Withi 2

Withi ‘of Roding’ (Essex), fl. 1066
Male
DWP
4 of 5

Name

Withi

Summary

Withi 2 had 1½ hides in west Essex TRE; his lord was Earl Harold (Harold 3).

Distribution map of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

List of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

Holder 1066

Shire Phil. ref. Vill DB Spelling Holder 1066 Lord 1066 Tenant-in-Chief 1086 1086 Subtenant Fiscal Value 1066 Value 1086 Value Conf. Show on Map
Essex 28,8 Roding Marci Widius Withi 'of Roding' Harold, earl Hamon the steward Serlo 'of Essex' 1.50 4.00 5.00 C Map
Totals

Profile

Withi 2’s manor at Rodinges can be identified as the later manor of Roding Marci, now Marks Hall in Margaret Roding parish, in the valley of the River Roding in west Essex (Reaney 1935: 494; Bassett 1997: 29, 31-2). DB states the Withi held his estate from (tenuit de) Earl Harold (Harold 3); but whether he was in the earl’s lordship by commendation or dependent tenure, or both, is uncertain.

Withi’s manor seems to have been predominantly arable, with two ploughs on his demesne land and another one on the land of his tied peasants. These latter comprised four villans and three bordars and their households, who together with two slave provided the manor’s workforce. There were 16 acres of meadow, presumably down near the river, and enough woodland to provide pannage for a moderate herd of pigs, but DB does not state if any livestock were actually present.

This is the only estate attributed in DB to someone called Withi. It has been suggested that Withi 2 was the same man as Withar (Palmer et al. 2002: DB Norf. 9,87 Notes) because of the similarity of their rare names and because both men were had Earl Harold as lord. However, Withi 2’s manor was small and 75 miles from the tight cluster of estates held by Withar, the DB forms of their names need not be regarded as representing the same name many men had been in Harold’s lordship TRE. There is therefore no reason to consider Withi 2 in connection with this or any other person.