PATTERNS OF INHERITANCE AND ATTITUDES
TO WOMEN REVEALED IN WILLS:
THE TONBRIDGE AREA 1500-1560
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
In 1560 Tonbridge was a small market town serving its surrounding
parishes. This article is an extract from an original study which was
designed to find what could be learned of Tonbridge and its
contiguous parishes during the previous sixty years from the wills of
the area recorded in the Will Registers of the Rochester diocese.1 The
wills were always the main source although supplemented with
evidence from the Tonbridge parish register of burials,2 beginning in
1547, Christopher Chalklin's study of Tonbridge 1550-17003 and
various secondary authorities.
The word 'will' is used here to describe a document which usually
contains two parts; a testament which concerns the disposal of personal
property, including the soul, and a will which describes the
arrangements forthe disposal of land. The will was usually registered
with the testament in the ecclesiastical court. However, since this
court had no jurisdiction over land, it was only a matter of convenience,
and 'the absence of a will does not necessarily mean the absence
of land'.4
During the period 1500-1560 there are 458 wills recorded for the
nine parishes studied, Tonbridge, Hadlow, Speldhurst, Tudeley,
Capel, Pembury, Leigh, Shipbourne, and Bidborough (Fig. 1). Of
these, Tonbridge and Hadlow dominate by their comparatively large
number of wills while Bidborough, the smallest, has only eight
(Table 1). Apart from a peak during the years 1555-1559, there is an
average of six wills per year from the nine parishes together. Seventy
of the wills are written either wholly or partly in Latin, and the
majority of these date from before 1525. When both languages are
used, the testament is in Latin while the will is in English. Sometimes
the scribe's Latin failed him and such phrases as 'una swame de
apibus' and 'unum paynted cloth' are fairly common.
Over the period as a whole, one will was written by a woman for
245
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
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fgInuHSiTAD . (
CLIFFC
/SSt
sroft
k, men*
*/65S
«
Ao*'+y
Fig. 1. Tonbridge and surrounding parishes
246
PATTERNS OF INHERITANCE AND ATTITUDES TO WOMEN IN TONBRIDGE WILLS
E
au.
SO
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247
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
every seven by men. This average hides some variation by time and
place. During the period of particularly high mortality, 1555-1559,
the proportion of female will-makers rose to one in five. Hadlow and
Tudeley had a higher than average proportion of women will-makers
but Leigh and Speldhurst a lower proportion (Table 1).
A comparison between wills and registered burials was only possible
for Tonbridge since none of the other parishes' registers begin before
1560. Between 1547 and 1560, 634 burials were recorded, of which
twenty-nine were stated to be of children (although this is probably an
underestimate). For the same period there are sixty-seven wills
recorded, although the burials of only forty-five of the testators appear
in the register. If allowance is made for wills in the Public Record
Office it would appear that in Tonbridge about one in nine adults made
wills.
The church encouraged even poor people to make wills in the hope of
receiving some of the property not already earmarked by custom for
other beneficiaries, but it is unlikely that these testators represent a
true cross section of the community. Probate was expensive and many
sought to avoid the complication 'especially where estates were small
and those close to the deceased were able to co-operate in mutual
trust.'5 Over the whole period and taking all the parishes, four testators
entitled themselves gentleman, six priest, twenty-nine yeoman, twelve
husbandman, and two labourer, while thirty-four stated themselves to
be craftsmen or mentioned 'shops'. There were fifty-eight women, of
whom thirty-six stated themselves to be widows. The distribution by
the wills of 'luxury' items such as pewter, linen, painted cloths and
feather beds also places the majority of testators among the more
affluent. Nevertheless, will-making was not confined to particular
families since among the testators of the 458 wills there are 239 names
of which 140 appear only once and only six occur seven or more times.
Wills have obvious limitations as a source for the study of a
community as a whole. However, there are certain aspects of life in
the community for which they provide valuable information. One of
these, the position of women in the community, is the subject of this
article.
THE COMMUNITY
The nine parishes of the study lie in the south-west corner of Kent, on
the southern boundary of the Weald Clay vale where the clay overlies
the sandstone of the Hastings Beds. In general the villages of the area
are located on the sandstone ridges with subsidiary settlements round
248
PATTERNS OF INHERITANCE AND ATTITUDES TO WOMEN IN TONBRIDGE WILLS
a mill in the neighbouring valley. The streams in these valleys were
used to power machinery for ironworking, the cloth industry and
milling. The soils on the clay are heavy and many were not ploughed
until the Second World War. Pasture and woodland must have been
the dominant land use.6
Hasted describes an area which was still well wooded in the late
eighteenth century,7 and this is consistent with the evidence of the
wills. Woods and underwoods are often added to the common formula
of'lands, tenements, rents, services medes and pastures'.8 Groves
and even single oaks are also bequeathed and occasionally the tools
of a woodman such as William Wynter who left a bordaxe, a carveaxe,
a byll, a pallaxe and a hokyngaxe.9 'Fedyng places' are also mentioned
with the more usual 'medes and pastures', which perhaps
suggests fattening for a market.10
Although it is difficult to gain a clear idea of the agriculture of the
area without inventories, wills do include various animals and crops.
Horses occur more often than oxen but usually a single animal
described as 'my bay gelding' or 'my hambling mare', clearly a riding
horse rather than a farm animal. By contrast four, six or a full team of
oxen are commonly bequeathed and these would seem to have provided
the plough animals on the heavy soil. Cattle appear to have been
more important than sheep but, rather surprisingly, pigs are seldom
mentioned. Of the corn crops, wheat was left most frequently but
often in small quantities for distribution at the testator's funeral.
No attempt has been made to estimate the population of the area as
a whole but the indications are that it was rising. This is confirmed by
Zell's work, based on evidence from forty Wealden parishes, including
those of the Tonbridge area. Although the study concentrated on
a slightly later period, he was of the opinion that the 'Kentish Weald
was producing a 'net' population increase from at least the 1540s'."
The average number of children per will in the Tonbridge area
increased over the period 1500-1560 from 2.3 to 3.0 (Table 2). The
figures underestimate the actual number of children per family since
they take no account of children who had died previously nor of adult
children who may have been omitted from the will.
Another indication of a rising population is the evidence of building
and of the subdivision of properties.12 This subdivision occurred
despite the fact that the area was better able than most to absorb the
increase because of forest clearance and the cloth and iron industries.13
This rise was not without setbacks. Both wills and entries in the
burial register for Tonbridge show a peak in the years 1557-1559
(Fig. 2). The occurrence of new surnames in the register also peaks at
this time suggesting increased immigration from other parishes. The
249
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
TABLE 2. NUMBER OF CHILDREN PER WILL
Period
1500-09
1510-19
1520-29
1530-39
1540-49
1550-61
Total
Wills
36
72
74
53
58
165
458
Number of
Children
82
140
184
140
185
497
1228
Average per
Will
2.28
1.95
2.49
2.64
3.19
3.02
2.69(av)
incidence of surnames indicates a population in excess of the 1,400
estimated by Chalklin for 1560, if each name represents a household
averaging 4.2 (Fig. 2). A possible explanation, which would lower
this average, is that comparatively large numbers of single people
from outside the parish, perhaps servants or apprentices, were living
in Tonbridge. This would be consistent with ZelPs findings for Staplehurst
and Cranbrook.14
The wills do indicate a concentration of crafts in Tonbridge. The
town was well placed on the London to Rye road for trade with a
wider area than its surrounding parishes. The larger towns of Maidstone
and Sevenoaks probably competed for some of the trade but the
market in Tonbridge would have been the most convenient for most
of the villages in the study.
INHERITANCE BY WIDOWS
The Tonbridge area is interesting as it was traditionally one where
gavelkind operated. The customary dower of lands in gavelkind was
formerly called 'free bench' and it differed from the custom in most
of the country in that a widow was entitled to a half of her husband's
lands and tenements rather than the more usual third.15 However, this
more generous provision was subject to the condition that she did not
hold the lands for life but only, 'so long as she live chaste"6 She
would forfeit the lands not only on remarriage, but also if fornication
was proved, most obviously if a child were born 'and heard to cry'. A
young widow must have been very vulnerable to malicious rumours
spread by interested parties, and the law acknowledged this as calling
a widow 'a whore' was actionable in common law.17 She was not
allowed to opt for 'the widow's third' to be held, unconditionally, for
250
PATTERNS OF INHERITANCE AND ATTITUDES TO WOMEN IN TONBRIDGE WILLS
35o
PAOITE cT
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Year
Fig. 2. Burials and new Surnames: Tonbridge Register 1547-61
life but she could choose to hold her lands jointly with the heir. This
must often have happened, especially if she was elderly and the heir
a son with whom she was on good terms. There is also evidence in
court rolls to show that widows often handed over their lands to sons
after only a short interval.18
At least in earlier times,19 dower was given at the church door at the
time of marriage. It was a gift from the husband but one which a free
man was bound to give. It normally consisted of one third of the land
of which the husband had seisin on the day of marriage. It did not
apply to land acquired after the marriage and it 'could only attach to
land held in free tenure'. It might or might not consist of nominated
pieces of land, and it could, with the bride's agreement consist of less
than one third. It might not be of land but could consist of 'money,
rents, services or chattels'.20
251
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
Provision made for widows in their husbands' wills must be seen
against this background. Widows were usually mentioned at an early
stage in the will and provision for them constituted a major part of its
contents, but it is difficult to tell whether these bequests are in
addition to her dower, or merely a clarification of the details. When
dower is mentioned it is often in connection with some modification
of the terms.21 Even if she did remarry, there is evidence that custom
gave some protection. James Marden's wife for example, was to lose
her inheritance if she remarried, except 'the third part according to
the right of the law'.22 Obviously, provision varied, too, with the
wealth of the testator. A will, therefore, may not explain all the
provision made for a widow, still less what lay behind the
arrangements. For these reasons a breakdown of the bequests into
categories can only be approximate, but it is accurate enough for
useful comparisons to be made.
The following six categories of bequest types have been identified
in this study:
1) Those widows left at least a life interest in all their husband's
lands or other properties.
2) Those left the holding for a time, either a number of years or until
the heir was of age.
3) Those left a house, or a house and land, which was a part only of
their husband's holding.
4) Those left a room, or rooms and maintenance.
5) Those left only money or goods.
6) Those for whom some other provision, or none, was made.
Table 3 shows the percentages in each category, for each of the nine
parishes, and the totals. The total number of allocations to all categories
(315) is greater than the total number of widows (286), since
widows who were left holdings for a fixed period were normally provided
for in some other way when that time elapsed.
The figures appear to indicate some difference in custom between
parishes. These differences are not easily explained by the 'demographic
fortunes of the testator's primary family'23 as can be seen
from Table 4. Tonbridge and Speldhurst, for example, while providing
in a similar way for their widows, have a dissimilar distribution of
children. Wealth and position in the family cycle are difficult to
ascertain in the absence of either inventories or parish registers, but
the few cases where assessment is possible indicate no explanation
either. The three parishes with a similar pattern of provision for
widows were those with the largest number of will-makers, Ton-
252
to
Category
Bidborough
Shipbourne
Leigh
Pembury
Capel
Tudeley
Speldhurst
Hadlow
Tonbridge
Total
1
No.
1
7
4
8
3
5
15
26
41
UO
TABLE 3. NUMBERS AND PERCENTAGES OF WIDOWS BY CATEGORY
(%)
(20)
(43)
(18)
(53)
(16)
(25)
(32)
(43)
(37)
(35)
2
No.
1
I
4
4
8
4
12
34
(%)
(20)
(6)
(21)
(20)
(17)
(7)
(11)
(11)
3
No.
3
5
3
3
8
13
24
59
(%)
(19)
(23)
(16)
(15)
(17)
(21)
(22)
(19)
4
No.
4
2
2
4
6
7
25
(%)
(18)
(13)
(ID
(9)
(10)
(6)
(8)
5
No.
2
4
6
2
7
8
10
11
19
69
(%)
(40)
(25)
(27)
(13)
(37)
(40)
(21)
(18)
(17)
(22)
6
No.
1
1
3
3
2
I
7
18
(%)
(20)
(7)
(14)
(20)
(4)
(2)
(6)
(6)
Total
5
16
22
15
19
20
47
61
110
315
1
rn
O
•n
2
X
m
2
HO
m
Q
3
ca m
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o
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2
™1
§
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aD
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rPALISON
M. A. WILLIAMS
TABLE 4. FAMILIES OF WIDOWS
Parish
Bidborough
Shipbourne
Leigh
Pembury
Capel
Tudeley
Speldhurst
Hadlow
Tonbridge
Total
Sons and
daughters
No.
2
6
12
9
12
12
28
28
52
161
(%)
(50)
(43)
(57)
(60)
(67)
(71)
(65)
(50)
(53)
(56)
Sons only
No.
2
3
4
2
1
5
12
18
47
(%)
(14)
(14)
(27)
(ID
(6)
(12)
(21)
(18)
(16)
Daughters
No.
1
1
1
1
3
2
6
7
6
28
only
(%)
(25)
(7)
(5)
(7)
(17)
(12)
(14)
(13)
(6)
(10)
No children
No.
1
5
5
1
1
2
4
9
22
50
(%)
(25)
(36)
(24)
(7)
(6)
(12)
(9)
(16)
(22)
(18)
Total
4
14
21
15
18
17
43
56
98
286
bridge and the parishes with the two largest villages, Hadlow and
Speldhurst. A similar pattern is found when the totals for all nine
parishes are used. It is possible therefore that differences between the
smaller parishes, and between them and the three larger parishes, are
best explained by the size of the samples. For this reason further
discussion of the categories is based on the totals for all nine parishes.
There were a hundred and ten widows in category (1), 35 per cent of
the sample, who inherited all their husband's property. The
percentage increased to 42 for widows without any children (Table
5).24 Where a widow had both sons and daughters, however, her
chances of being in this category declined to 26 per cent. These
figures suggest two questions: why did some widows with children
still inherit all the property for life: why did those without children
fail to inherit all the land in a majority of cases?
It is more difficult to answer the first question. Several of the
testators, like Richard Newman, who asked his wife 'honestly to find
my children, being yonge' were leaving heirs who were under age.25
Some had married children, perhaps already provided for. Others
only left a house, or a house and garden, probably barely sufficient to
support the widow. A closer examination of the wills of testators
without children, who still did not leave their widows all their land,
reveals that in most cases no land was mentioned. Several others were
left a part of the holding, the rest going to kin or in substantial
bequests to the church.
A few widows were left the land outright. John Wattes left his wife
all his lands 'to give or to sell',26 as she wished, while William Frye
254
to
Category
Family
Sons and
daughters
Sons only
Daughters only
No children
Total
1
No.
48
24
15
23
110
(%)
(26)
(50)
(54)
(42)
(35)
2
No.
25
3
3
3
34
(%)
(14)
(6)
(H)
(6)
(11)
3
No.
39
8
3
9
59
(%)
(21)
(16)
(11)
(16)
(19)
4
No.
21
4
25
5 6 Total
No (%) No (%)
(8) 69 (22) \l
-o
m
oo
O
Tl
TABLE 5. ALLOCATION OF WIDOWS BY FAMILY TYPE gj
o
ro
D
>
(8) 8 (16) 2 (4) 49 g
6 (21) 1 (3) 28 m
15 (27) 5 (9) 55 H
(6) 315 °
O 2
s
DO
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00
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
bequeathed all his land in Leigh and Speldhurst to his wife 'in as
ample form as I have it'.27 Margerie Fischer was not given quite so
much freedom to dispose of her inheritance, but she was left all her
husband's lands for life plus a year, presumably so she could
distribute that year's income in her own will.28 Much more typical,
however, was James Geste who left his wife Elizabeth his house and
lands in Speldhurst 'for term of her natural life', to pass to his brother
William on her death.29
Category (2), those left their husband's holding for a limited
period, was much smaller. It included thirty-four widows or 11 per
cent of the sample, ranging from 6 per cent of those with no children,
to 14 per cent of those with both sons and daughters. Many of these
children were young and phrases such as 'during the nonage of my
heirs' or 'for the upbringing of my children' often introduced the
bequests. The testator's lands were left to the widow for periods
varying from one to twenty years, or more commonly until the heir
came of age, at which stage some other provision was usually made.
Katherine, wife of Richard Lockear, inherited his house and all his
lands until his daughters were ten, when house, barn, threshing floor
and lands were to be divided between them. She might then retain a
garden until they were twenty, but no further provision was made for
her.30 There was only one other case of a daughter inheriting while her
mother lived, and then only part of the property. The sons who
inherited usually did so at twenty-one. Wealthier testators often
provided a house and perhaps land for their widow at this stage.
Elizabeth Rabblye, for instance, retained the lease of the Dower
Lodge, in Hadlow, when the rest of the holding passed to her son.31
Others received an annuity or the profits of half the land.
Margaret Sandyll was to have 'the North side of my house' plus two
gardens while Johan Latter was to have 'a chamber and parlour in
Holdens' plus 13s. Ad. per annum from each of her two sons.32
Sometimes no provision was made but this was usually when the
widow had had control of the lands for a lengthy period and could be
expected to make her own arrangements.
There were fifty-nine women in category (3), 19 per cent of the
sample, who received a house or a house and land, which formed a
part only of their husband's holdings. They were usually the widows
of comparatively wealthy testators whose holdings were capable of
division. In contrast to the previous category, when children were
mentioned they were apparently of an age to inherit. Many of these
women might have been in category (2) if their husbands had died at
an earlier stage in their lives. All were left more than the bare
minimum, but some must have been able to live quite comfortably-
256
PATTERNS OF INHERITANCE AND ATTITUDES TO WOMEN IN TONBRIDGE WILLS
Dioness Bowreg inherited a house and its lands, several crofts and
gardens and all her husband's meadowland. Her son, of an age to hold
land, received only two crofts, and the rest of the lands on her death.
In contrast, Elizabeth Hamon was to live with one son in 'the ketchen
House', with a way to the street and well, the 'litle meade before the
door', and half the hemp land. Her other son inherited 'the mansion I
dwell in' and considerable land, like his brother. Between them they
were to supply their mother with seven loads of wood, a bushel of
good wheat, and a quarter of barley each year and the keeping of two
cows.33
The twenty-five widows in category (4), those left a room or a room
plus maintenance, are only 8 per cent of the sample, but provide some
of the most interesting glimpses of contemporary life. All were left a
room or rooms in their sons' houses. Usually the testator appears less
wealthy than those in the previous category, but not always. Joan
Marten was left only a room although her two sons inherited four
houses between them; perhaps she was too old to live alone.34
There was recognition on the part of the testators that shared
accommodation could cause problems. In several cases alternative
arrangements were made in the event that the parties 'could not
agree'. Very often the wife's rights were spelled out in some detail.
Alice Swayland was to have 'the chambre where in I lye sick' in her
son Nicholas' house, 'with free access to the hall, kitchen and backside
of the mansion and dwelling house, to bake brew and wash and
do all and every other thing and things necessarie and apperteynyng
unto her without let disturbance or interuption of the said Nicholas'.35
It was often stipulated explicitly that there should be 'free egress and
regress', and access to 'fleete and fire', bake-house or oven. This was
not so in the case of Johan Borne who was provided with two chambers
'at the West end of my mansion', but as well as an annuity she
also inherited all the corn and cattle, not to be divided between the
sons until her death.36 Husbands seemed to fear that life might be
difficult for widows and did the best they could to strengthen their
hand.
There were sixty-nine widows in category (5), which, at 22 per cent
of the sample, was the second largest group. These women, who
inherited goods or money only, were not necessarily the poorest.
Among them was Johan Harrison, who was to be paid £100 by her
husband's executors within a year of his death, as well as being left
considerable house goods of 'the best' quality and two cows.37
Elizabeth Cheesman, must also have been quite an attractive
proposition as she inherited £30 in debts to collect and, 'four oxen,
seven cows, one bull, two mares, eight hogs, five calves, six quarters
257
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
of wheat and three of rye.' Most numerous in this category however,
were those left the residue of their husband's goods, which are
impossible to evaluate in the absence of inventories. As has been
stated already, in many of these cases no land was mentioned in the
will and the bequest must either have represented most of what there
was to leave or have supplemented arrangements about land already
understood. Most of the remaining widows in this group were left
annual sums, ranging from 10s. to 46s. Sd.,to be paid by the testators'
sons or brothers who had inherited the land. Unless they had other
means of support it must have been difficult to live on such sums at
a time when even labourers earned between Ad. and 6d. per day.38 In
view of the inflation in their price, the two widows who were left a
single cow may have had the better bargain.
The eighteen widows in category (6), for whom other provision or
none was made, form 6 per cent of the sample. Eight were left property
jointly with their sons. The others were left the residue of the
testators' goods, but only conditionally. In most of the examples this
meant being left the goods, or occasionally even property, to sell, the
money to be employed for 'my soul's health'. Sometimes the money
was to be used to pay debts or money and goods were to be distributed
among the children.
Many of the bequests to widows were conditional. Seventy testators
made conditions, a few of them several. The remarriage of their widows
may not have disturbed the villagers of Teriing (Essex),39 but it seems
to have obsessed those in the Tonbridge area. All but one of the fortyeight
men who made conditions about their widows' remarriage had
children, many of them obviously still young. Young children imply a
young widow with the likelihood of remarriage, and it seems reasonable
that the testators should have sought to protect their heirs. There
is considerable evidence for litigation between widows and stepsons,
and the threat that children from a subsequent marriage might pose.40
In about half the cases remarriage meant the widow lost the whole
bequest, but in the others she either retained some property or received
a small annuity, perhaps in recognition that she still had children from
the marriage to raise. Occasionally a more personal note was struck.
There is, perhaps, unnecessary vehemence in the expression of the following
condition, 'provided alwayes that if the said Alice shall fortune
to marry at any tyme hereafter, that then I will and my veray mynd is
that the said Alice my wyf shall lose and forgoe all the said parlour,
chamber buttry and the kepyng of her said kyne, and every part thereof
any word clause or article to the contrary not with- standing'.41 Another
common condition was that the bequest should be used for the
support of the children. John Piry asked that his wife 'keep my child
258
PATTERNS OF INHERITANCE AND ATTITUDES TO WOMEN IN TONBRIDGE WILLS
honestly and lovyngly unto the tyme that he shall be abill to govern
hymself; if she did not his overseers were to take both land and child.42
The next most urgent concern was that the widow should hand on the
property in good order. Phrases such as 'paying the lord's rent and
keeping the repairs' or keeping 'windtight and watertight', 'neither to
stripe nor waste save hedgelote and houselot', are common. One testator
took the precaution of stipulating the amount his wife should
spend on repairs each year, another appointed a carpenter as supervisor
to see them carried out.43 Another cause for anxiety was that widows
might go to law to claim dower granted at marriage, and several bequests
were made conditional on relinquishing any such right.44
Unique but interesting was John Wayre's insistence that if his wife
'will not be obedient to the catholyque church .... but remain still in
disobidience unto the same than the said Agnes my wif to have no more
than the lawe will admitt and gyve her.'45
Conditions might work in the widow's favour, however, and it was
quite common to give her the right to distrain on land or goods if she
were unpaid by other beneficiaries, such as sons or brothers of the
testator. Wills reflect only the theory. That reality might be different
is shown by the will of Margaret Goff who pleaded that she was not
able to do repairs as charged, 'for poverty', since she had not received
the rents due by her husband's will.46
There was some change over time in the type of provision made
(Fig. 3). There was a fall in the numbers of widows left all their
husband's property and a rise in the numbers left money and goods
only, probably in response to the increasing numbers of children. It
may, on the other hand, merely reflect a change to 'an increasingly
cash-dominated economy'.47 Even in the early stages of inflation this
must have been to the disadvantage of the widows.
Altogether it seems that husbands took considerable trouble to see
that their widows were properly provided for and to guard them
against disputes arising after their death. Many of them left their
wives far more than the law or custom demanded. If the will was 'a
written deviation from oral custom', designed to 'enshrine the wishes
of the individual holder as against the potential heirs'48 it was more
often used to improve the widow's lot than to limit her freedom.
Where husbands appear to have been mean it can often be explained
by lack of wealth or by arrangements made at marriage which took
effect automatically on the husband's death. In the Tonbridge area no
one custom seems to have been followed, as in the Cambridgeshire
villages of Chippenham and Orwell, for example.49 Various types of
arrangement were made, all of which seem quite logical when the
whole will is examined in detail.
259
ALISON M. A. WILLIAMS
NOTE: Category 1 X Interest in all husband's estate
3 o House (Land); Part of estate to 5 + Money or Goods only
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