17th Century Surveys of Royston
First page of the 1610 survey of Royston
In the seventeenth-century four surveys were conducted in Royston. Each directly relates to the short period when James I bought up large parts of the town centre and made his hunting lodge there one of his principal royal residences.
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The largest of the documents is the survey of the manor of Royston Priory compiled in 1610.
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A further three surveys were compiled in 1649, 1650 and 1652 in connection with the sales of the former royal lands under the Commonwealth. These detail the various properties in the town which had been acquired by James I.
The orginal documentation has been carefully transcribed by Neville Chuck and Dr Andrew Barclay, Senior Research Fellow with the History of Parliament Trust, who has undertaken research into the context in which surveys where made.
The work on these surveys is ongoing and we hope to publish the the transcriptions in the future.
The 1610 Survey
This manuscript was compiled in 1610 for the lord of the manor of Royston, Sir Robert Chester (d. 1640). It itemises all his properties in and around Royston, together with a number which did not belong to the manor. Individual houses are briefly described, with information on which properties were adjacent. The names of the occupants and the basis of their tenures are also recorded. Previous tenants are occasionally mentioned. Similar information, including acreage, is given for the fields surrounding the town.
The manuscript comprises 40 folios. Almost all the text dates from 1610, although there are some later annotations.
A few pages from this survey were copied by William Cole (1714-82) and those extracts survive among his notes in the British Library.
The context of the survey was almost certainly James I’s interest in acquiring more property in the town. That related to a wider shift in the King’s involvement with Hertfordshire. The swap of Hatfield and Theobalds between James and the 1st Earl of Salisbury in 1607 made Theobalds the King’s most favoured large-scale residence. Royston was then developed as his most favoured small-scale residence, to be used as a more private retreat from the full court at Theobalds. Salisbury probably encouraged this. By 1610 James had already built a new house for himself at Royston and he was expected to acquire other properties there, which indeed he did do. Sir Robert Chester probably commissioned the survey to assist in his negotiations with the King. It therefore provides a snapshot of the town at the moment when James I was in the process of making significant property purchases there.
The 1649, 1650 and 1652 Surveys
The papers of the parliamentary commissioners for the sale of Charles I’s lands include three surveys of the late King’s properties in Royston. Those properties were the small house which had been built by James I (the ‘Palace’) and the pre-existing houses along the east side of what is now Kneesworth Street, which James had purchased as accommodation for his servants. Some of those buildings survive.
These three documents are relatively brief. They cover only nine pages and total just over 3,000 words.
Supported by the Brian Leslie Racher 2004 Charitable Trust
The Royston Heritage Group is extremely grateful to the Trust for the support it has provided, without which much of the work carried out to date could not have been accomplished.
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