Middleton Hall Blog

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 2nd October. It was described as payment for 4 ells of cloth for smocks for Mistress Jane. The amount was 2 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £58.84 today. The Mistress Jane referred to in this entry is Jane Harbottle, the widowed daughter of Sir Henry. An ell was an historic unit of measurement, particularly used in the fabric trade. The word ell comes from the Ol

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 1st October. It was described as payment for Master Catesby’s school hire, schoolboard for 15 weeks and the making of gear (clothes). The amount was 20 shillings, which was the equivalent of about £441.28 today. School hire referred to the school fees paid specifically for the provision of basic educational tuition. However, additional charges could be applied for a physical desk spa

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 30th September. The first was described as payment to Sir Henry’s brotherhood of Our Lady of the Chapel of the Sea and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. The second was described as Sir Henry’s reward to the Friars of Nottingham who had held an ale (feast) and the amount was 8 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £191.22 to

The 30th September is National Sporting Heritage Day and one of the aims of this day is to highlight the importance of archival records of sports. The definition of a sport is “any activity that uses physical exertion or skills competitively under a set of rules”, and this is what distinguishes a sport from a game. Francis Willughby made a similar distinction between “games of exercise” and “games of wit”, stating that the word game was most properly used for card, table and

The 26th September is European Day of Languages and, to mark this, this blog will give a brief history of Middleton Hall in Welsh. Welsh is an important language in the history of Middleton Hall. For centuries, the Willoughby family were Welsh speakers due to their business interactions with the Welsh. Many of their servants were also native Welsh speakers and, as a result, Welsh words are present throughout the Middleton Manuscripts. Furthermore, it is known that Francis Wil

The next five entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 25th September. The first was described as Sir Henry’s offering at the rood of Nottingham and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. The second was described as alms given at the same place and the amount was also 4 pence. The third was described as payment for 2 yards of fustian for a doublet for Master Catesby and the amount was 16 pence, whi

One of the key occupations within the domestic household was the cook. Over the centuries there have been innumerable cooks employed at Middleton Hall. The first documented cook at Middleton Hall was in the late 13th century and he was William, the cook of Philip de Marmion, 5th Baron Marmion of Tamworth. However, this post will focus on two specific cooks at Middleton Hall separated by over 300 years: William Darby; and Evelyn Dixon. In medieval and Tudor times, the occupat

A key household servant in a manorial house throughout history has been the butler. However, this role underwent significant change over the centuries to the extent that the role would be effectively almost unrecognisable as the same occupation if viewed across the centuries. This post will highlight two butlers of Middleton Hall: Gilbert Butlo in the 13th century; and Charles Hobby in the 19th century. The first documented butler at Middleton Hall was Gilbert Butlo in the 1

It is frequently stated that Middleton has a very long documented history. One example of this is that, as a result of deeds and court records in the late 13th century, it is possible to know the names of some of the workers at Middleton for Philip de Marmion, 5th Baron Marmion of Tamworth. This post will focus on some of them. The relationship between the lord of the manor and his servants and workers was very different in 13th century England to that of later centuries. In

Living under one roof, working long hours side by side, sharing mealtimes, bedrooms and even chamber pots, it is unsurprising that so many servants working in domestic service found a second family amongst their fellow servants. Many workers took jobs where they could find familial companionship in their workplace, which was a great source of comfort when miles from home. In some cases, however, servants found themselves working alongside their actual relatives and we have a

The 16th September is Plover Appreciation Day. To mark this, and the 350th anniversary of the publication of Francis Willughby’s Ornithologia, this post will focus on part of the description of the European Golden Plover in Ornithologia. Willughby’s description of the plumage is now known to be accurate for this species in its winter non-breeding plumage. Willughby knew this species by the name of the Green Plover or Pluvialis viridis. He also noted that it was known as Parda

There have been many governesses at Middleton Hall over the centuries. This post will focus on one: Elizabeth Tilley. She is known to have been a governess at Middleton Hall during the early part of the tenancy of the de Hamels. Governesses in the Victorian era normally came from a middle-class background, were educated and unmarried. However, they would also lack the financial means to be able to live independently. Thus, this form of paid work was viewed as a way of providi

John Ray is one of the most famous residents of Middleton Hall, but his origins were humble and he rose through the social and reputational strata due to opportunities provided by his occupation. This post will focus on the nature and some of the challenges of being a parson-academic in the 17th century that Ray faced. John Ray was born on 29th November 1627 in Black Notley in Essex. His father was the village blacksmith and his mother was the village herbalist. In that era,

When the occupation of “caterer” is stated today, it is common to think of a person or company that has been hired to provide and serve food. However, this meaning of this occupation only developed in the 19th century. In the historic meaning, which dates from at least the 15th century, it referred to someone who was employed to obtain fresh provisions. The Middleton Manuscripts make many references to the caterer of Middleton Hall, in this historic meaning, but the first cat

This post will focus on John Trussell who was bailiff of Wollaton Hall in the mid-16th century. The previous blog focused on his fellow steward of Middleton Hall, John Hall. Together, these posts provide an example of two very different lives in a similar occupation for the same family at the same time. John Trussell was, like John Hall, a gentleman servant. He was a younger son of minor nobility but, due to his situation, he needed an occupation. John Trussell descended from

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 12th September. The first was described as a reward to the horsekeepers of Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset, and the amount was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today. The second was described as a reward to Master Grey’s servant for bringing a present to Wollaton Hall and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. The third w

The servants that are most frequently recorded in the historic documents of Middleton Hall are the gentlemen servants, especially those that were the stewards or bailiffs. This post will focus on one of them, John Hall, who, for over a decade, was additionally in sole control of Middleton Hall. Although the steward was the chief of the servants, in Tudor times they were not generally considered to be a servant. This was because the steward ran the estate in the absence of t

The theme for Heritage Open Days in 2026 is “Everyday Histories”. This theme aims to draw attention to the daily working lives of our ancestors. For Heritage Open Day Week, from 11th to 20th September 2026, Middleton Hall Trust will run a series of blogs highlighting various “ordinary” workers from its long history. References to the people who worked on the Estate have survived from Middleton Hall’s earliest time, albeit they are extremely patchy. Most that are referred to,

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 10th September. It was described as a reward to the officers of the Lady Abbess of Polesworth, when Sir Henry spent one night there on his way to the manor of Thomas Grey, 2nd Lord Marquess. The amount was 2 shillings 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £51.48 today. This entry in the Accounts reveals that the visit of the Marquess to Middleton Hall was part of a journey that

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 9th September. It was described as a payment to Toll, on the commandment of Sir Henry, when Toll went on pilgrimage to the sweet rood of Garendon in Leicestershire. The amount was 12 pence, which was the equivalent of about £22.06 today. In the Middleton Manuscripts, from the time of Sir Henry to his grandson Sir Francis I Willoughby, there are multiple entries that make mention of s