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 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

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 27th August. A third entry directly after those was undated. The first was described as payment to Sir William for the amount that he had paid for four pairs of shoes for four Children of the Chapel and the amount was 23 pence, which was the equivalent of about £42.29 today. The second was described as a reward to the anchoress at Polesworth and the amount was 8 pence, which w

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 4th August. It was described as a payment to Sir Henry’s brotherhood of Saint Thomas of Canterbury. The amount was 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £14.71 today. St Thomas of Canterbury was Thomas à Becket. The fraternity that bore his name has a long connection with the owners of Middleton Hall. It has also had various names throughout its history. In 1191, at the capture

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was undated except for the month of August. It was described as Sir Henry’s offering to Our Lady of Worcester and St Kenelm at Winchcombe. The amount was 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £14.71 today. Our Lady of Worcester was a famous shrine. It contained a highly venerated statue of the Virgin Mary in the Lady Chapel of what is now Worcester Cathedral, but at that time the Cathedra

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were both dated 20th July. The first was described as costs incurred at Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, and the amount was 6 shillings 11 pence, which was the equivalent of about £152.61 today. The second was described as payment to Sir Henry’s brotherhood of Our Lady at Aylesbury and the amount was 6 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £147.09 today. Sir Henry was a member

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 26th May. It was described as Sir Henry’s reward toward the church ale at Aston. The Middleton Manuscripts suggest that this refers to Aston juxta Birmingham in Warwickshire. The amount was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today. It is uncertain why Sir Henry went to this church ale. Furthermore, it is uncertain what this religious feast was honouring. Saints Peter

In St John’s Church at Middleton is a 15th century memorial brass of Sir Richard Bingham and his wife Lady Margaret de Freville. This brass is unusual in two ways. Firstly, it is a double brass. These are not very common as the majority of medieval brasses are of single figures, especially amongst those that have survived. However, the second aspect makes the Bingham brass extremely uncommon and very intriguing. The representations of Richard and Margaret are in reversed posi

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was undated. It was described as payment for ale and banners for Cross Week. The amount was 6 pence, which was the equivalent of about £11.03 today. Cross Week was an alternative name for Rogation Week. Major Rogation always occurred on 25th April but Rogation Week occurred from the Sunday to Wednesday that immediately preceded Ascension Day. Ascension Day occurred 40 days after Easter Sunday,

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated Saturday 5th May. It was described as payment at Middleton Church for ale for Sir Henry. The amount was 1 penny, which was the equivalent of about £1.84 today. A church ale was essentially a feast centred around the drinking of ale. Originally, church ales were gatherings established to honour the patron saint of the church. Ales were normally held on a Sunday and in 1526 that would

In the Domesday Book of 1086, it was recorded that a church was present at Middleton. However, the Church present today is believed to have been initially constructed in the 12th century. This was when the Middleton Estate was in the possession of the de Marmion family. They additionally had the advowson of St John’s Church at Middleton. An advowson enabled someone to propose who would hold the ecclesiastical position at a specific church. Advowsons recognised the role of the

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 17th April. The first was described as payment for bread and wine at Easter at Drayton Bassett Church and the amount was 6 pence, which was the equivalent of about £11.03 today. The second was described as payment for oil and chrism and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. Finally, the third was a payment to Sir William, the parish priest of

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 15th April. It was described as payment for showbread and wine. The amount was 1 penny, which was the equivalent of about £1.84 today. This entry poses a lot of questions that we have been unable to answer. There is no question that Sir Henry Willoughby was a very devout Catholic. However, showbread is categorically not a feature of the Catholic religion. It is only present in the Je

The 13th April 2026 is the 850th anniversary of the founding of an abbey by an owner of Middleton. On 13th April 1176, Robert III de Marmion, 2nd Baron Marmion of Tamworth, officially founded the Abbey of Notre-Dame de Barbery, which was located in the communes of Barbery and Bretteville-sur-Laize in Calvados, Normandy, about 20km south of Caen. On 14th November 1140, Robert III’s father, Robert II de Marmion, 1st Baron Marmion of Tamworth and Lord of Fontenay-le-Marmion in N

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were undated except for the month. However, from their location in the accounts, it can be determined that their date was probably either the 2nd or 3rd of April. The amount for each of these individual entries was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. The first entry was described as a reward to the young men of the town (Middleton village) that gathered for the chur

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were all made on 1st April, which was Easter Sunday. The first entry was described as a payment at Easter for bread and wine for Middleton Church and the amount was 9 pence, which was the equivalent of about £16.55 today. The second entry was described as a payment for oil and chrism and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. Finally, the third entry was

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were both dated as Shere Thursday. Shere Thursday was the ancient name in English for what became Maundy Thursday, which is the Thursday before Easter. The word “shere” meant “clean” or “bright”. The name referred to the act of cleaning which was a key feature of the day and it is known to have been customary for men to have their beards shorn as part of this. The word maundy, which has

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was described as money paid to Thomas Slade for holy water for the three quarters due to him on Our Lady’s Day. Lady Day was the common English name for the Feast of the Annunciation, which was celebrated on 25th March. The amount was 12 pence, which was the equivalent of about £22.06 today. St John's Church, Middleton, Warwickshire, 2015. Photograph taken by Debbie Jordan. There is some uncer

This entry and post are a déjà vu from last year. In this entry in the Middleton household accounts of Sir Henry Willoughby from 1526, we get to wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day a day early, yet again! The entry was described as a reward to my Master’s valentine for Saint Valentine’s Day and was dated 13th February. His gift to his valentine was also again 4 pence, which is the equivalent of about £7.35 today. So how was Valentine’s Day observed in Tudor times? St Valen

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts of Sir Henry Willoughby for 1525 were both dated as the 28th December. The first was described as a reward to the child bishop of Lichfield. It was for 6 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £147.09 today. The second entry was described as a reward to the bishop’s servants and the amount for this was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today. These entries refer to a popular English mediev