The Middleton Accounts of 1525: #7

The last entry for April in the 1525 Middleton household accounts of Sir Henry Willoughby was described as a reward to someone that had brought Sir Henry news of red deer that lay beyond Meriden, Warwickshire. The amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. It was undated but there are similar entries to this in the accounts in other years, normally dated around the 28th April.

Middleton Hall was located in a deer park. The first record of this deer park was in 1247 but it is believed that it had existed before that time. At its greatest, the deer park boundary was: on its eastern side, exactly where the canal is today; on the north side, in line with just north of the entrance from the main road to Middleton Hall today and actually exactly where the current northern boundary of the land managed by Middleton Hall Trust is today; on the west, was where Wishaw Lane is today but extended further northwards and there was a gateway at the exact position of the junction of Wishaw Lane and the Lichfield Road today; and the south side curved from the junction, round what is today the Belfry Golf Course then encompassed North Wood Manor and continued curving eastwards until it met where the canal is today.

Part of the Warwickshire Sheldon Tapestry on display at the Market Hall Museum, Warwick, showing Middleton, Middleton Hall and the surrounding deer park boundary in c.1590, 2023. Photograph taken by Wil Goodridge,

The Middleton deer park provided all the venison the Willoughby family required. Records indicate that the venison was normally made into pies that were stored in order to provide food for the entire year. However, records do show that they also hunted deer, with permission, in other locations as well.

There is some uncertainty in regards to the meaning of this accounts entry. This is primarily because it is out of the hunting season for almost all types and sex of deer. The hunting season for does (female deer) was September until Candlemas (February 2nd). For the male red deer and fallow deer, the hunting season was Midsummer Day (June 24th) to Holy Rood Day (September 14th). The exception was roe deer buck, for which the hunting season was from Easter to Michaelmas (September 29th). However, rather than hunting what is noticeable is that the date of this entry is in time with the start of the fawning, or calfing, season of the red deer. Moreover, every time this type of entry appeared in the accounts, the deer were described as lying or laying and being seen lying down is a key indicator for fawning.

Further Reading: W. H. Stevenson, Report on the Manuscripts of Lord Middleton, Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1911. p. 376.

Author - Debbie Jordan, Middleton Hall Volunteer.

Please consider supporting Middleton Hall Trust by sending us a donation.