Enton - History

History

Much of the history is described by way of its historical sites below.

Witley appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Witlei. Its domesday assets were held by Gislebert (Gilbert), son of Richere de L'Aigle. It rendered: 12 hides; 1 church, 15 ploughs, 3 acres (12,000 m2) of meadow, woodland worth 30 hogs, in the Godalming Hundred and rendered £16.

In 1848, Samuel Lewis's "topographical dictionary of England" describes Witley as

A parish, in the union of Hambledon...containing 1488 inhabitants...situated on the road from Godalming to Petworth, and comprises 6,324 acres (2,559 ha), of which 3,150 acres (1,270 ha) are arable, 900 acres (360 ha) pasture, 1,100 acres (450 ha) wood, and 1,174 acres (475 ha) waste. A pleasure-fair is held on the 23rd of April. The living is a discharged vicarage, with that of Thursley annexed, valued in the king's books at £17. 15. 10.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. J. Chandler; impropriators of Witley, J. Leech, Esq., and the Rev. J. Chandler; impropriator of Thursley, J. Knowles, Esq. The great tithes of Witley have been commuted for £13, and the small for £200. The church is a cruciform structure, principally in the early English style, with a central tower surmounted by a spire, and contains monuments to the Chandler and Webb families, and some ancient brasses. A district church, dedicated to St. John the Evangelist, was built at Milford in 1836: the living is in the gift of the Brodrick family. There is a place of worship for Calvinists.

In 1911 historian and factfinder for the Victoria County Histories that turned to Surrey that year, H. E. Malden, excluding many words about the advowson, of no general notability given their general forfeiture in favour of church-appointed clergy, wrote 1,857 words about the church history with a layout plan. As to manors which owned virtually all of the land in the medieval period, seven existed of which three were more senior as had nobility living in them or owning them whereas the others did not; Malden wrote 3788 words, mostly of their ownership and manor houses. These senior manors are summarised below whereas the other four were Wytley Chesberies or Wytley Cheasburies Manor, Mousehill Manor, Rake Manor and Roke or Roakeland Manor.