Welsh Journals

BOUGHROOD IN THE MIDDLE AGES By I. W. ROWLANDS With regard to its central position, it is both curious and unfortunate that so little is known of Boughrood's early history. In the Middle Ages it lay in the commote of Is Mynydd, in the cantref of Elfael, but it is not until the beginning of the thirteenth century that we first learn of a castle and estate there and of its Norman tenants-the Herefordshire family of Gamages. We cannot be sure that the first of this family in England came over with the Conqueror but we do know that their patrimony was in Gamaches in Eure, les Andelys.1 Their estate in England was centred on Mansell Gamage in Herefordshire, granted to them by the Lacys of Weobley sometime between 1086 and 1135.2 Godfrey de Gamages appears as a tenant of Hugh de Lacy in 1166 and may have been the son of an earlier Godfrey who held Eaton near Leominster about 1128 to 1139. Judicious support for Henry II brought its rewards the king granted Godfrey 15 "solidates" of land in Herefordshire "in Wallia" in 1158; in 1159 he received the Shropshire manor of Stottesden.3 In 1172 Godfrey still possessed half a knight's fee in Normandy.4 His elder son, Mathew, succeeded in 1175-6 to Stottesden and the Herefordshire estates held in chief while William, the younger son, succeeded to Mansell Gamage. In 1194 Mathew's estates were taken into royal hands (possibly for supporting Count John) but were restored by September 1198, together with new lands in Staffordshire, such as Tattenhall and Wigginton.5 Mathew how- ever chose to remain in Normandy at the separation of 1204, leaving his younger brother with the difficult task of reclaiming those Gamage lands which the king had granted to others. A letter close of July 1205 directs the sheriff of Hereford to have custody of Mathew's "domus" at Boughrood ("Bouret").6 A certain Walter, constable of the castle, was directed to deliver it and Mathew's lands to Walter de Clifford. In December of the following year the latter was instructed to hand over the castle ("Boskeret") to the custody of Roger II de Tony, lord of Flamstead, whose grandson, Ralph, was to be granted the honours of Colwyn and Painscastle in Elfael in 1233.7 For William de Gamages the process of recovery was slow, but in March 1218 the new king instructed the sheriff of Hereford without delay you are to let our faithful and beloved William de Gamages have such seisin of his lands of Boughrood, of which he was disseised due to the war, as he had at its beginning".8 Boughrood at least was his. Other letters close indicate that William eventually recovered the remainder of his brother's estate at Stottesden and Dilwyn in Herefordshire.9 He had even increased his share­John had granted him crown lands in Gloucestershire and part of the manor of Cotesmere in Rutland. He was granted custody of Ludlow in 1225. On his death, before 1240, his son Godfrey succeeded to Mansell Gamage and his other estates, for in 1242-3 we learn that Walter Scudamore was holding half a knight's fee of him "Of the honour of Bocred" in "Puttestun".10 Godfrey died in 1253 when the king ordered the escheators to seize his lands." The fortunes of the Gamage estates were now to be linked with the Pembridge family. Godfrey had left three daughters and co-heiresses one