Will and Inventory of Edwarde Clarke, husbandman, 1588

Clarke requested burial in the churchyard of Basing and bequeathed 12d. to the poor of the parish and 4d. to the cathedral. He had a well-equipped house, with the nice detail of bacon hogs stored in the roof of the hall. He left mostly to his wife, his executrix, but the sum of £13 6s. 8d. was set aside for his daughter when she reached 18. His crops in the ground comprised more vetch than corn, but there was corn in the barn. He had a high number of horses (nine) and cattle but no sheep. This document illustrates how complicated Tudor land holding and finance could be even at village level; his half lease was left to his brother in law on terms we would describe as a repairing lease, and he also held land from ‘Mr Dumer’s heirs’. Total value £53 12s.