Boldon Book

The fortuitous survival of two great surveys, Boldon Book, and Bishop Hatfield's survey, drawn up some two hundred years apart, has provided us with a fascinating insight into the lifestyles of medieval tenants on the estates of the bishop of Durham.The first of these, Boldon Book, was compiled in c. 1183, during the episcopate of Bishop Hugh du Puiset, in order to provide a detailed overview of the rents and dues owed to the bishop by the tenants of the vills and townships under his direct control. As this was not a survey of the county as a whole, it did not incorporate the estates of Durham Priory, which included the vills of Monkwearmouth parish, nor those of the bishop's leading lay tenants. However, Bishopwearmouth, listed as Wearmouth, was mentioned in the survey, together with Tunstall, Ryhope, and Burdon. Brief mention was also made of the borough of Wearmouth (Sunderland), which was valued at 20s.