STRAY NOTES, PREHISTORIC, SAXON, AND NORMAN. 239
Marci. This William, as we have seen, held one hide of land for
16s., and was accustomed to defend it against the king, i.e., he and
not the Chapter had to pay all the king's dues.
A certain Ralph de Marci, already referred to, held land at
Astoca for a manor and 80 acres at the time of the Domesday
Survey. This Ralph, or another bearing the same name, entered
upon lands of the Dean and Chapter as we have already seen. In
or before 1120, when Ralph died, the Chapter granted to his son
William and his heirs, all the lands which his father, Ralph, held in
Navestock on the day of his death, for a yearly payment of 16s.
in full.
William's son or grandson, Ralph de Marci in 1152, refused to
pay his just dues, and the then Firmarii—Theodoric and Robert de
Turri—stipulated that the Chapter should consequently release them
from all loss which they might sustain thereby.
We have no information as to the compromise which was made,
but it was evident that the dispute had been settled in some form,
inasmuch, as de Breante—Ralph's son-in-law, and in right of his
wife, is now represented as holding one hide of the aforesaid property
acquired by the first Ralph of the Domesday period. It is worthy of
note, however, that the Dean and Chapter were sufficiently tired
of the de Marci family, and, therefore, took the precaution to make
William de Breante responsible for satisfying the Crown for all
demands upon such one hide to which allusion has been made.
But William de Breante and his wife lend additional interest to
their holding, from the fact that between 1218 and 1222, William
in right of his wife, had liberty given him by Robert, Dean of S.
Paul's, with the consent of Walter Niger, the then Vicar (and likewise
Prebendary of Rugmere) to found a Chapel and a Chantry in his
Court at Navestock, provided he and his heirs maintained a
Chaplain at his own charge, sworn to preserve the liberty of the
mother Church and to pay the Vicar all the profits he should then
receive and admit none of the Parishioners to confess or other holy
offices there under pain of being suspended by the Vicar. The
Founder also and the heirs of the said Joan his wife, or whoever else
had the said Chapel under his lordship, were also sworn to
preserve the rights of the mother Church under like pain. In which
Chapel the Chaplain was to administer the Mass only with Bread
and Holy Water forbearing all other Holy Offices saving that at
Easter the Founder and his Wife and heirs, with their family and