Monument record 1292/1/0 - Norshaw manorial lands

Many Domesday vills incorporated two or more manors, such as at Tatton, which appears twice for the two manors of Tatton and Norshaw in separate ownership in both 1066 and 1086. It is unlikely to be coincidence that 13th-14th century documents also reveal the existence of two manors at Tatton, one described as 'Tatton' and one as 'Norshaw, in the vill of Tatton'. Later evidence implies that throughout the period these holdings were always geographically distinct blocks of land rather than interspersed holdings. The boundary between the two manors probably lay along a deeply indented stream that runs from a spring near the post-emparkment fishponds to the Tatton Brook. The boundary is continued westwards by a hedgeline to the old Tatton to Rostherne road. To the east of Tatton Brook another continuous hedgeline appears to define the boundary in an eastwards direction.

Norshaw should be identified with the manor held in 1086 by Ranulf Mainwaring. Norshaw was the smaller of the two manors, consisting largely of poorly drained, slightly north-facing clay land. Many of the fieldnames recorded in 1733 were characterised by elements referring to birch, heath and scrub; parts were then also still unenclosed. (1)

Hussey, John, 1974, Redrawing of 1733 Hussey Tatton Estate Map (Maps and Plans). SCH4969.

<1> Higham N.J, 1999, The Tatton Park Project, Part 2: The Medieval Estates, Settlements and Halls.JCAS, p.64-65 (Article in Journal). SCH4937.