The Boys family of Fredville-revised 15.4.2013
The Boys family, also, de Bois & de Bosco, claimed descent from R. de Boys, or de Bosco, a companion of William the Conqueror who fought at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and was rewarded with gifts of land by the grateful King William. In 1357 John Boys was known to have held Bonnington in Goodnestone parish, part of the Manor of Wingham. In the following decades members of the family acquired land in and around Nonington parish.
In 1484 William Boys bought “The manors of Fredeuyle and Beauchamp’ and 2 messuages, 405 acres of land, 3 acres of wood and 76 shillings and 4 pence of rent and a rent of 8 cocks, 30 hens and 1 pair of gloves in Nonyngton’ and Godneston’ ”, one of the messuages was at Beauchamps, the other may have been on the site of the later Fredville mansions, although there is at present no no documentary evidence to confirm this and so the site of the other messuage remains presently unconfirmed.
Hasted, in his history of Kent, states that William Boys “removed thither” to Fredville and made it his main residence, but returned to Bonnington at some time before his death in 1507. However, in June, 1496, William Boys signed a land transfer document as “William Boys of the parish of Goodnyston” possibly indicating he had not moved to Fredville, but had remained at Bonnington. Further confirmation of this may be the gift of he made in the year he died to the Church of Nonington of 40/- (£.2.00) towards buying a Antephonar (religious music book), which he signed William Boys of Goodnestone.
It had been thought that Holt Street Farm house was possibly the other messuage, but a grant by Robert Suaneden to Thomas Nedysole (Nethersole) and others in 1486 indicates that the Holt Street estate was not part of the 1484 Fredeuyle and Beauchamps’ sale. Thomas is believed to have been the father or brother of the John Nethersole mentioned in the 1484 sale. Nethersoles, whose main residence was at Womenswold, appear in the records of several land sales in and around Nonington in the late 1400’s and early 1500’s.
It was also previously believed that Beauchamps’ had been separated from Fredeuyle at the time of, or shortly after, the sale but the records of the Abbey of St. Alban’s for Essesole manor (previously Essewelle manor , now known simply as Easole), show William Boys as holding Bechams (Beauchamps) then consisting of a messuage and some fifty acres of land from the Abbey, for an annual payment of £2 2s 9d payable once a year at Michaelmas (29th September), but without suit of court (held in freehold). The Boys family retained 15 or so acres of the land, as part of Essesole Farm (now Whitehouse Farm), until at least 1698, when the Essesole manorial records show them as owing forty eight years manorial dues, £.54 8s 0d, for Essesole Farm.
The Boys’ must have sold Beauchamps at some time after 1501 as by 1558 it had passed into the possession of Edward Browne of Worde (Worth) juxta Sandwich, yeoman, who on 2nd March of that year conveyed it to Thomas Hamon of Nonnyngton, gentleman. By then it consisted of: “All that messuage or tenement called BEACHAM situated in Nonnyngton, with all barnes, houses and edifices, now in the occupation of Thomas Hamon and all…. rents, services, …ect…containing 50 acres”. The fifteen acres retained by the Boys’ had obviously been replaced.
There is a possibility that the two messuages referred to in the 1484 sale document were in fact both at Beauchamps, as the record of the 1558 refers to houses, indicating at least two on the site. If correct, this would indicate that there was in fact no Fredeuyle manor house at the time of the sale.
Another possibility is that the other messuage was Essesole Farm, oldest parts of the farmhouse would be at least contemporary to, if not pre-existing, the 1484 sale. It would have been similar in appearance to the oldest part of the Bonnington manor remains some two miles or so to the north-west of Essesole Farm. The “newer” brick built part of Bonnington dates from the mid 1500’s and may be contemporary to house built on the known Fredville mansion site by the Boys.
William Boys died in 1507, having, according to Hasted, returned to Bonnington just before his demise and was buried in Goodnestone Church, perhaps another indication of his preference for the accommodation at Bonnington over Fredville or Beauchamps. He had obviously been very astute at seeing which way the wind blew as his apparent lack of opposition to Richard III had not caused him any problems with the succeeding Henry VII, the first Tudor, and he continued to prosper under the new regime.