Fief à Eperon

Fief de l'Eperon or Fief à Eperon

In 1440, the Fief Blondel was transferred. In the deed, it specifies a certain fief called the fief Thomas Blondel being in the said parishes, parcel of the fief au Canely containing about three bouvées of land called the Bouvée Phlipot Pain, lying in the said parish of St Pierre du Bois, and the bouvées Torquetil and Bourgeon with the fief de l'Eperon lying in the said parish of Torteval and likewise all and such seigneuries, dignities, liberties, graces and franchises as to the aforesaid fiefs and each of them attach and belong with a certain dinner which the said Jenete takes and owns annually for an estate of inheritance, she claims, on the fief of the Prior of Lihou.

It is possible that there may also have been another Fief à Eperon or that the "Fief of Spurs or Fiefs Eperons was split between several seigneurs.

Histornical Note on the Dependency Fief de l'Eperon

"The Blondel Feif's fief de l’Eperon does not appear to be recorded otherwise than on the 1440 deed and later deed copy which is in the University of Leeds Archives, but The Blondel Eperon fief could be also part of the Eperon Fief that pays suit to the Queen with spurs. The Fief Thomas Blondel is said to be part of the fief Canelly so, the Eperon “fief” is a dependency of Thomas Blondel. The other Eperons Fief is in St. Andrews Parish.

Dependency fiefs are not unusual, and several other fiefs’ records call certain dependent tenures “fiefs” though these do not possess any of the usual manorial paraphernalia (a court etc). At some point the dependent fiefs had somewhat more privileged occupants than some other holdings. The fief de Blanchelande is particularly notable for being split up into many holdings, each known as fief this or that.