Anys Harding of Frensham 1568

Widow of Westend, Frensham, Surrey

Number 2 in Harding of Frensham Series
Anys was the widow of Bartholomew Harding (see previous post) left to run the farm in Frensham and raise six children when Bartholomew died.

“I Anys Hardinge of the Parishe of Frensham in the conty of Surre wydo beynge sycke in bodye but whole and perfyte in remembrance thankes be unto God” 24 March 1568

• To be buried in Frensham Churchyard;
• To the mother church: 6d; to the poor men’s boys: 4d;
• To my son Bartholomew Harding: a ewe and lamb, a wether tegg, 2 ewe teggs;
• To Bartholomew Harding’s child: a wether tegg;
• To my son Richard Harding: a cow named Bezie, a heifer, a bullock, a ewe and lamb, 6 teggs, a hog, a brass … one old flock bed, one blanket and bolster, one sheet, one potinger, 1 acre of oats in the home field, and the wheat growing in the little meadow, paying to his brother John out of the same, 2 bushels;
• To my son Thomas Harding: 6 wether teggs, the great chest in the chamber, the table and form in the hall, 1 acre of oats in the home field; 
• To my son John Harding: one calf … 6 wethers, 2 ewes and lambs, one sow pig, one coffer, one potinger, one half acre of oats in the hill field;
• To my daughter Christiane Trigge: one half year’s rent of the house that she dwells in, one ewe and lamb, 2 teggs, pair of cambric sheets, and my best gown;
• To my grandchild Joan Trigge: a lamb;
• To my godchildren: 6d each;
• To my daughter Joan Harding: all the rest of my goods and to be my executrix;
• Overseers of my will: John Harding of Sprakley and William Ede of Westend;
• Witnessed by: John Harding, William Ede, Christopher Beane, and others;
• Probate granted in Guildford 8 April 1568 to Joan Harding, daughter of Anys Harding.

Notes

1. All six of the children named in Bartholomew Harding’s 1557 Will were still alive when Anys Harding wrote her Will;
2. Bartholomew junior was now married with one child (unnamed);
3. Christiane had married Thomas Trigge (Husbandman of Frensham) and had a daughter, Joan. Thomas Trigge’s 1593 Will has survived and he is a widow with 4 surviving children: John, Thomas, Agnes, and Christiane;
4. Sons John, Richard, and Thomas are not recorded as having children so probably were yet unmarried;
5. Anys wrote her will in March during lambing season on the family farm so lambs featured in hr bequests;
6. Anys made her unmarried daughter Joan Harding residuary beneficiary and executrix so Joan likely still lived at home and had taken over the running of the house as Anys became ill;
7. Anys used the same overseers of her Will as her husband, as well as the same witnesses (except for William Harding);
8. BUT … Bartholomew’s Will was proved at Winchester in the Church Court of Winchester Diocese whereas Anys Harding’s Will was proved at Guildford in the  Archdeaconry Court of Surrey;
9. “Poor Mens Boys”: Anys left 4 pence to this charity as did many of the Frensham wills of the Tudor period so this was probably a Frensham charity to help poor boys although I can find no reference to it other than in wills. And what about the poor girls?
10. Please see the previous post (Bartholomew Harding 1557) for an explanation of terms such as “wether”.

How old was Anys Harding when she died? Based on the fact that she was a grandmother and young people often didn’t marry until they were able to support their own household, usually in their early to mid-twenties, Anys was likely in her 50’s. She had been a widow for 11 years when she died.

Sources

• London Metropolitan Archives and Guildhall Library Manuscripts Section, Clerkenwell, London, England; Reference Number: DW/PA/5/156
• Google images