William Atkyns v. Thomas Corby of Bierton husbandman : Michaelmas term, 1539

This action of trespass has an alleged use on each side. Both sides trace their title to John Corby. Thomas Corby claimed that prior to the Statute of Uses John Corby had bargained and sold the land to Thomas. A bargain and sale traditionally had made the seller the feoffee to uses for the buyer, and the Statute of Uses thereafter made Thomas the legal tenant of the fee simple. Atkyns claimed that after the Statute of Uses a final concord had accomplished a grant from John Corby (who, if the defendant was correct, no longer had any right) to Atkyns and another person to hold to the use of Atkyns, and the Statute of Uses immediately transferred the legal fee simple to Atkyns. So the case illustrates both the expected effect of the Statute of Uses on bargains and sales and also the expected effect of the statute on a grant to uses made after the statute.

[IMG 0982] Buckinghamshire. Thomas Corby late of Bierton in the abovesaid county husbandman was attached to answer William Atkyns concerning a plea, why with force and arms he broke the closes and houses of the same William at Bierton and depastured, trampled, and consumed his grass to the value of 40s lately growing there with certain beasts and inflicted on him other enormities to the grave damage of the same William and against the peace of the now lord king etc. And wherefore the same William by John Basset his attorney complains that the abovesaid Thomas on September 10 in the 31^st year of the new lord king [September 10, 1539] with force and arms broke William’s closes and houses at Bierton and depastured, trampled, and consumed his grass to the value etc., there lately growing with certain beasts, viz., horses, oxen, cows, pigs, and sheep, and other enormities etc., to the grave damage etc., and against the peace etc., wherefore he says that he is worse off and has damages to the value of £10, and thereof he produces suit etc.

         And the abovesaid Thomas by Robert Woodlef his attorney comes and denies force and injury when etc., and as to the coming with force and arms he says that he is guilty in nothing thereof, and of this he puts himself on the countryside. And the abovesaid William similarly. And as to the residue of the abovesaid trespass above supposed to have been done, the same Thomas says that the abovesaid William ought not to have his abovesaid action against him, because he says that the closes and houses abovesaid as well as the places in which the abovesaid trespass is supposed to have been done are and at the abovesaid time at which it is supposed that the abovesaid trespass is supposed to have been done were one messuage, 3 acres and one rod of land, 1 acre of meadow and 6 acres of pasture with appurtenances in Bierton abovesaid whereof before the abovesaid time at which etc., a certain John Corby was seised in demesne as of fee and thus seised thereof before the abovesaid time at which etc., scilt., on March 21 in the 26^th year of the reign of the now lord king [March 21, 1535] at Bierton abovesaid for a certain sum of money paid to the same John by the aforementioned Thomas and thence in the future to be paid he bargained and sold the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances to the same Thomas to have to himself and his heirs in perpetuity, by pretext of which bargain and sale the abovesaid John was seised of the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances in his demesne as of fee to the use of the same Thomas and his heirs; and, John being thus seised of the same tenements with appurtenances to the same use in the abovesaid form, by a certain act promulgated in the Parliament of the now lord king held at London beginning on November 3 in the 21^st year of his reign and thence to and toward Westminster adjourned and prorogued and there by divers prorogations continued and prorogued to and until February 4 in the 27^th year of the reign of the said lord king and there on the same February 4, among other things it was enacted by the now lord king from the assent of the lords spiritual and temporal and the community then being in the same Parliament as well as by the authority of the same Parliament among other things that when any person or any persons at the time of the making of the same act made in the abovesaid 27^th year stand seised or after the making of that act will stand seised of or in any honors, castles, manors, lands, tenements, rents, services, reversions, remainders, or other hereditaments to the use or confidence of any other person or any other persons or of any body politic by reason of any bargain, sale, feoffment, fine, recovery, covenant, contract, agreement, will or otherwise in any manner whatsoever, that in each case of this kind every person or persons and body politic that at the said time of the making of the abovesaid act has or have or after the making of the same act will have any this kind of use or confidence in fee simple, fee tail, for term of life or of years or otherwise or any use or any confidence in remainder or reversion thence into the future would stand and be seised and adjudicated in lawful seisin, estate and possession of and in the same honors, castles, manors, lands, tenements, rents, services, reversions, remainders, and hereditaments with their appurtenances to all intentions and constructions in law of and in suchlike estates as they before the abovesaid act promulgated had or after the making of that act would have in use of or in the same, and that the estate, title, right, and possession that were in this manner person or persons that before then was or were or after the making of that act would be seised of any lands, tenements, or hereditaments to the use or confidence of any this manner person or persons or of any body politic from the said time of the making of that act promulgated will be clearly adjudicated in him or in them who at the time of the making of the abovesaid act had or after the making of that act would have such use or confidence according to this manner quality, manner, form, and condition as they before had in or at use or confidence that were in them as in the same act promulgated in the said 27^th year is more fully contained, by pretext of which act the same Thomas was seised of the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances in his demesne as of fee, and the abovesaid William, claiming the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances by color of a certain charter of demise made to him thereof for term of his life by the aforementioned John long before the abovesaid bargain of the same tenements with appurtenances made to the same Thomas [IMG 0983] by the aforementioned John in the abovesaid form, whereas nothing of the same tenements with appurtenances ever transferred thereof into the possession of the same William by that charter before the abovesaid time at which etc., entered on the possession of which certain William thereof; the same Thomas afterwards, scilt., at the same time at which etc., re-entered into the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances and depastured, trampled, and consumed the abovesaid grass then there growing with the abovesaid beasts, as well he might. And this he is ready to verify, wherefore he seeks judgment if the abovesaid William ought to have his abovesaid action against him etc.

         And the abovesaid William says that he by anything alleged before ought not be precluded from having his action abovesaid, because he says that before the abovesaid time of the abovesaid trespass done the abovesaid John was seised of the tenements abovesaid with appurtenances in his demesne as of fee and thus seised thereof before the abovesaid time at which etc., a certain fine levied in the court of now lord king at Westminster, scilt., on the morrow of All Souls in the 29^th year of the reign of the same now lord king before John Baldwin knight, Anthony Fitzherbert, William Shelley, and Thomas Willoughby then justices and other faithfuls of the same lord king then present there between the aforementioned [IMG 1597] William and a certain Henry Horwood plaintiffs and the aforementioned John Corby deforciant concerning the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances among other things by names of 1 messuage, 3 acres and 1 rod of land 1 acre of meadow and 6 acres of pasture with appurtenances in Bierton, whereof a plea of covenant was summoned between them in the same court, scilt., that the abovesaid John recognized the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances to be the right of the same William as those that the same William and Henry had from the gift of the abovesaid John and remitted and quitclaimed them from him and his heirs to the aforementioned William and Henry and the heirs of the same William in perpetuity, and particularly the same John granted for himself and his heirs that he would warrant the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances to the aforementioned William and Henry and the heirs of the same William in perpetuity, by virtue of which fine the same William and Henry were seised of the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances, viz., the same William in his demesne as of fee and the abovesaid Henry in his demesne as of free tenement; and the same William and Henry being thus seised of the same tenements with appurtenances to the use of the abovesaid William and his heirs in the abovesaid form, by the abovesaid act promulgated in the Parliament of the said now lord king held at London begun on November 3 in the abovesaid 21^st year of his reign and thence to and toward Westminster adjourned and prorogued and there by divers prorogations continued and prorogued to and until the abovesaid February 4 in the 27^th year abovesaid of the reign of the said lord king and there on the same February 4 among other things it was enacted by the now lord king from the assent of the lords spiritual and temporal and the community being in the same Parliament then as well as by the authority of the same Parliament among other things that when any person or any persons at the time of the making of the same act made in the abovesaid 27^th year stands seised or after the making of that act will be seised of or in any honors, castles, manors, lands, tenements, rents, services, reversions, remainders or other hereditaments to the use or confidence of any other person or any other persons or of any body politic by reason of any bargain, sale, feoffment, fine, recovery, covenant, contract, agreement, will or otherwise by any manner whatsoever, that in each this kind of case every person or persons or body politic that at the time of the making of the abovesaid act has or have or after the making of the same act would have any this manner use or confidence in fee simple, fee tail, for term of life or of years or otherwise or any use or any confidence in remainder or reverter thence in the future stand and be seised and adjudicated in lawful seisin, estate, and possession of and in the same honors, castles, manors, and lands, tenements, rents, services, reversions, remainders, and hereditaments with their appurtenances to all intentions and constructions in law of and in suchlike estates as they before the abovesaid act promulgated had or after the making of that act would have in use of or in the same and that the estate, title, right and possession that were in this manner person or persons that before was or were or after the making of that act would be seised of any lands, tenements, or hereditaments to the use or confidence of any this manner person or persons or any body politic from the said time of the making of that act promulgated will be clearly adjudicated in him or them who at the time of the making of the abovesaid act had or after the making of that act will have such use or confidence according to this manner quality, manner, form, and condition as they before had in or at use or confidence as were in them, as in the same act promulgated in the said 27^th year is more fully contained, by pretext of which certain act the same William was seised of the same tenements with appurtenances in his demesne as of fee until the abovesaid Thomas Corby on the abovesaid September 10 in the 31^st year abovesaid [September10, 1539] with force and arms broke the closes and houses of the same William Atkyns at Bierton and depastured, trampled, and consumed his grass to the value etc., there recently growing with certain beasts against the peace of the now lord king as above he complains against him, without this that the abovesaid John Corby bargained and sold the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances to the aforementioned Thomas Corby to have to himself and his heirs in perpetuity as the same Thomas Corby above alleged, and this he is prepared to verify, wherefore because the abovesaid Thomas Corby acknowledged the abovesaid trespass done in the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances above, the same William Atkyns seeks judgment and his damages by occasion of that trespass to be adjudicated to him etc.

         And the abovesaid Thomas Corby as before says that the abovesaid John Corby bargained and sold the abovesaid tenements with appurtenances to the same Thomas Corby to have to himself and his heirs in perpetuity as he above alleged, and of this he puts himself on the countryside. And the abovesaid William Atkyns similarly. Therefore it is ordered to the sheriff that he should make to come here on the Octaves of St. Hilary 12 etc., by whom etc., and who neither etc., to recognize etc., because both etc.