PREBENDAL MANOR. King Stephen in 1146–9 granted the church of Brampton, with its lands, tithes and all appurtenances, for the foundation of a prebend in Lincoln Cathedral. The prebend continued in possession until 1848, when the lands attached were vested in the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The family of Burnaby were lessees of the prebendal house in 1722–59 and afterwards acquired the freehold. They lived in the house until about 1895, when it was let for a time. In 1908 it was put up for auction, but it was not sold. It remained empty for a year or two and was later bought by James Edwin-Cole, Duke of Polignano, who died here in 1920. The house was then sold to Mr. Charles Scholefield, the present owner. The prebendary's court, view of frankpledge and rents of assize are mentioned in the 13th and 14th centuries.
A large part of the western side of the parish formed the FOREST OF HARTHAY (Hertehey, Herteye, Harthey, xiii cent.). In 1086 there was woodland in Brampton for pannage, half a league by two furlongs, an area which would approximately correspond to that of Brampton Wood. In 1278–9 a wood belonging to the chief manor covered the same area, and in 1302 John de Hastings had licence to sell timber from his wood in Brampton which was said to be in Weybridge Forest. It was further shown in 1086 that there were 36 hides in Brampton which Richard Engaine, hereditary forester, wrongly claimed to belong to the forest, but were the king's demesne. These 36 hides probably included the Forests of Weybridge and Harthay and must have been distributed among the king's demesnes in Brampton, Alconbury and apparently the waste hide in Ellington (q.v.), and, as many of these wrongful claims of 1086 were later allowed, these lands may have formed a forest. In 1130 the county made payments for the hays of Brampton, that is, probably Weybridge, afterwards in Alconbury (q.v.) and Harthay in Brampton. The boundaries of Harthay in 1154 and 1299 were as follows: 'From Houtoneslinche (near Stonehill Grove) between the field of Houghtone and cover of said wood as far as Brampton wood, and so by the bounds of the same wood from Brampton and Hertheye to the field of Sybethorpe (in Ellington parish) and so between the same field and the cover of Hertheye as far as Rokespol (probably where the boundary between Brampton and Ellington turns north-east), and so by the duct descending to Wykenelond (in Ellington parish).' The two hays were contiguous, and both were royal demesne, afforested before Henry II afforested all Huntingdonshire on his accession. Harthay did not form part of the forest of Weybridge, which developed in the next century, but was granted by King John in 1215 to St. Mary's (Cathedral), Lincoln, as 'our wood of Harthay,' in compensation for the waste and destruction perpetrated by himself and his supporters in the park of Stow (Lincs) during the Interdict. The church might inclose and impark or assart the wood, which was not far distant from the Bishop of Lincoln's manor and palace of Buckden to the south, while the church of Brampton was already a prebend of Lincoln Cathedral. Among the lands of Brampton in 1279 were 2 hides at Harthay held of the Bishop of Lincoln by James Grim, and this land appears subsequently to have descended with the Prebendal Manor. Grounds called 'the Great Hartyes' and 'East Harty or Newbery's Hartyes' are mentioned in connection with the Prebendal Manor in 1722–3. The name High Harthay in the north-west of the present parish indicates the site of this royal and episcopal wood, while the large wood to the south represents the ancient manorial wood.
