the story of Beorhtwald's retirement. The charter is unfortunately lost, and indeed was already lost in 1247. It cannot have been a genuine document in the form described above, but the facts may have been taken from an earlier charter. The mention of only six hides, and not the usual 'Glastonbury Twelve Hides', is a very favourable feature.
Rather more satisfactory is a charter dated 681 (or, as William of Malmesbury says, 680), but in the fifth indiction, which would give 677. This is a grant by Bishop Haeddi to Abbot Hemgisl of Lantocai (i.e. Leigh in Street), together with an island surrounded by the water of Ferramere (i.e. Meare). According to William of Malmesbury's account Centwine, Baldred and Caedwalla confirmed the grant; and this suggests a time before the last of these was driven into exile.[1]
Baldred was one of the petty kings of Wessex, who held power with or under Centwine, before Caedwalla subdued the latter and acquired supremacy in 685. Baldred gave to Abbot Hemgisl Pennard[2] and a fishery on the Parrett;[3] also Logwores-beorh (Montacute, afterwards lost);[4] and he restored Brent which had been lost under Abbot Beorhtwald.[5]
Hemgisl was buried, as we have already said, in the Old Church;[6] and from this we may perhaps conclude that Ina's new church was
- ↑ For this charter see below in Appendix B.
- ↑ B. C. S. 61, a tenth-century charter preserved at Longleat.
- ↑ De Antiq., p. 50; J. of G., p. 370.
- ↑ De Antiq., p. 50: he seems to have used a composite charter which included Pennard, Montacute, and the Parrett fishery.
- ↑ B. C. S. 121.
- ↑ This W. of M. (p. 52) may have got from the closing paragraph of the Privilege of Cathred (B. C. S. 169).
ment of the abbot according to the Rule he has probably introduced from the Great Privilege of K. Ina, which he gives later (p. 57). For the rest we have in the Liber Terrarum two distinct charters of K. Centwine: (1 ) 'de insula Glastoniae', (2) 'de Cantucwdu s. Munekaton'. The first is lost: the second is probably represented by B. C. S. 62, in which K. Centwine gives in 682 'xxiii mansiones' near 'Cantucuudu' (i.e. West Monkton) and 'in cassatos' on the other side of the river Tone 'ad insulam juxta collem qui dicitur brittanica lingua Cructan, apud nos Cryc beorh ', bounded on the north by the Tone and on the south by the 'Blacan broc'. We thus see that the text of the De Antiq. has two blunders: (1) 'Cantucdun ' for 'Cantucuudu' (Quantock-wood), and (2) 'Crucan' for 'Cructan'. The names Creechbury (or Creechbarrow) Hill and Black Brook still remain. The twenty hides at Cary do not appear in this charter. The word 'Crucan' has seriously misled the writers of The Early Wars of Wessex (pp. 57 f.). This Quantock-wood charter is important as showing that the Saxons under K. Centwine had reached within three or four miles of what was soon to be known as Taunton.
