Spellings and dates

• Earliest known mention is given in part II, The Place Names of Sussex', Mawer & Stenton (E.P.N.S. Vol. VII - 1930)
• Hodleg' 1287 from Compton Place Muniments (ex. inf. Rev W. Budgen), I have also found
• Hadleg - Bayham Cartulary (Cotton, Otho. A II) 14th century c. 1332
• Hodlies & Hodes 1597 Buckhurst Terrier ('land belonging to John Avery')
• Hodleyes 1611 Duchy of Lancaster Special Commissions (PRO)
• Hoodleys field 1627 Sussex Record Society publication No. 14 Post Mortem Inquisitions 1485-1649

Other mentions found in my researches

• 'The Booke of John Rowe' Steward of the Manors of Lord Bergavenny 1597 - 1622 "One tenement now beinge the lodge (of the Manor of Buckhurst - MP) and certain landes thereunto adioyninge cont' by estim' xxxvj (36) acr' called Hodlyes tenemt & renteth viijs iiijd (8/4d)". This part of the Manor of Buckhurst is mentioned because it adjoins land belonging to LordBergavenny (Abergavenny), the estates at 'Bullocks-towne' being so inter-woven that it was necessary to detail both manors to make sure all was clear as to ownership & rents. 'Bullockstowne' was an area of Buckhurst Manor that ran from Lye Green (approx.) to Smugglers Lane, & included the area of Hoadleys, Dale, Summersales, etc.
• Subsidy rolls, Edward III
• "Villa at' de Birchendenne..." 1327 - "John de Hodlegh iis vid"
• and in 1332 - "Villat' de Burchyndenne" - "William Hodlegh viijd".

Spelling is at the whim of the writer and is phonetic, it has no tie to date, and is often found spelled differently (title or name) by the same person in the same document, or even phrase. Tenants of lands for Hoadleys take the name of the property as part, of their title, as do other tenants, say at Ham, Duckins, Cotchford, etc. The name can be easy to identify, i.e. 'Hodlegh', or not in cases of tenants who own part of the lands of the farm, or even the main house, as - 'Hodes' 'Hod' or 'Hodd'- so that in these subsidy rolls we also find 'John Hodd iis' and 'John Hod xiid', dated 1327 and 1332 respectively; they could be one and the same person. In preceding centuries, and at times, into 12th to 15th C., one expects to find/see 'John att Hode', 'John de Hoddes', or similar, which became, especially in documentation, 'John Hode', etc., because abbreviation was very much the habit of the times.

Also found in John Rowe's 'Booke' - "Thomas A (Att) Neve 10. Mar. 14. Ja: holdeth by copye seaven acres of customary land called Hodleys feild (sic) neere Lye greene (per) re 31 Eliz.". (1621)

Researched by Malcolm Payne, Dip. L. Hist. © 1983