The tithe map and schedule  have been combined to create this annotated map of East Boldre and East End. This supplements Rev Comyn’s 1817 survey by showing the community one generation later. 

 

Tithes were a form of tax, traditionally 10% of agricultural produce, paid to support the Church of England. Following the Reformation, much land passed into private ownership, along with the right to collect tithes from tenants.

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By the early 19th century, this system had become deeply unpopular amid growing social and economic pressures.

• From 1770 to 1830, 6 million acres of common land were enclosed, depriving the rural poor of grazing rights and the ability to produce food, forcing many into wage labour.​​​

• The end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 brought an oversupply of labour which drove wages down.

• Annual hiring fairs gave way to much shorter contracts, and the Poor Law system struggled under increasing demand, with relief often falling below subsistence level.

• As workers left to work in cities, and as religious non-conformity grew, those remaining in rural areas carried an increasing share of payments to support a church many no longer felt connected to.

• The introduction of threshing machines threatened rural jobs.

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The Swing Riots of 1830 and 1831 emerged from these pressures; Hampshire was one of the worst affected counties. Landowners received letters signed “Captain Swing,” threatening action if the threshing machines were not destroyed. ​Nationally, the response was swift and severe: nearly 2,000 protesters were tried, with 644 imprisoned, 481 transported to Australia, and 19 were executed.

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Reform followed. ​The Tithe Commutation Act 1836 replaced payments in kind with monetary “tithe rent-charges,” payable by landowners. A national tithe survey, carried out between 1837 and 1850, recorded land ownership, occupation, and value.