In the name of God Amen the sixth day of September one thousand sixe hundred and fifty I Richard Lane of Hanslapp in the county of Bucks being of good and perfect remembrance thanks be given to God for the same and knowing all men to be mortall and the tyme and hour of Death uncertayne do make and ordayne this my last will and Testament in manner and forme following  First I bequeath my soule unto the holy and blessed Trinity the father the son and the holy Ghost by whome I was created Redeemed and sanctified and my body to be buried at the discretion of my Executors hereafter named  Item I give to the poore of Hanslapp fforty shillings  Item my will is that all such guifts as my late deceased wife gave and not as yet paid shallbee paid viz To my Sonne Bunce Twenty shillings To Stephen Bunce five pounds To the rest of his children Twenty shillings apeece To my sonne Silles children Tenn pounds To my sonne Cotes Children Tenn pounds  Item I give to my sonne Charles and his Assignes the lease of the house wherein I now dwell and the use of all the household stuffe and goods in and about the same soe longe as hee shall live and inhabite therein and make use of them there  Alsoe I doe give unto the sayde Charles and his heyres all that little pightell adioyning to the sayd house which I and my late Wife purchased of William Ashby the elder and William Ashby the yonger  Item I give my Cowes bull Mare and hog to my sonnes Henry and Charles equally betwixt them  And whereas I have twelve Acres of Meadowe in Broad meade for sixe yeares at Michaelmas next  I give sixe Acres thereof to my sonne William to laye to his farme at Tottallend The other sixe to my sonne Henry to laye to his ffarme at Greenend  Item I do give unto sonne Henry Lane all that ffarme called Greene End ffarme otherwise Greenend Place in Hanslapp aforesayd being held of the Manner of East Grenewitch in ffree Soccage¹ with all and singualr the pastures and meadowes and lands thereunto belonging  And all that house and land which I purchased of Robert Hawkins one Acre of land purchased of William Cooke and other land and Meadowe purchased of John Rawlins and Robert Newman To have and to hold to him the sayd Henry Lane during his naturall life And if in case he shall marrye any woman with a good estate or portion Then I doe hereby give unto him full power to make unto her a Joynture of all or any parte thereof  And after his decease all the sayd houses land meadowes and pastures shall be and remayne to the first Sonne lawfully begotten by the said Henry Lane and to the heyres Males of the body of such first sonne lawfully to be begotten And for defaulte of such issueto all and every sonne and sonnes of the body of the sayd Henry lawfully begotten as they shall be borne and precede each other in priority of birth and seniority theelder to be preferred before the yonger and to the severall heyres Male of every such soneee and sonnes severally and prespectively to be begotten and for default of such issue Male then the sayd ffarme houses lands Meadowes and pastures to bee and remayne to my sonne William Lane for terme of his life and after to the first sonne lawfully begotten by the sayd William and the heyres Males of the body of such first sonne lawfully begotten And for defaulte of such issue to every sonne and sonnes  of the body of the sayd William lawfully to be begotten as they shall be born and precede each other in priority of birth and seniority the elder to be preferred before the yonger, and to the severall heyres Males of every such sonne and sonnes severally and respectively to bee begotten And for defaulte of such issue the same ffaarme houses lands Meadowes and pastures with the appurtenances to remayne to my sonne Charles Lane for terme of his life and after to the first sonne lawfully begotten by the sayd Charles and the heyres Males of the body of such first sonne lawfully to be begotten And for defaulte of such issue to every sonne and sonnes of the body of the sayd Charles lawfully to be begotten as they shall be borne and precede each other in priority of birth and seniority the elder to be preferred before the yonger and to the severall heyres Males of every such sonne and sonnes severally and respectively to be begotten And for default of such Issue the same ffarme house Lands Meadowes and pastures with the appurtenances to remayne to mee and my right heyres for ever  Item I do give unto my Executors in trust for my sonne Henry and his Children all those severall Leases of the ffarme houses and lands with the appurtances in Green End in Hanslap aforesayde which I purchased of Thomas Tirrill Richard Grenvile Esquires and of Thomas Dorman or any of them to bee settled according to certaine Articles of agreement made betwixt mee and Captaine Roper upon the Marriage of my sonne Henry  Item my will is that my Executors shall pay and satisfie all such proper debts as shalbe rightly and truely owing by my sonne Charles at the tyme of my decease  And for my daughter Jane my will is that when her husband shall have setled the Inheritance of his land in Hanslapp unon his eldest sonne by her after his decease then I doe give and appointe the summe of sixe hundred pound to bee impoyed by my Executors for the benefitt of her during her life and after her decease to and amongst her Children the same moneys to be putt forth and secured by lands if it may be And in the meane tyme untill her husbands settlement and after shee to have the encrease and profitt thereof for her maynteynance during her life  For my daughter Kingsmill my will is That when shee shall have a house provided for her to dwell in and sufficient mayntenance for her and her Children settforth not subject to incombrance or debt and a Competent Joynture made her and fullwell and Migbory(?) setled on her issue after his Mothers decease Then I doe give unto her the summe of one thousand pounds whereof two hundred pounds allready lent him and his Mother by bond to be parcell and all bonds taken by mee in her name or in any other mans name for her use to be parte thereof and in the meane tyme shee to the interest thereof for her mayntenance  Item I give to my sonne William all those grounds in Castlethorpe Leased by be mee to Roger Nicholls Esq during the term therin if hee live soe longe and after his decease the remaynder of the Terme therein to my sonne Henry  And for my Staffordsheire and Cottages my will is that my brother Humfrey and his sonne Richard shall hold the Cottages according to the severall Leases by mee made to them for their lives And for the rest of my lands Cloases and Meadowes there in the parish of Wolverhampton now in the possession of my brother Thomas Lane or his Assignes I doe give the same to my brother Thomas for Terme of his life  And after his decease to his sonne Walter for Terme of his life at the yearely Rent of twelve pence payable to my heyres  Item If my Nephew ffrancis Lane shall returne from beyond the seas  Then my will is that hee shall have Twenty pounds to bee imployed by my Executors for his good and preferment  Item I doe give unto my Grandchild Stephen Bunce the summe of Twenty pounds  Item I doe give unto my Laundress Twenty shillings And to her Mayde Tenn Shillings  And for a further provision for my two sonnes William and Henry I doe give and appointe all the Rest and residue of my Estate in Lands houses Mortgages Leases goods debts and Chattells whatsoever not formerly disposed of unto my Executors hereafter named and their heyres in trust for my sonnes William and Henry to the intente and purpose that the reall Estates thereof may be kept and preserved for my sonnes and that all such moneys as can any way be raised out of the residue of the remayning Estate or the encrease thereof shall be layd forth by my Executors in purchasing of Lands Leases or Annuities or some other Provision for my sayd sonnes and their heyres and Assignes and setled uppon them accordingly in such manner as that the same may not be by them sold or made away Out of all which Estate before recited soe given to my Executors in trust for my sayd sonnes William and Henry my will and meaning is that my sonne Charles his heyres and Assignes shall have such parte and proportion as my Executors in their discretions shall think be fitt to give and sett forth for him his heyres and Assignes To bee likewise setled upon him his heyres and Assignes in such manner as before is lymitted to his brothers And Revokeing and disannulling all former wills by mee made I doe intruste nominate and appointe my loving Cozen William Rushton Gent and my loving friends Mr John Phillips and Mr Roger ffreeberye to bee Executors of this my last Will and Testament in truste for my sayd sonnes William and Henry giving unto them five pounds a peece for their paynes and allowing unto them all charges and expences which they bee putt unto in gathering in of my Estate or in the defence thereof out of the remayning Estate  And lastly I doe give to my sonnes in Lawe and their Wives fforty shillings a peece to buy them Rings withall to keepe as Tokens of their deceased fathers love  And I doe hereby charge and require my sayd Children to be loving and kinde .... to each other  And I doe hereby desyre and request my loving Kinsman Henry Haynes Esq and my loving Sonnes in Law Welbourne Sill  Mathew Bunce Esquires William Cotes gent to be Overseers of this my last Will and Testament Desyring them to determine of any Controversie that may arise hereby without suite in lawe if it may bee  In witness whereof I have wrott all this will with my owne hand and sette both hand and seal the day and yeare above written Richard Lane Signed sealed and published to bee the last will and Testament of the sayd Richard Lane in the presence of us Nathaniell Netmaker Thomas fforster the marke of Richard Lane the yonger William Ashbie                                               

Proved 10th December 1650 

Notes

1.free Socage is a medieval term for a form of tenure by which a tenant renders certain honourable and non-servile duties to his lord