Very little is known about the tithebarn in Thornton. What is known is that it belonged to Lancaster Priory, that it was standing in 1330 and the field in which it stood.
Lancaster Priory was founded between 1087 and 1100 by Roger of Poitou who is noted in the Domesday Book (1086) as owning Thornton and the surrounding areas.
God save us from these raiding priests, Who seize our crops and seize our beasts, Who pray 'give us our daily bread', And take it from our mouths instead. |
Tithes
The tithe, or payment in kind, of 10% of the annual produce in crops, livestock, orchards and gardens was an ancient custom in the Christian west and is referred to in Deuteronomy:-
"Set aside a tithe - a tenth of all your fields produce each year being the
tithe of all your crops and store it in your town".
Tithes first came to England with St Augustine (d. 604) and by the end of the 10th century tithe payments had become compulsory everywhere. During the next four or five centuries tithe barns were constructed to store the produce.
Tithes were split into three categories
| Predial Tithes | all things actually arising from the ground |
| Mixed Tithes | all things nourished by the ground |
| Personal Tithes | the produce of mans labour |
Although tithes have changed throughout the centuries, in 1836 they were changed from payment in kind to monetary payments, they were still paid until finally being abolished in 1996.