We were delighted to be given recently a facimile copy of the 1086 Domesday Book.
Before the time of Old Sir Rowland, Soulton possesses a documented history extending back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears under the designation “Svltune” (see: Open Domesday).
Soulton entry in the 1086 Domesday Book
This record reveals Soulton as having been previously held “in libera possessione” (free possession) by a Saxon thegn named Brihtric. This Brihtric is understood to the brother of Eadric Streona, the powerful Ealdorman of Mercia who governed from 1007 to 1017.
Both Eadric and Brihtric met a violent end in London on Christmas Day, 1017, at the hands of King Cnut the Great during his rule of England.
Soulton Hall entry in the Domesday Book
This association with Eadric and Brihtric underscores the turbulent political climate of the Saxon era, a period marked by Viking incursions and power struggles.
The Domesday Book itself, compiled nearly seven decades after the deaths of Eadric and Brihtric, serves as a crucial link to Soulton’s Saxon past. The record offers a snapshot of the manor’s landownership at a pivotal juncture in English history, following the Norman Conquest.
