Diseworth in the Domesday Book
Diseworth appears in the Domesday Book*, as an entry for one William Loveth:
LEICESTERSHIRE
XXVII. THE LAND OF WILLIAM LOVETH
WILLIAM Loveth holds of the king 3 carucates of land of DISEWORT.
There is land for 3 ploughs. In
demesne is 1 [plough]; and 6 villans with 6 bordars have 2 ploughs.
It was worth 10s ; now 30s ;
The same William holds THEDDINGWORTH. TRE 2 ploughs were there.
There 2 sokemen with 2 other
men have 1 plough. There are 10 acres of meadow. It was worth 3s ;
now 10s .
The soke of this land belongs to the king's manor of Great Bowden.
The same William holds 5 carucates of land in SEWSTERN. TRE 5
ploughs were there. In demesne is 1
plough; and 6 villans with 1 sokeman have 1 ½ ploughs. It was worth
3s ; now 10s. This land is [in]
"Stofalde" the third part of 1 virgate. +Waste.+ IN FRAMLAND
WAPENTAKE.
* The Domesday Book is a great land survey from 1086, commissioned by William the Conqueror to assess the extent of the land and resources being owned in England at the time, and the extent of the taxes he could raise. The information collected was recorded by hand in two huge books, in the space of around a year. William died before it was fully completed.
The Domesday Book provides extensive records of landholders, their tenants, the amount of land they owned, how many people occupied the land (villagers, smallholders, free men, slaves, etc.), the amounts of woodland, meadow, animals, fish and ploughs on the land (if there were any) and other resources, any buildings present (churches, castles, mills, salthouses, etc.), and the whole purpose of the survey - the value of the land and its assets, before the Norman Conquest, after it, and at the time of Domesday. Some entries also chronicle disputes over who held land, some mention customary dues that had to be paid to the king, and entries for major towns include records of traders and number of houses.