Domesday Yardley

In 1086 Gerlei (Yer-ley) appeared as a 'member' of Beoley, overseen by the same radman for the Abbot of Pershore. The vital statistics for both manors are given as one and cannot be separated, but in view of Yardley's greater size we may claim for it a larger share of population and ploughland. There were perhaps 60 people in the whole manor, of which about 600 acres (1/13) were under cultivation, the rest being meadow (much of it unusable bog) and wood which covered probably a third of the total area. Nothing can be said of Swanshurst Quarter except that it was fairly thickly wooded, especially on the valley sides, but this we know from geology and place-names not from Domesday Book. The area of wood given therein was much more than the total acreage of both manors! Foundation dates of Yardley's early sites are not recoverable; there were four communal settlements including Greet in medieval times, but which of these existed in 1086 must remain unknown. Greet was like at least one of the others in having no nucleated hamlet, its farmers living in cottages about the edges of the open fields.