Durham Bishopric Estates

The post-Conquest bishops of Durham were heirs to a tradition of ecclesiastical and temporal authority stretching back to the 7th century, which grew at least in part from the reputation of St Cuthbert and his shrine. Their regalian authority as palatine lords, and the judicial institutions associated with it, developed gradually during the Middle Ages - the term palatinus seems first to have been applied to the bishop of Durham towards the end of the 13th century. The geographical area covered by the Palatinate extended from the Tyne to the Tees, together with parts of Northumberland (Norhamshire and Islandshire - Holy Island and an adjoining coastal area - in the north and Bedlingtonshire in the middle of the county) which were sometimes collectively called North Durham, and the manor of Crayke, near York. The Palatinate was thus co-terminous neither with the diocese of Durham nor with the area covered by the bishopric estates (since it excluded the bishop's Yorkshire estates in Allertonshire and Howdenshire, where his franchise was not regalian).

Although the administration of the bishop's spiritualities was distinct from that of his temporal powers, there was much overlap in the financial administration of the Palatinate and of the temporalities of the see, as the records in this collection reveal (see Custodial history below). The bishop owed his wealth primarily to the income from his vast estates rather than to the profits of his palatine lordship. All estate as well as palatine revenues were accounted for at his exchequer, and it was not uncommon for key posts in the estate administration and the palatinate administration to be held by the same man.

In 1536 the bishops lost their criminal jurisdiction, which was transferred to the crown, and their regalian powers continued to dwindle during the following centuries. Their palatinate jurisdiction was finally terminated in 1836, when Durham became an ordinary county.

The extensive estates from which the bishops of Durham drew their income comprised lands, mines, quarries, and other assets, held on a variety of tenures. They lay not just in the area of modern County Durham, but also in parts of modern Northumberland and Yorkshire - Norhamshire, Islandshire (Holy Island and nearby coastal areas) and Bedlingtonshire in Northumberland, and Allertonshire, Howdenshire and the manor of Crayke in Yorkshire. The bishops also had property in London, including Durham House in the Strand.

The bishops also drew income from other estates from time to time, under wardships and escheats, for example at Hart and Hartlepool. Properties held on different tenures were administered in different ways by separate officers. Northern tenures had their peculiarities, and tenures could change.

The bishops of Durham had their central administration in Durham, and used peripatetic manorial courts, and local bailiffs, officers and deputies to administer the bishopric estates. After the Ecclesiastical Commissioners (succeeded in 1948 by the Church Commissioners) took over the administration of the Durham bishopric estates, in the 19th century, the administrative venues altered.

The Ecclesiastical Commissioners were established in 1836, with the chief duty, inherited by the Church Commissioners, of administering the secular estates and revenues of the Church of England in order to maximise support for the clergy. Dealing with church land throughout the country, they have always operated from a London central office, and employed as local provincial agents firms such as Smiths Gore or Clayton & Gibson. The old Durham central office of the bishops' administration became one such provincial office, mainly to handle copyhold (Halmote Court) business, whereas business relating to freehold and leasehold property was largely handled by the central London office, to which records considered relevant by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners were transferred (see below, under Custodial history).

Records still required for current administration continue to be held centrally by the Church of England Record Centre in London, but a large quantity of material no longer so required has been returned to Durham, and deposited with the university, which also has in its custody the Durham Bishopric Estates Halmote Court Records, and the Durham Diocesan Records. Occasionally documents from the deposited material are recalled by the Church Commissioners, usually temporarily, but sometimes indefinitely.