Tithe Commutation Act 1836
|
|
| Citation | 6 & 7 Will 4 c 71 |
|---|---|
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 13 August 1836 |
|
Status: Amended
|
|
The Tithe Commutation Act 1836 (6 & 7 Will 4 c 71) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom with the long title "An Act for the Commutation of Tithes in England and Wales". It replaced the ancient system of payment of tithes in kind with monetary payments. It is especially noted for the tithe maps which were needed for the valuation process required by the Act. British Parliamentary Paper 1837 XLI 405 was published to give guidance on how landscape features were to be indicated on the maps. It is entitled ′Conventional signs to be used in the plans made under the Act for the Commutation of Tithes in England and Wales′
Tithes were originally paid as one-tenth of the produce of the land (crops, eggs, cattle, timber, fishing, etc.) to the rector, as alms and as payment for his services. The tithes were often stored in a tithe barn attached to the parish. At the dissolution of the monasteries some of the land passed out of church ownership, and the tithes were then paid to private landlords. Inclosure Acts made further modifications, either abolishing tithe payments entirely or replacing them with monetary payments. Various other arrangements also replaced payments in kind, but not systematically.
By the time of the Tithe Commutation Act there was considerable discontent over payment of tithes, most notably in the Tithe War of 1831-1836 in Ireland; in England a dispute over tithes in 1806 led to a double murder in Oddingley, Worcestershire.
The Act substituted a variable monetary payment (referred to as the "corn rent") for any existing tithe in kind. This payment was originally calculated on the basis of seven-year average prices of wheat, barley, and oats, with each type of grain contributing an equal part to the total. Prices were determined nationally. Parcels of land for which tithes had already been commuted were unaffected, as initially were Ireland and Scotland. Some land was free of tithe obligation, due to barrenness, custom, or prior arrangement.
A commission was established to identify all affected properties and to resolve boundary issues arising from the survey. It was headed by three commissioners:
...
Wikipedia