The Newport Hundreds

The old Saxon unit of land measurement was called the hide. It was not a mathematical concept, but rather based upon the amount of land that could support a family - the family itself being a loose concept, but the original understanding was that it would support one warrior.  Historians have estimated that in this part of the world a hide was approximately 120 acres. The hide was also used to assess taxes.

The Hundred, or a land area of approximately 100 hides, was the next step up from the manor for local administration. There are three hundreds in our area, the Bonnestou  or Bunsty Hundred, the Moulsoe Hundred and the Sigelai or Seckloe Hundred. Each Hundred took its name from the meeting point - usually a hill - Moulsoe, Seckloe and Bunsty. Each is more-or-less central for the district. and meetings and courts were held at an agreed central point.

The Hundred Courts declined in importance from the seventeenth century when County Courts began to assume more importance but they were still in use in the 19th century.

The Bunsty Hundred, includes all the North Bucks land north of the River Ouse and falls outside of the city of Milton Keynes. It includes the parishes of Castlethorpe, Haversham, Hanslope, Little Linford, Gayhurst, Stoke Goldington, Ravenstone, Weston Underwood, Tyringham, Lathbury, Olney, Lavendon, Cold Brayfield and Newton Blossomville.

Moulsoe Hundred  was made up of the long strip of parishes down the eastern side -Clifton Reynes, Emberton, Sherington, Chicheley, Hardmead, Astwood, North Crawley, Moulsoe, Broughton, Milton Keynes, Walton, Wavendon, and the Brickhills.

Seckloe Hundred  contains Bletchley, Bradwell, Calverton, Great Linford, Loughton, Newport Pagnell, Newton Longville, Shenley (part of), Simpson, Stantonbury, Stoke Hammond, Stony Stratford, Willen, Great and Little Woolstone, Wolverton and Woughton on the Green.

In the 13th century the hundreds were group together and subsequently known as the Newport Hundreds.

Milton Keynes today covers Seckloe Hundred and about one third of Moulsoe Hundred. In reality a much larger area is influenced by Milton Keynes' population of a quarter million