The estate accounts of the former Templar lands in Lincolnshire for which William de Spanneby, the keeper of those lands, was responsible, begin on 10 January 1308, the day of the Order's arrest. As a consequence, the initial accounts give an insight into the nature of the agriculture and estate management practised by the Templars, while subsequent accounts record the changes which took place as the impact of the king's agents became increasingly apparent and exploitation took precedence over sustainable agriculture. The following four chapters deal with different aspects of the nature and fate of the Templars’ Lincolnshire estates during the transitional period to which the accounts of 1308–13 give unparalleled access.

Two major components made up the mixed agricultural economy on the former Templar estates in Lincolnshire: arable farming and sheep farming. Of these, sheep farming was centrally accounted by preceptory. Arable farming, on the other hand, was accounted by manor, which allows for the development of a comparative picture of arable practice across the former Templar estates of Lincolnshire. The purpose of this chapter is to explore the nature of the Order’s arable farming practice in Lincolnshire.

Arable framework on the Templar estates

The range of arable crops grown in the early fourteenth century was limited in the extreme, being entirely restricted to grains and legumes. Above all, the complete absence of root crops had far-reaching dietary implications for both humans and beasts. At its most extensive, the range of crops included wheat, barley, rye, oats and the leguminous crops of peas and beans, sown together or separately.

The account for Aslackby covering the period from 16 June 1312 until 28 September of the same year lists a total of 155 acres of land in seed, which consisted entirely of wheat, barley, beans and oats. In addition, 80 acres of fallow land are accounted, of which 12 were manured and ploughed for the third time. The relative proportions of arable and fallow land, 2 sown acres to 1 acre of fallow, clearly point to a three-course rotation, which, it would be reasonable to assume, would be practised throughout the ex-Templar estates in Lincolnshire. Roden identifies a similar three-course rotation constituting fallow, winter-sown crops, and spring-sown crops being practised on tenant farms and demesne holdings in the Chiltern Hills by 1300.