Let's go to Middenshire

So, what happened to the inhabitants of Middenshire? Having fled their now drowned homeland, they eventually managed to blend in with the mainland population, changing their names to avoid the ridicule of the general population. Middenshire names were nothing if not distinctive, and to admit to their origins, especially in those parts of Dorset where the shire's existence (or rather, former existence) was still widely known, would have been as unwise as us admitting a spell in a psychiatric facility. This explains the name 'Throcke' found on Thuck's gravestone; the name was not the result of anomalous spelling, but rather that of deliberate concealment. There must now be many thousands of people with Middenshire ancestry as a result of this migration. Who knows, there might even be a descendant of William Thuck, living somewhere in the West Country, blissfully unaware of his now famous precursor.

Once all the manuscripts and books had been briefly examined, Dr. Mowbray published a short paper entitled, 'Middenshire - an England in Miniature.' Primarily intended as a scholarly work, the paper was not intended for public consumption. Apart from a full list of the contents of the cannon, much of Mowbray's treatise was concerned with Middenshire politics, the operation of the Manorial System, and other serious socio-economic issues. This narrow brief, of necessity, ignored the treasury of anecdotes, folklore, humour and social comment that Thuck had included in his diary and printed works, especially the Perambulacion. I came across Mowbray's paper a few years ago quite by chance in the British Library whilst I was researching medieval cures for an article I had intended to submit to a history magazine. Some of Thuck's printed material seemed both relevant and useful to the topic I was looking at, so I contacted Dr. Mowbray with a view to gaining access to Thuck's books and notes. The ever-generous Dr. Mowbray granted me unlimited access to the Thuck papers. However, at that time I was holding down a full time career in London, and spending sufficient time on the papers was out of the question. Now, however, I find myself free of work and, following a move to the south coast, somewhat closer to the archive where Thuck's papers are stored. Thus it is that I am able to introduce Middenshire to a wider public, and the current popular method of blogging seemed an ideal medium in which to do so. Unlike Dr. Mowbray, it is not my aim to tell the reader how many oxen were held by each Manor, how much tax was paid in 1350, or what ordinances existed to ensure the town ditches were kept scoured. I am sure he or she would rather hear about the penalty for stealing cowpats; about the farmer who paid part of his tithe in urine; and about the astronomer who saw stars of a different kind when he failed to spot one of the ditches.

So, come with me, if you will, back through the mists of time, as we prepare to explore England's forgotten corner. And, by the power of the pen, I shall attempt to restore to life all those men and women, so long dead, who lived, loved and breathed, and who made up that rich, but not terribly well-executed tapestry that was Middenshire.