ABSTRACT
The successful implementation of the Tithe Commutation Act necessitated the creation of a considerable bureaucratic structure. The commissioners attempted to aid the process of commutation by issuing publications on how it could best be affected, and by providing simple forms for the completion of award and apportionment details. William Blamire’s extensive practical knowledge of agriculture made him an obvious candidate for the post of enclosure commissioner in 1845. Assistant commissioners needed resourcefulness, initiative and considerable professional skill. The problems facing tithe apportioners were of a different order of magnitude from those of the assistant commissioners, and their work was generally subject to much more criticism. The tithe apportionment was an inflexible instrument. Many apportionment appeals, contentious and passionate affairs as they could be, indicated that the tithe payers did not understand the Tithe Act. As their encouragement of voluntary commutations indicates, the commissioners preferred viability to uniformity.
