From Steve Roud's
The English Year, p. 176-177:
Rogationtide is the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday immediately preceding Ascension Day, the fortieth day after after Easter Sunday....It was traditionally the time for the faithful to go in processional around the parish, led by the clergy, ... giving thanks to God, and blessing the fields, crops, and animals....
.... the processional to bless the fields came to include the notion of checking the parish boundaries, and what is now called 'beating the bounds' was born....
....In the absence of effective record-keeping, the extent to which local officials were forced to rely on the memories of old people for evidence in local matters and legal disputes cannot be overstated, and this was especially true in the area of custom and tradition.
This year, Ascension Day in the Western Church falls on Thursday, May 14. Rogation Days are May 11-13.
