Merlesweyn, lord of Tarlton and sheriff of Lincolnshire, was left in command of the north by King Harold after the battle of Stamford Bridge, but may have submitted to the Conqueror soon after the coronation; he rebelled in 1068 and was dispossessed (Taylor 1917, 76).
Domesday Book records that Little Tarlton belonged to Ralph Paganel and was held by Roger de Ivry. There seems to have been another Tarlton manor also belonging to Ralph that was mostly in Rodmarton. Tarlton itself was held by William de Ow, his tenant was Herbert, this manor passed to Edward of Salisbury, and in 1142 to the diocese of Salisbury (Thorp, 175-6). "Tornentone" (Tarlton) seems to have had a chapel as early as 1226; it endowed a deacon prebend in Sarum Cathedral and was worth 12 marks (Thorp 1928, 138).