Edited sentence: A few centuries later the Church asserted its control and relatively small parishes began to be defined though many areas long remained extra-parochial not included within any parish.After the Reformation the Tudor government adopted these ecclesiastical parishes for civil purposes and, in the 1530s, gave these institutions responsibility for highways and militias and for poor relief previously provided by the monasteries.Around the time of the Norman Conquest small local churches began to be established usually created and owned by major landholders and not tied to the ecclesiastical hierarchy.At the same time parishes were also given responsibility for registration of baptisms marriages and burials.In Anglo-Saxon times a parish was the large surrounding area under the pastoral care of the secular clergy of a monastery or religious house.The principal Parish Officer was the churchwarden.The various functions were carried out by parishioners and funded by the parish Rate