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VIEWS 
 
 OF THE MOST INTERESTING 
 
 Collegiate anti $atocl)ial Cl)urel)es 
 
 IN 
 
 GREAT BRITAIN 
 
 INCLUDING 
 
 SCREENS, FONTS, MONUMENTS, 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN PRESTON NEALE, 
 
 AND 
 
 JOHN LE KEUX. 
 
 WITH 
 
 HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTIONS. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PUBLISHED FOR THE PROPRIETORS; 
 BY LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, BROWN, AND GREEN, PATERNOSTER- 
 ROW; AND G. AND W. B. WHITTAKER, AVE-MARIA LANE. 
 
 1824. 
 
J. M'Creery, Printer, 
 Tooks-Coutt, ChauceryLane. 
 
TO 
 
 HIS MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY, 
 GEORGE THE FOURTH. 
 
 Sire, 
 
 The encouragement of Science, when derived 
 from the Throne, demands the gratitude of a Nation 
 whose best interests are advanced by its effects ; Your 
 Majesty's most gracious condescension, in permitting Your 
 august name to be affixed to our humble labours, is a 
 most flattering testimony of Your Majesty's liberal sen- 
 timents respecting Works of Art. 
 
 The attempt we have here made to illustrate the 
 characteristic beauties of the Ecclesiastical Buildings of 
 this Kingdom, in a more extensive and popular manner 
 than has yet been proceeded with, contributing mate- 
 rially, at the same time, towards the History of this at- 
 tractive branch of our National Architecture, is, we trust, 
 an undertaking of sufficient importance to secure to us, 
 not only the favor of every admirer of the Fine Arts, but 
 of all those who regard with feelings of interest or pride, 
 whatever is connected with a gratifying retrospection of 
 the gradual elevation of their country. 
 
11 
 
 It is particularly in this point of view that we are 
 emboldened to hope that our anxious endeavour towards 
 so noble an object, will not be found altogether unworthy 
 of the august Patronage it has experienced. 
 
 Should any apology be necessary to contempo- 
 raries, for our ambitious views in this respect, it will be 
 found in Your Majesty's gracious acceptance of " The 
 History of Westminster Abbey," a former Work, by 
 one of the individuals Avho have now the honor of sub- 
 scribing themselves, with all deference to Your Ma- 
 jesty, 
 
 Your Majesty's 
 
 Most dutiful and loyal subjects, 
 
 JOHN PRESTON NEALE, 
 
 AND 
 
 JOHN LE KEUX. 
 
CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME 
 
 OF 
 
 VIEWS OF CHURCHES. 
 
 CONTAINING FORTY-EIGHT ENGRAVINGS, AND TWO VIGNETTES. 
 
 BUCKINGILV3ISHIRE STOKE POGIS ST. GILES, North-East. 
 
 CAMBRIDGESHIRE . CAJNIBRIDGE GREAT ST. MARY'S, Pl. 1, The Tower. 
 
 2, Interior. 
 
 THE HOLY TRINITY ... 1, East End. 
 
 2, Interior. 
 
 GLOUCESTERSHIRE. CAJMPDEN ST. JAJMES'S, South-East View. 
 
 HEREFORDSHIRE... LEDBURY View of the West End. 
 
 LEOmNSTER ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, Pl. 1, West End. 
 
 2, North Aisle. 
 
 HERTFORDSHIRE .. . ST. ALBANS.. ABBEY CHLTICH, Pl. 1, The South Side. 
 
 2, The Nave, West End. 
 
 3, Ditto, East End. 
 
 4, The Choir. 
 
 5, The Altar Screen. 
 
 6, MoN. OF Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester. 
 
 7, South-East View. 
 
 Vignette, The Piscina in South Aisle. 
 
 SABRIDGEWORTH ST. aiARY'S, Pl. 1, Sodth-East View. 
 
 2, South Aisle. 
 
 NORFOLK INGHAai THE HOLY TRINITY, Pl. 1 , South-East View. 
 
 i 2, MoN. of Sir Oliver Ingham. 
 
 3, Ditto of Sir Rogir De Boys, &c. 
 
 SOUTH LOPH.\.M... ST. NICHOLAS, The Tower. 
 
 NORTH WALSH.\M Pl. 1, The South Porch. 
 
 2, The Font. 
 
 WORSTEAD ST. JIARY'S, Pl. 1, The Tower. 
 
 2, The Font and Gallery at West End. 
 
 NORFOLK YARMOUTH ST. NICHOLAS, Pl. 1, Soutb-West View. 
 
 2, The Choir. 
 
 3, The Chancel. 
 
 4, The North Aisle. 
 
NORTHAJVrPTONSfflRE. Bt'LWICK ST. NICHOL.\S, Socth Sidi. 
 
 KETTERING ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, Tower akd Spire. 
 
 OXFORDSHIRE WITNEV ST. JURY'S, North Side. 
 
 SUFFOLK LOWESTOFFE ST. MARGARET'S, Sodth-East View. 
 
 SURREY CROYDON ST. JOHN'S, Pl. 1, Tbe North Side. 
 
 2, TuE Nave AND Chancel. 
 
 3, Mos. OF Wbitoift, &. &c. 
 
 WARWICKSHIRE STRATFORD TRINITY, Pi.. 1, North-West View. 
 
 2, South Side. 
 
 3, North Aisle. 
 
 4, Chancel akd Mon. of Suakspeare. 
 
 ViGN. The Old Font. 
 
 WORCESTERSHIRE.... EVESH.\iI ALL SAINTS, Sooth Side. 
 
 GREAT JI.\LVERN . ST. RLARY'S, Pl. 1, The North Side. 
 
 2, Jesi'3 Chapel. 
 
 3, The Choir. 
 
 LITTLE JIALVERN ST. GILES'S, Pl. 1, South-East View. 
 
 2, Interior. East End. 
 
 THE TITLE, A Composition or CnrKCH Firnitirf, &c. 
 
g»t. (Giles's C{)urcf), 
 
 STOKE-POGIS, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE. 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. ARTHUR BOLD. 
 
 The Parish of Stoke-Pogis, which is in the Diocese of Lincoln, and 
 Deanery of Burnham, is situated in the Hundred of Stoke, about two 
 miles north-north-east from Slough. 
 
 The Church is a small structure, in the Pointed style of architecture, 
 having a wooden spire : the accompanying Plate gives a north-east 
 view of it, shewing the porch ; and, in the back-ground, the monument 
 erected by Mr. Penn in commemoration of the poet Gray. 
 
 In the north wall of the chancel of this Church, under a rudely executed 
 arch, ornamented with pinnacles and foliage, is an ancient tomb, supposed 
 to have been erected in memory of Sir John Molyns, Knight Banneret, 
 and Treasurer of the Chamber to King Edward IIL : he had obtained the 
 Manor of Stoke by marriage with Egidia, the grand-daughter and heiress 
 of Robert Pogis. Near the Altar, on the north side, are the engraved 
 brass figures of Sir William Molyns, Knight, and Margaret his Lady. 
 The knight is represented in a pointed helmet, with sword and dag- 
 ger, and has a lion at his feet; it appears, from the inscription, that 
 he died on the 0th of June, 142-5. Lady Margaret is habited in a boddice, 
 mantle, and veil. On the south side of the altar is a brass figure of a 
 lady in a shroud, in commemoration of Eleanot, daughter and heiress 
 of William, Lord Molyns, slain at the celebrated siege of Orleans, in 
 1429, son of the above Sir William ; and wife of Robert, Lord Hunger- 
 ford, who being an active adherent to Henry VI., was taken prisoner 
 at the battle of Hexham, and shortly afterwards beheaded at New- 
 castle : she was subsequently married to Sir Oliver Manyngham, Knt. 
 George, third Lord Hastings, who attended Henry VIII. at the sieges 
 of Therouenne and Touniay, and who died in 1544, after being created 
 Earl of Huntingdon, was also buried here, but there is no monument 
 to his memory. The Font is a large plain vessel, supported by a shaft 
 with niches. 
 
 Sir Edward Hastings, Baron Loughborough, erected the Chapel 
 which adjoins this church, as a place of interment for his family, and 
 directed by his will that tombs should be raised for such of his relations 
 as had been buried here, and that on his own tomb should be placed 
 his effigies in copper, gilt. There are not, however, any sepulchral 
 memorials in this place for the family of Hastings, so that either the 
 testator's injunctions were not complied with, or the monuments muil 
 1 
 
ST. Giles's church, stoke-pogis, Buckinghamshire. 
 
 have been removed. In the east window is a figure of Lord Loughbo- 
 rough, in painted glass ; he is represented kneeling at a desk, on which 
 is an open book, and as habited in armour, with a surcoat, and the 
 George suspended at his breast ; his surcoat is charged with the arms 
 of the Hastings' family and their alliances ; and on each side of his 
 head is a shield, one inscribed with the initials E. H., and the other 
 charged with his crest, a buftalo's head erased, sab. gorged with a ducal 
 coronet, and armed, or; a mullet for difference. This Chapel contains 
 a monument for Dr. Gregory Hascard, Dean of Windsor, who died in 
 1708 ; he was one of the most celebrated preachers of his time. 
 
 The Church-yard was the scene of the well-known Elegy by Gray ; 
 the following fine stanza, expressive of the thoughts arising from con- 
 templation in this spot, is among those, with which, as Mr. Mason has 
 recorded, that exquisite poem was originally intended to conclude ; 
 before the happy ideas of the " hoary-headed swain," and his artless 
 narrative, had suggested themselves to the accomplished Lyrist. 
 
 " Hatk ! how the sacred calm, that breathes around. 
 Bids every fierce, tumultuous passion cease : 
 In still small accents whispering from the ground, 
 A grateful earnest of eternal peace." 
 
 The remains of Gray, in pursuance of his particular directions, were 
 interred in a vault near the chancel-door, where those of his aunt and 
 beloved mother had previously been deposited : the following inscription 
 on the tombstone, or at least the latter part of it, was written by the 
 Poet. 
 
 *' In the vault beneath are deposited, In hope of a joyful resurrection, the remains of 
 Mary Antrobus. She died, unmarried, Nov. v. mdccxlix. Aged i.xvt. In the 
 same pious confidence, beside her friend and sister, here sleep the remains of 
 Dorothy Gray, widow, the careful tender Mother of many children, one of whom 
 alone had the misfortune to survive her. She died, March x:. mdccliii. Aged 
 
 LXVII." 
 
 John Penn, Esq., the present possessor of the Manor of Stoke-Pogis, 
 feeling that some tribute was due to the memory of Gray, the place of 
 his sepulture even being undistinguished by any memorial, caused a 
 classic monument to be erected to the Poet's honour in 1799, and under 
 the direction of the late James Wyatt, Esq., in a lawn opposite to his 
 mansion, and nearly adjacent to the road side. This monument, as 
 mentioned above, is shewn in the Plate. 
 
 This Parish is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at 
 7/. 17s. ; Lord Francis Osborn, brother to the Duke of Leeds, is the 
 patron. The vicar is usually also the master of an hospital, which was 
 originally founded near the Church-yard in 1557, by the above-named 
 Lord Loughborough, for a chantry-priest and four beadsmen ; after the 
 Reformation, it was appropriated to the support of a master and poor 
 brethren ; and, in 1765, the edifice was rebuilt in a more convenient 
 situation by the late Mr. Penn. 
 2 
 
I !Pl. t^'"= 
 
 rav<?diyJ.LeJtinix . 
 
 i'JRCH , 
 
 ■ii.Tu-ir FatTthtf/:,-" 
 
<3xtnt ^t. iHarp'0 Cftutdj, 
 
 CAMBRIDGESHIRE; 
 
 PERPETUAL CURATE, 
 THE REV. W. G. JUDGSON. 
 
 Great Saint Mary's, or the University Church, was rebuilt in the 
 Reign of Henry VII., and towards its completion that monarch was 
 a great benefactor. It was commenced in 1478, under the auspices of 
 Alcock, Bishop of Ely, to whom the merit of the design is usually at- 
 tributed. The Church was so far completed in 1488, that the Bishop is 
 then stated to have preached a sermon in it, which lasted from one 
 o'clock in the afternoon till past three. He was not only a prelate of 
 singular learning and piety, but, possessing great skill in architecture, he 
 was made comptroller of the royal buildings. This Church, but more 
 particularly his very curious sepulchral Chapel in the Cathedral at Ely, 
 proves his ability and judgment. The body of the Church, which alone 
 bears the mark of his hand, was completed in 1519, but the Tower is 
 more modern, not having been erected till 1608. John Warren was the 
 architect, who died the same year it was finished, as appears by a 
 tablet to his memory, against the east wall of the Chancel. 
 
 The west end of this Church, which is commonly called Great St, 
 Mary's or St. Mary Magna, to distinguish it from another Church, si- 
 milarly dedicated, forms the east side of a most noble quadrangle, vide 
 Plate I.; King's College Chapel, the University Library, and the Senate 
 House, on the other sides, without the intervention of private edifices, give 
 an air of peculiar grandeur to its site. The Tower is lofty and well pro- 
 portioned, the embattled parapet has octangular turrets, surmounted by 
 balls. It contains a musical peal of ten bells, and a clock : the entrance 
 porch is adorned with the royal arms boldly sculptured, and some remains 
 of painting nearly defaced. The interior of the Church is both light 
 and beautiful ; our View, Plate II., is taken from the east end, so as 
 best to display its elegant proportions, and admirable uniformity of de- 
 sign ; the groining of the roof is at once a specimen of the architect's 
 taste and skill; ten clerestory windows on each side, above the arches 
 of the nave, give ample light to every part of this really noble building, 
 i 
 
GREAT ST. MARY S CHURCH, CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 
 
 Academical exercises were formerly performed, and public orations 
 were made in this Church ; Queen Elizabeth, while at Cambridge, in 
 1564, attended the disputations here. The University Sermons are still 
 preached in this Church, except on a few particular occasions. The 
 Vice Chancellor, Heads of Colleges, Noblemen, and Doctors, sit in a 
 gallery, which occupies the place of the ancient Rood Loft. The Mas- 
 ters of Arts and Fellow Commoners in the area of the nave ; Bache- 
 lors of Arts and Under Graduates have galleries in the Aisles, which 
 were built pursuant to the directions in the will of William Worts, Esq. 
 who died in 1709, and left a sum of money for that purpose. In vari- 
 ous parts of the Church are memorials for Aldermen of the Corporation. 
 On the south wall of the Chancel, is a mural monument to William 
 Butler, D. D. who died Jan. 29, 1617; he is represented by a half- 
 length figure, under an arch, executed with much spirit; one hand rests 
 upon a skull, the other holds a book ; on the sides of the monument, 
 are statues of Labour and Rest. Arms, sable, a fcss lozengy, between 
 three covered cups, or. There is also a memorial of John Crane, Esq. 
 who died in 1652 ; and a slab in the north aisle, to Russel Plumptree, 
 M. D. who died in 1793. On the south side of the Church is a Vestry, 
 and a Chapel, adjoining the Chancel. The corresponding Chapel on 
 the north side is dedicated to St. Andrew, in it is a monument to the 
 memory of Thomas Lorkin, Esq. born at Frendsbury in Kent, who died 
 May 1, 1591. 
 
 Martin Bucer, the celebrated Reformer, was invited to England by 
 Archbishop Cranmer, and was received at Cambridge as a Teacher of 
 Theology in 1549; he died here in 1551, and was buried in this Church 
 with great funeral pomp. In the reign of Queen Mary his body was dug 
 up and publicly burnt, and his tomb demolished, but it was afterwards 
 set up again by order of Queen Elizabeth : several manuscripts respect- 
 ing him are preserved in the Library of Caius College. 
 

 
Ci)tircfj of t!)e H^ol^ %xinit^, 
 
 CAMBRIDGE. 
 
 PERPETUAL CURATE, 
 THE REV. CHARLES SIMEON, M. A. 
 
 The town of Cambridge is divided into fourteen Parishes, of which 
 that of the Holy Trinity is the largest. The Parochial Church stands 
 at the south end of Bridge-Street, and is built in the form of a cross, 
 with the principal entrance at the north. The view of the exterior given 
 in plate 1, is taken from the east; the west front, upon which the skill 
 of the architect in many instances was exerted, and his taste employed 
 to devise ornaments, being here concealed by the contiguous houses. 
 The Chancel and body of the Church are of small extent when com- 
 pared with the noble Transepts or Chapels, which rise considerably 
 above the roof of the Chancel, and admit of a series of clerestory win- 
 dows. The architecture of this part of the Church is of a more florid 
 character. Laving been erected at a later period. The east window of 
 the Church, which is a prominent feature of our exterior view, is divided 
 by its mullions into four bays. The Tower, which has been recently 
 re-erected at the expense of the Parishioners, is at the west end ; and 
 contains a peal of five bells; each angle of the parapet surrounding 
 the Tower is ornamented with a small turret, terminating in a pinnacle, 
 and, above the whole, rises a small, but well proportioned Spire. 
 
 This Church was formerly appropriated to the Abbey of West 
 Dereham, in Norfolk, a Monastery founded by Hubert Walter, who 
 became Archbishop of Canterbury in 1193, and continued at the head 
 of the ecclesiastical power in the reigns of Richard I. and John, till 
 1207. When the present edifice was erected, cannot be discovered : it 
 appears from Lysons's Magna Britannia, under Cambridgeshire, that it 
 was destroyed by fire in the year 1174, in the time of Henry II., and 
 that it was afterwards rebuilt; but no part of the architecture of this 
 building can be referred to within a century of that early period. 
 
 At the dissolution of Monasteries, which preceded the Reformation, 
 this living was annexed to the Episcopal See of Ely, the Bishop 
 of which Diocese appoints a sequestrator or Vicar. The Rev. Charles 
 Simeon, M. A., and Fellow of King's College, the present incumbent, 
 has distinguished himself both by his eloquence and his writings. 
 1 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, CAMBRIDGE. 
 
 Plate 2, represents the very noble interior of this Church, taken from 
 the west end, with a full view of the remarkably fine Transepts, which 
 are built in the richest style of ecclesiastical architecture, and may be 
 attributed to the time of Henry VI.* In each, the florid character 
 of the ornaments, as well as the disposition of the windows, is some- 
 what varied, but both the Cross Aisles tuay still be assigned to the 
 same architectural jera, and are equally admirable for the purity of taste 
 displayed in the sculptural decorations ; the groining of the ceilings is 
 peculiarly elegant. In the south Transept, beneath the clerestory win- 
 dows, is a very richly carved moulding or string course, composed of 
 Strawberry leaves, in the manner of the ducal coronet; this Aisle con- 
 tains a marble slab to the memory of William Spekes, who died Decem- 
 ber 1, 1666, and to Elizabeth Spekes, his wife, who died on the 24th of 
 January, 1693. 
 
 In the North Aisle, against the east wall, is an elegant altar tomb, 
 enclosed with rails, erected to commemorate Sir Robert Tabor, Knight, 
 an eminent physician in the reign of Charles II., who first administered 
 the bark with success in intermittent fevers, and who was buried here 
 on the seventeenth of Nov. 1681 ; the monument bears his armorial 
 achievement, viz. Azure, on a chevron engrailed, between three lions' 
 heads erased, or ; three leopards' faces of the first: over it is the crest, a 
 lion's head, or ; and, beneath the shield, the motto, soles occidere et re- 
 dire possint. 
 
 The Chancel, which is the most ancient part of the present building, 
 is comparatively low : over the communion table, and under the east 
 window, is a scriptural painting, within a frame, of Jesus Christ ap- 
 pearing to Mary Magdalen, as an altar-piece. Against the north wall 
 of the Chancel is a handsome monument to the memory of Elizabeth 
 Peyton, the eldest daughter of Richard Anderson, Esq., of Hertford- 
 shire, and widow of Robert Peyton, Esq. ; she died on the 26th of 
 April, 1659, at the age of 53 ; upon the tomb is the arms of Peyton, viz. 
 sable, a cross ingrailed or, in the dexter canton a mullet argent, impaling 
 those of Anderson, viz. : argent, a chevron between three cross crosslets 
 flory, sable. Another monument records the death of Susan, the 
 daughter of Samuel Gatward, Esq., and Elizabeth, his wife, on the 
 19th of December, 1707, and of Samuel, their son, who died on the 9th 
 of May, 17 12. Arms sculptured, a chevron ermine between three herons, 
 impaling a bend heticeen two mullets. There is also a memorial of Ed- 
 ward Lawe, Gent. Irenarcha ac Senator, qui obiit. May 30, 1675, 
 
 • It is a singular fact, that during the commotions between the houses of York and Lan- 
 caster, and their adherents, so prejudicial to the progress of the arts of civilization, archi- 
 tecture in England flourished in a greater degree, vide Callaway's Anecdotes of the Ai1s 
 in England, p. 27. 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, CAMBRIDGE. 
 
 with his arms, viz., on a cross, Jive crosslets formy; the latter is partly 
 concealed by the rails which enclose the Communion Table. 
 
 The Tower is raised on lofty pointed arches; those opening upon 
 the Transepts are curiously ornamented in their mouldings, with a tre- 
 foil headed panelling of a bold character. Against the east wall of 
 the Nave, on the north side of the arch, opening upon the Chancel, is a 
 large and handsome sepulchral memorial to Francis Percy, Esq., Al- 
 derman of Cambridge, and also a Captain in the Militia, who died May 
 6, 1711, aet. 67, and to Margaret, his wife, who died on the 20th of 
 September the same year: by her he had issue, six sons and six daugh- 
 ters. Two of his sons, Algernon and Henry, are also buried here. His 
 eldest son, Francis Percy, was a Captain in the Navy. It is recorded 
 upon the monument, that this family was a branch of the ancient and 
 noble House of Percy, whose chief seat is at Alnwick Castle, in Nor- 
 thumberland. Arms, or, a lion rampart, azure, impaling, argent, on 
 a cross, sable, Jice lions rampant, or. 
 
 On the south wall is a mural monument to the memory of the Rev. H. 
 Martyn, Fellow of St. John's College, who died at Tokal, Oct. 16, 
 1812, in his way from Shiraz to Constantinople. He had been Curate 
 of this Parish for about two years ; and went from thence, as Chaplain 
 to the East India Company to Bengal, where he translated the New Tes- 
 tament into the Hindoostanee language, as he did also afterwards at 
 Shiraz into the Persian language. The memoir of his life, in a single 
 volume, is inferior in interest to no book in the English language. 
 And under it, another to Mr. Charles Wagstaff. Against a pillar, 
 near the end of the Nave, is a memorial of Samuel Conant, A. M., of 
 Magdalen College, Oxford. Arms, gules, ten billets, or. There is also a 
 marble slab in the Nave, commemorating Dorothy Folkes, who died 
 October 1, 1710: she was the posthumous daughter of Martin Folkes, 
 Esq., of Hiliington, in Norfolk, and of Dorothy, his wife. The font 
 at the west end of the Church is of an octagonal form, of stone, with 
 a wooden cover ; the organ is also at the west end. 
 
 The Church-yard, as may be seen in our view of the exterior, is 
 crowded with monumental records; amongst which are tombs of Joseph 
 Purchas, who died 1721, a;t. 48 ; AVilliam CoUis, Gent. ; John, the son 
 of John and Abigail Alders, ob. 1702, aet. 15. Another for John 
 Wardall, who died Nov. 23, 1723, Kt. 88. 
 
 The table of benefactors to the Parish of the Holy Trinity hangs up 
 against the south wall of the Church. Henry Wray, of this Parish, 
 Stationer, in 1628, gave an Alms-house for eight widows, to receive a 
 weekly allowance. 
 
i 
 
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 4 
 
 ik^m^LM 
 
 Dravm toyj.i.i<eiu& 
 
 ^ Zngi HVEd. iy J. Xin^e . 
 
 OK]LET CHURCBE, 
 
 SSSF.X. 
 
Botle^ C{)urcj), 
 
 ESSEX; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 REV. JOHN HERUINGHAM, M.A. 
 
 This Church is situated upon an eminence, on the southern bank of the 
 river Stour, and is in the hundred of Hinckford : the Church-yard com- 
 mands an extensive prospect ; the two churches of Sudbury, those of 
 Long Melford and Lavenhani, are distinctly recognised, with several 
 others in Sufiolk. Both the body of the Church and Chancel are of one 
 pace, tiled, and at the western extremity is a square tower, wherem are 
 three bells. 
 
 The following inscription is upon a plate of brass, inlaid in black 
 marble, in the chancel : 
 
 Hie in Domino requiescit Johannes Durhame, filius tertius Thorns Durhame de 
 West Durhame in com. Nurf. Armigeri. Qui cum sexaginta et septem annos vixisset 
 vicessimo nono die mensis Julii; anno verb! incarnati, 1601, morte prareptus est. 
 
 Against the north wall of the chancel is a tablet inscribed as follows : 
 
 The Rev. William Heirlngham, A.M. late rector of this palish and Chadwell St. 
 
 Blary's, in this county, Prebendary of Jlora, St. Paul's, ob. 22 Febry. 1819. 
 
 " Multis ille bonis flebilis occidit." 
 
 And on the southern side, near to the altar, another tablet : 
 
 Sacred to the memory of the three daughters of the Rev. William Herringham, 
 rector of this parish ; Anna Maria, the 2nd daughter, who died 5th February, 
 1796, aged 9 years, was bnried at Chipping Ongar in this county ; Catharine, the 
 eldest daughter, who died 22nd June, 1811, aged 25 years; and Elizabeth Mary 
 Althea, the third daughter, who died 1st January, 1812; are interred in a vault 
 on the outside of this chancel. 
 There is also in the chancel an ancient marble monument. The 
 effigy of the person to whose memory it is erected, is placed between 
 two pillars supporting an elegant cornice. She is represented as in the 
 act of devotion, kneeling upon a cushion, hev hands clasped, and before 
 her is a book opened. Above the entablature is the representation of a 
 glory, encircled by cherubim, and beneath, on a neat tablet of black 
 marble, this inscription : 
 
 Pulvis in hoc tumulo Waldegravi JIagdala proles 
 
 Unaque Southcotti sponsa sepulta jacet. 
 Virgo pudica. Parens foecunda, Piissiraa sponsi, 
 
 Sponsa, tenax fidei libera vixit opum. 
 Mortem vita dedit, A'itara quam Vita negavit 
 Mors dedit, O adsis ilors, fera Vita vale. 
 Obiit octavo die Septembris, 1598. 
 
 The family arms are curiously wrought and affixed to several parts of 
 the monument. 
 
 The most conspicuous ornament of this Church, is a superb monu- 
 ment in memory of Sir Edward Waldegrave, Kut., the lady Frances his 
 
 f 
 
BORLEY CHURCH, ESSEX. 
 
 wife, and tlieir five children, as represented in the plate ; it is ahout 
 fourteen feet in height, nine feet in length, and five in breadth, 
 erected in the body of the chnrch against the north and eastern walls ; the 
 richly finished entablature at the summit, is supported by six pillars of 
 beautiful marble, of the Corinthian order ; underneath, at their base, 
 are placed two recumbent figures, at full length, of Sir Edward Walde- 
 grave, and Lady Frances Waldegrave, executed in marble, and of supe- 
 rior workmanship ; their hands are uplifted, as in prayer; the head of Sir 
 Edward reclines on his helmet, that of his wife on a pillow ; at his feet 
 is placed an urn ; at those of Lady Frances a squirrel. M'ithin five com- 
 partments, of which three are on the south side, and two at the head 
 of the tomb, are the eiBgies of their five children, the name of each 
 affixed above, with their marriages, as follows : 
 
 Charles Waldegrave married Jerouima, daughter of Sir Henry Jerningham, Knt. ; 
 Nicholas Waldegrave married Katherine, daughter of Wistan Browne, Esq. ; alary 
 Waldegrave married Sir John Petre, Knt.; Katherine Waldegrave married 
 Thomas Gavren, Etq. ; Alagdalen Waldegrave married John Southcote. 
 
 Upon two tablets of black marble, which are placed round the edge 
 of the cornice, is this inscription : 
 
 Edvardus obiit ab incamatione Domini millesimo quingentesirao sexagesimo primo ; 
 anno aetatis suk quadragesimo quarto ; primo die mensis Septembris. 
 Francisea obiit ab incarnatione Domini millesimo quingentesimo nonogesimo nono ; auno 
 aitatis suEE septuagesimo ; decimo octavo die mensis Octobris. 
 
 En jacet Edvardus tumulo Waldegravus in isto, 
 Et comes ante tori comes est Francisea sepulchri 
 Nudos fata genus relevavit, transiit, auxit 
 
 Conjux, Vir, Proles alimento carcere vita 
 En homo quid tituli, quid prosit stemma vel aurum. 
 
 Si taa vitalis deserat ossa calor. 
 Nil superesse vides, homini compage soluta 
 Terra, suum repetit, sidera jusque secum. 
 
 At the summit of the entablature the arms of this family are curiously 
 wrought in freestone, with the intermarriages of the sons and daughters 
 underneath ; the whole is richly ornamented, painted, and gilt, and pro- 
 tected by iron palisades. 
 
 Sir Edward Waldegrave was master of the great wardrobe to Queen 
 Mary, her chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, and one of her privy 
 council ; also M. P. for Essex, in the Parliament which assembled on 
 January 20th, 1557, and sat until that Queen's demise. His family, 
 originally from Waldegrave, in Northamptonshire, were many genera- 
 tions resident on the banks of the Stour, in this quarter, at Smallbridge, 
 in Buers St. Mary's, Suft'olk, within which church several are interred 
 with monuments, and at Borley and Lawford, in this county : they were 
 afterwards seated at Navestock, in the hundred of Ongar, which is still 
 the burial place of the family. 
 3 
 
LAMBOURNE, ESSEX; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 REV. ROBERT SUTLEFFE, B. D. 
 
 This Church was given by Robert de Lambourue to the Canons of 
 Waltham Holy Cross, in the reign of Henry III.; it afterwards became 
 a Rectory, and continued in their gift till the dissolution, when it came 
 successively into the hands of Sir Anthony Cook, Nicholas Bacon, Ca- 
 tharine Barefoot, &c. 
 
 Dr. Thomas Tooke purchased the advowson of Nich. Staphurst, of 
 Billericay, in 1712, and bequeathed it to Corpus Christi College, at 
 Cambridge, of which he had been a fellow. 
 
 The building is small, being not more than seventy feet in length by 
 twenty-one in breadth, and is not an object of any particular interest, 
 excepting for its interior beauty and the very fine Monuments it con- 
 tains, of which we have given a view. The Chancel, however, is orna- 
 mented with three windows of stained glass, and a fourth, containing five 
 pieces of curious old painting, viz. a representation of the Smooth Ways 
 of Sin and the Rugged Paths of Virtue; the Nativity; the Adoration of 
 the Magi; Christ walking on the Sea; and the Crucifixion: these were 
 brought from Basle in 1817, and bear a German inscription. 
 
 At the East end, upon the north side of the Altar, is a marble monu- 
 ment to the memory of Dr. Thomas Wynnyff, Bishop of Lincoln, Dean of 
 St. Paul's, and Rector of this Parish, ob. 19th Sept. 1G54, set. 78. The 
 father of the Bishop was also buried here, John Wynnyft", of Sherbourne, 
 Dorset, Gent., ob. 27th Sept. 1630, aet. 92. Opposite to the Bishop's 
 Monument is one of white and grey marble, to the memory of Dr. Tho- 
 mas Tooke, ob. 24th May, 1721, a;t. 54. 
 
 Outside the rails of the Altar, in the centre, is buried the body of the 
 Rev. Michael Tyson, B.D. F. R.S., a celebrated antiquary and Rector 
 of this Parish, who died in 1780, but no inscription records his inter- 
 ment. 
 
 1 
 
ST. MARY AND ALL SAINTS, LAMBOURNE, ESSEX. 
 
 A monument in the Chancel, and over the Communion Table eon- 
 tains the figure of Faith, after the design of Sir Joshua Reynolds, for the 
 window of New College Chapel, at Oxford ; and upon a marble tablet is 
 this inscription : 
 
 Within tlie walls of this Church rests the body of Judith, Dowager Lady Rous, 
 the daughter and heiress of John Bedingfeld, Esq., of Beeston, in Norfolk, and 
 wife of the Rev. Edward Lockwood, of Dews Hall, in this Parish and County. 
 
 In 1749' she married, 1st, to Sir John Rous, Bart., of Henham Hall, Suffolk, 
 and, by him, was the mother of John, the present Lord Rous : 2ndly, of Frances, 
 the late wife of Sir Henry Peyton, Bart. ; and 3rdly, of Louisa, wife of John 
 Birch, Esq. By her second husband she left no issue, and died in Portman 
 Square, London, September 10th, 1794. 
 
 Near unto her are likewise deposited the remains of the Rev. Edward Lockwood, 
 third son of Richard Lockwood and of Matilda A'ernon, Rector of Hanwell, in 
 Oxfordshire, and of Kingsthorp, in the county of Northampton, wlio died, January 
 22nd, 1802, aged 82 years. 
 
 His second son, Edward Lockwood Percival, Esq., having sustained with the 
 resignation and fortitude which became him, as a Christian and as a man, the 
 protracted sufferings of a severe and painful illness, departed this life, July 6th, 
 1804. June 15, 1790, he married Louisa, the second daughter of the late Lord 
 George Manners Sutton, of Kelham, in the county of Nottingham, youngest son 
 of John, the third Duke of Rutland, and by her, who died February 5th, 1800, 
 left four surviving children, viz. Edward, George Hervey, Louisa Elizabeth, and 
 Frances Lucy : 
 
 Whereof George Hervey, born February 1st, 1793, Captain in His Majesty's 
 Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, followed his excellent parents, November 
 11th, 1815. He was not more respected in the public duties of his profession 
 than respectable and beloved in the endearing intercourse of domestic life. Those 
 who knew him best will bear the readiest testimony to the merits of his cha- 
 racter, and will join with his sorrowing relations in deploring their early and 
 untimely loss. 
 Against the South wall is a Monument of white marble to the memory 
 
 of the Rev. John Tooke, A. M. ob. Nov. 6, 1745, at. 07, and of his 
 
 family : in height it is about nine feet, and of a pyramidal shape ; on the 
 
 basement is a long Latin inscription : 
 
 On the floor adjacent to the North wall of the Church is a slab, inlaid 
 
 with brass, thus inscribed : 
 
 <Df pour djarptc jrap for tlje ^oulcji of 
 
 ^Robert 2?nrefoor, €>itc?)in anD .JRcrcer of 
 
 HoiiDon, fliiD iiatljcrpnc Ijy?' '-Pi'ff ; toljyrlje 
 
 iRofacrt Dccc?"!;i!.iO i])c xxv oay of 3iunc, i54(j, on toljOiSe 
 
 ^a\ilH I'c 31 oro 3i'lju Ijatic mcrci,i. 
 
 Between the two windows of the Chancel, on the north side, is a mural 
 monument, six feet in length, and upon a pyramid of white and veined 
 marble this inscription : 
 2 
 
ST. MARY AND ALL SAINTS, LAMBOURNE, ESSEX. 
 
 Near this place lye the remains of Mrs. Matilda Lockwood, daughter of George 
 Vernon, Esq., of Sudbury, in Derbyshire, by Catherine, daughter of Sir Thomas 
 Vernon, Knt., and wife of Richard Lockwood, Esq., of Dews Hall, in this 
 parish, with whom she lived in all conjugal affection 31 years, and had a nume- 
 rous offspring, of which £ve sons and two daughters are now living. To her 
 husband she endeared herself by every act of kindness and condescension— to 
 her children by an attentive and impartial care of them, with a prudent, not in- 
 dulgent tenderness — to her relations she was respectful — with her friends re- 
 markably cheerful, open, and sincere — to all mankind affable — to her inferiors 
 very obliging ; and by all who knew her, whether near or at a distance, she was 
 esteemed one of the most amiable and best of women ; for she had all the ad- 
 vantages of a natural charming temper, accomplished behaviour, and good un- 
 derstanding, that could adorn this life ; and all the inward blessings of Christian 
 virtue and piety which might entitle her to a better. She died November 25th, 
 in the year of our Lord 1743, and 54th of her age. To whose memory her loving 
 and mournful husband put up this marble as the last tribute of his esteem. 
 
 Be it sacred likewise to the memory of Richard Lockwood, Esq., second son of 
 Richard Lockwood, Esq., of Gayton, in Northamptonshire, by Susannah, daugh- 
 ter and sole heiress of Edward Cutts, Esq. Early in life he went to Turkey to 
 improve his fortune, but his elder brother dying, to whose estate he was heir, he 
 returned to England, and being of an active disposition, not only czirried on an 
 extensive traffic for some years, but being chosen into several parliaments, gave 
 a constant attendance, serving his country and constituents with an untainted in- 
 tegrity, and unshaken firmness. In the decline of life, thinking himself incapable 
 of doing his country any farther public service, he retired from the fatigues of bu- 
 siness to his seat at Dews Hall, and passed the last scene of his life in a cheeifiil 
 enjoyment of his family and friends, and a truly religious service of his God. 
 Thus prepared, he arrived at that period of life, which at best is but labour and 
 sorrow, and by a gradual decay, expired on the 31st day of August, 1756, in the 
 78th year of his age. 
 
 On the other side of the north window of the Chancel is an elegant 
 monument of white marble, by the late Joseph Wilton, R. A., bearing 
 a figure of Hope reclining upon an urn, in alto relievo : upon the urn are 
 the arms of Lockwood, impaling Conyers, and this inscription on the 
 base — 
 
 Near this place are interred the remains of John Lockwood, Esq., second son of 
 Richard Lockwood, of Dews Hall, in this county. He married JMatilda, second 
 daughter of Edward Conyers, Esq., of Copt Hall, in Essex, by whom he had a 
 daughter, Matilda, born April 8th, 1763, now living. This memorial was erected 
 by his afflicted widow in the year of our Lord 1778. In the same vault, are since 
 deposited, the remains of the above-mentioned Matilda Lockwood, widow, who 
 surviving her husband upwards of sixteen years, died June 3rd, 1793, in the 
 sixty-seventh year of her age. 
 
 Opposite to this last is a monument of a pyramidal form, bearing the 
 arms of Lockwood, impaling Vernon, and this inscription : 
 
 Sacred to the memory of Anna Catharina, wife of Richard Lockwood, Esq., of 
 Dews Hall, in this parish. She died on May 31st, 1757, aged 47 years. In the 
 same vault are interred the remains of the aforesaid Richard Lockwood, Esq., who 
 died on Blarch 25th, 1797, aged 84 years. 
 3 
 
ST. MARY AND ALL SAINTS, LAMBOURNE, ESSEX, 
 
 In the large window, on the right hand, and which adjoins the Chan- 
 cel, is a marble tablet, with this inscription : 
 
 To the affectionately beloved, and truly honoiired raemor)- of Matilda Lockwood 
 Maydwell, who, in the bloom of youth, resigned herself to her God, on the 
 22nd of March, A. D. 1800, and to her infant daughter, aged three weeks and 
 two days, the much afHicted husband and father erects this small token of his 
 sincerest regard. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, but blessed be 
 the name of the Lord. 
 
 Arms of Lockwood, impaling Maydwell and Lockwood. 
 
 In the Churchyard is the tomb of Admiral Sir Edward Hughes, K. B. 
 late ofChigwell, in this county, ob. 17th January, 1794, xt. 77. Lady 
 Ruth Hughes, his wife, ob. 30th Sept. 1800, set. 69. David Ball, 
 Esq., late of Bishops Hall, in this parish, ob. 17th Aug. 1798, at. 38. 
 Captain Henry Ball, R. N. ob. 6th Aug. 1792, aet. 38; her sons by 
 her first husband. 
 
ESSEX; 
 
 VICAR, 
 REV. THOMAS JEE, M. A. 
 
 Thaxted is situated on the river Chelmer, near its source, in the 
 Hundred of Dunmovv. On comparing the stately Church with the 
 Town in which it stands, one can scarcely forbear wishing to know by 
 what means so fair and costly a structure arose. It is true the Town 
 was formerly of more consequence than it is at present, but the abilities 
 of the inhabitants, even in its most flourishing state, would appear 
 greatly inadequate to an undertaking, which in the present period would 
 require more than ten years' rents of the whole parish, and when lands 
 were less improved, must have cost double that sum to complete it. 
 
 None of the rates, or other accounts respecting the first rise of the 
 building are extant, but during the whole time in which it was carrying 
 on, wherever the churchwardens are mentioned, we always find four of 
 them. AVithin the same period, in one small part of the Parish, many 
 donations of land occur, which were immediately sold, and it is pre. 
 sumed, were given to raise money for promoting the work at the Church. 
 If the donations in other parts of the Parish were equally liberal, the 
 sums supplied by them must have been very considerable, and will suf- 
 ficiently account for the display of many armorial bearings on the ceiling 
 of the Church, which are known to have belonged to the inhabitants, it 
 being usual to place the arms of benefactors in a conspicuous situation. 
 Archbishop Parker, in a letter to the Lord Treasurer and Queen Eli- 
 zabeth, thus writes, " I am requested to signifie at whose charges the 
 reparations of the Chaunsell of Thaxted, appropriated to the Priory of 
 Stoke, whereof I was the late Dean, ought to be done. Your Honours 
 shall understand, that the College did use to bear the Charges, ex- 
 cepting that for the glazing, the College bore two parts, and the Vicar 
 the third; and thus pray 1 your good Honours to extend your favour 
 for convenient allowance in the maintayning of such fair edifices, builded 
 of good zeal and devotion of our predecessors, to God's Glory, and the 
 comfort of the people, which in that Parish are very great. Thus, I 
 commit your Honours, &c. Lambeth, 12<A September." The year is 
 not mentioned, but on 25th February, 1562, a warrant was issued from 
 the Marquess of Winchester, Lord Treasurer, for the repairs of this 
 Church. It is certain, however, that the parishioners of Thaxted were 
 1 
 
THAXTEH CHURCH, ESSEX. 
 
 greatly assisted in finishing the structure by several noble personages 
 connected with the Church and the college at Stoke, in Suffolk. 
 
 Eluric, a noble Saxon, founded seven prebends in the Church of 
 Clare, in Suffolk, temp. Edward the Confessor, of which the Church of 
 Thaxted and the tithes of the domain of Clare made one. 
 
 Gilbert de Clare annexed that Church to the Abbey of Bee, in Nor- 
 mandy, in the year 1090. Richard, his son, upon rebuilding his Castle at 
 Clare, removed this eudowment to the neighbouring Parish of Stoke, 
 iu 11-24. 
 
 Richard II., in the year 1395, discharged them from their dependence 
 on the Norman Abbey of Bee. This Monastery, at Stoke, was by 
 King Edward IV., converted into a College, consisting of a dean and 
 six canons, under the patronage of the House of York, iu whom it 
 remained till the time of Edward VI., but in the first year of his reign it 
 was dissolved. 
 
 The dimensions of the Church at Thaxted, withinside, exclusive of 
 the thickness of the walls, and the projection of the buttresses, is 183 
 feet in length, and 87 feet in breadth. It is built Cathedral wise, with 
 a transept between the body and Chancel, and a noble Tower and 
 Spire ; the latter of which having been greatly damaged by lightning in 
 the year 1814, was wholly rebuilt about 182'2, by ]\Ir. Chesshyre, of 
 Over M'hitaker, near Coleshill, Warwickshire ; the repairs to the Tower, 
 including all expenses of carrying the stone. Sec. amounted to about 1,100/. 
 
 As the architecture throughout is of the pointed kind, no part is pre- 
 sumed to be older than the reign of Henry III., at which time indeed 
 the benefactions of the inhabitants of Thaxted, to the neighbouring 
 Abbey of Tiltey, were more frequent than is consistent with the de- 
 mands of so great an object for the exercise of their piety at home. 
 
 This Church was most probably commenced in the reign of Edward 
 III., but its several parts have been evidently erected at different times, 
 as appears from the variety of style in the architecture, and from other 
 circumstances. 
 
 PLATE I.— SOUTH-EAST VIEW. 
 
 The South Aisle and South Transept are unquestionably the oldest 
 parts of the Church, butitisdiiScult to assign a priority to either ; the lat- 
 ter indeed bears upon it the greatest marks of decay, but the former has 
 undergone the most repairs. The South Aisle is the most plain, having 
 no pilasters for its ornament on the interior, and had originally no but- 
 tresses for its support; the mullions of its windows are of a more sim- 
 ple, and consequently cheaper form than any others in the whole 
 Church, and the glass first placed in them appears to have been plain ; 
 the painted windows, which have since adorned this Aisle, being cer- 
 tainly of a more recent date than the fabric itself. 
 2 
 
THAXTED CHURCH, ESSEX. 
 
 The South Transept presents a dift'erent appearance, and no expense 
 seems to have been spared ; from some circumstances it is supposed 
 this portion of the building was erected by the munificence of a lady. 
 The twelve smaller lights in the great window seem to have been origi- 
 nally filled with representations of female saints ; of these, four are still 
 known by their attributes to be St. Mary, St. Affra, St. Catharine, and 
 St. Petronilla. 
 
 Elizabeth de Clare was at this time patroness of the monastery of 
 Stoke, and it is not unlikely, that from her encouragement, this building 
 was proceeded with. The arras of AViliiam de Burgh, Earl of Ulster, 
 son to Lady Clare, occur, upon the entrance into the nave, in four of its 
 windows, which part is supposed to have been built before his death, 
 about 1340. The Font is of very particular structure, and the resem- 
 blance in style between it and the monument which Edward III. erected 
 for his father, shews it to be nearly coeval with the nave in which it 
 stands. 
 
 The South Porch was evidently erected after the Aisle, and most 
 probably subsequent to the nave of the Church : a coronet over the arch 
 of entrance denotes it to have been the benefaction of a noble person. 
 It is therefore concluded, that Lionel, Duke of Clarence, was the 
 founder, from his family connexion with the House of Clare. The 
 North Aisle and North Transept are attributed to Edmund Morti- 
 mer, Earl of March and Ulster, to whom three-fourths of the Manor of 
 Thaxted belonged. In the principal window of the north Transept is re- 
 presented a knight in armour, bearing on his shield the arms of Mortimer. 
 The Earl died in 1381, before the windows, on this side, are presumed 
 to have been completed ; for amongst the badges, the rose, en soleil, the 
 cognizance of Edward IV. was conspicuous, as well as a dragon wreath- 
 ed round a stump, or ragged staff. This part of the Church was greatly 
 damaged by a storm, December 2, 1763, when the painted windows were 
 nearly destroyed, but the figure of the Earl of Mortimer was most fortu- 
 nately preserved, and replaced at the re-erection of the north window in 
 1765. 
 
 The arms of 3Iarch and Ulster, in the groined roof of the tower of the 
 church, seem to indicate the hand of a Mortimer engaged in its founda- 
 tion. 
 
 The Tower of the Church, containing eight bells, is of very fine pro- 
 portion, and the spire uncommonly elegantt it is embellished with large 
 crockets on the angles, and for its needle-like appearance, so much ad- 
 mired in structures of this kind, few parish spires will fall under our 
 notice, which exceed that we are here treating of. 
 
 The whole fabric, excepting the north porch, may be considered as 
 having been completed about the year 1465. It has, however, been sug- 
 gested, that the old church was not taken down, until the present one was 
 3 
 
THAXTED CHURCH, ESSEX. 
 
 nearly completed, as there are vestiges of the old foundation on the 
 south and east sides, and this in some measure accounts for the Chancel 
 being of later construction than the aisles and other parts of the church. 
 
 PLATE II.— VIEW OF THE NORTH PORCH. 
 
 The North Porch was undoubtedly constructed by the munificence 
 of King Edward IV., but at a subsequent period of his reign. In two 
 large compartments are seen the Royal Arms, and in the arches of 
 the two windows, over these arms, are sculptured, two crowns, sup- 
 ported each of them by a hand, and below, upon the jambs of each 
 window, are heads of men and women. Between the windows is a very 
 rich canopied niche, formerly containing a statue of the Virgin Mary, 
 and having at its base the emblems of the Holy Trinity. 
 
 Badges of Henry VIII. and Catharine of Arragon, appear in the 
 south aisle, as the portcullis, pomegranates, a rose charged with a bend, 
 &c. At the spring of the arch, at the east end of the aisle, are a Jleur 
 de lis, heads of lions, roses, &c. opposite to which is the Martyrdom of 
 St. Catharine. In one of the windows also, over the arms of Plantage- 
 net, is the figure of St. Catharine, with her right hand on a wheel, and 
 her left resting on a naked sword. Of the arms in the roof of this aisle, 
 one belonged to the Heggs, a family which flourished here as early as 
 Edward III., another to the Yaldyns of the same period. 
 
 The Benefaction of Henry and his Queen was probably made about 
 1521, when they passed through Thaxted, on their way to Easton Lodge, 
 or Horeham Hall. On the roof of the south aisle are seen the water 
 bougets, and bourchier knot, the well known cognizances of Henry, Earl 
 of Essex, temp. Henry VIII. 
 
 The Nave, or Body of this Church, appears not to have sufficient 
 width in proportion to its length, when compared with the aisles. The 
 pillars also which support it are plain, and the arches heavy ; but the 
 beautiful windows in the clerestory amply recompense these defects. 
 
 PLATE III.— VIEW OF THE EAST END, INTERIOR. 
 
 The period of the erection of the Chancel may be ascertained by an 
 examination of the armorial bearings in the various parts. Besides many 
 of the badges of the House of York, in the windows of the north aisle 
 are the royal arras of Edward IV. almost entire, with the remains of 
 other shields, containing the arms and quarterings of Plantagenet, 
 March, Ulster, and Geneville, fragments of a male, and a female figure, 
 &c. The carvings on the reading desks represent heads and paws of 
 lions, dragons, pelicans, roses, falcons, and swans, together with a con- 
 tinued series of griffins and lions placed near the basement. The East 
 window is now filled with modern painted glass, containing the arms and 
 cognizances from the roof of the church. 
 4 
 
THAXSTEB) CBLlTmCH 
 
 If OBTH y ORC H 
 
 :e.££raitS STSl^alffria^^ ^-■. 
 
THAXTED CHURCH, ESSEX. 
 
 Niches and piscias, still remaining iu the transepts, and at the east 
 ends of the aisles of the chancel, belonged to distinct chapels. Two 
 of these were called The Chapel of the Holy Trinity, and St. Anne's 
 Chapel ; a third, from the ornaments upon the roof, made, it appears, at 
 the expense of Thomas Drought, and Agnes his wife, may have been a 
 Chapel of our Lady, and the fourth probably belonged to St. John the 
 Baptist, whose Guild, and that of the Holy Rood, were the principal. 
 According to some authorities the Church was originally dedicated to 
 St. John the Baptist, though others mention the Virgin Mary and St. 
 Lawrence for its patrons. Besides the High Altar, with the lights be- 
 fore the Crucifix in the Rood Loft, there were iu this Church the Altar 
 of St. Lawrence, with Our Lady's light there ; the Altars of St. Mar- 
 garet and St. Thomas, of Canterbury ; and the lights of St. James, St. 
 Catharine, The Holy Virgin, St. George the Martyr, and St. Peter. 
 The best piece of painted glass in the Church has been at the east end 
 of the north aisle of the Chancel ; the subject is Abraham going to oflFer 
 his Son, and enough of it is left to make us wish the whole was re- 
 maining. 
 
 The tradition of a miracle that was wrought here, is said to be com- 
 memorated by the following inscription : 
 
 psi t])t .JEiraficn of our 
 
 ;|)})CiijpDe bp anc^ ©Enttnortl). 
 
 The painting to which this served as a title is defaced, but the person 
 who gave it a place in the Church, was of the family of Wentworth, to 
 whom, from the 18th year of Edward IV., a fourth part of the Manor of 
 Thaxtcd belonged. 
 
 The following Inventory occurs amongst the parish papers, and seems 
 to have been taken on the Guild day of the Saints mentioned in it, by 
 the fraternity who had the superintendence of their altar. 
 
 Memorandum that theis be the Rudiments ' perteyning to Our Lady, and 
 
 Our Lady Anny. 
 
 Imprimis : A Book and Chalice. 
 
 Item : A Vestment of red, and anodyr of purpull, and the third of murreyn, with all the 
 
 thyngs perteyning to theym except Gyrdill. 
 One Garment of blew Vellvey t ; a crown, with stones sett in silver ; a pair of Beids of 
 
 Curall, with Gawds * of silver with silver Tangs, ' six Perils, two Walsyngham Bruches. ■* 
 A Garment of Black Velvett, with one pair of Beids of Jeitts,^ with Gauds of silver ; two 
 
 Stons of Cristal; a Tang of silver; a Walslngham Broch. 
 A Pax Brodd ; two Avytts j^ a Pelow of silk ; a Covercloth ; a Corprax ;' two Candilstyks 
 
 with Pyills,» and the third without Pyills ; eight Awtur Clothes ; three Towels. 
 Four Suytts of Hangyngs about the Auter ; three painted Cloths. 
 
 ' Roodments. ® Ornaments, 3 Taggs. * Broches, sucli as our Lady 
 
 of ^Valsingham wore. * .Tett. ' Books containing the Ave Bfary, or service to 
 
 the Virgin. ' A paten for the Holy AVafers. ' The stem between the socket 
 
 and foot of the candlestick. 
 
THAXTED CHURCH, ESSEX. 
 
 Tbe Monks of Stoke supplied this Church with chaplains, until Roger 
 Niger, Bishop of London, caused a Vicarage to be endowed here in 
 the reign of Henry III. There was a Chantry here under the direction 
 of the Guild of St. John the Baptist, from the time of Edward III. or 
 sooner, the clear value of which at the suppression was 9/. lis. l|d., of 
 this C/. 6s. Sd. was paid yearly to the Chaplain. 
 
 Besides this Chantry, there was a multitude of Obits, of which the 
 Vicar had the celebration. 
 
 There was formerly an Organ in this Church, which appears by an 
 entry, 10th June, 3d Edward VI. John Aburforthe, the Churchwarden, 
 charges in his accounts, 1/. 6s. 8d. for a year's salary paid to the Organ 
 player. It does not appear when this Organ was erected, but most pro- 
 bably it was in the reign of Edward IV., soon after the completion of 
 the Churcli. In 1481, Robert AVedow, Bachelor in Music, was made 
 Vicar here. From the paintings and sculptures in and about the great 
 window of the North Transept, many of which have allusion to music, 
 that part of the Church seems to have been intended for the Organ, and 
 the situation of the pew belonging to the singers, which until within these 
 few years adjoined the North Transept, makes it likely that this was the 
 place of it. 
 
 William Humfrey, by his will dated 1498, and several other persons 
 by theirs, direct the Dirge and Requiem to be performed according to 
 the laudable use of the Town of Thaxted. 
 
 In 1757, and the following year, near 600 pounds were expended in 
 the repair of the Tower and Spire of this Church; on which occasion, 
 for the aid of their tenants and other parishioners. 
 
 The Right Honorable Lord Maynard gave . . £100 
 
 Charles Smyth, Esq. of Hill Hall ... 25 
 The Governors of Guy's Hospital . . .20 
 
 John Wale, Esq. of Colne Priory . . .10 
 
 In gratitude for which donations the arras of these benefactors were 
 erected over the west door, by a voluntary contribution amongst the 
 principal inhabitants of the place. Lord Maynard was a farther bene- 
 factor to the Church in the year 17C5, by rebuilding the windows, and 
 otherwise repairing the east side of the North Porch. 
 
 We have been much indebted to Mr. A. Clarence, Surgeon, Thaxted, 
 for the loan of a very curious Manuscript, from which many copious ex- 
 tracts have been made for this Account. 
 
 Charles Lord V^iscount Maynard is the patron, and the Rev. William 
 Biggs, A. M. is the present curate. 
 

THEYDON MOUNT, ESSEX ; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 REV. RICHARD SMYTH, A.M. 
 
 Theydon Mount is a small parish distant from Epping about three 
 miles, it received its name from standing on high ground, and is a rec- 
 tory appendant to the manor. The Church was burnt by lightning, and 
 was rebuilt by the first Sir William Smyth, of Hill Hall. In the Chan- 
 cel, of which we have given the view of the North Side, are several 
 costly monuments of the ancient family of Smyth; the tomb nearest to 
 the altar, on the right hand side of our plate, bears the following in- 
 scription, at the back of the arch, immediately over the cumbent figure. 
 
 Thomas Smithus Eques Auratus, Hujus Manerii D'n's, cum Regis Edvardi sexti ; 
 turn Elizabetha; Reginas Consiliarius ; ac primi nominis secretarius, eorundemque, 
 Principum ad Maximos Reges legatus, Nobilis ordinis Garterii Cancellarius, Arda;, 
 Australisque Claneboy ia Hibernia Colonellus, Juris Civilis supremo titulo etiam 
 cum adolescens insignitus, Orator, Mathematicus, Philosophus excellentissimus, 
 linguarum Latinae, Gra^ca;, Hebraica?, Gallica! etiam et Italicae calentissimus. Pro- 
 borum et ingeniosorum homiuum fautor eximius plurimus commodans, neminl no- 
 cens, ab injuriis ulciscendis alienissimus. Deniq ; sapientia, pietate, iijtegritate 
 insignis, et in orani vita seu ager seu valens intrepidus mori, cum statis sua; 65 
 annum complevisset in adibus suis Montaulensibus 12° die Augusti, anno salu- 
 tis, 1577, pie et suaviter in Domino obdormivit. 
 
 Beneath the effigies of the knight, is the following words : 
 
 Gloria vitae contractsE celebrem facit in terrae visceribus sepultum. 
 Innocuus vixi ; si me post funera Ixdas 
 Ccelesti Domino facta, sceleste, lues. 
 
 Around the arch of the canopy of the monument is inscribed, 
 
 What yearth or sea or skies contayne, what creatures in them be. 
 My mind did seeke to know the Heavens continually. 
 
 Above the entablature, on the top of the monument, is the arms of the 
 family, within a circular compartment, viz. Sable, a fess dancctte argent 
 billeti of the first, between three lions rampant gardant of the second, each 
 suppmting an altar or, flaming proper. Over the arras is the crest. A 
 salamander in flames proper. Around the coat is this motto, seemingly 
 allusive of the crest, 
 
 TabiScus quam vis serpens oppressarit ignem 
 Qua ta'.ntn erumpendi sit data copia lucet. 
 
ST. MICHAELS CHURCH, THEYDON MOUNT, ESSEX. 
 
 On the south side of the Chancel, opposite to the monument above de- 
 scribed, is another very superb, and probably the most expensive in the 
 Church, to the memory of Sir MlUiam Smyth, Knt., of Hill Hall, who 
 rebuilt this Church, and died 12th December, 1626, at. 76. Both the 
 knight and his lady are represented by cumbent figures, as well as their 
 three sons and four daughters, who are all placed beneath in the atti- 
 tude of devotion. 
 
 The altar-tomb, seen in our view on the left hand side of the plate, 
 bears the following inscription in the centre panel of the front. 
 
 Here lieth the body of Sir William Smyth, Knt., sonne of Sir William Smyth, of 
 Theydon Jlount, in the county of Essex : where, after many sweet expressions of 
 his confidence ia the mercies of his Saviour, in the two and thirtieth year of his 
 age, he peaceably slept in our Lord Jesus. 
 
 He had two wives, the first, Helegenwagh, the daughter of the Right Hon. Ed- 
 ward Viscount Conway ; by her he had one only sonne and heir, Edward, and two 
 daughters. The second, Anne, descended of the ancient family of Crofts, in Hert- 
 fordshire, is yet living, who as a testimony of her loyall affection, erected this 
 to the memory of her dear consort deceased, on the 5th March, 1631. 
 
 His effigy, with those of his two wives, are placed upon the tomb ; the 
 latter represented kneeling in attitudes of devotion. 
 
 The mural monument over the last-mentioned, is thus inscribed : 
 
 Sir Edward Smyth, of Hill Hall, in the county of Essex, BarL, son of Sir Thomas 
 Smyth, of tlie same place, BarL, who married Jane, the only daughter of Peter 
 Vandeput, Esq., late of the city of London, merchant. He had by her several 
 children, who all died young, except his son Sir Edward Smyth, who erected this 
 monument to the pious memory of his most dear father, who departed this life 
 the 24th day of June, 1713, aged 76. Daihe Jane departed this life, Jan. 28, 
 1720, aged 67. 
 
 Nearer to the altar of the Church, against the same wall, is another 
 monument, belonging to the same family, with this inscription : 
 
 Here lies the body of Sir Edward Smyth, Bart., of Hill Hall, in this parish, son of 
 Sir Edward Smyth, and Jane, daughter of Peter Vandeput, Esq., whom his com- 
 panions well knew to be a man of integrity, strict justice, and good morals. He 
 had two wives, the first Anne, daughter of the Right Hon. Sir Charles Hedges, 
 Secretary of State, by whom he had five sons and one daughter. And Elizabeth, 
 daughter of John Wood, of London, Esq. 
 
 The estate was formerly in the possession of the family of Hampden. 
 Sir John Hampden married Philippa, daughter of John Wilford, of Lou- 
 don, by whom he left no issue. After his decease, she became the se- 
 cond wife of Sir Thomas Smythe, Secretary of State to Queen Eliza- 
 beth, and in his descendants the living now remains. The present Rector 
 is brother of the late patron, Sir William Smyth, Bart, many years 
 Colonel of the West Essex Militia, who departed this life 1st May, 
 1823, OBt. 77. There is a monument erected to his memory in the south 
 aisle, corresponding with that of his father and mother in the north aisle. 
 2 
 
I 
 
Bt fames' C!)utc!j, 
 
 CAMPDEN, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 VICARAGE, VACANT. 
 
 Campden is celebrated in the early period of history as the traditional 
 place of Congress of all the kings of the Saxon Heptarchy, where they 
 deliberated upon the best mode of carrying on the war with the Britons ; 
 the town is situated in a fertile and well cultivated valley, twenty-eight 
 miles north-east from the city of Gloucester. 
 
 The Church is a magnificent structure, worthy of the period in which 
 it was erected, which, from the style of the architecture, tradition, and 
 other circumstances, is supposed to have been about the beginning of 
 the reign of Richard II. The massive and ornamented Tower, its grand 
 feature, rises in very fine proportion, the height of 105 feet to the upper 
 mouldings, exclusive of the open embattled parapet, enriched with pin- 
 nacles, twelve in number, which give an aerial lightness to the structure: 
 this Tower contains a very fine peal of eight bells. The whole length of 
 the Church, from the west to the east end, is 130 feet, and the width of 
 the Nave and side Aisles is 57 feet ; the height of the Nave is 60 feet. 
 The Chancel is spacious, and underwent a considerable repair in the 
 reign of Charles I., at the expense of Sir Baptist Hicks, the first 
 Lord Campden. He also built the wall round the Church-yard, presented 
 the Communion plate, gave the decorations for the Pulpit, and a large 
 brass eagle, which stands in the middle of the Church, and holds a 
 Bible. Lord Campden also endowed the Vicarage with ^art of the 
 great tythes of Winfrith and West Lulworth, in Dorsetshire. 
 
 On the north side of the Chancel is a curious monument of stone, 
 very finely sculptured, to the memory of Thomas Smith, Esq., to whom 
 the Manor of Campden was granted by Queen Elizabeth ; he died in 
 1593. 
 
 In the middle of a Chapel on the south side stands a most magnificent 
 monument, bearing the effigies of Viscount Campden and his Lady. On 
 the north side of the tomb is the following : 
 
 To the memorie of her deaie and deceased Husband, Baptist Lord Hicks, Viscount 
 Campden, borne of a worthy family in the Citie of London ; who, by the blessing 
 of God on his ingenious endeavors, arose to an ample estate, and to the foresaid 
 degrees of honour : and, out of those blessings, disposed to Charitable uses, in his 
 lifetime, a large portion to the value of 10,000i., who lived religiously, vertuously, 
 and generously, to the age of 78 yeares, and died Octo. 18, 1629. 
 1 
 
ST. JAMES' CHURCH, CAMPDEN. 
 
 ELIZABETH, VISCOUNTESSE CAMPDEN, 
 
 His deare Consort, borne of the family of the Rlays ; lived his Wife in all peace and 
 contentment, the space of 45 years ; leaving issue by her said Lord and Husband 
 two daughters, Juliana, married to Edward Lord Noel, now Viscount Campden, 
 and Mary, married to Sir Charles Morison, Kut., and Baronett, hath piously and 
 carefully caused this monument to be erected as a testimonie of their mutuall love, 
 where both their bodies may rest together in expectation of a joyfuU resurrection. 
 
 On the south side the monument is an inscription reciting the benefits 
 he conferred upon this town, addressed, "Ad Terrain Campdenicam." 
 
 In the same Chapel, upon the south side, is a monument, with the effi- 
 gies of Lord and Lady Campden : upon two folding doors, on each side 
 of them, are the following inscriptions : 
 
 This monument is erected to preserve the memory and po>irtrai( of the Right Honor- 
 able Sir Edward Noel, \'icount Campden. Baron Noel of Ridlington and Hicks of 
 Ilmington, a Lord of heroic high parts and presence. He was Knight Banneret in 
 the wars of Ireland, being young, and then created Baronet, anno lOH. He was 
 afterwards made Baron of Ridlington. The other titles came unto him by right of 
 Dame Juliana, his wife, who stands collaterall to him in this monument ; a lady of 
 extraordinary great endowments, both of virtue and fortune. This goodly Lord 
 died at Oxford at the beginning of the late fatal Civil Wars, whither he went to 
 serve and assist his Souverain Prince, Charles the First. And so was exalted to 
 the kingdome of glory, 8" Martii, 1642. 
 
 The Lady Juliana, eldest daughter and ro-heir of that mirror of his time. Sir 
 Baptist Hicks, Viscount Campden ; she was married to that noble Lord, who is 
 here engraven by her ; by whom she had Baptist, Lord \'iscount Campden, now 
 living, who is blessed with a numerous and gallant issue ; Henry, her second son, 
 died a prisoner, for his loyalty to his Prince. Her eldest daughter, Elizabeth, was 
 married to John, Viscount Chaworth. Mary, her second daughter, to the very 
 noble Knight, Sir Erasmus de la Fontaine ; Penelope, her youngest daughter, died 
 a maid. This excellent Lady, for the pious and unparalleled affections she re- 
 tained to the memory of her deceased Lord, caused this stately monument to be 
 erected in her lifetime, in September, Anno Dom. 1664. 
 
 A beautiful monument fixed to the wall at the east end of this Chapel, 
 commemorates Penelope Noel, their daughter, who died May 17, 1633. 
 
 At the east end of the north Aisle is a large altar-tomb for Mr. Robert 
 Lilly, uncle to the celebrated astrologer of that name ; he died 21st of 
 October, 1036, aet. 54 ; there is also a neat monument to AViliiam Bar- 
 tholomew, A. M., Vicar of this Church, who died 11th October, 1600, 
 
 ■Ml. J6. 
 
 lu the middle Aisle is a marble slab inlaid with brass, and with the 
 effigies of " Wilelmus Grevel* de Campedeni quondam Civis Londini et 
 tlos m'cator. lanar. totius Anglie, qui ob. 1401," and of " Mariona uxor 
 predict! Wilelmi, qui ob. 1386." 
 
 We are much indebted to the Rev. W. Spooner, the late Vicar of 
 this Church, and to the Rev. R. O. Wilson, the resident Curate, for 
 their corrections in this account. 
 
 * Tradition relates, that he built the tower and a considerable part of the Church at his 
 own expense. A curious old house in the town is still shewn as the habitation of Lis family. 
 
• 
 # 
 
 
%i)t Cf)urt}) of ^t. Jofin tije Baptist, 
 
 CIRENCESTER, GLOUCESTERSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. HENRY ANTHONY PYE. 
 
 The Town of Cirencester was accounted the metropolis of the large 
 province of the Dobuni amongst the ancient Britons, and was called 
 Corinium Dobunoriim by the Romans. It was an eminent station for 
 the Roman armies, and it is even said that the Emperor Constantine 
 was crowned King of the Britons here. Canute, after his return from 
 Denmark in the year 1020, held a general council of the kingdom, at 
 Easter, in this town, wherein Ethelwold was outlawed. Cirencester was 
 also remarkable in ancient times for its ecclesiastical history, a college 
 having been founded here in the period of the Anglo-Saxons, of which 
 Rumbald, Chancellor of England, was Dean in the reign of Edward the 
 Confessor. King Henry I. repaired the College, and built a Monastery for 
 Black Canons of the order of St. Augustine in the year 1117, which was 
 dedicated to St. Mary and St. James, and endowed with a large revenue. 
 This was a Mitred Abbey, and had place in Parliament: twenty-nine 
 abbots in succession governed this monastery, which at the dissolution 
 was valued at 1,0.57/. 7s. lid. per annum. 
 
 The Church of St. John the Baptist, of which we have given three 
 Views, is considered to be one of the most magnificent parochial edi- 
 fices in the kingdom ; there were formerly two other churches in this 
 town, St. Cecilia and St. Lawrence, situated in the streets still called by 
 those names. The former is now a private dwelling, and the latter was 
 converted into an hospital, the mastership of which had been granted by 
 privy seal for life, and tlie family of the Georges were long masters 
 thereof. — Atkyns's Hist. p. 180. 
 
 St. John's Church consists of a large Body, or Nave, seventy-seven 
 feet in length by seventy-four feet in breadth, including its lateral aisles ; 
 a Chancel, fifty feet long, and twenty-four broad ; a lofty, well propor- 
 tioned Tower, crowned with enriched battlements, and surmounted by 
 pinnacles at the angles, rises at the west end^ and handsome Porches on 
 the north and south sides ; adjoining to the Body and Chancel are five 
 chapels, dedicated to Jesus, St. John, St. Catharine, St. Mary, and the 
 Holy Trinity. 
 
 The South Porch, Plate I., is very large and lofty, having its front 
 towards the Market Place. It was erected in the early part of the reign 
 of Henry VIII., when Aveline, the aunt of Thomas Ruthall, Bishop of 
 1 
 
 f 
 
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, CIRENCESTER, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 Durham, a native ofthis town, gave a hundred marks towards the building. 
 His mother also and the parishioners contributed largely to its completion. 
 Over the entrance to the Church is the Town Hall, where the General 
 Sessions are often held. Anciently the Porches of our Churches were, it 
 is known, occasionally used for holding temporal courts, but more fre- 
 quently a priest was accustomed to educate the children of the parish in 
 the Porch, whence it was sometimes called the Parvise, a Purvis pueris 
 ibi edoctis. Chaucer, Prol. 9, alluding to both customs, speaks of 
 
 a Serjeant at Hain, toare an& toi.sic, 
 arijat i)aD often been at tfie g»prVii^e. 
 
 The Acolites in ancient times addressed the congregation from the Porch 
 previous to their entering the Church, and Marriages were partly per- 
 formed in the Porch, whence the bride's dower was denominated Dos 
 ad ostiu77i Ecclesice. 
 
 On each side of the entrance are large chambers, now converted into 
 mean dwellings ; the ceiling of the entrance is groined with pendents 
 and fan tracery, very rich. 
 
 Plate II. is a view of the East end of the Church from the Church- 
 yard, and which shews the various forms of the east windows of the 
 Chancel, Jesus Chapel, and the Chapel of St. Mary, erected at different 
 periods; over these are seen the rich battlements of the body of the Church, 
 and its noble Tower. Near the door, in the South Aisle, is the ancient 
 Font, a modern Font has been placed at the west end of the Centre 
 Aisle. The Organ is at the east end, occupying, as is usual in Ca- 
 thedrals, the place over the screen. The Body of the Church is so 
 crowded with pews and partitions of modern erection, as to destroy 
 much of the beautiful effect of the building when in its less encumbered 
 state; much, however, is to be admired in the bold moulding of the arches 
 of the Nave and the groining of the ceiling. A large and richly mullioned 
 window at the west end contains some very fine specimens of ancient 
 painted glass ; there is also another window, so adorned, at tlie east end 
 over the altar. On one window are delineated the full length effigies of 
 Peter, King of Castile; of Richard, Duke of York; of Thomas, Duke of 
 Surrey; of Richard, Earl of Salisbury; and of Sir John Jenevill; the 
 latter of whom was buried in this Church. In an east window of the 
 North Aisle is a large full length representation of Richard, Duke of 
 York, Earl of Cambridge, &c. Ac. in his paternal coat armour, having 
 upon the pommel of his sword the arms of Mortimer, Earl of JMarch. 
 
 One Window so decorated is esteemed a great curiosity ; it contains 
 figures of all the ecclesiastical orders of the Church of Rome, from the 
 Pope to the Mendicant Friar. 
 
 In the Chancel is a monumental inscription, exhibiting the very essence 
 of true poetry ; 
 3 
 
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, CIRENCESTER, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 M. S. 
 
 Egregii Juvenis 
 
 RADULPH WILLET SELFE. 
 
 Vultu honesto, 
 
 Pectore Generoso, 
 
 IMoribus placidissimis. 
 
 Annum agens decimum sextum : 
 
 Caras parentibus, 
 
 Cams preceptoribus, 
 
 Virtute quam annis maturior. 
 
 Diem obiit supremum xi Kal. Feb. mdcclviii. 
 
 Vale Anima dulcissima ! 
 
 Against one of the pillars on the north side of the Church near the 
 Altar is the Pulpit, of stone, with sculptured mouldings and panels. 
 
 Jesus Chapel, at the east end of the south aisle, is small, being not 
 more than twelve feet long, and nine feet broad ; near this is the Cha- 
 pel dedicated to St. John, which is thirty-four feet by twenty-four, and 
 contains, on the north side, a large and handsome Monument to the me- 
 mory of George Monox, Esq., a native of this town, to which he was 
 also a great benefactor. He was an eminent merchant, and Sheriff of 
 London, and died in the year 1638. 
 
 St. Catharine's Chapel, on the north side of the Chancel, was founded 
 by Thomas Ruthall, Bishop of Durham, in the reign of Henry VIII., 
 and the immediate predecessor of Cardinal Wolsey in that See. He 
 was a person remarkable for his learning and prudence, and was exe- 
 cutor to Henry VII., and afterwards privy-counsellor to Henry VIII. ; 
 he died at his palace in London, in the year 1522, and lies buried in 
 the Chapel of St. John the Baptist, in Westminster Abbey.* This Cha- 
 pel is fifty-four feet long, and only thirteen feet wide; the roof is most 
 beautifully groined with fan tracery sculptured in stone. St. Mary's 
 Chapel, longer than any of the before-mentioned, is upon the north-east, 
 having St. Catharine's Chapel on the south side of it. It was anciently 
 endowed with great revenues ; the Chapel is forty-seven feet long, and 
 twenty-one feet broad, and contains a large monument to the memory 
 of Humphrey Brydges and his wife, both great benefactors to the town 
 of Cirencester : he died in the year 1598. 
 
 There is also, in the same Chapel, a very handsome monument of Sir 
 William Master, Knt., of Cirencester, and Alice his wife, the daughter 
 of Edward Estcourt, Esq., of Salisbury. Sir William was High Sheriff 
 of Gloucestershire, in 1627, and was distinguished for his piety, pru- 
 dence, and loyalty, throughout the great rebellion, in which he was 
 sequestered, and compounded for 1,483Z. He served in parliament for 
 this borough, and died in 1661. 
 
 Under the above is an alabaster figure of the eldest son of Sir Wil- 
 liam. Thomas Master, Esq., who married Elizabeth, sister of Sir Tho- 
 
 * His Monument is engraved in Neale's History of Westminster Abbey, vol. ii. 
 3 
 
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, CIRENCESTER, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 mas Dyke, Bart., of Horsham in Sussex, and also served in parliament 
 for Cirencester : he died in tlie year 1C80. 
 
 Trinity Chapel, of which we have given a View, looking east, in 
 Plate III., is a fine specimen of pointed architecture, with windows of 
 painted glass, and a beautifully carved oak ceiling supported by brackets 
 springing from figures of angels holding shields. The Staircase and Gal- 
 lery, represented on the right of the View, lead to the Pew belonging 
 to Earl Bathurst's family, many of the ancestors of whom lie buried in 
 the vault underneath this Chapel. 
 
 Upon a very handsome ftlonunient, against the east wall, erected to 
 the memory of Allen, Earl Bathurst, who died after only a few days' 
 illness, at his seat near tliis town, is the following inscription : — 
 
 Near this are deposited the remains of 
 
 Allen, Earl Bathuist, and Catherine, Lady Bathurst. 
 
 In the Legislative and Judicial Department 
 
 of the Great Council of the Nation, he served 
 
 Hia cotintry 69 j'ears, with Honour, Ability, and Diligence. 
 
 Judgment and Taste directed his Learning, 
 
 Humanity tempered his \\'it. 
 
 Benevolence guided sdl his Actions. 
 
 He died regretted by most, and praised by all, 
 
 the 16th day of Sept. 1775, aged 91. 
 
 Catherine, his Consort, by her milder 
 
 Virtues, added lustre to his Great Qualities ; 
 
 Her Domestic OLConomy extended 
 
 His Liberality ; 
 
 Her Judicious Charity, his IMunificence ; 
 
 Her Prudent Government of her Family, his 
 
 Hospitality. 
 
 She received the reward of her exemplary life 
 
 the 8th of June, 1768, aged 79. 
 
 Married, July 6th, 1704. 
 
 There are many other Monuments of this noble family in Trinity 
 Chapel, where is also an inscription in brass, inlaid in marble for Wil- 
 liam Prelate, Esq., a special benefactor to the Chapel: he died in the 
 year 1462. 
 
 Gumbald, the Chancellor before mentioned, lies buried in the body of 
 the Church, with an inscription on his gravestone, implying that Rum- 
 bald the Chancellor lies buried there. Two of the ancient Barons St. 
 Amand, Lords of the Manor of South Cerney, are interred in the Pres- 
 bytery. 
 
 The heart of Sanchia, wife of Richard, Earl of Cornwall and King of 
 the Romans, was also buried in the Presbytery ; she was the daughter 
 of Beatrix, Countess of Provence, and sister to both the Queens of Eng- 
 land and France. 
 
 There is an inscription upon a marble slab, in the South Aisle, to the 
 memory of Sir William Nottingham, Knt., and his wife. He died in 
 the year 1427. 
 4 
 
.*^-^>- 
 
 Dra-wn ty J. p. !Keale . 
 
 
%ljt '^hht^ CJiutc!) of ^t. iHarp, 
 
 TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. CHARLES WHITE, A. M. 
 
 The ancient conventual Church of Tewkesbury presents several distinct 
 claims to the notice of the man of taste and the antiquary; as a build- 
 ing it exhibits the striking peculiarities of the Anglo-Norman style of ar- 
 chitecture in a very prominent degree. The massive Tower, and beauti- 
 ful western Front, must be considered as singularly fine, and nearly per- 
 fect, examples of the embellishments used at that remote period, while 
 the Choir, and other additions to the edifice, constructed in later times, 
 are no less interesting specimens of the pointed arch. The magnificent 
 monuments within its walls, are more numerous and costly than are 
 usually to be found, and the Church is remarkable in its decoration for 
 a very fin« genealogical series of portraits of the Clares, Earls of Glouces- 
 ter, and of the family of De Spenser, bpnefactors to the Abbey, executed 
 in stained glass, which, from its early date, is one of the most satisfac- 
 tory references for Baronial costume to be obtained in the kingdom. 
 
 This Church was one amongst many splendid structures, which, 
 abounding in this county in former times, gave rise to the well known 
 but profane proverb. As sure as God's in Gloucestershire, the superstitious 
 sense of which is explained by Ray, to suppose God, by his gracious 
 presence, peculiarly fixed in this county, wherein there were more and 
 richer Mitred Abbeys than in any two Shires of England besides. 
 
 According to the best authorities, it appears that so early as the year 
 715, a Church and Priory, dedicated to the Virgin Mother, were 
 founded on this spot, by Odo and Dodo, or Thodo, D and Th being sy- 
 nonymous in the Saxon, two brothers, then Lords of the manor, who en- 
 dowed their Foundation with the Manor of Stanway, in this county, and 
 other possessions, sufficient to maintain a Prior and four or five monks, 
 who were of the Benedictine Order, which was the first Order established 
 in Britain, and almost the only one settled here before the Conquest. 
 
 The Church is situated within the ancient Kingdom of Mercia, in what 
 is now a beautiful and fertile plain, in the Vale of Evesham, on the 
 banks of the Avon, near its confluence with the river Severn, at the dis- 
 tance of eleven miles from the City of Gloucester. It is called Teode- 
 chesberie in Domesday Boke. 
 
 After the Conquest, the Manor of Tewkesbury, which had been seizedby 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 King William, was granted by his son, Eufus, to Sir Robert Fitz Hamon, 
 a powerful Baron, son of Hamon Dentatus, Lord of Corboile, in Nor- 
 mandy, who at the instigation of Sybil, his wife, and Girald, Abbot of 
 Cranbourne, in Dorsetshire, refouuded the Abbey Church, and endowed 
 it with large possessions. " It cannot," saith William of Malmsbury, 
 " be easily conceived how much Robert Fitz Hamon adorned and beau- 
 tified this Monastery, where the stateliness of the buildings ravished the 
 eyes, and the pious charity of the ISIonks the affections of all persons 
 that came thither." The style of the Founder of Tewkesbury Abbey, 
 was, Sir Robert Fitz Hamon, by the Grace of God, Prince of Glamor- 
 gan, Earl of Corboile, Baron of Thorigny, and Granville, Lord of Glou- 
 cester, Bristol, Tewkesbury, and Caerdiffe, Conqueror of Wales, near 
 kinsman to the King, and General of his Highness's army in France. 
 
 After many very gallant exploits, the Lord Fitz Hamon was at length 
 slain at the siege of Falaise, in Normandy, in 1107, the seventh year of 
 the reign of King Henry I., and was buried in the Chapter House ; but 
 his remains were afterwards removed into the Church, on the north side 
 of the chancel, in the year 1241, by Abbot Robert, who interred them 
 in a tomb of giey marble, inlaid with his figure in brass, which was af- 
 terwards surrounded by a screen of stone, in the time of Abbot Parker; 
 when, round the tomb, was painted this inscription, not now legible. 
 
 3jn ijita CapcUa jacct ©n.s iiobcrtu.ji iriUu^ V^amonis! 
 Ifujus E-Oci f unDator. 
 
 ' King Henry, unwilling so great an estate should be divided amongst 
 his four daughters, reserved the eldest, Mabel, for his own illegitimate 
 son, Robert, called The Consul, whom he thereupon created Earl of 
 Gloucester. He died in 1147, and was succeeded by his eldest son, 
 William, second Earl of Gloucester, who confirmed all the Charters 
 which his ancestors had granted to the Abbey of Tewkesbury; he died in 
 1173, when his three daughters became his coheirs. The Honor of Glou- 
 cester was bestowed in marriage with Isabel, his youngest daughter, on 
 John Plantagenet, younger son of Henry II., who was the third Earl of 
 Gloucester during the reign of Richard I. ; but having no children by 
 her, when he came to the crown, in 1199, he procured a divorce, and 
 Isabel then married Geoffrey Mandeville, whom King John created Earl 
 of Gloucester ; but he dying without issue, the title was next enjoyed by 
 Almeric, son and heir of Almeric Devereus, by Mabel, eldest daugh- 
 ter of William Fitz Hamon, 2nd Earl of Gloucester; but he died, about 
 122G, without issue, when this great inheritance devolved to Amice, 
 the wife of Richard de Clare, Earl of Hertford, whose son and heir, 
 Gilbert de Clare, was the first Earl of Gloucester and Hertford, both 
 which he held jointly. In his issue, the Earldom of Gloucester long 
 continued, as will be best seen by the annexed Genealogy. 
 
 •2 
 
3i:i)e petiigree of tl)e ®arls of (Gloucester, Jc» 
 
 BENEFACTOES TO THE ABBEY OF TEWKESBURY. 
 Robert Fitz Hamon, ob. 1 107^=Sybil, sister of Robert Belesme, Earl of Shrewsbury. 
 
 Mabel, sole heiress=rRobert, the Cotisul, first Earl of Gloucester, ob. 1147. 
 
 William, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, ob. I173.=pHawise, da. of Robert, Earl of Leicester. 
 
 John, 3rd Earl of=Isabel, ob.=Geofrrey Man- Amice =p Richard 
 
 Gloucester, after- 1216. deville, 4th DeClare, 
 
 wards King of E. of Glou- Earl of 
 
 England,divorced cester. Hertford. 
 
 1199. 
 
 Mabel ^ Almeric 
 Devereux. 
 
 Almeric Devereux, 5th 
 
 Earl of Gloucester, 
 
 ob. 1226, S. P. 
 
 Gilbert de Clare, 6th E.^Isabel, da. of William Mar- 
 of Gloucester, ob. 1230. slial, E. of Pembroke. 
 
 Richard de Clare, 7th E. of Gloucester, ob. 1262.=f:Maud, da. of John Lacy, E. of Lincoln. 
 Gilbert de Clare, 8th E. of Gloucester, ^ Joan d' Acres, = Ralph Mont Hermer, 
 
 ob. 1295. 
 
 Gilbert de Clare, 
 10th Earl of Glouces- 
 ter, ob. 1314, S.P. 
 
 ob. 1307. 
 
 9th E. of Gloucester. 
 
 William, Lord=Eleanoi^ 
 Zouch, of Mor- 
 timer, ob.l336. 
 
 :Hugh, Lord Margaret=Hugh Aud- 
 
 De Spenser, ley, 12th E. 
 
 jun.,ob.l326, of Gloucester, 
 
 nth E. of ob. 1347. 
 
 Gloucester. 
 
 Hugh, Lord De=Elizabeth, da. of=SirJ3uy Bryan, Edward De^Anne, da. of Henry, 
 
 Lord Ferrers, of 
 Groby. 
 
 Spencer, ob. 
 1349, S.P. 
 
 Willm. Monta- 
 cute, ob. 1359. 
 
 K.G.Ob. 1391. 
 
 Spenser, 
 ob. 1342. 
 
 Edward De Spenser, K. G., ob. 1375.=pElizabeth, da. and heir of Bartholomew, Lord 
 
 Burghersh, ob. 1409. 
 
 Thomas De Spenser, 14th Eail of=i=Constance, da. of Edmund Langley, Duke of York, 
 Gloucester, ob. 1399. 1 ob. 1417. 
 
 Richard Beauchamp, Lord=pIsabel, ob. 1439.^Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, 
 Abergavenny, ob. 1421. I 
 
 ob. 1439. 
 
 .1 I 
 
 Eh2abeth,:T^ir Edwd Neville. Henry Beauchamp,=pCicely, da. Anne=pRichd. Neville, 
 
 ob.l418 
 
 + 
 
 Duke of Warwick, 
 ob. 1446. 
 
 of Richd. 
 Neville, E. 
 of Salisbury, 
 ob. 1401. 
 
 I": 
 
 Anne, ob. infans. 
 
 E. of Warwick, 
 ob. 1471. 
 
 Isabel, ob.=pGeorge, Duke Edward, Pr.=Anne, ob.=pRichard, Duke 
 1476. of Clarence, of Wales, 1485. of Gloucester, 
 
 ob. 1477. ob. 1471. afterwards king 
 
 Richard III. 
 ob. 1485. 
 
 t, Co 
 
 Edj^fard, Margaret, Countess of=Sir Rich. Pole. Edward, Prince of Wales, and Earl 
 ob. 1499. Salisbury, ob. 1541. of Salisbury, ob. 14S4. 
 
 3 
 
ABBEY CHUKCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOtJCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 After the death of King Richard III., the Lordship of Tewkesbury 
 ■was annexed to the crown, who held it till 1547, the first year of the 
 reign of Edward VI., when it was granted to Sir Thomas Seymour, 
 who held it till his attainder, when it reverted again, and continued in 
 possession of the crown till 1609, when James I. granted the Manor 
 and Borough, inter alia, to the corporation of Tewkesbury, in whom it 
 now remains. 
 
 The Abbey of Tewkesbury was the last of the religious foundations in 
 this county that surrendered to King Henry VIII. The resignation was 
 made by Abbot Wakeman, and fifteen of his Monks, 9th January, 
 1539, to Robert Southwell, Esq., \^'illiam Petre, Edward Kaim, and 
 John London, Doctors of Law. John Ap Price, John Kingsmao, 
 Richard Paulet, and William Berners, Esqrs., Commissioners, as- 
 signed by the King to take the surrender of divers monasteries. 
 
 A List of the Abbots of Tewkesbury, from the time of the Foundation of 
 the Abbey by Robert Fitz Hamon. 
 
 1. Giraid, Abbot of Cranbourne, 
 
 admitted 1104; he returned 
 to Winchester, where he had 
 formerly been a monk, 1109. 
 
 2. Robert, elected 1110, ob. 
 
 1124. 
 
 3. Benedict, elected 1124, ob. 
 
 1137. 
 
 4. Roger, or Robert, elected 
 
 1137, ob. 1161. 
 
 5. Froraund, elected 1162, ob. 
 
 1178. 
 
 6. Robert, received benediction, 
 
 1182. ob. 1183. 
 
 7. Alan, Prior of Canterbury, re- 
 
 ceived benediction 1187, ob. 
 1202. 
 
 8. Walter, elected 1202, ob.l213. 
 
 9. Hugh, the Prior, elected Ab- 
 
 bot, 1213, ob. 1214. 
 
 10. Bernard, elected 1215. 
 
 11. Peter, a Monk of Worcester, 
 
 elected in 1216, ob. 1232. 
 
 12. Robert Fortington, the Prior, 
 
 elected Abbot 1232, ob. 
 1253. 
 
 13. Thomas Stoke, elected 1253, 
 
 ob. 1275. 
 4 
 
 14. Richard Norton, elected 1276, 
 
 ob. 1282. 
 
 15. Thomas Kemsey, elected 1282, 
 
 ob. 1328. 
 
 16. John Cotes, elected 1328, ob. 
 
 1347. 
 
 17. Thomas Legh, elected 1347, 
 
 ob. 1361. 
 
 18. Thomas Chesterton, elected 
 
 1362, ob. 1389. 
 
 19. Thomas Parker, elected 1390. 
 
 He was a great benefactor 
 to the Abbey, ob. 1412. 
 
 20. William Bristow, elected 141 4, 
 
 ob. 1442. 
 
 21. John Abindon, elected 1443. 
 
 22. John Salys, elected 1468. 
 
 23. John Strensham, elected 14**. 
 
 In 1476 he attended the fu- 
 neral of Isabel, Duchess of 
 Clarence, and died in 1481. 
 
 24. Richard Cheltenham, elected 
 
 1481, ob. 1509. 
 
 25. Henry Beoley, elected 1509. 
 
 26. John Wakeman, elected 1531. 
 
 He was the last Abbot, and 
 in 1541 was appointed the 
 first Bishop of Gloucester. 
 
EnCiHvpd bv W.V/^aUifi. 
 
 Hon 
 
 CH0RC1 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 The clear yearly value of all the Possessions of the Monastery, as 
 well spiritual as temporal, besides 136/. 8s. Id. granted in fees and an- 
 nuities to several persons, amounted to 1,595/. 17s. 6d. 
 
 Amongst the jewels reserved for his Majesty's use, were two Mitres 
 gilt, garnished with rugged pearl and counterfeit stones ; and of silver 
 plate for the same purpose, 1,431 oz. The ornaments reserved for his 
 Majesty's use, were, one Cope of silver tissue, with one Chasuble and 
 Tunicle of the same ; one Cope of gold tissue, with one Chasuble and 
 two Tunicles of the same. It appears by a Grant made in 34 Henry 
 VIII., that before, and at the time of, the dissolution, the body of the 
 Abbey was used as the Parish Church, and that the Parish had pre- 
 served it from destruction, and had then purchased of the King, the 
 Chancel, Tower, Bells, Clock, Chimes, and Churchyard for the stipu- 
 lated sum of 483/. 
 
 PLATE I. VIEW OF THF. NOT^TH TRAVSF.PT A\D TOWER. 
 The earliest Towers of Anglo-Norman architecture were placed, in the 
 conventual churches, between the Transepts, and when accompanied by 
 others on the west Front, as at Lichfield, were distinguished by the appel- 
 lation of Rood spires, being in the very centre of the Cross, which usually 
 formed the ground plan of the building. There was formerly a lofty 
 Spire of wood, covered with lead, upon this Tower, which, accordino- 
 to Dyer's History of Tewkesbury, from the Black Book belonging to the 
 Corporation, was erected by Robert, first Earl of Gloucester, the son of 
 Henry I., and fell down in the time of divine service, upon Easter day, 
 1559. A very ingenious author on the antiquities of this Church consi- 
 ders the spire of more modern date. " The exterior of the Tower has 
 undergone less change, and is of a more unmixed Norman character than 
 any other part of the building ; for the spire formed no part of the original 
 design : the battlements and pinnacles have been renewed, but proba- 
 bly not in any very difterent manner from what they were built at first, 
 as it does not seem quite clear, notwithstanding the current opinions 
 to the contrary, that pinnacles were 7iever adopted by the earliest Nor- 
 man builders; though it is certain the_, prevailed much more gene- 
 rally, and in a rectangular instead of a conical form, after the point- 
 ed arch was introduced. Battlements seem to have been a Norman 
 improvement on the plain parapets, or hanging eaves, of the Saxons, 
 suggested probably by their own fortified castles ; these likewise were 
 more lavishly employed, as well in the inside as the outside of their 
 buildings, when the Norman yielded to the Gothic style; the predominant 
 zig-zag moulding, which laces the heads and sides of the arcades,— 
 the pillars and pilasters rather elongated beyond the dimensions of ear- 
 lier times,— the two conjoined arches under a larger one,— and the 
 range of small arches whose heads intersect each other,— all these dis- 
 5 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 tinguishing peculiarities, which occur in this conspicuous member of 
 Tewkesbury church, are so many testimonies of its having been erected 
 soon after the Conquest." — Cursory Disquisition on the Conventual 
 Church of Tewkesbury, Sfc. p. 28. 
 
 The Tower rises above the Body and Transepts in a plain base, with 
 an ornamented superstructure divided into three stories, above which 
 is the embattled parapet and pinnacles at the angles, of comparatively 
 modern construction ; the height of the whole to the coping of the bat- 
 tlement is one hundred and thirty-two feet. The first story above the 
 basement is adorned with a range of arches and columns, admitting 
 three windows upon each side ; above this is a very curious series of in- 
 tersected arches, such as have been presumed to have given the idea of 
 the first pointed arch, which division is again surmounted by a similar 
 range of arches to the lower story, but with only two windows upon each 
 face, which are however divided into two lights, though under one arch. 
 The author, whom wc hare before quoted, presumes that this was one 
 of the same sort of Towers spoken of by Mr. Warton, which he tells us 
 " were calculated to produce the effect of the Louvre, or Lantern, in 
 the inside, and were originally open almost to the covering," and in- 
 stancing Winchester Cathedral, he adds, " nearly the whole of the in- 
 side of this Tower was formerly seen from below, and for that reason its 
 side arches or windows, of the first story at least, are artificially wrought 
 and ornamented." The same remark might bd' justly applied to the Tower 
 of Tewkesbury, where we may perceive, in that part of it now used as a 
 Belfry, more pains employed in the workmanship than if it had always 
 been shut up from the Church below, as it now is, would probably have 
 been bestowed upon it. The present floor of this room is laid upon a 
 vaulted ceiling, springing from corbels of more delicate execution than 
 those in the Nave, and bearing evident marks, from the pointed style of 
 it, and from the arms which occur in it, of a much later date than the 
 Tower itself. In the walls surrounding it, there is the same sort of Gal- 
 lery, as in the Nave and Transepts, for the purpose of giving access to 
 the higher parts of the building; which would be wholly without a mean- 
 ing in this place, if we Qould suppose that the present floor had always 
 belonged to it. It may be further urged, in support of this having been 
 a Louvre Tower, that there was, till very lately, a square strong building 
 in the Churchyard, which had every appearance of having been built as 
 a Campanile, an edifice often placed apart, and so called from the pur- 
 pose it was applied to, of holding the bells ; for in the oldest Cruciform 
 Churches, the convenience of their aflfording a Belfry, was but an after- 
 thought, or at least, a secondary object, in the construction of Towers; 
 as the great additional strength which they gave by their incumbent 
 weight, to the main arches of the building, would be alone sufficient to 
 recommend them. — Curs. Disq. p. 30. 
 6 
 
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 Dijjnaxr sfCaUuK-J-$'^ 
 CfiUTih /nm tfuf2afr]3S 
 
 ArcK .fTlistrmli^Jnrf^ 
 
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 ,zri!R«wc£ TO TBXUOinntKrrs. 
 
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 h i'.-untcf'..' .•■■»:j^" •'■■'■•■*■/■'■' 
 
 S,udt.^h(cfl^mi IfenL-ck 
 
 ■frj:itS. 
 
 
 
 I^-nLTiJ^Jiij-i 
 
 I(.SeB^rS.tmazkfria.rs Aw^' 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 The Tower now contains eight bells in the upper story; in 1632 the 
 four bells, originally belonging to the Church, were cast into six, and 
 in 1696 these six bells were re-cast into eight, the expenses of which 
 were defrayed by voluntary contribution. 
 
 PLATK TT. THE GKOIINU PJ.AN. 
 
 The Form of the Cross is adopted in the Plan of this venerable edifice, 
 " which," says Eustace, the classical traveller in Italy, " seems to have 
 been introduced about the end of the fifth century ; the Church of St. 
 Sophia, at Constantinople, erected in the sixth century, is in that form, 
 which very happily combines variety with unity, and beauty with conve- 
 nience." Another elegant writer, who agrees in the early introduction of 
 the Cruciform Plan, thus expresses his opinion upon its comparative me- 
 rit with reference to that of the Greek temples : " Upon the establist- 
 ment of Christianity, external magnificence was sacrificed to internal 
 decoration and the oblong square, the ground plan, peculiar to the an- 
 cient Temples, being extremely simple in their interior, but sumptuous 
 to view, was gradually formed into the Greek and Latin Cross, which is 
 much more favourable to superstition than to beauty." — Dallaway. 
 
 We are, however, more disposed to agree with a modern critic, who has 
 defined the peculiar excellence of this favourite form of the ecclesiastics 
 of the middle ages, and thus dilates upon the increased effect produced 
 by its adoption. " The Transepts," he says, " vary the long line of the 
 building by a conflexion of lines and angles, and preserve, by the par- 
 tial exposure of battlements and pinnacles, the appearance of extent be- 
 yond what the eye can immediately comprehend, which is a common 
 and important character of Ancient Architecture, the grandeur of which is 
 no more the result of dimension, than its beauty is of ornament. The 
 Architects applied both as accessaries, but depended on neither alone 
 for the merit of their buildings."— 06sc)Ta«io?is om Magdalen College, Ox- 
 ford, p. 59. 
 
 The uniformity of the Latin Cross, in the ground plan of Tewkesbury 
 Abbey Church, is only broken by the various sepulchral Chapels at the 
 east end, which spread like a Nimbus, or glory, from the transept arms to 
 the head of the figure. More eastward was formerly The Lady Chapel, 
 now destroyed, presumed to have been founded by Gilbert de Clare, the 
 first Earl of Gloucester, of that illustrious Family ; all of whom are also 
 supposed with great probability to have been interred within its walls. 
 
 . PLATE III. VIEW OF THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 The total length of the building, which is seen in this view, is upwards 
 
 of three hundred and twenty feet. It was upon this side of the 
 
 Church, westward of the Transept, that the beautiful Cloisters of the 
 
 Abbey were situated. The remains of the panelled arches of one side 
 
 7 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MART, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 of tlie square are still to be seen on the wall of the Church, above which 
 are four pointed windows of three bays each, giving light to the south 
 aisle. In the Clerestory are inserted seven windows, in the Tudor style, 
 and above it is a modern Doric parapet. The present roof of the nave 
 is somewhat flat, but that it rose to a higher pitch in its original state, 
 may be seen by the weather-moulding, where it joined to the Tower. 
 
 In the end of the South Transept are two comparatively small win- 
 dows of two lights. A large and substantial buttress, graduated in six 
 stages, supports the western angle, and upon the east side is an ancient 
 Chapel, having within it a semicircular apsis for the altar; beyond this, 
 in the View, are seen the Vestry and two other Chapels, over which are 
 the pointed windows of the Choir, under angular gables, ornamented 
 with crockets and finials, the whole surmounted by an open parapet of 
 indented work, capped with small battlements. 
 
 PLATE IT. Vmw OF THE WESTERN FROXT, NORTH PORCH, &c. 
 
 The great western Porticus is formed by an immense and beautiful se- 
 micircular receding arch, sixty-five feet in height, and thirty-four feet 
 wide, now filled by a pointed window of seven bays ; four transoms di- 
 vide it again into five stories, each compartment forming a pointed arch, 
 feathered. The whole window is of modern construction, erected after 
 the destruction of one that was blown down on the 18th February, 
 1661, during a violent storm, and rebuilt in the year 1686. The intro- 
 duction of this pointed window has entirely changed the character of 
 the West Front. In its original state, this Anglo-Norman Arch, which 
 is supported by six slender cylindrical pillars on each side, probably con- 
 tained several windows similar in their dimensions to those in the Tower, 
 with a doorway beneath them. AVhen the application of mullions and 
 transoms became known, the architects were enabled to enlarge their 
 apertures for light, and a window similar to the present might have 
 occupied the place as early as Edward the Third's reign. 
 
 The Turrets on the sides of this AVestern Front bear the same charac- 
 teristic embellishments which distinguish the Centre Tower, and fix 
 their erection to the same early period, having been evidently constructed 
 
 as antagonists to the overbearing pressure on the centre of the Arch ;" 
 they are each crowned by a clustered pinnacle, similar to that upon every 
 angle of the Great Tower. The pointed windows of the aisles appear of 
 the date of Edward the Third's reign. 
 
 Over the front of the north Porch, the west side only of which is seen 
 in this View, is a statue of the Virgin INIary, to whom the Church was 
 dedicated. 
 
 On the right hand of the approach to the Church, in the Church-yard, 
 which is shaded by rows of chesnut and other trees, is a very ancient 
 tomb, which has no inscription upon it, but seems to have had an up- 
 right cross mortised into it, the lower part of which still remains. 
 
^ 
 
t 
 
r n i^ a ve 1 iY ^■''''-^'"all i 2 ■ 
 
 \* 
 
ISbcwe ^J. p. Seal£ 
 
 rnfp- v 
 
 V.LZ --V rir THE VA.VE LOOXCSa WXP - 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 PLATE V. VIEW OF THE NAVE, LOOKING WEST. 
 
 The Nave of this Church, constructed wholly in the Norman style, 
 will be admired for the very fine effect produced by the sublime grandeur 
 of the architecture. It is formed by seven massive uniform cylindrical 
 columns ranged on each side, supporting a series of semicircular arches* 
 above which is a Triforium, or gallery of communication, and over that 
 the Clerestory windows. The ceiling of the Nave has evidently been 
 added since the introduction of the pointed style, being groined in a 
 very handsome manner with numerous ribs and sculptured bosses a tall 
 the intersections ; the whole is painted and gilt. 
 
 In the foreground of our view, upon the south side of the Nave, is the 
 Font, which has been introduced since the Church became Parochial, as 
 the right of Baptism was seldom granted to monastic institutions, except 
 by special favour. It appears, from its construction, to be about the date 
 of Queen Elizabeth's reign, and bears upon it this inscription : 
 
 ONE lORD, ONE FAITH, ONE BAPTISM, EPUES. 4, VER. 5. 
 
 The monument against the third column from the west, upon the south 
 side, seen in the view, is surmounted by a shield, Azure, a/ess, ermine, 
 between three ifofces' heads erased, or, Tayler, impaling, or, a fret, azure, 
 Eaton. 
 
 Insigne pietatis exemplar. Maiiae charissima uxor Georgii Tayler Gen : Filia 
 Reverend! Roberti Eaton Sen. primo Aprilis die. Anno domini 1726. patienter 
 eipiravit eetat. 62. et hie juxta intercolumnlam cum matre et sorore suis requi- 
 escit, et in hoc templo, prope ostium adyti, prsefatus Robertus, hujus ecclesise 
 quondam dignissimus pastor, cum filio Johanni suo sepultus. Georgius Tayler 
 Gen : Maria; praBd. iMaritus, ob. 19 Decembris, anno Salutis 173.5, aetatis 67. 
 Anna Hayward Georgii, praed. Neplis, ob. 23 Jan. 1749, jet. 13. IMariae Anna, 
 Mater Georgii Tayler Filii, obiit 2d die Decembris, 1785. Mary Hayward, Jun. 
 ob. July 27, 1811, act. 82. 
 
 In the north aisle of the Nave, near the Transept, is a cumbent monu- 
 mental figure under an arch within the wall, long called the Tomb of 
 Lord Wenlock, who was slain in a moment of despair at the celebrated 
 Battle of Tewkesbury, in 1471, by the Duke of Somerset, under whom 
 he had a command. John Lord Wenlock is known to have been buried 
 at Luton, in Bedfordshire, where his tomb still remains, and the monument 
 in question is of much earlier date than the time of Edward IV. The 
 figure of the knight is represented in a praying attitude, with an arming 
 sword by his side, and a lion at the feet ; over the armour, which is of 
 plate, he wears a jupon, adorned with arms, and upon his left arm a 
 shield, blazoned with the same, viz. a chevron, between three leopard^ 
 faces, which is certainly not the armorial bearing of Lord Wenlock; un- 
 der the head is the crest, a lion's head. 
 9 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 Upon the south side of the Nave, opposite to the last, is another an- 
 cient monument, misnamed that of Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, 
 beheaded after the same battle. This tomb, as well as the before-men- 
 tioned, appears to be of the date of Edward the Third's reign, and con- 
 sists of aa ogee formed arch, ornamented with crockets, and answering 
 to the place of the finial is an angel, bearing a plain shield; within the 
 spandrils of the foils, into which the head of the arch is divided, are two 
 shields represented to be pendent, that upon the dexter side bears o lion 
 rampant, and that upon the sinister, three chevrons, the arms of Clare, 
 indicating that it is the monument of some knight who had married a 
 daughter of the House of Clare, the chiefs of which were Earls of Glou- 
 cester, and considerable benefactors to the Abbey : no figure remains on 
 the tomb; it was opened in 1795, but was found to contain only rubbish. 
 
 Between two of the columns in the Nave is an ancient slab, bearing 
 the following inscription in Lombardic characters : 
 
 LEGER DE PARR GYT ICI, DIEUX DE SA ALME EN EIT MERCI. 
 
 The following curious anagrammatical inscription is on a brass in the 
 Nave : 
 
 In hocTumulo sepulto jacet Amia uxor JohannisWiatt, Tewkesburiensis Generosi 
 
 quffi spirilum exhalavit x)n' August Ao Dni . In cujus obitum versiculos 
 
 perlegito subsequentes. 
 
 A me disce mori, mors est sors omnibus una ; 
 Mortis et esca fui mortis et esca fores. 
 I n terram ex terra teiTestris massa meabis ; 
 E t capiet cineres urna parata cinis. 
 
 V ivere vis cceIo, terrenam temnito vitam ; 
 
 V ita piis mors est mors mihi vita piae. 
 I eiunes, vigiles, ores, credasq. potenti, 
 A rdua fac : non est mollis ad Astra via 
 
 T e scriptura vocat, te sermo ecdesia mater ; 
 T eq. vocat sponsus, spiritus atque pater. 
 
 Against one of the columns of the Nave is a monument for Mr. Tho- 
 mas Hartlebury and family. At the west end of the Nave, on the north 
 side, is a mural monument to the memory of Richard Bridges, Lieu- 
 tenant of the Navy, and his children, and against the north wall of the 
 Aisle is a tablet to Benjamin Jacobs, who died 2nd August, 1785, jet. 40. 
 . The principal monuments in the Transepts are to the following : Mrs. 
 Anne Slaughter, daughter of Daniel Pert, Esq., ob. 28, Oct. A. D. 1040. 
 aet. 84. Arms, Argeyit, a saltier, azure. Slaughter, impaling. Argent, on 
 a bend, yules, three mascles ofthcjirst. Pert. 
 
 Mary Oldisworth, daughter of Thomas Chamberlayne, of Oddington, 
 Esq., who lived a virgin twenty-nine years, a wife five, and a widow 
 thirty-nine; she died 4th August, 1684, ast. 73. Arms, Guks, on afes&, 
 10 
 
DnwntyJiENeale. 
 
 TEWKESBUmT CHUmCH. 
 
 XK.£ CHQXH- 
 
 GI.OUOESTES. SSIRi: . 
 
 Engraved by^^r.'WalU i 
 PI. 6- 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 argent, three lions passant guardant, azure. Oldiswortb, impaling. Gules, 
 an escutcheon, argent, within an orle of mullets, or. Chamberlayne. 
 
 Priscilla, wife of Henry Tracy, Esq., of Southvvick, the only daugh- 
 ter of Charles, son of William Lord Eure, Baron of Witton and Maldon, 
 ob. 14 Mar. A.D. J632. Arms, Quarterly, or and gules, on a bend, sable, 
 three escallops, argent, Eure. 
 
 John Roberts, Gen. of Fiddington, ob. 1631. aet. 77. Arms, Per pale, 
 argent and gules, over all a lion rampant, sable, Roberts. 
 
 A monument of freestone bears the following inscription : 
 
 Memorise Sacrum. Clarissimi Patri Conano Richardsono ab Equestri Familia 
 Richardsonorum de Pershore Oriundo, cujus recentiorem ajtatem, linguarum Va- 
 rietas peritia inartibus progressum vero hujus oppidi summa tertiaq. prafectura 
 merito decoraverunt. — Cui vero cum octogessimum sextum eetatis su* attigisset 
 annum, Ehui postremus illuxit dies. Ejus unicus filius Edwardus Richardsonus 
 amoris ac pietatis ergo pareotavit. 
 
 Arms, Argent, on a chief, sable, three lions' heads erased, of the first, 
 langued gules, Richardson. 
 
 The Nave of the Church is separated from the Choir by a Screen 
 and Gallery, containing an Organ, which originally belonged to Mag- 
 dalen College, Oxford, where in his youth Oliver Cromwell had been 
 so delighted with it, that after he became Protector he had it conveyed 
 to Hampton Court, and placed in the Great Gallery there for his amuse- 
 ment. At the Restoration it was sent back to Oxford, but another hav- 
 ing been presented to Magdalen College, it was iiually removed to 
 Tewkesbury Church in 1737. 
 
 PLATE VI. VIEW OF THE CHOIR, LOOKING TOWARDS THE ALTAR. 
 
 The substructure of this part of the Church is wholly Norman; upon the 
 massive circular columns of the original work, the Choir rises in pointed 
 arches to the roof, which is richly groined and painted; the bosses at all 
 the intersections of the ribs are particularly fine, some are sculptured to re- 
 present foliage, others small groups, &c. &c. The peculiar character of 
 the architecture of the upper part of the Choir is that which is sometimes 
 called the decorated style, in use about the time of Edward lU. and 
 Richard H. ; and as Abbot Parker is stated to have built much, we may 
 reasonably conclude the Choir to have been finished during his abbacy : 
 he died in 1412. The large painted windows at the east end, a most 
 beautiful and striking termination of the view, are divided into four 
 lights each, the mulliuns of which branch into flowing tracery in the 
 heads; the upper compartments are filled with glass of a deep red, the 
 admirable ruby, so difficult of attainment by modern glass-painters. 
 Upon this are delineated branches of the vine, with the leaves and fruit 
 of white colour. The heads of the arches to the bays, or grand divisions 
 of the windows, are adorned with splendid double canopies, rising over 
 11 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MAKY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 the figures of the Earls of Gloucester, &c., which form the most interest- 
 ing portion of the window. The series of benefactors here represented 
 consists of eight whole length figures, very similar in their general form 
 and position, whose costume, with the general style of the workman- 
 ship, fixes the execution of the windows to the period of Edward III. : 
 they are full faced, having on their heads conical basinets, to which are 
 attached camails, for the protection of the throat, and on the shoulders 
 appear the ailettes; the armour in which their bodies are cased is of the 
 mixed kind, mail and plate, but is covered with the surcoat or jupon, 
 blazoned with the arms of each individual, marking precisely the person 
 represented. They hold lances in their hands, and the ground, or base 
 of each figure is a lawn, or carpet worked with flowers, &g. The portraits 
 may be surveyed in the following order. Vide also the pedigree, p. 3, 
 of this account. 
 
 1. Robert Fitz-Hamon, Founder of the Abbey. Arms, on his sur- 
 coat, Azure, a lion rampant guardant, or. 
 
 2. Robert the Consul, first Earl of Gloucester, natural son of King 
 Henry I. Arms on his surcoat, Gules, three rests, or. Much diffe- 
 rence of opinion exists amongst heraldic writers as to the precise mean- 
 ing of this bearing, which is sometimes called a sufflue, and clarion ; it 
 appears, with the greatest probability, to represent the rest, or case, used 
 by archers for carrying the long bow when on a raarch, or not in action. 
 
 3. Gilbert de Clare, sixth Earl of Gloucester, &c. Arms on his sur- 
 coat. Or, three chevrons, gules. 
 
 4. Richard de Clare, seventh Earl of Gloucester, &c. Same arms. 
 
 5. Gilbert de Clare, eighth Earl of Gloucester, &c. Same arms. 
 
 6. Gilbert de Clare, tenth Earl of Gloucester, &c. Same arms. 
 
 7. Hugh, Lord De Spenser, styled eleventh Earl of Gloucester, he 
 having married Eleanor, the eldest sister of Gilbert de Clare, the last 
 Earl of that illustrious family. Arras on his surcoat. Quarterly, argent 
 and gules, in the second and third quarter a fret, or; over all a bend, 
 ^able. 
 
 8. William, Lord Zouch of Mortimer, second husband of the above- 
 mentioned Eleanor de Clare ; he died 1st March, 133G, and was buried 
 in the Lady Chapel. His monumental effigy is still preserved in the 
 grounds at Forthampton. Arms on his surcoat. Gules, bezanty. 
 
 Below the figures are large diapered compartments; the other window 
 contains four whole length representations — 1. The Prophet Daniel. 
 2. Jeremiah. 3. King Solomon. And, 4. The Prophet Joel. Other arms 
 in these splendid windows are. Argent, a lion rampant, sable . Bar- 
 ry, argent and azure. Grey. Bang nehule, argent and gules, a bend, 
 azure, D'^^niorie. Argent, a lion rampant, sable, crowned, or, &c. &c., 
 together with Gules, a cross ragulie, or, the arms of the Abbey of Tewkes- 
 bury ; but the coat given in Tanner's Notitia Monastica, in Willis's Seals 
 12 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 of Parliamentary Abbeys, and in Rymer's History of the Benedictines, 
 is Gules, within a border argent, a cross raguUe, or. 
 
 The Altar-piece, which is of the Doric order, with an elliptical pedi- 
 ment, was erected iu the year 1726 by private contribution, at which 
 time the pews and seats in the Church were repaired. Behind the High 
 Altar was formerly the Chapel of St. Edmund the Martyr, on the ceiling 
 of which was represented the Legend of his life, his being shot with 
 arrows, beheaded, and the wolf defending his head from other beasts. 
 On the south side of the Altar are two very curious and ancient cano- 
 pied Stalls, the fronts of which are painted chiefly in red and gold, the 
 backs diapered in various pattern. There were originally three of these 
 stalls. 
 
 On the north, or opposite side of the Altar, is the splendid Monument 
 of Hugh, Lord De Spenser, jun., and his Lady, Eleanor de Clare, Coun- 
 tess of Gloucester, in whose right he held the Lordship of Tewkesbury, 
 and was Patron of the Church. After the death of Piers Gaveston, Earl 
 of Cornwall, this nobleman became the favourite of King Edward II., and 
 a participator in the dissensions between that monarch and the confede- 
 rate Barons. He was at length taken prisoner at Hereford, and by the 
 Queen's orders was hanged, drawn, and quartered in 1326; some of his 
 limbs were privately buried in this Church, and this Monument was erect- 
 ed to his memory by his wife, Eleanor de Clare, who died in June, 1337, 
 and was here buried : no inscription is upon the tomb, but the eftigies of 
 both the lord and lady remain tolerably perfect. The Monument is so 
 delicate in its execution, that it has suffered materially in the ornamental 
 part, particularly of the Cowonnement, or canopy, which is of the richest 
 description, and extremely similar to that over the tomb of Sir Guy Bryan, 
 of which we have given a view, vide Plate VIII. The basement of the 
 Tomb of Lord De Spenser is panelled in a series of trefoil-headed arches. 
 At the head of this tomb is the sepulchral IMonument of Robert Fitz 
 Hamon, the Founder of the Abbey, which was inclosed within the present 
 screen of stone-work by Abbot Parker; and more towards the west 
 upon the same side, is the Chapel of St. Mary Magdalen, erected by 
 Isabel de Spenser, Countess of Warwick. On the opposite side of the 
 Choir, at the foot of the steps of the Altar, is the Chapel of the Holy 
 Trinity, containing the Monument of Sir Edward De Spenser, Knight 
 of the Garter, and his wife Elizabeth, the daughter and heiress of Bar- 
 tholomew, Lord Burghhersh. He died in 1375, and his etligies in ar- 
 mour is placed at the top of this Chapel in a supplicatory posture. Upon 
 his surcoat is painted the arms of De Spenser. His lady died in J 409. 
 The opposite side of this sepulchral Chapel in the south aisle is seen in 
 the foreground of Plate XI. 
 
 On a column upon the north side 6f the Chancel is a Monument of 
 white marble, " In memory of George Peyton, M. D., who died Octo- 
 13 
 
v,1llyj.t.iieaie. 
 
 io;---r- >. iTi-St^sley. 
 
 TEWKTESBUffiT CHTnRCH, ' 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 Clarence, and the vigils were observed by the duke's own family, Until 
 the next day, which was the vigil of the Epiphany. The suffragan of the 
 Bishop of Landaft" celebrated the first mass of St. Mary, in St. Mary's 
 chapel; the second mass of the Trinity was celebrated by the Lord Abbot 
 at the altar ; and the suffragan of the Bishop of Worcester celebrated the 
 third mass of eternal rest, at which Peter Wild, D. D. of the order of 
 Minors at Worcester, preached a sermon in the choir before the as- 
 sembled prelates. Mass being ended, the body was left under the hearse 
 in the midst of the choir, for thirty-five days, when solemn exequies were 
 daily performed during that time in the convent. Her body was after- 
 wards buried in a vault behind the high altar, before the door of the Lady 
 Chapel, and opposite the door of St. Edmund the Martyr's chapel. 
 George, Duke of Clarence, who derived from his wife Isabel the titles 
 of Earl of Warwick and Salisbury, was executed in the Tower of Lon- 
 don in the next year, and was also buried in the vault behind the high 
 altar, as shewn in our ground plan. 
 
 PLATE VII. VIEW OF THE SEPULCHRAL CHAPEL OF ISABEL, COUN- 
 ' TESS OF WARWICK. 
 
 Between two of the large Anglo Norman pillars, on the north side 
 of the choir, stands the elegant chapel erected by Isabel, Countess of 
 Warwick, in 1438, and by her dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalen. It 
 consists principally of two open screens, one towards the choir, and the 
 other fronting the north aisle, which are distinguished by the exuber- 
 ance of their decoration, amidst which is observed such a degree of sim- 
 plicity in the character of its ornaments, as to entitle it to a high rank 
 amongst the specimens of this style of architecture. The north side is 
 chosen for our view, as exhibiting the whole front, the lower part of the 
 chapel next the choir being concealed by the ancient wooden seats of 
 the Monks that have been placed against it ; the whole screen is exactly 
 eighteen feet nine inches in height, and about seventeen feet wide, the 
 door-way being six feet three inches high, by two feet two inches wide ; 
 the open screen rises about half the height of the chapel, the highest part 
 being at the west end, and the whole oratory is covered by a most beau- 
 tiful canopied roof, enriched wilh pendents, dividing it into three compart- 
 ments, from north to south, this elegant production is faced on the exte- 
 rior by a series of canopies, which are supported by light ornamented 
 piers containing niches for six statues, three upon each side, between 
 light pinnacled buttresses; upon the upper band or fascia of the screen; 
 beginning on the south side is the following inscrlplioti : — 
 
 iiacmentotc ©nc gisahcUe Jte ©e .fjpcniScc conntcssc Oc SDarrctoir, 
 que Ijiinc €apcUatn funoabit in t^onorcm 2?eatc JUarie JRajjOalcne 
 Et obiit 3LonDmii.si apua jninorca anno ©ni .m€ar€€|jf=f3ijE Die 
 jScti 5(0lja;ini!S liiljangelisitc, ct ^icpulta m cl;oro, m Dtjfti-am patri^ 
 jSui. cuju.si anmic.parcat ©ens', ilmtn. 
 
 Arms upon the side of the chapel nest the choir, over the door, 1. 
 
 10 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 France and England, quarterly, King Edward III. 2. Castile and 
 Leon, quarterly, Peter King of Castile and Leon. 3. France and Eng- 
 land, quarterly, Edmund of Langlcy, Duke of York. 4. France and 
 England impaling Castile and Leon, Isabel of Castile, Duchess of York. 
 
 5. Clare quartering De Spenser, Thomas De Spenser, Earl of Gloucester. 
 
 6. Clare quartering De Spenser and impaling France and England, Con- 
 stance, Countess of Gloucester, who was the daughter of Edmund of 
 Langley, Duke of York, and mother of Isabel, Countess of Warwick, 
 the founder. The armorial bearings upon the side of the chapel nest the 
 aisle, which is shewn in our view, are as follows : the basement, in three 
 divisions, contains, in the first, three angels under canopies bearing shields, 
 1. France and England, quarterly. King Edward III. 2. The bearings 
 upon this shield are entirely destroyed. 3. France and England, quar- 
 terly, Edmund of Langley, Duke of York. In the second division of the 
 basement are two angels bearing shields. 1. France and England, quar- 
 terly, impaling Castile and Leon, quarterly, Isabel of Castile, Duchess of 
 York. 2. Clare and De Spenser, quarterly, impaling France and Eng- 
 land, quarterly, Thomas de Spenser, Earl of Gloucester. In the third 
 division two angels bearing, 1. France and England, quarterly, in chief, 
 and Castile and Leon, quarterly, in base, impaling Clare and Dc Spenser, 
 quarterly, Constance, Duchess of Gloucester. The arms on the fascia and 
 over the door are, in each compartment, three, 1. The Royal Ai-ms of 
 England. 2. The Arms of Clare, Earls of Gloxicester. '■i. Clare impaling 
 England, Isabel, Countess of Gloucester, and John, afterwards King of 
 England. 4. De Spenser, Hugh, Lord De Spenser. 3. De Spenser, im- 
 paling Clare. Eleanor, Countess of Gloucester, wife of Hugh, Lord 
 de Spenser. 6. Clare and Dc Spenser, quarterly, impaling, Burghcrsh, 
 Sir Edward De Spenser, K. G. A critic, whom we have before quoted, 
 thus describes this beautiful specimen of architecture. " The Countess 
 of Warwick's chapel, for so should this gem of antiquity be called, par- 
 takes decidedly of the Florid Gothic, which began to prevail in the reign 
 of Henry VI. and soon reached that plenitude of ornament which we 
 may admire rather than approve ; it is to the superabundance of its deco- 
 ration, that our objection lies. There can be but one opinion on the 
 praise which belongs to the exquisiteness of finishing by which the seve- 
 ral parts of it are distinguished. The entablature appealing to rest upon 
 light buttresses of singular beauty, gives us an assemblage of fretwork 
 which may vie with the finest specimens of similar workmanship in the 
 kingdom, the elegant palm-leaved parapet which occurs in the division 
 between the stories ; the numerous escutcheons blazoned ; the niches 
 and pedestals under their respective canojjies, once ornamented with 
 figures, which fanaticism has dislodged ; the pendents, ' dropping like 
 congelations in a grotto, from a roof adorned with a most delicate tra- 
 cery, spread over it like a web, these, and a countless multitude of mi- 
 nuter beauties, almost distract attention, and overwhelm the judgment 
 with their ditferent claims to notice." — Curs. Disq. p. 104. 
 
 16 
 
1: t!: e 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 PLATE van.— VIEW OF ST. MARGARET'S CHAPEL, WITH THE MONU- 
 MENT OF SIR GUY BRYAN, OB. 1391. 
 
 This light and elegant specimen of monumental architecture, erected 
 to commemorate Sir Guy Bryan, a Knight of the Garter, occupies the 
 centre of an open screen which divides the Chapel of St. Margaret, or, as 
 it is now called, Bryan's Chapel, from the north aisle, the entrance to 
 the Chapel being at the west end, at the head of the tomb. 
 
 Sir Guy Bryan, or de Bryan, was a person of very great note in the reign 
 of Edward III. He was standard-bearer to the King in the last notable 
 fight with the French, at Calais, in 1349, and obtained a pension of two 
 . hundred marks for life, for his gallant behaviour, and for his prudent 
 bearing of the standard there, against the enemy, and there strenuously, 
 powerfully, and erectly, sustaining it. He was constituted Governor of 
 ■ St. Briavel's Castle, and Warden of the Forest of Dean, and was Am- 
 bassador with the Duke of Lancaster to the Pope, to obtain a ratifica- 
 tion of a League between France and England, and was afterwards 
 created a Knight Banneret, and again was Ambassador to Rome. He 
 had second grant of two hundred pounds per annum, and the Manor of 
 Portham, in Devonshire, and was appointed Admiral of the West in 
 1370. In 1371, upon the death of Sir John Chandos, K. G., he was 
 installed Knight Companion of the most noble Order of the Garter, and 
 married Filizabeth, the daughter of William Montacute, Earl of Salis- 
 bury, K.G., widow of Hugh, Lord De Spenser, who died iu 1349 
 without issue. He was summoned to parliament amongst the Barons of 
 the realm, from the 24th of Edward III. to the 13th of Richard II., in- 
 clusive, the year following which he died, leaving Philippa and Eliza- 
 beth, his grand-daughters, his heirs, vfho were the only children of Guy 
 de Bryan, his son, who died during the lifetime of his father. 
 
 Sir Guy Bryan founded and endowed a Chantry at Slapton, near 
 Kingsbridge, in Devonshire, and appropriated certain rents in Bristol 
 to the office of sacrist in this Abbey, and also to the priest who should 
 say the first mass for his soul, every day, at the Altar of St. Margaret, 
 within the Chapel, with other prayers for his ancestors and posterity, 
 viz. the mass of the Trinity, on Sunday ; the mass of the Holy Ghost, on 
 Monday; the mass of St. Thomas, on Tuesday; the mass of the Holy 
 Rest, on Wednesday; the mass of the Ascension, on Thursday; the 
 mass of the Holy Cross, on Friday ; the mass of St. Mary, on Saturday ; 
 and to whatever priest should so officiate, a weekly stipend, also to the 
 priest who shall celebrate mass on his anniversary, or on the anniversary 
 of his wife, Elizabeth, if the Abbot, five shillings, and, if the Prior, three 
 ^hillings and four-pence ; to him who should read the Gospel, to the 
 reader of the Epistle, to him who should hold the paten, and to the 
 17 
 
ABBE\ CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 precentor and his two assistants, eight pence a piece; to the Prior, 
 twelve pence ; and to every monk, four pence. 
 
 Elizabeth Montacute, his wife, died many years before him, in 13-59, 
 when her whole dowry, including Ilanley Castle, Tewkesbury Manor, 
 Malvern Chace, &c., devolved to her first husband's nephew, Edward 
 de Spenser, K. G. 
 
 " The name of Sir Guy Bryan must be joined with that of De Spenser 
 as a great benefactor to this Church, in putting up the ceiling under the 
 tower, in enlarging tiie windows, and perhaps in completing several de- 
 signs began and prosecuted by Elizabeth's former husband, till death 
 overtook him, and to which, with singular delicacy. Sir Guy Bryan 
 might have allowed only the arms of the original projector to be affixed ; 
 a resemblance, doubtless, has been intended between their monuments, 
 but the copy will not bear to be examined with the original, under any 
 other association it might obtain praise. It has, however, the advan- 
 tage oT being placed in a better light, and a more commanding situa- 
 tion."— Curs. Disq. p. 100. 
 
 The principal difference between the monuments of Sir Guy Bryan, 
 and that of Hugh, Lord De Spenser, which is represented near Abbot 
 Wakeman's monument, in Plate IX., consists in the decorations of the 
 basement, or altar, upon which the figure reposes ; the latter is panelled 
 in small trefoil-headed arches, while that of Bryan is divided into three 
 large quatrefoiled compartments, the centre of which is charged with 
 the armorial shield of Sir Guy Bryan, Or, three piles, in point, azure, 
 and those on each side with the same arms impaling the coat of Monta- 
 cute, Argent, three fusils in fess, (jules. 
 
 The Knight is represented by a cumbent statue of alabaster, admira- 
 bly executed, and in the attitude of drawing his sword, which is a de- 
 parture from the general style of the period, but is frequently found in 
 monuments of an earlier date ; the figure is now much mutilated, but is 
 a most valuable specimen of monumental sculpture, from the extreme 
 richness and peculiarity of the armour; it has originally been painted 
 and gilt, although little of that gaudy decoration is now to be disco- 
 vered, even to the eye of an experienced antiquary. The armour is com- 
 plete, but of the mixed kind ; the head is covered with a conical ba- 
 sinet, to which, by a red lace, is attached the camail, formed in a very 
 curious manner, apparently of wires, bent to take the form of rings ex- 
 tending all round, which is particularly explained in Meyrick\ Ancient 
 Armour, vol. ii. Under the jupon was usually worn a convex breast- 
 plate, the form of which is evident in this figure. The jupon, itself of 
 Arabic origin, and generally composed of silk or velvet, is represented as 
 embroidered, or worked with the arms of Bryan, most curiously diapered 
 with a raised composition, which is clearly to be seen under the right arm, 
 where it is less worn than in the other more exposed parts of the figure ; 
 18 
 
Diawn tj J. F. ITeale. 
 
 CEKOTAPH OF ABBOT 'WAX'E'xrAII 
 
 ^En^avie d by B. B o sle j 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 it reaches to the middle of the tliighs ; the arms are covered by the mail 
 sleeves of the haubergeon, and the vant bras of plate, the left arm is 
 unfortunately broken. His military girdle of red and gold, sustained a 
 sword and dagger, both also broken ; his chausses are of mail, with slips 
 of plate above and below the genouilliers, and his feet rest on a lion ; 
 the crest, under the bead of the figure, is much mutilated, and appears 
 to resemble a griffin's head ; but from a monumental brass in Seale 
 Church, in Kent, to the memory of Sir William Bryan, Knt., it seems 
 that a bugle horn was the family crest. 
 
 The canopy, or couronnement, exhibits a most elegant- design of the 
 pointed style, and consists of four stories of foil-headed arches, open, 
 and supported by buttresses of an extremely light construction, termi- 
 nating in small crocketted pinnacles; some of the buttresses are now out 
 of the perpendicular, and some of the pinnacles gone. 
 
 Within the Chapel of St. Margaret are monuments for Thomas At- 
 kyns, Esq., son of Richard Atkyns, Esq., of Tuffley, who died in 1608; 
 and for Mr. Robert Porter, who died in 1703, 
 
 PLATE IX.— CENOTAPH OF ABBOT W.\KEMAN, FIRST BISHOP OF 
 GLOUCESTER. 
 
 The Prelate, for whom this splendid memorial was erected, was born 
 in the adjoining county of Worcester, and received an education for the 
 Church, amongst the Benedictine monks in Gloucester College, in the 
 University of Oxford, of which order he became a member, and at length 
 succeeded Henry Beoly in the Abbacy at Tewkesbury, according to 
 Dyde's " History, &c." The precise time of Abbot Beoly's death has not 
 been ascertained, and other accounts mention an intervening Abbot, 
 John Walker, who, it is stated, died in 1531, and was buried in this 
 Church under a marble slab, adorned with his arms, and was succeeded 
 in the same year by John AVakeman, who continued at the head of the 
 monastery for ten years, and surrendered his office at the time of the Re- 
 formation. Having submitted to the king's supremacy, he was soon 
 afterwards appointed the first Bishop of the See of Gloucester, which 
 was erected by charter of Henry VIII., dated 4th September, 1541. 
 He was also Chaplain to his Majesty, and at the revisal of the several 
 translations of the New Testament, by the most learned divines, he had 
 the Book of Revelations assigned to his superintendence. Bishop AVake- 
 man died about the beginning of December, 1549, when he was suc- 
 ceeded at Gloucester by the celebrated martyr. Bishop Hooper, and ac- 
 cording to Godwin's Catalogue of Bishops, was buried at Worthington, 
 or Wormington, but Anth. VYood thinks his interment was at Forthamp- 
 ton, where it is known he had a house and private chapel, and often re- 
 sided. — Atkeiue, i. 579. 
 
 The gorgeous Cenotaph, represented in the annexed plate, had been 
 19 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 constructed by Wakeman during his lifetime, and while he was Abbot 
 of Tewkesbury, doubtless with the intention of being buried in a vault 
 beneath. Amid all the splendour of monumental decoration, of which 
 the age admitted, the person of the Abbot is here represented by a 
 cadaver, or emaciated figure, which is commonly called The Starved 
 Monk, stretched upon a shroud. The tomb is constructed with an open 
 recess, beneath the slab, upon which this figure is laid out, and here, 
 it is supposed, the cadaver would have been removed at his decease, 
 while a cumbent figure of the Abbot, in pontijicalibns, would have oc- 
 cupied the upper tablet, had not the dissolution of the Abbey, and his 
 consequent removal, frustrated the design. Such a disposition is seen 
 on the tomb of Archbishop Chichele, in Canterbury Cathedral, and is 
 not uncommon on monuments of ecclesiastics, though very rarely seen 
 upon those of the nobility. 
 
 This cenotaph is so situated as to form a part of the screen of the 
 Chapel of St. Edmund the Martyr, standing north-east from the high 
 altar. Our view is taken within the Chapel, shewing, in the distance, 
 part of the screen, at the back of the altar; and, on the right, De Spen- 
 ser's monument. The whole cenotaph is composed of rich workmanship, 
 light and florid screen-work, nothing solid. The basement, or altar part, 
 of the tomb, as we have observed before, forms an open recess, adorned 
 with most curious perforated work upon the front, towards the ambula- 
 tory. The piers which support the canopy, are faced with light graduated 
 buttresses, between which are lofty ornamented octangular pedestals, sur- 
 mounted by niches, with their canopies for statues ; and, between the 
 piers, springs a light and beautiful arch, foliated at its lower edge, with 
 the spandrils perforated with quatrefoils ; from beneath the centre of this 
 arch descends a very rich, but somewhat heavy pendent ornament, of 
 an ogee form, immediately over the figure, a singular and bold devia- 
 tion from the monumental style of the age. Above the whole are three 
 projecting canopies, with their pinnacles and gables crocketed and 
 under wrought with tracery of the most delicate workmanship. It was 
 hardly possible that such elaborate decoration could escape mutilation. 
 A portion of the west end, or head of the monument, which originally 
 projected beyond the piers, has been destroyed, and some of the tracery 
 of the curious pendent arch has also suffered, but the whole may be con- 
 sidered as a tolerably perfect example of the richest and most elegant 
 design of sepulchral monuments. 
 
 PLATE X.-MOXUMENT OF ABBOT CHELTENHAM, OB. 1509, &c. 
 
 Richard Cheltenham succeeded Abbot Strensham, who died in 1481, 
 
 •21 Edward IV., and continued at the head of this monastery during the 
 
 reigns of Edward V., Richard III., and Henry VII. ; dying in 1509, 
 
 he was here interred. The mouument represented in our plate was long 
 
 20 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBURY, GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 assio-ned to Abbot Fortington, but ao investigation of the style, and de-: 
 vices with which it is adorned, has proved the date of the structure to be 
 much more recent, and the arms and initials are found to correspond 
 with Cheltenham alone. It forms the ouly part now remaining of the 
 screen of one of the Chapels upon the south side of the Church, and, in 
 the distance of our view, a part of the altar-screen, and above it, the 
 painted windows in the chancel are seen. 
 
 This monument consists of an ornamented basement, or altar, divided 
 into four compartments, containing moulded quatrefoils, with large shields 
 in the centre ; upon these shields no blazonry is to be found, but, in the 
 spandrils of the canopy, upon large branches of sculptured foliage, are 
 four shields, two upon each side ; the largest contain the letters ifi. C., 
 entwining a crozier, the monogram of the Abbot ; the smaller shields 
 are charged with a chevron, between three escalop shells, and over all a 
 Palmer's staff, in pale ; the arms of Richard Cheltenham. The canopy 
 is arched quite in the Tudor style, very flat, but rising to an apex, its 
 soffit is sculptured with groins and ornamented bosses, bearing the let- 
 ter JS. and a crozier, C. and a palmer's staff: some are carved with an 
 escalop, and others with a Palmer's scrip or wallet upon foliage, boldly 
 wrought. No effigies appears ever to have been placed upon the monu- 
 ment, or is there any inscription now remaining. The whole was, pro- 
 bably, at its erection, surmounted by a frieze and cornice, which is now 
 destroyed by time, or rather wantonness, A monument which is seen 
 through the arch of the above, on the right hand, contains a stone coffin, 
 inscribed SiOljanne^ Shba.^ i)U)\l^ %aci, in Lombardic characters, which 
 is supposed to commemorate Abbot Cotes, who died in 1347 ; this coffin 
 was opened in the year 1795, and within it were then found remains of 
 sacerdotal habits, with the^rras of Clare upon them; but it should be 
 observed, that the monument, within which this coffin is now placed, 
 seems of much later date than the time of Edward III., when the Ab- 
 bot died, and is conceived to have been erected to the memory of some 
 other person : more westward is another ancient monument, containing 
 the stone coffin of a monk, unknown. 
 
 PL.\TE XI.— VIEW OF THE SOUTH AISLE. TOMBS OF ABBOTS, &c. 
 
 The monument on the left hand of this Plate, which is the most con- 
 spicuous in the series of Abbots' tombs here represented, is that of a 
 monk, unknown ; the arched recess of which it is composed is much or- 
 namented, terminating in an exceedingly rich fiuial, sculptured with fo- 
 liage, upon each side were pinnacles, but one of them has been broken 
 oft" about the middle ; its date is of the reign of Edward III., judging 
 from the style of the workmanship. The next monument, upon the same 
 side of the aisle, is that of Alan, Prior of Canterbury, a man of great 
 learning, who received the benediction in the year 1187, 34 of Henry 11., 
 ■21 
 
ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. MARY, TEWKESBtFRY, GtOUCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 having been the friend of Archbishop Becket, whose biographj' he com- 
 piled, together with his passion and miracles, to promote his canoniza- 
 tion. Quadrilogus de vita et processii S. Tliomw Cantuariensis ct Mar- 
 tyris super Libertatc Ecclcsiasticd, a book collected out of the four his- 
 torians, who were contemporary and conversant with Becket, viz. Hu- 
 bert de Hoscham, Johannes Carnotensis, Gulielmus Canterburiensis, 
 and Alanus Teukesburiensis, who are introduced as so many relators 
 of facts interchangeably, was printed at Paris in 1495, and is known by 
 the name of Quadripartita Uistoria. Abbot Alan died here in 1202, 
 and was buried underneath the arched recess, in the south wall, where 
 is a stone coffin, with his name on the ledge ; it was opened a few years 
 ago, and his remaius were found with all the habiliments and ensigns of 
 the Benedictine order, in tolerable preservation ; the arch of the tomb is 
 surmounted by a plain gable, rising in straight lines, without finial or 
 crockets. Another monument, beyond that of Abbot Alan, has an or- 
 namented finial, with pinnacles on the sides, but appears to be nearly of 
 the same date. In the wall, between the two tirst-mentioned monu- 
 ments, is the door of the Vestry, with three very curiously sculptured 
 corbels over it. The Diaconum Magnum, or Great Vestry ; the original 
 destination of this chamber contained the altar service of plate, the copes, 
 and other vestments of the priests, &c. ; the arches of the windows and 
 doorway of this Vestry are distinguished by ornamented bosses down 
 the sides of the mouldings, with a fillet of the same description sur- 
 rounding the slender pillars, banded together, upon raised pedestals, 
 support the ceiling. The foreground and right hand side of the view, in 
 our plate, is occupied with the sepulchral monument of Sir Edward De 
 Spenser, within a Chapel dedicated to the Holy Trinity ; the open screen 
 of which is in two divisions, with the door in the most distant. 
 
 In the south aisle are also tiiese mouuments : one inscribed, " Here 
 lyeth Anne, the eldest daughter of Sir Paule Tracy, Knt., first wife to 
 Edward Hall, Esq., and widowe to William Ingram, Esq., who de- 
 ceased, 24th February', A.D. 1639."' Arms, within a lozenge. Or, be- 
 tween two bends gttles, an escalop in chief, sable. Another for John 
 Gelding, Esq., who died in 1642. 
 
 There are two hamlets in the parish, viz. Mythe and Southwick, and 
 the whole contained, in 1811, a population of 4,820. 
 
 22 
 
HEREFORDSHIRE; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. JAMES WATTS. 
 
 The town of Ledbury is situated on a gentle declivity, within a small 
 but pleasant valley, formed by the Dog-Hill, on the north-east and other 
 eminences, in the Hundred of Radlow, on the east side of the county. 
 At a short distance on the west flows the river Leddon, which gives 
 name to the town, and taking a course, due south, through Gloucester- 
 shire, unites its waters with the Severn. 
 
 The Church is a large building in an early style of architecture, but 
 having undergone many alterations at different periods, it has conse- 
 quently lost some portion of its original character, though it still dis- 
 plays many fine specimens of sculpture in its ornaments, and is interest- 
 ing in its general effect : the view we have chosen is from the south-west. 
 Edwin, a powerful Saxon, son of Edric the Forrester, who lived in 
 the time of William I., gave Ledbury to the Church of Hereford, having 
 been cured of the palsy at the intercession of St. Ethelbert. 
 
 The Lord Bishop of Hereford is now the patron, and appoints two 
 prebendaries, or portioners of the upper and nether Hall, in this Church, 
 who are the joint patrons of the living. The present portioners are the 
 Rev. Joseph Martin and the Rev. James Watts. 
 
 Tn the Church were formerly Chauntries of the Holy Trinity, St. 
 Anne, and others. John Treftant, Bishop of Hereford, founded here, 
 about the year 1401, a College of Priests, consisting of a Custos, or 
 Master, eight Chaplains, besides Clerks, Ministers, and Servants, which 
 was liberally endowed. Henry IV. incorporated them, but, at the Re- 
 formation, it was dissolved; and the lands given to the crown, in the 
 1st year of Edward VL On the north side of the Church is a very 
 handsome portion of the building, called the Deacon's Lodgings, which, 
 in later times, was converted to a School House, but is now the re- 
 ceptacle of lumber. It is supposed to have been originally founded by 
 1 
 
LEDBURY CHURCH, HEREFORDSHIRE. 
 
 John Stoke, from an inscription upon a pew : " tliginti £t ^tf niarCff 
 
 a 3i0l]annc M>taU jSunt Data: tt ii camcrae fucrunt scDificatfle." 
 
 In the Church is a monument of Sarah Skippe, ob. 1665, and others 
 to members of the family of John Skippe, D. D., Bishop of this Diocese 
 from 1539 to 1553. 
 
 At the east end of the Chancel is a slab to the memory of Charles, son of 
 Francis Godwin, Bp. of Hereford, and to his wife Dorothy, inscribed : — 
 
 PR«IBIT DOROTHEA, SEQUITUR CAROLUS, 
 
 AMBO RESURGUNT. 
 GOOWYN THE ONE, GODWUN THE OTHER. 
 
 At the east end of the North Aisle is an ancient tomb of freestone, 
 with a mutilated recumbent figure of a female. 
 
 There are also monuments in the Church for Richard Caple, Esq., ob. 
 1601. Thomas Chambers, Esq., ob. 1605. John Hey wood, Esq. of 
 Wellington, alias Prior's Court, in this county, ob. 1614. Thomas 
 Cupper, Esq. of Glympton, in Oxfordshire, ob. 27 June, 1621. 
 
 In the Chancel is buried John Thornton, D. D., Vice Chancellor of 
 Oxford, and Master of the Hospital, in this town, founded by Hugh Foliot, 
 Bp. of this Diocese, dedicated to God and St. Catherine, for the reception 
 of poor people and travellers. 
 
 Anne, the wife of Ambrose Elton, of the Hazel, Esq., daughter of 
 Sir Edward Aston, Knight and Baronet, and sister of Sir Walter Aston, 
 Baron of Forfar, of Tixall. She died, 5th Feb. 1660. Her husband was 
 buried by her in 1659. 
 
 Stay, reader, here lies the body of James Bailey, late of Ledbury, Corvisor, who 
 departed this life 13 December, 1674, a^t. 100 jTs. and 8 mths. He was the 
 youngest brother of Humphrey Bailey of Ocul Pychard, and of Samuel Bailey, late 
 of Hereford. These three brothers lived the age of 300 yis. What one wanted 
 the other made up. — Mors rapit omnia. 
 
 John Hoskins, D. D. Vicar of this Church, is buried here with an epi- 
 taph beginning thus : — 
 
 Sub pedibus Doctor jacet hie in legibus Hoskins, 
 Esse Pius docuit, quodq. docebat erat, &c. 
 
 The Tower of the Church is distinct from the body, and is surmounted 
 by a modern spire. 
 
C!)urc|) of ^t ^tttx anb ^t. 3^ml 
 
 LEOMINSTER, HEREFORDSHIRE. 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. G. W. CURTIS. 
 
 1 HE town of Leominster is situated in a rich and fertile vale, and on 
 the banks of the river Lug, which making a considerable flexure, flows 
 along both its northern and eastern sides, and here receives a second 
 tributary stream, the Pinsley. It is distant about thirteen miles north 
 from Hereford, and one hundred and thirty-seven west-north-west from 
 London. 
 
 It appears from a comparison of various authorities, that a Monastery 
 was founded here, in honour of St. Peter, about the year 660, by Mer- 
 wald, sovereign of the western part of Mercia, who committed the charge 
 of it to Eadfrid, by whom he had been converted to Christianity. This 
 establishment was destroyed in the wars with the Danes, and was suc- 
 ceeded by a College of Prebendaries, which was subsequently replaced 
 by an Abbey of Nuns. The violation of Edgiva, the Abbess, by Sweyne, 
 eldest son of Earl Godwin, in 1046, for which he was at first driven into 
 banishment, by Edward the Confessor, seems to have been the com- 
 mencement of those enormities which terminated in the total loss of his 
 power and possessions ; but the circumstance of there being nuns here in 
 1086, which is evident from the Domesday Survey, invalidates Tanner's 
 conjecture that this outrage occasioned the rum of the convent. The nuns 
 were dispersed, however, and their estates enjoyed by laymen, some time 
 prior to the year 1125, when King Henry I. gave this foundation, with 
 every thing belonging to it, to his new Abbey of Reading, in Berkshire, 
 to which it afterwards became a subordinate cell of Benedictine monks. 
 In 1239, the Priory and the Parish Church were re-dedicated to St. 
 Peter and St. Paul, by Ralph de Maydenstan, Bishop of Hereford, 
 who granted a charter of indulgence in consequence. 
 
 The right of the Abbots of Reading to appoint monks of their house 
 Priors of Leominster, was contested in the thirteenth century by the 
 Bishop of Hereford's Official ; but the proceedings were stopped, on the 
 interposition of Edward I., and the ultimate decision does not appear to 
 have been recorded. In the year 1402, the Priory was laid under heavy 
 contributions by Owen Glendower, who had taken possession of the 
 town : it was then in its most flourishing state, many persons giving up 
 their estates for a life support in the house. 
 
 The revenues of this foundation exceeded those of any other cell in 
 England, and even of some abbeys. Tanner, quoting the MS. Register 
 
LEOMINSTER CHURCH. 
 
 of Edward Fox, Bishop of Hereford, states their yearly amount in 1536 
 to have been 660/. 19s. 8rf., of which 448/. 4s. 8d. were paid to Reading 
 and iu other reprises. 
 
 The present Church consists principally of a splendid body, of the 
 Pointed style of architecture, united on the north side to the more an- 
 cient Parish Church and its Tower, as shewn in Plate I. The chief 
 entrance is through the Tower, by a western doorway, beneath a semi- 
 circular arch, having zigzag and billet mouldings, the lower members of 
 which, with the exception of zigzag course, are slightly pointed. The 
 capitals of the columns are curiously wrought with scroll-like foliage, 
 doves, lions, lilies, &c. Over the door-way is a round-headed window, 
 now partly blocked up ; but the upper windows of the Tower are point- 
 ed. At the south-western angle of the Tower is a projection, resem- 
 bling a buttress, in which is a flight of steps leading to the top. The 
 great western window of the Church displays some handsome tracery; 
 its principal mullions are supported, in a singular manner, by iron cramps, 
 which extend from buttresses connected with the basement story, but 
 detached above it, and terminated by pinnacles. The mouldings and 
 centre mullion of another window at the west end of the Church, to the 
 north of that just described, are enriched with a curious ornament, appa- 
 rently representing the unblown calyx of a flower. The five windows 
 on the south side of the Church all resembled this originally, but two 
 of them requiring to be repaired in 1812, were altered into a plainer 
 style. Between the roof of the choir and that of the old Church, or north 
 aisle, is a small bell tower, surmounted by a crocketted pinnacle. 
 
 The interior of the old Church is delineated in Plate II. : its floor is 
 much raised; its columns are short and massive, of the Anglo-Norman 
 period : over the arches they sustain is a range of blank arches, sup- 
 ported by rectangular pilasters, each of which includes two smaller 
 arches of the same description, with their pilasters. Above these is a 
 series of rectangular compartments, having their superior angles canted 
 ofl", some of which open into windows. This division of the Church is 
 separated from the less ancient structure, iu the Pointed style, by a 
 wall, galleries, and wainscotting, which are built over another range of 
 the ancient columns. 
 
 There were three chantries in this Church, to each of which a priest 
 was appropriated ; viz. the chantry of St. Mary, that of the Trinity ser- 
 vice, and that of the service of our Lady of Pity, otherwise called the 
 Chantry of Philip ap Morgan's Lands. Many altars were also dedicated 
 to the service of particular saints, as well in this Parish Church as in that 
 of the Priory. The charter granted by Robert, Bishop of Hereford, 
 soon after 1130, announces the consecration of the altars of the Holy 
 Cross, in the Parish Church, with that of those dedicated to St. Mary 
 Magdalene, St. Margaret, and St. Katharine. 
 
 In 1389, a new roof was made to the Chancel of the Holy Cross. 
 
 2 
 
Lia*-nbTJP.Neale. 
 
 Iiiji3v»il>y J. Le Kenx 
 
 LEOMIKSTEB rHITM« 
 
 CMiU.'J: j:JCA:-.!r, 
 
LEOMINSTER CHURCH. 
 
 On Nov. 18, 1699, a fire destroyed the whole interior of the eastern 
 part of the Church, which was rebuilt a few years afterwards, iu a style 
 altogether incongruous to the remaining portions of the ancient edifice ; 
 being supported by four large columns of the Tuscan order. The length 
 of the entire Church, which is also that of the most ancient part, the 
 north or back aisle, as it is called, is 123 feet ; its total width is 124 feet, 
 and its height 52 feet, while a noble Tower to the north-west rises to 
 the elevation of 99 feet. 
 
 The body of the Church is regularly pewed with oak ; over the Com- 
 munion Table is a fine Altar-piece, after Rubens, the subject being the 
 Lord's Supper; on each side of which are Tables with the Ten Com- 
 mandments, in gilt letters ; also Moses and Aaron ; and, lastly, the 
 Lord's Prayer and the Belief, with a glory over the Altar-piece. At the 
 west end is the Font, over which is the organ, erected in 1737. 
 
 The ancient monuments in this Church were destroyed by the fire and 
 consequent fall of the east end in 1699 ; it would appear, from the scanty 
 notices of them given by Blount and other antiquaries, that there were 
 few of importance. 
 
 The following account of an ancient inscription, formerly in this 
 Church, is given by Price, in his Historical and Topographical Account 
 of Leominster. 
 
 " Coppie of the viscripsio/ie found by me John Hackluyte, of Eaton, in 
 Herefordshire, vppou a brassen plate on the wall of the south side of the 
 Chirche of Leominster, in the said countie of Hereford, 1592. All the 
 letters were cut oute in brasion plate, and faestened upon a timbre lette 
 into the wall, and have been, washed over with white, at such time the 
 said Chirche had been cleaned. 
 
 " My foremost fathers did build upon this my town, and at Kenelmford, and 
 Meadwellhamstede, and Lincoln, and Leicester, and Kenelmworth, and 
 Clint, and Kenelmstrone, and Winchcombe, and Hereford, and Sutton, and 
 Kenchester, and Westminster, and \'erulum, and Nottinghame, and War- 
 wick, and Gloucester, and Stanford, and Berkeley, and Tewkesbury, and 
 Runcown, and Tamworth, and Edesbury, and Sempringham, and Lincolne, 
 and Crichelme his Ley, and Off-Church. Christ loved me, and was my 
 most righteous defence always. I have loved Christ, and for his love my 
 lands I forsook (i. e. gave) but my Kingsland and also my Kenelmworth, I 
 do not forgive (i. e. give) I am Christ's Kenelme, and Kenelmbald is my 
 Kinsman at Clinton." 
 
 (All in Saxon characters.) 
 " An explanation at large of this monument," observes Mr. Price, " is 
 in the Addenda to Weaver's Funeral Monuments, by which it appears, 
 that the person to whom this inscription did belong, was descended from 
 the ancient Saxon Kings, and died about the year 1060. His ancestors 
 had a castle in the neighbourhood of Leominster, the site of which may 
 be traced: it was called Kenelmbaldston; by abbreviation, Kimboldton. 
 The way to it from Leominster is well known by the name of the Cornish. 
 Way." 
 
 3 
 
LEOMINSTER CHURCH. 
 
 Blount, in his MS. collections for the History of Herefordshire, men- 
 tions an alabaster figure of a lady in the old Church, but without in- 
 scription or arms. It is said to have represented a great benefactress 
 to the Church and Town, probably, according to Price, Matilda Mow- 
 bray, whose charter to the men of Leominster, is still extant. 
 
 There are no modern monuments of particular interest in the Church. 
 In the Churchyard is the tomb of Mr. John Ward, many years manager 
 of a company of comedians, and grandfather of the late Mr. John Kemble 
 and of Mrs. Siddons. It bears the following inscription : 
 
 " Here waiting for our Saviour's g:reat assize. 
 
 And hoping thro' his merits hence to rise, 
 
 In glorious mode, in this dark closet lies 
 
 John Ward, Gent. 
 
 Who died Oct. 30, 1773, 
 
 Aged 69. 
 
 Also, Sarah his wife, who died 
 
 Jan. 30, 1786. Aged 75 years." 
 
 In the Churchyard are also memorials for Mrs. Joan Seward, who 
 died in 1767, and Mrs. Wheel, in 179-2, both aged 103 ; also of Mar- 
 garet Mapp, who died in 180"2, aged 107 ; and of Betty Perry, near 
 Leominster, in 1819, aged 109. 
 
 The living is a discharged Vicarage, valued in the King's books at 
 10/. 3s. 8d. The King is the Patron. In 1631, the celebrated dissen- 
 ter, John Tombes, was appointed Vicar; he was driven from Leominster 
 in 1641 by the King's forces, but returned hither, after undergoing many 
 vicissitudes of fortune, a short time prior to the Restoration. Soon after 
 that event, however, being apprehensive of persecution, and having 
 married a rich widow, he retired from the clerical profession, and went 
 to reside at Salisbury, where he died in 1676, aged 73. W. Whittle, 
 who succeeded him in the Vicarage, is recorded to have had nineteen 
 children by one wife. 
 
 The Priory was situated to the north-east of the present Church, on 
 the little river Pinsley. Some of the buildings are yet standing ; among 
 them is the Priory House, which has undergone various alterations 
 since the Dissolution. Lord Coningsby had it fitted up for a county 
 gaol, thinking he had interest sufficient to remove the assizes from Here- 
 ford to Leominster. It was afterwards rented by the Corporation, and, 
 in 1717 or 1718, made into a Mansion-house for the Bailiff' of the town. 
 It has since been converted into a house of industry for the poor of Leo- 
 minster. The Oil Slill on the Priory Green was the Corn Mill belong- 
 ing to the Priory. The name of an adjoining meadow, now called Alm- 
 buei-y Close, designates the site of another of the conventual buildings. 
 The unevenness of the ground, to the eastward of the present Church, 
 is supposed to mark the foundations of the Priory Church, which, ac- 
 cording to Leland, "was here joyned to the east end of the paroch 
 chirche, and was but a small thinge." 
 4 
 
atnt ;OTar^'s €bnxt% 
 
 SABRIDGEWORTH, HERTFORDSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 REV. THOMAS HUTCHINSON. 
 
 This Church is very pleasantly situated at the east end of the town of 
 Sabridgeworth, on the banks of the little river Stort, which here separates 
 the county of Hertford from Essex. It is in the Deanery of Braughing, 
 and Diocese of London, the Bishops of which are now its patrons ; but 
 originally the Vicarage appears to have been appropriated to the Abbey 
 of St. Peter's, Westminster, by William Mandeville, Earl of Essex, in the 
 reign of Henry II., who " gave the Church to the Monks of West- 
 minster in pure alms." At what time the present edifice was built is 
 not recorded, but, from the prevailing style of its architecture, it may 
 be assigned to the aera of Henry IV. The view of the exterior, plate 1, 
 is taken from the south-east, shewing the Porch on the south ; at the 
 west end is a low square Tower, embattled, from which rises a very 
 small, but elegant taper Spire, covered with lead, reticulated in the 
 joints, rendering it both light and ornamental. On the exterior of the 
 Tower is seen the staircase turret. The Church consists of a Nave, 
 north and south Aisles, and a large Chancel at the east end, separated 
 from the body by an open screen. 
 
 The Church has a picturesque appearance from almost every point of 
 view, but particularly so from the banks of the river, which meanders in 
 beautiful curves through a most fertile country for some miles on either 
 side of Sabridgeworth. 
 
 The interior is striking, from the number of handsome Monuments 
 which it contains ; many of the corbels of the roof are curious and well 
 sculptured, and a great portion of the old seats remain. In the middle 
 Aisle is a marble slab, inlaid with brass, to the memory of Geotfry 
 Joslyne, and Catharine and Johanna, his wives, who died 11th January, 
 1470 ; he was the father of Sir Ralph Joslyne, Knt., twice Lord Mayor 
 of the City of London, who died 2.3th Oct. 1478. At the east end, on 
 the north side, is a very fine marble bust by Bacon, of Robert Jocelyne, 
 Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1739 ; he was created Baron Newport, 
 29th Nov. 1743, and Viscount Jocelyne, 6th Dec. 1755 ; he died in 
 1 
 
ST. MARY'S CHURCH, SABRIDGEWORTH, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 London, Dec. 3rd, 1756. On the south side of the entrance to the 
 Chancel, is a small mural monument " to the precious memory and 
 name" of Sir William Hewitt, Knt., ob. 1C37, and Dame Elizabeth, 
 his wife, who died in 1646. It is adorned with half-length figures of 
 the Knight and his Lady, and is seen in our view of the interior. 
 
 The screen of the Chancel is perforated with small trefoil headed 
 arches : over this was formerly the rood loft, the steps to which are now 
 remaining in the south Aisle. The Chancel is large, and rich in Sepul- 
 chral Monuments, kept very clean, and in most excellent preservation, 
 the most ancient of which is against the north wall, consisting of an 
 Altar Table, upon which are the mutilated effigies of a man armed, 
 and his lady ; above the tomb is a tablet inserted in the wall : " Heare 
 lyeth John Jocelyne, Esq., and Phillip his wife, which John died. An. 
 Dom. 1525." On the same side is a monument to the memory of Sir 
 Walter Mildmay, Knt., of Pishoburj', who died •24th Feb. 1606, with 
 his figure in armour, and that of his Lady, Dame Marie, the daughter 
 of Sir William Walgrave, of Smalbridge, in Suftblk, both kneeling 
 before a table covered with tapestry, edged with fringe, and a double 
 desk, with two books upon it, his son standing in armour behind him, 
 with an inscription under it. At the east end of the Chancel are three 
 Hatchments for members of the family of Jocelyne, whose chief seat 
 has been at Hide Hall, near this town, from the time of Henry III.; 
 the first bears the arms of Jocelyne, viz., arj/re, a cimdar wreath, argent 
 and sable, four hawks hells joined thereto in quadrature, or. Crest, a 
 falcon's leg belled, or, erased gules. Motto, Faire man devoir. Second 
 Hatchment, quarterly of six, viz., 1. Jocelyne as before, with an escut- 
 cheon of Ulster. 2. Azure a fess or. 3. Gules, a griffin segreant, 
 within a border engrailed, or. 4. Gules, an escutcheon argent, icithin an 
 orle of martlets, or. 5. Gules, on a saltier engrailed, or. Jive cinquefoils 
 of the first, and a chief ermine. 6. Azure, three cinquefoils or. The 
 third Hatchment has nine quarterings, viz. six, as before. 7. Gules, tivo 
 lions passant argent, over all, a bend ermine. 8, Sable, ttco bars argent, 
 in chief , three plates. 9. Jocelyne. 
 
 Against the south wall of the Chancel is a Monument and Bust of 
 Sir Thomas Hewitt, Bart, of Pishobury, who died August 4, 1662, aet. 
 57, bearing the arms of Hewitt impaling, ermine, on a clievron indented 
 azure, three crowns or, motto, Honestum utili: opposite to which is a 
 very handsome monument of bis son George, Viscount Goran and 
 Baron of St. Jamestown, in Ireland ; he died in 1689, a;t. 37. He is 
 represented at full length, in a complete suit of armour, but without his 
 helmet, and is standing upright, under a canopy, supported by columns, 
 over which, are his arms, \\z. gules, a chevron engrailed between three owls 
 argent. Crest, a falcon belled or. Supporters, dexter side, a falcon or, 
 with wings expanded argent. Sinister side, a gryphon or, wings ex- 
 
SAINT MARY'S CHURCH, SABRIDGEWORTH, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 panded argent, collared, azure, billette or, motto, vigilando : at the base 
 is a long Latin inscription to his memory ; he left his estate at Pisho- 
 bury to his sister Arabella Lady Wiseman, whose daughter Anne mar- 
 ried the Honorable Henry Lumley, only brother to Richard, Earl of 
 Scarborough, to whom there is also a neat marble slab. He died 
 Governor of Jersey, 18th of October, 172'2, aet. 62, and their daughter, 
 Frances, died 13th Oct. 1719, aet. 6. On a flat stone is an inscription 
 to the memory of William Gardiner, Esq., of Pishobury, who died the 
 29th of November, 1792, aged 41 years ; also Christopher, his son, who 
 died, August, 1725, aged 4 months. At the entrance into the Chancel, 
 is a marble slab covering a vault, with the arms of Hewitt impaling 
 Litton, Anno Dom. 16C6. 
 
 The second plate represents the interior view of the south Aisle, 
 looking east, across the body of the Church, which is separated from 
 the aisles by clustered pillars, and pointed arches, composed of very 
 bold mouldings; the ceiling is here seen, which consists of panels 
 formed by the intersection of the beams, supported by brackets, rest- 
 ing on corbels ; those at the east end are of stone, and are sculptured 
 with the attributes of the evangelists boldly executed. At the west 
 end of this Aisle is the font, of an octagonal form, on a pedestal and 
 base ; within the quatrefoil panels, on the sides, have been shields of 
 arras, but their bearings are now entirely defaced. In the Church is a 
 great number of brasses inlaid on marble slabs ; but the most interest- 
 ing, is one seen in the fore-ground of the view, plate 2. It is finely exe- 
 cuted, and is supposed to commemorate a branch of the Planta- 
 genet family ; the full length figures represent a Knight and a Lady ; 
 the Knight is in plate armour, with his feet resting on a greyhound : 
 at the upper corner of the marble is the arms of old France and 
 England quarterly. The Lady's head is covered by a coif, and her neck 
 bare, she is clad in a loose robe and mantle ; at her feet is a little dog. 
 In the upper part of the slab, over her head, is the arms of England, 
 with a label of France as borne by the Plantagenets, Earls of Lancaster; 
 the date of the Monument may be assigned to the latter end of the four- 
 teenth, or to the beginning of the fifteenth century, by the mode of bear- 
 ing the arms, as well as the costume of the figures. It is somewhat sin- 
 gular, that this curious Monument should have been passed over by the 
 historians of the county, Chauncy and Salmon. Neither Sandford, nor 
 his continuator in the Royal Genealogies, Stabbing, appear to have ever 
 seen it. Upon another slab in this Aisle, are the figures of a Knight and a 
 Lady, spiritedly executed, with this inscription in Roman capitals, viz. : 
 
 " Here lyeth buried Edward Leventliorp, Esquire, who died in Decerab. 1551, 
 (being y' eldest sonne of Thomas Leventhorp, Esquire, and Elizabeth his 
 
 wife, y= the daughter of Bailee of Aldbury, Esquire. Theire eldest 
 
 sone was also Edward, who married Mai-y Parker, the second daughter of 
 
 Sf Harry Parker, Knight, y' eldest sone of Harry, lo Mor''=." 
 
 3 
 
SAINT MARY S CHURCH, SABRIDGEWORTH, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 Against the south wall, towards the east end of this Aisle, is a large 
 mural Monument, consisting of columns supporting an arch ; under which 
 is represented a Knight in complete armour, in a reclining posture, and, 
 below him, a Ladj', who is also reclining, tolerably sculptured, to the me- 
 mory of Sir John Leventhorp, Knight and Baronet, who died 23rd of Sep- 
 tember, 1625, and his Lady ; on the basement are his six sons and eight 
 daughters, all kneeling. Over the centre of the arch is a large shield of 
 arms, quarterly of four : viz. 1. Argent, a bend gobonuic sable and gules, 
 between two cottises of the second, for Leventhorp. 2. Argent, afess between 
 three fleurs de lis (/nles. 3. Sable, a lion rampant argent, crowned, and 
 within a border engrailed, or. 4. Leventhorp. On the dexter side is the 
 arms of Leventhorp impaling, argent, three lions passant gules. Sinister 
 side of the arch. Leventhorp as before, impaling, argent, a bend engrailed 
 between six billets sable. In this Aisle are preserved several brass plates 
 belonging to slabs iti the Church. On the floor, at the east end, is a mar- 
 ble inlaid with two figures in winding sheets ; at the head of which are 
 two coats of arms, viz., 1. France and England quarterly. 2. Old France 
 and England quarterly, with a label of three points. At the feet of the 
 figures have been three coats ; the first is now gone ; 2nd, Leventhorp, 
 quartering, o chevron, with a label of three points; 3rd, Leventhorp, 
 quartering, a fess between three Jleiir de lis. "tA'ithin the two quatrefoils 
 on the upper part of the east window of this Aisle are two coats, in 
 stained glass, quarterly or, and gules, being the arms of William de Say, 
 who married Beatrice, sister and heiress of Geoffrey Mandeville, Earl 
 of Essex. 
 
 The north Aisle has also some painted glass in the small quatrefoil 
 divisions of the mullions of the east window, viz. 1 . Or, a fess be- 
 tween two chevrons sable. 2. Say. At the end of the Aisle is a mar- 
 ble slab inlaid with a brass plate eighteen inches by three, inscribed 
 in black. " Of your Charite pray for the Soule of Wilhil Chauncy, on 
 whose Soule Ihu have mercy." Arms — Dexter shield, A cross Jtevry , oh 
 a chief, a lion passant. Chauncy, with an annulet for difference. On the 
 sinister side, within a shield, is a heart between two hands in chief, and 
 two feet ill base, all pierced and bleeding, representing, heraldically, the 
 five wounds of Jesus Christ. The following members of the family of 
 the historian of the county are also buried here ; John Chauncy, ob. 
 1479, and his wife Anne, the daughter of John Leventhorp, Esq., ob. 
 1477; John Chauncy, Esq., ob. 1510; John Chauncy, Esq., ob. 1-346, 
 and his two wives, Elizabeth, who died 1531, and Katharine, who died 
 1535 : there is also buried here, Margaret, the daughter and heiress of 
 William GitFord of Gilston, wife of John Chauncy of Stepney. 
 
HERTFORDSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. HENRY SMALL. 
 
 The effect of this venerable pile, when seen from a distance, is ex- 
 tremely grand and imposing ; situated upon an eminence, its massive 
 towers rise with majestic splendour above the houses of the ancient town, 
 which is known to have had its first importance under the Romans by 
 the name of Verulam, but to have afterwards increased, chiefly under 
 the protecting influence of the successive Abbots of this rich and pow- 
 erful monastery. The almost regal splendour of those priests, who here 
 ruled with absolute sway a large community, and who held in early times 
 the very first place amongst the spiritual Lords of the Realm, by virtue 
 of their extensive baronial territories, is easily pictured in the imagi- 
 nation. But as the outline of the building becomes more defined, and 
 a nearer approach displays the ivy mantled walls, and other indications 
 of the former extent of their lordly accommodation, mouldering fast 
 away, while the vast magnitude, combined with the simplicity of ma- 
 terial and decoration, of the sacred edifice, which remains, suflSciently 
 denotes its great antiquity, the prospect forces upon the mind a melan- 
 choly train of reflection on the instability of human institutions. 
 
 Monastic foundations had their origin in this country about the time of 
 St. Augustine, who came from Rome to convert the Pagan Saxons to the 
 religion of Christ; and when Offa ascended the throne of Mercia, in 755, 
 abouttwenty great monasteries had been founded in England, and about 
 the same number of Episcopal Sees established ; Ofta's zeal prompted 
 him to do what many of his crowned predecessors had done before him ; 
 but being undetermined whom to select as the patron saint of his esta- 
 blishment, while he was at the city of Bath, it is recorded that an angel 
 appeared to him in the silence of the night, and admonished him to raise 
 out of the earth the body of Alban, the first British martyr under the 
 Dioclesian Persecution, and place his I'emains in a siiitable shrine. The 
 very memory of Alban had been lost for 340 years, but the king assem- 
 bling his clergy and people at Verulam, they commenced their search 
 for his body with prayer, fasting, and alms, when a ray of fire was seen 
 by all to stand over the place of burial, like the star that conducted the 
 Magi to Bethlem. The ground was opened, and in the presence of Offa 
 the body of the Protomartyr Alban was found. The king is said to have 
 placed a circlet of gold round the skull of the deceased, with an inscrip- 
 tion to signify his name and title, and immediately cansed the remains of 
 1 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 the saint to be conveyed to a small chapel, without the walls of Veru- 
 1am, until a more noble edifice could be raised. This transaction is 
 stated to have occurred on the 1st of August in 791, four hundred and 
 ninety-four j'ears after the sutFering of Alban. The king aftenvards made 
 a journey to Rome to procure the desired privileges to his intended foun- 
 dation, which the Pope granted, with great commendations of his zeal 
 and piety ; when he undertook to build a stately church and monastery 
 to the memory of St. Alban, and that same year he set about the work. 
 
 The principal endowment made by OiTa, was his manor and palace of 
 Winslow, in Buckinghamshire, for which estate he procured the singu- 
 lar privilege of exemption from the tax of Rome, scot, or Peterpence. 
 Willegod, a very religious man, who was born of a noble family, and 
 related to the king, was placed over the whole body as the first Abbot, 
 or Superior. 
 
 At the death of Oft'a, in 794, Willegod was in complete possession of 
 this new government, and had established the rule of his house. One 
 hundred monks had been selected out of other religious houses, chiefly 
 from that of Bee, in Normandy, and were now under the vow and obli- 
 gation of the Order of St. Benedict, which compelled them to live in the 
 observance of the most rigid chastity, to have no possessions of their own, 
 and to pay obedience to their Abbot. Their dress was a. long black gar- 
 ment, loose and ungirded, beneath which they wore a close white tunic 
 of woollen, and a hair shirt, a cowl hung back on their shoulders, and 
 their legs were covered with boots. In their diet they were compelled 
 to abstain from all flesh, except when sick. 
 
 The Abbots, who continued to preside over this ancient and royal 
 foundation until the dissolution, were in number forty. By grant from 
 Pope Adrian IV. they took precedence of all others in England. 
 
 1. Willegod, elected791, died 794. 
 
 2. Eadric. 
 ',i. Vulsig. 
 
 4. Vulnoth. 
 
 5. iEdfrid. 
 
 6. Ulsinus. 
 
 7. iElfric, the first of that name. 
 ». Ealdred. 
 
 9. Eadmer. 
 
 10. Leofric, elected 993, ob. 1006. 
 
 11. .Slllfric, the second. 
 
 12. Leofstan. 
 
 13. Frederic, elected 106G, died 
 
 1076. 
 
 14. Paul, elected 1077, died 1093. 
 
 2 
 
 15. Richard D'Aubeny, elected 
 
 1097, died 1119. 
 
 16. Geoffrey de Gorham, elected 
 
 1119, died 1146. 
 
 17. Ralph deGobion, elected 1146, 
 
 died in July, 1151. 
 
 18. Robert de Gorham, electedll51. 
 
 ob. 20th Oct. 1166. 
 
 19. Symon, elected 1168, died 1183. 
 
 20. Warren, elected 1183, died 1195. 
 
 21. John deStudham, elected 1195, 
 
 died 1214. 
 
 22. William deTrumpington, elect- 
 
 ed 20th Nov. 1215, died 24th 
 Feb. 1235. 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 23. John de Hertford, elected 9th 
 
 Sept. 1235, died 17th April, 
 1260. 
 
 24. Roger de Norton, elected Dec. 
 
 1263, died 1290. 
 
 25. John de Berkhamstead, elected 
 
 1291, died 15th Nov. 1301. 
 
 26. John Maryns, elected 1302, 
 
 died March 1308. 
 
 27. Hugo de Eversden, elected 
 
 1308, died 1326. 
 
 28. Richard de Wallingford, elect- 
 
 ed 30th Oct. 1326, died May 
 1335. 
 
 29. Michael de Mentemore, elected 
 
 1335, died 1349. 
 
 30. Thomas de la Mare, elected 
 
 1349, died 15th Sept. 1396, 
 aet. 88. 
 
 31. John Moote, elected 1396, died 
 
 11th Nov. 1400. 
 33. William Heyworth, elected 
 1401, resigned in 1420. 
 
 33. John Whethamsted, elected 
 
 1420, resigned 26th Nov. 
 1440. 
 
 34. John Stoke, elected 1440, died 
 
 1451. 
 John Whethamsted, re-elected 1451, 
 died 20th January, 1460. 
 
 35. William Alban, elected 25th 
 
 Feb. 1460, diedlst July, 1476. 
 
 36. William Wallingford, elected 
 
 10th Aug. 1476, died 8th 
 Aug. 1484. 
 
 37. Thomas Ramryge, elected 
 
 1492, died about 1523. 
 
 38. Cardinal Wolsey, appointed to 
 
 hold the Abbacy, in com- 
 mendam, 1523, died 2nd Nov. 
 1530. 
 
 39. RobertCattoh,succeededl531, 
 
 died 1538. 
 
 40. Richard Boreman, appointed 
 
 1538, resigned 5th Dec. 1539- 
 
 The last Abbot, who had been Prior of Norwich, was chosen by the 
 royal interest, being appointed only to present an appearance of ab- 
 batical rule and government, and to execute with a better grace the in- 
 tentions of the king and parliament, which had now been brought to ma- 
 turity. On the 5th of December, 1639, Sir Thomas Pope, accompanied 
 by the king's visitors, came to the Abbey, when Boreman, on sight of 
 their warrant, immediately signed his resignation, and delivered up the 
 Abbey Seal, thus giving up the possession of a revenue estimated at 
 above 2,500Z. per annum, according to Speed. Boreman obtained an an- 
 nual pension of 266A 13s. 4rf , the prior 33/., 6s. 8d., and thirty-eight 
 monks smaller sums. Sir Richard Lee, Kt., 8th February, 1540, ob- 
 tained a grant of the site of the Monastery, together with the Church of 
 St. Andrew, as a recompense for arrears of pay due for military services. 
 The king had reserved in his hands the whole Abbey Church, which was 
 still used as a place of worship, but remained in the possession of the 
 crown until the charter of incorporation given to the town of St. Albans, 
 in 1553, by Edward VI., at which time the king sold it to the towns- 
 men for 400Z. Before this charter was granted, Sir Richard Lee had 
 actually pulled down and sold the principal part of the materials of the 
 venerable Monastery and all its buildings. 
 3 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 PLATE I. THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE CHURCH, EXTERIOR. 
 
 The most perfect view of this stately edifice is obtained from the 
 meadows on the south side of the Abbey. It is constructed in form of 
 a cross, extending from east to west five hundred and thirty-nine feet, 
 and from the extremity of the north transept to that of the south, the 
 church occupies one hundred and seventy-four feet; the height of the 
 centre tower is considered to be one hundred and forty-four feet; the 
 material of which the fabric is constructed is various, much of the old 
 part is brick, or tile plaistered, stone and flint is also used. It should be 
 observed that the church does not stand precisely true to the points 
 of the compass, but that the chancel-end inclines considerably towards 
 the south, which circumstance is by no means uncommon. The most 
 ancient part of the building is evidently that towards the centre, which 
 may be with certainty assigned to the Norman Abbot, Paul, who was 
 appointed, through the interest of his kinsman Laufranc, to the Monas- 
 tery, in 1077, the twelfth year of the reign of William the Conqueror. 
 Mathew Paris, a monk of St. Albans, positively states that the present 
 Church was begun to be erected, and a great part of the edifice built by 
 Paul during the first eleven years of his rule, and that it was dedicated 
 by his successor. Abbot Kichard D'Aubeny, in 1115, the 16th year of 
 the reign of Henry I. Archbishop Lanfranc was a great benefactor to 
 the Abbey, he not only assisted Paul with large sums to rebuild his 
 Church, but endowed the same with lands and manors. Vide " New- 
 combe's History of the Abbey of St. Albans," to which work we have 
 referred for the piincipal historical facts. 
 
 John de Studham, the twenty-first Abbot, in the reign of King John, 
 commenced the rebuilding of the West Front, and received of his pre- 
 decessor. Abbot Warren, one hundred marks for that purpose. The 
 work, however, proceeded but slowly, and was at length completed by 
 his successor in the Abbacy, William de Trunipington, who iilso made 
 additions to the centre Tower, and erected substantial buttresses from 
 the foundation up to the battlements, thereby strengthening the walls, 
 and increasing the beauty of its appearance. He at the same time en- 
 larged the windows at the ends of the Transepts, adding so much light, 
 that the Church assumed a more splendid appearance, and seemed 
 wholly re-edified under his care. 
 
 The Tower is divided into three stories, and is supported at the angles 
 by massive buttresses, which terminate in circular turrets, the whole em- 
 battled, and surmounted by a small taper spire, a peculiar feature in 
 the churches of this county. The first story of the Tower, below the 
 battlements, contains, on each face, two double windows, within a semi- 
 circular headed arch; the upper part of which is filled with triangular 
 
S7 AlLBAIfS ABBEX CBnUlEvIJS , 
 
 ■VTi:"WOr THE -I/AVE r.OOKJM&'W^ST.. 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 billets, having open spaces between them. In this part of the Tower 
 the bells are hung. Below this is a series of four arches, each divided by 
 short massive columns, forming a kind of open gallery, intended to 
 lighten the appearance of the Tower, which below this compartment is 
 nearly plain. The Transepts are evidently of the same aera as the centre 
 Tower, with the exception of the large windows at the ends, which we 
 have noticed to have been subsequently added. 
 
 On the south side was originally situated the Cloisters, and the resi- 
 dences of the Monks, the Grand Entrance to the Abbey, from Sopwell, 
 being anciently on the south-east; nine pointed arches, indicating the ex- 
 tent of the Cloisters, remain on the south wall of the Nave of the Church. 
 In the Clerestory is a series of lancet-headed arches, extending to the 
 west end, which, it is most probable, were originally glazed. Few win- 
 dows now appear, and those are irregular in their forms, and various in 
 their dates. 
 
 This side of the venerable and majestic Church is at present disgraced 
 by a building immediately abutting against its sacred walls, betraying 
 in its erection a violation of taste and feeling, at a time too, when exer- 
 tion is made to lay open to public view the most remarkable specimens of 
 ecclesiastical architecture in the kingdom. Far from any personal re- 
 flections on the proprietor, we must feel it our duty to mark, with proper 
 indignation, encroachments of this nature. Such buildings ought al- 
 ways to be detached, in order to display the pristine dignity of the sacred 
 pile. This building has been, of course, omitted in our view, Plate I. 
 
 The West Front of the Abbey Church still bears an imposing and dig- 
 nified character, though deprived of much of its ornamental particulars. 
 This portion of the building was completed in the latter end of the reign 
 of King John. A bold pointed arch of entrance leads to a deep porch, 
 or Gallilee, within which is the door, in two divisions, finely carved. The 
 interior of the Porch is divided by slender pillars of Sussex marble, sup- 
 porting sharp-pointed arches, and other tracery, a fine specimen of the 
 earlj'' pointed style. The moulding of the large outer arch terminates in 
 two human heads, and above it are sculptured the arms of the Abbey, 
 and of Offa, king of Mercia, the founder. 
 
 Two Porches, which formerly opened from the West Front to the 
 North and South Aisles, are now stopped up on the exterior. They are 
 also constructed in the early pointed style, and exhibit some fine detached 
 columns of Petworth marble, with rich foliaged capitals, &c. Over the 
 Porch is the Great West Window. 
 
 PLATE 11. VIEW OF THE NAVE, LOOKING WEST. 
 In this View we have chosen a point from whence the singular diver- 
 sity of the architecture, in this interesting portion of the building, may 
 be observed. From the great arch which supports the Tower, to the west 
 5 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 eiul of the Church, are twelve piers, or columns, ou each side, and thirteen 
 arches, each, about twelve feet in span. 
 
 The four arches on the north side, towards the west, are supported on 
 a cluster of stone columns, attached to an octangular pier, and are 
 pointed. These are constructed in the style of the thirteenth century, and 
 may be assigned to the Abbot, John de Studham, whose work was com- 
 pleted by his successor, William de Trumpington, while the massive 
 pier on the right of the View, and, like the continuation eastward, sup- 
 porting plain semicircular arches, marks the earlier period of the Nor- 
 man Abbot Paul. On the south side of the Nave, the same variety in 
 the architecture is observed. Over the large arches is a Triforium, or 
 Gallery, composed of a range corresponding with the lower, and over 
 that a third range of arches, which rises to the roof, the piers are fluted 
 iu the upper compartment. 
 
 The lower part of the Great West Window is now stopped up; like the 
 tier above it, it was in nine divisions, which are again subdivided into 
 eighteen, towards the top of the window. No painted glass is remaining; 
 but we may well suppose it was originally adorned with that splendid 
 material. On the south side of the entrance is a small Tablet, to the 
 memory of Francis Carter NiccoU, who died, 1st June, 1782, xt. 58, 
 and others of his family. 
 
 The Ceiling of the Nave is boarded, and was the work of Abbot 
 Whethampsted, in 1428. The ribs form, by their intersection, square 
 compartments, and are supported on trusses of very coarse workmanship ; 
 the whole is painted. Within each panel is a wreath, inclosing the ini- 
 tials 3!» 1^?» ^'1 '" large white letters. Near the second column from 
 the west, in the pavement, is a marble slab, with indents of a figure, the 
 brass of which is now gone, said to be a memorial of the celebrated Sir 
 John Mandeville, a native of this town, who travelled into Tartary, &c. 
 about the year 1322. He died in 1371. 
 
 PLATE III. VIEW ACROSS THE EAST END OF THE NAVE, SHEWING 
 
 SAINT CUTHBERT'S SCREEN. 
 The Arches of the Nave seen in this vievi' vary considerably in their 
 decoration from those previously described, as well as from the arches on 
 the north, or opposite side of the screen, which crosses the Nave at the 
 entrance of the Choir, where they are found to be plain and semicircular, 
 springing from massive piers constructed of brick, or, as it is called, 
 Roman tile, plastered over; this tile is of exquisite hardness, surpassing 
 stone in durability, but bearing no ornament whatever. On the contrarj', 
 the columns and arches seen in our view are embellished with very bold 
 and rich mouldings, terminating in finely sculptured heads, of an abbot, 
 a king, a queen, and a bishop; above them is a string course ornamented 
 with roses, and above the columns are shields of Arms, bearing the in- 
 6 
 
TJrawiiiiyJ.i'.Heale . 
 
 s 
 
 .r €HUK<rw, 
 
AILBAHS ABBET 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 signia of the Abbey, of Mercia, of England, of Edward the Confessor, 
 and of France. A bove the larger arches is a series of ornamented arches, 
 springing from clustered columns, the capitals of which are sculptured 
 into foliage, and the spandrils pierced. The arches of the third, or upper 
 range, are also pointed, and decorated in a similar manner; this portion 
 is constructed of Tottenhoe stone, as is also St. Cuthbert's screen, which 
 is recorded to have been erected upon the following occasion. Richard 
 D'Aubeny, 15th Abbot, being present at Durham, when the body of St. 
 Cuthbert was there deposited, was restored to health by miracle ; on his 
 return to St. Albans he built this choir-screen, and adjoining to it, on the 
 west side, a Chapel, dedicated to St. Cuthbert. The western side of the 
 sciieen is adorned with canopies, terminating in rich finials, below which 
 are niches, and on the south side a piscina : at each end of the screen 
 are pointed arch doorways, opening into that part of the Choir called the 
 Baptistry, from the font being placed there. On the north side of the 
 screen appears the remains of a tomb and a piscina; the whole has been 
 mutilated, and the parts obscured by whitewash. Originally the shrine 
 of their patron saint, St. Alban, elevated behind the great altar, was 
 visible to the view of the whole Choir and congregation from this part. 
 The organ of the church is now placed over it. 
 
 The Monument, in the South Aisle, seen in our view, is to the me- 
 mory of William Atkinson of Doncaster, who died, 25th January, 1763, 
 aet. 30, &c. &c., near which is a mural monument to John Thrale, Esq., 
 who died on loth May, 1701, with busts of him and of his wife Mar- 
 garet; on the opposite side of the Aisle, is a tablet to W. King, of Fine- 
 shade, who died, 10th May, 1766. The roof, at the west-end of the 
 South Aisle, is of open timber, but towards the east end it is groined 
 stone; the windows are pointed, and in two divisions. The outer wall 
 of the North Aisle is of Norman architecture, but pointed windows have 
 been subsequently inserted, differing in style from those on the south, 
 and still containing a few fragments of painted glass, chiefly armorial. 
 
 PLATE IV. VIEW OF THE CHOIR, LOOKING WEST. 
 This plate exhibits, in a prominent manner, the earliest portion of the 
 architecture of this noble pile, consisting of the interior of the great 
 centre tower, at the intersection of the transepts ; the four vast and Un- 
 adorned piers, of Roman tile, that support the fabric, are surmounted 
 by large semicircular arches, above which is a range of small arches, 
 with double openings to a gallery round the tower, under the belfry. The 
 ceiling is of groined timber, and is painted in a florid pattern : in the cen- 
 tre is a circular opening with wooden balustrades. Th& large piers have 
 been deprived of a portion of their bases to admit of the pews, erected 
 about the time of Charles II. : opposite the pulpit are hung the achieve- 
 ments of the late Earl and Countess of Spencer. 
 %■ 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 Both the transepts are of Anglo-Norman architecture, similar in clia- 
 racter to the centre tower. In the arched recesses, which appear on each 
 side of the South Transept, were formerly chapels, with altars to the 
 Holy Mary, St. Simeon, Thomas de la Mare, and St. John ; in that of St. 
 Simeon are the remains of three stone coffins, dug up a few years ago. 
 The large South Window was demolished in a violent storm that hap- 
 jjtned in the year 1703, when its place was filled by the wooden frame, 
 now remaining. In the wall beneath the window is an ancient oak-door, 
 with curiously worked iron hinges, opening to a short covered passage, 
 leading most probably to the Abbot's Chambers, which were formerly 
 near the cloisters : at this end is a mural monument, representing a 
 short column, surmounted by a vase, to the memory of Henry Pye 
 Rich, Esq., one of the commissioners for the treaty with America, who 
 died, 18th July, 1809, aet. 73, also a tablet for Mary, widow of James 
 Tippet, Esq., ob. 4th May, 181.3, a;t. 59. On the west side, is another 
 tablet for Ptolemy James, A. M., ob. 1729, with a long Latin inscrip- 
 tion to his memory. On the floor are many slabs, with indents of por- 
 traits, arms, and legends, from which the brasses appear to have been 
 long since removed. 
 
 In the North Transept the large end window is divided by stone 
 transoms and mullions into seven divisions, three in the centre, and two 
 on each side, and is really handsome ; the arch, considering its early 
 date, is rather flat. In this part of the church were formerly altars to 
 St. Hugh, St. Patern, the apostles, and also the shrine of St. Amphibal. 
 The body of St. Amphibal, the instructor of St. Alban, was found in 
 1178, and brought from Redburn Green to the Abbey, where it was 
 preserved, enclosed in a shrine on the north side of the High Altar. It 
 was afterwards moved from the apsis of the church to this aisle, in the 
 time of Abbot Trumpington. 
 
 The martyrdom of Amphibal is painted in colours, now considerably 
 faded, on the centre of the roof; in the other divisions is a series of 
 arms of the principal baronial families in the kingdom. Arms, also, form 
 the decoration of the ceiling of the south transept. 
 
 Against the north wall of this transept is a monument, represent- 
 ing a sarcophagus, over which reclines a weeping female figure, but 
 badly sculptured, to the memory of Christopher Rawlinson, Esq. of 
 Cark Hall, Cartmell, ob. 1733 ; and, on the west side, are tablets to 
 Joseph Handley, Mayor of this town, who died 11th February, 1702, 
 and to John Handley, ob. 26th July, 1742. 
 
 PLATE V. THE ALTAR SCREEN, ERECTED BY ABBOT WALLINGFORD, 
 
 1480. 
 
 This most beautiful specimen of the florid style of architecture, erected 
 in the reign of Edward IV., was intended to veil the shrine of St. 
 
 8 
 

THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 Alban, which formerly stood in the presbytery behind the High Altar, 
 and to be the means of creating a new degree of respect and veneration 
 for the patron saint, whose relics, about the time of its erection, were 
 visited with greater solemnity, and allowed to be seen but rarely. Al- 
 though it is generally called Walliiigford's Screen, there can be little 
 doubt that it was originally designed by Abbot Whethamsted, whose ar- 
 morial badge is sculptured upon it; it is also surmised that the screen 
 was begun to be erected in the abbacy of Alban, and was completed 
 by Abbot Wallingford about the year 1480 ; the expense of the whole, 
 which is entirely composed of stone, including the statues with which it 
 was formerly adorned, was 1100 marks. The workmanship is certainly 
 of the choicest kind, and though a considerable alteration has been made 
 in the centre or principal compartment, the design is altogether so pure, 
 and the general effect so little injured by the partial mutilation, that it 
 now remains one of the noblest efforts of skill, and a triumphant display 
 of the inimitable excellences of that peculiar style of architecture in 
 which it is constructed, decidedly the most appropriate to the situation 
 where it is placed. 
 
 In our representation of this interesting composition, necessarily in- 
 troduced upon a small scale, a due regard to the general effect has not 
 induced the slightest neglect of the ornamental decoration that pervades 
 the whole subject, which is endeavoured to be made as conspicuously 
 prominent as it appears in its masterly original. The Chancel is ascend- 
 ed by four steps, and in the centre, where the altar formeily stood, bear- 
 ing not only the pix, but massive candlesticks, rich reliquaries, flower- 
 pots, &c. &c. is now placed the more simple communion table of oak, 
 represented in the plate, covered with a cloth. This table is of very an- 
 cient date, and is inscribed with the names of the four evaiigelists, in old 
 English characters ; above it is very neatly painted the Decalogue, with 
 the Lord's Prayer and Creed. That part of the screen, immediately over, 
 consists of a series of twelve small canopies surmounting pedestals, in 
 niches, which might possibly have been intended for little statues of the 
 apostles in silver, or other precious metal. Over these is the large space, 
 before alluded to, of more modern workmanship than the rest, and not 
 executed with corresponding delicacy ; where originally was probably 
 sculptured a portion of the life of St. Alban, or perhaps the resurrection 
 of Jesus Christ. The subject, whatever it might have been, was con- 
 sidered as superstitious, and was defaced at the reformation of religion ; 
 its place has been supplied in after-times by panelling, loaded with 
 crockets, besides which, at the spring of the arches, below the middle 
 transom, are cherubim heads. Five very rich canopies form the sum- 
 mit of this division of the screen ; the centre supported by a console or 
 bracket. In each side division of the screen is a pointed arch doorway, 
 over one of which is sculptured the arras of Whethamsted, and over 
 9 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 the Other, the arms of France and England, quarterly. Three tier of 
 large canopied niches, on each side, originally held sixteen statues, which 
 assemblage of varied figures must have produced a most imposing and 
 gorgeous eflfect. The screen is more lofty than is usual in similar works 
 of art, and is crowned by a rich projecting moulding, boldly sculptured 
 with foliage, terminated above by a very delicate open-work parapet, 
 minute in its ornaments, and like the rest of this splendid production of 
 masonic skill in singular preservation. 
 
 On the south side of the chancel, close to the altar-screen, is the 
 monument of John Whethamsted, Abbot of this Monastery, who died 
 January 20, 1460, in the last year of the reign of Henry VI. His pa- 
 ternal name was Bostock, but, according to a custom amongst ecclesi- 
 astics, he received the appellation of AVhethamsted, from the place of 
 his birth, and became one of the most famous in the annals of this royal 
 foundation. He was educated at Gloucester College, Oxford, of which 
 he was Prior, when he was elected to the rule and government of St. 
 Albans, on the resignation of Abbot Heyworth, in 1421. The Abbey 
 Church, which had been neglected by his predecessors, very early en- 
 gaged his attention, and for the most worthy purposes, he adopted the 
 policy of admitting knights and even ladies into the fraternity, thus en- 
 couraging the rich and great to become interested for the safety and 
 prosperity of the institution. In the year 1428, above thirtj' persons of 
 consideration took on them the Rule of the fraternity, all of whom con- 
 tributed to the repairs of the church. The roof of the Choir bears evi- 
 dent marks of having been erected during his government; between the 
 groins is alternately painted the eagle of St. Matthew and the Agnus Dei, 
 and over the great east arch of the tower appears the arms of the Abbey, 
 azure, a saltier or, supported by the lamb and the eagle, and surmounted 
 by a crown, over which is inscribed ©DminC, JliliScrcrC. On the dexter 
 side is a shield bearing, gvles, three crowns or, the arms of Mercia; and, 
 on the sinister, another shield, bearing, quarterly, gules and or, four 
 lions rampant countercharged. Below, upon a large scroll, are these 
 lines, alluding to Whethamsted, who was the sixth abbot of the name 
 of John. 
 
 ^ic uOicunquc biGc.s .sit pictu^ ut aonu.s ct alc^ 
 €ffigic!^ opcriiii jicrti pam.^ ista 3;oi)anni.ii 
 <e^,sc ticl in toto jubis.se tcl infacicnoo 
 <e?t opu? ])ac unum causabit cum facicnOu'. 
 
 In 1440, after he had ruled the Abbey of St. Albans twenty years, he 
 was induced from prudential motives to resign the mitre, in consequence 
 of the misfortunes which seemed impending over his very excellent friend 
 and benefactor Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester; the abbot having good 
 reason to think that the duke's foes would caiTy their malice so far as 
 10 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 to ruin his adherents : on the 26th of November, in that year, John 
 Stoke, Prior of Wallingford, was appointed his successor ; but, upon his 
 death, in 1451, Whethamsted was unanimously re-chosen. The civil war 
 between the houses of York and Lancaster raged during his second rule, 
 and, in 1455, the first battle of St. Albans was decided. King Henry VI. 
 left London with about two thousand men, for the purpose of impeding, 
 the march of Richard, Duke of York, from the north, with a body of 
 three thousand troops ; the latter encamped in Key field, on the east 
 side of the town, while the King took post in Peter Street, where the as- 
 sault was made by the Duke's army, when a great conflict ensued. The 
 King's forces fled and left their sovereign, who, being discovered by the 
 Duke of York, was led prisoner to the Abbey, from whence he was the 
 next day conveyed to London. The greater part of the bodies of the 
 slain, which were thickly strewed about the town, were interred at St. 
 Peter's ; but the chief nobles, who fell on the Lancastrian side, were 
 buried with funeral honours in the Chapel of St. Mary, within the Abbey 
 Church, permission having been granted, at the intercession of Abbot 
 Whethamsted ; there is not however remaining any memorial to distin- 
 guish the particular spot. 
 
 On the right hand of the plate, representing the grand screen in the 
 chancel, is seen a small portion of the beautiful monumental Chapel, 
 which Abbdt Whethamsted, in contemplation of his latter end, caused 
 to be erected on the south side of the Altar. It occupies the space be- 
 neath one of the great arches of the Choir ; the richly ornamented ca- 
 nopy forming the roof, is supported by a flatly pointed arch, the soffit of 
 which is adorned with pendants, terminating in small armorial bosses, 
 delicately wrought, bearing the badges of the rose, within the garter ; the 
 rose, en soleil, &c. &c. Within this oratory the abbot had provided for 
 the due celebration of masses for the welfare of his soul. The large grey 
 marble slab which covered his remains, has been deprived of the brass 
 containing his portrait ; but, with the exception of this mutilation, the 
 Chapel is still in fine preservation, and is one of those objects that will 
 always render the Church of St. Albans interesting to the man of taste 
 as well as the antiquary. 
 
 Immediately above the arch, on the outer face of the monument, is a 
 very bold floriated cornice, upon which are three large shields of arms, 
 viz. 1. A saltier. Abbey of St. Albans. 2. A chevron between three bunches 
 of wheat, three ears in each. Abbot Whethamsted. 3. Three crotvns. 
 Kingdom of Mercia. The moulding is also sculptured with the Abbot's 
 Badge, three ears of wheat, several times repeated, accompanied by this 
 motto, in large letters, ^allc^ tl^tiUnDabant. Above the moulding is 
 a series of quatrefoils charged with roses, mitres encircled by ears of 
 wheat, the arms of the Abbey, of Mercia, &c. &c. ; the whole surmounted 
 by a very elegantly wrought cornice, terminating in vine leaves. 
 11 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 On the wall, over the south side, or back of the monument, towards the 
 Aisle, is painted the following inscription : — 
 
 JOHANNES 
 
 DE LOCO FRUMENTARIO 
 
 QUIS JACET HIC ? PATER ILLE JOHANNES, NOMINA MAGNA 
 
 CUI WHETHAMSTEDIO PARVUIA VILLA DEDIT 
 
 triticije in tumulo signant QnoQUE NOMEN arist;e 
 
 VITAM RES CLAR*:, NON MONUMENTA NOTANT. 
 
 The north side of the Chancel is occupied by a monument of corres- 
 pondent elegance, but more elaborate in its ornamental decoration. This 
 very beautiful sepulchral Chapel is seen in perspective upon the left- 
 hand of the Altar Screen, in Plate V. ; it is a singularly fine specimen of 
 the scientific taste which the ecclesiastical rulers of the monastic insti- 
 tutions are sometimes found to have possessed and encouraged. This 
 monument would do credit to the first architect of any period of English 
 History, and a contemplation of the multiplied fancy displayed in its en- 
 richments, is enough to make some, possessed of great names, blush at 
 the poverty of invention to be discovered in their designs. 
 
 In this Chantry, which has been suffered to remain in good preserva- 
 tion, all the sculptured allusions refer to the name or olfice of the abbot 
 to be commemorated, of whose personal history little is now known. 
 Thomas Ramryge was elected to the abbacy in the year 1492, the 8th 
 of the reign of Henry VII. ; his appellation is supposed to have been 
 derived from Ramryge, a place so called, about eight miles from hence, 
 where it is not improbable he was born, and it is imagined that he con- 
 tinued abbot till the year lo'23, which is assigned by Newcombe as the 
 time of his death, although the precise date is not known. After that 
 period Cardinal Wolsey held the Abbey in commendam. This Oratory 
 or Chapel he undoubtedly caused to be erected in his lifetime, and pro- 
 vided that his obit might be commemorated, and periodical masses be 
 established for his soul's welfare ; his pious intentions were but transient 
 in efiect, for, soon after the Reformation, his Chantry appears to have 
 been seized upon, and appropriated by a wealthy attorney of the town as 
 a burial place for his family. 
 
 The Chapel is enclosed by a beautiful open screen, in four principal 
 compartments, upon the side nest the Chancel, in one of which is the door, 
 inscribed, .JBCOrUlU ijaDaitl aD porta.s' mfcri. In the small spandrils of 
 this arch of entrance are sculptured very curious representations of the 
 martyrdom of St. Alban and St. Amphibal, according to the monastic 
 legends. The lower part of the monumental screen is panelled with or- 
 namental enrichments, and above the somewhat flatly pointed arches of 
 the principal story, is a bold and broad moiilding, bearing shields of the 
 royal arms, with the dragon and greyhound for supporters ; others are 
 12 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 charged with the emblems of the crucifixion, one shield bears, quarterly, 
 four lions rampant, which is supported by two rams, holding each a 
 crozier ; above the moulding rises a series of pointed arches, open be- 
 tween the raullious, and enriched with floriated pinnacles, &c. 
 
 The interior of this Sepulchral Chantry or Oratory, is superlatively rich 
 in sculptured ornaments, most delicately wrought ; the Ceiling is adorned 
 with pendents, and is divided.into compartments by minute tracery, ra- 
 mifying in elegant forms ; at the west end, against the wall, is the full 
 armorial escutcheon of Abbot Ramryge. By what authority these eccle- 
 siastical cognizances were assumed, cannot now probably be explained; 
 but it remains a proof that armes parlantes were adopted as early as 
 the incorporation of the college of arms. The field bears, On a bend 
 coupe three Imperial Eagles, between- a Lion rampant in chief, and a Ram 
 salient in base, supported by two Rams, collared, and with the letters 
 X * V * Q* t, and roses upon the collars. Rams' heads, the above let- 
 ters, and other allusions to the name of the Abbot, are also frequently 
 repeated amongst the great diversity of ornamental decoration with 
 which this beautiful Chapel is profusely covered. Besides these two 
 splendid monuments, there is now left very few memorials of the suc- 
 cessive powerful Abbots of St. Albans. Some marble slabs in the 
 pavement of the chancel and choir still retain portraits en creiix, partially 
 concealed by pews, see^Plate IV., others, not bearing inscriptions, tra- 
 dition only records their particular designation: Roger Norton, ob. 1290; 
 John Berkhamstead, ob. 1301 ; and John Maryns,ob 130B; were buried 
 in the choir, under slabs of marble, itdaid with brass. 
 
 One of the most remarkable specimens of this description of memorial, 
 in the kingdom, has been removed, within these few years, from the 
 chancel into the presbytery, at the east end of the Church ; it consists 
 of one entire piece of metal, the whole size of the large slab, upon the 
 surface of which it was bedded with pitch; some of the studs with which 
 it was also fixed, having become loose, the clerk has carefully pre- 
 served it, by nailing it to a board. This very curious relic presents a 
 spirited intagliated portrait of Abbot Thomas De la Ma;e, an ecclesi- 
 astic, of noble parentage, being son of Sir John De la Mare, Knt., and 
 Joanna, daughter of Sir John de Harpsfield, Knt.; he was elected to 
 the abbacy of St. Albans in the year lol9, the '24111 of Edward III,, 
 previously to which, he had beeu Prior of Tynenioulh, in Northum- 
 berland, and had been entrusted with the custody of the Earl of Doug- 
 las, taken prisoner at the battle of Nevile's Cross. After he hud ruled 
 this monastery forty-seven years, he died in 1396, a?t. 88 ; his figure is 
 represented clothed in the richest sacerdotal vestments, having his mitre 
 on his head, and bearing his pastoral-staft' in his left hand; he is standing 
 enthroned under a very rich canopy, containing numerous saints in niches. 
 13 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. AI.BANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 PLATE VI.— THE MONUMENT OF HUMPHREY OF LANCASTER, 
 DUKE OF GLOUCESTER, 1447. 
 
 Behind the rich Altar-scvcen, is a part of the Church, called the Presby- 
 tery, in the centre of which formerly stood the gorgeous shrine of the 
 patron saint of the Abbey. The whole space, beneath one of the large 
 pointed arches, on the south side, is occupied with the sepulchral oratory 
 of the illustrious Duke of Gloucester, who, by the popular enthusiasm 
 manifested during his misfortunes, was generally called, the Good Duke 
 Humphrey, and the Father of his Country. He was the fourth and young- 
 est son of King Henry IV., and Mary Jlohun, his first wife ; and was 
 created Duke of Gloucester and Earl of Pembroke in 1414, by his 
 brother, then King Henry V. He was handsome, brave, and accom- 
 plished, and on the accession of Henry VF., was appointed Protector 
 or Guardian of the kingdom, which important olfice he executed to the 
 general satisfaction. He married twice ; the first of his wives was Ja- 
 queline or Jacoba, the only daughter of William, Count of Hainault, 
 and Margaret of Burgundy ; by this marriage, in 1425, he acquired other 
 titles, and was then styled " Humphrey, by the Grace of God, Son, 
 Brother, and Uncle to Kings, Duke of Gloucester, Earl of Hainault, 
 Holland, Zealand, and Pembroke, Lord of Friesland, Great Chamber- 
 lain of England, Protector and Defender of the said Realm and Church 
 of England." Soon after this event, he sailed over to the Netherlands, 
 with his Duchess, and a body of English troops, to oppose the Duke of 
 Burgundy, who aspired to her inheritance ; being unfortunately defeated, 
 the Duke of Gloucester's match with Jaqueline was soon after annulled 
 by Pope IMartin V., who confirmed, at the same time, a former marriage 
 she had contracted with John, Duke of Brabant, the ally of the power- 
 ful Duke of Burgundy. His second wife was Eleanor, the daughter 
 of Reginald Lord Cobham, of Sterborough, in Surrey, who had previ- 
 ously lived with him as his mistress. This circumstance, which mate- 
 rially aflFected his moral character, was speedily taken advantage of by 
 his enemies, jealous of his power ; and the interest of his uncle. Cardinal 
 Beaufort, prevailing, the Duke of Gloucester now began to lose his in- 
 fluence at court. In 1441, his Duchess was accused of having recourse 
 to sorcery and witchcraft, to shorten King Henry's life, and make way 
 for the Duke of (>loucester"s advancement to the throne, and, upon that 
 charge, was committed to perpetual imprisonment in the Isle of Man. He 
 had opposed, with all his power the marriage of the King with Margaret 
 of Anjou, w hich he considered an ignominious alliance, but the Cardinal 
 and council carried it into effect, and the next year, procured the Duke to 
 be accused of high treason, and summoned to take his trial before a par- 
 liament convened at Bury St. Edmunds. Upon his arrival at that town, 
 be was confined in the Abbey, where he was next day found dead in 
 U 
 
Xaeia'-^ityJ-Le Xenx- 
 
 J.-^ATLBAWS ABBEY CHURCH. 
 
THE A'^BEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 his bed, 24th February, 1447 : no one doubted he had fallen a victim 
 to the vengeance of his enemies, although his body was exposed to view, 
 and exhibited no outward marks of violence. 
 
 He was buried, with great funeral pomp, in this Church, the expense 
 of the monument being defrayed by the Abbot and Convent, amounting 
 to 433/. 6s. 8d. ; they also entailed upon themselves an annual expendi- 
 ture of nearly 80Z. for daily masses for his soul, and for the celebration 
 of his anniversary or obit. This monument, vide Plate VI. is more 
 florid, in style, than those we have already described, and consists of a 
 small oratory, or Chapel, in which the priest officiated, open towards the. 
 Presbytery, but enclosed by a curiously wrought iron screen on the side 
 next the south aisle ; the ceiling of this Chapel is adorned with very 
 minute tracery, and is enriched by pendents, terminating in delicate bos- 
 ses. The spaudrils of all the arches, on the outer face of the monument, 
 are filled with quatrefoils in circles, having in the centre of each, the 
 arms of France and England, quarterly, as borne by the members of the 
 House of Lancaster. 
 
 Immediately over the arches, on the front of the oratory, or chantry, 
 is a very bold cavetto moulding, charged with seven large shields, 
 sculptured with the personal arms of the Duke of Gloucester, viz., quar- 
 terly, France and England, ivithin a border ; four of these shields are 
 surmounted by ducal coronets, and each of the other three with a lion, 
 as a crest, upon a richly mantled helmet. Above this moulding rises a 
 most splendid canopy, or Couronnement, consisting of four principal ta- 
 bernacles, and two of lesser height, accommodating itself to the form 
 of the arch under which it is reared ; between each of these floriated 
 gables is a space, occupied by three niches with pedestals, formerly con- 
 taining statues ; these are now gone, but, upon the south side of the 
 monument, the greater number of the statues now remain ; they un- 
 doubtedly represent his royal and noble ancestors, and are curious exam- 
 ples of the costume of the period of Henry IV. These figures being 
 intended for an elevated situation, are not sculptured with anatomical 
 exactness of proportion, the heads of all being much too large; their 
 remarkable appearance within the niches aflxjrds a degree of exuberance 
 to the, otherwise rich, facade of the monument, very seldom witnessed. 
 In the annexed view of this beautiful work of art, we have shewn the 
 entrance to the identical vault in which the body of the Duke of Glou- 
 cester was buried ; this was accidentally discovered in the year 1703, 
 since which time, visitors have been constantly admitted, who have 
 purloined bone after bone of the illustrious individual, until but a very 
 small fragment of his skeleton remains. This vault is not without its 
 decoration, for, at the east end, is a contemporary painting of the cruci- 
 fixion of Jesus Christ, with a chalice to receive the blood which streams 
 15 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 from the wound in th6 side. No inscription exists upon this highly 
 ornamented sepulchral monument, but, near to it, against the east wall of 
 the south aisle, are painted the following elegiac lines : — 
 
 fix MEMORlff, V. OPT. 
 SACRUM SEROTINUM. 
 Hie jacet Humphredus, Dux ille Glocestritts olim 
 Henrici seiti Protector, fraudis ineptaa 
 Detector, dum ficta notat miracula caeci 
 Lumen erat Patrice, Columen venerabile Regni, 
 Pacis amans, Wusisque favens melioribus, unde 
 Gratum opus Oionio, qus nunc scola sacra refulget : 
 Invida sed muUer Regno, Regi, sibi nequam 
 Abstulit hunc immuH, vix hoc dignata sepulchro j 
 Invidi^ rumpente tamen, post Funera vivit. 
 
 DEO GLORIA. 
 
 This part of the Church, called the Presbytery, was considered the 
 most sacred, being appropriated, during the celebration of divine service, 
 entirely to the abbot and priests, while the congregation were confined 
 to the body of the Church ; in the centre of this sanctuary, as the most 
 attractive object, was formerly placed the splendid shrine of their cano- 
 nized patron, distinguished as the first Martyr, in England, the precise 
 spot is now marked by a marble slab, thus inscribed : — 
 
 S. ALBANUS VEROLAMENSIS ANGLORUM PROTO-MARTYR XVII. JUNII. CCXCVII. 
 
 Six hollow places denote where the staves of the Canopy over the Shrine 
 were originally fixed. This was an object upon which the ingenuity of 
 artists was then displayed in its greatest extent. The shrines were 
 usually placed in an insulated and conspicuous situation, near the High 
 Altar: this, of St. Alban, according to history, somewhat resembled an 
 altar tomb, with a lofty ornamented canopy, supported on pillars over it, 
 representing the saint lying in great state, thus to receive the homage 
 and adoration of all true believers. It contained the very coffin in 
 which his bones were deposited, inclosed in another case, having on the 
 sides embossed figures in precious metals, shewing the chief acts of St. 
 Alban's life. At the head, towards the east, was a large representation 
 of the crucifixion, between the statues of Mary and John, greatly orna- 
 mented with jewels. At the feet, in front of the choir, was represented 
 the Virgin Mary, with Christ in her arms, seated on a throne, highly 
 enriched with precious stones. The pillars were formed like open towers, 
 and were all of j)late gold, while the inside of the canopy was covered 
 with crystal stones. It was erected by Syniond, the 19th abbot, about 
 the year 1180, under the direction of Master John, a goldsmith, and very 
 excellent artist. Matthew Paris, the historian, who lived one hundred 
 16 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 years after, says, that he had never seen " a Shrine more splendid and 
 noble than that at St. Albans." 
 
 On the north side of the Presbytery, opposite to the monument of 
 Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, is a very curious gallery of wood 
 panelled and carved in high relief; in this gallery several monks were 
 stationed to watch the shrine, a precaution not unnecessary, considering 
 that It was composed of the most precious and costly materials. 
 
 The back of the Altar-screen occupies the west side of the Sanctuary 
 whde the east end, consisting of three pointed arches, springing from 
 clustered pillars, was formerly open to the Chapel of the Virgin of 
 .which the exterior view is given in ' 
 
 PLATE Vn.-«OUTH EAST VIEW OF THE ABBEY CHURCH, SHEWING 
 THE LADY CHAPEL. 
 A Chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, usually at the east end 
 was attached to almost every Conventual Church in the kingdom This' 
 addition to the Church of St. Albans, was completed during the ab- 
 bacy of Hugh Eversden, between the years 1308 and 1326 in the 
 re.gn of Edward the Second. It was built chiefly at the expense of one 
 -Keginaldus of this town, an advocate in the Court of Rome whose 
 business was to manage appeals, and suits made to the Papal Consis- 
 tory. Thomas Westwode, a chanter of the Church, is also reported to 
 have procured assistance towards its erection, from the pious and faith- 
 ful, which exertion procured him to be the first person appointed to the 
 office of Ciistos Capella. 
 
 The dimensions and proportions of this building are so just and 
 beautiful, and its decorations display so much elegant simplicity that 
 It may be referred to, as a specimen of pure and cultivated taste' and 
 must be regarded as a model that would not discredit any age' Its 
 whole length is fifty-five feet, and width twenty-five; in heigiit it is 
 thirty feet. The Chapel was originally lighted by seven beautiful pointed 
 windows, which still claim particular attention from the elegance of their 
 form even m their decayed state. Traces of the delicate sculpture with 
 which this Chapel was formerly adorned, are to be discovered in ranges 
 ot figures surrounding the windows, which have not lost their graceful 
 form, though greatly obscured by coats of whitewash, &c. The pave 
 ment is now covered by a boarded floor, so that no sepulchral memo- 
 rials are to be seen, though probably such still remain beneath. Besides 
 the choice and splendid altar of the Virgin Mary, formerly at the east 
 end, there were others laterally situated, which constantly attiacted a 
 great resort of persons, particularly on festival days. These smaller 
 Uiapels, or Oratories, were evidently more calculated for privacy of 
 devotion than the Church, and were intended to give an opportunity for 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH OF ST. ALBANS, HERTFORDSHIRE. 
 
 pious reflection, and the operations of conscience. When these private 
 altars were abolished at the Reformation, the erection of pews was, un- 
 doubtedly, intended to answer the same purpose. 
 
 Our view from the south east, Plate VII. shews the remains of the east 
 window of the Lady Chapel, the rauliions of which being composed of 
 friable stone, are much mutilated, and the whole is now in a state of la- 
 mentable decay. One of the lateral chapels on the south is also seen, 
 and over the whole building appears the great east window of the Abbey 
 Church, the massive tower and south transept form the back ground. 
 
 The Chapel of the Virgin Mary is now completely separated from 
 the Abbey Church, and is used as a school, a passage, for the conve- 
 nience of the inhabitants of the town, having been opened through the 
 Ante-chapel, this is also rich in sculptured decoration. 
 
 The very curious and ancient Piscina, or rather Benetier, in the south 
 aisle of the Church, is the subject of our vignette tail-piece. From the 
 style of its decoration, it may be referred to the time of King John ; but 
 it must be observed, that the ornamented canopy now placed upon the 
 Piscina, which stands under a singularly formed arch, is no part of it, 
 and has most certainly no connexion with the original Piscina. 
 
 At present we must observe that the Church is kept particularly neat, 
 and very clean ; and that more than common attention is paid to visitors 
 by the parish clerk, who appears to take great interest in the remark- 
 ably curious monuments committed in some respects to his care. 
 
 PISCINA IN SOUTH AISIE. 
 
ASHFORD, KENT ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. JAMES BOND. 
 
 The town of Ashford is situated on rising ground, near the confluence 
 of the upper branches of the River Stour, overlooking the celebrated 
 Weald of Kent, a wonderfully rich and level tract, interspersed with very 
 gentle eminences, highly cultivated and adorned with numerous seats and 
 villages, scattered amongst towering oaks aud other trees, within the 
 distance of fifty-four miles from the metropolis, and about fourteen from 
 the city of Canterbury. Its large and beautiful Church, dedicated to 
 the Virgin Mary, is of very remote origin, but was entirely rebuilt about 
 the latter end of the reign of Edward IV., chiefly at the expense of Sir 
 John Fogge, Knt., who resided at Repton, about a mile from this town. 
 He died about the year 1490, and was buried under a tomb, which 
 stands on the north side of the Altar, in the Chancel. The Monument is 
 now greatly defaced, but contains on one side of it a brass plate with 
 these lines : 
 
 Pleuius hie sequitur quod fecerat ille Johannes 
 
 Sumptibus ex propriis, banc ecclesiam renovavit 
 
 Cum campanile quod funditus aedificavit. 
 
 Pluribus atque libris chorus hie per eum veneratur, 
 
 Ac ornamentis altari Dei veneratur. 
 
 Vestibulum ditans, et plura jocaUa donans 
 
 Ut patet intuitu, pro posteribus memoranda 
 
 Ad laudem Domini, cui laus sit nunc et in seram. — Amen. 
 
 Sir John Eogge was Comptroller of the Household, and Privy Coun- 
 sellor to King Edward IV., and also founded a College in this town, 
 with a small establishment appointed to pray for the souls of the king 
 and several persons of distinction, and also those of his majesty's liege 
 subjects who were slain in the battles of Northampton, St. Albans, 
 and Sherborne, in defence of his right and title. 
 
 In a vault underneath the tomb near the altar, which is called Fogge's 
 
 vault, but belongs to the Lord of the Manor, a great many of the Fogge 
 
 family have been buried : there is a tradition that above twenty knights 
 
 of that family have been deposited there. From an old MS. one in- 
 
 1 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, ASHFORD, KENT. 
 
 scription relative to a member of this family is given in Parsom's East 
 Kent, as havinj; formerly been in this Cluircli. 
 
 J^ere, unoer t^\i ?tonc, Ipetj) tibe boDne of 4r})oma.!S J?oggf, <^P 
 quprc, lateli .s^crgcant porter unro tljc mo^t famo)Sc)j princEJi, fting 
 i^tnry VII. anD Vlll., ano tlianor, Ijis tonf, tijc vnljirtie aijottiaji 
 iiccfsicD tfje xvitJj Dap of ilugu^t, tjje pcre of our UorD 1612, anO 
 (jEIianor ocfcscO tljc Oap of , t])t pcre of our iLorD one 
 
 ti)OU?anQ fitic IjunQrcD anD on toljo^e jsoule^ %ti\x^ ijabe mttcp. 
 
 On labels issuing from the mouths of two figures now gone, are these 
 sentences : 
 
 pater Oe €eIiiS ttii^crerc nobi^. 
 ^pintu.si ,§ancte ©eu^ mijierere nobi.sf. 
 
 The family of Fogge, in after times, sutiered much in their estate at 
 the period of the Civil Wars, and according to the vicissitude of human 
 affairs, were reduced to a very small property at the beginning of the 
 eighteenth century. 
 
 Captain Christopher Fogge, a descendant of this ancient family, was 
 made prisoner by the Turks, and redeemed from slavery with a consider- 
 able ransom. He afterwards went to sea as commander of the Rupert 
 man of war, and died on hoard of iiis own ship in the River Thames,' 
 soon after his last voyage, about the year 1707. At his death the fa- 
 mily was most probably extinct. 
 
 The Church consists of a Nave, with aisles on the north and south 
 sides, two transepts and a chancel, with a very noble embattled tower 
 at the intersection of the nave and transepts. It is finely proportioned, 
 and rises to the height of two stories above the body of the Church, and 
 is ornamented with niullioned windows, rising to a pointed arch upon 
 each face. Four octangular turrets, one at each corner of the Tower, 
 are crowned with small spires, and terminate in vanes. — Vide Exterior 
 View, Plate 1. 
 
 The effect of the interior of the fabric is considerably injured by the 
 many pews and galleries that have been introduced for the convenience 
 of the numerous inhabitants of the town, by which much of the original 
 beauty of the structure is lost ; there is now no painted glass in the 
 windows ; but Weever, in his curious work, speaks of many goodly por- 
 traitures — as of King Edward III. ; the Black Prince ; Richard, Duke 
 of Gloucester ; Richard, Earl Rivers; the Lord Hastings; the Lord 
 Scales; Sir William Hawte; Valoins, and his two wives; the first, the 
 daughter of Hawte, the second of Fogge, &c. &c. 
 
 The Church, however, still contains a great many monuments deserv- 
 ing attention; the principal of which are in the Soutii Transept, chiefly in 
 memory of the family of Smyth, Lords of Westenhanger, and formerly 
 owners of the Manor of Asbford, now represented by the Lord Viscount 
 2 
 
« 
 
 4 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, ASHFORD, KENT. 
 
 Strangford. All these tombs are now in excellent preservation, and 
 remain fine specimens of the taste prevalent in Monumental Architecture 
 during the sixteenth, and in the earlier part of the seventeenth century ; 
 they vrere repaired by the late Chief Baron Sir Sidney Stafford Smyth, 
 a descendant, whose great grandmother was the Lady Dorothy Sydney, 
 so celebrated by the poet Waller as Saccharissa. 
 
 The Monument of Thomas Smith, Esq. composed of various-colored 
 marble, represented in Plate II. stands against the south wall of the 
 Chapel, and bears the following inscription : 
 
 Memoriffi Sacrum. 
 Hie certa spe beats resurrectionis conditur claiissimus vir, Thomas Smith, de 
 Westenhanger, Armiger, qui ob spectatam in principem fidem et observantiam 
 dignissimus habebatur. Qui portorii vectigalibus in Londini portubus praeficere- 
 tur, quae postea triginta miUium librarum annua pensitatione a principe redemit, 
 et singulari in nobiliores liberalitate et amore in mercatores praestitit opes quibus 
 ilium Deus opt. max. beavit ad Dei gloriam pauperes sublevando, vere religionis 
 professores fovendo, bonasque lileras promovendo et ad reipublicse usum loa- 
 ginquas navigationes instituendo novas terras detegendo, et serarias fodinas ape- 
 riendo libens lubensque erogavit. Jamque annorum plenus cum sexagesimum 
 nonum an'um implevisset, filiosque sex, sex etiam filias ex Alicia clarissima 
 conjuge sexigeneria, filia et harede Andrei ludd militis D'ni hujus Villae de 
 Ashford suscepisset ; qui in clariores familias matriraonio colligantur, ex hac vita 
 firma in Christo fide demigravit junii septimo. 
 
 Anno Salutis 1591. 
 Johannes Smyth filius primogenitus, optimo patri matriq' charissimiE csteiis 
 filiis filiabus eoUacrimantibus, ad officios^ pietatis et posteritatis memoriam 
 moestissimus posuit. 
 
 The figures of Thomas Smith, and his wife Alice, are represented 
 lying at full length under an arched canopy, composed of a rich enta- 
 blature supported by two Corinthian columns, surmounted by a com- 
 partment filled with the arms of Smyth. Argent, a chevron engrailed 
 between three lions passant sable. Crest, a leopard's head erased, argent 
 gorged with a collar and chain sable. Two other shields, with impale- 
 ments and quarterings of the family, and small obeHsivs on pedestals at 
 the angles. On the base of the tomb are the six sons and six daughters 
 of the deceased, kneeling at Prie Dieus, with an open book upon each. 
 
 On the west side of this Chapel is the monument of Sir Richard 
 Smyth, Knt, of Leeds Castle, fourth son of the above, who is repre- 
 sented in armour, lying upon a cushion and mat ; in front are his three 
 wives and five children. Upon the monument is the following in- 
 scription : — 
 
 Here lyeth the body of Sir Richard Smyth, of Leeds Castle, Kent, fourth son of 
 
 Tliomas Smyth, of Ostenhanger, in the county of Kent, Esq. 
 He married three wives, who were widows. By the first of them, being a daugh- 
 ter of Sir Thomas Scott, of Scott's Hall, he had his only son, Sir John Smyth, 
 and two daughters, Elizabeth and Alice ; and by his second wife he had his 
 3 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, ASHFORD, KENT. 
 
 daughter, Mary ; and by his last wife, who survived him, he had his daughter 
 Margarett. He was Receiver of the Duche of Cornwall, and Surveyor General 
 and Commissioner for the Revenewes assigned to Prince Charles, for many years. 
 He was a just officer in his accounts, which he perfected with much content- 
 ment, where he was trusted. His love to his wife's children and friends was 
 extraordinary, and he tenderly did respect them. His bounty to the poore was 
 very great. He lived piously, and having an assured hope of a joyfiil resurrec- 
 tion by a lively faith in the meritts of Jesus Christ. He rested from his labors 
 on the 21st July, 1628, in the 63d year of his age. 
 
 The other Monument to this ancient family is upon the east side of 
 the Chapel, and commemorates Sir John Smyth, Knt., only son of the 
 latter, who died in 160S), and Elizabeth, his wife, who are represented 
 kneeling on cushions at a lettern or reading desk. The former is in ar- 
 mour, with a ruft", the latter has also a ruff and large hoop. In front of 
 the Monument are portraitures of their three surviving children ; and on 
 a black marble tablet is this inscription : 
 
 To the Slemorye 
 of Sir John Smyth, of Ostenhanger, Knight, and Elizabeth, his wife, daughter 
 and sole heyer of John Fineaux, of Heme, in the County of Kent, Esq., who 
 lived married together about 30 yeares, and had issue two sons and six daugh- 
 ters, whereof three only survived them at the time of their death, whose por- 
 traitures are here presented, videlicet, Thomas Smyth, Esq., his sonne and heyer ; 
 Katharine, married to Sir Harry Baker, of Sissinghurst, in the county of Kent, 
 Knight ; and Elizabeth, marryed to Harry Nevill, the younger, of Billingbere, in 
 the County of Berk. Knight. 
 
 Elected by Sir John Scott, Sir Rich. Smyth, and Christopher Tolderve, the exe- 
 cutors to the said Sir John Smyth. 
 
 The last of this family that was buried in the vault underneath this 
 Chapel, was Philip Smyth, Viscount Strangford, in 1708 ; a great es- 
 tate in this county formerly belonged to the family. Thomas Smyth, 
 commonly called Customer Smyth, was remarkable for his great riches. 
 Westenhanger, in the parish of Stanford, between this town and Hythe, 
 their usual place of residence, was a noble and magnificent structure ; 
 a small part of it that still remains, has been converted into a farm-house. 
 
 On a slab, in front of the Altar steps, is a curious full-sized brass, in 
 memory of Elizabeth, daughter to Henry, Lord Ferrers, ofGroby, and 
 wife to David le Strabolgie, the fourth of that name. Earl of Athol ; 
 she died in the year 1375, and is represented in the old French round 
 dress, closely buttoned from the waist, her hair in three rows of curls, 
 surrounding her face, and hanging over her shoulders : she held a square 
 banner in each hand, that in the dexter paly, that in the sinister 
 charged with seven viascles, the arms of Quincy ; over her head, within 
 a square, the arms of France and England, quarterly, and under her 
 feet, a heater-shaped shield, charged with a cross, impaling three chevroTUi, 
 all within a border guttie, and originally bore this inscription : " Icy gist 
 4 
 
ST. MAKY'S church, ASHFORD, KENT. 
 
 Elizabeth, Countesse D'AthoIs, la fille de Sign Ferrers, Dieu assoile que 
 mourut le xx jour d'Octobre, Tan de Grace MCCC." — Vide Le Neve's 
 Church Notes, Add. MS. 5479, in the British Museum. The figure is 
 uow much mutilated, and of the fillet of brass, round it, the following 
 only remains : 
 
 gjcp gisit— Counte.^jSc— que mout'. 
 
 The original Altar of the Church was pulled down during the Civil 
 War, aud the names of the Churchwardens, cut in stone, were placed in 
 the Chancel; but in the year 1697, this tablet was removed, and the 
 present altar-piece erected by subscription ; the following is the curious 
 preamble to the List of the Subscribers to the new work. 
 
 " Whereas the ancient Altar and Altar-piece of the Parish Church of 
 Ashford, having been both decent and ornamental, rising with a fine 
 ascent, and the same railed in after a decent manner, were in the time of 
 rebellion, in the reign of our truly pious and martyred sovereign, King 
 Charles the First, of blessed memory, in the year of our Lord, 1644, 
 sacrilegiously defaced and removed, the Altar razed even with the 
 ground, and some of the materials converted to their own private uses, 
 by men as well of factious and rebellious principles and practices as sa- 
 crilegious; and to perpetuate this their infamous act and sacrilegious 
 depredations, the then Churchwardens, Joy Starr and William Worsley, 
 two of the actors in so great and villainous a profanation and profuse 
 wasters of the churches treasure, had their names cut in stone, which 
 they placed in the wall where the ancient Altar-piece stood, as a monu- 
 ment thereof, but is now taken out and broken to pieces, it being a 
 shame to our church that the names of such men should remain there, 
 already too long, who under the hypocritical mask and disguise of ab- 
 horring idolatry, dared be guilty of so bold a sacrilege as to violate 
 God's altar. 
 
 " We, therefore, the Parishioners of the Parish of Ashford, and affec- 
 tionate members of our truly apostolical and established Church of 
 England, abhorring, as we are bound in duty, so sacrilegious an act, 
 and to testify our sincerity and due regard to the order and decent ap- 
 pendices of our church, and that place where peace and reconciliation is 
 made between God and man, may no longer continue as it is now, to our 
 shame, the place of brawls and contentious disputes of the parishioners, 
 but that a fair and decent Altar and Altar- piece, pavement, and rails, may 
 be raised aud placed again in its ancient place and order, being there- 
 unto encouraged and moved by the exemplary and pious offer of a ge- 
 nerous contribution by our very good lord, the Earl of Thanet, and the 
 Reverend Sir George Wheeler, and being well assured of the further 
 pious and concurrent contribution of our very good Lord Strangford, and 
 divers other devout persons of honour and quality, for the completing 
 5 
 
ST. Mary's church, ashford, kent. 
 
 so decent an enterprize, have and do hereby promise to pay the several 
 sums of money to our several and respective names here under written 
 annexed, to encourage and carry on so good and commendable a work. 
 
 " Witness our hands this five and twentieth day of July, Anno Domini, 
 1695." 
 
 Then follows a list of subscribers to the amount of seventy pounds. 
 
 The following Account of some of the Vicars of Ashford is also from 
 Parsons's East Kent, p. 537, vi-here the order of succession is traced 
 from the Parish Register. 
 
 Rev. John Wallis, Vicar, father to the famous Dr. Wallis, the learned 
 Mathematician of Oxford, was buried, Dec. 4, 1622. 
 
 On a flat stone in the Archbishop's Court, within the Church, are the 
 following inscriptions relating to him and his family : 
 
 Here lieth the body of the faithful servant of Jesus Christ, late painful and loving 
 Pastor of this Congregation, Mr. John Wallis, who departed this life, November 
 30, 1622, being of age 55 years, and Mr. Henry Wallis, son of Mr. John and Jo- 
 anna Wallis, who lived a godly, prudent, just, and useful man, and died much 
 lamented, Sept. 3, 1666, aged 46 years, and is here interred in his father's grave : 
 Mrs. Joanna Wallis, a prudent, grave, and pious matron, sometime wife of Jlr. 
 John Wallis, Pastor of this Church, daughter of Mr. Henry and Sarah Chapman, 
 sometime of Godmersham, died September 26, 1643, aged — years, and is here 
 interred by her husband. Also Mrs. Rebecca Wallis, widow of Mr. Henry Wal- 
 lis, and daughter of Mr. Howell, of Rye, who died Sf ptember 20, 1677. 
 
 Rev. Edmund Hayes, Vicar, father to INIr. Hayes, Printer to the 
 University of Cambridge, was buried Sept. 3, 1638. 
 
 Rev. Mr. Mackbee succeeded Mr. Hayes; in his time were great 
 confusion both in church and state. 
 
 Rev. Richard Whitlock, Vicar, araan of wit and learning, was buried 
 October 24, 1666. 
 
 Rev. Thomas Risden, Vicar, succeeded Mr. Whitlock. He was mi- 
 nister in Bread Street, London, and was burnt out of his habitation by 
 the great fire, anno 1666; he then came to Ashford, and was here 
 buried May 29, 1673. 
 
 The Rev. Samuel Warren, Vicar, succeeded, and died in 1720, 
 aged 84. On a black marble slab in the Chancel is the following in- 
 scription to his memory : 
 
 M.S. 
 Samuelis Warren hujus Ecclesise Ashfordiensis nuper Vicarli, viri et vitae sancti- 
 monia, et puritate fidei et niorum suavitate vere venerandi. Numeroso Gregi 
 XLVIII annos summa fide, summaque constantia invigilavit pastor inculpatus, et 
 quo erat ingenio ad omnia humanitatis officia prompto non tantum profuit omni- 
 bus, sed et placuit. Ad munus sacerdolale licet indesinenter atteutus, rei tamen 
 familiari administrand.i? non prorsus defuit. Quinimo raliones domesticas tam 
 accurate ad calculum vocavit, et facultates suas tam provide et prudente dispen- 
 savit ut ex redditibus satis modicis nunquam non suppeteret unde liberos suos 
 
 6 
 
Dra.'wn isyZ. 'jl . 1 
 
 ASHFOEB chtitircb:. 
 
 Engra-vediy'Vr.'Wallis . 
 
 ; THE SOTTTH TILAUSI.: 
 
 ■ St' £lai^cfriaxf Jlc^ . 
 
 % 
 
ff^ 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, ASHFORD, KENT. 
 
 bene multos honeste educaret et liberaliter. Nee in suos solum benignus erat vir 
 optimus, utpote qui erga omnes se semper benevolum pra:stitit ft propensmn, in- 
 digentihu^ vero summe beaeficum, vera siguiticatio animi generosi. 
 Quippe cum plerique omnes magnificum ducunt si non inviti id erogent quod sa- 
 tietati superfuerit, hie vel a semetipso auferre sustinuit, quo alios 
 
 Posset beaie. 
 
 Senecta potius f[uam moibo confectus 
 
 Christi raeritis plenR confisus 
 
 Deo placide animam reddidit 
 Martii XVI an'o D'ni MDCCXX 
 JEtatis sua: LXXXIV. 
 Hie etiam juxta jacet desideratissimi viri conjux dilectissima Sara, Joannis Stafford 
 Rectoris de Luggershall in agro Sussexiae tilia, natu minima ; foemina tam venus- 
 tate corporis quam prcecellentibus animi dotibus vere spectabilis. Quae statim 
 post deciraum partura variolis oppressa in Christo obdprmivit Sept'ris XX. Anno 
 D'ni MDCLXXX\ II. a;talis suze XL. 
 
 His son. Dr. William VV^arren, made antiquities his favourite study, 
 and wrote a history of this Church, many extracts from which are given 
 in " Parsons's Account of Monuments, &c. in the churches of East 
 Kent," 1794, 4to. He died at Canterbury, but was buried at Ashford. 
 In the Churchyard is a tomb erected to his memory, with this inscription : 
 
 H. S. E. 
 
 Gvdielmus Warren, LL. D. 
 
 Aul. Trin. Cantabr. Socius. 
 
 Reverendi Viri Samuelis Warren, 
 
 Hujus Ecclesia? olim A^icarii 
 
 Filius 
 
 Obut III Jan. MDCCXLIV. 
 
 jEtatis suae LXII. 
 
 In diiferent parts of the Church are monuments with these inscriptions : 
 
 In a Vault beneath lieth interred the body of John Norwood, late of this Town, 
 and Slary his wife, by whom he had seven children, six of whom are in the said 
 Vault with him, in memory of whom their surviving son Edward has erected this 
 monument, 1743. 
 
 Near this place are deposited the remains of Thomas Hussey, Esq. who died July 
 3, 1779, aged 56 years. Also three of his Children, who died infants. 
 
 Beneath this Monument lies interred the small remainder of Arthur Apsley, of 
 this Town, Esq. who near twenty years with loyalty, courage, and good conduct, 
 discharged the especial trust reposed in him by their JIajesties King William and 
 Queen Anne as Cornet, Lieutenant, and Exempt of their first troop of Horse 
 Guards. He married Mary, youngest daughter of George Evelyn, of Godstone, 
 in Surrey, Esq. by whom he left no issue. He died Dec. 29, 1719, in the 50th 
 year of his age. 
 
 Near him also is interred the body of Arthur Apsley, father of the aforesaid 
 Arthur, who died Dec, 4, 1743, aged 80. 
 7 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, ASHFORD, KENT. 
 
 Here also lieth interred the body of Thomas Apsley, of this Town, who out of his 
 filial duty and brotherly affection erected this Monument to their memory. 
 
 Here lies the Body of James Reader, late of this Town, who departed this life 
 
 August 24, 1727, aged 52. 
 Near him also lieth interred the body of Elizabeth, relict of the said James Reader, 
 and daughter of Arthur Apsley : she died October 17^ 1741, aged 64 years. 
 Mary Handfield, relict of Thomas Handfield, ob. June, — 38, aged 79. 
 
 Thomas Apsley, son of Thomas and Ann Apsley, died the 23rd uf Januarj', 1774, 
 
 in the 38th year of his age. 
 Elizabeth Apsley, his widow, died the 22nd day of July, 1791, in the 73rd year' 
 
 of her age. 
 
 Thomas, son of Thomas and Elizabeth Apsley, died the 8th of October, 1767, in 
 
 the 28th year of his age. 
 
 Upon a slab of marble in the Vestry is the following inscription : 
 
 Hoc sub Marmore, 
 Conduntur cineres Johannis Feimer generosi, hujus oppidi non ita pridem incols 
 et omamenti, qui obiit XV die Julii Anno D'ni JNIDCCII. ffitatis suse XXXVI. 
 Viverat multis certe nominibus memorandus utpote qui fidelis Ecclesite Anglicans 
 filius orthodoxy, fidei pietatem adjunxit vitaeque integritatem, quinetiam, quod illi 
 omnino dandum est laudi, feliciter monstravit benignam ingenii venam sermonem 
 festivum, moresque faciles non tantum cum religionis gravitate convenire, sed vir- 
 tutem ipsam gratiorem reddere et magis amabilem. Uxorem duxit Saram Thomse 
 Bull de Mershara generosi filiam natu maxiraam, foemiuam sane tali viro dignam 
 quae obiit V. die Aprilis RIDCCXV et hie juxta jacet sepulta. Ex hac septem 
 suscepit liberos, quorum tres pra:maturo fato abreptos pater moestus ploravit qua- 
 tuor superstites Mariam, Franciscam, Saram, Elizabethan!, et Priscillam, moriturus 
 testamento reliquit haeredes. Elizabetha anno xtatis undecimo vixdum expleto 
 variolis occubuit ; tres reliqus marmor hoc pietatis et gratitudinis ergo posuere 
 Anno Domini WDCCXXXIV. 
 
 lu the Archbishop's Court is a Monument inscribed with the fol- 
 lowing : 
 
 Memorise Sacrum 
 Baptista' Pigott, filii Baptists Pigott de l3artford, Clerici, primique Scolae Ash- 
 fordiensis Moderatoris, qui summis doctrinffi oroamentis, eximiaque docendi facul- 
 tate instructissimus, nuraerosum eruditorum coetum et ecclesia^ et reipublicEe dedit, 
 E prima uxore, relicta Georgii Symons, clerici, filia vero Henrici Stacey de Ashe 
 generosi duos filios Baptistam et Gervasium, totidemque iilias, Helenam et Ma- 
 riam tulit. Ex alteris etiam nuptiis cum Jana filia Johannis Spencer et Franciscae 
 conjugis de Feversham Armigeri, duos itidem suscepit tilios Spencerum et Edwar- 
 dum, quatuor vero filias Franciscam, Elizabetham, Janam, et Annam. Et cum 
 ultra quatuor lustra huic schols pra;fuisset, anno aetat. 70 pietate juxta ac annis 
 maturus, maritus et pater indulgentissimus de discipulis ut et oppido etsi ingratq 
 optime meritus Decem. quint. Calend. Feb. 1657. obiit. 
 
 H. J. B. P. S. P. 
 
CJurcf) of ti)t f|ol^ Crinitp, 
 
 INGHAM, NORFOLK. 
 
 REV. JOHN HEPWORTH, STIPENDIARY CURATE. 
 
 1 HE Lordship of Ingham was possessed, at a very early period, by a 
 family of the same name, of whom Oliver de Ingham was living in 
 1183, and John de Ingham is known to have been Lord in the reigu of 
 Richard I. Sir Oliver de Ingham, great grandson of the last, and 
 Seneschal of Gascoigne and of Aquitain, and Lord Warden of the 
 Marches of Guienne, in the reign of Edward HI., had two daughters 
 and co-heirs, the younger of whom, Joan, conveyed Ingham to her 
 second husband. Sir Miles Stapleton, of Bedale, in Yorkshire. This 
 Knight and his Lady founded a perpetual Chantry in the Parish Church 
 of lugham, consisting of a Warden and two Priests, performing service 
 in honour of the Holy Trinity, and for the souls of King Edward III., 
 the founders, their parents, and other relations, and of all the faithful 
 deceased. This institution was soon converted into a Priory, of the 
 order of the Holy Trinity and St. Victor, for the redemption of captives 
 from the Turks, and to which the Church, having been rebuilt, was 
 made collegiate and appropriated, by Thomas Percy, Bishop of Nor- 
 wich, on the 2d of July, A. D. 1360. The Convent at first consisted 
 merely of a prior or custos, and two brethren ; but four other brethren 
 or canons, and a sacrist, who oflSciated for the parishioners, were sub- 
 sequently added ; and the number was designed to have been made up 
 to thirteen, if the revenues had so increased, that ten marks annually 
 could have been allowed each religious. In 1384, the endowments of 
 the Priory were augmented by John de Saxham, on the condition that 
 a chaplain should be provided to pray for his soul in the collegiate 
 Church. 
 
 Ingham Priory became, in a short time, the head house of its order 
 in this country, and even imparted to it the name of the order of Ingham, 
 by which it was thenceforward known, as well as by those of the order of 
 the Maturins, and of the Trinitarians. The conventual possessions of the 
 Ingham foundation, according to Mr. Taylor, in his Index Monasticus of 
 the Diocese of Norwich, were four manors and four impropriate churches, 
 with lands and interests in about twenty parishes. The Priory itself 
 was situated on the north side of the Church, to which its cloister ad- 
 joined. 
 
 The Church, of which Plate I. is a View from the south-east, is forty- 
 four yards long, including the nave and chancel ; the width of the chan- 
 cel is eighteen feet; and that of the nave, with its two aisles, forty feet. 
 Adjoining, to the south, was a Chapel, dedicated to St. Mary. Over the 
 porch, which Las a stone groined roof, were two large rooms, where 
 lived the Sacristan. At the west end is a lofty and elegant Tower, 
 I 
 
above the grand entrance through which are the arms of Ingham, and 
 of Stapleton impaling Felbrigg and de la Pole, indicative of its builder, 
 Sir Miles Stapleton, great-grandson of the founder, who died in 1466, 
 of and his two wives, Catherine, daughter of Sir T. de la Pole, son 
 of Michael, Earl of Suflblk, and Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Simon Fel- 
 brigg. Sir Miles was Knight of the Shire in Parliament in the 28th of 
 Henry VI. By his last will he devised the whole of his moveable pro- 
 perty to be dispensed to pious uses, and all his manors to his feoflees, 
 for four years, to raise money for aimes-deeds, for his soul's health ; 
 he left considerable legacies to this Church and Priory. 
 
 In the following account of the principal monuments and other sepul- 
 chral memorials in this Church, the inscriptions are given from Blome- 
 field's History of Norfolk. Most of them are now gone, and the rest 
 are in a very imperfect state. 
 
 Under an arch on the north side of the chancel lies the sculptured 
 figure of Sir Oliver de Ingham, as represented in the annexed Engraving, 
 Plate II. ; its ancient appearance is thus described by Weever : " Vnder 
 afaireTombe of free-stoue, veiy curiously wrought, lieth the body of /S/r 
 Oliver Ingham, with his resemblance in his coate Armour, his belt, gdt 
 spurs, and the blew Garter about his leg; his Creast, the Owle out of 
 the luie bush, with a crowne on the head thereof: He being a great 
 trauailer, lyeth vpon a Rocke, beholding the Sunne, and Moone, and 
 Starres, all very liuely set forth in mettall, beholding the face of the 
 earth : about the Tombe, twenty and foure mourners." Sun, moon, and 
 stars, however, have long since disappeared, and but fourteen of the 
 mourners now remain. Weever, who frequently must have trusted to 
 other eyes than his own, is not always correct either in his descriptions 
 or in his dates. In this case there never was any " blew Garter." Sir 
 Oliver died in 1343, and was not a knight of that order. What Weever 
 denominates " a rocke," is a bed of rough stone-work, representing a 
 bed of round flints : the Knight's position is singular, for he appears as 
 if prepared to jump up on his feet; his head inclines over his shoulder, 
 towards the inner part of the arch. His right arm crosses his breast, 
 and grasps his sword, which hangs at his left side, but is now broken ; 
 his left arm crosses his breast to his right shoulder, the hand resting on 
 the stony pillow. His legs were crossed, but are now broken. His 
 eyes seem directed to a painting on the back of the arch ; this, which is 
 much defaced, is probably the " face of the earth,'' which Weever de- 
 scribes the celestial luminaries as beholding : it is described in the fol- 
 lowing terms by the late lamented artist INIr. C. Stothard, in a letter 
 printed in his Memoirs : " The subject of it appears to relate to hunt- 
 ing. A figure on the left, with a green hood over his head, is blowing 
 a horn ; towards the centre are seen the stag, lion, camel, and other 
 animals. Another huntsman, who is not so well preserved, appears to 
 be stringing his bow." On the side of the tomb was the following in- 
 scription : " Mounsier Oliucr de Ingham gist icy ; et Dame Elizabeth, 
 su compagne, que Ivy Dieu de les almes dit mercy." 
 2 
 
*-* 
 
INGHAM CHURCH. 
 
 At the east end of the Church, by the rood-loft, is an altar-monument, 
 with sculptured figures of Sir Roger de Boys and Margaret his lady, 
 delineated in Plate III. The Knight is in complete armour ; his head 
 rests on the head and body of a Saracen, coupe, and at his feet is a 
 hound, with his paw resting on a gauntlet. The following is the in- 
 scription, according to Blomefield : " Monsieur Roger de Boys gist icy, 
 et Dame Margarete sa femme, auxi vous, qui passer icy priez Dieu de 
 leur almes eit mercy, Elle morout fan n'tre Seigneur mill, trecent et 
 quinsieme et il morout Tan de dit nostre Seigneur, 1300. With this date, 
 however, neither the armour of the Knight nor the dress of his lady by 
 any means agree ; they point to about 1330 ; and there is a word fol- 
 lowing the " trecens," though it is illegible. His arms, argent, two bars 
 with a canton gules, over all a fillet sable, are yet visible on his surcoat; 
 and her robe is checked with his arms and her own, argent, three 
 mascles between two bendlets, sable. It is remarkable that both figures 
 wear the mantle of some order, having as a badge on the right shoulder 
 a cross pattee, of which the upper limb is removed to make room for a 
 motto : this is in the Gothic letter, and is in three divisions, but is no 
 longer legible, and no record of it exists. Some have imagined it to 
 be " Amor:" others, " A ma vie:" the latter is the better conjecture. 
 
 The chancel is floored with the monumental stones of the Stapletons 
 and their connexions ; and the inlaid brasses were among the richest in 
 the county. All are now gone : they were stolen in 1800, when St. 
 Mary's Chapel was pulled down, to save the expense of repairing its 
 Toof, and the Church laid open. 
 
 In the centre before the high altar were the full-sized figures of Sir 
 Miles Stapleton and Joan his lady, the founders of the Priory. They 
 were coarsely executed and out of proportion. Their right hands were 
 joined; the armour df the Knight was inlaid with roundels; the lady's 
 hair fell in two formal braids, one on each side of her face ; round her 
 head was a narrow fillet of jewellery, the precious stones being repre- 
 sented by a composition, of various colours; from above each elbow hung 
 a long narrow sleeve. Arms, Stapleton, lion rampant, imp. Ingham, 
 per pale or et vert, a cross moline, gules. The inscription is thus very im- 
 perfectly given by Blomefield : Priez pour les almes Monseur Miles de 
 Stapleton, et dame Johamie, sa femme, Jille de Monseur Older de Ingham, 
 fondeurs de ceste mayson, que Dieu de leur almes eit pitie." The lady 
 was widow of Sir Roger le Strange ; and daughter and sole heiress of 
 Sir Oliver de Ingham. By this marriage Sir Miles added a large estate 
 to his former possessions in Yorkshire, and became a conspicuous per- 
 son in the reign of Edward the Third, ranking high in his favour, and 
 being one of the first Knights of the Garter ; some token of which order 
 ' one is disappointed in not finding on his monument." He died in 1365. 
 There were likewise brasses, with armorial bearings, of Sir Miles Staple- 
 ton, son of the founder, and Ela, his lady, daughter of Sir Edmund 
 Lliford, and of Sir Brian Stapleton, his son, with Cecilia, daughter of 
 the Lord Bardolph, his lady ; and of Sir Miles, son of Sir Brian, and 
 his two wives, before mentioned, with whom terminated the Norfolk 
 branch of the family, in 1466. 
 3 
 
INGHAM CHURCH. 
 
 Here also were engraved effigies or inscriptions and armorial bear 
 ings of the following persons : Joan, wife of John Plays, and daugh- 
 ter of the second Sir Miles Stapleton, who died Sept. 2, 1385; the 
 Lady Ela, wife of the second Sir Miles, and daughter of Sir Edmund 
 Ufford ; Sir Roger Boys, who died Feb. 25, 1421 ; John Boys, Esq. ; 
 Edmund Stapleton, Esq., Chamberlain to John, Duke of Norfolk, and son 
 of Sir Miles, the founder, who died in 1462 ; and Matilda his wife, for- 
 merly the wife of Sir Hugh Fastolf, who died in 1435 ; Lady Elizabeth 
 Calthorp, first wife of Sir Francis Calthorp, who died July 23, 1536. 
 There is also a memorial to William Johnson, Esq., Lord of the Manor 
 of Ingham, who died Jan. 2, 1640, aetat. 41. Tn 1431, John Bradle, 
 Esq. was buried by the north door of the Church. In 1384, John de 
 Saxham, who gave the manor of Westhall, dkc. to tbe Priory, was buried 
 in St. Mary's Chapel. Weever mentions as buried here " Dame Ela 
 Perpoint, which had two husbands." 
 
 In the body of the Church was a gravestone, with brass figures of a 
 Knight and his Lady, and the following metrical inscription : 
 
 Hie miles |:ratus, Thomas Saukvile vocatus 
 Ponitur et digna sibi conjux Anna benigna ; 
 August! pr. idus, M. C. quater, L. q. secundo, 
 Hunc Christus Dominus fecit valedicere raundo. 
 Hec cum Clementer uit anno post venireute, 
 lUorum fuDus absolvat trinus et unus. 
 
 The state of the Church declares that the present wealthy inhabitants 
 of the parish possess but little of the taste and spirit which guided 
 the founders. Many of the windows are bricked up ; the oriels are closed 
 with plaster ; the stone screen has fallen, and its beautiful gates are cut 
 up into pew doors ; the monks' stalls and the monuments are utterly 
 dilapidated, and the whole of the interior is in a ruinous condition. 
 
 A portion of the walls of the Priory, with two small doorways, still 
 remains; but nothing that is interesting, either in an architectural or a 
 picturesque point of view. 
 
 At the Dissolution, the prior, John Say, with Robert Barham and 
 four others, subscribed to the King's supremacy on the 5th of August, 
 1.534. The yearly value of the endowments at this period, after all 
 fixed charges upon them were deducted, amounted to Gl/. 9s. 7|rf. ac- 
 cording to the Valor Ecclesiasticus, and to Dugdale. Speed states the 
 gross revenues at 74/. 2s. 7jrf. The Priory lands, &c. were granted to 
 Sir William Woodhouse, of Waxham, in this county, who afterwards 
 exchanged the Priory grange, manor, appropriated Rectory, and lands, 
 with William Rugg, Bishop of Norwich, for the Priory of Hickling and 
 other possessions ; and they are still attached to the See. 
 
 Prior to the erection of the Church into a collegiate estabUshment, 
 the parish of Ingham was a Rectory, valued at twenty-sis marks in 
 the reign of Edward I., when the Rector had a manse and thirty acres of 
 land, and paid 12d. Peter-pence. It is now served by a stipendiary 
 Curate, nominated by the Bishop. 
 
 4 
 
WAILSHAM CHUmCH< 
 
 j: O O T U i: SIKAUCS, 
 
 'iM^y-. /UK/, \/ :.'.■/ ^V.'/'.V.-.. 
 
NORTH WALSHAM, NORFOLK ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 REV. WILLIAM FARLEY WILKINSON, A. M. 
 
 The town of North Walsham is pleasantly situated about five miles 
 from the sea coast, on the heights between the rivers Bure and Ant, 
 fourteen miles from Norwich, and twenty-four from Yarmouth. The 
 Church, an ancient and interesting edifice, stands in the centre of the 
 town, being encompassed by three streets, in a triangular form ; the 
 market-cross, originally erected in the reign of Edward IV., by Thomas 
 Thirlby, bishop of Norwich, although an object of much aversion at 
 the reformation, not only escaped demolition at that period, but was 
 repaired in the year 1600, by William Redman, then bishop, and was 
 adorned with his arms, viz. a cross between four ermine cushions tas- 
 selled, impaled with those of the see of Norwich. 
 
 Canute the Great, in the seventeenth year of his reign, on his foun- 
 dation of the abbey of St. Benet, at Holme, 1034, gave the lordship of 
 the hundred of Tunstead, in which this town is situated, to the abbey, 
 and Edward the Confessor granted a confirmation of these possessions. 
 A Church was erected here at a very early period, dedicated to St. 
 Nicholas, and was in the patronage of St. Benet's abbey, till the reign 
 of Henry VIII., when Richard Nyx, bishop of Norwich, having incurred 
 a praemunire for appealing to the see of Rome, the whole of the re- 
 venues of that see were granted away. Upon his death in the tower of 
 London in the year 1536, it became necessary to provide for his successor, 
 and the abbacy of St. Benet was then annexed to the see for ever. The 
 bishopric of Norwich having thus lost its temporal barony, the bishop 
 now sits in the House of Peers, merely by virtue of his mitred abbacy 
 of St. Benet. The Church is a large building, consisting of a nave, side 
 aisles, and a chancel, altogether about one hundred and fifty-six feet 
 long by sixty-eight feet in width. There is a tradition that the ori- 
 ginal edifice, having been occupied by the rebels, in 1381, as a strong 
 hold, after their defeat by Henry Spencer, the warlike bishop of Norwich, 
 in the battle of North Walsham Heath, the Church was by his order 
 demolished. The architectural style of the present building confirms 
 the tradition, for it evidently appears to have been erected soon after 
 that event. The Porch, vide plate 1, possesses a bold and ornamental 
 1 
 
ST. NICHOLAS' CHURCH, NORTH WALSHAM, NORFOLK. 
 
 character in its design, and is composed of flint and stone intermixed, in 
 architectural devices. In the spandrils of the arch of entrance are sculp- 
 tured the arms of John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster, who had a seat at 
 Gimmingham in this neighbourhood, and the arms of the abbey of St. 
 Benet at Holme, viz. a crosier in pale between two ducal coronets ; 
 blank shields in quatrefoil compartments are continued round the base- 
 ment. The massive tower of this Church, originally one hundred and 
 forty-seven feet high, fell down the 16th of May, 1724 ; the rebuilding 
 of this tower was at one period contemplated, and Thomas Hayter, 
 bishop of Norwich, is said to have readily contributed one hundred 
 pounds towards so desirable an object ; the proposal was however laid 
 aside, and the venerable tower still remains in its dilapidated state, as 
 seen in our first plate, which represents the richly ornamented entrance, 
 or porch. 
 
 A peculiarity in the plan of this really fine building is its having been 
 erected without any architectural distinction between the nave and the 
 chancel, and, like the ancient Roman Basilica, it forms one magnificent 
 and sacred chamber, only divided by the screen as usual in this coun- 
 try. The side aisles are continued along the whole extent from the west 
 to the east eijd, and are separated from the body of the church by a 
 range of very elegantly formed arches, supported by light clustered 
 pillars, so lofty as not to admit of a clerestory above them, and the 
 Church is lighted by raullioned windows on the north and south sides. 
 In the east window, which was unfortunately demolished by a storm of 
 wind in the year 1809, were the arms of the see of Norwich, impaling 
 Freke in stained glass, being the coat of Edmund Freke, bishop of Nor- 
 wich from 1575 to 1584. 
 
 On the north side of the chancel is the sepulchral monument of Sir 
 William Paston, knt., with his effigies in armour, sculptured by John 
 Key, freemason of London ; the whole is stated to have cost 200/. It is 
 adorned with the arms of Paston, Argent, six fteur de lis azure, and a 
 chief indented or , together with many quarterings. This monument was 
 partially cleaned and re|)aired a few years ago by the governors of the 
 grammar-school, but it is much to be regretted that they left the work 
 incomplete. The inscription is in gold letters upon black marble. 
 Pietati et beneficentiae sacrum. 
 Obdormit hie in Domino, Gulielmus Pastonus, eques auratus, antiqua et no- 
 bili stirpe ortus, cognatione nobilissimis familiis conjunctus, hospitalitate 
 per annos quinquaginta quinque, et post mortem viginti duratura clarus. 
 Ad reparandas cathedrales ecclesias BathonijE et Norvici collegiumq. Gone- 
 villi et Caii munificus. Pauperibus viUaj Yarmuthia; beneficus. Qui scho- 
 1am in hoc loco ad iafomiandam jiiventutem concionesq, ad divinum verbum 
 disseminanduni, redditibus in perpetuum assignatis pie instituit, et mortali- 
 tatis memor, hoc monumentum certa spe in Christo resurgendi, sibi vivua 
 posuit. Anno Dai. 1608, statis sute 80. 
 3 
 
ilLi,._T avod l;_y J.Lc Ki^'tt 
 
 
 
ST. NICHOLAS' CHURCH, NORTH WALSHAM, NORFOLK. 
 
 Sir William founded the free grammar-school in this town, and en- 
 dowed it with forty pounds a year, and ten pounds annually for a weekly 
 lecture. 
 
 Within the Church were formerly chapels dedicated to St. Thomas, 
 St. John, and St. Margaret, of the Holy Ghost, and of Corpus Christi. 
 
 The very beautiful font is the subject of our second plate. It is sur- 
 rounded by an octagonal railing, the main imposts of which were each 
 formerly crowned with some heraldic deviee; three only remain. This 
 method of enclosure is agreeably to ancient custom, for iu a Rituale pub- 
 lished at Antweijj in lH.'i9, it is reijuirefl that the font should be " can- 
 cellis circumseptum." The highly ornamented cover, crowned also by 
 an emblematical device, is one of the richest of its kind in the kingdom, 
 rising in a succession of arches, buttresses, and pinnacles, in four dis- 
 tinct tiers ; it is terminated by a florid finial, the whole boldly designed 
 and executed. 
 
 The water used in baptism was formerly consecrated with much cere- 
 mony, and to preserve the same from other uses, the ornamented covers 
 were adopted, which were always kept locked. The hallowing of the 
 font, as it was called, was permitted even after the commencement of the 
 reformation, and was usually performed on the eve of Easter and Pen- 
 tecost. All children were at one period required to be christened at 
 those times ; but as early as the time of Archbishop Peckham, it was 
 ordained that baptism should be administered at all times of the year, 
 except on the eight days before these evens, during which, if the child 
 could live, it was enjoined to wait until the font hallowing. 
 
 The following memorials in this Church are mentioned in the History 
 of Norfolk, but most of the slabs have been deprived of the brasses 
 that formerly bore the inscriptions, &c. 
 
 " Orate pro anima D""- Margarete Heterseti que obiit 21 Decemb. 
 1397." 
 
 " Orate, &c. Willi. Boys, qui obt. 1 Kal. Martii 1404," &c. 
 
 " Orate, &c. Edmi. Ward, quond. vicarii huj. eccliae." &c. 
 
 " Orate, &c. Roberti Wythe Capellani," &c. 
 
 " Orate, &c. Robi. Wyllis Capellani, &c." 
 
 Robert Elmham, Esq. was buried in the chapel of St. Thomas in 
 1472. 
 
 A slab to the memory of Henry Scarburgh, Gent., who died in 1683, 
 also to Henry Scarburgh, Gent, who died in 1617, aet. 56, with the 
 arms, &c. 
 
 A slab in memory of Mary, wife of Edmund Themylthorpe, Gent, 
 who died July 4, 168.5, with his shield of arms. 
 
 Another in memory of Henry Fuller, of North Walsham, Gent, who 
 died aged 84, 1704, and his arms. 
 
 3 
 
ST. NICHOLAS' CHURCH, NORTH WALSHAM, NORFOLK. 
 
 A slab in memory of John Withers, Gent, who died August 29, 1712, 
 with his arms. 
 
 This town, which is in the hundred of Tunstead, and deanery of Blow- 
 field, is called North Walsham in respect to its situation as to the level 
 of the marshes, and to South Walsham in Walsham hundred. It con- 
 tained in the year 1811, four hundred and thirty-two inhabited houses, 
 and a population of two thousand and thirty-five persons. 
 
 On the heath, beside the road to Norwich, is still standing a stone 
 cross in tolerable preservation, said, and not improbably, to mark the 
 field of battle in 1381. 
 
 We are much indebted to the Reverend William Tylney Spar- 
 DENS, of North Walsham, and to the Reverend William Farley 
 Wilkinson, for their communications respecting this interesting edifice. 
 
^ 
 
Clje Cijurcf) oi ^t i^itfjolas, 
 
 SOUTH LOPHAM, NORFOLK: 
 
 RECTOR, 
 THE REV. JAMES BARROW. 
 
 Ihe two distinct Parishes, Lopham Magna and Parva, or North 
 and South, about three quarters of a mile distant, were united in one 
 Manor, called Lopham, so spelt in Domesday Book, and were granted by 
 William the Conqueror to Roger Bigod, a Norman, and Earl of Nor- 
 folk, who held divers other Manors in this County, and founded the 
 Abbey of Thetford, where at his death he was buried in 1107. 
 
 William Bigod his son and heir, was steward to king Henry I., and 
 perished with that Monarch's children and others of the Nobility, by 
 shipwreck, as they came from Normandy into England, in the year 1119. 
 
 This Earl gave the Church of Lopham Parva, or South Lopham, to 
 the Monks of Thetford, and it was appropriated to that Abbey, with all 
 its appuitenances, by King Henry II. 
 
 It is probable, says Blomefield, that there was formerly a Cell here, 
 and that the monks of Thetford served the Church for some time, which 
 is the reason that it never had any institution, although the Monks quitted 
 their right to the Lord of the Manor, who had a release of it from the 
 Abbey, at a very early period, as, before the year 1340, it was taxed 
 at twenty-six marks, a value that must include the whole. It was then 
 added, with appurtenances, to North Lopham, the Rector of which took 
 the Cure upon him from that time. 
 
 The Church, dedicated to St.. Nicholas, is ancient, but the Tower is 
 the only part remaining of the original structure, which is supposed 
 to have been erected by William, Earl of Norfolk, in the reign of 
 Henry 1. The Tower is square, and very large, containing a peal of 
 six bells, and is evidently much more ancient than the body of the 
 Church, which was most likely rebuilt at the same time. Nicholas de 
 Horton erected the present Chancel in the reign of Edward III. He 
 was Rector of this parish from 1301 to the year 1381. Tliomas Wode, 
 Chaplain to the Duke of Norfolk, a benefactor towards building Gonville 
 Hall in Cambridge, was afterwards Rector of this Parish from the year 
 1446 to 1462. During the Civil War, in the reign of Charles I., Thomas 
 X 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, S. LOPHAM, NORFOLK. 
 
 Ellis obtained possession of this Rectory, but was deprived, after the 
 Restoration, upon the act for holding Anabaptistical errors, and for re- 
 fusing to baptize infants. 
 
 Within the Church are no remarkable monuments, but the following in- 
 scriptions are mentioned by Blomefield, as then remaining in the Chan- 
 cel : " Hie jacet Dominus Willus Lirling;" 
 
 " Orate pro animabus Rolandi Arsick Armigeri, secundi Filii Eudonis 
 Arsick Militis qui Rolandus obiit 17" die Feb. 1497, et Margaretae 
 Uxoris ejus, Filia; Thoma; Huntingfield, de hac villa, que quidem 
 Margareta, obiit 25" die Octobris, 1486. Quorum animabus propitietur 
 Deus. Amen." 
 
 " Orate pro animabus Willi Hovell de Ashfield, Armigeri et Eliza- 
 bethae Uxoris ejus, qui quidem Willus, ob. 7° die Julii, 1534. Quor. 
 aiab. propitietur Deus. Amen." 
 
 Robert Saunder, who was buried in the Church in 1526, gave the 
 sum of twenty shillings towards the repair of the Steeple. An estate at 
 Wortham, in Suffolk, of 301. a year, was also given by one Purdy towards 
 the repairs of the Church ; and a messuage, barn, and sixteen acres of 
 freehold land in the Parish, were settled to repair and beautify the 
 Church for ever. There were formerly two guilds in this Church, one 
 dedicated to St. John, the other to St. Peter, both were endowed with 
 lands, which were taken possession of by the crown in the first year of 
 Edward VI., but were afterwards purchased by the inhabitants, together 
 with a piece of ground called Lamp Acre, originally given to maintain a 
 lamp burning in the Church, and were at length settled to the use of the 
 poor. 
 
 The Honor of Clare extended to South Lopham, and various lands 
 here were formerly held of that honor. The Parish is in the Hundred 
 of Giltcross, and Deanery of Rockland ; and when Blomefield wrote, 
 viz. 1739, South Lopham contained 76 dwelling houses, 95 families, and 
 470 inhabitants. In 1811, there were 91 inhabited houses, occupied by 
 133 families, ronsisliii^ of Till persDus. The neighbourhood is remark- 
 able for three curiosities, or Wonders, as they were formerly called : 
 First, The self-grown Style, which is a tree naturally formed to answer this 
 purpose. Second, The Oxfoot Stone, a large pebble, bearing an impression 
 similar to that made by an ox's foot, but which is evidently the exuvial 
 mark of some bivalve shell, at one time imbedded in the fossil. Third, 
 Lopham Ford, where the sources of the rivers \Vaveney and Little 
 Ouse, are within three yards of each other. The latter is a Causeway 
 between the two streams, which flow in a contrary direction. The Wa- 
 veneyruns eastward, by Scole and Bungay, to Yarmouth. The Little 
 Ouse separates this county from Suflblk, and flows by the town of 
 Thetford to Brandon, in a south-west course. 
 2 
 
WORSTEAD, NORFOLK. 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. PETER HANSELL. 
 
 In the time of Edward the Confessor, the Lordship of this town be- 
 longed to the Abbot of St. Benet at Holme, being the gift of King Ca- 
 nute, and is mentioned in Domesday Boke by the name of ISrDCjStjDfl, 
 under the possessions of that Abbot, together with lands, valued at 4/.; 
 there were at the time of the Conqueror's survey, two churches with 
 twenty-eight acres, as provision for the Monks of St. Benet. 
 
 The Manor was then held of the Abbot by Robert, an officer of the 
 cross-bowmen, whose son Odo, assumed, according to the custom of 
 that age, the name De Worstede, or Worsted, from this his seat and 
 Lordsiiip. 
 
 The Town is situated in the Hundred of Tunstead, twelve miles from 
 the city of Norwich, and twenty-one from Yarmouth, chiefly consisting 
 of a single street. It stands on a small stream running into the Thyrn, 
 a tributary to the River Yare, and is remarkable for being the first 
 place where twisted yarn was manufactured, which obtained from, the 
 circumstance the name of Worsted. Weavers and workers of that ma- 
 terial are mentioned in records as early as the reign of Edward III., 
 and obtained privileges in that of Richard II. ; but the town has actually 
 declined in modern times, the market on Saturday has been long dis- 
 Bsed, and in 1811, it contained only 108 inhabited houses, and a popu- 
 lation of G19 persons. 
 
 The learned Henry Wharton, author of " Anglia Sacra," son of the 
 Reverend Edmund Wharton, Vicar of this Church, was born here, Nov. 
 9, 16G4; he displayed uncommon abilities at an early age, and com- 
 menced his career under the patronage of Archbishop Tenison, who 
 recommended him to the Lord Arundel of Trerice, as tutor for his son. 
 He died 5 May, 169.5, set. 30, leaving by will the greater part of his pro- 
 perty, " to be disposed of to a religious use in the Parish of Worstead, 
 in which he was born." His father, who survived him, was one of his 
 executors. 
 
 The period of the foundation of the Church, which is dedicated to 
 Saint Mary, is not recorded, but in very early times, it was a Rectory 
 in the patronage of the family of the proprietor of the Manor. Sir Ro- 
 1 
 
ST. Mary's church, worstead, Norfolk. 
 
 bert de Worstead, about the beginning of the reign of Henry III., 
 granted the appropriation of this Church to the Priory of Norwich, by 
 deed without a date, and by another deed lie gave them the Chapel of 
 St. Andrew, which gift was confirmed by Cardinal Pandulph, Bishop 
 of Norwich and Pope's Legate. The same Knight also granted them 
 lands, by deed confirmed by the Abbot of Holme. 
 
 On the dissolution of the Priory, the Manor belonging to it with the 
 Rectory and the patronage of the Vicarage, were granted to the Dean 
 and Chapter of Norwicii, by whom it is at present held; but Sir George 
 Berney Brograve, Bart, is lay proprietor, under a lease from the Dean 
 and Chapter. 
 
 The Ciiurch, a fine specimen of architecture, is constructed, like a 
 great many others in this and the neighbouring county of Sufiblk, of 
 flints faced, intermixed with stone, that is to say, the walls are com- 
 posed of flint, but the quoins of the buttresses and the mullions of the 
 windows, as well as the arches, are of freestone. It consists of a Nave, 
 or body, with its north and south Aisles, together with a beautiful Porch, 
 the Tower, and a Chancel. 
 
 The Tower at the west end of this Church, vide Plate 1, is a dis- 
 tinguished feature of the building, and is of very beautiful proportion, 
 rising to the height of four stories ; in the first is the entrance, imme- 
 diately over which is the great west window of four divisions ; the mul- 
 lions, which sustain it, ramify into a variety of minute tracery, in the 
 upper part, of the most pleasing description. In the next story of the 
 Tower, within a square compartment, is a circular window, giving fight to 
 the belfry, and above, a large pointed window of two lights, divided by a 
 transom ; the mouldings of the arch of this window are ornamented at 
 regular distances with small pateraj, of foliage, &c. In the Tower is a 
 peal of six bells. The whole is supported by graduated buttresses at the 
 angles, terminating in low unornamented pinnacles, each of which is 
 surmounted by a Tane, and the Tower is crowned with a handsome em- 
 battled parapet; four grotesque heads at the corners convey the water 
 from its roof. 
 
 A very handsome Porch, not dissimilar in its architecture to that at 
 North Walsham, of which we have given the view, is in the south side. 
 
 Near the entrance, at the west end, is the Font, vide Plate 2 ; in form 
 it is hexagonal, each of its sides elaborately sculptured in ornamental 
 panels; the shaft, or pedestal, and the steps upon which it is mounted, 
 are, with the exception of the lowest, adoined with the same profusion 
 of sculpture. The whole is of most elegant proportion, and is crowned 
 with a richly carved cover of florid work, in the manner of buttresses, 
 rising in a succession of pinnacles, round a centre, and terminating with 
 a curious finial. The use of the cover has been noticed in our description 
 of the Font at North Walsham, it may now be observed, that the ce- 
 2 
 

 ""IHTHTKfmHr.. ^^-^ 
 
 Tji^Jc/riarjJifijU-SiJIcJiaA.f^^jk.fi&ir/'arTtftajn^Siir?^ 
 
ST. MARYS CHURCH, WORSTEAD, NORFOLK. 
 
 remony of Baptism was originally performed by total immersion, and 
 those Fonts, which claim the greatest antiquity, are deep and circular ; 
 where taste and elegance unite in their forms, as in the present subject, 
 the age must be ascribed to a comparatively modern period of history. 
 
 Over the west door is a gallery with the following inscription, upon 
 a fillet, represented as twined round a portion of the carved work with 
 which it is adorned. 
 
 ^])i^ tncrfe tna.si ma&e in p" per o£ «Bo& mcccccl at pe proppr co^t 
 of tlje ca'tell* o£ tjje cjjprcije of BDoris'tea, callpD p"^ bacijcKcr^ fpte, p' 
 goD p'^crbe to' alt tfje fa'n'fattor;^ of p' ^"ame, noto $ cb' amt\ Cftan 
 toar jju^'bo'O.'i, Crp.^tofpr jSa't. 31e£crp ©jp. 
 
 Prom the body of the Church, this gallery with the west window over 
 it, is seen to the greatest advantage, and in front stands the beautiful 
 Font, with its fine spiral cover, which appears particularly elegant ; the 
 whole of the interior is remarkably neat, and it should be noticed, that 
 the aisles are not incumbered with galleries, which almost always dis- 
 figure the edifices where they are introduced, and destroy the graceful 
 proportions of the architect ure. legenda 
 
 The Chancel is separated from the body of the Church by a very fine 
 open screen, adorned with curious delineations of early saints of the 
 Church, bearing the date of 1412, which marks the time of its erection. 
 
 The painting of this screen has been objected to, upon account of the 
 splendid coloring not being now in harmony with the calm tints of the 
 stone, and the present simplicity of the rest of the building; but it must 
 be remarked, that the colours are imitated from the ancient part of the 
 screen, still preserved; and it is more than probable, that when it was 
 originally erected, the ample windows were adorned with stained glass, 
 if not the walls with legendary paintings, which would of course pro- 
 duce a combination of effect in perfect unison. The inscription on a 
 scroll upon the screen is as follows : 
 
 <©rate tt . . . . uf eiujS qui i)OC opu^ fieri feterunt 
 
 quar' a'i'afa's* ppicict' dcuiS amen. <©uoo opu.^ factum Ci5t et finitum 
 anno O'ni mificsfimo quaDri'ge'tejSimo Ouobecimo, cui git gloria lau-s 
 jbonor ct amen. 
 
 The Chancel was built in the 2nd year of the reign of Richard II., 
 at which time the Prior of Norwich granted thirteen oaks out of 
 
 • Candle, a frequent offering to the Church in ancient times. The constant maintenance 
 of lights at a particular altar was provided for, either by the legacies of the departed, or by 
 a guild, or fraternity, which in this case seems to have consisted wholly of bachelors, and 
 the husbands or treasurers of the fund, at the time of the erection of tlie gallery, to have 
 been Christopher Bant and Jeffery Dey. 
 
 Ceragium, or waxshot, was the term used for money expended in cliurch lights. 
 3 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, WORSTEAD, NORFOLK. 
 
 Plumstead Wood, and timber also out of St. Leonard's Wood, towards 
 its completion. Upon the floor are still some inlaid brasses remaining' 
 wth inscriptions, as 
 
 Hie jacet d'nus Joh'es Yop quonda' rector eccl'ie de Boton cuj' ai'e jj'piet Deus. 
 
 Amen. 
 Orate p' ai'a Xpoferi Ra't el Joanne ux' ej' qui obiit 11 die Januarii Aono D'ni 
 
 MCCCCCXXSVIII. 
 
 This appears to belong to the same person who was instrumental in erect- 
 ing the gallery at the west end of the Church. 
 
 Another inscription runs thus, conveying but an intricate meaning in 
 consequence of its mutilation. 
 
 Hie lapis in pannis, Spicer tenet ossa Johannis. 
 Qui qua . . . domino pius X L et Mo meat Anno. 
 
 At the east end of the north aisle was formerly a Chapel, dedicated to 
 St. John the Baptist; part of the altar, and the frame-work of a paint- 
 ing which represented the decollation of that Saint, together with other 
 curious portions of the ancient Chapel, still remain, and were repaired 
 in 1823; as was also the Chancel screen, at the expense of AVhartou's 
 benefaction. 
 
 Sir Robert Camownde, a Priest, was buried in 1482 in the Chapel 
 of St. John. 
 
 In the Chancel are several monuments to members of the family of 
 Berney of ^Vaxham, ancestors of Sir George Berney Brograve, Bart, of 
 Worstead House. 
 
 There are also remaining the following ancient inscribed brasses, viz. 
 
 Orate p' a'i'a Johis Albastyr qui obiit xxiv die Sept Anno D'ni mcccccxx cuj' 
 a'i'e p'pieiet deus Amen. Orate pro a'i'a Agnetis Albastyr que obiit A° D'ni 
 Mcccccxxiv cujus a'i'e p'pieiet deus amen. 
 Orate pro a'i'a Thome Whatt, wyrsted we', yr, qui obiit xv°die Augusti mcccccvi 
 
 cuj' a'i'e p'pieiet deus amen. 
 
 Orate pro A'i'ab's Johannis Glover ct Isabelle ux ej' qui ob xxi die mensis De- 
 
 cemb. Anno D'ni M" D° quor' a'i'ab p'pieiet deus amen. 
 
 Pormerly there was a Chapel, in the Parish but at some distance from 
 the Church, dedicated to Saint Andrew ; the Rents of Assize belonging to 
 which in the year 12oG, were given to the Vicar, together with the Obla- 
 tions, when the Vicar was to keep in repair, and find all the ornaments 
 for the said Chapel. The chief of these Altar Oblations were small 
 sums paid for saying masses, and other prayers for the souls of the 
 deceased. Agnes, the widow of Richard AVatts, was buried in St. An- 
 drew's Chapel, in the year 1.V29, and by will contributed to the repair of 
 it at that period, but it is now totally demolished. She also gave lands 
 to find two lamps in the Church for ever, if the King's laiis will permit, 
 4 
 
¥ 
 
 1 I 
 
^t Jttcfjolas Ci)utt|^, 
 
 GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK; 
 
 PERPETUAL CURATE, 
 THE REV. RICHARD TURNER, B. D. 
 
 1 HE ancient town of Great Yarmouth, which derives its name from its 
 situation at the mouth of the River Yare, and containing at present a 
 population of upwards of 18,000 persons, forms only one parish ; the 
 Church, one of the largest in the kingdom. The original foundation of 
 the Church is attributed to Herbert de Losinga, the first Bishop of Nor- 
 wich, in the reign of William Rufus, who appropriated it to the Prior 
 and Monks of the Holy Trinity, at Norwich, who had formerly a cell 
 here. It is a perpetual curacy, with the appropriation of great and 
 small tithes, and at the dissolution the patronage devolved to the Dean 
 and Chapter of Norwich, with whom it now remains. 
 
 There is no part of the present building that can be assigned to the 
 early period of Bishop Herbert, in whose time the circular arch and 
 massive shafts shewed the remote connexion of the Norman architec- 
 ture with the works of the Romans, but the most ancient parts of this 
 Church may be readily assigned to the year 1250, the 35th of Henry 
 III., when the structure is recorded to have been greatly enlarged, 
 and was at that time most probably rebuilt, as in the following year 
 it was dedicated to St. Nicholas, a personage held in the greatest 
 repute by mariners, from the circumstance of his prayers having pre- 
 served the ship, in which he sailed to the Holy Laud, from a storm that 
 threatened its destruction. The noble and interesting edifice is situated 
 near the north entrance of the town, by the Norwich road ; and although 
 it has undergone many injudicious repairs, when considered in regard to 
 its appearance and external cft'oct, it still retains the cUaractcristic fea- 
 tures of the architecture of the reign of Henry III. The building com- 
 prises, in its plan, a nave and two aisles, which latter are larger in re- 
 gard to height and breadtli than the body, but do not extend so far 
 eastward ; the greatest length of the Church, from east to west, is two 
 hundred and thirty feet, and the breadth, including the aisles, is one 
 hundred and eight feet. 
 
 Plate I. represents the South-west View of the Church, with the 
 South-east Porch, and Transept At the west end are four buttresses, 
 or octangular towers, those at the extremity, ornamented at the upper 
 part with a trefoil-headed panel upon each face, and rise into plain 
 pinnacles, surmounted by a small cross. The western Windows are not 
 1 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK. 
 
 regular in form, or has their tracery been very carefully preserved; 
 otherwise, from its extent, this front would have a striking appearance. 
 A very great detriment to it, is the accumulation of earth in the church- 
 yard, the threshold of the door being now about six feet below the sur- 
 face. 
 
 The principal entrance to the Church, is by the south-east door, beneath 
 the large window of the cross aisle, or transept. The extreme angles of 
 this transept are supported, like those at the west end, by graduated but- 
 tresses, terminating in towers and pinnacles, between them is a hand- 
 some window, divided by mullions into compartments, which in the upper 
 part are multiplied and diversified in their form. The three windows 
 on the south side of the Church, which are shewn in Plates 1 and 2, 
 are various in their tracery, without being uniform in their appearance ; 
 the centre is the most ornamented ; they were formerly filled with painted 
 glass, of which not a vestige now remains. At the intersection of the 
 transepts with the nave, rises the Tower, which is now embattled, but 
 was originally decorated with pinnacles; it demands attention as the 
 oldest part of the present structure ; it is surmounted by a spire, erected 
 in the year 1807, useful and conspicuous as a sea-mark. The height of 
 the old spire was 18G feet, somewhat higher than the present, and was 
 of wood, covered with lead, which having been injured from the shrink- 
 ing of the timber, or from the effect of lightning in 1683, was crooked in 
 its appearance, and was at length taken down in, the year 1803, and 
 after a survey by >>'illiani Wilkins, Esq. of Cambridge, the tower was 
 repaired and the spire rebuilt; that and the ball are now covered with 
 copper tinned. The Tower contains a peal of ten bells, esteemed ex- 
 ceedingly harmonious. From tiie top of the Tower is a very fine pano- 
 ramic view of the busy town and its beautiful environs. Here are seen 
 the mazy windings of the Rivers Waveney and Yare, together with the 
 the Bure, or North River; swelling into an immense lake, the Braydon 
 Water ; and turning towards the ocean, the eye commands a vast extent 
 of beach, with the .Tetty, Nelson's Column, and numerous vessels pur- 
 suing their course from the northern ports to I,oiidon, or lying at anchor 
 in the roads. 
 
 A very considerable sum was expended upon a general repair of the 
 Church, under an act of parliament passed for that purpose, 9th of June, 
 1806, when the south side and west end were restored, under the direc- 
 tion of trustees, the principal of whom was Sir Edmund Knowles La- 
 con, Bart. 
 
 Plate II. is a view of the Choir, or Preaching Place, looking east, 
 and taken below the Organ Gallery. That part of the Church which ex- 
 tends to the west of the Tower forms, with the Aisles on each side, a 
 spacious Choir, havir)g an appearance of much grandeur. 
 
 The Ceiling is ancient, and panelled in compartments, at the intersections 
 
 2 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK, 
 
 of which are bosses, containing coats of arms, and various emblems and 
 devices, carved. The whole has been painted to represent dark marble 
 veined with white; and although tolerably executed, is a very injudicious 
 coloring for what should always appear light and airy. Would it not 
 have been much better to have adhered to the ancient design, which is 
 still to be seen in the roof of the north aisle, where the small moulded 
 ribs and bosses are painted a light color, and the panels studded with 
 gilded cinquefoils, radiated like stars. 
 
 The Pulpit is at the south-west end of the choir, and adjoining to it, 
 on the same level, is the Vicar's Pew, inclosed with a screen, and as- 
 cended by a staircase from the cross aisle; the whole is of singular con- 
 struction, and is undoubtedly of the age of Elizabeth, or James I. 
 
 The Reading-desk and Clerk's Pew are opposite to the Pulpit, 
 on the north-west. The Communion-table being apart from the Choir, 
 every part of divine service is read here. 
 
 On the south side is the Alderman's Gallery, at the west end of 
 which, near the Pulpit, is the seat of the Mayor, under a canopy sup- 
 ported by four fluted columns, ornamented with gilding, &c., over it the 
 royal arms. The access to this seat is through the Gallery, over which, 
 between the windows on the south wall, are the armorial ensigns of Sir 
 William Paston, Knt., 1633, Argent, sixfleurs de. lis azure, and a chief 
 indented or, with supporters and crest ; under which is this inscription : 
 His arms stand here, whose workes of charity shall speake his praise, though 
 he in dust doth ly. 
 
 Mongst many more good deedes vi'* he hath done, 
 
 Yarmouth doth 'knowledge this for to be one, 
 
 That he gave to their pore a pound a yeere, 
 
 For ever to continue, as it doth appeare. 
 
 Sir W. Paston gave out of the Rectory of Caistor eight pounds per an- 
 num, to be disposed of by the Bailiffs of the Poor for ever. At the west 
 end of the Gallery is the arms of Sir Samuel Tryon, Knt., 1615, aztire, 
 afess crenelle beticeen six estoiles, argent, inscribed, 
 
 ^iz Samuel Cryon.s" arniji arc plac'D l^ece, 
 a fiitiD luElbtoijiticr to our garmoutj] ^att. 
 
 IX MEMORIAM BENJEFACT0RI3 MUNIFICI. 
 
 Between these painted coats, and about the centre of the Gallery, is a 
 marble tablet, bearing the arms of the town : " Erected by the Corpo- 
 ration, as a tribute of gratitude to the memory of Edward Warnes, Clk., 
 Rector of Lammas, with Great and Little Hautboys, for his liberal do- 
 nation of an estate at Thrigby to the Corporation, for the use of the 
 poor of this town for ever. He departed this life the 27tli of Decem- 
 ber, 1700, aged 87 years, and lies interred in the Church at Thrigby." 
 
 On the north side of the Choir is another Gallery, erected by Mr. 
 John Fuller, and Rachael, his wife, in 1705, at the expense of 130/., for 
 the benefit of the Fishermen's Hospital in this town, when two pillars 
 3 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK. 
 
 of the nave were actually removed to admit light to this Gallery, which 
 in itself disfigures the appearance of the Church considerably. 
 
 The Organ, at the west end of this Church, is said to exceed in excel- 
 lence of tone and power every instrument of the kind in Europe, except 
 that at Haerlem. It was originally erected in 1733, br't was repaired 
 by England in 1812, and consists of three parts, viz. the Great Organ, 
 the Choir Organ, and the Swell, together with two octaves of pedal 
 pipes. It stands in a Gallery, supported by four Doric columns. 
 
 At the north-west end of the middle aisle is the Font, raised upon three 
 steps ; it is octangular, and is covered by an ornamented pyramidical 
 wooden top, painted and gilt. 
 
 Plate III. represents the spacious east end of the Church, called the 
 New Chancel; the view is taken from the south-west, and shews the 
 large south-east window. Over the Communion-table is painted the 
 Decalogue, the Lord's Prayer, and Creed ; the whole inclosed by a 
 wooden balustrade. This part of tiie Church measures in extent from 
 east to west 57 feet, and 108 feet from north to south ; but is only used' 
 at the time of administering the sacrament, and for the celebration of 
 marriage. 
 
 Before the Reformation, this Church, like most others in the king- 
 dom, had its Holy Rood, or Crucifix, with the figures of Mary and 
 John. Swinden's account of this, in his History of Yarmouth, is cu- 
 rious and interesting to the admirers of Church antiquities. " In the 
 east end of the middle aisle stands the Communion Table, where for- 
 merly stood the Great, or High Altar, and over it a loft or perch, call- 
 ed the Rood Loft, erected by Robert de Haddesco, Prior of St. Olave's, 
 in 1370, and ornamented with curious decorations and devices at his own 
 Cost and charges. It is called ' Opus pretiosum circa magnum altare,' 
 and by means of illumination with lamps and candles, the whole ap- 
 peared exceeding splendid and solemn. These lights before the altars, 
 iu ancient times, were, with great care and expense, constantly main- 
 tained, and had always a custos or warden appointed to superintend 
 them ; and so zealous were the ancients to maintain these lights, that 
 very few wills were made wherein some legacy was not given to this 
 illumination." 
 
 Between the High Altar, and the east wall, was formerly a space of 
 about nine feet, which was used as a vestryin later times ; it was after- 
 wards converted to a Charnel-house, but in the year 1783, the east wall 
 was removed, and a window substituted, immediately at the back of 
 the Communion Table. The two pointed windows on each side this 
 part of the Chancel, are amongst the oldest portions of the building, 
 and are evidently of the wra of Henry III. 
 
 - " The Prior of St. Olave, besides what is before mentioned, built, in 
 the east end of this Church, a neat Chapel, and dedicated it to the Lady 
 of Arneburgh, which was standing in 1515, and on the north side thereof 
 4 
 
| L-----* 
 
^2 
 
 JiJiuw' niVir'Sfliii) mwHB"] [iMUHffi'H uinn "ii£inB(kHi!ffiii»aiuii!>"K wjji'aiiuwi'«ii>i>i ' i > i "iv loitaiE-ii i rj ii > '< ■ i 'iiinuHaiiiiHniua.iiB».. 
 
 ,LiiJ.j-^,^ 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK. 
 
 was erected a fine Organ, and to the west of it, the Choir, furnished 
 with eight priests, who were sent from Norwich, and resided here under 
 the Prior, and composed a Choir till the Dissolution. So numerous 
 were the Chapels in this Church, in the reign of Edward III. that 
 though the building is spacious, it was thought advantageous to erect a 
 new edifice at the west end, which was called the new work, and in- 
 tended as an additional aisle to the Church; but by reason of the great 
 plague in 1349, when no less than 7,052 persons died in this town, it was 
 never completed. Each of these Chapels had an Image, Altar, Light, 
 &c., which were chiefly supported by a company called a Guild, who 
 had land, tenements, money, goods, plate, and other utensils belong- 
 ing to them, and were all dissolved, except the Merchant's Guild the 
 37th Henry YUr'—Swindeti. 
 
 At the dissolution of religious houses, when an inventory of the or- 
 naments belonging to this church was taken, amongst other things are 
 mentioned eleven tunicles, the gift of Sir John Fastolfe, Knt. ; a silver 
 temple, weighing 168 oz.; and some of the oil of St. Nicholas, a sacred 
 relic, the gift of one of the priors. 
 
 In this part of the Church, called the New Chancel, on the north-east, 
 behind the seats, which are continued round the greater part, is a triple 
 niche and piscina, and on the north side a very curious doorway, con- 
 sisting of a flat Tudor arch, with a moulding all around, enriched with 
 quatrefoils and shields alternately. In the spandrils are an angel cens- 
 ing, upon one side, and a priest kneeling before a cross, which is radiated, 
 on the other. Over the centre of the arch is a sculptured shield charged 
 with a chevron nebule between three demy seals, and surmounted by a 
 helmet and mantling, but the crest is broken off. 
 
 Here are many handsome modern mural monuments of marble, with 
 inscriptions dictated apparently by filial piety, and a proper regard to 
 the memory of deceased relatives ; but all the monumental brasses, by 
 an order of assembly in 15r>l, were torn from the marbles in which 
 they were bedded, and were delivered to the Bailiff^s of the town for the 
 purpose of casting them into weights and measures for the use of the 
 mhabitants ; an act of spoliation which we are really grieved to record. 
 The oldest monumental inscription now in the Church is dated 1620. 
 
 Plate IV. is a view of the North Aisle, or Old Chancel, as it is called, 
 from the east end near the base of the Tower. At the time this Church 
 was under the Prior of Norwich, it appears from Swinden's History of 
 Yarmouth, that three Parish Chaplains and one Deacon usually offi- 
 ciated here, and were supported by the Priory at Norwich; for in the 
 reign of Henry VI. twenty shillings were paid by the Prior to the town 
 as a compensation for the temporary want of a Parish Chaplain and a 
 Deacon. 
 
 This part of the Church was formerly open to the Choir, but about 
 forty years since the screen at the back of Fuller's Gallery, to which 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK. 
 
 the stairs, seen on the left of the View, Plate 4, lead, was erected for 
 the greater accommodation of the congregation, and this aisle is at pre- 
 sent disused, except as a place of sepulture. In the wall on the north 
 side, near the east end, is a very handsome arched monument of free- 
 stone, ornamented with crockets and pinnacles, apparently about the age 
 of Edward III. Within this arch is a slab of Purbeck marble, of much 
 older date : it is of taper form, and is sculptured with a cross of eight 
 points, each terminating in a trefoil, and is undoubtedly the memorial of 
 some former chaplain. 
 
 Against this wall is a small tablet to the memory of Henry Swinden, 
 the historian of this town, who died 11th January, 1772, set. 55, erected 
 by John Ives, F. S. A. ; there are also three mural monuments to the 
 family of England, arms, gules, three lions passant, or, and others to those 
 of Symonds, arms, sable, a dolphin cmboiced, argent, and of Preston, 
 a family which still flourishes in the town, arms, ermine, on a chief in- 
 dented sable, three cresecnts, ur. At the west end of this Aisle or Chan- 
 cel, is a fine window of three divisions, and a Chamber Vestry, the large 
 tablets on the outside contain lists of benefactions to the Charity- 
 school, and are surmounted by a figure of Charity, and a boy and girl. 
 Over the entrance is a square stone, with the arms of the town. Anno 
 Domini, 1C50. 
 
 THOMAS FELISTEAD, 
 
 * * * * 
 
 BAYLIFS. 
 HENRY MOULTON, 
 RICHARD BETTS, 
 CHURCHWARDENS. 
 
 The other name was that of NVilliam Burton, which was ordered to be 
 erased at the Restoration. 
 
 In this Vestry is a collection of about two hundred ancient volumes, 
 and a very curious and singular Library-table, or Reading-desk, contain- 
 ing six shelves, which revolve upon an axis, and, by a mechanical con- 
 struction, preserve their level, presenting alternately the various volumes 
 for consultation with the greatest ease. 
 
 At the east end, against the wall of the transept, is a marble monu- 
 ment to Sir William Gooch, Bart., who died 17th December, 1751. 
 Arms, party per pule, argent and sable, a cheeron between three talbots 
 passant, countcrchanged, on a chief gules, three leopards' heads, or. Crest, 
 a talbot passant, per pale, argent and sable. Motto, Fide et virtute. 
 
 The principal entrance to the Church-yard, which contains about six 
 acres, is by a handsome iron Gateway, at the end of an avenue of limes 
 leading from the Market-place ; but on the west side is a very curious 
 mutilated brick Gateway, of the time of Charles I., which deserves to 
 be restored to its pristine form. On the north and east sides of the 
 Church-yard are the remains of the old town walls. 
 6 
 
INDEX TO THE FIRST VOLUME 
 
 OF VIEWS OF CHURCHES. 
 
 ■ ' TIJLE. A Composition or Church Fdrniture. 
 
 « STOKE POGIS CHURCH North-East View. 
 
 CambriDgeiSbire. 
 
 3 CAMBRIDGE, GREAT ST. MARY'S . Pl. I. The Tower. 
 ■• DITTO II. Interior. 
 
 5 DITTO . . . THE HOLY TRINITY Pl. I. East End. 
 8 DITTO II. Interior. 
 
 7 BORLEY CHURCH Monument oi- Waldegrave. 
 
 8 LAiWBOURNE CHURCH Interior. 
 
 ' THAXTED CHURCH South-East. 
 
 10 DITTO North Porch. 
 
 11 DITTO East End, Interior. 
 
 '2 THEYDON MOUNT Monuments of Smyth Family. 
 
 «3foucc^tcr!5'birc. 
 
 15 CAMPDEN CHURCH South-East View. 
 
 n CIRENCESTER CHURCH Pl. I. The Porch. 
 
 I* DITTO II. East End. 
 
 10 DITTO III. Trinity Chapel. 
 
 17 TEWKESBURY CHURCH Pl. I. North Entrance and Tower. 
 
 IS DITTO II. Ground Plan. 
 
 19 DITTO III. South Side. 
 
 =0 DITTO IV. West End. 
 
 <>i DITTO V. The Nave. 
 
 ia DITTO VI. The Choir. 
 
 23 DITTO VII. Countess of Warwick's Chapel. 
 
 «■» DITTO VIII. Sir Guy Bryan's Monument, 
 
 's DITTO IX. Cenotaph of Abbot Wakeman. 
 
 46 DITTO X. Abbot Cheltenham's Monument. 
 
 27 DITTO XI. South Aisle, looking West. 
 
il^eceforD?i]irc- 
 
 28 LEDBUKY View of the West End. 
 
 *« LEOMINSTER Pi. I. West End. 
 
 30 DITTO II. North Aisle. 
 
 3' SABRIDGEWORTH CHURCH . . . Pl. I. Socth-East View. 
 s« DITTO II. South Aisle. 
 
 53 ST. ALBANS, ABBEY CHURCH . . Pl. I. The South Side. 
 
 34 DITTO II. The Nave, West End. 
 
 35 DITTO III. Ditto, East Esd. 
 
 36 DITTO IV. The Choir. 
 
 37 DITTO V. The Altar Screen. 
 
 38 DITTO VI. MoN. of Humphrey, Duke of Glouceste 
 
 39 DITTO VII. Soith-East View. 
 
 40 DITTO Vignette, The Benetier in the South Aisle. 
 
 Stent. 
 
 4' ASHFORD CHURCH Pl. I. The Tower. 
 
 42 DITTO II. T. Smith's Monument. 
 
 IJotfoIfi. 
 
 <3 INGHAM CHURCH Pl. I. South-East View. 
 
 44 DITTO II • Monument of Sir Oliver Ingham. 
 
 45 DITTO III. Ditto of Sir Roger De Boys, &c. 
 
 ••6 NORTH WALSHAM CHURCH . . . Pl. I. The South Porch. 
 
 47 DITTO II- The Font. 
 
 48 SOUTH LOPHAM ■. Tue Tower. 
 
 49 WORSTEAD Pl. I. The Tower. 
 
 50 DITTO !!• The Font and Gallery at West End, 
 
 31 YARMOUTH CHURCH Pl. I. South-West View. 
 
 54 DITTO ■ II- The Choir. 
 
 53 DITTO Ill- The Chancel. 
 
 54 DITTO IV. The North Aisle. 
 
j-ira-wn ty J-'F.lIeale 
 
 MOIS-IUMJEH-TAJL ffiEMAUfS , &c 
 
 J>irua.ifjt, e,£iih*p. 
 
 ^ SPSUOcfriArj Ji^ad., 
 
VIEWS 
 
 OF THE MOST INTERESTING 
 
 Collegiate anti ^atocl)ial CJurcl&es 
 
 IN 
 
 GREAT BRITAIN 
 
 INCLUDING 
 
 SCREENS, FONTS, MONUMENTS, 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN PRESTON NEALE. 
 
 WITH 
 
 HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTIONS. 
 
 VOL. II, 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PUBLISHED BY LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, BROWN, AND GREEN, 
 AND SHERWOOD, JONES, AND CO., PATERNOSTER-ROW. 
 
 1825. 
 
J. MCrcav. 'Jooks Court, 
 Chancery Lnm, London. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 Upon undertaking this Work it was my purpose to illustrate, more 
 fully than has hitherto been done, the ancient ecclesiastical archi- 
 tecture of this country, and to bring together all the more interesting 
 specimens of its various styles, from the rude and simple effort, to 
 the most finished and elaborate structiu'es, in a series of plates, not 
 unworthy of the present advanced state of the arts, particularly 
 architectural design and engraving. The field was certainly a most 
 ample one, and I trust that my labors, as far as they have proceeded, 
 will sufficiently shew that I have not been a careless or indiscriminate 
 collector of the various objects it presented. Notwithstanding, how- 
 ever, the increase of patronage which the work has obtained during 
 the last twelve months, and the many flattering testimonies of appro- 
 bation that I have received from various quarters, the publication of 
 my " Views of Seats " and other professional engagements, compel 
 me to suspend my labors for the present, since I find that I cannot 
 devote the attention which would be requisite, in order to prosecute 
 the work, with that punctuality a periodical Pubhcation demands, so 
 as to do justice both to myself and my subscribers. Yet, although not 
 carried to the extent I originally contemplated, I flatter myself the 
 work will be deemed -not an unimportant accession to our architec- 
 tural and antiquarian publications, nor unworthy of a place in the 
 library of the topographical student, as it now comprises many of 
 the most interesting of the various structures belonging to the class 
 it is intended to illustrate. Upon my own more immediate share in 
 its execution it would be arrogating too much to make any com- 
 ment, except, that however I may have performed it, it has been 
 pursued, not with the feelings of a hirehng, but with the alacrity 
 and ardor of one engaged in a favorite pursuit ; and, perhaps, I 
 may be permitted to observe, that the execution of the plates ge- 
 nerally do honor to the artists employed upon them, and that for 
 high finishing, delicacy, and taste, they will bear a comparison 
 with those of many more expensive works. To those Gentlemen 
 who have so kindly supplied me with historical documents, and 
 information, for the literary portion of these vohmies, some of 
 whose names will be found in the respective. articles, I here take 
 an opportunity of returning my thanks for their valuable assistance, 
 as I do Ukewise to Mr. Thomas Moule, for the manner in which he 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 has conducted this arduous part of the work. With respect to the 
 Iiistory and description of each subject, no effort has been spared 
 to render it as full and accurate as possible. During the publi- 
 cation of the work I have also received many excellent hints from 
 anonymous correspondents, of which I have occasionally availed my- 
 self, and only lament that I am unable to thank personally those 
 friends who furnished them. The Churches more fully illustrated 
 in these volumes are those of Great and Little Malvern, St. Alban's, 
 Shrewsbury, and Tewkesbury Abbeys, the Churches of Stratford- 
 upon-Avon, Croydon, Yarmouth, Thaxted, Cirencester, Melford, 
 and Lavenham, with the principal Churches of Oxford and Cam- 
 bridge ; all these being interesting, either as examples of their re- 
 spective style, or on account of the historical and antiquarian remi- 
 niscences connected with them, and perhaps it will be allowed that 
 they have never before been described either so fully or in so popu- 
 lar a form. 
 
 The Frontispieces attached to these volumes are compositions se- 
 lected from interesting specimens of sacerdotal furniture, and monu- 
 mental remains of peculiar splendor, subjects intimately connected 
 with ecclesiastical antiquities, and contain, in the first, a representa- 
 tion of the curious Font, at Stalham, in Norfolk, with an extraordi- 
 nary rich cover from that at Sudbury ; an antique muniment chest, 
 from St. Mary Magdalen's, Oxford, upon which are placed chalices, 
 &c. Wykeham's celebrated crozier, from New College Chapel, at 
 Oxford, and a processional cross, now in the possession of the Rev. 
 W. T. Spurdens, North Walsham, Norfolk ; above, are canopies 
 from stalls in Henry the Seventh's Chapel. The second plate con- 
 tains a view of Archbishop Bowett's Tomb at York, highly wrought 
 arches and capitals from Salisbury, a Churchyard Cross from Whal- 
 ley, in Lancashire, with a sculptured Mitre from Whethamsted's 
 tomb, at St. Alban's ; more distant is the Monument of Bishop 
 Brewer, from Exeter, part of Henry the Fifth's Chantry, and Queen 
 Philippa's Tomb, at Westminster, and a screen from York Minster, 
 
 At a future opportunity I may probably either resume the Work, 
 or select some particular Churches, to be published each separately, 
 but in a precisely similar form to the present Volumes. 
 
 JOHN PRESTON NEALE. 
 
 Beimel Street, Blackfriars-Road, 
 January 6, 1826. 
 
BULWICK, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 REV. JOHN THOMAS TRYON. 
 
 JJULWICK, or as it was sometimes spelt Bolewyke, is ia the Hundred 
 of Corby, ten miles from Stamford, on the road to Kettering, and is 
 situated in Weldon Deanery. The Church, of which we present a south 
 view, is a very fine specimen of that peculiarity in architecture for which 
 this county is one of the most celebrated in the kingdom. The Tower 
 and stone Spire are models of their kind ; simply elegant in their gene- 
 ral appearance, they combine the most just proportions with a taste- 
 ful distribution of ornament. Four plain graduated buttresses at the 
 angles support the Tower ; its basement, fourteen feet by ten, as high 
 as the body of the Church, is plain ; but the lofty story which rises above, 
 is ornamented on each face with two united, and very elegantly pro- 
 portioned pointed windows, filled with tracery in the upper part, and di- 
 vided by a transom in the middle ; above, is a rich band or fascia filled 
 with quatrefoils, &c., and grotesque heads, forming water-spouts at the 
 angles ; the Tower is finished with an embattled parapet. The Spire, of 
 stone, which rises to a considerable height, is octagonal, pierced with two 
 tier of tabernacled openings, on alternate sides, and is terminated by a 
 vane ; the Church standing on an eminence above the village, the spire 
 is a most pleasing object for many miles. The structure consists of a 
 body, north and south aisles, and a chancel ; its total length is ninety feet 
 six inches ; breadth, including the aisles, forty-nine feet six inches. The 
 entrance is by a porch on the south side ; the body of the Church is di- 
 vided from the chancel by a screen, and, on the south side the altar, is 
 the triple sedilia of stone, and a piscina. Bridges, in his history of this 
 county, mentions the following memorials ; but, from alterations, during 
 the various repairs the Church has undergone, some of them no longer 
 exist. In the chancel is a stone to the memory of the Rev. John 
 Nobles, who had been Rector of this parish forty-two years, ob. 1692, 
 »t. 69, and, on the east wall, a tablet to the Rev. Charles Nettleton, 
 twenty-six years Rector of the parish, ob. 1719, aet. 57 ; there is also 
 now remaining another stone in the north wall of the Chancel to the 
 1 
 
ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, BULWICK, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
 
 memory of the Rev. Francis Jackson, who was forty-nine years Rector 
 of this parish, ob. 1770, a;t. 75. 
 
 Near the screen, in the body of the Church, is a brass, with this in- 
 scription : 
 
 " Ific jaccnt JDiU'muiS €tgo.s' ct JDargarcta uror cju.^ qui quiDem 
 
 Jl^iirm xix° ojc nicn.si^ ilp'tijj S'no ©'ni .niiU'imo cccc. 
 
 Lxxxii. quoc' fl'i'abu.s' propi. " 
 
 Against the south wall, a mural monument, with the figures of an 
 elderly man and woman kneeling on opposite sides of a prie d-ieu in- 
 scribed below, nobis vita solus Ckristus est ; beneath the figures are re- 
 presented six children, Elizabetha, Johannes, Gulielmus, Ricardus, Ca- 
 rolus, and Josias. Arms, vert, a Jleur de lis, argent. Crest, a goafs 
 head proper. Above the figures this inscription, " Hie jactt Henricus 
 Fowkes Miles uxorque ejus fidissima domina Jana, Roberti Denys 
 Equitis de Brickton, comitatu Devon, filia, adjacet tumulata quae post- 
 quam a prKdicio conjuge cum unica gnata undecim filios peperit una 
 cum decimo tertio, August! 23, anno domini, IGO!), in partu obiit, itidem 
 
 Henricus Miles letho solvit debitum die anno Domini . " On a 
 
 board against the south-west pillar, " John Brown, confectioner, citizen 
 and Salter, of London, eldest son to AAilliara Brown, late of Bulwick 
 town, gave, in the year 1GG2, when corne was deare, to the poor of this 
 town of Bulwick, being the place of his nativity, the somme of three 
 pounds ten shillings." 
 
 In this parish was formerly a Guild to the honor of St. Anne ; by the 
 commissioners' return, the second year of the reign of Edward VI., it 
 was certified to be possessed of a stock money gathered of men"s de- 
 votions bestowed on lights and drinking in gange week, amounting to 
 eight pounds, six shillings, and eight pence. 
 
 In the Church-yard lure was also founded a chantry to the honor of 
 St. Anne and our Lady, by GeofiVy Cappe ; Henry, Duke of Lan- 
 caster, John of Ghent, and Lord William Zouche, for two priests. 
 
 The Church is at present undergoing a repair at the expense of the 
 parish, when new pews, and a new pulpit and reading-desk of oak, are 
 to be erected. 
 
1 
 
 
 lOKCH 
 
KETTERING, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE ; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 THE REV. B. W. FLETCHER. 
 
 The pride and ornament of our Parish Churches are, no doubt, the 
 lofty spires which, it may be observed, are generally found to be more 
 prevalent in the flat than in the hilly counties. Northamptonshire 
 abounds veith them, and the example we have here selected may rank 
 with the most elegant. Mr. Dallaway, in his Observations on English 
 Architecture, has justly remarked, " that the more beautiful specimens 
 of a species of architecture exclusively our own, (for upon the Conti- 
 nent the spire is rarely seen,) are extremely simple, and owe their 
 effect to their fine proportions, unbroken by ornamental particles." This 
 observation strikes us particularly with regard to the spires of this 
 county, in which the several openings, surmounted by tabernacled ca- 
 nopies, break the beautiful outline of the principal object, and although 
 they may give a richness of effect, deprive the spire of the chaste sim- 
 plicity of its original design. 
 
 At the west end of this Church, which is dedicated both to Saint Peter 
 and Saint Paul, is the embattled Tower, represented in our plate, three 
 stories in height, graceful in its ornaments, and just in its proportions, 
 having at each angle a small hexangular turret ; from hence rises the 
 spire, enriched with crockets, and terminating in a vane ; on opposite 
 sides of the spire are the small windows or openings above mentioned. 
 Besides the body of the Church, which is really handsome, and is very 
 generally admired, there is a North and South Aisle, separated from it 
 by remarkably fine pillars, and a Chancel. In some of the windows of 
 the Aisles are still remaining fragments of the painted glass, with which 
 they were formerly filled, consisting chiefly of mutilated portraits of Ec- 
 clesiastics, and Saints of the Church. 
 
 During the late repairs, it became necessary to clear the walls of the 
 whitewash, when a curious painting, apparently of the period of Henry 
 VII., was discovered on the north wall of the Church. It represents 
 a pilgrim with a greyhound, &c. This interesting relique is preserved to 
 public view, principally through the praiseworthy exertions of a respect- 
 able antiquary residing in the town. 
 1 
 
KETTERING CHURCH, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
 
 On the back of the screeu dividing the North Aisle from the Chancel, 
 are figures of a man and four sons, and a woman and four daughters, 
 with this inscription over their heads. OratE prO a'l'afau^ DDltllcImi 
 
 2?urgi^ ct ^oJjannc ZUut ct Cdjabctij urorum cju^ ct animafau^ 
 
 omnium 2?CnffactOrum .SUOriim, Jmcn. Underneath the figures is 
 inscribed, " ^Vho so redis mi name shal have Godj-s Bljssing and Our 
 Ladj's, and my AVyfis doe sey the same." 
 
 Over the North Porch are two sculptured shields, the first bearing. 
 Two keys endorsed in saltier, four cross crosslets fitchfee, arms of the 
 Episcopal see of Peterborough. And the second charged with, Two 
 swords in saltier, perhaps the see of London. 
 
 In the Church are no Monuments, except a small brass i.-.Iaid against 
 the VFall, for a member of the family of Sawyer, who endowed an hos- 
 pital in this town for six poor widows. In the Church-yard are the 
 remains of an ancient Tomb, without any inscription, but which, from 
 an authentic tradition, was erected for the person who built the steeple. 
 Over the Porch door are three handsome niches, beautifully sculptured, 
 in which were formerly statues of St. Peter, St. Paul, and the Founder 
 of the Church, destroyed by the puritans in the time of Oliver Cromwell. 
 Over this Porch is a cell, anciently used by one of the Monks of Peter- 
 borough, to the Abbot of which a weekly market was granted for the 
 support of the said Monk. 
 
 Since the induction of the Rev. B. W. Fletcher, the present Rector, 
 the Church has been uewly pewed, and Galleries have been erected. 
 The Right Honorable Lord Sondes is now the Patron. 
 
 The Town of Kettering in Huxloe Hundred, is pleasantly situated ou 
 a gentle ascent, above a branch of the River Nen, and contained in 
 the year 181 1, seven hundred and thirteen houses, with a population 
 of three thousand two hundred and forty-two persons. 
 
^ 
 
■ 
 
^11 ^atnts €f\xm% 
 
 OXFORD; 
 
 CURATE, 
 THE REV. J. RADFORD. 
 
 In a selection of Views of Churches, made for the purpose of illustrat- 
 ing the Ecclesiastical Architecture of the kingdom, it is conceived not 
 improper to introduce a structure erected in the Italian manner, which 
 so much prevailed from the time of Inigo Jones to the present period, 
 although we decidedly object to the preference which is now given to it, 
 over what is called the Gothic style. The church of All Saints, one of 
 the principal in Oxford, has often and justly been praised by critics in 
 architecture. Mr. Dallaway, after reciting the censure of \Valpole upon 
 modern churches, and the true observation of Murphy, that they are a 
 vile compound, Italy having furnished the ground plan, Greece the Por- 
 tico, and France, or Germany, the Spire; thus remarks upon All Saints, 
 which he tells us was built by Dr. Henry Aldrich, the accomplished 
 Dean of Christ Church, one of the most perfect architects of his time. 
 " The spire has fewer objectionable parts than almost all those of Wren, 
 Hawksmoor, or Gibbs, and the Church, with its Corinthian Portico, 
 no less than the accuracy of its internal proportions, is uncommonly cor- 
 rect in composition and elegant in effect." Anecdotes, p. 105. 
 
 The plate represents the view of the north side, being taken from Lin- 
 coln College Lane, looking towards the High Street, in which the Church 
 also forms a prominent and interesting object. It is constructed of a 
 perishable stone, consequently many of the projecting parts have lost 
 their sharpness, and the admirable details of its architecture have been 
 impaired; but as a picture its effect is probably increased, the mouldering 
 stone blending more happily with the venerable structures by which it is 
 surrounded. 
 
 The entablature is remarkably bold ; this is carried round the building, 
 and is supported by coupled columns of the Corinthian order, a mode 
 purely Italian. Its length is made to admit four large arch-headed 
 windows and a noble portico, the columns are not fluted, and the frieze 
 is perfectly plain; all its grandeur is therefore derived from the justness 
 1 
 
ALL SAINTS CHURCH, OXFORD. 
 
 of its proportions; over this is an attic and balustrade. Tlie very fine 
 Tower rises at tiie west end, consisting of a rustic basement, upon which 
 is the Belfry story, which is adorned at the angles by striped pilasters, 
 and surmounted by a balustrade, and vases upon pedestals at each cor- 
 ner : above, the Tower is cylindrical, and environed by a beautiful peri- 
 style of Corinthian columns, from whence rises an obelisk termination 
 bearing a vane. 
 
 The old Church of All Saints, or All Hallows, as it was then fre- 
 quently called, fell down from decay and neglect about the year 1G99. 
 Amongst other benefactors to the new edifice. Dr. Radclift'e became a 
 considerable contributor, at the instigation of his friend. Dr. Aldrich. 
 The armorial ensigns of the various benefactors are displayed upon the 
 ceiling. The Church consists of a Nave, or Body, with lateral Aisles, 
 and a Chancel, and measures in length, withinside, seventy-tvio feet, by 
 forty-two feet in width ; the height of the interior is fifty feet. 
 
 All Saints is a Curacy in the patronage of Lincoln College. 
 
^t ^etet s €ljmt\) in fte east, 
 
 OXFORD; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. H. W. BUCKLEY, M. A. 
 
 This Church is considered to be one of the oldest in the kingdom, and 
 its foundation is attributed to St. Grymbald, whose high character for 
 piety and learning induced King Alfred to send a deputation to Rheims, 
 in France, to persuade him to leave his own country, and to make Eng- 
 land his residence. At the court of Alfred he became the companion 
 of the celebrated Asser, whose Annals of the Reign of Alfred have been 
 justly appreciated by the antiquary and the historian. In this work we 
 have the account of Grymbald's presiding, by the direction of Alfred, over 
 the University of Oxford, and his removal from that place to Winches- 
 ter, and since it teads to establish the high antiquity and origin of this 
 Church, may here be related. 
 
 In the year 886 a discord arose at Oxford between the old residents of 
 the place, and Grymbald, and those persons whom he had brought 
 with him. The former were attached to their established customs, and 
 were unwilling entirely to obey the new institutions of Grymbald. The 
 dissension lasted for three years, and Alfred himself at length went per- 
 sonally to Oxford to reconcile these differences. It appears that the 
 king, anxious for the peace and welfare of his university, did not so 
 immediately favour the cause of Grymbald as might have been expected. 
 He appointed an audience, at which the different arguments of each 
 party might fairly be discussed. The old schoolmen contended, that 
 before the arrival of Grymbald letters had flourished there, though the 
 scholars had been fewer ; and they proved, by the indubitable testimony 
 of ancient annals, that the ordinances and institutes of the place had 
 been established by some pious and erudite men, as Gildas, Melkin, 
 Nennius, Kentigem, and others, who there grew old in letters ; and 
 that St. Germanus, who had gone through the country, successfully 
 combating and preaching against the errors of Pelagius, had resided 
 half a year at Oxford; and that these institutions had been approved of 
 by him. The arguments of Grymbald are not stated, but the king not im- 
 mediately deciding against him, yet recommended peace and mutual con- 
 cessions to either party. 
 1 
 
ST. PETER'S CHURCH IN THE EAST, OXFORD. 
 
 Grymbald felt himself aggrieved at this, and instantly retired to the 
 monastery at Winchester, recently founded by Alfred, and caused to be 
 removed to Winchester the very tomb in which it had been his intention 
 that his bones should be deposited after his decease. This tomb had 
 been made in a vault under the chancel of St. Peter's Church in Oxford, 
 which church (irymbald himself liad built from the very foundation, of 
 stone, hewn and polished with the utmost care.* 
 
 The vaulted Crypt is of no ordinary beauty, evidently of Saxon ar- 
 chitecture, and is scarcely to be considered inferior to that under the 
 Cathedral of Canterbury. It is thirty-six feet long, and twenty feet 
 ten inches in width, being divided into three aisles, each of which is 
 terminated at its western extremity by an arched door-way. One of 
 these is reported to have been the entrance to a subterraneous passage, 
 and the traces of the hinges of a door are still visible. They are, how- 
 ever now converted into the sacred repositories of the dead. The roof 
 is low and vaulted, supported by eight massive pillars, on the capitals of 
 some of which some admirable carving is still visible, and which has 
 much exercised the ingenuity of the antiquary to decipher. Every care 
 has lately been taken, under the direction of the Rev. S. W. Hughes, M. A. 
 the present curate, with appropriate taste, to restore and preserve this 
 venerable relic of ages long gone by ; the mouldering bones and skulls, 
 with which its floor was strewed, have been removed and re-buried in the 
 church-yard, the windows and arches have been repaired, but it is much 
 to be lamented that it is still liable to be flooded in winter from the rise of 
 the level of the land-springs. 
 
 The Chancel itself, represented in plate 2, is particularly worthy of 
 notice for two beautiful Saxon windows, ornamented with chevron 
 mouldings, and from the richly sculptured intersecting arches, which sup- 
 port the roof. The groining is of stone, and there are winding staircases 
 inserted in the walls which lead to the parts above it. The whole style 
 of the Chancel corresponds with the interior of Iffley Church, and there 
 is also a striking similarity between the south door of St. Peter's and the 
 western entrance of that venerable fabric. 
 
 The remainder of the Church has the same character of building with 
 the edifices of the time of Henry V. and is built in the pointed style. The 
 large window on the south side contains, in its upper part, some beauti- 
 ful specimens of old Painted Glass ; and in one of those on the north 
 side is a curious symbol of the Trinity. 
 
 • The passage in Asserius Menevensis is as follows. — "At Grymbaldus hiec iniquo 
 animo gerens, statim ad monasterium Wintuniense ab Alfredo recens fundatum proficisce- 
 batur, deinde tumbam Wintoniara transferri curavit, in qua proposuerat post hujus vitce 
 curriculum ossa sua reponenda in testudine, quie erat facta subter cancellum ecclesia' Divi 
 Petri in Oxonitl, quam quidem ecclesiam idem Grymbaldus extruxerat ab ipso fundamento 
 de saxo, summi cur^ perpolito. — Wite's Edition of Asserius Meneventis, page 53. 
 
 2 
 
,f,rRv?ii L<y v: ."f^vtSli . 
 
ST. PETERS CHURCH IN THE EAST, OXFORD. 
 
 We mu8t not omit to mentiou its richly ornamented porch, in which, 
 on the one side, are the remains of a Benetier, or vessel for holy water; 
 and the stone in the seat beneath has the appearance of being much worn 
 by the bended knee. On the other side, in a window, is the fragment of an 
 antique font, which was dug out from the Church-yard. It is of curious 
 and very ancient workmanship, and once contained in bold relief the 
 figures of the Twelve Apostles. The present font is of carved wood, 
 and represents Adam and Eve at the foot of the forbidden tree, in the 
 centre of which is the vessel for the consecrated water, the cover being 
 curiously formed by the foliage. 
 
 There is a peculiarity in the construction of the Tower of the Church, 
 that it tapers very considerably towards the top, but the interior is 
 built straight, so that the amazing strength of its foundations may readily 
 be conceived ; it contains a good peal of six bells. 
 
 The body of the Church is about seventy-six feet long, and forty-two 
 feet wide. The length of the Chance! is thirty-nine feet, but its whole 
 character would evidently be improved, by removing the Organ and 
 Loft, and placing it in the Western Gallery, thus affording a connected 
 and uninterrupted view of the Chancel. The Organ is in great part 
 the work of Father Smith ; it was repaired, and additions made to 
 it by Messrs. Green and Byfield of London, by subscription from the 
 inhabitants and contributions from the Heads of Colleges within the 
 parochial limits, about the year 1760, at which time the whole edifice was 
 repaired and new pewed at the expense of the Parish. 
 
 Many persons of local distinction and of eminence in the literary 
 world are buried within this Church; and among these we may mention 
 Dillenius, formerly Sherardian Professor of Botany, the Langbaines, 
 and Potters, and many Heads of Colleges and Halls within the pre- 
 cincts of the Parish; many of the Principals of Hart Hall, now de- 
 molished, and the family of the Frewins have found their last resting 
 place within this venerable pile. Here lie also the remains of Josiah 
 PuIIen, whose name will survive as long as the well known tree planted 
 by his own hand on Headington Hill shall continue in existence. There 
 are also several memorials and incriptions on brasses affixed to the walls. 
 One of these, to Dr. Richard Radcliffe, and another to the memory of 
 Simon Parrett, and Elizabeth his wife, which we have here transcribed. 
 It records the unusual circumstance of his having been twice Proctor 
 of the University. 
 
 Here resteth the bodies of Simon Parrett, Master of Arts, late Fellow of Mag- 
 dalen College, and twise Proctor of the tJmversity of Oxford, and Elizabeth, his 
 wife, daughter of Edward Love, of Aenohe, in the county of Northampton, Es- 
 quier, which Simon departed this worlde, the 24 day of Septebr. in the yere of 
 our Lorde God MCCCC84, and in the yere of his age 71. And Elizabeth de- 
 parted in childbed, the xxvii day of December, in the yere of oure Lorde God 
 MCCCCC72, and in the year of her age xlii. 
 
ST. Peter's church in the east, oxford. 
 
 Besides the historical narrative already noticed, we find that mention 
 of this Church is made in Domesday Book, whereby it appears that it 
 belonged at that time to the king. By William the Conqueror it was 
 granted to Robert D'Oyley, a Norman Baron, to whom the Castle of 
 Oxford likewise belonged ; and there is in the possession of Richard 
 Bignell, Esq., of Middeton Stoney, a ring which, tradition says, ac- 
 companied the gift of this Castle, and was the token of regal favour. 
 From D'Oyley 's heirs the Church returned by escheat to the crown, but 
 in the reign of Henry the Third it was granted to Merton College, in 
 the gift of which the living still remains. 
 
 St. Peter's in the East was formerly used as the University Church, 
 and the afternoon sermon is still preached here during the whole of Lent, 
 the preachers being appointed by the Vice Chancellor, an annual pay- 
 ment of a small sum being nevertheless made to the Parish. There is 
 also a morning sermon on the anniversary of St. Simon and St. Jude 
 preached here by a member of University College. 
 
 The Churchyard offers little worthy of observation, except indeed the 
 tomb of the celebrated antiquary, Thomas Hearne, formerly Vice Prin- 
 cipal of Edmund Hall. It is situated near the south-east angle of the 
 building, and bears the following inscription written by Hearne himself. 
 
 Here lieth the body of Thomas Hearne, M.A. who studied and preserved an- 
 tiquities. He died June 10, 1735, aged 55 years. Deut. xxxii, 7. Remember 
 the days of old, consider the years of many generations ; ask thy father, and he 
 will shew thee ; thy elders, and they will tell thee. Job. viii. 8, 9, 10. Enquire, I 
 pray thee, &c. 
 
 It was repaired by Dr. Rawlinson in 1754; but it is now fast verging 
 to decay, much to the regret of those whose similarity of taste and pur- 
 suits must lead them to venerate liis memory and name. 
 
 The parish, in the Census of 1811, contained 174 inhabited houses, 
 and 1,104 persons ; within its limits are Magdalen College, New Col- 
 lege, Queen's College, part of University College, and the Halls of 
 St. Edmund, Magdalen, and a part of St. Alban's Hall. Hart Hall, 
 long since dissolved, was also within its limits, but it is almost en- 
 tirely pulled down ; Magdalen Hall is now made an appendage of 
 the College of Magdalen, and the Students of the Hall have removed 
 to the place where Hart Hall formerly stood, where a handsome modern 
 edifice has been erected, but which does not sufliciently accord with 
 the ancient character of the contiguous buildings. It consists of two 
 wings, one forming the residence of the Principal, the other rooms for 
 the junior members of the Hall. The wings are connected by a neat 
 Stone Gateway, forming the entrance to the quadrangle. 
 
^t. JHarp jHastialen's C|)uit!), 
 
 OXFORD ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. CHARLES HENRY COX. 
 
 It appears from ancient documents that a Church, dedicated to St. 
 Mary Magdalen, was erected on the same site with the present venera- 
 ble fabric, so early as the eighth century. It was said to have been 
 built by the permission of St. Frideswide, who died about the year 739. 
 Little, or perhaps none of that ancient Structure now remains ; and it is 
 obvious, from the irregularity of the present Church, that it has been 
 erected at various periods, and experienced successive alterations. Im- 
 mediately after the Conquest, St. Mary Magdalen's Church came into 
 the possession of Robert D'Oily, who having, in 1074, founded the 
 College of St. George within the walls of Oxford Castle, gave this 
 Church to the secular Canons whom he established there. Fifty years 
 afterwards, Robert D'Oily the second, who founded Osney Abbey, 
 translated the College of St. George and its endowments, including St. 
 Mary Magdalen's Church, to his new Monastery. On the Dissolution of 
 Osney Abbey, in the reign of Henry VIII., the Vicarage of St. Mary 
 Magdalen was given to Christ Church, the Dean and Chapter of which 
 are the present patrons. 
 
 The Church is situated in the North Suburbs of the City, between the 
 Corn-market, and St. Giles's-street. It consists of four parallel aisles, 
 which are terminated on the east by a Chancel, and on the west by 
 a square embattled Tower. The northern and southern aisles were 
 heretofore chantries ; the former is ascribed to the Lady Devorgilla, 
 Foundress of I^aliol College, who built it about the year 1290, for the 
 use of the members of that society, who had not then any Chapel within 
 their walls. The southern aisle is the most striking part of the whole 
 Fabric; this is considered to have been founded originally by Huo-h, 
 Bishop of Lincoln, in the year 1194, at the time when Richard I. re- 
 turned from captivity, and was probably intended and used as a 
 Chapel to the neighbouring Palace of Beaumont, in which that king was 
 born. This Chapel being decayed, was rebuilt in the reign of Edward 
 III., 1337, and dedicated to the Virgin Mary ; the style of its Archi- 
 1 
 
ST. MARY Magdalen's church, oxford. 
 
 lecture is particularly pure, and without a profusion of ornament, is en- 
 riched by a due proportion of decorated members. Its pointed windows 
 are great ornaments to the southern front of the Church ; they are placed 
 between buttresses, adorned by canopied niches, containing mutilated 
 remains of statues : an open-work parapet adds to the eflect of this part 
 of the building, as seen in Plate 1, which, we are happy to learn, is at 
 present undergoing considerable reparation. The Tower was built in 
 the reign of Henry VIII. : it is substantial, but neat, and contains five 
 bells. 
 
 The stone Font in this Church, represented in Plate 2, is very rich in 
 its ornaments, and is probably of the date of Edward III.'s time. The 
 term font, as used by the early Fathers of the Church, implied the foun- 
 tain, or pool, wherein persons were baptized, and was afterwards em- 
 ployed to signify the vase, capable of total immersion, of which descrip- 
 tion this font seems to be. It rises from a comparatively small base, and 
 expands in eight divisions, highly enriched with very bold tracery, deeply 
 cut, forming a pointed arch, and a large trefoil, above which is a fillet 
 sculptured with foliage ; and on every one of the eight sides of the upper- 
 most division of the font, are three quatrefoils, each containing a plain 
 shield. The top is formed of wood, and is removable at pleasure, by 
 means of a small crane. 
 
 The Parish contains 370 houses, and a population of about 2,200, 
 being the largest in the city. 
 
.Ura-v/n by J E Ueale . 
 
 ST MAHY MJl: 
 
 Engraved ly w •■Ka. 
 
 oxrojiz 
 
 U.nJan.Jith.Jiau. 2.2X6.hy J.P.KeaU.U.Senitjair SP mackfiriarj SoaJ.. 
 
OXFORD; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. EDWARD HAWKINS. 
 
 This Church, now one of the principal architectural ornaments of the 
 finest street in England, if not of Europe, is an ancient foundation, and 
 was granted by King Edward II., with all appurtenances, to the Pro- 
 vost and Fellows of Oriel College, which still retains the patronage. 
 That king was the founder of Oriel College, which in reality owes 
 its erection to the suggestion and liberality of his Almoner, Adam le 
 Brome, who was buried in a Chapel of his name attached to this 
 Church. With respect to the present edifice, it appears that in the 
 reign of King Henry VII. the Church was in such a ruinous state, that 
 the University in Congregation, Feb. 1486, John Russel, Bishop of 
 Lincoln, being then Chancellor, appointed Stephen Browne to be their 
 Proctor, to intercede with the bishops and other spiritual and wealthy 
 persons for money to rebuild it, which appeal produced most liberal 
 contributions, and that consequently in the year 1498 the present 
 building was erected. It also appears from Antony a Wood, that 
 Richard Fitzjames, D. D. Bishop of Rochester, Almoner to King 
 Henry VII., and the brother of Sir John Fitzjames, Lord Chief Jus- 
 tice, contributed very liberally towards the completion of this Church, 
 in consequence of which his arms, quartering those of Draycot, were 
 sculptured in stone over the north door. His coat of arms, together 
 with those of Cardinal Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Edmund 
 Audley, Bishop of Salisbury, who, it is probable, also contributed, were 
 on the basement of the stone pulpit formerly in this Church as well as 
 upon the roof of the Old Library, now the Common Law School, on the 
 east end of the north side of the building. The Church consists of a 
 Nave, side Aisles, a Tower crowned with a Spire on the north side, 
 and a large Chancel, its entire length is about two hundred and fifty 
 feet, and its breadth fifty feet. The height of the roof is seventy feet, 
 the whole of light and elegant architecture. 
 
 Plate 1, represents a south-east view of the Exterior in the High 
 Street from a point where the enriched Spire is probably seen to the 
 1 
 
ST. MARY S CHURCH, OXFORD. 
 
 greatest advantage ; another object was obtained by adopting this view 
 in preference to one from the north, which is not the least interesting in 
 the Church, it shews the curious Porch at the west end of this front. 
 
 This Porch is a remarkable and singular specimen of the use of co- 
 lumns with twisted shafts, called by the French the Colonne Torse ; the 
 whole, it must be confessed, is out of character as applied to a building 
 constructed in the pointed style; but in the execution the skill of a great 
 master was employed, and time has so harmonized the materials that its 
 incongruitj' is scarcely perceptible. This Porch was built at the ex- 
 pense of Morgan Owen, D. D. of Jesus College, Chaplain to Arch- 
 bishop Laud, Chancellor of the University in 1637, upon a design of Ni- 
 cholas Stone, Senior, a pupil of Inigo Jones, who adopt'sd the twisted 
 columns from those used by Michael Angelo in the attar at St. Peter's 
 in Rome ; they are of the Corinthian order, and support a broken pedi- 
 ment, bearing in the centre, over the entablature, a statue of Saint Mary 
 the Virgin, and the Infant Christ, illustrative of the dedication of the 
 Church. Soon after it was completed, this statue was defaced by the 
 Parliamentary soldiers in 1642, and the circumstance of its erection was 
 actually made one of the articles of impeachment against Laud, " that 
 he did oblige the said Dr. Morgan Owen to build it, permitted him as 
 Chancellor of the University, and connived at all when 'twas finished." 
 — Wood's Athena, ii. 606. 
 
 The spire of St. Mary's, one of the most striking objects in every distant 
 view of the University, rises from a tower situated on the north side of 
 the Church, between' the Nave and the Chancel. From the basement of 
 the Tower to the vane, is one hundred and eighty feet, the exact altitude 
 of the spire alone, at Salisbury. Having mentioned such a noble speci- 
 men of this description of architectural decoration, it cannot fail to excite 
 a comparison, by no means in favour of St. Mary's; where the beautiful 
 proportions and elegant symmetry of the object, are lost in the exuberance 
 of the clustered ornaments which crowd the base of the spire, aud deprive 
 it of its proper character, simplicity of form. The Tower of the Church 
 is square and plain, and consists of two stories, the upper containing six 
 bells, and having one large pointed window or opening in each side, 
 over which, upon the north and south sides, is the face of a dial. The 
 outer angles of the Tower are supported by buttresses, which, above the 
 ornamented parapet, are crowned with turrets of very rich workmanship, 
 shewing canopied niches containing statues on the outward iace, and 
 terminating in small enriched pinnacles ; there are also openings at the 
 base of the spire, which are crowned with tabernacles, ornamented with 
 crockets and finials ; from this rich cluster the octagonal spire rises 
 with perfect plainness to the vane. 
 2 
 
ST. MARYS CHURCH, OXFORD. 
 
 Plate 2. View of the Interior, looking west. The Nave is divided from 
 the Aisles by clusters of light pillars, supporting a series of high pointed 
 arches, above which are the windows of the Clerestory. The roof is 
 lotty and although very plain, is particularly neat. The pulpit, of wood 
 which usually stands in the centre of the Nave, is a moveable object' 
 having nothing very attractive in its appearance. ' St. Mary's being the 
 University Church, sermons are preached here in turn, on every Sunday 
 morning and afternoon during Term ; those in the morning by the Heads 
 ot Houses with a few exceptions. The Vice Chancellors seat is at the 
 west end of the Middle Aisle, elevated a few steps, a little below which 
 are seats for the Proctors, and on either hand for the Heads of Houses 
 and IJoctors; below these are seats for young noblemen, with benches 
 
 h 1^ r J! T! °^ ^'''- ^' *'" ''''' ^-"^ '^l-' -i'h =^ return to 
 the North and South Aisles, are Galleries for the Bachelors of Arts and 
 
 I'nder-graduates. 
 
 Upon the 10th of February, Dies Scholastica, the Mayor, two Bailiffs 
 and sixty of the Burghers of the city, used to make an offering of a silve; 
 penny each, as an atonement for the murder of some scholars, which 
 
 ook place ,„ an affray, in the time of Edward HI. : from this ceremony 
 the Mayor, &c. were released on the 1st of February. 18^5 
 
 The monument against the second pillar, upon the south side of the 
 CHurch, as seen in the annexed engraving, is that of Dr. Walli« Savi- 
 l.an Professor of Geometry, celebrated for his controversy with Hobbes 
 m the centre is a has relief representing an allegorical Figure of Geo- 
 metry, rechning on a sphere; and above is a half-length figure of the 
 Professor himself; beneath is the following inscription • 
 
 Johannes Wallis, 
 
 Geometriffi Professor Savilianus, 
 
 et 
 
 Gustos Archivorum Oxon. 
 
 hie dormit. 
 
 Opera reliquit immortalia 
 
 ob. Oct. 28, A. D. 1709, st, 87. 
 
 Filius et Hsres ejus 
 
 Johannes Wallis, 
 
 de Saundess m Com. Oxon. 
 
 Armiger, 
 
 P. 
 
 Upon the pil ars on the south side are monuments to Theophilus Poyn- 
 ter. Bachelor of Medicine, and Stephen Toone. At the west end of the 
 South Aisle IS a very beautiful memorial by John Flaxman. R. A., in ho- 
 
 equally qualified to guide the taste of the elegant, and correct the 
 errors of the learned," according to his biographer. The composition 
 
ST. MARYS CHURCH, OXFORD. 
 
 represents a group of two figures in mournful attitudes ; Justice with 
 her balance, and a Brahmin, holding a volume of Sanscrit, both admirably 
 executed. 
 
 The east window, in the upper compartments, contains some painted 
 glass, but the rest are plain. 
 
 The font is simply of oak, lined with lead ; it is of an octagonal form, 
 with a conical top. 
 
 The organ-gallery and screen, seen in our view, are of the Corinthian 
 order, with glazed doors in the centre, ill adapted to the situation, and 
 heavy in appearance. 
 
WITNEY, OXFORDSHIRE. 
 
 RECTOR, 
 THE REV. R. BARNARD. 
 
 The Town of Witney is situated on the River Windrush, in the 
 Deanery of Witney, and in the Hundred of Bampton, at the distance 
 of eleven miles from Oxford, and of about sixty-six from London, in a 
 north-westerly direction. 
 
 Aiwin, Bishop of Winchester, about the middle of the eleventh cen- 
 tury, gave the Manor of Witney, with eight others, to his Cathedral 
 Church. The writers who relate the fiction of his deliverance from the 
 charge of adultery with Queen Emma, the mother of Edward the Con- 
 fessor, by her walking, unhurt, over nine red-hot plough-shares, affirm 
 that he made the grant in commemoration of that event. In the fol- 
 lowing century, Witney was given by Henry de Blois, Bishop of Win- 
 chester, and brother of King Stephen, to his newly-founded hospital of 
 St. Cross, at Winchester. 
 
 The Church is situated at the southern extremity of the High street. 
 It is a large and handsome structure, in the form of a cross, with a 
 square Tower in the centre, having an octangular turret at each angle, 
 and crowned by a lofty Spire, the proportions of which are rather sub- 
 stantial than elegant. The north entrance is by a descent of several 
 steps, through a round-headed doorway, over which is a vacant cano- 
 pied niche. Similar niches occur in various divisions of the north side. 
 In the spacious and handsome Chancel is the ancient Piscina, together 
 with some remains of the stone recesses used by the priest and deacons 
 during the celebration of mass. Here also is the burying-place of the 
 Freind family; and, on a grave-stone of black marble, an engraved brass 
 of a man in a gown, to the memory of Richard Ayshcombe, of Lyford, 
 who died on the 12th of June, 1606, aged 65. In a recess at the end of 
 the north transept are two recumbent effigies in stone, without inscrip- 
 tion, and much defaced by age. At the north-western angle of the 
 Church is a Chapel, which is the burying-place of the Wenman family. 
 Its wooden roof is indifferently painted in resemblance of clouds, red, 
 white, and blue, abundantly interspersed with gilt stars. The following 
 particulars of the monuments in this Chapel, as they existed in June, 
 1660, are derived from some church-notes, preserved in the Harleian 
 Library, in the British Museum, which are printed in vol. L of the Topo- 
 
WITNKY CHURCH. 
 
 grapher ; and the earliest inscription now remaining is that of Sir Francis 
 Wenman. 
 
 " In a Chapeli, at the lower end of the north ile, under an arch in the 
 wall, an ancient proportion of a woman in stone, at her feet a dog." 
 
 At the east end of this Chapel, an ornamented oval tablet, to the me- 
 mory of Mary, wife of Francis Wenman, of Caswell, Esq., and daughter 
 of Thomas Lord Wenman, of Thame Park, who died Nov. 13, 1657. 
 On a large gravestone of black marble, raised a little from the ground, 
 this inscription : 
 
 " In hope of a joyfull resurrection here lyeth the body of Sir Francis Wenman, 
 
 Kt. who married Anne, the daughter of Samuel Sandys, Kt. by whome he 
 
 left issue Samuel, Francis, and Anne, and deceased June 26, A*. Dni. 1640, 
 
 aged 40 years ;" 
 
 with several coats of arms ; among them Weriman, impaling a fesse 
 dauncetee, between three crosses fitchee, Sandys. " Over it upon the 
 wall his sword, with helmet and spurs, with banners of the arras of 
 Wenman and quarterings." 
 A brass figure of a man in a winding sheet, with this inscription : 
 
 " Pray for the soule of Wm. Wenman, the which departed out of this life the 
 XXX. day of August, in the year of our Lord mvcxxi, on whose soule Jhesu 
 have mercy:" 
 
 At each corner a scroll, with " JhQ mercy. Lady help." 
 
 At the south side of the Chapel, a raised monument of grey marble, 
 with brass figures of a man and his two wives, and their children, five 
 girls and three boys. Over the man's head a scroll, bearing " Sea Tri- 
 jtitas unus deus miserere nobis ;" round the verge the following inscrip- 
 tion : 
 
 " Of your charity pray for the soulysof Richard Wenman, Anne and Christian 
 his wifes, whiche Christian deceased the xi. day of April in the year of our 
 
 Lord God Mccccc. and the said Anne deceased the day of 
 
 in the year of our Lord God mv on whose soules, &c. 
 
 Man in what state that ever thou bee, 
 Timor Mortis shotild trouble thee." 
 
 The living consists of a Rectory and Vicarage ; the former valued, in 
 the King's books, at 47/. 9s. 4^d., the latter at 91. 12s. 6d. : they were 
 united, in the ninth year of Charles L, into one benefice, by the name of 
 the Rectory of Witney ; but all dues and fees are reserved as if they 
 were still separate. The Bishop of Winchester is the patron. 
 
 Dr. Thomas Jackson, a celebrated Arminian divine, and the ornament 
 of the University of Oxford in his time, was appointed Vicar of Witney 
 in 1638, through the interest of Archbishop Laud ; being at the same 
 time made Prebendary of Winchester and Dean of Peterborough, and 
 having before been elected President of Corpus Christi College. " He 
 was a person," says Anthony a Wood, in his Athenae Oxonienses, " fur- 
 nished with all learned languages, arts, and sciences, especially meta- 
 physics, which he looked upon as a necessary hand-maid to divinity." 
 
SHREWSBURY, SHROPSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. HENRY BURTON, M.A. 
 
 A Monastery, dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul, was founded . 
 here in the year 1083 by Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury, 
 for Benedictine Monks from Seez in Normandy. The founder endowed 
 it largely, and at length became a monk of his own Abbey, where he 
 died in 1094, and was here buried ; as was also his son, Hugh, slain in 
 the Isle of Anglesey. Robert Pennant, the fourth abbot of this house, 
 obtained the reliques of St. Wenefrede, and enshrined them, which 
 added much to the emolument of the Abbey. Its abbots had, at a very 
 early period, the privilege of wearing the mitre, and were summoned to 
 Parliament; at the dissolution its revenues were valued by Speed at 
 656Z. 4s. 3d. The site of the Abbey, with all its buildings, originally 
 comprised about ten acres, as we learn from the splendid History of 
 Shrewsbury, lately published by the Rev. Hugh Owen and the Rev. 
 J. B. Blakeway, from which we derive nearly the whole of this account. 
 
 Of this venerable edifice, the chief remnant is the Nave of the Church, 
 which in a great measure has escaped the devastation that befel almost 
 every other part of the conventual buildings. The Nave, like those of 
 many other Abbey Churches, was anciently parochial, and had a low 
 screen for the Altar, probably between the great piers, on a line with 
 the present pulpit ; the space to the west being appropriated to the 
 parishioners. The Abbey Church was originally cruciform, and had its 
 Transepts, Choir, and Lady Chapel, together with various Chantries, 
 each containing its altar. 
 
 Of these distinct parts of the Abbey Church, the whole eastern 
 limb, with the transept and centre steeple, have been swept away, and 
 thus has it lost considerably more than two-thirds of its original dimen- 
 sions. The length of the Nave, including the West Tower, is now one 
 hundred and twenty-three feet. 
 
 The present Parochial Church of the Holy Cross, embraces within its 
 walls the Nave, side aisles. Porch, and \1'estern Tower of the Abbey 
 Church. It is principally constructed with a deep-red sandstone of 
 1 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH, SHREWSBURY, SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 good quality. The fabric, as it now exists, bears deep marks of havoc 
 and mutilation, yet displays in some of its parts curious and interesting 
 featiires. The effect of the external elevation is cruelly injured by the 
 loss of the eastern portion of the Clerestoiy, which having been neglected 
 by the parishioners, the roof, from decay, fell in, long after tiie dissolu- 
 tion of the Abbey, and the shattered walls of the Clerestory were swept 
 away to save trouble and expense. Thus, as the western portion re- 
 tains its original height, a great disproportion arises between the east 
 and western parts of the fabric. 
 
 PLATE I.— VIEW OF THE WESTERN TOWER, &:c. 
 The West Front of the Abbey Church is composed of the Tower, 
 .with the western ends of the side aisles; these had originally each a 
 Norman window, that on the North side still remains with a small Go- 
 thic light inserted within it : the window of the corresponding aisle has 
 a pointed arch evidently cut out of the old Norman masonry, and now 
 entirely void of mullions and tracery. The Tower is nearly perfect ; and 
 though neither loftj' nor much adorned, is a noble, and would be a well- 
 proportioned structure, were it not that the want of pinnacles on the 
 summit gives it a heavy effect, not usual in those of that age. It rests 
 on an early Norman basement, evidently once a part of the ancient 
 Nave, surmounted by a superstructure of the fourteenth century. A 
 round-headed arch, deeply recessed, and richly laced with mouldings, 
 having a pointed doorway, similarly adorned, inserted within it, forms 
 the west entrance, which has an ascent of three shallow steps. The 
 exterior rib of the outward round arch springs, on each side, from a 
 Norman shaft, with an indented capital : the pointed arch was doubtless 
 en<^rafted within the ancient semicircidar doorway, when the Tower was 
 erected, in order to preserve uniformity. This is an elegant portal, and 
 it is impossible not to admire the skill and ingenuity with which the ar- 
 chitect has combined the pointed with the Norman round arch. 
 
 Immediately above the AVest Door rises a magnificent and beautiful 
 window, its sides and arch enriched with delicate mouldings, in the deep 
 hollow soffits of which, is a series of small panels, having foliated arched 
 heads. The outward mouldings of the arch rise high above it, forming 
 a spring canopy enriched with crockets, and ending in a flower, from 
 which again springs very elegantlj^ a niche or tabernacle. 
 
 The body of this fine West Window, to the spring of the arch, con- 
 tains two stories, divided horizontally by a transom, and perpendicularly 
 by six upright midlions, into seven compartments for the glass. The 
 two central mullions, as they approach the spring of the arch, bisect the 
 bead into smaller arches on each side, and these are further subdivided 
 into others, which are uncommonly acute ; the interstices of all filled 
 with several tiers of small opened panelled tracery, mingled with tre- 
 
Tiraym byJ.Eiicai.e. 
 
 TUT. A3EE"y C HUS.C2 . 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH, SHREWSBURY, SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 foiled and quatrefoiled foliage, in beautiful and variegated profusion. 
 For a window of such large dimensions, the arch is remarkably sharp 
 and lofty ; the tracery, too, is uncommon, and of an intricate richness 
 seldom met with, partaking of the perpendicular straight-lined, and hori- 
 zontal curved characters. The form of this tracery, and the armorial 
 bearings, quite fix it to the latter part of the fourteenth century, when 
 the foliated and more elaborate fashion, displaying infinite variety and 
 beauty, was going out, and the upright, or small-arched, style was be- 
 ginning to take place. For justness of proportion, and elegance of de- 
 sign, we have very few great west or eastern windows equal to this; the 
 easy and graceful ascent from the base to the summit, and the light, 
 though rich combination of the tracery, are remarkably pleasing. The 
 lower story of the window was never pierced to admit glazing, but con- 
 sists of blank panels, which in shape and size exactly resemble the range 
 above them ; this was undoubtedly done to preserve a due proportion, 
 which otherwise would have been too short for the breadth. The square 
 and shallow piers of the old basement are continued upon the front, attach- 
 ed to the angles of the Tower in the new masonry, as far as to the summit 
 of the middle or window story, where they end in pointed canopies. 
 On the face of each of these, midway, is a niche, both of which have 
 evidently been elegant, but are now almost mouldered away ; they ori- 
 ginally contained the statues of St. Peter and St. Paul, the tutelary 
 saints of the Abbey. 
 
 Handsome shelving buttresses flank the north and south-west angles 
 of the Tower, their sets-ofF worked into canopied pediments ; these are 
 finely proportioned, and give a remarkably pleasing effect, by the gra- 
 dual diminution in its breadth as the Tower rises to the summit. On 
 the north-eastern angle are vestiges of a flying buttress. The middle 
 story of the Tower has two handsome pointed windows in its north and 
 south sides; those in the former being now blocked up, and having been 
 barbarously despoiled of their mullions, the blank arches are painted to 
 represent tracery. The upper or bell-chamber story, displays a double 
 window on every side ; they are small but handsome. Between those 
 on the west front, is an armed knight standing on a corbel, which rests 
 on the finial of the great window below. He occupies a tabernacle, 
 which has a high straight-sided canopy, flanked with a small pinnacle 
 at each impost. It has been usual to denominate this figure the effigy 
 of Roger Montgomery, the founder ; but in the History of Shrewsbury, 
 from whence we have derived this account, it is most satisfactorily as- 
 signed to King Edward III. : the armour of the figure exactly accords 
 with that of the middle and latter part of the fourteenth century. The 
 helmet is conical, the throat and breast clad in mail, while the rest of 
 the figure is enveloped in plated steel. In one hand he bears a frag- 
 ment of what appears to have been a sceptre, the other rests on the hilt 
 3 
 
THE ABBEY CHliROH-, SllRCWSBCRY, SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 of his sword, now mutilated ; and round the helmet are the evident re- 
 mains of a crown. The painted glass of the great window, beneath his 
 feet, strongly confirms the opinion of Messrs. Owen and Blakeway, dis- 
 playing as it does a series of armorial bearings of the royal family, and 
 of the chief nobility of Edward the Third's time, and proving that the 
 Tower was in a great part erected, if not finished, during that reign. 
 
 The battlements, and very likely the pinnacles, which originally 
 crowned this fine old Tower, were suffered either to go to gradual decay 
 after the dissolution, or were ruined in the civil war, and have been 
 meanly repaired with brick-work. 
 
 The large bell, called St. Wenefrede's, famed for its fine sound, was 
 preserved long after the dissolution, as the chief ornament of the Abbey 
 Tower, It was broken in ringing for the safe return of Corbet Kynaston, 
 Esq., from France, in 1730. Its weight was 3-5 cwt. : round the upper 
 part of this bell, near the crown, was inscribed : 
 
 ^ancta DSpncfriba 6co no^ comenDare memento, 
 iUt pictate ^ua no.si jScrbet ab ijoiStc cruento. 
 
 About the middle was the following Leonine verse, 
 
 protege, pura, pia, quoiS tonboco fairgo maria. 
 
 There is now a deep-toned peal of eight bells in the Tower. On the 
 north side of the Church is a lofty and handsome Porch. Its portal is 
 formed by a deeply recessed square opening, the mouldings of which 
 fall over the angles far down the sides, ending in busts, now mutilated. 
 Within this is a graceful pointed arch, rising from a round column oft 
 either side. Above are two chamber stories, each lighted by a small 
 window; the heads nearly flat, and divided by single muUions; on the 
 right and left is a niche, extending the whole height of the upper stories. 
 The bold embattled gable, unnecessarily destroyed, has been replaced 
 by an ill-designed square parapet. 
 
 The eastern termination of the Church is formed by a wall, built be- 
 tween the two great western piers of the central Tower of the ancient 
 Church, in which is inserted a pointed window, with muUions selected 
 from the ruins, and placed in it with more care than has been bestowed 
 CD the other early reparations. 
 
 Although barbarously defaced, and curtailed of its fair proportions, 
 the interior of the Church has still much of that solemn dignity which 
 irresistibly fills the mind with religious awe, to the excitement of which, 
 ancient Cathedral and Monastic Churches contribute in a degree so far 
 beyond all other ecclesiastical structures, that the art of man has ever 
 yet produced. 
 
Diawnliy JJlSeale . 
 
 Z tcJied iy J. "Sn^e . 
 
 S I! 
 
 - S* JtlackfrioKS Jl^j.i 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH, SHREWSBURY, SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 PLATE II.— VIEW OF THE EAST END, INTERIOR. 
 
 The ancient Nave displays five arches on each side ; three on the 
 eastern portion are semicircular, and rest on short, thick, round piers, 
 having; shallow bases and filleted capitals in the plainest and earliest 
 Anglo-Norman style. The two half columns, which adjoin the great 
 piers of the central Tower, are, like them, broken into a cluster of mas- 
 sive round shafts with indented capitals : above these are the remains 
 of the triforium. The accommodation for the parochial duties in the 
 Abbey Church are highly respectable. The Altar stands on a raised 
 area, beneath the eastern wall, on which is a wooden screen of the last 
 century, with figures of Moses and Aaron on each side the Decalogue, 
 wretchedly painted. 
 
 Near the western end of the north aisle is the Font, which is of great 
 antiquity, and once belonged to the ancient Church of High Ercal. The 
 pedestal stands upon an elevated area, paved with very curious ancient 
 glazed tiles, some of which were found on the spot once occupied by the 
 Refectory of the Abbey : amongst the figures are a Knight on horseback, 
 arms of the Talbots, Fitz- Alans, Mortimers, &c. 
 
 The Tower at the west end is nearly open to the Nave, divided from 
 it by a lofty and beautiful pointed arch, reaching to the ceiling, and 
 springing from high clustered imposts; the whole breadth and nearly 
 height of the western front of the Tower is occupied by the great window; 
 the glazing of this window was restored in 1814 to its original beauty, 
 chiefly at the expense, and entirely under the superintendence of the 
 Rev. William Gorsuch Rowland, Curate of the Parish; the series of 
 armorial bearings was copied from a sketch made by Sandford in 1658. 
 
 Besides the above, other windows of the Church have been embellished 
 with painted glass by the indefatigable exertions of the same benefactor. 
 With the exception of a few old shields of arms, the whole was executed 
 by Sir John Betton, of Shrewsbury, and his partner, Mr. David Evans. 
 
 PLATE III.— ANCIENT JIONUJIENTS. 
 
 Of the Monuments in this Church, the oldest is that of Roger de 
 Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury; but on the fall of St. Chad's, and (he 
 demolition of St. Alkmund's Church, several ancient monuments, which, 
 from their size, the confined system of modern Church-buildings could 
 not, or from their antiquity, the fastidiousness of modern Church-builders 
 would not, admit within the new edifices, found an asylum within the 
 ample side aisles of the Abbey Church. 
 
 The oldest of these, brought from St. Chad's, is a cumbent figure, repre- 
 senting a person robed to the feet, with a coif drawn close over his head, 
 and tied under his chin, which possibly may be the efiigy of one of the 
 judges of assize, who died at Shrewsbury while upon the circuit. 
 5 
 
THE ABBEY CHURCH, SHEEWSBURY, SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 A fine monument, represented in our plate, was removed from Welling- 
 ton Church in 1788, and stood more than thirty years in the churchyard 
 of that parish. It is composed of alabaster, and contains the figures of 
 a man and his wife, with this inscription : 
 
 K^ic jacct in tumba rorpuiS ©ill'mi iJibarlton armigcri, ft 
 ^nnc ilror eju^, que quiDem ginna nbiit ijii Die JBcnjii.a '%mn 
 gnno ©'ni iBillc'mo ccccwiiii et bictujS iDifl'm.^ obiit p'mn 
 Die Mcn^i^ gjulii ainno ©'ni .fiill'imo tccccyliiii. quorum 
 animafa' p'picietuc ©eu.si. 
 
 The sides of this monument consist of a series of five canopied niches, 
 within the first, at the head of the Tomb on the north side, is an angel 
 holding a shield, bearing quarterly 1st and 4th, Or, a lion rampant gules, 
 debruised by a bend argent, Charlton. 2ud and 3rd, Gnles, ten bezants, 
 Zouch. Within the second niche is a friar or pilgrim. In the centre 
 compartment are two angels, bearing a shield. Quarterly, 1st and 4th, 
 Charlton. 2nd. Argent, un a cheif or, a raven proper. Horde. 3rd, 
 Zouch. The fourth niche contains another friar, and towards the foot 
 of the Monument is an angel bearing the arms of Horde single. 
 
 The Monument, of which the head only is seen on the left of our 
 plate, formerly stood in the north aisle of St. Alkmund's, and was trans- 
 ferred to the Abbey, and repaired at the expense of Sir Thos. T. Jones, 
 Bart., of Stanley Hall. It is a handsome altar-tomb, bearing two 
 cumbent figures, an Alderman in his Civic robe, and a Lady in a scarlet 
 gown, and the following inscription at the head : 
 
 Gulielmus Jones, Aldermanus Villas Salopian, et ^lianora, uxor ejus, jacent sub 
 hoc monumento. 
 
 Upon the south side, 
 
 Gulielmus Jones, obiit 15 Julii, Anno D'ni. 1612. 
 
 On the north side, 
 
 iEleanora Jones, obiit 25 Feb. 1623. 
 
 Arms, 1st and 4th. Argent, a lion rampant vert, vvlncd on the shoulder 
 gules, Jones. 2nd and 3rd. Or, a bend gules, Cottel. Impaling Quar- 
 terly of six. I. Sable, three Nags' Heads erased argent, Owea. 2. Vert, 
 three eagles displayed in Jess, or, Owen Gwynedd. 3. Argent, a lion ram- 
 pant sable, Madoc ap Meredith. 4. Or, a lion rampant vert, Santhe Hardd. 
 5. Argent, a boars head covped proper. 6. As 1. 
 
 Over the head of this tomb in our plate, is seen an elegant and finely 
 executed mural monument, bearing an inscription commencing thus: 
 M. S. Hcicjuxtajacet Thomas Rock, Arm. Vita functus Jan. 3% Anno 
 Max. 62. Dom. 1078, &c., &c. 
 

%ijt C|)urtfj ot ^t Jofjn tf)e Baptist, 
 
 HALES OWEN, SHROPSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. G. BIGGS. 
 
 The Parish of Hales Owen, which is extensive, forms a portion of the 
 Hundred of North Bradford, although it is situated about thirteen miles 
 from the borders of the County of Salop, and is entirely surrounded 
 by StaflFordshire and Worcestershire. The Manor and Advowson were 
 given by King John to Peter de Rupibus, Bishop of Winchester, for 
 a Monastery, which was founded by the Bishop, and the Manor settled 
 upon it. King Henry III. confirmed the whole. This Abbey was 
 situated not far from hence, the remains shew it to have been a magni- 
 ficent structure. The Parish is now a Vicarage in the patronage of Lord 
 Lyttleton ; its Church, a truly venerable and interesting structure, is 
 very spacious, and consists of a Nave, or Body, with its lateral aisles, 
 a central Tower, containing eight bells, surmounted by a spire, and a 
 large Chancel. The entrance at the west end of the Church, as well as 
 that upon the south side, is by an arch in the Anglo-Norman style; 
 over it, on the west front, is a long narrow lancet-headed window, ap- 
 parently of the lime of Henry II. 
 
 A great portion of the building is evidently of very early structure : 
 the columns of the simplest form, supporting arches without mouldings, 
 a proof of antiquity ; some parts are of comparatively modern date, but 
 the windows having pointed arches in their heads, are in a great measure 
 deprived of their muUions, and a very few fragments of the painted 
 glass with which they were originally adorned have been suffered to re- 
 main. The arms of Lyttleton appear in an east window, viz. Argent, a 
 chevron, between three escallops, sable. Many of that family are here in- 
 terred. Some ornaments also remain in one of the north windows. 
 
 The curious Font we have selected for illustration, is undoubtedly of 
 very considerable antiquity, being of sutficient magnitude for immersion, 
 the most ancient form of baptism, which prevailed until the period of the 
 Reformation. 
 
 This very ancient Font is elevated on a broad basement, upon which, 
 in the centre, is a circular pedestal, and four short thick columns, sup- 
 porting the Bason, or Font, itself, which is octagonal, that is, having 
 four larger and four smaller faces on its sides ; the latter have been or- 
 namented with whole-length figures boldly sculptured, which, as well as 
 the principal, or larger sides of the font, are much mutilated, so as to 
 render it extremely ditiicult for the artist to give the detail in his repre- 
 sentation, owing to the ravages of time, and the destruction caused by 
 wantonness. 
 1 
 
HALES OWEN CHURCH, SHROPSHIRE. 
 
 The columns which support the Font have capitals of similar form to 
 those of the pillars of the Body of the Church at the west end, and upon 
 the whole its positive antiquity cannot fail to render it an object of great 
 curiosity, as having been formed to assist in one of the most important 
 rites of the church in the earliest ages of Christianity in this kingdom, 
 independent of which it must excite attention as a most interesting spe- 
 cimen of Anglo-Norman sculpture, a remote connexion being found to 
 exist between the rude ornaments of that era, and the refined productions 
 of the classical ages of Rome and Greece. 
 
 In the Chancel of this Church, within the rails before the Altar, is a 
 mural monument to the memory of a pleasing poet and essayist, much 
 admired in his day, which bears the following epitaph : 
 
 William Shenstone, Esq., 
 Obiit 11 Feb, 1763, set. 48. 
 
 Whoe'er thou art, with reverence tread. 
 These sacred mansions of the dead ; 
 Not that the monumental bust, 
 Or sumptuous tomb, here guards the dust 
 Of rich or great : let wealth, rank, birth. 
 Sleep undistinguish'd in the earth ; 
 This simple urn records a name, 
 WTiich shines with more exalted fame. 
 
 Reader, if genius, taste refined, 
 A native elegance of mind. 
 If virtue, science, manly sense. 
 If wit, that never gave offence. 
 The clearest head, the tenderest heart. 
 In thy esteem, e'er claimed a part — 
 Ah ! smite thy breast, and drop a tear. 
 For know thy Shenstone^s dust lies here, 
 R. G. S. and J. Hodgetts. 
 A. 0. P. 
 
 Shenstone was interred in the Churchyard, where a slab covers his 
 remains, from whence is a very fine view of the Leasowes, a place cre- 
 ated by his fancy, and raised to celebrity by his genius and taste, where 
 he long resided, but which has been much neglected since his death. 
 
 In the Chancel is also a massive marble monument, erected by Lady 
 Jane Halliday to the memory of her deceased husband. Major Halliday, 
 of the Leasowes ; and in the Churchyard is an epitaph, written by Shen- 
 stone, upon Miss Anne Powell, of this town, a lovely young lady, who 
 was killed by a fall from her horse. 
 
 The Parish contains, besides the Church, Chapels of Ease at Cradley 
 and at Oldbury St. Nicholas. The Town has also a free Grammar 
 School, endowed with lands to the amount of 200/. ; the mastership is in 
 the gift of twenty feoffees, and to be held by a graduate of one of the 
 universities. 
 
%f}t Cijutcj) oi g)t. ^tttx anti ^t. ^aul, 
 
 LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 THE REVEREND WILLIAM OKES, M.A. 
 
 1 HE town of Lavenham, or Laneham, as it is sometimes called, is si- 
 tu&.ted in Babergh Hundred, seven miles from Sudbury, on the banks 
 of the Breton, a river which falls into the Stour, a boundary of the Coun- 
 ties of Suffolk and Essex. It is nearly surroundpd by hills, except on 
 the south; and on an eminence, at the west end of the town, stands the 
 Church, generally considered the handsomest in the county ; it is a Rec- 
 tory in the Deanery of Sudbury, and Diocese of Norwich : the Living is 
 now in the patronage of Caius College, Cambridge. The Rev. James 
 Buck, the late much esteemed Rector, died 20th January, 1825, when 
 the Rev. William Okes of Caius College, was appointed to the Living. 
 The Rev. Frederick Croker is the Curate. 
 
 The architecture of this beautiful fabric is not entirely of one period, 
 the Chancel being much older than the other more ornamented parts of 
 the building, and is probably as early as Edward III. The magnifi- 
 cent Tower and Body of the Church were erected iu the reign of Henry 
 VII., the most fertile sera for the pious appropriation of the wealth of 
 the country towards repairing and rebuilding ecclesiastical structures. 
 This Church, like many others of the same period, is adorned upon the 
 surface of the exterior with the armorial cognizances of the Founders, the 
 Veres, Earls of Oxford, and Lords of the Manor from the Conquest; the 
 principal part of the building was, however, erected by the munificence 
 of the family of Spring, opulent Clothiers,- who resided here for more 
 than a century ; and by means of a profitable trade, rose in prosperity 
 sufficient to enable them to intermarry with the high born family of Vere, 
 and became the ancestors of Sir William Spring, Baronet, of Pakenham 
 Hall, in this County. The arms of Spring is profusely carved upon 
 many parts of the edifice, and the mullet, or spur rowel, an heraldic 
 badge of the Vere family, is equally conspicuous in the numerous orna- 
 mental decorations. 
 1 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 PL.\TE I.— GENERAL MEW OP THE CIR'RCH FROM THE SOUTH-E-^ST. 
 
 The Church consists of a very stately Tower at the west end, a Nave 
 peculiarly light and elegant, together with its north and south aisles, 
 and a Chancel ; on each side of the latter is a spacious and beautiful 
 Chapel. Beyond the ancient Chancel is a Vestry, built by Thomas 
 Spring, the father of Thomas Spring, who erected the Tower. The total 
 length of the building is one hundred and fifty-six feet six inches, princi- 
 pally constructed of free-stone beautifully wrought. 
 
 The Nave of the Church rises above the aisles, sufficient to admit of a 
 clerestory, containing a range of twelve Windows, of rich workmanship 
 and elegant form, three lights in each, the upper part being subdivided by 
 muUions into six. The Windows of the north and south aisles are of 
 much larger dimensions, being divided in the middle by a transom ; 
 each containing eight principal lights or bays, and pierced with quatre- 
 foilsiu the upper part, under the point of the arch, which is of the flat kind, 
 in general use during the age of Henry VIT. ; these were undoubtedly 
 filled with stained glass, veiy little of which now remains. Between all 
 the lower windows are ornamental buttresses. Both the nave and aisles 
 are surmounted by a fascia, or string course, consisting of a deep ca- 
 vetto, charged with boldly sculptured heads of animals, convolved 
 leaves of flowers, &c. ; above which is a most beautiful and elaborate 
 open-worked parapet, entirely concealing the lead-work of the roof. 
 Each crest or croupe of the battlement is pierced, and displays within 
 an open pointed arch, a sculptured flower, or strawberry leaf, while the 
 curiously-formed quatrefoil panels, beneath each loop or embrasure, 
 are charged with shields and mullets alternately. On the south side 
 of the Church, near the west end, is the elegant Porch, and at the 
 south-east corner of the Nave is a large staircase Turret of a polygonal 
 form, crowned with a lofty pinnacle, the numerous angles of which are 
 profusely covered with crockets. 
 
 On each side of the Chancel is a very elegant Chapel, containing three 
 large and handsome windows on the side, also an east window, having 
 the west end of each connected with tlie aisles by an open arch. The 
 Chapel, on the north side, bears the following inscription upon the ex- 
 terior under the battlements, ^imoni.ti 2?rancl]j ct 'jrlijabctac ujrori^ 
 ijii.^ qui igtam CapEllam fieri fcccrunt. 
 
 The Chapel, on the south side of the Church, seen in our View^ 
 was erected by Thomas Spring, called the Rich Clothier of Lanehani, 
 and bears an inscription in the same characters. (Orate prO anilll'ia 
 
 CljnmsE Spring ct illicit uiori.^ cju.s, qui i.stam CapcIIam fieri fc=^ 
 ctrunt anno ©otn. Jliillimo. teat. Wt^i^nno qumto. 
 
 2 
 
* 7 
 
 # 
 
*■ 
 
 rawn tv J, Ulerde . 
 
 IzAVEKHAM CHTURC:-- 
 
 Tax TO"Wra*TOB2B 
 
 - S'-rj^ Sc XJ^Ka^juUh-^iASf Farr. ■ 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 Between the windows of the Chapels are graduated buttresses, orna- 
 mented with niches and canopies ; they rise to the summit of the battle- 
 ments, and were originally crowned with pinnacles, now demolished : 
 there is aa entrance to each Chapel beneath the centre window. The 
 Chancel extends beyond these Chapels, the East Window of which 
 is curious in the disposition of its mullious. Farther eastward, behind 
 the Altar, is the Vestry. 
 
 PLATE II.— VIEW OF THE TOWER AND PORCH ON THE SOUTH SIDE. 
 
 The Tower is very large and lofty, imposing in its appearance, and 
 much admired for the simplicity and chastity of its design, as well as 
 for its excellent workmanship. It is constructed with boulder, or stones 
 in a rough state, quoiued and ornamented with wrought stone, having 
 on the west front an arch of entrance, and over it a fine window. 
 
 The whole is of most excellent masonry, and elegant in its propor- 
 tions. The Tower is forty-two feet in diameter, and one hundred and 
 forty-one feet high, and there can be no doubt but that its height was 
 originally increased by pinnacles at the angles. This commanding alti- 
 tude creates'an interest in the building, when viewed from a distance, an 
 effect no doubt intended by the architect. It was raised about the same 
 period as the much better known Tower of Magdalen College, at Ox- 
 ford, founded in 1492, and completed in 1498; but partakes more of 
 massive grandeur than Magdalen Tower. The lofty structure is divided 
 into four stories of unequal height, the uppermost, containing six bells, is 
 adorned on each side by a large and handsome window. At the angles 
 of the Tower are square turrets, buttressed in the centre of each out- 
 ward face ; that on the north-east contains a winding staircase leading 
 to the top. The turrets and buttresses are panelled with small pointed 
 arches, the mouldings of which are still as sharp and perfect as the day 
 they were sculptured ; the pinnacles are gone from the summit, but a 
 most beautiful and curiously worked parapet still remains to attest that 
 much ornament was bestowed upon the parts now destroyed ; above 
 the upper fascia, at the base of the pinnacles, are shields bearing the 
 arms of the founder, in all twenty-four. Thomas Spring, the rich clothier, 
 who died in 1510, was at the expense of its erection. 
 
 The Porch, on the south side, is one of those elaborate specimens of 
 architectural ornament not uncommon to the aera of Henry VII., the 
 spandrils of the arch of entrance are each charged with a boar, the cogni- 
 zance of the Veres ; from the Latin Verres, adopted as a quaint play upon 
 the name; immediately over the Arch is a richly sculptured canopied 
 niche, now deprived of its statue ; three compartments on each side this 
 niche are filled with escocheons, each bearing quartered coats of the 
 arms of the family; these are surmounted by a curiously enriched parapet. 
 3 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 This Porch is supposed to have been erected by the munificence of 
 John Vera, the fourteenth Earl of Oxford of that family. 
 
 PLATE III.— VIEW OF THE INTERIOR, LOOKING ACROSS THE CHOIR. 
 
 The entire length of the body of the Church is ninety-four feet, six inches, 
 and its width, including the aisles, is sixty-eight feet. The light and 
 elegant Nave is separated from the north and south aisles by six pointed 
 arches, about twelve feet wide, and contains a double range of pews on 
 each side, allowing ample space for an approach. There are no galleries 
 to disfigure the beautiful symmetry of the building. 
 
 The fine west Window was originally open to the body of theChurch 
 by a pointed arch, nearly as high as the ceiling, on the east side of the 
 tower; this was filled in by a Doric screen during the late reign. The 
 Font, placed against the first pillar, on the north side of the Nave, is of 
 an octagonal form, the cover is apparently of the age of Henry VII. open- 
 ing with doors in front like a closet. A small organ has been placed on 
 the south side of the Choir, tasteless in its design, and unconnected with 
 any part of the building. There are entrances to the Church both in the 
 north and south aisles. On the west side of the north door is a small 
 muial monument inlaid with brass, representing a shield of arms, bear- 
 ing a cross, with figures of a man and woman ; from the mouth of the 
 man proceeds a label, inscribed with these words : 
 
 3fn manuji tua^ 55Dmine commcnDo ^picitum mcum. 
 
 Underneath the figures are these lines : — 
 
 Contynnalle prayse their lynnes in brass, 
 
 Of AUayue Dister here ; 
 A clothier virtuous while he was 
 
 In Lavenham many a yeare. 
 For as in lyfe he loved best 
 
 The Poore to clothe and feede, 
 So with the riche and all the rette 
 
 He neighbourlie agreed ; 
 And did appoint before he died 
 
 A special yearly rent, 
 Which should be every Whitsontide 
 
 Amongst the poorest spent. 
 
 KT OBIIT ANNO DOMINI 1534. 
 
 No donation is now made to the poor, in consequence of this benefac- 
 tion, and all trace of its source is lost in obscurity. Above the North 
 Door is a small mural monument of black and white marble, 
 
 'lo the memory of Sarah, the wife of John Syer, Gent., of this parish, who died 
 JMay 9, 1770, a;t. 50. 
 
 4 . 
 
^Y ^ ri ]di». t',-'' ■'■ ■ ' ^ C iil V 
 
 VIEW LOOKIHG ACROSS THE CHOTH. 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 On the wall, farther eastward, are the following lines, probably paiuted 
 soon after the Restoration, and now nearly obliterated. 
 
 Thou, Lord, who from the Spanish spoate, 
 
 And from the Powder blast. 
 And from the former sicknesse stroake. 
 
 And from this newly part. 
 Hast saved us, and our, and thine, 
 
 So many as survive. 
 Oh, do not of thy grace divine, 
 
 Our feeble souls deprive. 
 Lord, bless the Parliamentall Courte, 
 
 Upper and lower House, 
 And, when to Counsell they resorte. 
 
 In them remember us. 
 From King that sits upon the throne. 
 
 To begars in the streete. 
 Let all their by'-past sins bemoan, 
 
 Before thy mercy seate. 
 That we and our posterity 
 
 Safe hid under thy wing. 
 May ever of thy verity. 
 
 And saving mercy sing. 
 
 The Chancel, or Sanctuary, in which the Altar is placed, is divided 
 from the nave by a fine open screen, under which are some ancient 
 stalls. The arms of King George II., an emblem of royal supremacy, 
 is placed over the screen. The Altar-piece is Doric, very plain, andmade 
 of oak. On the north side of the Altar is a very noble monument com- 
 posed of marble and alabaster; to the memory of the Rev. Henry Copin- 
 ger, with sculptured figures of the Priest, his wife, and their twelve 
 children ; above them, are represented two angels bearing scrolls, on one 
 of which is written, Dilccli, accipite coronam vitte ; on the other, Mortui, 
 venite ad judicium. Upon the cornice, over one angel, is inscribed, 
 Novissimus lectus sepulchrum ; over the other, Viventes sequentur mortuos. 
 Upon the top of this monument are two escutcheons, one baron and 
 femme, the other with many quarterings ; and, upon a tablet, on the left 
 side, is this inscription : 
 
 SACRUM MEMORI.B 
 
 Henrici Coppingeri antiquissima Coppingeroru' 
 Familia, in agro hoc Suftbleiensi, oriundi, hujus 
 Ecclesiae per quadraginta et quinque annos Pastoris 
 Paciiici, Fidelissimi, et Vigilantissimi, 
 Monumentura hoc, amoris et pietatis ergo, 
 • • Delectissima uxor Anna, Marito optime 
 
 Mercnti, heu invita superstes, moerens posuit. 
 Amans Maritus, prole foecundus pater, 
 Sancti pins Pastor gregis, 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 Qui sensa dextre codicis docuit sacri, 
 
 Nam voce quam vita majus 
 Qui larga abunde pavit indigos mauu 
 
 Securus aanons domi. 
 Hie plenus aunis, plenior Deo jacet 
 
 Secum polo gregem trahens 
 Mutus jacet ; sed lingua quse vivo decus 
 Vitam paravit mortuo. 
 
 Upon a tablet, on the right side of the monument, is this inscription : 
 
 This monument was erected at the sole 
 Costs of Miss Anne Copinger, in memory of her deare 
 Husband, the Rev. Learned and Godly Divine 
 Mr. Henry Copinger, 
 Fourth Sonne of Henry Copinger, of Buxhall, in this county, Esq. 
 By Agues, his wife, daughter to Sir Thomas Jermine, 
 Of Rushbrooke Hall, Knight; 
 The painful and vigilant Rector of this Church, 
 By the space. of forty-five years; 
 Prebendary of the Metropolitan Church of St. Peter's, in Yorke ; 
 , Lord of the Towne, 
 And Patron of the Church of Buxhall aforesaide, who marryed Ann, daughter 
 to Henry Fisher of Linne, in Norfolk, Gent., and by her had eight sonnes and 
 four daughters, and, after he had lived godly seventy-two yeares, dyed peace- 
 ably the 21st of Decern. Anno 1622. 
 
 This monument of Dr. Henry Copinger was new beautified Anno Domini 1712, 
 by Mrs. Judith Brinkley, daughter of Thomas Burly, Gent., and Margaret, his 
 wife, third daughter and co-heir of Ambrose Copinger, D. D., by Judith, his wife, 
 only daughter of Roger Keddington, Gent., which Ambrose was second son of 
 the said Henry, and also Rector of this parish, and of Buxhall, where he was 
 buried. 
 
 JUSTORUM MEMORIA BENEDICETUR. 
 
 On a black marble slab, is inscribed : — 
 
 Under this stone are deposited the remains of the Rev. John Squire, M. A., 
 thirty-three years Rector of this parish. He departed this life upon the 24th of 
 October, 1763, aged sixty-three years, and also of Ann Squire, his widow, who 
 died upon the 27th of February, 1779, aged sixty-seven years : and near this sjfot, 
 are interred five of their children. 
 
 In the middle of the Chancel, on a flat stone, inlaid with brass, before 
 the Altar, is the figure of an infant, and the following inscription : 
 Immatura Morte, nisi quod a Deo Opt. Max. ita decretum, ex misera hac vita 
 ereptus, die 9 Julii, diebus e nativitate decern, a baptismo quatuor, Clopton 
 D'Ewes Armiger, filius et hicres apparens Simonis D'Ewes equitis Aurati, et do- 
 minae AnnaB conjugis su» filia; unica; et haeredis Gulielmi Clopton militis ; 
 beatam cujus animam, fide mediis sibi ipsi optime cognitis, imbutam, aaternus, 
 ut confidetur, misericordiarum pater inter beatara sanctorum chorum in coelos 
 elocavit. 
 
 Sir Symonds D'Ewes was then Lord of the Manor of Lavenham, it 
 having been alienated to that family, by Edward, Earl of Oxford, in 
 6 
 
Iiiavm toy J- P-S sale 
 
 .n^iavtajjy J.l-e^e^'s; 
 
 BX-^s-S T^ AT.C1MI K-" 3IIOKSI»S TO tBI TA5.1XT OT «»=■». 
 
 StTFrOLK- 
 
 Jj,„dm.liJ,Ji^Z2S!S.iyS£X,aUJi£omMSI£U-^*ir!^sll0l-^. 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 the reign of Elizabeth. Richard Moore, Esq., of Kentwell Hall, is now 
 the possessor of the Manor. 
 
 In the Vestry, situated behind the Chancel, is an ancient tombstone, 
 covering the remains of the pious founder of this part of the Church ; 
 above it is a mural monument inlaid with figures in brass, of Thomas 
 Spring, bis wife, and ten children : over their heads is the following in- 
 sc.ip'.ion : 
 
 <©cate pro animafau.si Cljomte Spring qui Jjoc '^.e.^tibulum 
 fieri fecit in bita ^ua, ct ^^argarita: uroriiS cju.^ qui quiDem 
 €|)omasi obiit jjicptimo Die mcn.si.b' .^eptcmbrii^, !sl. ©. XWb 
 
 Ic^imo cccclvvvbi. ct prarOicta .JBacgarita obiit, Oie 
 
 at. ©. .IBilIesiimo cccc[j:,lt. <!lluorum animabu.^ propitietur 
 OEUiS. Slmcn. 
 
 PLATE IV.— THE ANCIENT PEW BELONGING TO THE FAMILY OF SPRING 
 AT THE EAST END OF THE NORTH AISLE. 
 
 Pews were not used as a general accommodation in Churches be- 
 fore the reformation of religion, and we find that it was decreed in 
 a synod in the diocese of Exeter, 1284, 13 Edw. I., that, with an ex- 
 ception of uoble persons and patrons, no one should in future claim any 
 seat; but, whoever first entered a Church for the purpose of devotion, 
 might chuse at his pleasure, a place for praying — vide Archaologia, 
 vol. xii. 
 
 This splendid Pew appears to have been erected in the reign of 
 Henry VIII., a few years previous to the Reformation. It is of an ob- 
 long form, enclosing a space of about fifteen feet in length, by eight feet 
 in width, built entirely of oak, and never was painted; indeed, the 
 workmanship is so elaborate, that it could not require the farther enrich- 
 ment of colour and gilding. 
 
 The design of the ornamental part is quite in the Tudor style ; the 
 pierced work, over the open arches, which surround it, being decorated 
 with the arms of the family of Spring, a chevron between three mascles. 
 At each angle of the closure is a large pillar, or turret, decorated with 
 small niches, pedestals, and canopies, somewhat in the manner of the 
 screen to Henry the Seventh's tomb at Westminster ; largo pillars also 
 divide the front and ends into principal compartments, which are again 
 subdivided by smaller twisted and reticulated columns, the upper parts 
 of the double arches filled with complicated tracery and arms ; the 
 whole is surmounted by a series of projecting Canopies rising in a num- 
 ber of small pinnacles, the groining of which is curiously formed of the 
 most delicate carving ; the entire work is executed with very great 
 freedom and boldness. The lower part of the Pew is panelled, with- 
 out much carved ornament. 
 7 
 
THE CHURCH OF ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, LAVENHAM, SUFFOLK. 
 
 A similar Pew on the corresponding site in the south Aisle was 
 erected for the Earl of Oxford's family, the ornamental parts of which 
 have suffered from the effects of time and wantonness. 
 
 The rafted roof of the Nave and Aisles is curious, the girders are 
 carved in foliage, and spring from tasteful corbels, representing figures ; 
 the capitals of the columns, from which the arches spring, are delicately 
 sculptured in form of ducal coronets rising in strawberry leaves. 
 
 The Chancel Screen and its ancient roof are also seen in the plate ; the 
 latter is supported by cantilevers, but is not particularly enriched. The 
 Screen is very handsome, consisting of a series of open arches em- 
 bellished with crockets, the spandrils filled in with light pierced work, 
 rich and various in its design, each exhibiting a different pattern in the 
 curvature of the tracery. Other funeral monuments in the Church, not 
 previously described, are 
 
 Margarite 
 
 Uxoris observantissimjE 
 
 Thomse Denny de Lavenham 
 
 In comitatu Suffolciffi generosi. 
 
 Quae senio fracta, fatis concessit 
 
 Et hie tandem requiescit 
 
 In pace. 
 
 iEternam ardenti pietate 
 
 Anhelavit coronam 
 
 Et gratissimo melioris vita; intuitu freta 
 
 Leta dolorum transivit metam 
 
 „ . .. . ( JEts: Christi MDCCXX. 
 Pnmo die Jumi, Anno ? ivvttti 
 
 ( Atatis sua2 LXXvlil. 
 
 Virtus epitaphium marmore 
 
 Perennius. 
 
 Here also lieth the body of Thos. Denny, Gent. 
 
 Who departed this life March 9, 1716, 
 
 Aged 78 Years. 
 
 The following is to the memory of Thomas Sroythers, Master of the 
 Grammar School in this town : 
 
 H. S. E. Reverendus Thomas Smythies, A. M. Colcestria; natus et educatus 
 CoUegii Sedneiensis Cantab, postea socius. Schola; in hac villa Grammaticalis, 
 demum moderator felicis ipse ingemii puerorura ingenia feliciter excoluit Ob. sexto 
 die Novembris, Anno Salutis, 1746, astatis 40. 
 
 S. M. Maiite uxoris dilectissimse et optime merentis Thomae Steward filia; natu 
 maxima; Joshua; Gregsby de Burgo Sancti I'.dmundi Armigeri, cujus virtutibus 
 coniux vere ma-rens heu! Invitus superstes hoc marraor ex amore suo dedicavit. 
 Invaletudine multos per annos afflicta fuit ; doloris maxime acutos animi fortitu- 
 dine rara et sincera pietate sustinuit ; tandem fractis viribus summa resignatione 
 divinte voluntati submisit. — Vitje bene acta; recordatione laeta, Et futura spe 
 plena, Animam deo reddidit, die tertio Octobris, 1758, anno aetatis 34. Hie 
 etiam sepulti jacent tres filii et tres filiae Thorns Steward et Maris uxoris ejus. 
 
fiSBTT 
 
 M 
 
^t JHargaret'S Cfjtircf), 
 
 LOWESTOFFE, SUFFOLK; 
 
 VICAR, 
 REV. RICHARD LOCKWOOD. 
 
 LowestCffe is situated on the most eastern point of land in England, 
 upon an eminence, commanding an extensive prospect of the German 
 Ocean, and -when beheld from the sea has the noblest and most beautiful 
 appearance of any place on the coast, between Newcastle and London. 
 
 The Church, built of flint and stone, stands about half a mile west of 
 the town, at a secure distance from the incursion of the sea; the present 
 edifice is supposed to have been erected prior to 1365, and is kept in 
 repair by lands belonging to it, consisting of above 90 acres, together 
 with several tenements, which are let by auction, in the presence of the 
 Minister and Churchwardens, every seven years. The whole building, 
 from west to east, is 182 feet long, 47 wide, and 43 feet high. The 
 height of the Tower, including the Spire, which is 50 feet, is 120 feet. 
 
 The View selected for the illustration of this edifice is taken from the 
 south-east. The series of windows on the south are divided by muUions, 
 which form in the upper parts delicate tracery ; the east window is also 
 admired for the handsome distribution of trefod-headed arches, of which 
 the lights are composed. And the buttresses are faced with architectu- 
 ral ornaments of flint and stone, curiously fabricated, in a method pecu- 
 liar to this county and Norfolk. 
 
 A Porch, on the south side, forms the principal entrance to the 
 Church ; over it is a room, called the Maids' Chamber, after a tradi- 
 tion that two maiden sisters retired to it, for the purpose of rehgious 
 seclusion. It is farther reported, that these sisters, whose names were 
 Elizabeth and Katharine, caused two wells, between the Church and the 
 Town, to be dug at their own expense, for the benefit of the inhabitants, 
 and that the name of Basket Wells is a corruption of Bess and Kate. 
 
 On the ceiling of the Porch is a carved Boss, representing the Trinity, 
 also two shields, charged M'ith the emblems of the Redemption. 
 
 The Nave, or Body of the Church, is separated from the side Aisles 
 by lofty handsome pillars, and receives additional light from a clerestory 
 admitting eight windows on each side. At the entrance of the Chancel 
 was formerly a Rood-loft, the ascent to which was discovered a few 
 ■ years since by the accidental falling of some stones from one of the but- 
 tresses on the south side of the Nave. 
 1 
 
ST. MARGARETS CHURCH, LOWESTOFFE. 
 
 The Chancel is remarkably elegant, no expense having been spared 
 in restoring it to its pristine beauty. The East Window was painted and 
 presented to the Ciiurch by Mr. Robert Allen of this town. Beneath a 
 large marble slab, in the middle of the floor, is interred Thomas Scroope, 
 Bishop of Dromore, in Ireland, and Vicar of this parish, who died here 
 January 16, 1491. The bishop was descended from the noble family 
 of Scroope, and was otherwise named Bradley, from the place of his 
 birth, he was instituted to this Vicarage in 1478, and died at the age 
 of very little less than 100 years. The brass, which was intended to 
 perpetuate his resemblance, is nearly all destroyed and taken away. 
 
 In the Chancel is also interred the Hon. James Howard, youngest 
 son of Thomas, Earl of Berkshire, who died a;t. 23, on the 7th of June, 
 166.5, of the wounds he "received the preceding day in the sea-fight with 
 the Dutch off this town. 
 
 On the first step of the Chancel, on a white marble stone, is an inscrip- 
 tion for the Rev. John Tanner, fifty-one years vicar of LowestofTe, and 
 brother of Dr. Thomas Tanner, bishop of St. Asaph, author of the 
 " Notitia Monastica ;" he died 2'2d Dec. 1759, aet. 75. The Chancel was 
 repaired, and the Nave of the Church was paved by him. The Organ 
 was set up in 1778. 
 
 At the west end of the Nave is a lofty narrow arch, supposed to have 
 been originally used as the Penitent's Porch, agreeably to the custom of 
 the ancient church. The Font is particularly curious, but has been much 
 defaced ; several figures of saints, wth which it had been adorned, were 
 damaged, under an ordinance of the Long Parliament, in 1644. There is an 
 ascent of three steps to it, the uppermost of which formerly bore an in- 
 scription, but it is now illegible. In the south Aisle are Monuments to 
 Thomas Annot, who founded the Grammar School here in 1570 ; to Rear 
 Admiral Usher, ob. 1GG9 ; John, his eldest son, ob. 1065 ; to Robert his 
 second son, ob. 1099, set. 50; Admiral Sir John Ashby, who was en. 
 gaged in the battles at Bautry Bay, Beachy Head, in 1689, and Cape 
 la Hogue, in 1092, he died 12th July, 1693 ; another of his nephew. Vice 
 Admiral James Mighells, who died 21st March, 1733, tet. 69; and a 
 memorial of Captain Thomas Arnold, who died 31st Auff. 1737, aet. 58. 
 
 In the Churchyard is interred the remains of the Rev. Robert Potter, 
 A. IM. Vicar of Lowestofte and Kessingland, and also a Prebendary of 
 Norwich, who died the 8th of August, 1804, a;t. 83. The literary world 
 is indebted to him for the best poetical versions of iEschvlus, published in 
 1777, Euripides in 1781, aud of Sophocles in 1788. A plain table monu- 
 ment to his memory is placed against the north wall of the Chancel. There 
 is also in the Churchyard a handsome pyramidal Monument to the 
 memory of John Barker, Esq., one of the elder Brethren of the Trinity 
 House, who was a great benefactor to this his native town ; he died 
 Nov. 1, 1787, xt. 80, and was here interred with great funeral pomp. 
 
*^ 
 
MELFORD, SUFFOLK; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 THE REV. B. FRANCIS, M. A. 
 
 The Town of Melfoid is situated in the Hundred of Babergh, four 
 miles from Sudbury, its Church, a most exquisite specimen of architec- 
 ture in Edward the Fourth's reign, stands upon a rising ground at the 
 northern extremity of the Town, on the west side of the road to Bury. 
 Formerly the Church belonged to the richly endowed Abbey of St. 
 Edmund at that place, when the Abbot occasionally resided at Mel- 
 ford Hall, on the east side of the Green, which Seat, together with the 
 advowson of the Church, after the Dissolution, were granted to Sir Wil- 
 liam Cordell, Knight. From a series of authentic and curious manu- 
 scripts, now in the possession of the Rev. William Tylney Spurdens, of 
 North Walsham, in Norfolk, and most obligingly communicated, we are 
 happy to be enabled to lay before our readers a very particular account 
 of this interesting edifice in its former state. The first MS. we transcribe 
 is dated August, 1688, and appears to have been written by the Rector 
 of the Church at that period. 
 
 " Much about the middle of the Parish of Melford, al's Long Mel- 
 ford, in Suffolk, upon an Hill, most pleasant for air and prospect, 
 there standeth a large and beautiful Church called Trinity Church, 
 because dedicated to the Holy and undivided Trinity." " It hath 3 
 lies, w'^'' from the North wall to the South wall, contain together iu 
 breadth, 61 feet 6 inches. Part of it was of an old erection, viz. the 
 whole North He, the Steeple, a great part of the Porch and p'haps 
 the East end of the South He. All the other parts are of a much 
 later erection, as by the different sort of building, & the several In- 
 scriptions still extant, in and about the said Church, may most evi- 
 dently appear." " The Middle Tie, viz. from the Steeple, exclusive, to 
 the East end of the Chancell, hath one entire advanced Roofe, in length, 
 152 feet and 6 inches ; distant from the pavement beneath, 41 feet and 
 e inches, supported on each side with ten arched Pillars, separating the 
 said Middle He from the 2 other lies, which are in height 24 feet, and 
 in length 135 feet and 4 inches. 
 1 
 
TRINITY CHURCH, MELFORD, SUFFOLK, 
 
 "The Pious Benefactours, concerned in the building the advanced He 
 may be known, and, let their memories never perish, by the Inscriptions 
 under the Battlements, without the Church, and by like Inscriptions in 
 the windows, undemolished, within the Church. 
 
 " From the Inscriptions under y' Battlements of y' advanced He with- 
 out y' Church, beginning on the North side : and here, John Clopton, 
 Esqr. worthily deserves to have his memory preserved, a zealous & 
 eminent promoter of the new erection. " He built the four first pillars 
 and arches on the North side, counting from East to West, whereof one 
 of y" is in y" Nave of the Church, tho' his name be now obliterated, & 
 by time & weather qxiite eaten out." " Though y' afores'' Inscription be 
 now obliterated, yet several persons have read the same, y' obliteration 
 being but of very late date, and in particular, the present Rector of y' 
 Church, who hereby sacredly and solemnly affirms that y' merit of the 
 action was ascribed to one or more of y^ family of y'= Cloptons, and, as 
 he remembreth and verily believeth, to John Clopton, in memory and good 
 of him, his wife, his children, and his ancestors. Nay, to this very day, 
 though y" rest be obliterated and worn out .... tOn is plain to 
 be espyed w*^"" insinuates y' Clopton was y" Benefactor for y"^ building 
 of those arches and pillars. After him, this Inscription follows : Pray 
 for the Soul of Rob' Sparrow, and Marion his wife, & for Thomas 
 Cooper, & Margaret his wife, of whose goods, Mr. Gyles Dent, John 
 Clopton, John Smith, and Roger Smith, with the help of the well dispo- 
 sed men of this town, did these 6 arches new rear Anno D'ni MCCCC 
 .... & 1°. " Whereas y' full account of the Annus D'ni be defaced, 
 yet by reason of y"^ mention of Giles Dent in the Inscription and y'^ 1° 
 at y'' end of y" said account, it is, ought, and can be no otherwise y" 
 Anno D'ni 1481, for Mr. Giles Dent was instituted into y' Rectory of 
 MelfordlS Aprilis, 1474; he made his will 19 April, 1484, nominating 
 Rob' Cutler and Thomas Ellis his executors, and John Clopton his su- 
 pervisor : on July y* 7th, following, he adds a Codicil to it, bequeath- 
 ing all y" grain of his Glebe, and his Tithes, to be disposed of in cha- 
 ritable uses. Thomas Aleyn,ars Carver, his successor, was instituted 14 
 Sept. 1484, into y'^ said Parsonage, and therefore there being 1° to end 
 y' Annus wherein y^ North side of that advanced He vias finished, it 
 could be no other, as before is hinted, thau y' Annus D'ni 1481. 
 
 " From y" Inscriptions under y"^ Battlements of y' s'' advanced Isle on 
 y' South side beginning at y' West end, by y'' Steeple, \v'^ are as fol- 
 lowcth : Pray for y" Souls of Roger Moryel, Margaret and Katha- 
 rine his wives, of whose goods the said Katharine, John Clopton, Mas- 
 ter William Twaitys, and John Smith, did these arches new rear, and 
 did make the pavement, there away. Anno D'ni Millesimo Quadringente- 
 simo primo. Pray for y" Soul of Thomas Couper, that did this Arch 
 rear. Pray for y' Soul of Lawrence Martin, and Marion his wife, and 
 
ili|iyfpyiti;i 
 
TRINITY CHURCH, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 for Richard Martin, and Elizabeth, and Joan, his wives, of whose goods 
 these Arches, in Chancel, reared Anno D'ni M.CCCCLl. 
 
 " From the Inscriptions under the Battlements of the South Isle with- 
 out, from the Steeple to the Porch : Pray for y' Soul of Master Giles 
 Dent, late Parson of Melford, of whose goods, John Clopton, Robert 
 Coteler, and Thomas Elys, did this Arch make and glase, and the Roofe 
 over y"= Porch. Pray for y' Soul of William Clopton, Margery Clopton 
 his wife, and for the Soul of Alice Clopton, and for John Clopton, and 
 for all those Souls that y" said John is bound to pray for. 
 
 " From the Porch to y'^ East end of y' said South Isle, as also at the 
 East end thereof: Pray for y' Soul of Roger Moryel, of whose goods 
 this Arch was made. Pray for y'' Soul of John Keek, and for his Fader 
 and Moder, of whose goods this Arch was made. Pray for y' Soul of 
 Thomas Elys, and Joan his wife, and for the good speed of Joan Elys, 
 makers hereof. Pray for y" Soul of John Pye, and Alice his wife, of 
 whose goods this Arch was made, and these twayn windows glased. 
 Pray for y' Soul of John Dyst, and Alice, and for y' good speed of Johu 
 Dyst, and Christopher, makers hereof. Pray for the Souls of Law- 
 rence Martin, and Marion his wife, and Elizabeth Martin, and Joan, 
 and for y' good estate of Richard Martin and Roger Martin, and their 
 
 wives, and all y" children of this Isle was 
 
 made Anno D'ni MiUesimo CCCC" LXXX° & IIII". 
 
 " The Inscription round y'^ Chappel, called our Lady's Chappel : Pray 
 for y° Soul of John Hill, and for y' Soul of John Clopton, Esqrs.; and Pray 
 for the Soul of John Loveday Butler, w"' John Clopton ; of whose goods 
 this Chappel is imbaylished by his executors. Pray for y^ Soul of 
 William Clopton, Esqr. Margery, and Margeiy, his wives, and for all 
 their parents and children, and for the Soul of Alice Clopton, aud for 
 John Clopton, and for all his children, and for y' Souls y' the said 
 Johu is bound to pray for, which did this Chappel new rear. Anno D'ni 
 M CCCC LXXXX HI. Christus sit testis haec me non exhibuisse ut 
 merear laudes, sed ut Spiritus memoretur. Roger Smith & Robert 
 Smith." 
 
 The next MS. appears to be of tlie same date, and handwriting, as 
 the former, and is entitled, 
 
 " Benefactors, as by the Inscriptions in the windows, uudemolished, 
 within the Church of Melford. 
 
 " The East window, celebrated formerly for its Imagery, and painted 
 glass, hath nothing in it now but white glass, as likewise the first 
 window on the Sputh side of the Church, from the East, lyeth under 
 the same defacement. 
 
 " The Second window, on the same side, hath at the very top, in one 
 light, 3). ^- M>. '• e. Jesus horn' Salvator, and in another JJJ. i. e. Maria, 
 under the aforesaid lesser lights, in the upper part of the said window, 
 
, TRINITY CHURCH, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 in the first pane thereof, nothing but white glass. In the other two 
 panes thereof, 2 Kings w"' crowns on their heads, incircled with glory, 
 liaving globes in their hands. In the lower part of the said window 
 nothing but white glass. 
 
 The Third window, on the very top of it, hath 5l' ^- ^- 'o another 
 light, .flicrcp- In the next light thereunto, the Martin's clothmark, which 
 is a Globe, with a cross, and streamer on the top, with Jt. on the one 
 side, and JEl. on the other, and in the next light .Hi. pro Maria, ut prius. In 
 the upper part of the window, beneath these lights, there are 3 Imageries, 
 all in glory, the middle whereof is supposed to be the Blessed Virgin, and 
 all of them encompassed with flower de luces ; the first whereof hath 
 a sword in his right hand, and a book in his left; the other, a long 
 and profuse beard : all three sitting iu chairs, as at rest, iu glory. 
 
 The Fourth window, on the very top of it, hath in one light ^i- 1^- <€>• iu 
 another light, JJicrcp, in another jfti. ut prius. In the upper part of the 
 said window, beneath these lights, there are 3 Imageries, in glory, in each 
 pane, one, sitting in their chairs, as at rest, the 3rd whereof hath a 
 black cap on his head, a blue wardrobe, and seemingly 2 pencils in his 
 hands. In the 3 panes, of the lower part of the said window, nothing 
 but white glass. 
 
 " The Fifth window hath on the top of it, in the lesser lights ^i- ^- <f>7 
 JlJctCp, iS. JjU. with his clothmark, and JJi. pro Maria, ut prius. In the 
 upper part, of the said window, beneath these 3 lights, an Abbot, or 
 Bishop, in the first pane thereof, with a mitre on his head, a Pope, with 
 his triple Crown, in the second, a Cardinal, with his hat and scarlet, in 
 the next, all encircled with glory, and sitting iu chairs, as at rest. In the 
 lower part of the said window, and in the first pane thereof, a Priest, as 
 is supposed, with the Tabernacle in his hand, in the second pane, Mary 
 Magdalene, with her hair disshevel'd & her box of spikenard in her hand. 
 In the 3rd pane, the Imagery not known. Under the Imagery of the four 
 last mentioned windows, in the upper part, there are these words written 
 
 as followcth Katarine Margarete uxorem ejus, & 
 
 pro a'iabusRoberte Moryell & Alicie uxoris ejus de 
 
 Hyene & pro a'iabus o'ium hujus . . . Eccle'ife in Melford, memoriam 
 
 de bonis prrefati Rogeri Bee fene vitriate Anno D'ni 
 
 M° CCCC LX", and in the lower part of the Fourth window, last men- 
 tioned, under the Imagery thereof, there is written Rector 
 
 hujus Eccl'iEe necnon Matildi Hyne in D'ni. Bon. fact. 
 
 "The Sixth window, which is the first in the Church, all the former be- 
 ing in the Chancell, hath, in the lesser lights on the top of it, 3i- l^- ^• 
 JBeccp, IR. ,IEI. with the Martin's clothmark between, and M- pro Ma- 
 ria, ut prius. Underneath these lights, and in the upper part of the said 
 window, in the first pane, nothing but white glass ; the second pane mostly 
 white glass ; the third pane, St. Vincent, standing, with a book in his 
 
 4 
 
>«.^v 
 
 
 - 6 -'P.^tJli J6.£tnua Sf JSla^i^ary -° 
 
TRINITY CHURCH, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 band, and his head encircled with glory; having, on one side of his face 
 Sanctae, and, on the other side, Vincenti. Under the aforesaid 3 panes 
 
 this inscription remains Couper and Mary his wife. 
 
 In the lower part of the said window, and in the first pane 
 
 thereof, a King, with a crown on his head and a sceptre in his hand, and 
 a flower de luce on each side of his head. In the second pane, St. 
 Christopher, as is supposed, sed qu<ere. In the third, Mary Magdalene, 
 with her hair dishevelled, and a box of spikenard in her hand. Under 
 which three pictures there is written. Orate pro animabus .... 
 . . re Marione ista Ecc'sire multipliciter decorata est & ornata. 
 
 The Seventh window hath, in the lesser lights on the top of it, 5I- ^- <§■ 
 .ItieCCp, IS- M-, with the Martin's clothmark between, and JJl. pro Maria, 
 ut prius. Underneath, in the three upper panes, there are three several 
 pictures of the Blessed Virgin, alike in face and wardrobe. By the face 
 of the first is written Maria, by the face of the second, Alma Dei Geni- 
 trix, by the face of the third, Sancta, the rest broken ; with this Subscrip- 
 tion .... Dent, John Clopton, Esq. John Smith, and Roger Smith, 
 this arch did repair of new. In the lower part of the said window, and 
 in the first pane thereof, supposed to be Joseph, y' spoused husband of 
 the Blessed Virgin ; "in the second, the Virgin herself, with the new born 
 babe in one hand, a sceptre in the other, and a crown upon her head. In 
 the third, supposed to be one of the wise men, having a golden cup in 
 o'ne hand, full of burning incense, and in the other a bundle of myrrh, sed 
 de his quaere. Subscribed, Orate pro a'i'abus Joannis Wains, Joha'nis 
 Felt & Abigal uxor eo'ru, fuit optima adjutrix .... novamfabri- 
 cam hujus Ecc'siae. 
 
 "The Eighth window, in the lesser lights nothing; underneath, in the 
 first pane, of the upper greater lights, towards the top, Hie Johannis; un- 
 der which, is Herod and his wife ; under Herod, a woman with an in- 
 fant in her arms ; under his wife, St. John laid along. Historia quaere. 
 Under the said prostrated St. John is written 8"='"" Johannes ; and, under 
 that, the soldiers arresting him. In the second pane, St. John in the 
 Wilderness, having over his head these letters, ecce angum, which, 
 probably, should have been ecce agnum. In the third pane, St. John 
 baptizing the Holy Jesus. In the lower part, in the first pane thereof, 
 the soldier with the sword in his hand, and John the Baptist lying in the 
 prison with his head off; underwritten, '''"• Johannes. In the second 
 pane, Herod the Tetrarch, and Herodias his wife, with their servants 
 about them, their daughter kneeling by, presenting a charger with the 
 Baptist's head in it, underwritten, S*"' Johannes Baptista. In the third 
 pane, St. John Baptist's Disciples, standing about the trunk of his body, 
 in order to their having been to his buriall. In the middle whereof is 
 written, in letters reversed, S'"' Johannes Baptista ; and, at the bottom 
 
TRINITY CHURCH, MEtFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 of the said window. Orate pro animabus Johannes Smith & Margaret & 
 Agnete ux 
 
 " The Ninth window, in the lesser lights, in the top, nothing. In the first 
 pane of the upper part, underneath, St. Peter with his key. In the se- 
 cond pane, St. Paul with his sword. In the third pane, St. Andrew with 
 his cross ; and, underneath them. Pray for the soules of Rob' Colet, 
 Marion, and Margaret, his wives. And in the first pane of the lower 
 part of the said window, St. John with a cup in his left hand ; in the se- 
 cond, St. James the Great with staff and his scrip ; in the third pane, St. 
 Simon the Zealot with his spectacles on his nose, and a book in his 
 
 hand ; underneath whom there is written, of whose 
 
 goods John Clopton, Thomas Elys, & John Haugh, did this window 
 glase. 
 
 "The Tenth window, in the lesser lights, on the top, nothing. In the 
 upper part, underneath those lesser lights, there are three imageries, sup- 
 posed to be three other Apostles, sed de his quaere ; and underneath 
 them is written. Pray for the soules of Roger Hoo, Alson, & Elizabeth, 
 his wives ; and in the three panes of the lower part of the said window 
 are three more Imageries, the first and last being almost defaced, the 
 middle one wholly remaining, supposed to be all Apostles ; under whom 
 is written, Of whose goods John Clopton, Mr. Gyles Dent, and Thomas 
 Elys, did this window glase. 
 
 "The Eleventh window, in the lesser lights on the top 3i-ii^-.§. advan- 
 ced between two JO's at a distance below. In the first pane, in the up- 
 per part, beneath these lesser lights, there is St. Katherine crowned, 
 with S'" on one side her face, and Katherina on the other. In the se- 
 cond pane, the imagery defaced. In the third pane, a man holding in 
 one hand a book open, in the other a staff, with a cross on the top of it, 
 by which there is written M". underneath which pane is written. Pray 
 
 for the soul of In the first pane of 
 
 the lower part of the said window, St. Peter with a key in his hand ; in 
 the second and third, mitred Bishops with their croziers in their hands. 
 The Subscription, thereunto belonging, defaced. 
 
 "The Twelfth window, in one of the lesserlights on the top 3- J^- <€>■> in 
 another Help, and, in the first pane beneath, the imagery defaced; in 
 the second, the Blessed Virgin, her babe in her left arm, with a crown 
 on her head, and a sceptre in her right hand; in the third, a Bishop, 
 with his mitre on his head, and a crosier in his left hand. In the lower 
 part, and in the first pane thereof, a King crowned, with his sceptre in 
 one hand and a javelin in the other. In the second pane, St. Cytha, ha- 
 ving her head encircled with glory, and on one side of her face, S'^, and 
 ou the other, Cytha. In the third pane, a Priest with a wand in his hand, 
 on the left side of whose face there fs written Ro'k, and just above his 
 6 
 
TRINITY CHURCH, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 knee are written other letters, supposed to be Kapball, and underneath 
 the said window. Orate p' a'i 'abus Richardi Wawyn .... 
 
 & Katharine uxor suie .... 
 
 "The Thirteenth window, in the lesser lights above, is written, Sit nomen 
 Dm Benedictum, and under them, in the first pane, Moses, as appears 
 by his horns on his head ; in the second pane, Aaron, as appears by his 
 priestly vestments; in the third pane, Saul, as appears by his mantle'- 
 sad de h,s 01 bus qu«re. Tn the lower part of the said window, and in 
 the first pane thereof, St. John the Evangelist, and by him is written, St. 
 Johannes Evangelista. In the second pane, St. Peter, and by him is 
 written, S- Petrus. In the third pane, St. James, and by him is written 
 » Jacobus; and under them is written, Orate .... his Horset 
 
 , &proai'abus Johannis . . . Roberti 
 
 • • • . Agnete uxoris. 
 
 The Fourteenth window, in the lesser lights nothing. In the first pane 
 hlS' "PP^^P^rt. beneath those lesser lights, a picture of a man, whose 
 hands thighs, and legs are naked, and the upper part defaced. In the 
 second, supposed to be King David. In the third, supposed to be Kin« 
 bolomon^ lu the lower part of the said window, and the first pane, the 
 Blessed Virgm, wUh our Saviour in her lap, as taken from the cross, 
 with the crown of thorns on his head ; in the second pane, Mary Magda- 
 len weeping, sed quaere; in the third pane, our Blessed Saviour naked, 
 defactr'''"^" "' "''°" •"'' ^''*^- ^''' Subscription of botii parts 
 
 "The Fifteenth window, in the lesser lights fourcoats of arms,-de quibus 
 !!r%/R P"' •''"■'' •'^"^^th these lesser lights, and in the first 
 
 pane, St. Bernard, with his crozier, and by him is written S-« Bernardus. 
 lathe second pane, our Blessed Saviour, with his scarlet robe, and 
 thorny crown The third pane, nothing but white glass. At the foot of 
 them IS this Subscription, Orate pro bono statu Johannis Pie & Alicie 
 • ■ - ■ oi . . . statu Johannis Firmin & . . uxoris 
 
 ?nL M '''!;°^r",P'^^' ""l '^^ ^'"dow, and in the first pane, Supposed 
 to be Mary Magdalene. In the second pane, nothing but white glass. 
 Jn the third pane, a Priest. At the bottom of ail . 
 VI VIS & mortuis .... ■ ■ • ■ i>iu 
 
 "The Sixteenth window, in the lesser lights, on the top, Nomen est D'ni 
 Benedictum. In the upper part, and in the first pane, underneath these 
 l.g Its, nothing but white glass. In the second pane, a Flower Pot, beset 
 with flowers mutating such a picture in the thirty-second page of the 
 Virgin Mane s OAce, set forth by Pope Pius 5th, the book "printed at 
 Antwerp, in the Year 1598. In the third pane, the Blessed Virgin, sit- 
 ting m a chair and encircled with tWs inscription, Ecce Ancilla D'ni fiat 
 imhi In the lower part of the window, in the first pane, nothing but 
 ^vh,te glass ; m the second, nothing also but white glass. In the third 
 
TRINITY CHURCH, MELFOKD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 pane, a Picture of a Man, somewhat defaced, holding in his right hand 
 a book, and in his left hand a staff, with a cross on the top; by his head 
 written S'"" Barthol, sed de illo qua;re. Underneath subscribed . . . 
 . . . Isabella uxor ejus . . . 
 
 " The Seventeenth window, in the lesser lights nothing. In the upper 
 part, and in the first pane underneath these lights, St. Edmund the King, 
 with his crown on his head, his sceptre in liis right hand, and an arrow 
 in his left ; under his feet written S'°' Edmundus. In the second pane, 
 part of an imagery subscribed S'°" Antonius. In the third pane the 
 imagerj' defaced. In the lower part, and in the first pane, nothing but 
 white glass ; in the second pane, Saint Katharine, with her wheel ; on 
 the one side of her face written, S", and on the other Catherina. In the 
 third pane, an imagery supposed to be Saint Barnabas ; on one side of 
 his face B. on the other side, bas , sed de illo quiere ; underneath which 
 
 pane is written est mor. et pro bono statu Agnet uxor 
 
 ejus .... Johannis et Marione uxor ejus. 
 
 "The Eighteenth window, in the lesser lights, on the top, two Priests. 
 In the upper part, and in the three panes, underneath these aforesaid 
 lesser lights, is nothing but white glass. In the lower part, and the first 
 pane, St Dennis habited, with his crozier in his hand ; on one side of 
 his head, Sancta;, and on the other side Deouisi. In the two other 
 panes, nothing but white glass. 
 
 " In the Nineteenth window, which is the window on the south side next 
 the steeple, in the lesser lights, on the top, two Coates of Arms. The 
 rest of the window hath neither imagery nor superscription. 
 
 " On the North side of the Church, from the Steeple, Eastward, in 
 the First window, and the upper lesser light, a Coate of Arms. In the 
 third pane, of the upper part of the said window, under those lesser 
 lights, the head, and part of the body, of a woman ; all the rest, white 
 glass. 
 
 " The Second window, in the lesser lights, a Coat of Arms. In the se- 
 cond pane of the upper part, under those lights, is a Woman ; all the 
 rest white glass, or without remark. Underwritten, in a confused me- 
 thod, . . . pro anima Honorabilis Dominae .... Ducissas ; 
 according to JMr. Rice's Brevyary, who took some account of the 
 Church before the late wars, now in the hands of Mr. Robert Torking- 
 ton, of Brettenham, Suft"., it is thus entered. In Fenestra prope Cam- 
 panile, in summitate Ecclesise, is this written, Orate pro a'i'a Honorabi- 
 lis Principissje Dom' Elizab' Ducissae Suffolk. In the said window are 
 these Armes, De la Pole, azure, a Jess between three Leopards' faces, Or ; 
 which impaled France and England, which was the daughter of Richard 
 Plantagenet, Duke of York, sister to King Edward 4th and to Richard 
 3d ; she was wife of John De la Pole, Duke of Suffolk, who died anno 
 1429. Qujere, whether these two first windows have not been con- 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 founded together. In the lower part of the said second window, in the 
 first pane, there is nothing but white glass; in the second pane, a Wo- 
 man, with her face turned backward and upward ; in the third pane, 
 Howard, in his Coat Armour, kneeling ; under whom is written, Johannis 
 Howard Miles. 
 
 " The Third window hath, iu the lesser upper lights, nothing ; and in the 
 three under lights beneath them, nothing but white glass ; only at the 
 foot is this inscription, Orate pro bono statu D'ni Druris . . . . ac 
 pro ... . Domine. In the lower part of the said window, Wil- 
 liam Clopton, between his two wives, viz. Juditha, daughter of Grey, of 
 
 Bockenham, and Cockwell, subscribed Judita; Clopton fil 
 
 Mar' Clopton til . . . Cockwell ux . . . 
 
 " The Fourth window, iu the upper part of the glass, very much defaced, 
 but represents together .... Denliam and his wife, in their Coat 
 Armour, having this subscription .... bono statu D'ni Denham 
 .... D'na uxore sua. see Wecvcr's Fun. Mon. fol. 609. In the 
 lower part of the said window, Sir William Clopton and Dame . 
 Trussel, his wife ; viz. in the first pane, Sir William Clopton, kneeling, 
 and his hands as praying, subscribed ^V " Clopton Miles .... In 
 the second pane, Trussel, his wife, uuderwritten, Francisca Clopton ; in 
 the third pane, the glass much defaced, but the picture seems to be Sir 
 William Clopton, kneeling, ut prius, having this subscription, Willielmus 
 Clopton Miles . . . 
 
 " The Fifth window, in the upper part, Howard impaling Oxford, in 
 their Coat Armour, under which is written. Orate pro bono statu D'ni 
 Howard, ac pro Domina uxore sua ; in the lower part thereof, three Clop- 
 tons, in effigie, kneeling, subscribed Walterius Clopton Miles, Thomas 
 Clopton Miles, Will'us Clopton de Ashendon Arraiger. 
 
 "The Sixth window, in the upper part thereof, there are, in their Coat 
 Armours, kneeling, three effigies, whereof two are supposed to be one 
 and the same man, and, in the middle of them, a woman, the wife to 
 the said person; and under them is written. Orate pro bono statu D'ni 
 Thoma: Montgomery Militis, ac pro Dna Dame Phillippe uxore sua; 
 their Coat Armour gules, a chevron ermin, between three Jlouer de luces, 
 or. Sir Thomas Montgomery, Knight of the Garter, in Edward 4th's' 
 time, see Weevers Fun. Man. fol. 609. In the under part of the said win- 
 dow Sir Thomas Clopton, between his two wives,* one the daughter of 
 Walter Clopton, the other the daughter of .... Mylde Arm 
 . . bearing, two rings gemmell sable, upon the upper part of the bend. 
 
 " The Seventh window, in the upper part, the effigies of three Judges, 
 thus subscribed. Pray for the good state of William Howard, Chief 
 Justice of England; and for Richard Picot, and John Haugh, Justices 
 
 * The remaining part of this account of the painted windows is from another MS. in a 
 different hand to the former, and appears to be of older date. 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 of the Law. Howard lived in King Edward the First's time, and the 
 other two in King Edward the Fourth's time. In the lower part, William 
 Clopton, Esq. between his two wives, Drurye and Frances, and un- 
 derneath the said William is written, W'. Clopton, Arm. tilius et haeres, 
 Thoraae Clopton, Militis ; and under the first wife is written. Uxor W'. 
 Clopton, filia Drury ; underthe second wife, hreres Elie. Francis. 
 
 " The Eighth window, in the upper part, Reinsforth, with his two 
 wives, under whom is written, as followeth — Orate pro bono statu Lauren- 
 tii Reinsforth, Militis, et Dnae Hungerford, et Elysabetha; Reinsforth, 
 uxor suaru' et filioru' suor' et filioru" suaru Beneath 
 
 " The Ninth window, in the upper part, three women in their Coat Ar- 
 mour, having this following inscription — Pray for the Soul of Dame Anne 
 Hay, and specially for Dame Margaret Jeynani, and for the good state of 
 Elysabeth Walgrave ; they all three hear Ermin, a f ess sable, between 
 three beehives, or, the first impaling Argent, afess between three hjons' 
 heads erased, or, the second impayling Walgrave, the third impay- 
 ling, Or, on a bend gules, three martlctts argent. In tha lower part, two 
 Cloptons in their Coat Armour, and Marrow, the wife of one of them, in 
 the middle. 
 
 " The Tenth window, in the upper part is Joslin, in his Lord Mayor's 
 Habit, with Clifford and his wife in their Coat Armour, under whom 
 are written as followeth — Pray for the Soul of Ralf Joslin, twice Mayor 
 of London; and for the good estate of Ben. Clifford, and Dame Elizabeth 
 his wife ; the said Elizabeth Clyfford bears Ermin, three barriiletts dan- 
 cette sable. In the lower part is Elizabeth Clopton in her Coat Ar- 
 mour, between Gedney and Cavendish, which are supposed to be her 
 two husbands, under whom is written as followeth — Orate p' a'i'a Joan- 
 nis Gedney, Mayoris Civitatis Londinensis .... Roberti Caven- 
 dish et Elizabethse, uxoris ejus ac 
 
 armig. 
 
 "The Eleventh window, in the upper part is Montgomery andDarcy, and 
 the effigies of two females, viz. Darcy Argent, two cheff'rons azure, under 
 whom is written. Orate p' bono statu Anna; Montgomerie et p" a'i'abus 
 
 D'na Elinore Gyvel, Margarette Gyvel de orum ami- 
 
 corum suorum. In the lower part are three effigies, Harliston and Alice 
 his wife, and Clopton, under whom is written as followeth — Orate pro 
 a'i'abus Joannis Harlistoni senioris, et Aliciicuxoris ejus, tilije W" Clop- 
 ton, et pro a'i'a Joanuis Harlistoni filius et ha;res 
 
 " The Twelfth window, in the upper part is Azure, an estoile icith sixpoi7its 
 argent impaling Argent, on afess beticecn three trefoils slipped, gules, an 
 escallop of the field ; and Drury, impaling the last coat. Three etfigies, a 
 
 man between two women, inscribed pro statu .... 
 
 armig. et pro D'na Anna uxor ejus et per uxoris ejus. 
 
 10 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 In the lower part three effigies, one of a man, the other two, of women : 
 on the man's coat. Argent, on a chevron sable, a cross crosslet of the field, 
 and Azure, two lyons jiassant guardant, or, on the first woman's coat, the 
 same, impaling Clopton. On the second woman, the same, impaling 
 Argent, a chcm-on gules, on the iipjyer ■part, two torteauxes, on the lotver 
 part, a mullet gules, under whom is written. Orate pro auima Joannis 
 
 Denston, et pro bono statuCatherinae uxor ejus fiUae 
 
 Clopton Arm. ac Annse Brent, filiae et ha;redis p'fato Joannis et Cat- 
 riuaj. 
 
 " The Thirteenth window, in the upper part, Peyton, between his two 
 wives, in a Coat Armour, Clopton and Hilton, under whom is written, 
 Orate pro a'i'abus Thomae Peyton Armig. senior, et Margarettae et Mar- 
 garettae uxor' suarura. Underneath, Rookwood, between his two wives, 
 Hilton and Clopton, in their Coat Armour : Uxor, William Rookwood, 
 Thomae Rookwood, uxor Thomaj Rookwood, fil. de Hilton, filia Wil- 
 liam Rookwood, filife Joannis Clopton. 
 
 " The Fourteenth window, in the upper part, three Angells, St. Gabriel, 
 St. Michael, St. Raphael. In the lower part three effigies, Curtior be- 
 tween his two wives, in Coat Armour, uxor Thomae Curtior, Thomas 
 Curtior, Armiger, Uxor Thomae Curtior, Arm. filius Joannis Scoynford, 
 filius et hseres Joannis Curtior. Joanuis Clopton, ArmiT. 
 
 " The Fifteenth window, in the upper part, S"" Ducius, with his left hand 
 lifted up as praying, S'"" Franciscus holding a book open, with both hands, 
 and within the bend of his right arm, a staff advanced , with a cross on the 
 top, Petrus Mille. At their feet. Orate pro anima Elizabethae Drury et 
 
 Henrici Hardman et Willi. Twaytes In 
 
 the lower part St. George with his red cross on his right arm and in his 
 armour. A Priest with his Censer in his right hand, and a taper in his 
 left. Orate pro, et pro bono statu Joanuis Story, et Joannis Stannard, Cle- 
 riorum et Benefactorum. 
 
 " The Sixteenth window, in the upper part, S*"' Andreas, with his cross. 
 The Blessed Virgin, with our Saviour in her lap, as taken from the Cross, 
 with his Crown of Thorns on his head, and the print of the nails in his 
 feet and hands. St. Gyles, with a crosier in his hand, at his feet S""iEgi- 
 dus, and under that, Laudes D'ni in jeternum cantabo. Orate pro anima 
 Magistri Ejidii Dent, quoiidam Rectoris hujus Ecclesise. In the lower 
 part nothing, being all white glass. 
 
 " The Seventeenth window, S""Oswoldus, S'"' Edmundus, S""Edwar- 
 dus, under the feet of St. Oswald, a shaven Monk; and under St. Ed- 
 ward, and St. Edmund, two mitred Abbots. Underneath is written. Orate 
 pro anima, Edwardi Hengham, nuper Abbatis de Bury, et pro bono 
 statu, G. Rawlesdon Abbatis, et ll'ci. Norton. In the lower part 
 nothing. 
 " The Eighteenth window, in the upper part, S»» Anna, with a child in 
 1! 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 lier hand, supposed to be the blessed Virgin, her daughter. The Virgin 
 Mary, with Crown and Sceptre, and her Son, the blessed Jesus, in her 
 arms, St. Elizabeth, with John Baptist her son, in her arms, at their feet, 
 under three Coats of Arms, is written, Elizabetha; Diicissae Suftoclise. 
 
 Plate 1, represents the whole of the south side of the Church. The 
 ancient Tower has been replaced by a structure, diftering greatly in style 
 from the splendid architecture of which the rest of the building partakes. 
 It was erected in 1725 ; the date appears on the key-stone, over the 
 west door. 
 
 Plate 2, a view of the Porch, shewing the architectural character of 
 the Church, more in detail, with the manner in which the inscriptions over 
 the windows, &c. are introduced ; they are all composed of flints, care- 
 fully inserted in the stone-work. 
 
 Plate 3, is a view of the Choir, looking east. The general appear- 
 ance at this point is striking ; no galleries interfere with the beautilul 
 effect of the architecture, the style of which was so well suited to the 
 magnificence and splendour of the ancient service. 
 
 The following curious manuscript, by Roger Martin, Esq. of Melford 
 Place, who lived in the time of the Reformation, relates many interesting 
 particulars of the Religious Ceremonies observed at this Church: 
 " The State of Melford Church and our Ladle's Chappel at the East end, 
 
 as I did hHoiv it. 
 
 " Memorand. At the back of the High Altar, in the said Church, there 
 was a goodly mount, made of one great Tree, and set up to the foot of 
 the window there, carved veiy artificially, with The Story of Christ's Pas- 
 sion, representing the horsemen with tlieir swords, and the footmen, &c. as 
 they used Christ on the Mount of Calvary, all being fair gilt, and lively 
 and beautifully set forth. To cover and keep clean all the which, there 
 were very fair painted boards, made to shut to, which were opened 
 upon high and solemn Feast Days, which then was a very beautiful 
 shew ; which painted boards were there set up again in Queen Mary's 
 time. At the north end of the same Altar, there was a goodly gilt Ta- 
 bernacle, reaching up to the roof of the Chancell, in the which there was 
 one fair large gilt image of The Holy Triidtij, being Patron of the Church, 
 besides other fair images. The like Tabernacle was at the south end. 
 
 " There was also in ray He,* called Jesus He, at the back of the Altar, 
 a table with a crucifix on it, with the two thieves hanging, on every side 
 one, which is in my House decayed, and the same I hope my heires will 
 repaire, and restore again, one day. There was also two fair gilt Taber- 
 nacles, from the ground up to the roofe, with a fair Image of Jesus, in the 
 Tabernacle at the north end of the Altar, holding a round bawle in his 
 
 • Sec Plate 4, view in tlie South .\islc, with tlie Pew of tJie family of Martin. 
 14 
 
MEJUFOKB CMUJKCM, 
 
 STTFrOLK. 
 
\' 
 
: r3wntyj,p,lieale. 
 
 Mas 1^1^ 'C 
 
 Zn^ared by'W.'Wallis. 
 
 T71' "TTT •!» |r< TLJT 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 hand, signifying, I think, that he containeth the whole round world- and 
 in the Tabernacle at the south end, there was a fair image of our Blessed 
 Lady, having the afflicted body of her dear son, as he was taken down, 
 off the Cross, lying along in her lapp, the tears, as it were, running down 
 pitifully upon her beautiful cheeks, as it seemed, bedewing the said sweet 
 body of her son, and therefore named The Image of our Lady of Pittu 
 
 '' Memorand. There was a fair Rood Loft, with the Rood, Mary and 
 John of every side, and with a fair pair of Organs standing thereby 
 which Loft extended all the breadth of the Church, and on Good Friday 
 a Priest, then standing by the Rood, sang Tlie Passion. The side thereof 
 towards the body of the Church, in twelve partitions in boards, was fair 
 painted with the images of the twelve Apostles. 
 
 " All the Roof of the Church was beautified with fair gilt stars. Fi- 
 nally, in the Vestry, where there were many rich Copes and Suites of 
 vestments, there was a fair Press, with fair large doors to shut to where- 
 in there were made devises to hang on all the Copes, without folding or 
 frumpling of them, with a convenient distance, the one from the other. 
 
 " In the Quire, there was a fair painted frame of timber, to be set up 
 about Maunday Thursday, with holes for a number of fair tapers to stand 
 in before the Sepulchre, and to be lighted in service time. Sometimes it 
 was set overthwart the Quire before the High Altar,* the Sepulchre being 
 alwaies placed, and finely garnished, at the north end of the Hi<rh Altar- 
 between that and Mr. Clopton's little Chappel there, in a vacant place of 
 the wall, I think upon a Tomb of one of his ancestors, the said frame 
 with the tapers, was set near to the steps going up to the said Altar. 
 Lastly, it was used to be set up, all along by Mr. Clopton's He, with a 
 door, made to go out of tiie Rood Loft into it. 
 
 " Upon Palm Sun.lay, the Blessed Sacrament was carryed in Proces- 
 sion about the Church-yard, under a fair Canopy, borne by four Yeomen • 
 the Procession coming to the Church Gate, went westward, and they with 
 the Blessed Sacrament, went eastward; and when the procession came 
 against the door of Mr. Clopton's He, they, with the Blessed Sacrament 
 and with a little bell and singing, approached at the east end of our La' 
 die's Chappel, at which time a Boy, with a thing in his hand, pointed to' 
 It, signifying a Prophet, as I think, sang, standing upon the Tyrret that is 
 on the said Mr. Clopton's He doore, Ecce Rex tuus, veuit, 4c. ; and then 
 all did kneel down, and then, rising up, went and met the Sacrament and 
 so then, went singing together, into the Church, and coming near the 
 Porch, a Boy, or one of the Clerks, did cast over among the Boys 
 flowers, and singing cakes, &c. 
 
 " On Corpus Christi day, they went likewise with the Blessed Sacra- 
 
 ,h */'^?v ' " 'J'"'" """'' "*' ^''"' ' "'" "'*= ^'""' "P™ ""= '"'«l> ^iJ«^. ^as placed 
 the Sepulchrum Donum, mentioned above. Plate 6, shews the beaufful interior of the 
 Clopton Chapel, with the arch of the tomb, upon which the sepulchre was usually erected 
 13 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 ment, in Procession about the Church green, in copes ; and I think also, 
 they went in Procession, on St. Mark's day, about the said green, with 
 handbells ringing before them, as they did about the bounds of the Town, 
 in Rogation Week, on the Monday, one way, on the Tuesday, another 
 way, and on the Wednesday, another, praying for rain or fair weather, 
 as the time required, having a drinking and a dinner there, upon Munday, 
 being fast day; and Tuesday, being a fish day, they had a breakfast with 
 butter and cheese, &c. at the Parsonage, and a drinking at Mr. Clopton's 
 by Kentwell, at his Manor of Lutons, near the pond in the Park, where 
 there was a little Chappel, I think of St. Anne, for that was their longest 
 perambulacion. Upon Wednesday, being fasting day, they had a drinking 
 at Melford Hall. All the Quire dined there, three times in the year at the 
 least, viz. St. Stephen's Day, Midlent Sunday, and I think, upon Easter 
 Munday. 
 
 " On St. James's Day, Mass being sung then by note, and the Organs 
 going in St. James's Chappel, which were brought into my House, with 
 the Clock and Bell, that stood there, and the Organs which stood upon 
 the Rood Loft, that was then a little from the Rood, which Chappel 
 hath been maintained by my ancestors, and therefore I Will, that my 
 heires, when time serve, shall repair, place there, and maintain, all these 
 things again. There were also fair stooles, on either side, such as are in 
 the Church, which were had away, by .loim King's means, who was Sir 
 William Cordell's Baylif, about which Chappel, there was paled in, 
 round about, a convenient piece of the Green, for one to walk in. 
 
 " Memorand. On St. James's Even, there was a bonefire, and a tub 
 of ale, and bread then given to the poor, auJ before my doore, there were 
 made, three other bonefires, viz. on Midsummer Even, on thq Even of 
 St. Peter and Paul, when they had the like drinkings, and on St. Tho- 
 mas's Even, on which, if it fell not on the lish day, they had some long 
 pyes of mutton, and peasecods, set out upon boards, with the aforesaid 
 quantity of bread, and ale ; and in all these bonefires, some of the friends 
 and more civil poor neighbours were called in, and sat at the board, with 
 my Grandfather, who had, at the lighting of the bonefires, wax tapers, 
 with balls of wax, yellow and green, set up, all the breadth of the Hall, 
 lighted then, and burning there, before the image of St. John the Baptist ; 
 and after they were put out, a watch candle was lighted, and set in the 
 midst of the said Hall, upon the pavement, burning all night. 
 
 " This was transcribed by Mr. Jonathan Moor, by my order, out of 
 certain papers written by, and belonging to Mr. Roger Martin, 
 of Melford, who died circ. ann. 23d Eliz. 1580. These papers 
 were showed to me, by Mr. Valentine Martin, and were part of 
 the large MS. book, lately wasted. IS. B. 12th April, 1692." 
 The following is copied from another Manuscript, relating entirely to 
 the Furniture and Utensils of the Church, and is, perhaps, the most cu- 
 rious list that has yet been printed in any Work : 
 ' 14 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 A Note of the Utensils and Furniture belonging to Melford Church, and 
 the Chappel adjoyning, taken, Aniw 1529, and transcribed by me out of 
 a paper Book belonging to Sir Roger Martin, Baronet, this 30th day 
 of September, 1686. Witness my hand, Nath. Bisbie. 
 
 The Account made by John Dyke and Robert Cawston, Wardens of the 
 Church of Melford, the Wth day of December, in the year of our Lord 
 God 1529, and in the 2\st year of the reign of King Henry VIII. 
 FIRST OF THE PLATE, OKNAMENTS, AND GOODS, BELONGING TO 
 
 THE SAID CHURCH. „, , . 
 
 oz. dwt. 
 
 A Chalice, parcel gilt, weighing 13 
 
 A Chalice, whole gilt, the gift of Mr. Kerver, late parson of Melford ... 31 1 
 
 A Chalice, parcel gilt, three of the feet broken; belonging to Mr. Clopton's altar II 
 
 A Chalice, the gift of Sir Thomas Turret, late priest of Jlelford, parcel gilt . 9 3 
 
 A Chalice, the gift of Mawt Barker, belonging to Jesos Altar, parcel gilt . . 21 3 
 
 A Chalice, belonging to Jesus Altar, the gift of Miriam Coort 22 
 
 A Chalice, the gift of Jone Ellis, belonging to John Hill's altar, parcel gilt .15 
 
 A Chalice, double gilt, with a quadrant crucifix upon the foot 41| 
 
 A Chalice, the gift of Mr. John Clopton, double gilt, with his arms upon the 
 
 foot of the backside 22^ 
 
 A Chalice, the gift of John Mason, parcel gilt 13 
 
 A Chalice, the gift of John Hill, gilt , . . . 20 
 
 The best Chalice, gilt 133i 
 
 A Chalice, parcel gilt, which was some time in the keeping of Jeffery Foot . 20 
 A JUonstrar, to bear in the Blessed Sacrament, the gift of Mr. John Clopton, 
 and Sir John Langham, Knt., and their wives, of silver and gilt, with a cru- 
 cifix of gold • 13 
 
 A relique of the Pillar that our Saviour Christ was bound to, the gift of Sir 
 William Clopton, Knt., inclosed with silver. 
 
 Two Basons of silver and parcel gilt, the gift of John Hill 132 
 
 A Silver Pot, the gift of Jlother Barrel 32 
 
 A Pax* of silver, parcel gilt, witli a crucifix of iron lOl 
 
 A Pax, the gift of Robert Jermjn, parcel gilt ISJ 
 
 A Pax, the gift of Isabel Boolington, parcel gilt I3J 
 
 A Cross, with Mary and John, clean gilt 45i 
 
 A Cross, the gift of Robt. Djster, silver and gilt 53i 
 
 A Pix of silver, and parcel gilt 2IJ 
 
 A Chrysmatorv of silver, parcel gilt, for oil and cream 22 
 
 A Little Chrysmatory of silver and enamelled, to bear in the Holy Oil of ex- 
 treme Unction, which cost lOs. Id above 1 
 
 A Ship of silver, and parcel gilt, the gift of Foot 9i 
 
 Another Ship of silver, parcel gilt, the Batchellor's gift 13j 
 
 The said Ship was given Anno 1517. 
 
 Two Silver Candlesticks, parcel gilt, the gift of Old John Smith 61 
 
 A Censer, the gift of Trinity Guild, parcel gilt 33j 
 
 Another Censer, the gift of our Lady Guild, parcel gilt 31i 
 
 Two Cruetts of silver, parcel gilt, the gift of young John Deek lOi 
 
 Other two Cruetts of silver, parcel gilt, the gift of Mr. Roger Smith .... 13i 
 
 * The Pax, a piece of metal with the picture of Jesus Christ upon it, was solemnly ten- 
 dered to all, at the conclusion of the Mass, to kiss, typical of the Kiss of Peace, This ce- 
 remony is now universally disused. 
 IS 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 ■ Hereafter, specifieth of all such Jeicells, with other ornaments, pertaining 
 to Our Lady Chappel, in Melford aforesaid. 
 
 First, a Girdle, the gift of 3Iad. Broke, of silver, and enamelled with ten Barrs, and the 
 
 Corse is green, weighing with the Corse 12i oz- Now it is stolen, 
 A Red Girdle, the gift of Mad. Tye, weighing with the Cross 4 oz. Now stolen. 
 Ten Langets of silver, the gift of the said Alice Tye, weighing l^oz. with the strings. 
 
 RINGS OF SILVER AND SOME GILT. 
 
 Three Rings upon the Apron of Our Lady. Two Little Rings, one shelling another. 
 
 Four Little Rings shelled together, in silver. 
 
 Upon the said Apron, a spon of silver, which spon was broken, to set in, the stones about 
 
 our Lady. 
 An Ouch of gold, and enamelled, with one stone in the midst of it, with three perls about if. 
 A Pair of Beads, of Coral, with the Pater Noster of silver, and upon the same Beads 
 
 one piece of Coral, closed in silver, and one buckle of silver. 
 A Pair of small Jett Beads, with a Button of silver and gilt, for the Crede, and upon the 
 
 same Beads be twenty-three small round beads of silver. 
 A Stone, enclosed with silver, and gilt, with the Trinity graven on the backside. 
 A Lyon, or Lebard, parcel gilt, with a chain to the same. 
 A Piece of Corall, closed in silver, the gift of Alice Tye. 
 A Buckle, with ten Stones, set in the same. 
 A Buckle of silver and gilt, with thirteen square chequers upon it. 
 A Buckle, with three stones in it, and three are out. 
 An Agnus Dei, enclosed in silver and gilt. 
 
 Two other, like hoops, with either of them four branches upon them, of silver. 
 Ten other small buckles, whereof four be silver, and I suppose the other is none. 
 Upon the said Apron eleven grants. One stone closed in cloath. In small pence, 21'J. 
 
 ob. A little Stone closed in silver. Sum of the weight of all these Jewells weighing 
 
 with the Apron 22 oz. 
 
 COATS BELONGING TO OUR LADY. 
 
 First, a Coat for the good days, of cloth of tissue, bordered with white ; and for her son, 
 
 another of the same, in like case. 
 A Coat of crimson velvet, and another for her son, in like case. 
 A Coat of white damask, and another for her son, in like case, bordered about with green 
 
 velvet. 
 An Altar Cloth of white branched damask of the same, bordered with green velvet. 
 A Vestment of green satin. Another Vestment of white fustian. 
 A printed 3Iass-book. Two Corporasses. 
 
 COPES AND VESTMENTS BELONGING TO MELFORD CHURCH, 
 
 As hereafter foUoweth : 
 First, the best Cope of cloth of tissue, the gift of Simond Smith. 
 Another Cope of cloth of tissue, the gift of Robert Ilayward. 
 
 A Cope of red velvet, branched with gold, with the suit of the same, called the Best Suit. 
 A Cope of blue velvet, branched with gold, with a suit of the same. 
 A Cope of red velvet, w ith a suit of the same, called Cokkets Suit. 
 A Cope of red silk, for Good Friday, with the vestment of the same. 
 A Cope of crimson velvet, the gift of Will. Deek, and i\Iargery, his wife. 
 The Suit of the same, the gift of Mrs. Nonnells of London. 
 A Suit of white branched damask, with two Copes to tie same. 
 16 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 A Suit, overworn, of black damask, with the Cope to the same. 
 
 Two Quire Copes of blue sattin. 
 
 A Cope of blue velvet, with stairs. 
 
 A Vestment of red velvet, the gift of John Hills's wife, with the name of Jesus in many 
 places, written in gold, of the same. Belonging to John Hills's Altar. 
 
 Two old Quire Copes. 
 
 A Vestment of cloth of Bawdkin, -with birds, called the Sunday Vestment. 
 
 A Vestment of red sarsnet, the gift of Miriam Court, belonging to Jesus Altar. 
 
 A red Vestment, with green in the midst, the gift of Sir Thomas Turret, Priest, which by 
 his Will, must be in keeping of Jlr. Jlartins Priest, and to be used by his Priest, and 
 kept in the Coffer standing in Jesus He, which Coffer, or Hutch, was of the said Sir Tho- 
 mas's Gift. Belonging to Jesus Altar. 
 
 A Chasuble and two Tunicles of red silk, with birds, whereof the Albs be in decay. Now, 
 amended. 
 
 Thirteen single Chasubles, with some of their Albs in decay. 
 
 A Cope of green velvet, with a suit of the same, the gift of Jone Foot, widow, in the vear 
 of our Lord God 1516. 
 
 ALTAR CLOATHS. 
 
 Two Altar Cloths of tissue and crimson velvet, the gift of John Smith. 
 
 An Altar Cloth of white damask in our Lady Chappel, of the said John Smith's gift. 
 
 An Altar Cloth, the gift of Tliomas Ellis and Roger Fuller, of Cloth of Bawdkyn. 
 
 An Altar Cloth, of blew damask, with garters upon the same Cloth, the gift of Mr. John 
 Clopton, with all such cloths of silk as belongeth to the Sepulchre, 
 
 An Altar Cloth of silk, with blew birds, bordered with blew velvet and blew worsted, the 
 which was made of the old cloth for to bear over the Sacrament. 
 
 MASS BOOKS PERTEINING TO YE CHURCH. 
 
 First, Two Jlass Books belonging to the High Altar. 
 A Mass Book, called Jesus Mass Book. 
 A Mass Book, the gift of John Hill. 
 A Book, the gift of Mr. Roger Smith and Rich. Butler. 
 A Mass Book, the gift of Mr. Thomas Kerver, late Parson of Melford. 
 Two old ]\Iass Books, one at St. James's Chappel, and the other in the Church. 
 A Mass Book, in print, belonging to Our Lady's Chappel. 
 
 A Mass Book, called The Red Mass Book, with many relicks on the same, adorned with 
 Jewells and stones. 
 
 ANTIPHONERS OF THE SAID CHURCH. 
 
 A great Cowcher, the gift of Jlr. Roger Smith. 
 
 A great Cowcher, lying before the Parish Priest. 
 
 A great Anliphoner, lying upon the north side of the Quire, before Jesus Priest, the gift of 
 
 Sir Thomas Turret, Priest. 
 Three other Antiphoners, lying within the said Quire, with two old Portuasses. 
 
 GRAILS. 
 
 Ten Grails, with one old Graile, 
 
 A Written Book of parchment for Priests to study upon, lying in our Lady Chappel, tlie 
 gift of Sir John Jent, Priest. 
 
 PROCESSIONERE. 
 
 Nine Processioners, all vrritten. 
 A Processionary, the gift of Sir Robt. Barret, Priest. 
 Three jNIanuals, one written and two in print. 
 17 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 Two old Martolages. 
 
 One Hj-mnal noted, in paper, the gift of Sir Richard Dodington, Priest. 
 
 An old Ordinal. 
 
 One Hymnal printed, the gift of Sir Edw. Tirrel, Joh. Hill's priest. 
 
 A Processioner, printed, the gift of Will. King. 
 
 ALTAR CLOATHS BELONGING TO YE CHURCH. 
 
 First, Three Altar Cloths for every day, the gift of Jone Foot, widow. 
 Ten Good Altar Cloaths, whereof the three best be the gift of John Foot. 
 Twenty-two Altar Cloths, which are simple. 
 Two Good Altar Cloths belonging to our Lady Chappel. 
 
 One Altar Cloth of diaper, given to tlie High Altar by Mrs. Chester, 1544. In another hand- 
 writing. 
 First, Ten Towels of diaper, good. 
 Four Towels of plain cloth. 
 
 CORPORASSES. 
 
 First, Ten principal Corporasses, of which five, one was of the gift of Mr. John Clopton, 
 and another of the gift of my Lady Clopton ; the third, the gift of Mrs. Court ; the 
 fourth, the gift of Mrs. Catharine Foxmere ; the fifth, the gift of Mrs. Jane Clopton, 
 
 One Corjioras belonging to St. Ann's Altar. 
 
 Another Corporas to Jesus Altar. 
 
 Another Corporas to John Hill's Altar. 
 
 Another Corporas to St. Edmund's Altar. 
 
 Two Corporasses belonging to the Altar of our Lady Chappel. 
 
 A Cloth of blue sUk to bear over the Sacrament, with Chalices of gold embroidered thereon, 
 the gift of Robt. Miller. 
 
 Two Corporasses, with their cloths of crimson velvet, embroidered with gold. 
 
 A Corporas Case, with the Resurrection upon it, embroidered with Images of gold in- 
 wardly. 
 
 All these belong to the High Altar. 
 
 Other Corporasses in the custody of the Chantry Priest. 
 
 COVERLETS. 
 
 First, a Coverlet of linnen and woollen, for the Herse, the gift of Jone Jent. 
 A Pall Cloak, very simple. 
 
 Four Cloths, to lay upon the Altai-, of black buckram. 
 
 An old Coverlet, of linen and woollen, which serves to pluck before the Cross, on Palm 
 Sunday. 
 
 LATTYN PERTAINING TO THE CHURCH. 
 
 Two Great Candlesticks. 
 
 Two Second Candlesticks, lately bought, which are called Secondans. 
 Two Small Candlesticks to the High Altar. 
 Two Small Candlesticks to Jesus Altar, both of Lattyn. 
 
 A Candlestick of Lattin, with ten branches, standing before the Image of Jesus. 
 A Candlestick. 
 
 A Candlestick, ten branches, before St. Ann. 
 
 A Candlestick, with three branches, belonging to the Trinity ; and now the said Candle- 
 stick standcth before the Image of St. Nicholas, 
 A Candlestick with ten branches, standing before the High Altar. 
 18 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 Two little pretty Candlesticks of Lattin, belonging to John Hill's Altar. 
 A Candlestick of Lattin, with ten branches, now in the Vestry. 
 A Candlestick of Lattin, with three branches, now in the Vestry. 
 
 HOLY WATER PAILES OF LATTIN. 
 Two Holy Water Pails of Lattin, with one Holy Water stick of Lattin. 
 
 BASONS AND EWER. 
 
 Two Basons and one Ewer of Lattin. 
 
 To the blessed Sacrament belong two Canopy Cloths. 
 
 Two Great Lectornes of Lattin in the Quire, whereof two of the feet be broken. 
 
 One Censer of copper and gilt. 
 
 One Ewer of pewter. 
 
 A Ladder, the gift of Giles Ellis, standing at the steeple door. 
 
 Three Cross Staves, twain good and one simple. 
 
 CHESTS. 
 A Great Chest, upon the Vestry Cellar, with two great locks to the same, of iron, the gift 
 
 of Mr. Clopton. IVhich two great locks broken by the thieves, Jan. 13, 1531, qua die spo- 
 
 liatafuit ista ecclesia Melfordiensis, 
 Another chest upon the said soler, with one lock. 
 Another plain Hutch there, with one lock. 
 One simple Chest, in the Vestry beneath. 
 Another Chest in the said Vestry. 
 
 Another Chest in the said Vestry, with an old Chest, to lay in Copes, all in the keeping of 
 
 the Sexton. 
 At Jesus Altar, a Chest, the gift of Sir Thomas Turret, priest. 
 Another Chest, at the Quire door, and now in the Vesti-y. 
 In our Lady's Chappel, two old Chests in decay. 
 Another Hutch, in St. Ann's Chappel. 
 
 CROSSES. 
 
 A Cross, of copper and gilt, for the week days. 
 A simple Cross, without ye feet 
 
 CROSS CLOATHS. 
 
 A Cross Cloth, of silk, the gift of Mr. Roger Martin. 
 
 Another Cross Cloth, the gift of Mr. Skern, sometime Parson of Melford. 
 
 Three other Cross Cloths, simple, with one simple Cross Cloth of silk, with three cross 
 
 staves. 
 A Cross Cloth of silk, the Batchellor's gift, 1530, which cost lis. 8d. 
 Two streamers of silk, one the Batchellor's gift, the other of Corpus Christi Guild. 
 Three Banner Cloths, the gift of tlie Guild of our Lady, Corpus Christi, and St. Peter. 
 A Coffer, the gift of Sir Will. Hodson. 
 Two Candlesticks of Lattin, standing at the said Altar. 
 In the Vestry, two short Ladders. 
 
 In the Church-house, a Table of beech, the gift of Mr. Roger Martin. 
 Two otlier Tables lying in the Mole, with one Forme. 
 One Forme in our Lady Chappel, the gift of Jolm Fuller. 
 
 In the Church, two Lanterns, to go with a Visitation, and one of them is in decay. 
 In the Church-house is another Forme. 
 
 At the High Altar, one simple Altai Cloth hanging before the said Altar, for every day. 
 One for Lent, with whips and with angels. 
 
 Before the Image of the Trinity, at the High Altar, one white Cloth. 
 19 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 A Cloth of Adam and Eve, to draw before the High Altar, in time of Lent, called The Veil. 
 
 Before our Lady, one cloth of blue. 
 
 At Jesus Altar, an Altar Cloth painted, the gift of Maid Aleyn of Bury. 
 
 To the said Altar, a Cloth for Lent, painted about with whips and Angels. 
 
 One Cloth, before the Image of Jesus, white. 
 
 Afore our Lady of pyte, at the said Altar, a painted Cloth. 
 
 At St. Ann's Altar, a stained Altar Cloth, for every day. 
 
 At the said Altar, two Cloths, stained with flowers. 
 
 Afore St. Ann, one Cloth, white. 
 
 Afore St. Leonard, one Cloth, white. 
 
 At John Hill's Altar, one simple stained Cloth. 
 
 Over the said Altar is a good stained Cloth of the Trinity, the gift of Robl. Colett. 
 
 At St. Edmund's Altar is a painted Cloth of St. Michael and our Lady. 
 
 Three long Cloths hanging before the Rood Loft, staiued, or painted, with the dawnce of 
 
 Powlis. 
 A Cloth hanging before the Rood, called The Veil, very simple. 
 One Cloth, with a vallon, before the Image of St. Saviour, white. 
 
 A Cloth, the gift of Jone Foot, hanging before the Rood Loft, with three small white napkins. 
 Before St. John the Baptist, a white Cloth, with a vallon. 
 Afore St. John the Evangelist, a stained Cloth. 
 Before St. Peter, a new white Cloth. 
 
 Before St. Anthony, a stained Cloth, with part of the Mount. 
 Two other little Cloths, hanging upon two Tabernacles. 
 Before St. James, a white Cloth. 
 Before St. Catharine, a white Cloth. 
 Before St. Margaret, a stained Cloth. 
 Before Mary Magdalen, a Cloth. 
 Before St. Edmund, a little Cloth. 
 Before St. Sythe, a white Cloth. 
 Before St. George, two drawn Curtains, stained. 
 Before St. Thomas, a simple Cloth. 
 Before the Image of St. Christopher, one Cloth, white. 
 Before the Images of St. Andrew and St. Loy, one Cloth, white. 
 Three other simple Cloths, to cast about divers Saints in the Church, some of them stained, 
 
 and some other, to the sum of thirteen Cloths. 
 In our Lady Chappel, an Altar Cloth, steiined. 
 A black buckram Cloth, upon the Altar. 
 A stained Cloth, hanging before the said Altar. 
 A Cloth, before our Lady Tabernacle. 
 Another Cloth on the other side, before the other Tabernacle, white, and both Cloths the 
 
 gift of John Barker of Acton. 
 Altar Cloths of sattin, of Hrydges in Panes, and with flowers, and a little Image of Jesus 
 
 in the midst of the said Cloth, which INIother Thresser, otherwise called dementi Thres- 
 
 sor, widow, bequeathed and gave to the said Altar of Jesus, which cost 31s. Sd. Anno 
 
 D'ni, 1.526. 
 Two Altar Cloths, white, the gift of the brothers of our Lady Guild, in the year of our 
 
 Lord God 1529. 
 
 Mem. April 6, 1541. There was given to the Church of Melford, two stained 
 Cloths, whereof the one hangeth towards Blr. Martin's He, and the other to be used about 
 the Sepulchre at Easter time, and also a red Coverlet for a fore Cloth to the High Altar. 
 This tatter sentence is written in another hand, 
 
 20 ^ 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORn, SUFFOLK. 
 
 Between two of the windows in the north aisle, within the wall, is in- 
 serted a curious tablet of alabaster, representing the Offering of the 
 Magi ; it is two feet long, by one foot and a half high, sculptured in 
 basso relievo, beautifully executed. The Virgin is reclining upon a 
 couch, with the infant Christ standing in her lap, behind the Virgin is a 
 female figure, perhaps intended for Elizabeth. The three Kings are 
 each presenting an offering ; he who is nearest to Jesus Christ, holds 
 in his left hand a globular vase, while with his right he salutes the new- 
 born infant. 
 
 On the south side of the altar is a large and curious monument to the 
 memory of Sir William Cordell, Knt., of Melford Hall, Speaker of the 
 House of Commons, and Master of the Rolls, in the time of Philip and 
 Mary, and Queen Elizabeth, who married Mary, the daughter of Ri- 
 chard Clopton, Esq. of Fore Hall. His arms are Or, a chewon eitnine 
 between three griffins' heads erased gules. Upon the monument, which is 
 shewn in Plate IH., is the following inscription : — 
 
 " Hie Gulielmus habet requiem Cordellus, avito 
 
 Steramate vir clarus, clarior ingenio. 
 la studiis primos consumpsit fortiter annos, 
 
 Mox et causarum strenuus Actor erat ; 
 Tanta illi Doctrina inerat facundia tanta, 
 
 Ut Parliamenti publica lingua foret ; 
 Postea factus Eques, Regins Arcana Maris 
 
 Consilia et PatriaB grande subibat onus. 
 Factus et est Gustos Rotulorum ; urgente senecta 
 
 In Christo moriens coepit ad astra viam, 
 Pauperibus largus, victum, vestemq. ministrans, 
 
 Insuper Hospitii condidit ille Domum : 
 Hunc sensit Princeps, sensit Respublica tota 
 
 Esse virum meritis & pietate gravem, 
 Vir pius & Justus, quem non a transite recti, 
 
 Sive odium poterat flectere, sive metus. 
 Qui quod pollicitus fuerat servavit et idem 
 
 Qui vitare malos novit amare bonos. 
 Firmus Amicitise Cultor ; convictor amcenus, 
 
 Candidas & vitai factus ad omue decus ; 
 Nee dubium est, qui sic vixit vitamq. reliquit, 
 
 Quid nunc ccelicolos spiritus interagat." 
 
 Plate VT. The Clopton Chapel, or Chantry, upon the north side of 
 the Chancel, is one of the most interesting portions of the building. On 
 the right is seen the piscina, near which was the altar for the officiating 
 priests, and the stalls, or seats, for their occasional accommodation du- 
 ring the Mass, which was offered up for the souls of the deceased. In 
 front is also seen the entrance to the vault, above which is the sepul- 
 chral monument of John Clopton, Esq. of Kentwell Hall, Sheriff" of this 
 County in 1451, and who died in 1497. The arch is open to the Chancel, 
 21 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, MELFORD, SUFFOLK. 
 
 and the slab was always used on Good Friday, for the raising of the 
 Sepulchre, as mentioned in Mr. Martin's Manuscript, which has been 
 previously transcribed. Over this Monument and the Stalls, is a series 
 of tabernacled Niches. But what is most curious, is the richly em- 
 bellished roof of oak, somewhat flat, the beams or rafters of which are 
 painted of a bright red colour, while the panelled surface between each 
 is of a delicate azure, studded with golden stars. Upon the rafters are 
 painted a number of small labels, inscribed 5I]U JEtrcp, and iJ3ra 
 JliCtCp, alternately ; between them, against the cornice, is a succes- 
 sion of shields, blazoned with the arms of Clopton, viz. sable, a bend er- 
 mine between two cuttises, dancette, or, impaling the Arms of the various 
 matches of the family. Below these shields is a wide scroll, commenc- 
 ing from an extended hand at one end, and continuing all round the 
 chapel, containing a verj' long genealogical inscription, in black letter, 
 partly obliterated. The walls appear also to have been nearly covered 
 with Scriptural legends, the whole extremely curious and interesting, as 
 a specimen of the magnificent decoration anciently applied to a sepulchral 
 chapel. 
 
 22 
 
mint (^resdi^'s C!)urcf), 
 
 SUDBURY, SUFFOLK; 
 
 PERPETUAL CURATE. 
 THE REVEREND H.W. WILKINSON, A.M. 
 
 The towu of Sudbury is situated upon the Stour, a considerable river, 
 which forms the southern boundary of the county, and consists of three 
 parishes, All Saints', St. Gregory's, and St. Peter's. It was in this town 
 that Simon, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the reign of Richard II. was 
 born. The east end of the Church of St. Gregory, built by that Prelate, 
 is prominent in our view, Plate I. which is taken from the south side; 
 the edifice is large, and comprises a nave, north and south aisles, with 
 a chancel : at the west end is an embattled Tower. The Chapel on the 
 south side, is called St. Anne's Chapel, and is now the property of the 
 Carter family. It contains two large raised tombs, covered with marble 
 slabs. Over one of them is a mural monument for Thomas Carter, with 
 an English inscription, which records his Benefactions to the Church 
 and the Poor. On one side of the tomb below this Monument, is the 
 following singular inscription. 
 
 H4c solitari^ cell4 
 
 A doloribus et procellis mundi, 
 
 Tutas leconJuntur reliquiae. Tho^. Carter, gen . 
 
 Marmore contiguo a dextris memorati, 
 
 Qui 12"°. Maii Anno Salutis 1706 
 
 .(Etatis suffi 68'°. natalis asterni 1"°. 
 
 De hac vita (ita speramus) migravit in Coelum 
 
 Bonus refertis operibus. 
 
 Vir nominis revera colendi probis ornatus moribus 
 
 militate hac Opiniosissimil fide intemeratus. 
 Ob amplissima beneficia Ecclesia; et Pauperibus coUatus. 
 In posterum omnibus merite celebrandus. 
 Viator 
 Mirum referam 
 Quo die affiavit animam prtrdicttis Titos. Carter 
 AaXs foramen transivit Camelus Sudburiensis 
 Vade 
 Et sis dives si tuj'ac similiter 
 Vale. 
 
 At the east end of the north aisle is the Vestry, in which is still pre- 
 served the head of Simon Sudbury, who was buried here; the magni- 
 ficent tomb erected to his memory in Canterbury Cathedral being only a 
 Cenotaph. The dried flesh remains upon the bones of the skull, which is 
 placed in a grated recess, and on the falling door or flap, is a parchment, 
 with an account of the Archbishop, written in an old hand, as follows : — 
 
 " The head of Simon Theobald, who was bom at Sudbury, and thence called Simon of 
 1 
 
SAINT GREGORY S CHURCH SUDBURY, SUFFOLK. 
 
 Sudbury ; he was sent when but a youth into foreign parts to study the civil law, where 
 he was made Doctor ; he visited most of the Universities in France, and was made Chap- 
 lain to Pope Innocent, and Auditor of his Rota, a Judge of the Romish court. By the in- 
 terest of the Pope he was made Chancellor of Salisbury in the year I36I. He was after- 
 wards Bishop of London, and in the year 1374, he was translated to the See of Canter- 
 bury, and made Chancellor of England. While he was Bishop of London, he built the 
 upper end of St. Gregorie's Church at Sudbury, and where his father's house stood he 
 erected a college of secular priests, and endowed it with the yearly revenue of one hun- 
 dred and twenty-two pounds, eighteen shillings, and was at length barbarously beheaded 
 upon Tower-hill in London, by the rabble in ^Vat Tyler's rebellion in the reign of Richard 
 11. 1322. 
 
 The general effect of the interior of this Church is fine. Some frag- 
 ments of the painted glass with which it appears the windows were for- 
 merly adorned still remain in various parts. In the journal of William 
 Dowsing, the parliamentary visitor, appointed under a warrant from the 
 Earl of Manchester for demolishing the superstitious pictures and orna- 
 ments of Churches within this county in 1G43 and 1644, is the following 
 entry, " Gregory Parish, 9th January, we brake down ten mighty great 
 angels in glass, in all eighty." Against the westernmost pillar, on the north 
 side of the Church is the very curious octagonal and ancient Baptismal 
 font represented in Plate 2; the cover in wood of rich workmanship is 
 heightened by painting and gilding, and is probably of the date of Henry 
 the Sixth's reign. The lower compartment opens like a closet, when the 
 ceremony is performed. Tt rises in arches and pinnacles to a canopy, 
 whence the whole is screened from the dust by a dark blue curtain. The 
 Font is of stone, and appears to be of much earlier date than its orna- 
 mented cover. The roof is of oak, and near the chancel end some origi- 
 nal tracery remains, with a series of angels on the string course. Three of 
 the bosses in the north Aisle are carved, viz. 1. The Virgin, within a 
 wreath or garland. 2. A Shield, bearing a Boar passant, within a 
 border engrailed. 3. A Tortile Oak Branch. 
 
 The Altar is very plain, having only the monogram I. H. S. in the 
 centre, and over the decalogue cherubim heads. Against the north wall 
 of the Aisle is an elegant monument sculptured by John Bacon, junior, 
 thus inscribed : — 
 
 .loannis Newman, A.i\I. Parochife, in hoc comitatu, parvs Cornearth dictas, nuper 
 Rectoris, mortalis esse desit Augusti die 10, A. D. 1814, annus natus 67. Non minus in- 
 tegritate vita;, quam singulare benevolentia, notus qualis autem erat in amicorum cogna- 
 torumque pectoribus, non in caduco marmore inscriptum superest. In eodem depositum 
 est tumulo quod quid fuit mortale Priscills et Joannis Gibbon, supra dicti, u.voris et filii, ilia 
 obiit Novembris die 20, A.D. 1803, annos natu 47, hie Februarii 1, A. D. 1805, Annus 
 natus 22. 
 
 Under this monument are three tombs, coveied with large black mar- 
 ble slabs, in memory of members of the family of Warner, 1C97, &c. 
 Also one for the Carter family, dated 1088. Close to the slabs is a very- 
 large stone, thirteen feet long by six feet w iJe, with indents of brasses, 
 but which has long been deprived of the plates. 
 

Cj)t C|)urt|) of ^t. 3o\)n t\)t Baptist. 
 
 CROYDON, SURREY ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. J. C. LOCKWOOD, M. A. 
 
 The magnificent Palace of the Primate of all England procured cele- 
 brity to this town, in very early periods of history. The Archbishops 
 of Canterbury have possessed the manor from the time of the Norman 
 Conquest, and Croydon was the place of their occasional retirement, when 
 those Prelates enjoyed their utmost plenitude of power, and the enor- 
 mous revenues which enabled them almost to equal royalty itself, in the 
 splendour of their establishment, and in the profusion of their hospita- 
 lity. The Church, from the earliest time, was appropriated to the Arch- 
 bishopric, and to the munificence of successive Prelates the present 
 building doubtless owes its existence. The ancient Palace, no longer 
 belonging to the archbishops of Canterbury, is now in a state of great 
 dilapidation, and is inhabited by Messrs. Starey, Bleachers, &c. ; but 
 the Church still retains its primary appearance, and has been selected 
 for the attention of our readers as one of the finest and most interesting 
 examples of Ecclesiastical architecture in this county. It stands at the 
 bottom of the town, contiguous to the site of the Palace, a portion of 
 which was added to the Church-yard, about the year 1808. 
 
 Plate 1. — The exterior view, represents the north side of the Church, 
 which consists of a spacious nave, north and south aisles, and chancel, 
 extending in length 130 feet. The tower at the west end, is very lofty, 
 and exceedingly well-proportioned, the decorations are chaste and sim- 
 ple, and are more striking from the justness of their disposition, than 
 from their exuberance. This portion of the edifice, judging from the shields 
 bearing the arms of Abp. Chichele, which occupy the spandrils of the 
 arch of entrance, was erected by that Prelate, at the very time that the 
 pointed style had attained its utmost perfection. The Tower is built of 
 flint and stone, and contains a fine peal of eight bells, and a clock. It 
 rises to the height of four stories, and with the exception of the very 
 fine muUioned window over the door, the lower divisions, which derive 
 support from buttresses, are not much ornamented; the chief decora- 
 tion being reserved for the summit, where the buttresses terminate in 
 1 
 
ST. JOHNS CHURCH, CROYDON, SURREY. 
 
 octangular turrets, surmounted by crocketted pinuacles, bearing gilded 
 vanes; at the south-east corner is the Saint's bell, a position usually as- 
 signed to it in the Tower. 
 
 This handsome Tower underwent a thorough repair some years ago, 
 when those parts of the sculptural ornament, which had suffered from the 
 devastation of time, were judiciously restoied with Roman Cement. It 
 is recorded by the following inscription over the door : 
 
 THIS TOWER REPAIRED IN 1807 AND 1808, WILLIAM BROWN 
 AND JOHN PHILLIPSON, CHURCHWARDENS. 
 
 Both on the north and south side is a Porch of entrance : that on the 
 north bears the arms of Archbishop Courtenay, who may be supposed to 
 have erected a portion of the Church in the reign of Richard IT. 
 
 The Chancel, properly so called, has been restored in good taste, 
 which is denoted by the following inscription at the east end. " This 
 Chancel end was repaired and beautified by Alexander Caldcleugh, 
 Esq. in the year 1808." St. Nicholas', or the Bishop's Chapel, at the 
 east end of the South Aisle, was repaired in 1815, and St. Mary's, or 
 Heron's Chapel, at the east end of the North Aisle, was repaired in 1817. 
 
 The interior of this Church, vide Plate 2, embracing the view of the 
 Nave and Chancel, presents a most noble appearance ; the Nave is se- 
 parated from the Aisles on either side by light clustered columns, 
 supporting pointed arches : towards the east end, near the Pulpit, is a 
 column of white marble, with an inscription written by Glover, the au- 
 thor of Leonidas, in memory of Philippa Bourdieu, who died 24th 
 June, 1780, xt. 50. A marble tablet, under tlie above, records the death 
 of James Bourdieu, Esq. of Coombe, in this county, 3d Nov. 1802, a?t. 90. 
 On the wall between the Nave and the Chancel, is a column of white 
 marble, supporting a funereal urn, in memory of Anne, wife of John Bour- 
 dieu, of Golden-square, London, who died 23d March, 1798, act 31. 
 
 The Organ, over the western entrance, was built by Avery, in 1794, 
 who always considered it as his greatest work. Some additions and 
 improvements to this instrument were afterwards made by Elliot, and 
 in its present state it may justly be deemed a perfect specimen of the art. 
 The Font in Heron's Chapel, of an octagon form, has been lately re- 
 stored, after having been laid aside for some time ; it is probably coeval 
 w ith the church ; the quatrefoil panels on its sides arc filled with roses, 
 in one is a lion's head. 
 
 In the Chancel were formerly twelve ancient wooden stalls, of curious 
 workmanship, which were removed to afford space for above a hundred 
 children of the School of Industry, who now have seats here. On the 
 south side of the Altar is the large and handsome monument of Edmund 
 Grindall, Archbishop of Canterbury, born in 1519, at Hensingham, a 
 small village in Cumberland. Under the patronage of Cecil, he attained 
 
 2 
 
riravTiK jrNf'ni 
 
 'INTEBJOTl I-OOSIV-^ 1:aST 
 
*^r 
 
ST. JOHN S CHUKCH, CROYDON, SURREY. 
 
 successively the sees of London, York, and Canterbury: in 1582, he 
 retired to Croydon where he died, July 6, 1583. Upon the tomb are re- 
 presented his arms, viz. Quarterly, or and azure, a ci-oss quartered, ermine 
 and or, between four peahens, collared and counterchanged, impaled veith 
 some of his ecclesiastical dignities. 
 
 On the north wall of the Chancel are tombs to John Pynsent, Esq. 
 Prothonotary.^ ob. iOth August, 16G8; arms, gules on a chevron en- 
 grailed, three mullets argent. And to Maister Henry Mill, and Eliz. his 
 wife, ob. 1575. In the middle of the chancel is a marble slab, inlaid 
 with brass, bearing this inscription : — " Hie jacet Egidiiis Seymer, qui 
 obiit xxii die Decemis Anno Dui. mccccxxx. cujus aie propicietur 
 Deus. 
 
 Plate 3 represents the Chantry, dedicated to St. Nicholas, now called 
 the Bishop's Chapel, at the east end of the South Aisle ; this Chapel ap- 
 pears to have been founded about the year 1450, by Richard Weldon, 
 Esq. and Elizabeth his wife, in whose family the presentation of the in- 
 cumbent continued, until its dissolution, in the first year of the reign of 
 King Edward VI. ; notwithstanding which, it is always said to have been 
 founded for the repose of the soul of John Staflbrd, Bishop of Bath and 
 Wells, who, after Chichele's death, was translated to the See of Canter- 
 bury; and for William Oliver; Vicar of this Church, who probably gave 
 some lands to the Chantry for the support of the officiating Priest, the 
 total income of whom was 14/. I4s. 
 
 The three very handsome monuments of Whitgift, Warham, and 
 Sheldon, shewn in the Engraving, are upon the south side of the 
 Bishop's Chapel, the centre Tomb is the most ancient; the inscriptions, 
 as well as the portraitures, of brass inlaid, have been sacrilegiously torn 
 from it, leaving it in some degree uncertain for whom it was erected, 
 but from the style, and from the armorial bearings with which it is 
 adorned, may be presumed to commemorate Thomas Warham, Esq., 
 the father of the Archbishop of Canterbury of that name, who died at 
 his seat at Haling House, near this town, in 1478, and by will ordered 
 his body to be buried in St. Nicholas' Chantry, before the image of our 
 Lady of Pity, bequeathing legacies for masses, cVc. with a distribution 
 of torches to be used at his Mouth's Mind, at which time it was usual 
 to have the funeral sermon preached. The Haling estate was after- 
 wards exchanged by Archbishop Warham with Henry VIII. for other 
 lands. The tomb is inserted in the wall, and is adorned upon its base 
 with three shields of arms, within quatrefoils, viz. 1. Gules, a jess or, 
 in chief a goat's head couped argent, attired of the second, in base three 
 escallop shells of the third, for Warham. 2. Warham, quartering party 
 per pale two bars. 3. Two bars as before. Over the tomb is raised 
 an obtusely pointed arch, flanked by small angular pillars, and sur- 
 mounted by an ornamented cornice, or moulding, the foliage upon which 
 3 
 
ST. John's church, croydon, surrey. 
 
 is finely sculptured. The soffit of the arch is divided into trefoil-headed 
 panels, with small qiiatrefoils at regular distances. At the back of the 
 recess are the indents of figures of a man and a woman, with labels 
 issuing out of their mouths. Above the whole are three shields, one 
 in the centre and one on each pillar, corresponding in their heraldic 
 bearings with those on the basement : over the centre shield is a helmet 
 and mantling, but the crest is now broken off. 
 
 The costly monument on the side towards the east is that of John 
 Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury, who died at Lambeth Palace, 
 Feb. 28, 1604. His funeral, which took place on the 27th of March 
 following, was attended by the Earl of Worcester and the Lord Zouche, 
 who bore the pall, and Dr. Babington, Bishop of Worcester, who 
 preached the funeral sermon. 
 
 The monument of this much celebrated character is remarkable as the 
 exact counterpart of that of his immediate predecessor. Archbishop 
 Griudal, who lies entombed on the south side of the altar, and both of them 
 very nearly resemble the sepulchral memorial of John Lord Russel, in 
 St. Edmund's Chapel, Westminster Abbey. The archbishop is here re- 
 presented upon a sarcophagus, in his clerical robes, with his hands raised, 
 as in prayer. The figure has been repainted, but in a very coarse un- 
 feeling manner, doing no credit to the workman employed, who, to judge 
 from this specimen, was selected from the lowest grade. The sarco- 
 phagus is placed within an arched recess, the spandrils of which are 
 sculptured with female figures, bearing wreaths of laurel and branches of 
 palm. At the ends of the tomb are Corinthian columns supporting an en- 
 riched entablature surmounted by three shields of arms ; the centre is 
 the largest, and bears the arms of the archbishopric of Canterbury, im- 
 paling. Argent, on a cross Jletiry sable, Jive bezants, for Whitgift. The 
 shield on the dexter side bears the arms of the bishopric of Worcester, 
 impaling Whitgift; and on the sinister shield is the arms of the Deanery 
 of Canterbury, impaling those of Whitgift. The sotHt of the arch, under 
 which the figure reposes, is panelled, with roses in the centre of each. 
 At the back are two genii, one bearing a spade, the other a torch, em- 
 blems of mortality, and holding a tablet within a frame, with the following 
 inscription upon it, written by his Grace's chaplain : 
 
 POST TENEBRAS SPERO LUCEM. 
 
 'Whitgifta Eborum Grirasbeia ad littora nomen 
 Whilgifta emisit felix hoc nomine Grimsbei. 
 Hinc natus, non natus ad banc mox mittitur hospes 
 Londinum : inde novam te, Cantabrigia matrem 
 Insequitur, supraque fidem suavi ubere crescit. 
 Petro fit socius Pembro. Triadique magister 
 Fitque matri, Cathedraique Professor utrique 
 ' £ Cathedra Lincolaa suum petit esse Decanum, 
 
ST, JOHN'S CHURCH, CROYDON, SURREY. 
 
 Mox Wigorn petit esse suum, fit Episcopus illic : 
 Proprseaes Patriae, quo nunquam acceptior alter. 
 Post annos plus sex summum petit Anglia patrem ; 
 Plus quam bis denos fuit Archiepiscopus annos 
 Charior Eliza dubium est an Regi Jacobo. 
 Consul utrique fuit — Sis tu, Croidona testis 
 Pauperibus quam charus erat, queis nubile struxit 
 Hospitium, puerisque scholam, dotemque reliquit. 
 Coelibis hxc vitae soboles qus nota per annos 
 Septuaginta duos nullo enumerabitur ffivo. 
 Invidia hsec cernens moritur ; Patientia vincens 
 Ad summum evecto seternum dat lumen honori." 
 
 In a compartment below the above, are the following lines : 
 
 " Magna Senatoris sunt nomina, pondera et xqua 
 
 Nominibus, quem non utraque juncta premunf! 
 Prssulis aeeedat si summum nomen ad ista 
 
 Pondera quis ferat, aut perferat ilia diu 1 
 Pax vivo grata est, mens recti conscia paeem 
 
 Fert animo, haec mortem non metuisse dedit. 
 Mors requiem membris, animaj coelestia donat 
 
 Gaudia ; sic potuit vincere qui patitur. 
 
 Gratia non miro si fit divina Johannis 
 
 Qui jacet hie, solus credito gratus erat. 
 Nee magis immerito Whitgiftus dicitur idem ; 
 
 Candor in eloquio, pectore candor erat, 
 Candida pauperibus posuit loca, Candida musis; 
 
 E terris moriens Candida dona tulit," 
 
 The other tomb represented upon this plate is a most sumptuous pile 
 to the memory of Archbishop Sheldon, who died in the Palace here, 
 November 9, 1677, in the 80th year of his age, and was buried in this 
 Church by his own particular directions. The general appearance of 
 this monument, which is much admired for the excellence of the execu- 
 tion, exhibits a great want of taste in the violent contrast of black and 
 white in the material of which it is composed, but which was undoubt- 
 edly adopted to increase the general effect, and display the superior 
 workmanship, principally in white marble, to the best advantage. The 
 black marble Altar Tomb, which forms the base of this Monument, is 
 accordingly panelled with white marble, most beautifully sculptured with 
 the sad emblems of mortality, human skulls and bones, apparently heaped 
 together with remorseless indifference, the osteology is indeed uncom- 
 monly fine : upon a large slab is a most exquisite statue of Sheldon him- 
 self, in his Archiepiscopal vestments, reclining upon his left arm, with 
 his mitre on his head, and his crozier in his right hand. There is a won- 
 derful grace in the composition and character of this figure, and the execu- 
 tion has been remarked as most admirable. The head of the Archbishop 
 is really quite a masterpiece of sculpture. This fine monument has been 
 5 
 
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, CROYDON, SURREY. 
 
 unjustly ascribed to foreigners, but is entirely the performance of Joseph 
 Latham, the city mason, of whom no other works are known. 
 
 The Monument rises to a considerable height above the principal 
 figure, and is surmounted by a funereal urn, flaming. Underneath are 
 two Genii, supporting the arms of the Archbishopric of Canterbury, 
 impaling, argent, on a chevron gnlcs, three sheldrakes of the first , on a can- 
 ton of the second, a rose of the last, for Sheldon : under it his motto, FOR- 
 TITER ET SUAVITER, and at the back, within a guideron tablet of white 
 marble, is the following inscription : — 
 
 "Hie jacet Gilbertus Sheldon, Antiqua Sheldoniorum familia, in A^o Staffordi- 
 ensi natus, Oxonii bonis Uteris eruditus, S. Sta Theologiae Doctor insignis ; 
 Coll. Omnium Animarum Custos, prudens, fidelis, Academic Cancellarius muni6- 
 centissimus, Regii Oratorii, Clericus Car. Imo B'mo Martyri Charissimus, sub 
 Serenissimo R. Carolo 2ndo MDCLX. magno illo Instaurationis Anno, Sacelli 
 Palatini Decanus, Londiniensis Episcopus; MDCLXII. in Secretioris Concilii 
 ordinem cooptatus; IMDCLXIII. ad dignitatis Arehiepiscopalis apicem evectus. 
 Vir omnibus negotiis par, omnibus titulis superior, in rebus adversis magnus, 
 in prosperis bonus, utriusque Fortunas Dominus ; Pauperum Parens, Literatorum 
 Patronus, Eeclesia; Stator. De tanto viro parva dicere non expedit ; multa non 
 opus est ; norunt Prssentes. Posteri vis credent : Octogenarius Animam piam et 
 Coelo maturam Deo reddidit V. Id Novembris, MDCLWII. 
 
 At the end of the Archbishop's Monument is a marble slab to the me- 
 mory of Sir Joseph Sheldon, Knt., the eldest son of Ralph Sheldon, Esq., 
 who was the eldest brother of Gilbert, Archbishop of Canterbury. He 
 died 16th August, 1681, a>t. 50. Under a slab in front is buried Daniel 
 Sheldon, Esq., son of the above Ralph, who died 14th February, 1G98, 
 set. 65, and Judith his daughter, who died Dec. 6th, 17-25, a:t. 47. Ano- 
 ther slab covers the body pf Roger Sheldon, Esq., son of Ralph, the 
 elder brother of the Archbishop. He died unmarried. May 30, 1710, 
 
 aet. 71. 
 
 There are also marble slabs in this Chantry for Abp. AVake, Potter, 
 and Herring. Tiie first, now concealed by a Tew, bears this inscription : 
 " Depositum Gulielmi Wake, Archiepiscopi Cantuarieusis, qui obiit XXI\'. Janu- 
 arii Anno Dom. JIDCCXXXVI. a;tatis suiE LXXIX. et EtheUlreda-, uxoris ejus, 
 qua: obiit XI. .\prilis, MDCCXXXV. aitatis sua: LXII." 
 
 The slab which covers the remains of Potter is also concealed by the 
 erection of pews in this part of the Church ; but a neat marble tablet is 
 now affixed on the wall, nearly opposite Sheldon's 3Ionumeut, and is 
 thus inscribed : — 
 
 " Beneath are deposited the remains of the Most Reverend John Potter, D. D., 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, who died October X. BIDCCXLVII., in the LXXIV. 
 year of his age." 
 
 Another slab records — 
 
 " Here lieth the body of the Slost Reverend Thomas Herring, Archbishop of Can- 
 terbury, who died March 13, 1757, aged 64." 
 6 
 
ST. John's church, croydon, surrey. 
 
 There were also the following sepulchral brasses in slabs of marble : — 
 Elizabeth, daughter of John Kynge, and Clementi his wife, who died 
 17th November, A.D. 1689, aet. 21. 
 
 Richard Yeoman, Farmer, of Waddon Courte, ob. 26th December, 
 1590, aet. 90 ; and Thomas Yeomans, ob. April 1st, 1602. 
 
 Another, with figures of Thomas Walshe of Croydon, Gent., and 
 Katherine his wife, daughter of William Butler of Tyes, in Sussex, Gent. ; 
 he died 30th August, 1690. 
 
 Against the east wall of St. Nicholas', or the Bishop's Chapel, is a mo- 
 nument of marble, with a kneeling figure at a prie dieu, inscribed with 
 these words, " Ossa Michaelis sunt hie sita Murgatroida, da pia poste- 
 ritas, ut vere quiete cubent." On a black marble tablet beneath is a 
 long inscription in Latin, by which it appears that he was Steward and 
 Secretary to Archbishop Whitgift, and died 3rd April, 1608, aet. 56. 
 
 Under it is another tomb for Elizabeth Bradbury, daughter to Wil- 
 liam Whitgift of Clavering in Essex, second brother to the Archbishop, 
 who died 'iCth June, 1612, a?t. 38. 
 
 And a black marble slab under Whitgift's tomb, records the memory 
 of Lady Elizabeth Gresham, late wife of Sir ^Villiam Gresham, Knt, 
 who died 9th December, 1632, and lieth here interred, the marble was 
 here placed by her only daughter, H. G. 
 
 The other Chantry Chapel, at the east end of the North Aisle, and 
 dedicated to the Virgin Mary, called Heron's Chapel, is said to have 
 been founded by Sir Reginald de Cobham, Lord Cobham, of Sterborough 
 Castle, in this county, for the repose of his soul, that of his wife Joan, 
 the daughter of Maurice de Berkeley; those of his children, and of all 
 Christian people ; the presentation of the priest was at the same time 
 vested in twelve of the principal inhabitants of Croydon : the first chap- 
 lain that occurs in the register of Archbishop Arundel, is John Parke, 
 in the year 1402. 
 
 Sir Reginald Cobham had a principal command in the English Army 
 at the Battles of Cressy and Poitiers, in the time of Edward III., in 
 whose reign he was summoned to Parliament as a Baron. 
 
 Under a small raised tomb, in this Aisle, was buried Elye Daveye, 
 Citizen and Merchant of London, who died 4th December, 1445 ; he 
 founded an alms-house for seven poor people in Croydon. 
 
 This part of the Church, now generally known by the name of Heron's 
 Chapel, is so called from a large monument against the north wall, as- 
 cended by three steps, representing a man in armour kneeling at a desk, 
 on which is a book opened ; he is attended by his five sons : his wife in 
 the same manner, is attended by eight daughters ; and the following is 
 the inscription: " Tumulus Nicholai Herone, Equitis, sepuiti, primo die 
 septem, 1566. 
 
 There is also a slab to the memory of Marmaduke Wyvel, Esq., se- 
 
 7 
 
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, CROYDON, SURREY. 
 
 cond son to Sir Marmaduke Wyvel, of Constable-Burton, ^it. and 
 Bart., who died 20tli August, 1623, aet. 60; and to 3Iarmaduke Wyvel, 
 Esq., second son to Sir M. Wyvel, Bart., who died 2nd January, 1678, 
 aet. 86. 
 
 The town of Croydon is in Wallington Hundred, ten miles from Lon- 
 don, pleasantly situated in the neighbourhood of Bansted Downs. At the 
 entrance of the town is an hospital, founded and endowed by Archbishop 
 Whitgift, for a warden and decayed house-keepers of Croydon and 
 Lambeth parishes, with a school for boys and girls, and a house for the 
 master, who is required to be a clergyman. Institutions of this nature 
 arose upon the dissolution of monasteries, in the gTants of property to 
 which, the support of the poor was frequently made a condition ; this 
 hospital of the Holy Trinity is one of many instances of the benevolence 
 and humanity of Whitgift, who was the third Archbishop of Canterbury 
 after the Reformation. The building was commenced in the year 1596, 
 and wholly completed about 1602 Never having been rebuilt, it still 
 retains the architectural character of that interesting period of our history 
 — the reign of Queen Elizabeth. At the west end of the Chapel is pre- 
 served a very fine portrait of the founder, inscribed in gold letters, with 
 the follo\ving expressive lines : — 
 
 Feci quod potui ; potui quod, Christe, dedisti ; 
 
 Improba fac melius, si potes, Invidia-: 
 Has Triadi Sancte primo qui struxerat aedes, 
 
 lUius en veraui Frssulis sifigiem. 
 
UORTH WEST V.JZW 
 
CljurcJ) of tf)e f|ol^ %xinit^, 
 
 STRATFORD-UPON-AVON, WARWICKSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. JAMES DAVENPORT, D, D. 
 
 The town of Stratford-upon-Avon, illustrious in British topography as 
 the birth-place of Shakspeare, is situated on the south-western border 
 of the county of Warwick, on a gentle ascent from the banks of the 
 Avon, which rises in a small spring at Naseby, in Northamptonshire; 
 and continuing its meandering course in a south-westerly direction, ap- 
 proaches Stratford in a wide and proudly-swelling stream, unequalled in 
 any other part of its course. The town is distant eight miles south-west 
 from Warwick, and ninety-four miles north-west from London. The 
 Church stands at its south-eastern extremity, from which it is ap- 
 proached by a paved walk, under an avenue of lime-trees, which have 
 been made to form a complete arcade. 
 
 This Church was originally a Rectory, in the patronage of the Bishops 
 of Worcester, in whose diocese it is situate ; and was purchased in the 
 tenth year of Edward III., anno 1337, of Simon Montacute, the then 
 Bishop, by John de Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury, and presented 
 to the chantry which he had 'previously founded in the Chapel of St. 
 Thomas the Martyr, adjoining the south aisle of the Church, which aisle 
 he had rebuilt at Iris own expense. The chantry consisted of five priests, 
 of whom the warden and sub-warden were perpetual, while the others 
 were elected and removed at the warden's pleasure. Many privileges 
 and immunities were procured for it, by the Archbishop, from Edward 
 III. ; and the founder, with other benevolent persons, settled various re- 
 venues upon it, arising from property in Stratford and other places. In 
 the year 1353, Ralph de Stratford, Bishop of London, and nephew of 
 the Archbishop, erected a large substantial mansion of stone, afterwards 
 called the College, adjoining to the western side of the Church-yard, as 
 a residence for the priests. 
 
 To the workmen engaged in this building, consisting of ten carpenters, 
 and ten masons, with their servants, special protection was granted by 
 the King's letters patent, until the edifice should be finished. An ample 
 charter, with many additional privUeges, was granted to the priests by 
 Henry V., in the first year of his reign ; and at some period in the reign 
 of that monarch, it acquired the title of a Collegiate Church, for, in the 
 first year of Henry VI. anno 1423, Richard Praty, afterwards Bishop 
 1 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, 
 
 of Chichester, was appointed warden, by the style of ' Dean of the Col- 
 legiate Church.' Thomas Balsall, D. D. who was appointed Dean in 
 1465, rebuilt the beautiful choir of the Church, as it now exists ; and 
 dying in 1491, was succeeded by Kalph CoUingwode, D. D. and Dean of 
 Lichfield; who, desirous of giving full effect to the work commenced by 
 his predecessor, instituted, with the assent of Sylvester Gygles, then 
 Bishop of Worcester, four boy choristers, nominated and admitted by 
 the warden, to be daily assisting in the celebration of divine service in 
 the Church, and for whose maintenance he conveyed to the foundation 
 certain lands in Stratford, Drayton, and Binton, all in Warwickshire. 
 
 The College had not long been thus completed and endowed, when 
 the celebrated Valor Ecclesiasticus was made, in 1535, by order of 
 Henry "VIII. ; in which it was valued, together with the Church, at the 
 annual sum of 128Z. 9s. \d. ; and in the survey taken at the suppression, 
 in 1546, their value was certified at nearly the same amount. On the 
 dissolution of the College, the Church was erected into a Vicarage, with 
 the jurisdiction of a peculiar ; and it continued in the gift of the succeed- 
 ing Bishops of Worcester, as lords of the Manor of Stratford, until the 
 third year of Edward VI., when Nicholas Heath, at that time Bishop, 
 sold it to John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, afterwards Duke of Northum- 
 berland, upon whose attainder by Queen Mary, it came to the crown, 
 and was presented to by the succeeding Lords of the Manor. The 
 Duchess of Dorset is at present the Patroness. 
 
 Stratford Church is a cruciform structure, consisting of a nave and 
 side aisles, a transept or cross aisle, and a chancel or choir ; with a tow- 
 er rising from the centre of the cross. The precise period of its erection 
 has not been recorded ; Leland conjectures that it occupies the site of 
 an ancient monastery, which appears to have existed here three centuries 
 prior to the Norman invasion, and he states as a supposition, that it was 
 rebuilt by Archbishop Stratford. Camden, in his Britannia, explicitly af- 
 firms, that it was erected by that prelate ; but Dugdale says, that the 
 south aisle only was built by him, and refers it, though erroneously, to 
 the time of the Conqueror. 
 
 The avenue of trees leading to the Church from the town, terminates 
 at the north entrance into the nave, which consists of a handsome 
 porch, buttressed and embattled, and apparently of a later date than 
 the adjoining aisle. Above the door is a pointed window, which is 
 now covered with a tablet commemorating the paving of the avenue, 
 but which formerly gave light to a small room over the porch, the 
 entrance to which is by a staircase in the north aisle. This room, 
 it is probable, was the muniment or record chamber. The nave is a 
 noble structure, supported on each side by six pointed arches, M'hich 
 rise from hexagonal columns : above these the sides are divided into 
 twelve compartments, forming twelve clerestory pointed windows. The 
 principal entrance into this part of the Church is at the west end, 
 •2 
 
\ 
 
 j • 
 
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON. 
 
 under a deeply-recessed pointed arch, over which are three conjoined 
 niches, crowned by elegant and lofty canopies. Above is the great 
 western window, which is nearly equal in width to the nave itself, and 
 is beautifully divided by muUions and tracery. The features of this 
 western part of the Church are correctly depicted in Plate I. Under 
 the great window is the font, a large fluted vase of blue marble, placed 
 there at the commencement of the last century. The nave terminates at 
 the western arch of the tower, which is now occupied by the organ, 
 built by Thomas Swarebrick about the year 1728, and provided for this 
 Church by subscription. In the space beneath the organ-loft there were 
 formerly two altars ; one on the north side dedicated to the Holy Tri- 
 nity, and the other on the south consecrated to the service of St. Peter 
 and St. Paul. A third altar formerly existed in this Church, dedicated 
 to St. Andrew, but its situation is unknown. The roof of the nave was 
 formerly surrounded by ornamented battlements, enriched by pinnacles ; 
 which were taken down in 1764, and rebuilt in a very inferior style. 
 
 At the eastern extremity of the north aisle was a chapel dedicated to 
 the Virgin Mary, which was used by the brotherhood of the Holy Cross, 
 founded at Stratford in 1269, by whom this aisle was repaired in the 
 reign of Henry V. The three steps which led to the altar still remain. 
 The chapel is now wholly oocupied by monuments, principally of the 
 Clopton family, who derive their surname from the manor and mansion- 
 house of Clopton in the parish of Stratford, of which they have continued 
 in possession for upwards of five hundred years. The most ancient mo- 
 nument, of which Plate III. gives an accurate delineation, is on the south 
 side of this aisle; it- consists of an altar-tomb, beneath an obtusely- 
 pointed arch richly decorated, and sustained by four elegant octagonal 
 pillars. The tomb itself is constructed of freestone, and is ornamented 
 with pannels inclosing shields. It is covered by a large slab of marble, 
 without either etfigy or inscription ; but it is believed to be a cenotaph 
 commemorating Sir Hugh Clopton, who was Lord Mayor of London in 
 1492. On the opposite side of the chapel is another raised monument, 
 also represented in Plate III., sustaining two recumbent figures in white 
 marble, of William Clopton, Esq., who died in 1592, and Anne his wife, 
 who died in 1596. He is represented in armour, his head reclining on a 
 crested helmet ; and has his sword and gauntlets by his side, and a lion 
 at his feet. 
 
 Between the monuments just described, as likewise shewn in the same 
 Plate, is another in memory of George Carew, Earl of Totness, and 
 Baron of Clopton, and Joice his Countess, who was eldest daughter of 
 the above-named William Clopton, Esq. Under a spacious ornamented 
 arch, supported by Corinthian columns, are their figures in alabaster, 
 painted to resemble life. The Earl is represented in armour, over which 
 is his mantle of estate ; he has a coronet on his head, and a lion couchaut 
 at his feet. The front of the tomb is of white marble, sculptured with 
 3 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRfNITV, 
 
 warlike engines and insignia, emblematical of the Earl's office as Master 
 General of the Ordnance to Queen Elizabeth. Over the arch, on a large 
 escutcheon, are his armorial bearings, with their quarterings. Within 
 the arch are the three following inscriptions: 
 
 " Thomas Staffordvs, strenwa milit\-m dvctor, in Hibernia, et merifo svo, eqves 
 avratvs ; serenissimis Magns Britaniae Regibvs .Tacobo et Carolo, eonmq. 
 conivgibvs, Aame et Henriettje-MarisE, ob 6delem praestitam operam inter 
 domesticos chairs, quia c\Tn iUvstri comite ejvsq. conivge div familiariter 
 vixit, hie pariter reqviescere volvit, donee Christi redemptoris voce, ad ster- 
 nam gloriam indvendam, raa cvm trivmphati beaton-m coelis resvscitabitvr 
 svperstitib' — valedixit ano. ab exhibito in came Wessia s^'pra millesimv' .... 
 sexcentess . postqvam omnibvs notis gratis annos vixisset " 
 
 D. O. M. 
 et memoriae sacrvm, 
 Qvi in spem imortalitatis, mortales hie deposvit exwias, Georgivs Ca- 
 nEw ■ antiqvissima, nobillissimaq. ortvs prosapise, eadem scilicet mascvia 
 stirpe qva illvstrissimse Giraldinorvm in Hibernia, et Windesoriensivm 
 in Anglia, familije, a Carew Castro in Agro Pembrochiensi, cognomen sor- 
 titvs est. Ab inevnte state bellicis stvdiis invtritvs, ordines in Hibernia 
 adhvc iwenis contra rebellem Desmoniae comitem primvm dvxit. Postea Eli- 
 zabeths foelicissimae memoriae regins, in eodem regno, consiliarivs, et tor- 
 mentorvm bellicorvm praefectvs fvit ; qvo etiam mvnere, in variis expedi- 
 tionibvs, in ilia praesenim louge celeberriiui, qva Gades Hispaniae expvgna- 
 tae svnt, anno m.d.xcvi. foeliciter perfvnctvs est. Demvm, c\Tn Hibernia 
 vniversa domesticas rebellionis et Hispanicae invasionis incendio flagraret, 
 Momoniffi praefectus, per integrvm triennivm contra hostes, tam intemos qvaun 
 extemos, mvlta fortiter £deliterq. gessit. Tandem in Angliam revocatvs a 
 Jacobo Magnae Britannia Rege, ad Baronis de Ciopton dignitatem evectvs, 
 Annae Reginae procamerarivs et thesavrarivs, tormentor\Tn bellicorvm per to- 
 tam Angliam Praefectus, Garnseiae insvlae gvbemator constitvtvs, et in secre- 
 tioris consilii senatvra cooptatvs est. Jacobo deinde ad ccelestem patriam 
 evocato ; Carolo filio vsq. adeo charus fvit, vt inter alia non vvlgaria bene- 
 Toli, affectvs indicia, ab eo Comitis de Totnes honore solenni investitvra ex- 
 ornattis fverit. Tantus \Tr, natalivm splendore illvstris, belli et pacis artibvs 
 omatissimvs, magnos honores propria virtvte consecvtus, cvm ad plenam et 
 advltam senectvtem pervenisset, pie, placideq. animam deo creatori reddidit, 
 Londini, in sdibus Sabavdi* ; anno dominicae incamationis, jvxta Anglica- 
 nam compvtationem, m.dc.xxix. Die Martiixxvij. Vixit annos Ixxiii. menses 
 fere decem. 
 
 Joisia Ciopton, cvivs efEgies, hie cernitw, ex antiqva Cloptonorvm fa- 
 milia, filia primogcnita el haeres, ex semisse, Gvlielmi Ciopton de Ciop- 
 ton armigeri, conivx moestissima viri charissimi, et optime meriti (cum quo 
 vixit annos xlix) memorix pariter ac svae, in spem foelicissimae resvrrec- 
 tionis monumentu. hoc, pro si-premo mvnere, non sine lachrimis, consecia- 
 vit. Ilia vixit annos 78, et 14°. die Februar ; obiit, ano. dni. incamat. 
 M.DC. 36." 
 
 Sir Thomas Stafford is said to have been a natural son of the Earl of 
 
 Totness, to whom, when President of Munster, he was secretary, and 
 
 whose Pacata Hibernia he published, after its author's decease. He 
 
 was gentleman usher to Queen Henrietta iMaria; and he appears to 
 
 4 
 
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON. 
 
 have enjoyed a very intimate friendship with the great Earl of Cork. 
 He desired to be buried near his intimate friends, the Earl and Countess 
 of Totness ; but his wish seems not to have been complied with, for 
 the blanks in the inscription, which, as well as those for his friends, ap- 
 pears to have been written by himself, were never filled up with the 
 time of his death ; nor is there any entry of his burial in the church 
 register. He survived both the Earl and the Countess. 
 
 " Of the life and actions of the Earl of Totness," observes Mr. Wheler, 
 from whose History of, and Guide to Stratford-upon-Avon, our mate- 
 rials for this account of the Church have principally been derived, " a bet- 
 ter account in a compressed form cannot be given, than from the second 
 inscription on the monument, [as above] which is a vigorous and ani- 
 mated composition. He was descended from a most ancient and noble 
 lineage, (in the male line of the illustrious family of the Fitz-Geralds, in 
 Ireland, and the Windsors, in England,) who originally derived their 
 surname from Carew Castle, in Pembrokeshire. From his youth he 
 was bred to the study of the art of war, and very early in life obtained 
 the command of the army in Ireland, against the rebellious Earl of Des- 
 mond. By Queen Elizabeth, he was made a Privy Counsellor, and 
 Master of the Ordnance in that kingdom, under whom he was a fortu- 
 nate commander in several expeditions ; especially in that memorable 
 one when the Spaniards were driven from Cadiz in the year 1596: and 
 when Ireland was inflamed by domestic rebellion, and the Spanish in- 
 vasion, as Governor of ]Munster for the space of three years, he bravely 
 and successfully defended that unhappy country against its enemies, in- 
 ternal and foreign. Being at length recalled into England, he was ad- 
 vanced by King James to the dignity of Baron of Clopton, and made 
 vice-chamberlain and treasurer to Anne his Queen ; Master of the Ord- 
 nance throughout England, Governor of the Island of Guernsey, and a 
 member of the Privy Council. By Charles the First he was no less 
 esteemed ; and among other not common proofs of his regard, he was 
 by him solemnly invested with the dignity of Earl of Totness. Upon 
 such a man, illustrious by the splendour of his birth, and adorned with 
 qualities that rendered him so serviceable to his country in war and peace, 
 were bestowed these honours, the just reward of his virtues. He died 
 without issue, the 27th of March, 1629, in the 74th year of his age ; 
 to whose memory, his sorrowful wife, with whom he lived forty-nine 
 years, erected this monument, as her last gift to the memory of the best 
 of husbands and of men. She died upon the 14th of February, 1636, 
 aged 78." 
 
 On a small tablet aflixed to the wall, between the monument of the 
 Earl and Countess of Totness, and that presumed to be Sir Hugh Clop- 
 ton's, is represented a woman kneeling at a desk, in commemoration of 
 Amy Smith, who was for forty years waiting gentlewoman to the Coun- 
 tess. The inscription is as follows : 
 5 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, 
 
 " Heere lyeth interred ye. body of Mris. Amy Smith, who (being abovt ye. age 
 of 60 yeares, and a maide,) departed this life, at Nonsvch in Svrrey, the 
 13th day of Sep. Ao. dni. 1626. She attended vpon the Right Hoble Joyce, 
 Ladie Carew, Covntesse of Totnes, as her waiting gentlewoman, ye. space 
 of 40 years together. Being very desirovs in her life tyme, that after her 
 death she might be laide in this Chvrch of Stratford, where her lady ye. sayd 
 Covntesse also herselfe intended to be bvried ; and accordinglie to fvlfiU her 
 request, & for her so long trew and faithfvl servise, ye. saide Right Hoble 
 Covntesse, as an evident toaken of her affection towards her, not onely 
 cavsed her body to be brovght from Nonsvch heitlier, & here honorably 
 bvryed, bvt also did cavse this monvnient and svperscription to be erected, 
 in a gratefuU memorie of her, whom she had fovn so good a servant." 
 
 Against the east wall is the monument of Sir Edward Walker, Knt. 
 Garter King at Arms, one of those faithful royalists who suffered so 
 much in the cause of the unhappy Charles. His fidelity was rewarded, 
 after the Restoration, by the above dignity : he died suddenly at White- 
 hall, on the 20th of February, 1676, aged 65. There are other monu- 
 ments in memory of various branches of the Clopton family. 
 
 The south aisle as represented in Plate II., is strengthened with but- 
 tresses, terminating in foliaged pinnacles; and at the south-western angle 
 is a circular staircase, which has the appearance, externally, of an oc- 
 tagonal embattled tower. This aisle was built by John de Stratford, in 
 the early part of the fourteenth century. At the east end he erected a 
 Chapel, which he dedicated to St. Thomas a Becket, the ascent to the 
 altar of which still remains, and near it, in the south wall, are three va- 
 cant canopied niches. Upon the front of the central canopy is sculptured 
 a Pelican, feeding her young with the blood from her breast, symbolical 
 of the Passion of Christ. Against the eastern wall of this aisle is a large 
 monument to the memory of Sir Reginald Forster, Bart., and Dame 
 Mary, his wife, daughter of Edward Nash, Esq., of East Greenwich, in 
 Kent. The transept, according to Dugdale, was eVected towards the 
 close of the fifteenth century, by the executors of Sir Hugh Clopton ; but 
 as its architectural characters resemble those of the Tower, which is cer- 
 tainly of much greater antiquity than that period, it was most probably 
 only repaired by them. Until 1773, the southern extremity of the transept 
 was used as the sacristy, but a small brick building was then erected 
 for that purpose, in a tasteless style, against the eastern side of the tran- 
 sept, and the southern wall of the chancel. The most ancient of the 
 monuments in the transept is at the south end, against the western wall. 
 It consists of a raised altar-tomb, within an arch, and rudely sculptured, 
 over which are four inscriptions, now almost obliterated. The first is 
 in the Hebrew language, being the twenty-first verse of the first chap- 
 ter of Job, expressive of the instability of human affairs. The second 
 inscription is in Greek ; it states that the earth and this tomb cover the 
 corporeal part of the deceased, and that the heavens possess his spirit 
 and soul. The third and fourth inscriptions are as follows: 
 6 
 
^ 
 ^ 
 
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON. 
 
 " Hie nvtritvs erat, uatvs, nvnc hie jacet Hillvs 
 Hicqve magistratvs fama ter muuere fvnctvs, 
 Cvmqve bonos aunos vixisset septvaginta 
 Ad terram corpvs, sed mens migravit ad astra. 
 
 Heare borne, heare lived, heare died, and bvried heare, 
 
 Lieth Richarde Hil, thrise bailif of this Borrow ; 
 
 Too matrones of good fame, he married in Codes feare. 
 
 And now releast in joi, he reasts from worldlie sorrow. 
 
 Heare Ueth Intombd the corps of Richarde Hill, 
 
 A Woollen Draper beeing in his time, 
 
 Whose virtves live, whose fame dooth florish stil, 
 
 Thovgh hee Hpsnlvfrl br to dvst and Slime. 
 
 A mirror he, and parterne mat he made, ' 
 
 For svch as shall svckcead him in that trade ; 
 
 He did not vse to sweare, to glose, eathei faigne, 
 
 His brother to defravde in barganioge ; 
 
 Hee woold not strive to get excessive gaine 
 
 In ani cloath or other kinde of thinge : 
 
 His servant, S. 1. this trveth can testifie, 
 
 A witness that beheld it with mi eie." 
 
 The tomb does not bear any date, but it appears from the register, 
 that Mr. Richard Hill, Alderman, was buried on the 17th of December, 
 1593. In the transept, likewise, among many other monuments of no 
 particular interest, is a memorial to Mr. Nathaniel Mason, an attorney 
 of Stratford, the inscription of which, in not inelegant Latin, was com- 
 posed by Somervile the poet. 
 
 The chancel, the eastern part of which is represented in Plate IV., 
 is the most beautiful as well as the most perfect division of this Church, 
 and was erected between the years 1465 and 1491, by Thomas Balsall, 
 D. D., who then held the office of Dean. It is separated from the tran- 
 sept by an oaken screen, which originally formed a part of the ancient 
 rood-loft ; and which was glazed in the year 1813. Five large orna- 
 mented windows on each side, give light to the chancel ; they were for- 
 merly decorated with painted glass, the remains of which were taken 
 out in the year 1790, and transferred to the centre of the great eastern 
 window, where they still remain, though in a very confused state. On 
 each side of the eastern window is a niche, boldly finished in the 
 Florid style of pointed architecture. In the south wall, near the altar, 
 are three similar niches, conjoined, in which were placed the concessus, 
 or seats, for the priests officiating at mass ; and immediately adjoining 
 them is the piscina. These objects are all shewn in the Plate. On 
 each side of the chancel is a range of stalls belonging to the ancient 
 choir, remarkable for the grotesque carvings which ornament the lower 
 part of each seat. 
 
 Erected against the north wall, within the communion rail, is a curious 
 altar-tomb, of alabaster, to the memory of Dean Balsall, who died in 
 
 7 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, 
 
 1491. The front is divided into five compartments, in each of which is 
 sculptured some remarkable event in the history of our Saviour : 1st 
 The Flagellation; 2nd. The Leading to the Crucifixion; 3rd. The Cru- 
 cifixion ; 4th. The Entombment ; 5th. The Resurrection. At the west 
 e«d are two niches, in one of which is the figure of a saint, and in the 
 other are three figures of doubtful appropriation. At the east end are 
 likewise two niches, one containing the figure of a saint, and the other 
 three figures, one of which appears to represent St. James. This tomb, 
 which has formerly been painted, is seven feet six inches in length, by 
 about three feet si:x iuchco in Uolght, and is covered by a slab of mar- 
 ble, in which an engraved brass figure of Dean Balsall, and an inscrip- 
 tion, were originally inlaid, but have been long since torn away. The 
 letters t. ti. the initials of his name, and iJ) U, carved in stone, still re- 
 main in several places. Against the eastern wall of the chancel is a 
 monument, in memory of John Combe, Esq., the subject of a well- 
 known satirical epitapli, ascribed to Shakspeare ; he died on the 10th 
 of July, 1614. 
 
 On the uorth wall, near the tomb of Dean Balsall, and elevated about 
 five feet from the pavement, over the spot which enshrines his remains, 
 is the monument of William Shakspeare, likewise depicted in Plate 
 IV. A bust represents the immortal bard in the attitude of poetic inspi- 
 ration, with a pen in his right hand, a cushion before him, and his left hand 
 resting on a scroll. It is placed under an arch and entablature, supported 
 by Corinthian columns of black marble, with gilded bases and capitals. 
 This bust was originally painted to resemble life ; the eyes being of a light 
 hazel, and the hair and beard auburn. The dress consisted of a scarlet 
 doublet, over which was a loose black gown without sleeves ; the upper 
 part of the cushion before him was green, and the lower part crimson, 
 with gilt tassels. In the year 1748, the monument was repaired, and the 
 bust carefully repainted, the expenses being defrayed by the receipts aris- 
 ing from the performance of Othello, in the Old Town Hall, on the 9th 
 of September, 1746 ; the play was performed by a company under the 
 management of Mr. John Ward, the grandfather of Messrs. J. and C 
 Kemble, and of Mrs. Siddons, a notice of whom will be found in our 
 account of Leominster Church, where he was buried. In 1793, the 
 bust, as well as the two figures on each side of the arms, was painted 
 white, at the request of the late Mr. Malone ; an act of barbarous taste, 
 which was severely satirized in an epigram, written in the album kept in 
 the chancel, and which has often been repeated. Above the entablature, 
 and surmounted by a death's head, are the Poet's armorial bearings ; 
 viz. or, on a bend sable, a tilting spear of the first, point upwards 
 headed argent : — crest, upon an esquire's helmet, a falcon rising, argent, 
 supporting a spear in pale or. 
 
 On each side of the sort of pier containing the arms, is a figure of a 
 8 
 
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON. 
 
 child in a sitting posture ; that on the right holds a spade, and that On 
 the left, whose eyes are closed, an inverted torch, with his right 
 hand resting on a skull. Under the bust, between the bases of the co- 
 lumns, are the following inscriptions : 
 
 ludicio Pylivm, genio Socratem, arte Maronem, 
 
 Terra tegit, Populus meeret, Olympvs habet. 
 
 Stay passenger, why goest thov by so fast. 
 Read, if thou canst, whom envious death hath plast 
 Within this monvment, Shakspeare, with whome 
 Qvick Nature dide ; whose name doth deck ys. tombe 
 Far more then cost ; sith all yt. he hath writt, 
 Leaves living art, bvt page to serve his witt. 
 
 Obiit Ano. Uoi. 1616. ^tatis 53, Die 23. Ap. 
 
 Below the monument, upon the stone covering the Poet's grave, are 
 the subjoined curious lines, said to have been written by himself: 
 
 Good fiend for Jesvs sake forbeare, 
 To digg the dvst encloased heare ; 
 Bleste be ye. man yt. spares thes stones, 
 And cvrst be he yt. moves my bones. 
 
 Tt has been presumed from the imprecation in these lines, and from 
 some passages in Hamlet, and in Romeo and Juliet, that Shakspeare 
 held in great horror the custom of removing bones from the grave to the 
 charnel-house ; he might perhaps have been witness of the practice in 
 this Church, and in viewing the immense pile of human bones deposited 
 in the charnel-house, which we shall presently describe, might have ap- 
 prehended that his own relics would eventually be added to them. They 
 have however remained undisturbed. 
 
 Considerable discussion has taken place respecting the authenticity of 
 the bust in Shakspeare's monument, as a portrait of the Poet ; but on a 
 review of the circumstances attending its history and erection, it seems 
 most probable that it may be relied upon as an accurate representation 
 of our Bard : it was probably erected at the charge of his son-in-law. 
 Dr. Hall, a learned and skilful physician ; and some verses addressed 
 to the Poet's memory by Leonard Digges, which are among the few tri- 
 butes of that kind prefixed to the first folio edition of his plays, prove 
 it to have been erected within seven years after his decease. 
 
 Mr. Wheler, in his Guide to Stratford, has discussed the probability of 
 this bust's having been sculptured by Thomas Stanton, who carved the 
 monumental busts of Richard and Judith Combe, likewise in the chan- 
 cel; and who is also conjectured to have executed the monument of Lord 
 Totness, already described. The probable conclusion is, that it was 
 sculptured by him : and as the similarity of style observable in the two 
 monuments indicates them to have been the works of the same artist, 
 the strong resemblance which the figure of Lord Totness bears to the 
 9 
 
CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, 
 
 paintings of that nobleman, is adverted to by Mr. Whaler, as corrobo- 
 rative evidence of the fidelity of Shakspeare's bust, as a likeness. 
 
 An elegant work has just appeared (March, 1824,) from the pen of 
 Mr. Boaden,in which the evidence on which the various representations of 
 Shakspeare claim to be received as authentic portraits, is minutely ex- 
 amined ; the following remarks on the " Stratford Bust" are extracted 
 from the section on that subject. 
 
 " The first remark that occurs on viewing this bust is, that it presents 
 our Bard in the act of composition, and iu his gayest mood. The vis 
 coinica so brightens his countenance, that it is hardly a stretch of fancy 
 to suppose him in the actual creation of FalstafF himself. Very sure I 
 am, that the figure must long have continued a source of infinite delight 
 to those who had enjoyed his convivial qualities. Among this circle, it 
 is nearly certain the artist himself was to be reckoned. The performance 
 is not too good for a native sculptor. . . . The contour of the head is 
 well given. The lips are very carefully carved ; but the eyes appear to 
 me to be of a very poor character; the curves of the lids have no grace — 
 the eyes themselves have no protecting prominences of bone, and the 
 whole of this important feature is tame and superficial. The nose is thin 
 and delicate, like that of the Chandos head ; but I am afraid a little 
 curtailed, to allow for an enormous interval between the point of it and 
 the mouth, which is occupied by very solid mustaches, curved and 
 turned up, as objects of some importance in that whiskered age. Yet I 
 must acknowledge, that the distance between the mouth and nose is ra- 
 ther greater than is common, in both the folio head and the Chandos 
 picture. There was perhaps some exaggeration here in the bust : viewed 
 in front, it consequently looks irregular and out of drawing — in profile, 
 this disparity is somewhat recovered. 
 
 " From what picture it was taken we are not informed. It was not from 
 the Chandos head — the costume is totally different. It was not from 
 Droeshout's original, for the same reason ; and for another, assigned in 
 its proper place. It has been suggested, that it might have had the cer- 
 tain model of a mask taken from the face of the deceased ; and on this 
 point, our sculptors express dift'erent opinions. However, with all abate- 
 ments as to the artist's skill, who was neither a NoUekens nor a Chan- 
 trey, he most probably had so many means of right information, worked 
 so near the Bard's time, and was so conscious of the importance of his 
 task, that this must always be regarded as a pleasing and faithful, if not 
 a flattering resemblance of the great poet." 
 
 The series of engravings given by Mr. Boaden, is to be held as con- 
 taining, in his opinion, " every thing that on any authority can be called 
 Shakspeare ; and they each of them, alone, possess very strong evidence 
 of authenticity. Droeshout's print is attested by Ben Jonson, and by 
 his partners in the theatre. The Stratford monument was erected by his 
 10 
 
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON. 
 
 son-in-law, Dr. Hall, and executed probably by Thomas Stanton, who 
 could not but know his person, and probably had some cast to Work 
 from. The Chandos picture is traced up to Taylor, the poet's Hamlet, 
 and was, no doubt, painted by Burbage. The head by Cornelius Jan- 
 sen, is marked by that painter decidedly Shakspeare, and every rea- 
 sonable presumption assures us that it was painted for Lord Southamp- 
 ton. The head by Marshall seems to have been copied by him from 
 a head by Payne, who reduced that by Droeshout, with some vari- 
 ations in the dress and attitude." What light these portraits throw 
 upon each other, and thus verify the whole, Mr. Boaden has brought 
 most strikingly before the spectator, by shewing the heads as nearly 
 as was practicable, in the same size, and in the same direction : and 
 the rational deduction from a comparison of them, and of the evidence 
 by which they are supported, undoubtedly is, that they are all authentic 
 portraits of Shakspeare. 
 
 To return from the digression into which we have been led by this in- 
 teresting subject :— 
 
 Between Shakspeare's grave and the north wall are buried the remains 
 of his widow, to whom is the following inscription, engraved on a brass 
 plate affixed to the grave-stone. 
 
 " Heere lyeth interred the body of Anne, wife of William Shakespeare, who 
 depted this life the 6th day of Avgv, 1623, being of the age of 67 yeares. 
 " Vbera, tu mater, tu lac vitamq. dedisti, 
 Vse mihi ; pro tanto munere saxa dabo! 
 Quam mallem, amoueat lapidem, bonus Angel' ore' 
 
 Exeat ut Christi Corpus, imago tua ; 
 Sed nil vota valent, venias cito Christe, restirget, 
 Clausa licet tumulo mater, et astra petet. 
 
 On the opposite side of the Poet's grave are those of several other 
 members of his family: viz. Dr. John Hall, and Susannah his wife, the 
 Poet's eldest daughter, who, as the grave-stone formerly set forth, was 
 " witty above her sex;" he died on the 25th of November, 1635, aged 
 60, and she on the 11th of July, 1649, aged 66.; and Thomas Nash, 
 Esq., who married Elizabeth their only child, and died on the 4th of 
 April, 1647, aged 53. 
 
 There are in the chancel, as well as in the other divisions of this Church, 
 numerous monuments of inferior interest ; and throughout the edifice the 
 pavement is covered with the almost obliterated memorials of the dead. 
 
 On the northern side of the chancel, just beyond the stalls, is an or- 
 namented door-way, formerly the entrance into the crypt or charnel- 
 house, which, from its style of architecture, the early Norman, appears 
 to have been the most ancient part of the Church It was taken down 
 in 1800, in consequence of its dilapidated condition ; and the immense 
 pile of bones it contained was carefully arched over. 
 11 
 
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON CHURCH. 
 
 The tower rises from four pointed arches, sustained by massive clus- 
 tered pillars ; and contains six musical bells. It was originally crowned 
 by a timber spire, covered with lead, and about forty-two feet in height : 
 this was taken down in 1763, and the present spire of Warwick hewn 
 stone erected in the following year, by an architect from Warwick. 
 
 The dimensions of Stratford Church are as follows :— The Nave is 
 103 feet long, 28 wide, 50 high; Side Aisles, each, 103 long, 20 wide, 
 25 high ; Transept, 94 long, 28 wide, 30 high ; Chaiicel, 66 long, 28 wide, 
 40 high; Total length, from East to West, 197; Tower, 28 square, 80 
 high; Spire, 83 high. 
 
 The living of Stratford is a discharged Vicarage, valued in the King's 
 Books at 20/. 
 
 Subjoined is a representation of the remaining part of the ancient 
 Font of Stratford Church, which originally stood in the south aisle, 
 opposite the door, nearly under the second arch of the nave from the 
 west. It has been noticed that the Font now in use was put up at the 
 commencement of the last century, at which period this portion of the 
 ancient one was removed to the residence, in Church Street, of Thomas 
 Paine, the then Parish Clerk, who died in 1747. In this situation it 
 remained until 1823 ; but having since its removal from the Church been 
 applied to the ignoble purpose of a Water Cistern, until the present 
 owner, Capt. Saunders, of Stratford, obtained possession of it, it had 
 sustained considerable injury: although from the cavities made for receiv- 
 ing an iron brace, or hoop, it appears to have suffered more severely from 
 the destructive hand of fanaticism, at the period of the Civil Wars, when 
 several other ornaments of the Church were mutilated or demolished. — 
 It is conjectured that the Font was set up in the reign of Edward III., 
 when John de Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury, erected the south 
 aisle in which it was situated ; but this mutilated relic (of which the base 
 and shaft are lost) derives greater interest from the probability, if not the 
 certainty, of its having been the Font wherein the Bard of Avon and his 
 family were baptized. 
 
 12 
 
T^Ts^rsi tyTATWallis 
 
Cjje Cj)iirci) oi g)t. imr anti ^u ^aul, 
 
 MARLBOROUGH, WILTSHIRE; 
 
 RECTOR, 
 THE REV. BARTHOLOMEW BUCKERFIELD, M. A. 
 
 The Town of Marlborough, or as it was anciently called, Marleberg, 
 and sometimes Marlebridge, is situated 75 miles west of London, on the 
 great road to Bath and Bristol. The pleasant valley in which it is 
 built is watered by the Kennet, and bounded to the north and west by 
 that extensive tract of land known by the name of the Marlborough 
 Downs, whilst the noble forest of Savernake occupies the south-eastern 
 district. The Town itself is of great antiquity, and is supposed to have 
 been built on or near the site of the Roman station, Cunetio. There are 
 also remains of several religious houses, particularly a priory of the order 
 of St. Augustin, which subsisted before the reign of King John. It was 
 a royal foundation dedicated to St. Margaret. At present Marlborough 
 is a small but flourishing town, containing about 4,000 inhabitants, 
 and divided into two parishes. The churches stand at either extremity 
 of a broad, handsome street, which gives them an imposing appearance. 
 That of St. Mary the Virgin is toward the East. The Church of St. 
 Peter and St. Paul, at the western extremity of the Town, forms a fine 
 termination to the main street, already alluded to. It was probably 
 erected early in the fifteenth century, as we find in the church manu- 
 scripts, bearing date from 1555 to 1701, that in the year 1576 it was 
 found necessary to " new buyld the pynnakels of the tovvre." Now as 
 the pinnacles of this Church are of a very substantial form, and better 
 calculated to withstand the fury of the tempest than such exposed parts 
 frequently are ; and as there is every reason to suppose that they were 
 originally built in the same form, we may safely conclude that the original 
 pinnacles did stand, without need of being rebuilt, for a century or more, 
 which will carry back the existence of the Church to at least the begin- 
 ning of the fifteenth century. 
 
 Plate I. The Tower of this Church forms a very beautiful object 
 to the surrounding neighbourhood, from whatever point it may be 
 viewed. It is finely proportioned, and consists of three stories, exclusive 
 of the battlements. The angles are ornamented with graduated octan- 
 gular turrets, surmounted with pinnacles, each bearing a vane. The 
 whole rises to the height of 116 feet. A staircase to the top is concealed 
 in the south-east turret. The walls are cased with a species of free- 
 1 
 
ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, MARLBOROUGH, WILTSHIRE. 
 
 stone, very capable of resisting the attacks of the atmosphere. The 
 Church consists, besides the Tower, of a Nave, with side Aisles, a Chan- 
 cel, and convenient Vestries ; the exterior length is 131 feet, and the 
 breadth 53. There is no appearance of the Church having undergone 
 any material alteration since its first erection, and consequently it pre- 
 serves much of its original character. The principal entrance to the 
 Church is through a porch on the south side, near the Tower. This 
 may possibly be a later erection than the rest of the building. There 
 were also four other entrances, two of which are walled up, and one on 
 either side of the Chancel is left open. 
 
 Plate II. — This View includes a great portion of the Church, com- 
 prehending the Nave, Aisles, and part of the Chaucel. The internal 
 length, including the Chancel and the old Vestry, is 120 feet; and the 
 breadth, including the Aisles, is 47 ft. Gin. The Nave, exclusive of the 
 Chancel and old Vestry, is 66 ft. 6 in. Iqng. 
 
 The clustered pillars of the Nave, separating it from the Aisles, have 
 a particularly light appearance. They are generally 12 feet distant from 
 each other, though the distance, especially in the south range, is by 
 no means regular, nor are the pillars in the two ranges respectively op- 
 posite to each other. The light is admitted through plain but hand- 
 some and uniform muUioned windows in the Aisles. The Pulpit, of an 
 octagonal shape, and the Reading-desk, are situated against the first pillar 
 of the Nave, from the Chancel : they are of oak, handsomely carved 
 and panelled. Opposite are the seats of the mayor, justices, and bur- 
 gesses of the town. The roof of the Nave is ceiled in compartments, 
 ornamented with quatre-foils and other devices, richly gilt, at the inter- 
 sections. The Chancel is vaulted with stone, as is also the roof of the 
 porch, over which is a small room about nine feet square. In the wall 
 of the north Aisle are appearances of there having been formerly a stair- 
 case leading to the rood loft. At the west end of the Nave is a hand- 
 some Gallery of oak, which was probably erected as long ago as the 
 year 1625. Above it stands a fine-toued organ, given to the Church in 
 1820, by the late N. Merriman, Esq. 
 
 Amongst the Monuments in this Church the most ancient are the fol- 
 lowing. One against the north wall of the Chaucel to the memory of 
 three children of the Lord Chief Justice Hyde. It represents two small 
 figures kneeling, opposite to each other, with a sort of desk and books 
 between them. On a tablet underneath is the following inscription : 
 
 HERE LYE THE BODIES OF TWO SONNES AND A DAVGHTER, OF S*" NICOLAS 
 HYDE, KNIGHT, LO. CHEIFE IVSTICE OF \' KINGS-BENCH, AND OF y' LADYE 
 MARYE, HIS WIFE : THAT IS ROBERT, BVRIED 24 IAN'^, 1626. FRANCIS, BV- 
 BIED 28 lAN'y, 1626, ELIZABETH, BVRIED 28 FEBRv''', 1626. 
 
 WEE SHALL COE TO THEM, BVT THEY SHALL NOT RLTVRNt TO VS. 2 Sam. 
 12. 23. 
 
ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, MARLBOROUGH, WILTSHIRE. 
 
 Arms, azure, a chevron, charged with a mullet gnles, between three 
 fusils, or. 
 
 On the wall is also a large marble monument to the memory of one 
 of the Coghills. On the same wall is an inscription for 
 
 Aan Savery, daughter of Farewell Perry, M. A. (many years rector of this Pa- 
 rish,) and wife to Servington Savery, A.M. ob. June 5, 1734, at. 45. 
 
 Opposite to this is a large mural monument, of Sienna marble, with 
 white marble tablets, to the memory of several members of the Clavering 
 family, of whom the reverend Robert Clavering, M. A. of Ch. Ch. Ox- 
 ford, was rector of this parish, and vicar of Preshute. 
 
 On the first pillar in the nave on the south side is a marble monument, 
 to 
 
 HUMFREDI WALL Gen : Ob. 29, die Jan. Anno Dom. 1719. .Etat. suae 75. 
 
 MARTHA Uxor ejus Ob. Apr. 1698, Ai.ta.U 41. Filia Wilhelmi Tarrant, Gen. 
 
 Qui ob. 19 Maij 1631 .Etat. 63. Et Maria; conjugis ejus Ob. Feb. 1686, .Etat. 62. 
 
 Elisabetha etiam uxor ejus 2''" Filiae ThomjE Chamberlayne Armig'. De Odding- 
 
 ton in AgTo Gloucestrensi Obijt 4° die Nov. 1725, /Etatis 83. 
 
 In this Church are also interred the families of Lipyeat, Baylye, 
 Dansie, Westmacott, Dalrymple, Brathwaite, Hawkes, Merriman, Hal- 
 comb, Warner, Pinckney, Hancock, &c. &c. 
 
 The ground story of the tower has lately been converted into a hand- 
 some vestry room, about fourteen feet square, the vaulting of which is 
 ribbed and groined in a style of great beauty. 
 
 In the floor is inserted a highly polished black marble slab, of great 
 size, bearing the following inscription in massive letters of brass. 
 
 '^ O S A ITaTgi, Xj Tiw, Xj YIubv. 'Ayiu, fl; it ufxn, X; »w», k^ afi. Afunt. 
 
 H. s. J. 
 
 IN SPE GLORI.E IMMORTALIS EXUVI/E MORTALES 
 
 FRAN. FRANCIS UXORIS, RIG. FRANCIS, FILIl, 
 
 MART. ID. A.D. MDCCLXVII. MART. KAL. V. A. D. MDCCLXXIX. 
 
 VIXIT ANN. LVI. VIXIT ANN. XXXIX. 
 
 GUL. FRANCIS, MARITI, FRAN. FRANCIS, FILIS, 
 
 I>EC. NON. VI. KAL. JUN. XVI. 
 
 A.D. MDCCLXXXIV. A.D. MDCCC.XVI. 
 
 ^IXIT ANN. LXXVI. | VIXIT. ANN. LXIX. 
 
 QUIESCANT IN PACE. 
 
 L. P. 
 
 CAR. FRANCIS. S. 
 
 A. D. MDCCCXVII. 
 
ST. PETER AND ST. PAUL, MARLBOROUGH, WILTSHIRE. 
 
 Underneath the inscription, which is much admired for its classic ele- 
 gance, are the arms of Francis, Argent, a chevron between three eagles 
 displayed, gules. 
 
 There are several black marble, and other slabs, on which are the im- 
 pressions of brass figures and inscriptions, but these have long been lost. 
 
 Within the communion rail, a black marble slab records the death of 
 the Rev. Edward Cressett, in the following words : — 
 
 Here lies the body of Edward Cressett, 51. A. of Oriel Coll. in Oxford, practicer 
 of Physic, who lived a most affectionate son of the Church of England, and be- 
 queathed 160i. to be improved to the equal and perpetual benefit of the minister 
 of this church, and the minister of St. Mary's in this Towne, whilst continuing as 
 then by law established, but when otherwise, then to the alms house in the marsh 
 there. He exchanged this life for a better, Aprill 12th, 1693, and in yeare of his 
 age 108. 
 
 Marlborough is in the Hundred of Selkleigh, and the diocese and 
 deanery of Sarum. St. Mary's church is a vicarage, valued in the 
 King's books at 10/. 9s. lOrf. and is in the patronage of the Dean. St. 
 Peter's is a rectory valued at 12/., and is in the gift of the Bishop. 
 
 Dimensions of St. Peter's Church, Marlborough. 
 
 ft. in. 
 
 25 
 
 Height of first story of Tower to 
 
 the moulding 33 
 
 Second Do. Do. 25 
 Third Do. Do. 
 From thence to top of Battle- 
 ments 
 
 From Battlements to stone 
 
 ball of pinnacles 20 
 
 Of weather-cock, spindles, 
 
 and copper balls 6 
 
 Length, whole of Church : 
 
 Interior 120 
 
 Of Body, exclusive of Chan- 
 cel, Old Vestrj-, &c 66 
 
 Of Chancel 19 
 
 OfOldVesU-y 26 
 
 Breadth, whole of Church : 
 
 Interior 47 
 
 6 
 
 ft. 
 OfNave 19 
 
 Of Side Aisles 12 
 
 Porch, inside, 12ft. 6in. by 9ft. 
 
 Outside east and west. ... 13 
 Ditto, outside side next the Tower, 
 
 6ft. ; next the Church 12 
 
 Tower, square of inside ground 
 
 Boor (New Vestry) 14 
 
 Square of 1st Do. (Belfry). . 14 
 Square of 2nd and 3rd Do. 
 clock loft and bell chamber 14 
 Externally tliere only appear 3 stories. 
 Internally there are 4 floors, viz. 
 The Ground Floor is the Vestry. 
 1st Do. Belfry. 
 
 2nd Do. Clock loft. 
 
 3rd Do. Bell chamber. 
 
1 
 
> 
 
 V . 
 
CJ)e C!)urdj oi m faints, 
 
 EVESHAM, WORCESTERSHIRE; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. H. P. COOPER. 
 
 1 HE Vale of Evesham, now so remarkable for its beauty and fertility, 
 was once equally celebrated for the magnificent Abbey, traditionally 
 founded, as early as the year 709, by St. Egwin, for Benedictine monks, 
 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary. • All Saints Church, as well as 
 that of St. Lawrence, now in ruins, which stands near it, was origi- 
 nally appropriated to the Abbey, as a subordinate Chapel. The 
 Priest who officiated therein was called a Chaplain, and had the same 
 allowance daily from the Cellar and Buttery, as the rest of the Monks of 
 the Abbey. 
 
 The Church stands near an ancient Gateway, within the Cemetery 
 of the two Parishes of All Saints and St. Lawrence, which is a large 
 square planted with trees. The exact date of its erection is not known, 
 but it is mentioned in a deed about 1226. At the west end is an em- 
 battled Tower with small pinnacles at the angles, and in a style of 
 architecture which corresponds greatly with that period ; it is surmounted 
 by an octagonal spire, terminated with a vane. The Porch, 12 feet 
 by 10, projecting from the base of the Tower, built by Clement Lich- 
 field, Abbot in the reign of Henry VIII, is of very beautiful construc- 
 tion, ornamented with a series of trefoil-headed arches on its exterior, 
 and is adorned with an open worked parapet. The annexed View ex- 
 hibits the general character of the building, and includes nearly the 
 whole south side of the Church. The pointed windows of the Nave are 
 divided into three trefoil-headed lights, with quatrefoil compartments 
 above ; but in the south aisle, or projecting portion seen in the Plate, the 
 windows are larger and more lofty : the lights are here divided by tran- 
 soms, and the embattled parapet is pierced with small light arches, while 
 the buttresses partake of a more ornamental style of architecture. The 
 body of the Church is nearly 130 feet in length, and its greatest breadth 
 including the north and south aisles, is 73 feet. The Aisles are sepa- 
 rated from the body by four Arches of unequal dimensions, those at 
 the east end being nearly double the size of the rest. Against the East 
 wall of the Chancel is a monument to the Rev. John Mitchell, LL. B., 
 vicar of this Church, who died Sept. 9, 1724, a:t. 41 ; Sarah, his wife, 
 and three children. Arms, party per pale, sable and argent, a chevron 
 1 
 
ALL SAINTS, EVESHAM, WORCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 between tivo heads erased, connterchanged of the field, Mitchell, impaling 
 ■paly of six, argent and gules a bend or. On the North side of the 
 Chancel is a small monument to Adam Cave, Gent, ob. 18 Oct. 1698, 
 set. 29, arms, vert,fretty argent ; and others to the same family. 
 
 About the middle of the South Aisle is the sepulchral Chapel of Cle- 
 ment Lichfield, the 55th Abbot of Evesham, who after having endowed 
 his Convent with many elegant ornaments, and useful additions, had 
 the mortification to witness the total demolition of all. He was elected 
 28th Dec. 1513, and resigned in 1533, in favor of Philip Hawford, who 
 was then created Abbot for the sole purpose of surrendering the Abbey 
 to the crown, which event took place 17th Nov. that same year, when 
 its site was granted by Henry VIH., to Sir Philip Hobby, Kt., for the 
 sum of 891/. 10s.; and the splendid edifice erected before the reign of 
 Henry III., was soon afterwards demolished, except the handsome 
 Tower erected by Clement Lichfield, which is 117 feet high, and con- 
 tains a peal of eight bells, there being but one in the Spire of the Church. 
 The Abbot after his resignation retired to Oftenhani, a country resid- 
 ence of the Abbot's near this place, where it is most probable he died. 
 He is buried in this Chapel built by himself, on the south side of the 
 Church. It is 16 feet by 13 in extent, and of beautiful florid architec- 
 
 ture. On the fretted Ceiling are the initals, rtf% upon an escutcheon. 
 The Abbot's monument is now defaced, but is described in Habington's 
 MSS. collected in the reign of Charles I., towards a History of the 
 County : " At the entrance of this Chapel, lyeth humbled on the ground, 
 the resemblance of an Abbot, truly great, in leaving the dignity of his 
 high place, and wise, when, foreseeing the storm that overthrew this 
 with other Religious Houses, he struck sail to avoid shipwreck. His 
 resemblance is engraved at the altar, in prayer. On his right hand, Et 
 in virlule tua judica me. Below on one side, Quia in inferno nulla est 
 redcmplio. On the opposite. Miserere mei Dens, et salva me. Under- 
 neath his feet, an inscription, which was also painted on one of the win- 
 dows, Orate pro Anima Domini Clement is Lichfield Sacerdotis, emus 
 tempore Nova Turris Evcshamensis cedificata est. He was buried, as 
 appears by the Register book, October 9, 1546." 
 
 The North Aisle was formerly called Derby Chapel, and its windows 
 were adorned in stained glass, with the well known cognizance of the 
 ^taideys, as Lords of the Isle of Man ; viz. Gules three armed, legs con- 
 joined argent, three times repeated, together with the armorial coats of 
 Sudeley, Mortimer, and others, with that of the Abbey of Evesham : 
 azure, a chain in chevron, with a ring on the dexter and a Horse lock on 
 the sinister, between three mitres or; all which are now destroyed. 
 
GREAT MALVERN, WORCESTERSHIRE ; 
 
 VICAR, 
 THE REV. HENRY CARD, D.D. F.R.S. F.A.S. F.R.S.L. 
 
 On the eastern declivity of the Malvern Bills, near the entrance of the 
 valley between the Worcestershire Beacon and North Hill, is situated 
 the healthful and picturesque Village of Great Malvern. The build- 
 ings are pleasantly interspersed amidst orchards, gardens, and planta- 
 tions ; and the scenery of the neighbourhood combines, in their happiest 
 union, the romantic, the beautiful, and the sublime. Hygeia presides 
 over its springs ; and the lyre of Poesy has frequently been strung in 
 admiration of its varied charms. 
 
 But it is not to its situation alone, nor to the delightful prospects 
 which its vicinity affords, that Malvern is indebted for its attractions. 
 The salubrity of its Wells, and the interest excited by its Church, 
 which exhibits in its Architecture a very beautiful example of the latest 
 period of the Pointed Style, furnish additional sources of healthful plea- 
 sure, and mental gratification. 
 
 Malvern has long been celebrated in Ecclesiastical History ; and the 
 Village itself owes its origin to an Hennitage, or Priory, which ac- 
 cording to Thomas, who wrote an account of its Antiquities and Church, 
 in Latin, (temp. James I.) was founded here, " in the wild forest," an- 
 terior to the Norman Invasion. This establishment was for Seculars ; 
 and our author states that Urso D'Abitot, or D'Abtot, a Norman 
 Baron, who possessed considerable estates in this County, was the 
 founder. In this Thomas has been contradicted, there being no men- 
 tion of D'Abtot's name in either of the two Charters granted to the 
 Priory by King Henry the First. If not the founder, however, it is 
 evident that Urso was a benefactor very soon after the Conquest ; there 
 being extant a rather curious grant made by him to the Malvern brother- 
 hood, (vide Nash's Hist, of Worcestershire, vol. ii. p. 266, note,) to 
 which, among the witnesses, is ' Athelisa Vicecomitissa,' the Sheriff's 
 Lady, his own wife. That some kind of a religious house was founded 
 here prior to the Conquest, is apparent from a Charter of Henry the 
 1 
 
First's, referred to iu Dugdale's Monasticon, which mentions that it was 
 endowed by King Edward the Confessor. 
 
 A somewhat different account of this foundation has been given in 
 Nash's History, viz. '■ Before the Conquest, Malvern was a wilder- 
 ness thick set with trees, and some Monks, who aspired to greater sanc- 
 tity, retired [thither] from the Priory of Worcester, and became Her- 
 mits. The enthusiasm spread so rapidly that their number soon in- 
 creased to three hundred; when, forming themselves into a Society, 
 they agreed to live according to the Order of St. Benedict, and elected 
 Aldwin, one of their company, to be Superior." Nash refers to William 
 of Malmsbury, as his authority for this statement ; but in respect to the 
 number of brethren congregated under Aldwin, or Aldewine, he is in- 
 correct ; Malmsbury 's words being,—' TTsque ad /jf'cenarium numerum,' 
 that is, thirt)', and not frccenarium, or three hundred. He was proba- 
 bly misled by Habyugton, the author of an account of this Priory, 
 which was dedicated to Queen Elizabeth, and printed in lo9G; and 
 in which Habyngdon has fallen into the same mistake. 
 
 In the " Anital. Wigoniienses,' Aldwin is expressly called tlie/oz;nrfer, 
 from the circumstance, as Habyngton rationally conjectures, of his hav- 
 ing " begged of the charity of others, as much as perfected this founda- 
 tion." He appears to have been one of the Anchorites at Malvern ; — 
 and about the year 1083, he was persuaded by St. Wolstan, Bishop of 
 W^orcester, to become a Benedictine Monk, instead of making a pilgrim- 
 age to Jerusalem, as he had previously intended, with assurances that 
 his place at Malvern would be wonderfully favoured by God : these as- 
 surances he is said to have lived to see fulfilled in a very considerable 
 degree ; the benefactions which he obtained by his zeal having enabled 
 him to found a Priory and Church for thirty monks, in honour of the 
 Virgin Mary. One of the principal benefactors was Gislebertus Ciispi- 
 nus. Abbot of Westminster, who, with the consent of his Convent, as- 
 signed several estates and manors to the new foundation ; stipulating, 
 as it should seem, that the future patronage of the Priory should be- 
 long to his own establishment : hence the Abbots of Westminster al- 
 ways claimed the approval and confirmation of the Priors of Malvern; 
 though it was not without many disputes that they maintained their pri- 
 vileges, Malvern, therefore, was regarded as a subordinate Cell to the 
 Abbey Church ; and the Dean and Chapter of Westminster have lands 
 in its vicinity at the present time. 
 
 Henry the First was a considerable donor to this Priory; besides con- 
 firming all former grants by his Charter, dated in 1127, he bestowed 
 various lands upon its inmates. In 1159, William Burdett gave to God, 
 and St. Mary of Malvern, all the land he had in Aucott in ^Varwick- 
 shire, with the mill, &c. and other possessions, for the foundation of a 
 Cell for four monks. Another Cell, subordinate to Malvern, was after- 
 wards founded at Brockbury, in the parish of Colwall, in Hereford- 
 shire. 
 
Bishop Latimer, about the period of the dissolution, petitioned that 
 two or three religious houses in each county, and in particular, that of 
 Great Malvern, might remain, and their revenues be applied to the 
 purposes of education ; but this was overruled by the cupidity of Henry 
 the Eighth's counsellors. When the Priory was dissolved, the value 
 of its possessions was estimated, according to Dugdale, at 308Z. Is. 5Jd. ; 
 and according to Speed, at 375Z. 0s.6rf. In the thirty-sixth of Henry VIII., 
 the Priory demesne was granted to William Pinnock, who transferred it 
 to John Knotesford, Sergeant at Arms, by whose descendants it was sold 
 to James Oliver, of the city of Worcester, aboirt the year 1774. Queen 
 Elizabeth, in her thirty-first year, granted to Richard Braythewayte, 
 and Roger Bromley, and their heirs, all the tythes of lambs, pigs, calves, 
 eggs, hemp, and flax, and the oblations of the Parish, and of the Chap- 
 pel of St. Leonard, on condition of their paying 8/. yearly to the Vicar, 
 and 8s. 2d. to the archdeacon of Worcester, " in respect of a synodal 
 and procuration, issuing out of the said tythes." The Priory Gateway 
 still remains in tolerable preservation ; together with an ancient and 
 somewhat curious wooden edifice, supposed to have been the Refectory 
 and Audit Hall, which has been converted into a barn with stabling. 
 
 The Church is a large and spacious structure, built in the form of a 
 cross, and having a lofty tower rising from the intersection of the nave 
 and transept. Formerly, two Chapels were attached to it, which have 
 been destroyed ; viz. one at the east end, consecrated to the Virgin 
 Mary ; and another on the south side. After'the conveyance of the 
 Priory demesne to John Knotesford, Esq., as mentioned above, this 
 edifice was purchased from him by the inhabitants of Malvern for 200Z., 
 and made parochial. The Patron of the Living is Edward Foley, Esq., 
 of Stoke Edith Park, in Herefordshire. 
 
 The more ancient parts of this fabric, which are principally confined 
 to the massive columns and arches of the nave, are of early Norman 
 architecture ; but the rest of the building is in the pointed style of Henry 
 the Seventh's time. That munificent Patron of the arts. Sir Reginald 
 Bray, K. G., who was a native of St. John's, Worcester, was the archi- 
 tect; and under his superintendance the Church assumed that appearance 
 . and character which have rendered it the admiration of every person con- 
 versant in elegant design, and ingenious workmanship. Sir Reginald's 
 great abilities, and his zealous attachment to the Lancastrian cause, oc- 
 casioned him to enjoy the entire friendship of his Sovereign ; and Henry 
 himself, his Queen, and his family, are reported to have assisted him in 
 renovating and embellishing this interesting pile. The painted and 
 stained glass that formerly adorned the windows, and of which many 
 beautiful specimens still remain, though greatly misplaced and mutilated, 
 are, in particular, stated to have been executed at the charge of those 
 illustrious personages. 
 
 During the lapse of centuries, and through the culpable neglect of 
 those who ought to have attended to its preservation, this Church be- 
 .3 
 
came greatly dilapidated ; so much so, indeed, that about the year 
 1788, it is described as being in such a ruinous state, " that it could 
 not be used with either convenience or safety ; the roof, when it rained, 
 admitting much water; the seats being mouldy and decayed ; the walls 
 and floor dreadfully damp, (for some parts of the Church were subject to 
 be flooded,) and the ivy allowed to pierce through the broken windows, 
 and cover a large portion of the east end of the fabric." In this forlorn 
 state it continued till about the years 1012 and 1013, when the roof and 
 ceiling were repaired, and the ivy entirely cut away; the expenses being 
 defrayed by a subscription principally raised among the nobility and 
 gentry of the surrounding country. Much, however, yet remained to be 
 done; when in a propitious hour, in 101.5, the Rev. Dr. Card wasin- 
 ducted to this Vicarage ; and that gentleman immediately directed his 
 attention to the repairs which were still requisite. Through his activity 
 and zeal, a further subscription was obtained; and the Church, within 
 three years afterwards, was placed in that complete state of reparation 
 and improvement in which it now appears. 
 
 From many points of view this structure is seen to great advantage, 
 and particularly from the north, as represented in Plate I. The tower, 
 which rises to the elevation of 124 feet, is finely ornamented with a 
 pierced battlement, and corresponding pinnacles, which are rather pecu- 
 liarly designed, as may be seen in the engraving. Elegant tracery adorns 
 the windows ; and the open-work of the embattlements westward from the 
 transept, gives an agreeable lightness to the upper part of the walls. On 
 the north side, there is a considerable descent to the Church, from the 
 irregularity of the ground. In the tower are six bells and a set of chimes. 
 
 The interior has a neat and impressive character : its length is 173 
 feet, and its breadth 63 feet; the height of the nave is 63 feet. When 
 the sun's rays are beheld streaming through the rich tints of its coloured 
 glass, the effiect is very fine. The nave is neatly pewed ; and in a 
 handsome galleiy near the entrance in the north-aisle is a good organ. 
 On the front of the gallery are the arms of her late royal highness the 
 Princess Charlotte of Wales, together with those of his serene highness 
 Prince Leopold, her husband. The pews of Earl Beauchamp and Ed- 
 ward Foley, Esq. are respectively ornamented, in front, with their armo-. 
 rial bearings. On each side the chancel, are placed the ancient stalls of 
 the monks, the under parts, or siib-sella, of which exhibit various 
 grotesque and other carvings in basso-relievo. Among them are the 
 following subjects ; which have been rudely etched by the late John 
 Carter, in the second Volume of his " Ancient Sculpture and Painting." 
 — 1. A Man on his death-bed, with a Priest at his head and a Doctor 
 at his feet, to whom he is offering bags of wealth to secure their aid. 2. 
 A Monk driving away the Devil, by propelling wind into his fundament 
 with a pair of bellows. 3. A Gardener holding a staff and garden-hook 
 with plants, <S:c. by his side. 4. A Man with a basket of fruit on his 
 right arm : in his left hand he holds up a pine. 5. A Male figure sus- 
 4 
 
taining a large goblet in each hand ; probably meant as an emblem of 
 gluttony, bis belly appearing to swag on the table before him, upon 
 which are remains of a repast. G. An Angel playing on a cittern. 
 
 The altar-piece consists of an entablature supported by columns of the 
 Ionic order, in the pannels between which, the Lord's Prayer, the 
 Creed, and the Commandments are neatly painted. Near it, on each side, 
 are ranged a number of the curiously inscribed Tiles, which formed a 
 part of the pavement of the ancient Church, intermixed with others on 
 which the armorial bearings of divers benefactors were represented. 
 Each tile is about five inches and a quarter square, in superficial extent ; 
 and nearly an inch and a half in thickness. They are mostly of a dark 
 red, or brown colour : the arms and letters have been impressed on them 
 when soft, and the indents afterwards filled up with a different coloured 
 clay ; as orange, &c. The inscription on the greater number of the tiles 
 is as follows : 
 
 €\)tnU . mon . jii . (iffe . 
 mat . not . cu . enDure . 
 pat. poia . Do.sit. jii. ^tlt 
 of . pat . potu . art . ^utre . 
 but . pat . poto . gebiiot . 
 un . to . pi . ^tctm . cure . 
 anti . cu . \)\t . abailc . pc . 
 tjit . i.^ . but . abcnture . 
 
 When divested of its obsolete orthography, this inscription might be 
 rendered thus : — Think, man ! tliy life will not endure for ever. What 
 thou dost thyself, of that thou art certain ; but what thou leavest to thy 
 executors' care, it is but a chance that it will ever avail thee. — Another 
 tile of the same kind is fixed against the large column on the north side, 
 near the entrance to the chancel; and various others, collected from dif- 
 ferent parts of the floor during the late repairs, have been used for facing 
 a low semicircular wall at the east end of the Church. Among the ar- 
 morial bearings on these tiles were those of Edward the Confessor, 
 and of many ancient baronial families ; particularly Bohun, Earl of 
 Northampton ; Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick ; Mortimer, Earl of 
 March ; Clare, Earl of Gloucester ; and Beauchamp, of Powick. Ac- 
 cording to Nash, the date of the tiles about the choir, is 1463 ; viz. 36th 
 of Henry the J»ixth. 
 
 Most, if not all of the windows of this edifice were very richly embel- 
 lished with painted glass, on which numerous subjects from Scripture 
 were depicted ; and likewise the etfigies of benefactors with their arms 
 on their surcoats. Though much of it has been destroyed, from culpable 
 neglect, and wilful devastation, there is still sufficient remaining to attest 
 its original splendour ; but the difl'erent series of historical representa- 
 tions are in every instance incomplete ; and only a few of the portraits 
 now exist. 
 
In the sixteen lower compartments of the great east wiudow, were tha 
 principal events of our Saviour's life and passion ; but nearly the whole 
 has been broken ; and the remaining fragments are so confusedly mis- 
 placed that no subject can be traced. In the upper divisions are the 
 twelve Apostles, with other figures. This window is shewn in Plate III., 
 the view being taken from the north side of the Church, near the entrance 
 of the transept. 
 
 In the third window from the east, on the north side, are the arms of 
 Westminster Abbey ; together with several transactions of the Monk 
 Aldwin, relating to his procuring Letters Patent for the foundation of 
 this Church from Pope Gregory the Seventh and William the Conqueror. 
 In the fourth window, the Crucifixion is represented in three divisions : 
 in the centre is Jesus upon the cross, on the right is St. John the Evange- 
 list and the Virgin Mary, and on the left, the Centurion speaking to his 
 soldiers. In the fifth window is a seraph, a cherub, and an avch-augel: se- 
 veral figures were removed from this part into the west window, when 
 the latter was glazed during the recent improvements. In the ninth 
 window is St. Peter, but greatly mutilated. 
 
 In the great west wiudow was origiually a representation of the Day 
 of Judgment, said to have been " not inferior to the paintings of Michael 
 Angelo." The whole however was demolished by unruly bovs, who, 
 whilst the Church remained in its dilapidated state, were wilfully suffered 
 to throw stones at the various figures thereon delineated. Under the 
 directions of the present Vicar, aided by a benefaction of 50/. from the 
 late Princess Charlotte of Wales, and Prince Leopold, her consort, this 
 window has been again resplendently filled with painted glass, brought 
 from less observable situations in other parts of the Church. The prin- 
 cipal recognized figures are St. Lawrence and St. George, the others 
 are Popes, Bishops, Saints, <i:c. 
 
 In the fourth window from the east, on the south side, are twelve 
 Scriptural subjects, commencing with the Creation, and ending with the 
 infancy of Cain, viz. 1. The Almighty forming the earth out of a chaos 
 of confused atoms. 2. God creating the moon and the stars. 3, 4, and 
 5. God creating the plants, the fowls of the air, and the trees and 
 beasts of the field. 6. God creating Man out of the dust of the ground. 
 7. Adam in a deep sleep, and God taking a rib from his left side to create 
 Woman. 8. God leading Adam and Eve into Paradise. 9. Adam 
 and Eve eating the forbidden fruit. 10. Adam and Eve hiding them- 
 selves among the trees in the garden. 11. The Angel of the Lord ex- 
 pelling Adam and Eve from Paradise. 12. Adam tilling the ground, 
 and Eve witli Cain upon her knee. 
 
 In the fifth window was the history of Noah, but the only subjects 
 not utterly mutilated, are these : — the Almighty appearing to Xoah, and 
 commanding him to build an Ark; and Noah sending out the Dove to 
 see if the Deluge had subsided. In the sixth window were the stories of 
 Abraham and Isaac, but the only events now intelligible are as follow : 
 6 
 
GffiEAT MAJLVEBN CHUmCH, 
 
 VfOKCESTERSHlRE °^ 
 
 1 -nars Sead tJLeKaix^.fhjteja'TarKha^n..Surry. 
 
— God appealing to Abraham ; Abraham taking Sarah to wife ; Abra- 
 ham putting out Hagar, the bondwoman ; Abraham journeying to 
 Mount Moriah; and Isaac sending Esau for venison. In the seventh 
 window was the history of Joseph, but no more than two subjects are 
 now distinguishable, viz. —Joseph's dream, that the sun, moon, and 
 stars, were making obeisance to him ; and Joseph sold by his brethren 
 to the Midianites. The eighth window was occupied with various sub- 
 jects from the history of the Israelites, but nothing intelligible can now 
 be traced. 
 
 The north end of the transept, (which is delineated in Plate II,) 
 opens from the chancel by a high pointed arch, having numerous mould- 
 ings rising from light shafts : at the sides are various compartments of 
 handsome panneling. The large window in Jesus Chapel, which forms 
 the extremity of the transept, exhibits some elegant remains of the 
 painted glass with which it was once filled. Several of the compart- 
 ments were blown out in the time of James the First, when much was 
 broken, and the rest was never properly replaced. In the upper large 
 compartments were represented in a circle, (the traces of which may 
 still be seen, as shewn in the accompanying print,) the Father, Sou, and 
 Holy Ghost, placing a crown on the head of the Virgin Mary : around 
 them were the angelic choirs praising God on various instruments. In 
 one of the upper divisions to the right of the circle, is the Offering of the 
 Magi ; and, on the the left of it, are Adam and Eve praying in the midst 
 of the Infernal spirits, with our Saviour taking the hand of Adam to lead 
 him forth. In other divisions, were, formerly, Christ received into Hea- 
 ven, and St. Michael combating with Satan. 
 
 Besides the above, there were also the figures of Henry the Seventh 
 armed and crowned ; Elizabeth his Queen ; the Princes Arthur and 
 Henry, their sons ; Sir Reginald Bray, K. G. ; Sir John Savage, and 
 Thomas Lovell, Esq.; all of whom were Henry's privy-counsellors. The 
 figures of Prince Henry and Sir Reginald Bray alone remain per- 
 fect; there is likewise the lower part of that of the Queen, but in a re- 
 versed position. They were all on their knees, praying; and under 
 them was this inscription : Orate pro bono statu nobilissimi et excellen- 
 tessimi regis Heurici Septimi et Elizabcthee regince ac domini Arthuri 
 principis filii eorundem, ncc non predilectissime consortis sue et suorum 
 trium militum. 
 
 Prince Henry is represented under a canopy of state richly orna- 
 mented with flowing drapery, diversely embroidered. He is kneeling 
 on two cushions, tasselled, placed on a ground of small squares, che- 
 quered black and yellow. Before him, on a desk or table, covered 
 with tapestry, is an open book, on a cushion fringed and tasselled : on 
 the book lies a sceptre. He wears a shirt of mail, but is otherwise in 
 compleat plate armour, except an helmet. On the breast of his surcoat, 
 are the arms of France and England, quarterly; and the same arms are 
 on his right shoulder : round his neck is a file of three points, argent. 
 7 
 
On his head is an open coronet; from which his hair descends in long 
 ringlets. The scabbard of his sword is much ornamented. His spurs 
 are very long ; but the points of the rowels are short. The canopy is 
 surrounded by angels, sounding musical instruments, as sackbuts, bag- 
 pipes, and citterns played on by a small stick, or plectrum. 
 
 Sir Reginald Bray is kneeling on a crimson cushion, under a very 
 rich Gothic canopy, or tabernacle, within a niche ; the latter is variously 
 ornamented in compartments of a screen-like appearance, blue, yellow, 
 and crimson. He is in plate armour, and a shirt of mail, but without 
 his helmet. His sword has a richly wrought scabbard, but it is not so 
 long as that of Prince Henry : the rowels of his spurs have long points. 
 Before him, on a desk and cushion, fringed and tasselled, is an open 
 book : the cushion is embroidered with his name, in Latin. On the 
 breast and shoulder of his surcoat, are his arms, viz. arg. a chevr. betw. 
 three eagles' legs, sab. erased d la cuisse, Gu. At his back is a richly- 
 wrought shrine, or reliquary. 
 
 Each of the above paintings is three feet two inches in height : they 
 were engraved by Strutt, for his " Manners, Customs," &c., but that of 
 Prince Henry is erroneously called Henry the Seventh. They have 
 been engraved also by the late John Carter, who made drawings from 
 them on the spot, in the year 1788: his engravings, coloured like the 
 originals, were published in the second volume of his " Ancient Sculp- 
 ture and Painting." The Nativity, the Marriage of Canaan, and Christ 
 sitting among the Doctors in the Temple, are also included in this 
 window ; together with other confused pieces now uuintelligible. 
 
 The west window of this Chapel, which consists of nine divisions, con- 
 tains the finest paintings in the Church, with the exception of the two 
 figures just described. They are all entire, and include among others, 
 the following subjects ; the Salutation of Elizabeth ; the Visitation of 
 the Angel to Mary ; the Nativity ; the Presentation in the Temple ; the 
 Blind restored to Sight ; the Resurrection of Lazarus ; the Multitude fol- 
 lowing our Saviour ; and the Last Supper. 
 
 In the Vicar's Chapel at the east end of the north aisle, is a small 
 window, which in the year 1820, was elegantly filled up with painted 
 and stained glass ; on which is depicted the arms of forty-six benefactors 
 to the recent repairs of this Church : below the window is this inscrip- 
 tion : — 
 
 Stranger, thou beholdest here the Armorial bearings of those who 
 chiefly aided the Vicar, Henry Card, in restoring the interior of 
 this venerable fabric ; and hanng done this pious deed, they fur- 
 ther consented to his wishes of placing their Arms in this window, 
 as commemorative of it. A. D. 1820. 
 
 Among the few remarkable monuments in this structure there is 
 
 one of unquestionable antiquity, but the person whom it represents is 
 
 unknown. It is a mutilated statue of a Knight, now placed in a recess 
 
 at the north end of Jesus Chapel, whither it was removed, at the com- 
 
 8 
 
Ir^wnLy-LENeale. 
 
 GBEAT 
 
 En.5?avedbyiLeKeTa. 
 
mencemen of the late repairs, from alow and simple tomb, or pedestal 
 m the south aisle. Carter, who states that no similar figure hlT 
 fallen under his observation, describes it as being arra^^^^^^^ 
 mo,.of the Conqueror's time, having a long surc.olt oTert tZII 
 hand .armed with a battle-axe ; the left holds a circular shield or t'ar 
 get, and from under it hangs a sword. The feet har. K T' . 
 above the ankles. In another recess in the same Ch « 
 stone, ofacoffin-likeform, -n melry of Prri^S: 'X ""'^^^^^ 
 
 1711, in the Priory garden, about three feet from the church-wall tL 
 inscription is in monkish rhyme, as follows :- ^^^ 
 
 Philosophvs dignvs bonvs Astrolo-vs, Lotheringvs 
 A ir pivs ac hvmilis, monachvs, Prior hvivs ovilis ' 
 Hic jacet in cista, Geometricvs ae Abacista 
 Doctor Walchervs; flet, plebs, dolet ™diqTe clerv, ■ 
 Hvic Ivx prima mori dedit Octobris seniori ; 
 Vivat vt in coelis exoret qvis qve fidelis. m'cx^xv 
 
 eftgy of his lady, and at their feet is Anne, their eldest of five daughters 
 by whom this monument was erected : he died on the 23d of Novemb ' 
 1599. Various slabs for the ancient family of Lvtron &r \Z , 
 
 ^ ets for more recent interments, are incluLd mTe ;em L ng s^' 
 ehral memorials. In the wall of the south aisle is an enriched circular 
 a ch, which some have supposed to have been a confessional, b t it i 
 ' In thf :: tf "°^^ ^" ^ '^^-^ -- --P-d by an ancie'nt tomb 
 
 Gervase of Canterbury, in his MS. Chronicle, as quoted in Tanner's 
 NotUia. mentions this Church as dedicated to St. Michael as well as to 
 the Virgin: it is likewise called St. Michael Malvern, in an o irina" 
 charter preserved in the British Museum, referred to by the edit f" 
 the new edition of Dugdale's Monasticon. 
 
 The old Parish Church was dedicated to St. Thomas the AnostlP 
 Church ? t'""*'^P'"^^^"' ^'^"^'=''' ^' thenorth westangfe'^:;i'e 
 
 o?eTm"rii\T:r2r " '-'''' ''^^-^ ^^ -^^^^ - '^- 
 
 Although Great Malvern was a cell to the Abbey of Westminster 
 
 sta^rr"; ^PP*^" ^° ^^^^^ ^'='^'^' - ^^^^ mfnagemen of "1 ; 
 estates, &c. as an independent corporation 
 
 Chi!" ""'7/ ''■"'•" '""""''' ^^'^'^°^' '» '^^ Dissertation on Ancient 
 Charters and Instilments prefixed to his Formulare Anglicanum, " sle 
 
Demises were made, which appear pretty singular. Thus Herbert, Ab- 
 bat of Westminster, granted to the Monks of Malvern, Manerium de 
 Powicd ad Firmam, pro xxiiii. libris per annum; Heec peatnia per iiii 
 terminos reddenda est, scilicet, Sfc; Et tamdiu tencant, quamdiu obedientes 
 fuerint et subjecti [nostrce] Matri Ecclesite, et de hue obedientid f de- 
 liter servierint ; Et illas Consnetudines liabcat Abbas, in codem Manerio, 
 qnas habet in omnibus aliis Mancriis quic similiter sunt ad Firmam. Ex. 
 Orig. Cyrogr. in archiv. S. Petri A\'estm." 
 
 According to the population Act of 1821, the Parish of Great Malvern 
 contained 313 houses: the number of inhabitants was 1,5GB; of whom 
 760 were males, and 818 females. 
 
 10 
 
««1 
 

^t (Giles's CJurci). 
 
 LITTLE MALVERN, WORCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 PERPETUAL CURATE, 
 THE REV. EDWARD WOODYATT, B. A. 
 
 Little Malvern, a small Village about three miles southward from 
 Great Malvern, is situated on a woody slope near the entrance of an ex- 
 tensive recess or hollow, in the range of hills of which the Herefordshire 
 Beacon forms such a conspicuous object. According to the return made 
 to the Privy Council by Bishop Sandys, in the reign of Queen Eliza- 
 beth, this parish contained thirty-seven families, but at the present time 
 there are fifteen only. The number of inhabitants, as taken under the 
 Population Act of 1821, was sixty-seven ; viz. thirty-three males and 
 thirty-four females, most of whom are employed in agriculture. 
 
 In the Anglo-Norman times, this district was little otherwise than an 
 umbrageous wilderness, well calculated for privacy and seclusion. 
 Here, therefore, about the year 1171, two brothers, named Joceline and 
 Edred, founded a small Benedictine Priory, for themselves and a few 
 other monks who had separated from the Priory at Worcester, to which 
 this cell became subordinate. The new establishment was dedicated to 
 St. Giles, and it continued till the dissolution of the lesser monasteries 
 in 1538, at which period it contained a prior and seven monks. Tts pos- 
 sessions, which were valued at 981. per annum, were afterwards granted 
 to Richard Andrews and Nicholas Temple. 
 
 The present Cliurch, which is that which belonged to the Priory, was 
 built on the site of the more ancient edifice about the year 1482, temp. 
 Hen, VII., by the influence of that celebrated prelate and architect, 
 John Alcocke, Bishop of Worcester. It was originally constructed in 
 the form of a cross, having an embattled tower rising from the centre ; 
 but the transept has long been in ruins and partly destroyed, and the 
 other divisions of the building are much dilapidated. From several 
 points of view it forms a picturesque and striking object, particularly 
 when its pointed windows and rich tracery are seen in combination with 
 the mantling ivj- that has been suflered to overspread a portion of the 
 exterior walls. In descending the hilly road from Ledbury, the eye 
 glances over the Tower of the Church, (whicii appears to rise from thick 
 woods), and penetrates into Gloucestershire, the intermediate country 
 being finely variegated. The variety of ground and scenery compre- 
 hended in this prospect, renders it exceedingly interesting. Cottle has 
 thus noticed the Church in his Poem on Malvern Hills : 
 1 
 
Just peeping from a woody covert near 
 
 The Lesser ftlalvern stands. Sequestered Church ' 
 
 The spot around tliee speaks of quietness. 
 
 Down at the mountain's base thou long hast brav'd 
 
 The vernal tempest and December's storms ; 
 
 Yet at this tranquil time most fair thou art. 
 
 The aged oaks around, and towering elms, 
 
 In wild luxuriance spread their stately limbs ; 
 
 And true to friendship, ward each angry blast. 
 
 That, howling through the valley, sweeps along 
 
 To thy dark battlements. 
 
 On each side of the upper division of the Tower is a handsome win- 
 dow, separated into two lights by a mullion, and having a quatrefoil 
 and other tracery near the apex. The adjoining walls are wrought into 
 tracery, displaying some bold overhanging mouldings. It seems pro- 
 bable, from its appearance, that the present roof is far more modern 
 than the other parts of the building. 
 
 The interior of the Church (vide Plate II.) is plain and uninviting, al- 
 though indications of former splendor still remain in its vestiges of painted 
 glass and armorial blazonry. Some rude seats, with a few pews, or ra- 
 ther boxes, in the nave, and some old stalls on each side the chancel, 
 are the inadequate accommodations for its numerous congregation during 
 divine service. A wooden screen, that has been perforated in the Go- 
 thic style, in compartments, but is now much broken, separates the nave 
 from the chancel. Nearly over it, extending from wall to wall, is a beau- 
 tifully-carved beam, exhibiting foliage, finely relieved and uuder-cut. 
 In an angle near the stalls on the north side, is a grotesque carving. 
 The east window is ornamented with very elegant tracery, dividing it into 
 numerous lights, the principal of which are trefoil- headed : quatrefoils 
 and other forms complete the design. In the upper divisions are several 
 armorial shields in stained glass ; and in the lower compartments are the 
 remains of some figures, which are stated to have been portraits of the 
 Queen and part of the family of Edward the Fourth. In the pavement 
 are several wrought tiles, on one or two of which the same inscription 
 may be traced as that already given in the account of Great Malvern 
 Church. The Font, which is of stone, and of an octagonal form, stands 
 among the pews on the north side of the nave. 
 
 The sepulchral memorials are principally confined to a few mural tab- 
 lets of little importance ; but there were formerly some monuments here 
 of considerable antiquity. Ilabyngdon says, that in his time (viz. Queen 
 Elizabeth's reign) '* there lay in the south aisle a Knight, or crusader, all 
 armed saving his face, his right hand on his sword, and his legs crossed : 
 on his right hand lay his Lady, with her arms crossed." He imagined 
 this latter position to indicate that the lady had accompanied her hus- 
 band, in his military-religious pilgrimage to the Holy Land. 
 
 The Church is a perpetual curacy. The living is in the gift of Mrs. 
 Wakeman, of Little Malvern, who is a Roman Catholic, and therefore 
 incapable of presenting; she has, however, the nomination to the living, 
 and the presentation is made by the Right Hon. the Earl Somers. 
 2 
 
Dra-\\Ti byJPNeale. 
 
 riL."]T"ivoi 1" H. Lp Kfmx 
 
 ILiLii Ji ii.,ir. ;'-t^'-x2.v iajM! v'ittllJBlCM , 
 wc R crsrsn ss/at. 
 
•^■ 
 
 INDEX TO THE SECOND VOLUME 
 
 OF VIEWS OF CHURCHES. 
 ' TITLE. Composition of Monumental Remains. 
 
 Bortijampton^ibi^. 
 
 * BULWICK CHURCH South Side. 
 
 » KETTERING DITTO Tower and Spibe. 
 
 <©JCfOrO!Si3JCC. 
 " OXFORD, ALL SAINTS ..... North Side. 
 ' DITTO, ST. PETER'S, IN THE EAST Pi. I. Exterior. 
 
 DITTO . , II. Interior, looking East. 
 
 7 DITTO, ST. MARY MAGDALEN . . Pl. I. Exterior. 
 
 ' DITTO n. The Font. 
 
 9 DITTO, ST. MARY'S Pl. L Exterior. 
 
 "• DITTO IL Interior, 
 
 " WITNEY CHURCH North Side. 
 
 '■' SHREWSBURY, ABBEY CHURCH . Pl. I. West Front. 
 
 "DITTO n. East End. 
 
 '* DITTO IXI. Monuments. 
 
 >s HALES OWEN CHURCH Font. 
 
 <t>uffolft. 
 
 IS LAVENHAM CHURCH Pl. L Exterior. 
 
 " DITTO IL The Porch. 
 
 '8 DITTO III. View looking across the Choir. 
 
 '^ DITTO IV. Ancient Pews. 
 
 '^0 LOWESTOFF CHURCH Sodth-East View. 
 
 •" MELFORD CHURCH Pl. L Exterior. 
 
 « DITTO II. The Porch. 
 
 "' DITTO III. View loosing East. 
 
 " DITTO IV. Ancient Pews. 
 
*■' MELFORD CHURCH V. View across the Cboiu. 
 
 « DITTO VI. Clohton Chapel. 
 
 27 SUDBURY, ST. GREGORY'S CHURCH Pl. T. 
 
 2S DITTO II. Font. 
 
 " CROYDON CHURCH Pl. I. The North Side. 
 
 30 DITTO II. The Nave AND Chancel. 
 
 31 DITTO 111. ]\l0Nl'MENT OF WnlTGIFT, &C. ScC. 
 
 !l?flrtoich,!Sl]irc. 
 
 se STRATFORD-UPON-AVON CHURCH Pl. 1. North-AVesi View. 
 
 33 DITTO II. South Side. 
 
 3+ DITTO III. North Aisle. 
 
 35 DITTO ... IV, Chancel and Monument of Shakspeare. 
 
 36 DITTO ViGN. The Old Font. 
 
 IBilt.sljirf. 
 
 -■>7 MARLBOROUGH CHURCH . . . . Pl. I. South-East View. 
 3« DITTO II. Interior. 
 
 IDorcejStersitire. 
 
 s° EVESHAM, ALL SAINTS CHURCH . South Sii;e. 
 
 •*" GREAT MALVERN CHURCH . . . Pl. I. The Noith Side. 
 
 *< DITTO n. Jesus Ci.apel. 
 
 *"- DITTO III. The Choir. 
 
 <^ LITTLE ]\L\LVERN CHURCH . . . Pl. I. South-East View. 
 ■>■* DITTO II. Intfrioh, East End. 
 
1 
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