Raithby is situated about 2 miles from Spilsby and about 9 miles from Horncastle, on the main road between the two towns, via Hagworthingham. It is within the ancient soke of Bolingbroke, and an appanage of the Duchy of Lancaster. There is a post and money order office, and letters, via Spilsby, arrive at 7.5 a.m., and depart at 5.40 p.m. The nearest telegraph office is at Spilsby. Not much of the early history of this parish is to be found. As is stated in the notes on Mavis Enderby, these two parishes were closely connected, land in both being held by the Saxon, Elnod (Domesday Book), also, in early Norman times, by William de Karilepho, the powerful Bishop of Durham, and by the Conqueror’s favourite, Ivo Taillebois, who, from the vast possessions which he acquired through his wife, the Lady Lucia, seems to have verily suffered from the disease of “land hunger.” Rather later, Eudo, son of Spirewic, the founder of the Tattershall family, held lands in Raithby, as well as at Mavis Enderby. In the reign of Edwd. I. (1402), the manor and advowsons of Raithby and Mavis Enderby were held by Robert de Willoughby, ancestor of the present Lord Willoughby. The descendants of Ivo Taillebois seem to have retained at least some of their property in Raithby for a longer period than they did in some other parishes, as we find that “Thomas Tailbus” of Raithby, by will, dated 7 March, 1556, requested that he might be buried “in our Lady’s Choir.” He states that he made his will while “mighty of mind, whole of witt and understanding.” He makes his wife, Johan, executrix, and desires her to give to their son Roger, and Agnes Harper (presumably a married daughter), “as much as may be conveniently spared.” (“Lincolnshire Wills,” by Canon Maddison).
The pedigree of the Taylbois’ of Raithby is given in the Visitation of 1562.
Again, by will, dated 5 March, 1579, John Taylboys, of Raithby, gent., desires that he may be buried in the church. He leaves everything to his wife, except 10s. to his mother, and William Thompson and “Wil Cockson,” executors are to pay £12, “bequeathed by my father to sexe children.”
The Littleburies had also land in Raithby; since by will, dated 1 Sep., 1568, Humphrey Littlebury, of East Kirkby, left land at Raithby, and other places, to his son, John Littlebury, and John Littlebury of Hagworthingham, by will, dated 28 Sep., 1612, left his lands at Raithby to his son John. As I mention in the notes on Salmonby, the Littlebury family were originally located in the Holbeach neighbourhood; Robert and his ancestors held land there, and at Whaplode, of the abbots of Croyland long before the reign of Edw. III. But he began to get in arrear with his rent, as shewn by the following list of omissions recorded against him:—
£ |
s. |
d. |
|
For his own and his men’s table with the abbot of Croyland |
40 |
0 |
0 |
Farms of tithes in Whaplode |
9 |
0 |
0 |
Denariis mutuo receptis (i.e. money borrowed) |
12 |
0 |
0 |
Several horses borrowed and not returned |
4 |
0 |
0 |
Other items are given as a set off, as well as his legacy of |
40 |
0 |
0 |
But there still remains a debt of |
60 |
0 |
0 |
This was a large sum in those days. But John Littlebury gave the abbot “diverse jewels” in payment of this debt. (Appendix to Cough’s “Croyland,” from the Abbey register.)
Sir Martin Littlebury was Chief Justice of England, A.D. 1243. His wife was Anne, daughter of Sir Henry Rochford. They intermarried with several other families of position and influence. Their pedigree is given in the Herald’s Visitation of Lincolnshire, in 1562–64, coming down to Humphrey Littlebury, of Stainsby, named above, as holding land in Raithby. (“Notices on Holbeach,” by G. W. McDonald).
By will, dated 4 March, 1599, Anne Skipwith, of Hanney, left legacies to Thomas and Robert Raithby, and this patronymic is not uncommon in the neighbourhood still.
In later years the manor of Raithby was the property of the Brackenburies, who had a handsome residence, Raithby Hall, which was, in 1848, purchased by the Rev. E. Rawnsley, who is now lord of the manor. A curious circumstance connected with the Hall is that during the time when it was owned by Mr. Robert Carr Brackenbury, he, being a friend of John Wesley, granted him the use of the hay loft for religious services, and subsequently by will provided that all future owners of the property should fulfil this condition, and these services are still occasionally held there, so that we have now the anomaly of the Hall being owned and occupied by a clergyman of the church of England, while the loft over his stables is used by a Wesleyan minister.
The benefice formerly paid a pension to the abbots of Croyland of £1 6s. 8d. At the Reformation the tithes were seized by “the Merry Monarch,” and the patronage of the benefice now belongs to the crown. The late Geo. Walker, Esq., of Offord House, Spilsby, owned an estate in this parish, also Admiral Buckle, who now resides at Gunby Hall. There is a free school here for the poor children of Raithby, Mavis Enderby, Hundleby, and Sausthorpe, founded and endowed by Thomas Lawford, in 1683, and besides his endowment, the teacher has the dividend of £204 1s. 8d. left by Elizabeth Kirkbridge, of Hull, in 1813, and the interest of £100 left by John Dawson, in 1839.
The Church is dedicated to the Holy Trinity. It consists of tower, nave, with south porch, north and south aisles, and chancel. The tower is of 3 tiers, and has 3 bells. The church was thoroughly restored in 1873, the chancel and nave wholly rebuilt, the architect being Mr. G. G. Scott. The porch has a very curious stoup in the western corner, with 3 Norman columns as supports. The north and south aisles have 3 bays, the columns being transitional Norman. In the north wall is a door and two square-headed, perpendicular windows with coloured glass; one of these has for its subjects St. George and St. Andrew, the other, St. David and St. Patrick. There is also a two-light window in the east wall of the north aisle. In the south wall, west of the porch, is a coloured two-light window, the subjects being, above, the Good Shepherd and the Presentation in the Temple, and below, Christ blessing little children, and our Lord’s baptism. Next to the porch, eastward, is a memorial two-light window to John Coleridge Kennard, the subjects being, the Resurrection, and the Ascension. The window at the east end of the south aisle is a two-light one, with coloured glass, by Kemp, the subjects being, Works of Mercy; it was put in in memory of Mrs. Rawnsley, by friends. The font is modern, also the lectern and the rood screen, which is coloured red, gilt, and blue. The east, north, and south windows in the chancel were given by the late Mrs. Rawnsley, who lengthened the chancel to its original dimensions, and gave the screen. The east window has three lights, the subjects being, in the centre, the Crucifixion, in the northern light, Gethsemane, in the southern light, the Saviour’s baptism. The walls of the chancel are painted with various devices. The reredos has three compartments, the centre, showing the Crucifixion; on the right (south), the Saviour and the Magdalen, Noli me tangere; on the left (north), the angel appearing to Mary, Ave Maria. Two other windows have the following subjects:—In one, in the centre, is the Lord in glory, with St. Michael, on the one side, St. Gabriel, on the other, by Milner; in the other, of four lights, put in by members of the Rawnsley family, in memory of their mother, the subjects are, in the lower part, one scene throughout, the birth at Bethlehem; above, the compartments show the Annunciation, with the Presentation and Visitation on either side. The south chancel window of three lights, with coloured glass, has the three subjects, St. Alban, St. Agnes, and St. Catherine. There is a piscina in the south wall of the chancel. The material of the structure is Spilsby green sandstone. The tower is of the Perpendicular period, other parts being a mixture of the Perpendicular, Decorated, and Transitional styles. The church is unusually rich in coloured glass, although all of it modern. The benefice, a rectory, is held by the Rev. George Ward, who lives at Mavis Enderby, of which parish he is also rector. Of the church plate, the chalice is of the date of Cromwell; the paten and former cover of chalice are of the date of Elizabeth. A modern paten has been presented by the Rev. E. Rawnsley. The register dates from 1558. It contains a note by a former rector, stating that a number of pages had been lost in the waste paper basket of his predecessor, but that, from other sources, he had himself supplied the deficiency. Then follows a long series of entries, all in one handwriting, the curious part, however, is that his own death is recorded in the same handwriting. We leave it to the reader to solve this puzzle of a posthumous record. The sandstone, which prevails generally throughout this district, disappears at Raithby, but about half-a-mile north-east of Raithby church, numerous phosphatic nodules are found scattered about the surface. The nodule bed can be traced across the fields to the south-west, and the phosphates lie generally in patches. The hill, south of Raithby, consists of the formation known as Tealby clay, capped with chalky boulder clay, blue clay appearing on its western slope. These clays rest upon a floor of hard calcareous ferruginous rock, full of brown oolitic grains.
Ranby is situated on the old Roman road to Caistor, northward, rather more than 7 miles from Horncastle. The vicar, the Rev. G. S. Lee, resides at Benniworth, rather more than 3 miles distant, of which he is rector. Letters, via Lincoln, arrive at 10.30. Ranby is probably a contraction of Ravenby; as we have near Louth, two parishes, Ravendale, east and west, and the hamlet of Raventhorpe, in the north of the county, in the parish of Appleby, near Brigg. Ravendale is contracted into the patronymic Randell; and so Ravenby becomes Ranby.
Ranby Hall, the seat of the Otter family, who have been located here and at Clayworth, Notts., more than a century, is a handsome residence in well-wooded grounds. One of the family was Bishop of Chichester, and another Archdeacon of Chichester.
In Domesday Book, the manor of Ranby is reckoned among the possessions of Odo, Bishop of Baieux, who was half-brother of William the Conqueror, and Earl of Kent. He became Bishop in 1049, and died at Palermo, on his way to the Holy Land, in 1097. Besides being Earl of Kent, he was Count Palatine and Justiciary of England. His abilities and his influence were so great that writers of the day described him as being, “totius Angliæ, Vice-dominus sub rege.” He was, however, too arrogant, and aspiring to the Papacy, he was about to leave England for Rome, taking with him the wealth he had amassed, when he was apprehended by King William, and sent to prison in Normandy. On the death of the Conqueror, he was liberated by William Rufus, but never acquired his former power, and being concerned in a conspiracy, had to abjure the realm. He held at one time 76 lordships in Lincolnshire, besides many in other counties. Another Norman, Ralph de St. Valery, a town in Picardy, also had a grant of land in Ranby, to the extent of 360 acres with 14 socmen holding 7 oxgangs, and 2 bordars with 240 acres between them. A Saxon thane, Godric, had some 604 acres. The church had a resident priest, owning a mill, worth 10s. 8d. a year, and 270 acres of meadow. At a later date, Ranby was an appanage of Tupholme Abbey. [156a]
The Church, dedicated to St. German, stands on an elevation, and would be a conspicuous object for several miles, but that it is embowered in lofty trees. [156b] It was restored in 1839 at the expense of Miss Alice Otter, who also presented three bells; and it was further improved in 1862, when the tower was incased with new stone, and the chancel re-built. The old chancel arch was at that time removed, and now forms the arch under the tower, the stone having been re-chiselled. The tower is massive, with four pinnacles, having two-light flamboyant windows in each face, and small lancet windows below them, in the west and south sides. In the north wall of the nave, there is one two-light flamboyant window, and in the south wall, two similar ones. A small north transept forms a vestry, in the west wall of which are preserved some small arches from an earlier fabric, and in its north wall is a two-light flamboyant window. In the north chancel wall there is a small one-light window. The east window has three lights with three trefoils above, and in the south chancel wall there is a two-light window with trefoil above. All the chancel windows have coloured glass. The south window is a memorial of Francis Otter, of Clayworth. The subject of the east window is the Ascension. The pillars of the new chancel arch have richly-carved capitals. The sittings are of plain oak. The font is octagonal, with plain shields and other devices on the faces. There is a Walesby tablet on the south wall of the nave, and large Walesby monuments in the churchyard. Weir, in his “History of Lincolnshire,” mentions a large ancient tumulus as being near the church. [157a]
Revesby is situated about 7½ miles from Horncastle, in a south-easterly direction; some 12 miles north-west from Boston, 8 miles south-west from Spilsby, and about 7 miles East, from the nearest railway station at Tattershall. Letters, via Boston, arrive at 7 a.m. The nearest telegraph office is at Mareham-le-Fen. One derivation of the name Revesby is from a Danish word meaning a “fox,” the Danes certainly at one time settled extensively in this neighbourhood, and “by” is a very common Danish termination. (Streatfeild “Lincolnshire and the Danes.”) Another and perhaps more likely derivation is from the “reeve,” or public guardian of the fen, [157b] who might well reside here, to look after the means of communication, roads and channels in the great tract of country southward, which was at one time almost a waste of morass, and subject to frequent inundation from the sea, and in connection with this, it may be mentioned that one of the recognised duties of religious houses, [158a] such as the Abbey of Revesby, was to keep roads and bridges in proper repair, and a portion of the Revesby property, named Stickney Wydale, was granted to the abbey, on condition that the monks kept in proper order the “Northdyke Causeway,” then a main road raised above the floods. [158b] And among the charters and deeds of Revesby, is one (No. 7b), by which William de Romara undertakes to compel the men of Holland to keep in repair a waggon-road from Sibsey. [158c]
The history of Revesby at that period is lost to us. No Saxon chronicles exist, as they do as regards some other places, to tell us of those early days. Yet we can, in a degree, connect Revesby with a great Saxon family, and one which is represented by a leading family in our county in the present day.
The Abbey of Revesby was founded by William de Romara, A.D. 1143. [158d] He was the son of Roger de Romara, who married (about 1093), as her 2nd husband, the lady Lucia, who was daughter and heiress of Thorold, of Buchenale (now Bucknall in this neighbourhood), Sheriff of Lincolnshire, and that family survives now in Sir John C. Thorold, of Syston Hall, near Grantham. The family of Thorold, or, as it was spelt at that time, Turold, was even then old and distinguished. He was the brother of the Lady Godiva, of Coventry fame, wife of Earl Leofric, and mother of Earl Algar, and descended, according to Camden (“Britannia”, p. 474), and others, [158e] from the Saxon Earl, Egga (and Morcar), who flourished in the 8th century. The first husband of Lucia, was Ivo Taillebois, of Anjou, who came over with the Conqueror, as the leader of his Angevin auxiliaries. After the death of the brave young Saxon nobles, Edwin and Morcar, brothers-in-law, of King Harold, who refused to submit to the Norman yoke, their sister, the Lady Lucia, became entitled to all their possessions, and therefore was an heiress worth securing; and, much against her wish, the Conqueror bestowed her upon his favourite, Ivo (A.D. 1072). With her, this Ivo acquired, among much other property, the manors of Revesby and East Kirkby. We find the first mention of Revesby, in Domesday Book (A.D. 1085), as follows:—“In Churchebi and Resuesbi there are 12 carucates (or about 1440 acres) of land, rateable to gelt;” [159] the land is 12 carucates; 54 sokemen and 14 villeins have these 12 carucates. Ivo has 1 carucate (in demense) and 2 churches, and 180 acres of meadow land. The whole manor, with all that belongs thereto, is 6 miles long and 6 miles broad. Turold was Lord of Spalding, and his daughter Lucia, and conjointly her husband, Ivo, founded the Priory of Spalding. But Ivo, by his acquisitions, became so great a tyrant, to all connected with him, that he was eventually outlawed by King Rufus, and banished the kingdom. He fled to Anjou. After a time he was allowed to return to his wife, the Lady Lucia, who was holding her court at Spalding; but, to her great relief, he shortly afterwards died of paralysis, and, writes the chronicler, Peter de Blois, “hardly had one month elapsed after his death, when she married that illustrious young man, Roger de Romara, and lost all recollection of Ivo Taillebois.” Their son, William, was created first Earl of Lincoln, and, following the example of his mother at Spalding, he gave certain lands to the monks of Riveaux, Co. York, to found a Cistercian Abbey, the lands aforesaid being all Revesby, Thoresby and Sithesby, and, as certain portions of Revesby were held by another lord, he effected an exchange, by giving land commensurate in Miningsby, and by a similar process of exchange, secured other further portions, so as to bring the abbey estates into what would now be termed “a ring fence.” We have not space to go to any extent into the history of the abbey. The original charter describes the property as “totam terram de Revesbiâ, et Thoresbiâ, et Schichthesbiâ.” Of the two churches, one, that of Thoresby, was at the time held by a priest named Ivo, in exchange for which the Earl William, gave him the church of East Kirkby, and appurtenances. This church probably stood on a site of the present church of St. Lawrence, at Revesby. (Howlett’s “Lincolnshire,” Allan’s “Hist. Linc.”) The other church, of St. Sythe, was doubtless in the southern part of the present park, which has retained the name of Sithesby, or St. Scythe’s until recent times. The abbey itself was to the south-east of the present church, at some quarter-of-a-mile distance, and of considerable dimensions, covering some acres of ground. From a lecture, given by the late Right Honble. Edward Stanhope, we gather that the abbey church, built of Ancaster stone, was at least 240ft. long, and over 60ft. wide, with many graceful pillars supporting its roof. The choir was of unusual form, extending some distance down the nave. Beyond it, discovered in making excavations in 1869, 70, was the tomb of the founder, having this inscription: HIC JACET IN TUMBA WIELLIELMUS DE ROMARE, COMES LINCOLNIÆ, FUNDATOR ISTIUS MONASTERII SANCTI LAURENTII DE REIVISBYE. [160] Near this were tombstones inscribed to William de Romara, son of William, Earl of Lincoln, who died before his father, and of William de Romara, son of Lucia, Countess of Lincoln. Three bodies were discovered and re-buried a short distance from this spot, being doubtless those of the founder and his two sons. In his later years, William de Romara himself became a monk, and requested to be buried “before the high aulter;” and the site is now marked by a granite stone, placed here in 1890, by the late Right Honourable Edward Stanhope. The Abbey field, approached by a broad causeway, on the north side, more than 250 yards long, has traces of four mounds, at different points, probably for outlook and defence. One of these, stands in an enclosure to the west, called Saffron Garth, doubtless the favourite resort of the monks, who were skilled gardeners; an enclosure on the other, north side, of the road, opposite this “garth,” is called “Paradise,” supposed to have been the orchard. Fish ponds, to supply the monks with their ascetic diet, are to be traced in various parts around. At Medlam, to the south-east, are the remains of a chapel or oratory. The abbot’s private residence stood in the present park, and some of the outbuildings of his establishment remained until recent years, near the later mansion of the proprietors of Revesby.
We will now give a few peculiar extracts from some of the deeds connected with the abbey. Most of these, until late years, were in the possession of the Marquis of Exeter, at Burghley House, Stamford, whose ancestors, as will be shewn hereafter, once held the property, and in 1881 they were presented to the Right Honble. E. Stanhope, by his lordship.
In celebration of the foundation of the Abbey, William de Romara “manumitted,” or released from serfdom, any of his villeins and dependants who would accept their freedom, “to go where they chose, and, if they remained on the estate, to give them land instead.” Among those who accepted freedom, were William Medicus, or the Doctor, and Roger Barkarius, a name still known in the neighbourhood. [161] The witnesses to the deed of liberty were Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, William Archdeacon, William Chancellor, and others.
By deed No. 8, William gives land in Stickney, and services due to him, from Alan of Stickney and his successors, to which Alan agrees; the money to be spent on wine for the “Masses” of the Abbey services.
To one deed (No. 20), for conveyance of pasturage for 20 cattle, 20 pigs, and 100 sheep, the witness is Thorold, Dean of Horncastle, a scion, doubtless, of the family of the Lady Lucia. He is further designated as “Magister Willelmus Novi Operis,” i.e. of Newark.
By deed 24, Matilda daughter of Roger de Huditoft (Huttoft) widow of William of Stickney gives half a bovate of land in Stickney “in the time of my widowhood” i.e., when the property became at her own disposal. The witnesses are two women, Christiana, wife of Henry de Claxby, and Eda, wife of Richard, priest of Mareham; not, therefore, a celibate.
By deed 27, Alan Smerehorn of Kirkby (East) gives a sedes molendini, i.e. a water mill and premises, with right to draw water through his land from Bolingbroke and Kirkby.
By deed 30, Hamelinus de Jherdeburcg (Jerburg) gives land in Stickney, “quam tenui de hospitalibus de Jerusalem in terretorio de Stickenei” i.e. which he had held of the monks of the Hospice of Jerusalem in Stickney, there having been a minor religious house there; of which Robert Picha is named as Preceptor in another Deed (25), temp. Henry II.
By a charter of Richard I. (Dugdale V. 456) the abbots are confirmed in the possession of lands in Toynton, the grange of Toft (still existing) Fulsby, lands in Miningsby, Kirkby, Claxby, Mareham, Tumby, Hameringham, Wood Enderby, Skegness, and many other parishes.
By deed No. 41, William, son of Roger de Bikinghesbi gives land in Miningsby for gate alms, i.e. to relieve beggars at the Abbey-gate, the monks being the great, and almost only, friends of the suffering and needy.
By deed No. 50, Ranulph, Earl of Chester, gives to the Abbey “his servant Roger, son of Thoreword of Sibsey, with all his property and chattells.” Here the man himself is treated as part and parcel with the chattells.
By deed 69, Gaufrid of Kirkby gives certain lands “ad chorum ecclesiæ aspergendum et decorandum,” i.e. for washing and decorating the choir.
Deed 75 conveys to the Abbey another servant, Radulph, son of Gamel the Palmer, with goods and chattells. The father here mentioned had evidently made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
Deed 78 gives to the Abbey “the homage of Gaufrid Le Neucume of Stickney and all his service.” Here, (temp. Henry III.) is one of the family of Newcome, or Newcomen, who, centuries later, became connected by marriage with the Banks family, in the person of the grandfather of Sir Joseph Banks.
By No. 108, Hugo de Lindsey gives one selion of land to maintain one candle burning before the altar of the blessed Virgin in the Chapel of St. Lawrence, (temp. Henry III. or Ed. I.)
By No. 115, William of Stickney gives land for the maintenance of candles to be kept burning in the Abbey church, one before the altar of the blessed Virgin, in honour of St. Margaret, and the other at the altar of St. Nicholas, in honour of St. James the Apostle.
By No. 141, the Abbot leases land in Wilksby (A.D. 1344) to John Hardegray, who is to pay “unum granum piperis” (pepper corn rent), annually at Christmas.
By No. 144, the Abbot and Convent grant to Richard Cave of Stickney certain land on payment of 8 silver pence annually. (2 Hen. V. Jan. 25, 1415.)
Then follows finally at the Dissolution, deed No. 150A, by which John, Abbot of Revesby, and the convent, grant (Nolentes Volentes) to Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, and his heirs, and assigns, the office of chief steward of the manors, lands, etc., of the Abbey, with an annuity of £26 3s. 8d. (Harleyan Charter, 44, Brit. Mus.)
This was the beginning of the end. The monks, who, with all their faults, had preserved for us our Bibles, had been the great patrons of learning, the friends of the poor, the teachers of agriculture, who had maintained our bridges and our roads, were forced to accept pittances smaller than those they had, on a generous scale, dealt out to thousands of others. To Charles, Duke of Suffolk, were granted the Abbey estates in 1539. He died in 1545, and was buried at Windsor. His two sons both died in one day, July 16th, 1551, at the Bishop of Lincoln’s house at Buckden. The Dukedom descended to the Marquis of Dorset, who had married the half-sister of Charles. The estates were divided, in 1552, among the descendants of Sir William Brandon. They were Sir Henry Sidney, Knight; Thomas Glemham, Esq.; John Carsey, Esq.; and Francis his son by Margaret his wife, sister to Charles Brandon; Christian Darnell, widow; Walter Ayscoughe, Esq.; and Henry Ayscoughe his son by Elizabeth his wife; and John Tyre, gentleman, and Elizabeth his wife.
John Carsey (also spelt Kersey) had the Revesby estate, Wilksby and Wood Enderby, and resided at Revesby. His son Francis probably resided at South Ormsby, and in 1575, the father and son jointly sold the estate to Thomas Cecil, Lord Treasurer Burleigh. The property then descended, through the 1st and 2nd Earls of Exeter, and Elizabeth, wife of Thomas Howard, Earl of Berkshire, to Henry Howard. He dying without male issue, was succeeded by his nephew, Craven Howard, in 1663. Craven Howard built a mansion here. But the entire property was sold in 1714 to the Banks family for £14,000, by his representatives the daughters of Henry Howard. [164] The last of the Banks family was Sir Joseph Banks, well known for his enclosure of the Fens and other works of public utility in the county, his patronage of science in every form, and his voyages of discovery. He died in 1820, and, by his will, most of the estates were bequeathed to Col. the Honble. James Hamilton Stanhope, who served in the Peninsular War, and at Waterloo, other portions being left to Sir Henry Hawley and his heirs, “with remainder to Sir Edward Knatchbull” (who managed the estates for his widow, Lady Banks). (Weir’s “Hist. Linc.” vol. i., p. 414, Ed., 1828; “Saunders’ Hist.” vol. ii., p. 113). He held them for a very short period, and was succeeded by J. Banks Stanhope, Esq., formerly M.P. for N. Lincolnshire (in 1823), who, some years ago, surrendered the estates to his cousin and adopted heir, the Right Honble. E. Stanhope, 2nd son of the 5th Earl Stanhope; and late M.P. for Horncastle Division.
Mr. Banks Stanhope greatly improved, and, indeed, may be said to have rebuilt the mansion of Revesby, from designs by the architect Burns, which now stands in beautiful grounds, and an extensive park, near the site of the former residence of the abbots. Vast sums have also been spent by him on the improvement of the estate; the rebuilding of farmhouses and cottages, so as to make the village a model one in every way. The Abbey, which is constructed throughout of Ancaster stone, and in the style of James I., is the repository of objects of art, of natural history, and of antiquarian interest, collected by Sir Joseph Banks, J. Banks Stanhope, Esq., and more recently by the Right Honble. E. Stanhope, sufficient to form a museum.
A subject of interest which has not yet been noticed is two tumuli, or barrows, in the parish, on the left hand, close to the road, and not many yards south of the Red Lion Inn. They were considered by the antiquarian Stukeley (“Itin Curios,” p. 23) to have been the burial place of two British kings, and probably also connected with the religious services of the Druids. They stand in an enclosure, the breadth of which, he says, “is 100 Celtic feet, and the length 300.”
In 1780 the northernmost of these barrows—there were formerly three—was explored by Sir Joseph Banks, but nothing was found of any interest beyond indications that it had been examined before, and since that time it has been levelled. He thought, however, that it had been the site of religious sacrifices. In August, 1892, explorations were carried out under the eye of the late Right Honble. E. Stanhope. Here again there were indications of former examination, not however to any great depth, and when the centre of the mound was reached a kind of sarcophagus, made of puddled clay, was found, from 5ft. to 6ft. in length, lying north and south, the sides 7in. or 8in. thick, and having an arch rising to a height of 2½ft.; the bottom, slightly concave, rested on the original soil, within this was black earth quite different in colour to the rest, which was believed to be human remains. No bones, however, were found. Broken pieces of pottery and two old nails, were found outside this receptacle, which were pronounced by Sir A. W. Franks, of the British Museum, to be mediæval, and to have probably been introduced by previous explorers. (Account by E.S., “Linc. N. & Q.,” vol. iii., pp. 145–7.)
We have little more to say of the past history of Revesby. When the Spanish Armada was expected to invade our shores in 1589, one of those Lincolnshire gentry who subscribed £25, a large sum in those days, towards the defence of the country, was Nicholas Saunderson of Rearsby, or Revesby; he also, at the muster at Horncastle in 1586, furnished “1 light horse”; John May of Mareham doing the same (“Architect. S. Journal,” 1894, p. 214.)
Among the old observances of Revesby was the annual fair, an occasion of much jovial festivity, and in the days of Sir Joseph Banks, that fine old English gentleman, the Sir Roger de Coverley of his day, encouraged such old time customs, providing ale most generously for all comers, and driving down to the village green, where the booths were arranged, with his party in two or three coaches. Morrice dancing and the mummers play always had his patronage. In these days of “autres temps, autres mœurs,” all these have gone out of vogue. Whether the modern, soi disant, more refined practices at village feasts are an improvement on the old is a question we leave others to decide.
Revesby church, dedicated to St. Lawrence, was formerly a small structure, rebuilt in 1735, partly with materials taken from the former Abbey, by Joseph Banks, Esq. (great grandfather of the Right Honble. Sir Joseph Banks), who purchased the property from the Honble. Henry Howard, 3rd son of the Earl of Berkshire, in 1714. The benefice then, as now, was a chaplaincy to the owners of the Revesby Abbey estate. [166] That church contained among its chief features a memorial tablet at the east end of the chancel to Nehemiah Rawson, Esq., who died in 1657, a name still common in the neighbourhood; another to the above-named Honble. Henry Howard, who died in 1663; and on the north side of the chancel was a large marble monument, surmounted by a bust, and an inscription in Latin to Joseph Banks, Esq., who died 1727. After renovation at various periods this old fabric was removed, and, on the same site, the present handsome church, a fine specimen of the 14th century, flamboyant style, was erected at the joint expense of J. Banks Stanhope, Esq., and the late Right Honourable Edward Stanhope, M.P., lord of the manor in 1890–2. The church consists of western tower, surmounted by a lofty spire; nave, with north aisle and south porch; and chancel, with organ chamber and vestry on the north side; the whole forming an elegant structure, reminding one, though on a smaller scale, of the famous marble church of Bodelwyddan in North Wales. It is built generally of Ancaster stone, the walls inside being lined with red Hollington sandstone. Mr. Hodgson Fowler was the architect, and in several details of the building he reproduced features borrowed from the original Abbey.
The following is a detailed description of the church:—In the south wall of the interior of the tower, in a recess, are various carved and other fragments of stone, and near them the capitals and bases of some small Norman columns; and on the north wall is a fragment of a canopied niche; all these being carefully preserved remnants of the original Abbey church.
In the centre is a small Norman font with plain bowl, supported on a shaft of 8 clustered columns, resting on a square base. In the tower above is a peal of 8 carillon bells of good tone, embracing the octave. The north aisle has 4 lofty bays. In the north wall are four two-light windows with trefoil and other tracery above. Against the west wall of this aisle is a massive marble monument surmounted by a bust, probably the old monument renewed, bearing in English the inscription, “In memory of Joseph Banks, M.P. for Grimsby and Totnes, born 1681, died 1727, married Mary Hancock, and had issue Joseph, and Mary, Lady Whichcote, died 1726”; to the left, “Joseph Banks II., born 1695, died 1741, married, 1st, Annie Hodgkinson, and had issue, &c.; Eleonora (the youngest) born 1723, died 1793, married the Honble. Henry Grenville, and was mother of Louisa, Countess Stanhope; married, 2ndly, Catherine widow of Newcomen Wallis.” Right inscription, “William Banks, born 1719, died 1761, married Sarah Bate, and left issue, (1) Joseph, afterwards Sir Joseph Banks, (2) Sarah Sophia, born 1744, died 1818.”
The south nave wall next to the porch eastward has two two-light windows similar to those in the north wall, and next to the chancel wall a large three-light window, flamboyant above, of coloured glass—the subjects being St. James, St. Peter, and St. John, bearing the inscription below, “Presented by the tenants of the Revesby estate as a token of esteem for James Banks Stanhope, Esquire, of Revesby Abbey, 1892.” The pulpit is of carved modern oak, being Flemish work, the subjects scriptural, resting on a stone base; the sittings throughout are of oak with carved panels at the ends. There is a good brass lectern, and oak fald-stool. The choir stalls in the chancel are of massive carved oak with good poppy heads. The panels of the sedilia are from the Abbot’s house; the encaustic tiles are copies of the originals, the remains of which are preserved in the bell chamber of the tower. The east window is of five lights with rich flamboyant tracery above. It is filled with coloured glass by Messrs. Heaton, Butler and Bayne, and erected by public subscription in memory of the late Right Honourable Edward Stanhope. The subjects are two rows of figures; in the lower row, in the two lights on the north side, are St. Edward and St. Matthew, then St. Boniface and St. Wilfred; in the central compartment, three figures, St. George, St. Martin, and St. Alban; then, to the south, St. Hugh and St. Jerome, in one light, St. Thomas and St. Lawrence in the other outside light. In the upper row, the central figure is the Saviour, crowned, His right hand uplifted in blessing, His left holding a sceptre; in the two compartments, on either side, are angels with harps, viols, &c. In the tracery above are heads of angels, and above all, the Angus Dei. The reredos is of plush velvet. A jewelled cross stands on the super-altar. The communion table is covered with a rich altar cloth of velvet and lace. To the north and south of the table, the walls are panelled with oak, to the height of the east window, with devices representing the ivy, olive, rose, gourd, pomegranate, vine, and fig; the fruit being inlaid mother of pearl, given by the Honble. Mrs. Stanhope. There is a brass tablet in the north wall, giving an account of the east window. In the south wall is a plain two-light trefoiled window, and a long stone seat below. The organ has handsome coloured pipes, and has in front a richly-carved oak screen. At the main entrance to the churchyard is a lich gate, “erected by friends and tenants, in loving memory of the Right Honourable Edward Stanhope.” In the churchyard, beneath the east window, is the Stanhope grave, framed in white marble, with a recumbent cross of the same material within it. Beneath that spotless emblem of our faith, lies all that was mortal of a noble being, a man “sans peur et sans reproche,” singularly gifted, of varied tastes, wide sympathies, generous instincts, of indefatigable industry as a statesman in the service of his Queen and country, and we may add without presumption, a sincere Christian, of strong convictions. Edward Stanhope, died, 22 December, 1893, admired by his opponents almost as much as he was beloved by his friends, and of him, we may truly say that his gain was our loss. Opposite the village green are alms-houses, for five poor men and five poor women, founded by Joseph Banks, Esq., in 1727, who endowed them with an annual rent charge of £50. Revesby is emphatically a model village, the residences of the tenants and their labourers, being alike maintained in the best order.
The parsonage, a good residence, erected by J. Banks Stanhope, Esq., stands in pretty grounds and is now adorned, internally, with much carved oak furniture, cabinets, overmantel, &c., &c., and with a display of numerous silver cups, trophies won in various competitions, by the Rev. P. O. Ashby, the active and energetic chaplain.
Salmonby is distant from Horncastle about five miles, in an easterly direction, on the road to Tetford, which it adjoins. The register dates from 1558, and contains some curious entries. One is as follows:—“Helena More, centesimo decimo ætatis anno, et undecimo die mensis Junii, Anno Dom. 1638 fato succubuit, et die duo decimo dicti mensis sepulta est 1638,” i.e., Helena More succumbed to her fate in the 110th year of her age, and on the 11th day of the month of June, A.D. 1638, and was buried on the 12th day of the said month, 1638.
In the month of March, 1723, there were six burials within nine days, three members of the same family; no cause for the mortality being mentioned. In the following year (1724), there were ten burials, among them being four of the name of Wait, three Ansels, and two Bartholomews.
The rector from 1710 to 1741, Rev. Henry Marshall, was also rector of Fulletby, and vicar of Orby, and he was succeeded by his son in the rectory of Salmonby, who also held the benefice of Ashby Puerorum.
There are some rather peculiar field names in this parish, two Wongs, far and near, a relic of Saxon nomenclature; also Skerrills and Skerrills Holt, Bramfleets, Haverlins (Haver=oats), Dry-sykes, Rotten Fen, Wallow Farm, and Wallow Camp, and The Mires, the last four, doubtless derived from the character of the localities. From a part of this boggy land in the north of the parish, rises a spring of chalibeate water, said to resemble the properties of the Tunbridge Wells; a pulverulent blue phosphate of iron, and an earthy oxide of iron. We do not know much of the early history of Salmondby, the village of some Saxon thane of the name of Salmond. The manor was apparently the property of the Saxon Earl, Harold, but William the Conqueror gave it to his nephew, Hugh de Abrincis, or Avranches, surnamed “Lupus,” or the Wolf, from his many deeds of violence, and it was held as part of the soke of the more important manor, or honour, of Greetham. In an ancient charter, found among the “Final Concords” (p. 359), it is stated that Geoffrey de Benigworth, grants to Avice, wife of William de Benigworth, his manors of Walmersty, Friskeney, Salmundesby, and Skreythesfeld (Scrafield), and all appurtenances, saving the advowson of the church of Salmundesby, which remains to Geoffrey and his heirs, and we have here an example of how the common labourers were regarded as little better than “goods and chattels.” Since, herewith he grants all the villeins holding the “villeinages,” or cottages, and “all their sequels,” i.e., their progeny, “to have and to hold to the said Avice all her life,” and after her decease, the manors and services were to revert to the said Geoffrey and his heirs for ever.
By will, dated 2 July, 1582 (“Lincolnshire Wills,” 1500, 1600, p. 105, No. 285), Margaret Littlebury, late wife of Thomas Littlebury, Esq., of Stainsby, in the parish of Ashby Puerorum, leaves money to the poor of Salmonby, Greetham, and other places. This Margaret was the daughter of John St. Paul, of Snarford, who, like the Dymokes, the Dightons, Maddisons, Massingberds, and many other leading county families, were mixed up in the Lincolnshire Rebellion of 1536. The Littleburies were seated at Hagg and Somersby, as well as at Stainsby, but they seem to have resided originally at Holbeach Hurn. Sir Humphrey Littlebury, Lord of Littlebury, was born, 1346. He married Elizabeth, daughter and heiress of Sir John Kirton, knight, Lord of Kirton, and there is a fine altar tomb of them both, in Holbeach church. His will was dated, Dec. 1, 1330. But there was a Sir Ralph Littlebury, knight, a juror at Holbeche, in A.D. 1293.
There would seem at one time to have been a substantial manorial residence at Salmonby, for by will, dated 23 January, 1614, Edward King, of Ashby-de-la-Laund, devises “to my sonne, John Kinge, my manor house, of Salmondbie, alias Salmonbie, with all appurtenances,” also certain “closes,” among them being the “Rush Close, Warlowe close, the Conie Hill, Huntepitts, Sheepe Walks, The Lings, alias Gallows Hill, Rotten Fen, &c., which manor and lands were late in the tenure of Richard Caterton.” He adds a codicil, dated “9 day of June, 1617,” bequeathing to his said sonne, John Kinge, various cottages, with his “commons of Key-gaite, and Sheepe-gait acre, and sheepe pasture in other places in Salmonbie. Lastlie, I bequeath to my right worthie and faithful friende, Sir John Meres, knight, a ring of gold of the value of xls., to be inamiled on the outside, and within to be ingraven these words, Donum Fidelis Amici.” This testator built the hall at Ashby-de-la-Laund in 1595. The Kings took the side of the Parliament, and Colonel Edward King distinguished himself. The last male heir, the Rev. John King, died without issue, a few years ago. The manor took its name from the two families, Essheby and De la Laund, who held it till the reign of Henry VI. It has belonged to the Kings since the reign of Henry VIII., but has now passed to Colonel Neville H. Reeve.
A former rector of Salmonby, Phyllip Robert, clerk, by will, dated 26 July, 1617, but not written in a clerkly style, desired “to be buried in the queare” (choir) of the church.
By a Chancery Inquisition (18 Henry VII., No. 46), it was found that Hamon Sutton, held the manor of Salmonby, with Maydenwell and others, and also the advowson of Salmonby, holding them of the Lord the King, as of his Duchy of Lancaster, and in the time of Queen Elizabeth, Anthony Thorold, knight, is named in certain documents still in the British Museum, as being lord of the manor at that time. (“Collectanea” G. Holles, vol., iii., p. 770.)
In 1415, John Kyghly, of Salmonby, a feoffe of Sir William Cromwell, knight, presented to the chantry in Driby church, because he, Sir William, was “out of the realm.” It is probable that he was with Henry V. at the battle of Agincourt, October 25, 1415. (“Architectural Society’s Journal,” 1895, p. 124).
Among the Revesby charters is a deed of Symon, son of Gilbert of Halton, and his wife Sarah, by which they jointly give to the Abbey of Revesby, all “their lands in Salmonby and in Scraydesfield (Scrafield), and in Stickney, and all their claims on the goods of Gilbert of Benniworth. Witnesses, Gilbert Cusin, seneschal of the house of the Earl Chester, and others.” Date, temp. Hen. III.
The patronage of the benefice of Salmonby was at one time attached to the crown, probably as an appurtenance of the honour of Greetham and Duchy of Lancaster, but it has now passed into private hands. In 1779, Henry Marshall, clerk, already referred to, was patron and incumbent. Prior to 1840, W. Bowerbank held the patronage and rectory. He was succeeded by the late Rev. Henry Fielding, formerly Canon of Manchester, next followed Rev. R. F. Ward, then for a brief period, Rev. F. Cooper, and it is now held by the Rev. John Booth, who is also patron. It has the unique distinction of having once been held in commendam by William Patten, commonly known later as William Waynflete, from his birth place, Wainfleet, in Lincolnshire; that most munificent divine, Provost of Eton, Bishop of Winchester, Lord Chancellor, Founder of Magdalen College, Oxford, and of a free school at his native place.
The church, dedicated to St. Margaret, was until recent years, an ivy-mantled structure, of the period Edwd. III. but it was restored in 1871, during the incumbency of the Rev. R. Fawssett Ward, at a cost of about £600, who also enlarged the rectory, and it now forms an interesting, well-kept and complete church, in the Perpendicular style. It comprises nave, chancel, south porch, and small spire, which contains one bell, and stands at the N.E. corner of the chancel. The east window was given by the late Henry James Fielding, Esq., eldest son of the former rector, in memory of his father and mother. It has five lights, with numerous compartments above, and is filled with good coloured glass, the subjects being, the Crucifixion above, and the Last Supper below, the design adapted from a window in the Refectory at Milan. There is a piscina in the south wall of the chancel. The south wall has also one three-light, and one two-light window in the Perpendicular style. The nave has, in the south wall, one three-light, and one two-light window, and the porch door; and in the north wall, one three-light window. The west window again, of three lights, has good stained glass, in memory of the Rev. Matthewman Manduel, for more than fifty years curate or rector of Tetford; the subject is, Christ Blessing Little Children. The tracery of all these windows is good. There is an organ, by Nicholson, of Lincoln, with nine stops, and handsome coloured pipes in front, the gift of the Rev. F. Cooper. The chancel sedilia and choir stalls are of good carved modern oak, by Messrs. Walter & Hensman, of Horncastle. The nave is fitted with open benches, which, with the roof, are of pitch pine. The font is modern, octagonal, with shields and roses floriated on alternate faces of the bowl, supported by an octagonal shaft and pediment. There is a graceful ogee arch as the priest’s entrance to the vestry. There was formerly in the nave of the church a brass of a civilian of the 15th century, much defaced, but it some years ago disappeared; it is mentioned among the list of sepulchral brasses supplied to the Archæological Institute on their visit to Lincoln in 1848, so that it still existed at that date. (“Journ. Archæol. Institute,” 1848, p. lii, etc.)
The lady of the manor is now Mrs. Nesbitt Hamilton Ogilvy, as representing the late Right Honble. Robert Adam Christopher Nesbitt Hamilton, a staunch Protectionist, who was one of the eight members of Parliament who voted to the last against the abolition of the corn laws. Some of the land belongs to F. S. Dymoke, Esq., and other smaller owners.
An interesting family heirloom preserved at the rectory, is a massive silver urn-shaped cup, 13 inches high, which was presented to Major Robert Booth, great uncle of the present Rector, by the officers and privates of the Wainfleet Infantry Volunteers, comprising three companies, which were raised at the time, when the first Napoleon was expected to invade this country in 1808, and of which he was Major Commandant (Oldfield’s “History of Waynfleet” 1829).
This rather straggling village is pleasantly situated about 6 miles north-east of Horncastle, in a basin of the Wolds, between the steep hill on the west, by which it is approached from Horncastle and West Ashby, by the old turnpike road to Louth, and the still steeper hill of Cawkwell, a mile further to the east, Louth-ward. In the centre of this basin, which is watered by a small tributary of the river Bain, rising near at hand, is an almost circular prominence, like the boss of a shield, on which fitly stands the church, above all the other human erections. Only a few years ago, this was a very poor structure of brick, although recent explorations have shewn that there formerly existed a fair-sized edifice, with nave, aisles, and chancel, fragments of which were built into the later brick structure. This earlier church is said to have been demolished about the middle of the 18th century. An inscription in the west wall of the present fabric records that “The nave of this church was taken down, and rebuilt, A.D. 1893: Alfred Soden, Vicar; C. B. Robson, J. R. Bourne, Churchwardens.” The chancel had been rebuilt in the previous incumbency of the Rev. T. White, by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, at a cost of £400, in 1890–1. In the reconstruction, stone was utilized from the small church of Cawkwell, the adjoining parish, which had been disused and in a state of decay for some years, and was not needed for the very small population of that parish, which is now, for ecclesiastical purposes, annexed to Scamblesby. The present erection of stone has a south door, with porch, and a priest’s door in the south wall of the chancel. The nave has north and south aisles, of three bays; the easternmost column in the south arcade is the original Norman, the rest being modern, in similar style. In the north wall are three lancet windows, the central one having two lights, the eastern and western one light, and in the south wall there are two similar windows, one with two lights, the other with one. The west end has two lancet windows, each with a single light, and above them an ox-eye window, with smaller lancets on either side of it. In the eastern wall of the nave, on either side of the chancel arch, is a narrow lancet window. In the chancel, the east window has two lights, with quatrefoil above, two square-headed windows in the south wall, and one in the north. The present font is modern, and plain; the curious, massive, circular bowl of the old font, about 2ft. 8in. in diameter, in height more than 2ft., and with depth of interior 1ft., large enough for immersion, stands outside the porch. The seats of the nave are modern, of deal, but they have very good old oak carved poppy-heads. The pulpit, of oak, was presented as a memorial of the late Vicar, the Rev. T. White, by his pupils; he having been formerly second master of the Horncastle Grammar School; it already, however, shows signs of decay. The chancel sedilia, of deal, were given by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The communion table, of oak, which is raised on two steps, was the gift of the present Vicar. In the north wall of the chancel is a tablet, commemorating, in Latin, and in quaint English verse, Margaret, the daughter of Henry Coppinger, of a distinguished family in Kent, and wife of “Franciscus Thorndike,” a lady, “imbued with a liberal piety from early years, who religiously fulfilled her conjugal duties, and who, suffering severely herself, also bore, as became a Christian, the loss of three children, and then, with one only surviving, herself yielded willingly to the call of God. Erected to a most beloved wife, by the most sorrowing of husbands.” No date is given, but it has been found from the Herald’s College, that she was buried at Scamblesby, Dec. 30, 1629. (“Linc. N. & Q.” iv., pp. 208–9). Another member of this family, the brother of Francis, was the Rev. Herbert Thorndyke, an eminent divine and worthy of Lincolnshire, Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, collated prebendary of “Layton Ecclesia” in the cathedral of Lincoln, by Bishop, afterwards Archbishop, Williams (in which dignity he succeeded the well-known George Herbert), and later, made a Prebendary of Westminster. He, by his will, dated July, 3rd, 1672, bequeathed his estates in this parish to the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln, for the endowment of the benefice, which, like that of the adjoining Cawkwell, was a very poor one. Thorndyke’s works form the 6th volume of the Anglo-Catholic Library. That the family was one of good position, is shewn by the fact of the name of Francis Thorndyke appearing in the list of the Gentry of Lincolnshire, in 1634, as “of Scamblesby,” also that of “Herbert Thorndyke, of Greenfield.”
The church is dedicated to St. Martin. Among the church plate is a communion cup, bearing the inscription “Communion Cup, 1712,” the Cawkwell cup is also old, but not dated. The register of Scamblesby dates from 1569, that of Cawkwell from 1685, but they contain no entries of special interest. This was one of the many possessions of the Norman, Ivo Taillebois, nephew of William the Conqueror, and chief of the Angevin auxiliaries, who came over with the Conqueror. After the death of the brave young Anglo-Saxon nobles, Edwin and Morcar, the sons of Alfgar, and brothers-in-law of King Harold, who refused to submit to the Norman yoke, their sister, the Lady Lucia, was the last of that royal line, and, being an unprotected female, William the Conqueror bestowed her in marriage with all her many possessions, on Ivo. He received with her, lands in Goulceby, Cawkwell, Asterby, and other places, too many to enumerate. He was a man of violent and tyrannous temperament, eventually, in the next reign, being outlawed as an enemy of King Rufus. He was subsequently allowed to return to this country, but not long afterwards died of paralysis. According to accounts, more or less authentic, the Lady, with a haste which was hardly decent—though under the circumstances perhaps not surprising—barely allowed one month to elapse (says the chronicler, Peter de Blois), “when she married that illustrious young man, Roger de Romara, son of Gerald de Romara,” who had been seneschal or steward to William of Normandy, before the Conquest; two other sons, Ralph and Edward, subsequently being founders, the former, of the Tankervilles, and the latter, of the Earls of Salisbury. By this marriage, the large possessions of the Lady Lucia, passed to the Romaras. Lucia herself had been a great benefactress to the priory of Spalding, which had been founded by her uncle, Vice-Comes, or Sheriff, Thorold of Buchenale. Among other gifts she conveys to the monks of Spalding “one watermill (a valuable property in those days), and all her tithes in Scamblesby,” with much more in the neighbourhood. (“Charters of Spalding Priory,” British Museum, D. n. 5). William de Romara, her son by her husband Roger, in due course, following suit, founded the Abbey of Revesby. In a later generation, the heiress of this family, married Gilbert de Gaunt, who thus succeeded to the large property, but it is probable that, on the occasions of each of these changes, some of the demesnes were diverted in different directions, and the changes were not few, as the Gaunts were succeeded by the Blondvilles, they by the Lacys, and they again by John of Gaunt, Earl of Richmond, 4th son of Edwd. III. whose son was King Henry IV., of Bolingbroke. How long Scamblesby remained a part of this heritage we are not able to say, but it may be observed that in this varied line of descent (as indeed in many others), there were various causes for the alienation, or disintegration of large demesnes. The Sovereign’s power was absolute and most arbitrarily exercised, unless, as was sometimes the case, the subject’s power was greater. The owners of large estates, and especially heiresses, were an object of peculiar interest to Sovereigns, who by reason of war, or their own extravagance, were not seldom more impecunious than their powerful subjects. The actions of the latter were carefully scanned, in order, if possible, that the Sovereign might find an excuse for confiscation, partial or entire, of the offender’s property, and so replenish the royal coffers. In the case of male proprietors, they could only obtain coveted privileges, or even exercise their own undoubted rights, on the payment of a very heavy fine. The times were turbulent, rebellion was not uncommon, and a large landowner sometimes found that he had espoused the unsuccessful cause, whereupon he naturally incurred the penalty. In the case of an heiress, a marriage contracted without the King’s license, was made sufficient ground for the royal displeasure, and a heavy fine or deprivation was the result. Some, or all of these causes were at work with different members of this particular line. In the case of the attainder of Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, even his divorced wife, Alicia, became subject to a penalty of £20,000, a very large sum in those days, when pence were almost equivalent to our pounds. In this, and other ways, the once vast possessions of the Thorolds, in this part of the county, passed into other hands; although they are still one of the leading families on the other side of it. Other families here came to the fore. On the dissolution of the monasteries, any property which had been granted by benefactors to those institutions, would pass, by grant of the sovereign, to others, unless he retained it himself. As we pass the small stream in Scamblesby, over which a child could now leap, we may recognise it as a power that once turned the mill-wheel of the Lady Lucia, or ground corn for the tenants of the priors of Spalding, but it knows their name no more. Some of the land, including the manor, passed to the Bishop of Lincoln; until, in 1862, it was transferred to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, who are now the Lay Impropriators; the living, now, after various augmentations, worth £300 a year, being in the patronage of the Bishop of Lincoln, and the Earl of Yarborough. The latter nobleman is now one of the largest proprietors in the county, though we believe he originally belonged to the south of England, and was connected with the Earls of Chichester, of Stanmer Park, in Sussex, in which county the heraldic Pelham buckle is a marked feature in many of the churches. [178] Other proprietors are the Lill and Bourne families. There is a prebendal stall in Lincoln Cathedral, attached to Scamblesby in conjunction with Melton Ross, which is now held by the Rev. Canon Arthur Wright, rector of Coningsby, and Rural Dean of Gartree.
There are rent charges for the poor of the parish, left by David Atkinson and dame Tyrwhitt; also the interest of £6 6s. 8d., left by an unknown donor, and a charge on land in Belchford, for poor widows.
Within a short distance of the church, in a south-eastward direction, are traces of a moated inclosure, which has probably been the site of a residence of some size. Nothing is known of its past history, but it may well have been a mansion on the property of the Countess Lucia, or some of her descendants, and occupied by a dependent vassal. There are a few records of former persons connected with the parish, of which we here give one or two. Among the “Final Concords,” under date, 1 July, 1202, is an agreement between Roger de Maletoft, on the one part, and Philip de Claythorp, and Mary his wife, on the other part, tenants of “4 oxgangs in Scamblesbi (about 60 acres),” by which they acknowledge the said land to be the right and inheritance of the said Roger; and in return for this, he granted it “to them and their heirs, to hold of him and his heirs for ever, doing for it foreign service”; and, as an acknowledgment of this, the said Philip and Mary gave the said Roger 4 marks. (Note appended to the will of John Guevera, made 18 March, 1607.) N.B.—A sister of John Guevera, married John Chapman, of Scamblesbi. The Guevera family came from Biscay, in Spain, probably imported by Katherine of Arragon, or Philip of Spain, Queen Mary’s husband.
Thomas Kent, of Scamblesby, clerk, by will, dated 23 July, 1623, among other bequests, leaves, “to my wife Mary, £40, with other benefits; my dau., Lydia Lent £200; my dau., Penelope Dennis, £16; my dau., Mary Martingdale, £20; my son, Thomas Kent, £20; my dau., Anne Millington,—; Henry Neave, my grandchild, £30; Gabriel Neave, my grandchild, £66 13s. 4d.; Mary Neave, £66 13s. 4d.; my son Elias Kent, 2 Kye, a pr. of oxen, a pr. of 2 yr. old fleaces; a mare that I had of my son-in-law, James Martingdale, my waines and waine-geares, and ploughs and plough-geares, my trays and harrows, also a bedd, a presse and a table, with the lease of the manor of Scamblesby; my son, Thomas, 44s. in gold; my son, Abell, 44s. in gold; to everyone of my grandchildren, 11s. in gold; to the poor of Donington, 22s.; of Goulceby, 20s.; and to the poorest of Scamblesby 20s.; to everyone of my servants, 16d.; to Lewis Whiteing, 2 ewes and 2 lambes; to Dorothie Candroy, a flocked yearing quee.” The testator’s wife is to have his household goods and chattels, for division among his children at her discretion; Timothy, his son, being sole executor, to whom he bequeaths the residence, after payment of debts and funeral expenses. To be buried in the chancel of Scamblesbie.
Elias Kent, of Scamblesby, gent., by will, dated 13 Feb., 1625, bequeaths to “my wife, Elizabeth, £200, and the household stuff, &c.; to my daughter, Martha Kent, £200 when 16, and the lease of Scamblesby manor; to my sister, Marie Martingdale, Mr. Benjamin Storre, 20s.; Thomas, William, and Elizabeth, the three eldest children of my brother Timothy Kent, deceased, 20s. a piece; and to Edward Kent, a new coat; to my brother, Thomas Booth, ‘Speede’s Chronicles’; to my brother, Richard Sharpe, my black gelding; to my mother, a 5s. piece of silver; to the poor of Scamblesby, 40s.; to the poorest of Goulceby, 10s. and of Donington, 10s.; to everie one of my sisters 10s.; to my cosen, Alice Brooke, £3 6s. 8d., and the horse called ‘Maud,’ &c., &c. My body to be buried in the chancel. My brother, Thomas Kent, clerk of Donington, to be executor.”
N.B.—On the death of the said Thomas Kent, Incumbent of Donington, 13 years later, he leaves “to my much honored friend, Sir John Munson, my black colt; to Sir Thomas Munson, my noble friend whom I much honor, my Spurr Royal; to the Right Honble., my Lord Beaumont, my bald colt; to the Rectors of Donington, for the time being, and their successors for ever, my Spalding tythes (these were the gift of the Lady Lucia to Spalding priory); to the repairs of St. Paul’s church in London, £5.”
The name Scamblesby means the “By,” i.e., farmstead (Scotice Byre) of the Saxon Skamel; probably his land, amounting to six carucates (or 720 acres), was that which, through the Lady Lucia, became the property of Ivo Taillebois, lord of Spalding.
The parish of Cawkwell, now ecclesiastically annexed to Scamblesby, is of small extent, being a lordship comprising some 680 acres of land, now the property of the Duke of Portland; the benefice, a vicarage now valued at £39 a year, being in the patronage of the Earl of Yarborough, who, as such, has the alternate presentation with the Bishop of Lincoln, to the consolidated benefice of Scamblesby with Cawkwell. This property, again, was among the lands of Ivo Taillebois, acquired by his marriage with the Saxon heiress, Lucia. Little is known of its past history. It probably passed through the like vicissitudes as Scamblesby, until it was granted to Sir Charles Cavendish, of Bolsover Castle, and from him, passed to the Dukes of Newcastle, the Earl of Oxford, and finally, by the marriage of his daughter and heiress, to the noble family of Bentinck, the ancestors of the present Duke of Portland, who, in the present generation, has married a lady of the almost neighbouring parish of Walmsgate. There was formerly a priory of Cawkwell, of which Sir William Tyrwhitt was steward. It was probably not a richly endowed institution, as his fee as steward was only £1. It would seem to have been a dependency of the much wealthier priory of Austin Canons, at Nocton. (Dugdale “Monasticon,” vol. ii., p. 211)
The Church, dedicated to St. Peter, was demolished, and the materials, in part, utilized for the rebuilding of Scamblesby church, in 1893. At the date of Liber Regis (temp. Queen Anne), the benefice was so poor that it is there described as “not presented to,” and the church has not been used for divine worship since 1885. Cawkwell house is a substantial residence, standing in good grounds, and occupied by C. B. Robson, Esq. The only thing worthy of note in connection with this parish, is that it was the birth-place, in 1599, of a learned and pious man, Hanserd Knollys, who was educated at Cambridge, distinguished for his zeal in religion, appointed master of the Free School at Gainsborough, took Holy Orders, and was presented by the Bishop of Lincoln to the living of Humberston. Afterwards, conceiving scruples as to the lawfulness of certain church observances, he resigned his benefice; for a time, with the Bishop’s connivance, he preached in various parishes, without using the church service. He eventually abjured his orders, and joined the Baptist persuasion, and became one of its pastors in London. The intolerance of the age forced him to seek refuge in Wales, Holland, Germany, and even America. He died, Sept., 1691, in the 93rd year of his age. (Weir’s “Hist. Lincolnshire,” vol. i, p. 301). [181]
We have mentioned Cawkwell hill. This is one of “the Alps of Lincolnshire,” and, although there are, among the Wold hills, several considerably steeper, being on a high road, formerly having much traffic, it has been the scene of some accidents. Only a few years ago, a gentleman living near, was driving down the hill in a thunderstorm, when he was struck by lightening, his carriage was upset, and his horse afterwards found on the other side of the hedge, he himself recovering without any serious effects. Sometime in the forties, the late Sir Henry Dymoke was driving a carriage and pair down the hill, when the horses bolted. The father of the present writer happened at the time to be walking down the hill, on his way home from Louth; as the horses dashed past him he made a spring at the bridle of the near horse, fortunately catching hold of it, and by running alongside, he succeeded in bringing the horses to a stand, without injury to anyone. But for this timely aid, the champion of England might have incurred a more serious ordeal than that of challenging his sovereign’s enemies.
The name of this parish, “Calche uuelle,” in Domesday Book, and now Cawkwell, might have been given with prophetic foresight into the future, as it is here, from a deep well, the bore of which passes through the chalk to the gravel below, that a pure and plentiful supply of water is obtained for the town of Horncastle, and more recently also for the modern health resort of Woodhall Spa.