THE PARISH CHURCHES OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE: ILLUSTRATED BY WILLS, TEMP. HENRY VIII.

By REV. J. CHARLES COX, LL.D., F.S.A.

It is proposed in this paper to group together certain facts relative to the parish churches of Northamptonshire which can be gleaned from the pre-Reformation wills of the county of the time of Henry VIII., and also from a few of the reigns of Edward VI. and Mary. It is much to be desired that some general analysis, or tabulated extracts from these most interesting most interesting testamentary documents, should be prepared for every county.'

Wills are invaluable as giving absolute proof of the dedications of churches. The dedications of this county as given in modern calendars and gazetteers are most faulty. For instance, a group of old churches is assigned to St. Luke, every one of which is a recent invention. The following table shows the relative frequency of the different dedications. This summary includes all old parish churches and a certain number of parochial chapels that had fabrics at a distance from the parish church, but omits the churches of mere religious foundations.

An admirable paper on the ecclesiology of the West Kent churches, by Mr. Leland L. Duncan, F.S.A., was printed in the third volume of the Transactions of the St. Paul's Ecclesio logical Society, 1895. Rev. F. W. Weaver, M.A., published annotated abstracts of a large number of Somersetshire wills in 1890, under the title Wells Wills,

The wills treated of in these pages are to be found at the Probate Office, Derngate, Northampton. I desire to acknowledge the invariable courtesy

and assistance extended to me by the officials.

A large portion of the extracts have been taken by my friend Rev. R. M. Serjeantson, M.A., to whom I am most grateful for the free use made of them in this article. I am hopeful that these pages will only prove introductory to a complete analysis for every parish by Mr. Serjeantson. In a few cases I have depended on the copious extracts made by Bishop Kennet in the eighteenth century, which are among his collections in the British Museum.

I

The Celtic saint St. Columba is commemorated in the dedication of Collingtree, the terminal of the place-name

being also Celtic; St. Wilfrid, of the Roman obedience, at Guilsborough ; St. Werburgh, at the chapel of Weedon Bec; St. Guthlac, at Passenham, and at the chapels of Deeping Gate and Elmington; and St. Pega, at Peakirk.

The full dedication of the church of Castor was in honour of the "Holie Virgins Seynt Keneburghe, Kenyswythe, and Tybbe," as is given in a will of 1532; though other wills only name St. Kyneburgh. The subsidiary church of Upton is also dedicated to St. Kyneburgh.

Pre-Reformation wills are often of value in giving the exact date of structural alterations or additions to the fabric of the church, as well as pointing to the time of considerable repairs. The fine embattled tower of Arthingworth was being built as late as 1515-17, as we find from various bequests. Steeple" was the term then used indifferently for either tower or spire, or both. Building or considerable repairs were in progress at Whiston in 1526, at Rothwell in 1528, and at Hazelbeach in 1537; whilst in the latter year there was a bequest of 68. 8d. to the steeple of Cransley Church" when the tyme shall come that it shall be new made." The building of the steeple of Old church was a long time in progress, certainly from 1512 to 1519. In the first of these years there was a bequest towards the steeple of 20s.; in 1519 there was the handsome bequest of 'xvj whethers off the second sortte, and iiij ewys of the same sortte." Richard Arnold left to the building of the roof of this steeple the best piece of oak in his yard, whilst another parishioner, in the following year, outdid this by leaving the two best pieces in his yard. The new aisle of St. John Baptist, in the church of Kettering, was building in 1512. The making of a porch at Moreton Pinkney was in progress in 1520. The roof of the church of St. Sepulchre, Northampton, was being repaired in 1528-9; in each of those years there was a bequest of 20s. towards "castynge of the leades and hellyng of pulkars." The south aisle of All Saints, Wellingborough was being built in 1530, when a parishioner left as much money as should suffice to glaze the middle window. Ten shillings were left in 1526 "to Our Blessed Lady of Ashby towards the building of the

parish church"; this would mean the nave of the conventual church of the house of the Austin Canons. A specially interesting bequest tells of repairs being done to the chapel of Our Lady standing in a wood in the parish of Croughton.

Among the bequests of general utility to the parish district, the most usual kind were those made in favour of the repairs of bridges and highways or "causeys.' There are several cases of bequests to the four bridges about the town of Rothwell, as well as to the dif ferent bridges at Oundle and Wellingborough. Other bridges that we have noticed are those of Barnwell, Brigstock, Deeping Gate, Denford, Moulton, Peterborough, Pitsford, Spratton, Walgrave, and West Haddon. The highways mentioned are generally those leading from a special place to the church, and in some instances for the causey from the parsonage to the church. Thomas Angiers of Paulerspury in 1532 left "one halff of my goodes to be spent in warkes of mercye as in mendyng of the hiewayes." Occasionally crosses, other than those in the churchyard, are named. There are bequests for two different crosses in the town of Irthlingborough, and one testator of Chipping Warden, in 1529, leaves twenty pence to the repair of the cross that stood

next his house.

There are various references of interest with regard to the Sacrament of the Altar.

Thomas Doddington, of All Saints, Northampton, leaves, in 1530, £10 in money or plate to make a pix for the Sacrament, and requests that his brother (who was probably a working goldsmith of the town) should "make the said pix after such a goodly manner as he can devyse." Henry Godwin, of Irchester, leaves, in 1526, 40s. "towards the bying and purchasing of a pyxe of sylver & gylte to ley the blessed Sacrament or body of our Lord Jhesu Cryste, there to remain for ever."

Stowe Nine Churches had a bequest in 1532, of "xs. to bye a cloth to leye over the holie sacrament on Corpus Christi dave & at all other tvmes nedeful."

The following relate to the English use of a canopy over the pix:

"To mendynge the canopye and blessed Sacrament of

the aulter xiid." (Holcot); "towards the maintenaunce of a canopye over the hie aulter, iiijd." (Daventry); "to the sacrament of the aulter to by a canopye xs." (Great Billing); "a canope to hang over the holy & blessyd Sacrament" (Brafield).

With regard to altar plate :

The mending of a chalice gained a bequest at West Haddon of 6s. 8d. in 1553; whilst £3 was at the same time left to that church to buy a new chalice. Bequests are also found towards buying a new chalice on three or four occasions, 40s. being the largest sum.

In these wills the celebration of the mass of the Five Wounds is frequently enjoined. There are also instances of St. Gregory's trentals, the mass of Pope Innocent, and the mass of Scala celi.

A bequest of 1529, providing for five funeral masses, specifies that they are to be: (1) The Five Wounds, (2) Our Lady, (3) Holy Ghost, (4) Jesus, and, (5) Requiem "for my pore soule." A Brington will stipulates for five masses (1) Nativity, (2) Epiphany, (3) Resurrection, (4) Holy Ghost, and (5) Assumption of Our Lady.

John Sumerly, of Mears Ashby, requested that five priests might have five groats to sing five masses of the Five Wounds on his burial day.

The use of fine household or personal linen (of course unused) for church purposes is frequently illustrated.

John Robinson leaves his best kerchief to the high altar of St. Gregory's church, Northampton, "to make a corporax." A Naseby parishioner bequeaths a kerchief to make a corporax, and three silk pillows. Henry Mayo, priest of Chipping Warden, left in 1516 "a fine kerchieff to make a corporax.

An Oundle woman left half a sheet to the altar of Our Lady, and the other half to the altar of St. Sythe. Cecile Smyth, widow, of Carlton, left in 1529 two sheets to make a surplice, one to make two altar cloths, and a table-cloth for the high altar. "A dyaper bordcloth was left to the high altar of Flore, "to remayne as an ornament ther." Joan Parker, in 1538, desired that a fine sheet might be laid on her body when borne for burial to the church of All Saints, Northampton, which was afterwards to be used as altar cloth at the high altar.