THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 i . k 
 
 a
 
 THE HISTOEY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 tofr Cfwrrfr 
 
 o o o 
 
 OF 
 
 ALL SAINTS', MAIDSTONE, 
 
 WITH ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 J. CAVE-BROWNE, M.A., 
 
 Vicar of Detling, near Maidntone ; 
 
 AUTHOR OF " LAMBETH PALACE AND ITS ASSOCIATIONS," ETC. 
 
 "... How beautiful they stand. 
 Thosa aucitnt altars of our native land." 
 
 L. E. L. 
 
 MAIDSTONE : 
 G. BUNYARD, WEEK ST. | J. BURGISS BROWN, WEEK ST. 
 
 AND OTHER MAIDSTONE BOOKSELLERS. 
 And of the Author.
 
 Printed by Hazell, Watson, & Viney, Ld., London and Aylesbury.
 
 DA 
 
 TO 
 
 be $rear anfr Clergu, 
 
 THE CHURCHWARDENS, AND OTHER OFFICERS, 
 AXD THE PARISHIONERS GENERALLY, 
 
 OF 
 
 |iil Saints', gfatbstoru, 
 
 THIS ENDEAVOUR TO ELUCIDATE THE HISTORY OF 
 
 THEIR NOBLE PARISH CHURCH, 
 
 WHICH THEY HAVE RECENTLY BEAUTIFULLY RESTORED, 
 
 AND OF WHICH THEY ARE JUSTLY PROUD, 
 
 IS OFFERED BY THEIR NEIGHBOUR, 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
 627090
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 [OME explanation, perhaps an apology, is 
 due from one who neither by parentage 
 nor by direct connection belongs to the 
 town of Maidstone for having attempted 
 to write a History of its Parish Church. 
 They who have addressed themselves to 
 the subject before him like Newton, 1 who was born 
 and for some years resided here, though his after-life 
 was passed in another part of the County ; and Beale 
 Poste, 8 who may be said to have lived and died in the 
 neighbourhood had the strong and stimulating motive of 
 love for their natale solum then Whichcord, 3 too, had 
 official connection with the Church as Architect, and 
 
 1 The History and Annuities of Maidstone,from the MSS. Collection* 
 of William Newton, Minister of Wingham. 1741. 
 
 3 The History of the College of A II Saints', Jfaidstone, by Beale Poste. 
 1847. 
 
 3 The History awl Antiquities of the Collfgiate Chnrch of All Saints , 
 Ma'ulstone, by J. Whichcord. 1845.
 
 vi INTR OD UCTION. 
 
 Gilbert, 1 again, as Organist but the present writer has no 
 such excuse to offer ; he can plead nothing but the circum- 
 stance of being located in a neighbouring country Parish,, 
 and finding in the noble building, of which all Maidstone 
 men may well be proud, a subject on which he might 
 gratify his love for Architecture and History. 
 
 Still his casual notes and jottings would probably never 
 have seen the light in a collected form, but for the request 
 made by his valued friend, the Rev. H. Percy Thompson,, 
 formerly Curate here, for a series of short papers about the 
 old Church for the outside pages of their Parish Magazine. 
 Out of those papers, which appeared month by month for 
 nearly three years, and are believed to have been read with 
 interest by many of the Parishioners, has grown the present 
 fuller, and he would hope more complete, account of the 
 Church, its Clergy, and its Associations. 
 
 His great object has been to obtain reliable information,, 
 and in his search for such he can truly say he has spared 
 neither himself nor any one, were he friend or entire 
 stranger, who he thought might be able to supply it. And 
 he gratefully acknowledges that from no quarter to which 
 he applied has he failed to receive most ready help and 
 encouragement. 
 
 While he has endeavoured to impart to his account some- 
 
 1 Memorials of All Saints Church, Maidstoiie, by Walter B. 
 Gilbert. 1866. 
 
 A more recent work has appeared by Mr. Russell ; but, covering as 
 it does the wider field of the Town of Maidstone, only a small portion 
 is given to the History of the Church, and that contains little more
 
 INTRODUCTION. vii 
 
 thing of the freshness which might interest the general 
 reader, he has also sought in the Notes (and specially in the 
 Appendices, where he has given the ipsissima verba 1 of 
 original documents) to meet the more rigid demands of the 
 Antiquary. 
 
 If he has occasionally given undue prominence to his own 
 personal sentiments and sympathies, he hopes to be pardoned 
 on the plea of the deep, and ever deepening, interest he has 
 felt in his subject. If, too, as he knows to have been the 
 case, he has occasionally somewhat ruthlessly attempted to 
 demolish some generally accepted local tradition, he trusts 
 that the result of the evidences or arguments he has adduced 
 will prove his justification. 
 
 In writing the lives of the successive Clergy who have 
 been connected with the Church, or in describing the 
 various Monuments which cover its walls, he has not been 
 content to give mere names and dates, or the bare words of 
 Epitaphs, but has tried to invest, as far as he possibly could, 
 the subject of each with such details of time and circum- 
 stance as would give to the individual thus commemorated 
 something of the interest which attaches to, and makes up 
 the semblance of, a living reality. For instance, in th 
 person of John Astley ~ appears a cousin to Queen Elizabeth, 
 on her mother's side ; in his second wife, a sister-in-law of 
 
 than a rtchauffe of preceding works : the Author has therefore not 
 referred to it as an authority in the following pages. 
 
 1 In giving Extracts from original MSS., the Author has adhered to 
 the mode of spelling adopted in every case. 
 
 J See page 151.
 
 viii INTRODUCTION. 
 
 the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey ; while Lawrence Washington 1 
 was most probably a member of that branch of the Washington 
 family from whom was descended the first President of the 
 United States. 
 
 In one portion of his projected work the Author regrets 
 that he has found himself utterly unable to fulfil his promise 
 and carry out his own intentions. He had hoped to intro- 
 duce copious extracts from the Parish Registers ; but on 
 entering upon that branch of his subject he found himself 
 confronted with what would well-nigh constitute the work 
 of a lifetime, and would expand his volume to portentous 
 proportions; consequently, in that Chapter (\ r !II.) he has 
 thought it better to content himself with giving an outline 
 of the general character of what presents a mine, or rather 
 a gold-field, of local history, and leave the enticing labour of 
 digging up and collecting these nuggets of genealogy to 
 some future explorer of more leisure and greater aptitude. 
 
 He desires to record his deep sense of obligation to the 
 many friends who have so kindly and readily aided him in 
 his researches ; to his Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury, 
 for extending to him that privilege which he enjoyed under 
 his Grace's predecessors, of free and unrestricted access to 
 the Registers and MS. Records preserved in the Muniment 
 Room of Lambeth Library ; also to the Librarian, W. S. 
 Kershaw, Esq., for obliging help ; to Sir Albert Woods, C.B., 
 Garter King-at-Arms, and to Gr. E. Cokayne, Esq., Xorroy 
 King, etc., for most valuable information and suggestions on 
 
 1 See page 1G8.
 
 INTRODUCTION. ix 
 
 Heraldic and Genealogical points, which the College of Arms 
 could alone supply ; to K. Garnett, Esq., LL.D., and all the 
 officials in the Reading Room of the British Museum, as 
 also to W. de Gray Birch, Esq., of the Manuscript Depart- 
 ment, for most hearty aid in searching out the stores of 
 knowledge contained in that National Treasure-House of 
 learning ; to C. T. Martin and Walford D. Selby, Esqs., for 
 their constant readiness to unfold to him the wealth of 
 English History stored up in the Public Record Office ; to 
 W. H. St. John Hope, Esq., Assistant Secretary of the 
 Society of Antiquaries, for many valuable suggestions, and 
 for obtaining the Council's permission to reproduce from 
 their Plates the impressions of Ancient Tiles found in the 
 Church; to J. Challenor Smith, Esq., for help in examining 
 the more ancient "Wills under his care in the " Literary 
 Search Department " of Somerset House ; to J. Brigstocke 
 Sheppard, Esq., LL.D., for many important Extracts from 
 the Canterbury Chapter Records ; and to other Antiquarian 
 friends ; 
 
 Also to Herbert Monckton, Esq., the Town Clerk of 
 Maidstone, for very obliging access to the Records of the 
 Borough ; to E. Bartlett, Esq., the Curator of the Museum, 
 for the opportunity of consulting the rich collection of works 
 on local History in that Library, and especially the valuable 
 Volumes of local MSS. forming the collection made by the 
 late Clement Taylor Smythe, Esq. ; to J. H. Turner, Esq., 
 of the County Receiver's Office, for much interesting local 
 information ; and to S. Bath, Esq., for the gift of two
 
 x INTRO D UCTION. 
 
 admirable photographs of the interior of the Church : to 
 these and to others also, whose valuable help is gratefully 
 noted in special portions of the work the Author desires to 
 tender his warm acknowledgments; he would only add a 
 hope that they will not think their efforts to help him in 
 his undertaking have been " labour lost," or time thrown 
 away. 
 
 Conscious as he is of the many imperfections of his work, 
 in extenuation of which he would plead that it is by no 
 means an easy task to clothe the dry bones of Archeology 
 in an attractive dress, he still hopes he may not have 
 utterly failed in attaining the end he has throughout set 
 before him, of presenting his subject before his Maidstone 
 readers in such form as to show them how closely their 
 " King's Town " was connected with, and affected by, the 
 momentous changes, Political and Religious, through which 
 the Nation was passing, and to raise what in many cases 
 seems to be little more than a vague pride, into an intelligent 
 appreciative admiration, of their noble Parish- Church.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE CHURCH, AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 Maidstone, a Roman Military Station, with its Basilica and Temple, 
 1-3 ; Domesday-Book mentions a Church being here, 3 ; Conflicts 
 with the Prior and Chapter of Christ Church, Canterbury, having 
 Jurisdiction sede vacante, 3 ; Form of the Previous Church 
 unknown, G ; Ancient Tiles discovered, 6-8 ; Archbishop Courtenay 
 not the Builder of the Whole Church, 9-11 ; The King's Licence 
 and the Pope's Bulla prove this, 14 ; The Windows, 15 ; The 
 Chantry Chapels, 17-21 ; The Proportions of the Church, 22 ; 
 The Doors, 23 ; The Vestry added, 25. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE CHANCEL, ALTAR-TOMBS, AND SEDILIA. 
 
 The "Miserere Seats" and their Heraldic Devices, 29-31 ; The three 
 Altar-Tombs Archbishop Courtenay's, 32-44 ; Dr. J. Wotton's, 
 45-7 ; Sir Richard Widville's or Woodville's, 47, 48 ; The Sedilia, 
 49-51. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S CHURCH. 
 
 William de Cornhull, 53-6 ; John Mansell, 57-61 ; Thomas Cor- 
 bridge, 62 ; Ralph de Forneham, 63 ; Prov/ atones, 64 ; Nicholas.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 de Knovylle, 65 ; Stephen de Haselingfeld, 66 ; Guido de-la- 
 Valle, 67 ; Anibaldus de Ceccano, 69, 70 ; Hugo de Pelegrini, 
 71 ; Robert Sibthorp, 72 ; William Tyrington, 73 ; Guido de 
 Mone, 74-8. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S "HOSPITALE." 
 
 Its Object, 79 ; Probable Motives for its Erection, 80-2 ; The Charter 
 for its Endowment, 82 ; The Successive Wardens, 83-6 ; The 
 " Corrodiars," 87 ; The Sources and Value of its Endowments, 88 ; 
 Absorbed into the College, 88, 89. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE : ITS MASTERS, ETC. 
 
 A " Secular " Foundation, 90 ; The Masters John Wotton, 91, 92 ; 
 John Holand, 93 ; Roger Heron, 93 ; John Drewell, 94 ; Peter 
 Stuckley, 95 ; Robert Smyth, 95 ; Thomas Boleyn, 95 ; John 
 Freston and John Lee, 96 ; John Camberton, 97 ; William Grocyn, 
 98-101 ; JohnPenynton, 102 ; John Leefe, 102-4 ; The Suppression 
 of the College, 105-8 ; The Revenues Appropriated, 109-11 ; 
 College Staff Pensioned, 111, 112. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 
 
 John Porter, 113-8 ; Robert Carr, 118 ; Robert Barrell, 120 ; Thomas 
 Wilson, 123-6 ; John Crumpe, 127 ; John Davis, 128 ; Humphry 
 Lynde, 129 ; Gilbert Innes, 130 ; Josiah Woodward, 130 ; Samuel 
 Weller, 132 ; John Denne, 134 ; James Reeve, 135 ; William 
 Vallance, 136 ; David Dale Stewart, 137 ; Thomas Dealtry, 137 ; 
 Edwin Francis Dyke, 138 ; The List of the Clergy, 139, 140.
 
 xii 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 
 
 Beales, 144 ; Tuftons. 146-9 ; John Astley, 150 ; Sir John Astley, 
 152 ; Sir Jacob (Lord) Astley, 155-8 ; Knatchbulls, 159-61 ; 
 John Davy, 162 ; Robert Stapley, 163 ; Richard Stapley, 164 ; 
 Charles Lybbe, 165 ; Griffith Hatley, 166 ; Lawrence Washington, 
 167 ; William Gull, 169 ; William Dixon, 169 ; Elizabeth Gallant, 
 170 ; Sir John B. Riddell, 171 ; Spicer Weldon, 172 ; Peter 
 Shadwell, 173 ; George Tod, 174 ; William Havelock, etc., 174 ; 
 John Wallace King, 176 ; Susann Maplesden, 177 ; William 
 Stanley, 178 ; Thomas Karkaredge, 179 ; Walter Francklyn, 180 ; 
 Dorothea Dering, 181 ; Dorothy Lawrence, 182 ; John Cripps, 
 183 ; Margaret Cripps, 184 ; Farnham Aldersey, 185 ; Christopher 
 Fullagar, 186 ; Polhill, 187 ; Ellis, 188 ; Sir Gyfford Thornhurst, 
 189 ; Sir Edward Austen, 189 ; Susanna Barrell, 190 ; John 
 Davis, 191 ; Gilbert Innes, 191 ; Josiah Woodward, 192 ; Samuel 
 Weller, 193 ; Richard Beeston, 194 ; William Worcester Wilson, 
 195 ; Francis Muriell, 195 ; Thomas and Harriet Dealtry, 196. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE REGISTERS, ETC. 
 
 The Registers, 197-202 ; The Plague, 203, 204 ; Introduction of Family 
 Pews, 205 ; of Galleries, 207 ; The Pulpit, 208 ; The Organ, 209 ; 
 The Font, 209 ; The Restoration by Mr. Vallance, 210 ; The Recent 
 Restoration, 211-3 ; The Bells, 215 ; The Destruction of the Spire, 
 217; The Stained Glass Windows, 218-22; The Regimental 
 Colours, 223.
 
 THE APPENDIX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 A (1). Extract from Domesday-Book 227 
 
 A (2). Extract from the Monastic Domesday-Book . . . 229 
 A (3). Archbishop Islip's Mandate for a Synod to be held at 
 
 Maidstone in 1351 229 
 
 A (4). Richard II. 's Charter for the College .... 230 
 
 A (5). Bulla of Pope Boniface IX. sanctioning it ... 233 
 
 B (1). Extracts from Archbishop Courtenay's Will, etc. . . 236 
 B (2). Archbishop Courtenay's Epitaph ; Dr. S. Denne's Account 
 
 of Opening the Tomb ; Mr. Beresford Hope's Opinion . 238 
 
 C (1). King John's Charter appointing William de Cornhull to 
 
 the Rectory 245 
 
 C (2). Edward II. 's Letter to the Pope on Behalf of Guido de 
 
 laValle 246 
 
 C (3). The same to the same, asking for the Bishopric of Dol 
 
 for the said Guido 247 
 
 C (4). Edward III.'s Remonstrance with Hugo de Pelegrini . 247 
 
 D (1). The Confirmation by Prior Roger, of Christ Church, Canter- 
 bury, to the Endowment of Abp. Boniface's Hospital 248 
 
 E (1). Extracts from Archbishop Chicheley's Register, showing 
 the Different Terms of Appointment of Masters to the 
 College 249 
 
 F (1). James I.'s Charter to Maidstone 252 
 
 The Remonstrance of the Corporation against the Arbitrary 
 Intrusion of James II. in the Appointment of Municipal 
 Officials . 255
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 ALL SAINTS CHURCH, MAIDSTONE, FROM THE WEST 
 
 ANCIENT TILES FOUND IN THE CHURCH 
 INTERIOR OF THE CHURCH, LOOKING NORTH-EAST 
 LOOKING NORTH-WEST 
 
 THE GROUND PLAN OF THE CHURCH . 
 ARCHBISHOP COURTEXAY'S TOMB 
 THE FRESCO ON WOTTON'S TOMB 
 
 THE SED1LIA 
 
 THE " BEALE MONUMENT " 
 
 THE "ASTLEY MONUMENT" 
 
 Frontispiece. 
 
 To face page 
 8 
 
 . 9 
 . 10 
 . 18 
 . 33 
 . 47 
 . 49 
 . 144 
 . 149
 
 THE 
 
 HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 IvERY old English Parish Church, in- 
 dependently of such attractions for each 
 individual parishioner as are based on 
 personal associations or precious memories, 
 has a history of its own, which, for the 
 searching out, will give it a place, and 
 claim for it a share, in the greater history 
 of the nation. This is true of even the smallest and 
 humblest village Church ; how much more so then must 
 it be in the case of a Church so eloquent of history and 
 instinct with beauty as All Saints', Maidstone ? 
 
 Eight hundred years ago so that unique national 
 record, Domesday Book, tells us Maidstone had a Parish 
 Church, though we must pass over three centuries more 
 before we can light on any authentic description of such 
 a building. Not till then do we arrive at anything like the 
 terra firma of archaeology. All before is at best conjecture ; 
 save that local tradition, and the discovery of older founda- 
 
 1
 
 2 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 tions around, proclaim the undoubted existence of an earlier 
 building. 
 
 Of that earlier building, however, What was its form ? Who 
 was its founder ? are points on which history and tradition 
 alike are silent. So, if we would bridge over the wide 
 gulf of centuries which separates the fourteenth century from 
 the days when the Gospel sound was first heard in Britain, 
 and reached this remote corner of the land, we are com- 
 pelled to look for our materials in the region of inference or 
 conjecture. 
 
 Now there is every reason to believe that where the town 
 of Maidstone now stands, there was in the days of the 
 Koman occupation a large Military Station whatever doubts 
 Antiquaries may have as to its name for the many portions 
 of tesselated pavement and fragments of pottery dug up 
 from time to time along the line of Stone Street and in 
 the neighbourhood of Springfields, still preserved in our 
 Museum, go to prove this. The very position here in 
 almost a right line between Dover, or Richborough, and 
 London, at the fording-place, too, of a navigable river would 
 imply that it was an important Roman Station, and would 
 in all probability have its temple to some Roman deity, and 
 its Basilica, or court of justice. There is abundant evidence 
 that both the one and the other were often used for Christian 
 worship, and even turned into Christian Churches. For 
 instance, tradition, confirmed by the discovery of an image 
 of the goddess, tells us that St. Paul's Cathedral stands on 
 the site of a Temple of Diana ; while it is known that so 
 late as the sixth century a somewhat ruinous Basilica was 
 standing on the site of the Cathedral at Canterbury, 1 and, 
 among other known instances, the Church of Brixworth, in 
 1 Sheppard's Litterce Cantuar, Intro., p. xxv.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 3 
 
 Northamptonshire, still retains distinct marks of having itself 
 been a Koman Basilica. Is it not then a pardonable effort 
 of the imagination to invest this spot, close to the old ferry 
 across the river (for Maidstone had no bridge till centuries 
 after), with such an interest of its own, connecting it with 
 the long, long ago to suggest that here may once have 
 stood a Temple sacred to some Koman deity, out of which, 
 or in the place of which, Saxon or Norman piety erected 
 a Chapel, small and homely it may have been, to give place 
 in after years to a more goodly and spacious Church, which 
 eventually made way for the present noble pile that strains 
 of Christian prayer and praise now resound where in days 
 gone by the " idol hymn " was raised by a benighted Koman 
 soldiery ? 
 
 Our first landmark appears in " Domesday Book," l which 
 tells us that at least as early as the reign of Edward the 
 Confessor (above eight hundred years ago) Maidstone could 
 boast a Parish Church. While in another almost contem- 
 poraneous MS. volume, preserved in the Chapter library at 
 Canterbury, and distinguished by the name of the " Monas- 
 tic Domesday" as consisting of extracts from the King's 
 Domesday Book, of all items having special reference to 
 lands belonging to the convent of Christ Church, Canter- 
 bury, occurs a statement that a parcel of land in Maidstone 
 
 1 The entry in Domesday Book opens thus : " Ipse, Archiepiscopus 
 tenet MEDDESTANE. Pro x solins se dffendit. Terra est xxx 
 carucarum. In dominio sunt Hi carucce. Et xxv rillani, cum xxi 
 bordarii habent xxv Caracas. Ibi ecclesia" etc., which may be thus 
 rendered in English : " The Archbishop himself holds Meddestane. It 
 answers for ten sulings. There is the arable land of thirty teams. In 
 demesne there are three teams, and twenty-five villans with twenty- 
 one bordars have twenty- five teams. A Church there," etc. The 
 entire record is given in extenso in Appendix A (1).
 
 4 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 (called a suling) was charged with a rent of 15s., to be paid 
 annually to the Mother Church of Canterbury, then styled 
 " Ecclesia Sahctse Trinitatis," showing that there existed 
 thus early a direct connection between Maidstone and 
 Canterbury. 1 
 
 From this time forward, for three centuries, only casual 
 entries in various ancient records tend to throw any light 
 on the state of the Maidstone Church during the so-called 
 " Dark Ages." Yet, casual and slight though they are, they 
 are of no little value. For instance, the Archbishops' 
 Registers at Lambeth Palace tell us that Ordinations were 
 frequently held here by Archbishops Winchelsey and 
 Reynolds, between the years 1296 and 1320, clearly indi- 
 cating that Maidstone Parish Church even then held an 
 important position in the diocese ; while a fact (apparently 
 not noticed by any writer of the History of Maidstone, yet 
 recorded fully in Archbishop Islip's Register, at Lambeth) 
 shows that not only was it an important Ecclesiastical centre, 
 but that the earlier Church of St. Mary must itself have 
 been a spacious building, for in the year 1351 Archbishop 
 Islip selected it as the scene of a General Diocesan Synod, 
 to which he cited, for the purpose of deliberating upon 
 certain weighty matters which had been submitted to him 
 by the Apostolic See, the Archdeacon of Canterbury, all the 
 Abbots, Priors, the heads of Chapters, Convents, Colleges, 
 and the clergy of the different towns in his diocese, 
 requiring them to appear, either in person or by their 
 representatives, at the Parish Church of Maidstone. 2 
 
 Allusion too should be made to the existence of a bitter 
 
 1 Somner's Antiquities of Canterbury (1640), p. 429. See Appendix, 
 A (2). 
 
 2 Archbishop Islip's Register, f. 50. See Appendix A (3).
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 5 
 
 jealousy between successive Archbishops and the Canterbury 
 Monks, for Maidstone was once very nearly being greatly 
 benefited by this long-protracted strife. So keenly did 
 Archbishop Baldwin, the brave Crusader Primate, resent the 
 constant interference of the Prior and his Monks, that he 
 designed the foundation of a Chapter of his own outside the 
 city. This was about 1193. However, he did not live to 
 carry it out against the strong opposition and intrigues of 
 the Monks. A century after Archbishop Walter Hubert 
 revived the plan, and selected Maidstone as one of the 
 alternative sites for the proposed Chapter. But again the 
 monks were too influential, and so the project fell through, 
 like the preceding one. 
 
 To this jealousy may probably be traced the unfortunate 
 collisions which at different times occurred between the said 
 Convent and the Maidstone Parish Church. To the Prior 
 and Chapter of Canterbury belonged the right to dispense 
 the patronage, and to hold visitations over the several 
 Churches of the diocese, during the vacancy of the See. It 
 is on record that they made at least three attempts to 
 exercise this latter right over that at Maidstone. Among 
 the records of the Chapter at Canterbury is an entry referring 
 to an " abortive attempt " being made for this purpose in 
 the year 1293, after the death of Archbishop Peckham. 
 Again, after that of Archbishop Stratford, in 1348, a similar 
 course was adopted : this time, apparently, with more signal 
 discomfiture ; for there occurs in the Canterbury Kegister a 
 fully detailed account of the Commissary of the Chapter, 
 accompanied by a goodly staff of officials, arriving at Maid- 
 stone, and finding the church doors closed in his face and 
 locked, and instead of that recognition of his authority, 
 which he expected, he and his satellites were encountered
 
 6 THE HISTORY OF MA TD STONE CHURCH. 
 
 by a jeering crowd in the Churchyard, who not only greeted 
 them with threats, but inflicted on them considerable personal 
 insult and outrage. 1 The result was that the posse comitatus 
 beat a hasty and undignified retreat, re infecta. Once more, 
 in the year 1495, during the vacancy of the See on the 
 death of Archbishop Morton, there was another visitation 
 held by the Chapter authorities, which included Maidstone 
 Parish Church ; and this time it would seem with better 
 success, for nothing is on record to the contrary. 
 
 It has been said that of the form, or the founder, of the 
 previous building nothing is known .either in history or tradi- 
 tion ; this only that it was dedicated to St. Mary the Virgin. 
 Whether it stood on the site of the present church or not 
 was long uncertain, and so, apparently by tacit consent, the 
 best of the Maidstone historians, like Newton and Beale 
 Poste, were content to leave it. 
 
 However, during the recent restoration of the building a 
 very important discovery was made which tends to throw no 
 inconsiderable light on this subject. 
 
 In digging up the floor, to lay hot-air flues, a fairly perfect 
 lead coffin, but without inscription or device, was found 
 below the flag-stones at the East end of the South Aisle, in 
 St. Katherine's (or Gould's) Chapel ; and fragments of another 
 were also found in the Nave. But it was at the base of the 
 second pier from the West in the southern arcade that the 
 most important discoveries were made. About twelve and 
 a half inches below the floor-level it was found that this pier 
 rested on the north edge of a massive oval-shaped base or 
 plinth, and on further examination it appeared that each of 
 
 1 The record says : " Nostris clericis ibidem existentibus graves minas, 
 et cruciatus corporum, furibunda rabie intulerunt." 8th Report of the 
 Historical MSS. Commission, p. 337. See Appendix A (3).
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 7 
 
 the other piers of this row had a similar base, but with this 
 noteworthy difference, that each succeeding one eastward 
 rested more and more nearly in the centre of its plinth, 
 showing that an earlier Church must have stood exactly on 
 this site, but with a slightly more Southerly inclination. 
 
 This view was confirmed by another and still more in- 
 teresting discovery, that, close on the North side of this 
 second pier, on the same level with the plinth, there lay a 
 group of tiles, which evidently had formed part of the 
 original pavement of that earlier Church. 1 These tiles were 
 submitted to the Society of Antiquaries, and pronounced by 
 them to belong to the middle of the thirteenth century. 
 They were in all thirty-two in number, five and a half inches 
 square, comprising six different devices; of these the most 
 common was a shield bearing three chevronels ; several bore a 
 single fieur-de-lys, others a lion rampant, and a fourth set a 
 quatre-foil, while one had three lions passant on a shield, 
 and another a square " checquy." The arrangement of 
 these tiles was methodical ; the fleur-de-lys, the lions passant, 
 and the quatre-foils lay in diagonal squares, and no 
 doubt the same order had been observed with the shield of 
 the three lions and the " checquy ; " while the chevronel 
 shields lay alternately-inverted as a border. 
 
 At first the hope was to trace out, through the medium 
 of these several shields, some clue to the original founders 
 or principal benefactors of the Church. But this seems im- 
 possible. The chevronels certainly were borne by the illus- 
 trious Clare family, and also, with some variation of colour, by 
 the Lewknors, but neither family, though Kentish, appears 
 to have been connected with Maidstone. The presence of 
 
 1 See Proceedings of the Society of Antujuaries, December 2nd, 1886, 
 to whom we are indebted for the accompanying impressions.
 
 8 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 the three lions passant the arms of England ever since 
 the time of Richard I. of the fleur-de-lys, the universally 
 recognised emblem of the Virgin Mary, to whom the Church 
 was originally dedicated of the quatre-foils too, a very 
 familiar architectural device leads to the more probable 
 inference that no special local significance can be attached 
 to them, and that they were introduced as the most common 
 and most easily attainable patterns of encaustic tiles at the 
 period when the old Church, of which they formed the 
 pavement, was built ; and that might be assumed to be about 
 the close of the thirteenth century. 
 
 But a further and even more interesting discovery of 
 tiles was made in the Chancel, under the Choir stalls. 
 Here, in the midst of rubbish and debris, thrust in to fill up 
 cavities, were a few tiles of a different date and character; 
 only five, more or less perfect, and a few fragments, yet 
 enough to give some idea of their beauty and design. They 
 represented two sitting figures, each figure extending over two 
 tiles, the upper part of the body on one, and the lower part 
 on the other. One figure was that of a king, sitting crossed- 
 legged on a richly diapered and pierced sedile or settle, 
 holding a sceptre in his hand ; the other that of a bishop, 
 mitred and robed, with his right hand raised in the act of 
 blessing. These are pronounced to be of a somewhat later 
 date than the others, probably about 1320 or 1330. They 
 are exactly four and three-quarter inches square, and not 
 above half an inch thick. Their smaller size, their compara- 
 tive thinness, their more elaborate details, and the position 
 in which they were found, all suggest that they had not 
 been designed for pavements, but were mural tiles, a far 
 more rare and therefore more interesting form of medieval 
 decoration.
 
 ANCIENT TILES FuUM) IN THE KLUOU Ol- ALL SAIMs' CUUKCU, 
 
 MAIPSTOvr. 
 
 Sec pntjf S.
 
 ANCIENT TILES FOUND IN THE FLOOR OF ALL SAINTS CHUKCH, 
 MAIP8TONE. 
 
 Set pofte S.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 9 
 
 This discovery shows that the present church stands very 
 nearly on the site, if not on the exact lines, of the earlier one. 
 And thus is cleared up a doubt which presented itself to the 
 mind of Beale Poste, when he wrote deploring the absence 
 of all trace of medieval interments, tiles, or anything that 
 would indicate the site of the previous building. " There 
 is no certain proof" (he said) "that the present All Saints' 
 stands on, or is adjoining the site of, a former structure ; 
 nor are there any means at present to clear the matter up." l 
 
 Leaving, as we must, the at best conjectural history of 
 the previous Church, we will pass on to take a survey of 
 the present building, and endeavour to trace out from its 
 architectural features an outline of its past history. A 
 casual glance at its exterior would doubtless lead to the 
 inference, drawn from its almost unbroken series of Per- 
 pendicular windows, that it was reared in the closing years 
 of the fourteenth century. But enter, and take up a 
 position near the West door, and a very different conclusion 
 forces itself on the mind. While the range of pillars 
 throughout corresponds in proportions and capitals, there 
 is a marked difference between the arches of the Chancel and 
 those of the Nave. The broader four-centred spans of the 
 former confirm the impression made by the glance at the 
 exterior, and indicate fourteenth century work ; but the 
 narrower two-centred arches, which give so charming an air 
 of lightness to the Nave, claim to be well nigh a century 
 older. While several other points of detail to be noted 
 help to substantiate that claim, a claim which will doubt> 
 less be regarded by some readers as a startling innovation 
 on the recognised traditions of the town, they will 
 doubtless point to the language used by a succession of 
 1 Beale Poste's History of All Saints' College, p. 94.
 
 io THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 authorities, by whom it is distinctly asserted that Archbishop 
 Courtenay was the builder of their noble Church from 
 its very foundations, and hesitate to accept the above 
 account. 
 
 There is undoubtedly a formidable array of so-called 
 authorities, from Kilburn of the seventeenth century to 
 Eussell of the present day, nearly all echoing from each 
 other the same story. To controvert such a body of opinion 
 we must first examine what that opinion is worth, and then 
 on what it was really based. We have named Kilburn 1 as 
 the oldest of these writers, though Camden, who lived in the 
 preceding century, is generally appealed to as the great 
 authority on this point. Now Camden in his Britannia 
 himself really says nothing about the building of the 
 Church, and only mentions the College as the undoubted 
 work of Courtenay ; while Dr. Philemon Holland, who edited 
 his work many years after, does interpolate the statement 
 that Archbishop Courtenay " erected a fair collegiate Church " 
 here. 
 
 But between the publication of Camden's original work 
 and Dr. Holland's edition of it, Kilburn had published 
 his Topographic of Kent, wherein he says, " Courtenay 
 pulled down the Hospital, and erected there a College for 
 secular priests to the honour of All Saints ; and also erected 
 the Collegiate Church, in which he was intombed." Now 
 the value of Kilburn's testimony on such a point will be 
 appreciated when it is addled that he says the " Parish 
 Church was called St. Faith's ! " About the same time 
 comes Philipott, 2 also a Kentish man, who, writing in 1658, 
 says that Courtenay, having pulled down the old Hospital, 
 
 1 Topographic of Kent, by Richard Kilburn (1659), p. 178. 
 
 2 Philipott's Villare Cantianum, p. 228.
 
 To face page 10. 
 
 HAGUE O> LONDON 
 
 ALL SAINTS', MAIDSTONE. FACING NORTH WEST.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. u 
 
 "instituted a College upon the ruins of it, 1 for secular 
 priests, devoted to the honour of All Saints', and also 
 erected the Collegiate Church, as the walls, diapered in 
 sundry places with his paternal coat, do easily evince." 
 Thus was the tale copied by each succeeding writer (gene- 
 rally improved upon), until more recently Gilbert, in his 
 Memorials of All Saints' Church, declares that " the credit 
 of rebuilding the Church at Maidstone as it now stands, 
 is due to Archbishop Courtenay." And lastly, Mr. Russell 
 in his History of the town, says, " It may be supposed that 
 All Saints' occupies pretty nearly the site of St. Mary's, 
 the only difference perhaps being that it stands a little 
 more to the westward than did the building which it 
 superseded." 
 
 All these have clearly copied the idea each from the 
 one who went before him, and so have perpetuated the 
 theory, a theory which it will be our endeavour to show 
 is really without any solid foundation, while the opinions 
 of such writers as Newton, Hasted, and Beale Poste, whose 
 works bear the impress of personal investigation and in- 
 dependent research, will be appealed to as supporting the 
 view already sketched in outline. 
 
 The first writer to question the theory that the old Parish 
 Church of St. Mary was demolished, and an entirely new 
 fabric erected by Archbishop Courtenay was Newton, the first 
 real historian of Maidstone. He pays that the Archbishop 
 " obtained leave of Richard II. to convert the Parish Church 
 into a Collegiate Church, and to fit it up for the use 
 
 1 The very circumstantial character of this statement carries with 
 it is its own refutation, considering the present College stands on one 
 Bide of the river and the old Hospital stood on the other, about a 
 quarter of a mile lower down the stream.
 
 12 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 of Warden and Chaplains of his new College, which he soon 
 after did, and dedicated it to All Saints'." He goes on to 
 say : "It was a common custom in those times to make 
 Parochial Churches Collegiate. This was done at Ashford 
 and Wye, and other places in this County. Archbishop 
 Peckham is called the ' Founder ' of the Church at 
 Wingham, because he converted or changed the Parish 
 Church, before erected, into a Collegiate Church in 1278." 1 
 Hasted clearly takes the same view, for he speaks of " the 
 alterations Courtenay. made in the Church, for the 
 convenience of the members of his new College." 2 Then 
 Whichcord seems to adopt the same view. He says : " In the 
 nineteenth year of the reign of King Eichard, A.D. 1395, 
 William de Courtenay obtained the king's license to convert 
 the Parish Church of St. Mary at Maidstone into a 
 Collegiate Church, for one Master or Warden and as many 
 Chaplains or other ministers as he should think fit ; " 3 
 though he strangely contradicts himself afterwards by 
 saying, <: Archbishop Courtenay, when he contemplated 
 founding his College, pulled down the old Parish Church, 
 and rebuilt the present edifice on the same site." 4 And 
 lastly, Beale Poste, probably the soundest Antiquary of them 
 all, says : " The terms of Courtenay's license from the Crown 
 are usually interpreted as implying that it empowered him 
 to make the Parish Church Collegiate." And again thus 
 tersely puts the case : " The Church was so considerable a 
 part of the College establishment, that strictly it may be 
 said to have been the most important feature of it ; as the 
 
 1 Newton's Maidstone, pp. 44, 45. 
 
 2 Hasted's Kent (folio ed.), ii. 119. 
 
 3 Whichcord's All Saints' Church, p. 5. 
 
 4 Ibid., p. 10.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 13 
 
 College was founded for the Church, and not the Church for 
 the College." 
 
 So diametrically opposite are the views thus arrayed 
 against each other, the one class, on the plan of " follow 
 my leader," claiming Archbishop Courtenay as not only the 
 founder, but the actual builder of the present Church ; the 
 other regarding him as little more than the judicious and 
 liberal adapter of a noble building already existing to the 
 requirements of his new College. In this conflict of opinions, 
 which is right ? 
 
 It may be asked, What was the design and intention of 
 the archbishop ? After an interval of five hundred years it 
 is not often an easy matter to read the mind of even an 
 Archbishop on such a point. Happily, however, there does 
 remain just enough evidence to furnish the desired clue. 
 Among the " Patent Rolls " preserved in the National 
 Record Office is the original licence, granted by Richard II. 
 to the Archbishop, and it is no doubt an echo of the petition 
 in which Courtenay had expressed his wish. In it we read 
 that the king empowers the archbishop to carry out his 
 proposed plan, which is thus described: "That the 
 Archbishop, being very desirous to promote the extension 
 and improvement of Divine Worship, is intent on constitut- 
 ing and endowing the Parish Church of St. Mary, Maidstone, 
 for the use of a certain College, and the King is graciously 
 pleased to give him licence to that effect." 2 
 
 Nor is the King's licence the only clue. In the Chapter 
 Library at Canterbury is a contemporary copy of the Bulla 
 which Pope Boniface IX. sent to the Archbishop, not only 
 sanctioning his project, but authorising him to collect 
 
 1 Beale Poste's College of All Saints, p. 93. 
 
 2 Patent Rolls, 19 Richard II., Part I, m. 11. See Appendix A (4).
 
 14 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 four-pence in the pound from all ecclesiastical benefices 
 within his Province for the purpose of building his College. 
 In that Bull the substance' of the Archbishop's petition is 
 thus referred to : " That we would deign to concede to you 
 the liberty to constitute the Parish Church into a Collegiate 
 one," etc., "for which object the Pope grants full and free 
 authority." : 
 
 The occurrence of the word erigere in both these 
 documents has no doubt led to the mistaken view that the 
 Archbishop erected the Church, whereas the word is clearly 
 used (as in similar documents) in a figurative sense, as 
 constituting it a Collegiate Church ; and in neither 
 document is there any distinct allusion to any plan of 
 building the Church anew. Moreover, in the Papal Bull 
 it is expressly stipulated that the proposed change in the 
 character of the Church shall not take place until the 
 resignation or death of the then Rector. 
 
 From such documentary evidence, then, there is little or 
 no ground for the assumption that Archbishop Courtenay 
 was the builder of the present Church. 
 
 Appeal must now be made to the fabric itself, as to how 
 far it will confirm, or throw doubt upon, that claim. What 
 does it say? 
 
 In its external lines and general design it was clearly the 
 work of one time and one mind. Whichcord has well said : 
 " No architect would have any hesitation in attributing the 
 complete re-edification to the same period." 2 The question 
 is, Was that Courtenay' s period? The plinth-line runs 
 round the entire building, it embraces every buttress, and 
 
 1 Registers of Christ Church, Canterbury, S. f. 25. See Appendix 
 A (5). 
 
 2 Whichcord's History, p. 10.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 15 
 
 the tower too ; while a noteworthy deviation in its level 
 only furnishes additional evidence of unity of design ; for it 
 starts on the South side of the West door about two feet 
 higher than on the North side, to adapt itself to the rise in 
 the ground along the South and East end ; and then at the 
 North-east angle of the Nave drops to the lower level, which 
 it maintains till it reaches the West door again. The same 
 continuity of line is noticeable in the upper string-course 
 also, which runs round the building ; and (with a single 
 exception) in the dripstone under the windows. 
 
 It is when the windows come under examination that the 
 real history of the fabric asserts itself. Windows, when they 
 undoubtedly form a part of an original building, are (as is 
 well known) the best and safest guides as to the date of that 
 building. But it is no less generally known that it was a 
 frequent custom, especially in the Perpendicular period, for 
 architects, instead of restoring some window (noble or 
 ignoble as the case might be) of an earlier period which had 
 fallen into decay or on the plea of obtaining more light 
 to remove all trace of preceding ages, and to substitute 
 entirely new work of the style of their own day. Of this 
 custom even that noble ecclesiastical architect, William of 
 Wykeham, has left examples in Winchester Cathedral, and 
 elsewhere. 
 
 Now in All Saints' Church all the windows (with one 
 notable exception, the westernmost window on the North 
 side of the Chancel or Choir) clearly belong to the time of 
 Courtenay. But is there any reason to suppose that they 
 formed part of the original building as it now stands ? Take 
 the group on the north side of the Nave. They are identical 
 in width and in tracery. Had they risen with the walls, is 
 it not reasonable to presume that they and the spaces they
 
 16 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 were to occupy would have corresponded ? Such, however, is 
 very far from being the case. One has ample space for hood- 
 moulding and returns ; another seems squeezed in between 
 the buttresses, so that the returns are cut off ; while a third 
 has the very jambs buried in the buttress on either side. 
 Then again the one which has elbow room betrays by the 
 variation of the masonry on the sides (what the irregularity 
 in the position of the others also shows) that these Perpen- 
 dicular windows were all of them palpably insertions in a 
 building already existing. 
 
 One word regarding that one exceptionally beautiful 
 window already alluded to. The present one is an exact 
 conscientious restoration ; 1 and as such it proclaims the 
 existence of a window of earlier date than its neighbours ; it 
 tells plainly that the original (of which it is a perfect repeti- 
 tion) had been called into form at a time when the gracefully 
 flowing curves of the Decorated Period had not quite 
 disappeared, to give place to the colder, stiffer lines of the 
 Perpendicular style. 
 
 The interior of the building, too, has its witnesses, ready 
 to give similar corroborative evidence in addition to that 
 supplied by the arches of the Nave, as already noticed. 
 There are the North and South entrance doors ; there is, 
 between the laiter and the Western angle, a smaller door, 
 now degraded into a rubbish recess, which originally opened 
 into the winding newel staircase leading to the belfry ; 
 there is also on the North wall a still smaller doorway lead- 
 ing by a small stair to an opening overhead, which gave 
 access to a rood-loft. Now all these doorways, with their 
 more pointed arches and delicate mouldings, may justly 
 
 1 This restoration was carried out in 1864, under the superintendence 
 of E. Stevens, Esq., architect, of Maidstone.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 17 
 
 claim to have belonged to a period before Courtenay intro- 
 duced his alterations. 
 
 Another, and a no less important branch of evidence, 
 remains to be adduced from the presence of two at least 
 of the four Chantry Chapels. 
 
 A passing word may be here introduced on the subject of 
 these Chantry or as they came to be called Side-Chapels. 1 
 A Chantry-Chapel, or side Altar, is that part of a Church 
 added or adapted, and endowed by some devout parishioner, 
 for the purpose of having, in addition to, and independently 
 of, the regular services of the Church, special Masses (or 
 prayers) for the dead, chanted for the souls of departed 
 relatives, as well as for the founder's own soul, while 
 supposed to be in Purgatory. It was a pious, though a 
 superstitious, custom of a misguided age. After the Refor- 
 mation these Chantry-Chapels were absorbed into the 
 Churches, and came to be known as Side-Chapels, while the 
 credence table or ledge, for the bread and wine before con- 
 secration, and the piscina or bowl for washing the holy 
 vessels, and sometimes the Altar steps, have been left. 
 These Chantry-Chapels were often built out at the side or 
 end of Nave or Chancel, and then appear like excrescences, 
 disfiguring the general contour of the building. Happily 
 such was not the case here. Each had been introduced 
 within the Church, if not built up with it. In each instance 
 the east end of a side Aisle of Nave or Chancel was utilised 
 for the purpose, with the result that the original outline of 
 the Church has not been broken in upon, and its symmetrical, 
 
 1 The term Chantry is often inaccurately applied to the portion of 
 the building containing the side altar. It is strictly the endoioment for 
 the support of the priest officiating there. Hence they are called 
 " Chantry-Chapels." 
 
 2
 
 1 8 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 and what may be called its symbolical, proportions have 
 never been disturbed. 
 
 All Saints' clearly had four such Chapels. Of these the 
 one at the east end of the north aisle of the Nave is un- 
 doubtedly the oldest. The elegant little door in the north 
 wall (already alluded to) leading by the narrow spiral stair 
 in the rounded buttress to the rood loft 1 overhead, clearly 
 shows this ; as also does the now sadly dilapidated niche in 
 the outer angle of the north-east corner, in which it may 
 be safely assumed there formerly stood an image of the 
 Virgin Mary, the Patron Saint of the Church itself, and to 
 whom this Chantry, or side altar, was specially dedicated. 
 The date of this, St. Mary's Chantry Chapel, like that of the 
 Church itself, is unknown, nor does vestige of piscina or 
 credence table (which probably stood out on a pillar, for it 
 would seem to have had no South wall) remain to furnish a 
 clue 
 
 Of the corresponding Chapel on the opposite side of the 
 Nave, commonly known as " Vinter's," or " Gould's Chapel," 
 there is evidence to show that it existed at least a quarter 
 of a century before Courtenay carried out his alterations. In 
 the Lambeth Registers 2 appears, under date A.D. 1369, a 
 record of a license being granted by Archbishop Whittlesey 
 to Robert Vyntier (in a similar entry in the Register in the 
 Canterbury Chapter Library the name is spelt Vineter), to 
 endow an Altar with land known as " Gould's estate," for two 
 priests to offer masses for the souls of the said Robert 
 Vyntier and his family ; and in another entry 3 at the close 
 
 1 A rood loft was the beam or ledge on which stood the Crucifix, 
 so called from the old Saxon word for a cross. 
 ' Archbishop Whittlesey ' s Kegister, f. 19. 
 3 Ibid., f. 82.
 
 GROUND PLAN OF THE R\R1&H CHURCH OF MAIDSTONE. 
 A. THE ALT/IK OF &T MARY. 
 
 B.THE ALTAR orar KATHE.RINE. (VINTE-H'S CHAPEU.) 
 
 C THE ALTAR OF ST THOIV1 AS. (ARUM DELL CHAPEL.^ 
 P. THE CHAPEL. OF THE. FRA.TERN ITY OF CORPUS CHRI5TI . 
 
 TO FACE PAGE 18.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 19 
 
 of the following year, 1 Robert Vyntier having died in the 
 interval, his executor, Robert Bourne, Rector of Southflete, 
 appoints Roger atte Steghele to be Chaplain at the Chapel, 
 and describes it as lying " at an Altar in the south part of 
 the Nave." 2 Here arises a question of considerable interest. 
 Was that east end of the South Aisle now for the first time 
 used as a Chantry Chapel, or was not this pious act of 
 Vyntier's the further eiidowment of an Altar previously 
 existing there, as the expression ad altare implies ? 
 
 Now there was undoubtedly an Altar in the Church, 
 dedicated to St. Katherine ; for several appointments of 
 priests to such an Altar occur in the Lambeth Registers ; 
 aud it seems difficult to find any other assignable site for it. 
 Considering that St. Katherine, the young virgin Martyr of 
 Alexandria in the third century, " done to death " under 
 a broad heavy wheel bristling with sharp knives, or daggers 
 (so the legends tell), was undoubtedly a very popular Saint, 
 as the one specially dear to spinsters, in memory of her 
 youthful devotion, and had a shrine, in most large Churches, 
 and clearly had one in old St. Mary's, is it not more than 
 probable (as the accurate Antiquary Beale Poste suggests 3 ) 
 
 1 The will of Robert Vyntier (Archbishop Langhain's Register, f. 
 120 a.), dated July 5th, 1368, and proved the following month, contains 
 the wish that his body may be buried " in Monasterio Beate Marie de 
 Boxele ubi Abbas dictl loci sepulturam in Monasterio assignare voluerit." 
 
 * The entry runs thus ; " 2 Kal. Oct. A.D. 1370. Apud Saltwode, 
 Dominus Rogerus atte titer/hele, Capellanus, institutus fuit ad Cantariam 
 perpetuam in Ecclesia Parochial* de Maidestan ad altare ex parte, 
 Australi navis dicte Ecclesie patenter constructum pro anima Robert/ 
 Vyntier de Maidestan, etc." WhittIesey's Register,/. 82. b. A writer in 
 the Journal of the Arch(eological Association, vol. ix., p. 412, errone- 
 ously places Gould's (or Vinter's) Chantry on the north side of the choir, 
 which was clearly that assigned to the " Fraternity of Corpus Christi." 
 
 3 History of the College, etc., p. 54.
 
 20 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 that this South Chantry was originally associated with her 
 name, and eventually came to be called " Vinter's " after 
 its latest benefactor, and " Gould's " Chapel from the 
 land with which he endowed it ? Unhappily the only 
 evidence that could have helped to clear up all doubt 
 as to the real origin and date of this Chapel has been 
 destroyed. In that South-east corner all that has been 
 left by the mutilating " axes and hammers " whether 
 wielded by the ignorant fanaticism of the seventeenth 
 century, or the utilitarian spirit of a far more recent age 
 whether directed to remove all vestige of pre-Keforma- 
 tion piety, or to clear away all obstruction to the winding 
 staircase which led up to the private gallery in the South 
 Aisle all that has been left of what could have given 
 a clue to the date of this Chapel, is hopelessly lost ; 
 and what does remain of a massive upright stone, now 
 chiselled away flush with the wall, only suffices to mock and 
 tantalise the inquirer by leaving him to conjecture how 
 beautiful a deeply projecting piscina bowl and credence 
 ledge once stood here, supported by a richly carved shaft 
 that rested on the raised Altar-step, exhibiting the skill of 
 a craftsman of the fourteenth century, or perhaps earlier 
 still, when Decorative Ecclesiastical art was in its glory ; for 
 it is scarcely necessary to say that the poor debased arch and 
 shallow ledge which did duty for " restoration " some forty 
 years ago, offers no clue to the original date or character of 
 the work which Eobert Vinter, or perhaps some still earlier 
 benefactor, designed, but, like the wretched whitewashed 
 ceiling (recently happily removed), was an insult and an 
 offence in the midst of so much true beauty. 
 
 A third, which under its more familiar name of " Arundel's 
 Chapel " might be assumed to belong to a period subsequent
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHI7EC7URE. 21 
 
 to Courtenay, was probably, like the other two, of much 
 earlier date ; and had its place also in the original structure, 
 under the name of " the altar of St. Thomas the Martyr " 
 (Becket). Here the Lambeth Registers again help us. In an 
 entry under the date A.D. 1417, 1 recording the endowment of 
 a Chantry by John Wotton, the first Master of the College, 
 with lands, etc., to the value of 40, it is expressly stated 
 that the proposed Chantry was " at the altar of St. Thomas 
 the Martyr," lying on the south part of the Chancel, which 
 he had richly furnished at his own expense. In this Chapel, 
 as his tomb testifies, he was buried, in the place he had in 
 his will specified, " before the altar of St. Thomas." 
 
 Some years after, a further endowment of this Chapel, 
 associated with the name of Archbishop Arundel, was made 
 from the tithes of Northflete, by which two more priests, or 
 Fellows, were added to the staff of the College, to say Masses 
 " at the altar of St. Thomas." 
 
 Thus, no doubt, it came that in this, as in the former one, 
 the name of the Saint was in time lost in that of the latest, 
 and probably the largest, benefactor ; and so St. ^Catherine's 
 altar became known as " Vinter's " or "Gould's Chapel," and 
 that of St. Thomas the Martyr as the " Arundel Chapel." 
 
 And it still seems possible to detect even in the imper- 
 fectly decipherable painting on the back of Wotton's tomb 
 a desire to perpetuate in one group the memory of two at 
 least of the three Saints the Virgin seated on her throne, 
 and St. Katherine with her wheel beside her, and a third 
 female figure too defaced for identification. 
 
 1 The entry in Chichele's Register, f . 327 a, runs thus : " Fundatio 
 Cantarie in Ecclesia Colhglata Omnium Sanctorum de Maldestan, etc., ad 
 altare Sancti Thome Mnrtyris in Ecclesia prefata ex parte australi 
 consecratum et propriis sumptibus meis honoriftce constntctum.''
 
 22 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 The fourth Chapel may be here mentioned, though 
 clearly belonging to a later time than Courtenay's. It is 
 the one at the East end of the North Chancel Aisle, and 
 was always associated with the extinct " Fraternity of Corpus 
 Christi," which formerly had its home in what is now called 
 Earl Street. In the Charter granted for its foundation in 
 1441, it was provided that the Chaplain of the Brotherhood 
 should be allowed to say Masses for the souls of the deceased 
 brethren in All Saints' Church. And this part of the Chancel 
 is always held to have been their Chapel, where two steps 
 of the raised altar still remain. 
 
 Allusion has been made to the symbolical character of the 
 proportions of the Church. This is a feature which would 
 hardly strike the casual observer, however much he might 
 be attracted by the general beauty of the interior. To this 
 symbolism, running as it does throughout the building, 
 Archbishop Benson drew special attention in his sermon on 
 the re-opening of the Church in February 1886, It may be 
 interesting to notice here some of the more striking illustra- 
 tions of it. For instance, the nave is 99 (3 times 33) feet 
 long, its width is within a few inches of 93 (3 times 31) feet ; 
 the Chancel measures in the clear 60 (3 times 20) feet long, 
 and either side aisle of it, the same in length, is 12 (3 times 
 4) feet wide ; while the Choir proper is also 60 feet long, and 
 30 (3 times 10) feet wide, forming two squares of 30 feet 
 each. The Tower, too, and even the Vestry, will admit of 
 being tested by the same rule. These, if not always exact 
 to a few inches, are approximately the dimensions of the 
 several parts. Is it possible to suppose that such proportions 
 were purely accidental, and not parts of one general design ? 
 May we not unhesitatingly adopt the theory suggested by 
 his Grace, that " If you would take the plans, and examine
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 23 
 
 the dimensions, you would find them written all over with 
 the figure three, undoubtedly with the intention of keeping 
 before men's minds the Holy Trinity, and the GOD whom 
 they worshipped " ? * Another instance of symbolism here 
 was also noticed to the writer by the Archbishop. Have not 
 the arrangement of the pillars a symbolical significance 
 the twelve in the Nave, six on either side, representing the 
 Apostles, and the four in the Chancel, two on either side, the 
 Evangelists ? 
 
 The Church originally had only four doors ; one at the 
 West end of the Nave, one leading under the Tower into the 
 South Aisle, and (corresponding with it on the opposite side) 
 one in the North Aisle, with the small " priest's door " in the 
 South Chancel wall, directly facing the College gateway. 
 
 The Western door was probably rarely used except on 
 State occasions, or privately by the Archbishops when passing 
 from the Palace into the Church, up the steps (traces of 
 which remain in a recess in the garden), through the stone 
 archway still visible in the western boundary wall of the 
 Churchyard. The Tower entrance on the South would be 
 used by the College dependants, and the inhabitants of 
 Knightrider Street and Stone Street, and by those coming 
 from under " the Cliffe " up the broad flight of steps at the 
 South-west corner, while the North door would be the general 
 entrance from the town. Here great changes have been 
 made, which should be noticed. An old print, given in 
 Hasted's History of Kent, shows that even a century ago 
 this door was protected by a flat battlemented porch, with a 
 square-headed doorway, having escutcheons on either side of 
 it. When, or why, this porch was removed local history saith 
 
 1 See Report of the Sermon in the Maidstone Journal of February 
 27th, 1886.
 
 24 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 not. All that now remains to show that it ever had a place 
 there is the outline of it, which may be traced in the pave- 
 ment outside the door. This was clearly the ordinary 
 entrance from the town side and a goodly entrance it was ; 
 for the road leading to it from Mill Street, passing along the 
 gable end of the old building now used as a porter's lodge, 
 then came in a straight line to this North door, giving an 
 open view of the most ornamental side of the fine old Parish 
 Church, to which it afforded an imposing approach. But 
 what with a wall and a row of neglected trees running across, 
 and blocking the way, the open view and imposing approach 
 had till quite recently been sacrificed to the encroachments 
 which successive owners of the Palace, in their desire for 
 greater privacy and an enlarged garden plot, had been 
 allowed to perpetrate ; and the church-goer from the town 
 had to find his way along a narrow winding alley (paved 
 with gravestones, and hemmed in between two rows of very 
 unornamental iron railings), nearly the length of the Church, 
 to reach the North door. 1 
 
 The fourth entrance was that commonly known as the 
 " priest's door." This no doubt had its ordinary place in the 
 south wall of the Choir and Chancel aisle. This doorway 
 itself has disappeared in the wider door of the subsequently 
 added Vestry ; yet an interesting evidence of its former 
 existence remains. Between the Vestry door into the 
 Church and the South door into the Chancel aisle is a 
 small stoup, or stone basin, in the wall. In medieval times 
 every person entering a Church would sprinkle himself with 
 holy water which lay in the stoup on his right hand. Now 
 
 Very recently great improvements have been carried out here 
 under the superintendence of Hubert Bensted, Esq., Architect, of 
 Maidstone.
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 25 
 
 the position of this stoup on the left hand of the door has 
 perplexed many persons, though the solution of the difficulty 
 is simple enough in the fact that it belongs, not to the 
 present door, but to the extinct " priest's door," relative to 
 which it would be in its right position. 
 
 The Vestry, as has been said, was subsequently added to 
 the Church. Of this there are several indications, though 
 the later work has been so cleverly bonded into the old that 
 it is impossible to detect on the outside any signs of the 
 addition. In the upper chamber, for instance, now used for 
 the organ-pipes, the drip-stone may be seen running along 
 inside, showing that that was originally an outer wall. Then 
 the square label-moulding over the arch of the door into 
 the Church, with a double rose in each of the spandrils 
 " England's blended roses bought so dear," emblems of the 
 Tudors, never adopted till, after the battle of Bosworth Field, 
 the marriage of Henry VII. of I^ancaster and Elizabeth of 
 York united the red and white roses, shows that it could 
 not have been before the latter part of the fifteenth century. 
 And Gilbert, in his Memorials of the Church, 1 states that 
 Dr. Lee, who was master of the College from 1470 to 1494, 
 obtained the sanction of the then Archbishop, Cardinal 
 Morton, and of the Pope, to levy a tax of fourpence in the 
 pound on all the clergy of the province to carry out this and 
 other alterations and improvements in the Church ; and this 
 closely coincides with the date suggested by the architectural 
 features. In its original construction the Vestry had a 
 pent roof, with the gable facing the south, as extant en- 
 gravings and drawings show; and it was not till 1846 that 
 
 1 Page 49. Unfortunately he does not give the authority on which 
 he makes this statement ; and the present writer has been unable 
 to find any. He therefore holds Gilbert responsible for it.
 
 26 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 the walls were raised and embattled to correspond with the 
 rest of the Church. 
 
 When the " priest's door " was thus absorbed in the Vestry, 
 an entrance into the South Aisle of the Chancel became 
 necessary ; and the present door into the " Arundel Chapel " 
 was no doubt then introduced. That into the North Chancel 
 Aisle is said to have been made as recently as the year 1795. 
 
 In the preceding remarks and arguments the attempt has 
 been made and it is hoped not altogether unsuccessfully 
 to show that there is nothing either of documentary or 
 architectural evidence to support the traditional theory that 
 Archbishop Courtenay was the actual builder of this fabric ; 
 but much to prove that the building existed in all its present 
 proportions and outline many years before his time ; and that 
 Hasted has accurately described the share which Courtenay 
 had in the work when he says that the munificent Arch- 
 bishop " rebuilt the chancel, and refitted it " for the use of 
 his College staff. One argument advanced in support of this 
 locally cherished theory is the use of the words "fundarat ab 
 imo" as applied to Courtenay on the Inscription which 
 Weever says used to run round the verge of his tomb. Now 
 the word does not originally, or even conventionally in 
 medieval use, necessarily imply that he was the founder, in 
 the sense of being the builder, but rather (which is strictly true 
 in this case), that he provided the " funds " for the worthier 
 endowment of his proposed College : and moreover the value 
 ^or valuelessness) of this Inscription will be examined in the 
 next Chapter in connection with his burial-place. 
 
 What he most probably did may be thus described : with- 
 out disturbing in any way the beautiful proportions of the 
 fabric, or its outer walls, beyond the insertion, as already 
 noticed, of windows of his own time, he would reconstruct the
 
 THE CHURCH AND ITS ARCHITECTURE. 27 
 
 Chancel thus accounting for the wider spanned arches, and 
 the slightly lower pitched roof- and introduce the Stalls, 
 and arrange them for the requirements of the Master and 
 Fellows of his College. Such an explanation of his action 
 would closely accord with the terms of Papal Bull and 
 Royal Charter alike.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, AND ALTAR-TOMBS. 
 
 |T is in the Chancel, or Choir, that we meet 
 with the unquestioned work of Archbishop 
 Courtenay. Here everything is suggestive 
 of him, whether in general design or in 
 minute detail ; and what was not completed 
 during his lifetime was evidently still the 
 working out of his plans. Philipott says 
 that in his time (1658) the Church walls were "diapered in 
 sundry places with Archbishop Courtenay's paternal coat," 
 and adduces this as evidence that he was the builder of the 
 Church ; l an inference which has been already shown to be 
 erroneous. Whether or not his statement of fact was more 
 accurate, it is now impossible to prove, for not a trace of 
 any such ornamentation remains. The discovery of those 
 mural tiles noticed in the last chapter 2 in no way qualifies 
 this, as they were doubtless introduced into the Church, 
 three-quarters of a century before Courtenay's time. Every 
 vestige of what may have once been has disappeared long 
 since, under the infliction of two centuries and a quarter of 
 scraping and plastering and whitewashing, under the name 
 of " improvements." 
 
 Happily, however, the Archbishop has left behind, in more 
 
 1 Villare Cantianum, p. 228. * Pages 6, 7.
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 29 
 
 permanent form than wall-painting, some valuable tokens of 
 a desire to perpetuate within these walls, not his own name, 
 so much as his strong affection for several of the members 
 of his family. For we have in the Choir Stalls a touching 
 trait of Courtenay's character; and some beautiful bold 
 workmanship, too, deserves a more than brief passing allusion. 
 At the back of these doubtless originally rose, as the sockets, 
 or mortise marks still visible would indicate, panelled or 
 open screens, probably too overhanging canopies of tabernacle 
 work. With sorrow be it said, however, that even the deep 
 carvings of these " Miser ere seats " l have not altogether 
 escaped mutilation from chisel or pocket-knife. 
 
 There were originally twenty-eight of these Stalls, each 
 with its massive oak seat working on hinges, with rich 
 carvings on the underside of the projecting brackets. But 
 the eight at the West end of the Chancel, four on either 
 side of the Centre Aisle, have disappeared, and seats of plain 
 deal screwed down have been substituted for them ! What 
 were the designs on these eight missing ones, which were 
 generally regarded as the most honourable seats, for the 
 Master and officiating Chaplains, and therefore no doubt 
 the most elaborate in workmanship, there is no record 
 extant. 2 Of the twenty still remaining, ifive have heraldic 
 devices, the others only contain flowers, leaves, or figures. 
 
 1 These seats are supposed to have been so called as being con- 
 structed in commiseration for the old and infirm priests when required 
 to perform a long service in a standing posture, because when turned 
 up they would form a slight seat against which one might lean and 
 support himself. 
 
 1 A correspondent in the Gentleman's Magazine, vol. Ixiv., p. 201 
 (1794) says on the bracket of the first Stall from the Nave on the 
 South side, which would be the Master's seat, was the figure of a 
 Priest, which, he suggests, would probably be that of Dr. J. Wotton, 
 the first Master.
 
 30 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Beginning with the seat at the South- West corner, we 
 find, impaled with those of the See of Canterbury, the arms 
 of the Archbishop himself, 1 three Torteaux with a label of 
 three points, carrying a mitre on each point, in allusion to 
 the three Bishoprics which he held in succession, St. David's, 
 Exeter, and Canterbury. The next Stall Eastward has again 
 the Courtenay arms with a mullet on each point of the 
 label, indicating his third brother (Edward), whose son 
 Edward eventually succeeded to the Earldom of Devon on 
 the death of his grandfather. With one intervening Stall 
 the Courtenay arms again occur, with three crescents on each 
 point of the label, representing, though in a very unusual 
 arrangement of the crescent, the shield of his second brother, 
 Thomas. While in the fourth Stall from the east, the arms 
 of the family once more appear having nine Torteaux, three 
 on each label, the distinctive device adopted by his fifth, 
 and evidently favourite, brother, Philip (of Powderham 
 Castle), 2 whose son Eichard the Archbishop had adopted and 
 educated, and whom he mentions in his will in terms of 
 
 1 The origin of the Arms of the Courtenay family is not without 
 historic interest. In the first Crusade a young cadet of a family, 
 already distinguished among the French nobility, bore himself so 
 bravely that he rose in high favour, and was accepted as the suitor 
 of a fair kinswoman of Godfrey de Bouillon, the Crusader King of 
 Jerusalem, who was himself a descendant of the ancient Counts of 
 Boulogne. In recognition of this honourable alliance young Courtenay 
 was permitted to bear the Arms of his Royal kinsman (on a field 
 OR, three torteaux, or roundlets GULES) ; which have been retained 
 to this day as the arms of the English branch of the Courtenay family. 
 See Gibbon's Decline and Fall, etc., end of Chapter LXL 
 
 3 These particulars are gathered from Cleaveland's Genealogical 
 History of the Courtenay Family, Book 111, Ch. xi., p. 265, and he 
 says (at p. 270) that the Arms of Philip were " OR 3 torteaux with a 
 label of AZURE of three points charged with nine plates for distinc- 
 tion."
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 31 
 
 special endearment, calling him his " dearest son and pupil," 
 to whom also he bequeathed the sum of one hundred Marks, 
 and several valuable books in case he became a Priest, and 
 his best Mitre should he become a Bishop a wish which 
 was fulfilled, as he was raised to the See of Norwich in 1413. 
 
 There remains yet one more heraldic shield to be ex- 
 amined, that on the Eastern Stall on the North side of the 
 Chancel. It bears a Chevron engrailed between three 
 leaves, and seems to have presented an enigma to previous 
 writers on the Church. Nearly all of them have passed it 
 by without notice ; Whichcord indeed refers to it, but only 
 says, "the bearings of it are as yet unappropriated ; " and 
 Hasted l suggests that they may be the arms of John Wotton, 
 the first Master of the College ; but the Kentish Wottons, 
 of which family he was a member, bore the Chevron only, 
 without leaves. But this very coat, Chevron between three 
 laurel leaves, is assigned to Gruido de Mone 2 (Bishop of St. 
 David's), who had been the last of the Rectors of St. Mary's, 
 and was so highly esteemed by Archbishop Courtenay as to 
 be selected by him as one of his Executors. What then 
 more natural than that the Archbishop should desire some 
 memento to be placed in this group, next to his own 
 brothers, of one who was clearly so dear to him ? Thus, 
 may not the mystery of the hitherto unassigned shield find 
 its solution in the affection of the Archbishop for his Fidus 
 Achates and bosom friend, Guido de Mone ? 
 
 Three raised Monuments, technically called Altar-Tombs, 
 originally stood within the Chancel ; each with its brass 
 
 1 Additional MSS., in British Museum, No 5479, f. 59. 
 
 - MS. note in copy of Bishop Godwin's De Presulibiis in Ashmole 
 MSS., No. 8569, referred to in Bedford's Blazonry of Episcopacy, 
 p. 33. This is more fully considered in De Hone's Life.
 
 32 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 effigy inlaid on its slab; that of Dr. John Wotton on the 
 South side ; opposite to it, on the North side, that of Sir 
 Kichard Wydville (or Woodville) ; and in the centre of the 
 Choir, a third, no doubt far more conspicuous and imposing, 
 that of Archbishop Courtenay himself. Of these Wotton's 
 alone retains its original elevation and character ; the other 
 two have at different times been degraded from " their high 
 estate," and now lie level with the pavement, of which 
 indeed they form part ; the " brasses " of all three have 
 long since disappeared, and only the indents remain to 
 show in outline what they once represented. 
 
 In describing the three, priority must in all justice be 
 conceded to that of the noble Founder of the College, and 
 the designer of the present adaptation of the Chancel to its 
 Collegiate use; though it has long ceased to present so 
 imposing an appearance as that of Wotton. Time was 
 when that massive slab of Bethersden marble, now lowered 
 to the pavement level, stood at an elevation of four feet 
 from the ground, and formed the top of a goodly tomb, 
 resting on richly carved and emblazoned sides, and, to use 
 the language of Beale Poste, standing up "a conspicuous 
 object, attracting the eyes of all beholders," 1 but being 
 found to impede the passage up the aisle, it was lowered to 
 within a few inches of the ground, and being still found an 
 inconvenient obstruction, was reduced to its present position," 
 flush with the pavement. 
 
 It is impossible to stand even now at the foot of that 
 massive slab, stripped though it be of its once goodly brass 
 which doubtless fell a prey to the sacrilegious frenzy of 
 the Puritan soldiers, when in that year of bloody memories, 
 1648, they obtained possession of the Church, and desecrated 
 1 History of All Saints' College, p. 87.
 
 To face page 33. 
 
 i J ;. 
 
 >V \ HH ' Bj 
 
 H ' : > ' r 7 T I 
 
 L'y 
 
 MATRIX OF THE BRASS 
 
 COMMEMORATING ARCHBISHOP COURTENAY, 
 IN ALL SAINTS', MAIDSTONE.
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 33 
 
 it under General Fairfax without filling up in conjecture 
 from the indents the details of the picture it must have 
 presented. A slab eleven feet five inches long, and four 
 feet and a half broad, inlaid with the full-length effigy 
 of the bountiful "fundator" of that noble pile, the figure 
 itself from the ground to the point of the mitre standing 
 above six feet high, under an elaborate crocketed canopy four 
 feet in depth, with its enamelled shields, must have furnished 
 a study which scarcely another Parish Church, and not 
 many Cathedrals or Abbeys, could have outrivalled. The 
 figure itself must have represented to a rare degree the 
 stately and graceful bearing of one whose personal appear- 
 ance bore evidence of his high lineage, that figure not a 
 little set off by the gorgeous vestments of his exalted office 
 as worn in those days, bearing in his hand not the ordinary 
 Episcopal crozier, as on the tomb at Canterbury, but the 
 cross-surmounted staff, the emblem of his Patriarchal 
 position in the English Church. Such labour, such splen- 
 dour, would hardly have been wasted on a mere cenotaph ! 
 
 Yet that is the condition to which the rival claim of 
 Canterbury Cathedral would reduce it, pointing to an 
 alabaster recumbent figure of an Archbishop in full pontifi- 
 cals with mitre and crozier. but with no inscription, 
 lying near the shrine of St. Thomas at the feet of the 
 tomb of the Black Prince, which local tradition only has 
 assigned as the real burial-place of Archbishop Courtenay. 
 
 Hence arises the qucestio vexata, "Where was the 
 Archbishop buried?" A History of Maidstone Church would 
 be incomplete which did not attempt to answer that ques- 
 tion. 
 
 As to the Archbishop's own wish with regard to his burial, 
 his original Will is most explicit, as also is that of the Codicil 
 
 3
 
 34 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 subsequently attached to it, 1 and by which it is partially 
 cancelled. His first thought and wish had been that his 
 body should lie in the heart of his beloved native County 
 of Devon, in Exeter Cathedral, where, too, he had held his 
 first ecclesiastical preferment. There, where three successive 
 Deans already lay buried (coram Summa Cruce), in front of 
 the High Kood, he desired to lie, and as his burial at that 
 spot would involve the removal of their bones, he directs 
 that they should be honourably re-interred at his sole charge 
 and cost. However, in his last illness, at the near approach 
 of death, a marked change had come over his feelings and 
 wishes. Maidstone, with its his own College, had obtained 
 a deeper hold on his affections than even Devon with the 
 ancestral associations of its Cathedral ; and personal humility 
 triumphed over family pride. His wish now was, as dic- 
 tated to an attendant at his sick bed within a few hours of 
 his death, that " not deeming himself worthy," as he said, 
 "to be buried in his own Metropolitan, or any other 
 Cathedral, he wished and chose that his burial should be in 
 the Cemetery 2 of his Collegiate Church of Maidstone, in the 
 place he had himself pointed out to his Squire, Sir John 
 Botelere." 
 
 1 All the important clauses of the Will, and the Cocn'cil, are given 
 in the Appendix B (1). 
 
 2 One of the arguments advanced by the " Canterbury Claimants," 
 against this being the real burial-place of the Archbishop, is based on 
 the use of this word. Assigning the more modern acceptation to the 
 word, even Newton and Beale Poste have described it as being the 
 " Burial-ground " of the Church, and therefore it is argued that the 
 Chancel could not have been meant ; whereas Du Cange, the great 
 authority on the meanings of Mediaeval Latin terms, expressly says 
 that, while Ccemeterium ordinarily means the place where the bodies 
 of the faithful are buried, it also includes the Church itself, when 
 bodies are buried within it. Thus that objection disappears.
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 35 
 
 After instructions so explicit, it seems strange that any 
 doubt should have ever risen as to the fact of his having 
 been buried there. Yet in spite of that Codicil, in spite of 
 the once goodly tomb and gorgeous brass attesting the fact, 
 and protesting against all rival claims to that honour, a 
 counter-claim is put forth in favour of an unnamed Tomb in 
 Canterbury Cathedral, which can show neither inscription 
 nor escutcheon in support of such a claim. 
 
 Let us then examine on what authority is the Canter- 
 bury claim based. Camden, Godwin, Somner, Gibson, are 
 generally appealed to in support of it, and certainly they 
 present a formidable array of names, such as one might 
 hesitate to confront : 
 
 " As who shall say, ' I am Sir Oracle, 
 And when I ope my lips let no dog bark.' " 
 
 But by taking them seriatim, and testing their language, it 
 may be found that their testimony on this point is not decisive 
 enough to substantiate the claim put forth on their authority. 
 To begin with, Camden, what does he, the father of England's 
 Antiquaries, really say on this subject? He published in 
 Latin three editions of his " Britannia 5? during his lifetime. 
 These successive editions vary very slightly in the account 
 of Maidstone. In the third, and the last edition for which 
 he was personally responsible, he merely says that " Maid- 
 stone is a neat and populous town, stretched out into a 
 great length. In the middle it has a Palace of the Arch- 
 bishops of Canterbury, begun by John Ufford, Archbishop, 
 and finished by Simon Islip. 1 Here is likewise one of the 
 two common Gaols (alterum ergastulum 2 ) of this County. 
 
 1 Camden's Britannia (1594), p. 243. 
 
 2 For which career is substituted in the later editions.
 
 36 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 But no allusion is made to Courtenay, or his burial. His 
 name is not even mentioned. So much for Camden's 
 testimony. A few years after his death Dr. Philemon 
 Holland published the " Britannia " in English, into which 
 he interpolated much matter for which his author can in no 
 way be held responsible ; though Bishop Gibson says " an 
 opinion had got abroad in the world that he consulted Mr. 
 Camden where anything appeared obscure or of a double 
 meaning." 1 
 
 Unfortunately Holland so blended his own ideas with 
 Camden's account that it became almost impossible to 
 separate them. Anthony a' Wood says " he has put in it- 
 many things which were not written by Camden." Here is 
 a case in point. To Camden's brief mention of Maidstone 
 Holland added that " William Courtenay erected a fair 
 Collegiate Church, in which he, so great a Prelate, and so 
 high born, lieth lowly entombed." Thus Holland really 
 suggests and supports the Maidstone claim. 
 
 While Camden was still alive the then successor of 
 Courtenay in the See of Canterbury, Matthew Parker, gave 
 to the world his great work on the " Antiquity of the British 
 Church," and, in speaking of Courtenay's death, would appear 
 to be the first of the writers of that day to assign to him 
 the honour of burial at Canterbury, specifying the place 
 as being "on the south side of the shrine of Thomas a' 
 Becket." 2 He was soon followed by another historian 
 Bishop, Francis Godwin, of Hereford, who in his Lives of the 
 English Prelates adopts almost the very words of Parker, 
 save only that he gives to the martyr of Canterbury his 
 
 1 Gibson's Preface to Camden (1695). 
 
 2 " In Ecclesia Cantuariensi juxta feretrum ThomcK Becket ex australi 
 parte sepultus jacft." De Antiquitate, etc. (1572), p. 303.
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 37 
 
 canonized title, and describes the tomb as being of 
 alabaster. 1 
 
 The authority for this statement may be found in one 
 single mediaeval writer, William Thorne, a Monk of Christ 
 Church, Canterbury, who lived in the latter part of the four- 
 teenth century, and wrote a work (really an appropriation 
 and continuation of an earlier one by Thomas Sprott, a 
 Monk of St. Augustine's), who gives an account of Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay's funeral, and says that it was solemnized 
 "in the presence of the king and many of the magnates of 
 the land." 2 But as Thorne is believed to have died in 
 1375, twenty years before Courtenay, and the later pages of 
 his MS. must have been the work of some later unnamed 
 and unknown scribe, this testimony is of no real weight. 
 
 But to return to Camden's "Britannia" (so often relied on) 
 and its later editors. Bishop Gibson published an edition in 
 1695, just seventy years after Camden's death, in which, 
 while he endeavours to disintegrate Holland's interpolations 
 (already noticed) from Camden's own original text, and 
 places some extensive " Additions " of his own separately at 
 the end of each County, he brings forward an entirely new 
 authority in support of the Canterbury claim, and that also 
 from Canterbury itself. In his " Additions " to the County 
 of Kent, which seem to be afterwards embodied in the text, 3 
 
 1 " Humatus jacet ad pedes Eduardi Principis ab australi parteferetri 
 Sancti Thomce sepulchro conditus alabastrine." Bishop Godwin's De 
 Presulibus (Richardson's Ed., 1743;, p. 122. 
 
 * " Eodem anno (1396) ultimo die mensis Julli Mayister Willielmus 
 Courteneye Cantuariensis Archiepiscopus rege cum magnatibus terrce tune 
 presente juxta feretrum Sancti Thomce, traditur sepultures." Chronicon 
 Gullielmi Thorn, in Hist. Angl. Decem Scnptorcs (Twysden's Ed.), 
 p. 2197. 
 
 3 In subsequent editions of his work Holland's Notes and Gibson's
 
 38 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 he says, speaking of Maidstone, " Archbishop Courtenay was a 
 great friend to this town, who built the College here, where 
 he ordered his Esquire, John Boteler, to bury him . . . 
 where yet he has a tomb, and had an epitaph too, which is 
 set down in Weever. But this I rather believe to have been 
 his Cenotaph than his real place of burial ; for Mr. Somner 
 tells us that he found in a Leiger Book of Christ Church 
 (Canterbury), that King Richard II., happening to be at 
 Canterbury when he was to be buried, commanded his body 
 (notwithstanding his own order) to be there interred, where 
 he still lies at the feet of the Black Prince in a goodly tomb 
 of alabaster yet remaining." 1 
 
 Thus Bishop Gibson, while repeating the statement, 
 throws all responsibility for it on Somner himself and his 
 MS. And what does Somner say ? "I find in a Leiger Book 
 of Christ Church (Canterbury) that the King (Richard II.), 
 happening to be at Canterbury when he (the Archbishop) was 
 to be buried, upon the Monks' suite it is like, overruled the 
 matter, and commanded his body to be here interred." 2 This 
 statement of Somner's was, it seems, to become henceforth 
 the basis of all future accounts of Courtenay's burial, though, 
 as we shall see, some few writers questioned or ignored it, 
 until towards the close of the last Century two Antiquaries, 
 Hasted and Dr. S. Denne, set themselves to examine it. 
 The very vagueness of Somner's expression, " I find," and 
 that too in the absence of all mention of the fact in 
 
 Additions have unfortunately been so intermingled with Camden's 
 original text that it is very difficult to assign each portion to its own 
 author, and hence has arisen the current opinion that Camden himself 
 was in favour of the Canterbury claim. 
 
 1 Gibson's Ed. of Camden's Britannia (1695), p. 217. 
 
 1 Somner's Antiquities of Canterbury (1640), p. 266.
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 39 
 
 other documents or records where a proceeding somewhat 
 singular and irregular would in all probability be noticed, 
 led them to make a close investigation ; with this result, that 
 no such Leiger Book existed among the Chapter Archives 
 at Canterbury, only a thin 4to volume in vellum, described 
 in the Catalogue as " Extracts from the Obituary of the Monks 
 of Christ Church," etc., by W. S. ; l while on the cover was 
 the endorsement, " Dominus Thomas Cawston Mon. hujus 
 Eccles. A.D. MCCCCLXXXVI." 
 
 Thus the very date robs the entry of any value. Had it 
 been contemporaneous, or an authenticated transcript of a 
 contemporaneous record, it would, as Dr. Denne says, have 
 at once terminated the dispute ; but appearing in a chance 
 volume, confessedly written a century after the Archbishop's 
 death, and utterly unsupported by any contemporary official 
 record, the absence of which throws such doubt on its 
 genuineness, it is worse than valueless; especially when 
 taking into account the glowing description it gives of the 
 scene, that it was " in the presence of the Illustrious King, 
 many magnates, Prelates, Counts, and Barons." 2 
 
 We have said it is utterly unsupported by any contem- 
 porary official record ; and one official record of the highest 
 value does exist, preserved in the Cathedral Library the 
 Dies Obituales* in which a full account of every State 
 Funeral of the Archbishops was given ; and yet in the 
 case of Courtenay this is silent. Is it likely that his death, 
 and many of his benefactions and legacies, in which the 
 
 1 Archceologia, vol. x., p. 272. 
 
 * Such is the account given by Cawston : " In presentia Ricardi Regis 
 incliti Secundi, et multorum inagnatuni, prelatorum, coinltum, et baronum." 
 
 8 The Dies Obituales are given at full length by Wharton in his 
 Anglia Sacra, pp. 52-64.
 
 40 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Cathedral body came second only to his own relations in 
 the amount of his bequests, should be duly noted, and yet 
 not one word about so grand a function as his burial 
 in the presence of so goodly a company, if it really 
 was performed there, should have been deemed worthy of 
 record ? This is certainly only a negative argument ; but 
 it does not stand alone. The Archbishop's Will, with its 
 Codicil attached, in which his wish and injunction to be 
 buried in Maidstone is so explicitly given, is also preserved 
 at Canterbury; yet not a note is added to the effect that 
 the King's command overruled and overrode the Archbishop's 
 dying wish, and that that wish was not carried out to the 
 letter. Nor is there among the State Papers in the Public 
 Kecord Office, or the Ecclesiastical or Municipal Records of 
 Maidstone, any allusion to any such order having come from 
 the King to rob them of the honour of retaining in their 
 own Church the corpse of one who, while living in their 
 midst, had been to them so great a benefactor. 
 
 Again, another negative argument may be advanced from 
 the difficulty, amounting to the impossibility, of the supposed 
 burial having taken place between the time assigned to 
 it, the 5th August, and that of the Archbishop's death, 
 30th July. Taking into account the distance, not far short 
 of thirty miles, and the rate of travelling five hundred 
 years ago, how would it have been possible that the 
 announcement of the death should have reached Canterbury, 
 the King's order have been carried back to Maidstone, the 
 preparation for the journey made, and the body conveyed at 
 all, much less in befitting state, within those six days ? 
 
 It is time to pass on to a consideration of what may be 
 termed the internal evidence. First, take the words of the 
 Epitaph which old Weever has preserved to us as having
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 41 
 
 run round the verge in his time. The opening lines run 
 thus : 
 
 " Nomine Willelmus en Courtnaius reverendus, 
 Qui se post obitum legaverat hie tumulandum, 
 In presenti loco quern jam f undarat ab imo ; 
 Omnibus et Sanctis titulo sacravit honoris ; 
 Ultima lux Julii fit vite terminus illi, 
 M ter C quinto decies nonoque sub anno." ' 
 
 Unfortunately this Epitaph, instead of removing all doubt 
 on the subject, as it might have been expected to do, raises 
 some of its own. Two expressions in it are appealed to as 
 telling against this being the actual burial-place. Instead 
 of opening with the usual " Hie jacet " (Here lies) the 
 interjection " en " (lo) is introduced, an expression which is 
 considered so vague as to leave it still an open question, 
 even if it does not imply that this is not the real place of 
 his burial. Then, in the second line, from the use of the 
 word " legaverat " (he had willed), the inference has been 
 drawn, that in spite of the distinct expression of his Will 
 he was not buried here. Now let the force of these two 
 objections be well weighed. Undoubtedly " Hie jacet " is 
 the more usual mode, and does more emphatically assert a 
 fact. But the use of " en," or its equivalent '' ecce," is not 
 so rare or infrequent as to raise any doubt. The pages of 
 Weever himself- contain many instances of their use, and 
 that in Canterbury itself: one or the other of them occurred 
 on the tombs of Abbots Drulege, de Borne, Findon, and 
 others, in the Monastery of St. Augustine ; and surely no 
 doubt existed as to those being the real places of their 
 burial? But perhaps a still more uncontested and incon- 
 
 1 The entire Epitaph is given in Appendix B (2). 
 3 Weever's Funerall Monuments, pp. 257, 259, etc.
 
 42 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 testable instance may be found in Rochester Cathedral, on 
 the tomb of Bishop Warner. 1 So that that objection is easily 
 removed. 
 
 As to the second, the use of the past-perfect tense, being 
 suggestive of a doubt as to his having been buried in accord- 
 ance with his Will, does the use of the same tense in the 
 very next line, in allusion to his having founded the Church, 
 raise any doubt that he was the real founder of it ? May 
 not the passage be thus rendered, " He had left instructions 
 (legaverat) that he should be buried in this place because 
 (fundaveraf) he had founded it," and therefore he was 
 buried here ? 
 
 However, the value of this Epitaph as evidence is so 
 doubtful and at best trifling, that much stress cannot be laid 
 upon it either way. It gives the date of the Archbishop's 
 death as 1395, when all records agree that he did not die till 
 the following year. And as Beale Poste argues from this 
 fact, and other vague expressions in it, that it could not 
 have been written by a contemporary, nor till probably half 
 a century or more after, the value of any testimony it might 
 supply for either side is nil. 2 
 
 Without burdening our pages with any references to the 
 more recent authors who have followed the line adopted by 
 Archbishop Parker down to Dr. Hook, it now only remains 
 to bring forward in brief review the opinions of those who 
 support the Maidstone claim. That sage Antiquary, Leland, 
 writing in the earlier part of the sixteenth century, anterior 
 even to Camden, says that " Courtenay founded a College at 
 Maidstone, and there lies buried." 3 About a century later 
 
 1 Thorpe's Antiquities of Rochester, p. 702. 
 
 2 Beale Poste's History of All Saints' College, p. 89. 
 
 3 Under the head of Maidstone, Leland's words are : " Bonifachts de
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 43 
 
 came John \Veever, to whose researches among inscriptions 
 (of which, too, he left such valuable records) we are indebted 
 for the one already quoted, as existing in his day (circ. 1630) 
 on the tomb in the centre of the Choir, who, after mention- 
 ing and disposing of the counter-claim of Canterbury, thus 
 expresses his opinion : " He (Archbishop Courtenay) lyeth 
 buried according to his Will, here in his own Church, under 
 a plaine grave-stone (a lowly tomb for such an high-borne 
 Prelate) upon which his portraiture is delineated," 1 etc. 
 Some fifty years later (1691) Henry Wharton, in his Anglia 
 Sacra, refers thus to the existence of the doubt : " Godwin 
 writes that he (Courtenay) was buried at Canterbury, but 
 that he was entombed at Maidstone is clearly more true, 
 from the Codicil which still exists annexed to his Will 
 among the Canterbury Archives. . . . And there, indeed, his 
 tomb remains to be seen to this day." 2 Then Le Neve, who 
 published his Monumenta Anglicana in the beginning of 
 the last century, has left a MS. note to the effect that 
 " In the middle Isle (sic) lyes Archbishop Courtenay, who 
 built the Church, under a flat tomb," etc., 3 and that with the 
 recorded opinions of Godwin, Somner, Gibson, and others 
 before him. 
 
 So powerfully contested a point could not fail to enlist 
 
 Sudaudia Archiep. Cant, fund avit unum jiarrujit Collegium sire Hospltale. 
 Wilhelmus Courtenay A rchiep. Cant, fundarlt alterum, ibique sepultus 
 jacet." Collectanea, vol. i., p. 97. 
 
 1 Weever's Funerall Monuments, p. 283. 
 
 * " Cantuarlffi sepultum Godtoinux scribit. Verius Maydensttmce tumu- 
 latuni esse patet ex codicillo, qui Tegtamento suo annexus extat inter 
 Archiva Ecclesice Chrixti Cantuarienxis. . . . At que isthic quidem 
 Sepulchrum illius hodienum vixendum." Anglia Sacra, p. 121. 
 
 3 Le Neve's Church Note* in Kent, Additional MSS. in the British 
 Museum, 5479, f. 151.
 
 44 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 the interest and excite the research of Antiquarians in later 
 years, and happily Maidstone had in the close of the last 
 century as its Curate the Eev. John Denne, himself an 
 Antiquary, and the brother of Dr. Samuel Denne, then 
 Rector of Lambeth, and one of the leading Antiquaries of 
 that day. It was determined therefore, if possible, to solve 
 the doubt by opening the tomb. Permission was obtained, 
 and the examination was made in the presence of the two 
 brothers Denne, and others. The result may be given in 
 Dr. Denne's own words : " At the depth of five feet six 
 inches was discovered a skeleton, entire as far as the ground 
 was opened. The skull, the collar bone, and the bones of 
 the arms and legs were in their proper positions. Some 
 of the rib bones had sunk on the vertebrae, and appeared 
 through their whole length at their due distances. The 
 ground under the skeleton had never been moved, and 
 under the skull, in which the teeth were remarkably well 
 set, and seemed to be complete, the ground was hard and 
 round as a bowl. 
 
 "It is an obvious remark (he goes on to say) that this 
 would have been the last body interred in the grave, nor 
 can it be thought a strained conclusion that this must have 
 been the skeleton of the person of whom the tombstone, 
 which had unquestionably covered the spot for many 
 centuries, was avowedly a memorial." 
 
 This investigation still left one or two points on which 
 doubts were raised. There was the absence of a leaden 
 coffin ; to which it may be replied, that in those days even 
 the highest in the land were not always buried in lead. 
 Again, the absence of any Ecclesiastical vestments or 
 insignia ; to this it may be said that the Archbishop's Will 
 disposes of mitre, and crozier, and a variety of copes and
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 45 
 
 other ornaments, till little would remain for use at his 
 burial. Then again, the good preservation of the teeth 
 has been advanced as an argument that the body found 
 must have belonged to a younger man. But it should be 
 remembered that Courtenay was only fifty-four at the time 
 of his death, and is represented as having been generally 
 a strong hale man. 
 
 All then being taken into account, may not the opinion 
 of the exploring party be unhesitatingly adopted, " that 
 the Archbishop was really here deposited, as the Inscription, 
 aided by tradition, strongly implies, and that the tale of 
 the body having been conveyed to Canterbury by the King's 
 command was fabricated by the Monks of the Priory of 
 Christ Church, for the purpose of supporting, as they 
 conceived, the credit and dignity of that Cathedral " ? 1 
 
 The second of the old Altar-Tombs to be noticed happily 
 retains enough of its original character to tell its own tale. 
 
 It has been shown in the preceding Chapter, 2 that at the 
 East end of this South Aisle of the Chancel there originally 
 stood the Altar of St. Thomas the Martyr (Becket), and that 
 the liberal endowment of it by Archbishop Arundel by the 
 grant of the revenues of Northfleet between it and one at 
 Canterbury, providing for the maintenance of one priest at 
 this Altar, as well as two at Canterbury caused it to be 
 thenceforth commonly known as the " Arundel Chapel." In 
 this Chapel, " before the altar of St. Thomas," as he expresses 
 the wish in his Will, 8 John Wotton was buried in 1417 ; and 
 
 1 Archueologia, vol. x., pp. 272, 273. 
 
 1 Page 21. 
 
 3 Wotton's Will is preserved in Archbishop Chichele's Register, I., 
 f . 327, in which he thus expresses his wish that his burial might be " ad 
 altare Sancti Thomce Martyris in Ecclesia prefata ex parte australi 
 conxecratum et sumi>tibu nieis honorifice conatructum."
 
 46 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 here the piety of his friends, or of his successor, raised this 
 goodly monument, forming a partition between the Chancel 
 proper and its South Aisle. It is a massive Altar-Tomb, with 
 a boldly panelled face, in quarter-foils, and a slab of fine 
 Bethersden marble for its lid, along the four sides of which 
 formerly ran an inscription, long since destroyed, with only 
 its indent remaining to show where it lay. Of this inscrip- 
 tion, however, which Weever has rescued from oblivion, the 
 wording proclaimed it to have been the tomb of John 
 Wotton. 1 The whole is crowned by a richly carved canopy, 
 on which traces of once bright colouring may still be seen ; 
 the space over the tomb itself is in four compartments, 
 separated from each other by carved pendants, from which 
 spring boldly cusped cinquefoiled arches, terminating in ogee 
 pediments, crocketed and finialed, the centre of each con- 
 taining an escutcheon. The first from the East, though now 
 sadly disfigured and nearly obliterated, nothing but the 
 outline of the cross being seen, clearly bore the arms of 
 Christ Church, Canterbury no doubt in allusion to the 
 connection already alluded to between this Chantry and the 
 one in the Cathedral, which shared with it the endowment 
 of Northfleet; on the next, the arms of the See, impaling 
 Arundel, and the third, the same, impaling Courtenay ; while 
 the fourth, now grievously disfigured by ignorant daubing, is 
 supposed to have represented the College arms azure, three 
 bars gemelles or. 
 
 One other striking feature of this tomb must be noticed. 
 On the wall rising up from the marble slab, and evidently a 
 
 1 The Inscription ran thus: " Hie jacet dominus Johannes IVotton, 
 Rector JEccles/ce Parochialis de Stapilhurst, Canonicus Cicestremis <6 
 primus Magister hujus Collegii, qui obiit ultimo die Octobris 1417." 
 Weever's Funerull Monuments, p. 286.

 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 47 
 
 subsequent insertion, resting upon and cutting off part of the 
 slab, to form the back of the subsequently added Sedilia, is 
 a fresco painting, very much obliterated, especially about 
 the faces of the several figures, which is supposed to repre- 
 sent the Virgin Mary seated on her throne, and St. Catherine 
 standing behind, while an angel is presenting the soul of 
 John Wotton (symbolized by a very diminutive figure, in 
 a suppliant posture), pleading for exaltation to heavenly 
 bliss ; l with a fourth figure hopelessly defaced, and present- 
 ing no emblem or symbol by which it could be identified. 
 In the return side-canopies are also figures of an Archbishop 
 (Courtenay ?) and a Bishop. 
 
 The third of the Altar-Tombs, which formerly adorned 
 the Chancel, stood on the North side opposite to that of 
 Wotton ; but, like Courtenay's, it also has been brought down 
 to the level of the floor, and only the indents remain to 
 show where once lay effigy, escutcheon, and scroll. Weever 
 says that even in his time this tomb was " shamefully de- 
 faced," nearly all the inscription destroyed, only a few words 
 remaining at the ends of the line ; which he read thus 
 
 ad bona non tardus vocitando 
 
 namque Deo trino valefecit 
 
 Decembr 
 
 . . . . . Anno Milleno C quatuor X 
 
 Local tradition (he adds) had always assigned it to one 
 \Voodville, " who dwelt at Thamote (the Mote ?), within this 
 Parish." Newton 2 infers from what remains of the date 
 that it was to the memory of " the father of the Sir Richard 
 (Wydewyll, Wydeville, Widvele, Wodevil, and Woodville, as 
 
 1 Beale Poste's History of the College, p. 31. 
 
 2 Newton's History and Antiquities of Ma'uhtotie, p. 77.
 
 48 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 the name is variously spelt), who was the first Earl Eivers 
 (whose daughter was King Edward IV.'s Queen), and who was 
 beheaded by the Northampton Mutineers A.D. 1469." 
 
 In a very interesting Collection of MS. Notes on Churches 
 made by the first Sir Edward Bering, of Surrenden, and 
 known as the " Surrenden Notes,'' 1 is an outline sketch of the 
 brass on this tomb, as it appeared in his time (1630), from 
 which we are able to give the following description. In each 
 of the four corners was an escutcheon ; at the top in the centre 
 a representation of the Trinity, the Father seated, His right 
 hand raised in the act of blessing, the left supporting a Crucifix, 
 and a dove descending over the right shoulder. On one 
 side, a little below, an angel kneeling, and on the other a 
 man, also kneeling. The figures of Sir Richard and his lady 
 must have been very boldly given ; he appearing in full plate 
 armour with his feet resting on a lion, she with a bird, probably 
 a dove, with spread wings, at her feet. From the mouth of 
 each proceeded a scroll containing a petition for " mercy," 
 while both had their hands raised in prayer. 
 
 Newton's conjecture that it was the tomb of the father of 
 the first Earl Rivers, and not, as some say, of that Earl 
 himself, is confirmed by the date so imperfectly given ; for 
 though the actual date of his death is unknown, there being 
 no entry of the fact at the College of Arms, this clue has 
 been obtained from there, that the said Sir Richard was 
 alive in 1440, but dead in 1442. Now the figures as given 
 by Weever support this, for MCCCCX needs only L. or LI. 
 or LI I. to represent that date. 
 
 The last structural feature of this noble building which 
 remains to be noticed is the range of Sedilia, that row of 
 
 1 A copy of which is inserted in Archceologia Cantiana, vol. i., 
 p. 178.
 
 To face page 49. 
 
 ALL SAINTS', MAIDSTONE. THE SEDILIA.
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 49 
 
 gracefully canopied seats on the South side of the Chancel. 
 These, as they now stand, are clearly of later date than 
 Wotton's tomb, for they contain some fine traits of the best 
 type of the Perpendicular style, which ruled during the 
 latter years of the fifteenth century. From the general 
 arrangement, 1 it is clear that the Tomb was originally open 
 through and through ; and that the Sedilia were an after- 
 thought, for the convenience of which a backing wall was 
 run up ; for this wall rests on the slab of the Tomb, covering 
 not only one side of the inscription that ran round it, but 
 also one of the figured and canopied sides which formed the 
 border of the brass itself. It is most probable that these 
 Sedilia were constructed at the same time as the Vestry 
 was thrown out on the South Aisle of the Chancel ; and the 
 paintings over the Tomb were no doubt then introduced to 
 relieve the blankness of the wall on the South side. 
 
 The ordinary arrangement of Sedilia, which were designed 
 for the use of the Clergy at the Altar Services, was a row of 
 three seats, the Easternmost one, for the officiating Priest, 
 being slightly higher than the other two, where his Assistants, 
 probably a Deacon and Sub-Deacon, sat ; sometimes only two 
 seats are met with in smaller Churches, and occasionally 
 only one. Here the arrangement is peculiar and rare ; four 
 seats, and all on one level ; the first being possibly for the 
 Archbishop, and the other three for the Master and two 
 Fellows, or Chaplains (Capellani). 
 
 The projecting canopy over them is divided into five 
 compartments ; that at the East enclosing the basins of a 
 double Piscina, with what looks like the usual Credence- 
 ledge above them, only that one-half the space has been 
 blocked up, and the other half clumsily opened out at nearly 
 1 Beale Poste's History, etc., p. 85. 
 
 4
 
 50 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 right angles through the wall. The hand of some would-be 
 beautifier or misguided " restorer " has successfully effaced 
 all clue to the original arrangement or design. It is not 
 improbable that there may have existed here a double 
 Ambry, one belonging to the High Altar, and the other to 
 that of St. Thomas (Arundel's Chapel), but all distinctive 
 trace of either has wholly disappeared under a plain cham- 
 fered and fluted edge to the aperture on either side. A 
 " Squint " the common name for a Hagioscope or a 
 Lychnoscope it could not have been ; had it been either 
 the one, to enable a worshipper in the side Aisle to witness 
 the elevation of the Host at the Mass, or the other, to 
 enable the night-watching attendant to see if the lights 
 were burning on the Altar without entering the Chancel 
 in either case it would have been placed obliquely, instead 
 of being as it is nearly at right angles with the wall ; and 
 also more Westward, and in the present case would be 
 rendered unnecessary by the open Altar-Tomb. It now 
 seems . meaningless, and as such may be left to others more 
 expert to suggest a meaning or an object. 
 
 The Sedilia themselves present a far more intelligible 
 and a highly interesting study. Each of these seats is 
 deeply recessed under a stone canopy, the ceiling of which 
 is groined and ribbed like the Tomb, with a central boss of 
 boldly carved leaves, while at the intersecting points are 
 smaller bosses delicately carved, representing leaves, flowers, 
 and two or three grotesque human faces. On the front of each 
 canopy are the remains of an escutcheon. The first three 
 and the fifth (counting from the East end) probably had the 
 same charges as those already described on Wotton's Tomb, 
 in the following order the Arms of Christ Church, Canter- 
 bury, then the See of Canterbury impaling Arundel, then
 
 THE CHANCEL; ITS CHOIR-STALLS, ETC. 51 
 
 the same impaling Courtenay, and the last those of the 
 College ; the fourth escutcheon, now woefully disfigured by 
 ignorant hands, is supposed by Beale Poste l to have borne 
 the arms of the Bohuns, Earls of Hereford and Essex, with 
 those of Courtenay per pale. While so much remains to 
 show how beautiful these canopies once were, it is saddening 
 to notice how barbarously they have been mutilated in later 
 years of the 16th Century to make room for some costly, 
 and in themselves perhaps handsome, monuments, but pain- 
 fully incongruous with those elaborate and elegant specimens 
 of art of two hundred years earlier. Only in the recent 
 Restoration of 1885-86 were the real beauties of these 
 Sedilia brought to light, when the Astley monuments were 
 removed, and relegated to a less obtrusive and more suitable 
 place at the West end of the Church, as the description 
 of them must be to a future chapter. 
 
 The three central Sedilia are crowned with light open 
 two-storied canopies, which, rising to an elevation of some 
 twenty feet, add greatly to the beauty and symmetry of the 
 whole group. 
 
 1 History of the College, etc., p. 33.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 
 
 JEW Churches in England, that can boast 
 of five Centuries and a half of existence, 
 have undergone less structural alteration, 
 yet probably none have experienced more 
 of change in other respects, than the 
 old Mother Church of Maid stone a 
 change in its very name, from St. Mary's 
 to All Saints' in its character and constitution, from 
 Parochial to Collegiate, and from Collegiate back again 
 to Parochial and consequently in the title and position 
 of its Clergy, from Rectors to Masters or Wardens, from 
 Masters to Curates, and eventually to Vicars. 
 
 They first appear as RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S CHURCH. 
 In endeavouring to trace out the succession of these 
 RECTORS, we are at the outset brought face to face with 
 a difficulty. The absence of any Registers of the Diocese 
 anterior to the time of Archbishop Peckham, at the latter 
 end of the 13th Century, leaves us without authentic 
 record ; and only casually, and from out-of-the-way quarters, 
 can occasional rays of light be obtained to help us in 
 our search for the earlier appointments. Former writers 
 of the history of the Church have experienced the same 
 difficulty. Newton, for instance, only names two Rectors
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 53 
 
 John Mansell, in the middle of the 13th Century, and Guy 
 de Mone, the last of them, at the close of the 14th ; while 
 Hasted inserts only one more, William de Tyrington, the 
 predecessor of de Mone. Beale Poste, with the greater 
 facilities offered to him by Dr. Ducarel's invaluable Index 
 to the Lambeth Kegisters, has supplied five more names 
 in this interval. But even then we have nothing but 
 the names and dates of the several appointments, each 
 little more than an empty name, nothing to show how 
 important a position the occupants of this valuable and 
 coveted Rectory held in the Kingdom, and how through 
 them Maidstone became identified with the Political and 
 Ecclesiastical History of England. All this was passed 
 over in silence a silence it will now be our endeavour to 
 break. 
 
 The first name that can be placed on the list is that of 
 WILLIAM DE CoRNHULL, 1 of whom Bishop Godwin, in his 
 account of the Archbishops, merely notes that he was 
 " collated by the King." 2 But the Charter of his appoint- 
 ment, still preserved in the " Public Record Office," gives in 
 full and most interesting details an account of the whole 
 transaction. It tells us that on the 6th of August, A.D. 1205, 
 within a month of the death of Archbishop Hubert Walter, 
 King John, while halting at his Palace of Havering-atte- 
 Bower, did, in the midst of that band of evil advisers as 
 old Matthew Paris calls them, time-serving, unscrupulous 
 minions, eager to pander to his passions to further their 
 own interests 3 avail himself of the vacancy in the See of 
 Canterbury, to which the patronage rightly belonged, to 
 
 1 Also spelt Cornhill and Cornhette. 
 
 * " Collatua per Regem." Bishop Godwin's De Presulibus, p. 315. 
 " Qui Regi in omnibus placere cupientes, consiliumnon pro ratione sed
 
 54 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 appoint to the Kectory of Maidstone (how or how long 
 vacant is not stated) this William de Cornhull. The few 
 words of the Charter 1 present a graphic picture of the 
 Court of that false and faithless libertine. Here was 
 Geoffrey Fitz-Pier (filius Petri), whom on the day of his 
 Consecration he had created Earl of Essex, as Justiciary 
 the most exalted and perhaps the least unscrupulous of 
 that godless band, whose presence at the Council-Chamber 
 exercised some restraint at least, so that, as the old Chroni- 
 cler tells us, when John heard of his death he "laughed 
 violently," and exclaimed with his favourite oath, "Now 
 for the first time I am King and Lord of England.' 
 Here, too, was Alberic de Vere, Earl of Oxford, and 
 hereditary Lord Chamberlain ; whose brother Robert, 
 however, his successor in the Earldom, was one of the 
 twenty-five Barons selected to secure the observance of 
 Magna Charta ; Hugo de Neville, too, who, as the King's 
 Chief Forester (Protoforestarius), was doubtless one of his 
 readiest agents in enforcing those oppressive forest-laws 
 under which high and low alike were groaning ; with John 
 de Plessetis, who afterwards by marriage rose to 'the Earldom 
 of Warwick. 2 Clergy, too, were here; among them John 
 de Bramcestre, already Archdeacon of Worcester in 1200 
 and Vice-Chancellor, and soon to be Lord High Chan- 
 cellor ; with other aspirants to Koyal favour. While the 
 Charter itself was writ by Hugo de Wallis, who the year 
 before had been made Archdeacon of Wells, and within 
 
 pro voluntate dederunt." Matthew Paris, Chronica Majora (Bolls Ed.), 
 ii.533. 
 
 1 Charter Roll, 7 John. See Appendix C (1). 
 
 3 Sir H. Nicholas' Historic Peerage, pp. 178, 369, etc.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 55 
 
 two years was raised to the Bishopric of Lincoln, and 
 the same year Lord High Chancellor also. 1 
 
 And what, it may be asked, constituted the merit, or the 
 claim, of this William de Cornhull to this valuable and 
 much coveted Rectory, into which he was appointed with 
 suoh seeming haste ? This may be easily accounted for. 
 He clearly belonged to the family of " de Cornhull," several 
 members of which had in the two preceding reigns been 
 Sheriffs of Kent, an office at that time held by his brother 
 Reginald, 2 whom Matthew Paris includes among the King's 
 " evil advisers ; " moreover, Hugo de Neville, already men- 
 tioned as one of the witnesses to the appointment, was 
 his nephew, having married a daughter of that Henry de 
 Cornhull whom his Sheriff-brother Reginald had deputed 
 no unwilling tool if the old Monkish Chronicler has not 
 wronged him by describing him, in conjunction with Fulco 
 de Cantelu, as being " very cruel and devoid of all feelings 
 of humanity " 3 to drive the Monks of Canterbury out of 
 their Monastery, for having persistently claimed the right 
 to elect their own Archbishop on the death of Hubert 
 Walter. Thus had the family of Cornhull established a 
 hold on the King's favour. This William, too, had already 
 experienced Royal patronage ; four years before he held 
 preferment which he had received from the King, 4 and had 
 more recently been appointed to the Wardenship of Malms- 
 bury Abbey. 5 Nor was his promotion to cease with the 
 
 1 Le Neve's Fasti, in locis. 
 
 * Called also " Vice-Comes de Kantice." 
 
 3 " Milites cruellissimos et humanitatis ignaros" Chronica Majora, 
 ii. 516. 
 
 * Eotuli Liberate, etc. (Hardy), p. 69. 
 
 4 Rotuli Patent (Hunter), 7 John, m. 1.
 
 56 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Maidstone Rectory. The Archdeaconry of Huntingdon 1 in 
 1209, and six years after the Bishopric of Lichfield, were 
 conferred upon him. This last appointment, however, came 
 to him through the influence of Pandulph, .the Papal Legate, 
 rather than from the King. For while the Monks of 
 Coventry and the Canons of Lichfield were fighting for the 
 right to elect to the vacant Bishopric, Pandulph appears 
 to have stepped in and settled the dispute by appointing 
 de Cornhull (in 1215), as being possibly still a persona grata 
 to the humbled and now more subservient King. And the 
 Chapter of Lichfield would seem to have much cause to 
 remember his Episcopate with gratitude ; for he transferred 
 to them the patronage of several benefices previously belong- 
 ing to the See, and moreover gave up to the Canons the 
 right to elect their own Dean. 2 He died in 1223, and was 
 buried in Lichfield Cathedral. 
 
 An event of some interest, as showing that Maidstone 
 even then occupied an important position in the country, is 
 recorded by Matthew Paris. He says 3 that " in the year 
 1209, in consequence of the execution of three Clergy at 
 Oxford on the false charge of having murdered a poor 
 woman, there was a general exodus of the Members of the 
 University, and that all, Masters and Scholars alike, to the 
 number of about three thousand, fled from Alma Mater, and 
 one detachment found shelter at Maidstone." This would pro- 
 bably have occurred while William de Cornhull was Rector. 
 
 Philipott, 4 in his account of the Town, says that " this 
 
 1 Le Neve's Fasti (1716), pp. 123, 158. 
 
 2 T. Chesterfeld, Historia de Episcop. Coventr. et LicJifcld. Anglia 
 Sacra (1691), p. 437. 
 
 3 Matthew Paris, Chronica Majora (Rolls Ed.), ii. 525. Historia, 
 etc., ii. 120. 
 
 4 Philipott's Villare Cantianum, p. 228.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 57 
 
 William de Cornhull, or Cornhill, gave to Archbishop Stephen 
 Langton, in the seventh year of King John's Reign, the 
 Manor and Palace of Maidstone." But this must be 
 incorrect; for according to Domesday the Manor of Maid- 
 stone must have belonged to the Archbishops at least one 
 hundred and fifty years before John's time ; and, moreover, 
 Langton was not enthroned at Canterbury till the ninth 
 year of that Reign. The land on which the Palace was after- 
 wards built may have belonged to him, and have been given 
 by Cornhull to the See in that Reign ; or, what is more 
 probable, the site where the College was subsequently 
 erected, the Tower at the West being evidently of con- 
 siderable antiquity, might have been Cornhull's gift to the 
 Archbishop, but not the Manor. 
 
 Between the vacancy caused by the promotion of William 
 de Cornhull to the See of Lichfield in the year 1215, and the 
 appointment of JOHN MANSELL to the Rectory of Maidstone 
 in 1241, occurs an interval which defies all efforts to fill up. 
 We are constrained therefore to place his name on our list 
 as the next known occupant of the Maidstone Rectory. 
 
 Happily we have not to rely for so doing on the chance 
 allusion of the gossiping old John Weever, 1 who in a long list 
 of Mansell's preferments calls him " Parson of Maidstone " 
 (without giving any authority for the statement), and whom 
 Newton and all subsequent writers have followed ; 2 but we 
 are enabled to trace out the details of the actual appoint- 
 ment 3 and his remarkable career from the pages of one 
 
 1 Weever'a Funerall Monuments, p. 273. 
 
 * It is somewhat remarkable that Newcourt, in his Repertarium, 
 while he gives a long list of appointments and benefices held by 
 Mansell, nowhere includes the Rectory of Maidstone among them 
 (vol. i., p. 111). 
 
 3 Matthew Paris, Chronica Majora (Rolls Ed.), vol. iv., pp. 153-4.
 
 58 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 who was his contemporary, Matthew Paris, the historian 
 Monk of St. Albans. 
 
 Mansell was clearly a person of no little note not to say 
 notoriety in his day. The son of "a village priest," 1 he 
 was early brought to the notice of Henry III., who, having 
 discovered his general cleverness, and his special powers of 
 diplomacy, attached him to his own person by making him 
 one of the " King's Chaplains." Desiring to reward him 
 still more, Henry obtained from the Pope the " provisio " of 
 the Eectory of Thame, in the Diocese of Lincoln, and on 
 its becoming vacant hurried off Mansell to take possession. 
 But Thame was in the patronage as well as in the Diocese of 
 the Bishop of Lincoln, and unfortunately for the King that 
 See was then filled by Robert Grosseteste (or Grostete), the 
 staunch, fearless Champion of the Church's rights against all 
 comers, be he King or Pope. He said he had already filled 
 up the vacant benefice, and resolutely resisted the King's 
 nomination, threatening to fulminate his anathema against 
 any one who should dare to infringe upon or any way injure 
 his rights. He sent word to the King that he was quite 
 ready to confer on "so learned and deserving a protege 
 of his Majesty " any other benefice of equal or even greater 
 value when vacant, but would resist and defy any attempt 
 at dictation or intrusion at Thame. Thus the battle royal 
 raged. 
 
 Eventually, ' however, Mansell, with courtly tact and dis- 
 cretion, entreated to be allowed to withdraw all claim to 
 the disputed benefice rather than be a cause of feud or 
 scandal between two such illustrious personages, and would 
 throw himself on the King's liberality. Henry, knowing 
 
 1 Matthew Paris, Chronica Hajora (Rolls Ed.), vol. v., p. 129. His 
 sister is called "filia ruralis sacerdotis."
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 59 
 
 only too well the determined character of the Bishop, 1 was 
 nothing loth to back out of the contest, and at once 
 rewarded Mansell for his well-timed withdrawal of all claim 
 to Thame by appointing him to the more valuable Rec- 
 tory of Maidstone, 2 which had lapsed to the Crown on the 
 withdrawal and death of Archbishop Edmund Rich in the 
 preceding year. Thus it came about that John Mansell 
 became Rector of Maidstone in the year 1241. 
 
 This was the first step in the ladder of his promotion, 
 and was soon followed by a rapid succession of Ecclesiastical 
 appointments. Two years after two Prebends at St. Paul's, 
 then the Chancellorship in that Cathedral, a Stall also at 
 Wells, another at Chichester, and the Provostship of Beverley, 
 flowed in one upon another ; for opportune vacancies in the 
 Sees of London, Wells, and York 3 placed all this patronage at 
 the King's disposal, and Mansell was ever at the King's elbow. 
 Matthew Paris calls him " specialis Regis consiliarius.'' 
 Maidstone, meanwhile, must have been an occasional 
 place of residence ; for in 1252 he lay here at death's door, 
 under suspicion of having been poisoned, and was unable to 
 be present at the Enthronization of Archbishop Boniface. 4 
 
 But the time was at hand when Royal favour was to 
 place him in a position to help himself. The highest Civil 
 appointments were to be added to his numberless Ecclesi- 
 astical preferments. In 1247 he was appointed Lord Keeper, 
 and soon after Lord High Chancellor, in which capacity his 
 Biographer, Lord Campbell, says, " He is computed to have 
 
 1 " Aliquando secus quam deceret impetuosus." M. Paris, Chronica 
 Majora, iv. 154. 
 
 * Ibid., iv. 154. " Quapropter meruit idem Johannes uberiori beneficio, 
 cilicet ecclesia de Maydnestan Rege Iargiente,2>rotinu8 investiri" etc. 
 
 3 Newcourt's Repertorium, vol. i., pp. 59, 111. 
 
 4 Matthew Paris, Chronica Majora, v. 80.
 
 60 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 held at once 700 (70 ?) l Ecclesiastical Livings, having (I 
 suppose) presented himself to all that fell vacant and were in 
 the gift of the Crown while he was Chancellor." This seems 
 an incredible number ; nor does Lord Campbell give any 
 authority for such a statement. Matthew Paris uses the word 
 " septingentis" which, if applied to his preferments, would 
 bring them within the more possible, though still exorbitant, 
 number of seventy ; and even this would account for what 
 he says of him that he could spend 4,000 marks a year, 
 and had refused several of the best Bishoprics in England 
 because he held so many of the best Livings, and because he 
 was " lubricus." Whether from that term the old Chronicler 
 meant to reflect on his morality, or to suggest that he 
 was " a slippery fellow," or only that he was fickle and fond 
 of change, it is now impossible to say ; he would certainly 
 seem to have been " manysided," for report credits him 
 with having distinguished himself on a very different field, 
 as having made a French gentleman prisoner in the battle of 
 Tailbourge, in 1242. The year 1261 would seem to have 
 marked the zenith of his favour at Court. In addition to 
 his direct preferments, he was in that year appointed 
 Custodian of the vacant sees of York and Durham ; while 
 the Close Rolls of that year contain grants of venison for 
 the yearly supply of his table from the Havering and 
 Savernacke and Shirewood Forests. 2 Matthew Paris also 
 
 1 Campbell's Lord Chancellors, i. 135 ; Matthew Paris (Chronica 
 Majora, v. 355) says : " Johannes Hansel, . . . arridente sibi fortuna 
 in tantum ditatus est redditibus ut septingentis de novo sibi accumulatis 
 ad quatuor millia marcarum totalis ejus annuus redditus cvstimabatur ; 
 ita ut nostris temporibus non est visus dericus ad tanfam opulentiam 
 ascendisse." 
 
 3 Close Rolls, 45 Henry III., m. 12, 15, 19, etc.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MAXY'S. 61 
 
 gives a characteristic instance of his sumptuous and osten- 
 tatious mode of life, when he entertained the Kings of 
 England and Scotland and their Queens at a banquet at 
 which 700 dishes were served at table. 1 
 
 Such favouritism and display could not fail to arouse the 
 jealousy of the nobles, especially when they suspected him 
 of playing them false with the King, who would not listen 
 to their accusations against his favourite. When they carried 
 their grievances and accusations against him to Rome, the 
 King would not desert him, but wrote letters to the Pope 
 and the Council of Cardinals 2 to vindicate the character of 
 one whom he regarded as so useful and faithful a servant. 
 But apparently with no avail ; for this pampered favourite 
 this pluralist of pluralists, " de grege porcus" closed his 
 meteor-like life in dishonourable exile and abject poverty on 
 a foreign shore in 1268, 3 presenting a melancholy illustration 
 of the hollowness of Court favour and of the fruits of a selfish 
 abuse of worldly power. 
 
 Whether John Mansell of sad memory retained the Rectory 
 of Maidstone till his death, or was made to disgorge it 
 with his other Church preferments on his disgrace, there is 
 nothing to show; nor is there any explicit record of the 
 appointment of his successor. Indeed, the name of his 
 probable successor is only to be gleaned by inference ; thus 
 among the entries in Archbishop Peckham's Register, 4 with 
 
 1 Matthew Paris, Chronica Alajora, v. 574. 
 Rymer's Fcedera, i. 414. Close Rolls, 46 Henry III. 
 
 3 "A.D. 1268. Obiit Johannes Mansel in parlibus transmarinis in 
 pauper tate et dolore maxima.' 1 Roger de Hoveden, Cotton MSS., Otho 
 D. 4, f. 154, printed in Chronicles of Melrose, Bannatyne Club, 
 p. 214. 
 
 4 Archbishop Peckham's Letters, etc., vol. i., p. 95, and ii. 562, an 
 invaluable addition to the "Rolls Series" by C. T. Martin, Esq.
 
 62 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 which the Lambeth Series begins, is a letter addressed by 
 Peckham to " Thomas, Chancellor of York " (no Sir-name 
 given), in which he explains that he had felt compelled 
 to sequestrate the revenues of Maidstone because the said 
 " Thomas " had so grossly abused his trust had suffered 
 the Ecclesiastical buildings to fall into utter ruin had 
 even despoiled the Church of its vessels and ornaments, and 
 had moreover been guilty of extortion in the matter of 
 revenues and dues. This letter, bearing date 1280, was 
 clearly addressed to some one quite recently Eector of 
 Maidstone. 1 Now Peckham's Eegister also records that the 
 Archbishop had in the preceding year filled up a vacancy 
 in the Kectory of Maidstone under peculiar circumstances 
 (to be noted presently) ; while the Kegisters of York Minster 
 record the appointment about that time to the Chancellor- 
 ship of York of one THOMAS CoRBRiDGE. 2 
 
 May not then the coincidence of dates and of the Christian 
 Name justify the inference that the delinquent Eector of 
 Maidstone who suffered sequestration under the hand of that 
 zealous reformer of Church abuses, Peckham, was the same 
 " Thomas " whom Edward I., at that time at open war with 
 the Primate, had seized the opportunity of a vacancy in the 
 See of York to thrust into the Chancellor's Stall in the 
 Northern Minster, and a few years after (A,D. 1299) into 
 that Archbishopric itself? 
 
 On such evidence (inferential and conjectural it must be 
 admitted) we venture to place for the first time on the list 
 of the Eectors of Maidstone the name of THOMAS CORBRIDGE. 
 
 1 Appendix C (2). 
 
 2 Le Neve's Fasti, vol. iii., 163 ; and also Additional MSS. 5833, in 
 British Museum ; though Drake in his Eboracum gives the name of 
 Thomas Corbett.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 63 
 
 A word may be pleaded perhaps for what would now-a-days 
 be regarded as the flagrant almost impossible delin- 
 quencies of Corbridge at Maidstone. His was evidently no 
 singular case. Peckham's Register abounds with similar tales 
 of Church neglect and spoliation under the lax and unscrupu- 
 lous rule of recent Primates, conspicuous among whom had 
 been the example of the last, Archbishop Kilwardby, who, on 
 being appointed Cardinal of Portus, had carried off with him 
 to Rome all the sacred vessels, and, most priceless of all, the 
 entire series, up to that date, of the Registers of the See 
 of Canterbury ; which have never been recovered. Then, 
 again, the one official controlling power in the person of 
 the Archdeacon of Canterbury had just disappeared by the 
 appointment of William Middleton to the Bishopric of 
 Norwich in 1278. 1 
 
 Happily we are not left to inference or conjecture for the 
 name of the Rector whom Archbishop Peckham appointed 
 in succession to the deprived Thomas de Corbridge in 1279. 
 His Register tells us it was RADULPHUS or RALPH DE FORNE- 
 HAM. 2 The terms too of this appointment, which are dis- 
 tinctly recorded, though apparently hitherto unnoticed, are 
 too full of significance to be passed over in silence. They 
 are History under a thin veil. The appointment was made 
 by the Archbishop in " accordance with an Apostolic Mandate 
 directed to him." 3 In other words, at the Pope's dictation. 
 
 In the course of this History of the Rectors such constant 
 allusion will be made to the influence, and indeed authority, 
 exercised by the Popes in their appointments, that it may 
 be well to give here in outline a brief sketch of the growth 
 
 1 Battely's Somner's History of Canterbury, p. 153. 
 
 1 Archbishop Peckham's Register. 
 
 3 " Juxtti tenorem Apostoliti Mandati silt directi."
 
 64 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 of that power, and to mark the steps by which, during the 
 13th and early part of the 14th Centuries, the Papal Court 
 was enabled to obtain so firm a grasp on the patronage of 
 the Ecclesiastical Benefices in England. 
 
 The successive aggressions and usurpations may be thus 
 traced. The first claim made by the Pope was that as Vice- 
 gerent of Heaven he had the right to appoint Kings a claim 
 not unfrequently exercised in Europe, and in this Country 
 weakly conceded by John ; then, that as the successor of 
 St. Peter, the Vicar of Christ, and therefore the earthly Head 
 of the Church, with him lay the appointment of all Bishops ; 
 then followed the claim that, as the Patron of the Bishoprics, 
 his was the right to nominate to all Benefices in the gift of 
 those Bishops whom he had consecrated, and at length to 
 all Benefices even in private patronage, as being part of 
 the Patrimony of St. Peter. Such appointments were made 
 under what were called " Mandates " of the Apostolic See. 
 
 Nor did even this satisfy the Papal greed. Under the 
 pretext of an anxiety to guard against the possibility of any 
 parish or office being left unprovided for in the event of a 
 death, they claimed the right to anticipate such vacancy, and 
 to "provide" for it directly it might occur. These anticipa- 
 tory appointments thus came to be known as "Provisions" 
 or " Expectatives." 1 These " Provisions " were occasionally, 
 but very sparingly, delegated by the Popes, as a mark of 
 favour, to the Kings, and the Bishops, and a chosen few of 
 the Nobles, as a sop in return for the vast patronage of 
 which they had been deprived. 
 
 1 This system of " Provisions " eventually became a crying grievance 
 of the English Church, and was ultimately denounced and forbidden 
 by Edward III. under the memorable Acts known as the " Statutes of 
 Premunire and Provisors," A.D. 1344.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 65 
 
 Now such delegated claims, when put forth, were (as we 
 shall see) frequently met by counter-claims, and resisted; 
 out of which arose bitter disputes and grievous scandals. 
 Our story will show how Maidstone now and again furnished 
 an illustration of such a state of things ; how her rich 
 Rectory attracted rival claimants, and how King and Pope 
 and Primate might be seen taking part in some unseemly 
 struggle for securing its coveted revenues for their respective 
 proteges. 
 
 William de Cornhull's, and also John Mansell's, had been 
 distinctly " Crown appointments ; " this of Ralph de Forne- 
 ham was no less distinctly a " Papal " one, under a claim of 
 the Pope already alluded to. Peckham, a Franciscan, and 
 habitually, if not ostentatiously, styling himself " F., i.e., 
 Prater Johannes " (Friar John), was so wholly a nominee 
 of his brother Friar, Pope Nicholas III., that his patron's 
 Mandate came to him with an authority he could not ques- 
 tion ; so within a few weeks of his own Consecration and 
 reception of the Pall he bestowed his earliest piece of good 
 preferment at the Pope's bidding, and thus, with all his 
 own independence of character, helped to bring the English 
 Church for a time into more abject vassalage to the Court 
 of Rome. 
 
 On the death of Ralph de Forneham in 1287, it would 
 seem that Archbishop Peckham had a freer hand in the dis- 
 pensing of his patronage, his old patron Pope Nicholas III. 
 having long since died, and the chair of St. Peter having 
 been filled by less ambitious and grasping spirits. For he 
 selects for this coveted Rectory one of his own Chaplains, 
 NICHOLAS DE KNOVYLLE, or KNOVILLE, one whose name 
 constantly occurs as witness to important documents and 
 letters, and who is expressly mentioned as having on one 
 
 5
 
 66 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 occasion been the chosen bearer of a " Letter of Condolence " 
 from the Primate to Queen Eleanor. 1 He had evidently 
 been Rector of Faversham before coming to Maidstone, for 
 the Registers record appointments made by him in 1282 and 
 1283 to the Vicarages of Bocton (Boughton-under-Blean) 
 and Hernhull (Hernhill), benefices then in the patronage of 
 the Rectory of Faversham. He too no doubt, like William 
 de Cornhull, belonged to an old County Family ; for the name 
 of Knoville repeatedly occurs in the list of the Magnates 
 summoned to Parliament in the reign of Edward I. 2 
 
 Nicholas de Knoville died in 1310 ; meanwhile Archbishop 
 Robert de Winchelsea had succeeded Peckham in the 
 Primacy, and the weak Edward II. was sitting on the throne 
 of England. On de Knoville's death the Archbishop collated 
 to the Rectory of Maidstone his trusty Chaplain and friend, 
 STEPHEN DE HASELINGFELD. 3 But at once there appeared a 
 rival claimant to the right of nominating in the person of the 
 King himself. Edward asserted that the Pope, Clement V., 
 had conferred on " his very dear consort," Isabella the 
 Fair as she was then called, though better known in later 
 history as " the She-Wolf of France " the provisio, or next 
 presentation, to this valuable benefice of " any person she 
 might deem fit and deserving," and that she greatly desired 
 it for a beloved kinsman of her own, one Gruido de-la- Valle. 4 
 
 1 Archbishop Peckham's Registers, ff. 24, 26, 30, etc. 
 
 2 See Dugdale's Summons of Nobility, etc., to Parliament. 
 
 3 Archbishop Winchelsea's Register, f. 47, b. 
 
 4 This was not the first time that the Queen advanced such a claim. 
 Three years before she had demanded one of the Prebends in Rouen 
 Cathedral for her Physician, John de Fountayne, on the same ground 
 of a proriaio-fxom the Pope ; but the Archbishop of Rouen, having 
 ako obtained a similar provisio, had anticipated the Queen's claim by 
 filling up the vacancy. See Royal Letters, 1807 (Pub. Record Office).
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 67 
 
 The Archbishop, however, resisted the claim ; and Stephen 
 de Haselingfeld, being in canonical possession, refused to 
 vacate in favour of the Royal relative. The King appealed to 
 the Pope to vindicate his claim ; " the Apostolic Rescript," 
 he said, " was being treated with contempt, and a grievous 
 wrong was being done to his dearest wife's kinsman." But 
 the appeal was apparently of little avail ; for two years after 
 he renews it with increased urgency, but with no better effect. 1 
 Haselingfeld seems to have remained in undisturbed, if 
 not in undisputed, possession till either his death or his 
 removal to some other benefice, when the coveted honour of 
 the Maidstone Rectory must have fallen to the expectant 
 GUIDO DE-LA- VALLE ; for in a subsequent letter to the Pope, 
 John XXL, who had succeeded Clement V., the King begs 
 the next appointment to the Bishopric of Dol, in Xormandy, 
 likely to become soon vacant, for the said Guido de-la- Valle, 
 whom he styles " Canon of Agiens, and Rector of Maydne- 
 stane." : Further proof also is forthcoming of de-la- Valle's 
 connection with Maidstone ; for when Queen Isabella crossed 
 over to France in the hope of gaining her brother's help in 
 raising an army against her husband, one of Edward's first 
 acts 3 was to confiscate the property of all " aliens," whether 
 lay or cleric, "being subjects of the King of France, with 
 whom he was then at war," and he required the Archbishop 
 of York, the See of Canterbury being vacant by the death 
 of Robert Winchelsea, to forbid, among others, the Proctors 
 of de-la- Valle to transmit to him any money they might 
 be holding on his account as revenues of the Church 
 of Maidstone. Whereupon Archbishop Reynolds, on being 
 
 1 Rymer's Ftedera, ii. 130, 131, 217. Appendix C (2). 
 
 2 Ibid., ii. 429. 
 
 3 Archbishop Reynold's Register, f . 312, b.
 
 68 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 appointed to Canterbury, at once issued a Commission 1 to 
 Thomas de Keresbrok, Kector of Lanfare, to take over 
 jurisdiction of the Church of Maidstone, which he describes 
 as " having been long vacant," and to receive and retain 
 in his name, and to give account to him of, all the 
 revenues belonging to that Rectory. By some writers the 
 name of Keresbrok has been included in the lists of Rectors ; 
 but in the Commission issued to him by Archbishop Reynolds 
 there is nothing to show that he was to do more than to 
 exercise general jurisdiction, to collect the revenues, and 
 to be responsible for them to the Archbishop during the 
 vacancy. 2 
 
 The name of this Ofuido de-la- Valle seems to mark the 
 first appearance here of that influence which had been 
 gradually permeating the English Church from the time 
 when the Savoyard Bonifice, uncle of Queen Eleanor of 
 Castile, was placed in the chair in which the typical 
 Englishman Thomas a Becket had sat seventy years before. 
 Hitherto the Rectors of Maidstone, as their names indicated, 
 had belonged to English or Anglo-Norman families, such 
 as Cornhull, Mansell, Corbridge ; while the last of them, 
 Haselingfeld, bespoke a still earlier Anglo-Saxon origin. 
 But now for above half a century the foreign element pre- 
 dominated, and Maidstone felt the ripple of the tide which 
 was rolling more or less over all England, filling all ranks 
 and orders of the Church with " aliens." It formed a new 
 era in the history of the Papacy. No longer content with 
 grasping all the best appointments and the richest benefices 
 for its own nominees, it now sought to appropriate the 
 revenues of the English Church for the support, not of 
 
 1 Appendix C (3). 
 
 * Archbishop Reynold's Register, f. 262, b.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 69 
 
 resident " aliens," but of avowedly iwn-resident, compara- 
 tively pauper, hangers-on at Avignon. For the Papal Court 
 had fled from Rome, and found shelter there, maintaining 
 a dependent servile existence under the protection, and of 
 course under the control, of France. 
 
 A more glaring illustration of this evil could hardly be 
 found than in the case of the successor of de-la- Valle in the 
 Rectory of Maidstone, ANIBALDUS DE CECCANO, another name 
 that as yet has had no place in this list. 
 
 The connection of this Italian Prelate with Maidstone 
 is expressly stated in the Register of Christ Church, Canter- 
 bury, in the account there given of an unseemly scene, in 
 which his Proctor, Jacobus de Bolonia figured, under the 
 following circumstances. There attached to the Prior and 
 Convent at Canterbury, as already mentioned, 1 the right of 
 holding Visitations in the Diocese during the vacancy of the 
 See, and on the occasion already alluded to of the Prior's 
 Officials being resisted and insulted, this Jacobus de Bolonia 
 was responsible for the defiant opposition. 2 As, however, it 
 was pleaded that he had acted without the authority and 
 against the wishes of his Rector, Cardinal Anibaldus, and 
 had most humbly and devoutly begged pardon, he was 
 forgiven, and the following year was confirmed by the newly 
 appointed Archbishop Simon Islip in the Proctorship, to 
 receive the revenues of the Rectory for the Archbishop in 
 consequence of " the death of Anibaldus, late Cardinal of the 
 Holy Roman Church, and Rector of the Parish of Maidstone, 
 now deceased." 3 The history of this man is an apt illustra- 
 tion of the phase, already alluded to, through which the 
 
 1 Page 5. 
 
 * Christ Church, Canterbury, Register G., f. 74. 
 
 3 Archbishop Islip's Register, f . 29, a.
 
 70 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 English Church was then passing. He had been created 
 Bishop of Tusculanum and Cardinal Archbishop of Naples 
 in 1327, 1 and in 1342 was selected by the Pope to act as 
 intermediatory between Philip of Valois and Edward III., 2 
 when he succeeded in bringing about a truce, though a 
 very short-lived one, between England and France. He was 
 thus brought into contact with the English King, and as a 
 reward for his services had the revenues of several English 
 benefices Maidstone among them conferred upon him, the 
 proceeds being collected for him by his recognized Proctors 
 (of whom his countryman Jacobus de Bolonia was one), and 
 regularly forwarded to him, to supplement a no doubt pre- 
 carious, and at best meagre, income from his high-sounding 
 Italian dignities. Avignon was clearly his home, and here he 
 died, as was currently believed by poison, in 1350, 3 having 
 drawn for many years the revenues of Maidstone and several 
 other benefices, 4 without having set foot in any of them. 
 
 The next step in the aggressive course pursued so per- 
 sistently by the Court of Rome was even in advance of any 
 we have yet traced ; and is revealed in connection with the 
 successor of Anibaldus. It was not enough that he, and many 
 others such as he, should fatten on the wealth of English 
 benefices the spiritual duties of which they ignored until, 
 as was said by a contemporary writer, "aliens who had 
 never seen, or never would see, their parishes, held and 
 farmed out the richest preferments in England " but every 
 living of any value in the country was to be charged with 
 various payments, such as Collations, Reservations, First- 
 
 1 Migne's Diet, des Cardinaux, p. 645. 
 
 * Baronii Annales, xxv. 293. 
 3 Ibid., xxv. 514. 
 
 * Alien Priories (Pub. Record Office), Q. R. Miscel., 19 Ed. III. and 
 20 & 24 Ed. III., 632.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 71 
 
 fruits (the entire income of the first year), and Tenths of any 
 Tithes in subsequent years, all to be transferred into the 
 Papal coffers ; and to ensure the regularity of such payments, 
 Papal representatives were to be scattered broadcast over the 
 land, under the titles of Legates, and Nuncios, combining, 
 the latter especially, with the more subtle functions of 
 diplomacy and espionage the practical duties of taking care 
 of the pecuniary interests of the " Holy Father." Thus was 
 the wealth of the English Church the offerings of pious 
 Englishmen for the promotion of religion in the land being 
 diverted from its holy course to support an " alien " non- 
 resident priesthood, and a rapacious foreign Court, until the 
 taxes raised by the Pope in England "were five times as 
 much as those levied by the King." This was more than 
 England's third Edward could submit to. Under the feeble 
 reign of his father this system of Papal exaction had de- 
 veloped with appalling rapidity. The King's weakness had 
 been the Pope's opportunity. But Edward III. inherited far 
 more of the independent, self-reliant spirit of his mother 
 Isabella than that of his pliant, vacillating father ; and the 
 occasion soon arose and that in connection with the Rectory 
 of Maidstone to put his firmness and resolution of character 
 to the test. 
 
 HUGO DE PELEGRINI was Rector of Maidstone in 1350. 
 He occupied a most exalted position under the Papacy. 
 Not merely was he a Proctor, or even a Legate ; he was 
 " Special Nuncio of the Supreme Pontiff." Yet to him did 
 the King 1 in 1363 address a searching remonstrance against 
 his systematic course of illegality : he charged him with 
 exacting First-fruits, etc., from benefices which had been 
 exempted from such payments, and enjoins him to make 
 1 Rymer's Fcedera, iii. 250. Appendix C (4).
 
 72 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 restitution in every such case, and to desist from these " new 
 and unprecedented demands under pain of Royal displeasure, 
 and threat of legal procedure." It would seem, however, 
 that Pelegrini had a friend in Archbishop Langham ; for in 
 the early days of his Primacy he issued a Commission l to 
 Pelegrini, conferring on him special jurisdiction even beyond 
 the bounds of his own parish. But at the close of the short 
 Primacy of Whittlesey (who succeeded Langham), the King, 
 assuming the See to be vacant, dismissed the obnoxious 
 Nuncio from the Maidstone Rectory, and nominated a 
 Chaplain of his own, ROBERT SIBTHORP. Yet in the following 
 year (1377) he revoked this appointment, 2 and issued a 
 " Brief" to Archbishop Sudbury, whom he had just raised to 
 the Primacy, calling on him to declare Maidstone vacant 
 (per defaltam) by default on the part of Pelegrini, and 
 to cite him personally before him, and to proceed at once 
 to the collation of his successor at Maidstone ; which he 
 accordingly did by appointing the King's own nominee, 
 Robert Sibthorp. 
 
 Nor was Maidstone the only preferment from which 
 Pelegrini was expelled. 3 He had held a Prebendal Stall at 
 Lincoln, and also the Treasurership at Lichfield, 4 of both of 
 which the King had already deprived him, as though loathing 
 and dreading his very presence in the country. 
 
 With him disappeared the " alien " element in the Maid- 
 stone Rectory. 
 
 Of the early history or antecedents of this joint nominee 
 
 1 Archbishop Langham's Register, f . 52, a. 
 
 2 Archbishop Sudbury 's Register, ff. 117, 118. 
 
 3 A note in the Christ Church (Canterbury) Register?, M. 371, says 
 Pelegrini's yearly income from Maidstone alone was " octies riginti 
 marcfe " (160 marks), or 107 nearly 2,000 of present currency. 
 
 4 Le Neve's Fasti, i. 582, ii. 210.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 73 
 
 of King and Primate, ROBERT SIBTHORP, or as his name is spelt 
 in his Will. " Sybbethorp," nothing appears on record save 
 that he was a " King's Chaplain," and had been appointed 
 in 1368 to the living of Hadham Magna, in Herts, by 
 Edward III., which he resigned in 1372, and in the following 
 year was presented to that of Roddington, in Notts, also a 
 Crown Living. 1 But his appointment to the Rectory of 
 Maidstone in 1377 is noteworthy for more reasons than one. 
 Not only did it mark a change from a non-resident foreigner 
 to a resident Englishman in the Maidstone Rectory, but a 
 change also (as there must have been) in the teaching of 
 the Maidstone pulpit, judging from the language of his Will, 2 
 made in 1390, which opens, not with the usual formula, 
 " In the name of God," or "of the Holy and Undivided 
 Trinity," but " In the name of Jesus ; " while he goes on to 
 commend his soul, not as was customary at that time " to 
 God and the Blessed Virgin Mary," but " to my Lord Jesus." 
 Thus early, it would seem, had the teaching of the great 
 reformer John Wickliffe penetrated to Maidstone. It was, 
 however, but a passing gleam of that purer light which was 
 not to shine upon the land for yet a century and a half. 
 That a man inclining, however slightly, to these " New 
 Doctrines " should have been in favour with Edward III. was 
 perhaps the less remarkable considering that only two years 
 before the King had appointed Wickliffe himself to the 
 Rectory of Lutterworth, under the influence of John of 
 Gaunt. 
 
 On the death of Robert Sibthorp in 1390, another " King's 
 Chaplain," in the person of WILLIAM TYRJNGTON, was 
 appointed to this Rectory, showing that it was then looked 
 
 1 Newcourt's Rtptrtorium, i. 831. 
 
 * Archbishop Courtenay's Register, f. 233, a.
 
 74 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 on as one of the prizes of the Church. In 1361 he had been 
 appointed by Edward III. to the Benefice of Shipdam in the 
 Diocese of Ely, the same year to a Prebend at St. Paul's, and 
 very soon after to one at St. David's, and also to the Rectory 
 of Bemak (now Barnack) in the Lincoln Diocese, in each 
 case, the nomination having lapsed to the Crown vacante 
 sede. 1 Rymer describes him as a " Public Notary," and 
 represents that in that capacity he was frequently called 
 upon to witness the King's signature to important Royal 
 contracts. 2 After holding the Rectory of Maidstone for a 
 short time only, he would seem to have exchanged it with 
 Gruido de Mone for the Prebend of Stowe Longa in Lincoln 
 Cathedral. 
 
 GUIDO or GUY DE MOXE was the last of the Rectors of 
 St. Mary's Parish Church. His first appointment on record was 
 to a Prebend (Stowe Longa) in Lincoln Cathedral in 1370. 
 He next appears as Rector of Bradwell in the County of 
 Essex ; in 1387 Courtenay, then Bishop of London, gave him 
 the Rectory of Harrow-on-the-Hill ; and in 1390, having 
 meanwhile been raised to the Primacy, brought him to 
 the Maidstone Rectory, by exchange of the Prebend of Stowe 
 Longa with William Tyrington. 3 This arrangement clearly 
 indicates the Archbishop's ulterior design with respect to 
 this Rectory, to convert it into a College. The Papal 
 Licence 4 (echoing, doubtless, Courtenay's Petition) contains 
 a significant clause that " the change was to be made on the 
 
 1 Pat. Roll, 35 Edward III., p. 3, m. 1. 
 
 * Rymer (Fcedtra, vol. iii., Part I., p. 89) styles him, " Lincolniensis 
 Diocesis Clencus Publlcus Auctoritate Apostolica. Notarius." Ibid., vol. 
 iii., Part II., pp. 62, 136, 179, 191, etc. 
 
 3 B. Willis's Cathedrals, ii. 243. 
 
 4 The part of the Pope's Licence above referred to is as follows:
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 75 
 
 death or resignation or removal of the then Rector." On 
 this understanding it would seem Gruy de Mone accepted the 
 Rectory, and resigned it in 1395, thus giving the Archbishop 
 the opportunity of appointing the first Master of his new 
 College in his own lifetime, and that in the person of their 
 mutual friend, Dr. John Wotton, at that time Rector of 
 Staplehurst. 
 
 The Registers of the Chapter at Canterbury disclose a 
 somewhat remarkable arrangement entered into between 
 the College on the one hand and the Prior and Convent 
 on the other that one of the first acts performed by the 
 newly formed College, in 1395, was to hand over a sum of 
 money to the Prior and Convent for the payment of an 
 annuity of 200 marks to de Mone for his life, out of the 
 income derived from two of the Convent manors of Cliffe 
 at Hoo and Holingbourne. 1 
 
 His resignation of the Maidstone Rectory had been 
 already preceded the year before by his appointment to the 
 Treasurership of St. Paul's, 2 and was followed the year after 
 by his promotion to the Bishopric of St. David's. He then 
 rose to be one of the Privy Council, and in 1398 Lord High 
 Treasurer of England. So highly was he esteemed by his 
 Patron Archbishop for he had held, before his appointment 
 to the Maidstone Rectory, an important confidential situation 
 in the Archbishop's household as Seneschallus terrarurn 
 that he appointed him also one of his Executors. He died 
 in 1407. 
 
 " Cedente rel decedente filio Hectare ejusdem tcclesie qui nunc est, vel alias 
 eccltsiam ipsam quomodolibet ilimittente, etc. 1 ' Canterbury Register S., 
 f. 25. Appendix C (5). 
 
 1 Canterbury Register S., ff. 27-2'J 
 
 1 Newcourt's Jtej>ertoriu>it, i. 105.
 
 76 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Grave doubts have been raised as to the Manx origin 
 which Fuller, 1 adopting the name of " de Mona," would thus 
 assign to him. Only twice is the name so spelt in the 
 Commission issued for his burial (in Archbishop Arundel's 
 Register, f. 13), and in Le Neve's list of the Bishops of 
 St. David's. In every other document in his appointment 
 to the Maidstone Rectory, in the record of his gift of 
 Kemsing to the Bermondsey Abbey, in his " Professio " on 
 appointment to St. David's, and again in his Will it appears 
 as " de Mone ; " so, too, Newcourt spells it in the several 
 appointments he held in the Diocese of London. The 
 first important deviation from this generally accepted form 
 occurs in Bishop Stubb's " Registrum," where, both in the 
 entry of the consecration in 1397, and again in his list of the 
 Bishops of St. David's, he spells it Mohun ; and Newcourt, 
 too, says that on his consecration he adopted this form. 
 Hence arises the question whether Mone was not the 
 phonetic mode of spelling Mohun, pronounced as a mono- 
 syllable ; and then whether, instead of being, as Fuller 
 would almost imply, an unknown stranger from the Isle of 
 Man, he was not really an offshoot from the old Mohun stem 
 so long settled at Dunster Castle, in Somersetshire. If the 
 arms of the Miserere stall in Maidstone Church, already 
 described, 2 rightly represent the ancestral coat of the last 
 Rector, Heraldry certainly offers no support to such a theory. 
 But then the authority for those arms is perhaps none of 
 the strongest. Bedford, in his " Blazonry of Episcopacy," 
 only relies on a seal (ex sigillo) and the authority of a MS. 
 in the Bodleian Library. Such a connection would certainly 
 go far to account for Archbishop Courtenay's patronage and 
 
 1 Fuller's Worthies, etc., ii. 571. 
 
 2 Page 31.
 
 THE RECTORS OF ST. MARY'S. 77 
 
 his affection for the said Guido, if he came of a good 
 Somersetshire family so nearly located as Dunster Castle 
 is to Powderham, the noble seat of that branch of the 
 Court enays ; and also for his subsequent advancement. 
 
 An argument of some weight may also be advanced from 
 the early history of the Mohuns of Dunster Castle. They 
 claim descent from an old Norman family named Moion, 1 one 
 of whom came to England with the Conqueror, and received 
 the Dunster estate as his reward. 2 The family was of suffi- 
 cient note to be represented in successive Parliaments in 
 the reign of Edward III., the first member summoned being 
 called John de Moun, 3 and he was also one of the original 
 Knights of the Garter; while William de Mohun, who 
 claimed to be Earl of Dorset, in the foundation Charter of 
 Bruton, signs himself Will'us de Moyne* The very variation 
 of name under which this family was known suggests the 
 possibility of de Mone being only another variety of the 
 same name, the ennobled form being assumed when the 
 Clerical " cadet " of the family rose to such eminence. 
 
 This, too, would connect him with the Lady Mohun whose 
 gorgeous monument has so honourable a place in Canterbury 
 Cathedral. For she was the widow of the last Lord de Mohun, 
 who appointed Archbishop Courtenay one of the trustees 
 under his Will. From her, too, the reversion of Dunster 
 Castle passed to Lady Luttrell, the widow of Sir Andrew 
 Luttrell, who was daughter of Hugh Courtenay, and the 
 Archbishop's sister. Such a descent and connection would 
 
 1 Leland's Collectanea, i. 202. 
 
 * Collinson's Somersetshire, ii. 8, etc. 
 
 3 Dugdale's Summonses to Parliament (4 Edward III.), p. 154. Close 
 Boll, 4 Edward III., m. 41. 
 
 4 Sir H. Nicholas' Historic Peerage, pp. 163, 437.
 
 78 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 certainly account better for Gruido de Mone's career than 
 the imputed origin of a Manx adventurer. 
 
 His Will contains a very touching proof of the regard 
 he retained to the end of his life for Maidstone. The only 
 legacy, outside his own family and household, was his " large 
 Breviary (Portiforium) and large Missal, which he had had 
 lately written by his Clerk, Wennocus Chamburlayne ; " these 
 he bequeathed " to the Collegiate Church at Maidestan, that 
 they might remain there for ever." * He was buried, in 
 accordance with his expressed wish, " in the north part of 
 the Chancel of the Conventual Church of Ledys (Leeds) in 
 Kent." That Breviary and Missal, however a connecting 
 link between the old College and still older Rectory are, 
 it is feared, hopelessly lost ; the tomb, too, and the Church 
 itself that " goodly Church, parallel to many Cathedrals," as 
 Philipott describes it 2 with the ent'ire range of Conventual 
 buildings, have been so utterly demolished that not a vestige 
 remains to mark even their site " the place thereof knows 
 them no more " while the historic Castle stands out still in 
 its renovated glory. 
 
 1 The clause runs thus : " Item lego. Ecdesie Collegiate de Mayden- 
 stone magnum portiforium et magnum Missale, que nuper per Wennocum 
 Chamberlayn Clericum meum scribi fed, ita quod, iidem libri ibidem 
 remaneant pro perpetuo," Arundel's Register, i., f. 246. 
 
 2 Villare Cantianum, p. 214.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S HOSPITAL. 
 
 brought to a close the History of 
 the Rectory of St. Mary's, before entering 
 on that of the College, into which it was 
 merged, it will be well to take a brief re- 
 view of the older foundation of Archbishop 
 Boniface, the endowments of which were 
 thenceforth to be amalgamated with those 
 of the College, and to furnish the additional funds for its 
 largely increased staff. 
 
 About the year 1261 Archbishop Boniface founded a 
 "Hospitals" as it was called, a resting-house for the relief of 
 travellers and pilgrims on their way from the South-west 
 coast to the Shrine of St. Thomas of Canterbury. This he 
 built on the West bank of the river a little below the bridge, 
 and dedicated to SS. Peter, Paul, and Thomas (a Becket). It 
 became known as " the Newark," a corruption of the term 
 " Xew-Work " (novi aperis), by which it was at first commonly 
 described. It was to consist of a Warden (or Master), and a 
 few " Corrodiars," or Prebendaries, for whose use he erected 
 a range of buildings, with a convenient Chapel, the only 
 vestige of which now remaining, beyond an occasional 
 fragment of some old wall now and again brought to light in
 
 8o THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 the repair or reconstruction of the neighbouring houses, is to 
 be seen, and that in a goodly state of preservation, in the 
 beautiful Chancel of St. Peters Church ; its East and side 
 lancet windows presenting, with their chaste and elegant 
 Purbeck marble shafts, an exqusite specimen of the Early 
 English Architecture of the middle of the 13th Century, not 
 unworthy to bear comparison even with the contemporary 
 windows of the Temple Church in London, or with the Chapel 
 in Lambeth Palace, which was also the work of Boniface. 
 
 One may be allowed to dwell for a moment on this 
 almost unique act of piety, so far as contemporary history 
 enlightens us, of one whose name is rather associated with 
 acts of tyranny and extortion. Boniface " the Savoyard," as 
 he was contemptuously called, to emphasize his alien birth 
 and character owed his elevation to the Primacy solely to 
 the fact of his being the Uncle of Eleanor of Provence, the 
 Queen of Henry III. His qualification s for such a post may 
 be judged of by the description given of him by a writer of 
 the time that " he was destitute of learning, and altogether 
 ignorant of the language and customs of his flock." This 
 single act of benevolence therefore the Hospital at Maidstone 
 deserves special mention. His more costly building at 
 Lambeth had been a compulsory work, under an injunction 
 from the Pope, as some atonement for his imperious and 
 sacrilegious treatment of the Monks of St. Bartholomew's at 
 Smithfield. That is an oft-told and well-known tale ; but 
 there was another incident in the earlier days of his Primacy, 
 graphically recorded also by Matthew Paris, but not so 
 generally known, which may account somewhat for the form, 
 and the place too, of this foundation, by which he perhaps 
 hoped to expiate a local wrong, and one that had indirectly 
 threatened serious consequences to Maidstone.
 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S HOSPITAL. 81 
 
 It appears that within a few months after he had attained 
 the Primacy a vacancy had occurred in the Mastership of a 
 Hospital in Southwark, which was in the Diocese and patron- 
 age of the Bishop of Winchester, and had been at once filled 
 up by William de Raleigh, the Bishop-elect of that See. On 
 hearing of this the Archbishop's Official, Eustachius de Len 
 (Lynn ?), interfered, on the ground that the Archbishop's 
 consent was necessary, and called on the new Master (or 
 Prior, as he was sometimes called) to withdraw his claim 
 till it had been canon ically sanctioned, asserting that he had 
 been irregularly and presumptuously intruded. This the 
 Prior, doubtless regarding possession as nine points of the 
 law, persistently refused to do, whereupon the Official ex- 
 communicated him, and ordered him to be taken away to the 
 Archbishop's Manor Prison at Maidstone. The Bishop-elect 
 of Winchester now, thinking his rights had been infringed 
 upon and his authority insulted, sent off a body of armed 
 dependants to rescue and liberate the Prior, and if necessary 
 to carry fire and sword into the Archbishop's Palace. On 
 arriving at Maidstone they found the poor Prior had been 
 carried off vi et armis to Lambeth. Thither they followed 
 him, and with a rush seized the Official, and subjected him 
 to much ignominious treatment, and retained him as a hostage 
 till the Prior should be restored to liberty. At length the 
 feud was settled by the intervention of Henry of Gaunt, 
 and the Primate and his Suffragan of Winchester were 
 temporarily reconciled, and Maidstone escaped any serious 
 damage. 1 
 
 It has been suggested that to this encounter Maidstone 
 may have owed the patronage which in his remorse the 
 Archbishop conceived for the town, for the Hospital was not 
 1 Matthew Paris, Chronica Majora (Rolls Ed.), v. 344-6. 
 
 6
 
 82 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 the only mark of favour he conferred upon it. To him it 
 was indebted for the first Grant of a Market to be held, 
 on the piece of ground then called Petrisfeld 1 (known as 
 the " Fair Meadow "), and most probably also for its Bridge, 
 connecting, as it would, his Hospital with the town and the 
 market, the erection of which local tradition has always 
 assigned to one of the early Archbishops. 
 
 The actual Charter under which this Hospital was built 
 cannot now be traced ; but the Confirmation of it by the 
 Prior and Canons of Canterbury is still preserved among the 
 Chapter Eecords, and strikingly illustrates 2 the co-ordinate 
 tenure under which the Monastic property of the Cathe- 
 dral was originally held. Under the Saxon Constitution the 
 Archbishop was himself regarded as the Prior, and all the 
 property was held conjointly by him and the Convent. But 
 when the Norman Lanfranc was appointed to the Primacy, 
 he effected the change which his previous experience in 
 the Abbey of Bee suggested. He arranged a division of 
 the general property ; one portion of the patronage and the 
 revenues being assigned to the See, and the remainder to 
 the Chapter ; each holding and dispensing his own share 
 independently of the other. The original system, however, 
 was still retained in theory so far that neither party could 
 actually relinquish any portion of the once joint property 
 without the consent of the other. Thus in the case of the 
 endowment of this Hospital, the Archbishop could not make 
 a legal and valid assignment of the revenues of the several 
 benefices for its income without the confirmatory consent 
 of the Chapter. This assent was given in September 1261 
 by Prior Roger de St. Elphege (or de Sancto Elphego), who 
 has left behind him worthy memorials of his rule in the 
 1 Charter Rolls, 45 Henry III., m. 2. - Appendix D (1).
 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S HOSPITAL. 83 
 
 beautiful windows of what is now called " The Dean's 
 Chapel" in Canterbury Cathedral. 1 It embraced, too, not 
 only the revenues of Farleigh and Button (near Northbourne), 
 which belonged really to the Archbishop's share, but also 
 the land called Petrishull, and other property which the 
 Archbishop had bought with his own money. 2 
 
 Of the successive Wardens of this Hospital, who it must 
 be borne in mind are quite distinct from the Masters of 
 the College of All Saints, with which they are sometimes 
 confounded, 3 the Lambeth and Canterbury Registers supply 
 an almost complete list. In the former the first name 
 given is that of William de Sele, appointed by Archbishop 
 Peckham in 1282 ; and Peckham's Register, the earliest 
 now extant at Lambeth, only dates back three years before. 
 Hasted, however, places ROBERT DE BRADEGARE as the first 
 Warden, giving "Cart. 1589" as his authority; but this 
 reference is so vague that it is impossible to verify it. 
 However, it may not be summarily rejected ; for the interval 
 of twenty years between the foundation of the Hospital and 
 the appointment of William de Sele would leave ample room 
 for at least one Warden prior to 1282. And in the same 
 Register the name of Robert de Bradegare does occur as 
 being Rector of Bydingdenne (Bedenden) in that year, and 
 as being a very infirm old man, while his death is mentioned 
 
 1 Somner's Antiquities of Canterbury, p. 283. 
 
 1 " Omnes terras, jiossessiones, et redtlitus, cum eorum pertinentiis quos 
 2>redictu8 Dominus Cantuar, emerit de pecunia sua, etc." Christ Church 
 (Canterbury) Register, I., f. 255. 
 
 3 To mark the distinction, and avoid the confusion which may arise 
 from the alternative use of Custodes and Magistri in the original 
 records of the appointments to Hospital and College alike, the term 
 " Warden " shall be used in reference to the one and " Master " to 
 the other.
 
 84 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 two years after. It is quite possible, therefore, that Arch- 
 bishop Peckham, finding him incapable from growing infirm- 
 ities to perform the onerous duties devolving on the office 
 of Warden, had in 1282 removed him from the Hospital 
 to the lighter duties of a Country Parish, and filled the 
 vacancy by appointing WILLIAM DE SELE, 1 who seems to 
 have already held preferment in the Diocese. He is styled 
 in the Lambeth Register " Rector of Ybanure," as Ducarel 
 reads it, and which is probably the same as " Ebbene " (now 
 Ebony), at present a Chapelry of Appledore, but formerly 
 an important Parish, in Romney Marsh. 2 
 
 After William de Sele came MICHAEL DE WYDEWADE 3 in 
 1304, and in 1310 JOHN DE EGLICHAM, both described 
 as Presbyters. And in the following year Archbishop 
 Winchelsea seems to have made a third appointment in 
 the person of THOMAS DE (dicto) JORDAN. 4 Archbishop 
 Reynolds also made two appointments in close succession 
 JOHN DE WALTHAM in 1324, and WILLIAM DE MALDON in 
 1326 ; but of none of these does anything seem to be 
 known. 
 
 In 1333, the See being vacant by the death of Archbishop 
 Meopham, Edward III. appointed one of his own Chaplains, 
 MARTIN DE IXNING, on whom also in 1348 he conferred the 
 Canonry of St. Stephen's, Westminster. 6 
 
 That was a year of sore trouble for England, and of great 
 and frequent changes in the Wardenship of the Hospital. 
 
 1 Archbishop Peckham's Register, f. 150, b. 
 
 Furley's Weald of Kent, ii. 708. C. T. Martin, in his valuable 
 Letters of Peckham, reads the word "Yhamme," and thinks it to 
 be identical with Yghtham (Ightham). 
 
 3 Archbishop "Wlnchelsea's Register, f . 50, a ; and 297, a, b. 
 
 4 Archbishop Reynolds' Register, ff. 262, 264. 
 
 5 Newcourt's Repertorium, i. 748.
 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S HOSPITAL. 85 
 
 The Pestilence, as it was called, after devastating the 
 Continent, had reached the shores of England. One of its 
 early victims was Archbishop Bradwardine, who had suc- 
 ceeded John de Stratford in the Primacy, but was carried 
 off a few weeks after his consecration ; to be followed by 
 Ufford, who did not live to be consecrated. During the 
 vacancies thus caused in the See the entire patronage passed 
 to the Prior and Convent of Christ Church, Canterbury, and 
 we find Prior Kobert Hathbrand appointing to the Warden- 
 ship of the Maidstone Hospital JOHN COLPEPPER, a member 
 no doubt of the old Kentish family two Centuries after so 
 closely associated with the Parish of Hollingbourne, and 
 also with Leeds Castle. He died within three months, of 
 the Pestilence, and the vacancy was filled by the Prior 
 nominating KICHARD DE NORWICH, 1 who only held it for 
 two years. A fatality still seems to have hung over the 
 Hospital. Archbishop Islip, who had become Primate in 
 1349, appointed two Wardens in rapid succession in 1351 
 WILLIAM DE LEGHTON in September, and RICHARD DELTRYNGE 
 DE PECKHAM in November. 2 Again six years after Arch- 
 bishop Islip is called on to fill the vacant post, for which he 
 selects one SIMON DE BREDEN, S a man who apparently had 
 a special qualification for the office, for he added to his 
 Priestly Orders the degree of " Doctor of Medicine," a 
 knowledge of incalculable value for such a post in those 
 days. During his Wardenship an important alteration was 
 made in some of the land tenure of the Hospital property, 
 aided doubtless, if not suggested by, Archbishop Islip's 
 personal interest in the town and all connected with it. 
 
 1 Christ Church (Canterbury) Register, G., f. 45. 
 * Archbishop Islip's Register, f. 258, b ; f. 278, a. 
 3 Ibid., f. 278, a.
 
 86 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 The Hospital is said to have held some of its land under 
 what is termed a " base tenure " that is, under an obliga- 
 tion " to perform uncertain and burdensome services for it ; " 
 these were now commuted for a money payment in the 
 form of rent. 1 
 
 On Simon de Breden's death in 1372, Archbishop 
 Wittlesey appointed Thomas Yonge, who is described as 
 " in utroque jure Licenciatus" substituting a man of Law 
 for one of Physic. The great majority of ambitious Clerics 
 of that day made Law their study, as a stepping-stone 
 to Ecclesiastical preferment ; but there seems nothing to 
 show that Thomas Yonge's legal lore raised him above this 
 Wardenship, and it he seems to have held only for a short 
 time, as five years after (in 1377) Archbishop Sudbury 
 made two appointments JOHN GROSSER in January, and 
 WILLIAM RISYNGE in June, both termed Presbyters ; 2 and a 
 third in the last year of his Primacy (1380) in the person 
 of JOHN LUDHAM, who in Sudbury 's Register 3 is called the 
 Rector of Trenge, and in that of Archbishop Courtenay, three 
 years after, Rector of Godmershan. 4 As this latter benefice 
 wa^ in the patronage of the Archbishop, it is possible that 
 Courtenay had given it to Ludham to reconcile him to the 
 loss of the Wardenship of the Hospital, which he had probably 
 already contemplated absorbing into his future College. 
 
 Some notice should now be taken of those who held a 
 subordinate office in the Hospital under the title of 
 " Corrodiars." Originally they were, some of them at least, 
 Priests, to undertake the regular ministrations of the Chapel 
 
 1 Christ Church (Canterbury) Register (A.D. 1364), H., f. 60. 
 
 2 Archbishop Sudbury's Register, ff. 121, 123. 
 
 3 Ibid., f. 133, b. 
 
 4 Archbishop Courtenay's Register, f. 253, a.
 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S HOSPITAL. 87 
 
 for the benefit of the pilgrims or travellers who might seek 
 rest there. But time was effecting great changes in the 
 religious feelings of the- country. Pilgrimages, though 
 still continued, were not so frequent ; and the need of such 
 resting-houses became less, while the erection of the bridge 
 at Aylesford would doubtless have diverted the line of the 
 pilgrims, by supplying a more direct route from the West, 
 to the Shrine of St. Thomas. Thus the very constitution 
 of this Hospital was undergoing a deteriorating change. The 
 Wardens, as we have seen, were still selected from the 
 Priesthood ; but not so the Corrodiars. They were ceasing 
 to be regarded as essential for the regular ministrations 
 of the Chapel. Laymen were being admitted to them, and 
 eventually domestics, and even paupers ; 1 and the Hospital 
 was fast sinking into an Almshouse, or home for Archi- 
 episcopal pensioners. 
 
 Such would seem to have been the state of things when 
 Archbishop Courtenay came to the Primacy. Here was a 
 noble Parish Church with an utterly inadequate staff at 
 the utmost probably only a non-resident Rector with one 
 or more assistant Priests to provide for the ministrations 
 of the rapidly increasing town, and the two Chapelries of 
 Detling and Loose. The income of the Rectory, as may 
 be inferred from the high position of the Dignitaries who 
 had sought and obtained it, was no doubt ample provision 
 for such a staff (each Chantry, be it borne in mind, was 
 a separate and special endowment), yet would not suffice to 
 meet the demands of such an ideal Collegiate body as the 
 Archbishop contemplated placing here. 
 
 The Tithes may be roughly estimated as producing at 
 
 1 " Ricardo Stoute raleito et fantiliari Dumini Arch. Caid.,'' " Thomas 
 Porter pauperi." Archbishop Arundel's Register, ff. 274, 282.
 
 88 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 that time about 106, based on the following calculations. 
 Thome's Chronicle tells us that in a " Taxation " made 
 under Kichard II. in 1385 1 the moiety of the "tenth" of 
 the Tithes (the amount remitted yearly to Home) was cvjs. 
 viijcZ. (5 6s. 8eZ.), besides which there was the rent of 
 farms, adjoining the College, at Bucklands, at Shyllvngton 
 (Chillington ?), Boxley, etc., producing about 65 more, 
 making a total of somewhere about 170, or, deducting 
 outgoings, probably about 133 in all; 2 and this, taking 
 the difference in the purchasing power of money five 
 hundred years ago at fifteen times its present value, would 
 represent a yearly income of about 2,000. 3 
 
 Meanwhile on the opposite bank of the river stood the 
 Hospital, founded about one hundred and forty years before 
 by his predecessor in the See, Archbishop Boniface, with a 
 wealthy endowment, now perverted not to say misused to 
 the spiritual loss of the town itself. There were the Tithes 
 of Farleigh, under the same " Taxation " said to be then 
 worth 13 6s. Sd., those of Linton 5 6s. 8d., and of Sutton 
 (near Northbourne) 20s., with their Temporalities aggre- 
 gating, according to Leland, 212 5s. 3cZ., and with all 
 outgoings leaving a clear sum of 159 7s. 10c?., 4 which, small 
 as it may sound now, would represent, according to the same 
 calculation, little short of 2,500 more. 
 
 1 Twysden's Decem Script&res, p. 2172. 
 
 * " Cujus fructus redditus et proventus ducentarum marcarum ster- 
 lingorum secundum communem estimationem valorem annuum non 
 excedunt, etc." Papal Bull of Boniface IX., Appendix E (1). 200 
 marks at 13s. 4d. would represent 133 6s. ScL 
 
 3 Thorold Rogers calculates that in Richard II. 's time the purchasing 
 value of money was eighteen times more than now ; other writers 
 say only twelve times more : the mean of fifteen is taken above. 
 
 * Tanner's Monastica, Kent, xxxviii. ; Leland's Collectanea, i. 97.
 
 ARCHBISHOP BONIFACE'S HOSPITAL. 89 
 
 All this, taking also into account the Easter Offerings 
 and " Altarage " or Church dues and fees, would amount to 
 a further sum of considerable amount. Here then appeared 
 to the practical, and no less devout, mind of Archbishop 
 Courtenay a source from whence the endowment and 
 patronage of the Parish Church might be materially im- 
 proved, and its greater efficiency promoted by giving it 
 a Collegiate character. Thus was he enabled to carry out 
 in part that grander design of his predecessors in the 
 Primacy two Centuries before.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE: ITS MASTERS AND ITS DISSOLUTION. 
 
 JN speaking of Archbishop Courtenay's 
 " College" it must be borne in mind that 
 the term as used five hundred years ago 
 did not imply a merely Educational institu- 
 tion, as it now does, but represented a body 
 of Parochial Clergy, collected together and 
 embodying the then Parochial system. 
 They were not like the members of a Monastery or Abbey, 
 bound by vows of celibacy and personal poverty, and 
 governed by the stern rules (regulce) of a Religious Order, 
 and hence called "Regulars;" but, being under no such vows 
 or rules, they were known as " Seculars," though bound 
 together, as it were, in a common brotherhood under a 
 common Master. They were free to live in separate houses, 
 generally within the College precincts or enclosure ; nor 
 was marriage prohibited. Their duties were to take part 
 in the ordinary daily services of the Church, to minister to 
 the sick, to teach the young, and exercise all the functions 
 of a Parochial Priesthood. The distinction between the two 
 classes has been thus happily drawn : the great aim of the 
 Regulars would seem to have been to save their own souls, 
 that of the Seculars to save the souls of others as well as
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 91 
 
 their own. Their Political and Ecclesiastical difference was 
 still more boldly defined. The Monasteries all claimed to 
 be perfectly independent of the English Hierarchy, and to 
 recognize no superior or controlling authority but the Pope 
 of Home. The Colleges, on the other hand, were entirely 
 subject to their respective Bishops. 
 
 Such was the character, such the objects, of the College 
 which the good Archbishop designed to found. 
 
 Of the Statutes he may have drawn up, or more probably 
 have sketched out, no record appears to have been preserved 
 either at Maidstone or Canterbury. It is probable, as may 
 be inferred from the several appointments to the Master- 
 ship, that while in its earlier years he thought it wise to 
 retain to himself and to his successor that right, yet, taking 
 warning from the past history of the Rectory, he thought 
 it better to forego it, when once the College was fairly 
 established, and to delegate to the Sub-Master and Fellows 
 the choice of their own Master, not perpetuating to the 
 See what had proved to his predecessors so fruitful a source 
 of contention and strife with King or Pope. 
 
 The first Master his own selection was Dr. JOHN 
 WoTTON, 1 evidently a personal and intimate friend, already 
 holding preferment in his Diocese, as Kector of Staplehurst. 
 He was most probably, too, a member of the old and distin- 
 guished Kentish family of that name. His name appears 
 first as holding the Rectory of Roding Beauchamp, in 
 Essex, to which he was appointed in 1387 ; two years after 
 he exchanged it for that of St. Mary, Battle, 2 in Sussex ; and 
 the next year by another exchange passed to Chartham, 3 
 
 1 Archbishop Courtenay's Register, f. 27o. 
 
 J Ibid., f. 163, b. Newcourt's Reptrtorium, i. 291, ii. 502. 
 
 1 Archbishop Courtenay's Register, ff. 130, 275-G.
 
 92 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 in Kent, which he resigned in 1392 for the Rectory of 
 Staplehurst. 
 
 It was while holding this that he was appointed by his 
 friend the Archbishop to the Mastership of the new College 
 of All Saints, and in the same year renewed, though appa- 
 rently only for a few months, his connection with the 
 Diocese of Chichester, by becoming Prebendary of Waltham 1 
 in that Cathedral. 2 Yet with all his changes and wanderings 
 his chief interest and affection would seem to have centred 
 in his College. On him doubtless devolved the grateful 
 task of carrying on to completion the designs for the 
 adaptation of the Choir to its Collegiate use, which had 
 been left unfinished by his beloved patron ; and his affection 
 for his friend and co-executor, Guido de Mone, 3 may be 
 traced in his armorial bearings on one of the Miserere Stalls, 
 among those of the Courtenay family. He also left to the 
 College many valuable bequests in money and vestments. 
 
 Here he died in the year 1417 ; and here, in accord- 
 ance with the wish expressed in his Will, 4 he was buried, 
 in the costly and richly ornamented Altar-Tomb which he 
 had himself constructed in the South Aisle of the Chancel 
 (previously known as the Altar of St. Thomas, and in later 
 days as the "Arundel Chapel"); where it still stands, 
 though in sadly defaced and mutilated condition, to testify 
 to his attachment to the scene of his twenty years' admini- 
 
 1 Walcott's Fasti Cicistren, p. 41. 
 
 1 It would appear that he also at some period held the Rectories 
 of Bukstede (Buxted), in Sussex ; and Chorlewode (Charlwood), in 
 Surrey, though no record of his appointment to either has been 
 discovered ; for his Will contains a legacy to each, as well as to 
 Chichester Cathedral. 
 
 3 See page 31. 
 
 4 His Will is in Archbishop Cbicheley's Register, Part I., f . 327.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 93 
 
 stration as Master of the College. The high esteem in which 
 he was held by his friend and patron, Archbishop Courtenay, 
 appears in the fact of his being appointed one of his 
 Executors; as also does the confidence reposed in him by 
 the King, in his having been selected by Henry V., in 
 conjunction with Sir Richard Clitherowe (or Cliderbowe), 
 twice Sheriff for the County, as joint Guardian of the 
 Temporalities of the See of Canterbury on Archbishop 
 Arundel's death in 1414. 1 
 
 On Dr. Wotton's death in 1417, Archbishop Chicheley, 
 who had succeeded Arundel in the Primacy, appointed 
 Dr. JOHN HOLOND, or HOLAND, LL.D. (utriusque juris 
 Doctorem), claiming the right for that turn (pro ista vice). 
 Of him nothing can be discovered as to his antecedents or 
 merits. He only held the Mastership a little more than 
 a year. 
 
 On his death in 1419 the right of election was, for the 
 first time, 2 exercised by the Sub-Master and Fellows in 
 favour of ROGER HERON, S who is only described as " Pres- 
 biter." He was probably connected with the William Heron 
 who, on the strength of his marrying a daughter of Lord 
 Say, 4 of Birling in this neighbourhood, was summoned to 
 Parliament among the Barons in the later years of Richard II., 
 and the earlier ones of Henry IV., 5 a relationship which 
 may account for his other preferments; for in 1415 he 
 
 1 Rymer's Fcedera, vol. iv., Part II., p. 72. Pat. Roll, 1 Henry V., 
 Part I., m. 65. 
 * Appendix E (1). 
 
 3 Archbishop Chicheley's Register, f . 103, b. 
 
 4 Sir H. Nicholas's Historical Petrdye, p. 248. 
 
 5 Dugdale's Summons to Parliament, 17-21 Richard II., and 1-5 
 Henry IV.
 
 94 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 also had been appointed to a Prebendal Stall in Chichester 
 Cathedral, and in 1425 was collated to the Chancellor's Stall, 
 and in the same year to the Precentorship in the Collegiate 
 Church at South Mailing, near Tarring in Sussex. 1 This 
 had been originally a Royal Foundation ; but in recognition 
 of the liberality of Archbishop Theobald in 1150, who had 
 added largely to the buildings and the endowment of the 
 Deanery, the patronage was transferred to the See of 
 Canterbury. 2 Dr. Heron would seem to have become con- 
 nected probably by the marriage of a sister with the old 
 Maidstone family of Beales ; for in the Will of one John 
 Beale, preserved at Somerset House, mention is made of 
 " his brother " (brother-in-law ?), " Roger Heron, Canon of 
 Chichester, and Master of All Saints', Maidstone." 
 
 The connection between the two Collegiate bodies of 
 Maidstone and South Mailing was renewed in the case of 
 Roger Heron's successor, JOHN DREWELL, LL.D. ; for he was 
 " Dean of South Mailing College " when, on Heron's resigna- 
 tion in 1441, he was elected to the Mastership at Maidstone. 3 
 His was but a short tenure of the office, for he resigned it 
 two years after. If he was the John Drewell (or Druell) who 
 was appointed to the Archdeaconry of Exeter in that year 
 (1443), he died there in 1453 ; 4 but while many bequests 
 are made to Exeter Cathedral in his Will, there is not one, 
 nor any allusion even, to the College at Maidstone. It is 
 far more probable that he was the future Rector of Fulham 
 (in 1452), which he resigned six years after, and was 
 
 1 Archbishop Chicheley's Register, ff. 155, 158, a. Walcott's Fasti 
 Cicistren, p. 31. 
 
 * Tanner's Notitia Monastica, p. 549. 
 
 3 Archbishop Chicheley's Register, p. 230, a. 
 
 4 Archbishop Kempe's Register, f . 290, a. ,
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 95 
 
 appointed Treasurer of St. Paul's, 1 which he also resigned 
 in 1467. While holding this he would have acted as 
 Commissary to Archbishop BOURCHIER, in the trial concern- 
 ing the Will of Sir John Fastolf (Falstaff?) in 1464. 2 
 
 He was succeeded in the All Saints' Mastership by one 
 PETER STUCKLEY in 1444, when the right of nomination 
 appears to have been again claimed by the Archbishop ; and 
 the only description of this nominee of Archbishop Stafford 
 is that he was " a Bachelor of Laws " (in utroque jure 
 baccalaureus). He died in 1450, when Dr. ROBERT SMYTH, 
 "a Chaplain of the Archbishop," was elected. 3 He had 
 been appointed by the Archbishop in 1443 to the Rectory 
 of St. Vedast, in the City of London, which he retained 
 with the Mastership till his death in 1457. 4 He was buried, 
 in accordance with the desire expressed in his Will, 5 in the 
 Chapel of St. Thomas i.e., in the South Aisle of the Chancel 
 of All Saints' Church, beside the tomb of the first Master, 
 Dr. Wotton. 
 
 After Dr. Robert Smyth came THOMAS BOLEYN, LL.D., 
 in 1458, 6 of whom, from the very frequent occurrence of the 
 name at that period, it is difficult to trace out the history ; 
 for there is no direct evidence of a reliable character to 
 connect any of the many of the same name with the Master 
 of the Maidstone College, beyond a MS. note left by that 
 accurate Antiquary, Browne Willis, and preserved among 
 Cole's Additional MSS. in the British Museum, in which he 
 
 ' Newcourt's Repertoriitm, i. 105. 
 
 * Paston Letters (Gairdner's Ed.), ii. 155-6. 
 
 3 Archbishop Stafford's Register, f. 107. 
 
 4 Newcourt, i. 565, 677. 
 
 '" Wills Dep. (Somerset House), Stockton, IV., f. 109, b. 
 6 Archbishop Bourchier's Register, I.*, f. 113.
 
 96 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 says that the Thomas Boleyn who was Master of this College 
 was also a " Canon of St. Neots " 1 (whether of the Monastery 
 in Cornwall or the Abbey in Huntingdonshire is not stated), 
 and that he died in 1 470. 2 Newcourt, in his Repertorium, 
 says there was a Eector of Chelsea in 1442, a Canon of 
 Hereford in 1444, one of Portpoole (at St. Paul's) in 1447, 
 a Sub-Dean of Wells in 1450, and Precentor in 145 1, 3 of that 
 name, and it is quite possible that in that age of pluralities 
 the Master of the College at Maidstone may also have held 
 any, and even all, of these appointments, especially if he 
 were a scion of that house of Boleyn which was already rising 
 into repute, and within a Century was to form a fatal con- 
 nection with Royalty itself. 
 
 Unfortunately the Lambeth Registers throw no light on 
 this obscure point. The record of his successor's appointment 
 might have shown the date of Boleyn's death or resignation : 
 but no such entry appears to remove the doubt ; and even 
 the name of his successor only occurs incidentally in the 
 record of the next appointment, which took place " on the 
 resignation of Dr. JOHN FRESTON, the late Master," in 1475, 4 
 when Dr. JOHN LEE was elected. There is nothing to tell 
 who this John Freston was, unless he was identical with the 
 J ohn Freston 5 who as " Sub-Master " joined in the election 
 
 1 Additional MSS. 5827 (Cole's MS., xxvi. 200). Beale Poste, in 
 his History of the College, p. 34, quotes the same MS., but makes it 
 say that Thomas Boleyn was " Canon of St. Roche, in Luxemburg.'' 
 
 2 If 1470 be the correct date for his death, this Thomas Boleyn 
 cannot be the same as the one mentioned by Le Neve, Fasti, vol. iii., 
 p. 677, as Master of Gonville Hall, Caius College, in 1454, for he 
 was alive in 1474. 
 
 3 Newcourt, vol. i., p. 199. Le Neve, Fasti, i. 157, 171. 
 
 4 Archbishop Bourchier's Register, I., f. 13. 
 
 5 Not Fyrston, as given in Gilbert's Antiquities of Maidstone, p. 7.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 97 
 
 of Dr. Lee, having for some reason subsided from the Master- 
 ship into the subordinate office, to make way for a successor 
 who was probably connected with the Maidstone family of 
 that name, which, according to local tradition, occupied a 
 Mansion in Earl Street, 1 one of the members of which, Sir 
 Richard Lee, was Lord Mayor of London in 1461, and again 
 in 1470, and Sheriff for the County of Kent in 1480. 2 
 
 This John Lee, " Decretorum Doctor," had been appointed 
 in 1462 to the Vicarage of Sandwich by Dr. Thomas 
 Chichele, 3 brother of the Archbishop and Archdeacon of 
 Canterbury ; he was probably also the Dr. John Lee, D.D., 
 who was appointed to the Rectory of Whitechapel in 1464, 
 and to the Vicarage of Stepney in 147 1, 4 which he resigned 
 two years after, and became Master of All Saints' College 
 in 1475, retaining it and the Vicarage of Sandwich to the 
 day of his death. His Will 5 evinces his special regard for 
 the College and Town ; for he bequeathed some tenements 
 he owned at Sandwich and lands at Maidstone to the 
 Master and Fellows of the College, on condition of Masses 
 being duly said for his soul ; and the residue of his 
 property to be given in Marriage portions to five Maidstone 
 girls. 
 
 He was succeeded in the Mastership of the College in 1495 
 by Dr. JOHN. CAMBERTON, S.T.P., 6 who had been a Fellow 
 
 1 Gilbert's Antiquities of Maidstone, p. 16. 
 3 Philipott's Vittare Centianum, p. 27. 
 
 3 Archbishop Bourchier's Register, f . 85, b. 
 
 4 Newcourt's Bepertorium, pp. 699, 740. 
 
 * Will Dep. (Somerset House), Vox, X., f. 23. 
 
 6 Not Comberton, as given by Beale Poste and others. Archbishop 
 Morton's Register, f. 158 ; where the circumstances of his unanimous 
 election by the Sub- Master and Fellows are detailed with more than 
 usual fulness. Appendix E (2). 
 
 7
 
 98 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 of Pembroke Hall (now College), Cambridge ; l beyond which 
 fact nothing seems to be known of him. His Will, 2 dated 
 1505, after expressing the wish that he should be buried 
 in the Choir, or Chancel, of the Collegiate Church, specifies 
 a few legacies to local objects, for the repair of St. Faith's 
 Church, of the large bridge (magni pontis), and the danger- 
 ous roadways (yiarum nocivarum), between Tovil and Stone 
 Street, with a small sum to his old College at Cambridge, 
 and a sum for a Chaplain to celebrate Masses " at the altar 
 of Jesus, in the College Church at Maidstone," for his soul, 
 and the souls of his parents, etc., etc., and also for that of 
 " the Lord Cardinal," doubtless Archbishop Morton, who had 
 appointed him to the College at Maidstone, and had died 
 four years before. 
 
 After a succession of men of whom comparatively so little 
 is known, appears one conspicuous among the literati of his 
 day, WILLIAM GROCYN, S a man whose distinguished learning 
 gave an eclat to the age in which he lived, styled, as he was, 
 the " Patriarch of English Literature," being undoubtedly 
 the prime mover of the great Eevival in learning which 
 
 1 Admission Register of Pembroke College, Cambridge, obligingly 
 communicated by the present Master. 
 
 3 Will Dep. (Somerset House), Adeane, VI. 
 
 3 A name so unfamiliar to the English ear not unnaturally appears 
 in every form of phonetic spelling : for instance, in the Register of 
 Exeter College, Oxford, we find it thus variously spelt Grosine, 
 Grosytie, Grosune, and Grosun (Boase's Reg. Coll. Exon.) ; and 
 Groson on the Indenture of his appointment to St. Laurence, Old 
 Jewry, as preserved at Balliol College, which in Newcourt's Reper- 
 torium becomes, evidently by a typographical error, Grayne ; while in 
 the Diocesan Register of London he is entered among the Rectors of 
 Shepperton as Groosun; and Anthony a' Wood (Hist, and Antiq., ii. 
 134) calls him Grocin. It is written Grocyn in the Lambeth Registers 
 and in his own Will, and is generally accepted in that form.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 99 
 
 marked the close of the 15th Century. His career, which 
 happily we are able to trace from his boyhood to his grave, 
 deserves the fullest record of incidents gathered from every 
 available source. A Wykehamist by birth as well as by 
 education for he was born at Collerne in Wilts, 1 on a farm 
 which his father held under New College he obtained a 
 Scholarship at Winchester in 1463, and passed on two years 
 after to New College, where after two more years he was 
 admitted to a Fellowship ; this he vacated in 1481, on being 
 appointed to the College living of Newnton Longueville, in 
 Buckinghamshire. 2 And here his connection with his old 
 College seems to have ceased, and he transferred his allegi- 
 ance from the double foundations of William of Wykeham 
 to that of William Waynflete ; for he next appears as 
 " Divinity Eeader " at Magdalen College. In this office he 
 had the honour to take part in a Theological disputation 
 before Richard III., on the occasion of the King visiting 
 Oxford in 1483 ; 3 and, greater honour still, before William 
 Waynflete himself, the (now aged) Founder of that noble 
 College, an old Wykehamist, as well as then Bishop of 
 Winchester. 
 
 In 1488 he resigned this Readership, and went to Italy, 
 that he might study Greek more deeply ; for in those days 
 Latin and Logic were " the be-all and end-all " of the Oxford 
 course. Italy had now become the harbour of refuge for the 
 men of art and science of the time, who, forced to fly for 
 their lives from Constantinople, the Capital of the Eastern 
 
 1 Not at Bristol, as generally said, though his name is so entered in 
 the New College Register. 
 
 J These details of his earlier life have been kindly communicated by 
 the present Warden of New College and the President of Magdalen. 
 
 s Anthony a' Wood's Hist, and Antiq. of Oxford, i. 639.
 
 ioo THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Empire, before the conquering Turks, had to seek sanctuary 
 amid the classical ruins of the older Imperial City of Eome, 
 and there, at the feet of the Masters of the " Classic 
 Revival," did Grocyn live for three years, drinking in deep 
 draughts of that rich but long-neglected language with 
 which, on his return to Oxford, he was enabled, from his 
 rented rooms at Exeter College, 1 in spite of keen and bitter 
 opposition, to re-mould and revolutionize the effete system 
 of teaching hitherto prevalent in the Universities. Here he 
 soon gathered around him as his pupils in Greek, and as 
 personal friends, some of the most rising intellects of the day : 
 John Colet, the future munificent Dean of St. Paul's, and 
 founder of St. Paul's School ; William Lilye, its first Master ; 
 Thomas Linacre, to whom England is indebted for her 
 College of Physicians ; Sir Thomas More, then a mere boy, 
 but to become the brilliant scholar, the devout Christian, 
 and the noblest of the many victims of Henry VIII .'s sus- 
 picious and tyrannical temper ; and even the learned Erasmus 
 himself, by general consent the greatest Greek Scholar of 
 that period. 2 
 
 On so bright and influential an ornament of his day 
 Church preferment, as might be expected, flowed in freely. 
 His College living of Newnton Longueville led to his being 
 appointed in 1485 to the Prebend of South Scarle in 
 Lincoln Cathedral; 3 then to the Rectory of Depdene, in 
 Suffolk (which he resigned in 1493) ; three years after to 
 the Rectory of St. Laurence, Old Jewry, 4 a Balliol College 
 living, which had apparently lapsed to the Bishop of London, 
 
 1 Boase's Registrum Collegii Exoniensis, p. 27. 
 * Newcourt's Repertorium, i. 726. 
 
 3 B. Willis's Survey of Cathedrals, iii. 236. 
 
 4 Bishop Savage's Register (London Dioc.), A.D. 1496.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 101 
 
 an appointment in which probably the hand of his old friend 
 and pupil, Dean Colet, may be detected; in 1504 another old 
 Oxford friend, Sir Bartholomew Reade, appointed him to the 
 Rectory of Shepperton in Middlesex; and two years later 
 Archbishop Warham, the patron of Erasmus, selected him 
 for the Mastership of All Hallows (All Saints), Maidstone ; 
 then in 1511 he also appointed him to the Rectory of East 
 Peckham, " on condition of his placing a Vicar there for the 
 cure of the souls of the Parishioners." 1 
 
 But as the Century advanced he evidently began to feel 
 his powers failing, for he resigned one benefice after another 
 Shepperton in 1513, St. Laurence, Old Jewry, in 1517, 
 and East Peckham the same year and in 15 19 2 he died at 
 Maidstone, a stroke of the palsy carrying him off, when, in 
 the touching language of his friend Erasmus, he had out- 
 lived himself (" sibi ipsi superstitem "). 
 
 His Will 3 indicates the depth of his friendships ; his two 
 Executors were his Godson (filiolus), William Lilye, the son 
 of his old Oxford pupil, and the first Master of St. Paul's 
 School, and Thomas Linacre, now in Holy Orders (Clerus) ; 
 and in accordance with his wish he was buried in the choir 
 of All Saints' Church. Like many another man of learning, 
 he must have experienced times of pecuniary difficulty. The 
 res anguata domi must have been known to him ; but he 
 found a friend in Dr. Yonge, himself an old New College 
 Fellow, at that time Master of the Rolls, with whom he 
 seems to have deposited some plate as security for a loan ; 
 but on Dr. Yonge's death a clause was found in his Will 
 
 1 Archbishop Warham's Register, f. 344. 
 
 3 A. a' Wood gives 1522 as the date of his death, no doubt from his 
 Will not being proved till that year. 
 
 3 Lansdowne MSS. (British Museum), xv. 33.
 
 102 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 a pleasing token of regard that "Master Grocyn shall 
 have his plate delivered to him, which I have now in pledge, 
 without any manner of redemption." 1 
 
 After a brief interval of a few months, during which JOHN 
 PENYNTON, M.A., 2 another Wykehamist, who had been elected 
 on Grrocyn's death in 1519, was Master, but of whom nothing 
 more appears to be on record, came a third Wykehamist to 
 occupy the vacated chair in the person of Dr. JOHN LEEFE. S 
 He was a native of East Stratton, a hamlet in the parish 
 of Micheldever, Hants, and was admitted to a Winchester 
 Scholarship in 1504, and passed on to New College in 1508, 
 where he succeeded to a Fellowship after his two years' pro- 
 bation. 4 This he held till 1517, when he left Oxford ; but 
 he did not, as Grocyn seems to have done, sever his connection 
 with William of Wykeham's noble Foundations ; for he took 
 the Degree of Doctor of Civil Law in 1520, and was elected 
 to a Fellowship at Winchester College, which led the way 
 to subsequent preferment as Rector of Ashe, in Hampshire, 
 a Winchester College living, and also to the Mastership of 
 St. Cross, near that City. He was likewise about the same 
 time appointed by a private friend to the Rectory of Brown- 
 
 1 Butler's Life of Erasmus, p. 59. Dr. Yonge is buried in the Rolls 
 Chapel, where an effigy over his tomb is said to have been the work 
 of Torregiano, the sculptor of the beautiful tomb of Henry VII. in 
 Westminster Abbey. 
 
 * Archbishop Warham's Register, f . 369. 
 
 3 Ibid., f. 401. This name also undergoes a variety of changes, 
 from Leefe, which is probably the correct form, to Lefe, Leef, L effee, 
 Leff, Leyf ; and in Dugdale's Moiiastica it appears as Lease (vol. vi., 
 p. 1394), evidently a typographical error. 
 
 4 For the particulars of Leefe's early School and College life the 
 writer is again indebted to the present Warden of New College, and 
 also to the Warden of Winchester College.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 103 
 
 Candover, in Hampshire. 1 An interesting fact in his family 
 history may be here mentioned, as accounting for some at 
 least of his preferments. His mother had married, as her 
 second husband, a Warham, 2 doubtless a near kinsman of the 
 Archbishop, who was by birth a near neighbour of the Leefe 
 family, and was himself a Wykehamist, thus securing for her 
 son a powerful patron in the Primate, who in 1519 obtained 
 for him the election to the Mastership of Maidstone College, 
 and in 1529 collated him to the then valuable Rectory of 
 Bedynden (Biddenden), and two years after to a Canonry, 
 and then to the Treasurership, in South Mailing College. 
 He also appointed him his Vicar-Greneral, and Keeper of the 
 Spiritualities of the See of Canterbury. 
 
 Leefe was destined to be the last of the Masters of the 
 College. With him the glory and the usefulness of Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay's Foundation was to expire after a Century 
 and a half of undoubted benefit to the spiritual interests of 
 the town. On its suppression in 1547, he and his staff were 
 all pensioned off. His share in the division of the spoil was a 
 pension of 5 a year ! with the consolation that the Com- 
 missioners under the Augmentation Office certified that he 
 was " a Doctor of Dyvinitie of honest qualities and conversa- 
 tion." However, his relationship to the late Primate doubtless 
 stood him in good stead ; for Bishop Bonner appointed him 
 to a Prebend in St. Paul's Cathedral on his surrender of the 
 Maidstone Mastership ; and he seems to have retained the 
 Mastership of St. Cross, and the Rectory of Biddenden, and 
 probably his other preferments, till his death in 1557. In 
 his Will, 3 are legacies to dependants of St. Cross, to the 
 
 1 The exact dates of these appointments are not known. 
 J Will of Alice Warham at Somerset House, Bodfelde, X. 
 3 Will Dep. (Somerset House), Wrastley, XXIX.
 
 104 T HE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Bishop of Winchester, and some lands at Maidstone to 
 Winchester College for a yearly " obit " for a space of twenty 
 years ; but, unlike Grocyn's, not a single bequest to Maid- 
 stone. He was buried in the Winchester College Chapel, 
 where a brass recorded the fact in Latin Elegiacs, the 
 opening lines of which contained a happy play upon 
 his name 
 
 " Nominis hie quid habet, Lector, si forte requiris, 
 A folii ductum nomine nomen habet ; " 
 
 
 which may be thus turned into English 
 
 " Reader, if you wish to know 
 What name he had who lies below, 
 From foliage taken (to be brief), 
 In life he had the name of ' Leaf.' " 
 
 As not an unfitting close to our death-song over the Maid- 
 stone College, it will be interesting to notice how in the 
 minds of its later Masters, at the most solemn moments of 
 their lives, when making their Wills, indications may be 
 detected of the gradual adoption of those religious views 
 which constitute the deepest characteristics of the Reforma- 
 tion. They mark the secret growth of that determination 
 not only to emancipate themselves from the thraldom of 
 Papal power, but also to remove those incrustations of Romish 
 doctrine which were overlaying, though forming no integral 
 part of, the purer and more Apostolic faith held by the 
 original English Church. It is in the formula} adopted by 
 successive Masters that this growing desire can be so clearly 
 traced. The expression used by Robert Sibthorp in 1390 
 has been already noticed " I commend my soul to my 
 Lord Jesus ; " but this disciple of John Wickliffe was far in
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 105 
 
 advance of his age. The old form seemed still to remain in 
 general use. In 1457 Kobert Smyth bequeathed his soul to 
 " Almighty God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and all Saints." 
 With his successor, John Lee, in 1495, the name of the 
 Virgin disappears ; he commends his soul to " Almighty 
 God " alone. John Camberton, in 1 506, while still retaining 
 a belief in the value of prayers for the dead, provides that 
 Masses for his soul shall be said at " the Altar of Jesus." 
 Grocyn, however, commends his soul to "Almighty God, 
 my Maker and Redeemer ; " while John Leefe, in 1557, says, 
 " I commend my soul to God the Father Omnipotent, 
 humbly beseeching Him ef His infinite goodness to pardon 
 my sins, etc., for His Son Jesus Christ's sake." l 
 
 Thus was the Romish dogma of Mariolatry dying out in 
 the English Church, and the purer worship of the " One 
 Only Mediator " being restored. 
 
 However, All Saints' College and all kindred Institutions 
 were doomed. 
 
 It must be admitted that many and deplorable were 
 the corruptions in doctrine, and irregularities in discipline, 
 which had for some years been creeping into the Church 
 in this Country ; yet none, one would think, so fatal as 
 not to admit of remedy none so deeply rooted into her 
 system as to require " root and branch " annihilation. 
 Gross impostures, and even immoralities, under the veil 
 too of religion, had brought obloquy, not to say infamy, 
 on some of the Religious Houses, and seemed in such 
 notorious cases to justify and demand the most extreme 
 
 1 For the opportunity of consulting these Wills, and much help 
 therein, the writer is indebted to the kindness of J. Challenor Smith, 
 Esq., of the Literary Inquiry Dep., Somerset House.
 
 106 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 measures. Many, meanwhile, were the efforts of devout 
 Churchmen to remove these abuses, conspicuous among 
 them the endeavours of Archbishops Morton and Warham ; 
 but all attempts to reform their own body were opposed 
 and thwarted by designing and interested placemen ; before 
 their eyes the vast wealth of some of the Monasteries 
 presented so tempting and irresistible a bait to an 
 unprincipled and needy body of Courtiers. Thus it befell 
 that under the united influence of their vices and their 
 riches, when the long-gathering storm burst, it swept 
 before it all such Institutions, Monastic and Collegiate, 
 Regular and Secular alike, involving all in one common 
 ruin ; even Maidstone College, in the fulness of life and 
 usefulness, might not be spared, when Boxley Abbey, a 
 scene of idle imposture, was only too justly doomed. 1 
 
 Not that the storm really burst suddenly ; it had been 
 long gathering. Its yet distant thunders could be heard 
 when, early in the 15th Century, Henry V. suppressed the 
 " Alien Priories," most of them " Cells " attached to Nor- 
 man Abbeys, which largely subsidized the King of France 
 in his wars with England. A Century later, Henry VIII., 
 at the suggestion of Wolsey, suppressed many of the 
 smaller Monasteries, among which idleness and immorality 
 had become a crying scandal, and utilized their revenues 
 for the foundation of his College at Oxford, and the 
 endowment of additional Bishoprics. But three years after, 
 when the rupture with the Pope had taken place, and 
 the Royal Supremacy had been asserted, the King made 
 a far wider swoop, and pounced upon all the Monasteries 
 in the kingdom, large as well as small, good and bad alike ; 
 and now, no longer under the pretext of turning their 
 1 Lambard's Perambulation of Kent (1596), pp. 230-237.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 107 
 
 revenues to better account, appropriated all their wealth 
 in land, or money, or plate, into the newly constituted 
 " Augmentation Fund," as Royal spoil to pander to his 
 own sensual luxuries, or to pay off his gambling debts, or 
 to reward the vile subserviency of his dissolute Courtiers. 
 Professing to see in every Abbey and Monastery a hotbed 
 of Papal intrigue in every Abbot and Prior an emissary 
 of the Pope he argued that their entire extermination 
 was necessary for the peace and well-being of the Kingdom 
 and the safety of the Throne. 
 
 It is with the College at Maidstone our story mainly 
 lies. Its fate was deferred for a few years. The year 
 1538 had seen the passing of the Act which doomed the 
 lesser of the Monastic Bodies, and two years after the 
 whole of them. Among the earliest of these last had been 
 the Abbey at Boxley. Here the " Rood of Grace," as it 
 was called, though better known as the " Winking Image 
 of the Virgin," had long obtained a perilous notoriety, 
 backed too by the dangerous repute of its enormous wealth. 
 This was at once condemned, 1 its wealth transferred to 
 the Royal coffers, and the land made over by the King to 
 Sir Thomas Wyat, of Allington Castle. 
 
 The fairly endowed College of Maidstone close by had 
 doubtless attracted the covetous eyes of Henry's greedy 
 Satellites. But then it was a College of " Seculars/' and 
 Parochial in its character, and therefore for the present safe 
 from the legalized spoliation. For in the original attack 
 some distinction was drawn between Monastic property 
 and that which belonged more strictly to the Church. 
 As a rule the latter was not touched in the reign of 
 
 1 This Image and its clever mechanism were publicly exposed at 
 St. Paul's Cross on Sunday, 24th February, 1539.
 
 io8 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Henry VIII., and on this principle the Eectorial revenues of 
 Maidstone should have escaped. But unfortunately under 
 Archbishop Courtenay's arrangement the income of the old 
 " Hospital " had been so blended with that of the Parish 
 Church the two so incorporated into one common fund 
 that in the general confiscation all went together, under 
 the plausible fiction of a " Deed of Exchange " between 
 the Archbishop and the King. Cranmer, with his pliant 
 subserviency, or, as some would say, with his far-seeing 
 shrewdness, thought it well to anticipate its compulsory 
 dissolution by including it among the several Manors which 
 belonged to the See, and by this " Deed of Exchange " 
 granted to the King " all the Manor and Lordship of 
 Maidstone, etc.," and therewith " the Advowson and Pat- 
 ronage of the College and Church," 1 thus probably saving 
 to the College a few more years of useful existence for 
 it was not actually surrendered till the beginning of the 
 reign of Edward VI. 
 
 There are circumstances connected with this surrender 
 which are of more than local interest, and indeed help to 
 illustrate a by no means unimportant page in the history 
 of the English Church. The revenues of the College were 
 derived from several different sources. There were the 
 Tithes and lands belonging originally to the Eectory ; the 
 endowments of Boniface's Hospital, which Courtenay had 
 transferred to his College ; and also the endowments of 
 the different Chantries. These were all regarded as inde- 
 pendent sources of income, and in the distribution each 
 formed the subject of a separate Grant; and shall here be 
 separately dealt with. 
 
 1 Augmentation Office Kecords (Record Office), A. 21, 24. For 
 Abstract of this Indenture, see B. Poste's History of the College, p. 39.
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. 109 
 
 The first to be appropriated, under an Act passed in 
 1540, 1 were the Chantries i.e., the endowments of the 
 Side-Altars, or Chantry Chapels, as they were called. Each 
 of these had its own Cantarista, or Chantry-Priest an 
 independent appointment duly recorded in the Register 
 of successive Archbishops, not included in the general 
 staff of the College, nor ordinarily taking any part in the 
 regular services of the Church, but having their special 
 function of chanting (hence their name) Masses for the 
 souls in Purgatory of the founders and their relatives. The 
 revenues also attached to these Chantries, as appears in 
 the Valor Ecclesiasticus of Henry VIII. , were regarded 
 as being perfectly distinct from those of the College, and 
 were accordingly assigned away by separate Grants of the 
 Crown. Does not this distinctness of the appointments, 
 the duties, and the incomes of these Cantaristse prove 
 that such Masses the very raison d'etre of these Chantries 
 formed no integral part of the original ritual and 
 teaching of the English Church, but were a parasitical out- 
 growth the germ of which came from Rome ? Naturally, 
 therefore, they were among the first to be swept away before 
 the rising tide of Reformation zeal, backed up by political 
 greed. 
 
 The Chantry connected with the Altar of St. Katherine, 3 
 at the East end of the South Aisle of the Nave commonly 
 known as Vinter's Chantry, from the name of the founder ; 
 or as Goulde's Chapel, from the Estate that formed its 
 endowment was the first to be disposed of. This was 
 evidently one of considerable value. Its original endowment 
 
 1 Augmentation Office Records (Record Office), A. 21. 
 
 1 Valor Ecclesiasticus, temp. Henry VIII., vol. i., pp. 75, 76. 
 
 3 See pp. 18, 19.
 
 i io THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 had been for two Priests, 1 each to receive 20 a year (but 
 only one seems to have ever been appointed at a time) ; 
 therefore the whole income (no inconsiderable sum in those 
 days) would have gone to him. This, with a dwelling house 
 (capitalis mansio) with orchard and garden adjacent, was 
 sold by the King to Sir George Blage or Blagge, 2 from 
 whom it was transferred to Sir Walter Hendley, and through 
 many hands has passed to the Earl of Eomney. 
 
 The Chantry connected with the Altar of St. Thomas at 
 the East end of the South Aisle of the Chancel, and known 
 as the " Arundel Chapel," as owing its endowment to that 
 Archbishop from the Great Tithes of Northfleet, formed 
 part of the King's grant to Lord Cobham; while that of 
 the Chantry Chapel on the North of the Chancel, which 
 had been assigned for the use of the Brethren of the 
 "Fraternity of Corpus Christi," was on its suppression 
 converted into endowment for a Grammar School, opened 
 in the old Hall of the Fraternity, as will appear in a 
 subsequent chapter. 
 
 Here it is worth noting that, when once ' in the King's 
 hands, the distinction was very strictly observed in the 
 subsequent distribution. The Eectorial Lands and the 
 Tithes were granted to Sir Thomas Wyat, of Allington 
 Castle, at a rental of 118 Qs. 5d., subject to the payment 
 of the salaries of " Curates " for Maidstone Parish Church, 
 
 1 Archbishop Wittlesey's Register, f. 82, a ; and Historical MSS. 
 Commissioners' Report, V. ; M. 221, in the Records of the Canterbury 
 Dean and Chapter. 
 
 2 Patent Rolls, 4 Edward VI., pt. i. (Beale Poste's History, p. 47). 
 This estate, which lies on the Headcorn Road, between two and 
 three miles South-east of Maidstone, still retains the name of 
 "Gould's Court, etc."
 
 ALL SAINTS' COLLEGE. in 
 
 and its Chapelries of Loose and Detling; while the site 
 of the College and the lands appertaining thereto, valued 
 at 212 5s. Id., 1 subject to outgoings which left about 
 160 clear, were sold to Sir George Brooke, Lord Cobham, 
 for 1,082. The advowsons of the Church of Maidstone, 
 with that of Xorthfleet, granted by Archbishop Arundel 
 to the Chantry he founded, and those of Farleigh, Linton, 
 and Sutton near Northbourne, forming the original endow- 
 ment of Boniface's Hospital, were all for the time, and 
 Northfleet and Farleigh still are, retained by the Crown. 
 
 At the time of the so-called " Surrender " of the College, 
 the Staff consisted, according to the Certificate of the Com- 
 missioners preserved in the " Augmentation Office," 2 of the 
 following members : John Leefe (erroneously spelt Leesse), 
 the Master or Warden, 59 years of age ; Thomas Wood (or 
 Ward), Sub-Master, aged 60 ; John Porter, Sacrist, aged 41 ; 
 Thomas Pyne (also spelt Pyend), Arthur Butler, George 
 Prior, all three about 60 years of age, and John Parker, 
 70 ; the last four being termed " Stipendiary Priests," and 
 pronounced by the Commissioners to be " of small learning, 
 howbeit of honest conversation." Besides these were John 
 Godfrey, the Chantry Priest of " Goulde's Chapel ; " and 
 George Denham, attached to the Chantry Chapel of " the 
 Fraternity of Corpus Christi." 3 
 
 Of these the Master, John Leefe, as already mentioned, 
 received, besides a Pension from the College funds as a 
 solatium,, a Prebendal Stall at St Paul's and other appoint- 
 ments. Of the Sub-Master and the Stipendiary Priests, 
 
 1 Dugdale's Monastica, vol. vi., p. 1394. 
 J Public Record Office, Kent, 28, 1. 
 3 Ibid., 29, 80, and 233, 87.
 
 ii2 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Wood (or Ward), Pyne, Butler, Prior, and Parker, nothing 
 seems to be on record save that they each received a pension 
 the Sub-Master and the Sacrist, 5, each of the others 4, 
 charged on the Augmentation Office ; sums which represent 
 about 75 and 60 respectively in the present currency. 
 
 A Nemesis, however, seemed to hang over such misappro- 
 priation of lands that had been consecrated to the Church's 
 use. Here, as elsewhere, this unholy spoliation carried with 
 it its own retribution. The houses of Wyat and Cobham 
 had but brief enjoyment of their ill-gotten wealth : the 
 son of Sir Thomas Wyat lost his property and his life 
 on the scaffold in the reign of Queen Mary ; and the 
 grandson of Lord Cobham, attainted for high treason in 
 Sir Walter Ealeigh's conspiracy, hardly escaped with his 
 life, forfeiting all his estates to the Crown, while in his 
 younger brother the family became extinct.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 
 
 T was indeed a sad and gloomy day for Maid- 
 stone when the young King, Edward VI., 
 inaugurated his brief reign under the self- 
 seeking misrepresentations of his uncle, 
 the Protector Somerset, and his minions, 
 by dooming the College to " Dissolution," 
 when, a body of Clergy in full working 
 order and amply endowed, consisting of a Master, a Sub- 
 Master, and five Fellows or Chaplains, with as many Lay- 
 Clerks, were swept away to give place to one single " Curate," 
 whose scant stipend was grudgingly and irregularly, and 
 sometimes only under remonstrance from the Archbishop, 
 doled out by the too often unscrupulous " High and Mighty 
 Lay Impropriator " of the Church's revenues. 
 
 The only one of the old College Staff whose subsequent 
 career can be traced is the Sacrist, JOHN PORTER, or Sir 
 John Porter, as he is always called in the Parish Registers, 
 this being the title of courtesy assigned to the officiating 
 Clergy in those days, as the English equivalent for 
 " Dominus" their previous Latin title. This John Porter 
 supplies the connecting link between the suppressed College 
 and the henceforth Parish Church. He remained under 
 Henry VIII., Edward VI., and Mary, as the " Parish Priest," 
 
 8
 
 ii 4 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 by which designation he was now always known ; he also 
 held the Eectory of Crundale, which had been attached to 
 the College in 1396 by Kichard II. But on Elizabeth's 
 coming to the throne he was regarded with suspicion, and 
 denounced as a " Popish Recusant," and suspended from his 
 office by the Royal Commissioners, who, however, permitted 
 him to remain in Maidstone, or to reside in any part of 
 Kent except Canterbury 1 this exception being probably 
 made because, notwithstanding the Commissioners contempt- 
 uously styled him " an unlearned Priest," he was a man of 
 generally recognized ability, and it was feared his influence 
 might be prejudicial to the Reformation views, which were 
 known to be at the time unpopular in the Metropolitical 
 City. He must, however, have succeeded in living down 
 this suspicion, for he appears to have been subsequently 
 allowed to act as Curate of Loose, and on his death, in 
 1562, was buried in his old Parish Church of All Saints. 
 
 Of Porter's successors it is very difficult to draw up a 
 continuous reliable list, from the absence of any entry in 
 the Lambeth Registers of appointments to All Saints' 
 Church from the suppression of the College to the time of 
 Archbishop Sheldon ; indeed, none appears between the years 
 1506, when J. Leefe was elected Master, and the year 1677, 
 with the single exception of that of Robert Barrell by 
 Archbishop Abbot, in 1620 an absence which may probably 
 be accounted for by the fact that during that interval all 
 were regarded as CURATES, and were removable at the Arch- 
 bishops' pleasure. This difficulty is moreover increased by 
 the appearance of many names in the Borough Records that 
 is, the Minutes of Burghmote Meetings which have no 
 place in the Church Registers. For instance, the name of 
 1 Strype's Annals, etc. (1824), vol. L, p. 414.
 
 ALL SAINTS 1 A PARISH CHURCH. 115 
 
 Richard Auger, or Augar, appears as "Curate," 1 as in con- 
 junction with the Churchwardens, vouching for the accuracy 
 of an Inventory of Church Plate, etc., at the time of the 
 Suppression ; then that of John Day, in 1557, who is said 
 to have been a nominee of Cardinal Pole. Both these names 
 occur during the period in which it is clear that John Porter 
 was really " Parish Priest," for he was not removed till the 
 beginning of Elizabeth's reign. 
 
 Not that the connection of these two Auger and Day 
 whatever their exact position, was without incidents of 
 historic interest. In the person of the former occurred 
 an event which marked one of the epochs of the English 
 Church. An Act had been passed in 1549 legalizing the 
 marriage of the Clergy, and eight years after Richard Auger 
 " took the benefit of the Act," and, renouncing celibacy, took 
 to himself to wife a Maidstone lady named " Chrystyan 
 Maylard," obtaining the services of Thomas Porter, the 
 Parish Priest, and ex-Sacrist of the College, to perform the 
 ceremony ! While the name of John Day is associated with 
 a very different and a sadder scene, 2 enacted in the Fair 
 Meadow, then called the King's Meadow, one of too many 
 similar scenes which brought undying obloquy on the reign 
 of Queen Mary the burning of the " Maidstone Martyrs." 
 In an address to the unhappy victims while bound to the 
 stake, he showed himself a worthy satellite of Nicholas 
 Harpsfield, then Archdeacon of Canterbury, who had issued 
 their Death-Warrant, and gave vent to language so bitter 
 and cruel, so full of fanatic fiendish malignity, as to grieve 
 the gentler and more noble spirit of his patron, the Cardinal 
 
 1 Newton's History, pp. 49, 62. 
 
 * Roger Hall's original Letter to Foxe describing this scene is among 
 the Harleian MSS. in the British Museum. No. 416, Art. 75.
 
 ii6 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Archbishop. For even John Foxe, little as was the love he 
 bore to the Papacy, says of the Cardinal, that he " was no 
 otherwise to be reputed than for a Papist, yet again it is 
 to be supposed that he was none of the bloody and cruel 
 sort of Papists," etc. 1 Day, however, remained at Maidstone 
 till Elizabeth came to the Throne and Parker to the Primacy, 
 when he was summarily removed, being convicted, moreover, 
 of leading a most scandalous life, and being a habitual 
 gambler and drunkard. 2 
 
 Newton also names two other persons supposed to have 
 been connected with Maidstone Church Thomas Hytton 
 (or Hitton), and John Hoker. But William Tyndale, whom 
 Newton gives as his authority for Hytton, really only 
 mentions the name as having been one of those " whom the 
 Bishops of Eochester and Canterbury slew at Maidstone," 
 and numbers him among the Martyrs of the Papacy, but 
 not as having ever been Curate here. Indeed, according to 
 Hytton's own confession, that he had been living abroad for 
 nine years, any connection with Maidstone would have been 
 with the College before its suppression ; yet his name does 
 not appear on any of the lists of the College Staff. 
 
 Then as to John Hoker; his name is introduced by 
 Newton on the authority of Bishop Burnett, who styles him 
 " Minister of Maidstone." 3 But as he is the reputed writer 
 of a letter to Bullinger, giving a full description of the 
 imposture of the " Holy Kood " at Boxley and that was 
 exposed and destroyed in 1538 he, too, must have lived 
 before the " Suppression of the College ; " the letter itself, 
 moreover, has only the simple heading, " Johannes Hokerus 
 
 1 Acts and Monuments (Townsend's Ed., 1849), viii. 308. 
 
 * Strype's Life of Archbishop Parker (1821), i 468-470. 
 
 * History of the Reformation (N. Pocock's Ed.), vi. 194.
 
 ALL SAINTS 1 A PARISH CHURCH. 117 
 
 Maydstoniensis" indicating merely that he was a resident 
 here, and not necessarily connecting him with either the 
 College or the Curacy. 
 
 It were injustice to the more amiable and gentle, and 
 grievously maligned, Cardinal Pole to whose character John 
 Foxe's testimony has been already given, and of whom 
 Collier 1 also says that any seeming connivance with Harps- 
 field's cruelties was the result of Papal pressure not to 
 record here an effort made by him to ameliorate the financial 
 position of many of the Churches (Maidstone among them) 
 which had suffered so severely from the legalized spoliation of 
 their revenues. He succeeded in persuading Queen Mary to 
 undo some of the sacrilegious wrong which had been perpe- 
 trated by her father and her brother. He obtained in 1558 
 the passing of an Act, 2 that out of the incomes of the bene- 
 fices which had been appropriated and were still retained in 
 the hands of the Crown, some restitution should be made to 
 enable the poorer Incumbents to live. He represented to 
 the Queen that many Kectories and Vicarages were then 
 void solely because the incomes were too small to sustain 
 able and efficient Clergy, while the responsibility for such 
 a deplorable state of things rested with the Patron. He 
 went so far as to offer to relieve her of the burden of this 
 responsibility, and to give her out of his own purse seven 
 thousand pounds, if she would transfer the patronage to him. 
 The Act sanctioning it was passed, and the following week 
 he issued orders for a Commission to carry out its objects j 
 but within a fortnight both Pole and Mary had passed away 
 to their account, and the Cardinal's noble plan collapsed. 
 
 1 Collier's Ecclesiastical History (1862), vi. 181. 
 1 2 & 3 Philip and Mary, 22nd October, 1558. Strype's Ecclesiastical 
 Memorial* (1822), pp. 121-123.
 
 Ii8 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 One of the earliest steps, however, taken by Elizabeth, 
 with her favourite Matthew Parker in the See of Canterbury, 
 was to transfer the Kectorial and Manorial income, which on 
 Wyat's attainder had reverted to the Crown, to the Primacy, 
 subject to certain specified payments to the officiating 
 Clergyman of the Parish Church, with its two Chapelries of 
 Loose and Detling, which were very soon after detached and 
 made independent Cures. Hence the Clergy of the Parish 
 Church of Maidstone came to be called " Archbishop's 
 Curates." This position their being removable at pleasure, 
 and lacking that permanency involved in a Collation or 
 Institution would doubtless account for the absence of any 
 entries of appointments to Maidstone in the Archbishop's 
 Kegisters at Lambeth, an absence which, as already noticed, 
 makes it rather difficult to trace the succession of Curates 
 for some years. 
 
 When the name of John Porter ceases in the Parish 
 Register, in the year 1559 (the date of his removal, as already 
 stated), that of ROBERT CARR, sometimes spelt " Carre," and 
 signed "Car" by himself in the Parish Register Books, 
 takes its place, and continues till 1606, though he appa- 
 rently retained the Curacy till 1620. Respecting him, the 
 only information to be gained comes from the entries in the 
 Burghmote Records, from which it may be inferred that 
 Maidstone enjoyed a long spell of peace and happiness, 
 and that he succeeded in gaining much respect as well as 
 popularity. 
 
 It would seem, however, that the Corporation regarded him 
 as being their Curate, for while they marked their approval 
 of his conduct by conferring on him the Municipal honour 
 of electing him a Jurat, they also seemed to have claimed 
 the right to exercise considerable control over the Church
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 119 
 
 Services, and the regulation of Church Fees, etc. 1 Moreover, 
 in consideration of his growing infirmities, they provided 
 him, either from Municipal funds or by private subscription, 
 with an Assistant; in which capacity probably the names 
 of Thomas Tymme, in 1571, and Richard Storer, 2 in 1574, 
 occur as "our Minister;" while in the later years of the 
 old man's life his son William, who had been appointed 
 Parish Clerk, was allowed to act as his father's Assistant, for 
 which the Corporation voted him 10 a year addition to his 
 Clerk's fees, and in 1617 doubled this allowance. Regarding 
 this second grant to William Carr an interesting Minute occurs 
 in the Burghmote Records, under date 16th March, 1618, to 
 this effect : " Whereas by an Assembly or Meeting at the 
 Churche it was thought fitt to allowe Mr. William Carre (sic) 
 for his encouragement in his studdy tenne poundes per annum, 
 synce which tyme having had experience of his forwardness 
 in his paynes-taking in preaching, and of his sufficiencie 
 therein ; It is now at this Courte thought fitt to encrease 
 his said allowance unto tenne poundes per annum more, by 
 such encrease of Churche Cess and for Churche busynesse as 
 formerly e, which we desire to be confirmed at the next Churche 
 Meeting ; with this caution or proviso nevertheless, that 
 neither the former allowance nor this further encrease of 
 allowance shall be any prejudice or example in tyme to come 
 for any other to demand or have the like, without like order 
 and approbation as in this ys now of Love and Curtisy and 
 
 1 This claim was not without some semblance of authority to sup- 
 port it, from the wording of the Charter by which James I. in 1603 
 assigned the Church for the use of the town. Appendix F (1). 
 
 * This Richard Storer was described in the " Burghmote Records " as 
 " Minister ; " and in his Will, which is in the Diocesan Prerogative Court 
 at Canterbury, styled himself " Curate of Maidstone."
 
 120 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 not otherwise allowed." l Of this further grant he had but a 
 short enjoyment, for he died in the course of that year, 
 when a Mr. Willeys was appointed to succeed him. He 
 continued to act as Parish Clerk and Assistant Curate till 
 the death of the aged and now incapacitated Eobert Carr, in 
 1620. 
 
 In that year Archbishop Abbot selected as his successor 
 one of whom he would seem to have had the highest opinion, 
 named ROBERT BARRELL. His is the first appointment 
 entered in the Lambeth Registers since the Suppression of 
 the College ; and there it appears under most auspicious 
 circumstances. He is described as a man endowed with no 
 ordinary gifts of preaching and expounding Scripture ; and, 
 as if in recognition of such great gifts and worth, the 
 Archbishop makes a marked difference in the character of 
 his appointment, as well as an important addition to the 
 income. " The small portion of the Tything," the entry 
 runs, " being insufficient for a man of quality to serve soe 
 great a Cure in soe populous a Town and Parish ... I have 
 set out, appointed, and allotted to the said Robert Barrell 
 all the small yearly Tythes whatsoever, commonly called or 
 known there by the name of Vicarige Tythes of the Boroughs 
 or Townes of Weeke and Stone ... in consideration only of 
 his due serving of the Cure . . . untill I the said Archbishop 
 shall think good otherwise to determine or revoke the said 
 allotment or any part thereof at my good will and pleasure." 2 
 
 Robert Barrell, however, would seem to have been of a 
 far less conciliatory, not to say compromising, spirit than 
 his predecessor. It may be, too, that the very form of his 
 appointment by the Archbishop tended in some degree to 
 
 1 T. C. Smythe's M.S., vol. ii., p. 100 (in the Maidstone Museum). 
 1 Archbishop Abbot's Register, f. 322, b.
 
 v ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 121 
 
 rouse suspicion as to the independent line he was expected 
 to adopt, and prepared the way for the persistent hostility 
 he was destined to meet with. 
 
 From the outset he found himself confronted by claims on 
 the part of the local authorities a legacy doubtless left to 
 him by the concessions which Carr had made such as he 
 felt unable to submit to. Hence his incumbency involved 
 twenty years of parochial contention and strife. First of all, 
 in spite of strong memorials and pressure, he refused to 
 retain as Assistant Mr. Willey, 1 who for the last two years 
 had been winning great popularity among the townsmen. 
 Then he refused to accept and adopt the Table of Fees 
 he found in use, which had been drawn up and sanctioned 
 by the Town Council. 2 The next bone of contention was 
 Mr. Barrell's claiming the right to appoint the Parish Clerk, 
 in accordance with the 91st Canon of 1603, an office which 
 the Corporation had, during Mr. Carr's incumbency, been 
 accustomed to regard as belonging to their patronage. Then, 
 last, and perhaps worst of all, Mr. Barrell refused to allow 
 the Notice of the Burghmote Meetings to be publicly 
 announced in the Church, a custom which had prevailed for 
 many years. 3 
 
 The writer retains a vivid recollection of a similar parochial 
 stir in a County Town in the West of England within the 
 last sixty years, when a newly appointed Vicar, with a devout 
 sense of propriety, resisted the attempt on the part of the 
 Corporation to have publicly notified month by month during 
 the Service that on a certain day there would be held "a 
 Meeting of the Trustees of the Pig-Market ! " 
 
 Moreover, Barrell introduced changes in the mode of 
 
 1 Burghmote Records of 1G22. Ibid, 1625. 
 
 3 Ibid., 1634.
 
 122 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 performing Divine Service, all these combined to estrange 
 from him the leading men of the place, who, in addition 
 to such pastoral grievances, imputed to him gross personal 
 irregularities, and formally petitioned Parliament for his 
 removal. The Petition 1 represented that the said Eobert 
 Barrell was " careless and negligent of his duties ; " that he 
 introduced " innovacions, causing the Communion Table to 
 be set up to the wall at the East end of the Chancel, and 
 there to be railed in," etc. ; that he was " very covetous and 
 contentious, exacting more and greater tithes and other 
 duties (dues) than had been formerly paid ; " that moreover 
 he was a common " tavern hunter," and " of evil example, 
 and a great scandal of the mynystry, and he hath Curates 
 under him of immoral character ; " and that, as for Boughton 
 Malherbe, of which he was also Eector, "he is not their 
 (there) resident, but leaveth his people to a hireling." 2 
 
 This Petition was also followed up by one from the In- 
 habitants of Boughton Malherbe in the following month, 
 denouncing the said Eobert Barrell as " not having resided 
 among them for twenty years, and putting Curates upon 
 them unapt to teach and of corrupt doctrine," as being " guilty 
 of immorality and intolerance," and therefore praying that 
 they " may be eased of the heavy burden that Eobert Barrell 
 is upon them." 3 
 
 His delinquencies, it would seem, culminated in a Sermon 
 he preached in April 1643 ; and an Order of Parliament 
 was at length passed in June for the sequestration of both 
 
 1 Two notables of the County, Sir T. Culpepper and Sir E. Bering, 
 presented this Petition ; see following note. 
 
 2 Minutes of the House of Lords, May 17, 20, June 2, 17, 1643 
 (Historical MSS. Com. Eeport, V., p. 91). 
 
 3 Ibid., and Walker's Sufferings of the Clergy, Part II., p. 202.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 123 
 
 the Livings : and thus ceased Barrell's connection with 
 Maidstone. The Parish Church, however, still retains a 
 memorial of the heavy loss he sustained during the first 
 year of his residence here in the death of his first wife. 1 
 
 At this time the " religious mind " of the nation was 
 passing through those spasmodic emotions which preluded 
 the introduction of " The Commonwealth." Having suc- 
 ceeded in bringing about Robert Barrell's removal, the 
 inhabitants of Maidstone petitioned that one John Osborne, 
 a reputed Boanerges, should be appointed ; but he seems to 
 have been considered worthy of a more remunerative post, 
 and was better provided for by Cromwell's " Tryers " in the 
 valuable benefice of Benenden, 2 which he held till after the 
 Restoration ; while Maidstone, to use the language of Walker, 
 had u foisted " 3 upon it one SAMUEL SMITH, who is described 
 as a " holy and able man ; " but clearly not of sufficient 
 preaching power for the people of Maidstone. His was but 
 a short stay ; for within a few months, not to say weeks, he 
 was transferred to Harrietsham, to make room for one who 
 was regarded as more fitted for so important a post. 
 
 This was THOMAS WILSON,"* a man of considerable learning, 
 and of great force of character ; for both of which he soon 
 became distinguished. He was born in 1601, the son of 
 a Cumberland " estatesman," educated at Bentlow School, 
 and afterwards passed with credit through Christ's College, 
 Cambridge. First appointed to the Curacy of Capel in 
 Surrey, he soon was moved to Farlington in Hampshire ; 
 
 1 The Epitaph is given in Chapter VII. 
 
 2 Calamy's Nonconformists Memorial, ii. 54. 
 
 3 Sufferings of the Clergy, ii. 202. 
 
 4 The following details are mainly taken from The Life of T. Wilson, 
 by G. S. (George Swinnoche), published in 1G72, a copy of which is in 
 the British Museum.
 
 124 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 then to Teddington-on-Thames ; and eventually, through the 
 influence of a Maidstone Jurat named Swinnoche, who had 
 obtained the right of appointment, to Otham, in order, as 
 it was avowed, that his fellow-townsmen, to whom their own 
 Curate, Robert Barrell, had become so objectionable, might 
 " resort there with little trouble or travail to hear the Word 
 of God." 
 
 Here he led an active yet peaceful life till the appear- 
 ance of The, Book of Sports in 1635, the refusal to publish 
 which caused him to be suspended from his benefice for four 
 years. In 1639 Archbishop Laud was moved to cancel his 
 suspension, and he returned to Otham. But the following 
 year a new difficulty arose. The Scots were marching upon 
 England, and an order was issued for the reading of a Prayer 
 in Church against them. This Wilson refused, on Rubrical 
 grounds, to introduce into the Service, and was prosecuted 
 in the Ecclesiastical Courts, and had to seek personal safety 
 in flight. But two years after and momentous years 
 they were, within which Lord Strafford had fallen, Charles 
 himself had fled from London, Laud was in the Tower, 
 and Parliament supreme Wilson was selected by " the 
 Commons House " to preach a Sermon before them at 
 St. Margaret's, Westminster, on the occasion of a " Solemne 
 Fast " on the 28th November, 1642 ; and, probably as much 
 in reward for his persecution as in recognition of his 
 learning, was chosen by Parliament as one of " the Assembly 
 of Divines." This Sermon, entitled Jericho's Downfall, 1 
 on Heb. xi. 30, was printed by the order of the House. 
 Evidently the old wound of his wrongs still rankled in his 
 
 1 A copy of this very scarce Sermon is in the possession of the present 
 Hector of Otham, the Rev. F. M. Millard, and one in the British 
 Museum.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 125 
 
 breast ; for he speaks most contemptuously of the Church, 
 as " Prelacy, purple Prelates, and their corrupt Clergy ; " 
 and again seems as if he exulted over the Archbishop, at 
 the time awaiting his trial, as having " come down when he 
 was in his Pontificalibus" Another passage in this Sermon 
 may be referred to as having a personal interest. Denounc- 
 ing the many stumbling-blocks he thought he saw in the 
 Church, he seems almost to shriek out, " Forget not the 
 odious sin of non -residence ! " Yet how circumstances alter 
 cases ! The following year he was appointed Curate of Maid- 
 stone by the combined influence of the friendly Jurat 
 Swinnoche and Sir E. Dering, and here he took up his 
 abode, leaving a substitute at Otham ; thus becoming him- 
 self guilty of what he had so recently denounced as that 
 " odious sin " of non-residence. 
 
 We would hope, however, for Wilson's credit, as well as 
 his peace of mind, that he was not cognizant of the manner 
 in which his substitute, Mr. Herne (or Heron), exercised his 
 pastoral care for his zealous but non-resident Rector ; for on 
 the fly-leaf of the Otham Register is a Memorandum, 
 vouched for by Thomas Davis, who succeeded Wilson at 
 Otham (and subsequently at Maidstone), that "during all 
 the time the said Mr. Herne served the Cure of Otham 
 (from 1647 to 1658) there was neither Marriage, Chrysten- 
 ing, or Buriall entered in the Otham Register." 
 
 Maidstone, however, for which it was considered Wilson's 
 friends had so persistently intrigued, proved to be no bed 
 of roses. He had zealously introduced more Services on 
 Holy-days as well as Sundays, and week-day Lectures, and 
 is said to have turned Maidstone from " being regarded as 
 a very prophane town " into a God-fearing one. Tradition 
 also ascribes to him the introduction of the historic hour-glass,
 
 126 THE HISTORY OF MA ID SI ONE CHURCH. 
 
 which testified to the length of his Sermons, while the over- 
 crowded Church bore witness to their attractiveness. 
 
 Still the more advanced Independents complained that he 
 did not go far enough for them not to the full length of 
 their extreme views ; and, unfortunately for him, at their 
 head was one Andrew Broughton, a Maidstone Attorney, who 
 was one of the Clerks in the House of Parliament, on whom 
 had devolved the, to him by no means unwelcome, task of 
 reading out the King's sentence in Westminster Hall. There 
 is a traditional 1 report that on the Sunday after the King's 
 execution Wilson had, with manly courage, in his Sermon 
 denounced the act as a foul and wicked murder. Broughton, 
 who was present in Church, was so exasperated that he rose 
 up and left, and headed a party of extreme fanatics who 
 established a hostile Service in St. Faith's Church. 
 
 It may be that passing events had effected a change 
 in Wilson's mind and feelings. It had been his sad lot to 
 see the Church in which he delighted to minister desecrated 
 by the fanatic troops under General Fairfax in 1648 ; and 
 this perhaps, added to the absence of that personal bitterness 
 he entertained for Laud, and to the sense of loyalty he still 
 cherished in his heart for Charles, may account for any seeming 
 inconsistency in the man who had borne witness against the 
 Archbishop, 2 openly condemning the execution of the King. 
 
 Then, on the other hand, the Royalists, who, though few 
 in number, were an influential body, and having the 
 Churchwarden on their side, opposed many of the changes 
 he introduced into the Church Services, to such an extent 
 that Wilson was driven to appeal to that ruling body known 
 in bitter irony of truth as the " Committee of Plundered 
 
 1 Gilbert's Memorials of All Saints', Maidstone, p. 133. 
 * Prynne's Canterburies Doome, p. 149.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 127 
 
 Ministers." All this notwithstanding the favour shown 
 him by the Corporation, the freedom of the Town, and a 
 substantial increase in his stipend being voted to him 
 appears to have deeply affected him ; and the Thomas 
 Wilson of Maidstone became in his later days, as the result 
 of opposition and even persecution, greatly changed from 
 the Thomas Wilson of Otham. 
 
 When drawing near his end, which occurred in 1653, his 
 parishioners entreated him to recommend to them a suc- 
 cessor, when he named JOHN CRUMPE, who had had charge 
 of the Chapelry of Loose, and had also assisted him at 
 Maidstone, and is described as being " a Godly and painful 
 preacher of the Gospel." l He was the author of a series of 
 sermons on " the Parable of the Great Supper," which was 
 edited after his death by a brother Minister, one W. Gearing, 
 who, in his Dedicatory Epistle to Sir John Banks of Ailes- 
 ford, says of him, that " he was not only a word-man but 
 a work-man a workman that needed not to be ashamed ; 
 a pattern of wholesome words in sound teaching, a pattern 
 of good works in well-doing," etc. So highly was he 
 esteemed, that the stipend, even with the addition of 20 
 made to his predecessor, only amounting to 96, was further 
 raised to 120, by the appropriation of 24 from the "Tythes 
 of St. Gregory's Priory, Canterbury." 2 He held this Curacy 
 (he is in one place called the " Kector ") till the Restoration. 
 Calamy says of him, that " he was of so moderate a spirit 
 that after his ejectment the Minister of Boxley often 
 admitted him to his pulpit. He died and was buried at 
 Maidstone, where his memory was precious." 3 
 
 1 Lambeth Misc. MSS. (Augmentation Records), No. 978, p. 132. 
 1 Ibid., No. 987, p. 103 ; No. 997, p. 73. 
 3 Calamy's Nonconformists' Memorial, ii. 65
 
 128 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Meanwhile another office was being formed by " the Com- 
 mittee of Reformation of the Universities " under the title 
 of a " Public Preacher " or " Lecturer," to which Thomas 
 Bragne was appointed in 1651, at a salary of 50; and in 
 1656, on Mr. Bragne's death, Joseph Winston, who was also 
 Master of the Grammar School, succeeded ; but was ejected 
 at the Restoration, and retired to Lewes, where he formed 
 a Congregational charge, and died there in 1690, at the age 
 of sixty-three, leaving behind him a character for great 
 wisdom, moderation, and self-denial. 1 He was the author 
 of several works on Infant Baptism. 
 
 Neither of these would come under the name of Curate. 
 
 With the Restoration came the counter-move in Church 
 patronage ; and in how different a spirit was it carried out ! 
 On Queen Mary's coming to the throne, every one who 
 refused to accept the Romish test lost his life at the 
 stake ; when Elizabeth succeeded, all who refused to accede 
 to the Reformed faith, in spite of great persuasion and 
 clemency, forfeited their livings only. Again, when at the 
 Rebellion Parliament became supreme, almost every one who 
 held a benefice was summarily ejected; while at the Restora- 
 tion even those who had been " intruded," to the exclusion 
 of the previous lawful occupants, were left in peaceful 
 possession on accepting the Act of Uniformity; and only 
 those who refused were removed. Among the latter was 
 John Crumpe. 
 
 On his removal Archbishop Juxon selected JOHN DAVIS, 
 already Rector of Otham (where he had followed Wilson 
 on his death in 1653), for the Curacy of Maidstone. Here 
 Davis seems to have left but little mark of his presence 
 during his brief tenure of the Cure, which he held with the 
 1 Calamy's Nonconformists Memorial, ii. 64.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 129 
 
 Rectory of Otham till his death in 1677. In Otham, how- 
 ever, he left a very substantial proof of his residence in the 
 old-fashioned yet comfortable Rectory House ; as is testified 
 by a boldly cut Inscription on a massive beam which runs 
 across the kitchen : " THIS HOUS WAS BUILT BY JOHN DAVIS, 
 RECTOR OF OTHAM, 1664 A.C." l He was buried in Maid- 
 stone, where an Epitaph 2 to his memory would lead to the 
 inference that, though the outer world of literature or 
 politics knew little of him (for nothing seems on record^, he 
 laboured hard and successfully in his parish during years of 
 reactionary excitement to preserve peace and goodwill, and 
 thus secured the respect and confidence of all classes during 
 his short incumbency. 
 
 After him HUMPHRY LYNDE held the Curacy, in conjunction 
 with the Vicarage of Boxley, Of him very little seems on 
 record. He was probably the youngest son of the Humphry 
 Lynde who Archbishop Laud's Chaplain refusing to license 
 a Treatise of his against Rome became a very bitter 
 opponent, and brought a considerable amount of learning, 
 with an intensity of Puritan zeal, to bear upon the Pamphlet 
 literature of the days of the Commonwealth. 3 This Humphry 
 Lynde would appear to have inherited his father's zeal, but 
 to have directed it into a different channel ; for Archbishop 
 Sancroft, in recognition of his zealous and faithful ministra- 
 tions, bestowed on the Curacy the second moiety of the 
 Small Tithes of Week and Stone Boroughs, of which one- 
 
 1 This Inscription long lay unknown, smothered in plaster and 
 whitewash, until brought to light by the present Rector, the Rev. 
 F. M. Millard, to whom the writer is indebted for the information 
 regarding it, and the entry made by Davis in the Register Book 
 regarding Heron's negligence. (See p. 125.) 
 
 ' See Epitaph in Chapter VII. 
 
 8 A thence Oxonienses, ii. 601. Canterburie's Doome, p. 185. 
 
 9
 
 1 3 o THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 half had been previously given. He died in 1690, and was 
 succeeded by EDWARD ROMAN, who held the Curacy for a still 
 shorter period, dying within two years of his appointment. 
 
 The vacancy thus caused in 1692 was filled by Archbishop 
 Tillotson by the transfer of GILBERT INNES from the smaller 
 Parish of Chislet to this far more important Cure, where 
 he was compensated for the loss of income by being collated 
 also to the Vicarage of St. John, Isle of Thanet. Here, as 
 well as at Chislet, he won the affection and respect of his 
 people. His Incumbency was evidently a peaceful one ; it 
 was marked by an increase in the scant stipend, which he 
 effected by recovering the Small Tithes of the outlaying 
 Hamlet of Lollington, that had been for some time withheld. 
 He was also active in rearranging the accommodation of the 
 Church, which had been greatly intrenched upon by the 
 erection of family pews. 1 This delicate negotiation he 
 appears to have superintended and carried out successfully 
 without arousing any ill-will. Newton says of him, that " he 
 discharged all the duties of this great and populous Parish 
 for nineteen years, when he sank under the care, and burden 
 of it " 2 a testimony which is fully confirmed by the Epitaph 
 on his Monument, clearly pointing him out as a most 
 laborious Parish-Priest. 3 He died in May 1711. 
 
 In Gilbert Innes' Successor, JOSIAH WOODWARD, appears 
 one who evidently occupied a conspicuous position in the 
 literary world, as a prolific author of Treatises and Pamphlets, 
 all indicating an active pastoral zeal. 4 He was first known as 
 
 1 Burghmote Records, given in Gilbert's Memorials, etc., pp. 159-167. 
 
 8 Newton's History, etc., p. 69. 3 See Epitaph in Chapter VII. 
 
 4 The British Museum Catalogue contains entries of above thirty 
 Pamphlets, Sermons, etc., under his name, and a " Life " of him, from 
 which the following facts are taken.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 131 
 
 Curate of Poplar, a Chapelry of Stepney, where, in 1702 
 he published among other tracts Pastoral Advice on Con- 
 firmation, on the Observance of the Lord's Day, on 
 Drunkenness, on Profane Swearing, and " A Seamen's 
 Monitor," which would seem to have run into a 14th Edition 
 within the Century. The fame of his powers, and of his 
 largeness of sympathy, soon reached the Continent, for he 
 was earnestly appealed to by the Pastors and Professors of 
 Neufchatel " for God's sake and for the honour of the Church 
 of England " to publish in an English form a " Letter which 
 their Brethren of Geneva and Basil in conjunction with 
 themselves had addressed to the King of Prussia entreating 
 him to promote an intercommunion between them and the 
 English Church." As a preacher, too, he must have risen to 
 a high position (many of his Sermons having appeared in 
 print) ; for Archbishop Tenison, himself a great preacher and 
 scholar, selected him to preach the " Boyle Lectures " in 
 1710 ; and the following year transferred him to Maidstone, 
 where, securing his valuable gifts for a wider field, he com- 
 pensated him for the scantiness of his income by giving 
 him also the living of Newchurch, in Eomney Marsh. 
 Here he readily adapted himself to the fresh sphere of duty. 
 Poplar with its river-side population had (as he had 
 mentioned) suggested a Seamen's Monitor, and Maidstone 
 with its military called forth a corresponding one for 
 Soldiers. But his connection with Maidstone was very 
 brief. One of his first Sermons here was a bold, powerful 
 one on the " Divine Right of Civil Government," preached 
 before the (newly elected) Mayor, and Corporation, in 
 November 1711, and before that Mayorality had expired he 
 had passed away. While at Poplar he had taken an active 
 part in forming a " Society for the Reformation of Manners
 
 132 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 in London " the nucleus of the now Venerable " Society for 
 Promoting Christian Knowledge." As early as 1700 he had 
 preached a Sermon at St. Botolph's Church on " The Great 
 Charity of Instructing Poor Children," and found time during 
 his all too brief sojourn in Maidstone to carry his principles 
 into practice by founding "The Blue Coat School" here, 
 happily a still standing memorial of his pastoral zeal. He 
 died in 1712, at the comparatively early age of fifty-two, 
 leaving behind him this testimony to his love of God and of 
 his fellow-men. 
 
 He was succeeded by SAMUEL WELLER, LL.B., a Fellow 
 of St. John's College, Oxford, who had been assistant to Dr. 
 Woodward during his short incumbency ; who also succeeded 
 him in the Rectory of Newchurch, to which Archbishop 
 Wake in 1731 added that of Sundridge, near Seven- 
 oaks. 1 His occupancy of this Curacy, which lasted above 
 forty years, was chiefly memorable for the enlargement, if 
 not the actual formation, of the once far-famed Parish 
 Library. That Eoyal benefactress to the Church, Queen 
 Anne, had in 1704 obtained the passing of an Act in Parlia- 
 ment to meet the great lack of books of Theology for the 
 Clergy, which as a rule they were too poor to purchase 
 for themselves, by sanctioning a grant of money for that 
 purpose. In the movement thus inaugurated Maidstone 
 took an active part. Several of the resident gentry gave 
 books ; and when an opportunity offered of obtaining for 50 
 the whole " Library of the Fathers " of that great Student 
 and Philanthropist, Dr. Bray, who had been Rector of St. 
 Botolph's, London, a subscription was opened and the appeal 
 so liberally responded to that the Parish Church soon pos- 
 sessed one of the largest and richest of the Parochial 
 1 Archbishop Wake's Register, f. 262, b.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 133 
 
 Libraries of England. But it fared worse with this memento 
 of Weller's zeal than it has done with his predecessor's 
 School. For early in the present Century the state of this 
 goodly Library is thus described : " I found many valuable 
 books missing ; and a still larger number irretrievably 
 damaged by the incursions of worms and damp ; of these I 
 caused some few to be re-bound, but the greater part were 
 far too decayed to be at all re-covered." Such is the memo 
 entered by " Robert Finch," Dr. Denne's assistant, in 1810, 
 in the fly-leaf of the Catalogue of the Library preserved 
 in the Maidstone Museum, where are also now carefully 
 shelved the remains of the grand old Library enough to 
 show what a noble collection of choice and almost priceless 
 literature it once formed. 
 
 The only other noteworthy events in Weller's time were 
 the destruction of the Spire by fire (to be mentioned in 
 a subsequent Chapter), the introduction of an Organ into the 
 Church, and the re-casting of the Bells ; unless we notice a 
 somewhat curious entry which appears in a small Memo- 
 randum Book preserved in the Vestry, among the Parish 
 Registers, which gives some insight into the funeral customs 
 of the reign of the first George. It is to the following 
 effect : 
 
 " At a Vestry held 20 June, 1722, Resolved : That whereas 
 an unreasonable custom has prevailed of deferring Funerals 
 till very late in the night to the damage of the Trade 
 of the Town and to the great inconvenience of the Inhabit- 
 ants, That therefore for the time to come any person or 
 persons having the care of Funerals shall be obliged to bring 
 their dead to the Church or Churchyard before the hour 
 of ten of the clock from Lady-day till Michaelmas, and 
 before the hour of seven of the clock from Michaelmas to
 
 134 THE HISTORY OF MAIDS2ONE CHURCH, 
 
 Lady-day, and in case any person shall break the said 
 order by delaying their Funeral beyond the said hours, that 
 then Mr. Weller shall be and is hereby desired to refuse to 
 read the Burial Service after the said hours." 
 
 After Samuel Weller came one who was a worthy repre- 
 sentative of an old Kentish family, JOHN DENNE, M.A., the 
 eldest son of Archdeacon Denne (of Rochester), and brother of 
 the distinguished Antiquary Doctor Samuel Denne, Rector of 
 Lambeth. He had been a Fellow of Bene't (Corpus Christi) 
 College, Cambridge. And was appointed to All Saints, 
 Maidstone, by Archbishop Herring in 1753, and the following 
 year by the Crown to the Rectory of Copford, in Essex. He 
 was also imbued with some of his brother's Antiquarian 
 spirit, as was shown in his endeavour to solve the doubt as 
 to the real burial-place of Archbishop Courtenay, by having 
 the massive monumental slab raised, which was believed 
 to mark his grave in the Choir of the Church, and the 
 ground underneath carefully examined ; the result being 
 that some of the leading Antiquaries of the day were 
 induced to admit that Maidstone, and not Canterbury, held 
 the bones of him who was pre-eminently "Maidstone's 
 Archbishop." 1 
 
 As Curate of the Parish Church he also acted as Chaplain 
 of the Gaol ; and there two Italian convicts under sentence 
 of death contrived, the very day before that fixed for their 
 execution, and while Mr. Denne was actually in attendance 
 upon them, to break out, stab the gaoler, and put Denne's 
 life into great peril. The fright, and the narrowness of his 
 escape, produced a long-life effect on him ; for the last thirty- 
 five years of his life he was subject at seasons to great mental 
 
 1 Arch&ologia, vol. x., pp. 272-3. Gough's Sepulchral Monuments. 
 See also supra, p. 44, and Appendix B (2).
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 135 
 
 distress. He died in the Palace in 1800, at the age of 
 seventy-four years. 1 
 
 His successor, JAMES REEVE, M.A., had been his Curate 
 since 1788, when he literally impersonated Goldsmith's 
 picture of the " Parson passing rich on 40 a year ; " for 
 such was his stipend. His placid countenance, as represented 
 in the portrait of him preserved in the Museum, would 
 betoken a peace-loving, easy-going, methodical mind ; and 
 his Incumbency, as described by old inhabitants who still 
 remember him, was naturally an uneventful one, save that 
 when in advancing age and the increase of the population he 
 found it necessary to have the assistance of a Curate he gave 
 him 100 a year, and that he was instrumental in the 
 erection of the first District Church (Holy Trinity) in 1828, 
 with which his widow's name is also connected, by her 
 bequest of the very conveniently situated house in King 
 Street, now at last used as " Holy Trinity Vicarage." 
 During his time, too, additional Church accommodation was 
 provided at the other end of the town, through the zeal and 
 Antiquarian spirit of another Curate, Frederick Fitzherbert 
 Haslewood, who, lamenting the desecrated condition of a 
 beautiful ruin (for it was little better) which had once been 
 the Chapel of Archbishop Boniface's " Hospital,'' and com- 
 monly known as the " Pilgrim's Chapel," resolved to utilize 
 it and restore it to its sacred use. He had come to the 
 Curacy in 1834 ; and in three years the exquisite Chancel, 
 with its deep-splayed lancet windows and graceful Purbeck 
 marble shafts, had been brought to light and cleaned ; while 
 a transept (not, however, worthy of such a Chancel) was 
 thrown out ; and thus at a cost of about 4,000, with accom- 
 
 1 Gentleman's Magazine, vol. xxxv., p. 392 ; and vol. Ixx., p. 396. 
 Nichols's Literary Anecdote$, vol. iii., p. 527.
 
 136 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 modation for above four hundred persons, the Church of 
 St. Peter was first licensed for Divine Service in 1837, and 
 two years after re-consecrated by Archbishop Howley. Then, 
 in the last year of Mr. Eeeve's Incumbency, St. Stephen's 
 Church at Tovil was built. 1 
 
 On his death in 1842, Archbishop Howley appointed 
 WILLIAM VALLANCE, M.A., who at once inaugurated a great 
 change in the internal arrangements of the Church. The 
 Galleries which had disfigured the Aisles and West end 
 disappeared ; cumbrous if comfortable family pews, which 
 occupied the body of the Church, were all cleared out to 
 give place to more ecclesiastical uniform seats, designed for 
 worship rather than luxurious slumber ; and the whole floor 
 of the Church was arranged for the use of the Parish 
 generally, and not exclusively for a few favoured Magnates. 
 This work of improvement, however, from lack of funds, did 
 not extend to the roofs, which were left with unsightly 
 whitewashed ceilings. The whole character of the Church 
 Services, too, underwent a great change, advancing with 
 the religious feelings and demands of the times ; while the 
 material proof of his energy and the largeness of his views 
 may be seen in the spacious (some say, over-spacious) 
 Vicarage he was instrumental in erecting. 
 
 It falls to the lot of very few men to introduce important 
 changes in the fabric or in the Services of a Church without 
 wounding some susceptibilities, arousing some regrets, or 
 interfering with some personal predilections, or supposed 
 vested rights. William Vallance was not one of that fortunate 
 few. The changes he had initiated caused in some quarters 
 
 1 The public observance of his Pastoral "Jubilee," in 1838 twelve 
 years as Curate, and thirty-eight years as Incumbent is duly noted 
 in the local papers of that date.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 137 
 
 considerable heart-burnings ; so when his work of restoration, 
 so far as he was able to carry it out, was finished, he asked to 
 be transferred to some other sphere of duty, leaving all the 
 good he had endeavoured to do to be carried on or perhaps 
 to be undone by a successor. 
 
 On his retirement, Archbishop Sumner, in 1854, appointed 
 DAVID DALE STEWAET, M.A., whose personal energy for 
 twenty-four years is gratefully remembered. In his time 
 there were to be seen no less than four District Churches 
 St. Philip's in 1858, St. Paul's in 1861, St. Faith's in 1872, 
 and St. Michael's in 1876 through the liberality of 
 Maidstone Churchmen, rising up one after another to meet 
 the rapidly increasing demands of the growing population. 
 
 During his Incumbency an Act of Parliament was passed 
 (in 1869) sanctioning the title of "Vicar" being taken by 
 all Perpetual Curates, and from that date the Incumbents 
 of Maidstone have been called " VICARS." 
 
 On Mr. Stewart's removal in 1878 by Archbishop Tait to 
 the more valuable living of Coulsdon, in the Diocese of 
 Rochester, THOMAS DEALTRY, M.A., previously Archdeacon 
 of Madras, was appointed to the Vicarage of Maidstone, 
 which he held only for a little over four years. 
 
 Of the affection with which the Parish regarded him, and 
 their appreciation of his ministrations, it is enough to say 
 that it found expression in the general desire to honour his 
 memory, not only by completing the yet unfinished work 
 begun by Mr. Vallance thirty years before in the restoration 
 of their noble Church, but also by making that restoration 
 worthy of Him Whose " House of Prayer " it was, of their late 
 Pastor, and of themselves. The carrying out of this grand 
 design, under the skilled eye of the distinguished Architect 
 .1. L. Pearson, R.A., devolved upon Mr. Dealtry's successor,
 
 138 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 EDWIN FRAXCIS DYKE, M.A., whom the Lord Chancellor (Lord 
 Selbome), the See being vacant on the death of Archbishop 
 Tait, selected to occupy this important post, which he at 
 present ably fills. 
 
 A better close to this series of Chapters on the building 
 itself and its successive Clergy cannot be found than in the 
 opening words of the Inscription which testifies to the 
 feelings of the Parish for their late Vicar, and their apprecia- 
 tion of their own goodly Parish Church. 
 
 TO THE GLORY OF GOD, 
 
 And in remembrance of manifold blessings vouchsafed to the 
 People of Maidstone, 
 
 THIS COLLEGIATE AND PAROCHIAL CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS 
 WAS RESTORED IN THE YEAR OF GRACE 1885. 
 
 The Roof of the Nave was erected 
 to the Memory of THOMAS DEALTRY, M.A., 
 
 Formerly Archdeacon of Madras, and Vicar of Maidstone from 
 1878 to 1882 ; 
 
 and of HARRIET his wife, 
 
 As a token of the esteem and affectionate regard of Parishioners and 
 
 Friends.
 
 ALL SAINTS' A PARISH CHURCH. 139 
 
 It may be well to insert here a List of the Clergy who have 
 been connected with this Church, whether as Rectors, Masters, 
 Curates, or Vicars, as given in the preceding Chapter. 
 
 1205. William de Cornhull Rector. 
 
 1241. John Mansell 
 
 1268. Thomas Corbridge 
 
 1279. Ralph de Forneham 
 
 1287. Nicholas de Knovylle 
 
 1310. Stephen de Haslingfelde 
 
 N. D. G-uido de la Valle 
 
 N. D. Anibaldus de Ceccano ,, 
 
 1350. Hugo de Pelegrini 
 
 1377. Robert Sibthorp 
 
 1390. William Tyrington 
 
 1392. Guido de Mone 
 
 1395. John Wotton, D.D. Master of the College. 
 
 1417. John Holond, or Holand 
 
 1419. Roger Heron 
 
 1441. John Drewell, or Darwell 
 
 1444. Peter Stuckley, LL.B. 
 
 1450. Robert Smyth 
 
 1458. Thomas Boleyn, LL.D. 
 
 N. D. John Freston, M.A. 
 
 1475. John Lee, D.D. 
 
 1495. John Camberton 
 
 1507. William Grocyn, D.D. 
 
 1519. John Penynton, M.A.
 
 140 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 1519. John Leefe, D.C.L. Master of the College. 
 1547. John Porter, M.A. Parish Priest. 
 
 J 1559. Kobert Carr Archbishop's Curate. 
 
 1620. Robert Barrell, M.A. 
 
 1643. Samuel Smith Intruded. 
 
 1644. Thomas Wilson 
 
 1654. John Crumpe 
 
 1661. John Davis, M.A. Archbishop's Curate. 
 
 1677. Humphry Lynde, M.A. 
 
 1687. Edward Ronan, or Roman, M.A. 
 1692. Gilbert Innes, M.A. 
 
 1711. Josiah Woodward, S.T.P. 
 
 1712. Samuel Weller, LL.B. 
 
 1753. John Denne, M.A. Perpetual Curate. 
 
 1800. James Reeve, M.A. 
 
 1842. William Vallance, M.A. 
 
 1854. David Dale Stewart, M.A. Vicar. 
 1878. Thomas Dealtry, M.A. 
 
 1883. Edwin Francis Dyke, M.A. 
 
 1 The names of Richard Auger and John Day appear as Assistant 
 Curates during the reigns of Edward VI. and Mary. See p. 115.
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 
 
 has certainly experienced its 
 full share of the ignorant, and often 
 wanton, spoliation of those mementos of 
 departed worth and tokens of affection 
 which, alas ! throughout the country has 
 been perpetrated under the melancholy 
 misnomer of " Church Restoration." 
 What a loss not only family genealogies, but even National 
 History, must have suffered under such ruthless destruction 
 it is impossible to calculate or conjecture ! Those records 
 graven in stone, long anterior to the existence of Parish 
 Registers, which would have borne generally reliable testi- 
 mony to the worth of individuals, or the greatness of 
 families, who filled no ignoble position in the Annals of the 
 country, are now for ever lost ! Not only must this deplor- 
 able demolition be charged on the mad and frenzied icono- 
 clasm of the Puritan zeal, which saw " the mark of the beast " 
 in every stained-glass window with its holy lessons, and 
 superstitious vanity in every effigy in brass with which 
 a pious mourner had adorned the tomb of some loved and 
 honoured kinsman no! there is no need to go back so 
 far in history, to times such as those. Modern utilitarian 
 ardour of this enlightened 19th Century is chargeable with its
 
 i 4 2 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 participation in this work of destruction as well as the mis- 
 guided so-called religion in the 17th. 
 
 Turn from Hamlet's melancholy reflection over the possi- 
 bility of the noble dust of Alexander being converted into a 
 " bung-cork," or that of Imperial Caesar " stopping a hole to 
 keep the wind away," 1 and think with what feelings some old 
 Kentish family, whose ancestral affection finds its centering- 
 point in Maidstone, would hear that the once richly embla- 
 zoned, or deeply engraved and ornamented, monumental slab 
 of a forefather's grave had ay, within the present Century 
 with arms and inscription laboriously obliterated and chiselled 
 out, been utilized (horribile dictu) to supply economical 
 partitions for a " Parish pigsty ! " 2 Or how would one of the 
 Municipal dignitaries of to-day contemplate the possibility 
 of his tombstone in some future day sharing the fate of that 
 of a civic predecessor which was actually used as " a paving 
 stone in Watery Lane " an indignity even greater than that 
 of the scores which, utterly irrespective of their proper graves, 
 now serve as pavements in the Churchyard paths. 3 
 
 Such Vandalisms have been perpetrated in this town, 
 and that within the enlightened 19th Century ! Indeed, 
 in the recent work of restoration, though the upper 
 portions of the Church have been so nobly beautified, 
 the pavements bear sad marks of the utilitarian spirit. 
 Let us take only one instance ; where a massive slab that 
 once indicated the grave of one of the Broughtons, (a family, 
 
 1 Hamlet, Act V., Scene 1. 
 
 2 Gentleman's Magazine, vol. Ixxxix. (1819), p. 232. The following 
 anecdote, recorded here, is worth preserving, as the record of a visit 
 to Maidstone : " A friend who was lately examining the monument of 
 Woodville was informed by a person present that it was always kept 
 in good and clean order, for he remembered putting nine coats of 
 whitewash over it." 3 Ibid., vol. xcii. (1822), p. 603.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 143 
 
 as will appear, of no insignificant origin and alliances,) has 
 been so placed that, while the upper portion containing the 
 family arms and crest boldly engraved serves as part of the 
 second step to the Communion rails, the inscription is wholly 
 buried under the step above it, and all means of identifying it 
 would have been lost but for a chance note among Clement 
 T. Smythe's MSS., preserved in the Maidstone Museum. 
 
 Having in Chapter II. spoken of the three oldest Monu- 
 ments, those of Archbishop Courtenay, Sir Richard Woodville, 
 and Dr. Wotton 1 which as Altar-Tombs were most conspicuous, 
 and formed to some extent part of the structural features of 
 the building, we would now pass on to give some account of 
 the other Monuments and Tablets which still appear on the 
 piers and walls, and some few on the pavements, of the 
 Church ; taking them, as far as possible, in chronological 
 order rather than according to their position in the building ; 
 so many of which have a special interest attaching to them, 
 either as connected with families still remaining in the 
 town or neighbourhood, or as illustrating by distinguished 
 examples the past history of the place. 
 
 Foremost among them, both for its age and also for its 
 character so rare, if not unique is the one to the Beale 
 family, and it has an additional claim to notice inasmuch 
 as that old Maidstone family, of which some of the descend- 
 ants still reside in the town, produced a direct representative 
 in the person of the late Rev. Beale Poste, whose name and 
 highly valuable work on " All Saints' College " have been so 
 frequently referred to in these pages. This Tablet supplies 
 also a connecting link with an ancestry who held an honour- 
 able place here at least five hundred years ago, contemporary 
 with Archbishop Courtenay himself. 
 1 Pages 32-48.
 
 144 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Inserted in the South-east face of the graceful column 
 which separates the South Aisle of the Chancel from the 
 Choir proper is an engraved plate of copper, thirty inches 
 long and eighteen wide, containing a genealogy of six gene- 
 rations (the designer of it himself representing the seventh), 
 and covering a period of considerably over two Centuries. 
 It is divided into six spaces, each representing a generation, 
 and each space again divided into three compartments, the 
 central one containing figures of the parents ; the Christian 
 name of the wife (or of the wives where there had been two) 
 being given, and also the relationship of the husband to the 
 descendant who had erected it ; the left compartment gives 
 in each case the sons, with the name of the one who 
 succeeded to the family honours, and in the right the 
 daughters ; all in kneeling postures. In the first and third 
 spaces on the right side, there being apparently no daughter 
 to commemorate, short sentences in Latin are introduced : 
 in the first, " jErwmnarum requies Mors " (Death is repose 
 from cares) ; and in the third, " Non potest male mori qui 
 bene viocerit " (That man's death cannot be bad whose life 
 has been good) ; while in the fourth, behind the kneeling 
 figure of a single daughter, is a coffin, or Altar-Tomb, sur- 
 mounted by a conspicuous " death's-head and cross-bones," 
 emblematic, it may be, of an early death. 
 
 At the foot of this series of family pictures are a. few short 
 sentences in Latin, of which the following may serve as 
 translations, with a long explanatory inscription below, also 
 in Latin : 
 
 " Mors deposicio sarcinse gravis." 
 (Death is the laying down of a heavy load.) 
 
 " Mors perfects? securitatis ingressus." 
 (Death is the entering into perfect freedom from care.)
 
 To face page 144. 
 
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 ALL SAINTS 1 , MAIDS 
 
 THE BEALE MONUMENT.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 145 
 
 " Lectori." 
 (To the reader.) 
 
 " Etsi pietas pro defunctis flere jubeat, 
 Fides tamen pro eis lugere vetat." 
 
 (Even though affection bids us shed tears for the faithful dead, 
 Yet faith forbids us to mourn for them.) 
 
 " Thomas Beale trinepos Johannis Beale tritavi sui bis Major 
 hujus ville, Deo et | Regi vivens supplex, frugali vita sua sorte 
 contentus, vicinis charus, et boni publici | hujus ville studio- 
 sus, duarum uxorum maritus, et ex illis xxi liberorum pater, 
 obiit ij die | Februarii Ao. 1593, & filios sex, filiasque duas 
 reh'quit. Cujus Pater Willelmus Beale nuper bis | Port- 
 grevius istius ville, egentibus ejusdem sua setate subveniens, 
 obiit Ao. 1534. Cujus | Avus Robertus vivens hac villa Ao. 
 1490. Proavus Johannes, Ao. 1461. Atavus Willelmus, Ao. 
 1429, | sua aetate etiam Portgrevius, et unus de primis fratribus 
 Domus Fraternitatis hujus | ville, postea sepultus in Ecclesia 
 Sti (sic) Fidei ; et Johannes ejus tritavus Ao. 1399, hie etiam 
 obiit. | Viventes hie etiam bene merentes hie etiam morientes 
 modo resurrectionem | carnis in adventu Christi expectant. 
 Quorum posteritati benedicat Deus. Quorum memoria | 
 Thomas till us dicti Thome hoc monumentum construct." 
 
 " Thomas Beale, thrice grandson ' of John Beale his great- 
 grandfather's great-grandfather, twice Mayor of this town, 
 humbly loyal to God and the King, of frugal and contented 
 spirit, beloved by his neighbours, and studying the good of 
 this town, the husband of two wives, and the father of 
 twenty-one children, died February 2nd, 1593, and left 
 surviving six sons and two daughters. Whose father William 
 Beale, lately Portreve of that town, who succoured its needy 
 in his time, died in the year 1534 ; whose grandfather, Robert, 
 lived in this town, and died in 1490. His great-grandfather, 
 John, in 1461. His great-great-grandfather, William, in 1429, 
 having also in his time been Portreve. and one of the first of 
 the Brethren of the Fraternity (of Corpus Christi) in this town, 
 was buried in the Church of St. Faith. And John, his great- 
 great-great-grandfather, also died in the year 1399. Here 
 
 1 Through three sets of generations a grandson. 
 
 10
 
 146 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 they lived, earning a good report ; here too, dying, look for 
 the resurrection of the flesh at the advent of Christ. May 
 God's blessing rest on their posterity. Thomas, the son of 
 the said Thomas, erects this monument to their memory." 
 
 The appended Genealogical Table may better explain the 
 line of family descent in the reverse order. 
 
 John Beale (his wife's name not given) died in 1399. 
 
 William (one of the Brotherhood), m. Katherine, d. 1429. 
 
 John, m. Agnes, and Alicia, d. 1461. 
 
 Eobert, m. Agnes, d. 1490. 
 
 William (twice Portreve), m. Johanna, d. 1534. 
 
 Thomas (twice Mayor), m. Johanna Cobb, and Alicia 
 
 Wolgate, d. 1593. 
 Thomas, his son, who erected this monument. 
 
 The next in point of age is the one known as the " Tufton 
 Tablet." It stands in close proximity to that of the Beale 
 family, being on the North-east face of the same Chancel 
 pier. It consists of a plain black slab of marble, enclosed 
 in a grey border, without a pretence to ornament beyond 
 a shield on the top, bearing the arms of Tufton (sable, an 
 eagle displayed, ermine, within a bordure, argent), impaling 
 those of Morley of Grlynd (sable, three leopards' faces, or ; 
 jessant-de-lis, argent). This tablet, like the more conspicuous 
 Monuments of the Astleys and Knatchbulls, differs widely 
 from the preceding one. These are memorials of families 
 that had but a brief connection with the town, and of which 
 all representatives have long since disappeared from the 
 locality; while that of the Beales, as already mentioned, 
 tells the tale of a family which has held close and honour- 
 able connection with Maidstone for at least five Centuries. 
 
 The Tuftons only became residents of Maidstone when,
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 147 
 
 early in the 17th Century, Sir Humphry, who was a younger 
 brother of Nicholas, the first Earl of Thanet, bought the 
 Mote of the Caesar family ; which, before its close, his grand- 
 son sold again to Sir Kobert Marsham. Soon after coming 
 here Sir Humphry Tufton lost three children two daughters 
 in their infancy, in 1635 and 1641 ; and in 1641 his eldest 
 son, when just twenty years of age. His death was the 
 occasion of the laudatory inscription on this Tablet, in which 
 are set forth in parental affection all the gifts and graces of 
 this flower of the family thus nipped in the bud, with a 
 supplementary display of all the lordly alliances which Sir 
 Humphry and his father and grandfather had formed, tracing 
 back each female acquisition to the family through four or 
 five generations up to the leading nobles of the land. 
 The lengthy Inscription runs thus : 
 
 " Next unto the Tombe of the Fownder of this Church on 
 the South syde thereof lye the bodies of Humphry Tufton, 
 Esq., Christian Tufton and Cicelie Tufton, his Sisters. Which 
 said Humphry Tufton was the eldest Sonne of Sir Humphry 
 Tufton of the Mote in this Parish, Knt. and Baronet, by 
 Margaret his wife, eldest daughter, and one of the Co-heirs 
 of Harbert Morley of Gline in Sussex, Esq., by Ann his wife, 
 eldest daughter unto Sampson Leonard of Kent, Esq., by 
 Margaret his wife, daughter and heir unto Thomas Fines, 
 Lord Dacres of the South ' ; who married Mary, daughter of 
 George, Lord Abergaveny, by the Lady Mary his wife, 
 daughter of Edward Stafford, Duke of Buckingham. 
 
 " And the said Sir Humphry Tufton was the second son 
 of Sir John Tufton of Hothfeild in Kent, Knt. and 
 Baronet, and Christian his wife, daughter and one of the 
 Co-heirs of Sir Humphry Browne of Essex, and Anne his wife, 
 
 1 So called to distinguish them from the other branch, who held 
 the family property in Cumberland, and were known as " Lords Dacre 
 of the North " (Collins' English Peerage, where the whole circum- 
 stances are explained).
 
 148 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 sister unto Bridget, Countess of Bedford, the daughters of 
 John Lord Hussye and the Lady Anne Grey his wife, 
 daughter unto George Grey, Earl of Kent, by the Lady 
 Katherine, daughter of William Harbert, Earle of Pembroke ; 
 the Grandmother of which George was the Lady Constance, 
 daughter unto John Holland, Earle of Huntingdon and Duke 
 of Lancaster, by the Lady Elizabeth, daughter unto John of 
 Gaunte, Duke of Lancaster, by the Lady Blanche, and brother 
 by the same father and mother to Sir Nicholas Tufton, the 
 first Baron of Tufton in Northian in Sussex, and Earle of 
 Thanet in Kent, and unto Cicely, Countess of Rutland, of 
 Francis, Earle of Rutland, and unto Mary, Viscountess of 
 Dunbar, wife of Sir Henry Constable, Vicount (sic) of 
 Dunbar. 
 
 " And the said Sir John Tufton was the sonne of John 
 Tufton of Tufton in Northian in Sussex, Esq. , sometimes High 
 Sheriff of County of Kent, and Mary his wife, eldest daughter 
 of Sir John Baker of Sussinghearst in Kent, by Elizabeth his 
 wife, daughter and heire unto Thomas Dinglye of Hampshire, 
 Esq. Which Sir John Baker was of the Privy-Counsel unto 
 King Henry the 8th, King Edward the 6th, Queene Mary, and 
 Queene Elizabeth : which said Mary had two sisters, one 
 married unto Sir Thomas Sackvile, Earle of Dorset, Lord High 
 Treasurer of England, and the other unto Sir Thomas Scott 
 of Scott's Hall in Kent. 
 
 " And the said John Tufton was the sonne of Nicholas 
 Tufton of Tufton in Northian in Sussex, Esq., by Margaret 
 his wife, daughter and heire of John Hever in Kent, Esq., 
 as by their Coate of Arms heere quartered by the Tuftons 
 appeareth. In which place their auntient seate in the name 
 Tuftons did long before continue. 
 
 "And as concerning the said Humphry Tufton, Hee by his 
 soundness of Religion and his discreete carriadge, to the 
 Glory of himselfe and Honor of his name gayned in his tender 
 years far beyond the expectation of his age, most affectiouat 
 love from his parents, opinion of all hopefulness from his 
 countrey, great joy and delight from all his acquaintance, and 
 by the sweetness of his disposition, comliness of person and 
 curtesy unto all, with the many qualities both of mind and 
 body wherewith his travells had inriched him, justly deserved 
 to bee accounted the Darling both of nature and education.
 
 To face page 149. 
 
 THE ASTLEY MONUMENT.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 149 
 
 He exchanged this life for the Celestial!, where his blessed 
 soul liveth in joyes everlasting ; although his losse here unto 
 his parents was unspeakable, and the griefe as greate unto all 
 that did know him. 
 
 " Obiit 3 Aug. 1641, ajtat. 20. 
 
 " He was a true lover of the Inhabitants of this Towne and 
 Parish, and had at the time of his death living 4 brothers, 
 viz., Sir John Tufton his second brother, Knighted shortly 
 after his death, Charles Tufton, Frauncis and Henry Tufton, 
 and 3 sisters, viz., Christian Tufton, Olimpha Tufton, and 
 Cicely Tufton. The said Christian Tufton obiit 14 die 
 Augusti 1641, setatis suse decimo quarto, being a handsome 
 and hopefull, a good and a vertuous gentle woman. 
 
 " And Cicely obiit 3 die Februarii 1635, aetatis suae tertio. 
 " This was erected Anno 1642." 
 
 These three appear to have been the only members of the 
 Tufton family buried in this Church ; Sir Humphry himself 
 withdrew to Bobbing Place, near Sittingbourae, where he 
 and two younger sons, Charles and Francis, were buried in 
 that Parish Church, and where Monuments of similar cha- 
 racter appear. His father, Sir John, was buried at Hothfield 
 in 1624, and his grandfather, Sir Nicholas, at Northian, in 
 1538. 
 
 Then come in a group four conspicuous Monuments of the 
 Astley family, which, as already mentioned, 1 were originally 
 obtruded inside the Altar rails, to the grievous disfigurement 
 and injury of the beautiful Sedilia, as the mutilated state of 
 their Canopies still shows. These were happily removed 
 during the recent alterations, and placed against the West 
 wall, to their own advantage, and far more to that of the 
 Chancel. 
 
 Of these the first to be noticed is a colossal one of grey 
 alabaster, rising to the height of twenty feet from the floor. 
 
 1 Page 51.
 
 ISO THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 It consists of two parts or stages, each containing a couple of 
 life-size figures, representing two generations. In the upper 
 stage appears John Astley, the first of the family to find a 
 home at Maidstone, whose singular career at the Court of 
 Queen Elizabeth demands some notice. He was descended 
 from the Sir Thomas Astley, Lord of Estleigh (from whence 
 the name is supposed to be taken), who was slain in the 
 Battle of Evesham in 1265, fighting for the Barons. His 
 mother's sister, Elizabeth Wode (or Wood), having married 
 Sir James, the brother of Sir Thomas Boleyn, became the 
 mother of Anne Boleyn, and therefore the grandmother of 
 Elizabeth. The Queen, acknowledging the cousinly kinship, 
 took him early into her household, where his intelligence 
 and accomplishments brought him to the notice and friend- 
 ship of Koger Ascham, the Mentor of his day, an advantage 
 he improved by marrying Katherine, the daughter of Sir 
 Philip Champernowne, who had been governess to the 
 Princess, and was one of the Ladies of the Bedchamber to 
 the Queen. 1 Thus he rose in favour with Elizabeth, who in 
 1558 appointed him Master of the Jewel House, and one of 
 the Grooms of the Chamber. Then in 1568 she conferred on 
 him the grant of Allington Castle, which on Sir Thomas 
 Wyat's attainder had reverted to the Crown. Soon after she 
 gave him also the Palace at Maidstone, and thus brought 
 him into connection with the town, which he represented in 
 the Parliaments of 1586 and 1588. His second marriage 
 with Margaret, daughter of Thomas, Lord Grey, brother of 
 the Marquis of Dorset, still further strengthened his position 
 at Court. Nor be it forgotten that he possessed a valuable 
 accomplishment which doubtless stood him in good stead 
 with the Queen : he was an authority on horses and horse- 
 1 T. Warton's Life of Sir T. Pope, pp. 81, 100.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 151 
 
 manship, and published in 1585 a work on The Art of 
 Riding. 1 What qualification he had for another appoint- 
 ment it is not easy to say, but in 1571 he had been selected 
 by the Queen " to attend the Archbishop of Canterbury " on 
 an inquiry " touching matters of Religion." 2 
 
 He died in 1595. He is represented on the upper stage 
 of this Monument, with his second wife by his side, each in 
 an arched recess. On either side projects at right angles a 
 marble flange or wing, containing an Inscription. 
 
 That on the left (at his side) is as follows : 
 
 " The Bight worshipf ull John Astley, Esquire, descended 
 
 from the truly awntient and honorable family 
 
 of the Lord Astley, the Capitall seat of 
 
 whose Barony was at Astley Castell in 
 
 Warwickshire, and with commendable regard 
 
 to the splendour of his birth and descent. 
 
 He made a noble paralel (sic) with his most 
 
 pious life and signall vertues. 
 
 He was justly acknowledged to be alyed 
 
 to the most illustrious Princess Queen 3 
 
 Elizabeth (by her mother's kindred), who 
 
 advanced him to places of principal repute 
 
 in Court services, being prime 
 
 Gentleman of the Privy Chamber and 
 
 Master of her Royal Jewels and Plate 
 
 thirty-seven years, and in other relations 
 
 before he had those places, from his 
 
 age of twelve yeares. 
 
 Mortis 
 Ann ^tatis 89." 
 
 1 This appeared anonymously, as " By a Gentleman of great skill 
 and long experience in the Art." His proficiency in this may account 
 for his being appointed on Committees " to pass horses for the Army " 
 (State Papers, Domestic, 1574, p. 487). 
 
 f Styype's Annah (1824), vol. ii., Part I., p. 708. 
 
 3 This relationship is explained above.
 
 152 2 HE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 On the right wing is the following Inscription : 
 
 " Margaret Grey, wife of the said 
 
 John Astley, Esq., was daughter of 
 
 Thomas Grey, branched out of the 
 
 Right Hon'ble house of the Greys, Duke 
 
 of Suffolke, Marques Dorcett (sic), Baron 
 
 of Groby, Harrington, Bonville, and 
 
 Astley. For the Heire Generall of 
 
 the last Baron Astley was married to 
 
 Reginald, Lord Grey of Ruthin, and 
 
 so the Title and Armes of the Barony 
 
 of Astley remayned in the Greys. 
 She left issue one sonne, Sir John Astley, 
 and three daughters, Margaret maried 
 to Anthony Nevile of Nottinghamsh. , 
 Esq. ; Bridgett maried to Sir Norton 
 Knatchbull of Mersham in Kent ; and Eleanor 
 maryed to Thomas Knatchbull of Mayd- 
 ston, brother to Sir Norton Knatchbull." 
 
 The lower portion of this Monument also contains two 
 figures of life size, and draped, like those above, in loose 
 shrouds, representing this son, Sir John Astley, and his wife 
 Katherine Bridges, whose descent and virtues are fully 
 recorded in the Epitaph which is placed between them, 
 while their arms are duly portrayed on the shield which sur- 
 mounts it ; that of the Astleys quarterly, 1 and 4, azure, a 
 cinquefoil, ermine, within a bordure engrailed, or; 2 and 3, 
 argent, a lion rampant, gules, ducally crowned, or ; impaling, 
 argent, on a cross, sable, a leopard's face, or, for Bridges : each 
 surmounted by its crest ; out of a ducal coronet, or, a plume 
 of five feathers, for Astley ; and out of a ducal coronet, or, 
 a Moor's head side-faced, for Bridges. 
 
 The Inscription tells how the son inherited the Koyal 
 favour, and how he rose to an office which would seem to be- 
 long rather to the times of the second Charles, " the Merry
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 153 
 
 Monarch," than to that of his melancholy and ill-fated 
 father, or his gloomy and pedantic grandfather. It runs 
 thus, in the stilted language of the day from the pen of a 
 trusted friend and admirer : 
 
 " Death hath added to the ornament 
 
 Of this place the blessed Memorials 
 
 Of the most accomplished Gent, by 
 
 Vertue and Parts, Sir John Astley, 
 
 Knight, onely sonne and heir of John 
 
 Astley, Esq., Master of the Jewels, &c. 
 
 Who from his tender years attended 
 On Queen Elizabeth in her Honourable Band 
 
 Of Pentioners ; and after was Master of 
 The Revels to King James and King Charles. 
 
 He married Katherine Bridges, 
 
 Daughter of Anthony Bridges, Brother 
 
 To the Lord Edmund Bridges, Baron 
 
 Shandois (sic), of Sudeley Castle, by whom 
 
 Having had issue divers children, 
 They all dyed before him, so that in 
 The Disposition of his Lands he affectio- 
 nately acknowledged both his Name 
 And his Nephewes, and left the care 
 Of his other Bequest in his Will to 
 William Harrison, Gent., the Queene's 
 Atturney in the Court of Common Pleas, 
 His Executor. Who out of due regard 
 To the Performance thereof and pious 
 Respect to the Memory of his Hon'ble Friend 
 Hath constructed this Monument. 
 Obiit 26 die Jan. A.D. 1639." 
 
 The term " nephewes " is here evidently used in the widest 
 sense of " kinsmen," for the member of the family to whom 
 the property passed was really only a Cousin, 1 as the accom- 
 
 1 In his Will (Somerset House), " Coventry," f. 21, he always calls 
 Sir Jacob his " dear Cosine.''
 

 
 THE MONUMENTS. 155 
 
 panying Genealogical Table will show. 1 Both Sir John and 
 Sir Jacob were descendants of the same Sir Thomas Astley, 
 the one through his first wife, Anne Broughton, and the 
 other through his second wife, Anne (or Hellen) Wode, or 
 Wood. 
 
 Thus on the death of Sir John the property passed to his 
 cousin, Sir Jacob, whose loyalty and prowess covered the 
 name of Astley with far more glory than did either " the 
 Master of the Jewels" or he " of the Revels," and reflected 
 no little honour on the Town of Maidstone. This was the 
 Sir Jacob Astley who fought gallantly in defence of the 
 King against the Parliamentary forces, and so especially dis- 
 tinguished himself in the re-capture of Reading, that Charles 
 raised him to the Peerage, connecting the name of that town 
 with his Barony, creating him Baron Astley of Reading. It 
 is of him that Clarendon says : " Sir Jacob Astley was an 
 honest, brave, plain man, and as fit for the office he exercised 
 of Major-General of the Foot as Christendom yielded ; and 
 was so generally esteemed." 2 Another contemporary 3 has 
 borne a still higher testimony to his worth in recording the 
 following anecdote, that before entering the Battle of Edgehill 
 (where he was severely wounded) he knelt down and offered 
 this memorable prayer : " Lord, Thou knowest how busy I 
 must be this day. If I forget Thee, do not Thou forget 
 me ; " and with that he rose up and cried out, " March on, 
 boys!" 
 
 To his memory appears a Tablet, characteristic in its 
 
 1 This Table is compiled on those given in Berry's Pedigrees of 
 Kentish Families, p. 372 ; in Blomefield's History of Norfolk, voL ii., 
 p. 419 ; and in Bayne's History of Eastern England, vol. ii., p. 143. 
 
 History of the Rebellion (University Press, 1843), vol. i., p. 482. 
 
 3 Sir Philip Warwick's Memories of the Reign of Charles I., p. 229.
 
 ] 5 6 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 simplicity, a black marble slab without border or ornament, 
 with the following quaint rhyming Epitaph : 
 
 " To the never dying Memory of that 
 Great Souldier and Person of Honour 
 Lord Jacob Astley, Baron of Reading. 
 
 Let th' Island Voyage (in the Van) speake forth 
 
 Thy youthful Valour, thy all-daring Worth ; 
 
 Next Neweport Battell, where thou didst preferr 
 
 Honour to Life ; There made an Officer 
 
 By famous Orange (thy great Generall), 
 
 Under whose Sword (that day) Spayns force did fall ; 
 
 What Cloudes of Nations could I raise for thee 
 
 And each one would a glorious witnesse bee, 
 
 As Holland, Denmarke, and vast Germany, 
 
 All grieve thy losse, honour thy Memory. 
 
 England (thy Mother) crowned thy hoary head 
 
 With Major Generall. Here in Honours Bedd 
 
 Thou (now) dost rest ; And with more Honour than 
 
 These times afford unto a Noble Man ; 
 
 Faith, Valour, Conduct, All in Souldier should 
 
 Or could be wisht for, This Tombe doth infold. 
 
 Ao. Dni. 1653. 
 Obiit 27 Die Februarii 1651.'" 
 
 Far more ostentatious was the form in which his widow, a 
 Grerman lady, whose maiden name was Agnes Imple, desired 
 to display her affection and admiration for one whose soldier 
 spirit and bearing had probably captivated her in one of his 
 campaigns abroad, a massive slab of black marble, seven 
 feet long and five feet wide, resting on four white columns, 
 forms a " herse," bearing on its centre a slightly sloping 
 shield of snowy white marble, whereon, between two lion 
 supporters, collared and ducally crowned, are carved in bold 
 relief the Astley arms, impaling what was no doubt her own 
 
 1 Newton, p. 95.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 157 
 
 family blazon, a falcon* resting on a dead branch, but with 
 this unusual arrangement of the bird facing " sinister-wise." 
 
 Conspicuous as this Monument still is without any extra- 
 neous ornament, how much more imposing and attractive 
 must it have been when (as we are told) there hung over it, 
 as in the case of the Tomb of the Black Prince at Canterbury, 
 the "great banner, and pennons, with coat, helm, crest, 
 sword, shield, and coronet," 2 of the devout and brave old 
 soldier. 
 
 After him two generations, his son and grandson, both 
 bearing his Christian name, remained in possession of the 
 adjoining Palace. When, however, the representative of the 
 third generation died in his father's lifetime without issue,, 
 the property passed by sale, like the Mote, to the Marsham 
 family. To the memory of this last member of this branch 
 of the house of Astley a fourth Tablet was erected, recording 
 his gifts and his father's sorrow at his premature death : 
 
 " Juxta hoc Mormmentum 
 In Hypogseo arcuato extructo 
 Exuviae Johannis Astley, filii natu minoris 
 Jacob Astley de Melton-Constable in Comitatu Norfolciae 
 Militis, et Baronetti, 
 
 Deponuntur, 
 
 Quo felicius misceantur cineribus 
 
 Praenobilis Viri Proavi sui Domini Jacob Astley 
 
 Et Ulustrium Propinquorum Dominorum Isaac et Jacob Astley 
 
 Baronum de Reading in Com. Berks. 
 Qui, cum Belgium totum et Foederatas Provincias semel 
 
 1 In a private Collection, preserved in the College of Arms, Lady 
 Astley's family coat is given as a raven; but in Le Neve's MSS. Notes 
 on Kentish Churches, in British Museum (Additional MSS., No. 5479, 
 f. 305) it is described as & falcon, and the figure on the slab certainly 
 rather resembles the latter bird. 
 
 1 Le Neve's Notes, as quoted in preceding note.
 
 158 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Et celebriores Gallise et Italise partes, Elegans Peregrinator 
 
 bis lustrasset, In Angliam rediit, 
 
 Linguarum imprimis Latinse, et Scientiarum, si quis alius, Peritissimus. 
 
 In quo, si uspiam, Artes Ingenuae et Humaniores Literas 
 
 cum selectissimis moribus Liberaliter habitabant. 
 
 At, Proh Dolor ! Nominis hie alterum Decus, 
 
 Amicorum Deliciae et Desiderium, Nee unquam suis, nisi moriendo 
 
 gravis, 
 
 Praematurus, et Prolis expers, Variolarum morbo correptus, 
 Londini, fato cessit Junii 30, Sepultus Julii 4. 
 
 JErae Christiana? 1719 
 Ann ,Etatis42.i 
 Hoc, tantse virtuti et Amori sacrum, poni curavit Mcestissimus Pater." 
 
 Which in English would run thus : 
 
 " In an arched vault 2 near this Monument are deposited the 
 remains of John Astley, the younger son of Jacob Astley, of 
 Melton-Constable, in the County of Norfolk, Knight and 
 Baronet, that they may be the more auspiciously mingled 
 with the ashes of that very noble man his great-grandfather 
 Sir Jacob Astley, and his illustrious relatives Sir Isaac and 
 Sir Jacob Astley, Barons of Reading, in the County of 
 Berks. When he had made a tour through Belgium and the 
 Netherlands, and twice traversed the more famous parts of 
 France and Italy, he returned to England, perfect master 
 (if any one was) of the Languages, Latin especially, and the 
 Sciences. In him dwelt lavishly (if anywhere) the liberal 
 arts and more refined learning, with the most polished manners. 
 But oh ! what grief ! he, a second ornament of the name, the 
 delight and idol of his friends, who never caused his family 
 a regret except in dying, was carried off prematurely, and 
 without leaving any children, by an attack of small-pox in 
 London, June 30th, and was buried here July 4th, A.D. 1719, 
 aged 42. His most afflicted Father caused this to be placed as 
 a tribute to his great virtue and a mark of his own affection." 
 
 The final words of the Epitaph on the North wing of 
 
 1 Newton, p. 96. 
 
 2 This vault was in the Chancel, from which all these Monuments 
 have been removed.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 159 
 
 the original Astley Monument supply the connecting link 
 between it and the neighbouring one to Thpmas Knatch- 
 bull, Esq., and his wife Eleanor Astley, which is more 
 fully told in the Inscription on a long slab of blue marble 
 erected by their eldest son, Sir Norton Knatchbull, many 
 years after their deaths, to the following effect : 
 
 "Juxta hie repositi contiguis requiescunt urn is. ne quos 
 vivos irrupta | Tenuit copula, Mors dirimeret, Thomas Knatch- 
 bull, Armiger, Filius | Richard! Knatchbull de Mersham- 
 Hatch, Armigeri, natu quartus, et | Eleonora Uxor ejus, Filia 
 Johannis Asteley, Magistri Jocalium, et a Privata | Camera 
 serenissimae Reginae Elizabethas, Armigeri. Obiit ille A.D. 
 1623 | Annum agens quinquagessimum secundum. Ilia vero 
 1638, aetatis sexagesimo Tertio. 
 
 " Utrique pietate insignes in Proximos, in Liberos, in Deum 
 singulari, | Habuerunt prolem septem Filios, Richardum, 
 Nortonum, Franciscum, | Thomam, Asteleyum, Johannem, et 
 Georgium ; Quorum quinque defuncti | Innubi, supersunt 
 Nortonus et Thomas. Et quatuor Filias, Bridgettam, | Mar- 
 garetam, Susannam et Aliciam ; Quarum Priores tres jam 
 etiam | Defunctae, Tertia sine prole, Quarta adhuc in vivis. 
 
 " Justa haec, debitae pietatis memor, evolvit tandem Dominus 
 Nortonus | Knatchbull de Mersham-Hatch, Miles et Baronet- 
 tus, Eorundem Thomas | et Eleonorae Filius et Haeres, Anno 
 Salutis Mundi 1653." ' 
 
 The substance of which may be thus given in English : 
 
 " Here repose close by in adjacent coffins, that death might 
 not tear apart those whom in life an unbroken bond had 
 held together, Thomas Knatchbull, Esq., the fourth son of 
 Richard Knatchbull, of Mersham-Hatch, Esq., and Eleonora 
 his wife, the daughter of John Astley, Master of the Revels, 
 and a Groom of the Chamber, of her most Gracious Majesty 
 Queen Elizabeth. He died in 1623, in his 52nd year ; she in 
 1638, aged 63. 
 
 " Both were conspicuous for their duty towards their neigh- 
 
 1 Newton, p. 97.
 
 160 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 hours, to their children, and to God. They had seven sons, 
 Richard, Norton, Francis, Thomas, Astley, John, and George ; 
 of whom five died unmarried : Norton and Thomas survive. 
 And four daughters, Bridget, Margaret, Susanna, and Alice : 
 the three former are already deceased (the third without 
 family), the fourth is still alive. 
 
 " Sir Thomas Norton Knatchbull, of Mersham- Hatch, Kt. 
 and Bart., the son and heir of -the said Thomas and Eleonora, 
 mindful of his debt of affection, thus at length unfolds their 
 merits, A.D. 1653." 
 
 The striking feature of this Monument is the array of 
 seven richly emblazoned shields which run along the face of 
 the frieze, and illustrate the family alliances. 
 
 In the centre, within a medallion, are the arms of Knatch- 
 bull: azure, 3 crosses crosslet fitchee between 2 bendlets, 
 or; impaling Astley, quarterly, 1 and 4, azure, a cinque- 
 foil, ermine, within bordure engrailed, or ; 2 and 3, azure, 
 a lion rampant, gules ; each surmounted by its crest (1) on 
 a chapeau, azure, turned up, ermine, a leopard statant, 
 argent, spotted, sable, for Knatchbull ; and (2) out of a ducal 
 coronet, or, a plume of five feathers, argent, for Astley. 
 
 On the dexter side the extreme shield has the Curteis 
 arms : argent, a chevron, sable, between three bulls' heads 
 cabossed, gules, impaling Knatchbull and Astley quarterly. 
 (Greorge Curteis, of Tenterden, 1 who was High Sheriff for 
 Kent in 1651, married Bridget, the eldest daughter of 
 Thomas Knatchbull.) 
 
 Next to it comes the shield of Toke of Godington (modern 
 and ancient) : quarterly, 1 and 4, argent, on a chevron 
 between 3 greyhounds' heads erased, sable, collared, or, 3 
 plates, of the second ; and, 2 and 3, an augmentation-coat 
 
 (Survey of Kent,' p. 413) describes him as "of Chart, 
 next S'atton Valence."
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 161 
 
 granted by Henry VII., parti-per, chevron, sable and argent, 
 3 griffins' heads erased, counter changed. (Nicholas Toke, 1 
 Sheriff for Kent in 1663, married, as his second wife, Margaret, 
 another daughter of Thomas Knatchbull.) 
 
 The third on this side, the nearest to the centre one, con- 
 tains the arms of Knatchbull and Astley quarterly, impaling 
 Westrow, or, a chevron in chief, 3 crescents, argent. (His 
 eldest son, Norton, the first Baronet, created in 1641, married 
 Dorothy, daughter of Thomas Westrow, Sheriff of London.) 
 
 The first on the sinister side of central shield has Knatch- 
 bull and Astley quarterly, impaling Chute, gules, semee de 
 mullets, or, 3 swords barwise, ppr. (His second son, Thomas, 
 married Anne Chute, daughter of Edward Chute, of Apple- 
 dore.) 
 
 The next on the sinister side is, or, a chevron between 
 3 talbots, ppr., impaling Knatchbull and Astley as before. 
 
 While the last is, per pale, gules and azure, a saltire, or, 
 with a crescent for difference, impaling as before. 2 
 
 Having brought to an end the description of this interest- 
 ing and historical family group of the Astley and Knatchbull 
 Monuments, we pass on to those of more miscellaneous 
 character ; and here some system may be adopted, instead 
 of giving them in the promiscuous manner in which they 
 appear in the pages of Newton. 3 It will be seen that Physic, 
 I^w, the Army, Commerce, Clergy, had here no unworthy 
 representatives, among former inhabitants of Maidstone. 
 
 1 So say Berry in his Kent Pedigrees, and Hasted in his list of the 
 Sheriffs ; but in Wotton's Baronetage he is called " Thomas." 
 
 * The intermarriages of the daughters, Susan and Alice, have not 
 been traced. 
 
 3 Every Inscription has been carefully verified by the original, and 
 where occasionally inaccurately printed in Newton's History, has been 
 corrected : in each case the reference has been given. 
 
 11
 
 162 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 First to take the disciples of Galen ; foremost among them 
 in point of time will come John Davy, 1 whose memory 
 is preserved in a handsome alabaster Monument in the 
 South-east corner of the South Aisle of the Chancel. The 
 central portion of this Monument contains busts of John 
 Davy and his wife in bold relief ; he attired in full academic 
 costume, with a Vandyke collar, the whole contour of his 
 face, long flowing curls, moustache, and imperial, strikingly 
 resembling his Koyal Master ; she wearing the broad coif- 
 like head-dress of the period, loosely falling over luxuriant 
 ringlets ; while each lays a hand on a skull lying between 
 them. In the tympanum of the pediment is a shield 
 bearing the Davy Arms (of the Norfolk family) 2 : sable, a 
 chevron engrailed, ermine, between 3 annulets, argent. 
 While in the space below the entablature, between the heads 
 the same, for Davy, impaling sable, on a cross, or, between 4 
 fleur-de-lis, argent, 5 pheons, azure, for Banks of Aylesford. 
 On either side of the Inscription is a medallion, containing 
 in relief the full face of a lady, with that of a man in profile, 
 doubtless representing the two daughters and their husbands. 
 
 The Inscription runs thus 3 : 
 
 " Neare this Place lye buried the Bodyes of John Davy, 
 Physition, third Sonne of Robert Davy of Eston in the 
 
 County of Norfock, Gent., and of Katherine his 
 Wife, Daughter of John Banks of Maidestone in the 
 County of Kent, Gent., with whome hee lived in Marriage 
 9 Yeares. Shee changed this Life for a better the 18th of 
 January 1631, and left unto him Issue one Sonne and 3 
 Daughters ; John and Katherine deceased. Mary his el- 
 dest Daughter himselfe saw married to John Wall, 
 
 1 Mentioned with honour in the Burghmote Records, C.C., f . 11. 
 * A full account of this family will be found in Blomefield's History 
 of Norfolk, vol. ii, pp. 395-6. 3 Newton, p. 86.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 163 
 
 Gent., Citizen and Draper of London. Elizabeth his 
 
 Youngest to Nathaniel Andrewes, Esq., Son of 
 Thomas Andrewes, Lord Mayor of London. He depar- 
 ted this Life the llth of May 1649, And of his Age the 69th 
 
 Yeare ; leaving his two surviving Daughters his Exe- 
 cutors. Who out of Duty and Affection to theyre deare 
 Father, have dedicated this Monument the 25th of September 
 
 1651. 
 
 He left by Will a parcel of Land of the value of 20 pound 
 per annum for ever, for an augmentation to the Stipend of 
 the Master and Usher of the Schoole of Maidestone." 
 
 Following, according to date, come two men of the name of 
 STAPLEY, father and son, both, it would seem, distinguished 
 in their profession, if we may trust the Latin Epitaphs ^which 
 in the stilted style of that day proclaim their learning : 
 
 "01. Viri 
 
 Quippe Animi dotibus 
 Cumulatissime Ornati 
 D'ni Roberti Stapley 
 
 Medicinae Doctoris 
 
 Quod reliquum est heic subtus jacet, 
 
 Pleuritis, Nephritis, Diabetis (pernieiosse Triadis), 
 
 Non unius Morbi, Trophoeum. 
 
 Mortalitatem exuit, Maii die xix. 
 
 Anno D'ni MDCLXXV., ^Etatis LXIL, 
 
 Magna superstite fama. 
 
 Sepulchrale qualecunque Marmor, 
 
 Parenti suo olim charissimo 
 
 Posuit ac vovet 
 
 Votumque Posteris sacratum esse voluit 
 Filius vere mcestus Rich. Stapley." 
 
 Which may be thus rendered in English : 
 
 " Underneath lies what remains of Sir Robert Stapley, a 
 man of note, Doctor of Medicine, most richly adorned with 
 mental gifts, the victim not of one single disease, but of a 
 deadly trio, Pleurisy, Nephritis, and Diabetes. He laid aside 
 
 1 Newton, pp. 88, 89.
 
 164 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 his mortal body on the 19th of May, 1675, at the age of 62, 
 leaving behind a great reputation. His very sorrowful son, 
 Richard Stapley, has placed this sepulchral Monument, such 
 as it is, as a votive offering to his most dearly loved father, 
 and a sacred Memorial to posterity." 
 
 That to the son himself is as follows : 
 
 " Richardus Stapleius, A.M., Medicus, 
 Fato functus 29 Nov. A.D. 1679, ^Etat. 25. 
 
 Hie subtus jacet. 
 
 Viator, si ad annos spectas, Praematurus, 
 Sin ad eruditionem, longaevus obiit. 
 
 Cursum Juvenis peregit 
 
 Quern raro Senes assecuti sunt. 
 
 In Medicina, in Anatomia, in Scientia Botanica 
 
 Ins true tissimus . 
 Quo vix, Phoebe, tua fueras praestantior Arte ; 
 
 Et, licet Oculus Mundi, 
 
 Sane digniorem Alumnum non conspexisti. 
 
 Sed, proh Dolor ! Praematura Mors oppressit 
 
 Scientiarum simul et sseculi hujus 
 
 Ornamentum. 
 
 Invidia Parcarum hoc factum arbitror, 
 
 Quse imperio suo dum viveret timentes 
 
 Vetuere ulterioris Lucis Moram." 
 
 " Richard Stapley, A.M., a Physician, who died on the 29th 
 Nov., 1679, aged 25, lies below. You who pass by, to you, if 
 you regard merely his years, his death will seem premature, 
 but if you look at his learning, his was a ripe age. As a young 
 man he accomplished a course which old men have rarely 
 achieved, being a perfect Master of Medicine, Anatomy, and 
 Botany. Him didst thou, O Phoebus, scarcely excell in thine 
 own art. And though thou art the ' Eye of the World,' 
 verily thou hast never looked on more worthy pupil. But, 
 alas ! a too early death overwhelmed one who was the orna- 
 ment of science and of his age. Methinks it was brought 
 about by the envy of the Fates, who, fearing their own empire 
 was in danger so long as he lived, forbad that Light to shine 
 any longer." 
 
 The son admits that he wrote the more modest Epitaph
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 165 
 
 for the father, but it is not avowed who was responsible for 
 the fulsome adulation of his own. 
 
 In a medallion at the foot are the Arms of Stapley (of 
 Sussex) : gules, 3 boars' heads within a bordure engrailed, 
 argent, impaling, or, a fesse, azure. 
 
 After them comes another formidable rival for medical 
 fame, in the person of Dr. Charles Lybbe 1 : 
 
 " Hie situs est Oarolus Lybbeus, M.D., ex illustri 
 Libbeorum familia in agro Oxoniensi ortus, 
 
 Domo vetustate, opibus, et sincera erga 
 
 Principem fide imprimis conspicua. Si verum 
 
 Admittis Lector, invidia licet audiente, dicam quod 
 
 Res est, fuit ille cum optimis priscorum 
 
 Temporum medicis facile comparandus 
 
 Prsesentis sevi si non primus at certe 
 
 Inter primes, ^tatis xxxiv. pridie 
 Idus Junii MDCLXXXVI. tediis vitse 
 
 Fatigatus potius quam morbo 
 
 Confectus diem euum obiit, at fama 
 
 Virtutum memoria hominum vivit 
 
 Viret que nunquam interiturus." 
 
 Which may be thus presented in its English dress : 
 
 " Here is laid Charles Lybbe, M.D., sprung from the illus- 
 trious house of Lybbe in Oxfordshire, a house conspicuous 
 for its antiquity, its wealth, and before all for its loyalty. 
 If, Reader, you allow me to say so (in defiance of envious 
 listeners), what is the actual fact, he would well bear com- 
 parison with the best of his profession in former times, and if 
 not the very first, is certainly among the foremost of the 
 present day. He closed his career at the age of 34, on the 
 day before the Ides (12th) of June, 1686, worn out with the 
 fatigues of life rather than carried off by disease, yet by the 
 fame of his virtues does he live, yea, and will enjoy an im- 
 perishable life in the memory of men." * 
 
 1 Newton, p. 91. 
 
 ' The Arms, as given in Lee's Visitation of Oxfordshire (1574) are :
 
 166 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 This is followed by one of more modest claims * : 
 
 "Prope ab hoc pariete 
 
 Exuviae GRIFFITH HATLEY conduntur. 
 
 Filius fuit natu quintus 2 
 
 Johannis Hatley, 
 
 Civis Londinensis (Generosa Prosapia 
 
 Apud Goldington in Agro Bedfordiensi oriundi) 
 
 Et Annse uxoris ejus, filias Johannis Porter, 
 
 De Lamberhurst in Com. Cant. Armigeri. 
 
 In Aula Pembrochiana Cantabrigise scientiis excultus, 
 
 Medicinae Doctor creatus est, 
 
 Quam deinde in hac Villa Regia per 40 annos 
 
 Cum magna peritiae fideique laude factitavit ; 
 
 Justiciarii quoque ad Pacem officio functus, 
 
 Ne ullo unquam modo civium commodi deesset. 
 
 Uxores duxit 
 
 Johannam Smith Quae juxta requiescit, 
 
 et Saram Tymbrell De Portsmouth in Agro Hanton. 
 
 Quse Viro optime de se merito superstes, 
 
 Hoc Monumentum pie posuit. 
 
 Honoribus tandem, Opibus, Annisque cumulatus 
 
 Londini, ubi vitalem auram nascens hauserat, 
 
 Moriens efflavit. 
 
 Dom. MDCCX. 
 Juki 31 Anno 
 
 ermine, a bend between two lions rampant, gules. Crest : on a wreath 
 an arm embowed in mail proper, holding a halbert erect. According 
 to this Visitation, printed in The Topographer (Salisbury), vol. i., p. 19, 
 the Lybbe family came originally from Taston, Devon ; and in the 
 middle of the 16th Century one of them took to wife Joan, daughter 
 of John Corker, of Checkenden, in Oxfordshire, and settled there, from 
 whom this Charles Lybbe was descended. 
 
 1 Newton, p. 82. 
 
 2 In the entry of his name in the Admission- Book of Pembroke 
 College, Cambridge, he is called "the eldest son": "Mail 14, 1655, 
 Griffith Hatky, Johannis Grocerii Londinensis filius natu maximtis, <&c., 
 admissus est."
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 167 
 
 This, turned into English, thus tells its tale : 
 
 " Near this wall are buried the remains of GRIFFITH 
 HATLEY. He was the fifth son of John Hatley, Citizen of 
 London (sprung of a gentle race at Goldington, in Bedford- 
 shire), and of his wife Anna, daughter of John Porter, of 
 Lamberhurst, in the County of Kent, Esq. He was educated 
 in Pembroke Hall, Cambridge, and took the degree of Doctor 
 of Medicine, which he then practised for 40 years in this 
 ' King's Town,' l with great credit for skill and conscien- 
 tiousness. He also so performed the duties of Justice of 
 the Peace, that he never failed in promoting the good of his 
 fellow-citizens. He married twice : first, Johanna Smith, 
 whose remains lie close by ; and Sarah Tymbrell, of Ports- 
 mouth, in Hampshire ; who, surviving him, has piously raised 
 this Monument to a husband who deserved so well at her 
 hands. At length, full of honours, riches, and years, he 
 breathed his last in London, where he had drawn his first, 
 July 31, 1710, aged 71." 
 
 From one who combined with his practice of Physic the 
 office of Justice of the Peace, we not inappropriately pass on 
 to those who were more directly " learned in the Law." 
 
 First of these comes the Monument of Lawrence Wash- 
 ington, formerly placed on the North side of the East 
 window in the Chancel, and now occupying a very elevated 
 position on the South wall of the Church ; which contains 
 the following Inscription 2 : 
 
 " ' Mortalis Morte Immortalis.' 
 
 u Here resteth the body of Lawrence Washington, Esq., 
 of the Family of the Washingtons, antientlie of Washington 
 in the Countie Palatine of Durham ; Register of the Highe 
 
 1 Maidstone was so styled in King James's Charter of 1604, and the 
 title is still retained in the Sheriffs Warrants, and in the " Habeas 1 
 Corpus " forms, to this day. 
 
 1 Newton, p. 94.
 
 168 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Court of Chancery xxvii yeares. 1 He had two wyvfs (sic), 
 Martha, daughter of Clement Newce of Hartfordshire, Esq., 
 and Mary, daughter of Sir Raynold Scott of this Countie, 
 Knight. By his first he had 5 sons and 2 daughters, Lawrence 
 and Mary, the eldest, only lyving, 2 Lawrence, succeeded him 
 in his Office, married Ann, daughter of William Lewyn, 
 Judge of the Prerogative Court. Mary married William 
 Horsepoole of this Parish, Gentleman. His other daughter 
 Martha married to Arthure Beswick, Gentleman, sonne of 
 William Beswick of this County, Esq. 
 
 " He havinge lived a Vertuous life of singular Intiecrity 
 (sic) in this place, being of the age of Ixxiii yeares, died the 
 xxi of December A.D. 1619. 
 
 "A Faithful believer in the meritts and mercies of his 
 Saviour. 
 
 " To whose memory his Sonne hath erected this Monument. 
 
 " Though after my skinne Wormes destroy this Body, 
 
 Yet shal I see God in my flesh." 
 
 The allusion to Durham in this Epitaph is somewhat 
 perplexing, for the Christian name of Lawrence never occurs 
 among the original Durham Washingtons, nor in that branch 
 of the family which subsequently settled at Aldwicke-le- 
 Street, in Yorkshire. 3 Whereas the great George Wash- 
 ington traced his descent to the elder of two brothers, John 
 and Lawrence Washington, " who emigrated from the North 
 of England " in the days of the Commonwealth ; and these 
 Baker 4 distinctly connects with those at Sulgrave in North- 
 amptonshire, who appear to have been a family of Lawyers, 
 and among whom the Christian name of Lawrence occurs in 
 
 1 He was elected Bencher of Gray's Inn in 1599, as shown in the 
 Register of that Inn. 
 
 s The exact words of the Inscription are here given, though they 
 seem to involve some confusion or obscurity. 
 
 3 Surtees' History, etc., of the County Palatitie. of Durham, vol. L, 
 p. 40. Hunter's South Yorkshire, vol. i., p. 354, n. 
 
 4 Baker's History of Northants, vol. i., p. 513.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 169 
 
 almost every generation. In that case, it is a reasonable 
 inference that the Lawrence Washington of this Monument 
 was an ancestral relative of the " First President of the 
 United States." 
 
 Of those who filled the important local office of EECORDER 
 of this town only three appear thus commemorated. The 
 first of whom any mention is here made was WILLIAM GULL 
 (who was Recorder from 1599 to 1634, when he resigned 
 from old age), and his name only occurs incidentally in the 
 Epitaph on his daughter Mrs. Crompe, thus : 
 
 " Under the second stone 
 
 From the wall rests 
 
 The Body of Lidia, late wife of Thomas Crompe, 
 Daughter of William Gull, Esq., 
 
 Recorder of this Town, 
 Who died the 1st of October 1624." 
 
 Nearly a Century elapses before another is similarly 
 honoured, when appears the name of William Dixon (on 
 a Monument on the North wall of the Chancel Aisle), with 
 the following Inscription : 
 
 " To the Memory of WILLIAM DIXON, Esq., 
 
 Descended from the Dixons of Helden in this County. 
 
 He was a Barrister at Law, Bencher of Grey's Inn,* 
 
 And many years Recorder of this Corporation. 
 Who died the 19th day of January 1725, aged 80." 3 
 
 The following is to another Recorder : 
 
 1 Newton, p. 88. 
 
 1 He was elected Bencher in 1689, and Treasurer in 1698. 
 
 3 Newton, p. 85.
 
 1 70 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 " To the Memory of 
 WILLIAM DIXON, Esq., 
 
 Descended from the Dixons of Hillden in this county. 
 
 He was Barrister at Law, Bencher of Grays Inn, 
 
 and many years Recorder of this Corporation. 
 
 Who dyed the 19th of January 1725, aged 80. 
 
 Also to the memory of 
 
 Rebecca his wife, 
 
 who died March 1st 1729, aged 58. 
 
 They had one son and three daughters, 
 
 Samuel, Catherine, Sarah, and Rebecca. 
 
 Two of them surviving, Catherine and Rebecca, erected this Monument." 
 
 The name of Dixon again occurs in connection with 
 another tablet, which records the worth of a sister-in- 
 law, 1 who would seem to have been a modern " Dorcas " : 
 
 " Prope hanc columnam 
 
 Depositi sunt cineres 
 D'ae ELIZABETHS GALLANT, 
 
 Pietate erga Deum, 
 Liberalitate erga egenos, 
 Et omni genere fcemineae virtutis 
 Inter Municipales suos praeclara. 
 Cujus ne Memoria 
 Cum corpore periret. 
 Hoc Epitaphium inscribi curavit 
 Gulielmus Dixon Armiger. 
 Obiit 23 die Junii, Anno Salutis 1715." 
 
 The English of which may be thus given : 
 
 " Near this pillar are deposited the ashes of Mrs. ELIZABETH 
 GALLANT, conspicuous for her piety towards God, her liberality 
 to the needy, and for every kind of womanly virtue among 
 her fellow-townsfolk. That the remembrance of her should 
 not perish with her body, William Dixon, Esq., has caused this 
 Epitaph to be inscribed. She died on the 23rd day of June, 
 in the year of our Salvation 1715." 
 
 1 He had married Rebecca Gallant.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 171 
 
 The Gallant family appear to have held for some time 
 an important and influential position in the town. The 
 name frequently occurs in the list of Jurats, Chamberlains, 
 and, in their turn, of Mayors 1 ; as also in connection with 
 the Church as Wardens. 
 
 Then follows a long interval, no other Recorder's name 
 appearing till the beginning of the present Century, when 
 that of Sir John Buchanan Riddell is worthily commemorated 
 on a richly ornamented brass plate on the East wall of the 
 South Chancel : 
 
 " In memory of 
 
 Sir JOHN BUCHANAN RIDDELL, 
 
 of Riddell in the County of Roxburgh, Bart., 
 
 Who died at the Mote, Maidstone, on the 21st April 1819, 
 
 in his 50th year, and was buried in the Chancel of this Church. 
 
 Also of his Widow, 
 
 the Lady Frances Buchanan Riddell, 
 
 daughter of Charles, first Earl of Romney, 
 
 who lived 48 years in the Palace, Maidstone, and there died 
 
 on the 30th of June 1868, in her 90th year, 
 
 and was buried in the Cemetery of this Parish. 
 
 This Monument was erected by their four sons and five daughters." 
 
 There is also, if reliance may be placed on the lan- 
 gi age of his Epitaph, one who well deserves an honourable 
 position among the luminaries of the Law, and who, though 
 not himself a Recorder, was the son-in-law of one. His 
 merits are thus set forth in laudatory Latin on a marble 
 Tablet on the North wall of the North Aisle of the Chancel, 
 under that of his father-in-law, William Dixon, and from 
 which he would seem to have been as rich in personal gifts 
 and graces as in legal lore : 
 
 " Hoc juxta marmor | conditte jacent mortales exuviae | 
 SPICER WELDON, Armigeri, | Hospitii Lincolniensis Lon- 
 dini, | Assessoris dignissimi ; | Qui dum vixit, erat | in
 
 172 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 Causis agendis, | Patronus capax, integer, diligens ; | Lucri 
 nimium nee appetens nee avarus, | Pietatis non fucate, | 
 Fidei vere Christianas | Cultor sincerus, nee morosus ; | 
 Verbi Divini Auditor non infrequens. | Hinc in eo amabile 
 illuxit exemplum, | quod semulentur plurimi, imitentur 
 pauci, | Assequantur vero paucissimi. | Utpote qui ornnia 
 vitae mutuEe officia | Humanitate prorsus laudabili adimple- 
 vit ; | Maritusoptimus,optimusqueParens, | Amicus strenuus, 
 fidusque, | Comes jucundus nee levis, | Urbanus, liberalis ; | 
 Vir denique probus, prudens, benevolus. | Exiguo hoc maximi 
 amoris et debiti cultus testimonio, | Marmor ejus cohonestari 
 voluit Vidua pietas spectata moestissimse | Rebeccse filiae et 
 cohoeredis Gulielmi Dixon, Arniigen | Et hujusce Municipii 
 olina Proprsetoris | Cui relicta est filia Rebecca | Luctus 
 Materni Particeps et Solatium. | Obiit vir integerrimus Maii 
 die decimo tertio | ^tatis suse> anno LIV. Salutis 
 MDCCXLVIII. | In eodem etiam sepulchro jacent sepulti | 
 Catherina Weldon filia, | Et Dixon Weldon filius, | Ilia obiit 
 Junii die xij. MDCCXXXIX., ^t. IV. Hie Novembris die 
 xix, MDCCXLIV., ^Et. VI." 
 
 In modified form the same appears in English on a slab 
 in the Chancel floor, between the North Stalls and the lower 
 step to the Communion Rails, with the addition of the death 
 of his wife, Eebecca Weldon, thus : 
 
 " Beneath this stone lies the body of 
 
 SPICER WELDON, Esquire, 
 
 Bencher of Lincoln's Inn. 
 
 He married Rebecca, one of the daughters and coheiresses of 
 
 William Dixon, Esquire, late Recorder of this town. 
 He died the 13th of May, Anno Domini 1748, aged 54 years. 
 
 Under the same stone also lies buried 
 
 Catherine Weldon their daughter, and Dixon Weldon their son. 
 
 She died the 12th of June, Anno Domini 1739, aged 4 years. 
 
 He died the 9th of November, Anno Domini 1744, aged 6 years. 
 
 Also the body of Mrs. Rebecca Weldon, 
 widow of the above Spicer Weldon, Esquire, . . . " ' 
 
 1 The date of her death is lost under the step, nor does the Church 
 Register contain any entry of her burial.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 173 
 
 The Army, too, was worthily represented here. 
 
 The earliest now remaining bears the name of one who 
 seems to have belonged to a family of soldiers. His name, 
 indeed, only occurs among those of a brother's family, Captain 
 Gustavus Belford, on a stone near the East end of the South 
 Aisle, where it is recorded : " Here lieth the Body of 
 Lieutenant General Belford, many years Commander of the 
 First Batallion of Royal Artillery, who died 1st June, 1780," 
 a date which suggests that he probably took part in some 
 of the battles of the earlier stage of the American War, 
 Lexington or Bunker's Hill. 
 
 Those that follow recall the days when Maidstone was 
 the headquarters of a Cavalry Regiment. The first records 
 the tragic close of a career full of bright promise. The 
 tale is thus told on a plain black tablet on the East wall 
 of the South Aisle : 
 
 " In Memory of 
 PETER SHADWKLL, 
 
 Lieut. Col. of the 23rd Regt. of Light Dragoons, 
 and Commandant of the Cavalry Depot ; 
 who was shot to the heart by a deserter 
 
 in the Public Street of Wrotham at 8 o'clock in the morning, 
 on the 1st day of June 1799, in the 47th year of his age. 
 
 By this atrocious deed 
 the Country was deprived of a valuable Officer, 
 
 and the Soldier of a sincere Friend ; 
 
 who from his extraordinary Military talents 
 
 rose from a private to the rank he held when he was murdered." 
 
 An interval of thirty years occurs, and Maidstone produces 
 a memento of one of the Peninsular Officers belonging to 
 a Regiment which carries on its colours the well-known 
 names of " Vimiera," " Corunna," " Talavera," " Salamanca," 
 etc. :
 
 174 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 " Sacred to the memory of 
 
 Lieutenant Colonel GEORGE TOD, 
 
 29th Regiment of Foot, who died 3rd June 1832. 
 
 And of Sarah his wife, who died 25th December 1840. 
 
 Whose remains, with those of their infant son George Gordon, 
 
 are interred near this spot in the vault of Joseph Hills. 
 
 Lieutenant Colonel George Tod 
 
 Served with distinction in Spain and Portugal, 
 
 Under the Duke of Wellington, and in North America. 
 
 He was the third son of William Tod, Esq., Fochabers, N.B., 
 
 Deputy Lieutenant and Justice of the Peace 
 for the Counties of Banff, Moray, and Inverness." 
 
 Over the Inscription is a shield, argent, a fesse chequy 
 of the first and sable, between 3 foxes' heads erased, with 
 a mullet for difference. 
 
 From the Peninsula we pass to India and the Punjab, 
 and to a time which again recalls the days when Maidstone 
 was the headquarters of a Cavalry Regiment. 
 
 On the West wall of the Nave is the following tribute 
 to a gallant body of officers and men who had doubtless 
 been well known in this town, and who fell fighting their 
 Country's battles in the Far East : 
 
 " Sacred 
 
 to the Memory of 
 
 Lt. Colonel WILLIAM HAVELOCK, K.H. 
 He served in Portugal, Spain, and France, 
 at Quartre-Bras, where he was wounded, 
 
 and at Waterloo. 
 He fell at the head of his Regiment, 
 
 charging the Sikhs 
 at Ramnuggar on the Chenab, 
 
 on the 22nd day of November 1848, Aged 56 years. 
 
 Captain JOHN FORSTER FITZ-GERALD ; 
 
 he died on the 26th of November 1848, 
 
 of wounds received in action at Ramnuggar, 
 
 Aged 28 years.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 175 
 
 Lieut. AUGUSTUS JOHN CURETON,' 
 
 killed at the Battle of Chillianwallah, 
 
 on the 13th of January 1849, 
 
 Aged 18 years. 
 
 Lieut. AMBROSE LLOYD, 
 
 killed at the Battle of Gujerat, 
 
 on the 21st of February 1849, 
 
 Aged 26 years. 
 
 Serjeant John Harwood, Corporal William Parker Todd, 
 and Privates John Alderton, William Alpine, Richard Bagg, William 
 
 Brazenor, 
 
 Charles Fox, John Hatton, Richard Hungerford, Benjamin Jennings, 
 James Raines, Charles Tuttell, John Ward, and George Williams, 
 
 Killed on the 22nd of November ; 
 and George Atkins, David Evans, and George Tookey, 
 
 Killed on the 13th of January 1849. 
 
 The Officers of the 14th (King's) Light Dragoons 
 
 erect this Monument to their Comrades 
 
 who fell in the Campaign of the Punjab. 
 
 (Be thou faithful unto death)." 
 
 This necessarily brief record of what was one of the most 
 brilliant episodes in the Punjab Campaign will admit of a 
 fuller account from the pen of an eye-witness, it being borne 
 in mind that William Havelock was one of a brotherhood 
 of gallant soldiers, of whom Henry, the hero of the " Relief 
 of Lucknow," was the best known ; while his brother Charles, 
 too, was no insignificant sabreur. The scene at Ramnuggar 
 is thus described 2 : " Brigadier Cureton had given his con- 
 sent to another body of these (Sikhs) being attacked by the 
 14th, and the Commander-in-Chief (Lord Gough), riding up 
 to William Havelock, had said, ' If you see a favourable 
 opportunity of charging, charge.' The gallant old Colonel 
 
 1 This was the stripling son of the brave old Brigadier whose death he 
 had so short a time before witnessed at Ramnuggar. (See next page.) 
 3 Calcutta Review, vol. xi., pp. 274-5.
 
 176 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 soon made the opportunity. And so it was ; not many 
 minutes after, William Havelock, ' happy as a lover,' and 
 sitting as firmly in his saddle as when he leapt the abatis 
 on the Bidassoa, placed himself at the head of his cherished 
 Dragoons, and remarking, ' We shall now soon see whether 
 we can clear our front of these fellows or not,' boldly led them 
 forward to the onset. All who beheld it have spoken with 
 admiration of the steadiness and the gallantry of this glorious 
 charge. . . . Havelock was not even wounded. . . . Again the 
 trumpets of the 14th sounded, and Havelock, disregarding 
 all opposition and difficulties, and riding well ahead of his 
 men, exclaimed, as he leapt down a bank, ' Follow me, my 
 brave lads, and never mind their cannon shot.' These were 
 the last words he was ever heard to utter. . . . He never 
 returned from that scene of slaughter. . . . He is said to 
 have slain several Sikhs with his own hand on that day. . . . 
 We know that few had learned in youth to wield sabre or 
 rapier like William Havelock, and at fifty-six his eye had 
 lost nothing of its native quickness." In the meanwhile, 
 during the first charge, " Brigadier Cureton, bravely riding 
 to the front, had received in his gallant breast a fatal match- 
 lock ball." 
 
 And yet another Monument remains to be noticed to the 
 gallant officer who preceded Havelock in command of this 
 distinguished Eegiment : 
 
 " Sacred 
 
 to the memory of 
 Lieutenant Colonel JOHN WALLACE KING, C.B., 
 
 who commanded the 14th Light Dragoons 
 during the greater part of the Punjab Campaign 
 
 of 1848, 1849, 
 and died at Lahore on the 6th of July 1850.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 177 
 
 This Tablet 
 
 was erected by his brother Officers 
 as a Testimony that the many virtues 
 
 which had endeared him to a numerous circle of Friends at home 
 
 were appreciated by those who witnessed his gallantry abroad 
 
 while commanding his Regiment in the Field." 
 
 Among the miscellaneous the earliest still preserved is 
 that to Susann Maplesden, which runs thus : 
 
 "SUSANN MAPLESDEN being of the just age of 84 years 
 hath ended her Pilgrimage vertuouslie and with good Report, 
 being one of the daughters of Thomas Partridge of Lenham, 
 Gent. She lived with her Husband Jarvis Maplesden (one 
 of the Jurates of this Town)' 45 years ; By whom she had 
 issue five Sons and six Daughters, whereof three Sons and 
 four Daughters were married and had issue, so that they 
 and their Children were 4 score and ten souls before her 
 death. She lived a Widow 10 Years 5 Months and 3 Weeks, 
 and ending her Life with a constant Faith and full Assurance 
 in her Saviour Jesus Christ. She was buried the 18 Day of 
 October Anno 1603. RM. COSE." 
 
 The name of Maplesden or as Philipott a spells it, Mapelys- 
 den calls up a sad association with one of the great national 
 events which to a serious extent disturbed the peace of 
 Maidstone. George Maplesden, of an ancient family of 
 mark in the neighbourhood, which had owned the Manor 
 of Bigons (or Digons) from the days of Edward III., had 
 recently become possessed of Chillingdon Manor House. It 
 may be this close proximity to Allington Castle proved fatal 
 to him, for he was involved in that mad rebellion which, cost 
 Sir Thomas Wyat his Castle and his head, and lost also 
 to Maplesden his Manor and his life, and the Town its 
 Charter for a time, events which must have occurred in 
 the middle-life of that aged and matronly widow of Jarvis 
 Maplesden, the subject of the foregoing Epitaph. 
 
 1 He was Mayor in 1577. 2 Philipott's Villare Cantianum, p. 229. 
 
 12
 
 178 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Here is an Inscription noteworthy from its singular 
 character : 
 
 " Hie jacet Corpus Willi Stanley, 
 
 SCDVS (Secundus) Fil. IO. Stanley de 
 
 West Peckham Gen., Fil. Willi 
 
 Fil. Thome Fil. Johis Stanley 
 
 de Wilmington 3 Fil. Willi 
 
 Stanley Armig. DNVS (Dominus) de Stanley 
 
 in Comi. Staff PDCVS (Prsedictus) Will. 
 
 Obiit 23 Augusti 1621." 
 
 It concisely represents six generations, and may be thus 
 amplified : 
 
 " Here lies the body of William Stanley, the second son 
 of John Stanley of West Peckham, Gentleman, the son of 
 William, who was the son of Thomas, who was the son of John 
 Stanley of Wilmington, the third son of William Stanley, 
 Esquire, Lord of Stanley in the County of Stafford. The 
 aforesaid William died August 23, 1621." 
 
 This corresponds exactly with the Stanley Pedigree given 
 by Berry, who traces this William Stanley from Lord Stanley 
 of Stafford, and adds that he married Audrey, daughter of 
 William Elston, of Maidstone. 
 
 On the North wall of the Chancel is a very characteristic 
 Monument of the Stuart period, consisting of an arched 
 canopy of alabaster, supported by flat black pillars, flanked 
 by two cherubs, one having his foot planted on a skull. In 
 the centre are two figures kneeling before a double " Prie 
 Dieu," with open book on either slope, the man in black 
 civic gown, with deep rolled collar ; the lady also in black, 
 with a coif draping her head. Above them, in the middle 
 of the entablature, is a shield, 1st and 4th (for Carkaredge, 
 of Godmersham), argent, on a fesse engrailed, sable, three 
 quarterfoils, or ; 2nd and 3rd, so defaced that it is not easy 
 to conjecture the charges. Under the arch, between the
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 179 
 
 two figures, another shield, dexter as above, impaling 
 quarterly, 1 st and 4th, yules, a bend, or ; 2nd and 3rd, a cross 
 flory, sable. 
 
 Under the figures is the following Inscription : 
 
 "Memorise Sacrum 
 
 Thomas Karkaredg, filii unici Gervasii Karkaredg, generosi, 
 et Marise filias Georgii Hills de Eggerton prope Godmersham, 
 generosi ; Qui cum amantissime vixisset cum Amia, filia 
 Arthuri Francklyn de Wye, generosi, conjuge sua per quin- 
 quaginta fere annos sine prole, primo die Decembr. A. 
 Salutis 1639, et JEtatis suze 72, ab hac luce migravit. 
 
 " Hoc (exiguum licet) Amoris sui erga humatum conjugem 
 Testimonium contumulari Desiderio uxor relicta moerentis- 
 sima meritissimo posuit. 
 
 " Hunc (Tu Lector) viventem esurientes pascendo, nudos 
 vestiendo, et ad haec (apud Wye et Godmersham) ad imperpe- 
 tuum legando, imitare, et mercede cum eo nunquam peritura 
 fruere. 
 
 "Serius aut citius omnis movetur urna." 
 
 Which may be thus rendered in English : 
 
 " Sacred to the Memory of Thomas Karkaredg, the only 
 son of Gervase Karkaredg, Gentleman, and Mary, daughter 
 of George Hills of Eggerton near Godmersham, Gentleman. 
 Who, after he had lived with his wife Amia (the daughter of 
 Arthur Francklyn of Wye, Gentleman) most lovingly for 
 almost fifty years, without any family, passed away from this 
 life on the 1st of December 1639, aged 72 years. 
 
 " This mark (slight though it be) of her love for her buried 
 husband has his most sorrowing relict caused to be erected to 
 him whose loss was most deservedly regretted. 
 
 " Reader, do thou imitate him in life, in feeding the 
 hungry, clothing the naked, and to that end leaving bequests 
 in perpetuity (for Wye and Godmersham), 1 and with him 
 enjoy an imperishable reward. 
 
 " Sooner or later every one's urn is shaken, i.e., every one's 
 turn to die must come." 
 
 1 He left 6 a year no trifling sum two hundred and fifty years 
 ago to be divided between the two Parishes, for supplying clothing to
 
 i8o THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 It is said that "some are born great, and some have 
 greatness thrust upon them ; " clearly Thomas Karkaredge 
 would come under the latter head. The Burghmote Eecords 
 tell of an incident in his Maidstone life which may account 
 for the tenor of his Will. He was elected in 1624 by his 
 fellow-townsmen to fill the office of Jurat, 1 but declined the 
 honour, and for his refusal was subjected to a fine of twenty 
 marks. This he resented ; and while Maidstone Church 
 possesses a memorial of his benevolent spirit, that benevo- 
 lence itself, perhaps in umbrage, though fifteen years had 
 passed, found its objects in his ancestral neighbourhood of 
 Wye and Grodmersham. 
 
 Below the Monument to Thomas Karkaredge is a black 
 slab with an Inscription which would seem to connect the 
 family of Francklyn, 2 into which he had married, with that 
 of Gilbert Innes, one of the Clergy of the Church. It runs 
 thus : 
 
 "Near this marble lieth the body of 
 
 Walter Francklyn, Gent., 
 who died the 23rd of Septr. 1758, 
 
 aged 68 years. 
 
 Also Jane, his wife, 
 
 daughter of the Rev. Gilbert Innes, 
 
 Formerly Minister of this Parish, 
 
 who died the 26th of May 1754, 
 
 aged 56 years." 
 
 two poor widows in each Parish, specifying with a minuteness indica- 
 tive of a " Hosier " the materials and colour of the several garments. 
 
 1 Burghmote Eecords, B.B., f . 79. 
 
 2 This is not the earliest mention among the Monuments of the 
 Francklyn family ; indeed, the floor of the North Chancel Aisle is 
 nearly paved with tombstones bearing the names of members of the 
 family, but they are so much defaced by wear as to be in most cases 
 illegible.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 181 
 
 While the alliance of the Knatchbull family with that of 
 the Astleys is displayed here on a richly emblazoned Monu- 
 ment, a more modest, yet far more eloquent Inscription, on 
 a plain unadorned Tablet, tells how the more ancient Kentish 
 house of the Derings of Surrenden became connected with 
 Maidstone in the person of a daughter of the first Baronet 
 (" the learned Sir Edward "), who married into the family 
 of English, at that time owning the neighbouring Manor of 
 Buckland. The following touching tribute to her worth is 
 here offered by her bereaved husband : 
 
 " Hie inhumata obdormit Dorothea 
 Olim Dei nunc Deo redditum donum, 
 D. Edwardi Dering, militis et Baronetti filia, 
 Thomae English de Buckland, Annigeri, Uxor, 
 Ob conjugalem fidem et morum suavitatem 
 
 Merito charissima. 
 
 Filios tres, Filias vero septem peperit, 
 In ultimarum tandem Gemello partu 
 
 Martyrio quodam expiravit. 
 Placide quiesce chare Cinis ! 
 Militasti pulchre, jam triumphas eximie, 
 Dum inter lachrymas et luctus gemens maritus 
 Hoc amoris sui testimonium inscribi curavit. 
 
 Obiit xx Aprilis MDCLXIX. ^Etat. suse xxxviii." ' 
 
 It may be thus, though imperfectly, given in English : 
 
 " Here sleeps entombed, once the gift of God, now given 
 back to God, Dorothea, daughter of Sir Edward Dering, 
 Knight and Baronet, the wife of Thomas English of Buckland, 
 Esquire. Deservedly most dear to her husband for the 
 
 1 She was the daughter of Sir Edward Dering, the first Baronet 
 (created in 1628), by his third wife, Unton, the daughter of Sir Ralph 
 Gibbs (Berry's Pedigrees of Kent, p. 397).
 
 :82 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 faithfulness of her married life, and the sweetness of her 
 manners. She had 3 Sons and 7 Daughters, and at length 
 died in agony, giving birth to twins. 
 
 Calmly rest, dear Shade ! 
 
 Well hast thou fought, now enjoy thy triumph to the full, 
 While thy afflicted husband, 'mid tears and sighs, 
 Causes this to be inscribed in token of his love. 
 
 She died on the 20th of April 1669, aged 38 years." 
 
 On a plain oval tablet in the North wall of the South 
 Chancel Aisle : 
 
 " Sacred to the memory of Dorothy Lawrence, Daughter 
 of John Lawrence, Esq., of Barns in Surrey, and Grand 
 Daughter of Sir John Lawrence, Lord Mayor of London, in 
 the memorable year 1665, whose magnanimity on that occasion 
 is recorded to His Honour. His descendant, to whom this is 
 dedicated, resembled her Ancestor in those incommunicable 
 perfections of the mind which adorn humanity, and by 
 uniting the practical Christian virtues to superior talents 
 rendered her life a blessing, and her death was -universally 
 lamented. 
 
 " She departed this January 2nd 1793, Aged 72." 
 
 This Monument (which is unnoticed by Newton) connects 
 the town of Maidstone indirectly with a man who filled 
 no insignificant position in the Corporation of London, and 
 indeed with a momentous period in the history of England. 
 Sir John Lawrence, little as he is known, seems to have fully 
 merited the praise bestowed on him in this Tablet of his 
 Grand-daughter. He was the son of an influential citizen, 
 and, like his father, a member of the Grocers' Company. 
 Notwithstanding the evil report which had reached the 
 King of the Corporation generally * for they were in ill- 
 favour for persistently resisting the attempts of the Crown 
 
 Gentleman's Magazine (1769), vol. xxxix., p. 515.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 183 
 
 to interfere and dictate in civic matters Lawrence, who 
 had been elected to the Shrievalty in 1658, must have been 
 regarded as an exception, or as a man worth being won over 
 to the King's side ; for he was Knighted within a month 
 of Charles's Restoration. It was, however, in the memorable 
 year 1665 that, as Lord Mayor, he covered himself with 
 honour ; for as Orridge l says, " Sir John Lawrence was 
 distinguished for his heroic benevolence during the Great 
 Plague." Evelyn, 2 too, records that the Procession that 
 year was "the most magnificent triumph by water and 
 land." This Blue-Coat-School boy must also have been a 
 man of no inconsiderable intellectual attainments, for he 
 was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1673 then, as 
 now, no trifling honour. 
 
 In the pavement of the North Chancel Aisle : 
 
 " Here lye the bodies of Thomas Cripps of this Parish, Gent, 
 (eldest son of John Cripps, Gent.), and Margaret his wife, 
 who left issue only Mary, sometime the wife of Edward Fogg, 3 
 Esq. (eldest son of Richard Fogg of Dane Court in the Parish 
 of Tilmanstone in this County), who exchanged this life for an 
 imortall (sic) in the 45th yeare of his age, and was also here 
 interred the 6th day of March in the yeare of our Lord 1683." 
 
 The following is on a marble Monument on the North 
 Chancel Wall. Over this Monument are the two shields, 
 that on the dexter side, on a chevron 7 horseshoes, for 
 Cripps ; on the sinister, a cross flory composed of nine 
 lozenges, for Fotherby : 
 
 1 Orridge's Citizens of London and their Rulers, p. 238. 
 
 - Evelyn's Diary (Bray, 1850), vol. i., p. 385. 
 
 3 This Edward Fogg seems to have come of a family of sailors. 
 He was captured by the Dutch on June 1st, 1666, and released as an 
 exchanged prisoner in the following November. Ardueologia Cantiaiut, 
 vol. v., p. 114.
 
 184 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 " D. O. M. S. 1 
 Hie sita est Margarita Cripps, 
 
 Filia natu minina 
 
 Thomae Fotherby Arm. et Elisabetha 
 
 (Robert! Moyle Arm. filiae) 
 
 Uxor Johannis Cripps, Gen. 
 
 Cui peperit filios duos Thomam et Johannem ; 
 
 Quorum Johannem superstitem reliquit, 
 
 Longo prognata sanguine 
 
 Moribus suis majores cohonestavit. 
 
 Vixit pietate erga Deum insiguis, 
 
 Conjux amantissima, mater optima, 
 
 Obiit Oct. die 8vo, An. Dom. 1696. ^Etatis suae 36." 
 
 :< Here lies Margaret Cripps, the youngest daughter of 
 Thomas Fotherby, Esq., and Elizabeth (daughter of Robert 
 Moyle, Esq.), the wife of John Cripps, Gentleman, to whom 
 she bore two sons, Thomas and John, of whom she left John 
 surviving. Sprung from an ancient family, she did honour 
 to her ancestry by her own life. Distinguished for her piety 
 towards God, a most loving wife and excellent mother, she 
 died on the 8th of October A.D. 1696, aged 36." 
 
 Within three years she was followed to the grave by her 
 youthful husband, when a touching Epitaph bore testimony 
 to their mutual love and holy lives : 
 
 1 The real meaning of these letters is doubtful. On every Monu- 
 ment or Tombstone in almost every foreign Cathedral or Church the 
 first three letters (D.O.M,) appear ; but the addition of S. is very 
 unusual. Some learned men have assigned to the letters a Pagan 
 origin, as expressing a dedication to some patron deity, thus : " D(eo) 
 O(ptimo) M(aximo) " " To the very good and great deity." Others 
 incline to give it a more Christian significance, thus : "D(atur) O(mnibus) 
 M(ori)," with in this case the addition of the word " S(emel) " " It is 
 appointed to all men once to die," as being to every reader a reminder 
 of his own mortality. Or, again, others have suggested another expla- 
 nation : " D(omus) O(mnium) M(ortalium),'' that the grave is the 
 house to which all mortals journey.
 
 2 HE MONUMENTS. 185 
 
 " Juxta Charissiman Conjugem requiescit 
 
 Depositum Johannis Cripps, Generosi. 
 
 Amantissimus vitae Comes, postliminio mortis 
 
 Qui obiit xxiv die Julii Anno Dom. MDCXCIX. 
 
 ^Etatis su83 xxxvi, insimul obdormit in Domino 
 
 Dignissimum Par in spem Beatae Resurrectionis. 
 
 Hanc Mnemosynem defuncti fratris Epigraphe subjiciendam 
 
 Curavit Cripps Gener. 
 Memoria Piorum 
 
 The substance of this may be thus given in English : 
 
 " Close by his very dear wife rests the body of John Cripps, 
 Gentleman. Her most loving companion in life, he was 
 restored to her in death. He died on the 24th of July 1699. 
 
 " Together sleep this most worthy couple in hope of a 
 Blessed Resurrection," etc. 
 
 In the centre of the Chancel, between the Rails and 
 Altar, on a slab : 
 
 " Hie jacet una cum duobus filiis 
 Thoma et Samuele ante patrem 
 Extinctis, FARNHAMUS ALDERSEY, 1 
 Familia non minus opulenta quam 
 Vetusta prognatus ; liberos quatuor 
 Ex conjuge Sara, adhuc viva duos 
 Mares, totidemque fceminas sibi 
 Superstites reliquit. Maidstonii, 
 Ubi etiam laudatam vitam egit, 
 Piam mortem obiit KAL. Januarii 
 Anno Redemptions humanaj 
 MDCLXXXVI. ^Etatis LXIII." 
 
 At the head of this Inscription is a shield, bearing quarterly, 
 1 and 4, on a bend engrailed between two cinquefoils, three 
 
 1 Second son of Thomas Aldersey, of Bredgar. His father had 
 married Margaret, the daughter of Humphrey Farnham, of Leicester, 
 and the second son received the mother's maiden name (Berry's Kentish 
 Pedigrees, p. 290).
 
 i86 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 leopards' faces, for Aldersey (identifying him with the old 
 Cheshire family of that name) ; and 2 and 3, a fesse, on 
 chief three boars' heads (? for Taylor, of Maidstone, his wife 
 Sara having, according to Berry, been the daughter and 
 co-heir of Eichard Taylor, of Cranbrook, a brother of Sir 
 Thomas Taylor, of Maidstone), with the crest a demi-griffon 
 issuing from a plume of five feathers. 
 On a stone in Middle Aisle : 
 
 " Christopherus Fullagar l 
 
 Generosus, 
 Obiit xij die Julrj, 
 ^Etatis LVI. 
 
 Salutis MDCCLXI. 
 Hie sepulta jacet Elizabetha 
 Christophori Fullagar, 2 Generosi 
 Charissima Uxor, Valentin! 
 Chadwicke de East Peckham 
 Vicarii dilectissima Filia, quae 
 Et si non annis tamen virtute 
 Et pietate repletam vitam egit, 
 Et, Deo sic volente, premature 
 Obiit decimo quinto die Octobris 
 Anno Domini 1693, ^Etat. xx, Expectans 
 Per Jesum Christum Felicem 
 
 Resurrectionem. 
 Anna Fullagar supra nominati 
 Christophori Fullagar vidua 
 Obiit xiij die Maii 
 
 Domini MDCCLXH. 
 
 JStatis suse LXXXVIT. 
 Anna Maria Fullagar 
 Obiit xiv die Julii 
 Anno aetatis LXII. Salutis MDCCLXIII." 
 
 1 Newton, p. 92. 
 
 * Hasted, ii., p. 121, says, " Samuel Fullagar bought the site of 
 St. Faith's Church, and his son, Christopher Fullagar, became proprietor 
 of it."
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 187 
 
 On a slab in the North Chancel Aisle under a shield, 
 1 and 4, spread eagle ; 2 and 3, like Knatchbull : 
 
 " Richard Polhill died the 12th January 1739, Aged 32 years. 
 
 Left issue three sons. 
 Also Rebecca his wife 
 
 (afterwards married to Mr. Robert Hartridge), died 
 
 Novr. the 14th 1757, Aged 59 years. 
 
 Also Richard, the youngest son of 
 
 the above named Richard and Rebecca Polhill, 
 
 died June the 19th 1783, Aged 45 years." 
 
 And on an adjoining slab the following : 
 
 " Under this stone lyeth the body of 
 William Polhill, Gent., who died 
 April llth 1768, Aged 68 years. 
 
 Likewise the body of 
 
 Thomas Turnis, who died 
 
 March the 30th 1750, Aged 69 years. 
 
 Also Elizabeth his wife died 
 
 July 28th 1780, Aged 86 years. 
 
 Also David Polhill, Esq., died 
 
 October the 3rd 1782, Aged 67 years. 
 
 Also William Polhill his son died 
 
 July 10th 1789, Aged 37 years. 
 
 Also Miss Helen Polhill 
 
 his daughter died August 13th 1795, Aged 35 years. 
 
 And Mrs. Helen Polhill, Wife of the above David Polhill, 
 
 Esq., died April 10th 1796, 
 
 Aged 73 years." 
 
 On the North-west face of the Eastern pier of the 
 Chancel, under the figure of a child weeping over an urn, 
 is a tablet to one of Maidstone's Benefactors, from the 
 chisel of Nollekens: 
 
 " Sacred to the Memory 
 
 of Sir Charles Booth, Knt., 
 
 late of Harrietsham Place in this County, 
 
 who died the 26th day of April 1795, Aged 60 years.
 
 i88 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 By his Will he bequeathed 
 
 Two Thousand Pounds 
 to be invested in Government Securities, 
 
 the interest thereof 
 to be applied for ever 
 
 to the education of Poor Boys and Poor Girls, 
 
 Inhabitants of, or near unto this Parish. 
 
 With other like Charitable Legacies to the 
 
 Parishes of Harrietsham, Harden, and Horsmonden in this County. ' * 
 
 On a flagstone in South Chancel, near Vestry Door : 
 
 "In memory of 
 
 EDWARD ELLIS, died Sept. 18, 
 
 1777, aged 63 years. Jane, his Wife, died Oct. 28, 
 
 1783, aged 59 years. 
 Also 3 Sons and 2 Daughters 
 
 who died in their Infancy, 
 (Viz.) Mary, William, Samuel, 
 
 John, and Elizabeth. 
 EDWARD ELLIS, Son of 
 
 the above named, died April 3rd, 1820, aged 71 years; 
 
 ELIZABETH, his Wife, died Dec. 5th, 1786, aged 33 years. 
 
 Also ANNE, his second Wife, died 
 
 April 9th, 1820, aged 61 years. 
 
 Leaving issue 2 Sons, 
 
 George and Edward. 
 
 Also EDWARD, Son of the above 
 
 Edward and Anne Ellis, 
 who died February the 10th, 1823, aged 29 years." 
 
 Two Monuments should be here noticed, as having once 
 lain on the pavement, and only rescued from oblivion by 
 
 1 Sir Charles Booth had been High Sheriff for Kent in 1784, in 
 which year he received Knighthood. He died at his Town House in 
 Upper Harley Street, and was buried in this Church on the 5th of 
 May, 1795. The three Parishes here named owe the foundation of 
 their parochial schools to this legacy, while here " Booth's School " still 
 remains as an independent Institution in Knight-Rider Street, where 
 sixty boys and forty girls receive a free education.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 189 
 
 T. C. Smythe, in his MS. Memoranda, ii., p. 135, preserved 
 in the Maidstone Museum : 
 
 " Here lies the Body of 
 
 Sir GYFFOUD THORNHURST, Barronett, 1 
 
 who died the 16th of December, 1627. 
 
 He had issue one son deceased, an infant, 
 
 and two daughters now living, Frances and Barbara, 
 
 by Dame Susann, the only daughter of Sir Alexander." 
 
 The arms were also engraved on the brass : ermine, on a 
 chief 2 leopards' faces, impaling, on 2 bars 3 mantlets each, 
 in chief a mullet. Crest, on a mount a greyhound couchant. 
 
 Another, on a stone : 
 
 "In Memory of Sir Edward Austen, of Boxley Abbey, 
 Baronet, who departed this life December 16, 1760, aged 
 55 years. He was descended from Sir Charles Robert Austen, 
 formerly of Hale Place in the Parish of Bexley in this 
 County ; who was created a Baronet by King Charles II. in 
 in the 12th year of his reign. Lady Austen, relict of the 
 above Sir Edward Austen, died 20th of September, 1772, 
 aged 57 years." 
 
 Above the Inscription was a shield, a chevron between 
 3 lions' gambs, erased; on an escutcheon of pretence a 
 chevron between 3 cinquefoils. The Baronetcy became 
 extinct in 1772. 
 
 This selection for, considering the scores which either in 
 fragments or with well-nigh obliterated inscriptions, cover, 
 and compose the pavement of, the Church (to say nothing 
 of the countless array with which the Churchyard bristles), 
 it can only be a selection may be brought to a close with 
 
 1 He was created in November 1622, as Sir Gifford Thornhurst, of 
 Agnes Court, Kent, and the Baronetcy became extinct on his death.
 
 I 9 o THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 the few which refer to Clergy whose remains have found 
 a resting-place here, in most cases preserving records of 
 their ministrations in the Parish. 
 
 Of those directly connected with the Parish Church the 
 earliest of whom any monumental record remains is EGBERT 
 BARRELL, of whom full mention has been made, 1 as he had 
 to bear the brunt of the storm of fanaticism which burst 
 upon the country during the reign of Charles I. He had 
 a domestic sorrow as well as parochial trouble ; for at the 
 outset of his ministry here he suffered the loss of his young 
 wife, to whose memory he placed a small tablet, which still 
 remains in the East wall of the South Chancel Aisle, with 
 this Epitaph : 
 
 " Sub hoc tumulo jacet cadaver 
 Susannse Barrell, Uxoris ROBERTI 
 BARRELL, Clerici ; cui peperit tres 
 Filios Filiasque duas castissimo 
 Thoro, Haec obiit sexto die 
 Mail Anno Domini 1621. 
 -ffitatis suse 29." * 
 
 Which may be thus given in English : 
 
 " Under this tomb lies the body of Susanna Barrell, the 
 wife of Robert Barrell, Clerk ; who bore him three sons and 
 two daughters in chaste wedlock. She died May 6th 1621, 
 aged 29." 
 
 Of his successor, THOMAS WILSON, whose memory Calamy 
 says was "precious," no memorial tablet remains in the 
 Church. 
 
 His successor, again, John Davis, 3 was more fortunate ; his 
 merits are thus recorded : 
 
 1 Pages 120-123. 2 Newton, p. 82. 3 Page 129.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 191 
 
 "Hie situs est JOANNES DAVIS 
 Othamiensis Ecclesise Rector, necnon 
 Animarum Curse in Parochia 
 Maidstoniensi praefectus. Ubi 
 Omnibus Boni Viri Fidique Pastoris 
 Officiis Bona Fide Functus, cum 
 Dignitate et ingenti omnium 
 Cujuscunque ordinis et opinionis 
 Hominum amore merito vixit. 
 Pacem unice coluit, annum agens Ivii 
 Recessit ad v non Julii, MDCLXXVII." l 
 
 " Here lies JOHN DAVIS, Rector of Otham, and also ap- 
 pointed to the cure of souls in the Parish of Maidstone, where 
 he faithfully fulfilled all the duties of a good man and a faith- 
 ful Pastor with dignity, and with the well-merited love of 
 men of every class and opinion ; he was singularly successful 
 in promoting peace, and died in his 57th year on the 3rd of 
 July 1677." 
 
 Gilbert limes, 2 too, has his due recognition of a laborious 
 ministry, if the word desudavit be meant to be taken 
 literally : 
 
 " Quod reliquum est 
 Revdi Viri GILBERTI INNES 
 Qui in hac Ecclesia annos 
 XIX plus minus desudavit 
 Hie subtus jacet. 
 Obiit quinto die Maii 
 JErse Christian MDCCXI. 
 ^Etatis suse LXI." 3 
 
 " Under this lies what remains of that reverend man 
 GILBERT INNES, who worked laboriously in this Church for 
 about nineteen years. He died on the 5th day of May, in the 
 year of the Christian Era 1711, aged 61." 
 
 This, though not so stated, was doubtless the loving 
 tribute of his widow, who also on the same tablet records 
 
 1 Newton, p. 83. ' Page 130 s Newton, p. 87.
 
 I 9 2 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 the death of their eldest daughter, nearly three years after ; 
 to be followed by that of her own death in advanced age : 
 
 "Etiam jacet Elizabetha, 
 
 Gilbert! Innes natu maxima, 
 
 Obiit decimo die Martii, Anno Domini 1714. 
 
 Hie quoque jacet 
 Uxor praedicti Gilberti Innes, 
 
 et Filia Johannis Peters, Cantuariensis Medici celeberrimi. 
 Obiit decimo septimo die Maii, 
 Domini 1732. 
 JEtatis SU33 72." 
 
 Following on comes a graceful testimony from a sadly 
 stricken widow to the worthy efforts (during an all-too-short 
 ministry here) of his successor JOSIAH WOODWARD, whose 
 distinguished literary career and pastoral zeal have been 
 already mentioned l : 
 
 " JOSI.E WOODWARD, SS.T.P. 
 
 Et hujus Ecclesise Curati, 
 Qui intra anni plus minus a primo adventu spatium 
 
 Morte correptus, 
 
 Magnum sui desiderium post se reliquit. 
 
 Et non sine magno pauperum, pragsertim puerorum et puellarum, 
 Quos moribus honestis primus institui curavit, 
 
 Ac totius hujus oppidi, luctu, 
 Ad Dominum migravit vi die Augusti, 
 
 JStatis LH. 
 Domini MDCCXII. 
 
 Quern fuisse eloquentem ac eruditum Concionatorem 
 Tarn pronunciata quam impressa plurima Testantur. 
 
 Viro apprime charo 
 Ac omni genere Doctrinse et Bonitatis ornato 
 
 Ne tanta merita posteris ignota sint, 
 
 Haec saxa pietissime posuit moestissima Conjux 
 
 Martha Woodward." 
 
 1 Page 131.
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 193 
 
 Which may be thus rendered in English : 
 
 " To Josiah Woodward, D.D., and Curate of this Church, 
 who, carried off by death within the space of about one year 
 of his coming here, left behind him a very deep regret at his 
 loss ; and to the no little grief of the poor, especially of the 
 boys and girls, 1 whom he was the first to have trained up in 
 virtuous ways, and indeed of the whole town, passed away 
 to his Lord on the Gth day of August, A.D. 1712, in the 52nd 
 year of his age. 
 
 " How eloquent and learned a preacher he was, the many 
 Sermons he delivered and Works he printed bear witness. 1 
 
 " To her most dear husband, a man ornate with every form 
 of knowledge and goodness, lest posterity should fail to know 
 his worth, his deeply sorrowing wife, Martha Woodward, has 
 in most ardent affection raised this tablet." 
 
 1 His founding the " Blue-Coat School " is mentioned at page 132. 
 
 * It may not be amiss to insert here the titles of some of the principal 
 works he published. 
 
 First to take the Sermons, with their dates : 
 
 1698. On Consideration for the Souls of Others. 
 
 1700. The Duty of Instructing poor Children. 
 
 1709. On the Duty of Public Thanksgiving (after Maryborough's 
 victories). 
 
 1710. The Boyle Lectures, " On the Divine Origin and Excellence 
 of the Christian Religion." 
 
 1711. On the Divine Right of Civil Government. This was the 
 first and last Sermon he preached before the Maidstone newly elected 
 Mayor, and Corporation. Its opening sentence was as follows : " Our 
 first step this day is rightly taken in imploring the blessing of the 
 Disposer of all things on the measures which shall be taken for the 
 good of this Corporation." 
 
 A few of his many Parochial Pamphlets may be mentioned : 
 
 1702. Advice to a Young Person on Confirmation. 
 
 1703. A Persuasive on the Observance of the Lord's Day. 
 
 1704. A Caution to Profane Swearers. 
 
 1705. A Seamen's Monitor (a 14th Edition of this appeared in 
 1799). 
 
 1711. A Dissuasive from Drunkenness. 
 
 1712. A Soldiers' Monitor. 
 
 13
 
 194 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 SAMUEL WELLER, who succeeded Woodward, has also 
 fitting recognition here. A tablet on the North wall of the 
 Chancel Aisle bears testimony to an exemplary ministration 
 of nearly forty years : 
 
 "Memoriae Sacrum 
 
 Keverendi SAMUELIS WELLER, L.L.B. 
 
 Parochiae hujus per quadraginta ferine 
 
 Annos Ministri, quam Provinciam 
 
 Doctrina ornavit et exemplo. 
 
 Obiit Jan. ix. MDCCLIII. Anno ^Etatis LXVII. 
 Lector, si possis, imitare." 1 
 
 A long interval now follows in which no memorial 
 
 1 On the same stone follows the Epitaph of his son-in-law : 
 
 " In eoden tumulo depositi sunt cineres 
 
 GEORGII MAY, 
 
 Qui omnibus vitse muniis quibus versari 
 
 Contingit, integritate inviolata functus est 
 
 Unicam supradicti S(ainuelis) W(eller) filiam 
 
 Matrimonio duxit, per quam binos genuit filios 
 
 Quorum alter in incunabulis decessit ; 
 Obiit Mar. xiv. MDCCLXXXV. Anno JStatis XLVIII. 
 
 Pio et gratissimo animo 
 In memoriam optimi parentis et mariti 
 Hoc manner posuit Filia et Vidua Superstes." 
 
 The substance of which may be thus given : 
 
 "Sacred to the memory of the Rev. SAMUEL WELLER, LL.B., for 
 nearly forty years the Minister of this Parish, which office he adorned 
 by his example no less than by his teaching. He died January 9th, 
 1753, aged 67. 
 
 " Reader, imitate him if you are able." 
 
 " In the same grave are deposited the remains of GEORGE MAY, who 
 performed with strict integrity all the duties of life. He married the 
 only daughter of the above-named S. "W., by whom he had two sons, 
 one of whom died in the cradle. He died March 14th, 1785, aged 48. 
 
 " In a spirit of piety and gratitude did the surviving daughter and 
 widow erect this Monument in memory of the best of parents and of 
 husbands."
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 195 
 
 appears to any of the succeeding Clergy of the Parish ; 
 during which, however, occur the names of some who, though 
 not connected with the Parish Church, were apparently 
 residents here, and whose bodies were buried within its 
 precincts. 
 
 Of these that of RICHARD BEESTON, whose name may still 
 be traced on a small slab in the floor of the North Chancel 
 Aisle, and is incorrectly spelt Beaton by Newton, 1 is the 
 earliest. The Inscription cut in stone is surmounted by a 
 small brass (one of the very few remaining in the Church), 
 representing his wife and himself kneeling, and their 
 children kneeling behind them: 
 
 "Christus mihi Vita, Mors mihi Lucrum." 
 
 Here lieth interred the Bodie of 
 
 RICHARD BEESTON, Clerke, Mester (sic) of Arts, 
 
 Who departed this life the 26th day of Dec. 1640, 
 
 and left issue by Elizabeth his wife, 
 
 Daughter of John Pawle, Gent., 
 Fower sonnes and three daughters. 
 
 On the North end of the middle step leading up to the 
 Communion Kails is one to " The Rev. Mr. JOHN DURRANT, 
 who departed this life the 25th day of January 1731, aged 
 65 years." 
 
 On a slab in the pavement of the South Chancel Aisle is 
 an Inscription to several members of the Muriell family, 
 and among them to " FRANCIS MURIELL, Clerk, who died the 
 5th of July 1750." He was Rector of Ruckinge, and Vicar 
 of Detling. 
 
 On an oval tablet on the South wall of Nave : 
 
 1 Page 91
 
 196 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 " Sacred to the Memory of Anna Eliza, wife of WILLIAM 
 WORCESTER WILSON, D.D., Vicar of Deptford, in the 
 County of Kent, who departed this life August 13th, 1775, in 
 the 48th year of her age. 
 
 "Also to the Memory of the said WILLIAM WORCESTER 
 WILSON, D.D., who departed this life Dec. 11, 1791, aged 65." 
 
 This Chapter of Monumental Kecords cannot be more 
 fitly brought to a close than by the touching Epitaph which, 
 as a tribute of filial affection to their parents, presents an 
 appropriate companion to the one which closed the preceding 
 Chapter, and bore witness to the respect and regard of the 
 Parish to its last Vicar, who followed his wife to the grave 
 within little more than a year. 
 
 It appears on an elaborately ornamented brass inserted in 
 the wall on the right hand of the Vestry Door: 
 
 z . " $%t righteous s|ran Tat in 
 
 m 
 
 ti To the Glory of GOD, 
 
 g_ and in remembrance of his servant, THOMAS DEALTRY, M.A., 
 ~ Born March 3, 1825, Died Nov. 29, 1882, 
 
 <-* to 
 
 ** and HARRIET DEALTRY his wife, 2J S 
 
 Born July 27, 1831, Died Sept. 30, 1881. ,1f 
 
 .2 
 a Resting in Maidstone Cemetery. ^"If 
 
 13 He was Archdeacon of Madras 18611871. i* * 
 
 >** **g* 
 
 * Rector of Swillington, Yorksh., 18721878. = *< 
 
 J Vicar of Maidstone 18781882. 
 
 $ I 
 
 bam, Q0alj aub faithful 
 into
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 REGISTERS ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH THE SPIRE STAINED 
 GLASS WINDOWS AND REGIMENTAL COLOURS. 
 
 IN dealing with the Parish Registers the 
 Author regrets exceedingly that he is un- 
 able to carry out his original intention 
 of giving full and copious extracts from 
 them, and is constrained by both time and 
 space to confine himself to a brief and 
 cursory description of their character and 
 contents. To extenuate his omission, and to reconcile the 
 reader to it, he feels he need only say that down to the 
 close of the last Century alone the Registers extend over 
 fourteen Volumes. 
 
 They are thus introduced : " The regystre off the Collegy- 
 ate Church off all Sayntes' in Maydeston in the wiche be 
 wryten and contayned all and singlre as well the propre 
 names as the surnames off them that have be (sic) wedded, 
 Christened, and buryed within the sayed Parysshe frome 
 the third day off September in the xxxiiijth yeare off the 
 reygne off the most excellent Prince Henry, by the Grace 
 off God Kynge off Englande, off ffrance, and off Irelande, 
 and in erthe supreme heed (sic) under Christe off the 
 Churche off Englande and Irelande." 1 
 
 1 At the head of the first page is a note in a different and more 
 recent writing, that " Henry VIII. began his reign Anno 1509."
 
 198 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 Probably very few Churches in England can produce 
 Registers of an earlier date, or more regularly kept. It 
 will be seen that they date back to within six years of 
 the time when Thomas Crumwell (soon to be created Lord 
 Crumwell, and eventually Earl of Essex), in his capacity of 
 Vicegerent of the King in all matters Ecclesiastical, obtained 
 the sanction of Henry VIII. to issue his memorable "In- 
 junctions ;" one of which was to the effect that every Parish 
 Church should have its Eegister-Book, and a Parish Chest 
 to keep it in. 
 
 The mention of Thomas CramweH's name justifies a 
 passing remark that the Church of England owes him, with 
 all his failings, a debt of gratitude for this, if for nothing 
 else, that, in an endeavour to introduce a better organization 
 into the Church system, he enforced the use of "Parish 
 Registers." Up to that time there had apparently been no 
 attempt to preserve any records, not at any rate methodi- 
 cally, of the Baptisms, Marriages, or Burials performed 
 throughout the land. From Crumwell emanated the In- 
 junction in 1538, to be promulgated by each Bishop through 
 his Diocese, which first established a systematic record, and 
 provided for its preservation. It ran thus : 
 
 " You, and every Parson, Vicar, or Curate, within this 
 Diocese, shall for every Churche kepe one boke or register, 
 wherein ye shall write the day and yere of every Weddynge. 
 Christeninge, and Buryinge made within your Parishe, . . . 
 and shal therein inserte every person's name that shalbe so 
 weddid, christened, or buryed ; and for the sauff kepinge of 
 the same boke the Parishe shalbe bownde to provide of theire 
 common charge one sure coffer with two locks and keys, 
 whereof the one to remayne with yow, and th' other with the 
 said Wardens of every such Parishe wherein the said boke
 
 THE REGISTERS. 199 
 
 shalbe laide up." And to ensure a regular observance of this 
 order, it was further enjoined, " whiche boke ye shall every 
 Sunday take furthe [forth], and in the presence of the said 
 Wardens, or one of them, write and recorde in the same 
 all the weddings, christenings, and buryings made the hole 
 week before ; and that done to lay upp the boke in the said 
 coffer as afore." Nor was even this sufficient to meet the 
 requirements of Crumwell's administrative mind ; lor it 
 went on to say : " For every tyme that the same shalbe 
 omitted the partie that shalbe iu the faulte thereof shall 
 forfett to the said Churche iijs. & iiijd. to be emploied on 
 the reparation of the same Churche." 1 
 
 In the last year of Edward VI.'s reign the same Injunc- 
 tions were re-issued with hardly a verbal alteration, save that 
 such entry should be made immediately after each Morning 
 or Evening Prayer. 2 
 
 Yet, though these rules were so rigidly enjoined by 
 Henry, and endorsed by Edward, they would seem to have 
 generally fallen into disuse in the latter part of Elizabeth's 
 reign ; for, according to Strype, 3 Bishop Still, of Bath and 
 Wells, brought a proposal before Convocation in November 
 1597, that steps should be taken to check the laxness of the 
 Clergy in this matter ; that every Sunday all entries made 
 in the Register-Book during the preceding week should be 
 " publicly read in the Church." On James's coming to the 
 
 1 The original of this Injunction is in Archbishop Cranmer's 
 Register (Lambeth Library), f. 99, b ; and a contemporary copy of 
 it in the Public Record Office, Tractat. Theol. cO Politic., III., Chapter- 
 House Books, A., J. It is also printed in Wilkins' Concilia, vol. iii., 
 p. 816 ; where the date is wrongly given 1536. 
 
 3 Bishop Sparrow's Collection of Injunctions, etc., p. 5, where it is 
 also given in the original Latin. 
 
 3 Life of Archbishop Whityift, vol. ii., p. 378 (1822 Ed.).
 
 200 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 throne, he re-issued the Injunctions, without any important 
 alterations beyond requiring that a third lock and key 
 should be provided for the Parish Chest, 1 so that each 
 Churchwarden should keep one. 2 
 
 Thus what might strike any one accustomed to the more 
 general character of Parish Eegisters as a remarkable feature 
 in those at Maidstone is fully and satisfactorily accounted 
 for, as being a more than usually strict observance of the 
 letter of these Injunctions. Instead of having been roughly 
 noted down at the time of each of these Occasional Offices, 
 as was doubtless the more common habit, and then from 
 time to time copied into the Register, the entries have 
 clearly been made week by iveek ; and each week's record, 
 even if there has been no Christening, or Wedding, or 
 Burial during the interval, has been duly signed by the 
 " Parish Priest " in the presence of a Churchwarden, whose 
 name is also given. 
 
 As the opening title states, the entries under each head, 
 Marriages, Christenings, and Burials (for such is the order in 
 which they come), commence with the 3rd September, 1542. 
 The Marriages extend over sixty-seven pages, to October 
 1553 ; at which point there is a note in the margin : " This 
 year Queen Mary came to the Throne." Then follow the 
 Christenings, covering seventy-three pages (from pp. 69-142), 
 and ceasing with August 1551. After them the Burials 
 (from pp. 143-218), from the same date to February 1552, 
 when the first Register closes. 
 
 1 An interesting specimen of such a " Parish Chest " may still be 
 seen in Detling Church, cut out of a solid block of elm, with its three 
 locks (the third apparently a subsequent addition), and used not only 
 for the Register-Book, but also (as a slit in the cover would suggest) 
 to receive offerings for the poor. 
 
 2 Bishop Gibson's Codex, etc., vol. i., p. 204.
 
 THE REGISTERS. 201 
 
 Between this first and the second Book occurs a gap 
 (hiatus valde deflendus), corresponding with the reign of 
 Mary. During that memorable period of nearly five and a 
 half years not a record exists of any such Offices. This is 
 the more remarkable as (Sir) John Porter, who had so 
 strictly preserved week by week (with two short intervals) 1 
 all the records during the five last years of Henry VIII. 's 
 reign, and that of Edward VI., was evidently still acting as 
 " Parish Priest ; " for it was this fact which gave rise to the 
 suspicion of his Komish proclivities, and was avowedly the 
 ground for his removal by Archbishop Parker on Elizabeth's 
 coming to the Throne. 2 
 
 With the reign of Elizabeth a separate Book is kept 
 of the Burials, reaching from 1558 to 1640; while the 
 Marriages and Baptisms, beginning from the same year, 
 are continued, in one Volume, the former to 1642, the latter 
 only to 1628. 
 
 The growing laxness in keeping these records is evidently 
 extending to Maidstone, where at the first such exemplary 
 attention to the letter of Crumwell's Injunctions had been 
 observed. The more usual plan of only signing at the foot 
 of the page, first by Minister and Churchwardens, and in 
 time only by the Minister, is now introduced; eventually 
 even his signature is omitted. 
 
 The signature of Robert Carr, Porter's successor, is remark- 
 able, occurring from 1559 to 1610, "Robert Car, Minister 
 ther " (sic) ; then, after an interval of twenty-five years 
 (during which no signature appears) in 1635 Robert Barrell 
 
 1 During the months of May and June 1543, and again from March 
 1549 to the end of that year, occurs the name of (Sir) Thomas Pyne, 
 signing as " Priest." He had also been Porter's Colleague in the 
 College. * Page 114.
 
 202 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 signs himself " Clericus," till the eventful 1642 ; when he 
 was removed. 1 
 
 Now follows a period when the good people of Maidstone 
 were evidently too much the victims of politico-religious 
 excitement to be given to marrying, for during the ten 
 years between 1643 and 1653 there were altogether only 
 sixty-three marriages. In that year came into force the 
 Ordinance which constituted Marriage a mere Civil contract, 
 only needing the presence and signature of the Mayor, or some 
 Justice of the Peace. The solemnization was taken out 
 of the Church's hands, though the record was still to be 
 made in the Church Register. This lasted till the Restora- 
 tion, when the necessity of the Church's sanction was again 
 recognized; and John Davis, the nominee of Archbishop 
 Juxon, signs as " Clericus," till 1677 ; after him comes 
 Humphrey Lynde, with the same title; which however he 
 subsequently changes to that of " Minister." After him, 
 for rather more than half a Century there was great irregu- 
 larity in signing, though the Registers were apparently very 
 carefully kept, until in 1752 the new system of requiring 
 the signature of the Officiating Clergyman to be appended 
 to each separate entry was introduced. 
 
 Like many ancient Parish Registers, these of Maidstone 
 contain terms which have long since become obsolete. For 
 instance, not unfrequently occurs in the entry of a Burial 
 the word " Chrisom " of such and such a parent, sometimes 
 without the Christian name at all : which implies that this 
 child died within a month of its being christened, that is, 
 during the period of its wearing its " chrisom cloth," the white 
 napkin which would have been laid on its head at its baptism. 
 
 Among the historical events which an examination of these 
 1 Page 123.
 
 THE REGISTERS. 203 
 
 Registers brings to light is the existence of a " Plague " 
 here in the beginning of the 17th Century. The mention 
 of " the Plague " involuntarily carries the mind to that 
 appalling visitation in England, and especially in London, 
 which in 1665-6 swept off its victims to the number of 
 between eighty and a hundred thousand ; but England has 
 known other such visitations, though happily of a less over- 
 whelming character. One has been alluded to under the 
 name of "the Pestilence," which in 1348 carried off Arch- 
 bishop Bradwardine, and also one after another of the Wardens 
 of Boniface's Hospital. 1 
 
 But one marked the opening of the reign of James I. 
 of which history seems to have taken but little account ; 
 it however has left its melancholy record on the pages of 
 the Burial Register here. It made its appearance in Maid- 
 stone in March 1603 ; but had, it seems, only a single victim 
 in each of the next four months. With the September of 
 that year it began its more formidable ravages, which con- 
 tinued into the following May. While the ordinary annual 
 mortality of the town at that time was under sixty, its 
 death-roll, as revealed by the ominous word plague written 
 against the name of each of its victims (sometimes six and 
 seven in a day), ascribes to it no less than one hundred and 
 thirty-six from that cause alone during those nine months, 
 in excess of the normal number. 
 
 The bitter experience of that "Plague" would seem to 
 have set the authorities of the town on their guard; for, 
 when in 1625 a pestilential disease broke out in London/ 
 
 1 Page 85. 
 
 3 The severity with which this plague raged in London is described 
 in the Life of Nicholas Ferrar, as given in Wordsworth's Ecclesiastical 
 Biography, vol. v., pp. 153-155.
 
 204 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 the order went through Maidstone that no one should " carry 
 or re-carrie (?) any goodes from this town to London, or from 
 there hither, during the Infection, upon forfyture of fyve 
 pounds for every offence; . . . and that no Inhabitant of 
 this town shall entertyn or lodge any party or partys 
 inhabiting in London, upon like payne." 1 
 
 Then again in 1636 a similar alarm appears to have come 
 over the town; for the following Order is entered in the 
 Burghmote Minutes, that " during the infeccon (sic) of 
 the plague in London seaven Wardmen and Watchmen be 
 appointed to watch and ward at such places and such times 
 as shall be thought fitte and convenient to keepe all 
 suspitious persons and goodes from coming into the town, 
 as by them shall be thought dangerous." 2 And the silence 
 of the Kegisters at these periods suggests that these pre- 
 cautions succeeded in preserving the health of the town. 
 
 A few remarks will not be out of place here as to the 
 various alterations which have from time to time been 
 made in the internal arrangements of the Church, which 
 it was difficult to introduce in the earlier description of 
 the building. There was doubtless a time when, with the 
 exception of the Choir and its Stalls, reserved for the 
 College Staff, the whole Church presented an open, unbroken 
 area like the Naves of many of our Cathedrals even in recent 
 years ; and was only used in those days for gorgeous Pro- 
 cessional Services, or for Special Sermons, when probably 
 a plain movable Pulpit was introduced, and stools provided 
 for the congregation. 
 
 1 Burghmote Records, B.B., f. 89. In this and subsequent Extracts 
 the original quaint spelling is retained. 
 Ibid., B.B., f. 158.
 
 ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH. 205 
 
 However, early in Elizabeth's reign it was resolved to 
 give to the Church as parochial a character as possible, 
 and to utilize the area to the utmost for Divine Service, as 
 the following entry in the Burghmote Records will show * : 
 
 On the llth of May, 1563 (5 Elizabeth), it was 
 " ordered by the Mayor, Jurats, and Office-holders that all 
 maner of men and women dwellyng and inhabytyng within 
 the Towne and Parishe of Maidston shall from henseforth 
 sytt in the Church of Maidston aforesaid in such places 
 and stooles as the Churchwardens for the tyme beyng 
 assigne and appoynte, uppon the payne of every persone 
 offendyng unto the contrarie for every offence in the 
 premysses, thre shillings and four pence of lawful money 
 of England to be levyed of the same persone or persones 
 his or their goods and cattails to the use aforesaid." 
 
 But only a very few years passed before an attempt was 
 made to appropriate portions of the area, and to erect family 
 seats or pews. The movement in this direction would seem 
 to have been made in 1569 by Nicholas Barham, then 
 one of the rising Magnates of the town, who was at the 
 time Recorder for the Borough, and had recently become 
 the owner of Chillington House (now the Museum), and 
 assumed the coif as Serjeant-at-Law to Queen Elizabeth. 
 
 The "great window of the South Aisle" had apparently 
 fallen into disrepair, and this furnished the opportunity 
 and excuse for this innovation. 
 
 The terms of the agreement with the Mayor and Jurats 
 under which this appropriation was permitted are thus 
 given in the Burghmote Records, under date September 
 5th, 1569 : "In consideration that Nicholas Barham, one of 
 Her Majesty's Serjeants at the Law, hathe at his proper 
 1 Burghmote Records, A. A., f. 29.
 
 2c6 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 charges erected and buylded fyve seats or piies in the South 
 Isle (sic) adjoyning to the Chancell of the Paryshe Church 
 of All Seynts of Maidston, for the necessary placing of 
 himself and his wief and family, 
 
 " And for that the said Nicholas is also contentid to enter 
 into covenante with the Mayor, Jurats, and Comonalty of the 
 said Town and Parishe of All Seints of Maidston, for him, his 
 heires, and assignes, of the hous wher he now dwelleth in the 
 Town of Maidston aforesaid, to beare and susteyne at his 
 and their proper charges, the necessarye reparacions of the 
 great wyndowe of the same Isle, scituate over agaynst the 
 same pues from tyme to tyme as often as yt shal be requisite, 
 
 " It is therefore ordered and agreed by the same Mayor, 
 Jurats, and Comonalty of the Town and Parisshe of All 
 Seynts aforesaid and withe the consent of the Freeholders 
 beyng at the said Court That the said Nicholas, his 
 heires, and assignes of the said hous wher he now inhabitethe 
 within the said Towne, shall have and injoy the only 
 easement, use, and comodity of the same fyve seats, and 
 one other seate next above the same seats, and to them 
 adjoyning without let or interruption of them or their 
 successors. 
 
 "And that one Instrument in wry ting between the said 
 Mayor, Jurats, and Comonalty, and the said Nicholas, shal 
 be made accordingly, wherein shal be comprised the cove- 
 nant of the said Nicholas for the said reparacion of the said 
 wyndowe as is aforesaid." 
 
 This was apparently the thin edge of the wedge which 
 in Maidstone, as everywhere else, was eventually to cause 
 the deplorable rift, so far as the House of (rod was concerned, 
 between the " classes " and the " masses," and practically 
 to exclude the poor from their Parish Churches. How the
 
 ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH. 207 
 
 system was allowed to become virtually general here, as in 
 other parishes, will be presently seen. 
 
 In the course of the following Century more, and still 
 more extensive, appropriations of space were permitted to 
 take place. The Astleys, not content with having occupied 
 a large portion of the floor and walls of the Chancel in 
 memorials of their dead, now, by virtue of being owners 
 of the adjoining Palace, claimed to have some seventy seats 
 assigned to them for the living members of their family ! 
 The leading townsmen naturally followed the example set 
 them by their more wealthy neighbours, until the whole 
 body of the Church, it may be said, had become a mass 
 of "family pews" of every variety of material and shape, 
 differing, and seeming to vie with each other, in size. 
 
 Then came the next stage of Church disfigurement in 
 the shape of deep, unsightly galleries, rendering the side 
 Aisle seats almost useless. Sir Robert Marsham, having 
 recently become the owner of the Mote, finding no fitting 
 accommodation available for his family and retinue, obtained 
 permission of the Corporation in 1681 to erect a gallery at 
 his own expense in the North Aisle ; but this arrangement 
 so seriously affected the boys of the Grammar School, who 
 had previously occupied seats in that Aisle (called in the 
 Vestry Book the " Lady Aisle "), that they were promoted 
 to the gallery overhead, a portion of which was assigned to 
 them. Another gallery followed, confronting it on the 
 opposite side, for the use of other leading families of the 
 neighbourhood. Thus the entire Church was "appro- 
 priated," filled with a mass of family pews and private 
 galleries, until no place, except perhaps in the most remote 
 and uninviting portions of their Parish Church, was left for 
 the use of the poorer Parishioners.
 
 208 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 When, at the close of the 17th Century, the Kev. Gilbert 
 Innes was appointed Curate, he set himself to right, if 
 possible, this monstrous wrong. In spite of a very powerful 
 opposition, especially on the part of the Astley family, 1 who 
 pertinaciously claimed their seats (though, having removed 
 to their Norfolk estates, they very rarely used them), he 
 succeeded in obtaining a little more general distribution 
 of space and uniformity of appearance ; yet, alas ! this, it is 
 believed, was at the expense of some fine old oak carving 
 of the preceding Century. 
 
 During the 18th Century very little material change was 
 effected in the general aspect of the Church ; only some few 
 efforts were indeed made towards improvement. 
 
 A tall Pulpit had arisen. At first it was placed, with 
 its heavy Sounding Board, 2 near the first pier on the North 
 side the "Gospel" side as it used to be called of the 
 Nave facing West ; then, for the supposed advantage of the 
 congregation, it was moved to the West end of the Central 
 Aisle, a change which involved less inconvenience than 
 might be supposed, as the great majority of the pews would 
 be square, facing either way. In the course of time, how- 
 ever, it was restored on a more orthodox plan towards the 
 East ; but now in the centre of the Aisle, where it rose in all 
 the ponderous and obstructive dignity of a " three-decker " 
 elevation " Pelion on Ossa, Ossa on Olympus piled." 
 
 Then the seats of honour assigned to the Churchwardens 
 and Overseers followed suit. Originally at the West end, "for 
 the better hearing the Sermon and ordering the Service," 
 they occupied two spacious seats, carefully screened off from 
 
 1 The amusing correspondence between the Curate and Sir Jacob 
 Astley is given in Gilbert's Memorials, etc., pp. 161-164. 
 1 The Sounding Board has been inverted into the Vestry Table.
 
 ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH. 209 
 
 draughts by a glazed partition ; but with the moved Pulpit 
 they too moved Eastward, and, with the Corporation, 
 occupied seats below the first step rising up to the Chancel. 
 
 The Organ must also be noticed. One was purchased by 
 voluntary subscription in 1747, and appears to have been 
 originally placed in the South-west corner of the Church, 
 from whence it was moved into a gallery at the end of the 
 Nave, and there stood, flanked by the children of the " Blue- 
 Coat School " boys on one side, girls on the other, consti- 
 tuting the Choir for many years, until the Kev. W. Vallance 
 had it removed at his own cost, and placed in the South 
 Chancel Aisle, the pipes being arranged in the upper 
 portion of the Vestry, which was raised to receive them. 
 
 Few visitors would fail to notice the Font, which, like the 
 Astley Monuments already described, betrays a desire to 
 proclaim family glory rather than to promote the Glory of 
 God. It is in itself a study and an enigma. The bowl is a 
 massive block of Bethersden marble, octagonal in form ; on 
 the Eastward face it bears a strange heraldic medley ; on a 
 richly mantled shield appear, on the 2nd and 3rd quarterings, 
 the usual lion of Scotland and harp of Ireland, but on the 1st 
 and 4th the three lions of England (strange to tell) altogether 
 disappear, and are made to give way to four fleur-de-lis. 1 
 
 1 With the Stuarts the Royal Arms underwent a memorable change. 
 Edward III. (claiming through his mother the throne of France) had 
 introduced in the 1st and 4th quarters five fleur-de-lis, which were 
 reduced by Henry V. to three, and so remained, the three lions of 
 England occupying the "2nd and 3rd quarters. But when James I. 
 came to the throne, England and France quarterly filled the 1st and 
 4th quarters, while Scotland appeared in the 2nd and Ireland in the 
 3rd. On this Font, however, four fleur-de-lis occupy the 1st and 4th 
 quarters, and the lions of England are nowhere. 
 
 14
 
 210 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 While on the North face of the Font are the Astley Arms in 
 all their elaborateness of display, a cinquefoil, ermine, with 
 a crescent for difference. Tradition has it that the original 
 Font of this Church, removed to make room for this no 
 doubt costly, yet interesting, specimen of Jacobean art and 
 taste, may be found at Sevenoaks ; and certainly that Font 
 bears the shield ascribed to Gruido de Mone, the last of the 
 old Eectors of St. Mary's (the chevron engrailed between 
 three leaves), which forms the heraldic device on the last 
 Stall Eastward in the Choir of this Church. 
 
 Of the state of things which thus existed half a Century 
 ago, a telling sketch was given by the lamented Archdeacon 
 Harrison, when, on the occasion of the reopening of the 
 Church in 1886, he recalled his impression of its condition 
 on his first preaching in it in 1 836, " filled with horse-box 
 pews, a three-decker, and galleries." 1 
 
 It would involve no ordinary effort on the part of any 
 casual visitor of to-day and even the old resident who 
 could recall the vague memories of childhood's churchgoing 
 would find it no easy task to picture to himself the entire 
 area of the grand old Church, now filled with uniform hand- 
 some low oak seats with poppy-head finials, crowded, as it 
 was half a Century ago, with great heavy square pews lined 
 with faded baize, red, green, and every shade of colour, all 
 suggestive of ease and slumber, and obstructed with deep 
 galleries, claimed, if not filled, by the " upper ten " of the 
 town and neighbourhood, with no room left for (rod's poor. 
 
 Such was the state of the Church when Archbishop Howley 
 appointed Mr. Vallance to the Cure. His great work, in which 
 he was nobly aided by the late Lord Komney, then living 
 1 Maidstone Standard, February 27th, 1886.
 
 ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH. 211 
 
 at the Mote, and other influential residents (though not 
 without much bitter opposition), was to open out the whole 
 area, sweep away the great family pews, remove the heavy 
 galleries, and introduce the present seats. But even then 
 the renovation of the Church was not complete, from a lack 
 of funds. The body of the building the most spacious 
 Church in the county of Kent was so far set in order : but 
 there remained the whitewashed ceiling, relieved (? dis- 
 figured) by a heavy cornice, to mock the eye of the Antiquary 
 by leading him to believe that behind it still lurked some 
 remains of a once richly carved and elegant open roof. 
 
 The result of the alterations then introduced may be 
 thus summarized. Accommodation was provided for fifteen 
 hundred adults and four hundred children, at a cost, inclu- 
 sive of the new Pulpit, 1 of about 2,500. The Church was 
 reopened by Archbishop Sumner on September 7th, 1849. 2 
 
 Nearly forty years did the noble Church continue in this 
 unfinished state, when, under circumstances which called out 
 the liberality as well as the artistic taste of a generation 
 which was growing up to a higher appreciation of Church 
 privileges as well as of Ecclesiastical adornment, it was 
 decided to retrieve the errors, and to supply the deficiencies, 
 of the past. The death of their late Vicar, Archdeacon 
 Dealtry, who during the six years of his Incumbency had 
 won the esteem and affection of the Parishioners, seemed to 
 demand at their hands some substantial and lasting memorial. 
 What, it was asked by one and another, could be a more 
 
 1 This handsome oak Pulpit, of Perpendicular work, was removed 
 some years after to make room for the present stone and marble one, 
 and was transferred to Detling Church. 
 
 * So far as the funds admitted the work was well designed and 
 carried out under a very rising young Architect, R. C. Carpenter, by 
 whose early death the Ecclesiological world sustained a heavy loss.
 
 212 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 fitting testimony of their grateful remembrance of his 
 ministry than the completion of the Church in which he 
 had ministered among them ? His successor in the Vicarage, 
 the Rev. E. F. Dyke, had happily a very hearty sympathy in 
 such a work, and so it was resolved to appeal to the Parish 
 and neighbourhood for funds to carry out this worthy object. 
 
 The appeal, issued early in 1883, was most readily 
 responded to. Headed as it was by the munificent dona- 
 tion of 2,000 from Messrs. Hollingworth, of Turkey Mills, 
 other leading Firms liberally followed suit; and a general 
 interest in the good work spread rapidly. The first object 
 was to make the restoration of the roof of the Nave the 
 memorial to the late Vicar. The Ecclesiastical Commis- 
 sioners, as representing the Archbishop of Canterbury, who 
 was virtually the Rector of the Parish, recognized the Rectorial 
 obligation, and gave 850 towards the restoration of the 
 Chancel; a legacy of 250 (with interest for some years), 
 under the Will of the late Mr. William Vaughan, a Builder 
 of the town, was added; an offer was made by Mr. J. Gr. 
 Smith, a native of Maidstone, but now resident at Surbiton, 
 to restore at his own expense the two Aisles of the Chancel, 
 "that on the South in memory of his parents, John and 
 Sarah Smith, and that on the North in memory of William 
 Vallance, M.A., Perpetual Curate of the Church from 1842 to 
 1 854 ; " then came subscriptions and offerings of various 
 amounts, from Nonconformists as well as Churchmen, until the 
 total sum was raised, and the Church reopened in February 
 1886, just three years after the proposal was first entertained. 
 The entire cost of this laudable undertaking may be calculated 
 at 10,000, exclusive of the Architect's Commission. 
 
 Then rose the question of moving the Organ from its poor, 
 makeshift position over the Vestry, and the very handsome
 
 ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH. 213 
 
 oak case which Messrs. Hollingworth had presented a few 
 years before, from the Chancel arch which it so sadly 
 obstructed. Between the East end of the South Aisle and 
 the Vestry wall lay a vacant space, the width of one bay ; 
 this, closed in by extending the South Aisle, gave an admir- 
 able Organ Chamber, into which, at a cost of 800 more, 
 the entire Organ itself, case and all, were moved, to the 
 great advantage of the instrument itself no less than to the 
 conspicuous improvement in the appearance of the Church. 
 
 Having thus traced the several stages through which the 
 internal arrangements of the Church have passed, it becomes 
 necessary to notice some minor details connected with it. 
 Mention has been made of the desecrations perpetrated in 
 the building by Fairfax's soldiers, and the ruthless sacrilege 
 in which the blind fanaticism of those days of the Com- 
 monwealth seems to have rejoiced. It is refreshing to turn 
 from these to actions which indicate the growth of a purer 
 and a sounder spirit. 
 
 The Burghmote Records tell of the coming change in 
 the feelings of the times. The days were gone by when 
 the brasses were torn up from the tombs, when horses and 
 men bivouacked within the sacred walls, when the very 
 use of the name " Church " 1 was denounced as savouring of 
 
 1 The following extract gives an instance of the use of this term : 
 "' Uppon a mocon (sic) now made at the desire of Mr. Crompe, the 
 Minister of this Parish, that the libertie may be granted unto him of 
 the use of the Scholehouse any Lord's daies in the Eveninge for the 
 repeticon of the Sermons preached in the publiquo place uppon the 
 Lord's daies and unto those as shall from time to time desir to par- 
 take thereof, And of other duties of piety at the same times, It is 
 ordered that the said libertie be allowed for the purposes aforesaid. 
 3 July, 1654" (Burghmote Minutes, C.C., f. 72).
 
 214 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 the hated Episcopacy, and the term " Publique Place " 
 substituted for it. The tide had turned. A reaction had 
 set in. The following entry, two years before the Restora- 
 tion, indicates this :- 
 
 "It is ordered at this Courte (19 July, 1658) that the 
 Chamberlyn of this Towne doe forthwith buy for the use 
 of this Corporation a Greate Bible newly printed in the 
 Easterne Languages [presumably in Greek], and likewise 
 that he take order for a Lexicon of the said Languages, and 
 Mr. Recorder is hereby desired to assist the said Chamberlyn 
 in the procuringe of the said Book." A subsequent Order 
 provides that the said Bible " be disposed of for publique 
 use of such Ministers or others as have recourse to the same 
 for theire readinge and studyes, and for that end that it be 
 for the present placed (untill further orders), in the Vestry 
 Roome of the Parishh Church in some convenient Presse with 
 shelves, and chayned in convenient manner ; and that there 
 be two keyes provided for the same Presse, one whereof to 
 be left with the Minister for the time beinge, and the other 
 with the Maior," etc. 1 
 
 But the Restoration once carried out, this spirit assumed 
 more consistent form. 2 In order to give by their example a 
 more open recognition of religious duties, the Corporation, in 
 April 1663, passed an Order, "That the Jurats should attend 
 the Maior from their houses to the Church to have Divine 
 Service and Sermon every Sunday Morning and Afternoon in 
 their gowns," etc., under a fine of one shilling for every absence. 
 
 1 Burghmote Records, C.C., ff. 94, b ; 96, b. 
 
 1 One contribution now made to the Church vessels should be noticed. 
 It was ordered that a " silver cup double gilt with a cover for the same 
 in form of a salver for the use of the Parishioners at private Com- 
 munion of the sick, be bought by the Churchwardens."
 
 ALTERATIONS IN THE CHURCH. 215 
 
 However, it would seem that in Maidstone, as generally 
 throughout England, religious apathy and laxness crept in 
 and marked the 18th Century. The fine imposed upon the 
 Jurats for non-attendance at Church lost its force, or became 
 a dead letter. And in the year 1758 it was considered 
 necessary to enter a remonstrance a mild one certainly, and 
 not based on the , highest motives against an apparently 
 general neglect on the part of the Corporation, to the effect : 
 " That it was found necessary and expedient for the good 
 order and government of the town and parish to sustain and 
 preserve the dignity of the Corporation that some of the 
 Jurats and Common Council-men attending the Mayor in 
 their gowns to and from Divine Service on the Lord's Day 
 would greatly contribute thereto." It was also further resolved 
 that 50 a year should be added to the Mayor's salary, 
 " towards defraying the charges of keeping a decent table 
 and entertaining at breakfast and dinner such of the Jurats 
 and Common Council-men as shall from time to time attend 
 and accompany the Mayor in their gowns to and from 
 Divine Service, and other expences incident to that Office." 
 
 The state of the Bells also attracted notice. Early in the 
 18th Century, when, as has been shown, the attempt was 
 made to rearrange the seats in the Church, the Corporation 
 turned their attention to the bells, and it was resolved in 
 1720 that they should be recast ; but it is uncertain whether, 
 if at all, or to what extent, this proposal was carried out ; 
 for before the end of that Century, namely in 1784, it was 
 considered necessary to provide an entirely new peal, 1 at a 
 cost of 800. But before that year had run its course, a very 
 unfortunate display of utilitarian economy manifested itself, 
 in the Resolution passed in the Council Chamber, that the 
 1 Manufactured by Hears & Co., of Whitechapel.
 
 2i6 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 ringing of the Curfew Bell in the winter was " useless and 
 an expence to the Parish, and should be discontinued." 
 And in the course of time the prohibition extended over 
 the summer months as well ; so that for many a long 
 year neither in winter nor in summer has the sound of 
 the " solemn Curfew " been heard in Maidstone. May it 
 not be asked if this reflected credit on the ruling powers 
 to abandon on the score of expense in a wealthy and 
 important town like Maidstone a time-honoured historic 
 custom, which has, it is believed, been maintained without 
 interruption in the neighbouring private residence of Leeds 
 Castle from the days of its institution at the Conquest ? 
 
 The roof of the Church was also pronounced to be in a 
 dangerous condition in 1788 ; and it was resolved that a new 
 roof should be constructed, but with this stipulation, so 
 painfully characteristic of the time that it " be cieled." 
 An allusion to the decayed state of the roof calls for some 
 mention of a great disaster which might have tended to cause 
 it, and to the consequent effect on its external appearance. 
 
 With all its present renovated beauty the Church certainly 
 lacks much of the dignity and importance it once possessed. 
 When the Palace on the North was the frequent residence 
 of Archbishops and their retinues, and the stately range 
 of College buildings on the South was in its glory, in the 
 midst of such an entourage the Church must have been 
 a worthy centre of a goodly group, whether seen from the 
 bridge below, or, still better, from the meadow across the 
 river ; its deeply buttressed and spire-topped Tower, rising up 
 on the slightly elevated bank, still honoured by the name 
 of " The Cliffe," picturesquely crowning the whole. 
 
 Now look at it from whatever point you will (except 
 perhaps from the river front), and there will be produced on
 
 THE SPIRE. 217 
 
 the mind the impression that the Tower is disproportionately 
 low. The high pitch of Nave and Aisles gives it a stunted 
 and dwarfed appearance. This was not always the case. 
 It has lost its SPIRE ; which, though only composed of a stout 
 wooden framework of oak, heavily cased with lead, tapering 
 upwards to a height of above eighty feet, gave it a relief and 
 a finish. On the Municipal seal, bearing date 1610, and 
 preserved in the Museum, the Spire appears as an evidence 
 that it existed nearly three hundred years ago ; and a very 
 rare print, by Bucke, shows that it was there so recently as 
 the year 1722; but during a very violent thunderstorm in 
 1730 it was struck by lightning, the timber was ignited, the 
 flames, fanned by the high wind, spread downwards till the 
 frame was destroyed, and the molten lead, falling over the 
 parapet of the Tower, broke through the roof of the South 
 Aisle, and the roof of the Nave was in great danger ; but by 
 vigorous efforts of the townsmen the Church itself was 
 saved. 1 
 
 The Maidstone of the middle of the last Century must, 
 however, have lacked the public spirit and liberality of the 
 present, or it would have replaced the Spire, or have sub- 
 stituted a more substantial one in its place. 
 
 To return to the interior of the Church. It must be 
 admitted that the least interesting and satisfactory features 
 of the Church, which with one or two exceptions are 
 utterly unworthy of the noble building itself, are the Win- 
 dows. Even the large painting which is divided between 
 the six lights of the East window, although a masterly 
 
 1 Full details of this disaster are given in Read's Weekly Journal 
 of November 7th, 1730 ; and in Fog's Weekly Journal and The Craftsman 
 of the same date.
 
 2i8 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 specimen of the designing of J. B. Caproniere, of Brussels, 
 has the grievous disadvantage of being one large picture cut 
 into slices to fit into the spaces between the mullions ; and 
 consequently presents here in one light a hand, and there 
 an arm belonging to a body in an adjoining compartment ; 
 while the spaces in the upper tracery are filled in with 
 fanciful and often meaningless designs. The subject is " The 
 Ascension," though no part of our Lord's body is visible. 
 Still, what it may lack in art and arrangement is greatly 
 supplied in the value of its associations, for it was a costly 
 tribute to the memory of a highly respected and very in- 
 fluential Maidstone resident, having been " Erected to the 
 Glory of God and in affectionate remembrance of Alexander 
 Eandall, of this Town, Banker, by his nephews Samuel and 
 Eichard Mercer, 1871. He was born January 6th, 1789. 
 Died April 5th, 1870." 
 
 Nearly all the other windows, be it admitted, are of a 
 very inferior character, judged by the taste and skill of the 
 present day ; they are unfortunate examples of that earlier 
 stage in the revival of the art of stained glass, when 
 crudeness of design and hardness of colouring were the 
 conspicuous defects in work produced in some even of the 
 best studios of half a Century ago. 
 
 The East windows in the two Chancel Aisles are the pro- 
 duction of Wailes of Newcastle, each to the memory of a 
 John Mercer, father and son, both connected with the 
 Kentish Bank : that in the North Aisle represents the Angel 
 announcing the Birth of the Saviour to the Shepherds, that 
 in the South the visit of the Magi to Bethlehem. 
 
 In the South Aisle of the Church all the windows, except- 
 ing a small two-light one beyond the Tower door, are also by 
 Wailes. The first from the East end, " To the Memory of her
 
 THE STAINED GLASS WINDOWS. 219 
 
 beloved husband Frederick Charles Griffiths, Major General, 
 and late Commandant in this town, placed by his sorrowing 
 widow, 1859," appropriately tells the story of Cornelius. In 
 the first compartment a soldier kneeling in prayer ; in the 
 second, an Angel coming to him ; in the next, Peter baptizing 
 him ; and in the last, his whole family, with " a devout 
 soldier " in the background, pressing forward for baptism. 
 
 The second window, illustrating the Parable of the Good 
 Samaritan, commemorates two generations of the Cutbush 
 family. " In Memory of Thomas and Elizabeth Cutbush, 
 Robert their son, and Elizabeth his wife, by their son and 
 brother, Thomas Robert Cutbush, 1859." 
 
 The third is emblematic of that of the Good Shepherd. 
 The first compartment represents some sheep coming out of 
 a fold; the second, the Shepherd Himself; the third, an 
 Angel ; and the last, the state of the Millennium, a little 
 child walking unharmed among lions and serpents. This is 
 " To the Memory of Thomas and Ann Edmett, by their son 
 Thomas Edmett, 1859." 
 
 Next to this comes a small two-light window, the first 
 inserted in the Church, representing " the Burial " and " the 
 Resurrection," by Messrs. Powell. It is " In Memory of Nina 
 Patry Carr; born Feb. 1, 1837; died Sept. 29, 1856." l 
 
 Another small window beyond the Tower door contains 
 representations of the Passing of the Red Sea, and our 
 Lord's Baptism in Jordan, " In Memory of John and Jane 
 Stephens by their surviving sons, 1887." 2 
 
 1 She was the sister of the Rev. Thomas Arnold Carr, then Curate 
 of the Church, subsequently Vicar of Cranbrook, and now of Harden. 
 
 1 The Church also possesses a Memento of another member of this 
 family in a handsome set of brass Altar -rails with rich open work 
 foliation, " In Loving Memory of John Beeching Stephens, placed 
 here by his widow, Annie Stephens, A.U. 1886." 
 
 \
 
 220 THE HISTORY OF MA ID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 At the West end of this Aisle now appears a large window 
 representing the " Adoration of the Shepherds; " it originally 
 stood at its East end, but was removed to make room for 
 the new Organ-Chamber in the recent alterations. It is 
 " To the Memory of Philip Corrall 1 and Mrs. Ann Carter, his 
 sister, by their friend Alexander Eandall, 1859." 
 
 On the North side the central window in the Chancel 
 Aisle is to the memory of the Thomas Edmett who had 
 erected that to his father and mother on the opposite side 
 of the Church. As a work of art and taste, and in the 
 grouping of the several subjects, this is far superior to any 
 of those yet noticed. It is the production of Lavers and 
 Westlake. The Central light represents the Miracle of the 
 Pentecost. In the first, on the left, St. Peter being led out 
 of prison ; in the next, the Apostle raising ^Eneas ; in the first 
 on the right, St. Peter and St. John healing the lame man 
 at the gate of the Temple ; and in the last, St. Paul preaching 
 at Athens. Under each is an appropriate scroll, while the 
 spaces in the upper tracery are filled in with figures of Angels 
 playing on different instruments. It is inscribed " To the 
 Glory of God and to the Memory of Thomas Edmett, 
 14 Oct., 1871, erected by his cousin E. A. Paine." 
 
 The next window represents incidents connected with the 
 Resurrection. In the side-lights the soldiers stand appalled, 
 and the women and the Apostles are seen hastening to the 
 Sepulchre ; while the central light would rather suggest our 
 Lord sitting on His Judgment-Throne. This is also by 
 Wailes, and is " To the Memory of Charles Mercer, who 
 died at Cairo March 15, 1861." 
 
 At the East end of the North Aisle of the Church is a 
 window without any definite design, but a mass of dazzlingly 
 1 He had been partner with Mr. Randall in the Kentish Bank.
 
 THE STAINED GLASS WINDOWS. 221 
 
 highly coloured diaper work and scroll tracery. It is " TV 
 the Memory of John Arkcoll, obiit July 24, 1857." 
 
 The last to be described is the one recently introduced 
 into the Church and commonly known as " the Soldiers' 
 Window," as being " dedicated by their surviving Comrades 
 to the Officers, Non-commissioned Officers, and Privates of 
 the old 50th and XCVIIth (now called the 1st and 2nd 
 Battalions of the West Kent Kegiment), who fell in the 
 Egyptian and Soudan Campaigns of 1882-86." It is also 
 from the studio of Lavers and Westlake, and deserves far 
 more detailed description. 
 
 In three of the four upper portions are representations of 
 what may be termed "Warrior Saints" St. Maurice, the 
 brave Roman Centurion who in the 3rd Century instigated 
 his comrades of the Theban Legion to refuse to offer sacrifice 
 to the gods, and with his whole legion was slaughtered 
 by command of the Emperor Maximian l ; St. Michael the 
 Archangel, the legendary Champion of Christendom ; and 
 St. George, the Patron Saint of England ; while the fourth 
 space contains the figure of the Virgin, under the title of 
 St. Mary : her position in such company may be accounted 
 for by the Church having been originally dedicated to 
 St. Mary, or may have been suggested by the prophetic 
 words addressed to her by the aged Simeon, " A sword shall 
 pierce through thine own heart also." In the centre portions 
 of each light are four scenes from our Lord's life " the 
 Marriage Feast," " the Roman Centurion pleading on behalf 
 of his sick servant," " Christ giving sight to the blind man," 
 and " the raising of Lazarus." Under these runs a canopied 
 arcade, in which are arranged, two and two, eight figures 
 of men and women, who, by the saintliness of their lives, 
 1 Gibbon's Decline and Fall, etc., chapter xvi. (Ed. 1827), vol. ii., p. 454, n.
 
 222 THE HISTORY OF MAIDSTONE CHURCH. 
 
 were deemed worthy of canonization, either for their devo- 
 tion or their munificence, and thus obtained places in the 
 Saxon Hagiology in connection with this County. In the 
 first light appears St. Ethelbert, the Saxon King of Kent 
 who received Augustine ; and by his side his Christian Queen, 
 St. Bertha, who was so instrumental in his conversion. In 
 the next St. Augustine himself, who brought the Gospel to 
 the heathen Saxons of Kent ; and with him St. Alwyn, of 
 whose identity there is grave doubt, for three bishops who 
 bore that name were canonized for their good deeds, but 
 none of them had any special connection with this County. 
 Then comes Archbishop Theodore of Canterbury, undoubtedly 
 worthy of a place among Kentish worthies, for though a 
 foreigner like St. Paul, he was a native of Tarsus in Cilicia 
 he became "the parent of Anglo-Saxon literature," and 
 first introduced the Diocesan system into England, and the 
 germ of the Parochial system into Kent ; by his side stands 
 Mildred, the daughter of King Egbert of Ke"nt, who was 
 the first Abbess of the Convent at Minster in the Isle of 
 Thanet, which her father had founded. And in the last 
 ompartment appears St. Thomas of Canterbury (Becket), 
 who was murdered in his own Cathedral, a victim of his 
 zeal in resisting the aggressions of Henry II. over the sup- 
 posed rights of the Church ; while by his side is St. Earcon- 
 gotha, a daughter of another Saxon King of Kent, though 
 her presence here seems difficult to be accounted for, as she 
 became Prioress of a Convent in Normandy, and seemingly 
 had no direct connection, save by birth, with this County. 
 
 The lower compartments contain the crests, mottoes, and 
 emblems of the two original corps. In the outer ones are 
 the White Horse and " Invicta," the emblem and motto 
 of the County ; while the second displays the long roll of
 
 THE REGIMENTAL COLOURS, 223 
 
 victories belonging to the colours of the old 50th, and 
 the third the Roman numerals of the XCVIIth, and the 
 motto, " Quo fas et gloria ducunt " (where duty and glory 
 lead). Underneath the whole runs the text so suggestive 
 of the trials the Regiment endured in the Soudan : " They 
 shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither 
 shall the sun light on them, nor any heat." 
 
 Nor is it only in this window that the achievements 
 of the Regiment are recorded. The old colours themselves 
 their "banners riven" have found here a worthy and 
 fitting resting-place ; the scrolls still visible to tell of the 
 more recent victories ; which are thus recorded on brass 
 plates at the foot of the standards ; that on the North pier, 
 containing those of the 50th, bears this inscription : " These 
 Colours were borne by the 50th, ' The Queen's Own,' Regi- 
 ment, from the 18th of July 1848 to the 5th of November 
 1863. They were carried during the Crimean Campaign, 
 being present in the Battles of Alma, Inkerman, and the 
 Siege and Fall of Sevastopol. Deposited in this Church 
 on the 1st of May 1886." On the opposite pier, under 
 those of the XCVIIth, the record runs thus : " These 
 Colours were presented to the XCVIIth Regiment by 
 General Sir W. Codrington, K.C.B., at Aldershot on the 
 14th July 1857, and were carried by the Regiment during 
 the Indian Mutiny in the Actions of Nusrutpore, Chanda, 
 Ameerapore, Sultanpore, and afterwards at the Siege and 
 Capture of Lucknow under Sir Colin Campbell. 1 Deposited 
 in this Church on All Saints Day 1883." 
 
 These weather-beaten and shot-riddled fragments of flags, 
 drooping down on either side of the Font, are telling with 
 rare eloquence how they have waved over many a brave 
 1 Afterwards Lord Clyde.
 
 224 THE HISTORY OF MAID STONE CHURCH. 
 
 soldier as he was passing through his baptism of blood on 
 the distant battle-field. 
 
 May the writer, in bringing his History of the grand 
 old Church to a close, indulge in a personal reminiscence ? 
 He was present when those Colours were deposited here, 
 and noticed, he will confess not without something like 
 soldier-hearted emotion, that, when, at the close of the 
 solemn service, the Kegiment passed out and filed by, 
 there rolled down the face of more than one veteran a manly 
 tear as he made his last salute to those familiar Colours 
 under which he had fought, and perhaps bled.
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 15
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 APPENDIX A (1). See page 3. 
 
 EXTRACT from DOMESDAY-BOOK, folio 3, a. 2. The expansions 
 are included in "brackets, [ ] : 
 
 " Ipse Archiep[iscopu]s ten[et] MEDDESTANE. Pro X solins 
 se def[endi]t. T[er]ra e[st] XXX car[ucarum]. In d[o]m[ini]o 
 sunt IIJ car[ucarse], et XXV vill[an]i cu[m] XXI bord[ariis], 
 hab[en]t XXV car[ucas]. Ibi Eccl[esi]a, et X servi, et V 
 molin[i] de XXXVJ solid[is] et VIIJ den[ariis]. Ibi IJ pis- 
 cari de CCLXX anguill[is]. Ibi X ac[rse] p[ra]ti. Silva XXX 
 porc[orum]. 
 
 "De hoc M[anerio] ten[ent] de Archiep[iscop]o IIJ Milit[es] 
 IIIJ solins. Et ibi h[abe]nt IIJ, ca[rucas] et dim[idium] in 
 d[omi]nio ; Et XXXIJ vill[an]os cu[m] X bord[ariis] h[abe]ntes 
 VI car[ucas]. Et X serv[os]. Et h[abe]nt I molin[um] de V 
 solid[is]. Et XII J ac[ra]s p[ra]ti. Et I J piscar[ias] et dimid[ium] 
 CLXXX anguill[is]. Et IJ salin[as]. Silva[m] XXIIJ pore- 
 forum]. 
 
 " In totis valent[iis] T.R.E. val[ebat] hoc M[anerium] XXIIJ 
 lib[ras]. Q[uan]do recep[it] XIJ lib[ras]. Et m[odo] d[omi]nium 
 Archiep[iscop]i val[et] XX lib[ras]. Militum XV lib[ras] et 
 X sol[idos]. Monachi Cantuar[ienses] h[abe]nt omni anno de 
 duob[us] ho[mi]ibus hujus M[anerii] XX sol[idos]." 
 
 The above may be thus freely rendered in English : 
 
 " The Archbishop himself holds Meddestane. It answers for [is
 
 228 APPENDIX. 
 
 rated at] 1 ten sulings. There is [arable] land of thirty ploughs. 
 In demesne there are three ploughs, and twenty-five villans, with 
 twenty-one bordars, have twenty-five plougJis. There is a Church, 
 and ten servants [serfs], and five mills of thirty-six shillings and 
 eightpence. There are two fisheries of two hundred and seventy 
 eels. There are ten acres of meadow land, and woodland with 
 pannage for thirty hogs. 
 
 " Of this Manor three knights hold four sulings from the 
 Archbishop, and have there three ploughs and a half in demesne, 
 and thirty-two villans with ten bordars having six ploughs, and 
 ten serfs. And they have one [molinum\ mill for five shillings, 
 and thirteen acres of meadow, and two fisheries and a half, of one 
 hundred and eighty eels. Two [safoVice] salt-works ; and wood for 
 twenty-three hogs. 
 
 " In total value this Manor was worth in the time of King 
 Edward, [the Confessor] fourteen pounds. When he [Archbishop 
 Lanfranc] received it, twelve pounds ; and now the demesne of the 
 Archbishop is worth twenty pounds ; that of the Knights fifteen 
 pounds and ten shillings; the Monks of [Christ Church] Canterbury 
 have twenty shillings every year from two men in this Manor." 2 
 
 1 The expression "se defendit " may be rendered " in self-defence." It repre- 
 sents the sum at which each landowner was assessed to the King under 
 the head of Danegeld, either as payment of tribute to the invading Danes, 
 or to defend himself and his country against their invasions. 
 
 2 A few words may be added in explanation of the terms here used. The 
 servi (serfs) and the viMani (villeins, so called, as it is supposed, from being 
 grouped in villages) may perhaps be thus distinguished from each other ; 
 while both represent a very low class of dependants, the former are attached 
 rather to the person, the latter to the land, of their owners. The bordarii 
 (bordars) were clearly a better class of labourers, occupying cottages, from 
 the Saxon word " bord," a boarded or wooden hut, a cottage ; in some 
 parts of England called cottarii. Some Antiquaries find a subsidiary deri- 
 vation for the name in the assumption that part of the tenure of their 
 cottage involved the supply to their Lord of poultry, eggs, and other small 
 provisions for his board. A caruca is supposed to represent as much 
 land as a plough, with a team of four yokes or pairs of oxen (hence 
 the name, derived from quatuor), could ordinarily till in the course of a 
 year. Then the existence of one or more molina (mills), whether worked 
 by wind or by water, enhanced the value of a Manor ; while salince, or salt- 
 works, formed no inconsiderable addition to it. The mills and salt-works 
 were generally the property of the Lord of the Manor.
 
 APPENDIX. 229 
 
 APPENDIX A (2). See page 4. 
 
 THE MONASTIC DOMESDAY-BOOK, as it is called, to distinguish it 
 from the other, is preserved in the Chapter Library at Canterbury, 
 and contains the substance of the entries in the King a Domesday, 
 so far as the possessions of the Convent of Christ Church, Canter- 
 bury, are concerned. It is printed in Somner's Antiquities of Can- 
 terbury, App. SS., xiiij : " Maidestane est proprium Manerium 
 Archiepiscopi, et in T.E.R. se defendebat pro X sull'. Et 
 ex iis tenet Radulphus unum sull' quod est apretiatum Is. Et 
 Willielmus frater Episcopi Gundulfi IJ sull', et sunt apretiat' X libr. 
 Et Anscitellus de Ros unum sull', quod est apretiatum LXs. 
 Et duo homines habent inde I sull', qui reddunt Altari Sanctae 
 Trinitatis l XVJs, et jam valet illud sull' XXs. Hoc Manerium 
 habet hundret am in seipso." 
 
 APPENDIX A (3). See page 4. 
 
 MANDATE FOE A SYNOD to be held at Maidstone in 1351, issued 
 by Archbishop Simon Islip, Register, f. 50. Printed in Wilkins' 
 Concilia, vol. iii., p. 13 : 
 
 " Simon, &c., dilecto filio Commissario nostro Cantuariensi 
 Generali, salutem, gratiam, et benedictionem. 
 
 " Quia super quibusdam negotiis nobis per Sedem Apostolicam 
 transmissis, cum dilectis nobis in Christo filiis Abbatibus, Priori- 
 bus, Archidiacono nostro Cantuariensi, Capitulis, Conventibus, 
 Collegiis, et Clero nostrarum civitatum et Diocesis Cant, exemptis 
 et non exemptis, deliberationem habere intendimus & tractatum ; 
 vobis committimus et mandamus, quatenus citetis seu citari 
 faciatis peremptorie Abbates, Priores, Archidiaconum nostrum 
 Cant., Capitula, Conventus, Collegia, et Clerum civitatum Dio- 
 cesis predictarum, exemptos et non exemptos, quod compareant 
 coram nobis, vel nostris Commissariis, in Ecclesia Parochiali de 
 Maidestan, die Jovis proxima post Festum Sancti Laurentii ; 
 dicti viz. Abbates, Priories, et Archidiaconus personaliter, et 
 
 1 Down to the middle of the 13th Century the Mother-Church of Canter- 
 bury was commonly known as the " Church of the Holy Trinity."
 
 230 APPENDIX. 
 
 quodlibet Capitulorum, Conventuum, Collegiorum, Clerus etiam 
 nostrarum civitatum et Diocesis predictarum, per unum Procura- 
 torem sufficientem et idoneum, super contentis in dictis literis 
 Apostolicis, ac aliis ipsas literas contingentibus, una nobiscum 
 seu cum Commissariis nostris, si impediti fuerimus, tractaturi 
 suumque super hiis, que ibidem ordinari contigerit, consensum 
 prebituri pariter et assensum, facturique ulterius et recepturi 
 quod hujusmodi negotiorum qualitas exigit et natura. Et quid 
 feceritis in premissis nos vel nostris Commissariis dictis die et loco 
 certificetis per literas vestras patentes, harum seriem et citatorum 
 nomina in schedula literis vestris certificatoriis annectanda 
 plenarie continentes. Datum apud Maghfield vi Idus Julii, Anno 
 Domini 1351, et consecrationis nostre secundo." 
 
 APPENDIX A (4). See page 13. 
 
 CHARTER OF RICHARD II., granting Archbishop Courtenay license 
 to convert the Parochial Church of St. Mary into a Collegiate 
 Church. Pat. Roll, 19 Ric. II., Part I., m. 11. (Public Record 
 Office) : 
 
 " Ricardus Dei Gratia Rex Anglie, et Francie, et Dominus 
 Hibernie, omnibus ad quos presentes litere pervenerint, salutem. 
 Sciatis quod cum venerabilis in Christo pater Gulielmus de 
 Courtenay, Totius Anglie Primas, et Apostolice Sedis Legatus, 
 consanguineus noster carissimus, devotionis fervore succensus, 
 cupiens intime et desiderans cultum Divinum ampliare pariter 
 et augere, Ecclesiam Parochialem Beate Marie de Maidenstone, 
 suorum patronatus et Diocesis, in quoddam Collegium, nostra 
 mediante licentia, erigere intendat et fundare, Nos, attendentes 
 propositum ipsius Archiepiscopi in hac parte meritorium et 
 salubre, ac debite considerantes grata et laudabilia ac fructuosa 
 obsequia nobis et regno nostro per ipsum Archiepiscopum multi- 
 pliciter impensa ; volentesque proinde, ac propter specialem affec- 
 tionem quam ad personam suam, suis exigentibus meritis, gerimus, 
 et habemus, ipsum Archiepiscopum super pia intentione sua in 
 premissis favore prosequi gratiose; et ut nos operis tam meritorii 
 prcemiis participemur, de gratia nostra speciali, et ex certa scientia
 
 APPENDIX. 231 
 
 nostra, concessimus et licentiam dedimus, pro nobis et heredibus 
 nostris quantum in nobis est, eidem Archiepiscopo quod ipse 
 dictam Ecclesiam Parochialem Beate Marie de Maidenstone, de 
 patronatu suo existentem, in quoddam Collegium erigere; et 
 Collegium illud de uno Magistro, sive Custode, ac tot Sociis 
 Capellanis et aliis ministris, Deo in eodem Collegio servituris, quot 
 eidem Archiepiscopo secundum discretionejn suam melius vide- 
 bitur expedire, fundare, facere, et stabilire valeat pro perpetuo, 
 juxta ordinationem suam in hac parte faciendam. 
 
 " Concessimus etiam, de gratia nostra speciali, et ex certa scientia 
 nostra, et licentiam dedimus pro nobis et heredibus nostris eidem 
 Archiepiscopo, quod ipse advocationem et patronatum predicte 
 Ecclesie Parochialis, ac Capellarum eidem annexarum, qui [? que] 
 de nobis tenentur in capite, ut dicitur, dare possit, et assignare 
 predicto Magistro sive Custodi et Sociis suis Capellanis ejusdem 
 Collegii, et successoribus suis Magistris sive Custodibus ac Sociis 
 suis Capellanis ejusdem Collegii, cum sic fundatum fuerit, habenda 
 et tenenda eidem Magistro sive Custodi et Sociis suis Capellanis 
 dicti Collegii, et successoribus suis Magistris sive Custodibus ac 
 Sociis suis Capellanis ejusdem Collegii, de prefato Archiepiscopo 
 et successoribus suis in liberam puram et perpetuam elemosynam 
 imperpetuum. Et eidem Magistro sive Custodi et Sociis suis 
 Capellanis, quod ipsi advocationem et patronatum Ecclesie pre- 
 dicte et Capellarum eidem annexarum a prefato Archiepiscopo 
 recipere et Ecclesiam ilium cum eisdem Capellis appropriare, et 
 earn sic appropriatam in proprios usus tenere possint, &c., &c., 
 in subventionem sustentationis sue imperpetuum tenore presen- 
 tium similiter licentiam dedimus specialem. 
 
 " Concessimus insuper, de uberiori gratia nostra, et ex certa 
 scientia nostra, et licentiam dedimus pro nobis et heredibus nos- 
 tris, eidem Archiepiscopo quod ipse Hospitale Apostolorum Petri 
 et Pauli " Novi Operis " de Maydenstone, ac omnia, terras, tene- 
 menta, redditus, servicia, et possessiones ejusdem Hospitalis, cum 
 pertinentiis, necnon advocationes et patronatus Ecclesiaruin de 
 Suttone, Lilh'ntone, et Farlegh, clicto Hospitali appropriatarum, 
 de patronatu nostro existentes ; que quidem, Hospitale, advoca- 
 tion&s, et patronatus, de nobis similiter tenentur in capite (ut
 
 232 APPENDIX. 
 
 dicitur), dare possit et assignare predictis Magistro sive Custodi 
 et Sociis suis Capellanis dicti Collegii, habenda et tenenda sibi 
 et successoribus suis, de predicto Archiepiscopo et successoribus 
 suis, in liberam puram et perpetuam elemosynam imperpetuum. 
 Et similiter quod idem Archiepiscopus predictum Hospitale ac 
 omnia, terras, tenementa, redditus, servicia et possessiones ejusdem 
 Hospitalis, cum pertinentiis, prefatis Magistro sive Custodi, et 
 Sociis suis Capellanis, ac Collegio predicto, in majorem subven- 
 tionem eorundem, unire, incorporare, et annectare valeat. Quod- 
 que dicte Ecclesie de Suttone, Lillintone, et Farlegh, licite 
 transferri valeant, in et ad predictos Magistrum sive Custodem, 
 et Socios suos Capellanos, ac Collegio predicto melioribus modo 
 et forma quibus fieri poterit imperpetuum ; seu alias quod unio, 
 appropriatio et incorporatio dictarum Ecclesiarum de Suttone, 
 Lillintone, et Farlegh, terrarum, tenementorum, reddituum, ser- 
 viciorum, et possessionum Hospitalis, predicti eidem Hospitali 
 antea facte penitus dissolvantur. Et predictis Magistro sive 
 Custodi et Sociis suis Capellanis dicti Collegii et successoribus suis, 
 ac Collegio suo predicto de novo approprientur, amortizentur, uni- 
 antur, et incorporentur ; habenda in eorum proprios usus juxta 
 ordinationem ipsius Archiepiscopi in hac parte similiter f aciendam 
 imperpetuum. 
 
 " Et eisdem Magistro sive Custodi et Sociis suis Capellanis dicti 
 Collegii, quod ipsi dictum Hospitale, ac omnia, terras, tenementa, 
 redditus, servicia, et possessiones ejusdem cum pertinentiis, ac 
 advocationes dictarum Ecclesiarum de Suttone, Lillintone, et 
 Farlegh, a prefato Archiepiscopo in forma predicta recipere ; 
 et Hospitale predictum, ac terras, tenementa redditus, servicia, et 
 possessiones hujusmodi cum pertinentis, ac Ecclesias illas Hospitali 
 predicto sic unita, annexa, translata, et incorporata, sive easdem 
 Ecclesias de novo incorporatas, sibi et successoribus suis in 
 proprios usus, habere et tenere valeant in imperpetuum, sicut 
 predictum est, similiter licentiam dedimus per presentes ; dum- 
 tamen elemosine pauperibus in Hospitali predicto solvi consuete 
 ibidem futuris temporibus continue sustententur. Statute de 
 terris et tenementis ad manum mortuam non ponendis edito, aut 
 quibuscunque aliis statutis in contrarium editis ; seu eo quod
 
 APPENDIX. 233 
 
 advocationes et patronatus dictarum Ecclesie Parochialis de 
 Maydenstone et Capellarum eidem annexarum ; ac dictarum 
 Ecclesiarum de Suttone, Lillintone, et Farlegh, sint parcella fun- 
 dationis Archiepiscopatus predict!, aut parcella temporalium ejus- 
 dem Archiepiscopatus, de fundatione progenitorum nostrorum 
 quondam Regum Anglie et nostro patronatu existentum ; seu eo 
 quod advocationes et patronatus predict! de nobis tenentur in 
 capite, sicut predictum est, aut aliquibus. 
 
 " Nolentes quod predictus Archiepiscopus vel successores sui, aut 
 prefatus Magister sive Gustos et Socii sui Capellani dicti Collegii, 
 seu eorum successores predict!, ratione statuti predicti seu aliquorum 
 aliorum premissorum, per nos vel heredes nostros, Justiciaries, 
 Escatores, Vicecomites, aut alios Ballivos, seu ministros nostros 
 quoscunque, inde occasionantur, molestentur, in aliquo, seu gra- 
 vanentur. 
 
 " In cujus rei, Teste Rege me ipso apud Castrum nostrum de 
 Ledes secundo die Augusti anno regni nostri decimo nono. 
 
 " Per breve de Private Sigillo." 
 
 APPENDIX A (5). See page 14. 
 
 THE BULL OF POPE BONIFACE IX., by which he sanctions the 
 project of Archbishop Courtenay for converting the Parish 
 Church of Maidstone into a Collegiate Church, endowed with 
 revenues capable of supporting twenty -four members. Given in 
 extenso in Dr. J. Brigstocke Sheppard's valuable Literce Can- 
 tuarvenses, vol. iii., p. 43, et seq. : 
 
 " COPIA BULLE DOMINI BONIFACII ix 1 QUAJI PERQUISIVIT DOMTNUS 
 W. COURTENAY CANTUARIENSIS ARCHIEPISCOPUS, PRO FUNDA- 
 CIONE COLLEGII OMNIUM SANCTORUM DE MAYDTSTON. 
 
 " Bonifacius servus servorum Dei, venerabili fratri Willelmo 
 ArchiepLscopo Cantuariensi, salutem, et Apostolicam benedic- 
 tionem. Humilibus et honestis supplicum votis, illis presertim 
 per que divinus cultus augeri valeat, libenter annuimus, illaque 
 favoribus prosequimur oportunis. Exhibita siquidem nobis nuper
 
 234 APPENDIX. 
 
 pro parte tua petitio, continebat quod tu, de propria salute recogi- 
 tans, et cupiens transitoria in eterna, et terrena in coelestia felici 
 conversione commutare, ad ejusdern cultus augmentum, parochia- 
 lem ecclesiam de Maydeston, tue Cantuariensis dicecesis, cujus 
 fructus et redditus et proventus ducentarum marcarum sterlin- 
 gorum secundum communem estimationem valorem annuum, ut 
 asseris, non excedit, in collegiatam erigere, et inibi collegium 
 unius Magistri, qui curam dilectorum nliorum parochianorum 
 ejusdem ecclesie exercere pro tempore teneatur, ac caput ejusdem 
 Collegii existat, necnon Capellanorum et Clericorum usque ad 
 viginti quatuor personarum, vel alium de quo tibi videbitur 
 n'umerum, instituere, ipsamque ecclesiam tarn sufficienter dotare, 
 de bonis ratione persone tue ad te pertinentibus, ac etiam 
 unicuique per te licite adquisitis et adquirendis, desideras; quod 
 computatis illis, ac etiam praedictis fructibus, redditibus, et pro- 
 ventibus, ejusdem ecclesie Magister, Capellani, et Clerici predicti, 
 cum personis ad ipsorum et dicte ecclesie obsequia necessariis, 
 potuerint decenter pro tempore sustentari, ac incumbentia eis 
 onera supportari. Quare pro parte tua nobis fuit humiliter sup- 
 plicatum, ut tibi dictam ecclesiam in collegiatam erigendi, et inibi 
 Collegium hujusmodi instituendi, licenciam concedere, et alias in 
 premissis salubriter providere, de speciali gratia dignaremur; 
 Nos igitur, qui eundem cultum augeri intensis desideriis aflfec- 
 tamus, hujusmodi supplicationibus inclinati, tibi ut cedente 
 vel decedente filio Rectore ejusdem ecclesie qui nunc est, vel 
 alias etiam ipsam quomodolibet dimittente, dummodo eorum 
 quorum interest ad id accedat assensus, absque prejudicio et 
 onere matricis Ecclesie, necnon cujuscumque alterius ; predictam 
 Parochialem Ecclesiam et Collegiatam erigendi, et inibi hujusmodi 
 Collegium faciendi pro uno Magistro et totidem Capellanis et 
 Clericis usque ad predictum viginti quatuor, seu alium de quo 
 tibi videbitur numerum, ut premittitur, instituendi, et etiam 
 hujusmodi fructus, redditus, et proventus, ejusdem Parochialis 
 Ecclesie, de hujusmodi ad te, ratione persone tue spectantibus, 
 necnon bonis aliis per te unicuique adquisitis et etiam adquirendis 
 licite, tamen, ut prefertur, augendi, adeo quod ipsi Magister, ac 
 Capellani, et Clerici, quos, usque ad hujusmodi viginti quatuor
 
 APPENDIX. 235 
 
 seu alium de quo tibi videbitur numerum, in ipsa parochial! 
 ecclesia institvieris, decenter vivere, necnon hujusmodi onera eis 
 incumbentia congrue supportare possint et l debeant ; ac etiam 
 statuendi et ordiiiandi ea que circa hujusmodi collegium statuenda 
 et ordinanda fuerint ; ac etiam modum vivendi ipsorum Magistri, 
 Capellanorum, et Clericorum, similiter per te statuendi et or- 
 dinandi, tenore presentium, plenam et liberam, auctoritate apos- 
 tolica, concedinius facultatem. Volumus etiam, et auctoritate 
 predicta de uberioris dono gratie decernimus, quod si eandem 
 Parochialem Ecclesiam in Collegiatam erigi, et hujusmodi viginti 
 quatuor seu alium de quo tibi videbitur numerum, institui per te 
 contingat, ut pret'ertur, Magister pro tempore ejusdem ecclesie, 
 per te in Collegiatam erigende, quodcunque aliud beneficium 
 ecclesiasticum, etiam si dignitas personatus, vel officium cum cura 
 vel sine cura, in Metropolitana, vel Cathedrali, aut Collegiata 
 ecclesiis fuerit, et etiam si requirat personalem residentiam jura- 
 tam, alias si canonice conferatur recipere, illudque cum magistratu 
 ejusdem ecclesie per te in Collegiatam erigende, ut prefertur, 
 retinere, ac fructus, redditus, et proventus, ipsius beneficii, in 
 eadem Ecclesia per te in Collegiatam erigendam, ut prefertur, 
 residendo, cum ea integritate, cotidianis distributionibus duntaxat 
 exceptis, percipere, cum qua illos perciperet si in beneficio seu 
 ecclesia hujusmodi in qua dictum beneficium forsan fuerit pro 
 tempore personaliter resideret, illosque personis de quibus sibi 
 videbitur, arrentare 2 aut [ad 3 ] firmam concedere libere et licite 
 pro tempore valeat ; diocesani loci aut cujuscumque alterius super 
 hoc consensu seu licencia minime requisitis. Quodque ad residen- 
 dum in beneficio, seu ecclesia hujusmodi in qua dictum beneficium 
 forsan fuerit, pro tempore minime teneatur, nee ad id, invitus, 
 a quoquam valeat coartari ; felicis recordationis Bonifacii Pape 
 octavi predecessoris nostri, ac generalis Consilii, ac aliis apos- 
 tolicis et provincialibus et sinodalibus constitutionibus, necnon 
 sstatutis et consuetudinibus ipsius ecclesie in qua hujusmodi bene- 
 ficium forsan fuerit, contrariis, juramento, confirmatione apostolica, 
 vel quacumque firmitate alia roboratis, non obstantibus quibus- 
 cumque ; et insuper exnunc irritum decernimus et inane si secus 
 1 ut ? 2 arrendare, MS. * ad, om. MS.
 
 236 APPENDIX. 
 
 super hiis a quoquam, qua vis auctoritate, scienter vel ignoranter, 
 contigerit attemptari. 1 Nulli ergo omnium hominum liceat hanc 
 paginam nostre concessionis voluntatis et constitutionis infringere 
 vel ei ausu temerario contraire, si quis autem hoc attemptare pre- 
 sumpserit, indignationem omnipotentis Dei, et Beatorum Petri et 
 Pauli Apostolorum ejus, se noverit incursurum. Datum Rome 
 apud Sanctum Petrum vij kalendas Julii pontificatus nostri anno 
 sexto." 2 (25 July, A.D. 1395.) 
 
 APPENDIX B (1). See page 34. 
 EXTRACTS FROM ARCHBISHOP COURTENAY'S WILL. 
 
 EXCERPTA ex Testamento Wilielmi Courtenay, Cant. Archiep. 3 
 (Archiv. C.C. Cantuar. Eegistr., G., f. 258) : 
 
 "Volo quod Corpus meum sepeliatur in Navi Cathedralis 
 Ecclesie Cathedralis Exoniensis, in loco ubi nunc jacent tres De- 
 cani seriatim coram summa cruce. Volo quod Episcopus loci me 
 sepeliat, nisi venerit Archiepiscopus Eboracensis. . . . Volo quod 
 illi tres Decani qui remoti erunt ratione sepulture mee in aliquo 
 ah'o loco honorifico Ecclesie ejusdem sepeliantur meis omnino 
 sumptibus et expensis." 
 
 After giving minute details as to the manner of his burial, 
 he proceeds : 
 
 " Volo quod pro anima mea, &c., &c., quindecim millia Missarum 
 celebrentur. Item volo quod duo millia Matutinarum dicantur." 
 
 1 attemptare, MS. 
 
 2 The Papal Bull is followed in the Register by the formal ratification of 
 the Prior and Chapter of Christ Church, and by a bond given by John 
 Wotton, the first Master of the new College, securing to the Prior and 
 Chapter an annuity of two hundred marks during the life of one Guy 
 Mone, a clerk. The consideration given in exchange for this annuity is not 
 stated, but a second bond follows, in which the Prior and Chapter acknow- 
 ledge themselves bound to pay the same sum yearly to Guy Mone for the 
 term of his life. 
 
 * This Will is more fully given in Battely's Edition of Somner's Anti- 
 quities of Canterbury, Appendix to the Supplement, No. XIII.
 
 APPENDIX. 237 
 
 Then follow above a hundred legacies of money, vestments, 
 books, fec., <fec., among which occur the following : 
 
 " Lego insuper et relinquo metuendissime Majestati vestre 
 ipsius devotissimam servitricem atque oratricem', carissimam 
 et unicam sororem meam, Daugayne, supplicans humiliter et 
 devote, quatenus eandem in hac valle miserie sub alis excellentis- 
 sime protectionis vestre custodire, fovere, atque protegere digne- 
 mini, <fec., &c. Item lego predicte sorori mee CC. libr. et modicum 
 Missale meum, <fec. Item lego eidem Altare meum de albo panno 
 cerico stragulato, una cum tabula Domini mei de Islep, <fec. Item 
 lego Domino Philippe Fratri meo xl libr., &c. Lego Domino 
 Petro Fratri meo xl libr., &c. Lego sorori mee Domine Anne de 
 Courtenay xx libr. Lego carissimo filio et alumpno meo Ricardo 
 Courtenay, C marcas absque aliqua condicione ; Item lego eidem, 
 in casu quo clericus esse velit, et ad sacerdotium promoveri, h'brum 
 meum Dictionarium in tribus voluminibus contentum, et optimam 
 Mitram in casu quo fuerit Episcopus, &c., pro tempore vite sue, et 
 volo quod post mortem suam, vel si, quod absit, ad mundum 
 redierit, quod omnes predicti Libri Sancte Ecclesie Cantuariensi 
 per modum legati remaneant, &c. Lego filiolo meo Willelmo 
 Courtenay, filio fratris mei Domini Philippi, C marcas, &c." 
 
 Then, after a number of additional legacies, he closes his Will 
 thus : 
 
 "Ordino et facio executores meos dilectissimum in Christo 
 fih'um Thomam Chillenden, Priorem mee Ecclesie Cantuariensis ; 
 Magistrum Adam de Mottrum, Archidiaconum meum ; Domi- 
 num Guidonem Mone, Rectorem Ecclesie de Maydestone; 
 Johannem Frenyngham, Armigerum ; Dominum Willelmum 
 Baunton, Rectorem Ecclesie de Harwe ; Johannem Dodyngton, 
 Rectorem Ecclesie de Crukern ; Magistrum Robert um Hallum, 
 Rectorem Ecclesie de Northfleete; et Dominum Johannem 
 Wotton, Rectorem Ecclesie de Stapleherst." 
 
 The following Codicil, or Memorandum, was drawn up no doubt 
 at his dictation by a friend at his bedside within two days of his 
 death : 
 
 " Reverendissirnus Pater languens in extremis (28 die Julii) in 
 interiori camera manerii de Maydeston, voluit et ordinavit quod
 
 238 APPENDIX. 
 
 quia non reputavit se dignum, ut dixit, in sua Metropolitana aut 
 aliqua Cathedral! aut Collegiata Ecclesia sepeliri, voluit et elegit 
 sepulturam suam in Cimiterio Ecclesie Collegiate de Maydeston 
 in loco designate Johanni Botelere Armigero suo. 
 
 " Item voluit quod debita sua solventur, et quod legata sua 
 scripta in Testamento prescripto, quoad f amiliares, solventur, quoad 
 extraneos legatarios defalcarentur juxta discretionem executorum 
 suorum; quodque residuum bonorum suorum remanens, ultra 
 debita et legata, expenderetur juxta dispositionem executorum 
 suorum circa constructionem Ecclesie Collegiate de Maydeston." 
 
 APPENDIX B (2). See page 41. 
 
 THE Inscription which, according to Weever (Funerall Monu- 
 ments, p. 257), ran round the edge of Archbishop Courtenay's 
 Tomb in his time (A.D. 1630) was as follows : 
 
 " Nomine Willelmus, en, Courtnains reverendus, 
 Qui se post obitum legaverat hie tumulandum, 
 In presenti loco quern jam fundarat ab imo, 
 Omnibus et Sanctis titulo sacravit honoris : 
 Ultima lax Julii fit vite terminus illi, 
 M ter C quinto decies nonoque sub anno. 
 Eespice mortalis, quis quondam, sed modo talis, 
 Quantus et iste f uit dum membra calentia gessit. 
 Hie Primas patrum, Cleri Dux, et genus altum, 
 Corpore valde decens, sensus et acumine clarens. 
 FUius hie Comitis generosi Devoniensis, 
 Legum Doctor erat Celebris, quern fama serenat. 
 Urbs Herdfordensis, polls inclita Londoniensis, 
 Ac Doroburnensis, sibi trine gloria sedis, 
 Detur honor, fit Cancellarius ergo. 
 Sanctus ubique pater, prudens f uit ipse minister, 
 Nam largus, letus, castus, pius, atque pudicus, 
 Magnanimns, justns, et egenis totus arnicas. 
 Et quia, Rex, Christi pastor bonus extitit iste, 
 Sumat solamen nunc tecum quesumus. Amen." 
 
 Although the opinions and arguments pro and con bearing on 
 this much-disputed point of Archbishop Courtenay's real burial- 
 place have been already stated at considerable length (see pp. 
 33-45), it may be well to append here some fuller quotations
 
 APPENDIX. 239 
 
 from Dr. Denne's communications to the Antiquarian world. 
 The Archfeologia, vol. x., p. 272, contains a long statement of 
 the investigation Dr. Denne had made into the existing evidence 
 on either side his examination of the real value of Somner's 
 discovery of Leiger Book, etc. This learned Paper appeared in 
 the Antiquarian Society's Journal in May 1788. Yet it did not 
 suffice to remove the doubts of Gough and his brother Antiquaries, 
 who still clung to the hitherto accepted dogma in favour of 
 Canterbury. So Dr. Denne, very strong in his own convictions, 
 seized the opportunity, which his brother's position at Maidstone 
 afforded him six years after, of applying the crucial test of a 
 personal examination of the Tomb itself. He then communicated 
 the result in the form of a Letter to his still hesitating, if not 
 sceptical friend, which Letter Gough gave to the world in his 
 Sepulchral Monuments (vol. ii., p. cxl), and then accompanied it 
 with an acknowledgment of his own conversion to his friend's 
 views. 
 
 A copy of that Letter in MS. is preserved among the collected 
 Notes by C. T. Smythe (vol. ii., f. 120) in the Maidstone Museum, 
 and no apology is needed for introducing it here in extenso. 
 
 " WILMINGTON, March 14, 1794. 
 
 " DEAR SIR, In compliance with your request I at length 
 transmit to you the promised notes with remarks on the opening 
 the groxmd under the Tombstone of Archbishop Courtenay, in 
 the Chancel of Maidstone Church. The delay has been partly 
 occasioned by a willingness to learn from Mr. Cherry, who was 
 an attentive inspector, how far his observations concurred with 
 my own ; and from his report, confirmed by another gentleman 
 present, I may venture to assure you that the circumstances are 
 accurately stated. 
 
 " As from the stones being raised a few inches above the 
 pavement a sufficient number of benches could not be properly 
 arranged for the accommodation of the children of the Sunday 
 School, it was judged expedient to place it on the same level ; and 
 it being necessary to take up the stone, in order -to carry off the 
 superfluous earth, you will not be surprised that curiosity should
 
 2 4 o APPENDIX. 
 
 prompt to a deeper search with the view of ascertaining whether 
 the Archbishop was really there deposited, as the Inscription, 
 aided by tradition, strongly implies ; and it was the united 
 opinion of the examiners, founded on what they saw, that this 
 was the case, and consequently the tale of the body having been 
 conveyed to Canterbury by the King's command was fabricated 
 by the Monks of the Priory of Christ Church, for the purpose of 
 supporting, as they conceived, the credit and dignity of the 
 Cathedral. 
 
 " Bones of persons of different ages, lying in all directions, were 
 found from one to four feet in depth under the stone ; and as in 
 digging graves on either side of the stone, which has been often 
 done, particularly on the North side, the earth from under the 
 stone had fallen in, and the vacancy been supplied with mould 
 and bones indiscriminately thrown up, this will account for 
 the position of such of the bones as were not far under the 
 stone ; but I think those bones which were lying at a greater 
 distance may be fairly appropriated to the bodies disturbed for 
 the interring of the corpse to be particularly described. 
 
 " Till we came to the scattered bones the earth was of a loose 
 texture ; but lower it was more dense, and at the depth of five 
 feet six inches was discovered a skeleton, entire as far as the 
 ground was opened ; for towards the feet, especially on the South 
 side, some of the earth was not removed, though enough was 
 cleared to allow of our seeing the bones of the leg and thigh. 
 The skull, the collar-bone, and the bones of the arm and leg, 
 were in their proper positions. Some of the ribs had sunk on the 
 vertebne, and appeared through their whole length at their due 
 distances. The Sexton, an experienced man in this line, after 
 repeated trials with his mattock, confidently asserted from the 
 nature of the loam that the ground under the skeleton had 
 never been moved, and he observed that under the skull, in 
 which the teeth were remarkably well set and seemed to be 
 complete, the ground was hard and round as a bowl. 
 
 " It is an obvious remark that this must have been the last 
 body interred in the grave; nor can it be thought a strained 
 conclusion but this must have been the skeleton of the person of
 
 APPENDIX. 241 
 
 whom the Tombstone, which had unquestionably covered the spot 
 for many centuries, was avowedly a Memorial. But it is further 
 observable, and it is a point of consequence to the enquiry, that 
 the skeleton was lying immediately under the portrait of brass 
 with which the stone had been inlaid ; or, as Mr. Cherry has well 
 expressed it, had a perpendicular been dropped from the centre 
 of the effigy on the surface of the stone, it would have touched 
 exactly the corresponding part of the body here deposited. 
 
 " .Recollecting that Archbishop Wittlesey, who died a little more 
 than twenty years before Courtenay, was not buried in lead, as 
 may be inferred from the examination of his tomb in the Nave of 
 Canterbury Cathedral, when levelled a few years ago, I did not 
 expect to see a coffin of this kind in Courtenay's grave ; and 
 perhaps you can show from sundry instances that in that age it 
 was not customary to enclose in lead the remains of persons of 
 even high rank. 
 
 " As to a coffin of wood, if any such there were, it could hardly 
 have endured a century upon this spot. The grave of the Arch- 
 bishop is clearly in the higher part of the ground plot of the Church, 
 where the earth was observed to be very dry; and the drier 
 the soil the sooner the coffin decays. Some coffins made of 
 green elm, and deposited in this Churchyard in a moist place, 
 have been found in a high state of preservation after forty years ; 
 and others, of dry elm, laid in dry ground, have mouldered in 
 a few months ; and, with or without a coffin of wood, in such a 
 soil as this, after a lapse of nearly four hundred years, a Crosier 
 must have perished, nor could the Episcopal ring, 1 of whatever 
 metal it might be made, have escaped a total corrosion. 
 
 " The Inscription professes a true representation of Archbishop 
 Courtenay's person to have been exhibited on the brass figure : 
 
 ' Respice, mortalis, quis quondam, sed modo tails, 
 Qnantns et ipse fait dum membra calentia gessit.' 
 
 1 The absence of this has been quoted as an argument against its 
 being the Archbishop's grave : but might it not have been assigned with 
 his mitre to his nephew ? William of Wykeham bequeathed his to New 
 College, Oxford, where it is still preserved. 
 
 16
 
 242 APPENDIX. 
 
 Supposing the words to mean, that with respect to the stature 
 of the Primate there was an exaot correspondence between the 
 portrait and the original, the despoiled matrix will not admit of 
 an accurate admeasurement, how many inches are to be deducted 
 for the height of the mitre, or of determining whether the drapery- 
 might not have fallen below the feet ; but if a judgment may be 
 formed of the height of Archbishop Courtenay from the figure 
 of him recumbent on his Cenotaph in Canterbury Cathedral, which 
 has upon the head a mitre of considerable length, he was a man 
 of middle size, and from the apparent length of the bones, and 
 indeed from the general view of the space occupied by the 
 skeleton under the Tombstone, such seems to have been the 
 stature of Courtenay. 
 
 " As a surmise it was suggested in my letter to you, 1 published in 
 Archceologia, that the Tombstone might not ever have been more 
 elevated than it was before its late removal ; but I was mistaken, 
 for a groove round the under surface not far from the edge shows 
 that it was the slab of an Altar-Monument. Whether it might 
 be lowered because the panels which supported it were ruinous, 
 and the parish unwilling to bear the expence of repairing them, 
 or because a monument raised so high was in such a situation 
 incommodious, cannot be traced. 2 It may, however, be remarked 
 that the incumbrance could not have been so great at the time 
 of its being constructed, nor for a century and a half later, when 
 the Laity were seldom permitted to enter the Chancel. 
 
 "During that period an Altar-Tomb so conspicuously placed 
 would have answered the purpose of a lasting hearse ; it would 
 have been a regular day's mind 3 to the Master and Fellows of 
 the College to excite a remembrance of their Founder. They 
 were convinced, possibly boasted, that to them were entrusted 
 the remains of the Archbishop ; and whilst in their Stalls, with his 
 effigy in view, they could not well neglect the offering of A ve 
 Marias and Pater-costers for the eternal benefit of the Prelate by 
 whose bounty they were maintained. The efficacy of Prayers 
 
 1 Archceologia, vol. x., p. 272. 2 This has been fully explained at p. 32. 
 * Used in the sense of a reminder, or remembrancer, as in the old phrase 
 " month's mind."
 
 APPENDIX. 243 
 
 for the Dead, a prevailing tenet of the religion of that age, 
 must have made a strong impression on the mind of Courtenay 
 himself; he having directed in his Will that 15,000 Masses 
 should be celebrated for his soul, and for the souls of his parents, 
 and other relatives, and that there should be also a recital of 
 2,000 Mattins. 
 
 "In his Epitaph it is mentioned that Courtenay was Chancellor 
 'Detur honor, Jit Cancellarius ergo.' " Surely he means Cardinal? 
 for I cannot find him Chancellor," was the comment of Weever's 
 on this line. And Newton, under the same notion, has intimated 
 that the word must have reference to Courtenay having been 
 Chancellor of Oxford. But if, as stated by Walsingham only, 
 Courtenay, when Bishop of Hereford, was created a Cardinal, it 
 is likewise said he did not accept that dignity ; and considering 
 that in his time, and for many years after, the Chancellorship of 
 Oxford was an annual office, conferred on members of the Univer- 
 sity not distinguished by their rank or by their connections in 
 the world, this is such an anti-climax in the detail of the Arch- 
 bishop's preferments, as could hardly have dropped from the pen 
 of even the Monkish Rhymer who was the Eulogist. Spelman 
 was not aware of Courtenay's having ever been Chancellor, and 
 has therefore observed in his Glossary, that the Bishop of London 
 who was appointed (5 Richard II.) was perhaps Robert Braibroke, 
 by an erroneous reading of " R " instead of " W" ; whereas it is 
 on record that Courtenay had as Chancellor the Great Seal for a 
 few months. Before the King in Council the oath of office 
 was administered to him in Reading Abbey, on the festival of 
 St. Lawrence (August 13th, A.D. 1381) 1 ; and on the ensuing 
 festival of St. Andrew, being then Archbishop of Canterbury, 
 elect, and confirmed, and styled " State Chancellor," he at West- 
 minster surrendered to the King the Greal Seal in a purse sealed 
 with the signet of the said elect. 8 Sir Robert Cotton has noticed 
 (in his Abridgement of Records in tJie Tower) that about the 
 beginning of November in this year, on the opening of a 
 Parliament, Archbishop Courtenay, then Chancellor, delivered 
 
 1 Ryraer's Fcedcra, vol. vii., p. 310. 
 
 2 Ibid., p. 333.
 
 244 APPENDIX. 
 
 a speech, taking for his theme, " Rex convenire fee-it Concilium," 
 upon which he adds he made a good oration, and spake of the 
 vertuous government of the King, and his reign ; affirming that 
 no reign could endure long if vice reigned therein; to redress 
 which, seeing it could not be done by the ordinary course of Law, 
 the King (he said) called his Parliament." ***** 
 (Here occur two paragraphs not bearing on this subject.) 
 " This letter I will conclude by observing that the slab of the 
 Tomb of Archbishop Courtenay is of marble, from a quarry in the 
 Weald of Kent, 1 that will take a high polish. 
 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 " SAMUEL DENNE." 
 
 It is due to the memory of one who has lately been taken away 
 from us Mr. Beresford Hope, himself a prominent Antiquary, 
 and indeed one of the original founders of the "Cambridge 
 Camden Society" (the mother of all subsequent associations 
 of a similar character), as well as the munificent restorer of 
 St. Augustine's College at Canterbury that an extract should 
 here be given from a Paper he read before the Kent Archaeological 
 Society at Maidstone in 1861, though it be at variance with the 
 opinion given by Dr. S. Denne. After expressing some doubt as 
 to the skeleton found under the stone being that of Archbishop 
 Courtenay, on the ground that it seemed to be that of a younger 
 man, he went on to say : 
 
 " There is one solution of the difficulty which I have not yet 
 seen stated, and which I throw out with great diffidence for the 
 consideration of men who can judge of its value better than 
 myself. Why should not Courtenay have been buried in both 
 places? Some of you may be surprised, but the suggestion is 
 not so ridiculous as at first sight it appears. We know that in 
 the Middle Ages it was one of the barbarous customs of the 
 times a custom which is even now occasionally followed in the 
 case of royal funerals to divide the dead body, and bury the 
 heart in one place and the rest of the remains elsewhere. In 
 
 1 Bethersden.
 
 APPENDIX. 245 
 
 this case Courtenay wished to be buried at Maidstone ; the Clergy 
 of Canterbury naturally wished to bury their ecclesiastical chief 
 in his Cathedral. Why should not the difference have been 
 split? Why should not the Leiger Book of Canterbury speak 
 the truth in telling us that Courtenay 's body was buried there ? 
 Why should not his heart, or some other portion of his remains, 
 have been buried in this his Collegiate Church, and been 
 covered over by that stone in the Chancel ? This reconciles 
 both the conflicting claims, and, it may be, is the real truth ? " 
 
 One argument against this suggestion is that any casket for 
 holding the heart (or any other portion of the body) would, as 
 existing specimens testify, be of a substantial character, and far 
 more durable than the comparatively fragile filigree work which 
 would ornament a crosier ; and such solid metal could hardly have 
 perished so entirely even in four hundred years as not to " leave 
 a rack behind." 
 
 APPENDIX C (1). See page 54. 
 
 CHARTER ROLL, 7 John, m. 8 (Public Record Office) : 
 
 "Johannes, Dei gratia, &c., <fec. Sciatis nos intuitu Dei efc 
 quantum ad patronum pertinet, dedisse, concesse, et hac Carta 
 nostra confirmasse Willelmo de Cornhull, Clerico, Ecclesiam de 
 Maydenestane cum omnibus pertinentiis suis, vacantem, et de 
 donatione nostra existentem, ratione Archiepiscopatus Cantuari- 
 onsis vacantis et in manu nostro existentis, habendam et tenendam 
 toto tempore vite sue adeo libere, integre, et pacifice sicut aliquis 
 ante eum ilium noscitur tenuisse. 
 
 "Testibus, G. filio Petri, Comite Essexie, Comite Albrico, Hugone 
 de Neville, Johanne de Bramcestre, Archidiacono Vigornensi, 
 Philippo de Luce, Johanne de Well', Johanne de Plessetis, et A. de 
 Essex. Datum per manum H. de Well', Archidiacono Wellensi, 
 apud Havering, vj die Augusti Anno Regni viij."
 
 246 APPENDIX. 
 
 APPENDIX C (2). See page 67. 
 
 1311. Edward II. asks the Pope for his kinsman Guido de la 
 Valle to be appointed Rector of Maidstone, on the ground of his 
 wife Isabella having desired it : 
 
 " Pape Rex, &c., &c. Nuper, pater sanctissime, vestri Apostolatus 
 gratia munifica, Isabellam Reginam Anglie, consortem meam 
 karissimam in suis favore preveniens speciali, uni persone idonee, 
 per dictam consortem nostram nominandse, de beneficio ecclesias- 
 tico ad collationem venerabilis patris Archiep. Cant, pertinente, 
 in civitate vel diocese Cant., quod persona sic nominanda duceret 
 acceptand', quamprimum ad id offeret se facultas, voluit provideri, 
 certis ad hoc per Apostolicum Rescript um executoribus deputatis ; 
 unde vestre clementie ad grates assurgimus speciales. 
 
 " Idemque executores, facta prenotato Arch, plenaria notifica- 
 tione de provisione hujusmodi, et aliis previis in negotio illo, juxta 
 juris exigentiam, & tenorem predicti Rescripti Apostolici, plenius 
 observati, de Eccl. de Maidenstan dicte diocesis, et de collatione 
 prefati Arch, postmodo vacantem, dilecto clerico et consanguineo 
 nostro magistro Guidoni de la Val, per dictam consortem nostram 
 ad hoc, nominato auctoritate benignitatis vestre, eis in hac parte 
 commissa, debite providerunt, <fcc., &c. Verum pater pie, quia, ut 
 jam nostro auditui est relatum, quidam magister Stephanus de 
 Haselingfeld, nitens provisionem predictam, non sine gravi sedis 
 Apost. offensa, pro viribus impugnare, et predictum clericum et con- 
 sanguineum nostrum effectu provisionis illius illicite defraudare, 
 fingensque se ad dictam eccl. jus habere contra dictum consangui- 
 neum nostrum, ad vestre sanctitatis curiam appellationem inter- 
 posuit super negotio memorato ; 
 
 " Sanctitati vestre affectuosis precibus supplicamus, &c., <fec." 
 Rymer's Fcedera (Record Commission Edition), vol. ii., p. 130. 
 
 1313. Edward II., again appealing to the Pope on behalf of his 
 kinsman, Guido de la Valle, and complaining that the Executors 
 of his wife, Isabella, have failed to effect the removal of Stephen 
 de Haselyngfelde, writes : 
 
 " Verum prsefatus Arch, licet sibi de facto ipsorum executorum
 
 APPENDIX. 247 
 
 in bac parte constaret, non sine contemptu sedis Apostol. et 
 dedecore prefate nostre consortis, eandem Eccl. cuidam magistio 
 Stephano de Haslyngfeld contulit, pro sue libito voluntatis; et 
 prefatum Guidonem, non obstante inhibitione executorum pre- 
 dictorum, a possessione ejus Eccl. fecit, contra justitiam amoveri, 
 ipsumque, et sibi adherentes per processus varios, aut excom- 
 municationum & interdicti sententias presumpsit, & adhuc pre- 
 sumit multipliciter molestare. 
 
 " Nos, igitur, <fcc., &c., beatitudini vestre sinceris affectibus sup- 
 plicamus, premissis provida deliberatione pensatis, petitionas 
 ejusdem Guidonis, vobis, si placeat, super premissis porrigendas, 
 benigue audire, sibique super contentis in eisdem, prout nostro eb 
 prefate consortis nostre honori accommodo ipsius Guidonis 
 vestra paterna sollicitudo prospexerit convenire, juxta speratam 
 fiduciam, dignemini opportunum juris remedium ordinare." 
 
 Rymer's Fcedera, vol. ii., p. 207. 
 
 APPENDIX C (3). See page 68. 
 
 1320. The King asks the Pope to appoint Guiclo de la Valle, 
 whom he calls " Canonicum Agenn., Rectorem Eccl. de Mayden- 
 stane," to the Bishopric of Dol, " quod ' Johannes Doles ' tanta se 
 seiitiat corporis debilitate depressum, tantaque senectute con- 
 fractum quod jam impotens redditur ad exequendum officium 
 pastorale per quod a cura exui & cedendi desideret facultatem." 
 
 Ibid., p. 429. 
 
 APPENDIX C (4). See page 71. 
 HUGO DE PELEGRIN. 
 
 1353. 26 Edward III. : 
 
 " Rex Hugoni (inagistro) Pelegrini, domini Summi Pontificis 
 in Anglia Nuncio Speciali, salutem, <fec. 
 
 " Licet primi fructus, de aliquibus beneficiis Eccl. in i-egno nostro 
 Anglie, pretextu aliquarum reservationum seu collationum per 
 dictum Dominum Summum Pontificem hide factarum, quousque 
 hujusmodi collationes realiter execute et effectum sortite fvierunt,
 
 248 APPENDIX. 
 
 ad usum dicti Dom. Sum. Pontificis aliquo tempore hue usque 
 exacti vel levati non fuerint, non de jure exigi vel levari debeant ; 
 
 " Vos, tamen, ut accepimus, diversas pecuniarum summas, 
 nomine primorum fructuum, a diversis personis ecclesiasticis dicti 
 regni qui beneficia sua ex collationibus verorum patronum tenent 
 & tenuerunt a diu, colore hujusmodi reversationum et collationum 
 de beneficiis ipsis per curiam Romanam factarum, ut asseritis, 
 quanquam hujusmodi collationes execute aut effectum sortite 
 realiter non existant, nee dictis beneficiis incumbentes quicquam 
 juris, virtute alicujus hujusmodi reservationis aut collationis 
 Papalis, vendicent in eisdem, ad usum Dom. Sum. Pontif . exegistis, 
 et indies levare nitimini minus juste, in nostri prejudicium, & 
 nedum personarum eccles. hujusmodi, set totius regni predicti 
 grave dampnum ac depressionem & depauperationem manifestam ; 
 
 "Nos, igitur, hujusmodi prejudicio dampno, depressioni et de- 
 pauperationi precavere, ac hujusmodi exactiones novas et insolitas, 
 in nostri et nostri regni dicti praejudicium machinatas, volentes 
 restringere, sicut decet, 
 
 " Vobis precipimus, firmiter injungentes, quod ab hujusmodi 
 exactionibus et gravaminibus aliquibus, personis eccles. dicti regni 
 nostri, ex causa premissa, de coeteris faciendis, penitus desistentes, 
 si quid ab eis, vel eorum aliquo, per vos vel ad mandatum vestrum, 
 sic extortum vel levatum fuerit, id eis sine dilatione restituatis, 
 ne ad vos propter vestram incuriam, in hac parte, materiam 
 habeamus graviter capiendi." 
 
 Rymer's Fcedera, vol. iii., part i., p. 250. 
 
 APPENDIX D (1). See page 82. 
 
 " CONFIRMATIO HoSPITALIS DE MAYDENSTANE. 
 
 " Omnibus Christi, &c., &c., ad quos, &c., dec., Rogerus Prior et 
 Capitulani, &c., salutem, &c. 
 
 " Cum "Vonerabilis Pater noster Bonifacius, Dei gratia Can- 
 tuariensis Archiepiscopus, &c., construxerit quoddam Hospitale 
 apud Maydenstane, et eidem Hospitali ac Magistro et Fratribus 
 ibidem Domino servientibus ac eorum successoribus dederit et
 
 APPENDIX. 249 
 
 concesserit, et sua Carta confirmaverit, sicut in eadem perspexi- 
 mus plenius contineri, quasdam terras, possessiones, et redditus, 
 nos donationibus et concessionibus predictarum terrarum, posses- 
 sionum, et reddituum, nostrum prebentes assensum, eas, sicut rite 
 et rationabiliter facte sunt, sigilli Capituli nostri munimine 
 auximus roborandas, viz., omnes terras, possessiones, et redditus, 
 cum eorum pertinentiis, quos predictus Dominus Cantuariensis 
 emerit de pecunia sua, in campis de Petryshull, et in aliis locis 
 ubicumque extra territoiium seu feotlum nostrum, necnon etiam 
 pratum quoddam qxiod est prope idem Hospitale et quod vocatur 
 " Broks " cum suis pertinentiis, quod habebat idem Dominus 
 in dominio Manerii sui de Maydenstane, collationibus insuper 
 ecclesiarum, viz., de Farnlege ( ? Farleigh) et Sutton, cum suis 
 pertinentiis, eisdem Magistro et Fratribus a predicto Domino Can- 
 tuar. factis, nostrum similiter prebentes assensum eas et alia omnia 
 que in presenti juste et pacifice optinerit, sigilli nostri predicti 
 communimus. Ita tamen quod in hiis quae perveniunt de 
 Manerio nostro de Farnlege cum suis pertinentiis, et que ex 
 antiqua consuetudine et approbata in eodem Manerio nostro 
 percipere consuevimus, nobis nee nostris successoribus aliquod 
 prejudicium generetur. In quorum omnium, &c., &c. 
 
 " Datum in Capitulo nostro die Dominica proxima ante Festum 
 Natalis Beatae Marise Virginis, Anno Domini MCCLXI." 
 
 Registrum Ecclesice Chrisli, Cantuariensis, I., f. 255. 
 
 APPENDIX E (1). See page 93. 
 
 THE following Extracts from Archbishop Chicheley's Register 
 (vol. i., f. 95, b) will show the different terms in which a direct 
 appointment (collatio), and one on the presentation of the College, 
 were made : 
 
 " Henricus, permissione Divina, Cantuariensis Archiepiscopus, 
 dilecto in Christo filio Magistro Johanni Holand, utriusque juris 
 Doctori, graciam, salutem, et Apostolicam benedictionem. . . . 
 Cum Collegium nostrum Omnium Sanctorum de Maydeston nostre
 
 250 APPENDIX. 
 
 Diocesis fuerit et sit ad presens, per mortem domini Johannis 
 Wotton ultimi Magistri sive Custodis ejusdem, magistratus solatio 
 destitutum ; Ipsiusque Collegii nostri provisio ad magistratus sive 
 custodie prefectionem in eodem legitime ad nos pertineat ista 
 vice; Volentes idcirco eidem Collegio nostro, ac cure animarum 
 Parochianorum ejusdem, in quantum cum Deo possumus salubriter 
 providere, ac de tue circumspectione, industria et solercia vigilanti 
 plenam in Domino fiduciam obtinentes, tibi magistratum et 
 custodiam dicti Collegii nostri de Maydeston conferimus intuitu 
 caritatis, ac te Magistrum et Custodem ejusdem prefecimus ac 
 per bureti nostri tradicionem investimus te, et instituimus cano- 
 nice in eadem cum suis juribus et pei tinentiis universis. Eidemque 
 Collegio nostro de persona tua providemus canonice per presentes 
 curam animarum Parochianorun, regimen quoque et administra- 
 tionem dicti Collegii, tarn in spiritualibus quam in temporalibus, 
 tibi in Domino committentes. In cujus rei testimonium sigillum 
 nostrum presentibus est appensum. Datum in Manerio nostro 
 de Otteford viij die mensis Marcii Anno Domini MCCCCXVII, 
 et nostre translationis anno quarto." 
 
 This is followed by a Mandate to the Sub-Master and Fellows 
 to proceed at once to his formal Induction, thus (Ibid., f. 96, a) : 
 
 " Henricus, permissione Divina Cantuariensis Archiepiscopus, 
 totius Anglie Primas, et Apostolice sedis Legatus, Dilectis in 
 Christo filiis Submagistro et Consociis Collegii nostri Omnium 
 Sanctorum de Maydeston nostre Diocesis, salutem, gratiam et 
 benedictionem. Quia nos magistratum et custodiam Collegii 
 nostri predicti per mortem domini Johannis Wotton, ultimi 
 magistri sive custodis ejusdem, magistratus solatio destitutum 
 audivimus, cujus provisio, ac magistri sive custodis prefeccio, in 
 eodem ad nos legitime pertinent ista vice, Dilecto in Christo 
 filio Magistri Johanni Holand, utriusque juris Doctori, contulimus 
 intuitu caritatis, ac ipsum Magistrum et Custodem ejusdem pre- 
 fecimus, et per bureti l nostri tradicionem investituimus eum, et 
 investituimus in et de eodem cum suis juribus et pertinent iis 
 universis, eidemque Collegio nostro de persona ipsius providimus 
 canonice atque rite. Tibi, igitur, fili Sub-Magister, committimus, 
 1 Clearly a clerical error for " biretti."
 
 APPENDIX. 251 
 
 et mandamus quatimis prefatum Magistrum Johannem, vel 
 Procuratorem suum ejus nomine, installes et in corporalem et 
 realem possessionem magistrates et ciistodie Collegii nostri pre- 
 dicti, cum suis juribus et pertinentiis universis, inducas, inducive 
 facias, et defendas inductum. Vobis insuper omnibus et singulis, 
 Sub-magistro, Consociis, clericis, choristis, Collegii nostri predicti 
 in virtute sancte obedientie firmiter injungendo mandamus, 
 quatinus eidem Johanni, ut Magistro Collegii nostri predicti, sitis 
 obedientes, et intendentes in omnibus sicut decet. Et quid tu, 
 fili Sub-magister, feceris in premissis, cum per partem dicti 
 Magistri Johannis congrue fueris requisiti, nos debite certifices 
 litteris tuis patenter habentibus hunc tenorem sigillo communi 
 ejusdem Collegii consignatis. Datum ut supra, &c." 
 
 The appointment of Holand's successor, as the first instance of 
 a presentation on the part of the Sub-Master and Fellows, is thus 
 intimated to Heron, and to the College : 
 
 "Henricus, <fcc., &c., Dilecto in Christo filio domino Rogero 
 Heron, presbitero, salutem, &c. Ad Collegium nostrum Omnium 
 Sanctorum de Maydeston nostre Dioicesis per mortem naturalem 
 ultimi Magistri ibidem, magistri sive custodis solatio ad presens 
 penitus destautum, te juxta formam et effectum ordinationis et 
 statutorum Collegii nostri antedicti in Magistratum ejusdem 
 electum, et ad idem per Sub-magistrum ac Capellanos et Con- 
 fratres perpetuos ipsius Collegii nostri nobis presentatum, admit- 
 timus. Tibi quare magistratum et custodiam ejusdem Collegii 
 nostri conferimus, et te Magistrum sive Custodem ejusdem Col- 
 legii nostri cum suis juribus et pertinenciis universis prefecimus 
 per presentes. Curam, regimen, et administrationem omnium et 
 singulorurn bonorum, tam spiritualium quam temporalium, ipsius 
 Collegii nostri vel ad illud quovismodo pertinencium Tibi in 
 Domino committentes. In cujus rei, fcc., <fec. Datum in Civitate 
 Rothomathen in Normannia, septimo die mensis Augusti anno 
 Domini MCCCCXIX, et nostre translations anno sexto." 
 
 This form of appointment is followed by the Mandate to the 
 College authorities to instal Roger Heron, in similar terms to 
 that in the case of Holand, mutatis mutandis. 
 
 Archbishop Chicheley'a Register, I., f. 103, b.
 
 252 APPENDIX. 
 
 APPENDIX F (1). See page 119. 
 
 EXTRACT from the Charter granted by James I. to the Town and 
 Parish of Maidstone : 
 
 "JACOBUS Rex Anglie, &c., &c. 
 
 " Cumque etiam quedam Ecclesia in Villa de Maidstone vocata 
 Ecclesia Omnium Sanctorum de Maidstone, quondam fuit Ecclesia 
 Collegiata, ac per quamplurimos annos jam elapsos usitata et 
 applicata fuit ad divinum servicium et alia que ad cultum divinum 
 pertinent ibidem celebranda, ac eadem Ecclesia cum Cemiterio 
 ejusdem quondam fuit parcellum possessionum nuper dissoluti 
 Domus sive Collegii de Maidstone predicti, ut informamur, Nos 
 pietate moti, et ob augmentationem cultus divini volentes, quod 
 de cetero imperpetuum eadem Ecclesia et Cemiterium eidem per- 
 tinens, erit, permanebit, et applicabitur ad divina Servicia in 
 eadem Ecclesia de tempore in tempus celebranda, et ad mortuos 
 in eodem Cemiterio sepeliendos, volumus et jure prerogative nostre 
 concedimus quod Ecclesia ilia in omnibus temporibus deinceps 
 imperpetuum sit, erit, et vocabitur Ecclesia Parochialis de Maid- 
 stone in Comitatu Kantie, eandemque Ecclesiam per nomen 
 Ecclesie Parochialis de Maidstone in Comitatu Kantie, pro nobis, 
 heredibus, et successoribus nostris per presentes volumus perpetuis 
 futuris temporibus de cetero nominari, dignosci, et appellari. Ac 
 ad intentionem quod Ecclesia ilia de cetero imperpetuum sit et 
 permaneat Ecclesia Parochialis pro divino servicio, et alias ad 
 cultum divinum spectans, in eadem Ecclesia perpetuo celebranda, 
 ac ad Sacramenta et Sacramentalia in eadem ministranda, ad 
 quam quidem Ecclesiam Maior, Jurati, et Communitas Ville 
 Regis et Parochialis predicti, ac omnes inhabitantes residentes 
 infra eandem villam et parocliiam de tempore in tempus adire, 
 congregare, et convenire possint, de gratia nostra speciali, ac ex 
 recta scientia, et mero motu nostris, damns et per presentes conce- 
 dimus et confirmamus predictis nunc Maiori, Juratis, et Com- 
 munitati Yille Regis et Parochie de Maidstone in Comitatu 
 Kantie predictis, et successoribus suis, Ecclesiam illam de Maid- 
 stone, ac Cemiterium ejusdem Ecclesie cum pertinentiis habendum 
 et tenendum predictam Ecclesiam .... imperpetuum ad divina
 
 APPENDIX. 253 
 
 servicia et alia que ad divinum cultum ibidem pertinentia pera 
 genda et celebranda prout modo usus est, sive antehac uti aut in 
 usu fuit sive sunt sive fuerunt, tenenda de nobis, heredibus, et 
 successoribus nostris, ut de Manerio nostro de Eastgreenwiche in 
 predicto Comitatu Kantie per fidelitatem tantum in libero et 
 communi soccagio, et non in capite, nee per servicium Mili- 
 tare. . . . 
 
 " In cujus rei testimonium has literas fieri fecimus Patentes, 
 Teste meipso, apud Westmonasterium tricesimo primo die Decem- 
 bris Anno Regni nostri Anglie Francie et Hibernie secundo, et 
 Scotie tricesimo octavo." 
 
 The following is an English translation of the foregoing 
 Charter granted by King James : 
 
 "James, <fcc., to all to whom, &c., &c. . . . Whereas also a cer- 
 tain Church in the Town of Maidstone aforesaid, called the Church 
 of All Saints of Maidstone, was formerly a Collegiate Church, and 
 for many years now elapsed was used and applied to celebrate 
 there Divine Service, and other things which pertain to Divine 
 worship, and the same Church, with the Cemetery of the same, 
 was formerly a portion of the possessions of the late House or 
 College of Maidstone aforesaid, as v we are informed ; We, moved 
 by piety, and for the augmentation of Divine worship, willing 
 that hereafter for ever the same Church, and the Cemetery to 
 the same pertaining, shall be, remain, and be applied to Divine 
 Services, to be celebrated in the same Church from time to time, 
 and to the burying the dead in the same Cemetery, will, and in 
 right of our prerogative grant, that the same Church, at all 
 times hereafter for ever, be, shall be, and shall be called the 
 Parish Church of Maidstone, <fec. . . . And to the intent that the 
 same Church hereafter for ever may be and remain a Parish 
 Church, for perpetually celebrating Divine Service and other 
 things belonging to Divine worship, in the same Church, and for 
 administering the Sacraments and Sacramentals in the same, and 
 to which Church aforesaid, the Mayor, Jurats, and Commonalty 
 of the King's Town and Parish aforesaid, and all other inhabit- 
 ants resident within the same Town and Parish, from time to 
 time may go, meet, and assemble, We do of Our special grace, and
 
 254 APPENDIX. 
 
 of Our certain knowledge and of Our own accord, give, and by 
 these presents grant and confirm, to the aforesaid the present 
 Mayor, Jurats, and Commonalty of the King's Town and Parish of 
 Maidstone in the County of Kent aforesaid, and their successors, 
 the same Church of Maidstone aforesaid, and the Cemetery of the 
 same Church, with the appurtenances, to have and to hold the 
 aforesaid Church, &c., to the aforesaid present Mayor, Jurats, and 
 Commonalty of the King's Town and Parish, and their successors 
 for ever, for the performing and celebrating there Divine Service, 
 &c., &c." 
 
 The search through the " Burghmote Records " which these en- 
 quiries have rendered necessary, has brought to light an incident 
 which, though affecting the Town rather than the Church, it will 
 not be out of place to mention here. Among the rumours of 
 plots and the consequent alarms which marked the later years 
 of Charles II. 's reign, was what is commonly known as the " Rye- 
 House Conspiracy." In the end of 1681, Lord Shaftesbury was 
 charged with being privy to the formation of an "Association," 
 having for its object the exclusion of the Duke of York, now 
 currently suspected of being a Romanist, from the succession to 
 the throne, and even of coercing the King to make certain 
 concessions. The discovery of some very compromising papers in 
 Lord Shaftesbury's house, the contents of which were published, 
 created a stir, not to say a panic, throughout the country. Among 
 the foremost of the towns to profess loyalty and to protest against 
 such intrigues was Maidstone, which, in common with the towns 
 of Evesham, Norwich, Derby, and others, presented a vehement 
 repudiation of all sympathy with such designs. The protest of 
 the Maidstone Corporation, accompanied as it was by a surrender 
 of their Charter from James I., deserves to be given in full. 
 
 It ran thus l : 
 
 At a Court of Burghmote held April 7th, 1682 (30 Charles II.), 
 
 " It is ordered at this Courte that the Abhorrence hereunder 
 
 written be forthwith presented to His Sacred Majestie with the 
 
 Common Seale annexed, and that the Charter of our Corporacon 
 
 1 Burghmote Records, C.C., f. 237.
 
 APPENDIX. 255 
 
 be alsoe surrendered and presented to his Majestic, as in the same 
 Abhorrence is expressed. 
 
 " To the King's Most Excellent Majestic : 
 
 " Wee your Majestie's most dutyfull and Loyall Subjects, the 
 Mayor, Jurats, and Common Councell of the King's Towne and 
 Parish of Maidstone, haveing with great astonishment and con- 
 sternacon of mind perused an accursed Paper seized in the Earle 
 of Shaftsbury's closet, and published by your Majestie's order, 
 doe thinke ourselves as true Englishmen (that is as good subjects) 
 in duty bound and obliged to declare to your Majestie and the 
 whole world our Abhorrence and utter detestacon of that most 
 Trayterous and villanous writeing bearing the name and Title of 
 an Associacon, but being indeed deemed by every one of us a 
 most horrid and damnable contrivance to destroy your Sacred 
 Majestie, your Royal Family, and Government, and to pursue to 
 utter destruccon all your Majestie's Liegh (? Liege) people who 
 should doe their duty in opposing the bloody designs purported 
 and sett forth in that audatious and arch-traiterous conspiracy. 
 And wee are the rather moved to this our public Testimony 
 against it because wee have observed that since this impious 
 contrivance hath been discovered to the world not one man to 
 our knowledge of the severall parties who are the known enemies 
 to the now established Government hath either in familiar 
 discourses, in written or printed papers, shewed the least dis- 
 affeccon or dislike to it. But on the contrary hath maligned and 
 reviled all good men who have (as wee doe) heartily abhorred and 
 detested that abominable and for ever to be abhorred Associacon. 
 And now, greate Sir, that our expressions may not be verball only, 
 wee doe in full confidence and trust in your Majestie's greater 
 wisdome, and from the certain and long experience wee have had 
 of your unparralelled goodness lay downe at your Majestie's 
 Roy all feet the Charter of our Corporacon, most humbly beseech- 
 ing your Majestie to grant us such a Charter as to your Princely 
 wisdom shall seeme most meet. God Almighty defend your sacred 
 person, and propogate your Royall family, that over us and ours 
 you and your lawfull Successors may Reigne till all derived
 
 256 APPENDIX. 
 
 dominion shall returne to the Originall power (God himselfe) by 
 whom Kings Reigne." 
 
 At the adjourned Court of Burghmote held 20th June, 1682, 1 
 it was ordered " that there be a Letter of Attorney unto Edwin 
 Wiat, Esq., 2 for us and on our behaulfs to surrender unto the 
 King's most excellent Majestie the Charter or Charters of our 
 Corporacon, and for soe doeing the said Letter of Attorney shall 
 be his sufficient warrant," etc. 
 
 The result was the speedy issue of another Charter from the 
 King, with a confirmation of their ancient privileges, and the 
 addition of several new ones. 3 
 
 Yet that substituted Charter contained a clause which proved 
 to be fraught with dire trouble to the town. It empowered the 
 King to remove and appoint Municipal functionaries, ostensibly 
 with the consent of his Council, but practically at his own will 
 and whim. James II. saw his opportunity, and taking advan- 
 tage of that clause, based a systematic attack on Maidstone 
 (among other Corporations), which had elected members obnoxious 
 to himself, as opposed to his Papistical views. Early in 1688 
 orders came to Maidstone to remove the Mayor, twelve Aldermen, 
 and eleven Common Councilmen, and a fortnight after to make 
 a further sweep of eleven more Aldermen, the rest of the Common 
 Council, and even the Recorder, and the Town Clerk ! Maidstone 
 obeyed, and in sullen submission elected the King's nominees. 
 But before the year had closed James had fled before the rising 
 storm, and a Memorandum in the Burghmote Records 4 (under 
 date October 20th) emphatically describes the feelings of the 
 town, " TYRANNUS EXIT : " and the original members of the 
 Corporation were reinstated. 
 
 1 Burghmote Records, C.C., f. 239, b. 
 
 2 Edwin AViat was Recorder. 
 
 3 Burghmote Records, C.C., f. 242. 
 
 4 US. in Burghmote Records, C.C., f. 7.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 ALDERSEY, Farnham, his Monu- 
 ment, 185 ; his Arms, 186. 
 
 Alien Rectors introduced, 66. 
 
 Priories dissolved by Henry V., i 
 
 106. 
 
 Allington Castle granted to Sir T. ; 
 Wyat, 110 ; given to John I 
 Astley, 150. 
 
 Altar of St. Catherine, 19 ; St. 
 Mary, 18 ; St. Thomas, 21. 
 
 Rails, in memory of J. B. 
 
 Stephens, 219 n. 
 
 Tombs, originally three in the 
 
 Chancel, 31, 32. 
 
 " Altarage," the meaning of the 
 term, 89. 
 
 Alterations inside the Church, 
 204-12. 
 
 Ambry destroyed in the Restora- 
 tion of 1848, 50. 
 
 Anibaldus de Ceccano, Rector, 69. 
 
 Anne, Queen, her beneficence, 132. 
 
 Archbishop, the figure of one, on 
 the Tiles, 8. 
 
 Baldwin plans a " Secular " 
 
 Chapter at Maidstone, 5. 
 
 Benson's Sermon at the re- 
 opening, 22. 
 
 Courtenay's Tomb, 32 ; was 
 he buried here ? 32-45 ; his 
 Epitaph, 41 ; his Will and 
 Codicil, 230-8. 
 
 Archbishop Hubert, Walter, revives 
 Baldwin's plan of Chapter 
 here, 5. 
 
 Islip holds a Synod here, 4. 
 
 Arches, the, of Nave, earlier than 
 those of the Chancel, 9. 
 
 Arms, Aldersey's, 185 ; Astley 's, 
 152, 160 ; Austen's, 189 ; Banks,' 
 of Aylesford, 162 ; Bridges', 
 152 ; Chute's of Appledore, 
 161 ; Courtenay's, 30 ; Cripps', 
 183 ; Curteis', of Tenterden, 
 160 ; Davy's, of Norfolk, 162 ; 
 Fotherby's, 183 ; Imple's, 156 ; 
 Karkaredge's, of Godmarsham. 
 178 ; KnatchbulTs, 160 ; Mone's, 
 G. de, 31; Morley's, of Glynd, 
 146: Stapley's, of Sussex, 165 ; 
 Taylor's, of Maidstone, 186 ; 
 Thornhurst's, 189; Toke's, of 
 Goddington, 160 ; Westrow's, of 
 London, 161. 
 
 Arundel Chapel, 26, 45, 92. 
 
 Ascham, Roger, friend of John 
 Astley, 150. 
 
 "Association, The," formed by 
 Lord Shaftesbury, and remon- 
 strated against by Maidstone 
 Corporation, 254. 
 
 Astley, John, Master of the Jewel 
 House, 150 ; his Monument, 
 152. 
 
 17
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Astley, Sir John, Master of the 
 Revels, 153. 
 
 Sir Jacob (Lord Astley of 
 
 Reading), his Character, his 
 Prayer at Edgehill, 155 ; his 
 Monument, 156 ; John Astley 's 
 (his grandson) Monument, 
 157. 
 
 family claim several Pews in 
 
 the Church, 207. 
 
 Astleys, a Genealogical Table of 
 the family, 154. 
 
 Augar, Richard, mentioned as 
 Curate in the Burghmote 
 Records, 115 ; married by 
 John Porter, 115. 
 
 Austen, Sir Edward, his Monu- 
 ment, 189 ; his Arms, 189. 
 
 BARHAM, Nicholas, first introduces 
 a Pew, 205. 
 
 Barrell, Robert, appointed Curate, 
 120 ; his unpopularity, 121 ; 
 Petitioned against and re- 
 moved, 122, 123. 
 
 Susan, her Monument, 190. 
 
 Basilica used for Christian Wor- 
 ship, 3. 
 
 Beale, the Monument of the family 
 of, 143-5. 
 
 Beeston, Richard, his Monument, 
 195. 
 
 Bells, the, recast, 215. 
 
 Beresford Hope, Mr., his opinion 
 on the Burial of Archbishop 
 Courtenay, 244. 
 
 Bible in Greek ordered to be pur- 
 chased, 214. 
 
 Blagge, Sir George, receives College 
 Property, 110. 
 
 Blue-Coat School, founded by 
 Rev. Josiah Woodward, 132. 
 
 Bohuns' Arms on the Sedilia, 51. 
 
 Boleyn, Ann, Aunt of John Astley, 
 150. 
 
 Dr. Thomas, Master of the 
 
 College, 95. 
 
 Bolonia, Jacobus de, Proctor of 
 Anibaldus de Ceccano, 69. 
 
 Boniface, Archbishop, founds a 
 Hospital at Maidstone, 79 ; his 
 Hospital Chapel restored, 135 ; 
 insults the Monks of St. Bar- 
 tholomew the Great at Smith- 
 field, 80 ; introduces Foreign- 
 ers, 68 ; probable motive for 
 his founding the Hospital at 
 Maidstone, 81 ; quarrel with 
 Bishop of Winchester about 
 appointing to the Mastership 
 of a Hospital in Southwark, 
 81 ; the Charter for building it 
 not extant, 82 ; its Confirma- 
 tion by the Prior of Christ 
 Church, Canterbury, 82, 248. 
 
 IX., Pope, sanctions Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay 's College, 233. 
 
 Book of Sports issued, 124. 
 
 Booth, Sir Charles, his Monument, 
 
 187. 
 " Bordarii," meaning of the word, 
 
 228 n. 
 Boxley Abbey, its Winking Image 
 
 exposed, 107. 
 
 Humphry Lynde, Vicar of, 
 
 129. 
 
 Bradwardine, Archbishop, died of 
 the Pestilence, 84. 
 
 Bramcestre, John de, 54. 
 
 Bray, Dr., his liberality, 132 ; his 
 Library bought, 132. 
 
 Breden, Simon de, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 85. 
 
 Bridges, Katherine, wife of Sir 
 John Astley, 153. 
 
 Britannia, Camden's, 35-7.
 
 IXDEX. 
 
 259 
 
 Brixworth Church an ancient 
 Basilica, '2. 
 
 Builder of the Church, not Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay, 10 ; Cam- 
 den's silence on the Subject* 
 10 ; P. Holland's additions to 
 Camden, 10; Philipott's State- 
 ment, Gilbert's, Newton the 
 first to question his building 
 it, 11 ; Hasted's opinion, 11 ; 
 Beale Poste's opinion, 12. 
 
 Bull of Pope Boniface IX. sanction- 
 ing Archbishop Courtenay's 
 plan to convert the Parochial 
 Church into a Collegiate one, 
 13, 233. 
 
 Burghmote Records, sources of in- 
 formation, 213, etc. 
 
 CALLANT, Elizabeth, her Monu- 
 ment, 170. 
 
 Camberton, Dr. John, Master of 
 the College, 97 ; the Language 
 of his Will, 105. 
 
 Canterbury Cathedral on the site 
 of a Roman Temple, 2 ; called 
 the Church of the Holy 
 Trinity, 229 n. 
 
 Monks jealous of Maidstone, 5. 
 
 Prior had right to hold Visit- 
 ations, and to dispense the 
 Patronage racante sede, 69. 
 
 Caproniere, J. B., of Brussels, de- 
 signed the East Window, 217. 
 
 Carkaredge, Thomas, his Monument 
 and Arms, 178. 
 
 Carpenter, R. C., Architect for the 
 re-pewing in 1847, 211 n. 
 
 Carr, Robert, Curate, 118 ; signs 
 Church Registers as " Minis- 
 ter," 201. 
 
 - Nina Patry, her Memorial 
 Window, 219. 
 
 Carter, Mrs. Ann, her Memorial 
 Window, 220. 
 
 " Caruca," meaning of the word, 
 228 n. 
 
 Cawston's addition to so-called 
 Leiger Book, 39. 
 
 Ceccano, Anibaldus de, appointed 
 Rector, 69. 
 
 Cemetery, the meaning of the word, 
 34 n. 
 
 Chadwicke, Valentine, Vicar of 
 East Peckham, 186. 
 
 Champernowne, Katherine, first 
 wife of John Astley, 150. 
 
 Chancel only adapted by Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay, 26-8. 
 
 Chantry (Cantaria), the term 
 strictly limited to the Endow- 
 ment, 17 n. 
 
 - Chapels, 17-21 ; the Endow- 
 ments of, seized, 109. 
 
 Charter granted to Maidstone by 
 James I., 252 ; renewed by 
 Charles II., 256. 
 
 of Richard II. to Archbishop 
 
 Courtenay for endowing his 
 College, 230. 
 
 Chartham, 91. 
 
 Chillingdon Manor House owned 
 by the Maplesdens, 177. 
 
 Choir Stalls, 29-31. 
 
 " Chrisom," the word used in the 
 Church Registers, 202. 
 
 Church Property carries its Nemesis, 
 
 112. 
 
 - Registers, 197-204. 
 re-opened in 1886, 22, 212. 
 
 the original, dedicated to St. 
 
 Mary, 6. 
 Chute. Edward, of Appledore, his 
 
 Arms, 101. 
 
 Clare family. Arms of, 7. 
 Cleaveland's Courtenay Family, 30 n.
 
 2fcO 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Clergy, List of, Rectors, Masters, 
 Curates, etc., 139. 
 
 Clitherowe, or Cliderbowe, Sir R., 
 93. 
 
 Cobham, Lord, receives Church 
 Property, 110. 
 
 Coffin, a leaden one, found in the 
 Church, 6. 
 
 Colet, Dr. John, Dean of St. Paul's, 
 Pupil of W. Grocyn's, 100. 
 
 Collatio distinguished from Presen- 
 tatio,in Archbishop Chicheley's 
 Register, in the appointment 
 of Masters of the College, 249- 
 251. 
 
 College, the meaning of the term, 
 90 ; its Constitution, 91. 
 
 Richard II. 's Licence to 
 
 Archbishop Courtenay for 
 Endowing, 230. 
 
 surrendered, 103-7. 
 
 Colpepper, John, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 85. 
 
 Commissary, the, of Christ Church 
 Chapter resisted, 5. 
 
 Corbridge, Thomas, appointed Rec- 
 tor, 62 ; his irregularities at 
 Maidstone, 63. 
 
 Cornhull, William de, appointed 
 Rector, 53 ; his history, 55, 56 ; 
 King John's Charter appoint- 
 ing him to the Rectory, 245. 
 
 Corporation of Maidstone acting as 
 Patron of the Church, 119. 
 
 Corpus Christi Fraternity, Endow- 
 ments assigned to the Grammar 
 School, 110. 
 
 Corral!, Philip, his Memorial Win- 
 dow, 220. 
 
 " Corrodiars," the meaning of the 
 word, 79 ; their office and 
 duties, 86 ; gradually lowered 
 in character, 87. 
 
 Courtenay, Archbishop, founded 
 as endowing, the Church, 12 ; 
 his Tomb, 32 ; his Burial-place 
 where ? 33 ; Camden's silence 
 on the subject, 35 ; P. Hol- 
 land's statement, Archbishop 
 Parker's authority, Bishop 
 Godwin's authority, 36; W. 
 Thome's testimony, value of, 
 37 ; his Will and Codicil, 
 236-8 ; Epitaph on his Tomb, 
 41, 238 ; opening of his Tomb, 
 134, 229-244. 
 
 Cripps, John, his Monument, 185. 
 
 Margaret, wife of John Cripps, 
 
 184. 
 
 Thomas, his Monument and 
 
 Arms, 183. 
 
 Grosser, John, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 86. 
 
 Crumpe, John, appointed Curate, 
 a great preacher, 127 ; asks for 
 use of the School House for 
 reading his Sermons on Sun- 
 days, 21 3 . 
 
 Crumwell (Cromwell), Thomas, in- 
 troduced Parish Registers, 198. 
 
 Curates, 115-118. 
 
 Cureton, Lieut. A. J., his Monu- 
 ment, 175. 
 
 Curfew Bell, the, discontinued, 215. 
 
 Curteis, George, of Tenterden, his 
 Arms, 160. 
 
 Cutbush family, their Memorial 
 Window, 219. 
 
 DANEGELD, its object, 228 n. 
 
 Davis, John, appointed Curate by 
 Archbishop Juxon, 128 ; Rector 
 of Otham, built the Rectory 
 there, 129; his Monument, 191. 
 
 Davy, John, a Physician, his Monu- 
 ment, 162.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 261 
 
 Day, John, mentioned as Curate, 
 115 ; his brutality and dis- 
 missal, 115, 110. 
 
 Dealtry, Thomas, appointed Yicar, 
 137 ; regarded with much affec- 
 tion, 138 ; his Monument, and 
 that of Harriet his wife, 196. 
 
 Dean's Chapel, Canterbury, the 
 Windows given by Prior Roger 
 de St. Elphege, 83. 
 
 Decorated Window, one in Xorth 
 Chancel, 16. 
 
 Deltrynge de Peckham, Richard, 
 Warden of Archbishop Boni- 
 face's Hospital, 85. 
 
 Denne, John, appointed Curate, 
 134 ; attacked in the Gaol, 134. 
 Dr. Samuel, examines the 
 grave of Archbishop Courte- 
 nay, and pronounces in favour 
 of that at Maidstone, 44 ; his 
 account of the opening the 
 Tomb, 239-244. 
 
 Dering, Sir E., " Surrenden Notes," 
 48. 
 
 Dorothy, daughter of Sir E., 
 
 her Monument, 181. 
 
 Detling, a Chapelry of Maidstone, 
 87. 
 
 the All Saints' Pulpit here, 
 
 208. 
 
 - the Parish Chest, 200 n. 
 
 De Vere, Alberic, Earl of Oxford, 
 54. 
 
 Dies Ol'duales silent about Courte- 
 nay's burial, 39. 
 
 Dissolution of the College, 103, 106, 
 107. 
 
 Dixon, William, Recorder of Maid- 
 stone, Monument of, 170. 
 
 Dol, Bishopric of ; Edward II. begs 
 the Pope to give it to Guido de 
 la Yalle, 247. 
 
 Domesday-Book, 13, 227. 
 
 Doors, the, clearly of earlier date 
 than the Windows, 16 ; origin- 
 ally four, 23 ; the two in 
 Chancel subsequently added, 25. 
 
 Drewell, Dr. John, Master of the 
 College, 94. 
 
 Ducarel, Dr., his Index to Lambeth 
 Registers, 53. 
 
 Dunster Castle, belonging to the 
 Mohuns, 76. 
 
 Durrani, John, his Monument, 195. 
 
 Dyke, Rev. E. F., appointed Vicar, 
 138 ; under him the Church 
 restored, 212. 
 
 EDMETT, Thomas and Ann, their 
 Memorial Window, 219. 
 
 Thomas, his Memorial Win- 
 dow, 220. 
 
 Edward II. asks the Pope to make 
 Guido de la Valle Rector of 
 Maidstone, 66, 246. 
 
 III. rebukes Hugo de Pele- 
 
 grini, 247. 
 
 Eglicham, John de, Warden of 
 Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 84. 
 
 Eleanor of Provence, Queen of 
 Henry III., her influence ob- 
 tains the Primacy for her Uncle 
 Boniface, the " Savoyard," 80. 
 
 Ellis, their Family Tombstone, 188. 
 
 Endowments of St. Mary's Rectory, 
 87 ; of Boniface's Hospital, 88. 
 
 English, Dorothy, wife of Thomas, 
 her Monument, 181. 
 
 Erasmus, a pupil of Grocyn, 100. 
 
 Erigere, the word misunderstood, 1 4. 
 
 Essex, Geoffrey, Earl of, 54. 
 
 Exeter College. Oxford, Grocyn had 
 rooms in, 100. 
 
 " Exit Tyrannus," 256.
 
 262 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 FAIRFAX, General, desecrates the 
 Church, 32. . 
 
 Farleigh, the Tithes of, 88. 
 
 Fleur-de-lis in the Royal Arms 
 explained, 209 n. 
 
 Font, the, its strange Heraldic 
 Character, 209. 
 
 Forneham, Ralph de, appointed 
 Rector, 63. 
 
 Fotherby Arms, 183. 
 
 Founding, i.e., endowing or find- 
 ing the Funds for an Institu- 
 tion, often called the building, 
 12, 26. 
 
 Francklyn, Walter, his Monument, 
 180. 
 
 Fraternity of Corpus Christi, the 
 North Chapel assigned to 
 them, 22 ; their Endowments 
 eventually assigned to the 
 Grammar School, 110. 
 
 Fresco at Wotton's Tomb, 21, 47. 
 
 Freston, Dr. John, Master of the 
 College, 96. 
 
 Fullagar, Christopher, his Monu- 
 ment, 186. 
 
 Funerals, the late hours forbidden, 
 133. 
 
 GALLERY, first, erected in the 
 Church, 207. 
 
 Gibson, Bishop, edits and adds to 
 Camden's Britannia, 37. 
 
 Gough, Lord, 175. 
 
 Goulde's Chapel, 18, 20. 
 
 Grammar School Boys' Seats in the 
 Church, 207. 
 
 Greek Bible and Lexicon bought 
 for the Church, 214. 
 
 revival of, Grocyn instru- 
 mental in, 100. 
 
 Grey, Lady Jane, related to John 
 Astley's second wife, 150. 
 
 Grey, Lady Margaret, John Astley's 
 second w.ife, 150. 
 
 Griffiths, Major-General, F. C., his 
 Memorial Window, 218. 
 
 Grocyn, William, Master of the 
 College, his Life, 98-101 ; his 
 Church preferments, 100 ; the 
 language of his Will, 105. 
 
 Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, 
 defies Henry III., 58. 
 
 Guido de-la-Yalle, kinsman of 
 Queen Isabella ; Edward II. 
 asks the Pope to give him the 
 Rectory, 66, 246. 
 
 Gull, William, Recorder of Maid- 
 stone, 169. 
 
 HAGIOSCOPE, its use, 50. 
 Harpsfield, Nicholas, Archdeacon of 
 
 Canterbury, 115. 
 Haselingf eld, Stephen de, appointed 
 
 Rector, 66 ; petitioned against 
 
 by Edward II. to the Pope, 
 
 67, 246. 
 Hathbrand, Prior of Christ Church, 
 
 Canterbury, 85. 
 Hatley, Griffith, Physician, his 
 
 Monument, 166. 
 Havelock, Lieut.- Colonel William, 
 
 his Monument, 174. 
 Henry V. appoints Dr. Wotton 
 
 Guardian of the Temporalities 
 
 of the See of Canterbury, 
 
 93. 
 Heron, Dr. Roger, presented to the 
 
 Mastership, 93, 251. 
 a Negligent Curate at Otham, 
 
 125. 
 Holand, Dr. John, Master of the 
 
 College, 93, 249. 
 Holland's, Philemon, Edition of 
 
 Camden's Britannia, 36. 
 Hollingworth. Messrs., their liber-
 
 INDEX. 
 
 263 
 
 ality in the Restoration of the 
 Church, 212. 
 
 Holy Trinity Church built, 134 ; 
 Vicarage bequeathed by Mrs. 
 Reeve, 135. 
 
 the Church of, Canterbury 
 
 Cathedral so called, 229 n. 
 
 Hoker, John, never a Curate here, 
 11G. 
 
 Hook, Dr., assigns Canterbury as 
 Courtenay's Burial-place, 42. 
 
 Hospital, Archbishop Boniface's, 
 sanctioned by the Prior and 
 Convent of Christ Church, 
 Canterbury, 82, 248; its En- 
 dowments, 88 ; transferred to 
 found the College, 89. 
 
 Hytton, Thomas, how connected 
 with Maidstone, 110. 
 
 IMTLE, Agnes, wife of Sir Jacob 
 (Lord) Astley, 156. 
 
 Injunctions of Crumwell, 198 ; of 
 Edward VI., 199 ; of James I., 
 200. 
 
 Innes, Gilbert, Curate, 130 ; his 
 Monument, 191 ; attempts to 
 re-arrange the Pews, 208. 
 
 Elizabeth, his wife's Monu- 
 ment, 192. 
 
 Isabella, Queen of Edward II., 
 claims the Rectory of Maid- 
 stone for her kinsman, Guido 
 de-la- Valle, 66, 07, 246. 
 
 Islip, Archbishop, friendly to Boni- 
 face's Hospital, 85. 
 
 Ixning, Martin de, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 84. 
 
 JAMES I. grants a Charter to Maid- 
 stone, 252. 
 
 II. dictates to the Corpora- 
 tion, 250. 
 
 Jericho's DoiotfaU, a Sermon by T. 
 Wilson, 124. 
 
 John, King, appoints W. de Corn- 
 hull to the Rectory, 53, 245. 
 
 Jordan, Thomas de, Warden of 
 Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 84. 
 
 Jurats to attend the Mayor at 
 
 Church in their gowns, 214. 
 I 
 
 ; KARKAREDGE, Thomas, his Monu- 
 ment, 178. 
 
 Kilburn's Toiwgraphie of Kent, 10. 
 
 King, the figure of one, on the 
 Tiles, 8. 
 
 Colonel J. W., his Monu- 
 ment, 176. 
 
 Knatchbull, Sir Thomas, married 
 Eleanor Astley, 159 ; his Monu- 
 ment, 159-61. 
 
 Knoville, Nicholas de, appointed 
 Rector, 65 ; his previous pre- 
 ferments,66. 
 
 LAMBETH Chapel built by Arch- 
 bishop Boniface, 80. 
 
 Registers referred to, 4. 
 
 Lanfranc, Archbishop, makes a 
 division of the Canterbury 
 Chapter Endowments, 82. 
 
 Langham, Archbishop, favours 
 Pelegrini, 72. 
 
 Laud, Archbishop, suspends T. Wil- 
 son, 124. 
 
 Lawrence, Dorothy, her Monument, 
 182. 
 
 Sir John, Lord Mayor, 183. 
 
 Lee, Dr. John, appointed Master, 
 96 ; said to have added the 
 Yestry, 24 ; the tenor of his 
 Will, 105 ; leaves Legacies to 
 Maidstone, 97. 
 
 Sir Richard, Lord Mayor, 96.
 
 264 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Leeds Castle, the Curfew Bell 
 never discontinued, 216. 
 
 Priory, De Mone's Burial- 
 place, 78 ; not a vestige re- 
 mains, 78. 
 
 Leefe, Dr. John, appointed Master, 
 102 ; related to Archbishop 
 Warham, by the second mar- 
 riage of his mother, 103 ; re- 
 ceives a Pension from the 
 College, 111 ; the language of 
 his Will, 105 ; his Epitaph in 
 Winchester College Chapel, 
 104. 
 
 Leghton, William de, Warden of 
 Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 85. 
 
 Leiger Book at Canterbury quoted 
 by Somner, 39. 
 
 Leland assigns Maidstone as Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay's Burial- 
 place, 42. 
 
 Le Neve favours Maidstone as 
 Courtenay's Burial-place, 43. 
 
 Lewknor family, Arms of, 7. 
 
 Lexicon in Greek ordered to be 
 purchased, 214. 
 
 Lichfield, W. de Cornhull, Bishop 
 of, 56. 
 
 Lilye, William, friend of W. Gro- 
 cyn, 100. 
 
 Linacre, Dr. Thomas, friend of 
 W. Grocyn, 100. 
 
 Lin ton (Lillington), the Tithes of, 
 88. 
 
 List of the Clergy, 139. 
 
 Literce Cantuaritnses edited by Dr. 
 J. Brigstocke Sheppard, 233. 
 
 Lloyd. Lieut. Ambrose, his Monu- 
 ment, 175. 
 
 Loose, a Chapelry of Maidstone, 87. 
 
 Ludham, John, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 86. 
 
 Luttrell family, related to Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay, 77. 
 
 Lybbe, Charles, Physician, his 
 Monument, 165. 
 
 Lychnoscope, its use, 50. 
 
 Lynde, Humphry, Curate, 129 ; his 
 father hostile to Archbishop 
 Laud, 129 ; at first signs 
 Church Register as "Clericus,'' 
 and afterwards as "Minister," 
 202. 
 
 MAGDALEN College, Oxford, found- 
 ed by Bishop William Wayn- 
 flete, 99. 
 
 Maidstone, a Church mentioned in 
 Domesday-Book, 1,3 ; its form 
 unknown, '2 probably on the 
 site of a Pvoman Temple or 
 Basilica, 3 ; Ordinations held 
 here about A.D. 1300, 4 ; fur- 
 nishes shelter to Oxford Stu- 
 dents, 56 ; Manor said by 
 Philipott to have been given 
 to Stephen Langton by W. 
 Cornhull, 57. 
 
 " Maidstone Martyrs," 115. 
 
 Maldon, William de, Warden of 
 Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 84. 
 
 Mailing (South) College in Sussex, 
 94. 
 
 Malmsbury Abbey, W. de Cornhull 
 Warden of, 55. 
 
 Mandates, Apostolic, their history, 
 64. 
 
 Mansell, John, appointed Rector, 
 57 ; his history, 58-61 ; his 
 preferments, 59 ; his death, 61. 
 
 Maplesden, Susann, her Monument, 
 117. 
 
 Mariolatry disappearing in the Eng- 
 lish Church, 105.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 265 
 
 Marriages become a Civil Contract 
 under the Commonwealth, 202. 
 
 Marsham, Sir Robert (Lord 
 Romney), erects a Gallery in 
 the Church, 207. 
 
 Masters and Wardens, distinction 
 of terms, 83 n. 
 
 Masters of the College, 91-107 ; 
 at first collated by the Arch- 
 bishops, and subsequently pre- 
 sented by the Sub-Masters and 
 Fellows, 240. 
 
 May, George, his Monument, 193. 
 
 Mayor, the, to be attended at 
 Church by the Jurats, 214 ; 
 addition to be made to his 
 Salary on that account, 215. 
 
 Mercer, John, father and son, their 
 Memorial Windows, 218. 
 
 Charles, his Memorial Win- 
 dow, 220. 
 
 " Miserere Seats," 29-31. 
 
 Mohuns, of Dunster Castle, 76. 
 
 " Molinum," meaning of the word, 
 228 71. 
 
 Monastic Domesday, 3, 229. 
 
 Mone, Guido de, supposed Arms on 
 " Miserere Seat," 31 ; the last 
 Rector, 74 ; his subsequent pre- 
 ferments, 75 ; said by Fuller to 
 be of Manx origin, 7G ; sug- 
 gested to have been of the 
 Mohun family, 76, 77; buried at 
 Leeds Church, 78 ; bequeaths 
 a Missal and Breviary to Maid- 
 stone, 78. 
 
 Monks of Canterbury jealous of 
 Maidstone, 5 ; claim to elect 
 the Archbishop, 55. 
 
 Monuments, 141-11)6. 
 
 Mutilation and Desecration i 
 
 of, 141. 
 
 Farnham Aldersey's, 185. 
 
 Monuments, John Astley's, 151. 
 Sir John Astley's, 153. 
 
 John Astley's, junior, 157. 
 Lord Astley's, 156. 
 
 Sir Edward Austen's, 189. 
 
 Susan Barrell's, 190. 
 
 - Beale's, 144-6. 
 
 Richard Beeston's, 194. 
 
 - Sir Charles Booth's, 187. 
 Elizabeth Callant's, 170. 
 
 Arch bishop Courtenay's, 32-47. 
 
 Margaret Cripps', 184. 
 Thomas Cripps', 183. 
 
 - Lieut. A. J. Cureton's, 175. 
 John Davis', 191. 
 
 John Davy's, 162. 
 
 - Thomas and Harriet Deal- 
 try's, 196. 
 
 Dorothea Dering's, 181. 
 
 - William Dixon's, 169, 170. 
 
 - Edward Ellis', 188. 
 Dorothea English's, 181. 
 
 - Walter Francklyn's, 180. 
 
 - Christopher Fullagar's, 186. 
 
 - William Gull's, 169. 
 
 Griffith Hatley's, 166. 
 
 Colonel William Havelock's, 
 174. 
 
 - Gilbert Innes', 191. 
 
 Thomas Karkaredge's, 179. 
 
 - Colonel J. W. King's, 176. 
 Sir Thomas Knatchbull's, 159- 
 
 161. 
 
 Dorothy Lawrence's, 182. 
 
 Lieut. Ambrose Lloyd's, 175. 
 
 Charles Lybbe's, 165. 
 
 Susann Maplesden's, 177. 
 
 Francis Muriell's, 195. 
 
 Polhill's, 187. 
 
 - Sir J. B. Riddell's, 171. 
 
 - Colonel Peter Shad well's, 173. 
 
 - William Stanley's, 178. 
 Richard Stapley's, 164.
 
 266 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Monuments, Robert Stapley's, 163. 
 
 Sir Gyfford Thornhurst's, 189. 
 
 - Colonel George Tod's, 174. 
 
 Tufton's, 146-9. 
 
 Lawrence Washington's, 167. 
 
 Spicer Weldon's, 171, 172. 
 
 Samuel Waller's, 193. 
 
 W. W. Wilson's, 196. 
 
 Josiah Woodward's, 192. 
 
 Woodville's, 32, 47. 
 
 Wotton's, 32, 46. 
 
 More, Sir Thomas, a pupil of 
 
 Grocyn, 100. 
 
 Muriell, Rev. Francis, his Monu- 
 ment, 195. 
 
 NEVILLE, Hugh de, 54, 55. 
 
 New College, Oxford, Grocyn, 
 
 Penynton, Leefe, Fellows of, 
 
 102. 
 Newnton Longueville Rectory given 
 
 by New College to Grocyn, 99. 
 Nollekeus, the Sculptor, a Monu- 
 ment by him, 187. 
 Non-resident Rectors, 69. 
 North Door, the Main Entrance 
 
 from the Town, 24. 
 Northfleet, Tithes of, endowment 
 
 for the Arundel Chantry, 46. 
 Tithes of, granted to Lord 
 
 Cobham, 110. 
 Norwich, Richard de, Warden of 
 
 Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 85. 
 Obiluales Dies silent about Courte- 
 
 nay's Burial, 39. 
 Ordinations held at Maidstone about 
 
 A.D. 1300, 4. 
 Organ, the, introduced, and its 
 
 different positions, 209, 213. 
 Osborne, John, petitioned for as 
 
 Curate, 123. 
 Otham, T. Wilson Rector of, 125. 
 
 Otham, Heron, Curate of, neglected 
 Registers, 125 ; John Davis, 
 Rector of, 128, 129. 
 
 Oxford Students find shelter at 
 Maidstone, 56. 
 
 PAGAN Temple, Canterbury Cathe- 
 dral built on the site of, 2 ; 
 
 St. Paul's Cathedral built on 
 
 the site of a Temple of Diana, 2. 
 Papal Licence to Archbishop Courte- 
 
 nay to convert St. Mary's into 
 
 a Collegiate Church, 14, 233. 
 
 Mandate, its history, 64. 
 
 Parish Chest, 198. 
 
 - Registers, 197-204. 
 Pearson, J. L., Architect, restores 
 
 the Church (1886), 137. 
 Peckham, Archbishop, yields to 
 
 the Papal Mandate, 65. 
 Pelegrini, Hugo de, Rector, his 
 
 character, 71 : is dismissed the 
 
 kingdom by Edward III., 72, 
 
 247. 
 Pembroke Hall, Camb., a Legacy 
 
 to, in J. Camberton's Will, 98. 
 Pensions given to the College Staff, 
 
 111. 
 Penynton, John, Master of the 
 
 College, 102. 
 
 Pestilence, the (of 1348), 84, 203. 
 Pews first introduced in the Church, 
 
 205. 
 Pigsties paved with old Monuments, 
 
 142. 
 Pilgrimages to Canterbury declined, 
 
 89. 
 Piscina, its use, 18 ; a double one 
 
 in All Saints' Church, 49. 
 Plague, the (of 1603, of 1625, and 
 
 of 1636), 203, 204. 
 Plinth, the, runs round the entire 
 
 building, 15.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 267 
 
 Presentatio distinguished from Col- 
 latio in appointments to the 
 Mastership of the College in 
 Archbishop's Chicheley's Reg- 
 ister, 249-51. 
 
 Pole, Cardinal, his character, by 
 Foxe, 116; by Collier, 117; 
 his endeavour to improve the 
 condition of the despoiled 
 Livings, 117. 
 
 Polhills, their Monument, 187. 
 
 Pope Boniface IX. sanctions Arch- 
 bishop Courtenay's project for 
 endowing his College, 233. 
 
 Porch at North Door removed, 23. 
 
 Porter, John, Sacrist of the Col- 
 lege, remains as Parish Priest, 
 113, 200 ; dismissed by Eliza- 
 beth as a " Popish Recusant," 
 114. 
 
 Anne, daughter of John, of 
 
 Lamberhurst, 167. 
 
 Preacher, Public, a new office made, 
 128. 
 
 Priest's Door, why removed, 24. 
 
 Proctors (Procurator es), appoint- 
 ment of, and their functions, 
 G9. 
 
 Proportions of the Church sym- 
 bolical, 22. 
 
 " Publique Place," the Puritan term 
 for the Church, 213. 
 
 RAMXUGUAR, the Battle of, 175, 176. 
 Randall, Alexander, his Memorial 
 
 Window, 217, 218. 
 Recorders of Maidstone, 169-72. 
 Rectors of St. Mary's, 53-78. 
 Reeve, James, appointed Curate, 
 
 134. 
 
 Mrs., bequeaths a house as 
 
 the Vicarage for Holy Trinity 
 Church, 135. 
 
 Regimental Colours deposited in 
 the Church, 223. 
 
 Registers at Lambeth, 4. 
 - Parish, 197-204. 
 
 u Regulars " as distinguished from 
 ' Seculars," 90. 
 
 Restoration, the, its effect on 
 Maidstone, 128. 
 
 Revival of Literature under W. 
 Grocyn, 100. 
 
 Richard II. grants a Licence to 
 Archbishop Courtenay for 
 endowing his College, 12, 13, 
 230. 
 
 Riddell, Sir J. Buchanan, his 
 Monument, 171. 
 
 Risynge, William, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 86. 
 
 Rivers, Earl, father's Tomb, 48. 
 
 Roding Beauchamp, 91. 
 
 Roman Court, its successive Ag- 
 gressions on English Benefices,. 
 69-71. 
 
 Pottery found at Maidstone, 2. 
 
 Station at Maidstone, 2. 
 
 Romney, the Earl of, erects a 
 Gallery, 207 ; helps to re-pew 
 the Church, 210. 
 
 ' Rood of Grace " at Boxley Abbey, 
 its Imposture exposed, 107. 
 
 Roof, the, repaired in 1788, and 
 " cieled," 216. 
 
 Rye-House Plot, 254. 
 
 ST. FAITH'S Church, wrongly called 
 by Kilburn the Parish Church, 
 10 ; a Legacy for its Repair 
 in J. Camber-ton's Will, 98. 
 
 St. Katherine's Altar, 19. 
 
 St. Mary, Image of, at North-east 
 Angle of the Church, 18. 
 
 St. Mary's Chapel, Date of, un- 
 known, 18.
 
 .268 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 St. Mary's Church, the original Dedi- 
 cation, 6 ; Rectors of, 53-78. 
 
 St. Paul's Cathedral on the site of 
 Temple of Diana, 2. 
 
 St. Peter's Church, Maidstone, part 
 of Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 80 ; restored for use, 135. 
 
 St. Thomas, the Altar of. 45, 92. 
 
 SS. Alwyn, Augustine, Bertha, Ear- 
 congotha, Ethelbert, Mildred, 
 Theodore, Thomas, 222. 
 
 SS. George, Mary, Maurice, and 
 Michael, in the " Soldiers' 
 Window," 221. 
 
 Salina, meaning of the word, 
 228 n. 
 
 Sandwich Vicarage held by Dr. J. 
 Lee, 97. 
 
 Say, Lord, of Birling, 93. 
 
 School-house asked for by J. 
 Crompe for preaching, 213. 
 
 " Seculars " as distinguished from 
 " Regulars," 90. 
 
 " Se defendit," meaning of the lex- 
 pression, in Domesday-Book, 
 228 n. 
 
 Sedtiia described, 49 ; mutilated by 
 the Astley Monuments, 149. 
 
 Sele, William de, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 83, 
 84. 
 
 Servi, meaning of the word in 
 Domesday-Book, 228 n. 
 
 Shadwell, Colonel Peter, his Monu- 
 ment, 173. 
 
 Sibthorp, Robert, appointed Rector, 
 73 ; the Language of his Will, 
 104. 
 
 Smith, Mr. J. G-., his liberal help 
 in restoring the Church, 212. 
 
 Samuel, " foisted " on Maid- 
 stone as Curate, but trans- 
 ferred to Harrietsham, 123. 
 
 Smyth. Dr. Robert, Master of the 
 
 College, 95 ; the Language of 
 
 his Will, 105. 
 " Soldiers' Window," the, Memorial 
 
 of the West Kent Regiment, 
 
 221-3. 
 South Mailing College, Sussex, 
 
 94. 
 Spire, the, of the Church burnt, 
 
 133, 217. 
 
 Stained Glass Windows, 217-223. 
 Stanley, William, his Monument, 
 
 178. 
 
 Staplehurst, 91. 
 Stapley, Robert, Physician, his 
 
 Monument, 163. 
 
 Richard, Physician, his Monu- 
 ment, 164. 
 Steghele, Roger de, appointed to 
 
 Vyntier's Chapel, 19. 
 Stephens, John and Jane, their 
 
 Memorial Window, 219. 
 Mrs., presents the Altar- 
 Rails, 219 n. 
 Stewart, David Dale, appointed 
 
 Perpetual Curate, 137. 
 Stools introduced in the Church, 
 
 205. 
 Storer, Richard, called " Minister," 
 
 119. 
 Stoup originally for the Priest's 
 
 Door, 24. 
 String-course, the, runs round the 
 
 building, 15. 
 Stuckley, Peter, Master of the 
 
 College, 95. 
 
 Sulgrave, Washingtons of, 168. 
 Sundridge, 132. 
 " Surrenden Notes," 48. 
 Surrender of the College, 103, 107, 
 
 111. 
 Sutton, near Northbourne, the 
 
 Tithes of, 88.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 269 
 
 Swinnoche, Robert, an influential 
 
 Jurat, 125. 
 Symbolical proportions of the 
 
 Church, 22. 
 Synod of the Diocese held here A.D. 
 
 1351, 4, 229. 
 
 " TAXATION " under Richard II. , 88. 
 
 Thame, the Rectory of, given by 
 Henry III. to John Mansell, 
 58. 
 
 Thomas, Chancellor of York, Arch- 
 bishop Peckham's letter of 
 remonstrance to him, 6'2. 
 
 Thome's, William, Chronicle, its 
 value, 37. 
 
 Thornhurst, Sir Gyfford, his Monu- 
 ment and Arms, 189. 
 
 Tiles, ancient, found in the Church, 
 6. 
 
 Tod, Lieut.-Colonel George, his 
 Monument, 174. 
 
 Toke, Nicholas, of Godington, his 
 Arms, 160, 1G1. 
 
 Tuftons, the Monument of, 146-9. 
 
 Tymme, Thomas, called "Minis- 
 ter," 119. 
 
 Tyrington, William, Rector, 73 ; 
 his previous preferments, 74. 
 
 Vacante sede, Prior of Christ Church, 
 Canterbury, holds Visitations 
 and exercises patronage in the 
 Diocese, 5, 85. 
 
 Vallance, William, appointed Per- 
 petual Curate, 136 ; re-pews 
 the Church, 136, 210 ; removes 
 the Organ, 209 
 
 Valle, Guido de, claims the Rec- 
 tory, 66, 246. 
 
 Vedast, St., Rectory of held by Dr. 
 R. Smyth, 95. 
 
 Vestry subsequently added, 24, 25. 
 
 Vicar, the title of, substituted for 
 
 Perpetual Curate, 137. 
 j Vicarage, the, built by W. Vallance, 
 
 136. 
 for Holy Trinity given by 
 
 Mrs. Reeve, 135. 
 Villani, meaning of the word r 
 
 228 . 
 
 Vinter's Chapel, 18, 19 n. 
 Visitations of the Diocese held by 
 
 the Prior of Christ Church. 
 
 Canterbury, vacante sede, 5. 
 
 WAILES of Newcastle designed most 
 of the Stained Glass Windows 
 in the Church, 218. 
 
 Walter, Archbishop Hubert, 53, 55. 
 
 Waltham, John de, Warden of 
 Archbishop Boniface's Hos- 
 pital, 34. 
 
 Wardens and Masters, distinction 
 of terms, 83 n. 
 
 Wardens of Boniface's Hospital, 
 83-6. 
 
 Warham, Archbishop, interested in 
 Maidstone College, 102. 
 
 Washington, Lawrence, his Monu- 
 ment, 168. 
 
 George, President of United 
 
 States, 169. 
 
 Waynflete, William, Bishop of Win- 
 chester, at Oxford in 1483, 99. 
 
 Weever, John, says Archbishop 
 Courtenay was buried at Maid- 
 stone, 43. 
 
 Weldon, Spicer, his Monument. 
 171, 172. 
 
 Weller, Samuel, appointed Curate, 
 132 ; his Monument, 193, 194. 
 
 Westrow, Thomas, of London, his 
 Arms, 161. 
 
 Wharton, Henry, in Anglia Sacra 
 favours Maidstone as Arch-
 
 .270 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 bishop Courtenay's Burial- 
 place, 43. 
 
 Wickliffe's influence felt at Maid- 
 stone in the person of Robert 
 Sibthorp, 73. 
 
 Widville, or Woodville, R., his 
 Tomb, 47. 
 
 Willeys, William, Assistant Curate 
 to R. Carr, 120, 121. 
 
 "Wills, remarkable change coming 
 over the language of, 105. 
 
 Wilson, Thomas, appointed Curate, 
 123 ; suspended by Laud, 
 chosen into the Assembly of 
 Divines, 124 ; becomes un- 
 popular at Maidstone, 126. 
 
 W. W., his Monument, 196. 
 
 Windows, the, uniformly Perpen- 
 dicular, evidently a subsequent 
 insertion, 15, 16 ; one excep- 
 tion Decorated, 17. 
 Memorial, 217-23. 
 
 Wolsey, Cardinal, urges the Sup- 
 pression of Monasteries, etc., 
 106. 
 
 Wode, or Wood, Anne (or Ellen), 
 mother of John Astley, 150. 
 
 Elizabeth, wife of Sir Thomas 
 
 Boleyn, 150. 
 
 Woodville's, or Widville's, Tomb, 
 
 47. 
 Woodward, Josiah, Curate, 130 ; 
 
 his energy, 131 ; founded the 
 
 Blue-Coat School, 132 ; his 
 
 Monument, 192 ; his writings, 
 
 193. 
 Wotton, Dr. John, Master of the 
 
 College, 91 ; buried here, 92 ; 
 
 endowed a Chantry, 21 ; his 
 
 Tomb, 21, 31, 45, 92. 
 Wyat, Sir Thomas, shares the spoil 
 
 of the Suppressed Abbey, 107 ; 
 
 receives Tithes of Allington, 
 
 110 ; his Rebellion, 177. 
 Wydewade, Michael de, Warden of 
 
 Boniface's Hospital, 84. 
 Wykehamists, three in succession 
 
 Masters of the College, Grocyn, 
 
 Penynton, and Leefe, 99, 102, 
 
 103. 
 
 Ybanwe, Ebbene or Yghtham, 
 84. 
 
 Yonge, Dr., Master of the Rolls, a 
 friend of Grocyn, 101. 
 
 Thomas, Warden of Arch- 
 bishop Boniface's Hospital, 
 86.
 
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