Rainham Church

RAINJUM CJIURCJI, KENT. ( 49 ) RAINHAM OHURCH. * BY THE REV A. J. PEARMAN, M.A. (FORMERLY VICAR OF RAINHAM), AT the suggestion of our Secretary, whose labours I hope so far to lighten, I have put together a few notes which, however incomplete in themselves, may serve to indicate the objects of interest to be found iu this ·Church. Iu point of symmetry Rainham. Church is certainly de:ficieut. As Sir Stephen Glyune remarked, "the interior has rather an irregular appearance, and the junction of the nave and chancel is awkward, being without an arch." Symmetry seems to require an arcade upon the south side of the nave·; where its width is much greater than that of the chancel. But though lacking the beauty arising· from just proportion, the Church, when viewed from the space beneath the tower, has a grave and reverend air well beseeming the House of God, and contains much that is worthy of notice. In its general aspect this Church is of a type with which we are familiar in Kent. It consists of a nave and chancel, with a very wide north aisle and chapel, north and south porches, and a tower at the westem extremity of the nave. At the beginning of 1865 the whole building was in a very unsatisfactory condition. The interior was filled with old pews of all shapes and sizes, the windows were decayed and mutilated, and the flint and stone work was much defaced. In that year, by the exertions of the Rev. G. Cole, Curate-in-charge, and the Churchwardens, Messrs. Walter and Mansfield, it was re-seated throughout and re-paved, at a cost of about £600. In 1867, the year after my appointment to the Vicarage, the work of renovation * A Paper (with some additions) prepared for the visit of the Kent Archroological Society to Rainham, 22nd July 1886. VOL XVI!, 50 RA.INHA.Y CHURCH. was carried on by throwing open the tower arch ; and in 1869-70-71 further p:mgress was made by renewing the windows and bringing the edifice into substantially the state in which you now see it. This involved an expenditure of some £1500. Since then, seats for the choir have been placed in the chancel, and other improvements effected, by the present Vicar, the Rev. C. Cobb. Dugdale tells us that Robert de Crevequer, the founder of Leeds .Abbey, a,bout the year 1137 gave the Canons there in free and perpetual alms all the churches of his estates, with the advowsons of them, and among t,he number that of Renham, with eighteen acres of land in the parish, which gift was made in the presence of William, .Archbishop of Canterbury, and John, Bishop of Rochester. We know nothing of the Church of that date, as the oldest portion of the existing edifice is Early English of the thirteenth century. In this style you will notice the three sedilia with trefoiled heads, beneath triangular canopies ; the trefoiled piscina ; and an elegant mural arcade on the south side of the chancel. Each arch of this arcade has slender shafts, set on a stone bench against the wall, and encloses a window. Of these windows the eastern is now "Decorated," the second "Early English," the third "Decorated," and the western "Perpendicular" -all reproductions of what we found; but the four were originally lancets, and distinct traces of one of them were discovered in the wall when the Church was restored, and may still be seen on the exterior. This kind of arcading was in frequent use in the thirteenth century :for the ado1·n- · ment of chancels, and examples of it may be remarked in the neighbouring churc4es of Upchurch, Hartlip, and Sittingbourne, as well as here and at my own . church of Merstham. You will also observe a lancet in the wall of the north aisle. Some of the windows in the body of the Church are "Decorated," one or two being very elegant, oi;hers are "Perpendicular." Most of them are new (the mullions and tracery of the originals having perished and been replaced by wooden uprights), but it is believed that they are faithful copies of the old. The building has evidently undergone considerable changes. One would suppose that the original RAINHAM CHURCH-SOUTH WALL OF CHANCEL. RAINHAM CHURCH, 51 nave had been taken down and rebuilt on a larger scale, with an extension to the southward, at which time the chancel arch was removed. It also seems likely that when the tower was built the Church was lengthened by a bay to the westward, or that the last arch was taken down, since the "Decorated" pillars of the rest of the nave here give place to one "Perpendicular."* The arcade has in its western part five pointed arches with octagonal piers, having capitals, the western respond being semicircular; then follows a very wide wall pier, having a large octagonal pillar attached to it. The chancel arcade is, as you see, more irregular than that o􀁷 the nave; the eastern arch is very rude and without mouldings, the adjacent pier being quite plain, and having attached on the east a circular shaft ; the second column is circular, with moulded capital. The central arch of this arcade is much smaller than the other two. The north chapel, generally called the Tufton chancel, is " Perpendicular." The bulkhead of the wall separating it from the aisle was removed when the Church was restored. There is a good ,arch, which has been thought by sqme not to be in its original position, leading from the chapel to the aisle. The two􀁸light window is old, the other three are · modern. You will not fail to remark the wooden step to the platform on which the northern Altar stood, nor the coped monu" ment in the floor, with its cross flory, found under the Bloor-place pew. That pew formerly ran round the southern pier, and was partly in the chapel and partly in the aisle. The crypt beneath this chapel is the burial-place of the Tufton family. The bodies of Sir John Tufton and his wife Olympia (daughter and heiress of Christopher Bloor), and of his second wife, the mother of his heir, were removed hither from Hoth:6.eld on account of the greater dryness of the vault, and thefr descendants continued to be buried here until the death of the late Sir Richard Tufton, Lord Hothfield's father, who lies in France, where he usually lived, and where he ended his days. On the outside,. under * Some of the pillars are of chalk and rest on the ground without any " foundation." At least this is what I was told by those who had seen them when the old pewing was removed. E 2 52 RAINHAM CHURCH, the east window, is an aperture through which the coffins can be seen. Robert Pocock, in his History of the Tufton Family, published at Gravesend in 1800, says, "The eastern vault at Rainham is 16 feet broad by 17½ long, supported by two short octagonal pillars and neatly plastered. Within it are twenty-seven coffins, including three of children; of these one is in the shape of the human·figure, the lead being fitted to the head, shoulders, and feet-likely of Olympia Bloor ; there is another of a shrine or penticed fashion, according to the early mode, when the coffin was shaped like a building, the Scripture declaring the grave to be 'the house of all living.' In the western vault, which is more recent, and receives those who arrive last to the place of general repose, are seven coffins in the first row. and nine in the second. This vault is about 14 feet broad by 17½ long. Having visited the mausoleum in 1790, and again in 1799, I could not but observe the great difference which had taken place in that interval. Many coffins are now without memorials,· and the whole sinking fast to decay, and in a few years jt will be as difficult to distinguish those lately placed there as the more ancient among them." The vaults are believed to have been constructed by Christopher Bloor, who possibly built the chapel above them, and is believed to lie in the easternmost. The north porch is entirely new. The former one was of brick, built in the last century, and quite out of harmony with the building to which it had been attached. When it was taken down it was found that part of a stone coffin had been used in its erection, and several graves were found beneath it. Its removal not only brought the fine "Decorated" arch opening into the interior into prominence, but also so wonderfully improved-I had almost said as by magic-the external appearance of the Church, that many who witnessed the change were most unwilling to see another porch erected. The architect, however, had so strong an opinion, based on cases in which he had been concerned, that it was not expedient to attempt to do without a porch when the main entrance was, as here, on the north, that the RAINRAM CHURCH. 53 Restoration Committee felt they had no choice in the matter. The massive lock, with its ponderous key, and the wicket in the door are among the "curiosities" of the Church. Au idea has been broached that the "wicket" and the "irons"· let into the stonework of the former single-light windows of the north chapel were intended for defence, and testified to the exposed situation of the Church. The south porch has of late been converted into a vestry. You will observe the deeply cut mouldings of the arch on the southern side. The roof of the Church is plain, with tie-beams and king-posts, except a small portion, which will be mentioned hereafter . TOWER, The tower is Perpendicular, of a type well known in Kent, built chiefly of Kentish ragstone, with flints intermixed. It is of three stages, divided by string courses, the central stage being the highest. There are battlements, corner buttresses, and an octagonal stair turret rising high at the north-east. The west window is of three lights; those of the belfry at'e square-headed and labelled. This tower, no doubt, was formerly a beacon connected with a line of other churches from the coast to London. It attracted the notice of Mons. Jouvin de Rochfort, the Treasurer of France, who visited England in 1670. He says, "We passed through Greenstreet, Sittingbourne, Newington, and Rainham, which has a fine tower to its church,"-an opinion endorsed by all who pass it, either by the turnpike road or by the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway. Hasted tells us that "20 Oct. 1791 the ste_ eple of this church was greatly damaged by a storm of thunder, the lightning of which split the wall of it for several feet in length." The Rev. Francis Haslewood, son of a former Curate of this parish, informs me that ' The Tempest,' a religious and moral essay published at Cranbrook in 1791, contains (p. 121) an allusion to the fact that Rainham Church was greatly damaged by lightning the same day that Speldhurst Church was demolished. On 9th May 1872, being .A.scensio11 Day, a very heavy storm, which I shall never forget, came on betwe en three and four 54 RAINRAM CHURCH. in the afternoon, and when the bell-ringer went to chime about seven for evening service, he discovered that the vane had been struck by lightning, and had fired the beam in which ·it was fixed. By the help of neighbours the flames were extinguished, and all was left in apparent safety about nine . .A.t a little after five, however, the next morning, smoke was seen issuing from the belfry, and on the alarm being given it was found that the wood-work was burning. In another half-hour the flames would have gained the mastery, and caused a serious amount of destruetion. .A bell-wire descending from. the belfry into the Ohur,ch bore marks of the electric fluid, which displaced a small pfoce of plaster at its lower extremity. The tower contains, besides a clock, a peal of six bells, of which I will mention the dates, weights, and founders. Ts. owt. qrs. 1. Treble bell of six. Charles II. coins. Christopher Hodson made me 1685. John Taylor, Tho• Osborne, Donors . . · 0 9 2. Robertus Mot me 1601 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 12 3. Robertus Mot me Fecit 1601 ; • . . . . .. . . • . .. .. • • • . . . . . .. O 14 4. Josephus Hatch me Fecit 1618 .. .................... ,. 0 18 5. Wm. Tuck and Luke Miles, Churchwardens. Pack and Chapman of London. Fet:it 1773., ........ , .......•• 0 18 6. Tenor bell of six, Robert Mot made me, 1582. 49 inches diameter, 3¼ inches thick ...... .... ...... ........ .. 1 4 3 0 0 0 0 3 Total weight.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 4 16 2 The font is modern. It was erected while the Rev. F. F. Ha,slewood was Ourate-in-charg·e, and has an octagonal bowl with decorated tracery. RooD AND PAINTING. On the north side of the Tufton Chapel are the remains of the rood staircase. Externally you see the projection which contains it and the slits by which it was lighted. The loft must have been carried across the whole width of. the north aisle and nave. Over the space it occupied in the nave the roof is boarded and painted. This boarding was much dilapidated when the Church was restored, but by means of spreading RAINHAM Cmmo:e:. Badge of Edward IV., painted on panels of roof over the east end of the ;Nave. RAINHAM: C:e:uno:e:-ANOIENT CHEST. RAINHAM CHURCH. 55 canvas over the back it was repaired and preserved. The painting in 􀁹ach compartment represents a '' rose en soleil," the badge of King Edward IV. Its choice as a subject was perhaps due to the desire to compliment the reigning sovereign, but I am disposed to hazard the conjecture that we have here a reminiscence of the connection between a Rainham landholder and the Royal house, since Sir Thomas St. Leger, who married the King's sister, was the son of l\f argarey Donet, the heiress of Sileham. This Sir Thomas was attainted, and executed ip. 1488 at Exeter, for joining in the unsuccessful rebellion of Henry, Duke of Buckingham, against Richard III. A.s his wife's former husband died in 1478, the date of the painting, if I am Tight in my conjecture as to its origin, would be :fixed to some period between those years. CHEST, One of the most interesting objects in the Church is the beautiful parochial chest now standing in the Tufton Chapel. Like that at Faversham, aud that ·kuown to us by engravings, and said to have existed at Wittersham-l<·-but of which the oldest inhabitant never heard so much as a rumour-it is ornamented on the front with elaborate carving of windowlike tracery, and bears marks, as you will notice, of the red ochre which it was customary to employ on wood-work. We may assign to it the approximate date of 1880, and think of it as having been in use some 550 years-since the day when Edward III. was a young man but lately seated on the * The Wittersham Chest is a mystery. Dr. Haslewood has favoured me with an extract from a letter written by Mrs. Julius Deedes, the widow of a former Rector of Wittersham, which is worth preserving. She says : "Some time after his prospectus came out, Mr. Streatfeild spent a week with us. He had hardly arrived when he said, ' I must go over to the Church to see that lovely chest in your church, which Mr. Hussey, of Scotney, sent me the drawing of, and which is in my prospectus.' So off he 110sted, though we told him there was no such thing there, and was immensely disgusted to 'find that it was not there now, nor was any one aware that it ever had been." Mrs. Deedes adds that "Mr. Streatfeild could never find out" that the chest had any existence at all save in the drawing and prospectus ! It was reproduced in the proposal for a new History of Kent issued by the late Mr, T. Godfrey Faussett, 56 RAIN.HAM CHURCH. throne-before the Black Prince won his spurs at Crecybefore the Wars of the Roses, the Reformation or the Armada. Placed on it for your inspection, is a volume of parochial records of the time of Henry VIII. and Elizabeth, and the fine Bible used in Rainham Church from l 726 to 1873, or 147 years. SCREEN. Between the chancel and the Tufton Chapel, inserted in the arcade, is a screen or parclose. It had sustained some injury fro,m the pewing and hat-pegs fastened upon it, and from the coats of blue and yellow paint with which it had been disfigured, but without much difficulty was restored to something of its former beauty. It is, as you see, "Perpendicular " in character, and has cinque-foil headed arches, the spandrils of which are ornamented with fruit and foliage, human heads, dragons, rabbits, parrots, fish, a harp, buglehorn, etc., carved with much life and spirit. MONUMENTS. I come now to speak of the memorials of the departed with which this ancient Church abounds. The most conspicuous are those in the North Chapel. That chapel is the burial-place of the Tufton family; but though not less than fifty of its members are here interred, it is somewhat singular that of only two of them does any memorial exist. The figure near the east window, of white marble on a low pedestal of the same material, represents Nicholas, Earl of Thanet, arrayed in his Parliamentary robes, and in the attitude of addressing the House of Lords. He was born 7th Aug. 1631, and married Elizabeth, daughter of Richard Boyle, Earl of Burlington. During the Great Rebellion, while a youth, he lived chiefly in France, and on coming to England in 1655, was committed to the Tower on suspicion of being concerned in a plot against Cromwell. In the next ye?,r, 1656, he wa.s again imprisoned and not released until 25th June 1658, some three months before Cromwell's death. The Earl died 24th Nov. 1679. The other figure, also in white marble, is that of George, sixth son of John, second Earl of Than et. He is represented RA.INHAM CHURCH-NORTH .ARCA.DE OF THE HIGH CHANCEL, Shewing Screen between it and the Tufton Chancel. RAINHAM CRlJRCR. 57 as dressed in a Roman habit, and seated on a suit of armour . .A.t the age of :fifteen he went into France, and afterwards into Germany. When at the Court of the Elector Palatine he joined his army, and being engaged near Newsbadt in rescuing the Elector from an ambuscade, had his horse shot under him, and received the wounds which ultimately proved fatal. For this service he was prese11ted with a ring worth £200, and a cornetcy in the Guards ; nor would the Elector ?J.ispose of the cornetcy until assured of his death. The inscrjption states, that "After having with great courage languished under the pain of bis wounds, for which neither in France, Germany, nor England, he could :find any cure, he died 12 Dec. 1670 in London, at Thanet House, in .A.ldersgate Street, to the great grief of his pious and tender mother, at whose charge this monument was erectecl in memory of her deceased beloved son." .A.t his death he had not attained the age of twenty-one and had been a sufferer for four years.* The brass now placed against the north wall of the chapel was found, if I remember rightly what I was told, near the south porch. The inscription is (translated), "Pray for the souls of William .A.ucher, Esquire, and Elizabeth, his wife, which William died 23 Deer 1514, on whose soul may God have mercy." * The early history of the Tuftons, as connected with Rainham, is involved in some obscurity. There can be no doubt that a family of this name held property in the parish as long ago as the time of King John (1199-1216) ; and there is a tract of ground near Moor Street called Tuftons, which in all likelihood was their original inheritance. But it is equally certain that the existing family, now seated at Hothfi.eld, came from N orthiam, and obtained their estates in Rainham by the marriage of Sir John 'rufton with Olympia Bloor, in the reign of Elizabeth (1558-1603), The probability is that the early Rainham Tuftons were an offshoot of the parent stock at Northiam, and have long been extinct. They do not appear to have been at any time the chief residents in the parish. It may be well to add here that although Lord Hoth:field holds the Bloor estates, he descends from the seconcl, wife of Sir John Tufton-not from Olympia, who had no son. In Hothfield Church is a handsome altar-tomb to Sir John and his second wife, with their effigies, and those of their children. S!,,e died in 1606-ke in 1624, aged 80. The inscription mentions the first wife; and from one of the shields of arms, it appears that the Bloor coat was or, a chevron vert between three pomeys-possibly an allusion to the fruitful land in which the lot of the Bloors had been cast. 58 RAINHAM CHURCH. On the east wall of the chancel is a monument bearing the following inscription:- " N eere this place lyes buried ye body of Tho. N orreys Esq who after many paynfull and dangerous expeditions at sea atcheived the charge & credit of a comavnder a mr of ye Trinitye hovse ; and a co missioner of the N avye Royall etc and dyed ye 19th of Deer 1624 whose lovinge and loyall ,vife Eliz. davghr of Tho. Elmstone hath dedicated to his memory this little monument & had issve by her 4 sones & 3 davgh1·s viz. Ralphe Ann Mary Eliz. Tho. Edward and Henry." Beneath his coat of arms-" Argent, billettee, a cross pattee, fl.ory, sable "-and above the inscription are the effigies of himself and wife kneeling at a desk. The monument below was formerly on the other side of the window. It consists of the figure of a sleeping child on two black marble slabs, and these words :- " N eere this place lyes ye body of John Norreys son of Edward & Barbara N orreys, Hee dyecl March 9 aged 7 months." " Here slepes my babe in silence, heaven's his rest For God takes soonest those He loveth best." The year was 1627. The babe was a grandson of Thomas and Elizabeth 􀁯 orreys. Under the arch on the north side of the sacrarium is a tomb* of Beth.ersden marble. It is o:f late Perpendicular work, the brasses are gone, and there are no armorial insignia; we can but conjecture, therefore, as to the person it was intended to commemorate. Weever says; in his Funeral Monuments, published in 1631, "In a Chappell of his owne foundation here in this Church lyeth. interred John Bloor and William Bloor which John dyed 20 December 1520."t This r:iay be his tomb; but it has been generally * One of the ornaments carved on the tomb is a11parently a "rose in sun," like the painting on the roof. t Either Weaver must be mistaken, or the Bloor stones do not cover the bodies or those whom they commemorate. They are in the chancel, not the chapel, and certainly appear to be in their original position. Probably he was confounding John and William with Christopher. RAINHAM. PIIOTO•I.ITHO, SPRAGUE & C9 LONDON, RAINHAM CHURCH. 59 conside1·ed that John Bloor's stone is that from which the brass is now gone, adjoining his brother's, immediately in front of the .Altar. Or it may be that which, as Weever tells us, once bore the inscription, of which no trace remains in. the Church:- " .For the love of Jesus pray for me ; I may not pray now, pray ye 􀀵'hat my paynes less'd may be, W yth one Pater N oster and one Ave. John Paynter of Dover, namy'd I was And two times Maire of that plas. I passyd to God the thirteenth of July, One thousand fyve hundred and forty." On the chancel floor in front of the rail, as I have just said, is the brass of William Bloor. He has his hair straight combed in the fashion of his day; and wears the long furred gown, lapelled and fastened with a girdle from which hangs his purse ; before his breast his hands are joined in prayerthis serves to display the deep sleeves, lined and cuffed with fur or sables, no less ornamental than inconvenient. The inscription is remarkable, as it contains at full length the title of " Defender of the Faith," not long granted to Henry VIII., and has besides a word or two more than usual. In English it reads as follows :- " Under this stone is buried the body 0£ William Bloor, gentleman, who died 29th December, .A..D. 1529, and in the 21st year of the reign 0£ Henry VIII., by the grace of God, King of England and France, Defender 0£ the Faith, and Lord of Ireland, on whose soul God have mercy.-.A.men." In 1522 William Blower, of Raynbam, Kent, was one of the sureties (for £100) for George Nevill, Lord Burgavenny, bound to allegiance in 10,000 marks. In 1523 he was one of the commissioners to collect subsidy in the county. He is also mentioned in the churchwardens' accounts, 1517-19. Richard Bloor in 1361 was executor of the will of Sir Roger de N orthwode, and had been his steward or Sir John's. His own executor was .A.dam, Vicar of Bredhurst. He had been employed in the building of Queenborough Castle, and was probably the "founder of the family," the last male representative of which was Christopher Bloor, who rebuilt 60 R.A.INH.A.M CHURCH. his seat at Lower Rainham, in the time of Henry VIII., and procured the disgavelment of his lands temp. Edward VI. Tradition says that Christopher, carrying his head under his arm, riding in a carriage drawn by headless horses, driven by a headless coachman, and attended by headless footmen, makes a nightly journey from the church to his old home, only •stopping to water his horses in the pond at Queen Court, where an old woman always sits spinning on the top of the barn. Queen Court, at which he is said to stop, lies in the lane leading from Upper to Lower Rainham. It, with the farm of Berengrave, was part of the possessions of the Crown until it was given by Eleanor, widow of Henry III., in 12.73, to the master and brethr􀂬n of St. Katharine's Hospital, London, by whom it has been let from time to time on a lease for lives. The present lessee is the Rev. J. A. Walter. In very dry weather traces of buildings may be seen in the stackyard and adjoining fields. On the chancel floor are four other brasses-one much mutilated, and the oldest inscribed memorial remaining in the church-to James Donet, who died in 1409. His arms" Argent, three pair of barnacles, extended, gules "-were formerly in one of the windows. He lived at the manor of Sileham, about a mile distant, and left a daughter and heiress, Margery, who married John St. Leger, of Ulcombe, Sheriff of Kent, 1431, and was by him mother of Sir Thomas St. Leger, Ambassador to France, and husband of the Princess Anne, sister of Edward IV., and widow of Henry Holland, Duke of Exeter. Sileham afterwards became the property of the Bloors, and from them descended with Bloor's Place to the Tuftons. The second brass bears this inscription :- " Heere under this stone lyeth buryed the bodie of John Norden Esquire who had iiii wyves, J ohne, Agnes, Ellyn, and Elizabethe the which John departed this life in the faith of Jesus Christ the -day of -in the yeare of our Lord God M.c.c.c.c.c.lxxx. (1580) and in ye -yeare of his age." His own figure is perfect, as is that of one of the wives. Four children remain, but two or three are gone. Hasted RAIN HAM. RAJNHAM. RAINHA'M CHURCH. 61 describes the armorial bearings as " On a fess, between three beavers passant, as many cross crosslets fitchee." But two of the crosslets are certainly trefoils. The Nordens lived at Mere Court, and I have been told that a ring with their arms engraved upon it wa,s found some years ago in the deep horse-well which, as those acquainted with the locality know, lies opposite the house. The third brass bears this inscription, bnt has no effigy or arms- " Here lieth buried the body of Charles Garlick some tyme vicar of the paryse of Rainham who being inducted into the cure the 6tl1 of July 1571 departed this lyfe the 26 day of August 1593." The fourth has a female figure and four children-the male and two other female :figures are gone, as are also eight children. No arms or inscription. On a loose piece of brass, which fits no existing indentation, are words in Latin-" Ye who live in the flesh pray for the dead, because ye must die." On the floor are several slabs to the memory of members of the Allen and Twopeny families ; there is also a ledger stone, with Lombard letters, partly hidden by the choir seats. In the body of the O􀁚urch are the following memorials :- A Slab . .A.rms-Orailoclc, Boar's Head and Cross Crosslets. "Here resteth the body of Thomas Cradock, M.A., Rector of Frensted, and Vicar of this Church. In his life, as well as preaching, he shewed the persuasive force of plainness and sincerity ; which gained him the love and reverence of all that both heard and knew him. He died 9th day of Oct. 1723, in the 75th year of his age." A Slab. "Here lyeth the body 0£ Hendrina, the wife 0£ Thomas Cradock, Vica1• 0£ Raynham, who was buryed the 21 day 0£ Nov. 1695." A Slab. "Here lieth the body of Thomas Cradock, M.B., eldest son of Thomas Cradock, Vicar 0£ this Church. He was born the 18th day 0£ March, .A.,D, 1698, and died tbe 7 day 0£ Nov. 1781." (He was an eminent medical man at Rochester.) 62 RAINHAM: CHURCH. On a stone near the pulpit- " Also of Martha, wire of the above John Marsh, and daughter of Edward and Martha Marsh, of Angmering in Sussex, who died 3 Dec. 1801, aged 61 years." On a tablet in the north aisle- " In memory of Mr. Thomas .Alldridge, 0£ thfo parish, obiit 20 Sept. 1816, retat 84 years. Hannah, wife of the above, obiit 8 .Aug. 1802, retat 70 years. Martha Bushell, their daughter, obiit 29 Dec. 1798, retat 30 years. This tablet was erected by their affectionate son and brother, Thomas .Alldridge, .A..D. 1818." On a slab- " John Taylor, Yeoman, who ... " The following inscriptions exist on stones remaining in their original position, but now covered by the tiles of the sacrarium :- " Here lyeth the body of Mr. Tho. Lambe, Mr 0£ .Arts, and a faithful Minr 0£ God's Word in this Parish 6 year'es. He marryed Mary, the daughter of Mr. Robt. Clayton, by whom he had issue, two daughters, Martha and Eliza, and died the 11 of .April 1662, aged about 41 yeares." "Rev. James Richards, Vicar of this Parish, died Nov. 11, 1804, aged 64." "Mary Elizabeth Richards, died Feb. 29, 1796, aged 23 years." The last named is also commemorated on a tablet on the north side of the chancel. At the north-west corner of the north aisle is a vault for the family of John Russell, Esg., of Greenwich. He was the owner of a large house at the east end of the street, in which Mr. Wakeley now resides. It was occupied at the end of the last century by Mr. Marsh, a surgeon, to whom one of the inscriptions already mentioned refers. The stained glass is modern. That in the window behind the pulpit is by Hardman, and represents in one compartment Cornelius giving alms, and in the other Dorcas distributing the garments she had made. It was given in 1871 by the late Mr:s, Walter as a memorial of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Taylor, of Berengrave. The lancet in the chancel arcade contains a figure of St. Margaret of Antioch, to whom RAINHA'M CHURCH. 63 the Church is dedicated, and the two-light Perpendicular window the figures of St. James and St. John. These are both by Lavers, and were given, with the pulpit and altar cloth and brass coronre, by Mr·s. Pearman, from the proceeds of her needlework in 1871 and 1876. I will only add a description of the Communion plate, taken from the sixteenth volume of the .A_irchr.eologia Oantiana. "Made inA.n.1566-7. Cup, 7"½inches high; diameter4inches. On the bowl two belts of foliage; the fillets cross each other five times in each belt. Maker's mark, in shaped shield, perhaps afl.eur-de-lis. Made in A.n.1627-8. Paten, 4! inches in diameter, 1 inch high; the gift of Anne Eimstone, widow. Maker's mark, in plain shield, W. S., with mullet beneath. Inscribed, 'Ex dono Anne Elmstone the widdowes mite to Rainham.' Made in A.D, 1632-3. Two Flagons, each 11 inches high, diameter of foot 6 inches, of mouth 3½ inches; the gift of Frances (nee Cecil), first Countess Dowager of Thanet, at Christmas, 1632, after her husband's death. Maker's mark, W. S., with an arrow in a bent bow between the letters, as on a cup at Chiddingstone." On 6th April 1636 a dispensation was granted from the Consistory Court of Canterbury, at the request of this lady, Frances, Countess Dowager of Thanet, then residing at Rainham, to allow the removal from the east end of the chancel to its south wall of " a little monument, figure, or inscription, in memory of the death and·interring of a child of one Master Ed. N orreys, since deceased." The· deed sets forth that Lady Thanet had bestowed "a fair communion table railed about in curious and decent manner and placed in the upper end in the chancel of Rainham as neare the east end thereof as conveniently may be, with a fair carpett of velvet to cover the same, and two large silver fl.aggons to be there perpetually used at the time of the administration of the Blessed Sacrament of the Lord's Supper & is withal desirous at the upper end of the said chancell as near the communion table aforesaid as may be· to have placed, pencilled or inscribed ce1·tain sentences of Holy Scripture and sacred things concerning that Blessed Sact which cannot conveniently be done without removing the said monument." 64 RA.INHA.M. CHURCH, The Parsonage of Rainham, with the Advowson of the Vicarage, belonged to the Priory of Leeds, and were thus described a-t the Dissolution 33 Henry VIII. ".A.dvocatio ecclesire de Rainham cum octodecim acris terrre in eadem villa. £ s. d. Firma Rector' ........................... 80 0 0 ,, Shoparum ..................... ... 0 8 4 " un' ten' .................. ......... 0 14 0 " al' ten' cum gardino ............ 0 6 0 " ditto ··· ··· ······ 0 6 8 The Parsonage, or Impropriate Rectory, remained in the hands of the Crown for a considerable period. It was at length bestowed on the Moyles and passed from them to the Derings. Sir E. C. Dering, Bart., is the present owner of the Rectorial Tit.he (commuted at £750), but some years ago he sold the Parsonage House and Farm to the late W. Walter, Esq., of Berengra,ve. The Parsonage House stands in the street by the side of the Vicarage, and is occupied by Dr. Knight. The Advowson of the Vicarage was granted by Queen Mary to the See of Canterbury, and the Archbishop continues to be the Patron. The Vicarial Tithes were commuted at £520. There are 3 acres of glebe. In 1640 the Vicarage was valued at £70, a.nd there were then 100 communicants, that is, 100 persons of an age to receive the Holy Communion. VICARS. 1282. RICHARD OF ST. EDMUNDS. 1310. RIOH.A..RD DE W .A..RVERRYNGS. 13-. RICH.A.RD DE HERNE. 1320. WILLIAM DE W .A..RLINH.A..M, 1323. Gumo DE OVERE. 13-. G.A..LFRIDUS WA.LEYS, 1378. REGINALD C.A..TIGO, 1880. THOMAS OF GLOUCESTER, -- N ICHOL.A..S CHILTON, 1416. WILLIAM CORPS, 1417. THOM.AS SKENE. 1417. JoHN G.A..RDYNER, 1418. RICJI.A..RD FFRENSJIE. -- WILLIAM ADAMSON, RAINRAM CRJJ"RCH, 1522. JORN WRYGRT, 1547. JoHN TowNESLEY. - J OilN W AKELYN, 1562. JORN HoLINSRED 1 h (Eli b h) 65 1571. CHARLES GARLICK 5 Patron, t e Queen za et . Buried 26 Aug.1593. Elizabeth, vid. Obas. Garlick, buried Jan. 5, 16,H-. 1593􀆂 R. Joy. 1595. OHRISTOI'JIER POWELL, buried 12 Jan. 16-H, 16-¥-¾, Jo:a:N GRIME.* 1644. GRIFFIN Sr>ENCER. 1645. THOMAS BLADEN. 1656. THOMAS LA.MDE. 1662. JonN OAMI'LESHON,t Vicar of Upchurch, 1664. 1665. WILLIAM WALTER. 1676. THOMAS On.A.DOCK. Previously Vicar of Tong, 1672.t 1728. HENRY SHOVE.§ .Also Vicar of Doddington. 1772. WILLIAM: TA.SWELL, 177'7, JAMES RICH.A.RDS. 1806. Hon. GERARD THOMAS NOEL. Afterwards Canon of Winchester, and Vicar ofRomsey, Hants. 1826. JoIIN PooRE, D.D. Also Rector of Murston, where he lies buried. 1866. AUGUSTUS JoJIN PEARMAN. Now Recto1· of Merstham. 1876. CHARLES CoDB, Previously Rector of Dymchurch. * In 1613 the glass in the windows of the Church and Tufton Chapel was largely repaired. t In the Parochial Accounts, 1666, are two entries, presumably relating to this Vicar: Item pd for a wareant to distrayne Mr. Campleshon •. , . , • • . . . 00 01 00 P pd to Mr. Scovell for to cleare the p'ish of Mr. Campleshon's children .. ...... , .••..•. , . . . • . . . • • . . • . • . • . • . . . • . • • • . 02 05 00 t The year following, viz. 1677, the Church was partially or entirely reseated. 1696, Nov. 10, the King (William III.) "went bye." § "July 5, 1780. Whereas att a Vestry in the Parish Church of Raynham on Sunday ye 24th of May last past it was agreed by ye Parishioners then present to assess the Rev'1 Mr. Shove Vicar of the sJ Parish att an £100 p'r ann' tow'ds ye Poors Rate & accordingly he y• sd Vicar was so charged to a Rate bearing date ye 31st of "!/0 same May last past. We whose names are underwritten, ye Church􀆃 wardens, Overseers and Princi.:pal Inhabitants of ye Parish, upon sober and mature deliberation do think proper to reverse and disannul ye sd order of Vestry and everything that is or may be charged on Mr. Shove in consequence of ye sd order, And further Mr. Shove haveing engaged that two Sermons shall be preached on Sundays both Summer & Winter; and that neither He nor his Curate shall or will expect any Surplice Fees for any Offices relating to y0 Poor, we do unanimously agree that M1·. Shove shall not be charged or assessed anything to any Poors Rate whatever·; and that his name for the future shall not be inserted in any Poors nook, so long as there shall be 2 Se1·mons a day."-Parish nook. During Mr. Shove's Incumbency some work seems to have been done at the Church. A new Pulpit and Desk were erected in 1725 at a cost of £80 7s., and a Bible and Prayer nook purchased for £5. In Novembei· 1724 the King (George I.) went through the parish, when the ringers received 5s, The Register dates from 1592. VOL. XVII. F