322 
the Church, known as the chapel of the Virgin Mary, and fitted it up 
with every requisite for Divine service, as he purposed securing it for 
his last resting-place. 
John Tame possessed no property of his own at Fairford as late as 
January, 1496, but was only a tenant of a portion of the Royal manor. 
This is known from his last Will and Testament, in which he bequeaths 
the sum of £240 for founding a chantry in the Church of Fairford. 
and so obtained the right of interment for himself. He also provides 
for the expenses of his burial and for the monument which is placed 
over his remains. For this he allows the sum of £140. The tomb, 
which is an “ Altar Tomb,” has upon it the brasses of John Tame and 
his wife. 
In 1498 a cession of part of the manor of Fairford was made to John 
‘Tame, but not the lordship, and he then pulled down the old house, 
called Beauchamp and Warwick Court, and erected a mansion more 
suitable to his taste. This house is mentioned by Leland, 1545— 
“There is a fair mansion place of the Tames, hard by the Churchyard, 
builded thoroughly by John Tame and Edmund Tame, the backside 
whereof goeth to the very bridge of Fairford ” (Itin. vol. ii. p. 21). He 
died 8th May, 1500. His Will was executed in 1496, but in it he makes 
no mention of either the Church or the windows, but only provides 
for a chantry in the Church, and for its fittings, together with the tomb 
to the memory of himself and his wife. The provisions of his Will 
appear to have been carried out by his son Edmund. The tomb, as we 
now see it, appears to have been erected about 1520. 
It is not improbable that the windows which now adorn the Church 
were placed there about a.p. 1505-6 by Edmund Tame, as Leland 
_ says that “ John Tame founded the chantry in the new fair Church of 
Fairford, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and that Edmund Tame 
finished the embellishment of the Church.” This is further confirmed 
by a statement of Antony 4 Wood. 
The Church of Fairford consists of a nave with aisles, and a chancel 
also with aisles. The whole is a structure of late date. Most of the 
Church has been restored at a late period, probably about 1488 or 
1489 ; the whole may have been completed about 1500. There are 
some old wall-paintings in the upper part of the nave, which are said 
to be similar in character to those in the Chapter-House at West- 
