By C. H. Talbot. 337 



The Tropenell or Neston Chapel, on the north side of the chancel, 

 of the fifteenth century, has a very fine stone screen, Avith fan- 

 vaulting under the loft,i considered to resemble work at Great 

 Chalfield Manor House, through which it is entered from the west 

 and against which are the indications of two altars, of the same 

 date as the screen. The principal feature of interest, in this chapel, 

 is the very fine monument of Thomas - Tropenell, of Grreat Chalfield 

 and of Neston, in the parish of Corsham, and his wife, who was of 

 the Ludlow family. There is also a smaller monument to another 

 of the Tropenell family, in the north-east angle. There is a good 

 piscina in the south wall. The chapel is very lofty and, against the 

 east wall, are two corbels, one above the other, bearing the arms of 

 Tropenell and LudloAv, which have, no doubt, carried statues. In 

 one of the north windows ^ are some remains * of onginal glass, 

 showing a badge of the Hungerford family, three sickles interlaced, 

 but much older than the time of Sir Edward Hungerford, of 

 Corsham, and perhaps referring to "Walter, Lord Hungerford, of 

 the time of Henry the Sixth. The chapel has an original high 

 roof, of the fifteenth centuiy, unrestored. Externally there is a 

 very interesting hip-knob, of the same date, with open tracery, on 

 the gable. 



The chancel, which exhibits no feature earlier than the fifteenth 

 century, though some part of the walls may be older, remains 

 without much alteration, but the chancel arch is new. The main 



1 Cresting has been added, for which, I believe, there is no authority. The 

 screen has suffered, in effect, by the alterations and addition to the aisle. 

 - Said to have died in 1490. 



3 There are three windows in this chapel, one at the east end and two on the 

 north side, all of three lights. 



■• These are in the westernmost of the two north windows. In one place, the 

 three sickles twice repeated, are in situ. In another, there is part of a leaf in situ, 

 and the opening is patched with the three sickles. There are also three other small 

 pieces of glass in situ. This is all that now remains of the heraldic glass that 

 was formerly in the north windows of the Neston Chapel, amongst which the 

 Hungerford arms, encircled with the garter (for Walter, Lord Hungerford), 

 occurred. Much of this glass was removed to Neston House, by William Eyre, 

 Esq., in 1675, and again, at a later date, was removed by Sir William Hanham 

 t,o his house in Dorsetshire. (See Jackson's Aubrey, p. 81.) 



