A HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



Bridges records a brass memorial to John Glynton 

 'merchant of the staple of Calais' (d. 1506) and Isabel 

 his wife, but little of this now remains.' 



The royal arms of Charles II (1667), long relegated 

 to the clock chamber, have been recently placed near 

 the south doorway. 



There is a ring of eight bells, three smaller ones by 

 Taylor of Loughborough having been added in 1930 

 to a former ring of five. The old treble (now fourth) is 

 by W. Taylor of Oxford, 1846, and the old second 

 (now fifth) is dated 1729. The old third and fourth 

 are alphabet bells with the shield of Richard Brasyer 

 of Norwich, and the tenor is by Edward Arnold of 

 Leicester, 1792.^ There is also a priest's bell by Taylor 

 of Loughborough, 1882. 



The plate consists of a silver cup and cover paten of 

 1 8 1 3, a plated flagon presented by Joseph Monk, vicar, 

 in 1 88 1, a plated alms dish, a pewter flagon, two old 

 pewter alms dishes, and two modern ones of Sheffield 

 make.^ 



The registers before 18 12 are as follows: (i) all 

 entries 1622-81, with gaps 1665-70 and 1676-9; 

 (ii) baptisms 1673-1740, marriages 1676-1740, 

 burials 1675-1740; (iii) baptisms 1741-1807, mar- 

 riages 1741-53, burials 1741-1806; (iv) marriages 

 1754-72; (v) marriages 1773-1812; (vi) baptisms and 

 burials 1807—12. The second volume is remarkable for 

 the extra matter inserted by Thomas Allen, vicar 1 706— 

 20, whose liberal ideas of the scope of parish registers 

 led him to record local events in its pages.'* 



The church of St. Katharine of Ir- 

 ADFOtVSON Chester was given by the elder William 

 Peverel to the Priory of Lenton.' In 

 1227 the prior's right to the advowson was challenged 

 by Emery de Nowers, lord of the manor of Little 

 Chester (q.v.) who afterwards withdrew his claim.* In 

 1268, however, the patronage was successfully claimed 

 by Margaret de Ferrers, Countess of Derby, as part of 

 her dower,' and the church remained in the gift of the 

 overlords of the manor^ until 1330 when Henry Earl 

 of Lancaster made it part of the endowment of his hos- 

 pital at Leicester' to which it was accordingly appro- 

 priated.'" When the hospital was refounded as the 

 College of Newark in 1360 (see Higham Ferrers ad- 

 vowson) the church of Irchester remained in its posses- 

 sion. It was amongst the spiritualities of this house in 

 1535" and came to the Crown on its dissolution in 

 November 1547.'- In 1607 James I granted the advow- 

 son to Robert, Earl of Salisbury,'^ from whom it passed 

 to Thomas Jenison, patron until his death in 1647.'* 

 Ralph his son and heir died twelve years later and was 



succeeded by his son Thomas Jenison'^ who owned the 

 advowson in 1662'* and presented in 1675." He died 

 suddenly without issue in 1681,'* and his sisters, Eliza- 

 beth, wife since January 1641 of Samuel Collins of the 

 Middle Temple," and Mary wife of Nathaniel Agutter 

 with their husbands and Elizabeth's son, Samuel Col- 

 lins, junior, and his wife, made a settlement in which 

 the rectory of Irchester was included.^" Afterwards the 

 Agutters alleged that they had been defrauded of 

 Mary's share by the younger Samuel, and in r686 they 

 unsuccessfully sued his son of the same name with his 

 widowed mother and sisters. The third Samuel Col- 

 lins^' presented to the living in 1688 and 1705.-^ Samuel 

 Collins, junior, and John Collins, presumably his sons, 

 joined him in a settlement of the church in 171 1, and 

 the younger Samuel and John held it with Elizabeth 

 Collins, spinster, sis years later. John Collins and his 

 wife in 1727 sold to Rupert Clarke.^^ 



Valentine Knightley presented to the living in 1745 

 and 1748, and Ambrose Dickins between 175 1 and 

 1777;^ and from 1794 to 1848 Francis Dickins was 

 patron. In 1770 the vicarage of Irchester was joined 

 to that of WoUaston and so remained until 1881.^' 

 During the second half of the last century the advowson 

 changed hands several times, being held for the most 

 part by three of its vicars, the Rev. R. Wood, the Rev. 

 J. Monk, and the Rev. H. Slater.^* It subsequently be- 

 longed to Mrs. Thomas of Reepham, Lincolnshire,^* and 

 is now held by the Misses Thomas and Mrs. Semple. 



The rectory of Irchester followed the 

 REC TOR T descentofthe advowson until 1605, when 

 James I granted it in socage to Peter 

 Bradshaw,^' trustee, as appears from a later document, 

 for the Earl of Salisbury^^ in whose possession it was 

 again united to the advowson in 1607. [See above.] 

 The two may have been acquired together by Thomas 

 Jenison, owner of the parsonage impropriate in 16 10, 

 when he was engaged in a dispute touching rights of 

 way.^' In 1773 Ambrose Dickins, then patron and lay 

 rector, received compensation in lands for the glebe- 

 lands and tithes of the rectory.^" 



A chapel of ease in Knuston dedicated 

 CHAPEL to St. Leonard had fallen into decay before 

 1567, when it was granted to Robert 

 Holmes and Thomas Boughton with land belonging to 

 it. 3' Twent}'-four years later only the site remained and 

 was said to be held by Henry Freeman, lessee of the 

 rectory, as 'concealed land'.^^ 



There were gilds of St. Katharine and St. John in 

 the church of Irchester with lands which were included 

 in the grant of 1 567. 



' Hht. of Northantz, ii, i 80. The brasses 

 were in the floor near the pulpit stairs, but 

 the figure of the man and the arms were 

 then gone. 



2 North, Ch. Sells of Nortkants. 311, 

 where the inscriptions on the old bells are 

 given. The old second has the 'Nazarene* 

 inscription and is probably a recasting of 

 one of Hugh Watts's bells. The Brasyer 

 dynasty extended over two generations 

 from 1424 to 1513. The three new bells, 

 together with a clock, were the gift of John 

 Turnell Austin of Hartford, Connecticut, 

 U.S.A., formerly of Knuston. The old 

 bells were restored at the same time. 



3 Markhim, Ci. Plaleof NorlAanls. 164. 

 * On the fly-leaf is a set of verses in 



Latin elegiacs, dated November 26, 17 10, 

 on the spire of Irchester composed 'on 

 awakening suddenly during my sleep'. The 



first volume, which according to Bridges 

 began in 1597, has been lost, 

 s Cal. Chart. R. iii, 316. 

 ^ Feet of F. Northants.,file 22, no. 222. 

 ' Ibid., file 48, no. 861; Rot. Rici. 

 Gra'vesend (Cant. 8c York Soc), 109. 

 ^ Cal. Inq.^.m. iii, pp. 296, 321. 

 ' Cal. Vat. 1327-30, p. 603; Misc.Bks. 

 (Duchy of Lane), 1 1, fol. \\h. 

 "> Vahr Eccl. (Rcc. Com.), iv, 169, 310. 

 " Nichols, Leiceiter^ i, pt. 2, p. 336. 

 ^^ Bridges, A'orMaH/j. ii, 181. 

 " Pat. 5 Jas I, pt. 17, m. 25. 

 '* Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.) ; Bridges, loc. cit. 

 'S MetcMe,yisitatiam of Northanis. loi. 

 '^ Feet of F. Northants, Hil. 13 & 14 

 Chas. II. 

 " Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.). 

 '^ Hist. MSS. Com. House of Lords 

 MSS. Rep. xii, App. vi, pp. 69, 70. 



26 



^' Northants. Notes & Queries^ New 

 Ser. ii, 161. 



20 Feet of F. Div. Co. Trin. 33 Chas. II. 



" Ibid. Northants. Mich. 3 Will. & 

 Mary. 



" Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.). 



" Feet of F. Northants. Mich. 10 Amie; 

 Div. Co. Mich. 4 Geo. I; Trin. 13 Geo. I. 



" Inst. Bks. (P.R.O.) i Bacon, Liber 

 Regis, 824. 



« LonJ. Gaz., 4 Mar. 1881. 



^^ Clerical Guide ; Clergy List. 



" Pat. 2 Jas. I, pt. 19. 



28 Cal. S.P. Dom. 1631-3, p. 482. 



=' Spec. Com. (Duchy of Lane), no. 864. 



3" Acts Priv. and Loc. 13 Geo. Ill, 

 cap. 15. 



3' Pat. 9 Eliz. pt. 5, m. 10. 



32 Misc. Bks. (Duchy of Lane), 117, 

 fol. 117*. 



