TITCHFIELD HUNDRED 



ROWNER. 



BRUNK. Assure A 

 cross moline or. 



1407," and from him the estate passed to his son 

 Henry, who held it till his death in 1461," when 

 it reverted to a Maurice Brune, probably his brother, 

 who, dying in 1468, was succeeded by his son 

 Thomas. 28 The manor passed on the death of Thomas 

 in 1497 to his son William Brune," who was suc- 

 ceeded in 1512 by his nephew, Sir John Brune, 

 who died in 1559 leaving a son Henry. 30 The latter 

 bequeathed a ' manor or farm called the Grange ' in 

 the parishes of Rowner and Stoke, to trustees, to 

 provide portions for five unmarried daughters, and on 

 his death in 1594 the manor and advowson of 

 Rowner passed to his son John,* 1 who died in 1639, 

 his heir being his nephew John, son of his brother 

 Charles. 32 On the death of 

 John, who died without heirs 

 male in 1645, his brother 

 Charles succeeded to the estate. 

 He died in 1703, and by the 

 death of his grandson Charles 

 Brune in 1769 the family be- 

 came extinct in the male line. 

 By his will his estates, in- 

 cluding the manor and advow- 

 son of Rowner, eventually 

 devolved on his grand-nephew 

 the Rev. Charles Prideaux- 



Brune of Padstow, Cornwall, who died in 1833, and 

 whose grandson Mr. Charles Glynn Prideaux-Brune is 

 the present owner. 33 



The church of ST. MARY THE 

 CHURCH riRGIN, ROWNER, is a small build- 

 ing, consisting originally of a chancel 

 14 ft. 2 in. by II ft. 5 in., and nave 25 ft. by 15 ft., 

 being apparently work of the first half of the twelfth 

 century, to which in the thirteenth century were 

 added a wide north aisle and north chapel, which 

 have become the nave and chancel, the older chancel 

 being used as organ chamber and vestry. The church 

 was extensively repaired in 1874, and shows little old 

 work outside, none of the windows having preserved 

 their old stonework. 



At the south-east of the old chancel a modern 

 doorway in twelfth-century style has been inserted, 

 with a ring of reused twelfth-century sunk star orna- 

 ment over the outer arch. The old chancel arch is 

 pointed, of two chamfered orders, with voussoirs alter- 

 nately of Binstead stone and clunch, the same arrange- 

 ment occurring in the responds, which have keeled 

 shafts to the inner order and round shafts in the 

 outer, with moulded capitals and bases. The angles 

 of the north arcade of two bays are like the chancel 

 arch, but of Bembridge stone. The south doorway 

 of the nave is modern. 



In the north wall of the present chancel is a thir- 

 teenth-century piscina, and opposite to it on the 

 south a single recessed sedile, to the west of which is a 

 wide round-headed thirteenth-century arch, springing 

 from moulded corbels, and opening to the old chancel. 



The font at the west end of the nave has an octagonal 

 bowl and shaft. The woodwork is all new, but a. 

 panel of the royal arms, dated 1705, is hung on the 

 east face of the old chancel arch. 



On the north of the chancel is a fine tomb dated 

 1559, with no inscription recording the name of 

 the person whom it commemorates, but the heraldry 

 shows that he was a member of the Brune family, and 

 the date makes it evident that he was Sir John Brune. 

 The tomb is in the form of a panelled base, on which 

 is a semicircular arch, over which are three pedestals, 

 supporting putti, who hold shields with the Brune 

 arms. Beneath the arch are the arms of Brune with 

 helm and mantling, and on the base four shields with 

 the arms of Brune, Brune impaling Tichborne r 

 Brune impaling Knowles, and Brune impaling Bam- 

 filde, the names being written above the shields. 

 Above the tomb are a helm and breastplate, placed 

 here within recent years. All the details are exceed- 

 ingly good and well executed, in the delicate early 

 Renaissance style, which ten years later had lost much, 

 of its purity. 



Externally the church shows little signs of age ; the 

 roofs are red-tiled, with a shingled bell-turret at the- 

 west containing one bell of 1 709. In the church- 

 yard are some specimens of eighteenth-century tomb- 

 stones, with beautiful lettering, some being carefully 

 repainted and set up against the church wall, and 

 church and churchyard are models of neatness. 



Copies of several wall paintings found during thfr 

 repairs of 1874 are preserved at the rectory. 



The plate consists of an alms dish of 1677, a stand- 

 ing paten of 1728, and a communion-cup probably 

 of the same date, a flagon of 1 726, and a pewter plate.. 



The first book of the registers is on parchment, 

 and goes from 1590 to 1683, with one baptism of 

 1583, and at the end are paper leaves with entries for 

 1673-81. The second book has births and deaths; 

 1669-1775, and marriages 1669-1754. The number 

 of marriages for so small a parish is abnormal, and is- 

 explained by the fact that Rowner was a favourite 

 place for marriages among the naval men from Gosport 

 and Portsmouth. The third book contains marriages 

 17541810, and the fourth baptisms and burials- 

 1775-1812. 



The history of the advowson of 

 ADVQWSON Rowner is identical with that of 

 the manor. 34 From the time of 

 the grant of Edward I the family of Brune with few 

 exceptions have exercised the right of presentation. 3 * 4 

 Very few members of the family have actually held 

 the living. In 1292 Philip le Brune was presented 

 to the living by Sir William le Brune, and he was- 

 succeeded in 1306 by Nicholas le Brune. The family 

 was not again represented until 1884, when the pre- 

 sent rector, the Rev. Edward Stapland Prideaux-Brune,. 

 was instituted." 



There are apparently no endowed charities in this, 

 parish. 



* Chan. Inq. p.m. 8 Hen. IV, No. *> Exch. Inq. p.m. 2 & 3 Eli*. (Ser. 2), ibid. 4 Hen. VIII (Ser. 2), vol. 27, No. 79 j. 



it. 



r > Ibid, i Edw. IV, No. 27. 



88 Ibid. 8 Edw. IV, file 28, No. 24. 



28 The manor was still held by the 

 ancient lervice of providing one armed 

 man for fort/ days every year for the 

 defence of Winchester Castle. 



file looo, No. 9. 



81 Chan. Inq. p.m. 36 Elir. No. 112. 



M Ibid. 15 Chas. I, No. 106. 



88 Maclean, Hist, of Trigg Minor, ii, 

 216, 217 ; Papers and Proc. Hants Field 

 Club, ii (3), 345. 



84 Chan. Inq. p.m. I Hen. IV, No. 39 ; 



ibid. 15 Chas. I, No. 106. 



85 In 1403-6 Hen. IV, in 1566 Queen 

 Eliz., and in 1593-4 Thomas Wade pre- 

 sented during the minority of the heir to 

 the manor. 



M Papers and Proc. Hants Field Club, ii. 

 (3). 349-5*- 



21 9 



