152 YETMINSTER CHURCH. 



Of these it is far and away most probable that the latter was the 

 person interested in the building, as he entered upon the estate at 

 an early age, being only six years old when his father died, so that 

 ready money may have accumulated during his long minority, to 

 which would be added the ample means placed at his disposal 

 through his marriage with the heiress. If this conjecture is 

 correct the building of the church would be his first work on 

 attaining his majority, and the brass which the church now so 

 fortunately possesses would represent the Esquire and his spouse 

 who saw, principally, it may be, through their own bounty, the 

 present handsome Perpendicular building rise from its foundations. 

 John Horsey's will is still extant (dated 1 May 23, Henry VIII. 

 1531, pr. July 1532. 16 Thower), and in it he desires to be 

 buried at Eatmister, and bequeaths 40s. to " the maintenance and 

 reparacion of the Church of Eatmyster underneath the condicion 

 that I be prayed for in the Bede Roll yerely." 



John Horsey was " felix opportunitate mortis." He did not live 

 to see the expulsion of the monks from Sherborne, 11 March, 

 1539, with which, perhaps, he would not have been in sympathy, 

 as he had a daughter a nun at Barking, nor did he see his son 

 enriched with the spoils of Church property, nor the church of 

 Yetminster, which he evidently loved, robbed of its vestments and 

 valuable ornaments by the rapacious commissioners of Edward VI., 

 1550, one of whom was his grandson. 



By the way, when these commissioners, who were Giles 

 Strangwayes, George Delalynd, John Horssey, and Thomas 

 Trenchard, all members of good Dorset families, came to 

 Yetminster, they found " 5 bells in the tower, 1 suyt of vestments 

 with a cope of blue velvet, 1 suyt of vestments of black wosted 

 with a cope, 1 payre of vestments of whyt saten, one paire of 

 vestments of red wosted, 1 paire of blewe chamlet, 1 peyre of 

 blewe sylk, 1 paire of blewe wosted, 1 cope of greyne sylk, 1 cope 

 of whyt fustyaine, 2 bann's of clothe, 2 surpleces, 6 altar clothes, 

 1 chalis parcell gylte, 4 towells. To the Churche use apoynted by 

 the said corny ssion's the chalis with the cope of whyt fusteyne, 



