ONGAR HUNDRED stapleford abbots 



immediately received licence to alienate both to Sir 

 Brian Tuke.-" The Crown probably regained the 

 advowson with the manor in 1 543-5-^° Thomas Smith 

 presented pro hac vice in 1557.^' In 1560 a presenta- 

 tion was made by the Crown, which has since retained 

 the advowson/^ 



In the time of Abbot Samson (1182-121 1) the value 

 of the church was assessed by his chronicler Jocelin of 

 Brakelond at 3 marks.'" In about 1 254 the rectory was 

 valued at 5 marks.'*'' The Prior of Holy Trinity, 

 Aldgate (Lond.) then received \ mark for tithe from 

 the demesne of the manor of Batayles.*' In 129 1 the 

 rectory was valued at ^£8.** The portion of the Prior 

 of Holy Trinity, Aldgate, was then valued at 1 3/. ^dy 

 In 1535 the rectory was valued at [^\(i i;/.'*' Its 

 'improved' value was £^^0 in 1604, ;^loi in 1650, and 

 j^i20 in 1661.^' The tithes were commuted in 1845 

 for ;£536;5o there were then 22 acres of glebe. 5i 



In about 1770 the rectory was said to have been 

 'new built by the present . . . incumbent'. s^ It is a 

 roughcast house of two stories. The pedimented porch 

 is contemporary and the bay windows and veranda 

 were probably added early in the 19th century. There 

 is a three-story addition of yellow brick dating from 

 later in the 19th century. A deep L-shaped pond in the 

 garden suggests that in medieval times the site was 

 moated. 



The parish church of ST. Afy/^?* consists of nave, 

 chancel, west tower, north chapel, vestry, and south 

 porch. Except for the chapel, which is dated 1638, the 

 church was rebuilt in the 19th century. 



A small engraving in the church shows the building 

 before the 19th-century reconstruction. There was 

 evidently a porch in the centre of the south side, flanked 

 by what were apparently 14th-century windows. There 

 was also, high up near the west end of the nave, a 

 single-light window which may have been of the 1 2th 

 century, indicating a Norman origin for the church. 



In a modern lancet window in the vestry is a stained- 

 glass panel depicting St. Edward the Confessor holding 

 a ring; this probably dates from the early 14th century. 

 In the south-east corner of the chancel there is a piscina, 

 reset, with a pointed head and foiled drain, also prob- 

 ably dating from the 14th century. 



The north or Abdy chapel is of red brick and has 

 semicircular headed windows, a coved cornice extern- 

 ally, and a hipped, tiled, roof. The chapel is separated 

 from the chancel by a pointed arched opening of the 

 19th century. A small entrance lobby of the 17th 

 century adjoins the east wall of the chapel but is not 

 structurally part of it. The front of this has been rebuilt 

 in modern brick but the side walls and the external 

 door, which has a segmental head, are probably of the 

 17th century. Above the inner door the date '1638' 

 appears in cut brickwork. The architectural style of 

 the chapel, however, suggests that it was rebuilt or 

 largely altered by the Abdy family later in the 17th 

 century.53 



In about 1770 the church was described as 'of one 

 pace and of equal breadth with the chancel, tiled. At 

 the west end is a neat gallery, behind which is a wooden 

 tower containing three bells. The church is in good 

 repair and the chancel has likewise been put into 

 exceeding good repair by the present incumbent. The 

 east window of the chancel is of a very singular con- 

 struction.'s4 



The west tower is of brown brick and was rebuilt in 

 1815.55 It is probable that the door and window open- 

 ings were altered later when the nave and chancel were 

 reconstructed. The parapet was formerly embattled,5* 

 but is now finished with a tiled coping. Internally the 

 tower is separated from the nave by a pointed arch of 

 chamfered orders, the whole being plastered. 



The nave and chancel were rebuilt in 1 861-2 at the 

 expense of William Gellibrand and his sister.5' The 

 architect was T. Jekyll of Norwich5 8 and the style is a 

 19th-century version of early 'Decorated'. The stone 

 walls are of polygonal masonry with strongly emphasized 

 joints. The windows have geometrical tracery and 

 externally all the openings have small shafts with 

 foliated capitals. The roof has exposed timber trusses. 



The north vestry and south porch are of the same 

 date. The porch is of timber arcading on a low stone 

 wall. In 1909 a new organ was put into the tower at 



a cost of j^250.S9 



In the north chapel, over the lobby doorway, is a 

 late 16th-century helm with a winged cap of main- 

 tenance. The pulpit, which is hexagonal and panelled, 

 is of the early 17th century. In the chancel are two 

 late- 17th-century upholstered chairs. The octagonal 

 font is modern. Above the south door of the nave are 

 painted boards {c. 1800) setting out the details of 

 William Gould's charities.*" 



There are now two bells, one large, cast by T. 

 Mears and acquired in 18 18, and one small, of the 

 same date and probably by the same maker.*' 



The plate consists of a silver cup and two patens of 

 1687, given by Sir John Abdy, 2nd Bt., and his wife 

 in 1688; a silver flagon of 1687 given by George 

 Nicholas and his wife; and a silver almsdish of 1692.*^ 



The oldest monument, which is on the north wall 

 of the tower, is to Francis Stonard (1604), his wife 

 Lucy (i 596), daughter of Sir Clement Heigham, Lord 

 Chief Baron of the Exchequer, 1558-9, and also of 

 Henry Stonard (l 555), brother of Francis.*^ Next to 

 this monument is a marble plaque with shield of arms 

 to Dormer, 2nd Baron Fortescue of Credan (1780),** 

 who is buried nearby. 



The north chapel contains three monuments to the 

 Abdy family. On the west wall is a fine marble tablet 

 commemorating Sir John Abdy, 4th Bt. (1759) ^""i 

 earlier members of his family. This was formerly in 

 the chancel.*5 On the east wall are tablets to Thomas 

 Abdy and to John Rutherforth Abdy (1840) and his 

 wife (1838). 



Tysea Hill or Pyrgo Chapel was probably builr in 



39 L. &■ P. Her,. Vm, xvi, p. 281. 



*" See above, Manor of Stapleford 

 Abbots. 



■♦■ Newcourt, Re-pert, ii, 555. 



"Ibid.; Kelly's Dir. Essex (1874 f); 

 Chel. Dioc. Year Bk. 1952. 



<' Chron. jocelin of Brakelond, ed. 

 Butler, 63. 



♦♦ Lunt, f^al. of NoriuicA, 336. 



♦5 Ibid. Cf. Cat. And. D. i, A. 736; 

 E40/733 ; see Manor of Battles Hall. 



«« Tax. Eccl. (Rec. Com.), 21A. 



" Ibid. 



<8 Falor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), i, 437. 



" £.yf.r. N.s. xxi, 78, 83. 



so E.R.O., D/CT 330. 



S' Ibid. 



52 Hist. Essex by Gent, iv, 37. The 

 incumbent was W. Gould who became 

 rector in c. 1767. 



" Prof. Pevsner believes that it is a very 

 early instance of the style; Buildings of 

 Essex, 29, 336. 



5* Hist. Essex by Gent, iv, 37. 



55 Kelly's Dir. Essex (1886). 



56 Kelly's Dir. Essex (1890). 

 5' Kelly's Dir. Essex (1886). 



5' N. Pevsner, Buildings of Essex, 335. 



59 Kelly's Dir. Essex (19 12}. 



^0 See below, Charities. 



'■ Ch. Bells Essex, 398. 



«2 Ch. Plate Essex, 16. 



" For the Stonards (or Stoners) see 

 above. Knolls Hill estate. 



*« See above, Knolls Hill estate. 



'5 Hist. Essex by Gent, iv, 38. 



\ 



229 



