LEYLAND HUNDRED 



LEYLAND 



The following have been curates and vicars ' : — 

 1729 Richard Clayton' 

 1 75 I John Heskin, B.A. (Christ Ch., Oxf) 



1752 Richard Meadowcroft, B.A.' (St. John's 



Coll., Camb.) 

 — William Key 



1753 John Lowes * 



1774 James Armetriding, M.A.° (Rrasenose Coll., 



Oxf.) 

 '795 John Lowes ° 

 I 799 Robert Procter ' 

 1838 John Williams, B.A.' 

 1892 Henry John Greswell Beloe 



A school was founded by John Longworth in 



There is a Weileyan chapel. 



As in other cases nothing is known of the provision 

 for Roman Catholic worship for a century and a half 

 after the Reformation.'" A room in Euxton Hall, the 

 residence of the Andertons, was used during the i Sth 

 century, and a chapel was built by subscription in 

 1 817. Afterwards this was repurchased by William 

 Ince Anderton, and a new church, St. Mary's, was 

 built in 1865. The south-west transept is the 

 Anderton chapel." The registers begin in 1742. 



CUERDEN 



Kirden, 1212 ; Kerden, Kerdyn, 1292 ; Keurden, 

 Kuyrdon, Keverden, xv cent. 



This township lies in the bend formed by 

 the Lostock, flowing north and then west. The 

 area is 808 acres," and the population in 1 901 

 was 401. About a third of the area is occupied 

 by the well-timbered park surrounding Cuerden 

 Hall, which stands in the south-east corner on a 

 hill overlooking the Lostock. Cuerden Nook and 

 Cuerden Green are hamlets in the north and 

 north-west. 



The principal road is that from Wigan to Preston 

 through Bamber Bridge. On the western edge is 

 that from Leyland to Preston. 



In 1666 the principal houses were those of 

 Christopher Banastre and Thomas Woodcock, each 

 having six hearths to be taxed. The whole number 

 in the township was forty-five." 



The population is mainly agricultural, but there is 

 a cotton mill. 



The township is governed by a parish council. 



From the early part of the 12th 

 MJNOR century, and possibly before that, CUER- 

 DEN was a member of the Sefton fee, 

 held by the Molyneux family." In some wav not 

 ascertained the lordship passed to the Banastres of 

 Walton-le-Dale and Newton-in-Makerfield, whose 

 right in Cuerden becomes evident about 1270," and 

 whose lordship descended with the manor of Walton 

 to the Langtons.'° 



About 1290, however, the immediate lordship of 



' From the p.iper3 at the Diocesan 

 Registry, Chester. 



* Nominated hy James Armetriding 

 of £uxton ; he stayed till his death. He 

 was buried at Leyland (where he seems to 

 have been curate also) on 12 Nov. 1751. 



* He had been guilty of some breach 

 of the ecclesiastical laws, but had been 

 pardoned and allowed to be a candidate 

 for holy orders by the preceding Bishop of 

 Chester. 



■* Schoolmaster of Walton-le-Dale. 



^ Son of John Armetriding of Euxton, 

 aged eighteen in 1766; Foster, Alumni 

 Uxon. He was fellow of his college. 



° Presented by the Rev. James Armet- 

 riding. 



^ Presented by the same. He was curate 

 of Claughton and Hornby in Lonsdale. 



In 182 1 the incumbent resided at 

 ICirkby Lonsdale, but employed a curate, 

 Mr. Armetriding of Steeple Aston was 

 patron. There were two services on Sun- 

 day, with a sermon in the morning, and 

 during the summer in the afternoon also. 

 The sacrament was administered four times 

 a year. The church possessed a silver cup, 

 pewter fiagon and plate. 



** The following were the patrons : — - 

 Cokayne Frith, James F., William Armet- 

 riding F., Margaretta F., Mary Anne F., 

 and Eliza F., all of Bridgen Place, Kent, 

 sons and daughters of Margaretta late 

 wife of the Rev. Edward Cokayne Frith 

 (formerly Margaretta Armetriding) ; 

 Thomas Compton of Littlehampton, 

 Sussex, and Sarah Mary (Armetriding) 

 his wife ; the Rev. Richard Greswell, 

 of Worcester College, Oxford, and Joana 

 Julia (Armetriding) his wife. Vacant by 

 the resignation of Robert Procter. 



9 End. Char. ReJ>. (Leyland). 



1" The stories of the three brothers 

 Critchlow of Euxton, as told by them- 

 selves on entering the English College at 

 Rome In 1627-9, .ire of much interest. 



William Critchlow, aged about twenty- 

 seven at his entry in 1627, said he was 



the * son of Ralph Critchlow, senior, and 

 Catherine Tootell his wife. Born in the 

 parish of Leyland, Lancashire, he was 

 brought up and lived there for the greater 

 part of his life. His parents belonged to 

 the middle class of society and were in 

 moderate circumstances. He had three 

 brothers and two sisters ; all his rela- 

 tions, except one, were Catholic. After 

 beginning his education, until thirteen, 

 he then took to mercantile pursuits for 

 ten years, when he again returned to his 

 studies. He was always a Catholic, and 

 left England 17 June 1626. He had 

 suffered a little for his faith, having been 

 seized and sent to the Tower of London, 

 from which he effected his escape by 

 means of d bribe, which cost him £zo. 

 He was at length sent into exile to 

 Belgium, and there applied himself to 

 study under the fathers of the Society ' ; 

 Foley, Rec. S. J. vi, 314. At college 

 he showed himself * a pious man and an 

 example of all good ' ; he was ordained 

 priest and sent to England in 1634. 



Oliver Critchlow, his brother, aged 

 about twenty-one at his admission in 

 1628, had been arrested between London 

 and Dover when on his way to Douay 

 about 1624, but had escaped by a bribe. 

 He was * of remarkable virtue, distin- 

 guished for humility' ; was ordained .md 

 sent on the English mission in 1635 ; 

 ibid, vi, 317. He died at Clayton Hall 

 August 1671 ; MiK, (Cath. Rec. Soc), 

 iii, 99. 



Richard Critchlow, a third brother,aged 

 nineteen on his admission in 1629, stated 

 that 'he studied at home until he was 

 fourteen years of age ; then when on his 

 way in company with others to prosecute 

 his studies in Lower Germany he was 

 captured on the River Thames and taken 

 back to London, and was detained there in 

 gaol for some time by the Archbishop of 

 Canterbury, who examined him. Some 

 months after, having obtained his liberty, 

 he was compelled to return home. In 



23 



the following year he went again to 

 London, seeking an opportunity of em- 

 barking, but the plague raged there, and 

 he was compelled a second time to return 

 home. He made his humanities at St. 

 Omar's College for three years' ; Foley, 

 op. cit. vi, 320. He also was ordained and 

 was sent on the English mission In 1636. 



James Walton, another student of the 

 College about the same time, had made 

 his studies at Euxton ; ibid, vi, 314. 



^' A. Hewitson, Our Country Churches, 

 257. The list of officiating priests la 

 given from 1740. 



'^ 805 acres, Including/of inlandwater ; 

 Census Rep. 1 901. 



'^ Lay Subs. R. 250, no. 9. 



^^ It was held by Richard de Molyneux 

 In 1212 ; Lanes. Inq. and Extents (Rec. 

 Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), i, 12. The Moly- 

 neux lordship was recognized again in 

 1242; ibid. 147. Even down to 1355 

 Cuerden was still accounted part of the 

 Sefton fee ; Feud. Aids, ill, 91. 



In later times the Molyneux family held 

 land in the township, but this was a part 

 of the Hospitallers' holding ; see Duchy 

 of Lane. Inq. p.m. xiii, no. 35 ; Lanes. 

 Jnq. p.m. (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), iii, 

 383, &c. 



i-' Roger delCuerden In 1 276 complained 

 that Robert Banastre had distrained him 

 to do suit at his court of Cuerden .j De 

 Banco R. 13, m. 28. 



Alice widow of Roger de Kuerden in 

 1 28 I and later claimed dower in 6 oxgangs 

 of land against Robert Banastrej ibid. 41, 

 m. 40 d. ; 43, m. 47. 



Simon son of Roger de Kuerden 

 claimed common of pasture against Robert 

 Banastre In 1284, and Roger, his brother, 

 claimed the like against Richard Banastre, 

 but they were non-suited j Assize R. 1 268, 

 m. 1 2, 1 3. The lordship of Robert Banastre 

 was fully recognized in pleadings in 1292, 

 quoted below. 



•"To an aid in 1378 the Mords of 

 Cuerden ' contributed for the fourth part 



