A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



central alley and the main cross alley leading from the 

 south door were to be 7 ft. wide, the minor alleys 

 5 ft. wide. It was found on measurement that the 

 body of the church contained 218^ yds. 7 J ft., and a 

 little over 54^ yds. was accordingly the allowance for 

 each quarter. Edward Scarisbrick, the earl of Derby 

 (two), and Henr)' Stanley of Bickerstaffe then agreed 

 upon the division.' 



There was a stormy scene in the church about 1 540, 



when Thomas Gorsuch caused the arrest of Richard 

 Giilibrand, the collector of the Easter roll, to be made 

 within the building, during the celebration of high 

 mass on Easter Day, and while most of the inhabitants 

 ' were diligently preparing themselves to receive the 

 most Blessed Sacrament.' The accused retorted with 

 charges of intention to ' murder, malm, or evil in- 

 treat' him, which made it necessary for him to apply 

 for the warrant.' 



The following is 



Instituted 

 c. I 190 . 

 c. 1275 . . 

 15 Dec. 1298 

 30 Dec. 1306 

 I May, 1309 



6 Dec. 1 3 1 1 . 

 28 Mar. 1339 

 31 Dec. 1 341 



3 April, 1384 

 16 Mar. 1422-3 



a list of the vicars of Ormskirk : — 



Name Patron 



Henr}' the Chaplain' 



Gervase * 



William de Lutton * Pr.andConv.of Burscough 



Robert de Famworth® „ 



Henry de Lichfield^ „ 



Henry de Melling ..... 



Richard de Donington ^ . . . . „ 



Alexander de Wakefield ^ . . . . „ 



William de Bolton '' 



John Spink ^^ „ 



Richard de Lancaster '^ . . . . „ 



Thomas Bolton '^ 



John Marke '* Pr.andConv.of Burscough 



Richard Ince ^^ „ 



William Ambrose^® „ 



HughHulme'^ 



Henry Hill '^ 



John Devyas ** „ 



Robert Madoke**' ...... 



Eliseus Ambrose*' The king 



Richard Ambrose ** Thomas Hopford, etc. 



William Knowles, M.A." .... Hugh Hesketh, etc. . . 



Cause of Vacancy 



res. R. de Farnworth 



d. H. de Melling 

 d. R. de Donington 

 d. of A. de Wakefield 

 d. of last vicar 

 res. J. Spink 



[depr. T. Bolton] 

 d. J. Marke 

 d. R. Ince 



d. H. Hulmc 



d. J. Devyas 

 d. last incumbent 

 depr. Eliseus Ambrose 

 d. of R. Ambrose 



^ Dioc. Reg. Chest. The seating space 

 was to be arranged thus, crossing from 

 the south wall : 6 ft. 8 in. ; alley, 7^ ft., 

 7 J ft. ; middle alley, 8^ ft., g ft. ; alley, 9 ft. 

 A length of 1 3 ft. seems to have been 

 taken from the chancel at the same 

 time, and filled with scats, the central 

 aisle being maintained at 7 ft. wide. 

 Edward Scarisbrick had both sides of the 

 south aisle and a small piece at the lower 

 end of the nave \ the earl of Derby had 

 all the rest of the nave, a portion of the 

 chancel, and also of the north aisle ; 

 Henr>' Stanley Of Bickerstaffe had the 

 remainder of the north aisle, at the end 

 of which was his chapel. 



* Du<by Pleadings (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.), ii, 243, 128. For another dispute 

 between the same parties see Duchy 

 of Lane. Depositions, Hen. VIII. xxxiv. 

 H 4. Among the Scarisbrick D (n. 162) 

 is the record of a denial made publicly at 

 high mass in Ormskirk Church on 10 

 July, 1446, concerning a feoffment of 

 property. The prior of Burscough and 

 all his canons were there, and many 

 others of note in the district ; and an 

 oath was sworn to the truth of it. 



8 * Henry the Chaplain of Ormskirk ' 

 was witness to a charter of Henry 

 prior of Burscough, which may be dated 

 between 1 1 Sg and i ig2 j Duchy of Lane. 

 Anct. D. L270. 



* Ralph the clerk of Ormskirk * was 

 witness to several charters of the earlier 

 half of the thirteenth century j Dep. 

 Keepers Rep. xxxrl, App. pp. igg, 201, 

 and igg {?). There is nothing to show 

 he had charge of the parish. 



■* * Gervase, vicar of Ormskirk,' attested 

 several charters about 127 c 



5 i 



Keeper s Rep. xxxix, App. pp. ig8, 202, 



Dep. 



* Lich. Epis. Reg. i, fol. lb. He paid 

 half a mark. 



® Ibid, i, fol, loh. He was a priest, and 

 was ordered to reside within the vicarage. 



7 Ibid, i, fol. 57 5 a priest. His stay 

 must have been very short, even if he be 

 identical with the Henry de Melling who 

 died in October, 131 1, 



^ Ibid, i, fol. 60 ; a priest. 



® Ibid, ii, fol. ri3ij canon of Bur- 

 scough. 



1" Ibid, ii, fol. 115; priest and canon of 

 Burscough. In Jan. 1365 the bishop 

 appointed him penitentiary for the four 

 deaneries of South Lanes, the reserved 

 cases excepted ; Ibid, v, fol. i ih. This was 

 confirmed in Jan. 1367; Ibid, v, fol. 15. 



^^ Ibid, iv, fol. g^b ; priest and canon 

 of Burscough. A John Spink was rector 

 of Aughton and Standish, dying In 1424. 



^'^ Ibid, ix, fol. 112A; canon of Bur- 

 scough. 



^'^ Ibid, xi, fol. 55 ; Thomas Bolton, 

 canon of Burscough and vicar of Orms- 

 kirk, was deprived on account of his 

 share in the necromancy of the prior. 

 He was absolved in Feb. 1454-5 j Ibid, 

 xi, foL 55^. 



^■* Ibid, xi, fol. II ; canon of Bur- 

 scough. The presentation was made by 

 the sub-prior and convent. 



^5 Ibid, xii, fol. 103^ ; canon of Bur- 

 scough. 



^^ Ibid, xii, fol. 123 ; canon of Bur- 

 scough. 



^7 James Meadowcroft, priest, living in 

 Ormskirk in July, 1506, speaks of a 

 Richard Hulme as his curate In I49g 5 

 Duchy Pleadings (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and 

 Ches.) i, 30. 



1^ Ibid, xiii-xiv, fol. 54^ ■ canon of Bur- 

 scough. The Act books at ChestT give 



244 



the date of induction as 5 Mar, 1505-6 ; 

 they also arc the authority for the cause 

 of vacancy. 



1^ John Devyas was vicar in 1527; {Vilis 

 (Rec. Soc. Lanes, and Ches.), p. 1 66. * Sir 

 Henry and Sir John Aimtvorth * are named 

 as *late vicars' in 1530 ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Mins. Accts. bdle. 136, n. 2,198, m. 6 d, 



™ Lich. Epis. Reg. xiii-xiv, fol. 664 ; 

 canon of Burscough. He was vicar in 1 5 34 ; 

 I^'alor Eccl. (Rec. Com.) v, 223, and at 

 Easter, 1537 ; Duchy Pleading! (Rec. Soc. 

 Lanes, and Ches.), ii, 126. 



''I Ibid, xiii-xiv. fol. 36^; one of the 

 Icing's chaplains. He was son of Henry, 

 the brother of Robert Ambrose, father 

 of Elizabeth Ambrose, who died in or 

 before 1572; Duchy of Lane. Pleadings, 

 14 Eliz. Ixxxv, A 4. He refused to 

 appear at the Elizabethan visitation in 

 '5 59 (Gee, Elix. Clergy), but must have 

 conformed afterwards. Buried in the 

 church I June, 1572. The proceedings 

 recording his deprivation are stated to be 

 among the York Consistory records, 



^ The patrons were T. Hopford, Ric. 

 Ambrose, and Hen. Webster. Ambrose in 

 1610 was described as 'no preacher' ; 

 Kenjrm MSS. (Hist. IVISS. Com.), p. 13. 

 An abstract of his will is printed in 

 Fishwick's Gantang (Chet. Soc), p. 158. 

 Buried in the chancel 7 Feb. 1612-3. 



^ Baines' Lanes, (ed. Croston), v, 255. 

 The Act books at Chester give the date 

 as 23 March, 1612-3, ='"<' the patrons as 

 Hugh Hesketh and John Birchall, ' by 

 grant of William carl of Derby.' William 

 Knowles was one of the king's preachers, 

 and was at Ormskirk in 1609 ; Raines 

 MSS. (Chet. Lib.), xxii, 298. He resigned 

 on 28 March, 161 5, and was buried in the 

 chancel 2 Oct. 1617. 



