Cfmrrfr Irils 0f
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THE IMPRESSION FOR SALE IS LIMITED TO FIFTY COPIES
IMPERIAL QUARTO, &• FIVE HUNDRED SUPER ROYAL OCTAVO.
No._ Super Royal Octavo.
THE
itlls nf inffolfe,
A CHRONICLE IN NINE CHAPTERS,
a ftomyhit gist of % Inscriptions on % gclls,
anb Distorical |totts.
BY
JOHN JAMES RAVEN, D.D.,
Of Emmanuel College, Cambridge:
Vicar of Frcssingfield with-Withersdale ; and Honorary Canon of
Nonoitk Cathearal ;
President of the Norwich Diocesan Association of Rin&cn ;
AUTHOR OF "CHURCH BELLS OF CAMBRIDGESHIRE," ETC., ETC.
LONDON :
JARROLD AND SONS, 3, PATERNOSTER BUILDINGS.
1890.
ry U
cc
JARROLD AND SONS,
PRINTERS,
NORWICH AND LONDON.
DEDICATED,
BY PERMISSION,
TO THE
HONOURABLE AND RIGHT REVEREND
THE
of
PREFACE.
As this, the latest contribution to English Campanology, is in one
sense the earliest, a few words seem necessary to explain the history
of a book which has been forty-two years in hand, and to account for
its impertections.
In the days of my boyhood at Mildenhall, where my father was
curate, I took great delight in the sound of the bells, and raised a
five-pound note for the repair of the gear of the fine old tenor. The
bell-hanger, one Flanders Green, an enthusiastic ringer, asked me to
read for him two of the inscriptions, of which I made a transcript in a
copy-book on August 28th, 1848, and proceeded to the investigation
of other bells In the neighbourhood. In the course of two years I had
made a considerable collection from Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire,
and South Lincolnshire. Wherever I went I carried on the work ;
but undergraduate life and residence in Dorset and Kent prevented
the county of Suffolk receiving very much attention till my college
presented me to the Mastership of Bungay Grammar School in 1859,
when I attacked at once the north-east of the county. During these
eleven years I had become acquainted with Messrs. Ellacombe, Tyssen,
Spelling, Lukis, and L'Estrange ; and our comparison of discoveries
was throwing much light on the history and interpretation of bell-
marks. I was enabled to finish and publish the Church Bells of
Cambridgeshire, after my removal to Yarmouth in 1866, and by the
kindness of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society to put forth a second
viii THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
and improved edition in 1885. Other counties seemed to pass by me
at a gallop while poor Suffolk was slowly hobbling on. Mr. Tyssen's
Sussex, Mr. Ellacombe's Devon, and Mr. L'Estrange's Norfolk were
things of the far past. Mr. Ellacombe added Somerset and Gloucester,
Mr. Dunkin Cornwall, Mr. North swept clear the wide area embraced
by Leicester, Northampton, Rutland, Lincoln, and Bedford, leaving at
his lamented death Hertford to be completed by Mr. Stahlschmidt,
who by himself gave us Surrey and Kent, and, in his turn summoned
to rest, has placed Essex within the reach of a third hand.
When my college presented me to the Vicarage of Fressingfield in
1885, the end of my labours seemed not far distant ; but it receded,
and had it not been for the energy of my good friends in other corners
of the County, I should have made but little progress.
Mr. Sperling's collection, chiefly from North-west Suffolk, communi-
cated to the East Anglian some thirty years ago, has supplied the
inscriptions from many towers ; and his letters to me about the same
time added many useful notes. Messrs. J. L. Biddell, Herbert W.
Birch, Charles Candler, E. M. Dewing, R. S. Dewing, C. H. Hawkins,
W. C. Pearson, Percy Scott, Shaw, E. J. Wells, Freeman Wright, F.
D. Young, and many others among the clergy and laity have been
helpers in various parts of the county; among whom the name of Cecil
Deedes, late Rector of Wickham S. Paul's, Essex, demands especial
mention. To him we are indebted for the bulk of the south-west
corner of our county.
Mr. Amherst D. Tyssen has kindly allowed me the use of the wood
blocks cut for his lamented father ; and a like favour has been granted
to me by the representatives of our departed friends, North and
Stahlschmidt. The Cambridge Antiquarian Society, too, has per-
mitted me to illustrate the Bury lettering, and other marks, with the
cuts made for my Church Bells of Cambridgeshire.
To Messrs. Wertheimer I am greatly obliged for the cut of the
effigy of Robert Brasyer, fig. 53.
PREFACE. IX
Mr. Tyssen has supplied the translation of the Year Book record of
the great bell Lawsuit, on pp. 40, etc.
The music of Requiem Etcrnam has been sent to me by the courtesy
_of Mr. W. J. Birkbeck.
The weights and notes of the bells are to be regarded only as
approximations, in many cases. The former are generally determined
by tradition, with a tendency to magnification. The latter vary with
notions of pitch, and the actual note is frequently between two received
semitones. When I began my work I had no ambition beyond a
registration of inscriptions, and took little account of anything else.
During the period that the work has been preparing for the press
many changes have come about through recasting. Some of these
have not been noticed ; and in other instances, additions to rings have
swelled up the list of errata.
The lists of bells cast by the various founders are not exhaustive ;
and at the last moment information keeps coming in. I may take
occasion in the East Anglian to give additional short notes from time
to time ; and perhaps to write at greater length in the Journal of the
Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and Natural History.
Had not the work possessed for me special attractions, it could not
have come forth in any form. As it now stands before me I recognize,
more fully perhaps than any one else, its errors and shortcomings. I
ask the indulgent judgment of those of my subscribers who have not
undergone a labour of the kind. From my fellow-labourers I expect
it. Those who know what the toil is will say that, with all its faults,
it is better that this contribution to the Campanology of England
should have come forth than that the heap of material collected should
remain without an attempt to reduce it to order.
J. J. RAVEN.
Frcssingfidd Vicarage, Harleston,
August 2&tJr, 1890.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
Introduction — The origin of large bells probably Oriental —
General absence of bells of the Saxon and Norman periods —
Mediaeval instructions for bell-founding — Walter of Odyngton's
—Those appended to the treatise of Gerbertus Scholasticus on
Music — Castings from wax models very rare — Existing Ante-
Conquestal towers — Scanty notices of the Norman and Early
English periods — A solitary bell from the Lynn foundry c.
1300, in Suffolk — Early Aldgate founders, from Robert Rider
to Henry Derby, and their works in Suffolk ... ... i — 12.
CHAPTER II.
Transition from Longobardic to black-letter — " William
ffoundor," shown to be William Dawe — His Suffolk bells — His
gun-founding for Dover Castle in 1385 — His will — John Dan-
yell's bells — Richard Hille's — Henry Jordan, Fishmonger and
Founder — His works at King's College, Cambridge, and at
East Bergholt — His will — Bequest remaining to this day —
His obit— His son, Dan Henry ... ... ... 13 — 32.
CHAPTER III.
Two bells probably by Thomas Bullisdon — The "moon and
stars " shield — Two bells by William Culverden — His rebus —
History of the use of the word Emmanuel — Culverden's rebus
interpreted — -His will — Westminster School — Boston Merchant
Guild — The Norwich Foundry — A nameless group — Pressing-
field tenor — The Brasyers — A Mediaeval Law-suit—Richard
Brasyer in the Court of Common Pleas — Ingenious argument of
Serjeant Genney — The large group of the Brasyers' bells— The
Burlingham group ... ... ... ... ... 33 — 63.
CHAPTER IV.
Suffolk founders — BuryS. Edmund's — A joke on S. Barbara's
name — H. S- — The Chirches — Reginald Chirche at Bishop's
Stortford — His will — Redenhall tenor the greatest remaining
work from Bury — Thomas Chirche — Roger Reve — The Seventh
at All Saints', Sudbury — Gun-founding at Bury — Waifs — A
Venlo bell at Whitton— A Mechlin bell at Bromeswell — Some
account of the Mechlin foundry — Gregory Pascal of Capel —
The Tonne family — Sproughton tenor ... ... 64 — 80.
xii TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER V.
Page
Sance and Sacring bells— Funeral uses — Angelas bell-
Curfew— Chime-barrels— Jack o' th' Clock ... 81—89.
CHAPTER VI.
The Reformation — Number of Church bells then in Suffolk
Spoliation — Restoration — Stephen Tonni of Bury, and his man
William Land — Their work at Long Melford — Death of Julian
Tonney the weaver — Bury foundry goes to Thetford — Founders
dining at Wattisfield — Thomas Draper, Mayor of Thetford—
The Brends of Norwich — Dier's bell at Clare — Topsel's at
Cratfield — Richard Bowler — The Thorington bell and a remi-
niscence of Kelt's rebellion — Aldgate gun-founding again 90 — 107.
CHAPTER VII.
John Clarke, an itinerant, in Suffolk — Joseph Carter — Peter
Hawkes — The Bury founders in the days of the Stuarts — John
Draper of Thetford — The later Brends of Norwich — "Col-
chester Graye" and his works, including the Lavenham tenor
—The siege of Colchester — Miles Graye's foundry burnt — The
Puritan rfyime — Bunyan — Milton — Compulsory ringing— John
Darbie of Ipswich ... ... ... ... 108 — 125.
CHAPTER VIII.
Dick Whittington— Call changes— Early peals— The "Twenty
all over," or "Christmas Eve"— 7,360 Oxford Treble Bob at
Bungay, in 1860 ... ... ... ... 126 — 130.
CHAPTER IX.
Later bells — Robard Gurney of Bury — Christopher Hodson
of S. Mary Cray — Miles Graye the younger — A solitary bell of
Christopher Graye's at Thrandeston — His difficulties in Cam-
bridgeshire— Is succeeded by Charles Newman, and the
foundry taken to Lynn — Thomas Newman at Bracondale and
Bury — John Stephens — Sudbury and its founders — Henry
Pleasant — Thomas Gardiner — His critic at Edvvardstone —
John Goldsmith of Redgrave — Ransomes and Sims — London
founders — Newton and Peele — Catlin — The Whitechapel men
— Phelps and his record of Dr. Sacheverell at Charsfield — His
eight at Bury S. Mary's — Lester — Pack — A failure at Beccles
— Chapman — The Mears family — Benefactions of the Suffolk
nobility and others — The Warners of Cripplegate — A ship's
bell from Stockholm at Lavenheath — John Briant of Exning
—The St. Neot's men and their successors — Joseph Eayre —
Arnold — The Taylors of Loughborough — Osborn and Dobson
of Downham Market — Birmingham founders — Blews at Lowe-
stoft — Carr at Newbourne — The Redenhall foundry — Recom-
mendation to South wold— Jubilee bells at Mildenhall —
Conclusion ... ... ... ... ... j^i — 155.
INSCRIPTIONS ... ... ... ... j^6 259.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
I — PLATES.
I. Lettering and Cross used by Richard Wymbish on Bell
at Great Bradley ... ... ... Opposite p. 10
II. Cross and Capitals on Bell at Sudbury S. Peter „ 35
III. London Marks ... ... ... „ 37
IV. Norwich Lettering ... ... ... „ 45
V. Lettering, Cross, and Stop of the Burlingham Type 60
VI. The Flight into Egypt, The Annunciation, and a
Piece of Border from a Mechlin Bell at
Bromeswell ... ... . . >« 75
VII (.i) Trefoil from Whitton. (/;) The Presentation
in the Temple, from a Mechlin Bell at
Bromeswell. Border and Medallion of S.
Michael and the Dragon, from a Mechlin
Bell at Bromeswell ... ... „ 76
VIII. " Requiem /Eternal!! " „ 86
II. — CUTS INSERTED IN THE LETTER-PRESS.
Figure page
1. Cross of John Godynge of Lynn, from Worlington ... 7
2. Early London Cross, from Barnardiston ... ... 8
3. Stop, from Barnardiston ... ... ... ... 9
4. Capital A, from Barnardiston ... ... ... 9
5. Capital G „ „ ... 9
6. Head of King Edward III., from Ampton ... ... 12
7. Initial Cross, from Ampton ... ... 12
8. The larger Laver Shield ... ... ... 13
9. The smaller Lavcr Shield ... ... ... ... 13
XJV THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Figure f"i'!
10. Seal of Sandre de Gloucetre, with laver ... 14
11. The Trefoils Shield ... ... ... ... 15
12. Larger Initial Cross, in Octagon, used by William Dawe
and others ... ... ... ... ... 15
13. Smaller ditto, ditto ... ... ... ... 16
14. 15. Smaller Crosses in Lozenges, used by William Dawe
and others ... ... ... ... ... 16
1 6. Rebus of William Dawe ... ... ... ... 16
17. Medallion from Clare ... ... 17
1 8. Octagon with six fleur-de-lys ... ... ... 18
1 9. Arms of France and England, crowned ... ... 21
20. ,, „ „ uncrowned ... ... 21
21. Mark, of a somewhat French type, used by London Founders 21
22. tlju . nurd , labi . jjdp ... ... ... ... 22
23. Cross and ring shield ... ... ... ... 23
24. Cross on Bell formerly at Wangford S. Denis ... ... 23
25,26. Henry Jordan's Shields ... ... ... 24
27. Clochard formerly at King's College, Cambridge ... 27
28. „ at East Bergholt ... ... ... 28
29. Shield of T, B., from Kesgrave and Iken ... ... 33
30. Cross sometimes used by T. B. ... ... ... 34
31. Moon and Stars Shield ... ... ... ... 35
32 — 35- Emblems of the Evangelists, from Bradfield Com-
bust and Saxmundham ... ... 35,36
36,37. Crosses sometimes found with them ... ... 36
(38 — 44. London Marks, on Plate III.)
45. Culverden's Rebus, from Stratford S. Mary and Ubbeston 37
46. Pot of Thomas Potter of Norwich, from Market Weston 42
47- Cross from Cratfield Clock-bell, in the early part of the
fifteenth century ... ... ... ... 42
48. The earlier Norwich Lion's Head ... ... ... 42
49. Fine Initial Cross, Norwich, from Fressingfield ... 43
50. Brasyer's larger Ermine Shield „ ... ... 44
51- „ Sprigged Shield „ ... ... 44
52- „ -smaller Ermine Shield „ ... ... 44
53- Effigy of Robert Brasyer, from S. Stephen's, Norwich ... 45
(54—60. The letters D, H, A, L, C, M, and N, used by the
Brasyers, on Plate IV.)
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. XV
Figitrt
61. Brasyer's Later Initial Cross • •• 46
62. „ „ Lion's Head 46
63. Shield used in Kent, with letters of the Burlingham type,
see Plate V. ... ... ... ••- 61
64. Shield of Abbot of St. Edmundsbury ... 62
65. larger Bury Shield, with Cannon ... ... 64
66. Smaller „ „ ... 64
67. Cross used at the Bury Foundry, about two-thirds real size 65
68. Stop „ „ „ „ 65
69 — 7 1 . Bury Lettering ... 65, 66
72. Venlo Trefoil, from Whitton ... ... 74
73. Large Cross of John Tonne, from Stanstead ... ... 78
74—76. Stops ., „ 79
77. Small Cross „ from Stoke-by-Clare ... 80
78. Sance-bell on Hawstead Rood-screen, from the east ... 82
79. Sance-bell Cot. from Fressingfield ... ... 83
50. Jack o' th' Clock, from South wold ... ... 89
51. Stephen Tonni's Crown and Arms| used at Bury, in the)
82. „ Fleur-de-lys [reign of Q. Elizabeth >
83. Clipped Crown and Arrows, probably used at Thetford 98
84. Fleur-de-lys, probably used at Thetford ... ... 99
85. Thomas Draper's Fleur-de-lys, from Ashbocking ... 100
86. Arms of Norwich City, used by William Brend ... 115
87. A Mark used by Miles Graye, sen., of Colchester, from
•Stradbroke ... ... ... ... ...116
88. Mark of James Bartlett of London, from Somerleyton 147
89. Old London Initial Cross, from Hadleigh ... ... 197
90. Laxfield Tower ... ... ... ... 213
91. Cross from All Saints, Sudbury ... ... 240
E RR AT A.
Read on
third "for "treble."
page 24, last line but one, " third " for "
„ 39, line II, "Noah's" for "Noah."
» 54> » 2i "second" for "fourth."
.. 54, „ II, "Earl" for " Eas'."
56, last line but one, "second " f
57, line 25, omit " Eye second."
64, „ 5, " Bromeswell " for " I
fio. o " tr<0-ilp " fnr " fhirH ."
: tenor. "
Bromenville. "
, 69> » 9, "treble " for "third."
, 78, „ 12, "possibly " for "probably."
, 86, ,, id, add "and third " to "second."
, 109, ,, 23, "tenor" for "second."
> I09. >i 31, "fifth" for "tenor."
,111, „ 26, " second " for " treble."
,112, „ 2, "Little" for "Great."
, 112, four lines from bottom, "third" for "second."
, 113, line 35, " Marlesford " for " Marlingford."
,114, •„ 4, "third " for "treble."
, 114, „ 17, Jlkttshall S. Andrew should be under 1623.
, 114, four lines from bottom, "second " for "fourth."
, 117, last line but one, "second" for "third."
, 119, line 6, "Barham" for "Parham."
123, eight lines from bottom, Ipswich, S. Mary-at-Elms, should be
under 1660.
124, line 2, omit "second."
124, „ 4, "seventh" for "fifth."
124, „ 22, "second" for "treble."
124, ,, 25, "treble" for "second," "tenor" for "fourth."
125, ,, 12, "tenor" for "fifth."
M3i » 22, "fourth" for "third."
134, „ ir, "first, fourth, and fifth" for "first three."
138, „ I, "treble "for "tenor."
'39, „ 25, "Hawkedon" for "Hawkendon."
'39, „ 3 'i "third "for "fourth."
140, „ 23, Westhorpe under 1702.
MO, „ 33, "Earl" for "East."
141, „ 12, "Mr." for "Dr."
'43, » 27. Mickfield under 1716.
'44, ,, 7, "treble and second " for " third and fourth."
144, „ 17, "second" for "bell.''
'45, >. 8, "treble, second, and third "for "fourth."
•45- i. 15, "tenor" for "second."
146, after line 2, add Syleham second, Margaret.
148, line 9, Bruisyard under 1732.
148, ,, II, Little Stonham under 1729.
148, ,, 20, the Helmingham bell went to Henley.
'5', » 7, omit "Norton and."
'51, „ 8, "work "for "works."
166, „ 8, "Greyse"for "Greyfe."
'79, „ CORNARO, LITTLE, 4 "1591 "for "1597."
183, DENNINGTON.i, "66" for "52?"
189, EYKE, 3, "65 "for "55."
205, ICKLINGHAM ALL SAINTS, i, "51" for "8."
222, OFPTON, "2, 5" for "2, 4."
, 225, PETISTREE, 6, "50" for "8."
Fig. 34, on p. 36, is on its side.
*IIs 0f
CHAPTER I.
Introduction — The origin of large bells probably Oriental —General ab-
sence of bells of the Saxon and Norman periods— Mediaeval instructions for
bell-founding— Walter of Odyngton's— Those appended to the treatise of
Gerbertus Scholasticus on Music — Castings from wax models very rare —
Existing Ante-Conquestal towers — Scanty notices of the Norman and Early
English periods — A solitary bell from the Lynn foundry c. 1300, in Suffolk —
Early Aldgate founders, from Robert Rider to Henry Derby, and their works
in Suffolk.
THE sweet voices of our Church Bells contribute to our lives
a certain inexpressible charm, yet few realize the fact that bells
have a history. They will be found to be no exception to the
general rule that on whatever matter man has worked, traces
will be sure to remain of the times, places, and methods of
workmanship. Such traces often have an important bearing on
the general history of a people, and record names of individuals
gone long ago, and events of local, or even of national impor-
tance ; so that a history of the Church Bells of any County
might be expanded without difficulty into a County history.
In dealing with those of Suffolk, it will be my endeavour to
keep Campanology and Topography abreast of each other, as
far as possible. Yet, first of all, a few words must be said about
the origin of the kind of bell which we now use, as distinguished
from those of more remote days, whether Etruscan, Roman,
Greek, Keltic, or any other.
2 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
There can be little doubt that the idea of casting bells of the
size which now hang in our towers came from the East, and
possibly reached England about the sixth century. The absence
of any traces of such things in the Roman period precludes a
much earlier date. The Roman ess thermarum, which sounded
to announce the hour for admission to the public baths, seems
to have been of a smaller size, and fabricated rather than cast.
And the mention of large bells during the Saxon period* leads
us to infer that the date of their introduction is not much later
than that which I have ventured to assign to it. But there are
no bells which may be reasonably supposed to be of this high
antiquity.
We may be sure that such bells existed. The regulation by
which the estate of a Thane was reached, necessitated the erec-
tion of a bell-tower ;-f- and it could not have remained inopera-
tive in a well-settled district.
It may be remarked in passing from this period, that at the
venerable " Old Minster," in the Rural Deanery of Southelm-
ham, assigned by tradition to S. Felix the Burgundian, there
are no signs of a tower, that there was once a round church at
Bury S. Edmund's, the foundations of which were discovered in
12744 that the church of Flixton S. Mary had a Saxon tower,
pulled down within the memory of man, and that the round
towers of Southelmham All Saints, Bungay Holy Trinity, and
others, which were apparently adapted for the reception of a
bell or bells, are Ante-Conquestal in their character.
The wildness of note in early bells led to free use of the hard
chisel and file, always fatal to quality of tone, and sometimes
even to existence. This may help to account for the absence of
any which may be safely ascribed to the Saxon and Norman
times.
Such a specimen as that at Wordwell may possibly be the
* E. g. The direction in Wulfred's Canons (A.D. 816) for the sounding of the
Signum in every church upon the death of a Bishop. See Johnson's English. Canons,
part I., p. 306.
t Churton's Early English Chunk, p. 230.
I Chronicle of John of Oxenedes (Rolls Series), p. 246.
BURY ABBEY— WALTER OF ODYNGTON. 3
original bell of the little Norman church, and scattered up and
down the county are a few of narrow make and sloping crown,
which seem old, but may have come from a local hand later on.
The county of Suffolk is sparsely supplied with specimens of
Norman work, mostly doorways, but at Bury S. Edmund's is a
grand tower, built in 1095, as a gateway to the Abbey, and
admirably adapted for a campanile, though according to Mr.
Gage Rokcwode, it did not serve that purpose till 1630.
One of the towers of the Abbey fell in 1210, and another,
certainly a campanile, in 1430. In one of the two, we may
suppose hung some of those bells of which Jocelin de Brakelond
tells us as greeting the newly-appointed Abbot, Sampson de
Tottington,* which also were among the Suffolk bells, which
rang without human help, at the great earthquake in Ely,
Norfolk and Suffolk, on the six and twentieth day of January,
in the eleventh year of King Henry Il.f
The earliest instructions for making bells, known to me, are
found in a treatise by Walter of Odyngton, a monk of Evesham,
in the time of Henry III.J
This manuscript, which through Archbishop Parker's care
escaped the destruction attending on the Dissolution of the
Monasteries, is No. 410 in his collection at Corpus Christi
College, Cambridge. Mr. Lewis considers the copy to have
been made in the fifteenth century. The chapter on bells,
headed in red ink, De symbalis faciendis, contains only eleven
lines of text, and is to the following effect (recto of f. 17) :
"Ad simbola facienda tola vis et difficultas extat in appensione cerae ex
qua formantur et primo sciendi quod quanto densius est tintinnabulum tanto
acutius sonat tenuius vero gravius. Unam appensam ceram quantamlibct
ex qua formandum primum cimbalu_*n divides in octo paries et octavam
partem addes tantas ceraj sicut integra fuit, et fiet tibi cera secundi simbali.
Et cetera facies ad eundem modum a gravioribus inchoando. Sed cave ne
* " Sonantibus campanis in choro ct extra." Cron. Joe. de Brakelonda, p. 18.
t " Eodemque anno terroemotus factus est septimo Kalendas Februarii in Ely et
Nortfolc et Sufoc, ita quod stantes prostravit, et campanas pulsavit." — Matth. Paris,
Chronica Majora, A.D. 1165.
J Summus fratris H'a'teri monachi Eveshamie musici de sptculationc musica.
4 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
forma interior argillas cui aptanda est cera alio mutetur, ne etiam aliquid de
cera appensa addat ad spiramina, proinde et ut quinta vel sexta pars
metalli sit stannum purificatum a plumbo, reliquum de cupro similiter mun-
dato propter sonoritatem. Si autem in aliquo defeceris, cum cote vel lima
potest rectificari."
He begins by saying that for making bells, the whole difficulty
consists in estimating the models from which they are formed,
and first in understanding that the thicker a bell is, the higher
is its note, and the reverse. From the use of the word " cera "
for a model, some might be inclined to infer that the bells of
that time were cast in moulds formed by wax models, but no
such instances are known to exist in England. When a bell is
to be made, a core or central block is first formed, to which is
fitted a model, or " thickness " of the bell that is to be. Outside
the model comes the cope. These models seem to have been
made at one time from wax. When complete, the outer earth,
forming a cope, was rammed tightly round them. A fire was
lighted, and the melted wax allowed to escape, the cavity being
afterwards filled by the metal from the furnace. There was an
easy way of ornamenting the outer earth, or cope, by laying on
the model extra strips of wax in the form of letters, &c., which
would leave their impression on the cope. We have lighted on
no instances of this kind in England, nor does there seem any
probability of such a discovery. Mr. Lynam, in his Church
Bells of Staffordshire (plates 3a and 3b), gives an interesting
and well-executed drawing of what appears to be an inscription
thus formed, from a bell at Fontenailles in Normandy, dated
121 1, but he tells us nothing more about it. He also mentions
similar lettering at Moissac, with the date 1273, recorded by
Viollet le Due. Our earliest inscriptions are set in separate
letters, each in its own patera ; and this would be impracticable,
save by stamping the cope itself. In castings from wax models
the cope is inaccessible. Hence we conclude that loam models
were used in England while these instructions remained in the
letter.
Walter of Odyngton then proceeds to expound the estimation
of the wax models of a ring of bells.
'£>
THE CIRE PERDU METHOD.
Starting with any given "model" for the first bell, you take
nine-eighths of it as a " model" for the second bell, and so on. If
you start from the heavier bells and work on to the lighter ones,
you must use a like method, i.e., let each " model " be eight-ninths
of the previous one. But take care lest tlte core to which the
"model" is to befitted be changed in a different proportion. Take
care also that none of your allotted "model" get itself into the
breathing holes. Then he gives directions about the metal— a
fifth or sixth part of the metal to be tin, purified from lead, and
the rest copper similarly cleansed. Lastly, contemplating the
abominable noise which would be sure to arise from these handi-
works, he says that if you fail in any point it can be set right
with a whetstone or a file, of which the former would be used
for sharpening purposes, grinding away the rim of the bell, and
the latter for flattening, filing off the inner surface of the sound-
bow.
Let us then imagine Walter of Odyngton attending to his
own instructions. He starts by allotting a certain amount of
wax for his first bell, makes his core by rule of thumb answer-
able to it, and then weighs both. By weight he gets his wax
for the other bells, on the nine-eighths system. The whole
method is so obviously empiric that there is no ground for
wonder at the necessity for burine, whetstone, hard chisel, file, or
any other tuning apparatus. Indeed, the free use of these
instruments may account for the almost total disappearance of
bells of the Saxon and Norman periods.
We are next to consider an improved method. Unfortunately
no date can be assigned to it. It is a little prose tract (c. ii.),
appended to an early poem, called Ars Musica. The poem itself
is attributed to Gerbertus Scholasticus, afterwards Pope Syl-
vester II. ; and if this be right, we are carried, as far as the poem
is concerned, beyond the Norman Conquest. But the chapter
in which we are interested belongs to a much later time. It
seems as though the unknown writer had known of Walter of
Odyngton's method, had seen that his nine-eighths made no
difference between tones and semitones, and to have thus sup-
plied a more workable plan : —
6 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Should anyone wish to regulate the sound of bells, like that of
organ pipes, he should know that thicker bells, like shorter pipes,
have a higher note. But one must be careful in the weighing of
the wax from which they are formed. He then proceeds to
designate the various bells in a ring by letters : —
The first, A,
The second, B,
The third, C,
The fourth, D,
The fifth, E,
The sixth, F, and
The eighth, G.
It is needless to say that the absence of the mention of a
seventh is very perplexing, and not at all to be accounted for by
the first and eighth being in unison. Perhaps some master of
mediaeval music can solve the mystery. I am content to record
the instruction as I find it.
B is formed from A, and C from B on Walter of Odyngton's
nine-eighths system. But to get D, which is a " semitonium "
from C, you take four-thirds of A. Then E is formed from D,
and F from E on the nine-eighths system ; but G from D (there
being a " semitonium " between G and F), by taking four-thirds.
It may be that the text requires emendation, but I am not bold
enough to touch it. The MS. is Rawlinson, c. 720, in the
Bodleian Library, and the passage, as follows, occurs on f. 13
recto and verso : —
" Sonitum tintinnabulorum si quis rationabiliter juxta modum fistularum
organicarum facere voluerit scire debet quia sicut fistulas breviores altiorem
sonum habent quam longiores, ita et unumquodque tintinnabulum quantum
superat densitate alterum tantum excellit et sono. Quod caute providendum
est in appensione cerae qua formantur. Ad primum autem quod est A littera
quali volueris pondere ceram appende, dividesque illam ipsam ceram asque
in octo partes, ac recipiat sequens, B, videlicet, ejusdem appensionis iterum
octo partes alias, addita insuper nona parte. Illasque novem partes in
unum collige dividesque in octo, recipiat tercium quod est C, eadem appen-
sione octo alias partes, addita etiam parte nona ejusdem ponderis. Tune
primi appensionem divide in tres partes, supereturque a quarto quod est D
quarta parte, hoc est semitonium. Item divides quartum in octo, supere-
A BELL FROM LYNN FOUNDRY.
turque a quinto quod est E, nona parte, dividesque similiter quintum in octo
et recipiat sextum quod est F nonam partem amplius. Quartum nichilo-
minus in tres partes aeque appensum ab octavo quod est G superetur quarta
parte, hoc est semitonium."
According to my calculation the models of the seven bells
would be in this ratio : —
A . 8
B . 9
C . 10-125
D . 106
E . 12
F 13-5
G . 14-2
Early English remains are few comparatively. Mildenhall
seems to have had a tower in this style, to judge from the
dog-tooth work buried in the buttresses of the present tower, and
Rumburgh still has the lower stage of a large square structure
with three single lights ; but the record of the bells begins much
about the time to which most of the earlier bell-chambers may
be referred ; and first we break ground with a solitary specimen
from the King's Lynn foundry.
This is the tenor at Worlington, inscribed + JOHAIHIGS ;
GODYKGG : OG = 1(611116 • 1H6 • EeCIT, with a plain
initial cross on four steps given here (fig. i). The Tallage
Roll, Lynn Bishop, 27 Edward I., mentions a Master John,
founder of bells, as paying half a mark as his share to the
County Subsidy in 1299, and as the same sum was paid in 1333,
8 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
by Thomas Belleyettir, the business probably went on in the
same place. The former is thus mentioned, " Mag'r Joh'nes
fundator Campanar' solvit die ven'is p'x ante festum Ste
Margar' in subsidiu Co'itatis dj m'rc sterl."* The latter (or his
successor, Edmundus Billeyettir) may be the person from whom
Cok, the emissary of Alan de Walsingham, purchased copper
and tin in I346.f The examination of lettering will, I think,
identify Magister Johannes Riston, at Bexwell, Norfolk, Jhoannes
de Guddine, at Wendling in the same county, and Johannes
Godynge de Lenne at Worlington, and the time points to the
Subsidy payer of 1299 as combining these designations. The
location of this one Lynn bell in Suffolk is not without signifi-
cance. The old hythe, or staithe, still exists at Worlington, and
the bell was no doubt brought by water, showing that the Lark
was navigable six hundred years ago. The neglect of the last
few years has blocked it, but I see that a company is just formed
to open the little river up again.
In preparing the Church Bells of Cambridgeshire I was picking
my way timidly under the uncertain light of lettering and marks
into the history of a little group of bells, bearing a cross (fig. 2) ;
Fig. 2.
" Quale per incertam lunam sub luce maligna
Est iter in silvis."
but in the last seven years the labours of Mr. Stahlschmidt have
shown that I was on the right lines. The cross is found in
Suffolk, on the tenor at Barnardiston, inscribed * OJimes
DGI OI^ATe PI\0 IlOBIS, with three roundlets in
* L'Estrange's Church Bells of Norfolk, p. 22.
t Church Bells of Cambridgeshire, p. 5.
LONDON FOUNDERS FROM SUFFOLK.
a vertical line by way of stop (fig. 3), and lettering closely re-
sembling that used by Robert Rider, whose will, dealing with
his real estate only, is dated 1386. His third wife's name was
Cristina, and he left her, inter alia, his claim on John and
Walter, his apprentices, for their unfinished term of apprentice-
ship. His body was to be buried in the churchyard of S.
Andrew over Cornhill (Undershaft), and he had a son. Sir John
Rider, a chaplain ; but his business cannot be traced into other
hands, though the cross appears on bells after his date, e.g., the
Q
O
Q
Fig. 3-
fine tenor in Carlisle Cathedral, which belongs to the time of
Bishop Strickland, 1400 — 1419, and the fifth and sixth at
Christchurch, Hampshire. I place this Barnardiston bell at the
head of the Londoners, as being very possibly, from the character
of the lettering, earlier than Rider's time, going back perhaps to
one of the three Suffolk founders exhumed by Mr. Stahlschmidt,
from the City Records, William de Suffolck, potter, 1276, Philip
de Ufford,* potter, 1294 — 1316, and Alan de Suffolk, potter,
1330 — 1331. I would venture to suggest that John Aleyn, who
uses the same cross, was a son of this Alan, " Johannes filius
Alani."
The accompanying A (fig. 4) is a specimen of the lettering on
the Barnardiston tenor. The G (fig. 5), of a slightly smaller
Fig. 4. Fig. 5.
* It seems probable that Ufford, near Woodbridge, is intended.
10 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
size, occurs with the Barnardiston lettering on the second bell
at Cherry Hinton, Cambridgeshire.
In the same part of the county lie the third at Assington, and
the fifth at Monks Eleigh, bearing the cross and lettering, which
is shown to have been used by Peter de Weston, 1330 — i34-8>
and William Revel, c. 1356.
An unquestionably early date may be assigned to the tenor
at Great Bradley, which bears the name of Richard de Wimbis.
This man's name first occurs in 1303, as one of a jury for
appraising the value of pledges for debt in the custody of
Nicholas Pycot, Chamberlain of the Guildhall. His delivery of
a bell, weighing 2,820 pounds, "every hundredweight thereof
containing 112 pounds," to the Priory of the Church of the
Holy Trinity in Aldgate, in 1312, has been mentioned in the
Cambridgeshire book ; but an additional fact has now come out,
that one Richard de Wymbish was Prior of the Convent from
1316 to 1325. Mr. Stahlschmidt suggests that relationship or
fellow-townmanship may account for the employment of one
Richard, when another was probably sub-prior.
Only five of his bells are known to remain, and Suffolk is
most fortunate in possessing one of them. Here and at Goring,
Oxon., he styles himself " Ricard " ; at Burham, Kent, and
Slapton, Northamptonshire, " Richard " ; at Rawreth, Essex, his
name is not given ; but at Berechurch (now re-cast), was the full
Latin " Ricardvs." The Goring third has the Norman-French
" fist," and asks prayers for Peter Quivil, Bishop of Exeter, with-
out mention of his soul, whence we may infer that the date is
earlier than 1291, when the Bishop died. Three other founders
bore the same surname, Michael de Wymbish, 1297 — 1310,
Ralph Wymbish, 1303 — 1315, and Walter Wymbish, in 1325.
This lettering is also now rare. It remains on the third at
Fairstead, Essex, and the third at S. Laurence, Norwich, both
inscribed
+ YOCO^ ; JOHAimes, the first bearing also + PGT^VS ;
ne ; wesson ; me : EGCIT, and the other + wirtenmvs
i ^eVGIi | JUG ; EGCIT, and on the third at Heckfield,
Hampshire, which bears a charming little piece of old English :
PLATE I.
I ETTERING >V CROSS rsi:i. r.v Ru-iiARii WVMKISH ON BEI.L AT GREAT BRAI.I.K
12
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
here. The former mentions Mary, the wife of Henry Derby,
whom we shall next name, and as a matter of general historical
interest, refers to a tenement purchased by him of Alice Ferrers,
the favourite of Edward III. in his last years. This woman
seems to have had considerable possessions in the city. Twenty
shillings left for poor prisoners in Newgate, and ten for those in
Ludgate, bespeak the humanity of the testator, and there are
the usual religious and charitable bequests.
The last of the Londoners of this period who appears in
Suffolk is Derby, who made the tenor at Ampton. He is men-
tioned in the Cambridgeshire book,* as the founder of the third
and fourth bells at Chippenham.
My conjecture as to his being a resident in Derby seems to
vanish in face of Mr. Stahlschmidt's evidence connecting him
with Henry Derby, ironmonger ; and though the union of trades
may seem somewhat irregular, and against guild law, there is no
more reason in rerum natura to object to a bell-founder being
called an ironmonger, if he did ironmonger's work, than to his
being called ollarius. Some of us have seen in this last quarter
of the nineteenth century an ironfounder's appliances utilised
for casting a ring of bells. Henry Derby's time seems to have
been from 1362 to 1390. The Ampton bell bears the heads of
King Edward III. (fig. 6), and an initial cross well known in
other counties (fig. 7).
Fig. 6.
Fig. 7.
Of Norfolk bells, those at New Houghton and Burnham
Deepdale, record Derby's name, and the treble at Wimbotsham
and the bell at West Lynn are presumably his.
* P. 16.
CHAPTER II.
Transition from Longobardic to black-letter — " William flbundor," shown
to be William Dawe — His Suffolk bells — His gun-founding for Dover Castle
in 1385— His will— John Danyell's bells— Richard Hille's— Henry Jordan,
Fishmonger and Founder — His works at King's College, Cambridge, and at
East Bergholt — His will — Bequest remaining to this day — His obit — His
son, Dan Henry.
SUFFOLK is remarkably rich in bells bearing those London
marks which come next in order of time, and form a connecting
link between the Longobardic and black-letter periods. There
are twenty-two of them against ten in Kent, six in Norfolk and
Lincolnshire respectively, and five in Cornwall, which are the
only counties at present known to possess more than two or
three. The principal shields (figs. 8 and 9) bear a chevron
between three lavcrs, or ewers, and they show the importance
Fig. S.
Fig. 9.
I4 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
of these common articles of domestic use. Sandre (Alexander)
of Gloucester, an ecclesiastic, before this time, used a laver in
his seal (fig. 10), and the word AYG on it has a double force,
being the part of the inscription, YGllGZr LAVGZi, which the
Fig. 10.
seal-sinker chose to exhibit. Now, to what peculiar circum-
stance are we to attribute the pre-eminence of Suffolk in this
respect ? It seems to me that there had been a succession of
Suffolk men engaged in the founder's craft in Aldgate. Close
following on William de Suffolck, already mentioned, come
John le Rous, potter, 1281, and William le Rous, potter, 1286, a
name strongly suggestive of the county. After a short interval
we have Roger le Rous, potter, 1311, and Nicholas le Rous,
potter, 1315.
A longer break intervenes, and then appear Robert Russe,
brazier, 1356 — 1397; Roger Rous, or Rose, de Bury, 1358 —
1392; and Alan Rous, potter, 1361. Peter de Blithe, potter,
1335 — I3S3, and Robert de Blithe, brazier, 1356, very likely hail
from Blythburgh,* and Philip de UrTbrd (who is called in his
will both Philip de Ufford and Philip de Rafford) is regarded by
Mr. Stahlschmidt as possibly the father of one William Rofforde,
who made the fourth bell at West Mill, Hertfordshire, using the
same lettering and cross as Henry Derby, of whom we have
lately spoken. The connection is a little strengthened by the
mention of the soul of John Rufford, and of a legatee, Mary,
the wife of Henry Derby, in the will of William Burford,
citizen of London and Belzeter, proved 1390.
* East Anglian, I., 203.
THE COMPANIONS OF THE LAVER SHIELDS. 15
After the lapse of five centuries, it is out of all reason to
expect evidence to be clear and coherent All that can be done
is to use care in putting the precious fragments together, and to
leave them to tell their tale as to the irrecoverable past.
These indications, at any rate, prepare our mind for a con-
nection between the county of Suffolk and that which was
pre-eminently the founder's parish, S. Botolph, Aldgate, and
may help to account for the large number of bells of the
" Laver " group, which we are discussing.
Besides the laver shields, larger and smaller, these bells bear
sometimes a shield with a chevron between three trefoils slipped,
the arms of Ruffbrd, Undcrhill, Fitz-Lewes, and other families,
Fig. u.
(fig. ii), two crosses, larger and smaller (figs. 12, 13), which
generally go with the larger and smaller lavers, other crosses
Fig. 12.
i6
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
(figs. 14, 1 5), and most notable of all a certain medallion (fig. 16),
bearing two birds, and the words, William ffouttfcor me fciit.
Fig. 14.
Fig. 15.
Fig. 1 6.
I will not inflict on my readers the endless variety in which
these marks occur, being convinced from careful tabulation that
no theory can be based on their aberrations. The group of
bells on which they are found is : —
WILLIAM DAWE'S SUFFOLK BELLS. 17
Barking, fourth and tenor,
Butlcy bell,
Clare, seventh,
Cornard, Great, fourth,
Elmham, South, S. Peter, the three bells,
Hawstead, treble,
Ilketshall, S. Margaret, treble and second (poor bells, the
former now split).
Ipswich, S. Stephen, treble and second,
Nedging, second,
Oakley, Great, fourth,
Peasenhall, tenor,
Petistree, fourth and fifth,
Sibton, third,
Ufford, fourth,
Westerfield, treble and second.
To these, before 1860, might have been added the Ingham
bell. On every one of this group, with one exception, occur
fig3- 8, 9, n, or 16. That exception is the Clare seventh, marked
with a handsome medallion (fig. 17) ; but this must go with the
Fig. 17.
others, as on the South Lopham fifth this mark occurs with
fig. 9, and with an octagon (fig. 18) which we find in con-
C
i8
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Fig. 1 8.
junction with fig, 12, on the Pebmarsh tenor. Mr. Stahlschmidt*
says that the trefoils never appear with the birds. The second
at South Elmham S. Peter upsets this, bearing the trefoils four
times on the shoulder, and the birds six times between the
words of the inscription. To add to our perplexity, the three
at South Elmham S. Peter, with all their variety, are nearly
certainly of one casting, and the treble, which has a band in the
place of an inscription, is nearly the counterpart of the treble
at Brent Tor, on Dartmoor, which has for its fellow another
(also almost certainly co-eval with it), bearing Longobardic
letters, and thus likely to date further back than the little
black-letter ring at South Elmham S. Peter. This is a specimen
of our difficulties in sorting out bells. On one point I am
disposed to agree with Mr. Stahlschmidt, in attributing all
that bear William Founder's name to one William Dawe, the
birds being presumably a rebus on his name. In addition
to the Southelmhamites, this mark is found at Nedging,
Great Oakley, and Uffbrd only. Certainly the mark survived
William Dawe, for it appears on the seventh at Magdalen
College, Oxford, the year of that foundation being 1456,! and on
a bell at Radcliff, Bucks, bearing indications of a still later date.
However, so far as Suffolk is concerned, I think we may stick
* Surrey Bells and London Bill-founders, p. 46.
t Bishop Waynflete may have placed a second-hand bell in Magdalen Tower.
GUNS AT DOVER. 19
to William Dawe. He is worth the trouble taken about him,
bringing us for the first time into the stream of general history.
Mr. Stahlschmidt is justly proud of having solved the mystery.
Through the kindness of Mr. Walter Rye he was allowed to
examine some deeds about East-end property belonging to the
Cornwallis family. He found two, bearing date 1392 and 1395
respectively, relating to the same premises, executed in the
presence of the same four witnesses, of whom one stands de-
scribed in the earlier deed as " William Dawe Foundr," and in
the later one, as " William Foundr." Subsequently it was
discovered that in the same ward, and at the same time, there
was another William Dawe, by trade a "white tawyer," or
dresser of white leather. This is a sufficient reason for William
Dawe persistently describing himself as William Founder.
Possibly the founder was a son of the *' white tawyer," who
appears on the Hustings Rolls for 1371.*
But how does this man, whose name has to be ferreted out
through musty parchments, and bells known to the birds, name-
sakes of William Dawe, in obscure village towers, belong to the
general history of the nation ? We must come to the year
1385, to see his services and the scanty trace of them yet
remaining. That year, though little noted in school books, was
a busy and anxious year in England. A short truce with the
French had terminated, and the advisers of the young King
Charles VI. were bent on executing a general assault on Eng-
lish territory. There was such a scare throughout the kingdom
that if the chroniclers are to be credited, Richard II. was soon
at the head of 300,000 men, the greater part of which he
reserved for the defence of the south coast. The ports must be
defended, and guns must be had for Dover. They had, as it
appears, already been mounted at Calais, under the governour,
Sir Hugh Calve'rley. " William the founder," doubtless this
William Dawe, is the man employed. In the issue rolls of the
year (ist May) is the following payment: — "To Sir Simon de
Burley, Knight, Constable of Dover Castle, for the price of 12
* Stahlschmidt's Church Bills of Kent, pp. 24, &c. ; Preface, p. xii.
2O THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
guns, 2 iron 'patella,' 120 stones for the guns, 100 Ibs. of
powder, and 4 stocks of wood purchased of William the founder,
of London and delivered to the said Simon by the hands of
William Hanney, Clerk, for fortifying and strengthening Dover
Castle, £gj IDS."* I would suggest for the consideration of
artillerists whether this does not point to an earlier date for
cast guns than that which is commonly received. Now I think
that the county of Kent contains some traces of the handiwork
of this same year. There are four bells only in that county
which bear the "birds" medallion (fig. 16), and of these two at
Downe are on the road from London to Dover ; one at Upper
Hardres is about four miles off the road, and one at Otham is
close by Maidstone.
Thus a group of Suffolk bells seems to be connected with the
foundry which caused the Frenchmen's ears to tingle with the
roar of Dover Castle ; and another group of Kent bells possibly
first sounded for service about the time when William Dawe
was completing his Dover job.
One more little glimpse, and we bid good-bye to William
Founder. Richard II. is now some years dead, poor hapless
man, and the first usurping Lancastrian is on the throne. The
business of the nation goes on much the same. There are
marryings and givings in marriage, births, deaths, probate of
wills in due course. In 1408, one John Plot, or Rouwenhale,
Citizen and Maltman, of London, dies, a widower and probably
childless. He leaves his money for divers purposes, charitable,
pious, beneficial. Among legacies for Mass of Requiem and
repair of " fowle weys," is this : — " Also my wyll ys that John
Walgrave, seruaunt of Wyllyam fondour haue of my gode iijs,
iiijd."f Although we know nothing of John Walgrave in
Suffolk, he has left his mark in other counties.
We turn to another group, dating plainly after 1413, for in
that year Henry V., not to be behindhand in the fashion,
changed the seme'e of fleur-de-lis in the French shield to three,
following the example of his rival Charles VI. This shield
* Stahlschmidt's Sumy Bells and London Founders, p. 45.
t Fifty Earliest English Wills, p. 15.
DANYELL'S SUFFOLK BELLS.
21
(figs. 19, 20), sometimes crowned and sometimes uncrowned,*
is usual on bells of this group, which consists of
Bildeston, treble,
Brockley, three bells,
Lakenheath, second and third,
Mildenhall, sixth.
Stowmarket, fourth.
Fig. 19.
Fig. to.
Before 1860 there was the old fourth at Mildenhall, from
which the present fifth was made, and the largest of the three
bells which used to stand in the north aisle of S. James's
Church, Bury St. Edmund's, formerly the clock bell there.
The readers of my Church Bells of Cambridgeshire will re-
member a mark (fig. 21) used by this founder. It occurs on
Fig. 21.
* No theory can be based on the absence of the crown.
22
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
all of the group, except at Bildeston and Stowmarket. The"
initials J D are plain enough on the Bildeston treble. There
is some difficulty about the letters on the treble at S. Botolph's,
Cambridge ; but I think that Blomefield is right in taking them
also for J D, and the pencil sketch (still remaining in the
Muniment Room of King's College) of the inscriptions on the
grand five bells which that Society unfortunately sold in
1754, records also J D on the treble, though the ink sketch
gives J 6. These seem undoubtedly to be the initials of John
Danyell, bell-founder and vintner. We only know his surname,
but J at that time is pretty sure to stand for John.* Now we
have a certain date for him, for the Bursar at King's College
paid in 1460, £3 133. 4d. to one Coke for bringing a bell of
" Danyell fonder's " from London to Cambridge. Again, the
tenor in Crowland Abbey, which is mark for mark like the
Brockley second and the Mildenhall late fourth, and inscribed,
3:t |Hult:s JUtttts Jlcsonct ffiampatta ioJjannis, is certainly later
than 1465, when it was cast in London, and apparently bore the
name of Michael, if we may give credence to the continuation
of Ingulph's chronicle. So much for his date. That he did not
confine himself to metallurgy we know from these same King's
College accounts, where it is recorded that he received 533. 4d.
Fig. 22.
* There were John Danyells in London in 1435. Stahlschmidt's Church Belli of
Kent, p. 54.
RICHARD IIILLE.
23
for half the cost of a tun (dolium) of wine. Among his marks,
though only once occurring with his royal shields in Suffolk, on
the Brockley second, is a beautiful cross bearing the words,
tlju mere: In&i fjclp round it (fig. 22), which we know to have been
used largely by Henry Jordan, or Jurden, who overlapped
Danyell, and possibly had some trade connection with him.
To keep in order of time, however, we must first take another
group, assigned by Mr. Stahlschmidt to Richard Hille.* For
this the principal mark is a shield divided by a bend, with a
cross above and a ring below (fig. 23).
Fig. 23.
The number is very limited, viz.,
Glemham, Great, fifth,
Higham, S. Mary, fifth,
Ipswich, S. Mary-at-Elms, second,
Ringshall, second,
Washbrook bell.
Fig. 24.
* Stahlschmidt's Surrey Belts and London Foundtrs, p. 35.
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
These all belong to South-east Suffolk, but there was another,
now recast, in the opposite corner of the county, the old second
at Wangford S. Denis, which bore also the cross (fig. 24), else-
where known in connection with the " ring and cross " shield.
That Richard Hille died in 1440, that his wife Joan
"resigned to Heaven's will,
carried on the business still,"
and in the end survived her second husband, Sturdy, and carried
on further business in 1459 with the town of Faversham, is to
be read in the annals of London bell-founders, to which we
have so often referred ; but the widow's works did not appar-
ently extend into our county.
We must now turn to the marks which generally accompany
the iljtt mertt laJJi help cross, already mentioned as on the Brockley
second. These are an elaborate shield divided saltireways by
two keys, with a fish above, a laver below, a garb (wheatsheaf)
on the right, and a bell on the left (fig. 25), and a shield bearing
a merchant's mark (fig. 26), which are so united, the one with
Fig. 25.
Fig. 26.
the other, and with fig. 22, that they and they alone occur on
nine of the twelve bells of this group. These bells are of a
superior character, and the marks are known in almost every
county. They are
Barnardiston, treble,
Bergholt, East, second,
MONGREL HERALDRY. 25
Boxford, second,
Bramfield, third, fourth, and fifth,
Groton, third,
Iken, treble and third,
Ipswich, S. Laurence, second,
Stradbroke, tenor, a fine bell, with a somewhat hard tone.
Wixoe bell.
North-west Suffolk, be it observed, is entirely unrepresented
in this group, and the Stradbroke tenor is the only bell in North
Suffolk. This, however, is a grand specimen, in E, weighing by
repute 21 cwt. All these are ascribed to Henry Jordan, or
Jurdeyi;, already mentioned. His overlapping Danyell in time
has been referred to, and in one instance (Wixoe) the use of
his personal shield (fig. 25) with a certain elegant octagon (fig.
18), which I have mentioned as found at Pebmarsh, Essex, in
conjunction with an earlier one (fig. 12), shows some connection
even with Dawe.
But let us look at that same personal shield, which would be
a horror to heralds, past or present, and see if it will not tell us
its story. Certainly it does seem rather a strange jumble, not
quite so excruciating as the arms of the Oddfellows, but enough
to make Rouge Dragon and Portcullis stare and gasp. Heraldic
language seems thrown away upon it, and it shall be described
in unadorned prose. A dolphin above, and S. Peter's cross-
keys seem to speak of fishery, a bell and a laver of foundry,
and a wheatsheaf of farming. The last interpretation we must
abandon. The wheatsheaf (in heraldic language, garb), turns
out to be part of the arms of the family of Harleton, from
which Henry Jordan was descended.
Now in Henry Jordan (one spelling must suffice for his name)
we have this strange union of Fishmonger and Founder. But
after all what does the strangeness amount to? I remember
two shoemakers in Blandford, Dorset, who announced them-
selves as qualified to bleed, and to extract teeth, and many
tradesmen at the present day trench on other business than
their own. Besides, have we not seen " Danyell fonder " vend-
ing half a dolium of wine to King's College, Cambridge? Let
D
26 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
us then fearlessly gaze on this hybrid tradesman of the Middle
Ages.
We have read of Richard Hille, and of his widow Joan. He
had also a daughter Joan, to whom he left the substantial sum
of two hundred marks. Far be it from me, after the lapse of
these ages, to deny to the young lady the possession of many
estimable qualities and personal charms, besides this " tocher ";
but it did not make her the less desirable in the eyes of Henry
Jordan, himself a " citizen of credit and renown," and a member
of the Fishmongers' Company, if not actually engaged in that
avocation.
The Jordans appear to have come from Loughborough, where
in All Saints' Church a battered remnant of a monumental
brass records the burial of Giles Jordan and Margaret his wife,
apparently in 1455. Henry Jordan's father and mother, as we
read in his will, were named Giles and Margaret, but in that
document he speaks of them as buried in the Church of S.
Botolph, Aldgate, directing that " ij tapers of wex " should burn
beside his own tomb and his wife's, and one should " stand upon
the middes of the stone there as the bodies of my father and
modr there lien buried ", and in like manner another, for Richard
Hille and his wife Joan, the second husband, Sturdy, being left
in darkness.
Some clever man may arise to read the riddle of this seem-
ingly double burial. On the Loughborough stone were formerly
arms, Jordan and Harleton quarterly, ar. three mullets, gu. and
sa. a chevron between three garbs ar. A mullet, by the way, is
not a fish, but a five-pointed star, and we shall come across it
again before long.
We have a very important notice of Henry Jordan at Cam-
bridge, in 1465 — 6. The visitor to King's College Chapel may
notice in dry summer weather a peculiarly arid spot occupying
some space on the lawn to the west of that noble building.
This is the site of an ancient " Clochard," or bell-house (fig. 27),
dating from the time just named. The building at the back of
it in the engraving is Clare College.
In 1466 one " Cartare " was paid for the hanging of the bells,
KING'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE.
Fig. 27.
the intention being, as it seems, that the bells should remain
there till a tower was ready for them. But King's College is an
uncompleted building, and the Clochard had to be propped up
before 1660. Eighty years more brought it to the last stage of
" calm decay," and the bells were removed to the ante-chapel,
whence in 1754 they went to another chapel, to wit, Whitechapel
bell-foundry, where Messrs. Lester and Pack boiled them down,
and none can say where the metal now gives forth its tuneful
sound.
Between the extracts made by Mr. J. Willis Clark from the
College " Mundum " book, and a drawing found among the
College archives, the largest bell of the five and possibly the
smallest (though this was more probably a remanent from older
work of our vintner friend " Danyell fonder ") may be traced
to Henry Jurden, whose heavy bill of forty pounds was paid by
the College in instalments of ten pounds. The former was a
28
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
magnificent bell, weighing 2 tons 6 cvvt. 2 qrs. 7 Ibs. — about 5
cwt. more than the noble tenor at S. Peter Mancroft, Norwich,
and thus the largest bell that East Anglia has ever seen. Alas !
that it should have perished. I have said that the Stradbroke
tenor is the largest extant work of Henry Jordan's in Suffolk.
The East Bergholt second is remarkable in its way as being one
of the tenants of a mediaeval Clochard (fig. 28) co-eval with that
Fig. 28.
which used to exist at King's, but more tenacious of life. A
very picturesque object is this antique bell-house, well-known to
all that frequent the villages which touch on the Stour valley.
Here, as at King's, the structure was only intended as a stop-
gap, for the base of a western tower may yet be seen. I think
it quite possible that the foundations on the south side of
Mildenhall Church are those of a Campanile intended for the
reception of the bells, while the present tower was building.
The dimensions are 33 feet by 21.
To revert to Henry Jordan's shields, no one as yet has read
the meaning of the device on the " banner shield" (fig. 26).
BILLITER LANE. 29
As is commonly the case, we know most of the man's history
from his will, dated October isth, 1468, with a codicil annexed,
printed in extenso in the Surrey Bells and London Bell-founders*
It is a most curious and interesting document in many respects,
giving us derivations of present local names, and insight into
the life of our forefathers. After the usual pious commendation
of his soul to his Maker he directs that his body should be
buried in " the Chapell of our lady in the Northeside of the
p'yshe Churche of Seynt Botulphes w'oute Aldgate of London
that is to say in the place where as the body of Johanne my
Wiffe there resteth burled." He had a son and as it seems an
only one, who is not mentioned in the will, cut off with less
than a shilling ; for the " Wardeyns of the Comynaltie of the
mistery or crafte of ffyshemong" of the said Citie of London,"
to wit William Turke, Robert Derlyngton, Edmond Newman,
Lawrence Ffyncham, William Hayes and John Stanesby are
his universal legatees. The will is preserved by the Fish-
mongers' Company, who still pay annually to the Founders'
Company one of Jordan's bequests, " to twenty of the poverest
people of the Crafte of Ffounders of London to ev'yche of them
eight pence (same) thirtene shillyngs and foure pence." The
lands bequeathed, with gardens, &c, are described (i) as "lien
togeder " in the lane called Billiter Llane in the p'yshe of Seynt
Katheryn Crechurche w'in Aldgate of London, and (2) as " in
the p'yshe of Seynt Brigide in Fleete Street in the subberbes of
London as they be sett and lien betwene the Tenement belong-
ing unto the ffraternytie of our blessed lady Seynt Mary the
Virgyne in the said Church of Seynt Brigide on the p'tie of the
Este and the Water of the Fleete on the p'tie of the West
wherof th' one hed abutteth upon the gardeyn of the Gaile or
Pryson of the Ffleete towards the North, and th' other heed
abutteth upon the Kyngs way of Fflete Streete towards the
South." "Billiter Llane," now Billiter Street is spelt in the
Guildhall copy of the will " Bellezeterslane," and thus we have
the derivation of a well-known place of business at the present
day. The site of Jordan's shop and dwelling-house is supposed
* Pp. 60, &c.
30 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
to be at the north-west corner of Billiter Street, fronting on
Leadenhall Street, and the foundry on the west side of Billiter
Street, on a space partially occupied by the East and West
India Dock-house.
This property still belongs to the Fishmongers' Company. It
was confiscated in the " regular way of business " by Parliament
for the Crown, in the days of young Edward VI., as being
devoted to superstitious uses, but the Wardens of that mystical
" crafte " of Fishmongers repurchased it.
The second property, lying to the North of Fleet Street
recalls three very various pictures of the past, the Fleet Prison,
the Guild of S. Mary in S. Bride's Church, with its masses and
festivities, and the Fleet Ditch. But these are not in Suffolk,
and we must not linger over them. The trusts for which the
property is left are sundry and manifold. Among them of
course stands prominently the " Obite or anniv'sarye of Placebo
and Dirige," which terms require explanation. These are the
first words in Antiphons of the office " Placebo Domino in
regione vivorum," Ps. cxiv. (Vulg. our cxvi.) 9, " I will walk
before the Lord in the land of the living," and " Dirige in con-
spectu tuo viam meam " (Ps. v. 9).
This obite is to be " with ryngyng of Bells (S. Botolph,
Aldgate, being especially mentioned) for my soule and the
soules aboverehersed openly to be named." We shall give
instances of this custom from Suffolk before long. Works of
piety (including xiijj. and ivd. for brede, ale, chese, and spices)
being thus considered, those of charity follow, of which the
bequest to the poor people of the craft of Founders, already
mentioned, may serve as a specimen. Many shivering souls
dwelling around Temple Bar had occasion to bless the memory
of the good citizen Henry Jordan, from whose will flowed a long
black stream of quarters of coals. Even the "sea coal fire,"
sitting by which Falstaff promised to make hostess Quickly a
lady, may have blazed at that moment from some bequest
analogous to Henry Jordan's.
But while all this magnificent array of works of piety and
charity was being committed to parchment, natural affection
A "NE'ER DO WELL." 31
seemed to slumber. The son, a scholar in his way, able to
plead his " benefit of clergy," a Bachelor of Arts of Oxford or
Cambridge, " Dan* Henry Jordon," a monk professed in the
house of Horley in Barkeshire, receives no mention in the will.
He must be regarded, we fear, as a " ne'er do well," but his
father remembered him in a Codicil " annexed to the Testa-
mente in Ptechemcnt undre Scale." The Wardens of the
" Comynaltie of the Mysterye of Ffyshemongers " were required
to help Dan Henry in time of his neede, at their discretion, as
often as such occasion might occur. There was reason to
anticipate that occasion might occur, and that the periods of
recurrence might not be separated by very long intervals.
To carry out this intention a brother fishmonger, Thomas
Wydm'pole, is appointed as a sub-almoner under the Wardens
of the Fishmongers' Company. Clearly Dan Henry is not to
be trusted with current coin of the realm. He is truly a monk
professed at Hurley, but all is not bliss within those sacred
walls. The Prior's discipline is likely to be too strict for Dan
Henry, or Dan Henry is likely to be too lax for the discipline.
" My coat is too short, or else I'm too tall," as the pauper said
when he found himself " decently habited " after the fashion of
the Union Workhouse. The need of Wydnvpole's appointment
is thus rehearsed in the codicil. " And for this cause that if the
Pryor and Covent of the said house of Horley for the tyme
beyng kepe hym to streightly or otherwise entrete hym than he
ought of very right and duetie to be doone to or els that they
wolle putte awey from hym his abite and living of a Monke
there whiche he hath chosen to him." It may have been a case
of corody,f complicated by misconduct. It is a sad picture, but
if we would know the past, we must take it as it stands, the
bitter with the sweet. Here we see the intelligent, successful,
benevolent citizen, whose works in more senses than one survive
to this day, who has sent his son to the University, and might
* Dan is short for Dominus, the term still applied in the Universities to Bachelors
of Arts.
t Corody, corodium, the right of nominating a person to be sustained in a
Religious House.
32 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
have looked to see him an Archdeacon or even a Bishop,
obliged to make these humiliating arrangements for the young
man, and even by anticipation blaming the Prior and Convent
of Hurley for kicking the luckless scapegrace out of their doors.
Thus we part from the story of Henry Jordan.
CHAPTER III.
Two bells probably by Thomas Bullisdon. — The "moon and stars"
shield — Two bells by William Culverden — His rebus — History of the use of
the word Emmanuel — Culverden's rebus interpreted — His will — Westmin-
ster School — Boston Merchant Guild — The Norwich Foundry — A nameless
group — Fressingfield tenor — The Brasyers — A Mediaeval Law-suit — Richard
Brasyer in the Court of Common Pleas — Ingenious argument of Serjeant
Genney — The large group of the Brasyers' bells — The Burlingham group.
A PAIR of bells now claim our attention,
Kesgrave bell,
I ken, fourth.
These bear a shield with the initials T. B. (fig. 29) well-known
Fig. 29.
In many counties, though rare in Suffolk. I found it on the
second at Cudham, Kent, in 1857. It is also known at Little
Gransden, and Rampton, Cambridgeshire, at Llandewednack,
the parish in which the Lizard is situated, at S. Mary's, Bedford,
Anstey, Hertfordshire, East Dean, Sussex, Paulerspury, North-
amptonshire, and other places — most notably of all at the
E
34 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
grand old church of S. Bartholomew-the-Great, Smithfield,
where there is a complete and melodious little ring of five
of this make, which, has happily survived the Great Fire of
London.
The best instance of all for our purpose is the fifth at Weeley
in Essex, with a prayer for the souls of William and Agnes
Brooke. There seems to be only one Agnes Brooke of this
district, to whose will a reference can be found at Somerset
House. The wills themselves are lost, but the indexes remain,
and from them it may be computed that Agnes Brooke died in
1506 or 1507. This tallies well with the Bullisdon, whom Mr.
Amherst Tyssen records as casting bells in London in 1510.*
The arms of Robert Billesdon, who was Lord Mayor of London
in 1483, are no help to us. There was a Thomas Bullisdon,
who represented the city in Parliament in 1492. T. in the
middle ages is almost sure to stand for Thomas, and very
possibly the founder of the Kesgrave bell and the Iken fourth
was Thomas Bullisdon, son of this Thomas. But we know
nothing more about him, and can tell no interesting stories as
in the case of Henry Jordan. Sometimes his bells bear the
fancy cross (fig. 30), which suggests connection with Danyell
and Jurden.
Fig. 30.
The following eleven bells : —
Boxford, seventh,
Bradfield Combust, second,
Church Bells of Sussex, p. 15.
PLATE II.
CROSS AND CAPITALS ON BELL AT SUDBURY S. PETER.
MOON AND STARS.
35
Groton, fourth,
Hadlcigh, fourth,
Levington, treble,
Saxmundham, third, fourth, and fifth,
Sudbury, S. Peter, fifth, sixth, and tenor,*
present in their location a marked exclusion of the north of the
county. They are the handiwork of a man whose usual shield
(fig. 31) bearing three mullets in chief, and a crescent in base,
Fig. 3'-
below a chevron, is found in all the named towers, save Bradfield
and Saxmundham. On the Bradfield bell and the Saxmund-
ham fifth appear the emblems of the four evangelists (figs. 32,
33> 34. 35), which appear at Impington, Cambridgeshire, and
Fig- 32- Fig. 33.
* This last is a good bell, weighing about 22 cwt.
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Fig. 34-
Fig. 35-
elsewhere in conjunction with the shield just named. The
initial crosses, of which figs. 36, 37 are examples, vary, as does
the lettering, which at Sudbury is remarkably large and forcible.
The resemblance between the shield and the arms of Sir Henry
Fig. 36.
Fig. 37-
Kebyll, citizen and grocer, Lord Mayor in 1510, leads Mr.
Stahlschmidt to assign the bells " provisionally " to one of the
Kebyll family, and he finds in the accounts of S. Stephen's,
Walbrook, for 1480, payments amounting to £$ 6s. &d. for bell-
hanging to John Kebyll, wheelwright. The arms of the Lord
Mayor of 1510 are given in Wright's Heylin without the cres-
cent, but variations in these points are very common in the
bourgeois heraldry of that time. It is more than likely that
evidence will turn up to confirm Mr. Stahlschmidt's conjecture.
These bells may be found in different parts of England, but
in no great abundance. Like North Suffolk, Norfolk is destitute
of them. I found two at Mumby, Lincolnshire, in 1855, and
PLATE III.
Fig. 41.
Fig. 42.
Fig. 40.
Fig. 43-
Fig. 44.
LONi^ON MARKS.
WILLIAM CULVERDEN.
37
Mr. North records also one at Eclworth, Bedfordshire, and one
at Norton, Hertfordshire. Four are given in my Church Bells of
Cambridgeshire, and five in Mr. Stahlschmidt's Church Bells of
Kent, but so far as we know there are none in the western
counties, and certainly there are none in the Diocese of Peter-
borough. Suffolk is as far above the average with these bells
as it is with William Dawe's. We know as yet of no mediaeval
foundry in Essex, and the Londoners having there a " happy
hunting-ground," readily crossed the Stour and did business
against Norwich, penetrating, in the case of Henry Jordan,
on one occasion quite to the north of that city. Other London
marks are given opposite (figs. 38 — 44).
The most attractive of the London foundry-shields is that of
our last ante-Reformation craftsman, William Culverden (fig.
45), a rebus which I guessed wrong. Further investigation by
Fig. 45-
Mr. Tyssen set me right His bells are very rare, so rare that
I give after the Suffolk pair,
Stratford, S. Mary, tenor,
Ubbeston, treble,
a complete list of towers containing those known to exist
Cambridgeshire, Landbeach.
Dorset, Steeple.
38 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Essex, Elsenham, Takely, Wicken Breaux.
Hertfordshire, Furneaux Pelham.
Kent, Boughton Aluph, Graveney.
Middlesex, Brentford.
Staffordshire, Kingstone.
Surrey, Chobham, Wimbledon.
A few more may perhaps turn up in the home counties and
the Midlands. The Dorset bell is at present the sole contribu-
tion of the west. He was at work only from 1510 to 1523,
which probably accounts for the paucity of his specimens. The
shield is in many ways a great curiosity, and the ingenuity of
my readers may be put to a test, as the meanings of the trefoil
and monogram at the foot are not yet clear. Round the bell,
which bears the word JFnnU (Founder), are the opening words of
Psalm xi., Jfn fttto (Eofi&o (In the Lord put I my trust), which
were often used by our forefathers as a motto, especially at the
outset of any business. Though I cannot recall the instance, I
feel sure that at the beginning of one of the MSS. of a mediaeval
Chronicle these words occur, coupled with
Jflsstf IJfrmctpto ^cmcfa ^Jlaria ^JTeo.
Now this very pentameter occurs on one of William Cul-
verden's bells, viz., that at Takely, Essex, which I therefore feel
justified in regarding as his earliest. When the Reformation
came in, this pentameter went out, but its place was taken by
the word Emmanuel, which used to be written at the head of
letters. I may be excused for enlarging on this, as it illustrates
a place otherwise obscure in Shakespeare's Henry VI. That
the fact is as I have stated is shown by a letter of Mr. William
Carnsewe to " Customer Smyth " (purchaser of metals to Queen
Elizabeth), dated 15 January, 1583, which is headed
" In te dne, in te dine
speram' nos Emanuell. In dfio Confido."*
Now for the Shakespearian illustration. The "clerk" of
Chatham is brought before Jack Cade, charged with the crime
* The Smelting of Copper in South Wales, by Col. Grant-Francis. See also "In
the Old Muniment of Wollaton Hall," Part II., New Review, December, 1889.
A REBUS GUESSED. 39
of being able to read and write and cast accompt. The enor-
mity of these charges was further enhanced by his name.
" Cade. What is thy name, sirrah ?
Clerk. Emanuel.
Cade (reflecting). They use to write it at the head of letters.
'Twill go hard with you."
Having thus treated of the use of Psalm xi. i., we turn to the
essence of the rebus, the bird with fcc (den) over it. Now those
versed in ornithology may scrutinize the feathered biped
diligently. It rather resembles the little birds in a child's
" Noah Ark," but it is meant for a culver, or pigeon, and thus
the riddle of the rebus was read.
A rebus is a picture-riddle, such as an Ash-tree on a Tun for
Ashton, a Mill on a Tun for Milton, &c. The difficulty of
producing a " den " must be the composer's excuse for not
completing his rebus.
The word " culver " for a wood-pigeon or dove is no doubt a
corruption from columba, and was apparently not extinct in the
west of England at the end of the last century. I must linger
a little over this delicious old English word. We find it in the
Blickling Homilies* not later than A.D. 971, where our Lord
addresses the Virgin Mary as " min culufre." In a Bestiary of
the thirteenth centuryf we have a lesson drawn from the nature
of the bird.
" Natura columbe et significacio
D" culuer haueth costes gode
alle we.s ogen to hauen in mode."
" The dove has habits good,
All we-them ought to have in manner."
Dan Michel in his Ayenbite of Inivyt\ (Remorse of Cons-
cience) speaks of our Lord as "that coluerhous," wherein the
mild-hearted may rest, about a century afterwards. • The rustic
glossaries know the word. They are referred to in my Church
Bells of Cambridgeshire, with the old Kentish word culverkeys
• E. E. T. s , p. 157.
t Old English Miscellany, by Dr. R. Morris, E. E. T. S., p. 25.
\ Reprint (1 888), E. E. T. S., p. 162.
II P. 43-
4O THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
for cowslips, and that it is " quite classical " (as Andrews en-
couragingly backs up a seemingly dubious word in his Latin
dictionary) will be acknowledged by all who reverence Edmund
Spenser as the poets' poet." The word occurs in the Faerie
Queene, in Sonnet 38, and in Teares of the Muses, 1. 245.
William Culverden's will is given at length in my Church Bells
of Cambridgeshire* He describes himself as " citezen and
brasier of London, and parishoner of the parishe of Sanct
Botulph without Algate of London," the old foundry parish.
He seems to have been a lone man, there being no mention of
father or mother, wife or children. The guild-brethren of the
brotherhood of Jesu within the church of S. Botolph, Aldgate,
and of the guild of our blessed lady of Boston are to be paid
up for the year, and if his assets suffice for the purpose, 33.5-. 8d.
is bequeathed to the Abbey of Westminster " where I was
brought upp in my youth."
From the special mention of the Boston guild it may be
conjectured that Culverden (like the author of this book) was
born " under the Stump." The Guild of the Blessed Mary was
the Gilda Mercatoria of Boston, and the earliest mention of it
is in 1393, when a Patent grant was issued to it. The present
Hall used by the Boston Corporation is the Hall of this Guild.
It was no small matter to belong to this Guild, considering the
"jolly pardons," which according to Foxe were renewed to it by
Pope Julius II. through Thomas Cromwell, in 1510.
The strange story of Cromwell's " gelly junkets " and their
effect on Julius II. may be read in Foxe's Acts and Monuments,
or in Pishey Thompson's History of Boston.^
Culverden's leasehold property in " Houndisdich," and his
"belmolds and implements w* all other stuffe w'in the said
house, grounde, and shedds necessarye and belonging to the
crafte or science of Belfounders or brasiers," were to be sold to
Thomas Lawrence, the lease for x marcs a year, the goods for
£120, but no arrangement could be come to, the executors
renounced the will, and letters of administration were granted
to two of them, Sir Roger Preston, clerk, and John Ryon,
* Pp. 44, &c. t Pp. 74, &c.
LOCAL WORK. 41
fruiterer. Thomas Lawrence was one of the witnesses to the
will, and another was John Tynny. I wish we had a bell of
Lawrence's in Suffolk, but though he is known at Margaretting,
Essex, and at Kingston, Cambridgeshire, his gridiron does not
appear within our borders. He died in Norwich in 1545. It is
probable that John Tynny is identical with John Tonne, about
whom a good deal has to be said hereafter.
I have now brought the Metropolitan founders whose bells
occur in Suffolk down to the time of the Reformation, when
there comes such a vast break-up of ideas and general cleavage
in English life that I purpose to turn back and again follow the
stream of time. I took King's Lynn (Bishop's Lynn, it was
more commonly called at that time of day) first, because
Suffolk has only one Lynn bell, and that a very early one.
Now, having exhausted my London list, I will return to Norfolk,
and discuss the very large company of bells from the Norwich
mediaeval foundries. After that I will come to the solitary
Suffolk centre of that time, Bury S. Edmund's, and then having
picked up some very remarkable waifs in the county, our
threads will all be joined in one loop, and we can start fair for
our post-Reformation annals.
The lion's share in Suffolk mediaeval bells is taken by the
city of Norwich, from which we have more than a hundred bells,
about two-thirds of the number in Norfolk. Outside the two
counties they are very rare. I cannot trace anything in Suffolk
to the William " Brasiere de Notyngham," admitted to the
freedom of Norwich in 1376, and mentioned in the Cambridge-
shire book*, nor to John Sutton " Belleyeter," admitted in 1404 ;
but Thomas Potter of the same year, or his successor, Richard
Baxter, may claim the Clock-bell, probably the Sance-bell, at
Cratfield,f the third at Somerleyton, the second at Ampton, and
the fifth at Market Weston. The latter cast two bells for
Mettingham College in 1416-17. The pot (fig. 46) on the
Market Weston bell seems appropriate to Potter, but the initial
• P. 13-
t This was discovered by my young friends, E. St. Lo Malet and W. W. Channel).
F
THE CHURCH BELL'S OF SUFFOLK.
cross (fig. 47), and lion's head (fig. 48), do not seem exclusively
his.
Fig. 46.
Fig. 47-
Fig. 48.
The Cratfield Clock-bell, with its dedication to the Virgin
* Stinjinis (Bgregte + ®otor (Kampana Jltarte, bears also the
words, |Jreii for ®ljE %ah ®i Militant JUegs. No will under
this name appears in the Ipswich Registry, which begins in
1444 ; and we may safely assume this bell to be of an earlier
date.
There are certain points of union between these men and the
Brasyers, but before we can touch on the latter great family a
curious little group comes across our way, which from the
locality of the bells can hardly be assigned to any place but
Norwich.
It consists of the Frostenden and Ellough trebles, and the
third at Southelmham S. James, to which might have been
added the old second at Gorleston. The maker of these bells,
whoever he was, seems to have lived about the middle of the
fifteenth century. He is only found in North-east Suffolk and
East Norfolk (Caister by Norwich, Gillingham, Lessingham,
FRESSINGFIELD TENOR.
43
Mundham, Rockland All Saints, and Wramplingham), and gives
sometimes the name of the donor, as JOHAnnes BI\OYn at
Southelmham S. James, and GDttlYHDYS «OI\mAn at Lessing-
ham. The latter seems identical with a certain Edmund Norman,
lord of Filby, who died in 1444, though his name is only con-
nected with the parish through one John Norman, a son of
Henry Norman, a villain of the manor of Lessingham, who had
a royal license to be presented to any ecclesiastical benefice,
notwithstanding his villanage, in 1435. On the Gorleston
second was a good piece of old English,
+ I AJH : OlAD = in • THG WOI^DCHGPG j OB THG :
CI^OS
This bell was also naturally dedicated to S. Nicholas, hanging
as it did in so prominent a sea-mark as Gorleston tower. Now,
to revert to the connection between Potter and Baxter on the
one part, and the Brasyers on the other, we have a connecting
link in the Fressingfield tenor, the largest " Norwicher " in the
county, though hard pressed in size by the Eye seventh. This
fine old bell bears for initial cross fig. 49, and the lion's head,
Fig. 49.
fig. 48, which seem to belong to the earlier men, but withal
the shield, fig. 50, which has a later appearance, being more
strictly heraldic than fig. 51. When earlier and later signs are
combined the later of course wins the day, and thus I dare not
44
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Fig. 50.
Fig. S1-
Fig. 52.
ascribe to my own tenor a date earlier than c. 1460, which makes
it somewhat earlier than magnificent carving on the benches, one
of the bench-ends bearing the initials a p, apparently for Alicia
de la Pole, Countess of Suffolk, widow of the beheaded Duke
William, and grand-daughter of the poet Chaucer. It seems
certain, from the evidence of the Paston Letters, that she was in
residence at Wingfield Castle at this time. But whatever may be
the exact date of the Fressingfield tenor, the connection of the
marks is obvious. The inscription is unique : •*• Scorum JWtntig-
^nngamu* Cnntica SauOt'j.
The bells of the Brasyers swarm all over the county, from
Bradwell to Stanningfield, from Icklingham to Wherstead, and
being as remarkable for beauty as for number, I am going
somewhat minutely into their history
PLATE IV.
54-
56.
Fig- 57-
55-
Fig. 58.
i^- 59- Fi.4. 60.
NORWICH LKTTKK1NU.
A MAYOR OF NORWICH.
45
The brass of Robert Brasyer, the first known of the name, is
in St. Stephen's, Norwich, and the accompanying engraving
(fig- 53) g'vcs h's effigy- The following is the inscription on
the brass, which is a double one : —
O bos onus picturaf tftag mturntcs Gcuotas »D Dtu ffuDlte priced p' (aiabj)
tiobcrli Utasijcr iftt tiuitatiis quontrn .aiDrrmam ft matons ct criHianr bi
dug. l^utbs requU cternam Ooiu t Or us. 21 nun.
S3-
He combined the business of a mercer with that of a founder ;
and his son, Richard Brasyer, is entered as a goldsmith as well
as a founder. The will of the latter was proved in 1482, by his
son, also Richard Brasyer, who died childless in 1513. Of these
men, Robert Brasyer was Mayor in 1410, Richard Brasyer the
elder in 1456 and 1463, and Richard Brasyer the younger in
1510. No one can see the lettering of the Norwich bells, of
which I give examples (figs. 54 — 60), without being struck by
its great beauty. The inscriptions are generally in hexameters
with an initial cross (fig. 61) and a lion's head (fig. 62), for stop
at the place of the rhyming word.
46
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Fig. 6 1.
Fig. 62.
A more unexpected quarter for light to arise from in the
history of a mediaeval foundry than an Appeal Case in the
House of Lords in 1881 can hardly be imagined. Yet so it has
come about, and the relations of Richard Brasyer the elder to
the town of Mildenhall in Suffolk have received illumination
from the case of Mackay v. Dick, through the black-letter lore
of Lord Blackburn.
Dick and Stevenson were engineers who invented a " steam
navvy." Mackay, a contractor, purchased it conditionally, and
alleged that it proved a failure. They for their part declared
that it had not been tried fairly according to agreement. After
divers appeals, the case came before the House of Lords, who
decided for the respondents, Dick and Stevenson. Lord Black-
burn, in delivering his opinion, quoted the case of the men of
Mildenhall against this Norwich founder, Richard Brasyer the
elder, in 1469. Let us look into the matter, as we have in
existence one Mildenhall bell, anterior to the time, and other
collateral matter.
The little town of Mildenhall had an abundant share in the
prosperity of East Anglia in the early part of the fifteenth
century, and the north-west corner parish of Suffolk was united
closely to London by the twofold Mayoralty of Sir Henry
Barton, citizen and skinner, the father of the public lighting of
the metropolis. Barton, a native of Mildenhall, or perhaps of
the adjoining village of Barton Mills, which yet contains a
beautiful specimen of domestic architecture of that time, was
MILDENHALL IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. 47
Lord Mayor in 1416 and 1430. His tomb still remains in
Mildenhall Church, as well as a Font, bearing his arms and
those of the City of London.
Great improvements appear to have taken place in Mildenhall
in these days. A market-cross was erected, as well as the fine
tower of the parish church, which was surmounted by a leaden
spire, of somewhat the same character as those at Brandon and
East Harling, making it a grand land-mark for many miles in
the open heaths and fens of the district. The bell-frame, a
great portion of which still remains, with the windlass for getting
the bells into position, is rather earlier than the tower. This
may be a surprise to some, but the fact that these frames are
bolted together by wooden pins, so long that they could not
have been driven in after the walls were built, is conclusive. It
seems to have been the usual procedure.
There were five bells, if we may judge from the construction
of the frame. Of these one remains, the original second, I
believe, dedicated to S. John the Baptist, and another, the
original treble, dedicated to S. Mary Magdalene, was recast in
1860. They have been already mentioned in the list of John
Danyell's bells, though at one time, with less complete informa-
tion than that which we now have, we were inclined to attribute
them to Richard Hille. Though they must have been large,
heavy bells, I do not think that they were remarkable for good
tone. That recast in 1 860 had a very " panny " sound, and the
ringers forty or fifty years ago had such a hatred to their old
fifth (the original second, as I think, and now the sixth) that
they tried to split it by ringing it with a rope strained round the
sound-bow. It resisted their kindly intentions, but possibly
they would have succeeded with a chain instead of a rope.
Good or bad, by 1469 not only were their makers dead, but
also the successful Henry Jurden. Another Mildenhall Lord
Mayor, Sir Thomas Gregory (1451), if living must have been
advanced in life, and the London connection was weakened.
Meanwhile the Norwichers are carrying matters with a high
hand in East Anglia, and in some way or other the great bell
of Mildenhall was broken as early as 1464, when William
Chapman of that parish bequeathed ten marks for its repair.
48 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Who shall do the work ? Norwich influence prevails, and the
men of Mildenhall make an agreement with Richard Brasyer to
bring him " le graund bell de Mildenhall," which was to be
weighed in their presence and recast " de ce faire un tenor pour
accorder in tono et sono a les auters belles de Mildenhall."
But somehow there was a failure, and they went to law.
The scene is worth dwelling upon. Danby, C. J.,* is presiding
in the Court of Common Pleas, his puisne brethren being
Choke, Lyttleton,f Moyle, and Needham. Two eminent Ser-
jeants are retained, Genney for the plaintiffs and Pigot for the
defendant. They are both well known in the Paston Letters,
where| there is a bill of costs in the case of Calle v. Huggan
with " wyne and perys," quite in the style of Solomon Pell ; and
Genney became a Judge of the King's Bench in 1481. The
men of Mildenhall and Richard Brasyer must have found their
purses lighter at the end of the performance.
The defendant is sued on his obligation. He does not deny
that the bell was brought to his house, but he says that it was
not weighed nor put into the furnace according to the inden-
ture. Thereupon Serjeant Genney says that it is not a good
plea, because defendant ought to have weighed it and put it in
the furnace. The indenture certainly, he added, did not specify
who was to weigh it, but it was clear that this was part of the
occupation of the founder, and it might be understood that he
was to carry it out. The learned Serjeant then drew a parallel
case of a tailor and his customer. Suppose a tailor is under
bond to me, on condition that if I bring to his shop three ells of
cloth it shall be cut out and he shall make me a gown, then it is
not for him to plead that the cloth was not cut out, for it is his
business to cut it out. To this Choke, Lyttleton, and Moile
agreed, Choke adding that the indenture expresses that it is to
be weighed and put in the furnace in the presence of the men of
Mildenhall, which showed that they were not to do it. Need-
ham, however, held that they could have as well weighed it as
* Appointed 1461.
t Appointed 1466. Author of the Treatise on Tenures.
\ "I., 25-
LAWYERS IN COURT. 49
the defendant could have weighed it, that part of the affair
requiring no special skill, and he also called up an imaginary
tailor, the counterpart of Serjeant Genney's.
The truer parallel, said Justice Needham, would be the
measuring and making up the cloth, not the cutting it out and
making it up, and if the bond did not specify who was to
measure it, the party to whom the bond was given ought to do
so. However, as to the casting, he agreed with the other
judges. Then uprises Serjeant Pigot for the defendant, reason-
ing on the bond somewhat in the style of the proceedings in the
well-known case of Shylock v. Antonio. A bond, says he, means
what it says. The weighing comes first, and the casting after-
wards. Brasyer could not recast the bell till it had been
weighed. The bond says that it is to be weighed in the presence
of the men of Mildenhall, and they might have made other
men weigh it. Chief Justice Danby's common sense puts all
this aside. The substance of the bond was the. casting of the
tenor, the weighing being a mere accident. It is not in accor-
dance with our ideas to find the counsel for the plaintiffs
speaking after the Chief Justice, but Genney being a Serjeant
was a brother, and he adds another case in point.
Suppose, says he, that a bond said that my son should walk
to a certain church to marry your daughter, and that instead of
walking he rode (ckavaucka) or was carried in a litter (en braces),
this accidental deviation would not forfeit the bond, the sub-
stance of it, the marriage, having been completed.*
* I regret that in my Supplemental paper on the Church Bells of Norfolk I was
misled by the published report of this case, which differs materially from that in the
Year Books, as here supplied to me through the kindness of Mr. Amherst D. Tyssen.
YEAR BOOK, EDW. IV. ANNO. IX. E T case 13.
En del sur obligac le def. pled' un endenture, s. q le
In debt on a bond the defendant pleads an Indenture according to which
grand bell de Mildenhall sjra cary al meason le defend' en Norwich,
the great bell of Mi'.denhall shall be carried to the house of the defendant in Norwich
al costes des hommes de Mildenhall x la serra wey x mis en few
at the costs of the men of Mildenhall and there shall lie weighed and put in the furnace
in pnesentia hominiim de Miliienhal, x donq3 le def. de c doit faire un
in the presence of the men of Mildenhal and then the defendant if it should make a
G
50 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Thus the Mildenhall folk won the day, but the tower long
remained tenor-less. Henry Pope, whose family had for many
years possessed the manor of " Tvvamil," now Wamill, in 1530
bequeathed £3 IDS. " towarde the makyng of the gret belle... to
be payde by the hands of... Thomas Larke whansoever the town
doo go abowght the making thereof."
tenor p accorder in (ana &* sana a les auters belles de Mildmhal, &c,, quod
tenor to agree in note and sound with the other bells of Mildenhall, etc. , that then
tune obligalio, p nullo habeatur fyc. x dit q le dit bell" ne fuit pas weye
the obligation should be deemed void, etc. , and says that the said bell was not weighed
ni mise en few accordant al endenture, xc ju('g£ si
or put in the furnace according to the indenture, etc, (prays') judgment if the
action.
action will lie.
\ Cenney. Ceo n'est plfie, car le def. duist
(Plaintiff's Counsel). That is not a (good) flea, because the defendant ought
aver wey c x mis en few, car il n'est pas mis en certein en
to have -weighed it and put it in the furnace, because it is not made certain by
1'endenture q doit weyer, donq3 il sjra entend' q cesty 4 ad le
the indenture who ought to weigh it, then it shall be understood that he who had the
conning5 de c faire, ou a i| occupation appent de c faire, doit c faire, xc. x icy
skill to do it, or whose business it is to do it ought to da it, and here
appiert q le defend, est le Brasier q duist faire le bell' issint il
it appears that the defendant is the Brasier who ought to make the bell, therefore it
appertient a son occupation de c faire, xc. come si un Tailour soit oblig^ a moy sur
appertains to his business to do it as if a tailor is bound to me on
condic " jeo port a son shoppe iii. ulnes de cloth le quel S5ra shape, x
condition that / bring to his shop 3 elles of cloth which shall be cut out, and
si le Tailour fait a moy un gown de c q adonq5 oblig£ S5ra avoid, x sir ore
if the tailor makes me a gown of it that then the bond shall be void, and
il n'est mis en certein q doit shape le cloth, x p c il S3ra
it is not rendered certain who ought to cut out the cloth, and for this reason it shall be
entend' c| le Tailour c doit faire car il ad le conning de c faire, issint icy,
held that the tailor should do it, because he had the skill to do it, therefore here
quod Choke, Littleton, cV Moile concesser, <&* Choke dit auxi, 1'endenture voiet,
which (three of the judges') agreed and Choke said also, the indenture expresses
in prasentia hominum de Mildenhal S5ra wey x mis en few, x
in the presence of the Men of M. it shall be weighed and put in the furnace, and
c S3ra entend p auters quant il voet q S3ra fait en lour presence,
that shall be held by others when it expresses that it shall be done in their presence,
x il ne poit • estre entend p nul aut forsqs p def. p que, xc.
and it cannot be understood to mean by any others than the defendant, wherefore, etc.
IT Neddam. Le pi. poet auxbien weier le bell' come poit le def.
(One of the judges'). The plaintiff can as well weigh the bell as can the defendant
THE BKASYEK SHIELDS. 51
It seems impossible to refer either to the elder Richard
Brasyer, or to his successors, Richard Brasyer the younger, and
Thomas Barker, any special bells, unless we have better evi-
dence than marks and lettering to support our classification.
No doubt the sprigged shield is less heraldic in its character
than that with an ermine feld, but the ermine shield is found
x auxi grand conning ad, donq3 qfit chose cst reherse en le condition
and had as great skill then when a thing is stated in the condition (of the toad)
d'estre fait, le quel poet auxibn estre fait p 1'un coin p Tauter, 1'un ad auxi
to be done which can as well be done by one as by the other, and the one has as
bon conning come 1'auf x n'est pas mis en certein 4 duist Z faire, cesty .1
good skill as the other, and it is not rendered certain who ought to do it, he to
q I'obligy est fait doit le faire. Come si un soit oblige a moy sur condic
whom the bond is made ought to do it. As if one is bound to me on condition
~\ si jeo port draps a luy, le q s^ra measure la, s'il fait a moy
that if I take cloth to htm which shall be measured there, and if he makes me
un gowne de c q adonq5 1'oblig^ S5ra voide, xc. icy n'est mis en certein
a gaum of it that then the bond shall be void, etc., here it is not rendered certain
q doit measure les draps, x p c q jeo say auxbien measurer come le
who ought to measure the cloth, and because I know as well how to measure as the
def. en c case il covient a moy de faire c, x issint icy, xc. mes a melt le
defendant, in that case it lies on me to do it, and therefore here, etc. tut to put the
bell' en few c nppertient al artificer per q come ad estre dit il
bell in the furnace that belongs to the workman wherefore as has been said he
duist faire c.
ought to do it,
Pigot. Un fait 53™ pris p entendmt, eins p les parolx,
(Counsel for defendant). A deed shall be taken to mean what the words say
x icy p les parolx il n'est tend9 de hire le bell' tanq3 que il soit wey, car
and here by the words he is not bound to make the bell until it is weighed because
le? parolx sont &* tune defend. fac, xc. Et auxi comt <| le fait
the words are "and then the defendant make," etc. And also in as much as the deed
voit in prtesentia hominum de M. issint puissent faire auters homes de
expresses in the presence of the men of M., therefore they may make other men
weier c en lour presence.
weigh it in their presence.
1 Danby. S'il mist tout le bell1 en few
(Chief Justice of the Common Pleas). If he put the whole bell in the furnace
sans weier 2 x ad fait un bell' disaccord' a les auters, n'ad il
without weighing it, and had made a bell out of tune with the others, would he not
p forfeite 1'oblig^ : il appiert i] le cause del fesans de 1'obligj fuist p c
ha ve forfeited the bonJ: il appears thai the cause of the making of the bond was in order
q il ferroit a eux un sufiic belle, xc. x c covient il meint, x nemy
that he should make them a sufficient tell, etc., and that lies on him now, and it is no
52 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
on the Fressingfield tenor with earlier stops, and portions of the
alphabet, which seem to belong to the infancy of inscriptions,
are found at Barsham with the sprigged shield, and at Bradwell
(tenor) with the ermine. False classification is far worse than
none. I will confine myself, therefore, to sorting out the in-
scriptions, and then deal with extraneous evidence which we
may have about special bells.
The Salutation to the Virgin occurs only on
Honington, second,
Saxham, Little, treble, and
Stanningfield, second.
Bells bearing the Salutation were used for the Angelus, as
also would be those thus inscribed : —
In ©oncla&t. Gabriel j2unc $«nge Suabe.
travers, adire q le belle fuist car? a luy a les costes d'un estrange home, x
traverse to say that the bell was brought to him at the cost of a stranger, and
nemy al costes des homes de M. xc. Car c n'est pas le substance de
not at the cost of the men of M., etc. Because that is not the substance of the
bond'.
bond.
Genney. Si jeo soy oblige deamesner mon fits a tiel lieu, x
(Plaintiff's counsel.') If I am bound to take my son to a specified place, and
4 il illonq5 alera a tiel Esglise p espouss vre file, en eel case
that he thence shall walk to a specified church to marry your daughter, in such a case
s'il espousa \r^ file la, comt q il chavaucha al Esglise, ou fuit
if he marries your daughter there, although he rode to the church, or was
port en braces, unc c ne forfeit mon oblig£ x unc 1'oblig^ voet
carried in braces,* yet that does not forfeit my bond, and yet the bond expresses
qu'il alera al Esglise, xc. mes c n'est le substance del bond' eins q
that he shall walk to the church, etc., but that is not the substance of the bond as that
il espousera vfe file, c est le substance, xc. (Case Fogassa, Com' 15 )t
he shall marry your daughter that is the substance.
IT Choke, Lyttleton, Moyle, Needham, and Danby were the judges of the Common
Pleas in 1469, Danby being chief justice. There were no judges named Genney or
Pigott, so they must be counsel, and it is clear which was on which side.
* Braces, according to Johnson's Dictionary, may mean stout leathern bands put
under a carriage on wheels — evidently to answer the purpose of springs. It may also
mean arms, or armfulls.
t The reference Case Fogassa, Com" 15, is to p. 15 of the Commentaries or reports
of Plowden, where the Mildenhall case is cited with approval, and very fully stated in
a case of Reniger v. Fogossa, argued on Feb. 8, 4 Edw. VI.
NORWICH INSCRIPTIONS. 53
(In this chamber, Gabriel, now sound sweetly), viz. : —
Bradwell, treble,
Fornham, All Saints, third,
Homersficld, tenor,
Melton, second,
Ottlcy, fourth,
Playford, treble,
Reydon bell,
Somerleyton, fifth,
Uggeshall bell, to which might have been added
Brandon, treble,
Bruisyard, tenor,
Weston, Coney, an old bell,
Herringswell, tenor ;
Also two inscribed : —
+ ji»tS«u$s Dt Cdi*. ftabfo Jlomm CSabrielisi. (I have the name
of Gabriel sent from heaven. The proper form, as occurring in
the Midlands, is Misst, not Missus'), viz. :—
Martlesham, treble,
Saxham, Little, second ;
and the old treble at Flixton, and second at Pettaugh, bearing
an inscription which belongs largely to the Western counties,
+ 4HU«u« Utto Vtt- «abriel jfttt 3Uta #a«r(e.* (Now Gabriel,
being sent, bears joyful tidings to Holy Mary) where " vero "
corresponds to " autem " in the Vulgate, S. Luke ii. 26.
Perhaps an illiterate reference to the same text may have pro-
duced the error in the previous inscription. Stonemasons at
the present day do not always deal skilfully with the Authorised
Version. We will speak of the Angelus bell under mediaeval
usages.
Other inscriptions relating to the Virgin Mary are + Celttti
^Hanna. €ua ^tolcss $00 (Ctbtt anna. (May thy offspring, Anna,
feed us with celestial manna) which is found on
Blakenham, Great, treble,
Cotton, fourth,
• The sixth at S. Giles', Norwich, bears this inscription.
54 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Cretingham, fourth,
Rishangles, fourth.
+ eirgints 0gctat£. 2Focot CCampana #laru. (I am called the
bell of the Glorious Virgin Mary) seems pretty well an exclu-
sively Norwich inscription, occurring on
Finningham, second,
Icklingham, All Saints, second,
Linstead, Great, bell,
Risby, treble,
Somerleyton, fourth,
Stonham, East, fourth, to which in former days might have
been added Saxstead tenor ; and finally,
+ 5um Jftoga ipulgata. JWunOi Jttaria Uocata. (1 am, when rung,
called Mary, the Rose of the world), on the tenors at
Covehithe,
Dalham,
Ipswich S. Laurence.
This appears to have been an epigraph peculiarly applicable
to tenors, from the local pronunciation " Roose," but it is
recorded as on the old second at Brandon.
The whole company of the Faithful we find commemorated
in a somewhat common-place hexameter : —
"*• ffitc jfit Jjanctorum. GJampana HauDc ttonorum. (This bell is
made in the praise of good saints), which is on
Charsfield, second,
Cransford, second,
Glemham, Great, treble,
Rishangles, treble, and was on
Herringswell, second.
A line of more force and more dubious theology is on the
Fressingfield tenor,
+ J»anctorum Jttcrltis. ^angamujj Cantica Uaufiiss. (Let us sound
songs of praise by the merits of the saints. It may be " to the
merits." Bold is he who dogmatises on mediaeval Latinity).
The Archangel Michael we might expect to find on bells
used as " soul-bells," answering to our " death bell," rung, how-
ever, before the latest travail of man on earth. The hexameter,
MORE NORWICH INSCRIPTIONS. 55
+ Sulcls Jjteto #tdi«. Campnna Focor #ttcl),nlts is on
Brundish, second,
Charsficld, fourth,
Hacheston, third,
Kirkley bell,
Mendlcsham, second,
Soham, Monk, third,
Spexhall bell, and formerly on
Campsey Ash, second, and
Herringflect, third.
I am much exercised as to the true meaning of this line.
Sisto is in some cases Cisto, perhaps a mistake for Cista, and
Me/is, an utterly abnormal form, may have lost a letter. Thus
the line would read Dulcis Cista Mellis Campana Vocor Michaelis.
(Box of sweet honey, I am called Michael's bell), with an allu-
sion to the shape of a bell, and what Mr. Haweis calls a " com-
bination hum." I am bound to admit that I can find no such
mediaeval use of Cista, but in the Eighth-century Epinal Glossary
the word is explained by corbes grandes, a country term for a
large basket, and not inapplicable to a hive.
The favourite saint of the Norwich founders is that turbulent
patriot martyr, Thomas a Becket. The Apostle of the same
name shrinks into insignificance in comparison with S. Thomas
of Canterbury, as may be understood by any who will examine
the dedications of Churches to S. Thomas ; and the merits of
him of Canterbury are those referred to in
+ JiofS Cfcome #lcrit(j(. .plertamur «SauDta Hud*. (May we merit
the joys of Light by the merits of Thomas !) Here follows a
round dozen of instances : —
Cotton, tenor,
Elmham, South, S. George, fourth,
Hinderclay, tenor,
Hoxne, fourth,
Ipswich, S. Laurence, fourth,
I x worth, fifth,
Melton, third,
Ottley, fifth,
0 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Sapiston, fourth,
Syleham, tenor,
Thornham, Great, tenor,
Wherstead, tenor, and formerly
Bungay, S. Mary, fifth, and
Wissett, tenor.
No one can fail to notice that this is eminently (like
pronounced Roose), an inscription for tenors, on account of the
booming sound of large bells resembling the word "Tom."
Thus we have Tom of Oxford and Tom of Lincoln, and there
is an inscription somewhere on paper, which none of us have
ever found on metal, " In Thome Laude Resono Bim Bom sine
fraude," translated " In praise of Thomas I repeat,
My Dong Ding Dong without deceit."
S. Peter, with the line,
-i- $ettu« SID Sterne. Sucat JJo* <SauDla ®ite (May Peter lead
us to the joys of Eternal Life !) claims the following list :-
Bradwell, second,
Bredfield, tenor,
Cove, South, bell,
Covehithe, fourth,
Dallinghoo, third,
Hepworth, tenor,
Mendlesham, third,
Sibton, fourth,
Soham, Earl, fourth
Soham, Monk, fourth,
Wyverstone, third.
To S. Andrew (Petrus ante Petrum), with the line + ^utgumua
SnDvca. dFamulonim jlusctpe $ota, (We pray thee, Andrew, receive
the vows of thy servants,) belong
Barningham, treble,
Bedingfield bell,
Brundish, tenor,
Friston, second,
Icklingham, All Saints, tenor,
Peasenhall, third,
DEDICATIONS TO FEMALE SAINTS. 57
Pcttaugh bell,
Soham, Earl, second,
Stonham, Earl, third,
Wenhaston, tenor, and formerly
Flixton, second, and
Herringfleet, second.
S. Margaret, the mediaeval Lucina, has the following, bearing
+ JFac i«»rgateta. J'lobi* fttt #*uima Itta. (Make, Margaret,
these offices joyful to us).
Bungay, Holy Trinity, bell,-}-
Dennington, second,
Homersfield, second,
Hoxne, fifth,
Martlesham, second
Thrandeston, second,
Ufford, second, and formerly
Herringswell, treble.
The history of S. Katherine, and her torture on the wheel,
appears to have suggested the appropriateness of dedications of
bells to her. The line,
+ Subbtmat Uignn. Qoiwntt&us Jjant l&atcrtna, (May worthy
Katherine help the givers of this bell) may be read on
Bildeston, fourth,
Cretingham, tenor,
Eye, second,
Southwold, seventh,
Stowlangtoft, third, and formerly on
Troston, second. This inscription has a philological value,
as showing the pronunciation of digna, rhyming with Katerina,
which yet survives in our condign.
The name of S. Mary Magdalen was given with the same
reference to benefactors : —
+ Dona lujicnOc iJjJta. Uogo jlligfinkna jHati.i.
It remains still on
Eye, seventh, a good bell,
* Nescio an hie versus rectius ad campanas an ad obstetrices referatur. J. J. R.
t Brought from some other church.
H.
58 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Kelsale, seventh,
Layham, bell,
Melton, tenor, and was on
Barningham, treble,
Felsham, fifth,
Fressingfield, fifth,
Troston, tenor.
S. Nicholas, as the patron Saint of sailors, we should have
expected to find near the sea. Such, however, was not the will
of the Norwich men.
+ SJunjeu flo* Cfjrigto. StuUeat .Cfiiclxjlaus In 2Uto (May Nicholas
strive to join us with Christ on high !) is on
Petistree, tenor, and
Playford, second ; and a better-known line,
+ floss JSotitt jganttts. jgcmper fitcfrolaus lit %\\it, on two hang-
ing within earshot of each other : —
Barningham, second,
Market Weston, third.
S. Edmund, especially a Patron of East Anglia, is mentioned
on
Cretingham, third,
Rishangles, tenor,
Semer, second, with an inscription,
+ JtUiitte IcDmun&i. jgtmug & ©umtne ^HunDt, which we know
as used also at the Bury foundry.
There are three inscriptions to S. John Baptist,
(a) + In Jttultts annis. jaesontt ©ampaita SoIjanntS.
(May the bell of S. John resound for many years !)
(b) + JWunm Baptlstr. ttnuHtctuS j&it Cljoru* tfste.
(May this ring be blessed, by the function of the Baptist!)
(c) Jjlot ^ttcc 13apttStt. 3al""il ^U'"1 Vulnnn ©Ijvtgte.
(May Thy wounds, O Christ, save us, by the prayer of
the Baptist !)
That the S. John mentioned in (a) is the Baptist is clear from
the addition of the word ^aptistt at Buckhorn Weston, Dorset,
and its insertion at Beddingham and Twineham, Sussex. The
old London founder Dawe commenced his inscription with the
THE LAST OF THE BRASYER INSCRIPTIONS. 59
word Ictrrnt*. Later, men weighed the transitory state of things
sublunary, and adopted the more modest Jn #lultig. If we had
not (c) to compare with (b), we might think that there was only
a reference in (b) to the baptism of bells. There probably is
such a reference. The limits of space will prevent our entering
on the subject.
(a) is on
Barnby bell,
Marlesford, treble
Ufford, tenor, and formerly on
Cransford, tenor.
(b) is on Glemham, Great, third, and the tenors at
Ilketshall, St. Margaret,
Marlesford,
Metfield.
(c) is only found on the Combs second.
S. Giles is the patron Saint of Blacksmiths. His churches
are generally in the outskirts of the town, where the smiths
would be keeping a look-out for the wants of poor way-worn
jades. His only Norwich bell, however, is in the midst of
Ipswich town, the third at S. Laurence's, bearing + j&onhua CFgiDii.
SUcenDtt «& <£ulmina Celt. (The sound of Giles rises to the
vaults of heaven.)
Two fine sentiments remain, without reference to any saint
+ jHobis Solamtn. Gelt Bet Ecus. amen. Brampton tenor.
(May God give us the solace of Heaven !) and one mixed from
Latin and English.
+ In ©c£ltb SlnD En SElo. HauUcs Bco. Southwold sixth, for-
merly, as it appears, the tenor at South Elmham All Saints, and
Rushmere S. Michael treble, where the second word is JHilct.
The variety of inscriptions on the Norwich bells is thus seen
to be very large. And from its company we may suppose the
double dedication of the old tenor at Brandon, recorded Jn
ftonorc jeanctt .plane ct jeanctt Satcrjne Viryinn to have a Norwich
origin. The casting of all Syntax to the winds is here remark-
able.
Three bells from the mediaeval Norwich foundry bear the
60 CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
names of benefactors, John Ripyng at Barnby, and John Samson
at Hinderclay, probably alive at the time of casting, and
Richard Smith, of Hoxne, deceased. That the bells were dedi-
cated to the saint whose Christian name the benefactor bore is
disproved by the second instance. That bell-dedications do
not accord with Church-dedications will be plain to any one
who will study the catalogue of inscriptions at the end of the
book.
"The Brasyers lived," says Mr. L'Estrange,* "at the north-
east corner of S. Stephen's parish, where, says Mackerell, ' now
Mr. Nuthall's Brewing office is.' The triangular plot of ground
bounded by Red Lion Street on the east and Rampant Horse
Lane and Little Orford Street on the other two sides, in King's
Map of Norwich, dated 1766, is marked ' Foundry' ; in Blome-
field's plan, 1741, it is numbered 66 ; and at p. 605 he says, 'on
the triangular Peice at Wastelgate stands a Brevvhouse, where
anciently stood (66) a Work House.' "
The well-known shield with the three bells and the ducal
coronet gave the name to this house in S. Stephen's, which
Barker in his will (1538) calls "The Three Bells." The name
was retained as late as 1670.
Further notices of the Norwich foundry, with extracts from
wills, &c., may be found in Mr. L'Estrange's well-known Church
Bells of Norfolk.
Before leaving Norwich we must treat of a group which seems
to gravitate towards this city. As in Geology, so in Campa-
nology, the circumstances of early observation determine names,
and the bells in question first receiving notice at Burlingham S.
Andrew, Norfolk, the "Burlingham" type, for want of a better,
has become the designation of a group of bells with Longobardic
or capital lettering, engraved in L'Estrange's Church Bells of
Norfolk, opposite p. 80.
There appear to be thirty-eight specimens yet remaining in
Norfolk, and fifteen in Suffolk. None are found in Cambridge-
shire, or further west and north ; and though Essex is nearly
* Church Bells of Norfolk, pp. 30, 31. He quotes from a MS. of B. Mackerell's
on S. Stephen's Parish, p. 35.
PLATE V.
<*£
LETTERING, CROSS, AND STOP OK THE BURLINGHAM TYPE.
THE " BURLINGHAM " GROUP.
6l
worked out none have been found there. But in Kent there is
a considerable group, traced by Mr. Stahlschmidt to a Canter-
bury founder, c. 1325.
Willelmus le Belyetere, of that city, however, always uses a
remarkable shield (ftg. 63) which is unknown in East Anglia ;
and in his inscriptions he never ventures beyond the Salutation
or ora pro nobis, whereas nothing can be more remarkable than
the variety and comparative scholarship of the inscriptions in
Norfolk and Suffolk.
Not that the Salutation is absent from the East Anglian
group. We have it, more or less imperfectly, on five Norfolk
bells, and on the Athelington treble and Swilland bell in Suffolk,
but perfectly on the third at Southelmham S. George. Ora pro
nobis is supplanted by some equivalent in the Suffolk specimens.
Passages from the Vulgate appear, Psalm cl. 6, Omnis Spiritus
Laudet Dominum at Sprowston in Norfolk, and Psalm xxvii. 7,
Dominus Sit Adjutor Meus on the treble at Weston, Suffolk,
and on the treble at Frettenham, Norfolk, is an apparent allu-
sion to S. John xiv. 6.
Sit Cunctis Annis Nobis Via Vita Johannis.
Knowledge of Scansion is also made manifest from the
caesural syllable on the second at Thorpe-next-Haddiscoe,
Norfolk.
62
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Ora Mente Pia Pro Nobis Virgo Maria.
The lovers of metre probably know how rare it is to find
attention paid to quantity in this class of composition.
These considerations would lead us to assign a later date for
the East Anglian group than for that round Canterbury. The
late Mr. J. R. Daniel Tyssen assigned the middle of the fifteenth
century as their probable period, which is confirmed by docu-
mentary evidence giving the dates of some Norfolk towers
containing these bells, and by the style of the fine tower of
Laxfield, wherein is one inscribed,
Divinum Aunvilium (sic) Maneat Semper Nobiscum.
But there is one shield, fig. 64, which Kent and East Anglia
Fig. 64.
alike know. Mr. Stahlschmidt is puzzled by it, but it is ascribed
to "King Edmond" in Harl. MS. 6163, quoted by himself, and
indeed is tolerably well-known in all places which were connected
with the Abbey of Bury S. Edmund's, as for instance, in the
porch of Fressingfield Church. The rarity of these bells in
West Suffolk, and the absence of the shield at Little Welnetham
and Rickinghall Inferior, the nearest points to Bury, do not
justify us in locating the foundry at that place. Moreover, that
at Newton-next-Castleacre, Norfolk, bears a well-known Nor-
wich shield (fig. 51), as well as a cross used by Austen Bracker,
which also occurs on the Sotterley second, and the Sprowston
third, Norfolk. This produces a marvellous complication which
I must confess myself unable to solve. The old second at
A WHITED SEPULCHRE. 63
Weybread, recast by Messrs. Moore, Holmes, and Mackenzie,
another of this type, and bearing the Salutation, was a mere
"whited sepulchre," very fair outside, but incredibly honey-
combed within. Per contra, Athelington and Weston are
pretty little rings " maiden," and in good tune. L'Estrange*
notes one of the recast Stuston bells, either the third or fourth,
as having been of the same type. And thus we pass from the
" Burlingham " group.
* P. So.
CHAPTER IV.
Suffolk founders— Bury S. Edmund's— A joke on S. Barbara's name —
H. S.— The Chirches— Reginald Chirche at Bishop's Stortford— His will —
Redenhall tenor the greatest remaining work from Bury— Thomas Chirche—
Roger Reve— The Seventh at All Saints', Sudbury— Gun-founding at
Bury— Waifs— A Venlo bell at Whitton— A Mechlin bell at Bromenville—
Some account of the Mechlin foundry — Gregory Pascal of Capel— The
Tonne family — Sproughton tenor.
AT last we get to an artificer working within the limits of the
county. We have already seen how that not only Suffolk men
generally, but a Bury man in particular, dwelt in the Founders'
Parish, S. Botolph without Aldgate, London ; but it is rather
late in the day when we reach St. Edmund's Bury itself.
Fig. 65. Fig. 66.
The Mediaeval Bury St. Edmund's foundry has barely a
hundred bells altogether now in existence, between fifty and
sixty in Suffolk, eighteen in Norfolk, twelve in Cambridgeshire,
two in Northamptonshire, one in Hertfordshire, and the rest (a
ST. EDMUNDSBURY.
number not as yet strictly determinable) in Essex. The shield
(fig. 64) already mentioned, though belonging to the Abbey of
St. Edmundsbury, does not appear to draw the bells which bear
it to the old Suffolk capital, and our earliest certainty is the
well-known pair (figs. 65 and 66) about which there need be no
doubt. The greatest interest which attaches to this group of
bells is in the evidence of gun-founding at Bury in the shield.
The inscriptions are not remarkable for erudition, and errors
appear to have been freely propagated. In the three East
Anglian counties the Invocation to the Trinity is incomplete,
Fig- 67.
Fig. 68.'
Fig. 70.
Hemingstone third and Wickham Market fourth bearing (£el(
toet Jttunusf +• <Sut . JXtgnat . (Crlnu*) &l . S5nu«, just like Trump-
ington fourth and Garboldisham third, and more than three-
fourths of all simply ©ra . ^ro . flobii, generally with the
These are rather under the actual size.
66 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Virgin's name. One lovely pentameter to gladden the heart of
an old schoolmaster turns up on the Monks Eleigh fifth : —
©ra . JLaurentt . JSona . ©ampana . ^act
The initial cross (fig. 67) and stop (fig. 68) are far more
elaborate than the lettering, of which specimens are given (figs.
69, 70, and 71). Another stop, not engraved, is frequently used
on smaller bells. A very plain cross is not uncommon.
Fig. 71.
One remarkable piece of jocularity has fortunately been pre-
served. S. Barbara, unnoticed by the Norwichers, has a few
Bury bells dedicated to her,
Barton Mills, treble,
Stanton All Saints, second,
Bealings, Little, old second, probably,
Stratford, S. Andrew, old tenor, certainly.
The last of these contained the " lytyll geste," such as it is, of
the bell-founder or his counsellor. Barbara, be it known to
those of my readers who have never studied Logic, is the name
of one of the Figures in that Art, as well as the name of a Saint.
These figures are arranged in two " premises," " major," and
" minor," and a conclusion. The vowels a, e, i, o are used to
show whether the statements are positive or negative, universal
or special. Thus from
Aff Irmo, and
nEgO
we have a and i positive, e and o, negative, the first of each pair
being universal, and the second special. So in the figure
A LOGIC JOKE. 67
B'Arb Ar A, both premises and the conclusion are universal and
positive ; and when »n Act in the University was being kept,
the figure was denoted by the side of the argument, thus : —
B Ar All animals can feel.
b Ar All cats are animals.
A Ergo all cats can feel.
Now some jocular genius has transferred Barbara on the old
tenor at Stratford S. Andrew* from the saint to the logical
syllogism,
+ Sancta . Bar . ttar . « . ©ra . #ro . flobi*.
There are only two dedicated to S. Edmund,
Elmswell, third,
Risby, tenor,
which is rather surprising, and some of the inscriptions, such as
+ CSirjo . ©oronata . Buc . ifloss . &b . &egna . Beata.
(Lead us, crowned Virgin, to the blessed realms), on
Rendham, third,
Stonham, Little, third,
Wilby, tenor.
+ 3>obanne» . ©fcriuti . ©ate . Sfgnare . pro . fiobit . otarr, a
dedication, rare in East Anglia, to S. John-the-Evangelist, on
Halesworth sixth, and
+ Stdl.i . jKaria . jH.nis . j&uccurre . IJiisstmn . jlobts
(Star of the sea, most holy Mary, succour us), on the seventh
at Sudbury All Saints, are better known in Wessex than in
East Anglia.
Though a large number of the East Suffolk bells from the
Bury foundry cluster round the cell of the Abbey at Monk
Soham, yet in that parish Norwich influence was the stronger.
It is a matter of great regret that we cannot find the name
belonging to the initials, H. S., of the first founder who used the
Bury shield. A good 'approximate date for his work is given
by the third bell at Isleham, Cambridgeshire, which bears the
arms of Bernard and Peyton, and a long intercessory prayer,
addressed to the angel Gabriel, for the souls of John Bernard,
who died in 1451, Thomas Peyton, who died in 1484, and their
* Fortunately preserved in a rubbing.
68 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
wives. The Registry of the Archdeaconry of Sudbury has been
searched in vain for his will. A Henry Smyth of Bury indeed
died in 1476, but his last will and testament* gives no indication
whatever of metal. He left his son Galfridus (Geoffrey) ten
shillings, and his daughter Constance ten sheep. There is a
hiatus (valde deflendus) between the end of one book (Hawke),
1482, and the beginning of the next (Pye), 1491. Probably the
missing document belongs to this period. But we must not
despair. When the archives of the Bury Corporation emerge
from their present chaos, the names of the fabricator of bells
and guns may also come forth. I will now give as complete an
alphabetical list as I can of the Bury mediaevals now existing in
Suffolk :-
Aldham, bell,
Barton Mills, treble,
tenor,
Bealings, Little, second,
Bedfield, third,
Bradfield Combust, second,
Bradfield, S. Clare, treble,
Charsfield, tenor,
Chillesford bell,
Darsham, third,
Dennington, treble,
- third,
Denston, treble,
second,
Depden, treble,
second,
Eleigh, Monks, fourth,
Elmswell, third,
Eyke, tenor,
Felsham, third,
Halesworth, fourth,
sixth,
Hemingstone, second,
* Lib. Hawke, 218 verso.
BURY BELLS. 69
Hemingstone, tenor,
Henley, fourth,
tenor,
Hinderclay, third,
Hollesley, second,
Holton, S. Mary, treble,
— tenor,
Ipswich, S. Helen, second,
S. Laurence, third,
S. Matthew, third,
Ixworth, fourth,
Lakenheath, Clock bell,
Laxfield, third,
Offton, third,
Ottley, third,
Rendham, third,
Risby,' tenor,
Shelley, third,
fourth,
Shottisham bell,
Stanton, All Saints, treble,
second,
third,
Stoke Ash, third,
• fourth,
Stonham, Little, fourth,
Sudbury, All Saints, fifth,
seventh,
Tuddenham, S. Mary, fourth,
Wattisham, second,
Weston Market, second,
Wickham Market, fourth,
Wilby, tenor.
All these bells seem to have been the work of H. S., Reignold
Chirche, Thomas Chirche, or Roger Reve. The second died in
1498, the third late in 1527 or early in 1528, and the last was
living in 1533. There are no means of classifying them, and I
70 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
have already said a good deal about the dedications. As yet
we have lighted on no documents in the county which relate to
them ; but something may be said about the operations of
Reignold Chirche in Hertfordshire, of Thomas Chirche in Nor-
folk and Cambridgeshire, and of Roger Reve in Essex.
The reputation of the elder Chirche in 1489 induced the
flourishing town of Bishop Stortford to trust them with the
recasting of their five bells, and the accounts of the Church-
wardens for that year record their costs and expenses " riding to
Bury S. Edmund's in order to make the agreement with Reginald
Chirche, ' bellfoundor," for making the said bells within the time
of the accounts this year, 4^. 8d. And paid for making the in-
denture and obligation concerning the aforesaid agreement, 22d."
We are gratified to find that no misadventure like that of the
men of Mildenhall at Norwich seems to have befallen Bishop
Stortford. " And in money paid about the carriage of the bells
aforesaid from this town to the town of Bury S. Edmund's ; and
for costs and expenses about the re-carriage of the said bells
from the town of Bury aforesaid to this town this year within
the time of the account, 52.?. And likewise in money paid to
divers men being about the trussing of the said bells in carts at
the same time and in ' trussing lyne ' bought for the aforesaid
carts, 3J. ^d." Business brings business. The Stortford men
from employing a Bury founder go on to employ a Bury smith,
who received 29^. for clappers. And, like founders of the present
day, Reginald Chirche cast the brasses for the gudgeons to work
in — at least seven out of the necessary ten, for which he received
igs. 8d. John Thurkill had 4-r. 8d. for himself and six horses
for the carriage of the bells, and the last item is for money paid
for the sanctification of the bells, i?s. ^d. After this year come
the instalments to Reginald Chirche, who seems to have turned
out a respectable ring of five. The details may be read verbatim
in Mr. Glasscock's Records of S. Michael's Parish Church,
Bishop's Stortford.
The following extracts from the will of Reignold Chirche were
given in my Church Bells of Cambridgeshire* but they deserve
rehearsal here : —
* P. 35-
REIGNOLD CHIRCHE'S WILL. 7 1
" My body to be buryed in Seynt Mary chirche, in the Ele of Seynt Pet',
vnder the marble ston thar be me leid. To the parysshe preest of the same
chirche to p'y for my soule, and to reherse my name in the bede rolle eu'y
Sunday be an hooll yeer vjs. \\\}d. Myn executors shall visite all the psones
that lye sike and bedred, gevy'g eu'y pson iiijV., or more, as they thynke
nede. My executors to kepe a sangrede and an erth tyde yeerly for my
soule, etc., in the chirche of our lady. To the new worke w'in the Monast'y
of Seynt Edm'nd, x m'rc. To the glide of the holy name of Jhu', xs. To
the glide of Corpus, xpi. y\]d. To the gilde of Seynt Petyr, xijrf. To the
gilde of the Purificac'on of our lady callyd Candelmesse gilde, xxs. To the
gilde of Seynt Margerete, iijs. \i\]d. To the gilde of the Decollac'on of
Seynt John Baptist, xxd., and a cuppe of silu' called a peace.* My iij small
ten'ntries set in Reyngate strete shall remayn to almesis housis for eu'.
Itm. I will Avery Foppys have hir dwellyng in one of the same almesse
housis duryng hir lyve. It'm. I will the seid Avery Foppe haue of my goods
quarterly, xx.fi. as longe as she levyth, after the discresson of myn execute's.
It'm. I will that Alis Power haue hir dwellyng in the hous that I bought of
hir duryng hir lyffe, and aft' hir discease I will the seid hous shalbe leten eu'
aft' to thentent that the seid almesse housis may be repared and susteyned
vp w' the fierme of the same hous for eu'. I will that Thomas Chirche my
sone do make clene the grete lectorn that I gave to Seynt Mary chirche
quart'ly as longe as he levyth."
The greatest work now in existence which came from the
Bury foundry is just outside the boundaries of our county, the
tenor at Redenhall. A few words must be said about this
magnificent bell. It must be Thomas Chirche's, bearing as it
does the Bury marks, and dating from 1514 or thereabouts,
when Thomas Bayly of Harleston willed 6s. 8d. " to the church
of Rednall to the yotyng of the gret belle." It has been terribly
mangled from chipping, at one time sharpened and at another
flattened, so that from the former process its diameter has
probably lost three-quarters of an inch. Its weight is about 24
cwt, and none that have heard it will fail to acknowledge the
grandeur of its tone. The following dimensions are on the
authority of my old friend, Captain A. P. Moore, of Wey-
bread : —
* The readers of Shakespeare's Henry V. will remember the fax which Bardolph
stole. A deal of needless ingenuity seems to have been spent on this passage. This
was a " loving-cup " for the gilde.
72 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Diameter . . . 50-5 inches.
Height to crown . . 37'5 „
„ to top of cannons . 56 „
„ inside . • 37 ..
We have notices of Thomas Chirche's operations at King's
College, Cambridge, in 1500, when he supplied the College
kitchen with sundry pots and ladles, and recast the second bell
of their five, also at S. Mary-the-Great, Cambridge, in 1514.
His will, dated July I2th, 1527, contains the following extracts,
especially interesting to Bury people : —
" My body to be buried in Seynt Mary chirche in the Ele of Seynt Petyr',
vnd' the ston ther be me layd. A priest to synge for my soule at the Awter
of Seynt Thorn's, etc., for 5 years. To the seid chirche of o'r lady oon food'
of led. To eu'y of the iiij priests that shall bere my body to chirche, xij</.
To Margaret my wyfe, my ten't joynyng to the capitall ten't late my ffadres
in the Southgate strete, su'tyme called Cobbold's. To Seynt Nicholas
Gylde holdyn in the College w'thyn the seid Town of Bury a litil stondyng
maser."*
Of Roger Reve we have but little to say. He recast the
" meane belle " (the second of three, apparently) for the parish
church of Debden, in Essex, in 1533, and gave the usual year-
and-day bond to William West, gentleman, William Byrde and
Richard Hamond, " yomen," of that parish. The amount was
£40, which may suggest that the amount forfeited by Richard
Brasyer in the matter of the Mildenhall tenor must have been
at least £60, if anything like proportion was observed on
account of the size of the bell. Reve did not guarantee his
success at the first attempt. The Debden people were to carry
the bell backwards and forwards as often as need should require,
and to take it up into the steeple and set it down again "redy to
the carte." This bond throws light on the weighing business,
about which Serjeants Genney and Pigot argued before the
judges of the Common Pleas in banco. Should the new bell
weigh more than the old, the parish is to pay to the founder at
the rate of 30*. the hundred of five score and twelve to the
* Church Bells of Cambridgeshire, pp. 36, 37.
NO EXISTING CANNON FROM BURY. 73
hundred, but if the contrary, the founder was to pay the parish
at the rate of 15*. the hundred.
Roger Reve is styled " clothear," at which by this time we
need feel no surprise. Mr. L'Estrange* suggested that the
transcriber had misread a contraction of some such word as
" clochearius," but the word is unknown, and no explanation at
all seems necessary. The bond is given in full in my Church
Bells of Cambridgeshire^ and in the East Anglian.^
The largest bell in the county from the Bury foundry is the
seventh at All Saints', Sudbury, inscribed :— + Stella . iBaria .
JKari* . &uccum . ^iisgtma . ilobi*. It is a fine bell, with a
diameter of 48 inches, and weighing a ton, more or less. The
fifth in the same tower is also from Bury, but the sixth, between
them, is a London bell, tolerably co-eval. This is rather puzz-
ling. Perhaps the London bell hung there by itself for a time,
and then was joined by its two Suffolk companions, the effort
for adding a big tenor not coming till I57&
I regret much that as in the case of Dawe, no old bronze guns
have been discovered with the Bury mark. The Woolwich
collection is certainly destitute of them. No doubt they served
their purpose, and then went to the melting pot. It can hardly
be thought incredible that the guns which riddled the galleys
and galleons of the Spanish Armada, did not number amongst
them some old campaigners which first saw the light of day at
Bury S. Edmund's, under the approving eye of H. S., one of the
Chirches, or Roger Reve.
In the church of S. Mary, Bury S. Edmund's, there used to be
a double brass, to a citizen and his wife, with bells ; the figures
had long been removed, but the incident remained. By this
time the stone has possibly disappeared, in the course of
" restoration." It is pretty sure to have commemorated one of
the artificers of whom we have been treating.
And now having dealt with the masses we must look up the
mediaeval waifs and strays within our borders, some of which
• Church Bells of Norfolk, p. 63.
t P. 37. ? II., 25-
74
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
will turn out to be of peculiar importance. A Longobardic
three first present themselves : —
Ellough, treble,
South Elmham, S. James, third,
Frostenden, treble.
The first bears the Salutation, the second records the name
of the donor : —
+ joHAnnes .: B^ovn ; me • BGCIT ; Eier^i, and
the last is inscribed,
+ CAmPAHA omnivm SAnCTOI^vm, the dedication of
the bell in this instance according with that of the church, not
an every-day occurrence. Of the same make was the old second
at Gorleston, appropriately dedicated to S. Nicholas, the patron
Saint of fishermen, and with these words on the shoulder : —
+ i Ana ; OIAD ; m ; YG WO^CHGPG = OB YG ;
cr\os.
These seem to have been the work of some itinerant founder,
roaming through East Norfolk and North-east Suffolk. There
are seven in Norfolk, at Caister-by-Norvvich, Gillingham, Les-
singham, Mundham, Rockland All Saints, and Wramplingham.
As we know nothing further about them we must leave them.
The Whitton bell, inscribed abe . maria . gratia . ano . m . cccc . ili,
is a thing quite by itself. Dates at that time of day are excep-
tional in England, and the trefoil (fig. 72) which separates the
words and lettering, as well as the general aspect of the bell, are
Continental, possibly Low Country, possibly French.
Fig. 72.
PLATE VI.
dj^/ ^^^^s^^j^i^l
^P> w,'p^^i '
\yi.f»'Jfe-«t..- iV '-JiK-'y*^^ •~:f/"-£li^. «.a \WS>«9
THE FLIGHT INTO EGYPT, THE ANNUNCIATION, AND A PIECE OF BORDER FROM
A MECHLIN BELL AT BROMESWELL.
VENLO. 75
I incline to the former theory, and from the identity of the
lettering with that on a bell at Baschurch, Salop, I feel disposed
to ascribe it to Jan Van Venloe. The Baschurch bell is inscribed
+ maria . int . fan . on* . Jjccrcn . m . tctc . tnUc . vlbtt (In the year
of our Lord 1400 and 47), with the name {an . ban . bcnlof. The
marks at Baschurch and Whitton certainly differ, the former
bearing an initial cross, with the Lion of S. Mark and the Eagle
of S. John, and only a single stop between the words. But the
lettering, the nearness of date, and the fact that the only other
recorded bell of Jan Van Venloe's (now, alas ! recast) at Vow-
church, Hertfordshire, bore the Salutation, turn the scale with
me, in the absence of other evidence. The Baschurch bell is
said to have been brought from Valle Crucis Abbey, but such
stories are not reliable. Venlo has been the seat of important
manufactures in metal for many centuries.
An enthusiastic Welshman, misreading the Baschurch inscrip-
tion, and thinking it to be in his mother tongue, rendered it into
English : —
"When cut off from life we become dead earth, the soul
departs, and proceeds through the air to Eternal Glory."*
The county is most happy in possessing one indubitable
foreigner of a high type of beauty, the smaller of the two bells
hanging in Bromeswell tower. I mounted this dangerous place
on January I3th, 1870, and certainly doubted my getting down
again alive. However, I thankfully record the preservation of
my life, and proceed to the inscription, in Flemish,
Jhesus ben ic ghegoten van Cornelis Waghevens int iaer ons
Heeren MCCCCCXXX. (Jesus am I, cast by Cornelis Waghevens
in the year of our Lord, 1530), with four medallions on the
waist, of which facsimiles are given opposite, and a bold and
deep arabesque border. There was formerly a bell smaller than
this in the tower, but it fell down, was broken and sold. The
note of this bell is C sharp, and of its companion B natural, so
that the lost bell, if in tune, was in D sharp.
The larger bell belongs to a Longobardic group, and is a
• See Morris's MS. collection in the Shrewsbury Museum.
76 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
century or two older. Flemish bells are so rare, and the later
specimens have received such high praise at the mouth of Mr.
Haweis, that it is not out of place to say that this one is more
remarkable for ornamentation than for tone.
The family of Waghevens is well known in the annals of the
city of Mechlin, and through the kindness of the Reverend
William van Caster, one of the Canons of the Cathedral, I am
able to give a list of the founders bearing that name : —
Henry, who died shortly before 1483. He was twice married,
and had issue by the first marriage a son Henry. His second
wife (Margaret van Belle) bore him two sons, Peter and George,
who carried on the paternal trade from 1483 to 1530, or there-
abouts.
Simon is supposed to have been a younger brother. His
range is from 1491 to 1516. From Medard (1524 — 1557), who
is partly conterminous with our Cornells, came a bell at
Herendal, not far from Mechlin, which bears a legend com-
parable to some of the less elegant in Suffolk : —
•+• Maria es meinen name
Mijn gheluit sij Code bequame,
Also verre me mij horen sal
Wilt God beware overal.
Medardus Waghevens goet mi te Mechelen in stede als nien
screfe.
MpcCCCXXXIII. wede.
i.e. Mary is my name,
May my sound be agreeable to God !
Also whoever shall hear me
May God preserve everywhere !
1530, the Bromeswell date, is the earliest for Cornells known
to Canon van Caster.
Jacobs earliest and latest dates are 1542 and 1554.
John, c. 1542, was possibly a cousin.
From Jacop Waghevens we have the tongueless bell in
Glasgow Cathedral called the S. Catherine bell, on which the
hours are struck, weighing about five cwt. It bears on one side
PLATE VII.
(a) TREFOIL FROM WHITTON.
(6) THE PRESENTATION IN THE TEMPLE, FROM A MECHLIN
BELL AT BROMESWELL.
BORDER AND MEDAMJON OF S. MICHAEL AND THE DRAGON, FROM A
MECHLIN BELL AT BROMESWKLL.
MECHLIN. 77
the figure of S. Catherine, and on the other the arms of Mechlin,
and is inscribed, Katherina ben ic, ghegoten van Jacop Vohag-
hevens int iaer ons Heeren, 1554, which the reader will by this
time be able to translate for himself. A bell discovered by my
friend, Mr. Justice Clarence of Colombo, Ceylon, in a bell-cot at
Nicholaston, Glamorganshire, seems to have come from the
hands of Peter or George Waghevens, or both. There is no
dedication, but it is simply inscribed : — Ic ben ghegoten int
iaer ons Heeren MCCCCCXVIII. Its tone is excellent, and it
bears two medallions. Peter Waghevens (or Waghevents) cast
an octave of bells for Louvain in 1525. There seems to have
been a later Jacop or Jacques, c. 1 590.
In 1 86 1, Mr. A. D. Tyssen examined, with his father, the
bells in Mechlin Cathedral. He found three inscribed thus : —
(1) miCHAGn vocoi\ GT BACT-A sum PGR^GGO^GIY
wAGHGYGns Anno DOI. mcccccxv,
(2) mtcsttt agrnon toagljucns gl)af mrn nccoott nucerrcfam scrccfiicn
faoott
(3) ?i?rimcu* toaghnicn me fecit anno Domini m crct Irrr.
These words are only portions of the inscriptions, and the
bells are profusely ornamented.
Mr. Tyssen thinks that another Mechlin bell is lurking about
somewhere in Middlesex.
Two bells present inscriptions in great confusion, with the
same lettering or letterings : —
Capel, S. Mary, tenor,
Levington, second.
On the former some letters are upside down, and some face
the wrong way, while others are afflicted with both these
maladies, and there are three distinct types, unknown to me or
to anyone to whom I have shown them. The general character
of the lettering is early, but when at last deciphered the inscrip-
tion brings the date down to the later days of Henry VIII.
OB YOUI\ CHG^ITG PI\AY BOR^ THG WGDBAI\G OB
G^GGOR^Y PASCAD.
Whoever the man may have been who bore this highly
ecclesiastical name, the rector of Capel, the Rev. A. Cecil
Johnson, found his name early in the register: —
78 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
" Sepultura 32 Henrici Octavi. Sepultura Gregorii Pascall
quarto die Februarii. A° p'dicto."
The Levington bell has its inscription (to the Virgin) back-
wards, but adds no further element of enigma. These I should
attribute to some local hand.
We now come to the connecting link between the ante-
Reformation and post-Reformation bells, the members of the
Tonne family. And here I must cast a doubt on much written
by me in the Church Bells of Cambridgeshire about two bells at
Wood Ditton. I read 1588 as their date, but it is more likely to
be 1544. There appear to have been two members of the house
of Tonne, probably brothers, often using the same mark, casting
*'"£• 73-
THE TONNE FAMILY.
79
bells about the same time. John is the man whose name more
frequently occurs on the whole, but we have three of Stephen's
in East Anglia, the Wood Ditton bells just mentioned, and the
fifth at Stanstead of the same date, which bears the large French
cross (fig. 73), known elsewhere as John Tonne's, together with
three other marks recognizable as used by him (figs. 74, 75, 76).
74-
75-
Fig. 76.
I am not aware that any bell of John Tonne's is dated so late as
1544. Most are undated, but in Sussex, where they are chiefly
found, we find 1522 at Sullington, and 1536 at Botolph's, and at
Stanstead Mountfitchet, Essex, I read 1540, though I may be
wrong, for the figures are very peculiar.
On the whole I think that Stephen was the son of John, and
identical with the Stephen Tonni, whose works we shall consider
in the Elizabethan period. Mr. Amherst Tyssen, who knows
more about French bells than anybody, past or present, con-
siders these specimens as decidedly French, and that the name
Tonne, or Tonni, is a corruption of Antoine, like our own Tony.*
I have already suggested that this John Tonne may be identical
with the John Tynny named in Culverden's will. He has left
us one little bell in Suffolk, the Clock-bell at Stoke-by-Clare,
inscribed, + jurge : mane : garbtre : Ceo. (Rise in the morning to
serve God), with a cross (fig. 77) and stop, well known as his.
It is a rare and good inscription, occurring only once besides,
on the third at Down, Kent, dated 1511. Here, however, neither
* The surname, however, is known in Suffolk in the previous century. We have
Johes Tony instituted rector of Icklingham in 1453-4.
SO THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
marks nor lettering are John Tonne's, and I adopt the theory of
the Kentish historian, that the bell came from some one from
whom our man learned his business. The ornamentation at
Down is of a foreign character. We must remember this
inscription, for an expansion of it will come from Stephen Tonni
in the time of Queen Elizabeth.
Fig. 77-
I should be inclined to class Sproughton tenor among the
medisevals. It has four coins, apparently the reverse of a
shilling, and some letters which may stand for I. H. I found
the third and the " ting-tang " at Great Amwell, Hertfordshire,
to be of the same character, but so far as I know the universe
contains no more of them. Thus my mediaevals have gone all
over the county. They began in the north-west, and they end
in the south-east.
CHAPTER V.
Sance and Sacring bells —Funeral uses— Angelus bell— Curfew— Chime-
barrels — Jack o" th' Clock.
THIS discussion of the bells themselves does not release us
from the middle ages. The reader must now be carried in
imagination to the usages of those distant days. We must
devote a little time to Sance and Sacring Bells, Burial uses,
the Angelus Bell, the Curfew, the use of Chime-barrels in T ren-
tals, and Jack o' tit' Clock.
First then, of the Sance bell, for which my readers have often
noticed a bell-cot standing on the gable of a church nave.
By the Constitution of Archbishop Winchelsey all that is
required of parishes, in the way of bells, is a Handbell to be
carried before the Host at the Visitation of the Sick, and Bells
with ropes, which latter seem to have been for the tower alone.
About 1367 came the Constitutions of Archbishop Sudbury,
wherein we find the first-mentioned, together with " Handbells
and Bells in Belfry, with cords to the same."
By degrees the hand-bells were partly supplanted by bells
hung in the rood-screen, of which instances remain (fig. 78) at
Hawstead, and in Norfolk at Wiggenhall S. German's and
Seaming, though for several purposes, of which we shall speak
presently, the hand-bells were still required. The bell so hung
appears to be that which is meant by a Sance, Sancts or Sanctus
bell, for we never find this word in the plural number. The
main use of it was to arrest attention at important parts of the
service, and especially at the Celebration of the Eucharist,
where it was rung at the Tcr Sanctus, just before the Canon
of the Mass.
It appears to have occurred to some mind that this use might
L
82
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
be extended for the benefit of those unable to come to church ;
and thus in the Perpendicular period of architecture arose the
practice of erecting a Sance-bell cot on the nave-gable. That
belonging to my own church at Fressingfield is (fig. 79) as good
Fig. 78.
an example as I can find, the spout for the rope still remaining
in the chancel-arch, and a groove for guiding the rope till it
would reach the hand of one standing on the floor being still
marked in the easternmost of the south arches of the nave.
The will of John Colmar of Fressingfield, dated 1495, bequeath-
ing one such bell, weighing 100 Ibs., gives an approximate date
SANCE BELL. 83
for all this work, as it would have been impossible to have
inserted the spout into the chancel-arch after it was built.
At Mildenhall, where there is an unusually fine Early English
chancel-arch, there was never a sance-bcll cot, but a turret on
the north side of the arch was erected in the Perpendicular
period for the purpose, and the mark of the rope is still plain
below.
Fig- 79-
In some cases the Sanctus bell may have been hung in the
tower, with the other bells.* The lawfulness or unlawfulness
of such things is just the kind of question to rend a nation
asunder, upset a throne, cause a frightful effusion of rage and
finally of blood, and generally to do the devil's work in the
world. There was certainly a time when they were not, so that
it is a marvel why anyone should have been seriously injured
for the want of them. And, on the other hand, they could have
by no possibility propagated error, and their only function was
that performed daily in every elementary school in the kingdom
by the teacher's little dish-bell, the calling for silence and
attention. A bell thus used at the Mass would be called a
* See Church Belts tf Cambridgeshire, p. 53.
84 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Sacring bell, whether sounded by hand or by rope ; but the
name of Sanctus bell appears to be restricted to the latter kind.
The smaller hand-bells are called Rogation Bells in some of
the Essex Inventories, and were doubtless used in the parochial
perambulations on the Rogation Days.*
The use of the Handbell prescribed in the Winchelsey Con-
stitutions was not the only one. When a funeral took place, a
handbell was rung as the procession went from the abode of
the deceased to the church. And this, which was observed at
Oxford at the death of Dr. RadclifF.t Principal of Brasenose,
in 1645, and is an everyday occurrence on the Continent, is a
practice of immemorial antiquity.
Under the Levitical Law contact with a corpse produced
ceremonial defilement.^ The Roman Law was in some points
more stringent still. The Flamen Dialis was not allowed to
hear the sound of funeral pipes, and even the statues of gods
by the roadside had their faces covered with a cloth before a
funeral passed by.|| We have it on good authority that bell-
men in black preceded Roman funerals,§ to prevent persons in
authority thus being contaminated, and the same plan was
pursued in case of those who were being led forth to crucifixion
or public scourging. Hence appears to have sprung the custom
of ringing a handbell before a funeral ; and no doubt one of
those which we find in the parish inventories of the reign of
Edward VI., was used for the purpose.
The other burial customs which we find prevalent seem to be
of later origin, the Soul bell, and bells during Thirty-days and
other commemorations, and at Earth-tides. The first requires
no treatment from me, having received such abundant illustra-
tion in the histories of Bells of other countries.
The best instance for the latter in our county will be from the
* Transactions of the Essex Archaological Society, vol. ii., part iii., New Series,
pp. 223, etc.
t N. and Q., III., 297.
t Lev. xxii. 4. Numb. xix. n.
II Festus on Aulus Gellius, Nodes Atlictz, x. 15.
§ Suidas and Gul. Budaeus, quoted by Hieronymus Magius, c. x.
TRENTALS. 85
will of John Baret of Bury S. Edmund's, who died in 1463, and
is buried in S. Mary's Church in that town. I make no apology
for inserting his epitaph, which has a noble ring in its sound,
and serves to bring the man before us. The will may be read
in full in Mr. Tymms's well-known Wills and Inventories* from
the Registers of the Commissary of Bury St. Edmund's and tlie
A rclidcaconry of Sttdbitry.
" He that will sadly behold me with his ie
John Maye see his own Mcrowr and lerne to die. Baret
Wrappid in a schete, as a full rewli wretche,
No mor of al my minde to me ward will streche,
From erthe I kam and on to earth I am brought,
This is my natur : for of erthe I was wrought,
Thus erthe on to erthe tendeth to knet,
So endeth ech creature : doeth John Baret
" Wherefore ye pepil in waye of charitie,
With your goode prayeres I pray ye help me.
For such as I am : right so shalle ye al bi
Now God on my sowle : have merci and pitie.
" Amen."
His directions are most ample. The two bellmen that went
about the town at his death were to have gowns, and to be two
of the five torch-holders, for which they were to have twopence
and their meat, the Sexton receiving twelve pence and his
bread, drink, and meat At the " yeerday," the bellmen were
to receive fourpence each for going about the town to call on
the inhabitants to pray " for my soule and for my faderis and
modrys."
The " Thirty day " (which may spring from the thirty days'
mourning for Moses and Aaron,)f is well-known for its Trental
of Masses, always of course thirty in number, but varying in
detail from time to time. Our concern with them is limited to
* Pp. 17, &c.
t Deut. xxxiv 8. Numb. xx. 29..
86 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
the use of bells. We find bellmen employed on the " Thirty
day," which seems equivalent to another well-known expres-
sion, the " Month's Mind." All the good people of Bury,
however, were not of the same opinion as John Baret. John
Coote, for instance, "will neyther ryngyn nor belman goynge,"
but his almsgivings and dinners on his Thirty-day to be " don
in secret manner."
Joan Mason, widow, of Bury, in 1510, directed the "bellemen
to go abovvte the paryssh," at her anniversary and earth-tide to
" pray and reherse the sowles " of all the persons she recited.
Another remarkable custom was the sounding by means of a
Chime-barrel the Requiem Eternam, which, as may be seen,
ranged only over five notes. John Baret, of whom we have
spoken, makes special arrangement for this music during his
Thirty-day.
" Itm I wil that the Sexteyn of Seynt Marie chirche hawe at
my yeenday xijd. so he rynge wil and fynde breed and ale to
his ffelashippe, and eche yeer what tyme my yeerday fallyth
that at twelve of the clokke at noon next be forn my dirige he
do the chymes smythe Requiem etcrnam and so to contynue
seven nyght aftir tyl the Vtas* of my yeerday be passyd and at
cue' lenton Requiem eternam and in lykvyse such day as God
disposith for me to passe I wil the seid chymes smyth forthwith
Requiem eternam and so day and nyth to cotynwe with the
same song tyl my xxx" day be past for me and for my freends
that holpe therto with any goods of here. Itm I wil geve and
beqwethe yeerly to the Sexteyn of Seynt Marie chirche viijj. to
kepe the clokke, take hede to the chymes, wynde vp the pegs
and the plummys as ofte as nede is, so that the seid chymes
fayle not to goo through the defawte of the seid sexteyn who
so be for the tyme, and yif he wil not take it vpon hym the
owner of my hefd place, the parish preest, and the Seynt Marie
preest to chese oon of the parysh such as wyl do it for the same
money, tyl such a sexteyn be in the office that wil undyrtake to
do it and to contynwe, for I wolde the sexteyn hadde it be fore
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ANGELUS BELL. 87
anothir, for his wagys be but smale, so he wil vndirtake to do it
and not fayle." And having made provision for the repair of
the chimes, he wills " the seid chymes to goo also at the avees,
at the complyn eche Satirday, Sunday and hooly day thowrgh-
out the yeer."
These chime-barrels seem to have been no novelty in the
middle of the fifteenth century.
The Angclus or Gabriel bell appears to have varied in use
from time to time. Polydore Vergil, writing from Urbino in
1499, attributes its origin to Pope John XXII. (1316 — 34), who
ordained that thrice every day at evening time bells should be
rung, and that then each should thrice recite the Angelic Salu-
tation to the Holy Virgin. He adds that the institution became
so permanent that it was in use in every nation to his day, so
that as soon as the sound of the bell was heard all forthwith
bent the knee and prayed. Another name for it was the Ave
bell, from the first word of the Salutation. In 1399 Archbishop
Arundel issued a mandate that at early dawn one Pater and
five Aves should be said. Thus arose the morning Angelus,
distinguished in Italy at the present day as Ave Maria del?
Aurora from the older Ave Maria delta Sera.
The well-known Jewish practice of the noon-tide prayer
induced a Meridian Angelus on the Continent, but it does not
seem to have come into England, though in some parts a mid-
day bell is rung. At first any bell would be used, but the
prevalence of the Salutation and of the name of Gabriel on
some bells seems to indicate that the bell so inscribed was used
for the special purpose. But that which we have treated of as
the Sance bell, may have been also used. " A gabryell, weigh-
ing 100 Ibs." is mentioned, as at Blickling, Norfolk, in the
returns of 1553, and there would hardly have been two bella
of this size in a church. Donors of such bells were desirous
of having themselves remembered in prayer. Thus John
Alcock, Bishop of Ely,* in 1490, consecrated one large bell
at Gamlingay, in Cambridgeshire, and granted forty days' indul-
* Founder of Jesus College, Cambridge.
88 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
gence to all truly penitent, who at the sound of the great bell
shall say five Paternosters and five Salut. Angel, for the good
state of the Catholic Church, for the Bishop consecrating, the
King, the Queen, and all the souls of the faithful departed this
life ; and to all who, at the sound of the little bell, shall say five
Salut. Angel, ad claus. adjunct. " God have mercy of John,
Bishop of Ely, that hallowede the alters and bells aforesaid,
either seting, standing, lyeing, or kneeling."*
Though the Curfew bell, of which there are traces before the
Norman Conquest, ceased to have legal sanction in the reign of
Henry I., there are abundant traces of it all along the years to
the present time. It served some useful purpose, and so it
survived. At Bury it saved the life of John Perfay, draper, who
was not forgetful of the incident, as appears in his will, dated
1 509. " I wole that my close which ys holdyn by copy off my
lord abbot of Bury Seynt Edmund, and ye which I purchasyd
of Thomas Russell gentylma, my lord payde the residue, I gyve
toward ye ryngers charge off the gret belle in Seynt Mary
Churche, callyd corfew belle."
The original of this bequest is thus related by Mr. Gage
Rokewodef : — " John Perfey, tenant of the manor of Fornham
All Saints, is said to have lost his way in returning from the
court to Bury, and to have recovered himself from a perilous
situation by accident, by hearing the striking of the clock or
bell at S. Mary's, Bury. This circumstance, if we are to believe
a tale not uncommon, led to his devising certain pieces of land,
which took the name of Bell Meadow, parcel of the manor of
Fornham All Saints, to the churchwardens of S. Mary's, in
order that the bell might be tolled in summer regularly at four
o'clock in the morning and nine in the evening ; and in winter
at six in the morning and eight at night."
Mr. Gage Rokewode is very likely right in thinking that one
purpose of this endowment was to excite the people to repeat
the Angelas.
Two instances known to me remain of the "Jack o' th'
* Gent. Mag., vol. Ixxiii., p. 174.
t History of If engrave, p . 1 1 .
JACK O' Til' CLOCK. 89
Clock," at Southwold (fig. 80), and at Blythburgh. I conjecture
that they date back to the earlier part of the sixteenth century.
There are many others, of a later period, up and down the
country.
tig. So.
By Shakespeare's time they were " household words," put by
him into the mouth of Richard II., who says,
" My time
Runs posting on in Bolingbroke's proud joy,
While I stand fooling here, his Jack o' th' Clock."*
In Lacroix's Les Arts du Moyen Age's (Paris, 1869), is an
account of the celebrated clock brought by one of the Dukes of
Burgundy, from Courtray to Dijon, which has two figures, a
man and a woman, who strike the hours from one to twenty-
four. The name Jacquemart has been usually given to these
figures, and a question has arisen as to the origin of the name,
which has probably given rise to "Jack o' th' Clock." One
derivation visisjacco marckiardiis, a Low-latin word for a coat .of
mail (jacqite dc maillcs). But a more probable derivation is
from a clock-maker, Jacques Marck, or Jacquemart. There was
such a man at Lille in 1422, who seems to have been a grandson
of one of the same name, living at Courtray in 1360.
* Shakespea-e's Richard //., Act v., Sc. 5. See also Coriolanus, Act. v., Sc. 2.
t Pp. 179, 180.
M
CHAPTER VI.
The Reformation — Number of Church bells then in Suffolk — Spoliation —
Restoration — Stephen Tonni of Bury, and his man William Land — Their work
at Long Melford — Death of Julian Tonney the weaver — Bury foundry goes
to Thetford — Founders dining at Wattisfield— Thomas Draper, Mayor of
Thetford— The Brends of Norwich— Dier's bell at Clare— Topsel's at Crat-
field — Richard Bowler — The Thorington bell and a reminiscence of Kelt's
rebellion — Aldgate gun-founding again.
MY last chapter will prepare the reader to expect some
account of the fate of our Church bells during the Reformation.
Under the court of Augmentation, established in 1536, in
view of the Dissolution, Commissioners were appointed for the
reception of the goods and chattels of the smaller priories.
Inventories were taken, and those for S. Olave's, Flixton,
Ipswich (Priory of the Holy Trinity), Redlingfield, Blythburgh,
Letheringham, Lcyston, Eye, Ixworth, and Campscy remain in
the Record Office.* No bells occur in any of these. There
must have been similar inventories for the larger houses after-
wards, but I know nothing about them.
Early in the reign of Edward VI. enquiries were set on foot
with respect to plate, jewels, bells, and other ornaments belong-
ing to the parish churches, which in some parts of the country,
especially in Kent, had been embezzled by the churchwardens
and others. By whom certificates were demanded from the
Suffolk churchwardens does not appear. The volume contain-
ing them is 510 of the " Miscellaneous Books" of the Augmen-
tation office, containing 179 certificates from Essex and Suffolk.
* Bundle 1393, File 136, No. I. The date of the earliest, S. Olave's, is 20 Aug.,
1536, and the Commissioners were Sir Humphrey Wingfield, Richard Southwell,
and Thomas Mildmay. William Dale was the Prior.
PLUNDER. QI
The Suffolk certificates arc dated early in November, 1547,
whereas the letter of the Privy Council to Cranmcr, charging
him to prohibit alienation, bears date the last day of April,
I548."
The labours of Mr. J. J. Muskett, by which that most useful
publication, the East Anglian, has been enriched with these
records, have been used by me ; and I desire here to return my
best thanks to him, and to another valued friend, the editor, the
Rev. C. H. Evelyn White, whom the county would gladly
welcome again.
Plate went wholesale, and that these prohibitions were needed
as to bells, is clear from the sales which had taken place at
Belstead, Chelmondiston, and Lound, while the men of Aldring-
ham made return that "all ornamets, playt, and belles belongyng
to owr cherche ar fore to sell." Robert Thurston and Edmund
ffeavyear, churchwardens of Rendham, strong in their honesty,
fear neither Commissioners nor any one else, and stoutly reply,
" For y8 ornaments and y" Bells we haue solde non as we wull
answere." "j peyer of hand bells" was sold at Darsham for
ijj. iiijrf In the great majority of instances nothing is said about
the bells. So far as one can judge from these relics of the
certificates of 1547, and the state of things in 1553, there had
been no general robbery of bells. In one parish, Ilketshall S.
Andrew, the money from the chalices went to the bells.
On March 3rd, 1553, another Commission was issued, the
Commissioners being Thomas Lord Darcye of Cheche, Thomas
Lord Wcntworth, John Jernegan, William Waldegrave, and
Thomas Cornwaleys, Knights, Owen Hopton and Christopher
Goldyngham. They did not ask for returns, but summoned the
churchwardens of each parish before them. The original sum-
mons remains in Bedingfield Church chest, and runs thus : —
"These shal be by vertue of a precepte dyrected unto me and others ffrotn
the Ryght Wurshyfull Thomas lord Wentworthe Wyllyam Walgrave John
Jernynghm and Thomas Cornwaleys Knyghtes Owen hopton and cfofer
Goldynghiii Esquyers the Kynge Maties Comyssyoners To Wyll you and
• Strype's Cranmer (E. II. S.), II., 93.
92 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
neverthelesse in the Kynge Maties name straightely to charge and comaunde
you That ye fayle not psonallye to appere before the Kynge ma"" sayde
Comyssyoners at Ypswych the secounde daye of maye next ensuenge before
ix of the clocke. . And that ye brynge before them (All excuses sett ap'te)
All and everye suche p'cell of plate Jewells metall or other ornamente (what-
soever they be) belongynge to yor churche chapell Guylde Brotherheede
ffraternytyes or copanyes as doe Remayne in y custodye or of eny other
psonne or psonnes to y knowledge to the uses aforesaydas yow wyll answere
upon othe The grete Belles and Saunce Belles in the Steples only excepte.
ffrom Brundysshe in Suff the xxvijthe of Aprylle A° 1553
By me Roger Wade "
Endorsed
" To the Churchwardens of the townshyppe of Bedyngfelde
Geve these."*
The Commissioners' book is in a perfect condition. The
entries show nothing but chalices and bells, one of the former
generally remaining to each parish. There were 1,669 great
bells, and 85 "Sancts" bells in the county, without Ipswich,
which formed the subject of a separate report, and Thetford S.
Mary's, which no doubt appeared in Norfolk. The Ipswich
Inventories, which are very full, show a total of 52 large bells
and 6 Sanctus.f The grand total for the county was therefore
1, 8 1 2. At the present day, excluding the six at Thetford S.
Mary's, and the metal of the recently melted four at Ilketshall
S. Andrew's, there are 1,864 Church bells in Suffolk; and in
weight of metal we have, of course, a great advantage. In the
towns and larger villages there has been a gain which more than
counterbalances the loss in cutting down the pretty little threes
in the smaller villages.
But the Commissioners' 1,812 is rather under the mark for
such a date as 1520, I should say, for though we can point to an
increase in some places, there had been a decrease from depre-
dation in others, and in one instance for certain the Commis-
sioners did not receive a full report.
A very suggestive case of depredation is that in the parish of
* East Anglian, New Series, II., 346. Communicated by the Rev. J. W.
Millard, Shimpling Rectory, Scole.
t The Commissioners' total is 51, but the figures give a total of 52.
A SLIGHT MISTAKE. 93
Woolvcrstone. In the thirty-eight year of Henry VIII., Philip
Wolferston, Esq., of that place, sold two bells and two vestments
belonging to the parish church. When the Commissioners of
1553 were making their enquiries, this transaction came to light(
and the loss to the parish was reported to be £20. Wolferston
took the course of bringing in a certificate stating that the bells
were not worth £$, that the vestments were of small value, and
that he had taken them "supposing the sayd churche to be hys
owne chapell."*
His name appears foremost in the catalogue of those who
who were bound by their recognizances to appear and answer
their several debts.
" philipp Wolverston, Gentilman, xxti.
Robt Wynkfeld of Branthfn, Gentilman, xxx//.
ffrauncis Sone of Wantisden, gentilman,
iiij'/». xiijj. i\\)d.
[the xxithof June, ffrauncis Noone of Martlishm, v/i.
1553, paid.] Nicolas Bramston of Chelmeton, yeoman,
xiij//. vijd.
Jeffery Blower, Symond Maddocke, William
Harrison, and William dennaunt of debbenh'm,
yeomen, x//."
By the side is written... hath brought in a testimonyall seelyd
and subscrybyd...to...payd the xxjth of June, 1553.
The seals and subscriptions are gone from the " testimonial "
presented to Wolferston in recognition of his little mistake as
to the ownership of the church, but the words just quoted
appear to refer to that veracious document. As the Commis-
sioners made remissions in the case of certain " pore men,"
which remissions were noted in a " p'ticulr boke" in the custody
of Sir Richard Cotton, Comptroller of the Household, we cannot
say whether these delinquents paid up in full, after the example
of Noone of Martlesham. That parish, with Wantisden and
Dcbenham, will appear not to have suffered in bell metal.
Chelmondiston acknowledges to have sold an old broken bell to
the value of xxjj. \\\]J.
* The certiScate may ba read in full in the East Anglian, N'ew Series, III., 1 12.
94 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Brantham seems a bad case. £30 is a lot of money, and
there was only one bell therein 1553. Robert Wingfield (son
of the Commissioner of 1536, Humphrey Wingfield), who had
married the heiress of Sir John Pargeter, Lord Mayor of
London, is absolutely without excuse. The parishes do not
seem to have taken benefit from these fines.
I have said that in one instance certainly the Commissioners
did not receive a full report. That instance is Brockley, which
is returned as having one bell, whereas three of Jordan's hang,
now in the tower, without doubt the same which hung therein
1553-
Perhaps the men of Brockley feared that what had been done
in the disturbances of 1549 might be attempted in Suffolk, and
only one bell of the smallest size left for their church,* and for
that reason concealed the true number, relying not vainly on
their sequestered position.
It must not be supposed that Suffolk is peculiar in these
respects. We will take an instance from Northamptonshire, in
which county "the towneshipp of Soulgrave...sold before the
fyrst Inventory was taken and maid by John Humfrey and
John Mayo, Churchewardens there one bell unto Thomas
Stuttesbury and Lawrence Wasshyngton.-f gent' of the same
towne for xvjV/. whereof v]li. is delyvyd to the I nhy taunts of the
same towne And is bestowed uppon the highe wayes and ford9.
" And their intent is to bestowe all the rest so," etc.J
We have already heard of Stephen Tonni. A gap of fifteen
years separates the name found at Stanstead, Suffolk, from that
on the bell at Reepham, Norfolk, which first bears the name of
Bury S. Edmund's : —
BGATI QUI HABITAT (s;c) in DOJHO TUA DOffllUG.
(Blessed are they who dwell in Thy house. Psalm Ixxxiv.
(Ixxxiii. vulg.), 5).
r>G BYI\I SAHTS GDmonoe STGEAHYS Toimi JUG
EGCIT. 1559.
* Froude, H. E.( V. 186.
f Ancestor of the first American President. See Henry F. Waters's Ancestry of
Washington, 1889.
J North's C. B. of Northamptonshire, p. 412.
STEPHEN TONNI.
95
I am not to decide on the identity of the two Stephens. The
latest date of the name is 1587, which would give a range of
forty-three years, a good long spell, but nothing incredible.
This Reepham bell bears the seal of the cloth subsidy for the
county of Suffolk, which may be applied to the history of Roger
Reve, "clothear," and ,'a representation of the Crucifixion.
Neither of these occur again. His usual marks are the crown
and arrows, indicative of the borough (fig. 81), and a fleur-de-lis,
perhaps with reference to his French origin (fig. 82).
Fig. 81.
Fig. 82.
1560.
As his are the first bells which bear the name of a Suffolk
town, I will take them in order of date. I know of none out of
East Anglia. The Norfolk and Cambridgeshire bells are in
italics, and those now recast have a dagger (-f) prefixed to
them : —
Stanton, All Saints, fourth,
Helmingham, tenor,
Cockfield, tenor,
„ Stctchzvorth, tenor.
The inscription on the Cockfield tenor was given me by
Flanders Green, who set me bell-hunting more than forty years
ago, an enthusiastic bell-hanger : —
raAUG CITYS fcGCTYm EYGG, JHODDGOI DISCYTG
sojimvm, T-GJHPDYJH AP»i\opinQYGS, GT YGHGI\AI\G
DGVHl.
It may be compared with the short admonition to rise early,
on the Stoke-by-Clare clock-bell.
1566. Hargrave, tenor,
Cj6 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1567. Kettlebaston, third,
„ Stanningfield, third,
f „ Troston, treble,
1570. Stradishall, third,
1572. Chediston, tenor,
„ Fakenham, Great, second,
„ Gedding, the two bells,
Ii „ Haughley, four lower bells,
I/ „ Letheringham bell,
1573. Somerton, second,
„ Sternfield, tenor,
„ Ubbeston, tenor,
1574. Glemham, Little, second,
1575. Mendlesham, tenor, a fine bell, reputed to weigh
24 cwt,
Ii D. „ Whatfield, second,
£11576. Bradley, Great, second,
D „ Kersey, third,
It „ Ottley, tenor,
t „ Petistree tenor,
t „ Sudbury, All Saints, tenor, the counterpart of the
Mendlesham tenor,
„ Walsham-le-Willows, fourth,
D „ Cambridge, S. Edmund, fourth,
It „ Landbeack, third,
Wilbraham, Little, treble and second,
It „ Winch, West, treble,
If 1578. Rede, treble,
It „ Somerton, treble,
fr 1580. Newmarket, S. Mary, second and third,
E< 1581. Levington, tenor,
1582. Elmswell, second,
„ Oxburgh, tliird,
„ Wickcn, fourth,
1586. Monevvden, treble,
„ Rede, second,
111587. Barham, tenor.
JULIAN TONNEYE, WEAVER. 97
The bells on this list marked If bear the initials W. it.,
thought with great probability to be those of William Land,
Stephen Tonni's foreman, of whom more hereafter. Whatfield
second also bears those of Thomas Draper.
It is a strange thing that we cannot find the will of this
active and successful bell-founder, but perhaps (like Briant of
Hertford) his labours were more useful to others than profitable
to himself. Beyond what is found on his bells, the only
glimpses we gain of him are derived from the Long Melford and
Wattisfield Parish Books, and from the will of his brother
Julian. In the former document, 1582 — 1584, Hugh Isacke
being then Churchwarden, may be read.
*" For takeinge downe the broken Belle vs.
For carryinge the broken Belle to Burye vj.
For helpe to loade it \)d.
For layde out at Burye for wayinge the belle v\\]d.
Two jorneys to Burye xvj</.
For makinge the wrytinge between the Church-
wardens and the Bell-founder i]d.
TO the Bell-founder for castinge of the belle
and metalle iij/i. xiiijj. \]d.
For hangeinge the belle xjj. \\\]d."
And now we stand by the death-bed of Julian Tonney,
weaver. It is the 9th of February, 1583. "Julian Tonneye of
Bury S' Edmonde in the countye of Suff., weaver, being of good
and p'fect remembraunce (thankes be unto God) did speake
theise words in manner as followeth, I geve and bequeath unto
Stephen Tonney my brother all those my goods, chattclls,
moveables, and howsholde stuffe, under what manner of kynde
soever they be, fownder to paye my debtes so far as they will
extend unto, in the p'sence of these men underwritten, John
Sterne, Robert Smyth, Willm Longe, John Barrett, John
Beacher, Thomas Tonney."
Poor Julian did not regard his estate with much confidence.
He must have died very soon after making this nuncupative
• Kindly sent me by Mr. Percy C. L. Scott, Hall Mills, Long Melford.
N
98 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
will, for on the I2th of February, Dr. Deye, Commissary and
Official of the Archdeaconry of Sudbury, granted letters of
administration to Stephen Tonni, as no executors had been
named by the deceased. The Thomas Tonney here mentioned
did not follow his father's trade, nor did William Land do much
on his own account.
I cannot say how we first found the latter name, though it
seems familiar enough to me. The original " Wylliam Lawnd,"
in 1 548 — 9, appears in one of those dealings in old metal for
which that remarkable time is eminent. The Churchwardens of
the Parish of " Mary Maudelen in Barmondesey " note
" Item sold more by them a crose of copper and other olde
mettyll of lattyn to Wylliam Lawnd weying xlvj pound pryce
the pound iiijaf. somme xvs, ii\]d."*
Possibly he was father to the W. L., whose initials we have
seen on Stephen Tonni's bells as early as 1572. This later
W. L. cast the tenor at Brettenham in 1574. He made an
excursion to Halstead in Essex in 1575, for which church, in
conjunction with Thomas Draper, he cast the fine tenor now
in that tower, a very grand bell, said to weigh 25 cwt. It is
marked with a crown and clipped arrows (fig. 83), as though
Fig. 83.
to mark some past connection with Tonne, but its motto is
also on the Whatfield tenor of the same year, which bears the
initials of all three founders : —
Omnia Jovam laudant animantia.
We have this combination of W. L. and T. D. at Wiston in
1 574, and at Wattisfield in 1584, where on the fourth appears
the following quaint couplet, the words separated by a fleur-de-
* Surrey Inventories, by J. R. Daniel-Tyssen, p. 98.
A DINNER AT WATTISFIELD. 99
lis in a lozenge, (fig. 84) to distinguish it from Tonni's flcur-dc-
lis in an oblong,
WD TD in THG 1\AYHG
OB Qvene eiiseBeTH BIS xin.
Fig. 84.
The Wattisfield folk had foundry dealings with Bury in 1578,
as we find from their book, but this job was carried out at
Thetford. The detail is very graphic : —
" Itm. the belfounders dyd dyne, thre of them xd."
Very suggestive of Tonni being with Land and Draper on
this occasion. Perhaps as senior man he consumed the extra
penn'orth. Perhaps also the poetry as above was post-prandial.
It must have involved a great effort.
" Itm the belfounders hade for earnest for the bell vs.
Itm layd out to the belfounders men when the
bell was felt (sic.) \n]d.
Itm. layd out to father Smyth for the bell hangen xvd.
and for the bell caryenge and recaryenge iiijj.
and for bordynge of four men one daye ijj.
and for bordynge of two men one daye xijd.
and for one man's wages one daye iiijV.
and for fetching of father Smyth's gear at Reck-
ynghal to wynd up the bell ijd.
Itm. layd out for eyornes for the bell \m]d.
Itm. layd out at fetfor (Thetford) to the bel-
founder at or ladyes day xxxiijj. iiij</.
IOO
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
vs.
Itm. for caryenge of a lode of wode to fctfor to
the belfounder iijj.
and for fellyng and makyng of the wood
Itm. layd out for the bell clapper
Itm. The belfounders dyd dyne at Nycolas Lockes
and thear dyner cam to
Itm. Layd out to John Boulton for whyt lether to
mend the belles
Itm. layd out for half a hundred bord, and thear
ar xiij to the half hundred lynge upon the
steple to mend the belles wheeles
Land's initials occur for the last time on a bell of Stephen
Tonni's at Barham in 1587.
Another William Land, possibly his son, turns up at Crayford,
Kent, 1615, Kirkoswald, Cumberland, 1619, and Wilmington,
Kent, 1636. He was a Houndsditch man, and at Stapleford,
Cambridgeshire (1622), his initials «ccur with those of Thomas
Draper's son John. In 1624 he cast the "Silver Bell," at S.
John's College, Cambridge, and probably in that town, as there
is no charge for carriage.
vd.
\\\}d.
\]d.
xxd."
Fig. 85.
Thomas Draper had moved on permanently to Thetford by
1588 at any rate, when he cast there the sixth for Redenhall,
esteemed by some the finest bell of that grand eight. It is
remarkable that in the same year he cast a small bell for
Hutton-in-the-Forest, Cumberland. He has left us but five
bells in Suffolk : —
1584. Ashbocking, second, with a peculiar fleur-de-lis (fig. 85),
1591. Tuddenham, S. Mary's, third,
„ Sapiston, third,
THOMAS DRAPER, MAYOR OF THETFORD. IOI
1593. Stradishall, tenor,
1594. Yaxley, tenor.
His health was evidently failing by this time, and he died in
1595. Municipal honours in his case were accompanied with
heavy cares. There was a turbulent burgess in Thetford named
Roger Herbert, who had to be expelled from the " twentieship "
for divers heinous offences, " first, he geveth not his money
towards the maiors diet ; he opposeth him selfe against the
maior and his companie in repugninge against the constitunes
and orders of the Towne made, etc., viz., made for hogges*, for
making rescues against the Serjeant Harington in arestinge
him, he comcth to no assemblie of longe tyme, he defraude men
of their money and paye not his detts to the discredit of the
towne, and for div'se and sondrie other causes, he misused the
maior and burgesses in bad names, in calling -Mr. Asteley
splittershankes, and some other of the companie cadowes^f- and
p'ticadowesj and Churles meaninge churle by Mr. Sheringe."
This expulsion is signed Rich. Asteley John Buxton.
" Mr. Drap V Maior his m'ke John Goldyngham
Anthonie Frere."
We can only trust that the newly-chosen member of the
Thetford " twentie " refrained from reflecting on the slenderness
of Mr. Richard Asteley's legs, and the loquacity with which Mr.
John Goldyngham, Mr. Anthonie Frere, Mr. John Buxton, and
even his Worship Mr. Thomas Draper may have been affected.
Thomas Draper's last mark in the records of the borough is on
May 8th, 1595, in a very trembling hand. His will, proved July
9th in that year, mentions his messuage in S. Cuthbert's parish,
his wife Margaret, and his sons Thomas, Edmonde, John, Henrye,
Richard, and William. Of these the first and third followed
their father's calling. The eldest son was in business before his
father's death, the old fourth at Hepworth, before being recast
in 1825, having borne the inscription : —
Thomas Draper the younger made me 1 593-H
* No doubt analogous to those at Ipswich.
t Jackdaws.
t Magpies?
1 MSS. Davy in loc.
IO2 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
No bell of his seems now to remain, the second at Cranworth,
Norfolk, dated 1598, which I saw in 1850, having been recast in
1853. His domestic relations were not very happy, as he was
returned in the Episcopal Visitation for Norwich Diocese in
1597 "for that he keepeth not with his wife, but remaineth
wth his mother, and so have contynewed a quarter of a yeare
nowe laste past."
I will postpone the larger subject of the third son, John, and
leave for a time the Bury and Thetford work with the mention
of Thomas Andrew, who used Stephen Tonni's well-known
marks. From him we have
Carlton, S. Peter's, four bells,
Nedging, treble, all dated 1598; to which might have been
added the Naughton second, now gone, dated 1 599.
The Norwich Elizabethan bells, from members of the Brend
family, form a considerable group : —
1567. I. B., Stradbroke sixth (the figure 6 is inverted),
1568. I. B., Metfield treble,
„ No initials, Little Ashfield second, inscribed Charoli
Framlingham Militis,
„ No initials, Horham, tenor,
1581. I. B., Elmham, South, S. James's, tenor,
1582. No initials of founder, Hacheston, tenor.
As John Brend the elder died on the 29th or 3oth of July,
in that year, and was buried on the 3ist of July, "greatly
indetted to diu'se men in diu'se somes of money," these are the
only Suffolkers in which he had a hand. The Horham bell
was probably made by him in conjunction with a brother
Robert. The works were in S. Stephen's parish, no doubt on
the site of the great mediaeval foundry. His lettering is large
and clumsy, and the arabic numerals very misleading. William
Brend, his son, removed the foundry into All Saints' parish.
From him we have : —
1583. Framlingham, sixth,
1590. Farnham, treble,
1 592. Dallinghoo, treble,
„ Kettleburgh, tenor,
HENRY TOPSEL'S BELL AT CRATFIELD. IO3
1592. Moncwden, tenor,
J593- Cookley, tenor,
„ Cratfield, tenor,
1596. Elmham, South, S. Margaret, tenor,
1597. Ellough, tenor,
1598. Fritton bell,
1599. Glcmham, Great, fourth,
with a large number of others, which we will treat of under the
the next century. His 1592 bells are crowded with initials of
subscribers or parishioners, notable by those who are reviving
the records of their parishes.
One bell, the sixth at Clare, is by John Dier, an old acquaint-
ance of mine, whom I unearthed at Maulden, Bedfordshire, in
1852, and subsequently at Much Hadham, Hertfordshire, in
1855. I am sorry to add that this prolonged intimacy has not
resulted in knowledge of his locality or operations. This Clare
bell, dated 1579, is his earliest known. In the following year
he cast a bell for Broomfield, Essex, and in 1583, the bell for
Arrington, Cambridgeshire. There are ten bells of his in
Bedfordshire and eleven in Hertfordshire. His latest date is
1597, and he uses sometimes a pentacle in conjunction with
other small trade-marks.
Another solitary bell, though hanging in good company, is
the fourth at Cratfield, the work of Henry Topsel, in 1585, in
which year he also made a bell for Hedenham, Norfolk. This
the parish sold to Kirby Bedon, when the Hedenham four were
run into six in 1838, and it still hangs in Kirby Bedon tower,
bearing " Hednam " on it. This placing the name of the parish
on a bell is unfortunately a very rare occurrence. " Cratfeld " is
on that fourth, and let us hope that it will never show the name
in any other tower. The initials f(- T., for Roger, the son of
Henry, are found on both these East Anglian bells. These
artificers are elsewhere unknown save in Sussex, where they
turn up, working at West Tarring, after an interval of fourteen
years. The initials H. T. appear on the second at Bury,
Sussex, in 1599, and the names of Henry and Roger on the
tenor at Felpham in the following year. " Henry Tapsell, the
104 ™E CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
elder," was buried at West Tarring, October 5th, 1604. Roger
went on with his Sussex work some thirty years afterwards.
Their bells are of no surpassing excellence. The surname is
curious, as denoting a nautical origin.
A far better artificer is Richard Bowler, whom all agree in
placing at Colchester, though there is nothing but tradition for
it. We have fourteen bells of his in Suffolk : —
1589. Stratford, S. Mary, fifth,
1591. Bergholt, East, priest's bell,
„ Cornard, Little, fourth,
1592. Wenham, Great, tenor,
1598. Cookley, treble,
„ IlketsJiall, S. Andrezv, tenor (melted in the fire of 1889),
1600. Greeting, S. Peter, treble,
„ Depden, tenor,
„ Freston bell,
1601. Bergholt, East, third,
„ Campsey Ash, tenor, •
„ Wickham Market, fifth,
1603. Lavenham, fourth and sixth,
„ Withersfield, second.
His lettering is generally of a bold Roman type, resembling
that of the first Miles Graye, the prince of founders, who is
supposed to have learned his business under Bowler. At
Waltham, Essex, is a bell of his with Richard Holdfeld's mark,
an unusual combination. There are two of his bells in Cam-
bridgeshire, but none in Norfolk, or further north, west or south,
to the best of my knowledge. An Augustine Bowler turns up
in Lincolnshire twenty or thirty years later than our Richard,
but we know little about him.
And now, for the last time I regret to say, we are brought
into touch with the gun-founders. The bell at Thorington bears
in shallow black letter, with a pentacle at the beginning, a stop,
and consisting of one lozenge over another, a la John Dier and
the Clarkes, the inscription,
Samtocll ©fotn JWaDe JKe for toanaUD. 1596.
The Owens of Houndsditch were a great gun-making family,
"THESE VILE GUNS." IO5
and some idea of John Owen, the first known of the name, and
his relations to two who bore the name of Samuel, may be
gleaned from his will. We all remember Shakespeare's fop, and
his objection to gunpowder. This fabricator of the King's
ordnance does not seem to have loved it too well. He is called
to a disagreeable service. Kelt and his fellows have exchanged
their camp on Mousehold heath, around the oak of Reformation,
for an occupation of Norwich. Lord Sheffield is killed, and
Norwich knows the place of his death to this day. Sir Thomas
Cornwallis is a prisoner. Parr, Marquis of Northampton, late in
command, has fallen back on Cambridge, and John Dudley,
then Earl of Warwick, better known as the Duke of Northum-
berland, Lady Jane Grey's father-in-law, is summoned to take
his place. The rebels have guns, and Owen, called to Warwick's
side, makes his will : —
" In the name of God, Amen. The xijth daye of August
Anno dm MVXLIX. I John Owyn of London (and one of the
kinge's founders of his ordynance) hole in bodye and in p'fte
memorie, being sent into Norfolke ageynst the Rebles at
Norwich, make this my last will and testament in maner
and forme following, that is to saye, I bequeathe my bodye
and soule into the keping of the lyvinge god who sees all
things.
" I give and bequeathe unto Anne Chainley als Rainse fyftie
pounds that she owith me without specialtie, and for the four-
score pounds I will that after my death she have the occupying
of the said m\H- for foure years, putting in suerties for the pay-
ment thereof withoute intereste.
" I give and bequeathe to my syster Alice twentie poundes,
to the poore people and presoners fourtie poundes. And I
bequeathe to a childe that is none of myne although yt is named
of me (and as a bill of rekenyng hereto annexed more playnlye
shall declare) the whiche is at norsse in sowth menies, whose
name is Samuell fourtie pounds, unto Samuell my brother
Robert sonne I give twentie pounds, to Jones tenne pounds, to
Susan fyve pounds.
" The rest of my goodes, cattell, moveables and immoveables,
o
106 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
debts, w all other things I give and bequeathe to my brother
Robert whom I make my soole executour, to Robert Eyer I
bequeath fyve pounds. In the thirde yere of Edvvarde the
sixte by the grace of god Kinge of England, Fraunce, and
Ireland, defender of the faith, and of the churche of England
and Irelande the supreme head.
" Wrytten in hast with my owne hande the yere and daye
above said by me, John Owen."*
I make no apology for transcribing this in full. It is worth
record on historical and religious accounts, as well for its con-
nection with our special subject.
John Owen, however, came- back from Norwich, and lived to
the following year, when his brother Robert made his renun-
ciation of the executorship, and the widow Anne, unmentioned
in the will, took out letters of administration on the 25th of
August.
To which of the Samuels of 1549, the unhappy nurseling, or
the acknowledged son of Robert, we may refer the Thorington
bell of 1596, is uncertain. Among the Bronze Ordnance in the
Rotunda, Woolwich, are three guns (nos. 4, 8, and 9 in the
Official Catalogue) by members of this family. Of the three,
one is by John and Robert, a brass saker, dated 1538, one by
John alone, a cannon royal, undated, but recovered from the
wreck of the Mary Rose, lost off Portsmouth in 1545, and a
sakeret on which may be read " Tomas Owen made this pese
for the YE'L of Garnse, vhan Sir Peter Mevtas vas Governor
and Captayn, Anno Din 1550."
How this Wanstead bell, the only Owen specimen remaining
this side of the county, came to Thorington, may be read in the
following memorandum on the second page of the earliest
Register : —
Memoranda yt y<= Right worshipfull Edward Coke Esquier Attourny
Generall to the Queenes most excellent maiestie and Bridgett his Wife did
Giue unto the Towneshippe of Thorington in June 1598 one Bell alone vppon
this condicion that neyther the Churchwardens nor any of the inhabitants of
* Compare Latimer's Sermons, Parker S., p. 265.
EDWARD COKE. 107
the said Towne should at any time after y<= aforesaid Guift sell awaye the
said Bell but continve and maintayne the same for the callingc together
of the inhabitants of the said Towne to divine Service and other seemely
vses. In witnes whereof I Robert Golde minister of the said Towne of
Thorington have sett to my hand to this wrightinge the xx'h day of Septem-
ber 1607.
Robert' Golde.*
• Kindly sent me by the Rev. T. S. Hill, Rector.
CHAPTER VII.
John Clarke, an itinerant, in Suffolk — Joseph Carter — Peter Hawkes —
The Bury founders in the days of the Stuarts — John Draper of Thetford —
The later Brends of Norwich — " Colchester Graye " and his works, inclu-
ding the Lavenham tenor — The siege of Colchester — Miles Graye's foundry
burnt — The Puritan regime — Bunyan — Milton — Compulsory ringing — John
Darbie of Ipswich.
BEFORE proceeding to the large blocks of bells which occupy
that great campanarian period, the first half of the seventeenth
century, there are three single specimens to be disposed of.
The second at Wrentham is the second earliest known (1606)
of a few bells, scattered about here and there, by John Clarke
(he spells his name at Wrentham without the " e "), who in his
pentacle and shallow lettering resembles John Dier and Samuel
Owen. In the following year he cast a tiny treble for Cold
Brayfield, in the county of Buckingham. At Wormington,
Gloucestershire, and Rumboldswyke, Sussex, he appears un-
dated. I turned him up, pentacle and all, at Flitwick, Bedford-
shire, with the date 1608. In 1609 he cast the second at Eastry,
Kent, and in 1613 the bell at Welney, Cambridgeshire. The
earliest known bell of his is the little tenor of three at Eastwick,
Hertfordshire, dated 1601. This seems a genuine case of itine-
rancy, and the poorness of the bells may account for it A
George Clarke cast a small ring of bells for Duxford S. Peter,
Cambridgeshire, in 1564, and a certificate (dated 1557) of the
weight of a bell from Wymondley Priory* shows that a bell-
founder named Clarke was living at Datchworth at the time.
* North and StahlschmicU's C. B. of Hertfordshire, p. 32.
MORE I'.F.I.LS FROM BURY. 109
The parish register records the baptism of a John Clarke in
'575. probably the maker of the Wrcntham bell. He is not our
only specimen of a proverbial rolling stone.
In 1609 Joseph Carter made the small bell at Great Fin-
borough. He originally started business at Reading, his earliest
date being 1579. Many bells of his and of his son-in-law,
William Yare, are found in Oxfordshire bearing the well-known
Norwich shield (fig. 50), but his best work seems to have been
three for Wittersham, Kent. He died in 1610, not unmindful
of his poor neighbours in Whitechapcl.*
I wish I could say something about Peter Hawkes, who cast
the Poslingford tenor in 1613. He is known in Essex, but not
elsewhere. At Birdbrook a bird, perhaps a hawk, is stamped on
one of his bells.
We will now take up the Bury bells, but the palmy days of
Tonni are over, and such as came forth from James Edbury,
John Driver, and Thomas Cheese, are not generally of a high
character. They bear for the most part Tonni's marks, and
sometimes a bit of arabesque border. These men sometimes
worked separately and sometimes together. To disentangle
them would be alike impossible and unprofitable, and I give the
list in order of time, putting recast bells in italics : —
1602. Rede, second (I. D.)
1603. Saxham, Little, tenor (T. G.)
„ Sturston, old tenor (I. €.)
1604. Onchouse bell (I. G.)
1605. Sudbury, S. Peter, fourth (I. e.)
This was probably Edbury 's greatest effort.
1608. Blythburgh bell (I. G.)
Charsfield, third (I. G.)
„ Cockfield, tenor (I. G.)
Shadingfield bell (I. G.)
1612. Elcigh, Brent, tenor (I. G.)
1614. Dcnham, S. John Baptist, bell (I. ».)
„ Friston, treble (I. D.)
„ Stowlangtoft, second (I. D.)
" Tyssen's C. B. of Sussex, p. 36. Stahlschmich's C. B. of A'ent, p. 92.
IIO THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1614. Theberton, treble and second (I. G. I. D.)
„ Worlington, third (1. G. I. D.)
1615. Wickham Skeith, third (I. G. I. D.)
B. B. with them, and a host of parochial initials.
1618. Greeting, S. Peter, tenor.
Naughton bell.
Scmer, tenor.
( John Driver died this year, teste registro, in S. Mary's parish,
i" Sep. 1618. John Driver belfounder, Nov. 2ist"
These last-named three bells bear his name, (save that at
Semer, which omits DI\IYGI\YS,) and the initials of Cheese.
In 1619, July 17, Arthur Hindes, bell-founder, was buried \
at S. James's, Bury. He has left no works behind him.
1621. Semer, treble (T. C.)
1622. Hargrave, treble (T. C. I. G.)
1623. Brettenham, second (T. C. I. G.)
1629. Thorpe Morieux, second (T. C.)
1630. Bradfield Combust, tenor (T. C,)
1632. Thorpe Morieux, treble (T. C.)
Pressed hard by the Brends on the North-east, and John
Draper of Thetford, who had an agent, Andrew Girne, at Bury
on the North-west, with Stamford men at work in Cambridge-
shire, and the great reputation of Miles Graye all round, it is no
wonder that these small Bury men did but little. I remember
the old Worlington third, which was cracked at the lip. Paro-
chial ingenuity sawed out the cracked part, the metal showing
clean and strong, but somewhat pale. It used to sound just
like a piece of wood. Cheese, who seems to have been the
survivor of the three, died in 1635, leaving "Thomas Andrews"
— perhaps the Thomas Andrew, bell-founder, lately mentioned —
the supervisor of his will. He appears to have contemplated
the possible re-marriage of his wife Mary, and while making all
provision for her during her life, settles small sums of money on
his daughters Mary and Elizabeth, and his son Thomas, who
takes the reversion of the parlour furniture, the greatest kettle,
and the greatest brass pot. The See of Norwich was vacant at
this time through the death of Bishop Corbet, and the will was
JOHN DRAPER OF THETFORD. Ill
proved before John Jewell, Surrogate of Thomas Eden, LL.D.,
Archbishop Laud's Commissary, which Surrogate was one of
the witnesses to the will.
Whatever came from Andrew Gerne we shall now consider
under the works of his master, John Draper, third son of
Thomas Draper the elder, and for more than forty years a bell-
founder in Thetford. His earliest date is 1600, and he died in
1644. The following list gives his Suffolk bells : —
1600. Honington, tenor.
In this year in conjunction with his mother, Margaret, he gave
a bond to the churchwardens of North Lopham, for the recast-
ing of their second bell, which was again recast in 1733. This
was on the 2pth of August. He had by himself given a bond
on the 1 9th of February of that year to the churchwardens of
Lakenheath for the recasting of their tenor, to which his brother
Thomas was a witness. This bell was again recast in 16/6.
Others since recast are in italics : —
1603. Thelnetham, fourth.
This bell, like some others in East Anglia, bears the crown
and clipped arrows (fig. 83), used by Thomas Draper the elder,
and to my mind denoting a past connection with Bury.
1605. Horham, fifth.
1606. Braiseworth bell. In this year he was casting at Wells,
May 22nd, " divers of the neighbours of the towne and Beeston-
next-Mileham accompanyinge them thither merily together."*
1608. Ampton, treble,
„ Barton Mills, second,
„ Icklingham, All Saints, tenor,
1609. Knettishall, tenor,
1615. Thetford, S. Mary, second,
1616. Elmswell, tenor,
1617. Risby, second,
1619. Barton, Great, second, fourth, and tenor,
„ Newmarket, S. Mary, treble and fourth,
1620. Chevington, treble,
* L' Estrange C. B. of Norfolk, p. 99.
112 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1621. Hinderclay, fourth (I. »• and A. G.),
„ Thurlow, Great, treble, second, third, and fourth,
„ Bergholt, East, tenor (I. D. and A. G.),
1623. Barnham, S. Gregory, tenor,
„ Exning, treble, second, third, and fourth,
„ Fornham, All Saints, treble and second,
„ Freckenham, second and third,
1624. Burgate, third,
„ Fornham, All Saints, tenor,
1625. Lidgate, treble, second, and fourth (I. O. and A. G.),
1626. Hopton, All Saints, tenor,
„ Pakenham, second,
„ Timworth, tenor,
1627. Beyton bell,
„ Combs, fourth,
„ Cotton, third,
„ Dalham, second and third,
„ Sturston, second,
„ Wickham Skeith, tenor,
1628. Knettishall, tenor,
„ Sapiston, treble,
1629. Hopton, All Saints, second,
„ Stow, West, third and fourth,
1630. Badwell Ash, treble, second, and fourth,
„ Hopton, All Saints, third, fourth, and fifth (these were
the second, third, and fourth to complete a ring of
five),
„ Rickinghall Inferior, second,
„ Thurston, treble and second (I. D. and A. G.),
1631. Ashfield, Great, third,
„ Stow, West, second and tenor,
„ Stowlangtoft, treble,
1632. Buxhall, treble and second,
1635. Buxhall, third,
„ Worlington, second,
1636. Wetheringsett, second,
„ Rushbrooke, second. This alone by Andrew Gerne,
without John Draper's name.
WILLIAM AND JOHN BREND. 113
This list is almost exclusively from West Suffolk, and East
Suffolk during the same period is largely supplied by Norwich,
which may be explained by relationship, for as he speaks in his
will of John Brend* of Norwich, as his brother, he presumably
married a Brend, no daughter being mentioned in the will of his
father, Thomas Draper. A little " ring " was thus formed by
the brothers-in-law, which kept out Miles Graye of Colchester
from the north of the county, and led to a "mighty pretty
quarrel " at Wickham Market, the traces of which yet remain.
An observation of the dates will show that John Draper's
Suffolk business arose mainly from the collapse of the Bury
foundry.
As with his death bell-founding died out at Thetford, we will
turn to his Norwich relatives, and take up the bells made by
William Brend, or his son John, or both, during the first half
of the seventeenth century.
1602. Wingfield, fifth,
1603. Elmham, South, All Saints, bell,
1606. Brundish, treble,
„ Wilby, second and third,
1608. Carlton Colville, treble,
„ Worlingham, third,
1609. Saxmundham, second,
1610. Bruisyard, second,
„ Elmham, South, S. George's, second,
„ Ringsfield, second,
1611. Halesworth, seventh,
„ Herringfleet, second,
1612. Brampton, second, third, and fourth,
„ Mendlcsham, treble,
„ Mettingham, treble,
1613. Wickham Market, tenor,
„ Wingfield, third, fourth, and tenor,
1615. Campscy Ash, treble,
„ Marlingford, second and third,
„ Mutford, second,
* L'Estrange's C. B. of Norfolk, p. 47, note.
114 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1616. Covehithe, second,
„ Westhall, treble and fourth,
1617. Kessingland, treble,
1618. Cratfield, treble and fifth,
„ Oulton, third, fourth, and tenor,
„ Pakefield, second,
1619. Homersfield, treble,
„ Ilketshall, S. Laurence, two bells,
1620. Hollesley, treble and tenor,
1621. Bramfield, treble and second,
„ Pakefield, tenor,
1622. Aldeburgh, third,
„ Bawdsey bell,
„ Benacre bell,
„ Bradfield, second,
„ Framlingham, seventh,
„ Ilketshall, S. Andrew, treble, second, and third (melted
in the fire of 1889),
„ Knoddishall bell,
„ Rendham, fourth,
„ Worlingham, treble,
1623. Mendham, fifth,
1624. Badingham, second, third and tenor,
„ Rumburgh, treble, second, and fourth,
„ Wangford, S. Peter, treble,
1625. „ „ fifth,
1626. Gorton bell,
„ Covehithe, third,
„ Westhall, tenor,
1627. Bury, S. Mary, fourth,
„ Elmham, South, S. Margaret, fourth,
„ Gisleham, treble and second,
„ Halesworth, fifth and tenor,
1628. Cove, North, fourth,
„ Dennington, fourth,
„ Mendham, third,
1630. Badingham, treble,
NORWICH CITY ARMS. IIj
1631. Farnham, second,
1634. Carlton Colville, third, fourth, and tenor (in this year
William Brend died),
1636. Mutford, third,
1637. Carlton Colville, second,
1639. Bcnhall, fourth,
„ Frostenden, second,
1640. Chediston, second,
„ Shipmeadow bell,
and lastly, in all probability the second, at Metfield, made in
1647. To these may be added the smaller of the two bells at
Withersdale, bearing simply the initials W. B.
Let the judicious reader compare the blank years in this list
with those in the others of the same period, and he will not
fail to note the results of the occupation of the " Associated
Counties" by the Earl of Manchester. The commission was
accepted by the Earl, August loth, 1643.
William Brend's wife's name was Alice, and the monogram
of the two, A B with a W below, is very common on his bells.
Fig. £6.
Il6 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
He often uses also the Norwich ermine shield (fig. 50) and the
arms of the city (fig. 86). He died in 1634, leaving his posses-
sions to his wife and his son John, who received respectively a
silver spoon and a hammer at the signing of the will.* Much
of the later work seems to have been done by John, whose
name alone occurs as founder in the Dennington Parish book in
1628, "ould Brend" being restricted to the hanging business.
I do not regard John Draper or these Brends as very uniform
in their work. With some excellent bells there are many of an
inferior quality. The Thetford bells are apt to be weak, and
the Norwich bells harsh.
And now comes the record of their great rival, Miles Graye,
of Colchester.
The general idea is that he learned his business under Richard
Bowler, and the slight overlapping of date need not trouble us.
There is a great similarity in the strong Roman lettering often
used by both, but Bowler's rough cross goes out, and several
marks are occasionally used, of which one found at Stradbroke
and elsewhere (fig. 87) may serve as a specimen. The name is
Fig. 87.
almost invariably given in full and in English. When he ven-
tures into Latin he appears, like the half-Romanized Celts, to
have confounded the subject with the object, varying between
" Milo" and " Milonem " Graye me fecit.
However defective his grammar may have been, he was a
L'Estrenge's C. B. of Norfolk, pp. 36, 37.
"COLCHESTER GRAVE." 1 17
prince among workmen. Of the eighty bells and more in
Suffolk which yet bear his name most arc of excellent quality,
and several are said to equal in grandeur of tone that which
ringers consider his masterpiece, the celebrated Lavenham tenor.
There arc a few of his bells in Norfolk, the bulk of those at
Swaffham, etc., some seventeen in Cambridgeshire, one in
Sussex (Chiddingly, treble), a good sprinkling in Hertfordshire
and Bedfordshire, and of course very many in Essex. His
most distant work is the tenor at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, which
he cast at Colchester in 1615, said in Archceologia JEliana* to
be his earliest date. However, Suffolk can find earlier. Here
is the catalogue : —
1605. Ipswich, S. Matthew, fourth,
1607. „ S. Mary-le-Tower, seventh,
1608. Thrandeston, third,
1610. Ipswich, S. Mary-le-Tower, eleventh, the old tenor, a
very fine bell,
„ Soham, Earl, treble,
„ Woolverstone bell,
1611. Harkstead, third and fourth,
„ Wickhambrook, fourth,
1613. Ipswich, S. Mary-at-Elms, third,
„ „ S. Mary-at-Quay, fourth,
„ Kenton, treble,
„ Stradbroke, fourth,
1614. Copdock, treble and second,
1615. Ashbocking, treble,
„ Copdock, third,
„ Ipswich, S. Mary Stoke, second,
„' Wilby, fifth,
1617. Stonham, Little, third,
1618. Bromeswcll, treble,
„ Melton, treble,
„ Nettlestead bell,
1619. Combs, third,
1621. Chattisham bell,
• New Seiies II., 19.
M8 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1621. Ipswich, S. Helen, treble,
Newbourne bell,
1622. Stradbroke, fifth, a good bell,
Stovvmarket, tenor, a very fine bell,
„ Wherstead, second,
1623. Bucklesham bell,
1624. Capel, S. Mary, fourth,
1625. Lavenham, tenor, already mentioned,
„ Nacton, treble,
1626. Bealings, Great, treble and second,
„ Somersham, second,
1627. Felixstowe bell,
1628. Hasketon, five bells, the second recast in 1825,
1629. Shelley, second,
1630. Ipswich, S. Margaret, six bells,
„ S. Nicholas, second,
S. Peter, sixth,
S. Stephen, third,
„ Kenton, second,
1631. Martlesham, tenor,
„ Soham, Monk, treble,
1632. Bramford, five bells, a treble added in 1805,
1636. Baylham, second, third, and fourth,
1637. Bedfield, treble,
„ Brandeston, third,
„ Eleigh, Monks, third,
„ Hollesley, treble,
„ Monewden, second,
(In this year he was at Saffron Walden, where he made a bell
for Ickleford, Herts, since recast.)
1638. Eleigh, Monks, second and fourth,
„ Felsham, second and fourth,
Kersey, tenor (" Colchester Graye ")
„ Winston, third and fifth,
1639. Felsham, tenor,
„ Orford, treble,
1640. Clare, third,
THE SIEGE OF COLCHESTER. lip
1640. Edwardstone, third,
„ Eye, sixth and tenor, very good,
„ Preston, fourth,
1641. Culpho bell,
„ Edwardstone, fourth,
„ Parham, second,
„ Sudbury, S. Peter, seventh,
„ Wickhambrook, treble,
1646. Stradishall, fourth,
Also Barnardiston treble and second, the dates of which I
have not.
This list is the most important by far which has yet been
recorded, for sequences as well as for weight of bells. Especially
the work of the years 1610, 1622, 1625, 1640, and 1641 deserves
to be remarked. The break of Suffolk work after 1641 is again
suggestive, and business was equally slack for him elsewhere at
the same time. But worse misfortunes than slackness of busi-
ness were in store for this great founder. Those that blow up
the flame of partisanship in matters of religion and politics may
well ponder the lessons taught by these " portions and parcels
of the dreadful past" which come under our notice, and be
content to let what is valuable in their principles work itself
naturally to the front. There are no signs of a Millennium,
either Anglican or Puritan, at Colchester in the summer of
1648. The Cavaliers of Kent, Hertfordshire, and Essex entered
the town, and Fairfax let them " stew in their own juice," not
adopting, however, this course till he had failed in an attack
upon Headgate. In this attack Miles Graye's " capital! messu-
age or tenement... scituate and being below Headgate in Col-
chester" was burned down, as we find from his will, and he
himself having endured the horrors of the siege, " set his house
in order" on the seventeenth day of May, 1649, "weak in body
and erased with age, but yet in p'fect mind and memory," and
was dead in a month. There is a not unusual gap in the
Register of Burials at S. Mary-at- Walls, Colchester from 1642
to 1653, another phenomenon which may be pondered by
admirers of Cromwell and the Puritans. But we note the
120 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
baptisms of Christopher* the son of Myles Gray and Jane his
wife, 29th January, 1625, and that of Myles, son of Myles
Graye and his wife, ipth September, 1628, and
" Moyles " Gray certifies the Register at this time as Church-
warden.
Old Miles's second wife was named Dorothy, and he left her
nearly everything. Christopher's name does not appear in the
will. Miles and the daughters Ann Darbye and Mary Starlinge
are cut off, severally, with a shilling, but James gets the
remainder of some leasehold property " to him and to his heyres
for ever." The registers of Colchester Holy Trinity, S. Botolph's,
and S. Leonard's, and of Stanway give us no information
worth recording about either Bowlers or Grayes ; but in 1656
Margaret Graye was imprisoned in Colchester Castle, as a
Quaker, for declaring the truth in " Peter's Steeple House." It
would be curious if she were a member of this family. The
Puritan liberty of opinion, whether for prophetic or other pur-
poses, was strictly confined to themselves. " New Presbyter
is but Old Priest writ large," and when the Independents came
in, it was the old song again to a fresh tune. Quakers were
clearly out of it, but if George Fox had got the upper hand he
would most likely have taken to coercion like the rest.
About this time the names of John Hardy and Abraham
Greene, of Bury S. Edmund's, bell-founders, brothers-in-law,
appear among the Bury wills, but no bells from either are known
to exist The former, who died in January, 1657, left his house,
which he had lately purchased of Simon Wray, baker, " adjoin-
ing to a certaine gate then called Risby Gate," to his widow
Mary for her life, then to go to John, the son of his brother-in-
law John Bixby of " Thorpe Morioux." Abraham Greene, who
had married Hardy's sister Joan, is probably identical with the
Abraham Greene of Lindsey, who died in 1662, leaving every-
thing to his sister, Prudence Dyer.f
The ten years from 1650 are of course not very productive of
• This, I think must be Christopher Graye the bell-founder ; but there is in the
Register another Christopher, son of Edward, born 1618.
t Lib. Heron, J.
THE COMMONWEALTH. 121
bells. The younger Aliles Grayc cast the Brantham bell in
165 1, and the five for Stansfield in the following year, quite a
phenomenon, which the parochial history may explain. John
Brend breaks ground in 1654 with the Thrandcston treble,
following on with two fives, for Blaxhall and Yoxford, splicing
in, a mediaeval at Darsham as a third in a ring of four. But in
1657 he evidently regarded himself as having made a great hit.
This was at Wickham Market, where the treble and second bear
bis name, the latter thus girding at the memory of the late man
of Colchester : —
The monument of Graie
Is past awaie.
In place thereof doth stand
The name of John Brend.
South Elmham S. Margaret's upper three belong to the same
year and man, Bures fourth and Horham fourth to 1658.
About that time Miles Graye the younger made the Aldeburgh
tenor ; also the Chilton bell, the old second at Newton-next-
Sudbury, the second at Acton, the second and third at Glcms-
ford, and the trqble at Great Thurlow, all pretty much in the
same neighbourhood. The bell at Brightvvell (1657) bearing
the name of the parish is probably John Hodson's.
John Darbie's star now rises on the horizon, but he must be
reserved for a complete list.
To do justice to the Puritan regime there seems to have been
little or no bell spoliation ; and though Bunyan regarded his
own ringing of bells as a sin, there is nevertheless a charming
allusion to their sweet voices, when he describes the entrance of
Christian into the Celestial City. Milton's magnificent lines : —
" Oft on a plot of rising ground
I hear the far-off Curfew sound,
Over some wide-watered shore,
Swinging slow with sullen roar,"
belong to his earlier career, with
" Or let the merry bells ring round,
And the jocund rebecks sound
To many a youth and many a maid
Dancing in the chequered shade."
122 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Whether he changed his mind about all this we know not,
but we know that it would have been summarily put down in
the cheerful days of the Major-generals. One compulsory peal
in 1650 is recorded in my Church Bells of Cambridgeshire* and
it is worth rehearsing here, as displaying the wariness of the
parish authorities of S. Mary-the-Great, Cambridge, in whose
book is this entry: —
" 1650. Paid to Persyvall Sekole the clarke for the ringers,
by an order from the Maior, on 30 Jan.,-f* being a day of thanks-
giving o . 2.0."
The latter part of the seventeenth century was a mighty time
for bells, and for several reasons we shall lead it off with John
Barbie's list, as for some time he was working at Ipswich, some
of his bells being of excellent tone, and the earliest eight in
Suffolk, Horham, mainly coming from his hand. In 1657 he
cast the fourth at Rodmersham, Kent. This is his earliest date
The Suffolkers run thus :—
1658. Henley, second,
„ Horham, fourth,
„ Sproughton, treble, second, and fourth,
„ Woolpit, fourth and fifth,
1659. Barking, treble and second,
1660. Blakenham, Little, treble and second,
„ Wetheringsett, treble,
„ Witnesham, second, fourth, fifth, and tenor,
1661. Hartest, five bells,
„ Holbrook, fourth,
„ Rougham, treble and second,
„ Soham, Monk, fifth,
„ Tattingstone, first three,
1662. Barrow, treble, fourth, and tenor,
„ Combs, treble,
„ Haverhill, third,
Ipswich, S. Mary-at-Quay, second, third, and tenor,
„ Nacton, second,
* P. 1 08.
t The anniversary of the execution of Charles I
JOHN DARBIE OF IPSWICH. 123
1662. Somcrsham, treble,
„ Sudbury, S. Peter, second,
„ Winston, treble and second,
1663. Burgh Castle, tenor,
„ Chelmondiston bell,
„ Higham, fourth,
„ Horham, sixth and seventh,
„ Kettlebaston, treble,
„ Newton, Old, treble, third, and fourth,
„ Shelley, treble,
„ Soham, Earl, third and tenor,
„ Wickhambrook, tenor,
1664. Barnham, S. Gregory, treble,,
„ Belstead bell,
Belton bell,
„ Elvedon bell,
„ Thetford, S. Mary, fifth,
1665. Grundisburgh, second and fourth, remains of a com-
plete five,
„ Ixworth, second and third,
1666. Battisford bell,
„ Dennington, tenor, 25 cwt (?), very fine,
„ Falkenham, treble and second,
1667. Offton, fourth,
„ Thorndon, second, third, fourth, and fifth,
1668. Brampton, treble,
„ Southwold, fourth and fifth,
„ Wangford, S. Peter, third,
1669. Haverhill, treble,
„ Ipswich, S. Mary-at-Elms, treble, third, and tenor,
„ Mendlesham, fourth,
1670. Sibton, second (he was rather busy in Norfolk and
Cambridgeshire this year),
1671. Gislingham, fifth and tenor, very good,
„ Ipswich, S. Mary-le-Tower, eighth and tenth,
„ Thorndon, tenor (these are among his best bells),
1672. Stowmarket, seventh,
124 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1672. Wickham Market, third,
1673. Kedington, second, third, fourth, and tenor,
1674. Holton, S. Mary, second,
Leiston, fifth,
Stow, West, fifth,
Sudbourne bell,
1675. Higham, S. Mary, second and tenor,
Rushmere, S. Andrew, treble and second,
Timworth, treble and second,
Tuddenham, S. Mary, tenor,
1676. Cavenham, second and tenor,
„ Claydon bell,
„ Groton bell,
„ Hoxne, treble,
„ Lakenheath, tenor, • .
Mildenhall, third (cast for a treble, a singularly fine
bell),
„ Syleham, treble,
1677. Bealings, Little, treble,
„ Copdock, fourth,
,, Elmswell, fourth,
„ Hintlesham, treble,
Southolt bell,
1678. Akenham bell,
„ Hintlesham, second, third, and fourth,
„ Rougham, fourth,
„ SaXstead bell,
„ West/tall> second,
1679. Boyton bell,
„ Orford, third and fourth,
„ Ramsholt bell,
1680. Ipswich, S. Clement, six bells,
Stanton, S. John-the-Baptist, treble, second, and
fourth (in this year he cast the tenor at Isleham,
Cambridgeshire, a magnificent bell,' said to weigh
25 cwt.),
1681. Kelsale, third and tenor,
A POSSIBLE MARRIAGE. 125
1 68 1. Sib ton, treble,
1682. Ipswich, S. Peter, treble,
„ I x worth, treble,
1683. Barham, trcble>
Capel, S. Mary, third,
„ Hacheston, second and fourth,
„ Ipswich, S. Peter, fourth,
Stradbroke, seventh,
1685. HaverkiH, tenor,
Tuddenham, S, Martin, treble,
„ Wattisfield, treble, second, third, and tenor,
„ Yoxford, fifth,
1686. Shotley bell,
Ufford, third,
1691. Stowmarket, third.
This catalogue far exceeds that of Miles Graye the elder,
whose daughter Ann I suspect that he married.
CHAPTER VIII.
Dick Whittington— Call-changes— Early peals— The " Twenty all over,"
or " Christmas Eve ''—7,360 Oxford Treble Bob at Bungay, in 1860.
SOME day modern critics will be down on the story of Dick
Whittington. While as yet we are free from their " triumphant
results," let us receive it, as it is fit. The first of his three Lord
Mayoralties was in 1397 ; and it must have been in the reign of
Edward III. that he heard the Bow bells calling to him, sup-
posing the peal to have been in G :—
Turn a - gain, Whit - ting - ton. Thrice Lord Mayor of Lon - don.
At any rate this sequence is that which all have known as
"Whittington '' by tradition, and the tale is natural enough. It
is an excellent specimen of what is termed a " call-change."
Before bell-machinery had reached its present development,
and while most bells only swung to and fro ih chiming, it was
impossible to change the sequence at every round. So after
thirty or forty rounds of one change, the caller would give the
signal for another, just as it is done in Sunday chiming at the
present day iri many a village church.
There are very few common1 subjects on which there are such
wild ideas as on bell-ringing. Every Christmas in the illustrated
newspapers you see the most grotesque views of ringers plenti-
fully exerting themselves in a way which would ensure their own
destruction and the ruin of the bell-gear. People think that
ringing is a vulgar, low kind of thing, only practised by boors
and a few partially-deranged gentlemen, who ought to be in a
GREAT CHANGE-RINGERS. 12/
private lunatic asylum. Did they know anything of the history
of the Art, they would find that amongst its votaries have been
a nobleman, Lord Brorcton ; a great judge, Sir Matthew Hale ;
senators, as Sir Symonds d'E.wcs; scholars, as Dawes, and many
others, of whose company no honost man need be ashamed.
Nor is the nature of change ringing contemptible, for no small
mathematical skill is involved in the composition of a peal.
These compositions appear to have been unknown till the be-
ginning of the seventeenth century, though the allotment of one
man to each bell in Udall's Ralph Roister Doister seems to
indicate some system of call-changes. But for a change at
every round it was necessary that the mere chiming should be
supplanted by a method which should give to the performers a,
more complete mastery of their instruments ; and that method,
is what is called " ringing," where the bell, which was resting
mouth upwards, swings completely round and balances mouth
upwards again, ; a contrivance called the " stay and slide "
prevents the bell from falling over, should the balance be dis-
turbed. A certain time then, has to elapse between two strokes
of the same bell ; and in arranging the sequence of changes it
is well to keep the place of any particular bell as near as
possible to its place in the preceding change. Thus, if the third
bell were sounding fifth in one change, in the next it should be
sounding fourth or sixth. The simpler peals which are given
by Fabian Stedma.n in his Tintintialogia, published in |66/, are
recorded by him as having originated fifty or sixty years before
his time.
His method for treating four-and-twenty changes on four
bells amounts to "hunting" the treble only. A bell is said to
be " hunted up " as she moves towards the tenor's or last place,
and " hunted down " when she moves towards the treble's or
first place. By observing the sequence of changes, the treble or
first bell being printed in stronger type, this movement will be
manifest, while it should be seen that the other bells stay twice
in each of the middle places, and thrice in the treble's and
tenor's. Each change is called a " single," i.e., a change of place
between two bells only, as though the composer had wished to
produce as little variety as possible.
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1234
2l34
2314
234!
324!
1324
1342
3X42
34X2
342!
4321
4l32
1432
1423
4231
243!
24X3
2X43
1243
A curious method on five is inserted by Stedman for
antiquity's sake. He calls it the " Twenty all over" ; but I find
that it is still well known in Fressingfield by the name of
"Christmas Eve." It is extremely simple. First the treble
hunts tip, while the others change no more than to make room
for it.
12345
21345
23145
23415
23451
Now the second does the same thing.
32451
34251
3452 1
The third now hunts.
45123
Now the fourth.
54123
51423
51243
51234
And lastly the tenor, which brings the bells round again.
15234
12534
12364
12345
48512
453i2
PLAIN CHANGES ON FIVE.
129
Here every change is a " single." The twenty changes arise,
of course, from there being four in each of the five hunts.
Another method called "Cambridge Eight-and-Forty " will
be found in my Church Bells of Cambridgeshire.
But the//rt/« changes on five bells are worthy of preservation.
12345 41235 51432 51324
21345 42135 54l32 53124
23145 42315 54312 53214
23415 4235! 5432! 5324!
2345! 2435! 5423! 5342!
3245! 24315 54213 53412
32415 2435 54123 53142
32145 21435 51423 51342
31245 12435 15423 15342
13245 12453 15243 13542
13425 21453 51243 31542
31425 24153 52143 35M2
3425 24513 52413 35412
34215 2453! 5243! 35421
3425! 4253! 2543! 3524!
3452! 42513 25413 35214
34512 42153 25143 35124
3452 41253 21543 31524
31452 14253 12543 13524
13452 14523 12534 13254
14352 41523 21534 31254
4352 45123 25134 32154
43152 45213 25314 325U
43512 4523! 2534! 3254
43251 45321 5234 2354
43521 45312 523U 23514
43215 45132 52134 23154
43125 4532 51234 21354
4325 14532 15234 12354
14325 15423 15324 12345
14235
If Dr. Burney could assure his readers that the Tintinnalogia
is " not beneath the notice of musicians who wish to explore all
the regions of natural melody : as in this little book they will
see every possible change in the arrangement of Diatonic
sounds, from 2 to 12, which being reduced to musical notes,
would, in spite of all which has hitherto been written, point out
innumerable passages, that would be new in melody and musical
130 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
composition,"* I may venture to claim at least as high a regard
for the modern peals, in which the bells are more freely moved
about amongst each other.
This method is easily applicable to any number of bells,
One of the six bell methods based upon it, the tenor and fifth
"hunted down," is called the " £sg it ire's Twelve-score" proving
by its name that bell-ringing two centuries ago was a gentle-
man's amusement.
I do not, however, intend to enlarge further on the subject of
change-ringing, on which there are plenty of good treatises, nor
to attempt a record of the most remarkable peals rung in the
county, this being a work undertaken by Mr. Slater of Glems-
ford. However, as I have now the honour to hold the post of
President of the Diocesan Society of Change Ringers, it would
have been unbecoming in me to pass the subject in silence, nor
must I be guilty of ingratitude in forgetting a certain 7,360 of
Oxford Treble Bob Major, rung to welcome my bride and
myself thirty years ago,-f- when I was Master of Bungay
Grammar School, and a member of that Society of Ringers.
The band consisted of
Benjamin Smith, treble, Benjamin Spilling, fifth,
William Sheldrake, second, . Jarvis Crickmore, sixth,
George Adams, third, Thomas Spalding, seventh,
Peter Page, fourth, Captain A. P. Moore, tenor.
Of this company, Messrs. Smith and Sheldrake, on the
previous Friday, had rung 10,080 of the same method at Reden-
hall, taking the treble and third respectively. The second was
taken by John Ellis, who was sixty-eight years old at the time.
The 7,360 took 4 hours 40 minutes, and the 10,080, 6 hours
25 minutes.
* Burney, General History of Musk, iii., 413. He give? a sprightly "Five Bell
Consorte " by John Jenkins, which he traces to Fabian Stedman's Tintinnalogia.
t Monday, March 26th, 1860.
CHAPTER IX.
Later bells— Robard Gurney of Bury— Christopher Hodson of S. Mary
Cray— Miles Graye the younger— A solitary bell of Christopher Graye's at
Thrandeston— His difficulties in Cambridgeshire— Is succeeded by Charles
Newman, and the foundry taken to Lynn — Thomas Newman at Bracondale
and Bury— John Stephens— Sudbury and its founders— Henry Pleasant —
Thomas Gardiner— His critic at Edwardstone— John Goldsmith of Redgrave
— Ransomes and Sims — London founders — Newton and Peele — Catlin — The
Whitechapel men— Phelps and his record of Dr. Sacheverell at Charsfield—
His eight at Bury S. Mary's— Lester— Pack — A failure at Beccles— Chapman
—The Mears family — Benefactions of the Suffolk nobility and others — The
Warners of Cripplegate— A ship's bell from Stockholm at Lavenheath— John
Briant of Exning— The St. Neot's men and their successors— Joseph Eayre
— Arnold— The Taylors of Loughborough— Osborn and Dobson of Down-
ham Market— Birmingham founders— Blews at Lowestoft— Carr at New-
bourne— The Redenhall foundry— Recommendation to Southwold— Jubilee
bells at Mildenhall — Conclusion.
ROBARD GURNEY, of Bury S. Edmund's, a son of the Andrew
Gurney already mentioned, first appears in his father's will,
dated 1643. He had accommodated his father with the loan of
2 cwt. of metal, which kindness is requited with a legacy of 3
cwt, " with all my tooles and moulds for to worke with all, as to
my trade belongeth."
In 1649, as I find from a communication from the Rev. A. F.
Torry, late fellow and dean of S. John's College, Cambridge, he
recast the bells for that college, the cost of recasting, for new
metal, and to the Bury carrier being £4 i8s. gd* His earliest
existing date is 1652, both in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire
(Impington third). The Suffolk list follows : —
1652. Bradley, Little, bell,
* In spite of this, the bell still bears the date 1624, and the initials W. I .
1 32 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1663. Santon Dovvnham bell,
1664. Stanningficld, treble,
1665. Worlington, second (a very good bell),
1666. Tuddenham, S. Mary, second,
1667. Alpheton, two bells,
1668. Bradfield, S. George, second and third,
„ Felsham, treble,
„ Foslingford, treble, second, and third,
„ Wangford, S. Denis, bell,
1670. Elmswcll, treble,
1671. Tostock, tenor,
„ Welnetham, Little, tenor,
1672. Tuddenham, S. Mary, treble,
1673. Onehouse, treble.
I consider him as unusually variant in his work. Some of
his bells are detestable. Mr. Deedes notices the curiously trun-
cated character of their edges. The Andrew Gurney, whose
wife's name was Mary, who had a son Robert baptized in 1667,
and was a legatee to the extent of £3 by will of his spinster
sister Mary, was almost certainly a brother. There was also a
sister Alice, who married a Jennings of Wickhambrook, and a
kinsman Thomas.
Had it not been for Lothingland there would not have been
a single bell in the county made by Edward Tooke, of Norwich.
As it is there are three : —
1675. Blundeston, the larger of the two,
1676. Oulton, treble,
1677. „ second.
His operations lasted from 1671 to 1679, when he died, and
was buried in All Saints' parish. He was the second son of
William Tooke, Alderman of Norwich, and Sheriff in 1650.
These little bells of his in Suffolk call for no remark.
The London founders could hardly get their noses into the
county during the heyday of John Darbie. John Hodson cast
the Kersey fifth and the Shelley tenor in 1662, and Christopher,
his son presumably, the fourth for Ipswich S. Mary-le-Tower
and the East Bergholt fourth in 1688, and the Kersey fourth in
S. MARY CRAY. 133
the following year. Their bells are more notable for the Stuart
coins on them than for specially fine tone. The family, I think,
was of Cambridge extraction, the name of Christopher Hodson,
gentleman, appearing in the Corporation Lease-book in the year
1589.* The locality of the London foundry is not known.
Christopher was in a kind of partnership with his father for four
or five years before 1677, when he removed to S. Mary Cray,
when his foundry was " in the High Street, on or about the spot
where the blacksmith's forge now stands, under the chestnut
tree at the foot of the hill on which the vicarage is built."f No
doubt Christopher each day attempted and did something to
earn a night's repose, but it could not well have been always at
Cray.
The situation is too awkward. He probably itinerated, and
as he cast Great Tom of Oxford in 1680, it would be worth
while seeing whether the Christchurch compoti for that year
throw any light on the point. That Great Tom is a poor bell
considering its weight, 7 tons 12 cwt.
I return to Miles Graye the younger, whom we have already
seen at Brantham and Stansfield. He was in Bedfordshire and
Cambridgeshire from 1653 to 1656. These are also from him : —
1656. Cockfield, third,
1658. Chilton bell,
„ Neivton-iiext-Sudbury, second,
1659. Acton, second,
„ Glemsford, second and third,
1660. Thurlow, Great, treble,
1 66 1. Clare, fifth,
1662. Stanstcad, third and fourth,
1663. Acton, third,
„ Edwardstone, fifth,
1664. Cornard, Great, third,
„ Newton-ncxt-Sudbury, fifth,
„ Wiston, second,
(He is in Cambridgeshire for the next three years.)
* Church Bells of Cambridgeshire, p. 88.
t Stahlschmidt's Church Bells of Kent, p. 97.
134 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1671. Assington, treble,
1672. Melford, Long, S. Catherine's Mission Room bell,
which used to hang on the tower of the Parish
Church,
1678. Hadleigh, treble and second,
1679. „ third,
1680. „ tenor, a fine bell, estimated to weigh 28 cwt,
1681. Somerton, third,
1683. Bildeston, third,
„ Hawkedon, five, the fourth since recast,
1684. Stutton, first three,
1685. Acton, tenor.
Another storm of politics was then raging over England, and
some zealous Abhorrer marks the Acton tenor with " God save
the King." About the middle of June in the following year,
when James's Irish policy was in full bud, Miles Graye died at
Colchester, leaving a shilling each to his children Samuel,
Francis, Myles, James, Francis and Jane, and the residue to his
widow Elizabeth. The gifts of his father had not fully de-
scended to him or to his elder brother Christopher, whom we
have only at Thrandeston, for which church he cast the fifth in
1678.
In my Cambridgeshire book I traced him to Ampthill in
1659. There can -be no doubt that in 1677 he was at Ipswich
helping John Darbie, for Mr. L'Estrange* says that the former
name is on the third, and the latter on the fourth at East
Harling, both dated 1677, while in the churchwardens' accounts
the item of 2s. 6d. appear " for writen the Artickells and the
bond between John Darby and the Towen," £i 6s. od. for
bell-clappers bought of John Hollwell of Ipswich, and £3 6s. od.
" payed John Darby in money for tow new bells casting." As
no bells of Christopher Graye's are known to bear date 1673,
1674, 1675, 1676, the probability is very strong that all this
time he was helping Darbie, and that the Thrandeston tenor
was made at Ipswich, like the East Harling third.
* Church Bdh of Norfolk p 67.
AN EMERGENCY. 135
Being at Haddenham in 1683, very likely he was the man
about whom the Rev. J. M. Freeman of Haddenham relates the
following local story : — " An old inhabitant recalls a tradition of
his early youth, some fifty years since, to the effect that there
lived a bell-founder in this place in the olden time ; and that on
one memorable occasion, when the operation of melting the
metal had reached a critical stage, it was found that there was
a deficiency in the supply of materials ; a few moments more
and the process would be endangered, if not spoilt. Acting at
once on the maxim that 'the end justifies the means,' our
traditional ' man of metal ' rushed frantically from his foundry
and made his way to a neighbouring inn — the present ' Rose
and Crown,' so the story goes — making an unceremonious raid
upon the establishment, 'whipping up' the pewter pots and
measures, as well as the ordinary vessels available for the
purpose. These were hurriedly conveyed home and cast into
the furnace in time, let us hope, to meet the exigences of the
case. Passing, however, to the present time, I may just add,
that in digging for the foundation of the new tower, a cavity
was found in the rock, containing cinder ashes, portions of bell-
metal and mussel shells, from which circumstances it has been
conjectured that the church bells were, for convenience sake,
cast on the very spot over which they were destined to hang."*
From Haddenham records it is pretty plain that there was
some connection between Christopher Graye and Charles
Newman, who in 1684 seems to have moved on to Lynn from
that village. Some of his bells are very good, and the county
contains about thirty of them : —
1686. Glemsford, tenor,
„ Hemingstone bell,
1688. Boxford, fourth,
1 69 1 . Redgrave, five bells,
1692. Stutton, second,
1693. Clare, tenor,
1695. Wickhambrook, second,
* Cam&ru/ft Chronicli, February 5th, 1876.
I36 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1696. Bentley bell,
Bury S. Edmund's, St. Marys, tenor,
1697. Lakenheath, fourth,
„ Livcrmere, Little, bell,
Stradbroke, third,
1698. Buxhall, fourth,
„ Lidgate, third,
„ Occold, third,
„ Timworth, third,
1699. Bacton, treble,
„ Bradfield, S. Clare, tenor,
Cockfield, third,
„. Kettlebaston, second (?),
„ Stowmarket, fifth,
„ Thurston, fourth,
„ Walsham-le- Willows, second and third,
1700. Cockfield, second,
„ Erwarton bell,
Walsham-le-Willows, treble,
1701. Hundon, second,
Thornham, Great, treble, second, and fourth,
1702. Barham, third.
This number pretty nearly equals that in Norfolk. There
are some eight in Cambridgeshire, and none elsewhere.
Comparing the Norfolk work with the Suffolk in 1699, his
busiest year, I am inclined to think that he had returned to
Lynn, after a ramble into West and South Suffolk. He seems
to have made use of water-carriage both by river and sea. The
bell at Blakeney was made by him in 1699, and two years
afterwards the churchwardens of S. Laurence's, Norwich, fetched
their tenor from the same little port, which is hardly possible to
have been used as a business centre. Most of the contempora-
neous Suffolk bells are within a fair distance of the river Lark ;
and Lakenheath Lode would have carried the bell for that
parish from the Little Ouse very conveniently.
The arabesques on Charles Newman's bells are something
like John Barbie's. His wife's Christian name was Alice.
THOMAS NEWMAN. 137
While they were living at Haddenham, in 1682, she bore him a
son Thomas, whose Suffolk works we shall have occasion to
mention.
The wanderings of Thomas Newman were more frequent
than extensive. He was born at Haddenham, April 2nd, 1682,
and baptized on the I3th of the same month. The presence of
Charles Newman's ornament on his earlier bells is to be noted.
He began work when he 'Was only nineteen years of age, his
earliest date being 1701. In the following year his head-
quarters were at Norwich,* and after a few single casts, he
adventured himself on a ring of five at Tunstead, Norfolk, cast-
ing them (according to tradition) in the churchyard, with no
remarkable success. Two little fives of his in Cambridgeshire,
Cambridge Holy Trinity and Foulmire, cast in 1705 and 1704,
are of poor quality. His Suffolk list contains nothing very
remarkable, the peculiarity of his bells, in my opinion, being
their inability to make themselves heard among their fellows.
Here it is : —
1704. Culford bell,
„ Walsham-le- Willows, fifth and tenor,
1706. Somerleyton, tenor,
1707. Elmham, South, S. James, second,
1711. Blythford bell,
„ Kessingland, second,
„ Rushbrooke, tenor,
1727. Thornham, Little, bell,
1728. Kessingland, third,
„ Pakefield, tenor, " at Norwich,"
1729. Haverhill, tenor,
1730. Lound, three bells,
„ Lowestoft, S. Margaret, bell,
„ Sapiston, second,
1732. Burgh Castle, treble and second,
„ Mildenhall, third and fourth,
1733. Bardwell, fourth,
* Tcsle, the bell at Howe, Norfolk.
138 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1733. Rushbrooke, tenor,
1734. Cowlinge, treble and second,
1735. Ashfield, Great, treble,
Kentford, three bells,
Lackford bell,
Lawshall, five bells,
Pakenham, fourth, "at Bury,"
Shimpling, first four,
1736. Redgrave, lower five out of six,
1737. Brome, five bells,
„ Palgrave, six bells,
1738. Boxstead, second,
1741. Fressingfield, third, fourth, and/////,
„ Herringswell, treble,
„ Rickinghall Superior, tenor,
1742. Wingfield, treble,
1744. Mildenliall Clock bell (a good bell),
1745. Ashfield, Great, second,
„ Wrentham, fourth,
In 1719, in conjunction with Thomas Gardiner, he cast the
tenor for Newmarket S. Mary. One thing is to be noticed in
his favour, that where he cast once, he very often cast again.
Between 1711 and 1727 he was very busy in Norfolk, and after-
wards in Cambridgeshire, Cambridge being his headquarters in
1724, when he cast the tenor for Berden, Essex, and in the
following year when he received money for the " brasses "
(sockets for the gudgeons to turn in) for S. Benedict's, Cam-
bridge. But a reference to the foregoing list will show that
before long he was back in Norwich, his foundry occupying the
spot in " Brakindel," where now the "Richmond Hill" public-
house stands. All the 1735 bells were doubtless cast at Bury.
He was of a poetical turn, no " mute inglorious Milton." As
early as 1706 his genius burst forth at Worstead in
" I tell all that doth me see,
That Newman in Brakindel did new cast mee."
In 1707 he married Susan Aspland of Haddenham, who
BRACONDALE. 139
seems to have survived him, for the entry of his burial in S.
John Sepulchre, April 2Oth, 1745, describes him as a married
man.
But neither family cares nor business trials could quench his
light, which culminated in a lambent flame in 1732, when
" Thomas Newman cast me new
In 1732 (tew),"
occurs at Burgh Castle, Mildenhall, and Winfarthing.
Metaphor as well as rhyme occurs at Great Ashfield —
" Pull on, brave boys, I am metal to the back-
bone, but will be hanged before I crack.1'
During his absence from Suffolk the Bracondale foundry was
occupied by John Stephens, a very fair workman, from whom
we have some twenty bells : —
1718. Burgh, S. Botolph, five bells (a treble afterwards
added),
„ Framlingham, treble and second to complete the
octave. This seems to have been the second or
third eight in Suffolk, Bungay S. Mary trebles to
the old eight bearing the same date.
1720. Bealings, Great, second,
„ Framlingham, third,
1721. Eye, treble, second, and third. This seems to have
been the third eight in Suffolk.
,, Hawkendon, fourth,
Tiinslall, six bells,
Wangford, S. Peter, fourth,
1722. Mettingham, second,
1723. Thorpe-by-Ixworth bell,
„ Mildenhall, tenor,
1724. Hessett, five bells (the fourth since recast),
1726. Ringsficld, treble,
1727. Bergholt, East, tenor (a fine bell),
This was about his last work. His burial at S. John
Sepulchre was on October I2th of that year, "widower." After
I40 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
his death the Bracondale foundry was occupied for a short time
by Thomas Gardiner, of whom we shall speak presently, and
with whom the long chronicle of Norwich founding ends.
Gardiner forms a good connecting link between Norwich and
Sudbury, to which latter town we will now turn, when Henry
Pleasant, another poetaster, was at work, taking in the district
the place of the younger Miles Graye. His list follows : —
1691. Peasenhall, second,
1692. Barnard iston, fourth,
1694. Orford, second,
„ Sibton, tenor,
1695. Bradfield, S. George, treble,
„ Drinkstone, tenor,
„ Welnetham, Great, bell,
1696. Drinkstone, second and fourth, third and fifth,
„ Hawstead, second and third,
1697. Hitcham, fourth,
1698. Nayland, second,
1699. Stoke-by-Nayland, fifth,
1700. Offton, second and fifth,
1701. Euston, first three,
„ Sudbury, All Saints, third,
„ Westhorpe, first two,
1702. Haughley, treble,
„ Lavenham, third and seventh,
„ Preston, fifth,
1703. Lavenham, fifth,
„ Wetherden, tenor,
1704. Preston, tenor,
1706. Eyke, second,
„ Framsden, tenor,
„ Ipswich, S. Nicholas, five bells, save the second,
„ Stonham, East, treble,
„ Stutton, third,
1707. Cornard, Little, second and third; and Brettenham
treble, undated.
He was evidently proud of his name, and in the last year of
his life celebrated it thus at Maldon : —
PLEASANT POETRY. 14!
" When three this steeple long did hold,
We were the emblems of a scold.
No music then, but we shall see
What Pleasant music six will be."
At Thetford S. Cuthbert's he simply records : —
" Henry Pleasant did me run
In the year 1701."
and with sublime idiom at Ipswich S. Nicholas : —
" Henry Pleasant have at last
Made as good as can be cast."
Mr. L'Estrange* quotes a writer in the Bury and Norwich Post,
probably the late Rev. Dr. Badham of Sudbury, to the effect
that Pleasant succeeded the Grayes at Colchester about 1686,
and afterwards removed his foundry to Sudbury. He also
speaks of Pleasant as casting at Bracondale about 1705, and
that he was in some way acting with Charles Newman about
that time appears from the fact that while two bells at Blickling,
dated 1703, bear the name of the latter, three years afterwards
the parish recovered three pounds of the former.
His English will not allow of his being considered the author
of the not faultless hexameter on the tenor at Ipswich S.
Nicholas : —
" Marlburio duce castra cano vastata inimicis," which records
that great general's victory over Villeroy at Ramilies.
He left behind him a widow, Milicent, to whom letters of
administration were granted February I2th, 1708.
John Thornton, whose bells generally please me, followed
him, casting in
1708, Cornard, Great, treble, second, and tenor,
1712, Cornard, Little, bell,
„ Thurlow, Great, fourth,
(both these in conjunction with John Waylett,)
1716, Acton, treble,
• Church Bells of Norfolk, p. 67.
1 42 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1718, Boxford, tenor (his most important work),
„ Burstall, three bells,
„ Withersficld, fourth,
1719, Wiston, tenor,
1720, Hundon, tenor.
There are also nice tenors of his at Cheveley and West
Wickham, and a neat little five at Newmarket All Saints, all
given in my Cambridgeshire book, and three bells in Norfolk,
at Pulham S. Mary-the-Virgin, and Shropham. Otherwise he
is not found but in Suffolk and Essex. His "infrequent
partner," Waylett, however, is known in Sussex (1715-1724),
Hertfordshire (1716), Kent (1717-1727), and Surrey (1718).
Some of Waylett's work in the South was done for Samuel
Knight of Reading. He appears to have been a good, though
rough workman, but he hardly belongs to us, and we will pass
to the last Sudbury founder, who has been already mentioned,
Thomas Gardiner. He started just after Thornton, his earliest
date being 1709, when like others of the craft, his first efforts
were not fully appreciated. Edwardstone was the earliest scene
of his labours, where he was entrusted with splicing in three
Miles Grayes (two of the elder and one of the younger) as third,
fourth, and fifth in a ring of six. No fault apparently was
found with his treble ; but a local genius, one William Culpeck,
otherwise to fame unknown, disagreed with him about the note
of the second, designated him as a " want-wit," then no uncom-
mon term of reproach, as we know from the Pilgrim's Progress,
and humbled him by compelling him to cast on that bell these
words, "Tvned by Wm- Culpeck, 1710." But a quarrel with a
founder is like a quarrel with a newspaper editor, and Gardiner
had his revenge of the last word on casting the tenor, which he
inscribed : —
" About ty second Cvlpeck is wrett
Becavse the fovnder wanted wett
Thair jvdgments were bvt bad at last
Or elce this bell I never had cast.
Tho. Gardiner."
Etymologically this is valuable, " ty " being the representative
AN ALLEGED WANT-WIT. 143
of "the," well-known to all who talk the beloved East Anglian
tongue, and " wctt " for " wit," shows the local pronunciation at
the beginning of the eighteenth century.
At Ickworth he writes —
" Tho. Gardiner he me did cast,
I'll sing his praise unto the last,"
but otherwise he is plain enough, save that he sometimes puts
on his bells impressions of coins, as at Pakefield, where I found
those of a coin of John V. of Portugal, dated 1745, and a half-
penny of our George II., and uses a small cross reduced from a
mediaeval one at S. Giles's, Norwich. His Suffolk list is a long
one : —
1709. 1710. Edwardstone, treble, second, and tenor,
1710. Badingham, fourth,
1711. Ickworth bell,
1712. Weston, Market, treble,
1713. Rendlesham, second,
„ Snape, tenor,
1714. Boxford, treble,
„ Campsey Ash, second,
„ Hemley bell,
„ Rendlesham, treble,
Waldringfield bell,
„ Wenham, Little, bell,
„ Wrentham, third,
1715. Bredfield, third,
„ Mickfield, tenor,
1716. Hinderclay, second,
„ Kersey, treble, second, and clock bell,
„ Sternfield, third,
„ Sweffling, tenor,
1717. Witnesham, tenor,
1718. Bildeston, tenor,
„ Chediston, treble,
„ Sweffling, third,
„ Wissett, second, third, and tenor (at Benhall),
1719. Wattisham, treble,
144 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
1719. Wyverstone, second,
1720. Huntingfield, five (the treble recast),
Knettishall, treble,
1721. Lidgate, tenor,
1722. Barningham, tenor,
„ Glemham, Great, second,
Harkstead, third, fourth, and tenor,
„ Hintlesham, fourth,
„ Holbrook, tenor,
,, Huntingfield, treble,
1723. Wrentham, treble,
1725. Poslingford, fourth,
Stoke-by-Nayland, treble,
„ Thetford, S. Mary, fourth,
„ Weston, Market, tenor,
1726. Clare, clock bell,
Greeting, S. Peter, bell,
„ Elmsett, treble,
Hep worth, first three,
„ Hundon, third,
1727. Greeting, S. Mary, bell,
„ Stonham, Earl, second,
1728. Falkenham, third and fourth,
„ Rumburgh, third,
1729. Campsey Ash, third,
„ Thelnetham, tenor,
1730. Euston, fourth,
1731. Barton, Great, treble,
„ Easton, treble,
1732. Burgate, tenor,
„ Ipswich, S. Mary-at-Quay, treble,
'733- Ipswich, S. Peter, second,
1734. Hinderclay, fifth,
1735. Barnham, S. Gregory, second and tenor,
„ Ipswich, S. Peter, fifth,
Offton, treble,
1737. Winston, fourth,
GOLDSMITH OF REDGRAVE. 145
1739. Orford, tenor,
1740. Alderton bell,
„ Westhorpe, third,
1743. Eriswell, tenor,
„ Kedington, second,
„ Stradishall, treble,
1744. Hitcham, tenor,
„ Preston, fourth,
1745. Stratford, S. Mary, second (in this year he removed to
Norwich),
1746. Burgate, treble and second,
1747. Acton, fourth (surely from Sudbury),
1748. Mendham, treble, second, fourth, and tenor,
1749. Pakefield, treble,
1750. Cove, North, treble and second,
1751. Mildetihall, tenor (" Norwich," a fine bell),
„ Ipswich, Holy Trinity, bell,
1754. Boxford, third \
„ Glemsford, fourth [ (all of these two years at
Rattlesden, first four Sudbury).
1755. Dalham, treble
His latest known date is 1759, on two bells at Danbury,
Essex. The writer in the Bury Post, already quoted, says that
the Hospitallers' Yard, near Ballingdon Bridge, and Curds or
Silkweaver's Lane were successively the sites of foundries.
This is all that can be said about Gardiner, save that in poetry
Dr. Johnson would have called him a "barren rascal," for he
uses the same jingle in 1754 as at Ickvvorth in 1711. And now
comes a man of some little local interest, John Goldsmith of
Redgrave, no poet, but fortunately a preserver of ancient dedi-
cations, his bells being frequently inscribed " Maria," " Gabriel,"
etc. In tone his bells are rather sweet than powerful. About
twenty of them remain in Norfolk and Suffolk, and none in any
other county. I append a complete list, with N. before those
from Norfolk.
1702. Badley, second, Maria.
„ „ third, Margaret.
T
146 THE CHURCH fcELLS OF SUFFOLK.
N. 1707. Frenze bell.
N. 1708. Pulham, S. Mary-the-Virgin, fifth, Margaret.
1710. Darmsden bell, Maria.
1711. Hoxne, third, Gabriel.
„ Oakley, Great, treble, Margaret.
„ „ second and fifth,
N. 1711. Shimpling, third (split).
„ Thetford, S. Mary, tenor, Maria.
N. „ Terrington, S. Clement, second, Maria.
1712. Rickinghall Superior, second, third, fourth, and
fifth (very small).
N. „ Ellingham, Little, bell,
N. „ Rushall bell.
N. „ Thorpe Abbot's, second.
1713. Wilby, treble,
We know from Tom Martin that the tenor at Thetford S.
Mary was inscribed : —
+ Dona jacpcnfce $fa. 3&ogo J«agt>alena |&aria,
from which it appears that Goldsmith's learning did not extend
to deciphering the whole inscription, or he would have lettered
his recast bell Magdalen instead of Maria.
His Margarets were probably Brasycr's, bearing
+ Jfac $£argarcta. JloWs ?l?cc JHuntra Seta, or Londoners with
* $?cc .flora ©ampana ^slargareta 3Est .flominata.
His Gabriel, the Hoxrie third, was no doubt the Angelus bell
of that parish, probably a Brasyer, with the well-known
+ $ac En ©oiulabc. (Sabrid Jlunc JjJange jibuabe.
With the solitary exception of Tattington tenor, cast by the
well-known firm of Ransomes and Sims, at Ipswich, in 1853,
the record of bells cast in the county now closes.
Having now altogether disposed of the bells of East Anglian
make in Suffolk, we will revert to the Metropolis.
There are two sui generis at Kelsale, and one at Crowfield.
All the rest come from the great foundry of Whitechapel, from
which as yet we have only had one specimen, the bell at Great
Finborough, 1609.
The Kelsale bells in question are the second and the sixth,
WHITICIIAPEL.
147
both dated 1708, the former bearing the name of John Pecle,
the latter that of Samuel Newton also. The site of their
foundry is denoted by a court called Founder's Court, in the
parish of S. Giles, Cripplegate, marked in old Ward maps.
Newton was the master, and Peele the apprentice. Though the
former was Master of the Founders' Company in 1711, there
are very few of his bells in existence. The same remark applies
to the latter, son of Samuel Peele, " latt of Bishopsgatt silkman
deceased," whose apprenticeship was out in 1704, and who died
in reduced circumstances between 1752 and 1755.* The Crow-
field bell was made in 1740 by Robert Catlin, who in that year
was elected a " love brother " of the Founders' Company, and
took up the business of Samuel Knight of Holborn.f
Fig. 88.
Nearly a century separates the two first Whitechapel bells.
The Somerleyton second is by James Bartlett in 1700, and
bears a well-known mark of his (fig. 88). The name of the
donor, Sir Richard Allen, Bart., appears on it.
James Bartlett, the elder son of Anthony Bartlett, a "lone
man," wrought for about a quarter of a century, doing more
work in the home counties than in East Anglia, where there are
* Stahlschmidt's C. B. of Kent, pp. 103, 104.
t P. 108.
148 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
three small College-chapel bells in Cambridge, and three not
very notable specimens in Norfolk, besides this Somerleyton
second. He died in 1701 intestate, and letters of administration
were granted to his sister, Elizabeth Bixon, widow. He was
succeeded by a very able man, Robert Phelps, said to have been
a native of Avebury in Wiltshire, from whom we have :—
1710. Charsfield, treble,
1711. Kettleburgh, treble,
1723. Bruisyard, treble,
1728. Ottley, second,
„ Stonham, Little, tenor,
1729. Rendham, second,
1731. Bedfield, second,
1734. Bures, second and third,
„ Bury, S. Mary's, eight bells, splicing in the present
fourth, a William Brend. Weight of tenor, 24
cwt, in D sharp, very good,
„ Soham, Monk, second,
1735. Bredfield, second,
1736. Helmingham, third,
„ Trimley, S. Mary's, bell,
1737. Ringshall, treble.
The first on the list has a truly notable legend : — " Sic Sache-
verellvs [ore melos] immortali olli [ecclesiae defensori h] anc dicat
[Gvlielmvs] Leman de Cherfsfield Eqves 1710. R. Phelps]."
This is restored from Carthew's MS., and though "constructio
latet," as Porson would have said, there can be no doubt as to
the political feeling which dictated it. But the immortality of
Dr. Sacheverell is not very enviable, and though " Hoy for Hoy
Church and Sachefrel " was the shout at many a harvest home,*
it may be doubted whether the name would have got into
history save for that zeal which prompted his impeachment.
However, Sir William Leman thought well of him, and he
may stand in the same hagiology as Thomas of Canterbury,
though only a star of an inferior order. Phelps, described as
* Waverley, ch. li.
THE BECCLES FAILURE. 149
" a man from y High Street," was buried at Whitechapel in
1738.
Thomas Lester, then thirty-three years old, took up his work.
His predecessor had given the county an almost complete eight
at Bury S. Mary's. He followed with six at Coddenham in
1740, either wholly in great part the gift of Theodore Eccleston,
Esq., of Crowfield Hall. But the tenor, of 15 cwt, had to be
recast in 1742, and then two trebles were added. In the three
following years the same generous donor and the same founder
were concerned in the first ten that were ever heard in Suffolk,
the Stonham Aspall bells, tenor 24 cwL ; and the brick tower
at Long Melford delighted by its eight tuneful bells, tenor 16
cwt, the ears of many whose eyes it had outraged. Besides
these he made the two smaller bells at Cotton and the three
smaller at Thelnetham. Soon afterwards he took Thomas
Pack into partnership, and lived on to 1769, when he died of
convulsions.
I have now reached a period with which the antiquary is
hardly concerned ; and I shall only notice the principal works
of later founders. A pleasant five at Ousden, tenor 14"^ cwt,
came from Lester and Pack in 1758, the gift of Thomas Moody,
Esq., and the Reverend Richard Bethell ; then in 1761 followed
the eight at Debenham, tenor 20 cwt, while in the next year
Suffolk saw the smallest five then known, Great Livermere,
tenor 5 cwt, and a mighty ten boomed over the Waveney
valley, from the massive tower at Beccles, tenor 271^ cwt* But
these were originally a bad casting, and it is rather a marvel
how they have lasted so long. The third was recast in 1804,
and the sixth and seventh in 1871, after having existed in a
cracked condition for many years. The treble, second, fourth,
and eighth have wooden crowns, the eighth having also a strong
iron band round the shoulder, though I could not discover
where the crack was. The ninth has a crack in the crown,
which did not amount to much when I examined it in 1861.
On a second visit, in 1869, I found that a piece of metal,
* So by weight, in 1871. Lester and Tack's list gives 28 cwt., and common
repute 29 cwt.
150 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
weighing some 1 5 Ibs., had fallen from the lip of the seventh,
while the fourth chattered, and the vibration of the sixth was a
minimum. In the section of the fracture of the seventh, I
observed that the metal was quite clear and free from honey-
comb, but there was an oval-shaped grain, like the grain of
wood, the nucleus of it in the middle of the fracture. Under
these circumstances the Beccles folk need not be surprised at
further collapses.
I am informed by Mr. S. B. Goslin, of the Cripplegate
foundry, where the sixth and seventh were recast, that the pecu-
liarity noticed by me occurs when castings are poured, the
metal flowing in having a chilled surface or cake, which may
slip in unless sufficient care is exercised, or sometimes from a
chill in the mould, which for some reason may be cooler in one
part than another. In such cases the metal, not being lively
enough with heat, flows sluggishly, hence such faults in the
casting.
After Lester's death Chapman became Pack's partner. They
made five for Gazeley, tenor 10 cwt., in 1775, and a similar ring
for Cavendish in 1779. Pack died of decline in 1781, and
Chapman of consumption in 1784. In the meantime a young
man from Canterbury, William Mcars, had been taken into the
Whitechapel business. His name appears on the little five at
Moulton, tenor 6 cwt. After Chapman's death William Hears
brought in his brother Thomas (said to have been a brewer)
from Canterbury, and the two brothers cast the six for Clopton
in 1788. Nothing of note came from Whitechapel after this
till 1 804, when Thomas Mears made the sixth for Worlingworth.
The Duchess of Chandos, then resident in the parish, Lord
Henniker, Emily, Lady Henniker, and others were benefactors,
as may be seen in the list of inscriptions. The Suffolk nobility
have not been unmindful of the bells on their estates. The Earl
of Dysart gave eight to Helmingham (by Thomas Mears the
younger) in 1815.
In 1820 the inhabitants of Bungay cut down a fine peal of
eight, the second or third oldest in the county, to the present
set, losing some 2 cwt. in the weight of the tenor, though
A SHIP'S BELL. IS1
possibly gaining in equability. The present tenor is in F sharp,
and further information will be found in the list of inscriptions.
Seven for Sudbury S. Gregory's, with a tenor of Pack and
Chapman's, gave that tower a complete Whitechapel eight in
1 82 1, and Polstead exchanged a grand old five (probably with
one or two cracked) for a lighter but tuneful six of Thomas
Mears's in 1825. Norton and Nowton, his last considerable
works in Suffolk, followed in 1829. Fornham S. Martin's six
in 1844 were from his sons, Charles and George Mears, the
latter of whom survived his brother, dying at Landport, Ports-
mouth, in 1873. From his hand we have the five at Ingham,
" offered " (as we find from the bells themselves) " at the church
at Ingham in memory of her Ancestors by Frances Wakeham,
June, 1860."
My fellow-townsman, Mr. Robert Stainbank, took up the
Whitechapel work some time before George Mears's death.
From him we have two sixes, Troston (1868), and Gorleston
(1873), both prompted by the same kindly natal feeling, the
former also notable for the preservation, as far as possible, of
the old inscription. The donors, respectively, were E. Stanley
and Miss Miriam Chevallier Roberts.
The Whitechapel foundry has had of late a formidable rival
in the Warners of Cripplegate. They did a mighty work at
the "Tower" Church, Ipswich, in 1866, putting a treble and a
tenor to the existing ten, and recasting the present ninth, so as
to prevent tuning. Ipswich knows the history of all this work,
and it is as needless for me to rehearse it, as to sing the praises
of the great twelve, from which I heard a good touch of Grand-
sire Cinques in December, 1887, when superintending the
Cambridge Local Examination.
The sixth and seventh at Bcccles were recast by the Cripple-
gate men in 1871. Two trebles were added by them to
Sudbury S. Peter's in 1874, and All Saints' followed suit two
years afterwards.
A single bell by Oliver of Wapping hangs in Stowupland
bell-cot. I know no more of the make.
In Lavenhcath tinkles an old ship's bell, rather curious than
antique, bearing the words —
152 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
" Back Skieppet ADoLF Guten
Bygdt Stockholm
i Jacobstad A. X. 1801 af Gerhard Homer."
When the good barque Adolphus, built at Jacobstad, on the
east coast of the Gulf of Bothnia, perished, I know not, or how
the bell came to Lavenheath. " Guten " may be noted as the
Scandinavian for "cast," and compared with the Flemish
" ghegoten."
We must now notice a few Suffolk bells by a Suffolk man,
John Briant, of Exning, born there in the middle of the last
century, and intended for Holy Orders. His love for mechanics
and clock-making, however, regulated his destiny, and he
developed into bell-founding at Hertford about 1781, when he
made the five for Great Thurlow, tenor 13 cwt. In 1800 he
cast the old five at Great Waldringfield into six, an achievement
which we do not find recorded in his lists. In 1807 and the
two following years he recast the tenor at Little Thurlow,
added a treble to Gazeley, and recast the third and fourth
(apparently Thomas Newman's) at Cowlinge.
For some years he had the benefit of the foremanship of
Islip Edmunds, who had served Arnold in the same capacity.
An honest, capable, and enthusiastic member of his craft, his
advice was sought by the Dean and Chapter of Lincoln when
the old " Great Tom " was broken, though at the time he had
given up the foundry. His sensible, straightforward correspon-
dence may be read in North and Stahlschmidt's Church Bells of
Hertfordshire* and the course of events abundantly justified
his counsel. It is painful to record that he fell into difficulties
through his unselfishness, and ended his days as a pensioner in
the Spencer Almshouses at Hertford, in 1829, not living to
witness the completion of the New " Tom o' Lincoln" in 1834.
The great Leicester foundry of the Newcombes and Wattses,
though claiming, as it seems, East Anglian, origin by the free
use of Brasyer's Norwich shield, did not touch Suffolk ; but
Joseph Eayre of S. Neot's, who for his part claimed business
Pp. 57, &c.
DOWNHAM MARKET. 153
descent from Watts, has left his mark at Havcrhill, when he
recast the fourth in 1765. His foreman, Thomas Osborn, and
his cousin, Edward Arnold, continued the foundry for a little
time, but soon separated, the former going to Downham Market.
From the latter we have a little ring of five at Whepstead
(1774), and a recast or two. Towards the end of the century
Arnold brought the foundry back to Leicester, and was suc-
ceeded by Robert Taylor, one of whose sons, John, with his
elder brother William, after working at Oxford, and in Devon-
shire and Cornwall, finally took up his quarters at Loughborough
in 1840. Their first Suffolk work to be noted is the turning of
the "Tower" eight into ten in 1845.
When I was a boy, disliking much the noise in Worlington
tower, I got up a subscription, and the Taylors recast the fourth
and added a treble there.
Ten years afterwards they put the Mildenhall folk into
possession of a tuneable six, and nine years after that recast
the three for Herringswell, after the fire at that interesting
little church. Then 1879 saw the octave completed at Strad-
broke, during the incumbency of the present Bishop of Liverpool,
and in 1884 filial and fraternal affection moved the members of
the well-known family of Garrett of Leiston to do the same
work for their parish church. A peculiarity of St. Neot's work
used to be the heavy clapping of 1,4, 6, 8. I know not whether
this is still observed. The effect would be manifest.
From the St. Neot's foundry arose that at Downham Market.
Thomas Osborn, son of Richard Osborn, joiner of that town,
baptized 1741, had been foreman to Joseph Eayre, and for a
while partner with Arnold. About 1778 they dissolved partner-
ship, and Osborn returned to his native place, where he
conducted an extensive business. For a short time he was in
partnership with Robert Patrick of Whitechapel (from whom by
himself we have Holbrook third, 1783) ; but the bulk of his
work bears no name but his own.
He made between sixty and seventy bells in our county, the
earliest being Great Barton third, in 1779, and the latest, Little
Glemham treble and Woodbridge eight, twenty years afterwards.
U
154 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
His work is generally held in good repute, and his chef d'cenvre
is the fine ten in the Norman tower at Bury, in D, tenor 30
cwt.* He died in December, 1806, and lies in Downham
Market Churchyard. For the last six years of his life his name
seldom occurs, his grandson, William Dobson, managing the
foundry. Suffolk has but two bells of this time, Coney Weston
bell, 1802, and Hadleigh fifth, 1806. Afterwards Dobson cast
between thirty and forty of our bells, none of more note than
the treble and second at Lavenham in i8ii,a little five for
Brandon in 1815, and the Horningsheath (Horringer) six in
1818. His work is very variable, from the excellent peal at
Diss to the not excellent peal at S. Nicholas, Liverpool. After
a while he fell into difficulties. Thomas Hears of Whitechapel
purchased his business in 1833. He went to London, was made
a brother of the Charterhouse, when he died and was buried in
I842.f
From Birmingham we have six at Christ Church, Lowestoft,
by Messrs. Blews and Son, and a bell at Newbourne by Carr.
The Redenhall foundry, under my friends Moore, Holmes,
and Mackenzie, were not so successful in Suffolk as in Norfolk.
They have given us a bell at Hoi ton S. Peter's, 1881, and six at
Weybrcad, their first effort in 1879. I much admire the tone of
some of their individual bells, and wish that Weybread may
some day experience Walter of Odyngton's " cos et lima," so as
to " tell the tale " as prettily as Winterton tells it, or as Thorpe
would tell it if it had a tower stout enough to carry the eight
made for it. As to their work at Southwold, the pity was that
they attempted to do anything with such a queer, though inter-
esting, crew as the present tenants of that glorious tower.
Winterton was occupied by a very " scratch " five, and my
counsel to my friends was to attempt nothing with splicing, but
send them all to the boiler. The result has been very good,
only the Wintertonians would have six out of metal that sufficed
for five. Let Southwold take the same course. London,
Loughborough, Birmingham — any one of them will do the work,
• * Note from Robert Carr. Weight from Dobson's list,
t V Estrange' s Church Bells of Norfolk, p. 49.
FINIS CORONAT OPUS. 155
but let the whole eight know the power of the furnace, and if
means do not suffice, have a fairly heavy six, and leave it to
the future to put on the trebles. Cutting down is often an
irreparable evil.
My story ends where I took it up in 1848, at Mildenhall.
After the many vicissitudes already related, the parishioners
determined to have a peal of eight worthy of their church, in
commemoration of the Jubilee year of Queen Victoria's reign.
Happily they were induced not to top a light six with two
trebles, but to " top and tail " with a treble and tenor, flattening
by a semitone the old fourth, now the fifth, which being a rather
thick bell, from Loughborough, stood the operation well. Mr.
Lawson, the representative of Mears and Stainbank, of White-
chapel, undertook the work, and carried it out admirably.
The detail will be found under the head of that parish.
I cannot close this work without an expression of thankful-
ness to Him from whom all mercies come, for the continuance,
amongst varied scenes of labour, of the will and power to
persevere in what seemed once an impossible task. So many
friends have helped me that I cannot thank them individually.
Not a few, indeed, have left this world, and of those that remain
I have lost sight of many in the labours of forty years. But
none the less do I cherish an affectionate recollection, so far as
memory will extend, of my kind helpers.
Long may dear old " sely " Suffolk resound at all appointed
times with the solemn and yet cheery music of the "peaceful
bells," which
" Still upon the hallowed day,
Convoke the swains to praise and pray ! "
INSCRIPTIONS
ON
*Il8 0f
1. ACTON All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 John Thornton made me 1716.
2 Miles Graye made me 1659. Nicholas Kerington.
3 Miles Graye made me 1663.
4 Tho. Gardiner fecit 1747.
5 Miles Graye made me 1685. God save the King.
" Great bells iiij." Return ot 1553.
Davy, Aug. i8th, 1826, notes the date of the 2nd as 1679, and the name
" Kennington " ; also the 5th as 1684. 2, 3, 4 chipped.
2. AKENHAM 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. John Barbie made me 1678. (45 in.)
3 in 1553-
Davy, 9 Sept., f827, did not go up to it.
3. ALDEBURGH 55. Peter and Paul, 6 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner and Son, London, 1885.
Rev. H. Thompson, B.A., Vicar.
N.^Hde } Churchwardens.
Hung by G. Day and Son, Eye.
2 Lester and Pack of London fecit 1764.
3 Anno Domini 1622. W. I. B.
4 Recast by John Warner and Sons, London, 1884.
Rev. H. Thompson, B.A., Vicar.
Churchwardens-
Hung by G. Day and Son, Eye.
5 Lester and Pack of London fecit 1764.
Jn°. Wynter and Samuel Aldrick Ch. Wardens.
6 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1820.
Clock-bell. 1812.
"Great bells iiij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553. Old 4 by J. Darbie.
INSCRIPTIONS. 157
In Davy's MS. 2 and 3, then I and 2, are reversed, and the bell recast in
i8S| has the same inscription as the present 3rd. The old tenor was inscri-
bed " Miles Graye made me 1653."
No mention of bells in certif. of iij Nov. 1547.
4. ALDERTON S. Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1740.
No mention of bells in certif. of iij Nov. 1547.
•• Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy notes the steeple about half down, 9 June, 1830.
5. ALDHAM ,<?. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. U 65 thrice.
-f- 67. j&ancta Q iWaria fj ©ra D $«> D /lobfo.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
" One " Davy, 19 Aug., 1825. Faculty for sale of two, 1759.
6. ALDRINGHAM S. Andrew, i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Hears Founder London. 1842.
Diameter iSJ in.
"One" Davy, 1808.
From Eastern Counties' Collectanea, p. 239, we know that there were three
in 1687, when Bishop Lloyd granted a faculty for the sale of two. These
were probably those alluded to in the words:— "All ornamets playt and
belles belongyng to owr Cherche ar fore to sell." Certif. iiij Nov., 1547.
5 in 1553. A. cum Thorpe.
7. ALKINSTON S. John Baptist.
Ecclesia destructa.
No return in 1553.
8. ALPHETON SS. Peter and Paul. 2 Bells.
1 Roberd O Gvrney made me 1667. ^
2 Robard O Gvrney made me 1667. ^
The mark between the names is a flower with eight petals.
Two heavier bells are said to have disappeared in the early part of the
eighteenth century. Traces of them still remain.
"Alton, Great bellis ij." Return of 1553.
Davy, Aug. 16, 1831, " 2 bells."
9. AMPTON S. Peter. 4 Bells.
1 Presented by the Honorable Clara E. C. Paley, 1888.
On a medallion below, John Taylor & Co., Lough-
borough.
2 Johanes Draper me fecit 1608.
3 D 6 thrice.
•-)- 47. SAHCTA : JBA^GTA : OX\A PI\O :
11OBIS : THOJHAS : B6CIT.
4 [U 6 thrice.
(-7- D SAHCT6 [J A»Dl\eA fj OI^A fj PI\O
Q HOBIS fj D«1\BY.
See pp. 12, 41. The occurrence of fig. 6 on a Norwich and a London
bell in the same tower is remarkable. The "second" mentioned on p. 41
has become the third.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. .
" Three bells and a clock,'' Davy.
158 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
10. ASHBOCKING All Saints. 2 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1615.
2 1584 D 85 five times.
Davy, 7 May, 1824, notes i "Blank," and the old tenor "Thos. Gardiner
made me 1745."
Terrier, 13 May, 1806. " Item, three bells with their frames."
11. ASH BY 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
No bells. Davy.
12. ASHFIELD, GREAT, All Saints. Tenor Ab, c. n cwt.
5 Bells.
1 Tho. Newman fecit 1735. Thomas Rice Churchwarden.
Pull on, brave boys, I am metal to the back-
bone, but will be hanged before I'll crack.
2 Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1745.
3 John Draper made me 1631.
4 U 65 thrice.
-j- Sum »ofa iiJulfata JHunfci ptaria Fotata.
5 U 65 thrice.
4- jHeritw CFSmunDi jiimus S ©umine #lundt.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 6 July, 1843, no notes.
13. ASHFIELD, LITTLE, S. Mary. 2 Bells.
1 W. M. Moss Churchwarden. 1825.
T. Mears of London fecit.
2 Charoli Framlingham Militis 1568.
He was resident at Crow's Hill, Debenham, in 1542. His sole heiress
was married to Sir Charles Gawdy of Debenham.
This seems to be the "Ashefeld," of which Wyllfa Seme and Wyllm
Roger were C. W. iij Nov., 1547, when they made return, "We have sty 11
remaynyng a peyer of Shalys and iij Bells." Same return in 15 53-
" The church has long been down . . . part of the steeple still remains,
and it is a picturesque object. A small bell hangs near the ground in a
latticed shed, at the east end of the chancel." Davy. See Thorpe next
Ashfield, whence the larger bell came.
14. AS PALL. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
2 in 1553.
Davy, 7 Nov., 1815, "2 bells."
15. ASSINGTON 5. Edmund. 4 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1671.
2 illegible.
3 -|- HOC ; siGnvm ; SGI\YA ; XPG ; OIAI^IA ;
THOIHA.
4 + JWiffi Cc (dig Jjabfo nomcn (Ealudte. Weight said
to be 19 cwt., dian.eter 43 in.
See p. 10 for 3. 4 belongs to the group on pp. 34, 35.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, Oct. 2, 1828. "The steeple is a square tower, containing 5 bells,
but I could not get up."
INSCRIPTIONS. 159
16. ATHELINGTON -S". Peter. 3 Bells.
1 -U : AYS GI\ACIA PDGIIA DllSTGCY.
2 -f- : OmAGDALGIlA : DUG : HOS : AD GAUDIA
3 -f- SOS BAI^PHOIfOmGG SADYG JUG.
See pp. 6 1 — 63.
" Alyngton, Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 25 Nov. 1813, notes 3 small bells.
The musical notes are E. D. C. Teste Rev. H. W. Thornton.
17. B ACTON S. Mary. Tenor Gf. 5 Bells.
i Charles Newman made me 1699.
2, 5 Thomas Mears Founder London 1841.
Revd. E. B. Barker, Rector.
Edward Cooper ) .-,, ,
William Kerry \ Churchwardens'
3 U 65 thrice.
-)- Sancta Q i&am D ©" D $™ D -flobis.
4 Pack and Chapman of London fecit 1772.
4 in 1553. 2 and 5 flattened by turning.
Davy, 21 July, 1831, "5 bells."
13. BADINGHAM S. John Baptist. 5 Bells.
1 Anno Domini 1630.
2 Anno Domini 1624.
A B
W
3 Slnno {Domini 1624.
A B
W
4 Thomas Gardiner made me 1710.
5 Anno Domini 1624.
U 5°-
No mention of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547.
4 in 1553.
Two of them noted correctly by Davy, 27 May, 1806.
One recast by Warner in 1889.
19. BAD LEY S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 68 -f- 68 sancte : augustfne era pro nobfs.
2 -|- John Goldsmith fecit 1702. W. R. S'. Maria.
3 Ex dono Elebth Pooley -\- John Goldsmith fecit 1702.
S'. Margaret.
Cross on i identical with that at Radwinter. This bell has no crown-
staple.
3 in '553-
Davy, 15 June, 1827, imperfectly reports as above.
20. BAD WELL ASH S. Mary. Tenor F#. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 4 John Draper made me 1630.
3 John Darbie made me 1664.
5 U 50 thrice. (Diameter 41 1 in.)
-j- 6 1 i«imcrc Eapttste Q 62 Ikncgtctus jjtt Chorua
l6o THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
" Ashefeld p'va. Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
" Five," Martin ; and Davy, 6 July, 1843.
21. BAR DWELL SS. Peter and Paul. 6 Bells.
1 Tho. Gardiner Svdbvry fecit 1719.
2 Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1770.
3 William Eaton Churchwarden 1820.
4 Thomas Spinluf & Charles Phillips C.W. T. Newman
fecit 1733.
5 Tho. Newman fecit 173-. Roger Cooke, Robert Bvgg.
C.W.
6 John Brett Churchwarden. Thos. Osborn Downham
fecit 1780.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1 553.
"6," Davy, July 26, 1832.
22. BARHAM S. Mary. Diameter of tenor 40 £ in. 4 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1683. S. D.
2 Miles Graye made me 1641.
3 Charles Newman made me 1702. Francis Weekes C.W.
4 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs. Tonni me fecit W. L.
1587-
Left blank in 1553 report. Probably 3, as the numbers fall short of the
total by 4, of which Darmsden may reckon for I .
Davy, 31 May, 1827, gives obviously wrong dates for i and 2, which he
also crosses.
23. BARKING £ Mary. 5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1659.
Frances Theobald Esq.
2 John Darbie made me 1659.
Thomas Roberts Bvgg Mvdd.
3 Miles Graye made me 16-4.
4 \) 9 thrice.
4- 13 ?^.\c 5n Condabe Gabriel ^iunc ^jJangc jcuabe.
5 U 8 thrice.
(Conboro Santta
See p. 17. Needham-in Barking.
No return of bells in certif of 1547. 4 in 1553.
So Davy, 16 June, 1827, though, like ourselves, he cannot read the date
on 3. I, 4, 5 cracked.
24. BARNARDISTON All Saints. Tenor 37 in. 5 Bells.
1 Milo Graie me fecit.
2 Milo Graie me fecit p?r nun.
3 U 25 + 22 y 26.
JBancta ^Waria 4Mng6aIcna <$ra JjJro .flobtS.
4 Henry Pleasant made mee 1692.
5 rj oomes i SAKCTI ; DGI ; oi\Afpe • »i\o i
noBis.
See pp. 8, 24.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
No notes. Davy.
INSCRIPTIONS. l6l
25. BARN BY S. John Baptist. i Bell.
Bell. U 52 thrice. 3)oh. <Ktptng.
-j- 61 $n iWultts Stnnis D 62 lUssonct Campa 3)ohtg.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
26. BARN HAM 5. Gregory. 4 Bells.
i John Darbie made me 1664.
2, 4 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1735.
3 John Draper made me 1623.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
27. BARN HAM £. Martin.
Ecclesia destructa.
" Great bells iij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
In 1639 the Rectories of S. Gregory and S. Martin were consolidated,
and the services directed to be performed in them alternatively. In 1682,
there was an order for the sale of S. Martin's bells, and S. Gregory's was
made the sole Church. Registr. Nor.
28. BARN INCH AM \ S. Andrew. 3 Bells.
1 U 52 thrice.
•4- 61 ©ucfumus SlnDrca Q 62 Jpamulorum Sufcipe Vota.
2 ij 52 thrice.
4- 6 1 j!2os £odtt Set* D 62 £«rnper Jlic&olaujs JEn aiiifS.
3 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1722.
" Great bells iij." Returns of 1553.
The old treble Dona Kepen&e $ta Kogo ^lagliaUna iHart'a. T. Martin's
notes.
Davy, 26 Aug. 1832, "3 bells."
Tenor G according to Sperling.
29. BARROW All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 T. Osborn Downham fecit 1786.
2 John Darbie made me 1662.
3 T. Osborn fecit 1786.
4 John Darbie made me 1662. Robert Hayward C.W.
5 John Darbie made me 1662. John Daynes.
30. BARSHAM Holy Trinity. In D. Diam. 27$ in. i Bell.
Bell F{E( HO m fj 62 U SL
" Great Bells iij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553,
Davy mistook KL for RD. He did not see that the inscription is a
portion of the alphabet. June 2, 1808. Pits now for three.
31. BARTON, GREAT, Holv Innocents. 5 Bells.
i Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1731.
2> 4> 5 John Draper made me 1619.
3 Tho5. Osborn Downham Norfolk fecit 1779.
So Davy.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
32. BARTON MILLS S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 IJ 66 thrice.
D 67 5ancta D Barbara n °™ D pro D fJobis.
2 Johanes Draper me fecit 1608.
V
162 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
3 rj 65 thrice.
-f 67 Sancte D &trt»a Q ^postoli Q «ra Q pto Q
Jiobtg.
" Great bells iij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
T. Martin (no date) notes 3.
Inscriptions incorrectly given by Davy, 21 Aug., 1829.
33. BATTISFORD S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. John Barbie made me 1666. D. P. C.W.
3 in 1553.
Davy, June 18, 1827, could not examine it.
34. BAWDS EY S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. W. I. B. Anno Domini 1622.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. " Great bells iij." Return
of 1553.
" One bell which I did not venture to approach." Davy, 9 June, 1830.
35. BAYLHAM 5. Peter. Tenor G. Diam. 41 in. 5 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner & Sons London 1865.
2, 3, 4 Miles Graye made me 1636.
5 Rev1. Henry Asplin, Ambros Brown & Sam1. Southgate
Ch: Wardens. Miles Stollery.
Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1772.
3 in 1553.
Davy, ii May, 1824, notes the old treble the same as 2, 3, 4, and the 3rd.
fallen out of its frame.
36. BEALINGS, GREAT, S. Mary. 4 Bells.
3, 4 Miles Graye made me 1626.
2 ]ohn Stephens made me 1720. Henry York, Church-
warden.
i Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1772.
Rob'. York Ch. Warden.
"Great bells ij." Return of 1553. Robert Godewyne, 1457, left 6/-
towards a new bell. Davy, 4 Aug., 1810, crosses i and 2. T. Martin, 1750,
notes 3 bells.
37. BEALINGS, LITTLE, All Saints. 2 Bells.
1 John Barbie made me 1677. John Rose.
2 -j- 67 jeancta Q i*taria rj ©ra D W*o D £obis.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
T. Martin, 1750, notes 3 bells.
Davy, 4 Aug., 1810, notes an intermediate © martir Barbara, &c.
Terrier, 21 Apr., 1834, 3 bells.
38. BECCLES S. Michael. Tenor in B. 10 and Priest's bell.
i Lester & Pack of London fecit Edwd. Brooks Portreve
1762.
2, 4 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1762.
3 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1804.
5 Our voices shall with joyfull sound
Make Hills & Valleys echo round.
Lester & Pack of London fecit 1762.
INSCRIPTIONS. 163
6, 7 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, Royal Arms
Patent, 1871.
C. F. Parker j churchwardens.
R. C. Houghton )
8, 9 [inscriptions entirely covered by an iron band].
10 £ O Quam dulces sonas. Domini properemus ad cedes
(sic) ^ Wm. Clark & Rob'. Margerom Ch. Wardens,
Lester & Pack of London fecit 1762.
Priest's bell, 1766.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. "Great bells iij. Sancts
Bells j." Return of 1553.
East Anglian, N. S. 11., 241, 269.
"Eight tuneable bells" ! Davy, Oct. 24, 1824, and May 27, 1825.
5 and 8 recast by Warner, 1889. Now a fair peal, though 4 and 9 are
cracked. See p. 149.
39. BEDFIELD S. Nicholas. 5 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1637.
Symond Jefrey Peter Aldreg.
2 The Revd. Charles Scolding M.A. Rector, William Warner
Ch. Warden.
R. Phelps fecit 1731.
3+67 sancta Q Jtfaria p ©rn Q i?«> D .#061*.
4 T. Osborn Downham fecit 1790.
Sam1. Frewer Church Warden.
5 Pack & Chapman London fecit 1774.
John Pritty Ch. Warden.
4 in 1553-
" Five," Davy, 23 July, 1808.
Terrier, 1753, gives 5 bells.
In 1839, Davy says, "The steeple now contains 4 bells." This is incom-
prehensible.
40. BEDINGFIELD S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. U 52 thrice.
-|- 6 1 ©uefumus Slnbrta D 62 jpamulorum jcufcipe Uota.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553.
Martin notes 3, 21 Nov., 1734. Faculty for sale of one of three, 1760.
Terrier, 23 June, 1794, gives 2.
41. BELSTEAD S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1664.
" Belstead pva. gregory Crevnr (?) & Roberte lynde chvrchwardes one bell
solde ffor xxxj. which was broke v yers past which is & shalbe Inployed to
the reperacn of chvrch roffe & the palyng of the chvrchyerd." Certif. of
1547-
i in 1553 and Sanctus bell.
Davy by mistake notes " Gardiner" for " Darbie."
42. B ELTON All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1664.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Faculty granted in 1690 to sell the smaller bell in order to hang the other.
Weight 6 cwt. 2 qrs. Weighed at Yarmouth Crane, at the time of re-
building the tower, by direction of the Revd. T. G. F. Howes, Rector.
164 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
43 BENACRE S. Michael. i Bell.
Bell. G. G. W. F. ©hurehtoarfccn* anno Stomtni 1622.
4 in rS53-
Davy gives this inscription imperfectly, 17 June, 1817.
44. BEN HALL S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i T. Hears London. 1842.
2, 3 John Brend made me 1639.
4 James Grimsbye John Bvlling Churchwardens 1639 J. B.
5 U 5° thrice.
-f- 6 1 |t?ac Hn ©dnclabc D 6z ffiabrttl JJunc $Jangc j&uabe.
6 Richard Brown John Baldry C. W. 1723.
No return of bells in certif. of 3 Nov., 1547. "Great bells iij." Return
of 1553.
Tenor by Gardiner, diameter 36^ in., weight 7 cwt. Davy gives the five
without the treble as here, with "Thomas" for "James," as Grimsbye's
Christian name.
45. BENTLEY S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Charles Newman made me 1696.
2 in 1553. " One bell," Davy.
46. B ERG HOLT, EAST, .S. Mary. 5 and Priest's bell.
T Cast by John Warner & Son, London, 1887. Jubilee
bell. Hung by G. Day and Son, Eye.
$ $ i fi 6
21^26-1-221725 ?t?tcce (Sabrielia Sonnt ?i?« (Eampana
*
3 = SYm i I^OSA • PYItSATA • JIlOnDI • fflAI^IA
YOCATA.
I\IGAI\DYS BO\ATIiGI\ ; flQS ; EGCIT 1601.
ISAAC meCHCHGIt
JOHH Br^emon cHvx\CHw^Ai\r)eiis.
4 Christopher . Hodson . made . me . 1688 . .
John . Leach . John . Peake . Chvrch . Wardens ....
5 John Stephens fecit 1727. Walter Gvllifer, Thomas
Broven Churchwardens (sic).
Priest's bell. Richardvs Bowler fecit 1591.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547.
5 and Sance bell in 1553.
The treble, which weighed 8 cwt., now weighs 4 cwt.
On the 4th dots denote coins, obv. and rev. of crown of Charles II., &c.
Cut in each side of the pit for the Tenor in the frame " 1691. IT IE."
The old treble bore Ricardvs Bowler me fecit 1601 . . . (three impressions
of coins, indistinct).
Davy's account mainly agrees with this.
This extract has been kindly copied from the Parish Book by Archdeacon
Woolley: — A note what the great bell wayed when it went to Berre, and
what it now wayeth this 241)1 of December, 1621.
It wayed, in the Churchyard, before it went to Berre, 26 hundred and 56
Ibs. ; it was broken in pieces and wayed agayne at Berre, and found 27
hundred and 24.
It weyeth now at home, 25 c. and 32 Ib. at one end of the beame, and at
the other end 26 c. and 09 ; the odes being 89 Ib., which being divided, is
44 Ib. and half.
INSCRIPTIONS. 165
The bell now wayeth five and twenty hundred seventy-five pound and half.
The bellfounders ware to be allowed for wag ,£40, and to account the bell
at 26 c. and 96 Ib.
And it now wayeth 25 c. and 76 and half. So they have in mettell,
which they must allow, one hundred twenty five poundes, at eight pence the
Ib., which makes in money, four pounds, a dozen shillings, eight pence.
They are to have for setting the bell, taking it at Barfould (i.e , Bergholt)
and delivering it there agayne, building a and so to kep hur one hole
year, nine pounds ten shillings.
Remayne to them four pounds eighteen shillings and fourpence, which is
paid to Andrew Gerne, of Berre Seynt Edmundes, by the appoyntment of
the M'. Workman, John Draper, of Thetford, Charles Bromey, with others.
47. BEYTON All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. John Draper made me 1627.
" Payton, Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
" One," Davy.
T. Martin (c. 1719) notes four bells.
48. BILDESTON S. Mary. 6 Bells.
1 I U 19 D -}- 22 jganete Coma ©ra ^to .flobis.
2 No inscription.
3 Miles Graye made me 1683.
4 U 50 thrice.
-(- 61 Jjubbeniat Dfgna D 62 IBonantibua ?l?anc Itatcdna.
5 Thomas Farrow Joseph Prockter Churchwardens 1 704.
6 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1718.
"Bylston, Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
"Six," Davy, 24 Oct., 1826.
49. BLAKENHAM, GREAT, S. Mary. 2 Bells.
. 1^51 thrice.
-|- 6 1 ©tltftt .Planna Q 62 Cua $roUs J2o« @ibct anna.
2 0 51 thrice.
-j- 6 1 .^ubeniat Digna Q 62 Donantibus ?l?anc IXatetina.
3 in 1553-
"Two," Davy, n May, 1824.
50. BLAKENHAM, LITTLE, S. Mary. 2 Bells.
i, 2 John Darbie made me 1660.
3 in 1553-
Davy, 18 May, 1829, "Two which I did not examine."
51. B LAX HALL S. Peter. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3 John Brend made me 1655.
4 Recast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1881. (Royal
Arms) Patent.
A. N. Bates, M.A. Rector.
James Toller ) ™
George Rope ) Churchwardens.
5 Omnis Sonvs Lavdet Dominvm 1655.
No return of bells in certif. of 1 547. " Great bells iiij," ISS3-
The old fourth like the first three, Davy.
52. BLUNDESTON S. Mary. 2 Bells
i T. B. 1661.
a E. T. 1675.
166 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
No return of bells in certif. of 1 547- " Blomston, Great bells iij." Return
In Davy's time there were three, one not hung.
53. BLYTH BURGH Holy Trinity. i Bell.
Bell. Tames Edbere Q 82 1608 (arabesque).
L.
J.M.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. Legacies— J oh. Greyfe,
1442, towards covering the bell-tower, and Hen. Tool, 1470, 20 marks for a
great bell. 5 in 1553. "Formerly 5." Davy, 12 Aug , 1806 " In the belfry
below, however, stands another small one, on which is b^e. t?«S'l't^o
SAL-YA me."
54. BLYTH FORD All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Newman made me 1711.
3 in 1553, doubly returned.
Davy notes one, but refers to Martin, who gives three.
55. BOTESDALE. i Bell.
Bell. John Draper made me 16 . .
A Chantry, with an inscription :—
"©rate p. aia63 Kofjis Sfjribe et — tuortg etus."
No return in 1553.
56. BOULGE S. Michael. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
"Bowge, Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547.
"The steeple is a small and low square tower of red brick, ... and con-
tains one bell, which has no inscription on it. The clerk informed^me that
there were some years ago 3 bells, but that 2 were sold for repairs." Davy,
27 May, 1823.
57. BOXFORD S. Mary. Tenor Diam. 52 in. 8 Bells.
1 Tho . . s Gardiner Svdbvry me fecit 1714.
2 ,§ancte JJecolae ©ra pro Jlobis IJ 26 -\- 22 U 25.
3 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1754.
4 Charles Newman made me 1688.
5 T. Osborn fecit 1790. Isaac Strutt, Hugh Green Ch.
Wardens.
6 [A border].
-4- 49 svm ^ATG^IHA rj 48 sem»ei\ rj 4e
UII\GO Q 48 DSO DIGIIA.
7 U 31 D 38 + 41 fintonat <& ©fits JFor Cfampant Gabtteltg
(sic).
8 Hsec Campana Beatse Trinitatis Sacra Fiat. John
Thornton Sudbury fecit 1718.
" Great bells v, Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. Cannons of 7 gone.
Davy, Oct. 2 and 3, 1828. Noted imperfectly, but in accordance with this.
58. BOXTEAD All Saints. 2 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 T. Newman made me. A. Golding & S. Spalding C.W.
1738-
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 1 8 Aug., 1831, " Two bells."
INSCRIPTIONS. 167
59. BOYTON 5. Andrnv. i Bell.
licll. John Darhic made me 1679.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1 553.
Davy (22 Jan., 1818), mistakes the date for 1692.
60. BRADFIELD [Combust] All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 Mears & Stainbank Founders London.
Bartholomew Young Church Warden 1693.
2 Recast 1869, Arthur Young Warden.
D 34 D 33 D 35 D 32-
- 15 j&ancta #Tarta JKagferittU ©ta $Jro .flobttf.
3 [j 8 1 Thomas n 82 Cheese made me 1630.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Notes Ff, E, Df.
"The steeple is down, but in the roof at the west end of the Isle are hung
3 bells, but I could not get to them." Davy. Diameter of Tenor 254 in.
61. BRADFIELD S. Clare. Tenor. Diam. 37$ in. 3 Bells.
1 1J 66 thrice.
- Jiancta Q 68 jKaria Q 63 ©ra Q 68 tfro Q 68
J'iobis.
2 Richard Ottewell Ch. Warden. W. & T. Mears, late
Lester, Pack, & Chapman of London fecit 1787.
3 Charles Newman made mee 1699.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1 553.
" 2 bells," Davy. Notes Cf , A$. Gf.
62. BRADFIELD .S1. George. Tenor. Diam. 37 \ in. 5 Bells.
1 H. P. made me 1695.
2 ^ R O G ^ 1668.
3 Robard ^ Gvrney made ^ me 1668.
4 Uriah Woodard & W«. Smith Ch. Wardens.
Lester & Pack of London fecit 1764.
5 R. A. Wardens. Henry Pleasant made me 1695.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
So Davy, only mistaking "Robard" on 3 for "Richard." He notes 60
steps in the tower staircase, i cracked, notes of the others C$, B, A$, G$.
63. BRADLEY, GREAT, S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 D 8 1 De D 8z Bvri D 82 Santi D 82 Edmondi Q 82
Stefanvs D 88 Tonni Q 82 me fecit Q 82 W. L.
D 81 1576.
3 D HIGAX\D ; De YYYOIBIS ; me ; peciT.
See p. 10.
The treble probably a very old bell. C. Deedes.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
No notes, Davy.
64. BRADLEY, LITTLE, All Saints. i Bell
Bell. ^ R. G. ^ 1652.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
No notes, Davy.
65. BRADWELL S. Nicholas. 3 Bells.
i U 50 thrice.
-(- 6 1 #?nc Jin Gontlabc D 62 Gabriel Jiut i.a
168 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
2 y 50 thrice.
+ 47 $»ctrua SD lEttrnc Q 62 ZJucat J2oS ^agcua File.
3 U 5° thrice.
-j- bifcl D 48 '6'm M"1 tsft' no m6t-
" Great bells iij." Return of 1 553.
i and 2 maiden, 3 a little flattened.
66. BRAISE WORTH S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1879.
1606, recast 1879.
R. M. Bingley, Rector.
^'cAI!efi'i 1 Churchwardens.
C. Schoneld J
Hung by G. Day & Son, Eye.
i in 1553.
Davy, 22 April, 1819, "John Draper made me 1606."
67. B RAM FIELD 5. Andrew. Tenor FJ. 5 Bells.
i, 2 AB 1J 52 U 86.
W
Slnno Domini 1621.
3 Jiancta iWatgateta ©ra |Jro Jflobts U 25 + 22 U 26.
4 *it jfionun JSomini 13me6iclum \} 25 -)- 22 IJ 26.
<s $ e * $
5 lnton.it llrclis ££tor Campana Jfltrljaclts.
u 25 4- 22 u 26.
So Davy, 23 May, 1806, with one or two involuntary variations. No re-
turn of bells in cert, of iiij Nov., 1547. 4 in 1553. The first rive of a six.
Bells re-opened after hanging, April I7th, 1890.
68. BRAN! FORD S. Stephen. Tenor G. Diam. 41 in. 6 Bells.
i Thomas Mears & Son of London fecit 1805.
2> 3) 4> 5> 6 Miles Graye made me 1632.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 10 June, 1828, calls the treble the 2nd, and dates the 5th 1636.
69. BRAMPTON S. Peter. Tenor Bi. Bells in tune. 5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1668.
2 Anno Domini 1612. W. B.
3, 4 U 86 AB U 52-
W
anno Out 1612.
5 U 51 thrice.
+ 6 1 Jiobis Jjolamen CTdorum D 62 \n\ £3ru0 amen.
4 in 1553-
So Davy, 2 June, 1808.
70. BRANDESTON All Saints. 6 Bells,
i, 4 Recast at the expense of the parish.
Lester and Pack of London fecit 1768.
2 The gift of H. Stebbing, Esqre, Mrs. A. Rivett, Widow,
and other benefactors, obtained by John Revett
Gent. 1709.
R. Phelps made me.
INSCRIPTIONS. 169
3 Miles Graye made me 1637.
5 Recast at the expense of John Revett,
Lester and Pack of London fecit 1768.
6 This bell was recast at the expense of John Revett 1768.
R. P. F. E.
(two impressions of the arms of Revett.)
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. "Great bells iiij." Return
of 1553. All
Hawes notes I as 2 here. 2 W Anno Dom. 1600. 3 In fHultlS SnniB,
Ac. 4 Sancta Uartfjolma (sic) ora pro nofits, and dates the tenor 1710. He
speaks also of a purchase of bells from Little Ashfield. On woodwork of 4,
" T. D. Thos. Packard made me 1670," as at Raveningham, teste G. Day.
71. BRANDON SS. Peter and Paul. Tenor in A, 16 cut.
6 Bells.
1 John Warner & Sons, London, 1870.
2 These five bells were cast by William Dobson 1815.
3 Prosperity to the town of Brandon 1815.
4 Give no offence to the Church. Wm. Dobson fecit 1815.
5 William Dobson Downham Norfolk founder 1815.
6 Rev1. Wm. Parson Rector, Thos. Willett and Rob'. Smith
Churchwardens 1815.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
I recast from the old 2nd at Wangford, q.v.
Five noted by Davy, 22 Aug., 1829.
These were cast out of an old three inscribed —
1 + &at In ffontlabe Oabriel Xunc Uniigr riulir.
2 + Sum Kosa $ulsata UStin&t JHaria Vocata.
3 + *n ffionore [Santti IBarie ft Santtt Katrrinc Virgfow (sic)] Ex infer.
J. H. Sperling.
72. BRANTHAM .9. Michael. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1651.
So Davy, i in 1553-
73. BREDFIELD 5. Andrew. 4 Bells.
1 Richard Phelps made me 1735.
2 F C.
W. M. G. F.' D. P. I. H. 1622.
3 Thomas Gardiner made me 1715.
4 U 51 thrice.
+ 6 1 $etrus &D Sterne D 62 JDurat floi $)ascua Viit.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. " Great bells iij." Return
of 1553. Davy notes 4. " W. M. L. F. L. F. I. H. 1592."
74. BRETTENHAM 5. Mary. Diameter of Tenor 27 in.
3 Bells.
1 H. Pleasant made me Reginald Sayer Warden.
2 Thomas Cheese James Edbere me fecit 1623.
3 D 82 Prais Q 82 God Q 82 1574 Q 82 W. L.
"Brentham, Great bells iij." Return of 1553. T. Martin, 31 May, 1737,
3 bells.
W
\JQ 'tin. CHU'/JI I SUFFOLK.
75. BRICETT, GREAT, 5. ^«>? and .",. f.'turtnu. 2 Bells.
i (>':'ir-#M Williarm, Coll. kt-gal. h-
3 In honore Sancta Trinitatii. Anno MIXXCXXXIX.
Very small. 3 in ';'»T, Oct. zjrd, 1826, visited this place. He
note, March z«ih, 1843, on the authority <A P- /. '.. ;-. . .hall,
"One beU In ftMM* fcMflc CtlnUaiif." Martin bad noted Crmitale. It
weighed 10 cwt. according to Terrier, 1834.
76. BRICETT, LITTLE.
Eccleita deitructa. No return in 15$ 3.
77. BRIQHTWELL 5. Awi* liaptitl. , Hell.
I:- D I Of Urighwell (sic) in Suffokkc Ftb 5. 1657.
-eat bell* ij," Return of 1553. T. Martin, Sept., 1725, One in a little
tower.
78. BROCKFORD.
/-."A '» ileitrucla. No return in 1553.
70. BROCK LEY ,V. ^«-/m«,. . l;dl».
1 D 21 U 20 -f V*' a«J»»tilM 4fconft In Sure Dti.
2 D 21 U >9 -f 22 Cri»tu« ^etpetut On Jiobis 6aubu
'V'uc
3 D 21 1? 20 4- 4fclt /lomrn Domini Uenf Dictum.
" Oreat bell* j," Return of 1553. See p. 94. No note* by Davy.
80. BROME 5. Mary. In I:?, i,-/t in tune. :'.-ll«.
i, 2, 3, 4 Thomas Newman of Norwi< h u. ,737.
5 Thomas Newman fecit. S. Ncwstead, I'. Kodwcll C. VV.
'7.37-
So Davy, t; June, 1809. 3 in 1553.
81. BROMESWELL ^ Edmund. Note* IX) and H. 2 Hells.
i Jhe»u» be/ ' Waghcvens int iaer
on , II- ' r- n M' « • • X.XX.
o o o o
a G i« ! Hono^e ; BAncTe ; pAvne.
No return of bell* in ccrtif. of iij Nov., 1 547. " Great bells ii i." Ke. of
1553. I Clear but not melodious, unchipped. 2 Slightly flattened. I'. 75.
According to Davy (12 Sept., 1807,) there was another, inscribed "Miles
e made me 1618." The other inscriptions a/rce wuh th'-v. Th'
mining bell was the smallest of the three. It fell, was broken, and sold.
82. BRUI8YARD .', /'.A, , |;(:||.
' Ml \>y ("In, W;.m< i <V Son, l.onrloii, i
'I'-.yal ArmM) 1'atcnt.
No return of bells in cert, of iij. Nov., 1547. "Great bells iij." Return
"' '553-
7 noiri --„ i r. Cl.clps made me. r -i,.,,-i DP/WI,, ;;,;„(., churcli-
warden, 1732. 2 »nno J3nl 1010. 3 K«c Kn «onflabe. &c.
83. BRUND1SH .V. teurence. AH ; lidk
i ANNO DOMINI if,'S,. T (1. W T.l;
eocupi HS
t 1J 51 thr.
t6':
; ;.-:-•,.•
+ «,-
T G probably - Thomas Chmhmm. Pits for 5. 4 in i >?.-. Terrier, t
June, 1791, and Dav>-, i« June, iSoo. give 5 hetts.
84. BUCKLESHAM £ .V*rr. i BeB.
BeN. Mites Graye made me
"Great bdh m>* Return of 1553. Davy, aj Feb., ttoj. reports it
inaccessible.
Terrier, 3 May, 1^4$ " O«« bett in weight about 500 pomds.* Diameter
)Q :-
BUNGAY X M** s .
:
?, > T London uvit i £20. Richard Mann,
Tohn Reynolds Churchwardens. rhu\ Brightly,
A Smith, Rob». Butcher, Rohm CameU, M. K
Kingsbury, Thomas Hunt, U\ Sheppard.
N return of befe in certif. of « \ 547. *• Great bells T. Sancts
. -
No notes by Davy. Prom a MS. of W. Adams, and notes of Rev. T,
Bewicke, 1 am able to compare the past and present peals.
crt. ^* »«.U».p*5**t
probably by J i 4 J i& $ a One, probably *, was
t a $ 0105 a si an AY* be*. Most of
a >4 these others seem to have
- - »aS
. anf . m M j 6
1
tea
3! '
••> «r
*e.
at
a at
1761 « to o lira o ai
tro j
k] V. S;V: :<:- S:S : ,<»,c.
been by Cgpin. 1700. 5
•whradht Mi - MM
six were
o 1570 J IT*
86. BUNGAY /** 7>w»ir>. i BdL
-i thrice.
So Davy, May m«, i$a>
No return in i \ v\, oft chnrch havitvc been partially bwmt not Innv before.
ne bell cjnil. in 1500^ apparently by John orenc^ sen^ was MM by tne
parish in 1755 far ^ta 79. 6<c. The present bet was honiht Kcon dl hand in
1750. The detail in t$«6 contains "It* jvcin to his J, B.^ wife in R«~
wMd« »>i It* gyven then to his mansvnnt and wnto his mayde in reward
A remnant oTfwM^prhnmt*.
87, BURES £ .Urn-. IVnor. l>i*mewr 50 in. « Bdls.
'
; K.
4 lohn
i Brand made me •.
x.
I Cnurch-
i {Sj
172 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
6 T. Mears of London fecit 1826.
JohnGarrard 1 Churchwardens.
John Boggis j
Davy, Oct. 2, 1828, 3 not noted. 5 " The Revd. Philip Gurdon, M.A.,
Vicar, WX Ambrose, John Harvey Church Wardens. Richard Phelps
made me 1 734."
" Great Bells v. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
88. BURGATE S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Thos. Gardiner Norwich fecit 1746.
2 1746.
3 Thomas Sturt John Draper made me 1624.
4 Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1772.
5 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1732.
5 in 1553. Martin and Davy note five.
89. BURGH 5. Botolph. Tenor. Diameter 36 1- in. 5 Bells.
1 Chapman & Mears of London fecerunt 1782.
2 John Stephens fecit 1718.
3 John Stephens made me 1718.
4 John Stephens Bell Founder of Norwich made us 5.
1718.
5 John Stephens fecit. 1718.
John Votier Rector John Page Churchwarden.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
90. BURGH CASTLE 5. Peter. 3 Bells.
1 Thomas Newman cast me new
In 1732.
John Pitcearn Rector.
2 Thomas Killett, Churchwarden, George Harris Over
Seer. 1732.
3 John Darbie made me 1663.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
91. BURSTALL S. Mary. 3 Bells.
J> 2> 3 John Thornton Sudbury fecit 1718.
3 in 1 553. Three bells, Davy.
91 a. BURY S. EDMUND'S, The Abbey.
The Great Bell Tower at the Abbey.
"The plan of the new building" (of the latter part of the eleventh cen-
tury), says Mr. John Gage, in Archaologia, xxiii , "bore a near resemblance
to Ely Minster, and both had, at the west end, a high tower between lower
lateral towers." It was not till the time of Samson of Tottington, tenth
Abbot, elected in 1180, that the work was finished. Jocelin of Brakelond, in
his well-known Chronicle, records the collection of stones and gravel (sabu-
tuiii), made for the purpose by Samson, while he was subsacrist, and the
alleged pecuniary assistance afforded by certain burgesses. The passage is
well worth reading. In Notes and Queries, Sixth Series, i. 303, it is re-
corded from the Register of Abbot Curteys, that one of the towers fell in
1210, and another, probably the bell-tower, in 1430, "turn propter quercuum
magnas et horas (sic) missas in opus lapideum, et conjunctas operi ligneo in
INSCRIPTIONS. 173
quo pendebant campamu, turn propter inordinatam et immoderatam earun-
dem pulsationem," fortunately after the people had left the church.
The ruin seems not to have been total, for the lead, bells, and some part
of the walls were subsequently taken down. Next year the east side of the
tower gave way, and was followed by the north wall in 1432.
The mason's contract for reconstruction is given at length by Mr. Gage,
together with a list of legacies towards the work, one as late as 1 500.
Writing in 1830, he says, "The flinty fragments of a south pier of the
tower have escaped the hand of destruction, and together with the flint work
of the western facade, which is a mass of deformity, point out to us the spot
where the Bell Tower once stood."
Professor Thorold Rogers's note on the weights of the bells in " Bury
Hospital" ( N. and Q, Sixth Series, i. 193), is exceedingly perplexing.
92. BURY S. EDMUND'S S. James. 10 Bells.
r, 2, 3, 4, 5 T. Osborn Fecit 1785.
6, 8 T. Osborn, Downham, Fecit 1785.
7 Cum Voco Venite T. Osborn Fecit 1785.
9 Our voices shall in concert ring
In honour both to God and King
T. Osborn Fecit 1785.
10 Percute Dulce Cano Bury St Edmd.
St James' Parish. Zephaniah Ostler,
Rob'. Carss Church Wardens. T. Osborn Fecit. 1785.
"Great bells v." 1553. Formerly 3 in N. aisle, i, De Bvri Santi
Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1580. Deo Patrie et Proximo; 2, R. G.
1664; 3 £it ifjomeit Somtni 33nuuictum U 20 n 2I +•
93. BURY S. EDMUND'S S. John Evangelist. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Mears, Founder, London, 1841.
94. BURY S. EDMUND'S S. Mary. 8 Bells.
i, 2, 6 R. Phelps Londini Fecit 1734.
3 T. Osborn Fecit 1785.
4 3nno Domini 1627 AB
W
5 R. Phelps Londini Me Fecit 1734.
7 Matthias Wright and Simon Buchanan, Church Wardens
1776. Pack & Chapman of London Fecit.
8 Mr. Richard Rayment & Mr. Robert Singleton Church
Wardens. Anno Domini 1734. Richard Phelps
of London Bellfounder made these eight bells.
" Great bells vj." Ret. 1553. Tenor recast at Bury, 1696, L'E., p. 66.
95. BURY S. EDMUND'S S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. T. Mears, Founder, London, 1858.
96. BUT LEY S. John Baptist. \ Bell.
Bell. CJurniS Slnnts Ecfoiut Campana 3JohaniuS U 9
coin.
So Davy. No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. "Great bells
iij." Ret. of 1553. Hawes notes one smaller, inscribed Sanrte $etre ora pro
nobis.
174 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
97. BUXHALL S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2 John Draper made me 1632.
R. M. & T. N. Wardens.
3 John Draper made me 1635.
4 John Griggs C. W. Charles Newman made mee 1698.
5 Gregory Copinger, Tho. Fuller C. W.
Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1739.
4 in 1553. Davy (June I3th, 1827), notes 5 bells, but the door locked.
98. BUXLOW S. Peter.
Ecclesia destructa. 2 in 1553.
99. CAMPSEY ASH S. John Baptist. 4 Bells.
1 I. B. Anno Domini 1615.
2 Tho. Gardiner fecit me 1714.
3 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1729.
4 Ricardus Bowler me fecit 1601
No mention of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. "Great bells iiij." Re-
turn of 1553.
So Davy, 20 April, 1819. Hawes notes the old 2nd, Otilds «Tfsto J¥UHs
(ffampana Voror jtlicfjatlis, and the 3rd, R. G. Anno Domini 1583. Martin
also notes DulctB, &c.
100. CAPEL S. Andrew.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
101. CAPEL S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2 T. Mears of London fecit 1829.
Rev1. Joseph Tweed Rector.
Cooper Brooke Esqr., Churchwarden.
3 John Darbie made me 1683. W. O. I. T.
4 Miles Graye made me 1624.
5 OB YOYI\ CHGI\ITG PI\AY EOI\ THE WGIt-
EAI\G OE ©r^GGOI\Z PASCAL:.
5 and Sance bell in 1553. See p. 77.
Davy was quite beaten by the tenor, which he gives: — DAIW SIN
SONGA CNA LAOSNP NONI FO DRAFIEW ROA. YARP. He
leaves 4 blank, notes 4 as 3, 3 as 2, and gives i, Virgomarta ora prta pronotts.
Possibly the inscription was one known in the West of England
+ Entercefie $ta $ro JJotits Virgo jttarta.
102. CARLTON 5. Peter. Tenor. Diam. 31$ in. 4 Bells.
i, 2, 3. 4 P 8l Thomas Q 82 Andrew FJ 82 me Q 82
fecit n 82 1598.
2 has no fleur-de lis between " me" and fecit.
Davy, 29 May, 1806, gives 1528, not recognizing the peculiar form of
the 9. 3 in 1553.
103. CARLTON COLVILLE £ Peter. Tenor. Diam. 45! in.
5 Bells.
1 Anno Domini 1608. W. B.
2 John Brend made me 1637.
3 Anno Domini 1634.
U 5°-
INSCRIPTIONS. 175
4 Anno Domini 1634.
5 G Oninis Sonvs lavdet Dominom.
Anno Domini 1634.
U 5°-
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. "Great bells iiij. Sancts
bells j." Return of 1553.
So Davy, save that he gives 1634 as the date of the second.
104. CAVENDISH S. Mary. Tenor 12 cwt. 6 Bells.
1 I mean to make it understood
Although I'm little yet I'm good.
Mears London fecit 1779.
2 If you have a judicious ear
You'l own my voice is sweet & clear.
Mears London fecit 1779.
3 Music is medicine to the mind.
Mears London fecit 1779.
4 Peace & good neighbourhood.
Mears and London fecit 1779.
5 Our voices shall in consort ring
In honour both to God & King.
Mears London fecit 1779.
6 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1869.
Royal Arms Patent.
" Great bells v." Return of 1 553.
Davy, Nov. 9th, 1805, 6. "T. Osborn Downham Norfolk fecit 1786." al.
sim.
105. CAVENHAM S. Andreu<. 3 Bells.
i William Dobson founder Downham Norfolk 1831.
2, 3 John Darbie made me 1676.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
T. Martin (12 Nov., 1755), and Davy (20 Aug., 1829), note 3 bells.
106. CHARSFIELD 5. Peter. 5 Bells.
1 Sic Sacheverellvs [ore melos] immortal! olli [ecclesiae
defensori h] anc dicat [Gvlielmvs] Leman de Cher
[sfield Eques 1710. R. Phelps].
2 U 50 thrice.
-j- 61 ?i?« Jptt &tontm n 62 Campa Hauut Eonorum.
3 LI 8 1 James Edbere (arabesque) Q 82 1068 (for 1608).
4 \J 50 thrice.
-(- 6 1 Qulct« JDtSto 4Hdi* Q 62 Campa Uocor i&ir&adig.
5 U 65 thrice.
-j- Jbancta D iWarw Q ©*a D $"> D Dlobig.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. " Great bells iiij." Return
of '553-
The inscription on the treble restored from Carthew's MSS., who notes
the rest like these, and refers to a legacy (1454) for the tower.
The Sacheverell inscription was evidently intended as a protest against
the prominent part taken by BP. Trimnell in the House of Lords, 1710.
107. CHATTISHAM S. Mary and All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1621.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553. " Three bells," Davy.
176 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
108. CHEDBURGH^// Saints. i Bell.
Bell. T. Osborn fecit 1797. Edward Drew Church
warden.
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553. No note, Davy.
109. CHEDISTON 5. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 Tho. Gardiner fecit 1718. R. M. C.W.
2 W. C. J. S.
John Brend made me 1640.
3 D 8l Filius D 82 Virginis D 8z Marie Q 82 Dat D 8z
Nobis D 82 Gaudia Q 8z vite d 82 1)e D 82
Bvri D 82 Santi Q 82 Edmondi Q 8z Stefanvs
n S2 Tonni Q 82 me D 82 fecit D 82 '572'
(Cracked.)
No return of bells in certif. iiij Nov., 1547. 3 in 1553-
Davy, 25 May, 1807, notes as above.
110. CHELMONDISTON .S. Andrew, i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1663.
" We have sold also an old broken bell to the valew of xxi s. viijrf. The
trew s'tificat of Rychard Dylley and Wyllam Camper," C. W. 1547.
i in 1553. " One bell." Davy.
111. CHELSWORTH All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Lester & Pack, 1763.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 26 Oct., 1826, notes no inscription.
112. CHEVINGTON All Saints. Tenor in F. Bells in tune. .
5 Bells.
1 John Draper made me 1620.
2 C. & G. Hears, founders, London, 1848.
SI" f ayner R°lfe I Churchwardens.
Wm. Jenmson )
Elizabeth White, John White, Francis White.
3 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1760.
4 -j- John Sparrow Ambros Ray C.W.S
Tho. Gardiner fecit 1737.
5 Benj. Downs Church Warden.
Tho5. Osborn, Downham, fecit 1780.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1 553.
Davy notes 5 bells, but no inscriptions.
113. CHILLESFORD S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell, rj 66 thrice.
+ Sancta n Ptarta Q ©*a Q V™ D .flobig.
So Davy.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Pits for three, this probably the
treble.
114. CHILTON £ Mary. Diam. 32 in. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1658.
So Davy, Sept. I3th, 1827. " Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
INSCRIPTIONS. 177
115. CLARE 55. Peter and Paul. Tenor c. 28 cwt. Diam. 54 in.
8 and Clock bell.
1 Given by voluntary subscription 1781.
Mcurs fecit.
2 T. Mears of London fecit 1829.
3 Miles Graye made me 1640.
and a shield, party per pale, a griffin (?) passant.
4 Whilst thus we join in chearful sound
Let Love and Loyalty abound.
Pack iV Chapman of London fecit 1779.
5 Miles Graye made me 1661.
6 ioljn 6icr mafic mr 1579.
* * * *
7 O 1 7 (Conscrba O 1 7 © O 17 CrimtajS O 1 7 <ffampanam
•
O 17 Islam.
8 John Kenyon Vic. William Wade C. W. I. L.
Charles Newman made mee 1693.
Clock bell. Tho. Gardiner fecit 1726.
"Great bells v. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy nearly as above, with a mistake or two. The 7th very much worn.
See p. 17, and East Anglian, I., 28, for notes by Mr. J. B. Armstead.
116. CLAYDON 5. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. John Barbie made me 1676.
So Davy, 15 Sept., 1827. 3 in 1553.
117. CLOPTON 5. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 43^ in. 6 Bells.
r> 2» 3, 4. 5 W. & T. Mears, late Lester, Pack, & Chapman
of London fecit 1788.
6 This peal cast in the year 1788 by unanimous consent of
the parishioners ; by recasting the five old bells and
adding this tenor made them a peal of six.
W. & T. Mears, late Lester, Pack, & Chapman of Lon-
don fecit 1788.
The C.W. sold a "payre of challes," of which they made verdict at
Ipswich 28 Sept., 1547, "ffrome y' day we haue neyther sold alyenatyd nor
pledged neyther ornam* Jewells plate nor bellys." iiij Nov., 1547.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
113. COCKFIELD S. Peter. 6 Bells.
1 Laus Deo 1843.
Thomas Mears fecit Londini.
2 Charles Newman made mee 1700.
3 Charles Newman made me 1699. G. H. H. T.
4 Miles Graye made me 1656.
5 D 81 James Q 82 Edbvry Q 82 I(5°8-
6 John Jowars Rob'. Debenham C.W.
Tho. Gardiner fecit 1721 Num. 126.
Date on 5 " 1098 " by mistake. See p. 95.
"Great bells v." Return of 1553.
Davy notes " T. Martin's notes taken in 1735."
178 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
119. CODDENHAM S. Mary. Tenor c. 15 cwt. 8 Bells.
1 Theodore Ecclestone, Esqr, 1742. Thomas Lester
made me.
Although I am but small
I will be heard above you all.
T. P. A. F. C. (incised).
2 Thomas Lester made me 1742. The: Ecclestone.
3 Theodore Ecclestone. Thomas Lester made us all, 1740.
4 The Revd. John Longe, Vicar, John Fox, James Brook
Ch. Wardens.
Thomas Mears & Son of London fecit 1806.
5, 6 Recast by John Warner & Son, London, 1878.
These bells are for the honour of God & the use of His
Church.
Revd. Robert Longe, Vicar of Coddenham.
Walter Chapman ) Church
Frederick Gull j Wardens.
7 Thomas Lester made us all 1740.
8
(filed off) 1742.
Thomas Lester of London made us all.
Clock bell, 1808.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 7 May, 1824, notes all as Lester's, save 4.
Theodore Ecclestone, Esq., was owner of the Crowfield Hall Estate,
which was purchased in the year, 1764 by Arthur Middleton, Esq., Governor
of S. Carolina, and grandfather of the late Sir W. F. F. Middleton, Bart.
120. COMBS S. Mary. Tenor E. Diam. 46^ in. 4 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1662. R. B.
2 Miles Graye made me 1619.
3 U 51 thrice.
D 49 .i&o* yrcce JSapttste D 62 Salbcnt £Tua ©ulnera
Xpe.
4 John Draper made me 1627.
4 in 1553. Davy notes 5 bells, one broken. Weights, according to
Terrier of 1770, 15, 18, 21, and 24 cwt.
121. COOK LEY S. Michael. 3 Bells.
1 Ricardvs Bowler me fecit 1598.
2 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1728.
3 Snno Oomtni 1593 W. B.
So Davy, 26 June, 1806.
Thomas Haywarde and Wyllam Sparke certify iiij Nov., 1547, that they
have sold "neither plate, joyells, bells." 3 in 1553.
122. COP DOCK £ Peter. 5 Bells.
i, 2 Miles Graye made me 1614.
3 Miles Graye made me 1615.
4 John Darbie made me 1677.
5 John Darbie made me 1679.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. 3 in 1553.
Davy calls the third the treble, otherwise there is no difference.
INSCRIPTIONS. 179
123. CORNARD, GREAT, S. Andrew. Tenor. Diam. 37 in.
5 Bells.
1 John Thornton made me 1 708.
2 Buxton Vnderwood Jef. Poter Warden 1708.
3 Miles Graye made me 1664.
4 €?icrnis 3nnU iUsonet Campana 3)ol)is U 1 1 + U 9 twice-
5 John Thornton made me 1708.
The cross on 4 is No. 27 in North's Church Dells of Bedfordshire.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, Sept. 12, 1827. 2 " Binxto'n ... Josef." 3 " 1616" al. sim.
124. CORNARD, LITTLE, All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 33 in.
5 Bells.
i Thornton and Waylet made me 1712.
2, 3 Henry Pleasant made me March 1707.
4 -(- Ricardvs Bowler me fecit 1597.
5 -|- IHS nA£Ai\enYs i\ex IYDSOI\V«I. -\-
So Davy, Sept. 12, 1827. The crosses on 5 are Austen Brackets, Cam-
bridgeshire, No. 71, but probably come from an earlier hand. The letters
are rich. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
In 1581 there were at least two bells, as the Parish account has a charge
of xjrf. for " a Bald'ycke for one of or Belles."
125. GORTON 5. Bartholomew. i Bell.
Bell. C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1847.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1 547. " Great bells iiij." Return
of 1553-
The parish in 1697 got a faculty for selling a piece of a bell for hanging a
bell in the porch and other expenses.
The old bell bore the Norwich mark (errh.) and the inscription,
13. IS. anno Domini 1626. It used to hang in a frame of timber over the
porch, but in 1 768 was removed to its present position in the tower. See
Davy's MS. Suckling says IB. K.
126. COTTON S. Andrew. 5 Bells.
i, 2 Thomas Lester of London made me 1746.
3 John Draper made me 1627. Thomas Barthroope
Robert Rose Wardens A. M. T. E.
4 rj 50 thrice.
-j- 6 1 CTfUsti JRanna D 62 Eua $role* &.ot ffit&tt anna.
5 rj 50 thrice.
-|- 6 1 £lo* Chome jWcrttts n 6z JWrrfamut ©auliia Hud*.
3 cracked. 4 in 1553. Martin, 16 Dec., 1724, notes 4.
" Five," Davy, 21 July, 1831.
127. COVE, NORTH, S. Botolph. 3 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner Norwich fecit 1750.
2 Anno Domini 1628.
AB
W
3 Tho. Gardiner Norwich fecit 1750.
Tho. Horth C. W.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy notes the date on 2 1618 instead of 1628, June 19, 1817.
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
128. COVE, SOUTH, S. Laurence. i Bell.
Bell U 52 thrice.
+ 6 1 ^ctrus ^D Sterne D 62 Ducat JJlos ^ascua Utte.
So Martin, 28 June, 1 750. " The rest of o< Jowells as bells plate and other
ornaments remayneth m the Costodye of the Township. " Certif. of James
Hanse and Roger Spicer, 1547." 3 in 1553.
Terrier rendered 18 May, 1827, " by computation 500 Ibs. weight.
129. COVEHITHE S. Andrew. 5 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 AB
W
&nno Domini 1616
3 £lnno JDomtm 1626.
US'-
4 U 50 thrice.
4- 6 1 $etr«» SO Sterne D 62 Qucat ilos $ascua 0ite.
5 U 5° thrice.
-}- 6 1 Sum ttosa ^ulsata Q 62 JHunfct plaria IToeata.
So Davy, 17 June, 1817, save 1628 on 3rd.
" Northalys," certif., 1547, no sale of bells. 5 in 1553. Well toned bells.
130. COWLINGE 5. Margaret. Tenor. Diam. 39 in.
S Bells,
i, 2 Thomas Newman made me. Ex dono F. Dickms,
Esqr., 1734-
3, 4 John Briant Hertford fecit 1809.
•5 T. Newman made me. Stephen Phillips & John Fenton,
C. Wardens.
"Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
131. CRANSFORD 61. Peter. 3 Bells.
. i W. B. Anno Domini 1594.
2 U 52 thrice.
+ 47 ?t?tc ,-fftt Scoru D ©ampa Eaulit 13onorum.
3 Recast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1878. Hung
by G. Day & Son, Eye.
Mrs. Borrett \
Mrs. Pooley ' ,-.
G.T. Borrett ( Donors'
T. P. Borrett )
G. F. Pooley, M.A., C. C. C. C., Rector of Cransford.
T' ?iHng ! Churchwardens.
J. Flory J
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
The old tenor was inscribed, £n jTOuIttS Slnnt'B, &c., and bore the same
marks as the 2nd. The rhyme-stop is not engraved, I think. Not in tune.
132. CRATFIELD 5. Mary. Tenor a very good bell.
6 and Clock bell.
1 Chapman & Mears of London fecerunt 1781.
2 John Smyth of Norwod and Henry Fiske Chvrchwardens.
Ao Do 1593 W. B.
INSCRIPTIONS. iSl
3 U 50 U 86 AB
\V
ilnno Domini 1618.
4 Cratfcld. Henry Topsel, R. T. Ano Dni 1585.
5 D If with my fellowes I doe agree
Then listen to our harmony.
\\'. IV G. S Chvrchwardens. W. B. 1618.
6 O 48 Per me fidcles invocantur ad preces.
1637- J- B.
Clock bell -j- 47 Virginia ligrcgtc 4- 47 iSUocor dampana
i«aut li)«s Jfot ®f)t £olr <9f Zailltam SUrgs.
So Davy, 22 May, 1807, with one or two involuntary variations. No re-
turn of bells in certif. of Symond Smyth and John Bateman, C. W., iiij Nov.,
1547. The battlement to the tower was then built by the sale of "a peyer
of Chalys a peyer of Sense's and a Crosse, the prce xxli." 4 and a Sance
bell in 1553.
The Clock bell has a staple for a tongue, and is worn internally. See
pp. 41, 103.
Some of the capitals on the 2nd are of the Norwich media;val type, like
Nos. 54, etc., and the A is quite peculiar.
133. GREETING All Saints.
Ecclesia destructa.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
T. Martin, Sept., 1732, "3 Bells (old ones)."
134. GREETING S. Mary. Diam. 39 in. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Gardiner fecit 1727.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 13 June, 1827, "One bell which I did not examine." Hung in a
chestnut frame and wheel, diam. of latter 7 ft. On the wheel is " Thomas
Sharman, Churchwarden, I FF (letters chipped off) 1733."
135. GREETING S. Olave.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
136. GREETING S.Peter. Tenor. Diam. 27 in. 3 Bells.
1 Ricardvs Bowler me fecit 1600.
2 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1726.
3 Johannes Drivervs T C. me fecit 1618.
" West cretynge. Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
Notes, probably by Tom Martin, 26 Sept., 1732, record "3 modern bells."
Davy, June 15, 1827, apparently by mistake notes only two, inaccessible.
Treble cracked.
137. CRETINGHAM S. Peter. 5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1661. T. C.
2 John Darbie made me 1661. H. C.
3 rj thrice.
+ #?« dFtt jetoru rj (Eampa SauDr Uonont"
4 U thrice.
-j- CCrlcfii #lanna D ^"a $roltsf jHoi ©tbtt £nna.
* William Dowsing and Gre<jir;e Smith.
182 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
5 U thrice.
-f Jjubbeniat Signa D Bonantibust ?l?anc iSatmna.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. " Great bells iiij." Return
of 1553- 3, 4, 5 Norwich bells. Shield 50, Cross 61, Rhyme-stop 62, I
tolerably sure.
138. CROWFIELD All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Rob'. Catlin fecit 1740.
From Davy, 12 May, 1824. I in 1553.
139. CULFORD S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Newman made me 1704
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 18 Aug., 1829, "one bell."
140. CULPHO S. Botolph. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1641 (cracked).
"Cvlsfo... Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
141. DAL HAM .9. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1755.
2 SIl\ mA^TIIl STUTBIEiDG IJ (Stuteville). Per
pale, arg. and sa. a sallire engrailed ermine and
ermines.
I am the second in degree
And will in tune and time agree.
John Draper made me 1627.
3 SI1\ aiAI^FIIl STUWEIIfDe U his arms.
I am the third and you shall her
Me beare my part, and sound most cleere.
John Draper made me 1627.
4 Sir Jas. Affleck Bart., and Jeremiah Moore Church-
wardens. Chas. D. M. Drake Rector.
This bell was recast by Wm. Dobson, Downham, Norfolk,
A.D. 1832.
5 U 5° thrice.
+ 6 1 &um aftofa pulfata Q 62 JWunot jWana 2Focata.
Sir M. S. died suddenly while smoking at the Bell at Thetford. See Rous's
Diary. See also Gawdy MSS., p. 116. His daughter Anne married James
de Grey of Merton, who died in 1665.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy could not get the key.
142. DALLINGHOO 5. Mary. Tenor G. Diam. 37 in.
4 Bells.
1 C.
W. M. L. F. L. F. H. M. 1592.
2 Richard Phelps made me 1732.
3 TJ 50 thrice.
4- 6 1 ^etrus ®t> lEtcrnc Q 62 ZJucat Jlos ^agtua Utte.
4 Thomas Gardiner made me 1715.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Hawes says "3 by Miles Graye, 5
formerly," and Martin, 1745, says 3.
INSCRIPTIONS. 183
143. DARMSDEN S. Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. John Goldsmith fecit 1710. Santa Maria.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547, probably I. Left blank in
1553. Davy, 14 Sept., 1827, "One bell ... no ladder."
144. DARSHAM All Saints. 4 Bells.
1 John Brend made mee 1656.
2, 4 John Brend made me 1656.
3 CJ 65 thrice.
-|- IsantU (sic) ©pont'a ©ra |)ro Jlobt*.
The churche reves of Darsham, John Reve :vnd Rob'. Backler, A°. 1547,
certify to the sale of "j peyer of handbells for the prce of \js. iiij</." 3 in 1553.
Uavy, 3 June, 1808, gets the numbers wrong, and reads Cfjoma on the
Tenor, ©poma is for apollont'a. See Cambridgeshire^ p. 126.
First four of a rive in G, all maiden, in tune.
145. DEBACH All Saints. In F. Diam. 23^ in. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.-
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. " Debedge... Great bells
ij." Return of 1553. Davy (27 May, 1833), found it inaccessible.
146. DEBENHAM S. Mary. Tenor i ton, in E. Diam. 44 in.
8 Bells,
i, 3, 6 lister & Pack of London fecit 1761.
2 Lester & Pack fecit 1761.
4 Lester & Pack of London fecit. Thos. Kersey 1761.
5 Thos. Mears of London fecit 1793.
7 Lester & Pack of London fecit. Edw1'. Davie & Jno.
Orford Ch. Wardens 1761.
8 In Wedlock's bands all ye who join
With hands your hearts unite
So shall our tuneful tongues combine
To laud the nuptial rite.
[The Rev1. Mr. Jas. Clubb Vicar : The Revd. Mr. Robert
Leman Curate, engraved],
So Davy substantially, but without a date to 4, and 1795 on 5.
"Gret bells v." Return of 1553.
147. DEN HAM S. John Baptist. i Bell.
Bell. 1614, I. D.
3 in 1553. Davy, 16 June, 1809, notes one bell. See p. 109.
148. DENHAM S. Mary. In F. Diam. 21 in. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553. Long-waisted, and apparently old.
149. DENNINGTON 5. Mary (fine bells). 5 Bells.
1 17 52 thrice.
•4- j&aneta platia ©ra li)ro ilobis.
2 -j- 47 JFar iWarjjartta D 48 Jiobf* $?te JKuncra Etta.
3 -f- jeaneta fchoma ©ta }jho 4tobi*.
4 Anno Domini 1628. W. I. B. Omnis Sonvs Lavdet
Dominvm.
1 84 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
5 1666 Anno Orbis incendio redempti vrbis peremptrc.
Gvil. Bell T. P. Vicarius.
John Darbie made me.
5 and a Sance bell in 1553.
So Davy and Jermyn, Aug. 5, 1806. Gillingwater, 10 May, 1798, notes 5.
Terrier, 3 July, 1753, "Five large bells, the Tenor of 25 cwt., the other
proportionable."
Much curious matter in parish accounts. The bell-frame is athwart the
tower, which has been built around it. Part of the capstan forms a beam.
150. DENSTON S. Nic/wlas. 2 Bells.
1 U 65 thrice,.
+ -sancta D l^arta Q ©«« D P™ D
2 U 65 thrice.
-f- £ancu D $tt« D ©*a D $«> D
" Denarston... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
No notes. Davy. Mr. Deedes notes these as I and 3 of a trio, as the '
middle pit is vacant. The usual failure has of course resulted from an
attempt to cut the crack out of 2. §
151. DEPDEN S. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 36 in. 3 Bells.
1 rj 65 thrice.
-f- 67 Sanctt D [jatco]lae D ©ra D $™ D
2 ij 65 thrice.
-f 67 &ancta Q 3«na D ©" D 1?" D
3 Ric ardvs Bowler me fecit 1600.
(A band between each word, and six Elizabeth coins on
the sound-bow.)
"Debden... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
No notes. Davy. Notes C, Aj, and A.
152. DRINKSTONE All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 39 in.
6 Bells.
1 Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1771. Henry Plume
Church Warden.
2 Henry Pleasant made me 1696. F. P.
3, 5 Mears & Stainbank, founders, London, 1869.
4 Henry Pleasant made me 1696.
6 Reginald Sayer, Tho. Cocksedge C.W. Henry Pleasant
made me 1695.
" Great bells iiij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy notes 3 and 5 like the rest, but " P. C." for " F. P." Tenor cracked.
Notes of the others F, D$, C|, C, A$.
153. DUNNINGWORTH S. Mary.
Ecchsia destructa. No return in 1553. The church was standing and in
use in the year 1561. Davy.
154. DUNWICH All Saints.
Ecchsia destructa. See extracts from Gardiner, 1734. No mention of
bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. 3 in 1553.
" The steeple appears in tolerable repair : I remember a man who had
occupied a farm at Yoxford, and whose name was Parker, being convicted
and transported for steah'ng, I think, one of the bells and some of the lead."
Davy, 24 Oct., 1839.
INSCRIPTIONS. 185
155. DUNWICH S. James, c. 5 cwt. i Bell.
Bell. T. Mears of London fecit 1832.
Coeval with the church, given by Frederick Barne, Esq.
156. DUNWICH S. John Baptist.
E celesta destructa.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. 3 in 1553.
157. DUNWICH .S. Leonard.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
158. DUNWICH S. Martin.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
159. DUNWICH S. Nicholas.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
160. DUNWICH S. Peter.
Ecclesia destrncta.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. 3 in 1553.
161. EASTON All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1731.
2 T. Osborn fecit 179?.
Rev. Loder Allen, Rector. Joseph Rust Ch. Warden.
3 Miles Graie made me 1627. I. E.
4 -4- JIUSSYS YGI^O PIG GAB^IGEt EG^T D6TA
5 Recast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1884.
This bell was cast and the peal rehung at the expense of
the Duke of Hamilton, A.D., 1884.
Hung by G. Day & Son, Eye.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547.
The places are still visible in the under-chamber where the beams were
built in. The old tenor, like the 4th, was of the "Burlingham" type,
inscribed 4- SPGS HOST1\A SAEtYS HOSI^A O BGAI'A
Jfl!\iniiFAS. It bore shield No. 64.
162. EASTON BAVENTS S. Margaret.
Ecclesia destructa. 3 in 1553, either in this Church or the next.
163. EASTON BAVENTS S. Nicholas.
Ecclesia destructa. See No. 162.
164. EDWARDSTONE 5. Mary. 6 Bells.
1 Mr. Cook and Nvtting C W. 1709.
2 Tvned by Wm. Cvlpeck 1710.
3 Miles Graye made me 1640.
4 Miles Graye made me 1641.
5 Miles Graye made me 1663.
6 About ty second Cvlpeck is wrett
Becavse the fovnder wanted wett
Thair jvdgments ware bvt bad at last
Or elce this bell I never had cast.
Tho. Gardiner.
1 86 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
See p. 142. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, May 21, 1829, leaves out " tuned by" on 2. 4 " 1663.
not read the Tenor.
165. ELEIGH, BRENT, S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 G 8l Thomas Cheese D 82 made me 1629.
2 G 8l Thomas G 82 Cheese made me 1632.
3 (arabesque) Jeams G 81 Edbvry G 82 1612.
" Brondylly... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, Oct. 25, 1826, " i, 1632," al. sim.
166. ELEIGH, MONKS, S. Peter. 6 Bells.
1 T. Osborn fecit 1790.
2 Miles Graye made me M 1638.
3 Miles Graye made me M 1637.
4 y 65 thrice.
4- 67 <9r* D 68 Eauuntt G 68 9Sona D 68 CTampana
G 68 ^act.
s G AssvmPTA ; GST ; mAi\iA ; in • CGLtvm.
6 Miles Graye made me M. 1638.
See p. 10. "Mounksylle... Great bells iiij." Returns of 1553.
Davy, Oct. 25, 1826. Imperfect, but accordant notes. "31 May, 1737.
There were only 5 bells."
167. ELLOUGH All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 32 in. 3 Bells.
1 G AVG : mAI\IA : GI\ACIA : PLiGnA
Dominvs : TGCvm.
2 The Revd. Rob'. Lemon Rector. John Warne Ch.
Warden 1763. Lester & Pack of London fecit.
3 Anno Domini 1597.
See p. 74. So in substance, Davy, June i, 1808.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
168. ELM HAM, SOUTH, All Saints. Note C. i Bell.
Bell. Anno Domini 1603.
" Pochia omfi Scor in Sowthe elmehfn... Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Here were three bells till about 60 years ago. It is said that two were
sold to Southwold, where there was recasting and addition in 1828. The
following note is from the Churchwardens' book : —
" C'. By Cash of Mr. Burgess for 2 Bells.
W«. 10 cwt. i qr. 3 Ibs. at 6Jd. .£31 3 5
Dr. Allowed Mr. Burgess for Tare and Tret in the
weight of Bells 8 i
Geo. Durrani Churchwarden."
That this is true there can be little doubt, for Davy records 3 bells,
" i Laudes (for laudet) Deo in 2 Anno Domini 1603. 3 ... ora pro ..."
Now the Southwold 6th bears, "En J&eglilj anH in Vo Hau&es Ero," which
Davy may well be excused for not deciphering. This was, according to him,
the largest of the three.
169. ELM HAM, SOUTH, 5. George. 5 Bells.
1 J Taylor & Son, Founders, Loughborough, 1844.
J. Hurry, Norwich, Agent.
2 anno Domini 1610 AB
W
INSCRIPTIONS. 187
3 U 64.
-f. AYG : JHA1\IA : GI\ACIA : PEtGIlA : DllS :
TGCY.
4 U 51 thrice.
-j- 6 1 &Q* ST&omc /ttrritis Q 62 #tmamur ©aufcia lucis.
5 John Brend made me 1635.
See p. 61. "Sandcroft in Sowtvilla... Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy notes four, which he did not venture to inspect.
170. ELM HAM, SOUTH, S.James. Tenor. Diam. 3iJ in. in C£
4 Bells.
1 R. B. 1662.
2 Thomas Newman made mee 1 707. Joseph Barber C.W.
3 -j- JOHAIIIIGS : Br\OYtl : JUG : BGGIT : BIGI\I.
4 Anno Domini 1581. I. B.
Bells not in tune. See p. 74. R. B. for Ralph Brend.
No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. "Great bells iij. Sancts j." Return
of '553- Davy dates 2 1704, crosses 3 and 4, and could not read
JOHAHnGSon3.
171. ELMHAM, SOUTH, S. Margaret. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3 John Brend made me 1657.
4 Slnno Domini 1627.
AB
W
5 U 51 thrice.
Slnno Domini 1596. W. B.
So Davy, save that he reads " 1 586 " for 1 596.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
172. ELMHAM, SOUTH, S. Michael. A good clear bell.
i Bell.
Bell. C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1847.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. "Only i bell," Davy.
173. ELMHAM, SOUTH, S.Nicholas.
Ecdesia destructa. " Great bells iiij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
" The church is now entirely demolished." Davy.
174. ELMHAM, SOUTH, S. Peter. Tenor. Diam. 34^ in.
NoteBb. 3 Bells.
1 U 9 four times.
2 1J n four times.
-j- I5 3)o&anncs O 16 Gristi O 16 ©are O 16 fiignart
O 16 yro O 16 JJobU O 16 ©rate.
3 1J 8 four times.
-j- 15 Sum O 16 ©abrtcl O 16 JFata O 16 ^Hatit. O 16
Sum O 1 6 t'omttnt.u
See p. 17. Well-toned bells.
No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. "Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
(The same three hung in the tower in 1889.)
175. ELMSETT S. Peter. Notes C and A#. 2 Bells.
i Thomas -f Gardiner -|- Sudbury -j- fecit -(- 1726 (two
coins).
,88 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
2 Miles Graye made me 1636.
Pits for two others, which are said to be in Stowmarket tower. " Great
bells iiij." Return of 1553- Uavy by mistake, 20 May, 1829, " I Bell."
176 ELMSWELL S. John Evangelist. Tenor. Diam. 40.^ in.
5 Bells.
j Robard Gvrney § made me ^ 1670. W. M. T. F.
2 De D 82 Bvri D 82 Santi Ll 82 Edmondi D 82 Stefanvs
n 82 Tonni D 82 me Q 82 fecit Q 82 WL D 81
1582 D 81.
3 U 65 thrice.
+ jlaiutt D 1=6munDt D ©™ D W™ D .flobtij.
4 John Darbie made me 1677.
5 3)obn Draper maot me 1616 (cracked).
" Great bells iij." Return of 1 553.
Davy, n June, 1827, imperfect notes, but correct as far as they go.
177. ELVEDEN X Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1664.
"Elvedene... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 24 Aug., 1829, notes one bell, but gives Ringers' Rules, dated Sept.
19, 1707, showing that there was at that time a ring of bells in this tower,
copied by Jennyn, 1817.
178. ENDGATE S. Mary.
Ecclesia destructa. " Ingate. Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Church taken down 1577. Bells, lead, etc., sold for £76 18 4, which was
given to Dunwich on account of losses sustained there. See W. J. A. in
East Suffolk Gazette, Aug. 9, 1887.
179. ERISWELL S. Laurence.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
180. ERISWELL S. Peter. 3 Bells.
I, 2 Thos. Osborn founder 1795. John Spark Church
Warden.
3 Tho. Gardiner made me 1743.
So Davy, 21 Aug., 1828. " Great bells vj." Return of 1553.
181. ERWARTON £ Mary. i Bell.
Bell. C. Newman made me 1700. R. Sporll. W.
Fisher C. W.
So Davy, i and Sance bell in 1553.
182. EUSTON S. Genevieve. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3 Henricvs Pleasant me fecit 1701.
4 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1730.
5 Domini Thome Hanmeri Baronetti.
Anno Domini 1701. H. P.
" Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy, 4 July, 1843, " Five."
183. EXNING S. Martin. 5 and Clock bell.
:» 2> 3> 4 John Draper made me 1623.
INSCRIPTIONS. 189
5 C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1845.
William Fyson | Church Wardens.
John Dobede
Clock bell. T. Mears of London fecit.
W-. Fyson j Church Warfens lg3J_
Thos. Bryant )
Late the gift of Francis Shepherd Esqr., 1723.
"Eycenyng Halfe Hundred:— Eycenyng... Great bells iiij. Sancts Bells
j." Return of 1553.
184. EYE 55. Peter and Paul. 8 Bells.
1 Ex dono Gulielmi Brampton generosi Anno Domini 1721.
2 Pack & Chapman of London fecerunt. Simon Cook
Churchwarden 1779.
3 Thomas Rust oppidi Praefecto J. Stephens made us 3
1721.
4 Let us rejoice our King restord.
Sam1. Cowing Danl Sewell Ch. Wardens.
T. Osborn fecit 1789.
5 O God continue thy tender mercies to the King.
Dan'. Sewell Sam1. Cowing, Ch. Wardens.
T. Osborn fecit 1789.
6, 8, Miles Graye made me 1640.
7 U 51 thrice.
-|- 6 1 Sona KcpcnUe $ta n 62 &ogo jjHagfcalcna JHarta.
So Davy, 17 and 18 June, 1809. 5 and a Sance bell in 1553.
Sperling notes the tenor as in Ej?, 24 cwt.
Comparison of dimensions of 7th and Tenor : —
Height in full
„ to shoulder
Plain, lip
Circum at inscription
ft.
3
7
8
ft. in.
2 IC-J
2 6i 26
3 6i 4 o
64 6 ni
Eye Town Hall possesses an old bell without inscription, but apparently
from London, c. 1350. Till the last century it used to hang in a spire which
formerly surmounted Eye tower. Very likely the original Sance bell.
185. EYKE All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 Henry Pleasant made me 1706.
3 U 55 thrice.
+ JFancta D ^Harta rj Ota Q V" D J2obts.
So Davy, 12 Sept. 1807. Martin (no date) notes 5.
From Hawes : — i.
2 Henry Pleasant made me 1706.
3 raiut.i ©ra |Jro jJJofcis.
4 En Jfttultis, -NIC.
5 Miles Graye made me 1630.
"Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Returns of 1553. Faculty for selling
two bells in Davy.
186. FAKENHAM, GREAT, 5. Peter. Tenor A*, c. 8 cwt.
3 Bells.
190 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
T _|_ ganeta : marta : ora : pro : nobts.
2 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1572.
3 R. G. 1667.
"Great bells iij." Returns of 1553. Davy, no notes.
187. FAKENHAM, LITTLE, 5. Andrew.
Ecclcsia destructa. No return in 1 553.
188. FALKENHAM S. Ethdbert. 4 Bells.
1, 2 John Darbie made me 1666.
3, 4 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1728.
So Davy, 15 July, 1829. No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
189. FARM HAM S. Mary. 2 Bells.
1 T. S. T. P. 1590.
2 &nno Bomtni 1631.
U 5°-
So Davy. Diameters 2ft. 2in., 2ft. 3|in. No clappers.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
190. FELIXSTOWE SS. Peter and Paul. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1627.
"ffylstowe. Great bells j." Return of 1553. Davy, 15 July, 1829, i Bell.
191. FELSHAM 5. Peter. Tenor. Diam. 45^ in. in F.
6 Bells,
i Robard «%> Gvrney made me A 1668.
1 '•'-{ J 9&J
2, 4 Miles Graye made me M. 1638.
3 U 65 thrice.
-f- 67 j&ancta fj anna fj ©rn Q $Jro Q i^obtg.
5 John Warner and Sons, London, 1887.
6 Miles Graye made me M. 1639.
" ffeltham... Great bells iiij." Re. of 1553. Davy, " 6 bells and a clock."
The old 5th bore U 51 thrice, with + 61, n 62> and IDona Bcpentc,
&c.
192. FINBOROUGH, GREAT, S. Andrew. Very small.
i Bell.
Bell. Josephus Carter me fecit Q 1609.
3 in 1553. Notes, probably by Martin, 15 April, 1756, record three bells ;
the Terrier of 1784 mentions but one. The tower fell in 1819; Davy, June
13 and 14, 1827, names a single bell hanging in a cupola.
193. FINBOROUGH, LITTLE, S. Bartholomew. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
2 in 1553. Davy, June 14, 1827, notes a single bell within the roof of the
nave, at the west end, and that the steeple was standing within the memory
of some of the present inhabitants.
194. FINNINGHAM S. Bartholomew. 3 Bells.
1 Thomas Lester & Tho5. Pack fecit 1754.
2 U 50 thrice.
+ 6 1 {Fttgtms C?grtgie D 62 2Focot Campnna ^Haric.
INSCRIPTIONS. 191
3. No inscription.
3 in 1553. Davy, 22 July, 1838, notes 3.
The third apparently a very old bell, with long barrel, sharp shoulder, no
headings, and light cannons.
195. FLEMPTON S. Catherine. i Bell.
Bell. Percute Duke Cano. T. Osborn fecit 1786.
"Great Bells iij." Return of 1553, Tom Martin, c. 1724, notes "The
steeple half down, three bells." See Davy's further notes.
196. FLIXTON S. Andreiv.
Ecdesia destructa. No return in 1553.
197. FLIXTON S. Mary. x Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
No return of bells in certif. dated iiij Nov., 1547. " fflyxon... Great bells
iiij." Return of 1553.
The late Revd. H. Warren, Vicar, informed me that there were three
bells formerly, the inscriptions on the other two being
- /Wiffug JUtro $te Gabriel Jftit Utta ^ttarir, and
-j- ©uefumus &nl)rca J^mulorum Suftipe Vota.
Davy s account is intended to agree with this. Here the late Sir R.
Shafto Adair placed a large Dish-bell bearing twice the arms and motto of
his family, and inscribed, Bfrnite Isibltembs Domino. #lrars me JFrcit
MDCCCLVII. It was struck on the outside with a large hammer, and emitted
a somewhat broken, booming sound, very effective at a distance. After
some years' use it became cracked, and was sold to help to buy an organ.
198. FLOWTON S. Mary. t Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
3 in 1553-
199. FORDLEY Holy Trinity.
Ecdesia destructa. 3 in 1553.
200. FORNHAM All Saints. 4 Bells.
i, 2 John Draper made me 1623.
3 U 5° thrice.
+ 6 1 #?ac Hn €ontlarc Q 62 ffia&rid flunt Pange Suabe.
4 John Draper made me 1624.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy has mistaken "Draper" for
" Darbie," and put a century on the dates.
201. FORNHAM S. Gcnevieve.
Ecdesia distructa. "ffornham Genofefye... Great bells ij." Return of
1553. " Three bells." Martin?
202. FORNHAM 5. Martin. 6 Bells.
J> 2. 3, 4, 5, 6 C. & G. Mears, Founders, London, 1844.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Three bells noted by Davy, but no inscriptions.
203. FOXHALL All Saints.
Ecdesia dtstntcta. "ffoxhall. Chalice one, wayinge viioz. qr. Great
bells ns (= nescio)."
I92 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
204. FRAM LING HAM S. Michael.
1 John Stephens of Norwich made me 1718.
2 John Stephens fecit 1718. Prosperity to all my bene-
factors.
3 John Stephens made me 1720.
4 U 50 thrice.
-j- 6 1 ?i?ac £n Coclabe Q 62 ©abricl l^iic ^angc £uabc.
5 \) 50 thrice.
-(- 61 ®trgims Ctgrcgtc D 62 2Focor ®«»f«« IRane.
6 Omnis Sonvs lavdet Dominvm Anno Domini 1583.
7 Anno Domini 1622. W. I. B.
8 Per me fideles convocantur ad preces I. S. 1718. Thomas
Mvlliner Moses Bvry C. W.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. " Great bells v. Sancts
bells j." Return of 1553. 7th a bad bell.
Many bequests "novo Campanili," from 1497—1534, by Christiana
Durrani, Margery Spinke, Tho Skimming, Rob, Maggs, Joan Trusse, Joh.
Botson de Saxsted, &c.
In 1657 a sixth bell was bought, probably of John Brend, partly by con-
tribution, partly by the sale of timber. Mr. Alexander, a Town feoffee, gave
£10. This is the second or third eight in the county, Horham being the
nrst, and Bungay S. Mary's old eight completed in the same year with
Framlingham.
205. FRAMSDEN 5. Mary. Tenor 16 cwt. 8 Bells.
i and 2 Gift of R' Honourable Wilbraham Earl of Dysart,
1814. T. Hears of London fecit.
3 Will"1. Dobson, Downham, 1809.
4 No inscription.
5 Sir Lionel Tollemache, Earl of Dysart, Baron of Hunt-
ingtower Bart and Kl. of the most ancient order of
the Thistle, who died March loth, 1770, recast
these bells to complete the peal.
Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1770.
6 Henry Pleasant made me 1706.
7 T. Mears of London fecit 1815.
8 Sir Lionel Tollemache, Earl of Dysart, Baron of Hunt-
ingtower Bart and K' of the most ancient order of
the Thistle, who died March loth, 1770, left by
will this bell.
Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1772.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. " Great bells iiij." Return
of 1553. Davy records 3 as bearing the same inscription as 5 : and 7,
"Renovata Senectus in florem rcdeat. John Robers, A.M., Vicar, John
Revell, Ch. Warden, 1740."
206. FRECKENHAM 6". Andrnv. 5 Bells.
i William Dobson Fecit Downham Norfolk 1809.
2, 3 John Draper made mee 1623.
4 The Revd. H. Bates Rector Wm. Westrop and Wm.
Mainprice Churchwardens 1809.
5 T. Osborn fecit 1792.
"ffrakenham... Great bells iiij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553. The
same inscriptions, but allotted to wrong bells by Davy, 21 Aug., 1829.
INSCRIPTIONS. 193
207. FRESSINGFIELD SS. Peter and Paul. 8 Bells.
i, 2 T. Meats of London fecit 1819.
3 Thomas Newman made me 1741.
4 Mr. T. Bancroft & P. James C. W. 1741.
T. Newman made me.
5 George Mears, founder, London, 1866.
6, 7 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1817.
8 0 50 thrice.
-j- 42 jecorum ^Heriti* Q 48 ^angamus Cantita EauOis.
See pp. 43, 83. 7 a little flat.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. 4 and a Sance bell in 1553.
Jermyn and Davy were here, 14 Oct., 1806. They note 3 and 4 as they are
now, 5 like 4 (as it was at my visit, 19 March, 1862), 6, Dona Kepen&f, &c.,
and 7, Omnis Sonus laudet Dominum 1632. I. B. On the crown I. A.
R. A. See Gillingwater's extract for the opening of the complete eight.
The 5th, which ringers think inferior to its predecessor, was recast after
an accident while William Riches was ringing in a course of 720.
There seemed to be no cause for the sudden cracking of the bell, so W.
R. tells us.
208. FRESTON S. Peter.
Bell. Ricardvs Bowler me fecit 1600.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553. A good bell.
Davy, by mistake, 1660,
L'Estrange, p. 65, mistakes this parish for Friston.
The Visitation Records of the Archdeaconry of Suffolk (1674) mention an
order for a new bell to be provided in place of an old one, which had been
sold. This order was repeated in 1675. In 1689 "the great bell" is
mentioned.
209. FRISTON S.Mary. 3 Bells.
1 Johannes Drivervs me fecit 1614.
2 y 50 thrice.
-(- ©ucfurnu* SSnUrta Q 62 Jfamulorum &ufripe Voia.
3 No inscription.
So Davy. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
210. FRITTON 5. Edmund. i Bell.
Bell. M. Sydnor Esquier. 1598.
" ffret on... Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
In Reeve's Historical Collection two bells are mentioned.
211. FROSTENDEN All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 -(- CAmPAIlA : OJimiYJXl : SA«CTOI\Ym
(cracked).
2 John Brend made me 1639. (Note B.)
3 fj : O : UGO : BBAI\A : PX\O : nOBIS :
OGYGXO^A : (Note A).
So Davy, 3 Sept., 1837. Treble probably an early London bell. Tenor
bears " Burlingham " lettering. See p. 60.
No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. 3 in 1553.
Z
194 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
212. GAZE LEY All Saints. Weight 10 cwt. 6 Bells.
1 A grateful strain boys let us sing^
To praise the name of Messrs. King
Wedge, Cornell, Norman, Hynes, and Fyson,
Death, Barnes, Staples, also Wilson,
By whose kind and generous aid
I(leader of this peal) was made.
John Briant fecit A.D. 1808.
2 Pack & Chapman of London Fecit 1775.
3 Whilst thus we join in chearful sound
May Love and Loyalty abound
Pack & Chapman of London Fecit 1775
4 Ye ringers all that prize
Your health and happiness
Be sober merry wise
And you'll the same possess.
Pack & Chapman of London Fecit 1775.
5 In Wedlock's bands all ye who join
With hands your hearts unite
So shall our tuneful tongues combine
To laud the nuptial rite.
Pack & Chapman of London Fecit 1775.
6 William Brewster and Richd. Hynes Churchwardens
1775. Pack & Chapman of London Fecit.
" Great bells v." Return of 1553. No note. Davy.
213. GEDDING. 2 Bells.
De Bvri Santi Edmondi.
1 Stefanus Tonni me fecit 1572.
2 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanus Tonni me fecit 1572.
Omnia lovam lavdent animantia.
No return in 1553. "2 bells and a small Fully." Davy.
214. GIPPING. i Bell.
Bell. Charles Tyrell, Esq., Patron.
Recast Anno Dom: 1812. Gipping Chapel,
i in 1553.
215. GISLEHAM Holy Trinity. Diams. 28 & 34 in. 2 Bells.
1, 2 Anno Domini 1627 AB
W
So Davy. No return of bells in certif. of iiij Nov., 1547. "Great bells
iij." Return of 1553.
216. GISLINGHAM S. Mary. In E., in tune. Tenor. Diam45}in.
6 Bells,
i Cast by William Dobson of Downham Norfolk 1814.
2, 3, 4 Miles Graye made me 1641.
5 John Darbie made me 1671.
6 John Darbie made me 1671. G. S. C.W.
4 in 1553. Fine-toned bells.
INSCRIPTIONS. 195
217. G L E M H A M , G R E AT, All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 U 52 thrice.
-j- 6 1 ftjcc Jftt Scorum n 62 Camp.i JlauOt ttonorum.
2 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1722.
3 U 52 thrice.
-j- 6 1 Jttunere Uapttstt Q 62 tteiutiictus Sit Chorus Iftr.
4 Anno Domini 1599.
5 -\- 14 U 23 -f- 14 Sum iiofa yulsata ^WunDt #tatta
Uocata.
So Davy. No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. "Great bells
v." Return of 1553.
218. GLEM HAM, LITTLE, 5. Andrew. Tenor. Diam. 44 in.
F#. 3 Bells.
1 Thomas Osborn Downham Norfolk fecit 1799. John
(Nottingham Churchwarden.
2 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1574.
3 Little Glemham November 1749. Cast by Thomas
Lester of London.
So Davy. No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. "Great bells
iij." Return of 1553.
219. GLEMSFORD S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i Thos. Mears of London fecit 1830.
2, 3 Miles Graye made me 1659.
4 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1754.
5 Tho'. Mears of London fecit 1830.
Rev. Wm. Butts, Rector.
Rev. E. D. Butts, Curate.
Churchwardens.
6 Charles Newman made mee 1686.
Churchwarden,
Davy, Aug. 18, 1831. No notes. " Great bells v." Return of 1553.
Nov. 16, 1698, "Wm. Tamplin for hanging the tenor and mending the
other bells, 9/6." P. Ace.
220. GORLESTON S. Andrew. 6 Bells.
J> 2» 3> 4> 5 Mears & Stainbank, founders, London, 1873.
6 Mears & Stainbank, founders, London, 1873.
This peal of bells dedicated to the honor and glory of
God and the use of the parish church of St. Andrew's
Gorleston by Miriam Chevallier Roberts born at
Southtown in that parish A.D. 1853.
The old 4 were thus inscribed : —
1 U 50 AB U 86.
W
1619. Dame Chamberlin Xpofer Poope.
2 (see p. 42) -f I AOl : JHAD :!«;¥€ WOI\CHePe
: OB YG : CI\OS.
-f- SAIICTG I HYCHODAG • OI\A ;
IIOBIS.
196 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
3 Anthony Taylor, Wm. Cross Ch. Wardens 1763. Lester
& Pack of London fecit.
4 rj 50 AB rj 86.
W
John Belton, Dame Chamberlin, Xpofer Poope, Church-
wardens 1619.
"iiij Nov., 1547. Certif. of Erasmus ffox and and Barnard Sudbru
Chyrchevvardens ther. We srtefye that the towneshypp have sold one Crosse
of sulu"- and one sens' of sylu' to the value and sma of xiiijli iiijs. yerys sence.
The whyche xiiijli is bestowyd vppon a newe bellfframe to the bells and a
new Battylment to the stepull for iiij yerys paste."
" Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
When I was here in 1866 I found only the two smaller of the four whole,
being the 2nd and 4th of a six. The treble and third were sold c. 1845 to
assist in pewing the church.
221. GOSBECK S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Recast by J. Taylor & Co., Loughborough, 1879.
The Revnd. F. S. Barry Rector.
W. Mayhew, Churchwarden.
3 in 1553. Davy, 8 May, 1824. One bell inscribed —
Sanrta jHarta ora pro notus.
222. GROTON S. Bartholomew. Tenor. Diam. 40^ in. Weight
10 cwt. 3 qrs. n Ibs. 5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1676.
2 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1764.
Richd. Lifton & Geo Mumford ChWardens Wm. Dawson.
3 1J 25 -|- 22 rj 26 j£ancte Hatrana €>ra ^J)ro Jlobus.
4 ^ 38 U 31 + <£tt Jiomcn Somtm Jfonefctctum.
5 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1763.
Geo Mumford & Richd. Lifton Ch.Wardens.
" Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
223. GRUNDISBURGH S. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 38^.
6 Bells.
1 T. Mears. of London fecit 1830.
Revd. Dr. Ramsden Rector.
James Hayward Churchwarden.
Sam1. Cutting Subscriber.
2 John Darbie made me 1665.
William Yorke C. W.
3 Pack & Chapman of London fecerunt 1779.
James Johnson Churchwarden.
4 John Darbie made me 1665.
5 G. Mears & Co., London, 1864.
6 Miles Graye made me 1628.
T. Martin, 1725, notes "John Darbie made me 1665 upon 4th bell lying at
the West end of the Church, upon the least but one
William W
Yorke C
upon the biggest S"- William Bloys Knight. Another broken bell run at the
same time lies in a Vestry or inclosed place at the West end of the South
Isle."
INSCRIPTIONS.
197
224. GUNTON S. Peter.
No Bell.
No return in 1553. None in Robert Reeve's time.
" We ncu' sold no other ymplemens (but plate) nat for y» xxii yers past.
Certif. of Henry Heyham and Henry Blocke, C.W. iij Nov., 1547."
225. HACHESTON All Saints.
i [Inscription wholly obscured by iron band].
2, 4 Ihon Darbie made me 1683.
3 U 50 thrice.
-+- 6 1 Quids Cifto
62 Carapa Uocot
1582. S. G. Rector. H. F. C.W.
Four bells are returned under " Parham Haston" in 1553.
Hawes notes the treble as " Richard Phelps made me 1712," and the tenor
as SG. RBCT RR RE CR HR. SH BR HT GT MW HI PII 1589.
Davy, Oct. 24, 1817, adds "Anno."
226. HADLEIGH S. Mary. Tenor 28 cwt. Diam. 52* in.
8 and Clock bell.
i, 2 Miles Graye made me 1678.
3 Miles Graye made me 1679.
ft £ ' $ £
4 -- 89 \) 31 -)- 37 Sit JJomen Domini EmUittum.
5 The Rev. Dr. Drummond Rector.
J. B. Leake and Thos. Sallows Churchwardens 1806.
Fig. 89.
6 The Very Rev. H. B. Knox Rector.
J. Rand W. Grimwade Churchwardens.
C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1856.
7 The Rev. Dr. Thos. Drake, Rector. Samuel Hyell
Edward Sallows Ch. Wardens. T. Osborn fecit 1788.
8 Miles Graye made me 1680.
Clock bell. AYG JIIAI\IA G^ACIA PDGnA
(backwards).
" Great bells vj." Return of 1 553.
Davy, 5 and 6 Nov., notes 5, Johannes Thornton fecit 1719. In Multis
Annis Resonet Campana Johannis, and 6, Sura Kosa $)ulsata jHun&i JJlaria
Vorata. al. sim.
I98 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
227. HALESWORTH 5. Mary. Tenor in C.
8 and Clock bell.
i, 2 Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1770.
3 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1759.
4 n 65 thrice.
-f 67 Sancte Q 68 W&oma Q 63 Ota Q 68 $>ro D 68
.
c RICHAKD WGIiT-Cm AUD DAHIGli BAI\HG
CHY^CH WAI\D6nS IYDII 1632 WIB
6 U 65 thrice.
+ 67 D 68 gjofianncg D 68 C&vtSti Q 68 «au Q 68
Dtgnare Q 68 pro Q 68 Jjlobis Q otaw.
7 1J 86 AB IJ 50.
W
&nno Domini 1611.
8 ficto SUpnirtD $5 &ogcr Z^ooliS (Erasmus £&ow (Kputclj
aaatfitns Safns *)arett gabc me. WIB.
Clock bell. T. Mears London fecit 1826.
Davy, 1806, agrees with this. No return of bells in certif. of 1 547. 5 an(i
a Sance bell 1553. 7th, inconceivably honeycombed, lasts by a miracle.
228. MARGRAVE 5. Edmund. Tenor in A. 3 Bells.
1 ^ Thomas Cheese D 82 James D 82 Edbere 1622.
2 T. Mears of London fecit 1841.
Elizabeth White, Sarah White.
3 n 81 Anno D 82 : D 82 Regni FJ 82 Regine D 81
Elizabeth. De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni
me fecit.
n 81 Anno Q 82 Domini Q 82 1566.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. "3 bells," Davy. The treble has
been over-flattened.
229. HARKSTEAD S. Mary. 5 Bells.
3, 4 Miles Graye made me 1611.
i, 2 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1722.
5 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1722.
So Davy. 3 in 1553.
230. HARLESTON 5. Augustine. Diam. i6J in. Note D.
i Bell.
Bell. J. Warner & Sons, London.
(Royal Arms) Patent.
Recast 1862! Revd. C. Perry Rector. James Matthew
Churchwarden.
2 in 1553. Davy, June I3th, 1827, notes a small bell in a cupola, inac-
cessible.
231. HARTEST All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 382 in. n cwt.
5 Bells.
J> 2i 3> 4 John Darbie made me 1661.
5 John Darbie made me 1661. William Coppinge Richard
Mirrld (sic) C.W.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, Aug. 17, 1831, " 5 Bells,"
INSCRIPTIONS. 199
232. HASKETON S. Andrew. Tenor. Diam. 36$ in. Note A.
5 Bells.
'» 3» 4) 5 Miles Crave made me 1628.
2 T. Mears of London fecit 1832. Samuel Randale,
Churchwarden.
I, 3, 4, 5 also bear the arms of Math. Atherold, ob. 1678. No return of
bells in certif. of 1547. " Wodbridge hasten... Great bells iiij." Return
of 1553-
233. HAUGHLEYS. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 45 in., in F. Weight
i ton. 5 Bells.
1 Virorum ; sumptus i nostrorum ; sunt \ Haughley.
Recast in memory of E. Ebdon Surgeon for 43 years a
resident of this Parish.
E. E. Ward Vicar. S> J- Harrison 1 Churchwardens
S. S. Baker 1885.
J. Smyth, G. Reed 1702 HP
Recast by John Warner Si Son, London.
2, 3, 4, 5 Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni Q 82 me D 82 Fecit Q 82
WL D 82 1572.
D 8 1 De D 82 Buri fj 82 Santi FJ 82 Edmondi Q 82.
U 81 Sumptus D 82 Nostrorum Q 82 Sunt D 82
Haughlue n 82 Virorum.
So Davy. 4 and a Sance bell in 1553.
234. HAVER HILL 5. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 3 John Darbie made me 1669.
2 John Darbie made me 1685.
4 Joseph Eayre S1. Neots 1765^. John Godfrey and Abel
Bull Churchwardens.
5 Tho. Newman of Norwich made mee.
W. Wilshere & S. Bridge C.W. 1729.
"Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. No notes. Davy.
235. HAWKEDON S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 5 Miles Graye made me 1683.
4 Samuel Sparrow William Pettit Church Wardens. J. S.
fecit 1721.
So Davy. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
236. HAWSTEAD All Saints. 3 and a Sance bell.
i -f- 15 U 9 <£t«ms &nm» Jikfoiut Campana.3)oJ)annta.
z, 3 Henry Pleasant made me 1696. Thomas Cason C.W.
Sance Bell. No inscription.
" Halstede... Great bells j." Return of 1553. The engraving of the Sance
bell, fig. 78, is taken from the chancel, and the bell hangs at the south end
of the Rood-screen. See p. 82.
The Whitechapel foundry cast five bells, tenor 9 cwt., for Hardwick
House in this parish at some time in the last 100 years.
237. HAZLEWOOD.
Ecclesia destructa. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
200 THE CEIURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
238 HELMINGHAM S. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 49 in., in D.
Weight 19} cwt. 8 Bells,
i, 2, 3, 4, S, 6 T. Mears of London Fecit 1815.
8 The Peal of Eight Bells were the gift of the Right
Honblc. the Earl of Dysart. Anno Domini 1815.
'T. Mears of London Fecit.
Davy, 5 Aug., 1806, left spaces for inscription on 6 bells, but alas ! did not
write them in. T. Martin (no date) notes 5. Old Tenor, Lionell Tallmach
Esq. De Bvri S''. Edm. 1562. Stephanvs Tonni me fecit. Davy. See
Henley. 4 in 1553.
239. HEMINGSTONE S. Gregory. Tenor. Diam. 45in.
3 Bells.
1 Charles Newman made me 1686.
2 U 65.
+ j&ancta Q Jftarta Q ®*« D P*o D i^obia.
3 U 65.
+ Cell D Urt D JWunus D ®w D «,cpat Q «* U
So Davy, 8 May, 1824, imperfectly, crossing I and 2. 3 in 1553.
240. HEM LEY All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1714.
So Davy, 21 May, 1811, save 1715.
No return in certif. of 1 547. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
241 . H E N G R AV E 5. John. i Bell.
Bell. 1796.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
" No bells, except a small one for the clock." Davy.
242. HENHAM.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
243. HENLEY S. Peter. Tenor 9 cwt. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas Mears & Son of London fecit 1809.
2 John Darbie made me 1658.
RafveMeadowe I gave this bell.
Willyam Meadowe f
3 Lionellus Tolmach Comes de Dysart hunc de novo
fundi C. 1736.
4 65 thrice.
+ j&ancta rj jftatia rj ©ra rj yro rj
5 \) 65 thrice.
-}- Sancte D ®oma Q ©ra Q ?3ro Q
Davy, 9 May, 1824, "The Clerk told me this (now the 3rd) came from
Helmingham." 4 in 1553.
The old tenor was by Gardiner, 1729, and weighed 10 cwt. i qr. 25 Ibs.,
without the crown staple. From this the present treble is supposed to be
made. The old 3rd by Miles Graye, 1617, was exchanged for a bell at
Helmingham c. 1870. In 1730 ,£22 I2J. was paid to a Sudbury founder,
no doubt Gardiner, for casting a bell and carriage.
INSCRIPTIONS. 201
244. HEN STEAD S. Mary. \ Hell.
licll. No inscription.
So Davy, 31 Aug., 1809. "One," Martin, 1750.
3 and a Sauce bell in 1553.
245. HEPWORTH S. Peter. Tenor. Diam. 35 in , in A.
5 Bells.
i, 2, 3 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1726.
4 Rob'. Nunn Churchwarden. William Dobson 1825.
5 U 50 thrice.
-j- $ftrus 2lD ttctnt D 62 Buc.ii 4lo9 $)ascua ITtle.
Impressions of coins and medals on I, 2, 3. " Great bells iij." Return
of 1553. 4 "Thomas Draper the younger made me 15931" says Davy, 6
Jan., 1810, otherwise as above.
246. HERRINGFLEET 5. Margaret. 2 Bells.
1 1837.
2 AB U 86 U 52.
W
anno Domini 1611.
" Heryngsheath... Great bells iij." Return of 1553. We find from Reeve's
Historical Collection that there were three bells, one inscribed + ©ursumug
anovM. jFamuIorum £>uscipe Uota, and another + Dulets Cisto JfUUs.
CTamvana Voror j Midj.itlis.
247. HERRINGSWELL S. Ethelbert. Tenor in B}, all tuned by
turning. 3 Bells.
i, 2, 3 I. Taylor & Co., Founders, Loughborough, 1869.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
The original treble, Jpac j/ttatgnrtta jfloiit* ?t?ec jjluneta Hela lev
bono robrni llou (T. Martin). Recast 1741, inscribed John Pond C.VV.
1741. Tho. Newman made me. 2 n $?" S^ scoru n ©ampa
Eauoe ISonotu. 3D ftoc Jn CJonclabc Q ©abriel ilunc ^ange suabc.
These three bells seen by me early in 1849 bore the usual Norwich marks.
Davy reports these so, 22 Aug., 1828. Martin notes 3 in 1755, so that the
Jfac Jtlargarfta must have come from earlier notes.
248. HESSETT 5. Ethelbert (fine bells). 5 Bells.
i, 2 Robert Midson John Vacher Churchwardens.
John Stephens made me 1724.
3 T. Osborn Founder 1787.
4 John Stephens Bell-founder of Norwich made me 1724.
5 John Stephens made me 1724.
So Davy. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
See notes in Canon Cooke's History of Hessett, in the proceedings of the
Suffolk Institute of Archajology, vol. iv., No. 6, pp. 330, 331.
249. HEVENINGHAMS. Margaret. Tenor 9 cwt. 5 Bells.
1 Tho. Osborn fecit 1797. Percute dulce cano.
2 T. Osborn Downham fecit 1797.
3 T. Osborn fecit 1797. Cum voco Venite.
4 T. Osborn fecit 1797.
5 Thos. Osborn fecit 1797. Long live King George the
Third.
2A
202 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547- 4 in '553-
Extract from Terrier rendered 24 May, 1784, "also four bells with frames,
the least thought to weigh 7 cwt., the 2nd 9 cwt., the 3rd 11 cwt., and the
4th about 15 cwt." One of the present five is cracked in the shoulder.
250. HICHAM S. Stephen. i Bell.
Bell. Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1861.
Presented by Joseph Gurney Barclay Esqr., Higham,
1861.
251. HIGHAM S. Mary. Tenor 8 cwt. 6 Bells.
1 Thomas Mears, Founder, London 1842. The gift of A.
C. Reeve, Esq.
2 John Barbie made me 1675.
3 William Mears of London fecit 1781. John Stubbin
Churchwarden.
4 John Darbie made me 1663.
5 + 43 U 23 jeancta JHOcg (Dm ^ro jHobtS.
6 John Darbie made me 1675. John Partridge C. W.
So Davy, only transposing 2 and 3. See p. 23.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 4 in 1553. On the battlement of
the steeple " J. S. W. M. 1786."
The late Vicar, the Rev. A. C. Reeve, died early in 1889. He was insti-
tuted in 1835.
252. HINDERCLAY .S. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 39^ in., in G.
c. 13 cwt. 6 Bells.
1 Cum voco venite. T. Osborn Downham fecit 1790.
2 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1716.
3 U 65 thrice.
-f- gancta : cnttrina : ora : pronottf.
4 I. U. and A. G. made me 1621.
5 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1734.
6 1J 50 thrice.
+ 6 1 $08 ®I)onu J&crtris Q 62 i«mamur ffiaufcia
Sung. 3)oJ)cls jcamfon.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy's notes on the Pitcher, 19 June,
1844. Sperling says, " Tenor G, 14 cwt,"
253. HINTLESHAM S. Nicholas. Tenor. Diameter 37 in., about
8J cwt. 5 Bells,
i, s John Darbie made me 1678.
2 John Darbie made me 1677.
3 John Darbie made me 1678. S. H. C.W.
4 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury me fecit 1722.
So Davy. 2 in 1553.
254. HITCH AM All Saints. Tenor 8 cwt. 6 Bells.
i, 2 Thomas Mears of London, Founder, 1837.
„ William Powell \ ™ ,
3 W». Everett } churchwar(iens.
4 Henry Pleasant made me 1697.
William Powell I ,,r ,
W» Everett ' Wardens-
INSCRIPTIONS. 203
5 Thomas ... Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1755.
I Kieldgate ) (. ...
R. Kemball f
6 Thomas (iardincr fecit 1744-
I. Fieldgate I c w
I. King i
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
T. Martin, 6 July, 1741, notes 6. Davy, 24 Oct., 1826, 5.
255. HOLBROOK All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 Pack & Chapman of London Fecit 1775.
Thomas Green & Jn°. Clark Ch. Wardens.
2 William Dobson Founder Downham Norfolk 1807.
3 Robert Patrick of London Founder 1783.
Thos. Green Churchwarden.
4 John Darbie made me 1661.
5 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1722.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 4 in 1553.
" Five bells, the oldest founded 1661." Davy.
256. HOLLESLEY All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 Anno Domini 1620.
2 U 65 thrice.
+ j&ancta ittaria <Dra tfro jHobis.
3 Per me fidelis invocantur ad preces. Anno 1620.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
There was another bell, with a large hole in the upper part of it, probably
the treble, at Davy's visit, 14 Sept., 1824, inscribed, " Miles Graye made me
1637," otherwise his record agrees with this, save that he kindly corrects
" fidelis " to " fideles."
257. HOLTON S. Mary. Notes B, Bb, A(j. 3 Bells.
1 IJ 65 thrice.
-f- j&anett Q 68 <9ault D 68 ®ra D 68 $to d 68 ^lobis-
2 John Darbie made me 1674. R. T. C.W.
3 U 65 thrice.
+ 67 3bc D 68 fHaria D 68 ©aria (sic) fj 68 #ltna D
68 Dominus D 68 C«um.
3 in 1553.
258. HOLTON 5. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. Three marks, "M. H. M. 1881 " (by Moore,
Holmes and Mackenzie.)
2 in 1553. "One bell." Davy.
259. HOMERSFIELDS. Mary. 2 & 3 out of tune. 3 Bells.
1 U 86 AB U 52.
W
Slnno Somtm 1619.
2 U 52 thrice.
+ 6 1 dFac ^ttargareta Q 62 J}obi« ftct i«luncta Ucta.
3 17 50 thrice.
-\- 6 1 ?i?ac In CTonclabc Q 62 Gabriel j3unc ^angc
" HunT-sfelde in Sowthelma... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy notes three bells, but could not get the key. May 18, 1830.
204 TIIE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
260. HONINGTON All Saints. Tenor A, c. 8 cwt. 3 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 U 50 thrice.
4- 6 1 Slbe IWatia Gratia ^Icna Q 62 Dns Return.
3 John Draper made me 1600.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 25 July, 1832, " 2 bells. '
261. HOO ^-S. Andrew and Eustaehius. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription (very small, cracked).
No return of bells in certif. of 1547, or in 1553.
Davy, Apr. 21, 1819, notes it as macessible.
262. HOPTON All Saints. Tenor in F#, c. 13 cwt. 6 Bells.
1 William Dobson Downham Norfolk fecit 1807.
2 John Draper made me 1629.
3, 4, 5 John Draper made me 1630.
6 John Draper made me 1626.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy. 27 July, 1824, omits date on
2. al. sim. Sperling (1860) says, "Tenor F|, 13 cwt."
263. HOPTON S. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. T. Hears of London fecit 1815.
No return of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. '_' Great bells iij." Return
of 1553. Three bells mentioned in Reeve's Historical Collection.
264. HORHAM S. Mary. Tenor in Bb , out of tune. 8 Bells.
1 John n Clvb 1673 Q Horham.
2 John Clvb Horham 1672.
3 John Clvb Horham 1672.
4 John Clovb [Clerke] 1658.
5 Johanes Draper me fecit 1605.
6, 7 John Darbie made me 1663. John Clovbe Rector of
Horham and Athelington.
8 Anno Domini 1568 (1568 also scratched in the mould).
4 in 1553. Davy, 16 July, 1809, notes these nearly so, except the tenor.
They are the earliest octave, apparently, in the county. The Terrier, 13
Dec., 1672, notes " Eight bells, with frames, ropes, etc."
John Clubb, Rector, left in 1693, 6s. %d. to be given to the poor on Plough
Monday. His arms are on i, 2, 3. Lettering of these puzzling.
265. HORN INGS HEATH S. Leonard. 6 Bells.
1 William Dobson Founder 1818.
2 Peace and good neighbourhood.
3 William Dobson Downham Norfolk Fecit 1818.
4 These Six Bells were given by Arthur Brooks Esqr., 1818.
5 Wm. Bacon Wigson Esqr. and Thomas Gardiner Church-
wardens 1818.
6 The gift of Arthur Brooks Esqr. The Revd. Henry
Hasted, M.A. Rector.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Tom Martin, c. 1724, notes, " Steeple
lowered. 3 bells." Davy in 1834 by mistake records only 5 bells.
INSCRIPTIONS. 205
266. HOXNE SS. Peter am! Paul. 5 Bells.
I John Darl.ir mad.- me 1676. E. W. A. G. J. H. S. L.
j Oinnis Sonus laudet Dominum. 1655 J. B.
\J (arms of Thruston, engraved on the bell).
3 -f John Goldsmith fecit 1711 Gabriel J. L. R. W. C. W.
T. 1'.
4 U 50 (Drate TJ 50 pro ata IJ 50 txttarut SmitI).
rj 62 j-los Cljomc ^Wcritts D 6l ^Wrreamut (OnuDia Jlucis.
5 D 47 Jf'ic IMnnjarcta Q 48 .flobis fOtf #luiura Etta.
5 and a Sance bell in 1553. See Thorpe Abbot's, L'Estrange, p. 223.
Martin (without date) notes "upon one cast some years ago was this,
Bjac «n Conrlabe <Pabrirl Xunc ftangr 5u,ibr." This was almost certainly
the present 3rd. He gives wrongly Uvotonc for Smttf) on the 4th. See his
note. Gillingwater, 20 Aug., 1799, sa>'s. "The 6th bell being split was sold
about 50 years ago, and the money applied towards seating and repairing
the church." In witness whereof the present five are in note the first five of
a six.
N.B. At Thorpe Abbot's are two bells : —
1 John Darbie made me 1678.
2 John Golds_mith fecit 1712. Mr. John Caton Ch. Wd. Mr.
S1. Staiiard.
T. R. E. iij belles. One said to have been sold to Hoxne.
East Anglian, I., 108, for repair of Clock (1521) in Bishop's Palace.
267. HULVER.
Ecclesia destructa.
268. HUNDON All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 3 ft. loin. 6 Bells.
1 Tho*. Osborn Downhatn Norfolk Founder 1796.
2 Charles Newman made mee 1701.
3 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury Fecit 1726.
4 T. Osborn Fecit Downham Norfolk 1801.
5 Thomas Mears Founder London 1841.
6 John Thornton Sudbury Made me 1720.
?r^1i?verson 'ch".wd..
John Hills J
" Great bells v." Return of 1553. No notes, Davy.
269. HUNSTON S. Michael. 3 Bells.
1 Pack & Chapman of London fecit. John Rust C. W.
2 J. D. made me 1614.
3 Johannes Drivervs me fecit 1617.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 6 July, 1843, "three bells."
270. HUNTINGFIELD5. Mary. Tenor cracked. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas IJ Gardiner Q fecit 1722.
2 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1720.
3, 4, 5 Tho. Gardiner fecit 1720.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553.
Davy, i Aug., 1806, gives no inscriptions. Frame very bad now.
271. ICK LING HAM All Saints. 3 Bells.
i TJ 8 thrice.
D 6 1 JFtrgtnig CFgrcgit D 61 JFocor Campana JHarfe.
206 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
2 1J 51 thrice.
Q 47 ducfumus Snfcwa D 48 JFamulovum Sufcipc (Jfiota.
3 Johanes Draper me fecit 1608.
" Great Bells iij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
272. I CKLING HAM S.James. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
" Great bells iij." . Return of 1553. Davy, 20 Aug., 1829, notes one bell.
273. ICKWORTH 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Tho: Gardiner he me did cast
I'll sing his praise unto the last. 1711.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. No mention of bells by Davy.
274. \\VE-NS.Botolph. 4 Bells.
1 TJ 26 D 22 U 25 Jeanne UTjjoma ©ra $to jilobig.
2 JHoi Sugufttm Sonet In Slurc Dei.
U 26 D 22 U 25
3 U 26 D 22 U 25 jeancta Itatcrtna ©ta ^j)io Jlobtg.
4 Sancte Kacobc ®ra i>to illobtS U 29.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
So Davy, save that he could not read No. 2. See pp. 25, 33. 2 should
have been mentioned with i and 3.
275. ILKETSHALL S. Andrew (before the fire, Sept., 1889).
4 Bells.
i, 2, 3 9nno J3omtni 1623.
AB
W
4 Ricardvs Bowler me fecit 1598.
So Davy, March i6th, 1810 " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
In 1547 John Emerys and John Chevez C.W. return that " Robert Skytte
wth the consent of thole Towne did sell one payre of chalyes v yeres agone to
the sum of iiij mrcs xd." which was bestowed about one bell, also " that
Roger Walker and Rychard Warner did selle one payre of chalyes ths last
yeare to the bme of xxxvj. whereof we have bestowed vpo a great belle xxjs."
The date on the tenor and one of the other bells remained unmelted.
The metal, when run out, yielded 14 cwt., enough for recasting the two
larger bells. Old tenor B. Diam. 34 in. i and 2 cracked in the crown.
276. ILKETSHALL 5. John Baptist. i Bell.
Bell : D : SAUCES : PST^e : OTC{A : PBO :
JUG :
" Great bells ij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
"One small bell," Davy, March 16, 1810.
277. ILKETSHALL S.Laurence. 2 Bells.
1 1619. W. B.
2 Anno Dni 1619. W. B.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. So in substance, Davy, Mar. 16, 1810.
278. ILKETSHALL S. Margaret. 3 Bells.
i U 8 thrice.
D 12 Sum &osa $3ulfSata 4&unHi itaterina Vocals.
INSCRIPTIONS. 2O7
2 U 8 thrice.
D 12 Quids Sisto /ttclis Campana SJocor (Sabdclis.
3 U 50 thric-c.
n 6 1 4f%uiurc JSaptistc Q 62 JJcnclrictus Sit CTljorus Estc.
" Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
Treble cracked, 2 and 3 poor tinny bells. Tenor in F, a little sharp. In-
accessible to Davy, May 20, 1830.
279. ING HAM S. Bartholomew. Tenor Ftt. Diam. 41 J in.
5 Bells.
ri 2i 3> 4> 5 G. Mears, founder, London.
Offered at the Church at Ingham in memory of her
Ancestors by Frances Wakeham, June, 1860.
The old bell was inscribed, U 9 + U 9 Sf c £oba Campana .fHargarrta
<Fst JJonunata. See p. 17.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 25 Aug., 1829, " Only one bell."
280. IPSWICH All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
281. IPSWICH S. Clement. Tenor Fjf. Diam. 43 in. 6 Bells.
!> 2, 3> 4) S> 6 John Darbie made me 1680.
So Davy, 19 May, 1811.
" Itm bells in the Stepyll iiij." Return of 1553. See East Anglian,
N. S. III., 204, etc., January, 1890.
282. IPSWICH £ Helen. 2 Bells.
i Me Made Graye Miles 1621.
2+67 .ganrta Q JWada fj <9ra D 13" .fiobtfJ.
"Seynt Ellyns...lmpms bells in the Stepyll iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 19 May, 1811, notes a third bell, like the present 2nd.
283. IPSWICH S. Laurence. Tenor F. Diam. 43^ in. 5 Bells.
1 U 66 thrice.
-\- 67 J&ancta D #larta Q ®ra Q pro D ^obis.
2 U 32 D 2 2 ^ancta Satcdna <9ra yro J2obis.
3 U 50 thrice.
D 6 1 5omtU£( lEgiOtt Q 62 Slstrnoit an Culmina Ccli.
4 U 50 thrice.
D 6 1 /$03 STjjome /Wcritts Q 62 #tcreamur 0au6ia ilutis.
5 \J 50 thrice.
D 6 1 Sum Jtlosa ^ulsata Q 62 #lunl>t ^Hnria Uocata.
So Davy, 20 May, 1811. See his note for legacies to the steeple.
"bells we have sold non." Certif. of parishioners, 1547. " Iti5 in the
Stepyll bells v Wheruppon gothe the Chymes. His Sancius bell." Return
of 1553. Tower engraved in the Building News, Dec. 29, 1882.
284. IPSWICH S. Margaret. Tenor F. Diam. 44 in. 6 Bells.
i, 3, 4, 5 Miles Graye made me 1630.
2 Robertas Richmond.
Miles Graye made me 1630.
6 Miles Graye made me 1630.
The living to the church, the dead unto the grave,
Thats my onely calling and propertie I have.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. " Itm bells in the Stepyll iiij."
Return of 1553. Davy, 31 Aug., 1825, " six."
208 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
285. IPSWICH S. Mary-at-Elms. Tenor G. Diam. 36 in.
135 John Darbie made me 1660. 5 Bells.
2 + + u 23.
4 Miles Graye made me 1613.
"Itm bells in the stepyll iiij. Itm Sanctus bell j." Return of 1553.
Davy, 21 Aug., 1821, notes I and 4 as here, gives 1662 as the date ot the
tenor, crosses 2 and 3, the former of which he calls " plain."
286. IPSWICH J>. Mary-at-Quay. Tenor A. Diam. 33 in.
6 Bells.
i T. G. fecit 1732. Mr. Henry Bowell C.W.
2, 3, 6 John Darbie made me 1662.
4 Miles Graye made me 1613.
5 Pack & Chapman London fecit 1775.
" Itm Sanctus bell i. Itm bells in the stepyll iv." Return of 1553.
Davy, ii June, 1811, notes 2 and 3 as dated 1663.
287. IPSWICH S. Mary Stoke. 2 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 Miles Graye me made 1615.
"Itm bells in the stepyll iiij." Return of 1553. Another removed 1887,
which Davy, 2 Aug., 1824, notes "plain."
288. IPSWICH S. Mary le Tower. Tenor Dj, 32 cw.t. Diam. 58 in.
12 Bells.
! .4- ©antatc Domino ©anttco .jUobo -f- 1866.
2 John Taylor & Son, Loughborough, Founders, July 15*,
1845.
3 George Taylor Joselyn & Edwin Brook Churchwardens
1844.
4 Christopher Hodson made me 1688. R. M. T. S
5 -f- aauDate Uominum In C^mbalts ikncgonanttbug -f- 1 866.
6, 8, 10 John Darbie made me 1671.
7 Miles Graye made me 1607.
9 -f- Ion Mcsono Bcparata JWaria Decora 'iTocata +
Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1866.
11 Miles Graye made me 1610.
12 _|_ fcriplcr persona BTrtmtass ilunc <BauDia Dona.
Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1861.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 5 and a Sanctus bell in 1553.
Davy, 2 Aug., 1810, notes i, 3, 4, 5' 7, 8 (the present 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, and
n) as here. The old and (present 5th) was like the old treble, and Warner
in 1866 repeated the inscription on the old 6th (present gth), dated 1707.
The recasting saved any tuning.
289. IPSWICH 5. Matthew. Tenor G. Diam. 39 in. 5 Bells,
i, 2, s Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1772.
3 TJ 65 thrice.
-f- Santta Q 33tatettna D ®tn D $ro d $to®*'
4 Miles Graie made me 1605.
So Davy, 17 June, 1824. No return of bells in certif. of 1547.
" Itm bells in the stepyll iiij. Itm Sanctus bell. Return of 1553.
In 1583, ^4 4s. id. was paid for casting a bell and overweight, and JJ. 4</.
for carrying it to Bury. In 1606 the brass of the 3rd cost 6d. for carrying to
Colchester and back, and Myles Graye received ,£4 2s. 6d, for casting the
2nd. There are some more curious items.
INSCRIPTIONS. 209
290. IPSWICH 's. Nicholas. Tenor G. Diam. 39 in. 5 Bells.
i, 3 H. P. 1706. W Tweedy E. Sycr Cws.
2 Miles Graye made me 1630.
4 Henry Pleasant have at last
Made us as good as can be cast. 1706.
5 H. P. 1706. Marlburio duce castra cano vastata inimicis.
So Davy, 30 June, 1826. No return of bells in certif. of 1547.
" Itfii bells in the stepyll iiij. ItiTi Sanctus bell." Return of 1553.
It is supposed that a Church dedicated to All Saints once stood on the
site of S. Nicholas. See p. 141.
291. IPSWICH S. Peter. Tenor G#. Diam. 34* in. 6 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1682.
2 Thos. Gardiner Sudbury Fecit 1733.
3 No inscription.
4 John Darbie made me 1683.
George Maciery Moreto. ?
5 T. Rainbird, W. Goodrich C.W*. T. G. Fecit 1735.
6 Miles Graye made me 1630.
" Itfii bells in the Stepyll iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 15 June, 1811, assigns these inscriptions thus : —
1 nowhere
2 to i
3 to 2
4 to 3
5 to 4
6 to 5, and calls the tenor
" John Catchpole C.W. Charles Newman made me 1701."
292. IPSWICH S. Stephen. Tenor B. 3 Bells.
1 1J 1 1 thrice.
-j- For auguftini jfeontt jn £ure zjci.
2 ij ii thrice.
-j- ©rtftu? ^jcvpctur Del JloMs Gauuia CJitf.
3 Miles Graye made me 1630.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. " Itffi bells in the Stepyll iiij."
Return of 1553. Davy, 3 Aug., 1810, "3 Bells." See p. 17.
293. IPSWICH Holy Trinity. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Gardiner Norwich fecit 1751.
Church about the beginning of the century.
294. IXWORTH 5. Mary. Tenor E, c. 18 cwt. 6 Bells.
i John Darbie made me 1682. Sim: Boldero, Tho.
Clark ChvrchWardens.
2, 3 John Darbie made me 1665.
4 U 65 thrice.
-j- Saneia Q ^-Haria D ©w D V*o D Jfrobt*.
5 17 50 thrice.
f- 6 1 Jlo* 3Tf)omc Jtttriii« D 62 #5mamur ©aubia UuctiS.
6 Roger Boldero Gent & Tho5. Garnham Ch. Wardens.
Lester & Pack of London fecit 1766.
" Yxford... Great bells v. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy, 24 July, 1832, gives no bell notes, but an interesting inscription
from the tower. The tower bears the name of " Master Robert Schot,
Abot " (of Bury). He was a native of Ixworth, and the date is c. 1470.
See pp. 55,69, 123, 125.
2B
210 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
295. KEDINGTON .95. Peter and Paul. 5 and Clock bell.
1 Thomas Hears, Founder, London, 1838.
2 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1743.
3, 4, 5 John Darbie made me 1673.
Clock bell. 1779.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. No notes, Davy. See p. 124.
296. KELSALE S. Peter. 8 Bells.
i, 2 T. Mears of London fecit 1831.
3 John Darbie made me 1681.
4 J. Peele me fecit. E. H. Burssor Churchwarden 1708.
5 T. Mears London fecit 1830.
6 S. Newton, J. Peele fecit. E. Hobart, E H. Burssor,
John Brothers, Ralph Eade Churchwardens 1708.
7 U 5° thrice.
n 61 Jiona BcpcnDc ^ia Q 62 jaogo ^HagDalcna J&arta.
8 John Darbie made me 1681. Philip Eade, A. E.
feoffees, Ralph Eade, Churchwarden, William Wright,
M. W. C. E.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 4 and a Sance bell in 1553. 6 and 7
noted so by Davy, 29 May, 1806. I am not quite sure of the yth marks.
See pp. 58, 124, 146.
297. KENTFORD £ Mary. 3 Bells.
i, 2 Thomas Newman of Norwich made mee 1735.
3 T. Newman made me. R. Norman & T. Mullinger
C. W. 1735-
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Three bells. Davy. See p. 138.
298. KENTON All Saints. 2 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1613
2 Miles Graye made me 1630.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 10 Nov., 1815, notes two bells.
See pp. 117, 118.
299. KERSEY S. Mary. Tenor F. Diam. 42 in. 6 Bells.
i, 2 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1716.
3 D 81 1576 D 82 De D 82 Bvn D 82 Santi Q 82
Edmondi D 82 Stefanvs FJ 82 Tonni Q 82 me
D 82 fecit D 82 W L
4 Christopher Hodson made me 1689.
John Fellget Edward Lapeg Church Wardens.
5 Stephen Kembell John Hodson made me 1662. W. H.
Rodger Clarke Church Warden.
6 Samuel Sampson Church Warden I say
Caused me to be made by Colchester Graye M. 1638.
Clock bell. Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1716.
So with one or two involuntary variations, Davy. Clock bell from him,
19 Aug., 1825. "Carsseye... Great bells v." Return of 1553. See pp. 96,
118, 132, 143.
300. KESGRAVE All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. -+- Sbancta plarta ©ra $to Jlobts U 29.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy. Note on Sir Samuel Barnardiston's generosity. See p. 33.
INSCRIPTIONS. 211
301. KESSINGLAND S. Edmund. Tenor E. 5 Bells.
1 Anno l>oinini 1617. WIB
2 Thomas Newman made me 1711.
Thomas Jealous C. W.
3 Tho'mas Newman made me 1728.
Thomas Brown, C. Warden.
4 Mears & Stainbank, Founders, London, 1866.
5 J. S. Crowfoot Churchwarden. R. Manthorp Overseer
1813. T. Mears of London fecit.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. "Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j."
Return of 1553. The old fourth was merely dated 1615, and the old tenor
was inscribed, "Thomas Newman made me 1728. Thomas Brown C.W.
John Jenner." Davy, who gives 1615 as the date of the treble. Tower, 93
feet high, a fine sea-mark. See pp. 114, 137.
302. KETTLEBASTON S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1663.
2 Steven Barton John Jenings Churchwardens 1699.
3 D 8 1 1567 p 82 De D 82 Bvri Q 82 Santi Q 8*
Edmondi Q 82 Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni n 82 me
D 82 fecit.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, by mistake, 27 August, 1826, 2 Bells. See pp. 96, 123, 136.
303. KETTLE BURGH .9. Andrew. 3 Bells.
1 Samuel Thompson, D. D., Rector. Robert Sparrow Gent.
Robert Salmon, Ch.W. R. P. fee. 1711.
2 -J- jeaneta Q 4#laria Q ©w D ^r° D ^iobte.
3 AP RG WW PA F.R. WP SRSNGLBI FTP. O 1592
So Davy, 3 Oct., 1805. "Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See pp.
102, 148.
304. KIRKLEY S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. TJ 52 thrice.
-f- 6 1 Dulcts jgtsto IHclis D 62 CTampa iL'ocor #lithis.
So Davy. No return of bells in certif. of 1547. "Great bells iiij."
Return of 1553. See p. 55.
305. KIRTON S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 15 July, 1829, i Bell.
In C, not a modern bell, and possibly an old one, with high crown.
Diameter 28 in. C. H. H.
306. KNETTISHALL All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1720.
2 John Draper made me 1628.
3 John Draper made me 1609.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 7 July, 1843, no notes. See
pp. in, 112, 144.
307. KNODDISHALL S. Laurence. i Bell.
Bell. W. I. B. Anno Domini 1622.
So Davy, I Aug., 1808. 3 in 1553. No return in 1553. Terrier of 1725
names three bells. Terrier of 1806 names one bell. See p. 1 14.
212 THE CEIURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
308. LACK FORD 5. Laurence. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1735
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. One bell. Davy. See p. 138.
309. LAKEN HEATH S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas Mears, Founder, London, 1841.
2 jgantta Uatmna ota pro JJobts -\- 21 U 20 -\-
3 Cristus ^crpctuc Set JJobts ©auDta 4Fttc -|- 21 rj 20 -f-
4 John Parsley Vicar. Charles Newman made me 1697.
5 John Darbie made me 1676. Thomas Denton James
Parlet Churchwardens.
Clock Bell.— auc FJ mada O datatta.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, 28 Aug., 1829, notes 5 bells
See pp. 21, in.
310. LAN GH AM S. Mary. 2 Bells.
Two small modern bells, about the size of a school-bell.
" Great bells ij. Sancts Bells j." Return in 1553.
Davy, 7 July, 1843, "one bell."
311. LAVENHAM 55. Peter and Paul. Tenor. C. 23 cwt.
8 Bells,
i, 2 William Dobson. Founder, 1811.
3 Henry Pleasant made me 1702.
4 Ricardus Bowler me fecit 1603
Jacobus Fuller et Antonius Hormesby Guardian! ecclesie
de Lavenham.
5 Henry Pleasant made me 1703.
6 Ricardus Bowler me fecit 1603.
Hie mevs vsvs erit popvlvm vocare (four dwarfs and
other devices).
7 C. & G. Mears, Founders, London.
Richard Johnson, M.A., Rector. James Knight Jen-
nings, M.A., Curate.
George Mumford j churchwardens.
Robert Howard )
Thomas Turner, Woolstapler. Charles King, Shoe-
maker, 1846.
8 Miles Graye made me 1625.
Davy, Aug. 14 and 15, 1826, omits " Hie, etc., on 6." al. sim. Long and
interesting note. The old /th " Henry Pleasant made me 1702." The White-
chapel men were rightly proud of their new seventh. She had to be flattened,
however. The tenor (see p. 117) is a very noted bell. John Carr when he
first heard her, said, " She came in with such a noble sound that she vibrated
a perfect octave." Others have observed the absence of overtones. Some
consider that she varies with the weather. Mr. H. A. O. Mackenzie has
kindly allowed me the sight of the vertical section. The peculiarity seems
to be thinness, especially at the crown. "Great bells v. Sancts bells j."
Return in 1553. See Dr. Howard's Vis. of Suffolk, pp. 170, etc.
312. LAVENHEATH S. Matthew. i Bell.
Bell. Back Skieppet ADoLF Guten
Bygdt Stockholm
i Jacobstad. A X 1801 af Gerhard Homer.
See p. 151.
LAX FIELD TOWKR.
21 '
Fig. 90.
214 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
313. LAWSHALL All Saints. 6 Bells.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1735.
6 T. Mears of London fecit 1828.
Davy, Aug. 16, 1831. "contains 5 bells, which I did not visit."
" Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return in 1553.
314. LAXFIELD All Saints (good). 6 Bells.
i Lester & Pack of London fecit 1760.
2, 4 Cast by John Warner & Sons, 1873.
Wm. Bloomfield 1 Church Wardens.
Wm. Aldridge \ George Day hung me.
Rev*1. J. Dallas Vicar.
3 U 65 thrice.
-\- 67 jfcancta Q /W.iri.t fj <9ro (sic) Q V" Q SobtS.
5 : rj Diuinu : AunxiniY (sic) : oiAnGAT : sem-
pei^ : noBiscv.
6 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1804.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 5 and a Sance bell in 1553.
Davy, 22 May, 1807, notes the old 2nd, lEii Jtlultts a»nis Kesonct Campana
JBoflis, and the old 3rd, Sancta flSarta ©ra $ro JJofcis, and the rest as here.
The tenor has a crack, which Day has stopped by boring a hole. This noble
tower (fig. 90) bears the arms of Wingneld and Fitz-Lewes in pale. See
pp. 62, 69.
315. LAYHAM S. Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. U 50 twice rj 86.
-f- 6 1 29ona JHepenDc yia Q 62 &ogo itlagliakna JJlarta.
" Great bells iiij." Return in 1553.
T.Martin, 17 Aug., 1717, 4 Bells. Davy, 18 Aug., 1825, only one bell.
See p. 58.
316. LEISTON .S. Margaret. 8 Bells.
i, 2 J Taylor & Company B.F. Added by F. Garrett in
remembrance of his partner and brother, who died
3oth July, 1884.
Vicar, B. W. Raven.
Churchwardens, F. Sherwood, W. H. Borrett.
3 John Taylor & Son, Loughborough, 1854.
4, 6 John Brend made me 1640.
5, 8 J Taylor & Co., Bell-founders, Loughborough, 1884.
Dedicated by affectionate children to the memory of
Elizabeth Garrett. who died the 3oth of March, 1884.
Vicar, B. W. Raven, C. W. F. Sherwood, W. H. Borrett.
7 John Darbie made me 1674 James Reeve John Wool-
nough C. W.
The old treble also by Brend 1640.
Terrier, 1806, i c. 5 cwt. ; 2, 7 cwt. ; 3 c. 9 cwt. ; 4, 12 cwt. ; 5, 15 cwt.
No return of bells in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553. See pp. 124, 153.
317. LETHERINGHAM S. Mary. t Bell.
Bell. De Buri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit
1572 W. L.
"Great bells iij." Return in 1553.
Davy gives the date 1579 (21 April, 1819). See p. 96.
INSCRIPTIONS. 215
318. LEVINGTON 5. 7V/,-. 3 Bells.
t ,Sit J2onun /I'mnni ttrnrfctctum U 31 + + 37-
2 Q em Q OI\P Q AI^O [3 AII\AJH Q ATCHA^.
3 D 8 1 T)e n 82 Bvri D 82 Santi D 82 Edmondi Q 82
Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni Q 82 me Q 82 fecit Q 81
\VL. D 81 1581.
So Davy, 3 Aug., 1810. "Great bells iij." Return in 1553. They hang
from N. to S. I, 3, 2. Levington second is of the same type as Capel S.
Mary tenor. The stop is not engraved, as far as I know. See pp. 35, 77.
319. LIDGATE 5. Mary. 5 Bells.
r, 2 John Draper made me 1625.
3 Charles Newman made mee 1698.
4 John Draper and Andrew Gurny made me 1625.
5 W. S. T. T. C.W. Tho. Gardiner Fecit 1721.
Five bells, Davy. "Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return in 1553.
See pp. 112. 136, 144.
320. LINDSEY S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. Inscription unknown.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, 19 Aug., 1825, 4 Bells.
The tower fell in 1836, when three of the four were sold.
321. LINSTEAD, GREAT, S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. U 52 thrice.
-|- 6 1 Utrgtnis Isgrrgfe Q 62 2F»cor (Kampana j/ttaric.
2 in 1553. Davy, 31 May, 1833, " Only one small bell." Terrier, 7 June,
1806, no mention of a bell. See p. 54.
322. LINSTEAD, LITTLE, S. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. 1789.
2 in 1553. Davy, 7 Jan., 1810, "a single bell." See his note.
323. LIVERM ERE. GREAT, S. Peter. Tenor 5 cwt. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 4 Lester & Pack of London Fecit 1762.
5 Simon Mothersole Farmer & Simon Mothersole Brick-
layer Ch.Wardens 1762.
Lester & Pack of London Fecit.
Davy notes this as recorded on the north wall of the Church.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 149.
324. LIVERMERE LITTLE, 55. Peter and Paul. \ Bell.
Bell. Charles Newman made mee 1697.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 26 Aug., 1829, "Only i bell."
325. LOUND S. John Baptist. 3 Bells.
i, 2 Tho. Newman of Norwich made mee 1730.
3 Tho. Newman of Norwich made mee 1730.
John Kelt and William Ellis C. W.
" One bell hanging and two splitt ones standing in the belfry." Reeve's
Historical Collection. He adds in a parenthesis, " 3 new bells."
" iiij°r Nouembr An°. R. R. Edwardi p'mo Lounde. A newe ctyficat
maid by ye church Wardens of lownde Thomas Jaxe and Robft Candlar.
Itiii y' we haue sold a bell for y« some of iiij//.
Itm for ye yottyng of a bell ... ... ... ... xl.r.'
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553. See p. 137
2l6 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
326. LOWDHAM.
Ecclesia dcstntcta. No return in 1553.
327. LOWESTOFT Christ Church. 6 Bells.
i. W. Blews & Sons, Birmingham.
Eleanor Strong
1876.
2 W. Blews & Sons, Founders, 1875.
3, 4 W. Blews & Sons, Birmingham, 1875.
5 W. Blews & Sons, Birmingham, 1875.
Charles Hebert, D.D., Vicar.
E. J. Barnes j churchwardens.
R. S. Barnes )
6 W. Blews & Sons, Founders, Birmingham, 1875.
-(- Voce mea viva depello cuncta nociva.
See p. 154.
328. LOWESTOFT S. John Evangelist. i Bell.
Bell. 1855.
329. LOWESTOFT S. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. I tell all that doth me see
That Newman of Norwich new cast mee 1730.
G. Durrani, C. W.
" Spire. Square Tower, i Bell. 5 formerly. 4 of them stole or perhaps
taken away during the time of the Commonwealth." Reeve's Historical
Collection.
"iiij0 Nouember A°. Dm. 1547.
Leystoft. The certyficate of Jamys Jetor. Antony Jetor. Robert Aleyn and
Roberd Hudschyd Cherchevvardens there" makes no mention of bells.
" Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. See p. 132.
330. LOWESTOFT 5. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
Small and modern.
331. MARLESFORD 5. Andrew. 4 Bells.
1 U 52 thrice.
-f- 61 In .plultis annis Q 62 Bcfonet CEampa 3)ol)tf5,
2 Anno Domini 1615.
it p IE )5 mp
3 Anno Domini 1615.
& p JE 33.
4 U 50 thrice.
-j- 6 1 JWunerc 33aptt*te Q 6a UcncDictus J»it ©{jorus Bte.
So Davy, nearly. " Mr. Edwd. Williams, Rector, has built a place for
the Saint's bell."
iij° Nouember A° Dm 1547. Certif. of Tho. Bayman and John Nuttall
C. W. makes no mention of bells. "Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
See p. 59.
332. MARTLESHAM S. Mary. 3 Bells.
i \) 52 thrice.
4- 6 1 ffltffus Dt CeliS D 62 P?alico Jlomen ffiabruli*.
3 U 51 thrice.
INSCRIPTIONS. 217
-f 61 JFac iHargarrta [J f>2 J2obt* #?cc jttuncra fcrta.
3 Miles Grave made me 1631.
1547, certificate of - — and — Syluerne C. W. of Martellesham makes
no mention of bells. See pp. 53, 57, 118.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
333. M EL FORD, LONG, Holy Trinity. 8 Bells.
i T. Lester made me.
2, 3 Thomas Mears of London, founder, 1833.
Rev11. Edward Cobbold, M.A., Rector.
Richard Almack, F.S. A., Sir Hyde Parker, Churchwardens.
4, 7 Thomas Lester made me 1744.
5 C. & G. Mears, Founders, London, 1845.
Rev1. Edwd. Cobbold, Rector.
George John Coe Robert Harris Esq. Churchwardens.
6 Abram Oakes Rector.
Giles Jarmin & Joseph Middleditch Churchwardens 1744.
Thomas Lester of London made us all.
John Williams of Stonham Aspal hung us all.
8 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1865.
Rev1. William Wallace Rector.
I Churchwardens.
J
H. Cooper
W. Downs hung me.
Davy, Aug. 16 — 18, 1826, 8. "Abraham Oaks Rector, Giles Jarmin
Joseph Middleditch Churchwardens 1764. The end crown (sic) the work.
Thomas Lester of London made us all." 2, 3, 5, as 4 and 7. Long and
interesting note. When Dr. Warren, Rector, was ejected " as he returned
home, one of the party beat a frying-pan before him, crying, ' This is your
Saints bell.' " For an account of Dr. Warren see C. Deedes's Dr. Bisbie's
MS. collections in Suffolk Archceolagy, 1889. Peal in East Anglian, 2nd
SI., 322. " Great bells v. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. Weight of the
old tenor, 16 cwt., Mears and Stainbank, 31 Jan., 1888. See pp. 97, 149.
334. MELFORD, LONG, S. Catharines (Mission Room).
Bell. Miles Graye made me, 1672.
This bell used to hang on the top of the tower. It was sold about 1868,
and repurchased by the Rector, the Rev. C. J. Martyn, for the Mission
Room. See p. 134.
335. M ELLIS S.Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1626.
4 in 1553. Martin, 18 Jan., l725/8, notes 5 bells. Bought from Thwaite
c. 1846. Davy, 23 April, 1819, notes this inscription as on the Thwaite bell.
C. W. accounts are interesting.
336. MELLS S. Margaret.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553. A small towerless Norman
building.
337. MELTON S Andrew. 3 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1618.
2 U 51 thrice.
-j- ?t?ac In Coclauc D 62 ©abtfcl iiut $ange Sunbc.
2C
2Ig THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
•5 17 51 thrice.
-f- fioe Ehonu JHcrttis D 62 ^Hctcamur ffiffuWa Eucr .
4 IJ 51 thrice.
-(- 61 iBona mcpcntij ^ia D 62 jaogo #Tag6aUua Jttavta.
So Davy, 12 Sept., 1807. (i in old church, 2, 3. 4 in new.)
iii Nov IU7, certif. of Roger Truston and John Chamberleyn, C.W.
makes no mention of bells. "Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See pp.
53,55, 53, 117-
338. MENDHAM All Saints. 6 Bells.
i, 2 Tho. Gardiner Norwich fecit 1748.
3 Anno Domini 1628 W. I. B.
4 Tho. Lines C.W. Tho. Gardiner Norwich fecit 1748.
5 U 86 U 50. AB
W
Slnno Domini 1623.
6 Cook Freston Esq. Will™. Rant Esq.
Tho. Gardiner fecit 1748.
4 in 1553. Davy, 21 June, 1839, notes 6 bells. See pp. 114, 145-
339. MENDLESHAM S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Ultima tuba fui sonitu non ultima vita magna ubi mag-
nanimo Frederico optimo nuptialia. 1612. AB
2 U 50 thrice. w_
-j- 6 1 ZDulctS ©ifto Jttdis D 62 CJampa Uocor
3 TJ 50 thrice.
-(- 6 1 ^ctrus at> Sterne D 62 Zhuat jlloss ^ascua
4 John Darbie made me 1669.
5 D 8 1 De D 82 Bvri Q 82 Sand Q 82 Edmondi D 82
Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni Q 82 me Q 82 fecit Q 82
1575-
Clock bell U 52.
4 in 1553. Martin and Davy 5. See pp. 55, 56, 96.
340. MET FIELD S. John Baptist. 3 Bells.
1 Anno Domini 1568 I. B.
2 Mr. John Franclin and Mr. Charles Watson Church-
wardens 1647.
3 U 5° U 86 twice.
-f 6 1 JBunm 33aptigt* Q 62 Ecncctttus Sit Cljorus Btc.
Davy, 7 Jan., 1810, gives "Richard" as Mr. Watson's Christian name,
and crosses i and 2. Anno Dni 1547. Metffilde. Certif. of John hybarde
and Nycholas Gooche C.W. makes no mention of bells. 4 and a Sance bell
in 1 553. Seep. 59.
341. METTINGHAM All Saints. 4 Bells.
1 U 52 thrice,
anno Comiui 1612.
2 John Stephens fecit 1722. Beniamin Culham Church
Warden.
3 No inscription. (A pretty border.)
4 No inscription. (A rough old bell.)
So in substance, Davy, Aug. 18, 1814. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
The compoti of the College founded here by Sir John de Norwich contain
notices of bells.
INSCRIPTIONS. 219
342. MICKFIELD S. Andrew. 3 Bells.
1 T. Mears of London fecit 1816.
2 Miles Graye made me 1626.
3 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury E. F. F. C. 1716.
From Davy, 14 April, 1828. No sale of bells in 1547 certif. 3 in 1553.
343. Ml DDL ETON Holy Trinity. 5 Bells.
1, 3 Pack & Chapman London fecit 1779.
2, 4 John Darbie made me 1670.
5 Pack & Chapman London fecit 1779.
In Wedlock's bands all ye who join
With hands your hearts unite
So shall our tuneful tongues combine
To laud the nuptial rite.
So Davy, 23 Sept., 1805. 4 in 1553. No sale pf bells in 1 547 certif.
Terrier of 1678, no mention.
„ 1753. "five bells in good tune."
1820 „
344. MILD EN S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. Mears, Founder, London, 1860.
" Myldyng... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Noted inaccessible by Davy, Oct. 25, 1836.
345. MILDENHALL .S. Andrew. Tenor in E, c. 18 cwt.
8 Bells.
i, 8 Mears and Stainbank, founders, London.
V. R.
Jubilee
1887.
2 John Darbie made me 1676. IT DP RS RC IW.
3, 4 Thomas Newman cast me new in 1732, Norwich.
5 I TAYErOI\ ABD CO. EtOYGHBOI^OYGH C. B.
YovnGffiAn G CHAPOIAH A PGACHGY.
I860.
6 -|- 2 J U 20 -|- In $jlult(s&nnis JXcfonctCampana 3)ohanms.
1 lOHIl TAYEtOI\ A«D CO EtOYGHBOJ^OYGH
lAmes J^GAD ATQD CHA^EGS OWGI\S iseo.
" Myldenaelye... Great bells iiij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy, 21 Aug., 1829, notes 6 bells. See pp. 21, 46-50, 83, 124, 137, 138,
145, 153, 155.
The frame was clearly made for five bells, but the difficulties about the
tenor, to which reference has been made, which were not solved in 1530,
seem to have been waiting solution in 1553, when there were only four bells in
the tower. I regard the old fourth of the six hanging in the tower when I went
up in 1848, inscribed -f- 21 U *9 ~H flomcn JttagDalrne Campana (Brrit
fHrlo&te, as the treble of these. The present 5th was recast from it. It
weighed 7j cwt. Thus the present 6th would have been the 2nd, a missing
bell, from which perhaps John Darbie made the treble (with loss of metal)
in 1676, would have been the 3rd, and the bell from which the old tenor
before 1860 was made would have been the 4th. This old tenor weighed
close on 15 cwt., and was inscribed "Jos. Arthy, Tho. Casburn, C. W.
Tho. Gardiner, Norwich, fecit, 1751." Whether there ever was before the
Jubilee a larger bell than this I cannot say. Henry Poulter of Worlington
22O THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
used to quote his father to the effect that the Isleham tenor, see Cambs., was
brought from Mildenhall because the tower was not strong enough for it.
Before 1860 there was on the top of the tower a Clock bell, weighing 44 cwt.,
inscribed, "Thomas Newman of Norwich made me, 1744."
346. MONEWDEN S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanus Tonni me fecit 1586
W. L. D 81.
2 Miles Graye made me 1637.
3 WM RB GS O S E B U R + PT PS MH AI MRCM
O 1592 O TK FB
So Harvey's MS, p. 606. iij Nov., 1547. Moneden. Certif. of John
Malster and John haryson C.W. makes no mention of bells.
"Monedele.. .Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 96.
347. MOULTON 5. Peter. Tenor 6 cwt. 5 Bells.
i, 3 Chapman & Mears of London Fecerunt 1782.
2 Chapman & Mears of London Fecerunt 1783.
4 Chapman & Mears of London Fecerunt 1784.
5 Chapman & Mears of London Fecerunt 1783.
Messrs. Abrm. Cawston & T. Poole ChWardens.
"Mowton... Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
348. MUTFORD S. Andrew. 3 Bells.
1 John Brend made mee 1638.
2 Anno Domini 1615. W. B.
3 John Brend made me 1636.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Eastern CmuitieJ Collectanea, p. 240. Davy records three.
349. NACTON S. Martin. 2 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1625.
2 John Darbie made me 1662.
So T. Martin, Sept , 1725, sav.e date of 2, which he gives 1666 or 1660.
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
350. NAUGHTON S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell, n 8 1 Johannes D 82 Drivervs + C me fecit 1618.
So Davy, 14 Sept., 1827, noting also an " old treble Miles Graye made me
1672 (?), and an old second, Thomas Andrew me fecit 1522 or 99 (sic)."
(1599. J. J. R.) " Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See pp. 102, 1 10.
351. NAYLAND S. Stephen. 6 and Clock bell.
1 Wm. Dobson, Downham, Norfolk fecit 1810.
2 Henry Pleasant made me 1698.
3 John Murrell, Will. Infield C.W. I.G. 1733. E.G.
4 Messrs. Samuel Alston & Isaac Nicholson Church-
Wardens 1789. W. & T. Mears Late Lester & Pack
of London fecit.
5 Miles Graye made me 1636.
6 James Edbvrie of Bury made my fellowes and mee.
U 1605 Q. Both marks contain curious monograms.
Clock bell. 1764.
"Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. Tenor omitted on
p. 109. Davy, Sept. 30 and Oct., 1828,-" Six bells which 1 did not examine."
INSCRIPTIONS. 221
352. N EDGING S. Mary. 2 Bells.
1 D 81 Thomas D 82 Andrew Q 82 me Q 82 fecit D 82
1598.
2 U 8 thrice.
+ 3)obanf« O 1 6 Cfristt O 16 ©are O 16 Dignare O 16
IJro O 1 6 jlobis O 16 ©tare.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See pp. 17, 102.
353. NEEDHAM MARKET S. John Baptist. i Bell.
Bell. By Private gift 1886. S. Maude M.A. Vicar.
C. Cooper Churchwarden.
See Barking. The return for 1 553 is for " Nedham in Barkynge."
354. NETTLESTEAD S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye made me 1618.
3 in 1553. Davy, 18 May, 1829, notes two inaccessible.
355. NEWBOURNE S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Miles Graye 1621 me made.
C. Carr 1885 me remade.
Davy. Terrier, 1780, "about six hundred." No sale of bells in 1547
certif. " Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
356. N EW MARKET S. Mary. 5 and Clock bell.
i, 4 John Draper made me 1619.
2,3 n 8 1 De Buri Santi Edmondi Stefanus Tonni me fecit
W. L. 1580.
5 Tho. Gardiner and Tho. Newman Fecit 1719. W.
Sandiver W. Headley, C. W.
Clock Bell. John Thornton Sudbury Fecit 1718.
So Davy, 21 Aug., 1828. He notes the tenor as not hung.
"Eycenyng Halfe Hundred. ..Newmarkett... Great bells iij. Sancts bells
j." Return of 1553. See pp. 96, in, 138.
357. NEWTON, OLD, S. Mary. 5 Bells.
It 3) 4 John Darbie made me 1663. TH RP
2 William Dobson Founder 1810.
5 John Darbie made me 1663. Thomas Hoggar R. P.
C. W.
3 in 1553. Seep. 123.
358. NEWTON-NEXT-SUDBURY All Saints. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 4 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1872.
(Royal Arms) Patent.
5 Miles Graye made me 1664.
Thomas Dearesle.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, Sept. 13, 1827, "Contains three bells :— I Thomas Kearsle Miles
Graye made mee 1685. I. W. 2 Miles Graye made me 1658. 3 Miles
Graye made me 1685." He is wrong. See p. 133.
359. NORTON S.Andrew. Tenor c. 13 cwt. 4 Bells.
1 Illegible, broken.
2 John Darbie made me 1674. Richard Clarke C. W.
222 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
3 John Draper made me 1628.
4 John Draper made me 1635.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553-
T. Martin, 26 May, 1757, "Four bells." Mentioned by mistake on p. 151.
360. NOWTON 5. Peter. 6 Bells-
i, 2, 3, 4, 5 T. Hears of London fecit 1829.
6 T. Mears of London fecit 1829. This peal of six bells
was given by O. R. Okes Esqr. Henry Ja*. Okes
Esqr. & the Revd. Auston Okes.
" Nolton... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
T. Martin, 26 Aug., 1749, notes 4 bells. Davy, Aug. 27, 1829, speaks ot
the present bells as " all cast and hung in the present year, the gift of Mr.
Oakes. The belfry is locked up." See p. 151.
361. OAKLEY, GREAT, 5. Nicholas. 5 Bells.
1 John Goldsmith Fecit 1711 S. Margaret. Mr. I. K. C.W.
2 John Goldsmith Fecit 1711.
3 William Dobson, Founder, Downham, Norfolk, 1828.
4^15 S«"» O 16 jaosa O 16 yulsata O 16 ^HunUi O 16
5Katertna O 16 2Focata.
5 John Goldsmith Fecit 1711. Mr. John Kelt, Mr.
Brown Turner Church Wardens.
3 in 1553. Martin, 5. See pp. 14, 176.
362. OAKLEY, LITTLE, S. Peter.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1 553.
363. OCCOLD .S. Michael. 5 Bells.
1, 2, 5 John Brend made me 1653.
3 Charles Newman made mee 1698.
4 William Dobson, Downham, Norfolk, Founder, 1824.
4 in 1553. Davy, 18 June, 1809, notes the old 4th like i, 2, 5. See p. 136.
364. OFFTON S. Mary, 5 Bells.
i Thos. Gardiner Sudbury Fecit 1735.
2, 4 Henry Pleasant made me 1700.
3 + Sancta Q JWatia Q ©w D 3P*° D J^obtg.
.4 John Darbie made me 1667.
So Davy, 19 May, 1829. A curious extract from Mr. Parker of Ringshall.
4 in 1553. See pp. 69, 123, 140, 144.
365. ONEHOUSE S. John Baptist. 2 Bells.
1 R D G 1673 D
2 n 8 1 1604 James n 82 Edbery n 82.
No return in 1553. Tom Martin, 16 April, 1756, "Good Fryday," notes,
" Round steeple, two bells." Davy, 13 June, 1827, records the same number,
inaccessible, or to use his own words, "the way up seemed by no means
convenient, or perhaps safe." See pp. 109, 132.
366. ORFORD 5. Bartholomew. 5 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me M 1639.
2 Henry IJ Pleasant U made TJ rne U 1694. John
Cragg. W. A.
INSCRIPTIONS. 223
3, 4 John Darbie made me 1679.
5 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1739. J. Harris C. E.
Ellis C. \V.
So Davy. No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. " Great bells iiij." Return
of 1553. See pp. 118, 124, 140, 145.
3C7. OTTLEY S. Mary. 6 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner & Son, London, 1878.
Henry & Catherine Woolner gave me August 8th, 1877.
H. Wilkinson, M.A., Rector.
G. F. W. Meadows ) Church
T. King j Wardens.
2 R. Phelps made me 1728. Mr. Bartholomew Russell
Donor.
3 U 65 thrice.
+ Saneta n Itatcrtna Q ©w D $" D -flobi*.
4 ij 50 thrice.
-j- ftac 3m (Eontlabc D 62 Gabriel flue JJJangc jcuabt.
5 U 50 thrice.
-j- Jlos Cfjonu itlcrttts D 62 .fttmamur ©auOfa Hutii.
6 De Buri Santi Edmondi Stefanus Tonni me Fecit W. L.
1576.
Davy. Terrier, 1794, 5. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See pp.
53, 55. 67, 96.
368. OULTON S. Michael. 5 Bells.
1 Edw. Tooke made me 1676.
2 Edw. Tooke made me 1677.
3, 4 U 5° U 86 AB
W
3nno Domini 1618.
5 U 5° U 86 AB
W
(Dmnis Sonus UauOet Domtiuim 1618 G Jtl tT U
"Great Bells iij." Return of 1553, See pp. 114, 132.
369. OUSDEN S. Peter. 5 Bells.
1 Lester & Pack of London Fecit 1758. T. M. & R. B.
6=1=0.
2 Lester & Pack of London Fecit 1758. T. M. 6* R. B.
7 = o = 20.
3 Lester & Pack of London Fecit 1758. T. M. & R. B,
8 = i = 12.
4 Lester & Pack of London Fecit 1758. T. M. <&• R. B.
10 = 2 = 26.
5 Lester & Pack of London Fecit 1758. This peal of bells
was the gift of Tho*. Moseley Esq" <Sr- The Rev. R.
Bet hell. ... 14=1 = 10.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 149.
370. PAKE FIELD All Saint and S. Margaret. 4 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner Norwich fecit 1749.
2 AB U 86 U 50.
W
224 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Sccunlms ^crgratus 1618.
3 anno ZDomtnt 1621.
4 Thomas Newman at Norwich made me 1728.
Davy records five. No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. " Great bells iij."
Return of 1553. See pp. 114, 137, 145-
371. PAKENHAM S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Hears & Stainbank, founders, London. C. W. Jones
Vicar, G. W. Mathew T. Thornhill Jun. Church-
wardens 1872.
2 John Draper made me 1626.
3 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1760.
4 G. Mears & Co., Founders, London, 1862.
Good Will to Man.
C. W. Jones Vicar, Rob'. Stedman G. W. Mathew
Churchwardens .
5 G. Mears & Co., Founders, London, 1862.
Glory to God.
C. W. Jones Vicar, Rob'. Stedman G. W. Mathew
Churchwardens.
No notes by Davy. See p. 112.
372. PALGRAVE S. Peter. 6 Bells.
i Gloria Deo in excellsis (sic) W. Plampin Gen'. 1737.
2. 3, 4. 5 Gloria Deo in Excelsis W. Plampin Gen'. 1737.
6 I tell all that doth me se
that Newman of Norwich new cast me 1737.
So Davy, 4 June, 1810. 3 in 1553. Sperling (c. 1860), "Tenor G|."
See p. 123.
373. PARHAM S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 rj uem : sPonsA • m&A. ; AD ; oi^pum •
mevm.
2 nAssump;pA :- eST •• OIAI\IA I III i CGItUOl.
3 W. I. B. Anno Domini 1623.
So Davy. No sale of bells in certif. of Nov., 1547. "Great bells iij."
Return of 1553. See Cant. v. i, vulg.
374. PEASENHALL S. Michael. 5 Bells.
i, 4 Mears & Stainbank, Founders, London, 1876.
2 Henry Pleasant made me 1691.
3 U 51 thrice.
-j- 6 1 ^lucsumuiS &nttea Q 62 JFamuIorum ,£u<setpe Fota.
5 TJ 9 thrice.
-j- 13 j£um 3ftofa $ulfssata .Plun&t Ivatettna tfocata.
4 and a Sance bell in 1553. Davy, June n, 1806, calls 3 "4," notes a
Sac En (Eonclabe... for 3, old treble and present 2nd, " Henry Pleasant made
me 1694." al. sim. W« from Terrier.
No sale of bells in certif. of Nov., 1547. See pp. 17, 56, 140.
375. PETISTREE SS. Peter and Paul. 6 Bells.
1 John Taylor & Sons, Founders, Loughb", 1848.
2 One bell recast unto three at the expense of Richard
Brook Esqr of Petistree Lodge A.D. 1848. Jo.
Taylor & Son fecit.
INSCRIPTIONS. 225
3 John Taylor & Son, Founders, Loughborough, A.D. 1848.
4 U 8 thrice.
-j- 12 CFtcrnig Snnisf iUcfonct Campana ^Jofranms.
5 U 8 thrice.
-(- 12 ffit Cilamantc IFjcsu .filancat Uctljlccm Sine flrgu.
6 U 8 thrice.
-f- 61 3Jungm #09 Xfo Q 62 jfctufcfat Jltcholaus En 2Uto.
Pytestre. Certif. of 1547 records no sale of bells. "Petystre. Great
bells iiij." Return of 1553.
At Davy's visit (6 June, 1806), the inscription on the old tenor, no doubt a
grand bell, was "De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1576."
.See pp. 17, 58.
376. PETTAUGH S. Catherine. i Bell.
Bell. U 5 1 thrice.
-f- 6 1 ©ucfumus ainurea D 62 Jpamulotum ,8ufcipe ITota.
" Pettawe, iii Nov., 1547. The certyficate of Thomas Mallyng and Hraunces
pyrson Cherchewardens th(ere) ffyrst we prsent that Robert orwell and Lacy
Lord that tyme beyng Cherchewardens hathe sold a peyer of Shalys prce-xls.
Whereof
We did bestowyd vpon the cherche in ladyng the seid xls. And y< remayn
styll a peyer of Shalys and iiij bells. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
There were three bells at Davy's visit. That which remains seems to
have been the tenor. The others were inscribed, John Darbie made me 1662,
and JUrttssus Vero $)ie ffiaburl Jf rrt Heta fdanr. See pp. 53, 57.
377. PLAY FORD S. Mary. 2 Bells.
1 1J 50 thrice.
-)- 6 1 Jfcac JIT Contlabt Q 6z ©aittcl Uluc ^angt ^uabt.
2 17 50 thrice
-f- 6 1 3)ungtre }2o« Xyo D 62 StuDcat Jifcjjolaus In Qllto
Terrier, 1784. "Three bells, two of them by Computation about 18 cwt.
The third on the ground, having been broken time out of mind, by compu-
tation about 12 cwt."
Terrier, 1801. "Two bells, by computation about 18 cwt."
Certif. of 1547 imperfect, but apparently no mention of sale of bells.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See pp. 53, 58.
378. POLSTEAD S. Mary. Tenor, c. 10 cwt. 6 Bells.
J> 2> 3> 4> 5 T. Mears of London fecit 1825.
6 T. Mears of London fecit 1825.
Rev4. John Whitmore, Rector.
JohnCorder j churchwardens.
Isaac Strutt J
" Great bells iiij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. No date to any visit
by Davy. Formerly 5 heavier bells. Present tenor 12 cwt. A tuneful ring.
379. POSLINGFORD S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3 Robard Gurney made me 1668.
4 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury me fecit 1725.
5 Peter Hawkes made me 1613.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See pp. 109, 132, 144.
380. PRESTON 5. Mary. 6 Bells.
i, 2 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1744.
2D
226 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
3 Tho. Norden Roger C. W. Tho. G. fecit 1744.
4 Miles Graye me fecit 1640.
5 Henry Pleasant made me 1702.
6 Henry Pleasant made me 1704.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, Aug. 15, 1826, puts 3 for I-
al. sim. See pp. 119, 140. The surname to Roger is Coe, as it appears
from the parish book (1743), when a cracked treble and a sound tenor were
ordered to be cast into three small bells, at a cost not exceeding £7.
381. RAMSHOLT All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1679.
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
" The steeple is round and has but one bell." May, 1726, T. Martin (?)
In 1747 the top of the steeple was blown down, and now the tower has no
roof, and is much dilapidated. See p. 124.
382. RATTLESDEN S. Nicholas. 5 Bells.
i, 2 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1754.
3 Robart Bumstead John Drake Church Wardens 1754.
4 Tho. Gardiner he did us cast
Wee will sound his praise to the last.
5 Henry Westley John Jewers Churchwardens. T. Osborn
fecit 1789.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy notes i, 3 as i, 2, 2 as 5, 4 as 3, and 5 as 3. See p. 145.
383. RAYDON S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 18 — .
3 in 1553. Davy records the inscription on the old bell, gancte Earnabe
(sic) ©ra 13ro
384. REDE All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 D 8 1 De D 82 Bvri Q 82 Santi Q 82 Edmondi D 82
Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni Q 82 me D 82 fecit D 82
W L D 82 1578.
2 n 81 De D 82 Bvri Q 82 Santi Q 82 Edmondi D 82
Stefanvs D 82 Tonni Q 82 me Q 82 fecit Q 82
W L D 81 1586.
3 John n 81 Dry Q 82 Ver Q 81 me fe cet D 81 1602.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Tom Martin, March 12, 1724, says, "Steeple above half down, 3 bells."
Davy, by mistake, Aug. 25, 1831, speaks of 2 bells. See pp. 96, 109.
385. REDGRAVE S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i T. Osborn fecit 1785.
2, 3, 4, 5 Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1736.
6 John Munns & John Goldsmith C. W. Thomas New-
man of Norwich made me 1736.
3 in 1553. T. Martin notes, In Sept., 1736, the five bells were taken out
of Redgrave steeple, in order to be new (run or) cast. The tenor had a piece
broken out of the top of it, and this circumscription : Chas. Newman made
me 1691. Goldsmith Ch W. On the other 4: Chas. Newman made mee
1691, in capitals. Sperling (1860) says, "Tenor G4, 9 cwt." See pp. 138,
145.
INSCRIPTIONS. 227
386. REDISHAM, GREAT, S. Peter. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
Suckling notes a split bell dated 1621. "The steeple has been long down.
But one bell hangs at the west end, in a frame on the ground. It bears
inscription, Anno Domini 1621." Davy, June 2, 1808 (?)
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
387. REDISHAM, LITTLE, S. James.
Ecdesia destructa. No return in 1553.
388. REDL1NGFIELD S. Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
3 in 1553. So Davy, 5 Dec., 1817.
Martin (without date) notes three modern bells hanging in a wooden frame.
389. REND HAM S. Michael. 5 Bells.
1 T. Mears of London fecit 1831.
2 Inscription entirely covered with an iron band. Date of
stock 1794.
3 U 65 thrice.
-}- Virgo D Coronata n 30uc Q £og Q SO Q
4 N. S. T. H. E. I.
Anno Domini 1622. WIB.
5 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1802.
Davy gives the 2nd "Edmond Palmer, John Blinco Churchwardens. R.
Phelps fecit, 1729."
Jonathan Grimwood of Rendham went up to see the tenor cast, and flung
seven half-crowns into the metal, to which some are said to attribute the
good tone of the bell. Tenor c. 13 cwt.
" for y« ornaments and ye Bells we haue solde non as we wull answere."
Certif. of Rob. Thurston and Edm. ffeavyear. C.W. 1547. "Great bells
iiij." Return of 1553. See pp. 69, 91, 114.
390. RENDLESHAM S. Gregory. 3 Bells.
1 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury me fecit 1714.
2 Thomas Gardiner made me 1713.
3 Miles Graye made me 1630.
Pits for five. The usual coins and marks on i and 2. Bells in Cf , C,
and B, with diameters 274 in., 29^ in., and 3ii in. Certif. of 1547 records
no sale of bells. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 143.
391. REYDON S. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. U 50 thrice.
-f- 61 ?l?ac Zn ©onclabc n 62 ffiabrid Jlunt ^angt jciiabr.
3 in 1553. "formerly 4 if not 5," Davy, Aug. 19, 1814. See p. 53.
392. RICKINGHALL INFERIOR S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 _{- see : JACOBG : inTGi\ceDe : »i\o : me
2 I. D. 1630.
3 No inscription.
" Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy, 6 Jan., 1810, " 3 bells.'' See pp. 62, 112.
228 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
393. RICKINGHALL SUPERIOR S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i Jonathan Stcggal George Porter C.Wardens. 'In a scroll
" E. Castor nnli j&on JFountiers aougljborouoj)" 1850.
2, 3, 4, 5 John Goldsmith fecit 1712.
6 Mr. George Elmy & Mr. Henry Freeman C. W. 1741.
Tho. Newman made me.
4 in 1553. See pp. 138, 146.
394. RINGSFIELD All Saints. 2 Bells.
1 John Stephens made mee 1726.
2 U 50 thrice.
Donvm Clem. Gooch et Rob. Shelford 1610.
" Great bells ij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553. Pits for four.
Davy notes 3, June 2, 1808. See pp. 113, 139.
395. RINGS HALL S. Catherine. 2 Bells.
1 R. Phelps Londini fecit 1737.
2 -f- 24 IJ 23 -f- 43 jgancta lUtcrina ©ra ^ro JJobtss.
3 in 1553. So Mr. Parker, who does not condescend to note i. See pp.
23, 148,
396. RISBY 5. Giles. 3 Bells.
1 17 51 thrice.
f- 6 1 Uirginte Isgrcgtc Q 62 <^ocor ©ampana i&arie.
2 JOHH OI\APGI\ OIAD6 JUG 1612.
3 IJ 65 thrice.
+ 67 JWcrittg D 68 IcOmuntit D 68 Stmug Q 68 a D
CTrtmtnc D 68 l*lunut.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. " 3 bells," Davy. See pp. 54, 69, 1 1 1 .
397. RISHANGLES S. Margaret. 3 Bells.
1 17 52 thrice.
+ ?^« dFit JDCotum D 62 CJampa ilauoe 33onorum
2 ij 51 thrice.
-f 6 1 C«le»ti J«anna D 62 £ua ^rolc«.j!iog ©tbet anna.
3 TJ 51 thrice..
+ 6 1 JHcritts lEumunDi D 62 jgtmuS a Ctiralne JHunDt.
3 in 1553. So Davy with involuntary variations from Martin. 4 Dec.,
1817. See pp. 54, 58.
398. ROUGH AM S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 John Barbie made me 1661. William Maning C.W.
2 John Darbie made me 1661.
3 TJ 9 thrice.
-j- 13 Sum &ofa ^JuliSata JHunUt .ptaria Fotata.
4 John Darbie made me 1678.
5 John Martin Church Warden. Thos. Osborn fecit 1790.
Vcnite Exultemus.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy notes five bells, but no inscriptions.
399. R U M B U RG H S. Michael. 5 Bells.
i, 4 2lnno Domini 1624 WIB.
2 & S J C (£j)uu|)toarl>tnj5. Stnno Somtni 1624 WIB.
INSCRIPTIONS. 229
3 Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1728.
5 The Revnd. Lombe Althills (sic) Perp. Curate. John
Briant Hertford fecit 1823. C. Reynolds.
3 and a Sance bell in 1553. " Old treble T. B. 1660." Davy, 16 May, 1806.
See pp. 7, 114.
400. RUSH BROOKE S. Nicholas. 3 Bells.
1 Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1733.
2 rj 8 1 Andrew Gvrny made me 1636.
3 Thomas Newman made mee 1711.
"Square steeple, 3 bells, and Dr. Needen says, modern ones." Davy.
See p. 112.
401. RUSHMERE S. Andrew. 6 Bells.
i, 2 John Darbie made me 1675.
3 U 26 -I- 22 1J 25 jfeancic Uotblfc <9ra ^ro fiobit.
4 U 26 -j-
22 U 25 Vor augufitni Jfonct In &urt SGM.
5 U 26 -(- 22 U 25 Sancta Untarina C5ra $ro Xlobis.
6 Mears & Stainbank, Founders, London, 1885.
Ad gloriam Dei et in memoriam Sancti Andreae, Apostoli
et Martyns, dedicata. Gulielmus VVigston, Vicarius,
Alfredus Meller, Gulielmus Dawson, Sacrorum
Custodes.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, 4 Aug., 1810.
402. RUSHMERE S. Michael. 2 Bells.
1 U 52 thnice.
In 'Filet ant) In too HaiiOcs Dro.
2 l^ 64 thrice.
-f : SCA : BA1^BAI\A : PHO : me
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 59.
403. SANTON DOWN HAM S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Robard Gvrney made me 1663.
" Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 24 Aug., 1829, notes one bell. Sec p. 132.
404. SAPISTON S. Andrew. 4 Bells.
1 John Draper made me 1628. The gift of Thomas
Mannynge.
2 Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1730.
3 STjjomas Brapn 1591.
4 U 51 thrice.
-f- 6 1 .fiog ST&omt JHeritfs FJ 62 J&mamur ©auWa fturi*.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 25 July, 1832, "four bells."
See pp. 56, 100, 112, 137.
405. SAXHAM, GREAT, S. Andrew. 3 Bells.
1 T. Osborn 1787.
2 T. Osborn fecit 1787.
3 Thomas Mears of London, founder, 1836.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. The old tenor was inscribed, " Fred.
Evered, Ch. Warden, 1787." Davy, Aug. 19, 1828.
230 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
406. SAX HAM, LITTLE, S. Nicholas. 3 Bells.
1 rj 51 thrice.
-(- 6 1 &bc JWatia ©ratta ^lena Q 62 Oomtnus Return.
2 ij 51 thrice.
-)- 61 JfltffuS Sc ©clis D 62 f»abro Jlomen ffiabrtdi*.
3 Thomas Cheese made me 1603. SB
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy transposes I and 2, and omits
S. B. on the tenor. See pp. 52, 53, 109.
407. SAX MUNDHAM S. John Baptist. 6 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London. Presented by
Mrs. Ann Crampin. Hung by G. Day & Son,
Eye, 1880.
2 Anno Domini 1609. W. B.
3 : -f- : sancta : margarcta : ora : pro nobis.
4 + O Sanctc {acobe ©ra $ro iiobts.
5 b 34, D 35, D 32, D 33-
« * * ® «
-}- O j&aneta JMargareta ©ra ^co jHobis.
6 1762. Lester & Pack of London fecit. J*°. Eade 6°
Ja>. Last Ch. Wardens.
Davy gives 1602 as the date of the 2nd.
" Great bells v. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. See pp 35, 113.
408. SAXSTEAD All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1678.
3 in 1553. Martin, 15 June, 1735, notes 3. No notes in Davy. Hawes
and Loder, p. 324, give a 2nd, "Anno I. P. I. A. 1589, and a 3rd,
Virginia iSgregie Vcror (ffampana .plane." See p. 124.
409. SEMER All Saints. 3 Bells.
1 D 81 Thomas Q 82 Cheese me fecit 1621.
2 TJ 52 thrice.
-j- 6 1 ^Weritts IHDmunlit D 62 jeimu<s & CTrimtiu J&un&t.
3 D 8 1 Johannes Q 82 Me fecit TC Me fecit 1618.
So Davy, 26 Oct., 1826. "Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See pp.
58, no.
410. SHADING FIELD S. John Baptist. i Bell.
Bell. James D 81 Edbere D 82 1608 (arabesque).
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. "i Bell," Davy, 2 June, 1808. See
p. 109.
411. SHELLAND. i Bell.
Bell. H. P.
W I m shoulder.
* OO*5 /
D 8 1 Thomas G 82 Cheese me fecit 1624.
Davy, June 13, 1827, notes one in a cupola, inaccessible. 4 in 1553.
412. SHELLEY All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 39 in. 5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1663.
Samvell Kerridge Esqvire gave me.
2 Miles Graye made me 1629.
3 U 65 thrice.
-j- Bancta O ana (sic) O ora O pro O nobts*
INSCRIPTIONS. 231
4 U 65 thrice.
-f- sancta : maria : ora : pro : nobia.
5 John Hodson made me 1662. This bell was given by
Samvell Kerredge Esqvier W. H. C (\V ?)
DUO (the first a fleur-de-lis, the last a medallion,
probably intended for Charles II.)
•3 'n '553- Davy transposes 4 and 5. See pp. 69, 118, 123, 132. These
are never rung. They have a wondrous system of " clocking."
41 3. S H I M P L I N G S. George. 5 Bells.
1, 4 Thomas Newman made me 1735.
2, 3 Thomas Newman of Norwich made me 1735.
5 Thomas Mears, London, 1843.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, " Four bells 1734, five bells 1831." See p. 138.
414. SHIPMEADOW S. Bartliolomew. i Bell.
Bell. John Brend made me 1640.
"Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. "Only one bell,"
notes, 6 June, 1769, in Davy's MSS. See p 115.
415. SHOT LEY 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. John Barbie made me 1686. W. D. R. F. Sr.
Henry Felton : Baronett U (Felton).
So Davy, 1823. But under " MS. notes by Sir J. Blois, p. 180," there is
" Ric. Bowler on the bells." 4 in 1553. See p. 125.
416. SHOTTISHAM S. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. U 65 thrice.
-+- 67 jSanrta Q i*latia Q ®ra D $w D .flofits.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. "One bell," Davy, 12 Oct., 1818.
See p. 69.
417. SIBTON S. Peter. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas Mears, founder, London, 1848.
2 John Darbie made me 1670.
3 U 9 thrice.
-f- 5n Ruin's Slnnis lUfonct Campana 3)°!)«nnt*.
4 0 52 thrice.
-j- 6 1 yctrus at) Icterne D 62 Ducat lies Caucus tTtlr.
5 Henry Pleasant made me 1694. Edmund Rickit
Warding.
Dec. 6, 1805, Davy notes the old treble, "John Darbie made me 1681.
W. R." Dec. 1805, "dates the 2nd 1673, and gives Eltrnw on the 3rd for
Kn JfBluItw. No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 4 in 1553. See
pp. 17, 56, 123, 140.
418. SIZEWELL S. Nicholas.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
419. SNAPE £ John Baptist. 3 Bells.
1 John Wehincopp. 1674.
2 N. H. O. I. 476 W C. P. O. C. N. I. H. I. W.
3 Tho. Gardiner fecit. 1713. R. H. I. K.
From Davy, June 12, 1806. No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. "Great
bells iij." Return of 1553. The date of 2 is probably 1576.
232 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
420. SO HAM, EARL, S. Mary. 5 Bells-
i Miles Graie made me 1610.
21^5° thrice.
+ 61 €kucfunut* Slntirca Q 6z JFamulotum Sufctpe Vota.
3 John Darbie made me 1663. R. D. H. B. W. S.
4 rj 50 thrice.
-f- 6 1 IfJf truss fto lEtctne Q 62 Ducat 4^o« ^agcua J?{te.
5 John Darbie made me 1663 R D H B W S.
Hawes crosses I and 3, and gives a wrong date for 5. The old windlass
remains.
On the buttresses of the tower is the following hexametrical quatrain, m
stone and cut flint : —
13anlpl)us Cobytt boa mana rotulil t'stt
IBcdie sacte cut presit gtacca cristf
Campailt's tin' Ifiomas (Pttna futt autor
1 et simitl opiimiis aunliator.
I regret to leave a word unread.
The wills of Radulph Cubytt of Norwich, and Thomas Edwarde of
Congham, in the first half of the reign of Henry VIII., have reference to
Earl Soham, and they seem to be the persons indicated in the inscription.
No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. " Some comits Great bells iiij." Re-
turn of 1553. See pp. 56, 57, 117, 123.
421. SOHAM, MONK, S. Peter. Tenor G. Diam. 40 J in.
S Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1631.
2 Post nullas renovata sodales. Reverendus Vir Gulielmus
Ray A.M. Rector. Thomas Martin & Laurentius
Spinny Ecclesie Guardiani. R. Phelps London
fecit 1734.
3 U 50 thrice. .
-j- 6 1 33ulttg jlisto .ptdig D 62 ffiampa ?Focor ^Itcftaclte.
4051 thrice.
+ 6 1 ^etrus &D Istcrnc Q 62 Ducat jHo<$ $ascua ©ite.
5 John Darbie made me 1661. John Aldrich Robart
Rous.
So Davy, 30 April, 1828. 4 in 1553.
No bells in 1547 certif. mentioned as sold. See pp. 55, 56, 1 18, 122, 148.
422. SOMERLEYTON S. Mary. Tenor G. 6 Bells.
1 J. Taylor & Co., Founders, 1872.
2 Sr. Richard Allen Baronet 1700 I B O 88
3 0 47 AY6 Q 48 UII\GO fj 48 UII\Ginum [J 48
fflATG^ Q 48 IHU Q 48 XBI.
4 U 51 thrice.
-(- 6 1 ffitrgtnte CFgtcgtc n 62 JFocor ©ampana ^Tarie.
5 0 51 thrice.
f- 61 ?ftac In Cfonclabe Q 62 (Safcrfcl jHunc ^ange Suabe.
6 William Ayton C.W. Thomas Newman made me 1706.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Re-opened Oct. 7, 1872. See pp.
4i, S3, 54, 147-
INSCRIPTIONS. 233
423. SOMERSHAM S. Mary. 2 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1662.
2 Miles Graye made me 1626.
3 in 1553. Davy, 18 May, 1829, notes an old treble like the present 2nd.
See'pp. 118, 123.
424. SOMERTON 5 Margaret. 4 Bells.
i De Bvri Santi Edmondi. Stefanvs Tonni me fecit
W. L. 1578.
2, 3 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1573.
4 Miles Graye made me 1681.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1 553.
Davy, March 23rd, 1814, calls i, 2 ; and 2, i ; 3, 4 ; and 4, 3." See pp.
96, 134-
425. SOTHERTON 5. Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Mears, Founder, London, 1842. T. F.
So Davy, June I, 1808. Terrier rendered 24 June, 1794, "One small bell
with the frame, weighing about } cwt."
Certif. of iiij Nov., 1547, by Thomas Davy and John Noone.
" Itffi for a broken hande bell ... ... viijrf."
No bell returned in 1553.
426. SOTTERLEY S. Margaret. 2 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1717.
2 : 4- : SAHCTA : mA^GAI\GTA : OX\A : PI^O
IIOBIS.
So Davy, i June, 1808. No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. "Great bells
iij." Return of 1553. See p. 62.
427. SO UT HOLT S. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me- 167 7.
4 in 1553. Davy, 3 May, 1837, "One small bell." See p. 124.
428. SOUTHTOWN S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. 1831 (the year of Consecration).
429. SOUTH WOLD S. Edmund. 8 and old Clock bell.
i, 2 No inscription.
3 William Dobson Downham Norfolk fecit 1820.
4, 5 John Darbie made me 1668.
R. I. T. S. Chvrch Wardens. T. P. T. N. Baylifes.
6 In fftcnlth 17 52 anD In ilto Saulied Deo.
7 U 50 thrice.
-|- 6 1 j&ubbeniat Stpa Q 6z SonatibuB #?ane ISaterina.
8 Honble. & Rev*. A. Rous, Vicar, J. Sutherland, P.
Edwards, Bailiffs, E. Freeman Ch. Warden, 1828.
Bell attached to old "Jack o' th' Clock." No inscription.
5 and a Sance bell in 1553. i and 2 cast not many years ago by Moore,
Holmes and Mackenzie. See extract from Gardiner's MS. 6 and another
bought from South Elmham All Saints. See No. 168, p. 186.
Davy, 12 Aug., 1806. " 5 bells hung, and one standing on the ground," on
which he did not note the inscrfi. Old Tenor En f«ulti»...
"A litill syluyr belle" was sold in 1547 by Thomas Jentylman and
Wright, C. W.
2E
234 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
The treble, from which the present 3rd was cast, was of the same make
as the present 4th and $th, and that which occupied the place of the present
6th, according to Davy, bore no inscription. Gardiner notes Katherine and
John as the Christian names of K. Tylls (1470) and Joh. Cawnteler (1471)
who left 5 marks each "ad facturam unius Campanffi."
T. P. T. N. are apparently the initials of Thomas Postle and Thomas
Nunn, Bailiffs in 1671 and 1662 respectively. Those of 1667 and 1668 bore
other initials. Tokens of Postle's are mentioned in Golding, p. 67. See pp.
57,59, 123, 154.
430. SPEXHALL S. Peter. i Bell.
\) 52 thrice.
-f- 6 1 Bulcts jgisto iWdts D 62 CTampa ZJocor ittichis.
3 in 1553. Davy, June 3rd, 1808. "3 bells formerly hung in a shed in
the yard, but in 1771 a faculty was obtained to sell 2 of them to repair the
church. The other hangs in a cupola at the west end of the nave."
Terrier rendered June, 1791. "Also one Bell hanging in a new erected
Cupola." See p. 55.
431. SPROUGHTON All Saints. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 4 John Darbie made me 1658.
3 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1813.
5 O
OHO
O
So Davy, who merely notes the tenor blank.
No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553. See pp. 80, 122.
432. STANNINGFIELD S. Nicholas. 3 Bells.
1 Robard ... Gvrney $ made ^j» me 1664.
2 IJ 51 thrice.
-f- 61 Ifae ffiracia $lcna D £>2 JBominug &mim.
3 D 81 De n 82 Bvri fj 82 Santi D 82 Edmondi D 82
Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni Q 82 me D 82 fecit Q 82
D 81 1567.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. So Davy, with slight variations. See
pp. 52, 96, 192.
433. STANSFIELD All Saints. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 4, 5 Miles Graye made me 1652.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 121.
434. STAN STEAD S. fames. 6 Bells.
i, 2 T. Mears of London fecit 1830.
3, 4 Miles Graye made me 1662.
5 LI 74 Sancta D 75 trtmtai Q 76 u"u* D 75 »<«* D 76
mtSmrc D 75 nobtg.
I544|
Strphcnc tonne me fecit.
6 Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1775.
"Great bellys iij." Return of 1553. Davy, Aug. 18, 1831. "Six bells."
See pp. 79, 133.
INSCRIPTIONS. 235
435. STAN TON All Saints. Tenor (1. Dunn. 39} in. 4 Bulls.
1 U 65 thriiv.
-j- : Sanctn : maria : ora : pro : nobig.
2 0 65 thrice.
-(- 67 © marlir D 68 Barbara Q 68 $vome Q 68 ficum
D 68 Isiora n 68.
3 U 65 thrice.
+ 67 ©siDug D 68 Celt D 68 JFac Q 68 Batbara Q 68
CTrcmina (sic) n 68 Ofli-
4 D 8 1 Anno Q 82 : Q 82 Regni Q 82 Reginae-Eli/.abeth
D 82 Be Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me
fecit n 8 1 Anno Q 82 Domini Q 82 1560.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 5 Jan., 1810, notes the inscription on treble defaced. See pp. 69,
95-
436. STAN TON S. Jo/in Baptist. Tenor G. Diam. 37 in.
4 Bells,
i, 2 John Barbie made me 1680.
3 No inscription.
4 John Barbie made me 1680. I W S B CVVs.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 5 Jan., 1810, as this. See p.
124.
437. STERNFIELD S. Mary Magdalene. 4 Bells.
1 John Brend made me 1659.
2 John Barbie made me 1681. I. B.
3 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1716.
4 Be Bvri Santi Edmondi. Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1573.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. From Davy, June 12, 1806.
438. STOKE ASH All Saints. 4 Bells.
1 William Bobson, founder, Bownham, Norfolk.
2 No inscription.
3 U 65 thrice.
f- Sancta FJ Snna rj ©ra D $>" D Xiobis.
4 -j- CreHo n ^n Deum ©mni G pottntcm.
4 in 1553. Davy, 23 April, 1819, notes the treble as AYG JHAKIA
GI^ACIA PlteHA, the third Sancto IHarta ©ra »ro Kobis.
These two dedications had been recorded by T. Martin, c. 1719. See p. 69.
439. STOKE-BY-CLARE S. Michael. 6 and Clock bull.
i, 3 T. Osborn fecit 1786. Cum voco venite.
2 T. Osborn Bownham Norfolk fecit 1786.
4 Mors vincet omnia. T. Osborn fecit 1786.
5, 6 Joseph Harrison Baniel Pannell Churchwardens.
Thos. Osborn founder Bownham Norfolk 1786.
Clock bell + 77 futge : mane \ farbirc j Deo.
"Great bells v." Return of 1553. Sec p. 79.
440. STOKE-BY-NAYLAND S. Mary. 6 and Clock bell.
1 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1725.
2 John . Hollon . Samuel . Bigsbc . C.Ws. 1725.
236 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
.
3 -f- 89 In JJUuItte annte 3&efonet (Jampana 3)ofjanmsi +
•
O Slopes froft alias tljorn
4 -I- ORA j JHGHTG ! PIA ! PR.O i HOBIS ;
YIR.GO : JHAI\IA ; Amen :
5 Joseph Holies . 1699. Thomas Williams . 1699. H.
Pleasant made me.
6 Reverend Joshua Rowley Minister Henry Cook Ed.
Cook Churchwardens 1811. Thomas Mears.
Clock bell. No inscription, apparently.
"Great bells v." Return of 1553. Davy, Sept. 29 and 30, 1828. "12
bells which I omitted to visit." This is remarkable. J. J. R.
The capital lettering on the fourth is unknown to me ; but the initial cross
looks like an enlargement of No. 47.
After the dissertation was printed, my friend, Mr. Justice Clarence, of
Colombo, Ceylon, went to see Giffard Hall, in this parish, formerly the resi-
dence of the Mannock family. Here over the gateway he found a small
bell, scarce 18 in. high, bearing a coin or two, and the inscription, Jtancie
&ugo ©ra $ro JfJobiB. There were no marks, but the lettering is Culverden's,
see pp. 37, etc. It is remarkable that his Lincolnshire proclivities show
themselves here in a dedication to the well-known Bishop of Lincoln.
441. STONHAM ASPALL 5. Lambert. Tenor E. 24 cwt.
10 Bells.
i, 2, 4 T. Mears of London fecit 1826.
3 T. Mears of London fecit 1826. Dan1. Wade aged 80
years. Wm. Last, Two of the Parish Ringers.
5 Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1770.
Wm. Banyard & Sam'. Davie Ch: Wardens.
6 T. Mears of London fecit 1826.
Job Roper John Blomfield.
7 T. Mears of London fecit 1826.
Rev1. Tho*. Methold Rector. \Vm. Taylor & Saml. Ford
Churchwardens.
8 Thomas Lester made me 1746.
9 In this tower hung 5 bells the tenor weighing 10 hun:
2 qrs. o Ib. In the year 1742 they were taken
down & with ye addition of 3 tons 10 hun: of mettle
were recast into ten att ye expence of Theodore
Ecclestone Esqre of Crowfield Hall, aged 27 years.
He gave also a new frame att ye same time, 1742.
Thos. Lester made us all.
10 Theodore Eccleston Esqr. gave me 1742. Thomas
Lester of London made me 1745. John Williams
hanged me. The end crowns the work.
So Davy, 12 May, 1824.
1 1 2 Theodore Ecclestone Esq. 1742.
3 Tho. Lester of London made me.
At proper times my voice I'll raise
Unto my Benefactor's praise.
Theodore Ecclestone Esqr. 1712.
No mention of bells in certif. of iij Nov., 1547. 4 in 1553, See p. 149.
INSCRIPTIONS. 237
442. STONHAM EARL S. Mary. Tenor G#. Diam. 38 in.
5 Bells.
1 Henry Pleasant made me 1706.
2 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1727.
3 U 50 thrice.
-j- 6 1 <aucfumu3 anbrea Q 62 Jfamulotum jeufctpe Fota.
4 U 50 thrice.
4- 61 ?Firgims Cfgregic Q 62 ©otot Campa #laric.
5 Candler Bird Ch: Warden. T. Osborn Downham fecit
1781. Percute dulce cano.
So Davy imperfectly, 28 March, 1811. 4 in 1553. See pp. 54,57, 140, 144.
443. STONHAM, LITTLE, S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 T. Mears of London fecit 1817.
2 T. Mears of London fecit 1816.
3 Miles Graye made me 1617 V.
4 U 65 thrice.
-j- JFirgo CJotna Sue ilo» S& ttcgna.
5 R. Phelps fecit 1729.
4 in 1553. T. Martin notes 5 bells.
3 *ancta tftana ora pro nolus.
4 Virgo <f oionata One nas alt icjna brata.
5 Saricta Katcnna ora yro iiobis.
Davy, 26 Oct., 1829, notes 5 inaccessible. See pp. 67, 117.
444. STOVE N 5. Margaret. i Bell.
Bell. 1759.
So Davy, 13 June, 1808. 2 in 1553.
445. STOW WEST .S. Mary. Tenor. Diam. 4aJ in. 6 Bells.
i C. AHD G. OIGAJ\S JiOIlDOn 1849.
Y6 THG IiOI\D.
2, 6 John Draper made me 1631.
3, 4 John Draper made me 1629.
5 John Darbie made me 1674.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 19 Aug., 1829. "5 bells which I did not visit." See pp. 112, 124.
446. STOWLANGTOFT S. George. 4 Bells.
1 John Draper made me 1631.
2 J. D. 1614.
3 U 51 thrice.
-j- 6 1 j&ubbenfat Dtngna D 62 Oon.inttbus ?i)anc Ivitrdna.
4 For the service of God. Cast at the expense of Henry
Wilson Esq. 1856. Taylor and Son, Founders,
Loughborough.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 6 July, 1843. "4 bells," apparently quoting T. Martin. See pp.
57, 109, 112.
447. STOW MARKET 55. Peter and Mary. Tenor D, c. 24 cwt.
Diam. 51^ in. 8 Bells.
1 William Dobson, Downham, Norfolk, Founder, 1810.
2 Tho: Osborn fecit 1791.
238 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
3 John Darbie made me 1691.
Thomas : Godard MF. John : Kceble : Richard :
Osbvrnd :
4 _j_ 22 rj 20 £it fJomen SJonunt 33enci)ictum.
5 Charles Newman made mee 1699.
6 T. Mears of London fecit 1823.
7 John Darbie made me 1672.
8 Miles Grave made me 1622.
Clock bell + AYG mA:flIA »*\ACIA PLGnA.
Probably the old Sance bell.
5 and a Sance bell in 1553. Davy transposes 2 and 3. The inscription
on the former he records as Adoremus unum Deum in Trinitate fidehter.
On 2 he mistakes "Tho" for "John," gives both Darbie's bells wrong dates,
and changes the names on 3. See pp. 21, 118, 123, 125, 136.
448. STOWUPLAND Holy Trinity. i Bell.
Bell. Oliver, Wapping, London. Revd. A. G. H.
Hollingsworth.
Churchwardens.
G. R. Freeman
In Nomine SS. Trinitatis 1843.
See p. 151.
449. STRADBROKE All Saints. Tenor Eb, c. 22 cwt.
8 Bells.
1 I Taylor & Co., Founders, Loughborough, 1879. Awake
thou that steepest.
2 I. Taylor & Co., Founders, Loughborough, 1879. Hal-
lelujah.
3 John Borrett Donor. Charles Newman made mee 1697.
I. 1J B. I. U B. (arms of Borrett).
4 Miles Graye made me 1613.
5 -f- Miles D Graye Q 87 made Q me Q 87 l622.
6 Fili Dei vivi miserere nobis 1567 I. B.
7 Nvmen inest nvmers. John Darbie made me 1683.
Thomes Aldous, Joseph Gibbs, C. W.
§ <a> $ $ <n
8 -f~ 44 U 25 -)- 14 (Sea (SaMdtS j&onat ?l)cc CDampaita
*
The figure "6" on the sixth is inverted, and looks like a "9." 5 and a
Sance bell in 1553. Davy, 16 Oct., 1806, "6 bells." See pp. 25, 102, 117,
118, 125, 136.
450. STRADISHALL S. Margaret. 5 Bells.
• i Tho. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1743-
John Yale Rector, Thos. Flack & Thos. Cook C.W.
2 Edw*". Arnold St. Neots fecit 1775.
3 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit 1570.
4 Miles Graye made me 1646.
5 THOJIIAS DI\APSI\ JUADG JUG 1593 fj 83.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. "Five bells and a clock." Davy.
See pp. 96, 101, 119, 145.
INSCRIPTIONS. 239
451. STRATFORD S. Andrew. 3 Bells.
i, 2 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1870.
3 Recast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1885.
Rev. E. Hall, M.A., Rector, S. Plant, Churchwarden.
Hung by George Day & Son, Eye.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Old Tenor rj 6; thrice.
h Sanrta D Car D Bar D 3 n ©ra rj pro n flobis." See p. 67.
This was the original treble. The others were inscribed, Sancta rtlana
©ra pro nob(0, and .fttrritis «?BmunDi, &c.
452. STRATFORD S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Rector Ecclesiam restoravit
Campanam Sextam me donavit
Cum gratiis Dominum adoravit
H. G. Anno 1879.
I. Taylor & Co., Founders, Loughborough.
2 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1745.
John Sacker, John Cooper, C.W.
3 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1723.
4 --43 + 37 *to i*tulti« 3nni« Kcfonct Campana 3)oi>ann{|S.
5 -- Richardvs Bowler me fecit 1589.
6 O O + Mantle O ffirtgori O ©ra O tyto O £obf«
U45
So Davy. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See pp. 37, 104, 145.
453. STRATTON 5. Peter.
Ecdena destructa. No return in 1553.
454. STURSTON All Saints. 4 Bells.'
1 No inscription.
2 John Draper made me 1627.
3 C. & G. Mears, Founders, London.
Walter Chenery, Rector.
Osborn Tippell, Churchwarden, 1853.
4 C. & G. Mears, Founders, London, 1857.
4 in 1553. Davy, 16 Oct., 1806, notes the old 3rd, © malrr Ulet memento mef,
and the old tenor, James Edbere me fecit 1603. R. B. W. S. E. D. The
old 3rd belonged to the " Burlingham " group, as recorded in L'Estrange's
Church Bells of Norfolk, p. 80. Messrs. Mears and Stainbank note that I,
3, and 4 were supplied by them in 1847, and the latter two since recast.
Peal first of 5 bells, tenor 8 cwt. ; now of 4, tenor 4 cwt. 3 qrs. 4 Ibs.
Diameter of treble 21} in., of tenor 32 in. See p. 112.
455. STUTTON S. Peter. 5 Bells.
i, 4, s Miles Graye made me 1684.
2 Charles Newman made mee 1692.
3 Henry Pleasant made me 1706.
So Davy. 3 in 1553. See p. 134, where "first three " is an error ; also
pp. 135, 140.
456. SUDBOURNE All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. John Darbie made me 1674.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. No notes in Davy. Diam. 3 ft. 3 in.
See p. 124.
240
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
457. SUDBURY All Saints. Tenor Di>, c. 30 cwt.
8 and Clock bell.
1 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1876.
In memory of Charles Badham M.A. 27 years Vicar of
this Parish. Died April, 1874.
2 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1876.
Presented by Elliston Allen.
3 George Dashwood Esi. John Crystall Wardens.
H. P. 1701.
4 Miles Graye made me 1671.
5 U 65 thrice.
4- 67 £ancta Q itatcrina D ©** D P™ D Jlobtss.
6 +91-1-41 £um Bofa ^ulfata plunDi Jttada 2Focata.
7 U 65 thrice.
-(- 67 Stdla D iWaria Q Platis D SUCCUHJ Q V»fftma
D ^obi«.
8 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London.
I toll the Funeral knell
I ring the Festal Day
I mark the fleeting hours
And chime the Church to pray.
Cast 1576.
Recast 1875.
Revd. A. H. Arden, Vicar.
HS. Pratt ) Churchwardens.
A. Archer
Clock bell. No inscription.
" Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. Davy notes no date,
reverses 6 and 7. Tenor as in Badham's notes, al. sim.
The tenor was by S. Tonni of Bury, 1576, inscribed, "Filius Virginis
Marie dat nobis gaudia vite." Badham. The crosses on the 6th are in
lozenges, instead of octagon, our blocks being according to the form at
Gloucester Cathedral and S. Alban's. See pp. 140, 151.
Fig. 91.
INSCRIPTIONS. 241
458. SUDBURY S. Bartholomew.
Ecclesia dcstrncta. No return in 1553.
459. SUDBURY S. Gregory. Tenor F, 16 cwt. 8 Bells.
I> 2. 3i 4> 5> 6 T. Mears of London fecit 1821.
7 Mears of London fecit 1821.
H. W. Wilkinson, Minister.
A. Dacon, Wm. Jones, Churchwardens.
8 Pack Chapman of London fecit 1774.
Ye Ringers all that prize
Your health and happiness
Be sober, merry wise
And you'll the same possess.
" Great bells v. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. Seep. 151.
460. SUDBURY 5. Peter. Tenor Eb. Diam. 49 in. 23 cwt.
8 Bells.
i, 2 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1874.
3 John Darbie made me 1662.
4 D 8 1 : James : Edbvrie (arabesque) 1605.
RB ISRS 1W RE RB TB RB WB 1C EC
5 + U 31 + 37 Jett ilomcn IDomim ttcncotctum.
a a & & o
6 -j- rj 31 -(- 36 Bn ittuItiiJ Snnts Mtfonct CCampana
7 Miles Graye made me 1641.
* $ « * 6
g _|_ IS 1^7 3I _j_ Intonat © ©rite ©ov CCampant
"Great bells v." Return of 1553. Davy, no date. The lower 6 cor-
rectly though imperfectly given. The beauty of these capitals is extraor-
dinary. See pp. 35, 109, 119, 123, 151.
461. SUTTON All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Robert Hvrnard Tho. Gardiner fecit 1713.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. "The steeple is down. One small
bell hangs in the roof." Davy, 12 Oct., 1818. Order for sale of a bell, 1692.
Eastern Counties' Collectanea, p. 240.
462. SWEFFLING 5. Mary. 6 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner & Son, London, 1887.
Jubilee bell. Rev1. R. Peek, M.A., Rector.
Hung by G. Day & Son, Eye.
2 T. Mears of London fecit 1831.
3 Tho. Gardiner fecit 1718.
4 Thomas Mears & Son of London fecit.
5, 6 Thomas Gardiner Benhall fecit. 1716.
" Swestlyng... Great bells iij." Return of 1553. No notes in Davy. See
p. 143.
463. SWILLAND 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. 4- AYE JHAI\IA G^ACIA PEienA
IHYS Tecvm.
So Davy imperfectly, 28 May, 1827. 3 in 1553. See p. 61.
2K
242 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
464. SYLEHAM S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1676.
2 John Goldsmith made me 1708. S'. Margaret's.
3 -f- 61 iHos STljome itlcntis Q 6z JWeteamuc (GauDia Ends.
So Davy nearly, 13 Oct., i8o5. 3 in 1553. See pp. 56, 124. 2 omitted
from Goldsmith's list, p. 145.
465. TANNINGTON S. Ethelbert. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 4 John Darbie made me 1662.
3 John Darbie made me 1662. Thomas Dade Esqvire.
5 John Darbie made me 1662.
William Dade Esq, John Jeffrey, W.K. C.W.
3 in 1553. Davy, 23 July, 1808, 'crosses 3 and 5. 2 and 4 are maidens,
the others chipped. On each stock is G. Day, Eye, 1866.
A William Dade of Tannington married Mary Wingfield of the Crowfiekl
branch. She died in 1624. No sale of bells in certif. of 1547.
466. TATTINGSTONE S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3 John Darbie made me 1661.
4 Thos. Mears of London fecit 1795.
5 Ransomes & Sims made me 1853.
The inscription on the old tenor is noted by Davy as I, 2, 3.
No sale of bells in certif. of 1547. 4 in 1553. See p. 146.
467. THEBERTON S. Peter. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 4, 5 Mears & Stainbank, Founders, London, 1875.
Facti Sumtu In Honorem Domini.
"One in 1553.
i, 2 I E. I. D. 1614.
3 John Darbie made me 1663.
4 Nos sumus instruct! ad laudem Domini 1594 (Arms, France and
England) E. R." Davy, Oct. 8, 1806. (He says I. A. on i, 2, but of course
he means I. E.) Diameters, 2 ft. z\ in. ; 2 ft. 4 in. ; 2 ft. 5$ in. ; 2 ft. 7f in. ;
2 ft. 10 in. Weights, 4 cvvt. o qrs. 12 Ibs. ; 4 cwt. i qr. ; 4 cwt. 3 qrs. 21 Ibs.;
5 cwt. 2 qrs. 19 Ibs. ; 7 cwt. o qrs. 1 1 Ibs. See p. no.
468. THELNETHAM S. Nicholas. 5 Bells
1 T. L. made me 1748.
2 T L 1748.
3 Thomas Lester of London fecit 1748.
, 4 John Draper made me 1603 \ Q 83.
5 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1729.
"ffeltham... Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, 27 July, 1824. 5,
1722. al. sim. Sperling says, "Tenor A, 8| cwt." See pp. in, 144, 149.
469. THETFORD S. Mary. 6 Bells.
1 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1765.
2 John Draper made me 1615.
3 Thomas Lester & Thos. Pack of London made me 1753.
4 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1725.
5 John Darbie made me 1664 IT
Orsburne Clarke Burrage Marline CW.
6 Sa Maria John Goldsmith fecit 1711.
Isaac Fawkes Churchwarden. Sa Maria.
No Suffolk return in 1553. Davy, 26 July, 1824, notes 6 bells. See pp.
in, 123, 144, 146.
INSCRIPTIONS. 243
470. THORINGTON S. F,t r. ^ Hell.
Bell. ( A pentaclc) iamtocll— ©tocn D iHaDt D i^
D for n toanstcD. 1596.
So Davy, Aug. 17, 1806. The Terrier, 19 June, l8or, says, "weighing
about I cwt " !
Ao. 1547 Thoringhtonne. Thes be the pcells y' hathe been solde win the
pishe ot Thoryngton in Sufif. Itm sold by the nolle pysche ij bells for the
prce of vj. iiij. iiij. One in 1553. See p. 104.
471. THORN DON All Saints. Tenor F. 6 Bells.
i C. <S; G. Mcars, founders, London, 1856.
2i 3) 4 John Darbie made me 1667.
5 John Darbie made me 1667. Isaac VVellvm Gent. C.W.
6 En mea campana qvam belle sonas Ex parte donvm
Isaaci Wellvm Rectoris 1671. John Darbie made.
4 in 1553. Davy, 18 June, 1809, notes the old treble, Isaac Wellvm Gent:
Ch: Warden I. D. 1669. See his note. See p. 123.
472. T HORN HAM, GREAT, S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2 Charles Newman made nice 1701.
3 U 65 thrice.
4- Sancta Q i&aria Q ©« D V" D $obi«.
4 Charles Newman made mee 1701. John Govch C.W.
5 U 50 thrice.
4- 6 1 J2o» SThome jJUritts n 62 ^Hcrcaraur Gairtia Euti*.
4 in 1553. Davy, 22 April, 1819, calls 5 4, and omits John Govch. See
PP- 56, 136.
473. THORN HAM, LITTLE, .S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Newmman (sic) of Norwich made me
1727. __
3 in 1553. Davy, 22 April, 1829. "Charles . . 1707." See p. 137.
474. THORPE-BY-ALDRINGHAM S. Mary.
Ecalesia dcstructa. No return in 1553.
475. THORPE-BY-ASHFIELD S. Piter.
Ecchsia, dcstructa. "Crete bells iij." Return of 1553.
"The steeple contains only one bell, thus inscribed, i Charoli framling-
ham Militis 1592." Davy. Vid. Little Ashfield, No. 13.
476. THORPE-BY-IXWORTH All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Edmund Whaites Ihon Howlet Church Wardens.
John Stephens fecit 1723.
" Yexforthe Thorpe... Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
Davy, 25 July, 1832, " One bell in a cupola." See p. 139.
477. THORPE MORIEUX S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 Thomas Cheese made me 1632.
2 O 81 Thomas Q 82 Cheese made me 1629.
3 J. Thornton made me 1713.
R. Santy I. Burton CWds.
"Thorpe Moresse... Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. no,
Martin, 5 July, 1741, by mistake says that they are modern ones.
244 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
478. THRANDESTON S. Margaret. 5 Bells.
1 John Brend made me 1654.
2 \J 50 thrice.
-f- 61 jfnc $*nrg.wta D 62 fZobts ?0sc i&uncra Hete.
3 Miles Graie made me 1608.
4 George Clay Esq. and Osborn Roper Churchwardens 1813.
5 Christopher Graye made me 1678.
4 in 1553- Davy, 17 June, 1809, crosses 2 and 3, and records 4, Katherin
Chittocke John Brend made me 1650. Sperling (c. 1860), " Tenor G." See
pp. 57, 117, 121. 134.
479. THURLESTON 5. Botolph.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
480. TH UR LOW, GREAT, All Saints. 5 Bells.
i, 3 Miles Graye made me 1660.
2 Recast by I. Taylor & Co., Founders, Loughborough, 1880.
4 C. & G. Mears, founders, London. This bell recast at
the expence of Lady Harland, Lady of the Manor
of Great Thurlovv, 1849.
5 A. Gardner & W. Eagle, C.W.
John Briant Hertford fecit 1781.
Clock bell. Tho5. Mears of London fecit 1794.
" Great bells iiij. Saucts bells j." Return of 1553. " Five bells," Davy.
See p. 121.
481. THURLOW, LITTLE, S. Peter. 5 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 4 John Draper made me 1621.
5 T. Crick Rector, W. Burch C.W. John Briant Hertford
fecit, 1807.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. "Five bells," Davy. See p. 112.
For " Great" read " Little."
482. THURSTON 5. Peter. 5 Bells.
i, 2 John Draper and Andrew Gvrny made me 1630.
3, 5 Thomas Newman made me 1714.
4 Charles Newman made mee 1699.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy notes "3 bells." See pp. 112,
156.
483. THWAITE .S. George. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription. New when the church was re-
stored in 1846.
3 in 1553. The old bell, inscribed "Miles Graye made me 1626," was
sold to Mellis c. 1846. See No. 335.
484. TIM WORTH S. Andrew. 4 Bells.
i, 2 John Darbie made me 1675.
3 Charles Newman made mee 1698.
4 John Draper made me 1626.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. " 4 bells," Davy. See pp. 112, 124,
136.
INSCRIPTIONS. 2*5
485. TOSTOCK 5. Andrew. 4 Bells.
1 No inscription.
2 U 66 -f- fanct rpclrt ora pro nobis.
3 4~ 67 Sancia ^itaria ota pro nobte U 65.
4 1671 ^ R & G ^
"Great bells iiij." Returns of 1553.
Davy calls the tenor " blank," but notes two inscriptions as 2 and 3.
486. TRIM LEY S. Martin. \ Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
"Great bells j." Return of 1553. From Davy, 16 July, 1829, "very
small."
487. TRIM LEY S. Mary. i Bull.
Hell. Lionellus Tolmach comes de Dysart hanc de novo
fundi C. 1736. (Coronet and crest of Tollemache.)
(Arms of Tollemache.)
Davy, 16 July, 1829, inaccessible. No sale of bells recorded in certif. of
1549. "Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See p. 148.
488. TROSTON S. Mary. ' Tenor, Diam. 28f in. Wt. 6 cwt.
6 Bells,
i, 2, 3 Robert Stainbank, Founder, London, 1868.
4 -f- Stefanus Tonni de Buri Sante Edmonde me fecit 1567.
Recast by Robert Stainbank, London, 1868.
5 -|- Subveniat Dingna. Donantibus Hanc Katerina.
Recast by Robert Stainbank, London, 1868.
6 -|- Dona Repende Pia. Rogo Magdalena Maria.
Recast by Robert Stainbank, London, 1868.
So T. Martin. Davy says, " with 2 bells " !
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 151.
These inscriptions were reproduced from the old bells. I saw them in
Jan., 1859. The 2nd and tenor bore shield No. 51 thrice each; and the
usual cross and rhyme stop, Nos. 61 and 62. The treble bore Tonni's
usual marks, Nos. 81 and 82.
489. TUDDENHAM S. Martin. 5 Bells.
i John Darbie made me 1685 R. C.
2> 3> 4i 5 John Darbie made me 1665.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. T. Martin, 23 April, 1725, 5. See p,
125.
490. TUDDENHAM S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 R. G. 1672.
2 R. G. 1666.
3 Thomas Draper made me 1591.
4 17 65 thrice.
-(- j&ancta Q &nna n "a n Pro l^oM*.
5 John Darbie made me 1675. William Baker C.W.
So Davy with a mistake or two, 22 Aug., 1828.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See pp. 69, 100, 124, 132.
491. TUN STALL 5. Michael. 6 Bells.
i This bell was added to the former five by the subscrip-
tion of the Rector and parishioners 1823.
246 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
2 T. Mears of London 1814.
3, 5 T. Mears of London fecit 1814.
4 T. Mears of London fecit 1832.
6 Rev. Jos. Gerrard Ferrand Rector.
T. Flatt Ch. Warden.
Wm. Uobson fecit 1823.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. The old six.
" I, 2, 3, 4, 5 Anno Domini 1721.
6 George Cutting, Joseph Green, Churchwardens. John Stephens made
me 1720." Davy.
492. UBBESTON S. Peter. The larger cracked. 2 Bells.
1 j&ancta anna ©ra $ro Jftobts O U 45-
2 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Q 82 Stefanvs Q 82 Tonni O
me D 82 fecit Q 81 1573 D Si.
So Davy, I Aug., 1806, save that he dates 2 1567. Terrier, 16 June, 1801,
"Three bells, one of which is cracked." 3 in 1553. Pits for three. See
PP- 37, 9°-
493. UFFORD S. Mary. Tenor F. 6 Bells.
1 John Taylor & Son, Founders, Loughborough, 1848.
2 \) 52 thrice.
-j- 6 1 dFac J&argareta Q 62 JloMs ?l?cc i&uncra Heta.
3 John Barbie made me 1686.
4 -f- 14 jsum O 16 Bosa O 16 ^ulsata O 16 ^tun&t O 16
Jftaria O 1 6 ^ocaia.
5 Thos. Simpson Gent. Churchwarden.
T. Osborn founder Downham Norfolk 1798.
6 IJ 50 thrice.
-f- 6 1 In ^ittultis 3nm« O 62 J&csonet Campa Jfohfa.
No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. "Great bells v." Return of
1553. The old treble was inscribed "Revd. Jacob Chilton, D.D., Rector,
John Hill C. Warden 1727." Davy, 7 June, 1806. The rest of his account
mainly agrees with the above. See pp. 17, 57, 59, 125.
494. UGGESHALL 5. Mary. In B!J. i Bell.
Bell. U 52 thrice.
-f- 6 1 J}.K Bu donclabe n 62 (Gabriel Jlunc JjJangc jsuafae.
So Davy, 3 Sept., 1807. " There were formerly more bells, which were
sold for the repairs of the church" (Mr. Sheriffe, R. 1786—1842). 3 in 1 553.
Pits for three, this probably being the old 2nd. The other two are said to
have been taken to Stoven and Sotherton. At the base of the unfinished
tower is the following inscription: — ©rate p'o animabs iEojis jetole tt martone
tti' ems, with two shields bearing emblems said to be those of a Free Mason
and a Mark Mason. See p. 53.
495. WALBERSWICK S. Andrew. i Bell.
Bell. Lester & Pack of London fecit 1767.
Diam. 2 ft. oj in., badly cracked in three or four places across the crown.
Davy, 22 June, 1809, "i Bell." Terrier, 8 June, 1791, "One bell with a
frame, weight about three hundred."
See Ellacombe's Church Bells of Gloucestershire, Supplement, p. 150,
and extracts from Gardiner's Dunwich. No sale of bells recorded in certif.
of 1547. 2 and a Sance bell in 1553.
1NSCRIPTIO- 247
496. WALDINGFIELD, GREAT, S. Laurence. Tenor V\.
Diam 42 in. 6 Bulls.
1 Canite Jovre Laudcs novo Carmine.
John Briant Hartford fecit An: Dom: 1800.
2 Omncs incoloe audite. John Briant Hartford fecit 1800.
3 Sit Nomen Domini Benedictum.
John Briant Hartford fecit An: Dom: 1800.
4 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1876.
E. W. Downs & Son, Glemsford, hung me.
5 Supremis Locis Jovam laudate. John Briant Hartford
fecit An: Dom: 1800.
6 Adeste. Revnd. Thomas Royce Rector, John Lott &
Ed. Prior C: W: Adeste. John Briant Hartford
fecit An: Dom: 1800.
"Great Bells iiij." Return of 1553.
Davy, Aug. 18, 1826. 4 "John Briant Hartford fecit 1800. Laudate
Deum" (tympanis?)
Entry in the Vestry book that 5 old bells were recast into 6 in 1800. See
p. 152.
497. WALDINGFIELD, LITTLE, S. Laurence. Tenor F£
Diam. 40 in. 6 Bells,
i, 4 T. Osborn fecit 1785.
2 Jeames n 81 Edbere Q 82 1612 (arabesque).
3 Jeames (arabesque) Edbury O 81 1612 G 82.
5 .Miles Graye made me 1617.
So Davy, Sept. 10, 1827. "Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
498. WALDRINGFIELD All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. Stephen Brame Churchwarden T. G. 1714.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 21 May, 1811, gives 2, 3. 4,
Thomas Gardiner Sudbury me fecit 1714, but on 2 Jan., 1824, notes but one
bell left. See p. 143.
499. WALPOLE 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. 1786.
So Davy, 26 June, 1806. T. Martin, 13 Sept., 1760, "They tell me there
was once a good steeple with 5 Bells." 3 in 1553.
500. WALSH AM-LE-WILLOWS S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i Charles Newman made mee 1700.
2, 3 Charles Newman made mee 1699. Johannes Hunt
Esq.
4 n 8 1 De Bvri Santi Edmondi Stefanvs Tonni me fecit
I576-
5, 6 Thomas Newman made me 1704. John Hunt Esq.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, 7 July, 1843, « 6 Bells." See
pp. 96, 136, 137.
501. WALTON 5. Mary. i Bell.
Bell, -f- SAHCTG JOHAIlIieS OI\A PRO
HOBIS.
Davy, 15 July, 1829, SAIIGTA JOHAnniS.
" The steeple . . . has long been down." No sale of bells recorded
in certif. of 1547. "Great bells ij." Return of 1553.
248 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
502. WANGFORD S. Denis. i Bell.
Bell. Robard .•, Gvrney made me 1668.
"Waynforde... Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 23 Aug., 1829,
notes " one small bell." There were certainly two, for I found two not very
small ones in 1849, and no one would have brought in a bell in the interim.
The larger of these two weighed 1 1 cwt., and bore -(- 24 TJ 23 -}- 24 <S>t
Jiomcn Domini 33cnrt>fttum. It was taken down in 1871, and weighed
before being recast into the present Brandon treble. That lamented ringer
and campanologist, the late Rev. A Sutton, Rector of West Toft, gave me
the weight. Pits for three. See pp. 24, 132, 169.
503. WANGFORD S. Peter. Tenor in G. 5 Bells.
1 Slnno Domini 1624 WIB.
2 Cast by John Warner and Sons, London, 1863.
(Royal Arms) Patent.
3 John Darbie made me 1668.
4 John Stephens made mee 1721.
John Sayer Church Warden.
5 &nno Domini 1625 AB
W
Davy, 3 Sept., 1807, notes the old 2nd of the same date as the 4th.
Terrier, 1827, 5. No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 4 in 1553.
See pp. 114, 123, 139.
504. WANTISDEN S. John Baptist. i Bell.
Bell. Pack & Chapman of London fecit 1773.
So Davy, July 31, 1810. "Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
505. WASH BROOK 5. Mary. Diam. 39^ in. i Bell.
Bell. U 23 -f Jin J&ulttss Snnis 3&cgonct (£ampana
3)ofjannis.
3 in 1553. Davy was unable to reach this bell in 1824. See p. 23.
506. WATTISFIELD S. Margaret. 5 Bells.
I> 2> 3) 5 John Darbie made me 1685.
4 wit TD in Q 84 1'He rj 84 r\AYne rj 84
OB rj 84 Qvene rj 84 eirse rj 84 BSTH rj 84
BIS rj 84x111 rj 84.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, 6 Jan., 1810, as this. Sperling
(1860), " Tenor G}." See pp. 98 — 100, 125.
507. WATTISHAM S. Nicholas. 2 Bells.
1 John Gardiner Church Warden T G fecit 1719.
2 TJ 66 thrice.
+ 67 Jjancta D 68 JWnria FJ 68 JWiigDalcnn n 68 (Dm
D 68 pro D 68 flobis.
So Davy, 24 Oct., 1826. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 69.
508. WELNETHAM, GREAT, 5. Thomas. i Bell.
Bell. H. P. made 1695. R. G. Churchwarden.
"Great bells ij." Return of 1553. "The steeple is down, but on the
roof, at the west end of the nave hangs i small bell." Davy. See p. 140.
INSCRIPTIONS. 249
509. WELNETHAM, LITTLE, S. Mary Magdalene. Tenor G.
Diain. 3-5.', in. 3 lid Is.
1 rj me : oiA^GAKeTe : CAmpAiiAm :
DIGITS .- iieTG o
2 R. B. IT IE? 1614 ID.
3 R. &G. & 1671 ^O
"Burlingham" lettering on treble, but Austen Bracker's cross. Cambs.,
No. 71.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1353. " 2 bells," Davy. See pp. 62, 132.
510. WE N HAM, GREAT, 5. John. 3 Bells.
i, 2 No inscription.
3 Richardus Bowler me fecit 1592.
So Davy. No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553. See
p. 104.
511. WE N HAM, LITTLE, AU Saint*, i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Gardiner Sudbury me fecit 1714.
3 in '553- "In the steeple there is but one bell, inscribed 'John Club
Rector of Horham 1672.'" Davy. See Horham, No. 264. See p. 143.
512. WENHASTON S. Peter. Tenor C£ Diam. c. 40 in.
6 Bells.
i, 2 Jn°. Ellis & Rob'. Tallant Ch.Wardens.
W. & T. Mears, late Lester, Pack & Chapman, London
fecit 1787.
3 T. Mears of London fecit 1823.
4 17 65 thrice.
4- *ancta n Snna fj <0ra Q $w D .Hobi».
5 Lester & Pack of London fecit 1767.
6 FJ 51 thrice.
-f- 61 ©ucsumus anBwa n 62 Jpamulorum Suscipe Voln.
So Davy, 3 June, 1808. Old 3rd, "W". Fiske, John Fiske, Anno
Domini 1629." A clean little ring.
No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 4 and a Sancts bell in 1553.
513. WESTERFIELD 5. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 /*t thrice 17 9.
2 2®lor Slujufifnf jj?onct Jn 9utc Bti rj 9.
3 C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1852.
" Itni bells in the Stepyll iij." Return of 1553, with the Ipswich churches.
Davy, 7 Aug., 1829, "3 inaccessible." See p. 17.
514. WESTHALL S. Mary. Tenor is a rather sharp F, slightly
flattened, vibrates a minor third. 5 Bells,
i, 4 Slnno Domini 1616 AB
W
2 C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1875.
3 No inscription.
5 Clmnis jconus Unu&ct Domtnum.
anno Domini 1626 AB
W
So Davy, 2 June, 1808. Old 2nd, "John Darbie made me 1678."
4 in 1553. On the screen, S. Antony's pig with a crotal. See p. 114.
2G
250 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
515. WESTHORPE S. Margaret. 5 Bells.
i, 2 John Osborne Gent. Simon Hunt Churchwardens.
1702. H. P.
3 Tho. Gardiner Norwich fecit 1740.
4 TJ 65 thrice.
-f- Sanctn D 68 JSlarta D 68 roa (sic) D 68 yronobisS.
5 William Grimwood and Jeremiah Hayward Church-
wardens 1808.
4 in 1553. Davy, 22 July, 1831, 5. See pp. 140, 145.
516. WESTLETON S, Pder. i Bell.
Bell. C. & G. Hears, founders, London, 1849.
S. A. Woods, jun. Esq- j Churchwardens.
R. Girhng, Esqr
Davy, 22 June, 1809. Sancta J$larta ota pro nobis. See his note.
No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 3 in 1553.
517. WEST LEY S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Mears of London fecit 1803.
"Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, Aug. 18, 1828, notes it as
inaccessible1. The present church was built in 1836.
518. WESTON £ Peter. 3 Bells.
i -- : oominus : SIT : AniuToi : meus :
2 -f see ; peTi\e : PI^O : me : DGU
CGDG :
3 4- 5HISSUS : UGl^O : PIG : GABI\IGIi :
BGI^T : IiGTA : JUA^IG.
So Davy, i June, 1808. "Great bells iij. Sawnce bells j." Return of
1553. Seep. 63.
519. WESTON, CONEY, S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. John Barnes Rector, John Alderton Thomas
Lanchester Church Wardens. Coney Weston,
Suffolk, 1802.
"Great bells iij. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553. A bell sold in 1690.
Eastern Counties' Collectanea, p. 240. T. Martin noted one bell inscribed,
Jtjac In Condatoe <5a6vtel $uc Sponge Jhtabe.
The tower fell in 1690.
520. WESTON MARKET S. Mary. 5 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner Sudbury me fecit 1712.
2 tj 66 thrice.
-j- Saiutc anDrca Sipostolt ©ta $ro .flofois.
3 U 50 thrice.
Socict Jsianctts Q Semper jlicbolaus Hn
.
5 Charles King, Thomus (sic) Peck Churchwardens.
John Stephens made mee 1725.
" Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Tenor according to Sperling 18 cwt.
Davy, 27 July, 1824. He noted 2, erased ... ora pro nobis; 3, erased ;
4. chipped off; 5, " Stephenson " for " Stephens," of course wrong. Sperling,
INSCRIPTIONS. 251
in 1860, noted a defaced inscription on single letters with a leopard's head
and a fleur-de-lis alternately separating them. My own notes, however,
show an initial cross, No. 47; and the pot No. 46, at the end of Jill S6 1^1 S.
The leopard's head is probably No. 48. There has been barbarous mutila-
tion in this tower. See pp. 41, 58, 69, 143.
521. WETHERDEN S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 2 Miles Graye made me 1673.
3 Mears & Stainbank, Founders, London, 1886.
C. J. Goodhart Rector.
S. W. Hunt ) 0, ,
P. C. N. Peddar | Churchwardens.
4 T. Osborn Downham fecit 1786.
5 Ralph Rouse Warden. Henry Pleasant made me 1703.
4 in 1553. Old 3 as I and 2, says Davy. See p. 140.
522. WETHERINGSETT All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 43* in.
5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1660.
2 John Draper made me 1636.
3 G. Mears & Co., Founders, London, 1 864.
4 Wm. Dobson, Founder, 1824. William Grimwade ^
John Cobbald Churchwardens.
5 Lester & Pack of London fecit. Ja'. Keen & Thos.
Edwards Ch. Wardens 1765.
3 in '553- Davy, 23 May, 1828, crosses 2 and 3, and notes the inscription
on the bell recast in 1864, Celt &et miinus Qut rrgiiat Cnniis et Units.
See pp. 112, 122.
523. WEYBREAD S. Andrew. 6 Bells.
T> 2i 3> 4> 5> 6 U (Moore, Holmes and Mackenzie).
See also East Anglian II., 6.
3 in 1553. The old three noted by me, 12 March, 1862.
1 No inscription.
2 -f- AY6 ttlAI^IA G^ACIA PIlGIlA.
3 John Brend made me 1651.
So Davy, 13 Oct., 1806. Mr. John Calver says that No. i, a very rough
bell, is said to have been cast in Weybread, that Mr. Robert Bond, Church-
warden, knew this, and that some knew the very field where it had been cast.
See pp. 62, 154.
The "greate bell" had a new baldrick in 1599, at a cost of xij</.
" Brande " the bellfounder received for casting it in 165 1, " w'h some charges
spent with him," ,£3 2s. The parish book is full of small items about the
bells.
524. WHATFIELD S. Margaret. 3 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1678.
2 n 8 1 Omnia n 82 Jovam D 82 lavdcnt. Q 82 ani-
mantia fj 81 1575. S. T. W. L. T. 1).
3 Miles Graye made me 1634.
So Davy, 26 Oct., 1826. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553. See p. 98.
525. WHEPSTEAD S. Pelronilla. 5 Bells.
'> 2> 3. 4. 5 E. Arnold, S'. Neot's, 1774.
"Great bells j." Return of 1553. Church notes about 1724 (Tom
252 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Martin's). "Church leaded, chancel tyled, steeple lowered. 4 bells."
" Five bells." Davy, Aug. 26, 1831.
The old leaden spire is said to have been blown down in the tremendous
storm of Sept 3rd, 1658, the night on which Cromwell died. See p. 153.
526. WHERSTEAD S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1675. Richard Goodinge C.W.
2 Miles Graye made me 1622.
3 U 50 thrice.
-f- 61 Hos £{)ome Jttcritts D 62 iWcrcamur (Eautria Hutisf.
3 i° '553- Davy notes two bells, but does not give the inscriptions. See
pp. 56, 118. R. Gooding was buried 27 Nov., 1682. Zincke's Wherstead,
p. 9.
527. WHITTON i Bell.
Bell. & 72 abe & 72 marts & 72 gratia & 72 aiio & 72
mtttt a 72 iH,
i in 1553. Inscription quite close up to shoulder of bell. Diameter 22|
inches. Height to shoulder 21 inches. Height to top of cannons 28 inches ;
square shouldered (Pearson, W.C. 15 May, 1887).
Davy, 9 Sept., 1827, " i Bell." No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547.
See p. 74.
528. WICKHAM MARKET All Saints. Tenor F. Diam. 41 in.
6 and Clock bell.
1 John Brend made me 1657.
2 The monvment of Gray
Is past awaie
In place of it doth stand
The name of John Brend, 1657.
3 A. D. 1883.
Gulielmus Thomas Image A.M. Aul : SS : Trin : Cantab:
Vicarius. Johannes Cracknell et Gulielmus Nathaniel
Whitmore hujus Ecclesias custodes.
4 U 65 thrice.
-f- 67 CTtU fj 68 Cct D 68 niitnug Q 68 qui D 68 regnal
D 68 «t D 68 units.
5 ^CHGSDIIAICKSWCWCIB. 1601.
1\ICA1^DYS BOWItGI\ me BGCIT.
6 Anno Domini 1613 WIB.
Clock bell. Inaccessible.
" Great bells v. Sancts Bells j." Return of 1553.
Davy crosses 5 and 6 and 3 and 4, and records the bell recast in 1883 as
inscribed, "John Darbie made me 1672." 4 Nov., 1805.
John Sawer and Tho. Gyrling C.W. of Wykham record no sale of bells in
their certif., 1547. It may be Wickham Skeith. 4 honeycombed. The
chime-barrel machinery was in the tower in 1873. The Clock bell, now on
the outside of the spire, appears to be the old Sance bell. There is an old
30 h- clock, without nut or screw in it. See pp. 69, 104, 113, 121.
529. WICKHAM SKEITH 5. Andrew. 6 Bells.
1 Osborn fecit 1780.
2 Thos. Osborn Downham fecit 1780.
INSCRIPTIONS. 253
3 I D I G 1615 B B
D6 QYAVYOB QYIMQYG ITttYIT-O L-IYORG
SYPGI^BO
VT TGmPEiA BOIIA SUIT IttYIODATA DGI.
» B « G
I G
4 John Darbie made me 1669.
5 The Lord to praise
My voice I raise.
Tho*. Osborn founder 1797:
6 John Draper made me 16:7.
4 in 1553. Martin in 1724 could not read the 3rd, and Davy in 1819 only
succeeded imperfectly.
The initials on the 3rd (besides I. D. and I. E., which are those of John
Driver and James Edbury, of Bury, the founders,) appear to be those of
Benjamin Boaden, bapt. 1598, Peter Fryer or Frere, whose son George was
baptized in 1597, Nicholas Goddard, bapt. 1591, and John Goddard, who
married Anne Fryer, or Frere, in 1584, and was Churchwarden in 1628.
Will of Henr. ffryer of Wickham in Ipsw. Registry between 1444 and 1455.
The inscription on the 3rd points te resistance by "village Hampdens" to
some "little tyrant of their fields." See pp. no, 112.
530. WICKHAM BROOK All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 Miles Graye made me 1641.
2 Charles Newman made mee 1695.
3 William Dobson 1823.
4 Miles Graye made me 1611.
5 John Darbie made me 1663.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. "Five bells," Davy. See pp. 117,
1 19, 123, 135. The date on the 4th is doubtful.
531. WILBY S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i John -f- Goldsmith -+- fecit -f- 1713 D + D
2, 3 Anno Domini 1606. W. B.
4 Rob'. Coates Ch. Warden. Tho*. Osborn Downham
fecit 1789.
5 Miles Graye made me 1615.
6 U 65 thrice.
-j- 67 iEltrgo D 68 CToronata Q 68 But fj 68 flot n
at) D 68 Hrgna D 68 Beata.
So Davy, 16 June, 1809. See some quaint lines on xxxviii score of Crown
Bob, March xxviii MDCCXXXIV in his note. 4 and a Sance bell in 1553.
3rd cracked, but hardly perceptibly so- See pp. 67, 117, 146.
532. WILLINGHAM S. Mary.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
The church is alluded to in Davy's MSS. as standing in 1529.
533. WILLISHAM S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. 1777.
2 in 1553. Davy, 19 May, 1829, i inaccessible.
534. WINGFIELD S. Mary. 6 Bells.
i Thos. Newman of Norwich made me.
Mr. Daws C. W. 1742.
254 TIIE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
2 AB U 86 U 52
W.
OmniS Sonus JLauSct Sominum itgfc 1596 <pv D
3 Anno Domini 1613 W. B.
4 Anno Domini 1613 W I B.
« Anno Domini 1602 AB
W.
6 Anno Domini 1613 AB
W.
4 and a Sance bell in 1553. Davy, 24 Sept., 1827, crosses I and 2 and
4 and 5. See pp. 1 13, 138.
535. WINSTON S. Andrew. 5 Bells.
1 John Darbie made me 1662 R. M.
2 John Darbie made me 1662 T D.
3, 5 Miles Graye made me 1638.
4 Thos. Gardiner Sudbury fecit 1737.
So Davy, except the initials. " Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. See
pp. 118, 123, 144.
536. WISSETT 5. Andrew. 5 Bells.
i T. Hears London fecit 1818.
2, 3 Thomas Gardiner Benhall fecit 1718.
4 D UII\GO Q mAI\IA.
5 Tho. Gardiner fecit 1718. Rob1. More C.W.
4 in 1553. Davy, 15 May, 1806, notes 2 and 3 as i and 2, 4 as 3, 5 as 4,
and an old tenor, |los Sljome...
The tenor was clearly recast for a treble. See pp. 1 1, 143.
537. WISTON S. Mary. 3 Bells.
1 W. L. T. D. 1574. Nicolas Grice Benefacter.
D 82 Fear & God Q 81.
2 Miles Graye made me 1664.
3 John Thornton Sudbury fecit 1719.
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. Davy, Oct. i, 1828, " A cupola which
contains three small bells." See pp. 98, 133, 142.
538. WITHERS DALE 5. Mary Magdalene. 2 Bells.
1 W. B.
2 No inscription.
2 in 1553. "Two" Terriers; and Davy, 10 Jan., 1811. See p. 115.
539. WITHERSFIELD S. Mary. 5 Bells.
i, 3, 5 Robert Taylor, St. Neot's, 1804.
2 Richard Bowler made me 1603.
4 John Thornton Sudbury fecit 1718.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. "Five tuneable bells," Davy. See
pp. 104, 142.
540. WITNESHAM S. Mary. 6 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner & Son, London, 1871.
2 John Darbie made me 1660.
3 Thomas Gardiner made me 1717.
INSCRIPTIONS. 255
4 John I)arl)ic made me 1660 C W
5 John Darbie made me 1660. John Hettridgcs C. \V.
6 John Darbie made me 1660. Daniel Meadows C. \V.
"Great bells iiij." Return of 1553. Davy, 28 May, 1827. See pp. 122,
143, where "tenor" is a mistake for "third."
541. WIXOE X Leonard. Diam. 28 in. i Bell.
Bell. U 25 O 18 1? 26 Sanctr jlreolac <Dra ^ro jlobis
So Davy. " Great bells ij." Return of 1553. See p. 25.
542. WOODBRIDGE S. John-the-Evangelht. i Bell.
Bell. Thomas Hears, London, founder, 1843.
543. WOODBRIDGE 5. Mary. Tenor 27 cwt. 8 Bells.
1 The Lord to praise my voice I'll raise.
Tho1. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
2 Hear me when I call.
Tho5. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
3 Strike me and I'll sound sweetly.
Thos. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
4 Peace and good neighbourhood.
Thos. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
. 5 Our voices shall with joyful sound
Make hills and valleys echo round.
Thos. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
6 In wedlock's bands all ye who join
With hands your hearts unite
So shall our tuneful tongues combine
To laud the nuptial rite.
Tho'. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
7 We to the church the living call
And to the grave do summon all.
Thos. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
8 John Hammond, Robert Allen Churchwardens.
Tho5. Osborn Downham Norfolk Founder 1799.
"Great bells v. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553. No sale of bells re-
corded in certif. of 1547.
An older tower seems to have become ruinous by the beginning of the
i;th century. Hawes has collected the following items from old wills :— W.
Foder, 1444, $s. 4^. Joh. Newport, 1444, £6 i$s. $d. Joh. Allrede, 1448,
20 marks. Joh. Spicer, 1453, £7. Galfr. Kempe, 1450, £7. W. Berard,
1451,3^.4^. Walt. Doft, 1448, 40?. Rob. Parterick, 1459, '3J- 4^- Joh.
Kemp, 1458, .£14. Rob. Barfoot, 40^.
The expression in Foder's will, "Ad fabricationem campanilis cum fuerit
inceptum," shows that the work had been already in project, perhaps for
some time ; " de novo faciend," in others points to the existence of a
previous belfry.
By 1612, according to Hawes, the bells were increased from 5 to 6.
Towards the end of the seventeenth century these had all been recast.
Martin's note (1712) is as follows :
" i John Darbie made me 1669.
2 Miles Grey made me 1638.
3 Miles Grey made me 1638.
4 Miles Grey made me 1676.
5 John Darbie made me 1679.
6 John Darbie made me 1677."
256 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
From notes in Davy, taken at the time of the removal of the bells for
recasting, Nov. 10, 1798, it appears that "Grey" on 4 is a mistake for
" Darbie," and that the date on 5 should have been 1676. The octave was
completed by the addition of two trebles, and the old 2nd, which thus became
the 4th, recast by Phelps in 1721 ; but Phelps's new 2nd went to the furnace
again at the hands of Pack and Chapman in 1779 The old 3rd, which had
become the 5th, had already visited Whitechapel in 1751, during Lester's
days.
Mr. Robert Allen, Churchwarden, caused the weights to be taken, with
this result : —
Old Bells. New Bells. Weighed at
Received. Founders' Weight. Woodbridge.
Cwt. qrs. Ibs. Cwt. qrs. Ibs. Cwt. qrs. Ibs.
1. 5 i 14 i 17 i 6
2. 5 i 14 8 o 23 . 8 o 20
3. 6 i o 9 o 26 9 o 22
4. 6 3 2 9 2 27 9 2 25
5. 8 i 9 it i 17 ii i 14
6. 9 3 10 12 2 12 2 o
7- 13 o 7 17 3 8 i/ 3 3
8. 18 2 18 26 3 ii 26 3 ii
Mr. Osborne's bill for the whole was £376 '7^- bd.
544. WOOLPIT 5. Mary. Tenor G#. Diam. 37^ in. 6 Bells.
i, 2, 3 C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1844.
4, 5 John Darbie made me 1658.
6 C. & G. Mears, founders, London, 1855.
Davy seems in this case to have counted from the treble. His notes are :
1 John Darbie made me 1658. Thomas Hudson, K. C. (?)
2 John Draper made me 1616.
3 spatula JWaria ©ra }i)ro JJofcts.
4, 5 John Darbie made me, 1658.
" Great bells v." Return of 1553. See p. 122.
545. WOOLVERSTONE S. Michael. i Bell.
Bell. C. & G. Mears, founders, London. Recast 1847.
i in 1553. Davy notes one bell inscribed " Miles Graye made me 1610."
East Anglian N. S. III., 112. See pp. 92, 117.
543. WORDWELL All Saints. i Bell.
Bell. No inscription.
"Great bells ij." Return of 1553. Davy, 18 Aug., 1829, "A small bell in
a cupola, which I could not get to." See p. 2.
547. WORLINGHAM All Saints. Tenor. Diam. 37^ in.
5 Bells.
1 U 52 U 86 AB
W.
&nno Domini 1622.
2 Anno Domini 1621. W. A. B.
3 Slnno Domini 1608.
4, S U 52 U 86 AB
W.
Domini 1621.
So Davy, 12 Aug., 1809. " Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. See pp. 1 13, 1 14.
548. WORLINGHAM .9. Peter.
Ecclesia destructa. No return in 1553.
INSCRIPTIONS. 257
549. WORLINGTON All Saints. 5 Bells.
1 ijjlmute Oultc rano. THG I^GV. JAflttGS GIBSOll
1\GCTOK. EI\GDGI\IC JOHH CIlAI\F£
AIID JAmGS BOOTY CHUI\CH WAI\DC«S.
I860.
I Cantor anU Son JfounDtrs Hougbboro'.
2 Robard Gvrney made me 1665.
3 John Draper made me 1635.
4 _L <f)mni9 : aonbs : l.tuuet : DOttlinum
THIS BGDIi "WAS I\GCAST AUD A TI\GBEiG
ADDGD BY SUBSCI\IP-TIOn. 1850.
I: Tanlot nnO Son Jfounocrs lloughboro.
c n I*JOHAIUIGS : GODYUGG : DG • DGIinG i
me ; BGCIT.
"Wrydlynton... Great bells iij." Return of 1553.
Till 1850 there were four (as noted by Davy, 24 Aug., 1829), and the old
3rd was inscribed "I. E. 1614 I. D." These bells are now the first five of a
six. See pp. 7, no, 112, 132, 153.
550. WORLINGWORTH S. Mary. Tenor 13 cwt. 6 Bells.
i, 2, 3, 5 Thomas Mears of London fecit 1804.
4 Mears & Stainbank, Founders, London.
Restaur.
In Memoriam
Elizabeth Jesser French
A.D. 1887.
6 Cast by subscription A.D. 1804.
Patrons : the Duchess of Chandos and Lord Henniker,
Emily Lady Henniker.
The Revd. Charles Buckle Rector, Henry Cupper Samuel
Wardley Church Wardens. Jn°. Jessup a sub-
scriber Treasurer. Thomas Mears of London fecit.
4 in 1553. Davy, 23 July, 1808, notes the 4th as like the rest, as I noted
it in 1874.
These lines are on Jessup's tomb (ob. June igth, 1825, aet. 80):—
" To ringing from his youth he always took delight,
Now his bell has rung and his soul has took its flight ;
We hope to join the choir of heavenly singing
That far excells the harmony of ringing."
The Tenor "Tolled xii Hours afio D. 1821 And A Funeral Peal Rang
after as a Token of Heartfilt Grief At The Death of Her Majesty Queen
Caroline."
551. WORTH AM 55. Thomas and Mary. i Bell.
Bell. T. Osborn Downham Norfolk fecit 1785. Cum
Voco Venite.
3 in '553-
552. WRATTING, GREAT, S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. W. H. 1625.
So Davy. "Great bells iij. Sancts bells j." Return of 1553.
Evidently William Harbert's, for the letters are those of Miles Graye s
larger alphabet.
258 THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
553. WRATTING, LITTLE, S. Mary. i Bell.
Bell. D 74 Sanctorum D ?6 more D 75 mo^° d 76
pulfo D 75 lautris D 76 Ijonorc.
3JoIjannes tonne me fecit
O
" Great bells iij." Return of 1553. One bell. Davy.
Through the kind perseverance of Mr. Deedes this interesting bell has
been added to our list. It is in a turret, and was long regarded as inacces-
sible, and thus has received no notice in the Dissertation. In the medallion
under the founder's name is a sitting figure, and on the opposite side of the
bell is a design enclosed in a pear-shaped figure, point upwards.
554. WRENTHAM S. Nicholas. Tenor G. Bells not in tune.
5 Bells.
1 Thomas Gardiner fecit 1723.
2 (Pentacle) JOHH CIrAI\!£ JHA»e THIS BGItlt
1606.
3 Thomas Gardiner me fecit 1714.
4 Thomas Newman made me. Mr. John Bardwell C.W.
1745-
5 C. & G. Mears, founders, London. Recast 1847.
Thomas Girling Esqr. Church Warden.
Davy, 31 Aug., 1809, notes the old tenor, "Anno Domini 1620 I B B."
No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 4 and a Sance bell in 1553.
See pp. 108, 138, 143, 144.
555. WYVERSTONE S. George. Tenor. Diam. 36 in.
3 Bells.
1 U 52 (Arms of England with C. R.) Henry \} Yaxle
made me 1674.
2 Tho. Gardiner fecit 1719.
3 U 52 thrice.
4- 61 yettus &t> ©terne D 62 Ducat jHos ^9aScua iZb'ttc.
So Martin gives the tenor. Davy notes three. 3 in 1553. Seep 144.
The shield between "Henry" and "Yaxle" is Yaxley, of Yaxley, en/i.,
a chevron sa. between three mullets pierced, gu. The family appears to
have been of great antiquity. Henry Yaxley's bells are very rare, and of
poor quality. I think it possible that some of the Horham bells are from
him. One by him, bearing the family arms, is at Fritton, Norfolk. From
his use of Brasyer's shield it seems that he may have been at work in Nor-
wich. There is here a vacant pit, larger than those occupied.
556. YAXLEY" £ Mary. 6 Bells.
1 Cast by John Warner & Sons, London, 1857.
(Royal Arms) Patent.
2 William Dobson, Founder, Downham, Norfolk, 1828.
3, 4 John Brend made me 1658.
5 U 65 thrice.
Covonata n Sue G Jlos D && D &egna D
tfaata.
INSCRIPTIONS. 259
6 Thomas Draper made me at Thetford 1594-
Cell solamen nobis del Deus. Amen.
Davy, 17 June, 1809, notes the 2nd split, and the 3rd, Virgo Coronata Due
Xos aD Krci'iia lir.il.i.
4 in 1553. On the old treble, T. Lester made me R. Jacob, D. Tripp,
1746. Sperling (c. 1860) "Tenor G." See p. 101.
557. VOX FORD S. Peter. 6 Bells.
*> 3. 4. 5 John Brend made me 1655.
2 I. B. made me 1656. Richard Hayle.
6 John Darbie made me 1685. C. R.
So Davy, 17 May, 1806. No sale of bells recorded in certif. of 1547. 3
in 1553. See pp. 121, 125.
As the parishes are arranged alphabetically, and under them are
frequent references to the Dissertation, there is no necessity for an
Index Locorum. The Table of Contents renders an Index Rerum
superfluous.
The names of Bell-founders and County Historians occur so con-
stantly in the list of inscriptions that the Index contains no reference
to either, save where they occur in the Dissertation.
Page
Page
Page
A
Atherold ...
... 199
Bayman . . .
... 211)
Atthills, by founder's
Beacher ...
... 97
Adair ...
... 191
mistake Althills 229
Becket Thomas a
55. 148
Adams
130, 171
Ay ton
... 232
Bell
... 184
Affleck ...
... 182
Belle van
... 76
Alcock, Bishop .
.. 87, 88
Belleyettir
8
Alderton ...
... 250
B
Belton ...
8
Aldreg ...
... 163
Belyetere ...
... 61
Aldrich ...
... 232
Backler ...
... 183
Berard
... 255
Aldrick ...
... 156
Badham ...
141, 240
Bernard ...
... 67
Aldridge ...
... 214
Baker
199, 245
Bethell ...
'49, 223
Aldous
... 238
Baldry ...
... 164
Bewicke ..
... 171
Alexander
... 192
Banyard ...
... 236
Bigg
- 195
Aleyn
9, 216
Barber ...
... 187
Bigsbe
... 235
Aleys
4'., 181
Barclay . . .
... 202
Billeyettii
8
Allen, 147, 168,
185, 232,
Bard well...
... 258
Billes 1 on
... 34
240, 255, 256
Earet
85,86
Bingley ...
... 168
Allrede ...
... 255
Barett
97, '98
Bird
... 237
Almack ...
... 217
Barfoot ...
... 255
Bisbie
... 217
Alston
... 220
Barker ... 51
,60, 159
Bixby
... I2O
Ambrose...
... 172
Barnardiston
... 210
Bixon
.. 148
Andrew ...
102, 110
Barne
185, 198
Blackburn, Lord
... 46
Andrews ...
40, no
Barnes ... 194,
2 1 6. 250
Blews and Son
... 154
Archer
240
Barrett ...
97
Blinco
... 227
Arden
240
Barry
... 196
Blithe de...
... 14
Armstead
... .177
Barthroope
... 179
Blocke ...
... 197
Arnold ...
'53, 238
Bartlett ...
... 147
Blois
... 231
Arundel . . .
... 87
Barton
... 46
Blomefield
22, 60
Arthy
... 219
Bateman ...
... 181
Blomfield
... 236
Aspland . .
... 138
Bates
165. 192
Bloomfield
... 214
Asplin
... 162
Baxter ...
41, 43
Blower
.- 93
Asteley ...
... IOI Bayly
71 Bloys
... 196
INDEX NOMINUM.
26l
Boaden ... ... 253
Boby ... ... 238
Boggis ... 171, 172
Boldero ... ... 209
Bond ... ... 251
Booty ... ... 257
Borrett ... 180, 214, 238
Botson ... ... 192
Bowell ... ... 208
Bowler ... 104, 116, 120
Bracket, 62, 179, 248, 249
Brukelond, Jocelyn de
3, '7*
Brame ... ... 247
Brampton .. 189
Bramston ... 93
Brasyer, 41—46, 48 (2),
49—51, 60, 72, 146,
152
Brend, 102, 103, 110, 113.
115, 116, 121, 148,
187
Brereton
Breton
Brett
Brewster
Briant
Bridge
Brightly
Brook
Brooke
Brooks
Bromey
Brothers
Broun
... 127
... 164
... 160
... 194
97. IS*
... 199
... 171
178, 208, 224
34, «74
162, 204
... 165
... 2IO
43. 74. l»7
Brown 162, 164, 170, 211
Broven
Bryant
Buchanan
Buckle ..
Budaeus . .
Bugg
Bull
Bulling ..
Bullisdon
Bumstead
Banyan ..
Burcb
Burford ..
Burgess ..
Burley de
Burney ..
Barrage ..
Burssor . .
Burton
Buiy
Butcher ..
Butts
Buxton ..
Byrde ..
164
189
'73
.» 257
... 84
... 160
... 199
... 164
... 34
... 236
... 121
... 244
II, 14
... 186
... 19
129, 130
... 242
... 2IO
-• 243
... 192
... 171
... I9S
... 101
... 72
Pagt
Cade ... ... 38
Calle ... ... 48
Calver ... ... 251
Calverley ... 19
Cambridge, Sir Ralph
of ... ... II
Camell ... ... 171
Camper ... ... 176
Candlar ... ... 215
Carnsewe ... 38
Caroline, Queen ... 257
Carr ... 154, 212, 221
Carss .. ... 173
Cartare ... ... 26
Carter ... 109, 190
Carthew ... 148, 175
Casburn ... ... 219
Cason ... ... 199
Caster, Van ... 76
Caton .. ... 205
Catchpole ... 209
Catlin ... 147, 182
Cawnteler ... 234
Cawston ... ... 220
Chainley, alias Kainse 105
Chamberleyn ... 218
Chamberlin 195, 196
Chandos, Duchess of
15°. 257
Channel! ... ... 41
Chapman 47, 150, 178
Charles I. ... 122
Charles II. 164, 2JI
Charles VI. of France
19, 20
Chaucer ... ... 44
Cheese ... 109, no
Cheniry ... ... 239
Chevez ... ... 206
Chilton ... ... 246
Chirche 69, 70, 71, 72, 73
Chittocke ... 244
Choke ... 48, 50, 52
Churton ... ... 2
Clarence ... 77, 236
Clark, 27, 163, 203, 209,
257, 258
Clarke, 104, 108, 109, 210,
221, 242
Clay .. ... 244
Clubb 183, 204, 246, 249
Coates ... ... 253
Cobbald ... ... 251
Cobbold ... ... 217
Cobytt ... ... 232
Cocksedge ... 184
Coe ... 217, 226
Cok • 8
Coke ... 22, 106
Colmar ... ... 82
Cook 185, 189, 236, 238
Pagt
Cooke ... 160, 201
Cooper 159, 217, 221, 239
Coote ... ... 86
Copinger .. ... 174
Coppinge ... 198
Corbet ... .. no
Corder ... ... 225
Cornell ... ... 194
Cornwaleys ... 91
Cornwallis 19, 105
Cottingham ... 195
Cotton ... ... 93
Cracknel! ... 252
Cragg ... ... 222
Crampin ... ... 230
Cranmer ... ... 91
Crevnr ... ... 163
Crick ... ... 244
Crickmore ... 130
Cromwell 40, 119, 252
Cross ... ... 196
Crowfoot ... ... 2ii
Crystall ... ... 240
Cubytt ... ... 232
Culham ... .. 218
Culpeck ... 142, 185
Culverden, 37, 38, 40, 79,
236
Cupper 257
Curteys ... ... 172
Cutting ... 196, 246
Dacon
Dade
Dale
Dallas
241
242
9°
314
Danby 48, 49. 51, 52
Danyell, 22, 23, 25, 27,
34,47
Darbie. 121, 122, 132, 134,
«36
Darbye ... ... I2O
Darcye of Cheche,
Lord ... 91
Dash wood ... 240
Davie ... 183, 236
Davy ... 101, 233
Dawe, 18, 19, 20, 2$, 37,
58,73
Dawes ... ... 127
Daws ... ... 253
Dawson ... 196, 229
Day and Son, 156, 164,
168, 169, 180, 185,
214, 230, 239, 241,
242
Daynes ... ... 161
Dearesle ... ... 221
Death ... ... 194
Debenham ... 177
262
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Page
Pagt
Page
Deedes, 132, 167, 184, 217,
F
Glemham... ... 171
258
Gloucester Sandre de 14
de Grey ... ... 182
Fairfax ... ... 119
Godard ... ... 238
de la Pole ... 44
Farrow ... ... 165
Goddard ... ... 253
Dennaunt ... 93
Fawkes ... ... 242
Godewyne ... 162
Denton ... ... 212
Felix S. ... ... 2
Godfrey ... ... 199
Derby ... 12, 14
Fellget ... ... 210
Godynge ... 7, 8, 257
Derlyngton ... 29
Felton ... ... 231
Golde ... ... 107
d'Ewes ... ... 127
Fenton ... ... 180
Golding ... 166, 234
Deye ... ... 98
Ferrand ... ... 246
Goldsmith 145, 146, 226
Dick ... ... 46
Festus ... ... 84
Goldyngham ... IOI
Dickins ... ... 180
ffeavyear ... 91, 227
Gooch ... ... 228
Dier 103, 104, 108, 177
ffoundor 16, 18, 19, 20
Gooche ... ... 218
Dobede ... ... 189
ffox ... ... 196
Goodhart ... 251
Dobson ... ... 154
Ffyncham ... 29
Goodinge ... 252
Doft ... ... 255
Fieldgate ... 203
Goodrich ... 209
Dou ... ... 201
Fisher ... ... 188
Goslin ... ... 150
Downs ... 176, 217, 247
Fiske ... I So, 249
Gowing ... ... 189
Dowsing ... ... i8l
Fitzlewes... 15, 214
Grant-Francis ... 38
Draper, 100, 101, 102, no,
Flack ... ... 238
Graye, 104, no, 113, 116,
in, 112, 113, 116
Flatt ... ... 246
118, 119, 120, 121,
Drake ... 182, 197, 226
Fiory ... ... 180
"S, 133. 134, 135,
Drew ... ... 176
Foder ... ... 255
140, 141, 142
Dring ... ... 180
Fogossa ... ... 52
Gregory ... ... 47
Driver ... 109, no
Foppe ... ... 71
Green 95, 166, 203, 246
Drummond ... 197
Ford ... ... 236
Greene ... ... 120
Dudley ... ... 105
Fox ... 120, 178
Grey ... ... 105
Dulley ... ... 176
Foxe ... ... 40
Greyse ... ... 166
Durrant ... 186, 192, 216
Framlingham 102, 158, 243
Grice ... ... 254
Dyer ... ... 120
Franclin ... ... 218
Griggs ... ... 174
Dysart, E. of, 150, 192,
Freeman, 135,228, 233.238
Grimsbye ... 164
200, 245
French ... ... 257
Grimwade 197, 251
Freston ... .. 218
Grim wood 227, 250
Frewer ... ... 163
Guddine ... ... 8
E
Frost .. ... 236
Gull 178
Froude ... ... 94
Gullifer ... ... 164
Bade ... 210, 230
Fryer ... ... 253
Gurdon ... ... 172
Eagle ... ... 244
Fuller ... 174, 212
Gurney ... 131, 132
Eiton ... ... 160
Fyson ... 189, 194
Gyrling ... ... 252
Eayre ... 152, 153, 199
Ebdon ... ... 199
Ecclestone 149, 178, 236
G
jj
Edbury ... 109, no
Eden ... ... in
Gage ... 172, 173
Edmund, King ... 62
Gardiner, 138, 140, 142,
Hale ... ... 127
Edmunds ... 152
143, 145, 184, 204,
Hall ... ... 239
Edward I. ... 7
233, 234, 246
Hamilton, Duke of 185
Edward III. 2, 126
Gardner ... ... 241
Hammond ... 255
Edward IV. ... 49
Garnham ... 209
Hamond ... ... 71
Edward VI., 30, 52, 84,
Garrard ... 171, 172
Hanbury ... ... 171
106
Garrett ... 153, 214
Hanmer ... ... 188
Edwarde ... ... 232
Gawdy ... 158, 182
Hanney ... ... 20
Edwards ... 233, 251
Gellius, Aulus ... 84
Hanse ... ... 180
Ellacombe ... 246
Elizabeth. Queen, 38, 80,
Genney 48, 49, 50, 52, 72
George II. ... 143
Harbert ... ... 257
Hardy ... ... 120
99, 235, 248
Gerbertus Scholasticus 5
Harington ... 101
Ellis 130, 215, 223, 249
Gerne ... in, 165
Harland ... ... 244
Elmy ... ... 228
Gibbs ... ... 238
Harleton ... 25, 26
Emerys ... ... 206
Gibson .. ... 257
Harris ... 172, 217, 223
Kvered . 220
E, *
Gillingwater, 184, 193, 205
Harvey ... 156, 172, 220
verett ... ... 202
Evesham, Walter of 3
Eyer ... ... 106
Gilpin ... ... 171
Girling .. 250, 258
Glasscock ... 70
Haryson ... ... 220
Hasted ... ... 204
Haweis ... 55, 76
INDEX NOMINUM.
263
• Page
Pate
Hawes, 169, 173 174, 182,
J
1 •»"' 97,98,99,100
'&9, 197, 23°. 232,
Lajeg ... ... 210
25S
Jacob ... ... 259
Larke ... ... 50
Hawke ... ... 68
Jacquemart ... 89
Last ... 230, 236
Hnwkes ... 109, 225
James 11. ... 134
Lalimer, Bishop ... 106
Hayes ... ... 29
... 193
Laud. Archbishop ... Ill
Hayle ... ... 259
Jannin ... ... 217
Lawrence 40, 41
Hayward 161, 196, 250
Jaxe .. ... 215
Lawson ... 155
}Iaywarde ... 178
Jealous ... ... 211
Leach ... 104
Headlcy ... ... 221
Jeflerys ... ... 195
Leake •... 197
Hebcrt ... ... 216
Jeffrey ... ... 242
Leman 148, 175, 183
Hele ... ... 156
Jefrey ... ... 163
Lemon ... 185
Henniker 150, 257
Jenings ... ... 211
le Kous ... 14
Henry I. ... ... 88
Jenkins ... ... 130
Lester 149, 150
Henry II. ... 3
Jennings ... 132, 212
Lester and Pack 27, 149
Henry III. ... 3
Jennison ... ... 176
L'Estrange, 8, 60, 63, 73,
Henry V. ... ao
jentylman ... 233
in, 113, 116, 134,
Henry VIII. ... 93
Jermyn ... 184, 188, 193
141, 154, 193, 205,
Herbert ... ... 101
Jernegan ... ... 91
239
Hettridges ... 255
Jessup 257
Lewis ... ... 3
Heyham ... ... 197
Jetur ... ... 2l6
Lifion ... ... 190
Heylin ... ... 36
Jewell ... ... in
Lines .. ... 218
Hieronymus Magius 84
Hill ... 107, 246
Jewers ... ... 226
Jewle ... ... 246
Liverpool, Bishop of 153
Lloyd ... ... 157
Hille ... 23, 24, 26, 47
John V. of Portugal 143
Lockes ... ... 100
Hills ... ... 205
ohn XXII , Pope 87
Loder ... ... 230
Hindes ... ... no
Johnson, 2, 77, 145, 196,
Longe ... 97, 178
Hobart ... ... 210
212
Lord ... ... 2^5
Hodson ... 121, 132, 133
Jones ... 224, 241
Lott ... ... 247
Hoggar ... ... 221
Jordan, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28,
Lynam ... ... 4
Holdlield .. 104
29. 30, 3', 32, 34. 37,
Lynde ... .. 163
Holies ... ... 236
Hollmgworth ... 238
47, 94
Joselyn ... ... 208
Lyttleton... 48, 50, 52
Hollon ... ... 235
Jowars ... ... 177
Hollwell ... ... 134
Julius II., Pope ... 40
M
Hopton ... ... 91
Hormesby ... 212
K
Mackay ... ... 46
Horner ... 152, 212
Mackenzie ... 212
Horth ... ... 179
Kebyll ... ... 36
Mackerell ... 60
Houghton ... 163
Kecble 238
Maddocke ... 93
Howard ... ... 212
Keen ... ... 251
Maggs ... ... 192
Howes ... ... 163
Kemball ... ... 203
Mainprice ... 192
Howlet ... ... 243
Kembell ... ... 210
Malel ... ... 41
Hudschyd ... 216
Kemp ... ... 255
Mallyng ... ... 225
Hudson ... ... 256
Kempe ... ... 255
Malster ... ... 220
Huggan .. ... 48
Kenyon ... ... 177
Manchester, Earl of 115
Hugh, S. ... 236
Kerington ... 156
Muniug ... ... 228
Humfrey ... ... 94
Kerredge, Kerridge,
Mann ... . . 171
Hunt 171,247,250,251
230, 231
Mannock ... ... 236
Hurnard ... ... 241
Kerry ... ... 159
Mannynge ... 229
Hurry 186
Kersey ... ... 183
Manthoipe ... 211
Hyhard ... ... 218
Kelt ... 105, 215, 222
Marck ... ... 89
Hyell 197
Killett ... ... 172
Margcrom ... 163
Hynes ... ... 194
King. 194, 203, 212, 223,
Marlborough, Duke
250
of ... 141, 209
Kingsbury ... 171
Martin ... 146, 228, 232
Knight ... 142, 147
Martyn ... ... 217
I
Knox ... ... 197
Mason ... ... 86
!
Mathew ... ... 224
Image ... ... 252
L
Matthew ... ... 198
Infield ... ... 220
Maude ... ... 221
Ingulph . . ... 22
Lacroix ... ... 89
Mayhew ... ... 196
Isaacke ... ... 97
Lanchester ... 250
Mayo ... ... 94
264
THE CHURCH BELLS OF SUFFOLK.
Page
P*p
Page
Meadowe . . . 200
0
Plume ... ... 184
Meadows 223, 255
Plowden ... ... 52
Mears ... 150, 151, 15^
Oakes ... 217, 222
Pond ... ... 201
Mears and Stainbank 15;
Odyngton, Walter of
Poole ... ... 220
Mecliel ... ... \bi
3, 4, 5. 6. '54
Pooley ... 159, 1 80
Meller ... ... 22c
Okes ... ... 222
Poope ... 195, 196
Methold ... ... 236
Oliver ... 151, 238
Pope ... ... 50
Mevtas ... ... 106
Orford ... ... 183
Porter ... ... 228
Michel ... ... 39
Orwell ... ... 225
Postle ... ... 234
Mirldleditch ... 217
Osborn ... ... 155 Po:er ... ... 179
Middleton ... 178
Osborne ... ... 250 Potter ... 41, 43
Midson ... ... 201
Osburnd ... ... 238 Pouiter ... ... 219
Mildmay ... ... go
Ostler ... ... 173
Powell ... ... 202
Millard ... ... 93
Ottewell ... ... 167
Power ... ... 7'
Mills ... ... 217
Owen, 104, 105, 106, 108,
Pratt ... ... 240
Milton ... 121, ij8
243
Preston ... ... 40
Mirrld (sic) ... 198
Owers ... ... 219
Prior ... ... 247
Moody ... ... 149
Oxnedes, John of ... 2
Pritty ... ... 163
Moore ... 71, 130, 18^
Prockter ... ... 165
Moore, Holmes and
Pycot ... ... 10
Mackenzie, 63, 154,
P
Pye 68
203, 233
Pyrson ... ... 225
More ... ... 254
Pack ... 149, 150
Moreto ... ... 209
Pack and Chapman 151
Morris ... 39, 75
Packard ... ... 169
Q
Moseley ... ... 223
Page ... 130, 172
Moss ... ... 158
Paley ... ... 157
Quivil, Bishop ... 10
Mothersole ... 215
Palmer ... ... 227
Moyle ... 48, 50, 52
Pannell ... ... 235
Mudd ... ... ibo
Pargeter ... ... 94
R
Mulliner ... ... 192
Paris ... ... 3
Mullinger ... 210
Parker, 3, 106, 163, 170,
Radcliffe... ... 84
Mumford 196, 212
184, 217, 222, 228
Rainbird ... ... 209
Munns ... ... 226
Parlet ... ... 212
Rainse ... ... 105
Murrell ... ... 220
Parr ... ... 105
Ramsden ... 196
Muskett ... ... 91
Parsley ... ... 212
Rand ... ... 197
Parson . ;.. 169
Randale ... ... 199
Parterick... ... 255
Ransomes and Sims 146
N
Partridge .. ... 202
Rant ... ... 218
Pascal ... 77, 174
Raven ... ... 214
Needen ... ... 229
Pascall ... ... 78
Rawlinson ... 6
Needham 48, 50, 52
Newcombe ... 152
Newman, 29, 135, 136,137,
Paston ... 44, 48
Patrick ... 153, 203
Peachey ... ... 219
Ray ... 176, 232
Rayment ... ... 173
Read ... ... 219
139, 141, 152
Peake ... ... 164
Reede ... ... 199
Newport ... ... 255
Pearson .. ... 252
Reeve, 193, 197, 20:, 2O2,
Newstead ... 177
Newton ... 147, 210
Nicholson ... 220
Peck ... ... 250
Peddar ... ... 251
Peek ... ... 241
204, 214, 215, 216
Reniger ... ... 52
Reve 72, 73, 69, 70, 72, 95,
Noone ... 93, 233
Peele ... 147, 210
>»3
Norden ... ... 226
Perfey .. ... 88
Revel ... IO, II
Norman ... 43, 194, 210
Perrers . . ... 12
Revell ... .. 192
North 37, 94, 108, 152
Northampton, M. of 105
Norwich, Sir John de 218
Nottingham, Brasiere
Perry ... ... 198
Pettit ... ... 199
1'eyton ... ... 67
Phelps 148
Revett ... 168, 169
Reynolds 171, 229
Rice ... ... 158
Richard II. 19, 20
w de 41
Phillips ... 160, 180
Riches ... ... 193
JMurm ... 201, 234.
Nuthall oo
Nuttall ... ... 2l6
Pigot 48, 49, 51, 52, 72
Pitcearn ... ... 172
Plampin ... ... 224
Richmond ... 207
Rickit ... ... 231
Rider ... ... 9
Nutting ... ... ,85
Plant ... ... 239
Riping ... ... 161
Pleasant ... 140, 141
Ripyng ... ... 60
Plot ... ... 20
Riston ... ... 8
INDIA \(. \IINM
Page Pagt P.,gr
Uivett
168 Slater ... ... 130
T
Ki.liers ...
192 Smith, 60, 130, 167. 169,
Roberts ...
- 195 171, iSi, 182, 205
Tallant . .. 249
Rodwell ...
170 Smyth. 68, 97, 99. 180,
Tamplin '95
Rofforde ...
14
181, 199
Tapscll ... I'M, 104
Roger
Sone ... ... 93
Taylor ... 153, 236
Rogers
'73
Southgate ... 162
Teverson ... . . 205
Roxewood
3, 88
Southwell ... 90
Theobald ... 160
Rolfe
176
Spalding ... I jo, 06
Thomas of Canterbury,
Romeneye
II
Spark ... ... 188
S 148
Rope
... 165
Sparke ... ... 178
Thompson 40, 156, 211
Roper
236, 244 Sparrow ... 176, 199, 211
Thorn ... ... 236
Rose
14, 162, 179 Spencer ... ... 152
Thomhill 224
Rous 14,
182,232,233 Spenser ... ... 40
Thornton 140, 142, 159
Rouse
251 Sperling, 161, 169, 189, Thruiton . . . ... 205
llouwenhale
20
202, 204, 224, 226, Thurkill ... 70
Rowley
. . 236
244, 250, 259 Thurston 91, 227
Royce
Rufford . . .
247
14, «5
Spicer ... I So, 255
Spilling ... ... 130
Tippell ... 239
Toller ... ... 165
Russe
... 14
Spinke ... ... 192
Tollemache 192, 200, 245
Russell . .
88, 223
Spinluf ... ... 160
Tomsun .. .. 195
Rust
185, 189, 205
Spinny ... ... 232
Tonne, 41, 78, 79, 80, 94,
Rye
19
Sporll ... .. 188
95. 97. 98. '00, 102,
Ryle
'53
Stahlschmidt, 8, 10, n, 12, 109,258
Kyon
... 40
14, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, Tony ... ... 79
26, 37, 61, 62, 108,
Tooke ... 132, 2*3
109, 133, 147, 152
Tool ... ... 166
S
Stainbank ... 151
Topsel . . 103, 104. 181
Stanard ... ... 205 i Torry ... ... 131
S., 11. ...
67, 68, 69
Sianby ... ... 195 Tottington, Samp-
Sachevercll
148, 175
Stanesby... .. 29 son, de 3, '7*
Sacker
... 239
Stanley .. .. 151 Trimnell, Bishop 175
Sallows . .
... 197
Staples ... ... 194 Tripp ... ... 259
Salmon .
... 211
Starlinge... ... 120
Trusse ... ... 19*
Samson . .
6O, 2O2
Stebbing ... ... 168
Truston ... ... 218
Sampson ...
... 210
Stedman ... 127, 128, 130
Turage .. ... 252
Sancroft ...
... 193
Steggall ... ... 228
Turke ... ... 29
Sandiver ...
... 221
Stephens... ... 139 Turner ... 212,222
Santy
... 243
Sterne ... ' ... -97
Tweed ... ... 174
Sawer
... 252
Stevenson ... 46
Tweedy ... .. 209
Sayer
Schofield . . .
169, 184, 248
... 168
Stollery ... ... 162
Strickland, Bishop 9
Tylls ... ... 233
Tymms ... ... 85
Schot
... 209
Strong ... ... 216
Tynny ... 4«. 79
Scolding ...
Scott
163
n.97. 148
Strutt ... 166, 225 Tyrrell ... ... 194
Strype ... ... 91 Tyssen, 34, 37. 49. 62, 77-
Sekole ...
... 122 Stuart ... ... 133 79,98,109
Seme
... 158 Stubbin ... ... 202
Sewell ...
... 189
Sturdy ... 24, 26 ij
Shakespeare
38, 89, 105
Sturt ... ... 172
Sharman
... 181
Stuteville. Stutfilde 182
Udall ... ... 127
Sheffield, Lord .. 105
Stuttesbury ... 94
Ufford, de 9. '4
Sheldrake
... 130
Suckling ... 179. 227
Underbill ... 15
Shelford ...
228
Suflblck. W. de. 9, 14
Underwood ... 179
Shepherd
.. 189
Suffolk, A. de ... 9
Sheppard
... 171
Sudbru ... ... 196
Sheriffs ..
... 246
Sudbury ... ... 81
V
Sheringe ...
... IOI
Suidas ... ••• 84
Sherwood
. 214
Sutherland ... 233
Vacher ... 201
Shrive
1 66
Sutton .. 4'. 248
Venice, Van ... 75
Simpson .
Singleton
Skimming
Skytte
... 246
... 173
' !SS
... 206
Sydnor ... ... 193
Syer ... .. 209
Sylverne ... .. *I7
Sylvester 11., Pope 5
Vergil, Polydore ...
Victoria, Queen ... 155
ViolletleDuc ... 4
Votier 172
266
IN'DKX NOMINUM.
J
I'ate
Pap
Page
W
Wentwurth, L
urd ... 91
Woolner ...
2*3
West
72
Woolnough
214
Wade ... 92, 177,
236
Weston, P. dt
IO, II
Wray
... 120
Waghevens, 75, 76. 77,
Wakeham 151,
170
207
Westley ...
Westrop ...
... 226
... 192
Wright 36, 173,
Wulfred ...
210, 233
2
VValdegrave
91
Whaites ...
243
Wymbis . . .
I67
Walgrave
20
White ...
91, 176, 198
Wymbish
10
Walker ...
206
Whitmore
225, 252
Wydmrpole
31
Wallace ...
217
Whittington
.. 126
Wynter ...
93
Walsingham, A. de
8
Wigson . . .
. . . 204
Wynkfield
Ward
199
Wigston . . .
... 229
Wardley ...
252
Wilkinson
223, 241
Warne
1 86
Willett ...
... 169
Y
Warner ... 162,
206
Williams, 170, 216, 217,
Warren ... 191,
217
236
Yale
... 238
Washington
94
Wilshere ...
... 199
Yare
109
Waters ...
94
Wilson ...
'94, 237
Yaxle. Yaxley
258
Watson ...
218
Wimbis ...
IO
York
162
Watts ... 152,
153
Winchelsey,
Arch-
Yorke ...
196
Waylet
179
bishop
Si, 84
Young
... 167
Waylett ... 141,
142
Wingfield, 90,
94,2(4,242
Youngman
... 219
Waynflete, Bishop
18
Wolferston
... 93
Wedge
'94
Wood ...
... 171
Weekes ...
160
Woodard...
... 167
Z
Wehincopp
231
Woods ...
198, 250
.
Wellum
Woolley . . .
... 164
Zincke
... 252
Welton ...
198
CC Raven, John Jemes
212 The church bells of
S7R3 Suffolk
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