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SCRIVELSBY, 
THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 


SCR. 


H 


The  Home  of  the  Champions. 


WITH    SOME    ACCOUXT    OF    THE 


MARMION  AND  DYMOKE   FAMILIES. 


ILLUSTRATED. 


By    the    rev.    SAMUEL    LODGE.    M.A. 

Canon  of  Lincoln,  and  Rector  of  Scrivelshy. 


"  Let  me  review  the  scene, 
And  summon  from  the  shadowy  past 
The  forms  that  once  hav'C  been." 

Longfellow. 


HORNCASTLE  : 

W.   K.   Morton,   High   Street. 

LONDON : 

Elliot   Stock,    62.,  Paternoster   Row. 

1893. 


^>?(oL^ 


To  Wife  and  Children,  and  all  who  love  a 

Happy  Home. 


INTRODUCTION. 


HE  Dvmokes  have  dwelt  at  Scrivelsbv  for  more 
than  five  centuries,  and  the  Championship,  the 
peculiar  badge  of  their  house,  is  strictly  attached 
to   the   feudal   ownership   of    the    Manor.       This 

alone  gives  the  little  village  an  importance  to  which,  other- 
wise, it  could  lay  no  claim.  But  it  has  become  an  article  of 
general  agreement,  that  while  no  place,  however  small,  is  beneath 
the  notice  of  the  historical  enquirer,  it  is  the  duty  of  all 
persons  who  have  the  leisure  and  inclination  for  such  studies,  to 
make  the  most  of  their  opportunities,  and  to  rescue  from 
oblivion  the  records  of  the  town  or  village,  in  which  thev 
may  chance  to  dwell. 

Scrivelsby,  as  is  well-known,  is  unusuallv  rich  in  historical 
associations,  as  well  as  in  subjects  of  interest  to  the  genealogist 
and  antiquarian.  But,  owing  to  recent  changes  in  the  family 
succession  and  other  causes,  there  is  an  absolute  dearth 
of  the  ordinarv  sources  of  information,  which  are  s^enerallv 
to  be  found  stored  up  amongst  the  archives  of  our  country 
houses,    and,    without    which,    it    would   be  useless    to    attempt 


77??.  INTRODUCTION. 

anything  in  the  shape  of  an  exhaustive  history  of  the  families 
that,  from  time  to  time,  have  inhabited  them. 

It  is  not,  however,  the  object  of  this  vrork  to  dwell 
upon  the  history  of  the  Marmions  and  Dvmokes,  apart  from 
their  connection  with  Scrivelsby  and  the  Championship ;  much 
less  does  it  propose  to  search  out  and  follow  up  the  offshoots 
and  collateral  branches  of  the  two  families,  in  their  various 
settlements,  in  England  or  abroad.  But,  even  in  this  restricted 
area,  it  ought  to  be  possible  to  excite  the  interest,  not 
only  of  the  residents  in  the  neighbourhood,  but  of  that  select 
circle,  also,  amongst  the  general  public,  to  whom  the  bye- 
paths  of  history,  and  antiquarian  research  are  always  attractive. 

It  is  true  that  the  local  reader  will  expect  and  appreciate 
local  details,  which  will  be  "caviare  to  the  general"  :  but  it 
is  not  too  much  to  hope  that  the  general  reader  will  find 
some  compensation  in  being  introduced,  it  may  be  for  the 
first  time,  to  an  ancient  Institution,  which  was  once  closelv 
connected  with  the  history  of  the  country,  but  is  now  in 
danger  of  perishing  from  memorv,  and  of  leaving  "  not  a  rack 
behind."  The  Championship,  however,  with  its  quaint 
ceremonies  and  time-honoured  associations,  must  not  be 
allowed  to  fall  into  abeyance,  without  at  least  an  acknowledg- 
ment of  its  past  history,  and  an  attempt  to  portrav  its  origin, 
growth,  and  present   position. 

The  striking  and  almost  romantic  transference  of  the 
Scrivelsbv  Manor  from  one  branch  of  the  Dvmoke  familv  to 
the    representative    of    another    and    an    older    branch,    a    few 


INTRODUCTION.  tX. 

years  ago,  excited  some  notice  at  the  time,  and  revived  the 
somewhat  waning  interest  in  the  fortunes  of  a  familv  which  for 
so  many  generations  had  been  established  at  Scrivelsbv.  It 
can  hardly  occasion  surprise  that  this  revival  of  interest  has 
brought  to  the  surface  manv  important  questions  respecting 
the  Dymokes,  and  the  unique  distinction  of  that  which  is 
generally  but  incorrectlv  termed  the  hereditary  Championship. 
No  fault,  indeed,  need  be  found  with  this  description,  as  long 
as  it  is  clearly  understood  that  the  office  is  only  hereditarv 
as  being  attached  to  the  estate,  which,  in  the  natural  course 
of  things,  mav  be  expected  to  descend  from  father  to  son, 
in  hereditary  succession.  Were  it  otherwise,  the  Championship 
would  have  been  the  perquisite  of  the  Tetford  branch  of  the 
Dymoke  family  from  1760  to  1875,  while  the  estate  was, 
during  that  time,  vested  in  what  is  known  as  the  Scrivelsbv 
branch  of  the  same  family.  But  the  ownership  of  the  Manor 
and  the  distinctive  title  are  inseparably  united.  It  will  be 
seen  in  the  following  pages  that  the  Championship  is  so  closelv 
connected  with  the  possession  of  the  land,  that,  apart  from 
Scrivelsby,  no  one  is  entitled  to  be  called  Champion  to  the 
reigning  sovereign. 

Again,  it  is  often,  but  erroneouslv,  supposed  that  the 
Manor  of  Scrivelsby  is  held  on  a  different  tenure  from  that 
under  which  other  estates  are  inherited.  Because  it  was, 
undoubtedlv,  a  striking  instance,  in  olden  times,  of  feudal 
occupation,  it  has  been  thought  that,  in  some  inscrutable 
fashion,     the     owner     of     the     Scrivelsbv     Manor     is     still     a 


X.  INTRODUCTION. 

feudatorv  liegeman  of  the  sovereign,  and  that  he  is  tied 
and  bound  bv  the  peculiarities  of  his  position.  It  is  a  pity 
to  dispel  these  pleasing  hallucinations,  but  it  is  an  historical 
fact,  that  all  feudal  obligations  have  long  ceased  to  be 
operative,  and  that  the  last  remnants  of  the  feudal  svstem 
came  to  an  end  at  the  time  of  the  Restoration  in  1660,  when 
the  Crown  and  Church  lands,  together  with  numerous  Royalist 
estates,  which  had  been  confiscated  during  the  Commonwealth, 
reverted  to  the  rightful  owners.  There  is  not  a  shadow  of 
doubt  that,  at  the  present  day,  the  owner  of  Scrivelsby  holds 
his  estates  exactly  as  other  estates  are  held  by  the  Nobility 
and  Countrv  Gentlemen  of  England. 

Under  these  circumstances,  then,  it  is  that  the  present 
attempt  is  made,  to  meet  an  acknowledged  want,  by  gathering 
together,  in  convenient  shape,  such  information  respecting  the 
Championship,  as  is  to  be  found  scattered  about  in  various 
Manuscripts  and  publications,  which  are  well-nigh  inaccessible 
to  the  general  reader. 

In  the  historical  part  of  a  work  of  this  kind,  originality 
is  neither  to  be  expected  nor  desired  :  but  attention  will 
alwavs  be  drawn  to  the  source  from  which  the  information 
is  derived,  with  due  attention  to  the  verification  of  quotations, 
in  accordance  with  the  advice  of  the  late  Venerable  President 
of  Magdalene.  And,  although  no  pretension  to  infallibility  is 
put  forward,  great  pains  have  been  taken  to  ensure  accuracy, 
without  which  a  book  that  treats  of  ancient  customs  and 
family  histories  would  be  justly  liable  to  severe   criticism. 


INTRODl'CTION.  XI. 

The  Family  of  Mannyiiii,  by  T.  C.  Banks,  has  been 
largely  consulted,  and  free  use  has  been  made  of  an 
unpublished  MS.  by  the  Rev.  Mark  Noble,  although  much 
labour  has  been  caused  bv  the  obvious  necessity  of  testins: 
the  statements  of  both  these  writers  bv  other  authorities. 

The  Rt.  Hon.  E.  Stanhope,  M.P.,  of  Revesby  Abbev, 
has  kindly  placed  at  the  author's  disposal  some  valuable 
papers,  which  were  found  amongst  the  manuscripts  left  bv  the 
late  Sir  Joseph  Banks,  P.R.S.,  who  was,  as  might  have  been 
expected,  much  interested  in  everything  connected  with  the 
Championship.  These  papers,  unfortunately,  were  received  too 
late  to  be  much  used  in  the  body  of  the  work  :  but  one  of 
them  will  be  found  in  the  Appendix  (No.  17),  and  is  likely 
to  attract  attention,  as  it  embodies,  in  homelv  ballad  language, 
a  serious  theory,  which  mav,  possiblv,  have  commended  itself 
to  the  judgment  of  Sir  Joseph  Banks,  although  it  runs  counter 
to  the  generally  received  opinion  on  the  subject  of  which  it 
treats. 

INIuch  useful  information,  too,  has  been  contributed  bv 
Lady  Hartwell,  on  subjects  connected  with  the  familv  historv 
of  her  ancestors  :  and  it  is  to  her  thoughtful  consideration 
that  the  readers  of  Scrivelsbv  will  have  the  opportunity  of 
seeing  the  interesting  extract  from  the  diarv  of  the  Champion 
who  officiated  at  the  coronation  of  George  III. 

Thanks  also  are  due,  and  are  herebv  cordiallv  rendered 
to    the    Rev.    W.    R.     Bell,     for     manv     valuable     hints     and 


xii.  INTRODUCTION. 

suggestions  ;  and  to  Professor  Church,  for  his  kind  assistance 
during  the  progress  of  the  work  through  the    Press. 

Reference  has  been  made,  with  the  permission  of 
the  author,  to  Pahiier's  Baronial  Family  of  Marmion,  and 
to  the  interesting  little  book  on  Parish  Registers,  by  Mr. 
Chester  Walters,  while  the  advice  and  assistance  of  Mr.  H. 
Carlton,  in  the  selection  and  production  of  suitable  subjects 
for  the  Illustrations,  have  been  highly  appreciated. 

Although  it  is  probable  that  many  readers  will 
unblushingly  skip  the  last  Chapter,  which  treats  of  the  old 
Parish  Registers,  it  will,  possibly,  be  found  sufficiently 
interesting  to  a  select  few,  to  justify  its  inclusion  in  a  work 
which  treats  of  Scrivelsby  itself,  as  well  as  of  the  families 
that  have  made  it  historical. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


PAGE 

The    Village.       Description.      Negative    Advantages.      Patriarchal    Government. 

Horncastle  Soke.       Special  Charms.       Life  in  the  Countrv.  .  .         i 

CHAPTER  II. 

Lincolnshire.  False  Impressions.  Healthiness  of  the  County.  Fen  and  Marsh. 
Hills.  Anecdote  of  lost  leaves.  Foliage  in  Autumn.  Sunsets. 
Somersby.         .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .12 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  Coronation  Ceremony.  Court  of  Claims.  Service  in  Westminster  Abbey. 
The  Coronation  Banquet.  Coronation  of  Charles  II.  Reasons 
suggested  for  absence  of  Champion  from  Early  Coronations.  Perquisites 
and  Claims  for  Service  at  a  Coronation.  .  .  .  .  .20 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Marmions.  Origin  and  Settlement.  The  Championship.  Feudal  System. 
Grand  and  Petty  Serjeanty.  Saxon  and  Xorman.  Robert  Dispensator. 
The  Knave.     The  Old  Judge.     Sir  Philip.     .  .  .  .  .29 

CHAPTER   V. 

The  Earlv  Dymokes.  Derivation  of  Xame.  Totemism.  Rebus  on  Lion  Gate. 
Canting  Mottoes.  Sir  Baldwin  Freville.  An  Imperious  Dame.  The 
Sockburn  Dragon.         .  .  .  .  .  .  .  -43 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Wars  of  the  Roses.  Execution  of  Sir  Thomas  Dvmoke.  Battle  of  Lose-coat 
Field.  Brass  in  Horncastle  Church.  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke.  Table 
Monument         .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .       ^2 


XIV.  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Lincolnshire  Insurrection  and  Pilgrimage  of  Grace.  Rising  of  the 
Peasants.  Perplexity  of  the  Gentry.  Bad  Faith  of  the  King.  Family  of 
Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (i).  .  .  .  .  .  .  .62 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Martyr  Champion.      The  Reformation.       Edward  VI.     Marv  and  Elizabeth. 

Appointment    of    Bishops.      Dr.    Cooper    of  Lincoln.       The    Duke    of 

Norfolk.     Episcopal  Visitation  at   Scrivelsby.  Imprisonment  and  Death 
of  the  Champion.     Reflections.           .             .  .  .  .  -72 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Stuart  D3-mokes.  The  Plague.  Mutilated  Ceremonial  at  the  Coronation 
of  James  I.  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (2).  Quarrel  for  Precedence.  Civil  War. 
Disastrous  Effects  on  the  Fortunes  of  the  Dymoke  Famil3^  The  Tottering 
Champion.    Cock  and  Bull  Story.     Break  in  the  Direct  Succession.  .       80 

CHAPTER  X. 

Latter  day  Champions.  Lewis  Dymoke  (i)  and  his  successors.  The  Tetford 
Branch  and  the  Scrivelsby  Branch.  First  Clerical  Champion.  Sir 
Henry  Dymoke.     Death  of   Henry  Lionel.      End  of  Scrivelsby  Branch.       93 

CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Missing  Link.  The  Tetford  Branch  Restored.  Vicissitudes  of  Fortune. 
Tradition.  A  "  Maze  "  of  Genealogy.  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (3)  ancestor 
of  both  branches.  The  Old  Champion.  Selection  of  the  Descendant 
of  Youngest  Son.  Restoration  to  descendant  of  Second  Son.  Henry 
Lionel's  Will.     The  Marmion  Barony.  .  .  .  .  -99 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Reflections.  Coincidences.  Mock  Heroic  Verses.  Redgauntlet.  The  Gold  Cups. 
Decay  of  Sentiment.  "  The  Champion's  Farewell/'  bv  Tom  Hood. 
Coronation  of  William  IV.     Courtesy  title  of  Champion.      .  .  .     107 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Scrivelsby    Court.       The    Park.       Lion    Gate.      Leaden    Cow.      Moat.      Arched 

Gateway.     Armour  and  Armoury.    Familv  Portraits.    General  appearance.     118 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Scrivelsby  Church.  St.  Benedict's.  Approach  from  Reclorv.  The  Church 
Plantation.  Architectural  features.  Monuments.  The  Xew  Style. 
Churchyard  Cross.        .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .123 


CONTENTS. 


XV. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Description  of  the  Old  Parish  Registers  from  1565  to  1812. 

APPENDIX. 


9 

10 
II 
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 

17 
18 

19 
20 


The  Champions  of  England  ..... 

Descent  from  Sir  Philip  Marmion  .... 

Mural  Tablet  to  Lionel   Dymoke  in   Horncastle  Church 

Table  Monument  to  Sir  Robert  Dymoke  in    Scriveisby  Church 

Autograph  Letter  from   Henry  VIII.  to  Sir  Robert  Dymoke 

Autograph  Letter  from  Queen  'SV.xry  to  Sir  Edward  Dymoke 

Orders  bv  Mrs.  Jane  Dvmoke      .... 

Ouartcrings  of  the  Dymoke  Coat  of  Arms 

Dymoke  Entries  extracted  from  Old  Register   . 

List  of  Champions  who  have  Acted 

List  of  Chainpions  who  have  not  Officiated 

"The  Champion's  Farewell,"  by  Tom   Hood 

An  Elegy  on  the  death  of  Sir  H.  Dymoke,  Bart.,  by  Henry  Winn,  of  Fulletby 

Letter  of  Henry  VL  to  Robert  Boulton,  Keeper  of  the  Wardrobe 

Genealogical  Tables  ...... 

Competition  between  Freville  and  Dymoke  for  the  Championship 

Established  Anecdotes  and  L'nestablished  Opinions 

The  Immediate  Successor  of  liobert  Dispensator. 

Rectors  of  Scriveisby  from   1246  .... 

An  Account  of  the  Procedure  at  the  Court  of  Claims,  &c.,  previous  to  and 
at  the  Coronation  of  George  III. 


131 


147 

149 
150 

152 

155 
156 
158 
161 
162 
165 
166 
167 
168 
170 
172 

174 

176 
182 

184 
188 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


1.  ESCUTCHEOX   OF    THE    DyMOKE    CoAT   OF    ArMS 

2.  Gardener's  Cottage.     .... 

3.  The  Stocks   ...... 

4.  CORO.VATIOX     BaXQUET.  .... 

5.  Gold  Cup  axd  Cover  .... 

6.  Effigies  of  Sir  Philip  Marmiox  and  Dame 

7.  The  Lion  Gate  ..... 

8.  Brass  to  Lionel  Dymoke  in  Horncastle  Church 

9.  The  Old  House  Before  the  Fire  in  1761 

10.  Armed  Figures 

11.  Sir  Henry  Dymoke,  Bart. 

12.  Francis  Scaman  Dymoke 

13.  The  Gold  Cups 

14.  ScRivELSBY  Court 

15.  St.  Benedict's,  Scrivelsby 

16.  Churchyard  Cross  to  Henry  Lionel  Dymoke 

17.  The  Present  Rector  of  Scrivelsby 


Frontispiece 
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104 

113 
121 
124 
129 

144 


^ 


CHAPTER    I. 

The  Village — Description — Negative  Advantages — Patriarchal  Government 
— Horncastle  Soke — Special  Charms — Life  in  the  Country. 

How  gay  the  habitations  that  bedeck 

This  fertile  valley  !     Xot  a  house  but  seems 

To  give  assurance  of  content  within, 

Embosom'd  happiness  and  placid  love  ; 

As  if  the  sunshine  of  the  dav  were  met 

With  answering  brightness  in  the  hearts  of  all 

Who  walk  this  favoured  ground. 

W^ORDSWORTH. 


)CRIVELSBY,  deriving  its  name  in  all  probability 
from  some  old  Danish  chieftain  with  the  usual 
appendage  "  by  "  denoting  his  township  or 
home,  is  prettily  situated  on  gently  rising 
ground  about  two  and  a  half  miles  south  of  Horncastle.  The 
population  is  small,  and  the  houses  few  and  far  between.  But 
although  the  village  is  one  of  the  smallest  in  the  county,  it  is 
far  from  being  dull  or  unattractive.  If  "all  the  world's  a 
stage,"  it  need  excite  no  surprise  that  the  natives  of  Scrivelsbv 
can  exhibit  on  their  humble  boards  an  epitome  of  what  is 
going  on  in  the  great  world  around  them.  Thev  have  their 
episodes    of    romance — admixtures  of   pathos    and    burlesque — 


2  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

veritable  Enoch  Ardens  are  not  unknown  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood ;  and  while  the  fickle  goddess  still  finds  work 
to  do,  shaping  her  ends  and  moulding  the  fortunes  of  mankind 

"  Now  in  cruel  sport,  and  now  with  eye  benign," 
the    novelist    will    find,     amidst     "  the     simple    annals    of    the 
poor"    sufficient   material    to    satisfy   the    most    exacting    of   his 
readers. 

Scrivelsby  is  still,  as  it  has  always  been,  the  theatre  of 
romance  and  unexpected  incident ;  and  yet  some  people  might 
think  that  life  in  so  small  a  place,  must  needs  be  dull.  But 
they  would  make  a  great  mistake.  It  is  true  that  some 
people  will  be  dull  anywhere,  and  to  them  even  the  charms 
of  nature  will  seem  flat  and  unprofitable.  If  balls  and  routs 
are  desired,  if  concerts  and  music  halls,  or  even  political 
meetings  and  that  latest  development  of  rural  happiness,  the 
Parish  Council,  be  deemed  indispensable  to  the  thorough 
enjoyment  of  life,  it  may  be  freely  allowed  that  no  such 
attractions  will  be  found  here.  But  happily  there  are  no  idle 
hands  at  Scrivelsby,  and  consequently  there  is  no  sense  of 
weariness,  except  that  which  comes  from  honest  toil.  People 
who  have  or  can  find  plenty  to  do  are  never  dull,  nor  do  they 
feel  that  craving  for  excitement,  from  which  others,  less 
favourably  circumstanced,  occasionally  suff'er. 

A  peremptory  demand  for  the  disclosure  of  the  particular 
attractions  that  Scrivelsby  has  to  offer  would  probably  be  met 
in  the  first  instance  bv  the  enumeration  of  its  negative 
advantages.       In   the    first    place    there    are    no    "  unemployed," 


THE     VILLAGE. 


3 


and  consequently  no  really  poor;  there  is  no  one  in  receipt 
of  parochial  relief ;  sickness  is  almost  unknown,  and  some 
little  time  back,  a  period  of  seven  years  passed  bv  without 
the  death  of  a  single  adult  belonging  to  the  parish.  To  go 
on  with  these  negative  advantages,  there  are  no  shops  and  no 
public  houses ;  and  though  more  open  to  question,  no  Schools, 
and  no  Dissenting  Chapels.  The  absence  of  a  School,  indeed, 
is  a  very  serious  drawback,  but  when  the  configuration  of  the 
village  is  considered,  it  will  be  seen  at  once  that  the  few 
children  of  school  age  are  on  the  whole  better  provided 
for  at  Schools  more  convenientlv  situated  in  the  surrounding: 
villages.  A  casual  traveller  passing  through  on  the  high  road 
would  easilv  understand  this.  Such  a  one,  it  is  true,  might 
ask  "but  where  is  Scrivelsby?"  He  is  told  that  he  is  passing 
through  the  village,  and  he  sees  here  and  there  a  house  or 
two,  but  invariably  a  long  way  apart  ;  he  sees  a  prettv  little 
church  in  a  large  churchyard,  and  he  sees  no  more.  "Where 
then  is  Scrivelsbv  "  and  instead  of  waitins^  for  echo  to  answer 
the  question,  the  following  description  must  suffice. 

The  village  consists  of  a  few  houses  placed  apparentlv  of 
set  purpose  as  far  as  possible  from  each  other — a  standing 
proof  of  self-sufficiencv — with  perhaps  a  reminiscence  of  the  old 
time  of  our  Saxon  and  Danish  fore-fathers,  when  each  family 
settled  in  a  separate  homestead,  distinctly  protected  by  its 
special  enclosure,  and  alwavs  solitary  and  apart.  Be  this  as  it 
mav,  all  that  the  passing  traveller  can  see  now  will  be  five  or 
six   houses,  and   these    at    long   intervals   from    each    other.      A 


4  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  first  cottage,  known  as  the  Image 
House,  from  a  quantity  of  figures  with  waving  arms  which 
used  to  shew  the  direction  of  the  wind,  is  one  of  the  most 
noteworthy  features  of  the  village — the  Gardener's  Cottage — 
immediately  fronting  a  lovely  little  piece  of  landscape — a 
winding  avenue  on  rising  ground,  flanked  on  either  side  with 
old  elm  trees,  the  intermingling  top-branches  of  which  form  an 
arch  of  nature's  workmanship. 

The  next  striking  object  is  the  Lion  Gate  leading  to  the 
Court,  to  be  hereafter  described,  with  its  quaint  double-roofed 
lodo-e  ■  and  a  mile  further  on  is  a  farm  house  at  the  cross-road 
leadincr  to  Moorbv  and  Wood  Enderby.  No  wonder  that  the 
question  "Where  is  Scrivelsby?"  is  often  asked,  even  by  those 
who  are  travelling  straight  through  it.  But  if  the  enterprising 
traveller  will  take  the  trouble  to  pursue  his  quest,  he  will  find 
snuglv  hidden  away  behind  the  Court,  and  on  the  north  side 
of  the  park,  a  little  cluster  of  houses,  constituting  the  real 
village  or  "town"  as  it  is  called  of  Scri'elsby,  far  away  from 
the  road  and  a  good  mile  from  the  Church.  Here  there  are 
no  less  than  three  farm  houses  and  four  labourer's  cottages  ! 
Retracing  his  steps  and  coming  back  to  the  Lion  Gate,  and 
going  southwards  he  will  come  to  an  old-fashioned  farm  house, 
prettily  situated ;  and  half  a  mile  further  on,  the  Rectory,  with 
two  cottages  hard  by  on  the  site  of  the  old  house  which  was 
burnt  down  in  1804.  And  this  is  Scrivelsby,  which  in  spite  of 
the  Uymokes,  would  probably  have  been  little  heard  of  outside 
the  countv,  had  it   not  been  one  of  the  places  enumerated  by 


GARDENERS    COTTAGE. 
From  a  Photograph  by  Messrs.  Poultoti  &•  Sons,  London. 


THE    VILLAGE.  5 

Sir  Walter  Scott  as  forming  part  of  the  appanage  of  the  hero 
of   his  immortal  poem. 

However  scanty  may  be  the  knowledge  of  the  source 
from  which  the  championship  springs,  everyone  has  read  or 
heard  of  the  "  Lord  of  Scrivelbaye,"  and  the  majority  of 
readers  will  insist  still  on  believing  that  the  Marmion  of  Sir 
Walter  Scott's  poem  was  one  of  the  Scrivelsby  Champions ; 
and  it  has  even  been  gravely  argued  on  no  better  foundation 
than  that  which  the  poem  affords,  that  the  Marmions  remained 
at  Scrivelsby  much  longer  than  is  generally  supposed.  So  hard 
is  it  for  sober  fact  to  hold  its  own  against  poetical  fiction. 
But  poets  and  the  writers  of  historical  romances  claim  for 
themselves  a  free  hand,  and  introduce  historical  names,  and 
travesty  historical  facts,  at  their  own  will  and  pleasure.  And 
as  the  readers  of  poems  and  romances  are  a  much  more 
numerous  body  than  the  prosaic  student  of  real  historv,  it  is 
little  to  be  wondered  at,  that  the  fictitious  representations  of 
the  poet  and  novelist  sink  deeper  and  make  a  more  lasting 
impression,  than  the  bare  facts  of  history  which  have  nothing 
but  their  reality  to  recommend  them.  Would  that  our  writers 
of  fiction  more  frequently  remembered  that 

"  It  is  excellent 
To  have  a  Giant's  strength  ;    but  it  is  tyrannous 
To  use  it  like  a  Giant." 

It  is  perhaps  in  the  matter  of  dates,  that  the  majoritv  of 
readers  are  imperceptibly  misled  bv  the  careless  introduction  of 
historical   characters  into  works  of   fiction,  nor  can  Sir  Walter 


6  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF   THE    CHAMPIONS. 

Scott  be  altogether  acquitted  on  a  charge  of  carelessness  in 
this  respect.  It  is  true  that  in  one  of  his  notes  to  "  Marmion  " 
he  tells  his  readers  that  the  last  champion  of  that  name  was 
Sir  Philip,  who  flourished  in  the  time  of  Henry  III.,  yet  it 
may  be  fearlessly  asserted  that  for  the  few  hundreds  who  read 
the  notes  of  such  a  work  with  any  degree  of  attention,  there 
are  thousands  or  hundreds  of  thousands  who  skim  hastily  over 
the  text,  and  carry  away  nothing  but  a  vivid  sense  of  pleasure 
at  the  swing  and  rhythm  of  the  poem,  together  with  a  very 
hazy  recollection  of  the  historical  allusions  with  which  it 
abounds. 

It  may  be  as  well  to  say  once  for  all  that  Scott's 
"Marmion"  is  a  creation  of  the  brain,  and  that  the  poem  itself 
is  based  on  incidents  connected  with  the  Battle  of  Flodden 
in  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.,  whereas  the  last  champion 
Marmion  died  at  Scrivelsby  in  the  twentieth  year  of  Edward  I., 
and  it  is  tolerablv  certain  that  in  his  time,  Scrivelsbv  consisted 
exclusivelv  of  the  baronial  hall  and  the  houses  of  the  artizans 
and  retainers  depending  upon  it. 

The  Government  of  the  Marmions  was  patriarchal.  The 
lord's  authority  was  supreme.  The  right  of  "gallows"  was 
claimed  as  a  special  prerogative  of  the  house,  and  so  sweet 
and  reasonable  a  claim  was  granted  as  a  matter  of  course. 
Even  within  living  memory,  some  faint  trace  of  this  patriarchal 
government  might  have  been  seen  here.  Not  indeed  that  the 
gallows  was  set  up  and  misdemeanants  executed  without  the 
intervention  of  Judge  and  Jury ;    but  the  old-fashioned  stocks, 


THE    VILLAGE.  7 

which  are  still  to  be  seen  in  the  little  copse  opposite  the  Lion 
Gate,  were  occasionally  used  for  other  purposes  than  those  of 
ornament.  The  Champion  of  the  day — and  that  day  for  weal 
or  woe  is  for  ever  gone — would  have  had  no  scruple  in  order- 
ing his  farm-bailiff  to  seize  any  naughtv  bovs,  found  playing  at 
pitch  and  toss  on  a  Sundav,  and  to  lock  them  up  in  the  stocks 
for  a  couple  of  hours  as  a  public  example  and  warning.  In 
these  davs  of  more  advanced  civilization,  the  same  offence 
would  have  necessitated  the  intervention  of  a  policeman,  the 
issue  of  a  summons,  the  calling  of  witnesses,  the  formality  of 
a  trial  in  the  Pettv  Sessional  Court  House,  the  preliminary 
horrors  suffered  by  the  culprits,  and  the  possible  fine  of  five 
or  ten  shillings — to  be  levied  on  the  unfortunate  parents,  who 
would  then  probablv  for  the  first  time  prove  that  they 
were  awake  to  their  parental  responsibility  by  giving  the 
delinquents  an  inordinate  thrashing  at  home.  There  is 
something,  after  all,  to  be  said  in  favour  of  a  patriarchal 
government,  such  as  that  which  undoubtedly  existed  in  early 
times  at  Scrivelsby. 

The  Lord  of  a  Manor  held  a  very  different  position  from 
that  of  his  modern  representative,  and  enjoyed  many  peculiar 
privileges,  some  traces  of  which  are  to  be  seen  at  the  present 
dav.  His  influence  would  naturallv  be  measured  bv  the 
extent  of  his  possessions.  Now  it  is  quite  certain  that  the 
Manor  or  Barony  of  Scrivelsby  was  at  one  time  much  larger 
than  at  present,  and  the  jurisdiction  of  the  lord  extended  over 
a   much   wider   area.      It   is    curious  to  note  how  jealously  the 


8  SCRIVELSRY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

privileges  of  the  domain  were  guarded  and  the  rights  of  the 
lord  secured.  Horncastle  and  fourteen  villages  more  or  less 
remote  formed  what  was  called  a  Soke  or  Soc,  to  which 
certain  rights  of  enquiry  appertained,  and  a  special  jurisdiction 
was  attached.  But  Scrivelsby,  though  contiguous  with 
Horncastle,  and  at  one  time  undoubtedly  forming  part  of  the 
Soke,  was  soon  after  the  coming  of  the  Marmions  found  to 
be  outside  it.  And  whv  ?  Because  these  powerful  lords, 
resenting  the  inquisitorial  claims  of  the  Soke,  bought  their 
barony  out  by  paying  the  customary  fine.  And  so  the  Soke 
of  Horncastle,  instead  of  comprising,  as  might  have  been 
expected,  a  cluster  of  villages  adjacent  to  each  other*  and 
contiguous  with  its  central  town,  is  found  to  run  in  a  peculiar 
fashion  of  its  own,  keeping  clear  of  the  district  which  was 
subject  to  another  influence.  But  there  are  abundant  reasons 
for  thinking  that  most  if  not  all  of  the  villages  that  might  have 
been  expected  to  be  included  in  the  Soke  of  Horncastle  were 
at  one  time  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  lord  of  Scrivelsby ; 
and  we  know  that  in  the  year   1258  Sir  Philip,  the  last  of  the 


*  Thus  the  villages  of  Thimblehv  and  West  Ashby  and  the  two  Toyntons,  are  in  the 
Soke  of  Horncastle,  as  are  also  on  the  south  side  of  the  town  the  two  Marehams  with 
Roughton,  Haltham,  and  Wood  Enderby,  each  of  these  three  touching  Scrivelsby,  but 
having  no  other  connection  with  it  ;  and  then  as  a  kind  of  compensation  the  Soke  makes 
an  unexpected  appearance  at  Coningsby,  Langrick,  and  Thornton-lc-Moor,  distant  from 
Horncastle  between  seven  and  twelve  miles.  Now  while  these  portions  of  the  Soke  of 
Horncastle  are  found  so  strangely  placed,  we  see  that  not  only  Scrivelsby,  but  the 
villages  intermediate  on  the  west  side  between  Horncastle  and  Coningsby  are  excluded, 
viz.:  Thornton,  Martin,  Langton,  Kirkby-on-Bain,  and  Kirkstead,  all  of  which  might 
have  been  expected  to  be  in  the  Soke. 


THE  STOCKS, 
Opposite  the  Lion  Gate,  Scrivelsby  Park. 


THE    VILLAGE.  9 

Scrivelsbv  Marmions,  obtained  a  roval  charter  for  a  yearly 
fair,  in  addition  to  a  weekly  market,  to  be  held  at  Scrivelsbv 
on  the  2 1st  of  March.  This  shews  that  the  baronv  was 
extensive,  and  although  it  may  seem  strange  that  so  insignificant 
a  village  should  be  chosen  for  the  central  place  of  business,  a 
little  reflection  will  enable  us  to  see  that  as  the  tenants  and 
other  dependants  of  the  barony  were  confined  to  the 
limits  of  their  own  district,  it  was  only  natural  that  the  chief 
place  in  it — chief  at  least  in  importance  if  not  in  population 
as  containing  the  lord's  seat — should  be  selected  as  the  proper 
place  for  holding  both  market  and  fair.  At  Scrivelsby  too 
were  the  gallows,  and  in  later  times  the  stocks  and  the 
pillory,  and  to  Scrivelsbv  accordingly  were  brought  the  various 
culprits  for  whose  benefit  these  contrivances  were  specially 
provided. 

But  without  going  back  to  the  past  glories  of  the  village, 
there  is  abundant  reason  for  saying  that  the  Scrivelsby  of 
to-dav  can  hold  it  own  against  all  gainsavers.  The  lover  of 
nature  can  revel  here.  There  is  abundant  occupation  for  the 
artist :  birds  in  every  varietv  abound  in  the  various  little 
coppices  and  plantations  dotted  about  in  every  direction  :  and 
wild-flowers,  including  lilies  of  the  valley,  which  grow  with 
unusual  luxuriance,  are  to  be  found  everywhere  in  great 
variety.  Never,  too,  was  there  such  a  home  for  a  student,  or 
a  man  with  literary  tastes ;  far  from  the  madding  strife  of  a 
large  population,  he  can  pursue  the  even  tenor  of  his  way, 
happy    and     complete     in     himself,     amongst     scenes     inviting 


lO  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF   THE    CHAMPIONS. 

contemplation    as    well     as    preparation    for    the    more    active 
business  of  life. 

Scrivelsby,  moreover,  is  a  good  sporting  country,  and 
those  who  are  learned  in  such  matters  say  that  with  its 
natural  advantages  and  its  numerous  coverts  it  would  be  hard 
to  find  a  better;  and  to  those  who  love  a  ride  with  the 
hounds,  the  neighbourhood  enjoys  a  good  hunting  reputation, 
although  perhaps  it  is  not  so  popular  in  this  respect  as 
Leicestershire  or  some  parts  of  the  Counties  of  York  and 
Northampton. 

On  the  whole  it  is  safe  to  say  that  a  place  where 
pinching  poverty  is  unknown,  where  everyone  is  fully  and 
happily  occupied,  where  the  cultivated  taste  of  the  educated 
can  find  abundant  scope  for  enjoyment,  while  the  illiterate 
labourer  is  learning  something  of  the  refinements  of  life  without 
the  intervention  of  the  political  firebrand,  is  not  to  be  held  in 
slight  esteem,  because  its  population  is  scanty  and  its  position 
a  little  out  of  the  beaten  track. 

It  will  be  a  bad  day  for  England  when  these  little  oases 
in  the  desert  of  life  are  swept  away,  and  when  confusion  and 
noise  take  the  place  of  peace  and  quietness  and  the  tranquil 
discharge  of  the  duties  of  life  which  are  as  incumbent  on  the 
residents  in  a  little  village  as  on  those  whose  fate  it  is  to  live 
more  in  the  glare  of  the  world  and  amidst  the  haunts  of  busy 
men  in  the  restless  hurly-burly  of  public  life.  But  non  omnes 
omnia.  Different  surroundings  suit  different  temperaments. 
Kusticus  finds  his  happiness  in  one  place  ;   Urbanus  in  another. 


THE    VILLAGE. 


I  I 


The  towns,  perhaps,  and  the  large  centres  of  population  are 
better  suited  to  the  young  ;  and  the  more  retired  nooks 
amidst  a  scanty  population  to  those  who  are  more  advanced 
in  vears  or  in  declining  health.  Happy  are  they  who  can  say 
of  their  home,  wherever  and  whatever  it  may  happen  to  be, 

"  In  all  the  world  no  spot  there  is 
That  wears  for  me  a  smile  like  this."* 


""■  "  Ille  tcrrarum  mihi  propter  omnes 
Angulus  ridet." 


M 

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pi 

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tf=:^=^ 

§ 

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1 

Sm 

CHAPTER     II. 

Lincolnshire — False  Impressions — Healthiness  of  the  County — Fen  and 
Marsh — Hills — Anecodote  of  lost  leaves — Foliage  i)i  Aiilujnn — 
Sunsets — Somersby. 

One  part,  one  little  part,  we  dimly  scan, 
Through  the  dark  medium  of  life's  feverish  dream  : 
Yet  dare  arraign  the  whole  stupendous  plan, 
If  but  that  little  part  incongruous  seem. 

Beattie. 

EFORE  entering  on  the  history  of  the 
Marmions  and  Dvmokes,  it  mav  be  worth 
while  to  attempt  the  not  very  difficult  task 
of  removing  some  of  the  prevalent  mis- 
conceptions respecting  the  quarter  in  which  their  home  is 
situated.  Lincolnshire  people  who  know  the  real  attractions 
of  the  county  have  for  the  most  part  been  satisfied  with 
chuckling  over  the  mistaken  notions  of  those  who  have  not 
enjoyed  a  similar  experience.  The  present,  therefore,  seems 
to  be  a  favourable  opportunity  for  shedding  a  little  light  on 
a  subject  which  is  still  involved  in  some  obscurity. 

It  is  sometimes  thought,  by  those  who  have  no  personal 
acquaintance  with  the  county,  that  Lincolnshire  is  flat, 
uninteresting,  and  unhealthy.     Some  people  seem  to  think  that 


LINCOLNSHIRE.  13 

Fen  and  Marsh  are  everywhere  predominant,  that  punts  and 
other  flat-bottomed  boats  are  the  usual  methods  of  locomotion, 
that  quinine  or  at  least  gentian  is  a  necessary  commodity  in 
everv  household,  and  that  ague  claims  its  victims  by  thousands. 
Now  in  answer  to  all  this,  which  is  only  an  exaggerated 
statement  of  what  was  at  one  time  an  almost  wide-spread 
belief,  it  will  be  enough  to  say,  even  at  the  risk  of  being 
twitted  with  Qui  s  excuse  s'accuse,  that  although  Lincolnshire 
is  assuredly  not  a  hillv  countv,  it  is  far  from  being  uniformly 
flat  ;  that  to  the  lover  of  nature  and  to  the  antiquarian  it  is 
full  of  interest,  that  ague  is,  happily,  a  thing  of  the  past,  and 
that  as  regards  healthiness,  the  statement  of  the  enthusiastic 
native  still  holds  good,  that  while  "Lincolnshire  taken 
altogether  is  about  the  healthiest  county  in  England,  Scrivelsby 
is   undoubtedly    the    healthiest    village    in    Lincolnshire." 

The  truth  is  that  a  century  or  even  half  a  century  ago  there 
was  some  foundation  for  saying  that  parts  of  Lincolnshire — even 
as  it  might  have  been  said  that  parts  of  Kent  or  Yorkshire — 
were  damp,  and  that  ague  was  prevalent.  The  old  mistake 
was  made  of  deeming  the  part  equal  to  the  whole,  and 
of  applying  to  the  one  certain  epithets  that  were  more 
appropriate  to  the  other.  Lincolnshire  is  in  size  second  only 
to  the  county  of  York,  and  it  is  not  strange  to  find  a  lack 
of  uniformity  in  so   extensive   a  district. 

Without  attempting  to  give  a  general  description  of  the 
countv,  as  being  unsuited  to  a  work  of  this  kind,  it  will  be 
sufficient    to    sav    a    few    words    about    the    Fens   and    Marshes, 


14  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

concerning  which  much  misapprehension  exists.  It  is  not 
everyone,  indeed,  who  knows  the  difference  between  them  : 
and  vet  the  knowledge  of  this  difference  is  necessarv  for  a 
thorough  appreciation  of  the  great  drainage  works  that  have 
exercised  the  ingenuity  of  our  forefathers  for  manv  generations 
and  have  onlv  been  successfullv  completed  within  living 
memory.  Marsh,  then,  is  land  reclaimed  from  the  sea,  the 
water  with  which  it  was  impregnated  being  salt  and  brackish, 
and  as  a  matter  of  course  adjoining  the  sea  from  which  it 
has  been  reclaimed.  On  a  receding  coast  the  Marsh  will 
sometimes  extend  for  several  miles.  Fen,  on  the  other  hand, 
as  we  see  it  now,  is  the  outcome  of  human  skill  and  industry, 
converting  a  naturally  wet  and  swampy  soil  into  good  and 
productive  land  * 

Much  skill  and  enterprize  have  been  exhibited  in  the 
reclamation  of  both  Fen  and  Marsh,  but  the  former  has  been 
the  more  difficult  of  the  two  and  has  been  almost  too 
successfully  carried  out.  So  effectual,  indeed,  has  been  the 
drainage  of  the  Fens,  that  not  only  has  ague  been  utterly 
routed,  but  so  little  moisture  is  left  in  the  soil  that  in  times 
of  drought  vegetation  is  seriously  hampered.  And  as,  contrary 
to  the  general  opinion,  the  rainfall  in  Lincolnshire  is  less 
than  in  any  other  English  county,  the  dryness  of  the  soil  is 
occasionally      attended      with       disastrous      results,      and      the 


~"  In  Murray's  Handbook  of  Lincolnshire  we  are  reminded  that  the  Marsh  "  differs 
entirely  from  Fen,  a  word  meaning  "  Mud  "  reclaimed  from  stagnant  water,  while 
the  Marshes  are  re-claimed  from  brackish  or  salt  water." 


LINCOLNSHIRE.  1 5 

agricultural  depression,  so  wide-spread  and  calamitous,  has 
told  more  heavily,  perhaps,  on  the  Fen  farmers  than  on  any 
other.  Even  the  productive  lands  of  the  Marsh  have  of  late 
vears  greatlv  deteriorated  in  value,  pasture  land  that  a  few  years 
ago  could  readily  be  let  for  /'5  or  /'6  the  acre  scarcely 
realizing  now  more  than   -f,2  or   /  3. 

But  it  is  with  the  natural  aspects  rather  than  with  the 
commercial  value  of  the  land  with  which  we  are  now  more 
immediately  concerned,  and  it  will  be  interesting  to  see  what 
was  said  of  the  fens  hundreds  of  vears  ago  when  the  general 
appearance  of  the  countrv  was  much  wilder  than  it  is  at 
present.  William  of  Malmesbury,  writing  in  11 40,  says  "The 
Fens  are  a  verv  paradise,  and  seem  a  heaven  of  delight  and 
beauty  thereof,  the  marshes  bearing  goodly  trees,  which,  for 
tallness  and  without  knots,  strive  to  reach  the  stars.  It  is  a 
plain  countrv  and  level  as  the  sea,  which  with  green  grass 
allureth  the  eye.  '  This  description,  it  must  be  owned,  is  a 
little  flattering,  and  doubtless  at  the  time  when  William  of 
Malmesburv  wrote,  there  were  manv  more  trees  "striving  to 
reach  the  stars"  than  suited  the  agricultural  necessities  of 
later  days.  The  Fens  after  all  only  occupy  a  fifth  part  of 
the  countv,  and  have  been  reclaimed  for  purposes  of 
cultivation  at  enormous  expense,  and  on  the  whole,  with 
great  success. 

Then,  as  to  the  flatness  of  the  county,  this  feature  is 
only  to  be  found  in  unbroken  uniformitv  in  the  district  of 
Holland,  one  of  the  three  great  parts  into  which    Lincolnshire 


1 6  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

is  divided,  the  other  two,  Kesteven  and  Lindsey,  exhibiting 
greater  variety,  and  often,  especially  on  the  Wolds  "  little 
bits"  of  scenery  quite  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  taste  of  the 
most  fastidious. 

The  highest  of  the  Lincolnshire  hills,  it  is  true,  does  not 
rise  above  four  hundred  feet  from  the  level  of  the  sea,  but 
each  of  the  three  chief  ranges  presents  a  wide  panorama  with 
varving  features  of  interesting  landscape.  Visitors  to  Lincoln 
need  not  be  told  of  the  hill  on  which  the  noble  Minster 
stands  :  and  even  from  Scrivelsbv,  which  is  not  the  hilliest 
part  of  the  county,  we  can  take  our  friends  a  short  drive  to 
Louth  by  way  of  Tetford  and  Ruckland,  by  roads  which  will 
for  ever  put  an  end  to  their  complaining  of  the  flatness  of  the 
county,  and  over  hills,  on  which  if  our  jaded  steeds  could  only 
find  articulate  speech,  they  would  deliver  anything  but  words 
of  grateful  benediction. 

The  view  from  the  broad  tower  of  Lincoln  Minster  is 
truly  grand,  and  the  late  Sir  Charles  Anderson  gives  a 
glowing  and  eloquent  description  of  it  in  his  "  Lincoln  Pocket 
Guide"  than  which  it  would  be  hard  to  find  a  safer  or  more 
valuable  companion  for  anyone  desirous  of  acquainting  himself 
with  what  the  Citv  and  Countv  of  Lincoln  have  to  offer  in 
the  shape  of  attraction.  The  extensive  view  from  the  heights 
of  Lincoln  Minster,  however,  is  only  an  additional  proof  that 
the  Minster  stands  well  in  the  midst  of  a  wide  and  level 
plain.  It  is,  perhaps,  this  particular  view  which  has  misled 
the    casual    visitor   into   the    mistaken  notion  that  the  whole  of 


LINXOI.NSHIRE.  1 7 

Lincolnshire  is  equallv  Hat  ;  and  such  an  impression  is  likelv 
to  be  deepened  bv  the  prospect  which  he  sees  from  either 
side  of  the  railway  carriage  on  his  departure.  But  the  railwav 
engineer  knew  his  business  too  well  to  choose  for  his  course 
anv  but  the  easiest  and  most  economical  road.  He  mav 
always  be  trusted  to  leave  the  hills  alone,  wherever  possible, 
and  to  avail  himself  of  the  natural  advantages  of  the  level 
ground,  which  will  reduce  to  a  minimum  the  heavv  outlav  of 
construction.  But  it  is  in  this  wav  that  strangers  are  naturallv 
led  to  think  that  what  thev  see  from  the  railwav  is  a  fair 
sample  of  what  is  to  be  found  in  other  parts  of  the  countv 
through  which  the  railwav  does  not  pass :  and  so  the  impression 
gets  about  that  Lincolnshire  is  flat  and    uninteresting. 

It  must  be  owned,  however,  that  the  natives  of  the  Marshes 
are  wonderfuUv  impressed  bv  the  sight  of  anvthing  in  the  shape 
of  rising  ground,  and  there  are  manv  humorous  stories  told, 
told  in  all  seriousness  and  possiblv  believed  in,  as  if  the  ant 
hills  with  which  thev  are  familiar  were  a  fair  representation  of 
the  hills  of  which  thev  hear  their  enterprising  neighbours 
speak  on  their  return  from  some  distant  expedition.  Nor  were 
our  forefathers  free  from  the  same  kind  of  weakness.  It  is 
onlv  a  few  vears  ag^o  that  some  leaves  out  of  an  old  re2:ister 
book  were  found  far  awav  from  the  parish  to  which  thev 
belonged  :  and  after  manv  surmises  and  much  close  examination, 
some  one  suggested  that  the  words  supra  moiitcni,  which  were 
plainlv  discernible,  might  possiblv  refer  to  Mareham-on-thc- 
Hill ,  a  little  village  adjoining  Scrivelsbv,  and  standing  on   the 

D 


1 8  SCRIVELSHV,     rilE    HOME    (JE    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

self-same    verv     "gentle     elevation    on    which     Scrivelsbv    itself 

Stands.     And   by   a   comparison   of  names   and     dates    with    the 

Mareham    register   it    was   fonnd    that  the  snrmise   was   correct, 

and    that   no    less    a    sonorons    description   than   supra    nioiitciii 

was  deemed  sufficient   to   render   adequate  justice   to   the   little 

rise  which  is  common  to  the  two  viUages. 

But,  if  we  are  not  mountainous,  we  are  well  wooded,  and 

few  sights  are  more  exhilarating  than  certain  parts  of  Scrivelsby 

on   a   sunnv   dav   in    late    autumn — the    most    beautiful    time    of 

the   year — when   the   foliage   appears   in   its   loveliest   and    most 

variegated  array,   tints  of  purple,   russet,  and  brown,  alternating 

with  the  fiery  red   of  the    beech,    and,   now  and  again,  all  the 

colours  of  the  rainbow  combining   to    make    such    a   picture  as 

must   lill   with   despair  the   most   skilful   and    enthusiastic  of  our 

landscape    painters — despair    o{   representing    a    tithe    of    what 

our  farm    labourers    see    unmoved    everv    dav  when    October  is 

drawing    to    an    end,    and    the    air    resounds  with    the   "  noise  of 

rooks  that   gather  in   the   wakino'  woods." 

"  But  who  can  paint 
Like  Nature  i*     Can  imagination  boast, 
Amid  its  gay  cvcaticMi,  hues  like  hers?" 

We  think,  too,  and  with  some  reason,  that  our  sunsets  are 
more  beautiful  and  noteworthv  than  can  often  be  seen 
elsewhere,  especially  in  the  more  hilly  districts  ;  that  the 
lights  and  shades  in  which  we  are  permitted  to  revel  form 
part  of  the  material  wherewith  the  poetic  temperament  is  fed, 
and  that    here,    as    nmch    as    anvwhere,   the    pages   of  the   book 


LINCOLNSHIRE.  1 9 

of  nature  are  so  displayed  as  to  lead  the  student  in  that 
fascinating  lore  nearer  and  closer  to  Nature's  God.  We,  at 
least,  do  not  wonder  that  the  genius  of  Tennvson  was 
nurtured,  if  not  matured,  in  our  own  immediate  neighbourhood, 
and  that  his  close  and  intimate  knowledge  of  woodland 
scenery,  wild  flowers,  and  the  ever-varving  aspect  of  fleecy 
clouds  and  meteor  lights,  enabled  him  to  see  the  ideal 
visions  of 
"Larger  constellations  burning,  mellow  moons  and  happy  skies, 
Breadths  of  tropic  shades  and  palms  in  cluster,  knots  of  Paradise." 

Somersbv,  the  birth-place  of  the  poet,  is  onlv  a  few  miles 
distant  from  Scrivelsbv,  and  there,  too,  is  to  be  seen  much 
of  the  same  tranquil  scenery,  though  on  a  less  gorgeous  scale, 
than  is  noticeable  here. 


CHAPTER    III. 

The  Coronation  Ceremony — Court  of  Claims — Service  in  Westminster 
Abbey — The  Coronation  Banquet — Coronation  of  Charles  II. — 
Reasons  suggested  for  absence  of  Champion  from  early  Coronations 
— Perquisites  and  Claims  for  Service  at  a  Coronation. 

Montgo)nery :  Ay,  now,  my  sovereign  speaketh  like  iiimself : 
Ami  now  will  I  be  Edward's  champion. 

Hastings:  Sound,  trumpet;  Edward  shall  be  here  proclaimed. 
Montgomery :  And  whosoe'er  gainsa3-s  King  Edward's  right, 
By  this  I  challenge  him  to  single  fight. 

{Throi^'s  doivn  his  gaunt /ct'\. 

Shakespeare. 


T  is  an  old  saying,  and,  doubtless,  as  true 
as  it  is  old,  that  "  uneasv  lies  the  head  that 
wears  a  crown,"  but  our  concern  now  is  not 
so  nnich  with  the  mental  cares  and  anxieties 
inseparable  from  regal  power  as  with  the  physical  torture 
suffered  bv  the  wearer  of  a  crown,  especially  on  the  first 
dav  of  assuming  it.  Anyone  who  will  take  the  trouble  to 
acquaint  himself  with  the  full  ritual  to  be  observed  during  the 
ceremony  of  a  coronation  \\\\\  sympathize  with  the  king  or 
queen  who  must  go  through  it  all  from  the  beginning  to  the 
bitter  end.     When  her  present  Majesty  was  crowned  more  than 


CORONATION    CEREMONY.  21 

fiftv  years  ago,  it  was  not  one  of  the  least  noticeable  features 
in  her  admirable  deportment  on  the  occasion,  that  she 
betrayed  no  distress  or  nervousness  beyond  what  was  natural 
and  graceful  in  a  voung  girl  appearing  in  public  under  such 
trying  circumstances. 

Such  importance  has  always  been  attached  to  the 
ceremonial  of  a  coronation,  that  a  Special  Court,  the  Court 
of  Claims,  was  appointed  to  hear  and  decide  upon  the 
petitions  of  every  claimant  to  take  part  in  it.  Some  of  the 
petitions  submitted  to  this  Court  are  sufficiently  curious. 
Amongst  them  is  a  claim  made  bv  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of 
Westminster  to  instruct  the  king  in  the  rites  and  ceremonies 
used  at  the  coronation,  and  to  carry  away  certain  perquisites 
for  the  discharge  of  this  arduous  duty.  This  may  possibly 
excite  a  smile,  but  there  was  a  real  necessity  for  the 
sovereign  to  have  someone  to  act  as  prompter,  to  ensure  the 
observance  of  every  formality,  and  to  provide  for  the  right 
thing  being  done  in  the  right  way  and  at  the  right  time. 

The  ordeal  of  the  full  coronation  service  in  Westminster 
Abbey,  lasting  as  it  does  for  several  hours,  is  sufficiently 
trying,  especially  to  a  female  sovereign  of  tender  years :  but 
this  is  only  the  beginning  of  the  anxious  work  of  an  anxious 
day.  After  a  brief  and  necessary  interval  of  rest,  the  arduous 
work  of  the  coronation  banquet  has  to  be  faced,  and  the  chief 
person,  in  whose  honour  the  banquet  is  held,  must  at  least 
seem  to  enjov  it,  must  be  perfectly  at  ease  and  gracious,  and 
above    all    things    must    beware    of    looking    bored  I       At    the 


22  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

coronation  of  Richard  II.,  Holinshed  gravely  tells  us 
that  "the  feast  on  that  occasion  was  so  exceedingly  sumptuous 
and  princely,  that  if  the  same  should  be  rehearsed,  the  reader 
would  perhaps  doubt  of  the  truth  thereof." 

It  was  during  the  coronation  banquet  that  one  of  the 
most  striking  features  of  the  dav's  ceremonial  was  to  be  seen 
— an  armed  knight  mounted  on  a  white  charger,  richly 
caparisoned,  riding  into  Westminster  Hall,  throwing  down  his 
gauntlet,  and  challenging  to  mortal  combat  anv  who  should 
gainsay  the  sovereign's  title  to  the  throne.  It  was,  indeed,  the 
great  feature  of  the  day,  and  it  is  a  pitv  that  it  should  be 
discontinued  now.  The  following  description  of  this  part  of 
the  ceremonial  is  quoted  by  Noble,  and  is  given  in  the  very 
words  of  an  eyewitness.  Dr.  Kennett,  Bishop  of  Peterborough, 
who  was  present  at  the  coronation  of  Charles  II.  Ex  uno 
disce  omnes  : — 

"  A  little  before  the  second  course  was  ready  at  the 
dinner  in  Westminster  Hall,  Sir  Edward  Dvmock  entered  the 
Hall,  on  a  goodly  white  courser,  and  armed  at  all  points  in 
rich  armour,  having  a  plume  of  blue  feathers  in  his  helm. 
He  there  made  a  stand  for  some  time,  and  then  advanced  in 
manner  following,  way  being  made  for  him  by  the  Knight 
Marshall  :  First  two  trumpets,  the  Sergeant  Trumpeter,  the 
Sergeants  at  Arms,  an  Esquire  carrying  the  Champion's  lance 
upright  ;  Mr.  Owen,  York  Herald  ;  the  Earl  Marshall  on  his 
left  hand  ;  the  Champion  ;  the  Lord  High  Constable  on  his 
right  hand  ;  both  likewise  on  horseback. 


CORONATION    CEREMONY.  23 

"At  the  lower  end  of  the  Hall,  York  Herald  proclaimed 
the  challenge  in  these  words  following  :  '  If  any  person,  in 
what  degree  sover,  high  or  low,  shall  deny  or  gainsay  our 
sovreign  Lord,  King  Charles  H.,  King  of  England,  Scotland, 
France,  and  Ireland,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  son  and  next 
heir  to  our  Sovreign  Lord  Charles  I.,  the  last  King  deceased, 
to  be  the  right  heir  to  the  imperial  crown  of  this  realm  of 
England,  or  that  he  ought  not  to  enjoy  the  same,  here  is  his 
champion  who  saith  that  he  lyeth  and  is  a  false  traytor,  being 
ready  in  person  to  combat  with  him,  and  in  this  quarrel  will 
adventure  his  life  against  him,  on  what  day  soever  shall  be 
appointed.'  Thereupon  the  Champion  threw  down  his 
gauntlet,  which,  lying  some  time,  and  nobody  taking  it  up,  it 
was  delivered  unto  him  again  by  York  Herald.  Then  all 
advanced  forward  untill  the  Champion  came  to  the  middle  of 
the  Hall,  where  York  Herald  made  the  like  proclamation,  and 
the  gauntlet  was  again  thrown  down,  taken  up,  and  returned 
to  the  Champion,  who  ascended  to  the  foot  of  the  ascending 
step  to  the  state,  and,  at  the  top  of  the  said  steps,  the  said 
Herald  proclaimed  the  said  challenge  for  the  third  time, 
whereupon  the  Champion  threw  down  the  gauntlet  again, 
which,  nobody  taking  up,  it  was  delivered  unto  him.  This 
being  done,  the  Earl  of  Pembroke  and  Montgomery,  assisted 
by  Viscount  Montagu,  and  Lord  Paget,  presented  on  the 
knee  to  the  King  a  gilt  cup  and  cover,  full  of  wine,  who 
drank  to  his  Champion  ;  and,  by  the  said  Earl,  sent  him  the 
cup  ;    and   he,    after   three    reverences,  drank  it  all  off,  went  a 


24  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

little  backward,  and  so  departed  out  of  the  Hall  ;  taking  the 
said  cup  for  his  fee,  accordingly,  as  being  adjudged  to  him  by 
the  said  Court  of  Claims." 

We  claim  to  know  a  great  deal  about  the  appearance 
of  a  Champion  on  a  Coronation  day,  but  our  knowledge  is 
more  apparent  than  real.  At  and  after  the  Coronation,  indeed, 
of  Richard  II.,  there  is  no  lack  of  trustworthy  information  on 
the  subject,  but  before  that  time  we  know  but  little,  and  that 
little  imperfectly.  Between  William  the  Conqueror  and 
Richard  II.  were  ten  soyereigns,  not  including  the  daughter 
of  Henry  I.  who  exercised  roval  power  at  interyals,  during 
the  troubled  reign  of  Stephen.  But  although  it  has  been  said 
that  at  the  coronation  of  Edward  III.  the  immediate  pre- 
decessor of  Richard  II.,  Sir  Alexander  Freyille,  knight, 
performed  the  office  of  Champion  as  ovyner  of  the  Castle  of 
Tamworth,*  a  confusion  has  probably  been  made  between 
Sir  Alexander's  claim  and  the  execution  of  the  duties  which 
the  claim  inyolyed.  There  is,  howeyer,  no  well  authenticated 
account  of  an  armed  Champion  taking  part  in  a  coronation 
before  the  time  of  Richard  II.,  although,  as  will  be  presently 
shewn,  from  the  time  of  William  the  Conqueror  there  had 
always  been  a  Champion  in  England,  albeit  a  Champion 
faineant. 

It  is  by  no  means  easy  to  giye  a  satisfactory  explanation 
of  the  absence  of  this  official  from  so  many  of  the  early 
coronations,    and    to    account    also    for    the    sudden    and   hotly 

"'■  Co/liii'x  Peerage.  5th   Ed.,  yd.   6,  p.   338. 


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CORONATION    CEREMONY.  25 

contested  claim  to  act  as  Champion  that  was  made  in  1377  by 
the  heads  of  two  great  families,  each  claiming  the  right  as 
being  descended  from  the  original  champion,  the  great  Norman 
baron,  Marmion,  who  is  better  known  by  his  court  title, 
Robert    Dispensator.*      No    difficulty,    indeed,    need    be   felt    in 

ri^htlv  gauginor  the   motives   underlying  the  claims  of  the  rival 

0,000  .0 

families  :  but  the  task  of  accounting  for  the  non-appearance  of 
a  Champion  at  so  manv  of  the  early  coronations  is  much 
more  difficult.  A  plausible  explanation,  however,  may  be 
safely  advanced. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  after  William  the  Conqueror,  the 
circumstances  under  which  his  immediate  successors  came  to 
the  throne  made  it  desirable  that  their  coronation  should  be 
conducted  as  quietly  and  unostentatiously  as  possible,  and 
consequently  the  most  striking  part  of  the  pageant  was 
omitted.  In  this  way  it  would  come  about  that  a  precedent 
being  established  bv  William  Rufus,  Henry  I.,  and  Stephen, 
the  remaining  sovereigns  up  to  Richard  II.  would  not  think 
it  necessary  to  require  the  services  of  a  Champion  which  were 


"="  This  is  not  tlie  first  time  that  a  great  Xorman  baron  appears  in  the 
English  Court,  nor  is  this  the  only  occasion  when  we  hear  of  a  Court  official 
bearing  the  title  of  Dispensator.  Du  Chesne  in  his  Scriptores  Normaniw  speaks 
of  one  Hugolin,  an  eminent  Norman,  at  the  English  Court,  whom  he  styles 
Regis  ■  Canccllarius  ct  Dispensator.  When  it  is  remembered  that  Edward  the 
Confessor,  the  son  of  Ethelred,  had  lived  in  Xormandy  twenty-seven  years, 
during  the  usurpation  of  the  three  Danish  Kings,  Cnut,  Harold,  and  Hardicnut,  it  is 
not  surprising  that  on  his  return  to  England  to  assume  his  royal  dignity,  he 
brought  with  him  several  persons  with  whom  he  had  contracted  friendship  in 
Xormandy,  and  whom  he  afterwards  appointed  to  honourable  offices  in  England. 
E 


26  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

evidently  not  considered  indispensable.  We  know  that  the 
coronation  of  some  of  these  intermediate  sovereigns  was 
conducted  with  much  pomp  and  ceremony,  but  the  part  of 
the  Champion  was  left  out.* 

Meanwhile,  the  two  families,  who  shared  a  portion  of  the 
inheritance  of  the  last  of  the  Marmions,  were  beginning  to 
put  forward  certain  claims,  of  which  we  shall  hear  in  another 
chapter;  and  so  the  coronation  of  Richard  II.  came  to  be  the 
pivot  on  which  the  controversy  turned  and  was  regarded  by 
each  competitor  as  likelv  to  settle  permanently  the  question 
between  them.  Without  unduly  anticipating  what  must  be 
said  later  on,  it  will  suffice  here  to  state  that  Sir  Baldwin 
Freville  and  Sir  John  Dvmoke  each  claimed  the  rio^ht  of 
acting  as  Champion  at  the  approaching  coronation  of  Richard 
II.  :  Sir  Baldwin,  as  the  descendant  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion's 
eldest  daughter  who  inherited  Tamworth  Castle,  and  Sir  John 
Dvmoke,  on  behalf  of  his  wife  who  was  descended  from  Joan 
the  youngest  daughter  to  whom,  on  her  father's  death,  the 
Manor  of  Scrivelsbv  was  allotted.  The  Court  of  Claims,  for 
reasons  which  will  be  hereafter  given,  decided  in  favour  of 
the  Dymokes,  in  which  family  the  championship  has  continued 
to  the  present  day. 


*"  Henry  II.,  Richard  I.,  John,  Henry  III.,  Edward  I.,  Edward  II.,  and 
Edward  III.,  were  all  crowned  with  great  solemnity  in  the  Church  of  St.  Peter 
at  Westminster  (except  Henry  III.,  a  child  of  nine  years  of  age,  who  was 
crowned  at  Gloucester)  but  no  mention  is  made  in  history  of  the  performance  of 
the   office    of  Champion    at    those    particular  times." — CoUiiis.  Peerage. 


CORONATION    CEREMONY.  2/ 

Amongst  other  claims  advanced  before  the  same  Court 
on  later  occasions,  Robert  Ratcliffe,  Earl  of  Essex,  claimed 
to  be  dapifer  to  the  King,  i.e.  to  have  the  privilege  of 
carrying  the  lordlv  dish  containing  the  piece  de  resistance  at 
the  coronation  banquet  ;  but  in  making  this  claim  he  must 
have  forgotten  the  peculiar  perils  of  the  office.  It  is  said 
that  William  the  Conqueror,  who  was  not  the  meekest  of 
mankind,  was  once  so  exasperated  with  his  dapifer  because  he 
brought  to  the  table  a  half-roasted  crane  that  he  incontinently 
knocked  him  down  and  kicked  him  out  of  the  banqueting 
hall.* 

The  King's  Champion,  in  addition  to  the  right  of 
performing  the  duties  of  his  office,  claimed  to  have  as  his  fee 
a  gold  cup  and  cover,  together  with  the  horse  used  at  the 
coronation,  with  the  saddle,  armour,  and  furniture,  as  well  as 
twentv  vards  of  crimson  satin.  The  cup  was  to  weigh 
thirtv-six  ounces.  These  several  claims  were  allowed  with  the 
exception  of  the  twenty  yards  of  satin. 

The  Champion  was  not  the  onlv  person  who  carried  off 
a  gold  cup  on  the  Coronation  Day,  for  "the  Lord  Mayor,  with 
certain  citizens  of  London,  claimed  to  serve  the  King  with 
wine  after  dinner  in  a  gold  cup,  and  to  have  the  same  cup 
and  cover  for  his  fee  :  and  with  twelve  other  citizens  by  them 
appointed,     to     assist    the     chief    butler    of     England     in     the 


''  In    these    days,  the    butler    of  a  modern    establishment    would    be    not    a    little 
startled  at  receiving  such  a  practical  intimation  of  his  master's  displeasure  ! 


28  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

butlership,  and  to  have  a  table  on  the  left  hand  of  the  hall. 
This  claim  was  not  allowed,  because  the  charter  of  the  citv 
was  at  the  time  seized  into  the  Kings  hands.  They  were, 
however,  permitted  ex  gratia  to  execute  the  office  and  to 
dine  in  the  hall  :  and,  moreover,  they  had  a  gold  cup  and 
cover  of  twenty  ounces  of  fine  gold  for  their  fee." 

There  was  yet  another  gold  cup  claimed  by  no  less  a 
person  than  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  who,  not  content  with 
modestly  demanding  the  best  cup  of  gold  and  cover,  claimed 
also  "all  the  vessels  and  wine  remaining  under  the  bar,  and  all 
the  pots  and  cups,  except  those  of  gold  and  silver,  in  the 
wine  cellar  after  dinner.  Allowed  with  only  a  cup  and  ewer, 
which  was  thirty-two  ounces  of  pure  gold." 

To  give  two  more  claims — from  high  Church  dignitaries, 
as  it  happens — the  Bishops  of  Durham,  and  Bath  and  Wells, 
claimed  to  support  the  King  in  the  procession,  but  strange  to 
say,  make  no  demand  of  a  fee  :  but  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  according  to  ancient  usage,  claimed  and  received 
as  his  perquisite  the  purple  velvet  chair,  cushion,  and 
footstool,  whereon  he  sits  at  the  coronation.* 


■"'See  Bank's  Family  of  Marinyun,  pp.  1 33-1 5'"^,  where  the  various  and 
multitudinous  claims  are  fully  given,  and  of  which  the  few  here  mentioned  are 
samples. 


GOLD    CUP    AND    COVER. 


Presented  to  the  late  Sin  Henry  Dyinoke  by  George  IV., 
after  his  Coronation. 


CHAPTER    IV. 


The  Mannions — Origin  and  Settlcjncnt — The  Championship — Feudal 
Sysieni  —  Grand  and  Petty  Serjeaniy  —  Saxon  and  Xornian  — 
Robert  Dispensator — The  Knave — The  Old  Judge — Sir  Philip. 

They  hailed  him  Lord  of  Fontenaye, 
Of  Lutterworth  and  Scrivelbaye, 

Of  Tamworth    tower  and  town. 

Scott. 

EFORE  the  arrival  of  the  Dymokes,  six 
Marmions,  two  Ludlows,  and  a  Hillary,  lived 
more  or  less  at  Scrivelsby.  Of  these  six 
Marmions  four  were  called  Robert,  and  it  is 
sometimes  difficult  to  assign  to  each  his 
proper  place  in  the  history  of  the  family.  So  fond,  indeed, 
were  the  Marmions  of  this  particular  name,  that  one  Sir 
Robert,  having  married  twice,  gave  the  same  name  to  the 
eldest  son  of  each  marriage.  The  varying  accounts  given  by 
diflferent  writers  of  these  earlv  settlers  at  Scrivelsbv  mav  be 
attributed  to  the  confusion  caused  by  so  many  members  of 
the  familv  bearing  the  same  familv  name.  It  will  be  an 
advantage,  therefore,  if   some    characteristic  title  can  be  found 


30  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

whereby  the  several   Roberts  may  be  easily  distinguished  from 
each  other. 

The  Marmions  were  a  powerful  Norman  family,  closely 
connected  with  the  great  Dukes  of  Normandy  and  dwelling 
at  Fontenav-le-Marmion,  between  Caen  and  Falaise,  where 
William  lived  before  his  memorable  expedition  to  England. 
Both  William,  afterwards  called  the  Conqueror,  and  the 
Marmions,  were  descended  from  a  common  ancestor,  Rollo, 
called  "the  ganger"  from  his  marvellous  activity.  Amongst 
other  high  honours  the  family  of  Marmion  enjoyed  the 
peculiar  privilege  of  acting  as  Champions  to  the  Dukes  of 
Normandy,  and  they  held  their  lands  on  feudal  tenure  by 
Knight  Serjeanty  subject  to  the  performance  of  this  particular 
service.  When  William  came  over  to  seek  his  fortune  in 
England,  he  brought  with  him,  as  might  have  been  expected, 
his  Champion,  Sir  Robert  Marmion,  the  Sire  or  Lord  of 
Fontenay.  We  may  judge  of  the  value  of  his  services  in  the 
eves  of  his  master  bv  the  noble  gifts  and  honours  with  which 
they  were  rewarded.  In  addition  to  his  other  possessions,  he 
received  grants  of  land  in  the  counties  of  Lincoln,  Gloucester, 
Warwick  and  Hereford,  together  with  the  governorship  of 
Tamworth  Castle  in  Warwickshire.*  Amongst  the  many 
Manors  given  to  this  Robert  Dispensator,  as  he  was  called, 
that  of  Scrivelsby  stands  out  prominently,  as  being  assigned  to 


'"  Tamworth    is    on     the    border    of    two    counties.      The     town     is    chiefly     in 
Staffordshire  :    the    district    in    wliich    the   famous     castle     stood     is     in    Warwickshire. 


THE    MARMIONS.  3 1 

him  under  the  same  tenure  as  that  by  which  the  Norman 
estates  were  held,  the  service  being,  as  in  Normandy,  to  act 
as  Champion  at  the   King's  Coronation, 

Amongst  other  institutions  the  Feudal  svstem  was 
introduced  into  England  by  the  Conqueror.  It  had  long 
existed  in  his  old  home,  but  was  unknown  in  England.  The 
svstem  is  intricate,  but  the  general  principle  can  be  grasped 
without  any  great  mental  effort.  Everyone  ought  to  know 
something  about  it,  and  there  is  a  certain  clue  which  will 
enable  those  who  follow  it  to  acquire  this  knowledge  easily 
and  one  that  will  guide  them  safely  through  all  its  intricacies. 
And  this  clue  is  Bismarck's  famous  dictum  do  iit  des  "  I  give 
something  to  you  to  induce  vou  to  give  me  something  in 
return." 

Self-interest  has  never  failed  to  exercise  great  influence 
on  human  affairs.  In  the  unsettled  times  of  the  eleventh  and 
twelfth  centuries  especially,  everyone  had  to  look  closely  after 
his  own.  Everv  man's  hand  was  against  his  neighbour.  The 
strong  arm  had  to  guard  what  the  strong  arm  had  gained. 
And  so,  above  all  things,  it  was  indispensable  that  the  arm 
should  be  strong.  Kings  knew  this  and  acted  upon  it  :  the 
great  barons  also  knew  it  and  turned  their  knowledge  to  good 
account  :  and  so  on  through  everv  grade,  the  ruling  principle 
amongst  them  all  being  this  far-reaching  maxim  do  ut  des. 

Thus  the  King  or  head  man  was  not  long  in  discovering 
that  he  could  not  hold  his  own  without  help  from  others. 
He   must   have   soldiers   to   fight    his   battles,    and    the    soldiers 


32  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

must  be  properly  equipped  :  and  so,  starting  with  the 
convenient  theory  that  all  the  land  in  the  kingdom  or  domain 
belonged  to  himself,  he  assigned  portions  of  it  to  his  great 
nobles,  on  condition  that  they  should  fight  for  him,  when 
summoned,  and  should  bring  with  them  a  body  of  men,  in 
number  proportionate  to  their  holding,  fully  armed,  and 
equipped  for  their  work.  The  King  said  in  effect  do  tit  des. 
The  great  nobles,  also,  said  to  their  dependants  :  "  I  haye 
more  land  than  I  can  cultivate  myself ;  I  will  therefore  let 
you  have  a  portion  of  it  on  condition  that  when  the  King 
summons  me  to  help  him  in  his  wars,  you  will  help  me  by 
bringing  so  many  men  fit  and  ready  for  service  in  the  field." 
Thus  we  have  in  a  small  compass  the  characteristic  feature  of 
the  feudal  system — service  to  be  rendered  for  boons  granted — 
and  both  depending  on  the  land. 

Then,  further,  in  days  when  the  art  of  legal  conveyancing 
was  unknown  there  must  be  some  proof  in  concrete  shape  of 
the  assignment  that  had  been  made.  Accordingly,  when  lands 
were  assigned,  some  particular  service  was  attached  to  the 
holding,  that  all  men  might  know  that  some  return  was 
expected  for  what  had  been  given.  Sometimes  this  outward 
sign  assumed  a  strange  shape.  The  great  noble  must  hold 
the  King's  stirrup  when  he  mounted  his  charger.  He  must 
gird  himself  with  a  napkin  and  serve  his  lord  at  the  banquet. 
He  must  undertake  to  act  as  Champion  to  his  master  when 
required.  He  must  cut  so  many  faggots  and  present  them  to 
his    lord    on    bended    knee.       He    must    once    a    year    make    a 


THE    MARMIONS.  33 

formal  offering  of  a  white  bull,  or  a  cask  of  Malnisev,  or — for 
the  value  of  the  sign  was  not  so  much  considered  as  the  sign 
itself — a  fleece  of  wool,  or  a  bushel  of  wheat,  or  a  load  of 
straw.* 

In  each  case  the  King  claimed  and  exercised  the  right  of 
determining  the  particular  service  attached  to  the  grant.  The 
most  common  and  at  the  same  time  the  most  important  was 
Knight  service,  whereby  direct  aid  was  to  be  given  in  times 
of  war  :  but  there  were,  besides,  numerous  forms  of  tenure, 
such  as  those  just  mentioned,  altogether  irrespective  of 
military  service. 

If  the  tenure  on  which  the  grant  was  made  consisted  of 
some  honourable  service,  such  as  acting  as  Champion,  or 
closelv  attending  on  the  Kings  person,  it  was  said  to  be  held 
bv  Grand  Serjeanty  or  Knight  Serj'eantx ;  but  if  the  tenure 
depended  on  the  offering  some  small  implement  of  war,  such 
as  a  bow,  a  sword,  a  lance,  a  pair  of  spurs,  or  such-like,  it 
was  said  to  be  bv  petit  or  petty  Serjeanty.  It  was  in  this 
wav  that  the  championship  became  attached   to   the    Manor   of 

^  Amongst  the  many  claims  advanced  bv  different  persons  to  take  part  in 
the  coronation  of  James  II.  was  one  from  the  Lord  of  the  Manor  of  Hej'don,  in 
Essex,  who  claimed  to  hold  the  bason  and  napkin  for  the  King  while  washing 
his  hands  before  dinner,  this  being  a  condition  on  which  the  land  was  held.  It 
was  in  , allusion  to  this  service  that  the  following  epigram  was  written  bv  Henry 
Pollexfen,   a   scholar   at   Winchester   at   the    time  :  — 

A    lord,    on    this   occasion,  prays   to    bring 

A   bason    and    a    towel,    to    the   King : 

This   custom,   sure,   on    no   good    footing    stands  : 

What    monarch    mounts   a   throne   with    dirty    hands  ? 


34  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

Scrivelsby  by  Knight  Serjeaniy\  although    in    after  times  there 
was  some  little  difficulty  in  proving  it. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  now  who  was  the  owner  of 
Scrivelsbv  before  the  battle  of  Hastings,  but  whoever  he 
mav  have  been,  his  claims  were  light  indeed  when  weighed 
against  those  of  the  powerful  baron  from  Normandy,  to  whom, 
alono;  with  manv  a  broad  acre  elsewhere,  Scrivelsbv  was 
assigned  by  the  Conqueror.  Saxon  and  Norman  had  appealed 
to  the  God  of  battle,  and  the  result  of  the  appeal  was 
unmistakeable.  The  well-known  rule  of  olden  times,  voe 
victis,  a  rule  which  even  in  these  enlightened  davs  has  hardlv 
ceased  to  be  operative,  was  strong  enough  then  to  solve 
many  a  difficulty  and  to  untie  many  a  hard  knot  of  state 
policy.  And  so  it  was  here.  The  Saxons  were  defeated  on 
the  battle-field ;  the  Saxons  must  suffer  accordingly.  The 
Normans  were  victorious :  to  them  therefore  must  fall  the 
spoils  of  war.  King  William  saw  clearly  what  system  of 
government  would  be  most  beneficial  to  himself,  and,  like  a 
strong  man,  he  adopted  it.  The  ownership  of  the  soil  was 
the  basis  on  which  his  authoritv  must  rest :  the  land  therefore 
must  be  in  the  hands  of  his  friends — his  "men"  as  his 
trustiest  partizans  were  happily  termed.  Amongst  the  rest, 
the  owner  of  Scrivelsby  had  to  yield  up  his  holding,  and  the 
great  Robert  Dispensator,  the  Champion  and  favourite  of 
William,  promptly  took  possession  of  it.* 

'-  Sir  Joseph  Banks  or  some  writer  who  left  his  MS.  at  Revesbv,  in  opposition  to 
Dugdale,     controverts     the     ojiinion     tliat    the    noble    family    of    the    Despensers,    is 


THE    MARMIONS.  35 

This  Robert,  the  first  EngHsh  Champion,  after  basking 
long  in  the  sunshine  of  Koval  favour,  fell  into  disgrace 
towards  the  end  of  the  reign  of  Henrv  I.,  and  was  stripped 
of  all  his  possessions  :  but,  upon  his  death,  as  in  the  case  of 
Sir  Thomas  Dvmoke  in  later  times,  the  King  did  his  best  to 
make  compensation  to  the  son  for  the  penalty  he  had  inflicted 
on  the  father  ;  and  accordingly,  the  next  Mannion,  Sir  Roger,* 
received  back,  not  onlv  all  the  forfeited  estates  of  his 
predecessor,  but  he  acquired  besides  several  fresh  grants, 
amongst  the  most  important  of  which  were  Quinton  in 
Gloucestershire,  and  Middleton  in  Warwickshire.  He  also  held 
the  barony  of  Llanstephan  in  Carmarthenshire. 

Upon  the  death  of  Sir  Roger  his  son  Robert  succeeded, 
and  acquired  great  reputation  for  charitable  deeds  and  for  the 

derived  from  Robert  Dispensator,  although  he  allows  that  the  word  Despenser 
carries  the  same  sense  as  Dispensator,  each  word  denoting  a  Steward,  or  comptroller 
of  the  household.  "  There  is  certainly,"  he  says,  "  a  similarity  in  the  sound  of 
'  Dispensator '  and  '  Despenser,'  but  if  we  lay  aside  this  coincidence  and  examine 
the  ancient  possessions  and  genealogical  descent  of  both  families,  the  sentiments  of 
Sir  William  Dugdale  will  be  probably  superseded,  especially  as  the  great  officer  who 
is  generally  allowed  to  have  had  the  honour  of  being  Champion,  came  in  at  the 
Conquest,  cloathed  with  the  like  dignity  in  Xormandy,  and,  assuredly,  enjoyed  the 
two  rival  manors  of  Tamworth  and  Scrivelsby.  For  the  family  of  Despenser  to  prove 
their  descent  from  Robert  Dispensator  they  must  show  us  a  regular  inheritance  of 
the  estate  according  to  Domesday  Book.  If  this  proof  cannot  be  adduced  they  must 
lay  asid.e  their  pretensions  to  this  stock,  and  instruct  the  heralds  to  derive  a  clearer 
genealogy  for  the  illustrious  house  of  Despenser,  which  has  at  various  periods 
incurred  the  severity  and  deserved  the  gratitude  of  the   nation." 

■=■  Dugdale,  Collins,  Banks,  and  others  give  the  family  name  of  Robert  to  all 
the  Marmions  up  to  Philip.  But  there  was  certainly  a  Roger  amongst  them, 
and  the  weight  of  evidence  favours  the  view  that  the  son  and  successor  of  the 
first    Champion    was   Roger  and    not    Robert.      (See    Appendi.x   Xo.    i8.) 


36  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

endowment  and  restoration  of  religious  houses  on  which  he 
spent  large  sums  of  money.  We  are  surprised,  therefore,  to 
learn  that,  in  spite  of  this,  his  general  character  failed  to 
conciliate  the  good  opinion  of  his  contemporaries.  On  the 
contrary,  instead  of  dwelling  on  his  munificence,  his  piety,  and 
his  charity  to  the  poor,  he  is  described  by  the  English 
annalists  of  the  period  as  "  quarrelsome,  stubborn,  and 
matched  by  few  of  his  time  in  ferocity  and  knayery."  In  the 
ciyil  war  between  Stephen  and  Maud  the  daughter  of  Henry  I., 
Sir  Robert,  as  became  the  Chariipion,  held  firmly  to  the 
King,  and  consequently,  during  the  short  time  of  Stephen's 
imprisonment  at  Lincoln,  Maud  depriyed  him  of  his  castle  at 
Tamworth  and  other  possessions,  and  bestowed  them  on  Sir 
William  de  Beauchamp,  who  had  remained  steadfast  to  herself, 
and  had  in  his  turn  been  despoiled  by  Stephen  of  many  of 
his  possessions. 

This  Champion  came  to  an  untimely  end  occasioned 
by  one  of  his  own  "  knayish  "  tricks.  Haying  quarrelled  with 
Maud's  Champion,  he  sacrilegiously  droye  out  the  monks  from 
the  Benedictine  Priory  near  to  his  enemy's  castle,  and  made 
the  Church  his  fortress.  As  a  master  stroke  of  cunning,- he 
thought  to  ensure  the  destruction  of  his  enemies  by  digging 
pits  which  he  carefully  coyered  oyer  with  earth,  but, 
unfortunately,  like  the  engineer,  "  hoist  with  his  own  petard  " 
he  fell  into  one  of  his  own  pits  and  perished  ignominiously. 
His  fate  has  often  been  quoted  as  a  warning  against  sacrilege. 
A  yaliant  cobbler,  seeing  the  Knight  disabled,  plunged  an  awl 


THE    MARMIONS.  37 

into   his   bowels,    and    a    common    soldier   forthwith    cut  off  his 
head. 

Another  Robert  followed,  and  by  uniting  his  son  to  the 
daughter  of  Sir  William  Beauchamp,  he  recovered  for  his 
family  the  much  coveted  possession  of  Tamworth  Castle,  of 
which  Maud  had  deprived  his  father. 

This  Sir  Robert  was  succeeded  by  his  son  bearing  the  same 
name,  but  of  a  different  temperament  from  all  his  predecessors  : 
he  was  a  student,  and  in  due  course  became  a  Judge  or 
Justiciary.*  So  famous,  indeed  was  he,  that  in  the  time  of 
Richard  I.  he  became  presiding  Justiciary  of  the  barons-errant, 
or  Justices-in-Evre,  an  office  somewhat  akin  to  the  position 
of  the  Lord  Chief  Justice  of  the  present  day.  In  1185  he 
was  Sheriff  for  Worcestershire  and  he  held  the  same  office 
also  in   1 187  and    1 190.    ' 

In  the  days  of  King  John  when  the  Barons  were  in  open 
revolt,  Sir  Robert  prudently  retired  to  Normandy  :  but, 
returning  to  England,  he  openly  sided  with  the  Barons,  and 
after  Magna  Charta  was  signed  sorely  against  the  King's  will, 
he  was  ordered  bv  the  enraged  monarch  to  yield  up  to  him 
the  greater  part  of  his   possessions  ;    and   a   military   force   was 


■=•  The  sentiments  and  usages  of  modern  tmies  afford  no  criterion  whereby  we 
can  safely  pass  judgment  on  what  strikes  us  as  incongruous  in  the  12th  or  13th 
century.  Bearing  in  mind  the  still  more  apparently  inconsistent  features  in  the 
character  of  the  military  churchmen,  the  Knights  Templars  of  the  period,  whose 
mission  it  was  to  advance  the  spiritual  empire  of  peace  by  the  vigorous  use 
of  the  weapons  of  carnal  warfare,  we  need  not  be  surprised  to  find  the  same  man 
performing  the  duties  of  a  Champion,  a  Diplomatist,  a  General,  and  a  Judge. 


38  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

sent  to  destroy  Tamworth  Castle.  Nothing  however,  came  of 
all  this.  The  old  judge  kept  his  property  well  in  hand,  and 
on  the  death  of  John  was  persuaded  to  submit  himself  to  the 
bov  King  who  succeeded  him — Henry  III.  He  died  shortly 
afterwards,  in  121 7,  leaving  three  sons,  two  of  them  called 
Robert,  and  the  youngest  of  the  three  William. 

On  his  death  Robert  the  Elder  succeeded.  Hitherto  the 
Marmions  held  their  feudal  tenures  both  in  England  and  in 
Normandy ;  but  on  the  separation  of  those  countries,  the 
representative  of  the  family  in  England  was  Robert  the 
Younger,  his  elder  brother  of  the  same  name  remaining  in 
Normandy.       These   two    Roberts   were    both    children    of    the 

J 

same  father  by  different  mothers.  By  an  agreement  between 
the  brothers,  Robert  the  Younger  consented  to  pay  a  certain 
sum  for  the  English  possessions,  until  a  final  settlement  should 
be  made  as  to  the  disposition  of  the  family  property  in  both 
countries.  "But  if  before  that,  Sir  Robert  the  Elder  made  his 
peace  with  the  king,  so  that  he  might  have  his  father's 
English  lands,  he  should  pay  to  Robert  the  Younger  as  much 
as  should  be  paid  to  the  Crown,  and  answer  for  the  rest,  and 
the  latter  should  account  to  him  for  the  issues  of  the  lands."* 


'-"  Mr.  C.  F.  R.  Palmer,  O.P.,  has  with  much  exemplary  diligence  unearthed  a 
great  deal  of  interesting  information  respecting  the  Marmions  of  Fontenay,  and  those 
who  care  to  investigate  the  early  history  of  the  family  will  not  find  a  safer  guide. 
His  work  is  entitled.  History  of  the  Baronial  Family  of  Marmion,  and  was 
published  in  1875  by  J.  Thompson,  of  Tamworth,  and  in  London  by  Simpkin, 
Marshall  &  Co.  The  account  here  given  is  mainly  based  on  information  supplied 
in   this   work,  after   verifying   it   by   reference  to   the   usual   authorities  on  the  subject. 


THE    MARMIONS.  39 

It    was    further    agreed    that,    "  the    said    Robert    the  Younger 

should     then     enjoy     the     lordships     of     Winteringham      and 

Coningsbv,  in  the  County  of  Lincoln  ;    Quinton,  in  the  County 

of  Gloucester ;    and   Berwick,   in   the   County    of    Sussex.      As 

also,  that  William,   his  vounger  brother,  should  have  East  and 

West  Torrington,  in  the   County  of   Lincoln,   and  lands  to  the 

value  of  ten  pounds  per  annum  in  Berwick  ;*   of  all  which  they 

had  special  grants  from  their  father.     These  conditions   appear 

to  have  been   executed  ;    for,   in  the   fifth  year  of  the  reign  of 

King  Henrv  IIL,t   Robert,  the  elder  son,  made  his  peace  with 

the    king,    and     had     possession    of    the    Castle    of    Tamworth 

delivered    to    him,     and     the     rest     of     his     father's     estates.:}; 

Having    occasion    to    return    into    Normandy,    17    Henry    HL, 

he     passed     over    the    whole    of    his     lands    in    England  §    for 

seven    years    to    Peter     de     Rupibus,     Bishop    of    Winchester, 

together  with  the  guardianship  of   Philip,    his   son  and  heir,  to 

marry  him    where    he    should   think   fit   without    disparagement. 

Whereupon,  the  Bishop,  with  the  consent  of  the  same  Robert 

and    Philip,    made    an    assignation    thereon    unto    William     de 
Cantilupe,i|    Sheriff  for  the  Counties  of  Warwick  and  Leicester. 

He  died,   25    Henry  HL,   anno    1241.^ 


■'-   Dugdale's    Warmckshi re ,  Vol.   II.,   p.   8i8. 
f-Pat.   5.      Hen.   III.  m.   8. 
X  Claus   5.      Hen.  III.   m.    19. 
§  Cart.   17.      Hen.   III.   m.   2. 

Cart.   24.      Hen.    III.    m.   4  :    and,   Testa  de  Nei'ill,  p.    106.  n.   472  ;    and    p.    144. 
n.   626. 

^  Matth.  of  Westmin.   in   an.    1241. 


40  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

The  last  of  the  Marmions,  the  son  of  Sir  Robert  the 
Elder,  and  the  most  famous  of  all,  was  that  Sir  Philip 
de  Marmion  who  was  a  leading  figure  both  as  statesman 
and  warrior  in  the  stormv  davs  of  Henry  III.  Sir  Philip 
received  as  a  reward  for  his  services  after  the  battle  of 
Evesham  a  grant  of  all  the  demesnes  in  Tamworth  together 
with  the  governorship  of  Kenilworth  Castle,  with  lands  in 
Nottingham,  Derby,  Warwick,  Lincoln,  and  Leicester.  Thus 
the  family  was  rich  and  powerful.  They  held  numerous 
estates  in  other  counties  and  possessed  property  in  other  parts 
of  Lincolnshire,  but,  as  regards  the  Championship,  the  Caput 
Baroniae  *  and  the  fons  honoris  were  at  Scrivelsby :  and  to 
the  present  dav  even  though  the  duties  of  the  Championship 
have  been  allowed  to  fall  into  disuse,  the  courtesy-title  of 
Champion  is  given,  and  will  doubtless  continue  to  be  given  to 
the  owner  of  Scrivelsby  Manor,  whoever  he  may  happen  to  be. 

On  the  death  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion,  without  male    issue, 
his  estates    were    divided    between    his    four    co-heiresses, t    the 


■"  Several  baronies  or  parts  of  baronies  might  be  vested  in  one  person  (Madox's 
Baronia  An^lica,  p.  33).  In  each  barony  there  would  be  a  chief  place,  generally, 
but  not  always,  a  Castle,  which  was  called  Caput  baronia-.  The  caput  of  the  Marmion's 
Staffordshire  barony  was  Tamworth  Castle  :  the  caput  of  the  Lincolnshire  barony 
was  Scrivelsbv,  which  as  carrying  with  it  the  Championship  was  also  the  chief 
fom  or  caput  honoris.  When,  upon  the  death  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion,  his  eldest 
daughter  took  Tamworth  Castle  and  the  estates  in  Staffordshire  as  her  portion, 
the  particular  tenure,  on  which  Scrivelsby  was  held,  was  probably  overlooked, 
and  so  occasion  was  given  for  the  subsequent  controversy  that  arose  as  to  the 
"  nidus  "  of  the   Championship. 

t  Strictly  speaking,  according  to  the  old  feudal  law,  a  barony  could  not  be 
divided.      The  exception   was  when   it  descended  to  heiresses,  in  which  case  it  had  to 


THE    MARMIOXS.  4  I 

two  with  whom  we  have  to  do  being  Margaret  and  Jane  or 
Joan,  a  child  of  eight  at  her  father's  death.  The  elder  of 
these  two,  Margaret,  or  Mazera  as  she  is  sometimes  styled  in 
the  old  charters,  was  Sir  Philip's  second  daughter,  but  upon 
the  death  without  issue  of  her  eldest  sister  Joan  who  was 
married  to  William  Mortein,  she  inherited  Tamworth  and 
the  estates  in  Staffordshire.  She  was  already  married  to 
Ralph  Croumbwell  or  Cromwell,  and  their  daughter  Jane 
became  the  wife  of  Alexander  Freville,  and  was  the  ancestress 
of  that  Sir  Baldwin  Freville  of  whose  claim  to  the 
Championship  we   shall   presently   hear.* 

Jane  or  Joan,  the  youngest  of  Sir  Philip's  four  daughters 
to  whom  Scrivelsby  and  the  Lincolnshire  estates  had  fallen, 
became  the  wife  of  Sir  Thomas  Ludlow  and  the  mother  of 
Thomas  de  Ludlow,  who  predeceased  her,  leaving  a  daughter 
Margaret,  who  subsequently  became  the  wife  of  Sir  John 
Dvmoke.t  Upon  the  death  of  her  first  husband,  Sir  Thomas 
Ludlow,  the  Lady  Jane  became  the  wife  of  Sir  Henry  Hillary, 
who  survived  her,   and  was  allowed  to  retain  possession  of  the 


be  divided  equallv  between  them,  the  eldest  daughter  being  entitled  to  the  chief  seat 
of  the  baronv,  bv  reason  of  her  eldership.  The  part  of  each  heiress,  before  partition 
made,  was  called  her  rationabilis  pars  of  such  a  barony.  It  was  also  called  Propo.rs  a 
Purpart  (see  Madox's  Baionia  Afiglica,  p.  42).  Of  Sir  Philip's  four  daughters  the 
eldest  and  the  voungest  were  bv  different  mothers  and  each  had  the  same  name. 

■~"  The  Frevilles  had  large  possessions  in  Cambridgeshire.      The  Church  of  Little 
Shelford   in  that  county  is  full  of  interesting  memorials  of  the  family. 

t  The  old   Ballad  which  will  be  found    in    the    Appendix    (Xo.    i)    gives   a   good 
account    of  the    union    of  the   Marmions    and    Dymokes   through    the  marriage  of  Sir 
John  Dvmoke  and  Margaret  Ludlow. 
G 


42  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

family  estates,*  with  the  title  of  Champion,  until  his  death  in 
1350,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  the  Lady  Margaret  Ludlow, 
mentioned  above,  who  married  Sir  John  Dymoke  and  was  the 
ancestress  of  the  family  that  for  more  than  five  centuries  has 
dwelt  uninterruptedly  at  Scrivelsby. 

It  is  often  said  by  people,  boasting  of  the  antiquity  of 
their  familv,  that  their  forefathers  came  over  with  William  the 
Conqueror,  but  it  is  not  often  that  their  claims  will  bear 
investigation.  Few,  indeed,  even  of  our  best  families,  can 
trace  their  lineage  so  far  back  and. with  such  certainty  as  the 
Dymokes  of  Scrivelsby.  The  present  Champion  is  a  lineal 
descendant  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion,  through  the  lady  whose 
marriage  with  the  Gloucestershire  knight  in  the  days  of 
Edward  IIL  is  the  link  that  connects  the  houses  of  Dymoke 
and  Marmion  :  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  Sir  Philip  Marmion 
was  directly  descended  from  the  great  Robert  Dispensator, 
who  accompanied  William  of  Normandy  in  his  descent  upon 
England   in  the   year   1066. 


'-  Sir  Henry  Hillary  appears  to  have  twice  exercised  the  right  of  patronage  to 
the  Rectory  of  Scrivelsby,  once  in  1324,  in  concert  with  his  wife,  who  is  styled  the 
Lady  Johan,  and  again  in  1325,  when  he  presented  in  his  own  right,  and  is 
on  the  occasion  ingloriously  deprived  of  his  initial  letter,  the  appointment  of  the 
new  Rector   being  recorded  as  due  to   "Sir  Henry   lUary,  Kt."! 


CHAPTER   V. 

The  Early  Dymokes — Derivation  of  Name — Totemism — Rebus  on  Lion 
Qate — Canting  Mottoes — Sir  Baldivin  Freville — An  Imperious 
Dame — The  Sockburn  Dragon. 


Dim  with  the  mist  of  years 
Gray  flits  the  shade  of  power. 

Byrox. 


H  E  family  name  of  Dymoke  has  undergone 
the  usual  fate  of  most  old  historical  names 
bv  being  spelt  differently  at  different  times. 
The  most  common  form,  however,  is  Dymoke, 
as  it  appears  in  the  present  day.  The  first  page  in  the 
old  Scrivelsby  Registers  contains  an  entry  recording  the 
marriage  of  Mrs.  Frances  Dymoke*  in  1565  to  Mr.  Thomas 
Winderbanke.  Other  forms  of  the  name  occasionally  appear 
as  Dimmock,  Dymock,  Dymocke,  Dymok,  Dimok,  Demoke, 
and  Demok. 

According  to  the  generally  accepted  theory,  the  name  is 
derived  from  the  manor  of  Dimmok  in  Gloucestershire,  the 
original  seat  of  the  familv,  before  they  took  up  their  abode  in 


■"■  This  lady  was  the  daughter  of  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (i). 


44  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  more  congenial  home  of  Scrivelsby.  This  may  possibly 
be  a  true  explanation  of  the  name,  but  it  is  also  possible  to 
go  still  further  back,  and  to  suggest  that  the  Gloucestershire 
manor  was  itself  called  after  the  family  which  settled  there, 
and  which,  m  accordance  with  the  ancient  belief  in  Totemism, 
derived  its  distinctive  appellation  from  the  oak  tree  from 
which  it  may  be  supposed  the  Dymokes  believed  themselves 
to  have  originally  sprung. 

This  belief  in  Totemism,  which  consists  in  the  supposition 
that  each  family  is  descended  from  a  particular  plant  or 
animal,  is  very  ancient  and  widely  spread.*  Many  of  our 
old  Saxon  families  can  distinctly  trace  the  origin  of  their 
names  in  this  way,  the  separate  clans  being  distinguished  from 
each  other  by  their  respective  totems,  which  were  consequently 
held  in  special  veneration  as  the  guardian  spirits  of  the 
family,  the  members  of  which  would  generally  refuse  to  pluck 
the  plant  or  kill  the  animal  after  which  they  w^ere  named. 
Thus  we  find  the  Heartings  or  sons  of  the  hart  :  the  Wylfings 
or  sons  of  the  wolf  :  and  the  Thornings  or  sons  of  the  thorn. 
Places  too  were  often  named  after  some  plant  or  animal  :  as, 
for  instance,  Oakington  from  the  oak  tree,  Horsington  from 
the  horse,  and  Wormingford  from  the  serpent  or  wyrm.  The 
suggestion  that  in  the  same  wav  the  Dvmokes  derived  their 
name  from  the  oak  tree  is  not  advanced  without  some  reasons 
that  go  far  to  support  it. 


See  Anjilo  Saxon  Britain,  p.  80,  by  Grant   Allen.     S.P.C.K. 


THE    EARLY    DYMOKES.  45 

The  visitor,  who  keeps  his  eyes  open,  on  entering 
Scrivelsbv  Park,  will  notice  on  the  right  hand  side  of  the 
Lion  Gateway,  a  rude  delineation  of  an  oak  tree — the  rebus 
of  Sir  Robert  Dvmoke,  whose  name  appears  below — the  letter 
Y  being  apparently  formed  by  the  stem  of  the  tree.  Again,  as 
an  additional  support  to  the  oak-tree  theory,  attention  may 
be  called  to  the  words  de  iimbrosd  quercu  which  are 
appended  to  the  name  of  "  Dimoak  now  Dimmock"  in 
Wright's  Court  hand  (p.  48,  6th  Ed.,  1822)  in  the  list 
of  ancient  surnames  as  they  were  written  in  old  deeds, 
records,  and  charters. 

The  family  motto  pro  rege  dimico  which  was  probably 
assumed  long  after  the  establishment  of  the  Dymokes  at 
Scrivelsby,  and  in  evident  allusion  to  their  duty  as  Champions, 
is  a  good  instance  of  what  are  called  canting  mottoes,* 

Sir  John  Dymoke,  who  married  the  Lady  Margaret  de 
Ludlow,  is  not  only  the  first  Dvmoke  who  settled  at 
Scrivelsby,  but  he  must  always  hold  a  conspicuous  place  in 
history  as  being  the  successful  competitor  for  the  Champion- 
ship in  his  famous  contest  with  Sir  Baldwin  Freville. 

So  much  has  been  already  said  of  the  four  daughters  and 
co-heiresses   of  Sir    Philip    Marmion,    that   it    will   be  sufficient 

■'-  Vcr  non  semper  viret  the  family  motto  of  the  Vernons,  Forte  scutum  ot  the 
Fortescues,  and  Conanti  dabitur  of  the  Conants  of  Rutland,  are  well  known  instances 
of  these  punning  mottoes.  Somewhat  akin  to  these  is  the  Rebus  by  which  names 
are  represented  by  figures  or  pictures.  Thus  at  Lincoln  College,  Oxford,  a  rebus  of 
Dr.  Beckington  represents  a  beacon  on  a  tun  or  barrel  :  and  at  Jesus  College, 
Cambridge,  a  Cock  standing  on  a  globe  does  duty  ibr  the  name  of  Dr.  Alcock,  the 
founder.      The  rebus  of  the  Dymokes  is  given  above. 


46  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

here  to  repeat  that  to  the  eldest  of  them  Tamworth  Castle 
with  its  appurtenances  was  allotted,  while  Joan,  the  youngest 
daughter,  inherited  the  manor  of  Scrivelsbv  and  the  estates  in 
Lincolnshire. 

There  had  long  been  a  smouldering  jealousy  between  the 
successors  of  these  two  sisters,  and  the  question  of  the 
Championship  caused  it  to  burst  into  flame.  The  time  had 
come  when  the  controversy  between  the  families  must  be 
broudit  to  an  issue.  The  coronation  of  Richard  II.  seemed 
to  offer  a  favourable  opportunity  for  securing  an  authoritative 
decision  as  to  their  respective  claims,  and,  by  mutual  consent, 
the  right  of  appearing  as  Champion  at  the  approaching 
coronation  of  the  grandson  of  the  reigning  king  formed  the 
subject  matter  of  the  appeal  which  was  to  be  submitted  to 
the  Court  of  Claims.  Each  claimant  had  apparently  a  strong 
case,  and  each  of  them  entertained  well-grounded  hopes  of  a 
favourable  result. 

Sir  Baldwin  Freville,  who  was  the  undoubted  represent- 
ative of  the  eldest  daughter  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion,  based  his 
pretensions  on  priority  of  birth  and  as  being  seized  of  the 
ownership  of  Tamworth  Castle.  He  also  pleaded  that  when 
his  ancestress  Margaret  (or  Mazera)  took  by  reason  of  her 
eldership,  on  the  death  of  her  sister  Joan,  the  most  important 
part  of  her  father's  patrimony,  she  took  with  it  that  which 
had  alwavs  been  deemed  the  chief  distinction  of  the  family — 
the  right  of  appearing  as  Champion  at  the  coronations  of  the 
sovereigns  of  England.     Against  all  this  Sir  John  Dymoke  had 


THE    EARLY    DYMOKES.  47 

nothing  to  allege  bevond  the  simple  fact  that  his  wife 
occupied  the  position  of  the  youngest  daughter  who  inherited 
Scrivelsbv  :  and  vet  this  was  sufficient  to  o^ive  him  the  victory.* 

The  controversy  was  a  repetition  of  the  old  fable  which 
enforces  the  wisdom  of  using  practical  methods  for  ensuring 
success,  instead  of  trusting  to  numberless  devices  by  which 
defeat  can  be  avoided.  And  even  as  Grimalkin  from  her 
coign  of  vantage  surveyed  the  discomfiture  of  the  fox,  in 
spite  of  his  many  devices,  so  did  the  wife  of  Sir  John 
Dymoke  learn  in  her  Lincolnshire  home  that  the  mere 
possession  of  the  manor  of  Scrivelsby  was  sufficient  to 
outweigh  the  formidable  claims  of  Sir  Baldwin   Freville. 

If  it  had  been  a  question  of  seniority.  Sir  Baldwin  must 
have  necessarily  succeeded  :  of  this  there  had  never  been  any 
doubt.  But  the  question  that  the  Court  of  Claims  had  to 
decide  turned  on  the  particular  tenure  on  which  the  respective 
lands  of  the  two  claimants  were  held,  and  to  which  estate  the 
Championship  was  attached.  The  result,  in  accordance  with 
the  general  expectation,  was  that  the  Championship  was 
attached  by  Knight  Serjeanty  to  the  manor  of  Scrivelsbv;  and 
as  this  manor  had  fallen  to  the  youngest  daughter  of  Sir 
Philip  Marmion,  it  was  declared  that  to  her  representative 
the  rights  of  the  Championship  belonged. t     Sir  John  Dymoke 


■"■  See  Appendix,  Xo.  i6. 

f  "The  adjudication  was  made  in  favour  of  Sir  John  Dymoke,  by  reason  that 
he  brought  forward  better  evidence  in  support  of  the  right  of  office  being  adjunct  to 
the    manor    of    Scrivelsbv    than    Freville    could    adduce    on    behalf   of   his    tenure    of 


48  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

accordingly  officiated  at  the  coronation  of  Richard  II.  as  his 
wife's  deputy,  and  from  that  time  forward  up  to  the  time  of 
George  IV.  in  1820  no  coronation  has  been  held  without 
the  appearance  of  a  Champion,  and  that  Champion  has  always 
been  a  Dymoke. 

With  the  exception  of  this  Sir  John,  we  know  but  little 
of  the  early  Dymokes  at  Scriyelsby,  and  still  less  of  their 
predecessors  in  their  old  Gloucestershire  home.  Indeed,  the 
first  two  Scriyelsby  Dymokes  are  so  oyershadowed  by  the 
imperious  Dame  who  was  wife  of  the  one  and  mother  of  the 
other,  that  after  the  contest  with  Sir  Baldwin  Freyille,  nothing 
is  recorded  of  either  of  them  beyond  the  bare  statement  that 
Sir  John  died  shortly  after  performing  the  duties  of  his  office  * 

Tamworth  Castle  :  and  moreover  because  as  it  is  reported  by  Speed  (p.  729) 
King  Edward  III.  and  his  son  the  black  Prince  had  often  been  heard  to  say 
that  the  inheritance  of  the  said  office  was  the  right  of  Sir  John  Dymoke." 
Banks.  The  decision,  however,  was  confined  to  the  special  occasion,  and  by 
using  the  words  salvo  jure  the  Court  plainlv  intimated  that  it  would  give  a 
dispassionate  consideration  to  any  further  arguments  that  might  hereafter  be 
advanced.  As  Sir  Baldwin  Freville  failed  to  take  advantage  of  this  open  door, 
the  Court  of  Claims  at  the  next  coronation  gave  a  definite  verdict  in  favour  of 
the    Dymokes. 

*  Banks  gives  the  following  account  from  an  old  Chronicle  respecting  a  part 
of  the  Champion's  proceedings  before  the  coronation  of  Richard  II.  :  "  In  the 
meane  time  Sir  John  Dimmocke  had  been  to  the  King's  armorie  and  stable, 
where  he  had  chosen  according  to  his  tenure,  the  best  armour,  save  one  :  and 
the  best  steed,  save  one:  so  that  the  said  John  Dimmocke  having  armed  himself, 
and  being  mounted  on  horsebacke,  came  to  the  Abbeie  gates,  with  two  riding 
before  liim,  the  one  carrying  his  speare,  and  the  other  his  shield,  staieing  there 
till  !Mass  should  be  ended.  But  the  Lord  Henrie  Percie,  Lord  Marshall, 
appointed  to  make  waie  before  the  King,  with  divers  others,  being  all  mounted 
on    great    horses,   came   to   the   Knight    and    told    him,   that    he    ought    not    to    come 


THE    EARLY    DYMOKES.  49 

as  his  mother's  deputy  at  the  coronation  of  Richard  II.,  and 
that  his  son  Thomas  officiated  at  two  coronations,  one  in  1399 
when  Henry  of  BoUngbroke  was  crowned,  and  again  in  141 3 
at  the  coronation  of  Henrv  V.  On  each  of  these  occasions 
Sir  Thomas  acted  on  behalf  of  his  mother,  who  must  have 
been  a  very  old  woman  at  the  time  of  her  death,  in  the 
glorious  year  of  Agincourt,  when  her  son  Sir  Thomas  had 
alreadv  attained  the  ripe  age  of  sixtv. 

This  lady  is  reported  to  have  had  a  strong  will  of  her 
own,  and,  on  the  death  of  her  husband  in  1381,  she  had  not 
the  least  thought  of  abdicating  in  favour  of  her  son,  or 
of  allowing  him  to  replace  her,  either  as  Champion  to  the 
King,  or  in  any  other  capacity.  To  use  a  Lincolnshire 
expression,  she  refused  to  take  her  slippers  off  before  she 
went  to  bed,  and  so  she  lived  and  died,  "within  her  little 
realm  supreme"  holding  the  reins  of  government  firmly  to  the 
end.  Had  she  lived  in  these  times,  when  "Women's  rights" 
is  one  of  the  questions  of  the  day,  she  would  doubtless  have 
disdained  the  vicarious  services  of  husband  and  son,  and 
would  have  donned  the  armour,  and  mounted  the  steed,  and 
thrown  down  the  gauntlet  in  her  own  person,  and  he  would 
have  been  a  brave  man  that  had  ventured  to  accept  her  gage. 

Of  the  next  Dymoke,  Sir  Philip,  who  acted  as  Champion 
to   Henry  VI,,  and  lived  long  enough  to  see  the  beginning  of 

at    that    time,   but  when    the   King    was   at    dinner,    and    therefore    it   should  be  good 
for    him     to     unarme    himself    for    awhile,    and     take     his    ease    and    rest,    till    the 
appointed   time  were  come  :    so    the    Knight    did,    as  the    Lord  Marshall  willed  him." 
H 


50  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF   THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  war  of  the  roses  which  was  destined  to  be  so  fatal  to    his 

son  and  successor,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  say  that  he  was  one 

of  those  happy  men  whose  history  expired  with  himself.       His 

record  must    have    been    good,  or   we   should  have  heard  of  it, 

for 

"  The  evil  that  men  do  lives  after  them, 
The    good   is   oft   interred  with  their  bones." 

But  although  Sir  Philip  himself  has  left  no   mark   of   personal 

identification,    bevond   the    one    official    ceremony   at   which   he 

took  part  at  the  coronation  of  the    Baby-king,    his   wife   shines 

with     a     reflected     light     in     connection     with     an     old     and 

interesting   legend.     This   lady   was   Joan,  the    daughter  of   Sir 

Christopher    Coniers,    Knight    of   Sockburn,    in    the    county    of 

Durham ;     and    through    her    we    become    acquainted    with    a 

ceremony  that  used  to  be  performed  by  her  father's  family    at 

the     Court    of    the    Bishops    of    Durham,    which    has    a    close 

resemblance  to  the  service   performed   by   her   husband   in   the 

King's  Court  at  Westminster. 

Noble   tells    us   that    "the    origin   of   this  was,  as  tradition 

relates,     that    one    of    the    Coniers'    slew     a    dragon,*     which 

devoured  men,  women,   and    children,   in    the    Palatinate. t      In 


'■'  In  confirmation  of  this  tradition,  the  tomb  of  the  great  ancestor  of  the 
Coniers',  in  Sockburn  Church,  has,  sculptured  upon  it,  a  dog  and  a  monstrous 
serpent   or  dragon,   Iving  at   the  feet  of  the  Knight,  whicii   he   is   said   to   have    i<illed. 

t  In  olden  times,  the  Bishops  of  Durham  were  temporal  princes  as  well  as 
ecclesiastical  rulers.  They  had  many  high  privileges.  The  County  of  Durham 
formed  one  of  the  three  great  English  Palatinates,  and  the  Bishop  was  placed 
at  its  head.  The  other  two  were  the  counties  of  Chester  and  Lancaster. 
In  these  Palatinates,  the  lord  or  Count  e.Kcrciscd  almost  royal  authority,  and 
enjoyed    an    absolutely    independent  jurisdiction. 


THE    EARLY    DYMOKES. 


51 


reward  for  this  prodigious  service,  the  Coniers'  were  appointed 
Champions  to  the  Bishops  of  Durham,  and  well  did  they 
deserve  this  honourable  post.  When  the  story  is  freed  from 
its  fabulous  embellishment,  it  appears  that  this  dragon  was 
nothing  more  than  a  ferocious  Danish  chieftain,  who  over-ran 
the  countrv,  literally  devouring  bv  his  sword  men,  women, 
and  children.  The  converting  the  Dane  into  a  dragon  is  very 
easily  accounted  for,  if  we  suppose  that  the  despoiler  bore  for 
his  standard  the  supposed  monster,  a  dragon." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Wars  of  the  Roses — Execution  of  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke — Battle 
of  Lose-coat  Field — Brass  in  Horncastle  Church—Sir  Robert 
Dymoke — Table  Monument. 


Somerset:    Let    him    that    is    no    coward,    nor    no    flatterer, 
But    dare    maintain    the    party    of   the    truth, 
Pluck    a    red    rose  from  off  this    thorn    with    me. 

Warwick  :    I    love    no   colours  :    and    without    all    colour 
Of  base    insinuating   flattery, 
I    pluck    this    white    rose    with    Plantagenet. 

Shakespeare. 

The   Gods 

Avenge     on    stony     hearts     a     fruitless    prayer 

For    mercy. 

TENwysox. 


N  the  death  of  Sir  Philip,  his  son  Thomas 
succeeded,  and  his  accession  to  the  Champion- 
ship gave  him  an  importance  which  was 
attended  with  fatal  consequences.  Had  he 
occupied  a  less  conspicuous  position,  he  would  probably 
have  escaped  the  fate  which  afterwards  overtook  him. 
He  was  not  only  the  King's  Champion,  but  he  was  connected 
by  marriage  with  the  powerful  family  of  Welles,  and, 
although    we    have    no    reason    for    thinking    that    Sir    Thomas 


.1     ^ 


/-I'l   >:f 


BRASS  TO   LIONEL  DYMOKE  IN    HORNCASTLE  CHURCH. 


THE    WARS    OF    THE    ROSES.  53 

Dymoke  was  likely  to  exercise  anv  predominant  influence  over 

the  course  of  events,  he  was  too  highly  placed  and  too  highly 

connected,  to  escape  the  perils  from   which  men  in  a  humbler 

sphere  would  be  exempt. 

"  The  mighty  pine  is  ever  most 
By    wild    winds   swayed   about   and   toss'd : 

With  most  disastrous   crash 
Fall  high-topp'd  towers,  and  ever,  where 
The  mountain's  summit  points  in  air, 
Do  bolted  lightnings  flash."  * 

In  the  history  of  this  Champion,  we  see  for  the  first  and 
only  time,  a  Knight  of  Scrivelsbv  laying  his  head  on  the 
fatal  block,  at  the  command  of  an  angry  King  who  could 
adduce  no  crime  on  the  part  of  his  victim  to  justifv  so  severe 
a  sentence.  But  the  wars  of  the  roses  had  bes^un,  and  no 
one's  life  was  safe.  Blood  was  shed  without  scruple  on  both 
sides.  Amongst  the  many  deeds  of  violence  of  which  but 
little  notice  was  taken  at  the  time,  the  fate  of  Sir  Thomas 
Dymoke  stands  out  a  conspicuous  instance  of  the  judicial 
murder  of  an  innocent  man,  without  any  .adequate  justification. 
It  is,  indeed,  almost  inconceivable  that  the  King's 
Champion  should  have  been  thus  sacrificed,  more  through 
caprice  and  momentary  indignation  at  the  insubordination  of 
another,  than  for  anv  overt  act  of  his  own.     It  is  true  that  everv 

""■  "  Sccpius  ventis  agitatur  ingens 
Pinus  :  et  celsas  graviore  casu 
Decidunt  turres :  feriuntque  summos 


Fulgura  montes. 


Horace. 


54  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

one,  at  the  time,  had  to  take  his  side  either  as  a  supporter  of 
the  house  of  York  or  of  the  house  of  Lancaster,  and  the 
sympathies  of  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke  were  on  the  side  of  the 
Lancastrian  King,  at  whose  Coronation  his  own  father  had 
acted  as  Champion.  Accordingly,  when  his  wife's  brother,  Sir 
Robert  Welles,  had  been  commissioned  by  the  Lancastrian 
leaders  to  raise  troops  in  Lincolnshire  on  behalf  of  Henry 
VL,  our  Champion  erected  his  standard  in  defence  of  the 
Lancastrian  King.  The  die  was  now  cast,  and  having  openly 
chosen  his  side.  Sir  Thomas  thenceforward  became  subject  to 
the  fortunes  of  war  :  and  had  he  been  slain  in  battle,  there 
would  have  been  no  cause  for  complaint.  But  he  was  put 
to  death  under  circumstances,  which,  even  at  the  present  day, 
excite  indignation  at  the  abuse  of  powxr  as  well  as  pity  for 
the  sufferer. 

It  came  about  in  this  way.  An  order  was  sent  by 
Edward  IV.  for  Lord  Welles,  the  father  of  Sir  Robert, 
and  the  Champion,  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke,  to  appear  before 
the  Council.  Instead  of  promptly  obeying  the  summons, 
thev  hesitated  for  a  time,  but  subsequently  went  to  London, 
when,  hearing  that  the  King  was  in  no  placable  mood, 
thev  fled  to  a  sanctuary,  and  only  left  it  on  receiving 
an  express  promise  of  pardon.  As  soon  as  they  had  presented 
themselves  at  the  Court,  Edward  received  them  graciously, 
but  insisted  that  Lord  Welles  should  exert  his  paternal 
authority,  to  induce  his  son  to  lay  down  his  arms  and  submit 
to    the    royal    mercy.       But    when    the     King     had     reached 


THE    WARS    OF    THE    ROSES.  55 

Stamford,  and  found  that  Sir  Robert  Welles  was  still  at  the 
head  of  his  troops,  he  ordered,  in  violation  of  his  promise, 
the  immediate  execution  of  Lord  Welles  and  Sir  Thomas 
Dymoke,  and  sent  a  second  summons  to  Sir  Thomas  Welles, 
who  replied  with  natural  indignation  that  "  he  would  never 
trust  to  the  perfidy  of  the  man  who  had  murdered  his 
father." 

A  battle  was  accordingly  fought  soon  afterwards  at 
Empingham,*  near  Stamford  ;  and  Sir  Robert  Welles,  being 
conquered  and  taken  prisoner,  was  beheaded,  a  few  hours  after 
his  father  and  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke  had  undergone  the  same 
fate,   at  Stamford. 

Deep  indeed  is  the  stain  left  on  the  character  of 
Edward  IV.,  by  this  wanton  exercise  of  irresponsible  power. 
But  the  deed  was  done  and  irreparable,  as  far  as  Sir  Thomas 
was  concerned  :  and  so,  the  King,  in  after  years,  did  everything 
in  his  power  to  make  atonement  for  his  cruelty  to  the  father 
by  heaping  honours  on  his  son.  This  we  shall  see  later  on, 
when  we  come  to  the  account  of  his  successor,  the  first  Sir 
Robert  Dvmoke. 


■•'*  The  battle  was  fought  at  Empingham.  Young  Welles  collected  30,000  men 
from  Lincoln  and  the  neighbourhood,  and  with  this  hastily-gathered  force  he 
encountered  the  well-seasoned  troops  of  the  Yorkist  King.  Xor  was  the  issue 
long  doubtful.  The  new  recruits  could  not  stand  before  the  trained  and 
experienced  soldiers  of  the  angrv  monarch,  and  seeing  many  of  their  leaders 
slain  and  the  danger  of  their  position,  thev  broke  and  fled  with  such  percipitation 
that  they  flung  aside  their  coats  to  enable  them  to  make  more  speed.  This 
skirmish    has    in    consequence    received    the    name    of  the    battle   of  lose-coat    field. 


56  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOiME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

The  eldest  son  of  the  murdered  Champion  was  Lionel, 
who  pre-deceased  his  father,  and  dving  in  15 19  was  buried  at 
Horncastle.  It  is  this  Lionel,  to  whose  memory  a  brass  was 
placed  in  St.  Mary's  Church,  and  which  still  exists,  though  in 
a  somewhat  dilapidated  condition.  There  was  also  a  large 
brass  on  the  pavement  of  the  north  aisle  at  its  eastern  end, 
beneath  which  he  was  presumably  buried,  but,  though  the 
matrix  of  the  brass  is  clearlv  discernible,  the  brass  itself 
has  disappeared,  with  the  exception  of  a  small  central 
ornament.  A  full  description  of  this  brass  will  be  found  in 
the  Appendix  (No.  3.)  A  daughter,  Alice,  who  survived 
her  father  Lionel,  became  the  wife  of  Sir  William  Skipworth, 
Knight  :  and  another  daughter  was  married  to  John  Goodrich 
of  Bolingbroke. 

To  go  back  to  the  victim  of  Edward  IV. — Sir  Thomas 
Dymoke, — we  are  told  by  Banks  that  through  his  marriage 
with  Margaret  the  second  daughter  and  subsequently  one 
of  the  co-heirs  of  Lionel  Lord  Welles,  bv  Joane  his  wife, 
daughter  and  heir  of  Sir  Robert  Waterton,  "  his  posterity 
have  a  co-inheritance  of  right  to  the  inheritance  of  the  barony 
of  Welles,  now  in  abeyance  :  with  this  peculiar  distinction, 
that  the  families  of  Dymoke  and  of  Willoughbv  Lord 
Middleton  are  the  only  two  representatives  in  the  male  line 
from  the  four  daughters  of  Lionel  Lord    Welles." 

Upon  the  death  of  Sir  Thomas,  his  son  Robert  was  only 
ten  years  old,  and  in  consequence  of  his  father's  tragic  end 
and  the  attainder  that  followed  as  a  necessary  consequence   of 


THE    WARS    OF    THE    ROSES.  57 

his    so-called    treason,    the    young    Champion    was    in    a  pitiful 

plight,    in    respect    to    his    future    position    and    fortune.      But 

Edward    IV.    whose    unjust    treatment  of  his  father  was  rather 

the   result    of  sudden   anger   than    of  anv  deep  conviction  that 

Sir    Thomas   Dymoke    had   committed    a    capital    crime,  was  so 

liberal  and  indulgent  to  the  orphan,  as  to  justify  the  suspicion 

that  he  wished  in  this  way  to  express  his  sorrow  for  the   rash 

act  into  which  he  had  been  betraved.      Accordingly  when  the 

young  Robert  came  of  age,  he  was  admitted  by  the  King  "to 

haye    liyery  of  all  his  inheritance,  as  well  those    lands   &c.    as 

were    descended    to    him    from    his    father,    as    of   those    other 

lands  &c.  which  had  deyolyed  upon    him    through    his  mother, 

the    co-heiress  of  Welles  and  Westerton,  without  any  account 

to    be    taken    either    as    to    their    yalue,    or    of    such    fine    as 

the     King    might    be    entitled    to    claim     as    due     to    him     on 

such    occasions."      (Prim.    Pat.    21    Ed.    IV.    n.    7   quoted   by 

Banks.) 

From  this  time  forward,  the  career  of  Sir  Robert  Dymoke, 

who  was  shortly  afterwards  appointed  a  Knight  Banneret,  was 

uniformly  successful.     He  liyed  in  fiye  reigns,  viz.,  in  those  of 

Edward    IV.,    Edward    V.,     Richard     III.,     Henry    VII.,     and 

Henry  VIII.,  and  acted  as  Champion  to  the  three  last  named 

sovereigns.     Henry  VIII.,  especially,  held  him  in  great  honour, 

and    at    Tournay    in     Flanders,     he     appears     as     the     King's 

Treasurer.      (See    Appendix    No.    5.)       LeJand,    the    antiquary, 

makes     mention     of     him      and      his     residence     as     follows  : 

"Dvmmok  dwelleth  at  Sckrettisbv,  two  miles  from  Horncastle. 
I 


58  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF   THE    CHAMPIONS. 

The  seat,  a  plain  building,  was  in  part  destroyed  by  fire  in 
the  last  century.  It  was  worthy  the  attention  of  the  curious. 
The  Hall  contained  the  arms  of  the  different  Champions  of 
England,  and  the  shields  of  those  sovereigns  at  whose 
coronation  they  had  officially  attended.  They  were  there 
also  complete  suits  of  armour  for  man  and  horse." 

This  Champion  died  in  1545  and  was  buried,  according 
to  Blinks^  at  Haltham.*  In  addition  to  his  son  Edward  who 
succeeded  him,  he  had  two  daughters,  the  younger  of  whom, 
Margaret,  was  married,  on  the  death  of  her  first  husband,  Sir 
Richard  Vernon,  to  Richard  Manners,  a  younger  son  of  George 
Manners,  Lord  Ross,  by  Ann,  sister  of  Edward  IV.,  and  aunt 
to  Elizabeth,  Queen  Consort  of  Edward  IV.  She  had  no 
issue  by  her  last  marriage,  but  it  is  singular  that  the  family 
of  Manners,  to  which  the  Dukedom  of  Rutland  is  attached, 
is  descended  from  an  elder  co-heir  of  her  first  husband.  Sir 
Richard  Vernon,  usually  called  the  Petty  King  of  the  Peak, 
in  consequence  of  his  having  no  less  than  thirty  manors  in 
that  part  of  Derbyshire. 

There  is  a  fine  table  monument  in  Scrivelsbv  Church  to 
this  Sir  Robert  Dymoke,  which  according  to  Banks  and  others 


■^  The  following  extract  is  taken  from  the  will  of  "Robert  Dimock  Knt.  of 
Scrivelsbv,"  and  is  dated  1543  : — "I  desire  my  son  Edward  Dimoke  to  appoint  2 
discrete  and  honest  priests  and  one  poore  man  for  5  years  to  sa}-  masse  daylie  in 
the  Parish  Church  of  Scrivelsbv,  and  the  poore  man  to  help,  and  pray  for  the  souls 
of  me  Robert  Dimoke  and  Anne  my  wife,  and  of  Thomas  Dimoke  and  Margaret  my 
father  and  mother "  (at  Somerset  House). 


THE    WARS    OF    THE    ROSES.  59 

was   once    at    Haltham,   containing  the  following  inscription  on 
a  well-cut  brass  : — 

"  Here    liethe    the    Bodv    of    Sir    Robert    Demoke    of 

Screvelsbv   knightXbaronet   who    departed    owt   of   this 

present    Ivfe    the  XV  day  of   April  in  ye  yere  of  our 

lord   god    MDXLV.    upon   whose    sowle   almighte    god 

have  m'ci  Amen." 

It  is  startling  to  see  the  title  of   Baronet  given  to  a  man 

who    died    in    1545,    whereas    it    is   well-known    that    Baronets 

were    first    appointed    by   James    I.,  shortly   after   his   accession 

in    1603.      The  word,    of  course,  should  be  Banneret,    and  we 

know     that    Sir    Robert    Dymoke     was     appointed    a     knight 

Banneret,     soon    after    attaining    his     majority.       It    was    this 

Sir  Robert  whose  rebus   appears   on   the  Lion  gateway,  at  the 

entrance  of   Scrivelsby  Park. 

With  regard  to  this  table  monument,  it  has  always  been 
supposed  that,  as  Sir  Robert  was  buried  at  Haltham,  his 
monument  was  originally  placed  in  Haltham  Church :  but 
there  is  no  trustworthy  information  to  be  obtained  on  the 
subject.  The  burial  took  place  before  the  days  of  registers, 
and  although  the  Haltham  Registers  go  back  to  1561,  no 
help  is  to  be  obtained  from  that  quarter.  Assuming  that  the 
burial  took  place  at  Haltham,  which  is  bv  no  means  unlikely, 
there  are  two  possible  explanations  to  account  for  the  exist- 
ence of  the  monument  in  Scrivelsbv  Church.  Scrivelsby 
being  the  caput  baroniae  would  be  the  natural  place  for  such 
a    memorial,    and    as  it  is   probable,  from    the    curious   blunder 


60  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS, 


on  the  inscription,  that  the  tomb  in  question  was  erected 
several  vears  after  Sir  Robert's  death,  it  is  not  at  all  unlikely 
that  Scrivelsby  Church  was  considered  the  fitting  place  for 
its  reception,  although  the  interment  had  taken  place  at 
Haltham. 

Another  plausible  conjecture  is  that  not  only  did  the 
burial  take  place  at  Haltham,  but  that  the  monument  also 
was  placed  there.  But  as  Scrivelsby  is  the  centre  of  a 
cluster  of  villages,  all  of  them  at  one  time  belonging  to  the 
Champions,  and  as  it  was  usual  for  the  second  son  of  the 
familv  to  take  Holy  Orders  and  to  hold  the  family  livings — 
sometimes  three  or  four  at  a  time — it  is  not  uncharitable  to 
suppose  thot  a  clerical  member  of  the  family,  finding  himself 
at  the  same  time  Rector  of  Haltham  and  Scrivelsbv,  quietly 
removed  from  the  former  village  a  handsome  monument 
which  he  thought  more  suitable  for  the  central  church  of  the 
parish  in  which  the  family  dwelt.  After  all,  it  is  quite  as 
likely  that  a  mistake  has  been  made  with  regard  to  Haltham, 
bv  some  old  writer,  and  that  the  mistake  has  been  so  often 
copied  by  later  generations  as  to  have  acquired  an  air  of 
truthfulness.  And  if  Sir  Robert  died  and  was  buried  at 
Scrivelsbv  there  would  have  been  nothino;  to  cause  a  flutter 
in  the  breast  of  the  curious  antiquarian,*  Amidst  so  much 
uncertainty  it  is  well  to  have  one  piece  of  solid  ground  to 
stand    upon,   and    the    present    Rector    has    secured    this    stable 

*^  See  ApjKMidix  (No.  4)  for  additio:i;il  evidence  lately  discovered. 


THE    WARS    OF    THE    ROSES 


6i 


footing.  He  found  the  monument  at  Scrivelsby,  and,  without 
being  too  curious  as  to  how  it  got  there,  he  means  to  keep 
it,  until  otherwise  directed  bv  competent  authority.  Here  it 
is  :    here  it  shall  remain. 


CHAPTER    VII. 


The  Lincolnshire  Insurrection  and  Pilgrifnagc  of  Grace — Rising  of  the 
Peasants — Perplexity  of  the  Gentry — Bad  Faith  of  the  King — 
Family  of  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (i). 

"The  ancient  heroes  were  illustrious 
For  being  benign,  and  never  blust'rous 
Against  a  vanquish'd  foe  :    their  swords 
Were  sharp  and  trenchant — not  their  words." 

BlTTLER. 


(N  the  death  of  Sir  Robert,  at  the  age  of  73, 
his  son  Edward  succeeded,  and  performed  the 
office  of  Champion  at  the  coronation  of  tliree 
successive  sovereigns,  Edward  VI.,  Mary,  and 
but  he  had  been  a  conspicuous  figure  even  in  his 
father's  lifetime,  and  had  been  in  some  danger  of  sharing  the 
fate  of  his  grandfather,  along  with  many  others,  who  for 
one  cause  or  another,  had  incurred  the  resentment  of 
Henry  VIII. 

The  times  were  "out  of  joint"  when  Edward  Dymoke, 
the  eldest  son  of  the  Champion,  was  Sheriff  of  the  County. 
The  office  in  those  davs  was  no  sinecure.  The  Sheriff  was 
responsible   for   the    preservation   of  order,    and   was   entrusted 


Elizabeth 


THE    LINXOLNSHIRE    INSURRECTION.  63 

with  adequate  powers  for  securing  it.  Everyone,  moreover, 
with  a  grievance  to  be  redressed,  or  a  favour  to  ask,  would 
go  to  the  sheriff,  as  the  natural  intermediary  between  the 
government  and  the  people.  Even  in  quiet  times,  the  sheriff 
had  plenty  of  business  on  his  hands,  but  when  social  troubles 
were  rife,  and  the  political  horizon  was  overcast,  his  respon- 
sibilities were  greatly  increased.  And  this  was  the  position  in 
which  Edward  Dymoke  found  himself,  when  he  entered  upon 
the  duties  of  his  ofhce  in  the  vear   1536. 

Henry  VIII.  had  been  on  the  throne  for  more  than  a 
quarter  of  a  century,  and  there  was  no  longer  any  doubt  as 
to  the  nature  of  his  rule.  The  days  of  expectation  were  past  : 
the  conviction  was  brought  home  to  the  minds  of  his  subjects, 
by  many  clear  tokens,  that  the  hopes,  in  which  they  had 
indulged,  on  his  first  accession,  were  not  destined  to  be 
fulfilled.  The  rich  and  powerful  were  the  first  to  suffer  from 
the  masterful  government  of  the  King.  The  time  was  come 
for  the  poor  to  undergo  a  similar  experience  ;  and  it  is  not 
surprising  that  they  were  less  disposed  to  be  submissive  than 
the  great  nobles,  who  had  felt  the  glamour  of  the  King's 
personal  ascendancy.  The  immediate  cause  of  complaint, 
indeed,  was  one  that  affected  all  classes  indiscriminatelv,  but 
to  the  poor  man  it  seemed  to  involve  the  loss  of  everything 
he  held  most  dear. 

Henry,  with  the  assistance  of  his  zealous  Vicar-General, 
had  already  made  a  beginning  of  carrying  out  his  arbitrarv 
project     of     suppressing     the     greater     monasteries,      and     of 


64  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

confiscatins:  the  revenues  with  which  thev  had  been  richly 
endowed.  And  it  was  evident  that  the  lesser  monasteries 
would  soon  share  the  same  fate.  The  peasantry  were  unable 
to  draw  fine  distinctions  between  an  impartial  investigation 
into  the  existence  of  supposed  abuses,  and  the  infliction  of 
punishment  for  evil  practices,  of  which  they  had  no  suspicion. 
Thev  only  saw  the  results  ;  and  these  seemed  to  be  always 
the  same,  under  circumstances  however  different.  They 
realized  the  certain  consequences  to  themselves,  and  were 
prepared  to  use  every  possible  means  for  protecting  their 
own  interests.  They  viewed  with  indignation  the  impending 
ruin  of  the  religious  houses,  which  thev  had  always  held  in 
the  highest  reverence  :  they  heard  of  monks,  elsew^here, 
expelled  from  their  homes,  and  exposed  to  the  horrors  of 
starvation  :  and  thev  looked  forward  with  well-founded 
apprehension  to  the  prospect  of  losing  the  charitable  doles, 
which  had  always  been  liberally  supplied  by  the  Monasteries, 
and  to  which  the  poor  people  had  learned  to  think  they  had 
an  inalienable  right. 

The  rustics  of  Lincolnshire  were  especially  alive  to  the 
danger,  for  there  were  many  of  these  religious  houses  in  the 
county,  not  a  few  of  them  being  within  a  few  miles  of  the 
Sheriff's  residence.  Barlings,  Kirkstead,  Tupholme,  and 
Bardney,  all  close  at  hand,  were  threatened  :  and  while  the 
higher  dignitaries  of  these  establishments  were  held  in 
universal  veneration,  moving  on  terms  of  intimacy  with  the 
aristocracy  of  the  district,  the  monks  and  poorer  brethren  were 


THE    LINCOLNSHIRE    INSURRECTION.  65 

always  sure  of  a  ready  welcome,  whenever  they  visited  the 
houses  of  the  farmers  and  of  the  labourers  who  tilled  the  soil. 
Under  these  circumstances  it  needed  but  little  to  fan  into  a 
blaze  the  smouldering  discontent  which  was  general  throughout 
the  Kingdom,  but  was  more  openly  expressed  in  the  Counties 
of  Lincoln  and  York.  The  men  of  Lincolnshire  were  the 
first  to  rise,  and  under  the  guidance  of  the  Abbot  of 
Barlings,  who  had  assumed  the  name  of  Captain  Cobbler,  thev 
unfurled  the  flag  of  rebellion,  and  boldly  demanded  a  redress 
of  their  grievances. 

This  Lincolnshire  Insurrection  paved  the  way  for  the 
more  formidable  movement  better  known  as  the  Pilgrimage 
of  Grace,  but,  notwithstanding  the  King's  contemptuous 
expressions,  it  was  a  sufhcientlv  unwelcome  revelation  to  him 
of  the  temper  of  the  people  with  whom  he  had  to  deal,  and 
of  the  necessitv  of  emploving  greater  caution  in  carrying  out 
his  plans.*  It  is  no  part  of  our  task  to  describe  the  details 
of  this  insurrection.  It  will  be  suflScient  to  sav  that  the 
peasants,  who  were  terriblv  in  earnest,  compelled  bv  sheer 
force  the  leading  gentry  to  take  part  in  the  movement  ;  and  if 
the  condition  of  affairs  had  been  less  serious,  we,  who  have 
been  spared  a  similar  experience,  might  have  derived  much 
amusement  at  witnessing  the  shifts  and  evasions  of  the  countv 
magnates,     who,     while     feeling    a    deep    svmpathy    with    the 

■"■  In  a  little  work  entitled  "  Dorothy  Dymoke,"  lately  published  by  a  Lincolnshire 
man,    the    Rev.    Edward   Gilliat,    an    interesting    and    vivid    account    is    given   of  the 
Lincolnshire  InsuiTection. 
J 


66  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

sufferings  of  the  poor,  were  only  too  conscious  of  their  own 
inabihty  to  render  them  any  effectual  aid.  They  knew,  better 
than  the  peasants  who  looked  to  them  for  guidance,  that  the 
resources  of  the  King  were  far  greater  than  any  they  could 
hope  to  bring  against  him.  They  were  painfully  aware  that 
the  bond  of  union  between  themselves  was  not  so  strong  as 
that  which  existed  between  the  rustics  who  were  more 
immediately  concerned  in  the  rising:  and  knowing,  moreover, 
the  vindictive  character  of  the  monarch  against  whom  the 
movement  was  directed,  the  gentry  of  Lincolnshire  were  not 
a  little  alarmed  at  the  prospect  of  falling  into  his  hands. 
They  were  between  two  fires.  In  their  front  was  an  angry 
mob,  proving  by  many  a  deed  of  violence,  and  notably  by 
the  murder  of  the  Chancellor  of  Lincoln  on  Roughton  Moor, 
that  they  would  brook  no  evasion  on  the  part  of  those  whom 
thev  regarded  as  their  natural  leaders  :  and  behind  them  was 
the  King  threatening  the  gallows  and  the  block  against  all 
who  ventured  to  resist  him  :  and  thev  had  abundant  reason 
for  believing  that  he  would  be  as  good  as  his  word, 
when  once  he  recovered  his  freedom  of  action  and  could 
wreak    vengeance   on  his  opponents. 

The  position  of  the  Champion,  Sir  Robert  Dymoke,  was 
peculiarly  trying.  He  was  well  stricken  in  years,  and  in 
feeble  health  :  his  sympathy  was  powerfully  enlisted  on  the 
side  of  his  poor  neighbours  :  and  yet  he  was,  or  had  been, 
on  terms  of  unusual  intimacy  with  the  King,  who  had  the 
gracious    art   of    attracting    to    himself  those  who   enjoyed  the 


THE    LINCOLNSHIRE    INSl'RRECTION,  67 

dangerous  privilege  of  his  friendship.  No  wonder  that  Sir 
Robert  pleaded  his  age  and  infirmities,  and  left  to  his  son 
Edward  the  difficult  task  of  reconciling  the  conflicting  claims 
of  the  King  and  his  subjects.  And  it  speaks  well  for  the 
discretion  of  the  Sheriff,  that  in  those  dangerous  times  he 
kept  his  head  on  his  shoulders,  and  lived  to  act  as  Champion 
to   Henry's   three    children. 

It  was  on  the  occasion  of  this  Lincolnshire  Insurrection, 
that  Henrv  VIII.  used  the  scurrilous  words  respecting  the 
Countv  of  Lincoln,  of  which  so  much  has  been  made  bv  late 
writers.  In  spite,  however,  of  his  unkingly  gibes,  there  is 
no  doubt  that  Henrv  was  seriously  alarmed  at  the  formidable 
dimensions  which  the  movement  had  assumed  ;  and,  with  the 
object  of  arresting  its  further  progress,  he  condescended  to 
adopt  the  same  tactics  as  those  by  which  the  insurrection  of 
Wat  Tvler  had  been  suppressed  in  the  time  of  Richard  II. 
Lavish  promises  were  made  :  the  royal  word  was  pledged  : 
a  free  pardon  was  assured  to  the  leaders  of  the  insurrection  ; 
but  no  sooner  did  thev  lav  down  their  arms,  than  the 
promises  were  forgotten,  and  many  of  the  poor  dupes  were 
unjustlv  executed.  The  same  duplicity  was  exhibited  later  on, 
when  Aske  and  others  suffered  for  the  part  they  had  taken 
in   the   Pilgrimage   of   Grace. 

The  character  of  Henrv  VIII.  must  always  be  an 
interesting  study,  but  it  is  a  forlorn  hope  to  expect  general 
assent  to  be  given  to  the  views  of  those,  who,  while 
extenuating  the   King's  faults,   would   fain  have   us   regard   him 


68  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

not  only  as  a  great  monarch,  but  a  model  statesman,  and  a 
wise  and  enlightened  ruler.  It  is  unfortunate  that  this 
estimate  is  not  supported  by  sufficient  evidence  to  justify  it, 
and  can  only  be  accepted  by  those  who  are  content  to  exclude 
everything   that   tells   against   a   foregone   conclusion. 

It  mav  be  readily  granted  that  Henry  VIII.  was 
intellectually  strong  :  he  was  an  able  and  adroit  diplomatist  ■ 
few  rulers  surpassed  him  in  sagacity,  and  none  in  the 
unscrupulous  adaptation  of  means  to  ends  :  but  there  was  a 
fatal  element  in  his  character,  which  spread  like  a  blight, 
tainting  the  good  qualities  of  which  he  had  received  from 
nature  a  bountiful  supply.  He  was  intensely  selfish,  and 
claiming  to  be  above  the  law,  he  carried  even  into  private 
life  the  spirit  of  the  French  King's  apothegm,*  and  so  he 
came,  gradually,  but  surely,  to  regard  himself  as  the  pivot 
round  which  all  things  in  heaven  and  earth  must  turn.  Such 
a  man  is  tolerably  sure  to  be  taken  by  the  multitude  at  his 
owm  valuation,  and  there  is — it  must  be  owned — a  certain 
kind  of  fascination  in  watching  the  efforts  of  a  strong  man, 
striving  to  bend  everything  to  his  own  iron  will.  But  right 
and  wrong  are  not  interchangeable  terms  :  and  we  can  only 
apply  to  the  King  the  same  standard  as  that  by  which 
ordinary  mortals  are  measured.     No  man  who  is  wholly  selfish 

can  be   really  great  :   and,  measured  by  this  rule,  Henry  VIII. 

^  In  these  days  the  most  absolute  ruler  would  scarcely  venture  to  say  letot 
c'est  vioi,  but  in  the  17th  century,  and  from  the  lips  of  Louis  XIV.,  the  words  are 
little   more   than   the   exaggerated   statement   of  a   fact. 


^'m^ 


ARMED   FIGURES   IN    SCRIVELSBY  COURT. 


THE    LINCOLNSHIRE    INSURRECTION.  69 

is  not  entitled  to  the  admiration  of  mankind.  On  the 
contrary  we  regard  him  as  a  conspicuous  instance  of  perverted 
gifts  :  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  of  his  reign,  there 
is  in  his  character  a  noticeable  decHne  in  conscientiousness 
and  self-restraint  :  and  a  King  who,  with  his  many  advantages 
- — natural  and  acquired — might  have  been  a  "  dear  son  of 
memory"  and  a  "great  heir  of  fame"  must  be  regarded  as 
a  man  ignobly  bent  on  using  place  and  power  for  himself 
alone,  and  ruthlessly  sweeping  out  of  his  path  every  obstacle 
that  interfered  with  his  interests  or  his  pleasure.  Confining 
our  attention  to  the  matter  before  us — the  methods  employed 
by  this  powerful  King  in  his  dealings  with  the  Lincolnshire 
peasants — we  can  only  pronounce  him  a  blusterer,  who  began 
bv  reviling,  and  ended  bv  betraying  the  unfortunate  men  who 
trusted  to   the   roval   word,    and  found  their  trust  misplaced. 

It  was  in  the  reign  of  Mary,  that  Sir  Edward  Dymoke, 
who  was  knighted  soon  after  the  death  of  his  father,  appears 
to  have  reached  the  zenith  of  his  fame,  and  it  is  to  him  that 
was  addressed  the  curious  letter  which  will  be  found  in  the 
Appendix  (No.  6.) 

Some  doubt  exists  as  to  the  marriages  contracted  bv  Sir 
Edward  Dymoke  (i.)  There  is  a  consensus  of  opinion  that 
he  married  Ann  the  daughter  of  Sir  George  Talbois,*  but  as 
it    is    also     said    that    he    married    a    daughter    of    Sir    John 

~"  The  Manor  of  Kyme  passed  to  the  Dymokes,  by  the  marriage  of  Sir 
Edward  Dymoke  with  Anne,  the  fifth  daughter  of  Sir  George  Talboys,  and 
Elizabeth  his  wife.  The  Dymokes  continued  to  reside  at  Kyme  until  the  close  of 
the    i8th   century.     (Bp.   of  Nottingham's    Sleaford  p.    254). 


JO  SCRIV'ELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

Monson,*  it  is  possible  that  he  was  twice  married,  and  as 
there  was  no  issue  bv  the  second,  the  name  of  Ann  Monson 
was  allowed  to  drop  out  of  the  genealogical  tables.  It  is  not 
a  matter  of  anv  great  importance,  except  as  a  proof  of  the 
intimacy  that  undeniably  existed  between  the  old  house  of 
Dvmoke  and  the  ancestors  of  the  present  Viscount  Oxenbridge. 
At  anv  rate,  bv  his  wife  Ann  the  daughter  of  Sir  George 
Talbois,  Sir  Edward  had  ten  children, t  three  sons  and  seven 
daughters,  a  much  larger  number  than  generally  fell  to  the 
Dvmoke  familv.  Of  these  ten  children,  Robert  succeeded  to 
the  Championship,  but  was  never  called  upon  to  exercise  the 
duties  of  his  office  ;  Charles  seems  to  have  been  knighted,  and 
died    in    1611.J      Edward  also  was  knighted,  and   died  in   1614 

~"  Collins' s  Peerage,  under  the  article,  entitled  "Monson."  In  all  probability 
Collins  has  made  the  mistake  of  assigning  to  the  first  Sir  Edward  a  matrimonial 
alliance   which    was   contracted    by    the    second    Sir  Edward    Dymoke. 

f  There  is  a  tradition  that  a  certain  Thomas  Dymoke,  presumably  connected 
with  a  collateral  branch  of  Sir  Edward's  family,  migrated  to  America,  in  the  early 
part  of  the  17th  century,  and  after  rising  to  eminence  in  the  Colony  of 
Massachusetts,  died  at  Barnstaple,  in  1658.  Even  at  this  distance  of  time,  his 
memory  is  held  in  veneration  by  the  surviving  representatives  of  this  offshoot  from 
the    Dymoke   family. 

X  The  Bishop  of  Nottingham,  in  his  Sleaford,  p.  409,  says  that  in  Howell  Church 
there  is  a  monument  bearing  this  inscription:  "Sir  Ch  :  Dimok,  of  Howell,  second 
son  to  Sir  Ed :  Dimok,  of  Screelsby,  Knig.,  Champion  to  the  crowne  of  England,  and 
his  wife  Margaret,  widow  to  Mr.  Anthony  Butler,  of  Coates."  On  a  previous  page 
(406)  the  Bishop  says  that  "the  Manor  of  Howell  passed  to  the  Dymokes  of 
Scrivelsby  in  the  year  1448  by  the  marriage  of  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke  with  Elizabeth 
Hebden.  liy  the  attainder  and  decapitation  o^  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke  in  1470,  the 
Manor  was  forfeited.  Subsequently,  however,  it  was  restored  to  that  ancient  family, 
who  possessed  it  for  a  considerable  period  ;  but,  from  the  evidence  of  the  parish 
terrier,  it  had  passed  into  other  hands  before  1707. 


THE    LINCOLNSHIRE    INSURRECTION. 


71 


at  the  age  of  78  ;  Elizabeth  was  married  to  Henry  Ascough, 
Margaret  to  Lord  Eure,  Frances  to  Thomas  Windebanke,  and 
the  remaining  four  Dorothy,  Susan,  Sarah,  and  Bridget  are 
left  out  of  the  ordinary  records,  but  whether  they  were  married 
or  single,  we  are  unable  to  sav.  Sir  Edward  Dvmoke  died  in 
1656,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  eldest  son,  Robert,  who  is 
well  entitled  to  hold  a  more  prominent  place  in  the  family 
history  than  that  which    has  hitherto  been  assigned  to  him. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

The  Martyr  Oiampion — The  Reformation — Edward  VI. — Mary  and 
Elizabeth — Appointment  of  Bishops. — Dr.  Cooper  of  Lincoln — 
The  Duke  of  Norfolk — Episcopal  Visitation  at  Scrivelsby — 
Imprisonment  and  death  of  the  Champion — Reflections. 

They,  constrained    to   wield    the  sword 
Of  disputation,   shrank    not,   though  assailed 
With    hostile    din,    and   combating  in    sight 
Of  angry    umpires,    partial    and    unjust : 
Nor   for    their    bodies    would    accept     release. 
Oh !    high    example,   constancy    divine  ! 

Wordsworth. 


•T  the  inquisition  taken  on  Sir  Edward's  death 
by  the  Court  analagous  in  some  respects  to 
our  modern  Court  of  Probate,  his  eldest  son 
and  successor  is  described  as  Robert  Dvmoke 
Esquire,  but  there  is  some  reason  for  thinking  that  he,  as  well 
as  his  two  younger  brothers,  subsequently  received  the  honour 
of  knighthood.  In  any  case,  his  marriage  with  Bridget, 
daughter  of  Edward  Clinton,  Earl  of  Lincoln,  brought  him 
into  connection  and  intimacv  with  the  English  nobilitv  ;  and 
though     he     never    exercised     the     office     of    Champion    at    a 


THE    MARTYR    CHAMPION.  73 

coronation,  he  is  no  doubt  correctly  described  as  "  a  person  of 
great  eminence  "  who,  dving,  while  Elizabeth  was  still  Queen, 
under  circumstances  to  be  presently  described,  was  buried  at 
Scrivelsbv  in   1580. 

Amidst  the  manv  changes  in  religious  matters,  for  which 
the  1 6th  century  enjoved  an  unenviable  notoriety,  Robert 
Dvmoke  maintained  his  own  ground  consistently  to  the  end. 
While  the  cause  of  religion  itself  suffered  from  the  indifference 
and  inconsistency  of  so  many  of  its  professors,  it  is  refreshing 
to  come  across  a  man,  who,  without  obtruding  his  religious 
belief,  condescended  to  no  unworthy  subterfuge,  in  attempting 
to  conceal  it.  In  the  old  faith  he  was  born  :  in  the 
practice  of  its  precepts  and  ritual  he  had  lived :  and  in 
maintaining  them  firmlv  to  the  end,  he  was  prepared  to  die. 
But  to  rightly  appreciate  the  real  heroism  of  his  death,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  give  a  brief  sketch  of  the  events  that 
preceded  it. 

The  growing  corruption  of  the  Romish  Church  had 
necessitated  the  movement  rightly  termed  The  Reformation. 
This  movement,  the  chief  theatre  of  which  was  in  Germany,  was 
warmly  supported  bv  many  persons  in  England,  secretlv  at  first, 
but  more  openly  and  defiantly  afterwards.  Henry  VIII. 
supported  it,  from  interested  motives,  although  his  support  was 
confined  to  the  political  side  of  the  question.  It  suited  his 
purpose  to  be  supreme  Head  of  the  Church,  and  as  this  could 
only  be  brought  about  bv  breaking  with  the  Church  of  Rome, 
he    lent    his   powerful    aid    to    the    movement,   which    aimed   at 


74  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  destruction  not  onlv  of  the  political  status  but  of  the 
doctrine  of  the  papacv.  It  is  no  part  of  our  present  business, 
to  do  more  than  allude  to  the  painful  and  dangerous  position 
of  those  who  were  sincerely  attached  to  the  religion  of  their 
forefathers.  They  were  expected  to  follow  the  King  in  his 
varying  moods,  now  compelled  to  accept  the  old  doctrines 
under  stress  of  punishment  sometimes  affecting  their  life  and 
sometimes  their  personal  liberty  and  fortune,  and  now  called 
upon  to  throw  off  obedience  to  the  holy  Father,  and  to  transfer 
to  the  masterful  King  the  absolute  supremacy,  in  matters 
ecclesiastical,  which  had  previously  been  exercised  by  the  Pope 
of  Rome.  To  be  burnt  as  a  heretic,  or  to  be  beheaded  as  a 
traitor,  was  the  alternative  to  be  faced  by  many  of  the  noblest 
of  the  King's  subjects. 

During  the  short  reign  of  Edward  VI.,  when  the 
Reformation,  in  spite  of  many  difficulties  from  within  and 
without,  made  steady  progress,  and  became  so  entwined  with 
the  real  life  of  the  nation,  that  the  blind  and  bigoted 
persecution  of  the  next  reign  only  tended  to  give  it  additional 
strength,  the  adherents  of  the  old  religion  were  very  far  from 
the  enjoyment  of  that  liberty  of  conscience,  which  later 
generations  have  learnt  to  prize  so  highly.  It  was  not  till  the 
reign  of  Elizabeth,  that  a  short  respite  occurred  in  religious 
persecutions;  and  men  began  to  hope  that  the  "bloody" 
period  would  never  again  be  renewed.  But  a  Tudor  Queen, 
with  many  of  the  characteristics  of  her  father,  had  merely 
taken  the  place  of  another  Tudor  Queen,    whose   fault    it    had 


THE    MARTYR    CHAMPION.  75 

been  that  she  adhered  too  extravagantly  to  the  religion  of  her 
mother.  But  Elizabeth  was  wise,  and  knew  how  to  bend  her 
own  inclinations  to  the  political  necessities  of  the    period. 

The  re-action,  after  Mary's  death,  in  1558,  was  so  strong, 
that  with  all  the  lion  courage  of  her  race,  Elizabeth  dared 
not  attempt  to  stem  the  torrent  that  was  gradually  sweeping 
away  every  obstacle  that  withstood  the  dominant  force  of  the 
Reformation,  albeit  it  was  notorious  that  in  her  heart  she 
favoured  the  doctrines  of  the  ancient  faith.  But  it  is  very 
doubtful  whether,  during  any  period  of  her  long  reign,  she  was 
sincerelv  actuated  by  religious  motives,  in  the  administration 
of  public  affairs ;  and  we  know  that,  without  having  her  sister's 
excuse,  for  Mary  was  at  least  sincere,  she  exhibited,  again  and 
again,  the  same  tendency  to  persecute  all  who  ventured  to 
differ  from  herself.  There  was  this  difference  between  the 
two  daua:hters  of  Henrv  VIII.  Marv  hated  the  Protestants 
and  burnt  them  without  compunction  :  Elizabeth  was  ready 
to  sacrifice  both  Papists  and  Protestants,  when  they  clashed 
with  her  interests.  It  was,  indeed,  against  a  section  of  the 
Protestants,  that  she  was  especially  vindictive.  The  Puritans 
in  general,  and  the  Anabaptists  in  particular,  could  expect  no 
mercv,  and  assuredly  they  received  none,  at  the  hands  of  the 
Queen.  And  with  the  ever-growing  dread  of  a  Romish 
re-action,  in  favour  of  her  rival,  the  detested  Queen  of  Scots, 
she  from  time  to  time  allowed  the  enemies  of  the  old  faith 
full  license  to  indulge  in  the  congenial  task  of  persecution. 
State-policy,  however,  not  religion,  was  the  guiding  feature    in 


76  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  Queen's  exercise  of  royal  power.  It  is  not  surprising, 
therefore,  that  during  her  reign  of  fortv-five  years,  the 
appointment  of  Bishops,  to  fill  the  constantly-recurring  vacancies 
in  the  several  sees,  was  conducted  on  no  uniform  principle. 
In  one  diocese  would  be  found  a  Bishop  tolerant,  at  least,  if 
not  secretly  an  approver,  of  the  tenets  of  Catholicism,  while 
in  another  and  possibly  a  contiguous  diocese,  might  be  seated 
a  prelate,  determined  to  use  his  power  and  influence,  in 
furthering  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation. 

It  was  our  Champion's  misfortune  to  be  living  in  a 
diocese  presided  over  by  a  Bishop  of  strong  Puritanical 
proclivities,  stern  and  unpitying,  who  could  not  awav  with 
ought  that  savoured  of  Papistry.  It  was  a  time  of  much 
searching  of  heart,  and  the  Queen  was  suffering  from  one  of 
her  many  fits  of  alarm,  in  consequence  of  the  attempt  of  the 
duke  of  Norfolk  to  marry  the  captive  Queen  of  Scotland.  A 
raid  was  accordingly  to  be  made  on  all  suspected  of  Romish 
practices.  Norfolk  was  lying  under  sentence  of  death,  and 
Elizabeth  after  succeeding  in  bringing  the  victim  to  her  feet, 
was  characteristically  anxious  to  save  his  life  at  the  last 
moment.  It  was  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  of  the  time.  Dr. 
Cooper,  who  was  appointed  to  stiflfen  the  resolution  of  the 
Queen,  and  to  gird  her  to  the  necessity  of  consenting  to  the 
execution  of  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  :  and  this  he  did,  bv 
preaching,  in  her  presence,  a  strong  sermon,  in  which  he 
urged  that  it  was  needful  for  the  welfare  of  the  State  that 
the    culprit    should    be    cut    oflf,    and    that    "there    was   often 


THE    MARTYR    CHAMPION.  77 

mercy  in  punishing  and  cruelty  in  sparing"  offenders  of  such 
a  nature  as  the  powerful  leader  of  the  Romish  faction  in 
England. 

This  was  the  Bishop  before  whom  Sir  Robert  Dvmoke 
was  cited  to  appear.  He  had  been  more  than  suspected  of 
hankering  after  Rome  :  rumours  were  rife  that  the  mass  was 
administered,  and  a  Romish  Priest  maintained  at  Scrivelsbv. 
Little  wonder,  at  such  a  time,  that  the  Champion  should  be 
summoned  to  Lincoln,  to  defend  himself  in  the  Bishop's 
Court ;  but  a  valid  plea  of  bodily  weakness  prevented  him 
from  obeving  the  summons.  The  Bishop,  however,  having 
scented  prey,  was  reluctant  to  leave  it  unsecured,  and 
accordingly  the  mountain  must  go  to  Mahomet,  as  the  more 
natural  alternative  was,  under  the  circumstances,  apparentlv 
impossible.  So  Bishop  Cooper  came  to  Scrivelsby,  in  great 
state,  on  his  errand  of  "mercy,"  and  put  the  sick  Champion 
through  the  customary  interrogatories,  by  which  heresy  was 
supposed  at  the  time  to  be  most  easilv  detected. 

Here  was  an  opportunity  for  word-fencing  and  pliancy,  to 
which  a  weaker  or  less  earnest  man  might  have  stooped,  but 
which  offered  no  temptation  to  the  hereditary  Champion. 
With  one  foot  in  the  grave,  he  scorned  to  palter  with  his 
religious  belief,  and,  knowing  the  consequences  of  his 
obstinacy,  he  set  himself  resolutely  to  withstand  first  the 
cajoling,  and  then  the  threatening  of  the  angry  Bishop.  The 
issue  was  not  long  in  suspense.  In  spite  of  his  feeble  health, 
the  Champion  was  forcibly  conveyed    to   Lincoln ;    and,  as   all 


78  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

attempts  to  shake  his  faith  were  doomed  to  failure,  he  was 
cast  into  prison,  where,  as  must  have  been  expected,  a  speedy 
death  put  an  end  to  his  sufferings,  and  entitled  him  to  be 
venerated  as  a  martvr  by  his  co-religionists  of  the  Church  of 
Rome. 

However  strong  may  be  our  views  with  regard  to  the 
Reformation,  and  however  greatly  we  deplore  the  corruptions 
that  had  been  allowed  to  spread  over  the  old  Church, 
dimming  if  not  extinguishing  the  old  light  which  had  lightened 
our  fathers,  we  cannot  withhold  our  sympathy  from  a  man  in 
the  position  of  Sir  Robert  Dymoke,  who  consistently  adhered 
to  the  religion  in  which  he  had  been  born,  and  refused  to 
purchase  prolongation  of  life,  by  surrendering  or  paltering  with 
it  for  an  instant.  No  member  of  the  Dymoke  family  has 
shed  greater  lustre  on  his  house  than  the  prisoner  in  Lincoln 
Castle,  whose  lifeless  body  was  brought  to  Scrivelsby  for 
interment,  in  the  village  Church,  where  he  and  his  forefathers 
before  him  had  worshipped  through  so  manv  generations. 

The  honour  of  the  familv  had  reached  its  zenith,  when 
the  championship  was  held  by  the  victim  of  the  Puritan 
Bishop  of  Lincoln.  At  this  time,  and  up  to  the  troublous 
period  of  the  civil  war,  the  Dymoke  family  was  wealthv  and 
influential.  Then  followed  a  long  period  of  gradual  decline, 
which  continued  till  the  time  of  the  late  Sir  Henrv  Dvmoke, 
when  something  of  the  old  state  was  once  more  witnessed  at 
Scrivelsby.  Those  halcyon  days,  unfortunately,  soon  came  to 
an    end,    and    were    replaced    by    the    pecuniary    troubles    of 


THE    MARTYR    CHAMPION. 


79 


previous  years  ;  and  at  the  present  time  the  position  of  the 
family  is  seriously  affected  by  the  depression  in  the 
value  of  land,  from  which  English  landowners  have  cruelly 
suffered,  and  nowhere  perhaps  with  greater  severity  than  in 
Lincolnshire. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Stuart  Dy  mokes — The  Plague — Mutilated  Ceremonial  at  the 
Coronation  of  James  I. — Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (2) — Quarrel  for 
Precedence — Civil  War — Disastrous  Effects  on  the  Fortunes  of 
the  Dymoke  Family — The  Tottering  Champion — Cock  and  Bull 
Story — Break  in  the  Direct  Succession. 


With  ruin   upon  ruin,  rout  on  rout, 
Confusion  worse  confounded. 

Milton. 

There    is  some  soul  of  goodness  in  things  evil, 
Would  men  observingly  distil  it  out. 

Shakespe.\re. 


HE  storniv  period  of  the  civil  war  between 
King  and  Parliament  w^as  disastrous  to  many 
a  loyal  family,  and  notablv  to  the  Dvmokes 
of  Scrivelsby.  It  was  a  time  to  stir  the 
blood  and  quicken  the  pulse  of  the  loyal  Englishman,  while 
the  circumstances  attending  a  Sovereign  at  war  with  his  own 
subjects  were  such  as  to  enlist  the  svmpathy  of  his  followers 
to  an  extraordinary  degree,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  make 
them  a  little  blind  to  the  Sovereign's  faults.  In  that  terrible 
time,    when    father   and    son    and    other   members   of  the    same 


THE    STUART    DYMOKES.  8 1 

faiiiilv  were  often  found  in  opposite  camps,  manv  a  noble 
fortune  was  ungrudgingly  spent  in  the  roval  cause  :  and,  as  we, 
with  our  present  knowledge,  review  the  past,  it  is  with  shame 
and  indignation  that  we  note  the  levitv  with  which,  in  the 
hour  of  success,  the  losses  of  the  gentry  were  regarded  by  the 
King  "whose  word  no  man  relied  on"  and  of  the  lavish  and 
disgraceful  expenditure  that  followed  the  great  act  of 
restoration  in  1660.  We  cannot  doubt  that  the  more  serious 
and  sober-minded  men  of  the  time  were  constrained  to  solace 
themselves  with  the  reflection,  that  it  was  for  the  cause,  and 
not  for  the  man,  that  thev  had  shed  their  blood,  and  exhausted 
their  treasure.  The  Dvmokes  must  be  included  in  the  long 
roll  of  those  whose  lovaltv  had  cost  them  dear  ;  and  it  is  from 
this  period  that  we  begin  to  hear  of  pecuniary  embarrassments, 
the  origin  of  which  can  be  distinctly  traced  to  the  heaw 
losses,  incurred  bv  various  members  of  the  family  in  supporting 
the  royal  cause. 

It  is  easy  for  us,  of  the  present  day,  to  understand  many 
things,  which  must  have  seemed  incomprehensible  to  those 
who  witnessed  the  occurrencies  of  the  early  part  of  the 
17th  century.  We  can  see  now  that  the  seeds  of  that 
disastrous  harvest,  which  was  garnered  in  the  davs  of 
Charles  I.  and  which  reached  its  maturity  in  the  tragedy  of 
1649,  were  sown  in  the  davs  of  his  predecessor,  "  the  most 
learned  fool  in  Christendom,"  as  he  was  not  inaptly  described 
by  his  contemporaries,  and,  as  he  is  more  exactly  portraved 
by    Sir    Walter    Scott    in    his     Fortunes    of    N'lg-el^    although, 


82  SCRIV^ELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

perhaps,    the    Wizard    of  the    North    has,    in   this  instance,  laid 
on  his  colours  a  little  too  thick. 

James  came  from  Scotland,  on  the  death  of  the  great 
Elizabeth,  to  take  possession  of  the  English  throne,  and 
brought  with  him  those  exalted  notions  of  the  roval 
prerogative,  which,  in  after  time,  proved  so  fatal  to  his 
house  and  dynasty.  But  the  royal  programme  was  fronted 
with  two  insuperable  difficulties.  The  time  was  unpropitious, 
and  the  King  was  weak.  He  was  self-willed,  indeed,  and 
obstinate,  and  for  a  while,  the  heritage  of  subserviency  left  by 
the  strong  rule  of  the  Tudor  Sovereigns  enabled  the  Scottish 
King  to  have  his  way,  and  to  enjoy  for  a  season  the  fool's 
paradise  of  his  own  creation.  But  the  first  lesson  to  King  James 
came  from  an  unexpected  quarter.  He  was  fond  of  show, 
jealous  of  his  supposed  rights,  and  would  bate  no  inch  of  state 
ceremonial,  albeit  his  own  ungainly  person  and  lack  of  grace 
contributed  anything  but  dignity  to  such  occasions.  It  was, 
accordingly,  with  much  displeasure,  that  he  heard  of  the 
necessity  for  dispensing  with  all  needless  pomp  and  display  at 
his  coronation.  The  necessity,  however,  for  this  curtailment 
was  urgent.  The  terrible  plague  was  breaking  out  afresh  ; 
numerous  deaths  had  already  occurred,  and  the  alarm  was 
universal.  For  fear  of  infection,  an  order  was  issued, 
forbidding  the  approach  of  the  people  within  the  precincts  of 
the  roval  Court  :  and  when  James  was  crowned  on  the 
25th  of  July,  1603,  the  ceremony  was  much  more  meagre 
than    suited    the    taste    of   a    King,    who    loved    "state   to   the 


THE    STUART    DYMOKES.  83 

full."  The  coronation  took  place  on  the  festival  of  St. 
James,*  the  patron  Saint  of  the  King,  but,  on  the  occasion, 
the  ordinary  ritual  of  the  coronation  service  in  Westminster 
Abbev  was,  considerably  abridged,  inasmuch  as  the  form 
employed  "  had  been  drawn  in  haste,  and  wanted  many 
things  which  midit  have  been  considered  at  a  time  of 
leisure."  The  Champion,  who  took  part  in  this  mutilated 
ceremonial  was  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (2),  the  eldest  son  of 
the  martvr,  and  of  whom  we  know  but  little,  save  that 
he  was  thrice  married.  His  first  wife  was  Catherine 
Harrington,  the  mother  of  a  son,  Charles,  who  died  young  : 
the  second,  Ann,  the  daughter  of  Sir  John  Monson,  the 
mother  of  Edward  Dvmoke,  who  was  baptized  at  Scrivelsby  in 
1600,  and  probablv  died  shortly  afterwards,  although  there  is 
no  entry  to  that  effect  in  the  parish  register  :  the  third  wife 
was  Marv  Poultenev  of  ^Nlisterton,  who  became  the  mother  of 
the  next  Champion,  Charles,  who  acted  officially  at  the 
coronation  of  Charles  I.  It  was  this  Champion,  who  had  the 
misfortune  to  excite  the  wrath  of  Sir  George  Heneage,  on  a 
question  of  precedence,  the  angry  knight  complaining  that  his 
enemv,  the  Earl  of  Lincoln,  had  played  him  a  scurvy  trick,  by 
placing  him  at  some  Court  ceremonial,  between  Sir  Edward 
Dvmoke  and  Sir  John  Monson — an  indignity  which  he  could 
not    brook,    inasmuch    as    they    were    but    "  pune "  knights,  in 

■=  It  was  customary  for  the  coronation  to  be  held  either  on  a  Sunday  or  on 
some  Saint's-day,  with  a  natural  preference  for  the  festival  of  any  particular  Saint,  that 
for  any  reason  was  held  in  special  reverence  by  the  Sovereign. 


84  SCRIVELSRY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

comparison  with  himself — and,  accordingly,  he  claimed  redress 
for  this  "presumptuous  and  malicious  grievance."  However 
ludicrous  such  a  complaint  may  seem  to  us  now,  it  was  in 
those  days  deemed  of  sufficient  importance  to  be  solemnly 
investigated  by  the  members  of  the  "College  of  Arms,"  who 
recommended  Sir  George  to  make  his  appeal  to  the  Earl  of 
Shrewsbury,  the  Earl  Marshal  of  England.  An  enquiry 
accordingly  was  made,  and  as  it  appeared  that  Heneage  was 
knighted  in  1583,  whereas  Dymoke  and  Monson  received  that 
honour  a  year  or  two  later,  the  Earl  Marshal  decided  that 
although  the  two  latter  were  "of  more  ancient  descent,  better 
allied  and  more  wealthy,"  the  Earl  of  Lincoln  was 
"perhaps  not  quite  correct"  in  placing  them  on  a  level  with 
Sir  George  Heneage,  who  had  the  advantage  of  one  year's 
seniority  as  knight  over  Sir  Edward  Dymoke,  and  no  less 
than  three  years  over  Sir  John  Monson  !  And  so  this  little 
tempest  was  allowed  to  subside,  like  a  French  duel,  without 
injury  to   any   of  the   persons   concerned. 

It  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that  the  coronation  of 
Charles  I.,  like  that  of  his  father,  was  delayed,  for  a 
similar  cause,  till  the  spring  of  the  year  following  his 
accession  to  the  throne.  James  died  on  the  27th  March, 
1625  :  Charles  was  crowned  on  the  2nd  of  February,  1626. 
In  the  interval,  the  mortality  had  reached  an  alarming  height. 
The  plague  had  again  broken  out,  and,  according  to  the 
records  of  the  time,  had  been  fatal  in  more  than  thirtv-five 
thousand    instances.      It    is    not    to    be    wondered   at,  that  the 


THE    STUART    DVMOKES.  8  ^ 

constant  re-appearance  of  this  fatal  epidemic  should  have 
exercised  a  disquieting  influence  on  the  minds  of  the  people, 
and  we  know  that  the  plague  continued  to  break  out  with 
greater  frequency,  and  always  with  increasing  violence,  until  the 
horrors  of  1665  were  followed  bv  the  purification  wrought  bv 
the  great  fire  of  the  following  vear. 

The  coronation  of  Charles  I.  took  place  in  the  early  part 
of  1626,  and  was  conducted  with  unusual  attention  to  ritual 
observance.  The  mutilated  and  ill-conducted  coronation  of 
James  L  had  excited  so  much  comment,  that  the  Kino:  issued 
a  commission  to  Archbishop  Abbott  and  certain  Suffragans  of 
the  southern  province,  to  search  for  precedents,  and  to  revise 
the  order  of  coronation.  The  most  active  member  of  this 
commission  was  Laud,  then  Bishop  of  St.  Davids,  who,  after 
holding  in  succession  the  Bishoprics  of  St.  David's,  Bath  and 
Wells,  and  London,  was  appointed  to  the  primacv  in  1633. 
Owing  chieflv  to  the  zeal  and  learning  of  Dr.  Laud,  the 
coronation  of  Charles  L  mav  be  regarded  as  an  illustration 
of  the  most  elaborate  ceremonial  that  can  be  used  on  such 
occasions.  It  had  at  first  been  arrans^ed  that  the  Oueen 
Consort  should  be  crowned  at  the  same  time,  and  everv 
provision  was  made  by  the  authorities,  for  the  double 
coronation  ;  but  although  Henrietta  Maria  was  dulv  proclaimed 
Oueen  of  England,  she  was  inflexible  in  her  refusal  to  be 
either  crowned  or    anointed.* 

"  See  Xo.  38  of  The  Antiquary  (New  Series  p.  78),  where  attention  is 
directed  to  an  exhaustive  treatise  on  the  coronation  of  Charles  I.,  by  the  Rev. 
Christopher  Wordsworth,  Canon  of  Lincoln  and  Rector  of  Tyneham. 


86  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

The  Champion  on  this  occasion  was  Charles,  the  son  of 
Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (2),  who  was  a  leading  cavalier  of  the 
time,  and  died  a  bachelor  shortly  after  the  breaking  out  of 
the   civil   war. 

The  Dvmokes,  as  might  have  been  expected,  were  loyal 
partizans  of  the  royal  cause,  and  Charles  Dymoke  in 
particular  impoverished  his  estate  by  largely  helping  the 
King  with  advances  of  money  in  his  lifetime,  and  on  his 
death  bequeathing  a  sum  of  ;^2000  for  the  relief  of  his 
necessities.* 

We  come  now  for  the  first  time  to  a  break  in  the 
direct  succession  to  the  Championship.  Hitherto,  we  have 
seen,  for  the  long  period  of  250  years,  son  following  father 
in  unbroken  succession,  an  almost  unprecedented  occurence 
in  anv  familv.  Henceforward  we  shall  find  occasional 
interruptions,  culminating  in  the  noteworthv  cleavage  that 
occurred  upon  the  death  of  Lewis  (i)  in  1760.  Upon  the 
death  of  Charles  Dvmoke,  who  was  the  first  Champion  that 
appeared  without  the  knightlv  spurs,  although,  in  all 
probabilitv,  the  honour  of  knighthood  would  have  been 
conferred  upon  him,  had  the  times  been  more  peaceful,  the 
Scrivelsbv  inheritance   fell    to    his    uncle    Nicholas,t   who    had 

^  He  also  left  a  sum  of  /300  to  be  expended  on  a  monument  in  Scrivelsby 
Church,  but,  owint^  probably  to  the  unsettled  times,  this  monument  was  never 
erected. 

f  Robert,  an  elder  brother  of  Nicholas,  died  without  male  issue.  His  daughter 
Elizabeth,  who  w^as  married  to  Robert  Heywood,  left  a  son  Robert,  who  claimed  to 
act  as  Champion  at  the  coronation  of  Charles    II.,   but    his    claim    was    disallowed    in 


THE    STUART    DYMOKES.  87 

been  knighted  at  Kichmond  by  James  I.  in  1604,  and  was  the 
youngest  son  of  Sir  Robert,  who  died  in  1580.  Sir  Nicholas 
never  acted  as  Champion,  and  on  his  death  was  succeeded  by 
his  son  Edward,  who  was  knighted  afterwards,  shortly  before 
the  coronation  of  Charles   II. 

It  was  not  a  bed  of  roses  on  which  the  new  Champion 
was  called  upon  to  lie.  Succeeding  to  the  estates  when  the 
Parliamentary  forces  were  flushed  with  the  first  taste  of 
victory,  his  very  title  excited  the  suspicion  of  the  King's 
enemies,  who  could  be  no  friends  to  the  King's  Champion ; 
and  so  they  summoned  him  to  Westminster,  to  answer  for  his 
"delinquency."  Such  delinquents  had  but  one  prospect  before 
them,  and  that  prospect  spelt — Confiscation.  A  heavy  fine 
was  accordingly  inflicted,  in  composition  for  the  off^ence  of 
being  a  Royalist,  and  bearing  a  "  lewd  and  malicious  "  title ; 
and  the  young  Champion  was  called  upon  to  pay  something 
over  ;^7000,  which,  by  some  arrangement  in  the  matter  of 
Church  benefices,  was  subsequently  reduced  to  a  sum  variously 
given  between  ^4000  and  ^,5000,  an  enormous  sum  at  the 
time,  and  one  that  contributed  to  the  further  impoverishment 
of  the  Dymoke  family.  This  Champion,  doubtless,  took  part 
in  the  subsequent  wars  of  the  period  and  he  survived  to 
witness  the  restoration  of  the  royal  family  in  the  person  of 
Charles  II.,  at  whose  coronation  he  oflftciated  as  Champion. 


favour  of  the  son  of  Nicholas,  who  was  confessedly  younger  than  Robert  Dymoke. 
From  this,  the  inference  may  be  fairly  drawn  that  the  Scrivelsby  estate  descended  in 
tail    male. 


88  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 


Sir  Edward  died  shortlv  afterwards,  and  was  buried  at 
Scrivelsby,  on  8th  of  January,  1663.  His  wife  was  Jane, 
daughter  of  Nicholas  Cressev,  of  Fuhietby  or  Fulletbv. 
Close  attention  should  be  paid  to  the  children  of  this  Sir 
Edward  Dymoke,  as  he  is  the  common  ancestor  from  whom 
the  two  branches  of  the  family — the  Tetford  branch  and  the 
Scrivelsbv  branch — claim  to  be  derived.  The  genealogical 
tables,  from  Banks  onwards,  mention  onlv  two  sons,  Charles 
who  succeeded  him,  and  John,  from  whom  the  Scrivelsbv 
Dvmokes  were  descended.  But  there  was  another  son, 
Edward,  coming  between  Charles  and  John,  and  from  him 
the   Tetford   Dymokes   spring.     This   we   shall   see   later  on. 

The  next  Champion,  Charles,  better  known  as  Sir 
Charles  Dymoke,  was  Champion  to  James  II.,  who  was 
crowned  on  the  23rd  of  April,  1685  ;  and  the  following 
unluckv  incident  occurred  at  the  coronation.  The  account 
is  taken  from  Prynne  s  Diary  as  given  in  the  Surtees 
Society  s  Vol.  54  for  1869  :  "  1698,  Dec.  21.  I  was 
told  this  day  a  very  observable  thing  by  a  verv  good  hand, 
which  is  this — When  Champion  Dimmock  let  off  his  horse  to 
kiss  K(ing)  James  II.  hand,  after  that  he  had  challenged 
anvone  that  durst  question  the  King's  rights  to  the  crown,  as 
the  custom  is,  the  Champion  in  moving  towards  the  King 
fell  down  all  his  length  in  the  hall,  when  as  there  was 
nothino;  in  the  wav  that  could  visibly  cause  the  same  : 
whereupon  the  queen  sayd  '  see  you,  love,  what  a  weak 
Champion  you  have.'     To  which  the  K(ing)  sayd  nothing,  but 


THE    STUART    DYMOKES.  89 

laught,  and  the  Champion  excused  himself,  pretending  his 
armour  was  heavy,  and  that  he  himself  was  weak  with  sickness, 
which  was  false,   for  he  was  verv  well,  and  had  none." 

This  last  statement  is  rather  an  ill-natured  commentary 
on  the  poor  Champion's  mishap.  He  might  have  been 
credited  with  the  sickness,  however  imaginarv,  which  he 
pleaded  in  extenuation  of  his  maladroit  performance.  It  is 
perhaps  fortunate  that  this  story  had  not  been  unearthed, 
when  Tom  Hood  was  on  the  look  out  for  material  to  give 
point  to  his  sarcasms  on  the  tottering  Championship.  Here 
would  have  been  a  veritable  tottering  Champion,  and  we  may 
imagine  the  glee  with  which  he  would  have  hailed  a  story  so 
much  to  his  taste.  In  justice  to  our  Champion,  however,  it  is 
only  fair  to  remember  that,  whether  his  plea  of  sickness  at  the 
time  was  real  or  false,  he  died  very  shortly  aftenvards.  Up 
to  now,  there  has  been  some  obscuritv  as  to  the  time  of  his 
death,  the  Scrivelsby  Register  not  mentioning  it,  and  Banks 
vaguely  stating  that  it  occurred  "about  1688."  But  in 
consequence  of  a  successful  rummage  latelv  made  at  Lincoln, 
all  doubt  as  to  the  date  in  question  is  happily  removed,  for 
amongst  the  ninety-four  entries  which  had  disappeared  from 
the  Scrivelsby  register,  and  were  found  amongst  the  transcripts 
at  Lincoln,  is  an  entry  recording  the  burial  of  "  The 
Honorable  Sr.  Charles  Dymoke,  Nov.  2,    1686." 

The  recovery  of  this  lost  date  is  further  serviceable  in 
clearing  up  some  obscurity,  arising  probably  from  the 
similaritv    of    Christian    names,    whether    Sir    Charles    Dvmoke 

M 


90  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

or  his  son  Charles  had  officiated  as  Champion,  at  the 
coronation  of  William  and  Mary.  As  this  coronation  took 
place  in  the  early  part  of  1689,  the  acting  Champion 
would  have  been  the  son,  who  succeeded  to  the  family 
honours  on  the  death  of  his  father  in  1686.  The  Scrivelsbv 
register  records  the  burial  on  the  7th  Julv,  1698,  of 
Eleanor,  the  wife  of  Sir  Charles  Dvmoke  and  the  daughter 
of  Lord  Rockingham.  There  were  four  children  of  this 
marriage,  Charles,  Edward,  a  second  Charles,*  and  Lewis.  Of 
these,  the  first  two  died  young  :  each  of  the  survivors,  in  due 
course,  succeeded  to  the  Championship.  The  elder  of  these, 
Charles  Dymoke,  Esq.,  undoubtedly  acted  as  Champion  at  the 
coronation  of  Anne,  and  also  at  that  of  William  and  Mary. 
Both  Mary  and  Anne  were  reckoned  Queens  de  jure,  as  well 
as  Queens  regnant,  and,  consequently,  they  were  both  entitled 
to  the  full  ceremony  of  a  public  coronation,  at  which  a 
Champion  would  appear.  In  the  case  of  Queens  Consort 
there    was    no    fixed    rule.      These    Queens    were    sometimes 


''  The  practice  of  giving  the  name  of  a  deceased  child  to  the  next  child  born  to 
the  same  parents  was  very  common  in  the  i8th  and  early  part  of  the  19th  century. 
It  is  in  this  way  that  many  a  supposed  centenarian  has  been  credited  with  more 
years  than  those  to  which  he  was  fairly  entitled.  A  search,  for  example,  in  some  old 
Register  for  the  baptism  of  A.B.,  supposed  to  have  been  100  years  old,  might 
produce  what  would  seem  good  evidence  of  the  correctness  of  the  surmise,  whereas 
a  further  search  might  have  made  it  clear  that  A.B.  in  question  had  died  10  or  15 
years  after  his  birth,  and  that  his  place  had  been  supplied  by  a  second  A.B.,  who 
would  be  the  person  about  whom  the  original  enquiry  was  made,  and  whose  years 
consequently  would  be  reduced  to  the  more  modest  dimensions  of  85  or  90. 


THE    STUART    DYMOKES.  9 1 

crowned  at  the  same  time  with  their  husbands,  and  sometimes, 
especially  if  thev  were  married  after  the  King's  coronation,  at  a 
special  coronation,  at  which  the  Champion  would  not  be  present. 
Thus  Elizabeth  Woodville,  who  became  the  wife  of 
Edward  IV.,  was  crowned  at  the  time  of  her  marriage,  as 
was  also  Anne  Boleyn,  the  unfortunate  wife  of  Henry  VIII. 
none  of  the  other  wives  of  this  King  being  crowned  at  all, 
with  the  exception  of  Catherine  of  Arragon,  who  was  crowned 
at  the  same  time  with    himself. 

This  Charles  Dymoke  was  buried  at  Scrivelsby,  on  the 
24th  January,  1702.  With  reference  to  this  Champion,  the 
gossiping  Prynne  tells  another  cock  and  bull  story,  though 
the  part  of  the  cock  is,  unfortunately,  left  out  :  "  This 
Dimmock  holds  certain  lands  bv  exhibiting  on  certain  davs 
every  year  a  milk-white  bull,  with  black  ears,  to  the  people 
who  are  to  run  it  down,  and  then  it  is  cutt  in  pieces  and 
given  amongst  the  poor.  His  estate  is  almost  j/'2000  a  year, 
and  whoever  has  it  is  Champion  of  England  ;  but  he  ows 
more  by  farr  than  he  is  worth,  and  has  no  children,  so  that 
it  will  soon  get  into  another  family.  The  Dimmock  has 
enjoyed  it  ever  since  Will(iam)  the  Conqueror's  days,  if  I  do 
not  mistake." 

This  story  of  the  bull  is  probably  correct  as  far  as  the 
baiting  of  the  poor  beast  is  concerned,  but  it  is  certain  that 
this  was  not  the  tenure  on  which  the  estate  was  held. 
It  is  also  probably  true  that  the  pecuniary  circumstances 
of  the    Champion    were    in    a   very   unsatisfactory   condition,    in 


92 


SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 


consequence  of  the  heavy  losses  occasioned  by  the  civil  war. 
Sir  Charles  Dymoke,  being  childless,  was  succeeded  by  his 
brother  Lewis,  who  was  destined  to  exercise  a  potent 
influence  on  the  family  history  by  the  testamentary  disposition 
he  made  at  the  end  of  his  long  life. 


CHAPTER  X. 


Latter-day  Chainpions — Lcivis  Dymoke  (i)  and  his  Successors — The 
Tetford  Branch  and  the  Scrivelsby  Branch — First  Clerical 
Champion — Sir  Henry  Dymoke — Death  of  Henry  Lionel — End 
of  Scrivelsby  Branch. 

Along  the  cool  sequestered  vales  of  life, 
They  spent  the  noiseless  tenor  of  their  way. 

Gray. 

HE  History  of  the  Family  from  this  period 
enters  upon  a  new  phase.  No  longer  brought 
into  the  same  prominence  by  being  in  close 
association  with  the  ruling  powers  of  their 
day,  the  Dymokes  seem  to  have  settled  down  at  Scrivelsby, 
quietly  and  unostentatiously  discharging  the  duties  which 
would  naturallv  fall  to  them  as  countrv  gentlemen  of 
distinguished  lineage. 

Lewis,  the  voungest  son  of  Sir  Charles  Dvmoke,  succeeded 
his  brother  in  1702,  and  for  nearlv  sixtv  vears  lived  at 
Scrivelsby  as  Champion.  He  was  twice  called  upon  to 
perform  the  duties  of  his  office,  once  at  the  coronation  of 
George    I.,  and   again    at   that    of   his    successor,*   and   had   he 

*  George  I.  was  crowned  on  the  20th  October,  1714,  and  George  II.  on  the 
nth  October,  1727.  It  is  strange  that  not  one  of  the  four  Georges  was  crowned  on 
St.  George's  Day,  which  seems  to  have  been  a  favourite  day  for  other  coronations. 
Thus,  Charles  II.,  James  II.,  and  Anne  were  crowned  on  that  day,  23rd  of  April. 


94  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

lived  a  few  more  months  he  might  have  been  summoned  to 
act  for  the  third  time  at  the  coronation  of  George  III. ;  but 
having  attained  the  ripe  age  of  ninety-one,  it  is  not  surprising 
that  this  dutv  should  have  devolved  upon  a  younger  man. 

A  little  later  on  we  shall  see  that  it  was  on  the  death  of 
this  Lewis  Dvmoke  that  the  great  break  occurred,  which 
divided  the  familv  into  two  branches,  the  one  residing  at 
Scrivelsby,  and  the  other  at  Tetford.  When  we  reach  this 
point  in  the  family  history,  we  shall  have  to  go  somewhat 
deeplv  into  the  puzzling  region  of  genealogical  enquiry :  it 
will  suffice  to  sav  here,  that  the  Scrivelsbv  estates  were 
bequeathed  by  the  aged  Champion,  who  died  a  bachelor  in 
1760,  to  a  distant  cousin  Edward,  who  only  lived  a  few 
months  in  the  possession  of  the  family  honours,  and  was 
succeeded  bv  his  son  John,  who  was  barelv  settled  in  his  new 
position,  when  he  had  to  act  as  Champion  at  the  Coronation 
of  George  III.*  This  John,  at  his  death  in  1784,  left  five 
children,  two  sons  and  three  daughters.  The  eldest  of  these 
daughters,  Catherine,  was  married  to  John  Bradshaw,  esquire, 
and  the  youngest,  Sophia,  to  John  Tyrwhitt,  Esq.,  the  second 
daughter,  Elizabeth,  dying  unmarried.  Each  of  the  sons, 
Lewis  and  John,  succeeded  in  due  course  to  the  Championship, 
Lewis  on  the  death  of  his  father  in  1784,  and  John,  who  was 
in  holy  orders,  in  1820,  when  his  brother  Lewis  died, 
unmarried,  after  a  tenure  of  twenty-four  years. 


*  A    most    interesting  extract   from    the  diary  of  this  Champion  will  be  found  in 
the  Appendix  (No.  20). 


LATTER-DAY    CHAMPIONS.  95 

The  Rev.  John  Dvmoke,  the  first  Clerical  Champion,  was 
represented  at  the  coronation  of  George  TV.  bv  his  son 
Henry,  just  out  of  his  teens,  permission  having  been  previously 
granted  by  the  Court  of  Claims,  to  whom  the  matter  had 
been  referred.  It  is  worth  remarking  here,  that  Mr.  Welles 
Dymoke  also  put  in  a  claim,  as  "  lineal  descendant  from  an 
elder  branch  of  the  Dvmoke  familv,  deriving  their  origin 
from  Sir  Philip  Marmion."  This  claim  was  not  allowed 
by  the  Court  of  Claims,  the  decision  being  "that  the  Champion- 
ship belonged  to  the  Reverend  John  Dvmoke,  of  Scrivelsby." 
It  is  important  to  remember  this,  as  this  decision  of  the 
Court  of  Claims  is  an  authoritive  settlement  of  a  question, 
about  which  some  little  doubt  had  previouslv  existed. 

The  Rev.  John  Dymoke  (i)  who  was  Rector  of  Scrivelsby, 
and  a  Prebendary  of  Lincoln,  died  in  1828,  leaving  two  sons, 
Henry  and  John,  and  one  daughter,  Maria  Georgiana,  who 
became  the  wife  of  Sir  John  Mansel,  Bart.,  and  died  at  an 
advanced  age  in  1888.  As  in  the  case  of  the  children  of  the 
first  member  of  this  branch  of  the  familv,  each  of  the  two 
sons  became  Champion — Henry  in  1828,  on  the  death  of  his 
father,  and  John,  who  was  in  holy  orders,  when  his  brother 
Henrv  died  in   1865. 

Henry  Dymoke,  better  known  as  Sir  Henry  Dymoke, 
Baronet,  to  which  dignity  he  was  appointed  in  1841,  probably 
as  a  solatium  for  the  discontinuance  of  the  office  of  Champion 
at  the  two  last  coronations,  was  held  in  verv  his^h  esteem. 
Few    country    gentlemen,     indeed,     wielded     greater     personal 


96  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

influence  than  Sir  Henry  Dymoke ;  and  the  position  of 
Chairman  of  Pettv  Sessions,  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Guardians,  and  President  of  everv  Institution  over  which  he 
cared  to  preside,  came  to  him  as  a  matter  of  course.  When 
he  succeeded  to  the  family  estate,  he  found  it  heavily 
encumbered,  and  he  made  it  the  business  of  his  life  to 
dischar2:e  the  manv  obliijations  under  which  it  laboured,  so 
that  he  might  leave  it  to  his  successors  as  free  and 
unincumbered  as  such  an  estate  ought  always  to  be.  This 
could  only  be  done  by  wise  management  and  rigid  economy, 
and,  until  his  self-imposed  task  was  accomplished,  he  abstained 
from  every  unnecessary  expense,  living  the  quiet  life  of  a 
country  gentleman,  and  thereby  securing  general  esteem. 
Happily,  he  long  outlived  the  necessity  for  this  comparative 
self-effacement,  and,  during  the  latter  years  of  his  life,  he 
assumed  the  position  more  becoming  the  owner  of  a  great 
name,  and  the  holder  of  an  honourable  office. 

In  1 84 1,  Sir  Henry  renewed  the  claim  which  had  first 
been  made  bv  his  uncle  Lewis,  who  petitioned  George  III. 
to  declare  him  entitled  to  the  Marmion  Peerage  :  but  on 
neither  occasion  was  the  petition  successful  ;  that  of  Lewis 
being  referred  to  the  House  of  Lords,  where  it  still  remains 
in  a  state  of  suspended  vitality,  from  which  it  is  never  likely 
to  emerge  ;  and  that  of  Sir  Henry  receiving  only  a  formal 
acknowledgment  that  "  the  Lord  Chancellor  had  presented  a 
petition  from  the  Hon.  the  Queen's  Champion,"  but  no 
decision  was  arrived  at. 


Sk'. 


V^ 


^ 

^' 

,/C- 

*  • 

V 

'a,  — - 

flfa^S^^^ 

w 

iWS^ 

W 

^^^tni^cJr 


THE  LATE  SIR   HENRY   DYMOKE,   BART. 
From  a  Photu(jt(iph  iii  t>tc  possession  of  Lady  HartwcU. 


Lx\TTER-DAY    CHAMPIONS.  97 

It  was  in  the  midst  of  his  useful  and  active  life,  when, 
in  1865,  Sir  Henrv  Dymoke  contracted  a  chill,  which  brought 
on  an  attack  of  diptheria,  from  which  he  died  at  his  London 
house,  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  64.  It  was  with 
something  like  consternation  that  the  news  of  his  death  was 
received  at  Horncastle  ;  and  within  a  short  time  a  public 
meeting  was  held  for  the  purpose  of  placing  on  record  the 
high  estimation  in  which  he  was  regarded,  as  well  as  the 
appreciation  bv  all  classes  of  his  many  services  to  the  town 
and  neighbourhood.  As  the  result  of  this  meeting,  a  suitable 
building  was  erected  in  Horncastle,  bv  public  subscription,  for 
the  Dispensary,  one  of  the  many  Institutions  in  which  he  had 
always  taken  a  warm  interest,  and  of  which,  as  the  inscription 
over  the  entrance  states,  he  had  ever  been  a  "generous 
supporter."  Sir  Henry  left  an  onlv  daughter,  Emma  Jane, 
now  Lady  Hartwell,  the  wife  of  Sir  Francis  Hartwell,  Bart, 
Her  mother,  Ladv  Dymoke,  was  the  second  daughter  of 
William   Pearce,   Esq. 

The  Rev.  John  Dymoke,  the  second  clerical  Champion, 
succeeded,  but,  being  in  feeble  health,  he  lived  very  little  at 
Scrivelsby,  and  died  in  Florence  in  1873.  Like  his  father,  he 
was  for  nearlv  fortv  vears  Rector  of  Scrivelsbv,  and,  for  the 
last  few  years  of  his  life,  was  invested  with  the  Championship, 
on  his  succession  to  which  he  resigned  his  benefice  in  favour 
of  the  present  Rector.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  only  son, 
Henry  Lionel,  who  died  shortly  afterwards,  without  issue,  at 
the    early   age    of  45.      His   widow,  who    had   a  life  interest  in 

N 


98  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  estate,  only  lived  a  few  years  to  enjoy  it,  and,  on  her 
death  in  1883,  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  her  husband's 
will,  the  Scrivelsby  inheritance,  as  will  be  fully  shewn  in  the 
next  chapter,  reverted  to  the  representative  of  the  Tetford 
branch  of  the  Dymoke  family. 

Of  the  seven  members  of  the  Scrivelsby  branch,  it  is  to 
be  observed  that,  with  the  exception  of  the  first  John,  who 
acted  at  the  coronation  of  George  III.,  and  the  first  reverend 
Champion,  who  was  represented  by  his  son  Henry  at  the 
coronation  of  George  IV.,  none  of  them  left  more  than  one 
child,  while  two  of  the  seven,  Lewis  and  Henry  Lionel,  died 
childless.  It  is  also  remarkable  that  every  male  of  this 
branch,  without  exception,  succeeded  in  due  course  to  the 
Championship, 


CHAPTER  XI. 


The    Missing    Link — The    Tetford    Branch     Restored — Vicissitudes    of 

Fortune — Tradition — A     "Maze"     of    Genealogy — Sir     Edward 

Dymoke  (3),  Ancestor  of  Both  Branches — The   Old   Champion — 

Selection   of  the    Descendant    of    Youngest    Son — Restoration    to 

Descendant  of  Second  Son — Henry  Lionel's   Will — The  Marmion 

Barony. 

"  Fortuna,  sasvo  heta  negotio,  et 
Ludum  insolentem  ludere  pertinax, 
Transmutat  incertos  honores, 

Xunc  mihi  nunc  alii  benigna." 

Horace. 

Fortune,  who  with  malicious  glee 

Her  merciless  vocation  plies, 
Benignly  smiling  now  on  me, 

Xow   on    another,    bids    him    rise, 
And    in    mere   wantonness   of  whim, 

Her   favours  shifts  from  me  to  him. 

Theodore  Martin. 

N  the  death  of  Henrv  Lionel's  widow,  we 
come  to  one  of  those  strange  turns  of 
fortune's  wheel,  which  from  time  to  time 
serve  to  excite  the  curiosity  and  quicken  the 
interest  of  those — and  their  name  is  legion — who  note  the 
ever-changing  aspects  of  societv,  as  exhibited  in  the  rise 
and  fall  of  our  old  English  families. 

It    is    often    said    that    "  the    unexpected   always  happens," 
but     when     the     truth     of    the     saying     is    established,    none, 


lOO  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

apparently,  are  so  astounded  as  those  who  were  loudest  in 
protesting  that  they  always  expected  it.  We  have  had  a 
striking  instance  of  this  at  Scrivelsby.  There  has  probably 
not  been  a  time  within  the  last  hundred  years,  when  some  one 
in  the  neighbourhood  has  not  said  with  more  or  less 
distinctness,  "  mark  my  words  ;  the  Tetford  Dymokes  will  one 
of  these  days  go  to  Scrivelsby."  In  fact,  ever  since  the  death 
of  Champion  Lewis  in  1760,  there  has  been  a  current  notion, 
expressed  with  greater  or  less  precision,  that  a  missing  link  in 
the  Dymoke  pedigree  would  be  found  at  Tetford,  and  that  in 
course  of  time  the  Tetford  branch  would  regain  their  old 
Scrivelsby  home.  Meanwhile,  the  two  offshoots  of  the  family 
settled  in  their  respective  spheres,  widely  and  socially  distinct 
from  each  other,  until  the  remembrance  of  a  common  origin 
seemed  well  nigh  lost.  The  one  f^unily  waxed  while  the 
other  waned.  The  tradition,  however,  of  the  missing  link  was 
handed  down  through  succeeding  generations,  although,  as  time 
went  on,  the  probabilities  of  a  change  seemed  to  be  gradually 
fading  away,  until  at  last  they  had  reached  the  vanishing 
point.  And  yet  every  now  and  again  would  still  be  heard 
the  old  cry  :  "  Mark  my  words  :  the  Tetford  Dymokes  will 
one  of  these  days  go  to  Scrivelsby."  And  now  that  they 
have  come  back,  the  wonder  is  that  so  improbable  a  thing 
should  have  happened. 

Here  was  a  family  well  established  and  possessing  the 
undoubted  right  of  transmitting  their  inheritance  at  their 
pleasure.      On   the  other  side  was  a  family  bearing  indeed  the 


THE    MISSING    LINK.  lOI 

same  name,  but  having  nothing  else  in  common  with  the 
family  in  possession,  and  who  apparently  were  as  little  likely 
to     be     called    bv    the     Scrivelsbv     branch     to    the     ancestral 

inheritance  as  any  other  family  in  the  county.      And  yet  by  a 

J  J  J  J  J 

series  of  accidents  which  no  one  could  haye  foreseen,  the  hazy 
notions  of  those  who  thought  that  somehow  or  other  the 
exodus  from  Tetford  to  Scrivelsby  would  be  accomplished 
haye  been  fully  yerified  :  the  missing  link  has  been  found,  and 
the  wanderimj  of  the  hundred  years  in  the  wilderness  of 
Tetford  has  been  followed  by  the  tranquil  Goshen  of 
Scriyelsby. 

But  in  order  to  fully  understand  the  circumstances  which 
led  to  the  accession  of  the  present  Champion,  we  must  go 
back  once  more  to  the  time  when  the  old  bachelor  Champion 
died  at  Scriyelsby  in  1760.  Haying  reached  the  patriarchal 
age  of  91,  it  is  hardly  surprising  to  find  that  he  had  outliyed 
many  members  of  his  family  who  might  naturally  haye 
expected  to  succeed  him.  The  estate  was  not  entailed, 
and  it  was  competent  for  the  aged  Champion  to  exercise  his 
discretion    in    the    nomination    of    his    heir.*       As    has    been 

*  The  i'ollowing  extract  from  a  private  letter  of  the  late  Sir  Joseph  Banks  is 
worth  quoting,  because  it  gives  a  sensible  and  practical  opinion  as  to  a  claim 
proposed  to  be  made  bv  the  Tetford  branch  of  the  familv  in  1811:  "It  matters 
not  to  the  heirs  of  Champion  Lewis  whether  the  estate  is  held  by  Knight  Service 
or'  by  Grand  Serjeantry,  as  neither  the  one  or  the  other  of  these  tenures  have 
any  influence  on  the  descent  of  the  land.  Scrivelsby,  like  the  generality  of  other 
lands  in  England,  is  held  by  the  proprietor  with  all  the  benefits  by  the  common 
law  provided  for  the  personal  advantages  of  proprietary  of  land  :  it  may  be 
bequeathed   by   will,  or   alienated    by   sale    or   gift;    and   if  so     alienated    in   prejudice 


I02  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

elsewhere  observed,  in  his  endeavour  to  do  justice  to  his 
relations,  he  "lost  himself  in  the  mazes  of  cousinhood,"  and 
bequeathed  the  manor  of  Scrivelsby  to  John  Needham 
Dymoke,  the  grandson  of  John  the  youngest  son  of  Sir 
Edward  Dvmoke. 

The  reader  is  now  invited  to  enter  this  "  maze  of 
cousinhood,"  and  he  will  then  more  clearlv  understand  the 
imbroglio  that  happened  on  the  death  of  Lewis.  Taking  our 
starting  point  from  the  death  of  Edward  Dymoke  (3)  1663-4, 
we  find  that  he  left  four  sons  : 

1.  Sir  Charles,  who  succeeded,  and  on  his  death  in    1686 

left  two  children,  Charles  and  Lewis,  each  of  whom 
succeeded  in  turn  to  the  Championship,  and  died 
without  issue,   Charles  in   1702,  and  Lewis  in   1760. 

2.  Edward,    whose    name    has    been    unaccountably    left 

out  from  the  genealogical  tables  since  the  time  of 
Banks.  It  is  from  this  Edward  that  the  Tetford 
branch  claim  to  be  descended. 

3.  Nicholas,  who  left  one  son  who  died  unmarried. 

4.  John,  from  whom  the  Scrivelsby  branch  claim  descent. 
Our  business  now  is  with  Edward,  the  second  son    of   Sir 

Edward  Dvmoke.  This  Edward  is  stvled  in  the  re^rister 
Edward  Dymoke,  Junior.  He  married  Abigail  Snowden,  on 
the   1 8th  July,    1654,  and  had  issue  : 

of  the  next  heir,  he  cannot  have  any  claim  against  the  vestee,  unless  it  arises 
out  of  special  bargains  or  agreements  made  and  confirmed  previously  to  the 
alienation." 


THE    MISSING    LINK.  IO3 

1.  Robert,    of  Grebby   Hall,    who    died    in    1714,    leaving 
three  children. 

2.  Edward,      who     died     unmarried,      1740,     leaving    the 
Tetford  estates  to  his  nephew,  John. 

3.  John,     who     was    the    fiither    of    another    John,    just 

mentioned,  and   who   continued  the  succession   on  the 

failure  of  the  heirs   of   his   elder  brother,    Robert,    of 

whose    three     children,     Reuben     and     Robert     died 

unmarried,    and    a    daughter,    Elizabeth,     became    the 

wife     of     the      Rev.      Thomas     Welles,     Rector     of 

Willingham  and  Spridlington,   and  to  whom    we    shall 

refer  bve  and  bve. 

Going    back    to    John,    we    find    that   he   died   at  Tetford, 

leaving    a    son,    also    called    John,    and    two    daughters.      This 

John    married     Rebecca    Nayler,     and    died    at    Tetford,     4th 

August,      1782.       It     was     to     this     John,     the     eldest     legal 

representative  of  Sir  Edward  Dymoke,  to  whom  the  Scrivelsby 

inheritance    would    naturallv    have    fallen    upon    the    death    of 

Lewis  in    1760.     But,    as   has    been    alreadv    mentioned,  Lewis, 

having    a    clear    and    indisputable    right     to     dispose     of     his 

property    at    his    pleasure,  left    the    Scrivelsby    estate    to   John 

Needham    Dvmoke,    with    remainder    to    his    brother    Edward, 

from    whom    the    Scrivelsbv    branch    of    the     Dvmoke    familv 

derived    their     succession.        Confining    our    attention    to    the 

Tetford  branch,  the  succession  from  this  point  is  uninterrupted, 

son    succeeding    father    in    regular    course    (as    will   be  seen  in 

the    full    genealogical    table  given    in    the    appendix),  until  we 


I04  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

come    to     Francis    Seaman    Dymoke,    the    present    owner    of 
Scrivelsby  Manor. 

Now,  turning:  our  attention  to  the  Scrivelsbv  branch,  we 
shall  find  that,  starting  from  the  same  point  as  in  the  case  of 
the  Tetford  descent,  viz.  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  (3),  who  died  in 
1664,  the  common  ancestor  of  the  two  diverging  branches,  his 
youngest  son,  John,  became  the  father  of  Charles,  who  was 
the  father  of  the  two  brothers,  John  Needham  and  Edward, 
mentioned  in  the  will  of  the  aged  Champion,  Lewis,  as  his 
heirs.  It  has  alreadv  been  told  how  this  Scrivelsbv  branch 
inherited  the  Scrivelsby  estate  and  the  Championship  from  the 
time  of  John,  who  officiated  at  the  coronation  of  George  III. 
in  1 76 1,  to  Henry  Lionel,  the  last  representative  of  this 
branch  of  the  family,  and  whose  death  occurred  in    1875. 

It  is  at  this  point  that  the  interest  of  our  genealogical 
puzzle  culminates.  Henry  Lionel,  dying  without  issue, 
bequeathed  the  estate — not  to  anyone  by  name— but  to  the 
"heir-at-law  of  John  Dvmoke,  who  died  at  Tetford  in  the 
vear  1782."  It  is  not  difficult  to  fathom  the  motive  of  this 
bequest,  nor,  indeed,  of  the  peculiar  method  adopted  for 
describing  it.  He  put  himself  in  the  place  of  the  old 
Champion  who  died  in  1760,  and  bequeathed  his  estate 
to  the  representative  of  the  heir-at-law  at  the  time  of 
Lewis's  death,  and  this  heir-at-law  w^as  "John  Dymoke,  who 
died  at  Tetford  in  1782,"  the  very  words  employed  in 
Henry  Lionel's  will.  Of  course,  he  might  have  left  it  direct 
to     Francis     Seaman     Dymoke,     who     was    undoubtedly    the 


FRANCIS  SCAMAN   DYMOKE,  ESQ.,  THE  HON.   THE   QUEENS   CHAMPION. 


THE    MISSING    LINK.  IO5 

heir-at-law  of  his  great  grandfather.     But   he  had  no   personal 

acquaintance  with  the  Tetford    family,    and    in    all    probability 

he   wished  to   emphasize,    as    distinctly    as   possible,    his    desire 

to   amend   what  might    have    seemed    to    him  a    wrong,   under 

which  the   Tetford  branch  had   suffered   for    a    hundred    years, 

without   gratifying  any   personal  wish   of   his   own   in  benefiting 

a    particular    individual.       And  so,    in    the    whirly-gig    of  time, 

the   Championship,   in  the   teeth  of    all    probability,    and    long 

after  the   time   when   the    inheritance    seemed    hopelessly    lost, 

comes  back    to   the  very    man    who    might    have    expected    to 

succeed,  had   the   cleavage   of  1760  never  happened. 

The     marvel     is     heightened      by     the      reflection      that, 

although   the   legal   representative   of   Sir   Edward  Dymoke    (3) 

is   now   at  Scrivelsby,   he  is   not   there  because   of  his   right   as 

successor  to   Sir  Edward,   but  because   he  was  selected,  as    of 

grace,  bv  Henrv   Lionel  Dymoke,    who    might    have    disposed 

of  his  property  any   way  he   pleased.      iVnother    result    of  the 

particular  wording  of  Henrv   Lionel's  will  is  that    it    excludes 

all  other  claims.     Had   it  stated  that  the    property  had    to    go 

to    the    heir-at-law    of  Sir    Edward    (3),    it  is    possible — not   to 

sav    probable — that    amongst    others,     the  descendants,    if   any, 

of     Elizabeth,      the     wife     of     the      Rev.      Thomas    Welles, 

(alreadv  mentioned   as  the  daughter   of  Robert,  the  eldest  son 

of  Edward  Dvmoke,    Junior,    the    second   son   of   Sir    Edward) 

would   have   put  in  a  claim,    and   the    revenues    of   the    estate 

would    have    been    wasted    in  litigation.      It    is    not    probable 

that  the  dying  Champion  had  this  in  his  mind  at    the    time  of 
o 


I06  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

drafting    his    will,    but    it    is    beyond    question    now    that    the 

Scrivelsby  estate  is    absolutely    vested    in    the    present    owner, 

and  that  his  title  thereto  is  clear  and  indisputable.* 

The    history,    however,    as    it    stands,    is    curious,   and  may 

at  least   serve,    amidst   other  instances   of  similar  vicissitudes  of 

fortune, 

"To  point  a  moral  or  adorn  a  tale." 

-  In  the  statement  of  the  claim  to  the  Baron}-  of  Marmion,  originally 
advanced  by  Lewis  and  subsequently  renewed  by  Sir  Henry  Dymoke,  attention 
is  drawn  to  an  important  decision  arrived  at  hv  the  Commissioners  who  were 
called  upon  to  adjudicate  between  the  rival  claims  of  Sir  Edward  Dymoke  to  act 
as  Champion  at  the  coronation  of  Charles  II.,  and  Robert  Heywood,  the  son  of 
Elizabeth,  daughter  and  heir  of  Robert,  who  was  unquestionably  the  elder  brother 
of  Nicholas,  the  father  of  Sir  Edward,  the  other  claimant.  The  commissioners, 
after  minute  enquiry,  having  pronounced  in  favour  of  Sir  Edward,  who  was 
certainly  not  the  heir  general,  but  the  next  heir  male  of  the  person  last  seized 
of  the  Manor,  decided  by  implication  that  at  some  time,  though  the  precise  date 
was  not  given,  "  the  Manor  had  been  settled  in  tail  male."  This  decision  would 
be  fatal  to  any  claim  that  might  be  advanced  by  the  descendants  of  Elizabeth, 
the  wife  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Welles,  and  daughter  of  Robert  Dymoke,  of 
Grebby    Hall,   who    died    in  the   year    1714. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Rejlections — Coincidences — Mock  Heroic  Verses — Redgaiintlei — The  Gold 
Cups — Decay  of  Sentiment — "  The  Champion  s  Farewell^'  by  Tom 
Hood — Coronation  of  William  IV. — Courtesy  Title  of  Champion. 

The    age     of    chivalry     is    gone.      That    of    sophisters, 
economists,   and   calculators    has   succeeded. 

Burke. 

ROM  what  has  been  said  of  the  families  of 
Marmion  and  Dvmoke,  it  will  be  seen  that 
for  more  than  two  centuries,  the  former,  and 
for  more  than  five  centuries,  the  latter  have 
been  closelv  connected  with  Scrivelsbv.  The  ]\Iarmions, 
however,  before  the  division  of  their  vast  estates,  were,  as 
might  have  been  expected,  more  ubiquitous  than  their 
successors,  residing  sometimes  at  Scrivelsbv,  but  more 
regularly  and  continuously  at  Tamworth  Castle,  in  Warwick- 
shire. But  they  were  a  martial  family,  and  the  necessities  of 
their  position,  entailing  duties  in  connection  with  public  affairs 
as  well  as  with  the  management  of  their  estates  in  different 
counties  of  England  and  at  Fontenov  in  Normandv,  caused 
them  to  be  migratory  in  their  habits,  and,  at  this  distance  of 
time,  it  woiild  be  difficult  to  say  where  they  were  living  at 
any  particular  moment. 


I08  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF   THE    CHAMPIONS. 

No  record  exists  of  anything  like  continuous  residence  in 
their  Lincohishire  home,  and,  although  Sir  Philip  Marmion, 
the  last  representative  of  the  unbroken  line  of  the  family,  was 
buried  at  Scrivelsbv,  he  did  not  die  there  :  and  beyond  the 
existing  proof  of  the  warm  interest  he  took  in  this  part  of  his 
inheritance,  the  chief  ground  for  inferring  that  this  was 
regarded  as  his  principal  home  is  based  on  the  fact  that  the 
effigies  of  himself  and  his  vrife  were  placed  in  Scrivelsby 
Church,  where  they  exist  to  the  present  day. 

The  Marmions  were  not  only  a  martial  family,  but  they 
took  a  prominent  part  in  the  administration  of  local  affairs  in 
the  several  counties  in  which  their  property  was  situated. 
They  were  Sheriffs  at  a  time  when  the  office  of  Sheriff 
involved  heavy  and  responsible  duties.  One  of  them,  that  Sir 
Robert  whom  we  have  styled  "The  old  Judge,"  was  at 
different  times  Sheriff  of  Worcestershire,  Staffordshire,  and  of 
the  Counties  of  Warwick  and  Hereford.  They  were  also 
cited  as  barons  to  assist  the  King  with  their  counsel  in 
critical  times,  when  the  affairs  of  the  nation  required  it.* 

Amidst  all  this  participation  in  government  and 
administration,  it  is  indisputable  that  not   a   single    member   of 


*  In  the  case  presented  hy  Lewis  Dvmoke  (2)  on  liis  petition  to  be  declared 
Baron  of  Marmion  of  Scrivelsby,  the  claim  is  based  on  the  petitioner's  descent 
from  Sir  Philip  Marmion,  "who,  in  the  return  to  an  inquisition  post  mortem 
taken  after  his  death  in  the  20th  of  Edward  I.,  is  stated  by  the  Jurors  to  have 
held  the  Manor  of  Scrivelsby,  with  the  appurtenances  of  the  King  in  capita,  per 
Baronimn,  and  to  have  died  seized  thereof  in  his  demesne  as  of  fee,"  and  that 
the   Marmions   "  were    of  high    rank    and    antiquity   among   the    Barons   of  the  land." 


REFLECTIONS.  IO9 

the  family  performed  the  peculiar  duties  of  the  office  which 
was  the  characteristic  distinction  of  their  house,  although  they 
were  undoubtedly  the  hereditary  Champions  of  the  Sovereigns 
of  England  as  well  as  of  the  Dukes  of  Normandv.  This 
abstention  is  certainly  remarkable,  whatever  wei2:ht  may  be 
attached  to  the  arguments  advanced  in  a  previous  chapter,  to 
account  for  the  absence  of  a  Champion  from  so  many  of  the 
early  coronations.  It  may  well  be  that  the  Marmions  were 
too  much  engaged  in  the  realities  of  actual  warfare  to  care 
about  playing  the  part  of  mimic  warriors  in  the  courtly  halls 
of  Westminster.  It  is  not  till  the  Dymokes  appear  upon  the 
scene,  that  we  hear  anything  of  a  Champion  claiming  to 
exercise  the  duties  of  his  office,  at  the  coronation  of  our 
English  sovereigns  :  but  from  that  time  onward — from  1377  to 
182 1* — a  Dymoke  has  always  been  found  equal  to  the 
occasion,  either  in  his  own  person,  or  by  the  substitution  of 
some  member  of  his  family. 

As  the  English  Championship  was  strictly  confined  to  the 
feudal  tenure  of  the  Manor  of  Scrivelsby,  it  would  occasionally 
happen  that  the  feudal  owner  would  be  a  ladv,  or  a 
clergyman  in  holy  orders,  in  which  case,  a  husband  or  a  son 
would  represent  the  Champion  on  the  coronation  day.  It  may 
be  worth  mentioning  that  on  the  first  as  well  as  on  the  last 
occasion,  when  a  Champion  appeared  at  an  English  coronation, 

*  Although  George  III.  died  on  the  29th  January,  1820,  his  successor  was 
not  crowned  before  the  19th  of  July,  1821.  It  was  on  this  occasion  that  Sir 
Henry  Dymoke  acted  as  Champion,  on  behalf  of  his  father,  who  was  in  holy 
orders. 


no  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  office  was,  in  each  case,  performed  vicariously,  in  the  one 
bv  the  husband  of  the  Ladv  Mars^aret  de  Ludlow  :  and  in  the 
other  bv  the  son  of  the  Rev.  John  Dymoke,  who  was  Lord 
of  the  Manor,  as  well  as  Rector  of  Scrivelsby,  on  the  death 
of  George   IIL 

Another  circumstance  mav  be  noticed,  if  onlv  for  the 
curious  coincidence  it  affords.  On  the  roll  of  Champions 
there  were  two  Dymokes,  of  the  name  of  Lewis.  They  were 
both  bachelors,  and  the  death  of  each  was  contemporaneous 
with  that  of  the  reigning  Sovereign  of  the  time,  George  IL 
and  the  first  Lewis  dying  in  1760,  and  the  second  Lewis 
dying  in  1820,  in  the  interval  between  the  death  of 
George  IIL  and  the  coronation  of  George   IV. 

With  regard  to  the  execution  of  the  office  of  Champion 
on  a  coronation  day,  it  will  be  remembered  that  the  right 
moment  for  his  appearance,  in  full  armour,  and  mounted  on 
his  charger,  was  in  the  middle  of  the  coronation  banquet,  the 
right  place  being  Westminster  Hall.  The  challenge  to  all 
gainsayers  was  in  the  orthodox  fashion,  by  flinging  down  the 
knis^ht's  gauntlet,  in  the  tolerable  certaintv  that  no  one  would 
venture  to  take  it  up  in  token  of  acceptance.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  the  challenge  never  has  been  accepted,  although  there 
have  been  occasions  when  the  Sovereign's  title  might  have 
been  fairly  questioned.  It  could  not,  for  instance,  have 
excited  much  surprise,  if  advantage  had  been  taken  in  this 
wav  to  challenge  the  right  of  anv  one  of  the  Lancastrian 
Sovereigns,    or   of  those    of  the    house    of  York.      Again,   the 


REFLECTIONS.  Ill 

accession  of  William  and  Mary,  as  well  as  that  of  Ann  and 
that  also  of  the  first  two  Georges,  might  have  occasioned 
some  danger  of  disturbance  at  their  respective  coronations. 
But,  happily  for  our  Champions,*  their  task  has  always  been 
a  bloodless  one,  and  instead  of  broken  bones,  the  Dvmokes 
have  alwavs  brought  back  from  the  coronation  banquet  a 
golden  cup  and  cover,  which  they  received  as  their  fee  from 
the  hands  of  the  Sovereign. t  x\lthough  the  Champion's 
challenge  has  never  been  accepted.  Sir  Walter  Scott,  in 
Rcdgauntlet^  gives  a  description  of  the  coronation  of 
George   III.,    and   introduces  one   of  his   characters,    a    maiden 

'"  The    following    mock-heroic    verses    were    written     on    the    occasion     of    the 
coronation    of  George  II.,    by   a   young   Westminster   Scholar  : 

When  first  the  new-crown'd  King  in    splendour   reigns, 

A  golden  cup  the  royal  Champion  gains. 

With  gesture  fierce,  his  gauntlet  stern  he  throws. 

And  dares  to  martial  fight  his  absetit  foes. 

Where  no  brave  Quixote  answering  to  his  call 

He  rides  triumphant  thro'  the  gilded    hall. 

Thrice  happy  Conqueror  that  the  laurel    wears 

Unstrain'd  by  warrior's  blood  or  widows'  tears. 

Armed  at  all  points,  should  he  a  foe  behold. 

Say — would  he  keep  the  field,  or  quit  the  gold  ? 
f  It  was  customary  for  the  Sovereign  to  pledge  the  Champion  bv  tasting  the 
wine  with  which  the  gold  cup  was  filled,  and  then  to  place  it  in  his  hands,  when 
he  was  e.xpected  to  empty  it  and  to  take  it  away  as  his  perquisite.  But  a 
strange  thing  often  happened.  As  it  was  necessary  to  remove  the  cover  for  the 
introduction  of  the  wine,  the  cup  naturally  came  in  this  state  to  the  Champion's 
hands,  and,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  most  of  the  cups  brought  to  Scrivelsby 
were  found  to  be  without  a  cover !  In  the  excitement  of  the  moment  the 
armed  knight  would  not  notice  the  absence  of  the  lid,  and  afterwards  when  he 
tried  to  recover  it,  lo  !  it  was  gone.  Now  this  is  suggestive  of  a  mystery  which 
it  passes   the    wit    of  man    to    fathom. 


I  1 2  SCRIVELSBY    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

of  fourteen,  as  surreptitiously  introduced  into  Westminster 
Hall,  and  instructed  bv  her  Jacobite  uncle  to  carry  away  the 
Champion's  glove,  and  to  leave  in  its  stead  a  written 
statement  that,  on  the  assurance  of  fair  play  and  honourable 
treatment,  a  fitting  knight  would  appear  to  dispute  the  young 
King's  title  to  the  throne.  In  a  subsequent  note,  the  author 
of  Waverley,  while  allowing  that  this  particular  incident  was 
only  the  fruit  of  his  own  imagination,  gravely  assures  his  readers 
that  "it  was  always  said,  though  with  little  appearance  of 
truth,  that  upon  the  coronation  of  George  III.,  when  the 
Champion  of  England,  Dymock,  appeared  in  Westminster 
Hall,  and,  in  the  language  of  chivalry,  solemnly  wagered  his 
body  to  defend  in  single  combat  the  right  of  the  King  to 
the  crown  of  these  realms,  at  the  moment  when  he  flung 
down  his  gauntlet  as  the  gage  of  battle,  an  unknown  female 
stepped  from  the  crowd  and  lifted  the  pledge,  leaving 
another  gage  in  room  of  it  with  a  paper  expressing  that  if 
a  fair  field  of  combat  should  be  allowed,  a  Champion  of  rank 
and  birth  would  appear  with  equal  arms  to  dispute  the  claim 
of  King  George  to  the  British  Kingdoms,"  and  that,  upon 
the  strength  of  this  tradition,  he  had  ventured  to  introduce 
the   striking   incident   in  his  novel. 

In  the  good  old  days  of  the  Plantagenets,  the  Champion 
claimed  for  his  coronation  fee,  not  only  the  gold  cup  with 
its  golden  cover,  but  the  suit  of  armour  also  in  which  he 
appeared,  as  well  as  the  charger  on  which  he  rode.  It  would 
seem  also  as  if  he  claimed  the  right  not  only  to  take  from  the 


REFLECTIONS.  II3 

King's  armoury  the  second  best  suit  of  armour,  but  also  to 
the  royal  Mews,  and  to  select  the  second  best  horse  he  could 
find,  which  afterwards  became  his  own  property.*  He  also 
claimed,  as  already  mentioned,  twenty  yards  of  crimson 
satin,  wherewith  to  adorn  his  knightly  person,  but  at  the 
coronation  of  James  I.,  and  subsequently  at  the  coronation  of 
Queen  Anne,  this  claim  of  satin  was  disallowed. 

From  the  list  given  in  the  appendix,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  Dymokes  have  acted  as  Champions  on  twenty-one 
occasions,  and  consequently  there  ought  to  be  twentv-one 
cups  in  possession  of  the  family.  But  the  present  Champion 
only  holds  seven,  viz.  those  obtained  at  the  coronation  of 
James  II.,  William  and  Mary,  Anne  and  the  four  Georges. 
On  the  death  of  Henry  Lionel  Dymoke,  in  1875,  the  Queen 
became  possessed  of  these  cups  by  special  bequest,  but  Her 
Majesty,  on  learning  the  circumstances  under  which  the  bequest 
had  been  made,  with  that  considerate  good  taste,  for  which 
she  is  justly  celebrated,  presented  them  as  a  personal  gift 
from  herself  to  the  present  owner  of  the  Scrivelsby  estates. 
In  spite  of  their  diminished  number,  these  cups  are  an 
interesting  feature  in  Scrivelsby  Court,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that    they    may    long     continue     in     the     old     home     of     the 


-  ~  At  the  coronation  of  George  III.,  John  Dymoke  is  said  to  have  ridden 
the  horse  that  carried  George  II.  at  the  battle  of  Dettingen,  but  no  record 
exists  of  the  subsequent  appearance  of  Bucephalus  in  the  Scrivelsby  stables !  It 
is  probable,  however,  that  the  Champion  received  the  value  of  the  horse,  in  the 
shape  of  a  composition,  which  was  generally  enforced  on  such  occasions. 
P 


114  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

Champions,  as  a  lasting  memorial  of  the  past  greatness  of  the 
family,  and  of  the  peculiar  office  which  they  were  privileged 
to  hold. 

It  will  be  further  noticed  that,  while  there  are  twenty-one 
coronations,  there  are  only  fourteen  officiating  Champions,  the 
explanation,  of  course,  being  that  several  of  the  Champions 
acted  more  than  once.  Thus,  the  first  Sir  Thomas  officiated 
twice,  and,  each  time,  as  the  representative  of  his  mother, 
who  was  tenacious  of  her  position  as  Lady  of  Scrivelsby. 
Sir  Robert  Dymoke,  and  his  son,  the  first  Sir  Edward,  each 
performed  the  office  on  three  coronations,  while  Charles 
Dvmoke  and  his  brother  Lewis  acted  twice.  The  late  Sir 
Henry  Dymoke  was  competent  to  act  in  his  own  right  at 
the  coronation  of  William  IV.,  as  well  as  at  that  of  Her 
present  Majesty,  Queen  Victoria,  but  on  neither  occasion 
were  his  services  required,  nor  is  it  in  the  least  likely  that 
the  office  will  ever  again  be   revived. 

We  live  in  strictly  utilitarian  times,  where  balance 
sheets  are  all  predominant,  where  pros  and  cons  are  strictly 
weighed,  and  woe  betide  any  institution  that,  when  placed  in 
the  utilitarian  balance,  kicks  the  beam  for  lack  of  power  to 
produce  solid  proof  in  justification  of  its  raison-cf  -etre.  The 
age  of  sentiment  has  passed  and  gone  ;  cakes  and  ale,  and 
even  cakes  without  the  ale,  are  an  abomination  to  the 
practical  men  of  the  nineteenth  century  :  sports  and  pastimes 
are  no  longer  thought  seemly  or  becoming  for  grown  men 
and  women  ;  and  even  the  games  of  our   unfortunate    children 


REFLECTIONS.  II5 

are  turned  to  profitable  account,  the  mysteries  of  geography 
being  taught  bv  the  help  of  map-puzzles,  and  architectural 
geometry  bv  tov-bricks.  No  wonder,  under  such  circumstances, 
that  our  Champions  are  never  again  likely  to  form  part  of  a 
royal  pageant,  and  that  their  office  will  in  future  be  nothing 
but  a  memory  and  a  name.  But  it  is  hard  to  think  that  the 
coup-de-gracc  was  given  to  the  Champion's  office  by  such 
very  poor  stuff  as  the  doggerel  verses  of  Tom  Hood,  which 
were  supposed  to  have  been  of  assistance  to  the  authorities  at 
the  time  of  the  coronation  of  William  IV.,  when,  chiefly  for 
economical  reasons,  they  were  anxious  to  reduce  the 
ceremonial  of  the  coronation  to  the  slenderest  possible 
dimensions.  Tom  Hood  was  a  wit  and  the  champion  punster 
of  his  day.  But  he  was  capable  also  of  writing  seriously  and 
effectively  on  any  subject  in  which  he  w^as  interested,  and 
when  his  sympathies  were  powerfully  enlisted  in  any 
particular  cause,  a  more  powerful  advocate  could  scarcely  be 
found.  The  effect  produced  by  his  thrilling  delineations  of 
the  sufferings  of  the  poor  shirtmakers,  half  a  century  ago,  has, 
happily,  not  yet  died  out  ;  and  he  himself,  by  the  choice  of 
his  epitaph,  showed  his  appreciation  of  the  popular  verdict 
that  was  passed  on  his  simple  but  painfully  realistic  poem.* 
But  his  "Champion's  Farewell  "  was  unworthy  of  him,  and 
Homer    was    for   once    found    napping.       The    lines  are   hardly 

■~"  The    only   panegj'ric   that   appears  on  Tom  Hood's  tombstone  in  Kensal  Green 
Cemetery  is  this  simple  line  : 

"  He  sang  the  song  of  the  shirt." 


Il6  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

worth    reproducing,    but    they    may   be    seen    in    the    appendix 
(No.   12)  bv  those  who  care  to  read  them. 

Ridicule  is  always  a  potent  engine  and  can  be  usefully 
employed  for  the  correction  of  abuses,  and  the  annihilation  of 
mischievous  shams.  Such  an  institution  as  the  Championship 
would  naturally  give  abundant  scope  to  the  role  of  the  jesting 
fraternity.  The  only  wonder  is  that  the  wit  that  was  evolved 
Avas  so  poor  and  trivial.  A  good  deal  of  pungent  satire 
might  fairly  have  been  expended  upon  what  might  be  termed 
an  unmeaning  ceremony,  necessitating  the  conversion  of  a 
quiet  country  gentleman  into  a  student  in  the  equestrian  school 
of  Astley,  and  a  change  from  riding  straight  in  the  hunting  field 
to  pirouetting  and  backing  in  Westminster  Hall.  The  wit, 
however,  in  spite  of  its  poverty,  seems  to  have  been  effectual. 

The  coronation  of  1831  was  quietly  and  inexpensively 
conducted  without  any  help  from  Scrivelsby,  and  there  is  no 
prospect  of  any  future  Champion  bringing  home  from 
Westminster  one  of  those  golden  cups  which  are  more 
precious  for  their  association  than  for  their  intrinsic  value. 
Sie  transit  gloria.  But,  though  the  duties  of  the  office  are 
no  longer  exacted,  the  Championship  still  remains  as  an 
appanage  of  the  old  baronial  estate  of  Scrivelsby,  the  owner 
of  which  is  by  courtesy  entitled,  in  his  official  capacity,  to 
be  addressed  A.B.,  Esq.,  The  Honourable  the  Queen's 
Champion.  This  title  is  strictly  confined  to  the  person 
entitled  to  perform  the  duties  of  the  office,  and,  like  that  of 
bishops  and  clergymen,   is  not  shared  by  wife   or  children. 


REFLECTIONS.  I  I  7 

An  amusing  story  is  told  of  an  aspiring  dame,  the  wife 
of  a  Champion  in  holy  orders,  a  good  many  years  ago,  who 
was  anxious  to  assume  the  prefix  of  Honourable,  and  was  only 
cured  of  this  little  piece  of  vanity,  by  finding  her  letters 
addressed  "The  Honourable  and  Reverend  Mrs.  D."  In  like 
manner,  the  witty  Bishop  of  Oxford  laughed  out  of  Court  a 
foolish  claim  for  some  distinctive  title  to  be  given  to  the 
Rural  Deans  of  his  diocese,  by  gravely  proposing  that  they 
should  be  dubbed  "Rather"  Reverend,  to  distinguish  them 
from  their  Right  Reverend  and  Very  Reverend  brethren.  So 
true    is    it    that,    in    these    davs    as    much    as    in    the    time    of 

Horace, 

Pleasantry  will  often  cut  clean  through 
Hard  knots  that  gravity  would  scarce  undo.* 

CONINGTOX. 


""■  Ridiculum  acri 
Fortius  et  melius  magnas  plerumque  secat  res. 

HOR.\CE. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


Scrivelsby  Court — TJic  Park — Lion   Gate — Leaden   Cow — Moat — Arched 

Gateway — Armour    and     Armoury — Family    Portraits — General 

Appearance. 

This   castle    hath    a   pleasant  seat  :    the  air 
Nimbly  and  sweetly  recommends  itself 
Unto  our  gentle  senses. 

Shakespeare. 

CRIVELSBY  Court,  the  family  mansion  of  the 
Dymokes,  is  situated  in  a  small  park  well 
stocked  with  deer.  The  park  is  well  wooded, 
some     of     the      trees      beino^     verv      old      and 

O  J 

picturesque  ;  and,  though  of  no  great  size,  the  park  is 
judiciously  laid  out,  so  that  it  appears  to  be  much  larger  than 
it  reallv  is.  It  is,  indeed,  highly  probable  that  in  olden 
times  it  extended  over  a  much  wider  area  than  it  occupies  at 
present.  There  are  indications  which  give  countenance  to  the 
belief  that,  at  one  time,  it  extended  from  the  present  confines 
to  what  is  known  as  "Teapot  Lodge,"  on  the  Dalderby  road. 
There  are  clear  traces  of  a  continuous  avenue  extending  along 
the  whole  distance  ;  and  the  field  in  which  the  Rectory  now 
stands  was  at  one  time,  in  all  probability,  a  portion  of  the 
old  park. 


SCRIVELSBY    COURT.  II9 

The  entrance  now  is  through  what  is  well  known  as  the 
"Lion  Gateway,"  a  stone  arch  of  the  late  perpendicular 
period,  surmounted  bv  a  rampant  lion.  This  gateway  was 
probably  built  by  Sir  Robert  Dvmoke,  in  the  early  part  of 
the  1 6th  century.  The  rebus  or  device  of  the  oak  tree,  on 
the  right-hand  side  of  this  archway,  has  been  already 
described. 

On  the  south  of  the  Court  are  two  short  avenues,  one  of 
walnut  and  the  other  of  chesnut  trees,  the  latter  especially 
forming  a  striking  object  when  seen  from  the  interior  of  the 
house.  It  exactly  faces  the  windows  on  the  north  side,  from 
which  a  charming  outlook  is  obtained.  The  leaden  cow,  now 
much  dilapidated,  used  to  wear  so  natural  an  appearance  as 
to  cheat  the  occasional  visitor  into  thinking  that  it  was  a 
veritable  animal,  kindly  posing  itself  in  a  suitable  attitude  for 
heightening  the  effect  of  the  landscape. 

A  moat  used  to  surround  the  house,  and  a  fountain  plays 
in  one  of  the  two  existing  sheets  of  water,  which  are 
well  stocked  with  gold  and  silver  fish.  A  small  well-turfed 
garden  occupies  the  place  of  the  old  pleasance.  The  walled 
fruit  and  kitchen  garden  is  inconveniently  situated  at  a 
considerable  distance  from  the  house,  in  the  lane  leading  to 
the  Rectory.  Adjoining  this  walled  garden,  on  its  eastern 
side,  is  a  bijou  flower  garden,  which,  though  fronting  the 
main  road,  is  so  well  hidden  by  shrubs  and  trees  as  to  form 
a  pleasant  retreat,  with  everything  to  gratify  the  eve,  and 
with    abundant    shade    to    serve    as    shelter    from    the    heat    of 


I20  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF   THE    CHAMPIONS. 

the  sun  in  the  hottest  days  of  summer.  The  Court  is  in  the 
Gothic  Tudor  style  of  architecture,  and  part  of  it  is  very  old. 
It  has  been  twice  exposed  to  the  danger  of  fire.  On  the 
second  of  these  occasions,  irreparable  mischief  was  done  by 
the  destruction  of  the  old  Hall,  the  walls  of  which  were 
ornamented  with  richly-illuminated  panels,  depicting  the 
various  arms  and  alliances  of  the  Dymoke  family,  from 
the  earliest  times.  This  fire  happened  in  1761,  at  the  time 
when  John  Dymoke  was  in  London  preparing  for  the 
coronation  of  George  III.,  and  shortly  after  his  ow^n 
succession  to  the  Championship.  The  first  fire  was  in  the 
preceding  century. 

At  the  approach  to  the  Court  yard,  in  front  of  the  house, 
is  an  ancient  and  most  interesting  arched  gateway,  evidently 
intended  to  cover  the  entrance.  It  has  strong  oaken  doors, 
and  there  is  an  embrasure  on  the  left-hand  side  with  pierced 
loop  holes,  to  rake  the  passage.  Over  it  is  a  tower,  w^hich 
was  probably  at  one  time  higher  than  it  is  at  present.  It  is 
now  used  as  a  clock  tower,  but  was  originally  constructed  as 
a  place  of  vantage,  from  which  missiles  might  be  discharged 
against  assailants,  and  was  in  all  probability  defended  by  a 
portcullis  and  a  drawbridge,  which  could  be  let  down  to  form 
an  entrance  to  the  Court  from  the  moat,  which  used  to 
encircle  the  whole  building.* 


*  A  good  idea  of  tliis  arched  gateway  can  be  obtained  from  the  quaint  engraving 
of  the  old  house  given  on  page  57.  The  laws  of  perspective  have  been  evidentl)'' 
violated  to  give  greater  prominence  to  this  old  gateway. 


SCRIVELSBY    COURT.  121 

There  is  nothing  remarkable  in  the  interior  of  the  house, 
the  rooms  of  which  are  comparatively  small.  The  old 
reception  hall,  subsequently  used  as  a  billiard-room,  is  the 
finest  room  in  the  house,  and  commanding  a  noble  view  of  the 
park.  In  the  dining-room  are  a  few  family  portraits,  three 
or  four  of  them  being  valuable.  A  few  years  back  there 
were  two  lay  figures  wearing  valuable  suits  of  armour,  and 
several  other  armed  figures  representing  the  various  Champions 
who  had  taken  part  in  the  coronations  of  their  time,  but, 
unfortunately,  the  bulk  of  these  were  disposed  of  a  few  years 
ago,  one  of  them  being  sold  for  a  thousand  guineas.  At  the 
same  time  was  sold  a  valuable  picture,  bv  Landseer,  its  chief 
interest  consisting  in  its  being  one  of  the  earliest,  if  not  the 
earliest,  of  the  published  works  of  that  artist.  On  the  right- 
hand  side  of  the  chief  entrance  is  a  small  enclosure,  containing 
an  interesting  collection  of  antique  arms,  supposed  to  have 
been  used  by  the  earlier  Champions.  Here  are  to  be  seen 
halberds,  and  axes,  and  maces,  and  swords,  with  old  guns  and 
pikes,  daggers,  and  lances,  the  whole  tastefully  arranged  and 
kept  in  admirable  order.  In  the  same  enclosure,  which  is 
known  as  the  armoury,  are  two  armed  lay  figures,  but  of  no 
value  or  importance. 

On  the  whole,  we  may  say  that  Scrivelsby  Court   appears 

to    be    more    suitable    to    the    status    of    an    ordinary  country 

gentleman,     than     to     that     of     such     eminent    men    as    some 

of  the  older  Champions  must   undoubtedly  have   been.     There 

is  no  room   now  for   state   ceremonial   or   display,  but  in  spite 
Q 


122  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

of    the     architectural     irregularities    of    the    house,    the    tout 
ensemble  is  imposing  and    unique. 

It  is  unfortunate  that  no  good  representation  is  to  be 
found  of  the  original  house,  as  it  appeared  before  the  great 
fire  in  the  last  century.  From  the  few  engravings  that  still 
exist,  it  would  seem  that  the  description  of  Leland,  the 
antiquary,  w^as  fairly  accurate.  At  the  same  time,  it  is  not  at 
all  unlikely  that,  although  the  exterior  was  not  particularly 
attractive,  it  was  at  least  as  convenient  and  as  w^ell  adapted 
for  its  purpose,  as  the  more  imposing  structure  of  the  present 
time. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


Scrivelsby  Church — St.  Benedict's — Pretty  Approach  from  Rectory — The 
Church  Plantation — Architectural  Features — Monuments — The 
New  Style — Church-yard    Cross. 

The  pathway,  by  perennial    green 
Guarded    and    graced,    seemed    fashioned    to    unite 
As  by  a  beautiful  but  solemn  chain, 
The  Pastor's  mansion  with  the  house  of  prayer. 

Wordsworth. 

I  would  rather  sleep  in  the  south  corner  of  a  little   churchyard 

than  in  the  tomb  of  the  Capulets. 

Burke. 


HE  Church  of  St.  Benedict,  at  Scrivelsby, 
stands  in  an  unusually  large  churchyard, 
lately  planted  with  ornamental  trees  which  in 
a  few  years  time  may  be  expected  to  add 
much  to  the  tranquil  beauty  of  the  scenery.  As  it  is,  the  two 
acres  of  churchvard,  enclosed  by  an  iron  fence,  is  one  of  the 
prettiest  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  one  from  which  good 
views  may  be  obtained  on  every  side.  The  approach  from 
the  Rectory,  half-a-mile  distant,  is  particularly  striking,  the 
last  quarter-of-a-mile  being  through  a  closely-wooded 
plantation,  the  trees  of  which  form  a  natural  archway, 
resembling  the  aisle  of  some  stately  cathedral,  w^hich  closes 
over  the  pathway  leading  to  the  Church. 


124  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

Many  fine  views  can  be  obtained  by  penetrating  into  the 
recesses  of  this  plantation,  which,  though  of  no  great  extent, 
is  one  of  the  most  attractive  "bits"  in  Scrivelsby.  The  artist 
will  find  here  abundant  opportunities  for  shewing  his  skill, 
and  the  sportsman  will  not  fail  to  notice  the  number  of 
pheasants,  whose  peculiar  whirr  and  cry  are  always  to  be 
heard  in  concert  with  the  cooings  of  the  wood-pigeon  and  the 
tuneful  melody  of  the  various  birds,  which  haunt  this  choice 
little  wood. 

The  outside  of  the  Church  is,  perhaps,  not  so  attractive 
as  the  interior.  The  addition  of  the  modern  steeple  at  its 
western  end  causes  the  Church  to  look  unduly  long,  especially 
as  the  chancel  roof  is  nearlv  on  a  level  with  the  nave,  and 
is  only  separated  from  it  by  a  leaden    ridge. 

The  Church  exhibits  various  architectural  features,  which 
shew  that  from  time  to  time  it  has  been  altered  and  renewed, 
as  was  likely  to  be  the  case  with  a  Church  the  patrons 
of  which  were  the  hereditary  Champions  of  England,  whose 
families  have  always  used  it  as  their  natural  place  of  worship. 
Attention  has  been  already  called  to  the  apparently  undue 
length  of  the  Church  ;  and  the  visitor  will  notice  in  the 
interior  that  the  present  chancel  has  been  undoubtedly  added 
to  another  and  more  ancient  chancel,  which  occupied  its 
natural  position  at  the  east  end  of  the  old  Church.  The 
present  reading  desk  stands  in  front  of  a  massive  pillar, 
w^hich  was  evidently  the  foundation  of  what  was  once  the 
chancel    arch,    the    old    chancel    ending    at    the    site    of    the 


ST.   BENEDICTS  CHURCH.   SCRIVELSBY. 


SCRIVELSBY    CHURCH.  I  25 

present  screen.  Why  this  chancel  was  built,  it  is  hard 
to  understand,  for  the  Church  is  already  too  large  for  the 
scanty  population,  and  must  always  have  been  sufficient  to 
hold  the  congregation  of  so  small  a  parish,  even  when  the 
Champion  appeared  with  his  full  retinue  of  attendants.  In 
olden  times,  however,  attendance  at  Church  was  not  so 
voluntarv  a  business  as  it  is  now,  and  where  all  had  to 
attend,  room  must  needs  have  been  found  for  all  ;  and  so, 
after  all,  there  might  at  one  time  have  been  some  reason  for 
enlarging  the  Church  in  this  way.  The  Church  is  dedicated 
to  St.  Benedict,*  and  parts  of  it  are  perhaps  500  years  old. 
The  arches  of  the  nave  are  early  English,  the  chancel  arch 
and  the  Church  itself  Perpendicular,  while  the  windows  shew 
three  different  stvles.  The  oldest  are  the  two  windows  in  the 
chancel,  which  are  late  Perpendicular,  and  the  others  are 
apparently    modern,    and     intended     to     represent     the     early 

~  It  will  generally  be  found  that  some  good  reason  exists  for  the  choice  of 
the  particular  Saint  to  which  our  parish  Churches  are  dedicated.  One  very 
common  reason  was  that,  inasmuch  as  the  festival  days  of  the  Saints  were  often 
used  in  old  times  as  convenient  dates  with  which  everyone  was  familiar,  the 
Church  took  its  name  from  the  Saint  on  whose  day  the  annual  holiday  was  kept. 
So  it  was  at  Scrivelsby,  where  Sir  Philip  Marmion  in  1258  obtained  a  royal 
charter  for  a  fair  to  be  held  on  the  vigil,  day,  and  morrow  of  Saint  Benedict, 
i.e.,  on  the  twenty-first  day  of  March  every  year.  Churches,  too,  were  often 
dedicated  to  Saints  who  had  suffered  martyrdom.  To  this  class  belong  St» 
Alban's,  built  by  OfTa  and  called  after  Alban,  the  Roman  soldier  who  has  the 
distinction  of  being  the  first  christian  martyr  in  Britain  :  St.  Alphage,  at 
Greenwich,  dedicated  to  the  great  Archbishop  ^^Ipheah,  or  Alphege,  who  was 
murdered  by  the  Danes,  loii  :  and  St.  Edmund's,  in  Xorfolk,  from  the  East 
Anglian  King  Edmund,  who  was  tied  to  a  tree  and  shot  with  arrows,  because 
he  refused  the  alternative  offered  him  by  the  Danish  Chiefs,  Ingwar  and  Hubba, 
to   renounce   Christianity   and   reign    under   them. 


126  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

English  and  perpendicular  period.  The  tower  and  spire  are 
modern,  the  windows  in  the  tower  and  that  also  of  the 
western  extremity  of  the  nave  being  good  specimens  of  the 
imitation  of  earlv  English.  The  least  worthy  window  in  the 
Church  is  undoubtedly  that  at  the  east  end,  which  ought  to 
be  the  most  imposing  and  best  of  all.  But  the  poorness  of 
the  window  is  intensified  by  the  poorness  of  the  painted  glass, 
which  was  placed  in  it  about  sixty  years  ago,  when  it  was  not 
so  easy  as  now  to  obtain  good  glass  and  good  workmanship. 
In  marked  contrast  with  this  wretched  specimen  of  painted 
glass,  is  the  window  placed  in  the  west  end  of  the  north 
aisle  a  few  vears  ago  bv  Sir  Francis  and  Ladv  Hartwell,  as 
a  memorial  to  the  mother  of  the  latter,  the  widow  of  Sir 
Henry  Dymoke,  who  was  buried  in  the  same  vault  with  her 
husband  at  the  east  end  of  the  churchyard,  a  stately 
monument  erected  over  this  vault  recording  the  deaths  of 
Sir   Henry  in    1865,    and  that  of  Lady  Dymoke  in   1884. 

The  other  features  of  interest  in  the  Church  are  the  two 
stone  effigies  in  the  north  aisle,  supposed  to  represent  Sir  Philip 
Marmion  and  his  dame,  the  last  of  the  family  of  Marmions, 
who  resided  at  Scrivelsbv.*  The  kniijht's  armour  is  clearly 
visible,    his   legs   are   crossed,   a   sign  that   he    was    a    crusader ; 

*  The  late  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  Dr.  Wordsworth,  who,  from  his  long  connection 
with  Westminster  and  Lincoln,  must  have  been  well  acquainted  with  every  kind 
of  monument,  was  much  impressed  with  the  two  stone  effigies.  There  was 
something,  perhaps,  in  their  rude  simplicity  which  appealed  to  the  poetical 
temperament  of  the  Bishop,  who  spoke  of  them  as  being  to  his  mind  an  ideal 
representation   of  the   quiet    and   repose    of  death. 


SCRIVELSBY    CHURCH.  12/ 

the  wimple  of  the  lady  and  the  dog  at  her  feet  are  also 
worth  observing.  The  handsome  table  monument  with  its 
capital  brass  and  legible  inscription  to  the  memory  of 
Sir  Robert  Dymoke,  who  died  in  1545,  is  well  deserving 
of  a  careful  examination.  So  much  has  been  already  said 
(see  p.  58)  about  this  particular  monument  and  its  curious 
mistake  of  baronet  for  banneret,  that  nothing  more  need  be 
said  here.  On  the  floor,  at  the  north  end  of  the  altar,  is 
the   following  inscription  : — 

"  Here    Iveth    the    body    of    the    Honourable    Charles 

Dymoke,  Esquire,  of  Scrivelsby,  Champion  of  England, 

who   departed   this   life  the    17th   day   of  January  and 

in   the   year   of  our   Lord    1702. 
This    gravestone  was  laid  at  the  proper  cost  and  charge 

of  his  widow,  Jane  Dymoke,  in  the  year  1726." 
This  Charles  Dymoke  is  the  Champion  regarding  whom 
some  doubt  had  at  one  time  existed  as  to  his  having 
performed  the  office  of  Champion  at  the  coronation  of 
William  and  Marv,  as  well  as  that  of  Anne.  And  even 
with  regard  to  the  coronation  of  Queen  Anne,  which  took 
place  on  St.  George's  Day,  23rd  April,  1702,  it  may  seem 
strange  to  find  the  death  of  the  Champion  who  officiated  at 
it  recorded  as  taking  place  on  the  17th  day  of  January  of 
the  same  year.  The  explanation,  of  course,  is  this  :  as  the 
year  then  began  in  March,  and  not  in  January  as  now, 
the  custom  grew  of  denoting  the  years  by  two  figures 
forming    part    of    each.      Thus    what    we    should     term     1703 


128  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

would  be  termed  1702-3;  and  "the  little  gentleman  in 
velvet  "  having  occasioned  the  death  of  King  William  on 
the  8th  of  March,  1702,  it  is  certain  that  his  successor, 
Queen  Anne,  could  not  have  been  championed  by  a  gentleman 
who  was  buried,  according  to  the  usual  authorities  on  the 
17th  of  January  preceding.  But  as  he  died  in  what  would 
now  be  called  1703,  he  could  well  have  been  present  at  the 
coronation  of  Anne  in  1702.*  It  would  not  have  been  worth 
mentioning,  had  not  a  difficulty  been  sometimes  felt  in 
reconciling   an  apparent  anomaly. 

In  the  vestry,   on   the   north  wall,   is  an    old    brass    which 
was  found  in  Scrivelsby   Court,   and  a   copy  of  which    appears 
in  the  old  register  book.     It  is  very  quaint  : — 
"  Mem'". 

S''    Charles    Dvmoke,    buried    within    the     commimion 

rails,   close   to   the   South  wall. 

Lady  Dymoke  next  to   him. 

Captain  Dymoke   next  to  the  Lady. 

The   late  Champion  by  the   North  wall. 

jyjdm  Prances   next   to   Him. 

There  are   other  monuments   to    the    Dymoke    family,   but 

of  no    architectural    value.      The    most    striking    is    a    marble 

monument,   elaborately    carved,    in    the    chancel    and    touching 

the    handsome     chancel    screen,    to     the    memory     of     Lewis 


^  The  "New  Style,"  whereby  the  year  was  to  begin  with  the  ist  of  January 
instead  of  the  first  of  March,  was  adopted  in  1751,  and  came  into  use  in 
England  on  the  ist  of  January,  1752.  All  other  European  nations  had  previously 
adopted    it   except    Russia  and    Sweden. 


CHURCHYARD  CROSS  TO   HENRY   LIONEL  DYMOKE. 


SCRIVELSBY    CHURCH.  I  29 

Dvmoke,  the  first  of  that  name.  This  monument  is 
surmounted  with  the  bust  of  the  aged  Champion,  and  has  a 
shield  containing  the  Dvmoke  Arms,  with  crest  and  sword 
erect,  and  we  are  reminded  by  the  inscription  that  this  Lewis 
was  the  youngest  son  of  Sir  Charles  Dvmoke,  by  Eleanor,  his 
wife,  daughter  of  the  first  Lord  Rockingham  ;  that  he  was  born 
on  the  14th  of  February,  1669  ;  that  he  performed  the 
service  of  Champion  at  the  coronation  of  King  George  L, 
and  King  George  IL ;  and  that  he  died  on  the  5th  dav  of 
February,  1760,  in  the  91st  vear  of  his  age.  There  is  also  a 
plain  slab  to  the  second  Lewis  Dvmoke,  who  died  on  the 
1 2th  of  May,  1820  ;  and  two  others  of  the  same  kind,  one  to 
his  father,  John,  who  acted  as  Champion  at  the  coronation  of 
George  IIL,  and  the  other  to  his  brother,  the  Reverend  John 
Dymoke,  the  first  of  that  name  and  title,  who  died  on  the 
3rd  day  of  December,  1828,  at  the  age  of  64.  The  wife  and 
relict  of  this  Rev.  John  Dymoke  died  on  the  26th  of  April, 
1856,  at  the  age  of  89,  and  was  buried  at  Scrivelsby,  her 
monumental  inscription  appearing  on  a  stone  on  the  floor,  on 
part  of  which  the  present  reading  desk  now  stands.  The 
inscription  on  this  stone  gives  her  the  name  of  Amelia  Alice 
Jane  Elphinstone.  She  was  the  mother  of  Sir  Henry 
Dymoke,  and  of  his  brother,  the  second  Rev.  John  Dvmoke, 
who  was  for  nearlv  fortv  vears  Rector  of  Scrivelsbv,  and  the 
immediate  predecessor  of  the  present  Rector.  Besides  two 
marble  tablets  to  the  memorv  of  Sir  Henrv  and  Ladv 
Dvmoke,    which    mav    be     seen    on    the     wall     of    the    North 

R 


130  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

aisle,  close  to  the  main  entrance  to  the  Church,  there  is  a 
marble  tablet  in  the  chancel,  bearing  the  following  arms  and 
inscriptions  : — 

"  Sable,  two  lions  argent,  crowned  or.  Dymoke. 
To   the    cherished   memory   of  his    loved    parents,    John 
Tyrwhitt,  Esq.  of  Pentre    Par,    Carmarthenshire,   obiit 
Aug,  2^.    1844  :    and   of  Sophia,    his  wife,  daughter  of 
the     Hon.     John      Dymoke,      of     Scrivelsby     Court, 
Lincolnshire,  obiit  March   14""   1845. 
This  tablet  is  erected  as  a  tribute  of  fillial  (sic)  respect, 
by  their  affectionate  Son,    the    Rev.   James    Bradshaw 
Tvrwhitt,    Rector    of   Wilksbv    and    Claxbv,    in    this 
county." 
At  the  west   end   of  the   churchyard   is    a    stone    cross   to 
the  memory    of   Mary    Anne,    the    relict    of   the    second    Rev. 
John    Dymoke,    who    died    and    was  buried  at  Paris,  in   1874, 
and     was     subsequently    re-interred     at    Scrivelsby,    in     1880. 
This  lady   was   the   daughter   of  the    Revd.   Dr.  Madeley,  who 
was  for  many  years  Vicar  of  Horncastle,  and   enjoyed   a   very 
high  reputation. 

There  is  also  a  handsome  churchvard  cross,  after  the 
model  of  the  one  in  Somersby  Churchyard,  to  the  memory  of 
Henry  Lionel  Dymoke,  who  died  in  London,  and  was  buried 
at  Scrivelsby  on   the    ist  January,    1876. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


The  Parish  Registers. 


Full    many  a    gem    of  purest   ray   serene 

The    dark    unfathom'd   caves   of  ocean    bear : 

Full    many   a    flower   is   born   to  blush    unseen 
And    waste   its   sweetness   on   the  desert  air. 

Gray. 


MONGST  the  curious  and  eccentric  irregularities 
— not  to  use  a  stronger  term — for  which  some 
of  our  old  Parish  Registers  are  notorious, 
those  of  Scrivelsby  may  well  put  in  a  claim 
for  pre-eminence.  It  is  almost  inconceivable  that  these  old 
registers  should  have  been  so  badly  treated.  When,  a  few 
years  ago,  the  laborious  task  of  reducing  them  to  order  was 
first  taken  in  hand,  it  seemed  utterly  hopeless  to  expect  a 
successful  result. 

The  following  were  some  of  the  difficulties  to  be 
encountered.  The  oldest  book,  beginning  from  1565,  had 
evidently  suffered  much  from  both  fire  and  damp  ;  many  of 
the  leaves  were  shrivelled  up  by  the  former,  and  rendered 
illegible  by  the  latter.  These  difficulties  were  in  a  great 
measure    overcome    bv    a    careful    use     of     certain     chemical 


132  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

appliances  by  which  the  old  writing  was  restored.*  The 
ravages  of  mice  were  not  so  easily  remedied.  These 
mischievous  little  creatures,  in  the  poverty  for  which  they 
have  a  proverbial  repute,  seem  to  have  been  very  partial — 
perhaps  for  nesting  purposes — to  old  parchment,  which  they 
nibbled  and  carried  off  without  compunction. 

A  still  worse,  and  apparently  more  irreparable  injury  had 
been  occasionally  wrought  by  the  free  use  of  penknife  or 
scissors,  many  pages  having  been  mutilated  in  this  way,  either 
by  mischievous  children  or  designing  adults.  Sometimes 
whole  pages  have  disappeared,  and  so  much  pains  has  often 
been  taken  to  conceal  the  loss  as  to  justify  the  suspicion  that 
their  disappearance  is  not  to  be  attributed  to  accident.  An 
additional  reason  for  thinking  that  penknife  and  scissors  were 
occasionally  used  to  save  the  trouble  of  paper  and  ink 
wherewith  to  make  a  fair  copy,  is  furnished  by  the  remarkable 
absence  of  many  entries  relating  to  the  Dymoke  family  that 
might  have  been  confidently  looked  for  in  the  oldest  register 
books  belonging  to  the  parish  in  Avhich  the  family  had  resided 
for  so  many  generations. 

Be  this  as  it  niay,  and  in  spite  of  the  apparent 
impossibility  of  remedying  such  disasters,  the  disasters  in  many 
cases  have  been  remedied,  and  this  is  how  it  was  done  : — By 
referring    to    the    transcripts    at    Lincoln,    and    with    the    kind 

°  It  is  worth  while  to  suggest  a  caution  against  an  injudicious  use  of  these 
chemicals,  which,  if  improperly  applied,  instead  of  restoring  may  have  the  effect  of 
permanently  destroying  the  old  writing.  The  attempt  should  never  be  made  without 
the  advice  and  assistance  of  an  expert. 


THE    PARISH    REGISTERS.  1 33 

assistance  of  the  learned  adept  who  presides  over  the  MS. 
department  of  the  Diocesan  Registry,  gaps  have  been  filled 
up,  and  the  old  entries,  which  mice  or  scissors  had  destroved 
or  designing  persons  had  removed,  appear  once  more  in  their 
proper  place.  As  many  as  twenty  entries  referring  to 
different  members  of  the  Dvmoke  family  alone,  which  had 
been  given  up  as  lost,  have  been  recovered  in  this  way,  and 
have  been  found  very  useful  in  reconciling  dates  and  clearing 
up  certain  matters  that  have  hitherto  been  found  difficult 
of  explanation.  There  are  still  a  few  Dvmoke  registers  that 
are  not  forthcoming,  but  it  is  not  likely  now  that  anv  further 
"finds'"  in  this  direction  will  be  made  at  Lincoln  or 
elsewhere.  So  much,  however,  has  been  done,  and  such 
unexpected  additions  have  been  made  to  the  Scrivelsbv 
registers  as  to  place  in  bold  relief  the  great  value  of  diocesan 
transcripts,  and  the  advantage  of  having  them  placed  in  such 
careful  hands  as  those  of  the  present  Curator  at  Lincoln. 

One  verv  curious  instance  of  restoration  bv  the  aid  of 
transcripts  may  be  noticed.  The  page  containing  the  entries 
for  the  year  1671  was  found  to  be  cut  awav  longitudinally, 
leaving  only  a  margin  on  the  left-hand  side  of  about  two 
inches  in  the  upper  part,  which  graduallv  tapered  down  to  a 
point  at  the  lower.  On  the  piece  of  the  page  thus  left,  the 
first  part  of  several  entries  were  plainly  visible,  and  then,  in 
consequence  of  the  mutilation,  thev  came  to  an  abrupt  and 
hopeless  ending.  The  Lincoln  transcripts,  however,  were 
brought  into  requisition,  and  the  missing  gaps  supplied.       The 


134  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

following  illustration  will   enable  the  reader  to  understand  this 

the   better.      The   break   shows   where   the   gaps   occurred,  the 

words  in  different  type  show  how  the  missing  information  was 

supplied  : — 

1671 

jNIarriages 

John   Bra  kenhury  &   Judith    West  married  May  w^'^. 

Burials 

John  O  verton  buried  Aprill  12*^. 

Catherine  W  ard  buried  Aprill  14**'. 

Susan  the  wife  of  Richard   Clypsam  gent,  buried  May  5*. 

Simon  Prantill  a  servant  buried  the  same  day 

John  the  sonn  of  Nicholas  Dymoke  Gent,  buried  Nov'.  3^. 

Jane  the   daug  liter  of  Nicholas  Dymoke  Gent,  buried  Dec^.  26"^^. 

Scriv                   elsbie  Tho :  Booker  Rector 

George  Hickton ") 

^,        „       ,         >  Uiurchwardens. 

Iho^.   Sparke      ) 

Thus  far,  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the  transcriber  had 
been  caused  bv  the  carelessness  of  later  jjenerations.  We 
now  come  to  a  very  remarkable  state  of  things  for  which  the 
parson  or  clerk  at  the  time  must  be  held  responsible.  It 
would  have  been  enough  to  make  the  hair  of  anv  unfortunate 
person  stand  on  end  when  he  first  realized  the  work  that  lay 
before  him  in  his  search  for  some  particular  entrv.  Whether 
owing  to  the  scarcity  of  parchment,  or  the  economical 
propensities  of  the  good  people  who  flourished  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  17th  and  the  beginning  of  the  i8th  centurv, 
advantage  was  taken  of  every  blank  space  that  could  be  found 
anywhere,  without  the  slightest  reference  to  the  order  of 
continuity    or    anv    other    order    save    that    of    the    whim    and 


THE    PARISH    REGISTERS.  1 35 

caprice  of  the  entry-maker.  Thus,  on  a  page  containing  the 
record  of  the  year  1576,  beautifully  written  in  the  old  court- 
hand  of  the  period,  and  duly  signed  by  parson  and 
"  Gardians,"  will  be  found  "  an  account  of  Births,  Burials, 
and  Marriages  since  Michaelmas,  1703."  Again,  on  the 
bottom  of  the  page  for  1678,  for  no  other  reason  apparently 
than  because  there  was  a  little  space  left,  four  entries  are 
introduced  for  the  year  1706,  one  of  the  four  recording  the 
"Buriall"  of  the  Parson's  son;  on  the  next  page  are  entries 
for  1 68 1  and  1688,  the  entries  for  the  intermediate  years 
being  inserted  in  happy-go-lucky  fashion,  amidst  the  vears 
1621,  1599,  and  1576  ;  and,  in  the  midst  of  entries  for  1579 
is  one  for  1711.  Entries  for  1693  are  thrust  into  the  page 
belonging  to  the  year  1586,  and — the  worst  case  of  all 
perhaps — entries  for  1754  ^^^  tucked  in  wherever  an  emptv 
space  could  be  found  on  five  different  pages,  properlv  belonging 
to  the  years   i 671-1753. 

These  instances  are  specimens  only,  and  they  by  no  means 
exhaust  the  catalogue  of  anomalies  to  be  found  in  the  oldest 
Scrivelsby  register.  But  enough  has  been  said  to  show  how 
almost  impossible  it  would  have  been  to  find  any  particular 
entry  that  might  happen  to  be  wanted,  without  diligentlv 
searching  for  it  through  the  whole  book.  The  present  Rector 
has  happily  been  able  to  reduce  this  chaos  into  some  kind  of 
order.  He  has  transcribed  the  whole  of  the  registers  between 
1565  and  18 1 2,  numbering  the  pages  in  the  new  book  into 
which  he  has  entered   them,    so   as   to   make   them    correspond 


136  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

with  the  old  book  from  which  they  have  been  copied.  Every 
"impertinent"  entry  has  been  ticketed  with  the  help  of  black 
lines,  so  that  it  may  be  seen  at  a  glance  to  be  "an  intruder" 
out  of  its  proper  place.  And,  further,  to  help  his  successors 
and  to  save  them  from  undergoing  much  needless  labour  in 
their  antiquarian  researches,  he  has  drawn  out  a  table  shewing 
the  page  on  which  the  entries,  if  any,  will  be  found  for  each 
year  from  1565  to  18 12.  The  following  extract  from  this 
table  will  shew  the  modus  operandi  and  the  strange  results  it 
occasionally  exhibits  : — 


"Entries,  if  any,  for  the  year  1565 

will 

be 

found 

on 

page  2 

1566 

to 

1575 

1576 

4 

1671 

54-  57- 

1680 

5- 

1682 

5.  38. 

1683 

22.  38. 

1687 

3- 

1688 

5- 

1703 

4. 

1711 

78. 

1712 

8. 

1722 

58.  1%. 

1750 

6S 

».  71.  'J2. 

1754 

54- 

IZ- 

81.  IIO. 

1797 

] 

[00.  114. 

The  temptation  to  publish  these  old  registers  in  a 
separate  volume  has  been  resisted  for  economical  reasons. 
The    majority  of  entries   refer   to   humble    and  obscure  people 


THE    PARISH    REGISTERS.  1 37 

over  whom  no  other  epitaph  can  now  be  raised  than  the 
famous  and  appropriate  one  referring  to  the  father  of 
George  III.*  There  are  no  verv  remarkable  entries  to  be 
found,  such  as  are  often  discovered  in  other  registers.  Even 
the  Dvmoke  familv,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  are  very 
curtlv  described.  A  list  of  the  Dvmoke  entries  will  be  found 
in  the  Appendix,   No.   8. 

It  is  well  known  that  previous  to  the  time  of  Henry  VIII. 
no  record  was  kept  of  the  births,  deaths,  and  marriages  that 
were  alwavs  occurrino^.  It  is  to  Thomas  Cromwell,  the 
imperious  Vicar-General  of  Henry  VIII.  to  whom  we  are 
indebted  for  our  parish  registers.  He  first  conceived  the  idea 
of  preserving  these  records,  and,  as  was  his  wont,  he  lost  no 
time  in  putting  his  idea  into  practical  shape,  and  the  following 
injunction  was  issued  on  the  29th  September,   1538  : — 

"  The  curate  of  every  parish  church  shall  keep  one 
book  or  register,  which  book  he  shall  every  Sunday 
take  forth,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  churchwardens, 
or  one  of  them,  write  and  record  in  the  same,  all 
the  weddings,  christ'nings,  and  burials,  made  in  the 
whole  week  before  :  and  everv  time  that  the  same 
shall  be  omitted,  shall  forfeit  to  the  said  Church 
iijs  and  iiijd." 

~  The    following    quotation  is  probably  not  verbally  correct,  but  it  is  made   from 
memory,  and  will  serve  its  present  purpose  :  — 

"  Here  lies  Fred 

Who  was  alive  and    now    is    dead 
And  so  of  him  no  more  be  said." 
S 


138  SCRIVELSRV,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

Useful  as  was  this  new  departure,  the  very  fact  of  its 
being  a  new  departure  caused  it  to  be  received  by  the  people 
with  general  alarm  and  mistrust.  Poor  people  especially, 
were  much  excited  on  the  subject.  They  "  misdoubted  "  the 
King,  and  got  the  idea  into  their  heads  that  some  new  tax 
on  the  ofhces  of  the  church  was  in  contemplation.  Thus  the 
first  clause  in  the  list  of  popular  grievances  circulated  by  the 
insurgents  of  the  "Pilgrimage  of  Grace  "  complains  "that  no 
infant  shall  receive  the  blessed  Sacrament  of  Baptism  onlesse 
a  trybette  be  payd  to  the  King."  These  fears,  however,  were 
altogether  imaginary.  No  fees  were  imposed.  The  clergy 
were  simply  ordered  to  take  note  of  and  duly  register  the 
weddings,  christenings,  and  burials  that  took  place  in  their 
respective  parishes.  But  so  widely  spread  was  the  suspicion 
excited  by  this  innovation,  that  Cromwell  prudently  stayed  his 
hand  and  allowed  the  subject  to  drop  for  a  time.  It  is 
noteworthy  that  the  injunctions  of  the  following  year  contain 
no  formal  order  on  the  subject  of  registers.  New  injunctions 
were  issued  from  time  to  time  in  the  succeeding  reigns,  but 
the  ordinance  of  registers  remained  substantially  unchanged 
until  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth.  It  was  towards  the  end 
of  her  reign,  in  1597,  that  the  clergy  in  convocation  made  a 
new  ordinance  respecting  registers  which  was  formally 
approved  by  the  Queen  under  the  great  seal.  Mr.  R.  E.  C. 
Waters,  of  whose  interesting  and  valuable  Parish  Registers 
in  England  the  present  writer  has  made  free  use,  says  on 
page  1 1  : — 


THE    PARISH    REGISTERS.  139 

"  It  has  been  wiselv  ordered  that  a  correct  transcript 
should  yearly  be  sent  to  the  Bishop  of  the  diocese  :  and  the 
utility  of  this  provision  in  supplying  local  loss,  and  preventing 
the  commission  of  fraud,  has  been  signally  proved  in 
parliamentary  and  legal  proceedings :  but  the  canon  attached 
no  fees  to  the  transcript  either  for  the  parish  or  the  Bishop, 
and  neither  of  them  was  zealous  of  employment  without 
remuneration.  The  result  has  been  that  the  parishes  often 
grudged  the  expense  of  a  copy,  the  Bishops  seldom  insisted 
on  its  transmission,  and  the  diocesan  registrars  allowed  their 
archives  to  remain  '  unarranged  and  unconsultable '  :  so  that 
the  Bishop's  transcripts,  which  ought  to  have  formed  an 
invaluable  department  of  the  public  records,  present  a 
lamentable  picture  of  episcopal  negligence,  parochial  parsimony, 
and  official  rapacity."  In  a  note  on  this  passage,  Mr.  Waters 
amongst  other  proofs  in  justification  of  his  invective,  quotes 
what  he  calls  a  "  cool  "  certificate  from  the  Registrar  of  the 
diocese  of  London  : — "  I  hereby  certify  that  //  is  not  the 
custom  within  the  diocese  of  London  for  any  return  to  be 
made  to  the  Bishop's  Registry  of  either  burials  or  baptisms." 
And  in  the  same  documents  occurs  also  this  sentence  : — "  Mr. 
Bruce  found,  in  1848,  that  at  Lincoln  the  parchment  transcripts 
were  regularly  cut  up  bv  the  Registrar  for  binding  modern 
wills  !  " 

This  extract  is  worth  quoting,  not  only  for  its  general 
truthfulness,  but  because  it  gives  an  opportunity  for  saying 
that     the     present     Bishop     of     Lincoln,     amongst     his     other 


140  SCRIVELSHY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

valuable  efforts  for  the  good  of  the  diocese,  has  engaged  the 
services  of  the  learned  Mr.  A.  Gibbons,  who,  in  addition  to 
other  valuable  work,  has  been  employed  for  the  last  few 
years  in  the  genial  task  of  searching  for,  examining,  and 
docketing  these  ancient  transcripts.  The  reproach,  therefore, 
of  episcopal  negligence  in  this  respect  can  no  longer  be 
brought  against  the  diocese  of  Lincoln ;  and  attention  has 
been  already  called  in  the  preceding  pages  to  the  assistance 
rendered  in  supplving  from  the  ancient  transcripts  the 
deficiencies  that  were  found  in  the  Scrivelsby  registers. 
Happily  for  us,  the  whole  of  these  transcripts  were  not  "  cut 
up  "    in    the   way   described  by   Mr.   Bruce. 

In  our  own  case,  and  leaving  out  the  "intruding" 
entries  to  which  attention  has  been  directed,  the  record 
appears  to  have  been  fairly  well  kept  on  the  whole  from 
1576  to  1653  inclusive,  thus  covering  the  unsettled  period  of 
the  civil  war,  when  this  kind  of  work  was  generally 
interrupted  if  not  altogether  neglected.  Indeed,  it  is  not 
uncommon  to  find  in  many  registers  special  allusion  made  to 
the  circumstances  of  the  time,  sometimes  by  way  of  excuse 
for  neglecting  the  register,*  but  more  frequentlv  as  a 
convenient  method  for  enabling  the  indignant  parson  to 
relieve  his  feelings    by    piling    up    epithets    against    the    arch 


*  Thus  at  Kibworth,  under  date  1641,  occurs  this  passage  :  —  "  Know  all  mcMi, 
that  the  reason  wh)-  little  or  nothing  is  registered  from  this  year  1641  to  the  year 
1649,  was  the  civil  wars  between  King  Charles  and  his  Parliament,  which  put  all 
into  confusion  till  then  :  and  neither  minister  nor  people  could  quietly  stay  at 
home  for  one  party  or  the  other." 


THE    PARISH    REGISTERS.  I4I 

disturber  of  the  time.  There  is  nothing  of  the  kind  at 
Scrivelsbv.  The  only  noticeable  thing  is  that  between  1642 
and    1650  there  are   fewer   entries   than   usual. 

The  oldest  register  begins  with  the  year  1565,  but  there 
is  only  one  page  for  this  year ;  then  the  record  breaks  off 
and  is  not  taken  up  again  till  1576,  after  which  till  1653  the 
entries  were  made  with  commendable  regularity.  Up  to  the 
year  16 14,  when  Parson  Haughton  died,  the  old  court-hand 
is  used,  and  the  penmanship  employed  puts  our  modern 
hand-writing  to  shame.  Then,  during  the  incumbency  of 
Haughton's  successor,  who  styles  himself  "  John  Dixon  de 
Screilsbye,  "  the  register  was  well  kept  and  well  written,  in 
the  transition  writing  of  the  time,  up  to  1653,  when  the 
following  ominous  memorandum  occurs,  badly  written  and 
almost   illegible  : — 

"  Approved    and    sworne    Thomas    Sparkes    Register  for 
the  towne  of  Screelsby,   accordins:    to    a    late    Act    of 
Parliament  touchinge  marriages  Birthes  and  Buryalls." 
From  this  point   all    goes    wrong    with    the    registers,    and 
this  bad  state  of  things  continues    till    the    incumbency    of   the 
Rev.  John    Brownell,    in    1751,    from    which    time  to   18 12  the 
registers  were  again  on  the  whole  fairly   well    kept.      It    is   in 
the    intermediate    period    between    the    arrival    of   the    Parlia- 
mentary  Sparkes  and  the  Rectorate  of  Mr.  Brownell  that    the 
registers  were  so   badlv    treated.      It    was    then    that    fire    and 
damp  and  penknife  and  scissors  did  their  deadly   work.     Then 
it    was    that    the     higgledy-piggledy    method    was    adopted    of 


142  SCRIV^ELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

filling  blank  spaces  wherever  thev  could  be  found,  and  then 
it  was  that  the  task  of  entering  the  births,  deaths,  and 
marriages,  was  apparently  left  to  the  clerk  or  his  wife.  Here 
is  a  specimen  of  an  entry  written  in  the  worst  kind  of 
peasant   illiteracy  : — 

"  10  of  March  Richard  Lanes 

1682  baptized  the  sun  of  Martha  Lanes  and 

frances  his  wif 

th  2  of  October,   1684 

Mary  Lanes  babtised  the  dautar  of 

Martha  Lanes  and  Trainees   his  wif." 

This  precious  information  is  given    on    the    page    properly 

belonging  to  the  year   1621.     In    this    period  the  name  of   the 

Rector    is    hardlv    ever     given.       Sometimes    it     is    mentioned 

once,    and    never    again. 

Here  is  a  curious  problem  which  hitherto  has  defied 
solution.  In  1663  and  again  in  1669  Thomas  Booker  signs  as 
Rector,  having  been  duly  instituted  in  1660.  He  also  signs  in 
1670  and  1671.  His  name  does  not  appear  again  till  1704, 
when  in  the  list  of  burials  occurs  this  entry  :^ — "Thomas  Booker, 
Rector  of  Scrivelsby,  buried  March  the  30th  day."  He  was 
consequently  Rector  from  1660  to  1704,  but  there  was  a  time 
when  two  Richards  were  to  be  seen  in  the  held  at  the  same 
time,  for  a  certain  William  Wood  signs  as  Rector  in  1671,  and 
he  is  buried  as  Rector  in  1672.  How  comes  William  Wood  to 
be  stvled  not  onlv  Rector  but  Rector  of  Scrivelsbv,  at  the 
time  when  Thomas  Booker    was    alive    and    in    the    enjoyment 


THE    PARISH    REGISTERS.  1 43 

of  his  professional  title?  If  this  had  happened  lo  or  15  years 
earlier,  it  might  have  been  assumed  that  the  rightful  Booker 
had  been  wrons^fullv  ousted,  and  the  wrongful  Wood  had  been 
unrighteously  foisted  into  his  place.  But  ecclesiastical  matters 
had  shared  with  temporal  policv  the  peaceful  settlement  of 
the  Restoration,  and  it  is  incredible  that,  ten  years  afterwards, 
a  duly  qualified  Rector  should  have  been  deprived  of  his 
benefice,  a  successor  appointed,  and  the  previous  incumbent 
recalled  to  his  post,  and  all  within  the  space  of  two  vears. 
This,  however,  is  the  problem  which  has  yet  to  be  solved. 
It  should  be  added  that  no  record  exists  at  Lincoln  of  the 
institution  of  William  Wood.  This  is  a  factor  of  which 
account  must  be  taken,  but  it  does  not  solve  the  problem. 
Everv  now  and  then  the  Parson  for  the  time  beins^  or 
some  one  officiating  as  Curate  would  take  the  opportunity 
of  recording  something  personal  to  himself.  Thus  a  propos 
of  nothing  in  particular  to  lead  up  to  the  announcement,  we 
are  told,  and  presumably  with  the  expectation  that  we 
should  be  interested  in  hearing  it,  that  a  certain  John  Mazey, 
of  whom  nothing  is  said  in  anv  other  part  of  the  book,  was 
"  inducted  into  the  Rectory  of  Roughton  on  the  29*^  of 
May  1673."  This  announcement,  however  important  in 
itself,  is  not  likely  to  be  so  widelv  and  generally  appreciated 
as  a  statement  which  appears  in  one  of  the  old  register 
books  of  the  parish  of  Woodham  Walter,  in  Essex,  to  this 
effect,  and  in  these  words  : — "  Be  it  known  unto  all  men, 
that   a   fatt   goose    is    better   than    a    lean    heen."       Albeit    this 


144  SCRIVELSBY,    THE    HOME    OF    THE    CHAMPIONS. 

announcement  partakes  of  the  nature  of  a  truism,  which 
no  one  is  likelv  to  gainsav,  it  is  at  least  amusing,  which  is 
more  than  can  be  said  of  the  institution  to  Roughton  of  the 
Reverend  John   Mazey. 

Manv     more     curiosities     in     connection     with     our     old 
registers    might    be    mentioned.       Enough,    however,    has   been 
advanced   in  proof  of   the    opening  sentence   of    this    chapter ; 
and,   although  much    may    be    said    in    favour    of  allowing    our 
old     registers    to     remain     in    the    custody     of    the     parochial 
clergv,    it  would    be    vain    to    contend    that    an    equally    strong 
case    could   not  be   easily   made   out    for    transferring    them    to 
the   Master  of  the   Rolls  or  some    other    authority    that    would  • 
be    responsible    for    the    due    preservation    of    these    priceless 
records.      The    foregoing    account    of    the    Scrivelsby  registers 
might   be   cited   as   a    strong    argument    for    thus    dealing    with 
them.       But     it     is    tolerablv     certain     that    these    old    books 
will    be    much    better    cared    for    in    time    to    come    than    too 
often  has   been    the    case    in    time    past.      Their    value    is    now 
more  highly   appreciated,   and   Incumbents  who    wish    to  retain 
possession   of  their   register   books    must    realize    the    responsi- 
bility  which    attaches    to    the    person    in    whose    custody    thev 
are    placed.       They    should    be    lovingly    handled,    reverently 
examined,   and,   above   all,    carefully  guarded.     On  these  terms 
only    is    it    to    be     expected    that    the    parochial     clergy    will 
be   trusted  with   so   precious  a  charge. 


'=XFX.K'cX» 


•Dc-APPENDIX.-s 


'N^XKS^ 


APPENDIX  No.   I. 

THE  CHAMPIONS  OF  ENGLAND.    ' 

The  Norman  Barons  Alarmyon 

At  Norman  Court  held  high  degree : 

Brave   Knights   and   Champions,   every   one, 
To  him  who  won  brave  Scrivelsby. 

These  Lincoln  lands  the  Conqueror  gave, 
That  England's  glove  they  should  convey 

To  Knight  renowned  among  the  brave. 
The  Baron  bold  of  Fontenay. 

The  royal  grant  from  sire  to  son 

Devolved  direct  iyi  capite, 
Until  deceased  Phill.  Marmyon, 

When  rose  fair  Joan  of  Scrivelsby. 

From  London  city  on  the  Thames, 
To  Berwick  town  upon  the  Tweed, 

Came  gallants,  all  of  courtly  names. 
At  feet  of  Joan  their  cause  to  plead. 

Yet  malgre  all  this  goodly  band, 

The  maiden's  smiles  young  Ludlow  won, 

Her  heart  and  hand,  her  grant  and  land, 
The  sword  and  shield  of  Marmyon. 

Out  upon  time,  the  scurvy  knave. 
Spoiler  of  youth,  hard-hearted  churl  : 

Fast  mowing  to  one  common  grave 
Goodwife  and  ladie,  hind  and  earl. 


148  APPENDIX. 

Out  upon  time,  since  the  world  began, 
No  Sabbath  hath  his  greyhound-Hmb  : 

In  coursing  man,  devoted  man. 

To  age  and  death — out,  out  on  him. 

In  Lincohi's  chancel,  side  by  side, 
Their  effigies  from  marble  hewn, 

The  anni  written  when  the}'  died. 
Repose  de  Ludlow  and  Dame  Joan. 

One  daughter  fair  survived  alone, 
The  son  deceased  in  infancy  : 

De  Ludlow  and  de  Marm3'on 
United  thus  in  Margery. 

And  she  was  woo'd  as  maids  have  been. 
And  won  as  maids  are  sure  to  be. 

When  gallant  j'ouths  in  Lincoln  Green 
Do  suit,  like  Dymock,  ferventl}'. 

Sir  John  de  Dymoke  claimed  the  right, 
The  Championship,  through    Margery ; 

And   gainst  Sir  Baldwin  Freville,  Knight, 
Prevailed  as  Lord  of  Scrivelsby. 

And  ever  since,  when  England's  Kings 
Are  diadem'd — no  matter  where — 

The  Champion  Dymoke  boldly  flings 
His  glove,  should  treason  venture   there. 

On  gallant  steed,  in  armour  bright, 
His  visor  close,  and  couch'd  his  lance, 

Proclaimeth  he  the  monarch's  right 

To  England,  Ireland,  Wales,  and  France. 


Then  bravely  cry  with  Dymoke  bold. 
Long  may  the  King  triumphant  reign. 

And  when  fair  hands  the  sceptre  hold, 
More  bravelv  still — long  live  the  Oueen. 


Old  Ballad. 


APPENDIX. 

No.   2. 

TABLE    SHEWING    THE    DESCENT   OF   THE    PRESENT 
CHAMPION    FROM    SIR    PHILIP    MARMION. 


149 


I . 
2 

J' 

4- 

5- 
6. 

7- 
8. 

9- 
10. 

II. 
12. 

14. 

15- 
16. 

17- 
18. 

19. 


Sir  Phili]-)  Marmion 

Joan  or  Jane 

Thomas  Ludlow 

Margaret  Ludlow 

Sir  Thomas  Dymoke  (i) 

Sir  Philip  Dymoke 

Sir  Thomas  Dymoke  (2) 

Sir  Robert  (i) 

Sir  Edward  ( i ) 

Robert 

Sir  Nicholas 
Sir  Edward  (3) 
Edward  Dymoke,  Junr. 
John(i) 
John  (2) 
John  (3) 

Thomas  Dymoke 
John  (4)  D3'moke 
Francis  Seaman 


=  Sir  Thos.  Ludlow 

=  Sir  lohn  Dymoke 
=  Elizabeth  Hebden 
=  Jane  Conyers 

Margaret,  daughter  of  Lord  Welles 

Jane  Sparrow 

Ann,  daughter  of  Lord  Talbois 

Bridget,    daughter    of    the    Earl    of 
Lincoln 

Mary  Dan  vers 

Jane  Cressey 

Abigail  Snowden 

daughter  of  Sir  Charles  Dymoke 

Rebecca  Rayner 
Francis  Capp 
Margaret  Seaman 
Mary  Anne  Pollexfen 


N.B. — In  this  table,  is  omitted  every  unnecessary  name.  Each  step  marks 
lineal  descent  from  parent  to  child.  The  full  family  tree  will  be 
given  in  No.  15  of  the  Appendix. 


150  APPENDIX. 

No.    3. 
MURAL  TABLET  TO   LIONEL   DYMOKE. 

The    interestinsf    mural    tablet    to    Lionel    Dymoke    in    Horncastle 

o 

Church  exhibits  a  well-defined  figure  of  an  armed  knight,  kneeling  on 
a  cushion  and  holding  in  his  hand  a  scroll  containing  in  black  letter 
the  following  inscription  : — 

"S'cta  trinitas  unus  Deus  miserere  nob." 

On    each   side   of   this   figure   are   two   shields   containing  arms,  as 
follows  : — 

1.  Dymoke,    sable,    two    lions    passant,    argent    in    pale,    ducally 

crowned,  or :   empaling  Waterton,  Barry  of  six  ermine  and 
gules. 

2.  Dymoke,  empaling  Marmion,  Vaire,  on  a  fesse  gules  frette  or;  in 

chief,    Hebden,  eniiine,  five   fusils   in   fess;    a  crescent  for 
difference. 

3.  Argent,  a  sword  erect  azure :  hilt  and  pommel  gules. 

4.  Dymoke  impaling  Ha3"don,  quarterly  gules  and  argent,  a   cross 

engrailed  counter  changed :    a  crescent  for  difference. 
In   one   of  the  lower  corners  of  this  brass,  are   the  figures  of   his 
two   sons,  who  died  in   infancy,  and  in   the   other  corner   three  of  his 
daughters. 

The  brass  also  bears  the  following  inscription  in  black  letter : — 
* "  In    honore    sc'te    et    individue   trinitas  orate  p'   a'ia  Leonis 
Dymoke    milit'    q'    obijit    xvij    die    me'se   Augusti   a°   D'ni 
M^CCCCCXix  cui'  a'ie  p'piciet  de'  Amen."      Weir. 


*  For    the    benefit    of   those    who    are    unacquainted    with    these    abbreviations,    it    ma}-    be 
worth  while  to  give  the  inscription  in  full:  — 

"In  honore  sanctoe  et  individuoe  Trinitatis  orate  pro  anima  Leonis  Dymoke  militis  qui 
obiit  XVII"  die  mense  Au_efusti  anno  Domini  MCCCCCXIX  cujus  animcc  propiecitur 
Deus." 
"  In  honour  of  the  Holy  and  undivided  Trinity  piay  for  the  sou!  of  Lionel  Dymoke  a 
soldier  who  died  on  the  17th  day  in  the  month  of  August  15 19  on  whose  soul 
may  God  have  mercy."  lit.  "  To  whose  soul  may  the  mercy  of  God's  propitiation 
be  extended." 


APPENDIX.  151 

In  the  pavement  below  there  is  a  shrouded  effigy  of  this  knight,  and 
the  following  lines  were  once  to  be  seen  hard  by,  but  they  are  now 
almost  if  not  quite  illegible. 

"  Leon  is  fossa  nunc  haec  Dymoke  capit  ossa. 
Miles  erat  Regis  cui  puree  Deus  prece  Matris. 
Es  testis  Christe  quod  non  iacet  hie  lapis  iste 
Corpus  ut  ornetur  sed  spiritus  ut  memoretur. 
Hinc  tu  qui  transis  senex  medius  puer  an  sis 
Pro  mc  funde  prcces  quia  sic  mihi  fit  venie  spes."* 

*  It  is  not  easy  to  give  an  adequate  representation  of  these  old  rugged  verses  with  their  double 
rime,  but  the  following  rough  attempt  will  convey  some  idea  of  what  was  in  the  mind  of  the  writer 
when  he  composed  the  knight's  epitaph. 

This  vault  contains  the  poor  remains 

Of  Dymoke,  Lionel : 
A  soldier  brave,  within  this  grave. 

He  must  a  short  while  dwell  : 
But  through  the  A'irgin's  intercession 
He  hopes  for  joyful  resurrection. 

Thou,  Christ,  dost  know,  that  not  for  show 

Or  body's  decoration 
This  stone  we  place  :  it  is  to  grace 

His  spirit's  habitation. 

So  pra}'  for  me,  whoe'er  you  be 

Whate'er  your  age  or  station, 
Before  you  go  :  for  only  so 

Are  hopes  for  my  salvation. 


152  APPENDIX. 

No.    4. 

THE    MONUMENT   TO   SIR   ROBERT   DYMOKE    IN 
SCRIVELSBY    CHURCH. 

Since  Chapter  VI.  was  in  the  printer's  hands,  a  curious,  but  still 
inconclusive  piece  of  evidence,  relating  to  the  tomb  of  Sir  Robert 
Dymoke,  has  been  supplied  by  the  discovery  in  Scrivelsby  Court,  the 
dwelling  place  of  the  Champions,  of  an  old  brass  which  has  evidentl}^ 
been  forcibly  wrenched  from  a  stone  to  which  it  was  once  affixed.  It 
is  nearh'  but  not  quite  square,  the  exact  dimensions  being  14  inches 
^y  ^Sh  'iiid  on  the  upper  part  is  the  Dymoke  Coat  of  Arms,  well 
and  clearly  cut.  The  inscription  is  much  more  roughly  cut  and  is  as 
follows  : — 

"  Under  this  Stone  h'es  y''  Body  of  Sir  Robert  Dymoke, 
Bannarett,  who  was  A  General  to  King  Henery  y®  S'*"  at 
y^  Takeing  of  Tournay  in  France,  and  left  there  his 
Treasourer.  His  Monument  was  Remov'd  under  3^""  Arch 
in  1760  by  y'^  present  Champion's  Orders." 
As  to  this  inscription,  of  which  the  above  is  an  exact  cop}',  there 
are  three  things  to  be  noted : 

1.  The  proper  description,   Banneret,   is   given,   and  not   Baronet, 

as  on  the  tomb. 

2.  The  Monument  is  not  now  in  the  place  where  it  was  originall}' 

set  up.  It  was  removed,  but  it  is  not  said  whether  it 
was  removed  yVc;;?  or  to  the  arch  of  which  it  speaks,  nor 
is  an}'  reason  given  whv  it  was  removed. 

3.  The  removal  was  affected  in   1760  by  the  order  of  the  present 

Champion. 
How  far  does  this  inscription  help  us  to  decide  whether  the  tonib 
was  erected  at  Haltham  or  Scrivelsby  ?  It  is  obvious  that  the  words 
"  under  this  stone "  may  refer  to  the  Church  of  either  parish,  and  that 
the  removal  spoken  of  may  have  been  either  from  Haltham  to 
Scri\'elsby  or  from  one  part  of  Scrivelsby  Church  to  another.  There  is, 
too,  a  delightful  obscurity  about  "  the  order  of  the  present  Champion  in 
1 760,"  for  in  that  year  there  were  no  less  than  three  Champions,  viz. : 
Louis  (i),  Edward,  his  successor,  and  John,  the  son  of  Edward. 


APPENDIX.  153 

Looking  impartially  at  the  evidence  as  a  whole,  it  would  seem  to 
favour  the  conclusion  that  Sir  Robert  Dymoke  died  and  was  buried  at 
Scrivelsby,  and  that  his  monument  which  had  been  placed  originally 
over  the  grave  was  removed  to  its  present  position  under  the  arch,  by 
order  of  John  Dymoke,  the  last  of  the  three  Champions  of   1760. 

The  fact  of  the  brass  in  question  being  found  at  Scrivelsby  Court 
favours  this  conclusion.  How  did  it  come  there  ?  Why  was  it  taken 
from  the  place  where  it  had  once  been  fixed  ?  If,  indeed,  the 
monument  were  brought  from  Haltham,  it  is  not  surprising  that  the 
plate  denoting  the  spot  where  the  burial  had  taken  place  should  be 
brought  away  with  it ;  but  this  particular  plate  could  never  have  been  at 
Haltham  at  all,  for  it  speaks  of  a  removal  "  under  the  arch  in  1 760," 
and  a  close  inspection  makes  it  evident  that  the  words  on  the  plate 
were  all  engraved  at  the  same  time.  It  is  reasonable  therefore  to  infer 
that  the  monument  was  simply  removed  from  one  to  another  part  of 
the  same  Church,  and  that  Church  must  have  been  Scrivelsby,  for  there 
is  no  arch  in  Haltham  Church  to  or  from  which  such  a  monument 
could  have  been  taken.  But  when  the  monument  was  removed, 
the  plate  was  probably  placed  at  first  on  the  pavement  close  to  it, 
but  was  subsequently  taken  away,  as  not  being  over  the  spot  where  the 
body  had  been  interred ;  and  what  so  natural,  under  the  circumstances, 
as  that  the  Champion  who  had  ordered  the  removal  should  have  taken 
the  brass  to  his  own  house,  where  it  would  be  stowed  away  in  some 
corner,  and  in  course  of  time  would  be  quite  forgotten  ?  The  inference 
therefore,  is  that  Banks  was  wrong  in  saying  that  the  monument  to 
Sir  Robert  Dymoke  was  originally  at  Haltham.  But  although  such  an 
inference  may  be  fairl}'  drawn  from  the  premises,  it  is  equally  possible 
that  an  opposite  conclusion  might  be  arrived  at  by  adopting  another 
line  of  argument.  For  instance,  it  might  be  said  that  the  brass  in 
question  is  altogether  misleading.  It  must  be  granted,  indeed,  that  it 
could  never  have  been  at  Haltham,  but  it  might  be  argued  that  it  was 
engraved  by  the  Champion's  order  to  account  for  the  change  of  site, 
the  first  part  of  it  being  possibly  copied  from  a  similar  brass  in 
Haltham  Church,  but  the  new  brass  was  afterwards  taken  away  for  the 
sake  of  decency,  because  it  falsely  asserted  that  under  it  was  buried 
the  body  of  the  Champion  to  whose  memory  the  monument  was 
u 


154  APPENDIX. 

erected.  So,  although  some  progress  has  been  made  by  the  suggestion 
of  a  possible  solution  of  the  problem,  the  question  still  remains 
undecided.  The  only  sure  standing-ground  is  that  given  at  the  end  of 
Chapter  VI. 

In  Lincolnshire  Notes  and  Queries,  Vol.  2,  p.  57,  "Sepulchral  Brasses 
in  Lincolnshire,"  a  good  suggestion  is  made  to  account  for  the  word 
baronet  being  used  instead  of  "  banneret."  It  had  been  previously  thought 
that  the  brass  was  not  cut  till  after  161 1,  when  the  term  baronet  was 
familiar,  and  "  banneret "  obsolete.  But  the  learned  writer  points  out  that 
as  an  interval  of  at  least  yy  years  had  elapsed  after  the  death  of  Sir  Robert 
Dymoke,  and  as  the  writing  is  too  well  cut  for  the  1 7th  century  "  it  seems 
more  probable  that  it  was  restored  after  some  injury,  received  probably  in 
the  ci\'il  war,  and  that  the  restorer  imagined  himself  to  be  con-ecting  a 
blunder  in  the  original  inscription." 


APPENDIX.  155 

No.    5. 

AUTOGRAPH   LETTER  FROM  HENRY   VHI.  TO  SIR   ROBERT 

DYMOKE   IN    1513. 

Now  in  the  possession  of  Lady  Hartwell  the  only  child  of  Sir  Henry 

Dymoke,  Bart. 

The  following  is  a  translation  into  modem  English  of  the  original 
letter  written  in  the  court  hand  of  the  period. 
"By  the  King. 
Henry  viij. 

We  wol  and  co'mande  you  that  of  o''  money  being  in  y''® 
keepinge,  you  do  paye  and  delyvere  unto  o""  Sherrif  Lancastre, 
oon  of  o"^  heralde,  the  somme  of  seven  ponnde  thirtene  shillinge 
and  foure  pens  sterlinge,  for  suche  cost  and  charge  as  he  hath 
susteyned  by  o''  co'mandement  to  and  from  us  and  o''  citie  of 
Torney  and  thes  o""  'tres  (lettres  ?)  shal  be  your  suffic'ent  warrant 
and  discharge  in  this  behalfe. 

Given  under  o'  signet  at  o""  Mano'  of  Elth'm  the  xiith  daye 
of  July  the  v*''  y're  of  o'  reigne. 
To  o''  trusty  and  welbeloved 
Knight  of  o""  body  Sir  Robert 
Dymmok    treasourer     of     o' 
citie  of  To'■ne^^" 

With  regard  to  the  foregoing  the  term  "Lancaster  Sheriff"  is  to  be 
noted.  A  "  Lancaster  Herald "  is  a  well-known  expression,  but  this 
mention  of  a  "  Lancaster  Sheriff"  is  unique. 


-@>o<^- 


156  APPENDIX. 

No.    6. 
LETTER   OF   QUEEN   MARY  TO   SIR  EDWARD   DYMOKE. 

This  letter  also,  written  in  the  court  hand  of  the  time,  is  now  in  the 

possession  of  Lady  Hartwell.      It  is  here  reproduced  in  modern  English 

characters : — 

"  By  the  Queene. 

]\Iarv  the  Oueene. 

Trustie  and  welbelovid,  wee  grete  you  well  and  left  you 
know  herewith  that  the  warres  be  open  betwixte  us  and  France, 
and  the  King,  our  derest  Lorde  and  husbande,  passed  the  sea  in 
parson  to  pursue  the  enemye,  wee  have  gyven  ordre  (as  mete 
is  our  honor  and  suretie  so  reguyring)  to  have  a  convenyent 
sorte  put  in  parfect  redyness  in  preparacon  I'attendre  upon 
our  own  parson,  as  well  for  the  defence  and  suretie  thereof, 
as  to  resiste  such  attempts  as  may  be  by  any  forren  ennymie,  or 
otherwise  made  agaynst  us  and  our  realme ;  and  knowing  your 
fidelite  and  goodwill  to  s'rve  us,  have  appoynted  you  to  be  one 
emongst  others  that  shall  attend  upon  us;  therefore  requiring 
and  charging  you  not  onlie  to  put  yourselfe  in  ordre  accordinglie, 
but  also  to  cause  your  tenints  srv'nts  and  others  w*^  in  your 
rules  and  offices,  to  furnj^she  yourselfe  w*''  ten  horsemen,  and 
one  hundred  footmen,  well  appoynted ;  of  the  whiche  footmen, 
one  iiii*''  parte  to  be  harquebuttiers  or  Archers :  one  other  iiii*^ 
parte  pykes ;  and  the  reste  Bills  ;  and  which  the  said  nombres 
of  men,  horse,  and  furnyture  well  in  ordre  to  be  readye  to 
attende  upon  us,  or  ellswhere  by  our  appoyntmente,  upon  one 
dais  warnyng  at  any  tyme  after  the  xxv**"  daye  of  Augusta 
nexte  comyng  ;  ann  in  the  meane  tyme  untill  you  shal  be  so 
called  to  s'rve  us,  remayne  in  full  readyness  and  ordre  to 
s'rve  under  theyme  that  have  charge  in  that  countie ;  and 
hereof  fa3''le  ye  not. 

Geoven  undre  our  signett  at  out  Manor  Richmond  the  laste 
of  Julie,  the  fourth  and  fyfte  yeres  of  our  reignes. 

To  our  trustie  and  well  bloved  Sir  Edward  Dymoke,  Knigt." 

The  close  connection  existing  between  France  and  Scotland  in  the 

14th  and  15th  centuries  is  well  known  to  all  historical  students.    England's 


APPENDIX.  157 

difficulty  in  France  was  ahva3'S  Scotland's  opportunity  in  England.  War 
between  the  two  countries,  especially  when  the  English  Sovereign  crossed 
the  water  to  conduct  the  war  in  person,  was  always  the  signal  for  Scotland 
to  rise  and  assist  her  friends  in  France  by  overrunning  the  border  and 
inflicting  as  much  damage  as  was  practicable  on  each  occasion.  It  is  very 
true  that  this  was  not  alwa3^s  a  safe  game  to  play.  A  Queen  of  England 
had  once  before  led  her  troops  in  person  to  punish  the  Scots  for  turning 
her  husband's  absence  to  the  usual  account,  and  the  laurels  gained  by  the 
wife  at  Nevil's  Cross  were  not  unworthy  to  be  twined  with  those 
subsequent!}'  gained  b)'  the  husband  at  the  gi'eat  battle  of  Crecy  in  1346. 
Coming  nearer  to  Mary's  own  time,  the  memory  of  Flodden  Field  was 
still  green,  and  it  requires  no  stretch  of  imagination  to  believe  that  Queen 
]\Iary  was  seriously  intending  to  take  the  field  in  person  against  the  Scots 
who  were  notoriousl}''  preparing  to  help  their  French  allies,  now  that  war 
had  once  more  broken  out,  and  King  Philip,  the  husband  of  Mary,  was 
fairly  out  of  the  kingdom,  having  "  crossed  the  sea  in  parson  to  pursue  the 
enemye."  It  is  certainly  a  little  remarkable  to  find  a  woman  like  Mar}'- 
desirous  of  emulating  the  heroism  of  Queen  Phillipa,  but  she  was  at  the 
time,  as  we  well  know,  restless,  uneasy,  and  full  of  trouble  from  every 
quarter.  Conscious  of  having  forfeited  the  affections  of  her  people, 
pining  for  the  return  of  her  husband,  whose  waning  love  and  phlegmatic 
temperament  chilled  and  depressed  her,  jealous  of  her  sister  and  successor, 
Elizabeth,  and  ill  at  ease  with  herself,  she  may  well  have  conceived  the 
idea  of  seeking  distraction  abroad  amidst  the  stirring  scenes  of  war  from 
the  thoughts  which  oppressed  her  in  the  peaceful  avocations  of  every-day 
life  at  home.  However  this  may  be,  it  was  generally  supposed  at  the  time 
that  the  Queen  had  made  up  her  mind  to  lead  her  troops  in  person  to 
Scotland,  and  this  letter  to  Sir  Edward  Dymoke,  with  its  minute  directions 
and  hints  of  establishing  a  special  bodyguard  selected  from  her  subjects  of 
most  approved  loyalty,  seems  to  confirm  the  general  report,  not  only  by 
its  particular  terms,  but  because  it  is  addressed  to  the  Champion  in  an 
autograph  letter  by  Queen  Mary  herself,  instead  of  being  sent  in  the 
ordinary  course  through  the  Lord  Lieutenant  of  the  county. 

Scrivelsby  Rectory.  S.L." 

The   foregoing  was  contributed  in   1888  to  Lincolnshire  Notes  and 
Queries,  and  is  now  reproduced  with  the  kind  permission  of  the  Editors. 

\ 


158  APPENDIX. 

No.    7. 

ORDERS   BY   MRS.   JANE   DYMOKE. 

Mrs.  Jane  Dymoke,  the  wife  of  Charles  Dymoke,  Esq.,  was  a  good 
woman  and  a  benevolent,  but  imperious  withal.  After  her  husband's 
death  she  busied  herself  with  philanthropic  attempts  to  ameliorate  the 
condition  of  her  poor  neighbours.  Having  property  at  Hemingby,  she 
left  a  sum  of  money  and  divers  lands  for  the  endowment  of  a  Hospital  or 
Almshouses  for  aged  widows  who  had  seen  better  days,  with  preference  to 
the  widows  of  clergymen  ;  for  the  payment  of  a  School  Master  and 
Mistress  ;  for  giving  a  free  education  to  the  children  of  her  tenants ;  for 
clothing  a  certain  number  of  scholars  of  both  sexes  ;  and  for  apprenticing 
the  boys  to  some  tradesman  or  artizan  in  the  neighbourhood.  A  few 
years  ago  this  last-named  opportunity  of  beginning  a  career  was  eagerly 
coveted,  but  in  these  days  of  restlessness  and  independence,  parents  do 
not  seem  to  appreciate  the  boon.  "  Binding  out,"  as  it  is  called,  is  a 
restriction  on  personal  liberty  and  the  noble  soul  liketh  it  not.  Parents 
like  their  children  to  be  free,  and  the  children  in  this  one  point  agree  with 
their  parents.  Thus  the  good  intentions  of  the  benevolent  lady  are 
necessarily  frustrated,  and  the  money  has  to  be  diverted  into  another 
channel.  We  gather  from  certain  expressions  in  her  will  that  any  change 
of  this  kind  would  have  been  very  distasteful  to  a  lady  who  constantl}"" 
reiterates  "  I  will  have  so  and  so  done,"  "  I  will  have  my  orders  obeyed." 
Mrs.  Jane  Dymoke  was  buried  at  Horncastle  and  not,  as  might  have  been 
expected,  at  Scrivelsb}',  where  her  husband  died  and  was  buried. 

Extract  from  "Orders"  given  by  Mrs.  Jane  Dymoke  in  1736  for  the 
good  administration  of  her  schools  at  Hemingby.* 

''That  by  Mrs.  Dymoke's  order,  the  Schoolmaster  and  children 
shall  be  visited,  as  she  shall  appoint,  to  see  that  all  things  be 
kept  in  order,  and  that  the  children  be  orderly,  and  to  hear 
what  complaints  are  made  by  the  Master  and  Mistress  of  the 
said  children,  and  to  rectify  the  same." 

*  These  "  Orders  "  though  quaintly  expressed,  are  in  many  respects  admirable,  and  might 
be  ado])ted  with  advantage  by  many  school  teachers  of  the  present  day.  They  are  worth 
preserving,  too,  as  shewing  vividly  the  difference  between  3'esterday  and  to-day.  No  one  now 
would  venture  to  give  such  directions  as  were  seriously  given  150  years  ago. 


APPENDIX.  159 

"  That  the  Master  be  duly  qualified  to  teach  the  children  to  read 
English  well  and  to  write  a  good  hand  and  to  understand 
Arithmetic.  /  do  not  desire  the  girls  should  learn  to  write — 
only  the  boys." 

"  That  the  Master  and  Mistress  be  members  of  the  Church  of 
England  ;  that  the  Master  shall  instruct  the  children  in  the 
principles  of  the  Christian  Religion,  as  laid  down  in  the 
Church  Catechism,  and  in  the  use  of  the  Common  Prayer 
Book,  and  that  he  prays  with  them  at  School,  morning  and 
evening,  and  enjoins  them  to  do  the  same  at  home,  and  to 
say  Grace  before  and  after  Meat." 

"  That  the  Schoolmaster  brings  them  to  Church  every  prayer  day 
and  sees  that  they  behave  themselves  with  all  reverence,  as 
the  Rubric  directs." 

"  That  he  takes  particular  care  of  their  manner  and  beha\iour, 
and  not  suffer  an}-  vice  to  grow  upon  them,  but  presently 
check  it  by  due  admonitions  and  corrections  without 
partiality." 

The  following  orders  relate  to  parents. 

"  That  they  shall  keep  their  children  at  School  without  changing 

them."     i.e.,  we  suppose  the  school,  not  the  children  ! 
"  That  they  send  the  children  clean  washed  and  combed,  with  a 

piece  of  white  linen  about  their  necks,  and  onl}'  Sundays  and 

Holidays  in  their  School  habits,  without  they  have  leave  to 

do  otherwise." 
"  That  they  would  set  them  a  good  example  at  home,  hear  them 

their  lessons,  catechism,  and  prayers,  and  see  they  perform 

their  tasks  properly." 
"That  they  freely  submit  their  children  to  the  discipline  and 

con-ection  of  the  School,  and  not  to  send  them  a  begging 

round  the  country  as  vagrants,  and  that  they  shall  forbear 

coming  to  the  School,  and  not  to  speak  ill  of  their  Master 

or  Mistress  for  correcting  them." 
"That  such  parents  and  such  children  who  will  not  submit  to 

these  orders,  their  childien  shall  be  turned  out  of  the  School 

and  lose  their  clothes." 


i6o 


APPENDIX. 


"  I  do  also  order  that  all  or  any  of  the  girls  may  be  emplo3"ed  by 

any  of  my  tenants  in  sewing,  and  spinning,  and  knitting, 

that  they  may  not  be  idle,  and  for  them  to  give  the  girls  a 

small  matter  to  encourage  them," 

And  then  in  the  midst  of  sundry  directions  for  carrying  out  her  kind 

intentions,  the  old  lady  abruptly  addresses  one  of  the  Trustees  by  name — 

thus  :  "  Mr.  Caborn,  I  desire  you  will  take  particular  care  that  these  my 

orders  may  be  performed  as  I  have  set  down.       And  if  in  case  an\'  of  the 

said  Widows,  Schoolmasters,  or  Schoolmistresses,  or  Children,  neglect  to 

observe  them,  to  let  me  know  by  the  very  first  opportunity,  and  they  shall 

be  discharged,  for  /  will  have  them  observed!' 


APPENDIX. 


i6i 


No.  8. 


OUARTERIXGS  OF  THE  DYMOKE  COAT  OF  ARMS. 
Arms — Sa.,  two  lions  passant,  arg.  crowned,  or  ;    Ouarterings. 


I 

2 

3 
4 


Dymoke 

Ludlow 

Marmion 

Kilpeck  [so    stated 


m 


the  books  of 
the  College  of  Arms,  but 
this  particular  Quartering  was 
probably  borne  as  the  badge 
of  office  of  Champion  (see 
Ralph  Brooke's  Discovery  of 
Camden  s  Errors.)] 


5 

Hebden 

6 

Rye 

7 

Welles 

8 

Waterton 

9 

Engaine 

10 

Sparrow 

II 

Talbo3's 

12 

Barraden 

13 

Fitzwith 

14 

Umfraville 

I^ 

Kvme 

Crests- 


-I 

2 


A  sword  erect,  arg.,  hilt  and  pommel,  or  : 
A  lion,  passant,  arg.,  crowned,  or  : 
The  scalp  of  a  hare,  ears  erect,  p.p.r. 

The  frontispiece  shows  the  Escutcheon  of  the  Dymoke  Coat  of  Arms 
with  the  proper  colourings. 


V 


1 62  APPENDIX. 

No.  9. 

DYMOKE  ENTRIES  EXTRACTED  FROM  OLD  REGISTER. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  names  of  the  members  of  the  Dymoke 
family  that  are  found  in  the  old  Scrivelsby  registers  : — 

1566     Mr.  Thomas  Windebanke  and  Mrs.  Frances  Dymoke  married, 

the  20'^  day  of  August. 
15S0     Robert  Dymoke,  buried,  26"'  of  September. 
1585     Katherine    Dymocke,  the   daughter   of  Edward   Dymocke   was 

baptized  the  28  of  August  Anno  supra  dicto. 
1593     Anne  D3'moke,  daughter  of  Rob*.  Dymoke  Esquier,  was  baptized 

the  second  da3^e  of  December  Anno  sup*"  dcto. 
1597     John  Dymoke,  gent,  buried  15th  day  of  December  a°  supra  dicto. 
1600     Edward  son  and  heyre  to  Sir  Edwd  Dymoke,  Knight,  was  buried 

May  18. 
1624     Edward  Dimock,  Knight,  buried  Septem.  2. 
1 64 1     Ladye  Mar}-  Dymocke,  buyried  July  10*''. 

1654  Edward  Dymoke,  Jun''.  and  Abigail  Snowden  weare  married,  the 
18  of  July  Anno  Domi  1654. 

1655  Robert  Dymoke,  the  sone  of  Edward  Dymoke  Jun^  and  Abigail 
was  borne,  the  2'j  of  Aprill  and  was  baptized  the  same  day. 

1667     Mrs.  Elizabeth  Dymoke  ye  wife  of  John  Dymoke,  gent,  bur; 
July  29*''  Anno  p.  dicto  {prcedicto). 

1667  Jane  ye  daughter  of  John  Dymoke  bur.  August  7*''  Anno  p.  dcto. 

1668  Nicolas  the  sonn  of  Nicolas  Dymoke,  gent,  and  Anne  his  wife 
buried  Ma}^  16"'  Ann,  p'.  do. 

1668  John  Dymoke,  gent,  buried  July  20*''  Ann  p.  d". 

1669  Lewis  the  Sonn  of  Charles  Dymoke  Esquire,  and  Elianor  his  wife 
bap.  Feb.  14*^  Anno  Supra  dicto. 

1669     Catherin  Dymoke  ye  daughter  of  Charles  Dymoke  Esquire  and 

Elianor  his  wife,  buried  Nov.  6*^.  An.  'p.  d". 
1669     Mrs.  Penelope  Dymoke  ye  daughter  of  Charles  Dymoke  Esquire 

buried  April  7"'.  Anno  Sup.  D". 
1 67 1     John  ye  sonn  of  Nicolas  Dymoke,  gent,  buried  Nov^".  3'"'^ 
1671     Jane,  ye  daughter  of  Nicolas  Dymoke  gent,  buried  December  6*^ 
1 671     Anne  the  wife  of  Nicholas  Dymoke  buried  March  16. 


APPENDIX.  163 

1693     Edward  Dymoke,  gent,  was  buried  May  13. 

1698     The  Hon"'"'"  lady  Elener  Dymoke,  widow  of  Sir  Charles  Dymoke, 

Knight  was  buried  on  the  7"'  day  of  July  1698. 
1702     The    truly     Hon""^'^    and    worth}'    Charles    Dymoke,    Esquire, 

Champion  of  England,  was  buried  on  ye  24*^.  day  of  January 

1702,  at  Scrivelsby  close  to  the  north  wall  within  the  rails  of  the 

chancel. 
1 714     Tho.  Dymok,  the  son  of  Nicolas  buried  March  28. 
1 7 14     Nicholas  Dymok  of  Enderby,  buried  Dec^  20.  ■ 
1743     Jane  Dymoke,  widow  of  Sir  Charles  Dymoke,  Champion,  died 

January  4*''  1743,  and  was  buried  at  Horncastle. 
1756     Mrs.  Elizabeth  Dymoke  ye  daughter  of  S^    Charles    Dymoke, 

buried  May  20. 
1760     The  Honb^^   Lewis  Dymoke,  Champion  of  England,  died  Feb. 

the  5*^,  buried  Feb.  the  2=,^,  1760. 

1763  Lewis,  son  of  the  Honb''^.  John  Dymoke  Champion,  and  Martha 
his  wife  born  March  8*''.  1760,  and  bapt*^.  the  same  day. 

1764  John,  son  of  the  Honb^^  John  D3''moke,  Champion,  and  Martha 
his  wife  born  March  8^^.  1760,  and  bapt^  the  same  day. 

1784     The  Honb^*^  John  Dymoke,  Champion  of  England,  died  in  Old 

Burlington  Street,  London,  March  6"".  and  was  buried  within  the 

communion  rails  at  Scrielsby  March  17*^,  1784. 
1799     Baptized    Charlotte    Catherine    Jane,    the    daughter    of   John 

Dymoke,  clerk.  Rector  of  Scrielsby  and  Amelia  his  wife  June  3"^ 

1799. 
1799     Charlotte  Catherine   Jane    daughter    of    John    Dymoke,   Clerk, 

Rector  of  Scrivelsby  and  Dalderb}',  and  Amelia  his  wife,  July 

2S'\   1799- 

1799     Charlotte  Catherine  Jane,  daur  of  the  Reverend  John  Dymoke 

(Rector)  buried  on  ye  26th  Ocf.  1799. 
1 80 1     Baptised   Henry   the  son  of   John    Dymoke,   Clerk,    Rector   of 

Scrivelsby  cum  Dalderby,  and  Jane  Alice  Amelia  his  wife  March 

6*^  1801. 
1 80 1     Christened  Henr}'  the  son  of  John  Dymoke,  Clerk,   Rector  of 

Scrivelsby   cum    Dalderby,   and   Jane   Alice    Amelia    his    wife, 

August  3''^.  1 80 1,  by  me  Thomas  Roe,  Rector  of  Kirkby  Bane. 


164  APrEXDIX. 

1802  Baptized  Mary  the  daughter  of  John  Dymoke,  Rector  of 
Scrivelsb}^,  etc,  and  Jane  Ahce  Ameha  his  wife,  Nov^  15^^.,  1802. 

1803  Buried  Mary  daughter  of  Rev'*.  John  Dymoke  and  Amelia  his 
wife,  Apl  15*^,  1803. 

1804  Baptised  John  the  son  of  John  Dymoke,  Clerk  and  Rector  of  this 
parish  and  Jane  Alice  Amelia  his  wife,  October  8^^.,  1804. 

1807  Baptised  Maria  Georgiana  daughter  of  the  Re^'^  John  Dymoke, 
clerk.  Rector  of  this  parish,  and  Jane  Alice  Amelia  his  wife  Feb'^y. 
9"".  1807. 


N.B.     The  following  are  not  to  be  found  in  the  parish  registers,  but 
are  taken  from  the  transcripts  at  Lincoln  and  can  be  depended  upon  : 
1 561-2     Married.    M^  John  Dymok  and  Mystris  Doritha  Gyrlyngton 

XXX  Julie. 
1 661-2     Christenings.     Jane  daughter  of  Edward  Dymocke  and  Abigail 

his  wife  June  4. 
Frances  daughter  of  Nicolas  D3'moke  Gent.  & 
Sarah  his  wife.     Dec.  30. 
1663        Burials.     M".  Sarah  Dymocke  wife  of  M^  Nicolas  Dymocke, 

Gent     Aprill  6. 
Sir  Edward  Dymocke,  K*.  buried  Jan^.  8^. 

Tho\  Booker. 
1664-5     Charles   son   of  Nicholas  Dymoke  Gent,  and  Anne  his  wife 

bapt.  Aug.  5. 
1665-6     Nicholas  son  of  Nicholas  Dymoke  Jan.  11.     Christened. 
1666-7     J^ne  daughter  of  Nicholas  Dymoke  Feb.  14.     Christened. 
1677-8     Burial.     M^  Thomas  Dymoke     May  22 
1678-9     Burial.     The  Hon*''^  Lady  Jane  Dymoke.     Dec.  27. 
1679-80  Burial.     Mrs.  Frances  Dymoke. 

1684        Burial.     Anne  Dymoke  of  M^  Nicholas  Dymoke  {sic.)  Nov.  7 
1686        Burial.     The  Honourable  S'.  Charles  Dymoke,  Nov.  2. 


APPENDIX. 

No.   lo. 


165 


LIST  OF  CHAMPIOXS  WHO  HAVE  ACTUALLY  OFFICL^TED. 


Sir  John  Dymoke,  for  his  wife,  at  the  coronation  of 
Sir  Thomas,  for  his  mother 

Do.  do. 

Sir  Phihp 
Sir  Thomas    ... 
Sir  Robert 

Do. 

Do. 
Sir  Edward  (i) 

Do. 

Do. 
Sir  Edward  (2) 

Charles 

Sir  Edward  (3) 
Sir  Charles  . . . 
Charles 

Do 

Lewis  (i) 

Do. 

John       

Henry,  for  his  father  the  Rev.  John  Dymoke  (i) 


Richard  H. 
Henry  IV. 
Henry  V. 
...      Henry  VI. 
...    Edward  IV. 
...  Richard  III. 
...    Henry  VI I. 
...  Henrj'VIII. 
...    Edward  VI. 
...     ...      xVi  ar  V  • 

Elizabeth. 

James  I. 

Charles  I, 
Charles  11. 
James  II. 
William  and  Mary. 

Anne . 

George  I. 

George  II. 

...     George  III. 

...     George  IV. 


1 66  APPENDIX. 

No,   II. 

LIST    OF    CHAMPIONS    WHO     NEVER    OFFICIATED    AT    A 

CORONATION. 

Robert,  who  died  in  the  year  1580  in  Elizabeth's  reign. 

Sir  Nicholas,  the  father  of  Sir  Edward  (3). 

Edward,  successor  of  Lewis  (i),  who  died  in  the  same  year,  1760. 

Lewis  (2),  eldest  son  of  John,  who  acted  at  the  coronation  of  George  III, 

Rev.  John  (2),  brother  of  Sir  Henry  Dymoke,  Bart. 

Henry  Lionel,  last  of  the  Scrivelsby  branch,  son  of  Rev.  John  (2). 

Francis  Seaman,  first  of  the  Tetford  branch. 


Lady  Margaret  (Ludlow)  was  represented  by  her  husband  once,  and  twice 

by  her  son  Sir  Thomas. 
Rev.  John  (i)  was  represented  by  his  son   Henry  at  the  coronation  of 

George  IV.,  in  1820. 


APPENDIX.  167 

No.   12. 

THE   CHAMPIONS  FAREWELL. 
By  Tom  Hood. 

Othttn  aim  dignitate. 

Here,  bring  me  my  breeches,  my  armour  is  o'er  : 
Farewell,  for  some  time,  to  my  tin  pantaloons  : 

Double  milled  Kerseymere  is  a  kind  of  leg  clover. 
Good  luck  to  broad  cloth  for  a  score  or  two  moons. 

Here,  hang  up  my  helmet,  and  reach  me  my  beaver. 

This  avoirdupois  weight  of  glory  must  fall  : 
I  think  on  my  life  that  again  I  shall  never 

Take  my  head  in  a  saucepan  to  Westminster  Hall. 

Oh  !  why  was  my  family  born  to  be  martial  ? 

Tis  a  mercy  this  grand  show  of  fighting  is  up  : 
I  do  not  think  Cato  was  much  over  partial 

To  back  through  the  dishes  with  me  and  my  cup. 

By  the  blood  of  the  D3miokes  Til  sit  in  my  lodgings. 
And  the  gauntlet  resign  for  neat  gentleman's  doe  : 

If  I  ride,  I  will  ride,  and  no  longer  be  dodging 
My  horse's  old  tail  twixt  Duke  Marquis  &  Co. 

No  more  on  my  horsemanship  folks  shall  make  merry, 

For  I'll  ship  man  and  horse,  and  "  show  off  "  not  on  shore  ; 

No  funnies  for  me,  I  will  ride  in  a  wherry. 

They  feathered  m}"  skull  but  I'll  feather  m}  oar. 

So,  Thomas,  take  Cato,  and  put  on  his  halter. 

And  give  him  some  beans,  since  I  now  am  at  peace  : 

If  a  champion  is  wanted,  pray  go  to  Sir  Walter, 
And  he'll  let  you  out  ^Nlarmions  at  guineas  apiece. 

The  ladies  admired  the  piebald  nag  vastly. 

And  clapp'd  his  old  sober  sides  into  the  street  : 
Here's  a  cheque  upon  Child's  :  so,  my  man,  go  to  Astley, 

Pay  the  charge  of  a  charger  and  take  a  receipt. 


1 68  APPENDIX. 

No.   13. 

AN  ELEGY  OX  DEATH  OF  SIR  HENRY  DYMOKE, 

By  Henry  Winn. 

On  humble  graves  I  oft  have  dropped  a  tear, 
Yet  stood  unmoved  beside  the  pompous  bier, 
Not  schooled  by  flattery's  art  in  cringing  low 
To  gilded  baubles  and  unmeaning  show  : 
It  is  no  common  death  when  such  as  I 
Seize  our  rough  quills  to  write  an  elegy. 

Toll,  Toll,  thou  solemn  bell,  and  check  our  mirth  : 
A  gentle  spirit  leaves  this  cherished  earth  : 
Relentless  death,  whose  dart  no  tears  can  stay. 
With  hasty  summons  calls  our  friend  away  : 
The  stroke  seems  cruel,  but,  we  think,  more  kind 
To  him  it  takes  than  us  it  leaves  behind. 

The  noblest  spirit  of  an  ancient  line — 

In  him  we  saw  each  manly  virtue  shine  : 

His  private  hfe — a  pattern  served  to  give 

How  husbands,  Fathers,  Masters,  ought  to  live  : 

In  public  life — he  bore  a  noble  part, 

The  friend  of  virtue,  industry,  and  art. 

Ready  the  poor  to  cheer,  their  wants  assuage. 
And  smooth  the  wrinkles  on  the  brow  of  age  : 
The  pauper's  humble  plea,  the  culprit's  cause. 
He  heard  with  pity,  yet  maintained  the  laws  : 
Patient  he  sat  to  weigh  conflicting  tales, 
And  with  impartial  hand  upheld  the  scales. 

Not  Marmion's  sword  he  wielded — but  the  pen. 
And  taught  religion  to  his  fellow  men  ; 
O'er  England's  curse  he  mourned,  and  bared  his' brand 
To  smite  the  fiend  which  desolates  our  land. 
Unstained  by  sordid  greed,  or  vulgar  pride. 
Honoured  he  lived,  and  much  too  early  died. 


APPENDIX. 


169 


Yet,  wherefore  grudge  the  happy  soul  its  bhss, 
And  wish  to  hold  it  in  a  world  like  this  ? 
Its  duty  nobly  done,  it  seeks  for  rest — 
Its  more  congenial  sphere  among  the  blest- 
Enrolled  with  ransomed  bands  on  that  glad  shore 
Where  parted  ones  shall  meet  and  part  no  more. 
Take,  gentle  shade,  this  tributary  verse 
The  muse  presumptuous  lays  upon  thy  hearse. 


w 


1 70  APPENDIX. 

No.    14. 

LETTER    FROM     HENRY    VI.    TO    THE    KEEPER    OF    THE 

WARDROBE. 

Henry  VI.  to  Robert  Boulton,  j^t/i  iVov.,  i^2g. 

(M.S.  Record  in  the  Chapter  House — Robert  Boulton  was  the  keeper  of 

the  wardrobe.) 

Henr}',  to  our  well  beloved  clerk  Robert  Boulton,  greeting. 
It  hath  been  shown  to  us  and  our  council  by  our  well  beloved 
squire  Philip  Dymoke,  in  what  manner  his  ancestors  (whose 
memory  is  not  obscured)  have  been  accustomed  to  do  certain 
services  and  ceremonies  at  the  coronation  of  our  noble  progenitors 
in  times  heretofore.  That  is  to  say,  to  be  armed  on  the  day  of 
coronation  and  to  be  mounted  on  a  large  horse,  and  to  do  and 
exercise  whatever  to  the  said  services  belongeth,  receiving  the 
fees  usual  thereto  ;  so  we  by  the  advice  and  assent  of  our  council, 
will  and  command  you  that,  for  the  holiday  of  our  coronation 
you  cause  to  be  prepared  the  trappings  and  other  things  in  this 
case  usual,  and  then  to  be  delivered  to  the  said  Philip  in  manner 
as  they  have  been  delivered  to  his  ancestors  by  the  Wardrobe 
Keepers  of  the  said  progenitors  at  such  ceremony  in  times 
heretofore,  and  we  will  that  these  our  letters  be  to  you  a  warrant 
for  the  same,  and  that  you  have  a  due  allowance  for  it  in  your 
accompt. 

To  be  delivered  to  the  said  Champion  before  the  21st  April. 

One  rich  great  horse  saddle  or  field  saddle  of  crimson  velvet, 
with  head  stall  reins,  breast-plate  and  crupper,  with  daggs  and 
trappings,  richly  trimmed  with  gold  and  silver  lace  fringe,  and 
great  and  small  tassels,  with  a  pair  of  very  large  stirrops  of 
Spanish  make,  and  stirrop  leathers  lined  with  velvet  and  gold  and 
silver  lace,  with  two  girths,  and  a  surcingle,  a  bitt  with  silver  and 
gilt  bosses,  a  pair  of  holsters  lined  with  velvet  and  laced  with  gold 
and  silver  lace,  and  a  pair  of  holster-caps  richly  laced  and  fringed 
suitable  to  the  saddle,  one  plume  of  red,  blue,  and  white  feathers 
(the  colors  of  the  three  nations),  containing  18  falls  with  a  heme 


APPENDIX. 


171 


top,  one  plume  of  feathers  for  the  headstall  and  dock,  and  two 
trumpet  banners  of  his  own  arms. 
It  is  worth  remembering  that  Henry  VI.  was  twice  crowned. 
It  is  said   Robert  de  Mormion,  the  first  Baron,  had  by  gift  of  the 
Conqueror  : 

Four  Manors  in  Warwickshire,  one  in  Gloucestershire,  fourteen 
in  Lincolnshire,  and  seventeen  in  Leicestershire,  all  which  were 
inherited  afterwards  by  the  family. 


172 


APPENDIX. 


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I  74  APPENDIX. 

No.   i6. 

COMPETITIOX    BETWEEX    FREVILLE    AND    DYMOKE    FOR 

THE    CHAMPIONSHIP. 

Sir  William  Dui^dale*  informs  us  that  Sir  Baldwin  Freville,  the  third 
of  that  name,  in  the  i  Richard  II.,  exhibited  his  claim  to  be  the  King's 
Champion  on  the  day  of  his  coronation,  and  to  do  the  service  appertaining 
to  that  office,  b}^  reason  of  the  tenure  of  Tamwortht  :  viz.,  to  ride 
completely  armed  upon  a  barbed  horse  into  Westminster  Hall,  and  to 
challenge  the  combat  with  whomsoever  that  should  dare  to  oppose  the 
king's  title  to  the  crown  :  which  service  the  Marmions,  anciently  Lords 
thereof,  had  heretofore  performed.  But  Sir  John  Dimmock,  being  then  his 
competitor,  carried  it  from  him,  b}^  Judgement  of  the  Constable  and 
Marshall  of  England,^  in  regard  he  was  possessed  of  the  Lordship  of 
Scrivelsby,  in  the  County  of  Lincoln  :  which  by  better  authorities  than 
Freville  could  produce,^  appeared  to  have  been  holden  for  divers  ages  b}' 
that  service  :  and  that  the  Marmions  had  the  said  office,  as  owners  thereof, 
and  not  in  right  of  their  castle  :  it  being  descended  to  Dimmock,  with 
Scrivelsby,  from  an  heir  female  of  Sir  Thomas  Ludlow,  Knight,  husband  of 
Joan,  the  3'oungest  daughter  to  Philip,  the  last  Lord  Marmion. 

In  later  times  an  apparentl}"  weighty  argument  was  advanced  against 
the  tenure  of  Scrivelsby  by  Knight  Sejeanty,  inasmuch  as  it  was  said  to 
be  well  established  that  Seijeanties  never  paid  escuage,l|  whereas  the 
ancestress  of  the  wife  of  Sir  John  Dymoke  on  one  occasion  paid  this 
particular  fine,  but  Mr.  Madox,  in  his  histor}^  of  the  Exchequer,  p.  453, 
says,  that  "  Escuage  was  generally  paid  out  of  Knight's  fees ;  but,  that  there 
were  also  some  Serjeantries  which  paid  Escuage  ;  among  which,  Joan,  late 
wife  of  Thomas  de  Ludelow  (who  could  not  have  been  more  than  17  3'ears 
of  age  at  the  time  of  her  death),  was  charged  for  the  Manor  of  Langeton, 
with  several  Escuages  of  the  armies  of  Scotland,  assessed  in  the  28th,  31st, 


*  Dugdale's  History  of  Warwickshire,  edited  by  Thomas,  Vol.  2,  p.  1134. 
f  Escheat,  23,  Edw.  I.,  n.  29. 
J  M.S.  in  offie.  arm.  (H.  13)  f.  321. 

§  Escheat,  23  Edw.  III.  F.  levat.  Term.  Mich.  I.  vi.  Line. 

II  Escuage  or  Scutage  was  the  fine  paid  for  non-attendance  on  the   King  in    time   of   war. 
Escuage  accordingly  was  levied  on  females  inheriting  land  from  a  deceased  father. 


APPENDIX. 


175 


and  34th  years  of  King  Edward  I.,  as  if  it  had  been  holden  of  the  King 
by  the  fourth  part  of  a  Knight's  fee  :  she  alleged  that  the  Manor  of 
Langeton  was  a  member  of  the  Manor  of  Scrivelsby,  and  that  the  Manor 
of  Scrivelsby  with  its  members  was  holden  of  the  King  by  Grand 
Serjeantry,  and  not  by  Knight  Service  :  hereupon,  the  King,  by  his  writ, 
commanded  the  Barons,  that  if  it  appeared  to  them,  that  the  Manor  of 
Scrivelby  was  holden  of  the  King  by  Grand  Serjeantry,  and  that  the 
]\Ianor  of  Langeton  was  a  member  of  the  Manor  of  Scrivelby,  and  that 
Joan  or  her  ancestors  had  not  formerl}'  paid  Escuage  for  the  said  Manor  of 
Langeton,  then  they  should  discharge  her  of  the  said  demanded  Escuages." 
Mich.  Brevia.,  9  Edw.  II.,  Rot.  13,  a. 


I  76  APPENDIX. 

No.   17. 

ESTABLISHED  ANECDOTES  AND  UNESTABLISHED  OPINIONS 
CONCERNING  THE  MARMION  FAMILY  AND  THE 
TENURE  OF  GRAND  SERJEANTRY  BY  WHICH  THE 
MANOR  OF  SCRIVELSBY  IN  THE  COUNTY  OF  LINCOLN 
IS  SAID  TO  BE  HELD. 

The  lines  given  below,  to  which  the  above  heading  is  appended,  were 
found  at  Revesby  amongst  the  many  valuable  manuscripts  of  the  late  Sir 
Joseph  Banks,  although  there  is  no  reason  for  thinking  that  he  composed 
them.  In  spite  of  their  doggerel  character,  they  are  evidentl}^  intended 
to  embody  a  serious  argument :  and  the  ballad  form  was  probably  chosen 
as  being  most  likely  to  arrest  attention  and  to  secure  general  acceptance. 

The  notes  given  at  the  end  will  enable  the  general  reader  to 
understand  the  allusions,  some  at  least  of  which  might  otherwise  be  almost 
unintelligible. 

When  William  the  Bastard^  at  London  kept  house, 

And  his  Frenchmen  ate  beef,  at  our  English  expense  Sir, 

His  house-steward  ^  who  let  all  his  purveyors  loose  ^ 
Was  call'd  by  the  English  Bobby  Despencer. 

This  Bobb}'  the  Steward,  \vas  Marmion  hight, 

A  name  possibly  coin'd  out  of  true  Kitchen  Bullion,^ 

If  his  first  trade  was  keeping  the  Pots  and  Pans  bright. 
For  what  Frenchman  call  Mariton  we  call  a  scullion. 

One  day  when  the  Bastard  had  heartily  din'd, 

He  said,  "Bobby,  if  due  Suit  and  Service  you'l  yield  me. 

To  reward  your  good  cheer  I'm  so  warmly  inclin'd. 

That  I'll  grant  you  Black  Coleshill  and  Snug  little  Scri'elsby." 

Bobby  ran  for  a  Clerk  who  could  minute  the  Grant, 

While  William  sat  boozing  beside  his  long  table, 
But  before  this  was  finish'd  away  William  went, 

So  to  tell  what  the  Service  was,  no  man  was  able.^ 


APPENDIX.  177 

Bobbv  soon  rode  to  Polesworth  and  turn'd  the  nuns  out, 

For  the  which  holy  Editha  grievousl}'  gored  him/' 
So  to  Scrivelsby  he  went  where  he  made  a  grand  rout, 

But  the  King's  Court  at  Horncastle  horribly  bored  him.'' 

At  last  old  Bob  died,  and  brave  Robert  his  son 

Stept  forward,  a  Knight  very  fond  of  head  breaking, 

But  before  this  great  Warrior  one  battle  had  won 

The  Knight  died  in  a  ditch  of  his  own  proper  making.^ 

When  Sir  Robert  the  third  got  his  Father's  estate 

A  Jury  was  summon'd  and  sworn  by  their  God 
To  return  all  his  Sersices  due  to  the  State 

But  their  verdict  was,  verilv  Nescunus  quod? 

Two  Roberts  succeeded,  the  Elder  rebell'd. 

The  second  was  Lo3'al  and  happy  and  free, 
But  neither  once  said,  that  their  Manor  was  held 

By  the  tenure  so  Xoble  of  Grand  Serjeantry. 

Next  came  Philip,  a  Knight  of  the  spear  and  the  sword, 

The  Family  now  had  seen  seven  coronations, 
Yet  no  Chronicle,  History,  Tale  or  Record, 

Says  they  e'er  gave  a  challenge  by  Right  of  their  stations. 


10 


Philip  ne'er  had  a  son,  so  the  Marmiton  name 

Which  arose  midst  the  scullery's  Filth  Grease  and  Smoke 

Was  left  to  the  younger  Branch,  men  of  good  Fame, 
But  the  Lands  went  to  Freville  and  Sir  John  Dymoke. 

How  these  youngsters  could  dream  that  the  Conqueror  gave 
To  Bob,  his  House  Steward,  the  Champion's  sword. 

Is  a  matter  good  People  can  scarcely  believe 

Unless  they've  seen  Faldingworth's  lying  Record.^^ 

Neither  William  the  First,  nor  fierce  Rufus  his  son 

Wanted  mock  men  of  war  to  demand  mock  concessions, 

By  their  sharp  swords  they  held  what  their  sharp  swords  had  won. 
And  left  Champions  to  prop  up  disputed  successions. 

X 


1 78  APPENDIX. 

From  Doomsda}'  we  learn  Scrivelsby's  Tenure  so  grand, 

B}'  Sergeantry  held,  is  a  manifest  Joke, 
For  that  after  the  Conqueror  granted  the  Land, 

It  owed  suit  and  service  to  Horncastle  Soke.^^ 

That  this  Fancy  was  foster'd  by  Great  John  of  Gaunt, 

Who  at  Bollinbrook,  five  miles  from  Scrivelsby  then  dwelt. 

That  he  told  Sir  John  Dymoke,  no  aid  we  should  want 
If  he'd  claim  that  by  Serjeantry  Scrivelsby  was  held. 

That  the  Faldingworth  Roll,  a  most  clumsy  deceipt. 

Was  forg'd  by  John's  order  ^^  and  brought  forth  to  view. 

That  from  John's  wicked  cunning,  it  got  all  its  weight, 
Were  likely,  for  such  things  John  us'd  much  to  do.^^ 

When  Richard  the  second  our  Monarch  was  crowned, 
John  of  Gaunt  sat  alone  and  decided  each  claim, 

It  was  then  Scrivelsby  Tenure  the  first  time  was  found. 
And  tis  then  we  first  read  of  the  Champion's  name. 

This  John  tried  by  a  forg'd  Roll  to  change  the  succession,^^ 
He  regarded  not  honor  or  the  Law  of  the  Land ; 

This  John  minded  not  how  he  got  wealth  in  possession, 
Yet  on  his  sole  decision  does  this  Tenure  stand. 

Surely  George  our  good  King's  indefeazable  right, 
Which  lives  in  our  bosoms  and  reigns  in  our  hearts. 

Lacks  not,  to  support  it,  the  wager  of  Fight; 
Fell  Usurpers  and  Tyrants  alone  need  such  Arts. 

An  Heir,  wise  and  valiant,  prudent  and  just. 
Entitled  by  Law  to  his  much  honor'd  name. 

Should  dispence  with  a  service  which  argues  distrust. 
And  which  casts  a  dark  shade  on  the  rights  of  his  claim. 


APPENDIX.  179 

NOTES    TO    BALLAD. 

^William  the  Conqueror  was  the  illegitimate  son  of  Robert  Duke  of  Normandy, 
known  in  history  as  Robert  the  Devil,  but  it  is  only  fair  to  remember  that  the 
Danish  system  of  marriage  was  widely  prevalent  amongst  the  early  Xormans.  By 
this  system  which  was  a  legalized  form  of  concubinage,  the  woman  was  bound  to  her 
paramour,  while  the  man  was  at  liberty  to  dissolve  the  connection  at  his  pleasure.  Of 
the  five  generations  of  Xorm.an  Dukes  from  RoUo  to  William  the  Conqueror,  all  save  one, 
known  in  history  as  Richard  the  Good,  contracted  this  species  of  marriage,  which  was 
not  deemed  morally  reprehensible,  nor  were  the  children  of  these  informal  unions 
debarred  from  the  rights  of  inheritance. 

-Robert  Dispensator,  the  first  English  Champion. 

3  The  allusion  is  to  the  system  of  purveyance,  by  which  the  King  was  entitled,  on 
his  journeys,  to  be  supplied  with  free  quarters  and  entertainment.  Such  a  custom  was 
frequenth'  abused,  and  the  "  purveyors "  had  a  bad  reputation  for  exacting  illegal 
contributions  to  the  King's  necessities. 

*  As  Dugdale  does  not  mention  anv  of  Marmion's  Norman  Ancestors,  we  are 
justified  in  supposing  him  to  be  the  first  of  his  family. 

*  In  allusion  to  the  return  of  the  Juries  mentioned  in  Tcsia  dc  Ncvill,  which  said 
Nescitmis  quod  sen>itiiim  (we  know  not  bv  what  service  the  lands  were  held). 

^Robert  Dispensator  is  said  to  have  been  in  such  a  hurry  to  secure  his  grant  of 
Tamworth  Castle,  in  the  jurisdiction  of  which  the  Nunnery  of  Polesworth  was  situated, 
that  he  forcibly  ejected  the  Nuns  from  their  home  ;  but  their  patron  saint,  Edith, 
appeared  to  him  in  a  vision,  and  so  alarmed  him  by  her  denunciations  of  his  sacrilege, 
that  he  restored  the  Nuns,  and  made  compensation  for  the  wrong  he  had  done. 

^  See  page  8,  where  a  reason  is  given  for  the  disappearance  of  Scrivelsby  from 
the  Soke  of  Horncastle,  which  is  sufficiently  confirmed  by  this  statement. 

^  See  page  36. 

^  See  note  5. 

^o  See  page  109. 

11  Bishop  Sanderson's  Collections,  page  192. 

^-This  is  an  unlooked  for  support  to  the  arguments  advanced  in  Chapter  I.,  p.  8. 
There  is  no  doubt  that,  before  the  Marmions  came,  Scrivelsby  was  in  the  Soke  of 
Horncastle,  but  although  the  exact  time  of  its  extrusion  is  unknown,  we  find  it 
mentioned  in  later  documents  as  forming  part  of  the  Wappentake  of  Gartree. 

1^  So  grave  an  accusation  ought  not  to  be  brought  without  adequate  evidence 
to  support  it.  It  is  evident  that  this  ballad  was  composed  by  a  partizan  of  the  Frevilles, 
and  in  opposition  to  the  claim  of  the  Dymokes  to  act  as  Champions.  But  it  is  monstrous 
that  for  lack  of  better  evidence  it  should  suggest  that  John  of  Gaunt,  the  President  of 
the  Court  of  Claims,  was  only  able  to  decide  in  favour  of  Sir  John  Dymoke,  by  producing 
a  forged  instrument,  assigning  the  Championship  to  the  Scrivelsby  Manor  by  Knight 
Serjeanty.       If  this  were  so,  how  comes  it  that  before  the  investigation  of  the  question  by 


l8o  ArPEXDIX. 

the  Court  of  Claims,  the  Black  Prince  gave  so  decided  an  opinion  that  the  right 
belonged  to  Sir  John  Dvmoke?  And  further,  if  John  of  Gaunt  had  perpetrated  this 
forgery  for  no  other  object  than  to  benefit  a  neighbour,  Bolingbroke  being  only  a  few 
miles  distant  from  Scrivelsby,  is  it  likely  that  he  would  have  left  the  question  open  by 
using  the  words  salvo  jure,  i.c.,  without  prejudice  to  any  future  claim  that  might  be 
advanced  by  the  Frevilles,  instead  of  at  once  closing  it  by  giving  a  definite  decision  in 
favour  of  the  side  which,  by  implication,  he  favoured  ? 

"See  Harl.  MSS.  66i.     F  154. 

I'' It  is  highly  probable — not  to  say  certain — that  John  of  Gaunt  maintained  his 
son's  contention  that  he  was  rightful  heir  to  the  throne  by  blood,  inasmuch  as 
he  was  descended,  on  the  mother's  side,  from  the  clda.1  son  of  Henry  III.,  Edmund, 
who,  by  reason  of  some  personal  deformity,  had  been  passed  over  in  favour  of  his 
younger  brother,  who  became  King  on  his  father's  death,  with  the  title  of  Edward  I. 
However  untenable  this  claim  may  have  been  at  the  time,  its  production  in  writing 
cannot  be  called  a  forgery  :  and,  after  all,  there  was  possibly  more  weight  in  the 
contention  than  has  been  generallv  supposed.  With  regard  to  the  whole  question,  which 
forms  the  subject  matter  of  the  ballad,  it  mav  be  worth  while  to  examine  in  greater  detail 
the  arguments  that  have  been  brought  forward  to  support  it.  The  whole  argument  is 
based  on  the  forgery  said  to  have  been  committed  by  the  powerful  John  of  Gaunt,  Duke 
of  Lancaster.  In  the  first  place  it  is  said  that  "  as  the  Duke  of  Lancaster's  great  baronial 
possession  of  Bolingbroke  was  contiguous  to  the  Manor  of  Scrivelsby,  and  as  he  had  not 
hesitated  to  forge  an  instrument  to  obtain  the  crown  of  England  for  his  son,  we  may  infer 
that  he  would  readily  stretch  a  point  to  serve  an  old  neighbour,  especially  if  a  valuable 
consideration  was  connected  with  the  obligation."  Was  ever  so  flimsy  a  pretext  assigned 
in  support  of  a  charge  of  forgery,  and  especially  when  brought  against  a  nobleman  in  the 
position  of  John  of  Gaunt  ?  The  next  argument  is  of  a  more  serious  character,  but  has 
very  little  to  do  with  the  matter  in  hand.  It  is  said  that  "  in  the  Lincoln  papers  the 
names  of  the  Jurors  sworn  to  make  the  returns  relative  to  the  scutage  aid  in  the 
I".  Edward  III.,  anno  1272,  are,  incredible  as  it  ma_v  seem,  the  same  as  those  stated  to 
have  been  returned  for  the  inquisition  of  the  same  towns  in  Tc^ta  de  Ncxnll,  which, 
according  to  the  sub-commissioners  of  the  public  records,  appear  to  have  been  compiled 
near  the  close  of  the  reign  of  Edward  II.,  or  the  commencement  of  that  of  Edward  III., 
anno  1327,  a  circumstance  so  notorious,  that  one  of  the  manuscripts  must  have  been 
falsified.  For  it  is  utterly  impossible  that  the  same  Jurors  could  have  been  sworn  in  for 
the  same  towns  at  a  distance  of  time  not  less  than  fifty  years."  A  palpable  hit  has  here 
been  made,  and  it  may  be  at  once  admitted  that  one  or  other  of  these  documents  has  been 
tampered  with,  but  there  is  no  evidence  as  to  which  of  the  two  was  falsified,  nor  that 
John  of  Gaunt  had  any  hand  in  either.  Again  it  is  said  that  "in  Testa  de  Ncvill,  p.  331, 
Philip  Marmion  held  lands  in  Dalderby  and  Wilkesby,  in  the  Wapentake  of  Horncastle, 
de  Doviiiw  Rcgc  in  capite  de  veteri  fcoffavicnto  "  ;  and  at  page  335,  that  "  Robert  Marmion 
held,  in  the  same  Wapentake,  in  Scrivelsby.  Thornton,  Lincoln,  Dalderby,  Wilkesby,  and 
Holtham,  septevidecim  carucaias  el  duas  bovatas  sed  nescwms  per  quod  servitiuin."     The 


APPENDIX.  l8l 

implication  here,  of  course,  is  that  at  that  time  no  record  existed,  which  expressly  stated 
the  particular  tenure  by  wliich  these  lands  were  held,  and  that  it  was  not  till  the  forged 
instrument  was  produced  by  John  of  Gaunt  that  anything  was  heard  of  Scrivelsby  being 
held  by  Knight  Serjeanty.  This  is,  undoubtedly,  a  fair  argument  to  use,  for  it  is  clear 
that  much  difficulty  was  experienced  in  finding  the  original  document  which  mentioned 
the  exact  tenure  on  which  the  several  estates  of  the  Marmions  were  held.  The  whole 
difficulty  was  caused  by  the  dispersion  of  the  Marmion  estates  upon  the  death  of  the 
last  baron  without  male  issue.  As  long  as  these  extensive  possessions  were  vested  in  a 
single  famih",  there  would  be  no  need  to  enquire  into  the  origin  of  the  several  privileges 
which  thev  carried  with  them.  But  the  case  was  different  when  the  fourfold  division  was 
made  on  the  death  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion  in  1292.  But  although  the  evidence,  as  regards 
Knight  Serjeanty,  is  not  so  conclusive  as  might  have  been  desired,  there  was  at  least  a 
well  established  tradition  that  Robert  Dispensator  received  the  Manor  of  Scrivelsby  in 
this  wa}-,  and  that  it  was  deemed  sufficient  to  justify  the  Court  of  Claims  in  assigning  the 
Championship  to  the  Dymokes  of  Scrivelsby,  rather  than  to  the  descendants  of  the 
Marmions  of  Tamworth.  In  any  case,  the  charge  of  forgery  completely  breaks  down,  and 
we  must  be  content  to  abide  by  the  final  award  of  the  Court  of  Claims,  which  decided  in 
favour  of  Sir  John  Dymoke,  "  by  reason  that  he  brought  forward  better  evidence  in 
support  of  the  right  of  office  being  adjudged  to  the  Manor  of  Scrivelsby,  than  Freville 
could  adduce  on  behalf  of  his  tenure  of  Tamworth  Castle." 


1 82  APPENDIX. 

No.    i8. 
THE  IMMEDIATE  SUCCESSOR  OF  ROBERT  DISPENSATOR. 

It  is  necessary  to  furnish  some  evidence  in  support  of  the  statement 
that  the  second  Marmion  in  England  was  Roger  and  not  Robert,  as  is 
generally  said  by  Dugdale  and  others  who  probably  followed  his  lead 
without  enquiry.  It  is  no  slight  support  to  this  statement  that  Mr. 
C.  F.  R.  Palmer,  O.P.,  who  bestowed  much  attention  on  the  subject  a  few 
years  ago,  has  satisfied  himself  upon  the  following  grounds,  that  Robert 
Dispensator  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Roger. 

In  the  printed  calendar  of  the  Patent  Rolls  of  Richard  II.  there 
appears  a  Confirmation  of  certain  donations  to  Polesworth  Abbe}-  in  the 
district  of  Tamworth  Castle,  made  by  a  member  of  the  Marmion  famih\ 
In  this  record  there  is  per  inspexinuis  the  gi"ant  of  Stephen  confirming  to 
Robert  Marmion  all  the  land  of  Roger,  his  grandfather,  and  Robert,  hi 
father,  according  to  the  charter  of  Henry  I.  The  Pipe  Roll  of  31  Henry  I. 
testifies  that  the  latter  Robert — i.e.,  the  great  grandfather  of  Roger — paid 
relief  in  the  year  1129,  on  inheriting  the  land  of  his  father,  and  Stephen's 
charter  supplies  the  father's  christian  name  which  the  Pipe  Roll  omits. 
This  Roger  most  exactly  fits  in  with  the  Roger  Marmion  of  Henry  I.'s 
time,  who  held  extensive  lands  in  Lincolnshire,  as  entered  in  the 
contemporary  list  of  crown  tenants  preserved  amongst  the  Harleian 
MSS.  The  Roger,  who  in  the  year  1107  joined  in  his  mother's  gift  to 
the  Benedictine  Abbey  of  Caen,  as  detailed  in  some  Normandy  deeds  at 
the  Public  Record  Office,  and  the  Roger,  in  the  same  reign,  who  was  Lord 
of  Llanstephan  Castle,  on  the  authority  of  a  MS.  in  the  Lansdowne 
collection,  must  have  been  one  and  the  same  person.  Hence  it  appears 
certain  that  Roger  Marmion  was  not  a  mere  "item"  but  the  head  of  the 
family  at  the  time  stated,  in  which  case  he  is  properly  described  as  the  son 
and  successor  of  Robert  Dispensator. 

If  Roger  died  in  the  year  1129,  as  the  Pipe  Roll  intimates,  he  cannot 
have  been  the  Rogier  Marmion  of  the  Conquest  in  1066,  whom  Wace  then 
describes  as  an  old  man. 

In  the  catalogue  of  the  great  military  officers  who  accompanied 
William  the  Conqueror,  quoted  in  Stow's  Aimals  (p.  104)  from  Gwilliam 
Tayleur,  occur  the  names  of  Rogier  Marmion  and  Le  Dispenser.     It  is 


APPENDIX.  183 

probable  that  by  the  titular  description  Lc  Dispenser  is  meant  our  Robert 
Dispensator,  and  that  the  Rogier  Marmion,  mentioned  amongst  the  great 
barons,  was  his  father,  who  died  shortly  after  the  battle  of  Hastings. 

The  known  dates  of  the  death  of  Robert  Dispensator  and  of  the 
Robert  Marmion  whom  we  style  "  The  Knave,"  favour  the  supposition 
that  the  immediate  successor  of  the  former  was  Roger.  "  The  Knave  " 
died  in  1143  and  Dispensator  in  1107,  so  that  ample  room  is  left  for  the 
son  of  the  one  and  the  father  of  the  other  to  be  in  possession  of  the 
famil)'  honours.  If  "  The  Knave  "  was  the  son  of  Robert  Dispensator,  as 
is  generally  stated,  he  must  have  been  upwards  of  70  when  he  came  to  an 
untimely  end  by  falling  a  victim  to  his  own  knavish  trick.  It  is  far  more 
probable  that  he  was  in  the  prime  of  life  at  the  time  of  Stephen's  conflict 
with  Maud,  and  that  he  succeeded  his  father  Roger  about  11 20. 

This  is  not  the  only  instance  of  a  confusion  that  has  been  made 
between  the  names  of  Robert  and  Roger  Marmion.  There  is,  according  to 
Ba?iks,  a  document  in  the  Cottonian  Library,  entitled  C/andhcs,  which 
states  that  the  following  notice  occurs  in  a  Catalogue  giving  the  names  of 
those  persons  who  held  lands  per  single  hundreds  or  centuries,  in  the 
County  of  Lincoln.  "  Rogerus  Marmion  inter  Scrifleby  et  Torentura  et 
Ructuna,  et  Dalbi  17  C.  et  2  B.*  quas  Rogerus  ipse  tenet.  Inde  in 
Dominio  9  C.  et  6  B.  Ulnetus  tenet  &c."  From  the  same  MS.  it  also 
appears  that  the  said  Roger  held  elsewhere  other  lands,  which  certain  men, 
whose  names  are  given,  held  under  him.  The  point  to  be  noted  is  that 
in  the  Cottonian  MS.  this  Marmion  is  called  Roger,  whereas  the  more 
authentic  record,  the  Liber  Niger  of  the  Exchequer,  calls  him  by  the 
name  of  Robert  Mamiyun. 

*  In  primitive  times,  before  the  present  S3'stem  of  land-measurement  was  adopted,  a  rough 
estimate  of  the  extent  of  a  man's  holding  was  arrived  at  by  marking  the  average  time  occupied  by 
Oxen  in  ploughing  it.  At  the  time  of  the  Domesday  Surve}',  lands  were  described  by  Carucates 
and  Bovates,  i.e.,  b}-  the  amount  of  land  that  could  be  ploughed  in  a  year  by  a  team  of  Oxen  and  a 
single  Ox  respectively.  There  was,  however,  no  fixed  standard  even  for  this  rough  mode  of 
estimating  land-areas.  Madox  in  his  Baronia  (p.  183,  n.w.)  says  that  odo  bovatoe  /admit  iinam 
Caracutam,  but  as  he  does  not  tell  us  what  was  understood  by  a  hovate  we  do  not  gain  much  from 
his  statement.  There  is,  in  fact,  no  established  value  either  of  a  bovate  or  a  Caracute,  in  consequence, 
probabl}-,  of  the  variety  of  soils,  which  would  make  it  impossible  for  oxen  to  plough  with  any  kind 
of  uniformit}',  but,  speaking  generally,  we  may  assume  the  average  extent  of  a  bovate  to  be  15,  and 
a  Caracute  120  acres.  A  curious  instance  of  this  primitive  system  of  measurement  is  given  in 
Homer  (II.  X.  v.v.  351 — 353),  where,  what  is  termed  a  "mule's  range,  "representing  the  distance, 
by  which  a  team  of  nimble-footed  mules  would  beat  a  team  of  lumbering  oxen  in  ploughing, 
appears  to  have  been  accepted  as  an  established  and  recognized  measure  of  distance. 


184  APPENDIX. 

No.    19. 

RECTORS  OF  SCRIVELSBY  FROM   1246. 

1246     [a°.  II  Grostete.] 

^Nlagister  Luke  de  Waltham,  ]iresented  by  Phili]-)  Marmyun. 
1262     [Gravesend] 

Philip  de  Ganere}',  subdeacon,  b\'  Sir  Philip  Marm3^un,  on  death  of 
]\Iagister  Luke. 
1270     [a°.  XII.  Gravesend]  vii  Kal  :   Maii 

Philip  de  Ganereio  subd.  by  the  Bishop  on  presentation  of  Philip 
Marmyun,  ad  commendam. 
1270      Xon  :  Julii. 

Magister  Donetus,  de  S.  Qiiintin,  subd  :    by  Sir  Philip  Marmyun, 
on  death  of  Philip  de  Ganerey. 
1290     XVI  Kal  :  Ap  : 

Magister  William  Gernun  Clerk,  presented  in  minor  orders  by  Sir 
Philip  Marmiun  Kn*.  on  death  of  Magister  Donetus. 
13 1 5     VI  Id  :  Jun  : 

William  de  Cossale,  priest,  b}'  Lady  Johan  de  Ludelowe,  Lady  of 
Scrivelsby,  on  resignation  of  William  Gernoun. 

1324  VI.  Id  :  Jul : 

John  de  Rocheford,  by  Sir  Henry  Hillary  and  Johan  his  wife,  on 
resignation  of  Dominus  William  Coshale  (sic) 

1325  VII.  Id  :  Maii 

John  de  ffylyngley  b}'  Sir  Henry  Illary  (sic)  Kn*.  on  resignation 
of  John,  exchanged  to  Spene  R.  Sarum  Dioc  : 
1354     XII  Kal  :  April  : 

John  Soot  of  Leverton,  priest,  by  John  Dymmok  Lord  of  Scrivelsby 
on  death  of  John  Anne}'  {perhaps  an  alias  of  the  preceding 
Rector) 
1360     V  Id  :  Oct  : 

Ralph  de  Schirburn,  priest,  by  Sir  John  Dynmiok  Kn*.  on  resignation 

of  John  Soote  of  Leverton — exchanged  to  Goxhill. 
John  de  Burley. 

No  record  of  this  Institution  can  be  traced  at  Lincoln,  but  it  must 
have  taken  place  between  1360  and  1378. 


APPENDIX.  185 

1378     Peter  de  Thirsk,  X  Kal  :  Jan:    priest,  by  Sir  John  Dymmok,  Kn\ 

on  death  of  Dominus  John  de  Burley. 
1 38 1     John  de  Croxln-,  priest,  July  6,  by  Lady  Margaret  Dymmok  on 

resignation  of  Peter  de  Thirsk,  exchanged  to  Claxby  R. 
1394     Magister     Thomas    de    Welbourne,    in     legibus    Licentiatus,    bv 

Margaret   Dymmok,  Lady   of  Scrivelsby.      {Hon)   vacant  not 

stated.) 
1404     WilHam  Peek,  Capellanus,  by   same,  Dec  :    12,  on  resignation  of 

Magister  Thomas  Welbourne — exchanged  to  Asfordby  R. 
141 1     John  Grenacre,  priest,  April  24th,  by  Lady  Margaret  relict  of  Sir 

John    Dymmok    Kn'.    and    Lady   of   Scrivelsby    on    death    of 

Dom^  W.  Peke. 
141 1     Dominus  William  Spenser. 
145 1     Dominus  Richard  Warner,  Capellanus,  by  Lady   Eliz"".  Dymoke, 

relict  of  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke,  Kn*.  on  resignation  of  Will™. 

Spenser. 
1454     Dominus   Robert  Burght,  [sic)  Capellanus,  by  Thomas  Demok  of 

Skrewylby  {sic)  gentilman — on  resignation  of  Rich  :  Warner. 

1467     Dominus  Thomas  Morpath,  alias  Sharparrow,  priest,  by  Sir  Thomas 
Dymoke,  Kn'.  on  deprivation  of  Dominus  Robert  Borow  {sic) 

i^'j2     Magister  John  Croxby,  B.D.,  by  Robert  Radclyf,  Esq"",  on  death  of 

Dominus  Thomas  Shai-parrow. 
151 7     ^Magister  Richard  Sothyde,  ^LA.,  by  Sir  Rob*.  Dymoke,  Kn*.  on 
resignat".  of  Croxby 
Thomas  Bromfield. 

Xo  date  given  of  this  Institution,  but  y''  first  pages  in  y^  oldest 
Parish  Register  are  signed  by  Tho  :  Bromfield  ft-om  1566 
to  ImSo 

1584     Thomas   Man,  clerk,  by  Sir  Edmund    Dymoke,  Kn*.  on  death  of 
D^  Tho^  Bromefeld 
■    John  Haughton 

Signs  old  Registers  from  1591  to  1614.     Buried  at  Scrivelsby. 

1615     John  Dixon,  M.A.,  on  death  of  John  Haughton. 

Buried  at  Scrivelsby. 

1643     Gabriel  Offley,  M.A.,  by  y'^  Bishop  Feb.  5. 
Name  does  not  appear  in  Register. 


1 86  APPENDIX. 

1643     John  Warren,  clerk,  June  1 1,  by  Charles  Dymock,  of  Scrivelsby,  Esq'. 
1660    Thomas  Booker,  clerk,  by  Edward  Dymoke  Esq. 

Thomas  Booker  signs  y«  old  Register  Book  as  Rector  in  1669  and  is 
buried  as  Rector  in    1704   while  y*   signature    of  Wm,  Weed 
Rector,  appears  in  1671. 
John  Whelpdale. 

No  record  of  date  of  institution  at  Lincoln.  The  Rev.  J.  Whelpdale, 
Rector,  was  buried  at  Scrivelsby  in  1730  but  no  other  mention  of 
the  name  occurs  in  the  Parish  Register.  Wm.  Wood's  name 
does  not  appear  in  the  Registry  at  Lincoln  but  he  signs  the 
Scrivelsby  Register  once  in  167 1  and  his  burial  is  recorded  as 
Rector  in  1672. 

1 73 1     William  Bowes,  A.B.,  Aug.  3 1 ,  by  Lewis  Dymoke,  of  Scrivelsby,  Esq'. 

Buried  at  Scrivelsby  in  1751 

1 75 1     John  Brownell,  clerk,  by  Hon  :  Lewis  Dymoke,  Esq'.,  on  death  of 
William  Bowes. 

Buried  at  Scrivelsby  in  1764.  It  was  either  in  this  Incumbency,  or 
more  probably  in  the  time  of  his  predecessor,  that  Dalderby 
was  consolidated  with  Scrivelsby  in  1741. 

1764     John  Tucker,  Oct  :  26,  by  John  D3'moke,  Esq.  on  death  of  preceding 

Rector  Brownell. 

Mr.  Tucker's  name  only  appears  once  in  the  Parish  Register,  when 
he  signs  as  Rector  in  1764. 

1777     John  Warner,  D.D.,  by  John  Dymoke,  Esq.  on  death  of  Tucker. 

This  name  does  not  occur  in  the  Parish  Registers,  but  it  appears 
from  the  record  at  Lincoln  that  Dr.  Warner  was  institued  on 
4th  x-\ug.  1777  and  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Robinson  on  loth  Novr. 
in  the  same  year. 

1777     Jonathan    Robinson,    M.A.,    loth    Nov'.,    by    John    Dymoke,    of 

Hoddesden,  Esq.  on  cession  of  John  Warner. 

Mr.  J.  Robinson  was  Rector  of  Kirkby  on  Baine  and  appears  to  have 
had  charge  of  the  parish  first  as  Curate  and  subsequently  as 
Rector  from  1767  to  1788.  He  probably  held  the  living  under 
a  bond  of  resignation  in  favour  of  J.  Dymoke. 

1 788     John  Dymoke,  B.A.,  April  25,  by  Lewis  Dymoke,  Esq',  on  resignation 
of  Robinson. 

.    He  appears  to  have  been   re-instituted   1789  and   1795   on  his  own 
cession.     He  was  the  father  of  his  successor  J.  Dymoke. 


APPENDIX. 


187 


1829  John  Dymoke,  B.A.,  March  15,  by  Henry  Dymoke  of  Scrivelsby 
Court,  Esq"",  on  the  death  of  John  Dymoke. 

He  died  of  cholera  and  was  cremated  the  same  day  at  Florence, 
6  years  after  his  resignation  of  the  Rectory. 

1867  Samuel  Lodge,  jNI.A.,  by  the  Hon:  and  Rev:  John  Dymoke, 
hereditary  Champion  and  late  Rector  of  Scrivelsby  on 
resignat".  of  said  J,  Dymoke. 


1 88  APPENDIX. 

No.  20. 

AX    ACCOUNT    OF    THE    PROCEDURE    AT   THE    COURT   OF 
CLALAIS,  cS:c.,  PREVIOUS  TO  AND  AT  THE  COROXATION 

OF  GEORGE  HI. 

The  following  is  given  ///  the  exact  words  of  Champion  John  Dymoke. 

"  As  soon  as  the  Court  of  Claims  was  established,  I  proposed  mine 
immediately,  and  exhibited  it  the  first  Court  day,  when  it  was  read,  and 
the  second  Court  day  it  was  read  again,  and  allowed,  and  my  certificate 
signed. 

The  Master  of  the  Rolls  was  petitioned  by  my  Attorney  in  my  behalf 
to  permit  the  Rolls  to  be  brought  into  Court,  to  shew  it  was  no  new  claim. 

A  day  or  two  after  the  certificate  was  signed,  I  carried  it  to  the 
Wardrobe,  and  there  left  it  (having  taken  copies),  that  the}'  might  order  the 
Banners  and  the  Saddlerv.  I  carried  there  with  me  an  emblazoning  of 
my  own  single  arms,  crest,  and  motto,  that  they  might  be  painted  on  the 
Trumpet  Banners. 

I,  on  day  after,  went  to  the  Tower  (having  first  given  notice  thereof 
to  the  Armourer  and  Secretary  of  the  Ordnance),  with  a  copy  of  my 
certificate,  to  claim  the  Armour,  Pistols,  Sword,  Lance,  and  Target.  I 
tried  on  the  Armour  I  fixed  upon.  The  Secretary  told  me  the  composition 
last  time  was  £60,  and  would  have  compounded  with  me  for  the  same, 
but  I  refused  talking  of  it,  as  after  I  had  wore  it,  it  became  my  property, 
as  much  as  my  estate,  and  I  intended  demanding  more.  1  carried  to  the 
Tower  with  me  the  emblazoning  of  ni}-  own  single  arms  (tho'  married), 
crest,  and  motto,  to  be  depicted  on  the  target. 

I  then  had  an  interview  with  the  Master  of  the  Horse,  the  Duke  of 
Rutland,  when  the  Duke  said  he  would  compound  the  horse  for  100 
guineas,  but  to  keep  up  the  form  of  the  claim,  and  to  secure  payment  of 
the  money  by  not  having  forgot  to  claim,  a  da}-  was  set,  and  I  went  in  the 
Master  of  the  Horse's  Coach  to  the  King's  Meuse  {sic),  where  I  laid  my 
hand  upon  the  best  white  horse  in  the  stable,  sa3'ing  *  this  horse  I  chuse  to 
do  my  service  upon  ;'  having  compounded  with  His  Grace  for  ^105,  or 
accepted  the  promise  of  payment  in  lieu  of  the  horse.     I  took  leave  of  His 


APPENDIX.  189 

Grace  in  the  Meuse  at  his  departure,  and  as  soon  as  he  was  gone,  my 
chariott  drove  up  and  carried  me  away.* 

After  that  I  received  a  letter  from  the  Board  of  Ordnance,  desiring  my 
attendance.  I  went.  It  was  then  required  of  me,  if  I  would  accept  of 
;^6o  as  a  composition  for  or  in  lieu  of  the  armour,  &c.  I  believe  from 
thence  they  would  have  proceeded  to  have  got  me  to  sign  a  promise  to 
return  it  !  a  tiling  nothing  shon/d  have  obliged  jne  to  have  done,  as  that 
ever  would  have  been  a  precedent  to  render  the  claim  of  the  armour 
nominal,  as  the  Board  for  the  future  would  have  made  ever}'  succeeding 
Champion  act  the  same,  and  have  given  what  composition  they  pleased, 
and  if  that  promise  or  receipt  had  been  given,  they  might  have  insisted  on 
the  armour  as  soon  as  used  and  been  ad  libitum  about  the  payment  of  the 
stipulated  sum.  (I  earnestly  recommend  it  to  all  my  successors  to  avoid 
this,  and  be  as  cautions  as  they  possibly  can,  when  they  have  to  do  with 
the  Ordnance.)  This  being  a  thing  unprecedented,  I  replied  that  it  was  an 
affair  which  required  deliberation,  and  that  the  Conrt  of  Claims  had 
allowed  my  Certificate,  which  expressly  ordered  me  one  of  the  best  suits 
of  armour,  and  such  a  one  as  the  King  would  wear  when  he  went  into 
mortal  battle.  This,  with  the  other  perquisites,  were  mine  as  much  as  my 
estate,  as  soon  as  the  coronation  was  over,  for  service  performed,  and  not 


*  See  page  113,  where  attention  is  drawn  in  a  foot-note  to  the  absence  of  this  horse  from  the 
Scrivelsby  Stables,  and  a  suggestion  is  made  as  to  the  probabihty  of  a  composition  being  offered 
and  accepted.  This  note  was  printed  before  the  author  had  seen  the  interesting  extract  from  the 
diary  of  Champion  John  D3-moke.  The  horse  that  carried  George  II.  at  Dettingen  in  1743  must 
have  been  at  least  twenty-two  3'ears  old  at  the  time  of  the  coronation  of  George  III.  in  1761,  and 
must  then  have  been  tolerabl}'  safe  for  the  Champion's  performance  in  Westminster  Hall,  although 
it  is  well-known  that  in  the  days  of  his  fiery  youth  he  was  not  alwa3's  to  be  depended  on  for  sobriety 
of  conduct.  On  the  contrary,  he  was,  during  the  battle  of  Dettingen,  so  oblivious  of  the  precious 
burden  he  was  carrying,  that,  being  frightened  at  a  sudden  and  unauthorized  dash  of  Grammont's 
cavalry,  he  became  unmanageable,  and  was  carrying  the  poor  little  king  into  the  verj'  heart  of  the 
enemy's  position,  when  he  was  stopped  in  time,  and  the  king,  dismounting  from  his  panting 
steed,  encouraged  his  men  by  telling  them  that  now  he  could  not  run  awa}',  even  if  he  would. 
"  No  more  running  awaj'  now,"  he  shouted,  "  steady,  my  boys  :  fire,  my  brave  boys  :  the  French 
\j'ill  soon  run,"  and  with  a  rapid  rush  of  infantrj^  he  drove  back  Grammont's  horse  at  the  point  of 
the  bayonet,  winning  the  battle,  which  is  chiefly  interesting  as  being  the  last  battle  at  which  an 
English  King  fought  in  person,  with  the  cold  steel.  Some  few  years  ago,  there  was  at  Scrivelsby 
Court  an  interesting  relic  of  this  old  horse  in  the  shape  of  a  white  tail  with  a  parchment  scroll 
attached,  stating  that  it  was  the  tail  of  the  horse  that  carried  George  II.  at  Dettingen  ;  but, 
unfortunately,  it  cannot  now  be  found. 


190  APPENDIX. 

like  any  other  fees  payable  on  this  occasion.  Being  asked  if  I  would 
compound  when  the  coronation  was  over,  I  told  them  I  would  give  an 
answer  to  that  when  it  zvas  over,  and  finlher  I  beg'd  to  be  excused.  The 
Board  told  me  they  perceived  I  was  delicate  for  the  rights  and  honour  of 
my  family,  and  applauded  me  for  it.  They  would  report  it,  and  I  should 
hear  further.  They  took  an  extract  of  the  cop}-  of  my  certificate,  which 
they  returned,  so  before  I  left  the  room  the}'  acknowledged  the  armour, 
&c.,  to  be  my  property,  and  said  the  minutes  of  their  records  corroborated 
it.     I  then  took  my  leave  and  came  away. 

Upon  this  unprecedented  behaviour  from  the  Board  of  Ordnance,  and 
assisted  by  Lord  Talbot  and  Lord  Litchfield,  &c.,  I  determined  to  present 
a  Petition  to  His  Majesty  for  my  amiour,  &c.  Accordingly  I  drew  up  a 
Petition  and  having  had  it  well  wrote  over,  I  presented  it,  on  my  bended 
knee,  to  the  King,  open,  after  he  retired  from  the  circle,  as  he  went  into 
his  private  apartments. 

After  some  days.  His  Majesty  ordered  me  one  of  the  best  suits  of 
armour.  The  armourer  interpreted  this  as  they  pleased,  and  gave  me  an  old 
suit,  but  it  being  only  three  days  before  the  coronation  when  it  was 
signified  to  me  by  the  Board  that  upon  my  ordering  the  Armour,  Target, 
Lance,  Sword,  &c.,  to  be  delivered  under  my  hand,  it  should  be  done. 
Accordingly  I  wrote  an  order  of  delivery  to  my  servant,  who  carried  it,  and 
with  this  verbal  reserve  to  the  Armourer,  that  he  should  keep  it  till  the 
coronation  day  and  wait  on  me  with  it,  when  so  ordered. 

Upon  a  rehearsal  of  the  Candles  in  Westminster  Hall,  the  Friday 
preceding  the  coronation,  I  ordered  the  Horse  and  Armour  only  down, 
which  I  tried  that  night  in  the  hall.  The  Armourer  brought  only  the 
Armour,  without  Target,  Lance,  or  Sword,  in  a  hackney  coach.  I  ordered 
the  Armour  only  on  the  Monday  morning  preceding  the  coronation,  which 
was  brought  again  in  a  hackney  coach  to  the  Riding  School  in  Tyburn  Road, 
where  my  horse  stood,  and  where  I  learnt  to  ride.  I  rode  three-quarters 
of  an  hour  in  my  Armour. 

On  the  day  of  the  coronation,  a  Sergeant's  Guard  of  Sir  Robt.  Rich's 
Dragoons  came  at  seven  o'clock  and  escorted  me  down,  when  I  purposed 
going  into  my  Booth  or  Stables,  but  it  was  not  half  built,  no  floor  in  it, 
but  a  perfect  hogst}',  owing  to  the  drunkenness  of  the  workmen.  It  being 
impossible  to  go  into  this  half  built  edifice,  I,  with  my  Gentlemen,  who 


APPENDIX.  191 

were  with  me  and  I  had  invited  to  the  Booth  with  me,  went  into  the  Hall, 
where  we  staid  till  the  procession  went  to  the  Abbey,  and  we  all  followed 
it  on  the  platform,  having  procured  a  ticket  from  the  Earl  Marshall  for  me 
and  my  attendance  {sic)  to  pass  and  repass. 

M)^  horse  and  accoutrements  were  sent  to  the  Meuse  the  night  before 
the  coronation,  to  be  brought  down  with  the  High  Constable's  Earl 
Marshall  High  Steward  to  the  stables  or  Booth,  which  was  done  by  twelve 
o'clock. 

The  dress  of  the  Esquires,  in  honour  of  the  young  King  and  his  late 
marriage,  were  white  cloth — neatly  made — with  a  broad  open  silver  lace, 
the  hats  were  laced  with  the  same  and  white  ostrich  feathers  round  each  ; 
m}'  four  pages  (being  my  footmen)  had  creamed  coloured  coats,  lined  with 
blue,  and  blue-coloured  cloth  waistcoat,  handsomelv  laced  with  a  brown 
single  silver  lace,  and  breeches  like  the  coat  (in  honour  of  the  King  and 
Queen)  instead  of  their  usual  Liveries,  which  was  generally  laced  with 
narrow  silver  instead  of  worsted,  and  hats  with  the  same  lace  round  them, 
as  on  the  coat,  &c.,  white  silk  stockings,  and  bags.  They  had  no  shoulder 
knots  on,  being  Pages,  but  the  next  da}^,  when  I  went  to  Court,  I  had 
three  of  them  behind  my  coach,  both  they  and  the  Coachman  had  then 
their  silver  shoulder  knots  on. 

I  went  to  the  coronation  in  my  dress  I  was  to  ride  in,  (fearing  the 
place  should  not  be  ready  to  receive  me)  and  my  coat  over  it,  with  a  sword 
on  it,  being  crimson  satin  quilted  jacket  and  breeches,  and  white  worsted 
stockings  on,  both  which  were  to  prevent  the  pressure  and  damp  of  the 
armour. 

Being  dressed  just  before  the  second  course  went  in  (as  I  took  care  to 
have  notice  from  the  Hall  when  it  was  proper  to  dress)  the  Knight 
Marshall  came  for  me.  With  him  I  entered  the  Hall,  carr3'ing  my  right- 
hand  gauntlet  in  ni}^  right  hand,  with  the  fingers  towards  the  horse's  head 
(left-hand  gauntlett  being  on  my  hand)  and  a  little  beyond  the  entrance, 
the  challenge  was  made,  at  the  end  of  which  I  flung  the  gauntlett  on  the 
ground,  on  the  right  side  of  me,  a  little  beyond  the  horse,  with  as  much 
force  as  the  armour  would  allow  just  then  my  most  uplifted  arm  and  hand 
to  throw  it.  I  immediately  clapped  my  hand  to  my  side  in  token  of 
defiance,  and  remained  in  that  attitude  till  the  gauntlett  was  taken  up  and 
returned  me  by  the  Herald.      In  the  middle  of  the  Hall  was  repeated  the 


192  APPENDIX. 

same,  only  with  this  difference,  that  after  the  challenge,  instead  of  raising 
my  arm  as  high  as  the  armour  would  admit  to  throw  the  gauntlett  forcibly 
on  the  ground,  I  this  second  time  did  throw  it  ascant,  expressing  thereby  a 
contempt  of  any  one  who  should  dare  take  it  up.  We  proceeded  to  the 
top  of  the  Hall,  and  at  the  foot  of  the  steps  the  challenge  was  read  a  third 
time,  at  the  end  of  which  I  threw  the  gauntlett  down,  as  at  first,  then, 
putting  my  hand  on  m}'  hip  (a  kimbo)  I  turned  my  face  and  head  to  the 
right  and  left — bidding  as  it  were  defiance.  After  the  gauntlett  had  lain 
some  time,  it  was  the  third  time  delivered  to  me,  which  I  then  put  on,  and 
as  soon  as  on,  I  touched  the  forehead  of  ni}'  helmet,  with  a  small  bend  of 
the  head  three  times,  to  pay  my  obeisance  to  His  Majest}',  first  on  the  left 
side  of  my  horse,  then  to  the  Queen  on  the  right  side,  then  to  the  King 
again,  in  token  that  I  had  finished  the  service  :  after  which  the  King  drank 
to  me  and  I  made  obeisance  as  before  to  him  only  once  :  the  cup  was 
brought  to  me,  and  with  the  most  audible  voice  I  was  master  of,  I  drank 
after  pronouncing  these  w^ords,  '  Long  live  their  Majesties.' 

Having  drank  my  liquor  (keeping  the  cup  in  my  hand)  I  turned  my 
horse  on  his  shoulders  round  to  the  right,  and  rode  down  the  hall,  waving 
my  cap  a  little,  that  it  might  be  seen.  I  delivered  the  cup  to  one  of  my 
Esquires,  when  out  of  the  hall,  and  as  soon  as  I  was  undressed,  I  got  into 
my  coach,  and  returned  in  the  manner  I  came  to  the  Hall  in  the  morning, 
the  guard  attending  me  home.  My  fi"iends,  being  in  another  coach,  were 
before  my  coach  within  the  first  escort  of  the  guards,  and  behind  mine 
came  the  second." 

JOHN  DYMOKE, 

September  i^iJi,  1761. 


INDEX. 


Agricultural  Depression 

Ague  no  longer  prevalent  in  Lincolnshire 

Anecdotes 

Mareham  supra  niontcni 

William  the  Conqueror  and  his  dapifer 

Knavish  trick  of  Sir  Robert  Marmion 

The  Dragon  of  Sockburn 

Quarrel  for  Precedence  . 

The  Tottering  Champion 

Gock  and  Bull  Story 

The  Rn'crend  Mrs.  D. 

The  "  Rather  "  Reverend    R.  D 
Architecture  of  Church 
Arched  Gateway 
Armour  and  Armoury    . 
Autograph  Letter  from  Henry  VIIL 
„  Queen  Mary 

Autumn  Tints 
Avenues  in  Park 

Baronetage  conferred  on  Sir  Henry  Dvmoke 
Battle  of  Lose-coat  Field 
Bovate,  extent  of 
Brass  in  Horncastle  Church 
„        Scrivelsby  Church 
Break  in  the  Succession  to  the  Championship 
Canting  Mottoes 
Caput  Baroniae    . 

Champion,  The,  at  Westminster  Hall 
"Champion's  Farewell,"  The,  by  Tom    Hood 
Chancel,  The 

Christian  Xames,  same  in  same  familv 
Church,  Description  of  . 
Church  Plantation,  The 
Churchyard  Cross  to  H.  L.  Dymoke 
Civil  War,  The    . 


S8 


PAGE 

15,  79 
13 


27 

36 

50 

83 

,84 

88 

91 

117 

117 

124 

-126 

120 

121 

^11 

156, 

157 

18 

119 

95 

5  5 

183 

150 

27, 152 

-154 

86,  94, 

102 

45 

40 

22-24 

115, 

167 

124 

29 

,  90 

123 

-130 

123- 

124 

130 

80-92 

196 


INDEX. 


P.\GE. 

Claim  to  Barony  of  Marmion    .......                   96 

Coniers  of  Durham         .... 

50 

Co-heiresses  of  Sir  Philip  Marmion 

40 

Coincidences        .... 

IIO 

Cooper,  or  Cowper,  Bishop  of  Lincoln 

• 

76 

Coronations 

Richard  II.            ...             . 

22,  25,  26 

James  I.    . 

83 

Charles  I. 

85 

Charles  II.             .             .             . 

22-24 

James  II.                ... 

88 

William  and  Mary 

90 

Queen  Anne 

90 

Queens  regnant    . 

90,91 

Queens  dc  jure 

90,91 

George  III. 

94 

George  IV. 

95 

William  IV.           . 

115,  116 

Victoria      .... 

21 

Court  of  Claims  .... 

21,  26-28 

Courtesy-title  of  Champion 

40,116 

Death  of  Robert  Dymoke  in  Lincoln  Castle 

78 

Descent  from  Sir  Philip  Marmion 

149 

Despenser  not  derived  from  Dispensator 

34,  35 

Dettingen,  George  II.  at 

113,  189 

Drainage  of  Fens 

14 

Duke  of  Norfolk  in  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth 

76 

Dymoke 

Derivation  of  Name 

I 

Origin 

43 

Lady  Margaret  (de  Ludlow) 

41,  47,48,49 

Sir  John    . 

45-48 

Sir  Thomas  (i)    . 

49 

Sir  Philip. 

50 

Sir  Thomas  (2)     . 

52-55 

Lionel 

56 

Sir  Robert  (i)      . 

56-59 

Sir  Edward  (i)    . 

.      62,  69,  70 

Robert 

72-78 

Sir  Edward  (2)    . 

83 

Charles 

86 

INDEX. 


197 


Dymoke 

Sir  Edward  (3) 

Sir  Charles 

Lewis  (i) 
(Scrivelsbv  Branch) 

Edward 

John  (i)    . 

Lewis  (2)  . 

Rev.  Jolm  (i) 

Sir  Henry 

Rev.  John  (2) 

Henry  Lionel 
(Tetford  Branch) 

Edward,  Junior 

John  (i)    . 

John  (2)    . 

John  (3)    . 

Thomas 

John  (4)    . 

Francis  Seaman 
Early  Coronations 
Elegy  by  Henry  Winn 
Epigram  by  Henry  Pollexfen 
Execution  of  Sir  Thomas  Dymoke 
Extract  from  Register  of  Dymoke  entries 
Family  Portraits . 
Fens  and  Marshes 
Feudal  System     . 
Fine,  Heavy,  on  Sir  E.  D^-moke 
Freville,  Sir  Baldwin 
Gardener's  Cottage 
Gateway,  Arched 
Genealogical  Tables 

1.  Direct  Descent  from   Sir  Philip  Marmion 

2.  From  Sir  Philip  Marmion  to  present  time 
Gold  Cups 
Goodrich,  John    . 
Grand  Serjeanty . 
Healthiness  of  Lincolnshire 
Heneage,  Sir  George 
Henrietta  Maria  . 
Heywood,  Elizabeth 


26,  4; 


30,  33.  i; 


■4,  175, 


PAGE. 
87,  88,  102 

88 

93,  104,  129 

94 
94 
94 
95 

95-97 
97 
97 

102 

102 

103 

103 
103 

103 
104,  149 

25 
168 

33 

54 
162-164 

121 

14 

31-33 

87 

-47,    i74;    175 

4 
120 

-     149 

172, 173 

28,  III,  113 

56 

179,  180,  181 

13 
83,84 

85 
86 


198 


INDEX. 


Hillary,  Sir  Henry 
Hood,  Tom 

Imperious  Dame,  The    . 
Imprisonment  of  Robert  Dvmoke 
James  I.   . 
Knight  Serjeanty 
Legacy  to  Charles  I. 
Leland's  Description  of  the  Old  House 
Lincolnshire,  Description  of 
Lincolnshire  Insurrection 
Lion  Gateway 
List  of  Acting  Champions 
Dymoke  Registers 
Rectors  of  Scrivelsby    . 
Manners,  Richard 
Martyr  Champion,  The 
Marmions 

Origin  and  Early  History 

Robert  Dispensator 

Sir  Roger 

Sir  Robert,  the  Knave    . 

Sir  Robert,  the  Judge     . 

Sir  Robert,  the  elder 

Sir  Philip. 
Maze  of  Cousin  hood 
Monson,  Sir  John 
Monuments  in  Scrivelsby  Church 
Mottoes,  Canting 
Mutilated  Ceremony  at  the  Coronation  of  James  I. 
Old  House,  Leland's  description  of 
Old  Ballad 

Orders  by  Mrs.  Jane  Dvmoke  . 
Parish  Registers  . 

Patriarchal  Government  of  the  Marmions 
Pecuniary  Embarrassments 
Pollexfen,  Henry,  Epigram  by 
Quarrel  for  Precedence  . 
Rebus  on  Lion  Gate 
Rectors  of  Scrivelsby  from    1246 
Reformation   in    England 
St-  Benedict 


PAGE. 

41,  42 
115,  167 

49 
77 

81-82 

33 
86 

57 
12-19 

63 

4,  45 

165 

162-164 

184-187 

58 

72-78 


2( 

^42 

30-35 

5,  182, 

183 

36, 

183 

37 

,38 

38 

.39 

40 

102 

83 

,84 

126- 

130 

45 

83 

57 

147, 

148 

158- 

160 

131- 

144 

6 

78 

81 

33 

83 

84 

45 

184- 

187 

73 

12: 


INDEX. 


199 


Scrivelsby 

PAGE. 

Description  of  Village      .......       2-4.  9,  10 

Branch  of  Dymoke  Family 

94-98 

Church       .                          . 

123-130 

Court         .... 

118-122 

Park 

118 

Serjeanty,  Grand  and  Petty 

33 

Skipworth,  Sir  W. 

56 

Soke  of  Horncastle 

7-8 

Stocks,  The         .... 

7 

Table  Monument  in  Scrivelsby  Churc 

h 

58-61,  152-154 

Tail  Male             .... 

87,  106 

Totemism 

44 

Tottering  Champion,  The 

88 

Vernon,  Sir  R.    . 

58 

Verses  on  Coronation  of  George  II. 

III 

Waterton  Sir  Robert 

56 

Wars  of  the  Roses 

53-55 

Welles  Dymoke 

•  95,  105,  106 

Welles,  Lord 

55 

Welles,  Sir  R.     . 

55 

Welles,  Lionel  Lord 

56 

Welles,  Rev.  T.              .            .            . 

103,  105,  106 

Will  of  Henrv  Lionel  Dvmoke 

104 

William  of  Malmesbury,  on  the    Fens. 

15 

Zenith  of  Dymoke   Family 

78 

cXd^X'cX' 


►^■•THE    END.-i^ 


^N£XX5^ 


ADDENDA   ET   CORRIGENDA. 

Pages  II  and  53,  to  the  English  versions  from  Horace  append  tiie  name  of  the  translator, 
Theodore  Martin. 

Page  26,  last  line,  for  Collin's  read  Collins's. 


28,  foot  note,  for  Bank's  read  Banks's. 


125,  foot  note,  for  Alphage  read  Alphege. 


129,  line  20,  for  reading  desk  read  screen. 

176,  second  stanza,  y&^  Frenchman  ;r^rr/ Frenchmen  ;  m\i\  for  Mariton  read^l2ccvd\X.ox\. 


179.  foot  note,/'r  Wappentake  ;r(7(^/ Wapentake. 


150,  foot  note,  for  propiecitur  read  propicietur, 


151,  line  I'i,  for  hal")itation  ;rr7c/ exaltation. 


rt 


m 


.f^ 


:  v « 


'$ 


{Ti/. 


>  ^J7-  ■?*>: 


^'^m 


•'<>,.:. 


■■'-**■  ""  I     '   '^*  ■   I     • 

■      '    :   ,     •»        »'■■•■   ,  ■■•.     .^ 

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