Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 7.djvu/472

 464

NOTES AND QUERIES. w h s. VIL JUKE 15, 1901.

their privilege, and so closely did the bishops clutch their little scrap of authority. But, howsoever it may have been as to this point, it is certain that the dean was always inde- pendent of the bishop. As in the case of Hawarden before mentioned, he held his own court ; he " invited " the bishop for a confir- mation ; and, as I am informed by the present dean, the late Bishop Durnford was the first who held a confirmation at Battle without signing his name, in a book kept for the purpose, to the acknowledgment that he came by invitation, claiming no right to be there. It may be added, as a little point of interest, that the title of dean is at least as old as the fifteenth century, a monumental brass record- ing " Decanus gratus Robertas Clere vocatus."

Backing and Hadleigh, Both deans seem to have been practically independent, having also a quasi-episcopal jurisdiction over certain neighbouring parishes. They were indeed ultimately subject to the Archbishop of Canterbury ; but as I learn from a * History of Hadleigh,' by the Rev. Hugh Pigott, "it was not thought etiquette for the arch- bishops to visit." However, the parish book of Hadleigh records that in 1761 Archbishop Seeker held a visitation and confirmation, first at Booking and two days afterwards at Hadleigh ; and, says the Hadleigh dean, "Dr. Sayer, Rector of Booking and joint Dean or Commissary with me for that place, being absent on the Continent, I attended at Bocking in his place." There is some little interest in the fraternity of these twin deaneries.

Middleham, Yorkshire. This deanery was a pious foundation of Crook-back Richard. In 1478, at the instance of the Duke of Gloucester, Edward IV. authorized the foun- dation of "quoddarn collegium apud Middle- ham deDecano et sexCapellanis,"&c. Richard, however, seems not to have carried out his purpose of endowment ; after his death the " college" came to nothing, but the title was retained until 1850.

Wolverhampton. Collegiate church, with its dean, having a large number of depend- ent chapelries. Edward IV. annexed the deanery to that of Windsor ; and so, with some little change in the time of Edward VI. and Mary, the deans of Windsor were deans of Wolverhampton, till the title was abolished | in 1846, up to which time there were also ' seven titular canons, who, however, seem to have had no practical connexion with the place. Shaw (' History of Staffordshire ') says of it : "A Royal Peculiar, subject to no earthly power [!] but the King of England, : and under it to the perpetual visitation of j

the Keeper of the Great Seal for the time being." It may be presumed that the Lord Chancellor regularly appointed a commissary for visitation.

Bibury, Gloucestershire, with jurisdiction over Aldesworth, Barnsley, and Winson. It had been a peculiar belonging to Osney Abbey, the rights of which were taken over by the impropriator. Rudder, 'History of Gloucestershire,' 1779, says :

"What the rights were has been disputed ever since the foundation of the See of Gloucester ; but it was agreed between Dr. Benson, late Bishop of Gloucester, and Mrs. Warneford, then Lady of the Manor, to lay all evidence relating to it before the Dean of Arches, and abide by his award ; which award was made in May, 1741. But the agreement became void at the death of that Prelate ; and the matters in controversy are in the same state as j before. The Lord of the Manor doth not allow to the Bishop a right of visitation : he appoints his own Official and Chancellor."

So no doubt the haggle went on to the j end the bishop vainly " claiming " (as above mentioned) a right of jurisdiction.

Dorchester, Oxon. The abbey held juris- diction over a group of nearly twelve parishes, mainly skirting the Thames, from Toot I Baldon, N.W., to Nettlebed, S.E., which right j was inherited by the impropriators. I have been enabled to inspect the visitation book, which is in the Bodleian Library. The first record which I make out from the villainous scriveners' handwriting of the period is in 1581 :

' ' Acta in Ecclesia Parochiali de Dorchester, coram j venerabili [the " worshipful"?] viro Thoma Glasier I Legum Doct. peculiaris et exempte jurisdictions de j Dorchester per Edmundum Fettiplace [holder of I the abbey] legitime constitute." For the year 1589 the entry is headed | "Visitacio Ep'alis " (episcopalis) ; but as it was held " coram V. Viro J. Drewrie, LL.D.," the entry must be a slip of the registrar. To the visitation were summoned the clergy and churchwardens (custodes) of the several parishes ; also from each parish, at least in the earlier years, two or three "jurati," by which are meant, I believe, "jurymen " sworn to give testimony of knowledge as to fact in respect of any questions which might arise as to their own place or neighbourhood. Among the acts I find, in 1721, " Ofncium Judicis promotum " against Sarah Orpwood, the mother of a base-born child. She was adjudged to do public penance in Clifton (Hampden) Church, and to bring the cer- tificate thereof (signed, no doubt, by the clergyman and churchwardens) to the next "curia" or court-leet. In 1741 similar pro- ceedings were taken against Mary Wallis. Being summoned and not appearing, she was