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Because we made our reservation online and in advance, we got the front row table, at the center of the stage.
I really like a lot of the pictures I've put up lately. I feel like I'm getting better. I don't know.
But, in some ways I'm not having as much fun. I'm trying too hard, I think, to get a "good picture" rather than do it because it's fun and to put things up that I like.
I just took this. It's not perfect, but I love it. I love the colors, and the blur, and the fact that the flower is dead. And the dirty dishes behind it. And that I only took seven or eight shots rather than twenty! Ha!
So, for awhile I think I'm just going to put up things I like, that are weird, or bad, or boring, or whatever. They may all suck, but I don't care. Maybe that's the point. Maybe I just need to be bad (or worse!) for awhile! Here goes!
Because thanks to easyjet, the Newcastle metro is en route from Geneva to Liverpool.
Almost worth it to meet the nicest bus driver in the world, but probably not quite.
long drive to near lake tahoe for t-day, and a lack of any knitting projects i could do in the car meant I grabbed a random skein of yarn and started swatching up this sock on thursday.
While I was at it, I decided to try a reverse dutch heel instead of my usual short-row heel. I think I like heel-flaps much better when done toe-up.
Yesterday I went on a mega walk with Reuben. A mega walk means rather than walking along the river and to the frozen lake, we carried on past the salt mine and up towards New Bridge. Yesterday the sky was really bright blue, the sun was bright and the light was fantastic. So, I saw many opportunities for 365 shots and decided to go back today.
Today the sky has been somewhere between white, light grey and white all day. The light has been pretty nonedescript apart from a crazy UV feel because of all the white snow. I considered shooting in RAW at one point :p I guess that will teach me to go out without a camera and missing the moments the day before!
So, I carried on along the river until I found a stream that hadn't frozen, it leads into the River Weaver and it was the only part of the River that wasn't frozen. All the swans and seagulls and random ducks had made their way there.
I waited for a while to get this shot. The swans carry on regardless whilst the seagulls start to land on the water, the stream becomes a mass of seagulls until suddenly one of the birds (or sometimes a car on the bridge) spooks them and they all panic and take to the sky!
I kind of like how it turned out.
I am dedicating this photo to Abigail Paige because one of her Facebook updates this week was "I'm bored of snow now". This photo is a bit of a move away from snow today (albeit ice on the river) so this one is for her.
Pastry shops literally exist on every corner where i live, but this is my first time ever eating at one. This is Maui! With a chocolate rum cake frosting MUSTACHE. Hah!
Because I cannot afford a DSLR, I used 20x microscope eye piece on my phone's camera lens; to take this pic.... ( now, tell me how do you find this experiment... Successful or insane...?? )
Türen einer öffentlichen Toilette in Schaftalberg in der Steiermark.
Doors and doorknobs in styria.
Türen & Türgriffe in der Steiermark
Because a dear friend, who's an architect, said: "Purple skies and construction sites, I couldn't have asked for more in a photograph."
Location: Al Karamah, Dubai
Xmas tree- 10 feet tall, collapses to 3 ft tall!
Product made by Because We Can, LLC
We do custom fabrication and design.
check us out here: www.becausewecan.org
Pursuit of Happiness
As Chil’a – New Year Festival comes to Skyrim, Dannee and Serana contemplates on what this holiday means for them. While Dannee tries to cope with her fair share of stress caused by recent events along with complicated relationship with her man, Serana tries to come to terms with herself and for what this day means to her, because for her this holiday has completely other meaning which seems like a millennia ago and turned her life upside down…
The story is in two parts, the first one is here – www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/Images/379185/?
And the second one - www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/images/379187/?
I am mad.
Clearly.
I have all day to travel back home, but here I am , catching the six o'clock ferry from East Cowes, sitting now on the deck, taking photographs as we cast off.
Because I am mad.
I have a couple of places to visit on the way home, so I catch the early ferry, missing breakfast at the hotel. I could have had breakfast and caught the ferry at nine, but that would have meant battling traffic in and out of Newport due to the Floating Bridge being out of action.
So here I am.
Taking shots.
It is the blue hour. Or is it the pink hour in the morning?
I don't know. But sunrise is half an hour away, the engines tone rises, calm water on the river turn to foam, and we move off.
Once the ferry leaves the river, I go back downstairs and buy a coffee and a Twix, then go to the back lounge to see the island blend into the murk of dawn's shadows.
The ferry is only 10% full, so plenty of room to spread out and pretend that there's no other people about. I could have gone back up to snap Southampton in the golden light as the sun had risen, but instead I just sit and wait for the call to return to your cars.
I program the sat nav, so once we were docked and tied up, I was one of the first off, and was soon heading north to the motorway and away from the Southampton rush hour.
Traffic was heavy, but I made good progress, allowing me to stop at Fleet services for breakfast in Costa, before pressing on to the M25 and the chaos that drive east would be.
Traffic much heavier than it was three weeks back, meaning I was half an hour later, which I didn't mind, as the church I planned to visit would be more likely to be unlocked at half nine rather than nine.
West Kent is picturesque, full of pretty villages full of former merchant's houses, now seamlessly turned into what used to be called the stockbroker belt.
Otford was a village, now a suburb of Sevenoaks, the ancient centre of the village is around the pond, and around the edge of the green is the pub and the church.
A parking space outside the papershop offered half an hour's free parking, so I abandoned the car there and limped over the main road to the church, showing well through the bare trees, just waking up as spring arrives.
A modern church centre sits to the north, and having tried the west and south doors, I try going through the church centre, and the doors swing open into the church, no one else was inside.
There was a grand monument, the west wall covered in hatchings and the east window in the Chancel had several Flemish painted panels of saints arranged into a cross.
I take many, many shots.
I am back at the car within the half hour, and a three mile drive away through the rolling countryside is the next target, Kemsing.
We had been here before, but the porch door was locked, but the parish website promised it would be open from nine. And it was.
John Vigar's description stated that access to the Chancel would not be possible, which confused me, but the large arts and crafts recreation of the rood screen, was locked, and the door through the vestry was also out of bounds.
So I took shots through the screen, not ideal, but better than nothing, and I think they came out well.
It was time to go home. So, back in the car I program my phone, and it leads me back to the M20, and from there I know the way.
Lots of trucks and lorries also heading south, but I cruise past them. Its a fine day to be driving, the sun is breaking through the low cloud and mist, making for a pleasant drive.
I have also judged the fuel well, so don't need to refill before stopping at the car hire office.
They give it the once over, I tell them the things which are not working on te brand new car, they make notes, and I am done.
Emma drives me back to St Maggies, dropping me off on Station Road. I walk along to Chez Jelltex, check the garden for new flowers and growth, then go onside.
The cats sleep on, and I am overcome with weariness. MY knee is aching, I am out of painkillers, but massage it, nd its a little better.
I have brunch and a brew, listen to some podcasts, have a shower, unpack the suitcase.
Phew.
It now stays light until gone six, meaning we could have gone for a walk before dinner. But not at the moment. So I cook hash for dinner, which was ten minutes away from being done by the time Jools got home.
So we eat and drink wine.
One day and the weekend will be here.
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A chocolate-box church in a well-maintained churchyard. The nave is twelfth century in date, remodelled in the fourteenth century when the present roof was constructed. The chancel is also early but was reconstructed in the sixteenth century. A north aisle was added in 1890. The character of the church derives almost entirely from the nineteenth-and twentieth-century furnishings with which it is blessed. The rood screen is of the correct proportion and design and in the main dates from 1894 with minimal amounts of old woodwork. The wonderful figures on top are of 1908 and were designed by Sir Ninian Comper - the angels balance on their wheels like unicyclists! Comper also designed the wall paintings in the chancel, the altar, reredos and canopy. In the north aisle is an interesting collection of furnishings. There is a painted tile picture of Kemsing by the Kent artist Donald Maxwell, one of only a handful to survive. The central window is of two bishops and is typical of Comper's work, but it does not carry his usual signature of a strawberry plant. The west window of the north aisle is by Douglas Strachan, 1935, and is an excellent example of his angular figures. By the font is a bronze Arts and Crafts panel of the Virgin and Child by Henry Wilson, the famous turn-of-the-century designer who lived in a neighbouring village and whose work may also be found in the churchyard.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Kemsing
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KEMSING.
THE next parish eastward from Otford is KEMSING, called in the Testa de Nevil, CAMESING, and in the Textus Rossensis, CIMICINGA. (fn. 1) The name of this place seems to have been given to it from some royal camp or fortress, situated here.
THIS PARISH of Kemsing, from its situation, is not much known or frequented, nor is it a pleasant one. It lies partly in the valley and partly on the chalk hills, at a small distance southward from the foot of which the village is situated, at the intersection of the roads from Otford to Ightham, and from the chalk hills to the high road by Seal Chart. Near the centre of it is a water, called St. Edith's well, who was a famous female saint, said to have been born in this parish, and to have wrought many miracles for such as applied to her for relief. (fn. 2) The parish is about two miles square; the soil of it, in the northern part, is mostly chalk, in the southern very fertile, it has about one hundred acres of wood; in the eastern part of it is the seat of Crowdleham, situated near the boundary of the parish of Ightham.
There was a market antiently kept here on a Monday, by grant from king Henry III. which has been long since discontinued, and a fair, which is still kept on Easter Monday. (fn. 3) There was an old knightly family, who took their surname from this place, being called Kempsing, whose coat of arms was, Argent, a sess and chevron, interlaced sable, which was quartered by the Harts of Lullingstone, in right of Peche, who married the heir general of it. (fn. 4)
IN THE SCUTAGE, levied as well on the prelates as the rest of the barons, in the 32d of king Henry II. being the seventh of that reign, towards the expences of the army in Wales. The honour of Kemesing, as it is there called, then being in the king's hands, answered for twenty-nine shillings by the hands of the sheriff of the county. (fn. 5) Soon after which it came into the possession of the earl of Albermarle, who held it of Walter Fitzhelt, as he again did of the king in capite.
In the reign of king John, Baldwin de Betun, who, by favour of king Richard I. had enjoyed the earldom of Albermarle, in Hawis his wife's right, who was daughter land sole heir of William le Gross, earl of Albermarle, was owner of this place, and in the 5th year of that reign granted the lordships of Kemesing, Braborne, and Sutton, in this county, to William Mareschal, earl of Pembroke, with Alice, his sole daughter and heir, in frank marriage. (fn. 6)
In the reign of king John he attached himself closely to the rebellious barons, when his lands were seised on, as escheats to the crown; and this manor, then valued at thirty-six pounds per annum, as appears by the Testa de Nevil, was granted to Fulke de Brent; on the confiscation of whose estates, and the earl's return to his obedience, he again came into possession of it, which happened on the king's death, his father having persuaded him to return to his loyalty once more, and he had many favours conferred on him by king Henry III. in the 7th year of whose reign he had, for his good services against the Welsh, scutage of all his tenants in this and other counties. In the 10th year of that reign, his first wife being dead, he married Alianore, the king's sister, by which he greatly incurred his displeasure; but a reconciliation quickly after taking place, he was again taken into favour, and in the 14th year of that reign had a confirmation of the manors of Kemsing, Braborne, and Sutton, in this county, upon condition, that in case Alianore, his wife, survived him, she should enjoy them during life. (fn. 7) He died possessed of Kemsing in the 15th year of that reign without issue, and lies buried in the Temple church, having his effigies cross legged on his tomb; on which the sheriff of this county had the king's precept to make livery to Alianore, his widow, of those manors. She, after seven years widowhood, remarried Simon de Montford, earl of Leicester, and steward of England, in St. Stephen's chapel, Westminster, the king giving her away with his own hand.
In the 45th year of that reign, the earl of Leicester, heading the discontented barons against the king, continued with them till the battle of Evesham, in the 49th year of it, in which the earl was killed; after whose death, the countess Alianore and her children were forced to forsake England, and she died some time afterwards in the nunnery of Montarges, in France.
In the mean time the four brothers of William earl of Pembroke, successively earls of Pembroke, being dead without issue, their inheritance became divided between the heirs of their five sisters and coheirs; and upon the partition of their interest in the manor of Kemsing, it seems to have become the sole property of Roger, eldest son of Maud the eldest sister, by her husband, Hugh Bigod, earl of Norfolk, (fn. 8) though the time of his coming into the possession of it. I do not find, as Alianore, second wife of William earl of Pembroke, was then living, who was entitled to it for her life.
Roger earl of Norfolk, and marshal of England, who bore for his arms, Per pale or and vert, a lion rampant gules, died of a bruise, which he received at a tour nament, about the 54th of Henry III.'s reign, leaving no issue by Isabel his wife, daughter of William king of Scots; upon which he was succeeded, as earl of Norfolk and marshal of the king's palace, as well as in the possession of this manor, by Roger his nephew, son of Hugh his brother, chief justice of England, (fn. 9) who, in the 7th of king Edward I. claimed, before the justices itinerant, large privileges for this manor; (fn. 10) and afterwards, in the 11th year of that reign, sold it, together with the advowson of this church, to Otho de Grandison, descended of a family, who were of the dukedom of Burgundy, in France, their residence there being called Grandison castle, a man of great account with that prince, who employed him much, and conferred many favours on him.
In the 18th year of that reign, he obtained free warren for all his demesne lands in Kemsing, (fn. 11) and having had summons to parliament among the barons of this realm, he departed this life without issue, leaving William de Grandison, his brother, his next heir; who died possessed of this manor, leaving by his wife, Sibilla, youngest daughter, and one of the coheirs of John de Tregoze, three sons; Peter de Grandison, his eldest son and heir, who, as well as his father, had summons to parliament; John bishop of Exeter; and Otho; and four daughters. (fn. 12)
On his death this manor became the property of Otho, the youngest son, who paid aid for it, in the 20th of king Edward III. as half a knight's fee, which William de Grandison before held in Kemsing of the earl of Leicester. He died possessed of this manor in the 33d year of that reign, (fn. 13) leaving by Beatrix his wife, daughter and coheir of Nicholas Malmains, one son and heir, Thomas, and a daughter, Elizabeth.
Thomas de Grandison, being of full age, had possession granted of this manor, among others; he was afterwards knighted, and died possessed of it in the 50th year of king Edward III. without issue, leaving Margaret his wife surviving, who likewise possessed it at her decease, in the 18th year of king Richard II. After which it came to Sir William de Bryene, or Bryan, who died possessed of it in the 19th year of the same reign, and lies buried in Seale church.
After his death, Sir William Fynes (whose name was originally spelt Fiennes, but about this time came to be written both Fynes and Fenys) became possessed of it, bearing for his arms, Azure, three lions rampant or. He was son of William Fiennes and Joane his wife, third sister and coheir of William de Say; and by Elizabeth his wife, daughter and heir of William Batisford, left issue two sons, Roger and James; from the former of which were descended the several lords Dacre of the south; and from the latter, the viscounts Say and Seale, both which titles are now extinct, (fn. 14) and the present lord Say and Sele.
James, the second son, above mentioned, possessed this manor, and in the 14th of king Henry, VI. was sheriff of this county, and soon afterwards made esquire of the body to that king. In the 24th year of whose reign, being then a knight, he was, by reason that Joane his grandmother was third sister and coheir of William de Say, by a special writ, on March 3d, next year, summoned to Parliament by the title of lord Say and Sele; (fn. 15) and two days afterwards, in consideration of his eminent services, he was, in open parliament, advanced to the dignity of a baron of this realm, by the above title, to him and his heirs male, and in the 27th year of that reign, he had a full confirmation and release of that title from John, lord Clinton, and of the arms of Say, which, on account of his descent from Idonea, the eldest sister of William de Say, might belong to him. In consideration of which he then granted to the lord Clinton, all advowsons of churches, knights fees, &c. which belonged to the latter, by reason of the lordship of Say. (fn. 16)
After which he obtained a grant of the office of constable of Dover-castle, and warden of the five ports, to him and his heirs male; was made lord chamberlain, and one of the king's council, and next year lord treasurer of England.
This rise to so high a pitch of honour, increased the hatred of the commons towards him, and served but to make his fall the more sudden and unhappy, for next year they accused him and others in the parliament held at St. Edmunds Bury, of treason, for having ing assented to the release of Anjou, and the delivery of Maine to the French; upon which the king, to appease them, sequestered him from his office of treasurer, and shortly after, on the insurrection of the Kentish men, under Jack Cade, observing their clamour against him, to mitigate it, he committed him prisoner to the tower; shortly after which, this riotous mob entering London, and finding their numbers increase, fetched him thence to Guildhall, and there arraigned him before the lord-mayor, and other the king's justices, notwithstanding his request to be tried by his peers; after which hurrying him to the standard in Cheapside, they cut off his head there, and carried it about on a pole, causing his naked body to be drawn at a horse's tail into Southwark, and there hanged and quartered, though his body was afterwards buried in the church of the Grey Friars, London. (fn. 17)
He left issue, by Emeline Cromer his wife, one son and heir, Sir William Fienes, who was that year, by special writ, summoned to parliament, being seized of an estate tail of the office of constable of Dover-castle, and warden of the five ports, by virtue of the patent above-mentioned, to James, his father, his interest in which he soon afterwards sold to Humphry, duke of Buckingham, and his heirs male.
The unhappy contention subsisting at that time between the houses of York and Lancaster for the throne, in which he risqued not only his person, but his whole fortune, brought him into great distresses, and necessitated him to mortgage, and fell the greatest part of his lands. (fn. 18) He married Margaret the daughter and heir of William Wickham, great-grandson of Agnes, sister to William of Wickham, founder of New College, Oxford. The lands of the lord Say being thus alienated the barony lay dormant, and the heirs male of the family were only called Fienes. Henry, his son and heir, though he used the title of lord Say, had never summons to parliament, and it remained unclaimed till the year 1733, when it was claimed by John Twisleton, esq. of Broughton, in Oxfordshire, descended by the female line from the above Sir William Fienes, lord Say and Sele, which claim, though it then failed, was renewed by his son Thomas, who was summoned to parliament as lord Say and Sele, in 1781, and was father to the present Gregory, lord Say and Sele. In the second year of king Edward IV. Sir William Fienes, lord Say and Sele, mentioned above, sold this manor of Kemsing to Sir Geoffry Bulleyn, (fn. 19) a wealthy mercer of London, who had been lord mayor in the 37th year of king Henry VI. whose grandson Thomas, was sheriff of this county in the 3d and 9th years of Henry VIII. and became a man of great note in that reign; for the king in his 3d year made him one of the knights of his body, and afterwards embassador several times to the emperor, and the kings of France and Spain, and in the 17th year of his reign, on account of the great affection which he bore to the lady Anne Bulleyn, his daughter, advanced him to the title of viscount Rochford; and in his 21st year, created him, being then knight of the garter, earl of Wiltshire and Ormond, and made him lord privy seal. (fn. 20) He died in the 30th year of king Henry VIII. possessed of this manor, have ing had by Elizabeth his wife, daughter of Thomas Howard, duke of Norfolk, one son, George, executed in his life-time, and two daughters; Anne, wife to king Henry VIII. and Mary, wife of William Carey, esq. of the king's body, and ancestor of the lords Hunsdon, and of the earls of Dover and Monmouth.
George Bulleyn, the son above-mentioned, bearing the title of viscount Rochford in his father's life-time, was, in the 26th year of that reign, made constable of Dover-castle, and warden of the five ports, and was much favored by that king, till the time of his change of affection from queen Anne Bulleyn; when the king, to make the path more easy towards the enjoyment of his new passion, in a sudden and unexpected gust of anger, in his 28th year, committed him to the tower, a few days after which, he was arraigned and beheaded, having had no issue, and was buried in St. Peter's chapel in the tower. (fn. 21)
On the death of the earl of Wiltshire without male issue, the king seized on this manor, in right of his late wife, the unfortunate Anne Bulleyn, the earl's elder daughter; and it remained in his hands till the 32d year of his reign, when by his indenture that year, reciting, that as the most noble lady, Anne of Cleves, daugh ter of John, late duke of Cleve, &c. came into his realm of England, on a certain treaty of marriage between himself and the said lady Anne; which marriage, although celebrated in the face of the church, yet was never consummated, for the conditions of it were never performed in due time, and there being other great and important causes, on account of which the convocation of the realm, with assent of the parties, and of the parliament, had declared the marriage to be invalid, there being no prospect of any children from it, notwithstanding which, the said lady was contented to conform to the laws of the realm, and to free herself and her conscience of the said marriage, and to remain at liberty within the realm; therefore the king, considering her high birth and nobility, of his especial grace and favour, granted her, for the maintenance of her noble estate, among other premises, his manors of Hever, Seale, and Kemsing, and his park of Hever, with all their rights, members, and appurtenances, late belonging to Thomas, earl of Wiltshire, deceased, and then in the king's hands; and all messuages, lands and hereditaments whatsoever, in Hever, Seale, and Kemsing, lately purchased by the king of Sir James Bulleyn, and William Bulleyn, clerk, to hold to her during life, so long as she should stay within the realm of England, and not depart out of it, without the licence of the king and his successors, and the king granted the premises free and discharged of all outgoings, rents, pensions, &c. except among others of forty shillings, issuing yearly out of the lands of John Tybolde, called Seale Park. (fn. 22)
¶The lady Ann of Cleves died possessed of these manors and estates in the 4th and 5th year of king Philip and queen Mary, when they reverted again to the crown; where the manors of Seale and Kemsing, and the other premises in those parishes, lay till queen Elizabeth, in her first year, granted them to her kinsman, Sir Henry Carey, whom she had advanced that year to the title of lord Hunsdon, baron of Hunsdon, in Hertfordshire, to hold in capite by knights service. (fn. 23) He was descended of an antient family, seated at Cockington, in Devonshire; one of whom was Sir Robert Carey, who in the beginning of king Henry V's reign, acquired great renown by his encountering and overcoming an Arragonian knight, who had performed many notable feats of arms in different countries, and then came to make trial of his prowess here in England, in a long and doubtful combat in Smithfield; for which he was by the king knighted, and restored to part of his father's inheritance, which had been forfeited. From which time he bore, as by the law of arms he might, the coat armour of the vanquished knight, viz. Argent, on a bend sable, three roses of the field barbed and seeded proper; the present bearing of this family: their antient bearing before this being, Gules, a chevron argent between three swans proper; one of which they still retain for their crest. His son was William Carey, who being in the battle of Tewksbury, in the 10th year of king Edward IV. on the part of the Lancastrians, upon the loss of that day, was taken prisoner, and notwithstanding he was promised a pardon, lost his head.
Kemsing is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Rochester, and deanry of Malling.
The church stands on the north side of the village, and is dedicated to St. Edith, whose image, set up in this church-yard, was greatly frequented for the singular benefits she daily dispensed in preserving corn and grain from blasting, mill-dew, and other harm incident to it. (fn. 32) It is a small church, consisting of only one isle and a chancel, having a pointed steeple at the west end, in which are two bells. There are but few monuments or inscriptions in it, in the chancel there is a grave-stone, with the figure of a man, and an inscription in brass in black letter, for Thomas de Hop, and at the east end a mural monument for Michael Jermin, D. D. obt. August 14, 1659, æt. 70. (fn. 33)
In the year 1397, anno 21 king Richard II. the king granted licence to Guy Mone, to give the advowson of the church of Kemsing to the prior and convent of Bermondsey for ever. (fn. 34) In which year they obtained the pope's bull, (fn. 35) to appropriate it with the chapel of Seale annexed to it, to the use and support of their convent; reserving, nevertheless, out of the fruits, rents, and profits of the church and chapel, for a perpetual vicar to be instituted in it by the ordinary, a fit portion, by which he might be maintained, the episcopal dues be paid, and other burthens incumbent on him might be conveniently borne. (fn. 36)
In consequence of which, John (de Bottlesham) bishop of Rochester, by his instrument, dated Oct. 12, anno 1402, (fn. 37) with the consent of the abbot and convent of Bermondesey, endowed the vicarage of this church as follows:
First, he decreed, that there should be a perpetual vicarage, to be held and possessed as a perpetual ecclesiastical benefice in the church of Kemsing, which he endowed out of the fruits, rents, and profits of the said church and the chapel of Seale; the vicar of which, who should be intitled to it, by the abbot and convent, proprietaries of this church, should be from time to time presented to the bishop and his successors, and inducted by the archdeacon; and he ordained, that the abbot and convent, and their successors, proprietaries of it, in right of the same, should take, have, and freely enjoy, all and every kind of great tythes, viz. of corn, of whatsoever sort it be, and of hay, growing within the bounds and limits, or titheable places of the church and chapel, the tithe of the grange or field of Budirevere within this parish only excepted; and he ordained, that the repair of the chancel of the church, in the walls, glass windows, and roof, and also the paying of all papal and royal tenths and procurations, and the procurations of legates of the apostolic see, of archbishops, bishops, and archdeacons, (the bishop and his church of Rochester being always saved harmless, on account of this appropriation) should belong to the abbot and convent, and their successors, to be paid and performed at their costs and expences; and he ordained, that the abbot and convent, and their successors, should cause forty pence in money, or meat and drink of as much value, to be yearly distributed to, and bestowed on, the poor, and more indigent parishioners of the church of Kemsing, towards their relief and support, out of the profits of the church; and he ordained, that the tithes of the food of all animals, and of pidgeons, and other titheable matters accruing within the rectory, and the straw of the church and chapel, so long as the rectory should remain in the hands of the abbot and convent, and be in no wife let to ferm, should belong to them, as proprietaries of the parish church; but if the same should be let to ferm, then he ordained, that the tithes of the food of animals, &c. as above-mentioned, should belong to the vicar of the vicarage of the same, for the time being, for ever, with this exception however, that if the abbot and convent should let to ferm any of their stock, with the rectory, no tithe should be taken of that stock; and he ordained, that the abbot and convent should cause to be built at their costs and expences, for that time only, a competent dwelling on a part of the glebe and soil of the rectory allotted for that purpose, in which he ordained, that the vicar for the time being should reside; and he ordained, that the portion of the vicar should be as follows: that he should take and have all oblations and obventions of the altar, as well in the parish church of Kemsing, as in the chapel of Seale, and the small tythes, of what kind or nature soever they be, accruing within the parish of the said church and chapel, and the titheable places of the same, and also all great and small tithes whatsoever, in and of the grange or field called Budyrevere, within the bounds and limits of the parish of the church of Kemsing; and he ordained, that the vicar for the time being should have the cure of all and singular the parishioners of the said church and chapel, and that he should find, at his own costs and expences, a proper chaplain to celebrate divine offices in the said chapel, and duly administer the sacraments and ecclesiastical sacramentals in the same, and also the bread, wine, and lights, necessary and accustomed at the celebrating divine offices in the said church and chapel; and, lastly, he pronounced and declared, that the above was a sufficient and competent portion for the vicar, and such as from it he would be able to support himself, to keep hospitality, and conveniently support the burthens incumbent on him. Which endowment was confirmed by the abbot and convent the day after, under their common seal. (fn. 38)
The above appropriation and endowment was confirmed by John Langdon, bishop of Rochester, in 1422, who further ordained, with the consent of the abbot and convent, that no future vicar might have any cause to complain, that he should receive yearly, from the abbot and convent, fourteen shillings of English money, beyond the portion before assigned to him as before-mentioned; and it was then agreed between the bishop and the abbot and convent, that the bishop should receive in future, out of the fruits and profits of the said church and chapel, 6s. 8d. yearly of English money, as an indemnity to the church of Rochester for any injury it might have received, by reason of the appropriation of this church and chapel.
All which was confirmed by the abbot and convent, under their common seal, the day and year abovementioned. (fn. 39)
On the dissolution of the monastery of St. Saviour's, Bermondesey, which happened in the 29th year of king Henry VIII. this church, with the chapel of Seale annexed was surrendered, among the rest of the possessions of that house, into the king's hands, and became part of the possessions of the crown, after which queen Elizabeth granted this rectory to Sir Peter Manwood; in king Charles I's reign, it was in the possession of James Bunce, esq. whose descendant, James Bunce, esq. of Crowdleham, in this parish, is the present owner of it.
But the advowson of the vicarage seems to have been granted, with the manor of Kemsing, to Henry Carey, lord Hunsdon, since which it has continued unalienated, for many generations, the property of the earls and dukes of Dorset, and is now in the possession of his grace John Frederick duke of Dorset.
In the 15th year of king Edward I. this church was valued at fifteen marcs. (fn. 40)
¶By virtue of the commission of enquiry into the value of church livings, in 1650, issuing out of chancery, it was returned, that here was a parsonage and vicarage; the parsonage tithes being about forty pounds per annum, and the glebe land thereunto belonging, worth ten pounds, master Bunce being patron, but it was then sequestered, and that the vicarage, tythes, and house, were worth one hundred pounds per annum; that there was issuing out of the parsonage to the vicar, by composition from the abbot, two pounds per annum, and by the will of master Bunce six pounds per annum, in all eighteen pounds, master Barton then incumbent. (fn. 41)
This vicarage, with Seale annexed, is valued in the king's books at 19l. 13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 1l. 9s. 4d.
My recent faves. I'm actually a bad fave'r. These are probably all my faves from about July 1 to date.
1. Untitled, 2. Untitled, 3. 2007 beach trip, 4. Who needs an umbrella....I just wanna play., 5. flickr.com/photos/30526983@N00/677718455/, 6. Untitled, 7. At the coffee shop, 8. Freedom, 9. Lil' dreamer., 10. ahem..., 11. Untitled, 12. Untitled, 13. Princess and the Pauper!, 14. Untitled, 15. Sunset, 16. gideon retouched, 17. Miss *S*, 18. Mmm carrots, 19. Miss G & Miss J, 20. I caught cha!, 21. "Did you just take a picture of me?", 22. IMG_0780_02, 23. no i was NOT rolling in the mud, 24. Little Miss Independence, 25. Untitled
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.
I am mad.
Clearly.
I have all day to travel back home, but here I am , catching the six o'clock ferry from East Cowes, sitting now on the deck, taking photographs as we cast off.
Because I am mad.
I have a couple of places to visit on the way home, so I catch the early ferry, missing breakfast at the hotel. I could have had breakfast and caught the ferry at nine, but that would have meant battling traffic in and out of Newport due to the Floating Bridge being out of action.
So here I am.
Taking shots.
It is the blue hour. Or is it the pink hour in the morning?
I don't know. But sunrise is half an hour away, the engines tone rises, calm water on the river turn to foam, and we move off.
Once the ferry leaves the river, I go back downstairs and buy a coffee and a Twix, then go to the back lounge to see the island blend into the murk of dawn's shadows.
The ferry is only 10% full, so plenty of room to spread out and pretend that there's no other people about. I could have gone back up to snap Southampton in the golden light as the sun had risen, but instead I just sit and wait for the call to return to your cars.
I program the sat nav, so once we were docked and tied up, I was one of the first off, and was soon heading north to the motorway and away from the Southampton rush hour.
Traffic was heavy, but I made good progress, allowing me to stop at Fleet services for breakfast in Costa, before pressing on to the M25 and the chaos that drive east would be.
Traffic much heavier than it was three weeks back, meaning I was half an hour later, which I didn't mind, as the church I planned to visit would be more likely to be unlocked at half nine rather than nine.
West Kent is picturesque, full of pretty villages full of former merchant's houses, now seamlessly turned into what used to be called the stockbroker belt.
Otford was a village, now a suburb of Sevenoaks, the ancient centre of the village is around the pond, and around the edge of the green is the pub and the church.
A parking space outside the papershop offered half an hour's free parking, so I abandoned the car there and limped over the main road to the church, showing well through the bare trees, just waking up as spring arrives.
A modern church centre sits to the north, and having tried the west and south doors, I try going through the church centre, and the doors swing open into the church, no one else was inside.
There was a grand monument, the west wall covered in hatchings and the east window in the Chancel had several Flemish painted panels of saints arranged into a cross.
I take many, many shots.
I am back at the car within the half hour, and a three mile drive away through the rolling countryside is the next target, Kemsing.
We had been here before, but the porch door was locked, but the parish website promised it would be open from nine. And it was.
John Vigar's description stated that access to the Chancel would not be possible, which confused me, but the large arts and crafts recreation of the rood screen, was locked, and the door through the vestry was also out of bounds.
So I took shots through the screen, not ideal, but better than nothing, and I think they came out well.
It was time to go home. So, back in the car I program my phone, and it leads me back to the M20, and from there I know the way.
Lots of trucks and lorries also heading south, but I cruise past them. Its a fine day to be driving, the sun is breaking through the low cloud and mist, making for a pleasant drive.
I have also judged the fuel well, so don't need to refill before stopping at the car hire office.
They give it the once over, I tell them the things which are not working on te brand new car, they make notes, and I am done.
Emma drives me back to St Maggies, dropping me off on Station Road. I walk along to Chez Jelltex, check the garden for new flowers and growth, then go onside.
The cats sleep on, and I am overcome with weariness. MY knee is aching, I am out of painkillers, but massage it, nd its a little better.
I have brunch and a brew, listen to some podcasts, have a shower, unpack the suitcase.
Phew.
It now stays light until gone six, meaning we could have gone for a walk before dinner. But not at the moment. So I cook hash for dinner, which was ten minutes away from being done by the time Jools got home.
So we eat and drink wine.
One day and the weekend will be here.
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This is a very wide church and relatively short, the walls being entirely rendered and a sombre grey in colour. From the roof hang a dozen brass chandeliers which almost create an impression of a warm country kitchen. At the west end above the tower door hang many hatchments, from a distance almost looking like a chessboard in their regularity The pews are unusual too, for although they are of normal proportions they each have a little closing door. Through the wide chancel arch the east window shows some small seventeenth-century glass panels, rather unhappily set together, while below it is an well-carved tomb constructed as an Easter Sepulchre. What a pity we do not know whose tomb it is, especially as it is of relatively late date.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Otford
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OTFORD.
NEXT to Shoreham southward lies OTFORD, called in Saxon, OTTANFORD, in the book of Domesday, OTEFORT, and in the Textus Roffensis, OTTEFORD; for it is observable, that the syllable an, when it is the second in the Saxon name of a place, is generally left out in our modern pronunciation. (fn. 1)
OTFORD PARISH is about nine miles in circumference, and contains about two thousand four hundred acres of land, of which about seventy are woodland. It lies for the greatest part of it in a low damp situation, which makes it far from being pleasant, and gives it a lonely and gloomy appearance, and in all probability it would have been but little known had it not been for the residence of the archbishops at it for such a length of time. In the valley much of it is meadow land, and though the rivulets and springs throughout it render it very moist and marshy, yet it is here rather fertile. Towards Sevenoke the soil becomes sandy, and on the eastern and western hills it is entirely chalk mixed with flint stones, and is in general very barren. The river Darent runs through it northward, and it is otherwise watered by two other streams which join the river here. Hence the chalk hills rise on each side towards the east and west. The high road from Dartford to Sevenoke goes through the village of Otford, which stands at the foot of the chalk hills in the valley, not far from the eastern banks of the Darent, across which another road branches off from the village towards Chevening. At the entrance of the village from Eynsford, stood till lately, an antient seat, seemingly of the time of queen Elizabeth, which carried with it the appearance of its former opulence.
It seems formerly to have been known by the name of Colletwell, and to have been for many years the residence of the Petty's; several of whom lie buried in this church, after which it for some time remained uninhabited and dropping into ruin. From the heirs of the above family it passed at length by sale to George Lake, esq. whose sister Mary, about 1790; sold it to Mr. James Martyr, who pulled the whole of it down, and built a good genteel house on the scite of it, in which he now resides. On the opposite or southern side are the ruins of the archiepiscopal palace, and near them the church. Here was a seat inhabited for many years by a branch of the family of Petley, and another by a branch of the Polhill family. David Polhill, esq. the last of that name, began to rebuild this house, intending to reside in it, but he again pulled it down before it was quite finished. The scite of it, with a considerable estate in this parish, is now in the possession of his son Charles Polhill, esq. of Chepsted.
The liberty of the duchy of Lancaster claims over a part of this parish. A fair is held here on the 24th of August, for pedlary ware, &c.
Antient history makes mention of two famous battles fought at Otford, one of which happened among the Saxons themselves, contending for glory and supreme sovereignty, the other between the Danes and Saxons, for their lands, lives, and liberties.
The first of these was fought in the year 773, when Offa, king of Mercia, having already joined to his dominion most part of Wessex and Northumberland; and perceiving the weak estate of the kingdom of Kent, thought it a fair opportunity to subdue it, and add it to his own domains. In consequence of which he invaded it, and fought a famous battle with Aldric, king of Kent, at this place; and though Offa gained the victory, yet it was not without great slaughter on both sides. (fn. 2)
The other battle was fought in 1016, when king Edmund, surnamed Ironside, passing the river Thames with his army, marched after Canute, the Danish king, through Surry, into Kent, and encountering the Danes at this place, made a great slaughter of them; after which he pursued them as far as Aylesford, in their rout to the Isle of Shepey, and had he not desisted from the pursuit there, through the treacherous advice which was given him, he would, in all probability, in the compass of that day, have made the victory compleat over their whole army.
The fields here are full of the remains of those slain in these battles; bones are continually discovered in them, particularly when the new turnpike road which leads from Eynsford, through Otford, to Sevenoke, was widened in 1767, many skeletons were found in the chalk banks on each side of it.
Mr. Polhill has a field in this parish, called Dane Field, which most probably was the spot on which the last-mentioned battle with the Danes was fought.
IN THE YEAR 791, Offa, king of Mercia, whose gifts to the British churches and monasteries in general were great and munificent, gave Otteford to the church of Canterbury; (fn. 3) soon after which one Werhard, a powerful priest, and kinsman to archbishop Wlfred, found means to gain the possession of it; but, at the command of the archbishop in 830, he by his last will, restored this place, then estimated at ten hides, again to the church of Canterbury; part of the possessions of which it remained at the coming of Lanfranc to that see, in the 4th year of the Conqueror's reign, anno 1070; who, when he divided the manors and possessions belonging to his church, (fn. 4) reserved Otford to the use of himself and his successors, and it remained in the archbishop's possession at the taking the survey of Domesday, in which record it is thus entered, under the title of Terra Archiepi Cantuariensis, i. e. the land of the archbishop of Canterbury.
The archbishop himself holds Otefort in demesne. It was taxed at 8 sulings. The arable land is 42 carucates; in demesne there are 6 carucates. There are 100 and one villein, with 18 borderers, having 45 carucates; there are 8 servants, and 6 mills of 72 shillings, and 50 acres of meadow. There is wood for the pannage of 150 hogs.
Of this manor three Thaines (fn. 5) hold 1 suling and an half, and there they have in demesne 3 carucates, and 16 villeins, with 11 borderers, having 4 carucates. There are 5 servants, and 2 mills of 24 shillings, and 28 acres of meadow, wood for the pannage of 30 hogs. The whole value of it, in the time of king Edward the Confessor, and afterwards, was . . . . Now the demesne of the archbishop is rated at 60 pounds, of the Thaines 12 pounds; what Richard de Tonbridge holds in his lowy is rated at 10 pounds.
From this period of time Otford continued part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, till archbishop Cranmer, in the 29th year of king Henry VIII. conveyed the manor, lordship, and seignory of Otford, and the manor of Otford Stuyens, alias Sergeants Otford, with the chapel of Otford annexed to the parsonage of Shoreham, and all other his estates in Otford, among other premises, in exchange to that king.
This manor, lordship, and seignory of Otford coming thus into the king's possessions, appears thenceforth to have been stiled the HONOR OF OTFORD, having a high steward appointed to preside over it, and it remained with the view of frank-pledge, and the courts and law days of it, in the hands of the crown at the death of king Charles I. in 1648. After which the powers then in being seized on the royal estates; and passed an ordinance to vest them in trustees, in order to their being surveyed, and sold to supply the necessities of the state.
Accordingly, in 1650, the honour of Otford was surveyed, when it was returned, that there belonged to it several court leets, within the hundreds of Codsheath, Sommerdenne, Sherborne Borough, and Kingsborough; all adjacent hundreds to this honour.
That there belonged to it a three weeks court held at Otford, wherein actions not above forty shillings were tried and determined. (fn. 6)
After the above survey, the honour of Otford was sold by the state to Edward Sexby, and Samuel Clerke, with whom it remained till the restoration of king Charles II. when the possession of it again returned to the crown, where it continues at this time.
The high stewardship of the honour of Otford has been from time to time granted by the crown to divers of the nobility and gentry of this county. John-Frederick, duke of Dorset, is the present high steward of it.
The archbishops of Canterbury had, from the earliest accounts, a HOUSE Or PALACE here, in which they resided from time to time, as appears by their frequent mandates, dated from their manor house of Otford, being a most commodious and favorite retirement for them; adjoining to which they had two large parks, extensive woods, and other lands for their pleasure and convenience, in their own possession.
Archbishop Thomas Becket seems to have been greatly pleased with the retired situation of this palace, and several tales are told of the miracles he wrought whilst at it; among others, that the archbishop finding the house wanted a fit spring to water it, stuck his staff into the dry ground, and that water immediately burst forth, where the well called from thence St. Thomas's Well, now is, which afterwards plentifully supplied the palace.
Here that great prelate archbishop Robert Winchelsea entertained king Edward I. in his 29th year, anno 1300, (fn. 7) and he resided here at the time of his death in the 6th year of king Edward II. anno 1313, (fn. 8) at which time it appears that there was a park here, which extended into Sevenoke parish, for four years afterwards the succeeding archbishop, Walter Reynolds, had the king's licence to purchase lands in that parish towards the enlarging of it, (fn. 9) but this afterwards not being thought by one of his successors, archbishop Simon Islip, sufficient for his accommodation, he with the king's licence purchased lands and meadows here, in the 33d and 34th years of king Edward III's reign, in order to be inclosed with other lands by the archbishop, and for another park to be made here, since known by the name of the Lesser or Little Park. (fn. 10)
Archbishop Deane, who came to the see in the 16th year of king Henry VII. rebuilt great part of this house; notwithstanding which, his immediate successor, (fn. 11) archbishop Warham, thinking the house too mean for him to reside in, as he intended to do, on account of his quarrel with the citizens of Canterbury, rebuilt the whole of it, excepting the hall and the chapel, at the expence of 33,000l. a large sum at that time, and here he entertained that splendid prince king Henry VIII. who rested with the archbishop at it several times both in the 1st and 7th years of his reign. (fn. 12) His next successor, archbishop Cranmer, observing that this stately palace excited the envy of the courtiers, passed it away, with his other estates in this parish, in exchange, in the 29th year of that reign, to the king, as has been already mentioned.
After this palace, with its parks and appurtenances, had thus come into the king's possessions, he kept the mansion with the two parks, called the Greater and Lesser, or Little Park, and the woods and lands belonging to this estate in his own hands, and soon afterwards purchased of a descendant of Sir Edward Bo rough, the manor of Danehull, in this parish, formerly possessed by the Cobhams of Sterborough, which he laid into his park here, all which continued pretty entire in the crown till king Edward VI. in his last year, and queen Elizabeth, afterwards made several grants of different parts of it. But the former in that year granted the little park of Otford, then lately disparked, to Sir Henry Sidney, as will be further mentioned below, and the latter in her 34th year granted to his son, Sir Robert Sidney, the scite of the honour of Otford, the archbishop's house commonly called the Castle, and the greater park, containing seven hundred acres, lying in Otford, Seal, and Kemsing; in the 15th year of king James I. bearing then the title of lord Sidney, he was created lord viscount Lisle, and that same year, with Barbara his wife, Sir Robert Sidney his son, and others his trustees, conveyed the whole of the above mentioned premises to Sir Thomas Smith, second son of Customer Smith, in whose descendants they continued down to Sir Sidney Stafford Smythe, chief baron of the exchequer, who died in 1778, as did his widow lady Sarah Smythe, in 1790, and by her will devised this estate, consisting of the ruins of the palace, and three farms, called the Place, Great Lodge, and Greatness farms, containing about eight hundred and sixty acres of land, in trust, to be sold for the benefit of her nephews and nieces, which they were accordingly, next year, to Robert Parker, esq. of Maidstone, in which situation they still continue.
Most probably the palace was demolished, and the lands of the Greater Park disparked soon after the grant of them to Sir Thomas Smith. It stood behind the present ruins more to the south. There is nothing left of the mansion itself, but vast heaps of rubbish and foundations, which cover near an acre of ground. The present ruins were part of the outer court, the two remaining towers of which were not many years ago two stories higher, but the roof of the largest which was covered with lead falling in, the uppermost story of each was taken down.
THE MANOR OF SERJEANTS OTFORD, with the LITTLE PARK, part of those possessions likewise granted by the archbishop to king Henry VIII. as mentioned before, remained in the crown till king Edward VI. in the 7th year of his reign, granted to Sir Henry Sidney, his park, called the Little Park of Otford, lately disparked, and his lands, meadows, &c. inclosed within it, parcel of the honour of Otford, for the term of thirty years, which lease was renewed anno 10 queen Elizabeth. After his death, his eldest surviving son, Sir Robert Sidney, by letters patent, in the 44th year of that reign, had a grant in see of the manor of Otford Stuyens, alias Sergeants Otford, the little park, and other premises here, late belonging to the see of Canterbury, at the yearly rent of thirty pounds. (fn. 13) This manor came afterwards to be possessed in undivided thirds, by Mompesson, Hyde, and Wall. The two former sold their shares to Sir Thomas Farnaby, bart. of Kippington, in Sevenoke, whose son, Sir Charles Farnaby Radcliffe, bart. is the present possessor of them. The other third part of this manor descended from the Rev. Dr. William Wall, vicar of Shoreham, whose only daughter and heir, Catherine, married Mr. Waring, and had by him eight sons and eight daughters, to his grandson, Mr. Sampson Waring, of Rochester, who, some few years ago, sold it to Sir Jeffry Amherst, K.B. since created lord Amherst, baron of Holmsdale, and he is the present owner of it. By the name of Park-fields, which several lands, now belonging to Charles Polhill, esq. between the village and the river Darent, have immemorially been called by, it should seem that he is owner of some part of the lands formerly inclosed within these parks of Otford.
But the little or Lesser Park, lying on the north side of this parish, and parted on the west side by the river from that of Shoreham, now claims the reputation of a manor, and is called OTFORD NEW PARK. It has been for some years possessed by the family of Bostock, and is now the property of the Rev. Stillman Bostock, of East Grinsted, in Sussex.
RYE-HOUSE is an estate here, which was formerly accounted a manor, and seems in the reign of king Edward III. to have been owned by John At-Welle and Robert William; for they had, in the 46th year of it, the king's licence to assign four marcs yearly rent, issuing out of certain tenements, called Le Rye, in Otford, held of the archbishop, to Adam Fleming, chaplain, and his successors, celebrating divine offices in the chapel of Apuldrefelde, for the good state of the king whilst he lived, and for his foul afterwards. (fn. 14)
This estate afterwards came into the name of Palmer, ancestors to those of Bekesborne, who bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron sable, between three palmers scrips or purses of the second, stringed and tasselled or
One of this family, John Palmer, died possessed of the manor of Le Rye, in Otford, in the second year of king Richard III. his descendant, of the same name, conveyed it by sale to king Henry VIII. in the 30th year of his reign; (fn. 15) who, in his 33d year, demised it to John Walker, yeoman, for a term of years; after which the family of Bosville had the see of this estate, in which name it continued down to Henry Bosville, esq. of Bradborne, in Sevenoke, who dying without issue, in 1761, devised this estate, among others, to his kinsman, Sir Richard Betenson, bart who dying, without issue, it came by the limitation of the same will to Thomas Lane, esq. who is the present possessor of it. (fn. 16)
Sir George Harper, anno 33 king Henry VIII. conveyed to that king a messuage, called BROUGHTON'S, and other premises in Otford, in exchange for lands in Essex; (fn. 17) all which were granted in the 1st and 2d of king Philip and queen Mary, (fn. 18) to Humphrey Colwych, to hold in capite by knights service.
The Polhills afterwards became owners of this estate; David Polhill levied a fine of it in the 16th year of queen Elizabeth, in whose descendants this estate has continued down to Charles Polhill, esq. the present owner of it.
Charities.
In the rolls of the 13th of king Henry III. there is mention made of an hospital, or house of leprous persons here. (fn. 19)
SIR THOMAS SMITH, gave by will, in 1625, to six poor persons who do not receive alms, and frequent divine service, bread to be delivered to them weekly, to be paid out of land, vested in the Skinners company, now of the annual produce of 5l. 10s.
ONE OF THE FAMILY OF POLHILL gave by will, 20s. yearly, to be distributed among the poor, at the discretion of the trust, parish officers, to be paid out of land vested in Mr. Polhill, and now of that annual produce.
JOHN CHARMAN by will, gave 20s. yearly, for the like purpose, to be paid out of land, vested in Mr. Amhurst, as trustee of the children of Mr. Richard Round, deceased, and of that annual produce.
OTFROD is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Rochester, and being a chapel to Shoreham, is a peculiar of the archbishop of Canterbury, and consequently in that deanry.
The church, which is situated at the east end of the village, near the palace, is dedicated to St. Bartholomew, a saint of great credit here for the gift of curing barrenness in women, which caused great resort of people to his image and shrine in this church; and a fair was held at Otford on his anniversary. It consists of two isles and one chancel, having a pointed steeple at the west end, in which are two bells.
Among other monuments and memorials in this church, in the south isle, on the south side, is a mural monument, of elegant sculpture, with a busto of statuary marble, and inscription, for David Polhill, esq. of Cheapstead, son of Thomas Polhill, esq. of Otford, by Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Ireton, by Bridget, daughter of Oliver Cromwell; he was one of the Kentish petitioners in king William III.'s reign, obt. M.P. for Rochester, and keeper of the records in the Tower, in 1754, æt. 80; he married three wives, first Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Trevor, esq. of Glynd, in Sussex; secondly Gertrude, sister of Thomas Holles, duke of Newcastle, who both died, s. p. thirdly, Elizabeth, daughter of John Borret, esq. of Shoreham, by whom he had four sons and one daughter; he left surviving Charles and Elizabeth; arms at top, Polhill with impalements; several memorials for the Rounds and Mainards. In the south chancel, a memorial for William Sidney and Alice his wife, descended from William Sydney lord of Kingsham, by Chichester, and of Isabella St. John, daughter of lord St. John, obt 1625; arms, a pheon; memorials for the Everests and Pettys. In the great chancel, on the north side, a magnificent monument, with the statue of a gentleman, as large as life, standing and leaning on an urn, over him is the head of a lady, in profile, with figures of statuary marble on each side, most beautifully executed; and a memorial for Charles Polhill, esq. youngest son of Thomas Polhill, esq. by Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Ireton, ob. 1755; he married Martha, daughter of Thomas Streatfield, esq. of Sevenoke, by whom he had no issue. Memorials for Bostock and Brasiers; a memorial on the south side of the altar for Robert Polhill, gent. of Otford, son of John and Jane, of Otford, obt. 1699, æt. 57; arms, Polhill. On the north side of the altar is an antient altar tomb, with an arch in the wall, ornamented with Gothic carved work, but the inscription is lost. In the east window is a shield of arms, Lennard, in stained glass, being or on a sess gules, three fleurs de lis of the field, with quarterings, in the middle a mullet for difference. At the end of the chancel a mural monument for George Petty and Anne his wife, daughter of John Polhill, esq. of Otford, he died 1719, and for Robert their eldest son, obt. 1727.
The chapel of Otford, annexed to the parsonage of Shoreham, was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, and continued so till the same was exchanged by archbishop Cranmer with Henry VIII. in the 29th year of his reign, as has been mentioned before.
King Edward VI. in his 1st year, granted the parsonage and advowson of Shoreham, with this chapel of Otford, to Sir Anthony Denny, to hold in capite by knights service, who presently exchanged the same with the dean and chapter of St. Peter's, Westminster, for the advowson and patronage of Cheshunt, in Hertfordshire. (fn. 20)
By virtue of the commission of enquiry into the value of church livings, in 1650, issuing out of chancery, it was returned, that Otford was a parsonage, rented at one hundred pounds per annum, the house and glebe of which was worth fourteen pounds per annum beyond that sum. (fn. 21)
It is an appropriation, now belonging to the dean and chapter of Westminster, the present lessee being the Right Hon. the lord Willoughby de Brooke.
The curate of this church, in 1719, had a stipend of twenty pounds per annum. In 1724, the dean and chapter of Westminster augmented this curacy with two hundred pounds. (fn. 22)