Parishes: Shipton Bellinger

SHIPTON BELLINGER

Sceptone (xi cent.); Shipeton (xii cent.); Septon, Schypton (xiii cent.); Shupton Berenger (xiv cent.); Shipton Bellyngar (xvi cent.).

The parish of Shipton Bellinger, on the borders of Wiltshire, covers an area of 2,560 acres, of which 406¾ acres are arable land, 877¾ are permanent grass, mostly for sheep pasture, and 119 acres are woods and plantations. (fn. 1)

The ground rises towards the centre of the parish to its greatest height, 565 ft. above the ordnance datum. Near here is the village, the main street of which joins the road from Marlborough to Salisbury, near Shipton Farm. The River Bourne sometimes flows through the village street for two years in succession, but at other times its course is dry. East of the village is the parish church of St. Peter, and half a mile south is Snoddington Manor House, the residence of Mr. H. C. Formby, J.P.

The soil is very light except on the summit of the hills, where it is clay, and the subsoil is chalk. The common fields were inclosed in 1793 under a Private Act of the previous year. (fn. 2)

Manors

Before the Conquest Carle held the manor of SHIPTON BELLINGER of King Edward, while at the time of the Domesday Survey a certain Rainald held it of Alured de Merleberge, tenant-in-chief. (fn. 3) The overlordship passed subsequently to Robert de Tregoz, (fn. 4) possibly through his marriage with Sibyl daughter of Robert de Ewyas. (fn. 5) It descended from him to John Lord De La Warr, son of Roger De La Warr by Clarice daughter of Sir John de Tregoz, (fn. 6) with whose descendants it remained until the 15th century. It was held by the service of one rose yearly, as of the castle of Ewyas (co. Heref.), which, on the death of Sir John de Tregoz, had been assigned to John Lord De La Warr. (fn. 7)

The mesne lordship belonged in 1167 to Loewis, (fn. 8) and from him passed to Peter le Kenet, who was holding two knights' fees in Shipton in the middle of the 13 th century. (fn. 9) The next lord of the manor was probably Ruald de Calva, who, in conjunction with his wife Beatrice, endowed the priory of Newark (co. Surr.) with the advowson of the church of Shipton Bellinger. (fn. 10) In 1296 Ingram Berenger held the manor, (fn. 11) and in 1316 he obtained a grant of free warren in his demesne lands of Shipton. (fn. 12) In 1332 and again in 1334 Ingram entailed the manor on his son John, who married firstly Alice Stonor and secondly a certain Emma. (fn. 13) John died in 1343, leaving a son and heir Ingram, aged two. (fn. 14) His widow Emma married Edmund Hakluyt as her second husband, (fn. 15) and the latter held the manor in right of his wife until his death in 1360, (fn. 16) when he was followed by Nicholas Berenger, (fn. 17) probably a younger brother of Ingram, who must have died young. Nicholas at his death in 1382 left two daughters as his heirs (fn. 18) : Joan, afterwards the wife of Peter Stantor, and Anastasia, afterwards the wife of Stephen Bodenham. (fn. 19) On the death of Joan in 1385 her heir was her sister Anastasia, then aged fourteen, (fn. 20) but her husband, Peter Stantor, who was to hold the custody of the manor during the minority of the heir, (fn. 21) remained in possession until his death in 1415, at which date Robert Bodenham, son and heir of Anastasia, attained his majority. (fn. 22) Robert, who was holding the manor in 1428, (fn. 23) became involved in financial difficulties, (fn. 24) and on his death in 1466 (fn. 25) the manor passed to his principal creditor, John Hall of Salisbury. (fn. 26) John Hall died in 1479 and was followed by his son and heir William. (fn. 27) In 1502 William conveyed the manor to Richard Bishop of Winchester and others, (fn. 28) by whom it was transferred to the Prior and convent of St. Swithun in 1504. (fn. 29) The prior and convent held Shipton Bellinger until the Dissolution, and in 1541 (fn. 30) the newly-constituted Dean and Chapter of Winchester obtained a grant of the same from Henry VIII. (fn. 31) On the abolition of the dean and chapter in 1650 Shipton Bellinger was sold to Thomas Hussey of Laverstock, (fn. 32) but was restored in the usual way on the accession of Charles II. The dean and chapter then continued in possession until 1859, (fn. 33) when they apparently sold the manor to Mr. Francis Sloane-Stanley, lord of South Tidworth, who was the owner in 1867. (fn. 34) Ten years later Mr. Stanley sold the estate to Sir John Kelk, bart., (fn. 35) who on his death in 1886 was followed by his son and heir Sir John William Kelk, bart. (fn. 36) The latter sold Shipton Bellinger in 1906 to the War Office for military purposes, (fn. 37) so that the manor is now vested in the Crown.

The manor of SNODDINGTON belonged before the Conquest to Tovi and at the time of the Domesday Survey to Hugh de Port, tenant-in-chief. (fn. 38) It was held in the 13th century of Robert de Pont de L'Arche, lord of Newton Valence, and by him of Robert St. John, a descendant of Hugh de Port. (fn. 39) The overlordship of the St. John family subsequently lapsed, and the manor was held henceforward as of the manor of Newton Valence (q.v.) by suit of court and the service due from the fourth part of a knight's fee. (fn. 40)

At the beginning of the 13th century Thomas de Port and Margery de Cundy held jointly of Robert de St. John the fourth part of a knight's fee in Snoddington, (fn. 41) and a century later, in 1305, Gilbert Cundy held the same land, valued at 60s., of Aymer de Valence. (fn. 42) However, before 1316, Snoddington had come into the possession of Ingram Berenger, (fn. 43) lord of Shipton Bellinger, who two years later obtained from Thomas Harengod and Eleanor his wife (fn. 44) a quitclaim of all their rights in two messuages and 2 carucates of land in Snoddington for a rent of £5 during the life of Eleanor. (fn. 45) From this date the manor followed almost exactly the descent of Shipton Bellinger (fn. 46) (q.v.) until 1466, when Robert Bodenham died seised only of the reversion of the manor. This right passed to his infant grandson and heir Richard, son of his son Robert, (fn. 47) who as soon as he came into possession evidently sold the manor, probably to pay his grandfather's debts, to Tristram Fauntleroy, (fn. 48) a younger son of the Dorset family of that name. Tristram died in 1538, leaving a son and heir Brian, (fn. 49) whose son Henry held the manor until his death in 1578. (fn. 50) His heir was his son William, (fn. 51) who evidently died in a few years without issue, since his brother Henry was returned as the heir of his father Henry in 1589. (fn. 52) From this date the descent of the manor is unknown until the beginning of the 18th century, when it was in the possession of Richard Bird. Elizabeth, daughter and heir of Richard, brought Snoddington in marriage to Ralph Etwall of Andover, and the manor continued in the Etwall family until 1885. when Mr. William Etwall sold it to Mr. William H. Alexander. (fn. 53) The latter dying in 1905 devised the manor by will to Mr. H. C. Formby, B.A., J.P., the present owner. (fn. 54)

The manor of Snoddington contained a mill worth 20s. in the 14th century. (fn. 55) The place-name Milborowe possibly marked its site in the 18th century.

In 1086 Robert son of Gerold held property in Shipton which had been held by Ulstan of King Edward before the Conquest. (fn. 56) This land followed the same descent as and subsequently merged in the manor of South Tidworth in the hundred of Andover (fn. 57) (q.v.).

Church

The church of ST. PETER consists of a chancel 21 ft. 3 in. by 16 ft. 3 in., with a vestry on the north side, and a nave 49 ft. 4 in. by 18 ft. 2 in., with a south porch and a wooden bell turret over the west end. The walling is of flint, with wrought stones irregularly built into the facing, and the roofs are tiled, the woodwork being good plain modern work, with an effective framing to carry the western turret. The fittings are entirely modern.

Very little can be said of the age of the building, as every part except a little of the north wall of the nave has been refaced or rebuilt. In 1879 the chancel was rebuilt, with the re-use of two old windows and a doorway on the south, the vestry and the south porch added, and the west buttresses and part of the west wall of the nave renewed. No details earlier than c. 1325 are to be seen.

The chancel has a modern east window of two trefoiled lights with a square head, a south-east window of a single trefoiled light, of 14th-century work re-used, and a south-west window of two trefoiled lights, also re-used Between them is a doorway with 14th-century jambs and modern fourcentred head. The sill of the south-east window serves as a sedile, and to the east is a modern credence recess with a shelf.

The vestry, on the north side, has a small single light on the east, and a two-light window, and an outer doorway in the north wall, and opens to the chancel by a segmental chamfered arch.

The chancel arch is two-centred, and has two chamfered orders. It has been retooled, which gives it a modern appearance, but the masonry is probably of 14th-century date. Beneath it is a stone screen of three trefoiled openings in 14th-century style; it purports to be a reproduction of an old stone screen of which only the springers of the side arches remained.

The only window in the south wall of the nave at the south-east and that opposite to it in the north wall are 14th-century windows of two trefoiled lights of unusual design. The main lights only are old, and have a transom over them, the sexfoiled opening filling the two-centred head of the window being entirely modern, but apparently following the old design. The mullions and tracery have a roll on the outer order. The south window has the lower stones of a label with head stops. The second window on the north side is a modern copy of the others.

The south doorway has continuous mouldings and a two-centred arch of 14th-century date, a good deal retooled, and the modern west window of the nave has three trefoiled lights under a low segmental arch.

The turret contains three bells, the treble bearing the black letter inscription, 'Johannes Cristi care dingnare pro nobis orare,' with a cross between the first and last words, and a medallion between all the other words, with a man's head in the centre surrounded by the inscription, 'Balthasar Caspar Melchoir.' The second bell is inscribed, 'god. be ovr . gvyd r.b. 1600,' and the tenor, 'Sancte Nicolae ora pro nobis.'

The plate consists of a Sheffield-plated chalice and paten, c. 1820.

The registers contain (1) baptisms 1563 to 1727, marriages 1548 to 1721, and burials 1565 to 1723; (2) baptisms 1743 to 1789 and burials 1756 to 1789; and at the end are two pages of baptisms and burials for 1801 to 1805, and burials 1813 and 1814 on the first page; (3) baptisms 1789 to 1812.

Advowson

The church of Shipton Bellinger was held in 1086 by the lord of the manor, (fn. 58) but early in the 13th century it was granted to the priory of Newark (co. Surr.) by Ruald de Calva and Beatrice his wife, (fn. 59) and the grant was confirmed by Robert de Tregoz, overlord of Shipton Bellinger (fn. 60) (q.v.). The rectory was appropriated to the prior and convent, who presented a vicar. (fn. 61) The priory continued in possession until the Dissolution, when the patronage passed to the Crown, by whom it was leased out until the middle of the 17th century. (fn. 62) The advowson belonged in 1665 and 1667 to John Shirley, (fn. 63) and from him passed to the family of Macham, who presented as late as 1761, (fn. 64) after which date the descent is obscure. In 1859 the vicarage was in the gift of the executors of the late Mr. Thomas Assheton Smith, (fn. 65) whose widow and sole legatee on her death the same year left all her property to her nephew, Mr. Francis Sloane-Stanley. (fn. 66) Mr. Stanley sold the advowson in 1877 to Sir John Kelk, bart., (fn. 67) from whom it descended to his son and heir, Sir John William Kelk, bart., (fn. 68) the present patron.

A chapel in Snoddington was granted with the church of Shipton Bellinger to the Prior and convent of Newark (co. Surr.). (fn. 69)

In 1312 Ingram Berenger, lord of both manors, obtained permission to grant land in Shipton to maintain a chaplain in the church there, (fn. 70) and twelve years later he granted the advowson of the church of Alderton in Whiteparish (co. Wilts.) to the Prioress and convent of Amesbury (co. Wilts.) to find two chaplains to celebrate divine service daily in the parish church of Shipton Bellinger and in the chapel of Snoddington for his good estate and for his soul after death. (fn. 71) There are apparently no endowed charities in the parish.