RAMSEY
Ramsey, the largest parish in Huntingdonshire,
lies on the Cambridgeshire border. It consists
almost wholly of fen-land which falls in many places
to only 3 ft. above the ordnance datum. To the
south, however, at the Bury boundary, the land rises
to 44 ft. The parish measures some seven miles
across from east to west and about five miles from
north to south and comprises 16,969 acres, nearly the
whole of which, being rich fen-land soil, is under
cultivation; there is comparatively little pasture and
no woodland. It forms a part of the Middle Level
of the Fen-land area, the story of whose drainage will
be told elsewhere. The principal crops are market
garden produce, particularly potatoes and celery, and
recently sugar beet. The parish boundaries formerly
ran through the marshes and meres of the fen-land
and were not clearly defined, but since the reclamation
of the fens they have become limited by streams and
drains. On the north and east they follow the county
boundary, which having been also the division between
the lands of the abbey of Ramsey and those of the
abbey of Thorney and the Bishop of Ely, were in
the 14th century for a long time questions of
dispute. Probably the cross called St. Bennett's
Cross, the site of which is still marked at the point
where the Ramsey and Warboys parish boundary
leaves the county boundary, was erected when these
disputes were settled by judgment of the court.
There is a detached portion of the parish at Higney in
Woodwalton parish, and Hepmangrove, formerly a
part of Ramsey parish, was attached to Bury (q.v.)
about the time of the Dissolution.
The early privileged area of the abbey was the
BANLIEU (banleuca, leucata, leugata or lowy),
nominally the distance of a league around the abbey.
It is uncertain how the rights over this district were
acquired. The abbey had the usual extensive liberties of a pre-Conquest monastery including soc and
sac, but the first mention of the leugata or banlieu is
in an undated charter of Henry I of 1100–2 (fn. 1) which
was confirmed by his grandson Henry II by another
undated charter probably of 1155. (fn. 2) As at Ripon,
where there was a similar leugata, the origin probably
goes back to a date before the Conquest. In the case
of Ramsey Abbey it no doubt began with the grant of
Edgar confirmed by Edward the Confessor (fn. 3) conferring rights of sanctuary and exemption from
episcopal and secular power, but the definition of
area and rights probably belongs to the Norman
period. By the charter of Henry I, the church of
Ramsey was granted, within the leugata or banlieu,
soc and sac, thol and team, infangentheof, forstal,
blodwit, murder, treasure trove and all liberties pertaining to the crown and also quittance of views of
foresters, assarts and all other pleas. Again by
another charter of Henry I (1130), it was provided that
the leugata around the abbey might be quit of all
episcopal and secular power, and it is stated that the
leugata extended to the little hill (monticulum) at
Wistow and went through the middle of the vill
of Wistow touching Raveley, and so into the marsh. (fn. 4)
Pope Innocent in his bull of 1139 confirmed the
leugata, 'as King Henry of good memory for his
devotion to you granted and in writing confirmed.'
This seems to suggest that the liberties granted by
Edward the Confessor were defined and the banlieu
probably formed by Henry I under his charter of
1100–2. (fn. 5) These liberties were confirmed by subsequent sovereigns and by various popes. (fn. 6) The abbots
claimed, and were from time to time allowed, jura
regalia by these charters. They had the return of
writs and the right to receive original writs and to
plead them before their own justices, to have their
own coroners, two in number, and to plead pleas of
the crown within the banlieu. (fn. 7) They also had
treasure trove, the amercements of their tenants,
chattels of felons and fugitives, (fn. 8) and their own prison
in Ramsey which was delivered by their own
justices. The court of the banlieu was held
at first before the king's justices especially engaged
by the abbot and later before the abbot's steward.
The form of the writs and procedure were similar
to those of the king's court. The court sat to the end
of the reign of Edward II at 'Smithscroft' (fn. 9)
and later in Ramsey at first three times a year but
later once a year or less often. The bailiff was the
officer of the court and the suitors were summoned
by the rideman as at the Broughton Court. (fn. 10) In
1332–3 a court of 'the Liberty of Ramsey' was held
usually at 'Baldewynesgate' but sometimes at
'Pracysgate' and 'le Garite.' It was always held
after dinner (post prandium) and took cognizance
mostly of pleas of debt. (fn. 11) It is uncertain, however,
whether this court was that of the banlieu. The
exemption from episcopal power was perhaps represented by the abbot's right to the spiritual jurisdiction
of an archdeacon in the vills of Ramsey, and Bury. (fn. 12)
The lands of the banlieu also formed a peculiar.
In 1279 and 1286 it was complained that although
by charter the banlieu extended only to one league
around Ramsey or from the high altar of the abbey
church, the abbot had withdrawn places from the
county and hundred courts which were from two to
seven leagues distant. (fn. 13) A league is an uncertain
measurement sometimes denoting one and at others
two and three miles, but none of the leugatae
(fn. 14) of
which there were several in this country, was restricted to a uniform measurement nor a regular
boundary. The charter of Henry I, already referred
to, only defines the southern boundary running
through the vill of Wistow and touching Great Raveley, the boundaries on all other sides are merely indicated as in the marsh. There are two perambulations of the banlieu, one in 1286 (fn. 15) and the other
probably of a later date. (fn. 16) So far as the place names
in them can be identified, the boundary of the banlieu
follows very closely, if not precisely, that of Ramsey
parish on all sides but the south. On this side it
follows approximately the boundary between Ramsey
and Warboys, then the boundary between Wistow
and Warboys, passing through the village of Wistow
to the boundary between Great Raveley and Upwood
and following the northern boundary of Raveley to
the point where it changes its direction to the north,
then crossing the parish to the eastern boundary of
Woodwalton and following that boundary where it
joins the western boundary of Ramsey. Thus the
banlieu seems to have included the parishes of
Ramsey, Bury, Upwood, three-quarters of Wistow (fn. 17)
parish and the small northern part of Great
Raveley.
The town of Ramsey is situated on what was
originally an island surrounded by Bury Fen on the
south and Stocking Fen on the north and was approached, as the chroniclers tell us, by a causeway
on one side only. The abbey stood on the highest
part of the island some 23 ft. above the ordnance
datum. Unlike the majority of pre-Conquest monasteries, it is not on a Roman road but lies on the verge
of the fens some seven miles east of the Roman road
called Ermine Street. The abbot's park stretched
away to the east and on the west a town grew up
to meet the requirements of the monastery and of the
traffic which the abbey brought. Until the end of the
12th century the town was quite unimportant, it
is not mentioned in the Domesday Survey (1086)
when, and for some time later, it formed possibly a
part of the parish of Bury or Wistow. (fn. 18) In 1130
Pope Innocent II confirmed to Walter Abbot of
Ramsey the chapel of Bury 'where your servants hear
divine service,' (fn. 19) which is suggestive that there was
then no parish church at Ramsey.
By 1200 the town had grown sufficiently to make it
worth while for the abbot to obtain a grant of market
on Wednesdays. (fn. 20) Henry III confirmed this right
in 1267 and at the same time granted a fair on the
vigil and feast of the Translation of St. Benedict and
for two days following. (fn. 21) The fair merely served
the needs of the immediate neighbourhood, for the
position of Ramsey in medieval times on the outskirts of the fen and on no main line of traffic, precluded any competition with the neighbouring fair
at St. Ives. For this reason Ramsey never rose above
the position of a small market town; it never became
a borough, nor did it ever return a member to parliament. Justice was administered at the court of the
banlieu, and at the abbot's courts leet and view of
frankpledge. The reeve and later the bailiff of the
town were the abbot's officers who carried out the
orders of his courts. (fn. 22) Under them the constable
arranged for the policing of the town. (fn. 23)
Like the townsmen of St. Albans, Bury St.
Edmunds, Wells and other towns which had grown
up under the shadow of monasteries, the men of
Ramsey rose during the disturbed condition of the
country at the end of the reign of Edward II, in order
to gain the independence and freedom which were so
necessary to a trading community. When Edward III
in April 1327, the first year of his reign, visited
Ramsey with his mother and Roger Mortimer, the
townspeople, both men and women, acclaimed the
abbot before the king as a traitor and accused him of
taking a great part of the treasure of Hugh le Despenser, then lately hanged. They challenged the abbot's
right to the market of Ramsey and asserted that he
unjustly withheld from them common rights and
other liberties. (fn. 24) The abbot was put to great expense
in rebutting these claims and appealed to the Bishop
of Ely to represent to the king and the council 'the
insolences of the townsmen,' who, he said, persisted
in their rebellion notwithstanding the offer of a compromise regarding a disputed right of way. (fn. 25) The
controversy, though cloaked under the guise of claims
to various rights, as we know from similar risings
elsewhere, had at its base the desire of the townsmen
to raise their status from villeins to burgesses. The
government became alarmed at these widespread confederacies which led to riot and bloodshed, and no
doubt the dispute ended at Ramsey as it did elsewhere, by the subjection of the men of the town to
the abbey.
We know little of the trade at Ramsey in medieval
times. It was mainly agricultural but there were
weavers and fullers and others connected with the
cloth trade who were presented from time to time at
the abbot's court for charging their customers too
highly; and fishermen who had special rights for
drying their nets. (fn. 26) Tanner, too, was a common
surname in the town. (fn. 27) Apparently a most prosperous trade was that of ale-house keeping, for we find
as many as fifty-four women at a time presented for
selling ale contrary to the assize, (fn. 28) which suggests a
concourse of travellers requiring refreshment.
The lines of the streets have changed little since
the town was originally laid out. No doubt the
approach to the abbey and town has always been by
the present road from St. Ives and so along the High
Street to the market place, past the church to the
open space which always lay outside the great gate
of the larger monasteries. Here the retinues of the
more important visitors to the abbey assembled and
here apparently the fair was held. Near by probably
were the inns of the barons or knights of the honour
of Ramsey, who in turn were in residence for the
protection of the abbey, as at the monasteries of
Durham, St. Albans and elsewhere. (fn. 29) Westward of
the church was the market place, which occupied the
whole space between the High Street and Little
Whyte, including the island site. Here, as at other
market towns, the market place became built over at
an early date, certainly as early as the 15th century when Little Whyte, which occupies a part of it,
appears. A fire occurred in Little Whyte on 29
August 1636 when 'fifteen commoning tenements'
were burnt down and others damaged. (fn. 30) No houses
built before the fire have survived. The present
houses are mostly of brick with tiled or slated roofs.
The Great Whyte, formerly known as the Whyte
(Wythte, le Withe, le Wygthte) turns northwards
from Little Whyte; its name goes back to the
13th-century. This and the High Street suffered
a like fate to Little Whyte. A great part of
the High Street was burnt on 21 May 1731, when all
the houses from the School House to the High Bridge
on the north side and many of those on the west side
of Great Whyte were burnt. (fn. 31) A group of interesting 17th century houses at the bottom of Great
Whyte, however, survived the fire. This group includes the George Hotel which has a staircase and
parts of the back premises of the early part of
the 17th century, but its front has apparently
been rebuilt. Eastward of the George Hotel are two
17th-century houses and also the Rose and Crown
Inn which bears the initials and date E.H. 1661.
The timber framing and plaster of these houses
have been largely renewed with brick.
Great Whyte is a peculiarly wide street and formerly
included in its width a stream which ran from Wistow
and Bury and became the High Lode north of the
Great Whyte. The High Street passed over this
stream by the Great Bridge or the Old High Bridge
said to have been of one pointed arch. The stream
down Great Whyte was covered in by a tunnel of
three spans, begun in 1852 and finished two years
later. (fn. 32) Very few houses here were built before the
fire of 1731; the Seven Stars Inn on the east side
has remains of 17th-century work and a cottage
with overhanging upper story farther north on the
opposite side of the road probably belongs to a
century earlier. The western part of the High Street
was known as Bridge Street (Brigstrate) which led to
the Great Bridge. This part of the town seems to
have been developed at the end of the 13th century when plots (placeæ) of land were being set
out for building. (fn. 33) Other 14th-century names of
streets are 'le Kolane,' 'Le Nunnestrate' and 'Turverslane.' Turning off to the west on the St. Ives
Road, a little south of the railway station, is Biggin
Lane which appears in the early part of the
14th century as 'le Byggyngwey.' (fn. 34) This lane led
to the moated grange of the monastery called the
Biggin. We have reference to 'Leperes Lane' in
Ramsey (fn. 35) and land in Hepmangrove next 'Leperislane, (fn. 36) which would permit of the identification of
Lepers Lane with Biggin Lane. In a court roll of the
time of Edward II it is recorded that John de Pappeworth fell into the infirmity of leprosy whereby he
could not mix with his neighbours at Ramsey, therefore it was ordered that no one henceforth should
receive him. (fn. 37) The Biggin may originally have been
one of the small leper houses which, when that disease
became almost stamped out in the 14th century,
were turned to other uses. (fn. 38) Before 1352 Biggin had
become a grange supplying the household of the abbey
with dairy produce such as milk, butter and great
quantities of cheese and bacon, while its garden
produce went to the guest-house of the abbey. It was
a manor which had a mill but had no customary
tenants owing work services. (fn. 39) Biggin remained
parcel of the possessions of the monastery until the
Dissolution, when it passed with other Ramsey
property to Richard Cromwell. Sir Philip Cromwell,
brother of Sir Oliver Cromwell, was living here in
1606. The house was pulled down about 1757 and
a door bearing the initials H.C. (for Henry Cromwell)
was taken to Ramsey House. (fn. 40) A toft in Biggin was
conveyed in 1316 by William the Smith of Upwood
and Beatrice his wife to Robert le Ferour and Joan
his wife; (fn. 41) and in 1333 Joan, as a widow, granted it to
John the Cook of the infirmary for eight years and
twelve weeks after her death. (fn. 42) Adjoining Biggin
Lane was Beterestrate or le Beteris-strate the position
of which has not been identified. (fn. 43)
Ramsey: The Great Whyte in 1822
About a mile to the north-east of the town is
Bodsey House, originally a hermitage on one of the
fen islands only approached by water. There is a
tradition that King Cnut had a 'hunting box' here,
but the story is improbable as Bodsey seems to have
been part of the original endowment by Earl Ailwin
to Ramsey before Cnut came to the throne. The
hermitage, to which belonged a fishery and ten acres
of meadow, came into the possession of the family
of Lek or Leyk of Yelling. Early in the 13th
century it was conveyed by Henry de Lek to the
abbot of Ramsey, the conveyance being confirmed by
Theobald de Lek and Katherine, Henry's wife. (fn. 44)
Later a dispute as to common rights here was settled
in 1220 by Theobald de Lek relinquishing all his rights
in Bodsey to the abbot. (fn. 45) Shortly afterwards Abbot
Hugh Foliot assigned the hermitage to the office of
pittancer of the abbey for an anniversary for his
father, his mother and himself. (fn. 46) Bodsey continued
as a grange of the abbey until the Dissolution when
it was assigned to John Lawrence the last abbot as a
dwelling place together with 100 loads of wood, a
swan mark with the profit thereof, and £266 13s. 4d.
pension. (fn. 47) It was granted to Richard Williams alias
Cromwell in 1539, probably subject to the life interest
of Lawrence, and descended with Ramsey (q.v.).
In the outlying part of the parish called Higney there
dwelt another hermit, named Edwin, who in the early
part of the 12th century gave succour to Christine, an
anchoress, for whom the priory of Markyate (co. Beds)
was founded. (fn. 48)
ABBEY BUILDINGS
AND HOUSE.
So little remains above
ground of the buildings of
Ramsey Abbey that their
history cannot be told at
any length. The wooden chapel for three hermits
built by Earl Ailwin the founder (fn. 49) was soon replaced
by a new wooden chapel and offices to accommodate
the monks sent by Oswald. (fn. 50) In 969, however, a stone
church was begun which was cruciform in plan, with a
great tower at the crossing and a smaller tower at the
west end. (fn. 51) This church when completed was dedicated to St. Mary, St. Benedict and All Virgins by
St. Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, and St.
Oswald, Archbishop of York, on 8 November 974. (fn. 52)
Some ten years later, owing to faulty work both in the
foundations and masonry, a crack appeared in the central tower which spread from the summit downwards.
After long consultation the tower was taken down and
rebuilt, the work being chiefly done by the young
monks. (fn. 53) Earl Ailwin, the founder, presented the new
church with organs and a 'tabula' set with sheets of
silver plates and gems, to be placed before the high
altar. (fn. 54) In 991 the church was again dedicated by
Archbishop Oswald in the presence of a great concourse of people. (fn. 55)
Cnut proposed to found a monastery for nuns
adjoining Ramsey Abbey and went so far as to begin
a church which was to be dedicated to the Holy
Trinity. Providentially, as the Ramsey chronicler
wrote, the idea was abandoned. The crypt below the
high altar of Cnut's church was completed and remained for centuries in the cemetery of the monks. (fn. 56)
The monastery seems to have been gradually rebuilt
during the 12th century. Building operations were
evidently contemplated in the 11th century by the
acquirement of stone quarries, (fn. 57) but it was not until
1116 that Abbot Reginald began to rebuild the church.
As we may imagine by the analogy of other monasteries, this rebuilding was carried out on a larger scale.
The monks were excluded from the church for seven
years and re-entered it in 1123. (fn. 58) A check was given
to the further rebuilding by dissensions within the
monastery itself and disturbances without in the kingdom. In 1143 the 'infamous earl' Geoffrey de Mandeville seized the monastery, expelled the monks, and
fortified it against the forces of King Stephen. (fn. 59) It
took long to repair the damage done by the earl's followers, but probably the rebuilding of the church,
already begun, was completed at the close of Stephen's
reign (1154) when, we are told, the great tower was
built by Abbot Walter. (fn. 60) At about the same time, the
refectory and other offices, probably completing the
cloister range, were finished. (fn. 61)
The monks continued to press for compensation
for the damage done by Mandeville and at length in
1163, by the intervention of Archbishop Thomas
[Becket], they obtained redress from the earl's son. (fn. 62)
The wealth which the monastery acquired at this time
and later was expended rather on the ornaments of the
church than on the fabric. Thus in 1192 new shrines
were provided for the bones of St. Felix, first bishop
of East Anglia, St. Ethelred and St. Ethelbreth, two
Saxon princes whose bodies were removed to Ramsey
by St. Oswald, (fn. 63) but the shrine of the more famous St.
Ive had to wait some seventy years for its renewal. (fn. 64)
A new refectory was begun by Abbot Hugh de
Sulgrave (1254–67) but was not finished until 1276 (fn. 65)
under the abbacy of William de Godmanchester. The
same abbot in 1277 made a water conduit to the abbey.
He also erected a new cistern in the abbey court,
built the abbot's hall and the south gate in the court
and provided a monumental brass for the tomb of Earl
Ailwin, the founder, showing the image of the earl 'in
subtile workmanship.' (fn. 66) The lady chapel was built or
rebuilt about the middle of the 13th century, and a
century later references are found to special wardens
for the maintenance of that chapel. (fn. 67)
Extensive rebuilding was continued into the 14th
century. In 1330 Abbot Simon de Eye began the new
presbytery and the greater part of the work was com
pleted before his death in 1342 when his body was
buried on the left side of the high altar there. (fn. 68) The
rebuilding of this part of the church continued for
some years later. At the end of the century there
was an intention to rebuild the Lady Chapel, and in
1396 lands were given for the maintenance of the Lady
Chapel, then to be newly built. (fn. 69) In the same year
the Bishop of Lincoln issued an injunction that the
timber, lead and marble left by the faithful for the
repair of the monastery and chapel of the Virgin were
to be restored to the warden of that work and that the
nave of the church, notoriously in want of repair, was
to be repaired within a year. (fn. 70) We have no evidence
whether the Lady Chapel was rebuilt; there are
references to new work, but nothing to show what it
was. The gatehouse we know from architectural
evidence was rebuilt in the 15th century.
RAMSEY ABBEY PLANS of HOUSE and GATEHOUSE
Reproduced by permission of the Controller of H.M. Stationery Office from the Report of the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments, Hunts.
After the dissolution of the monastery in 1539
Sir Richard Williams, alias Cromwell, the crown
grantee, merely used the monastic buildings as a
source of profit, by selling the building material.
During the third quarter of the 16th century Gonville
and Caius College, King's College and Trinity College,
Cambridge, were all very largely built of these materials. (fn. 71) The towers of Ramsey (fn. 72) and Godmanchester (fn. 73)
parish churches were built of them, and the gateway at
Hinchingbrooke is thought to have been taken from
Ramsey. The miserere stalls in Over church and stalls
in Somersham church also came from Ramsey (fn. 74) and no
doubt much of the material found its way into the
walls of the neighbouring houses. (fn. 75)
The Cromwells continued to use Ramsey Abbey as
a quarry well into the 17th century, but during the
last few years of the 16th or the first year or two of the
17th century Sir Henry Cromwell seems to have
begun the present house which he is said to have
used as a summer residence. (fn. 76) His son, Sir Oliver,
lived at Hinchingbrooke until, owing to financial difficulties, he sold it to Sir Sydney Montagu in 1627
(q.v.). He then took up his residence at Ramsey,
a comparatively small building. Ramsey Abbey House
at that time consisted of the eastern part of the
present building, three stories in height, facing north,
with the present four-storied towers at the north-east
and north-west corners. Forming the main eastern
portion of the basement of that house is the lower part
of a large rectangular building, 68 ft. by 23 ft. (internal
measurements) running east and west which has now
been cut up into various rooms. It dates from the
middle of the 13th century and obviously was some
portion of the monastic buildings. It is divided into
six bays by buttresses, and around its internal walls is
a fine 13th-century wall arcade composed of moulded
trefoiled arches with moulded and foliated capitals
and moulded bases, now sadly mutilated. The west
wall of the building is thicker than the other walls and
is possibly of the 12th century. There were doorways
on each side in the second bay from the west; that
on the north belongs to the time of the building of the
house and that on the south, now blocked, is of the
13th century. The original windows were above the
level of the surviving part of the building; the remains
of only one can be seen in the modern corridor. Until
recently this building has been taken to be the
monastic refectory which is known to have been rebuilt in the middle of the 13th century, but it has
lately been suggested that it is more probably the
Lady Chapel, projecting eastward from the north
transept, in the same position as the Lady Chapel is
known to have stood at Peterborough. (fn. 77)
In 1839 the house was considerably altered and
enlarged from designs by Blore. A wing was added on
the west side and a new north front was built between
the towers some 10 ft. northward of the old front, a
pierced parapet and a new porch being also added.
At the end of the corridor on the ground floor is a
late 13th-century figure in grey marble which is supposed to represent Ailwin the founder of Ramsey
Abbey. The figure has a beard and curled hair and
wears a civil dress with a long cloak. He holds two
keys and a wand in his right hand and his left is
placed across his chest. Over the head is a trefoiled
canopy and above are angels holding the soul in a
sheet. The feet rest on a lion. In the basement is a
late 16th-century door said to have been brought
from Biggin House, which has an oval boss in the
middle bearing the initials H.C. for Henry Cromwell,
brother of Sir Oliver Cromwell.
The present lodge is a fragment of the Great Gate
of the monastery which when perfect must have been
a fine specimen of a 15th-century gatehouse. The
arched gateway stood on the west side of the lodge
across the present road and was pulled down when
the road to Warboys was made in the early part of
the 18th century. (fn. 78) The octagonal turret has panels
richly carved. In the north side is a plain twolight window lighting the ground floor and a two-light
cinquefoiled oriel window above. The gatehouse was
at one time used as a prison and was thatched with
reed. Possibly at this time the upper part of the house
was destroyed.
MANORS
Ramsey belonged to Æthelstan called
'Half Kyng' of the East Angles, who was
living from 925 to 960. He was succeeded by his son Ailwin who founded Ramsey Abbey
in 969. (fn. 79) Ailwin at first merely established monks on
the island of Ramsey, and it is unlikely that he defined
the extent of the watery waste surrounding it which
was to be included in his endowment. No manor of
Ramsey is entered in the Domesday Survey (1086), at
which time possibly it formed a part of Bury or
Wistow, but more probably it was omitted on account
of royal rights the abbot enjoyed over it. (fn. 80) From the
dispute between the Abbot of Ramsey and the Abbot
of Thorney in 1281 (fn. 81) it would appear that the manor
was then formed and its eastern boundary extended
to the boundary of the present parish and county. The
abbey held the manor until its dissolution in 1539.
After the Dissolution, the site of the monastery of
Ramsey, the church, steeple, and churchyard, the
lordships and manors of Ramsey, 'Heyghmongrove,'
Bury, together with other manors, and the granges or
farms called Bigging, Higney and Bodsey, a windmill
in Ramsey, the park called Ramsey Park and divers
lands, woods, fens and marshes and the impropriate
rectory of Ramsey were granted on 4 March 1539–40
to Richard Williams, alias Cromwell, in fee at a rent
of £29 16s.; to hold as fully as John, late abbot, held
them. (fn. 82) Sir Richard Williams, alias Cromwell, was a
man of considerable importance. He was a nephew of
the wife of Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, Henry's
celebrated minister and one of his agents for the
Dissolution of the Monasteries, being a son of Thomas's
wife's sister Katherine who married Morgan Williams.
He was therefore first cousin of Gregory, Lord Cromwell, who married Elizabeth Seymour, widow of Sir
Anthony Ughtred and sister of Queen Jane Seymour
and the Protector Somerset. These family connexions no doubt helped him in acquiring the lands of
dissolved religious houses. On account of the advancement of his aunt's husband he took the name of
Cromwell. He was sheriff for Cambridgeshire and
Huntingdonshire in 1540–41, with which counties
he was connected through his wife Frances daughter of
Sir T. Murfyn, sheriff of London. In 1542 he purchased from the crown the sites and estates of other
monasteries in the county. (fn. 83) He died in 1544
seised of these lands and of a market and fair, twenty
fisheries or meres and a park called Ramsey Park
(later called the New Park or Red Deer Park) leaving
a son and heir Henry aged seven years. (fn. 84) The wardship and marriage of his heir was granted to Sir
Edward North, Chancellor of the Court of Augmentation, who received an annuity from the Cromwell
estates. (fn. 85) Henry, who like his father was sheriff of
the county, settled his estates in 1583–4 on the
marriage of his son Oliver with Elizabeth, daughter of
Sir Thomas Bromley, lord chancellor of England. By
this settlement he provided for his wife Joan, daughter
of Sir Ralph Warren, mayor of London, who predeceased him, and the remainder he left to his son and his
heirs male. (fn. 86) Sir Henry married as his second wife
Anne, widow of Seignor Horatio Palavicini. He died
in 1604 and was succeeded by his son Sir Oliver then
aged 37 years. (fn. 87)
Ramsey Abbey. Or a bend azure with three rams' heads argent thereon cut off at the neck.
Cromwell. Sable a lion argent.
Sir Oliver, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth,
settled his estates in 1607 and 1622. (fn. 88) By the
extravagance of his father his property was considerably impoverished and his staunch loyalty to
the house of Stuart brought him into further difficulties. He had to sell Hinchinbrook to Sir Sidney
Montagu in 1627 and went to live at the small summer
residence which his father or he had built at Ramsey.
On account of the opposition to the party of his
nephew, Gen. Oliver Cromwell, his lands were
sequestered. In 1645 he addressed a petition from
Ramsey, where he then lived, stating he was 84 years
of age and his estates were heavily encumbered. His
son Col. Henry Cromwell, described as of Upwood,
had served with the king and been badly wounded
and although then in prison could not move on
account of his wounds and sickness. In 1649 Henry,
Sir Oliver's son, complained that in setting his fine
the committee had not taken account of his debts.
He only had the reversion of the estate of his father,
who was still living and would probably survive him. (fn. 89)
Sir Oliver died in 1655 and was succeeded by his son
Henry, who settled the manor of Ramsey and Bury
cum 'Hepmangrove,' two mills, 300 a. of land
covered with water, free fishery, etc., in Ramsey,
Wistow and Bury and the rectories of Ramsey and
Bury cum Hepmangrove in 1650, (fn. 90) probably for purposes of raising money; with Henry his son and
heir he again settled them in 1654. (fn. 91) Henry the
elder died in 1657. He dropped the surname of
Cromwell probably on account of differences with his
cousin the Protector. His son Henry with his wife
Anne conveyed the manor of Ramsey, the park and
site of the monastery with lands in Ramsey and
Biggin and the rectory of Ramsey in 1664 to John
Morris, again probably for raising money. (fn. 92) On
5 January 1670–1, Sir Henry Williams as lord of the
manor of Ramsey promoted a Bill in parliament for a
rectification of the boundaries settled by the commissioners appointed under the Bedford Level Act,
between his property and that of Sir William Leman,
but it was rejected. (fn. 93) Sir Henry died in 1673, when
his estates passed to his sisters and their heirs,
Carina, widow of William Hetley, Elizabeth, widow
of Henry English, John Wise and Henry Avery, who
together in 1676 conveyed the manor, site, rectory
and other lands to Robert—and John Morris. (fn. 94) This
purchase was probably made on behalf of Col. Silius
Titus, who held a court as lord of the manor as early
as 14 Oct. 1675. (fn. 95) Col. Silius Titus was a royalist
politician who assisted in the compilation of the
pamphlet 'Killing No Murder,' and was member of
parliament for Huntingdonshire in 1679 and 1681.
He died in 1704 and left Ramsey to his wife and
daughters. (fn. 96) Catherine his surviving daughter died in
1732 and left her estate worth about £2,000 a year
to a man and woman servant. (fn. 97) The manservant
John Smith sold the manor in 1737 to William
Fellowes, probably as trustee for his brother Coulson
Fellowes. (fn. 98) The manor passed on the death of
Coulson Fellowes in 1769 to his son William, who
was succeeded in 1804 by his son William Henry
Fellowes. Edward, second but eldest surviving son
of William Henry Fellowes, was created Lord de
Ramsey in 1887 and died in the same year. His son
William Henry, second baron, died in 1925. His
wife, Lady de Ramsey, took a keen interest in the
encouragement of art needlework. He was succeeded
by his grandson Ailwin Edward, son of Coulson
Churchill Fellowes (d. 1915), who became third Lord
de Ramsey, and is the present owner.
HIGNEY (Higkeneia, Hygeney, Higeneye) is
an island lying in a detached part of the parish of
Ramsey on the west side of Woodwalton parish. It
seems originally to have been parcel of the manor and
parish of Woodwalton and was attached to Ramsey
by Henry Cromwell in the early part of Elizabeth's
reign (see below). In 1134 Aubrey, daughter of
Reinelm and widow of Eustace de Shelley (Scellea),
gave to Ramsey the manor of Walton with the island
'which is called in English Higkeneia.' This grant
was made with the consent of Eustace her son and
of her over-lord Walter de Bolebec and Helewise his
wife, and Hugh their son. (fn. 99) The abbot was to hold
by the service of two knights doing the service of
other knights of the Bolebec fee, saving ward of the
castle of Newcastle. Aubrey de Shelley's sons seized
the lands granted, 'tempore guerrae,' probably while
Geoffrey de Mandeville occupied the abbey in 1143.
Abbot William (1161–77) compromised the dispute
arising on this seizure by marrying the widow of
Aubrey's son, who held the manor, to his brother,
apparently Michael de Walton (fn. 100) and endowing her
with the lands seized. Michael son of Michael de
Walton made a series of agreements with Abbot
Hugh of Ramsey in 1219. (fn. 101) Under them he was to
hold two carucates of land in Walton of the abbot,
except Derdmannesmere and the island of Higney,
four villeins, each holding an acre next the water, a
moiety of the wood of Walton, which lay next Raveley,
and the moiety of 30 acres of wood in Barewe. (fn. 102) The
abbot was also to have the right of pre-emption over
the lands retained by Michael. Apparently he
exercised his right, as in 1229 he assigned the lands to
the use of the office of sacrist of the abbey. (fn. 103) In
1279 we find the abbot was holding the manor of
Higney in Walton in free alms. (fn. 104)
Higney remained with the monastery until the
Dissolution, when it was granted with Ramsey to Sir
Richard Williams alias Cromwell. It followed the
descent of Ramsey (q.v.) until
the early part of the 17th
century, when Sir Oliver
Cromwell sold it to the
feoffees under the will of Sir
Thomas Sutton for the endowment of King James's
Hospital, otherwise the
Charterhouse, (fn. 105) London. On
2 March 1630–1 these feoffees
conveyed it to the governors
of the Charterhouse. (fn. 106) The
governors of the Charterhouse
held the property until 1918
when it was sold as Higney
Grange (871½ acres) and
Higney Hundred or Lower Farm (114½ acres) to
Mr. Thomas Roberts, of Eye (co. Northants.), who
conveyed it in lots to Mr. George Keeble of
Peterborough, Mr. Edward Henry Jellett of London,
and Mr. Thomas Carey. (fn. 107)
Charterhouse, London. Or a cheveron between three rings gules with three crescents argent on the cheveron.
CHURCHES
The parish church of ST.
THOMAS OF CANTERBURY is
built mainly of rubble, but the aisles
and other parts are of ashlar. The roofs of the chancel
and nave are covered with tiles and the aisles with
lead. The church consists of a chancel (22 ft. by
20 ft.), nave (93 ft. by 19 ft.), north aisle (13 ft. wide),
south aisle (13 ft. wide), north chapel and south
chapel and west tower (14 ft. by 15 ft.), all measurements being internal.
The architectural history of this church is somewhat involved. The present building, which was
originally erected about 1180, is of peculiar plan.
The very small chancel, the long nave and the absence
of a tower from the original church, point, as the
investigators of the Royal Commission on Historical
Monuments suggest, to the building having been
designed for a hospital, infirmary or guest house. (fn. 108)
The chancel would form the chapel, and the nave the
hall of such an establishment. As in the case of all
monasteries of Pre-Conquest foundation, the
parishioners of Ramsey doubtless had rights in the
monastic church. After the introduction of stricter
rule and more elaborate services in the 12th century,
particularly the Sunday Procession, the parochial
services, probably at Ramsey as elsewhere, interfered
with those of the monks. Hence, accommodation
for the parishioners was no doubt made by a parochial
chapel outside the monastic church, but possibly
at a later date than was customary elsewhere if the
present church had been originally an infirmary.
This late 12th-century building consisted of a
chancel, with north and south chapels, nave and aisles.
The south chapel was destroyed about 1310, before,
or at the time that the early 14th-century window
was inserted in the south wall of the chancel, but the
north chapel was standing in 1744. (fn. 109) The aisles were
apparently rebuilt about 1500. The west tower
was built in 1672. There was formerly a south
porch, destroyed in 1843, which probably belonged
to the period of the rebuilding of the south aisle
about 1500. A north vestry was built on the site
of the north chapel in 1910, and the church was
restored in 1844, by Mr. E. Fellowes, when it lost
some of its ancient fittings, including a chancel
screen and some old glass. (fn. 110) The gallery was removed
in 1903.
The chancel is vaulted, and is lighted by a large
east window of three round-headed lights, deeply
splayed, above which is a vesica-shaped window
and high up in the gable a round-headed window,
now blocked, which at one time lighted the space
over the vault. In the south wall is an early 14th-century window of two pointed lights with a trefoil
above in a roundhead, and farther west is a
doorway of about 1600, with a four-centred arch in a
square head. In the north is a doorway of uncertain
date, leading into the modern north vestry. The
vestry has a late 15th-century north window of three
cinquefoiled lights, with tracery in a four-centred
head, taken from the east wall of the north aisle.
In the south wall of this vestry are the remains of the
vaulting shafts, with cushion capitals for the vault
of the 12th-century chapel which stood here. Similar
remains for the vaulting shafts of the south chapel are
still preserved outside the south wall of the chancel.
The 12th-century chancel arch has a two-centred
head, and the responds have scalloped capitals and
moulded bases. There was formerly a chancel screen
stretching across the nave and aisles at the first pier,
which was taken down in 1844. (fn. 111)
The nave was formerly of eight bays, but one bay
has been embedded in the western tower. The
arcades are very fine examples of 12th-century work.
The arches are all two-centred of two plain orders,
but the piers, although corresponding in the pairs
opposite one another, differ, each pair from the other,
some being of grouped shafts, others round
and octagonal. The capitals in like manner differ,
some scalloped, others have water-leaves and volutes.
Over the second pier on each side is the entrance,
now blocked, to the rood loft, indications of which
may be seen on the south side. The clearstory,
consisting of seven windows of two cinquefoiled
lights in four-centred heads on each side, is of 15th-century date. The north and south aisles have
windows of similar detail each with three cinquefoiled lights in a four-centred head, all of about 1500,
and the north and south doorways are of the same
date.
It was apparently intended to build a west tower
in the early part of the 16th century. John Lawrence,
the last abbot of Ramsey, by his will dated
29 February 1537–8, directed that £13 6s. 8d. should
be paid 'towards the building a stepull in the parish
church of Ramsey when the town will build it.' (fn. 112)
The town at that time seems to have built only
'a low wooden steeple,' which fell down and was
replaced by the present tower in 1672, from material
taken from the monastic buildings. (fn. 113) This west
tower is of four stages, with embattled parapet and
crocketed pinnacles at the angles. The tower arch
is two-centred, with semi-cylindrical responds, having
two attached shafts, scalloped capitals and moulded
bases. The west doorway is also of 12th-century
material, re-set, probably, from the original west
doorway. Over the doorway on the outside in a
panel is the inscription, 'Take heed, watch and
pray for ye know not when the time is. S. Mar. 13,
33.' In the west wall of the second stage is a 15th-century window of two cinquefoiled lights re-set,
over which, in the third stage, is another window
made from re-set material. In the bellchamber is
a window in each wall, made up from 12th-century
and 13th-century material and a 12th-century stringcourse re-used. A beam of the bell frame bears the
inscription, '1672 Nevill Jones et Thomas Wallis,
churchwardens.'
RAMSEY The PARISH CHURCH of ST THOMAS of CANTERBURY
Reproduced by permission of the Controller of H.M. Stationery Office from the Report of the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments, Hunts.
The blue marble hexagonal font of about 1200
was found about 1844 buried below the floor of the
aisle. It has a circular central shaft and six angle
shafts.
The 15th-century oak lectern has a steep double
rotating desk, supported on a square stem with four
traceried buttresses surmounted by figures of the
evangelists. It has been restored. On it are the
Paraphrase of Erasmus and Comber on the Book of
Common Prayer. The latter still has a chain attached
to it.
There are the following monuments: In the north
side of the chancel to William Henry Fellowes (d.
1837); Mary Julia widow of Edward first Lord de
Ramsey (d. 1901); Edward Fellowes, first Lord de
Ramsey (d. 1887); on south side of chancel, to
Emma relict of William Fellowes (d. 1862). The
glass of the east window was given in memory of the
Fellowes family. In north aisle, to James Smyth,
surgeon (d. 1848); to Carina wife of Edward Day
(d. 1867); to Coulson Churchill Fellowes (d. in
France 1915); above is a standard of the Life
Guards; on east wall, to James Jones, agent to the
Fellowes estate (d. 1803); and on the west wall, to
Arthur Hubbard and Henry Flowers (d. South Africa,
1899–1902); windows to Private Leonard Fuller,
Princess Patricia Canadian Light Infantry (d.
Flanders, 1915); to Harold Edward Langford (d.
Kassasin, 1882); to Heneage Greville, Lord Guernsey
(d. on the Aisne, 1914). In south aisle, to Lancecorporal Ronald William Shelton, Royal Fusiliers (d.
at Cambrai, 1918); Rev. James Saunderson Serjeant,
M.A. (d. 1882); Isabella Rebecca, wife of Capt.
H. W. Denison Adam (d. 1904); tablet commemorating the gratitude of parishioners of Ramsey for
restoration of the church by Edward Fellowes, in
1843–4; on west wall, to David Black, B.A., 2nd
Lieut. Lancashire Fusiliers (d. Poonah, 1892); window
to Christopher Mawdesley (d. 1894), and Catherine
Jane his wife (d. 1895).
The registers are as follows: (i) Baptisms, marriages
and burials, 4 April 1559 to 6 March, 1642–3
(ii) ditto, 31 March 1653 to 23 November 1673;
(iii) ditto, 7 November 1673 to 24 March 1737–8;
(iv) ditto, 26 March 1738 to 27 December 1812.
(v) The Official Marriage Book, 12 May 1754 to
15 June 1778; (vi) ditto, 22 June 1788 to 12
November 1801; (vii) ditto, 30 November 1801 to
5 November 1812.
The church plate consists of: An Elizabethan
silver cup, with two bands of arabesque ornament,
hall-marked for 1568–9; the cover-paten of same,
inscribed 'RAMSAYE,' and hall-marked as cup; a
silver cup inscribed 'The guift of Elizabeth Margetts,'
and hall-marked for 1648–9; (fn. 114) a standing paten
belonging to the same, with no inscription, but
hall-marked as cup; a tall silver cup inscribed 'Donum
Joannis Tidmarsh in Usum perpetuum Ecclesiae
Parochialis de Ramsey in Com. Huntingdon,' and
hall-marked for 1730–1; the cover-paten of same,
similarly inscribed and hall-marked; a silver standing
paten, inscribed, 'The Gift of Emma Fellowes, 1838,'
and hall-marked for 1838–9; a silver alms-dish, similarly
inscribed and hall-marked; a Britannia silver flagon,
inscribed, 'Ex Dono Robti Pigott Armigeri, Haeredis
et Vertutum et Census Johannis Dryden Armigri:
Ecclesiae, et Parochiae de Ramsey in agro Hunt,
Benefactoris Munificentissimi. Anno Dom: 1713.'
and with a shield of the arms of the donor Robert
Piggott and his crest, a wolf's head proper,
hall-marked for 1712–13; a silver and mother-of-pearl
baptismal shell, the mother-of-pearl carved with a
panel of Joseph and Mary, with the infant Christ,
going into Egypt, surrounded with foliage, hallmarked for 1920–1.
There are said to have been four bells before the
building of the tower in 1672, housed in a low wooden
steeple. These four bells were, with some additional
metal, cast into five. There is a sanctus bell, which
is uninscribed and probably old. The other six
bells were all cast in 1810 and five, and possibly the
sixth, by R. Taylor, of St. Neots.
In the churchyard eastward of the chancel is the
shaft of the 14th-century churchyard cross, standing
about 9 ft. high. The head has been lost.
The church of ST. MARY, two miles north-west
of Ramsey, was built by Mrs. Emma Fellowes,
widow of Mr. William Henry Fellowes, in 1858.
It is of stone in the 14th-century style and
consists of a chancel with north vestry, nave of
five bays, aisles, south porch and north-west tower
with spire.
The church of ST. THOMAS, Ponds Bridge, near
Whittlesey, was built by subscription in 1867. It
consists of an aspidal chancel, nave, south-east transept
and bell turret at the north-west corner. The roofs
are of slate.
The church of ST. BENET, at Ramsey Hollow,
is a building of brick, consisting of a chancel and
nave. It was erected in 1881 and enlarged in
1913.
The church of ST. FELIX, at Forty Foot Bridge,
was built in 1902.
ADVOWSONS
At one time the whole of the
district which became known as the
banlieu was probably served at a
parochial altar in the abbey church. In the 12th
century, however, the use of the church by the
parishioners of the banlieu, which from its liberties
must have formed an ecclesiastical unit, would
probably interfere with the more elaborate services
then introduced into the Benedictine monasteries. (fn. 115)
Possibly on account of this, a chapel, to serve the
people of the town, was built at Bury, within the
banlieu and near to Ramsey town, subordinate to
Wistow Church, which was outside the banlieu.
Thus, in 1139, Pope Innocent II refers to Bury
chapel just after it was built, according to architectural
evidence, as being situated next the monastery,
'where your (the abbot's) servants hear Divine
service.' (fn. 116) Probably the term 'servants' would
cover all the parishioners of the banlieu, as Upwood
had not then become a parish. Bury is referred to as
a church, with its chapels at Wistow and Raveley,
in the confirmation of Pope Alexander III of 30 June,
1178. (fn. 117) In this confirmation the churches and
chapels of the abbey are set out, but no reference is
made to any church or chapel at Ramsey. A parish
church, however, existed at Ramsey before 1291,
when we have a return of it. (fn. 118)
The banlieu being exempt from the jurisdiction of
the bishop and archdeacon, Ramsey became a donative
belonging to the Abbot of Ramsey and the incumbent
was styled chaplain and, later, curate. At the Dissolution the church was granted to Sir Richard Williams,
and the advowson has since followed the descent of
the manor. (fn. 119) The patron's right to a donative and
the freedom of the church from visitation of the bishop
and archdeacon continued until 1875, when the
patron relinquished such rights and the incumbent
became a vicar.
The parish of ST. MARY was formed in 1860.
The living is a vicarage in the gift of Lord de
Ramsey.
A question arose in the early part of the 17th century
as to whether Higney was in Woodwalton or Ramsey
parish. John Heron, farmer of the island under the
Charterhouse, complained in 1638 that within 70
years it had been a member of Woodwalton, when
Sir Henry Cromwell, being then lord of both Woodwalton and Ramsey and patron of both livings, sold
Woodwalton, reserving Higney, and bound the tenant
to pay tithes and taxes to Ramsey, which is five miles
from Higney, Woodwalton being under two furlongs.
Under this arrangement, John Heron complained, he
was denied commonage with Ramsey, and his commonage with Woodwalton was abridged. He stated
further that he built a seat in Woodwalton church
for his use, but the Lord of Woodwalton had taken
it, so that there was no place for him and his family.
The matter was referred to Sir John Lambe, Dean of
the Court of Arches, to ascertain to which parish
Higney belonged. (fn. 120) On 17 April, 1638, Sir Oliver
Cromwell, apparently as owner of the great tithes of
Ramsey, wrote to Sir John Lambe, desiring him to
order the retention of Higney in Ramsey parish, and
sending him an extract from a record showing that
the Abbot of Ramsey held Higney. (fn. 121) Sir John
Lambe seems to have adopted the view that Higney
was parcel of Ramsey parish, to which it still belongs.
Chapels have been licensed for marriages as follows:
Baptists, at the Great White, in 1837; Salem, in
1858; the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Great White Backs
Way, 1872; Wesleyan Methodist, 1864; and Wesleyan,
1883.
CHARITIES
Bequest of Mrs. Carina Overall
Day. This charity was founded by
the will of the donor, proved 9 July,
1867. The endowment of the charity now consists
of £400 Consols with the Official Trustees, producing £10 yearly in dividends, which are distributed to
the inmates of the Almshouses on St. Thomas's Day.
Town Stock and Poor's Estate Charity. The
charity is regulated by a scheme of the Charity
Commissioners, dated 3 Jan., 1905. The endowment consists of several pieces of land in Ramsey,
together with the buildings thereon, containing 32
acres (approximately); £80 Consols with the Official
Trustees; £23 4s. Consols invested in private names
and £100 5 per cent. Exchequer Bond. The income,
amounting to £120 (approximately), is applied in
accordance with the directions contained in the
scheme. The trustees of the charity are the rector
(ex officio), four representative trustees appointed by
the Urban District Council, and four co-optative
trustees.
Poor's Land. By a decree of the High Court of
Chancery, made 7 July, 1656, land containing 100
acres was set out for the use of the poor. The
endowment of the charity now consists of land containing 97 acres, let out in allotments; £339 17s. 10d.
Consols with the Official Trustees, and £388 4s. 7d.
Consols in the High Court of Chancery. The
income, amounting in 1925 to £350, of which onethird is paid to the governors of the Grammar School,
is expended in premiums and clothing for apprenticing
poor children.
Lands under Care. This charity was founded
before the year 1607, for providing habitation for the
poor. The endowment consists of several pieces of
land in Ramsey, containing in all about 28 acres, let
for £115 10s. per annum, together with 30 cottages,
let for £31 6s. 8d. per annum. The income, after
payment of repairs, etc., is applied towards the
parochial and drainage rates.
By a scheme of the Charity Commissioners, dated
21 July, 1916, the trustees of the Town Stock and
Poor's Estate Charity were appointed trustees of the
Poor's Land and Lands under Care Charities.