HARTLEBURY
Heortlanbyrig (x cent.); Heortlabiri, Huerteberie
(xi cent.); Herclebery (xii cent.); Hertlebur,
Hertlebyr (xiii cent.); Herthulbury (xiv cent.);
Hertylburie (xv cent.); Hartilbury, Hurtbery
(xvi cent.).
The parish of Hartlebury has an area of 5,355 acres.
Upper Mitton, with an area of 359 acres, formerly a
hamlet of Hartlebury, was constituted a civil parish
under the Local Government Act of 1894. (fn. 1) From
the low-lying banks of the Severn and the Stour on
the western side of Hartlebury the land rises towards
the east, reaching a height of 200 ft. above the
ordnance datum on the eastern border and of 300 ft.
at Bishop's Wood on the southern boundary. The
eastern part of the parish is on the Keuper Sandstones, the western on the Bunter Pebble Beds.
There are 1,618 acres of permanent grass and
2,810 acres of arable land, the chief crops being
wheat, barley, peas and potatoes. The woods and
plantations, of which the largest is Bishop's Wood,
cover 172 acres. (fn. 2) The Oxford, Worcester and
Wolverhampton branch of the Great Western railway
passes through the parish, and is joined at Hartlebury
station by the Severn Valley branch. The main
road from Worcester to Kidderminster enters the
parish on the south near the Mitre Oak, where the
road from Stourport meets it, and running north is
joined in the village of Hartlebury by another road
from Stourport, on the left of which near the smithy
is the old pound.
The village of Hartlebury is on the Worcester and
Kidderminster high road. The church stands in the
centre of the village in a churchyard of moderate
size. The village itself contains few features of particular interest; the best house is, perhaps, the rectory, a good building of the late 17th century built
by Bishop Stillingfleet (1689–99). Hartlebury Castle
is situated a little to the north-west of the main
village, surrounded by an extensive park. On the east
side of the road ascending to the southward out of
the village, which is built at the foot and upon the
sides of small hills of sandstone, is the old grammar
school, a small and much modernized building of
brick. On the same side of the road, a little distance
to the southward again, new and elaborate buildings
for the accommodation of the school have been
erected, and were opened in 1912.
There used to be in the village an old cross bearing
the date 1666, but it was pulled down by a farmer's
team in 1839 because it was thought to be in the
way, and with it went also the stocks and whippingpost which stood below it. (fn. 3) A sundial covered with
quaint inscriptions used to stand in a cottage garden
surrounded by a yew hedge. It was called the
Wizard's Pillar, being put up in 1687 by a man
named Fidkin, who was considered to be a wizard.
This now stands in the churchyard of Areley Kings. (fn. 4)
On the glebe farm there is a hermit's cave called
Hardwick's Cell. The roof is supported by sandstone
pillars, and a door and window have been cut in the
rock. Two giant oak trees stand in this parish, one
in the bishop's park, called the Prior's Oak, and the
other called the Mitre Oak, on the high road to
Worcester. Probably they marked the boundaries
of the bishop's rights in the forest. The Mitre Oak
is said, but certainly erroneously, to have been the
oak under which Augustine met the Welsh bishops.
In Wilden (Wildon, Wildons, xvi cent.), (fn. 5) a hamlet
on the north-west of Hartlebury, near the Stour and
the Worcestershire and Staffordshire Canal, are the
ironworks of Messrs. Baldwin, Limited.
Torton, on the north-east of the parish, was the
'Torchinton' named in a 13th-century charter as
one of the boundaries within which the forest of
Ombersley was to be disafforested. (fn. 6)
Titton, another hamlet, and part of the episcopal
manor of Hartlebury in the 16th century, was then
called 'Titton, Tiddington or Teddington.' (fn. 7)
Waresley is a hamlet and ancient manor to the
south of the village. Waresley House was for many
years in the latter half of the 19th century the residence of Dr. John Peel, D.D., Dean of Worcester.
From about 1876 until his death in 1912 the Rev.
Benjamin Gibbons lived there. Waresley Court is
now occupied by Lord Hampton.
Whitlench House, (fn. 8) to the east of the village, is the
residence of the Rev. J. P. E. Bulteel, M.A., a
secretary of the Bishop of Worcester. Charlton
House in the hamlet of Charlton is the residence of
Mr. R. M. Danks, J.P.
On Hartlebury Common, on the west of the
parish, were the rifle ranges of the County Rifle
Association, but they are now closed. The common
is held by the county council under a lease from
the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The parish was
inclosed under an Act of 1815, (fn. 9) the award being dated
27 July 1821. (fn. 10)
Upper Mitton is separated from Hartlebury by the
River Stour. The whole of the northern part of the
parish is occupied by a sewage farm. The town,
which lies on the outskirts of Stourport, is in the
south of the parish, with a station on the Severn
Valley branch of the Great Western railway.
Among former place-names in this parish were
Werkmangreve, the Cross of Waresle, Cheyshoute,
Euchencroft, la Chesehouse (fn. 11) (xiii cent.); Murkhous,
le Bruche, Killyngham, Carenforlong, le Brodemore
in Carentesmede, Briddesgrene, Welhegge, (fn. 12) Escherugg or Asscherugge (fn. 13) (xiv cent.); Lynnall or Lynholt
Wood, (fn. 14) Nordalls and Payton or Paynter's Grove, (fn. 15)
Perches (fn. 16) (xvi cent.).
CASTLE
Hartlebury Castle was originally the
manor-house of Hartlebury, and has
always followed the same descent as the
manor. Walter Cantilupe began to build in the
time of Henry III, (fn. 17) the castle being finished by
Bishop Giffard, who in 1268 obtained a royal licence
to complete its fortification. (fn. 18) The first royal visitor
to the castle was Edward I, who came here on his
way to suppress the Welsh rebellion of 1282. He
then called upon Bishop Giffard to have ready his
forces to join the expedition. (fn. 19) Twelve years later
Edward again spent a day here when he was journeying to Wales. (fn. 20)
In the middle of the 16th century the castle is
described as a 'fayre Maner Place … having ii
lyttel Towers covered with Leade, and the Chamber
cauled the Bishop's Chamber also covered with Leade,
and there is a Chappell annexed to the said Chamber
lykewyse covered with Leade, where ys a lyttell Bell
weying by estimacion dimid. hundred Weight. Also
there is a Mote and a Ponde adjoyning to the said
Castell well stored with Fyshe.' (fn. 21)
Elizabeth stayed at Hartlebury for a week on one
occasion, being entertained by Bishop Bullingham. (fn. 22)
The castle was the principal residence of the
Bishops of Worcester during the 16th and first half
of the 17th century, (fn. 23) until it fell into the hands of
the Parliamentarians in 1646. In 1644 the Commissioners of Array, being pursued, fled here from
Ombersley, considering it a safer place than Worcester, (fn. 24)
but William Sandys, the governor of the castle, surrendered it in May 1646 to Colonel Thomas Morgan
without a shot having been fired. (fn. 25)
The castle is said to have been destroyed by the
Parliamentary army, but it was afterwards used as a
prison for Royalist plotters, and from a survey taken in
1648 it is evident that the building was still standing.
It was then described as a strong castle situated upon
a rock with a moat round about it filled with water.
The Commissioners intended to have it pulled down,
and the value of the materials was estimated at
£820 15s. 10d. (fn. 26) In 1647 the castle was sold with
the manor to Thomas Westrowe. (fn. 27)
Bishop Lloyd was in residence in the reconstructed
castle in 1699, and a list of the household goods
found there by him is given in Francis Evans's
diary. (fn. 28) Bishop Hurd was visited at the castle on
2 August 1788 by George III and the queen
accompanied by the Duke of York, the Princess Royal
and the Princesses Augusta and Elizabeth. (fn. 29) It is
said that in 1803, during the panic caused by the
projected invasion of the Emperor Napoleon, his
Majesty contemplated removing to Hartlebury with
the royal family for greater security. (fn. 30) Bishop Hurd
actually made the offer, and the king, though considering that he himself ought to be nearer the centre
of action, said that in so unhappy an event he would
feel much confidence in placing the queen and
princesses under the care of the bishop. In 1846
Hartlebury was made the sole palace of the see of
Worcester, (fn. 31) and some lands in the parish were vested
in the bishop in 1870. (fn. 32)
There has been a chapel in the castle from very
early times. In 1285 Bishop Giffard held an
ordination in his chapel of Hartlebury. (fn. 33) Bishop
Hemenhale received in this chapel the vow of the
widowed Lady Isabella de Stepilton in 1337, and
blessed her in forma benedicendarum viduarum. As she
was not 'of the lord's jurisdiction' Lord William de
Birmingham swore that such vow should be kept
under penalty of 100d. 'in subsidy of the Holy
Land to be applied.' (fn. 34) Orders were frequently celebrated by the bishops in this chapel. (fn. 35)
Hartlebury Castle stands on a plateau of red sandstone, surrounded on three sides by a moat partly filled
with water. On the east side the moat has been filled
up. The remaining part is about 100 ft. wide, and
incloses a space of about 4 acres, on the west side of
which the house is placed, the ground at the back falling
away sharply to the level of the moat, while on the east
or entrance side, towards the village of Hartlebury, there
is a large forecourt. The whole of this space seems
originally to have been inclosed by a wall, of which
the north-west bastion alone remains. The character
of its masonry suggests that it belongs to the period
of Giffard. Of the house itself, which does not seems
to have been more than a fortified manor-house, the
earliest portions which can be definitely dated are the
hall, the chapel, with the apartments to the west of
it, and a small piece of the west wall of the present
kitchen. They appear, from the few original
details which have survived, to be of the 15th
century, though much altered and incorporated into
later work. Bishop Carpenter built a gate-house
and draw-bridge on the east side of the house, near
the present entrance gates, and he may perhaps have
been the builder of the hall. The drastic rebuildings and alterations to which the castle was subjected
in the last half of the 17th century have rendered
the evidence of the structure itself difficult to read.
Bishop Carpenter's gate-house has long disappeared,
and Bishop Hurd is said to have removed in 1781
the last vestiges of the original keep, which is described
as having stood to the east of the present house. (fn. 36) As
the buildings stand at present they consist of the hall,
with the principal entrance at the south-east, the
chapel wing on the south, projecting towards the east,
and connected with the hall by a range of buildings
of nearly equal length, and a north wing, answering
to the chapel wing.
The only original detail remaining in the hall
is the timber roof, now partly concealed by a
plaster ceiling at the level of the collars. There
are six principals, two being against the wall at either
end. They have wall posts, resting upon corbels,
from which the collars are strutted by modern
curved braces forming four-centred arches. The
moulded ribs of the original ceiling following the
slope of the sides of the roof are still visible, though
the panels are plastered. The entrance is now at
the south-east; the original entrance and the screens
were probably at the north end, on which side was,
and still is, the kitchen, though completely rebuilt.
Two recesses with moulded four-centred heads and
jambs, plastered and painted, opposite to each other
at the south end of the hall, and containing the
entrance and garden doorways, may perhaps point to
the former existence of oriels at the daïs end. The
north wall is now occupied by an early 19th-century
stone geometrical staircase, leading to a doorway
giving entrance to the first floor of the north wing.
There are three plain pointed windows in the east
wall. In the centre of the north wall is a fine stone
chimney-piece of the late 17th century, placed there
by Bishop Hough, with his shield over the opening,
Worcester impaling argent a bend sable. South
of the hall is the saloon, lighted by three pointed
windows in its east wall, balancing those of the hall.
The walls and ceiling are fine examples of early
18th-century plaster work. At the rear of the hall
and saloon is a long corridor, divided by a lobby,
through which the hall is entered from the moat or
garden side. Previously to the end of the 18th
century this would seem to have been of one story
only. At this period Bishop Hurd added the library
on the first floor above it. This is a fine apartment,
long and narrow, divided into a central and two
shorter end bays by Ionic columns, and having a
semicircular bay window in the centre of the west
wall. The ceiling is coved and flat, and the design is
in the Adam manner. The original drawings which
have been preserved are dated 1782, and are signed
by one James Smith of Shifnall; the plaster work
was executed by Joseph Bromfield of Shrewsbury.
The elevation presented to the forecourt by this
range of buildings is long, low, and uninteresting.
The sandstone facing, which renders the earlier and
later work externally indistinguishable, is probably
the work of Bishop Fleetwood (consecrated 1675),
whose shield is placed over the entrance porch. On
either side of the porch are the plain pointed
windows of the hall and saloon. A print of 1731
shows these as square-headed; by the end of the
18th century the testimony of another print shows
that they had assumed their present form. The
whole is crowned by an embattled parapet. The
elevation towards the moat is of two stories, with the
semicircular bay window of Bishop Hurd's library in
the centre. The windows are plain square openings,
and the parapet is likewise embattled. The slope
of the roof towards the forecourt is slated, while the
slope on the moat side is tiled. A flèche of Strawberry Hill Gothic, surmounted by a vane, and
exhibiting a dial and pointer to show the direction
of the wind, is perched on the centre of the ridge.
Adjoining the saloon on the south is a projecting
two-storied portion containing the drawing room, a
small library, and the principal stairs, while south of
this again is the chapel, two stories in height, which
projects nearly its whole length into the forecourt.
At the west end of the chapel is a two-storied range
of apartments of equal height, the west wall of which
is flush with the west wall of the central range of
buildings described above. Neither the drawing
room nor the adjoining apartment possesses any feature
of interest. The stairs appear to be of the last half
of the 17th century, at which date this block appears
to have been rebuilt. The chapel is a good example
of the 'Gothic taste' of the 18th century. The
date of the walls is uncertain. The print of 1731
referred to above shows an east window of four lights
with intersecting tracery in the head and a gable
over it. If any reliance can be placed on this view,
it would put the date well back into the 14th
century. Here again the refacing of the walls inside
and out renders it impossible to dogmatize. The
buttresses, of which there are five, two angle buttresses
at the east end and three on the south wall, one
belonging to the apartments at the west end, are
suspiciously wiry in their proportions, but their
mouldings seem too good for the 18th century.
Some of the windows of the west part of the chapel
range are evidently openings of the 15th century,
having four-centred heads; on the whole, it seems
most likely that the whole of the range, chapel
included, may be assigned to that date. The chapel
in its present form has an east window of three
pointed lights, with three pointed two-light windows
in each side wall, all of the 18th century. The
chapel and the adjoining apartments on the west are
covered by one hipped roof covered with slate.
Internally the chapel is wainscoted with 'Gothic'
panelling of the Batty Langley school. The ceiling
is a plaster fan-vault. In the upper lights of the
side windows are the shields of some of the most
noteworthy of the former bishops. These, which are
by Price, are good specimens of 18th-century glass
painting. In the west wall is a window opening into
the first floor of the adjoining apartment.
The northern wing balances the chapel wing and
seems to be almost entirely of the 17th century, with
the exception of part of the west wall of the kitchen,
against which is a large buttress of one offset, which
may belong to the 15th century.
The forecourt is inclosed by low brick walls on
the north and south; on the east side are the entrance
gates with small lodges on either side. These are
the work of Fleetwood, though, like the rest of his
work, Gothicized in the 18th century. An outer
court is formed by stables running east and west on
either side of the lodges. Those on the north side
have been altered into a clergy-house. All trace of
the moat on this side has disappeared.
There has for long been a PARK at Hartlebury.
In the 16th century there was a 'lyttell Parke
conteanying one Myle abowte … wherein be
lxxvi Deare.' The keeper, Francis Blount, had
pasture there for one horse and two kine by a grant
of the dean and chapter, and by a grant for life from
the bishop pasture for 5 kine. (fn. 37) In a deposition of
the reign of Charles II it was said that the park of
about 100 acres was impaled and well stocked with
deer in early times, the bishop paying to the rector
in lieu of tithes one shoulder of every deer killed
there. It was disparked before it was sold with the
manor to Thomas Westrowe in 1647, and was then
divided up, one half of it being fenced. (fn. 38) In 1701
the park pale was in a state of dilapidation and
Bishop Lloyd allowed timber for its repairs to be
taken from Monks Wood and his demesne at Grimley
and Hartlebury. (fn. 39) A detailed account of the deer in
Hartlebury Park from 1699 to 1709 was kept by the
bishop's secretary and is still preserved.
MANORS
HARTLEBURY is said to have been
given to the Bishop of Worcester by
Burhed, King of Mercia (c. 850). (fn. 40) It
certainly belonged to the bishopric in 985, when
Bishop Oswald granted half a ' mansa' there to his
'familiar friend' Leofwine for three lives. (fn. 41) The
manor is enumerated among the lands of the see in
the Domesday Survey, (fn. 42) and in 1199 John granted
to the bishop in this manor such liberties as he
enjoyed in his other manors. (fn. 43)
The bishop obtained a grant of free warren at
Hartlebury in 1254 and 1255. (fn. 44) In 1291 the
manor, containing 2 carucates of land, was worth
£25 13s. 4d. (fn. 45) It remained in the possession of successive bishops (fn. 46) until Bishop Hooper, during his short
occupation of the see, gave it to Edward VI, (fn. 47) who
in 1553 granted it to the Duke of Northumberland. (fn. 48)
In the same year the duke sold it to Sir Francis Jobson. (fn. 49)
On the restitution of Bishop Heath he re-entered
into possession of the manor, (fn. 50) but Sir Francis Jobson,
through the influence of the Earl of Leicester,
obtained an Act confirming his title in March 1558, (fn. 51)
in spite of the protests of the bishop. Sir Francis
died in 1573, (fn. 52) and before 1578 the manor again
became a possession of the see of Worcester. (fn. 53) In
1647 the Parliamentary Commissioners sold it to
Thomas Westrowe. (fn. 54) At the Restoration it was
given back to the see, (fn. 55) and passed in 1860 into the
hands of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, (fn. 56) who are
the present lords of the manor.
Five 'manses' at WARESLEY (Waresley, x cent.;
Wearesleah, xi cent.; Waereslege, xii cent.;
Warbelsley, Warvysley, Wardesley, xvi cent.) were
given by Bishop Oswald in 980 to his clerk Wulfgar.
The land (fn. 57) remained subject to the church until
shortly before the Conquest, when, Bishop Wulfstan
having granted it to Alfwine son of Beorhtmœr, it was
seized on the death of Alfwine by Urse the sheriff. (fn. 58)
Thus, according to the monastic chronicler, the
church lost this land. The bishop's right of overlordship seems, however, still to have been recognized,
for in the 12th century the land was held of the
manor of Hartlebury, (fn. 59) and was still said to be held
of the bishop in 1505. (fn. 60)
Urse's interest passed to the lords of Elmley, and
the manor was held of the honour of Elmley until
the end of the 14th century. (fn. 61)
Towards the end of the 12th century Walter de
Bromsgrove held Waresley of William de Beauchamp. (fn. 62)
The family of Bishopsdon held land under the
Beauchamps at the beginning of the 13th century, if
not earlier, for in 1208 a writ of mort d'ancestor
was brought by William Black and his wife Eleanor
in the name of Neste, the mother of Eleanor, against
William de Bishopsdon for 2½ hides in Pepwell
and Waresley. William called to warranty the son
of William de Beauchamp to prove that the latter had
given the land to Frarinus (fn. 63) de Bishopsdon. The
plea concludes: 'William Black being asked by what
warranty he married Eleanor said that he found her
penniless and married her for herself.' (fn. 64) William de
Bishopsdon, in the rebellion of the barons against
John, followed his lord Walter de Beauchamp, and on
that account forfeited his lands, but they were restored
to him in 1216. (fn. 65) William was dealing with land in
Waresley in 1220, (fn. 66) and it was perhaps his son
William who granted land at Waresley in 1225 to
Hawisia daughter of Eleanor, (fn. 67) who may have been
his sister. William de Bishopsdon joined the barons
against Henry III, and forfeited his lands, which
were, however, restored to him in 1268, under the
'Dictum of Kenilworth.' (fn. 68) Thomas de Bishopsdon
afterwards held the manor, his widow Joan holding
dower of his lands in 1339. (fn. 69) John de Bishopsdon,
who obtained a grant of free warren in his demesne
lands here in 1319, was probably grandson of
Thomas. (fn. 70) In 1339 this John, then Sir John, settled
land in Waresley upon himself and his wife Beatrice
for life, with remainder in tail-male to his sons Roger
and John. (fn. 71) Beatrice survived her husband and her
son Roger, and was still holding land at Waresley in
1374, when Thomas son of Roger de Bishopsdon
conveyed the reversion after her death to trustees. (fn. 72)
Thomas died in 1386 in possession of the manor of
Waresley. (fn. 73) His son William succeeded and granted
all his land in Waresley to his daughter Iseult in frank
marriage. (fn. 74) Iseult apparently left no children, for the
manor passed into Castesby family through the
marriage of Philippa daughter of William de Bishopsdon with Sir William Catesby. (fn. 75)
Their son William Catesby was attainted and
forfeited all his estates in 1486, but they were
restored to his son George in 1495. (fn. 76) He died in
1505, leaving a son William, (fn. 77) on whose death in 1517
the estate passed to his brother
Richard. (fn. 78) Richard died in
1553, leaving as his heir his
kinsman William Catesby,
then a minor. This William
was his grandson, son of his
son William. (fn. 79) The manor
of Waresley was assigned as
dower to Katherine widow of
William son of Sir Richard
Catesby, who afterwards became the wife of Anthony
Throckmorton. (fn. 80) William
(then Sir William) Catesby
leased the manor in 1577 to
Edmund Catesby and others for twenty-one years
after the death of Katherine Throckmorton, who still
held the manor as jointure. (fn. 81) This lease was assigned
in 1591 to Thomas Best. (fn. 82) Habington states that Sir
William Catesby sold the manor to Mr. Henry Cookes,
'in whose heirs Waresley for the greatest part continued,' (fn. 83) but it seems probable that the property was
sold to Thomas Best by Sir William Catesby, for in
1619 William Best and his wife Margery were holding
the manor, (fn. 84) and in 1646 Gervase Wheeler and his
wife Joyce had come into possession of it, (fn. 85) and continued to hold it as late as 1694. (fn. 86) In 1764 William
Wheeler was owner of the manor. (fn. 87) In 1817 it was
conveyed by Thomas Harward and his wife Anne to
William Prattinton. (fn. 88) Mr. Watson writing in 1839
said the manor then belonged to the Rev. Thomas
Harward of Winterfold. (fn. 89) Part of the manor passed
under his will to the Rev. Thomas Littleton Wheeler,
whose son Canon Thomas Littleton Wheeler acquired
the rest under the will of Miss Mary Jane Harward
in 1908. On the death of Canon Wheeler in 1910
the property was vested in trustees for sale, his widow
Mrs. Katherine Ewart Wheeler being tenant for
life. (fn. 90)
Catesby. Argent two leopards sable with golden crowns.
There is no mention of PEPWELL (Pipewell,
xiii cent.; Peopwell, Pepewell, xiv cent.; Peppwall,
Popewelle, xv cent.) in the Domesday Survey, but it
was probably one of the berewicks belonging to the
manor of Hartlebury at that time, as it was held of
that manor in 1281, when William de Portes did
suit at the bishop's court of Hartlebury by reason of
his tenure of Pepwell. (fn. 91) No other mention of the
overlordship occurs.
As early as 1208 the Bishopsdon family held
land here as well as in Waresley, (fn. 92) and it continued
in their hands until about the end of the 14th
century, when William de Bishopsdon gave it to
his daughter Iseult in free marriage. After this little
connexion can be made out between the successive
owners. John Lench, who was attainted in 1461
and put to death 'for having followed his holy king
and master Henry VI,' (fn. 93) owned a messuage and land
in Pepwell. (fn. 94) In 1537 John son and heir of William
'Stapull' granted the manor to Richard Hunt for
£30, part of it being then held by Elizabeth Grewell,
John's grandmother. (fn. 95) John Stapleton sold it in
1538 to Henry Morgan, (fn. 96) who with his wife Agnes
is known to have owned the property until 1549. (fn. 97)
William Cookes had acquired it before 1595, and
after his death in 1619 he was succeeded by his son
Edward. (fn. 98) Prattinton, writing at the beginning of
the 19th century, states that Pepwell then belonged
to Mr. Glasebrook. (fn. 99)
The manor of UPPER MITTON (Mutton, xiv cent.)
is in the hundred of Lower Halfshire, and is separated
from the rest of the parish of Hartlebury by the River
Stour. It is not mentioned by name in the Domesday Survey, but it was probably one of the six berewicks of Hartlebury, of which manor it was held
until the 17th century. (fn. 100)
In 1359–60 John Sapy and his wife Isabel sold a
messuage, a mill, and a carucate of land in Over
Mitton to Edmund de Brugge. (fn. 101) John Lench held
land at Mitton at the time of his attainder in 1461, (fn. 102)
and this was granted in the following year to Sir
Walter Scull. (fn. 103)
Agnes widow of John Dombleton died seised of
the manor of Over Mitton in 1495. (fn. 104) Her heir and
successor Margery daughter of William Dombleton
was involved in the following year in a lawsuit with
Richard Habington and Richard Brown as to a watermill belonging to this manor. (fn. 105) According to the
Visitation of Worcester of 1569 the two plaintiffs
were sons of Elizabeth or Parnell and Perino, daughters
of John de Dombleton and his wife Agnes. (fn. 106) The
manor of Over Mitton seems eventually to have
passed to Richard Brown, for he and his wife
Anna sold it in 1522 to Henry White, William
Jefson, and Edward Saxilby, (fn. 107) who conveyed it three
years later to Simon Rice. (fn. 108) It then passed with
Croome D'Abitot (q.v.) to Sir Francis Clare, who
inherited it in 1580. (fn. 109) From that date it followed
the same descent as Caldwall Hall in Kidderminster
(q.v.) until 1777, when it passed with that manor
from Anthony Deane to Matthew and Thomas
Jeffreys. (fn. 110) Its descent after that time has not been
found.
POOLLANDS FARM was leased by John Pooler
from the Bishop of Worcester in 1655, when he was
accused of being an adherent of the King of Scotland
and his estates sequestered. (fn. 111) Evidence having been
brought before the Treasury Commissions to prove
the accusation groundless, his estates were restored,
but four years later they were again sequestered for
his complicity in Sir George Booth's rising. (fn. 112) Hugh
Pooler was holding a lease of Poollands in 1664, (fn. 113)
and in 1710 an Act was passed for the sale of the
estate of Humphrey Pooler. (fn. 114)
There were belonging to the Bishop of Worcester (fn. 115)
in this parish in 1086 two mills worth 4s. and
10 horseloads of grain yearly. They were worth
£3 in 1291. (fn. 116) Eight years later one water-mill
'next the vivary' was leased by the bishop to Adam
de Hartlebury and his wife Agnes. (fn. 117) This mill was
known as 'Polemulne,' and there was also a fullingmill in the manor. (fn. 118) In 1302 the water-mill was
leased for 58s. and the fulling-mill for 23s. (fn. 119) In
1644 an order was issued to all commanders in the
service of the king and Parliament to forbid the
plunder of cloth in the fulling-mills in Hartlebury
belonging to Robert Wilmot. (fn. 120) At the present day
there is a corn-mill at Titton on a tributary of the
Severn and another on the Stour.
The bishops had fishing rights in Hartlebury, a
weir in the Severn being leased at 16s. in 1299, (fn. 121)
and at 11s. 3d. in 1302. (fn. 122) There were four fishponds in the manor in 1299. (fn. 123) In 1359 Bishop
Brian wrote denouncing 'certain sons of iniquity
who have incurred excommunication' for entering
his manor and taking away fish. (fn. 124)
The tenants of the bishop in the 16th century
were allowed common pasture for their cattle on the
bishop's meadow of 16 acres from Michaelmas to
Candlemas, in return for which they cut and made
the hay on 10 acres of the meadow without payment,
the bishop supplying them with meat and drink
during this work. (fn. 125)
CHURCHES
The church of ST. JAMES
(fn. 126) consists of a chancel, with south chapel
and north organ chamber and vestry,
nave with north and south aisles, continued west to
form staircases to the side galleries, a western tower
and a west porch. The building is almost completely modern, having been designed by Rickman
in 1836, and as such is not without interest. The
detail is scholarly but the general design is poor.
The chancel is three bays long with open arcades to
the two eastern bays. On the north side this is
original early 14th-century work with pointed arches
of two chamfered orders resting on piers of four halfround columns with moulded circular capitals and
bases, and is the only part of the chancel not entirely
modern. The arcading on the south is a modern
copy. The east window is of four lights with
geometrical tracery, and the moulded chancel arch
has shafted jambs. The nave, of similar design, is
four bays long with attenuated sandstone piers supporting two-centred moulded arches, above which is
a groined and vaulted plaster ceiling. The north
and south aisles are lit by five three-light windows
divided horizontally by the north and south galleries.
The tower is of 16th-century date and bears on a
pedimented tablet the arms of Bishop Sandys and
the date 1587. It is of three stages with diagonal
buttresses and an embattled parapet with modern
angle pinnacles. The belfry openings are of two
lights under a three-centred main arch. Against the
west side of the tower is a modern two-storied porch,
and above the west door is a window of three lights.
Only the lower part of the bowl of the font is
original 12th-century work. It is circular with
nail-head ornament.
The tower contains a ring of eight bells with a
sanctus. The treble and second are modern, and
were cast in 1900 by Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel when the belfry was restored. The third was
cast by J. Briant of Hertford in 1812, and the fourth
was recast in 1900. The fifth and seventh are
dated 1640, and are the work of Thomas Hancox,
the latter bearing the inscription in Roman capitals
'Master Eyre the coroner gave to this bell thirty
pounds.' The sixth is an interesting mediaeval bell
by a 16th-century Worcester founder, and bears the
inscription in Lombardic capitals 'SANCTA MARIA VIRGO
INTERCEDE PRO TOTO MUNDO QVEYA (sic) GENVISTI REGEM
ORBIS.' The eighth was cast by Abraham Rudhall in
1704, and the sanctus bears the churchwardens'
names and the date 1678.
The plate consists of a set presented by William
Lloyd, Bishop of Worcester, and Ann his wife, 1714,
having been made in the previous year. The set
comprises two cups, one handle paten and one flat
paten, two flagons and an almsdish, all silver gilt.
The registers are as follows: (i) mixed entries
from 1540 to 1754 with gaps 1553 to 1560 and
1672 to 1673; (ii) baptisms and burials 1755 to
1787; (iii) baptisms and burials 1788 to 1812;
(iv) marriages 1754 to 1803; (v) marriages 1803 to
1812.
The church of ALL SAINTS at Wilden was built
in 1879 by the late Mr. Alfred Baldwin as a chapel
of ease to St. Michael, Stourport. It consists of
chancel, nave, organ chamber, south porch and
western bell-turret. Wilden was constituted a
separate ecclesiastical parish in 1904, the living being
a vicarage in the gift of Mr. Stanley Baldwin.
The Mission Church of ST. MARY, Bishop's
Wood, was presented to the parish by Bishop
Philpott, who opened it in 1882. It is built in
the half-timbered style of the surrounding houses,
on a beautiful site overlooking the Severn. Bishop
Philpott was buried in the churchyard, which was
added in 1892. Archdeacon Lea presented a little
silver cup said to be of 1571 for use in this church. (fn. 127)
There is a church mission room at Summerfield.
ADVOWSON
A priest at Hartlebury is mentioned in 1086, (fn. 128) and the church
was granted by Bishop Samson in
1097 to the monks of Worcester with a hide of land
and the tithes. (fn. 129) In 1148 Bishop Simon confirmed
to them the church with a chapel and lands belonging. (fn. 130) Bishop Giffard consecrated a church at Hartlebury in honour of St. James the Apostle in 1269. (fn. 131)
Wishing to enrich the college of Westbury-on-Trym
Giffard tried to appropriate the rectory of Hartlebury
to it, (fn. 132) and for a short time Hartlebury became a
vicarage, the rector presenting a vicar in 1280. (fn. 133)
On account of the expostulations of the monks of
Worcester the bishop revoked the appropriation, and
in 1290 he presented John de Rodeberewe (fn. 134) to the
church, having previously given it to him as a
prebend of Westbury. (fn. 135) The advowson of the
church of Hartlebury has belonged from that time
to the Bishops of Worcester. (fn. 136)
The living of Hartlebury was a peculiar, the
rector holding concurrent jurisdiction with the
chancellor in proving wills and granting administrations. It was visited by the bishop triennially, the
other two years by the rector of Hartlebury. (fn. 137)
In 1291 the church of Hartlebury was valued at
£20, (fn. 138) and at 30 marks in the 14th century. (fn. 139) In
1535 the rectory was valued at £30. (fn. 140) At this time
the rector of Hartlebury received from the rectory of
Elmley Lovett 20s. 6d. and from the rectory of
Doverdale 2s. (fn. 141) The rector of Hartlebury sued the
xrector of Doverdale in 1450 for this latter sum,
which he claimed had been paid from time immemorial. (fn. 142) Bishop Simon in the 12th century granted
all tithes of hay in his vill of Hartlebury to the use
of the monks and for hospitality. (fn. 143) These tithes were
said in 1303 to be worth 16s. (fn. 144) A rent of £1 6s. 8d.
was paid to the monks of Worcester out of the rectory
of Hartlebury in 1291, (fn. 145) and in 1542 Henry VIII
granted this rent to the Dean and Chapter of Worcester. (fn. 146) This gift was confirmed by James I. (fn. 147)
A chantry dedicated to St. Mary the Virgin was
founded in the church of St. Mary the Virgin of
Hartlebury in 1323 by Richard Mayel for the souls
of John de Rodeberewe (fn. 148) and his father and mother and
all the faithful departed, certain lands in Waresley
'Wetelyng' (?Whitlench), Stone, Shenston, Walton and
Lychmor being granted to a chaplain to celebrate daily
service there. (fn. 149) In 1337 Richard Mayel and Maud,
formerly wife of Alexander D'Abitot, presented the
chantry priest, (fn. 150) but before 1457 the patronage had
devolved upon the bishop. (fn. 151) The chantry is mentioned again in 1472, (fn. 152) but appears to have been
dissolved before 1549, its revenues having, perhaps,
been granted before that time to Hartlebury School,
for among the property of the governors of the school
are Chantry Meadow and the meadow of St. Mary. (fn. 153)
Kenrick Watson, writing in 1839, states that in the
churchyard under an arch in the wall of that part of
the church which was formerly called St. Mary's
chantry was a monument of John de Rodeberewe,
but that the monument was destroyed when the old
church was taken down. (fn. 154) It is uncertain whether
this chantry was the same as the chantry of Waresley
to which the bishop presented in 1362. (fn. 155)
In 1548 there was an obit in the parish maintained
by the rent of a piece of meadow then worth 1s. 6d., (fn. 156)
and in 1638 Charles I granted to Sir Edward Sawyer
a meadow called Netherton in the parish of Kidder-minster, which had been given for obits in Hartlebury
Church. (fn. 157)
Upper Mitton, part of the benefice of Hartlebury,
was transferred to Lower Mitton in 1877. (fn. 158)
The Congregationalists have a mission chapel at
Crossway Green in connexion with Baxter Chapel,
Kidderminster, erected in 1860, and there is a
Baptist chapel at Upper Mitton.
CHARITIES
The Free Grammar School and
charity of Mrs. Hannah Eyre for
education. (fn. 159)
In 1634 Samuel Manninge, by will proved at
Worcester, gave a close of land to the poor. The
trust property consists of about 5 a. in St. Peter,
Droitwich, producing £10 yearly, which is distributed
in sums of 4s. each to poor widows.
The Almshouse Charity—as recorded on the table
of benefactions—about 2 a. of land with two cottages
thereon in the manor of Waresley were appropriated
to the use of the poor. The property is let at
£11 6s. a year, which is also distributed in sums of
4s. each to poor widows.
In 1821 William Hyde by will left a legacy of
£400, now represented by £430 13s. 8d. consols
with the official trustees, the annual dividends of
which, amounting to £10 15s. 4d. are applied as to
£2 5s. to the bell-ringers for ringing peals on the
anniversary of testator's birth, 10s. to the parish clerk
and 2s. to the sexton for attending to the grave of
testator's mother, the residue being distributed in bread.
In 1874 Mary Hurst by deed gave a sum of £50
for coals for the poor. It was invested in £53 16s. 6d.
consols with the official trustees, producing £1 6s. 8d.
yearly.