FINCHAMPSTEAD
Finchamestede (xi cent.); Fynchamstede, Finghamstede (xiv cent.).
The parish of Finchampstead is situated on the
right bank of the River Blackwater, between Sandhurst
and Swallowfield. The area is 3,943 acres, of which
993 are arable, 964 permanent grass and 1,687 woods
and plantations. (fn. 1) The surface is very undulating,
rising to a height of 300 ft. above the ordnance
datum at Church Hill and 331 ft. at Ridge Farm,
and sloping steeply down towards the valley of the
Blackwater. The western end is London Clay, but
the main portion consists of sands and clays of the
Lower, Middle and Upper Bagshot Beds. The
church stands on a small outlier of the upper sands,
which are again found in the higher parts of Finchampstead Ridges, capped by a considerable thickness
of plateau gravel. As a ferruginous conglomerate this
has been used as building stone, as, for example, in
the tower of All Saints' Church, Wokingham. There
is a little alluvium and valley gravel on the banks of
the Blackwater. The western side of the parish is
agricultural, while much of the surface of the other
parts is covered with heath and pine woods, forming
part of the well-known Bagshot pine district. Finchampstead was a bailiwick of the forest of Windsor,
the appointment to the office of bailiff being vested
in the Crown. (fn. 2) The bailiwick included the three reddeer walks of Sandhurst, Bigshot and Easthampstead. (fn. 3)
The parish was inclosed by an Act of 1813, (fn. 4) and
the award of the commissioners under the Windsor
Forest Inclosure Act was issued in 1818.
The Roman road, commonly called the Devil's
Highway, connecting Staines with Silchester, runs
through the parish. In the field called Six Acres a
Roman milestone was found in 1841, which is now
in the garden of Banisters. The house called West
Court stands on the road. (fn. 5)
Under the years 1029, 1098, 1100, 1103 and
1164 (fn. 6) the Chronicles record that blood was seen
gushing out of the earth at Finchampstead in Berkshire. The well to which this tradition belonged
was called Dozzells Well and was situated at the
edge of the road leading from Finchampstead to
Eversley Bridge. Its water was reputed to be a cure
for bad eyes. It was destroyed a few years ago when
the road was widened.
Before the inclosure of the forest (1818) the
village was very inaccessible. No bridge spanned
the Blackwater until Eversley Bridge was erected in
1819. Finchampstead or Long Water Bridge, to
which the 'New Road' then constructed leads, was
built in 1854. A drift way led to Eversley Bridge,
and another green road led across the Ridges to the
Wokingham and Sandhurst road. Mr. John Walter
constructed in 1861–3 the fine road across the Ridges
and planted each side with Wellingtonias. Mr. Walter
also constructed in 1887 a new road extending the
Wokingham highway to the Ridges. The old Wokingham road leads to the church, and thence to the
Ridges. The Nine Mile Ride, constructed by
George III, runs through and ends in the northern
part of the parish. A road, known as the Reading
road, starting from Eversley Bridge, runs north to the
Devil's Highway and thence to Arborfield.
The old centre of the village was Fair Green, near
the Greyhound Inn. An annual fair was granted to
the lord of the manor (fn. 7) in 1458. (fn. 8) It lasted three
days, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in Whitsun
week. In 1583 Thomas Harrison had a renewed
grant of this Whitsuntide fair, which has been
long discontinued. At the beginning of last century
an annual fair was held on the first Wednesday in
April within the West Court Manor, (fn. 9) but this is
also no longer held, and the green has been inclosed.
The church stands on an eminence about half a
mile north-west of the village, which has the usual
type of red brick cottages with a few of half-timber
work. The old manor-house of East Court stood
west of the church, near which a new house called
the Manor House has been recently built. Inside
was a large hall with a good tiled pavement. The
brickwork of the wall which now surrounds the
garden is old, and the former tenant, Dr. Warre,
late head master of Eton College, recently discovered
a large oven. Traces of terrace walks are still
evident. Until 1879 extensive farm buildings belonging to the old house were standing on the eastern
side of the churchyard. The present East Court,
formerly known as Cowdries, is mentioned in a Court
Roll of 1607. Some portions of the 17th-century
house remain, but it was greatly enlarged by Mr.
Charles Fyshe-Palmer at the beginning of the last
century and by Mr. John Walter in 1870. In 1326
the warden of the hospital of God's House, Southampton, had a residence at Finchampstead. (fn. 10)
The West Court manor-house until it was enlarged
and renovated by the Rev. Henry Ellis St. John in
1835 had a moat and drawbridge. The house is of
red brick with tiled roofs and dates from the 17th
century or perhaps earlier. The stair hall has been
reduced to little more than a passage, the stairs being
turned another way and the space thrown into the
next room. The rooms are lofty for their size, and
there are several fine carved oak fireplaces and much
panelling of the 17th and 18th centuries. The finest
fireplace is perhaps that in the drawing room,
formerly in the bedroom above; it has richly carved
wood shafts in its jambs, and the overmantel is divided
into three bays with allegorical female figures representing Wisdom, Justice, and the Arts. The middle
panel is now filled with a later achievement of arms,
Quarterly: 1 and 4, three fleurs de lis in a border
charged with roses (Lennox), 2 and 3, a fesse checky
in a border engrailed (Stewart); over all a scutcheon
charged with a saltire between four roses; perhaps in
memory of Lady Elizabeth Stewart, mother of Lords
Charles and Bernard Howard respectively husbands
of Mary and Katherine, co-heirs of George Tattershall
of West Court. The next room (the 'Justice' or
'Oak' room) is lined with oak panelling, all plain
excepting round the top, against the ceiling, where
the panels are carved with strapwork ornament (fn. 11) ;
the fireplace in this room has allegorical figures like
the fireplace in the drawing room, and an overdoor
in the entrance hall has figures of the same type, with
a shield of arms, the connexion of which with the
house is not known, said to be Wilstrop quartering
Gardiner and impaling Bigg. Upstairs is a low passage
which is thought to have been a priest's hiding hole,
and possibly dates from the time when the Howards
tenanted the place. Several of the bedrooms have
panelling like that downstairs. A fireplace of plainer
design and of early 17th-century date was brought
from Tylney Hall, while another is of Italian workmanship. There is also an overmantel made from a
large 17th-century cabinet, and other fragments. The
stairs have twisted balusters and have all been painted.
The house contains some interesting portraits of
the ancestors of the St. John family, including those
of Lord and Lady Bolingbroke. The portrait of
Ellis Mews (b. 1679), who assumed the name of
St. John on his marriage with his cousin Frances
St. John, was at one time in the possession of the
family, but it was so damaged by a fall that it could
not be restored. There is also a large painting of a
hunting scene near Dogmersfield, the property of
Sir Henry St. John Mildmay, painted by Seymour
about 1720, showing several portraits of members
of the family in the foreground, including that of
Mrs. St. John, the wife of Ellis St. John (formerly
Mews), and her son seated in a two-wheeled carriage
drawn by six horses.
The house named Banisters recalls the name of a
family who once owned the manor. This property
apparently belonged to a younger branch of the
family. It was held in the time of Edward III by
Nicholas Banister under the lords of Aldermaston,
and consisted of a messuage and 40 acres of land
with appurtenances. (fn. 12) In 1337 a mill, then worth
7s. 8d. a year, together with 105 acres of land, was
entailed upon Thomas Banister and his wife Amice. (fn. 13)
In 1456 Thomas Banister witnessed a deed of
Stephen Colle, lord of West Court, concerning
Wynnebush, a property in the parish. (fn. 14) A terrier of
Aldermaston shows 'the heir of John Banister' holding
in 1549. John Banister appears on the Lay Subsidy
Roll of 1585, William Banister on that of 1597 and
Thomas on that of 1629. (fn. 15) William Banister died
in 1619 seised of two messuages and 124 acres of
land held of the manor of Finchampstead West
Court, Thomas Banister being his son and heir. (fn. 16) In
the list of those paying hearth tax in 1662 John
Banister appears as paying for seven hearths. (fn. 17) In
the reign of Charles II the present house was built,
over the porch of which is the date 1683 and
the letters B/JH, which an entry in the register
explains to stand for John and Hannah Banister.
This John is described in the register as 'a rich
man.' He is apparently the John Banister of
Finchampstead who was appointed regarder of the
forest in 1695. (fn. 18) John Banister, who died in 1821,
left no children, and the estate was sold to Anne widow
of the Rev. Charles Wood of Tendring, Essex, and
sister of the Rev. Ellis St. John, who inherited it on
her death. (fn. 19) It is now owned by Mr. Charles
Edward Harris-St. John of West Court Manor.
Several residences have been built in recent years.
Finchampstead Place has superseded an old house
known as 'Sunnyside' or 'the Hatches,' a new
rectory was built by the Rev. Edward St. John, and
another in 1913, and North Court, South Court,
Wyse Hill and Hill Rise have also been erected.
There is a Church of England school in the parish
built by the late Mr. John Walter between the years
1858 and 1871.
Among the place-names found in Finchampstead
are Dozells or Dodsells (cf. Dozzells Well above),
Churchhams, Deames, Lord's Moors alias Rushymeads,
Gammins, Little Fryth Coppice, Agates Field, Wimbushes or Wynnebush, Emmerix, the Bath and Ferretts,
now Wick Hall Farm.
MANORS
In the reign of Edward the Confessor
FINCHAMPSTEAD was held by Earl
Harold and on his death at the battle
of Hastings it came into the possession of William I,
who held it in demesne in 1086. It then rendered
no geld, but contributed to the 'ferm' of Reading. (fn. 20)
The manor was granted by Henry I with Aldermaston to Robert Achard. (fn. 21) It remained vested in
the lords of Aldermaston (q.v.), under whom it was
held by sub-tenants. (fn. 22) Apparently Robert Achard
enfeoffed three knights in three of his manors, of
whom two were Alard Banister and John Banister, (fn. 23)
ancestors of the two families of Banister found
in Finchampstead and Sulhamstead. Alard Banister,
a justice itinerant for Oxfordshire in 1174, was
possibly son of the above-mentioned Alard. Finchampstead descended to William Banister, who was
holding at the time of the Testa de Nevill. (fn. 24) William
Banister, probably his son, died before 1276, leaving
two daughters and co-heirs
Constance and Agatha, who
married John and Peter
Hussey (de la Hoese) respectively. (fn. 25) John Hussey appears
in Finchampstead in 1276, (fn. 26)
and the two daughters with
their husbands presented to
the church in 1299. (fn. 27) Thus
the manor became divided and
the East Court and West
Court moieties were formed.
Banister. Or a cross paty sable.
EAST COURT
EAST COURT was held
in 1316 by John Hussey and
Emma his wife. (fn. 28) In 1328 a John Hussey received
a quitclaim of one-third of his moiety from Edward
Thornhill and Joan his wife, (fn. 29) who probably held in
dower, and in the next year John Hussey settled it
on himself and Agnes his wife and their male issue
with remainder to Matilda, Emma and Alice, their
daughters. (fn. 30) In 1345 this third part of a moiety
was held by John Brome and Alice his wife, possibly
one of the three co-heirs, who in that year granted
the reversion of this portion after the expiration of a
lease for a term of years held by John Oliver, parson
of the church, to John Bemo, citizen of London. (fn. 31)
This third part was in 1347 purchased of John Bemo
by Richard Yenyndon (Evendon) of Wokingham. (fn. 32)
Possibly John Hussey had already parted with the
main part of his moiety before the settlement of this
third in 1329, for East Court
is found about the middle of
the 14th century in the possession of the Foxley family.
Sir John Foxley presented to
the rectory of Finchampstead
in 1361. (fn. 33) His elder daughter
Katherine married John de
Warbleton and the younger,
Margaret or Margery, married
Robert Bullock. (fn. 34) He had also
three illegitimate sons, of
whom Thomas Foxley, (fn. 35) the
eldest, obtained from Margaret Hartington, daughter of Robert and Margaret
Bullock, a quitclaim of her right in the manor
of Finchampstead in 1429. (fn. 36) At the death of Sir
Thomas Foxley in 1436 the manor apparently passed
to William Warbleton, grandson of John and Katherine, (fn. 37) who with Margery his wife settled it in 1447
on themselves and their issue with remainder to
Richard Hay, uncle of William Warbleton, and
Matthew his son. (fn. 38) Matthew died before January
1451–2, when the manor was granted by William
and Margery Warbleton to Hugh Pakenham and
Constance his wife, daughter of Sir Richard de la
Hay. (fn. 39)
Foxley. Gules two bars argent.
In 1458 Hugh Pakenham and Constance his wife
received a grant of a fair to be held at Finchampstead. (fn. 40)
Hugh and Constance Pakenham were succeeded by
John Pakenham, whose wife's name was Margaret. At
the time of their death, which occurred on the same
day, 1 October 1485, their son Edmund was only
five years of age. (fn. 41) The wardship was sold by Sir
Thomas de la Mare of Aldermaston, as chief lord,
to William Bessells of Bessels Leigh and William
Alane. (fn. 42) Sir Edmund Pakenham left two daughters,
Constance, who married Geoffrey Pole, and Elizabeth,
who married Edmund Marvyn. (fn. 43) On the division
of his property in 1528 Finchampstead was settled
on Elizabeth Marvyn, who with her husband conveyed it in 1538 to Stephen Cawood. (fn. 44) He, who
was a mercer of Wokingham, died a year later
and left an infant son Thomas, whose wardship was
assumed by the chief lord, Sir Humphrey Forster
of Aldermaston, and sold to Richard Staffordton of
Wokingham. (fn. 45) In 1561 Thomas Cawood sold the
manor to Henry Hinde and Thomas Harrison. (fn. 46)
The former was purveyor to the royal stables in the
reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth. On his death in 1580 Thomas Harrison
succeeded to the property. The Harrison family came
originally from Cumberland and settled successively
in Hampshire and Berkshire. (fn. 47) Thomas Harrison died
in 1602, (fn. 48) having constituted his son-in-law George
Carleton trustee during the nonage of his grandson
and heir Richard Harrison. (fn. 49) He directed that his
body should be buried in the porch of the west door
of Finchampstead Church. (fn. 50) His widow Elizabeth died
in 1612. (fn. 51) Richard Harrison the grandson, knighted
in 1621, was of Hurst. (fn. 52) He died in 1655 and was
buried in Hurst Church. (fn. 53) His son Sir Richard (fn. 54)
sold the manor in 1661 to Richard Palmer of Workingham, owner of the Luckley estate, (fn. 55) who died in
1670. (fn. 56) His son and heir Richard Palmer left no
children, and was succeeded by his brother Charles
Palmer, M.D., (fn. 57) of Arborfield, a great benefactor of
the town of Wokingham. In accordance with his
will several parcels of land were sold, but were bought
back by Humphry Fish of Ickwell, his cousin, to
whose son Henry the manor was devised on condition
that he assumed the surname of Palmer in addition
to that of Fish. (fn. 58) This Henry resided at Luckley,
Wokingham, and the manor-house was let to John
Allright. (fn. 59) He was succeeded
by his son Charles Fish-Palmer, (fn. 60) whose son, also named
Charles, (fn. 61) inherited in 1807. (fn. 62)
During his time the present
East Court manor-house, formerly known as 'Cowdries,'
was enlarged and used as the
residence of the lord of the
manor. Charles Fyshe-Palmer
was M.P. for Reading in 1818.
He married Lady Madelina
Lennox, second daughter of
Alexander fourth Duke of
Gordon and widow of Sir
Robert Sinclair, bart., but left no issue. Sir John
Gordon Sinclair, his wife's son by her first marriage,
succeeded to the property and sold it in 1849 to
Mr. John Walter (fn. 63) of Bear Wood, owner of the
Times, whose grandson Mr. John Walter is now lord
of East Court Manor.
Palmer of Wokingham. Checky or and sable a chief gules with two molets or therein.
The other half of the manor, known as WEST
COURT, the property of Agatha Banister, wife of
Peter Hussey, was held after her death by her
husband, and at his death in 1306 descended to
their son Peter Hussey. (fn. 64) He settled the manor in
1335 on his son Thomas. (fn. 65) Peter was dead by 1350,
when Margery his daughter quitclaimed the manor
to Alina Hussey his widow. (fn. 66) On the death of Alina
in 1369 it passed to Peter Hussey's great-grandson
John Colney, then aged fifteen, son and heir of Joan
wife of John Colney, daughter and heir of Thomas
Hussey, son and heir of Peter. (fn. 67) John Colney died
in 1382, leaving a son John, aged six years. (fn. 68) Stephen
Colney succeeded before 1455, when he presented
to the living, (fn. 69) and in 1456, as Stephen Colle, he
executed a deed granting to Robert Porton a messuage called Wynnebush. (fn. 70) Margaret Colle, who
inherited the Colle lands, married John Perkins (or
Parkyns), lord of the manor of Ufton. (fn. 71) Their son
and heir was Thomas Perkins, (fn. 72) who married Dorothea
daughter of Edward More (fn. 73) of Wichwood (Hants),
and became a large landowner in several parishes.
His eldest son Richard, who married Elizabeth
daughter of Sir John Mompesson, succeeded in 1524
and died in 1560. (fn. 74) Having no children, he settled
the property on his nephew Francis Perkins, (fn. 75) reserving to himself and his wife
a life interest therein. Francis
became owner of West Court
on the death of Lady Marvyn,
widow of Richard Perkins, in
1581. He married Anne
daughter of Serjeant Edward
Plowden of Shiplake, (fn. 76) and,
being a recusant, suffered much
for his religion, his house
at Ufton being frequently
searched. He sold West Court
to George Tattershall of
Stapleford (Wilts.), who had
married his sister Katherine
Perkins. George Tattershall, his son, was holding
in 1605. (fn. 77) The Tattershalls were also recusants. After
the death of the last-named George Tattershall the
manor was apparently taken into the king's hands, for
in 1637 his son George had a grant of two parts
of the manor for twenty-one years from the Crown. (fn. 78)
Another George Tattershall was dealing with the
manor in 1659. (fn. 79) His daughter Mary married Charles
Howard, fourth son of Henry twenty-fifth Earl of
Arundel, a recusant, and the manor was settled on
them by George Tattershall in 1662. (fn. 80) After his
wife's death Howard sold the manor in 1704 to James
Goodyer, (fn. 81) third son of Edward Goodyer of Dogmersfield. James Goodyer died a widower and intestate in
1710, and was succeeded by his brother John, (fn. 82) who
died a bachelor in 1712. The estate reverted to their
mother Hester Goodyer, who lived to a great age
and died in 1723, (fn. 83) and then passed to her daughter
Martha, wife of Ellis Mews, who assumed the name
of St. John by Act of Parliament in right of his first
wife Frances St. John. He left the manor to his
second son the Rev. Ellis St. John, who was rector
of the parish for forty-two years (1744–86). (fn. 84) His
son the Rev. Ellis St. John (fn. 85) succeeded. He died
in 1809, leaving the manor to his son the Rev. Henry
Ellis St. John, (fn. 86) rector of Finchampstead. The rector
was a keen sportsman and kept a pack of foxhounds. (fn. 87)
His property was greatly increased by the Windsor
Forest Inclosure Acts, and he acquired the property
known as Banisters (see above). He died in 1841,
having bequeathed the manor to his second wife
Elizabeth, who presented her second son Edward to
the rectory. The eldest son Henry St. John died
before her in 1852, and she left the manor and
Banisters to her remaining sons Edward, John and
Paulet St. John. (fn. 88) The Rev. Edward St. John, who
became the owner of the manor, died at Finchampstead rectory in 1892. (fn. 89) The manor is now the
property of Mr. Charles Edward Harris, who took the
name of St. John by royal licence in 1907, having
married Jessie St. John St. John, niece of the last
owner and daughter of Henry St. John, J.P., above
mentioned, who died in 1852. (fn. 90)
Perkins of Ufton. Or a fesse dancetty between six billets erminees.
The Domesday Survey records a mill on the
manor of Finchampstead. (fn. 91) A new mill was built
about the beginning of the 17th century. (fn. 92) This is
a few hundred yards higher up the stream than the
site of the old one, the course of the backwater of
which can still be traced on the south of the stream.
CHURCH
The church of ST. JAMES consists
of an apsidal chancel 18 ft. 6 in. in length
and 17 ft. 7 in. in width, nave 33 ft. 7 in.
by 19 ft. 9 in., north chapel and aisle 32 ft. by
15 ft. 4 in., north porch, and a brick west tower 13 ft.
by 12 ft. 9 in. These measurements are all internal.
The chancel and nave date from the 12th century,
but with the exception of a pillar piscina and the
font no details of that period remain. In the north
wall of the nave are the outlines in the plaster of two
of the original round-headed lights, but all the other
windows and doorways have been replaced by later
work. Traces of the side lights of the chancel are
said to have been found at the recent restoration,
but nothing is now discernible of them; the chancel
arch was widened late in the 15th century. The
north chapel appears to be of more than one date;
the western half opens to the nave by an archway
like the chancel arch, but there may have been an
earlier transept there to which the late 14th-century
window in the north wall of the chapel belonged.
This transept seems to have been lengthened eastwards in the 15th century, and again in the 16th
century, the date over the small doorway, 1590,
indicating the latest enlargement. The tower was
added in 1720, probably replacing an earlier one.
The porch is modern and much of the work has
been restored. The whole building except the tower
is cemented externally and all the roofs are tiled.
The east window is modern and of three lights
under a traceried square head; to the south of it is a
modern round-headed recess, below which stands a
12th-century pillar piscina with a fluted capital and
octagonal stem, the faces of which are slightly convex
with small rolls at the angles; the moulded base
appears to have been recut in the 15th century. The
south window is of the late 14th century, and is of
two trefoiled ogee-headed lights with quatrefoiled
piercings under a square head with a moulded label,
and jambs of two orders. The arch to the chapel
from the chancel has flattened semi-octagonal
responds with plain capitals and bases; it is four-centred and of two chamfered orders. A rear
arch of two orders is built to the north of this,
bringing the wall of the chapel flush with the north wall
of the nave. The chancel arch has semi-octagonal
jambs with moulded capitals and bases. It is two-centred and of two hollow-chamfered orders, and
appears to be of 15th-century date.
The north chapel has a 15th-century east window
of three cinquefoiled lights under a traceried two-centred head with a moulded external label. At the
east end of the north wall of this chapel is a small
doorway with a four-centred head; on the lintel are
inscribed the letters and date 'T 1590 H.' The
door is ancient and has vertical ribs. Of the two
windows in this wall the first is of the 14th century
and has two ogee trefoiled lights under a square head
with a moulded external label; the western window
is of the 15th century and has two cinquefoiled
pointed lights under a square head; the external label
is modern.
An arcade of two bays opens from the nave into
the chapel, the eastern and narrower bay, together
with its respond and the middle pillar, being
modern; the other bay corresponds with the chancel
arch. Over the pillar the outline is seen in the
plaster of a blocked round-headed 12th-century
window, and another appears to the west of the
arcade. The north doorway is probably a 15th-century insertion, and is of a single hollow-chamfered
order with a two-centred arch; further west is a
modern single light with a traceried head. The
first of the two south windows, which are both of
14th-century date, has four trefoiled ogee-headed
lights with semi-quatrefoils over, under a square head;
lights with semi-quatrefoils over, under a square head;
the outer stonework is modern, and it is doubtful
whether the inner jambs, which are painted, are old.
The other window, which is of two similar lights, is
all old work, and has a moulded label outside.
Plan of Finchampstead Church
The tower is entirely of brick excepting the 15th-century west window of two ogee trefoiled lights,
below which is a brick doorway. The archway into
the tower from the nave is also of brick, and through
it entrance is gained to the small west gallery set
across it. The tower angles are strengthened by
diagonal buttresses, and the stair turret rises in the
north-east corner. The round-headed bell-chamber
windows are filled with brickwork with cruciform
piercings; the parapet is plain with brick pinnacles
at the corners. On the north side is a panel with
an inscription bearing the date 1720.
The porch is modern and has a pointed outer
doorway and a small side window. The chancel roof
has a flat ribbed and boarded ceiling, which was
formerly over the east end of the nave. The roof
of the nave has 15th-century moulded tie-beams and
wall-plates, and is plastered below the collar beams.
The chapel roof has three old tie-beams, the two
easternmost having curved braces. The part of the
wall-plate over the wider arch into the nave is
moulded; the rest is plain and probably contemporary
with the 16th-century extension of the chapel.
The pulpit is modern, but contains some pieces of
15th-century tracery and cresting, perhaps from the
former rood screen. The font, of coarse limestone,
has a fine circular bowl of 12th-century workmanship,
with sloping sides enriched with twisted or spiral roll
and bead ornament, and moulded and carved round
the lower edge. The stem and base are modern.
By the north doorway is a small alms-box made of a
solid cylindrical piece of wood strengthened and inclosed by ornamental wrought-iron; it is not of great
age. Under the tower is a large plain
panelled chest with a sloping lid inscribed
'RH 1614,' and another smaller one
with the initials and date set with nails,
'BL 1690 IT.'
On the east wall of the nave is a small
brass inscription to Henry Hinde, lord of
the manor of Finchampstead East Court,
who died 28 December 1580. In the
nave floor is a small brass inscription to
Elizabeth the 'wife of John Blighe, daughter
and heire of John Taylor of Finchamstede,
who had Jane an only daughter (now five
years) died 13 July 1635.' Further west
is a small brass with the figure of a lady
and her child richly dressed, and with a
verse inscribed above. In the chancel floor
is a black slab with two small brass inscriptions, the upper commemorating Richard
Marsh, a citizen and grocer of London, who
died in 1613, and the lower inscribed
with a set of laudatory verses in Latin. In the north
chapel stands an altar tomb with a black marble slab
to Richard Palmer, lord of the manor of East Court,
who died in 1670. Over it are two 19th-century
monuments to two members of the same family, Lady
Madelina Palmer, daughter of the Duke of Gordon,
who died in 1847, and Charles Fyshe-Palmer, who
died in 1843. Other gravestones are to Mrs. Brabent,
wife of Dr. Brabent, rector of Berkhampstead (Herts.),
who died in 1728, Peter Sparke, 1687, and Nathaniel
Johnston, 1710.
There are six bells, the treble by Mears & Stainbank,
1885, and the other five by John Warner, 1792.
The plate comprises a cup and paten of silver-gilt
with the hall-mark of 1591 and a chalice, paten and
flagon of 1854. There is also an old pewter flagon
of late 17th-century date. (fn. 93)
The earliest book of registers is numbered (ii) (the
first book being missing), and contains baptisms from
1653, marriages from 1655 and burials from 1654,
all to 1782; (iii) contains all entries from 1724, the
baptisms to 1794, marriages to 1753 and burials to
1793; (iv) baptisms 1784 to 1838, marriages 1783
to 1834, and burials 1787 to 1838; (v) baptisms
1794 to 1812; (vi) marriages 1756 to 1812; (vii)
baptisms and burials 1794 to 1812.
ADVOWSON
The presentation to the rectory
was vested in the lords of the manor
of Finchampstead, and after the
division of the manor into East Court and West
Court the lord of each moiety took the alternate
presentation. In 1660 the owner of West Court,
George Tattershall, was a Roman Catholic, and therefore unable to appoint to the benefice. His right
appears to have been delegated to Thomas Marsh, (fn. 94) a
parishioner residing in a house called 'Phipps Land'
on the East Court Manor. Dr. Charles Palmer, who
died in 1713, bequeathed the right of alternate presentation to the principal of St. Mary Magdalen Hall,
Oxford, (fn. 95) who, when the rector, Richard Rogers, died
on 11 May 1736, neglected to appoint a successor.
and the presentation lapsed to the Crown, George II
appointing St. John Rogers on 4 May 1738. (fn. 96) The
Rev. Ellis St. John, having the alternate presentation
to the living of South Moreton, arranged an exchange
with the principal of St. Mary Magdalen Hall,
Oxford, in order that he might have the whole
patronage of Finchampstead, and this was confirmed
by a Private Act of Parliament on 17 July 1755. (fn. 97)
His son the Rev. Ellis St. John was presented to the
living by James Clitherow, (fn. 98) who was probably presenting pro hac vice.
The advowson remained in the St. John family
until 1864, when the Rev. Edward St. John sold it
to Mr. John Walter of Bear Wood, whose grandson is
now the patron.
CHARITIES
By an award under the Windsor
Forest Inclosure Act (fn. 99) allotments of
37 acres or thereabouts were made
for the benefit of the industrious poor, the rents to
be laid out in coals or other fuel. The lands were sold
in 1857 and the proceeds invested in £742 17s. 2d.
consols.
This parish is entitled to benefits in connexion
with Lucas's Hospital, Wokingham (q.v.).
Two acres of land were awarded by the Commissioners of the Windsor Forest Inclosure Act in 1818
to the surveyor of highways of Finchampstead for a
gravel-pit. In 1880, the gravel being exhausted, the
pit was sold and the money invested, the dividends
being paid to the Finchampstead surveyor of roads.
Finchampstead Church: The Font