PIRTON
The parish of Pirton lies on low ground in the
north-west of Hertfordshire at the edge of the Bedfordshire plain. The greater part of it is only about
200 ft. above the ordnance datum, but the ground
rises considerably, and in the north-west, where it
meets the Chilterns, it has a height of 400 ft. In
the south of the parish the little River Oughton takes
its rise, and this part of Pirton is known as Oughton's
Head (formerly Altonishevyd). (fn. 1) The Icknield Way
forms part of the southern boundary of the parish.
The population is entirely agricultural, the chalk
land being particularly adapted for the growth of corn.
The arable land covers 1,865 acres, while pasture
comprises only 331 acres and woodland 65 acres. (fn. 2)
An inclosure award was made for the parish in
1814 under an Act of 1811. (fn. 3)
The village lies in the middle of the parish, and is
of particular interest, as it was at an early date,
possibly before the Conquest, fortified by a ditch.
The area inclosed, about 10 acres, was utilized later
for a mount and bailey castle, the mount or 'motte'
standing about 25 ft. high above the bottom of the
surrounding ditch in the north-west corner of the
inclosure, and the remainder of the area divided into
three baileys, the largest stretching along the north
side and including the church and the other two on
the south. The ditches are well marked, and there
is still at times a good deal of water in parts of them.
This castle, unfortunately, has no history. It was
probably made in the 12th century, perhaps during
the anarchy of Stephen's reign, by Alan or Gerard de
Limesi. There is little probability that it was ever
defended by masonry walls. On the mount probably
stood a timber tower, approached by a steep narrow
bridge of timber from the bailey below over the ditch
or moat which surrounds it. Timber palisades may
have defended the surrounding outer banks of the
baileys. We can only conjecture that it was dismantled by Henry II as an adulterine or unlicensed
castle, hundreds of which he is said to have destroyed.
When the site was abandoned by the Limesis the
mount was probably used as a look-out and meetingplace of the villagers, and so came to be called Toot
Hill.
The village is now outside this inclosure, principally on the north-west side. At the south end of
the village is what remains of the Old Hall, a house
of the Docwras, which has been turned into an inn.
It is a rectangular two-storied block, 46 ft. by 20 ft.,
having a panel on the west front of the arms of
Docwra and the date 1609, There are indications
that a wing, only about 12 ft. less than the width of
the main block, projected from the back of the house,
but this has been entirely removed. The flint and
brick walls are plastered, the roof is tiled.
Ground plan of Pirton Old Hall
Ground plan of Hammond's Farm
Ground plan of High Down
Hammond's Farm lies a quarter of a mile to the
north of the church, and takes its name from the
family of Hammond. In the 17th century a John
Hammond held about 150 acres, and was succeeded
by another John Hammond, from whom it has descended to Mr. William Hanscombe. (fn. 4) It is a house
of the L type, of about 1600, built in two stories,
the lower of brick, the upper of timber with tiled
roof. The parlour is in the main wing, running
east and west; in the south-east wing are the
kitchen and offices; the porch with its lobby is in
the angle formed by the wings. On the north is
a smaller wing containing the staircase. The
rooms in the upper story are panelled and have
arabesque friezes of early 17th-century work. One
of them has a fine chimney-piece. There is a
plastered timber 17th-century dove-cote near the
house.
The Rectory Farm, the residence of Mr. Ernest
R. Davis, lies a little more than a quarter of a mile
to the west of the church, and was apparently once
the manor-house of the rectory manor. It is an
early 17th-century timber-framed house of the
L type, altered and faced with brick in the 18th and
19th centuries. The main building, running east
and west, contains the parlour; from the eastern end
of it a wing projects southward, containing the
porch, lobby and kitchen. On the north side is a
small staircase wing. A moat surrounds the house,
and what appear to be traces of an outer moat can
be seen on the north-east side. The tithe barn,
135 ft. by 37 ft., seems to be of the 16th century.
It is of timber on a foundation of masonry.
The Grange, the property of Mr. W. Hanscombe,
on the western edge of the parish, is a moated
timber-framed farm-house of early 17th-century
date, but restored and modernized. It seems to
have been originally of H type, but has been much
altered. The house, which faces eastward, has an
L-shaped south wing, whose upper story formerly
projected. The kitchen in the north wing has the
remains of a large 17th-century fireplace; its
chimney corners are now hidden by cupboards.
There is an old timber bake-house on the north
side of the house, and a contemporary bridge-house
of timber and plaster spans the moat.
Pirton Hall, a large red brick house, built in
1879, lies about 2 miles to the north-west of the
village; attached to it is a park. It is now the
property of Mr. W. Hanscombe.
High Down, the property of Mr. F. A. Delmé
Radcliffe, and now occupied by Mrs. Pollard, stands
on high ground about three-quarters of a mile
south-west of the village. It was apparently the
manor-house of the manor of Pirton, and was
probably begun about 1599 by Thomas Docwra,
lord of the manor, whose arms with the date 1599
appear on the south side of the house. His arms
with his name and that of Jane Periam and date
1613 are also over the entrance gateway to the
stables. The house is of two stories with basement,
and is built of plastered flint and clunch. The
main wing forms the south side of a courtyard,
and is entered by a gabled porch projecting from its
south front and rising the whole height of the house.
On the eastern side of the entrance passage is the
hall (now the dining-room); on the west are the
pantry and some small rooms, with a staircase beyond
leading to the floor above. North of the entrance
passage is the staircase hall, out of which the morningroom opens to the west and the drawing-room to the
east. The drawing-room continuing northward forms
the short arm of the L. The kitchens are in the
basement under the drawing and the dining rooms.
A range of out-buildings forms the western boundary
of the courtyard; on the north side are the stables.
In the north-east gable of the stables a stone panel
has been inserted with a shield of the Docwra arms,
the date 1504 and the name of 'Thomas Docwra
Miles,' who was prior of the Order of St. John of
Jerusalem. The shield has a chief of the arms of the
Hospitallers and below is the inscription 'sane boro,'
apparently for ' sane baro,' a motto which occurs
elsewhere in connection with the Hospitallers, and
probably refers to the claim of the priors to be the
first barons of England. Near the stables is an old
square brick dove-house.
Panel with Arms of Sir Thomas Docwra at High Down
A mill called Oughton Mill or Westmill, which
was bequeathed by Thomas Ansell in 1607 to
his son Edward, (fn. 5) may probably be dated to the
13th century, when a mill formed the subject of
dispute between the Prior and convent of Hertford
and Wiscard, lord of Ramerick. The mill was said to
have been given to the priory by Alan de Limesi. (fn. 6)
In the 14th century, however, it is found in the
tenure of the Oddingselles. It was said in 1353 to
be so much out of repair that no one would rent it. (fn. 7)
MANORS
Pirton
At the time of the Domesday Survey
PIRTON was assessed at 10 hides, of
which 2 hides were in demesne, and on
the manor there were an English knight and three
sokemen.
Before the Conquest the manor had been held by
Archbishop Stigand. In 1086 it was part of the
possessions of Ralph de Limesi, and the estate was
held by the family of Limesi in chief as part of
their barony of Ulverley (fn. 8) until the end of the 12th
century. From Ralph it descended to his son Alan
de Limesi and from Gerard, son of Alan, to John de
Limesi, son of Gerard, (fn. 9) after whose death in the
reign of Richard I the lands of the Limesi barony
were divided between his
sisters, Basilia wife of Hugh
Oddingselles, or d'Odingseles,
and Eleanor wife of David de
Lindsey. (fn. 10) David had a son
David de Lindsey, (fn. 11) who left
no issue. Gerard his brother
succeeded and on his death
his property passed to his
sister Alice wife of Robert de
Pinkney of Weedon Pinkney. (fn. 12)
The manor remained with the
descendants of Hugh Oddingselles, who held it in sub-fee
from the Pinkneys. Henry de Pinkney, who died
about 1276, (fn. 13) was succeeded by his son Robert, and
Pirton was held of Robert until his death in 1296–7. (fn. 14)
His brother Henry, who succeeded, granted the
reversion of his estates to the Crown in 1301, (fn. 15) from
which time Pirton was held of the king in chief.
After the division of the manor (see below) the half
of William Oddingselles and his descendants was
held in socage and owed the rent of a pair of gilt
spurs and payment of 2s. 6d. at the view of frankpledge at Oughton's Head (Altonis Hevyd), (fn. 16) and
the other half was held by Hugh Oddingselles and his
descendants by knight service as parcel of the barony
of Ulverley. (fn. 17)
Pincess of Weedon. Argent a fesse indented gules.
Pirton Grange: East Front
Pirton Old Hall
Basilia and Hugh Oddingselles, the immediate tenants of the manor, left two
sons, William and Hugh, (fn. 18)
who divided the property and
so formed two manors.
William Oddingselles, who
was lord of the manor of Solihull in Warwickshire, took
that half which was afterwards
known as the manor of PIRTON. (fn. 19) Hugh's moiety of
the property became the
manor of Oddingselles (q.v.).
Oddingselles. Argent a fesse gules with two molets gules in the chief.
William Oddingselles died in 1295, leaving as heir
his son Edmund, (fn. 20) who probably died without issue,
as the manor was divided between two of Edmund's
sisters, Ida and Alice. (fn. 21) Ida was wife of John de
Clinton, first Lord Clinton,
Alice was the wife of Thomas
de Caunton. (fn. 22) Ida was
succeeded by her son and
then by her grandson, both
named John de Clinton. (fn. 23)
Alice died in 1322 and was
succeeded by her son David. (fn. 24)
David and Joan his wife
settled the property on themselves and their heirs with
remainder to William de
Clinton Earl of Huntingdon,
a younger son of John and
Ida de Clinton. (fn. 25) David died
before 1343 and Joan married
as her second husband Laurence de Ayot. (fn. 26) They
held the manor jointly until Joan died
in 1354, leaving a daughter Elizabeth, (fn. 27)
who married a certain Maurice who
is called son of John son of Nichol. (fn. 28)
Elizabeth died without issue in 1364, (fn. 29)
and the manor passed by the settlement to John de Clinton (nephew
and heir of William de Clinton Earl
of Huntingdon), (fn. 30) to whom William
de Caunton, heir of Elizabeth, released
all his right. He received an annual
pension from the earl of £20 out of the
manor for life. (fn. 31) Thus both moieties of
the manor were united in the hands of
John de Clinton. Edward de Clinton
son of John de Clinton died seised of
the manor in 1399–1400 and was succeeded by his nephew William, (fn. 32) who
granted the manor to certain feoffees,
by whom it was conveyed to Richard
Clitheroe. His son Roger died in
1455 and left a daughter Eleanor wife
of John Norreys. (fn. 33) John survived his
wife and died in 1485; his son and
heir Edmund was then aged seven.
His second wife Isabel afterwards
married Henry Marney. (fn. 34) In January
1507–8 Edmund Norreys conveyed the
manor to Alice Say, widow, and John
Lech, her son. (fn. 35) According to Chauncy,
in the reign of Elizabeth it was in the
possession of Samuel Maron of Berkswell, co. Warwick, (fn. 36) and was sold by
his son Edward in 1611 to Thomas
Docwra of Putteridge. But this can
scarcely be correct, for the inquisition
on Thomas Docwra quotes a settlement
made by his father Thomas Docwra on
himself (the son), on his marriage with
Jane Periam in 1599. (fn. 37) So the manor must have
come into the family at an earlier date than that
given by Chauncy. Thomas received a grant of
free warren at Pirton in 1616. (fn. 38) He died in 1620, (fn. 39)
leaving as heir his son Periam. On the death of
Periam in 1642 it descended to his
son Thomas, (fn. 40) whose only child Martha
married Sir Peter Warburton of Arley
(co. Ches.). In 1726, after the death
of Martha, Thomas Warburton, Sir
George Warburton, bart., son of
Sir Peter and Martha, and Periam
Docwra joined in a conveyance to
Ralph Radcliffe. (fn. 41) It has since descended in the family of Radcliffe, (fn. 42) and
is now in the possession of Mr. F. A.
Delmé-Radcliffe of the Priory, Hitchin
(q.v.).
Hammonds Farm, Pirton, Showing Porch
Clinton. Argent six crosslets fitchy sable and a chief azure with two molets or pierced gules therein.
Oddingselles
The manor of ODDINGSELLES
(Doddingseles, Odyngseles, xiv cent.),
often called also 'half the manor of
Pirton,' was that part of the manor of
Pirton which on the death of Basilia
Oddingselles fell to the share of Hugh
her son. Hugh died seised of it in
1304–5, leaving as heir his son John. (fn. 43)
He and his wife Emma obtained
licence in 1316 to grant the manor to
Thomas de Wassyngeles for a settlement on them and their heirs. (fn. 44) In
1337 John and Emma granted the
manor to William Corbet for life, with
reversion to their son Thomas. (fn. 45) After
the death of John, Emma married
William Corbet, who died in 1346. (fn. 46)
She survived until the next year. (fn. 47)
Her son John Oddingselles succeeded
to the manor, and died abroad in 1352,
leaving a son John, then aged sixteen. (fn. 48)
It descended in 1380 to his son Sir
John, and in 1404 to Edward son of
John (fn. 49) (during whose minority the
property was entrusted to John
Cokayn, (fn. 50) his father-in-law), to Edward's son Gerald,
and finally to Edward son of Gerald. (fn. 51) In 1505
Gerald d'Oddingselles granted the manor to feoffees, (fn. 52)
who released it to Richard Decons. (fn. 53) He sold it
shortly afterwards through trustees to Roger Lupton,
clerk, Provost of St. Mary's College, Eton. (fn. 54) Eton
College held the manor till 15 February 1800,
when it was purchased by Penelope widow of
Sir Charles Farnaby Radcliffe, (fn. 55) from whom it has
descended to Mr. F. A. Delmé-Radcliffe, the present
owner.
RECTORY MANOR
The grant by which Ralph de
Limesi gave to the priory of St. Mary,
Hertford, the church of Pirton (see
below) included also 2½ hides of land
there and a mill. After the Dissolution this estate
was granted in 1538, under the name of Pirton, to
Anthony Denny and Joan Champernowne, who were
then about to marry. (fn. 56) Anthony Denny was succeeded
by his son Edward Denny of Waltham Holy
Cross. (fn. 57) His son Sir Edward Denny, kt., died in
February 1600–1, (fn. 58) leaving a son and heir Arthur,
a minor, whose mother Margaret Lady Denny held
one-third of the property in dower. (fn. 59) In 1609
Arthur Denny, with his wife Elizabeth and his
mother, conveyed the property to Sir John Davies, kt., (fn. 60)
and he died seised of the manor and rectory in 1626,
having settled the manor on his daughter Lucy on
her marriage (at the age of ten) with Ferdinand Lord
Hastings, son of Henry Earl of Huntingdon. (fn. 61) In
1628 the Crown seized this property in payment of
debts incurred by Arthur Denny, (fn. 62) but it was apparently regranted to Lucy and her husband Ferdinand
Lord Hastings, who were in possession in 1634. (fn. 63)
High Down, Pirton: Entrance Gateway
Previous to this, however, Sir Archibald Douglas,
who had married Eleanor widow of Sir John Davies,
had sold the rectory and manor for a term of sixty
years to Francis Poulton. In 1642 Lucy Lady
Hastings appeared on behalf of her mother to claim
the rectory, alleging that Sir Archibald was insane
and Eleanor was in prison when he sold the property, (fn. 64) and that her mother was in great distress owing
to Sir Archibald having appropriated all the profits
of this sale, and to the loss of her dower in Ireland,
which was in the hands of rebels. Lady Hastings
remarked that she was unable to help her mother, as
Lord Hastings had lost the greater part of his estate
in the Irish Rebellion. (fn. 65) The Poultons, however,
remained in possession, and the manor was sold
in 1656 by William Poulton, son of Francis, to
Thomas White, (fn. 66) whose executors conveyed it to
Anthony Deane, kt., in 1686. (fn. 67) Morgan Deane,
grandson of Sir Anthony, left
the property to his trustees
for sale, (fn. 68) and in 1736 it was
bought by Robert second Lord
Raymond, (fn. 69) from whom it
passed by his father's will to
Benesham Filmer, son of Sir
Robert Filmer, bart., of East
Sutton, co. Kent. He died
unmarried in 1763, when it
came to his nephew Sir John
Filmer, bart. (fn. 70) Sir Edmund
Filmer, great-grandson of Sir
Edmund, brother and ultimate
heir of Sir John, sold the
manor in 1870 to Messrs. Paine &
Brettel of Chertsey, solicitors (since
which date most of the tenants have
been enfranchised), and the rectory
farm and about 415 acres of land to
Mr. Daniel Davis of Hexton, farmer.
It is now occupied by Mr. E. R. Davis.
Dove-cote at Hammonds Farm, Pirton
Filmer, baronet. Sable three bars or with three cinquefoils or in the chief
The manor of Ramerick in Ickleford
extended into this parish, and this part
of it is sometimes referred to as the
manor of Pirton. (fn. 71)
CHURCH
St. Mary
The parish church of
ST. MARY, standing in
the middle of the village,
is built of flint rubble with stone dressings. The chancel roof is tiled, and
that of the nave is covered with lead.
The church consists of a chancel,
central tower, nave and south porch. (fn. 72)
The original church, consisting of a
chancel, nave and central tower, was
built in the 12th century. The chancel
was much altered in the 14th century,
when a south transept, now demolished,
was built on the south side of the
tower. New windows were inserted
in the nave in the 14th and 15th centuries, (fn. 73) and the south doorway was
altered about 1380, when the south
porch was built. In the 17th century
several small alterations were made,
notably to the east window, and in
1883 the whole church was restored
and the tower rebuilt from the foundations.
The chancel, of which the walls are
probably part of the original church, now shows no
detail earlier than c. 1330. The east window, which
was originally of the 14th century, is now much
defaced by 17th-century alterations. The remaining
windows are all of the 15th century. One on the
north side and one on the south have two lights,
cinquefoiled and with tracery. In the south wall
there is also a three-light window of three cinquefoiled lights in a square head. A doorway, also on
the south side, has a two-centred arch. In the
chancel, under the easternmost window on the south
side, is a 14th-century double piscina with a central
pillar.
The east and west arches of the central tower are
semicircular, of about 1130, and several of the stones
are ornamented with a diaper pattern. The capitals
and abaci are plain, and have been reset and retooled.
On the north side is a doorway, of about 1330, with
a lancet head and a simple continuous moulding. It
now leads to a modern wooden vestry built against
the north side of the tower. On the south side is a
wide archway, now bricked up, with a low modern
two-centred head. This originally opened into a
south transept.
The nave is lighted on the north side by two
windows, the easternmost of three lights with tracery
above, of the 15th century. The lower part of this
window is blocked up, the sill being 2 ft. 8 in. below
the bottom of the lights. The westernmost window is
of two cinquefoiled ogee-headed lights, with a quatrefoil above, and has a high two-centred head. In this
window are fragments of 14th-century glass. Between
the two windows is visible on the interior side only
a 12th-century round-headed window, now blocked.
The 14th-century north doorway, to the west of
both windows, is blocked, but on the outside its two-centred head and single-splayed jambs are visible, and
the door, which is much defaced, is probably contemporary. On this wall are remains of painting, now
quite undecipherable, which were discovered in 1883.
The south wall of the nave has two windows similar,
and similarly arranged, to those on the north side, but
the jambs of the easternmost window are of the 14th
century, and the lower part is not blocked, while the
lights of the westernmost window are trefoiled, and
simple arches instead of ogees. In the easternmost
window are fragments of 15th-century glass with the
arms of Lindsay. There are between the windows the
remains, consisting of the eastern jamb and half the
head, of a 12th-century window like that in the north
wall. The south doorway, of about 1330, has a two-centred head. The jambs are plain on the interior but
moulded on the exterior side. The door is probably
contemporary. To the west is the doorway, with a
two-centred head, of the stairs to the upper floor of
the porch. The west window has three ogee cinquefoiled lights, with tracery above, in a two-centred
head. It has been repaired with cement, and is now
blocked. The south porch is of two stages, the ceiling
of the lower stage having been removed, so that the
porch is now open to the roof. There is a stone seat
in the west side of the porch; the east and west
windows have been blocked up. There is a small
recess over the two-centred entrance arch, and the
two-light window of the upper stage above the recess
is original, but the dividing mullion is missing.
The upper stage of the tower is reached by a newel
in the north-west angle, approached by a door on the
outside. The bell chamber is lighted by three twolight traceried windows on the east, north and south,
with two-centred heads, and on the west by a square-headed loop. There is a two-light window on the
north side of the lower stage. The tower has an
embattled parapet and a needle spire. The buttresses
at the north-west, south-east and south-west are
original, as are those of the nave, but the large
diagonal buttress at the north-east angle is modern.
The only monument to be noted is that of Jane
wife of Thomas Docwra, 1645, a mural tablet with
arms and inscription, on the south wall of the nave.
There is a chest, probably of the 17th century, in
the chancel.
The bells are five in number: the treble by John
Briant, 1781; the second and third by Joseph Eayre
of St. Neots, 1763 and 1756 respectively; the fourth
by Thomas Russell of Wootton, 1731; and the tenor
by Robert Oldfeild, 1634.
The plate includes two cups and two patens of
Sheffield plate.
The registers are in four books, the first containing
baptisms from 1562 to 1776, burials from 1558 to
1776 and marriages from 1560 to 1753; the second
baptisms and burials from 1774 to 1812; the third
marriages from 1754 to 1773; and the fourth
marriages from 1774 to 1812.
ADVOWSON
In the 11th or early 12th century
Ralph de Limesi gave the church of
Pirton with the tithes of his lands
there (fn. 74) to the priory of St. Mary, Hertford, which
he founded as a cell to St. Albans. A vicarage was
ordained before the beginning of the 13th century. (fn. 75)
The advowson remained with the priory till the
Dissolution. (fn. 76) It was then granted to Sir Anthony
Denny, and descended with the rectory (q.v.) until
about the middle of the 17th century. In 1670
presentation was made by the king; in 1682 by
Dorothy, widow of Samuel Howe; in 1732 by the
Bishop of Lincoln; in 1735 by Isaac Coleman, the
late incumbent; in 1748 by James Colt Ducarel;
in 1773 by Charles Peers; in 1835 by Susanna
Thirlwall; and in 1847 and 1851 by Ralph Lindsay. (fn. 77)
In 1870 the advowson was conveyed by the representatives of the late Ralph Lindsay to the Dean and
Chapter of Ely, (fn. 78) the present owners.
For a very long period before 1851 there had been
no resident incumbent. A parsonage-house was then
built by Mr. Ralph Lindsay, the rector.
In 1507 Thomas Pyrton left 40s. 'to make an
image of the Blessed Mary and a tabernacle to stand
in the church there.' (fn. 79)
There are a Wesleyan chapel and a Baptist chapel
in Pirton at the present time.
CHARITIES
In 1641 John Hammond by his
will directed that a sum of £100
should be laid out in the purchase of
land, the rent thereof to be applied in binding out
one apprentice or more to an honest trade. The
trust estate consists of two allotments at Punches Cross,
containing 6a. 3r. 23p., awarded on the inclosure in
1811 in lieu of land originally purchased.
The testator further devised two cottages, to be
occupied by poor families rent free. The charity is
regulated by a scheme of the Chanty Commissioners,
3 May 1904. A premium of £12 10s. is usually
paid, and the cottages, rebuilt by the Hanscombe
family, are used as almshouses.