BIGGLESWADE WITH STRATTON AND HOLME
Bicheleswade, Bichelesworde (xi cent.), Bykeleswade (xiii–xiv cent.), Bickleswade (xvii cent.).
Biggleswade, including the hamlets of Stratton and
Holme, is a parish with an acreage of 4,647½ acres,
of which 2,932 acres are arable land, 1,148½ are
permanent grass, and 6½ woods and plantations. (fn. 1)
The slope of the ground is from south to west, the
west of the parish, bounded by the River Ivel, being
especially low-lying, and subject to floods in the
immediate neighbourhood of the river. The lowest
point here is only 86 ft. above the level of the sea.
Toplers Hill in the south is the highest district, 249 ft.
above the sea level. The Great Northern Railway
main line passes through the parish, and has a station
in the town of Biggleswade. The Roman road to
the north also traverses the parish, running northwards from Baldock. The town of Biggleswade itself
is concentrated in the west central part of the parish.
Stratton, a scattered hamlet, lies a mile and a half to
the south-east of the town, Holme a mile to the south.
In the north lies Biggleswade Common. The Roman
road, leaving Bleak Hall to the south soon after it
enters the parish, passes through the hamlet of Stratton,
which takes its name from its position. A branch
road on the north leads to Stratton Park, lying in 160
acres of beautifully-wooded grounds. The main road
approaches the town of Biggleswade from the east,
and at the entrance to the town divides into two
branches, one taking a westerly direction, and going
on to Moggerhanger, while the other passes along the
outskirts of the town on the east, and goes on to
Potton.
Another road leading from Langford in the south
passes straight through the hamlet of Holme, entering
the town of Biggleswade at the south-west. On the
west of the road at the north end of the hamlet lies
Scroop's Farm, an interesting reminder of the Scroops,
who in the early fourteenth century were manorial
lords here. A path here leads down to the river past
the moat and Holme Mills.
The town of Biggleswade is built round a large
oblong market-place from which the main streets
radiate, Shortmead Street running westward to the
church and thence north, and crossing the Ivel by a
bridge on the outskirts of the town, where it joins a
branch of the Great North Road; Hitchin Street,
running south; and High Street, running east to the
London Road. In the south-west of the town there
is a second bridge over the Ivel. The principal house
in the parish is Stratton Park, a modern house about
two miles south-east of the town.
The town was much damaged by fire in the eighteenth century; a note in the registers of June,
1785, records the destruction of 103 houses in five
hours, which would suggest a predominance of half
timber and plaster buildings.
There are no domestic buildings of special interest,
though the town can boast its fair share of the
eighteenth-century red-brick fronts and doorways
which form the chief attractions of so many country
places, and as usual there are a few older timber
buildings. The bridge over the Ivel at the northeast is mediaeval, of three pointed arches, and very
probably the subject of Bishop Dalderby's indulgence
of 1302, which was designed to promote the building
or repair of Biggleswade bridge. (fn. 1a)
At the east end of the market-place is the Town
Hall, a rather unattractive stone building dating from
1814, and at the west end is the principal inn, 'The
Swan,' with a picturesque yard behind it.
The parish church stands in a large churchyard
on the west side of the town, and its tower,
though of no great height, forms a landmark for
some distance, owing to the flatness of the surrounding country.
Ancient British coins of gold (inscribed), silver,
copper and brass, have been found in this parish. (fn. 2)
Traces of ancient earthworks are to be found at
Holme in the form of a small square moat, about
100 ft. each way, with a circular raised platform in
the centre, and several detached traces of moat lines
in the fields near. (fn. 3) In 1547 Biggleswade contained
440 'houselyng' people, (fn. 4) and the population at the
last census was 5,120.
The following place-names have been found in this
parish: le Nezerhalke, Barleslade, and Ashwelleweye
in the fourteenth century; (fn. 5) Helolme, Lyncroft, Lovelayeslane, Hungerhill, Crouchewey, Conyesfurlong,
Overfoxehale, Mitlylmere, le Prestysbrade, Remededyche in the fifteenth; (fn. 6) Spectacles or Spectlacon,
Bushopps, Radwells Hook, Pittholme, Colgrene,
Jacklynsholm, Stows, Barleslade, Saltwell, Holmfanne
in the seventeenth. (fn. 7)
Manors
Previous to Domesday BIGGLESWADE MANOR was held by Archbishop Stigand, but at the time of the
Domesday Survey it belonged to Ralph de Lisle, who
held it of the king in chief, and was assessed at 10
hides. (fn. 8) Ralph de Lisle did
not retain permanent possession, for in 1132 Henry I
granted Biggleswade manor to
Alexander bishop of Lincoln
and his successors as an endowment for the cathedral. (fn. 9)
The bishop of Lincoln rendered feudal service for this
manor, assessed at half a
knight's fee, to the king in
1284, (fn. 10) and in 1329 Bishop
Henry received a charter of
free warren here. (fn. 11)
Diocese of Lincoln. Gules two leopards or and a chief azure with Our Lady sitting therein and holding the Infant Saviour.
In 1547 Henry Holbeche,
then bishop, transferred Biggleswade manor to Edward VI in exchange for
other lands, and it thus became crown property. (fn. 12) It
was leased in the time of Henry VIII to William
Steward for a certain term of years, which was still
running in 1575. (fn. 13) In 1604 it became part of the
jointure of Queen Anne wife of James I, (fn. 14) and at a
later date of Henrietta wife of Charles I. (fn. 15) In 1689
Lord Carteret was holding the manor (fn. 16) by lease;
and in 1772 Robert, Earl Granville, became lessee for
thirty-one years at a yearly rental of £26 19s. 7d. (fn. 17)
Shortly after the expiration of this lease Biggleswade manor was sold, in 1807, to Sir Francis
Willes for £2,180. (fn. 18) He died in 1827, when he
bequeathed the manor to Peter Harvey Lovell, whose
representative Francis Lovell is at the present day lord
of the manor. (fn. 19)
Amongst under-tenants of the bishops of Lincoln
the name of Le Blunt or Blundell occurs frequently.
Simon Blundell and Emma his wife held lands and
rents in Biggleswade in 1276, (fn. 20) and some years later
William Blundell was holding there. (fn. 21) An inquisition taken at the death of Alan Blundell in 1304
shows that he held land here of the bishop of Lincoln (fn. 22) in 1334, and his son John died seised of
50 acres of land in Biggleswade held in the same
manner. (fn. 23)
In the fifteenth century the Enderbys also were
tenants of the bishop. Maud Bothe, widow of John
Enderby, held 10 messuages and 200 acres of land as
of Biggleswade manor in 1474, (fn. 24) and her son Richard
Enderby held six messuages and land of the bishop in
1488. (fn. 25)
There are four entries concerning the hamlet of
STRATTON in the Domesday Survey. Ralph de
Lisle, lord of Biggleswade manor, held a manor assessed
at 4 hides, which had formerly belonged to Archbishop
Stigand. (fn. 26) This manor appears to have become
absorbed in Biggleswade, and passed with it to the
bishop of Lincoln, who in 1284 held half a fee in
Stratton as part of Biggleswade manor. (fn. 27) A second
holder was the Countess Judith, who held 3½ virgates
which afterwards became STRATTON MANOR. (fn. 28)
It formed part of the honour of Huntingdon,
and on its subdivision among the co-heirs of John
earl of Huntingdon, the overlordship of Stratton
fell to Ada his youngest sister, and, like Potton Bur
detts (q.v.), passed by her marriage with Henry Hastings into the possession of the earls of Pembroke. (fn. 29)
Lt Scor. Or three piles gules.
Hastings. Or a sleeve gules.
No connexion has been found between the undertenant, Fulk of Paris, mentioned in Domesday, and
William Rixband, who was holding in Stratton as
early as 1231, (fn. 30) and whose family continued to hold
this manor, for in 1322 Margaret Rixband, presumably
a descendant, enfeoffed William Latimer of her manor
in Stratton. (fn. 31) From this date the manor appears to
have followed the same descent as Potton Burdetts
(q.v.), (fn. 32) until Elizabeth Latimer brought Stratton as
dower to her husband Robert de Willoughby. Before
his death in 1397 the manor had been leased for a
rent of £10 per annum to Richard Enderby and Alice
his wife, and they appear subsequently to have acquired
the full possession of the manor, for John Enderby
their son held the manor at his death in 1457. (fn. 33)
Maude, his widow, subsequently married Robert
Bothe, and at her death in 1474 the manor passed
to Richard Enderby, her son by her first marriage, (fn. 34)
who died in 1487, (fn. 35) when his son John acquired
the manor, and died in 1509 leaving an only daughter,
Eleanor, as heiress. (fn. 36) She married Francis Pygott,
and an inquisition taken at the death of their son
Thomas Pygott in 1581 states that he, 'having cause
to mislike the marriage of their eldest son Michael
with Margaret, daughter of one Gill,' settled the
manor of Stratton on his son Lewis and heirs male,
with remainder settlement to
a younger son John. (fn. 37) Seven
years later Lewis and John
alienated the manor to Sir Edmund Anderson, chief justice
of the Queen's Bench. (fn. 38) The
Andersons of Eyworth (q.v.)
continued to hold the manor
until the death of Edmund
Anderson in 1639, (fn. 39) whose
daughter and sole heiress married Sir John Cotton. (fn. 40) In
1764 the manor of Stratton
was purchased of the relatives of
Sir John Cotton, last heir male of the family, by the
trustees of Curtis Barnett, who had died in 1746 at Fort
St. David, and it is held at the present day by Mr.
Barnett, a representative of the same family. (fn. 41)
Cotton. Azure a cheveron between three hanks of cotton argent.
There are seven entries in Domesday, amounting
in all to 6 hides 3½ virgates of land, relating to the
hamlet of HOLME. Two of these holdings became,
by the thirteenth century, absorbed in neighbouring
manors. The first was the manor of 2 hides held by
Ralph de Lisle, lord of Biggleswade manor in 1086, (fn. 42)
which by 1284 had become absorbed in Biggleswade. (fn. 43)
The second property was the hide of land held by
Walter the Fleming at the time of the Survey, (fn. 44) which
subsequently became appurtenant to Langford manor. (fn. 45)
Another holder in Holme at
the Survey was the Countess
Judith, of whom Fulk of Paris
held 3½ virgates. (fn. 46) This property, which never attained the
status of a manor, followed the
same descent as Sutton (q.v.),
and after the fifteenth century
no further trace is found of
it. (fn. 47)
Barnett. Or a saltire sable with a leopard's head sable in the chief.
Other holders in Holme
were Nigel de Albini, of whom
Fulk of Paris held half a hide, (fn. 48) of which one
further mention is found in the thirteenth century,
when Richard Cosyn held I hide in Stratton and
Holme of the honor of Ralph St. Amand and Isabella
de Albini. (fn. 49) Alwyn, a king's bailiff, held 1½ hides of
the king in Holme, (fn. 50) which reappears in the thirteenth
century as the hide which Ivo Quarel held of the
king in serjeanty. (fn. 51) Hugh de Beauchamp owned a
virgate, which was held of him by Mortuing. (fn. 52) This
land appears to have been granted by them to the
abbot of Abingdon, who in 1236 had a dispute with
Geoffrey de Beauchamp concerning free tenements
which he held of him in Holme and Stratton. (fn. 53) In
1346 Richard de Milnho held one-tenth of a knight's
fee of the abbot of Abingdon in Stratton. This fee,
which had formerly been held by Roger de Milnho,
probably represents the ancient Beauchamp holding,
of which no further trace has been found. (fn. 54)
William d'Eu also held a small estate of 3 virgates
in Holme at the time of the Domesday Survey, (fn. 55) which
disappears after the beginning of the fifteenth century,
until which time it appears to have followed the
same descent as Edworth (q.v.). (fn. 56)
The Holme portion of HOLME WITH LANGFORD MANOR, of which the history is given in
Langford parish, consisted of land in this hamlet of
which Henry le Scrope died seised in 1337, (fn. 57) whose
son Richard le Scrope in 1398 granted all his lands in
Holme and Langford to Richard II, who immediately
transferred them to the abbey and convent of Westminster. (fn. 58)
Scanty reference has been found from the fifteenth
century onwards to ESTONS MANOR in Holme
belonging to the family of Eston. In 1484 Thomas
Eston and Christina his wife conveyed this so-called
manor by fine to William Finderne and others under
trust for re-conveyance. (fn. 59) Some years later, in 1516,
Richard Eston, probably a son of Thomas, died seised
of lands and tenements in Holme, (fn. 60) leaving a son
Thomas aged six, who in 1549 did homage at the
Biggleswade court for a messuage and a virgate of
land inherited from his father. (fn. 61) The latter history
of this property may be inferred from an extract from
a Biggleswade Manor Court Roll (c. 1660) by
which customary lands which had formerly belonged
to Thomas Eston, then to William Plomer, were
transferred by Sir Edward Alford and others to
Erasmus de la Fontaine. (fn. 62) No further mention of
this property has been found.
Scrope. Azure a bend or.
Westminster Abbry. Gules St. Peter's keys crossed or.
Ralph de Lisle owned two mills in his manor of
Biggleswade which were worth 47s. at the time of
Domesday. (fn. 63) In 1611 these mills were separated
from the manor and granted to Edward Ferrers and
Francis Philips. (fn. 64) Stratton manor appears to have
had a water-mill attached to it in 1436, in which
year John Enderby conveyed it to John Broughton
and other trustees. (fn. 65) There was a free fishery in the
waters of Biggleswade manor during the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries. (fn. 66)
Biggleswade is an ancient BOROUGH by prescription which has never received a charter of incorporation or returned members to Parliament. Small but
undoubted traces of Roman remains have been discovered, (fn. 67) and the early importance of Biggleswade
as an agricultural centre was probably owing to its
favourable position on the Roman road to the north.
The earliest mention that has been found of burgage
tenure is in 1247, when Sewel de Haswell alienated a
burgage to Henry le Sweyn. (fn. 68) In 1293 the burgesses
of Biggleswade claimed from Bishop Sutton the right
of leaving their burgages by will by a certain charter
which granted them 'liberties and customs which are
observed in other boroughs.' The bishop ordered an
inquiry into the validity of such claim, the result of
which does not appear. (fn. 69)
Biggleswade was a mesne borough which grew up
under the protection of the bishop of Lincoln, to
whom the manor was granted in 1132 by Henry I. (fn. 70)
In 1547 it passed by exchange into the possession of
the crown, (fn. 71) and subsequently was held with the
manor (q.v.) by the stewards. There were two
courts baron belonging to Biggleswade, one of which
was for the borough and the other a forinsec court
for dealing with the district outside the borough; (fn. 72)
there were also courts leet held twice a year, (fn. 73)
kept by the steward of the manor to whom a yearly
fee was paid, which in 1649 was 26s. 8d. (fn. 74) There
was also a reeve elected by tenants with the consent
of the lord for the collection of rents, who received
14s. per annum, and a beadle who received 7s. (fn. 75) The
burgage tenants paid 4d. on descent or alienation of
land as a fine to the lord of the manor, and the rents
of assize within the manor in 1649 amounted to
£22 6s. o½d. (fn. 76) The borough courts were held as
late as 1670, at which date Biggleswade formed part
of the possessions of the dowager queen Henrietta
Maria. (fn. 77) In 1830 a contemporary writer says of
Biggleswade, 'In ancient records it is called the
borough and foreign of Biggleswade, and it hath now
its bailiwick or franchise to which the tolls of the
market and fairs are payable. The present proprietor is Mr. Simeon Sill.' (fn. 78) Biggleswade has always
been an agricultural centre owing to its favourable
position and its early privileges as a market town.
In 1227 Henry III confirmed a market to Bishop
Hugh, which was granted by King John to be held
freely and without interruption, (fn. 79) and in the fourteenth century the bishops of Lincoln successfully
claimed a Monday market. (fn. 80) This market was again
confirmed by Henry VIII in 1528, (fn. 81) and when in
1547 the manor passed to the crown the right to hold
a market continued to be attached to it. Thomas
Margetts in 1662 petitioned successfully to have the
market day altered from Monday to Wednesday, (fn. 82) on
which day a market is still held.
The bishops of Lincoln also held from the earliest
times at least one fair annually in Biggleswade. In
1228 its date was altered from the Feast of the
Assumption (15 August) to Holy Cross Day
(14 September). (fn. 83) This fair was confirmed to the
bishop in 1528, and in addition two other yearly
fairs of three days' duration were granted to be held
on the Feasts of St. Mary Magdalene (22 July) and
of Sts. Simon and Jude (28 October). (fn. 84) Edward
Ditchfield, as lessee of the manor, received other fairs
on Whit Monday and the Feast of the Purification
(2 February) in 1631, (fn. 85) and Camden notes Biggleswade as famous for its horse fair and its stone bridge. (fn. 86)
Defoe's Tour styles it 'one of the greatest markets in
England for barley.' At the present day five fairs,
corresponding to these various grants, are held on
14 February, Saturday in Easter week, Whit Monday,
27 September, and 8 November.
The straw-plait trade formed one of the staple
industries of Biggleswade from the eighteenth century,
but with the recent introduction of foreign plait it
has now completely died out. (fn. 87) Early in the nineteenth century white thread lace and edging were
manufactured here, but this industry has also disappeared. Market gardening is, however, an important modern development in this parish.
Church
The church of ST. ANDREW consists of a chancel 54 ft. by 23 ft. 4 in.,
with modern north vestry and organ
chamber; nave 52 ft. 6 in. by 21 ft. 2 in. with
north aisle 15 ft. 9 in. wide and south aisle 18 ft. 4 in.;
western tower 15 ft. 3 in. by 16 ft., and south porch.
The earliest part of the church appears to be at the
west end of the nave, where the eastern arch of the
tower shows details of c. 1300, and is flanked by
buttresses which show signs of the rake of an earlier
roof to the nave. These buttresses are set symmetrically with the centre line of the tower and not with
that of the present nave, the arcades of which date
from the fifteenth century. On the buttresses abutting the tower arch remains of a raking weather
mould can be seen from the aisles, and give evidence
to the pitch of a former nave roof of earlier date than
the present arcade.
No other features in the nave are earlier than
1340, to which date the south doorway and a blocked
window to the west of it belong. A south aisle, and
probably a north aisle, were in existence at this time,
but with the destruction of the older arcade or arcades, and remodelling of the aisles in the fifteenth
century, their history has been lost. The chancel is
recorded to have been rebuilt between 1467 and
1481, by John Ruding, archdeacon of Bedford, but
its details suggest a date nearly a hundred years
earlier, and it is probable that the rebuilding
was rather a remodelling of older work. Fisher (fn. 87a)
gives a drawing of a misericorde seat with a crescent between five scallops, evidently part of Ruding's
work. There have been modern restorations in
1832 and 1884, and the tower was rebuilt in 1720,
its east wall alone being preserved. The chancel has
an east window of seven lights in fifteenth-century
style, the stonework being modern. On the south are
three three-light windows in late fourteenth-century
style, much repaired, and below them is a contemporary moulded string course. At the south-east of the
chancel is a piscina and three sedilia, also of the same
period; none of this work can be so late as the
recorded rebuilding of 1467. There are no old features in the north wall, against which a modern vestry
and organ chamber are built. The chancel arch of
two moulded orders is of the same date as the south
windows and has a pointed relieving arch above it.
The nave arcades are of four bays, c. 1450, with
moulded arches of two orders, and piers of engaged
half-round shafts and half-octagonal moulded capitals.
Above is a clearstory with four three-light squareheaded windows on each side, c. 1500. The east
window of the north aisle is of four lights with late
fifteenth-century tracery, and now opens to the
organ chamber. In the north wall are two similar
windows, and near the west end of the aisle a doorway, the external stonework of which has been
renewed. The west window of the aisle is of clumsy
Gothic detail inserted in a wider opening and is comparatively modern. In the south aisle the east window is of four lights of late fifteenth-century detail.
In the south wall are two three-light windows, and
to the west of them a fourteenth-century south doorway opening into a late fifteenth-century porch with
stone-vaulted ceiling and a parvise reached by a stair
at the south-west, and lighted by a three-light south
window. At the south-east of the porch is a contemporary opening, formerly a window, but now cut
down to make a doorway. West of the porch and
blocked by the parvise stair is an early fourteenthcentury window of which only the rear arch is now
visible, and the west window of the aisle is of late
fifteenth-century detail. The internal doorway to
the parvise stair remains, blocked with masonry. The
only old roof is that over the south aisle, which is of
the fifteenth century, with moulded timbers and
carved bosses showing traces of colouring; on the
eastern boss is a pelican. All the wooden fittings of
the church are modern except the south door, which
is of the fifteenth century, (fn. 87b) and the door to the rood
stair at the north-east angle of the south aisle, also of
the fifteenth century with tracery panels, and an openwork iron lock-plate which has been backed with red
leather. At the south-east angle of the north aisle is a
plain piscina, and in the south aisle there is a squareheaded recess in the east wall, and a restored fourteenth-century piscina at the south-east.
The tower which, as has been said, was rebuilt in
1720, is of three stages, with an embattled parapet,
and a staircase at the north-east angle. The belfry
windows are four-centred and of very plain detail, and
the west window on the ground stage is modern,
copied from the south windows of the chancel. There
is a small blocked doorway in the south wall, and the
traces of the abutment of the former south wall can
be seen on the south-east buttress, showing that the
former tower was wider than the present.
The font at the west end of the nave has a plain
bowl on an octagonal panelled stem with emblems of
the crucifixion carved on it. Against the north wall
of the chancel is a modern stone slab in which are
set fragments of the fine brass of John Ruding, archdeacon of Bedford, 1481, a small drawing of the
complete brass hangs on the wall, showing its former
arrangement. (fn. 87c) The figure stood under a canopy with
a small figure of death on the right side and an
inscription below in lines alternately incised and in
raised letters on an enamelled background, and a long
marginal inscription went round all four sides of the
stone. A considerable part of this is still preserved.
Scallops and crescents, being charges from the arms of
Ruding, occur in the inscription and on the slab.
There is also a head of St. John Baptist on the
charger, supported by angels; he was no doubt the
archdeacon's patron saint. There is also a brass to
William Halsted, 1449, and his two wives, Isabel
and Alice.
There are five bells, the first four by Thomas
Russell of Wooton, 1721, and the tenor by Taylor
of St. Neots, 1806.
The plate consists of a communion cup of 1781,
a paten and flagon of 1842, and a second chalice of
1870 with a paten of 1868, both presented in 1876.
The first volume of the registers contains burials
and baptisms from 1697 to 1765. The second contains marriages from 1754 to 1789.
Advowson
The rectory to which the advowson
of the vicarage is attached was formerly
annexed to a prebend in Lincoln
Cathedral. In 1132, together with Biggleswade manor
(q.v.) it was granted to the bishops of Lincoln, (fn. 88) and in
1535 the vicarage was worth £10. (fn. 89) In 1837 the archdeaconry of Bedford, hitherto in the Lincoln diocese,
was transferred to Ely, whose
bishop now holds the right of
presentation to Biggleswade. (fn. 90)
There appears to have been
a chapel in Stratton in the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. In 1317 Thomas de
Northfleet, canon of St. Paul's,
left money for the repair of the
chapel of St. Mary. (fn. 91) John
Enderby left alms in 1457 for
masses for his soul to be said in
Stratton Chapel, (fn. 92) and in 1473
Maud his widow obtained a licence to found a
chantry at the altar of St. Mary in the chapel of
Stratton for the souls of John Enderby and others. (fn. 93)
Diocese of Ely. Gules three crowns or.
The church of St. John the Baptist in the north of
the town, designed by Sir Arthur Blomfield, is a
building of brick, erected in 1883.
There are in Biggleswade at the present day Strict
Baptist, Baptist, Wesleyan, and Primitive Methodist
chapels, and a meeting-place for the Salvation Army.
There are also a council and two non-provided
schools.
In 1475 the bishop of Lincoln received a licence
to found a fraternity or gild to be called the Gild
of the Holy Trinity, (fn. 94) whose object was to provide a
priest to say a daily mass in the church of St. Andrew,
Biggleswade, 'for the good estate of the said King
(Edward IV) and Queen, the soul of the late Duke of
York, father of the king, and all the brothers and sisters
of the said guild.' (fn. 95) At the Dissolution its value was
£7, but in 1547 it was found no longer to fulfil the
purposes for which it was established, and was
abolished. (fn. 96)
Charities
Charity of Sir John Cotton, bart.,
known as the Flitwick Charity. In
1726 Sir John Cotton, bart., by his
will, directed (inter alia) that a sum of £1,800 should
be laid out in the purchase of freehold lands, and that
out of the rents and profits two-ninths thereof should
be paid to the vicar of St. Notes, county of Huntingdon, two-ninths to the rector of Conington in the
same county, one-ninth to the vicar of Biggleswade,
as augmentations of their respective benefices, twoninths to the schoolmaster in the township of Holme
(in the ancient parish of Glatton, Huntingdonshire),
and two-ninths to the schoolmaster in Biggleswade for
the instruction of children in the principles of the
Christian religion as practised in the Church of
England.
By the direction of the Court of Chancery an estate
in the parish of Flitwick in the county of Bedford
was purchased in 1752, the rental value of which is
about £200 a year. The official trustees hold (1906)
a sum of £53. 15s. 11d. consols, towards replacement
of a sum of £375, borrowed in 1897, for enlargement
of the farm-house.
By an order made under the Board of Education
Act, 1899, two-ninths of the net yearly income has
been assigned for purposes of education under the
title of Sir John Cotton's Educational Foundation
(Holme), and the same proportion under the title of
Sir John Cotton's Educational Foundation (Biggleswade). The other proportions are duly applied for
their respective objects of trust.
Robert Braynforth (as appeared from the Table of
Benefactions), by his will, date unknown, charged certain
land in Distaff Lane, in the parish of St. Nicholas Cole
Abbey, London, with the yearly sum of £10 for the
use of the poor of the town and parish. The rentcharge was redeemed by the payment into court of
£333 6s. 8d. consols, which sum was, in or about the
year 1898, with the consent of the court re-invested,
with other monies advanced for the purpose (since
replaced out of income), in the purchase of a groundrent of £15 a year, payable out of No. 215, London
Road, Croydon, belonging to a society known as 'The
Institute Building Society.'
The income is distributed in money to the poor
inhabitants on St. Thomas's Day in sums of 10d. to
each recipient.
The Table of Benefactions also showed that John
Wright, by his will, date unknown, gave the sum of
£4 a year, payable out of a house in the Market
Place, to be distributed among such poor people as
should live in the parish. The property charged
now consists of shops and a house in the Market
Place, of which Mr. A. J. Brookbanks is the owner.
The charity is distributed at the same time and in the
same manner as the last-mentioned charity.
It also appeared, from the same table, that the
Rev. E. B. Frere, vicar of the parish, deposited
£52 10s. in the Savings Bank in trust for the poor
for ever. The gift is now represented by £51 10s. 6d.
consols, with the official trustees, and the dividends,
amounting to £1 5s. 8d., are distributed in bread.
In 1795 Jane Brooks, by her will, proved in the
Archdeaconry Court of Huntingdonshire, on 24
January, 1797, bequeathed £160 to trustees upon
trust to invest the same and to apply the income for
the benefit of poor people of the respective parishes of
Hinxworth and Baldock in the county of Hertford,
Biggleswade and Stotfold in the county of Bedford, in
equal fourth-part shares for distribution in bread
amongst the most necessitous poor of the respective
parishes.
The legacy was, in 1833, laid out in the purchase
of two contiguous pieces of land known as the Great
Mill Field and the Little Mill Field, in the parish of
Stocking Pelham in the county of Hertford, containing together 7 a. 3 r. 18 p.
By an order of the Charity Commissioners of 2 April,
1889, the churchwardens were appointed trustees of
the charity. The rent, amounting after deductions
for tithes, &c., to £4 9s. 8d. is applied in the distribution of loaves.
In 1808 George Herbert, by his will, bequeathed
to the vicar and churchwardens £300 in trust to
distribute the income in monthly portions at the times
of distributing the sacrament-money to poor inhabitants of the parish usually attending divine service.
The legacy is represented by £393 8s. 10d. consols,
with the official trustees. The dividends, amounting
to £9 16s. 8d., are distributed in gifts of 1s. monthly
to communicants.
Mrs. Elizabeth Meen, by her will, proved in the
P.C.C. on 13 May, 1840, left £200 upon trust to
be invested and the income applied for the benefit of
that class of poor widows of the town of Biggleswade
upon St. Thomas's Day in every year for which a
collection had usually been made. The legacy is
represented by £217 7s. 10d. consols with the official
trustees, the dividends of which, amounting to
£5 8s. 8d., are applied by the vicar and churchwardens in the distribution of bread.
National and Infant Schools (see above, 'Schools').
In 1755 Edward Peake, by will, gave a house and 2
roods of land, situate at Holme, and an annual sum
of £13, charged on other premises at Holme, for purposes of education; this sum, together with £2 3s.,
the rent of the house and land, is applied for the
benefit of these schools.
See also Sir John Cotton's Charity, abovementioned.