WIMLINGSWOLD,
USUALLY called Womenjole, lies next to Nonington south-eastward. It is situated at a small
distance northward from the east end of Barham
Downs; the country is much the same as Nonington last-described, open and uninclosed arable land
and downs, but the soil is still less fertile, being
more chalky and stony. The village, having the
church in it, is nearly in the middle of the parish;
near the eastern boundary is Snowdown, where there
is a hamlet and large wood, named Woolwich, commonly called Wollege, the manor and estate of it belongs to Mr. Papillon, and the wood to the archbishop; and at a small distance further is a down, called
Three Barrow Down, from three large barrows, or
tumuliremaining on it; here are plain remains of Cæsar's works, a part of the continued course of them
leading to his main camp at Denne-hill. These works
here begin to be singular, as they are large, and the
trenches deep and particularly adapted, and continued
up to a great extent and variety of intrenchments, that
possess all the hill between Denne-hill terrace, on the
edge of Barham Downs, and the scite of Nethersolehouse under Snowdown. This place was very proper
for the station of his main corps, as by its situation,
it commanded all the open conquered country behind him to the sea, where he had left his fleet, and
the woody country before him, where the Britons harboured, and from thence frequently alarmed and annoyed his foragers.
Sir Thomas Browne, comptroller and treasurer of
the houshold to king Henry VI. who was owner of
the adjoining manor of Eythorne, obtained the grant
of a fair to be held yearly at this village of Wimlingswold, on the feast of St. Margaret the Virgin, on the
20th of July, (fn. 1) but it is now held yearly on Old
May-day.
The MANOR OF WINGHAM claims paramount
over it, and the borough of its own name has jurisdiction over it. The manor of Eythorneclaims likewise
over some part of it.
NETHERSOLE, now called Old Nethersole, is an antient mansion, situated at a small distance from the
church, which, as early as the reign of Henry III.
was in the possession of a family of the same name,
who bore for their arms, Parted per pale, gules, and
azure, three griffins, segreant, or; (fn. 2) and it appears by
an antient deed of the 38th of king Henry III. that
William, the son of Thomas de Nethersole, enfeoffed
Richard de Wolwiche in certain lands lying in Nethersole, and in his descendants this seat continued
down, without interruption, till at length Mr. John
Nethersole, gent. of this place, leaving three sons,
John, of Barham; Stephen, of Wimlingswold; and
William, of Canterbury, it became divided among
them, in undivided thirds, and they all dying without
male issue, their respective shares of it became again
divided among their daughters and coheirs, and afterwards into several more minute subdivisions among
their heirs; however, at last Mr. Jacob Sharpe, of
Canterbury, who possessed a share of it by marriage
with Elizabeth, the eldest of the three daughters and
coheirs of William Nethersole, gent. of Canterbury,
before-mentioned, in the years 1771 and 1772, purchased all the other shares of it, and so became possessed of the whole of it, which at his death in 1774
he gave by will to his third son Jacob Sharp, esq. now
of Barham, the present owner of it.
BUT A PART of the Nethersole estate, in this parish,
came into the possession of Thomas Nethersole, esq. a
younger son of this family, who boilt on it a mansion
for his residence in the valley, at the south-east boundary of this parish, which he named NETHERSOLEHOUSE, and left it to his son Sir Francis Nethersole,
who resided here for some time, but in the civil wars
he retired to Pollesworth, in Warwickshire, where he
built and liberally endowed a free school. He died
there in 1659, s. p. and by will gave his estates in this
county to his nephew John Marsh, son of his sister
Anne, by Thomas Marsh, esq. of Brandred, whose
arms were, Quarterly, gules and argent, in the first quarter a horse's head, couped of the second. (fn. 3) His descendant John Marsh, esq. of the Inner Temple, counsellor-at-law, afterwards resided here, but dying s. p.
in 1752, he devised this seat, with his other estates, by
his will to Mr. John Winchester, surgeon, of London,
for life, and he died possessed of it in 1781, leaving
one son and a daughter, who became the second wife
of Sir Edward Dering, bart. Upon his death it came
by the entail of the above will, to the eldest surviving
son of his cousin Capt. Henry Marsh, of the royal
navy, which was John Marsh, esq. of Salisbury, who
afterwards removed hither, but in the year 1786 he
alienated it to Hardinge Stracey, esq. of Denne-hill,
one of the clerks of the house of commons, who has
since entirely pulled down this mansion, and he continues owner of the scite where it stood, with the lands
and appurtenances belonging to it.
Charities.
ELIZABETH, daughter of Stephen Nethersole, esq. of this
parish, gave by will in 1737, three houses, a forge, and three
acres of land, in this parish, for the use of the poor.
The poor constantly relieved are about sixteen, casually six.
THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of
Bridge.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Margaret,
consists of one isle and a high chancel, with a small
cross sept on the north side, having a tower steeple at
the west end, in which there is one bell. The church
appears long and low, without any partition on the
roof, or on the pavement in the inside, between the
isle and chancel; the latter part seems much the more
antient. In the chancel in the walls, are two tombs,
under pointed arches; one of them has half the stone
on the tomb remaining, inscribed with old French capitals, nearly obliterated. A monument, with marble
bust, for John Marsh, esq. of Nethersole, obt. 1752.
He lies buried in a vault underneath, with others of
his family. Within the altar-rails a memorial for
Francis Levett, esq. Turkey merchant, who died at
Nethersole in 1764; arms, A lion rampant, between
an orle of cross-crosiets, fitchee. A monument for John
Winchester, esq. obt. 1781. At the east end, where
the altar should have been, a very handsome and superb pyramidical monument, with a medallion, for
Thomas Marsh, esq. lieutenant-colonel of the militia
of the cinque ports, captain of Sandown castle, deputy lieutenant of Dover castle, &c. obt. 1739. Near
it, in the south wall, is another antient tomb, with
three small pointed arches at top. On the pavement
are several stones, coffin-shaped, with remains of old
French capitals round them. The north cross sept,
which belonged to Old Nethersole, is covered with a
a pew. In the isle, near it, are monuments and gravestones for several of the family of Nethersole.
The church of Wimlingswold was antiently esteemed
as a chapel of ease to that of Wingham, and was on
the foundation of the college there, in 1286, separated from it, and made a distinct parish of itself.
Very soon after which it appears to have been united,
as to its ecclesiastical jurisdiction, as a chapel of ease
to the church of Nonington, and continues so at this
time, being as it were but one and the same curacy;
and the appropriation of the parsonage of it, in like
manner as that of Nonington, was settled on the college of Wingham, from which the curate, officiating
in this church, received a pension, or stipend of
4l. 13s. 4d. over and above all the small tithes arising
in this parish, (fn. 4) and after the suppression of it was
granted, with that parsonage, to the see of Canterbury, part of the revenues of which it still continues,
William Hammond, esq. of St. Albans, being the present lessee of both parsonages.
The small-tithes of this parish, together with those
of Nonington, were given to the minister serving the
cure of these parishes, under certain restrictions, by
Edward Boys, esq. of Nonington, by his will in 1596,
as has been already fully related before. In 1640 here
were fifty-six communicants.