WARTHILL
Wardille, Wardhilla (xi cent.); Warthull (xv cent.);
Wharthell, Wathell (xvi cent.); Wartheill (xvii cent.).
The parish of Warthill, formerly in the forest of
Galtres, (fn. 1) covers an area of nearly 1,004 acres, of which
a considerable proportion is freehold of the manor of
Holtby and the rest freehold and copyhold of Warthill Manor. There are 656 acres of arable land,
where wheat, barley, oats and potatoes are grown,
273 of permanent grass, and 28 of woods and plantations. (fn. 2) The soil is sandy on a subsoil of Keuper
marls and bunter sandstone. In the greater part of
Warthill the land lies at a height of 75 ft. above
ordnance datum, rising to 100 ft. on the borders of
Gate Helmsley on the east.
The village lies in the south of the parish on a
road known as 'Common Lane'; this enters it from
Stockton on the north-west and is crossed at Warthill
Gates by the line of the York and Scarborough branch
of the North Eastern railway. Warthill station
stands within the borders of Stockton. The village,
which is small but picturesque, is placed in a hollow
and surrounds a green and its pond. None of the
cottages are of any great age. At the north end is
the manor-house, now a farm-house, which with the
manor farm is now the property of Mr. Henry Hillyard; at the south are the church and Wesleyan
Methodist chapel, the latter dating from 1841, with
a few cottages beyond.
A moat which surrounds the site of the ancient
manor-house is still to be seen in a garth near the
vicarage, which stands on the borders of Gate Helmsley.
In the opposite direction, a mile west of the village,
in a large park, is Brockfield House, now the residence
of Mr. Charles Talbot Agar.
Among the lands belonging to the manor in the
17th century were Peasland, Hungry Carbutt, Cattingbutt, Chappellbutt, Bull Ynge, Wybutt, Farrlonglands, Shortbrock, Brockrood, Redcarr lands, Stovelands, Keerells, Borrowbrigg and Long Harams. (fn. 3) An
Act for the inclosure of 500 acres of common, a tract
of 50 acres known as 'Sandy Lands,' with various
ancient messuages and other tenements called 'Frontsteads,' was passed in 1812. (fn. 4)
Manor
Three geld carucates in WARTHILL,
in the possession of the see of York in
1086, (fn. 5) were afterwards assigned to the prebend which took the name of the parish. (fn. 6) Though the
benefice was of comparatively small value, (fn. 7) more than
one Roman cardinal held it. It was held in 1272 by
Ancherus, Cardinal of St. Praxed, for whom Pope
Urban intervened to secure a pension until his provision to a wealthier prebend, (fn. 8) and in 1345 by Aymer,
Cardinal of St. Anastasia, who was then promoted to
benefices in the province of Canterbury. (fn. 9) John de
Markenfield, a royal clerk, obtained the prebend from
Edward II in 1307 during the voidance of the see of
York. (fn. 10) Several instances of papal interference with the
archbishop's right to the patronage of this prebend
occur in the 14th century. In 1351 Edward III
granted it to Thomas de Oldington, (fn. 11) who, at the
king's death, was ejected by John Thorne, provided
by the pope; at his death John was succeeded by
John de Akun. (fn. 12) Another papal nominee, Richard
Carlton, who was 'litigating in the apostolic palace'
in 1391 concerning the canonry and prebend of
Warthill, (fn. 13) does not seem to have actually entered into
possession. On his death in or before 1395 the pope,
after a series of provisions, provided Walter Cooke,
prebendary from the resignation of Nicholas Slake
in 1397 until 1423. (fn. 14) John le Romayn, afterwards
Archbishop of York, was collated to this prebend in
1279. (fn. 15) A later prebendary, Adam Moleyns, afterwards in 1445 (fn. 16) Bishop of Chichester, was a pluralist.
Towards the close of the 16th century the prebend
was granted to George Coryate, (fn. 17) in reward, presumably, of many years devoted to the adulation, in
Latin verse, of Queen Elizabeth and her nobility. (fn. 18) A
worthier tenant, prebendary from 1688 to 1713, was
Francis Drake, (fn. 19) whose son and grandson of the same
name, both antiquaries and the elder of considerable
renown, (fn. 20) were lessees of the manor in 1746 and
1775 respectively. (fn. 21)
In 1649 the manor of Warthill was sold for
£157 10s. by the commissioners of the Long
Parliament to John Pickersgill of London. (fn. 22) After
the Restoration it remained in the possession of the
prebendary until the statute of 1840 transferred the
estates of non-residentiary prebends to the Ecclesiastical
Commissioners, (fn. 23) who were empowered to sell it in
1852. (fn. 24) The manorial rights which were enjoyed
by the lessee of the prebendary until 1840, and
afterwards of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, (fn. 25) now
belong to Mr. Henry Hillyard as owner of the
Manor Farm, which is a small property of about 200
acres. The largest landowner in Warthill is Mr.
Charles Agar of Brockfield House. (fn. 26) There was a
manor-house here belonging to the prebendary in
the 14th century. (fn. 27)
A 'manor' of 2 geld carucates held by Sorthoued
in the time of Edward the Confessor belonged to the
Count of Mortain in 1086, when it was said to be
waste. (fn. 28) This seems to be the land which lies
within the parish of Holtby, and was described in
1812 as freehold held of the manor of Holtby (fn. 29) (q.v.).
The Prior of St. Andrew, York, had a grange and
other tenements in Warthill from the 14th to the
16th century, having obtained a messuage and 2 oxgangs from Walter Richman in or about 1303. (fn. 30)
Church
The church of ST. MARY is a small
modern building consisting of a chancel,
nave and tower on the south side, forming a porch. The ancient church was pulled down
in 1787 and a brick building substituted by Robert
Bowes. The present structure was begun in 1873
and is of red brick with stone dressings. The tower
is surmounted by a small slate spire and contains
three bells cast by J. Warner & Co. in 1876.
The plate consists of a cup (York, 1779) with the
maker's initials H.P., a paten of 1874 and a silvermounted glass flagon. There are also a good pewter
flagon and two pewter plates inscribed 'Warthill
Church.'
The registers previous to 1812 are as follows: (i)
mixed entries 1689 to 1812; (ii) marriages 1763 to
1811.
Advowson
The church was always associated
with the metropolitan church of
York. It was appropriated to the
prebend of Warthill and in the gift of the prebendary,
who was bound as rector 'to find at his own expense
one chaplain to celebrate in the chapel of Warthill.' (fn. 31)
At what date the vicarage was ordained is not known, (fn. 32)
but it was valued at 60s. 8d. in 1535, (fn. 33) when the
archbishop wrote to Cromwell that he had 'now sent
the King the advowson of Warthill.' (fn. 34) The patronage remained vested in the prebendary until the Act
of 1840 transferred it to the archbishop, who still
presents. (fn. 35)
Charities
By deed dated 26 May 1906
Samuel Girton gave a sum of £53
6s. 6d. India 3 per cent. stock (with
the official trustees), the dividends to be applied for
encouraging the members of the choir of the parish
church. (See Stockton-on-the-Forest.)