in the preservation of the church to carry out the suggestions of the resolution, and it will be for our local Society to consider whether some practical scheme could be originated, to be worked in concert with the Archdeacon, to accomplish the desired object. I here introduce some excellent illustrations of the church, taken from photographs by Mr. S. G. Payne of Aylesbury. I have given a short description of its architectural features in my report to the Society of Antiquaries, and which will appear in the Proceedings of the Society. The illustrations are, the exterior of the church, from the south side; the chancel, looking west; the nave and south aisle, looking east. It should be explained that the interior of the church and chancel was taken as it was seen by Mr. Strachey before the recent attempt made to bring about some appearance of order. Mr. Strachey's letter was primarily written to call attention to the perilous condition of the Brudenell Monument, then left unprotected in the interior of the old church. This monument has been removed to the new church at Stoke Mandeville, at the cost of the Marquess of Ailesbury, and it is a subject for congratulation that it is now safe from the thoughtless destruction of holiday crowds. An illustration of the monument in the old church, and as it appears, after careful restoration, in the new church, is also given with the illustrations of the church. On a brass plate affixed to the back of the recess above the recumbent figure is the following inscription: Cruell death by mortall blades Hath slaine foure of my tender babes Hath ther soules to Him receaved Which lovingly lyved and dyed mylde Thou wert my tenth even God's owne choyce On Good Friday at night my Doll depted Hopeing through Christ he will provide Such is my hope of Richard my Sonn. In examining into the history of St. Mary's, Stoke Mandeville, I have referred to Domesday, and I find a confirmation of the fact already known that this church. was originally connected with the church of Aylesbury. It is worthy of observation that Aylesbury and Buckingham were the only churches at the time of the survey that held estates in Buckinghamshire, and Aylesbury was of much greater importance than Buckingham. Aylesbury was evidently a parish of large extent, and embraced several districts which were subsequently formed into parishes, amongst which was Bierton, itself, as time went on, becoming the mother church of Stoke and the other chapelries of Quarrendon, Broughton, and Buckland. Aylesbury, it should be remembered, was one of the four British towns that held out against the Saxon invaders, and there is reason to conclude that its church was of very early date, and that the site of this church was dedicated to religious purposes from remote times. Bosworth, in his Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, interprets the word Eyles-burh, or Egelesburh, as referring to Aylesbury; and it would seem that in "Egles" the town preserved its Celtic name, Eglwys-the town with a church. That the town was important as an ecclesiastical centre is evident, for Leland writes of Aylesbury as having one parish church, "but that is most ancientest in all "these quarters, as it appeareth by the Life of S. Osith. "Querendon, a mile and a halfe from Alesbury, also "Bierton and Alesbury (qy. Ellesburrowe) in Chilterne, "3 miles of by South with divers other Hamletts were in "Alesbury parish;" and Browne Willis writes: "The "church of Ailesbury was one of the most ancient of all "these parts, and the parish thereto belonging of the "greatest extent in the whole County.* I make the following quotation from Domesday, as it "Notitia Parliamentaria," published by R. Gosling, 1730. refers to Stoke and its connection with Aylesbury, and I do not find that the recognized county history by Lipscomb makes any allusion to this extract from the Survey. Remigius, Bishop of Lincoln, holds Stoke. It "is rated for 8 hides. Arable land for 21 ploughs. In the "demesne 3 hides and 6 ploughlands there. 20 villeins "with 4 bordars have 15 ploughlands. 4 serfs and 1 mill "of 10 shillings. Woodland for 30 pigs. Meadow for 3 ploughs. This Manor belongs to the church of Aylesbury. There are 18 bordars who pay 20 shillings "a year. In all values it is worth 20 pounds; when "received 12 pounds; in King Edward's time 18 pounds. Bishop Walwi held this Manor with the church in King "Edward's time. Every freeholder of the 8 hundreds which lie around Aylesbury, who holds 1 hide or more, 'yields a certain quantity of corn to this church. And "formerly by every freeholder one acre's produce of corn or else 4 pence, were paid to this church, in the "time of King Edward, but since the coming of King "William this has not been paid."* 66 66 66 This offering "of corn, or one year's produce of corn or else 4 pence paid to the church" by every freeholder, in the time of the Confessor, of the eight hundreds around Aylesbury confirms the evidence of Leland and Browne Willis bearing on the importance of the church, and the yielding of these dues is a point of considerable interest. I conclude that these dues were known as "church shot" or church scot." In the seventh and eighth centuries 66 *Terra Episcopi Lincoliensis. In Elesberie Hundreds. Remigius episcopus Lincoliæ tenet Stockes. Pro viii. hidis se defendit. Terra est xxi. carucarum. In dominio iii. hidæ, et ibi sunt vi. carucatæ. Ibi xx. villani, cum iv. bordariis habent XV. carucatas. Ibi iii. servi, et unus molinus de x. solidis. Silva xxx. porcorum. Pratum iii. carucarum, Hoc manerium jacet ad ecclesiam de Elesberie. Ibi xviii. bordarii qui reddunt per annum xx. solidos. In totis valenciis valet xx. libras, quando receptum xii. libras tempore Regis Edwardi xviii. libras. Hoc manerium cum ecclesia tenuit Walwi episcopus tempore Regis Edwardi. De viii. hundredis qui jacent in circuitu Elesberie, unus quisque sochus qui habet unam hidam aut plus reddit unam sumam annonæ huic ecclesiæ. Adhuc etiam de uno quoque socto una acra annonæ, aut iiii. denarii solvebantur huic ecclesiæ, tempore Regis Edwardi; sed post adventum Regis Willelmi redditum non fuit. |