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The Headless
Lady
On the south wall of the nave is a brass which was once
part of a memorial tablet or tomb cover. It is obviously the figure of a lady
but it has been severely damaged; the head is missing and so is part of the base
of the Figure. The lady wears a long dress and mantle and her hands are in an
attitude of prayer. The brass is of l4th century date. The type of head dress
she would have worn would have depended upon whether or not she was married and
also on her social status. As we do not know who she was we cannot find out the
answers to questions about her head dress. There once may have been a little dog
near her foot.
The Marie de Bradehurst Chapel
This chapel was built during the
Fourteenth Century. It would have been the private chapel of the Lord of the
Manor and his family. During the service the family would sit in comfort in this
chapel from where they could see the altar but not have to mix with the rest of
the congregation. In winter time they would probably have a fire to keep them
warm.
On the walls would be the memorial tablets and brasses in memory of the dad
members of their family who were buried beneath the floor. There may also have
been carved figures on some of the tombs. The chapel was called the Marie de
Bradehurst chapel because it was dedicated to the Virgin Mary (Marie) and was
owned by the owners of Broadhurst (Bradehurst). The chapel was demolished in
1850. It had probably fallen into disrepair by this time. During the early
Nineteenth Century it had been used for some time as the Village School.
The Boy who was
Buried before he was Born
If you stand in the chancel and look at
the south wall, you will be facing an archway which has been filled in. This
archway used to lead into the Marie de Bradehurst Chapel. On this wall are two
memorial tablets which originally were on the walls of that chapel.
The one on the right is in memory of William Pigott and his family. William
and his wife Jane had four sons and one daughter. All four of the boys died
young; William died aged nineteen. Gervas was fourteen, Robert only a few months
old when he died and Henry, apparently, died in March 1715 but was not born
until December 1715. The explanation is that our calendar has been changed -
read more details here.
Up until 1752 the new year began on 25th March and not on 1st January as it does
now. So Henry was born in December and died the following March aged nearly 3
months, but in those days it was during the same year.
Clocks
Outside you will see the clock in the
tower. The face of the clock is painted blue and the hands and numerals are
gilded. The present clock was installed in 1853. The previous clock had a
lozenge shaped face as can be seen in a picture of the Church painted soon after
1850. That clock probably had only one hand so the time could only be told to
the nearest quarter of an hour. Before the days of radio, aeroplanes and cars
exact time was not so important. If it is a sunny day, see how accurately you
can tell the time by the sundial over the porch entrance. Remember Summer-time
is a modern convenience so the sundial may be a whole hour wrong.
The Lightmlakers
The memorial tablet next to the Pigott
tablet is surmounted by a shield with a red lion. This tablet commemorates
members of the Lightmlaker family. Saphira Lightmlaker was the sister of Dr.
Robert Leighton, whose books are preserved in the Church. Saphira preferred to
be called Susan. Perhaps she adopted the name Susan after reading about her
namesake Saphira in the Bible (Acts Chapter 5).
Susan married a London Brewer named Lightmlaker and they
lived at Broadhurst. She was widowed at the early age of 37 and lived to be 84.
She was, apparently, a rather severe lady who quarrelled with the Rector, Giles
Moore. The grave slabs of her two brothers, Sir Ellis Leighton and Archbishop
Robert Leighton, are built into the exterior wall of the chancel.
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