KYRE WYARD or KYRE MAGNA (fn. 1)
Chure (xi cent.); Cure, Cure Wyard (xiii cent.);
Curwyard (xiv cent.); Cuyrewyard (xv cent.);
Kyrewiare, Kyer, Kyrewyarde (xvi cent.).
This parish lies in the west of the county on the
Herefordshire border. It has an area of 1,516 acres,
of which 126 acres are arable land, 790 permanent
grass and 112 woods and plantations. (fn. 2) The soil is
clayey loam, the subsoil Old Red Sandstone, the chief
crops being corn, hops and fruit. In the south-west
an altitude of 800 ft. is reached near Kyre Common,
but the land falls to the north-east to 300 ft. It is
watered by Kyre Brook, and Perry Brook and
Cadmore Brook bound it on the south and west.
It is a thinly-populated parish and comprises some
houses and cottages on the Tenbury Road, a few
scattered farms, and a considerable portion of the
Kyre estate with the house. Kyre Park, the seat of
Mrs. Frances Christina Baldwyn-Childe, charmingly
situated in the midst of magnificent woods and commanding extensive views to the north and south, lies
to the west of the road from Tenbury to Bromyard,
4 miles from Tenbury. The grounds are believed to
have been arranged by 'Capability Brown.' An extensive lawn stretching from the west of the house is
bounded on the south, west and north by three
lakes, (fn. 3) the shores of which are well wooded, and the
parish church, standing to the south-east, is connected
with the house by a modern timber cloister.
Plan of Kyre Park
The house in its present state is L-shaped on plan,
the foot of the L being formed by a thick-walled
building, the walls of which are probably those
of a fortified house of the 14th century, and the main
limb by a hall of about 1600 with 18th-century
additions on the south and east. The earliest portion of the house appears to have been for some time
in a ruinous condition, when it was bought from
Lord Compton in 1575 by Sir Edward Pytts, who
undertook to repair and add to the building. The
work was continued by his son Sir James Pytts, who
succeeded to the estate in 1618. A most interesting
account exists, principally in Sir Edward's own handwriting, of the progress of this work begun in 1586. (fn. 4)
By 1611 the hall and eastern staircase, all that now
remains of the work of this period, were probably
complete, but little further progress was made, for
ho writes under that date:
In the name of God Amen. Nowe purposing by God's
assistance to go forward withe building of Kyer House and
reparinge the ruyns thereof, I brought John Bentley freemason
from Oxford (where he wrought the newe addition to Sir Thomas
Bodleigh his famous library) with me as I came from London
to Kyer to take instructions from me by veinge the place to
draw me a newe platte for I altered my first intent, because
I wold not encroche on the churchyard, nor alter it, nor build
a new churchyarde more convenient hard by because my
consyence wold have accused me of doinge the same, of purpose
only to grace myne owne house.
The new plan was to consist of a rectangular central
block 90 ft. by 58 ft. with a square tower at each
corner, two of which were to be 14 ft. square and the
other two 12 ft. square. This plan, however, was not
carried out and the repair of the old keep appears
not to have been made at this time, since no work
of the period remains in it. The hall had on the south
two wide oak mullioned windows which looked on to
a court, and the buildings originally contemplated by
Sir Edward, but abandoned, would evidently have
stood on the east side of this court and encroached
upon the churchyard.
During the latter part of the 18th century considerable alterations and additions were made and the
earlier west wing, which seems to have been of [square-cornered capital letter C, lain on its side]
plan, was then remodelled, the wide gaps in its sandstone rubble walls being repaired with brickwork and
the recessed portion on the western side filled by the
present drawing room with rooms above it. At the same
time a two-storied addition was made to the south of
the hall, blocking the large windows on this side, and
the whole house, with the exception of the hall,
was remodelled externally and redecorated internally.
In 1880 the house was restored in a conservative
manner; the partitions by which the hall had been
divided into three rooms were then removed, while
the kitchen offices on the east and the small porch
on the north front were added.
Kyre Park: The North Front, Showing Hall Chimney With Adiacent Chamber
The west wing now contains three stories and is
occupied by the principal staircase, the drawing room,
the morning room, and a small room at the southwest. On the north and south are bay windows
carried the whole height of the building, and the
walls are crowned by a moulded cornice and plain
parapet surmounted by a pediment in the centre of
the west front, and having ball finials at the angles,
while a deep modillion cornice runs round the whole
block at the level of the second floor. The principal
stairs form an excellent example of 18th-century work;
they are of soft wood with a large square well, slender
turned balusters, and a moulded handrail wreathed at
the foot of the lower flight. The staircase hall communicates with the drawing room on the west and the
morning room on the south, and there are cellars
underneath these apartments, but the only original
basement rooms are those beneath the north end of
the drawing room and under the morning room.
The latter appears to be the lower part of a very
much higher apartment with two windows on the
south, now blocked, and a doorway on the east.
A small portion of the masonry which divided the
two windows and the lower parts of the extreme
jambs remain on the inside, but of the doorway the
only part unaltered is the lower part of the north
jamb, which has a simple splayed edge. The rooms
in this wing retain their tastefully designed and
charmingly executed late 18th-century decoration,
with plain coloured walls, decorated friezes, and in
some cases concentrated ornament on the walls. The
drawing room was enlarged during the late restoration by the inclusion of the room to the north of it,
the thick wall between them being opened out. The
walls of the morning room are panelled, and on the
west side is a marble fireplace with a carved wood
overmantel inclosing a painting of a ruined church.
The hall block, which adjoins the west wing at the
north-east, occupies the centre of the north front, with
the modern entrance porch and kitchen offices on the
east, and a modern brick wing on the west. The
central block is two stories in height with an attic, and
is built of brickwork on a sandstone plinth with a
moulded base course. At the north-west is a large
projecting chimney, and on the east side of it, carried
to the full height of the building, is a small wing in
which there are two small chambers, one entered from
the hall by a sliding panel discovered not long since,
and the other opening off the room above. There are
four original stone moulded windows in the hall, two
on the north and two on the west, the southern most of
these last being inclosed by a modern corridor. These
are transomed windows, the part above the transom
being divided by a mullion in each case, and they
have been repaired, but retain in some cases their
original iron fastenings. The oak mullioned frame of
one of the original south windows was discovered
during the recent restoration and has been re-used
with additional lights in the corridor which connects
the hall with the principal staircase in the west wing.
The fireplace at the north-west of the hall has a late
17th-century overmantel carved with fruit and flowers
in high relief. The ceiling, now plastered, is divided
into rectangular compartments by heavy moulded oak
beams, which have been recently strengthened by an
iron girder. At the south-east is a doorway leading
to the 18th-century additions, and on the east is another
doorway which opens into the entrance hall. This
last is entered through the north porch and contains
an original late
16th-century oak
staircase continued
to the attics. It is
of the dog-legged
type and has heavy
square newel posts
with shaped finials,
moulded hand-rails
and flat shaped and
pierced balusters,
the bottom newel
having a heavy
shaped buttress-like
support. The first
story is lighted by
18th-century and
modern sash windows. The 18thcentury block on
the south side of the
hall is two stories
in height and the
walls are plastered.
A central entrance
doorway, flanked by
Doric pilasters and
crowned by a curved
pediment, leads into
the southern entrance hall, on either side of which
are the library and dining room. The dining room
has a fireplace of coloured marble with a carved wood
overmantel. At the west end of the room are two
fluted columns of the composite order supporting one
of the ceiling beams, and on the east is a central doorway flanked by wood Ionic columns, and having a
semicircular-headed niche on either side of it. The
room above the dining room is charmingly decorated
and has an oval-domed ceiling enriched by plaster
floral decoration. A modern covered timber walk or
cloister connects this block with the church, which
stands close to the house on the south-east. In the
corridor above the hall is some early 17th-century
panelling. The house contains a good collection of
portraits of the Pytts family.
To the east of the house is a large U-shaped brick
barn erected about 1618. It stands on a sandstone
base, has stepped gables and tiled roofs, and is supported on the north side by a long row of buttresses.
To the east of the barn is a 17th-century half-timber
gate-house, and a little to the north-east is a circular
dovecot, which retains the original central post supporting a ladder by means of which all the cells
could be reached, the post revolving on its axis. The
dovecot is built of stone with brick cells, and is
covered by a conical tiled roof with small dormers
on the top. It is probably of the 14th century, but
it was removed from the south side of the house and
re-erected in its present position in 1752. To the
south of the house is a brick stable of about 1750,
which retains the oak fittings of its Jacobean predecessor; the posts between the boxes have large
acorn finials.
The Old Rectory, Kyre Wyard
On the road to Bockleton, about 200 yards south
of Kyre Park, are eight almshouses comprised in one
U-shaped brick building, one story in height with a
tiled roof. These were founded by Anne, widow of
James Pytts, who died in 1715, a separate house
being provided for each of the eight parishes in which
the Kyre Park estate was situated.
About a quarter of a mile south-west of Kyre Park
is the Old Rectory, now a farm-house, a half-timber
building of the early 14th century, with minor 17thcentury and modern additions on the south. The
original portion of the house is of rectangular plan
with the front facing east, and is constructed of four
heavy timber principals, two of which are at the ends
and the other two between them. Each of these
principals consists of two long curved pieces of oak,
about 9 in. wide by 5 in. thick, which spring directly
from the ground on either side and meet at the apex
of the roof, thus forming an acutely pointed arch,
the end and side walls being formed by oak-framed
timbering secured with oak pins. The principal at
the north end still remains intact and exposed, and
the others can be traced in the partitions by which
the house is now divided, though they have been considerably cut in places. The entrance was evidently
in the centre of the east front. In the 17th century
the house was divided into two floors and an addition
built at the south end, while in recent years another
small extension has been added on the south. To
the north of the house is an old timber tithe barn
with a modern iron roof.
Place-names are Hill Place, (fn. 5) Bache Close, Lounsech,
New Pyninge, Cronckhill, Frog Medowe, Whitbatche, (fn. 6) Beckall Field, (fn. 7) Portans (fn. 8) (xvii cent.); Haunings, Romers, Uzzalls.
MANOR
There were three manors called Kyre
in Worcestershire at the date of the
Domesday Survey. That afterwards known
as KYRE WYARD, from its occupation by the family
of Wyard, belonged in 1086 to Osbern Fitz Richard
and had been held formerly by King Edward the
Confessor. (fn. 9)
According to Heming, it had originally been held
with Clifton upon Teme (q.v.) and other manors by
the monks of Worcester, who had been deprived of
their property by Earl Hakon at the time of the
Danish invasion. (fn. 10) The overlordship remained with
the heirs of Osbern, following the descent of Wychbold in Dodderhill (fn. 11) until the partition of Hugh
Mortimer's estates in 1309. (fn. 12) This fee was then
assigned to the Cornwalls and remained in that family (fn. 13)
until the 17th century, (fn. 14) Kyre Wyard being held of
their barony of Burford.
The tenure of the manor was a cause of 'great
strife' after the death of Sir Edward Pytts in 1618.
His son and heir Sir James Pytts alleged that it was
held of the king by grand serjeanty, but Sir Thomas
Cornwall claimed the overlordship. The dispute was
decided in favour of Sir James Pytts. (fn. 15)
The first under-tenant at Kyre Wyard whose name
has been found was John Wyard, who held half a
fee in Kyre and Stanford in 1211–12. (fn. 16) He was
probably succeeded by Robert Wyard, who gave land
at Kyre to Henry de Turberville about the middle of
the 13th century. (fn. 17) John Wyard was holding the
manor in 1287, (fn. 18) but was dead before 1299, (fn. 19) and
seems to have been succeeded by another John. (fn. 20) It
was probably this John who took part in the rebellion
of 1322 (fn. 21) and forfeited his lands, which were granted
in 1323 for life to Simon de Reading, serjeant-atarms. (fn. 22) He in 1324 obtained a grant of free warren
for life in all his demesne lands at Kyre Wyard. (fn. 23)
Before 27 January 1328 the manor had been restored
to the Wyards, as at that date a grant was made to
John Wyard, 'our yeoman,' of free warren in his
demesne of Kyre Wyard. (fn. 24) The manor had passed
before 1354–5 to Sir Robert Wyard, who died
seised of it in that year, leaving three daughters and
co-heirs, Elizabeth, Isabel and Julian. (fn. 25) Only the
eldest daughter seems to have survived, as ten years
later she, then the wife of John de Herle, was
described as Robert's heir. (fn. 26) Sir John and Elizabeth
settled the manor in 1393–4 on their heirs male,
with remainder to Roger Mortimer of Tedstone Wafer
(co. Hereford), who had married their daughter
Maud. (fn. 27) Elizabeth died in 1397, leaving as heirs
her daughter Margaret wife of Thomas Vaughan
and John son of her daughter Maud and of Roger
Mortimer of Tedstone Wafer. (fn. 28) The manor passed
under the settlement to Roger Mortimer, who died
seised of it on 13 December 1402, and was followed
by his son John. (fn. 29) He, then Sir John Mortimer, died
seised of a messuage and a carucate of land in Kyre
Wyard in 1415. (fn. 30) He was followed by his son John,
who died while still a minor in 1420, (fn. 31) his heir being
his brother Hugh. During Hugh's minority the
custody of the manor was granted to Roland Lenthall, (fn. 32)
who held it until Hugh came of age in 1434. (fn. 33)
Hugh, having settled the manor in 1455 on his wife
Eleanor Cornwall, (fn. 34) died in 1460, leaving an infant
son John. (fn. 35) Eleanor Mortimer survived both her
husband and her son, (fn. 36) and married as a second
husband Sir Richard Croft. She held the manor
until her death in 1519, when it passed to her grandson Thomas, son of her daughter Elizabeth by Sir
Thomas West. (fn. 37)
Sir Thomas West sold the manor in 1520 to John
Croft, his mother's half-brother, (fn. 38) who almost
immediately sold it to Sir William Compton. (fn. 39) The
latter died seised of it in 1528, leaving a son Peter,
aged six. (fn. 40) Sir William's widow Elizabeth married as
her second husband Walter
Walshe, groom of the privy
chamber to Henry VIII, and
Kyre Wyard was one of the
manors assigned to her as
dower. (fn. 41) Peter Compton was
succeeded in 1539 by his
infant son Henry, created
Lord Compton in 1572. (fn. 42) By
him the manor was sold in
1575 to Edward Pytts, (fn. 43) apparently in satisfaction of a
debt of £4,000 due from Lord
Compton. (fn. 44) Edward Pytts was
an officer of the Court of
Common Pleas and had an
office in Falcon Court, in the parish of St. Dunstan's,
Fleet Street. (fn. 45) He made a settlement on his wife,
Elizabeth Wilford, and his sons William, James and
Edward in succession in 1577–8. (fn. 46) He was justice of
the peace for Worcester in 1582, knighted 23 July
1603, and Sheriff of Worcestershire 1611–12. (fn. 47) He
died on 11 January 1617–18, and was succeeded by
his son Sir James, (fn. 48) who had been knighted at the
same time as his father. (fn. 49) He was sheriff in 1631 (fn. 50)
and died in 1640, when his son Edward succeeded. (fn. 51)
Though Edward took office under the Commonwealth and was a sequestration commissioner for
Worcester in 1647, he seems to have been a Royalist
at heart and in August of 1654 was reported as
having spoken contemptuously of Cromwell and
Parliament. (fn. 52) He was, however, at that time a
member of Parliament for Worcester county, and sat
in 1660 for Leominster. (fn. 53) He died in 1672, (fn. 54) and
was succeeded by his son James, who was holding the
manor in that year, (fn. 55) and who represented Weobley
in 1660 and Worcestershire in 1685. (fn. 56) He died
childless in 1685, and was succeeded by his cousin
Samuel Pytts, (fn. 57) who was holding the manor in 1696 (fn. 58) ;
but Anne widow of James Pytts lived at Kyre Park until
her death in 1715, as under the will of her husband,
Samuel was not to occupy it until after her death,
unless he married her sister Sophia, (fn. 59) which he did
not do. Samuel Pytts was M.P. for Hereford 1699–
1700, Sheriff of Worcestershire 1704–5, (fn. 60) deputy
lieutenant the same year, and in 1713–14 lord
commissioner of trade and foreign plantations. He
was succeeded in 1729 (fn. 61) by Edmund, his eldest son
by his first wife, Frances daughter of Samuel Sandys
of Ombersley, who had joined in a settlement of the
manor in 1726. (fn. 62) Edmund Pytts was holding the
manor with his eldest son Edmund in 1750, (fn. 63) and
was M.P. for Worcestershire from 1741 until his
death 24 November 1753. (fn. 64) His son Edmund, who
succeeded him, was M.P. for Worcestershire 1753–61
and sheriff in 1771. (fn. 65) He died unmarried in
1781, and was succeeded by his brother Jonathan, to
whom their grandfather, Admiral Jonathan Collett,
had left his large fortune, and to whom for lack of
means Edmund Pytts had to leave Kyre Park
during his lifetime. (fn. 66) Jonathan Pytts was sheriff in
1783 (fn. 67) and died without issue in 1807. His widow
held this manor until her death in 1832, when Kyre
reverted to William Lacon Childe of Kinlet, M.P.,
a second cousin of her late husband. (fn. 68) Mr. Childe's
fifth son, the Rev. Edward Baldwyn-Childe, succeeded
his father at Kyre in 1880, when he resumed his
paternal surname, Baldwyn, in addition to Childe.
He died in 1898, when his widow, Mrs. Frances
Christina Baldwyn-Childe, became lady of the manor,
which she holds at the present date.
Pytts of Kyre Wyard. Azure three bars argent with three stars or in the chief.
A mill at Kyre which rendered 10 horseloads of
wheat (fn. 69) was entered in the Domesday Survey. A
mill formed part of the manorial estate from the 16th
to the 18th century, (fn. 70) but
there is no mill here at the
present day, though the Mill
Meadow and its water-courses
mark the site.
Childe of Kinlet. Gules a cheveron ermine between three eagles close argent.
John Wyard, king's yeoman, received a licence from
Edward III to impark his
woods of Kyre Wyard on
16 August 1329. (fn. 71) Habington wrote, 'The parcke of
Curewyard is not to bee
shutte up in sylence for it is
adorned with so many and
mighty oakes as scarce any
ground in England within that
quantity of Akers can shew so many.' (fn. 72) It is still
said to possess some of the finest timber in England.
References to it occur in the Kyre Park charters
and elsewhere from the 15th century. (fn. 73) Nash wrote
in 1779 that it had been originally 500 acres, but
within the last fifty years contracted to 180. (fn. 74)
CHURCH
The church of ST. MARY consists of
a chancel 21 ft. 3 in. by 14 ft., nave
29 ft. 6 in. by 20 ft. 3 in., south chapel
24 ft. 2 in. by 13 ft. 9 in., and a timber bell-turret
above the west end of the chapel. These measurements
are all internal.
The nave and chancel date from the early years
of the 12th century and are remarkable in being
built out of line with each other, the chancel inclining
considerably to the north. The chapel was added
early in the 14th century, when the chancel and
nave were reroofed, two windows inserted in the
chancel, diagonal buttresses added to the eastern
angles, and a west doorway pierced in the nave. The
bell-turret was probably erected about 1700. The
original 12th-century chancel arch was cut away in
1833, with the excuse of admitting a better view of
the chancel from the nave. The church is built of
sandstone rubble, the nave and the east and west walls
of the chapel being plastered internally. The nave
and chapel roofs are tiled and the chancel roof slated.
In the east wall of the chancel is a good early 14thcentury window of three trefoiled lights with reticulated tracery under a pointed head. To the south of
the window is a plain piscina with a rectangular threesided head. In the north wall is a square aumbry,
probably of the 14th century, and near the west end of
the wall is a single trefoiled light, the inner jambs and
round arch of which are of the early 12th century,
but the outer stonework is modern. Near the east
end of the north wall, and also in the east wall
immediately to the north of the window, are deep
rectangular holes, the purpose of which is unknown.
In the south wall, near the east end, is an early 14thcentury two-light window with a quatrefoil in the
head. This has no external arch, the tracery coursing
with the walling, and the cusping of the lights has
been cut away. Further west in the same wall,
opposite the original window on the north, there are
indications of a blocked opening in the masonry, and
it is probable that there was originally a window here,
blocked in the 18th century. The chancel arch is
pointed and has plain chamfered edges; the south
jamb, though plastered over with the arch, is probably
that of the original 12th-century arch.
In the centre of the north wall of the nave is an
original narrow round-headed light, on either side of
which is a window of two trefoiled lights under a
square head; that on the east probably dates from the
early 14th century, but the other is modern. In the
south wall, opening into the chapel, is a wide acutelypointed arch of the early 14th century; this is of two
chamfered orders with continuously moulded jambs
having moulded stops, only two of which now remain
intact, the others having been worn away. Between
the east jamb of the arch and the east wall are some
exposed stones which probably form the east jamb of a
blocked window. In the west wall is a 14th-century
pointed doorway, continuously chamfered, and above it
in the gable is a modern trefoiled light. The walls of
the chapel are unusually thick for the period, and are
further strengthened by a buttress in the centre of the
south wall and two at either end. There are three
windows, one in the east wall, of three trefoiled lights
with reticulated tracery under a pointed head, and
two in the south wall, each of two trefoiled lights under
a pointed head. At the north end of the west wall
is a pointed doorway with a plain continuous chamfer.
These openings are all original, but the exterior arch
of the east window has been renewed and the tracery
reset. The floor at the east end of the chapel is raised
by one step for the altar pace, and in the south wall
is an early 14th-century trefoiled piscina with a plain
chamfered edge, the projecting bowl of which has
been cut away.
Plan of Kyre Wyard Church
The square bell-turret, which is covered with
weather-boarding, has a two-light louvred window
in each face and is surmounted by an octagonal lead
spire. The chancel, nave and chapel all have trussed
rafter roofs of the 14th century, but the western third
of the nave roof, which is divided from the rest by
a heavy truss with a moulded tie-beam of the Elizabethan
period, is plastered in line with the rafters and collars,
the struts having been removed. At the west end
of the chapel is a heavy truss supporting the turret.
The font has a plain circular cup-shaped bowl,
which probably dates from the 12th century, but the
face has been considerably chipped; the round stem
and square base are probably modern. The oak
altar table with large turned legs dates from the 17th
century, and the altar rails are of about 1750. The
stone pulpit is modern. Both the nave and chancel
walls, with the exception of the sanctuary, have dados
made up of oak panelling of the 17th and 18th
centuries, and along the south wall of the chapel is
some 18th-century panelling fixed with its face to the
wall. The thick oak seats in the nave are probably of
the 16th century, but they have been made up with
18th-century panelled ends. In the sanctuary are
three 18th-century oak chairs. In the chapel are
preserved an oak bier bearing the date 1682 with the
initials I S; a 15th-century helmet and a cannon
ball, both suspended from the same peg on the west
wall; a Geneva Bible of 1578; and a chest, probably
of about 1300, carved out of a single oak log, 5 ft.
5½ in. long, 1 ft. 9 in. wide, and 1 ft. 10 in. high.
On the plastered jambs of the south-west window of
the chapel are remains of 14th-century wall-paintings;
of that on the east jamb only a small portion is
visible, but the painting on the west jamb, which has
a richly diapered background, probably represents the
Virgin and Child.
On the south side of the chancel are two marble
mural monuments, each composed of an inscribed tablet
flanked by columns and surmounted by a cornice and
broken pediment with a shield of arms; the eastern
monument is to Catherine second wife of Samuel Pytts,
who died in 1702, and the other to Edward Pytts,
who died in 1672. Below the original inscriptions on
both these monuments are modern inscriptions commemorating other members of the family. On the
south wall of the chapel is a tablet to Hugh Thomas,
sometime rector of the church, who died 21 October
1693, and Acton his son, who died 21 August 1727.
At the east end of the chapel is a floor slab to Elizabeth
Brockwale, wife of William Brockwale of Kyre Wyard,
who died 13 October 1618.
The bell-turret contains two bells and a 'sanctus'
bell. The treble is inscribed 'M. Corbet. C. W.
Isaac Hadley Fecit 1703'; the other two bells are
without date or inscription.
The communion plate consists of a paten of 1644,
given by Anne Pytts, and engraved with the arms of
Pytts impaling Fettiplace; a cup of 1571; a modern
copy of the last; a paten of 1866; and a 17thcentury flagon with no hall-marks.
The registers previous to 1812 are as follows:
(i) all entries 1694 to 1780, baptisms and burials to
1812; (ii) marriages 1779 to 1812; (iii) a copy
of all the other entries in one book.
ADVOWSON
Kyre was originally a chapel of
Tenbury, (fn. 75) and thus became a possession of the abbey of Lire. It
was afterwards apparently looked upon as part of the
endowment of the priory of Livers Ocle in Ocle
Pychard, Herefordshire, which was a cell of Lire
Abbey. (fn. 76) On many occasions during the 14th and 15th
centuries the presentations were made by the king
because the temporalities of Lire Abbey were in his
hands on account of war with France. (fn. 77) The possessions of the abbey were confiscated by Henry V and
given to the priory of Sheen in Surrey, but the advowson of Kyre Wyard must have been given to the lord
of the manor, for in 1444 Sir Hugh Mortimer
presented, (fn. 78) and he settled the advowson with the
manor on his wife Eleanor in 1456. (fn. 79) Since that
date the advowson has followed the descent of the
manor. (fn. 80)
By an undated charter R—. Bishop of Hereford
granted the inhabitants of Kyre Wyard a cemetery
at their chapel in exchange for a yearly payment
of 12d. to the mother church of Tenbury. (fn. 81) This
payment had apparently ceased before 1535, and
Tenbury was no longer recognized as the mother
church.
CHARITIES
Pytts' Hospital. — The hospital
founded by will of Mrs. Anne Pytts,
proved in the P.C.C. 4 August 1716,
for eight aged widows selected from this parish and
certain parishes adjoining, is endowed with a sum of
£3,229 2s. 10d. 2½ per cent. annuities, held by the
official trustees, producing £80 14s. 8d. yearly; also
with a rent-charge of £8 a year devised by the will of
Sir George Fettiplace, brother of the foundress,
proved in 1743. Each of the inmates receives 2s. 6d.
a week, coal of the value of £2 and a gown at Easter,
and £1 each at Christmas in respect of Sir George
Fettiplace's gift.
Edward Turville's Charity.—A sum of £8 a year
is received from the Grocers' Company, London, and
distributed yearly on the first Sunday in January
amongst the poorest of the parish.