NUTFIELD
Notfelle (xi cent.); Notfeud, Nutfield and Notfeld (xiii cent.); Nutefeld and Nuttefeld (xiv
cent.).
Nutfield is a village 3½ miles east of Reigate. The
parish is bounded on the north by Gatton and Merstham, on the east by Blechingley and Burstow, on
the south by a detached portion of (formerly) Horne,
on the west by Horley and Reigate. It measures
5 miles from north to south, 2 miles from east to
west in the northern part, and less than 1 mile in the
southern part. It contains 3,576 acres.
The parish of Nutfield extends from the Upper
Green Sand at the foot of the chalk range, over the
Gault, the outcrop of which is wider here than is usually
the case in Surrey, the Lower Green Sand, and the
Wealden Clay, which forms the soil of the lower half
of the parish. On the ridge of the Lower Green
Sand there is a considerable width of the sandy clay
known as the Sandgate Beds. This is the soil in
which fullers' earth is found. It is in Nutfield that this
has been most extensively worked, but it occurs, more
or less, wherever the Sandgate Beds can be traced, and
can be followed from West Surrey to Maidstone; its
existence no doubt had a great deal to do with the
formerly flourishing clothing trade of Surrey. The
quality of the earth dug from the Nutfield pits, as
well as the quantity, made them famous. (fn. 1) The industry was formerly of great importance, though not
now so considerable; fullers' earth is still in demand
however, owing to its peculiar properties in absorbing
oil and grease. Pits are still worked in Nutfield
parish, and close to the parish in Reigate. The
Fullers' Earth Union, and the Surrey Fullers' Earth
Company, are the principal proprietors. (fn. 2)
The village and church of Nutfield lie upon the
Green Sand hill on the road between Blechingley and
Reigate, which follows the top of the ridge, and is
probably an ancient way. There is scarcely any open
ground in the parish. A branch of the Mole traverses
the southern part. The South Eastern Railway, Redhill and Tunbridge branch, runs through the parish
from east to west; it was opened in 1842, but the
station, at South Nutfield, some distance from Nutfield village, was only opened twenty years ago.
The hamlet called Ham, 2 miles south-west of
Nutfield village, was an outlying part of Blechingley,
added to Nutfield in 1894. (fn. 3)
The history of Nutfield, so far as it exists, is the history of the fullers' earth industry. But in 1755 about
900 Roman brass coins of the later empire were found in
an earthen vessel crushed by a wheel in the road between
Nutfield and Ham. (fn. 4) As roads were usually mended
with stone from the nearest quarter, the vessel was
probably brought with the stone from the Upper
Sand ridge.
No Inclosure Act or Award is known. When
Manning and Bray wrote, (fn. 5) there was waste at Nutfield Marsh where certain tenants only had rights of
common.
The ridge of the hill at Nutfield offers a pleasant
situation for houses, of which there are several of a
good character. Nutfield Court is the seat of Mr. J.
T. Charlesworth; Nutfield Priory, which stands in a
park, of Mrs. Fielden; Woolpits, where was an old
house, of Mr. Frederick Scrutton; Holmsdale House of
Miss Sharwood. The Rev. E. Sandford, instituted in
1792, rebuilt the rectory; it stands in a small park.
At South Nutfield, nearer the railway, a large number
of gentlemen's houses have been built of late years.
There is a cemetery under Parish Council management.
The school (national) was built in 1863.
South Nutfield, or Lower Nutfield, is an ecclesiastical district in the middle part of the parish, near to
and south of the railway. It was made an ecclesiastical district in 1888. The church (Christ Church)
consecrated in 1888, is in 13th-century style, in red
brick, consisting of nave, chancel, and north porch,
with a shingled belfry and spire. The church stands
near the old hamlet of Ridge Green.
An infant school (Church of England) was opened
in 1889.
The southern part of the parish is in the ecclesiastical district of Outwood, formed in 1870 (see Burstow).
MANORS
At the time of the Domesday Survey
NUTFIELD was held of the king by Ida
of Lorraine, wife of Count Eustace II of
Boulogne. (fn. 6) Nutfield was afterwards held of the
Crown as of the honour of Boulogne, (fn. 7) when that
honour came to the king by forfeiture. (fn. 8) In the time
of King Edward Ulwi had held Nutfield for 13½
hides; it was afterwards assessed for 3, but its value
had increased from £13 to £15. (fn. 9) There were 10 serfs
attached to the land, a somewhat large proportion. (fn. 10)
During the reign of Henry I the manor was
granted by the king, at the petition of the Countess
Ida, to the priory of St. Wulmar at Boulogne. (fn. 11) In
1195 Hubert de Anestie rendered account to the Exchequer of £16 for the farm of Nutfield, held of the
abbot, and of £4 of that farm for the past year when
the land was seized into the hands of the King of
England because the abbot was of the land of the
King of France. (fn. 12) Hubert de Anestie, still living in
1211–12, when he held the lordship of Nutfield, (fn. 13)
left as heiress Denise, who married Warin de Monchensey. (fn. 14) In 1246–7 the Abbot of St. Wulmar
quitclaimed to Monchensey and his heirs the £16
rent in Nutfield and all right which the abbot or his
successors might have in the manor. (fn. 15)
Denise survived her husband Warin de Monchensey
and her son William and, in 1288, after the death of
the latter, was granted the custody of her son's lands
during the minority of Denise, daughter and heir of
William. (fn. 16) In 1290 Joan, half-sister of William de
Monchensey, (fn. 17) and William de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, her husband, protested against the right of the
younger Denise to inherit her father's lands on the
plea of illegitimacy, which was, however, disallowed. (fn. 18)
In 1290 Denise was married to Hugh de Vere, (fn. 19) and
in 1304 after the death of her grandmother, Denise
de Monchensey, inherited the manor of Nutfield. (fn. 20)
Denise the granddaughter died in 1314 and, her
husband being already dead, the manor passed to
her cousin Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke,
son of Joan Countess of Pembroke. (fn. 21) He died ten
years later, but in the inquisition made on his lands
at the time of his death there is no mention of
Nutfield, though it is not evident when he parted
with it. He held in 1316. (fn. 22) In 1325–6 it was
held by John de Cobham, (fn. 23) to whom it had been
demised by Sir Ralph de Cobham, (fn. 24) presumably his
brother.
The latter seems to have been a younger brother
of Stephen de Cobham of Rundale, but this is not
certain. (fn. 25) He died before 1329, in which year, in
a suit concerning the manor, John de Cobham, senior,
stated that he held the manor for life, calling to
warrant John, son and heir of Sir Ralph, then a
minor. (fn. 26) At the same time
Mary, widow of Sir Ralph
and wife of Thomas Earl of
Norfolk, Marshal of England,
claimed to hold a third as
dower. (fn. 27) In 1359, probably
after the death of John de Cobham, senior, the manor was
held by Sir John de Cobham,
son and heir of Ralph and Mary,
usually referred to as the son of
the Countess Marshal. (fn. 28) He
alienated the manor to Fulcon
Horwode in that year. This
was apparently a grant for life only, (fn. 29) as Sir John de
Cobham, who served in the French wars under the Black
Prince, conveyed the reversion of his lands to the Crown
in 1359, (fn. 30) 'by reason,' as was stated in 1377, when the
matter came before Parliament, 'of the great love and
good affection he bore towards the prince, eldest son
of the said King' (Edward III). (fn. 31) Sir John surrendered
his lands by giving the king a gold ring for livery of
seisin, a procedure which Parliament, in 1377, stated
to be legal and valid without any document, especially
when such a surrender was made to the king himself. (fn. 32)
The manor of Nutfield was among those so conveyed, (fn. 33)
but though the king had re-granted the manor to
Cobham for life, (fn. 34) it was seized into the king's hands
in 1363, as it was found that the alienation to Fulcon
de Horwode in 1359 had been made without royal
licence, (fn. 35) and early in 1364 the manor was granted
by the Crown to Sir Nicholas Lovayne, (fn. 36) to whom
Horwode quitclaimed all right in 1365. (fn. 37) In 1367
William Strete presented to the church as lord of
Nutfield. (fn. 38) It is probable that Strete obtained the
manor in consequence of a debt incurred by Lovayne.
In 1372 and for several years afterwards the manor
was in the hands of trustees, who had been enfeoffed
by consent both of Lovayne and of Strete, apparently
for the purpose of raising the sum of £550 due to
Strete from Lovayne. (fn. 39) In 1375 Strete acknowledged
the payment of £275, (fn. 40) but soon after, possibly in
payment of the remainder of the debt, Strete seems
to have obtained full possession of the manor, as he
held it in 1377, though it was still in the hands of
trustees. (fn. 41) An inquisition taken in that year on the
death of Sir John de Cobham, recording the grant of
his lands to the Crown, states that William Strete held
the manor of Nutfield. (fn. 42) In 1380 trustees quitclaimed
the manor of Nutfield to Sir Nicholas Carew and his
son Nicholas; (fn. 43) possibly this was also a mortgage.
William Strete by his will, 1383, desired that his manor
of Nutfield should be sold for £900, but that if the
purchaser were Nicholas Carew the price should be
£800. (fn. 44) Edmund Strete, kinsman and heir of William, quitclaimed all his right to the Carews in 1384. (fn. 45)
Sir Nicholas the father died in 1390. (fn. 46) His son in
1432 settled the manor on himself and Mercy his
wife and their issue; (fn. 47) it seems, about this period, to
have been frequently in the hands of trustees. (fn. 48) The
manor passed to his son and grandson; the latter died
in 1466 and left a son, also called Nicholas, (fn. 49) who
died soon after. The major part of his lands, including Beddington, then passed to his uncle, James
Carew. (fn. 50)
Cobham. Gules a cheveron or with three stars sable thereon.
The manor of Nutfield was, however, divided
among his sisters and co-heirs, (fn. 51) Sancha wife of John
Iwardby or Ewerby, Anne wife of Christopher
Tropenell, and Elizabeth wife of Walter Twynyho. (fn. 52)
In 1508–9 Nutfield was held by John Ewerby, Anne
Tropenell and Walter Twynyho. (fn. 53) The Ewerbys seem
to have conveyed their share of the manor in equal
portions to the other co-heirs, as complete moieties
were soon after held by the Tropenell and Twynyho
families. (fn. 54)
The manor was not again united until 1619. The
Tropenell moiety descended to Thomas, also called
Giles, son of Christopher and Anne, and to his
daughters and co-heirs, Ann wife of John Eyre,
Elizabeth wife of William Charde, Mary wife of
John Young, and Eleanor wife of Andrew Blackman,
all of whom were holding a moiety jointly in 1557. (fn. 55)
The Chardes seem to have relinquished their share
soon afterwards. In 1570 John Young and Mary
conveyed a third of a moiety to Thomas Bristow. (fn. 56)
In 1576 Richard Mompesson and Susan daughter
and heir of Andrew Blackman (fn. 57) conveyed a third of
the moiety to William Gawton, (fn. 58) who in 1583
obtained the third which belonged to the Eyres. (fn. 59)
Gawton died ten years later seised of two-thirds of a
moiety; (fn. 60) his son William (fn. 61) obtained Thomas
Bristow's third in 1597, (fn. 62) and died seised of a complete moiety of the manor in 1610. (fn. 63) Richard Gawton, his son and heir, (fn. 64) conveyed this moiety in 1619
to Daniel Bassano and Thomas Turner. (fn. 65)
In the meantime the Twynyho moiety had passed
from Walter Twynyho and Elizabeth to their son
Edward, and to his son Anthony. (fn. 66) Anthony
Twynyho died in 1529, and his sisters and co-heirs,
Ann wife of Henry Heydon, and Katherine wife of
John Dauntesay, each became seised of a moiety of a
moiety. (fn. 67) That of the Heydons descended to Francis
Heydon, their son and heir, while Bridget, daughter
and heir of John and Katherine Dauntesay, married
Hugh Hyde and inherited her mother's fourth share. (fn. 68)
These parties held the moiety in 1564, (fn. 69) but Heydon
probably quitclaimed his share soon after, as in 1566
Hugh Hyde and Bridget conveyed the entire moiety
to Nicholas Best. (fn. 70) Apparently Nicholas at his death
left the property to three sons in equal parts; Christopher Best, who died in 1598, held a third of a
moiety of Nutfield, which he left to Nicholas his son
and heir. (fn. 71) William Best was probably another son,
and seems to have obtained both the share of his
other brother and that of his nephew Nicholas, as he
died in 1602 seised of a moiety of Nutfield, (fn. 72) and
Henry, his son, (fn. 73) is referred to in 1603 and 1609
as holding an entire moiety. (fn. 74) In 1619 Henry Best
and Etheldreda his wife conveyed this moiety to Daniel
Bassano and Thomas Turner, who, (fn. 75) at the same time,
obtained the Tropenell moiety as already shown.
Bassano, barrister of the Inner Temple, was evidently
a trustee as, in 1641, presumably after the death of
Thomas Turner, he conveyed Nutfield to John
Turner, eldest son of John Turner of Ham in Blechingley, to the second son, also called John, and to
the third son Thomas. (fn. 76)
The eldest son died before 1651, (fn. 77) and John and
Thomas Turner held Nutfield jointly in 1658. (fn. 78)
Thomas the survivor, by will proved December 1671,
devised the manor to John, George, and Thomas
Turner, sons of his brother John, late of Ham. (fn. 79)
The survivor John conveyed in 1707 to his son John
in fee; the latter died in 1713, his sister Charity,
wife of Joseph Cooke, being his heir. (fn. 80) On the death
of the latter in 1740 without issue the manor was
divided between Cooke's sisters and co-heirs, Elizabeth Eboral and Mary Gotty. (fn. 81)
Elizabeth's son William died in 1775 and he by
will devised to his niece Mary Eliza who held this
moiety in 1808. (fn. 82) William Gotty and Mary conveyed their moiety to Sir George Colebrook, bart.,
in 1763. (fn. 83) Colebrook in 1774 conveyed half to
Anthony Aynscomb and half to John Clement;
Aynscomb left his share to his wife, who died in
1800, with remainder to her sister Bett Tyler, afterwards wife of William Burtt, and she held this fourth
part in 1808. (fn. 84) John Clement's fourth descended
to his son and grandson, the latter selling in 1805 to
John Perkins. (fn. 85) The parts held by Mary Eliza and the
Burtts afterwards passed either to John Perkins or John
Newton, as these two held the manor in 1841. (fn. 86)
Newton afterwards obtained Perkins' share, and Mr.
John Newton was lord of Nutfield until after 1895,
after which date it passed to Jervis Kenrick, who
held in 1899. Mr. Henry Partridge of Castle Hill,
Blechingley, was recently lord of the manor, but it is
now held with that house by Mr. A. P. Brandt.
William Charde and Elizabeth his wife, descendants
of Ann Tropenell, held a moiety of the site and
capital messuage of Nutfield in 1557. (fn. 87) According
to Manning and Bray, using Mr. Glover's deeds, (fn. 88)
it passed to a daughter of William Best above named,
Mary wife of Richard Jewell. He left a son John,
whose son, also John, married Mary Tyler and died
without issue. She married Anthony Aynscomb, see
above. It is now the property of Mr. J. T.
Charlesworth.
The family of Hadresham or Hedresham was
settled in Nutfield at the end of the 12th century,
their lands there being afterwards known as the
manor or reputed manor of HATHERSHAM. In
the reign of Richard I Hubert de Anestie granted a
wood in Nutfield called Widihorn to John de
Hadresham and his heirs, (fn. 89) and about the same time
John also received a grant of a mill there, the names
of Robert and Peter de Hadresham appearing among
the witnesses to this deed. (fn. 90) In 1271–2 Peter de
Caterham and Alice his wife quitclaimed 6 acres of
land in Nutfield to Bartholomew de Hadresham, (fn. 91) and
in 1316 John, son of James de Hadresham, received
a grant of a meadow there called Merchauntesmead. (fn. 92)
In 1358 John de Hadresham died seised of a
tenement in Nutfield, held of the chief manor,
consisting of a capital messuage, 60 acres of land of
which 20 could be cultivated, 4 acres of meadow,
20 of pasture, and 10 of wood. The tenement was
said to be worth 23s. per annum. (fn. 93) The same
amount was paid in the 17th century as the annual
rent of the manor of Hathersham. (fn. 94) John left a son
and heir, William de Hadresham. (fn. 95) The lands
afterwards passed to the Asshurst family. William
Asshurst held land in Nutfield in the early 15th
century, (fn. 96) and in 1507 John Asshurst, son of William,
died seised, among other lands, of the 'manor of
Hadresham'; he left no issue. (fn. 97) Agnes, widow of
John Asshurst, afterwards married John Skinner, (fn. 98)
and seems to have brought this land to his family.
Sir Thomas Wyatt the poet held the manor in 1538, (fn. 99)
but he was possibly a trustee, his father, Sir Henry
Wyatt, having acted as such for John Skinner and
Agnes in the conveyance of property which they held
in East Betchworth. (fn. 100) In 1556 the manor of
Hathersham was held by James Skinner and Margaret
his wife, (fn. 101) and on James's death without issue in 1558
passed to the family of his brother. (fn. 102) John Skinner,
nephew of James according to the inquisition taken
at his death, died seised of the manor in 1584. (fn. 103)
Richard Elyot of Albury was a nephew and heir. (fn. 104)
In 1603 Richard and Thomas Elyot conveyed the
manor of Hathersham to Henry Drake and Charles
Evans, (fn. 105) Sir Thomas Palmer and Alice his wife,
widow of John Skinner, surrendering their claim. (fn. 106)
Drake and Evans seem to have divided the manor, as
in 1609 Drake died seised of a moiety, (fn. 107) which his
son Edward conveyed to Richard Killick in 1614, (fn. 108)
and in 1616 it passed from Killick to Henry Shove. (fn. 109)
Shove apparently acquired the other moiety also, as
his family afterwards held the entire manor, of which
they retained possession until the latter part of the
18th century. (fn. 110) It was held in 1768 by Henry
Shove and Ann his wife. (fn. 111) According to Manning,
Shove died in 1771, when, by the terms of his will,
Hathersham was sold, becoming the property of
Robert Smith. (fn. 112) In 1790–1 Robert Smith the
son and Elizabeth his wife sold to Sir Sampson
Wright, (fn. 113) whose widow, Lady Wright, held the
property in 1808. (fn. 114) It passed after her death to
Mr. S. Simms. (fn. 115) It is now held as a farm.
In 1350 Thomas de Wolbergh died seised of a tenement in Nutfield which he held of the lord of Nutfield for the service of 33s. 9d. (fn. 116) His son, John de
Wolbergh, was witness to a deed in 1359. (fn. 117) In
1364 Cecily de Beauchamp held five acres of meadow
in Nutfield of John de Wolbergh. (fn. 118) In 1463
William Sydney died seised of the manor of WOLBERGH leaving two daughters and co-heirs, Elizabeth
afterwards wife of John Hampden, and Anne, afterwards wife of William Uvedale. (fn. 119) The Uvedale
moiety remained in this family until after 1528. (fn. 120)
In 1572 the whole manor was held by William
Jeale. (fn. 121) In 1602 William and Ovington Jeale, probably sons of the first William, conveyed to George
Evelyn, (fn. 122) who settled Wolbergh shortly after on his
daughter Katherine on her marriage with Thomas
Stoughton. (fn. 123) Stoughton, who survived his wife, died
in 1611 seised of the 'manor or farm of Woolboro,'
George Stoughton, his brother, being his heir. (fn. 124)
The latter conveyed the manor in 1623 to John
Turner, (fn. 125) from whom it passed to Thomas Turner of
Nutfield. The latter by will of 1671 left 'the
messuage, &c., containing 160 acres in Nutfield in
occupation of Anne Barnes called Woolborough,' to
his nephew Thomas Turner. (fn. 126) The latter, according
to Manning, conveyed in 1685 to William Barnes,
whose son conveyed to William Lukyn in 1722. (fn. 127)
From Thomas and Robert Lukyn the property
passed, in 1740, to Helen Shelley, (fn. 128) daughter of Robert Bysshe, wife of John Shelley, and grandmother of
Sir Bysshe Shelley, who died in 1815. (fn. 129) He was
succeeded by Sir Timothy Shelley, whose eldest son,
Percy Bysshe Shelley, the poet, was drowned in 1822.
Sir Timothy, at his death in 1844, was therefore succeeded by his grandson, Sir Percy Florence Shelley. (fn. 130)
HOLILOND.
—The family of atte Holilond was
settled in Nutfield in the early 13th century. In an
inquiry concerning their lands, made in the reign of
Edward III, it was stated that during the reign of King
John Denise de Monchensey (fn. 131) had alienated to Reginald de Holilond a messuage, 42 acres of land, 8 acres
of meadow, 10 of pasture and 1 of wood in Nutfield,
parcel of the manor of Nutfield, to hold to him
and his heirs at the rent of the true value. (fn. 132) This
alienation was made in 1202–3, the charter being enrolled 'in a certain missal' of Battle Abbey, the abbot
of which, Richard atte Holilond, was brother to
Reginald. (fn. 133) The property was afterwards held by
Robert son of Reginald, and John son of Robert. (fn. 134)
John atte Holilond in 1349 obtained a pardon from the
Crown for having entered into the said premises without
licence from the king; both his father and grandfather
had been similarly in fault. (fn. 135) The name of Thomas
atte Holilond appears as witness to a deed in 1359, (fn. 136)
and in 1400 John atte Holilond held land in Nutfield. (fn. 137)
The subsequent ownership of these lands is not apparent, but they clearly had given their name to the
family which held them so long, and the present Holland House, or Hall Land House, in Nutfield is the
survival of the name.
CHURCH
The church of ST. PETER and ST.
PAUL stands on a site with a steep
northerly slope, close to the road, in a
very pretty and well-planted churchyard, and some way
below the crest of the ridge on which the village is built.
It consists of a chancel 36 ft. 4 in. long by 17 ft 4 in.
wide, north vestry and organ chamber, nave 40 ft. 2 in.
by 22 ft. 3 in., north aisle 12 ft. 9 in. wide, south
transept 10 ft. 3 in. deep by 14 ft. 11 in wide, south
aisle 15 ft. 5 in. wide, south porch and a west tower
14 ft. 1 in. by 13 ft. wide. All these dimensions are
taken within the walls.
The plan of the nave doubtless dates from the 12th
century, but the oldest architectural details are to be
found in the chancel, which inclines southward from
the axis of the nave, and seems to have replaced the
12th-century chancel early in the 13th century. It
was about 26 ft. long originally, but was lengthened
10 ft. early in the 14th century.
A north aisle was added to the nave about 1230;
the arcade still remains, but the aisle walls have been
removed at a widening of the aisle in the 15th century.
The chancel arch was widened to its utmost limits
early in the 14th century. A south transept was
added in the 15th century, about 1450, and the west
tower is the work of the latter half of the same
century. The south aisle was built in 1882, and the
north vestry and organ chamber are also modern.
The tower has been repaired at different times, the
upper part being much rebuilt late in the 18th century; in recent years a great deal of restoration work
has been undertaken, with the result that nearly all
the window tracery has been renewed.
The east window of the chancel has three cinquefoiled lights with tracery under a pointed head of 15th-century style, but all of modern stonework. The
north-east window is of two trefoiled lights with a
quatrefoil in the head under a two-centred arch,
but only the inner jambs and hollow-chamfered rear
arch are old. Just west of the window is a straight
joint in the wall, which has been stripped of its
plaster, marking the line of the east wall of the 13th-century chancel. In the 13th-century walling is one
complete lancet, tall and narrow, with a plain chamfer
on the outer face, now looking into the vestry, and close
to it on the west the head of a second lancet of different detail, with an external rebate, and perhaps of
earlier date. It is evident that the complete lancet
was the eastern one of a pair, the springing of the
rear arch of the second window being yet visible, but
the window head just noticed is too near it to allow
for a splay of equal angle, which would be natural in a
pair of contemporary windows, and has either been
moved eastward at the insertion of the modern arch to
the organ chamber, or belongs to an older arrangement.
As at present set, it is accurately half-way between the
chancel arch and the east wall of the 13th-century
chancel, a fact which suggests that it is in position, and
that the complete lancet is a slightly later addition. This
is also possible from the way in which the sill of the
complete lancet breaks into the head of a recess in the
sill below, which though now much altered was
originally a locker with two arched openings, the eastern of which is now represented by its sill only, while
the western has lost its inner order and is masked
by a modern memorial brass hinged to serve as a
door to it. Two cinquefoiled arches, one large and
one small, open into the modern vestry and organ
chamber.
Only the lower part of the 13th-century south
wall of the chancel remains, the upper part having
been rebuilt when the chancel was lengthened, with
three windows, two of a single trefoiled light and one
at the south-east of two cinquefoiled lights. Only
the east jamb of the western of the two trefoiled
lights is left, the window having given place to a
two-light 15th-century window, but both the other
windows preserve their old jambs and rear arches,
the external masonry being modern. Below the
south-east window is a 15th-century piscina with a
shallow half-round basin in the sill and a shelf.
Below the middle window is a 14th-century tomb
recess with jambs of two chamfered orders, broach
stopped, with a two-centred arch, dying on the
chamfer of the jambs; in the recess is a contemporary
slab with a floriated cross in low relief, and on its
hollowed edge a partly destroyed inscription:—'SIRE THOM[AS DE R]OLEHAM GIST ICI DEU DE SA ALME
EYT MERCI.' (fn. 138)
The chancel arch is a 14th-century insertion, having
half-octagonal jambs with broach stops at the base,
and moulded bell capitals with scroll-moulded abaci;
the arch is double-chamfered on both sides and has
no label.
The 13th-century north arcade of the nave is of
three bays with circular pillars, water-moulded bases,
and bell capitals; there is no east respond, the arch
dying on the east wall face, but on the north face of
the return in the aisle is a short length of chamfered
abacus which looks to be of earlier date than the
arcade, and may have belonged to an arch opening to
a former north transept. The west respond is half-round with a capital like those of the pillars, but
the base is buried beneath the floor. The arches
are two-centred and of two chamfered orders.
The south arcade is of three bays, and is all modern
except the east arch and respond, which has chamfered
edges and a moulded capital of 15th-century detail.
The pillars are circular with moulded capitals and
bases; the eastern pillar having an attached shaft
on its south side to receive the modern arch between
the transept and aisle.
All the windows of the north aisle have been
modernized outside; the first and third on the north
are of two lights, and
the middle one of three
lights, all with traceried
pointed heads of 15th-century style; the inner
jambs are old, as are also
the rear arches, which
are hollow-chamfered,
and the west window
has two lights of 14th-century character with
old inner jambs and
arch. A modern archway opens from the aisle
into the organ chamber.
The south transept
has a 15th-century east
window of two cinquefoiled ogee-headed lights
with old tracery in a
pointed head; the jambs
are of two hollow chamfers, and the window
has a moulded label outside. The south window of
the transept has two lights under a geometrical
traceried head; the inner quoins are old, but the
outer stonework is all modern. Under the window
are two recesses each 6 ft. 3 in. long with four-centred
arches, doubtless sepulchral, but now empty; the chamfered jambs have broach stops at the base. On the
outer face of the gable of the transept is a sundial
dated 1758.
The south doorway is of the 15th century, moved
out with the wall, and has moulded jambs and a
two-centred arch. The two south windows of the
aisle are square-headed, the first of three lights and
the second of two; the west window is of three lights
under a traceried pointed head; all three windows
are modern.
The west tower is of three stories, but rises without
a break. It is strengthened by diagonal buttresses at the
western angles and has a stair-turret at its north-east
corner. The arch opening into it from the nave has
chamfered jambs and a two-centred arch of two
hollow chamfers with a wide hollow between, and
the west doorway is of two hollow-chamfered orders
and has a four-centred head with a modern window
of three lights over it. The second story is lighted on
the north, south, and west by single trefoiled lights,
and the third story by two-light windows with
cinquefoiled four-centred heads. The diagonal buttresses are faced with stone slabs bearing inscriptions,
now partly hidden by the cement coating, referring
to some late 16th or 17th-century repairs, (fn. 139) and the
tower is tied by iron rods, on the straps of which
is the date 1740. Later repairs are shown by a small
stone panel on the south side below the bell-chamber
window bearing the date 1786, and this date also occurs
on several rain-water heads. Over the tower is a
shingled wood spire changing from square to octagon
above the parapet, and crowned by a weather vane
with the date 1767. The tower is coated with
cement, which has fallen away here and there, showing
that the parapet and upper parts of the buttresses
have been repaired with brickwork. The north wall
of the aisle, in addition to its east diagonal buttress and
the two at the western angle, has been strengthened
by raking buttresses of brick between the windows.
The south porch is a modern one of wood. Owing
to the slope of the ground there are several step;
down from the south doorway to the floor level of
the aisle.
Plan of the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Nutfield
The roof of the chancel is covered with Horsham
stone slabs and has a modern wood-panelled ceiling;
a moulded tie-beam across the middle appears to be
old. The nave roof, also covered with Horsham
slabs, is open timbered, a plaster ceiling having been
removed; two of its tie-beams are old. The north
aisle has a gabled roof with collar-beam trusses,
formerly plastered; the timbers are old and plain,
and the south aisle roof is modern. Both aisle roofs
are tiled.
There is a good deal of interesting woodwork in
the church.
In the chancel is a seat made up with two old
bench-ends with carved poppy-heads, probably of
early 16th-century date, and the 15th-century rood-screen still stands across the chancel arch. Its doorway has a two-centred pointed head with traceried
spandrels, and the arch springs from carved bunches of
foliage on the doorposts, on the inner faces of which
are three sunk quatrefoils, an unusual detail. The
side bays are each divided into two trefoiled openings,
with a quatrefoil over in the traceried pointed head
of the bay; the middle rail is moulded, and the plain
boarding below it is modern in the south half of the
screen. The muntins are all moulded: on the face of
the northernmost is a short length of half-octagonal
shaft with a moulded capital, from which sprang a
vaulted cove below the loft; on the moulded cornice
stands a line of brattishing, but the rest of the loft
has, as usual, been removed. The space above the
screen was evidently once boarded, as in the soffit of
the chancel arch is a row of square holes (now filled in)
in which the uprights were fixed.
The font is dated 1665, but the octagonal panelled
bowl is clearly some two centuries earlier, and the date
doubtless records its return to the church after having
been thrown out by Puritan fanatics in the time of
the Commonwealth.
The hexagonal pulpit contains a number of early
16th-century linen-pattern panels in two tiers, one
pair of panels being modern; the framing of the
pulpit appears to be modern also.
The middle window of the north aisle contains
a few fragments of 15th-century glass in the two
piercings over its middle light.
On the south wall of the chancel is a brass plate
inscribed: 'Orate p' aiabz Willī-Graffton qndā Clīci
hui' ecclesiae et Johē ux eius et Joh[] filli eordm qor
aiabz ppiciet deus am[en].' Above it is the figure of a
man in a long cloak girt at the waist and with fur trimming; his hands are clasped in prayer; also a woman in
long high-waisted gown and a loose head-dress hanging down behind her. Over the man is a shield
charged with a cheveron, and over the woman one
charged with a cheveron impaling a saltire. On the
south wall of the south aisle is a small 17th-century
brass with a Latin inscription to Edmund Molyneux.
On the north wall of the chancel is a chalk panelled
tablet to Charles Gillman, son of Anthony Gillman
of Reigate. The date of his death was left blank,
and has been roughly scratched in at a later date—'13th April 1631.' The inscription finishes: 'as by
ye monumt of ye said Anthony in Reigat apears'; the
shield over is charged with a leg cut off at the thigh,
booted and spurred.
There are six bells; the treble by Mears and Stainbank, 1897; the second by William Eldridge, 1663;
the third, Thomas Mears, 1793; the fourth, C. and
G. Mears, 1848; the fifth and the tenor, Wm. Eldridge, 1662.
The oldest piece of the communion plate is a cup
with a trumpet stem with the hall-mark of 1665; it
has a cover dated 1666; there is also a chalice and
paten of 1849. In the vestry are kept two wooden
collecting boxes with handles, of the usual 17th-century type; both have painted inscriptions,
'Pray remember the poore,' with the name of the
parish.
The registers date from 1558.
ADVOWSON
The Domesday Survey mentions
the existence of a church at Nutfield, (fn. 140) but no other early record of
it is found. It was valued at £8 12s. in the Taxatio
of 1291. (fn. 141) It is not mentioned in the gift of the
manor to the priory of St. Wulmar of Boulogne, nor
in the surrender of the manor by the abbot to Warin
de Monchensey, but there is nevertheless some reason
for supposing that the advowson became the property
of the priory and was retained after the surrender of
the manor. John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, presented to the church in 1328, (fn. 142) and it is possible that
he had received a grant of the advowson when the
possessions of alien priories had been seized by the
Crown some years before; another advowson which
he held in 1328 had come into his possession in that
manner. (fn. 143) In 1337, at the beginning of the Hundred Years' War, the Sheriff of Surrey was ordered to
restore church, goods and chattels to Giles de Fossato,
parson of Nutfield Church, whose possessions had
been seized because he was 'a native of the power
of the king of France.' (fn. 144) As a reason for this concession it was stated that the king had considered
the poverty of Giles and wished to have compassion
on him. (fn. 145)
It is not evident how the advowson passed to the
lord of the manor, but it had become his property
by 1363, (fn. 146) and was held by successive lords until the
death, in 1466, of Nicholas Carew. (fn. 147) His son, who
died shortly after, left, as has been shown,
sisters and co-heirs who married into the families of
Ewerby, Tropenell, and Twynyho, and each sister
retained a third of the advowson. (fn. 148) The portions
belonging to the two latter families descended with
their respective shares of the manor (q.v.). (fn. 149) Of the
latter property each of the two families afterwards
held a complete moiety, which probably accounts for
the fact that their shares of the advowson were constantly referred to as moieties also, though in reality
they were thirds only. In 1580 William Best presented on a grant from William Charde and Elizabeth,
one of the Tropenell heiresses. (fn. 150) These two thirds were
finally conveyed to the Turner family in 1619. (fn. 151)
The third held by the Ewerbys passed to the family
of St. John by the marriage of Joanna the daughter
and heir of Sir John Ewerby with John St. John. (fn. 152)
The son of John and Joanna, also called John, (fn. 153) presented to the church in 1550, (fn. 154) and in 1590 conveyed
one moiety of his third to Henry Burton and the
other to Walter Cole. (fn. 155) In 1620 Walter Cole and
William his son and heir sold their share to Sir
Thomas Penruddock, Sir George Stoughton and
George Duncombe, trustees of Ann, Dowager Countess
of Arundel. (fn. 156) In 1626 presentation was made by
Sir Julius Caesar by virtue of a grant made him by
Burton and Cole, (fn. 157) presumably before the latter gave
up his right in the advowson. The king presented by
lapse in 1634 because Christopher Best had not sued
out livery of the advowson. (fn. 158) Henry Lord Mowbray,
grandson of Ann, Dowager Countess of Arundel, (fn. 159)
presented in 1640, (fn. 160) and this family seems to have
acquired Burton's share also, as in 1658 the Earl of
Arundel held a full third turn of presentation, the
other two-thirds of the advowson being held, as has
been said, by John and Thomas Turner. (fn. 161) In 1660
the Crown presented. (fn. 162) According to Manning, Henry
Lord Maltravers, Earl of Norwich, and Henry Howard
his son granted the next turn to West and Keck in
trust for Burbury in 1676, (fn. 163) and in 1677 John and
Thomas Turner granted their turn to Henry Hesketh,
who afterwards purchased Burbury's interest and sold
to William Hollingsworth. (fn. 164) The latter presented
in 1711 and again in 1731. (fn. 165) Lord Mowbray (fn. 166)
finally conveyed his share to William Beckford in
trust for Sir Lionel Jenkins who, by will, devised
it to Jesus College, Oxford. The Turners' share
descended with the manor (q.v.), and after the death
of William Hollingsworth presentation was made both
by Joseph Cooke, as lord of the manor, and by Jesus
College. The case was brought before a commission
of six clergy and six laymen, but as these decided
equally in favour of the college and lord of the manor,
nothing was settled. (fn. 167) Finally, however, a decision in
Cooke's favour seems to have been made, as his incumbent continued to hold the living. (fn. 168) The college
afterwards treated with him for purchase, but the
transaction was not completed until after his death,
his sisters conveying to the college shortly after 1740. (fn. 169)
Jesus College has since held the advowson. (fn. 170)
CHARITIES
Smith's Charity is distributed as in
other Surrey parishes.