Mintern Magna (St. Andrew)

MINTERN MAGNA (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Cerne, partly in the hundred of Cerne, Totcombe, and Modbury, partly in the liberty of Fordington, but chiefly in the liberty of Piddle-Trenthide, Cerne division of Dorset, 2 miles (N.) from Cerne; containing, with the hamlets of Hartley and Tiley, and the tything of Middlemarsh, 354 inhabitants. This parish, which is situated on the road to Weymouth and Bath, comprises 1996a. 2r.: the soil is generally chalk, alternated with flint; the surface is varied, and enriched with wood. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £12. 14. 2.; net income, £140; patron, H. Sturt, Esq. Round the north aisle of the church, which is the burial-place of the Napiers, are coats of arms, and inscriptions to the memory of several members of that ancient family.

Mintern Parva

MINTERN PARVA, a tything, in the parish and hundred of Buckland-Newton, union of Cerne, Cerne division of Dorset, 9½ miles (N. by W.) from the town of Dorchester; containing 130 inhabitants.

Minting (St. Andrew)

MINTING (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Horncastle, S. division of the wapentake of Gartree, parts of Lindsey, county of Lincoln, 5¾ miles (N. W. by W.) from Horncastle; containing 280 inhabitants. The parish comprises about 2621 acres, of which onehalf is indifferent pasture, and the other, with the exception of about 100 acres of woodland, is arable. The living is a vicarage, endowed with the rectorial tithes, and valued in the king's books at £5. 7. 11.; patrons, the Master and Fellows of St. John's College, Cambridge: the tithes have been commuted for £452, and the glebe consists of 18 acres. The church was given, before 1129, to the abbey of Leyr, in France; and an alien priory of Benedictine monks was established here, which continued till its suppression by Henry V., who granted it to the Carthusian priory of Mountgrace. There are two places of worship for Wesleyans.

Mintlyn (St. Michael)

MINTLYN (St. Michael), a parish, in the union and hundred of Freebridge-Lynn, W. division of Norfolk, 2¾ miles (E. S. E.) from the town of Lynn; containing 36 inhabitants. It comprises about 1250 acres, of which 400 are plantations and heath. The church has been demolished.

Minton

MINTON, a township, in the parish and union of Church-Stretton, hundred of Munslow, S. division of Salop; containing 125 inhabitants.

Minver, St.

MINVER, ST., a parish, in the union of Bodmin, hundred of Trigg, E. division of Cornwall; containing 1139 inhabitants, of whom 683 are in the Highlands, and 456 in the Lowlands. This parish is situated on the coast of the Bristol Channel, and is separated from Egloshayle by a stream which at high water is navigable to Amble bridge, in the parish of St. Kew: it comprises 6300 acres, of which 1012 are common or waste. Great quantities of corn are sent to Gloucester and other places, for loading which a neat quay has been erected. The substratum contains copper-ore, and a mine was opened and wrought for some time, but the works have been discontinued. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £13. 10. 2½.; patron and impropriator, W. S. Sandys, Esq. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for £1000, and the vicarial for £356; the impropriate glebe comprises 21 acres, and the vicarial 41. The church, situated in the Highlands, has a tower surmounted by a lofty spire. In the Lowlands are two chapels: one, dedicated to St. Michael, is on the margin of the river Camel, across which is a ferry to the town of Padstow, nearly opposite; the other, dedicated to St. Enoduck, is a little to the north of the former, with a low tower, and nearly buried in the sand which has drifted in this part of the parish. There are a place of worship for Wesleyans, and a cemetery for the Society of Friends.

Minworth

MINWORTH, a hamlet, in the parish of Curdworth, union of Aston, Birmingham division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick, 4 miles (N. W. by W.) from Coleshill; containing 329 inhabitants.—See Curdworth.

Mirfield (St. Mary)

MIRFIELD (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Dewsbury, Lower division of the wapentake of Agbrigg, W. riding of York, 2¾ miles (W. by S.) from Dewsbury; containing 6919 inhabitants. This place, at the time of the heptarchy, formed part of the parish of Dewsbury. It afterwards belonged to Sir John Heton, lord of the manor, whose lady, on her way to the parish church, before dawn, on Christmas-day, being attacked by robbers, and her attendant killed, the pope, on the intercession of her husband, who was then at Rome, granted permission to the family to build a chapel here, which subsequently became parochial. In 1261 the district was severed from Dewsbury, and erected into a distinct parish. Including the hamlets of Battyeford and Hopton, it comprises by admeasurement 3548 acres of fertile land. The surface is finely undulated, and the lower grounds are watered by the navigable river Calder, which divides the parish into two unequal portions, the larger of which is on the north side of the stream; the substratum abounds with coal and freestone of good quality. Within the parish is Blake Hall, a handsome modern mansion, erected on the site of the ancient seat of the Hoptons, beautifully situated, and commanding agreeable prospects. Here are also, Castle Hall, erected on the site of the old mansion of the Hetons, and now an inn; Upper Hall, once the residence of the Shepley family; and Hopton Hall, an ancient edifice partly modernised.

The village is on the north bank of the river Calder, along which it extends for a considerable distance; the inhabitants are chiefly employed in the woollen manufacture, and the making of cards for machinery, and there are some large flour-mills and extensive malting establishments. A good trade is likewise carried on in mineral produce, for the conveyance of which the Calder and Hebble navigation affords great facilities; and the Manchester and Leeds railway passes through the parish. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 1. 0½.; net income, £242; patron and impropriator, Sir George Armytage, Bart. The tithes were commuted for land in 1796. The church was, with the exception of the tower, rebuilt on a larger scale, in 1826, at an expense of nearly £2000, raised by subscription; it is a neat and well-arranged structure, containing 1000 sittings. Churches have been erected at Battyeford and Hopton, which see. There are places of worship for Wesleyan Methodists of the Old and New Connexions, Primitive Methodists, Baptists, Independents, Moravians, and Swedenborgians. A free school is endowed with certain houses and land bequeathed by Richard Thorpe in 1667, and now producing £50 per annum. Near the church is a large circular mound called Castle Hill. Bishop Hopton, who lived in the reign of Mary, was born at Blake Hall.

Miserden (St. Andrew)

MISERDEN (St. Andrew), a parish, in the union of Stroud, hundred of Bisley, E. division of the county of Gloucester, 4½ miles (E.) from Stroud, and 5 (E. S. E.) from Painswick; containing, with the hamlets of Camp and Sutgrove, 509 inhabitants. This place derives its name from the family of Musard, who had a castle here, of which the foundation, with some broken fragments of wall, still remains. The manor-house is said to have been built with the materials of the castle, and was, with the manor and estates, the property of the Kingston family, and their usual residence prior to the reign of James I., when they sold Miserden to the Sandys family (baronets), who held it for several generations. The mansion, now unoccupied, was at one period during the civil war garrisoned for the king, with whom the gentry of the parish, the Sandys, Kingston, and Partrige families, took part. The manor of Wishanger, here, is of very ancient date, and was the seat of the Partriges, of whom William Partrige, of Cirencester and Wishanger, was summoned by the heralds at their first visitation of the county in the reign of Henry VIII.; from him the manor descended lineally for ten generations, and it was the principal seat of the family until the commencement of the present century, when it was sold. The manor-house, though partly taken down and otherwise injured, is still standing, as a farmhouse; the porch bears the arms of Partrige impaling those of Ernley of Wiltshire, on a large stone over the entrance, Robert Partrige having married into the Ernley family in the 16th century. Almost adjoining the house is a very ancient hamlet of six or seven houses, called The City. The parish comprises by computation 2200 acres, of which about 1300 are arable, 500 pasture, and 300 woodland; the soil is chiefly clay, and the substratum affords good limestone, and clay of excellent quality for tiles. The surface is elevated, and the scenery in some parts, particularly round the castle and about the glen at Wishanger, is beautifully varied. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £8. 13. 4.; patron and incumbent, the Rev. Yarnton Mills, whose tithes have been commuted for £410, and who has a glebe of 86 acres. The church is a neat edifice of ancient date, with a substantial and handsome, though not lofty, tower; and contains, in a small separate chapel, a superb monument in fine marble, representing in fulllength figures a baronet and his lady, of the Sandys family. In the chancel and elsewhere are some good monuments of the Partriges and Kingstons.

Missenden

MISSENDEN, a hamlet, in the parish and union of Hitchin, hundred of Hitchin and Pirton, county of Hertford, 3 miles (S. by E.) from Hitchin; containing, with the hamlet of Langley, 170 inhabitants.

Missenden, Great (St. Peter And St. Paul)

MISSENDEN, GREAT (St. Peter And St. Paul), a parish, in the union of Amersham, hundred of Aylesbury, county of Buckingham, 26 miles (S. E. by S.) from Buckingham; containing 2225 inhabitants. The living is a discharged vicarage; patrons, the Trustees of the late J. O. Oldham, Esq.; impropriator, G. Carrington, Esq. The great tithes have been commuted for £1204, and the vicarial for £337. 10.; the vicarial glebe contains about one acre. The church has been repaired, and 170 additional sittings provided. There is a place of worship for Baptists; also a free school on the British system, established January 1st, 1827, and an agricultural and garden school, supported by subscription. In the parish was an abbey for Black canons, in honour of the Virgin Mary, founded in 1133 by Sir William de Missenden, and the revenue of which at the Dissolution was £285. 15. 9. John Randall, an eminent divine in the reign of James I., was born here.

Missenden, Little (St. John The Baptist)

MISSENDEN, LITTLE (St. John The Baptist), a parish, in the union of Wycombe, hundred of Aylesbury, county of Buckingham, 2½ miles (W. N. W.) from Amersham; containing 1011 inhabitants. The parish comprises by computation 3500 acres; the soil is gravel, alternated with loam, and the surface is hilly and richly wooded. The village has one principal street, from which a smaller one diverges nearly at a right angle; and is situated on the road to Aylesbury. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £13. 3. 9.; patron, Earl Howe.

Misson

MISSON, a parish, in the union of Doncaster, Hatfield division of the wapentake of Bassetlaw, N. division of the county of Nottingham, 2¾ miles (E. N. E.) from Bawtry; containing, with the hamlet of Newington, 834 inhabitants. The parish consists of 5792 acres of land, of which the soil is generally sandy and light: the village is neat and well built. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £6. 4. 4½., and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £359; impropriator, Earl Spencer. The tithes were commuted for land in 1760, when 286 acres were allotted to the vicar. The church is a handsome building in the later English style, with a square embattled tower. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans; also a free school, erected in 1693, and endowed with land, &c., producing an income of about £65.

Misterton (St. Leonard)

MISTERTON (St. Leonard), a parish, in the union of Lutterworth, hundred of Guthlaxton, S. division of the county of Leicester, 1 mile (E. by S.) from Lutterworth; containing, with the hamlets of Poultney and Walcote, 589 inhabitants. The river Swift, which at times rises and falls very rapidly, runs through the parish. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £16. 13. 4., and in the gift of J. H. Franks, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for £619. 15., and the glebe comprises 13 acres. Sir John Pulteney and his sister bequeathed rent-charges amounting to £15; and 10 acres of waste land, producing £19 a year, have been given for distribution among the poor.

Misterton (All Saints)

MISTERTON (All Saints), a parish, in the union of Gainsborough, North Clay division of the wapentake of Bassetlaw, N. division of the county of Nottingham, 4¾ miles (N. W.) from Gainsborough; containing, with the township of West Stockwith, 1706 inhabitants, of whom 1055 are in the township of Misterton. The parish is in the north-eastern extremity of the county, where the river Idle and Chesterfield canal terminate in the river Trent, and comprises by computation 4740 acres; a great part of the land was a swamp, which has been drained and brought into cultivation. The village, situated on the north side of the canal, is large and well built; a fair for cattle and horses is held in it in September. The living is a perpetual curacy, valued in the king's books at £10. 5.; net income, £85; patrons and appropriators, the Dean and Chapter of York. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1771. The church, an ancient structure, was much injured by a high wind in 1824, when the roof, on which were two tons of lead, was blown down. At West Stockwith is a chapel of ease. There are places of worship for Calvinistic and Wesleyan Methodists, and a Roman Catholic chapel.

Misterton (St. Leonard)

MISTERTON (St. Leonard), a parish, in the union of Beaminster, hundred of Crewkerne, W. division of Somerset, 1¼ mile (S. E. by S.) from Crewkerne; containing 475 inhabitants. The living is a discharged vicarage; patrons, the Dean and Chapter of Winchester; impropriator, John Hussey, Esq. The great tithes have been commuted for £205, and the vicarial for £70; the glebe comprises 33 acres. The church has been enlarged. A school is supported by subscription.

Mistley (St. Mary)

MISTLEY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and hundred of Tendring, N. division of Essex, ½ a mile (E.) from Manningtree; containing 976 inhabitants. The parish comprises by survey 2067 acres, of which 1200 are arable, 600 pasture, 160 woodland and plantations, and the remainder garden-ground. The village is situated on the navigable river Stour, and has good quays, to which vessels of 300 tons' burthen can come up at spring tides; also commodious warehouses for corn, malt, and coal. The petty-sessions for the division of Tendring are held here on Monday, once in five weeks, alternately with Thorpe. The living is a discharged rectory, with the vicarage of Bradfield united, valued in the king's books at £16. 13. 4., and until lately in the gift of Lord Rivers: the tithes of the parish have been commuted for £660, and there is a glebe-house, with a glebe of 33 acres. The church stands about a mile northwest from the site of a former structure, and was consecrated in 1735, having been built principally at the expense of Edward Rigby, Esq.

Mitcham (St. Peter and St. Paul)

MITCHAM (St. Peter and St. Paul), a parish, in the union of Croydon, Second division of the hundred of Wallington, E. division of Surrey, 9 miles (S. S. W.) from London; containing 4532 inhabitants. This parish, which is situated on the road to Reigate, is divided into Upper Mitcham, formerly called Whitford or Waterford, and Lower Mitcham, anciently Michelham, or "the great dwelling," a name probably derived from the district having been at an early period the residence of persons of distinction. The air is so remarkable for its salubrity, that Dr. Fothergill, an eminent physician of the last century, called the place the Montpelier of England. In various parts are old mansions with spacious walled gardens and pleasure-grounds, and the surrounding scenery is diversified; the river Wandle, which abounds with excellent trout, passes at the extremity of the village. The soil is a rich loam, lying upon gravel of great depth, and is distinguished for its production of elms of stately growth: the greater portion of the land is laid out in plantations of chamomile, liquorice, peppermint, roses, lavender, and other aromatic plants. A small common, at the entrance into the village from London, still retains the name of Figge's marsh, having been the property of Sir Edward Figge in the time of Edward III. The principal business is the printing of calico, silks, and challis; and there are snuffmills upon a large scale. A pleasure-fair is held for three days, commencing on August 12th.

The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10; net income, £456; patron, William Simpson, Esq., in right of his lady, a lineal descendant of Archbishop Cranmer, and owner of the manor of Mitcham; impropriator, D. Watney, Esq. The church, an ancient structure of flint and stone, which had become greatly dilapidated, was taken down in 1822, and handsomely rebuilt in the later English style, with the exception of the tower. There are places of worship for Independents and Wesleyans. A Sunday school, established in 1788, has an endowment of £62. 12. per annum; and a national school, supported by subscription, was enlarged in 1839, from a portion of the funds. The almshouses on the Green, for twelve widows or unmarried women, were founded in 1829, by Miss Tate, who endowed them with an estate producing to each of the inmates £7. 16. per annum. Among the eminent characters who formerly resided at Mitcham, were, Archbishop Cranmer, whose mansion is still remaining; Sir Julius Cæsar, who entertained Queen Elizabeth in his house for one day at an expense of more than £700; Sir Walter Raleigh, whose ancient mansion on the Green, which, previously to his expedition to Guiana, he sold for £2500, was taken down in 1833; Dr. Donne; Lord Chancellor Loughborough; and the late Peter Waldo, Esq., the last of the Waldenses, known by his treatise on the Liturgy of the Church of England, and whose mansion, part of which was erected in the reign of Edward II., is still remaining, with some carvings of the time of Elizabeth, and others by Grinlin Gibbons, in excellent preservation.

Mitcheldever (St. Mary)

MITCHELDEVER (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Winchester, hundred of Mitcheldever, Winchester and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 9 miles (S. E. by S.) from Whitchurch; containing, with the tythings of North and South Brook, West Stratton, and Weston-Colley, 1119 inhabitants. This place formerly belonged to the Russell family, and was for some time the residence of the widow of Lord Russell who was beheaded in 1683. The parish comprises by admeasurement 7094 acres of land, in good cultivation; the village is pleasant, and the South-Western railway has a station here. The living is a vicarage, with the livings of Northington, Popham, and East Stratton annexed, valued in the king's books at £26. 13. 4.; net income, £326; patron and impropriator, Sir Thomas Baring, Bart. The church was rebuilt by Sir Francis Baring, in 1806, at an expense of nearly £10,000; it is a handsome structure in the early English style, and contains a monument by Chantrey, to members of the Baring family. A parochial school is supported by Sir Thomas, who has also built almshouses for 80 aged and infirm poor of both sexes.

Mitchell-Dean.—See Dean, Mitchell.

MITCHELL-DEAN.—See Dean, Mitchell.

Mitchelmersh (St. Mary)

MITCHELMERSH (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Romsey, hundred of Buddlesgate, Romsey and S. divisions of the county of Southampton, 3½ miles (N.) from Romsey; containing, with the hamlets of Awbridge and Brashfield, 1180 inhabitants, of whom 436 are in the hamlet of Mitchelmersh. The parish comprises 3978 acres, of which 20 are common or waste. The Andover canal runs through it. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £26. 12. 8½., and in the gift of the Bishop of Winchester: the tithes have been commuted for £814, and the glebe comprises 75 acres. Schools are partly supported by subscription.

Mitchel-Troy (St. Michael)

MITCHEL-TROY (St. Michael), a parish, in the hundred of Raglan, union, division, and county of Monmouth, 2¼ miles (S. W.) from Monmouth; containing 383 inhabitants. This parish is bounded on the east by the river Wye, and on the north by the Trothy, and is intersected by the road from Monmouth to Abergavenny. It comprises by computation 1750 acres, of which 500 are arable, 955 pasture and meadow, 160 wood, and 92 common; the surface is a good deal undulated, and the scenery embraces some beautiful views, especially from a hill at the rear of Troy House, a seat of the Duke of Beaufort's. The living is a rectory, with the living of Cwmcarvan annexed, in the patronage of the Duke: the tithes have been commuted for £221. 10., and there is a good parsonage-house, with a glebe of 60 acres. The church is in the early style, and consists of a nave, chancel, and south aisle, with a square tower formerly surmounted by a spire which was struck by lightning some years since, and in its fall destroyed the north aisle; the windows are ornamented with modern stained glass, and the communion-table is inlaid with a large slate slab, on which is engraven the Last Supper, Crucifixion, and Ascension. In the churchyard is an ancient stone cross.

Mitford

MITFORD, a parish, in the union of Morpeth, partly in the W. division of Castle ward, in the S., and partly in the W. division of Morpeth ward, in the N., division of Northumberland, 1¾ mile (W. by S.) from Morpeth; containing 733 inhabitants, of whom 220 are in the township of Mitford. This manor, in the time of the Saxons, belonged to the family of Mitford, and at the Conquest was part of the possessions of John, lord of Mitford, whose only daughter, Sybil, was married by the Conqueror to Sir Richard Bertram, son of the lord of Dignam, in Normandy. The family of Bertram became very numerous, and acquired large estates in this part of the kingdom, which they retained till the reign of John, when, taking part with the barons against that monarch, their castle here, and also the town, were burnt, and the lands laid waste, by the Flemish allies of the king; the barony, becoming forfeited to the crown, was bestowed upon Philip de Hulcoates. The possessions were subsequently restored by Henry III. to the Bertrams; but after the death of Roger de Bertram in 1242, his son and successor being taken prisoner among the insurgents at Northampton, the castle and estates were seized by the king, and never regained. The castle was taken and dismantled by Alexander, King of Scotland, in 1318, and the barony, at that time the property of the Earl of Pembroke, after his decease passed to Sir Henry Percy, lord of Atholl, whose two daughters conveyed the manor of Mitford, by marriage, to Thomas Brough and Sir Henry Grey. The whole of the manor, in the reign of Henry VIII., belonged to William, Lord Brough, who in 1557 granted the estates to Cuthbert Mitford and his heirs for ever, reserving to himself only the site of the castle and the royalties, which, afterwards falling to the crown, were granted by Charles II. to Robert Mitford, with whose descendants they have since remained. The town of Mitford was of considerable importance, and had a charter of incorporation at a very early period; the records were most probably destroyed in the wars between John and the barons.

The parish consists of the townships of Benridge, Edington, Highlaws, Mitford, Molesden, Newton-Park, Newton-Underwood, Nunriding, Pigdon, Spittle-Hill, and Throphill. It comprises by computation 9500 acres, of which 600 are woodland, and the remainder arable, meadow, and pasture. The surface is finely varied; the river Wansbeck intersects the parish from west to east, and the river Font, after skirting the northwestern portion of it, falls into the Wansbeck at the village. The substrata are chiefly coal, limestone, and sandstone. The present manor-house, erected in 1828, after a design by Mr. Dobson, is a handsome mansion of white freestone, beautifully situated on the brow of the north bank of the Wansbeck, opposite to the remains of the ancient manor-house, on the other side of the river. The village now consists only of a few neat cottages. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10. 6. 8.; net income £100, with a glebe of 10 acres; patron, the Bishop of Durham. The church is an ancient and venerable structure: the nave is in the Norman style, and appears to have been damaged by fire, probably during the assault of the castle; the chancel is in the early English style.

Mithian

MITHIAN, an ecclesiastical district, in the parishes of Kea, Kenwyn, Perranzabuloe, and St. Agnes, union of Truro, W. division of the hundred of Pyder and of the county of Cornwall, 6 miles (W. N. W.) from Truro; containing about 2000 inhabitants, chiefly miners. The district was constituted in July 1846, under the provisions of the act 6th and 7th Victoria, cap. 37. Its mean length is about three and a half, and mean breadth about two miles; and it includes, besides the village of Mithian, two equally considerable villages called Silverwell and Blackwater, and some smaller ones. The exposed parts are barren heaths, capable of cultivation, and in progress of being inclosed either by the landowners or by the miners, who cultivate small plots. The barrenness of the moors, also, is often pleasingly and unexpectedly diversified by sheltered and fruitful valleys of great depth, with streams winding along them; and this is especially the case at Mithian, where a stream passes through a picturesque and romantic ravine interspersed with farmhouses, orchards, plantations, and meadow-land. In these valleys, scarcely a breath of wind is felt though a storm rage on the downs above them. Lands which have been twenty years reclaimed from common, afford good pasturage; those which have been three years reclaimed will bear wheat if well manured, and any part of the crofts or common will yield a fair crop of turnips the first year of breaking up. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Crown and the Bishop of Exeter, alternately. There are three Methodist and three Primitive Methodist places of worship.