Mouldsworth
MOULDSWORTH, a township, in the parish of
Tarvin, union of Great Boughton, Second division of
the hundred of Eddisbury, S. division of the county of
Chester, 9 miles (N. E. by E.) from Chester; containing 165 inhabitants. It comprises 786 acres, chiefly of
a clayey soil. Of the tithe rent-charge, £48 are payable
to the vicar, and £74 to the Dean and Chapter of
Lichfield.
Moulsey, East and West.—See Molesey.
MOULSEY, EAST and WEST.—See Molesey.
Moulsford (St. John the Baptist)
MOULSFORD (St. John the Baptist), a parish, in
the union of Wallingford, hundred of Moreton,
county of Berks, 4 miles (S. S. W.) from Wallingford;
containing 144 inhabitants. The parish comprises 1415
acres, of which 417 are common or waste land. A
station on the Great Western railway is situated here.
The living is in the gift of the Rev. G. K. Morrell: the
tithes have been commuted for £225, and the glebe
comprises 5 acres.
Moulsham
MOULSHAM, a hamlet, in the parish, union, and
hundred of Chelmsford, S. division of Essex, ¾ of a
mile (S. W.) from Chelmsford; containing 2906 inhabitants. A district church, dedicated to St. John, has
been built, containing 540 sittings, 300 of which are free:
the living is a perpetual curacy in the gift of the Rector,
with a net income of £150.
Moulsoe (St. Mary)
MOULSOE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Newport-Pagnell, hundred of Newport, county of
Buckingham, 3 miles (S. E. by E.) from NewportPagnell; containing 297 inhabitants. The parish comprises by measurement 1600 acres, of which 150 are
woodland, and the remainder arable and rich pasture;
the soil is a strong loam, alternated with clay. The
views are very extensive, and include Woburn Abbey.
The river Ouse flows here: the Grand Junction canal
connects the parish with the town of Newport-Pagnell,
and the London and Northampton road passes through.
The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at
£16. 16. 3.; net income, £280; patron, Lord Carrington. The tithes were commuted for land in 1802; the
glebe altogether comprises 229½ acres, with a house.
The church stands on an eminence, and is a plain structure in the early English style, with a tower. A school
is endowed with £18 per annum, arising from 14 acres
of land left by Lady Northampton.
Moulton
MOULTON, a township, in the parish of Davenham, union and hundred of Northwich, S. division of
the county of Chester, 3 miles (S.) from Northwich;
containing 318 inhabitants, and comprising 437 acres of
land. The soil is partly clay and partly sand. The
Liverpool and Birmingham railway passes through.
Moulton (All Saints)
MOULTON (All Saints), a parish, in the union of
Spalding, wapentake of Elloe, parts of Holland,
county of Lincoln, 4 miles (W.) from Holbeach; containing 2038 inhabitants. The parish comprises 11,256a.
12p.: the village is pleasantly situated about half a mile
south of the road from Spalding to Lynn. The living
is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £28. 13. 4.;
net income, £456; patron, M. Johnson, Esq. The
tithes were commuted for land in 1793; the glebe comprises 347 acres, with a house. The church is a handsome structure in the decorated English style, with a
tower and spire of graceful proportions, 180 feet in
height. There is a chapel in that part of the parish
called Moulton-Chapel, the living of which is a perpetual
curacy, in the patronage of the Vicar; net income, £90.
The Wesleyans, and Methodists of the New Connexion,
have places of worship. A free grammar school was
founded in 1561, by John Harrox, who endowed it with
land now producing £500 per annum. There are two
almshouses for widows, and the poor's lands produce an
income of £162. Thomas de Multon, one of the barons
who signed Magna Charta, resided here.
Moulton (St. Mary)
MOULTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of
Blofield, hundred of Walsham, E. division of Norfolk, 2½ miles (S.) from Acle; containing 235 inhabitants. It comprises 1140 acres, of which 650 are arable,
and the remainder meadow and marshy ground. The
living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's
books at £5. 6. 3.; net income, £177, with a glebe of
24 acres; patron and impropriator, the Rev. George
Anguish. The church is chiefly in the later English
style, with a circular tower of ancient date; in the
chancel is a monument to several members of the Anguish family. A fund of £18, the rent of land allotted
under an inclosure act, is distributed among the poor.
Moulton (St. Michael)
MOULTON (St. Michael), a parish, in the union and
hundred of Depwade, E. division of Norfolk, 3 miles
(W. S. W.) from Long Stratton; containing 444 inhabitants. The parishes of Great and Little Moulton were
formerly distinct, but on the demolition of the church of
the latter (All Saints) in 1570, they were united; the
site of the ancient church is called the Sanctuary. The
living of Great Moulton is a discharged rectory, valued
in the king's books at £6. 13. 4., and in the gift of W.
W. Chute, Esq.: the tithes have been commuted for
£453, and the glebe comprises 20 acres. The church is
a handsome structure, chiefly in the later English style,
with a square embattled tower; it contains a font elaborately sculptured. A parsonage-house, in the Italian
style, was built in 1831, by the Rev. J. S. Wiggett. The
living of Little Moulton is a discharged rectory, valued
in the king's books at £4. 3. 1½.; patron, S. Webster,
Esq. The pious, learned, and eloquent preacher, John
Moulton, a Carmelite friar, who flourished about the
year 1400, was born at Moulton.
Moulton (St. Peter and St. Paul)
MOULTON (St. Peter and St. Paul), a parish, in
the union of Brixworth, hundred of Spelhoe, S. division of the county of Northampton, 4½ miles (N. N. E.)
from Northampton; containing 1368 inhabitants. It
comprises by admeasurement 3060 acres of land, nearly
all arable; the soil is a stiff clay, alternated with red
sand, and the surface is generally flat: there are some
limestone-quarries. The Northampton and Kettering
road passes within a quarter of a mile of the village.
The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£14. 3. 9.; net income, £391; patron, E. S. Burton,
Esq.; impropriator, John Nethercoat, Esq. The tithes
were commuted for land and a money payment in 1772.
The church is partly Norman, and partly in the later
English style, with a lofty and handsome tower. Here
are places of worship for Baptists and Wesleyans.
Moulton (St. Peter)
MOULTON (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of
Newmarket, hundred of Risbridge, W. division of
Suffolk, 3½ miles (E. by N.) from Newmarket, containing 379 inhabitants. It comprises by computation
3000 acres: an inclosure act was passed in 1839. The
living comprises a rectory and a vicarage, the former
valued in the king's books at £13. 6. 8., and the latter
at £4. 7. 8½.; patrons, the Master and Fellows of Christ's
College, Cambridge. The tithes have been commuted
for £587, and the glebe comprises 139 acres. The
church is a large and handsome edifice. The poor's
land produces a rent of £39.
Moulton
MOULTON, a township, in the parish of Middleton-Tyas, union of Richmond, wapentake of GillingEast, N. riding of York, 5 miles (E. N. E.) from Richmond; containing 209 inhabitants. The township comprises about 2750 acres of land, and includes the hamlets
of High and Low Gaterly: the village is in a secluded
situation, on the acclivity of a picturesque vale, and on
the road from Richmond to Kirk-Leavington. A remarkable ancient hall, belonging to the Northumberland
family, still exists, but much reduced from its former
importance. The vicarial tithes have been commuted
for £159, and the impropriate for £81. A chapel of
ease was erected in 1837, by the late John Ward, Esq.,
secretary to the Bishop of Chester. There is a place of
worship for Wesleyans.
Moulton-Park
MOULTON-PARK, an extra-parochial liberty, in the
union of Brixworth, hundred of Spelhoe, S. division
of the county of Northampton, 2¾ miles (N. N. E.)
from Northampton; containing 18 inhabitants, and
comprising 500 acres of land.
Mountfield (All Saints)
MOUNTFIELD (All Saints), a parish, in the union
of Battle, partly in the hundred of Staple and Henhurst, but chiefly in that of Netherfield, rape of
Hastings, E. division of Sussex, 2½ miles (S.) from
Robert's-Bridge; containing 601 inhabitants. The parish is situated on the road from London to Hastings;
the surface is finely undulated, and in many parts richly
wooded. Blue and grey limestone are found in abundance, and there was formerly an iron-furnace. The living is a discharged viearage, valued in the king's books
at £5. 13. 4.; net income, £189; patron and impropriator, Earl De la Warr. The great tithes have been
commuted for £170, and the vicarial for £210; each of the
glebes comprises 20 acres. The church is a neat structure in the early English style, with a tower surmounted
by a spire.
Mount-Hawke, Cornwall.—See Agnes, St.
MOUNT-HAWKE, Cornwall.—See Agnes, St.
Mounthealey
MOUNTHEALEY, a township, in the parish and
union of Rothbury, W. division of Coquetdale ward,
N. division of Northumberland, 2½ miles (E. S. E.)
from the town of Rothbury; containing 36 inhabitants.
It lies at a short distance north-west from Paperhaugh,
and comprises the farmsteads of High Healey, Low
Healey, and Healey-Coat. The road between Morpeth
and Wooler runs on the east, and in the south direction
flows the Coquet river.
Mountnessing (St. Giles)
MOUNTNESSING (St. Giles), a parish, in the
union of Billericay, hundred of Chelmsford, S. division of Essex, 2 miles (S. W.) from Ingatestone; containing 925 inhabitants. The parish derives its name
from the ancient family of Mountney, and from its
luxuriant pasture and meadow lands; it comprises 941
acres, of which 104 are common or waste. The living
is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at
£11; net income, £117; patron and impropriator, Lord
Petre. The impropriate tithes have been commuted for
£210; the impropriate glebe comprises 13 acres, and
the vicarial 21. The church is an ancient edifice, on the
south side of which is a small chantry chapel, containing
several monumental inscriptions. Richard Beyley, in
1743, bequeathed a house and 18 acres of land, producing £30 annually, to teach as many poor children,
at one penny a week per head, as the funds will allow.
A priory of Augustine canons was founded in the reign
of Stephen, at Thoby, in the parish, by Michael Capra,
Roise his wife, and William their son; it was dedicated
to St. Mary and St. Leonard, and at the Dissolution had
a revenue of £75. 6. 10. The refectory and two arches
of the cloisters are still preserved.
Mounton
MOUNTON, a parish, in the union and division of
Chepstow, hundred of Caldicot, county of Monmouth,
1½ mile (W. S. W.) from Chepstow; containing 76 inhabitants. The name is supposed to be a corruption of
Monks' Town; and considerable remains of walls, still
traceable in the contiguous woods, manifest that a large
town formerly existed here. The parish comprises 380
acres of a hilly and well-wooded surface, and presents
some pleasing views, especially in a picturesque valley,
through which flows a stream affording water-power to
extensive paper-mills, also worked by steam. A loamy
soil, resting on limestone, prevails on the cultivated
grounds. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income,
£87; patron, W. Hollis, Esq.; impropriator, T. Lewis,
Esq. The tithes have been commuted for £55. The
church exhibits several marks of antiquity, and there are
the remains of another, dedicated to St. Mary, in a
wood between this place and Poolmeyric.
Mountsorrel
MOUNTSORREL, a market-town and chapelry,
partly in the parish of Rothley, but chiefly in that of
Barrow, union of Barrow, hundred of West Goscote, N. division of the county of Leicester, 7½ miles
(N.) from Leicester, and 104½ (N. N. W.) from London;
containing 1536 inhabitants. The name of this place,
prior to the Conquest, appears to have been Soar-hill,
which, like its present appellation, is evidently derived
from its position on a mount or hill near the river Soar.
On the highest of a range of hills, impending above the
town, and called Castle Hill, stood a fortress, which is
mentioned in the reign of Stephen, when it was assigned
to Robert le Bossu, Earl of Leicester, and his heirs, on
condition that Ralph, Earl of Chester, who also laid
claim to it, should, with his family, be amicably received
within the borough, bailiwick, and castle, whenever they
might choose to reside there. In 1167, Robert Blanchmains, Earl of Leicester, on his rebellion against Henry II.,
was dispossessed of this with his other estates: the latter
were subsequently restored to him, but the king retained
the castle, and a governor was appointed to hold it. In
1215, it was garrisoned by Saer de Quincy, its governor,
for the Dauphin of France, whom the barons had invited
to their assistance; and when the royal cause became
triumphant, in the beginning of the reign of Henry III.,
it was taken and razed to the ground.
The town is rather romantically situated, amidst
rocky and variegated scenery, and consists principally
of one long street, which extends about three quarters of
a mile along the high road, and is paved with red granite
from the adjacent cliffs; the houses in general are constructed of the same material. Worsted-hose and netlace are manufactured; about 250 persons are employed
in frame-work knitting. The Soar canal affords facility
for the conveyance of stone. The market, which is
almost disused, is on Monday: there is a fair on the
10th of July, during which a court of pie-poudre is
held. The market-house, a small building in the centre
of the town, was erected in 1793, at the expense of Sir
John Danvers, Bart., who at the same time removed a
curious and ancient cross, which occupied a portion of
the site, into his own grounds. The chapelry comprises
322a. 3r. 36p.; the substratum abounds with granite,
which is of excellent quality for paving, masonry, and
other purposes, and is raised in large quantities, affording employment to a number of men, varying from 100
to 300, according to the demand. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £180; patron, the Vicar of
Barrow: the chapel, dedicated to St. Peter, is a neat
structure containing 500 sittings. At Mountsorrel SouthEnd, forming the Rothley portion of the chapelry, is a
district church, built, with a parsonage-house, in 1844,
at a cost of £5500, by Miss Brinton, who has the
patronage of the living: the church is in the early
English style, with a spire, and contains a painted east
window and a fine-toned organ. There are four places
of worship for dissenters; also a school endowed with
about £12 a year. Several considerable benefactions
have been made for the relief of the poor. The Barrow
union workhouse is situated in the township.
Mousehole
MOUSEHOLE, a hamlet, in the parish of Paul,
union of Penzance, W. division of the hundred of Penwith and of the county of Cornwall, 2½ miles (S. W.)
from Penzance; containing 1014 inhabitants. This
place, which is also called Port Enys, is situated on
the western shore of Mount's bay in the English Channel; and though at present only a large fishing-village,
was formerly of considerable importance. In 1293,
Henry de Tyes obtained for it the grant of a market on
Tuesday, to which was afterwards added a fair on the
festival of St. Barnabas. A quay was constructed in
1392; and the village appears to have advanced in
prosperity till 1595, when, with the adjoining village of
Newlyn, it was burnt by the Spaniards, since which time
its market and fair have been discontinued. The pilchard
and mackerel fisheries are still carried on; and the
London market, in the early part of the season, is supplied with mackerel from this place, by way of Portsmouth: about 80 seine-boats are employed in the fisheries belonging to the port, which is defended by two
batteries. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans.
A chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and situated
near the extreme verge of the shore, was destroyed in
1414 by an encroachment of the sea; and according to
Leland, there was a chapel dedicated to St. Clement, on a
small island opposite to the village.
Mouson
MOUSON, a township, in the parish of Bambrough,
union of Belford, N. division of the ward of Bambrough and of the county of Northumberland, 2¼
miles (S. S. E.) from Belford; containing 72 inhabitants.
It lies to the north of Bell's Hill, and on the west of the
road between Belford and Alnwick. The township is the
property of Haydon-Bridge school. Vestiges of a Roman camp are to be traced on the east side of the road.
Mowsley
MOWSLEY, a chapelry, in the parish of Knaptoft,
union of Harborough, hundred of Gartree, S. division of the county of Leicester, 6½ miles (W. by N.)
from Harborough; containing 267 inhabitants. The
chapelry comprises by admeasurement 1100 acres. The
soil is chiefly gravel, alternated with clay; the surface is
hilly, the scenery diversified, and the prevailing wood is
ash. The Grand Union canal passes on the south. The
tithes were commuted for land in 1788.
Moxby
MOXBY, a hamlet, in the parish of Marton-inthe-Forest, union of Easingwould, wapentake of
Bulmer, N. riding of York, 5½ miles (S. E. by E.) from
Easingwould; containing 20 inhabitants. A Benedictine nunnery, in honour of John the Evangelist, was
founded here in 1167, by Henry II., and had at the
Dissolution a revenue of £32. 6. 2.
Moxhull
MOXHULL, a hamlet, in the parish of Wishaw,
union of Aston, Birmingham division of the hundred of
Hemlingford, N. division of the county of Warwick,
4¼ miles (N. by W.) from Coleshill, on the road to Tamworth; containing 73 inhabitants. It is situated to the
west of the Birmingham and Fazeley canal; and is
chiefly distinguished as the residence of Berkeley Noel,
Esq., whose seat of Moxhull Park is bounded on the
east by the high road: the house was built about the
14th century, and is a substantial edifice, containing
some ancient portraits of members of the Noel and
Hacket families.
Moze, county of Essex.—See Beaumont.
MOZE, county of Essex.—See Beaumont.