BIRDINGBURY
Acreage: 1,063.
Population: 1911, 209; 1921, 163; 1931, 186.
The northern boundary of the parish is formed by
the River Leam, and the eastern by a small stream
which runs into that river. Birdingbury Hall stands
on a slight hill overlooking the Leam, to whose banks
its grounds slope down. South of the Hall is the
church, and the village lies farther south round a road
which runs south-west to Long Itchington, and another,
crossing it at right angles, from Marton to Leamington
Hastings. The houses are mostly modern, of brick,
but there are a few of timber-framing with thatched
roofs. Another road runs due south from the village
for 2 miles to Birdingbury Wharf on the Warwick and
Napton Canal, which crosses the southernmost projection of the parish. To the north of the village the
Leam is crossed by the road and by the Rugby and
Leamington branch of the L.M.S. Railway, Birdingbury Station being just over the boundary in Frankton
parish. Near this bridge was the mill referred to in
1200, (fn. 1) and mentioned in 1315 as appurtenant to the
manor. (fn. 2)
Henry Homer (fn. 3) was rector of Birdingbury from
1764 until his death in 1791, being also incumbent
of Willoughby and Anstey and chaplain to Edward,
Lord Leigh. He wrote with acumen on the subjects
of open fields, public roads, and inland navigation, on
all of which his views were in advance of his time. He
also produced seventeen children, of whom three figure
in the Dictionary of National Biography—Henry (the
eldest) was a notable classical scholar, but his chief
connexion with Birdingbury is that he died there in
May 1791, a few months before his father; Arthur
(4th son) compiled a Bibliographica Americana and
died in 1806; Philip Bracebridge (10th son) was born
in the Rectory in 1765, was a classical scholar and
poet, and became master and fellow of Rugby School,
where he died in 1838.
Manors
BIRDINGBURY was among the
twenty-four vills which Earl Leofric
bestowed upon the monastery of Coventry,
his gift being confirmed by Edward the Confessor in
1043. (fn. 4) Accordingly the Domesday Survey shows the
Church of Coventry holding 2 hides in Birdingbury
(corrupted by the scribe into 'Derbingerie'); (fn. 5) and the
manor and church were among the possessions of the
priory taken under his protection in 1221 by Pope
Honorius III. (fn. 6) By 1242 Henry de Hastings was
holding the manor of the Prior of Coventry. (fn. 7) On his
death custody of the manor during the minority of his
son Henry was assigned in 1251 to Stephen Bauchan. (fn. 8)
This Henry, as a leading rebel, forfeited his lands in
1265, and this manor, valued at £12, was first
granted to John de Warenne but was apparently among
those committed 'of grace' to Henry's wife Joan. (fn. 9)
Under the Dictum of Kenilworth Henry recovered his
lands, and in 1285 his son John established his rights
to view of frank-pledge and other franchises in
Birdingbury. (fn. 10) John leased the manor for life to John
Paynel, as half a knight's fee, (fn. 11) and he had a grant of
free warren in his lands here in 1312. (fn. 12) After the death
of John de Hastings his widow Julian, who married
Thomas le Blount, held the manor in dower, it being
valued in 1325 at £17 18s. 1½d. (fn. 13) The manor then
descended with Fillongley (q.v.) to Sir William
Beauchamp, who in 1392 granted it for life to John
Olney, his receiver, at a rent of 40s. (fn. 14) Olney must
have acquired the fee simple, as when his granddaughter Margaret married Thomas Throckmorton
she brought the manor into that family. (fn. 15) Their
grandson Sir George Throckmorton sold it in 1541
to John Hylmer, freemason of London, and Emyn
Ogle, widow. (fn. 16) In 1567 Jasper Lake of Gray's Inn
conveyed the manor to Henry Goodere (fn. 17) of Baginton,
who six months later transferred it to John Shuckburgh
of Napton. (fn. 18) His great-grandson
Thomas Shuckburgh sold it in
1658 to Charles Leigh of Leighton Buzzard, (fn. 19) second son of Sir
Thomas Leigh of Stoneleigh,
who in 1674 sold it to Sir Charles
Wheler, bart. (fn. 20) His son Sir
William in 1687 released his
rights to his mother Lady Dorothy and she at once sold the
manor to Simon Biddulph, who
was still lord when Dr. Thomas
wrote in 1730. (fn. 21) The family of Biddulph, baronets
since 1664, continued to hold the manor (fn. 22) until 1914. (fn. 23)
Lt.-Col. Harry Egerton Norton was lord of the manor
in 1924, (fn. 24) and in 1936 it was held by Mrs. Alsagar
Pollock. (fn. 25)
Biddulph. Vert an eagle argent.
At the time of the Domesday Survey 1 hide ½ virgate
in Birdingbury was held by Goslin under Turchil;
among the sub-tenants were 3 franklins who had themselves held this land in the time of Edward the Confessor. (fn. 26) With Turchil's other estates this passed to the
Earls of Warwick. Thus in 1242 a half-fee was held
of the earl by Thomas de Clinton, (fn. 27) and in 1316 by
John de Somerville; (fn. 28) in 1400 it was held by John
Olney, (fn. 29) who, as already mentioned, also held the other
half-fee, and presumably the two estates were amalgamated.
In 1206 Henry de Armentiers proved his right to the
services of half a knight's fee for an estate held of him
in Birdingbury by Henry Trovecerf, (fn. 30) Treverf, (fn. 31) or
Tredeuern. (fn. 32) To which of the two half-fees this refers
is not obvious.
The Abbey of Polesworth had land in this parish
given by Edeline sister of Robert Boteler of Engleby
for the souls of Roger de Somerville (her husband) and
Walter (his father), (fn. 33) but there seems to be no later
reference to it.
Land in Birdingbury was included among the property of the Hospital of St. John the Baptist of Coventry
granted to John Hales in 1545. (fn. 34)
Church
The church of ST. LEONARD was
built about the end of the 18th century
and enlarged and gothicized in 1873.
It is rectangular in plan, with an apse forming five sides
of an octagon, and stands at the east end of the churchyard. It consists of nave, choir, and apse, with an
internal porch and a vestry at the west end of the nave,
the apse being a recent addition. The church is built
of ashlar and the apse is coursed rubble. The west end
of the building is of classic design and the remainder
modern gothic. The apse is lighted by five two-light
windows with pointed arches, the choir by two pointed
lights with pointed arch and hood-moulding on each
side, the nave has two similar two-light windows on
each side. At the west end on the north side there is a
narrow square-headed window to the vestry, and above
a lancet window, with hood-moulding, to the gallery,
with a similar light on the south side to light the gallery
staircase. The west front is of classic design with an
entablature and pediment supported on four Doric
pilasters, and above is an octagonal bellcote built of
stone with round-headed lights in each side and a
domical lead-covered roof springing from a moulded
cornice. The west doorway has moulded architraves
and a panelled oak door.
The choir, i.e. the eastern 12 ft. of the rectangle,
separated by a wooden screen, which was made from
the old oak rafters in 1873, and the small apse have
tiled floors, one step to the choir, two to the altar rails,
and one to the altar. The apse is vaulted, the ribs
springing from three clustered shafts with foliated
capitals and moulded bases, the vaulting being decorated
in gold, blue, and red. On the south side is a combined
piscina and sedilia with moulded trefoil heads supported on coloured marble shafts with floriated capitals,
and at the window sill level there is a stone band of
foliated carving. There is a pointed arch to the
apse, moulded in two orders, the inner supported on
short coloured marble shafts with floriated capitals
and fluted corbels, the outer on attached shafts
with floriated capitals and moulded bases. The walls
of the choir are cemented, with stone dressings,
and the underside of the roof has matchboarded
panels.
The nave (38 ft. 6 in. by 22 ft. 3 in.) has ashlar
walls, tiled floor, and matchboarded ceiling in panels.
At the west end are three tall pointed arches; the
lower parts of the two side ones are blocked to form
the vestry (north) and the gallery staircase (south), the
centre one opens into the lobby, and in each of the
openings is the panelled gallery front, the centre one
with a carved royal arms. In the north-west corner
there is a small stone font of classic design. The pulpit,
which stands to the north of the choir, is octagonal,
panelled with wood inlay.
There are two bells: (fn. 35) the larger bears part of an
alphabet and the date 1615; the other is by Pack and
Chapman, 1774.
The registers begin in 1559, but the first volume is
defective.
Advowson
The advowson followed the descent
of the main manor until 1929 when
the rectory was united with the
vicarage of Marton, the joint patronage being assigned
to the Bishop of Coventry. (fn. 36)
The rectory was valued at £4 in 1291 (fn. 37) and at
£7 10s. in 1535. (fn. 38)
Charities
William Smith by a codicil to his will
dated 23 August 1711 charged property at Kites Hardwick and Thurlaston in the parishes of Leamington Hastings and
Dunchurch with the yearly sum of 4s. to the poor of
each of ten parishes, including Birdingbury, to be paid
on Easter Day to the churchwardens and overseers,
to be laid out in bread and distributed among the
poorest people of the parishes. The rent-charge was
redeemed in 1905 in consideration of the sum of £80
Consols, producing an annual income of £2.
Thomas Bayes, who died on 5 October 1730, by
will charged the land called Gilberts Close, Monks
Kirby, with the payment of the yearly sum of 20s. to
the churchwardens and overseers of Birdingbury to be
laid out in forty sixpenny loaves to be distributed among
the poor inhabitants at two equal distributions in the
year; viz. on 1 May and 1 November. The rentcharge was redeemed in 1915 in consideration of
a sum of £40 Consols, producing an annual income
of 20s.