ORLINGBURY
Ordinbaro (xi cent.); Orlingberge (xii cent.); Ordingber, Orlingeber (xiii cent.); Orlebere (xvi cent.);
Orlebear (xvii cent.).
Orlingbury is a compact parish about twice as long
as it is broad, with an area of 1,939 acres. The soil is
of good fertile mixed character, the substratum being
Great Oolite limestone, white sand, ironstone, and
Upper Lias clay. The principal crops are cereals.
The western edge of the parish, bounded by Walgrave and Hannington, is about 450 ft. above the
ordnance datum. From this the ground slopes slowly
to the east, and in the north-east corner of the parish,
around the village of Orlingbury itself, the level falls
to 330 ft. In the south-east the ground falls rapidly,
and is only 220 ft. at the parish boundary on the
Orlingbury-Little Harrowden road.
The village green, around which the village is built,
is at the crossing of two by-roads, which connect it with
the Harrowdens, Pytchley, Broughton, Hannington,
and Isham. South-east of the village green, on the crest
of the hill facing Little Harrowden, is Orlingbury Hall,
built by Richard Young soon after 1700, and now the
residence of Mrs. Jacques. It is a well-designed building of two stories, with barred sash windows, pedimented doorway, and grey-slated eaved roofs. It is
faced with local ironstone and the long front elevation is divided into three bays by wide pilasters. It
stands on the site of the old manor-house inhabited
successively by the Lanes, Toftes, and Chibnalls;
which, in 1678, contained about 20 rooms and paid
tax on 13 hearths. (fn. 1) On the right of the hall is the
rectory, built in 1703, (fn. 2) and on the opposite side of the
green stands the church of St. Mary. South-east of
the church is a gabled rectangular dovecote, probably
of the 17th century but without architectural features. (fn. 3)
A small chapel for dissenters was built in 1830, and
there is a public elementary school, erected in 1845.
The village itself is very compact, but scattered in the
fields to the west are several farms. In the far north-east
corner of the parish stands Badsaddle Lodge, a house
which, in Bridges' time (c. 1700) was moated. (fn. 4) Southeast of this on the Orlingbury-Hannington road stands
Wythmail Park Farm, a moated house which marks the
site of an ancient hamlet and manor of that name.
A terrier of Beaver's Manor made in 1673 mentions
a windmill. (fn. 5)
Owen Manning (1721–1801), the historian of Surrey, was born in the village; his father or grandfather
Owen Manning is recorded as a tenant of the 'townehouse' in 1673. (fn. 6)
Manors
In Domesday Survey Fulcher (Malesoures) held of Walter the Fleming 2½
hides in 'Widmale'. (fn. 7) Walter the Fleming's
lands formed the barony of Odell (Wahull), and in the
Survey, temp. Henry I, Fulcher Malesoures held of the
fee of Wahull 1 hide in Orlingbury and 1½ hides and
1 virgate in Withmale; (fn. 8) from which it would appear
that of the 2½ hides which Domesday allocates to Withmale one hide was really in Orlingbury. This hide was
the land which in later times was known as BEAVER'S
MANOR. The Malesoures, and later their successors
the Trussells, held it of the barony of Odell as part of
their manor of Lamport (q.v.), the local tenants in early
days being the family of de Orlingbury.
In 1130 Simon Malesoures, Gerald de Wismalua,
and Alvred de Orlinberga were concerned in deerstealing. (fn. 9) A Simon de Orlingbury was a surveyor of
repairs to certain royal houses in 1174, (fn. 10) and Ralph father
of Robert de Orlingbury was named in the Hundred
Rolls for 1276. (fn. 11) Robert de Orlingbury held one third
of a fee of Richard Trussell and he of William Trussell,
who held it of John de Wahull in 1284, (fn. 12) and was succeeded before 1316 by Hugh de Orlingbury. (fn. 13) Another
Robert de Orlingbury held a quarter fee in 1347, (fn. 14)
and an Adam de Orlingbury is recorded in 1351; (fn. 15)
no later references to this family have been found in connexion with Orlingbury. It was apparently this manor
which John Piel of Irthlingborough and others purchased
in 1377 from Henry Piel, Archdeacon of Northants., and
William Braybrooke, parson of the church of Cransley. (fn. 16)
John Piel died in 1386, when the manor, with that of
Irthlingborough and several others, descended to his
son Nicholas Piel, an annuity of 50 marks being granted
to his widow Joan. (fn. 17) Nicholas died in 1406 leaving a
son and heir John, then under age and in the custody
of William, Abbot of Bury. (fn. 18) In 1412 a John Beamer
(probably a scribe's error for Beaver) and others purchased from Andrew Newbottill and Joan his wife a
third part of the manor of Orlingbury, (fn. 19) and in 1428
Robert le Bever was holding a quarter fee late of Robert
de Orlingbury. (fn. 20) In 1469 Thomas Beavyr and Isabel his
wife sold the manor, called for the first time 'Beavyr's
manor', to William Tanfield of Gayton. (fn. 21) Before 1502
it had passed to William Lane of Orlingbury, who died
seised of it in that year, together with certain lands in
Orlingbury called 'Blakys' and 'Monkeys'. (fn. 22) His son
and heir Ralph, then aged 36, died without issue and
the manor devolved on his nephew Sir Ralph Lane of
Horton. Sir Ralph died in 1540 leaving a son Robert,
then under age, and a widow Maud, who was granted
an annuity of £50 from the estate during Robert's
minority. (fn. 23) In 1572 Sir Robert Lane sold the manor to
William Tofte of the Middle Temple, (fn. 24) who died in
1575. (fn. 25) His son William died without issue in 1599, (fn. 26)
when the manor passed to his sister Elizabeth, the wife
of Godfrey Chibnall of Orlingbury, and of Astwood,
Bucks. In the following year the manor was claimed
by Roger Dale for his infant daughter Elizabeth, as heir
of his wife Elizabeth, the daughter of William Tofte
senior by his first wife. (fn. 27) An agreement (fn. 28) was reached
shortly afterwards whereby Godfrey and Elizabeth
Chibnall remained in undisturbed possession, to the
complete exclusion of the infant Elizabeth, who was,
according to the considered opinion of Serjeant Pemberton given in 1680, unjustly disinherited. A settlement of the manor took place in 1618 (fn. 29) on the marriage
of Thomas Chibnall, the son of Godfrey and Elizabeth,
who inherited on the death of his mother in 1631. (fn. 30) At
the death of Thomas in 1673 (fn. 31) the manor passed to his
only son Godfrey, who died without issue in 1678,
having willed the manor to his widow Anne for life,
with remainder to his sisters Frances and Elizabeth. (fn. 32)
They sold the manor in 1682 to John and Nathaniel
Bridges, (fn. 33) a claim to it by another Godfrey Chibnall,
nephew of Thomas, being unsuccessful. (fn. 34)
Chibnall. Azure two leopards or between two flaunches ermine.
Young, of Orlingbury. Argent a bend sable with three griffons' heads or thereon.
Brook Bridges inherited half the manor from Nathaniel, and purchased the other half from John in 1685,
the whole manor being conveyed to Richard Young in
1705. (fn. 35) At his death in 1751 he was succeeded by his
son Allen Young, who died in 1796. (fn. 36) The estate then
passed to his surviving son Allen Edward Young, who
was succeeded at his death in 1835 by his eldest son
Allen Allicocke Young. He entailed the estate so that
at his death in 1895 it passed to his grandson Arthur
St. Leger Newton Young, the eldest son of his son
Richard Newton Young. Col. Arthur St. Leger Newton Young was killed during the Great War, when the
estate devolved on his only son, Richard Arthur Allicocke Young, a minor. The trustees of the estate sold
it in 1920 to Mrs. Jacques of Orlingbury Hall, who is
the present possessor.
In 1086 Fulcher Malesoures held of the Count of
Mortain 3 virgates in Ordinbaro. (fn. 37) At the later survey,
temp. Henry I, he held 1½ hides of the honor of de
Courcy. (fn. 38) The overlordship of the fee remained with
this honor during the next three centuries, but some
time before 1506 (fn. 39) appears to have come into the hands
of the Trussells of Lamport, intermediary lords of
Beaver's Manor mentioned above.
The local tenants were the Loges family, from whom
the holding derived its name of LOGES MANOR. The
first recorded member is a Simon de Loges in 1242. (fn. 40)
Richard de Loges, the successor of Simon, paid scutage
for half a knight's fee in Orlingbury, Harrowden, and
Isham in 1284 and 1296. (fn. 41) A William de Loges is
recorded in 1347 and 1351. (fn. 42) Either he or a successor
of the same name sold the manor in 1374 to William
Thurling. (fn. 43) Alice Thurling is recorded as owner of half
a fee, late William Loges, in 1428. (fn. 44) Within the next
few years, possibly by marriage, the manor passed to
the Withmales (see that manor), for in 1506 Sir
Thomas Pulteney died seised of it in right of his wife
Rose, the heiress of the Withmales. (fn. 45) It then passed to
their grandson, another Sir Thomas Pulteney, whose
son, Michael sold it in 1565 to William, 2nd Lord Vau x
of Harrowden. (fn. 46) Edward, 4th Lord Vaux, died without
male issue in 1661, when the manor passed to his wife's
son Nicholas, titular 3rd Earl of Banbury. (fn. 47) At his death
it passed to Charles, titular 4th earl, who, with Sir
John Briscoe, mortgaged the manor in 1688 to Lord
Ashburnham. Lord Ashburnham's executors seem to
have foreclosed on the property a few years later and
sold it to Richard Young of Orlingbury, who was in
possession some time before 1717. (fn. 48) The history of the
manor then follows that of Beavers mentioned above.
BADSADDLE (fn. 49) is not mentioned in Domesday,
but at the survey temp. Henry I Fulcher Malesoures
held ½ hide in 'Bateshasel' of the fee of Wahull (Odell). (fn. 50)
It descended, with the other Malesoures property, to
the Trussells. John Trussell was holding the manor in
1285, when it was stated that Badsaddle, Withmale,
and Orlingbury ought to be represented together as one
vill at the sheriff's tourn. (fn. 51) William Trussell of Lamport was the tenant at the death of Thomas de Wahull
in 1303. (fn. 52) The extent of the manor was then given as
one capital messuage, one water-mill, and certain customary work.
In the early part of the 14th century Sir John Trussell sold it to Henry Green the younger and Isabel his
wife, the sale being confirmed by his son William Trussell in 1349. (fn. 53) Sir Thomas Green died in 1392 seised
of the manor, which was then held of Richard Chamberleyn. (fn. 54) His son and heir Sir Thomas Green was
recorded as owner in 1395. (fn. 55) The manor passed, like
Great Harrowden (q.v.), to Nicholas, 1st Lord Vaux
of Harrowden, and Thomas, 2nd Lord Vaux, sold it
to Richard Humphrey of Barton Seagrave, who was
the owner at his death in 1558. (fn. 56) The manorial rights
seem then to have lapsed, and a lawsuit of 1571 stated
that certain lands called Battsadell in Orlingbury,
which had long been common of pasture, had recently
been hedged and converted into a park by William
Humphrey of Barton Seagrave. (fn. 57) Bridges stated that the
land at his time was owned by Osborne Fisher and
Lord Arran. (fn. 58) Badsaddle Lodge was owned in 1846 by
Lewis Loyd, at whose death in 1858 it passed to his
son Samuel Jones Loyd, created Lord Overstone. The
trustees of Lord Overstone's estate sold it in 1920 to
Mr. C. H. Tomkins, the present possessor.
WYTHMAIL (fn. 59) can be traced as a hamlet from the
11th to the 15th centuries. Although a priest is mentioned in Withmale in 1086, this must refer to Orlingbury, as the hamlet was always a parcel of Orlingbury
parish. It is true that in 1357 John de Wythmale
granted land to the parson of Orlingbury to provide for
services in Withmale chapel, but this was probably a
private chapel attached to his own manor-house.
On the marriage of Rose, the heiress of the Wythmales, with Sir William Pulteney at the end of the 15th
century, the hamlet was allowed to decay, and the land
seems to have merged into the common fields of Orlingbury—for Bridges states that when Wythmail Park was
made in 1614 the 300 acres inclosed were taken out
of the common fields. He adds that the land was disparked in 1657; but the name has survived. Wythmail alias Wilmer Park is mentioned frequently in the
19th century and at the present time there is a moated
house called Wythmail Park Farm.
WYTHMAIL MANOR. Widmale was rated at 2½
hides in 1086 and was held by Fulcher (Malesoures)
of Walter the Fleming. (fn. 60) A later survey, temp. Henry I,
assigns only 1½ hides and 1 virgate to Withmale, (fn. 61) the
other hide being in Orlingbury (see Beaver's Manor
above). The manor, like that of Beaver's, formed part
of the honor of Wahull (Odell), and was held by the
Malesoures, and later their successors the Trussells, as
part of the manor of Lamport. The Withmale family
were the local tenants. Nicholas de Withmale held
2/3 of a fee here in 1284, (fn. 62) and in 1305 he and his wife
Alice settled the manor on their son Nicholas. (fn. 63) Another
John de Withmale was owner in 1346, (fn. 64) and a survey
of the manor taken four years later showed that it was
worth £4 8s. 4d. per annum. (fn. 65) It was apparently this
John who in 1357 settled a messuage and 1½ virgates
of land on Adam Trussell, parson of Orlingbury, to find
a priest to perform services three times a week in Withmale chapel. (fn. 66) Another John was returned as owner in
1428, (fn. 67) and at his death, or perhaps that of his son, the
manor descended to Rose Withmale, wife of Sir William Pulteney. Sir William died seised of the manor,
together with that of Loges in Orlingbury, in 1507, (fn. 68)
and for the next 150 years the descent of the manor
follows that of Loges (q.v.).
In 1654 (fn. 69) Edward, 4th Lord Vaux of Harrowden,
settled a yearly rent of £50 issuing out of Withmale
Park on Frances Harvey. At Lord Vaux's death in
1661 it passed by previous settlement to Nicholas, titular
3rd Earl of Banbury. (fn. 70) Charles, titular 4th earl, sold
it in 1694 to Thomas Wentworth, (fn. 71) with Great Harrowden (q.v.), with which manor it passed to the Earls
Fitzwilliam, who continued to own it until recent
times, when it was sold to Mrs. Jacques, the present
owner of Orlingbury Hall.
Church
The church of ST. MARY was entirely
rebuilt in 1843 on a new plan, and consists
of chancel with north vestry, lofty central
tower, north and south transepts, aisleless nave, and
south porch. It is in the style of the 14th century, faced
with local ironstone, with embattled parapets and
low-pitched roof. The east window is circular, but the
others are pointed, those of the bell-chamber being of
three trefoiled lights with reticulated tracery. The
tower is in two stages above the roof, and has open
traceried parapets and tall angle pinnacles. The building was repaired in 1912.
The old church, according to Bridges, consisted of
chancel, nave, north cross-aisle, and west tower and
spire, (fn. 72) but no adequate record of it has been preserved.
The 14th-century alabaster effigy, already described, (fn. 73) lies in a wall recess on the north side of the
chancel, a position similar to that which it occupied in
the old church. In the chancel (south wall) a brass plate
records the burial-place of John Mar (father of Henry
Mar, rector), who died 2 August 1450, (fn. 74) and in the floor
of the south transept are the figure brasses of William
Lane (d. 1502) and Elizabeth his wife, but the portion
of inscription recorded by Bridges is missing. The
figures are no longer in their proper relative positions,
and the four brass shields, which were formerly at the
corners of the original slab, are now on an adjoining
stone. (fn. 75) In the floor of the south transept also are brass
plates to Thomas Chybnale (d. 1673), his son Godfrey
(d. 1678), (fn. 76) and his two wives, Elizabeth eldest daughter
of Thomas Andrewe (d. 1643) and Elizabeth daughter
of Sir John Wingfield (d. 1671). In the chancel is a
floor-slab with the name of Alexander Ekins, rector
(d. 1699), and a mural tablet to Charles Sturgis, rector
and canon of Lincoln (d. 1745). The south transept,
which has a separate entrance on the west side, contains
various 18th-century tablets to members of the Young
family.
The font now used is modern, but the bowl of an
ancient one, much weathered, is in the south transept.
It is roughly octagonal, but quite plain. There is a
17th-century oak chest.
The tower contains a ring of five bells cast by
Thomas Mears of London in 1843. They were rehung
and rededicated in 1919. (fn. 77)
The plate consists of a cup and cover paten of 1637,
a bread-holder of about 1673 inscribed '1691 Patina
ecclesiae de Orlingbury ex dono Alexandri Ekins Rectoris Ecclesiae praedicte', and a flagon of 1776 inscribed 'Orlingbury: the gift of a pious and charitable
Lady 1776'. (fn. 78)
The registers begin in 1564, but the years 1653 to
1668 are missing. Before 1812 the volumes are as follows: (i) all entries 1564–1653; (ii) baptisms 1667/8–
1750, marriages 1668–1749, burials 1667/8–1751;
(iii) baptisms and burials 1749–1812; (iv) marriages
1754–83; (v) marriages 1783–1812. Penances are recorded in 1753, 1757, and 1763, and briefs between
1699 and 1722. There is also a parchment roll consisting of many strips stitched together, with entries of
baptisms, marriages, and burials 1564–1646.
Advowson
The advowson of Orlingbury appears to have belonged from the
earliest times to the honor of Wahull
(Odell), and was probably held by the Malesoures, for
their successors, the Trussells, held the right of presentation as parcel of their manor of Lamport, (fn. 79) with which
it passed to the Veres. The 17th Earl of Oxford sold it
with Lamport Manor to John Isham, who sold the
right of presentation in 1561 to Sir Robert Lane, (fn. 80) then
owner of Beaver's Manor. It followed the descent of
this manor through the Toftes, Chibnalls, and Bridges,
but was retained by Brook Bridges at the sale of the
manor to Richard Young in 1705. The Bridges family
presented until the middle of the 19th century, but had
disposed of the right before 1874, when it was in the
possession of the then rector. Mrs. Jacques of Orlingbury Hall is the present patron of the living.
In 1254 Orlingbury church was valued at 13 marks
and in 1535 at £20 17s. 10d. (fn. 81)
Charities
In 1750 Robert Bushby left £10
and in 1818 Joseph Manning left £18
to the poor. In 1874 these produced
10s. and 18s. per annum respectively, but at the present
time the combined value is only 15s. per annum, and
this is distributed in bread to the poor on Christmas
Day.
Eighteen acres of land called 'Poors' hold' are let at
an annual rental of £9.