Chiddingstone - Chillington

A Topographical Dictionary of England. Originally published by S Lewis, London, 1848.

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'Chiddingstone - Chillington', in A Topographical Dictionary of England, (London, 1848) pp. 593-597. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england/pp593-597 [accessed 19 April 2024]

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Chiddingstone (St. Mary)

CHIDDINGSTONE (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Seven-Oaks, hundred of Somerden, lathe of Sutton-at-Hone, W. division of Kent, 8 miles (S. S. W.) from Seven-Oaks; containing 1405 inhabitants. The parish in the Textus Roffensis is called Cidingstæne, and in other records Chiding-stone; according to tradition, from a large stone supposed to have been the spot where judicial affairs were transacted by the ancient Britons. It comprises 5705a. 1r. 19p.; and is bounded on the south by a branch of the Medway, and intersected by the river Eden, about a mile south of which, on an eminence, is the village. The South-Eastern railway passes a little to the north. There are 210 acres of woodland. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £28. 9. 4½., and in the patronage of the Archbishop of Canterbury: the tithes have been commuted for £868, and the glebe comprises 7 acres, with an excellent glebe-house. The church is a very neat building, chiefly in the later English style, and contains some handsome monuments to the Streatfield family, and a peal of bells; the tower is considered the finest in the county.

Chideock (St. Giles)

CHIDEOCK (St. Giles), a parish, in the union of Bridport, hundred of Whitchurch-Canonicorum, Bridport division of Dorset, 2¾ miles (W.) from Bridport; containing 826 inhabitants. It is bounded on the south by the English Channel. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed, with the livings of Marshwood and Stanton St. Gabriel, to the vicarage of WhitchurchCanonicorum. There is a place of worship for Roman Catholics.

Chidham

CHIDHAM, a parish, in the union of West Bourne, hundred of Bosham, rape of Chichester, W. division of Sussex, 6 miles (W. by S.) from Chichester; containing 325 inhabitants. This parish, which forms a peninsula on the coast, is bounded on the east by Bosham creek, on the west by Thorney channel, and on the south by the harbour of Chichester. It has been attempted several times to open a more direct communication between this place and Bosham, by means of an embankment of the sea, but without success; the last embankment, which was 550 yards in length, and 15 feet high, was swept away by the memorable storm of 1822. The soil is a marl of the richest kind, producing wheat and oats of superior quality; and the Chidham white, or Ledge-wheat seed, which is in so great estimation, takes its name from having been first raised in this parish. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £10. 19. 2.; net income, £114; impriators, the landowners. The church is in the early English style, with later additions.

Chidlow

CHIDLOW, a township, in the parish of Malpas, union of Wrexham, Higher division of the hundred of Broxton, S. division of the county of Chester, 2 miles (S. E.) from Malpas; containing 12 inhabitants. The township comprises 135 acres; the soil is clay and sand. The tithes have been commuted for £18. 10.

Chieveley, or Chevelie (St. Mary)

CHIEVELEY, or Chevelie (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Newbury, hundred of Faircross, county of Berks, 4½ miles (N. by E.) from Newbury; containing 1936 inhabitants, and consisting of the chapelries of Leckhampstead, Oare, and Winterbourne, and the tythings of Courage and Snelsmore. This place was the residence of the prior of Abingdon, whose ancient seat still retains the name of Prior's Court. The parish comprises 8925a. 3r. 5p.; the surface is in general flat, and is watered by the Winterbourne rivulet. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £26. 11. 3.; net income, £1174; patrons, alternately, John Thomas Wasey, Esq., and the Rev. Christopher Capel; impropriators, various landowners. There are chapels at Leckhampstead, Oare, and Winterbourne; and a place of worship for Wesleyans. In 1759, Thomas Henshaw granted an annuity of £10, with a school-house at North Heath, and in 1805 Catherine Mather bequeathed £800, both sums for educating children; the school was rebuilt in 1839, and placed in union with the National Society.

Chignal (St. James)

CHIGNAL (St. James), a parish, in the union and hundred of Chelmsford, S. division of Essex, 3½ miles (N. W.) from Chelmsford; containing 252 inhabitants. The soil is generally inferior; a considerable quantity is a deep wet loam resting on a clayey marl, which, even under the best management, is far from being productive. The living is a rectory, with that of Mashbury united, valued in the king's books at £10. 14. 7.; net income, £430; patrons, the Executors of the late Rev. B. Hanbury. The church is a small edifice, partly of brick and partly of stone, with a spire of wood; near it is the parsonage-house, a handsome edifice. There was formerly a church dedicated to St. Mary, but it was taken down long since; and the churchyard is now a small field, called St. Mary's croft.

Chignal-Smealy (St. Nicholas)

CHIGNAL-SMEALY (St. Nicholas), a parish, in the union and hundred of Chelmsford, S. division of Essex, 4¾ miles (N. W. by N.) from Chelmsford; containing 94 inhabitants. This is one of the smallest parishes in the county, containing not more than 300 acres of land, the greater part of which is of very inferior quality. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5. 6. 8.; net income, £120; patrons, alternately, F. Austen, Esq., and the family of Coke. The church is of brick, with an embattled tower, and contains some ancient monuments.

Chigwell (St. Mary)

CHIGWELL (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Epping, hundred of Ongar, S. division of Essex, 6 miles (S.) from Epping, and 12 (N. E.) from London; containing 2059 inhabitants. This place was originally within the bounds of the great forest of Waltham, and in ancient records is styled Cingwella, supposed to imply the King's Well, a purgative spring here, from which its present name is derived. In the adjacent forest was a royal mansion, designated Potteles, or Langfords, the only memorial of which is preserved in the name of the site, King's Place Farm. The parish comprises 4522 acres, and, with the exception of 700 acres of common or waste, consists of land in a high state of cultivation, and of great fertility; the scenery is pleasingly rural, embellished with rich woods and thriving plantations; and in the immediate neighbourhood are several handsome seats and villas. The village consists principally of one long street, on the road from London to Ongar and Dunmow, and contains many substantial houses. At a distance of a mile to the south-east of the church is a range of detached villas and good houses, called Chigwell Row, forming one of the most populous and respectable parts of the parish. From these dwellings, and particularly from the top of Hog-Hill House, a hunting-seat, built by Sir James Tylney Long, Bart., is a splendid panoramic view, embracing St. Paul's Cathedral, the line of the Thames for many miles, Norwood, Shooter's Hill, Greenwich Hospital and Park, Woolwich Arsenal, and a large portion of the county of Kent down to Gravesend. The air is very salubrious, owing to the elevated position of the parish, and the inhabitants are noted for longevity. A road made across Hainault Forest from Chigwell Row to Romford, by subscription, in 1809, affords great facilities for traffic to the agriculturists and others of Essex, Herts, Middlesex, and Bucks, to the great market of Romford. Rolls Park, in the parish, was purchased by Eliab Harvey, in the beginning of the seventeenth century, and was the residence of his descendant, Admiral Sir Eliab Harvey, K.G.C., who distinguished himself in the battle of Trafalgar, when his own ship, the Téméraire, was boarded by two French ships, both of which, after a severe struggle, were captured and taken in tow as prizes.

The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £18; patron, the Prebendary of St. Pancras, in the Cathedral of St. Paul, London. The great tithes have been commuted for £900, and the vicarial for £500; the impropriator's glebe contains 56½ acres, and the vicar's nearly 11 acres, and there is a glebe-house. The church is an ancient structure, exhibiting in the south entrance and other parts some remains of early Norman architecture, with a wooden belfry and spire. On the north side of the chancel is an effigy in brass of Dr. Samuel Harsnet, many years vicar of the parish, and successively Bishop of Chichester and of Norwich, and Archbishop of York, who was buried here in 1631; on the south side is a monument in alabaster to the memory of Thomas Coleshill, an officer in the courts of Edward VI., Queen Mary, and Queen Elizabeth, and inspector of the customs at the port of London, who died in 1595. There are several other ancient monuments. St. John's chapel at Buckhurst Hill, consecrated in April, 1837, is an elegant building erected at a cost of about £2000, raised by subscription, including a grant of £200 from the Incorporated Society; the site was given by the lady of the manor, Mrs. Hatch Abdy, of Claybury Hall, who died in 1838, and to whom a monument has been erected in the chapel. The living is in the gift of the Bishop of London. At Chigwell Row is a place of worship for Independents. In 1629, Archbishop Harsnet founded two free schools, one for the Greek and Latin languages, the other for writing and arithmetic, and endowed them with the impropriate rectory of Tottington, in Norfolk, now yielding a gross income of £340 per annum. William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, was educated in the school.

Chilbolton (St. Mary)

CHILBOLTON (St. Mary), a parish, in the union of Andover, hundred of Buddlesgate, Andover and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 4 miles (S. E. by S.) from Andover; containing 359 inhabitants. According to a notice discovered by the present rector among the parochial records, this parish, together with that of Enford, was, in gratitude for deliverance, given to the cathedral of Winchester by Athelstan, who, being defeated by the Danes on their landing on the coast of Sussex, about 930, shut himself up in Winchester, where, after a fruitless siege, it was agreed to decide the fate of the kingdom by single combat, in which the giant Colbrand, the Danish champion, was vanquished by the renowned Guy, Earl of Warwick. The parish comprises 3100 acres, of which 264 are common or waste: the Andover canal passes through the south-western part. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £26. 9. 4½., and in the patronage of the Bishop of Winchester: the tithes produce £617. 10., and the glebe comprises 10 acres.

Chilcomb

CHILCOMB, a parish, in the union of Winchester, hundred of Fawley, Winchester and N. divisions of the county of Southampton, 1½ mile (S. E. by E.) from Winchester; containing 269 inhabitants. The parish is situated in a valley, surrounded on all sides by hills, and comprises 2257a. 16p., whereof 390 acres are common or waste: stone is quarried, which is used chiefly for lime. The river Itchen, which is partly navigable, and a canal, run through the parish, nearly in a parallel direction, in their course from Winchester to Southampton; and a road from Winchester to Petersfield passes at a small distance from the village. A fair for general commodities is held on St. Magdalen Hill on the 2nd of August, said to have been formerly the largest fair of those continuing only for one day, of any in England. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £8. 6. 8., and in the gift of the Bishop of Winchester: the tithes have been commuted for £161, and the glebe comprises 4½ acres, with a glebehouse. The church was repewed in 1839.

Chilcombe

CHILCOMBE, a parish, in the union of Bridport, hundred of Uggscombe, Bridport division of Dorset, 4¾ miles (E. by S.) from Bridport; containing 53 inhabitants. The parish comprises by computation 450 acres, and is watered by a brook called Bridy: chalk is obtained for manure. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £4. 11. 8., and in the gift of the Devisees of the Rev. Edward Foyle: the tithes have been commuted for £100. The church is an ancient edifice, and contains a monument to Henry Michell, killed in battle, 1662, aged twenty-one. On the summit of a steep hill to the north, are vestiges of an intrenchment, inclosing three barrows: from its partaking both of the Roman and Saxon modes of fortification, it is supposed to have been constructed by the former, and extended by the latter people. The Knights Hospitallers had possessions here, with a quadrangular mansion, now a farmhouse.

Chilcompton (St. John The Baptist)

CHILCOMPTON (St. John The Baptist), a parish, in the union of Clutton, hundred of Chewton, E. division of Somerset, 6¾ miles (N. N. E.) from Shepton-Mallet; containing 618 inhabitants. The name of the parish is derived from its situation in a cold, though picturesque, vale. A clear stream flows through the village, forming at intervals small cascades; and several pleasing villas add to the general neatness of the place. Coal is obtained. Imbedded in the red rock in the vale, are found calcareous spar, iron-ore, branches of coral, and a few cornua ammonis: and there are quarries of common stone for rough building and the roads. The living is a perpetual curacy, with a net income of £129: the patronage and impropriation belong to Miss Tooker. The church has been rebuilt on a larger scale. There is a place of worship for Wesleyans. On Blacker's Hill are vestiges of a quadrangular intrenchment, inclosing about fifteen acres; and near it are several tumuli, between which and Broadway are three subterranean cavities, supposed to have been iron-pits, but called by the inhabitants "The Fairy Slats."

Chilcote

CHILCOTE, a chapelry, in the parish of CliftonCampville, union of Tamworth, hundred of Repton and Gresley, S. division of the county of Derby, 6½ miles (S. W. by W.) from Ashby-de-la-Zouch; containing 162 inhabitants. The manor is described in the Domesday survey as a hamlet of Repton; it belonged, as early as the reign of Richard I., to the Berkeley family, who held it under the earls of Chester. The heiress of Sir Thomas Berkeley brought the property in the 15th century to Sir Thomas Brydges, and it was subsequently possessed by the family of Milward, from whom it passed in marriage to the Clarkes. The chapelry is bounded on the east by the river Mease, and comprises 1325 acres, whereof 771 are arable, 533 meadow and pasture, and 20 plantation; the surface is undulated, and the soil varies from stiff upland to sandstone. At the south entrance to the village is a small piece of pasture, on which a tithe-barn anciently stood. The chapel has been lately repaired by Francis Robertson, Esq. Chilcote Hall, formerly the seat of the Milwards, and afterwards of the Clarkes, has been pulled down.

Chilcott

CHILCOTT, a tything in the parish of St. Cuthbert, city and union of Wells, hundred of WellsForum, E. division of the county of Somerset; containing 70 inhabitants.

Childerditch (All Saints and St. Faith)

CHILDERDITCH (All Saints And St. Faith), a parish, in the union of Billericay, hundred of Chafford, S. division of Essex, 2½ miles (S. S. E.) from Brentwood; containing 247 inhabitants. It is about 4½ miles in length and one in breadth, and comprises the manors of Childerditch and Tillingham. The living is a discharged vicarage, valued in the king's books at £8; patron and impropriator, Lord Petre. The tithes have been commuted for £172; the glebe comprises nearly 18 acres, with a glebe-house. The church is a neat plain edifice, with a tower of brick surmounted by a shingled spire.

Childerley (St. Mary)

CHILDERLEY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and hundred of Chesterton, county of Cambridge, 7½ miles (W. N. W.) from Cambridge; containing 54 inhabitants. After the capture of Charles I. by Cornet Joyce, in 1647, he was conveyed hither by order of Cromwell, who visited him, in company with Fairfax, both of them disavowing all participation in the seizure of his person, and, at the king's request, caused him to be removed to Newmarket. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £6. 9. 2.; income, £20; patron, N. Calvert, Esq. The church is in ruins.

Childrey (St. Mary)

CHILDREY (St. Mary), a parish, in the union and hundred of Wantage, county of Berks, 2½ miles (W.) from Wantage; containing 546 inhabitants. The parish is situated on the Ickleton-way, part of the Ikeneldstreet; and comprises 2719a. 18p., of which about 2151 acres are arable, and the rest pasture. The soil, in the lower lands, is a rich black loam, with a substratum of clay; in the middle lands, a whitish loam, resting on soft freestone; and in the uplands, a very shallow light black mould on a white rubble. The surface is intersected by the Wilts and Berks canal, and, to the north of the church, by the Great Western railway. The village is pleasantly situated, and was for one night the abode of Charles I., who, escorted by his own troop, took up his quarters here. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £33. 14. 7.; net income, £604; patrons, the President and Fellows of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. The tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1772. The church exhibits some remains of Norman architecture, and contains several ancient monuments, and a curious circular font of lead, divided into compartments, in each of which is the figure of an abbot; the windows have some old stained glass; and there are effigies in brass, inlaid with lead, of William Fyndern and his wife, with the date 1444. Here is a place of worship for Wesleyans; also a few almshouses.

Child's-Ercall, county of Salop.—See Ercall, Child's

CHILD'S-ERCALL, county of Salop.—See ERCALL, CHILD'S.—And other places having a similar distinguishing prefix will be found under the proper name.

Childwall (All Saints)

CHILDWALL (All Saints), a parish, partly in the union of Prescot, and partly in that of West Derby, hundred of West Derby, S. division of the county of Lancaster; comprising the chapelries of Aigburth, Garston, Hale, Wavertree, and Much Woolton, and the townships of Allerton, Childwall, Halewood, Speke, and Little Woolton; the whole containing 10,714 inhabitants, of whom 186 are in the township of Childwall, 4¼ miles (E. by S.) from Liverpool. Childwall is supposed to comprise the name of the Saxon chieftain by whom it was first occupied. The manor was held in the 13th century by the de Grelles and Delawarres; subsequently by the de Hollands, de Lathoms, and Sotheworths; and in the 15th century by the Stanleys, from whom it was sequestrated during the war of the Commonwealth. It afterwards became the property of the Le Greys, who sold the manor in the 18th century to Mr. Green, of Liverpool; and more lately it came to the Gascoynes. The heiress of the last-named family married the present Marquess of Salisbury, who assumed, in consequence, the name of Gascoyne.

The parish is bounded on the west and south by the river Mersey, to which the rivulets of Childwall are tributary, and comprises by computation 14,870 acres, of which 680 acres are in Childwall township. The soil is various; in the higher lands a light clay upon red rock, in some few parts sandy, and in the remainder a reddish marl alternated with blue clay. The Manchester railway passes about a mile to the north of the church. Childwall Hall (which, with nearly the whole of the township, is the property of the Marquess of Salisbury, and entailed upon his second son,) is the splendid residence of John Shawe Leigh, Esq., and is in the castellated style, after a design by Nash; the park and grounds are in beautiful taste, and the scenery forms a panorama almost unrivalled in beauty and extent. The living is a vicarage, valued in the king's books at £5. 11. 8.; net income, £456; patron and appropriator, the Bishop of Chester. The church has some early English piers and decorated windows, but the greater portion is of modern date: the tower is handsome, surmounted by a spire, and of neater stonework than the rest of the edifice. Six other livings are maintained in the parish. There is an endowed school; and various bequests have been made for charitable uses. A cell of monks, here, from the monastery of Up-Holland, had the great tithes before the Reformation. Jeremiah Markland, son of a rector of the parish, a learned critic and classical scholar, was born at Childwall in 1693.

Chilfroom (Holy Trinity)

CHILFROOM (Holy Trinity), a parish, in the union of Dorchester, hundred of Tollerford, Dorchester division of Dorset, 9 miles (N. W. by W.) from Dorchester; containing 128 inhabitants. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £5; net income, £180; patrons, Sir G. Bamfylde, and W. Fryer, Esq. A school was founded in 1774, by George Brown, who endowed it with a rent-charge of £21.

Chilgrove

CHILGROVE, a tything, in the parish of West Dean, union of West Bourne, hundred of Westbourn and Singleton, rape of Chichester, W. division of Sussex; containing 130 inhabitants.

Chilham (St. Mary)

CHILHAM (St. Mary), a parish, and formerly a market-town, in the union of East Ashford, hundred of Felborough, lathe of Shepway, E. division of Kent, 6 miles (W. S. W.) from Canterbury; containing 1165 inhabitants. The parish comprises 4332 acres, of which 560 are in wood. Chilham Castle is supposed to have been a post of the ancient Britons, and afterwards a military station of the Romans, there being evident proofs of the latter in the discovery of coins, foundations of houses, and other remains. It is of great antiquity, and was a strong fortress and palace of the kings of Kent, till destroyed by the Danes, in the middle of the ninth century; at the Conquest it was rebuilt by Fulbert de Dover, on whom it had been bestowed. The present stately edifice was erected by Sir Dudley Digges, in 1616, and the interior of the Norman keep made applicable to domestic purposes. On the north-west side are traces of a deep fosse, inclosing an area of eight acres. It is asserted that Cæsar, on his second invasion, here defeated the Britons, who retreated and intrenched themselves in an adjoining wood, where vestiges of their rude and extensive works are still visible; and on a hill at the southeast side of the river, and eastward from the castle, is a tumulus, termed Julaber's Grave, supposed to be the place of sepulture of Quintus Laberius Durus, a tribune, who was slain in the conflict. The house, which is in the Elizabethan style, is finely situated on the slope of a hill, commanding an extensive view of the valley of the Stour. On the same eminence, to the north-east of the house, stands the village, protected on one side by the castle and on the other by the church. The Chilham station of the Ashford and Canterbury part of the SouthEastern railway is nine miles distant from the Ashford station, and five miles from that of Canterbury. A cattle-fair is held on November 8th. The living is a vicarage, with that of Molash annexed, valued in the king's books at £13. 6. 8.; net income, £698; patron, J. B. Wildman, Esq., who, with Sir J. Fagg, Bart., is impropriator. The great tithes have been commuted for £1000, and the vicarial for £600; the glebe contains 25 acres, with a glebe-house. The church is a spacious cruciform structure, exhibiting portions in various styles, whereof the early English predominates: it contains several monuments, the principal of which are, a group in marble, by Chantrey, considered one of his finest works; the mausoleum of the Colebrooks, erected in 1755, on the site of an ancient chantry chapel; that of Sir Dudley Digges, of earlier date, with his splendid monument in the centre; and a monument to the memory of his sister, Margaret Palmer. There is a school endowed with funds producing £12. 11. 6. per annum.

Chillenden (All Saints)

CHILLENDEN (All Saints), a parish, in the union and hundred of Eastry, lathe of St. Augustine, E. division of Kent, 3¾ miles (S. E. by S.) from Wingham; containing 137 inhabitants. This parish, which comprises only 200 acres, chiefly arable, is the smallest in the county. A fair for pedlery, &c., is held on WhitMonday. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5, and in the patronage of the Crown; net income, £130. The church is a small ancient edifice, with a Norman arch at the entrance.

Chillerton

CHILLERTON, a hamlet, partly in the parish of Wootton, liberty of East Medina, but chiefly in that of Carisbrooke, liberty of West Medina, Isle of Wight division of the county of Southampton; containing 244 inhabitants.

Chillesford (St. Peter)

CHILLESFORD (St. Peter), a parish, in the union and hundred of Plomesgate, E. division of Suffolk, 3 miles (W. N. W.) from Orford; containing 220 inhabitants, and comprising by computation 1865 acres. A branch of the Ore, called Butley creek, runs up to the place. The living is a discharged rectory, valued in the king's books at £5. 3. 4., and in the patronage of Mrs. E. S. Smear: the tithes have been commuted for £287. 8. 7., and the glebe contains 32a. 5p.

Chillingham (St. Peter)

CHILLINGHAM (St. Peter), a parish, in the union of Glendale, E. division of Glendale ward, N. division of Northumberland; containing 459 inhabitants, of whom 217 are in the township of Chillingham, 5 miles (E. by S.) from Wooler. The parish is situated on the river Till, which flows through the centre of it, in a direction from south to north, and falls into the Tweed at Tilmouth. It comprises, with the townships of Hebburn and Newtown, 4925a. 3r. 25p., of which 1794 acres are arable, 2296 pasture, and 835 woodland; the surface is in many parts richly embellished. The soil is various, but the greater portion exceedingly fertile: coal and limestone are found, the latter being quarried for burning into lime; and there are quarries of stone for building and other purposes. The parish belongs to the Earl of Tankerville, whose seat, Chillingham Castle, is a very ancient structure; the north-east tower dates back to the time of Henry III.: the building probably became dilapidated during the war of the Roses, and the centre was rebuilt in the reign of James I. In the park is a breed of wild cattle, the only one in the island, and supposed to be the same as was found before the time of the Romans; the animals are white, with a tinge of red on the ears. The living is a vicarage as to the townships of Chillingham and Newtown, and a rectory as to Hebburn, and is valued in the king's books at £4; patron, the Bishop of Durham; impropriator of the remainder of the great tithes, the Earl of Tankerville. The tithes have been commuted for £384, and the glebe comprises nearly 2 acres, with a glebe-house. The church is an ancient and small edifice, with a Norman doorway; in the chancel is a richlysculptured monument, temp. Henry VII., to Sir Ralph Grey, whose father was killed at the battle of Towton, and whose grandfather was beheaded by Henry V., with Lord Cobham, after the Lollard outburst. On an eminence eastward from Chillingham Park is a double intrenchment, called Ros Castle, supposed to be a British fort; in the park is an ancient camp. At Newtown is a cross, termed the Hurle Stone, which is twelve feet high.

Chillington (St. James)

CHILLINGTON (St. James), a parish, in the union of Chard, hundred of South Petherton, W. division of Somerset, 4 miles (W. by N.) from Crewkerne; containing 321 inhabitants. It is situated in a beautiful valley, to the north of the great London road, and comprises 882a. 1r. 1p., of which 27 acres are common or waste. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £60; patron and impropriator, Earl Poulett, whose tithes have been commuted for £237.

Chillington

CHILLINGTON, a liberty, in the parish of Brewood, union of Penkridge, E. division of the hundred of Cuttlestone, S. division of the county of Stafford, 2 miles (S. W.) from Brewood. A convent of Benedictine nuns was founded by Isabel Lander, and called Black Ladies, from the colour of the nuns' dress, as a similar sisterhood of Cistercians, about two miles to the east, in Shropshire, had the name of White Ladies, from the nuns' white habits. The Giffard family were seated here at a very early period. Chillington Hall, a beautiful mansion, long their seat, stands on an elevated site in a spacious park with fine pleasuregrounds and plantations. On the estate is an excellent quarry of brown and white freestone.