All Saints Church Chancel Screen
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Parish of Upper Coquetdale All Saints Rothbury Chancel Screen Coats of Arms The text in this booklet is from a Common Place book found in the Rector’s vestry. It was originally researched by David Dippie Dixon and was first published in the Parish Magazine. The fly leaf reads: The Chancel Screen was erected and the vestry screen decorated in 1901edicated by the Bishop of Newcastle All Saints Day 1901 Designer;- Mr . A.B. Plummer, Newcastle Carver;- Mr Ralf Hedley, Newcastle Rev. C.E. Blackett-Ord - Rector Lord Armstrong Churchwarden D.D. Dixon Churchwarden Dr. J.Barrow Churchwarden Thos Shell Churchwarden The Chancel Screen and Coats of Arms The riches of the interior of the Rothbury Parish Church was greatly enhanced by the erection of a carved oak pulpit, choir stalls and chancel screen. The pulpit is an exquisite piece of workmanship and contains the figurers of St. Columba, St Paulinus, St Hilda , St Aidan and Bernard Gilpin. The figures occupy niches beneath finely carved canopies. An inscription around the base of the pulpit reads: “To the glory of God and in affectionate memory of Margaret, wife of Baron Armstrong, of Cragside who died on the 2nd September, 1893 in her 86th year.” The pulpit was erected by William and Winifreda Watson Armstrong, November 1901. A brass pate on the massive and handsome oak choir stalls contains the following inscription: “Dedicated to the glory of God and in loving memory of Edward Mallet Young, Rector of Rothbury 1894-1900 and Honorary Canon of Newcastle, by his wife, brothers and sister. All Saints Day, 1901.” The screen of seven arches, a large centre one and three smaller ones on each side, resting on a solid panelled basement, filled with flowered tracery surmounted by a richly carved cresting and cross, fills up the wide and lofty Early English Chancel arch with good effect. Arranged on the mouldings of the beam are a series of eighteen shields blazoned with the arms of Land Owners, Benefactors, Patrons and th Communities connected with Rothbury Church and parish from the 12 century down to the present time. The inscription on the lower part of the screen runs: “To the glory of God and in loving memory of William George Baron Armstrong of Cragside. C.B. Born November 26th 1810 Died December 29th 1900.” This screen was also erected by William and Winifreda Watson Armstrong November 1901. The oak screen that divides the chancel from the priests vestry is embellished with graceful tracery work, and in its twelve panels are the coats of arms of the Rectors of Rothbury. On the front of the chancel screen are nine shields. From the left they are the Arms of;- Clavering, Percy, Cartington, Hepple, Armstrong, Ogle, Wharton, Smart and Dawson. 1. Clavering The shield is quartered, the first and fourth quarters are gold, the second and third are red, with a black band across the shield from the top right hand corner down to the left hand corner. The latter blazonry of the Claverings invariably show a bend but this coat of arms was chosen as belonging to Robert Fitz-Roger the first Clavering lord of Rothbury. A favourite with the king, he received grants of the manor of Corbridge in 1204, of Newburn and Rothbury in 1205. The coat is a copy of that found on a seal attached to his grant of a rent charge from his mill at Warkworth for the purpose of maintaining the light before St. Cuthbert's Shrine. The seal is of green wax, on which Robert Fitz–Roger appears on horse back in a characteristic fashion brandishing a huge sword. His arms “Quarterly a bendlet” can just be discovered on the long shield. 2. Percy A blue lion on a gold shield. Henry Percy IV, already the possessor of the barony of Alnwick, acquired in 1332, the Clavering baronies of Warkworrth, Corbridge, Newburn and Rothbury. The ancient Percy arms were five golden spindles of fusils on a blue shield, but Henry Percy III, adopted the azure lion on a gold shield, which was also borne by his son Henry Percy IV. This coat is placed on the screen to represent the first Percy, Lord of Rothbury. He remained true to the azure and gold of the ancient Percy coat, which was emblazoned on the lambrequin that flowed from his knightly helm. The Dukes of Northumberland are lords of the Manor of Rothbury, and at the restoration of the Church in 1850, the then Duke gave £800 to the restoration fund. 3. Cartington Shield with a red ground, divided by a horizontal band of gold, between three gold wheels. As early as 1278 there was a John de Cartington. There was also a “lance” of that name at Agincourt in 1415, but the arms quoted are those of a John de Cartington as they occur on a seal to a document in 1452. He was probably the same man who in 1458 was appointed commissioner together with Henry, Earl of Northumberland, and other gentleman, to raise a body of archers in the County of Northumberland. About 1494, Ann the daughter and heiress of Cartington married Sir Edward Radcliffe, a member of the Derwentwater family. Thus the manor of Cartington passed from the Cartingtons to the Radcliffes whose arms are emblazoned on the shield above the doorway leading from the chancel into the priests vestry, once known as the Cartington Chantry. 3. Hepple Ground shield ermine – a small red shield with indented edges in the centre. Soon after the conquest the surname Hepple appeared as owner of a moiety of Hepple - probably old Saxon tenants who held their lands under tenure, but on the marriage in 1331 of Joan, the heiress of Hepple to Sir Robert Ogle, the name ceased, and the lands of the Hepples passed into the possession of the Lords Ogle. 5. Armstrong Shield with a red ground with spear between two armour cased arms . Lord Armstrong, of Cragside, besides being a great benefactor of the Church and Parish of Rothbury, was the rector's churchwarden from the year 1866 until the day of his death in December 1900. 6.Ogle Shield with a red band between three red half moons The advent of the Ogles into Coquetdale came about by the marriage of Joan de Hepple to Sir Robert Ogle in 1331. In 1363 there was a Robert de Ogle at Hepple and in 1541 the Ogles were still the owners of the Hepple barony, which eventually passed to the descendents of this ancient Northumbrian family, by way of the Duke of Newcastle in 1663, the Earl of Oxford in 1724, and the Dukes of Portland until 1803. 7. Wharton A white sleeve on a black background, gold border with eight pairs of lions paws crossed. The name of Thomas Wharton, gentleman, occurs in the list of Vestrymen for 1659 and judging from the various entries in the vestry books, it is evident that the Whartons had been a family of some importance in the Parish. In 1731 William Wharton of Brockley Hall, in Rothbury Forest presented a silver flagon to the Parish Church of Rothbury on which is engraved the Wharton arms as blazoned on the screen. The fanciful border to the shield was an augmentation granted by Edward V1 to Lord Wharton, Warden General of the Marches. 8.Smart Shield quartered 1st and 4th, white with a black chevron between three arrowheads, 2nd quarter, red, with a black border and red pellets, a half lion of gold.3rd quarter, black with two white shin bones crossed, the right over the left) The first notice of the Smart family in Coquetdale may be found in the Poll book 0f 1748, where a William Smart had a freehold in Netherton in the Parish of Alwinton. Later they became the owners of part of Trewhitt, and around 1805 , Trewhitt Hall was built by John Smart, the antiquary. In 1879 the Trewhitt estate was purchased by Lord Armstrong, then Sir William George Armstrong. The south transept of All Saints is known as the Trewhitt Porch, in which two of the original lancet windows are filled with stained glass to the memory of members of the Smart Family., 9, Dawson A blue shield, with a white indented bend with three Jackdaws. The family of Dawson were once owners of a greater part of Holystone, but several of their ancestors, on the maternal side belonged to Rothbury. In 1785 a family member, George Farquhar Esq., presented a fire engine to the town and Parish of Rothbury. This fire engine is still in existence and refurbished a few years ago,may now be found in the Bailiffgate museum in Alnwick. As recorded on the brass tablet on the tower arch, Miss Mary Dawson of Ripon, in 1893, gave the fine ring of eight bells now in the Church Tower. She also provided money for a building to be used for the first cottage hospital, near the top of the High Street. The building was converted to apartments when the cottage hospital was relocated to Cemetery Bank. On the rear (altar) side of the chancel screen are nine shields. From the left they are the Arms of: Mowbray, Henry 1. Tynemouth Monastery, See of Carlisle, See of Newcastle, See of Durham, Duchy of Lancaster, Riddle, Watson-Armstrong. 10. Mowbray A silver lion erect, on a red shield No doubt in Saxon times a church stood on the site of the present Parish Church. It was customary for Saxons to build their churches in the midst of the “Clearing” where their meeting of Justice were held.