Hannah Gilbert - Swithland

Here lieth the body of

Hannah ye Daughter

of Robert Gilbert who

Departed this life

Decem. ye 4th 1714

 

Last of the Gilbert memorials that I have so far found in the churchyard in the beautiful village of Swithland. I particularly like the lettering and layout on this headstone.

Curiously, this is one of the very few headstones from this period that I have found on which the word 'body' does not start with a capital letter.

Samual Gilbert - Swithland

Here lieth ye Body

of Samual Gilbert

the Son of Robert

Gilbert by Hannah

his wife, He departed

this life Janr: 26.th 1728/9

In ye 10:th year of his Age

Four years after the death of Ann Gilbert, Robert and Hannah seem to have lost another child. This time the 10 year old Samuel. The design of Anne and Samual's memorials is so similar, it seems highly likely to be the work of the same mason.

From this layout it also seems likely that Ann's headstone would have given her age at death, but that part of the stone is now under the soil level and so is unreadable.

This is yet another double dated stone. Another death in the cold month of January.

Ann Gilbert - Swithland

Here

lieth the body of

Ann Gilbert the

Daughter of Robert

Gilbert and Hannah

his wife, She departed

this life the 28th day

of January 1724/5

This is another of the Gilbert family graves in the churchyard in Swithland.

John Gilbert - Swithland

Another of the Gilbert family, laid in a row across the beautiful churchyard in Swithland.

John ye Son

of Robert &

Ann Gilbert

died ye 8 th of

Sept: 1690

On the reverse side of the stone is the following inscription:

When living one

of uertues hopfull

branches was he;

 

His conursation

honist delitting in

pious sobriety;

 

G Hv ls

Doner

 

There is some confusion between the letter U and V - I have transcribed it here as U because it is identical to the letter U used in other places. However, in context it should have been a V. Thus the verse could be written as follows:

 

When living, one of virtue's hopeful branches was he;

His conversation honest, delighting in pious sobriety;

 

 

The lettering at the bottom of the stone may possibly refer to a person who paid for the stone or possibly for this inscription - which seems to be the work of a different mason from the one who engraved the front of the stone.

 

  

 



Robert Gilbert - Swithland

Here is another member of the Gilbert family, who lie in a row at the rear of the church in Swithland.

Here lies ye Body

of Rob:t Gilbert son

of Arther Gilbert

Who died ye 12th

of Feb:ry

Anno Dom:

1697/8

Aged 54 y:rs

 

This really is a beautiful memorial, engraved on a somewhat irregularly shaped stone.

Whereas his father's headstone is single dated, this stone, seven years later, is double dated. This is interesting because it suggests a period of transition during which people in this part of the world started to think of January1st as New Year instead of March 25th.

Arthur Gilbert - Swithland

At the rear of the churchyard in Swithland, lies a row of headstones commemorating members of the Gilbert family. The oldest of these belongs to Arthur Gilbert.

Here Lyes The BOdy

Of Arthvr GILbert WhO

DeparteD ThIS LIFe

ThE 13th dAY OF JAnuAry

ANNO DOM 1683

AEtaHs Sur 83 Yeares

 

In transcribing this stone, I have tried to be faithful to the irregular use of capital letters and to the spelling. 'Arthvr' should clearly be 'Arthur'. We can see the use of the letter U correctly in the final word of the inscription, so it does seem that the V was a mistake. A transcription error perhaps. All this adds weight to the idea that the mason did not have a high level of literacy and was merely transcribing words that had been written by someone else.

 

The words "Aetais Sue" are almost certainly intended to read "Aetatis suae", a Latin phrase meaning "In the year of his age".

 

A death in January after the the Gregorian calendar started to be used but before its official adoption in 1752 is sometimes given a double date, but here only a single date is given. 

 

 

After the year, five dots, are inscribed in a pattern sometimes called a quincunx. I would like to know the meaning of this. Perhaps it is merely a design to make the stone more beautiful, adding to the pattern of arches and crosses that runs along the top. Alternatively, it may have a specific meaning.

 

Old graves - spooky or peaceful?

Do you find churchyards spooky or do you find them peaceful? Opinion seems divided on the matter. But perhaps you can guess my feelings.

John Prier - Swithland

HERE . LYETH . IN .

TERRED . THE . BODY

OF . JOHN . PRIER . TH

SON . OF . ROBART

PRIER . WHO . DEPART

ED . THIS . LIFE . THE . 8TH

DAY . OF . MAY . 1673:

A beautiful example of Seventeenth Century headstone from the church in Swithland village.  Although there is ample space below the inscription, the remainder of the inscription is on the reverse of the stone.

BEING OF THE

AGE

OF 15 YEARES

Although the lettering is considerably larger on the reverse side of the stone, the style is so close to that on the front that I have no doubt it was the work of the same mason.  The letters A and R are particularly distinctive.

I imagine the spelling of John Prier, could easily be recorded as John Prior in other places, just as Robart Prier might well be written as Robert Prior.

Robert Coleborne

Here Lyeth ye Body of

Robert Coleborne

who departed this life the

27th day of April Anno

Dom. 1732 Aged 63 Years

 

After a short but sharpe affliction here

I take my leave of you my wife so Dear

Lo here I lie in this soft bedof dust

Waiting the Ressurection of the Just

A large and beautifully laid out headstone with regular lettering. But it seems the word 'short' was initially spelled without the 't' which was added afterwards in superscript.

All Saints Churchyard, Newtown Linford.

Elizabeth Smith - Swithland



There is a particularly fine collection of 17th and 18th Century headstones to the rear of the St. Leonard's Church in Swithland. The churchyard is beautifully kept. In the autumn sunshine this morning it was wonderfully peaceful. Hundreds of years having passed, the stories implied by the headstones do not carry the weight of sadness they undoubtedly did when fresh.   

 

Here

lieth the Body of

Eliz: Daughter of

Tho: and Mary

Smith. She de-

-parted this life

Janr: ye 2d 1723/4.

Aged 13: years.

 

This stone memorial to the child Elizabeth Smith, is notable for the double dating and for the skull and crossed bones detail at the top. 

 

 

 

 

Welsh slate headstones

St Mary in the Elms churchyard in Woodhouse has a number of beautifully engraved 18th Century headstones, noticeably different in style from those in Newtown Linford, for example. By 'different' I mean to say that the writing is well laid out on the stone, the capitalisation is regular, and the spelling has not been subsequently corrected.

John Boley's headstone is a good example:

Here lyeth Interred

the Body of John Boley

who departed this life

October the 3rd Ano. Dom

1721 Aged 32 Years

Were the masons in Woodhouse more skilled and literate than those in Newtown Linford? Or were the people of Woodhouse who could not afford a more expensive mason being buried in some other churchyard?

One indication of the money being spent on the Woodhouse burials is the type of stone being used. We can get a clearer look at this on the reverse side.

 

I would need to do a microscopic comparison to be certain, but to my eye this is Welsh slate rather than the local Charnwood Slate. Welsh slate cleaves far more regularly. The unevenness of Charnwood slate gives the roofs of local houses their particular charm, but it must be far harder for the mason to work with.

 

This is certainly Welsh slate:

 

And this is local stone, complete with tool marks:

 

 

 

.

The Riddle of Double Dated Headstones

Why do some early headstones give two years of death for the same person? The headstone of Richard Broadas in Woodhouse is a beautiful example.

 

Here lieth ye Body of

Richard the Son of

Antony Broadas Who

died ye 20th of Feb:1702/3

aged 22 years

 

How could he had died in both 1702 and 1703?

To find the answer we have to look back to the Calendar (New Style) Act, which was adopted by parliament in 1750.

Previously England, Wales, Ireland and the Colonies had used the Julian Calendar and celebrated New Year on March 25th. The Act formally adopted the Gregorian Calendar and set New Year on the now familiar day of January 1st.

One curious byproduct of this change was that the year 1751, was left with only 282 days.

The use of double dates on headstones shows that for a time the two dating systems co-existed. Thus, any day after January 1st and before March 24th might be regarded as being in one of two adjacent years.

This double dated headstone in Newtown Linford is another example. William Poole is said to have died on the 16th of March 1605/6. According to the Old Style calendar he died in 1605 (new year had not yet been reached). But according to the New Style calendar the new year happened in January, so it was already 1606.

The New Style calendar had been adopted in other parts of the world many years before. The changeover took place in Scotland in 1600 and earlier still in Catholic Europe.

From the double dating of headstones and other documents it seems that the change of new year had for some time been seeping into popular usage in England, but that legal documents used the old system until the formal changeover in 1752.

Lucy Patchet - Woodhouse

The village of Swithland was supposed to be my destination today, but roadworks and a possible detour of several miles triggered a change of plan. It was by chance then that I came to the delightful village of Woodhouse and the 15th Century church of St Mary-In-The-Elms.

 

 

 

 

Lucy Patchet's headstone was bathed in sunshine.

 

here

lieth Interr'd the Body of

Lucy Daughter of

JOHN & ANNE PATCHET

She departed this Life

June the 5th: 1760

Aged Eleven Weeks

 

This pretty Babe is gone to Rest

With those who liv'd and dy'd ye Best

William Poole - Newtown Linford

Here Lyeth ye Body

of William Poole

who Departed this life

the 16th of March:

Anno Do 1695. 6

Aged 47

This is another of the 17th Century headstones of All Saints Churchyard, Newtown Linford. It is simple but beautifully laid out. Unlike so many of the early stones, this one was clearly sketched out in advance, with each line pleasingly centred.

William died 9 days before the new year, which was counted as March 25th in England and Wales up until 1751.

The thing I don't understand about this stone is the meaning of the small superscript '6' following the date.

Richard Frost - Newtown Linford

[Here] Lyeth ye Body of

[Ri]chard Frost who dy

[e]d April ye 26 Anno 1686

Aged 53 Years;

Another member of the Frost family. Another headstone ending with a semi-colon.

Margaret Frost - Newtown Linford

Here Lyeth ye Body of

Margaret Frost who dy

ed July ye 23rd An, Do, 1693

Aged 50 Years;

All Saints Churchyard, Newtown Linford. This small but beautifully inscribed headstone ends with a semi-colon rather than a full stop and leaves space below. Sometimes punctuation can tell a story.

Richard Hudson - Newtown Linford

A large and impressive stone in All Saints Churchyard, Newtown Linford, distinctive for the crack from top to bottom along which it has slipped.

Here lyeth the Body of Richard Hudson

who departed this life November the 8th

Anno. Dom. 1689 Aged 69 years

Here also lyeth the Body of Elizabeth

the Daughter of Richard Hudson by

Elizabeth his wife, she departed this life

March the 6th Anno. Dom. 1701 Aged 21 yer

Here also lyeth the Body of Elizabeth

the wife of Richard Hudson she

Departed this life July ye 10th Anno. Dom.

1716 Aged 79 Years

 

The size of stone and quality of engraving mark this out as an expensive piece of work compared to others here of similar date. The spelling, layout and capitalisation of letters are all more regular than on the smaller stones.

 

Susan Burbidge - Newtown Linford

Here lyeth ye body

of Susan Burbidge

who departed this

life Feb ye 26th day

Anno Dom 1700

Aged 62 Yrs

 

Both old & young ye passeth by

Strive to live well for ye must die

 

Another of the cluster of leaning gravestones in All Saints Churchyard, Newtown Linford. I was struck by how regular and well laid out these words are on the stone. It is a beautiful work of art, or craft, if you prefer. This was surely not inscribed by the same hand that produced George Burbidge's headstone just under 2 years later.

 

Given the ages and dates, we might be tempted to think that George and Susan were husband and wife, though perhaps they were brother and sister, or cousins. Whoever she was, she is named here in her own right, and not as "Susan wife to..." or "Daughter of..." as was more common.

 

I'd like to think that George had this headstone made and that the choice of words came from the way he saw Susan. We will never know. 

 

George Burbidge - Newtown Linford

Here lieth the

Body of George

Burbidge who de

parted this liFe

Novembr ye 18:

Anno:1701: aged 61y

 

The mason ruled a neat margin on the left, but apparently ran out of space on the right. It also seems as if two letters were originally left out and have been added in superscript. This leads me to a question: how literate was the craftsperson?

 



This is one of a cluster of leaning headstones, the group looking rather drunken.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cast Iron Grave Markers - Newtown Linford

This one is way off my stated period of interest. But I hadn't seen anything like it before, so I thought I'd share it. A pair of cast iron grave markers in All Saints Churchyard, Newtown Linford.

IN AFFECTIONATE REMEMBRANCE OF

MARY ANN BUTHAWAY

DIED DECEMBER 25th 1901

ERECTED BY THE MEMBERS

OF THE NEWTOWN LINFORD

MOTHERS UNION

 

 

IN AFFECTIONATE REMEMBRANCE OF

SAMUEL BUTHAWAY

WHO DIED

OCTOBER 18TH 1911

AGED 69 YEARS

REST AFTER WEIRINESS

PEACE AFTER PAIN

Thomas Bony - Newtown Linford

This is one of my favourite headstones. It has writing on both sides and seems to have been added to on at least two occasions. As yet, I can't decipher all of it.

First inscription:

Hear : Lyeth : The Body

of : Thomas : Boney : Son

To : John : Boney : Who

Departed This Life

July 1683  

The second inscription follows on below with a slightly different letter spacing, indicating it was added some time afterwards:

And Ione (Jone?)

Bony His Wife

Who Dyed March 1696

The third inscription in a different lettering again occupies the very top of the stone, above a crudely cut horizontal line:

HICKIA set

Then squeezed in on the right hand side at the top:

JOHN : BONY

AND : HIS : 5 : WIES

A lower case letter 'e' sits just below the enigmatic word 'WIES'. Is this really John Bony and his five wives? Did someone called Hickia bury (set) John and his extended family there under the ground? I would love to know.

It wasn't until I walked away from this fascinating headstone that I noticed yet another inscription on the other side. Once again, this is in two different hands, presumably added at two different times:

First part:

As i Am so shallt Thou Bee

Pre Pare Thy self To follow mee

 

Second part:

 

Blessed . are . the . Dead . Wich . die . in . the

LorD . that . they . mae . rest . from . their

labers And Their . works . follo . Them

 

rev 14 verr 13

This is a quotation from the Revelation of St John the Divine, chapter 14 verse 13. I can't find this exact wording but the passage is clear enough. It would be interesting to know what translation they would have had access to at that time.

And finally, there is an illustration: a face and an arrow pointing to the ground.

Blank Headstones - Newtown Linford

All Saints in Newtown Linford has many 17th and 18th Century headstones, some of them quite unusual. The church is easy to find, being right next to the Bradgate Park car park.

I was particularly interested to see two headstones topped with skull and crossbones design, but with no inscription below. I'm sure someone must know the meaning of this. If so, please write in and let me know.

No inscription means no date. However, the size, shape and type of stone look closer to the Eighteenth Century graves than those from the Nineteenth Century.

Thomas Page - Scraptoft

Here Lyeth the body of

Thomas Page who depart

ed this life January the 25th

Anno Dom.1714

Aged 47 years.

Here I lye sleeping in the dust

until the rising of the just

Till ye time that Christ shall say

arise my saints & come away

The sun was hiding around the side of the church when I visited Scraptoft, leaving this beautiful headstone in shadow. Not ideal lighting for photography. I've done my best to increase the contrast, but the image is still rather flat. Click on the picture for a larger view to see the detail of the squeezed-in lettering.

Ann Webster - Scraptoft

Ann the

Daughter of Tho

Webster she departed

this life the 15th of

May in ye 22 Year of

her age 1699

Though this stone dates from the 17th Century, the angel design appealed to me, so I have included it here. I also like the way the letters have been squeezed in. I'm assuming that Tho is short for Thomas.

This is one of the stones tucked away on the edge of Scraptoft Churchyard. You may need to clear away vegetation to find it. Watch out for the stinging nettles.

Elizabeth Windsor - Scraptoft

Here Lyeth

the Body of

Elizabeth the wife of

Robert Windsor

She died Dec:r 8th 1727

Aged 51.

 

Another simple 18th Century headstone in Scraptoft churchyard. Curiously, every letter 's' on the stone is in the modern form despite the early date. Once again, the woman's name is given only in relation to her husband's.

Alice and James Frostnill / Frostnil - Scraptoft

Scraptoft Church has several 18th Century headstones, the most impressive of which occupy prominent positions near the path. A few smaller, less perfectly engraved stones are crowded together along the edge of the churchyard, somewhat overgrown with nettles and ivy. 

 

Among these are the headstones presumably belonging to husband and wife James and Alice. The surname is spelt Frostnill on James's stone and Frostnil on Alice's. 

 



Here lyeth the body

of James Frostnill who

departed this life February

the 6th Anno Dond. 1716

in the 68 yeare of his age

Alice the wife of James

Frostnil departed this life

the 28 of sep 1721 aged 77

The husband's memorial names him without reference to any other. But the wife's memorial only gives her name in relation to her husband, already more than five years dead.

Moses Miler - Scraptoft

Here Lies

the body of

Moses Miler

Who died Oct 26 1735

Aged 41 Years

All you that come my grave to see

As I am now so must you be

 

The skull and crossbones design seems to be a reference to the belief of the Knights Templar that if the skull and at least two large bones remained then the body would be resurrected at the Day of Judgement. The winged hourglass is presumably a reminder of mortality.

Underneath the crossed long bones and ribs are a crossed scythe and arrow, symbolically bringers of death. And to either side are a spade and pick, symbolic of grave digging.

This stone is easy to find in the pleasant churchyard at Scraptoft, just outside Leicester. It stands alongside a line of other 18th Century stones next to the path that runs between the road and the church itself.