Priory+church



THE CHURCH.

Of all these buildings practically nothing now remains except the church.

In its present form this consists of a Tower basement at the west end, and a Nave, the eastern part of which is separated from the western part by the original Screen (Perpendicular), so forming the chancel.

The roof is depressed, open timbered, and appears to have been reconstructed out of an old high pitched roof, while that of the chancel is new, but constructed as a continuation of the Nave roof.

There is also a south Porch with an Early English arch, leading into the Nave. The thickness of the Nave wall, in which this arch is formed, measures more than a yard.

What remains of the western Tower is a basement with Early English entrance, and above, three lancet-shaped windows. On this has been built a timber structure with latticed windows, as a bell chamber. This is surmounted by a high pitched tiled roof, with flag-staff and vane.

The wooden bell chamber, reached by a very narrow spiral staircase, is in a somewhat delapidated condition. It contains five bells, bearing the following inscriptions, as recorded by Dr. J. J. Raven (Church Bells of Suffolk, No. 399, pp. 228, 229)

In the return of the Royal Commission set up in 1553 to find out how many church bells had been embezzled by churchwardens, mention is made of three bells and a sanctus bell. (East Anglian Notes and Queries, Vol. III, new series, p. 130).

On the north side, and proceeding eastward, are two perfectly plain square-headed, domestic looking windows of about five feet by four formed without much splay, and with no tracery whatever ; of then one is about fifteen feet from the ground, and the other about twelve feet from the ground.

A little to the right of these two windows is a narrow, lancet-header door, leading to the stairway up to the rood loft. The stairs are stil in position, though somewhat delapidated. The passage is built ii the thickness of the wall.

Some ancient stained glass was found when these stairs were discovered, but apparently what became of this is not known.

There is on the north side of the Chancel a three light Perpendicular window, the sill of which is nine feet from the floor. Where the vestry door is usually found there is a low Transition doorway, which give into what is now a garden, where formerly was a room on the ground floor of the eastern range of buildings, possibly the " Slype " (see plan)

Beyond this doorway, and about two feet from the east wall there is Squint or hagioscope, and nearly above this a square opening, about fourteen inches high by ten inches wide.

The Sanctuary is raised two steps above the- Chancel floor, and is paved with Minton tiles. Within the rails are four Memorial slabs The largest of these is to the memory of John Norman, Gentn., with crest and shield of Arms.

There are also two slabs to the memory of members of the Aldred family, and one small slab in the extreme S.E. corner to the memory of Stephen Elmy, qui obiit 1688.

On the north wall of the chancel is a monument " to continue the memory of Katherine, the wife of Samuel Chandler, and of Susan, his wife, of this parish, who was the daughter of Capt. Francis Saunders, and Katherine his wife, late of Great Yarmouth in ye county of Norfolk, which Susan ye wife of Samuel Chandler (aforesaid) lyeth interred in this place with ten sons and daughters besides her for whome this was erected, who was borne 20 May, 1661, and departed this life 12 September, 1705, aged 44 years, 4 months, and 3 days." The East Window is of four lights, modern Perpendicular with depressed arch.

On the south side of the Chancel there is a round-headed (arched) doorway, now built up, immediately opposite the Early English doorway in the north wall. This probably led to a sacristy, or it may have been merely a door to the open air from the monks' part of the church, as none other appears to exist. It was obviously blocked when the fifteenth century buttresses were built (see plan).

Four feet from the doorway is a round headed recess for a Holy Water stoup.

There are two windows in the Chancel on the south side ; one Decorated, the other Perpendicular. The first is of three lights, the other of two. In the upper tracery the painted glass has been removed, and he bosses of crown glass set in its place.

There are two good three-light Perpendicular windows in the south wall of the Nave, eight feet from the floor.

The Porch is 15th. century. Just inside is a large round-headed recess for Holy Water stoup.

On the floor of the Nave are five sepulchral slabs to the memory of members of the Davy family. Also one to the memory of a Harvey of Yoxford. David Elisha Davy, the great collector of Suffolk Memorials and Historic Notes, who afterwards resided at the Grove, Yoxford was born in this parish.

In the last century there was a Gallery, put up by the Rev. Lombi Athill (1823-1850), which was afterwards removed by the Rev. Regd N. Durrant (1854-1866).

On the wall beneath its site hangs a clarionet that had been player by a Mr. James Day, one of the minstrels in that gallery long ago.

The oaken rood screen is lofty, and the tracery under its pointed arches most graceful; but all is disfigured with hideous paint and varnish, which should be removed. Were this done it is possible that considerable remains of figure-painting might be disclosed. Even now one or two robes can be made out on the unvarnished space of panel beneath the pulpit, and the dado-band, marking the shoulder-level of a vanished figure, can be seen on a panel near the doorway. There is no record available of these paintings. (S.I.A. Proceedings, vol. xxi, p. 192).

The Pulpit is a plain and rather poor Jacobean construction. It stands now by the north wall, just outside the Screen. Prior to the restoration of the church by the late vicar, the Rev. W. Linton Wilson, n 1896-7, the pulpit stood in the middle of the nave, faced by two exceptionally large box pews, which with others were then replaced by modern seats. Many of these have excellent poppy-head ends, and in the others modern reproductions in oak. There is some good carving, apparently Jacobean, on the backs of several seats at the west end of the church.

The Font is octagonal, with quatrefoils in each panel, on a modern ease.

Inside the church is preserved an old rough stone coffin, which was discovered, fairly recently, buried in an adjoining orchard on the south side of the nave.

The Arms of Rumburgh Priory, discovered during the restoration n 1878, were painted and framed by the late Vicar, and hung on the west wall of the Nave.

The Arms are given in Richard Taylor's Monasticus, 1821, p. 85 : " Argent on a Cross gules, a besant, thereupon a demi-King in his robes all proper, in the dexter quarter in chief a Key in pale of the second." (These are the arms of S. Mary, York.)

In the compilation of these Notes on Rumburgh Priory I am especially indebted to the late Rev. Alfred J. Bedell, vicar of Cratfield from 1908 a former member of our Society, for some detailed notes, now in the possession of J. A. Bailey, Esq., of Rumburgh ; and to Hugh Braun, Esq. F.S.A., A.R.I.B.A., for drafting the plan of the Priory buildings from the data given in the Tudor Survey (which will be seen to differ consider ably in several respects from the outline plan published in S.I.A Proceedings, vol. XIV, page 322).

I am also indebted to my daughter, H. M. Cane, for the drawing of the plan, with Mr. Braun's assistance, and for detailed measurements o1 the church: to my wife for the drawings of the Arms; to C. H. Lockitt, Esq., F.R.HIST.S., for translation of the Papal Bull; to the Vicar, the Rev. D. Stewart, for information on certain details; and to the Editor of the Proceedings, the Rev. H. A. Harris, for assistance in various ways. The list of the Priors and Vicars was compiled by the late Vicar, Rev. W. Linton Wilson, and is given as an appendix.