TRINITY CHAPEL
Was anciently attached to a Lazar-house or Hospital, with the history of which it is most intimately connected. When or by whom founded is not known—at least, if such is recorded, it is not mentioned by any writer on ecclesiastical affairs; but as it appears always to have been attached to the Abbey of Westminster, we may conclude its foundation was connected with that establishment.
The earliest mention I have met with of the Lazar-house is in a grant of James I., preserved in the British Museum, [52] as follows:—
1605, James R. By ye king,
Trustie and welbeloued wee grete you well. Whereas we are given to understand that the sick, lame, and impotent people in our hospitall of Knighte-bridge, in our county of Middlesex, are greatly distressed for want of wholesome water, both for the dressing of their meat, and for making condiment potions for their sores, and that in our park called Hyde Park, in our sayd county, adjoyning to the sayd hospitall, there is within of 140 paces of the sayd hospitall a meete spring of good water, wof by pipe of lead of the charge of five and thirty pounds, may safely be brought to serve the sayde house, for their relief in yt behalf, without any inconvenience growing thereby to our said parke; in consideration of ye poverty, and for the contynuall use and ease of ye sayd impotent and distressed people, wee are graciously pleased to bestow uppon them ye sayd sum of xxxvl., lawful money of England, for and towards the charge of bringinge the sayde springe water to the sayde house by pipe of lead. Wherefore our pleasure is, that you, our warden of our Mint, shall appoint workmen, and give order for the doing thereof, and defray the charge, not exceeding the sayd sum of xxxvl.; ffor the which wee do hereby give you full allowance out of those our moneys as remayne in your hande, lately coyned in our Tower. And this shall be our sufficient warrant unto you, and the duplicate of this published by you a sufficient warrant and discharge to ye keeper and keepers of ye sayde parke, and to all other persons that may consent for the doing hereof. Given under our sign, &c., at or Castle of Windsor, the sixth day of September, in ye thyrd yere of our raigne of England, France, and Ireland, and of Scotland the thirty-eighth.
To our trusty and welbeloued servant Sr Thomas Knyvett, Knight, warden of our mynt. C. C. Inwood.
But, although this is the earliest document concerning the Lazar-house I have seen, there exist earlier, to which the public have not access. Lysons says there is, among the records of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster, a statement of its condition in 1595, drawn up by John Glassington, Governor of the House, by profession a surgeon, and whose family rented the hospital, &c., from the Church of Westminster (at the rent of 4s. per annum) for many years. In this document he states that there were no lands belonging to this hospital, nor a groat of endowment; that there had been a certain piece, which was then enclosed within Hyde Park, to the great detriment of the charity. He also states that when he became governor, the building was ready to fall; that he had expended above £100 on it; that there were commonly thirty-six or thirty-seven persons in the house, who were supported by voluntary contributions; that the charge of the previous year, in provisions only, and exclusive of candles, linen, woollen, salves, medicines, burials, &c., had been £161 19s. 4d. He adds a list of fifty-five persons whom he had cured, some of whom had been dismissed as incurable from other hospitals. An account of the regulations of the house is subjoined by him, by which it appears that the patients attended prayers every morning and evening, and that on Sundays there was morning and evening service for the neighbours; that those who were able were obliged to work; that they dined every day on “warm meat and porrege,” and that every man had his own “dish, platter, and tankard, to kepe the broken from the whole.” [55]
In the parish accounts of St. Margaret’s are several entries relating to this hospital:
| 1634. | Item, for a pair of sheetes for Jane Clare, when wee sent her to the Spittle at Knightsbridge | 3s. | 6d. | |
| 1638. | Item, to Mr. Winter, keeper of the hospitall at Knightsbridge, for the keeping of the Three Innocents for one month | 16s. | ||
| 1639. | Item, to Mr. Thomas Neale, for three paire of shoes, two paire for the poore Innocents at the Spittle at Knightsbridge, &c. | 6s. | 6d. | |
| 1646. | Disbursements for the poore Innocents in the Spittle, or Lazar-house, at Knightsbridge; sum total, | £4 | 2s. | 11d. [56] |
There are no books or accounts of the Lazar-house existing at the Chapel now, neither have I been able to ascertain whether they exist elsewhere, or even at all. But in one of the register books still preserved is a list of persons discharged from it; the date of the year is not given, but I have reason to think it about 1676. There are twenty-seven entries, of which the following may serve as samples:—
March 5—Priscilla Knight to London, criple.
,, 6—Mary ffranklin to Berkshire.
,, 9—John Wordner, his wife, to children, to Bristow, criple.
,, 10—Nicholas fflood, his wife, 4 children, to Wales, criple.
,, 18—Robert Dicerson, his wife, 2 children, to Gloster.
These unfortunate creatures most probably begged their way up from the country, and, while inmates here, owed their subsistence to charitable contributions, and, when cured, had to beg their way home again. There was also the following entry in another book, date about 1695:—
“Thomas Pirkin, a soldier under Captain John Callipfield, in Brigadier Solwin’s regiment, died in Hospital in August last past.”
Like its origin, its end is obscure: I cannot trace when, or from what causes, its useful and Christian career was terminated. It was certainly existing when Newcourt was collecting materials for his “Repertorium,” published in 1720, and that is the last allusion to it I can find.
It has always been traditionally related in Knightsbridge, that during the fatal year of the plague, 1666, the institution was for a while given up to those who had been attacked by that scourge; and it is also said that the enclosed plot on the Green was the spot where its victims, here and elsewhere in the locality, were buried.
In Butler’s “Hudibras” (III. c. ii. v. 1110), among other charges Cooper urges against the Presbyterians is, that they
“Fill’d Bedlam with predestination,
And Knightsbridge with illumination.”
And the last editor of Gray’s “Hudibras” supposes that by the Presbyterian Illuminati here, Butler alluded to the unfortunate inmates of this Lazar-house! [58a]
There were three other similar establishments in the suburbs of London—namely, at Southwark, Kingsland, and Mile-end. Great care was taken that those afflicted with leprosy, or other such disorder, should be immediately conveyed to one of these places. The law was strictly carried out, and where resistance was made, the sufferers were tied to horses, and dragged thither. [58b]
That the chapel attached to this hospital was of ancient foundation, we may justly infer from its being described as “very old and ruinous, and ready to fall,” as far back as 1629. In that year, for that cause, the inhabitants petitioned Laud, who then filled the see of London, for leave to rebuild it at their own cost, it being the place to which they usually resorted “to perform their religious duties and devotions.” The Bishop, by his licence, dated July 7th, 1629, gave them permission so to do (the consent of the vicar and churchwardens of St. Martin’s being first obtained), “therein to frequent Divine Service and sermons, which Divine offices were to be performed by a sufficient minister, lawfully licensed from time to time,” by the Bishops of London, or their Chancellors for the time being; “provided that the said inhabitants, or their families, did once every quarter of a year repair to their respective parish churches to perform their devotions, and every Easter receive the Holy Communion there, and pay all rights, duties, and profits to their respective ministers to which they did belong,” and this licence was to continue in force during the pleasure of the Bishops of London.
The Chapel was accordingly rebuilt, and “consecrated to the use of the poor of the Hospital,” who “having no maintenance but what they received of alms,” and not being “able to maintain a curate, repair the Chapel, or relieve themselves,” it was, on October 3rd, 1634, according to an arrangement made by the Master of the Hospital, the curate, and some of the principal inhabitants of Knightsbridge, ordered by Dr. Duck, then Chancellor of London, that they, or the major part of them, should let certain pews and seats in such manner as should best effect these objects; that they should keep a register of their accounts, which were to be adjusted every six months, reserving to the incumbents of St. Margaret’s and St. Martin’s their respective rights and emoluments. Dr. Duck presented one piece of the plate used in the celebration of the Communion.
In 1650 the Parliamentary Commissioners appointed to inquire into the state of ecclesiastical benefices, reported that Knightsbridge Chapel, in the parish of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, belonged to a Lazar-house there; that twenty years before the date of inquiry it was re-edified and enlarged by public contributions; and that Henry Walker, the minister, placed there on probation by order of Parliament, received £10 per annum from the inhabitants. The Commissioners afterwards allowed him £40 per annum. [60]
Among the records of the Dean and Chapter is a petition from John Glassington, surgeon, dated 1654, praying to be admitted Governor of the Hospital, which his ancestors had always rented of the church at Westminster; which petition is accompanied by a certificate of Sir John Thorowgood, one of the Commissioners for Middlesex, and an active public officer in this locality at the time of the Commonwealth; but I infer the application was unsuccessful for a time, for in the next year Henry Walker was presented to the curacy by Cornelius Holland and George Reeve, joint-governors of the Chapel. John Glassington was, however, Governor in 1659.
In 1699, Nicholas Birkhead, who was then lessee of the Chapel, rebuilt it, and the present building is mainly his work. In 1789, it was enlarged by its front being brought in a line with the adjoining houses, a grass-plot eight feet deep having previously occupied this space. The present front, galleries, &c., were then erected. At the end of the last century Dixon Gamble, Esq., became lessee, but now it is held direct from the Dean and Chapter of Westminster, who nominate the incumbent. There is an endowment of £30 per annum payable by them, but the income is derived chiefly from the pew rents.
The Chapel is as plain an edifice as possibly can be; there is no ornament of any kind about it. It is built of brick, and is 53 feet long, by 30 feet broad. The gallery is round three sides of the building; the organ, built by Hancock, 1770, being on the south side. The communion-table is at the north end. The front terminates in a pediment, over which is a small cupola containing one bell, thus inscribed—
“Mrs. Mary Birkhed gaue me, 1733.”
In the brickwork are let in three stone slabs, the centre of which is inscribed “Knightsbridge Chapel, 1789;” that on the right is inscribed, “Rebuilte by Nicho Birkhead, Gouldsmith of London, Anno Dom. 1699;” the left or western one has the following emphatic dedication cut in it, [62] “Capella sanctæ Indiuidux Trinitatis.”
The Communion Plate consists of five pieces, all of silver; they are inscribed as follows:—
The Large Chalice.—Sanctæ et Indiuidæ Trinitati—Rest to the Lord:—Mary Birkhead (about 1708.)
The Paten.—Sanctæ et Indiuidæ Trinitati.—The Guift of Arthure Duck, Docter of the Ciuell Lawe and Chancelor of London (1628 or 1629).
The Small Chalice.—Sanctæ et Indiuidæ Trinitati.—The Gift of the Right Honbl. and Right Reverent Willm. Lord Bishop of London. [63a]
The Plate.—The Gift of Elizebeth Knightly to Knights-Bridg Church, Oct. 18th, 1705. [63b] There is a coat of arms engraved on the edge of this piece, doubtless that of the donor.
The Flagon is modern, being the gift of the Rev. J. Foyster (about 1825).
The list of its ministers is, as far as I have been able to trace them, as follows:—
1630. Nathaniel White, licensed May 24th.
1637. William Pope—as curate.
1640. Nehemia Dod—as curate.
— Henry Walker on probation till 1655, when he was nominated curate.
1658. Christopher Lee appears to have been minister, but various other names also appear in the registers till May 23rd.
1660. Thomas Wheatley then signs himself “Minister of Knightsbridge.”
1661 (Feb.). Henry Tilley.
1662 (April). Nathaniel Barker.
1663 (April). — Herring (whose name occasionally appears between 1658–60.)
1666. Robert Hodson, till October 20th.
1667. Francis Hall, licensed October 25th.
1669. Henry Herbert or Hubert, S.T.P., licensed April 26th. His signature, however, occasionally appears before this date.
1671. John Cull.
1683. — Sanby, who was minister from January 1st, 1683, to December 31st, 1685.
1686. Henry Watts, who quitted in May, 1695; strangers appear to have officiated till
1696. Thomas Bobar entered on his duties December 4th. He made way for in
1699. Philip Horneck, who officiated from March 9th to October 16th.
1699. Thomas Knaggs appointed curate October 16th; he stayed till January 10th, 1707, when Francis Jeffrey succeeded. But in February, 1708, Mr. Knaggs returned, and was minister till May 17th, 1713.
1713. Robert Hicks, to June 10th, 1719.
1719. Humphry Persehouse, who was minister forty-one years. He resigned in December, 1759, when
1760. — Bailey, chaunter of Westminster Abbey, was appointed on January 1st by the Dean and Chapter. I believe he was succeeded by the Rev. John Gamble, nominated by his father, as lessee. He died in 1811.
1811. — Harris. [65]
1822. J. G. Foyster, M.A. of Queen’s College, Cambridge. He published a volume of sermons preached here. In 1832, Lord Brougham gave him the rectory of St. Clement’s, Hastings, on which he quitted Knightsbridge. He died there May 17th, 1855.
1832. John Martin, who shortly resigned, and was succeeded by the Rev. Hibbert Binney, D.C.L., the late minister, who, since June, 1838 (when he was appointed rector of Newbury), left the chapel to the ministry of the Rev. John Wilson, now D.D., and the present incumbent. Dr. Binney died June 6th, 1857. Among assistant ministers here have been the Rev. Alexander Cleeve, author of several devotional works, who died September 23rd, 1805; the Rev. H. J. Symons, LL.D., who read the burial service over Sir John Moore at Corunna. He gained the notice of the Duke of York in this pulpit, and quitted it for the Peninsula with a regiment, to which he was chaplain.
Baptisms and marriages were formerly solemnised here, and twenty register-books, some very small, and others quarto and folio size, are still preserved. Many of them, however, are but duplicates of the others, and three are memorandum-books of the clerks, with registrations, expenses, notices, and other entries therein. The regular register of baptisms has been missing a very long while, but duplicates of several years have been preserved; with the exception of a few leaves, all the books of expenses are lost also. [67] I have stated before that the books of the Lazar-house are also missing, and so is the burial book, if such ever existed. I shall be glad to quit this statement, so disgraceful to some of the former officials of the Chapel, and give a few extracts from those still fortunately preserved.
Previous to the passing of Lord Hardwick’s celebrated Marriage Act, in 1753, it was not necessary to the validity of a marriage that such should be performed in a church, or solemnised by any religious ceremony. And although the law of the Church visited with censure those who neglected its canon in this respect, yet the Common Law recognised other and more private modes. Consequently around and in London, at almost all the chapels, marriages were performed, and at some in a very discreditable manner. Lord Hardwick’s bill made it necessary to the validity of a marriage that it should be solemnised in a parish church or public chapel where banns had been regularly published. The result was, that as at these chapels banns were not published, marriages therein solemnised were no longer legal; and among others obliged to succumb to this law, Knightsbridge Chapel was one.
It would almost appear that our Chapel had some reputation for its irregularities in this solemnity, if we are to trust some of the pointed allusions in the literature of a bygone currency. Shadwell, in his play of “The Sullen Lovers,” published in 1668, makes Lovell say:—
“Let’s rally no longer: there is a person at Knightsbridge, that yokes all stray people together; we’ll to him, he’ll despatch us presently, and send us away as lovingly as any two fools that ever yet were condemned to marriage.”
And in the Guardian (No. 14, March 27, 1713), a run-away marriage is spoken of as being celebrated “last night at Knightsbridge.” Although such references seem to illustrate what could be only known as a fact, I yet think they were but a jocular remark as regards Knightsbridge, and not indications of a reality. It is scarcely possible to think such would have been allowed in a place of worship, so much under the control of the Dean and Chapter as this was; and many memoranda in the books vindicate its ministers from the charge of winking at wrong, as these allusions insinuate. Of these curious entries I give the following as specimens:—
“Mem.—Thomas Palmer and Ann Clarke: if they come to be maryed, stop them, and send for Mr. Clarke, next doore to the Mitre Tavern in Duppin’s Ally, King Street, Westminster.”
“William Squire, silver-smith, living in Long Acre, who stood father to Elizabeth Goldingham, who was married to Edward Keyn ye 20th of ffebruary, 1690/1, does give this account of the said Elizabeth Goldingham, that she has lodged at his house for 2 years, that she is no heyress, but ffollows the trade of a manta-maker for her living, and further he adds that she has neither ffather or mother liveing, nor no relation who does any way look affter her, but that she is really at her own disposal.”
But although such entries show the rule, I must admit that at a certain period before the time to which the foregoing entries refer, are others which appear suspicious; and if any irregularities occurred I should place them between the two extreme dates, shown in the following extracts:—
1678, April 28. Jacob Stent and Mary Crouch, secrecy for life.
1678, April 28. James Gibson and Anne Tarrant, secrecy.
1678/9, April 28. William Taylor and Elizabeth Steward, great secrecy.
1680, April 25. Edward Charlton and Alice Robinson, secret for 14 years.
1682, May 7. Andrew Barry and Mary Elton, secrecy.
With these curious notices of old systems, habits, and ideas, I proceed to give some extracts from the registers, selecting those referring to eminent persons, and which contain allusions of interest and peculiarity. The earliest entry of baptisms is the following.
1663, Aug. 28. Will, ye sone of will birke of this hamlett, by Mr. Herring.
1667, Jan. 23. Sofiah London, the daughter of Richard London and Mary his wife.
A family named London lived in this locality many years, and there are several entries of the name. Probably the celebrated gardener so named, who will be afterwards noticed, belonged to it.
1668. Nathaniel, son of William Ipsley, baptised, September 8th.
Most probably this name should be Hipsley. Persons of this name were clerks here many years.
1670, Nov. 3. James, son of James and Mary Rouse.
1675, Feb. 19. Dorothy, daughter of James Took, Esq., and Magdalen his wife. Westminster parish.
1675, April 11. William Lord, son of Robert and Anne Thurlow.
A family of this name lived in the St. Margaret’s part of the hamlet in the 17th century.
1675, Nov. 5. Joan, daughter of Robert and Hester Gunter, baptised.
Persons of this name may be traced from this period to the present time in our locality. It is the earliest entry of the name I have found.
1676, Jan. 8. Margerite, the daughter of Elizabeth Bedford by Mr. Philip Thomas.
1677, June 17. Tristram, the son of Tristram and Anne Huddlestone.
1677, July 20. George, son of Berkley Trye, Esq., by Mary his wife, baptised by Jo. Andrews, entered at St. Martin’s.
The Tryes are a very ancient Gloucestershire family.
1678, Jan. 3. Robert, son of Robert and Hester Gunter.
1681, April 11. Anne, the daughter of George Sams by Martha Wheatley, his servant, as ’tis told me.
1682, May 27. Thomas Dennis, 30 years of age, was baptised.
1683, March 4. Jane Rutter was baptised. A black woman.
1689, June 27. ffrances Wharton, the daughter of Jane Wharton, a child of base (birth).
1691, Dec. 21. Hannah Hipsley, daughter of Thomas and Mary Hipsley, by Mr. Watts. Born Dec. 6th.
1692, Feb. 14. Margaret Tarbet, the daughter of Margaret Perryvil; being a woman-child that fell in travail in ye street.
1702. Mary, daughter of Thomas Werd by Mary his wife, was baptised the 3rd of May by Mr. Killberk.
This is the last baptism recorded, and only one is entered between October 16th, 1694, and this date: the others are missing; and though I know baptisms were occasionally solemnised here even to the end of the last century, no later record has been preserved.