A History of Giggleswick School from its Foundation, 1499 to 1912

by Edward Allen Bell

In 1603 also, William Clapham, Vicar of "Runtoun in the county of Northfolke by his last will and testament bearing daite the fyft day of July, 1603," bequeathed to the schoole the patronage, free gift and advowson of the Churches and Rectories of Fulmodestone, Croxton and Rolleston in the county of Norfolk, "And the yearlie pension or porcionn paiable out of them of iiijli. viijs. viijd. I will that iiijli. thereof be yearlie for ever imploied towards the maytaynance or fynding of a poore scholer of the said schoole of Gigleswick, being of the said parish of Gigleswicke or Clapham, to be kept to Learning in somme Colledge in Cambridge: Provided alwaies and my will is that he shall be one of the Claphams or Claphamsons, if there shall be anie of those names meete and fitte theirfore, and to have the said yearly allowance of iiijli. for the space of seaven yeares, if he continue and abide in Cambridge so long." ... "And the other viijs. viijd. I will that the one half theirof shall be bestowed yearlie toward a potacionn amongst the poore schollers of the same schoole, for the tyme being one Saincte Gregories daie, and the other half distributed amongst the poore of the said parish of Gigleswick yearlie on Easter daie for ever, to be ordered, governed and distributed from tyme to tyme by the Feoffees, overseers, governors, and rulers of the said Schoole for the tyme being, whereof one to be a Clapham if their be anie of the name in the same parish meet for that office."

Potations, thus provided for by William Clapham, were common to many schools and were gifts of food and beer by the Master to the Scholars, who in their turn were expected to bring gifts of money and thus enable the Master of a Free School to get an addition to his pay. At Nottingham Dame Mellers in 1512 did "straitlye enjoyne that the Scholemaister, and Usshers, nor any of them, have, make, nor use any potacions, cock-fighte or drinking with his or their wiffe at wiffes' hoost or hoostices, but only twice in the yeare nor take any other giftes or avayles, whereby the Schollers or their Frendes should be charged, but at the playsure of the frends of the Scholers, save the wages to be payde by the sayde Gardyans." On the other hand in the Hartlebury School Statutes, 1565, it is written "the said Schoolmaster shall ... take the profitts of all such Cocke-fights and potations as be comonlie used in Scholes." At Cambridge "they have a potation of Figgs, Reasons and Almons, Bonnes and Beer at the charge of the sayed Determiners."

Such was the custom and William Clapham evidently intended by his gift of 4s. 4d. to relieve the Master from the expense and allow the gifts to be pure profit. Unfortunately no record has been traced of any gifts though there are entries in the Minute-Books of payment of expenses on March 12, 1626, "charges this day vis. vid.," which probably refer to the expenditure upon the scholars. Such mention is quite exceptional up till the close of the seventeenth century. The usual accounts are much briefer, giving no details of expenditure but mentioning the balance only e.g. "their remaineth in the hands of John Banks fifty-eight pounds eighteen shillings sixpence."

In time Clapham's bequest increased in value and was reckoned in the Exhibition Account. Certainly from 1767 the Exhibition Account gave something towards the cost of the Potation. In 1767 it was £1 7s. 0d., in 1770, 11s. 3d. In 1782 it becomes a fixed sum of £1 10s. 4d. and the Governors make up the rest from another account. In one year 1769 it was regarded as a joint expenditure by the Governors and Masters. During the last twenty years of the eighteenth century the expenditure averaged £2 10s. 0d. In 1814 it was £8 1s. 2d., thus proving independently that the numbers of the School must have increased considerably. In 1839 figs and bread are mentioned as having been bought and the Charity Commissioners' Report of 1825 says that beer had ceased to be provided. The figs and bread continued to be distributed till 1861, after which the practice ceased.

The Scholarship to "some colledge in Cambridge" was gradually merged with other gifts in a general Exhibition Account and it is only rarely possible to distinguish a holder of the Clapham Exhibition. Indeed £4 was not a luxurious sum as time went on.

On June 29th, 1604 Henry Tennant of Cleatopp, who had already shewn himself eager for the welfare of the School by supporting the petition of Christopher Shute for the confirmation of the Statutes, gave £100 to the Governors of the School. With this money they were to buy lands or rent charges "to and for such use, purpose and intent that the yearly revenues, yssues, and profittes ... shall and maie be by them ... emploied first for and towardes the better mantaynance of Josias Shute, one of the sonnes of the said Christopher Shute, in Cambridge, until such tyme as he shall be admitted to be Master of Arts in the said Universitie, and from yeare to yeare for ever for and towards the releiving and mantayninge of such schollers within the Universitie of Cambridge, one after another successivelie, as shall be naturallie borne within the said parish of Giggleswick and instructed and brought upp to learning at the said free Grammer Schoole, and as shall be elected and chosen out of the said Schoole by the Master and Governors ... to be fitt for that purpose." Each one was to receive the money until he became Master of Arts, so long as he did not defer the time beyond the customary limit nor remove nor discontinue his place.

This gift Tennant confirmed in his will of July 5 in the same year with a further gift of all his lands and hereditaments in Settle and the "ancient yearlie rent of five shillings be it more or lesse." This was to "go towards the procuringe and obtayninge of an Exhibicioun for a poore scholler or seizer in somme one Colledge in Cambridge until ... he shall or may be Bachelor of Arts.... The same poore scholler to be borne within the parish of Giggleswick and brought upp at the schoole their att learninge and to be elected ... by the Maister and Governors." Clapham's advowsons and rent-charge were sold by the Governors on June 20, 1604, to "one Symon Paycock, of Barney, and Robart Claphamson, of Hamworth, in the countie of Northfolk, clarke" in consideration of the payment of one hundred marks and the lands in Settle left by Henry Tennant were sold to Antonie Procter, of Cleatopp, on January 14, 1604 for £40. These two sums together with Henry Tennant's former gift of £100 helped to make up £240, with which the Governors on January 19, 1609, bought a rent-charge of £14 13s. 4d., which has been paid them ever since. Being a rent-charge, it is not liable to fluctuation.

The first elections were made on February 14, 1604. Josias Shute did not take his B.A. degree till 1605 nor his M.A. till 1609, so that the clause in Henry Tennant's will referring to him still held and he was receiving the interest on £100, but there is also the interest on the lands in Settle which had been sold for £40 and were bringing in £4 yearlie.

Thomas, one of the sons of Christopher Shute, and Alexander Bankes, of Austwick, in the parish of Clapham (also a relative of one of the Governors) were elected to the two Exhibitions. But as Clapham's money continued for seven yeares, they were each to receive £4 a year for four years and to divide the Clapham Exhibition during the next three years, if both continued in the University. This was done "for their better mantaynance and to take awaie emulation."

Thereafter elections were frequently made, until the merging of the funds in the general foundation of the School by the scheme of 1872.