Parishes: Cheriton

CHERITON

LIES the next parish westward from Folkestone, being written in antient records both Cherington and Ceriton.

IT LIES between the two ranges of the down and quarry hills, which here approach within two miles of each other; the former at the northern boundary, and the latter crossing the southern part of it, in rather a wild and unfrequented country, the prospects from the southern hills towards the sea, and the breaks between them being in general exceedingly pleasing. The lands in it are for the greatest part very poor and barren. The church and village stand very high, where the soil is of a chalky nature. The vale between this and the down-hills is chiefly meadows, and is watered by several springs, which unite in the larger one which rises at Pean farm, under those hills, and flows through this vale towards Folkestone. From the church, which stands at the end of the high ground, on the steep precipice of a hill, there is a fine opening between the quarry-hills towards the sea. Near it, down in the bottom, is the court lodge, an antient gothic building, where the soil is very sandy, and eastward from it, very poor and much covered with furze and brakes. A little further in the bottom, between the quarry-hills, is Horn-street, where the stream called the Seabrook, which rises in the adjoining parish of Newington, runs along the side of it, and turns a paper and corn-mill, belonging to Mr. Pearce, which is curious, being worked at times both by wind and water; and about half a mile further it turns another corn-mill, called Seabrook mill; and thence crossing the high road from Hythe to Sandgate, under a bridge, it turns westward, and sinking into the beach and sand of the sea shore, loses itself in it. The sea shore here is the southern boundary of this parish; the above-mentioned road runs along it, close at the foot of the high quarry-hills, on to the hamlet of Sandgate, where, almost as far as the castle and eastward of it, all the houses, being the greatest part of them, are within this parish. The small stream, called Enbrooke, which rises near the Oaks, about a mile and an half from hence, runs by Querling hither, and then loses itself among the sea beach. At Underhill, in this parish, the duke of Richmond lay, as he passed to and from king Charles II. When in exile, in the day haunting that little wood still called Richmond's shave; whose then owner, Writtle, was on the restoration rewarded with the governorship of Upnor castle.

THE MANOR OF CHERITON was antiently held of the barony of Averenches, or Folkestone, and was held by knight's service and ward to Dover castle, by a family which took their name from it. Waleran de Ceritone appears to have held it in the 45th year of king Henry III. as did his descendant Odo de Ceritone in the beginning of the next reign of king Edward I. (fn. 1) soon after which this name became extinct here; for I find it next in the possession of Roger de Mereworth, who held it in like manner; and in right of his manor of Ceryton, (perhaps Chartons, in Farningham, held by him of the archbishop) claimed and was allowed the office of carver at the archbishop's inthronization, and the fee belonging thereto, which was, the knives used at his table; and in the 8th year of that reign had a charter of free-warren for all his demesne lands in this parish; at which time William de Brockhull seems to have had some joint interest with him in this manor, and certainly afterwards became possessed of the whole of it; from him it passed to the family of Valoyns, and Henry de Valoyns possessed it in the reign of king Edward III. in the 14th year of which he was sheriff, and that year had a charter of free-warren for all his lands and manors in it. His descendant Waretius de Valoyns left two daughters his coheirs, and on the partition of their inheritance, the manor of Cheriton was allotted to the youngest, married to Sir Francis Fogge, who died possessed of it in that reign, and was buried in this church. His effigies was on his tomb, lying cross-legged and habited in armour, with his arms on his surcoat, im paling those of Valoigns, of which, though remaining in Philipott's time, about the middle of the last century, there is nothing now to be seen. His descendant Sir John Fogge, of Repton, anno 31 Henry VIII. by the act passed that year procured his lands in this country to be disgavelled. His son Edward Fogge, esq. dying s. p. anno 20 Elizabeth, (fn. 2) it came to his uncle George Fogg, esq. of Braborne, who sold most of the antient patrimony of his family in this county, as he did this manor, to Mr. Henry Brockman, afterwards of Beachborough, whose descendant James Brockmen, esq. of Beachborough, died possessed of it in 1767, unmarried, being the last heir male of this family, and by will devised this manor, with the rest of his estates, to the Rev. Ralph Drake, who took the name of Brockman, and his eldest son James Drake Brockman, esq. now of Beachborough, is the present possessor of it. A court baron is held for this manor.

SWETTON, formerly called Swecton, is a manor in the middle of this parish, which was part of the barony of Averenches, or Folkestone, being reputed as a member of the manor of Tirlingham; accordingly it passed, in like manner with it, in marriage from the Crevequers to Criol, and thence again to Rokesley, and afterwards to Poynings; and from thence again by another female heir to Henry, lord Percy, afterwards earl of Northumberland, who died possessed of it. s. p. anno 29 Henry VIII. having before his death granted the reversion of this, as well as his other manors and estates, to the king, in case he died without male issue. After which it was granted to Thomas Cromwell, earl of Essex, and after his attainder, to Edward, lord Clinton and Saye, who alienated it to Mr. Henry Herdson, citizen and alderman of London, one of whose descendants passed it away to Mr. Henry Brockman above-mentioned, afterwards of Beechborough. Since which it has descended, as the manor of Cheriton above-described, to James Drake Brockman, esq. of Beechborough, the present owner of it. A court baron is held for this manor.

ENBROOKE is a manor in this parish, situated about half a mile eastward from the church, which takes its name from the adjoining spring or brook so called. It was part of the antient barony of Folkestone, and was held of that manor by knight's service, and by inclosing eighteen perches of Folkestone park, and ward to Dover castle. In the reign of Henry II. this manor was held by a family, who, having erected a mansion upon the demesnes of it, afterwards took their surname from it. Walter de Elnesbroc held it as above-mentioned in the reign of king Henry II. as did his descendant Walter in that of king Henry III. soon after which, the abbot of Langdon became possessed of a third part of this estate, which then became a separate manor, (fn. 3) an account of which will be further mentioned hereafter. But the other part of it, in which the manor and mansion of Einesbrooke were included, continued in the family of Einesbrooke; one of whom, Michael Enbrooke, was a good benefactor to the church of Cheriton in king Richard II.'s reign, by building the north chancel in it, still belonging to this manor; and in this chancel are two very antient tombs, now much decayed by time; on one, within an arch in the wall, lies the effigies in stone, of a man habited in robes, or long vestments; on the other, which is on the pavement at a very small distance from it and the wall, is that of a woman, having on her a head-dress, and a wimple under her chin; these being the most antient monuments of the kind that I have yet seen in this county. Philipott says, they probably belonged to two of this family of Enbroke. His son John Enbroke, in the next reign of Henry IV. alienated this manor to Peter Alkham, who again passed it away to Thorold, or Torold, and Walter Torold conveyed it to Nicholas Evering, of Evering, in Alkham, afterwards knighted; in whose descendants it remained till John Evering, esq. in the reign of queen Elizabeth, alienated it to John Honywood, esq. of Elmsted, in whose descendants, of Evington, in that parish, baronets, it has continued down to Sir John Honywood, bart, now of Evington, the present owner of it.

THE MANOR OF BISHOPS ENBROOKE, now usually called the Oaks, which lies at a small distance westward from that last-described, of which, as has been already mentioned, it was once a part, being separated from it soon after king Henry III.'s reign, when it was become part of the possession of the abbot and convent of West Langdon, who held it by knight's service of the manor of Folkestone, and ward to Dover castle. After which this manor, for so it was then reputed, continued part of the possessions of that abbey till the surrendry of it, in the 27th year of king Henry VIII. when coming into the king's hands, it was granted by him that year, with the scite and the rest of the possessions of the abbey, in exchange to archbishop Cranmer; whence, and to distinguish it from the other manor of the same name, it acquired the name of Bishops Enbrooke; the archbishop, within a very small time afterwards, conveyed it back again to the crown, where the fee of it lay, till queen Elizabeth, in her 42d year, granted it to Sir Edwyn Sandys, of Northborne, whose eldest son Henry Sandys, esq. dying s. p. it became the property of his younger and only surviving brothers, Edwyn, Richard, and Robert, of whom colonel Richard Sandys, having before purchased of John Marsham, esq. a subsisting term granted by the queen in this manor, bought of his two brothers their interests in it, and so became entitled to the whole fee as well as the possession of it, which his grandson Jordan Sandys, esq. of Downe, (fn. 4) afterwards alienated to William Glanvill, esq. of Ightham, whose son William Glanvill Evenlyn, esq. of few years since passed it away by sale to Mr. Henry Cock, of Folkstone, who died in 1792, and his heirs are the present possessors of it.

CASEBORNE is likewise a manor in the western part of this parish, which was held of the manor and barony of Folkestone by knight's service, and ward to Dover castle, by a family of the same name, who had a castellated mansion on it, the ruins of which, though overgrown with wood, are visible even at this time. Galfridusde Caseborne, son of Galfridus, was possessed of it at the latter end of king Henry III.'s reign, and in his descendants it continued down to Thomas de Caseborne, who is reported to have lived here in much state about king Richard II.'s reign, and to have been buried in the chapel belonging to this mansion; but leaving no male issue, Catherine, his only daughter and heir, carried it in marriage to William de Honywood, of Henewood, in Pastling, in whose descendants, baronets, and residing at Evington, in Elmsted, in this county, this manor has continued down to Sir John Honywood, bart. now of Evington, the present possessor of it. A court baron is held for this manor.

SWEET ARDEN is another small manor here, which is now so far sunk into obscurity as to be hardly known. It was antiently held of the manor and barony of Folkestone by knight's service. In the reign of king Edward I. as I find by the book of Dover castle, it was held by William de Brockhull and his coparceners, and after that by William de Swyt Arden, some time after which it came into the possession of Horne, and continued there some time; but in the reign of king Henry VIII. James Man, of Cheriton, was become possessed of it, and he sold it, by two dis serent feosments, anno 37 Henry VIII. and anno 3 Edward VI. by the description of his farm apud le Banke, with rents of assise, and lands called Sweet Arden, and certain castle-guard rents, to J. Aucher, gent. of Cheriton, whose descendant Anthony Aucher, of Bishopsborne, in 1691, conveyed these premises to Richard Topclisse, of Cheriton, who at times purchased of the Chapmans, of this parish, other lands adjoining, called likewise Arden; all which his son Godwin Topcliffe, of Hythe, alienated in 1619 to Robert Broadnax, gent. of Cheriton, and his heirs alienated it to Robert Hobday, of Hope-house, in Folkestone, and in this name of Hobday this estate continued for some time, till at length by two daughters and coheirs it was carried in marriage to William Rolfe, of the Uphill of Folkestone, and Richard Thomas, of Alkham; and on a partition of their estates, this at Cheriton was allotted to the farmer, who furviving her husband left it to her three daughters, one of whom died before her, and her third part descended to her two brothers, Nicholas and Thomas Rolfe, the former of whom devised his interest in it to Mr. Richard Marsh, who now possesses it. The second daughter, by her will, devised her third part to Mr. Lott Eaton, of Hythe, who is now entitled to it; and the third daughter died leaving Mr. Thomas Rolfe, above-mentioned, her heir-at-law, who died in 1794, possessed of her third part, as well as the sixth part of this estate called the Bank-house farm, with the lands called Sweet Arden, as above-mentioned, which he left by will to Mr. Reynolds, attorney at law, Folkestone, who now possesses it.

ACKHANGER is a manor in this parish, which is an appendage to that of Tirlingham, in Folkestone, in the description of which a full account of it, and its successive owners, may be seen, down to the right hon. Jacob, earl of Radnor, the present owner of it.

Here are no parochial charities. The poor constantly relieved are about thirty, casually twenty.

CHERITON is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Dover.

The church, which is dedicated to St. Martin, is built of sand-stone, and consists of two isles and two chancels, having a tower steeple at the west end, in which are four bells.

This church has always been esteemed as appendant to the manor of Cheriton, the succeeding owners of which have been from time to time owners and patrons of it, and it is now as such in the patronage of James Drake Brockman, esq. of Beechborough.

It is a rectory, and is valued in the king's books at 16l. 12s. 6d. and the yearly tenths at 1l. 13s. 3d. In 1588 it was valued at one hundred pounds, communicants one hundred and seventy. In 1640 at eighty pounds, communicants one hundred and seventeen. It was, in the year 1771, united to the vicarage of the adjoining parish of Newington, both churches having the same patron.

Church of Cheriton.