The Story of Jesus Chapel

(kindly contributed by Rev Paul Firmin and written by Miss Doris Corps )

From medieval times there was an old house and chapel at Bitterne Manor belonging to the see of Winchester, built on the site of the former Roman settlement of Clausentum

Towards the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth the occupant of the old house, Francis Mylles, former secretary to Sir Francis Walsingham and later Member of Parliament for Winchester, applied to the Bishop of Winchester for permission to cart stone from Bitterne Manor to a part of Ridgeway Heath called Pear Tree Green for the purpose of building a new house. It was common practice in those days to avail oneself of building materials lying to hand.

Francis Mylles called his house Pear Tree House. Around 1617 it was occupied by Captain Richard Smith, a former Governor of Calshot Castle, who became a connection by marriage of Francis Mylles when John Packer, the brother of Captain Smith's first wife, married Philippa, the daughter of Francis Mylles, in 1613.

The people of the area into which Captain Smith had moved were mainly farming, labouring and fishing folk, ferrying surplus produce across the Itchen to help feed the townspeople of Southampton. They were nominally in the parish of St Mary's Church which stood on the opposite side of the river, outside the old walls of Southampton. Apart from St Mary's, the nearest churches for these people were at South Stoneham, Botley and Hound, so attendance at services, christenings, marriages or burials involved a long walk, or a jolting ride over rough roads, or the crossing by open boat of a broad and often turbulent river. Apart from the ferry boat, the only other way to reach St Mary's was by crossing the river at Mansbridge.

Captain Smith was a pious, God-fearing man Having experienced at first hand the difficulties involved in attending divine services he resolved to build, at his own expense, the church that he and his neighbours so sorely needed An application made to Dr. James Montagu, Bishop of Winchester, for a licence to build a chapel of ease on Ridgeway Heath was granted in February, 1617. Tradition says that more stone was brought up from Bitterne Manor. This may well be true since the stone in the oldest part of the church, the west wall near the porch, came originally from quarries at Quarr in the Isle of Wight, exhausted centuries before the church was built.

The original church building was fairly small and probably did not take long to build. Inside the church today, over the small arch near the font is a small shield, its coat of arms erased by 200 years of weathering, since it was originally on the outside of the building. The date 1618, still boldly incised just below the shield indicates that the building was completed in that year, yet the church was not dedicated till September, 1620 What caused the delay? Bishop Montagu's death in July, 1618, no doubt accounted for some of it, since his successor, Bishop Andrewes, did not arrive from Ely to replace him till January, 1619 Further delay probably arose from the lengthy negotiations in which Captain Smith, the Bishop and the Rector of St. Mary's were involved to safeguard the rights and emoluments of the mother church. St Mary's church was in a partly ruinous state at that time - only the chancel being used for services - and the Rector could ill afford any loss in revenue. Consequently, stringent stipulations were made to safeguard previous tithes and offerings and to ensure that marriage and burial fees should still go to the Rector of St Mary's, regardless of whether the ceremony was performed in the new church or the mother church. It was agreed that the upkeep and repair of the new church would devolve on its own parishioners, yet contributions towards the upkeep of St. Mary's would still be required of them. Stipulations were also made regarding attendance at the new church. People on the west side of the river could not attend the new church without the permission of the Rector, but Captain Smith and his neighbours must undertake to attend Holy Communion at St Mary's at Easter or Whitsun unless they had a dispensation from the Bishop. This clause was designed to maintain a state of subjection. Further negotiations centred round the appointment of a curate in charge, and Captain Smith was required to guarantee a stipend of 20 marks per annum (£13 6s 8d) and to provide a small house for his use.

Captain Smith's relations rallied round him handsomely. Frances, Countess of Exeter, whose first husband had been Sir Thomas Smith, gave £50 in her lifetime, and Mrs Catherine Palmer, thought to have been Captain Smith's mother in law by his second marriage, bequeathed a similar sum. These monies were invested to produce income to be put towards the curate's stipend.

The Consecration of Jesus Chapel

By 1620, the church had been built and furnished, and all business matters relating to it had been settled On Sunday, September 17th 1620, Bishop Lancelot Andrewes came to Ridgeway to consecrate the new church which was to be called Jesus Chapel, and also to consecrate its burial ground. At that time, there being no set form of service in the Book of Common Prayer for the consecration of a church, the Bishop had prepared a form of service of his own. This service, a model for subsequent consecrations, was published some years after his death in booklet form entitled "The Form of Consecration of a Church or Chapel and a Place of Christian Burial. Exemplified by the Right Reverend Father in God, Lancelot, late Lord Bishop of Winchester, in the Consecration of the Chapel of Jesus in the Foresaid Diocese" The booklet was sold by T. Garthwait, at the "little north door of St Paul's, London, 1659". This was old St Paul's, of course, destroyed in the Great Fire of London, 1666.

The Bishop began the service saying, "Captain Smith, you have been an often earnest suitor to me, that I would come hither to you. Now that we are come hither to you, what have you to say to us?".  Speaking on behalf of himself, the inhabitants of Weston, Woolston, Ridgeway and Bitterne Manor Captain Smith told of the difficulties of crossing the broad and often dangerous River Itchen, in consequence of which "the people go not over at all, or if any do, yet they both go and return back in great danger, and sometimes not the same day. Besides, in the fairest weather, at their return from church, they press so thick into the boat for haste home, that often it proves dangerous and ever fearful, especially to women with child, old, impotent sickly people and to young children ". He went on to say, "Many times also they are forced to baptise their children in private houses, the water not being passable, and when they lie sick, they are without comfort to their souls, and die without Ghostly advice or counsel, their own minister not being able to visit them, by reason of roughness of the water, and other ministers being some miles off remote from them". Captain Smith then reaffirmed his promises to the Bishop regarding the proper use of the church, its furnishing and maintenance, and the appointment and support of a "sufficient clerk, being in the Holy Order of Priesthood".

"In the Name of God let us begin,' said the Bishop, and he and his clerks, Richard Smith and his family and friends, villagers, cottagers, seamen and all who could, crowded into the little church. There was a long day before them The service began at eight o'clock in the morning and went right on to evensong, apart from intervals for refreshment at Pear Tree House. Every part of the church was visited, and appropriate prayers said. At the communion service the cup had to be filled several times from the flagon on the altar. There were psalms, the litany, an address by the Rev. Rowlandson (Captain Smith's brother in law), and at some time during that long day a poor woman came forward to be "churched", and to give thanks for the recent birth of her baby.

When the Bishop sat in his chair to give forth the act of consecration, his gaze went round the church and he spoke of its dimensions and furnishings. From East to West it was fifty and a half feet. From North to South it was twenty and a half feet. It had wooden chancel rails, a holy table (properly furnished), a font, a pulpit, convenient seats both below and above in a gallery (reached by steps outside the west wall), and a bell.

Two of the assistants of the Bishop that day were the Wren brothers, Matthew and Christopher, uncle and father of the boy destined to be the architect of the new St Paul's Cathedral. They each had distinguished careers ahead of them. Matthew became chaplain to Charles I, when he was Prince of' Wales, and accompanied him on his romantic journey to the court of Spain in search of a bride. He became Dean of Windsor, and in succession Bishop of Hereford, Norwich and Ely. Being a Royalist and a zealous churchman he suffered during the conflict between the Crown and Parliament and was imprisoned for eighteen years, but was reinstated in his see when Charles II came to the throne. He died in 1667 aged 81. His brother Christopher did not attain quite such eminence. He became the Dean of Windsor, and later Rector of East Knoyle in Wiltshire

Before proceeding to the consecration of the burial ground, the Bishop asked Captain Smith why he was again calling on his services. Captain Smith spoke movingly of the times when, the river being impassable, his neighbours were "constrained to bury their dead in the open fields, or if they durst venture over, yet the dead body was followed with so little company as was no way seemly". The consecration then took place At that time the burial ground was two to three thousand square yards in extent and was enclosed by a wooden rail.


Early Benefactions of Jesus Chapel

During the service of consecration of the church the Bishop had spoken of the altar as being "properly furnished". Was the silver borrowed for the occasion, we wonder, and did the Bishop know about it? Why else would he express the wish that the offertory of £41 2s 2d, collected on a silver plate, should be used to provide a chalice for the new church'? It is not known whether this was done or not. The silver still in existence today all dates from after the Restoration of Charles II and mostly came as a bequest from a second Catherine Palmer, a maiden lady, probably a niece of the original benefactress, who died somewhere between 1680 and 1691 and was laid to rest in a vault in Jesus Chapel. The bequest consisted of a chalice, a cover, two handsome silver flagons, an altar cloth, a pulpit cloth and a cushion.

For knowledge of the early benefactions of Jesus Chapel we are indebted to the Rev. Thomas Andrewes, who became minister around 1705 or 1706. He sat down on one occasion and drew up a list of the benefactions known up to his day. He listed the gifts of Catherine Palmer and the Countess of Exeter, the bequest of silver of the later Catherine Palmer, the gift of land in Berkshire under Captain Smith's will, the small house in Sea Road provided by Captain Smith for the use of the curate in charge, the bequests made under the will of Nathaniel Mills in 1638, the annuity of £5 for which John Packer, Captain Smith's "most deare brother" had made himself responsible, and so on.

By the time that Thomas Andrewes had taken up his incumbency some of the benefactions still remained, but others had been "lost". The money of Catherine Palmer and the Countess of Exeter was still safely invested. The church silver was still in existence. The small house in Sea Road, known as the Old Parsonage, was still being used by the curate in charge. If it were sold, the Rev. Andrewes estimated it might bring in £10. Nathaniel Mills' bequests - £2 yearly to the parson of Jesus Chapel, £1 yearly for the upkeep of the church, and £2 yearly for the poor of the parish, to be paid for ever out of his manor or farm of Woolston - were still being administered by the mayor of Southampton, and three of his most ancient aldermen. But the ownership of the land in Abingdon had been disputed, so nothing was coming from that source, the Packer annuity was no longer being paid, and there were other losses in income.

It is hardly surprising that Jesus Chapel had sustained "losses", considering the turmoil and reversals of fortune which would have taken place during the trouble between King and Parliament, only a generation after the founding of the church John Packer, for instance, had been a very wealthy man who owned several estates, among them being Groombridge, in Kent. This estate eventually went to John Packer's great grandson, Philip, whose fortune declined and Groombridge had to be sold. If the benefaction to Jesus Chapel had been a charge on this estate, it would have been lost on the change of ownership. Captain Smith had also left his own family very well provided for, but in later years his son Richard appears to have had problems with money. A blank for a baronetcy purchased on his behalf by his father was never taken up, a copyhold to land in Bitterne was forfeited in 1641 (only two years after he succeeded to it) for non—-payment of £41 l0s, the patronage of Jesus Chapel was sold by him, for £10 "in the hand", to Martha Mylles in 1685.

There is a poignant little story about one would-be benefactress of Jesus Chapel. This was Lady Martha Coney, widow of Sir William Coney of St Anne's, Westminster, half sister of the Catherine Palmer who gave the silver to the church and whose coat of arms is carried by the silver flagons. When Lady Martha died in 1691, she left a will in which she expressed the desire to be buried in the same vault at Jesus Chapel as her sister. Her wish was granted, and Lady Martha was laid to rest alongside her sister. After making a few bequests to relations, Lady Martha also desired that £30 "be set out at interest for the use of the parsons that shall belong to Jesus Chapel near Southampton ".This request was denied by her family, who said that her assets were not sufficient. As the Rev. T L 0 Davies wryly commented, years later, "The parsons can only regret that her means were not equal to her goodwill".

The Church Registers

We are indebted to the Rev. Anthony Poole for the earliest records of christenings, burials and marriages at Jesus Chapel. Right from the beginning, the mother church had failed to provide a book for the recording of such events. The Curates in charge were expected to enter them in the registers of the mother church. Most of these, however, were destroyed in a disastrous fire at St Mary's Rectory early in the 18th Century. Like his predecessors at Jesus Chapel, the Rev. Poole had sought to officiate in a second church in order to augment his meagre stipend. For many years he combined the duties of Jesus Chapel and South Stoneham. Later he moved to Holy Rood, while still retaining Jesus Chapel. Over the years he had adopted the practice of recording all christenings, marriages and burials in the South Stoneham register, as Jesus Chapel did not have one, putting a small mark against the Jesus Chapel records to distinguish them from the others. His move to Holy Rood presented him with a problem. Where was he now going to keep his records'? He solved the problem by providing himself with a "little payper book", Jesus Chapel's first register, but he did so grudgingly. Along with the christenings, marriages and burials, he recorded his annoyance at having to provide the book at his own expense. "Memorandum - that Jesus Chapel being in the parish of St. Mary's, and no register book belonging to it because the parishioners took no care to provide one, for thirty years past I was both vicar of South Stoneham and Minister of Jesus Chappel. I took care to enter all Christenings, Marriages and Burials belonging to the said Chappel into the Register book of South Stoneham, distinguishing them by this mark. (There follows a drawing of a hand, with the index finger outstretched). But now being removed to the Vicarage of Holy Rood in Southampton, and still continuing the said Chappel, I have taken care to enter all Christenings, Marriages and Burials in this small payper book, til such time as the Parishioners of St Mary's shall provide me a Register Book for the said Chappel, this is the true state of the case Witnesse my hand, Ant Poole, Minister of Jesus Chappel".

The Rev Poole never did get the register for which he had waited so long, and neither did his successor, the Rev Thomas Andrewes, who kindly gave another book to the parish. The Rev Saunders recorded events in a little book of his own providing. The Rev Bartholomew left a memorandum to the effect that he started a new register in 1739, but did not say who had been the provider.

There are a number of gaps in the records, which presumably occurred between the going of one minister and the coming of another, when the Rector of St Mary's would have been responsible for any services carried out at Jesus Chapel. An absence of marriages from 1753 onwards was due to "Hardwicke's Act", (Act 26 Geo II Cap 3 3) which restricted the celebration of marriages to parish churches only, in an attempt to prevent clandestine marriages from taking place. The restriction remained in force until 1843, when the Bishop of Winchester granted Jesus Chapel a new licence (under the provisions of Acts 6 and 7, Will IV Cap 85) enabling banns to be published once again and marriages celebrated. A dearth of baptisms around 1770 was due to the action taken by the redoubtable Rev James Scott, of whom more later.

Hard Times

Though life was hard for the incumbents of Jesus Chapel in the first half of the 18th century, it was even harder for their little flock. The farmers and labourers of the area were very dependent upon the seasons and the harvests, and a poor yield meant hunger for all. The harvests of the sea were equally unpredictable. Sometimes great shoals of herring came up the Itchen, or the catches of sprats were so huge that the surplus had to be spread over the fields as manure. At other times the fish did not come, and adverse weather made it perilous to venture out in search of them. When illness, accident or death overcame a breadwinner, his family could soon be reduced to desperate straits. Southampton itself was in a bad way - almost on the verge of bankruptcy - and had declined as a port because its trade with the continent had been hampered and disrupted by wars with France. Even trade around the coast and with the Channel Islands was risky, owing to the activities of French Privateers, and in the Mediterranean all shipping had to run the gauntlet of encounters with Algerian and Turkish pirates. The punitive expeditions that were despatched from time to time often included amongst their crews men from Itchen Ferry, who had a hard-won reputation for good seamanship. These "Algerines" as they came to be called were sometimes captured and enslaved for a while. The old Church Warden's books record the little sums doled out in those dark days to the sick, needy and orphaned to help them over the bad patches. There are frequent references to the "poor Turkey Slaves", the hardy souls who somehow struggled back home, utterly destitute, and who looked to the little church on Pear Tree Green for some relief of their misery. They came in considerable numbers 12 in 1727, 9 in 1729, 3 in 1730, 18 in 1734, 11 in 1736, and no less than 46 in 1737.

Jesus Chapel lacked the resources to do much to relieve the bodily distress of its people during those hard times but it could provide spiritual comfort, and a hope of better things to come. During a particularly lengthy interregnum, around 1730 it is thought, even this comfort was often denied them, and they sorely missed the ministrations of a vicar of their own. Consequently a petition was prepared for presentation to the Rector of St Mary's, asking for his help. A copy of the petition, unsigned and undated, was found among the papers of Jesus Chapel. The petition begins by reminding the Rector of the reasons for the building of Jesus Chapel, and says that the people are again in a similar plight, both with regard to crossing the Itchen and from "the want of a minister to perform the offices and dutyes in the Chappel and to visit the sicke which are here very numerous and Poore and easily persuaded to tarry at home or tern to Conventicles, to prevent which wee are willing to make such a subscription as may in some manner support a Goode man to reside here on this side the water ".The Rector was asked to make a contribution, which if he did so, "would gaine him the prayers of all these poore inhabitants".

Whether the petition was ever actually presented to the Rector of St Mary's (Archdeacon Brideoak), is not known. Certainly his name does not appear among the 53 subscribers who in 1733 promised to pay annual sums amounting in all to £11 6s to the "goode man" who came to the rescue, namely the Rev Saunders. Perhaps the people of Jesus Chapel decided to rely entirely on self-help. In any case, the mother church still had problems of its own. For most of his ministry Archdeacon Brideoak was actively engaged in having his church rebuilt. A nave was built on to the old chancel in 1711, and then the chancel was rebuilt in 1723. The work was strong, plain and honest, and St Mary's remained virtually unchanged until 1833. Archdeacon Brideoak had only a small number of people in his parish, as most of the inhabitants of Southampton still lived within the city walls, or in the parish of All Saints. St. Mary's was surrounded by farm land, orchards and marshes, and as late as 1779, according to the town records, had only 57 rateable houses in the parish.

For how long subscribers were able to maintain their payments is not known, but around 1770, the then incumbent, the Rev Scott, was finding it so difficult to make ends meet that he resolved to do something about it. In a memorandum in the church register he wrote "The reason why so few baptisms after this year are registered is that James Scott, ye curate of Jesus Chapell in two memorials complains to ye Bishop of Winchester (Dr John Thomas) of ye hardship and inconsistency of taking care of parochial duty in that part of ye parish called St Mary's Extra as curate of Jesus Chappell when ye Rector of St Mary's received all ye emoluments of surplice fees. The Bishop considered ye case and ordered ye Rector of St Mary's to do all of parochial duty of baptisms and visiting of sick, etc. ,in that part of ye parish as well as ye other ,just ye same as if there was no Chappell existed. The Rector of St Mary's having nothing to do with ye service of ye said Chappell nor of Burial of ye Parishioners of St Mary's Extra in ye church-yard of ye said Chapell. The Bishop's injunction exempted ye curate from ye unprofitable burden of slaving for ye Rector of St. Mary".

It took a while, but by withdrawing a part of his labour, the Rev Scott succeeded in having the terms of his employment ameliorated. From his time onwards, the rewards of the ministers of Jesus Chapel began to be more commensurate with their labours.

Better Days

In the mid-eighteenth century the fortunes of Southampton were at their lowest ebb, but the tide was about to turn, bringing sweeping changes to the town and its people, and also to the parish of St. Mary's and that of Jesus Chapel.

For a brief period Southampton became a fashionable Spa town, when a medicinal spring was discovered just north of Bargate in the 1740's. Frederick, Prince of Wales, and later his sons, came to drink that water, and their visits set the seal of royal patronage and approval on the town, and fashionable society began to follow. Apart from health giving baths, drinking the waters, visiting the countryside and admiring the views, the visitors needed entertainment, so assembly rooms for balls, concerts, and card playing were built, botanical gardens created, archery butts set up, and so on. The refurbished hotels of the town enjoyed a period of unprecedented prosperity. Stage coach networks were set up to traverse the good roads recently brought into being by the Turnpike Trusts, and passengers and goods were deposited at the hotels with ease and regularity. There was a building boom. Many of the most beautiful parts of the town and its environs were snapped up as sites for desirable residences for the wealthy.

The Dukes of Cumberland and Gloucester ceased their visits to the town after 1778, but for thirty years or more the seasons continued, led by lesser lights, such as the Marquis of Landsowne, who entertained lavishly in his Gothic castle.

Doubtless the presence of the officers of the various regiments billeted in and around Southampton during the wars with the French added colour and glitter to the various assemblies and provided the young ladies with dashing partners. The bright eyes of the young ladies must often have aroused strong feelings in the young men. A victim of rivalry between officers lies buried in the church yard of Jesus Chapel This was Lieutenant Smith of the 19th Regiment, encamped on Netley Common, who challenged Ensign O'Brie to a duel. Lieutenant Smith was killed, and O'Brie fled to Winchester where he was caught and brought back for trial at Southampton, where he was convicted of manslaughter.

Some of the people who were attracted to Southampton at this time were men of vision, who saw the possibilities of the locality and had the money to put their plans into operation. One such man was David Lance. While in the far east, he had become friendly with Fitzhugh of Bitterne Manor. On his return to this country, David Lance had married Fitzhugh's sister, and had built a fine house in Bitterne called Chessel House, with beautiful views of the Itchen Valley. As Mansbridge was still the only bridge across the Itchen near Southampton, access to Chessel House was rather difficult for visitors from Southampton, so Mr Lance invested in a company which built Northam Bridge, and later, Bursledon Bridge.

During her stay in Southampton from 1806 - 1809, Jane Austen paid occasional courtesy calls on Mrs Lance. She also encountered her and her daughters from time to time at balls and assemblies in Southampton. In one of her letters, Jane Austen told how she and a companion crossed the Itchen by Ferry boat, walked up Sea Road, across Pear Tree Green and on to Chessel House. It is hardly likely that the observant Miss Austen gave only a passing glance at the little church on Pear Tree Green, or at the old and ailing pear tree that gave it its name. After tea and polite conversation with Mrs. Lance, the two visitors made their way homewards to Castle Square by way of Northam Bridge, admiring the views as they went across

The 19th century — a period of rapid growth

Early in the nineteenth century Southampton began to decline as a Spa town, mainly because Brighton was now coming to the fore. Various attempts were made to rekindle its former popularity, but they came to nothing, yet despite this, Southampton continued to grow and to attract new trade. When the Napoleonic war ended, the coastal and channel trade was resumed. From the 1820's onward, steam driven paddle ships, good roads and fast stage coaches established Southampton as a major port in the South.

By the 1830's the volume of goods being handled, and the numbers of passengers using the port were such that the Town Quay and West Quays were inadequate to deal with them. The Royal Pier and the Old Docks were built to ease the situation. Hundreds of workers flocked to the town, attracted by the promise of work for all. They built the docks and the warehouses. Later they were joined by hundreds more who came to build the railways. The workers had to be housed, so after each influx there was a building boom. Within a few years, the fields, orchards and marshes around St Mary's had become transformed into street after street of working class homes, and St Mary's church had to be completely rebuilt to accommodate its greatly increased congregations.

In time, the population spilled over on to the Eastern side of the river, into Woolston and Itchen, with a further influx of people, mainly from the North of England and Scotland, when Oswald and Mordaunt's, later Thornycroft's, was established on the bank of the river.

The newcomers brought changes to the area The tight-knit little community of Itchen Ferry resented the coming of the "foreigners" and fights broke out. Though inter-marriages took place, it took a generation or more for the area to settle down. No matter how long a person lived in Itchen Ferry, he remained a foreigner unless he had been born there. Another major change as a result of the growth in population was the coming of the Floating Bridge. The ferry boat had become totally inadequate for the amount of traffic across the Itchen, and a new means of transporting people and goods had to be sought. The people of Itchen Ferry objected strongly to a bridge being built, fearful of losing their livelihood. The Admiralty and the Northam Bridge Company also objected, on the grounds that a bridge would interfere with shipping in the river. Finally the Admiralty came up with the idea of a floating bridge, steam driven, working on wire hawsers. After a period of hard bargaining, terms were agreed, and the new Floating Bridge began to operate in 1836. As a result of the rise in the population of the parish of St Mary Extra, throughout the nineteenth century the ministers of Jesus Chapel were closely concerned with the problems involved in enlarging the church, building the schools for the children, providing more burial ground and building three new churches.

For two hundred years Jesus Chapel had remained virtually unchanged, but in 1821, when the population of the parish was 983 and the seating capacity of the church only 290, the South transept was built. In 1847, the addition of the North aisle increased the accommodation to 539, but on several occasions, the church was so full that parishioners had to be turned away. It became necessary for three new churches to be built - St Mark's, Woolston, in 1863; Holy Trinity, Weston, in 1865; and St Mary's, Sholing, in 1866. The parishes of all three were carved out of the parish of St Mary Extra. Jesus Chapel was again enlarged in 1883, when the Chancel was built on to the church. By then, the gallery built in 1618 had been removed because it was unsafe. The gallery was broken up for firewood and used to heat the church "It was not the first occasion by many on which the gallery had been instrumental in increasing the heat of the church - at least to those who sat under it," wrote the Rev T L O Davies.

The money needed for the alterations to Jesus Chapel came partly from the diocese and partly from private subscriptions. The Rector of St Mary's was approached in both 1821 and also in 1847 and invited to subscribe, but on both occasions felt unable to do so. He was the Earl of Guildford, a noted pluralist, who enjoyed the stipends from a number of churches, but as he no longer received any monetary gain from Jesus Chapel he evidently felt under no obligation. The tie between the mother church and the daughter church was becoming weak, and in 1881 it was broken entirely when the minister of Jesus Chapel became vicar in his own right, and no longer a perpetual curate of St Mary's.

Fortunately for Jesus Chapel, help was now coming from a new source. A number of wealthy people had moved away from the overcrowding and cholera outbreaks of Southampton and now lived in fine residences on the outskirts of the parish. Many of these people were supportive of the church and generous with their money. Their names, and the names of the houses where they once lived, can be found on the memorial tablets around the walls of the church - the Macnaghtens of Bitterne Manor, the Hultons of Barnfield, the Wrights of Oak Bank and Mayfield. The Chamberlaynes of Weston Grove, the Richardsons of Chessel, and the Edes, Forbes and Erringtons of Merry Oak. The latter name, a corruption of St Mary's Oak, came from the old oak tree which stood in the Errington's stable yard right up to the beginning of the 20th century, marking the old parish boundary. Sadly, most of those fine houses no longer exist, but the memory of them is kept alive by the street names near their former locations.

The Pear Tree Schools, formerly the National Schools, were built in 1848 on land adjoining Pear Tree Green given by the Bishop of Winchester in his capacity as Lord of the Manor. Built of stone, at a cost of £865 15s 3d, the buildings are a fitting complement to the church. An infants' school, added in 1897 in memory of the Rev W. Lewis Davies, cost £600, raised by voluntary contributions. This little corner of the parish, with the church, the schools, the Pear Tree Inn and the Green in close proximity, retains a little of the village atmosphere of former days. As in the case of many former church schools, the Pear Tree Schools have now passed into the care of the state, for the rising cost of maintenance and the higher standards of the provision required were burdens too great for the church to bear.

The provision of more burial ground in the area to cope with the increasing population proved to be a thornier problem than had been anticipated. The enlargement of the church in 1821/2 had taken away some of the burial ground, so in 1846 the boundary was pushed out slightly to make the church yard exactly one acre in extent. By 1852 the space was filling up rapidly, and the owner of Ridgeway drew attention to the fact that many of the people being buried in the churchyard were non-parishioners. The Bishop was consulted, and with his help regulations were drawn up putting limitations on its use.

For a while, the burial grounds attached to the new churches of Weston and Sholing eased the situation, but by the 1870's it became clear that more ground was needed. Mr Chamberlayne offered to sell a piece of ground beside Sholing Lane for £50, but the villagers wanted to enclose the land at the back of the church. The Commissioners, reluctant at first, finally agreed to this proposal, but Mr Forbes of Merry Oak strongly opposed any further encroachment on Pear Tree Green and took out an injunction to prevent it. He was prepared to give the £50 so that Mr. Chamberlayne's offer could be taken up, but by then it was realised that the parcel of land was too small. A Burial Board was set up in 1878 on which the Rev T L 0 Davies served for 18 years. The Rev Hulton, son of the first minister of Weston, sold the Board ten acres of Weston Common for £1500. This land became St Mary Extra Cemetery. A curator's lodge and chapels were provided, and to pay for it all, £3000 was borrowed at 4 ½ % for 30 years, to be repaid by annual instalments. The last instalment was paid in 1910. The management of the cemetery is now vested in the Council. Pear Tree's own burial ground was closed at the beginning of the 20th Century, whereupon it became the Council's duty to keep it in order.

In the 19th century yachting became the new sport of the wealthy. Three roads in the parish still perpetuate the names of yachts famous in their time - Ailsa, Defender, and Shamrock. The fears of the ferry men that the coming of the Floating Bridge would take away their livelihood proved groundless, as many of them were sought after to skipper or crew some very famous yachts. Ben Parker became the captain of the German Emperor's yacht "Meteor". Charles Dyke and Henry Parker were skippers in succession of Thomas Chamberlayne's "Arrow", which, bought from a breaker's yard, redesigned and rebuilt, was the only English yacht ever to beat the 1851 Queen's cup winner "America". This happened in a race off Ryde, in the following year.

In the church yard of Jesus Chapel, a tombstone tells of a tragedy which happened in 1884, when three men and a cabin boy called Richard Parker were taking the yacht "Mignonette" to a new owner in Australia. The yacht foundered in mountainous seas in the South Atlantic, and they took to a dinghy. The cabin boy, who had been told to bring food and water, threw the water keg overboard, thinking it would float and be retrieved, but it sank like a stone. The two tins he brought contained turnips, not meat. After 16 days adrift in the open boat, while crazed with hunger and thirst, two of the men decided to save their own lives by killing and cannibalising the 17 year old cabin boy, who was already near death from the effects of drinking sea water. This they did. On the 19th day, they were picked up by a passing ship and brought back to England. They were tried and condemned to death for murder, but owing to the terrible suffering they had under gone, they were reprieved and given a short term of imprisonment. The tombstone telling the tragic story was placed on the grave of the boy's mother.

Scenes from the tragedy of the Mignonette, the death of Richard Parker and the trial of Dudley (centre) and Stephens (left of centre) in Regina v. Dudley and Stephens (1884)

The Davies Family

The patronage which Richard Smith sold to Mrs Martha Mylles remained in the family for more than 200 years, passing through various branches to the Speedes, the Warings and the Davieses.

In the 19th century the Davies family provided Jesus Chapel with three incumbents in succession, all remarkable men, dedicated to their vocation and dependable leaders in a time of great change. The Rev William Lewis Davies, a Fellow of St John's College, Oxford, afterwards Principal of Elizabeth College, Guernsey, came to the parish in 1847 and died in 1856, aged 60. His memorial, the Infants' school, was a fitting one in view of his interest in Education. He was succeeded by his nephew, the Rev John Silvester Davies, of Pembroke College, Oxford, a brilliant scholar and researcher, author of several books, the best known among them being "The History of Southampton, (1883) still very highly regarded by eminent historians. He resigned from Jesus Chapel in 1860, to make way for his cousin. After spending a year in Alexandria, he returned to Southampton as curate of St Peter's, and in 1864 became the first incumbent of St Mark's, Woolston.

The Rev Thomas Lewis Owen Davies, son of the Rev William Lewis Davies, was a graduate of Exeter College, Oxford. Like his cousin, he had written several books, and also had an interest in history, and a keen chronicler of the day to day events affecting his parish and his parishioners. He drew upon his store of local knowledge to write a number of articles for the "Southampton Times" in 1901 under the heading "Historical Notes", and they make fascinating reading today.

Though the chief concern of the Rev T L 0 Davies was for the spiritual welfare of his parishioners, he had a care for their minds and bodies also. He was a great organiser of evening classes, exhibitions, flower and vegetable shows, a debating society, a natural history society, welfare schemes and a sickness benefit society. He formed a cricket club which used to play on Pear Tree Green, and he sat shoulder to shoulder with them at celebratory suppers at the Royal Oak in Itchen Ferry. He was a good friend in time of trouble. When the Floating Bridge Company tried to renege on terms agreed with the Ferry men he was a firm leader of the opposition. When there was an encroachment on their landing places, and the Ferry men threatened to use violence he was a restraining influence, and brought them round the table to thrash out a compromise.

At first the Davies family lived at the Old Parsonage, but when the railway branch line from Southampton to Netley crossed their garden they decided it was time to move. The old house was sold for £1,800 - a far cry from the £10 estimated by the Rev Thomas Andrewes so many years before. A house called Woolston Lawn was purchased in its place and renamed Pear Tree Vicarage. It stood on land which had once been part of Nathaniel Mills' manor.

In 1910 the Rev T L 0 Davies celebrated his Jubilee as Vicar of Jesus Chapel. It was typical of the man that his gift from parishioners and friends should take the form of improvements to the interior of the church he loved so well. It was also typical of him that he should meticulously list every single gift item in the Parish Magazine of October, 1910, from the Reredos of Caen stone with alabaster panels and corbels for altar lights, right down to a new stone step, replacing the worn one at the West door.

The Rev T L 0 Davies continued to serve for a further seven years. He resigned in 1917, and died the following year, deeply mourned.

The Twentieth Century

The "goode" men longed for in the old petition have never ceased to come to Jesus Chapel, from the time of the Rev Saunders to the present day, and they have served the church and its people faithfully and well. It has not been easy. Jesus Chapel and its parishioners have had varying fortunes in the present century, like so many others. The war memorial in the church reminds us of the many families who lost their loved ones in the 1914 -1918 war, and many of the older folk still remember the years of depression and unemployment that followed that war, and the great dole queues that used to form in Woolston. The coming of new industries, especially the aircraft industry brought new jobs and renewed hope to the area. Then the 1939 - 1945 war brought widespread destruction to the parish, and wiped out Itchen Ferry almost entirely. There was an exodus of many people to less vulnerable places Some returned after the war, but others did not, and have been replaced by new families moving into the area. Jesus Chapel came through the war almost unscathed. The people at the A R P post on the Green had kept a watchful eye on it, and fire watchers, led by the curate, spent many a weary night in and around the church in an effort to keep it safe. When land mines fell in the vicinity they destroyed all the stained glass windows except one, the East Window, depicting the birth, the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.

Since the war the parish has undergone many changes. Most of the available land has been built upon, and blocks of flats have replaced many of the houses destroyed during the war. The Floating Bridge has gone, replaced by the Itchen Bridge, the coming of which has changed the appearance of Woolston considerably. Its approaches swept away Pear Tree Vicarage and also the Parish Hall. The parish now has a fine replacement hall close to the church, which is very convenient, and a new, smaller vicarage in Pear Tree Avenue.

Despite the number of purpose built flats and residential homes for the elderly in the neighbourhood, statistically Pear Tree Parish is a "young" area, so of necessity, much thought and attention has to given to the religious education, leisure activities and welfare of the young people who will be the church of the future, and to the problems of the young unemployed and the homeless. The traditional welfare work of the church is continued by the Women's Fellowship, the Mother's Union, the Luncheon Club, the Young Wives, the Sunday School, the Mission and Stewardship Group and the leaders of Rainbows, Brownies and Guides. Lay pastors and others assist the Vicar with his pastoral work by visiting elderly, sick or bereaved people in the parish, and the families of the newly baptised, and newly married.

The church is well and faithfully served by its Vicar, Lay Reader, organist, choir, servers, church wardens, sidesmen and the PCC. Many members of the congregation provide valuable back-up services of all kinds - distributing the Parish Magazine, cleaning the church, polishing the brass, arranging the flowers, and so on.

The Family Service has become a regular and popular feature in the pattern of worship in Jesus Chapel, and the whole congregation is able to join in and welcome the newly baptised babies and their parents and relations. Another regular occurrence is for members of the congregation to meet together in the Parish Hall for coffee and a chat after morning service. The Hall, now so near to the church is a great asset. It is pleasing in appearance, well maintained and well run by its management committee, and is the focal point of most of the activities of the parish.

Jesus Chapel was built to fill a need in the lives of the people of the neighbourhood. They maintained it lovingly and it has stood on the Green, serene and beautiful, in good times and bad, for more than three and a half centuries. Long may it survive. Living as we do in today's troubled world, our need for this little church and all that it stands for is as great today as ever before.

D E CORPS

(January 1985)
Reprinted 1997

LIST OF INCUMBENTS
(Perpetual Curates until 1881 - Vicars thereafter)

Jesus Chapel, Pear Tree

1620 — 1648 John Peckham, MA
16_? — 1668 Roger Turner, MA
1668 — 1702 Anthony Poole
1705 — ? Thomas Andrewes
1723 — 1729 (?) John Mylles, MA
1733 — 1739 Edward (?) Saunders, BA
1739 — 1768 William Bartholomew
1768 — 1794 James Scott
1794 — 1796 Lancelot Greenwaite Halton, MA
1796 Philip Baker (Died the same year)
1797 — 1809 Samuel Byam, DD
1809 — 1843 William Waring, MA
1843 — 1847 Philip Rawlin Robin, MA
1847 — 1856 William Lewis Davies, MA
1856 — 1860 John Silvester Davies, MA,FSA
1860 — 1917 Thomas Lewis Owen Davies, MA
1917 — 1921 William Edward Ashdown BA
1921 — 1924 Arthur James England Harris-Rivett, FRGS
1924 — 1933 William Hipwood Mowatt, MA
1933 — 1950 Cuthbert Gambier Ryves Sydney-Turner, DSO, OBE
1951 — 1958 William Lewis Johnson Bedder
1958 — 1980 Stanley Cyrus Wincott, AKC
1981 — 1986 Michael Harley, AKC, Dip Ed
1986 — 2000 Barry Paul James, BSc (Hons)
2001 — Date Paul Gregory Firmin, BA (Hons), ACIB