Great dalesfolk of yore, Teesdale Mercury

Great dalesfolk of yore

Mar 25, 2008

THROUGHOUT the Middles Ages ordinary people, particularly those who lived in the north, seem to have held knights in high esteem. 

This was probably because this part of the world was always in danger of being attacked from Scotland. The armies led by northern knights were the people's main protection. When a knight died he was most likely to be buried with honour in one of the monasteries supported by his family. In a few cases though knights were buried in their parish church. Sometimes a stone effigy was placed over their grave.

A knight's family would use their influence to have the body buried as near as possible to the high altar but in many cases an effigy would later be moved into some out of the way corner. 

It is quite surprising how many of these effigies have survived 600 years or so and are still in relatively good shape. There are exceptions however: Sir Ralph de Neville of Raby had the distinction of being the first layman to be buried in Durham Cathedral in recognition of his exploits at the Battle of Neville's Cross in 1346. Unsurprisingly his monument and that of his son Sir John de Neville were badly mutilated by the Scottish soldiers who at a later date were imprisoned in the Cathedral. The Scots would without doubt have regarded the Neville knights as their deadly enemies.

Of course it wasn't just knights whose graves were marked with an effigy.  Teesdale churches contain a number of effigies but most of them commemorate civilians, many of them women. 

For instance there is an effigy of a priest in the porch at Forcett Church and four effigies, two of men and two of women now adorn the window ledges of Stanwick church. And then there is a rather a curious effigy of a woman half in and half out of Hamsterley Church.   

The best preserved effigy of a knight in Teesdale is arguably that of Sir Hugh FitzHenry. He was buried in his parish church at Romaldkirk in 1304. Sir Hugh was Lord of Cotherstone and Ravensworth Castles. He was the last member of his family to take as his surname the name of his father. After his death his descendants adopted FitzHugh as their surname. The ancesters of the FitzHughs founded Jervaulx Abbey in the 12th Century and most of the family were buried there.

Why then was Hugh FitzHenry not taken to Jervaulx for burial? His wife Albreda who died before him was buried at Jervaulx as was his father, Henry FitzRandolph. It may be an indication of the troubled nature of the time when he died. Hugh died of battle wounds at ‘Berwick-upon-Teyse' on the 4th March 1304. I think this would be the place we now call Ingleby Barwick, right down the river near Yarm - or was the name of the place written down wrongly and Berwick-on-Tweed was really the place he died? Sir Hugh had been attending King Edward I, the Hammer of the Scots, in his Scottish Expedition. His death occurred shortly after the siege and taking of Stirling by the English army.

Sir Hugh's body was taken home to Romaldkirk where his funeral took place on 22nd March at St Romald's Church. It was conducted by John the Prior of Guisborough - an indication of Sir Hugh's rank and importance in Teesdale society. His effigy would probably have been erected shortly after his burial. Mind you when the floor was being restored in the 19th Century it was discovered that Sir Hugh's body wasn't under the effigy. 

He may have been buried in front of the altar and the effigy moved at a later date. Sir Hugh is depicted wearing his chain mail and bearing his sword. His right hand holds the hilt of his sword and he carries his shield in his left hand. His uncrossed feet rest on a small animal - possibly a dog.

Historians can trace the development of armour by studying the effigies of knights. Sir Hugh FitzHenry's armour is typical of that worn by knights in the early 14th Century.  At that time suits of armour didn't include solid pieces of steel. Instead they were made entirely of chain mail, which would probably have made movement easier for the knights than was the case later in history. Sir Hugh was carrying his sword unsheathed and so it is possible to see that this was a typical, relatively blunt, slashing sword generally used in the early 14th Century. 

There is some debate about whether someone's effigy even remotely resembled the person it was meant to depict. In the case of medieval monarchs, there are often several carvings purporting to represent a particular king and they have enough similarities to suggest that they really are quite lifelike. 

But in the case of a knight, it's unlikely that the sculptor had ever seen his subject, alive or dead. He would take care to get the coat of arms right because that was such a prestigious status symbol to the surviving family members. However, I can't help wondering if sometimes a grieving widow was horrified to find her husband given a stone moustache when in life he had always been clean shaven!

First published in the Mercury, March 19, 2008