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CHAPTER VII.
Church Books.
1. Black Letter Bible, 1611.—“Imprinted at London by Robert Barker, Printer to the King’s Most Excellent Maiestie. Anno Dom. 1611.”
Title page lost. Condition fair.
2. Book of Common Prayer and Holy Bible—in One Volume.—“Cambridge Printed by John Field Printer to the Universitie And illustrated wth chorographical sculps by J. Ogilby” The Prayer Book and the Old Testament are dated 1660, the New Testament 1659. A printed slip is pasted at the end of the Apocrypha with this inscription “This Bible was given to the Church of Leake in the connty of Nottingham, by Frances Stanhope—the Widow of the Honourable Charles Stanhope of Mansfield, Esq. and the mother of Michael Stanhope, Doctor in Divinity, Rector of the said Church, Nov. the ninth, 1717.”
3. The Book of Homilies.—Printed at Oxford, 1683. Condition, bad.
4. Bishop Jewel’s Works.—Black letter and Roman type. Title page lost. The date of the greater part of the volume 1611. Condition, bad. This volume bears upon its first page the name “Mr Bley,” who may have been the original owner. On the fly leaf are the names of “John Chamberlin” and “John North Booke his.” There are two or three attempts at rhyme, apparently by the former, of which one bears transcription
“ Godes gift am I, Himselfe He freely gave me Gods gift am I, and Non but hee shall have me.”
THE CHAINED BOOK.5. The most famous book in the possession of the Church is a chained volume,1 entitled “Katabaptistai Kataptustoi. The Dippers dipt. Or, The Anabaptists2 duck’d and plung’d over Head and Eares, at a Disputation in Southwark. Together with A large and full Discourse of Their 1 Original. 2 Several sorts. 3 Peculiar Errours. 4 High Attempts against the State. 5 Capitall punishments: with an Application to these times. By Daniel Featley D.D.3 The Third Edition. . . . London. Printed for Nicholas Bourne, at the South Entrance of the Royal Exchange: And Richard Royston, in Ivie-Lane. 1645.”
The Epistle Dedicatory of this book was addressed “To the Most Noble Lords with the Honorable Knights Citizens and Burgesses now Assembled in Parliament” “From Prison in the Lo: Peters house in Aldersgate-street, Jan. 10. 1644.”
The volume measures 7½ by 57/8 inches, and is bound in leather. It is in fairly good preservation.
THE REGISTERS.
The oldest register is a parchment volume, measuring 15 by 6 inches, containing mixed entries of baptisms, marriages, and burials, for the years 1600 to 1668. From 1654 to 1660 the entries are of births, not baptisms. These recommence in 1660, the year of the Restoration. Condition, good.
The second volume is also of parchment, measuring 14¾ by 5 inches, and contains mixed entries from 1669 to 1721. Condition, fair.
The third volume, also of parchment, needs binding. It measures 13¾ by 7¼ inches, and contains mixed entries—with some attempt at grouping them—for the years 1721-1764.
The fourth volume is of parchment, and is in good condition. It contains entries of baptisms and burials 1764- 1812. It measures 16¾ by 6¾ inches.
The fifth volume, parchment bound, contains entries of marriages from 1755 to 1812, and publications of banns from 1755 to 1788. It measures 15 by 9½ inches, and is in good condition.
A sixth volume, parchment bound, contains entries under the Act of 1783, which levied a 3d. stamp duty on every burial, marriage, and birth, or christening. The entries of marriages are from 1784 to 1799, baptisms 1783 to 1797, and burials 1783 to 1797. It is in bad condition.
EXTRACTS FROM THE REGISTERS.
The registers commence with the year 1600. They have few entries of special interest. In some of the extracts given, the form, rather than the substance, is the point of interest.
In the year 1644 we have this entry: “Ffowre souldiers buried slaine in a skirmish in our Lordship September ye 17th between partyes of the King’s forces and the Parliament’s whereof two were of His Majestyes forces of Ashby de la Zouche garrison and two of Leicester the Parliaments garrison.”
The next entry is “Thomas Ffloer alias Flower buried September ye 19th dying of his wounds received in the same skirmish September ye 17th being of the Ashby de la Zouche garrison.”
In 1654 the register commenced afresh at the other end of the volume, with this note at the top of the first page: 1654. “Be it remembered that on the 1st day of Aprill there came before me William Llanden Esqr one of the Justices of the peace for the County of Nottm William Wild being choosen the Parish Register for the Towne of East Leake in the said Countie and considering the sd William Wilde a person fittly qualified for that imployment I have approved and sworne according to the late act of Parliament in that behalf. In Witness whereof I have subscribed my hand the day & year first above written
Willm Llanden”
| 1727. | Eliz. Clark a Londoner buryed October ye 15th 4 |
| 1732. | Mary White a Traveller was Buried Ap 4th 4 |
| 1734. | Mr Edward Wheat was buried June the nineth |
| 1755. | Daniel Leake Buried Jany the 27th 1755 [The last Leake in the register.] |
| 1766. | Mr Hugh Hardy buried April 20th 1766 |
| 1771. | Miss Sarah Thorold buried June 10th |
| 1783. | Mr Thomas Angrave buried Sept 17th |
| Thomas Angrave buried Septr 24th | |
| 1786. | Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob, sons of Edward and Anne Savage were born 13th March 1786 at one birth and were baptized March 14th 1786 by me Stephen Phillips Curate. Abraham Isaac & Jacob sons of Edward and Ann Savage, born at one birth were buried in the same coffin on March 19th 1786. |
| 1806. | Mary Ann the daughter of the Rev. George Holcombe Rector buried May 31st 1806—(Buried in the Chancel—see floor stone) |
| “ | Mr John Hardy was buried Novr the 7th 1806. |
There are some curious Christian names and spellings in the registers : Alin, Amphales (Amphilus, Amphilas), Anfillis, Annes, Bottris, Coysandria, Dorritie, Darthoty, Edee, Elner, Elline, Emmet, Fatherne, Gillian, Hewe, Honna, Joyce, lone, Magdalene, Mudwin, Ostin, Prudent, Prudence, Rainold, Thurstan, Thomasin (Thomasiny) Ursula (Ussala, Ursilla).
Mention is made of certain villages at the close of the earliest register, implying that they were villages for whom collections, under Briefs, were made in the year 1638, viz., “Stoke Nayland in Suffolk, Clifton Com. Bedford, Mattershaw Com. Nottingham, Little Steeping Com. Lincolne, Lenton Nottinghamshire, Licham Com. Norfolk, Bourne Com. Lincolne.”
For the inhabitants of Meer in Wilts., who were suffering- through fire, the sum of 3/3 was offered at Great Leak under letters patent issued in the 22nd year of King Charles II., 1682.
(1) The book was probably attached to the East side of the middle pillar of the arcade.
(2) The Anabaptists or Baptists had a Meeting House in the village in 1696, see p. 63. This was replaced by a larger building in 1756, which was in turn enlarged in 1839. This community possesses an endowment of £700, which was left to it under the will of Mr. John Litherland, who was apprenticed in his youth to Mr. James Smedley, Joiner, Builder, and Wheelwright, of this parish.
(3) Daniel Featley, or Fairclough, b. 1582, d. 1645, had a remarkable career.—He was a Chorister of Magdalene Coll. Oxford, admitted Scholar of Christ Church 1594— He was Chaplain to English Ambassador at Paris, 1610-12; Domestic Chaplain to Archbishop of Canterbury, 1617-25; Rector of Northill, Cornwall; Rector of Lambeth, 1618 onwards; Rector of All Hallows, Bread Street, London; Rector of Acton, 1627 onwards; Provost of Chelsea College, 1630. In 1642 he narrowly escaped death at the hands of some of the Earl of Essex's soldiers. He was imprisoned for eighteen months, in 1644-5, as a “spy and intelligencer,” being found in correspondence with Archbishop Ussher. He was buried in the chancel at Lambeth Church. He was the author of “ Ancilla Pietatis,” “ Clavis Mystica," and various controversial books.
(4) These burials of strangers are accounted for by the forgotten fact that up to 1739 the road from Loughborough to Nottingham lay through East Leake and Gotham.