The History of the Chapel of the Maison de Dieu Hospital, Ripon

RIPON:
The History of the Chapel of the Maison de Dieu Hospital, Ripon

OF the foundation and early history of this little Chapel, and the Hospital to which it belonged, nothing can be ascertained; but the following particulars relating to the present institution have been extracted from the " Report of the Ripon Charities."

" This Hospital, sometimes called also S.' Ann's, is an ancient asylum for eight poor women, supposed to have been founded by one of the family of the Neville's. It appears to have been long under the management of the Mayor and Corporation of Ripon, as Trustees, but we could discover no evidence of any endowment antecedent to the following :-William Gibson having by will, dated 4th October, 1680, devised a piece of copyhold ground to the said Hospital, an acre and a half of meadow, situate in the fields of Ripon, in a place called Bell Furrs, was, on the 9th February, 1710, surrendered to the Mayor, AIdermen, and Commonalty of the borough of Ripon, and their successors, upon the trusts of the said will, for the relief and support of sixteen poor widows in the said Hospital; and that the said Mayor, Aldermen, and Commonalty, might supply the vacancies there, with poor widows, according to the ancient usage thereof.

" Isabella Lakin, by indenture of bargain and sale enrolled, dated 25th January, 1757, conveyed unto the Mayor, Burgesses, and Commonalty of Ripon, two closes of pasture and meadow ground, containing five acres called Bell Furrs, upon trust, to distribute the rents thereof among such poor . persons as there were or should hereafter be admitted into the said Hospital, in equal shares and proportions.

" The Hon. William Aislabie, by indenture dated 30th December, 1754, in consideration of £50, being monies belonging to the said Hospital, demised unto the Mayor, Burgesses, and Commonalty of Ripon, another piece of land, called Bell Furrs, containing la. 2n. 28p., for a term of 3000 years, upon the like trusts as are mentioned in the preceding conveyances, at a peppercorn rent, &c.

" The almswomen are selected by the Mayor and Corporation, usually from among poor widows of the town of Ripon, and are all proper objects of the charity."

Of the ground plan of this building little can be said. It consists, or rather did consist, of a nave and chancel; the former, to within four feet of the chancel arch, is divided into a number of small rooms, occupied by the almswomen mentioned in the foregoing extract. The sanctuary, probably from its more limited dimensions, has been spared such desecration, but only to be exposed to a degree of neglect no less deplorable-it is roofless, and at present a receptacle for garden implements.

No exterior view is given, as no external feature of any interest remains. All the windows of the nave have been walled up, nor can their positions be ascertained, as the walls are completely covered with a thick coat of rough cast, and not a bit of their original surface is visible. It had three doorways, one at the west end, and one on the north and south sides; the two latter, immediately westward of the chancel arch, a somewhat unusual position ; those at the west end and on the north side are walled up. There are no indications of a bell-turret or gable; and the coping has been removed from the western gable of the nave ; that, however, on the eastern one remains, but the cross is gone. The nave has no feature by which the date of its erection can with certainty be ascertained, but the pitch of the roof and its massive walls would indicate an early period, and it is most likely coeval with the chancel arch, which belongs to the latter part of the twelfth century. The chancel is late perpendicular ; it has an eastern window of two lights, with a pointed arch, and about the middle of the south side is a two-light, cusped, square-headed window, and in a corresponding position, on the north side, there has been a similar one, but it is now walled up. In walling up this window, a shield, surmounted by a cross, was inserted-of which an engraving is given ; they had no connexion originally, the cross being apparently a gable cross. The chancel walls are of great solidity and well built, and are of hewn ashlar, internally as well as externally ; they are composed of limestone, very similar to that used at York Minster. They were originally surmounted by a battlemented parapet, fragments of which yet remain.

Of the interior of the Nave nothing can be seen excepting the roof, which is of oak; it is simply constructed, but of great solidity, it has trussed principals, consisting of tie beam, collar beams, struts, and braces. The chancel arch (shewn in the interior view) is of early date, but clearly later than the piers from which it springs. In the centre of the chancel, immediately to the east of the archway, stands what undoubtedly has been a benatura,* or holy water stoup, removed from its proper position; unlike the walls, it is of sand stone, octangular, on plan with concave sides, each side having a plain shield, excepting two, which appear at some time to have been attached to a wall. At present it stands on a roughly hewn pedestal, which formed no part of the original design. There is a piscina in the usual place, the basin contained in a projecting bracket, and a single light transomed window immediately to the east of it. There is a bracket on each side of the east window ; that on the north side being considerably the largest, and bearing a shield charged with three crescents. This chapel, too, has a stone altar, similar in form and construction to that of St. Mary Magdalen, but smaller, the slab being 5ft. 9in. long and 2ft. 7in. wide.

* In the engraving our lithographer has miscalled it a font.