was not the least important. "Brevia de privato sigillo[Pg 26] quickly succeed one another at this time," wrote the Rev. J. Brigstocke
Sheppard, in 1881,[3] when he had gone carefully through the muniments of the Dean and Chapter. "The King, in an agony of ap-
prehension, occasioned by the threat of invasion, backed by a large fleet collected in the northern ports of France, begs the Bishop
again and again to raise a defensive militia, to cause prayers to be offered in all churches, and finally to advance him as much money
as he can upon security of the clerical disme which would soon be due." In a further letter, the King being determined to borrow
from such of his subjects as could best afford to lend, ordered the Bishop to send for six of the richest clergy and six of the most
affluent laymen in each county, and upon these twenty-four to impose a loan of fifty marks on an average--more upon those who
could afford it, and less upon those less able to bear the tax. In 1373 Bishop Appleby was enjoined by the King to reside continually
in his diocese upon the Marches, and to keep the inhabitants in a state of defence as a protection to the rest of the kingdom against the Scots.
And so through all the long list of Border[Pg 27] troubles the Bishops had to take a conspicuous share in the proceedings, until the
ludicrous incident on Penrith Fell, which was the last occasion on which a Bishop took part in fighting on English soil. Various local
chroniclers have given different versions, but there seems to be no room for doubt that the one by Chancellor Ferguson is accurate.
When in 1715 the Jacobites marched from Brampton to take Penrith, the people from all the country side (though whether the
number was 4,000 or 14,000, as variously stated, is not material), armed with guns, scythes, pitch-forks, and other handy if not always
military weapons, went on to the fell to meet the rebels. The "posse comitatus were under Lord Lonsdale and Bishop Nicolson, the
latter seated in his coach, drawn by six horses. So soon as the Highlanders appeared, the posse comitatus went away; in plain words
they skedaddled, leaving the two commanders and a few of their servants. Lord Lonsdale presently galloped off to Appleby, and the
Bishop's coachman, whipping up his horses, carried off his master willy nilly to Rose Castle. It is said the prelate lost his wig, while
shouting from the carriage window to his coachman to stop." The[Pg 28] result of this ignominious retreat was that the Jacobites
took possession of Penrith for the time being, but behaved well, their most serious action being the proclamation of James the
Third, and the capture of a lot of provisions.
From fighting prelates to fortified churches is not a long step. Three or four of these structures have come in for more notice than
the rest, although the latter cannot thereby be considered as lacking some of the most interesting features of the others. During the last thirty years the changes necessitated by restorations of churches have caused some of these relics of turbulent times to be
somewhat altered; there are still, however, numerous village structures which tell their own story much more vividly, to the trained
eye, than could be done by written record. When the late Mr. John Cory, county architect for Cumberland, read his paper on the
subject at Carlisle a quarter of a century ago, he pointed out some of the characteristics of these ancient ecclesiastical strongholds:
"The distance from each other tells of a scanty population; the deficiency of architectural decoration shows that the inhabitants of
the district were otherwise engaged than in peaceful occupations; while traces of continual repairs in[Pg 29] the fabric are evidently
8
not to be attributed to the desire shown in the churches of many southern counties to make good buildings better, but have resulted
from the necessity occasioned by the partial destruction of churches through hostile aggressions. In many instances it may be said
that the church had been erected scarcely less for the safety of the body than for the benefit of the soul."
That the abbey of Holme Cultram was once both a fortress and a church is shown to this day by the remains of earthworks which
once served for its defence. Curious entries in the parish books also indicate the bitter hatred of the Cumbrians for those from over
the Border. The value of the abbey is shown by a petition of the inhabitants of the lordship to Cromwell in 1538, when they asked
"for the preservation and standynge of the Church of Holme Cultrane before saide; whiche is not onlye unto us our parish Churche,
and little ynoughe to receyve all us, your poore Orators, but also a great ayde, socor, and defence for us agenst our neghbours the
Scots, witheaut the whiche, few or none of your Lordshipp's supplyants are able to pay the King his saide Highness our bounden
dutye and service, ande[Pg 30] wee shall not onelye praye for his graciouse noble estate, but also your Lordshipp's prosperitie with
increase of honour long to endure."
The tower of Burgh-by-Sands Church, close to the Solway, was built at the west end of the structure, with walls six feet to seven feet in thickness. A further indication of the desire for security is found in the bottoms of the windows of the church, which were placed eight feet from the ground. Entrance to the fortified tower could only be obtained through a ponderous iron door six feet eight inches high, with two massive bolts, and constructed of thick bars crossing each other, and boarded over with oak planks. As only one person at a time could gain access to the vaulted chamber, there was every possibility of offering effective opposition to attacks, while the ringing of the bells would be the signal for bringing any available help. What was true of one side of the Solway was equally true of the other, there being still traces of fortified churches on the Scottish side of the Firth.
Newton Arlosh Church is another noteworthy example of a building
"Half house of God, half castle 'gainst the Scots,"
though here the bulk of the attention would seem[Pg 31] to have been paid to bodily danger. The doorway was made only two feet six inches wide, and as at Burgh the lowest parts of the windows were placed above the reach of a man's hand--in this case the sills were seven feet from the ground. Light was of less consequence than security, and so the windows were only one foot wide, with a
height of three feet four inches.
Though further away from the Border than either of the other churches mentioned, that at Great Salkeld was peculiarly liable to attack by the Scottish raiders, as it occupies a strong position near the river Eden, whose banks seem to have been much used by the undesirable visitors. The tower is in a splendid state of preservation, although necessarily much altered, in detail, from its former condition. There were five floors, that on the ground level being a vaulted room, with a strong door of iron and oak leading into
the church. Three small apertures afforded light and opportunities for watching from the first floor, and that room also contained a fireplace. In a footnote in their "Cumberland" volume of "Magna Britannia," the brothers Lysons suggest that Great Salkeld Church might have been fortified about the time that Penrith Castle was[Pg 32] built. There is, however, no direct evidence on the point.
Dr. Todd, the former Vicar of Penrith, who was noted for his encounters with his superiors, says in his account of Great Salkeld Church, that in his time there was a place "called the Corryhole, for the correction and imprisonment of the clergy, while the Archdeacon had any power within the diocese."
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