History of the Parish of Brignall
The parish lies in the far south of County Durham (it used
to be part of the North Riding of Yorkshire) on the north
bank of the River Greta not far from Barnard Castle.
Neolithic stone axes have been found and there is plenty
of evidence from the prehistoric period from neighbouring
parishes including many examples of the mysterious
rock art on nearby Barningham moor.
Greta Bridge is a hamlet situated on both sides of the
river about three miles from the Mill. Here, in a field
behind the Morritt Arms Inn, is a small but well defined
Roman Camp. The walls, which had a stone
facing, enclosed about four acres. Many inscribed stones
and other Roman relics have been found here.
Sir Walter Scott, the renowned Victorian writer, mentions
this camp in his poem of "Rokeby"
"Behold the boast of Roman pride!
What now of all your toils are known?"
A grassy trench, a broken stone !"
The Fort was part of the defences for the Roman road which
followed the route of the modern A66. I expect an imaginative
local will report a sighting of ghostly Roman legionaries
marching waist deep through the modern carriageway one of
these days.
The village name Brignall, is
probably of Anglo-Saxon origin. It is believed
to come from the Old English word 'briggen' meaning 'bridges'.
This clearly suggests that the village grew up where the
ancient trade routes found a crossing point over the river
Greta.
Although it was recorded in the Domesday Book as mostly
being wasteland, by 1265 it had grown enough to be given
permission to hold a weekly market. The medieval village
of Brignall was much larger than it is now. The village
shrunk in size in the 16th and 17th centuries but the remains
of some of the earlier, medieval buildings are still visible
as earthworks.
Brignall Manor was held by a family styled De Rye, whose
ancestor came to England with the Conqueror. King John gave
Margery de Rye, together with the manors of Brignall and
Cliffe, in marriage, to Charles, son of William Charles,
keeper of the King's wardrobe.
From this family the manor passed by purchase, in 1380,
to Sir Richard le Scrope. Agnes, daughter and heir of Richard
de Brignall, married William Philip, of Stillington, who
thus acquired the Brignall lands, and settled here some
time in the reign of Edward III. They held their lands of
Lord Scrope by military service, and two of them are named
among the archers at the Battle of Agincourt.
In the time of Henry VIII during the early 16th century
the Lord of the Manor was James Philip. He was reported
to be very harsh, and often quarrelled with his neighbours.
He must have made a serious enemy because in 1789 two lead
tablets were found hidden in a round barrow on Gaterley
Moor. On one side they were covered in curious symbols,
and on the other a curse on James Philip and his family
was written. Strangely enough, the family soon died out.
For a fuller version of this story see the The
Curse on James Phillip.
By 1712 at least four mills were recorded in the village
although it is not known if Brignall Mill was one of these.
In the latter part of the 18th century, Brignall estate
was in the possession of the Edens, of Windlestone, in County
Durham. They sold it, in 1817, to John Bacon Sawrey Morritt,
Esq., of Rokeby, for the sum of £66, 000 and it has
since descended with Rokeby estate.
In the 19th century the inhabitants of Brignall parish,
in 1851, numbered 173 and in 1881, 131.
The soil was a variable mixture of loam and clay, and fairly
productive, and the greater part of the fields were in pasture.
Quarries of fine grey slate existed on Brignall banks. Sandstone
was also quarried and the Mill is probably constructed of
stone sourced nearby.
The Church (St. Mary) was built in 1834,
chiefly at the expense of the first Morrit resident at Rokeby,
J. B. S. Morritt, Esq., and is a neat edifice in the Early
English style, consisting of nave, chancel, and tower.
The previous old church is some distance away from the
modern village and is now in ruins, a large quantity of
the stone having been used in the erection of the present
one. The old font has been preserved and is still in use,
and also the old pre-Reformation bell, with the inscription
"Sancta Maria, Ora pro nobis."
The old church was probably built in the 13th century,
though a fragment of a possible Anglo-Saxon stone cross
shows that there was probably an even earlier church here.
For the Old Church as a famous subject
see Artistic
Connections.
Jane Weston
More historical information
