b. James Braby [1851-1886] James and Emma’s eldest son was James (6). There is a story regarding father and son which reached The Times in 1872, as the case went to court – James Braby being a JP added to the interest. The Brabys had invited Mr F Perkins of Brixton to dine with them at St James Hall Restaurant at Regents Circus. Mr Perkins stood accused of assaulting the waiter, as indeed did the waiter of assaulting Mr Perkins. It all arose as two cutlets had been ordered but James Braby Jnr had changed his mind and decided to eat one of the cutlets ordered for another, thus breaking the restaurant rules, so the bill included payment for 3 cutlets even though only two had been eaten! When James Braby Snr refused to pay the extra (1s 6d, on a 25s 3d bill), the proprietor ordered the waiter to take Perkins’s hat. This led to blows, and the party ended up at the police station. Mr Perkins was alleged in court to have said to the waiter, “You cod headed lubber, get out of my way!” Naturally both Brabys gave evidence he had not said this. The judge, clearly taking the side of the “gentlemen of position” in a “first-class establishment”, fined the waiter 60s, and the case against Mr Perkins was dismissed. It is possibly the shock that a gentleman’s hat could be impounded in front of the ladies that clinched this judgement.

In 1882, James is listed alongside his father at Maybanks, implying he was taking over the running of the estate. Tragedy really struck on 21 April 1886. James, aged 34, was killed when he fell from his horse. He was unmarried, but as the elder brother, the succession and name of James died with him. “Thy short career on earth is run. We weep and say God’s will be done.” is inscribed on the path-facing side of the square pink granite plinth with a cross above - one of the more imposing and enduring monuments in the churchyard. His parents’ names were inscribed on other faces of the plinth, located near the path leading north, the one they would have taken from Maybanks.

Above, the announcement in The Times

Below, The Illustrated Police News, Saturday, 1st May 1886. “Wareham” is actually Warnham, where the staghounds were formed in 1870, in association with Warnham Deer Park owned by the Lucas family. There is unfortunate irony in the final event of his life being in a village from whence his ancestors came.

James Braby was buried at this spot in Rudgwick

churchyard. The plinth records his name on one face (right), his parents separately on other faces. Judging by the ‘modern’ use of pink granite, it seems probable this cross was erected after his father’s death in 1907 by his surviving brother and sisters.

c. Drungewick Manor

The Times, 19 April 1879. James Braby did not purchase the Loxwood Place property or the manor of Loxwood. Drungewick House was in the parish of Wisborough Green. Loxwood, including Drungewick, became a separate civil parish in 1938 (ecclesiastical parish 1873). The auction on 22 July 1879 split the above properties into seven Lots, of which Drungewick was the largest, 1,092 acresIn 1879, when a sale was announced in The Times, James was able to purchase the Drungewick Estate, just over 1000 acres, which the paper reported sold for £20,100, and to become thereby lord of the manor of Drungewick, part of which was in Loxwood, part in Tisman’s Common.

Right, Drungewick Manor in 1795 (Burrell MSS).

Drungewick Manor today, viewed from Drungewick Lane. Similarities in the elevations suggest the earlier drawing was sketched from almost the same direction. If so, the right hand side, dated 1559, is little altered, whilst an additional larger wing has been created in the central portion.

‘Duryngewyck’ (1396 spelling, suggesting an early connection with Durrington on the coast) is a very large secluded moated property, first recorded in 1216, first owned by the abbey of Séez, passing into the hands of the bishops of

Chichester in 1256 who built a residence, with an enormous cattle staurum used for the bishops’ herds and flocks until 1560. In 1272, it is recorded that there were kept 252 oxen, 100 cows, 10 bulls, 3150 sheep, 120 she-goats, 10 he-goats, and 10 horses. Ordinations are known to have taken place here in 1444. A newly built gable records the initials ‘WT 1559’, which may have been those of William Tressham, chancellor of the diocese. Transferred to the crown in the reign of Elizabeth I, she granted the manor and estate to Sir Edward Onslow. It was in the ownership of the Threel family of Greathouse – later Loxwood House – from 1605 when Richard Threel married Margaret Onslow, but her grand nephew Sir Henry Onslow MP for Arundel was living there in 1664 when he was knighted. It stayed in Onslow hands until 1879, on the death of Denzil Onslow of Great Staughton, Hunts, who was unmarried, hence the sale in that year. The house is said to contain elements of the original 13th century building, early 17th century oak panelled rooms. The foundations of the chapel are visible in the grounds.

It is astonishing that the Braby family had the wealth to acquire this prestigious and historic estate in addition to their property elsewhere. Perhaps this investment was made possible by the sale of the family business. As the Onslows had not lived there, it is likely to have been in need of some improvements. English Heritage listing describes it thus: “The east gable has the date 1559 in it and the house is an irregular-shaped timber-framed building, restored and enlarged in the C19 and since [my italics]. It is now fronted with brick on the ground floor and tile-hung above, both now painted. Horsham slab roof. Casement windows. Two storeys. The north front has three projections with four gables. The south-west front has two projecting wings. Most of the moat of the old fortified house survives.” This suggests James Braby may have made additions to the house.

It is recounted that Drungewick Lane, which bridges the Loxwood Stream near the house, was frequently in need of repair and previously had five gates along its length, leading to summonses to the landowners to improve their sections. In 1899, Mr Braby (James?) complained to the county council. Eventually, HRDC accepted it as their responsibility and repaired it for £300 in 1903, with a contribution of £117 from Mr Braby. The gates were removed, by which time the cost had risen to £646. then the bridge needed repair, repeating the saga – historically it had been the responsibility of the manor of Amberley using timber from Trenchmore Farm. Again the councils came to an agreement in 1905, HRDC 1/3rd, WSCC 2/3rd, total cost £344.

Left, Exfoldwood Common, before enclosure(1851), on the Rudgwick tithe map of 1840, drawn by Alan Siney. The common was fully enclosed before James Braby purchased Drungewick with its title of lord of the manor. Wealden manors were very patchy. Much of the west of Rudgwick parish around Tismans Common was in the manor of Drungewick. The road from Rudgwick to Drungewick Lane is on the left of this map (north is to the right).

A further indication that Drungewick remained in the ownership of James (6) during his lifetime is contained in the history of the manor. A perambulation of the bounds of the manor took place in 1803, when Gen. Denzil Onslow was lord of the manor. The next one (possibly the last) was on 12–13 October 1882, when James Braby, as the relatively new lord of the manor, undertook his perambulation accompanied by the steward, Alfred Church (his son-in-law), and several other persons, probably members of the family; a

record of the event is with the manorial archive. Alfred was succeeded as steward by his son Frederick. The manorial waste had mostly been enclosed under the Onslows - Tismans Common (Exfoldwood) in 1851, and Headfoldswood Common in Loxwood in 1865. Their long walks would have encompassed these two area and the farmland – no surprise it took two days.

Map, right, Headfoldswood Common, on a 1:10,560 Ordnance Survey map of 1898, shaded red to show the common before enclosure in 1865 (source: Stories of Loxwood, JC Buckwell, SAC, 56, 1914, also the source of the information on the perambulations). This common was also enclosed before James Braby purchased Drungewick, but in this case much of the common has remained scrub and woodland since.

Below, this OS map, scale 1:2,500, of Drungewick Manor House dates from 1876 (copyright old-maps.co.uk). The site of the medieval chapel is shown. The chapel, house and garden are all within the moated ‘staurum’. Drungewick Lane passes north west of the house. The river in the north west is the Loxwood Stream, with the Wey & Arun Canal parallel to its meanders, the canal recently abandoned at this date. Note the aqueduct due north of the manor house, which fell into ruin, and has recently been reconstructed by the Wey & Arun Canal Trust. James and Ernest Braby would have approved! The River Arun comes in from the east and turns south. It can be seen that Drungewick was originally accessible by river. In a defensive position at the confluence of the two rivers, it has picturesque views in modern times.

d. James and Emma, the final years In September 1894, James was appointed Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Surrey (DL). When the meeting to set up a Rudgwick parish council met the same year, it was James Braby who convened the meeting. When the first election was held he was not among the candidates, yet at the first meeting on 31 December 1874, he was elected Chairman by the councillors! He was in the chair for just one year,

Emma Braby, died 13 January 1899.

Below, 1901 census, 28 First Avenue, Hove

re-elected in April 1895, but in July he resigned, no reason recorded. Perhaps his health (or that of Emma) was the reason. Evidence from the only photo to come to light, taken very soon after this date, suggests he may have had a stroke. Nevertheless, he re-appears in the minute book in 1897 to hand over the deeds of the ‘new’ hall, to be called Rudgwick Jubilee Hall – the former school he had donated back in 1868. James and Emma continued to live at Maybanks until Emma died at their home in early 1899.

It was time to leave Maybanks. His entry in the 1901 census at 28 First Avenue in Hove included a hospital nurse in the household, Florence Duddy, suggesting that the 77 year old James was ill or infirm. Flora and Constance were in attendance, and there were four other domestic servants. Did he return to Maybanks? Probably, not. In the 1901 census, Herbert Kesterton is renting the property, and in 1903 (Kelly’s Directory), Frank Thorby Leney. However, Kelly’s is insistent that “Maybanks is the property and residence [my italics] of James Braby esq. J.P., D.L., F.S.S.”, only to state later that James Braby is a private resident of Maybanks and Eaton Lodge, Hove. One hopes, for his sake, he was well enough to return to Maybanks occasionally. In December 1907, James died in Hove at Eaton Lodge on Cromwell Road. The two Hove addresses are only a few blocks apart. He retained ownership of Drungewick right up to his death, as the announcement in The Times makes clear, referring to him being lord of the manor of Drungewick. The parish council recorded “deep regret at the death of Mr James Braby” at their meeting on 23 December 1907. Attempts to sell Maybanks and the estate in 1906, consisting then of Ruets, New Barn and Tillhouse Farms, 305 acres altogether, had not been successful, first together and then in four Lots, according to The Times. The Illustrated London News reported his estate to be worth £66,301 at probate in 1908. From 1907-11, Frederick Stacey is listed at Maybanks in Kelly’s Directory, in 1913 and 1915 David Sissons (who joins the Brabys in having a memorial stained glass window in Rudgwick church), then from about 1917 to at least 1933 Crossley and Phoebe Swithinbank owned the house, advertising it to let in 1931. His sister Isabel married Sir Stafford Cripps. It seems more likely it was either Sissons rather than the Swithinbank family which altered the entrance drive to the house to swing in front of the south facing wing’s front door, as shown on a 1920 map and contemporary photographs. The male person in the drive has been tentatively identified as David Sissons’s son, Harold H Sissons, by a relative.

An attempt to sell Maybanks took place, before James’s death, at auction, on 8 October 1906. Note that the solicitors were Messrs AF Church & Son of Fenchurch St, EC. Mr Church was, of course, James’s son-in-law.

The Times further reported the poor sales conditions in the housing market on 13 October, under the strapline, “The week has been a disappointing one at Tokenhouseyard, hardly any of the larger properties having changed hands”. Unfortunately, there was no further report when Maybanks was sold.

Above, The Times, Monday, 16 December 1907.

Below, The Times, 28 February 1908

James Braby, died 13 December 1907, Rudgwick churchyard.

MAYBANKS IN ABOUT 1914

thought to be during the ownership of Mr and Mrs David Waddington Sissons, whose son Harold H Sissons may be the person in photo 1.

Photo 1 and 2, the carriage drive, showing the new turning to the west front of the house (see also map 3, 1920, old-maps.co.uk). photo 4, the west front, with new turning circle (since removed), and seated lady.

1 2

3 4 5 6

Photos 5 & 6, the east front, oldest wing centre, cottage-like wing to north, possibly domestic offices.e. Ernest Edmund Braby [1858-1922] and Augusta Atkins Batten

In 1878, Ernest was listed in the Post Office Directory as a farmer in Rudgwick. Where is not clear, but he was not listed in either the preceding one (1874) or the following one (1882). Ernest was still living at Maybanks in 1881, but may have been a tenant of his father for a while on another of his father’s farms before moving to Drungewick in the 1880s, possibly on his marriage to Augusta, which took place in Kent in 1884. As the younger son, he would not have expected to inherit Maybanks, but his brother James died in 1886, altering everyone’s expectations. James was being groomed to take on Maybanks. Was Drungewick purchased for Ernest? Whatever the family decisions, the fact is that Ernest and his wife were established there by 1891, courtesy of his father. James had completed some improvements on purchase, and so the house was not occupied by the family in 1881. The farm foreman was caretaker.

1891 census, Ernest and Augusta Braby at Drungewick, Loxwood, Wisborough Green. John Carter was his farm foreman.

Ernest, like his father, became a Justice of the Peace, probably c1910. In 1893, he was appointed a Civil Service Commissioner, for the appointment of boatmen in the Customs Department [London Gazette]. The Commission was set up in 1855, to oversee all appointments to the Civil Service. A successor organisation still exists today. The examination for boatmen in the Customs Department began in the year he was appointed.

After his father’s death and the sale of Maybanks, he continued to live and farm at Drungewick, taking over the lordship of the manor, exhibiting Sussex cattle like his father. He was a noted breeder of these red cattle, exhibiting for over 35 years, winning many prizes. As his father’s Maybanks herd had been dispersed, the Drungewick herd must have been built up independently, perhaps at first by James then by Ernest. Reports of his trophies in The Times reveal how popular the breed was among some of the large landowners in and around Rudgwick, viz., John Aungier at Lynwick, Earl Winterton at Shillinglee and

Left, a first and a third prize go to the aristocratically named bulls Charles Lucas at Warnham of the Drungewick herd. But look more closely: another prize goes Park.to one bred in the herd, now in Kent. The Times, 29 June 1906

In 1881, the house was occupied by John and Mary Ann Carter. John was the farm foreman, and 10 years later was still in the job, living in the cottage next door. John was the son of a farmer at nearby Songhurst Farm. In 1901, the bailiff was George Randall, of another local family. Ernest and Augusta were living there in 1891 and 1911, though they also continued to own property in Kent. They also had an apartment in Marine Parade, Brighton where they were in 1901, near his father and sisters in Hove. Again, the house was left in charge of a caretaker, the groom, Frederick Prouting and his wife Mary. It is said that Ernest took responsibility for the repairs to Rudgwick church on behalf of his sisters, technically the lay Rectors.

Top, The Times, 26 August 1922Bottom, The Times, 6 September 1922

Little else is known about Ernest’s life. At its end, he or his representatives placed the house and estate on the market before his death, as his father had done. Actions such as these may well have been to be prepared for death duties. In this case, it was only days before his death. The announcement of sale shows that Drungewick Hill Farm and Pephurst Farm, both in Loxwood, but adjacent to the boundary with Rudgwick, formed a substantial part of the estate, a total of 504 acres, of which Drungewick comprised 295. Half of the estate purchased in 1879 must have been sold earlier, or separately. The Drungewick Estate would never be so large again. Drungewick Hill is once more a major cattle farm (with Flitchfold), breeding pedigree Charolais and in the ownership of Mr Peter Foulger. The river floodplain provides good grazing. The advertisement gives interesting information about the size and amenities of the house – electricity, a water supply, 11 bedrooms (two with bathrooms; some for staff) and an oak panelled interior.

Drungewick has stood by this tributary of the Arun since the 13th century, although it is also beside the Wey and Arun Canal. However, the estate agent did not know his River Arun from his Wey & Arun Canal! The reputable local firm should have known better. After having had so few owners in its 700 year history, the house and its 295 acres then came on the market again as soon as 1929, and again in 1935, but then with only 70 acres, barely a viable farm, even then. In 1922, Drungewick was sold to Samuel Boag, a Lloyds insurance broker, who sold it on again in 1929 to Sir Charles Walker. In the 1950s it was home to Gilbert Miller, an American impresario. It is now the home of Genesis musician, Mike Rutherford and his wife, Angie, whose interest in livestock and horses continue in the ancient tradition.

Top, The Times, 22 September 1922Bottom, The Times, 4 December 1922

Ernest died at home on 19th September 1922, and was buried in Rudgwick. The outline of his will (£17,850 gross) is interesting for the reference to the family graves, “His rent charge on property in Rudgwick [including tithes due to The Parsonage] to the governors of Queen Ann’s Bounty for keeping in repair the family graves in Rudgwick Churchyard and subject thereto for augmenting the benefits of the vicarage of Rudgwick”.

The Times, 31 March 1947

Ernest’s widow, Augusta, died on 29 March 1947, aged 93, having moved to Wood Green, near Fordingbridge, Hampshire. She was left £2000 for life, and then for Horsham Cottage Hospital. Her funeral and burial alongside her husband was in Rudgwick. There were no children. Hence, this Braby line had come to a halt, James (5) having no Braby grandchildren.

f. Rudgwick Lay Rector The announcement of Ernest Braby’s legacies alludes to Rudgwick church. The role of the Braby family as lay Rector came before the Vestry in 1885 when serious discussion with the church authorities regarding the replacement of the harmonium by an organ in front of the vestry window (where it now is), which gave rise to the need for a Faculty to retain seating in the chancel for the lay Rector, his family, and tenants at The Parsonage. The organ was some time coming, and in 1889 the long suffering but wealthy Mr Thurlow agreed to pay for it – finally installed 1898.

It is about this time, in the1887 Kelly’s Directory, that James’s role as lay Rector is given prominence in the description of Rudgwick parish. “The lay rector is James

Braby, Esq. F.S.S., J.P. Maybanks.” This reappears in each edition until in 1903, his address is given as Hove. From 1911-1922, “Ernest E. Braby, esq. of Drungewick Manor is the lay rector”. There is no further reference. That this commences in the 1880s is more a function of expanding coverage than of any historical significance.

The Old Parsonage today (much modernised) James Braby had succeeded his father, James (4), as lay Rector. The position went with title to The Parsonage (now The Old Parsonage), formerly the glebe farm of Holy Trinity Church, whose land mainly extended down the east side of Rudgwick, much of which has now been built on. Such properties still contain defunct references to the responsibilities of the lay Rector in their deeds. When Constance Mary Braby, daughter of James (5) sold The Parsonage, with 9 acres remaining, in 1926 for £1650, the documents referred to it being subject to a yearly pension (tithe) paid to the Vicar of Rudgwick and his successors (and further sums to the diocese) for three thousand years, a responsibility dating from 1 Jan 1820 by an indenture between Henry Howard and Rt Hon Lord Howard of Effingham, and now, in 1925, releasing Herbert John Watson (of Hermongers, who was attempting to buy a parcel of land part of The Parsonage) from his responsibility for repair and maintenance of the Chancel. It so happened that in 1926 the chancel window needed repair. A Mr Chambers wrote to the chancellor of the diocese, but was told that the lay Rector was responsible and that the Indenture of 1820 did not affect the Vicar and Churchwardens as neither their predecessors nor the church was party to it. The Churchwardens consulted Messrs Medwin & Co, solicitors in Horsham, who took the matter up with Messrs Mills, Lockyer, Church & Evill, 5 Finsbury Sq EC, the Braby solicitors (Mr Church being Miss Braby’s nephew). £50 was paid without prejudice, of the £67.10 claimed, which was accepted without prejudice. The full settlement and discharge of responsibilities for the payment of £1 yearly and from the Chancel repairs was made by a subsequent owner, Harriet Reynolds, who paid £300 to the Chichester Diocesan Fund on purchase of the property in 1931 ( private research by Alan Siney and transcription of The Old Parsonage deeds by David Rigby).Below, right, Holy Trinity, Rudgwick, postcard posted 1905. Shows the porch at the west door, removed – eventually – despite vestry meetings repeatedly outvoting the vicar from 1889 onwards. The porch was eventually removed! James and Ernest would have been present at these discussions, but the vestry minutes do not record which way they voted. It was of course the east end of the church for which the Brabys had special responsibility.

The Guide to Rudgwick Church (1937) refers to the Duke of Norfolk obtaining the manor and tithes from the Bishop of Chichester in 1809, and sets out some evidence for the Rectory being leased by the Crown to Thomas Wiseman in 1554 as part of a land deal made with the Bishop of Chichester by Queen Elizabeth, and for William Burton holding the Rectory in 1547 from Salmon’s Chantry in Arundel. He was the last ordained Rector. There had been Vicars (curates) recorded since 1270. The manor descended from one half (a moity) of the manor of Pulborough when it was divided between the two daughters of Alard le Fleming (who rebuilt

Rudgwick Parish Church, of which the tower remains, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, on his manorial land, and, moreover, obtained a license for an annual fair on the feast of the Holy Trinity (and may have had a hunting lodge, dated from the early 13th century, now called Warhams, by the River Arun). The Rudgwick manor descended through the Hussee family and consisted of 53 acres of land, and in earlier times, the two Rudgwick water mills. After 1809 the Bishops of Chichester held only the advowson of the Vicar. Thus, it would seem that the reference to ‘manor’ in the James Braby Will of 1865 is to this manor (see page 27).

As with their mother, Florence, known as Flora, and Constance Braby remain something of an enigma in the village, as virtually nothing is known about them. Both

left the village when their father moved to Hove in his last years. Constance Braby had wholly owned The Parsonage together with Gravatts Farm and a small part of Gaskyns since 1914, inheriting half from her sister Florence Adeline, but like all her predecessors had not lived there. The two spinster daughters had inherited the properties as tenants-in-common from their father in1907 (it seems likely that they and Ernest were jointly owners and lay Rectors until his death in 1922, after which the two sisters held the title to the land

Constance Braby’s funeral in the West Sussex Gazette. Note the names Glover and Church. Cyrus and Roland Braby are referred to below.

and its rights and responsibilities). As early as 1840 when the tithe map was being drawn up with its apportionment it was clear that the Vicar was in receipt of his £1 from Parsonage Farm, but curiously the owner was recorded as William Jelley, who was living there and farming the land. However, it seems more plausible he leased the farm from James Braby. In 1901, both Braby ladies were living with their sick father in Hove. After his death they moved round the corner to 56 Norton Road, where Florence died in 1913 at the rather young age of 57. Constance was still in Norton Road until her death in 1937 at age 72. Both were buried in Rudgwick.