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Religion and Kingston's Past
Religion and Kingston's Past
All Saints' Church, Kingston
The Church was central to people's lives in medieval times. It provided spiritual support as well as practical help through poor relief, highway maintenance and education. It is not hard to understand why people turned to the church for spiritual and practical help in desperate times including bad harvests, political unrest and plague.
The Parish Church of Kingston, called All Saints, was originally a Saxon foundation and was possibly the site of Saxon coronations. The current church has Norman origins but has been much altered over the centuries. It was the centre of a very large parish stretching as far as Sheen (now Richmond), Thames Ditton and East Molesey.
Piety
A striking example of the piety of lay people is the Lovekyn Chapel, dedicated to St Mary Magdalene. Originally endowed by Edward Lovekyn of Kingston in 1309 and rebuilt in 1352, it was a chantry chapel where priests prayed for the repose of departed souls. It was built by the Lovekyns so that prayers could be said for the family for ever. It survives today having been given to Kingston Grammar School by Elizabeth I after the Reformation in the 16th Century. Kingston's Bailiffs were its governors.
The Lovekyn Chapel, London Road, Kingston upon Thames
Difference and Change
By the 1500s signs of religious dissent appeared and there is evidence pf people called 'Lollards' from the Malden area being examined in Kingston. One of them, Thomas Denys was burnt in the Market Place. The Lollards believed that the Church and ritual interfered with communication between God and Man. Although not widespread this religious free thinking was dealt with severely.
It was however soon dwarfed by Henry VIII's break with the Church of Rome which led to the Reformation, the Dissolution of the monasteries and the annexing of church lands by the Crown. The Lovekyn Chapel was one of the casualties.
When Mary Tudor came to the throne in 1553 she restored Catholicism and in 1554 married the Catholic Philip of Spain. This provoked rebellion and Thomas Wyatt, at the head of a sizeable band, marched towards Kingston with the intention of crossing the bridge and marching on London. The people of Kingston , probably not wishing to be seen to be acting against the Crown, removed the centre span of the bridge, hindering the rebellion. The Town's loyalty was rewarded with a charter granting extra privileges including an additional annual fair.
The accession of Elizabeth I brought a return to Protestantism and Kingston appears to have embraced this. In 1588 the Catholic Martyr, William Way was hanged, drawn and quartered in Kingston. It is easy to miss the significance of the entry in Kingston's Chamberlains' accounts listing the gruesome equipment needed for the execution. However, in the same year, the vicar of All Saints, John Udall, was forbidden from preaching in the town due to his extreme Presbyterian views. Please see documents below for examples.
Extract from charter of King Philip and Queen Mary, 1556 (document reference KA1/20).pdf
Transcript of part of document reference KA1/20
Civil War
By the time of the Civil War and the Protectorate, Kingston was very much allied to the Presbyterian cause through its vicar Richard Mayo and the group of Cromwell supporters, led by Theophilus Colcocke and Obadiah Wickes. They sought to gain control of the Corporation by illegally debarring their Royalist (and therefore traditionally Anglican) opponents and installing their own supporters instead. Please see documents below for examples:
Illegal elections (document reference KB16/7/10).pdf
Transcript of document reference KB16/7/10
The Restoration
The restoration of the monarchy in 1660 saw the restoration of the Anglican faith but a significant number of Kingston people remained nonconformist. Presbyterians were persecuted and conventicles (secret or unauthorised assemblies for worship) were broken up. But many people of influence were sympathetic to their faith. The Quakers however were persecuted with much more vigour. Their views were similar to those of the Lollards. A few notable local traders supported them, including John Feilder , Stephen Hubbard and Francis Holden. Please see documents below for examples:
Record of conviction for attending illegal religious meetings, 1665 (document reference KE2/7/8).pdf
Transcript of document reference KE2/7/8
Transcript of document reference KE2/7/10, 1666
Toleration
The Toleration Act of 1689 ended persecution of Protestant Dissenters but Catholics had to wait until 1828/9 for the same privilege. It was not until 1850 that the first Catholic church in Kingston, St Raphael's, was built.
Today, Kingston caters for many different religions and faiths, and equality laws reflect a toleration which people in earlier centuries would have envied.