Chest tombs in St. Augustine's churchyard Northbourne
Anyone who has walked through the churchyard at Northbourne will have noticed the large chest tomb monuments amongst the gravestones. As the name implies they look like a large chest, and are sometimes referred to as altar tombs. They continued the tradition of the medieval tomb-base, found inside churches, and would have been erected to show the deceased person's wealth and status. In the churchyard there are five in all.
The Gibbon chest tombs
The Gibbon chest tombs are a pair that can be found side-by-side, about ten metres from the south porch, and seem to be the oldest grave monuments in the churchyard. The style of the two chest tombs is identical, and typical of the 17th century. They have large moulded cover-slabs and plain sides. The southern chest tomb is complete and part of the inscription survives on the southern side panel.
It reads:
Here lieth the body of William
Gibbon one of the sons of William and Alice Gibbon
[who was buried] the 10th of Aug. [ano. Dom. 1648 and]
aged 45 years.
The northern chest tomb looks rather forlorn, as it is incomplete; the side panels are missing; only the base and cover-slab survive. On August 22nd 1807 the Rev. Montagu Pennington, who held the living of Northbourne from 1806 to 1849, recorded in the parish register:
The latter inscription is also mentioned by Charles Igglesden in his 'Saunters Through Kent' Vol. IV, published in 1902. It would seem likely that the stone mentioned by Montagu Pennington is one of the side panels missing from the northern chest tomb, although does anyone know were it is now? A ‘William Gybbins’ and ‘Alles Harvye’ were married at Northbourne on the 2nd April 1589. William Gibbon died at Tilmanstone in 1639 and Alice, described in the parish register as ‘old mother Gibbon,’ died at Sandwich.
The Shocklidge chest-tomb
The Shocklidge chest tomb is on south side of the church under a yew tree. It is of a more ornate style characteristic of the 18th century, and it is listed as of special architectural and historic interest. The Rev. George Shocklidge held the living of Northbourne for 49 years, from 1723, until his death in 1772. He was son of Rev. J Shocklidge, perpetual curate of Ash-next Sandwich, who lost his life by drowning in the River Stour in 1712.
The chest tomb is described as having 'finely moulded side panels of cartouch outline, with urn-shaped corner pieces and moulded top-slab'. There is an armorial design on the top and the inscription concerning George Shocklidge is in Latin. Also buried here is his wife Elizabeth who died aged 80 on April 11th 1768 and Mary Parker, their daughter, who died aged 63 on 9th of September 1788. George Shocklidge married Elizabeth Bate on 19th June 1721, at Horsmonden, Kent.
The Benson chest-tomb
The Benson chest-tomb lies tucked away in the south-west corner of the churchyard. This is a simpler design with plain stone panels and fluted corner pillars, and I believe it is one of the two listed as of special architectural/historic interest. As with many chest-tombs, the inscription is on top of the cover-slab, and consequently it is very weathered and worn, although a few words can be seen in the right light conditions. The parish burial register records him as the Rev. Edward-Beckingham Benson, who was the Rector of St. Leonard's Church, Deal from 1788 until his death on 10th July 1795. Owner of the Vine Farm in Northbourne[1] and a six preacher at Canterbury Cathedral (a body of six preachers originally set up in 1541) and formerly vicar of Ixning in Suffolk. He married Frances Alicia Sandys on 27th August 1783 at Saint Alphege, Canterbury. They had four children: Edward, Henry, Caroline and Thomas. Frances Alicia Sandys was the widow and second wife of the Rev. Richard Sandys (they had a daughter Alicia Annabella Sandys). Frances Alicia was the daughter of Charles Bennett, the 3rd Earl of Tankerville (1716-1767) - her 1st husband was William Aslong.
The inscription records that the eldest son, Edward, perished aboard HMS Babet which vanished without trace, supposed to have foundered in the Gulf of Mexico on her passage to Jamaica in 1801. Originally a French ship captured on 23rd April 1794 off the Isle of Bas by HMS Flora, Melampus and Arethusa. Babet was involved in a number of actions, including capturing a French schooner in 1798 and became Vice-Admiral Mitchell's flag ship in the Zuider Zee off Holland in 1799. Babet had just undergone refitting at Sheerness, when she disappeared. The inscription also records a daughter, Caroline, died on 26th September 1794, aged 5 years and 9 months, and a son, Thomas Benson Esq., was buried alongside the chest tomb on March 1st 1809. More details on the Benson family.
The Matson chest-tomb
The Matson chest-tomb can be found north-west of the church; it is a plain design and in a rather sad state, mostly it seems, due to its method of construction. It was built of brick and covered in a render to imitate stone, but this has cracked along the line of the brick courses and in places the render has fallen off and some of the bricks have fallen out. The inscription on the top-slab is very worn and only the name 'Henry Matson' can be identified; the parish register records Jane Matson from Sandwich, buried 22nd October 1798 and Henry Matson from Sandwich, buried May 7th 1815 aged 64.
[1] - Hasted describes, '...a house and estate, called the Vine farm, in the possession of the hon. lady Frances Benson.' - Edward Hasted, The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent, 1800, Vol IX, 584.