11. EDUCATION COMES TO WILLINGHAM

Education and literacy arrived at Willingham in 1579, when Laurence Milford was granted a licence to teach young children, He lived in a cottage on the west side of George Street and it was likely that at that stage he would have taught children in his own house. Many of the wills of that period were written and witnessed by him too, which would suggest a high degree of illiteracy in the village population before then. The school was upgraded in 1596 when William Norton was licensed to teach grammar.  This interest in education followed the rapid development of printing presses earlier in the century which now enabled the printing and circulation of pamphlets and books from contemporary writers like William Shakespeare on a national scale.

It was also during this time that the Parish Registers were instituted. They started in October 1559 and recorded all christenings, marriages and burials in the parish. The first Register consists of 68 parchment leaves and covers a span of 94 years.  Together with later Registers, it is now held in the County Archives. Surnames which occur frequently in the early Registers are Love, Ingle, Few, West, Maddy, Frogge, Brazier and Hallywell.  The most popular first names in them for boys are John, William, Thomas and Henry, while for girls Joan, Agnes, Katherine, Alice (or Alse), Margaret and Marjorie dominate.
There was no great change to the actual fabric of the Church during this period. In the 1550’s wallpaintings in churches throughout England were limewashed over following an Order in Council of 1547, a reaction against Catholic embellishments of all kinds.   Willingham was no exception.  In 1569 a new silver chalice  was made, fashioned in all probability from the plate confiscated by King Henry VIII decades earlier. The new chalice was “to replace the prophane cuppes, bowles, dishes and chalices heretofore used at Masse”.  We still have it, and a very handsome piece it is.  It stands over 6 inches high, and is just under 5 inches in diameter with a cover engraved with a cross and the words “For the town of Wyllyngham.”
Apart from the Registers and the new silver, Thomas Parkinson did not leave his mark in much of a tangible way from his 31 years as Rector of Willingham.  Perhaps one should look to see what he was doing at his other livings at Wimpole and Orwell!  However, the 30 years following his death in 1585 were to witness events  that would have a momentous effect on  Willingham’s  development.

Next time:  Great Changes in Willingham.