Devon, Its Moorlands, Streams and Coasts | Page 9

At a few yards' distance, on the south of the
Castle, stand the ruins of the chapel; the walls of three sides are still
standing, although imperfect and partly fallen down, and almost
smothered in ivy. Originally this square tower at the south-west angle
was joined to the Castle, and two more round towers stood at the
northern angles. Near the chapel is a low wall, and looking over it one
sees a very steep slope to the river, sixty feet beneath. A wide and deep
moat surrounded the Castle on the other sides.
It is said that Tiverton suffered both in the Civil War of 1150 and also
in the Wars of the Roses, and though there is little evidence to support
this assertion, there can be no doubt that indirectly the town must have
been disagreeably affected. For Baldwin de Redvers fortified his castle
at Exeter, and it is very likely that retainers from Tiverton were sent to
strengthen the garrison; and when the Earl was driven from the country
by King Stephen, his servants and their families were probably
distressed by want, if not by the sword.
During the Wars of the Roses, three successive Earls of Devon lost
their lives, and many of their followers must have fallen too, leaving
defenceless widows and children.
The Earls of Devon had many manors, but lived much in their Castle at
Tiverton, and some were buried in the adjoining church of St Peter. To
the third Earl, known as 'the Good' or 'the Blind' Earl, and his wife a

tomb was erected, 'having their effigies of alabaster, sometimes
sumptuously gilded.' So writes Risdon, about the year 1630, and adds
regretfully, 'Time hath not so much defaced, as men have mangled that
magnificent monument.' It has now entirely disappeared. The epitaph it
bore was this:
'Hoe! Hoe! who lyes here? 'Tis I, the goode erle of Devonshire, With
Mabill, my wyfe, to mee full dere, Wee lyved togeather fyfty fyve yere.
That wee spent wee had; That wee lefte wee loste; That wee gave, wee
have.'
The church is a fine Perpendicular building, and has a high embattled
tower, with slender crocketed pinnacles springing sixteen feet above
the summit. The roof is battlemented, and the tracery in the windows is
graceful. On either side of the chancel stands an altar-tomb--that on the
north side being in memory of John Waldron, on the south of George
Slee, both benefactors to the town in having founded almshouses. The
sides of the tombs are boldly and curiously sculptured, being covered
with raised devices, and a deeply lettered inscription is engraved in the
top of each. A picture of St Peter being delivered by the angel from
prison, painted by Richard Cosway, hangs over a north doorway.
Cosway was born in Tiverton, and the letter that accompanied his gift
expressed good feeling and his warm affection for his native town.
The most distinctive feature of the church is the very decorative
'Greenway' chapel. John Greenway was a rich wool-merchant of
Tiverton, and on the walls of the chapel was inscribed this couplet:
'To the honour of St. Christopher, St. Blaze, and St. Anne, This chapel
of John Greenwaye was began.'
It is interesting to note, of the three saints to whom the chapel was
dedicated, that St Christopher was the patron of mariners and one of the
'sea-saints,' St Blaze the special patron of wool-combers; while St Anne
particularly presides over riches. An old distich runs:
'Saint Anne gives wealth and living great to such as love her most, And
is a perfite finder-out of things that have beene lost.'

So that the help of all three was peculiarly necessary to make John
Greenway a prosperous man!
The chapel is late Perpendicular, and it is most elaborately carved and
decorated. The roof is covered with different kinds of ornamentation,
and the cornice bears the arms of Greenway, of the Drapers' Company,
and other devices. Along the corbel line are carved scenes from the
Bible, beneath is a sea of gentle ripples, with several large ships in full
sail upon it, and above and beside the windows is a multitude of
different designs--merchants' marks, animals, roses, anchors, horses
and men; and a very delightful ape sits on a projecting pedestal, close
to the porch. The porch is extremely elaborate, both within and without.
On the frieze are six panels, each carved with a different Scriptural
subject, separated from one another by single figures. Over the porch
are the arms of the Courtenays, and above them an emblem and more
carving, besides two large niches, now empty, at each side of the door.
Inside the porch, over the door leading into the church, is a carving of
the Assumption, and the roof is richly carved with merchants' marks