History

Early Times

The churchyard of St Mary, Whyke, is by far the oldest burying place in Chichester still open for burials. It maintains a thousand-year-old tradition of parishioners being buried in the ground of their parish. The ancient and traditional (and rather splendid) name of the parish is Rumboldswhyke, though it is now generally shortened to Whyke.

The Old Church itself was built in the 11^th Century, shortly before or after the Norman Conquest (it therefore vies with St Olave in North Street for the title of oldest surviving church building in Chichester). At this time it was already customary for parishioners to be buried close to the parish church, and for the area of a churchyard, ‘God’s Acre’, to be designated, e.g. by wooden crosses at the churchyard corners. 

The dead would be clothed in a ‘winding sheet’ or shroud, but were often buried in the clothes in which they died. Burial in a west-east orientation was customary. In early times coffins were not used, except for a few wealthy individuals. Wooden coffins began to be used from the fourteenth century. Since there were no memorial markers, the sites of individual graves were eventually forgotten, and the ground was used again and again. This situation is reflected in the famous churchyard scene of Shakespeare’s Hamlet (c. 1600), where the sexton, digging a new grave, turns up skulls of previous burials; he comments that a body will last in the ground only eight or nine years.

Written Records of Burials

Regular written records of burials (and of baptisms and marriages) were kept by most parishes in England from 1558, in compliance with an edict of Elizabeth 1. In many parishes, including Rumboldswhyke, these early records are lost, as a result of the Civil War of 1642-51, poor storage conditions, etc. The first surviving Rumboldswhyke parish register has records of burials from 1673, but initially they are jumbled and repetitive, as if the Rector was trying to reconstruct a list from surviving scraps of information: a proper sequence begins only in 1711. Fortunately copies of parish registers, the so-called Bishop’s Transcripts, began to be made in England in 1597. These provide burial records for Rumboldswhyke from 1610. The earliest records are these:

        Agnis Habergin, widow, buried September 17, 1610
        John, the sonne of Richard Collier, buried December 29, 1610.

If only that level of information had been maintained! Unfortunately, by 1700 burial records had become minimalist, rarely providing more than a first name, surname, and date of burial. From 1813 the age of the deceased was also provided, and some indication of residence, e.g. “Hornet in Wyke”; only around 1900 did street numbers start to be given. Family relationships were rarely indicated, and never after 1812.[1]

The 1700s and 1800s

By the seventeenth century memorials naming the deceased started to appear in churchyards, originally made of wood, often in the shape of a cross. These would decay quite quickly, and so the wealthier families began to erect memorials of stone. In St Mary’s Churchyard the earliest surviving gravestone is from 1673/4, and then we have several from the 1700s, starting in 1719. These are clustered quite close to the church itself. But the use of these semi-permanent stone markers ended the re-use of burial plots, so that new plots were gradually opened further from the church, and particularly towards the east.

Several of the early headstones in our churchyard have been moved from their original positions. For example, against the north wall of the church at least six stones have been laid flat to make a pavement. This may have happened when the north aisle of the church was built in 1866-67, no doubt necessitating the re-siting of some headstones. To the south of the church there are six stones laid flat: one of these was already badly worn by 1886, and they have clearly been walked over for a very long time. Similarly outside the church door there are two horizontal stones, one of which was partly “worn away by feet” by 1886.[2]

There are also 14 stones with their backs against the churchyard wall which runs along Whyke Road.[3] From their odd position, and the fact that they face east whereas other stones in the Old Churchyard face west, it seems likely that these stones have also been moved. At some point a north-south pedestrian pathway was created through the churchyard, hugging the west wall of the church: this was because the pavement outside the churchyard wall was (and still is) too narrow for safety. The 14 stones may have been moved to create space for this pathway.[4]  

Through the 1800s the tide of burials gradually advanced to the east of the church, reaching the eastern boundary around 1880.[5] It then turned towards the southerly parts of the churchyard, and back in a westerly direction. Even after the 1888 Extension was opened, some burials continued to take place in the Old Churchyard; this involved not only the addition of relatives to existing graves, but also the opening of new plots. The last new burial plot attested by a headstone in the Old Churchyard is from 1927 (Slay number 79), close to the boundary fence south of the church. In all some 1,450 individuals were buried in the Old Churchyard between 1610, when written records began, and 1928, the last known burial here (Slay 202, actually a deposition of ashes). We cannot tell, of course, how many parishioners were buried in the five centuries before written records.

Yew trees are traditionally associated with churchyards. We are proud of our four in the Old Churchyard: two are English yews, one of them beautifully domed, and two are Irish or fastigiate yews, with a tall and spindly Scots Pine unfortunately growing between them. There is also a magnificent cedar (probably a Cedar of Lebanon). A row of lime trees grows along the southern boundary, and another along the western boundary close to the brick wall. We do not know the dates of all these plantings.

When the redundant church was sold leasehold in 2003 (on a 125-year lease), the section of the churchyard to the south of the church, between the church and the southern boundary, was sold with it as part of the property. So this section, containing many of the oldest headstones, is legally no longer part of the churchyard. It is labelled ‘private area’ on the plan above. So far there has been no change in its physical condition, but since the property is being sold leasehold again (2024), it remains to see what will become of the headstones.

The 1888 Extension

By the middle of the C19 most of Chichester’s churchyards were full, and burials from those parishes were taking place at the Litten. In fact burial space was lacking in towns and cities across the country. In 1854 a statute by HM Government required local councils to close existing parish burial grounds, and to make alternative arrangements for burials. Chichester City Council therefore established a large new cemetery at Portfield, which opened in 1859. This cemetery was intended to include burials from those parts of Rumboldswhyke parish that came within the city boundary. However, there was some resistance in the parish to this arrangement, and a legal opinion was sought in 1885 as to whether those parishioners living within the city boundary had a right to be buried in the parish churchyard. The opinion received was that they did have such a right.[6]

This came at a time when the population of Whyke was increasing rapidly, and with it the number of burials. To illustrate this increase, in 1800-49 there were 405 burials, while in 1850-99 there were 668. Consequently steps were taken to enlarge the churchyard. The Rector of the time, the energetic Rev. Thomas Peel Brandram, was no doubt heavily involved in the negotiations. The piece of land north of the Old Churchyard, lying between it and Quarry Lane, was purchased and opened for burials in 1888. The first burial, that of Maria Ann Grover, took place promptly on 7 January 1888, and is noted in the register as “First Burial in the New Ground”.

In contrast to the Old Churchyard, the 1888 Extension is laid out in long regular rows, to optimise the use of space. Also for reasons of space, the plots are just 3’ 6” wide, and visitors have only an 18” strip to walk along between rows. Whereas the headstones in the Old Churchyard mostly face west, almost all those in the Extension face east – presumably a policy instituted by Rev. Brandram.[7]

The rows in the 1888 Extension were filled in succession from east to west. The very first burial was in the north-east corner, and that row (now called Row 20) was filled from north to south, but thereafter the rows were filled from south to north. Of course, the chronological sequence was modified by various factors, such as the natural desire to bury family members together: for example, the Upson family purchased three contiguous plots, which were filled over a period of nearly 40 years.

Plots near the central footpath were perceived as more prestigious, so that Bishop Southwell is buried in plot 1 of Row 2, Bishop Burrows in plot 1 of Row 4, and two Cathedral organists in plots 1 and 3 of Row 6. By contrast, those plots near the northern boundary were perceived as less desirable. Eventually they were enveloped in a hedgerow of trees and shrubs. This hedge now screens the Churchyard somewhat from the Quarry Lane traffic, and provides good habitat for wildlife. In all, very approximately 1,200 individuals are buried in the 1888 Extension.

Infant mortality was still high at this time, and special provision was made for the burial of infants and young children. A first row of such burials was started in 1888, and a second row, of half-sized plots, in 1894 (now called Rows 21 and 22). In the year 1895 alone 14 children were buried, as against 10 adults. Thereafter the first plot of the regular rows was reserved for multiple burials of children: five children were buried in plot 1 of Row 19, four in Row 18, six in Row 17, six in Row 16, when this practice ceased. Row 19 also has other plots containing multiple burials of small children.

Two cherry trees grow in the neighbourhood of these children’s graves. They provide a wonderful flowering display each spring – almost like an annual commemoration of the new lives lost and laid to rest here.

The 1938 Extension

As World War 2 approached, the 1888 Extension was becoming full, and further land was therefore purchased to the east. It is known as the 1938 Extension, presumably because the land was purchased then, although burials did not start until April 1944. The Rector at the time was Rev. C.A. Trimming. Again burials were laid out in straight rows running north-south, and the first row opened was the most easterly (now called Row 36). Whether then or later, a row of beech trees was planted along the eastern boundary, and they have now grown to a magnificent size.

In both the 1888 and 1938 Extensions, roughly half of all plots contain a single individual, while the others contain two individuals (occasionally more) – almost always relatives (usually husband and wife), with the earlier burial placed at a lower level, and the later above. There is an interesting mixture in both Extensions between people who spent only their retirement years in Chichester, and those who lived most or all of their lives here, whose family connections form a fascinating social network throughout the churchyard.[8]

The churchyard was becoming neglected and overgrown during this period, following the closure of the Old Church. Partly for this reason, the rate of burials gradually slowed. The primary burials in Row 36 spanned just four years (1944-47); in Row 30, seven years (1955-61); in Row 24 (the last row to be filled), 20 years (1982-2001). In all there are very approximately 730 individuals buried in the 1938 Extension. The proportion of children is notably smaller proportion than in the 1888 Extension, reflecting a reduction in infant mortality.

Eventually burials commenced in a new area to the south of the 1938 Extension and to the east of the Old Churchyard: there have been 12 burials here between 2006 and 2023.

Cremation and the Garden of Remembrance

The deposition of Flora Anne Ruff’s ashes in April 1942 (Row 9, plot 21) seems to be the first instance of cremation recorded in the parish burial register. Much earlier, however, the ashes of Edith Clementine Norris of Whyke Lodge, who died in France in 1914, “were brought to her dear country and laid to rest here”, and the ashes of her husband George Henry Norris, who died in 1928, were placed “next to those of his beloved wife”, according to their inscribed stone in the Old Churchyard (Slay 202).

Cremation grew rapidly in popularity during the second half of the twentieth century. From the 1960s on there are regularly instances, noted in the parish burial register, of ashes being deposited in the Churchyard following a funeral. They were usually placed in or on the existing grave of a spouse or relative. At the turn of the century a separate area was set aside for the deposition of ashes, known as the Garden of Remembrance. As of the end of 2023 some 30 depositions have been made in this area.

More Written Records

The locations of individual burials in the 1888 and 1938 Extensions were recorded by successive churchwardens on three large hardboard sheets in the form of a map, known as the Burial Plan (still stored at the church). Over the years some confusion and errors crept in. Ken Green as churchwarden and Hilda Yardley as parish secretary therefore started afresh, creating the present numbering and system. Their plan is dated Aug 2000, with revisions July 2014. They numbered the rows from 1 (the most westerly) to 36 (the most easterly), and started the numbering of plots afresh in each row, from number 1 at the southern end of the row. This plan is reproduced on this website. The old and new Burial Plans are the only record of where individuals are buried, if they do not have a headstone. On the basis of this work, Ken created an electronic index of the burials in the two Extensions, organised alphabetically, which makes it easy to locate any particular burial.

We are also fortunate to have a complete and accurate transcription of all the inscriptions on gravestones in the Old Churchyard and the two Extensions. This transcription was made by Katherine Slay in the late 1990s for the Sussex Family History Group.[9] It is invaluable to have this permanent record, since the inscriptions inevitably become less legible over time, as a result of the weathering of the stones.

The Future

Churchyards, especially in towns and cities, are increasingly valuable as open green spaces which are in effect nature sanctuaries. This is certainly true of St Mary’s Churchyard, where several species of bats have been recorded, for example, and well over 100 species of plants.

At the start of 2023 a volunteer group called The Friends of St Mary’s Churchyard was founded by John Fitch and Sam Kelly, with the support of the Rector, Fr Angus Reid, and the Parochial Church Council. The goals of the group are to care for, celebrate and enhance the Churchyard, with regard to both its human history and its natural history. As the group generates interest in the Churchyard and improves its appearance, it is likely that there will continue to be a demand for burials and for deposition of cremated remains. At the present rate, there is enough room for burials for the next 100 years at least. We trust that the Churchyard will continue to serve as a protected area for all God’s creatures, a physical embodiment of the human history of this community, and above all a consecrated space where the dead may rest in peace, and the living may remember them.