A 17th century Woodbury scandal?
A very influential family in Woodbury from the 16th to early 18th centuries was the Holwell clan. It produced gentlemen farmers, merchants, serge makers, a physician in Exeter, and a barrister. All these men owned or leased properties in the parish including the old Parsonage House, the Venmoor Farms, Church Stile Farm and several other estates.
From 1625 a succession of Edward Holwells lived at Parsonage, and the man in this account was a very well-known and respected member of the community having held positions of authority not only in Woodbury, but also in the Hundred of East Budleigh (the equivalent of the present day District Council).
In 1697 a Mary Venn was taken before the Justices of the Peace to answer a charge of speaking scandalous words against Edward Holwell. Mary was the wife of Michael Venn who was the licensee of The White Hart. Evidence before the Court was given by Abraham Lyde and Thomas Channon that when they were in the ale house (The White Hart) ‘they called for a flagon of beer and whilst drinking it heard Mary, the landlord’s wife say that as she was coming or going from Scotsmore she heard a whispering in Mr Edward Holwell of Parsonage’s Gatehouse at Venmore’. Mary then after listening for a time avowed that Agnes Rew, Edward Holwell’s servant, said to her master “pray be civil with me for I am almost out of breath”. Mary Venn then gave evidence that she saw Richard Spare, a Woodbury farmer, coming to the Gatehouse, and beckoned him to come to her. They both went into the Gatehouse, where Mary saw Mr Edward Holwell ‘lay with his servant, Agnes Rew, upon the soft hay in the Gatehouse, being on top of her’.
Another witness called Mary Salter, wife of William, then declared that Sarah Frank, wife of Robert, came to her house and she asked her about the news of Mr Edward Holwell punishing his maid Agnes. Sarah replied that the story was true as Mary Venn had seen Edward Holwell ‘lay with his maid Agnes in his Gatehouse and there also saw him pinching of his said maid’. She was surprised at the story that Mary had told her as she could not believe it of Mr. Holwell, who was an honest man. Richard Spare then gave evidence and declared that when he came to Mr. Holwell’s Gatehouse at Venmore he found Mary Venn, and he went with her inside and saw there Edward Holwell laying upon the soft hay and his servant, Agnes, was then treading of the soft hay and he did not see any ‘uncivil’ action by them.
Information was then given by Henry Osborne that he was sitting with Lyde and Channon drinking a flagon of beer when he heard Mary Venn say that one of the best men in the parish had lain with his maid. He could not imagine who the man could be, having several in mind, and then asked if she meant Edward Holwell of Parsonage. He commented that he thought that Holwell was as honest as any man in Woodbury, to which Mary replied that she heard Agnes say to her master “good master do you not lay so heavy upon my breast”.
Unfortunately the Quarter Session papers do not give the result of the case so we cannot know the truth of the story. Was this a case of women gossiping? One can imagine groups of women chattering about it and, like ‘Chinese whispers’, embellishing the account of what Mary Venn saw and heard. Is it possible that Mary had invented the story and that she had a grievance against Edward Holwell? Alternatively the account could be true, and the fact that he was an important gentleman farmer in the parish, and a man who was well known in Exeter and surrounding districts, and she was a lowly village woman and a landlord’s wife, could have made other parishioners afraid to speak out against the powerful Holwell family. Though the outcome is not known it does give one a vivid picture of a small part of life in the parish of Woodbury.
There were several farms in Venmore, three of which were leased for many years by members of the Holwell family from the Manor of Woodbury. The most likely one in which this ‘scandalous’ event was claimed to have taken place was at Cooks, Higher Venmore, though I do not know what the significance of the Gatehouse was. The records of the Vicars Choral of the Cathedral show that the Parsonage house and farm had been tenanted by the Holwell family from about 1625 until 1713, but until the reign of Edward VI the Parsonage had been the residence of the vicar of the Parish who was appointed by the Vicars Choral. The dilapidated dwelling house was demolished in the 1850s and the present Parsonage House was erected for the Reverend John Loveband Fulford.
From 1625 a succession of Edward Holwells lived at Parsonage, and the man in this account was a very well-known and respected member of the community having held positions of authority not only in Woodbury, but also in the Hundred of East Budleigh (the equivalent of the present day District Council).
In 1697 a Mary Venn was taken before the Justices of the Peace to answer a charge of speaking scandalous words against Edward Holwell. Mary was the wife of Michael Venn who was the licensee of The White Hart. Evidence before the Court was given by Abraham Lyde and Thomas Channon that when they were in the ale house (The White Hart) ‘they called for a flagon of beer and whilst drinking it heard Mary, the landlord’s wife say that as she was coming or going from Scotsmore she heard a whispering in Mr Edward Holwell of Parsonage’s Gatehouse at Venmore’. Mary then after listening for a time avowed that Agnes Rew, Edward Holwell’s servant, said to her master “pray be civil with me for I am almost out of breath”. Mary Venn then gave evidence that she saw Richard Spare, a Woodbury farmer, coming to the Gatehouse, and beckoned him to come to her. They both went into the Gatehouse, where Mary saw Mr Edward Holwell ‘lay with his servant, Agnes Rew, upon the soft hay in the Gatehouse, being on top of her’.
Another witness called Mary Salter, wife of William, then declared that Sarah Frank, wife of Robert, came to her house and she asked her about the news of Mr Edward Holwell punishing his maid Agnes. Sarah replied that the story was true as Mary Venn had seen Edward Holwell ‘lay with his maid Agnes in his Gatehouse and there also saw him pinching of his said maid’. She was surprised at the story that Mary had told her as she could not believe it of Mr. Holwell, who was an honest man. Richard Spare then gave evidence and declared that when he came to Mr. Holwell’s Gatehouse at Venmore he found Mary Venn, and he went with her inside and saw there Edward Holwell laying upon the soft hay and his servant, Agnes, was then treading of the soft hay and he did not see any ‘uncivil’ action by them.
Information was then given by Henry Osborne that he was sitting with Lyde and Channon drinking a flagon of beer when he heard Mary Venn say that one of the best men in the parish had lain with his maid. He could not imagine who the man could be, having several in mind, and then asked if she meant Edward Holwell of Parsonage. He commented that he thought that Holwell was as honest as any man in Woodbury, to which Mary replied that she heard Agnes say to her master “good master do you not lay so heavy upon my breast”.
Unfortunately the Quarter Session papers do not give the result of the case so we cannot know the truth of the story. Was this a case of women gossiping? One can imagine groups of women chattering about it and, like ‘Chinese whispers’, embellishing the account of what Mary Venn saw and heard. Is it possible that Mary had invented the story and that she had a grievance against Edward Holwell? Alternatively the account could be true, and the fact that he was an important gentleman farmer in the parish, and a man who was well known in Exeter and surrounding districts, and she was a lowly village woman and a landlord’s wife, could have made other parishioners afraid to speak out against the powerful Holwell family. Though the outcome is not known it does give one a vivid picture of a small part of life in the parish of Woodbury.
There were several farms in Venmore, three of which were leased for many years by members of the Holwell family from the Manor of Woodbury. The most likely one in which this ‘scandalous’ event was claimed to have taken place was at Cooks, Higher Venmore, though I do not know what the significance of the Gatehouse was. The records of the Vicars Choral of the Cathedral show that the Parsonage house and farm had been tenanted by the Holwell family from about 1625 until 1713, but until the reign of Edward VI the Parsonage had been the residence of the vicar of the Parish who was appointed by the Vicars Choral. The dilapidated dwelling house was demolished in the 1850s and the present Parsonage House was erected for the Reverend John Loveband Fulford.
