An enquiry having been instituted into the extent of the Foundation of Old Malton Free Grammar School, founded by archbishop Holgate in the reign of king Edward VI., to ascertain the rights and privileges granted thereby, and more particularly those of the inhabitants of New-Malton, the following facts and remarks are respectfully submitted to the attention of every one whose interests it may concern.

The preamble of any grant in a written act or deed shows generally the intention and views of the grantor: It is therefore the first enquiry which demands attention. In the foundation deed of Old-Malton School, the words of the grantor are

"Whereas it hath pleased the King our late Sovereign Lord Henry the Eighth of most famous memory, by the Grace of God King of England, France, and Ireland, Supreme Head, deceased, of His most Godly Zeal and Affection towards the increase of Learning, and bringing up of Youth in Virtuous Exercise, in His Grace’s Realm of England and other His Grace’s Dominions, to freely Give and Grant to Me the said Archbishop by His Grace’s letters Patent dated the 24th of October in the 38th year of His Grace’s Reign, full authority, licence, power and free liberty to erect, establish, make and order Three several Free and Perpetual Grammar School, that is to say – One within the Close of the Cathedral, or Metropolitan Church of York, or in the City of York – One other at Hymsworth in the West Riding or the County of York – and the Third in Old-Malton in the North Riding of the said County; of the several Schoolmasters and their Successors for ever; and to be called the Free Grammar School of Robert Holgate, Arbp. Of York, in the City of York, Hymsworth and Old-Malton aforesaid, and the same Schoolmasters, to be three several Incorporations, to sue and be sued by the names aforesaid, and to have three common Seals, every One of them one, and to continue in succession for ever according to such constitution, ordinances and Rules as shall be therefore devised and made by me the said Archbishop of York. And further to Give Lands and Tenements to the clear Yearly value of twelve pounds sterling. And to the Schoolmaster of the said School in Hymsworth aforesaid and his Successors, Lands and Tenements to the clear yearly value of twenty four pounds over and above all charges and reprises. And also the Schoolmaster of Old-Malton and his Successors Land and Tenements to the clear yearly value of twenty pounds sterling, over and above all charges and reprises, as more plainly and at large appeareth by the aforesaid Letters Patent."

5 "Know ye, that the said Archbishop of York by the Mercy and inestimable Goodness of Almighty God, and to His Honour and the increases of Virtue and Learning and for the Commodity and Profit of the King’s Majesty’s Subjects, Church Inhabitants of this His Grace’s Realm of England, by virtue of the said Letters Patent, by this present Writing Do Constitute, order, erect, establish, make and declare the Erections, Foundations, Rules and Ordinances of the Free and Perpetual School of Old-Malton aforesaid as hereafter ensueth, that is to say:

First, I Order, Constitute, Make, Establish and Erect, that One Perpetual and Free School of Grammar, from henceforth being in Old-Malton aforesaid, of ONE Schoolmaster and his Successors in one House there for that purpose by me provided. And so to continue from One Schoolmaster to Another in succession for ever, TO TEACH GRAMMAR and OTHER KNOWLEDGES and GODLY LEARNING in the same School, FREELY without taking any STIPEND or other EXACTIONS of the SCHOLARS or any of them, THITHER RESORTING to learn and know the same."

The statutes or rules of the foundation do not mention either the schoolmaster or the scholars until the NINTH rule, which says "And further I will and Ordain that the said Schoolmaster shall be conveniently seen(?) in the HEBREW, GREEK and LATIN TONGUES, and shall teach and inform the same to such scholars in the said School, as shall be most mete and fit for the same according to the discretion of the said Master. And CHIEFLY and PRINCIPALLY I Will and Ordain that the said Schoolmaster shall be well seen and have good knowledge and understanding in the LATIN TONGUE and GRAMMAR, and shall generally to ALL SCHOLARS THITHER RESORTING for the same, duly read and teach GRAMMAR, and other Good Authors of the LATIN TONGUE, and Authors translated into Latin, as the same Scholars shall be able and apt to receive the same, according to the Ordinances and Rules as I shall hereafter make and appoint for the same: And if I make no Rules and Ordinances therefore, then according to the discretion of the Schoolmaster of the said School for the time being."

Rule 10th "And further; I Ordain and Constitute, that the said Schoolmaster and his Successors shall continually have under them in the said School One person to be USHER in the said School to teach such Children and Scholars in the said School of the lowest Forms as to him shall be appointed by the said Schoolmaster and his successors."

In the 26th. Rule the founder of the school says "And further, I Ordain, Will and Constitute, that if any Scholar, resorting to the abovesaid School for learning, will not be ordered in lawful causes, concerning his studies and learning thereof, or concerning his honest manners, or reasonable correction, that then the said Scholar shall be put forth and banished from the said School, and not suffered nor permitted to study or learn in the said School until he have submitted himself to the said Schoolmaster, to abide his order for Offences before committed."

Rule 33. “And further, I Ordain and Constitute that the said Master and his Usher shall cause their Scholars, and every of them to use and exercise WRITING of their LATINS and Lessons of their own hands. And further; that neither the said Master and his Successors nor the Usher at the said School for the time being, shall be bound by this foundation to teach any Scholar, BUT ONLY SUCH AS CAN READ, but shall either weekly or daily, by the discretion of the said Master and his Successors appoint some of their Scholars to hear and teach them."

The preceding extracts from the foundation deed of the free school in Old-Malton contain every word found therein respecting the scholars entitled to be educated in that school on that foundation free from any "Stipend or Exaction." – It will be observed that there is no limitation expressed of the use and benefit of this school to any place or town whatever. Education in "Grammar and other Knowledges and Godly learning" is by the first rule and ordinance to be afforded to "the Scholars thither resorting" without paying any "Stipend or Exaction" for their education; and the ninth rule confirms this more expressly as to the system of education and the scholars to be taught, "The Master is to teach Hebrew, Greek, and Latin to All Scholars thither resorting"

Can any explanation be required of the intent and meaning of the most charitable and right reverend founder of three free grammar schools at York, Hemsworth and Old-Malton, more than is given by the connexion of the words "All the Scholars thither resorting" – "the King’s Majesty’s Subjects, CHURCH a handwritten note suggests this is a misread by the printers, and should be the Inhabitants of His Grace’s Realm of England". Yet doubts have been expressed how far the privilege of education in the free school of Old-Malton extends, and objections have been made to extending the privilege to NEW-MALTON, because New-Malton being situated so near to the school, and from its population more extensively interested in the privilege of the freedom of the school than any other town in the vicinity, has not been even named by the founder in any part of the foundation deed; and other towns, Norton, Settrington and Appleton are united with Old-Malton parish in certain duties required by the founder. From this fact it is contended that New-Malton is intentionally excluded from any participation in the free benefit of the institution, and not only from the free benefit, but entirely from any benefit, for the master is strictly enjoined to give all his time and attention, even including Sundays, to the FREE scholars, and also is positively debarred and prohibited from receiving any stipend or exaction for teaching any scholar.

This erroneous objection, for such will it appear, arises from confining the words "Old-Malton" to the town and not including the parish, which is always added by the founder when any duties are required from the inhabitants; and likewise probably in some persons from not knowing that the town or borough of New-Malton is situated within the parish of Old-Malton, which made it unnecessary to mention the chapelries, that only recently established as parochial chapels. The chapels of St. Michael and St. Leonard in New-Malton, are chapels of ease to St. Mary’s, the mother church at Old-Malton, and are now parochial chapels of ease, although originally only CHANTRY CHAPELS. St. Leonard’s chapel was erected to supply the place of the chantry chapel of St. James in the castle of New-Malton, and the date of the first register book for that chapel to record baptisms, marriages and burials is A.D. 1600. The first register for St. Michael’s chapel begins A.D. 1570, for the same purposes.

The earliest mention of these chantry chapels is by LELAND in his Itinerary, undertaken the latter end of the reign of king Henry the Eighth. He says "The Towne of Malton both two Chapelles in it as members to the Paroche Chirch of Malton yet standing where the late Priory in Old-Malton was." – These chapels were endowed with lands and houses situated in Old and New Malton, and Malton field and Broughton. – CHANTRY CHAPELS were built by pious persons for the saying and singing of masses therein for their own souls and the souls of their families. There chantry chapels were probably founded and endowed by the Bromfletes and Veseys, the great proprieters of Malton, and estates in Yorkshire, and the known founders of other chantry chapels and monastic institutions. One of the Veseys founded Old-Malton priory in the reign of king Stephen. The following is an extract of leases granted by queen Elizabeth, of the chantry lands, &c. once belonging to the chantry chapels in New-Malton:-

"Augmentation Office in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth." – "Particulars for Leases in the North Riding of the County of York." – "Parcel of the late Chantry of St. James within the Castle of New-Malton in the County aforesaid:" then follows a recital of separate Leases, in number "nineteen," of lands and houses, amounting in yearly payments to "seven pounds sixteen shillings and two pence."

"Parcel of the late Chantry Lands, &c. of St. John Baptist, within the Chapel of St. Michael, in New-Malton, in the said County of York." – "Only two Leases in this Chantry, of lands formerly belonging thereto, the yearly value, two pounds."

"Parcel of the late Chantry or Chapel of St. Michael, in New-Malton aforesaid, founded for One Chaplain to serve there." Only one lease, value yearly, sixteen shillings – These particulars were prepared for granting a lease of the whole property to "Thomas Spenser and Ralph Rayon, men of good substance in Malton," "examined 20th. January, 1568, Anthony Rone, Auditor, and on the 18th. February, 1562, by Anthony Robinson, for the Tenants."

Another "particular for Leases" in the same reign, says

"County of York. Parcel of the Lands and Possessions of the late Chantry of St. John Baptist, within the Chapel of St. Michael, of New-Malton.

"One Farm, One Messuage and One Oxgang of Land situate in the Town and Fields of Old-Malton, yearly value twenty shillings." "The fine A different connotation at this time - an amount to be paid by a tenant to a landlord after four years Rent. "

In the Domesday Record, compiled in the reign of William the first, "TWO MALTUNES" or two divisions of the same town are described, and in ONE MALTUNE there is a CHURCH and a mill; this church must have been erected at some period in the Saxon Heptarchy, and the foundation of the outer walls, including pillars, were discovered and traced in the garden of the Priory Grange, by the late George Watson Esq. then resident there. The lower part of the shaft of one pillar he left standing on its foundation, with its capital near it on the ground, where the pillar at least yet remains. In this record we do not find any mention of any CHAPELS in either Malton, we must therefore conclude that the chantry chapels in New-Malton were erected subsequent to the compilation of it, which confirms the opinion before given, that they were founded by pious persons and endowed with lands and houses for the maintenance of a chaplain or chaplains, whose duty it was to say masses for the souls of the pious founders; such chapels were generally attached to some monastic institution at the first, and afterwards made chapels of ease and parochial chapels to the mother church.

The inhabitants of these chapelries had, (long after) the privilege granted, A.D. 1650, of burying within the chapels, (neither of the chapels having then any burying ground attached) by Sterne, archbishop of York, on paying certain mortuaries in the said grant directed; one half of which was to be paid to the minister of the "Parochial Church" at Old Malton, for the repairs and ornament thereof; the other moiety to be applied to the repairs and ornament of the chapel in which there might be any interment. Persons refusing to pay the mortuaries not to be allowed the privilege, but "shall cause their dead to be buried in the church or church-yard at Old-Malton, according to ancient custom."