CH16. Tablet with dove above and cherub beneath
Near this place / Lyes Interr’d ye Body of / CHRISTOPHER, third Son / of Sir JOHN INGILBY of / Ripley in ye County of York / Bart. Who departed / this Life the 17th of / March 1712 / Aged Seven weeks / and three day’s.
Very high up on the wall is the memorial stone of little Christopher Ingilby who was only 7 weeks and 3 days old when he sadly died in 1712. At this time, two thirds of all children, rich and poor, died by their 5th birthday. The memorial stone is a square panel with a carved dove carrying a branch and an angelic head. Christopher is buried outside in the churchyard near the large cedar tree.
Christopher was the son of Sir John Ingilby and his wife Mary (nee Johnson) whose ancestral home was Ripley Castle, near Harrogate, one of the great historic houses of England which was the family home for over 700 years. When I was researching the Ingilby family for this article, my curiosity got the better of me and on impulse I whizzed off a quick email to Ripley Castle. Imagine my surprise when I received a reply about an hour later from the present Lord Ingilby! He very kindly provided photographs of the portraits of Christopher’s parents, as well as a family tree spanning centuries. He also says that history doesn’t relate why the family were in Hillingdon but he thinks that there must have been some connection for him to have been buried just outside the church there, rather than brought back to Ripley. Lord Ingilby promises to visit St John’s one day and I have assured him of a warm welcome!
Christine Bartlett
