St. Mellyn Rectory is situate in the hundred of East, and hath upon
the north Kellaton, east St. Dominick, south Pillaton, west Quethiock.
In the Inquisition of the Bishops of Lincoln and Winchester, 1294,
into the value of Cornish benefices, Ecclesia Sanctæ Meliani in
decanatu de East £4. In Wolsey’s Inquisition, 1521, £11. 12_s._ 6_d._
The patronage in Coryton; the incumbent ――――; and the parish rated to
the 4_s._ per pound Land Tax, 1696, for one year, £96. 13_s._
Niew-tone, now Newton, synonymous words, signifying after the English
Saxon a new town, was another district or voke lands of a manor taxed
in the Domesday Book, 1087; which lordship for many ages hath been the
seat of that ancient British family surnamed de Coryton.
William Coryton, Esq. Member of Parliament for Killaton, was one of
those imprisoned Members of Parliament, temp. Charles I. 1628, who
asserted the prerogative of Parliament, the liberty and property of
the subject, against the despotic and arbitrary power of the Monarch,
set up by Noye, his Attorney-general; for which he was fined five
hundred pounds, and could not be delivered from prison till he had
paid that sum, but forced to make a submission and acknowledgment of
his offence, and put in security for his good behaviour.
He was the father of Sir John Coryton, of this place, who, the 27th
February 13 Charles II. 1661, was by his letters patent of that date,
created the 605th Baronet of England. He married Mills of Exeter, and
had issue by her Sir John Coryton, Bart. his eldest son; who married
one of the heirs of Mr. Richard Chiverton, Knight, bred a Skinner in
London, and was Lord Mayor of that city 9 Charles II. 1657, by whom he
had issue two daughters. He was Sheriff of Cornwall, 1682.
After his decease his younger brother, William Coryton, Esq.
Barrister-at-law, succeeded to his honour and estate; who married the
daughter of Sir Theophilus Biddulph, of Westcomb, in Kent, the 744th
Baronet of England, by letters patent, bearing date 2 November 16
Charles II.; by whom he had issue Sir John Coryton, Bart. now extant.
After Sir William’s first wife’s death, he married the widow and
relict of Thomas Williams, Gent. a goldsmith or banker of Lombard
Street, in London; by whom, though a very aged woman, to recompence
that defect he had much riches or wealth. After his death she married
Sir Nicholas Trevanion, of St. Germans, who followed in marriage the
Delphic Oracle’s direction, and Dion’s,
Refuse noe woman nere soe old,
Whose marriage bringeth store of gold.
His sisters, Anne was married to John Peter, of Porthcuthan, Esq. and
Catherine to Clarke and Dobbins, and ―――― to Goodall, of Fowey, Esq.
The arms of Coryton are Argent, a cross saltier Sable.
Croca-don, or Croucadon, Cruco-don, words of one signification,
signifying bank, hillock or tumulus, hill or town; a place notable for
barrows, wherein human creatures were heretofore interred, before and
after the Roman Invasion. (See Tacitus in the life of Agricola.) This
place was the dwelling of Charles Trevisa, Gent. that married with
Fortescue; who giveth for his arms, Gules, a garb Or. Denominated, I
suppose from Trevisa, or Tre-wisa, in St. Enedor, and originally
descended from John Trevisa, born in Gloucestershire (as Baker saith),
who being for some time bred in Oxford, afterwards took orders, and
became a secular priest, that might marry; and then became domestic
chaplain to Thomas Lord Berkeley, by whom he was afterwards made Vicar
of Berkeley in Gloucestershire; where, at that Lord’s request, he
translated the Sacred Bible into the English tongue, though the same
was done by John Wickliff fifty years before, but not with that
perfection of language that Trevisa did it; although Trevisa’s
translation is altogether as far short of Tyndall’s in Henry the
Eighth’s days, by reason the English tongue was still improving to a
higher perfection; and yet Tyndall’s translation was far inferior to
that of King James I. notwithstanding they all agree in the original
substance, sense, and meaning of words in those translations; wherein
Wickliff, Trevisa, and Tyndall, made use of infinite Cornish-British
words to express the same. Neither is the last translation of King
James I. altogether void of them.
Mr. Trevisa also translated Bartholomew de Proprietatibus Rerum; the
Poly-chronicon of Ralph Higden; a treatise of all the Acts of King
Arthur; and divers other things. Lastly, this learned and painful
priest died about the year 1470, aged about eighty-six years.
Westcot, in this parish, was another district taxed in the Domesday
Book, 1087; it is now the dwelling, as I take it, of Mr. William
Brendon, Gent.
In this parish is Pentyley, or Pillaton, a house and church built and
so named by Mr. James Tillie, afterwards knighted, and married the
widow of Sir John Coryton.
Since the writing of the above premises, about the year 1712, Sir
James Tillie died, and as I am informed, by his last will and
testament, obliged his adopted heir, one Woolley his sister’s son, not
only to assume his name, (having no legitimate issue) but that he
should not inter his body after death in the earth, but fasten it in
the chair where he died with iron, his hat, wig, rings, gloves, and
best apparel on, shoes and stockings, and surround the same with an
oak chest, box, or coffin, in which his books and papers should be
laid, with pen and ink also; and build for reception thereof, in a
certain field of his lands, a walled vault or grot, to be arched with
moorstone; in which repository it should be laid without Christian
burial; for that as he said but an hour before he died, in two years
space he would be at Pentillie again; over this vault his heir
likewise was obliged to build a fine chamber, and set up therein the
picture of him, his lady, and adopted heir for ever; and at the end of
this vault and chamber to erect a spire or lofty monument of stone,
from thence for spectators to overlook the contiguous country,
Plymouth Sound and Harbour; all which as I am told is accordingly
performed by his heir, whose successors are obliged to repair the same
for ever out of his lands and rents, under penalty of losing both.
However I hear lately, notwithstanding this his promise of returning
in two years space to Pentiley, that Sir James’s body is eaten out
with worms, and his bones or skeleton fallen down to the ground from
the chair wherein it was seated, about four years after it was set up;
his wig, books, wearing apparel, also rotten in the box or chair where
it was first laid.