Sometime between the 1728 Corbridge map of Green Farm, which shows the Church with quite a large tower and 1744 when the (reduced) tower was put in order, there was a major collapse. This led to a decision by the Parish to rebuild the partially collapsed tower and to pay for the repairs by selling two of the three bells. In 1743 a Petition was prepared in the name of the Reverend John Grey the Vicar, John Staines the Churchwarden, Daniel Abill the Overseer and other parishioners. (This is exceedingly curious since according to the Revd Auden's researches the Vicar from 1742 was one Richard Chase!). For reasons unknown, the Petition did not proceed in its then form, there being endorsed on the outside of the Petition “Mr John Grey Vicar of the Parish of Hempstead having refused to sign, this Petition was prepared and signed by Robert Britiffe Esq Impropriator”. Furthermore his signature was supported by other parishioners, including John Wood, Gent of Green_Farm who was then almost certainly the most influential village resident. Despite the Vicar's refusal to support the Petition, the faculty was granted (NRO 23240 Z 92). The faculty of 1743 (NRS12994) partly reads as follows -

“Thomas by divine permission Bishop of Norwich to our well beloved in Christ Robert Britiffe Impropriator of the Tithe of Hempstead near Holt in this county of Norfolk and Diocese of Norwich and to John Staines Churchwarden there John Wood John Purdy Daniel Abill Miggott West parishioners of the said parish Health in our Lord everlasting. Whereas it has been humbly represented unto us by you the said Impropriator Churchwardens and parishioners aforesaid that the steeple of your said parish church at Hempstead hath been cracked time immemorial and part thereof fallen down several years since and that the other part is much decayed. That you intend with our leave to take down the decayed part which is standing as far as the roof of the church or thereabout and build the other side up to it. But as the charge thereof will be very great you pray our licence or faculty to run down your now Bells which are three and to run one of such bigness or size as shall be fit upon all occasions for the parishioners assembling together and to apply the money arising from the rest of the metal towards your finishing the work above said Know ye --

In witness thereof---Seal of office of our Vicar General in Spiritual in this behalf to be affixed to these presents this twelfth day of July in the year of Our Lord one thousand and seven hundred and forty three.

There is a detailed account signed by John Staines and Daniel Abill listing the cost of the demolition and rebuilding which came to £67 - 02 - 9½

Then appears
“Sold our bells for £7-02-8
The bell we bought cost £19-12-3
So the balance due to us was £55-10-5

Our disbursements were £67-02-9½
We recovered by the bells £55-10-5
So there is due to us £11-12-4½

It would be interesting to know who paid the deficit but this the account does not reveal (NR 23240 Z 92)

John Stones, the churchwarden, having completed his task, despite the disapproval of the Vicar, no doubt proudly put up the date stone on the tower -

John Staines
Chuichwardin
1744

The reconstructed bell seems to have cracked and more damage occurred to the fabric because in 1767 another faculty was obtained, this time to sell the bell. Another one was bought and the purchased bell is one made by W. Brend of the family of Norwich bell founders.
The inscription on it is “Anno Domini 1599 W”.

What is not commemorated is the building of the gallery. This is supported by very ancient beams (in some cases moulded) which are believed formerly to have supported the rood screen which would have been destroyed when the chancel was taken down - pre 1830. The front of the gallery is made up from panels from box pews. The choir seats in the gallery are carved with the names and initials of bored choirboys. Galleries in the 18th Century were common enough but many were destroyed by reforming parsons toward the latter half of the 19th Century, when surpliced choirs singing in the chancel became fashionable. Presumably the reason for the survival of the gallery was simply that with no chancel the choir had no choice but to sing from the gallery as had been done for centuries.

The Revd Auden records “Before the harmonium was placed in the church a village band led the music. A Mr Wright father of the Clerk and Sexton (1886-1916) was conductor, and a brother also played. Miss Beckett was organist for sixteen years 1890-1906. In 1901 a new Estry organ costing £17 took the place of the harmonium. This was replaced in 1932 by the present American organ”

The Church Chalice is dated 1568 and is inscribed “FOR THE TOVN OF HEMSTED”

In notes left by Mr Auden appears the following: -
“When Thomas Hendry who had been one of the Churchwardens who lived at Church Farm was retiring he had a sale of his goods. A pile of what he thought useless articles and refuse was made in the yard. Edmund Ling of Hempstead_Hall discovered on this rubbish heap a battered silver cup much tarnished. He begged it from Mr Hendry and had it cleaned and repaired in Norwich when it was seen to be the Church Chalice. When Edward Ling died his sister Mrs Alfred Ling happened to show the cup to Mr J H Gurney who promptly told her it was church property and should be returned to the church. Much against her will this was done under pressure in 1913”.

The sad shortage of memorials came to an abrupt end with the arrival as Vicar of Charles Louis Rudd in 1873 who must have been a man of enormous energy and, presumably, wealth.

In Hugh Bryant's “Norfolk Churches'' under the heading of “Rudd Memorials'' appear the following:
“East Window (on South Side) given by the Rev C L Rudd in memory of his three brothers
James Sutterwaite Rudd late HM 323nd Light Infantry and late Sub Lieut RN died 7.8.66

John Trohear Rudd Capt HM 59th Rgt died 27.6.75

WM Frederick John Rudd Lieut Colonel Royal Scots died 13.8.68

(this window was executed by W C Constable FSA of Cambridge)''

The Carved Reredos and brass lecturn were also given by Rev C L Rudd as was a brass chandelier “in memory of Jane Rudd died 1 1 .8. 1 882” (NB this circular candle holder has disappeared: it was probably taken down when the Apse was built in 1926. At the same time the two tablets each side of the former altar table which like the candle holder appear in pre 1926 photographs were removed to the Vestry).

The memorial window was in 1926 transferred to the east end of the church. There is no reference on it to the names of the three brothers of the Vicar. The inscription merely says that it “Is dedicated to the memory of three brothers by Charles Louis Rudd MA Vicar of this Parish 1876''.

The Reredos is equally uninformative saying that it “is erected to the memory of three sisters by their brother Charles L Rudd MA Vicar of this Parish 1886''.

On the Pulpit appear the following:
“This pulpit and desk are erected in loving memory of James Winter who died Feb 16th 1876 and of Mary Ann his wife who died Dec 16th 1883 by their daughter Georgiana E Rudd Easter 1884''.

On the Lecturn (An Angel and a Serpent) is written "Presented to Hempstead Church July AD 1886" (It was in fact also given by the Vicar).
On the font appears - Presented to this church by Georgina Eliza Rudd to the glory of God and in memory of

It is curious that the Vicar's memorials do not list the names of those commemorated (ie “three sister”) while Mrs Rudd's memorials are more explicit.

Charles Rudd also gave the harmonium in memory of his brother Captain John Rudd. He had died just after the Vicar was inducted when maybe a harmonium was urgently required. But why was John Rudd given a second commemoration in the window?

Fifty years later the Auden family also contributed to the interior interest of the Church. The Vicar did the research on the list of incumbents (the board apparently being paid for by Lord Rothermere) while has daughter Ruth Wilson did the etching of the Church dated 1934.

The Revd A. M. Auden had a son Jack who emigrated to Canada. Jack's sister Rachel later commemorated him with a flower stand (first given to Sheringham Church but later removed and given to Hempstead Church). The inscription reads -
“This gift of his sister Rachel in loving memory' of Jack Auden M.F. Pioneer and Founder of the Town of Auden Ontario. He went about doing good. Acts 10 Verse 36
What does M.F. stand for? Jack had a son who died young and two daughters. Auden turns out to be a railway station on the Canadian National Line (now amalgamated with the CPR). lt is supposed to have a population of 25. It has no roads. What record of Jack Auden will be found there?

The stained glass window on the south side was given “In loving memory of Richard Hardy, Churchwarden of this Parish who entered into rest December 8th 1914 aged 70. This window was erected by his wife and son”.

There are other modern memorials. The stand to the Lectern commemorates John Hagen 19l0-1935 and D.W. Hagen 1932-1954 throughout which years they were Churchwardens.

The wooden cross over the altar was given in memory of Ethel and Gertrude Money by their brother and sister.

Claude Fowle 1890-1980 is commemorated on the reading desk. The crucifix above the pulpit was given “In memory of Barry William Wisken 25.9.60.'' The Bible was the “Gift of DW and RM Hagen and their sons. Easter 1926.''

The wooden hanging lamps (beautifully made by Margaret Durst) were given by Michael Levete in 1999 in memory of his wife Sally.

Photographs of the interior of the Church towards the end of the 19th Century show the effect of the collapse of the Chancel which took place before 1828 when a Ladbroke drawing shows only a low shed. (Likewise tile Gurney Estate Map of 1833 shows the Church without its Chancel) The end of the Chancel was simply walled off making the then Church a simple rectangle.

Mr Auden left various notes saying that in 1940 the Clerk William Money remembered a three-decker pulpit fixed on the north wall about sixty years previously. This was almost certainly removed by Rudd who replaced it by a modern conventional version paid for by Georgiana Rudd. He added that in 1898 the roof was match boarded in replacement for plaster and that open pews were substituted for box pews.

Following the taking down or collapse of the Chancel, the outline of which can still clearly be seen on the ground, the oblong shape of the Church with a flat east wall must have seemed rather dull - more like that of a chapel that most parish churches with their chancels and aisles. Sir Alfred Jodrell of Bayfield Hall may well have thought so and (so it is said) it was he who suggested that the thatched apse be added in 1928 to the east end of the church to replace the long-lost chancel and the existing East Window moved. The architect was C. Upcher and the builder Bullen of Cromer, the cost in excess of £430. Subscriptions raised £319 and it is believed Sir Alfred Jodrell provided the difference. There seems to be no precedent for such a thatched apse in East Anglia - certainly not one with a tall East Window giving the effect of the prow of a ship with a figurehead in front. It seems that Sir Alfred encouraged improvements in many local churches. Certainly the church at Letheringsett was almost entirety rebuilt by him as were most of the buildings in Glandford.

The Churchyard was enlarged in 1906 to include a portion of the Glebe and “ground given by Mr J H Gurney”. It was consecrated by the Bishop of Thetford on November 21st. £51-3-0 was raised by subscription most of which (£31-16-10) was spent on the rather elegant railings made by Ling Brothers, the Saxthorpe iron founders.
Hempstead, A Norfolk Village - Robin Carver, 2000

Where did the earlier vicars and curates live - if indeed they lived in the Parish at all?

In East Anglian Archaeology Report No 8 (Norfolk) Andrew Rogerson and Nick Adams have written a fascinating report on the excavation of the moated site to the south-west of the church which they concluded was the site of the lost medieval Lose_Hall. ln that report they considered also the possibility of the site being that of the original vicarage and recorded the following information:-

''The Prior of Norwich had land in Hempstead in the late l2th Century. In 1249 the rectory was appropriated to the Priory and a vicarage settled. There was an estate which produced £1 a year and a farm rented to produce £2-13-4pa.''

Rogerson goes on to state ''The Glebe Terrier of 1613 places the vicarage to the south of the church and between the road and the manor close and described it as "a dwelling house and a barne with one little outhouse . . .''

In 1629 the rectory, parsonage house and barn were mentioned in a leasing agreement between Edmund Britiffe, senior and junior, and the Dean and Chapter of Norwich.

ln 1677 the Glebe Terrier states that “in the late times of the unhappy rebellion -- the vicarage house fell down to the ground and was utterly demolished so that we had no house upon the vicarage ground.”

By 1704 the Dean was leasing “the scite of the rectory'' to Edmund Britiffe.

In 1761 and 1781 the Dean was leasing “the scite of the rectory'' and the “ruins of the barn'' to the Earl of Buckinghamshire (who had become Impropriator on inheriting the Britiffe estates in Hunworth, Hempstead and Stody). The lease to the Blickling Estate was renewed in 1837, 1844 and 1865.

So somewhere underground to the west of the village playground there must still be the foundations of the original vicarage, its “barne'' and outhouse.

Presumably it was Robert Watson, vicar between 1599 and 1649 but also Vicar of Bodham and Baconsthorpe, in one of which villages he may have lived, who let the former vicarage fall down so that since the mid-l7th century to 1876 there was nowhere in the village for the vicar or (unless he took lodgings) for the curate to live.

Historically many parishes were held in plurality - a practice increasingly under criticism in the middle of the 19th Century as can be seen in Trollope's Barchester novels. In any event, before that, it was commonly said that “In the 18th Century the Church slept”. Hempstead seems to have been typical with the tower being allowed to fall down in the seventeen-thirties. At the time of its rebuilding in 1744 the Vicar was conspicuous by his absence with the responsible churchwarden being permitted to record his own success in rebuilding it with his own named and dated plaque so prominently displayed.

Oxford Movement and the great wave of reform that so changed the Church of England in the latter part of the 19th Century, Nowhere else did this wave operate more spectacularly than in Hempstead with the arrival of Charles Louis Rudd in 1873 after the death of the Rev. J. C. Leak who had been Curate of Hempstead for 14 years but Rector of Birmingham Parva for no fewer than 45 years.

Within three years, in 1878, the new vicarage, built by public subscription, was erected on the Glebe Land adjoining the Church. The architect was J. B. Pease of Norwich and the builder R. Cornish of North Walsham. The whole of the Church was furnished at the expense of Mr. & Mrs. Rudd with pulpit, reading desk, lectern, font, chandelier, reredos and harmonium as memorials to members of their family.

Not content with their achievements the Vicar, one year after building the vicarage, built the infant school (later to become the Reading Room). In the parish magazine for October 1877 it was recorded that “a room capable of holding 80 people has just been erected by public subscription. It is built of stone and red brick and has a neat appearance. The want has been long felt in the parish of a building which would answer the two fold purpose of an infant school and Parish Room. Mr. West of Holt is the builder'' A hundred years later Mrs. Diana Spalton when converting the school (bought from the Diocese) into a house for herself discovered a number of letters from former pupils thanking the Rev. Rudd for educating them there.

The last resident vicar to live at the vicarage was the Rev. A. M. Auden who died in 1944. The Audens came from Derbyshire. The poet W. H. Auden (who went to Gresham's School) was a cousin. For three years afterwards the non-resident curate in charge was Rev. John Norman but from 1947 onwards the parish became joined with Baconsthorpe and Plumstead. The Audens had two daughters, one of whom, Ruth, later married the Rev. Wilson, Rector of Barningham, and lived at Barningham Rectory. Ruth Wilson has left some useful jottings about Church life in the thirties and forties in Hempstead and Baconsthorpe.

Mrs. Claudine Fuller (1916-1998) who lived in Hempstead all her life, recalled the Vicarage in her childhood - particularly the much loved Gleave family. They organised for the village children tableaux and picnics in the woods. All the village took part in the money-raising for the Apse in 1925 and 1926. The Sunday School every year had its outing at Sheringham, being taken in Mr. Hagen's Waggon.

The vicarage then went into limbo. It was let for a number of years. Colonel Philip Shirley was a tenant and was Church Secretary and Treasurer from before 1960 until 1977. At one stage it was occupied by schoolmasters at Gresham's. It was really sold in the late nineteen-seventies and became owned by Mr. John Thomson.
Hempstead, A Norfolk Village - Robin Carver, 2000