Hidden Henley

VISITORS to Mapledurham may notice the fine clock on the church tower, constructed from decorative alternating hand-cut brick and flint panels. The initials W. R. and date of 1832 might give a clue.

The unusual Catholic aisle in this church was mentioned in Hidden Henley in May, so it may came as no surprise that Protestant vicars in the past have evidently attempted to remove the rights to use this aisle and the Catholic chapel in Mapledurham House alongside.

One such priest was Lord Augustus Fitz-Clarence, who was one of King William’s 10 children by his mistress Dorothea Bland, known as Mrs Jordan, and who found himself installed here by orders of the Protestant king. The previous vicar had been suddenly promoted to Bishop of Chester and removed “at the urgent insistence of the Crown”. The clock was a gift from the King for all to see.