My wife's ancestors - Sawyer - Contents

Monument to Sir Robert Sawyer, Highclere church

The church at Highclere, Hampshire.
Beside the house at Highclere.
The old church was built 1687-1689 by Sir Robert Sawyer.
He died 1692. A monument was erected to him in the old church.
A new Highclere church was built in 1870, some distance to the N of this location.
The old church, beside Highclere Castle, fell into ruin.
Luckily, monuments were moved to the new church. The Sawyer monument survives in the new church. See findagrave.
See modern church. See map and street view of approach.

Monument to Sir Robert Sawyer, moved to new church, Highclere.
See larger and full size.
Photo 2011 by Mike Searle.
From Geograph. Creative Commons. Also on Flickr.
See 2025 shot.

Wider shot. Photo 2025.
See larger and full size.

Close up of inscription. Photo 2025.
See larger and full size.

Description of monument, then in old Highclere church.
From [Nichols, 1858].

Location of ruin of old church.
From OS map. Revised: 1894. Published: 1897.
Some remains of the old church survive today beside Highclere Castle.
See modern map.

Memorial to Bishop Thomas Milles, in Highclere church.
In 1707 he went to Ireland as chaplain to Thomas Herbert, 8th Earl of Pembroke (Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland 1707-1708).
In 1708 he became Bishop of Waterford and Lismore, which he remained until his death in 1740. He was buried in Ireland.
Photo 2025. See larger and full size.

References

The Topographer and genealogist, John Gough Nichols, Vol.3, 1858.
- "Church Notes of Highclere and Burghclere" on pp.400-411.
- These are notes about the old church, later ruined. Some monuments were moved to the new church.
- "Funeral Certificate of Sir Robert Sawyer", dated 6 May 1693, on p.408.

Sources yet to be consulted

Highclere parish registers (from 1652).

The church has a wall listing of patrons and rectors of the church.