People of Westwood : Reverend Edmund Roy (1803 – 1873)
Westwood Church was consecrated in 1844, its first Vicar being appointed shortly afterwards. The church was much needed by the people of Westwood Heath, who had been using the local school as a chapel, a building too small to house the congregation in any degree of comfort. The new church quickly became the centre of life at Westwood Heath with the Reverend Edmund Roy as its first vicar.
The following account of Edmund Roy is taken from the Centenary Booklet of Westwood Church, a wealth of information, published in 1944.
“ He was a tall, thin, clean-shaven man. He resided in High Street, Kenilworth, and rode on a white pony to Westwood. A room in the house near the church was set aside for his use; he had a special gate opening from the garden of the house to the churchyard. He robed after reaching the reading desk, assisted by the clerk, John Bates, who held office throughout Mr Roy’s ministry, and who inherited £50 and a stock of woollen clothing at his vicar’s death. Mr Roy gained the goodwill of the people. He seems to have acted as a “father” to the villagers, who were obedient to his desires, though he rarely visited the village, except on Sundays, or on special occasions. A man of means, he was thoughtful of the wants of invalids and convalescents, believing in the efficacy of a bottle of wine, a large stock of which he kept in his Westwood room. He was a bachelor, and seems to have had no living relatives; at least, none were ever known to accompany him to the village throughout his long stay of 26 years. No photograph of him is existing; no parishioners, or their descendants, ever saw one”.
The account includes some poignant statistics taken from the parish records during Rev Roy’s ministry:
“Infantile mortality was rife; of the first 50 entries in the burial register, 22 were infants. The marriage register records, that of the first 50 weddings, 36 of the contracting parties could not write their names, frequently both man and wife were in the same predicament”
Edmund Roy was a passionate advocate of education, leaving a generous bequest to the school on his death. This ensured that the people of Westwood never had to pay anything towards the education of their children, “ a remarkable and most unusual fact”. The account continues, “In some respects, Mr Roy was ahead of the times in which he lived; he believed the poorest child should have some education, he deplored the short school lives of the children, and dear to his heart was the formation of a library, both for adults and children. The books lasted long after his death, and some remain in Westwood Club to this day. The writer and many others can testify to the pleasure they derived from the children’s books, a memory as delightful as the books themselves.”
Reverend Roy retired in 1871 after 26 years of service. He died in Kenilworth in 1873 and was buried at Westwood Church.
Source: Westwood Church Centenary Booklet (1944)
Photos:
Jill Kashi, March 2020
For those interested in headstone symbols, Edmund Roy’s has an intertwined IHS, the first three letters of Jesus’ name in the Greek alphabet. This also represents the cross of Christianity; in Latin “In Hoc Signo Vinces”, translated as “In this sign, thou shalt conquer”. The five-pointed stars here represents the Star of Bethlehem.
Please contact us if you have any questions, comments or suggestions. If you have any old photos of the area or any information about the local history, we would be delighted to hear from you.
Email address:- westwoodheathhistory@gmail.com