A Handbook to St Mary Redcliffe Church, J. Chilcott 1848

26 ST. MARY REDCLIFFE CHURCH.
Under the window in this transept is a Knight Templar,
carved in freestone, lying on a plain altar tomb, in a coat of mail,
with a shield on his left side, and a sword in his right hand,
probably designed for Robert de Berkeley, Lord of Bedminster
and Redclifl‘e, and a benefactor to this church.
Near this is a handsome mural monument, erected by sub
scription in 1835, with the following inscription on a marble
tablet 2——
Sacred \
To the Memory of
NATHANIEL BRIDGES, D. D.
Vicar of Willoughby' and Hatton,
and for 28 years
Iecturer of this Parish.
He died the 17th July, 1834,
aged 86 years.
In him were combined
Those estimable qualities
which
Render social intercourse delightful
and make public ministrations a blessing.
Gospel simplicity, deep uniform piety,
unremitting zeal
for the spiritual interest of the people,
and unbounded benevolence,
were his distinguishing characteristics.
Firmly attached
to the Establish Church of England,
he yet rose superior to party prejudices,
and loved all who loved his Master.
In him the church of Christ
has lost a faithful, laborious,
and successful minister.
Marble will moulder, monuments decay,
Time sweeps memorials from the earth away;
But lasting records are of BRIDGES given,
The date eternity, the archives heaven.
There living tablets, with his worth engraved,
Stand forth for ever in the souls he saved.
‘ Dr. Bridges was presented to the living of Willoughby in 1792, by
Magdalen College, Oxford, in which college he graduated M. A. in 1778;
B. D. in 1780; and D. D. in 1784. At Ilatton he succeeded, we believe, Dr.
Samuel Parr.