But the truth is that the appellation in reality comes from the first Norman lord, Malduith, or Mauduit, later written' Maudytt, who held the manor from Norman William. The reputed descent of Mauditt from Maudire is a beautiful piece of folk etymology of the same type as has produced a confusion in the unlettered mind between "sacrilegious" and "religious."
And the rest of the tradition is similarly explained away. After changing hands, the manor -was bought in 1614 by Dr. Nicholas Styward, whose heir was created a baronet in 1660. His present-day descendant takes his name from the manor and is Sir Simeon Stuart qf Hartley Mauditt. In the hands of this family it remained until the end of the eighteenth century when the then Sir Simeon Stuart sold it to Hepry, the last Lord Stawell Here, again, legend enters in, and it is difficult to verify. For it is said in the neighbourhood that Lady Stawell wanted to live in the manor, but that her husband disliked the house and pulled it down to settle the question of residence there.
The Stuarts still retained an affection for the church, and many of them are buried in the churchyard. One Lady Stuart's body was brought from Norfolk, their native county, for burial. and was a month on the read.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.