Godfrey, Francis (via memorial stones index)

(1681-1712)

Godfrey’s uncle was John Churchill, the Duke of Marlborough. Godfrey too became an army man and served at Blenheim following the celebrated battle. He was later described by John Dart in 1726 as a “Gentleman of the Bed-Chamber to his serene Highness George, Hereditary Prince of Denmark”. Godfrey passed away from a fever the year after he sold his regiment having risen to the rank of brigadier.

His monument on the south wall by the chapel entrance is a grand affair in the Baroque style with many classical motifs.  The wall monument is constructed of several pieces of white marble with various intensities of veining. A fine-grained white marble with dusty blue-grey veining has been used for the plinth, pediment and columns and a slightly lighter-coloured veined marble used for the inscribed panel. Both stones are probably a variety of Carrara Marble called Calaccata which has a subtle blue-grey veining. However, the darker veins embrace discrete pieces of white marble confirming the stone used is largely a brecciated marble. A term used in the stone industry to describe marbles of this appearance is Arabescato from the decorative word, arabesque. The Carrara district in Italy was one such quarrying region which supplied Calaccata Arabescato marbles.

Francis Godfrey died 1712