Monument to Richard and Margaret Torrington, c.1356
Little is known of the Torringtons but we know that they were an important family in Berkhamsted; Richard may have been responsible for some of the 14th century building work in the church, but there is no direct evidence of this. Above the image of Margaret is the coat of arms of the Incent family, indicating that these families were joined by marriage.
Historians record that the building (particularly the corbels that supported the nave roof) used to be decorated with the Torrington family arms, but they had all vanished by the 19th century. The Torrington and Incent arms were re-instated more recently when the present roof was put in place in 1960.
Medieval monuments almost never depicted human emotion, but occasionally engravings such as this one showed couples holding hands in a touching illustration of love. At his feet is a lion, the symbol of fortitude; at hers two dogs, symbols of faithfulness.
