Monument to Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport, Cricket St Thomas Church, Somerset, designed by Sir John Soane (1753-1837). Displaying the arms of Hood, West and Bray, with quarterings, topped by the Hood crest of A Cornish Chough resting on an anchor
English: St Thomas's church, Cricket St Thomas, Somerset, monument to Admiral Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport (2 December 1726 – 2 May 1814). He married twice, but failed to produce any issue: Firstly in 1758 to Maria West (d.1786), a daughter of the Reverend Richard West, Prebendary of Winchester, by his wife Mary Temple, a daughter of Sir Richard Temple, 3rd Baronet, of Stowe, Buckinghamshire, and sister of Richard Temple, 1st Viscount Cobham.[13] Secondly in 1788 to Mary Sophia Bray (d.1831), only daughter and heiress of Thomas Bray of Edmonton, Middlesex. Monument designed by Sir John Soane (1753-1837), a friend of Lord Bridport and his 2nd wife, who in 1786 rebuilt Cricket House for him. Text Sir John Soane's Museum Collection Online[1]: Lord Bridport died 2 May 1814 and Soane's first designs for his monument are dated 9 December of that year. Alternative designs for the monument were sent to Lady Bridport for her approval from 1815 to 1816 and were amended according to her wishes. The generous variety and adaptation of Soane's designs is reflective of his good friendship with the Lord and Lady Bridport. At first, in January 1815, she found Soane's designs rather plain and requested more naval ornament (Priv. Corr. XIII.H.24). Designs then changedfrom a simple monumental tablet to a sarcophagus-shaped panel below an acroterion and with variant naval ornaments (drawings 3 to 7). In response to these designs, Lady Bridport wrotein May 1815 that she didnot find them suitable for a church (Priv. Corr. XIII.H.28). Subsequent drawings incorporate an aedicule and sarcophagus composition. In March 1816, Lady Bridport offeredSoane assistance with the family heraldry, sending him a few examples of the family seal for his information(Priv. Corr. XIII.H.26). Soane's subsequent designs incorporate her suggestions, having the Hood achievement of arms. The built monument has a sarcophagus-like base supporting an aedicule that frames a tablet. The Hood achievement of arms is in front of the strigillated sarcophagus, and a Cornish chough (the family crest) caps the pedimented top.... The monument was kept modest, as the inscription reads: For His Bravery, for his Abilities / For his Achievements in his Profession / For his Attachment to his King, and his Country, / Consult the annals of the British Navy, / Where they are written in Indelible Characters. // Let this Monument record his private virtues. / He was a sincere and pious Christian, / A faithful and Affectionate Husband, / A Warm and Steady Friend to Merit / Benevolent to the Brave and Virtuous in Distress: / Kind to his Domestics and Dependents, / The Patron of unprotected Youth, / The Poor Man's Benefactor, the Seamens' Friend, / Beloved, Revered, and Deplored by All. The monument was placed in St Thomas's Church, close to Cricket Lodge. An undated bill states that the monument cost Lady Bridport £310:14:4 (Priv. Corr. XIII.H.32). The bill shows that Soane charged only £15, about a 5% commission.