Also in the grounds is the parish church, containing many memorials to the Hampden family including a monument to John Hampden, the celebrated patriot, who died of wounds received at the Battle of Chalgrove during the English Civil War in 1643 fighting for the Parliamentarians. He had earlier achieved fame and notoriety by his refusal to pay the Ship Money tax, introduced by the near bankrupt Charles I. Hampden was prosecuted for refusing to pay the tax on his lands in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. He was tried and found guilty, and consequently became a public hero, known as 'The Patriot'. The spot where he refused to pay is marked by a monument in the grand avenue at Hampden House, although the exact location of the actual site is in dispute.