THE RELIGIOUS PENSION ROLL OF DERBYSHIRE. II 



have strenuously carried out the order at once to eject from 

 the monasteries all under twenty-four years of age, or who had 

 been professed under twenty. This two-fold enactment would 

 at once cast forth penniless at least a fourth of the members 

 of religious communities. 



So far as Derbyshire was concerned, the Act for dissolving 

 the smaller houses ought to have extinguished all save the 

 Austin Abbey of Darley, which was the only religious house 

 in the county that had a larger income than ;£2oo a year; 

 its annual value at that period was estimated at ;£258 13s. 4d. 

 But among the almost incredibly mean ways adopted by the 

 Crown and its agents for squeezing as much as possible out 

 of the religious houses, was the encouraging the smaller houses 

 to contract out of the first Suppression Act by big fines, well 

 knowing all the time that the suppression would shortly become 

 universal. In Derbyshire this odious action was carried out 

 in two cases. The Black Canons of Repton obtained the royal 

 grant to remain undissolved by paying into the Treasury the 

 sum of ;£266 13s. 4d., and the White Canons of Dale a like 

 favour on payment of ;£i66 13s. 4d.* 



Of the smaller religious houses whose siippression was carried 

 out in 1536, the ex-prior of Breadsall received a pension of 

 ;£3 6s. 8d.,t and the ex-prior of Gresley j£6.l In the latter 

 case two canons also received j£$ i6s. 8d. each, but that was 

 on a».^ount of their serving the respective vicarages of Lulling- 

 ton and Gresley, which they were called upon to resign. No 

 lecord has been found of any pensions to the communities of 

 Beauchief Abbey§ or of King's Mead Nunnery. 



The great body of friars, who were not dissolved in the 

 earlier suppression, were all sent forth, as were the Dominicans 

 of Derby, penniless. 



* Gasquet's ZTewrj/ V///. and the English Monasteries, ii., 529-30. 

 t Aug. Offic. Misc. Books, ccxxxii., f. 196. 

 X Ibid., ff. 37b, 53b. 



§ Beauchief Abbey had an average of 1 5 canons ; it was surrendered on 4th 

 February, 1536. Veggth Beaitchief, 202. 1 



