272 Bistorij of the Priory of MonMon Farley. 



Allington and Slaughterford ; and lands at "Westbury, Westbury 

 Leigli, Penley, Bratton, and South Wraxball. At Sop worth,' near 

 Badminton, an estate and the advowson, the gift of the Tropenell 

 family of Chalfield; and a salmon fishery at Arlingham near 

 Fretherne on the banks of the Severn, afterwards rented of the 

 Priory by the Berkeleys. 



The heads of the Bohun family continued to be looked upon as 

 the patrons and protectors of the Priory in secular matters. They 

 also claimed the advowson of the house, i.e., the right of nominating 

 the Prior. But this right (a very frequent bone of contention in 

 those times) was also claimed by the Prior of Lewes, of which 

 house Farley was a daughter, just as the house of Lewes was itself 

 a daughter of Clugni. These daughters were sometimes undutiful, 

 very jealous of parental dictation, and very anxious to escape from 

 it. Consequently, when in this case the rival claims came, as they 

 very soon did, into collision, Farley Priory took part with the 

 family of its founder. A process-at-law followed, as a matter of 

 course, between Henry Bohun Earl of Hereford, on the one part, 

 and Lewes Priory on the other, to settle the power of appointing 

 and depriving the Prior here, and the degree of allegiance due to 

 Lewes according to the statutes of St. Benedict. An amicable ad- 

 justment was at length arrived at, October 10th, 1208, upon this 

 footing : — Whenever there should be a vacancy at Farley, Bohun 

 the patron, his heirs or his agents, accompanied by two of the monks 

 of Farley, should take a journey to Lewes, and make a formal request 

 to the Superior of that house to give them a new Prior. Where- 

 upon the Superior of Lewes should faithfully and honestlj'' nomi- 

 nate two persons fit for the situation, either out of the house of 

 Lewes, or of the house of Farley, or of any other house of the 

 Clugniac order. Of these two, Bohun and his companions were to 

 choose one, which ever they could guess to be, or by any other 

 means could be persuaded to consider the most promising of 



^ By a Deed of the year, 132.3, the Prior of Lewes gives license to the house 

 of Farley to lease out for three lives, the offices of Sower ( sementis ) of Sopworth, 

 Reaper (messoris) of Farley, and Clerk of the Priory Church of Farley. (Lewes 

 Chartulary.) 



