A HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE 



can be identified ; he was probably the second 

 prior.i A commission was appointed in 13 19 

 to hear the complaint of William de Bernak that 

 Richard, prior of Fineshade, and Robert de 

 Benyfeld, his fellow canon, with many others, 

 had broken his close at Blatherwycke, felled his 

 trees, and carried away timber and other goods. ^ 

 Prior Richard held office for over thirty years, 

 and on his death, in 1 34 1, was succeeded by John 

 Bacon, a canon of the house.^ He died within 

 two years, and the bishop, who in the previous 

 year had ordered a commission to inquire into 

 alleged excesses within the house,* appointed in 

 1343 William Spalding as prior on the plea of 

 irregularity of election. ° A disastrous fire 

 occurred at the priory early in the episcopate of 

 Bishop Fleming, 1420— 1431, and in December, 

 1422, the bishop sanctioned the appropriation of 

 the church of Laxton on this account ; the ad- 

 vowson had belonged to their house.^ Only one 

 visitation of this house is recorded, that of Bishop 

 Gray, 1431-1436. His injunctions are of a 

 purely formal character and throw no special 

 light on the internal condition of the house. ^ 



During the rule of Prior John Markfield in 

 1522 the house was called on to contribute the 

 large sum (for so small a house) of £p.o as a loan 

 towards the king's expenses in connexion with 

 his claim to the French throne. ^ The clear 

 annual value of the house according to the Valor 

 of 1535 at that time amounted to ^^56 lo;. Ii^a^.' 

 Christopher Harringworth, who became prior in 

 1526, subscribed with six fellow canons to the 

 acknowledgement of the king's supremacy on 

 26 August, 1534.^" The house came under the 

 statute for the suppression of the smaller mon- 

 asteries. On Palm Sunday, 1536, Humphrey 

 Stafford wrote to Cromwell from Blatherwycke 

 to beg for the gift of the priory of Fynshed, a 

 house of canons in the county of Northampton. 

 In the same letter he preferred a request for the 

 house of canons of Worspring (Somerset) for his 

 father." 



Thomas Luffenham, recently elected, was 

 prior at the time of the actual surrender and 

 received a pension of 10 marks.^^ After the dis- 

 solution the site and demesne of the priory were 

 granted to John, Lord Russell, from whom they 

 passed shortly to Sir Robert Kirkham,^^ who 



1 Line. Epis. Reg. Roll of Wells. 



2 Pat. 12 Edw. II. pt. 2, m. 6d. 



3 Line. Epis. Reg. Inst, of Burghersh, f. 240. 

 ■* Ibid. Memo, of Beck, f. igd. 



5 Ibid. Inst, of Beck, f. 59. 



S Ibid. Memo, of Fleming, f. 220. 



7 Ibid. Memo, of Gray, f. 20 id. 



8 L. and P. Hen. VIII. iii. pt. 2, 24S3. 



9 Valor EccL (Rec. Com.), iv. 297. 



10 P.R.O. Acknowledgement of Supremacy, No. 51. 



11 L. and P. Hen. VIII. x. 643. 



>2 Misc. Bks. (Aug. Off.), 232, f. 28b. 

 13 Pat. 33 Hen. VIII. pt. I, cited by Bridges, Hist. 

 ofNorthonts, ii. 308. 



turned the 

 dence.'* 



conventual buildintrs into a resi- 



Priors of Fineshade 



136 



William Engayne,'^ elected 1226 



Philip of Bedford,!" elected 1 233 



Philemon,'^ occurs 1248 



Ralph le Messag,i^ occurs 1248 



John,i9 occurs 1258 



William of St. Neots,^'^ elected 1265, died 



1275 

 Arnold of Slawston,"' elected 1275, resigned 



1289 

 Thomas of Tachebrok,^'^ elected 1289, died 



1305 

 Stephen of Stamford,-^ elected 1305, resigned 



1310 

 Richard of Hold,-* elected 13 10, died 1 34 1 

 John Bacon,^^ elected 134 1, died 1343 

 William of Spalding,^" appointed 1343 

 Robert," died 1356 

 John de Piry,^^ appointed 1356 

 Henry Sutton,^' died 1 421 

 Richard Hemmingford,^" elected 1 42 1 

 Simon Bulwyk,'' occurs 1480, died 1502 

 Robert of Exilby,'^ appointed 1502, died 



1503 

 John Markfield,^' appointed 1503, died 1526 

 Christopher Harringworth,'* appointed 1526 

 Thomas Luffenham,^' occurs at surrender of 

 the house 



A very fine thirteenth-century pointed oval 

 seal of the priory, attached to the deed acknow- 

 ledging the king's supremacy in 1534, now in 

 the Record Office,'" represents the Virgin seated 

 on a car\'ed throne under a canopy supported by 

 two columns, the Holy Child with nimbus 

 sitting on her left knee. On each side of her 

 head is an estoile of eight points. Her feet are 

 resting on a carved corbel. Legend : 



s'ecclesi(e) : beate : marie : de : ca(str)o : 



YMIELIS. 



1* Ibid. 15 Line. Epis. Reg. Roll of Wells. 



16 Ibid. 



17 Cited by Bridges, Hist. o/Northants, ii. 307, from 

 Liber Swapham, f. 171b. 



18 Soc. of Antiq. MS. No. xxxviii. f. 94. 



1^ Cited by Bridges from Liber Swapham, f. 280. 



-" Line. Epis. Reg. Roll of Gravesend. 



-1 Ibid. =2 Ibid. Roll of Sutton. 



-' Ibid. Inst, of Dalderby, f. 109 



"Ibid. f. 118. 



-5 Ibid. Inst, of Burghersh, f. 240. 



^" Ibid. Inst, of Beck, f. 59. 



" Ibid. Inst, of Gynwell, f. 166. 23 Ibid. 



29 Ibid. Inst, of Fleming, f 57. 30 ibid. 



31 Cal. And. D. (P.R.O.), B. 373. 



32 Line. Epis. Reg. Inst, of Smith, f. 205d. 



33 Ibid. f. 21 I. 



3* Ibid. Inst, of Longlands, f. 97. 



35 Misc. Bks. (Aug. Off.), 232, f. 28b. 



36 P.R.O. Acknowledgement of Supremacy, No .51. 



