A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



on Portlande, Wymborne and Corfe, namely 

 that they were to be strictly confined to the 

 cloister and not suffered to speak to any 

 secular person until Michaelmas ; to receive 

 discipline openly from the president in 

 chapter every Friday up to the Feast of the 

 Holy Trinity ; to receive discipline humbly 

 and devoutly from the whole convent on the 

 first Friday after this sentence ; to leave 

 their stalls in the quire for the like time and 

 to sit with the servants and novices ; and to 

 take their share of the menial work ; and for 

 a whole year after this sentence to fast on 

 Fridays, Corfe and Wimborne on bread, beer 

 and broth, and Portlande on bread and 

 water. 



On 3 July of that year, Manere was 

 released from solitary confinement elsewhere, 

 and restored to Christchurch, but to undergo 

 a sentence there like that just detailed on his 

 three colleagues. 1 Meanwhile Andrew and 

 the other canons took proceedings against the 

 prior for false imprisonment in the Arches 

 Court, and on 8 February, 1403, the prior 

 was discharged from further observance, and 

 the matter remitted to the bishop and the 

 archbishop. 2 Previously to this, however, 

 namely in November, 1402, the ringleader 

 Milton, who was undergoing solitary confine- 

 ment in another Austin house, convinced the 

 bishop of his penitence, and was discharged 

 from his obligations to Christchurch, and 

 received the episcopal licence to enter a 

 stricter rule of religion. 3 



On Wykeham's death the religious houses 

 of Winchester diocese were visited during the 

 vacancy of the see by John Maydenhith, dean 

 of Chichester, acting as commissary for the 

 Archbishop of Canterbury. Christchurch 

 priory was visited in November, 1404 ; 

 amongst the findings of the visitor may be 

 noted that there were twenty-two canons 

 instead of the statutory number of twenty- 

 six ; that there were twelve sick in the 

 farmery ; and that Prior Borard had not 

 rendered a proper balance sheet in the 

 presence of the chapter. 4 



Sir Thomas West, who married Jane, 

 daughter of Roger, Lord de la Warre, by his 

 will dated 5 April, 1405, ordered that his 

 body should be buried in the new chapel of 

 Christchurch, where his mother Alice was 

 buried. He left 100 to the priory building 

 fund, as well as large chantry bequests. 



Thomas Talbot, the twentieth prior, died 



1 Winton. Epis. Reg., Wykeham, iii. ff. 

 346*. 



* Ibid. iii. f. 353b. 3 Ibid. iii. 35 ib. 



4 Cant. Archiep. Reg., Arundel, i. 5ozb, 503. 



in August, 1420 ; his sepulchral slab is in the 

 north quire aisle, while that of his predecessor, 

 Prior Borard, is in the south quire aisle. 



An inspection and confirmation of royal 

 charters was granted by Edward IV. to the 

 prior and convent of Christchurch on 23 

 June, 1461, for a fee of five marks, when 

 charters of William II., Stephen, Henry II., 

 John, Richard I., Edward I., Edward II. and 

 Richard II. were produced at Westminster. 8 



On 12 November, 1494, the priory was 

 visited during the vacancy of the see by Robert 

 Sherborne of Hereford (afterwards Bishop of 

 Chichester), as commissary for Archbishop 

 Morton. At this visitation the prior and each 

 of the canons were severally examined. 

 Prior Draper deposed ' nil ' ; the sub-prior 

 and fifteen other canons followed his example. 

 It was reserved for Canon Thomas Selby to 

 make the only complaint to the archbishop's 

 commissary, which was duly entered in 

 the metropolitical register, namely that the 

 convent beer was remarkably weak (valde 

 tennis}. 6 



This priory was again visited on 22 March, 

 1501, by Dr. Hede, the commissary of the 

 priory of Canterbury, in the vacancy of that 

 see. The prior, John Draper, stated that the 

 attendance at the night and day offices was 

 regular ; that the sub-prior of the house also 

 held the offices of sacrist and master of the 

 mills, of which an annual balance sheet was 

 furnished ; that the common seal was under 

 four keys, kept respectively by himself, the 

 sub-prior, the steward and the third prior ; 

 that none of the valuables of the house were 

 pledged, and that there was no debt. 

 William Eyre, sub-prior, John Warner, 

 steward, Richard Cogin, third prior, Nicholas 

 Bryght, precentor, John Baker, almoner, 

 John Gravy, cellarer, John Gregory, warden 

 of the frater, William Beaver, warden of the 

 chapel of St. Mary, Walter Lodge, master of 

 the works, and various other canons holding 

 no particular office testified omnia bene. 

 Robert Godewyn, sub-deacon, stated that the 

 sick in the farmery did not have what was 

 necessary for them. The prior expressed his 

 inability to state the statutory number of the 

 canons of Christchurch, but Thomas Wim- 

 borne, one of the canons, on the following day 

 (for the visitation extended over two days), 

 testified that the number was twenty-four. 



Prior Draper died on 12 November, 1501, 

 and the convent elected William Eyre, the 

 sub-prior, in his place. It was afterwards 

 alleged, on the accession of Henry VIII., 



6 Pat. i Edw. IV. pt. 5, mm. 1 1 and 10. 

 6 Cant. Archiep. Reg., Morton, f. gib. 



158 



