RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



visited, during the vacancy of the see, by 

 Robert Shirborne, treasurer of Hereford (after- 

 ward Bishop of Chichester), as commissary of 

 the Archbishop of Canterbury. Prior Stan- 

 brook deposed that all the canons were men of 

 religion and good morals and conversation, and 

 that there were two tenements in the town of 

 South wick belonging to the priory which had 

 been destroyed by the last high wind. Eleven 

 of the canons appeared before the visitor, but 

 had no depositions to make. 1 



The priory was again visited on 1 2 March, 

 1501, by Dr. Hede, as commissary for the 

 prior of Canterbury, during the vacancy of 

 the see. John Lawder, the prior, stated that 

 it had not deteriorated during his time and 

 that the value of the rents and profits had 

 grown to 300, and was sufficient to support 

 all their burdens ; that none of the valuables 

 of the priory were in pawn, and that the 

 common seal was kept under the four keys of 

 himself and the sub-prior and two other of 

 his brethren. Thomas Kent, sub-prior and 

 sacrist, said that silence was observed at all 

 the appointed times and places ; he differed 

 from his superior as to the number of keys to 

 the chest in which the common seal was kept, 

 for he stated there were five, three of which 

 were kept by the other canons in order of 

 seniority. William Whyte, another canon, 

 maintained however that there were only 

 four keys, whilst Peter Elton, the precentor, 

 agreed with the sub-prior that there were five. 

 We wonder whether the commissary ordered 

 the chest to be produced that he might count 

 the number for himself. John Pince, the 

 warden of the chapel of St. Mary, and Thomas 

 Sketle, the sub-chanter, were content to report 

 omnia bene. The matter of the keys seemed 

 to be the only point in dispute. 



Henry VIII. passed through Southwick in 

 September, 1510, and made an offering of 

 6s. 8d. at Our Lady of Southwick.* 



In January, 1514, the Crown granted a 

 licence to Prior Thomas Kent and the 

 monastery of Southwick to hold a fair for 

 three days on the feast of St. Philip and St. 

 James and the two following days ; instead 

 of a fair for two days on the eve and day of 

 the Assumption of the Virgin, which had 

 been granted by Henry III., and which was 

 said to injure the neighbouring fairs. 3 Thomas 

 Annesley, a gentleman with the Queen Con- 

 sort, in November of the same year, was 

 granted a corrody in this house, in the place 



of Thomas Parker, deceased.* On the sur- 

 render of this corrody by Annesley it was 

 granted in October, 1530, to Robert Wen- 

 ham, master of the children in the collegiate 

 church of Windsor. 6 



There are various letters of Prior Norton to 

 Lord and Lady Lisle at the Public Record 

 Office, but they are of no interest as regards 

 the priory. In 1534 he seems to have retired, 

 for in September of that year he wrote to Lady 

 Lisle saying that the visitation of God (the 

 plague) was very sore and extreme in the 

 marine ports, and that many of her loving 

 friends had died ; adding that he was living 

 peacefully at his hermitage of St. Leonard's. 

 It concludes, ' scribbled with a comfortless 

 heart, in cede heremitica dim Leonard!.' * 

 However, in 1535, when the Valor Ecclesi- 

 asticus was taken, William Norton is named 

 ' modo Prior' The total clear annual value 

 of the priory was then estimated at 257 

 45. \d. 



Cromwell found a tool ready to betray the 

 house in one of the canons, James Gunwyn. 

 On 20 January, 1536, Gunwyn wrote as 

 follows to Cromwell : ' We are bound by the 

 will of William Wykeham to have daily five 

 masses in our church, which have not been 

 said for more than forty years. On 26 May 

 last the Commissioners sat in our place to 

 ascertain the yearly value of our lands, that a 

 tenth part might be assessed according to Act 

 of Parliament, when my master (the prior) 

 delivered them a book of the yearly rents 

 which was not in all points made truly. 

 Also on 22 September last we had a visitation 

 of our house by Dr. Layton, when we had 

 certain injunctions given us to be observed, 

 several of which have been neglected hitherto. 

 I send you this information in discharge of my 

 oath of obedience, and would have done it 

 earlier if I could have had a trusty messenger, 

 for if my master knew of my writing he would 

 convey away the plate, money and jewels in 

 his keeping.' 7 



A letter to Lord Lisle of 16 March, 1538, 

 stated that the priory was to be suppressed, and 

 that ' Our Lady of Southwick ' was taken 

 down. On 21 March, John Husee, a solicitor 

 and servant of the Lisles, wrote to Lord Lisle 

 that ' Pilgrimage saints goeth down apace as 

 Our Lady of Southwick, the Blood of Hales, 

 St. Saviour's and others.' On the following 

 day the same correspondent wrote to like 

 effect to Lady Lisle. 8 Leland referred to the 



1 Cant. Archiep. Reg., Morton, i. gib. 



2 Letters and Papers, Hen. VIII. ii. 



3 Pat. Hen. VIII. pt. 2, m. i. 



I6 7 



4 Letters and Papers, Hen. V1I1. i. 5552. 



6 Ibid. iv. 6, 1751. B Ibid. vii. 1153. 



7 Ibid. x. 138. 8 Ibid. xiii. 514, 564, 580. 



