RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



hides of land at Stanfit, the church of ' Sap- 

 peleja ' (? Stapeley) with a virgate of land and 

 6 acres of meadow in that town, the church 

 of Whitsbury with the tithes of the whole 

 manor, and lands at Breamore. To this the 

 king added pasturage for a hundred beasts of 

 the canons, and pannage for a hundred pigs 

 in the New Forest, together with as much 

 dead wood as they required for fuel. 



All grants of churches, chapels, lands, tithes, 

 meadows, mills, fisheries, etc., that had been 

 made to the canons of Breamore were con- 

 firmed to their prior Robert by Bishop Henry 

 de Blois (nag-yi). 1 The same bishop 

 confirmed to them the appropriation of the 

 neighbouring church of Rockburne, with the 

 assent of the patron Manasser Bisset, and of 

 the priest Crispin, to whom was assigned a 

 pension of two shillings. 8 Manasser Bisset 

 was also the donor of 22^ acres to the priory 

 of St. Michael. He placed in the priory an 

 additional canon, who was to specially serve 

 (in masses) him and his ancestors. 3 



In the reign of Henry II. a composition 

 was entered into between Prior Geoffrey 

 and the canons of Breamore and the lazar 

 house of Bradley, whereby it was covenanted 

 that the church of Rockburne, which was 

 near to Breamore Priory, should pertain to 

 the canons, but that they should pay there- 

 from a yearly sum of IOOJ. to the house of 

 Bradley. 4 



Among the ancient deeds of the Public 

 Record Office is a grant in frankalmoin by 

 Henry, son of Thomas son of Hugh de 

 Tarente Keynes, with the consent of Joan 

 his wife, to the canons of Breamore, of a 

 curtilage and lands in Pimperne, Dorset, with 

 pasture for fifty-two sheep, paying 3*. yearly 

 to the abbess and convent of Tarente. It is 

 an undated deed, but of the first half of the 

 thirteenth century. 6 



Towards the end of the reign of Henry 

 III. the priory church of Breamore required 

 re-roofing, and the king granted ten oaks 

 in the park of Melchet for the purpose, 

 and gave orders to this effect to Stephen 

 de Eddesworth, bailiff of Clarendon. The 

 canons however only obtained two oaks, and 

 in the reign of Edward I. petitioned the king 

 on the subject in 1278, when he was at Win- 

 chester. The king instructed Roger de Clif- 

 ford, justice of the forest on this side Trent, 

 to make inquiries, and if it was so to cause the 



1 Madox's Formulare Anglicanum, 39. 

 " Ibid. 292. 



3 Charter at College of Arms, cited by Dugdale. 



4 Madox's Formulare Anglicanum, 22, 368. 



5 Ancient Deeds, P.R.O., B. 2917. 



prior and convent to have the remaining 

 oaks. 6 



There are three references to this priory 

 in the proceedings of g)uo Warranto at the 

 beginning of the reign of Edward I. The 

 prior had made claim to wreck of the sea in 

 regard to his lands in Somerset. As however 

 neither the prior nor his proctor put in an 

 appearance for the hundred of Carhampton, 

 the claim went by default. A like course 

 of non-appearance, with a like result, happened 

 with regard to the prior's claim to have 

 gallows and assize of bread and ale at Langley. 

 Probably both these cases were too weak to 

 defend, and were encroachments made on the 

 royal prerogative in the troublous times of 

 Henry III. When the prior's claim to a vir- 

 gate of land at Shirenewton (Newton Tony), 

 with its appurtenant rights, was called in 

 question at like proceedings for Wiltshire, 

 Prior Thomas appeared in person, and pro- 

 duced evidence showing that this right had 

 been conferred on the priory by Henry II. and 

 confirmed by John and Henry III., so that 

 the jury had no difficulty in returning a 

 verdict in his favour. 7 



On 27 February, 1286, licence was granted 

 for the alienation in mortmain by the prior 

 and convent of Breamore to Robert, Bishop 

 of Bath and Wells, of the advowsons of the 

 churches of Stanton Drew and Chelworth. 8 



At the taxation of 1291, the priory's tem- 

 poralities in the archdeaconry of Winchester 

 (Breamore, etc.) were valued at jCj 95. od. ; 

 in the archdeaconry of Bath (Portbury) at 

 jf 6 ; in the archdeaconry of Dorset (Pim- 

 perne) at ,3 i6x. 6d. ; and in the arch- 

 deaconry of Sarum (Eblesborne and Gorton) 

 ^4 Ss. 6d. There was also a pension of i 

 payable to the priory from the rectory of 

 Stanton Drew, making the total annual value 

 22 14$. od. 



In September, 1294, the prior of Breamore, 

 in common with the great majority of the 

 heads of the religious houses, received protec- 

 tion for one year in favour of the persons and 

 goods of the priory, in consequence of the 

 convent having contributed according to the 

 taxation made for a tenth for the Holy Land. 9 

 A like protection was granted in 1297 on 

 making fine before the chancellor. 10 



In March, 1301, grant was made in free 

 alms to the prior and convent of Breamore of 



6 Close, 6 Edw. I. m. 10. 



7 Placita de Quo Warranto (Rec. Com.), 698, 

 776, 867. 



8 Pat. 14 Edw. I. m. 20. 



9 Ibid. 22 Edw. I. m. 8. 



10 Ibid. 25 Edw. I. m. isd. 



H 



169 



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