A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



and all its lands for ever every kind of toll, 

 pontage, murage, passage, etc. This was 

 confirmed in 1375 by Richard II., who also 

 in 1385 exempted the hospital property in 

 Hampshire from the payments of tenths and 

 fifteenths for that turn. Other royal confirma- 

 tions were granted in 1399, 1413 and 1429.* 

 In 1346, in the assessment for making 

 Edward the Black Prince a knight, it appears 

 that the prior of God's House, Southampton, 

 held half a knight's fee in Cosriam. 2 



Among the muniments at Queen's College 

 are not only the charters of God's House, but 

 also a large number of household account rolls 

 and rent rolls beginning with the time of 

 Edward I. Of the earlier of these Mr. Riley 

 gave in 1877 a long and most interesting 

 analysis, as well as a summary of facts that 

 they establish in connection with this house 

 and its administration, to which we are in- 

 debted for the following particulars. 3 



In the time of the first two Edwards, the 

 members of God's House consisted of a master 

 or warden, two priests, a clerk, from two to 

 three brothers, from three to nine sisters, three 

 or more poor mendicants (paupers), and two 

 or three indoor servants, such as cook, washer- 

 woman or dairymaid, and various outdoor 

 labourers, such as carters, ploughmen, and 

 herdsmen of cattle, sheep and swine. 



The building contained two halls, probably 

 for the two sexes ; chambers were assigned to 

 the warden, which had a cellar beneath let to 

 a tenant ; the priests had also their chambers, 

 and there were separate rooms for the brothers 

 and sisters when in residence. It also seemed 

 probable to Mr. Riley that the paupers lived 

 in the house ; judging from analogy it may 

 be assumed that this was certainly the case. 

 The duty of the senior of the two priests was 

 to act as steward or sergeant of the house. 

 The second priest, who had a lower stipend, 

 was the chaplain ; though later there was a 

 third priest appointed as chaplain, and the two 

 senior priests were styled the two sergeants. 



The brothers occasionally paid handsomely 

 for admission, as with a flock of sheep or 

 money gifts. They were often made bailiffs 

 or stewards of the different manors, and resided 

 at Cosham or Warror in the Isle of Wight, 

 or at Heckley near Southampton. Occasion- 

 ally they took part in field labour, such as 

 reaping and haymaking. The sisters, too, at 

 times were engaged in winnowing. The 

 sisters, in addition to their meals, received a 

 farthing a day in lieu of clothing. The 



1 Pat. Rolls, under dates. 



a feudal Aids, ii. 339. 



3 Hist. MSS.Com. iv. 453. 



paupers, in addition to their board, received a 

 farthing every other day ; when working in 

 the fields they received additional remuneration, 

 chiefly in the form of shoes. No money 

 payment to the brothers is ever mentioned in 

 the accounts, but they had a liberal allowance 

 of materials for clothing. 



The warden, who absorbed the greater 

 portion of the revenues, had a mansion or 

 residence at Gussage in Dorset. Occasionally 

 the accounts make mention of a warden 

 residing at Salisbury, Winchester, Odiham, 

 and even Wokingham in Berkshire. Brothers 

 and servants of the house were frequently 

 engaged in the laborious work of carrying 

 wine, cider, ale, stores or provisions to various 

 distant places where the warden for the time 

 might be dwelling. The accounts also reveal 

 that wardens now and again imposed their 

 relatives (nepotes) on the hospital, receiving 

 from it money, clothing, board and educa- 

 tion. 



In 1373, with characteristic energy, Bishop 

 Wykeham proposed to visit God's House, as 

 one of the most important hospitals in his 

 diocese. When the notice was received by 

 Queen's College as wardens, steps were at once 

 taken to resist the bishop. On 27 June, the 

 chancellor issued a prohibition to the bishop, 

 in the king's name, on the ground that the 

 hospital was held in free alms of the Crown 

 by the provost and scholars of Queen's, and 

 that therefore the Crown was visitor. This 

 prohibition was duly entered in the bishop's 

 register. 4 



In 1462, Edward IV. granted to the 

 warden, chaplains and brothers of God's 

 House the alien priory of Sherborne, with the 

 object of securing the increase of divine 

 worship within the hospital of St. Julian or 

 God's House, and perpetual masses for the 

 souls of the king and his successors, and for 

 the souls of ' Richard late Duke of York, our 

 father of famous memory, and of Richard, late 

 Earl of Cambridge, our grandfather who lies 

 buried within the hospital.' 6 The church or 

 chapel of the house was dedicated to St. 

 Julian, and hence the hospital itself occasion- 

 ally went by that name. In 1463 the king 

 inspected and confirmed to Queen's Hall the 

 letters patent of Richard II. and the charter 

 of Edward III. granting them the hospital.' 



The Valor of 1535 affords interesting 

 particulars as to the hospital. The gross 



4 Winton. Epis. Reg., Wykeham, iii. f. 8. 



8 Pat. i Edw. IV. pt. 4, m. 13. The result of 

 this was to grant the Sherborne estates to Queen's 

 Hall. See the account of Sherborne Priory, p. 228. 



6 Ibid. 3 Edw. IV. pt. 3, m. 17. 



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