A HISTORY OF HAMPSHIRE 



Thomas Browne, formerly King's Scholar of Christ Church, Oxford, 

 who in 1565 was also made vicar of Kingsclere, was a competent person. 

 As he left the cure of Basingstoke to a curate he no doubt could find time 

 from his clerical duties to teach the school adequately. In 1560 we find 

 a ' schoolmaster ' again appointed ; 3-r. 4^. was paid * when we,' the 

 wardens, ' made bargayn with- him.' This schoolmaster was again a name- 

 less bird of passage, as after two quarters' payment to him we again find 

 ' Master Vycar ' paid for teaching the school for a quarter in 1561, 1 3^. 4</ ; 

 and for three quarters in 15612 at the rate of 4 6j. %d. a year. In 

 1560 the school received its first additional endowment in the shape, 

 common enough in medieval times, of five ewes, which Agnes Yate, 

 widow, gave ' of the bequest of Rychard Yatte to the brothered of the 

 holy goste and to the mayntenanses of the scholle ; wyche,' say the 

 wardens, ' we have lett to Thomas Yate by a andenter (indenture) for 

 2J. 8</. by the yere.' For many years the accounts duly contain the entry 

 of 2J. 8</. rent of the five ewes, whose capital value was thus estimated at 

 2 13*. 4</. 



In 1562 there was again a 'skolemaster' for Midsummer and Michael- 

 mas quarters, this time at the rate of 5 a year, but as the vicar is 

 mentioned as again acting as schoolmaster from Christmas quarter at the 

 same rate he was probably the same person as the schoolmaster and 

 taught for the whole year. He was also given 4^. 6d. for his ' dyner 

 and reward.' 



In 1563 a new schoolmaster came. He received u. as 'earnest,' 

 while the wardens laid out ' at the time of drinking with him, 7^., and 

 for his chamber, 3J. 4^.' His salary was only >C IQ a y ear - The endow- 

 ment proved insufficient for his maintenance, as we find entries of payments 

 by the scholars of 8j. %d. for Christmas quarter, of 1 5^. for Lady-day 

 quarter and of i is. for three quarters in 1564. At the rate of %d. 

 a quarter, which was the traditional amount, this would mean thirteen 

 pupils for the former quarter and twenty-two for the latter, a very fair 

 number for a town the whole population of which amounted to under 

 1,000. This schoolmaster disappeared after Midsummer, 1564, and * Mr. 

 Brown, Vycar,' taught until November, 1567, what was then called the 

 ' free skoole,' apparently because no fees were charged when he was doing 

 the work. Then a determined effort was made to put the school on a 

 better basis. A more permanent addition to its resources than the 

 five ewes of Richard Yate's gift was made by a bequest of Richard 

 Holloway by his will, which took effect in 1564, of IQJ. a year rent- 

 charge out of his house ' towards the maintenance of the schole.' This 

 house was in Holy Ghost Street, now called by the uninteresting name of 

 Chapel Street. Richard Holloway, his son, lived in it until 1 570, when 

 the vicar bought it for 18 and gave 1 the house 'to the Alderman and 



1 Will dated 4 June, 1 5 86, proved at Winchester 21 June, 1588 (Basingstoke, p. 668). Mr. Baigent 

 in a note on p. 1 48 seems to have misapprehended the difference between Richard Holloway's gift of a 

 rentcharge of lot. on the house in 1569 and Thomas Browne's gift of the house itself in 1588. In 

 1626 the house was let on a building lease to Charles Butler at l6/. a year. 



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