A HISTORY OF SUFFOLK 



One of the recurring disputes between the 

 monastery and the town at its gates came to a 

 head in 1292, when a royal commission of 

 inquiry was appointed, by which it was arranged 

 that the burgesses were to present annually at 

 Michaelmas an allowance for confirmation by 

 the abbot ; and the alderman was to present 

 four persons to the sacrist as keepers of the four 

 gates of the town. The fifth or last gate was 

 to remain in the custody of the abbey. The 

 commissioners stated that this had been the 

 custom since the days of the Confessor. 1 



In consideration of a fine made by Abbot 

 John, in June, 1300, the crown sanctioned the 

 assignment by the abbot and convent, to two 

 chaplains celebrating in the chapel recently 

 built in the abbey churchyard and called ' La 

 Charnere,' of the yearly produce of twenty- 

 seven acres of land sown with wheat, being 

 the produce of one acre in as many vills 

 of their demesne lands, which produce had 

 hitherto been assigned to the abbot's crozier- 

 bearers for performing that office. 2 The char- 

 nel in the abbey churchyard had been founded 

 in order to avoid the scandal of the bones of 

 the departed lying about in the over-used burial- 

 ground. 



In May, 1304, the king pardoned the abbey 

 of all their debts to the crown, in consideration 

 of their remission to the king of a thousand 

 marks, borrowed of them from the tenths of the 

 Holy Land on the clergy, which had been de- 

 posited in the abbey's custody in the pope's 

 name. During the same month, Edward I, 

 ' out of devotion to St. Edmund,' granted that 

 the prior and convent should, during future 

 voidances, have the custody of all temporalities, 

 saving knights' fees and advowsons. But for 

 this privilege the abbey had to pay the stiff 

 fine of 1,200 marks if the voidance lasted a year 

 or less, and if longer at the proportionate rate 

 of IOO marks a month. 3 



In May Edward I granted the murage and 

 pavage dues of the town on goods coming into 

 the town of Bury St. Edmunds to the abbot 

 and convent for three years. 4 In August of the 

 same year a commission of three justices was 

 appointed in the matter of the rebellion of the 

 town against the general administration of the 

 abbot as lord of the town. The charge against 

 sixty-two of the townsmen, who are named, 

 and others was of a comprehensive character, 

 accusing them of conspiring together by oaths of 

 confederacy and resisting every detail of the 

 abbey's rule, usurping the administration of 

 justice and collecting tolls and other dues granted 

 by charter to the convent. 5 



Abbot Thomas died on 7 January, 1311-12, 



'Cole MS. xiv, fol. 51. 

 1 Pat. 28 Edw. I, m. 13. 



3 Ibid. 32 Edw. I, m. 1 8. 



4 Ibid. m. 2. ' Ibid. m. 8 d. 



62 



and the election of Richard, the third prior, was 

 confirmed in April, 1312, by Pope Clement V. 

 This confirmation states that Richard had been 

 elected by the sacrist, cellarer, infirmarian, and 

 chamberlain, and by four other monks whose 

 names are cited. 6 In June of the following year 

 the pope sanctioned the appropriation of the 

 church of Harlow, value 20 marks, to take effect 

 on the death or resignation of the rector, a per- 

 petual vicar being assigned. 7 



In 1327, the long simmering disputes between 

 the town and the abbey came to a head with 

 grievous results, involving the plunder of the 

 abbey and its estates, and the seizing of the abbot 

 and his deportation to Diest in Brabant. These 

 disturbances were long known as the Great 

 Riot. Long statements on both sides appear in 

 Arnold's Memorials, as already set forth. In 

 this summary it seems best to take the state- 

 ments from the official entries on the patent 

 rolls. On 14 May, 1327, mandates were de- 

 livered by the king and council to the authorities 

 of both abbey and town, under forfeiture of all 

 they could forfeit, prohibiting the assembling of 

 armed men. 8 Nevertheless the riots continued, 

 and on 20 May, 1327, Edward III appointed 

 John de Tendering and Ralph de Bocking, 

 during pleasure, to the custody of the abbey and 

 town of St. Edmunds, which the king had 

 taken under his immediate protection in conse- 

 quence of the grave dissensions. Power was 

 given to the two wardens to arrest inferior 

 offenders, but not to remove officers and ministers 

 of either abbey or town as long as they were 

 obedient. 9 In July the king associated two 

 other warders, Robert Walkefare and John 

 Claver, with John and Ralph. 10 A further 

 step was taken in the interest of the monks, on 

 1 6 October of the same year, when the crown 

 appointed John Howard, during pleasure, to the 

 custody of the abbey, with power to protect it 

 and defend its possessions, to arrest those who 

 had injured it, and to apply its revenues, saving 

 the necessary provision for its governance, to- 

 wards the payment of its debts and its relief ; 1] 

 but this appointment was revoked on 10 Novem- 

 ber. 12 This revocation was doubtless brought 

 about by the very serious and extensive character 

 of the revolt against the abbey's authority be- 

 coming better known to the authorities. By 

 the end of October commission was granted to 

 the Earl of Norfolk, Thomas Bardolf and others 

 to take, if necessary, the posse comitatus of both 

 Norfolk and Suffolk, to arrest those besieging 

 the abbey, and to imprison others guilty of 

 criminal acts in these affrays. 13 At the same 

 time four justices were appointed to hold a special 



6 Cal. Pap. Reg, ii, 1 1 1 . ' Ibid. 115. 



' Pat. i Edw. Ill, pt. ii, m. 22 d. 



' Ibid. m. 20. 10 Ibid. m. 5 d. 



11 Ibid. pt. iii, m. 14. 

 " Ibid. m. 1 2. " Ibid. mm. 1 3 d, 8 d. 



