LETTER XXIII 



THIS Thomas Ashford was most undoubtedly the last prior 

 of Selborne ; and, therefore, here will be the proper place 

 to say something concerning a list of the priors, and to 

 endeavour to improve that already given by others. 



At the end of bishop Tanner s Notitia Monastica, the 

 folio edition, among Brown Willis s Principals of Religious 

 Houses, occur the names of eleven of the priors of Selborne, 

 with dates. But this list is imperfect, and particularly at 

 the beginning ; for though the Priory was founded in 1232, 

 yet it commences with Nich. de Cantia, elected in 1262 ; so 

 that, for the first thirty years, no prior is mentioned ; yet 

 there must have been one or more. We were in hopes 

 that the register of Peter de Rupibus would have rectified 

 this omission ; but, when it was examined, no information 

 of the sort was to be found. From the year 1410 the list 

 is much corrected and improved, and the reader may 

 depend on it's being thenceforward very exact. 



A LIST of the PRIORS of SELBORNE PRIORY, from BROWN WILLIS'S 

 PRINCIPALS OF RELIGIOUS HOUSES, with additions within [ ] 

 by the Author 



[John . . . was prior, sine dat.] 1 



Nich de Cantia el. . . . . . .1262 



\Peter was prior in . . . . .1271] 



[Richard was prior in . . . .1280] 



Will. Basing was prior in 1299 



1 See, in Letter XI. of these Antiquities, the reason why Prior John . . . 

 who had transactions with the Knights Templars, is placed in the list before the 

 year 1262. [G. W.] 



