RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



Sutton deprived the brethren of their right 

 of election, because of the dissensions which 

 arose at the resignation of the prior : and 

 finding no one in the house whom he thought 

 capable of holding office, he on his own 

 authority re-appointed Adam de Hanred, the 

 monk who had just resigned. 1 In 1287 Adam 

 again resigned, and on 26 May a licence to 

 elect having been obtained, the brethren 

 elected Richard de Silveston. The royal 

 assent to his election was signified on 18 June, 

 but on that day a messenger arrived from the 

 convent bearing the resignation of brother 

 Richard and requesting another licence to 

 elect. 2 This having been obtained, the 

 choice of the priory fell on a brother from 

 another monastery John of Houghton, from 

 the priory of Daventry. 3 He in his turn re- 

 signed two years later, and became a Friar 

 minor : the monk elected in his place resigned 

 the office, 4 and Peter of Saldeston or Shalstone 

 was finally appointed. 5 In 1294 the bishop 

 visited the house, and deposed Peter of Shal- 

 stone, 6 because he would not obey the in- 

 junctions then given as to the management 

 of the property of the convent, and William 

 of Brackley was elected. After this the house 

 must have enjoyed greater peace, for William 

 ruled it nearly twenty years, and his successor 

 twenty-eight years. 



The only other recorded visitation of this 

 monastery was in 1311, by order of Bishop 

 Dalderby ' ; its results are not entered in the 

 episcopal registers. In 1347 the prior was 

 enjoined to receive back an apostate monk, 

 who wished to resume the habit of religion. 8 

 The death of the prior is recorded in the year 

 of the Great Pestilence, and it is stated that 



1 Line. Epis. Reg. Rolls of Sutton. According 

 to entries on the patent and fine rolls the monks, 

 on the resignation of Adam de Henred or Hanred 

 in December 1284, elected William de Brackley, a 

 brother of their house, as prior, and on 2 January, 

 1284-5, the king signified his assent (Pat. 13 Edw. I. 

 m. 31). The bishop annulled the election and 

 reappointed Adam, without however obtaining 

 another licence from the king, who of his special 

 grace directed the escheator to restore the tempor- 

 alities of the house to Adam until Parliament, to be 

 held after Easter, when the matter should receive 

 final settlement. Fine R. 13 Edw. I. m. 1 6, cited 

 by Dugdale, Man. iv. 346, it.z. 



2 Pat. 15 Edw. I. ms. 9, II. 



3 Line. Epis. Reg. Rolls of Sutton. 



4 His name was Gilbert de Merse. Pat. 17 

 Edw. I. ms. 1 8, 20. 



5 Line. Epis. Reg. Rolls of Sutton and Pat. 17 

 Edw. I. m. 18. 



6 Line. Epis. Reg. Memo. Sutton, f. in. 



7 Ibid. Memo. Dalderby, 2O2d. 

 s Ibid. Inst. Bek. I2d. 



all the monks died of the plague. 9 It may 

 be that, like many other small houses, the 

 priory of Luffield never fully recovered its 

 original numbers or prosperity after this year. 

 The last prior, Thomas Rowland, on the sup- 

 pression of the house in 1494, retired to the 

 abbey of Abingdon, of which he died Lord 

 Abbot in IS04. 10 



The original endowment of the priory con- 

 sisted of the demesne land at Luffield, with 

 other parcels of land in Thornborough, Shal- 

 stone and Evershaw in this county, at ' Flec- 

 hamsteda ' in Warwickshire, and at Dodford 

 in Northamptonshire ; with the churches of 

 Thornborough, Beachampton and Water 

 Stratford and the Chapel of Evershaw. 11 The 

 total value of temporalities in 1291 was 

 24 i<)s. i\i. 12 ; the spiritualities could not 

 have amounted to much, as the churches of 

 Thornborough and Water Stratford were 

 both of less than 10 value, and vicar's por- 

 tions had to be paid out of this. 



In 1316 the prior of Luffield was returned 

 as holding half the vill of Shalstone, half the 

 vill of Evershaw, and one third of Thorn- 

 borough. 13 In 1346 he held the same portion 

 of Thornborough, and shared with the abbot 

 of Biddlesden one eighth of a knight's fee in 

 Evershaw. 14 



The value of the house, as stated in the bull 

 of Alexander VI. for its annexation, is stated 

 to have been 260 golden florins. 



PRIORS OF LUFFIELD 



Mauger, 15 first prior, occurs before 1133 



William, 18 occurs 1151 



Ralf, 17 occurs 1174 



John 18 



William, 19 before 1218 



Roger, 20 died 1231 



William de Brackley, 21 elected 1231 



8 Cited by Browne Willis (Hist, of Mitred 

 Abbies, ii. 27) from Camden. See also Gasquet, 

 Black Death, 137. 



10 Browne Willis, Hist, of Mitred Abbies, ii. 27. 

 His companions were probably transferred to other 

 monasteries according to the ordination laid down 

 in the bull of Alexander VI. Dugdale, Man. iv. 



3S 2 - 



11 Ibid, and Hund. R. (Rec. Com.), ii. 343, 351. 



" Pope Nich. Tax. (Rec. Com.), 45-47, etc. 



Feud. Aids, i. 108-9. 



i* Ibid. 125-6. 



i Foundation Charter, Dugdale, Man. iv. 346. 



Bull of Eugenius III., ibid. 



" Bull of Alexander III. ibid. 



is Browne Willis, Hist, of Mitred Abbies, ii. 25 



i Ibid. 



"o Pat. 15 Hen. III. m. 2. 



Ibid. ' 



349 



