RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



infrequently obliged to be absent from England 

 for periods of varying length ; thus William, 

 prior of St. Faith's, nominated two attorneys to 

 act for him for two years, in April, 1303, and 

 obtained simple protection for a like period 

 during his absence.' In 1307 the same prior 

 again obtained protection for two years,^ and 

 protection was granted, in 1344, to Prior Pontius 

 de Cerveria, going beyond the seas for causes 

 concerning him, and for his men, horses and 

 harness, with reasonable expenses in gold ; pro- 

 vided he make no payment of tribute, nor carry 

 with him gold or silver plate, or jewels.' 



On I December, 1307, a commission was 

 appointed in connexion with an outrage on the 

 priory of St. Faith. It was alleged that Robert 

 de Barwe, Hubert le Warner, with twenty-five 

 others, in the time of the late king, forcibly 

 entered the priory, consumed the victuals and 

 other goods, and guarded the gates of the priory 

 for four months, so that the prior could not 

 enter nor the monks within get out ; that they 

 carried off his palfrey worth 10 marks ; killed in 

 his wood seven swine worth 40;. ; threw a monk 

 from off a horse on the king's high road, carried 

 him off to Horsford, spoiled him of his habit and 

 shoes, and imprisoned him ; further, that they 

 entered the prior's market at the town of Hor- 

 sham, collected the toll, pickage, and other dues 

 there, took away from his servants their goods 

 and wares, seized twelve cart-horses worth 

 30 marks, which were to carry his corn in the 

 autumn, and impounded them for four weeks, 

 whereby most of the corn being left in the fields 

 was trampled under foot by cattle, and the monks 

 had to carry on their backs the small residue 

 that escaped ; threw from off a horse his servant 

 appointed for the gathering in of the corn, and 

 carried off the horse ; felled his trees, broke his 

 ditches and closes, drove off his cattle, and 

 entered and hunted in his warren, and carried 

 away his hares.* 



Edward III granted the custody of the alien 

 priory of St. Faith, when it was taken into the 

 hands of the crown, to the prior on condition of 

 his paying ^loo a year; but in 1337 he re- 

 mitted for that year half the amount.' In 1338 

 the prior, on the petition of the cardinals of 

 St. Praxed and St. Mary's in Aquiro, was par- 

 doned the payment of ;^8o out of the ;^ioo 

 yearly so long as the priory remained in the 

 king's hands.^ 



In 1345 the king appointed Sir John DufFord, 

 knt., patron of Horsham Priory, to collect all 

 farms, rents, tithes, pensions, etc., due to the 

 priory, now committed to the custody of the 



' Pat. 31 Edw. I, m. 28. 



» Ibid. I Edw. II, pt. i, m. 6. 



' Ibid. 18 Edw. Ill, pt. ii, m. 30. 



' Ibid. I Edw. II, pt. i, m. J J. 



' Close, 2 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 15 ; pt. ii, m. 37. 



« Pat. 12 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 38. 



prior, at farm, as the king was informed that 

 many of these were in arrear, and unless they 

 are got in, the prior would be unable to answer 

 for his rent.' 



In 1372 Pope Gregory wrote to the bishop of 

 Norwich commending to him four monks, the 

 bearers of the letter, of the monastery of Conches, 

 whom Abbot Draymond was sending to live in 

 the priory of Horsham.' 



Thomas de Berthelet, appointed in 1389, was 

 the first prior elected by the monks of Horsham, 

 and in December, 1390, a crown grant was 

 made, at the request of the king's uncle, the 

 Duke of Lancaster, and of the king's brother, the 

 Earl of Huntingdon, of denization to the Bene- 

 dictine priory of Horsham, wholly discharging 

 them from all fines and impositions as aliens. 

 No prior was to be placed over them but a true 

 Englishman, and on all points they were to be 

 as free as the prior and monks of Thetford, on 

 Condition that they paid the king 2 marks a year, 

 as they formerly did to the abbey of Conches, 

 and that they prayed for the king and queen and 

 for the good estate of the realm. In their peti- 

 tion begging to be thus naturalized, the monks 

 stated that their priory was almost ruined, divine 

 service nearly abandoned, and where there used 

 to be a prior and twelve monks to celebrate 

 three masses daily, and to give every poor beggar 

 a loaf and two herrings (in addition to other 

 charities), they had at present but a prior and 

 eight monks who could hardly subsist, because 

 they had to pay ^50 yearly to the exchequer as- 

 long as the war with France lasted.' Horsham 

 was henceforward recognized as an English 

 priory. 



In 1462, a grant was made by Edward IV in 

 free alms to the provost and college of Eton of 

 the pension or apport of 2 marks, which the 

 priory of St. Faith used to render to the abbot 

 of Conches.'" 



John Sarisbury was prior on 17 August, 1534, 

 when he signed the acknowledgement of the 

 king's supremacy, in conjunction with six of his 

 monks.'' 



In November, 1535, Dr. Legh and John ap 

 Rice paid several visits to St. Faith's at Crom- 

 well's request. The former wrote to Cromwell 

 on 19 November, saying that the house was a 

 commodious one and spent about 300 marks a 

 year ; there were but five monks with the prior, 

 and two wished to be dismissed. Two days 

 later Prior Sarisbury wrote to Cromwell com- 

 plaining that his visitor had sequestrated the 

 possessions and movables of the house without 

 any just cause, which had been brought about 

 by the sinister reports of his enemies. * Being 



' Ibid. 19 Edw. Ill, pt. ii, m. 16. 



' Ca/. of Pap. Reg. iv, 1 14. 



' Pat. 14 Ric. II, pt. ii, m. 39. 

 '» Ibid. I Edw. IV, pt. iii, m. 24. 

 " Dep. Keeper's Rep. vii, App. 2, No. 94. 



347 



