A HISTORY OF NORFOLK 



The Hospital of St. John Baptist 



The leper hospital of St. John Baptist, founded 

 in the twelfth century, used to stand, says Blome- 

 field, 'at the corner of Earl's or Alice's lane 

 against St. Cuthbert's Cross, its church being in 

 the orcliard belonging to that house.' '■ 



Protection, involving authority to collect alms, 

 was granted by the crown to this hospital in 

 1229,^ and the master had a grant of a fair, in 

 1232, to be held on the vigil and feast of the 

 decollation of St. John the Baptist.' 



As the town increased in that direction, 

 the inconvenience of a leper establishment in 

 the midst of population became obvious ; and 

 on the foundation of Magdalen hospital by 

 John earl of Warenne it was suppressed, and the 

 brethren moved there. Subsequently the latter 

 house was not infrequently named under the 

 conjoint invocation of St. Mary Magdalen 

 and St. John Baptist ; a gild that pertained to 

 the earlier hospital, called the gild of St. John 

 Baptist, was also transferred to St. Mary 

 Mae;dalen. 



1390, John Fordham, bishop of Ely, granted 

 an indulgence of forty days to all persons who 

 would give help and assistance to the poor men 

 and lepers living in the hospital of St. Margaret's 

 by Thetford during the next three days.' 



The hospital was dissolved in the time of 

 Edward VI, and the site granted to Sir Richard 

 Fulmerston. 



103. LAZAR-HOUSE OF WALSING- 

 HAM 



There was a lazar-house or a spittle of old 

 foundation at Walsingham. Blomefield found 

 mention of it in i486 ; and in 1491, Robert 

 Pigut, by will, gave messuages called the Spittle- 

 houses, with lands, freemen, and villeins pertain- 

 ing, in Walsingham and Houghton to Robert 

 Godfrey and others, on condition that they 

 settled them on John Ederich, a leper of Nor- 

 wich, and Cecil his wife, for their lives ; and 

 afterwards to admit two leprous men or one, of 

 good family, from time to time.* 



The Hospital of St. John 

 There was a leper hospital dedicated in honour 

 of St. John on the Suffolk side of the town. 

 Martin gives references to it under the reigns 

 of Edwa^rd I, II, and III. In 1387 John" of 

 Gaunt, as already detailed in the account of 

 the friary, gave the old parochial church of 

 St. John to the friars, which then became the 

 chapel of the hospital. At the time of the 

 dissolution it was demolished as part of the 

 friars' property, and the site was granted to 

 Sir Richard Fulmerston.* 



The Hospital of St. Margaret ' 



St. Margaret's was one of the four appendant 

 churches of Thetford both in the Confessor's 

 and the Conqueror's days. It stood on the 

 Suffolk side of the borough. In the fourteenth 

 century the parish was annexed to that of St. 

 Mary's, and the church, which was in the gift 

 of the bishop of Ely, became the chapel of a 

 leper hospital. In 1304 certain thieves broke 

 into the house of lepers of St. Margaret and 

 stole a silver chalice worth 5^., 205. in money, 

 and linen and woollen cloths worth los., and 

 then set fire to the buildings.* On 20 March, 



' Blomefield, Hist, of Nor/, ii, 78. 



' Pat. 13 Hen. Ill, m. 5. 



' Chart. 16 Hen. Ill, m. 5. 



* Blomefield, Hist, of Norf. ii, 71-2 ; Martin, 

 Hist, of Thetford, 97-8. There is a certain amount 

 of confusion in the statements as to these two leper 

 hospitals, one of St. John, and the other of St. John 

 Baptist. 



' Blomefield, Hist, of Norf. ii, 72 ; Martin, Hist, 

 of Thetford, 89, 90. 



' Assize R. 1234, m. 26, i. 



104. THE HOSPITAL OF WALSOKEN 



There was a chapel dedicated to the Holy 

 Trinity in the parish of Walsoken, at a place 

 called Stathe-Dytch, to which was attached a 

 gild or fraternity of some fame, ruled by a 

 master or warden. It seems to have been 

 usually termed the Hospital of the Holy Trinity. 

 Pope Urban (1378-90) and four of his succes- 

 sors granted particular indulgences to the 

 brethren and sisters of this house and their 

 benefactors as appears from a deed of admission 

 of two persons into this fraternity, dated 6 Octo- 

 ber, 1 48 1. At that time Eborard was master ; 

 he is termed ' custos capelle et hospitalis 

 See. Trinitatis de Walsoken.' Blomefield also 

 mentions a like deed of admission granted in 

 1476, to John Bernus, esquire, and states that 

 the bishop of Ely granted in 1487 forty days' 

 indulgence to all who contributed to the support 

 of this hospital.^ 



The hospital was served by chaplains as well 

 as by a master. In December, 1390, Thomas 

 Fayrandgod and Richard Holn, perpetual chap- 

 lains of Holy Trinity chapel, Walsoken, received 

 permission for themselves and their successors, 

 from Pope Boniface IV, to celebrate mass in the 

 chapel even in the time of interdict. This 

 indult is of value, as it is therein stated that the 

 hospital was founded by King Richard 1.'" 



The Valor of 1535 estimates the annual value 

 of this hospital at £s ^'- 3^-" 



' Fordham's Register, fol. 175. 



* Blomefield, Hist, of Norf ix, 2 8 1-2. 



' Ibid. 1 29-30. 



'" Cul. Papal Reg. iv, 376. 



" De/>. Keeper'' s Rep. viii, App. 2, p. 46. 



452 



