80 Mr. W. Dickson on a Chantry 



which shall not be held of us immediately in capite, or otherwise by mili- 

 tary service, from any other person or persons, willing to give, grant or as- 

 sign the same to them, to be had and held by them and their successors, 

 Chaplains of the aforesaid Chantry, as well for the Exhibition in grammar 

 of poor boys there as aforesaid, as for the maintenance of the said Chantry 

 and support of the burdens necessarily belonging to the same Chantry, ac- 

 cording to the ordinances of the Earl, Bishop, Henry and John, the three 

 or two longest livers of them, as it is permitted to be done for ever. 



" And likewise by the tenor of these presents we have given special li- 

 cence, for any person or persons that he or they may give, grant, or assign 

 in form aforesaid such lands, tenements and rents of the said annual 

 value to the aforesaid Chaplains for the time being of the aforesaid 

 Chantry as „is aforesaid, so long as it be found by Inquisition duly taken 

 and returned into the Chancery of us and of our hens, that it may be done 

 without hurt or prejudice of us or our hens or others whatsoever, notwith- 

 standing the Statute of Mortmain, except in those cases where express men- 

 tion is made of other gifts and grants by us or any of our ancestors to the 

 aforesaid Earl, Bishop, Henry and John or any of them in matters of small 

 amount existing before the date of this Licence. 



" In Testimony whereof we have caused these our letters to be made pa- 

 tent. Witness ourself, at Westminster, the 6th day of July, in the 26th 

 year of our reign, [a.d. 1448.] 



" By writ of Privy Seal and of the date aforesaid." 



This Henry Earl of Northumberland was the son of the 

 valiant Hotspur ; he held many high offices under the Crown, 

 and was in great favour with King Henry VI. ; he was killed 

 at the battle of St. Albans, 23rd May, 33 Hen. VI. (1455), 

 fighting in the army of that king. He was succeeded by his 

 eldest son Henry, one of the parties named in the above Charter ; 

 he was summoned to Parliament in his father's lifetime as Lord 

 de Poynings; his wife was Baroness Poynings Fitzpayne and 

 Bryan in her own right, titles which have descended from her to 

 His Grace the present Duke of Northumberland. 



The Bishop named in the above Licence was William Alne- 

 wicke, formerly Archdeacon of Salisbury ; he was made Bishop 

 of Norwich 27th Feb. 1426— was Keeper of the Privy Seal 

 — translated to Lincoln 19th Sept. 1436, and died 5th Dec. 

 1449. From his name being Alnewicke he was probably a na- 

 tive of that town, and so instrumental in the endowment of this 

 Chantry. 



This religious foundation seems to have been augmented from 

 time to time by grants from pious individuals, and to have risen 

 rapidly, as it only existed for about 100 years. 



At the dissolution of Chantries in 1547 this Society possessed 

 44 burgages in various parts of the town of Alnwick, containing 

 in all nearly 11 acres. 



This is proved by the following extracts from an ancient Survey 

 of the Borough Town of Alnwick, made in the time of King 

 James I. (1624), and preserved in Alnwick Castle : — 



