A HISTORY OF YORKSHIRE 



at Calder, was elected in his place. He was 

 master of the novices at Hood, but had only one 

 novice under him at the time, to whom he 

 was speaking concerning the observances of 

 the rule, when (the chronicler relates) suddenly 

 and without warning, all the monks surrounded 

 him and bore him in their arms to the high 

 altar of the oratory, proclaiming him as their 

 abbot with a loud voice in the name of the Holy 

 Trinity. In Easter week following he was 

 blessed as abbot by the archbishop at Sherburn, 

 on the presentation of Roger de Mowbray, who 

 was present at the ceremony. 



When the monks had been four years at Hood 

 and many persons had joined them, the place be- 

 came too small, and in 1 143 Roger de Mowbray 

 gave them his vill of Bellalanda super Moram^ 

 [Old Byland] with its church and all its appur- 

 tenances. Having made this grant, he caused 

 the monks to build a small cell by the River Rye, 

 not far from Rievaulx Abbey, which had been 

 founded twelve years before by Walter I'Espec. 

 Here Abbot Roger and his monks stayed for five 

 years. At the desire of Roger de Mowbray 

 Hood was given to the Augustinian priory which 

 he founded at Newburgh. 



As Old Byland, from its nearness to Rievaulx, 

 was unsuitable for the new abbey, Roger de 

 Mowbray gave the monks in 1 147 two carucates 

 of land near Coxwold, and the monks set to work 

 to clear the ground, and built a small stone 

 church, a cloister, and other buildings and offices. 

 But when Roger de Mowbray had left for Nor- 

 mandy troubles arose. Robert Dayville, lord 

 of Kilburn, greatly hindered the monks, asserting 

 that they had inclosed part of his vill of Kilburn. 

 Hugh Malbys, lord of Scawton, also harassed 

 them, as did Guy deBoltby. In consequence of 

 these difficulties Abbot Roger went in 1 147 to 

 Savigny, where he attended the general chapter 

 (which gave Jervaulx as a daughter-house to 

 Byland). He assured Abbot Serlo and those 

 present that his monastery was amply endowed, 

 if he and his monks were allowed peaceable 

 possession of their property. He left before the 

 chapter was ended, and hastened to Roger de 

 Mowbray, who promised speedy and efficient help. 

 Fortified with letters from him to the disturbers 

 of the rights of the monks, he returned to Eng- 

 land. On Roger de Mowbray's return a settle- 

 ment was effected.^ 



These troubles ended, new ones arose, the 

 Abbot of Calder asserting that Roger and his con- 

 vent belonged to that house, and not to Savigny. 

 Abbot Roger replied that had there been an 

 Abbot of Calder when Hood was given, there 

 might be some claim for Calder, but as Calder 

 was vacant at the time, the gift was to Savigny, 

 to whom he and his monks were subject. The 

 next year the Abbot of Savigny held a visitation 



' Dugdale, Moit. Angl. v, 352. 



of his houses in England, and the question was 

 referred to Aelred, Abbot of Rievaulx. The 

 Abbot of Furness put in his claim above that of 

 the daughter-house of Calder, but Aelred decided 

 against the claims of Furness. With this, the 

 troubles of the monks of Byland in maintaining 

 their property and independence came to an end, 

 but Roger de Mowbray, in order to make every- 

 thing sure for the future, confirmed all his gifts to 

 Byland before the Archbishop and chapter of 

 York. 



The monks remained thirty years at Stocking, 

 and while there cleared the woods and drained 

 the swamps, and no doubt began the abbey church 

 on the site now occupied by its ruins. On the 

 eve of All Saints (30 October) 1177 they made 

 their fourth and final move to what was then 

 called Whiteker, but to which they conveyed the 

 name of their house of Bellalanda, and which has 

 since borne the name of Byland from it. Abbot 

 Roger ruled the convent for the long space of 

 fifty-four years, at Old Byland, Stocking and 

 Whiteker (Byland). He had often wished to 

 resign, but when he had pleaded this with 

 St. Bernard he was persuaded to continue in 

 office. At length, worn out and enfeebled by 

 age, he resigned, but lived nearly three years 

 longer as an inmate of the monastery. There 

 seems some difficulty in accounting for the 

 removal from Stocking, where the monks had 

 built a stone church and cloister, and other offices 

 and structures. Possibly these were too small, 

 for the church is described as a small one, and it 

 may be that on that account they thought well to 

 begin a new monastery close by, on a larger 

 scale. 



By far the most important event in the after 

 history of Byland must have been the ' battle of 

 Byland Abbey' as it has been called, fought on 

 the high ground between the abbeys of Rievaulx 

 and Byland, on or about 14 October 1322, but 

 as to what befell Byland Abbey on that occasion 

 we do not know. King Edward is said by some 

 to have been at Byland Abbey when the news 

 of the discomfiture of his forces and the capture 

 of the Earl of Richmond by the Scots reached 

 him. By others it is said that he was at Rievaulx 

 Abbey. At whichever of the houses he was 

 sojourning he fled precipitately to York, leaving a 

 large treasure and much silver plate behind him, 

 which fell into the hands of the Scots. 



Burton ' gives a long list of the possessions the 

 abbey received from different donors.* 



' Burton, Mon. Ebor. 329-38. 



* Egerton MS. 2823 is a chartukry of Byland. 

 A large number of original charters of the abbey are 

 said to have been destroyed when St. Mary's tower 

 at York was blown up in 1 644, and others were burnt 

 in a bookseller's shop at Bristol about i860. The 

 British Museum possesses a number of early charters 

 relating to Danby, Whitby and elsewhere. Add. 

 Chart. 7409-32. 



132 



