A HISTORY OF YORKSHIRE 



was the refractory prioress who had been removed 

 and Agnes de Pontefracto elected in her place. In 

 1 3 1 4 '* the archbishop granted licence to the nuns 

 to have William de Calverleye, of the order of 

 Friars Minor, as their confessor. 



In the week before Pentecost in the same year, 

 Archbishop Melton visited Hampole, and as a 

 result, but not till 5 December following, he sent 

 on a series of injunctions.'' The house was found 

 to be heavily in debt, and he exhorted all to be 

 economical, and with the help of their discreet 

 custos, or master, to strive to be relieved of their 

 debts. All contained in his predecessor's decretum, 

 as well as that in his own, was to be observed, and 

 the whole read in chapter. The prioress and sub- 

 prioress were enjoined that they were to correct 

 and even chastise nuns who used new-fashioned 

 narrow-cut tunics and rochets, contrary to the 

 accustomed use of their order, whatever might be 

 their condition or state of dignity, and hence- 

 forth all the nuns were to use uncut garments of 

 the old fashion, long time observed in the house, 

 to the honour of religion. The archbishop also 

 ordered that all the irregular clamides of the nuns, 

 to wit those of black colour, should be removed 

 within half a }ear, and that in future they 

 should use clamides of russet colour according to 

 the old fashion of the house and institutes of the 

 order ; and four scapulars were to be provided 

 for the nuns whose duty it was to wait on the 

 convent at dinner {in prandio). 



No secular servants were to sleep in the dor- 

 mitory, nor were any brethren of religious orders, 

 relatives of the nuns, to be allowed to spend the 

 night in the inner guest-chamber of the house. 

 No male children over five years of age were to 

 be permitted in the house, as the archbishop 

 found had been the practice. The prioress was 

 exhorted to show no personal favouritism. 

 Joan de Vernour was to have a room in the 

 outer court of the house for her abode, which the 

 convent had granted her for her life. Writing to 

 the Dean of Doncaster, on 14. July 1324,^ the 

 archbishop directed him to make Thomas de 

 RayneviU undergo the penance imposed upon him 

 for committing the sin of incest with Isabella 

 Folifa}t, nun of Hampole. The penance was 

 that on a Sunday, while the major mass was 

 being celebrated in the conventual church of 

 Hampole, Thomas de RayneviU was to stand, 

 wearing a tunic. only and bare-headed, holding a 

 lighted taper of a pound weight of wax in his 

 hand, which after the ofiFertory had been said he 

 was to offer to the celebrant, who was to explain to 

 the congregation the cause of the oblation. Also 

 that on two festivals more penitencium he should be 

 beaten {fuitigetur} round the parish church of 

 Campsall. The Dean of Doncaster was to see 

 that this penance was performed, and was to 

 report how the culprit had conducted himself 



" York Archiepis. Reg. Greenfield, ii, fol. 853. 

 " Ibid. Melton. •» Ibid. fol. 162^. 



during it. Evidently it was not carried out at the 

 time, for on 16 August 1326" the archbishop re- 

 peated the direction for its performance. 



On I January 1353^' Archbishop Thoresby 

 issued a commission to inquire into the state of 

 the house, which, according to the public report, 

 through unwise rule and other causes, was in 

 such a condition of financial collapse that the 

 dispersion of its nuns was threatened, unless it 

 could be quickly and generously assisted. What 

 was discovered was to be corrected and reformed, 

 and if reasonable cause demanded it, the prioress 

 was to be deposed, and another elected. 



On 8 December 1358^^ the archbishop wrote 

 to the prioress and convent on behalf of Alice de 

 Reygate, one of their nuns, who, with weeping 

 countenance, had prostrated herself at his feet, 

 confessing that she had broken the vow of her 

 profession and been guilty of immorality with 

 an unmarried man. The archbishop directed 

 that she was to be received back more penitentis, 

 but was not to wear the black veil. She was to 

 take the last place in the convent, and receive 

 daily disciplines in chapter, until he saw good to 

 order otherwise. 



On 20 August 1411^* Archbishop Bowett 

 held a visitation of Hampole, and sent on 

 20 October a long series of injunctions. 

 Several are of a general character, exhorting the 

 prioress and her nuns to charity one with an- 

 other and the due observance of their rule ; 

 the prioress to use circumspection in regard to 

 the recreations of the nuns, now summoning 

 one and then another, and in making corrections 

 not to be a malicious acceptor of persons. She 

 was to punish and chastise so that the punish- 

 ment of one might be a continual fear of the 

 others, and if any proved incorrigible, or resisted 

 her, she was to certify the name of that nun 

 without delay to the archbishop, ' ut ipsa juxta 

 ipsius demerita debite castigetur.' All the nuns 

 were exhorted to obey the prioress, without 

 reluctance or murmuring. None having any 

 complaint against the prioress were to ignore the 

 archbishop's authority and call in the aid of any 

 secular or regular power. Any wishing to com- 

 plain, if another sister joined with her, was to 

 have access to the archbishop, the necessary ex- 

 penses being given to her by the prioress. If the 

 prioress refused her leave for this, or delayed it 

 beyond three days, she and her nun associate 

 were to have access to the archbishop without 

 incurring a charge of apostasy.^* Any receiving 

 gifts or legacies from friends were at once on 

 returning to reveal them to the prioress. No 

 person, secular or religious, greatly suspected, 



" Ibid. fol. 166^. " Ibid. Thoresby, fol. 15*. 



" Ibid. fol. 103. " Ibid. Bowett, fol. loi. 



" That is, they might go out of the monastery 

 without leave of the prioress, or even against her 

 order, that they might lay their complaint before 

 the archbishop, and yet not be charged with apostasy. 



164 



