RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



HOUSES OF AUSTIN CANONS 



; 46. THE PRIORY OF BOLTON 



The priory of Austin canons, afterwards moved 

 in 1151^ to Bolton, was originally founded at 

 Embsay' in Skipton, by William Meschines and 

 Cecilia de Romeli his wife, lady of Skipton, in 

 1 120.' The foundation charter,* addressed to 

 Archbishop Thurstan, records that they had 

 given to Reynold, the prior, the church of 

 Holy Trinity of Skipton, with the chapel of 

 Carleton and the whole vill of ' Emmesey,' for a 

 church of regular canons. 



By a separate charter,' Cecilia de Romeli 

 granted to the church of St. Mary and St. Cuth- 

 bert of Embsay, and the canons there, the whole 

 vill of Kildwick, and her son-in-law William, 

 nephew of the king of Scotland, and Aeliz de 

 Romeli his wife,* confirmed to the church of 

 Embsay the church of All Saints of Broughton 

 in Craven. 



In 1 1 5 1,' with the consent of Aeliz de Romeli, 

 then patroness,* the canons were moved to Bolton, 

 where she gave, with consent of her son William, 

 the capital manor of Bolton in exchange for 

 other lands. This exchange was confirmed by 

 Henry II.' A charter of Aeliz de Romeli, 

 confirming the gifts of William de Meschines 

 and her mother, gives fuU details of the boun- 

 daries of the lands given to the canons ' ecclesiae 

 tunc apud Embesiam, nunc apud Boelton com- 

 morantibus.' ^° 



There was some connexion between Bolton 

 and the priory of Huntingdon which is not 

 very clear. The church of Skipton was part of 

 the foundation gift of William de Meschines 

 and Cecilia de Romeli to the canons when at 

 Embsay, but in a charter of confirmation by 

 Henry I to the priory of Huntingdon is included '^ 

 ' ecclesiam S, Trinitatis de Scipeton cum omnibus 

 sibi pertinentibussicut idem Willelmus [Meschin] 

 eam eis [canonicis de Huntingdon] dedit et 

 confirmavit.' There are two charters printed ^ 

 relating to the * subjection ' of Bolton to Hunt- 

 ingdon, which, however, throw little light on the 



' Dugdale, Mon. Angl. vi, 201, 203, no. v. 



' Ibid. 203, no. ii. ' Ibid. no. i. 



' Ibid. no. ii. ' Ibid. no. iii. 



' Ibid. no. iv. ' Ibid. no. v. 



' In I Edw. I (1272-3) the king was patron; 

 Burton, Mm. Ebor. 121. 



' Dugdale, Mon. Angl. v, 204, no. vi. 



'" Burton, Mot. Ebor. 115. The legend that the 

 priory was founded by Aeliz de Romeli after her son 

 had been drowned while hunting is clearly unsupported 

 by facts. 



" Dugdale, Mon. Angl. vi, 80, no. ii. 

 Ibid. 205, 206, no. XV, xvi. 



matter, especially as the church of Skipton 

 seems to have belonged without any real inter- 

 ruption to Bolton. Neither makes allusion to 

 the church of Skipton as the reason of the sub- 

 jection, or states what the Prior and canons of 

 Huntingdon meant by their claim ; but the 

 second of the deeds, entitled ' Carta de Absolu- 

 tione Prioris de Boelton de Subjectione Priori 

 de Huntendone,' '' addressed to G[eofFrey], 

 Archbishop of York 1 191 to 1206, by R[oald], 

 Prior of Guisbrough, and W [ ], " Prior of 



Marton, states that as the apostolic commis- 

 saries of Celestine III (1198 to 1 216) they 

 had declared the Prior and canons of Bolton 

 free from all subjection to Huntingdon. How- 

 ever, in the Compotus Roll, Michaelmas 1324 

 to Michaelmas 1325," the canons of Bolton 

 paid j^5 bs. 8d. pro pemione de Huntyngdon, 

 The whole affair is, unfortunately, obscure. 



Dr. Whitaker, speaking of the establishment 

 as revealed from the accounts of the priory from 

 1290 to 1325,^* says that it consisted of a prior, 

 who had lodgings with a hall and a chapel, 

 stables, &c., detached from the main building, 

 and that there were fifteen canons and two 

 conversi^'' besides the armigeri or gentlemen 

 dependent on the house, who had clothing, 

 board, and lodging, the liieri servientes within 

 and without, and the garciones or villeins. Of free 

 servants, intra curiam, there were about thirty, 

 such as the master carpenter, the master and 

 inferior cook, brewer, baker, &c., and Dr. 

 Whitaker's estimate is that the establishment 

 consisted of more than 200 persons, but many 

 of them were engaged on distant manors and 

 granges. 



On 2 December 1267 ^* Archbishop Giffiird 

 visited the priory of Bolton, when it was found 

 that Brother Hugh de Ebor' possessed private 

 money, which it was said he had placed at deposit, 

 or handed to his brother at York, or his sister, a 

 nun of St. Clement's. He was also charged 

 with incontinence, but that charge was not 

 proved. The whole convent had conspired by 

 oath against the predecessor of William de Dan- 

 field, the existing prior. John de Pontefracto, 



" Ibid. 205, no. XV. 



" No prior of Marton whose name began with W 

 is known at this period. Henry was prior in 1203 

 and 1237. There would appear to be an error of 

 the copyist or a misprint. 



" Burton, Mon. Ebor. 125. 



" Dugdale, Mon. Angl. v, 202, citing Hist. Craven 

 (ed. 2), 369-84. 



"In 1 3 80-1 besides the prior there were thirteen 

 canons and five convent. 



" Archbf. Gifard's Reg. (Surt. Soc), 145. 



195 



