A HISTORY OF YORKSHIRE 



appear that the only means of relieving the stress 

 which prevented the priory from supporting the 

 full number of its canons and maintaining due 

 hospitality, was to send some of the canons for a 

 time to other houses of the same order, and 

 licence to do this was conceded by the arch- 

 bishop. 



A letter from the archbishop, dated lo April 

 1372,^ refers to the case of John Strother, a 

 canon who, at the archbishop's recent visitation, 

 stated that he had been compelled by threats by 

 his father, William Strother, to make his profes- 

 sion as a canon of the house against his will. 

 He sought licence from the archbishop to visit 

 the apostolic see and obtain a release from his 

 vows. This the archbishop granted. 



In 1380^' the house contained the prior and 

 sixteen canons. The clear income of the house 

 in the Valor Eccksiasticus is reckoned at 

 ^269 5J. 9^.2^ 



Burton ^' has, in alphabetical order, a list of 

 the places where the priory held property. The 

 house was surrendered 8 December 1539^° by 

 John Kildwick and seventeen canons. 



Priors of Kirkham 



William, first prior, c. 1 130" 

 D. or O., c. 1 134^' 

 Wallevus otherwise Waltheof, c. 1 140 ^' 

 GeofiFrey, between 1 1 47 and 1153^ 

 William (de Muschamp), occurs c. 1191-2 " 

 Walter, occurs c. 1 195 ''* 

 Drogo, occurs c. 1 195-9'' 

 Andrew, occurs c. 1200—10'' 

 Walter, occurs before 1226 ** 

 William, occurs 1219-28 ^ 

 Richard, occurs 1235-46" 

 Roger, occurs 1252 '' 



Hugh de Beverley, occurs 1258,''' 1268 ** 

 William de Wetwang, occurs 1304 '° 

 John de Elveley, confirmed 1304,*" resigned 

 1310^* 



" York Archiepis. Reg. Thoresby, fol. 196. 



»' Subs. R. (P.R.O.), bdle. 63, no. 12. 



" Valor Eccl. v, 103-4 ; Dugdale, Mon. Angl. vi, 208. 



" Burton, Men. Ebor. 374-7. " Ibid. 377. 



" Rievaulx Chartul. 171 n. 



" Ibid. " Ibid. » Ibid. 



" Burton, Mon. Ebor. 377 n. ; Rievaulx Chartul. 26. 



"=Cott. MS. Claud. D. xi, fol. 229. 



" Burton, Mon. Ebor. 377 n. 



"B.M. Harl. Chart, in, C. 2i. 



" Rievaulx Chartul. 172 n. 



" Baildon, Mon. Notes, i, loi. 



" Ibid. " Ibid. 



'"' Cott. MS. Nero, D. iii, fol. 30, 32 d. 



** Dugdale, Mon. Angl. vi, 209, no. iv ; Baildon, 

 Mon. Notes, i, 1 01. 



•» York Archiepis. Reg. Corbridge, fol. 41. " Ibid. 



" Ibid. Greenfield, fol. 117^. In Recs. of Northern 

 Convocation (Surt. Sec), 58, one 'Gerard of Burton ' 

 is named as Prior of Kirkham, who was present at the 



Robert de Veteri Burgo, 1310," died 1321 *» 

 John de Jarum, 1321,^* died 1333" 

 Adam de Wartria, 1333," died 1349*' 

 John de Hertelpole, 1349," resigned 1 362-3 ** 

 William de Driffield, elected Feb. i362-3,»» 



died 1367 " 

 John de Bridlington (sub-prior), elected 1367 " 

 John de Helmeslay, elected 1398," died 



1408" 

 Richard de Ottelay, elected 1408" 

 William Frithby, died 1457 " 

 Nicholas Naburne (sub-prior), elected 1457," 



died 1462°* 

 Thomas Irton, elected 1462 " 

 William Perle, succ. 1470,^ died 1504" 

 Thomas Bowtre, appointed (by lapse) 25 Sep- 

 tember 1504 °^ 

 John Kildwick, elected 1 5 1 8 *' 



The seal,*^ used as early as 1191, is a large 

 vesica, 3I in. by i|^ in., showing our Lord in 

 Majesty, with the legend : — 



SIGILLVM SANCTE TRINITATIS DE CHIRCAM 



The 1 3th-century prior's seal "^ is a vesica 2| in. 

 by I^in., of similar but more elaborate design, 

 having the prior kneeling in the base between 

 two water bougets. On either side of the 

 majesty is a water bouget between two Cathe- 

 rine wheels, which devices refer to Walter Espec, 

 the founder, who bore arms of three Catherine 

 wheels, and to Lord de Ros, in whose honour 

 the house had for arms three water bougets with 

 a crozier in pale over all. Of the legend there 

 remains : — 



.... PRIORIS DE KIRKEHAM 



Provincial Council at York in 131 1-12, which dealt 

 with the Templars, and, it is added with a (?), ' executed 

 after the Northern Rebellion of 1337.' Immediately 

 after his name comes that of Robert Oldburg, ' prior 

 of Kirkham,' who, it is suggested, was Prior of 

 Warter. There is, however, no hiatus in the list of 

 Priors of Kirkham about this time which could be 

 filled by ' Gerard of Burton.' 



" York Archiepis. Reg. Greenfield, fol. 122^. 



" Ibid. Melton, fol. 285. 



" Ibid. fol. 325. " Ibid. fol. 320. 



" Ibid. fol. 320. " Ibid. Zouch, fol. 202^. 



** Ibid. " Ibid. Thoresby, fol. 208. 



"Ibid. " Ibid. fol. 218. 



" Ibid. " Ibid. sed. vac. fol. 230. 



" Ibid. fol. 2953. " Ibid. 295^ 



« Ibid. W. Booth, fol. I \oh. " Ibid. 



" Ibid. fol. 1 1 8,5. " Ibid. fol. 1 1 8i, 119. 



'" Dugdale, Mon. Angl. vi, 207. 



" York Archiepis. Reg. Savage, fol. 53^. 



"Ibid. Wolsey, fol. 39^. 



"The last prior. He died 1 552. 'John Kil- 

 wyk lait prior of Kirkham, obijt circa primum diem 

 Maij hcc anno sexto Regis nunc, and his pension by 

 yere ^50.' Exch. K.R. Accts. (P.R.O.), bdle. 76,. 

 no. 23. 



" Cat. of Seals, B.M. 3360 ; Cott. Chart, v, 13. 



" Ibid. 3363, kxiv, 71. 



222 



