RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



begging that the church of DalUngton might be 

 appropriated to them^^ represents that their 

 original endowment had been so slender and the 

 place of foundation was so sterile that the rents 

 did not exceed 15 marks a year, and each nun 

 was allowed only 2s. a year for her clothing 

 and \d. a week for food ; so many of the 

 people serving the priory had died, and the 

 houses were in such a bad state and the live 

 stock so diminished, that the conventual lands 

 were left uncultivated, and unless some remedy 

 were provided the nuns would have to beg the 

 necessaries of life from door to door. The 

 Bishop of Lincoln vouched for the truth of these 

 statements, and the pope gave the necessary 

 licence in August 1381," a vicarage at DalUngton 

 being ordained a few months later.*' Beyond 

 one or two notices of the election of a prioress 

 and the commission of Bishop Grey for a visita- 

 tion " nothing is heard of the priory during the 

 15th century. 



When the chancellor of the diocese on behalf 

 of Bishop Longland visited Flamstead in May 

 1530" there were seven nuns ^^ besides the 

 prioress. Three of them said that all was 

 well, another reported that young girls were 

 allowed to sleep in the dormitory, and another 

 that the prioress had a nun to sleep with her, 

 apparently because she was afraid of being late 

 for matins. The prioress was enjoined to give 

 up this practice and to exclude children of both 

 sexes from the dormitory. From the second 

 injunction it may be inferred that the nuns kept 

 a school. The priory came to an end on 3 March 

 1537^ under the Act of the previous year 

 dissolving monasteries of less than X^oo annual 

 value. The conduct of the nuns was irre- 

 proachable, the commissioners returning them 

 as ' of very good report,' ^ and the management 

 of the place had evidently been efficient, since 

 the house was in good repair. 



Agnes Croke, the prioress, received a pension 



of £6 a year,^ but the seven other nuns seem to 



have been dismissed with a small sum of money .^* 



The income of the priory was estimated in 1 5 26 



at j^39 6s. Sd. gross and £17 ijs. 6d. net,^^ in 



^' They obtained the king's permission in 1 3 1 3 

 (Cal.Pal. 1307-13, p. 591). 



1^ Line. Epis. Reg. Buckingham, Memo. pt. ii, 

 fol. 232 d. " Apr. 1382 (ibid. fol. 233). 



" Ibid. Grey, Memo. (1431-5), fol. 89. 



^' Doc. of Bp. of Lincoln at Exchequer Gate. 



^^ Five ' ladies ' and two sisters. 



21 L. and P. Hen. Fill, xii (i), 571 (3). 



^ Transcript of Land Rev. Rec. bdle. 66, no. 3. 



^^ L. and P. Hen. Fill, xiii (i), p. 577. She was 

 still receiving it in 1555 (Add. MS. 8102, m. 9). 



^ The sum of ^^16 izs. lod. was divided among 

 the seven nuns and ten servants (Mins. Accts. 

 Hen. VIII, no. 1606). 



^^ Salter, J subsidy collected in the diocese of Lincoln 

 in 1526, p. 193. 



4 433 



1535 at ^30 I9J-. 6\d. clear ^^ and in 1537 at £37 

 net ^' ; it was derived from the manor of Wood- 

 hall in Hemel Hempstead, land and rents in 

 Flamstead, Gaddesden and St. Albans (co. 

 Herts.), in Studham and Hockliffe (co. Beds.), 

 Cholesbury, Dagnall, Edlesborough and Win- 

 grave (co. Bucks.), and the rectories of 

 Tilsworth (co. Beds.) and Dallington (co. 

 Northants).''* The goods and chattels of the 

 nunnery with the ornaments of the church were 

 sold for j^44 8^. ^\d. ^^ ; the plate was valued at 

 16 4^-. y^d.^^ and the three bells at ;£lo.^i 



Prioresses of St. Giles, Flamstead 



Agnes, occurs June 1244,*^ died 1254-5'^ 

 Petronilla de Lucy, elected 1254-5,^* occurs 



125535 

 Loretta, occurs 1270^* 

 Laura, died 1291 3' 



Joan de Whethamsted, elected 1 291 ^' 

 CeciHa de Morteyn, elected July 1308," 



resigned 1316*" 

 Helen de Dunstaple, elected 1 3 16" 

 Maud Lucy, elected 141 5 *'^ 

 Joan Mourton, died 1454 *^ 

 Catherine Colyngryge, elected 1454" 

 Joan Bone, occurs 12 March 1498-9 *^ 

 Agnes Tryng, elected 1509,*' occurs 15 10 



and 1514,*' resigned 1 5 17" 



2« Falor Eccl. (Rec. Com.), iv, 276. 



^ Transcript of Land Rev. Rec. bdle. 66, no. 3. 



28 Rentals and Surv. (Gen. Ser.), portf. 8, no. 41 ; 

 Mins. Accts. Hen. VIII, no. 1606. 



2S Counting the wheat sown in the demesne lands, 

 which sold for £15. The stuff in the parlour fetched 

 5j., that of the quire 6s. %d., of the vestry 66^. %d., 

 of the kitchen i 5^., of the high chamber 30/., of the 

 middle chamber 36/. 4</., of the buttery zos. and of 

 the bakehouse 26/. id., a table of alabaster^ 20/., 

 another for our Lady altar 3/. 4a'., the glass in the 

 church windows 20J-., the timber in the quire 26/. id. 

 The nuns had 6 horses, 7 kine and z. heifers, 7 swine 

 and 28 sheep (Aug. Off. Misc. Bks. ccclxi, fol. 65). 



3° Ibid. It consisted of a silver salt, six silver spoons, 

 a chalice and paten gilt, and 'the garnishing of i 

 mazer band.' 



'1 Mins. Accts. Hen. VIII, no. 1606. 



32 Feet of F. Bucks. 28 Hen. Ill, no. 47. 



33 Line. Epis. Reg. Lexington's Rolls (Huntingdon 

 Archd. Anno, 2). '* Ibid. 



36 Feet of F. Bucks. 40 Hen. Ill, no. 147. 



36 Ibid. 55 Hen. Ill, no. 134. 



3' Line. Epis. Reg. Sutton, Inst. fol. 85 d. She 

 is mentioned in the Lay Subsidy Roll of 1 290-1 

 (bdle. 120, no. 2). 



38 Line. Epis. Reg. Sutton, Inst. fol. 85 d. 



39 Ibid. Dalderby, Memo. fol. 1 12 d. 



«Ibid. fol. 327. 



^1 Ibid. 



<2 Ibid. Repingdon, Inst. fol. 361 d. 



« Ibid. Chedworth, Inst. fol. 186. ** Ibid. 



« Aug. Off. Convent. Leases, iv, no. 1 1 8. 



« Line. Epis. Reg. Smith, Inst. fol. 423. 



<'■ Aug Off. Convent. Leases, iv, no. 116, 120. 



48 Line. Epis. Reg. Wolsey and Atwater, Inst. fol. 47. 



ss 



