RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



to give a resting-place to the remains of 

 Henry VI. The body of that unfortunate 

 king ' found dead ' in the Tower was shown 

 for some days in St. Paul's in order to disarm 

 suspicion, after which it was taken on a barge 

 to the abbey of Chertsey to be buried/ where 

 it remained till removed to Windsor by 

 Henry VIII. 



In comparison with the abundance of 

 material for the external history, there is but 

 scanty information as to the internal condition 

 of this house. It is probable, however, that 

 as the abbots were held in so high esteem 

 their rule was satisfactory, and as we hear of 

 no scandal touching the abbey it may be in- 

 ferred that its condition was good. It was 

 diligently visited during the administration 

 of Bishop Wykeham of Winchester, either 

 personally or by commission, but no com- 

 ment throws light on this point.^ During 

 the abbacy of John de Rutherwyk, a dispen- 

 sation was applied for on behalf of John de 

 Winton, priest, a monk of Chertsey for 

 wounding a thief. The petition recounts 

 that a thief at night time broke into the 

 infirmary where the monk was lying ill in 

 bed. A struggle took place between the 

 robber and some servants who were roused, in 

 which the thief received deadly wounds on 

 the head, but by whom the blows were 

 struck was uncertain in the confusion. The 

 monk, suddenly aroused from sleep by the 



entry on the Pat. Rolls 15 March 1465, recites that 

 the king was entitled to 50 marks from the abbey 

 when it became void by the cession of Thomas 

 Angewyn ; that the said sum was granted by the 

 king in 1462 to his sister Anne, Duchess of Exeter 

 (Pat. I Edw. IV. pt. V. m. 18) ; that the new abbot, 

 William Wroughton received the letters patent of 

 this grant and letters of acquittance of the duchess ; 

 that afterwards, on 6 February 1464-5, when the 

 abbot was deprived of his office and dignity, there 

 was another voidance of the abbey ; that the de- 

 prived abbot carried off the said letters to places 

 unknown, so that John, now abbot, and the con- 

 vent cannot exonerate themselves of the 50 marks, 

 having no receipt to show, but that the king was 

 willing not only to pardon them that sum, but also 

 the 50 marks due for the second voidance (Pat. 

 6 Edw. IV. pt. i. m. 17). 



1 Gale's Hist, of Croyland, i. 556. Warkworth, 

 Chron. of the first Thirteen Tears of Edw. IV. (Cam- 

 den Society), 21 



2 On 29 October 1381 the house was visited by 

 commission of the bishop (JVykeham's Reg. [Hants 

 Rec. Soc], ii. 328). The bishop gave notice of his 

 intention to visit the abbey on Monday next after 

 Feast of St. Peter ad Vincula, 1378 (ibid. 404). 

 And the abbot and convent were cited to appear 

 for a visitation at their chapter house on Wednesday 

 next after St. Matthew, 1392 (ibid. 436). 



noise of this conflict, and hardly conscious of 

 what he was doing, leapt from his bed and 

 seizing a sword from one of them struck the 

 thief on the ear and jaw ; but in the opinion 

 of the medical men and others this particular 

 wound was not a deadly one. The abbot 

 suspended the monk from celebrating mass 

 and sought counsel of the bishop, who, inas- 

 much as John de Winton had not mutilated 

 any member of the thief, nor, in the judg- 

 ment of the medical men, been the cause of 

 his death, decided that he need no longer ab- 

 stain from celebrating mass.' 



Certain regulations made in the thirteenth 

 century mention the various officers of the 

 monastery and illustrate their duties. Abbot 

 Adam by the consent of the convent as- 

 signed certain rents for the celebration of his 

 anniversary, to be received by the almoner, and 

 distribution made to the brethren of bread, 

 wine and fish, and of bread to the poor. 

 The same distribution was to be made on the 

 anniversary of Abbot Alan, and the almoner 

 should also on the Feast of Blessed Mary Mag- 

 dalene, according to ancient custom, distribute 

 bread, wine and curd cheese-cakes.* Among 

 other customs we read that the cellarer was 

 bound to provide cheese for the refectory of 

 the convent ; the chamberlain was to receive 

 ;^20 from the cellarer for clothing for the 

 brethren, and grease to anoint the shoes of 

 the preaching brethren seven times in the 

 year ; the chamberlain had to provide towels 

 for the lavatory and for the ceremony of the 

 washing of feet, and on the Vigil of All 

 Saints he was to find the abbot and convent 

 sandals of white cloth.^ The office of the 

 pittancer is not mentioned till the time of 

 John de Benham, and it is stated that he 

 founded it.' 



When the abbey was visited on 28 April 

 1 501, by Thomas Hede, commissary of the 

 prior of Canterbury, during the voidance of 

 the sees of Canterbury and Winchester, the 

 number of the inmates had fallen, and it 

 would seem, in spite of conflicting witness, 

 that the house was largely in debt. The 

 abbot ^ testified to the due performance of all 

 their religious duties, both in the day and 

 night offices ; that there was not the full 

 statutory number of monks ; that the rents 



3 Reg. of Rigaud de Asserio (Hants. Rec. Soc), 

 p. 423. 



« Cott. MS. Vitel. A. xiii. f. Sad. 



6 Ibid. f. 79. 



6 Exch. K. R. Misc. Bks. 25, f. 173. 



' Thomas Peket or Pigot was consecrated Bishop 

 of Bangor in 1500, but was allowed to retain the 

 abbey in commendam. 



61 



