A HISTORY OF SURREY 



FRIARIES 



lo. THE HOUSE OF DOMINICAN 

 FRIARS OF GUILDFORD 



Queen Eleanor of Provence, the widow of 

 Henry III., founded a house of Dominican 

 friars at Guildford, on the east bank of the 

 river, a little to the north of the High Street, 

 on the site where the militia barracks formerly 

 stood, at the end of Friary Street, opposite to 

 the royal park across the river ; but the exact 

 date of the foundation is not known. The 

 late Father Palmer in his essay on this house * 

 has made it manifest that the Dominicans 

 were not established at Guildford at the time 

 of the death of the young prince Henry, 

 which took place at Guildford on 20 October 

 1274. Further he has offered fairly satisfac- 

 tory proof that this house was founded by 

 Eleanor of Provence, in affectionate remem- 

 brance of her grandson, and that the foundress 

 listened to the desire of the young prince's 

 mother in the choice of the order, for Eleanor 

 of Castile was the nursing mother of the 

 friar-preachers. The heart of the boy prince 

 was deposited in the church of this priory, 

 and was solemnly exposed as the anniversary 

 of his death came round. On 17 May 1306 

 the Princes Thomas and Edmund, sons of 

 Edward I. by his second wife, Margaret of 

 France, were present in this church at a mass 

 for the soul of their half-brother, and made 

 an offering of 2id. 



On 6 March 1275 Edward I. granted to 

 the friars a road leading from Guildford to the 

 royal park, to be enclosed for enlarging their 

 area.* 



Various benefactors were forthcoming to 

 assist the friars in the erection of their church 

 and house. John de Westpurle gave the 

 timber for the dorter and ^Tioo in money to 

 the building fund. Sir Hugh Fitz Otho 

 built the quire, and Lady Clarisan gave the 

 stalls.' The king granted them four oaks fit 

 for timber out of Guildford Park in 1294 as 

 well as two leafless oaks fit for fuel.* In 

 1298 Edward I. granted them six more leaf- 

 less trees from the same place for a like pur- 

 pose.' The king was at Guildford in May 

 1302, when he gave ^s. to the friars for a 

 day's food on three separate occasions. On 



• Reliquary, ixvi. pp. 7, 20. 



» Cant. R. 3 Edw. I. No. 19, 

 » Obituary Calendar, University Lib., Cam- 

 bridge. 



* Close, 22 Edw. I. m. 3. 

 ' Ibid. 2' Edw. I. m. 9. 



1 8 May he was present at the mass in their 

 church celebrated for the soul of Sir Arnold 

 Gavaston, and made an oblation of 51. 4^. 

 Edward II. on coming to Guildford in 1324 

 gave 8j. to the twenty-four friars for a day's 

 food. Edward III. at visits paid to Guildford 

 in 1331, 1334, 1336 and 1337 made like 

 <^ifts for a day's food at ^d. a head, according 

 to the number then in residence, which 

 varied from 24 to 17.° 



Henry IV. was at Guildford on 1 2 Febru- 

 ary 1403. The king and royal family lodged 

 at the friary, and before leaving a gift of 40J. 

 was made to cover the damage done to the 

 house vessels and gardens in entertaining the 

 royal guests.' By letters patent of 4 Novem- 

 ber 1504, Henry VII. granted to Prior 

 Venables and the convent 40 cartloads for 

 firewood every year out of the royal park at 

 Henley and the common of Worfesdon ; in 

 return for this, two masses were to be cele- 

 brated every week by two friars at the Lady 

 Altar for the good estate of the king, of 

 Margaret his mother, of Henry, Prince of 

 Wales, and his other children, and for their 

 souls after death.* 



In the University Library, Cambridge, is 

 an obituary calendar of Guildford Friary, 

 which gives the names and dates of the death 

 of the priors and other persons connected 

 with the house." 



In the year 131 8 Edward II., desirous or 

 carrying out the intentions of his mother to 

 found a monastery of Dominican sisters, 

 formed the economical design of refounding 

 this house and appropriating it to Dominican 

 sisters instead of friars. To further his pro- 

 ject he wrote divers letters to Pope John 

 XXII. in 1 3 1 8-9, and eventually despatched 

 two Dominican friars, Richard de Burton 

 and Andrew de Aslakeby, to Rome to plead 

 in person." It was proposed to endow this 



" Reliquary, xxvi. 10. 



' Ibid. 



8 Pat.20Hen.VII.pt. I, m. 27. 



' LI. ii. 9. This is a fourteenth century folio 

 containing several tracts bound together, all of 

 which formerly belonged to the Guildford Domi- 

 nicans. It includes the constitutions of the Friars 

 Preachers and the rule of St. Augustine ; the 

 calendar is on fl. 42-5. There is a transcript of 

 it by Tanner in the Bodleian MS. 342. Most of 

 this is reproduced by Father Palmer in his article 

 in the Reliquary. 



"> Rymer's Fcedera, iii. 702, 734, 753 ; Mon, 

 vi. 1494. 



"4 



