RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



faithful zeal of the aged abbot, whom he noted 

 to be almost broken down with age and weak- 

 ness, that, entirely of his own motion and 

 special grace, he exempted the venerable father 

 of the monastery from obligatory attendance at 

 any of the quire offices, save of his own good 

 pleasure, and he also left the use of woollen 

 underclothing entirely to the latter's discretion. 

 At the last visitation there was a debt on the 

 house of ;^40, but he found it reduced to £20. 

 The house was abundantly supplied [peroptime 

 staurata) with grain and all necessaries. 



The bishop further ordered, for the honour of 

 God, the convenience of this house, and for the 

 good of religion, that the abbot should without 

 delay select the most suited in life and know- 

 ledge of his fellow canons, and send him up 

 before Michaelmas to the university of either 

 Oxford or Cambridge, there to be supported at 

 the expense of the house.*' 



The next recorded visit of Bishop Redman 

 was in 1472, when he freed Robert Ouston, one 

 of the canons, from the obligation of attending 

 quire oflSces, on account of his infirmities and 

 age.*' 



In the record of the visitation of 1475 the 

 names of all the community who were present 

 are set forth. William Burton was abbot, 

 Robert Stanley prior, and Richard Symondson 

 sub-prior ; there were also ten other professed 

 canons, and two novices. In addition to these 

 there were five vicars and a chaplain present 

 who were also still reckoned as White Canons 

 and subject in certain particulars to the rule. 

 The Premonstratensians were the only religious 

 order who held the privilege of presenting their 

 professed brethren to livings in their gift and 

 appropriation, without the need of any dispensa- 

 tion. When once episcopally instituted these 

 vicars could not be recalled, but they were 

 expected always to wear the habit of their order, 

 to attend visitations at their own abbey, and 

 in all ways possible to keep the rule. On this 

 occasion there were present the vicars of Cuck- 

 ney, adjoining Welbeck ; of Littleborough, on the 

 opposite side of the county near the Lincolnshire 

 borders ; of Whatton,*' in the south-east of the 

 county; of Whitton and Coates, both in Lincoln- 

 shire ; and a chaplain in conventu Watton, which 

 must mean ' in residence at Whatton,' unless it 

 be the Gilbertine priory of Watton, Yorkshire."" 



The general answers to the usual questions at 

 the visitation of 1478 show that the abbey at 

 that time held ten churches and two chapels. 

 Redman on this occasion appointed certain of 

 the canons to extra-official positions to help the 



" Coll. Anglo-Premm. iii, 177-8. 



" Ibid. 179. 



*' In the north aisle of Whatton Church is a 14th- 

 century effigy of a priest in the habit of the White 

 Canons. 



'" Coll. Anglo-Prmon. iii, 179-80. 



abbot, namely circator^provisor exteriorum, succentor, 

 and magister grangie, whose titles at once show 

 the duties expected of them. It was enjoined on 

 the circator to see that the doors of the cloister 

 were firmly locked and shut at nights and at 

 appointed times during the day. Brethren were 

 to wear almuces under their capes ; the abbot 

 was to supply better bread and ale for the 

 convent, and to provide an infirmary where 

 a vicar was then residing, those premises being 

 vacated at once. All were to rise in time for 

 mattins ; delinquents in this respect to be pun- 

 ished. None were to go into the woods for 

 shooting or hunting. At the previous visitation 

 the house had been found in debt to the extent 

 of ;^90, and the debt had not been lessened 

 owing to the great trouble there had been in 

 defending the rights and liberties of the mon- 

 astery. There was only a moderate supply of 

 grain and other necessaries. The community 

 present on this occasion numbered twenty-four, 

 including two deacons and three novices ; four 

 vicars appeared, and two others who are entered 

 as the respective chaplains of Bothamsall, near 

 Welbeck, and of Aslockton, a chapelry of Scar- 

 rington parish." 



The visitation of 1482 shows a grievous 

 decline ; Abbot Burton proved a sad successor 

 to the virtuous Abbot Greene. Under an evil 

 superior any religious house would naturally go 

 downhill. The abbot was found guilty ot 

 incontinence, as well as of dissipating the goods 

 of the monastery, pledging the jewels and plate, 

 and suffering the buildings to go into ruin ; he 

 was formally deposed before the whole convent 

 and the Abbot of Beauchief, and sent to Barlings 

 Abbey, there to undergo certain years of penance. 

 Two other canons were also found guilty. The 

 care of the monastery was temporarily assigned 

 to John Colby, one of the canons, who held the 

 offices of sacrist and circator.^^ 



Matters were not much better when Bishop 

 Redman visited Welbeck in 1488. One of the 

 canons was found guilty of incontinence ; he 

 admitted the sin with great contrition, and was 

 subjected to severe penance for forty days, to be 

 followed by three years' banishment to some other 

 house of the order.'' Another canon,- William 

 Hankyn, guilty of disobedience, of absence from 

 divine offices, and of hunting, was warned that 

 for every repetition he would be put on discipline 

 for forty days ; he was never to be allowed out 

 of the precincts lest he should return to his evil 

 habits, and he was meanwhile ordered to say 

 through the whole psalter by heart within the 

 year. John Colby, who was then vicar of Cuck- 

 ney, was charged to pay yearly to the abbot and 



" Ibid. 182-3. The canon who served the chapel 

 of Bothamsall lived in the abbey ; and this also seems 

 to have been generally the case with the vicar of 

 Cuckney. 



"Ibid. 184-5. "Ibid. 186-7. 



135 



