RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



carried, much shame with it, namely the walking 

 in the Sunday procession with bare legs, feet, and 

 head, and carrying a wax taper. The contrast 

 between secular penances and the severity of 

 those usually inflicted in monasteries is strongly 

 marked. 



It is unfortunate that there are no records of 

 visitations of the chapter or prebendaries. It 

 would appear from the Liber Albus that there 

 were at one time visitations made by archbishops, 

 as the statutes of both 1293 and 1303 state that 

 they were drawn up in consequence of visitations. 

 But from beginning to end of the voluminous 

 pre-Reformation episcopal registers of York 

 there is no entry of a visitation of Southwell.^'*' 

 Such visitations may possibly have escaped entry, 

 but it is far more probable that none were held 

 later than 1303. 



Other references to this great collegiate 

 foundation are of rare occurrence in the diocesan 

 registers, save in the matter of the collation to 

 prebends. 



Archbishop Gray in November 1234 granted 

 an indulgence of thirty days of enjoined penance 

 to all penitents who should aid in the construc- 

 tion of the fabric of Southwell Minster, the 

 indulgence to hold good for three years.^"^ This 

 gives the date when the beautiful Early English 

 quire was in progress. 



There are various references to Southwell in 

 Archbishop Gififerd's register (1266-79), though 

 mostly on minor point-s. In 1270 the archbishop 

 addressed a letter to the sequestrator, ordering 

 him to respite the fine for non-residence imposed 

 on Henry de Skipton, canon of Southwell.^"* 

 About this same date Henry de Brondeston was 

 collated to the prebend in the church of South- 

 well which had been held by Richard de Sutton. 

 In making this appointment the archbishop 

 invested the new canon with his ring, and 

 demanded of the chapter that they should assign 

 him a stall in quire and a seat in the chapter- 

 house. But the particular feature of this colla- 

 tion was that he was made subject to the yearly 

 heavy payment of 50 marks out of the profits of 

 the prebend to Adinulf, the pope's nephew, 

 during his life. This gross case of papal nepo- 

 tism was imposed on Archbishop Gray in 1 24 1, 

 when collating Richard de Sutton to this pre- 

 bend."' 



The date of the exquisite chapter-house 

 is determined by an ordinance of Archbishop 

 Romayne of 1293, when he directed that the 

 houses of alien canons threatened with ruin were 

 to be duly repaired within a year, under pain 

 of a heavy fine for the fabric of the new chapter- 

 house.io» 



"" The present writer can say this with confidence, 

 for he made a special search on Mr. Leach's behalf in 

 1890. "' York Epis. Reg. Gray, fol. 64-5. 



"» York Epis. Reg. GifFard, fol. 29^. 



"" Ibid fol. 38, 38 d. '»« Liber Albus, fol. 52. 



2 16 



Southwell was a favourite residence of many 

 of the archbishops, and several chose it as 

 the place for their interment. Archbishop 

 .ffilfric Puttoc died at Southwell in 105 1 ; he 

 was buried at Peterborough.^''^ Archbishop 

 Cynesige (1051-60) bestowed on the minster 

 bells of great size and tone.^"^ Archbishop 

 Gerard (1096-1108) died at Southwell, but was 

 buried at York.^"' Archbishop Thomas II 

 (1109-14) wrote a letter soon after his appoint- 

 ment to all his parishioners of Nottinghamshire, 

 praying them, for the remission of their sins, to 

 help with their alms in building the church of 

 St. Mary of Southwell ; promising to all who 

 gave the least assistance a share in all the 

 prayers and good works done therein and in all 

 his (minster) churches, releasing them at the 

 same time from their Whitsuntide visit to York 

 Minster, and substituting Southwell Minster in 

 its place. Archbishop Corbridge died at Lane- 

 ham in this county in 1304, and was interred in 

 the minster.^" Archbishop William Booth, 

 who appropriated the church of Kneesall to the 

 vicars choral, died and was buried at Southwell 

 in 1464."^ Archbishop Laurence Booth, who 

 founded a chantry of two priests, also died at 

 Southwell in 1480, and was there buried.^^^ 



There are two imperfect impressions of the 

 old 12th-century seal of the collegiate church of 

 Southwell. The one is attached to a grant to 

 RufFord Abbey, c. 1220;^^' the other is attached 

 to the deed of surrender of 1540, at the Public 

 Record OiBce. It rudely portrays the Blessed 

 Virgin seated, with the Holy Child on her lap ; 

 the legends runs : — 



SIGILLUM SANCTE MARIE WELLA. 



An engraving of the latter of these impressions 

 appears as a frontispiece to Mr. Leach's Visita- 

 tions and Memorials. 



23. THE COLLEGE OF TUXFORD 



John de Lungvillers in 1362 obtained the 

 royal licence to found in the rectory house and 

 church of Tuxford, of his patronage, a college 

 of five chaplains, one of whom was to be termed 

 the warden. They were to hold the advowson 

 of the church, to pray for the founder's good 

 estate during his life, and for his soul after death, 

 and for the soul of Thomas his father and for all 

 the faithful departed. For some reason or 

 another this scheme was not carried into effect, 

 and six years later John de Lungvillers gave the 

 advowson and appropriation of Tuxford to the 

 priory of Newstead, ordaining that they were to 

 maintain three chaplains to celebrate daily for a 



"' Raine, Hist, of the Ch. of York, ii, 343. 



"" Ibid. 344. '»' Ibid. 361. 



""Ibid, iii, 412. '"Ibid. 436. 



»' Ibid. 438-9. "» Harl. Chart. 83, D. 2. 



I 21 



