RELIGIOUS HOUSES 



century later another scandal occurred, apparently 

 more serious, for Prior John Barton suffered 

 deprivation (1511) instead of being allowed to 

 resign. The nature of his offences is not dis- 

 closed, but that the priory was not in a healthy 

 state is evident from the fact that the bishop pre- 

 ferred a canon of Kenilworth, a house of the 

 same order, to the vacant office.'^"' 



As the income of the priory was less than 

 j^200 it was dissolved under the Act of February, 

 1536. It then contained only five canons (in- 

 cluding the prior), all of whom were priests.^'* 

 One had been reported by Legh and Lay ton, 

 the visitors of the previous year, as guilty of in- 

 continence.'^' At first only one expressed a 

 desire to continue in religion, but the others 

 seem afterwards to have changed their minds. 

 The church and other buildings were found to 

 be ' in good state and plight.' '™ The Earl of 

 Derby was anxious to save the church, in which 

 many of his family lay buried.'^' His intention 

 was to find a priest there at his own cost ' to do 

 divine service for the souls of his ancestors and 

 the ease and wealth of the neighbours.'''^ But 

 he complained that the king's commissioners 

 valued not only the glass and bars in the windows 

 and the paving, but all other goods at a higher 

 price than ' they be well worth,' and his plan 

 fell through. In November, 1536, during the 

 disturbances of the Pilgrimage of Grace, he urged 

 delay in pulling down and melting the lead and 

 bells as ' in this busy world it would cause much 

 murmur.' ''' 



The priory was dedicated to St. Nicholas, and 

 its first endowment by Robert son of Henry con- 

 sisted of three churches and a plough-land, com- 

 prising part of Burscough township (including 

 the hamlet of Ormskirk) and the vill of Marton.'^^ 

 In the next century Robert de Lathom gave a 

 fourth part of the township of Dalton, near 

 Wigan,''' and a large niunber of small rents and 

 parcels of land were added chiefly by the leading 



'" Robert Harvey. He was summoned to convo- 

 cation in 1529 ; L. and P. Hen. VIII, iv (iii), p. 2700. 



'^ Duchy of Lane. Rentals and Surv. ptfo. 5, 

 No. 7. They had twenty-two vi^aiting servants and 

 household officers and eighteen ' hinds of husbandry.' 

 Two persons enjoyed board for life. 



"" L. and P. Hen. VIII, x, 364. 



"° Duchy of Lane. Rentals and Surv. ptfo. 5, 

 No. 7. 



"' Lanes. Chantries, 68. His uncle Sir James 

 Stanley was steward of the priory and received an 

 annual fee of £5 from the house ; Duchy of Lane. 

 Rentals and Surv. ptfo. 5, No. 2. The first Earl of 

 Derby was a great benefactor of the priory ; Testamento 

 Vetusta, 459. 



"* L. and P. Hen. VIII, xi, 517. 



'" Ibid, xi, 1 1 18. In May, 1537, the earl was 

 endeavouring to obtain a lease of the priory and its 

 demesne lands ; ibid, xii (i), 11 15. 



''* Lanes. Inq. (Rec. Soc), i, 16. 



"' Reg. of Burscough, fol. 31^. 



local families in the surrounding district.''* In 

 1283, for instance, Henry de Lathom, lord of 

 Tarbock, gave a place called Ridgate, which 

 Richard son of Henry his ancestor had originally 

 set apart for the use of lepers, but which the 

 parishioners had diverted to their own use.'" 

 The only property of the house north of the 

 Ribble was at EUel, a little south of Lancaster."* 

 These temporalities were estimated in the valua- 

 tion for the tenth made in 1534-5 to be worth 

 ;^56 If. \d. a year.'" The three rectories of 

 Ormskirk, Huyton, and Radcliffe-on-Soar yielded 

 an income of j^73, and the net revenue of the 

 house after fixed charges had been deducted was 

 stated to be ^^80 7^. iid. The new survey made 

 at the Dissolution raised it to £122 ^s. 7^.'*° 

 Inter alia the Commissioners disallowed a fixed 

 charge oi £"] for alms distributed yearly for the 

 souls of Henry de Lathom and his ancestors. 

 The buildings with the bells and lead were valued 

 at;^i48 lOf., the movable goods at ^^230 3^. 4^.'*' 

 Debts due to the house amounted to ^40 6^. 8<^., 

 but it owed rather more than double that sum. 

 The site and demesne lands were granted to Sir 

 William Paget on 28 May, 1547.'*^ 



ween 



Priors of Burscough 



Henry,'*' probably first prior, occurs bet 



1 1 89 and 1 198 

 William,'*^ occurs before 1199 

 Geoffrey,'*^ occurs before 1229 

 Benedict,'*^ occurs 1229 and 1235 



"° The Register contains numerous charters of 

 donation, the originals of some of which are extant 

 among the ancient deeds of the Duchy of Lancaster in 

 the Record Office. 



'" Reg. of Burscough, fol. 45^. The priory kept 

 up a hospital for lepers. Henry de Lacy, earl of 

 Lincoln (1272-1311), stipulated for a perpetual right 

 to admit to it one of his tenants in his fee of Widnes ; 

 Trans. Hist. Soe. (New Ser.), v, 131. 



'" In leasing a messuage and land here in 1338, a 

 solar and stable were reserved for the canons' visits to 

 Lancaster and EUel ; Duchy of Lane. Anct. D., 

 L. 644. 



'" Vahr Reel. (Rec. Com.), v, 222. 



'*" The ' Brief Certificate ' of the Commissioners, 

 whose instructions bear date 24 April, 1536, is in 

 Duchy of Lane. Rentals and Surv. ptfo. 5, No. 2, 

 and, with some additions, in Duchy of Lane. Mins. 

 Accts. bdle. 158, No. 7. 



'*' The ornaments of the church were valued 

 (omitting shillings and pence) at ^97, plate and 

 jewels j£27, chattels of all sorts ^^37, stuff and imple- 

 ments of household j^3l, stock of corn ^^35. 



'*^ Duchy of Lane. Misc. Bks. xxiii, 10 d. 



163 ^ grant of lands by him was confirmed by the 

 founder, Robert son of Henry, who died in 1198 or 

 early in 1199 ; Lanes. Pipe Rolls, 353. 



''•' Ormerod, Lathom of Lathom, 66. 



'^' Mentioned as a predecessor of Benedict ; Reg. of 

 Burscough, fol. "jh. 



'*= Ibid. fol. 5,6; Final Concords (Rec. Soc), i, 60. 



151 



