54. THE PRIORY OF NEWBURGH
Roger de Mowbray in 1145 (fn. 1) gave to God
and the church of St. Mary 'de Novo-Burgo,'
and the canons there serving God, the site itself
and all the east part of 'Cukewald' (Coxwold)
beyond the fishpond (vivarium), the church of
St. Mary of Hood, with the land and wood
under the adjoining hills, as the monks of Byland
had formerly possessed it. (fn. 2) Also the church
of Coxwold, with its subordinate chapels, viz.:
Kilburn, Thirkleby, and Silton, the church
of Tresc (Thirsk), together with the chapel of
St. James. Robert de Mowbray also granted
the canons and their men who dwelt in Thirsk
all the liberties and privileges which his burgesses possessed in the burgh, of buying and selling in the market-place and outside it free of
toll and stallage.
Besides these gifts Robert de Mowbray confirmed the donation of the church of Welburn
with 6 bovates, and the valley where the church
stood with the chapel of Wombleton, (fn. 3) and the
churches of Kirby in Ryedale (Kirkby Moorside), Kirby near Boroughbridge (Kirby Hill),
and Cundall with their endowment lands.
Nigel (fn. 4) the son of the founder, and William the
grandson, confirmed these and other gifts.
By a separate charter Roger de Mowbray (fn. 5)
granted to the canons of Newburgh the churches
of Masham, Kirkby Malzeard, 'Landeford,'
Haxey, Owston, 'Appewrda,' and Belton;
Samson de Albini, to whom Nigel, Roger de
Mowbray's father, had given them, assentiente
pariter et donante. To this grant Roger, Abbot
of Byland, was one of the witnesses. Samson
de Albini (fn. 6) made a separate grant of the churches
in question to Augustine, prior of the church of
St. Mary of Newburgh, with certain conditions.
A further grant (fn. 7) was made by Roger de
Mowbray for the soul of his father Nigel, his
mother Gundreda, his own soul, and that of
Adeliz his wife, to God, 'Sanctae Marie de Insula
desubtus Hode,' and to Augustine the prior, and
the canons serving God there, in perpetual alms,
of the church of St. Andrew in York, 'quae est
ultra fossam in Fischergata.' Among the witnesses
to this charter were William the dean and the
chapter of York, and Samson de Albini.
The priory of Newburgh was peopled from
Bridlington, and the canons who came for that
purpose at first settled at Hood, which had been
vacated by the monks of Byland. This latter
grant of Roger de Mowbray would seem to have
been made to the canons while settled at Hood,
and before they moved to Newburgh, when
Hood became a cell of that house.
There is interpolated in Archbishop Giffard's
register (fn. 8) an undated sentence of deposition, pronounced by his predecessor, Godfrey de Ludham
(1258-64), against a prior of Newburgh, whose
name, unfortunately, is not given. It is not
improbable, however, that Prior John, whose
name occurs in 1252-3, may have been the
prior in question. Whoever the prior was whom
the archbishop deprived, his faults, as recorded
in the sentence, stamp him as a very bad ruler.
He did not, it is related, correct the brethren
equitably, but excused some and detestably made
known the private confessions and penances of
others. Of his own initiative he imputed crimes
to others, and had entered into a conspiracy
against the archbishop's visitation of the house.
He had made the brethren take a wicked oath
not to tell the archbishop the things that needed
correction, and had forbidden them, under threat
of excommunication, to reveal matters to the
archbishop. Although he took a corporal oath
that he would reveal all, except secret faults,
many faults that were not secret, though repeatedly asked, he refused to reveal. He was
thus a perjured man, besides being a waster of
the goods of the church, keeping an extravagant
and superfluous household. For these, and
many other faults concerning which the archbishop was silent, he decreed him removed from
the rule of the priory. The brethren were absolved from obedience to him, and directed to
provide the monastery with a new prior.
On 22 June 1259 (fn. 9) Pope Alexander IV
granted an indulgence to the Prior and Augustinian convent of Newburgh, that they might
cause those of their churches and chapels in
which vicars had not been appointed to be
served, as heretofore, by their chaplains, and that
vicarages should not be taxed, or perpetual vicars
appointed against their will, notwithstanding any
contrary indult granted to the archbishop.
On 18 September 1275 (fn. 10) Archbishop Giffard
held a visitation of Newburgh, when it was
found that the monastery was in debt to no less
an amount than £737 16s. 10d. A certain
camera had been uselessly built apud Fresch. (fn. 11)
No other buildings were to be constructed without the assent of the wiser and older of the
convent, and the necessary works of the great
house were to be preferred. The prior was too
lenient with the obedientiaries, and was ordered
to be more strict. The sub-prior was easily provoked, he was to keep his temper under pain of
removal from office. The cellarer was dealing
in horses as merchants did, which was incongruous with religion. He was not to do so,
under pain of removal from office, as in commerce between buyer and seller it was difficult
to avoid sin. This inhibition was extended to
all obedientiaries. The cellarer did not speak
civilly to his brethren or to those outside, as he
should, that the house might obtain the favour
of many. Under pain aforesaid, he was to conduct himself with gentleness and courtesy. The
custos of the fabric did not render accounts of
his expenses, either beyond the sea (fn. 12) or at home,
nor did he conduct himself properly in his office.
When he had rendered his account the office was
to be given within a month to some one else who
was able to conduct it. The gardener, who
was too much given to roving about, and did
not do his work as he should, was to be removed
within fifteen days and another appointed. There
were gossipings among the brethren, and laymen
and seculars were too often about the chamber
of the late prior, which was not seemly. Such
offences were to stop, and none were to go to
the ex-prior's chamber without the licence of
the prior or sub-prior.
Archbishop Wickwane held a visitation of the
priory on 16 February 1279-80, (fn. 13) when the
following correcciones were made: All were to
obey their prior honestly, and no one was to
sham illness, nor was such a one by any means
to be admitted to the infirmary, but rather as a
deceiver he was to be expelled and punished.
No one, after compline, was to go into the
cloister for ribaldry or drinking, and if any one
visited a guest or friend, with the leave of the
president, he was not to eat or drink there. The
prior, taking with him the sub-prior, was four
times a year to examine all the chests and carols,
lest the poison of private ownership should defile
any one in the sight of God.
The refectory-alms, and those of the whole
monastery, were to be distributed 'in usus ipsius
Dei vivi' and the poor, and not unlawfully intercepted. If any one, at lauds or matins, was
negligently silent, he was to be suspended at
once, and expelled from the consort [of the
others] until he repented. The original and
full state of the prior was restored, his coadjutors
being removed, provided the prior took counsel
of the convent and was active in resisting rebels
and dangers.
Those were to be preferred for the schools
and offices who would fully instruct in divine
service, and discreet guardians of good fame and
conversation were to be deputed for the management of the property and the granges. Obedientiaries who dimitted office were not to keep
anything. All the convent were to see that
Divine service was celebrated distinctly, and that
every letter to be sealed in full congregation of
the convent was openly and publicly sealed.
The keeping of useless or wasteful servants,
and also of a superfluity of dogs, was strictly prohibited. No woman was to be received as guest
except the honourable wife of the patron, who,
for one night only, might stop at the monastery.
No one was to receive payments or gifts without
the consent of the president, and then was not
to keep such himself, but they were to be assigned
to common use by the prior or president. Hunting, moreover, on the part of the canons and
unlawful outings were wholly forbidden, and the
doors and exits of the monastery were to be
better guarded than they had been. William de
Foxholes, Robert Wrot, William de Endreby,
and Anselm de Pontefracto, whose morals and
deeds had hitherto been discordant with the
rule, were committed by the archbishop for
correction to the prior and sub-prior.
A certain Roger, a conversus of the house, had,
to the scandal of the order, left it. Archbishop
Romanus, on 26 May 1286, (fn. 14) wrote to the prior
to receive him back to his habit again. He was,
no doubt, the same as Roger de Soureby, concerning whom the archbishop in his decretum of
11 October of the same year (fn. 15) (which deals
mainly with Marton), (fn. 16) directed that as he was
penitent he was to be admitted to the house, but
sent to reside at Hood.
On 29 December 1292, (fn. 17) the archbishop
ordered the public excommunication of Robert
de Wetwang, who, nineteen years before, had
entered Newburgh as an Augustinian canon, and
was at the time an apostate, wandering about to
the great peril of his soul and the scandal of the
people, leading a very dissolute life.
On 28 September 1312 (fn. 18) Archbishop Greenfield commissioned two of his clerks to receive
the purgation of the Prior of Newburgh, who
stood charged with certain unspecified acts of
incontinence. Two years later the archbishop
wrote (3 April 1314) to the prior, (fn. 19) that during
a recent visitation held in the city of York, a
canon of Newburgh, John de Baggeby, had
sinned carnally with a certain Alice de Hextildesham, and had confessed his sin. The archbishop sent him to the prior to be punished.
On Monday after the Translation of St. Thomas
the Martyr in the same year (fn. 20) the archbishop
held a visitation of Newburgh, on which he sent
a decretum to the prior and canons, couched in
terms common to such documents, and throwing
little light on its internal affairs, except that the
house was heavily in debt and burdened by
pensions and liveries.
In May 1318 (fn. 21) a visitation of Newburgh was
held for Archbishop Melton, who issued a long
series of injunctions, which are, however, for the
most part of a general character. Charity was
to be nurtured, Divine services properly performed, and especially those of our Lady and
for the departed, and others said without note,
which were not to be gabbled, and one side was
not to begin the verse of a psalm before the
other side had finished. Seculars were to be
restrained from frequent use of the cloister
and infirmary and other private places. No
strangers were to eat in the refectory except
mature and worthy persons. The sick were to
be attended to as their needs required and the
means allowed, and they were to have a discreet and modest canon, at the appointment of
the prior, who should say the canonical hours,
and celebrate mass to their edification and
solace. All the members of the house were to
use the accustomed habit, and avoid novelties in
dress.
In July 1328 (fn. 22) Archbishop Melton ordered
three canons, for disobedience, to be sent to other
houses of the order—John de Thresk to Cartmel,
John de Kilvington to Hexham, and William de
Wycome to St. Oswald's, Gloucester. Four
other rebellious canons were to receive a weekly
discipline.
It was the custom for the archbishop to claim
a pension for someone nominated by himself, on
the occasion of the creation of a new abbot or
prior, in certain of the monasteries. The custom
prevailed in regard to Newburgh, and on
2 August 1323 (fn. 23) Archbishop Melton wrote to
the prior and convent to assign a decent annual
pension to Richard de Whatton, clerk, virtute
creacionis novi prioris. Apparently the new prior
was John de Cateryk, who had been elected two
years before.
In 1366 (fn. 24) Archbishop Thoresby gave notice
of his intention to visit Newburgh, because a
rumour had reached him that the house, by the
indiscreet rule of the prior and the carelessness
of the officials, was very greatly in debt and
almost bankrupt. The result of the visitation
is not recorded. In 1380-1 (fn. 25) the convent
comprised the prior and fifteen canons.
In 1404 (fn. 26) one of those little gleams of light
which help to make the daily routine of the
house more realistic is thrown upon the scene
by an indult granted by Pope Boniface IX to
William Chester, priest and Augustinian canon
of Newburgh; seeing that by the customs of the
priory each of the canons, being a priest, was
bound in a certain order to say mass week by
week, in a loud voice and with music, such
canons being called ebdomadarii, and seeing that
he, on account of an impediment of his tongue,
could not conveniently do so, he was to be free
for life from such obligation.
Archbishop George Nevill gave notice of a
visitation of Newburgh on II October 1465, (fn. 27)
and a letter is preserved in his register from the
prior, William Helmesley, giving the names and
offices of the persons summoned to appear before
the archbishop. The offices were those of subprior, sacrista et magister fabricarum, magister
tannarie, elemosinarius, cellerarius, magister
sartrie, magister firmarie, cantor, hostiarius, (fn. 28)
magister granarie, sub-cellarius, sub-cantor,
sub-sacrista, refectorarius. The result of the
visitation itself does not seem to have been
entered in the register.
In the Taxatio of 1291 (fn. 29) the ancient assessment
of Newburgh is put at £81 7s. and the new
assessment at £20.
In 1527 (fn. 30) the clear value was returned as
£300, and in the Valor Ecclesiasticus
(fn. 31) the total
income was returned as £457 13s. 5d. and the
clear value at £367 8s. 3d. The priory of
Newburgh held property in Durham, Leicestershire, and Lincolnshire, besides Yorkshire. (fn. 32)
Drs. Legh and Layton (fn. 33) record, as superstition
at Newburgh, that the canons had the girdle
'Sancti Salvatoris,' which, as it was said, was
good for those in child-birth. They had also in
veneration an arm of St. Jerome.
There were seventeen canons besides the
prior, William Lenewodd, at the dissolution, (fn. 34)
four of whom were deacons. The prior received
a yearly pension of £50, and the others sums
varying from £16 13s. 4d. to £4 each.
When an inquiry was made in the seventh
year of Edward VI (fn. 35) as to the payment of pensions in the North Riding the following return
was made as to Newburgh: William Edward
(106s. 8d.) appeared with his patent; John Flint
(106s. 8d.) 'is dead the xth day of July in the
first yere of Kinge Edward the Sexe' [1547];
Robert Tenant (100s.); Rowland Fostar (100s.);
Thomas Grason (£4); James Barwyke (£4);
and William Graye (£4) appeared with their
patents and were for the most part a year in
arrear.
On 18 December 1537 (fn. 36) the council in the
north wrote to the king that 'of late a young
fellow, Brian Boye, late servant to the Prior of
Newburgh as keeper of St. Saviour's Chapel
(whereunto many pilgrims resort), said that the
prior has spoken unfitting words of your highness.' The prior and Boye were examined together, and the prior swore that it was false.
Boye was commanded home to his father, and
although there was no other evidence against the
prior they say 'we have thought right to sequester
him till the king's pleasure is known at St. Leonard's, York, (fn. 37) a house of the same order, with
our fellow Mr, Magnus.'
Priors Of Newburgh
Augustine (fn. 38)
Richard, occurs 1169-70 (fn. 39)
Swein, occurs before 1195 (fn. 40)
Barnard, occurs 1199 (fn. 41)
M . . ., occurs 1199 (fn. 42)
D . . ., occurs 1202 (fn. 43)
Philip, occurs 1225 (fn. 43a) -31 (fn. 44)
Ingram, occurs 1246-9 (fn. 45)
John, occurs 1252-3 (fn. 46)
William de Louthorpe (mentioned 1284) (fn. 47)
John de Skipton, 1250-1 (fn. 48)
Robert, occurs 1279, (fn. 49) 1286 (fn. 50) (de Hovingham) (fn. 51)
William de Empingham, confirmed 28 Jan.
1280-1 (fn. 52) (or Implingham (fn. 53) ), occurs 1282, (fn. 54)
1284 (fn. 55)
John de Foxholes, elected 1304, (fn. 56) resigned (fn. 57)
John de Hoton, elected 1318, (fn. 58) died (fn. 59)
John de Cateryk, elected 1321, (fn. 60) died 1331 (fn. 61)
John de Thresk, elected 1331 (fn. 62)
Thomas de Hustewayt, appointed 1351 (fn. 63)
John de Kylvington, occurs 1359 (Query, an
intruder)
John de Thresk (Query, a second time), died
1369
Thomas de Hustewayt, elected 1369 (fn. 64)
John Easingwold, occurs 15 July 1437, (fn. 65)
died (fn. 66)
John Millom, confirmed 4 Aug. 1437, (fn. 67) died (fn. 68)
William Helmesley, confirmed 15 Dec. 1459 (fn. 69)
Thomas Yarom, elected 1476 (fn. 70)
John Latover, elected 1483, resigned (fn. 71)
Thomas Barker, elected 16 June 1518 (fn. 72)
John Ledes, elected 1524 (fn. 73)
Robert, occurs 1535, (fn. 74) 1536 7 (fn. 75)
William Lenewodd, (fn. 76) 1538
The earliest seal, (fn. 77) of 12th-century work, is
a vesica, 3 in. by 2 in., the obverse having our
Lady crowned, sceptred, and seated, holding the
Child. The legend is:—
SIGILLVM SANCTE MARIE DE NEVBVRGO
The reverse is an antique gem in a vesica, 1½ in.
by 11/8 in., with the legend:—
SIGNE OBEDIENCIE ET PIETĀTS.
The 12th-century seal (fn. 78) of the secretary of
the chapter is another antique gem in a vesica,
21/8 in. by 15/8 in., with the legend:—
✠ S' SECRETAR' CAPITVLI BEATE MARIE DE
NOVOBVRGO
The second seal (fn. 79) of the abbey is a 13thcentury vesica, 3 in. by 15/16 in., showing our Lady
crowned and sceptred and seated in a richlydecorated chair between two censing angels.
She holds the Child on her left knee, and is
blessing with her right hand. Below is the
prior with two monks. The legend is:—
SIGILLVM A . . . . . CTE MARIE DE NOVOB . . . . .
The 12th-century seal (fn. 80) of Prior Barnard is a
small vesica, 1¾ in. by 1 in., with a seated figure
of a saint, and the legend:—
. . . . NARD PRIOR' DE NOVOBVRGO