8. ST. GILES IN THE WOOD PRIORY,
FLAMSTEAD
About the middle of the 12th century Roger
de Todeni or Tony (fn. 1) founded at Flamstead a
priory in honour of St. Giles for Benedictine
nuns and endowed it with land and certain small
tithes in the parish. (fn. 2) He ordained that the
assent of himself and of his heirs must be
obtained at the election of the prioress, and
that without their consent there should never
be more than thirteen nuns in the house.
The priory, to which a pension of 5 marks out
of Dallington rectory was assigned in 1220, (fn. 3)
received from Agatha de Gatesden in 1228 some
land in Hemel Hempstead (fn. 4) and acquired before
1244 (fn. 5) land and 30s. rent in Edlesborough (co.
Bucks.) from Nicholas son of Bernard, whose
granddaughter Isabella afterwards sold to the
nuns all that she owned in that place (fn. 6) ; property in Potsgrove (co. Bedford) was made over
in 1257 to the convent, (fn. 7) who in 1270 held
20 virgates of land in Wingrave given to them
by William de la Hyde. (fn. 8)
The statute of Pope Boniface VIII for the
stricter cloistering of nuns, obedience to which
was enjoined upon them in 1300, (fn. 9) added restrictions to a life already sufficiently hard, for
there is no doubt that the nuns were very poor.
William Dalderby, Bishop of Lincoln, in appointing delegates in July 1308 to examine a
recent election at St. Giles's, commissioned them
to act for him in choosing a prioress if necessary,
evidently from a desire to save the nuns
expense, (fn. 10) and on 17 June 1316 (fn. 11) he granted
an indulgence of thirty days to all who gave
alms to the priory.
Careful administration was of paramount importance, and it was at the earnest supplication
of the prioress and convent that the Bishop of
Lincoln on 17 March 1336-7 appointed as
master of the house a priest called Roger de
Croule, of whose prudence and industry he was
assured. (fn. 12)
Pestilence with its agricultural consequences
must have aggravated the nuns' difficulties (fn. 13)
in the latter part of the 14th century. The
petition of the convent to Pope Urban VI (fn. 14)
begging that the church of Dallington might be
appropriated to them (fn. 15) represents that their
original endowment had been so slender and the
place of foundation was so sterile that the rents
did not exceed 15 marks a year, and each nun
was allowed only 2s. a year for her clothing
and ½d. a week for food; so many of the
people serving the priory had died, and the
houses were in such a bad state and the live
stock so diminished, that the conventual lands
were left uncultivated, and unless some remedy
were provided the nuns would have to beg the
necessaries of life from door to door. The
Bishop of Lincoln vouched for the truth of these
statements, and the pope gave the necessary
licence in August 1381, (fn. 16) a vicarage at Dallington
being ordained a few months later. (fn. 17) Beyond
one or two notices of the election of a prioress
and the commission of Bishop Grey for a visitation (fn. 18) nothing is heard of the priory during the
15th century.
When the chancellor of the diocese on behalf
of Bishop Longland visited Flamstead in May
1530 (fn. 19) there were seven nuns (fn. 20) besides the
prioress. Three of them said that all was
well, another reported that young girls were
allowed to sleep in the dormitory, and another
that the prioress had a nun to sleep with her,
apparently because she was afraid of being late
for matins. The prioress was enjoined to give
up this practice and to exclude children of both
sexes from the dormitory. From the second
injunction it may be inferred that the nuns kept
a school. The priory came to an end on 3 March
1537 (fn. 21) under the Act of the previous year
dissolving monasteries of less than £200 annual
value. The conduct of the nuns was irreproachable, the commissioners returning them
as 'of very good report,' (fn. 22) and the management
of the place had evidently been efficient, since
the house was in good repair.
Agnes Croke, the prioress, received a pension
of £6 a year, (fn. 23) but the seven other nuns seem to
have been dismissed with a small sum of money. (fn. 24)
The income of the priory was estimated in 1526
at £39 6s. 8d. gross and £17 17s. 6d. net, (fn. 25) in
1535 at £30 19s. 6½d. clear (fn. 26) and in 1537 at £37
net (fn. 27) ; it was derived from the manor of Woodhall in Hemel Hempstead, land and rents in
Flamstead, Gaddesden and St. Albans (co.
Herts.), in Studham and Hockliffe (co. Beds.),
Cholesbury, Dagnall, Edlesborough and Wingrave (co. Bucks.), and the rectories of
Tilsworth (co. Beds.) and Dallington (co.
Northants). (fn. 28) The goods and chattels of the
nunnery with the ornaments of the church were
sold for £44 8s. 3½d. (fn. 29) ; the plate was valued at
£6 4s. 7½d. (fn. 30) and the three bells at £10. (fn. 31)
Prioresses of St. Giles, Flamstead
Agnes, occurs June 1244, (fn. 32) died 1254-5 (fn. 33)
Petronilla de Lucy, elected 1254-5, (fn. 34) occurs
1256 (fn. 35)
Loretta, occurs 1270 (fn. 36)
Laura, died 1291 (fn. 37)
Joan de Whethamsted, elected 1291 (fn. 38)
Cecilia de Morteyn, elected July 1308, (fn. 39)
resigned 1316 (fn. 40)
Helen de Dunstaple, elected 1316 (fn. 41)
Maud Lucy, elected 1415 (fn. 42)
Joan Mourton, died 1454 (fn. 43)
Catherine Colyngryge, elected 1454 (fn. 44)
Joan Bone, occurs 12 March 1498-9 (fn. 45)
Agnes Tryng, elected 1509, (fn. 46) occurs 1510
and 1514, (fn. 47) resigned 1517 (fn. 48)
Agnes Croke, elected 1517, (fn. 49) occurs 1530, (fn. 50)
and at the dissolution of the house, March
1537 (fn. 51)