38. THE PRIORY OF ANDWELL
This small priory was a cell or dependency
of the great Benedictine abbey of Tiron. It
was founded early in the twelfth century by
Adam de Port of Mapledurwell. His grant
of lands in Nately and other rents were confirmed by a charter of Henry I. Roger de
Port, the eldest son of Adam, much increased his father's benefaction by giving to
the monks of St. Mary of Andwell lands at
Winchester, the mill of Andwell before the
gate of their house and a virgate of land pertaining to it, and a virgate of land at Mapledurwell. The churches of Stratton, Hinton
and Bradford were also granted to them,
together with numerous minor gifts by the
De Port family of Mapledurwell. (fn. 8)
The church of this priory, the successor no
doubt of an earlier structure, was dedicated
by John, Bishop of Ardfert, acting as suffragan
for Peter de Roches, Bishop of Winchester,
about the year 1220. An indulgence of
forty days was granted to all who, having
confessed and repented, had come to the
consecration and offered alms, and also of ten
days for those who had made like attendance
at the dedication of the altars, which had
taken place on the Feast of the Holy
Innocents. The church was dedicated in
honour of St. John Baptist. The thirteenth
century seal of the priory represents that saint
carrying an Agnus Dei in his right hand, with
a monk kneeling before him, and the legend
Sigillū Prioris de Anedewelle.
Only one of the grants in the Cartulaire de
Tiron mentions Andwell by name; this
occurs in the charter of Roger de Port, circa
1150, by which he gave to his monks at
Andwell (Henedewella) the mill before their
gate with the land belonging to it, as freely
as he held it on the day of the gift. But
several of the papal confirmations of English
grants to Tiron, such as those of Eugenius III.
(1147) and Alexander III. (1179), specify the
church or priory of Mapledurwell. As the
parish of Mapledurwell adjoined the extraparochial district of Andwell, and as Tiron
held land and served a chapel in that parish,
there can be no doubt that it is but an alias
for the priory of Andwell. (fn. 1)
In 1223 an agreement was come to between
Theobald, abbot of Tiron, representing the
cell of Andwell, and Alan Basset. The
abbot and convent released to Alan all claim
in Hookwood, and gave him land in the field
of the chapel at Mapledurwell, retaining a
third of the moor called Eastmoor. He
restored to them a way sufficient for a laden
horse to go along with his leader at the head
of his tillage toward the water of Mapledurwell to the house of Andwell. (fn. 2)
Richard de Beaumont and James Pasquier,
who were priors in succession of the sister
priory of Hamble, were also priors of Andwell.
Probably Pasquier, who died whilst prior of
Hamble and who was instituted to that house
in March, 1345, on the resignation of Beaumont, exchanged priories with the latter.
The absence of all reference to the admission
of priors to Andwell throughout the episcopal
act books makes their succession doubtful.
In 1274 the prior had in Up-Nately ten
tenants who held of him in villenage five
yardlands that formerly belonged to Basingstoke manor. In 1290 the holdings of the
prior of Andwell at Nately and Mapledurwell
were worth £2 per annum, whilst in his own
manor the rents, meadow and mill were
valued at £3 yearly. An extent and inventory of the possessions of the priory taken in
1294 show that within the precincts were a
messuage, garden and dovecot worth 10s.
yearly, whilst the lands and other possessions
yielded a total of £6 14s. 2d. From free
tenants the prior received £4 8s., and twentyone customary tenants who held three virgates
paid 48s.; but deductions left a clear rental
of 43s. 8d., so that the whole income of the
priory only came to £8 17s. 10d. (fn. 3) The
inventory showed that the priory stock
included a horse worth a mark; two carthorses, 8s.; six plough-horses, 19s.; a mare and
foal, 6s. 8d.; three colts, 6s.; eighteen oxen,
108s.; two cows, 7s. 6d.; three better cows, 15s.;
three yearling bullocks, 2s.; one heifer, 2s. 6d.;
thirty-three sheep, 14s. 2d.; forty-two lambs,
20s.; twelve hogsteers, 8s.; and twenty hogs,
20s.; yielding a total of £12 10s. 8d. The
dead stock was worth 29s. 4d., by far the
largest item being a brazen pot in the kitchen
at 16s. 8d. The seed-corn and crops were
valued at £12 12s.t leaving the total value of
the inventory at £26 12s. (fn. 4)
It would seem that the priors of Andwell
were simply the nominees of the abbot of
Tiron, and were apparently removable at
pleasure. The distance of the controlling
force and the complete freedom from episcopal
supervision or even recognition, worked evilly
for the discipline of the house. The exactions
of the Crown during the reign of Edward III.,
when there was war with France, in seizing
not only the apport or usual annual tribute to
the abbey of Tiron, but further sums under
the guise of securing the custody of the house
to the respective priors, were also a sore
burden. Eventually in May, 1368, Bishop
Wykeham sequestrated the priory of Andwell
(together with that of St. Cross, Isle of Wight)
for dilapidations. In the document securing
this, addressed to the archdeacon of Winchester and the warden of the college of St.
Elizabeth, the bishop comments severely on
the faults, negligences and carelessness of the
priors which had brought about the loss and
collapse of both the spiritual and temporal
affairs of the priory; adding that the house
and buildings would soon be in irreparable
ruin unless some speedy remedy was provided.
In 1385 the priory was in the hands of
Thomas Driffielde and Eleanor his wife, and
was returned as being of the annual value of
£13 6s. 8d. (fn. 5) It was let to farm by the king's
treasurer in order to secure the apport. After
Richard came to the throne it was let to one
Thomas Thorpe for £10 a year, and in
December, 1387, John de Uvedale, sheriff of
Hampshire, and four others were appointed to
inquire touching waste and defects in the
alien priory of Andwell, before its custody was
committed, at a certain yearly farm, to Thomas
de Thorpe. (fn. 1)
During the latter part of the reign of
Richard II. the parent monasteries of these
alien houses were permitted to sell them to
other religious houses, or to particular persons
who desired to use them for founding chantries,
hospitals or other works of charity. (fn. 2) Bishop
Wykeham availed himself of this privilege by
purchasing Andwell from the abbey of Tiron,
and paying Thomas Thorpe £20 for his
interest therein. The bishop bestowed the
priory and its lands on his newly founded
college at Winchester, to which it still
belongs.
Andwell at the time of its purchase was
valued at £10 10s. a year. The other Hampshire purchases made by Wykeham from the
abbey of Tiron were Hamble, valued at
£13 6s.; St. Cross, Isle of Wight, valued at
£5; and Worldham Chapel, valued at £1.
Roughly speaking, he obtained £30 a year
for about £380, rather more than twelve
years' purchase. (fn. 3)
Wykeham no sooner secured the Andwell
property than he saw to its repair. In a list
of extraordinary expenses incurred by the
college from the opening day in 1393 down
to 1401, occurs the then very large sum of
£538 4s. for the repairs of manors, rectories
and chancels that had been secured from
various alien priories. The items are not
separated, but the repairs included the grange
and chamber at Andwell. (fn. 4)
At Epiphanytide, 1410, the warden kept
open house for two days to a number of
country gentlemen. The manor of Andwell
contributed a heronshaw towards the feasting;
the man who brought it to Winchester, a
distance of twenty-two miles, received 1s. for
his pains. (fn. 5)
Priors Of Andwell
Hugh (fn. 6)
Walter Britell
William de Pulchra Quercu
Gervase, 1210, 1216 (fn. 7)
Nicholas, time of Henry III. (fn. 8)
Robert, time of Edward I.
Richard Edward II.
Ralph
Godfrey de Insula, time of Edward III.
Richard de Beaumont
James Pasquier