34. THE AUSTIN FRIARS OF CANTERBURY
Archbishop Walter Reynolds obtained, 4 July,
1318, licence to alienate in mortmain to the
Austin: Friars two acres of land in the parish of
Westgate, Canterbury, on which they might
build their houses. (fn. 1) The land was worth 13s. 4d.
a year. In March, 1319-20, the friars seem to
have numbered eight. (fn. 2) Some years later however the friars obtained leave to alienate their
original site, provided they did not alienate it in
mortmain, in qrder to acquire a more convenient
place. (fn. 3)
They had already in 1324 obtained a place in
St. George-s parish, on or near the site of the old
gaol, by purchasing from Thomas de Bonnington
of Goodnestone a messuage, held of Elias
Lambyn, and worth 13s. 4d. a year. The chief
lord was the priory of Christchurch, and the
monks, in spite of the prayers of Hugh Despenser,
earl of Winchester, tried to prevent the settlement of the friars in this parish on the ground of
the poverty of the church of St. George, of which
they held the advowson. The friars however
persisted. Their oratory was already founded in
1325 without the permission of the archbishop,
who now intervened and ordered an inquiry into
the circumstances. In 1326 they agreed to pay
the parson of St. George's 9s. (fn. 4) a year in lieu of
all tithes due to him from their land, and 20d.
annual rent to the monks of Christchurch. The
monks now withdrew their opposition. (fn. 5) The
number of friars had in 1336 increased to
eighteen. (fn. 6)
In November, 1329, they obtained two additional plots adjacent to their area, one a vacant
piece of land 82 ft. by 55 ft. to the west of their
house, from the king, the other a messuage
granted to them by Henry son of Robert atte
Gayole, the jurors having declared that no loss
would ensue except that the citizens, who held
the city in fee-farm of the king, would in future
lose the tallage of the tenants of the said messuage. (fn. 7) The two next additions to their area were
made by Richard Fraunceys or le Frenshebaker,
parson of the church of Monkton in the Isle of
Thanet, who granted them two messuages in
1335, and a messuage and garden in 1344, for
the enlargement of their dwelling-place. (fn. 8) They
afterwards bought from John Chich, who was
bailiff of Canterbury, 1351-2, a plot of ground
in St. George's parish lying on the highway at
the Cloth Market, upon part of which they built
their outward gate on the north-east of the convent. (fn. 9) In 1354 John, parson of the church of
St. Andrew, Canterbury, gave them a messuage
adjacent to their place, worth 12d. a year. (fn. 10)
In 1356 they agreed to pay the prior and
convent of Christchurch 2s. 4d. a year, apparently for these later acquisitions. (fn. 11)
John Chertesey gave them a messuage and
garden, adjacent to their area and held of the
crown in burgage, in 1394; the friars paying a
fine of four marks for the licence.
In 1408 the friars obtained from Henry IV
royal licence to reconstruct their houses and
buildings which faced the highway, to let these
houses and buildings as well as a messuage and
garden in St. George's parish, and to apply the
proceeds to the support of their church arid other
buildings and to the payment of their dues. (fn. 12) To
carry out their improvements they found it necessary to inclose two winding lanes which surrounded a great part of their area. These lanes,
they asserted, had fallen into disuse and were so
full of dung and other filth that the stench was
dangerous to the health of the inhabitants and
' disgusted the hearts of those celebrating and
hearing divine service in the friars' church.' In
1429 John Sturreye, the prior, leased from the
city for ninety years, at an annual rent of 4s., a
'crooked lane ' (fn. 13) leading from the Cloth Market
near the eastern or cemetery gate of the friars to
the church of St. Mary Bredin; and two years
later the friars leased from the city for 12d. a
year (fn. 14) and inclosed another lane
opposite to that church and extending from the new
stone wall with the porch in it as far as the east part
of the garden of the convent opening into Sheepshank
Lane by a wooden door.
In the same year (1431) they obtained licence
from the king and council to hold the two lanes
and also a messuage and garden conferred on
them by William Benet and Thomas Langdon.
Their right to these various plots being called in
question, the property was seized by the king's
escheator; the prior appeared by his attorney,
Robert Shamell, before the Court of Exchequer
in 1438, and obtained judgement in his favour. (fn. 15)
The friars received from the city 2s. a year in
the latter part of the fifteenth century ' for the
rent of the Boordehouse.' (fn. 16) Occasionally some
of the commissioners appointed to arbitrate in the
frequent disputes between the commonalty and
the abbey of St. Augustine were lodged at the
Austin Friars, at the city's expense. (fn. 17) The municipality granted these friars £1 6s. 8d. towards
the cost of their pavage in 1481-2. (fn. 18)
The Austin Friars of Canterbury are often
called the White Friars, (fn. 19) an error which has
led to some confusion. The famous John Capgrave has been erroneously claimed as an inmate
of this house. (fn. 20) It is said that several of the
Hauts were buried here, especially William
Haut of Bishopsbourne, esq., who was buried in
the choir before the image of St. Katharine between his wives in 1462, and left 20 marks for
the repair of the church. (fn. 21) Others buried here
were Amabilia Gobion, who gave 10 marks for
the repair of the church, 1405; John Brempe
of St. Andrew's, 1462; William Bonyngton of
St. George's, 1464, and Christina his wife;
William Benet, 1464, and his wife; William
Catbery, carver, 1479, and his friend Christian
Hamer; William Walpole, chaplain of Lord
Thomas Arundel, 1483; Simon Flegard, clerk,
Thomas Linsey, corvesir, and Richard Dyne in
1484; William Faunt of St. Mary Bredin,
1485, and his father and mother; William
Colsor, 1485; William Aylard, smith, 1497;
John Courteman, 1501, and Joan his widow,
1511; Richard Stephinson, 1510, and Margaret
his wife, near the image of our Lady; Nicholas
Barry, 1513, 'in the churchyard next the chapel
of the parson of St. Andrew'; Isabel Walker,
1516, and William Courthope, 1530,' before the
image of our Lady of Pity'; William Corall,
1532. William Geyre, 1539, and Lucas Gibbes,
whose will was made 8 October, 1539, and
proved 12 April, 1543, also desired to be buried
at the Austin Friars. (fn. 22)
Legacies were left to these friars by Elizabeth
de Burgh, lady of Clare, 1360; (fn. 23) John Tyece
of Canterbury, who by his will, dated 1381 and
proved in 1400, ordered that his grange at
' Redyngate ' and all his other arable lands in
Canterbury should be sold and the proceeds divided
among the mendicant friars, nuns, and other poor
religious (fn. 24) ; Sir Richard atte Lease, kt., 1393 (fn. 25) ;
Richard Pargate, citizen of Canterbury, who in
1457 bequeathed 40s. towards making their new
gate (fn. 26) ; Cecilia Lady Kirriell, 1472 (fn. 27) ; Richard
Tilley, 1485 (fn. 28) ; John Bakke of Canterbury,
1500 (fn. 29) ; Didier Bargier, rector of St. Andrew's,
who left to the altar of St. Didier in the Austin
Friars ' my little brevet mass-book covered with
red leather,' in 1504 (fn. 29a) ; Elizabeth, wife of John
Hale, alderman, who left them 3s. 4d. a year
for ten years to celebrate her obit, 1506 (fn. 30) ;
John Roper of Eltham, esq., 1524; (fn. 31) and
Richard Sandisbury of Sittingbourne, 1521,
Margerie, widow of John Baylie of St. George's,
1522, and Sir Nicholas Hewys of Monkton in
Thanet, 1530, provided for masses at the altar of
Scala Celi in this church. (fn. 31a)
Sir John Fineux, Chief Justice of Common
Pleas, having expended more than £40 in repairing the church, refectory, dormitory and
walls of the friary, the brethren bound themselves by indenture in 1522 to provide one chaplain to celebrate mass daily in the chapel of the
Visitation of the Blessed Virgin for the souls of
Sir John, Elizabeth his wife, and others. (fn. 32)
The religious observances of the ' Gild of the
Assumption of our Lady of the Crafts and Misteries of the shpemakers, curriers, and cobblers of
the city of Canterbury' were held in the church
of the Austin Friars. The gild ordinances of
1518 provide that every brother shall solemnly
attend high mass here at ten in the morning on
the feasts of the Assumption, St. Cyprian, and
St. Crispin, and shall offer at the mass 1d. Masses
were to be said at this church for the souls of
deceased brethren. (fn. 33) In 1524 William Fiernour
left tapers to ' the Brotherhood of St. Erasmus in
the Austin Friars.' (fn. 33a)
The bishop of Dover, who came to Canterbury on 13 December, 1538, to negotiate the
surrender of the friaries, found the Austin Friars
specially in great poverty. (fn. 34) Their debts were
£40, and their implements not worth £6, except
a little plate weighing 126 oz. He reports to
Cromwell that at the Austin Friars on 14 December, 'one friar very rudely and traitorously
used himself,' and declared he was ready to die
for it that the king might not be the head of the
Church, but it must be a spiritual father appointed
by God. This was probably Friar Stone, and
the sequel is thus noted in the City Accounts
(1538-9):—Paid for half a ton of timber to
make a pair of gallows to hang Friar Stone,
2s. 6d.; to a labourer that digged the holes, 3d.;
to four men that helped set up the gallows for
drink to them, for carriage of the timber from
Stablegate to Dongeon (i.e. Dane John), 1s.; for
a hurdle, 6d.; for a load of wood and for a
horse to draw him to the Dongeon, 2s. 3d.; paid
two men that set the kettle and parboiled him,
1s.; to two men that carried his quarters to the
gates and set them up, 1s.; for halters to hang
him and Sandwich cord and for straw, 1s.; to a
woman that scoured the kettle, 2d.; to him that
did the execution, 3s. 8d. (fn. 35)
The priory of the Austin Friars was put under
the charge of Sir. Anthony St. Leger, (fn. 36) then sheriff
of Kent, and in 1542 granted by the king, in
exchange for other lands, to George Harper.
The property, consisting of the site (1½ acres), a
garden in the tenure of the rector of St. Andrew's, a tenement called Me Welhouse,' and
seven other tenements or gardens let to tenants at
will, was valued at £5 10s. 4d. a year. Harper
sold it in June, 1542, to Thomas Culpeper of
Beakesbourne, who had licence, February,
1543-4, to alienate, it to Robert Brome. (fn. 37)
Priors
John Sturreye, 1429 (fn. 38)
John Godewyn, 1462 (fn. 39)
William Mallahan, 1522 (fn. 40)
The fourteenth-century seal of the house contained three niches with ogee arched canopies,
under them a bishop with pastoral staff between
two archbishops with crosiers; over the canopies the Almighty, half-length, lifting up the
right hand in benediction, in the left hand an
orb. The background is diapered lozengy. In
base, under a depressed square-headed arch the
prior reading at a lectern, behind him two friars
praying. Legend:—
S. COMMVNITATIS FRATRVM EREMIITARE
ORDINIS SBI AVGVSTINI CANTVARIE (fn. 41)