HOUSES OF BENEDICTINE NUNS
12. THE PRIORY OF BLACKBOROUGH
Roger de Scales and his wife Muriel, about
the year, 1150, founded a small priory for monks
(fratribus) at Blackborough in Middleton Parish,
dedicated to the honour of the Blessed Virgin
and St. Katharine. It was endowed with lands
and woods, etc., in the immediate neighbourhood
of the house. The confirmation and extension
grant of Robert de Scales, son of the founder,
shows that the establishment was at that time for
the support of religious of both sexes (sororibus et
fratribus), but the house was finally assigned
about 1200 to the sole use of Benedictine nuns.
Robert de Scales, great-grandson of the founder,
confirmed to the nuns the churches of Middleton
and Santon, with a moiety of the Church of
Wetherden, Suffolk. (fn. 1)
The taxation of 1291 showed that the priory
had property in twenty-five Norfolk parishes, to
the annual value of £26 4s. 3½d. In spiritualities they had the appropriated churches of Middleton and St. Martin's, Rainham, valued
respectively at £5 6s. 8d. and £10, and a portion
of the church of Wetherden, worth £5. The
total clear value for taxation purposes came to
£36 19s. 1d., because there were deducted from
the full total £4 13s. 5½d. for habits for the
nuns, 25s. for the fabric of their church, and
57s. 7d. in payment to various lords. At that
date, in addition to those entertained from time
to time at the guest-house, the number of the
nuns and their servants living in the priory was
forty-four. (fn. 2)
The prioress and nuns of Blackborough obtained in 1329 a licence, by a fine of ten marks,
for the alienation in mortmain by William de
Salleford, chaplain of the advowson of the church
of Paddlesworth, Kent, to find a chaplain to
celebrate daily in Blackborough church for the
good estate of Isabella de Scales and the said
William in life and for their souls after death. (fn. 3)
In 1350 Robert de Scales confirmed to the
prioress and convent the advowson of the church
of Islington.
In 1377 the church of Paddlesworth was
appropriated to the priory. (fn. 4)
A return made to the crown in 1416 of the
appropriated churches of the diocese, names the
following as belonging to the nuns of Blackborough, with the dates of their appropriation:—
Illington (1388), Middleton (1360), South Keynham (1370), and a mediety of Wetherden.
(1349). (fn. 5)
The Valor of 1535 gave the clear annual
value of the priory at £42 6s. 7½d.
Edward III, in 1347, pardoned the prioress
and nuns their share for two years and the tenths
granted him by the clergy, because they were,
through no fault of their order, in so miserable
and depressed a condition. (fn. 6)
Margaret de Bristede, a nun of this house,
obtained an indult in 1352 to choose a confessor
to give, if penitent, plenary remission at the hour
of death. (fn. 7)
On 7 July, 1514, the nuns were visited by
Bishop Nicke. The prioress and five of the
sisters were severally examined. Margaret
Gygges stated that the day and night offices were
duly said and silence observed and that her sole
complaint was that the prioress, to save the
expense of an auditor, did not present an annual
statement of accounts. Margaret Hollins,
sacrist, bore witness to the good repair of the:
manors, but said that the cloister and church,
were somewhat defective. Agnes Guy said that:
they had had no sub-prioress for four years, that:
they were ignorant of their foundation numbers,
that the prioress rendered no account, and that:
the house was said to be in debt. Margaret
Cobbes said that the church porch was in ruins,
that the prioress rendered no balance sheet, but
gave the sisters a verbal account of the house,
that religion was less duly observed on account
of there being no sub-prioress or proper officials,
that the nuns did not have their customary
recreation, and that the prioress had had one
chaplain for three years. The prioress and
Elizabeth Bullwar contented themselves with
omnia bene. (fn. 8)
At the visitation of 1520 all things were found
satisfactory at Blackborough nunnery, and an
inventory of goods was duly exhibited. (fn. 9)
The last visitation of this house before the
dissolution took place on 1 August, 1532, when
Master Miles Spencer, the bishop's principal official
was the visitor. The prioress, Elizabeth Dawney,
stated that all was well (fn. 10) so far as the condition
of the house would allow. Margaret Giggs, subprioress, said that the house was in great decay.
Agnes Guy, Margaret Colman, Margaret Hasilley, Elizabeth Bulwere, Katherine Sooge,
Dorothy Sturges, Elizabeth Caws, Joan Pyndre,
and Joan Bate, all reported favourably and had
no complaints to make. (fn. 11)
According to the secret report of Legh and
Leyton, drawn up early in 1536, Prioress
Dawney and two of her nuns (Bulwere and
Sturges) were suspected of incontinency (fn. 12) ; very
different was the report of the county gentlemen
who drew up a detailed statement of the house
later in the same year, which was presented in
January, 1537; they stated that the priory contained nine religious persons 'of good name and
fame.' There were also living in the house a
priest, eleven men servants and eight women
servants. The clear yearly value was estimated
at £44 0s. 1½d. The house was somewhat in
decay; the lead and bells worth £60; the
movable goods, stocks and stores, £59 4s., and
10 acres of wood, £13 6s. 8d. The debts due by
the house amounted to £79 4s. 8d. (fn. 13)
The depositions entered by the commissioners
at the time of their visit show that the prioress
and her eight nuns all asked for dispensation. (fn. 14)
In this year Anne, Lady Oxford, half-sister to
the Duke of Norfolk, wrote to Cromwell, understanding that religious houses under £200 a
year were 'at the king's gracious pleasure to
oppress,' requesting to have the farm of a place of
nuns in Blackborough, net worth £100 a year
as she supposed. (fn. 15) On 27 March of the same
year Richard Southwell wrote to Cromwell,
stating that Blackborough nuns, like those of
Crabhouse and Shouldham, were making away
with all they could, making such pennyworths
that all their goods will be dispersed, and there
would be nothing left to pay any part of their
debts. (fn. 16)
The site and possessions of the priory were
leased to James Joskyns for twenty-one years (fn. 17) ;
in 1550 they were granted, with the manor and
fair of Blackborough, to the bishop of Norwich
and his successors at an annual payment of
£1 3s. 9d. (fn. 18)
Prioresses of Blackborough
Avelina, (fn. 19) occurs c. 1200
Margaret, (fn. 20) occurs 1222, 1228
Katherine de Scales, (fn. 21) occurs 1238
Alice, (fn. 22) occurs c. 1250
Mary de London, (fn. 23) occurs 1259, 1261
Katherine de Fitton, (fn. 24) occurs c. 1277
Ida de Middleton, (fn. 25) elected 1304
Lettice, (fn. 26) occurs 1332, resigned 1342
Winnesia de Hoyton, (fn. 27) elected 1342
Isabel de Stanton, (fn. 28) elected 1344
Isabel de Hynton, (fn. 29) elected 1352
Matilda de Dunton, (fn. 30) 1384
Mary de Bersingham, (fn. 31) 1389
Elizabeth Beaupre, (fn. 32) occurs 1428
Alice Erle, (fn. 33) 1434
Margaret Geyton, (fn. 34) 1480
Matilda de Lupe, (fn. 35) occurs 1482
Margaret Fyncham, (fn. 36) occurs 1514
Elizabeth Dawney, (fn. 37) occurs 1532