33. THE PRIORY OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE, THETFORD
Thetford was in the hands of Stephen in
1139. Soon after this date the king gave all the
lands and advowsons on the Suffolk side of the
river, both within and without the borough,
to William de Warenne, the third earl of
Warenne and Surrey. Immediately after he
had received this grant, the earl founded a
monastery on that side of Thetford for canons
of the order of St. Sepulchre, of the Austin rule,
which order had been introduced into England
about 1120. By the foundation charter the
earl bestowed on the canons the church of St.
Sepulchre, with a quadrigate of land in the adjoining fields, together with all the lands,
churches, tithes, and manorial rights in Thetford
that he had obtained from the king. He further
granted them two yearly fairs, namely at the
Invention (3 May) and the Exaltation of the
Holy Cross (14 September). The earl was at
this time about to set forth on a crusade, and
the concluding sentences of the charter solemnly
commend the maintenance of his new foundation to his brother palmers, to the burgesses, and
to all his faithful friends. It was witnessed by
his brothers Ralph and Reginald. (fn. 1)
Hamelin, Earl Warenne, who married Isabel,
the founder's daughter and heir, confirmed this
grant, and also gave them a third fair on the
festival of the Holy Sepulchre, 20s. in rent, and
the tithes of two mills. He died in 1202.
William, Earl Warenne, Hamelin's son, gave
the canons sixty acres of lands, and 10s. rent out
of his mill at Brendmilne. Henry II also gave
sixty acres of demesne lands of Thetford to the
priory.
Early in the reign of Henry III, Sir Geoffrey
de Furneaux, lord of Middle Harling, died, and
was buried in the priory church by the side of
his wife Amy. He gave the canons, for this
privilege of sepulture among them, the ninth
sheaf of all his demesnes in Bircham (Cambridgeshire) and Middle Harling, together with a
messuage and twelve acres of land. About 1250
Alice, wife of Sir Michael Furneaux, a grandson
of Sir Geoffrey, was also buried in this church,
as well as many subsequent members of the
family.
In 1272 William Nunne of Thetford
granted to Prior Ralph and the canons a
messuage in the town towards procuring habits
for the canons, and Thomas de Burgh in 1274
granted the ninth sheaf of his demesne lands in
Somerton, Suffolk, and Burgh in Cambridgeshire, in exchange for the advowson of Somerton.
The taxation of 1291 showed that this priory
was of the annual value of £20 0s. 1¼d.; it
then held possessions in fourteen Norfolk and
five Suffolk parishes, in addition to small incomes
from the dioceses of Ely and London.
The hospital of God's House, Thetford, was
definitely settled on the priory in the year 1347.
In 1331 Edward III licensed the appropriation
to the priory of the church of Gresham, the
advowson of which had been granted by John,
Earl Warenne, in 1281, but the bishop of
Norwich refused his consent. In 1339 the
prior and canons appealed to Rome, and Pope
Boniface granted them leave to appropriate the
revenues on the next vacancy, provided they
served it by one of their own canons and paid
all episcopal dues. The bishop would not, however, give his consent without the formal
ordination of a vicarage.
A survey of this house, taken on 20 December,
1338, shows that the priory held the Thetford
churches of SS. Cuthbert, Andrew, Giles,
Edmund, Lawrence, and the Holy Trinity, the
last two being served by the canons. They also
held 293 acres of meadow and arable land in
the neighbourhood of Thetford, of the united
value of £10 12s. 0½d. They had liberty of one
foldcourse in the field of Westwick, wherein
they might feed 500 sheep, and might remove
those sheep to Brend for change of pasture when
the shepherd pleased and had convenience
for washing them; also another foldcourse for
320 sheep, and various other pasturage rights
for cattle and swine. The total annual value
of the priory at the time of this survey was
£62 9s.
In 1394 Abbot Cratfield, of Bury St. Edmunds,
licensed the prior to purchase the tenement
called Playforth in Barnham, with its services,
rents, foldcourse for 400 sheep, and 133 acres of
arable land worth ½d. an acre, of Master Walter
of Elveden, who held it of the fee of St. Edmund.
For this the prior was to pay a yearly rent to the
abbey of 22d., and 2d. on the election of a new
abbot. (fn. 2) In 1442 the earl of Suffolk obtained
licence to alienate to the priory 240 acres of
arable land, 600 of pasture and heath, four foldcourses in Croxton, and a messuage and garden
in Thetford, to found a chantry in the conventual church. The prior sued John Legat,
rector of Tuddenham, in 1464, for an annual
pension of £6 from that church, which he had
detained for two years; the prior recovered it by
proving that he was always taxed at 12s. tenths
for the portion.
When the Valor of 1535 was drawn up the
clear annual income was then only £39 6s. 8d.
This was a great falling-off from the income of
1338; several items of income were much reduced, for instance the pension of £6 a year
from Tuddenham church stood only at 40s. in
the last Valor.
The priory was visited by Archdeacon Goldwell, on behalf of the bishop, on 12 November,
1492. Prior Reginald and seven canons were
present; the visitor found that no reform was
needed. (fn. 3)
Bishop Nicke visited the house on 21 June,
1514. The record of this visit is incomplete.
The prior, Thomas Vicar, said that Canon
William Brigges, then at Snoring, was an apostate and of evil life. Richard Skete complained
that no one had been appointed sacrist, that the
beer was of poor quality, that the prior had returned no account since his appointment, that
Stephen Horham, the prior's servant in charge
of the dairy, had the spending of the profits of
seven or eight cows, that Stephen was married,
and he had suspicions as to his wife, and that
Stephen had laid violent hands hands on him.
Richard Downham made some like complaints,
and also spoke of the bad repair of the buildings
and nave of the church, and that there were not
Sufficient vessels in the kitchen, and that spoons
and other silver plate had been pledged. William
Kingsmill made like complaints, and said that the
prior, whom he considered remiss but not criminal
in his conduct, had presented no accounts for
seven years. The depositions of Robert Barneham and Thomas Herd were to much the same
effect. (fn. 4)
At Bishop Nicke's visitation of June, 1520,
only the prior, John Thetford, and three canons
were present. The prior stated that the priory
buildings were in sad decay, and that the income
was not sufficient for their support. Richard
Noris said that Thomas Lowthe, the predecessor
of the present prior, had taken with him a breviary
belonging to the house. (fn. 5)
At the visitation of July, 1526, the prior and
five canons were present. Prior Thetford complained of the unpunctuality of the canons at
high mass on Sundays and the principal feasts.
Nicholas Skete thought the beer was too sweet
and weak. (fn. 6)
The last visitation was held in July, 1532,
when the prior and three canons were severally
examined, and all testified omnia bene so far as
the condition of the house permitted. There
were also three novices who were professed by
the bishop. The bishop enjoined on the prior
to see that the newly professed were instructed
in grammar. (fn. 7)
Prior John Thetford and six canons subscribed to the royal supremacy in their chapterhouse on 26 August, 1534. In that year Prior
Thetford, who had been a canon of Butley, gave
to the church of that monastery two chalices,
one for the chapel of All Saints and the other
for the chapel of St. Sigismund; also two relics,
with a silver pix for relics, and the comb of
St. Thomas of Canterbury. He resigned the
priory of Thetford about the close of 1534, and
became prior of Holy Trinity, Ipswich.
Legh and Ap Rice, the notorious visitors of
Cromwell, visited this priory towards the end of
1535. According to their comperta Prior Clerk
confessed incontinency to these men and his
desire to marry; they also reported badly of three
others. (fn. 8)
The county commissioners for suppression of
this house in 1536 reported that it. was of the
clear annual value of £44 12s. 10d.; that the
lead and bells were worth £80, and the
movable goods £29 8s. 7d.; and that the debts
owing amounted to £7 1s. 7¼d. The house
was 'very Ruynous ande in Decaye.' They found
only one religious person there, 'of slendre
Reporte who requirythe to have a dispensacione
to goo to the Worlde.' The persons who had
their living at the house were sixteen—namely,
two priests, two hinds, four children, and eight
waiting servants. (fn. 9)
Prior Clerk obtained a pension often marks. (fn. 10)
The house, site, and possessions were granted
in 1537 to Sir Richard Fulmerston.
Priors Of Thetford
Richard, (fn. 11) 1202
Gislebert (fn. 12)
William, (fn. 13) 1228
Richard, (fn. 14) 1242
Roger de Kersey, (fn. 15) 1247
William, (fn. 16) 1274
Peter de Horsage, (fn. 17) elected 1315
Richard de Wintringham, (fn. 18) elected 1329
John de Shefford, (fn. 19) elected 1338
Roger de Kerseye, (fn. 20) 1347
Robert de Thetford, (fn. 21) 1349
Robert Edwyn, (fn. 22) resigned 1351
Adam de Hokewold, (fn. 23) elected 1351
William de Haneworth, (fn. 24) elected 1358
Adam de Worsted, (fn. 25) elected 1378
Robert de Stowe, (fn. 26) died 1420
John Paltok, (fn. 27) elected 1420
John Grenegras, (fn. 28) elected 1432
Peter Tryon, (fn. 29) elected 1454
Reginald Ilberd, (fn. 30) elected 1471
John Burnell, alias Burham, (fn. 31) 1496
William, (fn. 32) 1503
Thomas Vicar, (fn. 33) occurs 1512
John Thetford, (fn. 34) occurs 1519
John Clerk, (fn. 35) occurs 1535
The thirteenth-century seal of this priory has
under a pinnacled canopy Our Lord rising from
the sepulchre, at the head of which is an angel,
with two sleeping soldiers in base. Legend:—
. . . . . ECCLESIE . . . . .D' THETFORD. . . . (fn. 36)
A fine but imperfect impression of a seal
ad causas of this house is attached to a charter
of 1457. It bears the Risen Saviour standing,
the right hand raised in benediction, and the left
grasping a long cross. In the field, on the left
are the arms of Warenne, chequy; and on the
right a crescent and a star. Legend:—
. . . . . . .HEFO. . . .AD CAVS. . . . . . . (fn. 37)