75. THE HOSPITAL OF ST. JOHN BAPTIST, LYNN
There was in the Dam Gate of Lynn an
important hospital, (fn. 1) of early foundation, dedicated
to St. John Baptist, consisting of a community
of master and brethren, with church, hospital,
hall, chambers, houses, and court.
In the thirteenth century a dispute arose as
to the right of the chaplain to administer the
sacraments in the hospital chapel or church. The
prior of St. Margaret's endeavoured to stop what
he regarded as an infringement of the rights of
the mother church of Norwich, and the matter
was referred to the judgement of the priors of
Bury St. Edmunds and Thetford and the sacrist
of Bury. The award, dated 11 February, 1234,
decreed that the private chaplain of the hospital
should celebrate one mass a day in the chapel
for the brethren in a low voice (suhmissa voce),
and that no one else was to celebrate there on
the same day save the prior of Lynn and some
priest nominated by him; that all oblations of
every kind, without any diminution, were to be
restored to the priory church of St. Margaret;
that brothers and sisters dying in the hospital
were to be buried in St. Margaret's; that the
chaplain was not to hear confessions; that they
were to be allowed a single bell for summoning
the brethren; and that the prior of Lynn was
annually to visit the hospital. (fn. 2)
On 26 May, 1399, the chapel was the scene
of the public recantation of William Chatrir
alias Sawtre, a priest of the church of St.
Margaret, Lynn. There had been another recantation on the previous day in the churchyard
of the chapel of St. James. Sawtre solemnly
took his oath, before the bishop of Norwich in
the chapel, on the book of the Gospels, that he
would never after that time preach publicly the
eight conclusions which he repudiated. But the
next year he relapsed, abjured his repudiation,
and was burnt. (fn. 3)
In 1535 the value of the hospital's small
possessions at Hard wick, Clench warton, and
Lynn, were estimated at £7 6s. 11d. a year;
the master at that date was Robert Newman. (fn. 4)
This house was destroyed by the later legislation of Henry VIII. On 18 May, 1545, it
was surrendered to the crown by Robert
Bumpstead, the master. He is described as
generosus, so he was clearly not in holy orders. (fn. 5)
Priors of the Hospital of St. John, Lynn (fn. 6)
Michael, (fn. 7) occurs 1273
William de Lingwode, (fn. 8) admitted 1331
John Barsham, (fn. 9) admitted 1390
John Blake, (fn. 10) admitted 1390
Roger Loksmith, (fn. 11) admitted 1401
John Vyne, (fn. 12) admitted 1405
Richard Warden, (fn. 13) admitted 1410
Thomas Lank, (fn. 14) 1418
John Lovell, (fn. 15) admitted 1418
Thomas Lovys, (fn. 16) admitted 1426
William Cowper, (fn. 17) admitted 1471
Robert Newman, (fn. 18) occurs 1535
Robert Bumpstead, (fn. 19) surrendered 1545
76. THE HOSPITAL OF ST. MARY MAGDALEN, LYNN
The hospital of St. Mary Magdalen was
founded on the causeway leading to Gaywood,
in the year 1145, by one Peter the chaplain.
It consisted of a prior and twelve brethren and
sisters; of these ten, the prior or chaplain being
one, were to be sound, and the other three
infirm or leprous. From the foundation deed
it appears that this was a reconstruction of a yet
older hospital, for the opening clause provides
that the brethren were to dress after a decent
fashion, like their predecessors (' secundum
morem fratrum antecessorum domus '). The
statutes drawn up by the founder and Archbishop Winchelsey ordered that the infirm
were not to enter the quire, the cellar, the
kitchen, or precincts, without reasonable cause,
but to confine themselves to the places assigned
them in church, hall, and court, and not to
wander about in public; that the brethren were
not to eat or drink outside the hospital for the
space of a mile in circuit lest scandal might
arise; that the common seal, books, chalices,
vestments, relics, wax, and other church ornaments, and the chest with the treasury of the
house, were to remain in the custody of the infirm
brethren, and the common money be kept in a
pix with three keys, one with the prior, and the
other two with two of the sound brethren, and
the alms from within or without the hospital to
be placed in the pix; that if anyone wished to
visit his wife or friends he might do so two or
three times in the year if it seemed necessary or
useful, but openly and with the consent of the
prior, and not for too long; that if any of
the brethren or sisters, sound or unsound,
broke the rules, the use of the hospital was to be
forfeited for a year, and unless willing to be
castigated according to the quality of the offence
within the year, the offender was to be expelled
for ever; that all the brethren and sisters were
to attend daily the seven canonical hours and
mass and to pray for all benefactors; that all
brethen and sisters were to have equal shares in
all the profits of the house the same as the
prior; that all should attend the general chapter
the day after the feast of St. Mary Magdalen,
and after chapter the mass for all buried there
and for all benefactors; that all ornaments of
the church and treasury were to be placed on
that day for the inspection of all the brethren and
sisters; that on the death of any brother or
sister the house was to have the best robe and
cowl, and the bed and the chest of the deceased,
and if there was no chest, 8s. 6d. for wax light
and 6d. for drink among the inmates; that the
house should celebrate thirty days for the soul
of the deceased; that 6d. was to be distributed
to the brethren on each of the feasts of All
Saints, Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost,
and on St. Mary Magdalen's Day, for prayers
for the founder; that his anniversary was also
to be celebrated yearly in the church, under pain
of excommunication, and on the same day the
chaplain, brethren, and sisters, were each to
receive 6d. as drink-money (ad potandum); that
on Maundy Thursday a farthing (libellum) and
a herring should be distributed to each brother
and sister of the house and to all mendicant
lepers, and that outside lepers should receive the
hospitality of the house for that night. The
statutes were confirmed and sealed by William,
bishop of Norwich in the year 1174. (fn. 20)
On 26 January, 1340, protection with clause
rogamus (that is for collecting alms), was granted
for two years to the master and brethren of St.
Mary Magdalen on the causey, Lynn, as they
had not enough for their support unless relieved
by the faithful in other parts. (fn. 21)
In 1549 the rebels from Ket's camp at
Castle Rising, on their return from trying to
enter the town, sacked the hospital and destroyed
the chapel and most of the buildings, so that it
was henceforth greatly impoverished. (fn. 22) The
hospital was seized by the crown under the Act
of Edward VI, but the property was afterwards
to some extent restored to the corporation for a
like purpose. Its post-Reformation history will
be given elsewhere.
Priors of St. Mary Magdalen, Lynn (fn. 23)
Peter, (fn. 24) before 1256
John Dulman, 1468
Nicholas Portland, occurs 1477, (fn. 25) 1482
Henry Burgh, 1482
Richard Bull, 1487
Richard Leke, 1520
Nicholas Bryggs, 1526, 1529
Roger Adams, 1534
John Dixon, 1552
Thomas Hasket, 1570
77-80. LAZAR-HOUSES, LYNN
In addition to the hospital of St. Mary
Magdalen, which provided partially for lepers,
there were four other lazar-houses close to the
town of Lynn, namely at Cowgate, West Lynn,
Setchey, and Gaywood.
Stephen Guybon of North Lynn, by his will
dated 1432, gave 12d. to every house of lepers
about Lynn, namely West Lynn, Cowgate,
Hardwick, Setchey, Magdalen, and Gaywood. (fn. 26)
Hardwick, in the parish of North Runcton, is
described separately, and 'Mawdelyn' obviously
means the hospital of St. Mary Magdalen.
As no records can be found of these small
lazar-houses, it may be assumed that they had
little or no endowment, and were entirely
dependent, like similar houses in other places, on
alms and occasional bequests.