HOSPITALS
23. THE HOSPITAL OF HOLY TRINITY AND ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST, BRIDGNORTH
This hospital stood to the north of St. John's Street,
set back from the road and adjoining Morfe Forest
on the east. (fn. 1) It is said to have been founded by
Ralph Lestrange (fl. 1179-95), (fn. 2) who left 3½ virgates
at Alveley to the hospital. (fn. 3) Apart from property in
Bridgnorth other early grants included a half virgate
in Ewdness, first recorded in 1255, (fn. 4) a half virgate in
Upton Cressett, acquired in the mid 13th century, (fn. 5)
and property at Dudmaston, where the hospital was
among the tenants of Robert of Dudmaston in 1305. (fn. 6)
It received several grants of wood from neighbouring royal forests in the earlier 13th century (fn. 7) and, like
St. James's hospital, obtained the right to a daily
horseload of dead wood from Morfe Forest in 1232. (fn. 8)
Timber from Shirlett Forest was given to build the
hospital chapel in 1257. (fn. 9)
During the later Middle Ages the hospital also
had a substantial estate in Bridgnorth itself, mainly
in the adjacent parts of Low Town but including
houses in Little Brug and St. Mary's Street. (fn. 10) In the
later 14th century it owed rents of 29s. ¾d. for lands
in Bridgnorth held of Lilleshall Abbey. (fn. 11) Much of
this town property was acquired between 1317 and
1344, when five daily chantry services at the hospital
were endowed by Bridgnorth burgesses. Two
messuages, lands, and rents in Bridgnorth, Quatford,
and Worfield were given by Henry Canne (1317); (fn. 12)
two messuages and 1½ virgate in Bridgnorth and in
More in Eardington by John Huband (1324); (fn. 13)
three messuages and lands in Bridgnorth by John de
Isenham (1335); (fn. 14) one messuage, lands, and 60s.
rent in Bridgnorth for a service of three chaplains
by William de la Halle (1337); (fn. 15) and two messuages
by Thomas de Holcumbe and Henry of Larden,
chaplains (1344). (fn. 16) William of Aldenham and two
chaplains sought licence to grant two further
messuages in the town in 1371. (fn. 17)
By the 1360s, when the hospital apparently had
five chantry priests in addition to the prior and six
poor inmates, (fn. 18) its augmented endowments attracted
the interest of the Crown. The latter regularly
exercised rights of patronage for a century after
1369, at least four of the priors thus appointed being
king's clerks. (fn. 19) John Cokeslane, prior in the 1380s,
seems to have been living in the town in 1389, when
he was licensed to hear Lenten confessions there. (fn. 20)
His ten successors, most of whom held the office for
little longer than a year, were probably all nonresident. In 1396 a commission was appointed to
survey the hospital on the ground that recent priors
had wasted its goods. (fn. 21) In 1414, during John
Arundel's absentee wardenship, there was only one
priest serving the hospital, the buildings were
ruined, and there were no almspeople. (fn. 22) In 1421–2
the hospital estate produced £17 19s. rent: Arundel
received at least £6, the chaplain £4; only 3s. 4d.
was spent in alms. Repair of the buildings and
property had, however, begun. (fn. 23) Arundel's successors probably had to reside. Edward Wade (appointed
1439) was apparently living in Bridgnorth in 1438 (fn. 24)
and Hugh Cardmaker, of a local family, was required
to reside. (fn. 25) Pensions continued to be a burden on the
hospital. (fn. 26)
On the strength of an erroneous pedigree purporting to show his descent from the founder, John,
Earl of Shrewsbury, procured a crown grant of the
patronage of the hospital to Lilleshall Abbey in
1471 (fn. 27) and at the same time the prior made over his
interest to the abbey. (fn. 28) A disappointed crown
nominee questioned the validity of the abbey's title
in 1497 (fn. 29) although this was confirmed in 1505 (fn. 30) and
1523. (fn. 31) By the Dissolution the hospital estate had
merged with that of the abbey but among payments
said to be due from Lilleshall in 1535 were a pension
of £6 13s. 4d. to the Jesus chantry at Lichfield from
the hospital revenues, the same sum to the hospital
chaplain, and 16s. 8d. in alms on the founder's
anniversary. (fn. 32) These sums accounted for over half
the income of the abbey's Bridgnorth estate.
In 1539, when it was held under a conventual lease
by Sir Richard Gresham, (fn. 33) the hospital was granted
to Rowland Edwardes of London. (fn. 34) It had passed by
1565 to John Whitbrooke, (fn. 35) whose descendant
Thomas Whitbrooke was in possession in 1588. (fn. 36)
A house known as St. John's was built on its site in
1698 (fn. 37) and there are no known remains.
Priors, Masters, or Wardens of Holy
Trinity Hospital, Bridgnorth
Adam, occurs in the early 13th century. (fn. 38)
Simon, occurs c. 1280. (fn. 39)
Roger, occurs 1340-5. (fn. 40)
Henry, occurs 1354. (fn. 41)
John, occurs 1367. (fn. 42)
Adam of Knightley, appointed 1369. (fn. 43)
John Cokeslane, occurs 1382, (fn. 44) resigned 1389. (fn. 45)
John of Wirksworth, appointed 1389, resigned
1390. (fn. 46)
Thomas of Beckingham, appointed 1390, (fn. 47)
resigned 1392. (fn. 48)
William Newton, appointed 1392, resigned 1393. (fn. 49)
John Charlton, appointed 1393. (fn. 50)
Thomas Winchcombe, appointed 1394, resigned
1395. (fn. 51)
Henry de Cotesmore, appointed 1395, (fn. 52) occurs
1398. (fn. 53)
John Wallington, appointed 1401. (fn. 54)
Thomas Mildenhall, appointed 1402, (fn. 55) resigned
1403. (fn. 56)
John Shakill, appointed 1403. (fn. 57)
William Benet, appointed 1405. (fn. 58)
William Lamprey, occurs 1407. (fn. 59)
John Arundel, appointed 1409, (fn. 60) resigned 1423. (fn. 61)
Richard Baxter, appointed 1423, (fn. 62) resigned
1439. (fn. 63)
Edward Wade, appointed 1439, (fn. 64) occurs until
1451. (fn. 65)
Hugh Cardmaker, appointed 1453, (fn. 66) resigned
1467. (fn. 67)
John Bricon, appointed 1467, (fn. 68) resigned 1471. (fn. 69)
Christopher Ledes, occurs 1523. (fn. 70)
An 18th-century drawing of the hospital seal on a
lease of 1366 (fn. 71) shows a cross paty between two
mullets. Legend, lombardic:
SIGILLUM [HOS]PITALIS SANCTI TRINITATIS DE BRUGE
A later common seal, on a lease of 1457, (fn. 72) is oval and
measures 2½ × 1½ in. It shows the Trinity under a
canopy with a kneeling figure below. Legend,
black-letter:
[SIG]ILLUM COMMUNE HOSPITALIS SANCTE [TR]INITA[TIS DE BRIGE]NOR[TH]
24. THE HOSPITAL OF ST. JAMES, BRIDGNORTH
This leper hospital stood on the site of the house
known as St. James's Priory, outside the town on the
east of the road from Bridgnorth to Quatt and south
of its junction with the road to Stourbridge; a
typical site for such a hospital. It was also on the
edge of Morfe Forest. It is first recorded in 1224,
when the king granted its inmates a horseload of
dead wood daily from this forest. (fn. 73) The circumstances of its foundation are uncertain but the tradition, recorded in 'an old writing under seal' still
extant in the 18th century, that its site and adjacent
assarts were given by Henry I, is not improbable. (fn. 74)
According to the same source other early endowments were granted by Thomas the Clerk and the
king's clerk Richard of Brecon, while the church
itself was built by William de Henegate 'and other
honourable men'. (fn. 75) The latter may well have been
burgesses of Bridgnorth. In the early 13th century
it was felt necessary to secure the assent of the
burgesses to a hospital lease (fn. 76) and the bailiffs of
Bridgnorth later claimed to be patrons.
Little is known of the hospital's endowments and
nothing of its internal life, except that it housed
men and women. (fn. 77) Later evidence suggests that its
estate included about 130 a. near the hospital itself,
mainly assarts and meadows along the Severn, (fn. 78) and
a few houses in the town. (fn. 79) Part of this may have
been granted by Peter of Bridgnorth, who obtained
licence to grant lands worth 40s. a year to endow a
daily service in the hospital in 1352. (fn. 80) No other late
medieval acquisitions are recorded and in the early
15th century the hospital was still to some degree
dependent upon alms. (fn. 81) Its estate was valued at £4 a
year in 1535 (fn. 82) and at the same sum in 1546, when
there were no inmates other than the warden. (fn. 83)
The bailiffs of Bridgnorth were exercising the
rights of patrons by 1543, when the new warden was
required to reside and to keep hospitality as his
predecessor had done. (fn. 84) He was instructed to lease
the hospital's arable lands on a share-cropping basis;
it was expected that he would use the pastures for
fattening stock and he was forbidden to lease them
except on yearly tenancies. (fn. 85)
Although the hospital's endowments passed to the
Crown under the Chantries Acts the bailiffs made
an attempt, only partially successful, to retain
possession, apparently justifying this by applying
the income to the almshouses in Church Street.
John Perrott, who obtained a crown grant of the
hospital estate in 1557, (fn. 86) immediately sold it to one
of the existing tenants, Roger Smyth of Morville. (fn. 87)
In 1560 the warden and the bailiffs brought an
action for recovery of the hospital (fn. 88) and in the following year Smyth was debarred from his rights as
burgess. (fn. 89) At the same time the bailiffs appointed as
warden Reuben Stenton, master of Bridgnorth
grammar school, and admitted five poor persons to
the hospital. (fn. 90) Although the lawsuit was revived in
1562 (fn. 91) Smyth and his successors remained in
possession of St. James's and the adjacent lands, (fn. 92)
apparently demolishing some part of the hospital
building before 1574. (fn. 93) The corporation, however,
retained possession of former hospital property
near St. James's and in the town and until the mid
17th century, wardens continued to be appointed by
the bailiffs to make leases and receive rents. (fn. 94) From
at least 1573 the latter were paid to the inmates of
the almshouses in Church Street and the property
was later merged with the general almshouse estate. (fn. 95)
Wardens or Priors of the Hospital of
St. James, Bridgnorth
William, occurs 1323. (fn. 96)
John Overton, occurs 1405. (fn. 97)
Ralph Ingestre, occurs as procurator 1411. (fn. 98)
Walter de Esenham, occurs 1414. (fn. 99)
Hugh Cardmaker, occurs 1472-83. (fn. 100)
Roger Horde, occurs 1490-9. (fn. 101)
William Byste, occurs 1507-35. (fn. 102)
William Rudge, instituted c. 1543, (fn. 103) died 1557. (fn. 104)
Rowland Chese, instituted 1557, (fn. 105) died 1561. (fn. 106)
Reuben Stenton, instituted 1561, (fn. 107) occurs 1573. (fn. 108)
Francis Lewis, appointed 1606, (fn. 109) occurs 1630. (fn. 110)
A drawing of the oval common seal of the hospital, (fn. 111) in use in the early 13th century, shows the
standing figure of St. James. Legend, lombardic:
SIGILLUM LEPROSORUM SANCTI IA[CO]BI DE BRUGIA