3. THE ABBEY OF MILTON
The Benedictine abbey of Milton or Middleton was built in the year 933 (fn. 1) by King Æthelstan
for the soul of his brother Edwin, or, as some historians aver, to expiate the crime of a brother's
murder, (fn. 2) the king, in his foundation charter,
testifying (without reference to the above incident) that for an endowment he had granted
for the good of his soul, and the souls of
his successors, the kings of England, to God,
St. Mary, St. Sampson, and St. Branwalader
the following lands:—26 hides at Milborne, 5
at Woolland, 3 at Fromemouthe, viz.: 2 in
an island and one at Ore (Ower), 3 hides at
Clyffe with a meadow, 3½ at Lyscombe, 1 at
Burleston, 1 at Little Puddle, 5 at Cattistock,
6 at Compton Abbas, 2 at Whitcombe, 5 at
Osmington, 6 at Holworth—in all 67 hides; a
weir on the Avon at Twyneham (co. Hants),
all the water within the shore at Weymouth
and half the stream out to sea, 12 acres of land
for the support of the weir and the person in
charge of it, and 3 thaynes in Sussex and a
saltern by the weir, 30 hides of land at Sydling
for the maintenance of the monks, 2 at Chelmington, 6 at Hillfield, and 10 at Ercecombe
(Stockland). (fn. 3) The king further bestowed rich
gifts on the abbey wherein he buried the body
of his mother, together with numerous relics
procured from Rome and Brittany, including the
arm and bones of St. Sampson, archbishop of
Dol, and the arm of St. Branwalader the
bishop. (fn. 4) In the reform of monasticism under
Edgar and Dunstan the secular priests here were
replaced in 964 by monks under an abbot,
Cyneward. (fn. 5)
At the time of the Domesday Survey besides
twelve acres of land in Hampshire, held of the
abbey by the sheriff Edward, (fn. 6) the church of
Milton had manors or estates in the following
places:—Sydling, Milton, Compton Abbas,
Cattistock, Puddle, Clyffe, Osmington, Whitcombe, Lyscombe, Woolland, Winterborne,
Hillfield—the rent of which was £2 and a
sextary of honey—'Ora' (Ower), Stockland—
which belonged to the demesne of the monks,
and was assigned towards the expenses of their
living and clothing—and Piddletrenthide. (fn. 7)
Henry I, reciting the charter of Æthelstan, king
of England, the founder, confirmed to the
abbey of Milton and the monks serving God
there their possessions therein enumerated with
all liberties, free customs and acquittances, the
right of soc, sac, tol, team, and infangnetheof,
waif, assize of bread and ale, gallows, pillory,
and all other appurtenances. (fn. 8) From Henry III
the abbot and convent obtained a charter in 1252
for the right of free warren over all their
demesne lands in Dorset, provided they should
not be within the king's forest, with a licence to
hold a weekly market at the monastery within
the manor of Milton on Thursday, a yearly
fair there on the vigil, feast, and morrow of the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and a
yearly fair in their manor of Stockland on the
same three days. (fn. 9) The Taxatio of 1291 gave
the abbey spiritualities amounting to £9 18s. 8d.
from the churches of Sydling, Puddletown,
Tolpuddle, Dewlish, Whitcombe, and Holworth, Stockland, Cattistock and Compton; (fn. 10)
and temporalities valued at £126 9s. (fn. 11) in the
deaneries of Bridport, Dorchester, and Whitchurch, the total income from both sources being
assessed at £136 7s. 8d.
The abbot was assessed for his holding at two
knights' fees in the reign of Henry II; (fn. 12) in
1155-6 he paid 40s. scutage. (fn. 13) He certified
the king by charter in 1166 that originally the
abbey owed no knights' fees either of the old
or new feoffment, but that Roger, bishop of
Salisbury, on the occasion when he took the
abbey into custody on its voidance at the
command of Henry I, enfeoffed one knight of
a tenement, viz. 2 hides held by Robert de
Monasteriis, and another knight of another tenement, viz. 2½ hides which William Fitz Walter
held. Afterwards R., the predecessor of the
present abbot, had returned these fees to their
original state, and the knights constituted by the
bishop had been made censuarii, and held thus in
the time of the aforesaid R., as did their heirs
at the present time: William de Monasteriis and
William Brito. (fn. 14) In the year 1184 Osbert de
Dorchester and Robert de Godmanston rendered
an account to the Exchequer of the farm of the
possessions of the abbey for half a year. (fn. 15) An
account for three terms was rendered in 1213, (fn. 16)
and on July of that year John intimated to the
custodians of the abbeys of Abbotsbury, Sherborne, and Milton that he was sending down
a number of sick horses to be placed in their
charge. (fn. 17) Edward I, in the first year of his
reign, granted to the prior and convent on payment of a fine of fifty marks the custody of
their abbey, void by the death of Abbot William
de Taunton. (fn. 18) The convent, in common with
other ecclesiastics, received in 1294 a grant of
protection for a year in consideration of the
money which they had contributed towards the
royal subsidy. (fn. 19)
A great misfortune befell the community in
1309; on the night of 2 September the wooden
belfry of their church was struck by lightning
in the midst of a violent thunderstorm and gale;
the building took fire, and in its destruction
perished the bells, ornaments, and vestments of
the monks, together with all their books, charters, and muniments. (fn. 20) The bishop of Salisbury
immediately granted an indulgence of forty days
in aid of the restoration of the church; (fn. 21) and
with the object of replacing the title deeds
which had been lost Edward II ordered a commission to inquire as to the lands and rents held
by the abbot and convent previous to the destruction of their charters, (fn. 22) by his own charter two
years later reciting the return made by the inquisition and confirming to the brethren all gifts
and privileges granted to the abbey by King
Æthelstan, his predecessor, and all subsequent
benefactors. (fn. 23) The abbot and convent received
a licence from the king in 1315 for the appropriation of the church of Sydling to their own
uses, the issues being charged with a sum of
20 marks, to be paid yearly to the chapter of
Salisbury towards the maintenance of the chantry
and obit of Nicolas Longespée, sometime bishop
of Salisbury, in the cathedral; (fn. 24) and in 1332
Edward III gave permission for the convent to
appropriate the church of Stockland, 'said to be
of their advowson.' (fn. 25) In 1324 Robert de Farendon alienated to the community 100s. rent from
a messuage and land in Upper Sydling for the
provision of a monk to celebrate daily in the
chapel of St. Mary Milton for his soul and the
souls of his ancestors; (fn. 26) and in 1329 a further
grant was made by Nicholas de Weye and
William de Wydecombe, chaplain, in aid of the
maintenance of a monk who should celebrate
daily in the abbey for their souls and those of
their ancestors and successors. (fn. 27) In 1336 the
convent were permitted to purchase the manor
with the advowson of the church of Winterborne Stickland from the chapter of Coutances
in Normandy; at the same time it was ordained
that 10 marks should be paid annually out of the
same, and other lands in Milton and Osmington,
to the chapter of Salisbury for a chantry established in the cathedral for the kings of England
and Simon of Ghent, late bishop; another
5 marks for a chantry in the church of Melcombe Regis for the soul of Edward III, and
5 marks for a chantry in the church of Milton
for the good estate of the king, Queen Philippa
his consort, and their children, and for their souls
after death. (fn. 28) A carucate of land in Bryanston
was conveyed to the convent in 1344 for the
yearly observance, on 31 January, of the anniversary of William de Stokes. (fn. 29) In 1392 the
brethren, on payment of a fine of 100 marks,
obtained from Richard II licence to acquire
various parcels of land in Hunsworth, Langford,
Milton, and Bedeshurst to be assigned towards
the yearly maintenance of the anniversaries of
Roger Manyngford (fn. 30) and Margaret his wife, and
other works of piety.
Henry IV, on 22 October, 1400, inspected
and confirmed an agreement made in 1386
between the abbot and convent and Nicholas
Langford, whereby the former consented to receive the latter into their confraternity so that
in life he should participate in all the spiritual
benefits of the monastery and order, should
receive a weekly corrody of bread and ale, a
robe with fur every year, a 'good chamber' within
the abbey with fuel and litter, stabling, and keep
for his horse, and a yearly rent of 40s., and
after death that his name should be sent round
with the names of other dead monks throughout
England; in return for these benefits it was
stipulated that he should assist the community in
their business with his counsel. (fn. 31)
The abbey was spared none of the charges imposed on houses of any standing belonging to the
Benedictine order and of the royal patronage. (fn. 32)
Pensioners were bestowed on the house with unfailing regularity by Edward II and Edward III, (fn. 33)
and on the appointment of a new abbot they did
not fail to present a clerk for the pension due at
the royal nomination. (fn. 34) In 1332 the abbot was
requested to contribute towards the subsidy raised
on the occasion of the marriage of the king's
sister; (fn. 35) and two years later to give a tenth
towards the expenses incurred by the Scotch
war. (fn. 36)
The community, which is said to have originally numbered forty, (fn. 37) was considerably reduced
in numbers in the latter part of its existence, the
change being attributed in the first place to the
loss incurred by the fire of 1309. (fn. 38) Other
causes were not wanting, and the strain on the
resources of the abbey became marked during
the rule of Richard de Maury, 1331-52. (fn. 39) On
24 April, 1344, the king ordered the chancellor
of Salisbury, John de Tylvyngton, Thomas Cary,
and John Maury to take the house, now in a state of
great depression and indebtedness owing to dissensions between the abbot and convent, into their
custody, and after making a reasonable allowance to
the inmates at the rate of 5 marks a year each, and
defraying the expenses of its ministers, to apply
the remainder of its revenues towards relieving
it of debt. (fn. 40) The decrees forwarded by the
bishop after a visitation in July of that year laid
stress again on the discords in the abbey and the
fact that the inmates were too many for its present financial condition. (fn. 41) The abbot and convent were ordered to adhere rigidly to the scheme
of retrenchment laid down by the bishop, though
they were warned about the same time not to
withdraw the chaplains serving various chantries,
or to neglect the needs of the sick. The bishop
also desired them to re-admit Brother Walter de
Sherborne, who had left the abbey with the
object of attaching himself to a severer rule, but
after joining the Brothers Preachers for some
time had apostatized to the world, and now, repenting of his excesses, with tears desired to
return. (fn. 42) The visitation report of 1378, containing various suggestions for matters in need of
correction, makes no special reference to poverty.
The attention of the abbot—who was enjoined to
bear himself modestly and benignantly towards his
fellow monks—was directed towards the quality
of the bread and ale served out to the household and to the condition of the drains, 'which
corrupt the air and are the cause of various infirmities.' The usual prohibition against the
entrance of women was coupled with an injunction
forbidding the admission of certain ladies mentioned by name within the precincts of the
monastery. (fn. 43)
Save for the appointment of abbots references
to Milton are rare in the century preceding the
Dissolution. A report issued after a visitation in
1425 comments severely on various details of the
management of the then abbot, Richard Cley;
and he was ordered, under penalty of suspension
from choir and deprivation for forty days of the
pastoral staff, to appoint a receiver of moneys
retained by him without rendering of any
account, and to redeem the jewels and silver
vessels which he had sold. (fn. 44) In 1438 the
number of the community seems to have
fallen to fifteen if we may accept the count
of those monks who assembled on 10 June of
that year for the election of John Breweton or
Bruton. (fn. 45)
The abbot and convent obtained from
Henry VIII in 1512 a licence to hold the
yearly fair in their manor of Stockland on the
eve, day, and morrow of St. Barnabas, instead of
St. Michael, as was granted by Henry VI, (fn. 46) on
account of the injury to other fairs in the neighbourhood. (fn. 47) Among the benefactions of Abbot
William de Middleton, 1482-1523, must be
mentioned the erection of a free school within
the town of Milton, for the maintenance of
which the abbot, by deed dated 10 February,
1521, and sealed with the common seal of the
abbey, made over the manor of Little Mayne,
&c., to Giles Strangeways, knt., Thomas Arundel, knt., and other trustees. (fn. 48)
The Valor of 1535 gives the abbey a clear
income of £665 3s. 3½d. from the parsonages of
Milton, Stockland, Sydling, and Osmington, (fn. 49)
and the manors of Milton, Stockland, 'Huysshe,'
Sydling, Compton Abbas, Holway, Cattistock,
Hillfield, Knowle, Osmington, Whitcombe and
Dorchester, Frome and Stafford, Burleston,
Lyscombe, Winterborne Stickland, La Lee, and
other lands. (fn. 50) Among the annual charges was
a sum of £51 16s., set down under the head of
almsgiving, assigned towards the observance of
the anniversaries of founders, including King
Æthelstan. (fn. 51)
The appointment of John Bradley, last abbot
of Milton, as bishop suffragan of Shaftesbury,
February, 1539, (fn. 52) preceded the suppression of
the abbey by a few days only. The abbot, who
surrendered the house with twelve of the monks
on 11 March, 1539, received a pension of
£133 6s. 8d., the prior £13 6s. 8d. the subprior £8, and the ten remaining brethren
£6 13s. 4d. each. (fn. 53)
The king the following year granted the
house and site of the abbey, with the church,
belfry, bells, and churchyard, the advowson of
the vicarage, manor, and rectory, to John Tregonwell, the commissioner deputed to receive the
resignation of the community. (fn. 54)
Abbots of Milton
Cyneward, appointed 964 by King Edgar (fn. 55)
Egelric, deposed 1102 for simony (fn. 56)
R., occurs in reign of Henry I (fn. 57)
A., occurs in reign of Henry II (fn. 58)
Eustace, elected 1198 (fn. 59)
William de Stokes, elected 1222 (fn. 60)
William de Taunton, elected 1256, (fn. 61) died
1273
Robert de Corfe, elected 1273 (fn. 62)
Walter de Sideling, elected 1291, (fn. 63) died
1314
Robert le Fauconer, elected 1314, (fn. 64) died 1331
Richard de Mauro or Maury, elected 1331, (fn. 65)
resigned 1352
Robert de Burbache, elected 1352, (fn. 66) died 1382
John Hentin, elected 1382, (fn. 67) died 1383
Walter Archer, elected 1383, (fn. 68) died 1417
Richard Cley, elected 1417, (fn. 69) resigned 1431
John Haselbere, elected 1431, (fn. 70) died 1458
John Breweton or Bruton, elected 1458, (fn. 71)
died 1482
William Middleton, elected 1482 (fn. 72)
John Bradley, elected 1525, (fn. 73) surrendered
1539
The round, thirteenth-century seal of the
abbey, (fn. 74) the impression of which is very fine
though the edge is imperfect, represents on the
obverse side the abbey church with a centre
and two towers, each having a tall spire and
two side turrets. Under the central tower beneath a trefoiled arch the Virgin is seated,
crowned, the Holy Child with nimbus on her
left knee, in her right hand an orb. Under the
arch of each of the side towers a mitred abbot
or bishop, full-length. In the foreground an
embattled wall. In the field over the roof two
demi-angels issuing from the heavens, each swinging a censer, and on the left a cross. Legend:—
+ SIGILL': CONVEN . . . . AN . . . . MIDELTONENSIS : E . . . . L'IE
The reverse represents the abbey church from
another point of view. Under two trefoiled
arches in the centre, the Annunciation of the
Virgin. In the triangular pediment above is a
bust. Legend:—
[PORTA : SA]LVTIS : AVE : : TE : PATET :
E[XITVS : A : VE] [VENIT : AB : EVA :]VE :
VE : : TOLLIS : AVE
A fine fragment of the same seal is found
attached to a deed dated 1315, (fn. 75) and to the surrender deed of the abbey in 1539. (fn. 76)