HOUSES OF BENEDICTINE NUNS
3. THE ABBEY OF WILTON
A poem probably written at Wilton in the first
half of the 15th century purports to give a history
of Wilton Abbey from its foundation until the
time of Henry I. (fn. 1) According to this, Weohstan,
first recorded ealdorman of Wiltshire, founded
a chantry at Wilton to commemorate Alcmund,
his father-in-law, who was killed in battle against
the King of Mercia. (fn. 2) Weohstan died in 800 and
in 830 his widow, Alburga, persuaded her brother,
King Egbert, to convert the chantry into a priory
for 13 nuns. (fn. 3) Alburga became the first prioress
of this house, which was attached to the church
of St. Mary. (fn. 4) The same source relates that in
890 Alfred laid the foundation-stone of another
house for women at Wilton. (fn. 5) This took two.
years to build and its church was dedicated to St.
Mary and St. Bartholomew. Thirteen nuns are
said to have taken the veil in the new house
and to have been joined there by the nuns of the
earlier foundation. (fn. 6) In the absence of any other
evidence to support it, little confidence can be felt
in this late account of the foundation of Wilton
Abbey. There was, however, a religious house at
Wilton by 934 for in that year Athelstan granted
land to the monastery of St. Mary there, (fn. 7) and in
about 955 it was included in the will of King
Eadred with the nunneries of Winchester and
Shaftesbury for a bequest of £30. (fn. 8)
The 15th-century chronicler tells how some
70 years after the foundation by Alfred, King
Edgar visited Wilton and there met Wulfthryth,
who became the mother of his daughter Edith.
Wulfthryth at the time of her meeting with Edgar
is described as one of the young girls who were
being educated at the abbey. (fn. 9) Edith was born
about 961 at Kemsing (Kent), (fn. 10) but spent almost
her entire life at Wilton in the care of Wulfthryth,
who later became abbess of the house. (fn. 11) Many
miracles are attributed to the saint during her life
at Wilton, (fn. 12) and after her death the abbey church
was placed under her patronage, (fn. 13) but, dying before her mother, she probably never became abbess.
Her well-known reply to Saint Adelwold when
reproved for her fine dress, that she in garments
of gold thread could be as virtuous as he in his filthy
skins, (fn. 14) suggests that she was a young woman of
strong personality. Shortly before her death Edith
is said to have had built at Wilton a chapel dedicated to St. Denis which was consecrated by St.
Dunstan. (fn. 15) Edith died on 16 September 984, (fn. 16) 43
days after the consecration ceremony, as predicted
by St. Dunstan, and was buried at Wilton, where
for many years miraculous events were connected
with her tomb. (fn. 17) King Cnut is said to have venerated St. Edith highly and to have erected a magnificent shrine to her at Wilton. (fn. 18) He also bestowed
many favours upon the abbey and undertook the
repair of the church and other buildings. (fn. 19) The
Conqueror is recorded as another benefactor. (fn. 20)
It is clear that for many years after her death
St. Edith's shrine attracted pilgrims to Wilton,
thus contributing to the fame and prosperity which
the abbey undoubtedly enjoyed in the 10th and
11th centuries. From its earliest days Wilton was
a house for nuns of the highest birth. Alburga,
sister of King Egbert, was the first prioress of the
first foundation. (fn. 21) Radegund, the first abbess of the
second foundation, was the daughter of Ethelstone,
Earl of Wiltshire; (fn. 22) Wulfthryth, mother of St.
Edith, was described as a nobleman's daughter. (fn. 23)
Elfeda, wife of Edward the Elder, and two of her
daughters were buried there. (fn. 24) Edith, wife of the
Confessor, was educated at Wilton, and returned
there for a time during the troubles of her husband's reign. Later she rebuilt in stone the convent church, which had previously been of wood.
In this work she is said to have been in 'pious
competition' with her husband's building operations at Westminster. The church at Wilton, in
spite of an outbreak of fire, was finished in 1065,
when it was consecrated by Heremann, Bishop of
Sherborne and Ramsbury. (fn. 25)
During the first 200 years or so of its history the
abbey acquired a large amount of valuable property.The chronicler records many benefactions from
early patrons, but the first reliable sources of
information are the charters contained in the
Wilton cartulary. (fn. 26) Many of the charters are not
grants to the abbey, but their inclusion in the
cartulary, and the fact that the lands that they refer
to were, in almost every case, held by the abbey in
1086, makes it safe to assume that they were in
fact the title deeds to estates acquired at an unknown date. The earliest charter addressed to the
abbey is that from Athelstan in 934 giving 10
manentes in North Newnton, and 5 cassati in Oare
in Wilcot, in the forest of Savernake. (fn. 27) Another
charter from the same king dated 937 granted 6
mansae in South Burcombe. (fn. 28) In 955 King Edwy
granted to the abbey 100 hides at Chalke. This is
thought to have included Broad Chalke, Bower
Chalke, Alvediston, Berwick St. John, Semley
(detached), Tollard Royal, and Ebbesborne
Wake (fn. 29) —all the ancient parishes in the hundred.
It is, however, unlikely that any jurisdictional
privileges were included. King Edgar was also a
generous benefactor and in 968 granted 10 hides
in South Newton, 10 hides at Sherrington, 3 hides
at Baverstock, 10 hides in 'Hwetinegam' and 3
hides in Frustfield (now lost), (fn. 30) 20 hides at an
unidentified 'Deverell', and 2 mills in Wilton. (fn. 31)
In the same year he also granted the abbey 2 hides
near Wilton. (fn. 32) From King Ethel red the abbey
received 10 cassati in Fovant. (fn. 33) A charter from
King Edgar purporting to confirm the earlier
grant of 100 hides at Chalke and conferring other
privileges upon the nuns must be looked upon
with suspicion. (fn. 34)
The remaining charters in the cartulary are
addressed to various individuals and concern 10
mansae in West Knoyle, (fn. 35) 10 mansae in Wylye, (fn. 36)
20 hides in Stanton St. Bernard, (fn. 37) 10 mansae
in Little Langford, (fn. 38) 10 mansae in Kemsing
(Kent), (fn. 39) 2½ hides in Ditchampton, (fn. 40) 5 mansae at
Didlington in Charlbury (Dors.), (fn. 41) 20 cassati at
Chilmark, (fn. 42) 10 hides at West Overton, (fn. 43) 9 mansae
at Swallowcliffe, (fn. 44) 10 mansae at Upton Lovell, (fn. 45)
3 mansae at 'Rollandune', possibly in or adjoining
Wilton, (fn. 46) and 4 hides on the Nadder close to
Ugford (in Burcombe). (fn. 47) There are also two
grants of land described as aet Afene, (fn. 48) presumably
Avon (in Durnford), (fn. 49) and a grant of a hide aet
Winterburnan, which from later evidence may
have been Ford in Laverstock. (fn. 50)
By 1086 the abbey held 231 hides ½ virgate
in Wiltshire and 12 hides outside the county. In
Wiltshire adjoining Wilton it held 8½ hides at
Washern, 4 hides at Ugford, and ½ hide at Ditchampton. Two hides, probably in Ditchampton,
which a certain Toret had given to the abbey with
his daughters, had in 1086 been taken by the
Bishop of Bayeux. Within about 5 miles of Wilton
the abbey held 6 hides in South Burcombe, 20
hides less a virgate in South Newton, 3 hides in
Bayerstock, 4 hides in Little Wishford, 3 hides
in Little Langford, 2 hides in Laverstock, and 4
hides in Durnford. Farther away, but within a
radius of about 10 miles, the abbey held 10 hides
in Fovant, 10 hides in Wylye, 4 hides and a virgate in Swallowcliffe, and 20 hides in Chilmark.
Farther away still there was a hide in Wardour,
10 hides in West Knoyle, 13½ hides ½ virgate in
North Newnton, 20 hides in Stanton St. Bernard,
and 10 hides in West Overton. In the hundred
of Chalke, some 5 miles south-west of Wilton,
the abbey held 77 hides. Ebbesborne Wake and
Tollard Royal, which probably account for the
23 hides needed to make up the 100 hides in
Chalke granted by Edgar, appear to have been
lost by 1086. Sherrington and Upton Lovell had
been lost and an estate called 'Troi', now Trow
Farm in Alvediston, had also apparently been
granted away. In the borough of Wilton the
abbey had rents amounting to £10 17s. 6d. (fn. 51) On
the whole it will be seen that the abbey had lost
very little of its early endowments of land.
In Dorset the Abbess of Wilton held 3½ hides
at 'Winbourne' (Philipston in Wimborne St.
Giles) and 6 hides at Didlington: (fn. 52) in Hampshire
she had 2½ hides at Watchingwell (in Calbourne)
in the Isle of Wight. (fn. 53)
The gross income from this property amounted
in 1086 to £246 15s. This was the highest gross
income recorded for any nunnery in England, (fn. 54)
and Wilton ranked with the houses at Shaftesbury,
Barking, and Winchester as a nunnery of the
first importance. It continued to attract royal and
noble ladies: Queen Edith retired to Wilton after
the Conquest, (fn. 55) and Gunhild, a daughter of Harold, was a nun there for a time. (fn. 56) It was, moreover,
a home of culture: Maud, queen of Henry I, was
educated at Romsey and Wilton, where she studied
letters as well as the more feminine ploys. (fn. 57) Wilton
was also the home late in the 11th or early in the
12th century of the poetess Muriel, (fn. 58) and at about
the same time of Eve (d. c. 1125) who later left
Wilton to become a recluse with Goscelin. (fn. 59) There
are, however, indications that the peace of the
cloister at Wilton was much disturbed by the turmoils of the Anarchy. In 1141 the empress was
probably at Wilton and there had her meeting
with Archbishop Theobald, (fn. 60) and tradition has it
that two years later the nunnery was fortified by
Stephen. (fn. 61)
To offset its very considerable wealth the abbey
had heavy obligations to meet. The Abbess of Wilton, like her sister of Shaftesbury, held her lands
of the king in chief by knight service. The obligation to furnish knights for service with the
Crown probably accounted to some extent for the
financial difficulties with which the house, apparently so richly endowed, met in the 13th century.
Moreover, the necessity of enfeoffing tenants to,
discharge the duties involved must have influenced
profoundly the policy of the abbey regarding the
leasing of its lands. In 1156, when the rate was
£1 for every knight's fee, Wilton was assessed at
£5 as scutage for the Welsh war. (fn. 62) In 1166 the
abbess certified by charter that the 5 knights she
was bound to find for service with the king were:
William St. Martin and Gerard of Chalke, responsible for one knight each, Gerard Giffard and
Walter Calestone for one knight between them,
Hugh de Curcellis and Ellis of Langford, responsible for one knight between them, and William
Burnell and Philip of Wimburne, responsible
for one knight between them. (fn. 63) Twice in the 12th
century, in 1197 and 1198, (fn. 64) the abbey was
assessed at 4 knights, but this was only a temporary
reduction, and until the second half of the 13th
century Wilton's servicium debitum was 5 knights.
The enfeoffment of tenants to discharge these
duties became more and more complex. In 1282
the scutage roll for the abbey lists some 70 tenures
by knight service ranging from one whole fee to
1 / 40 of a fee lying in some 32 places. (fn. 65)
Towards the end of the 13th century, in accordance with the general trend, the quota of knights
demanded from Wilton began to fall. In 1277 the
abbey was assessed at I knight, (fn. 66) and in 1299 the
abbess acknowledged that this was the quota due
from her. (fn. 67) At the beginning of the 15th century
it was expressly stated that the abbess held all her
lands in Wiltshire of the king in chief by the service of 1 knight's fee. (fn. 68)
Usually the abbess compounded for her service
either by scutage or by a fine, but occasionally her
knights performed service. She had knights with
the king in the Welsh expedition of 1223 and in
that of Bedford in the following year, (fn. 69) and between 1277 and 1327 she offered service at least
four times. (fn. 70) The payment of scutage and fines
was a heavy burden upon the abbey. In the 12th
century the payment exacted was usually £5 or
10 marks. (fn. 71) Failure to pay could meet with serious
consequences, and in 1223 the abbess appears to
have been temporarily disseised of her property for
failing to answer the summons promptly. (fn. 72) Debts
were carried over from year to year. In 1197
£10 was paid for scutages imposed in 1195 and
1196, but a debt of 30 marks for service due
remained. (fn. 73) This was not paid off until 1208, (fn. 74)
and in the meantime 10 marks as scutage were
exacted and paid in each of the years 1200, 1201,
1203, 1205, and 1206. (fn. 75)
As did the other great nunneries at Winchester
nd Shaftesbury, Wilton continued in the 12th
and 13th centuries to receive a number of royal
benefactions. In 1130 Queen Maud gave a right
to fuel worth £2 15s. and the same year the abbey
was in receipt of £1 5s. 7d. from a fair granted by
Queen Maud and Henry I. (fn. 76) Claims arising from
the right to hold this fair later brought the abbey
into conflict with the mayor and burgesses of
Wilton, who in the 15th century themselves
held two annual fairs. (fn. 77) In 1212 King John extended the abbess's fair by eight days. (fn. 78) In the
years between 1361 and 1374 the fair brought in
£4 4s. 0½d. in perquisites and tolls. (fn. 79) Between
1231 and 1246 Henry III made grants of oaks
for fuel, (fn. 80) and gave permission for the abbess to
take over a hundred trees from her wood in Savernake. (fn. 81) In 1239 the same king offered three pieces
of gold tinselled silk in the church of St. Edith for
himself, his queen, and his son Edward, (fn. 82) and in
1246 he sent a gift of a tun of prisage wine for the
abbess. (fn. 83) In 1297 Mary, daughter of Edward I,
and a nun at Amesbury, presented in her father's
name at the shrine of St. Edith 7s. and a gold
clasp. (fn. 84)
In spite, however, of these marks of royal
favour, the financial difficulties of the house appear
to have increased as the 13th century progressed
until about the middle years something in the
nature of a crisis was reached. In 1229 royal
letters were issued requesting the tenants of the
abbey to contribute towards the relief of the
house. (fn. 85) In 1242 the abbess was excused the payment of 5 marks due for the royal expedition to
Gascony and was allowed to apply the money to
the repair of St. Edith's shrine. (fn. 86) In 1252 another
appeal was made to the abbey's tenants for assistance, (fn. 87) and this was repeated in 1276. (fn. 88) In 1257
scutage was again excused on account of the
abbey's 'exceptional difficulties and oppressions
that year'. (fn. 89)
By 1246 the buildings of the abbey had fallen
into a serious state of disrepair, and the Bishop of
Salisbury assigned part of the revenues of Bulbridge church for their restoration. (fn. 90) In 1256
Henry III made a grant of oaks for the fabric of
the convent church and for repairing the house. (fn. 91)
Five years later he gave 6 oaks to Beatrice Murdac
for the chapel of the Blessed Mary at Wilton, (fn. 92)
and 50 oaks to the convent for the refectory roof. (fn. 93)
In 1267 the Treasurer of Salisbury bequeathed
100s. for the fabric of the conventual church. (fn. 94)
Edward I also made a grant of oaks in 1276 and
repeated his gift the next year. (fn. 95) These efforts to
repair the abbey's buildings seem to have met with
a serious setback in 1299, for in that year royal
grants of oaks were made to rebuild houses destroyed by fire. (fn. 96)
An attempt to raise money at this difficult time
was made by the abbess, who in 1256 accepted
from the Dean of Salisbury 100 marks in return
for an undertaking on her part to pay 5 marks
annually for his obit in Salisbury Cathedral. In
1281 the abbess was three years in arrears with her
payments: in 1285 the dean wrote demanding
arrears amounting to 13 marks, and two years
later he threatened the prioress, cellaress, and
sacrist of Wilton with greater excommunication
if the debt was not paid immediately. (fn. 97)
Against a background of financial difficulty it
is not surprising to find some evidence of lax
discipline within the community. In 1271 there
was dissension among the nuns over the election
of an abbess to succeed Maud de la Mar, and the
house seems to have been without a head for some
time. (fn. 98) Further evidence of a not very satisfactory
state of affairs is probably to be deduced from the
fact that in 1284 (fn. 99) and again in 1302 nuns of
Wilton were guilty of misconduct. (fn. 100) To make
matters worse the abbey must have suffered for a
time from the lack of a firm head, for in 1317 the
abbess, Emma Blount, was found by the bishop to
be too old and infirm to attend satisfactorily to her
duties and a canon of Salisbury was appointed
guardian of the spiritualities of the house. (fn. 101)
Some detailed information regarding the daily
life of the nuns at Wilton at the end of the
13th century is to be found in a fragmentary
account of the larder. (fn. 102) The weekly expenditure
on food and drink for the nuns varied over the
seventeen weeks covered by the roll from 10s. to
£1. Three or four sides of bacon (baco) and sometimes a few hens and pigeons were usually taken
from stock (instaurum) weekly. A large quantity
of eggs—usually between 200 and 300—was
bought and consumed each week. Fish was eaten
oh Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Visits
from the steward of the abbey were recorded since
extra food on those days had to be accounted for.
Likewise a visit from the Bishop of Salisbury was
noted because a young sheep (multo) and 6 pigeons
were required that day. Extra food had also to be
accounted for when servants or tenants brought
Wood or dung to the abbey. A great feast was held
in the 15th week when the new abbess was installed. (fn. 103) Among the delicacies eaten were swans,
peacocks, and venison. Sixty gallons of milk and
over 2,000 eggs were bought, and among other
purchases were large numbers of candles and plates
and dishes of many varieties.
Whether at this date any separate household
arrangements existed for the abbess is not known.
Some 50 years later there is evidence of such
arrangements. (fn. 104) The abbess then had her own
pantry from which came white loaves called
'abbessebred', and her own cellar in which was
kept 'the better ale brewed for the abbess'. She
also had her own kitchen. The prioress, too, at
this time received some preferential treatment in
the matter of food. The abbess's house is said to
have stood near to her court of the Belhouse. (fn. 105)
The apparent poverty of Wilton in the 13th
century should not obscure the fact that throughout its history the abbey continued to rank as one
of the most important nunneries in the country.
As in the other two great houses of nuns at
Shaftesbury and Winchester, the conventual
church at Wilton was a prebendal church with
prebends for a certain number of secular canons.
The origin of these prebends undoubtedly lay in
the wish of these important and richly endowed
houses to secure the services of canons who would
ensure the celebration of mass in the conventual
church, and who would also supervise the temporal affairs of the house. (fn. 106) When the arrangement
first came into being is not known, but in 1312 in
the course of an inquisition on the prebend of
Chalke, one of the prebends at Wilton, a jury
stated that the church had been prebendal from
time immemorial. The same jury returned that
the prebendary was bound to reside in or near the
convent in order to assist the nuns with his counsel
and help when required to do so and to have a vicar
resident at Wilton for the celebration of masses in
the conventual church. (fn. 107) Since, however, a prebend
could be held without papal dispensation in addition to other benefices, it was often much prized
by those who could not fulfil the first of these
requirements.
In the prebend of Chalke the abbess possessed
a particularly valuable piece of preferment since
the prebendary had the right to present not only
to the vicarage of Chalke but also to the chapels
of Alvediston, Bower Chalke, Gurston, and
Knighton annexed to it. (fn. 108) It was consequently
coveted by the Crown and jealously guarded by
the abbess. A claim by the king to present in 1299
by reason of the vacancy which occurred that year
led to a dispute between the king and abbess which
lasted until 1367. In 1299 the abbey's candidate
was their steward, Henry of Tilshead, (fn. 109) while the
king, on the assumption that Tilshead had not
been admitted before the abbess died, presented
John of Berwick, a clerk of the Household, whose
preoccupation with royal business probably made
him unacceptable to the abbess. (fn. 110) In 1344 (fn. 111) and
1346 (fn. 112) the case was heard in the King's Bench,
Judgement was entered for the king, but the dispute continued. Opposition to the king's nominee
was so strong that the Sheriff of Wiltshire and five
other persons were deputed to arrest and bring
before the king and council those who were preventing his admission. (fn. 113) Some months later the
case was before the papal court. (fn. 114) The result is
unknown, but later in the same year the king presented one of his clerks to the prebend. (fn. 115)
During the second half of the 14th and first half
of the 15th centuries royal nominees continued to
be presented to Chalke. In 1390, for example, the
prebend was granted to the king's nephew Richard
Holland. (fn. 116) In 1448 the abbess and convent granted
the advowson to the king. In return, the convent
was to have the issues from all temporalities during
vacancies, paying £10 for each vacancy: the farm
of the hundred of Chalke (see below) was reduced
from £14 5s. to £10, and licence was granted for
the appropriation of the church of South Newton,
the advowson of which had long rested with the
abbey. (fn. 117) Either this transaction was never carried
out, or the advowson of Chalke was later restored
to Wilton, for in 1475 the abbey was licensed to
convey the advowson to 'the royal college of St.
Mary and St. Nicholas, Cambridge? [King's]. (fn. 118)
Later evidence shows that for this the college
paid an annual rent of 20 marks to the abbey. (fn. 119)
The revenues of three other churches were
assigned to the support of prebends at Wilton,
namely South Newton, North Newnton, and
Stanton St. Bernard. (fn. 120) The right of presentation
to these prebends was, like that of Chalke, a
valuable piece of patronage in the hands of the
abbess. In 1536, for example, presumably with
a propitiatory motive, the abbess granted the
advowson of Stanton St. Bernard for one year only
to Thomas Leigh, at that time one of the commissioners appointed to visit Wilton. (fn. 121)
The abbess also had the advowsons of Semley,
Fovant, Baverstock, Chilmark, and Wylye. (fn. 122) In
1207 she unsuccessfully claimed the advowson of
Great Wishford. (fn. 123) Licence to appropriate the
church of Berwick St. John was granted in 1334
when the advowson was said to belong to the abbey
already. (fn. 124) In Wilton the abbess had the advowson
of St. Nicholas in Atrio, St. Mary's, West
Street, and St. Mary's, Bread Street, later
united with the church of Bulbridge; (fn. 125) also of
Fugglestone church and Bemerton chapel, which
was annexed to it in 1533. (fn. 126) In Dorset she had the
advowson of Charlbury church. (fn. 127)
Presentation to the office of deacon in the conventual church was yet another piece of patronage
in the abbess's hands. Like the prebends, this also
appears by the 13th century to be much sought
after by pluralists. (fn. 128) It is possible that the duties
of deacon at Wilton were in fact carried out by
the sub-deacon. In 1311 a certain Henry of
Guildford, presented as sub-deacon by the abbess
and convent, was barred from the post because he
was blind and could not read. Philip de Curtyngton was appointed in his place on condition that he
renounced his fellowship at de Vaux College. (fn. 129)
In 1291 the deacon had a portion of £1 13s. 4d.
out of West Overton church. (fn. 130) The sub-deacon
at the same date had a pension out of Bromham
church of 13s. 4d. (fn. 131) In 1535 the deacon and subdeacon respectively received annual fees of £2 1s.
and £1 19s. 4d. (fn. 132)
In the 15h century there were attached to the
conventual church, besides the deacon, 2 subdeacons, 3 acolytes, and 10 priests. (fn. 133) Some of the
priests were presumably chantry chaplains. In
1419-20 there were three chaplains attached to
the abbey, two of chantries within the abbey, and
the third of the 'Maudelyn'. (fn. 134) In 1449 eight
chantry chaplains are named. (fn. 135) In 1535 there was
a chaplain for a chantry founded by the former
abbesses Maud Bokeland and Sibyl Aucher and
five other chaplains attached to the conventual
church. (fn. 136)
In 1291 the temporal property belonging to
the abbey was assessed for the taxation of Pope
Nicholas at £340 6s. 8½d. (fn. 137) As far as can be
judged from the return, which is incomplete for
Wiltshire, the abbey retained property in all the
places in which it had estates in 1086 except
Wardour, Durnford, and Swallowcliffe in Wiltshire, and Wimborne St. Giles and Watchingwell
outside the county. The hide of Wardour had
been alienated at least by 1200 to William of
St. Martin for the performance of knight service. (fn. 138)
Durnford, Swallowcliffe, and Wimborne St. Giles
were probably granted away for the same reason.
Durnford and Wimborne St. Giles yielded rent to
the abbey in 1528. (fn. 139) Watchingwell was alienated
by the middle of the 13th century, (fn. 140) but by 1385-6
Urry's Place in Carisbrooke had been acquired. (fn. 141)
The property in Kemsing, acquired before the
Conquest, yielded a rent in 1225, (fn. 142) but seems to
have been lost by 1291. By 1195 a hide at Bourn
(Cambs.) had been acquired, (fn. 143) and in 1291 the
abbey had a small estate there. Property was
acquired by 1291 at Lydlinch (Dors.), (fn. 144) and at
some time during the 13th century at Withypool
(Som.) (fn. 145)
Little is known of the profits of the conventual
estates or of their management. An account of the
abbey's receipts for five weeks during the late
summer of 1262 records a total of £100 3s. 5½d. (fn. 146)
This included £55 13s. as aid from free tenants
and tallage from villein tenants; £32 14s. 3d. from
sales of stock; 8s. 4d. from profits of mills in Wilton, Wylye, Chilmark, and Chalke; £9 3s. 4d.
from sales of grain at Chalke and £1 9s. 4d. from
pleas and perquisites. There is no mention of
profits from wool, but a taxation assessment of
probably a slightly earlier date shows that sheep
in considerable numbers were kept on many of
the abbey's manors. (fn. 147) Mention of grazing rights
for the abbey's flocks occurs frequently in the 12th-,
13th-, and 14th-century deeds belonging to the
abbey, (fn. 148) and a 14th-century custumal of South
Newton states that all customary tenants of the
manor carried wool to Wilton. (fn. 149)
On one occasion in the 16th century wool
seems to have been used as currency at Wilton.
In 1521 it was alleged in Chancery that the
abbess had failed in an undertaking to pay Richard
Thurston £180 worth of wool from the woolhouse at Wilton. This she was said to owe Thurston for vestments and copes of silk and velvet
'wrought with gold and powdered with archangels'. The abbess claimed that the wool had in
fact been given to Thurston, who had, moreover,
been provided with food and drink while 'trying
it'. (fn. 150) In 1528 the substance of the abbey was said
to consist in wool to the value of 600 marks, (fn. 151) and
in 1535 the abbey had pasture for 1,000 sheep at
its manor of Chalke. (fn. 152)
From an early date the abbey had a wood within
Savernake Forest. In 1221 (fn. 153) and 1233 (fn. 154) permission was given for the abbess to have reasonable
estovers in her wood within the royal forest, and
in 1224 the abbess was granted 'wudeward' and
the custody of her wood as she had it before the
Barons War. (fn. 155) Twice in the 13th century the
abbey's beasts within the bailiwick of Savernake
were distrained upon for trespass of the forest law,
and on the second occasion the abbess's lands were
also seized. (fn. 156) In 1246 the abbess was pardoned for
assarting 19 acres in the forest, (fn. 157) and in 1280, in
the course of a dispute with the Abbot of Hyde
over pasture rights in Rainscombe, the abbess was
again found to have reclaimed land for tillage
which she was ordered to enclose. (fn. 158) The abbey
also had woodland in the forests in the south of the
county and in 1323 woods in Wylye and Baverstock, which had been seized for offences against
the forest law, were restored to the abbess. (fn. 159)
As is to be expected, much of the abbey's
property lay in and adjoining Wilton itself. Between 1361 and 1374 rents within the borough
brought in an annual income varying from
£4 18s. 6d. to £6 11s. (fn. 160) In 1539, besides property
in Washern, Fugglestone, Quidhampton, and
Netherhampton, the abbey had rents from tenements in South, East, West, Broad, Minster, and
Short Streets, in Kingsbury, Bulbridge, and Great
and Little Marsh. (fn. 161)
Although granted 100 hides in the 10th century, it cannot be said with certainty that the
abbess held the hundred until the 13th century.
In 1226 it was returned by inquisition that the
hundred had been granted to the abbess by William
Longespée, Earl of Salisbury. (fn. 162) This was repeated
by the jurors in the hundred court in 1275 when
the hundred was said to be worth 3½ marks a
year. (fn. 163) The grant by Longespée was again referred
to. in 1280-1 when the king unsuccessfully
claimed the hundred on a quo warranto. (fn. 164) In 1535
perquisites of the hundred court were valued at
£17; the farm paid to the Crown was £14 6s. 8d.
and the fee to the bailiff was £1 6s. 8d. (fn. 165)
As well as franchisal jurisdiction in the court
of her hundred of Chalke, the abbess had baronial
jurisdiction in the court of her barony called the
court of the Belhouse. In a memorandum drawn
up some 20 years after the dissolution of Wilton
and purporting to record earlier conditions, it is
stated that all those who held land of the abbey by
knight service did suit at this court 'from three
weeks to three weeks' and from them the abbess
could claim all the usual incidents of such tenure.
The memorandum also records that in addition
to the court of the Belhouse the abbess had a three-weekly court baron for all tenants within the
suburbs of Wilton. (fn. 166)
Wilton appears to have been burdened with all
the usual demands made upon houses under royal
patronage. On the occasion of the creation of a
new abbess the abbey was obliged to furnish a
pension for one of the king's clerks until a suitable
benefice could be provided for him. In 1347 the
pension appears to have been £5 a year. That year
William of Lambeth was in fact receiving £10,
but in order that no precedent should be established he acknowledged in Chancery that he was
receiving £5 awarded on the institution of Robergia de Popham, and £5 awarded on the institution
of Lucy Loveny. (fn. 167)
The abbey also had to provide maintenance for
boarders nominated by the king, and numerous
instances are to be found on the Close Rolls
between 1328 and 1442. In the first half of the
14th century there is evidence to show that the
convent was maintaining at least two royal nominees at the same time, for in 1328 Roger Liseway
was sent in place of Roger Danne, and in the next
year John of Odiham, yeoman of Queen Philippa's
chamber, was sent in place of John Asshe. (fn. 168) The
appointment, in 1413, by the king of his servant
Thomas of London to the post of gate-keeper at
Wilton is presumably another example of this form
of exploitation. (fn. 169) When the Bishop of Salisbury
visited the abbey in 1379 the convent appears to
have been overburdened by these commitments
either imposed by the king or undertaken by the
nuns themselves. It was then stipulated that no
more corrodies or pensions were to be granted
without very good reason, and only with the consent of the chapter and the advice of the bishop. (fn. 170)
In 1535 the abbey was liable for corrodies amounting to £5 13s. 4d., and it seems that to these
the Prior of Ivychurch, the Prior of St. Denys,
Southampton, and the prior of St. John's Hospital,
Wilton, had the right of nomination. (fn. 171)
Considerable financial strain was presumably
imposed upon the house by the fact that the king,
the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of
Salisbury, and even apparently sometimes the
queen, had the right to nominate nuns to Wilton
on certain occasions. The king exercised his right
on his coronation and on the creation of, a new
abbess. A claim by the queen to present a nun on her
coronation occurs in 1236 when Queen Eleanor
renounced for life any such right in return for a
grant by the abbey of two liveries for life to Mabel
de Braybuf. (fn. 172) The bishop could present a nun on
his consecration, as he did, for example, in 1408, (fn. 173)
and in 1414 the archbishop nominated a nun 'in
virtue of the customary rights of his church'. (fn. 174)
As at other houses of royal foundation, attempts
were made to avoid the serious financial loss incurred during a vacancy by compounding for
permission to retain the administration of the temporalities at such a time. In 1271 40 marks were
paid into the Wardrobe for this privilege during
the next vacancy, and on this occasion permission
was given for the abbey's steward to remain in
office during the vacancy. (fn. 175) In 1340 an attempt
was made to establish that the abbey should retain
its property during a vacancy in return for £40 a
month during that time. This the abbess disputed,
requesting that the concession should be granted in
return for a fixed sum paid in advance, and on this
occasion she purchased the privilege for £60 paid
to the king for his next expedition overseas: (fn. 176) exemplification was obtained in the following year. (fn. 177)
Thenceforth it was usual for the abbesses of Wilton to compound for this concession. Until 1385
the sum paid was £60. (fn. 178) Thereafter and at least
until the middle of the 15th century it was £40,
and occasionally a smaller sum was paid for an
inspeximus and confirmation. (fn. 179)
Besides these more or less routine demands, the
abbey was liable for special requests in times of
crisis. In 1310 Wilton was included in the royal
demand for a loan of victuals, (fn. 180) and in 1347 in
the request for a loan of wool. (fn. 181)
To administer the revenues of the house so as
to meet its obligations must have been beyond the
capacity of many of the abbesses of Wilton and
their stewards. Economic difficulties may, as in
the 13th century, have been to blame, in part at
least, for some slackness of discipline which is
apparent at Wilton at the end of the 14th and
beginning of the 15th centuries. For there appear
to have been some grounds for criticism when the
Bishop of Salisbury visited the abbey in 1379. (fn. 182)
Breaches in the rules enjoining enclosure and
prohibiting private property seem to be the most
widespread offences at that time: it was also ordered
that a careful check be kept on the admission of
visitors: no married woman was to sojourn within
the convent: all corrections were to be imposed
publicly by the abbess in the chapter: the nuns
were to reprove their pupils kindly, and were forbidden to entertain themselves with superstitious
plays or games. The abbess was more rigorously
to enforce the Rule, which had been translated
into French for the benefit of the nuns. She was
to visit the sick in the infirmary frequently, and
she was to drink the same beer and eat the same
bread as the nuns. A slackness in the administration of the house is perhaps implied from the command that no letter or deed was to be sealed with
the common seal except in the chapter and in the
presence of the convent: all deeds were to be
registered and compared by at least two clerks of
the house: annual accounts were to be kept and
read before the convent: the steward was to be
chosen with the consent of the abbess and convent.
The buildings were apparently in a ruinous state
since the repair of the dormitory and other buildings was ordered.
Archbishop Courtenay visited Wilton eleven
years later in 1390, (fn. 183) The abbess and senior nuns
were examined by the archbishop, and the junior
nuns by his commissary. The visitation lasted for
at least two days, but no trace of a report has been
found. In 1400 Bishop Metford visited the abbey
and appears to have found much the same state of
affairs as Erghum had found in 1379. The prioress
and sub-prioress were reputed to be too old to
attend to their duties, and the abbess was ordered
to appoint two other nuns to assist her. (fn. 184) There was
another metropolitical visitation in 1423, when
Archbishop Chichele reported everything to be in
order. (fn. 185) In 1425 the Bishop of Salisbury granted
an indulgence of 40 days to all who visited St.
Edith's shrine on the anniversary of the saint's
death (16 Sept.). (fn. 186)
Many accounts of elections of abbesses in the
chapter house at Wilton are to be found in bishops'
registers. After the celebration of mass the nuns
were summoned to the chapter house by the ringing of a great bell. In 1441 there were 44 professed nuns, of whom three were in the infirmary
owing to age and infirmity and voted by proxy. (fn. 187)
In 1464 there were 23 professed nuns and 17
awaiting profession, who were, however, allowed
to vote for the abbess as they were of age. (fn. 188) In
1485 there were only 14 professed nuns and 16
awaiting profession. (fn. 189) Numbers had risen slightly
by the time of the Dissolution, when there were
31 nuns in addition to the abbess and prioress. (fn. 190)
Little information about the abbey's obedientiaries
has been found. A chantress (fn. 191) and a cellaress (fn. 192)
are mentioned in the 13th century: (fn. 193) in the 14th
century a third prioress is mentioned in addition
to the sub-prioress, (fn. 194) and in the 15th century
there is mention of a sacristan. (fn. 195)
Bequests continued to be made to the house. In
1386 Nicholas de Bonham bequeathed 12d. to
each nun to pray for his soul and those of his
parents and benefactors. To his daughter, a nun
of the house, he left a number of spoons, dishes,
and trinkets. To the abbess he left two silver
cups. (fn. 196) John atte Mille left 12d. in 1394 for the
fabric of the conventual church. (fn. 197) Henry Paunscefote left 10 lb. of wax to the abbey in 1522. (fn. 198)
The election of an abbess to succeed Cecily
Willoughby (d. 1528) appears to have been the
occasion of interference by the Crown. The convent sponsored the election of the prioress, Isabel
Jordayne, said to be 'ancient wise and discreet', but
Anne Boleyn favoured a certain Eleanor Carey,
sister of Philip Carey, brother-in-law of Anne. (fn. 199)
Serious moral charges brought against Eleanor,
however, made it impossible for the king to support her candidature and Isabel Jordayne was
elected. (fn. 200)
At the time of this election Thomas Benet was
sent to reform the house. Attempts by both the
newly elected abbess and by Benet (fn. 201) were made to
enforce enclosure, but they appear to have met
with difficulties. Benet informed Wolsey 'in no
wise any of them by gentle means nor by rigorous
—and I have put three or four of the captains of
them in ward—will agree and consent to the
same'. (fn. 202) To add to the troubles of the community
at this time there was an outbreak of plague in the
house and the dormitory was destroyed by fire. (fn. 203)
The date of Isabel Jordayne's death is unknown.
In March 1533 the prioress wrote to Wolsey
complaining that the house had long been without
a head. (fn. 204) She also complained that Richard Hilley,
chancellor and vicar-general to the Bishop of
Salisbury, was interfering in the affairs of the
house: 'He orders us, as he says, after the law; but
we are not wont to so much law as he doth exercise among us.' The appointment of Christopher
Willoughby as steward of the hospice and general
receiver was particularly resented, and the prioress
accused him of alienating 'such of our farmers as
bear us goodwill'. (fn. 205) Cromwell's reply to the prioress
is unknown, but in June 1533 Hilley applied for
letters patent to the justices to assist him in reforming 'certain enormities' at Wilton. (fn. 206) In October of
the same year they were still without a head, for
Cranmer promised the prioress 'to do all in his
power in the election' about to be held. (fn. 207) This last
election seems to have been thoroughly corrupt.
Sir Richard Lyster supported a certain Cecily
Lambert and promised Cromwell that if she were
elected her friends would make him a gift of £100,
and that he should have £10 and the stewardship
of the house when it became vacant. (fn. 208) For the first
time, however, the appointment was not made
from among the nuns at Wilton, and Cecily
Bodenham, Prioress of Kington St. Michael, was
elected. (fn. 209) Cecily, as a suit in Chancery shows, had
borrowed money to secure her election. (fn. 210)
In September 1535 Thomas Leigh was at Wilton attempting to enforce enclosure. (fn. 211) The abbess
protested in a letter to Cromwell asserting that the
house, already in debt, would suffer still further
since 'good husbandry could not be exercised as
well by any other as by herself. She asked permission, therefore, to leave the abbey on business
accompanied by two or three of the nuns. She
also asked that the nuns might be permitted to
see their relatives in her presence in the hall of the
convent. (fn. 212)
Although according to the abbess Wilton
was in debt, its gross general income in 1535
was £674 6s. 27/8d.—the fourth highest of any
nunnery in England. The net general income
was £600 14s. 07/8d. Income from spiritualities
amounted to less than £50. The gross temporal
income amounted to £632 16s. 27/8d., (fn. 213) of which
an unusually large proportion—about 1 / 7—was composed of revenue in kind. (fn. 214) Income from demesne
in hand was £21 7s. 8d.; income from woods
amounted to £10 11s. 8d., and from corn mills
£4. (fn. 215) According to the assessment made by the
king's ministers in the year after the Dissolution
the net revenues of the house were just over £700. (fn. 216)
No serious losses of land had been sustained since
the 13th century. The abbey's estate in Little
Langford is not accounted for in 1535: at Stanton
St. Bernard and North Newnton—both over 15
miles from the abbey—the whole of the demesne
was leased out: Bridmore (Berwick St. John) and
parts of Semley and West Overton were leased at
a fee farm rent. Laverstock was the subject of a
dispute between the abbess, the heirs of Henry
Milborne, and the occupiers. Rents were received
from Sutton Mandeville, Figheldean, Frustfield
(see above, p. 232), Winterbourne Ford (see above,
p. 233), Durnford, Stoke Farthing and Knighton
in Broad Chalke, Upton and Cuttice Down in Berwick St. John, 'Virif' in Alvediston, Chilhampton
in South Newton, Steeple Langford, and 'Horewood' in Netherhampton.
Outside the county there were rents from Didlington, Philipston, Lydlinch, and Withypool.
The estate in Carisbrooke had been lost, but a rent
was received from Freshwater. The property in
Bourn had also been lost, but rents had been
acquired in Accott in Swimbridge and in Kentisbeare (Devon). (fn. 217)
Among the charges upon the house in 1535
were annual payments to a steward—the Earl
of Shrewsbury, who held the stewardship in 11
other monasteries (fn. 218) —a steward of the hospice and
general receiver, an auditor, and an under-steward:
maintenance was provided for thirteen poor 'Magdalens' to pray for the souls of the founders of the
abbey, and alms were given annually to the poor
of the hospital of St. Giles: there was an exhibition
for a scholar at each university, and there was an
annual pension to the communar of Salisbury
Cathedral. (fn. 219) An annual pension of £1 was also
paid to the Vicar of Bulbridge. (fn. 220)
On 25 March 1539, on the same day as Shaftesbury, the abbey surrendered. The abbess was
allotted a pension of £100, a house at Fovant with
its orchards, gardens, and meadows, and a cartload of wood every week from Fovant wood: the
prioress received a pension of £10, and 31 other
nuns pensions ranging from £7 6s. 8d. to £2. (fn. 221)
Three days after the surrender the commissioners
reported that they had sequestered the tenants of
Fovant, South Newton, Chalke, and Washerne
because the abbess had leased those estates to her
friends and kinsfolk 'as was surmised'. Since, however, she was 'without father, brother or any
assured friend', she was allowed to retain the house
at Fovant. (fn. 222)
The abbey buildings with most of the estates
were granted to Sir William Herbert (cr. Earl of
Pembroke 1551) in 1541 (fn. 223) and 1544. (fn. 224) No evidence has been found to substantiate Aubrey's
story that the nuns returned to Wilton during
Mary's reign and were received humbly by Pembroke, who, however, on Mary's death, rounded
on them 'like a tygre' and turned them out again
in no uncertain terms. (fn. 225)
At the time of the Dissolution the abbey buildings were in a ruinous state (fn. 226) and were pulled down
to make way for the building of Wilton House, in
the erection of which stone from the abbey is said
to have been used. (fn. 227) The only building still standing which must have formed part of the abbey lies
slightly to the north-east of Wilton House. This,
it has been suggested, was the abbess's court of the
Belhouse, since it has on its roof a small stone
erection to hold a bell. It is a two-story building
dating from the 14th century. It has a stone tiled
roof, mullioned casements, and doorway on the
south end. (fn. 228) The 15th-century antiquary, William of Worcester, has left some description of the
abbey church. This, he recorded after a visit, contained '90 of my steppys', while the width of the
nave with the two aisles was '46 of my steppys'.
The late Sir Harold Brakspear considered that the
90 paces represented the length of the nave only,
and that the dimensions of this expressed in feet
would be 146 by 72½ ft., giving a nave rather
longer than that at Malmesbury. (fn. 229)
A psalter from the abbey library has survived.
It is a volume measuring 11½ by 8 in., bound in
vellum and comprising v + 221 leaves. It is said
to have been commissioned, written, and illuminated in about 1250, and to be the work of the
Salisbury School. That the psalter was written for
Wilton is proved by the prayers in the Litany for
the abbess and congregation of the Church of
St. Mary and St. Edith. There is also one pictorial
reference to the life of St. Edith. The psalter
appears to have left Wilton in or before 1523, when
it was given to a nun at Romsey. (fn. 230)
Abbesses of Wilton
Alburga, traditionally the first prioress of house
founded by King Egbert. (fn. 231)
Radegund, traditionally the first abbess of house
founded by Alfred. (fn. 232)
Ælfgyth, occurs 955. (fn. 233)
Wulfthryth (Wulftrude or Woltrud), died
1000. (fn. 234)
Bryghtwyde, occurs 1065 (fn. 235) (said to be third
abbess after Wulfthryth). (fn. 236)
Alfyne, succeeds Bryghtwyde 1065, (fn. 237) died
1067. (fn. 238)
Hawise, occurs temp. Hen. II. (fn. 239)
Alice, occurs 1192. (fn. 240)
Mary, occurs 1194. (fn. 241)
Asceline, occurs 1197, (fn. 242) 1208. (fn. 243)
Margaret, died before 12 Feb. 1222. (fn. 244)
Isabel de Warenne, elected 1222, (fn. 245) died before
1 Apr. 1228. (fn. 246)
Alice, elected 1228, (fn. 247) died before 7 May 1237. (fn. 248)
Alice, elected 1237, (fn. 249) died before 29 Aug.
1252. (fn. 250)
Maud de la Mare, elected 1252, (fn. 251) died before
2 Nov. 1271. (fn. 252)
Juliana Gifford, elected between 27 Dec.
1271 (fn. 253) and 16 Nov. 1272, (fn. 254) died before
6 July 1296. (fn. 255)
Parnel de Vaux, elected 1296, (fn. 256) died before
8 May 1299. (fn. 257)
Emma Blount, elected 1299, (fn. 258) died before
20 Nov. 1321. (fn. 259)
Constance de Percy, elected 1321, (fn. 260) died before
14 Aug. 1344. (fn. 261)
Robergia de Popham, elected 1344, (fn. 262) died
before 4 May 1346. (fn. 263)
Lucy Loveny, 1346, (fn. 264) died before 30 Oct.
1361. (fn. 265)
Sibyl Aucher, elected 1361, (fn. 266) died before
20 June 1374. (fn. 267)
Maud de Bokeland, elected 1374, (fn. 268) died before
12 Oct. 1395. (fn. 269)
Felise Lavington, elected 1395. (fn. 270)
Joan Beauchamp, elected 1403, (fn. 271) died before
19 Nov. 1416. (fn. 272)
Christine Doulre, elected 1416, (fn. 273) , died 1441. (fn. 274)
Christine Codford, elected 1441, (fn. 275) died
1448. (fn. 276)
Isabel Lambard, elected 1448, (fn. 277) died 1464. (fn. 278)
Edith Barough, elected 1464, (fn. 279) died before
11 Dec. 1470. (fn. 280)
Alice Comelonde, elected 1471, (fn. 281) died 1485. (fn. 282)
Cecily Willoughby, elected 1485, (fn. 282) died before
30 Apr. 1528. (fn. 283)
Isabel Jordayne, elected 1528; (fn. 284) on 28 Mar.
1533 abbey said to have been long without
an abbess. (fn. 285)
Cecily Bodenham, elected 1534. (fn. 286)
There are two 13th-century impressions of the
Wilton Abbey seal. Both are attached to undated
charters of the Abbess Maud de la Mare (1252c. 1271). (fn. 287) These are round, 25/8 in. in diameter,
and bear the three-quarter-length figure of St.
Edith with her face in profile to the left. The
saint's right hand is raised in benediction, her left
holds a book. The legend round the seal is:
+ SIGILL EADGYDE RE . . . L' . . . ELPHE
The matrix of the seal is thought to date from the
10th century. (fn. 288)
A 16th-century impression of the seal is attached to a charter of the Abbess Cecily Bodenham dated 1536. (fn. 289) There is a fourth impression
of the seal in the muniment room at Wilton House
unattached to any document.
Impressions of the personal seals of four of the
abbesses of Wilton are known to exist. A fragment
of that belonging to the Abbess Hawise (temp.
Hen. II) is attached to an undated charter at
Wilton House. (fn. 290) It is a pointed oval, 1¾ by 2¾ in.,
having on it a standing female figure with arms
extended holding an object, possibly a key, in the
left hand. (fn. 291) The seal of Abbess Maud de la Mare
is attached to one of the undated charters mentioned above which also bears the seal of the abbey. (fn. 292)
The abbess's seal is an oval 1½ by 2¼ in., bearing
the full-length figure of an abbess, the right hand
holding a pastoral staff, the left in front of the body,
holding a book. On each side of the figure is a
small vesical compartment, that on the right containing a head, possibly St. Edith's, that on the left
being almost entirely broken away. All that remains of the legend are the letters ISSE. (fn. 293) An
impression of the seal of the Abbess Sibyl Aucher
is attached to a deed of 1371. (fn. 294) It is an oval,
1¼ by 2 in., bearing within an ornamented Gothic
niche a full-length figure of an abbess, the right
hand holding a pastoral staff, the left a book.
Below the figure is a shield of arms. (fn. 295) A certificate
by the Abbess Maud de Bokeland dated 1375
bears an impression of this abbess's personal seal. (fn. 296)
It is a pointed oval, bearing a full-length figure of
an abbess, with a crosier in the right hand and a
book in the left. The figure stands within a Gothic
niche and below is a shield of arms. (fn. 297)