41. THE AUSTIN FRIARS OF GORLESTON
This friary was founded towards the end of
the reign of Edward I, by William Woderove,
and Margaret his wife. (fn. 1) On 28 June, 1311,
Roger Woderove, son of the founder, obtained
licence to grant to the prior and Augustine Friars
of Little Yarmouth a plot of land adjacent to
their dwelling, (fn. 2) and in 1338 a further enlargement of their house was made on a plot of land
240 ft. by 70 ft., the gift of William Man, of
Blundeston. (fn. 3)
In the large and handsome church many distinguished persons were buried. Weever names
the founder and his wife; Richard earl of Clare;
Roger FitzOsbert and Katharine his wife; Sir
Henry Bacon, 1335, and many of his family;
Joan countess of Gloucester; Dame Alice
Lunston 1341; Dame Eleanor, wife of Sir
Thomas Gerbrigge, 1353; Dame Joan Caxton
1364; William de Ufford, earl of Suffolk, 1382;
Michael de la Pole, earl of Suffolk; Sir Thomas
Hengrove; Dame Sibyl Mortimer, 1385; Sir
John Laune, and Mary his wife; Alexander
Falstolfe; William March, esq., 1412, and
John Pulman, 1481. (fn. 4)
Lambarde, writing of this house, which he
mistakenly terms an abbey, says: 'Here was of
late years a librarie of most rare and precious
workes, gathered together by the industrie of
one John Brome, a monk of the same house,
which died in the reign of King Henry the
Sixte.' (fn. 5) John Brome was prior of the house
and died in 1449. His collection of books was
famous and said to include several of which
there were no other copies in England; he was
himself the author of chronicles and sermons. (fn. 6)
The historian of Yarmouth says that these
Austin Friars had a cell across the water in
Yarmouth proper, the remains of which are to
be seen in Howards Street; the adjoining row
is still called Austin Row; though popularly
corrupted into Ostend Row. (fn. 7)
The house was suppressed, with the other
Yarmouth friaries, by Richard Ingworth towards the end of 1538, (fn. 8) and the site was
ganted in 1544 to John Eyre, rightly styled by
Weever 'a great dealer in that kind of property.'