8. THE PRIORY OF DAVINGTON
This priory was founded, according to Tanner,
by Fulk de Newenham in 1153. It is said that
he gave the church to it, but the abbey of Faversham claimed it under another grant, and the
dispute was referred to Hubert, archbishop of
Canterbury, who gave the church to the nuns
subject to the payment by them of a rent of
2 marks yearly to the abbot and convent. (fn. 1)
Henry III by a charter (fn. 2) dated 22 April, 1255,
confirmed the possessions of the nuns and granted
liberties to them, which they claimed successfully
in 1279. (fn. 3) The priory is not mentioned in the
Taxation of 1291, but a return (fn. 4) in 1385 shows
that it then owned the churches of Harty, Newnham, and Davington, worth £ 12, the church of
Bardfield, worth 13s. 4d., and temporalities
worth £ 14 6s. 5d. yearly. Lands were acquired
in mortmain in 1341 (fn. 5) and 1392. (fn. 6)
Archbishop Peckham on 10 October, 1279,
committed the custody of the priory to the vicar
of Faversham, ordering him to be careful
of its possessions, and to see that the provisions
made by himself and his predecessor at their
visitations should be observed. (fn. 7)
In 1343 the king remitted (fn. 8) to the prioress
and nuns the demand made upon them for wool,
sheaves, and lambs, granted by the commons, and
the tenth granted by the clergy. They had
complained of their poverty, and a return (fn. 9) of
their possessions had been made; and it was
found that these hardly sufficed for their maintenance and the support of alms and other works
of piety ordained.
Archbishop Langham briefly reported all
things well after a visitation on 20 April, 1368. (fn. 10)
Archbishop Warham made a visitation of Davington in the autumn of 1511, when Maud
Awdeley was prioress. The convent had rents
to the value of £31 14s. besides demesne lands
which they held and cultivated to the value of
£10 yearly. The house had to pay 20s. to the
archbishop for board at the time of his visitation.
Elizabeth Awdeley, professed at Cambridge, had
been there twenty years, and Elizabeth Bath,
professed at Mailing, ten years; and they said
that all was well except that the revenues of the
house decreased. There were also two other
inmates, not professed, who had been there for
fifteen and ten years respectively. (fn. 11)
Davington eventually succumbed to poverty,
as happened also to a few other small priories in
England. (fn. 12) It was found by inquisition on
26 October, 1535, that there had been there a
priory of Benedictine nuns dedicated to St. Mary
Magdalen, where one Maud Dynmarke was
prioress, Elizabeth Audle a nun, and Sybil
Moonyngs a novice. Elizabeth had died on
12 June, 1526, and no more nuns had been professed there, and the prioress died on 11 March,
1535, and after her death Sybil left the priory, so
that it was forsaken and extinct. The prioress and
convent owned the manor of Fishbourne, two
parts of the manor of Monkton, the advowsons
and rectories of Davington and 'Stanger,' the
rectory and advowson of the vicarage of Newnham,
and lands in Davington, Fishbourne, Faversham,
' Overperston,' Newnham, the Isle of Harty,
' Durdevile,' Minster in Sheppey, Harbledown,
Norton, Luddenham, Sittingbourne, Sandwich,
Thanet, Ash by Sandwich, Sellinge, Linsted, and
Stanstead at Ospringe; and they also had once
the advowson of Bradfield, and two parts of the
advowson of Monkton, but John, archbishop of
Canterbury, in 1522 united these churches to
Otterden with the consent of Joan, then prioress.
The priory and all its possessions thus came into
the hands of the king, who on 8 September, 1546,
sold them to Sir Thomas Cheyne, treasurer of
the household. (fn. 13)
Prioresses Of Davington
Maud, occurs 1232 (fn. 14)
Joan, occurs 1259, 1263 (fn. 15)
Lucy de Apuldrefeld, resigned 1350 (fn. 16)
Margaret Borstall, appointed 1350 (fn. 17)
Isabel Northoo, elected 1383 (fn. 18)
Elizabeth Harrys, died 1401 (fn. 19)
Marjory Neulond, elected 1401 (fn. 19)
Loreta Sorenden, died 1437 (fn. 20)
Alice Lyndesey, elected 1437 (fn. 21)
Ellen Urmeston, died 1507 (fn. 22)
Maud Denmerke, appointed 1507 (fn. 22)
Maud Awdeley, occurs 1511 (fn. 23)
Joan, occurs 1522 (fn. 23)
Maud Dynmarke, died 1535, the last prioress (fn. 23)