HOUSES OF AUSTIN CANONS
16. THE PRIORY OF BILSINGTON
John Mansel, provost of Beverley, by a
charter (fn. 1) dated in June, 1253, (fn. 2) with a long list
of witnesses, states that with the consent of
Henry III and the authority of Boniface, archbishop of Canterbury, he has founded a monastery of canons regular professing the rule of
St. Augustine, in honour of St. Mary, for the
good estate of the king and Queen Eleanor, and
has granted in frankalmoign to William, prior,
and the canons, as endowment, that part of the
manor of Bilsington which he had of the grant
of the heirs of Hugh, earl of Arundel, and all
his land of Polre, Gozehale, and Ecche. The
priory was to be free and subject to no other
house, and at times of vacancy the sub-prior and
convent might elect a new prior without asking
licence from anyone. This and several other
charters and documents relating to the priory are
to be found in a small chartulary preserved at the
British Museum. (fn. 3)
The foundation charter was confirmed by a
charter of Henry III, dated 12 June, 1253,
which was confirmed afterwards by Henry VI
in 1444 (fn. 4) and Edward IV in 1466. (fn. 5) Edward I
in 1276 confirmed to the convent their rights
at vacancies, provided that when they elected a
prior they should present him for the royal assent
and the confirmation of the archbishop of Canterbury, and that after the prior had been confirmed he should come to the king with letters
testimonial. (fn. 6)
Henry III on 9 March, 1266, reciting that
the priory was vacant and the patronage of it
pertained to him by the grant of the founder,
committed it to the custody of Simon de
Daunteseye, one of the executors of the will
of the founder, during pleasure. (fn. 7) On 7 June,
1272, he granted the manor and priory of
Bilsington to the abbot and canons of St. Mary,
Boulogne; (fn. 8) though this grant seems not to have
taken effect.
Archbishop Peckham wrote to the prior and
convent on 26 April, 1284, forbidding them to
waste their woods and other possessions without
his permission, and adding that if they did not
fear canonical censure he would denounce them
to the king, their patron. (fn. 9)
In the Taxation of 1291 the temporalities of
the priory, in Bilsington, Woodnesborough,
Newchurch, Brookland, Lydd, Ruckinge, Hinxhill, Eastbridge, Othe, and Woldene, were
valued at £33 16s. 5d. yearly. In 1328 the
prior and canons had licence to acquire the
advowson of the church of Bilsington from the
prior and convent of Boxgrave, and to appropriate it. (fn. 10) In 1327 they had licence to drain,
inclose, and bring into cultivation a salt marsh
of 60 acres in Lydd; (fn. 11) but the expense was too
great for them, and in 1337 they had another
licence to lease 40 acres of it in perpetuity to
tenants who might drain it. (fn. 12)
The priors of Tonbridge and St. Gregory's,
Canterbury, gave notice of intended Visitation of
the priory of Bilsington in 1353, by authority of
the Augustinian chapter. (fn. 13)
By an inquisition (fn. 14) taken in 1372 it was
found that the priory was of the king's foundation to find seven canons to celebrate for the
king and his progenitors, and that for four
years past there had been no priests there except
the prior and one canon, and the canon celebrated in the parish church, which was appropriated to the priory. The prior was bound to
find a canon to celebrate for the souls of Thomas
de Meyne and his ancestors for certain lands
in Lede given by him for that cause, but the
prior was a common merchant and went to all
fairs to trade, and no mass was celebrated for
the souls. It does not appear whether the
prior was properly called to account for his shortcomings.
Archbishop Arundel issued injunctions after a
visitation in 1402, in which he forbade the entry
of women, as observed by him, and sales of wood
without the consent of the archbishop. The
prior was further ordered to show the state of
the house. (fn. 15)
In 1510 the archbishop held an inquiry by
request, when it was found that William Tilman,
the prior, had run the house into debt and
neglected his spiritual duties. The prior of
Leeds, who had been induced to endorse the
bills of the prior of Bilsington, begged that the
goods of the monastery might be sequestrated
with a view to the speedy clearing off of the
debt. The archbishop thereupon granted a
decree of sequestration against Bilsington. (fn. 16)
The oath of acknowledgement of the royal
supremacy was taken on 26 December, 1534,
by John, prior, and six others. (fn. 17) In the Valor
of 1535 the gross value of the possessions of the
priory, including the manors of Belgar in Lydd
and Over Bilsington, is given as £122 0s. 8d.
yearly, and the deductions amounted to
£40 19s. 1¾d., leaving the net value £81 1s. 6d.
(sic) yearly. (fn. 18) The house would thus have come
under the operation of the Act of Dissolution of
the next year; but, as happened in a few other
cases, this was anticipated, and the prior and
convent surrendered on 28 February, 1536. (fn. 19)
A pension of £10 yearly was afterwards given
to the prior. (fn. 20)
The site of the priory was leased on 29 July,
1537. to Anthony Seyntleger; (fn. 21) and on 31 July,
1538. the reversion of this and most of its
possessions were granted to the archbishop of
Canterbury. (fn. 22)
Priors Of Bilsington
William, occurs 1253 (fn. 23)
Walter, occurs 1255 (fn. 24)
John de Romenale, elected 1276 (fn. 25)
Hamo de Clopton, elected 1279 (fn. 26)
John de Sandwyco, elected 1293, (fn. 27) died 1317 (fn. 28)
Simon de Hauekeshell, elected 1317, (fn. 28) resigned
1320 (fn. 29)
John de Wy, elected 1320 (fn. 29)
John de Romene, elected 1342, (fn. 30) died 1349 (fn. 31)
Edmund de Cantuaria, elected 1349, (fn. 31) resigned
1361 (fn. 32)
John de Aldham, elected 1361, (fn. 33) resigned
1363 (fn. 34)
John de Romene, elected 1363 (fn. 34)
Thomas Brenchesle, elected 1390 (fn. 35)
John Broke, elected 1411, (fn. 36) resigned 1426 (fn. 37)
William Peers or Pyers, elected 1426 (fn. 38)
Roger Erle, elected 1435 (fn. 39)
William Mungeham, elected 1439 (fn. 40)
Hamo Betrysden, elected 1441 (fn. 41)
Laurence Wattes, elected 1442 (fn. 42)
Paul Pyre, elected 1457 (fn. 43)
Robert Carpenter, elected 1460, (fn. 44) occurs
1470 (fn. 45)
Thomas Andrewe, elected 1491, (fn. 45a) occurs
1501 (fn. 46)
William Tilman, occurs 1510 (fn. 46a)
William Tiseherste, resigned 1513 (fn. 47)
Richard Cotyndone, elected 1513 (fn. 48)
Arthur Sentleger, resigned 1528 (fn. 49)
John Tenterden or Moyse, appointed 1528, (fn. 50)
the last prior (fn. 51)
The seal (fn. 52) of the priory (fourteenth century)
is a pointed oval measuring 2¾ by 1¾ inches.
In a carved niche with three trefoiled canopies,
pinnacled and crocketed, the coronation of the
Virgin; an angel issuing from above and placing
the crown on her head. The background
diapered. In the base, under an arcaded corbel,
the founder turning to the right, holding a
model of the church, and a group of kneeling
canons. Legend:—
SIGILLŪ CŌMUNE ECCLIE de MARIE DE BILSINGTONE