25. THE HOSPITAL OF SS. MARY AND CUTHBERT, GREATHAM
Greatham Hospital was founded in 1272 by
Robert Stichill, bishop of Durham, who dedicated it to the Blessed Virgin and St. Cuthbert,
and granted to it, by way of endowment, the
manor of Greatham, free of all charges, and the
advowson of the church. He also promised
forty days' indulgence to any person making a
charitable donation to the hospital, (fn. 1) and in his
will left £200 for the improvements of the wood
belonging to it. (fn. 2) In 1313 Bishop Kellaw
granted to the house 17 acres of waste in
Weardale Forest, with pasture for sixty cows,
at an annual rent of 2s., (fn. 3) and it is stated in the
charter of refoundation of James I that Henry IV
bestowed upon Greatham Hospital a market and
two fairs. (fn. 4)
The original foundation consisted of a master,
five priests, two clerks, and forty poor men born
on one or other of the bishop's manors. The
master and the other priests, when officiating,
were ordered to wear surplices and black hoods
after the manner of the canons of St. Augustine;
the hours of service to be the same as at Sherburn Hospital. (fn. 5)
The provision for the poor men at Greatham
was on a very liberal scale. They seem to have
been divided into two classes, distinguished by
their dress, the quality of their food, and the
fact that one class had, and the other had not,
personal attendants of their own. In 1311
Matthew Lardener received a grant of an
allowance for himself and his servant in the
hospital. He was to have' the room called the
Frerechamber' for his private use, and to sit at
the chaplains' table, while his man dined with
the other servants of the house. His daily portion consisted of two loaves—one of white bread,
and the other of an inferior quality—a flagon of
the best ale, and a mess of food from the
kitchen. He also received fodder for his horse,
and every year a gown for himself de secta
armigerorum. (fn. 6)
The recipient of another fourteenth-century
grant, of which we have the particulars, received
daily a loaf of second-best bread, half a flagon of
second-best ale, a rack [raccatum] of hay, and a
peck of oats; with the use of a private chamber,
litter for a horse, a candle and a peck of coals
each winter, and every year a gown de secta
garconum hospitalis. (fn. 7)
The early history of the hospital is singularly
devoid of incident. An occasional dispute occurred as to the right of presentation to the
mastership, (fn. 8) or the patronage of Greatham
rectory; (fn. 9) and in 1378 the bishop commissioned
the priors of Durham and Finchale to visit the
hospital. (fn. 10) No record, however, of this visitation
exists.
The clear value of the house was given in
1535 as £97 6s. 3d. (fn. 11) Being a lay foundation
it did not fall within either of the dissolving
statutes, but continued to exist. (fn. 12) The Royal
Commissioners in 1594 reported that the possessions of the hospital included the township of
Greatham, and the tithe corn of Greatham and
Claxton, together with a large quantity of stock
and household gear. There were then only
thirteen brethren, who received in all, besides
diet and fire in the brother-house, £14 4s. a
year. Four persons were awaiting admission
when a vacancy should occur, and were meanwhile in receipt of a small annual sum. The
hospital retained the following staff of servants
and officials:—Porter, clerk of the chapel, bailiff
of the liberties, cook, under-cook, butler, baker,
brewer, horsekeeper, laundress, four women servants, shepherd, neatherd, slaughterer, swineherd, sixteen labourers, steward, and two serving
men. Henry Dethicke, LL.B., was master; but
service was said twice a day by the vicar of
Greatham, who received in return his diet and
£2 per annum. (fn. 13)
King James I refounded the hospital, 20 July,
1610, settling the number of inmates at thirteen,
all to be poor men and unmarried; and confirmed the possessions of the house. (fn. 14)
In 1761 the then master of Greatham built
almshouses for six poor women near the hospital, (fn. 15)
and in 1788 the chapel was pulled down and
rebuilt. A skeleton with a chalice was found
in the old building, and was re-interred. (fn. 16)
Masters of Greatham Hospital
Andrew Stanley, coll. 23 January, 1272-3 (fn. 17)
Thomas de Levesham, occ. 22 November,
1301 (fn. 18)
John de Botheby, occ. 1311, (fn. 19) 1313 (fn. 20)
William de Middleton, occ. 18 January,
1343-4 (fn. 21)
William de Tykhill, appointed by the king,
11 May, 1345 (fn. 22)
William de Middleton, occ. 1348-9 (fn. 23)
John Stockton, occ. 1351 (fn. 24)
William de Westeley, coll. 12 May, 1351 (fn. 25) ;
occ. 1353 (fn. 26)
Thomas de Bridekirk, occ. 1358-9 (fn. 27)
William de Westeley, coll. 7 August, 1361,
p.m. Th. de Bridekirk (fn. 28)
Henry Snayth, app. by the king, 18 November, 1361 (fn. 29) ; admitted by the bishop,
30 January, 1361-2 (fn. 30)
John de Sleford, coll. 18 June, 1363, p.r.
Henry Snayth (fn. 31)
Henry Snayth, coll. 1 December, 1363, p.r.
John of Sleford (fn. 32)
William de Denby, coll. 20 July, 1366, by
exchange with Henry Snayth (fn. 33)
John de Henley, occ. 28 August, 1372 (fn. 34)
John Burgess, occ. 27 November, 1384 (fn. 35)
Thomas Weston, occ. 9 October, 1407 (fn. 36)
John de Tybbay [? Tebay], coll. 18 October,
1408, p.m. T. Weston (fn. 37)
Ralph Steel, occ. 1415 (fn. 38)
John Hunteman, coll. 2 April, 1415, by exchange with R. Steel (fn. 39)
? A Master, name unknown, app. April,
1421 (fn. 40)
Nicholas Hulme, occ. 1433 (fn. 41)
John Soulby, coll. 25 August, 1433, by exchange with N. Hulme (fn. 42)
Robert Tatman, coll. 2 March, 1439-40 (fn. 43)
John Lathom, occ. 20 April, 1441 (fn. 44)
William Scroop, occ. 1451 (fn. 45)
John Keeling, elected 1463 (fn. 46)
William Estfield (fn. 47)
Edward Stryngwish, coll. 26 August, 1500,
p.m. W. Estfield (fn. 48)
Humphrey Gascoin, occ. 1532 (fn. 49)
Thomas Sparke, occ. 1541 (fn. 50)
John Kingsmill, occ. 1 March, 1571-2 (fn. 51) ;
1585 (fn. 52)
John Barnes, instit. 3 November, 1585 (fn. 53)
Henry Dethicke, occ. 1594; (fn. 54) 20 July, 1610 (fn. 55)
Ferdinand Moorcroft, res. 13 July, 1619 (fn. 56)
William Neile, coll. 13 November, 1619 (fn. 57)
John Cosin, coll. 22 June, 1624, p.m.
W. Neile; (fn. 58) res. 24 July, 1624 (fn. 59)
Gabriel Clarke, coll. 24 July, 1624, p.r.
J. Cosin; (fn. 60) ejected by the Roundheads
16 (sic) (fn. 61)
Samuel Rand, M.D. occ. 1644 (fn. 62)
Simon Askew, occ. 1653 (fn. 63)
Thomas Potter (fn. 64) , occ. 19 May, 1662 (fn. 65)
Sir Gilbert Gerard, kt. and bart., app.
27 May, 1663, p. r. Thomas Potter (fn. 66)
John Parkhurst, occ. 30 October, 1676 (fn. 67)
Dormer Parkhurst, occ. 2 June, 1711; (fn. 68)
1761 (fn. 69)
Nicholas Halhead, occ. 14 August, 1764 (fn. 70)
John William Egerton, occ. 1785; (fn. 71) 1788 (fn. 72)
The earl of Bridgewater, occ. 1819 (fn. 73)
The hon. Augustus Barrington, d. 1860
Rev. J. B. Tristram, M.A., app. 1860; res.
1874
Rev. — James, M.A., app. 1874; d. 1885
Rev. R. Wolters, app. 1885; d. 1893
Rev. J. F. Hodgson, app. 1894; d. 1897
Rev. S. Barradell Smith, app. 1897, pres.
master
The seal still in use at Greatham Hospital is
the seal of Stephen Payn, almoner to Henry V. (fn. 74)
It is a pointed oval, with a figure of Payn beneath a canopy, bearing in his hands a ship. At
the top are the arms of Edward the Confessor;
on the left those of England and France; and on
the right what are supposed to be the paternal
arms of Payn himself. Legend—
'SIGILLUM . OFFICII . ELEMOSINARII . REGIS .
HENRICI . QUINTI . ANGLIE .'
Below the figure—
'STEPH'S . PAYN.' (fn. 75)