22. HOSPITAL OF ST. JOHN BAPTIST, BUCKINGHAM

The hospital of St. John Baptist is mentioned only once, under the year 1279, in the Hundred Rolls of this county, (fn. 1) where it is stated that the master held one acre of land for which he paid 1d. yearly. It is just possible that the chapel of St. John Baptist, belonging to the hospital of St. Thomas of Acon in London, (fn. 2) and endowed with a chantry by Matthew Stratton in 1268, (fn. 3) may have originally been the chapel of this hospital; but this is mere conjecture.

23. HOSPITAL OF ST. LAURENCE, BUCKINGHAM

The hospital of St. Laurence was founded, for the purpose of sheltering lepers, probably during the thirteenth century, though it is not mentioned earlier than the fourteenth. The master and brethren received an indulgence in 1321 from Bishop Burghersh, to induce the faithful of the neighbourhood to contribute to their necessities. (fn. 4) In 1337 it was stated that they had not enough for their livelihood unless they could be relieved by contributions from a somewhat wider circle, and they were consequently allowed to seek alms from those outside the town of Buckingham. (fn. 5) In 1347 a certain Gilbert of Buckingham endowed the hospital with lands of the value of 10 marks, out of compassion for the poverty of the master and brethren. (fn. 6) The depreciation of property after the Great Pestilence probably made it impossible for the house to be maintained any longer. Nearly all the hospitals of the county came to an end at this period.

Footnotes