CHAPTER XVII.
OF ST. MARY'S COLLEGE, IN BAILY-END.
There was only one college in this town, dedicated to the honour
of the Blessed Virgin, which was first a gild only, the brethren and
sisters having a priest, which they called their chaplain, to whom they
paid an annual stipend, to pray for the welfare of the members of the
fraternity, while living, and their souls when dead, and to officiate
for them at the general gild days, or annual feasts, or on the anniversaries or obit days of such brethren as settled sufficient on the
fraternity, to keep them perpetually. At this time, and even to the
Dissolution, it was sometimes called the Gild of St. Mary in BailyEnd. In this state it continued till Edward the First's time, and
then it became a college, for a master and two chaplains or brethren,
who had a convenient mansion-house, and a chapel by it, built and
endowed by Sir Gilbert de Pykenham, senior, who gave the patronage
or nomination of the master and fellows to the Mayor and Commonalty of the burgh, and also ordered, that the gild should be continued as formerly, and that the master and fellows for the time being
should continually serve, and daily officiate for, the brethren thereof,
and that all persons, both men and women, might be admitted into
the society upon their being elected by the majority of the brethren,
and entered into the gild book by the master and fellows, paying for
such their admission, one quarter of barley, or more, (fn. 1) according to
their ability, besides a fee in money; by means of which, this college
greatly increased in revenues, the chief persons in the corporation
being generally members of it, besides other persons of distinction in
the neighbouring towns. In the year 1337, being the 11th of Edward
III. I find by the Account-Roll of the house, (fn. 2) that it was endowed
with lands and tenements to the value of 26l. 6s. per annum, viz. in
rents issuing from divers tenements in Thetford, 13s. 6d. per annum,
part of which viz. 4d. from the tenement of John Le-Goose, and 1d.
from the tenement of Margaret de Stanford, and 20d. from Peter
Le-Meysters, were given and settled particularly on the master to
receive yearly, and expend in keeping the anniversary of the founder,
with a wax taper, and a lamp burning in the chapel that whole day.
They had a tenement in the Gress-Market, and about nine shops in
Baily-End, and three in Nethergate-street, besides their college and
new dove-house, and gild-hall, which was built this year. At this
time, the admission fee was 3s. 4d. besides the barley. The yearly
quitrent paid for their shops to the Earl Warren, then lord of the
town, was 1s. 9d. and the master's salary 3l. 6s. 8d. and 13s. per
annum, which the master paid to a poor woman annually by way of
alms. Among the brethren admitted this year, I find these persons,
who were clergy in the town, viz. Will. Hardyng, chaplain, Thomas
Buchard, chaplain, Richard de Snyterton, brother John de Fordham,
and Sir Reginald Purry, chaplain, and Edmund Caston, was expelled
the society at the same time, which then consisted of about 36
members.
This house, at the archdeacon's survey in Edward the Third's time,
was found to be in the archdeaconry of Norwich, and deanery of
Thetford, but was not taxed for any of its revenues, it being founded
since the taxation was made. (fn. 3) And this was the condition of the
house at this time, which did not continue long thus meanly endowed,
for in 1370, the Mayor and Commonalty obtained license from King
Richard II. to purchase divers lands in Ashwyken, and settle them in
mortmain, so that they did not exceed 10l. per annum. And in 1392,
they were settled on the college, on condition the master founded a
chantry (fn. 4) in the chapel of St. Bartholomew, in the gild-hall, which
he did, and served it by the fellows of the college, who officiated for
the welfare of the corporation, and the souls of the departed, which
had been members of that body.
In 1416, the master accounted for the revenues of the college, as
he was annually obliged to do; and it appears they amounted now
to about 40l. a year; they had a house in Bridge-street, let at
10l. 13s. 4d. a year, and 4l. a year in Ashwyken, &c. There were 9
new members admitted, among which Margaret Camplyon, a nun,
and Tho. Hogg, chaplain, were the chief, besides one John Crane,
who lived at Ipswich, which shews it must be a noted society, or else
persons so far off would scarce have sought for admission; but what
confirms it more to be so, was the annual number of persons who left
legacies at their deaths to this house, to have their names entered in
the bead-roll, in order to be partakers of their prayers, as well as the
brethren: for this year there were several entered in the roll, upon
their executors paying their legacies, according to their wills; and
besides this, there were many legacies given by other persons every
year, which often much added to the settled revenues; among others,
John Austin, rector of Wang ford, was buried this year in the chapel,
and gave x. marks to adorn it, with a portifory, two board-cloths, and
two towels to serve at the little (or low) altar, and also a coverbyth,
to serve in the chapel, which was to be laid every year, on the day of
his anniversary, over his grave; and also he ordered John Gylet,
rector of West Wrotham, his executor, to pay the master of the
chapel a legacy of 13s. 4d. (fn. 5) The master's stipend now was 6l. 13s. 4d.
and the two fellows 9l. 6s. 8d. and the expenses at their annual feast,
or great gild, amounted to 56s.
In 1420, John Banham, rector of Little Livermere was buried in
the chapel, and gave two new antiphonars, and one gradual; and
this year also, John Gylot of Thetford, chaplain (a member of this
college, I suppose) late rector of West Wrotham, was buried in the
chapel, and gave to the altar 3s. 4d. to repair it 6s. 8d. to every chaplain serving in it 12d. and small legacies to the religious houses in
the town.
In 1422, John Olyver of West-Toftys was buried in the yard of this
chapel, and gave a legacy to this gild, and another to the gild of
Corpus Christi in Thetford. (fn. 6)
In 1473, Peter Benne, chaplain, was buried in the chapel, and gave
a legacy to the painting the tabernacle of the Virgin Mary in it, and
another to St. Mary's gild that belonged to it.
In 1499, John Fyshere, burgess, who is buried in St. Nichola's
churchyard, gave them a legacy. It appears that John Chaa was a
benefactor, of whose gift they had 9 acres in Croxton, 2 acres by St.
John's hospital, and other barley rents: they paid annual small rents
for their shops, houses, and lands, to the Priors of Bromhill, of the
canons, and of the monks in Thetford. In 1446, the Mayor and
Commonalty obtained another license to settle 10l. per annum more,
in mortmain; and after this, (fn. 7) the rents became so considerable, that
there were two chamberlains annually chosen by the fraternity, who
received the rents and passed their accounts, before the Mayor for the
time being; and by an account passed in 1541, it appears that the
Austin friars held a tenement of them, by the rent of 12d. a year,
and that the yearly profits were much enlarged; they had then a
close and certain lands in Hocham, and one acre in the field there,
held of that manor, by the rent of 4d. per annum, and also divers lands
and revenues in Gislam, Rushmere, and the adjoining towns in the
county or Suffolk, which added to the other revenues, made up the
annual income of 109l. 7s. (fn. 8) which was the value of it at its dissolution
in 1547, when it was resigned into King Edward's hands by John
Gunnel, the last master, who had a pension of 5l. per annum assigned
him for life, which was paid in 1555, and not afterwards, that I can
find. which induces me to think he died in 1556. At its dissolution
the chapel and college were entirely demolished, and the revenues
which came to the King were divided the next year in the following manner: the site of the college and chapel, called Chapel-Yard,
and 30 acres of arable land and pasture thereto belonging, with all messuages, &c. lying in Thetford and Croxton, and all rights thereto belonging, were given to the Duke of Norfolk, and by him forfeited to
the Crown, and soon after granted to Sir Richard Fulmerston, and his
heirs, (fn. 9) who laid the land (fn. 10) to Maison Dieu fold-course, and sold the
site, houses, and curtilages, to Nicholas Hoode; but how it went after
I cannot say, till the 7th of James I. 1608, and then the King, at the
humble request of Sir William Rider, Knt. granted to Maurice
Francis, Esq. and Francis Phillips, Gent. the site of the chapel, with
divers tenements and curtilages belonging to it, all which were to be
held of the Crown by him and his heirs, in free soccage, as of the
King's manor of East-Greenwich, by fealty only; and from this time
it hath been a private property, and as such continues, it belonging at
this time [1738] to the son and heir of Robert Pierson, lately deceased.
It stands near the river, directly behind the common gaol for the
burgh, there being no ruins of any account.
The other revenues in Ashwyken, Gislam, Rushmere, &c. continued
in the Crown till the 29th Elizabeth, and were then granted by that
Queen to Edward Wymark, Gent. and his heirs, to be held by the rent
of 3s. 4d. per annum.