lordeschipe he ys not abill to bring home eny thing ageyne, nor yet to make a trewe accowntes wher this ys spent by xx. markys truly. And in his cofer I fowne xj. bullys of the bischopis of Rome, and above an hunderyd letters of pardons, and in all the bokys in the quere the bischope of Rome still standing as he did xx. yerys past. I have chargid the balys that he schall be forthe cumming; and for the howse I have sett a pore freer to kepe masse ther, and I have providyd for his borde and leveyng to be payde xvj. a weke, till your further plesure be knowen in yt. Their be iij. labur for yt, that ys sir John Russell, schreyve of Wisitor schere, he ys cum to London to sewe for yt; Mr. Pye; and Mr. Newell, servant with my lorde of Wisitor, ffor whom at the desyar of my lorde of Wisitor I spake to your lordescipe, for and excepte he have yt I thinke he schall lese a mariage of xl. markys by yere. Your lordeschipe may do your plesure. This ys the substans of yt. The howse ys mete for no man to dwelle in, withowte gret costis don on yt. Yt standith in a good ayer, and yt hathe so many tenauntreys and closeis abowte yt as be laten for vli, by 3ere. Their be ij. good bellys, a chales, and a fewe vestmentes of litill valure; the stuffe beside ys not worthe xls. Leade ther ys non, except in ij. gutteres, the which the prior hathe conveyd into the towne, but yt ys suar. Yt ys metely wodeyd in hege rowys. Here ys all, beseching your lordeschipe to knowe your plesure, yff eny thing I schall do in theis ii. howseis. I schall cum within x. mile of them in my progresse, but what soever yow order for them I pray yow be so good lorde that my chargis their may be payde off the stuffe and the dewteis of the howseis, and that I may be dischargid of the borde and wagis for the freer at Wheich, for I had neither peny nor penyworthe in eny off them. Also, my lorde, I beseche yow to sende me your plesure yff that I schall medill with the howse of wheite freeres in Winchester.* I here that their be no freeres, and whether eny ordenans be made by the kingis grace * At Winchester there was a priory of Carmelite or white friars, founded in 1278, which stood opposite the church of St. Michael, but of which very little is known. or yow I knowe not. Your plesure in theis, my lorde, I hartely beseche yow, and I ever at your commandment by Goddis grace, hoo preserve yow to heis hei honor. This xxiij. day of Maye. From Gloscetur, by your servant and orator, RICHARD Dovorens. It seems by the date of the following letter that the bishop remained several weeks occupied between Gloucester and Bristol. It appears, however, that during this period he had visited Marlborough and Winchester, and perhaps also some other places in that part of the country. XCVIII. RICHARD BISHOP OF DOVER TO CROMWELL. [From MS. Cotton. Cleop. E. iv. fol. 251.] My synguler good lorde, my dewte presupposyd, pleseythe yt yower good lordeschype to understande, that before I receyvyd yower letter by my servantt, I had beyn in Brystowe at the Whyte Fryers,* and also in ij. howsys of Glowsetur, and ther for the gret clamor that was for dettes ther, I had men assyngneyd by the mayeres of bothe towneys to prise suche as was in thoys iij. howsys, and solde all and payd the dettes, as by my accounttes yt shall appere, and the howsys put in saffe custody tyll the kynges plesur be forther knowyn. The substans in the more parte of the howsys ys very small; in dyverse placeys lytyll more than the dettes; and the clamor of pore men to whom the monye ys oweynge ys to tedyus. Wherfor thys order I toke tyll yower letter cam specyally, where that the dettes were moche. But nowe that I knowe your forther plesur, I shall folowe yower commandement so nere as I can, and accordeynge to yt I have begon with the Grey Fryers in Glowsetur.† And because I am in dowte off * The priory of the Carmelites or White Friars in Gloucester, a small house, was founded in the latter part of the reign of Henry III. †There was in Gloucester a house of Grey or Franciscan Friars, or Friars Minors, which existed as early as the year 1268, but the date of its foundation is uncertain. my returne to London, I sende to yow here the copys off every indenter off the inventorys off every howse that hathe gyffyn up into the kynges hondes, because yf that yt shall forten in the tyme any howse by the kynges grace or yow to be set any order for yt, that ye maye knowe the order and substans off that howse by theys copys. And where that yt hathe pleseyd yower lordeschype to wryght to me, as ye juge, that thowgh I have changeyd my habet, I have not changeyd my fryeres hartt, goode my lorde, juge me not so, for God shall be my juge, my fryers hart was gone ij. yeres befor my habet, saveynge only my leveynge; but the favor that I have schewyd hathe not be for my fryers hartt, but to brynge all thynges with the moste quiet to passe; and also tyll now that yower honorabull letter cam to me, I never koulde perseyve any thynge of yower plesur, but ever fereyd that yf I wer to quike, that I shulde offende yower lordeschype, the whyche I wolde not by my wyll for all that I am abull to make in the worlde. But yff that I myght know that I shulde not offende the kynges grace nor yower lordeschype, I koulde by juste and fayer menys, and do no wronge, dyspache a gret parte off the fryeres in Ynglonde, or my yere off vysytacyon was endeyd, so that I myght have sum lyberte to lycens them to change ther habettes after ther howsys were gyffyn up. For off trewthe ther harttes be clene from the relygyon the more parte, so they myght change ther cotes, the whyche they be not abull to paye for, for they have no thenge. I harttely beseche yower lordeschype be good lorde to theys pore men that have gyffyn up ther howsys that they may have sum dyscharge. I sende ther namys here incloseyd. And where yower lordschype noteythe that I shulde sum thinge wryght in commendacyon of the fryers, and suffer sum to tery at mennys desyer, the trewthe ys, I have so don because that I wolde not be taken to schewe them extremyte, but rather favor. But in my besynes. amonge them, ther appereythe lytyll favor, for where that I fynde them fawte, I declare ther fawttes after suche facyon that they rather woll gyffe up the howsys, than I shulde declare ther deme nors, as by that menys I have receyvyd iij. howsys sythe that I wroght laste to yower lordeschype, the whyche I thynke olde not a lytyll a moveyd yower lordschype, yff ye had knowen the order off them; sum stekeynge faste in wyndowys nakeyd goynge to drabbes, so that the peler was fayne to be sawyde to have hym owte; sum beynge plucked from under drabbes beddes; sum feytynge so that the knyffe hathe stoken in the bone; wythe suche other praty besynes, off the whyche I have to moche. But on I thynke ye shulde doo a goode dede to wryght to the mayer of Marleburthe, that he sumwhat loke on a fryer ther that ys in prison for a mayde chylde off x. or xi. yeres of age, whom he useyd nowtely; they wolde that I shulde a delyveryd hym at my beynge ther, but master Yorke and I spake with the chylde and here yndes, so that the mater appereyd so that I wolde not medell ith the fryer. As for the Blacke Fryers of Wynchester,* I lefte yt with all the stuffe in a seculer mannys handdes, and gave but lycens to the prior to say masse ther tyll that I sent hym my letter ageyn, the whyche nowe I have senth to advoyde hym thense. Sythe that I last wroght to yower lordschype I have receyvyd iiij. howsys into the kynges handdes. The Whyte Fryeres in Brystowe, the whyche all that was in yt ys lytyll more than payd the dettes. Yt ys a goodly howse in byldeynge, mete for a gret man, no renttes but ther gardens. Ther ys a chapell and an yle off the chyrche, and dyverse gutteres, spowtes, and condytes, lede ; the reste all tylle and slate. A goodly laver and condyte cumynge to yt. Thys howse was in dett above xvjli. of the whyche payd viij., the rest dyschargeyd by plegeys. In Glowsetur I have dyschargeyd iij. howseys, as by the mayer and aldermennys handes * The house of Black or Dominican Friars in Winchester, was founded by Peter de Rupibus, or Derroches, bishop of Winchester, in 1221. + I find no account of this house in the Monasticon. It was against the order of the friars to possess lands; but the gardens, which they let out on leases, were allowed to pass by a quibble. ye may perseyve. The Blacke Fryers* ys a proper lytyll howse; lytyll led but on yle; no renttes, but ther gardens, the whyche master Fell the alderman hathe in lese under ther convente sell for many yeres, and I harttely desyer yow be good lorde to hym that he also may have that howse. He dothe moche goode in that towne amonge the pore pepull, setteynge many on worke, above iij. hunderyd dayly; and I am moche bownde to hym for heys gret comfort in all my besynes ther at bothe tymys, and for the more parte I have beyn at borde with hym. I beseche youe be good lorde to hym. The Grey Fryers ys a goodly howse, moche off yo new byldeyd, specyally the chyrche, quere, and dorter; the rest smal logeynges; dyverse leseys owt for yeres off logeynges and gardens; no led but a condyte and small gutturs. The Whyte Fryeres but a small howse, and in decay, and sum howseys taken downe and solde; no renttes but xx3. by yere, and that ys taken for xx. yere befor, off the wyche ix. or x. yere to cum. Yonge Thomas Bell hathe parte off the gardens off yt for yeres. I wold he myght have that howse, yf yt pleseyd the kynges grace and yower lordschype. My singuler goode lorde, I mekely beseche yow pardon me of my rude and longe wrytynge, and yff yt plese yow to be good lorde to me to sende the dyscharge for the fryeres and yower forther plesur by thys brynger, he shall sende yt to me to Ludlowe or Harforde† thys nexte weke, and I ever yower orator to Jhesu, whom I hartely beseche to gyve me that grace to do that thynge that shall be to hys hey honor, to the kynges graceys plesur and yowers, to the whyche I woll appley my selfe to the uttermost of my pore. Yowr servantt and orater, My gude lorde, if that ze wold be so gode lord to me to send to The house of the black or Dóminican friars in Gloucester was founded about 1239. The last prior was John Raynolds. + Hereford. |
