Ernest Harold Pearce

“ His servant, Nicholas Symcok, of London, has been robbed in the middle of June by highwaymen, one of whom, Richard Surrey, is popularly known as Richard atte Belle. The knight of the road has made off with some silver plate and £40 in coin, and has taken sanctuary at Westminster, being hotly pursued by his victim, who finds on Surrey's person all his lost property, less £5 of the stolen money. Symcok has deposited his recovered goods in the hands of Dan William Colchester, one of the lord Abbot's monks, who has laid them aside and placed his seal upon the package. ”

“ THE PERSONAL EFFECTS OF ABBOT LITLINGTON.
Though general opinion pointed to his election in Litlington's stead, Colchester was in some danger of disappointment. He had spent so much time abroad—a very large proportion of the preceding nine years—being engaged all the time in a cause which brought him into collision with the preferences of the Court, that it is not wonderful if the King desired the election of another. ”

“ On personal grounds our monk must have been pleased at the choice of the electors, for the new Pope was the special protégé of the French Cardinal of Pampeluna, Simon Langham's friend and executor. But financially the effect was provoking. We know that Urban VI. proved himself a man "full of Neapolitan fire and savagery," who thought "that the Cardinals could be reduced to absolute obedience by mere rudeness," 33 and we are quite prepared for Colchester's statement that between the Pope and the Sacred College there arose a great dissension. ”

“ That which cost more, and was probably more interesting to Colchester himself, was the coming and going of personages or their servants—the squire of the Earl of Cambridge (Edmund Langley, fifth son of Edward III.) , who receives 20s. for bringing a letter to the Abbot from his lord; the Earl of Warwick's steward, who comes to sell a black palfrey; a monk of his own year, Richard Excestr', who is just starting on his career at Oxford, and to whom the Abbot gives a fatherly present of 20s. ”

“ The plan tended to the great advantage of the monasteries; it meant that the likely young men were taken at an impressionable time in their lives out of the narrow rut of cloistral life, and were associated with the world of scholarship and of affairs; and it will be found that a large proportion of those who were sent to Oxford rose quickly to positions of trust in the Convent. William Colchester remained at Oxford, save for periodical visits to the Abbey, from 1366 to 1370. ”

“ Such duties sensibly performed, William Colchester was not long in attaining to administrative office. To begin with, Abbot Litlington chose him as his Custos Hospicii; i.e. Seneschal or steward of his household. We have the roll on which the young monk gave an account of his stewardship for the year Michaelmas to Michaelmas, 1373-4, and as the doings it records represent his early experience of that conventual business in which he was to be immersed for nearly half a century, we may stay by it for a short space in order to get our impressions. ”

“ I must not describe it at length, but one feature of it, an entry under the head of "pitancie et flacones," is of too great interest to be passed by. Pittances were additional meals on special occasions by way of varying the dreary round of dry bread and sour wine, which alone could be provided in the Refectory. But "flacones" seem to be pancakes, and pancakes are a recognized Westminster institution, though it is no longer the duty of the Convent Treasurer to provide them for his brethren. ”

“ Therefore, my good Lord—asks the Earl—I pray you have these chattels delivered up to my servant. This letter bears no date, and there is no proof that the Archdeacon as such was concerned with the affairs of sanctuary; nor does any title of office accompany the introduction of his name. But the incident was one which bore a legal character and Colchester's part in it may possibly be brought within the vague limits of archidiaconal functions. ”

“ Because the Pope had left, there was no great chance of finding company for the journey; 25 and company meant so much the more security. There was nothing for it but to hire a companion, and he found one Gerard of London, who was willing to face the journey for 20s. and his expenses. Colchester is conscious that this seems an extravagance, but he enters in his account a plea that it was justified by the variety of language and the dangers of the roads in foreign parts. 26 For the road to Dover he bought for himself a horse and saddle which cost 34s. ”

“ The King in this case is Harry of Monmouth, and we are thinking with somewhat mingled feelings that October 25, 1915, brings us to the 500th anniversary of the battle of Agincourt. But it is Henry V.'s Abbot who concerns us now; for in such [11] a scheme of windows the Abbots are more difficult to justify to the ordinary visitor than the monarchs, not because of unworthiness, but because there has been but little effort made to appraise their worth as heads of our ancient house, or as conspicuous figures in their generation. 1
In this case the Abbot is William of Colchester. ”

“ The floor-space, as the centuries following the Reformation were apt to forget, is intended to serve the purposes of public worship. But the large windows of the Nave offer to those who would honour and foster the memory of the great dead a means of fulfilling their desire, and of adorning the fabric at the same time. ”

“ Beaufort was therefore not abroad at the time with Colchester, but was defending his interests at home. But both Colchester and Philip Repingdon, Bishop of Lincoln, were in Italy in 1408. Colchester was at Lucca and Pisa in May, supporting the Cardinals who were struggling with Gregory XII., 91 and his old friend, Bishop Merke, was with him. At Siena, on September 18, Gregory created ten new Cardinals, and one of these was Philip Repingdon. 92 It would be natural that he and Colchester should then meet, possibly travelling homeward together, and being in Cologne on October 10. ”

“ We can thus easily credit the statement of a Westminster chronicler, 56 whom the Dean of Wells believes to have been the rival candidate himself, that, when the vacancy occurred, the King wrote thrice to the Prior and Convent urging them to find their new Abbot in Brother John Lakyngheth, the very Treasurer whom we have seen in the act of paying to William Colchester the sums required for his long journeys and his legal costs, perhaps with a keen satisfaction at [55] thus facilitating his rival's absence. ”

“ When the great man moved about, it was seemingly not with any great train; otherwise it would hardly be necessary for the Seneschal to give 1s. 8d. to a certain man for guiding my lord out of the forest of Rockingham, as if the Abbot were too lonely to face the possible appearance of Robin Hood with equanimity. ”

“ For enemies without and rebels within are confederate in their malicious plots to shatter the peace of the realm. You therefore to whom (under us) belongs the administration of government in our monastery we hereby urge and enjoin that, [71] considering what we say above, you should put a limit upon the Brethren's walks abroad and upon their ridings into distant parts—except of course in the case of the Monk Bailiff—until God grants us more peaceful times. ”

“ But the Sacrist has something to enter on the other side, an offering of £2 from the Countess of March, the lady who craved the aid of the girdle. If any one is churlish enough to say that the bargain seems but a poor one for the Convent—150s. spent on the journey, and only 40s. received from the beneficiary—the answer is that the horses would be sold at the end of the return journey for almost as much as they cost. If, again, it is objected that in any case the lady's gift was money thrown away, it is not so easy to convince the gainsayer. ”

“ The passage, when they obtained one, cost 3s. 4d. each for the men, and double for the horses. At that cost they reached Calais, and within three days were at Bruges, where again there was a long halt. For the royal letters had not come. Edward III. was on his death-bed, and passed away eleven days after our travellers left London. But Colchester is convinced that an enemy had done this, and when he insists that the issue of the letters has been frustrated "per aduersarios," we must remember that the Dean and College of St. Stephen's were closer to the royal ear than our Abbot and Convent. ”

“ Secondly, he begins to be recognized as an experienced person who can safely be sent upon missions involving prudence and the management of men. In the same year, 1371-2, a payment of twenty shillings was made by the Steward of the Abbot's Household for the expenses of William Colchester and two valets who were sent to Northampton for the meeting of the General Chapter of the English Benedictines, probably in attendance on the Abbot of Westminster, who was frequently one of the Presidents of the Chapter. ”

“ On the other hand, he does not so treat the presents he receives from the great ones of the earth. When a stag arrives from Windsor, or a buck from the Baroness Despenser, the cash value of these compliments is not taken into the account; there is merely an acknowledgment that certain recognitions in money have been given to the bearers of the gifts. ”

“ Almost immediately there arose a difficult question about sanctuary, as to which the reader may be again referred to the Polychronicon. 61 Words almost fail the scribe as he pictures the reverence and love of the King for the Church. "There is not a Bishop on the bench," he says, "who displays as much zeal for the Church's rights."
Thus it came to pass that King and Court alike poured upon the Abbey the benefits of their generosity in spite of Colchester's election, and in the case of the Court the gifts came quite as [57] readily from Richard's enemies as from his friends. ”

“ If we may take it that the Abbot's expenditure on his chariot was of the same extent, we have a total outlay of £66, or about £1000 of our money.
Colchester's generally good health began to fail in 1416, and his apothecary was called in to apply various remedies at a fee of 16s. 8d. 102 At home he could still find interest in watching the progress of the New Work, for the north aisle of the nave was being proceeded with and the pillars of the triforium above it were being put in their place. ”

“ Stephen agreeing to pay to the Abbey a yearly sum of five marks, and the right of the Abbot to instal the Dean of St. Stephen's being upheld. 20 What concerns us is that the Abbot and Convent chose William Colchester as their proctor at Rome in this suit, and that by good fortune there survive long statements of his personal and legal costs in carrying out the task laid upon him. They will serve as a guide-book [32] of his journey and will give us considerable insight into his adventures. ”

“ He also provided a horse for the journey to Marseilles, where Colchester was to take ship, and put some money in his scrip. So our Proctor turned his back on Avignon, perhaps not fully realizing that when on August 14, five days before his departure, he and Farnago witnessed the probate of Cardinal Langham's will, 30 he had been concerned with a document which was to have a vast effect on the church and the conventual buildings of St. Peter, Westminster. ”

“ It is not necessary to assume that they were contiguous. "The part of the Garden which belongs to the Lady Chapel" cannot be located with certainty, but the Convent Garden lay in the acres eastward of St. Martin's Church, Charing Cross, which still retain the name, and are now [48] the scene of the sale of garden-produce that is grown elsewhere. Our great chartulary called Domesday 46 shows that the Lady Chapel was given considerable property in this district during the reign of Henry III., under whom the chapel was built. ”

“ So now he converts his balance of 16s. 8d. from sterling into florins, reckoning a florin at 3s. 2d. To this he adds seven florins by the sale of his own horse—a creditable bargain, for, having paid 34s. 8d. for the beast in London, he has ridden it to Bruges, and there parted with it for 22s. 2d. On the other hand, Gerard's horse has turned out badly; the journey has nearly killed it; 28 and it goes for three florins, or 9s. ”

“ The portion of the triforium above his window is also due to Henry III., but in his old age Colchester may well have seen the workmen busy with the erection of the corresponding section of the clerestory.
[60]
VII THE ABBOT AT HOME
As before, if we want to know an Abbot's interests and his manner of life at home, we shall go to the accounts of his stewards or Seneschals. His rent-roll is less than Abbot Litlington's, and there are heavier arrears. The country is greatly unsettled and it is not an easy time for landholders. ”

“ It must be before 1409-10, when John Borewell died. 87 He was in office as Granger, Kitchener, Cellarer, and Gardener almost till his death, and he had been in partnership with Peter Coumbe, as manager of the funds provided for Queen Anne's anniversary, 88 from 1394 to 1399. But who is the Bishop of Lincoln? It is tempting to think of the princely Henry Beaufort, the most potent holder of the see at this period ”

“ Merton Hall, Oxford, 88 Monk-Bailiff, 16 Musicians, Abbot Colchester's favour to, 67 f. Nave, the New Work in, 58 f., 63, 80 f., 84 Neyte, la, mansion of, 52, 62, 64, 66 Northampton, 22, 69, 80, 86 Organs at Westminster, 68 Oxford, Benedictine students at, 19, 26; "Gaudies" at, 66; Merton Hall, 88 Pampeluna, Cardinal of, 38 Pancakes, monks', 27 ff. Percyvale, Master, King's musician, 68 Pershore, 63 Pestilence, Great, 19 Peuerel, Thomas, monk, 85 Poets' Corner, 11 f. Polo, Marco, Book of, 50 Polychronicon, 55 n., 56 Pyrford, manor of, 62, 66, 68, 79 Rackham, Rev. R. B., 81 n., 84 n. ”

“ Reigate, 76 Repingdon, Philip, Bishop of Lincoln, 79 Richard II., 12, 14, 28, 53-58, 66, 68, 70, 74-76, 87 Robinson, Dr. J. Armitage, Dean of Wells, 10, 32 n., 52 n., 53 n., 54, 72, 83 Rome, 31, 33, 37-43, 80, 88 Romescot, collection of, 79 Rouen, capture of, 85 Sacrist, 23, 63, 71 St. Edmundsbury, Abbot of, 82 St. John Baptist, chapel of, 86 St. Margaret, Westminster, parish of, 71 St. Peter ad Vincula, feast of, 68 St. Stephen's, Westminster, Dean and Canons of, 30 ff., 43 Salisbury, William de Montacute, Earl of, 44 f. Sanctuary, 39, 45 Sandon, John, monk, 65, 67 Scott, Dr. ”