A HISTORY OF NORFOLK Thomas Thorp/ 1461 Thomas Gregg,- 1 485-1 503 Robert Botyld alias Wyndham,' 1 503 There is a cast of the pointed oval seal of this house (2 in. by I4 in.) of thirteenth-century date at the British Museum. The seated Virgin bears the Holy Child on the left knee. On each side are three cherubs. Legend : — SIGILL ECCE SCE MARIE DE HIK.EL * 29. THE PRIORY OF GREAT MASSINGHAM A small Austin priory, dedicated to the honour of the Blessed Virgin and afterwards to SS. Mary and Nicholas, was founded at Great Massingham before 1260, probably by Nicholas le Syre of Massingham. The house was originally termed a hospital, and was doubtless chiefly intended for the relief of the poor, but the master being termed a prior, and the house being placed under the Austin rule, it was also correctly designated a priory. It continued, however, to be referred to occasionally as a hospital and its prior as the warden at least as late as 1405 ' ; and in 1395 it is even called ' the king's Domus Dei ' of Massingham, when John Wilton, who had faith- fully served the late king but was now incapaci- tated through leprosy, was sent there to be sustained.* In 1260 Nicholas de Massingham granted to the Prior William of the hospital of St. Mary of Massingham, a messuage and mill and two carucates of land in Great and Little Massing- ham, together with 5^. rent and a furlong of heath, with all homages and services, on condi- tion of the hospital paying the donor an annuity of ;^I5 for life, and annuities of ^5 and six marks respectively to his brother John and his sister Joan.' The house had but a small endowment. The taxation roll of 1291 shows that it had posses- •sions in six Norfolk parishes, and that its annual >yalue was ^^ 1 8 2s. On 12 May, 1293, the prior and brethren of tlie hospital of St. Mary, Great Massingham, obtained licence to hold, of the gift of John Lamberd and others, twenty-five acres of land in Massingham.* In April, 1302, the prior and convent of the hospital obtained licence to enclose a path below their convent on the west side for the enlargement of their buildings.' ' Blomefield, Hist. ofNorf. ix, 305. ' Ibid. He is called the twenty-first prior by the chronicler. ' Ibid.
- B.M. Ixix, 25 ; Ackn. of Supr. (P.R.O.), 63.
' Pat. 6 Hen. IV, pt. I, m. 15. ' Ibid. iS Ric. II, pt. i,m. 21. ' Fin. Norf. 44 Hen. Ill, 33.
- Pat. 21 Edw. I, m. 17.
- Ibid. 30 Edw. I, m. 23.
For several years the priory received a great many small gifts of lands from the inhabitants of Massingham, a clear proof that its services were valued. Edward II, in 131 3, granted a licence to the prior and convent of Great Massingham, to acquire in mortmain lands and rents to the value of j^io a year.'" On 22 July of the same year in part satisfaction of this licence, Simon Knout assigned to the priory 6 acres and 3 roods of land in Massingham ; Avice, late wife of GeoiFrey Bartelot, and Reginald her son 2 j acres; Margery and Basilia Chamberleyn, I acre ; Felicia de Narford, a moiety of an acre ; Robert and Emma Cat, 3 roods ; Katherine Bryghtlet, a rood ; and William de Whitewelle, 35J. j^d. of rent. In August, 131 5, there was an additional alienation of ii|^ acres of land in Massingham to the priory, on payment of half a mark.'^ In October, 1329, sixteen other persons alienated small plots of lands in Massingham to the priory (here termed hospital) of the united yearly value of 13^. /^dP In 1335 eleven others granted somewhat larger plots of the annual value of 24^. 2j(/.," and the advowson of the church of St. Mary, Warham, with ^d. of rent was given to the priory in 1339, by Katherine, widow of Walter de Norwich, and John her son.'* On 18 February, 1299, the king signified to the bishop of Norwich the royal assent to the election of brother Geoffrey de Fakenham, cellarer of the house of SS. Mary and Nicholas, Massingham, to be prior of that house, he having been presented by the sub-prior and brethren to the king as patron by reason of the knights' fees and advowsons of churches, late of Richard, son of John, deceased, tcnant-in-chief, being in his hands.'^ John de Lenn was instituted to the priory by the bishop in 1325 ; the royal assent had on this occasion also to be obtained, as the patronage was in the king's hands, by reason of the forfei- ture of Thomas de Weyland." The buildings of this small priory being much decayed, and its emoluments so small, the bishop's licence was obtained in 1475 to unite it to the priory of West Acre. It was therefore re- established as a cell of West Acre, and maintained two canons and two poor brethren.'* There is an elaborate survey and rental of the possessions of Massingham priory at Candlemas, 1540, at the Public Record Office, covering twelve closely written folios." The house is '" Ibid. 6 Edw. II, pt. ii, m. 1 2. " Cal. of Pat. 7 Edw. II, pt. i, m. 1 8. " Ibid. " Ibid. » Ibid. '^ Ibid. '= Ibid. Pat. 17 9 Edw. II, pt. i, m. 25. 3 Edw. Ill, pt. ii, m. 18. 9 Edw. Ill, pt. ii, m. 9. 13 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 9. 27 Edw. I, m. 36. 18 Edw. II, pt. ii, m. 16. 386 ■' Norf. Epis. Reg. Gold well. fol. 221. '^ Rentals and Surv. portf. xxiv, 4.
