Precentors

LIST 3 PRECENTORS

PRECENTORY

By the early 16th cent. the precentory was endowed with rents from demesne land at Tupsley, with the rectory of Walford, the chapel of Ruardean (Glos.), and with portions of the churches of Sevenhampton (Glos.), Ross on Wye, Ledbury, Tupsley, Barton, Hampton Bishop, Shelwick, Bosbury, Whitbourne, Portfield, Bishops Frome, Bromyard, Upton Bishop, Sugwas, Cradley, Eastnor, Barton in Colwall and St Devereux, with a total net value of £21 19s 5d (Valor III 7a-8a; all places in Herefs. unless stated). Apart from Ruardean, these places had belonged to the church of Hereford since before 1066 (DB I fos. 181c-182d). The points at which they became specifically attached to the precentory are not clear, but certainly the prec. enjoyed a share in the demesne tithes of Sevenhampton by the 1160s (EEA VII no. 121) and, by c. 1291, two mills at Tupsley worth £5, 22 acres at Tupsley worth 11s (Taxatio p. 169a-b), and portions in the churches of Whitbourne and Ledbury (Taxatio p. 160a-b).

PRECENTORS

Robert

Occ. as cantor 1132, before 27 June (EEA VII no. 55) and 28 June 1131 × 1137, perhaps 1134 (ibid. no. 15); cf. MB p. 267. Perhaps identifiable with the Robert, canonicus et sacerdos, who was commem. 19 Oct. (app. 1 fo. 41r). See also Robert the treas. (list 4).

William

Occ. as cantor 1131 × 1142, prob. Dec. 1139 (Cart. Sandford I 50). The name William may perhaps be an error for Gilbert (see following item).

Gilbert

Occ. as cantor 1143 × March 1148 (EEA VII no. 26, before Robert de Béthune's departure for Rheims), 1144 (ibid. no. 47), 16 July 1147 × March 1148 (ibid. no. 23, after William of Wycombe had ceased to be prior of Llanthony, in which office he last occ. 16 July 1147), c. 1150 × 1155 (GFL no. 317), and 1154 × 1155 (Reading Cartularies I 264, no. 327). Commem. as prec. 17 Dec. (app. 1 fo. 51v). See also Brooke and Brooke p. 10.

Reginald

May previously have been treas. (list 4). First occ. as cantor c.1155 × 1158 (GFL no. 313); last dated occ. 2 Oct. 1172 (cart. St Guthlac fos. 15v, 108r). He witnesses a ch. issued prob. by bp. Robert Foliot (as opposed to bp. Robert of Melun) which can be dated 6 Oct. 1174 × 13 Aug. 1178 (EEA VII no. 125). All references to Reginald in this dignity except for his obit notice give his title as cantor rather than prec. Commem. 23 Feb., as prec. (app. 1 fo. 7r), which suggests that he d. in office; the date of his d. is unknown.

? Richard

A Richard, chapl. and prec., was commem. 10 Jan. (app. 1 fo. l). He cannot be more closely identified and may perhaps have held the dignity of prec. at some point between the mid 1170s and the mid 1180s. It is, however, possible that he held the office of cantor in the early 12th cent.

William Foliot (fn. 1)

Occ. previously as can. (list 36). Was not made prec. until after the start of William de Vere's episcopate, since he and the future dean Richard Brito both witness, as cans., EEA VII no. 203. Occ. as prec. 10 Aug. 1186 × 24 Dec. 1198 (ibid. no. 182), Apr. 1195 × 24 Dec. 1198 (ibid. no. 201), and 24 Sept. 1200 × 30 Nov. 1201 (ibid. no. 260). William Foliot's last definite occ. as prec. was 2 Oct. 1205, without surname, but in the company of his successor in office, William of Kilpeck (cart. St Guthlac fo. 108v, issued by prior Henry of St Guthlac's temp. Henry abbot of Gloucester). Commem. 27 March (app. 1 fo. 11 v); d. in any year between 1206 and 1215 inclusive. The William prec. who occ. 30 Nov. 1201 × 1207, prob. late in that period (EEA VII no. 266), could be either William Foliot or William of Kilpeck; so too could the William prec. who was one of the addressees of a letter of Gerald of Wales of 1210 × 1211 (Giraldus Cambrensis, Speculum Duorum, ed. Y. Lefèvre et al. (Cardiff, 1974) pp. xl, 160), though the former is perhaps slightly more likely, since he was a friend of Gerald (Gir. Cambr. 1 268-71).

William of Kilpeck (fn. 2)

William prob. became prec. before the d. of bp. Giles de Braose (17 Nov. 1215), since Giles conf. a gr. made by William the prec. to Walter Walensis (EEA VII no. 286), who is more likely to have been a brother of William of Kilpeck than of William Foliot (a brother of the latter, unless he were a uterine brother or illegitimate, would presumably have borne the surname Foliot). William of Kilpeck appears to have acquired his by-name through being chapl. of Kilpeck (EEA VII no. 289). He cannot have become prec. before 27 March 1206, and his earliest occs. in the office cannot be more closely dated than 27 March 1206 × Feb. 1216 (Hereford ch. no. 799, pd. Gloucester Original Acta no. 37, where the limiting dates are given as 1205 × 1215; cart. St Guthlac fo. 15v, nos. 1 and 2, all issued while Hugh de Mapenore was dean). William's last occ. as prec. was 27 Oct. 1219 (cart. II fo. 135v); commem. 14 June (app. 1 fo. 22v) and therefore d. no earlier than 1220 and no later than 1223 (see next item). (See also list 36).

M. Thomas Foliot (fn. 3)

Occ. first as can. (list 36, under M. Thomas Foliot I). Also can. of Lichfield (Cart. Dunstable no. 168; Innocent III, Cal. Letters no. 846; Sayers, Judges-Del. p. 329). He occ. first as prec. 29 Nov. 1223 (Magnum Registrum Album no. 464). Curiously he occ. without the title prec. in 1224 (Curia Regis Rolls XI 316 refers to him as M. Thomas Foliot and therefore it cannot be a reference to his contemporary, the Thomas Foliot who was rector of Westbury). Thomas witnesses bp. Hugh Foliot's acta fairly frequently as prec. He became treas. between 30 Aug. 1230 and 7 Aug. 1234 (list 4).

M. Robert of Ewerby (fn. 4)

Prob. identifiable with the Robert of Ewerby presented to the church of Ewerby (Lincs.) by the prior and cans. of Kyme ?1209 × 1219 (Rot. Welles I 43) and who had evidently res. the church by 1224 × 1225, when it was again vac. (ibid. III 138); rector of Balsham, Cambs. 1225 (CPR 1216-25 p. 588); prob. also identifiable with the M. Robert de Ywarbi who witnesses Waltham Charters no. 196 (a ch. concerning Shudy Camps in Cambs., issued before 1230, perhaps before 1211). Official of bp. of Ely 26 Jan. 1223/4 (Guildhall, St Paul's MS 25121/864, previously St Paul's A/23/864, with copy in BL Harley MS 6956 fo. 136r) and temp. bp. John (Ely Liber M pp. 168 (iterata), 170, 173; Cart. Mon. Rameseia II 185; cf. Biog. Camb. p. 668). His first dated occ. as prec. of Hereford is 30 Nov. 1233 (CPR 1234-47 p. 34); also occ. as prec. 1231 × 7 Aug. 1234 (Hereford ch. no. 1390, before the d. of bp. Hugh Foliot), and 2 Apr. 1234 (Early Charters of St Paul's, ed. M. Gibbs (Camden 3rd series lviii, 1939) p. 142, no. 182). He occ. as one of the executors of N[icholas] de Bréauté 4 June 1238 (Rot. Grosseteste p. 314; for Nicholas, see Acta of Guala no. 66). Robert is prob. the unnamed prec. of Hereford who occ. 30 Sept. 1236 and 10 Aug. 1240 (Close Rolls 1234-7 p. 509, and ibid. 1237-42 p. 213). Commem., as prec., 19 July (app. 1 fo. 27r). See also Biog. Camb. p. 668.

M. Aimeric of Aigueblanche (fn. 5)

Occ. as prec. 24 June 1249 (cart. II fo. 24r, with mag. title) and July 1254 (Hereford ch. no. 1945); occ. as prec., with mag. title, 15 Oct. 1256 (ibid. no. 1950), and frequently 1257-8 (ibid. nos. 291, 1347, 1958, 1860-1, 1963-5, 1969- 70, 2917-19); gr. of safe conduct to, going beyond the seas, 12 June 1264 (CPR 1258-66 p. 324); occ., without prec. title, as guardian of the bpric. of Hereford, 8 July 1264 (ibid. p. 332); became chanc. before 20 Dec. 1270 (see next item and list 5).

Aymo of Aigueblanche (fn. 6)

Occ. in company with M. Aimeric of Aigueblanche, by now chanc., 20 Dec. 1270 (Hereford ch. no. 2867); given simple protection 18 Feb. 1271 (CPR 1266- 72 p. 519). Commem., as prec., 19 Sept. (app. 1 fo. 37r); evidently d. 1271 (see next item).

Hervey of Boreham (fn. 7)

Archdcn. of Shropshire Aug. 1271 (list 7); occ. as prec. 25 March 1272 (Reg. Swinfield p. 163), 18 May 1272 (Westminster Domesday fo. 287v), 12 Dec. 1272 (J. Dart, The History and Antiquities of the Cathedral Church of Canterbury and the Once-Adjoining Monastery (1726) app. no. iv) and 1271 × 1274 (Reg. Swinfield p. 57 and WAM no. 15164). Occ. without dignity and without surname, as absent can., 24 June 1273 (Capes, Charters p. 138). El. dean of St Paul's 1274 (1 Fasti I 8) but did not immediately relinquish the precentorship, and so was ordered to appear before bp. Thomas de Cantilupe for plurality of benefices 13 Aug. 1275 (Reg. Cantilupe p. 88). D. 1276, before 19 Nov. 1276 (see next item). Preb. of Ewithington (list 15).

M. William de Montfort (fn. 8)

Coll. to precentorship by bp. Thomas de Cantilupe 19 Nov. 1276 in succession to Hervey of Boreham (Reg. Cantilupe p. 111). Vicarius of bp. of Hereford 23 Aug. 1282 (Reg. Pecham II 168). Also archdcn. of Shropshire (dioc. of Lichfield) 1283 to d. and preb. of Lichfield (Biog. Ox. II 1297-8). El. dean of St Paul's 31 Oct. 1285 (1 Fasti I 8), but retained the precentorship at Hereford and the preb. of Inkberrow in Hereford cath. (list 21). Can. of Lincoln 1291-4 (1 Fasti III 96). D. 22 Sept. 1294 (ibid.).

M. John de Swinfield (fn. 9)

Previously archdcn. of Shropshire and then treas. (lists 4, 7); coll. to precentorship 29 Jan. 1294 (Reg. Swinfield p. 529); presumably the unnamed prec. who occ. as resident can. 29 Sept. 1295 (Capes, Charters p. 169); mag. by 1304 (Bodl. Library Record VII 160); still prec. in 1311, but his successor first occ. in that year (2 Fasti II 8; cf. Bodl. Library Record VII 160). Preb. of Putson Major and Withington Parva (lists 31, 35).