Lincoln cathedral

LINCOLN CATHEDRAL

It was probably about the year 1078 that William I moved the see of Dorchester to Lincoln, (fn. 1) and granted to Bishop Remigius sufficient land to build 'the mother church of all the bishopric of Lincoln.' (fn. 2) The cathedral was completed within the lifetime of the first bishop, who died, however, four days before its consecration in 1092. (fn. 3) The charter which was granted to Remigius by William II in 1090 makes no provision for the constitution of the capitular body, (fn. 4) but Henry of Huntingdon, writing almost at this date, mentions a dean, treasurer, precentor and two other important members of the chapter, one of whom was presumably the chancellor, and seven archdeacons. (fn. 5) John de Schalby writing from extant documents in the fourteenth century states further that there were twenty-one prebends attached to the original foundation. (fn. 6) The early historians of Lincoln believed that the Rouen tradition was followed in the constitution of their church, (fn. 7) but it seems probable that the great secular foundations of England were largely influenced by the cathedral of Bayeux, with which they had in early days a close connexion both personal and constitutional. (fn. 8)

So true it is that the cathedral body was originally the council of the bishop, that for more than a century it is difficult to differentiate between episcopal and capitular history. The immediate successors of Remigius were munificent benefactors. Robert Bloett doubled the number of prebends, endowing the church with rich gifts of lands and vestments, and Alexander 'the magnificent' continued this policy, though the Lincoln historian complains that he dissipated the wealth of his church by building castles and monasteries. (fn. 9) A few valuable acquisitions are also attributed to Robert de Chesney, but John de Schalby accuses him of nepotism and of alienating a prebend to the order of Sempringham. (fn. 10) His want of foresight as a ruler is proved by his decree freeing the church and prebends of Lincoln from all episcopal jurisdiction, (fn. 11) a step which involved one of the greatest of his successors in what was perhaps the most serious difficulty of his episcopate.

Of the years between 1167 and 1183 there is little to record. It was a period of confusion throughout the diocese and it is probable that the cathedral shared the general disorder. (fn. 12) With the consecration of Bishop Hugh of Grenoble, however, came a revival of spiritual zeal and constitutional growth. He was zealous for the spiritual efficiency of his canons and absolutely refused either to allow them to be employed as ambassadors, or to bestow prebends upon royal nominees, courtiers, foreign students, or clerks of any other cathedral church who were unlikely to observe the required residence; (fn. 13) he also issued a charter empowering the dean and chapter to force all canons whose prebendal work obliged them to non-residence to provide vicars to represent them in the services of the church. (fn. 14)

Induced probably by disorders consequent on the confusion from which his cathedral had just emerged, he gave licence to the dean and chapter to excommunicate anyone who unjustly withheld the dues of the communa, (fn. 15) or inflicted any injury on the tenants or possessions, of the church, (fn. 16) and further forbade the archdeacons to remove such excommunication without orders from the bishop or chapter. He was a vigorous opponent of anything which tended to isolate the cathedral body from the rest of the diocese, and the letter in which he exhorted the dean and chapter to encourage the parochial clergy to bring their people and their oblations to the annual Pentecostal procession at Lincoln, though undoubtedly prompted by financial needs, is full of indignation at the apathy of the capitular body with regard to the general indifference of the diocese to the claims of the cathedral upon their affections. (fn. 17)

Apart from the question of the quarrel with Grosteste the thirteenth century seems to have been a time of quiet progress. At this period the customs of the church, both constitutional and ritualistic, were committed to writing, (fn. 18) and the endowments of the cathedral were largely increased by Bishop Gravesend, (fn. 19) who also made provision for the choristers, hitherto supported by the alms of the canons. Oliver Sutton increased the daily commons of the canons from 8 d. to 12d., (fn. 20) and at his instigation the dean and chapter did much to provide for the decency and order of the cathedral and community life. A chapel was built for the parishioners of St. Mary Magdalen, on the site of whose original church the cathedral stood, and who had accordingly hitherto used the west end of the nave as their parish church, to the great disturbance of the regular services. (fn. 21) In 1285 licence was obtained from the king to enclose the cathedral precinct by a wall 12 ft. high, with gates to be closed at dusk and opened before sunrise, for the better safety of the canons from night attacks in passing from their houses to service. (fn. 22) It was also determined that in future the 'poor clerks' who served the altars should live together in one house; (fn. 23) and after the completion of the new wall the bishop enjoined the dean and chapter to build a house for the vicars choral, 'seeing that for the most part solitude is the occasion of all evils amongst them.' (fn. 24)

Thus by the close of the thirteenth century the cathedral had reached in all essentials the constitution which it was to retain throughout the middle ages. The chapter consisted of the dean, chancellor, treasurer and precentor, the sub-dean, the eight archdeacons, and the simple canons. (fn. 25) Every member occupied an endowed prebendal stall to which he was appointed by the bishop and installed by the dean. Chapter meetings were as a rule attended by canons in residence only, but upon great occasions every member of the chapter might with the consent of the residentiaries be summoned. At such full meetings as these the dean was, nominally at least, elected. (fn. 26)

Outside the capitular body, but next in importance to the canons, came the vicars choral; these were the deputies in choir of such canons as were non-resident or only kept the minor residence of seventeen weeks and four days in the year. (fn. 27) The exact date of their institution cannot be determined, but the dignitaries appear to have had vicars early in the twelfth century, (fn. 28) and St. Hugh's decree probably merely systematised an existing custom. They were divided into two 'forms'—seniors in priests' orders, and juniors being deacons, sub-deacons, or acolytes. (fn. 29) Before admission they were presented to the dean and chapter by their prebendaries, subjected to examination in reading and singing, and if competent admitted to two years' probation, during which they had to learn by heart the antiphonal hymnal and psalter. They lived a collegiate life under two elected provosts, and received fixed salaries over and above their share in the commons of their society; they were also protected by statute from arbitrary dismissal on the return of their prebendary to residence. (fn. 30) Their number of course varied with the number of non-resident canons; in 1349 there were eight, in 1437 there seem to have been as many as thirty-six, (fn. 31) and in 1440 they were sufficiently important to be constituted a legal corporation. (fn. 32)

Junior to the vicars were the poor clerks who served the altars. Their appointments occur in the first extant chapter acts of the fourteenth century. About that time they were five in number, and from an entry of the year 1492 they appear to have ranged in age from nineteen to twenty-four, and throughout the fifteenth century they were frequently exhorted to be more diligent in their attendance at the schools. Last of the organized groups of the cathedral body were the choristers. These under Gravesend's ordinance numbered twelve, and lived together in one house with a master at their head, and under the general control of the precentor. The boys were to be admitted by the dean and chapter, who were also to appoint the master and a canon to oversee his administration. (fn. 33)

The chapter acts also contain mention of chantry priests and brethren and sisters. The former seem to have been of about the same standing as the vicars, but that they were not themselves necessarily vicars is proved by the fact that about the year 1349 five priests are mentioned apart from the eight vicars. The brethren were generally people of some rank or wealth who took an oath of fealty to the cathedral, and were admitted as partakers in the benefits of its prayers. In the fourteenth century Richard II and his queen, Henry earl of Derby, afterwards King Henry IV, (fn. 34) Philippa Chaucer and Sir Henry Percy were all solemnly admitted as brethren or sisters, and in the fifteenth century there were a large number of such admissions, including merchants of Lincoln and a prioress of Stainfield. (fn. 35)

As was usual in the middle ages the power of the cathedral was further enhanced by royal concessions at the expense of the central and municipal government. Henry II granted to the dean and chapter and ail their servants a long list of franchises and the right to hold a court, called the Galilee Court, weekly for residents and daily for non-residents, to hear all pleas within the limits of the close, both pleas of the crown and others. These extensive liberties naturally became a source of dispute with the city, but the church made good its claim (fn. 36) and there are records of suits in the court held 'at the west door of the church in the porch called the Galilee porch' throughout the middle ages. (fn. 37) In the quarrels of the fifteenth century one of the complaints urged against the dean was that he allowed suits which should have been judged in the Galilee Court to be brought before the royal courts. (fn. 38) A steward of the Galilee Court occurs as late as 1793. (fn. 39)

That so important and well-organized a body should be free from all exterior control, as under Bishop Chesney's decree it must have been, involved such a menace to the welfare of the church as could not be allowed to pass unchallenged, and already in the first half of the thirteenth century Grosteste had fought and won the battle of authority. He had himself been a canon of Lincoln, (fn. 40) and it may be that personal knowledge led him to believe that some definite exterior control was needful. He was opposed not only by his own chapter, who, it is said, openly regretted having raised a man of so low birth to a position of such authority, (fn. 41) but by all the exempt ecclesiastical foundations of England and by the bishops themselves, who feared that Grosteste's triumph might be used as a precedent in a case then pending as to the right of the archbishop of Canterbury to visit the sees of his province. (fn. 42)

The course of the struggle is not easy to follow, but it would seem that the dean and chapter showed signs of revolt at the first suggestion of episcopal visitation, and in consequence Grosteste obtained a licence from the pope, in January, 1239, to carry out his intention. (fn. 43) By the following Whitsuntide the canons had sent a proctor to represent their case at Rome, (fn. 44) and when the bishop gave notice that he should visit the cathedral on 18 October, 'convocatis . . . per decanum et capitulum omnibus canonicis in crastino Sanctae Fidis in capitulo Lincolniae, et habito super praedictis tractatu die Dominica proxime sequente ad pulpitum in ecclesiae Lincolniae, accepta a populo publice licentia adeundi sedem Apostolicam et interpositis appellationibus propter injurias quas eis, ut dixerunt, faciebam et facere conabar,' the cathedral dignitaries and many of the other canons set out at once for Rome, and sent letters to all the chapters of England, inciting them against Grosteste. When the bishop reached Lincoln for his visitation the whole cathedral body absented itself; but, hearing that he had been summoned to meet the archbishop of Canterbury on 3 November, the dean and chapter, instead of pursuing their journey to Rome, waited for him in London.

The bishop was in doubt whether or not to suspend and excommunicate the contumacious canons, but after various proposals of arbitration, (fn. 45) it was finally decided to ask the pope to entrust the cause to the bishop of Worcester and the archdeacons of Worcester and Sudbury. (fn. 46) In January of the following year Gregory IX issued a commission to the bishop of Worcester, the archdeacon of Worcester, and the abbot of Evesham, bidding them exhort the dean and chapter to obedience, and, failing that, to hear and judge the cause themselves. (fn. 47) It would seem probable that the pope issued this mandate on his own initiative as soon as he realised the gravity of the quarrel, for three months later the cause was committed to the arbitrators chosen at London by the contending parties. (fn. 48) There seems to be no evidence as to what took place under their jurisdiction, but there is reason to believe that a second meeting was held between the bishop and the canons at the end of 1240 or early in 1241, when the chapter swore to a new form of procedure. (fn. 49) It may have been on this occasion that Richard de Kirkham was chosen to be associated with the bishop of Worcester as arbitrator. (fn. 50) Certainly he was an active judge during the autumn of 1241 and the early part of the year 1242, (fn. 51) and proved himself to be of an independent spirit; for, in spite of the fact that he was appointed at the request of the canons, he did not hesitate to suspend several members of the chapter when they persuaded the king, by means of a forged history of their foundation, to remove the suit from the ecclesisiastical to the secular courts. (fn. 52) It was by such expedients that the suit was prolonged throughout the years 1242 and 1243. At the end of the latter year the dean and chapter appealed from the decision of the bishop of Worcester to the pope, and the case was referred to fresh judges by Innocent IV. (fn. 53) At length, in 1244, the bishop and the dean both sought the pope at Lyons, and on 25 August, 1245, a judgement was obtained. (fn. 54) It is usually said that the pope's decision was entirely in favour of Grosteste, and it has been insinuated that the bishop induced the dean to consent to the arrangement by securing his promotion to the see of Coventry. In defence of Grosteste it may be urged, however, that though the right of visitation was secured to him, the other points of his contention, as mentioned in the pope's award, were given in favour of the canons. (fn. 55) Moreover, the papal authority had from the first been inclined to favour the bishop, (fn. 56) and Dean Roger de Weseham, as Grosteste's own nominee, appointed on the deprivation of William de Tournay, would hardly have required a bribe. (fn. 57) Further, though the canons in 1243 refused to accept an arrangement with the bishop made by the dean without procuratorial authority, (fn. 58) their confidence in the latter must certainly have been restored before they employed him as their representative at Lyons; and the fact that Matthew Paris, always a severe critic of Grosteste, records Dean Roger's promotion with approval (fn. 59) ought in itself to be sufficient to dispel any remaining suspicion.

In the absence of evidence in favour of the dean and chapter it is impossible to determine on whose side justice is to be found. All that is known of Grosteste's character makes it hardly possible to doubt that he only engaged in this unseemly strife because he felt that a grave principle was at stake; his letters, moreover, are full of affection for the dean and chapter, and he asserted repeatedly that no one could be more anxious for peace than he was himself, but it must be a true peace to bring satisfaction. (fn. 60) Again, though the canons probably based their claim to exemption upon de Chesney's charter in all good faith, it is difficult to find any excuse for the means which they employed to prolong the suit; and even if Grosteste were wrong in the motives to which he attributed their frequent visits to the king, the absurd forgery of the re-foundation story, and their protest against Richard de Kirkham's right to suspend the sub-dean and chancellor, must be pronounced unworthy. At the same time it should be remembered that contemporary opinion for the most part blamed the bishop for persisting in his claim, and even Adam Marsh wrote in remonstrance, reminding his friend that the divine command bids masters strive to inspire love rather than fear. (fn. 61)

The rest of Grosteste's episcopate passed in peace for the dean and chapter, but on the death of the bishop the cathedral body were obliged to defend their privileges against the archbishop of Canterbury, who claimed the guardianship of the property of the see during vacancy. (fn. 62) The dispute was settled in favour of the canons in May, 1261. (fn. 63)

The fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries were marked by a constitutional struggle if possible more unedifying than that of the thirteenth. At the root of the matter lay the frequent absence or non-residence of the deans. Though bound by oath to reside, it was always possible for them to obtain licence from the pope to be absent for periods of greater or less duration; this was sometimes obtained on the plea of being engaged in the king's service, sometimes in order to go on pilgrimage or to study at some foreign university, and once, in the case of John de Schepey, in order to avoid the expense of maintaining a household both at Lincoln and on his prebendal estate. (fn. 64) This condition of affairs gave rise to a quarrel between dean and chapter as to whether the authority which the dean was in the habit of exercising in chapter, in the matter of visitation, correction, sequestration of vacant prebends, and presentation of vicars and chaplains, was really his by virtue of his dignity as dean or by virtue of his position as head and therefore agent of the chapter.

The first recorded occasion of dispute was in 1312, when Roger de Martival and the canons referred the case to Bishop John Dalderby. (fn. 65) The arguments on both sides have been preserved at considerable length by John de Schalby, who conducted the case for the chapter. (fn. 66) They are characteristically mediaeval in their dialectical form and somewhat far-fetched deductions, but there can be little doubt that the bishop, in pronouncing in favour of joint authority, correctly interpreted the spirit of the constitution. (fn. 67) With the next dean, Henry de Mammesfeld, similar difficulties arose, with regard both to the right to present chaplains to the; altar of St. Peter (fn. 68) and the right to visit prebendal churches without consulting the chapter. In 1324 the sub-dean went so far as to order the succentor to record and report the exact length of the dean's absence upon his unsanctioned visitation, in order that his share of the commons might be deducted, since he was away purely on his own authority and for his personal advantage. (fn. 69)

The friction increased under the succeeding deans. In 1332, when Anthony Bek was abroad, the sub-dean and chapter denied the right of his vicar-general to appoint vicars to two prebendaries also out of England. (fn. 70) No clear account of the dispute seems to be extant, but apparently the dean adhered to his position. An appeal was made to Rome, and the case ultimately referred to the prior of Warter. (fn. 71) No decision, however, was reached before Bek was promoted to the see of Norwich, and the suit was prolonged under his successor, William of Norwich. Talliata, the papal auditor, gave judgement unreservedly in favour of the dean, and on the appeal of the chapter this sentence was confirmed, with a proviso that in case of the dean's continued absence or neglect the sub-dean and chapter might act. (fn. 72) That the chapter were determined not to acquiesce in any such decision is clear from the fact that in 1341 they repudiated the conciliatory attitude of their proctor at Rome. (fn. 73) In spite, however, of the firmness of their resistance, and a favourable judgement given by the archbishop of Canterbury in March, 1343-4, (fn. 74) they were still unsatisfied, and on the eve of Dean William's promotion to the episcopate both the sub-dean and the chapter wrote to him, imploring him to make the desired concessions before it was too late. The bishop also wrote in the same strain, and the chapter addressed two letters to the pope, speaking of the evils caused by the absence of the dean, and desiring him to provide some one who would be willing to reside personally. (fn. 75)

The decree of the papal auditor was not reversed, but the whole question seems to have remained in abeyance for some forty or fifty years when it was revived under Dean Schepey. In December, 1403, Boniface IX made a statute that in future the right of visitation should belong to the dean, sub-dean, and chapter conjointly. (fn. 76) This was nominally done by the pope 'ex mero motu et ad nullius alterius instanciam' on account of the confusion in the prebendal churches arising from the cessation of all visitation for the last forty years; but it is evident that Dean Schepey had already revived the old claims, for in the same month Henry IV committed the case to the bishop of Lincoln, hearing that 'Master John Schapeye, dean of Lincoln, is striving to infringe certain ancient customs of the chapter.' (fn. 77) Four years later the king ordered that the statute of Pope Boniface should be observed, and forbade the dean to remove the case from the jurisdiction of the bishop of Lincoln to the Court of Christianity. (fn. 78) In March, 1405-6, however, on Schepey's appeal Innocent VII confirmed the decision of Peter Fabri, (fn. 79) and in the winter of 1407-8 the case was once more committed to a papal auditor, and the archbishop of Canterbury and English bishops forbidden to take further action in the matter. (fn. 80) From this time, however, the bishops of Lincoln seem more and more to have considered the case as one affecting the internal discipline of the cathedral body, and as thus coming within their own jurisdiction. In 1410 Bishop Repingdon on his visitation ordered that the statutes should be written out and put in a place where all could see them, and in 1415, after the death of Schepey, Dean Macworth was peremptorily reminded that his oath of office bound him to residence. (fn. 81) Fragments also remain of an award pronounced by the bishop some time between 1412 and 1420, (fn. 82) but apparently without effect, for in 1421 the dean and chapter promised adherence to a decision delivered by Bishop Flemyng in the presence of the king, whereby the dean was to be allowed to convoke the chapter under his own name and seal for triennial visitations, but the chapter were to appoint two canons with whose advice the dean was to administer correction; in the absence of the dean the sub-dean or other president of the chapter was to act. (fn. 83)

Such a judgement was not calculated to satisfy the chapter; and, though they seem to have acquiesced in it for the time being, (fn. 84) in 1433 they once more appealed against Macworth both to Rome and to Canterbury, and the bishop of Lincoln issued an inhibition against the dean and ordered him to appear before him in chapter. (fn. 85) The quarrel was how complicated by the existence of what appear to have been real abuses on both sides; each accused the other of having failed to observe the award in the matter of jurisdiction, but the dean added grave charges of misappropriation of revenues on the part of the canons, and the chapter accused the dean of offences against ritual and custom, of abuse of patronage, and of the betrayal of chapter secrets to seculars. (fn. 86)

Bishop Gray's compromise pronounced in August, 1434, was strongly in favour of the canons, and in December Macworth asserted that he had not assented and would not assent to it without better consideration. (fn. 87) In these circumstances the quarrel dragged on for another two years, (fn. 88) and in 1437 Bishop Alnwick, who had lately been translated from Norwich, came to visit his cathedral and found a deplorable state of division and confusion. He visited again in March, 1437-8, and in June, 1439, having annulled his predecessor's pronouncement as lacking authority, he summoned a chapter to establish his own award and to draw up a book of customs. (fn. 89)

The award of Bishop Alnwick, unlike those of his predecessors, bears the impress of the hand of the statesman. He gave judgement in favour of joint jurisdiction, but he also pronounced against numerous abuses which were rife amongst the canons, and he saved the dignity of the dean by ignoring all complaints which were merely personal or irremediable. At first Macworth appeared to be submissive; both he and the chapter accepted the award, and at the bishop's suggestion decided that it would be well to compile a complete book of cathedral statutes to take the place of the fragmentary and in part unwritten customs which were all that had hitherto existed; (fn. 90) but before very long the dean broke out into open rebellion against the bishop's authority, he denied his right to visit the prebendal estates, he stated his intention of refusing to accept any new statutes and protested more than once in chapter against the holding of convocations to discuss those which Alnwick had compiled, and he attempted to force the sub-dean to acknowledge the authority of the award of Bishop Flemyng. (fn. 91) The bishop bore his insubordination until February, 1444-5, then at length sentence of excommunication was passed, (fn. 92) which remained in force certainly until September, 1448, and possibly until the end of the following year. (fn. 93) In 1451 Macworth died.

The award of 1439 has been said to mark the close of the legislative period of Lincoln Cathedral history; certainly no fresh constitutional questions of importance arose until the nineteenth century, and what changes were introduced were merely the gradual modifications which were the natural outcome of an age when community life in the church was little understood and everything older than the sixteenth century regarded with suspicion as savouring of popery. (fn. 94)

Of the internal condition of the cathedral before the beginning of the fourteenth century there is very little evidence. It is probable that the greatest menace to the life of the church, here as elsewhere, was the papal and archiepiscopal power of provision. The archbishop claimed the right to present to one prebend in return for the confirmation of each bishop, and the pope claimed patronage on a yet larger scale, and over and above this expected the bishops to provide for such men as he should suggest to them. (fn. 95) The canons thus provided were frequently foreigners and cardinals, and nearly always held one or more prebends in other cathedrals, (fn. 96) so that not only did the revenues of the church go out of England to the foreign beneficiaries, (fn. 97) but it was impossible that the canons should be resident either at Lincoln or in their prebendal parishes.

St. Hugh's objection to the appointment of foreigners to Lincoln prebends has already been mentioned. In 1253 Bishop Grosteste made an equally determined and possibly even bolder stand when the pope required him to provide for his nephew Frederick de Lavinia. (fn. 98) This, however, appears to have been without permanent result, for in 1289 all the prebends of Lincoln except five were said to be in the hands of Romans, (fn. 99) and Clement V between his consecration in November, 1305, and Michaelmas, 1309, provided thirty people to positions in the cathedral, at least twelve of whom, to judge by their names, must have been foreigners. (fn. 100)

With the fourteenth century knowledge of a more intimate kind as to the discipline of the cathedral can be gathered both from the chapter acts and the episcopal registers, and it becomes evident at once that visitors had two distinct classes of men to deal with. On the one hand there were the vicars, poor clerks, and chantry priests, who seem to have been of much the same standing as the ordinary monk and to have shared his temptation to gambling, drinking, irreverence in choir, and immorality; and on the other there were the canons, whose offences seem to have been rather in the direction of self-interest, favouritism, and neglect of the care and consideration for their juniors which were essential to the welfare of the cathedral.

In the early years of the fourteenth century the charges against the vicars and poor clerks brought before the chapter were few. In 1307 Robert Coty, a vicar, was twice convicted of having lost all his clothes and even his choir vestments at the gaming table, and consequently resigned his post, (fn. 101) and in 1310 the canons complained to the bishop that in spite of the small number of residents the vicars refused to help at the celebration of chapter mass. (fn. 102) In 1334 William of Dunham seems to have been ejected by his fellow vicars from his lodging in the vicars' court and to have been restored by the dean and chapter (fn. 103) with an admonition to lead an honest life. A more serious state of affairs is perhaps indicated by the injunctions issued in 1392 to vicars of both forms, chaplains, and poor clerks, forbidding them to take any woman except a mother or a sister to their own rooms except in the presence of a third person, and imposing fines for frequenting taverns. (fn. 104)

The chapter acts of the succeeding century contrast unfavourably with these. Quite early there are complaints of insolence to the dignitaries and of evil life, (fn. 105) and from the year 1454 onward there is scarcely a page without some record of irregularity, insolence, negligence, debt, (fn. 106) or immorality. In 1508 such was the laxness of morals among the poor clerks that the treasurer undertook specially to visit and oversee them, (fn. 107) and in 1509 new ordinances were passed against neglect on their part and that of the vicars. (fn. 108)

At the same time it is probable that the contrast between the fourteenth and fifteenth century chapter acts was due to a stricter idea of discipline entertained by the canons at the later date or to a more regular keeping of the act books; it is certain that as early as February, 1347-8, Bishop Gynwell (fn. 109) found considerable negligence to exist among the vicars and poor clerks who absented themselves from the canonical hours and processions, walked and talked in the cathedral during service, and wandered about at night wearing arms, and the example of the canons at the time was evidently not edifying, for though the bishop told them that he found many things to commend he was obliged to reprove them also for talking loudly in choir and absenting themselves from service, for withholding alms from the poor and, in the case of the non-residents, subtracting the salaries of their vicars. The general decency and order of the cathedral also left something to be desired, vestments were described as minus decentes and the ordinale (fn. 110) was not properly followed by the vicars. A general injunction was issued to all members of the cathedral body not to frequent the houses of women living within the close, however honest.

A few years later a terrible state of affairs was revealed; in January, 1359-60, the bishop had already twice given orders that all women should be removed from the close. Finding that he was not obeyed he issued a third injunction, pointing out at the same time that women with their husbands kept taverns within the close which were haunted by clerks and others at night, with the result that robberies and murders and other crimes were rife, and under the steps by which the people went up to the great altar a secret passage had been discovered which had an outlet into the room of one of the poor clerks. (fn. 111) Apparently admonition was in vain, for three months later a yet more stringent injunction was issued, and a yet worse state of affairs revealed, women of evil life having even been admitted to the house of the dean. (fn. 112)

The next sixty years undoubtedly saw some improvement, but the archbishop of Canterbury, on his visitation in 1390, still complained of talking and laughing in choir, and of vicars and others leaving the church in the middle of the service. Obits of kings arid bishops and feasts of apostles and doctors were not properly observed, and vicars were admitted by favour and without proper examination. Great disorder was caused by the indecent celebration of All Fools Day on the Feast of the Circumcision when the vicars played practical jokes even during the services. (fn. 113)

A certain amount of laxness at this time is scarcely matter for surprise. The quarrels with successive deans, which must have been seriously detrimental to discipline, had now been carried on intermittently for almost a century, and Schepey, who was elected dean in 1388, seems to have been utterly careless of anything but his own interests. In January, 1393-4, he came into conflict with Bishop Bokyngham, certain of his servants having polluted the cathedral by bloodshed. When the bishop visited the dean refused to profess obedience to him and would not show his title to office; he was consequently suspended and excommunicated, and as he remained obdurate the case was brought before the archbishop of Canterbury. Schepey was ultimately induced to submit, but in the meantime grave charges had been brought against him by the canons, who complained of his derisive treatment of them in chapter, of his remissness in correction, and his unpunctuality. They stated that he did not appoint a chaplain to celebrate for him daily, but retained the salary for his own use, that he misappropriated the common funds and imposed excessive fines upon the vicars, that he refused the feedings and omitted the celebrations to which he was bound, (fn. 114) that he was extravagant in buying unnecessary pictures and images, and was in the habit of frequenting public games and shows and of allowing their performance in the close.

In these circumstances it is hardly to be wondered that there were serious complaints to be brought against the junior members of the church. The vicars, it was said, were noisy in choir, the chaplains wandered about and were disorderly and the poor clerks were negligent; a clique of vicars and chaplains sowed discord between dean and chapter, several of the vicars were rectors of parish churches, one was in the habit of coming to choir in a state of intoxication, and fifteen people were suspected of laxness of morals. Little appears to have been said at the time about the canons beyond a charge of slackness against the precentor. It is evident, however, from the complaints of the dean, that there was much discord between him and the chapter, and much partisanship among the vicars. (fn. 115) The friction appears to have increased, and when Bishop Repingdon held a visitation in 1410 a very similar state of affairs was revealed. Games were carried on in the cemetery, the statutable feedings were not observed, the vicars wore noisy wooden shoes, and wandered about in secular habit outside the church at service time. (fn. 116) Bishop Gray's injunctions of 1432 show that the general carelessness had not lessened. Vicars were appointed without examination and were consequently open to the usual charges of negligence, irreverence, and dissipation, repairs were needed both in the fabric and the vestments, and stipends were not punctually paid to vicars and chaplains. Here, as elsewhere, some of the chantries had become so much impoverished that they had been united, (fn. 117) and the bishop enjoined that in such cases measures should be taken to secure the fulfilment of the wishes of the founders at least in part, and that the chantries thus united should be given to priest vicars lest they should be forced by lack of means to resign or to seek some undignified employment outside the church. Such was the poverty of the vicars that certain provisions had been made without authority, obliging new members of the body to live for a certain time at their own expense. These were annulled, as they prevented suitable people from joining the community. (fn. 118)

Such complaints, however, were as nothing compared with the confusion revealed when Alnwick visited the cathedral at the time of his award in 1437. As the comperta at this visitation have been printed at length elsewhere, (fn. 119) it will be sufficient here to say that the dean seems to have been guilty of unbearable arrogance and lack of consideration, that the precentor and treasurer were negligent, that the chancellor was guilty of scandalous conduct in his opposition to the dean, that the canons were in many cases arbitrary in action and withheld the stipends of their vicars, that the standard of morality was low amongst the latter, and that the sacrist had abused his position as confessor.

Of the next sixty years no record appears to exist, and when Bishop Smith visited in 1501 matters seem to have considerably improved. The dean said he hoped everything was satis prospere, and several of the vicars returned the verdict omnia bene. Evil reports had indeed arisen from the fact that a woman had access to the rooms of one of the chaplains, and the dean and precentor had not been sufficiently careful in admitting vicars, clerks, and choristers, otherwise the bishop seems, to have been satisfied with his visit. (fn. 120) Two years later a more serious state of affairs had again arisen. The bishop enjoined that chantry clerks should not take their meals in taverns, that women of evil life should not be admitted to live within the close, and that an overseer should be appointed for the vicars and poor clerks. There seem to have been certain cases of misappropriation, and vestments and jewels had been given away without the dean's consent, chapter secrets had been revealed to seculars, and a quarrel had arisen between the dean and treasurer as to the right of the latter to absent himself from the cathedral without leave, and his obligation to provide good wine for the celebration of the sacrament. (fn. 121) Bishop Longlands seems to have visited about the year 1524, and at some subsequent time wrote to insist that the dean should make the required corrections; he added that the residents were fewer in number than of old, the dignitaries ought to reside, especially the treasurer, and as the latter had long been absent he was sending Mr. Richard Parker to fulfil that office, as he was willing to keep residence. (fn. 122) In 1539 he issued further injunctions empowering major residents to profess minor residence after three years if ill, and making one or two other regulations. (fn. 123)

The first half of the sixteenth century was a period hardly less critical for the secular foundations of England than for the monasteries. It was very early in his reign that Henry VIII began to show an alarming interest in Lincoln, and issued a decree that none of the singing men or boys of the cathedral should be taken away unless it were to sing in his own chapel. (fn. 124) By the year 1528 Bishop Longlands seems even to have considered it a favour that he was allowed by Wolsey to bestow the deanery according to his own ideas of fitness—there is a touch of irony in the words in which he thanks the cardinal for his 'goodness in suffering me to bestow my own livelihood.' (fn. 125) In August, 1534, the acknowledgement of the royal supremacy was signed by the dean and seventy-one others. (fn. 126)

Two years later the Lincolnshire insurrection broke out. It is not quite clear what attitude was adopted by the dean and chapter. It would seem that the rebels, on coming to Lincoln, met with a favourable reception at the hands of members of the corporation, (fn. 127) and by some means they obtained access to the chapter-house of the cathedral. According to one witness the gentlemen lodged one night with the dean and canonsand were well entertained. (fn. 128) At the same time, when the mayor was at a loss how to defend the town in case of attempted plunder, the sub-dean and chancellor who were in residence, being unable to send men to his assistance, promised and collected £30, which they forwarded to the town hall. (fn. 129) Suspicion of complicity, however, seems to have fallen on the dean, but the Duke of Suffolk wrote to the king assuring him that Henneage was absent from Lincoln at the time and that he had had no communication with the rebels, and either through innocence or influence the cathedral suffered nothing worse than the exaction of a loan from the residentiaries, to be repaid before the issue of the king's pardon. (fn. 130)

In June, 1540, the dean received orders to take down and convey to London Tower 'a certayn shryne and divers feyned Reliques and Juels' in the cathedral, whereby 'all the simple people be moch deceaved and brougbte into great supersticion and idolatrye.' (fn. 131) From the memorandum of the execution of this order, it appears that the king thus appropriated 2,621 oz. of gold, 3,285 oz. of silver, besides pearls, precious stones, the pure gold shrine of St. Hugh, and the pure silver shrine of St. John Dalderby. Between the years 1548 and 1553 yet further plunder was taken, (fn. 132) and it is perhaps scarcely surprising that the treasurer threw away the keys of his office, which became from that time extinct in Lincoln cathedral. (fn. 133)

The story of the next few years is soon told. In April, 1548, after a visitation by commissioners, the dean read the royal injunctions exhorting the whole of the cathedral body to charity, studiousness, and general good discipline, providing for a certain number of sermons and for portions of the service to be conducted in English, abolishing certain observances of the cathedral, and making provision for choristers who 'have ther voices chaunged,' with a few other regulations. (fn. 134) In 1552 Matthew Parker was installed as dean. Parker had modified an early enthusiasm for Lutheran teaching by Patristic study, but he was a married man, and on the accession of Mary espoused the cause of Lady Jane Grey. (fn. 135) The Chapter Acts make no comment on the revolution which involved his downfall, simply recording the installation of Dean Mallet in September, 1555, and the significant injunctions of the bishop of Lincoln in 1556—that services were to be performed in accordance with the Use of Sarum, that prebendaries were to wear ecclesiastical dress and to shave their beards, and that married men were not to administer the sacrament. (fn. 136) There seems to be no evidence as to how the prebendaries and other ministers of the cathedral received these quickly succeeding changes of ritual or the injunctions of 1559, (fn. 137) whereby Elizabeth practically reverted to the position of 1548, only as late as June, 1580, the episcopal visitor learnt that one vicar did not 'feel right about religion,' and thought it no 'derogation to the dignity of our Lord to invoke the Virgin.' (fn. 138)

With the close of the sixteenth century began the gradual slackening of those ties which had originally bound every member of the cathedral body and every parish under its jurisdiction into a closely knit community. In the early years of the fourteenth century there seem generally to have been about ten resident canons, (fn. 139) in 1433 there were eight beside the dean, (fn. 140) and in 1492-3 an order was issued that each prebendary might pay one visit to Rome so long as he left at least five canons in residence at the cathedral (fn. 141); it was therefore an innovation when it was decreed in September, 1589, that in future the number of residents should not exceed four. (fn. 142) Other signs were not wanting that the ideal of the old community life had been lost sight of, for in answer to articles issued by Bishop Chaderton, in 1607, it was stated that visitations had so long been omitted that jurisdiction over prebendal places was lost; thus the connexion between the non-resident canons and their cathedral was practically reduced to the visits necessitated in keeping their preaching turns, and even these were in some cases neglected, (fn. 143) and on the occasion of a metropolitical visitation in August, 1634, it appeared that some prebendaries had never seen the cathedral, and appointed insufficient deputies to preach for them. (fn. 144)

Unfortunately the new era in the cathedral history does not seem to have been a more vigorous one. Other complaints at Bishop Chaderton's visitation were to the effect that the dean and chapter were 'dissolute and careless' in their government; that the choir was inefficient and irreverent; that the master of the fabric and the vergers and bell-ringers were negligent; that preachers were usually much disturbed by the 'prophane walking and talking of idle and irreligious persons'; that the close had become 'a place of great licentiousness, especially in alehouses,' and that 'no course was taken for beggars . . . who . . . trouble every stranger with their importunity.'

Archbishop Laud's vicar-general in 1634 seems to have found an even more deplorable lack of fitness, the communion table was 'not very decent and the rail worse,' the organ 'old and naught,' the copes and vestments had been embezzled, and alehouses, hounds, and swine were kept in the churchyard. A few years later the senior vicars complained of the financial oppressions which they were suffering at the hands of the residentiaries. (fn. 145) The only activities of the period seem to have been a renewal of the dispute as to the rights of metropolitical visitation, (fn. 146) and the formation of a company of ringers. This curious organization was very similar in character to the craft gilds of the fifteenth century, its members were chiefly tradesmen of Lincoln, and the company had its own feasts and constituted itself a kind of provident society. Its ordinances were drawn up in 1612 and received the acknowledgement of the dean and chapter in 1614; the last master was apparently appointed in 1725. (fn. 147)

The civil war involved the cathedral in the common ruin which overtook the church and the crown. In 1649 deans and chapters were abolished by Act of Parliament, (fn. 148) and between that year and 1658 most of the cathedral estates were sold. (fn. 149) Mr. Edward Reyner and Mr. George Scotereth, or Scottericke, the former of whom had been lecturer in the city since 1635, (fn. 150) were appointed ministers in the cathedral church in April, 1649. (fn. 151) In March, 1655-6, they were empowered to appoint an assistant preacher, and Reyner and one Abdy are spoken of as 'ministers and lecturers of this city' as late as September, 1660. (fn. 152)

Michael Honeywood, the first dean of the restoration, was worthy of the work of reconstruction which he was called upon to undertake. He devoted his whole energy to the vindication of the lost franchises of the cathedral, the restoration of choral services with an efficient choir, the repair of the cathedral and the vicars' houses, and the improvement of the library. (fn. 153) Apart from this there is little evidence of the condition of the church in the later seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries; such visitations as were made were more or less formal, and apart from occasional complaints as to omissions of prebendaries' preaching turns, and of the presence of idlers in the church, throw very little light on the life of the community; that Samuel Fuller, whose portrait hung in the 'drinking-room' at Burley, (fn. 154) should be one of the best known of the deans of this period was perhaps a sign of the times.

The nineteenth-century settlement was the natural outcome of the gradual oblivion to which the early organization of the cathedrals of the old foundation had been consigned. By legislation of the year 1840 it was provided that the chapter was to consist of the dean and four canons (fn. 155) —the precentor, chancellor, sub-dean, and one archdeacon—and the terms of residence were fixed at eight months in the year for the dean and three months each for the canons, the dean was to be appointed by the crown, and the prebends were disendowed and their estates vested in the ecclesiastical commissioners, as were also the separate estates of the cathedral dignitaries. (fn. 156) The silence of this statute, and still more the character of the report issued by the royal commissioners in 1854, show how little either the framers of the Act or those for whom it was framed realized the extent to which they had deviated from the original constitution of the cathedral. The unhistorical differentiation between the greater and lesser chapters, the narrowing of the duties of the canons to the superintendence of the fabric and services of the cathedral and of education in the city, and the failure to realize that the old statutes had not regulated ritual and liturgy only, but the whole activity of a vigorous social life, were the main characteristics of the return. The entire report would probably have admitted of the same explanation as that given by the priest-vicars of their doubt as to the date of their foundation— namely, that no one could read their charters. (fn. 157)

No immediate legislation followed, but in 1870 the estates of the dean and chapter were surrendered to the ecclesiastical commissioners, (fn. 158) and in 1873 new regulations were made as to the reestablishment of certain prebends and honorary canonries. (fn. 159) In the meantime the spirit of historical inquiry took possession of the cathedral body. The 'Novum Registrum ' was carefully studied and its authority called in question, and the status of the non-residentiary canons became a matter of dispute. On the one hand certain of the prebendaries claimed to be summoned to occasional meetings of a 'greater chapter,' both as a matter of right and as an expedient to secure closer union between the parishes of the diocese and the mother church. The dean on the contrary denied the historical foundation of the greater chapter, and stated that in the middle ages only major and minor residents were entitled to summons to chapter meetings, thus excluding all modern prebendaries as non-resident. (fn. 160)

The whole dispute was embodied in the report issued by the Cathedrals Commission of 1884. The commissioners in this report proposed to supplement the old custom by new statutes which they said to a large extent represented existing custom. Against these Dean Blakesley issued a vigorous protest, to the effect that he could not give his sanction to the vague and unhistorical greater chapter which was to be created in accordance with the wishes of the prebendaries, and that he objected to the proposals to dissolve the corporation of priest-vicars, to curtail the rights of the dean, canons, and non-residentiary prebendaries in favour of the bishop, and to extend the canons' term of residence from three to eight months. (fn. 161) Only one of the suggestions embodied in the supplementary statutes was ultimately adopted—namely, that of the creation or revival of the greater chapter, which may now be summoned by the dean for specified purposes. In all other respects the cathedral continues to be governed by the constitution of 1840. (fn. 162)

While the grants to the common fund [communa] of the canons were very numerous about A.D. 1200, (fn. 163) these were for the most part grants of small quantities of land, and the grants of manors were chiefly in early times for the endowment of prebends, and later in connexion with chantries. William I granted (fn. 164) to Remigius the manors of Welton near Lincoln and Sleaford, when the seat of the bishopric was translated to Lincoln; and in 1086 the bishop held both manors of the king, six canons of Lincoln holding the Welton lands under the bishop; (fn. 165) later we hear of the prebend of Sleaford (Lafford), though the manor continued in the bishop's hands. Roger Fitz Gerold and Lucy his wife gave the vill of Asgarby as the endowment of a prebend, and William de Romara confirmed the gift of his father and mother, which gift had also been confirmed to St. Mary of Lincoln and Canon Robert de Grainvill by King Henry. (fn. 166)

King Henry I granted to St. Mary of Lincoln the church of Brand, priest of Corringham, and 2½ carucates of land as the endowment of a prebend, so that he, and his son after his death, should hold the same as a prebend of St. Mary. (fn. 167) Bishop Robert de Chesney alienated the prebend of Canwick to the canons of the hospital of Lincoln of the order of Sempringham, and Bishop Hugh confirmed the gift c. 1190 with the consent of Haimo, the dean, and the chapter of Lincoln. (fn. 168) In 1292 the abbot and convent of Fécamp conveyed to the dean and chapter their manor of Navenby, which they had received from Henry III in exchange for Winchelsea and Rye, because the safety of the realm did not admit of these being held by them, and King Edward I granted a licence of alienation on condition that a chantry be founded at Harby in honour of Queen Eleanor, who died there. (fn. 169)

The manor of Normanby by Spittal was granted to the dean and chapter by Henry Beck, nephew of Bishop Thomas Beck, to maintain two chantries in Normanby church and one in the cathedral. (fn. 170) In 1324 a licence was granted for the manor of Aunsby [Ounesby] to be alienated to the dean and chapter, who were to find three chaplains to pray for the souls of Robert de Lacy, formerly treasurer of the cathedral, Richard de Rowell, formerly canon, and Hervey de Luda, custodian of the altar of St. Peter. (fn. 171) The manor of Glentham was conveyed to the dean and chapter by three executors of John duke of Lancaster to keep the anniversaries of Kings Henry IV and V, and of the duke. (fn. 172) The manor of Greetwell was conveyed to the dean and chapter in 1480, (fn. 173) and the Valor shows that 100s. was paid therefrom to the chantry of Dean Robert Flemyng. The manor of Scamblesby was in the hands of feoffees in 1497, (fn. 174) and the Valor shows that after its grant to the dean and chapter there was a payment therefrom to the chantry of Bishop John Russell. There are court rolls of the manor of Friesthorpe in 1314, 1339, and 1400, (fn. 175) but nothing to show how it was acquired.

In 1303 the dean and chapter held one-fourth of half a knight's fee in Heydour, one-fifth and one-hundredth of a fee in Mumby and Theddlethorpe, one-tenth in Timberland, onesixteenth in Lissington, one-tenth and onehundredth in Searby, one-ninth in Scredington, one-fourth and one-twentieth in Fotherby, onesixth in Tetford, one-tenth in Owmby, and smaller portions in Thurlby, Hackthorn, Somersby, and Langton. (fn. 176) In 1346 the return is the same with the exception of the omission of Mumby and Theddlethorpe, and the addition of half a knight's fee in Claypole, a quarter in Stoke, a quarter in Ormsby, a tenth in Thurlby, three quarters, a fifth, and one fifty-fourth in Aunsby. In 1401-2 the chapter held one-tenth of a fee in Willingham, and £10 of annual rent in Boothby and Graffoe wapentakes. In 1428 no mention was made of Timberland, Claypole, Stoke, Thurlby, Scredington and Tetford, but a quarter of a fee is mentioned in Thorpe-in-theFallows, a quarter in Fillingham and in Hemswell, and lesser portions in North Ormsby and Utterby. (fn. 177)

The date of the foundation of each prebend cannot be determined, but besides those already mentioned we find that King Stephen endowed that of Brampton. (fn. 178) The endowments of several other prebends consisted of the great tithes of churches, such as St. Lawrence, Lincoln, and St. Paul, Bedford, which had - been granted or confirmed to Remigius by William I, or which belonged, as Caistor and Stow, to episcopal manors.

According to the Taxatio of Pope Nicholas the church was assessed in 1296 to about £1,398 3s. (fn. 179) In 1536 the clear yearly value of the appropriated churches was £247 0s. 8¾d., and that of the manors of Friesthorpe, Navenby, Normanby, Glentham, Fillingham, Marton, Ormsby, Croxton, Greet well and Scamblesby in Lincolnshire, and Marston in Oxfordshire, held in lay fee, was £93 18s. 7¾d. The annual septisms of prebends were worth £74 10s. 7d., the vicars' estates £145 11s. 2d., and those of the choristers £34 13s. 4½d.; pensions, oblations, fabric money, and tithes, amounted to £128 7s. 6d. net, and the keeper of St. Peter's altar received £20 10s. 10d. At the same date the deanery was valued at £187 14s. 2d., and the precentorship at £8 2s. 4d., the clear yearly revenue of the chancellor was £54 1s. 5d., that of the treasurer £10 13s. 4d., and that of the subdean £32 12s. Of the prebends the wealthiest at this time seems to have been Leighton Manor whose clear value was £57 15s. 1d.; St. Botolph's, on the other hand, was only worth £1 a year, and Thorngate was returned as valueless. Of the others Clifton was valued at £19 4s. 2d., South Scarle at £11, Farrendon at £30 11s. 2d., Welton Beckhall at £5 2s. 1d., Welton Brinkhall at the same, Welton Ryvall at £7 7s. 5d., Welton Painshall at £5 8s. 9d., Welton Westhall at £9 6s. 8d., Heydor at £26, Corringham at £38 16s. 6d., Carlton cum Thurlby at £17 6s. 8d., Carlton cum Dalby at £12 15s., Sutton in the Marsh at £19, Asgarby at £12 10s., Louth at £36 3s. 4d., Scamblesby at £23 13s. 4d., North Kelsey at £16 10s. 2d., Sleaford at £11 19s. 5d., Caistor at £3 4s., Stowe in Lindsey at £10 19s. 1d., Norton Episcopi at £7 3s. 2d., Dunholme at £9 4s. 2d., Decem Librarum at £6 18s. 7d., Sexaginta Solidorum at 60s., Centum Solidorum at £4 9s. 4d., Crackpole at £4 8s. 2d., All Saints Thorngate at £4 7s. 1d., St. Martin's at 38s. 4d., Saint Cross at £4, Empingham at £25 6s. 5d., Ketton at £29 10s. 2d., the farm of Nassington at £5 2s. 2½d., Leighton Ecclesia at £13 14s., Brampton at £26 7s. 4d., Long Stowe at £33 2s. 2¾d., Bugden at £17 7s. 4d., Bedford Minor at £2 16s. 6d., Biggleswade at £42 7s. 4d., Aylesbury at £36, and Marston at £12 5s. 6d. (fn. 180)

The value of the chantries in the cathedral as given in the Valor was £177 16s. 5½d.; the list, however, even for this date is very incomplete. A register begun apparently about the year 1330 mentions the following chantries:—that of King Edward II and Queen Isabella at the altar of St. John the Baptist, of Hugh of Wells at the altar of St. Hugh, of Henry de Lexington at the altar of St. John the Baptist, of Oliver Sutton, of John Dalderby at the altar of St. John the Evangelist, of William de Tournay (Thornaco) at the altar of St. Mary, of Simon de Barton, of Hugh de Normanton, of Nicholas de Hiche, of William de Hemingburgh, of John de Widdington, of William de Aveton, of William son of Fulk at the altar of St. Denis, of Peter de Hungaria (or Hundegarde) at the altar of St. Nicholas, of William de Thorenton and of William de la Gare, of Henry de Beningworth at the altar of St. John the Evangelist, of Robert de Lascy, Richard de Rowell (or Rothwell) and Harvey of Louth at the altar of St. Mary Magdalene, of William de Lexington at the altar of St. Michael, of William de Winchecumbe at the altar of St. John the Baptist, of Ruffus called 'physicus' at the altar of St. John the Evangelist, of deceased bishops at the altar of St. Peter, of Richard de Faldingworth at the altar of St. Giles, of Geoffrey de Mawdlin, of William son of Ulf, of Gilbert of Kent, of brethren and sisters of the canons, of Geoffrey Pollard, of Henry de Mammesfeld in the chapel of St. John the Baptist, of Nicholas and Joan Cantelupe at the altar of St. Nicholas, of Bartholomew, Henry and Robert Burghersh in the chapel of St. Katherine, of Hugh Walmesford at the altar of St. Giles, of Richard Whitwell at the altar of St. Stephen, of John Bokyngham at the altars of St. Hugh and St. Katherine, of Walter de Stanreth at the altar of St. Andrew, of John Gynwell at the altar of St. Mary Magdalene, of Richard Stretton and of Hervey Beck at the altar of St. Katharine. (fn. 181) Of these that of Nicholas de Hiche was united with those of William Lexington and John Widdington, that of William Aveton with those of Geoffrey Pollard, Geoffrey Mawdlin, and William Hemingburgh, that of Henry de Beningworth with Richard Faldingworth's, (fn. 182) William Fulke's with Peter de Hungaria's, Stretton's with Wolfe's, and Stanreth's with that of Antony Goldesburgh or Goldsmith. (fn. 183) The chantries of Dalderby, Normanton, Winchecumbe, Ruffus, deceased bishops, brethren and sisters, Henry de Mammesfeld and Hervey Beck do not occur again, but in the certificate drawn up prior to the dissolution of the chantries at the beginning of the reign of Edward VI there is mention of the chantries of Bishop Russell, Henry Edenstow, Robert Flemmyng and Umfraville, (fn. 184) and yet another list of the years 1547-9 omits these and adds the chantries of William Smith, Katherine countess of Westmorland, Thomas Alford, canon, Agnes Cause, widow, Roger Benyson and Joan his wife, Richard Ravenser and William Walthan, and two 'Works' chantries, sometimes called chantries of the Fabric. (fn. 185) In addition to all these there appear to have been chantries for the souls of Bishops Alnwick and Longlands, of Katharine Swyneford, and of Henry duke of Lancaster, and others known as Swilling's, Crosby's Colynson's, and Wellbourne chantries. (fn. 186) With the exception of the Lancaster and Westmorland families nearly all those commemorated were connected with the cathedral, having been either bishops, deans, or canons. Most of the chantries were served by one, or sometimes two priests, but Bishop Hugh's grant in 1234 provided for three chaplains, a deacon, and a sub-deacon. (fn. 187) Bishop Bokyngham made provision for two chaplains, and, if the chantry certificate be correct, for two poor boys to be kept at school from the ages of seven to sixteen, (fn. 188) and the chantry founded by Bartholomew Burghersh in 1340 appears to have been the largest of all, being served by five chaplains, one of whom was master or warden; (fn. 189) according to the chantry certificate six boys were kept at school from the revenues, and at the dissolution part of the endowment was set aside to support additional choristers, now known as the Burghersh chanters. (fn. 190)

A survey of the estates of the dean and chapter 1649-50 mentions these manors in Lincolnshire: Glentham, Fillingham, Navenby, Normanby (2), Crosholm, Osbournby, Greetwell, Aunsby, Willingham, Southrey, Welton Panshall, Westhall with Goringhall, Beckhall, Brinkhall and Rivehall, Friesthorpe, Asgarby, Scamblesby, Maltby, Caistor, Corringham and South Scarle; also the manors of Hambledon, Empingham and Ketton in Rutland; of Gretton, Nassington and Marston St. - Lawrence in Northamptonshire; of Great Paxton in Hunts; of Walton in Bucks; of Langford in Beds; of Chesterfield in Derbyshire; and of Mansfield and Edwinstowe in Notts. (fn. 191)

Deans of Lincoln

Ralph, 1092 (fn. 192)

Simon Bloet, c. 1110 (fn. 193)

Nigel, (fn. 194) between 1123 and 1147

Philip de Harecourt, (fn. 195) 1141

Adelelmus or Ascelinus, (fn. 196) called fourth dean, but occurs 1163, and according to Dugdale in 1145 and 1162

Geoffrey Kirtling, (fn. 197) or Kytlynge, c. 1169 and 1176

Richard Fitz Neale, (fn. 198) occurs 1186, became bishop of London 1189

Haimo, (fn. 199) occurs 1189 and 1194

Roger de Roldeston, or Rolveston, (fn. 200) occurs 1200 and 1222. According to Dugdale and Le Neve, 1195-1223

William de Tournay, (fn. 201) occurs 1225. According to Dugdale and Le Neve, 1223-39

Roger de Weseham, (fn. 202) 1239 or 1240-5

Henry de Lexington, (fn. 203) 1245-54

Richard de Gravesend, (fn. 204) 1254-8

Robert Marsh, (fn. 205) died in 1262

William de Lessington, (fn. 206) 1262-72

Richard de Mepham, (fn. 207) 1272, occurs 1274

John de Maydestun, called dean, (fn. 208) 1275

Oliver Sutton, (fn. 209) 1275-80

Nicholas Heigham, (fn. 210) occurs 1281, executors of his will mentioned 1288

Philip Wilughby, (fn. 211) occurs 1288-1305

Joscelin de Kirnington, (fn. 212) 1305

Reymund del God, (fn. 213) or Goth, cardinal of New St. Mary's, 1305-10

Roger de Martival, (fn. 214) 1310-5

Henry de Mammesfeld, (fn. 215) 1315-28

Anthony Bek, (fn. 216) 1328-37

William of Norwich, (fn. 217) 1337-44

John de Offord, or Ufford, (fn. 218) 1344-8

Thomas de Bredewardyn, (fn. 219) 1348-9

Simon de Bresley, (fn. 220) 1349. He died, according to Le Neve, in 1360

John de Stretle, (fn. 221) occurs 1364; he was dead in 1371

Simon Langham, (fn. 222) to 1376

John de Schepey, (fn. 223) 1388-1412

John Macworth, (fn. 224) 1412-51

Robert Flemyng, (fn. 225) 1452-83

George Fitzhugh, (fn. 226) 1483-1505

Geoffrey Simeon, (fn. 227) 1506-8

Thomas Wolsey, (fn. 228) 1509-14

John Constable, (fn. 229) 1514-28

George Henneage, (fn. 230) 1528-39

John Taylor, (fn. 231) 1539-52

Matthew Parker, (fn. 232) 1552-4

Francis Mallet, (fn. 233) 1555-70

John Whitgift, (fn. 234) 1571-7

William Wickham, (fn. 235) 1577-84

Ralph Griffin, (fn. 236) 1585-93

John Reynolds, (fn. 237) 1593-8

William Cole, (fn. 238) 1598-1601

Laurence Stanton, (fn. 239) 1601-13

Roger Parker, (fn. 240) 1613-29

Anthony Topham, (fn. 241) 1629-49

Michael Honeywood, (fn. 242) 1660-81

Daniel Brevint, (fn. 243) 1681-95

Samuel Fuller, (fn. 244) 1695-9

Abraham Campion, (fn. 245) 1700-1

Richard Willis, (fn. 246) 1701-21

Robert Canon, (fn. 247) 1721-2

Edward Gee, (fn. 248) 1722-30

Edward Willes, (fn. 249) 1730-43

Thomas Cheney, (fn. 250) 1744

William George, (fn. 251) 1748-56

John Green, D.D., (fn. 252) 1756

Hon. James York, D.D., (fn. 253) 1762

Robert Richardson, (fn. 254) died in 1781

Richard Cust, D.D., (fn. 255) 1782-3

Sir Richard Kaye, bart, (fn. 256) 1783-1809

George Gordon, D.D., (fn. 257) 1809-45

John Giffard Ward, 1845-60

Thomas Gamier, B.C.L., 1860

James A. Jeremie, D.D., D.C.L., 1864

Joseph William Blakesley, B.D., 1872

William John Butler, D.D., 1885

Edward Charles Wickham, D.D., 1894

The pointed oval twelfth-century chapter seal (fn. 258) of Lincoln Cathedral ishows the Virgin, crowned, holding in her right hand a sceptre terminating in a flower, and with the left hand supporting the Child seated on her knee. The Child is of larger proportion than usual, with cruciform nimbus, and the right hand raised in benediction; in the left hand is an orb (?). The throne has projecting terminals at the sides and a plain footboard.

The legend on a concave bevelled edge runs—

✠SIGILLV CAPITVLI SANCTE MARIE LINCOLINEN . . .

Another twelfth-century pointed oval seal (fn. 259) shows the Virgin and Child designed in a manner similar to the last, but more artistic, on a carved throne; in her right hand a lily sceptre; the Child holds in the left hand an open book. Footboard with two small arches below.

The legend on a concave bevelled edge runs—

SIGILLVM - CAPITVLI - SANCTE - MARIE LINCOLNIENSIS - ECCLESIE.

The N'S in LINCOLNIENSIS are reversed.

A pointed oval seal of the fourteenth century (fn. 260) shows in a double niche, with Gothic canopy, trefoiled arches, and open work at the sides, the Virgin (?) holding a small model of a church, an angel addressing her. The corbel at the base is enriched with foliage. In the field, over the canopy, a crescent and estoile.

. . . CAPITVLI - ECCL'IE - LINCOLR: AD: CAVSAS: ET: NEGOCIA: NEC: NON: AD: ALIEN(ANDVM:)

The pointed oval seal of Dean William de Tournay (fn. 261) shows the dean, full length, holding a book.

SIGI . . . . . LELMI DE TOVRNA . . .

The letters U, R are conjoined.

The seal of Dean Roger de Weseham (fn. 262) is a pointed oval showing the dean, full length, lifting up his hands.

✠ ROGERVS LINCOLNIENSIS ECCLESIE DECANUS.

The seal of Dean William de Lessington, (fn. 263) also a pointed oval, shows the dean seated on a carved seat to the right reading at a lectern.

✠ S' MAGIST[RI] WI . . . . . DE LINC . . . . .

The seal of Dean John de Stretle of 1366 (fn. 264) represents within a carved Gothic panel, and suspended by the strap from a forked tree, a shield of arms: gyronny of eight, on a canton, a covered cup, Stretle.

SIGILL': IOH'IS: DE: STRETELE: CLERICI -

The letters D, E are conjoined.

The pointed oval seal of Dean John de Schepey (fn. 265) shows a male saint, perhaps St. John the Evangelist, enthroned, with a flight of steps and rocky sides in the foreground. On the left an unidentified figure, full length, probably the dean, on the right suspended by a strap from a tree a shield of arms, the bearings obliterated by pressure. The legend was a rhyming hexameter verse.

SHEPEYE: DECANUM . . . . . IA: QZ: SANUM.

The pointed oval seal of Dean John Constable (fn. 266) represents in a carved niche, with a heavy canopy and tabernacle work at the sides, the Virgin, holding a long sceptre, with the Child. In base a shield of arms: quarterly 1-4 vairé, over all a bend. Constable.

S': IOH'IS: CONSTABLE: DECANI: ECCL'IE: LINCOLNIE.