that the houfe was in her hands on the vacancy of the prior, and that the advowfon of the Priory belonged to her; that he took occafion on these pleas to difturb and vex the prior, had cited him to appear and answer in her courts, and had amerced him: on which the prior obtained an injunction, the feventh year of Edward the Firft. This difpute feems to have been afterwards accommodated, as there are releases between the countefs and the prior, wherein fhe referves to herself the right of advowfon and lordship over the priory; these releases bear date the hinth year of Edward the First,

The claim of a right in the patron, or reprefentative of the founder, to the temporalities of a religious houfe, in cafe of a vacancy, is by no means unprecedented; and in fome inftances feems allow ed in the decrees of the fynod convened by Ottoboni, in the fourth year of Henry the Third, where patrons were forbid, by the fixth canon, to retain the profits of vacant benefices, excepting they are entitled to them by ancient ufage. It is to be obferved, that at this time the nobility of England, who were heirs to the founders of religious houfes, and to thofe who had given the advowsons of churches to monafteries, had generally taken great offence at the Monks; who, by procuring the appropriation of their churches, and taking the profits to themselves, had, as they conceived, abufed the truft repofed in them: the churches being conferred on them, not as finecures, but under the fuppofition of their being the best judges

what perfons were moft fit to be prefented to the livings; whereas by thefe appropriations, the churches were neglected, and the intention of the donors defeated. The English nobility prefented a remonftrance on this fubject to Pope. Alexander the Fourth, ftating, "That they and their

predeceffors, out of refpect [1259. to the appearing fanctity of the religious focieties in England, had liberally conferred on them their right of patronage; that by fuch means they might have the opportunity of chufing fit perfons, and prefenting them to the bishops, as a moft effectual provifion for the cure of fouls, and relief of the poor: whereas they found this pious intention fruftrated, not only by papal provifions, that interrupted the right courfe of prefentation, but chiefly because the religious, by clandeftine and indirect ways, with the neglect, or contempt of their own bishops, had obtained thofe churches to their properties, by conceffions from the apoftolic fee: on which account they thought themselves obliged to refume the patronage of fuch converted churches, and reunite the advowfons to their own demefnes; because they faw the good intentions of themselves and their predeceffors intirely defeated." All this his holiness excufed in his anfwer, by protefting" a pure and fincere defign in fo appropriating fome churches to religious places, with the affectionate bowels of piety and mercy; firmly hoping and believing, that fuch conceffions of charity might relieve the wants of the religious, and promote the worship of God with

in the refpeétive churches: and therefore, if their complaints were true, he was forry the apoftolical judgment fhould be deceived, and the facred intention of the fee of Rome be fo perverfely difappointed: but far be it from them, obedient fons, for this caufe of appropriations and provifions, to revoke and take into their hands the right of patronage, beltowed on fuch religious houfes, fince they had no authority to difpofe of ecclefiaftical affairs, and muft not prefume to touch any facred thing. However, with the af fiftance of the bishops, he would fo effectually labour to redrefs all abuses, as to leave no juft matter of complaint or scandal."

The fame pope, in an epiftle, two years afterwards, complained, "that the covetous defire of the religions, had by falfe pretences obtained from the fee of Rome, the appropriation of many parochial churches within the kingdom of England, and had by that poifon infected the whole nation: while, by thefe means, the worship of God was loft, hofpitality was intermitted, epifcopal rights were detained, the doors of charity were fhut against the poor, the encouragement of ftudious scholars was abated, with many other scandals and offences.

This practice of convents procuring the appropriations of churches became fo fcandalous, that even the Monks were afhamed of it. Bishop Kennet, in his Parochial Antiquities, mentions an inftance, when Hugh de Levon, Abbot of Meaux, in Yorkfhire, would have beftowed the appropriation of the church of

Effington on that abbey: the Monks themfelves obftructed his intention for the space of five years, protefting against the encrmous injuries which would arise, to be lamented by perfons yet un born. Nor was the difcontent on this fubject confined to the laity, but even the bishops fought to have the evil redrefied, and many canons were enacted in the fynods for that purpose, to which the Monks refufed obedience, and much violence was' ufed by them in oppofition to the canons; nor did they fubmit till they were reduced by force. The monafteries, poffeffed of churches, not only appropriated the rents to their own ufe, but frequently farmed them out; by which means the good intentions of the donors were fruf trated.

In the fynod assembled at Oxford by Archbishop [1222, Langton, the thirteenth canon forbids thevicarage of any church to be given to a vicar who fhall not ferve the church: the fourteenth obliges thofe who have benefices to refide: the fifteenth appoints a fufficient portion of the benefice to be allowed for the maintenance of the vicar: and the fortieth forbids the letting to farm, excepting it be done for fome caufe, which shall be approved by the bishop.

Thefe canons were also

[x237

ordained by the fynod convened at London, by Otho, the pope's legate; and again by another fynod held by Ot- [1268, toboni, both of which require churches to be fupplied by a refident vicar.

A neglect in the obfervation of these canons,

[1307.

occafioned

TH

of Burton, or Barton, having been diffolved long before the general fuppreffion of monaftic foundations, efcaped the notice of Dugdale, Speed, Tanner, and other writers on religious houfes, fo that its existence had nearly funk into total oblivion. Sir John Oglander indeed mentions it in his manufcript Memoirs, but his information appears to have been merely traditional: its hiftory is however preferved in the regifter of John de Pontifiera, Bishop of Winchefter, wherein the ftatutes of the house are confirmed by an inftrument, in which the bishop affirms he had feen the charters of John de Infula, Rector of Shalfleet, and of Thomas de Winton, Rector of Godthill, founders of the Oratory of the Holy Trinity of Barton, for the ordering and governing the faid Oratory made, and in full force, under the feals of

1282.]
the founders, as follows:

I. That there fhall be fix chaplains and one clerk to officiate both

for the living and dead, under the rules of St. Auguftin.

II. That one of these fhall be prefented to the Bishop of Winchefter, to be the archprieft; to whom the reft fhall take an oath of obedience.

III. That the archpriest shall be chofen by the chaplains there refiding, who fhall prefent him to the bishop within twenty days after any vacancy fhall happen.

IV. They shall be fubject to the immediate authority of the bithop.

V. When any chaplain fhall die, his goods fhall remain to the Oratory.

VI. They fhall have only one mefs, with a pittance, at a meal, excepting on the greater feftivals, when they may have three meffes.

VII. They fhall be diligent in reading and praying.

VIII. They fhall not go beyond the bounds of the Oratory, without licence from the archpriest.

IX. Their habit fhall be of one colour, either black or blue; they fhall be clothed pallio Hibernienfi de nigra boneta cum pileo.

X. The archpriest shall fit at the head of the table, next to him thofe who have celebrated magnam miffam; then the Prieft of St. Mary; next the Priest of the Holy Trinity; and then the priest who fays mafs for the dead.

XI. The clerk fhall read fomething edifying to them while they dine.

XII. They fhall fleep in one room.

XIII. They fhall use a special prayer for their benefactors. XIV. They fhall in all their

ceremo