England: Atherstone - 02

The issues in contention were principally the same points of dispute which had engaged religious and secular (diocesan) clergy for so many decades. Some of the complaints of the pastor were fully justified. The people of Atherstone, not having a parish church of their own, had become attached to the Augustinian friary and attended its church rather than what officially was their parish church in distant Mancetter.

The Bishop of Lichfield, John Bourgh, a Dominican friar, saw the difficulties but thought the accusations of the pastor were without merit, and hence refused to receive his complaint. Thereupon the pastor complained to Rome, which ordered the bishop to conduct a formal investigation.

Images (below): At left, the interior of St Mary’s Church, Atherstone. At right, a side view, showing the older portions on the left and the later portion on the right. The present "Gothic" tower was a reshaping in 1872 of the original Austin Friars' square tower.

The willingness of the Austin Friars to arbitrate is evident from every page of the long legal document, while some demands of the pastor show an acrimonious and unchristian spirit. He resented not only the burials in the friary but was also was incensed by the style of pews in their church, which made services more comfortable.

The Austin Friars were so sure of their cause that they left it entirely to the judgment of a board of arbiters, but were to be deeply disappointed. The arbiters were all diocesan priests; they sided with the pastor even in matters which had nothing to do with parochial rights and which were handled differently both elsewhere in the Diocese of Lichfield and in all other dioceses where mendicants had houses.

For example, as a result of the arbitration the Austin Friars at Atherstone were forbidden to preach on Sundays, to announce lost articles, to bless bread and to distribute holy water.

The much-disputed question whether parents had the right to decide on the burial place for their children was decided in favour of the pastor. Even the canonical portion (one quarter of the total amount) of the Augustinian church’s income was extended to cover income gifts and stipends, which sources were not included in the directives of Pope Boniface VIII.

With the closure of religious houses by King Henry VIII, the Atherstone Priory was suppressed in August 1538. Beforehand, on 23rd May 1538 the king’s official visitator, Richard Ingworth reported to Thomas Cromwell, “At Atherstone I have appointed the Prior to see God served till that I know further of your pleasure; but all is gone, so that they were not able to make shift to pay for my costs nor to give me one penny of contribution to their visitor accustomed.”

“That house is a proper house and certain lands belonging to it lying round about it to the value as it is let out by lease, of four marks per year. All the stuff is not worth 40s besides a chalice and a bell, and there is no lead here. Atherstone is a little house in decay, but may spend four marks a Year of which they pay four nobles a year in rent. One Ameas Hyll, a servant of the king, has most of the ground by lease.”

(Continued on the next page.)
ID2842

<< Previous Next >>

England: Atherstone - 02