<g>William</g>, one of the Baron’s retainers, feeling oppressed by the heat of
the weather, and fatigued by the roughness of the mountain tract through
which they had passed, gladly threw himself down on the soft grass to
seek a few minutes’ repose. But the novelty and grandeur of the scene
awakening his curiosity, he was tempted to make a hasty survey of the
spot; and turning towards the river, that here and there filled the
solitude with its murmurs, he caught a glimpse of the little <g>chapel</g> with
which St. David had hallowed the scene. Suddenly inspired with religious
enthusiasm, he felt an irresistible inclination to linger near the spot;
and at last, dismissing his attendants, he took up his new abode in the
desert; and, like his devout predecessor, consecrated his life to the
service of God, or rather to the contemplation of divine things. He laid
aside his belt--says the recording monk of Llanthony--and girded himself
with a rope. Instead of fine linen, he made unto himself a vestment of
haircloth; and instead of a soldier’s cloak, he loaded himself with
heavy iron. The suit of armour which, in his warrior life, had defended
him from the weapons of the enemy, he now wore as a garment highly
suitable for hardening him against the temptations of his old enemy,
Satan. So that the outer man being thus mortified by austerity, the
inner man might become day by day better disposed and purified for the
service of God. And in order that his zeal might not cool, adds the
pious historian, he thus sacrificed himself, and continued to wear his
hard armour, until the iron and steel were absolutely worn out with rust
and age.
In this manner the devout ascetic spent his years, which otherwise might
have been devoted, like those of his kinsmen, to acts of plunder and
bloodshed; and it only leaves room for regret that his example was not
more generally followed by his companions, whose armour, unfortunately
for mankind, was never suffered to “rust;” and who often, at that
period, transformed the beautiful Welsh frontier into a wide
battle-field. The austerity of his life, witnessed by the rust on his
armour, established his reputation for sanctity; and the cell that
harboured a pious philosopher, was soon regarded as a shrine where he
maintained constant intercourse with those angels and blessed spirits,
whose office was to watch over the saints of that early day.
His fame becoming general among the religious fraternities, Father
<g>Ernesi</g>, confessor to Queen Maude, was induced to make a pilgrimage to
the Honddy; and there, entering into a holy alliance with the steel-clad
hermit, he set immediately to work, and with most laudable industry
erected a chapel on the spot, which was consecrated by Urban, Bishop of
the Diocese, and Rammeline, Bishop of Hereford, and dedicated to the
honour of St. John the Baptist, whose solitary life in the wilderness
they affected to imitate.
Soon after this event, in the early history of Llanthony, Hugh de Laci,
Earl of Hereford, listening to the ghostly exhortation of Ernesi, to
evince his faith by good works, founded a Priory of Canons-Regular of
the Order of <g>St. Augustine</g>, and placed it with all solemnity, as in the
former instance, under the patronage of the blessed St. John. Of this
new establishment, Father Ernesi, as he had a good right to expect, was
elected Prior. This was the commencement of a new and important era for
the fame of Llanthony, which, under the united management of the twain
brothers--both in the odour of sanctity--acquired daily reputation, and
drew to its sacred precincts some of the greatest men of the realm. The
temporal affairs of the rising Abbey attained unwonted prosperity by the
personal countenance and support of King Henry and his Queen, who were
but too happy to exchange a portion of their superfluous wealth for an
interest in the prayers of that holy brotherhood, who had elevated the
banks of the Honddy to a near relationship with Heaven, and held in
their hands--as it was currently believed--the “title-deeds of rich and
extensive settlements in Paradise. And as the latter were assigned,
without partiality, to the highest bidder,” the proceeds for masses
alone--we speak not ironically but historically--increased the annual
revenues to an amount that, in those times, was justly considered a fair
proof of monastic prosperity. On the other hand, it is piously averred,
that such was the disinterestedness and unworldly-mindedness of the
brotherhood, that they despised everything that bore not the stamp of
spiritual riches--that they declined all offers of lands, goods, and
chattels, that were liberally tendered to their house.[317] In that case
it seems probable that the Abbey of Llanthony was not erected in the
ordinary way; that is, by dint of money, but by the force of miracles;
and, like a certain city of old, was conjured into its fair and lofty
proportions by the powers of Harmony. But after duly weighing the
question, the evidence in favour of money seems conclusive; and indeed
certain _scripta_ are now extant to show that the brotherhood of
Llanthony were not less sensible of the value of money--as a spiritual
means--than any of their illustrious fraternity. But it may be said,
with much truth, that the uses to which their money was applied,
produced those “miracles” of Art, which it is the object of this work to
illustrate.
[It is always to be kept in view, that these holy men, in professing
poverty, were, literally, personally poor. The riches, of which they
were merely the guardians--but which are so often charged against them
as proofs of their avarice--were expended on the house of God; in other
words, in fostering the arts, in relieving the poor, in practical
hospitality, and in cultivating a niggardly soil. Personally, they were
poor trustees upon a vast property, which they were bound to employ for
the glory of God and the good of mankind; and if, in some cases that may
be named, the funds thus contributed by the pious were perverted to less
laudable purposes, the fact that, in general, they were applied to the
excellent uses contemplated by the testators, is not to be controverted.
The churches, hospitals, almshouses, cells, and priories, which were
thus founded, built, and endowed from these sources, are proofs of the
fidelity, good sense, and Christian philanthropy, with which the church
property was then administered.]
Once upon a time, as the Monkish historian has told us, the Queen of
King Henry, who desired to bestow a boon on William, of whose entire
disinterestedness she was not apprised, desired permission to put her
hand into his bosom;[318] and when, with great modesty, the holy man
submitted to her importunity, she conveyed a large purse of gold between
his coarse chemise and iron boddice; and thus, by a pleasant and
innocent subtilty, administered, as she imagined, the means of comfort.
But, oh, his wonderful contempt of the world! He displayed a rare
example that the truest happiness is found to consist in possessing
little or nothing of the good things of this life. He accepted, indeed,
the Queen’s gift; but it was only that it might be expended, not in any
worldly or selfish gratification, but in beautifying the house of God.
But having by this act overcome the scrupulous delicacy with which he
had hitherto resisted the temptation of riches, they now flowed in from
every quarter, until that noble edifice was completed, the mouldering
<g>Nave</g> of which is represented in the engraving opposite.[319]
Of the situation of the <g>Abbey</g>, a very picturesque and glowing
description, in good Latin, is given by the old historian, who paints
the wild scenery, in which the first hermits took up their abode, with
the pencil of a Salvator.[320] The following translation, though from a
modern pen, is also a picturesque and not inaccurate sketch of the
scene, which retains all the natural features ascribed to it by the
first writer; but with one engrossing feature superadded--that of a
stately abbey in the last stage of desolation--its towers and arches
bearing witness to the arts employed in its construction, and the sacred
objects of its foundation. In the following passage, Giraldus alludes
to the Itinerary of Archbishop Baldwin[321] in 1188.
“In the deep Vale of <g>Ewyas</g>,” he writes, “which is about an arrow-shot in
breadth, encircled on all sides by lofty mountains, stands the church of
St. John the Baptist, covered with lead, and an arched roof of stone;
and considering the nature of the place, not unhandsomely constructed on
the very spot where the humble chapel of <g>St. David</g> had formerly stood,
decorated only with moss and clay, a situation truly calculated for
religious retirement, and better adapted for canonical discipline than
all the monasteries of the British isle. It was founded, as already
observed, by two hermits, in honour of religious seclusion, far removed
from the bustle of life, and planted in a solitary vale watered by the
river Hodeni--from which it was called Lanhodeni; for _lan_ signifies an
ecclesiastical place.[322]
“Owing to its mountainous situation, the rains are frequent, the winds
boisterous, and the clouds in winter almost continual. The air of the
place, though heavy, is found to be salubrious; and diseases are so
rare, that the brotherhood, when worn out with long toil and affliction
with the daughter--that is, New Llanthony on the Severn--no sooner
return to this asylum, and their mother’s lap in the Vale of Ewyas, than
they regain their wonted strength and vigour. For, as my topographical
history of Ireland testifies, in proportion as we proceed to the
eastward, the face of the sky is more pure and subtile, and the air more
piercing and inclement; and as we draw nearer to the westward, the air
becomes more cloudy, but, at the same time, is more temperate and
healthy.
“Here, while sitting in their cloister, and enjoying the fresh air, the
monks, when they happen to look up towards the horizon, behold the tops
of the mountains, as it were, touching the heavens, and herds of wild
deer feeding on their summits. The body of the sun does not become
visible above the heights of the mountains, even in serene weather,
until about the first hour, or a little more. Truly this is a spot well
adapted for contemplation--a happy and delightful spot--fully competent,
from its first establishment, to supply all its own wants, had not the
extravagance of English luxury, the pride of a sumptuous table, the
increasing growth of intemperance and ingratitude, added to the
negligence of its patrons and prelates, reduced it from freedom to
sterility; and if the step-daughter [Lanthonia Secunda], no less
enviously than odiously, had not supplanted her mother.
It seems worthy of remark, that all the priors who were hostile to the
old monastery died ‘by Divine visitation.’ William, who first despoiled
the place of its herds and storehouses, being deposed by the fraternity,
forfeited his right of sepulture among the priors. Clement seemed to
like this place of study and prayer; yet, after the example of Heli
[Eli], the priest, as he neither reproved nor restrained his brethren
from plunder, and other offences, he died by a paralytic stroke. And
Roger, who was more an enemy to this place than either of his
predecessors, and openly carried away everything which they had left
behind--robbing the church of its books, ornaments, and privileges--was
also struck with a paralytic affection long before his death, resigned
his honours, and lingered out the remainder of his days in sickness and
solitude.
In the reign of <g>King Henry</g> the First, when the Mother-Church was as much
celebrated for her affluence as for her sanctity[323]--two qualities
which are seldom found thus united--the fame of so much religion
attracted hither Roger, Bishop of Salisbury, who was at that time Prime
Minister; for it is virtue to love virtue, even in another man; and a
great proof of innate goodness it is to show a detestation of those
vices which hitherto have not been avoided.
When he had reflected with admiration on the nature of the place, the
solitary life[324] of the fraternity, living in canonical obedience, and
serving God without a murmur or complaint, he returned to the King, and
related to him what he thought most worthy of remark; and after spending
the greater part of the day in the praises of this place, he finished
his panegyric with these words--“Why should I say more? The whole
treasure of the King and his kingdom would not be sufficient to build
such a cloister.”
Having held the minds of the King and the Court for a long time in
suspense by this assertion, he at length explained the enigma, by
saying, that he alluded to the “cloister of mountains,” by which this
church is on every side environed. But
<g>William</g>--the warrior who first discovered this place--and his companion
Ernisius, a priest, having heard, perhaps--as it is written in the
Fathers, according to the opinion of Jerome--“that the church of Christ
decreased in virtues as it increased in riches”--were often used
devoutly to solicit the Lord, that this place might never obtain great
possessions. They were exceedingly concerned when this religious
foundation began to be enriched by its first lord and patron, <g>Hugh de
Lacy</g>, and by the lands and ecclesiastical benefices conferred upon it
by the bounty of others of the faithful. From their predilection to
poverty, they rejected a great many offers of manors and churches; and
being situated in a wild spot, they would not suffer the thick and
wooded parts of the valley to be cultivated and levelled, lest they
should be tempted to recede from their eremitical mode of life.
But whilst the Mother-Church increased daily in riches and endowments, a
rival <g>Daughter</g>--as we shall see--availing herself of the hostile state
of the country, sprang up at Gloucester, under the protection of Milo,
Earl of Hereford; as if, by Divine Providence, and through the merits of
the saints, and prayers of those holy men (of whom two lie buried before
the high altar), it were destined that the Daughter-Church should be
founded in superfluities, whilst the Mother continued in that laudable
state of mediocrity, which she had always affected and coveted.
“Wherefore let the active reside there, the contemplative here; there
the pursuit of terrestrial wishes, and here the love of celestial
delights; there let them enjoy the concourse of men, here the presence
of angels; there let the powerful of this world be entertained, here let
the poor of Christ be relieved; there, I say, let human actions and
pompous declamations be heard, but here let reading and prayers be heard
only in whispers; there let opulence, the parent and nurse of vice,
increase with cares; here let the virtuous and golden mean be
all-sufficient.
“In both places, the canonical discipline instituted by <g>St. Augustine</g>,
which is now distinguished above all other orders, is observed; for the
Benedictines, when their wealth was increased by the fervour of charity,
and multiplied by the bounty of the faithful, under the pretext of a bad
dispensation, corrupted, by gluttony and indulgence, our <g>Order</g>--that is,
the Augustinian--which, in its original state of poverty, was held in
high estimation. The Cistercian order, derived from the former, at first
deserved praise and commendation, from its adhering voluntarily to the
original vows of poverty and sanctity, until ambition, the blind mother
of mischief, unable to fix bounds to prosperity, was introduced; for as
Seneca[325] says, ‘Too great happiness makes men greedy, nor are their
desires ever so temperate as to terminate in what is acquired.’”
Here the author, as if to contrast them with those of <g>Llanthony</g> Prima,
indulges in a learned and eloquent apostrophe against the luxury and
pride of several orders of monks. He concludes it with this anecdote: “I
have judged it proper to insert in this place an instance of an answer
which King Richard--Cœur de Lion--made to Fulke, a good and holy man, by
whom God, in these our days, has wrought many signs in the kingdom of
France. This man had, among other things, said to the king, “You have
three daughters, namely, Pride, Luxury, and Avarice, and as long as they
shall remain with you, you can never expect to be in favour with God.”
To which the king, after a short pause, replied, “I have already given
away those daughters in marriage--Pride to the Templars, Luxury to the
Black Monks, and Avarice to the White.”[326]
“It is a remarkable circumstance,” he continues, “or rather a miracle,
concerning Llanthony, that although it is on every side surrounded by
lofty mountains, not stony or rocky, but of a soft nature, and covered
with grass, yet Parian stones are frequently found there, and are called
Freestones, from the facility with which they admit of being cut and
polished; and with these the church is beautifully built. It is also
wonderful, that when, after a diligent search, all the stones have been
removed from the mountains, and no more can be found; yet, upon another
search, a few days afterwards, they reappear in greater quantities to
those who seek them.”
After some farther remarks on the manners of the monastic orders, the
venerable author thus beautifully concludes:--“In these temperate
regions I have obtained, according to the usual expression, a place of
dignity, but no great omen of future pomp or riches; and possessing a
small residence near the castle of Brecheinoc [Brecknock?], well adapted
to literary pursuits, and to the contemplation of _eternity_,[327] I
envy not the riches of Crœsus; happy and contented with that mediocrity,
which I prize far beyond all the perishable and transitory things of
this world.”
So far the monk of Llanthony--whose partiality is very excusable; but,
unfortunately, the <g>act</g> or charter of Edward IV., uniting the two abbeys,
gives a different colouring to the transactions between the two
abbeys--mother and daughter. It recites that, owing to the depredations
committed on the convent by the neighbouring inhabitants, and the
frequent removal of the priors and other members of the convent, the
religious functions were negligently performed, and acts of charity and
hospitality to strangers no longer exercised: Also, that as John Adams,
the prior, had profusely squandered away the revenues of the church,
maintaining only four canons besides himself, who paid no attention to
the holy duties of the establishment: And whereas all due regard and
reverence were paid to the sacred offices of the church by the members
of the monastery of new Llanthony near Gloucester, the king hereby
grants all the lands--both in England, Wales, and Ireland--now
appertaining to the convent of Llanthony in Wales, to the prior of the
convent of Llanthony near Gloucester, to have and to hold for ever, on
the payment of the fine of three hundred marks, and on condition that he
maintains an establishment--dative and removable at will--of a prior and
four canons, as the mother-church, for the purpose of performing
religious service and mass for the souls of its founders. “Thus,”
continues our author,[328] “in the short period of thirty years, we see
the simple chapel of St. David transmuted into a spacious and elegant
abbey; that same building nearly deserted, and another, still more
magnificent, erected and translated from the solitary banks of the
little river Hodni, to the rich and luxurious shores of the Severn.”
<g>Milo, Founder</g> of Llanthony Secunda.--Under this head, it is recorded in
the Abbey Chronicle, that in the reign of King <g>Henry</g>, son of the
Conqueror, there flourished a certain warrior of noble family named
Gwalterus, or <g>Walter</g>, who was Constable, under the King, of the Castles
of Gloucester and Hereford. The said Walter caused to be erected on his
own demesne the Castle of Gloucester, and dying some time thereafter,
his remains were conveyed to <g>Llanthony Abbey</g>, in Wales, and there
buried. The aforesaid Walter left an only son, <g>Milo</g> by name, whom King
Henry created Earl of <g>Hereford</g>; and moreover, by way of augmentation to
the said earldom, made over to him and his heirs for ever a grant of the
whole Forest of <g>Dean</g>.
This <g>Milo</g>, first earl of the name, took to wife Sibylla, heiress of
<g>Brecknock</g>, and daughter of <g>Bernard</g> and <g>Agnes</g> of New March.[329]--The
offspring of this marriage were five sons and three daughters, namely,
Roger, Henry, Walter, Matthew, and William, Margery, Bertha, and Lucy.
He founded the Abbey or Priory of New Llanthony, near Gloucester, on the
25th of May, 1136, being the first of King Stephen’s reign; and dying on
Christmas-eve, 1143, was buried in the chancel of the <g>Abbey</g> which he had
founded seven years before. After his demise, he was succeeded in his
titles and estates by each of his five sons, one after the other; but
all of whom died without legitimate issue. Hereupon his possessions were
shared in equal proportions by his three surviving daughters.[330] <g>Lucy</g>,
his third daughter, was married to Herbert <g>Fitz-Herbert</g>, and had for her
share and dowry the Forest of Dean, and other estates in England.[331]
The offspring of this marriage was a son named <g>Peter</g>, who became the
father of a long line of descendants.
Bertha, second daughter of Count Milo, married William <g>de Brewes</g>, and
took for dowry the lordship of Brecknock. The offspring from this
marriage were three sons, <g>William</g>, <g>Egidius</g>, and <g>Reginald</g>. William, their
eldest son and heir, in the time of King John, having made war upon his
enemy Guenhunewyn, subdued him, and slew no less than three thousand
Welsh in one day at <g>Elvel</g>. This battle took place on the morrow of <g>St.
Lawrence</g> the Martyr, in the year of our Lord 1498. But for this
rebellious act he was disinherited by <g>King John</g>; and, without trial,
condemned to quit the realm of England. He died in exile; while his
unhappy wife and their only son, being thrown into prison by the same
heartless and arbitrary power, died shortly after in captivity.
<g>Egidius</g>, the second son, became Bishop of Hereford; and <g>Reginald</g> de
Brewes, the third son, after the death of King <g>John</g>, and that of his two
brothers the afore-named William and Egidius, was pronounced heir to all
the possessions which had been forfeited by his brother William, and
took possession of the same accordingly. He married a daughter of
William <g>de la Bruere</g>, and had by his wife a son whom he named William de
Brewes, _quartus_. The latter espoused the lady Eve, daughter of the
renowned William, Earl Marshall, so frequently mentioned in these
pages.[332] By this union he had issue four daughters--Isabella,
Matilda, Eve, and Alionora. Of these, <g>Isabella</g> was married to David, son
of <g>Llewellyn</g>, Prince of Wales.
But at a great festival where he presided, immediately after the Paschal
Feast, in 1229, Llewellyn conceiving a bitter jealousy between his wife
and the said William de Brewes, most treacherously caused the latter to
be ignominiously hanged--an atrocity which threw the whole Welsh
frontier into the greatest confusion and alarm; for at that time <g>King
Henry</g> was still in France with a large army; and in his absence the
country was but ill provided with the means of enforcing the law.
<g>Matilda</g>, the second daughter, married Roger <g>Mortimer</g>, Lord Wigmore, from
whom sprang a numerous progeny. <g>Eve</g>, the third daughter, married William
<g>de Cartello</g>. <g>Alionora</g>, the fourth and youngest, married Humphrey <g>de
Bohun</g>, with the lordship of Brecknock, which for some time had belonged
to the Counts or Earls of Hereford. Among the names here mentioned,
those of Bertha and Lucy, daughters of <g>Milo</g>, are to be held in special
reverence as eminent patrons and benefactors of <g>New Llanthony</g>.
And here, for the present, we take leave of the genealogical table,
which exhibits in many striking examples the instability of fortune, the
frailty of human nature, the vanity of riches, and the uncertain tenure
of life.
[Illustration: C]<g>HARTERS.</g>--The following is an extract from the charter
of King John, in the first year of his reign, wherein all grants
previously made in favour of <g>Llanthony</g> are recited and confirmed:--
“<g>Know</g> all men by these presents, that I, <g>John</g>, King of England, have,
out of love to God, confirmed in perpetual offering to God, to the
Blessed Virgin, St. John the Baptist, and the Canons-Regular of
<g>Lantonay</g>, the donations or grants hereunder described, which have been
reasonably and lawfully conceded to them, viz.: By deed of gift from our
father the late King Henry, the chapel near the Castle of Gloucester,
the school in the same town, a moiety of the fishery of <g>Horsepol</g>, which
is in our domain, with iiij lib. of land in the manor of <g>Bernington</g>, as
alms in perpetuity.”--So much for the new Abbey near Gloucester.
He then recites and confirms the benefactions of Hugh and Walter <g>de
Laci</g>, consisting of lands, woods, fisheries, villages, houses, and
whatever property in those times was essential to the prosperity of a
great religious establishment. It is a long deed; and, besides those
already noticed, introduces a full list of benefactors, whose names and
families--though of great note and influence at that day--have long
vanished from the political horizon, and are seldom found but in ancient
title-deeds, or charters like the present, in which their good works are
faithfully and minutely registered.
It is to be observed, however, that after the establishment of <g>New
Llanthony</g> on the Severn, the benefactions to the Mother-Abbey are few
and insignificant. The former, under the patronage of the <g>Milo</g> family,
became suddenly rich, and able to introduce those embellishments of art,
and that luxurious mode of life, which opened a wide channel for the
diffusion of its revenues; but while it increased its splendour, insured
its ultimate poverty.
* * * * *
By a <g>Deed</g> given by <g>Edward</g> the Second, in the eighteenth year of his
reign, the property conveyed to Llanthony by Walter <g>de Laci</g> and others,
is again revised and confirmed. He grants also permission to elect from
their own body, or from any other, as they may see meet, a fit person to
preside over the Church and Priory of Llanthony, whenever a vacancy
occurs, concluding--“Et ut hæc libertas eligendi eis in perpetuum
perseveret illibata, huic scripto <g>Sigillum</g> meum est appositum.”
The Deed given by <g>Walter</g> and <g>Hugh</g> de Laci to the Canons of Llanthony is
then recited; and by this document a vast amount of property,
privileges, arable lands, pastures, fisheries, hunting-grounds, and
various other benefactions, are described as finally made over to the
Prior and Brotherhood, out of pure love for the glory of God, the
welfare of their own souls, the souls of their predecessors, successors,
and kinsfolk.
In this munificent grant is comprised the whole valley--‘totam
vallem’--of the <g>Ewyas</g>, with all its appurtenances, in which the church
is situated; describing, at the same time, its boundaries:--“Et concedo
quod habeant omnimodam venationem et dominationem infra metus terræ
suæ.” All this is followed by other unquestionable privileges, such as
united with the spiritual an amount of despotic power, which invested
the Prior and Canons of Llanthony with an authority in things temporal,
no way inferior to that exercised by a feudal Baron in his own castle,
and over his own vassals.[333]
* * * * *
But in spite of its revenues, and the ‘personal example and influence of
a few--but only a few--distinguished members and benefactors of this
monastery, it fell gradually into disrepute and decay.’ The principal
cause has been generally ascribed to the rival Abbey at Gloucester, by
which benefactors were alienated, and good works averted from that on
the Honddy. But there were other causes at work--the evil lives of the
Priors themselves; their indolence, luxury, and licentiousness; their
dissipating the funds, and perverting their use to unsanctified
purposes; which did more to degrade monastic habits, and pull down the
sacred edifice, than could have been accomplished by their most
inveterate enemies. And enemies they certainly had--both formidable and
frequent; for they were exposed, by their insulated position and
supposed wealth, to irruptions from those bands of marauders, to whom
plunder and forced contribution from holy men were more like a pastime
than military enterprise. But of this hereafter.
[Illustration: W]<g>E</g> are now to give some account of the decline and final
dissolution of Llanthony, brought about by causes which are thus
recorded by the Latin historian:--Whereas certain priories and religious
houses, but more especially the aforesaid Priory of St. John the Baptist
of <g>Lanthony</g> _Prima_ in Wales, as well by frequent removals and
expulsions of the Priors and occupiers of the places aforesaid, as by
divers secular persons and others, tenants of these possessions, were so
profligately squandered, dilapidated, and mismanaged, both in regard to
their houses, substance, and affairs, that divine service and the
regular observance of religious duties have become less frequent than
ever; that the means of hospitality, almsgiving, and, above all, the
works of piety and charity, which had been there established of old, and
customarily done and observed in the place, are now withdrawn and
perverted from the original design: And whereas John <g>Adams</g>, Prior of
<g>Lanthony</g>, as we are plainly informed, hath wasted and destroyed, and
continues to waste and destroy, the fruits, revenues, products, and
emoluments of the said <g>Priory</g>; and hath found and supported no Canons,
except himself and four others, little given to a religious life; that
he hath withdrawn, and does withdraw, the forms of divine worship, works
of hospitality, piety, and charity, which were there wont to be done and
maintained, according to the original foundation of the same; whereby
the vows and intentions of the Founders have been and are so
fraudulently perverted, to the manifest offence and great displeasure of
Almighty God, and contrary to the design of the Founder: And whereas our
will is, that the pious vows of the <g>Founders</g> of the said Priory be not
thus shamefully frustrated and forgotten; but in reverence of the
salutary order observed by those godly men, the Prior and Canons-Regular
of the Monastery of <g>Lanthony</g>, near Gloucester; and observing in what an
exemplary manner divine service and punctual observances are every day
celebrated therein, with honour and strict obedience, according to the
full extent of its revenues: And whereas it is our earnest desire to
make suitable provision for the honour of <g>God</g> and his Church, by a
restoration of the forms of divine worship, and by application of the
revenues left by the Founder to their original and legitimate object:
We, therefore, have here, by an act of special grace, granted and
conceded to our beloved in CHRIST, <g>Henry Deen</g>, Prior, etc., of Lanthony,
near Gloucester, to that Convent and his successors for ever, the right
of patronage, and the advocation of the Priory and Conventual Church of
<g>Lanthony</g>, etc., in Wales. <g>Also</g> the Priory, etc., with all members,
cells, churches, chapels, domains, lands, and tenements, whatsoever and
wheresoever--in England, Wales, and Ireland--as parcels of the said
Priory, or in whatever manner belonging thereto; <g>With</g> all rents, etc.,
to have and to hold by the said Prior and Convent of <g>St. Mary</g> of
Lanthony, and their successors--for the sum of three hundred marks, paid
to us beforehand--in pure and perpetual alms for ever. And
<g>Moreover</g>, we grant to the said Prior and Convent, the Conventual Church
or Monastery of <g>Lanthony</g> in Wales; with the priorate, and all rights,
privileges, and appurtenances, to the Prior and Convent of Lanthony,
near Gloucester--their Conventual Church and successors--to be
consolidated, united, appropriated--to transfer, or to be transferred to
their management; and that they possess these in full and proper use for
themselves and their successors for ever; together with, etc.
<g>And</g> these things, all and singular, as promised and permitted,
consolidated, etc., and transferred to them and their successors
aforesaid, to have and to hold for ever, for their proper use, and for
masses and prayers to be performed for our prosperity, and that of
<g>Elizabeth</g>, our well-beloved consort, so long as we remain in the body;
and for the health of our souls when we shall depart this life. <g>Also</g> for
the souls of our progenitors; and for the souls of all who have departed
this life in the <g>Faith</g>.
<g>And</g> it is hereby ordered, that the Prior of New <g>Lanthony</g> and his
Convent, they and their successors, shall exhibit and defray their own
and all expenses incurred in the maintenance of Old <g>Lanthony</g>, and the
Prior and Canons there resident. That the latter office shall be in the
gift of the former, removable at the will and pleasure of the Prior and
Convent for the time being. That four Canons[334] shall there reside,
for the celebration of masses and other divine offices; and for the
administration of the sacraments, and sacramental duties, to the
parishioners and rural population, so long as they are not impeded or
interrupted therein by the rebellious disturbers of our peace. And to
pray for the souls of the Founders of <g>Lanthony</g> _Prima_, and for the
souls above-named; and to be removable at the word or sign of the
Prior, for the time being, of New <g>Lanthony</g> aforesaid, etc. etc.--By the
<g>King</g> at <g>Westminster</g>, the x day of May.[335]
* * * * *
<g>From</g> this date the Abbey of Old Llanthony, which had been grievously
interrupted in its religious duties, and damaged by its own internal
misgovernment, the reckless lives of its inmates, and the frequent
imposts and exactions to which it was subjected by the rebels and
marauders above alluded to, was suffered to fall into decay and
disrepute. Its resources, in obedience to the above decree, were drawn
off from their legitimate channel, and employed to augment the revenues
and foster the pride of its undutiful and “rival Daughter” on the banks
of the Severn. Thus--as the old historian has pathetically
observed--“Filii Matris meæ pugnaverunt contra me; nam leviùs communia
tangunt, sed quodammodo specialiori et tanto atrociori flere, clamando,
Filii uteri mei pugnaverunt contra me, quia--
Non sua sunt summa leviter perstricta sagitta
Pectora, descendit vulnus ad ossa suum.”
Yet, after the lapse of centuries, the Abbey of Old Llanthony presents
an imposing aspect. In that solitude, over which it was erected for the
diffusion of spiritual life and light, it is still an object of
venerable grandeur; while of the luxurious temple of “her Daughter,”
built on one of the most fertile spots in the kingdom, elaborately
ornamented and munificently endowed, the remains are few and
insignificant. Thus, if the old monastic fathers could burst their
cerements and look around them, they would perceive that Time, the
avenger, has drawn a line of as marked distinction between the two
monasteries, as between a greater and a lesser criminal; and, by a just
and discriminating sentence, consigned one to the plough, and the other
to pilgrims and archæologists.[336]
[Illustration: _Llanthony Abbey._