The Middleton Accounts of 1526: #46

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 27th August. A third entry directly after those was undated. The first was described as payment to Sir William for the amount that he had paid for four pairs of shoes for four Children of the Chapel and the amount was 23 pence, which was the equivalent of about £42.29 today. The second was described as a reward to the anchoress at Polesworth and the amount was 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £14.71 today. The third entry was payment for four primers for the Children of the Chapel and the amount was 10 pence, which was the equivalent of about £18.39 today.

The two entries referring to the Children of the Chapel are proof confirming that Sir Henry did provide the clothing and general education of these child servants. At Midsummer in 1524, Sir William Webb had received his half-year wages of 20 shillings, which was the equivalent of about £520.02 today. He was one of Sir Henry’s highest paid servants and it is known that this Sir William was Sir Henry’s private chaplain. It is possible, but not certain, that Sir William Webb is the same person as the Sir William in this 1526 account entry. If that is the case, then Sir William Webb was also likely to be Sir Henry’s Master of the Children of the Chapel.

When the title Sir was used in Tudor times in connection with someone in an ecclesiastical role, it did not mean that they were knights. It was used as a courtesy title in respect of their position in the church but it also identified that the clergyman had either not gone to university or had only received a Bachelor of Arts. University was very expensive and as a result many priests, curates and chaplains, especially those from lower social classes, learned through what were essentially practical apprenticeships in the Church. A highly learned clergyman who had been to university and received a Master of Arts or Doctorate degree would have been identified instead by the prefix of Master or Doctor. This traditional prefix naming distinction gradually faded in the Elizabethan era and completely disappeared in the 17th century, which was when the Church of England became more professionalised and a university education became a standard requirement.

The anchoress at Polesworth refers to an individual who lived a life of extreme religious seclusion within a specially built cell. This cell was known as an anchorage and there was one integrated within Polesworth Abbey. Unlike the monastic nuns who lived as a community, the anchoress was permanently locked inside her cell. Furthermore, the anchoress’ vows were different in that she took a vow of permanent stability in a single cell and she only answered directly to the bishop, not the abbess. The presence of an anchoress is believed to have started at Polesworth Abbey in at least the 13th century and continued until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536. The anchorage at Polesworth Abbey was a two-storied single-cell building built into the south aisle of the Abbey church. The cell had a small squint window that looked into the church in order for her to view the altar and receive the Eucharist. There was another covered window to the outside in order for her to receive food and charity and give spiritual counsel to people. It has been suggested that the presence of the anchorage at Polesworth Abbey is deeply tied to St Editha, its patron saint. Historical hagiographies note that before St Editha became Abbess of Polesworth, she spent years living a very austere and secluded life as a hermit in the Forest of Arden. The inclusion of the anchorage honoured this traditional practice of solitary devotion.

David Rogers, Polesworth Abbey Church (east side), 2008, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Further Reading:

W. H. Stevenson, Report on the Manuscripts of Lord Middleton, Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1911. p.370, 384.

“3. History of the site and buildings”, Polesworth Abbey – A conservation Management Plan, https://abbeypcc.weebly.com/uploads/5/3/9/4/53941565/polesworth_conservation_plan_section_b.pdf

“Priest by Patronage? ‘Sir’ William Edwardson”, Edwardson History Society. https://www.edwardsonhistorysociety.com/priest-by-patronage

Author - Debbie Jordan, Middleton Hall Volunteer.

Please consider supporting Middleton Hall Trust by sending us a donation.