The Annals of Burton are in the British Museum,[223] and so is the Chronicle of Croxden. Various other books from the monastic libraries of Staffordshire have also drifted thither, one of which, a copy of St. Augustine from Burton Abbey, has on the fly-leaf a list of the books in the Library in the thirteenth century.[224] It shows that there were then over sixty volumes, many of which contained several works. These are Commentaries on various books of the Bible, most of the works of the Fathers, sundry books of Sermons and Homilies, Lives of various saints, and several editions of Bede’s History, one of which is in English. There were also copies of the Gospels and of the Psalms in English, an English Hymnary, and an English Homily book. Abbot Geoffrey, the sixth Abbot of Burton, wrote the life and miracles of St. Modwen in a quarto of 167 folios in double columns,[225] and the first Abbot of Croxden himself copied out the greater part of the Bible. A later Abbot of Croxden, in the thirteenth century, bought for the Library an annotated Bible in nine volumes for fifty marks. Abbot William de Over, who was elected in 1297, much enriched the Library. It is evident there were books in considerable numbers in the monasteries, yet they are unmentioned in the records of the dissolution. Very occasionally we find “old books” sold for trivial sums, and one or two Missals are mentioned. At Stafford Robert Dorrington bought two “lots” of “old bokes,” those in the Library at the Grey Friars (with a coffer) for two shillings, and those in the vestry for eightpence; the “old bokes in the quyer” at the Austin Friars sold for sixpence. At Stafford two Missals sold for eightpence and twelvepence each, and at Lichfield one fetched fourpence.
The books and documents that were important as title-deeds were of course looked after. The original Chartulary of Burton Abbey is still in the possession of the Marquis of Anglesey, and that of Dieulacres is possessed by the Earl of Macclesfield. The Chartularies of Stone and Ronton are in the British Museum.[226] But probably the greater part of the books were treated in a manner similar to that in which Dr. Layton treated the books at the Oxford colleges, and no doubt the description he gave of the result of his visit to New College would apply to most of the monasteries: “We fownde all the gret quadrant court full of the leiffes ... the wynde blowing them into evere corner.”[227]
As might be supposed from the character of the agents employed, much of the spoil did not reach the Royal treasure-house without a good deal of trouble. The lead was to be melted into “plokes” and sows, weighed, and marked with the King’s marks, and delivered under indenture to the constables of neighbouring castles, such as Tutbury. But so long afterwards as the reign of Mary, John Scudamore was being called upon for the settlement of his accounts. The following letter was addressed to him from Westminster on the “laste of February,” 1555:[228]
“After our harty comendacyons, theise maye be to advertyse you that we have perused the indentures made betwyxte Mr. Sheldon and you, and accordynge to the tenure of the same have charged the sayed master Sheldon with all the leade, bell metalle, and redy money mencyoned and conteigned in the sayed indenture, which beynge deducted oute of youer charge, yett there dothe remayne to be aunsweryd by you bothe leade and bell metalle as ffollowythe, that ys to saye for leade att ... Rocestre, vi, ff.; Croxden, xiiii, ff. de.; Delacres, iiii, ff.; Tuttberye, vi, ff., i, quarter; nuper prioratus canonicorum de Stafford, xliiii, ff.; ... the celle of Dudley, iiii, ff.; ... ffor the aunswere whereof we requyer you, by the vertue of the kynge and quenes majesties comyssyon to us directed, that wythe as convenyente spede as you may after the receyte hereof sende unto us youre suffycyente deputie to accoumpte byfore us for the same, so as hereuppon their majesties may be satisfyed by you of the dett that shall faul out uppon the same. And bycause we be moche callyd uppon to reporte youer estate and dett herein, we therefore are constrayned the more ernestly to calle uppon you, whome we dought not wylle have such regarde hereunto as bothe their majesties expectacyon herein may be served (as ys mete), as also for the full ende of this charge towardes youer selfe, with which as before the ende ys troublesome and comberous unto you, so will the ende thereof be to youer quyetnes and comforte. Whereof, for that you are ouer oulde ffrende and of oulde acquayntaunce, we thought to advyse you the rather for that commyssyon ys nowe oute for the ende of those causys, of which you nowe may be dyscharged yf the faulte be not in youer selfe. We also advertysse you that Mr. Sheldone wylbe no further charged concernynge the leade and belles within your late circuyte there thenne ys conteyned in the indentures bytwyxte you and hym; and therefore you muste aunswere the reste youer selfe, whereunto we dought not but you wyll have such respecte as we may receyve youer aunswere withe expedycion.”
It is difficult to make any precise estimate of the numbers affected by the Dissolution. In the case of houses the deeds of surrender of which are extant, of course the number of signatories can be definitely stated. The Suppression papers give some further details. Valor Ecclesiasticus gives the stewards and bailiffs, etc., but, as we have seen, cannot be relied upon for completeness. From a comparison of the available data the following table has been compiled:
| Religious | Bailiffs etc. | Servants | Chief Steward | Others | |
| Brewood Nunnery | 4 | 7 | 1 chaplain | ||
| Burton Abbey | 11 | Earl of Huntingdon | 1 corrodian, | ||
| 1 scholar | |||||
| Croxden Abbey | 13 | 7 | |||
| Dieulacres Abbey | 13 | 8 | 30 | Lord Derby | 8 bedeswomen |
| Dudley Priory | 2 | ||||
| Hulton Abbey | 5 | Sir Philip Draycot | |||
| Sir Richard Sutton | |||||
| Rocester Priory | 9 | 2 | |||
| Ronton Priory | 3 | John Harcourt | |||
| St. Thomas’s Priory | 7 | 13 | 16 | Earl Ferrers | |
| Stone Priory | 2 | Sir Edward Aston | |||
| Trentham Priory | 4 | William Chetwyn | 1 corrodian | ||
| Tutbury Priory | 9 | 10 | Earl of Shrewsbury |
The recurrence of the same surname among the lists of inmates and employees of the religious houses is worth noticing. At Dieulacres the Abbot, Thomas Whitney, had Humfrey Whitney as bailiff of his lordships and manors in Cheshire, John Whitney as chamberlain, and two other servants who bore his name and were of sufficient importance to be pensioned. At St. Thomas’s the Prior, Richard Whitwell, gave employment to another Richard, an Edward, and a Katharine, who all bore his surname; William Stapulton and Thomas Bagley were canons, and Thomas Stapulton and William Bagley were servants. Among the servants three were named Coke, two Turner, two Beche or Bech (besides one named Bache), and three were named Baker.
That there was ordinarily a bailiff at Brewood Nunnery is shown by the existence in the house of a bailiff’s chamber. It was well furnished at the Suppression, and Robert Baker, who received a “reward” of 13s. 4d., may have been the occupant.
At Dieulacres Valor Ecclesiasticus gives three bailiffs, etc., but at the Dissolution seven are mentioned, besides a forester; and eleven other men were pensioned. Lord Derby, “Steward of the Monastery and town of Leek,” received a pension at the Dissolution. At Stafford Valor Ecclesiasticus gives nine stewards: at the Suppression twenty-nine people were rewarded, which appears to mean thirteen officials (besides the High Steward and including the cook), who were also pensioned, and sixteen others, including four ploughmen and six women. At Hulton Sir Philip Draycot was Chief Steward of the Staffordshire Manors, and Sir Richard Sutton of Cambryngham.
From the names of the holders of the office of Chief Steward it may be presumed that the post was mainly an honorary one. Lord Derby and the Earls of Huntingdon and Shrewsbury are not likely to have presided often in the manor courts or to have taken much active part in the work of administration. In many cases it is even mentioned expressly that there was a deputy steward. Probably the office corresponded somewhat to that of patron of an institution, or Chancellor of a modern University: the holder lent the house the prestige of his name, attended on special occasions, and was expected to use his influence when necessity arose. It is to be feared the Chief Stewards did nothing to help the monasteries in their hour of need: many of them only used whatever knowledge they possessed of the monastic affairs to obtain a good share of the spoil. The Earl of Shrewsbury, Chief Steward of Tutbury, was also Chief Steward of the Abbeys of Shrewsbury, Buildwas, Lilleshall and Wenlock in the adjoining county of Salop, of Beauchief in Derbyshire, St. Werburgh (Chester), Vale Royal and Combermere in Cheshire, Welbeck in Nottinghamshire, and Wilton in Wiltshire. Thomas Cromwell was steward of five monasteries and of New College, Oxford.