So much that is of interest in the religious life of the period is connected with the chantries that it is worth while recording some of the scattered notices that have come down to us.
To begin with the Chapel of Our Lady, the earliest mention we have of it is in 1364 while in 1392 the Corpus Christi Gild endowed a priest there to sing mass for the good estate of Richard II, Anne his queen, and the whole realm of England, to be called St. Mary's priest. The indenture sets forth that "he is to be at Divine service on Sundays and double Feasts in the chancel and at Matins, Hours, Masses, Evensong, Compline and other offices used in the said church and also daily at Salve in our Lady's Chapel unless hindered by reasonable cause." The records of the Dissolution of the Chantries show how much town property must have been held by them, while from these and other sources we learn the extent of their belongings in tenements, messuages, rent charges and the like. Thus in 1454 Emot Dowte gave several tenements to this altar and in 1492 Richard Clyff "late parson of St. George in London," left a house in Well St. to the church "to the intent that the mass of Our Lady may be observed the better." In 1558 (the year of Elizabeth's accession) William Hyndeman, alderman and butcher, directs that his body be buried in the Lady Chapel "as aldermen are wont to be buried, towards the charges whereof I give twenty nobles to be levied of my quick cattle and if it be too little then I will that Sybil my wife shall lay down 20s. more." He also orders an obit to be kept after the death of his wife "yearly for ever;" a form of words that must surely have sounded unreal after the changes of the last two reigns.
Perceye's chantry again, which Dugdale considered the oldest (though he does not give the date) was endowed in 1350 with six messuages, one shop, six acres of land and 40s. rent, all lying in Coventry, to which in 1407 William Botoner and others, added a messuage and twenty-four acres of land in the city for another priest.
Then the chantry of the Holy Cross (1357) founded for two priests to sing daily a mass for the good estate before death and for the souls after of the royal family, and for the founders and the members of the Fraternity of the Holy Cross, was endowed with seven messuages, fourteen shops and sixteen acres of land in the city.
Dugdale enumerates also four others, Cellet's, Corpus Christi, Lodynton's and Allesley's, to which should probably be added Marler's, assigned by him to St. Michael's. The first two are doubtless the same foundation, for in 1329 land and tenements were granted to the priest of Corpus Christi Chapel for the health of the soul of William Celet and others.
It was almost certainly situated in the south transept, on the upper level over the vaulted passage. The position of Lodynton's chantry (1393) is not known; Allesley's, founded in the reign of Edward I, was sung at St. Thomas's altar.
Richard Marler stipulates in his will that his priest is to have the "stypend or wagis of nyne marks by yere so long as he shall be of good and prestly conversacyon and demeanor, wt' a p'vyso that yf the seyde prest be ffounde otherwyse, after monyc'on and reasonable warnyng to hym geven, he to be removed."
Much of the later history of the church relates to the destruction of its fittings and furniture or to restorations almost as grievous. In 1560 2s. 6d. was paid for taking down the carving about the high altar, while the Mayor bought the panelling of the altar for 33s. 4d., the vail for 5s., the "thing that the sacrament was in over the altar 1s.," the "peyre [pair of candlesticks?] that was upon the altar 5d." Perhaps he thought that all these things would be wanted again ere long. In 1547 a quantity of costly vestments and banners had been sold and we find in the accounts a number of such items as these: "Sold the 6 day of Jennery 5 copps of red teyssew to Mr. Roghers, now mayre (and 4 other persons) pryce of the sayd copps, 10l. To Bawden Desseld one cope of red velvet, 5l. Mr. Schewyll a grene velvet cope, 30s."
But before Mary's death we have a lengthy inventory of copes, vestments, albs, banners and the like, some of which may have come back to the church from the buyers at the sale eleven years before.
The church must have looked like a builder's yard in 1643 when the Committee and Council of War pulled down divers houses outside Bishop's and Spon Gates and stacked the materials here, while the changes of government are indicated by the payment in 1647 of 3s. 6d. "to Hopes for defacing the King's Arms" and in 1660 of 6s. to "Hope for the King's Arms."