ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY PREACHING ON BEHALF OF HENRY, DUKE OF LANCASTER
Harl. MS. 1319, page 12.
- One awter cloth with a nether part and a border of damaske and one payer of certyns of sylk.
- One cope of cloth of gold the grownde beeinge red.
- One cope of cloth of gold the grownde beeinge blew.
- One cope with a vestment of whit damaske wroght upon red flowers of golde and fflanmells pertayninge to the same.
- One cope with a vestment of koges and fflamels to the same.
- One cope of red velvet imbrodered with buds and cards of golde.
- One cope of blew velvet imbrodered with golde and images and also
- One vestment of red velvet with fflowers of golde.
- One vestment of dornyx bodkyn.
- One awter cloth of red velvet with fflowers of golde and y borders pertayninge to the same.
- One awter cloth with a nether part of blewe sarcenet imbrodered with garters and iiij certins of sarcenet.
- xvij awter clothes of linen cloth ix borders and xx certyns all stayned.
- ij awter clothes of lynne stayed with half-pencers.
- ij borders of stayed cloth.
- j awter cloth of ginger collered velvet with a border to the same.
- j clothe of blewe velvet that went abowt the sepulchre.
- viij lynnen clothes used in the tyme of Lent and vj certins of lynen clothe pertayninge to the same.
- ij copes of grene silk demyn and j cope of red velvet imbrodered with gold and images.
- iij borders and a font clothe all stayned.
- iij certyns of blew and yellow buckram.
- iiij certyns of sarcenett red and greene.
- iiij certyns of saye yellow and red.
- iiij certyns of red say and ij vayle clothes.
- j curten of blak sarcenett with silk frenges.
- xli gaulbez and xxx hed cloths all lynen cloths.
- j corporas case of cloth of golde.
- vj corporas cases of dyvers sorts and v corporas cloths.
- A box of coper otherwise called the pix-box with a cower of sarcenett.
- ij pewter dyshes.
- j gilt cup with a patten all gilt.
- i chalis all gilt without a patten.
- ij chalices parcell gilt with ij patens.
- iiij crosse staves ij of wode and ij of coper.
- j clothe of hear (i.e. hair) to laye upon an auter.
- xvij cosshens of sylke.
- ix candlesticks of latten smale and great.
- ij sencers of latten.
- iiij stoks of latten for water.
- j greate deske of latten.
- iiij rods of irone and a fier sholven (sic, i.e. shovell).
- Certayne olde leade iiij paxes.
- xx dieper towells and xv dieper auter clothes.
- x playn awter clothes.
- xi players cotts of lynnen cloth stayned.
- ij bere clothes to cast upon a coffyn the j bodkyn sylke and the other of lynen cloth stayned.
- xvij banners and strements of silke stayned.
- viij banners of cloth stayned.
- viij banner staves.
- j Bible.
- ij payer of organs.”
Among the minor offices of the Church, that of the blessing of the widow may be mentioned. The Benedictio Viduæ accompanied the vow of future chastity.
Between the Gospel and the Epistle the widow knelt before the Bishop sitting on a fald stool. He asked her in the presence of the congregation if she were willing to become the spouse of Christ and to give up the lusts of the flesh. She then read, or caused to be read, the following profession:—“I, A. B., avow to God perpetual chastity of my body from henceforward, and in the presence of the Honourable Father in God, My Lord by the Grace of God, Bishop of C., I promise steadfastly to live in the Church a widow. Then the Bishop blessed the ring, sprinkled it with holy water, and put it on the widow’s finger as a sign of her marriage with Christ, saying:—
“Accipe, Famula Christi, annulum Fidei signum, connubii indicium, quem devota deferas, casta custodias, quo ad amplexus divini sporsi coronanda perficias. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Oremus.”
He then said certain prayers, and the ceremony was completed. Of this ceremony Furnivall quotes a remarkable instance. In the year 1231 Eleanor, sister of Henry the Third (and widow of William, Earl of Pembroke, who died 15th April 1231), took the vow before Edmund, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Richard, Bishop of Chichester. Seven years later, however, she married Simon de Montfort. The Archbishop protested, and a dispensation was obtained from the Pope.
In 1351 Philippa, widow of Guy, son of Thomas, Earl of Warwick, took the vow in these words:—
“En le nom de le Seint Trinitie, Piere, Fils et Seint Esprit jeo Philippa que fu la feme Sire Guy de Warwyst face puriment et des queor et voluntie entierement, avow a Dieu et Seint Eglise, et a la benure Virgin Marie et a tout le bel compaigne delestine et a vous reverent Piere en Dieu Sir Reynaud per le Grace de Dieu Evesque de Wircester que jeo ameneray ma vie en chastitee defoie en avant, et chaste ferra de mon corps a tout temps de ma vie.”