The Deed of Consecration survives today as Ms. Archives ref J1 A1, in the Archives of Lincoln’s Inn. This translation of the Deed of Consecration was prepared by Zola Packman, Assistant Professor of Classics at NC State University, with the aid of Diarmaid MacCulloch, Professor of Theology, Oxford University.
George Montaigne, Bishop of London
LATIN CHARTER ENGLISHED[1]
[Page One]
1 To Christ’s faithful, all and sundry, to whom this present letter of witness
2 has come, and to those destined to see, inspect, read, or hear it, and to those whom things written below affect, or can affect, in whatever way, in the future, George, by divine permission Bishop of London, and in sure faith, wishes everlasting
3 salvation in the Lord. By this present manner of witness, we bring to the notice of all of you and wish notice to be brought through this present witness that on this day, being Thursday,[2] the feast of the Ascension of our Lord, the twenty-second day
4 of the month of May, in the one thousand seven hundred and twenty-third year of our Lord, between the hours of eight and eleven before noon of the same day, at the entrance of the chapel here below described, before us, George, the Bishop of London aforesaid,
5 there appeared in person the reverend and venerable men Thomas Spencer, Richard Digges and Egidius Tooker,[3] knights and lords of the Inn,[4] along with others of
the Inn commonly called Lincoln’s Inn beside the lane commonly called Chancery Lane,
6 in the suburbs of the city of London, and also William Ravenscroft, knight, one of the reverend and venerable counselors[5] of the aforesaid inn, and as much in their own proper names as in the names of each and every lord and counselor of the
7 aforesaid inn, and the students in the same, declared that they, for the honor of God and the use of counselors, students, and those lodging with them, now and in the future, in the aforesaid inn, have caused the said chapel and building with stairs or steps
8 before the access or entrance to the same to be newly now erected, built, and constructed, using their own personal expenditures, and have sufficiently and suitably decorated and fitted out with sacred table, pulpit, suitable seats, even a bell,
9 and other things necessary for divine worship; and they have ceded their right and interest in the premises and have given and donated the aforesaid chapel and the premises, each and all, looking towards the same purpose, by their unanimous
10 consent and agreement, to God Almighty, and as evidence of this free donation of this aforesaid chapel they have presented to us, and transmitted into our hands, the keys of the aforesaid chapel, and have humbly entreated us that the said
11 chapel and other premises looking to the same purpose should be decreed as intended for separation from all previous common and profane uses whatsoever, and dedication and consecration, and that it should be so separated, dedicated, and consecrated
12 by our ordinary and Episcopal authority. Wherefore we, the aforementioned bishop, assenting favorably to the pious and religious supplications aforesaid, have decreed that the aforesaid chapel should be thus separated,
13 dedicated and consecrated, and that we should proceed[6] to the separation, dedication and consecration of the same, and we have proceeded, and with that intention we entered the aforesaid chapel. And when possession thereof was accepted through us, and it
14 along with the other premises had been dedicated to God, we, the bishop aforementioned, in the presence of the population congregated in a large assembly within the aforesaid chapel, separated, dedicated and consecrated the said chapel as had been entreated of us, saying
15 pronouncing and promulgating publicly then and there a certain schedule or statement put together in writing and presented, offered, and handed over to us through our learned lord Henry Martin,[7] doctor of laws and soldier, our vicar
16 general in spiritual matters, and our principal diocesan officer, in the names of the above-named masters of the ground, and other counselors and students of the aforesaid inn, under the form of the following words:
17 In the name of God, amen. Since reverend and venerable men, counselors and students in the inn commonly called Lincoln’s Inn, along the lane commonly called Chancery Lane, notoriously placed and situated in the suburbs of the city of London,
18 belonging to our London Diocese and jurisdiction, drawn by pious and religious devotion, have now newly erected, built, and this chapel in the aforesaid inn, containing between the walls of the same, in longitude from the east towards the west, sixty
19 eight feet or thereabouts, and in latitude from the north towards the south, forty one feet, or thereabouts, and a certain construction with stairs or steps before the access or entrance to the same, upon their own lands, with
20 their own expenditures, for the honor of God and the use of counselors, students, and those lodging in the same, and have sufficiently and suitably decorated and fitted out the same chapel with sacred table, pulpit,
21 suitable seats, a bell, and other things necessary for divine worship, and have begged us that we, with our ordinary and Episcopal authority, should, on our own behalf and that of our successors, separate, dedicate, and consecrate
22 the said chapel and other premises from all previous uses, common and profane, whatsoever: We therefore, George, by divine
23 permission Bishop of London, assenting favorably to the pious and religious desire of the said reverend and venerable men in this matter, proceeding to the consecration of this chapel, newly erected, constructed and adorned by the expenditures of the reverend and venerable men aforesaid,
24 as stated before, by our ordinary and Episcopal authority, have separated this chapel and the whole building and the entrance of the same and the stairs or steps of the said chapel as at present
25 they exist, and the other premises looking to the said chapel, from every common and profane use in perpetuity, and we attest through the present document that they have been so separated and moreover, by the same ordinary
26 and Episcopal authority, for ourselves and our successors, we grant license and permission in the Lord for practicing divine worship in the aforesaid chapel, to wit, public prayers and recitation of the sacred liturgy of the Church of England,
27 for sincerely setting out and preaching the word of God, and for administering the sacrament of the holy Eucharist or the Supper of the Lord in the same, and to the priest, canonically ordained according to the custom and ritual of the Church of England, who will serve in that chapel,
28 we grant the right of saying divine prayers and doing other permitted actions, so also we grant to the said reverend and venerable men, counselors and students and those lodging with them in the aforesaid inn,
29 full power of hearing divine prayers and sermons made there in the said chapel and the same chapel, so far as is in us and we are able by right, laws, statutes, and canons of this realm of England, and is permitted to us, we consecrate
30 for the honor of God and for the sacred use of the said (reverend)[8] and venerable men and others staying in the aforesaid inn now, and for the future, under the name of Chapel of the Holy and Indivisible Trinity in the inn known as Lincoln’s Inn, and so we name
31 and call it, and we openly and publicly pronounce, decree, and declare that it ought to remain so assigned, dedicated, consecrated, called, and named also in future times forever. Moreover, by all and sundry privileges
32 in this customary and requisite matter, for genuine chapels consecrated by law, we want this chapel to be fortified, to every effect of the law, and so far as is in us, and by law we are able, we so fortify and establish it
33 through the present document – without however any prejudice, and saving always the right and interest of parish churches, Saint Dunstan in the west of London, and Saint Andrew in Holborne , of London, and the rights and interest of rectors, vicars, curates, and sextons
34 of the aforesaid churches, and of other ministers of the same churches existing at this time, and of all other churches whatsoever in whose parishes the aforesaid inn or its boundaries, or any part from it are sited and situated,
35 in offerings all and sundry, incomes, bonds, fees, profits, privileges, rights and ecclesiastical emoluments whatsoever, ordinary and extraordinary, owed to the same respectively, or customary, and arising and forthcoming within the precinct or
36 boundaries of the aforesaid inn, and in any way looking to the said churches by right or custom and applying to rectors, vicars, curates, sextons and other ministers of the same churches, in as ample
37 measure and form as they were owed to the same before this, our consecration of this chapel.[9] Which premises, all and sundry, so far as is in us, and by right we can, for ourselves and our successors we George of London so decree and establish
38 through those present. [George of London][10] Which things thus done, with divine prayers celebrated according to the liturgy of the Anglican church in the aforesaid chapel, with a psalm thereafter chanted, and a sermon (on the theme from the tenth chapter of the Gospel of Saint
39 John, verses twenty two and twenty three taken up in these words, to wit: “And it was at Jerusalem the Feast of the Dedication, and it was winter, and Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch,” having been made in that place by the
40 reverend and venerable man Master John Donne, professor of sacred theology, dean of the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul in London, the Lord’s Supper afterwards having been administered and received in the chancel[11] of the aforesaid chapel,
41 and other solemnities customary in this matter having been observed, we dismissed the congregated population with the ordinary apostolic benediction. And immediately we, the aforesaid Bishop, descended to the ground assigned to be consecrated for the burial of the dead in and before the aforesaid
42 inn, and we walked about the same through the extremities of the boundaries of the same, along with our aforesaid vicar general in spiritual matters, and the lords of the aforesaid ground named above, and some others of the society of the aforesaid inn,
43 and with similar entreaty made then and there for the separation, dedication and consecration of the aforesaid ground for a cemetery or place of burial, we the aforesaid bishop, as had been entreated of us, decreed that it should be so separated, dedicated
44 and consecrated, and that we should proceed to the separation, dedication and consecration of the same, and then we made a procession to a seat fittingly ornamented, prepared for us, over the aforesaid ground, and located near the eastern
45 boundary of the same, and there for a little while we rested ourselves, then, with the population settled, and the noise settled down, we proceeded, and beginning with prayers and the twenty third verse of Genesis[12] read publicly, at once, then and there, we the aforesaid bishop
46 before the congregation then present, separated, dedicated and consecrated the aforesaid ground as had been entreated of us, reading, pronouncing and promulgating publicly, then and there, a certain schedule or statement
47 put together in writing, and presented, extended, and handed over through our vicar general in spiritual matters and our principal official, named above, in the names of the lords above mentioned of the ground and others of the society of the aforesaid inn,
48 in the following words, to wit: In the name of God, Amen. Since reverend and venerable men, counselors and students in the inn commonly called Lincoln’s Inn next to the lane commonly called Chancery Lane, in the suburbs of the city of London,
49 of our London diocese and jurisdiction, lead by pious and religious devotion, have offered and donated this place or ground, recently belonging to the said duly chosen reverend and venerable men by perfect right, and the passage or access to the western boundary of the same,
50 to God and this present chapel recently consecrated through us, from a sense of piety and for burying the dead, which place or ground indeed for the greater part of the same is situated underneath the arch or vaulting[13] of the same chapel, and is boundaried by
51 the extremities of the foundations of the same structure; it contains from the eastern part of the same towards the west, seventy and six feet, and from the northern part of the same towards the south, sixty and seven
52 feet or thereabouts, and the passage or access to the western boundary of the same containing in longitude twenty one feet, and in latitude seven feet or thereabouts, and have entreated us that we, by our ordinary and Episcopal authority, should
53 deign to separate said place or ground and the passage or access to the western boundary of the same, from all previous uses common and profane whatsoever, and to convert them to sacred use: We, therefore, George
54 by divine permission Bishop of London, favorably agreeing to their pious and religious desire in this matter, have decreed that this place and ground and passage or access to the western boundary of the same, containing the quantities specified above,
55 should be separated from earlier and other uses whatsoever, common and profane, for the following uses. And the same for the counselors and students in the aforesaid inn, and those lodging with them in the precinct of the aforesaid inn, and their successors,
56 we assign for the cemetery or place of burial of dead bodies in and before the aforesaid inn, so far as is in us, and by laws, statues and canons of the realm of England we are able, and by our Episcopal authority we
57 dedicate and consecrate and attest through this present document that they have been thus assigned, dedicated, and consecrated. And we openly and publicly pronounce, decree, and declare that they ought to remain thus dedicated and consecrated in future times forever.
58 Moreover we wish these cemeteries or places of burial to be protected by all and sundry privileges customary and requisite in this matter, to competent cemeteries or places for burial consecrated by law, to every effect of the law, and
59 so far as is in us, and by law we are able by right, and according to laws, statutes, and canons of this realm of England, is permitted to us, for ourselves and our successors,[14] we so fortify and establish them, without however any prejudice, and saving always the right and interest of parish churches Saint Dunstan in the West of London, and Saint
60 Andrew in Holborn of London, and of the rectors, vicars, curates and sextons of the aforesaid churches, and of other ministers of the same for the time being, and of all other churches whatsoever, as of rectors,
61 vicars, curates and sextons and other ministers of the same existing at the time, in whose parishes the aforesaid inn or the boundaries of the same or any part of it are sited and situated, in respect of all and singular
62 fees, bonds, profits, privileges, rights and emoluments whatsoever for burials owed or customarily given to the same churches respectively, and arising and forthcoming by reason of these premises[15] being within the precinct or boundaries of the aforesaid inn,
63 and looking to the said churches by law or custom in whatever manner and pertaining to rectors, vicars, curates, sextons, and other ministers of the same churches in as ample mode and form as was owed to them or accustomed
64 to be paid before this our consecration of this chapel and cemetery or this place or ground now assigned for burial. Which premises all and sundry, so far as is in us, and by law we are able, for ourselves and our successors
65 we, George, Bishop of London so decree and establish through the present document.
Which things having been done, and prayers having been poured forth for the blessing of the aforesaid work, we dismissed the aforesaid congregation with the apostolic benediction.
66 All and singular which things we the Bishop of London have entrusted to Robert Kemp,[16] notary public, now the guard of our register, and have commanded him to put into effect, and to register in perpetual memory of the matter, and to guard faithfully in our archive.
67 Of these things, all and sundry, that have been performed, the abovementioned lords of the aforesaid inn have asked the previously spoken of Robert Kemp, the notary public, to confirm a public instrument for them, or public instruments, and witnesses then present, to offer testimony thereof.
68 And being present then and there[17] the honorable and noble lord Henry, Earl of Southampton,[18] and also the reverend and venerable men, Sir James Ley,[19] Chief Justice of the King’s Bench, soldier and servant of our Lord the King for the law,
69 Sir Henry Hobart,[20] Chief Justice of our Lord the King for the Court of Common Pleas, Sir Humphrey Winch[21] and Sir William Jones,[22] Justices of our Lord the King for the Court of Common Pleas, Sir Ranulph Crewe,[23] The King’s Serjeant at Law, Sir Thomas
70 Richardson,[24] soldier, and Leonard Bawtry,[25] esquire, serjeants at law, Sir Francis Vane,[26] and also masters Daniel Price,[27] John Whiting,[28] and [Leonard] Hutton,[29] Doctors of Divinity,[30]
71 Thomas Wilson[31] and Thomas Worrall,[32] clerics, Bachelors of Divinity,[33] domestic chaplains of the said reverend father, William Ayeloffe[34] and Christopher Brooke,[35] knights, together with many other witnesses. In good faith
72 and the testimony of all and sundry aforementioned, the seal of our vicar general in spiritual matters, which we use in this matter, we have placed upon this present document, and we, Henry Marten, doctor of laws and soldier, vicar general
73 in spiritual matters of the said reverend father, at the special request of the said reverend father, have placed the seal of our aforesaid office, upon the present document. Given, as to the applying of the aforesaid seal, the twenty-sixth day
74 of the month of May, in the sixteen hundred and twenty-third year of our Lord.
75. RK
76 Faithful unto death.
77 And I, Robert Kemp, of the Diocese of London, by full authority Notary Public, and at present principal custodian of the registry of the reverend father in Christ and Doctor of Divinity, George, by divine permission Bishop of London, and as registrar of deeds, or scribe, of the same most reverend father in the matter of the dedication and consecration of the Chapel newly erected, built, and consecrated in the Inn commonly called Lincoln’s Inn along the street called Chancery Lane in the suburbs of the city of London, and of the ground assigned for cemetery or place of burial of dead bodies, in and before the aforesaid inn assigned, (myself) specifically assigned through the same reverend father:
78 Because I was there for the public ceremonies for dedication and consecration of the chapel and ground aforesaid and other activities for the transfer of property contained in the instrument annexed to the present one, written out in detail for you in the same instrument annexed to the present one, being present in person for these, as well as the remaining events of the occasion, all and sundry, specified
in the same instrument, when these things happened as described above, in the year of our lord, as well as the month, day and place aforesaid, as they were enacted and took place, and as I saw, knew, and heard those things thus being done, all and sundry:
79. I made note of all these events and recorded them as presented here, in this present public instrument, annexed to the present one, faithfully written by the hand of <> another (as I was meanwhile impeded by other needful duties) I therefore then completed, signed, and published, and redacted into this public and authentic form, and with my customary and usual seal, name, cognomen, and signature have signed and subscribed in good faith and testimony of these events, all and sundry, having been asked and questioned on this specifically,
80 Thus I, Robert Kemp, notary public, give witness.
[1] This document is a translation of Lincoln’s Inn Ms. ref J1a1 by Zola Packman, Department of Foreign Languages, and annotated by John N. Wall, Department of English, NC State University.
[2] Literally, “the day of Jupiter.”
[3] The men listed here and in line 6 were the four most senior benchers of Lincoln’s Inn in 1623. As such, they shared responsibility with the other benchers for the administration of Lincoln’s Inn. Thomas Spenser, or Spencer (1547-1630) was admitted to Lincoln’s Inn in 1564, called to the bar in 1574, and appointed a bencher in 1586; for the Inn, he held various offices including Treasurer (1593-94) and Dean of Chapel (1611-29). He was Dean of Chapel while Donne was the Chaplain and Trinity Chapel was being planned and built. Richard Digges (1564-1634) attended Oxford University (BA 1579) and Lincoln’s Inn (beginning in 1581); he was called to the bar in 1589 and became a Bencher of the Inn in 1608. He served as a Member of Parliament (1597-1628) and became a Serjeant at Law in 1623. Egidius Tooker; also known as Giles Tucker (1565-1623) became a student at Lincoln’s Inn in 1581; he was called to the bar in 1589 and became a Bencher in 1608. He served as a Member of Parliament (1601-1614). William Ravenscroft (1589-1647) attended Oxford (BA 1580 Brasenose College) and began studies at Lincoln’s Inn in 1580. He was called to the bar in 1589, became an Associate of the Bench in 1604 and a Bencher in 1621. He also served as a Member of Parliament in 1586, 1597, and from 1601-28. In 1623, Tucker, Spencer, and Digges were members of the group of Benchers who legally owned the land and buildings of Lincoln’s Inn, which in the 17th century functioned as an unincorporated association. Ravenscroft had been a one of the legal owners of the Inn at an earlier point in the Inn’s history but was not a member of this group in 1623. Tucker, Spencer, and Digges are functioning here as representatives of the “owners” of the land and the building which they are conveying to the Church of England in the person of Bishop Montaigne who is setting it apart for a holy purpose in this ceremony. Ravenscroft’s role in this ceremony is more obscure, unless his role is to serve as a representative of the Benchers who are not part of the group who legally own the Inn. “Owners . . . of the Inn” here translates “domini . . . hospitii predicti” because of the role of Tucker, Spencer, and Digges in the legal organization of the Inn. Biographical information for these men is from Wilfrid R. Prest, The Rise of the Barristers: A Social History of the English Bar 1590-1640 (Oxford: Clarendon, 1986) and The Inns of Court under Elizabeth I and the Early Stuarts 1590-1640 (Totowa, NJ: Rowman & Littlefield, 1972.
[4] Translating “ armigeri domini.”
[5] The Latin word here is “juris consultus,” which recurs several times in this document; its meaning has been a puzzle for interpreters for some time. While OLD gives “lawyer” for “juris consultus,” we have concluded that the best translation is “counselor,” since there were several different kinds of lawyers in the English legal system, including attorneys, barristers, and counselors, and these individuals are in the counselor category.
[6] Literally more like ‘that proceeding should take place’.
[7] Sir Henry Martin (1562-1641), graduate of Oxford (New College, BCL 1587, DCL 1592), knighted 1616, Chancellor to Diocese of London (1617-41), judge of High Court of Admiralty (1617-41), Dean of Arches (1624-34), Judge of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury (1624), buried at Longworth, Berkshire. Biographical information concerning Martin is from Brian P. Levak, The Civil Lawyers in England 1603-1641 (Oxford: Clarendon, 1973).
[8] “Reverend and venerable” is the usual phrase, but the first word seems to have been omitted by accident in the text at this point.
[9] Parish churches had “rights and interests,” including financial interests, regarding people living within the geographical boundaries of their parishes. By consecrating a new worship space for people living in the buildings of Lincoln’s Inn, Bishop Montaigne is in effect creating competition for members with St. Dunstan’s and St. Andrew’s Churches and is here trying to assure them that Trinity Chapel will not deprive them of any rights, especially “offerings, donations, payments, fees.” Controversy over the relationship between Trinity Chapel and these parish churches would recur in later years.
[10] A brief version of the bishop’s name and title separates sections of the document. So also below, line 65.
[11] Translating “sacellum,” referring to the east end of the chapel, the space “above the step” where the altar was locarted and the Lord’s Supper or Holy Communion was celebrated, as opposed to the west end of the chapel where the congregation sat, stood, or kneeled during the service of the Word. Documents in the possession of Lincoln’s Inn pertaining to the furnishings of Trinity Chapel refer to this space as the chancel.
[12] Translating “precibus incipiendo ac vicesimo tertio versiculo Geneseos adstatim tunc ibidem publice lecto,.” The Inn’s own account of the ceremony says that the 23rd chapter of Genesis was read at this point.
[13] Literally, “concameration .” The underneath of Trinity Chapel is open to the air and supported by a number of stone pillars. This reference is to the stone vaulting that finishes this undercroft area.
[14] Words unreadable at this point in the Latin ms. have been supplied in the translation from a similar passage elsewhere in the ms.
[15] See Note 10 above. Bishop Montaigne is again reassuring neighboring parishes that the consecration of a new burial space at Lincoln’s Inn will not affect these parishes’ ability to collect in this case burial fees they would otherwise be entitled to if people were buried on the grounds of the Inn rather than in parish burial grounds.
[16] Official of the Diocese of London. Biographical information on Kemp has been difficult to trace, although an entry in the Register of Archbishop Richard Bancroft dated 23 May 1610 shows him serving as Proctor in the Court of Arches and Notary Public for the Archbishop (Lambeth Palace Archives, Reg.Bancroft, f.171v, with thanks to Matti Walton, Assistant Archivist at the Lambeth Palace Library for recovering this reference for me.) May be the Robert Kempe born in 1588 in Essex County, the son of Robert Kempe , Esquire and Dorothy Harris, because he married one Jane Browne on 10 May 1616, in Westminister, which puts him in the right place at about the right time to be a church employee.
[17] What follows is a list of witnesses to events at Trinity Chapel on May 22, 1623 who can attest to the accuracy of this document as prepared by Robert Kemp, notary public.
[18] Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, 1573-1624, better known to many as Shakespeare’s patron. His father and his son were both members of Lincoln’s Inn, though he was a member of Gray’s Inn, another of the Inns of Court. He was a benefactor of Trinity Chapel.
[19] Sir James Ley, (1550-1629) BA, Brasenose College, Oxford University, 1574, Lincoln’s Inn, barrister, 1584, knighted 1603, governor of Lincoln’s Inn, 1609-22, named Earl of Marlborough 1626.
[20] Sir Henry Hobart, (1560 – 1625), studied at Lincoln’s Inn from 1675, was admitted to the bar in 1584, and became governor of Lincoln’s Inn in 1591. MP from 1588-1611. Knighted in 1603. Became Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas in 1613. Spelled as “Hubbard” in the text.
[21] Sir Humphrey Winch (1555-1625) educated at Lincoln’s Inn; named barrister 1581 and bencher 1596. Knighted 1606, named a justice of the Court of Common Pleas in 1611.
[22] Sir William Jones (1566-1640), educated at St. Edmund’s Hall of Oxford University and Lincoln’s Inn (1595), served as Chief Justice of the King’s Bench in Ireland (1617-1620) before becoming a judge of the Court of Common Pleas (1621) and of the King’s Bench in England (1624-1640).
[23] Sir Ranulph (or Randolph) Crewe (1558 – 1646), educated at Lincoln’s Inn from 1577, made a bencher in 1600. Knighted in 1615 and named Serjeant at law in 115. 6Named Lord Chief Justice of the King’s Bench in 1625 but removed a year later for refusing to agree with the crown on a legal matter.
[24] Sir Thomas Richardson (1569–1635), educated at Lincoln’s Inn from 1587, admitted to the bar 1595, served as Speaker of the House of Commons, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas (succeeding Hobart in 1626) and Chief Justice of the King’s Bench from 1631.
[25] Leonard Bawtry (c.1561-1626 ) educated at Lincoln’s Inn, named Serjeant at Law by James I in 1614.
[26] DNB identifies Sir Francis Vane as Sir Francis Fain, first earl of Westmorland (1583/4–1629), educated at Queens’ College, Cambridge, about 1595, and was admitted to Lincoln’s Inn in 1597. MP for Kent in 1601, Maidstone in 1604, 1614, and 1621, and Peterborough, Lincolnshire, in 1624. Created KB at James I’s coronation on 15 July 1603, and first Baron Burghersh and first earl of Westmorland on 29 December 1624.
[27] Daniel Price(1581–1631), educated at St Mary Hall and Exeter College, Oxford (BA 1601, MA 1604, BD 1611, DD 1613). Admitted to the Middle Temple in 1609. Served as chaplain to Prince Henry from 1610 to 1612. In 1620 named rector of Worthen, Shropshire. In late 1623 named Dean of Hereford Cathedral.
[28] John Whiting, DD ( – 1624) was a Canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral, holding the Prebendiary of Ealdstreet from 1615-1625. Educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, from 1592, Scholar; B.A. 1595-6; M.A. 1599; D.D. 1615. Preb. of St Paul’s, 1615. Was made an honorary member of Lincoln’s Inn , Aug. 6, 1620. Died in London, 1624.
[29] The absence in the ms. of a first name for this individual makes him difficult to identify, but a likely candidate is one Leonard Hutton, DD, who was a Canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral, serving as Prebend of Reculversland, starting in 1609.
[30] Translating “sacrae theologiae professoribus” in the professional vocabulary of the day.
[31] The Rev. Thomas Wilson (1591?-1660), graduate of Westminster School and Oxford University (Christ Church College), BA (1611), MA (1614), BD (1621-2), Fellow of Merton College, Canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral and Prebend of Nesden (from 1623).
[32] The Rev. Thomas Worrall (1589?-1639), born in Cheshire, graduate of Oxford (Brasenose College BA 1610, MA 1612, BD 1619, DD 1623) and Cambridge (DD 1624), rector of Middleton Stony, Oxfordshire (1620), Rector of St. Botolph’s Bishopgate, in London (1624), Canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral (1624), Prebend of Portpool (1624-27) and Prebend Holbourn (1627-1639), rector of Finchley, Middlesex (1626), married Mary, daughter of William Wail (in London, 1624), buried in St. Botolph’s.
[33] Translating “sacrae theologiae bacchelariis” into the academic degree structure of the day.
[34] William Ayeloffe (c. 1570 – c 1645/47) admitted to Lincoln’s Inn in 1585, served as Treasurer of the Inn in 1623. Became the king’s ancient serjeant-at-law, and a leader of the English bar in the later years of Charles I.
[35] Christopher Brooke, (c1570 – 1628) Educated at Trinity College, Cambridge University and Lincoln’s Inn, from 1587, and made bencher 1614. Served as Treasurer of the Inn in 1624. Shared chambers at the Inn with John Donne and witnessed Donne’s marriage in 1609 to Anne More, for which he was thrown (briefly) in jail at the urging of George More, Donne’s new father-in-law.
4 This is notary language, and again I leave it to you to find something intelligible to non-notaries. Premisses in these documents appear to be events or legal actions described above. Transactions ? Above-mentioned events?
5 ‘described above’ here translates premittitur, which probably should be translated so as to acknowledge its relationship to ‘premissis’ above, but I’m at a loss. ‘as premised’? Ugh.
7 That’s what it says. Present document annexed to the present ones. ARG.
8 See note 5 above.