Ancient funerall monuments within the vnited monarchie of Great Britaine, Ireland, and the islands adiacent with the dissolued monasteries therein contained: their founders, and what eminent persons haue beene in the same interred. As also the death and buriall of certaine of the bloud royall; the nobilitie and gentrie of these kingdomes entombed in forraine nations. A worke reuiuing the dead memory of the royall progenie, the nobilitie, gentrie, and communaltie, of these his Maiesties dominions. Intermixed and illustrated with variety of historicall obseruations, annotations, and briefe notes, extracted out of approued authors ... Whereunto is prefixed a discourse of funerall monuments ... Composed by the studie and trauels of Iohn Weeuer.

Saint Osithes.

Whose ancient name was Chich,* 1.1 now growne out of vse by reason of Osith the virgine of royall parentage; who being wholly deuoted to the ser∣uice of God, was here stabbed to death by the Danish pyrates, in the yeare 653 in the moneth of October.* 1.2 And being by our Ancestours honoured for a Saint, Richard de Beaveyes Bishop of London, in her memoriall, built here a religious house, of Regular Chanons, about the yeare 1120. in the raigne of King Henry the first. His grant I haue read in the Records of the Tower,* 1.3 beginning thus. Richardus Dei gratia London Episcopus, &c. Salu∣tem. Sciatis quod ego dedi Ecclesie Sancte Osithe virginis de Ciz. ecclesias de Sudemenestra et de Clachentona cum omnibus que ad illas pertinent, &c. King Henry confirmes and augments this donation by his Charter dated at Roan in the nineteenth yeare of his raigne. And many others so added to the reuenues of this Monastery, that at the time of the suppression, it was valued at 758. pound, fiue shillings eight pence. This Bishop, the founder, was diuers times about to resigne his Bishopricke, that he might become a regular Canon in this his owne new built Monasterie; and that the rather, because being taken with an irrecouerable Palsie,* 1.4 he well knew his time to be short. But he so long deferred the execution of this intent, that he was surprised by death before he could performe it, the sixteenth day of Ianua∣rie, 1127. He was Warden of the marches of Wales, and gouernour of the County of Salop, he sate Bishop twenty yeares, in which time (beside the building of this Monastery) he purchased diuers whole streets, and much housing neere to his Cathedrall Church of Saint Pauls. All which he pull∣ed downe, and leauing the ground vnbuilt for a Cemitery or Churchyard, enclosed the same with a wall, which for the most part remaineth; but at this day so couered with houses, as it can hardly be seene. The Canons of this house desired his body to be here buried: which they entombed vnder a marble Monument with this inscription.

Hic iacet Richardus Beauueis,* 1.5 cognomine Rufus, London Episcopus, vir probus et grandeuus, per totam vitam laboriosus, Fundator noster religiosus,

et qui multa bona nobis et Ministris Ecclesie sue sancti pauli contulit, obijt xvi. Iaenuarij M.c.xx.vii. cuius anime propitietur altissimus.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Foundation of Saint o••••••bes.
• * 1.2

  Io. Cap••raue.
• * 1.3

  Cart. Antiq, lit.
• * 1.4

  Godwin. de Prefisl. Angl.
• * 1.5

  Rich. Beauueis Bishop of Lon¦don. Mss. in bib. Cott.