A Monastic Legacy: The Rise and Demise of a Medieval Inn

Frederick Edwards

If you have read any of my previous articles you will know that St. Mary's origins date back to the 12th century, when land was gifted by the de Braose family (of Bramber castle fame) to the Knights Templar. The 12th century Templar structure that would've once stood on the site was located next to a wharf, the sea coming right the way up to Bramber, allowing boats and other vessels to dock and unload their cargo or human passengers. After the Knights Templar left Bramber in 1154, the land was gifted by John de Braose to the monks of nearby Sele Priory in c.1230. In this period the monks replaced a previous Norman wooden bridge crossing the Adur, with a grand 170-foot, 4-arch stone bridge. The monks acted as wardens of the bridge, and also constructed a chapel to St. Mary here, providing a place for weary travellers to pray for a safe journey, and of course to leave valuable offerings (a main source of income for monasteries). In this period there must have been a structure located on the land now occupied by St. Mary's House, but further archaeological survey is needed to determine its extent and positioning.

Conjectural Drawing of the Sele Priory Bridge at Bramber

The present structure, is the remaining east wing of a c.1470 close-studded timber frame building, which once existed as a four-sided courtyard inn. In its heyday the structure would have been one of the most spectacular inns in the locality, it's sheer size, double entryways for carriages, and galleried lodgings would have served all classes of society as they journeyed across the muddy roadways of Medieval Sussex. In this article I will explore the myths and legends surrounding the origins of St. Mary's as an inn (a hotly debated topic), and delve deeper into the evolution of inns and roads across Medieval England.

St. Mary's as it is seen today the remaining east wing of the courtyard inn.

Roads

Accommodation has always been an essential part of travel, the speed of travel in modern times often means only a short stop at a service station to grab a takeaway coffee is necessary, but in Medieval times where travel occurred by horse, carriage, or even on foot, journeys could take days or several weeks depending on the destination. The journey was often further hindered by the limited number of roads, access to bridges, and of course the poorly managed and often unstable paths.

The owners of inns sought to capitalise on the turbulent journeys of weary travellers, by stationing their inns alongside roads, and at key points such as bridges, ports, and particularly dangerous stretches of road. More inns were needed on the treacherous clay of the Weald where journeys took longer, than downland chalk, which provided a sturdy base to travel swiftly.

Most of our information about medieval roadways comes from contemporary accounts and maps. One map that has been the subject of academic study recently is the 'Gough Map' c.1390-1410. The map shows the whole of great Britain, signifying certain places with depictions of buildings, castles and churches. There is a lot of uncertainty around the production of the Gough map, its interpretation, and intended use. Most early maps have settlements indicated with a standardised symbol - usually a church. However the Gough map has much more variation, not only does it indicate settlement size through the depiction of larger or smaller buildings, but it also includes detailed depictions of castles and churches. The map also has scribed red lines which appear to connect between different locations, multiple interpretations have been offered up, but the general consensus seems to be that these lines are an indication of a medieval road or primary route of travel.

The Gough Map of England, the red indicator below shows Bramber. The castle to the east is Arundel, and the large cathedral structure further east is Chichester.

Another anomaly presented by the map is evident at a more local level. Anyone familiar with the areas around Bramber will know that Steyning has primarily been a larger settlement than neighbouring Bramber. It is interesting then, that Steyning is not presented on the map at all, but Bramber (or Brymbre as it is called on the map) is. The same anomaly is presented in the Titchfield Itineraries of c.1400, which document the Premonstratensian Canon's travel itineraries from their home at Titchfield Abbey to other Premonstratensian Houses. James Frederick Edwards has argued that these routes show a preference for travelling along coastal routes, not least because these roads were the most important for foreign trade due to their proximity to ports. But why depict Bramber and not Steyning? Could this be because the author of the map wanted to illustrate the key crossing point at the river Adur, or was it placed to indicate a traveller's stopping point along the scribed red roadways? These are questions we will probably never know the full answer to, but it is clear that Bramber was important for medieval travel. The Victoria County History notes that the road through Bramber formed part of the great medieval east-west route through Sussex, which led from Southampton to Canterbury. And that Eleanor, countess of Leicester, had used it in 1265 travelling from Portchester to Dover, as had Edward I multiple times.

Monastic Inns

You may be thinking that my interpretations are completely wrong, as the Gough map was created around 60 years before timber frame structure of St. Mary's was erected. However, it is probable that the timber building was simply a new building on the site of a previous inn. As I mentioned before, in the 13th Century the land now occupied by St. Mary's House had passed to the monks of Sele priory. Interestingly, inns often have their origins in monastic foundations, particularly in provincial areas. Originally, before the widespread construction of inns, many monasteries had provided lodging within their monastic foundations for travellers, who in this time were mainly merchants or pilgrims. As travel became more frequent the lodgings provided within the monastery were often not sufficient, and so inns became more commonplace.

An original seal from the title deeds of Sele Priory from an alien priory to a native house, photo from Magdalen College Library.

Also, being the great agriculturalists of the era, monks often held responsibility for the upkeep of roads and bridges, making them ideally suited for establishing early inns. Some religiously founded inns also had chapels close to them or attached directly to the inn, where travellers could pray for a safe journey and leave offerings. This information has a number of parallels with St. Mary's, not only was the site once owned by the monks of Sele priory, but the main road and bridge was also cared for by them. This, along with the provision of a chapel to St. Mary on the bridge, and the positioning of St. Mary's next to the main thoroughfare and Adur crossing makes it seem all the more plausible that this site has always functioned as an inn.

Collegiate Institutions

In addition to monastic institutions, early inns were also often established or taken over by new collegiate institutions, as was the case at St. Mary's. The land which St. Mary's is sited on was purchased by William Waynflete Bishop of Winchester, and founder of Magdalen College Oxford, in c.1460-1470. Sele priory had become a patron of Waynflete in 1459, and he swiftly incorporated the priory into his new collegiate foundation. Following this Waynflete constructed a huge four sided courtyard inn, with grandiose close-studded timber framing, and a number of travellers' rooms, which were accessed via a courtyard gallery. Magdalen College also purchased and rebuilt an Inn at Andover in this period, making it apparent that they wished to capitalise on the growing propensity for travel occurring in this era. In its full splendour St. Mary's Inn would have been one of the largest inns in the locality, and surely would have serviced numerous wealthy guests.

William Waynflete, Bishop of Winchester.

Where to Place Your Medieval Inn

So far we have seen how Medieval roads and monastic institutions have contributed to the siting of inns. But what other factors led to inns being established, and more importantly, being successful?

John Speed's Map of 1610 showing the crossing point at Bramber.

Owners of inns also saw opportunities to build their structures at bridges and waterways. Inns located by bridges, as is the case at St. Mary's, would have benefitted from the heavy footfall of travellers crossing these bridges. In John speed's Map of 1610 we can see how the Bridge at Bramber was still the primary crossing point, even at this later date.

Furthermore, the tides of the Adur meant that flooding often occurred, which probably resulted in travellers staying at the inn longer than intended. Of course, the Adur not only provided a rather useful stopping point, but it also carried potential customers too. As a coastal county many ports around Sussex provided customers for the inns, as passengers continued on their journeys. Merchants, politicians and milita often used the roads through Sussex to access London after arriving from the continent. Upon landing at a port such as Shoreham visitors would often seek accommodation, hire horses, and look for refreshment - all of which could be provided by the larger inns. The river Adur was a primary route for transport, with bargemen being recorded as late as 1705, and a wharf was located just east of St. Mary's for landing goods brought by sea. No doubt the Adur also functioned as a primary travel route for people, especially when the roads were in poor condition, making it an excellent place to cite an inn such as St. Mary's.

Another important factor in placing your inn was the proximity to markets. Many inns functioned as a centre for marketing, providing a space to sell fish, beer, wine and cloth, as well as a place for refreshment and accommodation for market-goers. Bramber's earliest recorded market is in 1073 when market tolls were documented as being collected at the castle, and the latest record for a market there is 1595. The presence of a market would have been an attractive feature to William Waynflete when he decided to build St. Mary's Inn in 1470, providing a ready-made group of potential customers.

Customers enjoying refreshment at a Medieval tavern c.1330...it seems the cusotmer on the far right has had one too many. Add MS 27695, f. 14.

The Downfall of an Inn

Considering the numerous factors contributing to the success of an inn you may be wondering how the downfall of these Medieval Inns came about. Indeed, some inns such as the 15th Century Angel Inn, Andover have continued to flourish even into the present day. However, this was not the case for St. Mary's. The next mention of St. Mary's comes in 1569, where a lease document gives Sir Francis Shirley as the leasee of "the chapill House or Seller" or the south side of Bramber Bridge. The document goes on to say ‘Francis S. to carry out all necessary repairs…the spring tide over flowen with water and it is dowtful how any building may be set or builded uppon the same," clearly expressing that St. Mary's was in a state of disrepair. This is confirmed by a sketch of 1636 by Dunstall which shows St. Mary's, not as a four sided courtyard inn, but as a singular surviving wing, and a lone tree growing through the remains of the stone bridge. Clearly, less that 100 years after the inn had been built by Waynflete, St. Mary's had crumbled, and with it, its prospects as a prosperous inn.

It is not known for certain what lead to the downfall of St. Mary's, but it a few ideas can be speculated. The most obvious reason is the flooding mentioned in the lease to Sir Francis Shirley. If the tides had continued to rise then of course St. Mary's would no longer be viable as an inn, and the decay of the building would have ensued.

However, we must not overlook a number of other possible reasons. The 1636 drawing by Dunstable shows that the stone arch bridge had fallen into disrepair, of course, the original bridge had been cared for by the Monks of Sele Priory, but upon their dissolution in 1480 who took over the care of the bridge? The Victoria County History notes that 'under the mismanagement of the priory in the mid 15th century the bridge and chapel fell into ruin.' Could it have been that the bridge fell into disrepair due to the dissolution of the priory, making the road inaccessible for travellers, and hence decreasing custom at the inn?

Another reason presented in numerous academic journals for the collapse of many inns is the Reformation. Not only did the dissolution of the monasteries remove the primary caretakers of medieval roads (monks), but as mentioned before, a great bulk of travellers were pilgrims, or those travelling between religious houses. Would the dissolution, paired with the inability to make pilgrimages have resulted in such a catastrophic loss of custom that St. Mary's had to close?

Another contributing factor on a more international scale could have been the 'Great Slump.' The Great Slump was an economic depression that occurred in England from the 1430s - 1480s, which was caused by a shortage of silver and a fall in trade. There were also problems at the beginning of the 16th century caused by huge inflation, between 1500 and 1540 prices in England doubled, largely caused by an increasing population, war, and an influx of silver from the New World. It is possible that this upheaval was the final nail in the coffin for St. Mary's, and the ultimate result of its downfall.

A Market Scene, c.1569, by Pieter Aertsen

Perhaps a more direct impact seen on St. Mary's itself is the closure of the local market. The last market recorded was in 1595, when it appears to have lapsed. This also indicates to us as historians that Bramber was falling down the social scale. Although Bramber was never a very wealthy borough its prominence on maps indicate that it still held some notoriety in the 15th century. However this seems to have been short-lived, as in the later 15th century many burgages are documented as empty or ruined, and the borough returns for the 17th century were a fraction of those listed in the more prosperous Steyning. Clearly Bramber was not as prosperous as it had once been, and this may have been a contributing factor to the demise of St. Mary's as an Inn.

Whatever the circumstances of St. Mary's demise, it is apparent that this once great structure had fallen to ruin by the late 16th century. It would not be until the 17th century that the building was restored, this time as a grandiose domestic dwelling complete with gilded wallpaper and secret passages. But when you visit the building today if you look carefully enough you will still see the remnants of this once spectacular structure.

Bibliography

• Hackwood, F. William., Inns, ales, and drinking customs of old England. London: T. F. Unwin, 1909.

• Frederick Edwards, James, Brian Paul Hindle, The transportation system of medieval England and Wales, Journal of Historical Geography, Volume 17, Issue 2, 1991, Pages 123-134.

• Pennington, Janet, The Inns and Taverns of Western Sussex, 1550-1700 :

• A Regional Study of Their Architectural and Social History, 2003

• http://www.goughmap.org/

• Kümin, Beat., Tlusty, B. Ann. The World of the Tavern: Public Houses in Early Modern Europe. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis, 2017.

• Cox, Barrie. English Inn and Tavern Names. United Kingdom: Centre for English Name Studies, University of Nottingham, 1994.

• Bruning, Ted. Historic Inns of England. United Kingdom: Prion, 2000.

• Webb, Diana. Pilgrimage in Medieval England. United Kingdom: Bloomsbury Academic, 2007.