The Archdeacons of Armagh 1417-71

County Louth Archaeological and History Society

The Archdeacons of Armagh 1417-71Author(s): Anthony LynchSource: Journal of the County Louth Archaeological and Historical Society, Vol. 19, No. 3(1979), pp. 218-226Published by: County Louth Archaeological and History SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27729483 .

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The Archdeacons of Armagh

1417-71

By Anthony Lynch, m.a.

In this article I shall consider the role of the archdeacon and his relations with the arch

bishop in the administration of the archdiocese of Armagh. It is well to bear in mind that in this archdiocese, two separate systems of ecclesiastical

administration existed side by side. Armagh inter Hiberno s consisted of the two deaneries of Orior and Tullaghoge, and was administered, subject to the archbishop, by the dean and the

chapter.1 Both the archbishop and the O'Neill chiefs attached great importance to the office of dean, as its holder enjoyed considerable autonomy and was a figure of major importance in the

political and ecclesiastical life of Armagh and of the province of Ulster.2 On the other hand the

parishes of Armagh inter Anglos (modern Co. Louth) were organised on the lines of a modern

archdeaconry under the direct control of the archbishop and one archdeacon.3 Here, as we shall

see, the archbishop was dominant and chose his own archdeacon who was

required to work in

close co-operation with him in the administration of that part of the diocese. Here, in contrast to the area inter Hibernos, the archbishop had complete control of his administration and of the faithful. The archdeacon's position was clearcut, his duties unmistakable, and his style con

siderably cramped by the proximity of the archbishop, in sharp contrast with the dean, who at times hardly acknowledged the archbishop's existence.

There was only one archdeacon in the diocese of Armagh. This contrasts with the situation in some of the bigger English dioceses where there were several, as these dioceses were divided

up into smaller administrative units, each under the jurisdiction of an archdeacon. In Ireland a

comparable, though not exactly similar situation existed in the diocese of Meath. This diocese was divided into the archdeaconry of Kells and the archdeaconry of Meath. However, Meath lacked a chapter, and the functions which normally belonged to such a body were exercised by the community of the clergy headed by the archdeacons.4

In the period between 1417-71, there are seven recorded archdeacons of Armagh, and two

others who were provided to, but did not obtain possession of the archdeaconry.5 The seven archdeacons were: Roger Stedman (c. 1414); William Somerville, (c. 1426), later a canon of

Armagh between 1440-55; Maurice Sweetman who died in 1427; Richard Rowe, (1427-29); Nicholas Alexander, (c. 1430);6 John Prene, official of the metropolitical court and the vicar of

1 The typical English and Irish secular cathedral chapters of the Middle Ages consisted of four dignitaries? dean, precentor, chancellor, and treasurer, and a number of canons with fixed prebends. See Evelyn Bolster, A History of the Diocese of Cork from the earliest times to the Reformation, (Shannon, 1972), 224-47; also A.

Gwynn and R. N. Hadcock, Medieval Religions Houses: Ireland, (London, 1970), 57, 60. For a general dis cussion, see K. W. Nicholls, "Medieval Irish Cathedral Chapters", Archivium Hibernicum, 31, (1973), 102-11; he discusses the Armagh chapter on p. 108.

21 have discussed the role of the dean, and the conflict over the deanship at length in my unpublished M.A. thesis, The Province and Diocese of Armagh, 1417-71, (U.C.D., 1979), chapter 4, especially pp. 74-103.

3 A. Gwynn, The Medieval Province of Armagh, 1470-1545, (Dundalk, 1946), 73-4 and more generally, 73-101; also A. Gwynn, "Canterbury and Armagh in the fifteenth century", Studies, 32, (1943), 500-1, and

Gwynn and Hadcock, Med. Rel. Houses: Ire., 60. 4 Nicholls, op. cit., 103; John Brady, "The archdeacons of Meath", I.E.R., 5th ser., 65, (1945), 88-100;

John Brady, "The archdeacons of Keils", I.E.R., 5th ser., 68, (1947), 314-24; John Brady, "The Medieval Diocese of Meath", R?ocht na Midhe, I, 3, (1957), 34-40.

5 The following information is based on J.B. Leslie, Armagh Clergy and Parishes, (Dundalk, 1911), 47-8; and J. B. Leslie, Supplement to 'Armagh Clergy <S> Parishes", (Dundalk, 1948), 16.

6 He had successively been rector of Dromin, Dunbin, and Clonmore, and was to become vicar of St. Peter's, Drogheda between his resignation from the archdeaconry and his death in 1454, Leslie, Armagh Clergy, 48.

2l8



The Archdeacons of Armagh, 1417-71 219

St. Peter's, Drogheda who became archdeacon in 1430 and held office until his consecration as

archbishop of Armagh in 1439. His successor, John White, former rector of St. Nicholas's Church, Carrickfergus was archdeacon between 1440-43. Finally, Thomas Waryn held office between

1448-77. The two unsuccessful claimants were William Hadsor, rector of Darver, Co. Louth in

1426, who later became bishop of Meath in 1430; and John River, from London, who made a bid in 1442.

At least six of these nine clerics were law graduates: Maurice Sweetman, Bachelor of Civil

Law;7 William Hadsor, Bachelor of Canon and Civil Law;8 Richard Rowe, Bachelor of Civil

Law;9 John Prene, Bachelor of Canon and Civil Law;10 John White, Bachelor of Canon and Civil

Law;11 and John River, Bachelor of Laws.12 The seventh, Archdeacon Thomas Waryn, probably also had a law degree, as he is referred to as 'Master Thomas, expert in laws.'13 In view of the legal nature of the archdeacons' work, it is not surprising that so many were graduates, all from

Oxford, and practically all of them had spent long periods practising law in ecclesiastical courts before their appointments.

The office of archdeacon was a non-major dignity with cure of souls, and was variously valued at twenty marks in 142714 and thirty marks in 1441.15 This income derived from con tributions and dues gathered by the archdeacon during his visitation of the different parishes, rather than from the holding of a prebend. Gwynn correctly states that 'the Inquisition of 1609

makes no mention of any benefice held by the archdeacons of Armagh in the Irish portion of the diocese.'16 Neither is there any evidence for the existence of a benefice or prebend belonging to the archdeaconry in the portion of the diocese inter Anglos, though there was a tendency for archdeacons after our period to be vicars of Termonfeckin.17 However, in the period being considered here John Prene obtained the vicarage in January, 1414,18 and held it with papal dispensation until he became archbishop in 1439,19 Thus he was provided with a living con venient to the archbishop's manor at Termonfeckin. Given that he was Archbishop Swayne's indispensable aide, first as official and later as archdeacon, the importance of a permanent residence close to that of the archbishop is easily recognised. In our period, Prene was the only archdeacon who was vicar of Termonfeckin, so clearly the benefice did not belong to the holder of the archdeaconry.20

Prene was probably better off than most of his successors, as Termonfeckin vicarage was

estimated to be worth about twenty marks,21 and the archdeaconry was worth about the same. Prene had received the archdeaconry through an exchange, made in 1429 with the archbishop's approval, for the vicarage of St. Peter's, Drogheda which was valued at only fifteen marks.22

Subsequently he found that he was not sufficiently dispensed, so on the 2nd August, 1434 he

7 H. J. Lawlor (ed.), "A Calendar of the Register of Archbishop Sweteman", Proc. Roy. Ir. Acad., 29C, (1911-12), 213-310, no. 252.

8 A. B. Emden, A bibliographical dictionary of the members of the university of Oxford to A.D. 1500, (3 vols., Oxford, 1957-9), vol. II, 845.

9 ibid., Ill, 1599.

10 ibid., Ill, 1515,. Elsewhere he is described as a "formed bachelor in decrees": D.A. Chart (ed.), The

Register of John Swayne, (Belfast, 1935), 95. 11 Emden's Oxford, III, 2035; identical entry given for Richard White, ibid., Ill, 2036. 12 A. M. Costello and A. Coleman (eds.), De Annatis Hiberniae, vol. 1: Ulster, (Dundalk, 1909; Maynooth

1912), 21. 13 W. G. H. Quigley and E. F. D. Roberts, Registrum Iohannis Mey, (Belfast, 1972), no. 64. 14

Costello, Annates, 2-3. 15

ibid., 20-2; Calendar of entries in Papal Registers relating to Great Britain and Ireland:] Papal letters, IX, 227.

16 Gwynn, Med. Prov. of Arm., 81.

17 ibid., 81.

18 H. J. Lawlor, "A Calendar of the Register of Archbishop Fleming", Proc. Roy. Ir. Acad., 30C, (1912-13), 94-190, nos. 233, 238, 239.

19 Cal. Pap. Reg., VIII, 502; IX, 56, 60. 20

Gwynn, Med. Prov. of Arm., 81. 21 Cal. Pap. Reg., VIII, 502, 508-9. 22

ibid., VIII, 100.



220 County Louth Archaeological and Historical Journal

was compelled by the pope to resign the archdeaconry and the vicarage of Termonfeckin, and then he immediately received them back through papal provision.23 Some of the other arch deacons relied exclusively on their office for their income, and so had to live on about half of what Prene received during his term.

The right of making appointments to the archdeaconry belonged to the archbishop as a rule, but the pope and the king also had the right of provision in certain circumstances in accordance with canon law and the regalian right. In May 1427 Archbishop Swayne conferred the office on Richard Rowe.24 However in November of the same year, Pope Martin V conferred it on

William Hadsor, believing it to be so long vacant by the death of Maurice Sweetman that its collation had lapsed to the Holy See.25 Hadsor who was then in Rome undertook to pay the first tribute.26 Clearly he was not well informed about events in Ireland, and he must have received a shock when he arrived back to find that his papal provision was worthless, as Richard

Rowe had been archdeacon since Maurice Sweetman's death.27 Rowe resigned in October, 1429.28 We do not know who provided his successor, Nicholas Alexander to the archdeaconry. Arch

bishop Swayne conferred it on his official, John Prene, when the latter persuaded Alexander to

resign and receive the vicarage of St. Peter's, Drogheda instead.29 On Prene's election to the see of Armagh, the archdeaconry again fell vacant, and as the temporalities of the see were in the hands of the king, John White, a cleric from Armagh who had acted as Swayne's proctor at

Rome during that primate's resignation,30 was presented by the crown on 9th January, 1440, and his proctor was inducted by the prior of the Culdees on January 21st.31 White probably had been recommended to the crown for presentation to the archdeaconry by either Archbishop Swayne or Archbishop Prene considering that they had already found him capable and reliable

enough to entrust the matter of Swayne's resignation to him. Two years later, in March 1442, we find another royal appointee, John River from London, disputing White's title to the arch

deaconry. Furthermore, River claimed that White's power in the diocese of Armagh prevented him from having any hope of justice being done to his claim. As a result of this complaint the

pope ordered the abbot of St. Thomas's Abbey, Dublin, the official of the diocese of Meath, and Thomas Barnby, canon of Dublin to look into River's claims and accusations.32 The outcome of this enquiry does not survive, but contrary to accepted opinion,33 which holds that White was removed soon afterwards, I find him still active as archdeacon in June and July, 1443. During this period he participated in the funeral ceremonies and burial of Archbishop Prene, and acted as one of the subcustodians of the spiritualities of the vacant see inter Anglos?* This strongly suggests that White was successful in defending his right to the archdeaconry against John

River's accusations.

We do not know who appointed Thomas Waryn who first appears as archdeacon in February, 1449.35 Previously he had been rector of Clonmore, County Louth, and proctor of Primate Mey at the meeting of the Great Council in February, 1446.36 This suggests that Primate Mey found him reliable and competent; indeed he sent him again as one of his proctors to the parliament held in Dublin in February, 1449.37 This was after Waryn had become archdeacon. Such in

23 Leslie, Armagh Clergy, 48; Cal. Pap. Reg., VIII, 502, 508-9.

24 Swayne Reg., 54.

? Cal. Pap. Reg., VII, 599. 26

Costello, Annates, 2. 27

Leslie, Armagh Clergy, 48. 28 Rev. J. B. Leslie's typescript copy of Bp. Reeves's Calendar of Primate Octavian's Register, (1480-1513),

(Nat. Lib. Ms. no. 2690), no. 138. 29 Cal. Pap. Reg., VIII, 508-9. 80

ibid., IX, 56. 31

Swayne Reg., 180-1; Emden's Oxford, III, 2035. 32 Cal. Pap. Reg., IX, 227; Costello, Annates, 20-1. 33

Leslie, Armagh Clergy, 48; Emden's Oxford, III, 2035. 34

Mey's Register, nos. 284, 286 and 63. 35

Swayne Reg., 194; Leslie, Armagh Clergy, 48. Both sources get the date wrong by calculating the new

year from 25th March. ?

Swayne Reg., 193. 87

ibid.t 194.




dications strongly suggest that Primate Mey had chosen and appointed Waryn having recognised his qualities of diplomacy, and willingness to work hard as his assistant. Mey's successor, Arch

bishop Bole was also to avail of Waryn's services, as he proved to be the longest lived of all the archdeacons of our period. He died in office in or before 1477,38

From this tentative study, it is clear that Armagh inter Anglos was regarded by the crown in the same way as any diocese in England or Wales. The king's rights of presentation in Armagh inter Anglos, 'sede vacante while the temporalities were in his hands were the same as those he had in any other diocese in his kingdom in similar circumstances,39 and these rights had been

jealously guarded in spite of the political upheavals and losses suffered by the Pale in the fourt eenth and fifteenth centuries. Likewise, the crown also sought to assert its rights of presentation in the diocese of Down, where the political situation was even more unfavourable.10 The rights of the crown in Meath remained unaffected, but it had long abandoned its claim to the right to

present clerics to benefices in Armagh inter Hibernos, as the right had become unenforceable due to the resistance of Gaelic churchmen and their secular chiefs.

The rights of the papacy to present clerics to reserved benefices and to benefices long vacant remained unaffected by the decline of the English colony, as is clear from the vast number of

petitions recorded in the Calendars of Papal Letters, and the papal directives given in response to these.41

Both royal and papal rights of provision meant that the primate was not always in a position to choose his own archdeacon, yet no Gaelic cleric managed to obtain this position as a result of a

papal provision, and as I have already noted, 42John White's appointment by the crown appears to have been made at the suggestion of either Archbishop Swayne or Prene. Clearly the needs of the situation and of the primate were considered by both the pope and the king when they each got the opportunity to present their candidate to the archdeaconry.

Any attempt to study the office of archdeacon in the medieval archdiocese of Armagh is

hampered by the nature of our main source. Their duties and actions are known to us only insofar as they have been recorded in the archbishops' registers. The archdeacons' registers have not survived, save for part of Archdeacon John Prene's induction book which now forms part of Octavian's register.43

It is obvious that since both the archbishop and the archdeacon were either English or

Anglo-Irish, and accordingly were compelled to operate together within the narrow limits of the diocese inter Anglos, the role of the archdeacon was restricted due to the presence of an active

archbishop in the same small area. This situation contrasts sharply with that prevailing in

England where some dioceses were very large and many of the bishops were absent for long periods in the king's service leaving their dioceses in the hands of their archdeacons and their

staffs, and thereby giving them considerable power and authority in the bishop's absence. In the diocese of Armagh however, the archdeacon was very much subject to the archbishop, acting as a member of the latter's staff, and having certain specific duties and rights.

The main duty of the archdeacon was that of inducting newly appointed clergy to their benefices on receipt of the episcopal mandates. Examples of this procedure abound throughout the registers.44 Similarly, he inducted newly elected superiors of religious houses and those elected to cathedral dignities, and he put them in possession of their monastery or prebend, and also gave them their stalls in the choir and places in the chapter.45 When the induction had been

38 Leslie, Armagh Clergy, 48; Costello, Annates, 9.

39 The situation in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries has been carefully studied by Margaret Howell,

Regalian Right in Medieval England, (London, 1962). 40 e.g. Mey"s Reg., no. 317.

41 See Geoffrey Barraclough, Papal Provisions, (Oxford, 1935). 42 above, p. 220.

43 Leslie's Cal. Octavian, nos. 49-76 and 85-120. 44

e.g. Mey's Reg., nos. 135, p. 133; 158, p. 152; 184, p. 185; 186, p. 186; 206, p. 208; 217, p. 218; 403,

p. 430; Leslie's Cal. Octavian, nos. 49-76. ?

e.g. Mey*s Reg., nos. 230, 231, 233, 270, 355.




performed, the archdeacon formally certified this to the archbishop46 and kept a record of it himself in case of disputes later. This is the nature of the portion of Archdeacon John Prene's induction book covering the years 1430-35 mentioned above.47

So, we find the archdeacon was one of the archbishop's chief officers who shared the primate's duties in the administration of the archdiocese. One very important aspect of this work was the

regular yearly visitation of the parishes of the diocese of Armagh inter Anglos.*8 The visitation dues collected during these perambulations of the diocese provided the archdeacon with the bulk of his income;49 the remainder came from inductions, from the fines collected in his court, and from various other stipends and expenses received in the course of his duties.

During his visitations the archdeacon examined the condition of the churches and their

suitability as places of worship.50 He also noted the zeal and good conduct of the clergy and their efforts to teach and minister to the faithful, as well as the piety and regularity of attendance of the latter at church and their behaviour there and elsewhere. On a number of occasions we find him in his own court hearing cases which involved the crimes and moral lapses of the clergy and people. In Prene's register there are the two cases of immorality which came before the arch deacon's court.51 One may suspect that despite the wide range of cases brought before him, crimes of sexual immorality, both on their own and in connection with marital disharmony and breakdown, took up a large part of the court's time. The archdeacons of Armagh were probably like the archdeacon in Chaucer's 'Friar's Tale' who maintained a lively interest in punishing such

misdemeanours:

"In my own district once there used to be A fine archdeacon one of high degree,

Who boldly did the execution due On fornication and on witchcraft too

Bawdry, adultery and defamation Breaches of wills and contracts, spoliations Of church endowments, failure in the rents and tithes and disregard of sacraments,

All these and many other kinds of crime That need have no rehearsal at this time, Usury, simony too. But he could boast That lechery was what he punished most."52

The archdeacon himself did not always hear the cases brought before his court as he had a

deputy53 and was entitled to appoint commissaries general and officials and apparitors to assist him in his duties. It would appear that he had one commissary general in the diocese inter Anglos who assisted him on visitations and during court hearings, and who was sometimes delegated to induct or institute a cleric to his cure.54 Besides his commissary general inter Anglos, the archdeacon on a number of occasions also appointed two commissaries general to represent him

* e.g. ibid., nos. 180, 270, 404.

*7 above, p. 221.

48 Following J. Brady, "Archdeacons of Meath", I.E.R., 65, (1945), 90; E. Bolster, History of the Diocese

of Cork, 231-2. 49

Mey's Reg., nos. 31 and 320. 80

ibid., no. 248. 61 Rev. J. B. Leslie's typescript copy of Bp. Reeves's Calendar of Primate Prene's Register, (1430-76)

(Nat. Lib. Ms. no. 2689), nos. 46, 290. 62 The Canterbury Tales, trans. N. Coghill, (rev. edit., London, 1972), 311; quoted by Dorothy Owen,

"Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction in England, 1300-1500; the records and their interpretation" in The material, sources and methods of Ecclesiastical History, ed. Derek Baker, {Studies in Church History series, vol. XI), 199.

53 Mey's Reg., no. 271.

64 ibid., no. 197; Leslie's Cal. Octavian, no. 314.




in the deaneries of Orior and Tullaghogue.55 Even the archbishop's notary, Canon William Somerwell acted as commissary general of Archdeacon Thomas Waryn in July 1452.56

Elsewhere we find Archdeacon Waryn appointing two new commissaries general in the deaneries of Orior and Tullaghogue.57 Their duties were to exercise archidiaconal jurisdiction in the two deaneries, to visit, and uphold standards of conduct, to correct those excesses and crimes which are the responsibility of the archdeacon, to hear and decide cases, to induct those

presented to benefices, and to levy and collect those dues to which the archdeacon is entitled. The archdeacon rarely went there himself, so he depended on them to collect his procurations in these Gaelic deaneries.58 To assist the commissaries in the performance of their duties, they

were given the right to impose canonical sanctions on those who resisted them. However, their

power was by no means absolute, for they were to answer for their activities to the archdeacon himself, or his deputy, Master James Leche. At the same time, the former commissaries in those deaneries were ordered to hand over the various dues and procurations which they still had in hand and they were to account for them to the archdeacon. This clearly proves that the com

missaries were appointed at the archdeacon's pleasure, and not on any regular basis. Moreover, this document not only informs us of the duties of the archdeacon's commissaries general, but it also gives us a clear idea of the terms of reference of the archdeacon's own duties as formally laid down on his appointment by the archbishop.

There is one intriguing aspect of the archdeacon's right to appoint commissaries. We have

just observed him appoint two, and have mentioned references to his having appointed others either singly or in pairs, without any apparent need to consult with, or obtain the prior perm

mission of any person or group in authority. However, if the archdeacon was about to be absent from the archdiocese, he was very careful to secure common consent to and recognition for the

commissaries general he had appointed and the power he invested in them. In December 1449, Archdeacon Waryn secured the consent of the convocation of the clergy inter Anglos at

Ardee to his request that during his proposed absence with Archbishop Mey in England, his

commissary might perform the archidiaconal duties of visiting and collecting procurations, and receive all rights and dues as if he himself were present in person.59 No record survives which

would indicate whether the dean and chapter of Armagh were consulted about the archdeacon's

proposed absence and the delegation of his powers to the commissary general on this occasion but, as the trip to England was "in the king's service", which in this instance probably meant the plight of the beleaguered colony, we may presume that they were given only the minimum of information, as the less they knew of the king's business, the better. However, on 27th July, 1450 when the trip mentioned above had probably already taken place, the archbishop was

present in Armagh cathedral in the company of the dean and chapter, in the course of ordinary visitation of the diocese inter Hibernos. On this occasion, Thomas Waryn obtained the assent of the archbishop, the dean, Charles O'Mellan, and the members of the chapter, to his request to

appoint one or more commissaries who would exercise archidiaconal jurisdiction during his absence. He then had William Somerwell draw up one or more public instruments recording their assent, and the notary also added a list of those present to the finished document.60

On loth February, 1452, Waryn again obtained a similar permission from the convocation of the clergy of the diocese inter Anglos, gathered in the chapel of St. Martin, in St. Peter's Church,

Drogheda. Again it appears that he proposed to absent himself, and so he had to obtain the consent of the convocation before he could appoint commissaries to act on his behalf during his absence. Again he had William Somerwell prepare public instruments which acted as the official

55 Leslie's Cal. Prene, no. 365; Leslie's Cal. Octavian nos. 67, 68, 69b, 71; Mey's Reg., no. 271. 56

Mey's Reg., no. 197. 57

ibid., no. 271. 58 Charles O'Mellan, dean of Armagh, was excommunicated for non-payment of the archdeacon's pro

curations in Nov. 1455. (Mey's Reg., no. 320). 59 Swayne Reg., 195.

60 Mey's Reg., no. 362.




record of what had taken place.61 As we noted above,62 William Somerwell himself was to act as Waryn's commissary in the summer of that same year.63

Having isolated the various instances of this practice, one is puzzled at the apparent ease with which the archdeacon could appoint commissaries to represent him when he himself was

present in the diocese, while he had to formally obtain consent to any commissaries he appointed on his behalf in his absence.

Furthermore, the archdeacon had to obtain a royal licence to leave the country. So, in

September, 1431, John Prene obtained a licence from the king to go abroad for six years.64 In 1438, a royal writ was sent to Archbishop Swayne requiring that he distrain John Prene, 'rector of Termonfeckin/ by all his emoluments to satisfy for two parts of his revenues due to the king for his absence. Archbishop Swayne spotted the mistake in the writ, which spoke of

Prene as rector rather than as vicar, and he availed of this technicality to reply that he knew of no John Prene who was rector of Termonfeckin, and thereby allowed his archdeacon to escape the fine.65 In 1441 a similar order was made to seize two thirds of the income of Archdeacon John

White of Armagh for his violation of the statutes against absentees.66 Some other aspects of the archdeacons' work and relations with the archbishops can be

gleaned from scattered entries in the registers. The archdeacon's position on the primate's staff was one of special trust, and required that the holder should be a man on whom the primate could rely with the utmost confidence. I have noted earlier67 how Archdeacon Thomas Waryn

was to accompany Archbishop Mey to England.68 No evidence survives to indicate whether the

trip took place or not, but the point at issue is that it was the archdeacon whom Mey chose to

accompany him as advisor on this important and demanding trip. Obviously Waryn was a man of enormous ability. His long term as archdeacon is testimony to this. Not only did he have the confidence of Archbishop Mey, but Archbishop Bole relied heavily on his advice and good sense also. These qualities must have made him a close confidant of that primate. In 1469 we find

Archbishop Bole writing to some unnamed person. In the letter he describes how highly Waryn has spoken of this person's character and qualities, and on this basis Archbishop Bole invites both him and Bishop Thady Morrissey, newly provided to the see of Down and Connor, to come and visit him.69 This is followed by a letter from the archbishop's secretary to the same person,

which again states the archbishop's high regard for him which is based on Waryn's recommenda tion. Furthermore Bole has instructed Archdeacon Waryn to invite this person to come to the diocese of Armagh. Such is the primate's eagerness to have him come, that he offers him a

pension of ten, or twenty marks a year, and will provide him with a house in Drogheda should he wish to bring his wife along as well.70 That the primate should go to such lengths speaks very highly of his confidence in Waryn's judgement.

However the archdeacon also had much more routine duties to perform as the archbishop's representative and deputy. In August 1427 he was issued with a citation ordering him to summon the clergy and people of Armagh diocese inter Anglos to attend the provincial council of bishops at St. Peter's, Drogheda, on 13th October, 1427. Rowe received this letter of citation personally

61 ibid., no? 363. The appointment of proctors during absence is probably connected with the statutes

against absentees noted below in fn. 65. 62

above, p. 223. ?3

Mey's Reg., no. 197. 64 Edward Tresham (ed.), Calendarium Rotulorum Patentium et Clausorum Cancellariae Hiberniae, ((Dublin,

1828), I, 252. Such a licence was required by the Absentee Acts of 1368 and 1380. The English Parliament of 1380 established that the penalty for absenteeism was to be the confiscation of one third of the culprit's income

and possessions; see E. Curtis & R. B. McDowell, Irish Historical Documents, nj 2-1922, (London, reptd. 1968), 69-61; see also H. F. Berry (ed.), Statutes and Ordinances and Acts of the Parliament of Ireland, King John to

Henry V, (Dublin, 1910). 470-1, 476-7. 65

Sivayne Reg., 177. "

ibid., 186. ?7

above, p. 223. ??

Swayne Reg., 195. 69 Leslie's Cal. Octavian, no. 477. 70

ibid., no. 478.




at Termonfeckin Manor on 26th September.71 Primate Mey's use of Archdeacon Waryn as his

proctor in the Dublin parliament of February, 1449 may also be referred to.72 Waryn's reliability is again highlighted when Archbishop Mey has him deliver an important and confidential letter to an unnamed person, probably in the Pale administration. In this letter the primate suggests that Hugh O'Neill should be treated with tact and diplomacy, so as not to create trouble, or

upset the progress already made towards peace.73

Having considered different examples of the archdeacons' important role as representative and messenger of the archbishop, it is clear that they must have been men of intelligence, re sourcefulness and adaptability who could perform a wide range of complex duties to the satis faction of their archbishops, and as such they were vitally important members of the Armagh inter Anglos diocesan organisation, and figures of considerable standing in their own right. Consequently they were frequently required to attend important meetings, court cases and other

transactions, and to formally bear witness to the proceedings. Thus, Thomas Waryn appeared among those present at the outcome of the notorious case brought by Master John Stackboll, Doctor of Civil Law, against Sir Thomas Bathe in 1452-53.74 He was also present as a witness at an appeal case brought in 1450 by the vicar of Tara, diocese of Meath, from the court of the

bishop of Meath to that of the archbishop of Armagh.75 Waryn was also in court for the hearing by Archbishop Bole of the case against Bishop William Sherwood of Meath for the non-payment of visitation dues.76 Elsewhere he witnessed an agreement between two clerics over the right of title to certain lands in County Louth, and he appended his seal to the official record of the

agreement as drawn up by William Somerwell.77

These incidents point to a more mundane aspect of the archdeacon's work, which involved attendance at the more important court cases which came before the archbishop's court and also to the routine business of acting as officiai witness to all manner of minor agreements and( con tracts which involved either the church, its clergy, its faithful, or property, and which consumed a major part of his time and energy.

From the foregoing it is clear that the archdeacon acted as indispensable aide, advisor and ambassador of the archbishop. It was vital that the archbishop should choose a man who, besides having the necessary intellectual and moral qualities, was one whom he found agreeable, cheerful, and with whom he could establish a good working relationship, as contact would other

wise make co-operation impossible, and the consequences for the spiritual and administrative life of the diocese would be disastrous. It is likely that Primate Swayne's choice of Richard Rowe as his archdeacon in May, 142778 was an unfortunate one which the primate was later to regret bitterly. Disagreement between the two men soon became so acute that by the end of November of the same year, the primate was forced to excommunicate Rowe and have him denounced "on account of his contumacy, and especially on account of his usurpation of the archbishop's authority."79 His name does not occur again in the register till July 1428,80 so the primate was not in a hurry to absolve and rehabilitate him. On October 28th, 1429 Rowe resigned from the

71 Swayne Reg., 62-3.

"ibid., 194. 73 Mey's Reg., no. 214. The letter is undated, but its context in the register suggests that it belongs to the

period autumn 1449-autumn 1451. The mode of address is broadly comparable with that used in letters to the duke of York, (MeyJs Reg., nos. 127, 174), and this may provide a clue to the identity of the addressee. More over, York was resident in the country as lieutenant between the 5th of July, 1449 and September, 1450.

(F. M. Powicke and E. B. Fryde (eds.), Handbook of British Chronology, 2nd ed., London, 1961, 154). 74 Mey's Reg., no. 381; see also H. F. Berry (ed.). Statute Rolls of the Parliament of Ireland, Henry VI,

(Dublin, 1910), 655-9; and H. G. Richardson and G. O. Sayles, The Irish Parliament in the Middle Ages, (2nd edit., Philadelphia, 1964), 222.

76 Leslie's Cal. Pre?e, no. 158. 78 Leslie's Cal. Octavian, nos. 224, 225, 232. 77

Mey's Reg., no. 383. 78

Swayne Reg., 54. 79

ibid., 82.

Mibid., 96.



'?26 County Louth Archaeological and Historical Journal

archdeaconry complaining that he was not able for the burden of its responsibilities.81 While

accepting that the burdens imposed on the archdeacon were considerable, one wonders whether this was the real reason for his resignation or whether continued bad relations with Primate

Swayne had forced them to part company. Soon however, Swayne appointed his tried and trusted

official, John Prene to the post. By now both men had known each other for many years, and were obviously close friends who shared a common outlook on the problems of Armagh diocese. Their harmony, cooperation and zeal in managing the affairs of the diocese must have made an

impression in Rome, for on Swayne's resignation in November, 1439, his friend Archdeacon

John Prene was provided to the vacant see by Pope Eugene IV.82 Surely this was the just reward which all good archdeacons dreamed of !

81 Leslie's Cal. Octavian, no. 138; and also the rough transcript of the register of Primate Octavian, pre pared from the originals in the archi?piscopal registry at Armagh by Bp. William Reeves, (T.C.D. Ms. 557, vol. 9, 224-5).

82 Cal. Pap. Reg., IX, 56.

