| Description | The monks of Christ Church had to carry out various duties essential to the running of the priory and its estates. These posts were called obedientaries, and a fairly comprehensive list of them is to be found in 'Archeaologia Cantiana' vol. xxxvii (1925) p129. Some of the more significant of these obedientaries, responsible for whole departments of the priory, had to account for their expenditure and revenue, and there are series of rolls surviving for such as the sacrist, almoner, and treasurer. Others, such as the feretarian or infirmarian, have left only the occasional account, and some, such as the precentor, have left none at all.
The six greater obedientaries - subprior, precentor, penitencer, sacrist, cellarer, and chamberlain - were appointed by the archbishop from three nominees submitted by the prior. The prior and chapter appointed the lesser obedientaries - treasurers (usually two), almoner, anniversarian, granger, and bartoner.
Usually two and often three monks carried out the duties of treasurer, the central accounting figure in the priory, dating back to the 1160s. They received the majority of the priory's revenues and redistributed them to the obedientaries. The late 1390s saw the prior take over something of this central role. Thence the treasurers accounted for income from urban property, manorial rents and fee farms, woods, some pensions, and the liberty profits, paying out for rents, property upkeep in Canterbury and London, transport, wages of their officials and some craftsmen such as a glazier and plumber, wood, some food, and liveries.
The Treasurers' accounts, ranging in date from 1281-2 to 1520-1, were never recatalogued by Urry; the fullest listing is that by Woodruff, 'Handlist of Account Rolls in Study X.Y.Z.', pp.29-31./MSS. Cat. 74,7 |
| Related Material | Treasurer's accounts: 1406-7 (80), 1419-20 (81), 1449-50 (82), 1456- 7 (83), 1459-60 (84), c1461-83 (draft) (84A), [1482]-3 (draft) (85), 1500-1 (86), c1500 (only m2) (87), 1508-9 (88), 1509-10 (951/1/31), 1512-3 (951/1/ 32), 1517-8 (89), 1518-9 (90), LPL ED 80-90 & LPL MS 951/1/31, 32 |