contends that 'it was granted to Westminster by a charter of Will. I and by two charters of Will. II', but that it 'somehow' became alienated to the Colchester abbey, which defended its right by means of the above forgeries. 'It is', he writes, 'in the forged charter of Eudo alone that any details regarding the gift or the donor appear: there we read "ecclesiam sancte Marie de Westchepinge Lundonie, que vocatur Niewecherche, concedente Ailwardo grosso presbitero",' &c.[1]
To this he adds, in a foot-note, 'Compare the "Alfwardus cognomento Grossus" of the fictitious first charter of Will. I, quoted above, p. 158'. On looking up this reference, we find the donor's name given in three forms, viz. 'Alwardus', 'Agelwardus', 'Alfwardus'. No one, however, so far as I know, of those who have given his name, has observed that he must be identical with the 'Afswand Grossus of London' who is found among the witnesses to a charter of William I (1081) in favour of St. Peter's, Ghent, which is now considered spurious.[2] Mr. Rye asserts that Eudo 'held the church of St. Mary of Westcheping in London, called Niewechurch', before the Conquest, 'and had made All ward [sic] Grossus the parson of it' (p. 44); but, here at least, he has certainly confused Eudo with his father Hubert, for Eudo's charter (spurious in its present form) speaks of 'Ailwardo grosso presbitero, qui in eadem ecclesia ex donatione … Huberti de Ria personatum consecutus fuerat'.[3] Continuing the above citation, we find Mr. Rye observing, of St. Mary Newchurch, that 'Davis (p. 79) notes that this purports to be the grant mentioned in a charter ascribed to 1087–8, upon [sic] no. 306, as the witnesses are, with one omission, the same as those in such charter'.[4] More confusion and misquotation! On 'p. 79' there is no such passage; but on p. 73 Mr. Davis appends to no. 278 a note that 'this is, with one omission, the same list of witnesses as in the forged charter Cotton xvi. 30 (no. 216) of 1080–5'. In other words, Mr. Davis holds that no. 306 (a charter of William II) confirms no. 278 (a charter of William I): he also notes that the witnesses to no. 278 are the same (with one exception) as those to no. 216. Mr. Rye does not even mention no. 216, but wrongly drags in no. 306, which has quite a different set of witnesses. He thus
- ↑ p. 165.
- ↑ See Davis, Regesta, no. 141 (pp. 37–8), where notes will be found on its text and its spurious character.
- ↑ Mr. Rye adds, in a foot-note, that 'there is what Davis calls (p. 441) a spurious charter of William II, confirming this grant, and this has been challenged by Round in the Eng. Hist. Rev. xvi. 725'. The reference to 'p. 441' is, of course, wrong, and should be p. 109. Mr. Davis there duly names 'Niewechirche [Westcheap, London]' among the gifts confirmed, and observes that 'The authenticity of the charter is challenged, with good reason, by Mr. Round (Eng. Hist. Rev. xvi. 725)'.
- ↑ p. 44 b.
