A HISTORY OF LONDON in the Old and New Testaments that day is said to be dedicated to God alone, and therefore should be solemnly celebrated with praises and prayers and other works of charity, and abstention from all servile work/'" The necessity for these ordinances shows that there was some disregard of the sanctity of the day ; and much lack of reverence for consecrated places is revealed by the accounts of various affrays which occurred during the 15th century in churches and churchyards. The most serious of these was in 1 417, when at Vespers on Easter Day the church of St. Dunstan in the East was the scene of a violent quarrel ending in the murder of an innocent citizen who interfered to make peace. The offenders were subjected to a severe penance, and the church was solemnly ' reconciled.' ^'^ The use of churches for secular purposes does not seem to have been regarded as wrong ; in the late 14th century there was a right of way through St. Michael le Querne, and the Bakers held their ' Hall-moots ' in St. Thomas of Acon.^°' During the 15 th century much money was spent by the citizens in rebuilding, enlarging, and adorning their churches. In some cases details of the work have been preserved. A bequest was made in 1420 for providing bells for St. Augustine's, and decorating the ceiling of the nave ' to the glory of God. '^" About 1427 the parish of St. Mary at Hill spent over ^90 on a new rood-loft, stalls in the quire, and a ' parclos ' between the quire and the chapel of St. Katharine. * St. Alphage "' and St. Michael Cornhill built new steeples; the first stone of St. Michael's was laid in 1421 by 'the reverend and discreet parson,' the churchwardens and many worthy men of the parish ' in the worship of the Holy Trinity and of Our Lady St. Mary and of St. Michael the Archangel and of all the holy company of heaven.' * St. Stephen's was rebuilt on the other side of the Walbrook, because the old site was too small for a church which would accommodate the number of people who resorted thither to hear divine service and pour forth their devo- tions. More than twelve foundation-stones were solemnly laid in 1429 by the mayor and six aldermen, the churchwardens, and others, among them the master mason of the work. Some of the money required was raised by selling images, old glass, &c., and in 1439 the senior churchwarden, who had given j^i3 6s. SJ. towards the making of the clearstory, held church plate worth over ^50 in pledge for sums he had advanced. The site was given by two aldermen, one of whom, a brother of Archbishop Chicheley, is described as the ' founder ' of the new church ; he also contributed largely towards the building, and provided all the timber for the two side aisles and the ' proces- sion-place.' ^" Instances might be given of similar liberality on the part of other citizens at this period,*"* among whom Sir Richard Whittington was pre-eminent in that as in other respects. His parish church, St. Michael "" Riley, op. cit. 644 ; Rec. Corp. Journ. iv, fol. 27 ; Chron. ofLond. (ed. Kingsford), 156. '" Wilkins, Cone, iii, 385 et seq.; Hist. Coll. ut sup. 115 ; Chron. of Lond. (ed. Nicol.is), 105. For other examples see Wilkins, op. cit. iii, 325, 388 ; Early Chan. Proc. bdle. 45, no. 48 ; Hale, J Series of Precedents, i, 39. '" Riley, op. cit. +17 ; Sharpe, Cal. Letter Bk. H, 207 ; cf. Cal. Letter Bk. G, 265 ; Prideaux, Mem. of Goldsmiths, ii, 357 ; Sharpe, Lond. and the Kingdom, i, 312. '" Sharpe, Cal. of Wills, ii, 423-4. '" Chwdns'. Accts. '" G. B. Hall, Rec. of St. Alfkage, 3. "« Overall, Accts. cfSt. Michael Cornhill, 199. '" Cal. Pat. 1422-9, p. 492 ; Guildhall MS. 1056 (l). The latter contains many interesting details concerning the rebuilding ; it is the source of the information given by Stow, Surt'. (ed. Kingsford), i, 227-8, and by Milbourn, Lond. and Midd. Arch. Soc. Trans, v, 3 3 3-5 . For the ' procession-place,' cf. Sharpe, Cal. of Wills, ii, 157, 218. '^ Accounts of churches in Stow, Surv. passim. 226
