St Edmund versus St Francis? Saints and Religious Conflict in Medieval Bury St Edmunds

Abstract

Between 1233 and 1258, Franciscan friars attempted to establish themselves in the town of Bury St Edmunds, which was jealously guarded by the Benedictine monks of St Edmunds abbey. In the ensuing conflict (which sometimes spilled over into acts of violence), the monks invoked St Edmund as the protector of the abbey. Although the monks eventually managed to eject the friars from the town in 1263, they were forced to grant the friars a friary site just outside Bury. This article examines how the monks deployed the figure of St Edmund in their battle with the friars, while also exploring the friars’ less well-documented responses. By calling on the saints, both sides elevated the clash between new and old religious orders to the heavenly plane, but the popularity of the new saint, Francis, complicated the monks’ efforts and produced a nuanced response from the Benedictines that eventually accommodated the friars.

A Monastic Antichrist Satire from Medieval Bury St Edmunds: Interpreting the Iconotypicon Buriense

“…The Benedictine abbey had been in conflict with the Franciscan friars since 1233 (pp. 56-67), 23 eventually reaching a settlement in 1263 where the friars settled outside the town's North Gate at a place called Babwell. However, both religious communities had come to define themselves against one another.…”

“…Furthermore, by the 15th century (and perhaps earlier), one of the key disputes between the abbot and friars was also one of the reasons John Grandisson and Richard FitzRalph had singled out the friars as agents of Antichrist; the abbot, like bishops elsewhere, had the right to regulate who could hear confessions within the town of Bury St Edmunds, while the friars claimed the privilege of being able to hear anyone's confession (p. 34). 27 The Cellarer's Chamber was a particular target of rioters who broke into the Abbey in 1327. On 21 October 1327, townsfolk broke into the Cellarer's offices and stole everything they could, as well as breaking the doors (p. 331).…”