Antiquarian notices of leprosy and leper hospitals in Scotland and England / by James Y. Simpson.

  • Simpson, James Young, 1811-1870.
Date:
[1841?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Antiquarian notices of leprosy and leper hospitals in Scotland and England / by James Y. Simpson. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    to illustrate my remarks by references to the disease as it existed contemporaneously in England.* In following out the object adverted to, I shall commence by an enumeration of such leper hospitals as I have detected any notices of in old Scottish records. The knowledge of the mere existence of most of these hospitals has been obtained more by the accidental preservation of charters of casual grants to them, than by any historical or traditional notice of the institutions them- selves. The information, therefore, which I have to offer in re- gard to most of them is exceedingly slight. The following mea- gre notes regarding the two first Lazar or Leper-houses, Spitals, Spetels, or Spitles,-f- which I shall mention, show the truth of this remark. Scottish Lkpeu Hospitals. Aldcambus, Berwickshire.—A Leper Hospital existed at Aldcambus, in the parish of Cockburnspath, Berwickshire, as far back as the reign of William the Lion. In the Cartulary of the Priory of Coldingham is preserved a charter by which that monarch confirms a grant of half a carrucate of land to this hospital. I shall give a transcript of the charter, which has hitherto remained unpublished. I do so that it may serve as a fair specimen of the various similar charter documents •to which I shall have occasion to allude in the course of the fol- lowing remarks. It is entitled Confirmatio donationis Hospitali de Aldcambus facta — Willelmus Dei gratia Rex Scottorum omnibus probis hominibustotiusterre sue Clericis.etlaicis salutem. Sciant presentes et futuri me concessisse, et hac carta mea confir- masse donationem illam, quam David de Quicheswde fecit Hospi- tali de Aldcambus et Leprosis ibi manentibus, de ilia dimidia ca- rucata terrse in Aldcambus quam Radulfus Pelliparius tenuit te- nendam: in liberam etpuram et perpetuam eleemosinara, cum omni- bus libertatibus et aisiamentis ad predictam terram juste pertinen- tibus, ita libere et quiete sicut carta predicti Davidis testatur Sal- vo servicio meo. Testibus Willelmo de Bosch, Cancellario meo, Waltero Cuming, Davide de Hastings. Appud Jcddewrith, xvi. die Maij. J Aldnestun in Lauderdale.—At Aldneston another leper- house existed. It was under the control of the Abbey of Melrose. In the Melrose Chartulary there is preserved a charter headed Carta Leprosorum de Moricestun. In this charter. Waller .Fitzallan, Steward of Scotland, granted to this hospital of Auld- nestun and its inmates, (Hospitali de Auldnestun et infirmis fra- * For reference to the prevalence of Leprosy nnil Leper hospitals in Ireland, see .Ledwich's Antiquities of Ireland, (Dublin, lf!n4,) p. 370. f Terms manifestly, (according to Junius, Johnson, Richardson, &c.) mere cor- ruptions of tile word iiospital. X Manuscript Cartulary of the Priory of Coldingham, p. Ih. Advocates' Library, Edinburgii. In the above Latin extract tiic original onhognipiiy is preserved.