- Abbot of Paisley
The Abbot of Paisley (later Commendator of Paisley; Prior of Paisley before 1219) was the head of the Cluniac monastic community of
Paisley Abbey and its property. The monastery was founded as apriory atRenfrew in 1163, but moved toPaisley in 1169. It became anabbey in 1219. The founder wasWalter fitz Alan , Seneschal (Steward) of Scotland. The line of abbots ended when it was turned into a secular lordship for Lord Claud Hamilton in 1587/1592. The following is a list of abbots and commendators:List of priors
* ???, 1163 x 1165 [Was prior at Renfrew. Name not known.]
* Osbert, 1173-1180x1192
* Roger, 1195 x 1196 -1208 x 1214List of abbots
* ???, 1220 [First abbot, when Paisley became an abbey in 1219. Name not known.]
* William, 1225/6 -1238, 1248?
* Stephen, 1272-1285
* Walter, 1296
* A [ ? ] , [Known only by initial A.] 1301
* Roger, 1318-1325
* John, 1327
* James, 1349
* John, 1362-1370
* John de Lithgow I, 1384-1408 x 1412
* Alan de Govan, 1412
* John de Lychcar, 1412
* William de Cheshelme, 1414
* Roland, 1414-1415 [Previouslyabbot of Crossraguel .]
* John de Lithgow II (?Lychcar), 1415-1431 x 1432 [Previously abbot of Crossraguel.]
* Thomas Morrow, 1418-1444
* Richard Bothwell, 1444-1445
* Thomas de Tarveis, 1445-1459
* Henry Crichton, 1459-1471
* Patrick Graham, 1466-1471
* George Shaw, 1471-1499
* Robert Shaw, 1498 -1525List of commendators
* John Hamilton, 1525-1553 [Became
bishop of Dunkeld (1544/6-47), thenarchbishop of St Andrews (1547/9) until he died in 1571; maintained the commend of Paisley until 1553, when he granted it to his nephew.]
* Claude Hamilton I, 1553-1587
* Robert Lord Sempill, 1569-1573
* William Erskine, 1581-1584 [Becamearchbishop of Glasgow in 1585.]
* Claude Hamilton II, 1586-1592Notes
Bibliography
* Cowan, Ian B. & Easson, David E., "Medieval Religious Houses: Scotland With an Appendix on the Houses in the Isle of Man", Second Edition, (London, 1976), pp. 64-5
* Watt, D.E.R. & Shead, N.F. (eds.), "The Heads of Religious Houses in Scotland from the 12th to the 16th Centuries", The Scottish Records Society, New Series, Volume 24, (Edinburgh, 2001), pp. 167-73ee also
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Paisley Abbey
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