Malmesbury took no part in the Wars of the Roses, but it is said that Edward IV stayed at the White Lion Inn, still extant, on his way from the battle of Tewkesbury. In the back parlour there is a fine old stained glass rondel of a "White Lion" of this period, the badge of Edward IV.
Malmesbury had its heyday in the 13th and 14th centuries, when the Abbey was rich and powerful and as a centre of the wollen trade. There were at least eight mills on the river, of which four-modified and modernised-still exist in name if not useage. After the Dissolution, and for some time before it, the Abbey was falling into decay and the magnificent spire fell about 1480 during the night. What a night that must have been! It is said that the gilt ball from the top was thrown half way down the High Street and landed on what is now Adye's Garage.
The Monastery had become sick and repairs were not carried out, either because of lack of monies or gradual loss of moral fibre of the Monks themselves. The numbers had fallen from some 200 to a mere seven, and one of the last Abbots was killed in a drunken brawl. The last Abbot, one Robert Selwyn (we still have Selwyns round here) did not want to take the job on but was persuaded by Richard Cromwell under Henry VIII to carry on until the Dissolution was completed. Some of the remaining Monks lived openly with their "wives and families" and when the axe fell in December, 1539, they simply doffed their habits and retired to a pension of 200 marks and a free house in Bristol for the Abbot, and the others at an average of 6-10 marks per annum. Four of the remainder legally married "and begat children."
Thus ended, tragically, the long and splendid reign of the Benedictines in Malmesbury after 847 years of work of God and education. At one time they controlled lands from Cornwall to Yorkshire and the old "Mitred Abbots" held great sway and authority over the lives of all concerned. On the whole the townsfolk were not sorry to see them go, until they found loss of trade and unemployment growing. This was fortunately relieved by one William Stumpe.
