26. #John de Marinis# (1302-1308). This Abbot had been Cellarer, and afterwards Prior, for fourteen years, before his election as Abbot. The full list of the fees and expenses connected with his confirmation at Rome is given. The sum was enormous: 2,500 marks and 400 shillings.
He offended Edward II. by refusing to supply some carriages and horses which the King had demanded, and so when Edward came to St. Albans he refused to see the Abbot. The latter tried to appease the King by a present made through the notorious favourite Piers Gaveston, and also by a grant of the manor of Westwood, which was beyond his power to give, but all to no purpose. Most of the records of his rule relate to rights of property and regulations respecting the monks. As his end approached he made a statement of his liabilities. He owed £1,300 and had never paid the 1,000 marks due to the King at the last vacancy. We are told that he was constant, not given to much talk, honest in his life, religious, and circumspect.
27. #Hugh of Eversden# (1308-1326). This Abbot, who had been Cellarer for five years, is described as being tall and handsome, able to speak French and English well, but with little knowledge of Latin. On this account he wished to avoid going to Rome, and sent his proctors instead to obtain the Pope's confirmation of his election--but they, having incurred much expense, returned to say that the Pope insisted on the new Abbot appearing at Rome in person. By liberal presents he made a favourable impression at Rome, but the journey, beyond the payments of first-fruits, cost him more than £1,000. With the help of a legacy from Reginald of St. Albans he finished the Lady Chapel and the retro-choir, in which he placed the shrine of St. Amphibalus. King Edward II. paid a second visit to the Abbey, and on being told by the Abbot of the benefactions of Edward I. gave 100 marks and much timber towards the work then in progress. The Abbot was twice besieged in his Abbey by the townspeople; they desired to be answerable to the King and not the Abbot. They gained their point, though they were compelled to surrender to the next Abbot the privileges they had obtained of Abbot Hugh. It was during the rule of this Abbot that the piers in the main arcade of the nave gave way while mass was being said on St. Paulinus' Day, 1323, and he had to begin repairing this part of the church.