CARTHUSIANS. An order of monks founded in the eleventh century by St. Bruno. Bruno went from Cologne, his birthplace, to Rheims, and there as "scholast fcns " made a reputation as a teacher. Before long, however, he decided to retire from the life of the world. He left Rheims, went to Hugh, Bishop of Grenoble, and unburdened his soul to him, telling him that, with certain companions, he wished to live a life of severe austerity and self-discipline. Bishop Hugh pointed out to him a site in La Chartreuse (whence the name Carthusian) near Grenoble, a spot accessible only by a difficult and gloomy path, and here in 1086 with his followers he erected an oratory and small separate cells around it, as in the Lauras (q.v.) of Palestine. A few years later Bruno was summoned to Rome by his old pupil, now the Pope, Urban II., never to return to La Chartreuse. Later he founded convents at Squillace and La Torre in Calabria, and he retired to La Torre to end his days there (t 1101). The Carthusians wore very rough and scanty dress, which included next to the skin coarse hair-shirts. They fasted almost without interruption. Sick or well, they would never touch flesh. But they ate fish when it was given to them as alms. On Sundays and Thursdays they ate eggs and cheese; on Tuesdays and Saturdays boiled pulse or herbs; on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays they took only bread and water. They ate only bran bread. Except on special occasions, they had only one meal a day. They devoted themselves to some manual work, chiefly the transcribing of books, and to constant prayer and worship, alone and in common. For some time they seem to have bad no written rule. The rules were first written down by Guigo, fifth prior of La Chartreuse (1228). In 1259 a collection of all the decisions of the
chapter-general since 1141 was made by Bernard de la Tour. In 1581 a fourth compilation appeared (Nova Collectio Statuorum Ordinis Cartusiensis). In 1688 this was approved of by Pope innocent XI. The name Char treuse, which in England became Charterhouse, was given to all the monasteries of the order. In France at the beginning of the eighteenth century there were seventy five monasteries. These were all swept away during the Revolution. There were nearly a hundred monasteries elsewhere. In England there were nine at the time of the dissolution. The Carthusian nunneries seem to have been founded in the thirteenth or fourteenth century. London still has its " Charterhouse," though it now serves a new purpose. The site, near Smithfield. with the surrounding land was purchased in 1349 by Sir Walter de Manny (t 1372) as a burial-place for those who died from the " Black Death." In 1371 on the same land he founded a house of Carthusian monks. At the dissolu tion the prior was banged for refusing to renounce the Pope's supremacy, and the monastery passed into the hands of the Speaker of the House of Commons. Sir Thomas Audley (1488-1544). In course of time it was purchased by Thomas Sutton (1532-1611). who founded a hospital and school, the hospital (home) for eighty men, by preference military men, the school for forty boys. The school was in course of time removed to Godalming. The Hospital remains, and now accommodates eighty Poor Brothers or pensioners. See Schaff-Herzog; W. Benham; the Cath. Dict.: Chambers's Eneuel.