The nuns, with their domestic and farm servants, were the centre of a busy and sometimes large community, and a very good idea of their social function as employers may be gained from the lists of wage-earning servants to be found in account rolls or in Dissolution inventories. We may take in illustration the large and famous abbey of St Mary's, Winchester, and the little house of St Radegund's, Cambridge. St Mary's, Winchester, had let out the whole of its demesne in 1537, and the inventory drawn up by Henry VIII's commissioners therefore contains no list of farm labourers. The household consisted of the Abbess and twenty-six nuns, thirteen "poor sisters," twenty-six "chyldren of lordys knyghttes and gentylmen browght vp yn the sayd monastery," three corrodians and five chaplains, one of whom was confessor to the house, and twenty-nine officers and servants. The Abbess had her own household, consisting of a gentlewoman, a woman servant and a laundress, and the prioress, subprioress, sacrist and another of the senior nuns each had her private woman servant "yn her howse." There were also two laundresses for the convent. The male officers and servants were Thomas Legh, _generall Receyver_ (who also held a corrody and had two little relatives at school in the convent), Thomas Tycheborne _clerke_ (who likewise had two little girl relatives at school and a boy who will be mentioned), Lawrens Bakon, _Curtyar_ (officer in charge of the secular buildings of the nunnery), George Sponder, _Cater_ (caterer or manciple, who purchased the victuals for the community), William Lime, _Botyler_, Rychard Bulbery, _Coke_, John Clarke, _Vndercoke_, Richard Gefferey, _Baker_, May Wednall, _convent Coke_, John Wener, _vndercovent Coke_, John Hatmaker, _Bruer_, Wylliam Harrys, _Myller_, Wylliam Selwod, _porter_, Robert Clerke, _vnderporter_, William Plattyng, _porter of Estgate_, John Corte and Hery Beale, _Churchemen_, Peter Tycheborne, _Chyld of the hygh aulter_, Rychard Harrold, _seruaunt to the receyver_ and John Serle, _seruaunt to the Clerke_[419].