Calwich had originally been a hermitage, and had been given by Nicholas de Gresley Fitz Nigel in the twelfth century to the Priory of Kenilworth. It had thus become a cell of that house, and came under the rules of the Austin Canons. A considerable amount of building had been done at Calwich in the latter part of the fourteenth century: in 1391 the Pope granted Indulgences to those who visited the place and made contributions to the fabric on the feast of St. Margaret and certain other days. The history of Calwich illustrates how the dependent “cells” were a source of weakness to the monastic system. Such houses were often unsatisfactory. They were sometimes looked upon as places of banishment for brethren who deserved punishment: a method of discipline akin to the later system of penal settlements like Botany Bay, and as likely to be productive of the very worst results. The very men who needed supervision would be freed from it, and the remedy would intensify the evil. In any case, such small communities would easily become engrossed in secular pursuits: their interests were narrowed, and their occupation small. Disputes arose between the dependent cells and the parent house, and the inmates of the cells often became unpopular with their neighbours. In 1293 the dependence of Calwich on Kenilworth was made the excuse for depriving its Prior of pasture rights in the Wootton Woods, it being asserted that he was removable at the will of the Prior of Kenilworth. This, indeed, was strikingly shown to be the case in 1334, when the Prior, although duly instituted, was recalled by the Prior of Kenilworth. The Prior of Calwich in 1293 denied that he held such a dependent position, but the local jury, to whom the case was referred, decided against him. Local feeling was hostile to the Canons, much as it was afterwards against the Alien Priories, and Calwich had to forego further rights of gallows and free warren, etc., in the manor of Ellastone. The parent house did not relax its hold or lessen its claims at the bidding of a Staffordshire jury. In 1334 the Bishop inquired into the matter and decided in favour of Kenilworth. This apparently brought matters to a crisis, for in 1349 the four resident Canons pleaded that they could no longer endure the uncertainty of their position and the unpopularity they experienced. They succeeded in having their house declared independent, under the patronage of the original founders, who undertook to pay yearly a sum of sixty shillings to Kenilworth in acknowledgment of its rights.