As abbess, thelburg began work on a church in honour of the twelve apostles which was left unfinished at her death in 664.
Barrin was, however, convinced of a concerted attempt to undermine the authority of the new abbess, with some nuns claiming her letters of provision were defective.
The nuns' duty was to pray and sing the divine office in the convent church with their sisters, attend the chapter chaired by the abbess, and engage in collective works.
The abbess acquired such a formidable reputation as a successful patron that other royalists approached her when their own applications to the king's ministers had failed.
The other obstacles hindering the abbess were her gender and her religious profession.
Moreover, the abbess ignored other more serious obstacles to her plan.
Given the network of agents the abbess employed, it is probable that some were more invisible to government probing than others.
It offers a detailed description of the abbess's involvement in royalist affairs, but does not explore the motives for her assistance.
