CHRONICLES
OF T1IR
MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON,
A.D. 1188 TO A.D. 1274.
Translated from the original Latin and Anglo-Norman of the " LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEOIBUS," tn
the possession of the Corporation of the City of London: attributed to ARNALD Fixz-TiiEDMAK,
Alderman of London in the Reign of Henry the Third.
THE
FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON,
A.D. 1259 TO A.D. 1343.
Translated from the original Anglo-Norman of the " CRONIQUES DE LONDON," preserved in the
Cottonian Collection (Cleopatra A. vi.) in the British Museum.
, foit|j States mtb Illustrations,
HENRY THOMAS RILEY, M.A.,
CLARE HALL, CAMBRIDOE ;
<^P THE INNER TEMPLE, BARRISTER-AT-LAW.
LONDON :
TEUBNER AND CO., PATERNOSTER ROW.
MDCCCLXIII.
EMILY FAITHFULL, PRINTER AND PUBLISHER IN ORDINARY TO HER MAJESTY,
VICTORIA PRESS, 83A, FARRINGDON STREET, B.C.
INTRODUCTION.
WHILE, in spite of the ravages of time, we still possess a considerable amount
of materials for enabling us to gain an accurate insight into the history of
this country during the Middle Ages, so far as that history is purely political,
or, in other words, centred around kings, and warriors, and ecclesiastics ; it is
equally the fact, and one not a little to be regretted, that there is a commensurate
deficiency of means to enable us to become acquainted with the history of the
middle and lower classes, " the Commons of England," during'the same period.
It is from a sense of this deficiency, that the Translator has been induced to place
the accompanying Chronicles in an English form before such readers as, taking
some interest in the realities of social life in those dark days, may not possess
the necessary leisure, opportunity, or qualifications, for reading them in the
original Latin or French.
These interesting records of times long past, though, like other and better
known Chronicles of the same period, dealing largely with the deeds and aspira-
tions of the sovereigns and potentates who were living here from five to six
hundred years ago, possess in addition the peculiar merit, that they disclose to
us almost every item of information that has survived, as to the history of the
English Capital during the same period ; and that they incidentally enlighten us
more, as to the status, rights, and usages, of the multitudes who were subsisting
by trades and handicrafts within the walls of a great city in those days, than
probably, the whole of our other Chronicles combined.
Many of these details in the first of these Histories, more especially are
extremely curious, and present us with successive pictures, in comparatively
minute outline, of the doings of a great and impulsive community of the Middle
Ages, steeped in the universal ignorance, barbarism, and credulity of the day,
prone to cruelty and bloodshed, ground to the earth by extortionate imposts, and
writhing under a tyranny almost despotic. To enumerate a few only of the
more prominent among the shifting scenes of metropolitan life in those days
which its pages present : we here witness the gatherings of the London popu-
lace in full Folkmote, whether to discuss their manifold grievances, or to
celebrate the fiction of granting leave to the sovereign to visit his dominions
beyond sea : the meetings of the citizens at the l Guildhall ever and anon,
either to elect their officers, or to protest against tyranny and extortion with-
out limit, the air resounding, we are told, with loud and boisterous shouts of
1 The Guildhall of that day, it must be present building, but stood at a distance of
borne in mind, was not identical with the about fifty yards behind its site.
IV INTRODUCTION.
" Ya, Ya," or " Nay, Nay " as the case might be : the trooping of the Londoners
down to Westminster, women and men alike, by royal mandate, to witness* their
worthless sovereign, Henry the Third, assume the character (without the risks
or responsibilities) of a Crusader : the habitual goings-out of Mayor and citizens
to meet the King at Knightsbridge (Kniwtebrigge) on his return from Windsor,
to salute him with what must have been but hollow greetings at the best : the
ready answer of the citizens, " in countless multitudes," to the summons tolled
out by the " Great Bell " of Saint Paul's, calling them to a work of pillage and
devastation, so foul as the laying waste with fire the Earl of Cornwall's fair,
manor of Isleworth (Ystleworthe) : the gatherings of the citizens, in attendance
on their Mayor, at shortest notice, to do the King's biddings and behests, or to
receive law at his hands, whether at the J New Temple, at Westminster, at
Woodstock, or at Windsor : the rebukes, insults, and imprisonments, repeatedly
experienced by the citizens at the hands of the Justiciars, or the ministers of the
sovereign : the assembling of the citizens at the Exchequer, in attendance upon
the King, and the consequent discussions about the contemplated change of
coinage: the populace in eager hunt, from time to time, and on the most frivolous
pretexts, for the lives and property of the greatly suffering Jews : the citizens,
sick to the very death of the tyranny, the extortions, and the importunities, of
their rapacious sovereign, upon watch and ward in support of the rising cause of
the Barons : the outrages committed by the dregs of the populace, under pretext
of supporting that good cause : the vengeance exercised by the sovereign on
regaining liberty and unrestrained power after the Battle of Evesham, in the
abject humiliation of the citizens, commencing at 2 Berkingecherche, continued at
Staines, and consummated, in breach of his plighted word, in the bailey and keep
of Windsor : the speedy transition of the populace from dread and despair to
extravagant jubilation, on the birth of John, the short-lived firstborn of Prince
Edward, the shops and 8 selds all closed, men and women, clerks and laymen,
hastening away to Westminster to give thanks to God, the streets of the City
resounding the while with dances and carols for joy, " as is the usual custom
" on the 4 Feast of Saint John the Baptist : " the street-fights kept up night
after night by the Guilds of the goldsmiths and the tailors, the bodies of the slain
being thrown into the Thames : the arbitrary and illegal doings of the dema-
gogue Mayors, Thomas Fitz-Thomas and Walter Ilervy, and their adherents :
all these, with numerous other descriptive passages of a like character, are
striking pictures of a great community, either doing or suffering, in some of
our darkest days, in the Middle Ages even ; for parallels to which, at so remote
a date, our other Chronicles are to be searched in vain, however much more im-
portant many of them may be in other respects.
1 Now known merely as ' the Temple :' the 2 Now known as Allhallows Barking.'
Old Temple,' situate in Holborn, was the 3 Or warehouses,
original settlement of the Templars in the 4 24th of June,
vicinity of London.
INTRODUCTION. V
As to the second of these works, the " French Chronicle" the main interest
of its contents, as being one of our earliest records compiled in illustration of
the history of the City of London, lies in the same direction. Though com-
paratively brief and meagre in appearance, there could not, in fact, have been
found a more fitting companion work to the " Chronicles of the Mayors and
Sheriffs" both as to subject, date, and the pleasing simplicity of its details.
The Liber de Antiquis Legibus (" Book on Ancient Laws ") from which the
first of these Chronicles is translated, is the earliest collection of historical
records now existing among the archives belonging to the Corporation of the
City of London. It is a small closely written folio volume, partly in mediaeval
Latin and partly in early French, containing 159 leaves of parchment, paged
continuously with Arabic numerals. When the volume was originally prepared,
some of the pages were left blank by the Compiler, but have since been filled
with matter of somewhat more recent date. Its present repository is the
Record-Room in the Town Clerk's Office, at the Guildhall of the City of
London.
The portion of the volume supplied (mainly in Latin, with occasional insertions
in Norman French) by the hand of the original compiler, though composed
probably from time to time at earlier dates, seems to have been written shortly
before, or in, the year of Our Lord 1274, the second year of King Edward the
First ; the preparations made for his Coronation, on the 19th of August in that
year, being the Uast subject treated of in this part of the work.
Though abounding with information on a great diversity of other matters,
the volume seems to have had its name, as remarked by the late Mr. Hunter in
his Appendix to the Report (1837) of the Commissioners on the Public Records
(p. 465), from the circumstance that it contains the oldest code of Ordinances
for the government of the City of London, in the " Assize " of Henry Fitz-
Eylwin, its first Mayor ; enacted in reference to the style and material of edifices
and party -walls, and the rights of the inhabitants in relation to their immediate
neighbours ; as also, incidentally, many other particulars, elucidating the rights,
privileges, and duties, of the civic authorities.
The Chronicle which, (in combination with the 2 " Additional Insertions ")
forms the original portion of the Liber de Antiquis Legibus, commences in the
year 1188, when Henry Fitz-Elywin, of 3 Loudenestane (London Stone), was
elected the first of its Mayors ; and is thence continued, year by year, to A.D.
1273, with 4 a few particulars relative to A.D. 1274; the names of the successive
Mayors and Sheriffs being given, together with those of the Custodes (or
Wardens) of the City, when, as was often the case, by an arbitrary and tyraii-
1 See page 178. The stone, however, does not now occupy
3 Pp. 179-208 in the present Volume. exactly its ancient site.
3 His residence being close adjoining thereto. 4 See pp. 177, 178.
vi INTRODUCTION.
nical exercise of power on part of the sovereign (Henry III., more especially),
the constitution of the City was suspended.
In this Chronicle many events of the time, both political and domestic, are
entered, and much of its matter, in reference to the City of London more
particularly, as already remarked, is to be sought in vain in any other of our
mediaeval records. The entries of events are few and brief in the earlier years ;
as having occurred at too remote a period, probably, to have attracted the
attention of the Compiler, or come under his notice. The execution of William
Longbeard (or Fitz-Osbert), in the reign of Richard I., is mentioned ; but we
are enabled to obtain information in reference to it from l other sources, in much
more interesting detail.
The somewhat more circumstantial history of the Chronicle may be said
to commence with an account of the arrest of Hubert de Burgh, at Brent wood,
in 1232; in succession to which, the more remarkable passages bear reference
to the seizure and burning of unlawful nets in 1236 (mentioned also on several
occasions at later dates) ; a singular interview of Gerard Bat, the Mayor of
London, with King Henry, at Woodstock, in 1240 ; the King's visit to the City,
and public leave-taking of the citizens in 1241, when about to pass over into
Gascoigne, with various other instances of similar leave-takings; the re-
markable dissensions in 1244, 5, between Nicholas Bat and Simon Fitz-Mary ;
the injustice inflicted upon the citizens of London in 1248, in compelling them,
though sorely against their will, to close their shops and warehouses for fifteen
days, and sell their wares only in the Fair at Westminster ; the offences com-
mitted in the same year against the civic franchises by Simon Fitz-Mary, and
his punishment ; the summons of the citizens to appear before the King at
Windsor in 1249 ; the oath of fealty made by the citizens to Prince Edward and
the Queen, in 1252 ; the summons of the citizens in 1254, to make answer to
the King for the escape of a prisoner from Newgate ; the execution in London,
A.D. 1255, of eighteen Jews of Lincoln, on the charge of murdering a child, "in
" despite of the Christian faith."
About the year 1257, the Chronicle again changes its character, and begins
to be much more full and circumstantial in its narrative. Among its more
prominent contents about this period, we may reckon an interesting Letter to
the citizens of London from Richard, Earl of Cornwall, the newly-elected King
of Almaine (Germany), descriptive of his journey from England to his new
dominions, his reception, his triumph over certain of his enemies, and his
Coronation, at Aix ; very similar, as Mr. Hunter has remarked (in p. 465 of the
Report above quoted), to another Letter of the same date printed in Rymer's
Fcedera ; the serious results arising from the mysterious roll, sealed with green
wax, found in the King's Wardrobe at Windsor, A.D. 1257 ; the Provisions
of Oxford, enacted in 1258 by the "Mad Parliament," as the royalists- our
1 Roger de Hoveden, more especially, and Roger of Wendover.
INTRODUCTION. VH
compiler in the * number derisively styled it ; and the consequent wars between
the King and Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, originally supported by
the great majority of the English Barons. For the remainder of this reign,
A.D. 1258-1272, as Mr. Hunter has remarked, no Chronicle has come down
to us more 2 full or more authentic than this. Many of the most important
transactions of the period took place in London, or its immediate vicinity ; and
we have here a narrative of them, combined with passing events more peculiarly
belonging to the City's domestic history, evidently penned by the hand of a
contemporary, and, as remarked in the sequel, there seems every reason to believe,
a witness of, and actor in, many of the scenes which he describes.
The portion of the Liber de Antiquis Legibus, which may, with strict
justice, be" termed, 8 " Additions" to the Chronicle above-mentioned, and con-
sisting, for the most part, of matter which would not conveniently admit of
being inserted in the- body of the narrative, is evidently by the hand of the
same compiler ; and, to some extent, (as in 4 p. 194, for example,) of prior date
in composition to the latter part of the Chronicle itself.
The " Later Insertions " (pp. 208-228) occur on various leaves in the volume,
which were left blank by the original compiler, and extend from the earlier part
of the reign of Edward the First to the 20th of Edward the Second. They
are of a miscellaneous character, inserted here and there, without any regu-
lar system or order, in hands more or less difficult to be deciphered, written in
corrupt French, of a Walloon or Picard complexion, and apparently, from the
extraordinary manner in which the commonest English names and surnames are
dealt with, by scribes of anything but English extraction. By way of recom-
pense, however, for these aberrations, several curious 5 particulars are given
in reference to the reigns of the first two Edwards, which, in all probability, are
nowhere else to be traced.
Besides the " Chronicles of the Mayors and Sheriffs," the contemporary
"Additions," and the " Later Insertions," translated in the present Volume,
there is some other matter inserted on various leaves of the Liber de Antiquis
Legibus, of less interest, and little or no value in a historical point of view;
consisting of various extracts from the Gesta Regum Anglorum of William of
Malmesbury ; Catalogues, in Latin prose, of the Archbishops of Canterbury
and their Suffragans, the Archbishops of York, and the Bishops of Durham,
See p. 40. drawn up for the purpose of more ready
2 The account, for example, of the frightful reference.
indignities perpetrated on De Montfort's s John le Jauser (or Chaucer), a trial in
body ; to be found, in similar detail, in no reference to whom is described in p. 221, not
other contemporary Chronicle. See page 80 improbably was an ancestor (perhaps grand-
of this Volume. father) or relative of the Poet Geoffrey
3 See pp. 179-208 of this Volume. Among Chaucer. See also p. 376 of the Translation
these, the early enactments relative to the of Liber Albus, for the mention, about thirty
Jews (pp. 194-201), deserve notice. years later, of Richard le Chaucer,' who pro-
4 See Note 1 in that page. The Summary bably, was the Poet's father,
of Mayors there given, appears to have been
Vlll INTRODUCTION.
down to the beginning of the reign of Edward the First ; Catalogues, in Latin
verse, of the Archbishops of Canterbury, the Popes, and the Emperors, to the
beginning of the same reign ; the Statute of Marlborough ; and a few other
memoranda of an unimportant nature ; all of which have been omitted in the
present Translation, as having been evidently inserted in the volume for the
private use of the Compiler in the way of general reference, and not as being in
any sense illustrative of the history of the City of London.
As to the name and identity of the Compiler, it is impossible to speak with
certainty, but there seem to be substantial grounds for believing that his name
was " Arnald," or " Arnulf, * Fitz-Thedmar," an Alderman of London ; the same
personage, in fact, incidents in whose life are touched upon, in several instances,
more or less at length, in the Chronicle and the " Additions," passages which
will be found in pages 37, 39, 40, 46, 120, and 170, of the present Volume ;
as also, the singular story of his descent, parentage, birth, and persecutions
(in the way of extortionate taxation), in pages 201-208 ; a narrative, we may
fairly conclude, of so peculiar a nature and of so entirely personal an interest,
as not to be likely to be inserted in a volume of national and civic history
by any other than an individual occupying the most influential position in the
compilation of the work. From a combination of these details, we learn
that Arnald Fitz-Thedmar was grandson, by the mother's side, of Arnald de
Grevingge, a citizen of Cologne ; that his father was one Thedmar, a native of
Bremen ; that Arnald was born on the Vigil of Saint Laurence, the 9th of
August, A.D. 1201 ; that he was Alderman of, one of the Wards of the City of
London ; that he was a member of the small, but wealthy and influential, party
in the City, that supported Henry III. 2 against Simon de Montfort and the
Barons ; and that he was in the number of the citizens marked, by Thomas
Fitz-Thomas, the Mayor, and Thomas de Piwelesdon, for a proscription, which
was about to be carried into fatal effect on the very day on which news reached
London of the Battle of Evesham, which gave the death-blow to the aspira-
tions of De Montfort and his supporters.
That Fitz-Thedmar was an Alderman of London, we learn from several of
the passages already alluded to ; but over which of the City Wards he presided,
appears to be now 8 unknown. In addition to his Aldermanry, he would seem to
have held some office under the Corporation, somewhat resembling that of
Chamberlain, or Town Clerk, and for which he not improbably was indebted
alike to his influential connexions, and to his support, in the face of no small
peril, of the royal cause. We are led to the conclusion that he may have held
1 Sometimes the name is simply given as ' certain knights and barons,' ran away at the
'Thedmarus,' Thedmar, or Tedmar ; see p. 120, Battle of Lewes. See p. 66.
example. 3 No allusion is made to him in the list of
2 In proof of this, it deserves remark, how Aldermen of London given in the Inquisition
openly, without any attempt at concealment or of 3 Edward I., printed in the Rotuli Hundred-
palliation, the Chronicle informs us that the orum, I. pp. 404-433.
greater part of the Londoners, as well as
INTRODUCTION. IX
such office by the fact, that in the last leaf of the Liber de Antiquis Legibus,
there is a memorandum inserted (p. 227 of this Volume), to the effect that, in
the year 1270 "the Chest of the Citizens" of London was in his custody, and
that certain of the more valuable of the City archives were deposited therein.
Not improbably, he may have resigned his Aldermanry on assuming this office.
At what exact date Fitz-Thedmar died, we have probably no means of ascer-
taining ; but there can be little doubt that his decease took place early in the
third year of Edward the First, from the circumstance that, on the Morrow of
Saint Scholastica (10 February) in the third year of that reign (A.D. 1275), his
will was read and l enrolled in the Hustings. We learn however but little from
the written Enrolment, which is evidently a mere extract only from the will, in
reference to certain lay fees, shops and cellars, belonging to him in the 2 City of
London ; which he leaves to Stephen Eswy, his kinsman (consanguineo meo),
for the benefit of Fitz-Thedmar's wife, the said Stephen, and the Monks of
Bermondsey. In this Enrolment, the name of his wife is 3 not given ; but it
seems not improbable that it was "Dionysia," from the fact that in folio 61b of
Letter-Book A, preserved at Guildhall, one of the earliest of the City records, there
is a memorandum to the effect, that on the Saturday after the Feast of Saint
Matthias (24 February) in the 20th year of King Edward the First, certain
damages for an assault were paid to Adam le Taylur and Dionysia, his wife,
"who was formerly the wife of Tedmar the Easterling (le Estreis) ;" a name
then commonly applied to Germans, and, in some instances, to persons of
German extraction as well. If this surmise is correct, as Fitz-Thedmar died in
his 74th year, and his wife contracted a second marriage and was surviving seven-
teen years after that date, there must have been, to all appearance, a consider-
able disparity between their ages. Beyond these meagre facts, despite very
careful research, no allusion to him has been met with in contemporary docu-
ments ; with indeed the unimportant exception of the Letter referred to in the
4 Note annexed, where his name is incidentally mentioned. In a Writ of the
1 The Enrolment is still preserved among of Sir Arnuld, son of Sir Thetmar, a
the MS. Enrolments at Guildhall, No. VII. ' burgess of London, ' at the time when the
Membr. 8. Londoners had incurred the crime of lese-
2 In the Parish of Allhallows in the Hay, or majesty by opposing the King, some years
Allhallows the Great, in Thames Street; so before. That, as amends for such crime, a
called from Hay Wharf, in its vicinity. certain tax was inflicted upon the people of
3 Reference is first made to her as, uxor mea London, but that Hermann had left that
prcedicta, ' my wife aforesaid,' evidently shew- city half a year before the tax was levied,
ing that the commencement of the will is That in spite of this, and of the fact that
wanting. Hermann was a foreigner, and a servant only,
4 In Rymer's Fcedera (New Ed. I. p. 534) the London officials had demanded his
we find a Letter addressed to the King of quota, by certain threatening letters ad-
England (A.D. 1276,4th Edward I.) by the City dressed to the citizens of Bremen ; and that,
of Bremen., stating that one of their fellow- in consequence of non-receipt thereof, the
citizens, 'Hermann de Bremen' by name, Mayor and burgesses of London had now
had formerly been a servant in the house for fourteen (twelve?) years prevented the
b
X INTRODUCTION.
second year of Edward II. (A.D. 1309) printed in Madox's History of the
Exchequer, mention is made of a " John Tedmar," as being one of the executors
of John d'Armen tiers, Alderman of Langbourn Ward ; and who, it seems not
unlikely, may have been a son of Arnald, the more especially as, in the narrative
before referred to. the four brothers of Arnald Fitz-Thedmar are mentioned (p.
202) as having died in early life, and, to all appearance, without issue ; while
from four of his sisters who attained marriageable years, " sprang sons and
" daughters, grandsons and granddaughters, and other kinsfolk, more than I can
" enumerate."
As to these sisters of Fitz-Thedmar, we are enabled to learn some few
particulars, from the circumstance that the will of one of them, " Margeria,
" daughter of Thedmar, the Teutonic," and then widow of l Walter de Wincestre,
was enrolled at Guildhall ; the 2 Enrolment still existing there, and bearing date,
the Monday after the Conversion of Saint Paul (25 January), in the sixth year
of Edward I. (A.D. 1278). From the mention in it of her " niece Margeria,
" daughter of Ealph Eswy," we infer that another of Fitz-Thedmar's sisters
was married to a person of that name ; identical perhaps with the individual
mentioned in the ensuing Chronicle as being Sheriff in 1234 and 1239, Mayor
in 1241, 1242, and 1243, and as having died in 1246. From the same En-
rolment we also learn, that a third sister was the wife of John de Gyzors,
a member of a family of considerable influence in the City, and the same per-
sonage probably who is mentioned as filling the office of Sheriff in 1240 and 1245,
which he resigned in the latter year for that of Mayor ; Mayor again in 1258 ;
and, with Arnald Fitz-Thedmar and others of the royalist party, as being
placed under proscription in 1264. From this source of information, we thus
have reason to infer that Fitz-Thedmar was connected by marriage with some
of the most substantial men of the City in his day.
How the Liber de Antiquis Legibus come into the possession of the Corpo-
ration of the City of London, is now unknown. It seems not improbable
however, that it formed part of the bequest of Manuscript volumes left to the
City in the year 1328 by Andrew Horn, Fishmonger and Chamberlain ; the se-
cond item in whose will (written in Latin) is " one other book, on the Ancient
* * * o f England," the noun substantive being omitted. Supposing the
omitted word to be " Legibus," the book so bequeathed would bear much the
same title by which the City volume in question is now, and probably always
has been, known. On the other hand however, it appears at least equally
probable, from the similarity of subjects, that the book so bequeathed is identical
people of Bremen from visiting, with due Majesty.
safety, the English dominions. For this l Probably the same person who is named
extreme hardship, Hermann being now dead, in the following Chronicle, as Sheriff in
and his heirs being willing to comply with 1229.
all just demands, redress is prayed of his 8 No. IX. Membr. 3.
INTRODUCTION. XI
with one of the two manuscripts now bound up in one volume, and preserved
at Guildhall, under the collective title of " Liber Horn.''
The original text of the Liber de Antiquis Legibus was published by the
Camden Society in 1846, under the editorship of the late Mr. Thomas Stapleton;
but without any attempt, by Notes, Glossary, or explanation, to trace its origin,
illustrate its history, or elucidate its manifold obscurities. In preference to
placing entire reliance upon Mr. Stapleton's rendering of the text, the present
translation has been based upon a careful collation of it with the Latin and
French of the original volume.
The " French Chronicle of London " is translated from the Norman French
of the Cottonian Manuscript, Cleopatra A. VI. ; of which volume it forms the
latter portion, commencing at folio 54. From the nature of the handwriting
(on small octavo leaves of parchment) and the fact that it ends at the 17th year
of Edward III., we are justified in concluding that it was compiled in the
earlier half of the fourteenth century; but by whom, or for what especial
object, it is probably impossible to ascertain. The Chronicle has no name given
to it in the Manuscript, but in the edition of the original French, published by
the Camden Society in 1844, under the supervision of Mr. George James
Aungier, it has " Croniques de London " for its title. No other copy, besides
that in the Cottonian volume, is known to exist.
For the purposes of the present translation, the original has been at times con-
sulted, though the French text has been ably rendered in the Camden volume.
The Translator is sensible also, that it would be an unjustifiable omission on
his part, were he to omit acknowledging his obligations to the Notes by which
the text of Mr. Aungier's edition is so abundantly illustrated.
Among the more interesting portions of the narrative of the French
Chronicle may be enumerated ; the Legend of Fair Rosamond, though
singularly 2 out of place, in probably its very earliest form, before the additions
of the clue, the dagger, and the poison, were thought of ; the account of the
repair of the Cross on the Clocher, or Belfry, of Saint Paul's ; the alleged
Miracles wrought at the Tablet erected by Thomas of Lancaster in that church ;
the celebration of his own interment by the Minstrel, Thomas Wade ; the
murder, by the London populace, of Walter de Stapulton (Stapledon) Bishop of
Exeter ; the early wars of Edward the Third, in prosecution of his claims upon
the French crown ; the details of the naval battle of Sluys, or Ecluse ; the siege
of Tournay, and the mention of the use of 8 gunpowder by the English, on that
occasion, June 1340; the unexpected arrival of Edward in London at night (30th
November 1340), and the disastrous results thereof to the Constable of the
1 See the Introduction to Liber Custumarum t 3 See p. 278. Cannon are said by most
pp. ix-xi, published (1860) under the super- authorities to have been first used by the
intendence of the Master of the Rolls. . English at the battle of Crecy in 1346.
2 See Note to page 232.
Xll INTRODUCTION.
Tower, and several of the ministers ; the seizure of the accumulated treasures
of Sir John de Molins, at his manor of Ditton and in the Abbey of Saint
Alban's ; with various minor details of commensurate interest, the purport of
some of which has probably not survived to us from any other mediaeval source.
The mode of dealing with names and surnames by the writer of this Chronicle
is somewhat peculiar, but by no means so remote from the ordinary English
standard as that which characterizes the " Later Insertions " in the Liber de
Antiquis Legibus.
The present translation has been made throughout as literally, and as
nearly presenting a reflex of the Latin and French originals, as, consistently
with the possibility of its being readily understood, it could be made. This
latter object carefully kept in view, it has been the endeavour of the Translator
to preserve as closely as possible the quaintness of diction of the original works ;
and it is alike from this motive and from a wish to avoid what might, in strictness,
be liable to impeachment of anachronism, that all names, both of persons
and localities, have been allowed to retain the ancient forms awarded to them in
the original, whether by English scribes or by writers of evidently foreign ex-
traction ; the means of at once identifying the name with its modern equivalent
being given in a Note annexed : and this too, in many instances, (" York," the
equivalent of the ancient " Euerwik ," for example), more than once, or twice
even ; with the view of saving the trouble of reference to an Index to such
readers, not imbued with a knowledge of our early nomenclature, as may be dis-
posed to devote a few hours to the uninterrupted perusal of two curious records,
hitherto buried, in comparatively inaccessible volumes, under barbarous Latin
and more uncouth French, of the domestic incidents of times, about which, by
the great majority of even well-educated persons, little or nothing is known.
The years of the Chronicles of the Mayors and Sheriffs, the reader should
be reminded, are civic years, reckoning from the election of the Sheriffs at
Michaelmas in each year : consequently, the occurrences mentioned as belonging
to that year, will in reality often belong to the year following, according to the
usual mode of reckoning the Dominical year. Hence it is that, (in page 1)
King Richard the First is mentioned as reigning in the (civic) year 1188,
though in reality he did not commence his reign until the 6th of July in the
year of Our Lord 1189. In further illustration of this mode of reckoning,
the Battle of Lewes, which is entered (p. 66) under the civic year 1263, was
fought on the 14th of May in the Dominical year 1264.
HENRY THOMAS RILEY,
CITIZEN AND FAN-MAKER.
4M April, 1863.
CHRONICLES
OF THE
MAYOES AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON.
1 RICHARD L 2 EDWARD I.
CHEONICLES
OF THE
MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON
HENRY DE ^ORENHELL,)
_, [-Sheriffs. Foi.68.
EICHARD FITZ-REYNER, )
These were the first Sheriffs of London, being so appointed at the
Feast of Saint Michael, in the year of Grace 1188, the first year of the
reign of King Richard ; and in the same year, the Jews were destroyed
throughout 2 England. In the same year, Henry Fitz-Eylwin of 3 Londene-
etane was made Mayor of London ; who was the first Mayor of the City,
and continued to be such Mayor to the end of his life, that is to say, for
nearly five and twenty years. And in the same year, that King, and
Philip King of France, set out for Jerusalem, and a countless multitude
of 4 Crusaders with them.
A.D. 1189. JOHN HERLISUN,'
T, -p. i Sheriffs.
ROGER LE Due,
3TJW,)
ETC, i
A.D. 1190. WILLIAM DE HAVERILLE,)
JOHN BOKOIHTE, J Sher
A.D. 1191. NICHOLAS DUKET,)
T, ,, J- Sheriffs.
PETER NEVELUN, )
In this year, the same King was made captive in 5 Almaine, while
returning from the Holy Land, and was ransomed for one hundred thou-
sand marks of silver.
A.D. 1192. ROGER LE Due, ) _
^ . f Sheriffs.
ROGER FITZ-ALAN, )
1 7. e. Cornhill. 3 London Stone ; in the vicinity of which he
8 In London and York more especially ; resided.
the persecution commencing on the day of the 4 Cruce Signatorum literally, "marked with
Coronation of Richard I. " the Cross." * Or Germany.
B
2 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1192.
In this year, the same King was liberated, and on the third of the
Ides [13] of March landed at 1 Sandwys; and on the fourth day of the
week after, arrived at London with a great array.
A.D. 1193. WILLIAM FITZ-YZABEL,
WILLIAM FITZ-ATHULF, ' Sheriffs -
A.D. 1194. ROBERT BESAUNT, )
-r r Sheriffs.
JUKEL ALDERMAN, 3
In this year, William 2 with the Beard, was drawn and hanged, on the
eighth of the Ides [6] of April.
A.D. 1195. GODARD DE ANTIOCH, )
T* T-, -r-, r Sheriffs.
ROBERT FITZ-DURAUNT,)
A.D. 1196. ROBERT BLUND, )
NICHOLAS DUKET,$ " ffs *
A.D. 1197. CONST ANTINE 3 FlTZ-ATHELHULF,)
ROBERT LE BEL, } Sheriffs '
A.D. 1198. ARNULF FITZ-ATHULF, )
. > bherms.
RICHARD FITZ-BARTHELMEU,)
In this year the King before-named was wounded in the left shoulder
by an arrow from an 4 arbalest; and died on the eighth of the Ides [6]
of April. In the same year, King John was crowned on Our Lord's
Ascension.
A.D. 1199. ROGER DE DESERT,)
JACOB ALDERMAN, $ S
A.D. 1200. SYMON DE 5 ALDERMANEBYRI,)
WILLIAM FITZ-ALIZ, \ b
In this year were chosen five and twenty of the more discreet men of
the City, and sworn to take counsel on behalf of the City, together with
the Mayor.
A.D. 1201. NORMAN BLUND,)
JOHN DE KATE, J S
A.D. 1202. WALTER BRUN, )
WILLIAM CHAMBERLEYN,^ Shenffs -
1 Sandwich. a Written Fitz-Athulf" above.
a Or " Long -Beard." His proper surname 4 Or crossbow,
was Fitz-Osbert. * Now " Aldermanbury."
A. D. 1203.] GREAT FIRE OF SOUTHWARK, ETC. 3
A.D. 1203. THOMAS DE HAVERILLE,)
HAMO BROND, J S
A.D. 1204. JOHN WALRAVEN, )
EGBERT DE WINCESTRE^ Shenffk
In this year there were Pleas of the Crown at the Tower of London.
A.D. 1205. JOHN HELILAND, )
EADMUND DE LA HALE, } Sherlffs -
A.D. 1206. SERLO LE MERCER, )
HENRY DE 1 SAINT AuBAN,i Shenffs -
A.D. 1207. ROBERT DE WINCESTRE,)
WILLIAM HAKDEL, $ Sherifik
In this year there was an interdict laid on the whole of
England, on the ninth of the Calends [23] of April; which
lasted six years, fourteen weeks, and three days,
A.D. 1208. THOMAS FITZ-^EAL,
PETER LE Due, J Sheriffs '
In this year the whole of England did homage to King John at
Merleberge.
A.D. 1209. PETER LE JUVENE,
WILLIAM WITB, f Sheriffs '
A.D. 1210. STEPHEN LE GROS,)
ADAM DE WYTEBY,} Sheriffs
In this year a certain Angevin was burnt to death at London.
A.D. 1211. JOCE FITZ-PETER,)
T n r Sheriffs.
JOHN GARLAUND, )
In this year was the Great Fire of 3 Suthwerk; and it burned the
Church of Saint Mary, as also the Bridge, with the Chapel there, and
the greatest part of the City.
A.D. 1212. CONSTANTINE LE JlJVENE,)
EALPH HELYLAND, f Sheriffs '
In this year died Henry Fitz-Eylwyne, the first Mayor of London,
and Roger Fitz-Alan succeeded him.
A.D. 1213. MARTIN FITZ-ALIZ,)
PETEE BATH, | Sheriffs -,
1 Saint Alban's. 3 Southwark. This fire took place in July,
1 Marlborough. A.D. 1212.
4 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1213.
In this year died Geoffrey Fitz-Peter, Justiciar of the King of
England, at the Tower of London.
A.D. 1214. SALOMON DE BASINGES,)
TT > Sheriffs.
HUGH DE BASINGES, )
In this year, Serlo le Mercer was made Mayor ; and the Barons
of England entered London against King John on the Feast of
Gordianus and Ephimachus 1 [10 May].
A.D. 1215. ANDREW NEVELUN,)
rr, > Sheriffs.
JOHN TRAVERS, $
In this year landed Louis, son of Philip, King of France, whom
the Barons of England invited to their aid against the before-named
King John ; which Louis laid siege to the Castle of 2 Dowre. In the
same year, William Hardel was made Mayor of London.
A.D. 1216. BENEDICT LE S SEYNTER,) _,
TTr > Sheriffs.
WILLIAM BLUND, )
In this year, Jacob Alderman was made Mayor, and so continued
from Easter until the Feast of the Holy Trinity ; but being then con-
demned to lose the Mayoralty, on the same day Salomon de Basinges
was made Mayor. In the same year also died King John, and Henry,
his son, was crowned at Gloucester; for by reason of the war still
continuing between himself and the aforesaid Louis and the Barons of
England, he could not come to London and there be crowned.
A.D. 1217. RALPH HELYLAUNDE,) _,
,_, > Sheriffs.
THOMAS BUKEREL, >
In this year Louis departed from England, peace being made between
the aforesaid King Henry and the same Louis and the Barons of
England ; and Serlo le Mercer was again made Mayor of London, and so
continued for five years.
A.D. 1218. JOCE LE 3 PESUR,) _
IT > Sheriffs.
JOHN YYEL, )
A.D. 1219. JOHN VYEL, again, ">
RICHARD DE WYMBELDON,) Sheriffs -
1 Roger of Wendover says, " Sunday, 24th 2 Dover.
"May, 1215," but unfortunately, Sunday fell 3 Meaning, " the Bell-maker."
on the 23rd in that year. 4 Either, Maker of Balances, or Weigher,
A. D. 1219.] EXECUTION OF CONSTANTI5E FITZ-ATHULF, ETC. 5
This year, on the day of 1 Pentecost a the same King Henry was
crowned at Westminster, Hugh de Burgh being Justiciar of all
England ; and the blessed Thomas the Martyr was afterwards
translated on the morrow of the 2 Octaves of the Apostles
Peter and Paul. [29 June.]
A.D. 1220. RICHARD RYNGER,) _,
t Sheriffs.
JOCE LE JUVENE, 3
In this year there were Pleas of the Crown at the Tower.
A.D. 1221. RICHARD RENGER, again,)
> Sheriffs.
THOMAS LAUMBERT, )
In this year, 3 Constantine Fitz-Athulf was hanged, and that without
judgment.
A.D. 1222. THOMAS LAUMBERT, again,}
> Sheriffs.
WILLIAM JOYNER, )
In this year, Richard Renger was made Mayor of London, and so
continued for five years.
A.D. 1223. JOHN TRAVERS, again,")
ANDREW BUKEREL,
A.D. 1224. ANDREW BUKEREL,
JOHN TRAVERS, again,
A.D. 1225. MARTIN FITZ- WILLIAM,
ROGER LE Due,
1 Or Whit Sunday. " of London, and commanded all the chief
2 The Octave or Octaves of a festival was " men of the City to appear before him. This
that day week; in the present instance, the 6th " being done, he enquired of them who had
of July. " been the mover of sedition in the City.
3 Sheriff in 1297. The circumstances attend- "Constantine, constant in his presumption,
ing the execution of Fitz-Athulf, are given in " said, * It is I, what would you have ? ' The
interesting detail in the Chronicle of John de " Justiciar, on hearing this, arrested him,
Oxenedes, (pp. 146, 147, of the printed edition) . " without making any tumult, and two of his
" In the same year, (1222) it befell, on Saint " supporters with him ; and in the morning
" James's Day, that at a wrestling-match in " sent him to Faux (de Breaute), attended
" London, such dissensions arose, that, in the " by a troop of armed men, to be hanged.
' sedition which resulted therefrom, Constan- " On having the halter put around his neck,
" tine Fitz-Olaf cried aloud in an insulting " he offered fifteen thousand marks of silver
"tone, 'Montjoye!' repeatedly exclaiming, " for his life. And so, Constantine was hanged,
" ' May God help us, and Louis, our lord ;' and the other two along with him."
" a fact that could not remain concealed. " Montjoye ! " it may be remarked, was the
< Whereupon, Aubert de Bure, collecting a war-cry of the French prince Louis and his
" force of armed men, proceeded to the Tower adherents.
6 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1226.
A. D. 1226. MARTIN FITZ- WILLIAM, again,)
ROGER LE Due, again, } b
In this year, Pleas of the Crown were held at the Tower, and John
Herlisun failed in 1 making his law, which he waged for the death of
Lambert de Legis ; to whom the King granted life and limb at the
instance of the prayers of the women of the City ; and he became an Hos-
pitaller of the 2 Hospital of Jerusalem.
A.D. 1227. HENRY DE COKHAM/)
STEPHEN BUKEREL, ) ^
In this year, Roger le Due was made Mayor of London, and so
continued four years.
A.D. 1228. STEPHEN BUKEREL, again, )
~ . t- oheriirs.
HENRY DE COKHAM, again,)
A.D. 1229. WALTER DE
T, -n Sheriffs.
ROBERT FITZ-JOHN,
At the withdrawal of these from their bailiwick at the Feast of Saint
Michael, all the Aldermen and principal men of the City made oath, with
the assent of all the citizens, that at no time would they allow any
Sheriff to be admitted to the Sheriffwick for two consecutive years, as
before they had been admitted.
A.D. 1230. JOHN DE WOUBORNE, )
_ _ __ > Sheriffs.
RICHARD FITZ- WALTER,)
A.D. 1231. WALTER LE BUFLE, )
-,, TT r Sheriffs.
MICHAEL DE SAINT HELEYNE,)
In this year, Andrew Bukerel was made Mayor of London, on the
Feast of Symon and Jude, [28 October,] and so continued for seven
years.
A.D. 1232. HENRY DE EDELMETON,) r
> Sheriffs.
GERARD BAT, )
In this year, the before-named Hubert de Burgh, the Justiciar, was
persecuted with the greatest of persecution ; so much so, that command
was given to the Mayor and Sheriffs, by letters of his lordship the King,
1 I.e. proving his innocence by the oath of "one's law."
a set of jurors, or compurgators, in those 2 The Order of Knights of St. John of Jeru-
days called a " law ; " the proving of inno- salem.
cence by such oath being known as " making
A. D. 1232.] DISGRACE AND FLIGHT OF HUBERT DE BURGH. 7
that he should be captured, wheresoever he should be found. After this,
taking to flight, he betook himself to a certain chapel at Brentwood, ( l in
Brandwodde) ; from which place he was dragged by force, and was after-
wards replaced there by Roger, Bishop of London. But after a short
time, he surrendered himself to* the mercy of his lordship the King, and
was taken to the Tower of London ; and after that, to the Castle of
Devizes, from which Castle he made his escape, and betook himself to a
certain church for safety ; from this however he was ejected by Richard
Marshal, the then Earl of 2 Penbrok, between whom and his lordship the
King there had arisen a great dissension. After the death of this
Richard, the same Hubert, together with Gilbert, brother of the afore-
said Richard, and the other Barons who before had been against
the King, was admitted to the peace of his lordship the King,
at Gloucester. The same year, on the Vigil of the Assumption of the
Blessed Mary [15 August] the citizens of London mustered in arms at
the Mile Ende, and well arrayed in the London 3 Chepe.
A.D. 1233. ROGER BLUND, )
SYMON FITZ-MARY, \ fe ffs '
This Symon, in the first term of his Shrievalty, so sadly wasted
the property that formed the issues of the Sheriffwick, that he was not
allowed to receive them any longer ; and by the Mayor and citizens, care
was entrusted to the clerks of the SheriiFwick of collecting the same, and
safely disposing thereof in acquittance of the 4 ferm of his lordship the
King.
A.D. 1234. RALPH ESWY, Mercer,)
T T.T F bneriffs.
JOHN NORMAN, )
A.D. 1235. GERARD BAT, again,)
r Sheriffs.
ROBERT HARDEL, )
In this year, 5 Alianora, daughter of the Count of Provence, came into
England, and was there crowned Queen.
A.D. 1236. HENRY DE COKHAM, again,)
JORDAN DE COVENTRE, $ Sheriffs.
1 The old English explanation of the Latin side.
' apud Boscum Arsum." 4 Or rent, due from the City to the King.
2 Pembroke. 5 Or Eleanor.
3 Or market ; the site of the present Cheap-
8 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1236.
These seized all the sailors found in the x kidels standing in the
Thames, and brought them, with their nets, to London, and imprisoned them
in Neuwegate ; who were all amerced before his lordship the King at
Keningtone ; which amercement by judgment remained unto the Sheriffs
of London : and then were their nets burnt in London.
A.D. 1237. JOHN DE 2 TuLESAN,
^ i Sheriffs.
CHAMBERLEYN,)
In this year died Andrew Bukerel, and Richard Renger was made
Mayor.
A.D. 1238. JOHN DE WILEHALE,) 01 .
[ hheriits.
JOHN DE KOUDRES, }
In this year died the aforesaid Richard Renger, the Mayor, and
William Joynier was made Mayor.
A.D. 1239. RALPH ESWY, Mercer, again,)
REGINALD DE BUNGEYE, >
These being elected before the Feast of St. Michael, there arose
a dissension in the City, because Symon Fitz-Mary had obtained the
King's letters, to the effect that they should admit him to the Shrievalty.
But certain of the principal men, with their Mayor, William Joynier,
would not consent thereto ; but said that he had obtained this in contra-
vention of their liberties. And because the said Symon was not then
admitted to be Sheriff, his lordship the King was moved to anger thereat ;
wherefore the citizens repaired to the royal Court, to conciliate the
King's favour, but could not do so ; so that they were without a Mayor
until the Feast of Saint Hilary [13 January] ; when Gerard Bat was
admitted [to the Mayoralty], and continued to be Mayor until the Feast
of Symon and Jude [28 October].
A.D. 1240. JOHN DE GESEORZ,)
MYCHAEL THOVT, \ S
In this year was 3 dedicated the church of St. Paul, at London.
In this year, Gerard Bat was again chosen Mayor, with whom certain
1 Nets of a peculiar nature laid in dams, bably from Walbrook, the locality where he
prepared for the taking of fish. See further lived.
as to this transaction, Liber Custumarum, pp. 3 /. e. newly dedicated, on completion of
3942, and Liber Albus, pp. 500502, the choir by Bishop Roger, surnamed Niger,
printed editions. Matthew Paris gives the date as 1242.
3 Called " de Walebroc " elsewhere : pro-
A. D. 1240.] THE MAYOR OF LONDON OFFENDS KING HENBY. 9
of the citizens proceeded to Wodestok, for the purpose of presenting
him ; and his lordship the King declined to admit him [to the Mayoralty]
there, or before he had come to London. And on the third day after,
upon the King's arrival there, he admitted him ; and after the oath had
been administered to him, that he would restore every thing that had
before been taken and received, and would not receive the forty
pounds which the Mayors had previously been wont to receive from
the City, the Mayor said, when taking his departure ; " Alas ! my
" Lord, out of all this I might have found a marriage portion to give my
" daughter." For this reason the King was moved to anger,
and forthwith swore upon the altar of Saint Stephen, by Saint
Edward and by the oath which he that day took upon that altar,
and said ; " Thou shalt not be Mayor this year, and for a very little
" I would say, Never. Go, now." The said Gerard, hereupon, not
caring to have the King's ill-will, resigned the Mayoralty, and Re-
ginald de Bunge was appointed Mayor of London.
A. D. 1241. JOHN FITZ-JOHN VYEL,'
THOMAS DE DUREME, $ Sheriffs.
In this year, an eclipse of the sun took place within the l quinzaine
of Saint Michael, about the 2 ninth hour, while Roger, Bishop of London,
was being buried. In this year, Ralph Eswy was made Mayor, and
so continued for three years. On the Feast of Saints Fabianus
and Sebastianus [20 January] in this year, Earl Richard, brother of
King Henry, returned from the Holy Land to London, it being the
six-and-twentieth year of the reign of that king; and in the same
year his lordship the King asked leave of the citizens of London, at
Saint Paul's Cross, that he might pass over into Gascoigne, to aid
the Count de la Marche against the King of France ; and soon after,
crossed over. In this year, William 3 de Marisco, who had been
convicted of treason against his lordship the King, was taken in the
isle of 4 Lundey by William Bardulf and Richard de Warenne, and
brought to the Tower of London. Afterwards, on the Vigil of Saint
James the Apostle [25 July] he was drawn and hanged, and on
1 A space of fifteen days, reckoning as full 3 Or " of the Marsh."
days both the first and last ; our fortnight. < Off the coast of Devonshire ; in the Bristol
2 7. e. three in the afternoon. Channel .
10 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1241.
the morrow of Saint James divided into four parts, one of which,
together with his head, remained suspended at London, and another
part 1
A. D. 1242. ROBERT Fixz-JoHN, again,)
-o -^ /- 1 1 -xi c Sheriffs.
RALPH ESWY, Goldsmith, )
In this year, Ralph Eswy was again made Mayor, and because his
lordship the King was not in England, was presented to the Chief
Justiciar of his lordship the King, that is to say, to the Archbishop of
Canterbury, at 2 Keningtone, and there sworn and admitted. And in
the same year, about the Feast of Saint Michael, the King returned
from Gascoigne.
A. D. 1243. HUGH BLUNB, Goldsmith,)
t Sheriffs.
ADAM DE GISEBURNE, )
In this year, Ralph Eswy was again made Mayor, and presented to
his lordship the King, at Westminster. In this year, there were Pleas
of the Crown at the Tower of London on the morrow of the 3 Hokeday,
which lasted until the Feast of Saint Barnabas the Apostle [11 June].
In these pleas were remitted the 4 essoins, which were wont to be presented
on the day before the day of Pleas of the Crown at the gate of the Tower
of London, as to the death of those who had been 5 attached until the
holding of the Pleas of the Crown; upon the understanding that the
sureties of such persons should be always held indemnified before the
Justiciar, if the death of the persons so bailed should be testified by the
Alderman and the 6 visnet. In these pleas, there was a law ordained for
7 foreigners attached in the City for homicide, to the effect that they shall
put themselves on the verdict of two-and-forty men sworn of the three
Wards next adjoining, as to whether they are guilty thereof, or not ; and
this before the Justiciary In these pleas William Bream 8 waged the
1 The sentence is incomplete. 5 Persons suspected but allowed to go at
2 In Surrey; where our early kings had a large, on mainpriseor bail, until the time of
palace, and whence its name. trial.
3 Or " Hocktide," the second Tuesday after Or " visnue, " " venue, " or neighbour-
Easter ; when " hocking," a species of rough hood.
and practical jokes, was extensively practised. 7 /. e. non-freemen.
4 Lawful excuses, put in by defendants, or 8 /. e. placed himself on the verdict of
their representatives, for non-appearance in thirty-six jurors or compurgators; who all, on
Court. oath, pronounced him not guilty.
JLD. 1243.] DISSENSION CAUSED BY SIMON FITZ-MARY. 11
Great Law, and completed it excellently well. At this time his lordship
the King took the City into his hand, that is to say, on the morrow of the
Holy Trinity, for the harbouring of Walter Buriler, without warrant for
so doing ; and re-delivered it unto Ralph Eswy, Mayor of London, to be
held in his keeping, until his return from Scotland. For, a short time
after this, he warred, with a great army, against the King of
Scotland ; but they came to terms.
A.D. 1244. NICHOLAS BAT, )
. c, . r oheriiis.
RALPH DE Bow, 'Spioef,)
These persons being elected and sworn on the third day before the
Feast of Saint Michael, his lordship the King returned from Scotland to
London on the Vigil of Saint Michael, and again took the City into his
hand for the cause aforesaid, forbidding the Sheriffs to do any of their
duties ; and he entrusted the City to Ralph Eswy, the then Mayor, and
to Michael Tovy ; who held it until the Feast of Saint Luke [18 October] ;
upon which day, the citizens made fine to the King in the sum of one
thousand pounds. On the morrow however, the Sheriffs before-mentioned
were presented. This year, upon the Feast of Saint 2 Dionis [8 April]
Fulk Basset was consecrated Bishop of London, in the Church of the Holy
Trinity at 3 Alegate. In this year, Michael Tovy was made Mayor. In
this year his lordship the King warred against David, son of Lewelin, in
Wales with his host.
Upon the withdrawal of the Sheriffs from their bailiwick, the citizens
meeting at the Guildhall, on the fourth day before the Feast of Saint
Michael, for the election of Sheriffs, there arose a very great dissension in
the City, through Simon Fitz-Mary ; who, understanding that the Mayor
was wishful to admit Nicholas Bat to the Shrievalty for the following-
year, declared that he would prove him to be a perjurer, if he should admit
the said Nicholas to the Shrievalty for two successive years, in contra-
vention of the oath which all the Aldermen had made, by assent of the
whole City, fifteen years before, in manner already noticed. By reason
whereof, out of respect for the Mayor, the said Symon surrendered his
Aldermanry into the hands of the City, by way of 4 amercement. Upon the
1 /. e. Dealer in spices. ' Aldgate.
5 Or, Denis. 4 Or modified fine.
12 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D.1244.
Vigil of Saint Michael, certain of the populace elected Nicholas Bat, with
the Mayor's assent, and the principal men Adam de Benetleye, saying that
the said Nicholas ought not to be chosen for two consecutive years ; nearly
all the Aldermen leaving the Guildhall ; and so Nicholas Bat remained
Sheriff.
A. D. 1245. NICHOLAS BAT, again,
Sheriffs.
dthj
ADAM DE BENETLEYE, Goldsmith,
But the said Nicholas being afterwards removed, John de Gyseorz
was appointed in his stead. But this John being made Mayor, Robert de
^orenhelle was made Sheriff.
This year, Michael Tovy was elected Mayor, on the Feast of Symon
and Jude [28 October] ; and because his lordship the King was at that time
in Wales, he was not immediately presented': but afterwards, on the
third day after the Feast of Saint Brice [13 November], he was presented
to his lordship the King at Wudestok, upon his arrival from Wales ; though
the King declined to admit him in the absence of his brother, Earl Richard,
and named as a day for the citizens, the thirteenth day after the aforesaid
day, at 2 Wyndlesore.
Upon which day, the citizens and the before-named Michael came to
the place aforesaid, bringing with them their charters as to their liberties
and the Mayoralty ; which being read before his lordship the King, the
King again named a day for the citizens at London, upon his arrival there.
And when he had come to London, upon the Vigil of Saint Lucy [13
December] he summoned all the Aldermen of the City to appear before
him on the morrow at Westminster. All of w T hom, Michael Tovy,
Nicholas Bat, Thomas de Dureme, Ralph Sperling, and John de Koudres
excepted,were sworn before his lordship the King, and examined as to the
election of Nicholas Bat ; who said, that they opposed such election, upon
the day that it was made, because that no person ought to be Sheriff two
consecutive years, according to the Statute of the City and the oaths of
the Aldermen and principal men of the City, which they had made on
that occasion fifteen years before.
Wherefore, the said Nicholas was deposed from the Shrievalty on the
morrow of Saint Lucy, and his lordship the King appointed John de
1 Cornhill. 3 Windsor.
A. D. 1245.] TETB CITIZENS TAKE QUEEN-HYTHE, AT A RENT. 13
Gyseorz in his stead. After this however, the said John was made
Mayor, on the second day before the Feast of Saint Hilary [13 January],
and on the same day was presented to the King at Westminster, and
admitted. For his lordship the King would not admit the said Michael
Tovy to the Mayoralty, by reason of the assent given by him as before
noticed ; whereupon, he resigned the Mayoralty, and John de Gyseorz
was made Mayor. Afterwards, on the Feast of Saint Vincent [22
January] the citizens, because they had only one Sheriff, elected Eobert
de Korenhell, and he remained Sheriff.
A.D. 1246. SYMON FITZ-MARY,
-^ Sheriffs.
LAUKENCE DE FKOWYK,
In this year, the citizens of London took Queen-Hythe, they paying a
yearly rent of fifty pounds to *Earl Richard, and sixty shillings to the
Sick of Saint Giles's without London. In the same year, Peter
Fitz-Alan was made Mayor ; and in the same year, that is to
say, in the year of Grace 1246, on the 20th day of February, there
was an earthquake at London about the 2 ninth hour. In this year, on the
16th day of April, namely, the sister of his lordship the King, on the
mother's side, the daughter of the Count de la Marche, came to London,
and was married to the Earl of Warenne.
In the same year, on the Monday next after 3 Hokeday, it was adjudged
in the Guildhall that a woman who has been endowed with a certain and
specified dower may not,- nor ought to, have of the chattels of her deceased
husband, beyond the certain and specified dower assigned to her, unless
in accordance with the will of her husband. And this befell through
Margery, the relict of John Vyel the Elder, who, by numerous writs
of his lordship the King, demanded in the Hustings of London the
third part of the chattels belonging to her said husband.
In this year, the Prior and Canons of Saint Bartholomew's, by counsel
and aid of William de Haverille, Treasurer of his lordship the King, and of
Johnde Koudres, their 4 Sokereve, and of Nicholas Fitz-Jocey, set up a new
5 tron, on the Vigil of Saint Bartholomew [24 August], refusing to allow
1 Earl of Cornwall. Soke, or place of exclusive jurisdiction.
2 Three in the afternoon. 5 Beam, or scales, for the weighing of wool
3 See page 10 ante. and heavy goods.
4 Bailiff, or agent for the business of their
14 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.i>.1246.
any one to weigh except with that tron; and this, in contravention of
the liberties and customs of the City. Wherefore the principal men of
the City, together with their Mayor, Peter Fitz-Alan, and a multitude
of the citizens, on the morrow went to the Priory of Saint Bartholomew,
and advised the Prior and Canons of that place to make amends for that
act of presumption, and to desist therefrom ; whereupon, they forthwith
gave up the practice, and by the Mayor and Sheriifs of London it was
published that every man was to sell, buy, and weigh in that market, just
as they previously had been wont to do. In the same year died Ralph
Eswy, 1 Mercer, on the Feast of Cosmas and Damicanus [27 September],
A.D. 1247. WILLIAM VYEL, ) ^
, T -r> > Sheriffs.
NICHOLAS BAT, again, )
This year, on the Translation of Saint Edward the King and Con-
fessor 2 [9 June] a portion of the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ was
brought to London, being sent by the Patriarch of Jerusalem to his
lordship the King, and was deposited at Westminster. In the same year,
Michael Thovy was again made Mayor, and by precept of his lordship
the King it was published that if any clipped penny or halfpenny
should be found offered for the purchase of anything, the same should
immediately be perforated. At this time, the money was entirely
made anew, that is to say, immediately after the Feast of All Saints
[1 November].
In the same year, on the Monday after the Feast of Saint Peter's
Chains [1 August] Henry de 3 Ba, a Justiciar sent by his lordship the
King, came to Saint Martin's le Grand, to hear the record which had
been given upon the plaint of Margery Yyel, on the Monday after Hoke-
day in the previous year, as already noticed in this book ; as to which
judgment the said Margery had made complaint to his lordship the
King, and had found pledges to prove that the same was false. Where-
upon, the Mayor and citizens meeting there, the record having
been read through, and all the writs of his lordship the King
which the said Margery had obtained, having been read and heard,
the Justiciar said: "I do not say that this judgment is false, but the
1 In page 10 ante, he has been styled " Gold- assigned to that event,
smith." But see p. 7. 3 Bath.
a Or else 29 April, as both dates have been
A. . 1247.] UNDUE ASSUMPTION OF JURISDICTION BY THE CITIZENS. 15
" process therein is faulty, as there is no mention made in this record
" of summons of the opponents of the said Margery, and, seeing that John
" Vyel, her husband, made a will, it did not pertain to your Court to
" determine such a plea as this." To which the citizens made answer;
" There was no necessity to summon those who had possession of the
" property of the deceased, for they were always ready, and proffered
" to stand trial at suit of the said Margery in our Court ; and besides,
" we were fully able to entertain such plea by assent of the two parties,
" who did not at all claim or demand the ecclesiastical Court, and seeing
" that his lordship the King by his writ commanded us to determine the
"same."
At length, after much altercation had taken place between the
Justiciar and the citizens, the Justiciar said that they must shew all this
to the King and his Council, and so they withdrew. Afterwards
however, and solely for this cause, his lordship the King took the City
into his hand, and by his writ entrusted it to the custody of William de
Haverille and Edward de Westminster, namely, on the Vigil of Saint
Bartholomew [24 August] ; whereupon, the Mayor and citizens went to
the King at Wudestok, and shewed him that they had done no wrong;
but they could not regain his favour. Wherefore upon their arrival
in London, the aforesaid William de Haverille exacted an oath of the
clerks and all the Serjeants who belonged to the Shrievalty, that they
would be obedient unto him, the Mayor and Sheriffs being removed
from their bailiwicks. Afterwards, on the Sunday before the Nativity
of Saint Mary [8 September], the Mayor and Sheriffs, by leave of
the King, received the City into their hands, and a day was given
them to make answer as to the aforesaid judgment before the King and
his Barons, namely' the morrow of the translation of Saint Edward,
at Westminster.
A.D. 1248. NICHOLAS FITZ-JOCEY, )
GEOFFREY DE WYNCESTRE,)
In this year the citizens of London, at the request of his lordship the
King, not compelled, and yet as though compelled, took their wares to
the Fair of Westminster, on Saint Edward's Day [16 March] ; and also,
1 See page 14 ante.
16 CHRONICLES OF TI1E MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.I>. 1248.
the citizens of many cities of England, by precept of his lordship the
King, repaired thither with their wares ; all of whom made a stay at
that fair of full fifteen days, all the shops and 1 selds of the merchants of
London in the meantime being closed.
And on the morrow of St. Edward, the Mayor and citizens appeared
at Westminster, to make answer as to the judgment before-mentioned,
that had been given against the aforesaid Margery Vyel, and so from day
to day until the fourth day; upon which last day, his lordship the King
requested them to permit the Abbot of Westminster to enjoy the franchises
which the King had granted him in Middlesex, in exchange for other liberties
which the citizens might of right demand. To which the citizens made
answer, that they could do nothing as to such matter without the consent
of the whole community. The King, however, on learning this, as though
moved to anger, made them appear before him, and, after much alter-
cation had passed as to the said judgment, (Henry de la Mare, a
kinsman of the before-named Margery Vyel, constantly making allega-
tions against the citizens), counsel being at last held before his lordship
the King between the Bishops and Barons, the Mayor and citizens were
acquitted and took their departure. In the same year, Michael
Fol. 67 B. .
Tovy was again made Mayor.
It should be observed, that when Simon Fitz-Mary, for his offence,
had delivered his Aldermanry into the hands of the City, as above
noticed, by assent of the whole community the Mayor returned him
his Aldermanry, upon condition of his conceding that if at any future
time he should again contravene the franchises of the City, the Mayor
might, without plea or gainsaying, take back his Aldermanry into
the hands of the City, and wholly remove him therefrom. Where-
fore, in this year, because the said Symon had manifestly sided with
Margery Yyel in the complaint which she had made to his lordship the
King as to the judgment given by the citizens as to which, as is already
written, she herself was cast as also, for many other evil and detestable
actions of which he had secretly been guilty against the City, the Mayor
took his Aldermanry into his own hands, and wholly removed him there-
from ; and the men of that Ward, receiving liberty to elect on the Monday
1 Extensive sheds, used as warehouses for the stowage of merchandize.
A. D. 1248.] NEWS OF THE DEFEAT OF THE KING OF FBANCE. 17
before Mid-Lent chose Alexander le l Ferrun, and that too in his absence ;
but he, afterwards appearing at the Hustings, was on the Monday
following admitted Alderman.
In the same year, upon the Feast of Saint Matthew [21 September]
there came news to London, that the King of France, who had sailed
with a great army of Christians against the Saracens, had taken
2 Damiete, the most strongly fortified city in Egypt, on the preceding
Octaves of the Holy Trinity.
A.D. 1249. JOHN TULESAN, again, )
[ Sheriffs.
RALPH HAKDEL, 3
In this year, Roger Fitz-Roger was elected Mayor, and that too in
his absence ; and was afterwards admitted by the King at Rochester.
In the same year, on the third day after the Epiphany, the citizens
recovered [on appearing] before the King, two kinds of franchise, of
which for many years they had been deprived. For the King granted
that the Jews, who before had been 3 held to warranty by writ of the
Exchequer, should plead in future before the citizens as to their tene-
ments in London. He also granted that the 4 Chirographers of the
Chest of the Jews should [in future] be 5 tallaged like other citizens.
In this year, on Sunday in Mid-Lent, nearly all the men, as well as
women, of London having met together, in accordance with the precept
of his lordship the King, in the Great Hall at Westminster, his lordship
the King assumed the Cross with the view of setting out in aid of the
Holy Land. It is also to be noted, that after his lordship the King had
repeatedly requested the citizens to grant to the Abbot of West-
minster the franchises which we have already mentioned in this record,
in this year, on the Wednesday, namely, in the week of Pentecost, there
was a day of 6 love appointed, at the demand of his lordship the King^
between the citizens and the Abbot ; upon which day, the Mayor, and
a countless multitude of the citizens with him, came to the New Temple,
1 Meaning, the " Ironmonger." In a sue- 3 On the transfer of property.
ceeding page, he is named among those 4 The keepers of the starrs, deeds and con-
banished from the City for siding with Simon tracts made by the Jews, who were regarded
de Montfort. as the especial property of the King.
2 Damietta, in Egypt ; which was taken by 5 Or " taxed."
Louis IX. King of France, on the 6th of 6 Or " reconciliation."
April, 1249.
I)
18 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYOKS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1249.
where the Abbot was, there being also present William de Haverill, the
Treasurer, Henry de Ba, Roger de Turkelby, John de Gratesdene,
Justiciars, and others who had been sent thither by the King. Upon
these desiring to hold a conference with the Mayor and Aldermen, the
whole of the populace opposed it, and would not allow them, without
the whole of the commons being present, to treat at all of the matter ;
all of them exclaiming with one voice that in no point would they recede
from their wonted franchises, which, by Charters of his lordship the
King and his predecessors, they possessed.
Upon this, a day was given them by the Justiciars to appear before
his lordship the King at l Wyndlesore, the Tuesday following, namely ;
and solely for this reason, the King took the City into his hands, and
delivered it to. William, the Treasurer, and to Peter Blund, the Con-
stable of the Tower, all the clerks and Serjeants of the SherifFwick
paying obedience to them. On the day appointed, the Mayor
and citizens appeared at Wyndlesore ; when the King, wishing
to harass them, compelled them, through his Justiciars, to shew cause
why they had gainsayed the Charter which he had granted to the Abbot
of Westminster, and why they had not permitted the men, who by his
precept had been placed in inquisition for causing a tumult in the mat-
ter between the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Canons of Saint
Bartholomew's, to make oath as to the same. For, a short time before
this, the said Archbishop wished to hold a visitation among the said Canons,
a thing that they would not permit. The citizens however made
answer, that they had had no day named for pleading there against
the Abbot of Westminster, and that out of the City of London they
were not bound to plead ; and that if they had been bound to plead
thereon, they ought not to receive any judgment as to the same in the
absence of their peers, the Earls, namely, [and] Barons of England ; as
also, that no man of London ought to swear in any inquisition, except
in accordance with the oath which he had [already] made to his lordship
the King, and in virtue of the fealty in which he is bound to him,
unless it be a case where one might lose life or limb, or lose land or
gain it. After this, consultation being held between the King and his
1 Windsor.
A.D. 1249.] THE CITIZENS EXEMPTED FROM PONTAGE. 19
Council, the City was restored to the citizens, and day was given them
until the Translation of Saint Edward [13 October].
In the same year, about the Feast of Saint James [25 July] there
came news to London, alas ! that the King of France, before-mentioned,
had been captured by the Saracens, his brothers and nearly all the
Christian army being taken or slain. He himself however, a short time
after, was ransomed by the Templars and Hospitallers.
A. D. 1250. WILLIAM FiTZ-KiCHARD X LE PRESTRE,)
HUMPHREY LB FEVRE, J Sheriffs.
In this year, John Norman was made Mayor. In the same year,
on the Monday after the Feast of Saint Michael, it was enacted by the
citizens, that the Wardens of the Bridge, from that day forward, should
have, take, or claim, nothing from the ships or property of citizens passing
through the 2 iniddle of the Bridge; whereas, before they had been
wont to take twelve pence for every ship belonging to a citizen, the
same as foreigners.
In the same year died 3 Fretheric, Emperor of the Romans, who
had taken to wife a 4 sister of King Henry, daughter of King John ; and the
5 Pope departed from Lyons to Milan.
A. D. 1251. NICHOLAS BAT, again,
LAURENCE DE FROWYK, again,
In this year, there were Pleas of the Crown held at the Tower o
London on the morrow of Saint Michael; at which pleas, Alexander de
Minynes, John Duraunte, Andrew le 6 Pepperer, and William Duraunte,
made the r Great Law ; and in like manner, Thomas de Faleyse and
Iseuda de Tateshall, who had 8 waged the Great Law in the pleas that
were last pleaded at the Tower, then fulfilled the same. Also, John,
le Clerc by name, failed in making his law, and was therefore condemned
to death.
In the same year, at the Feast of the Translation of Saint Edward
[13 October], the citizens of London, at the request of his lordship the
1 " The Priest." 6 Dealer in pepper and spices.
2 At the drawbridge. 7 1. e. proved their innocence on the oath of
3 Frederic II. who died in Apulia, 13 De- thirty-six compurgators or jurors.
cember, 1 250. 8 1. e. had given pledge to take their trial
4 Isabella. in this form. As to the case of Iseuda de
5 Innocent IV. Tateshall, see the Liber Albus, folio 33 A.
20 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1251.
King, offered large tapers at the altar of Saint Edward,, namely, at every
1 Office, one square taper of wax. In this year, Adam de Basing was
made Mayor, on the Feast of Symon and Jude [28 October]. In this
year, on the Feast of Saint Stephen [26 December] 2 during the
Nativity, his lordship the King gave Margaret, his eldest daughter, in
marriage to the King of Scotland. This year, on the morrow of Saint
John the Baptist [24 June], there was intense heat, which lasted five
days.
A.D. 1252. WILLIAM DE DURESME, )
m ITT i Sheriffs.
THOMAS DE W YMBURNE,)
This year, John Tulesan was made Mayor. In the same year, on
Tuesday, the thirteenth day of May, the Archbishop of Canterbury
and other thirteen Bishops, in the Great Hall at Westminster,
with the assent of his lordship the King, and in his presence and
that of Earl Richard, his brother, and many other Earls and Barons,
arrayed in pontificals and with lighted 3 tapers, excomunicated all those
who should contrive or do aught whereby the liberties contained in the
Charters which he had made to the Barons of his realm, in the ninth
year of his reign, should in any point after that day be infringed or
nullified.
Afterwards, on the morrow of Our Lord's Ascension, on the 30th
day of May, namely, by precept of his lordship the King, the whole
community of London was assembled in the churchyard at West-
minster; where his lordship the King took leave of them, saying
that he was about to cross over into Gascoigne ; and gave orders
that all persons in the City should meet together, on the Sunday
following, at Saint Paul's Cross, in presence of those whom he should
send thither, and there make oath of fealty to Sir Edward, his son,
and to his Queen, to whose charge he was about to commit his kingdom.
Afterwards, this matter was postponed until the Tuesday in Pentecost ;
on which day, the whole commons of the City did fealty at the Cross
aforesaid, to Sir Edward, and in his presence, saving their fealty to
his lordship the King.
1 Portion, or fresh division, of the service 3 For the Formula of Excommunication then
of the Roman Church. pronounced, see Statutes of the Realm (1815).
2 1. e. in Christmas week. Vol. I. p. 6.
A.D. 1252.] EXTORTIONS PRACTISED UPON THE JEWS. 2 1
At the same time, the King exacted from all the Jews a whole
moiety of all their moveables, giving them credit by their a starrs for the
same; and by his writ gave orders to the Justiciars assigned for the
custody of the Jews, that if any Jew, by the tenth day after sight of
the said writ, should not have made satisfaction for his tallage, such
person should be outlawed, and Dovre should be assigned for him and all
his household as the port for sailing with the first wind, never to return ;
this however was afterwards not persisted in. At the same time, the
King by a new Charter confirmed unto the citizens of London all their
franchises, laws, and customs, as also those which they had in the time
of King Henry the First, both used and disused ; and further granted,
that seven pounds sterling should be allowed yearly to the Sheriffs in their
2 ferm, for the liberty of the Church of Saint Paul ; and that the Mayor,
who was wont to be presented to the King only, wherever in England he
might be, should in future be presented to the Barons of the Exchequer
at Westminster, in case the King should not be in London at the time
when the Mayor was elected. It should also be known, that the citizens
then gave unto his lordship the King five hundred marks for obtaining
that Charter.
Afterwards, on the Wednesday before the Feast of Saint Laurence
[10 August] his lordship the King put to sea, to cross over to Gascoigne.
A.D. 1253. KlCHARD PlKARD, )
JOHN DE NORHAMPTON,) k
In this year, on a Friday, after dinner, it being the tenth day of
October, the water of Thames rose to a greater height than ever it had
done in our times. In the same year, Nicholas Bat was made Mayor, and
on the morrow was presented to the Barons of the Exchequer at West-
minster, and sworn and admitted, in manner granted to the citizens by
Charter of his lordship the King, of which mention has been made above
in this record. In this year, about the Feast of Saint Michael, it was
enacted by the whole community, that the bailiwick of Bridge Street and
of Queen-Hythe, which previously they used to let to ferm, should be
1 Deeds of acquittance so called, peculiar to land, which had been granted as a Soke, or
transactions with the Jews. See p. 17 ante. place of exclusive jurisdiction, to the Dean
8 Rents and payments due to the Exche- and Chapter of St. Paul's,
quer. This payment was for a small piece of
22 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1253.
held by the Sheriffs, whoever they might be, they paying therefor fifty
pounds yearly to his lordship the King, and sixty shillings to the Hospital
of Saint Giles, and to the commons of the City twenty-seven pounds.
In this year, it was enacted by the community, that no one of the
franchise of the City should in future pay 1 scavage for his beasts sold on
the field of 2 Smethefeld, as before they had been wont. In this
year, about the season of Lent the Sheriffs of Middlesex, by
precept of his lordship the King, caused all the wears to be destroyed that
stood in the Thames towards the West ; and at this time, many nets which
were 3 injurious, were burnt in Westchep. Afterwards, and before Pente-
cost, the Sheriffs of London, seeing that the water of Thames pertains
unto London, by precept of his lordship the King destroyed all the other
wears from London to the sea. In the same year, on the 29th day of May,
her ladyship the Queen put to sea, to cross over to her lord the King,
in Gascoigne ; and her son Edward with her, to espouse the sister of
the King of Spaku
A.D. 1254. WILLIAM ESWY, Mercer,)
^ T f oherilis.
ROBERT DE LINTON, )
In this year, Ralph Hardel was elected Mayor of London, and
because the Barons of the Exchequer were then at the Parliament
at Wyndlesore, he was not presented on the morrow ; but on the day
after, the citizens, bringing with them their new Charter, presented
him to the said Barons, who would not admit him without Writ of
his lordship the King; saying that the Mayor, in the preceding year,
was not admitted by reason of the new Charter, but by assent of her
ladyship the Queen, then at Westminster, to whose custody the
kingdom had been entrusted. And immediately after this, the Barons
shewed a writ of his lordship the King, by which precept was
given to them that they should take the City into the King's hands,
for non-observance in the City of the assize of bread and ale.
And although the citizens ought not to be molested for such a
default as this, but only the Sheriffs, if convicted thereof; still, the
City was taken into the King's hands, and delivered into the custody
1 A duty payable for the shewage of goods to 2 Smithfield ; so called as being the smetfie,
be sold. or level, field.
3 By reason of the smallness of the meshes.
A. D. 1254. j THE CITIZENS SUMMONED BEFOBE THE KING. 23
of John de Gyseorz, the said John being sworn before the Barons ;
after which, the clerks and all the Serjeants of the Sheriffs, as also the
Wardens of the Gates, the Thames, and the Gaol, were there sworn.
And all this had been discussed in the Parliament aforesaid, because *
the citizens, being divided among themselves, would not appear
there before Earl Richard, as they had promised him, to put an end
to a matter on which they had frequently entreated him before,
namely, the Exchange. Afterwards, the citizens waited upon the Earl,
to entreat his favour ; whereupon, he named for them a day at London,
saying that he would do nothing therein without counsel of the King,
to whom a moiety of the issues of the Exchange belonged. After this,
on the third day after the 1 Feast of Saint Edmund the Archbishop,
the citizens of Westminster made fine to the said Earl before the
Council of his lordship the King, in a sum of 600 marks; whereupon,
all claims were remitted on account of the Exchange, and the Mayor
and Sheriffs were restored to their bailiwicks.
In this year the King returned from Gascoigne, and passing through
the midst of France with the safe-conduct of the King of France, put to
sea at 2 Wytsant, and landed at Dover in the week of Our Lord's Nativity,
on Saint John's Day [27 December] ; the Queen also then came, Sir
Edward, the King's son, remaining in Gascoigne, with the King of
Spain's sister, whom he had just married; his father having given
him Gascoigne, Ireland, the Earldom of Chester, Bristowe with its
Castle, 3 Staunford, and whatever he held in the parts of Wales.
After this, on the second day before the Epiphany [6 January], the
King, coming to London, summoned the Mayor and citizens to
appear before him immediately after the Epiphany ; and wished
to*make them answerable for the escape of John de Froine, who had been
taken and imprisoned in Neuwegate, as having been indicted for consenting
to the death of a certain Prior from beyond sea, who belonged to the house-
hold of the Bishop of Hereford. To this the citizens made answer, that the
custody of the Gaol does not belong to them, but to the Sheriffs only.
Whereupon, answer was made to them by the King, that as they make
1 Either 16 or 17 November ; it is uncer- 2 Witsand, near Calais,
tain which. 3 Stamford, in Lincolnshire.
24 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D 1254.
the Sheriffs, they themselves ought to be answerable for them. To this
the citizens said, that they do not make the Sheriffs, but only have to
choose them, and present them to the Barons of his lordship the King ;
and that such Sheriffs can do nothing in respect of their office, before
they have been admitted at the Exchequer ; that in no point ought they
to be answerable for the Sheriffs, save only as to the ferm due from the
Sheriffwick, and only then, when the Sheriffs themselves are not of
sufficient means to pay the ferm.
At length, after much altercation, the Sheriffs were taken and delivered
to the Marshal of the King's Court, and on the morrow were imprisoned
in the Tower of London; where they remained a month and more.
Afterwards, about the Feast of the Purification of Saint Mary [2
February], for many reasons shown to the King, the Sheriffs were
released on surety of the Mayor ; but the King, being moved to anger
beyond measure at such escape, would not allow the Sheriffs to remain
in office as such. Wherefore the citizens removed them and elected
others, on the first Monday in Lent, namely, Stephen de Oystergate
[and] Henry de Waleraund.
A.D. 1255. MATTHEW BUKEREL,}
JOHN LE MYNUR, $ S
This year, upon the Feast of Saint Eldreda [23 June] which was on a
Sunday, the sister of the King of Spain, wife of Sir Edward, eldest son
of his lordship the King, came to London, and a countless multitude of
Bishops, Earls, Barons, Knights, and citizens, went forth from the City
to meet her, as also his lordship the King, in person; the City of London
being most nobly tapestried and arrayed.
In this year, seeing that it is specified in the Charters as to the
Mayoralty, that the citizens may remove their Mayor at the end of the
year, and substitute another, or retain him, if they will, on condition that
he be presented to the King, Ealph Hardel was continued Mayor, and
did not even vacate the Mayoralty, as all the Mayors before had been
wont to do ; and on the third day was presented to the King, sitting at
the Exchequer, and there admitted, not being sworn, but only charged
in accordance with the oath that he had made in the preceding year.
On the same day, the King took the City into his hand, because the
A.D. 125-5.] ACCUSATION AGAINST CERTAIN JEWS OF LINCOLN. 25
citizens, who had been repeatedly pressed for the l Queen's Gold, would
not agree to pay it; and so the City remained in the hands of the
Treasurer, to whom the King had entrusted it, until the Octaves of Saint
Martin [11 November] ; on which day, by writ of his lordship the King,
the City was restored to the citizens, in accordance with their request
made at Windlesore.
In the same year, upon the Feast of Saint Cecilia [22 November],
which was on a Monday, two-and-ninety Jews were brought to West-
minster from Lincoln, and were imprisoned in the Tower of London, for
the death of a certain male child, whom they purposely slew at Lincoln, in
despite of the Christian faith. Eighteen of these, who, when the King
was at Lincoln, had declined to put themselves upon the verdict of
Christians, without Jews, as concerning that death, and had been then
indicted for the same before the King, were on the same day
drawn, and, after the hour of dinner, and towards the close of
the day, hanged. The other 74 were taken back to the Tower.
In the same year, Sir Edward, the King's eldest son, came to London
from Gascoigne, on the Vigil of Saint Andrew [30 November], the City
being handsomely hung with tapestry for the occasion. In this year, the
Queen, for a sum of 400 marks, remitted to the citizens of London all
claim which she had against them on account of her Gold ; which Gold all
the other men of the realm were wont to pay upon fine made to his lord-
ship the King. In the same year, the King of Scotland and his Queen,
daughter of the King of England, came into England, and, on the
Assumption of Saint Mary [15 August] were with his lordship the King
at Wudestok ; upon which day, the said King held a great and most
noble Court, nearly all his Earls and Barons being present. After this,
on the Sunday before the Decollation of Saint John [29 August] the
King of Scotland and his Queen came to London, the City being
decorated and hung with tapestry.
A.D. 1256. WILLIAM ESWY, Draper/;
-o > Sheriffs.
RICHARD DE EWELLE, >
Be it observed, that whereas in past times the new Sheriffs were wont,
on the Vigil of Saint Michael in each year, to ride with the citizens to
Neugate, to receive charge of the prisoners there, and then to all the
1 A compulsory charge of ten per cent, in favour of the Queen Consort, upon certain fines.
E
26 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. I25fi.
Gates of the City, to exact fealty and trustiness of those who receive
the City customs ; this year, all the servants who pertain unto the
Shrievalty, came to the Guildhall upon the same day, and there, before
the Mayor and citizens, plighted their faith a in the Sheriffs' hands, that,
they would be faithful, every one in his office, so long as in their service
they should remain. This year, Ralph Hardel was again chosen Mayor,
on the Feast of Symon and Jude [28 October], and, his lordship the King
not being in London, was presented to the Barons of the Exchequer and
there admitted.
In this year, on the Monday before the Feast of Saint Andrew
[30 November], William de Munchanesey appeared at the Hustings,
and had the testament read of Paulina his deceased wife, daughter of
Reginald de Bungeye, by which she had devised all her tenements in
London; and proffered to prove the same, as is the custom of the City
as to testaments, touching any tenement, land, or rent. To which, answer
was made by the persons who alleged that .they were the heirs of the
said Paulina, that it was not necessary to prove that testament, as it was
not a reasonable one. For that she was not able to devise any tenement,
seeing that she was under her husband's control. At length, after much
altercation had taken place between the parties, the Mayor and citizens,
having held conference thereon in the Chamber, came and said, that no
married woman can, or ought to, devise any tenement of hers, and that
if she does so, it must be revoked as void; for that no sale, gift, lease, or
alienation, which a woman, having a husband, makes as to land, tene-
ments, or rents, ought to stand good, unless she comes to the Hustings
with her husband, and openly makes oath as to the same.
Be it remembered, that in the same year, at the Feast of the Inno-
cents [28 December], in the Chapel of Saint Stephen at Westminster,
before his lordship the King and his Council, Sir Richard, Earl of Corn-
wall, brother of the said King, gave assent to the election made by the
princes of 2 Almaine, who had chosen him to be their King. At the
same hour on that day, there was a great tempest, and thunder
Fol. 70 B. * fe
and lightning, at London and elsewhere.
It has usually been the custom, when wares which have to be sold
1 I. P.. their hands placed within those of the 2 Or Germany.
Sheriff.
A.D. 1266.] ENACTMENT AS TO THE WEIGHING OF MONEY. 27
by balance, are weighed, for the draught of the balance to incline on the
wares side, the case of gold and silver excepted, which are always
weighed with the pin standing midway, and inclining neither towards
the weight nor towards the gold or silver ; and consequently, that the
weigher, who weighs in the City by the balance of his lordship the
King, is able, by reason of such draught, to give a greater weight to
one person than to another, through favour, may be, or through fear, or
through a bribe passing between them, or perhaps inadvertence. It was
therefore provided and enacted on the Saturday after the Feast of
Saint Nicholas [6 December], in the one-and- fortieth year of the reign of
King Henry, son of King John, that all wares which have to be weighed
by the King's balances in the City, shall be weighed like gold and silver,
the draught in no degree inclining towards the wares ; and that, in lieu
of such draught, the vendor ought to give to the buyer four pounds in
every hundred. At the same time, it was provided that the weigher
ought to receive, for his trouble, one halfpenny for every hundred
pounds by him weighed ; but where there are several hundred pounds,
one farthing for every hundred, and in the same manner, for a thousand
weight two pence halfpenny.
In the same year, Henry de Ba, the Justiciar, came to the Guildhall
of London, bringing to the Mayor and Sheriffs a writ from his lordship
the King; who thereupon summoned before him all the vintners of the
City. The Justiciar wishing to amerce all of these for breach of the
assize of wine, the citizens made answer, that the vintners who had
broken the assize ought, and are wont, solely to be amerced at the Com-
mon Pleas of the Crown, and not before a Justiciar at the Tower. To
whom the Justiciar made answer that this will not satisfy his lordship
the King, for that it does not seem just or right that they may break the
assize for seven years or more with impunity, and only once be amerced
for so many offences. To which reply was made, that his lordship the
King both is wont to, and may, whenever he pleases, upon election by
the citizens, appoint two wardens to keep that assize, in manner as here-
tofore ; such wardens being now dead, and the citizens having had no
precept since for the election of others. That the same wardens too,
when any one is convicted of breach of the assize, ought to sell the wine
found in the tun, in reference to which the breach has been committed,
28 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1256.
and to produce the money at the Pleas of the Crown holden before the
Justiciars, the transgressor nevertheless being there also amerced. At
length, after much altercation had taken place, the matter was postponed
for conference thereon with the King. After this, the Mayor and citizens
waited upon the King at Wyndlesore, who named for them a future day
at London, at the holding of Parliament in Mid-Lent.
In the same year, during Lent and in Easter week, there came
several princes of Almaine to London, namely, the Archbishop of
Cologne, and other Bishops, Dukes, and Counts, who all did homage to
his lordship Earl Richard, in presence of his lordship the King, his
brother, they having elected him King of Almaine. After this, on
Thursday in the same week, he took his departure from London, jour-
neying towards the sea, his wife being with him, as also his son Henry,
by his first wife, mother of the Earl of Gloucester; and putting to sea
at * Gernemue on the 27th day of April, on the Feast of Philip and
James [1 May] they landed at 2 Thurdrakt, which is situate on the
water called " Musele." Afterwards, on Our Lord's Ascension, he was
crowned, as set forth in the Letter underwritten:
" Richard, by the grace of God King of the Romans, ever Au-
" gust, to the Mayor and citizens of London, health and all bless-
" ings. We do the more joyfully and in especial retain in our heart the more
" propitious and marked events that attend our elevation, inasmuch as we
" do believe that the pleasures thereof are doubled by congratulation : and
ee the more especially do we find a threefold degree of exhilaration in our
" joyousness, when we feel assured that the same has reached your ears,
" confident as we are that the same are always ready, in the purity of your
" good faith and the zeal of your warm affection, attentively to listen to
" news of our well-being ; while at the same time, in our own affection
" towards you, we do feel a longing regret which tells us how much more
" rejoiced we should have been rather to converse with you personally
" hereon, and upon certain other festive matters, than give you informa-
" tion thereof through the agency of writing, acting as our interpreter.
" To the end, however, that a full and certain knowledge may be im-
" parted to you of all the joyous events that have befallen us since we took
" our departure from among you, we have deemed it proper that the
J Yarmouth, in Norfolk. 8 Dort, or Dortrecht, situate on the Maas.
A.D. 1256.] LETTER TO THE CITIZENS FROM THE KING OP THE ROMANS. 29
" present page, indicative of the events aforesaid, should unto you
"be directed; intimating thereby, as matter for your congratulation,
(f that on the Sunday next after the Feast of Saint Mark the Evan-
"gelist [25 April], attended by our suite, we took ship at 1 Jernemue.
" On the Tuesday following, the day, namely, of the blessed Apostles
" Philip and James [1 May], all, as well ourselves and our family as our
" suite, being well alike in person and in effects, we reached the town of
" 2 Durdreych, situate in the midst of the dominions of the Count of 3 Hoy-
" land ; and, after staying there two days to take some repose after our
" fatigues, on the third day we took our departure therefrom, and then con-
" tinuing our progress, through the countries of Hoyland and Gelderland,
" on the Friday before the Feast of Our Lord's Ascension arrived at Aix ;
" the more illustrious and more worthy of the men thereof, clergy, that is
" to say, as well as laity, nobles, knights, and all other the citizens, meeting
" us at our entrance into the said city, and receiving us magnificently and
" honourably amid the greatest joyousness and jubilation, glad and re-
joicing, without any obstacle or difficulty whatsoever intervening. And
" it is our belief, so far as in these lands the testimony bears witness of
" general and wide-spread report, that for the last two hundred years, no
" one of the Roman Emperors or Kings, upon newly commencing his rule,
" has ever without grave offence, or opposition and gainsaying thereon,
" entered the city of Aix. And while after so entering the said city, it
" was necessary for us to make a somewhat long sojourn therein, behold !
" certain rumours, cherished by our warmest desires, reached us, joy-
" ously making known unto us that the Archbishop of Treves, the enemy
" of our advancement, who, to the detriment of our name and honour, with
" a vast multitude of armed men had laid siege to our Castle and Palace
" of Bopardt, and had prepared many engines for the capture thereof
" had been attacked by our beloved prince, the venerable Archbishop of
" Mentz ; who, with the aid of a great body of warriors from among our
"faithful subjects, out of respect for our name had hastened to the relief
" of the said Castle, and to the assistance of the people there besieged, and
" on the Wednesday next after the 4 Feast of Saint John Port Latin [6
1 Yarmouth, in Norfolk. remembrance of the Evangelist being cast
2 Dortrecht. into a cauldron of boiling oil, before the
3 Holland. Latian Gate at Rome.
4 The Day of St. John Port Latin was in
30 CHRONICLES OP THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1256.
" May] had manfully engaged the said Archbishop of Treves ; not with-
" out slaughter of his partisans, while many of his knights and other
" accomplices were made prisoners, the Archbishop himself, at the close
" of the battle, by the aid of a disgraceful flight avoiding the
" punishment of death, or at least the peril of being taken cap-
" tive. And thus, our said Castle being, by the aid of the aforesaid
" Archbishop of Mentz and other our faithful people, happily relieved
" from the blockade of the besiegers and the assaults of the foe, and ex-
" cellently well supplied with provisions and such other valiant defenders
" as were needed, the same Archbishop of Mentz at Aix presented himself
" before us. Where, on the Feast of Our Lord's Ascension, himself and
" the Archbishop of Cologne being present, as also many other Bishops,
" Dukes, Counts, and Barons, peers and nobles of our realm, and faithful sub-
" jects of ours, we did. upon the throne of 1 Charles the Great,withall befitting
" solemnity, in the name of Him 2f Who resisteth the proud, but giveth
" grace to the humble,' receive the sceptre of the Holy Roman Empire, and
ss the crown thereof; our most dear consort being in like manner on the same
" day solemnly crowned together with us, as was befitting. At length,
" the feast of our coronation having been celebrated with great solemnity
" and rejoicing, and the counsels of our well-beloved princes and other
" our faithful subjects as to our own affairs having been communicated to
" us, it seemed unto ourselves and to them, that it would be most in
" accordance with the elevation that had by vote been conferred upon
" us, that we should immediately, without loss of time, proceed to the
" humbling of those who were rebelling against us, and more especially,
" and first thing of all, turn all our endeavours towards breaking the horns
" of him of Treves who had raised them against us ; that so, as he was the
(f first of all, in our matters, to shew himself not so much a just and a
" reasonable [opponent] as a willing embroiler, he may be the first to
" experience and to learn what and how much to his detriment our hand
" both can and may effect. As to this however we would especially have
" you informed, that we do now trust that so great is our power in
" Almaine, through the aid of our faithful subjects and supporters, that,
" while they continue to cherish their fealty towards us, and remain
" zealous in their devotion in our behalf, the power of no man living will
1 Or, Charlemagne. a James iv. 6, and 1 Peter v. 5.
A.D. 1256.] AGREEMENT MADE WITH THE ABBOT OF WALTHAM. 31
" be an object of fear to us. Given at Aix, this 18th day of May, in the
" first year of our reign."
In this year, about the Feast of Saint 1 Peter's Chains [1 August], the
King of England fought, with a great army, against Llewellin, son of
Griffin, the Prince of Wales, and against other Welshmen who had
risen against the King, because that Sir Edward, the King's son, would
not treat them in accordance with their customs. Accordingly, coming
with his army to the castle that is called 2 "Ghennok," he remained there
until the Nativity of the Blessed Mary [8 September], awaiting his men
from Ireland, for whom he had sent ; but as they did not come, his
lordship the King seeing that he could not crush the Welsh, unless
with a great multitude of foot-soldiers accompanying him, he withdrew,
having placed garrisons in his castles.
This year, about the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Mary
[8 September], peace was made between the citizens of London and the
Abbot of Waltham, who before had been at variance, because that the
Abbot would exact Stallage of them in the Fair of Waltham ; for which
reason all the people of London withdrew, refusing to resort to the said
Fair of Waltham for three years and more. And the agreement
so made was to the effect, that the Abbot returned to the
citizens of London all the distresses that had been taken for the said
stallage, and for such distresses as had been lost and had become
spoiled, the value thereof in money ; and he further granted that in
future the citizens might resort to the said fair, and there stand acquitted
of all stallage for ever.
4 A.D. 1257. THOMAS FITZ-THOMAS, )
ROBERT DE CATELONIE,$
The said Robert dying however, on the morrow of Saint Lucy
[13 December] Matthew Bukerel, was made Sheriff; but on the Ides
[13] of February was removed, and William Grapefige was made Sheriff
in his place.
In this year, the King issued a new coinage, of golden pennies, each
1 Or, Saint Peter " ad Vincula" stalls.
2 Glamorgan. 4 " In this year Ralph was continued
3 A payment for the privilege of erecting * Mayor." Marginal Note.
32 CHRONICLES OF THE MA.YOBS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1257.
two Sterlings in weight, and of the purest gold ; and it was his will that
such gold coin should pass current in value for twenty sterlings.
This year, on the Sunday next after the Feast of All Saints [1 No-
vember] the Mayor and citizens appearing before his lordship the King
at the Exchequer in obedience to his precept, he put them to the ques-
tion, conjuring them by the fealty in which they were bound to him,
that they would certify him, according to their consciences, whether the
aforesaid coinage would be beneficial and for the common weal of his
kingdom, or not. Accordingly, holding counsel and conference thereon
among themselves, they appeared before the King and said, that through
that coinage the greatest detriment might accrue to his realm, and more
especially to the poor of his realm, the chattels of very many of whom
are not worth in value a single gold coin. And further, they said that
through that coinage gold would be held of much lower value, when that
money should come to be dispersed in so many hands; a thing that was
already evident, seeing that sheet gold, which always used to be worth
2 ten marks, was then worth nine marks only, or even eight. Whereupon,
after they had set forth many reasons why that coinage would prove
otherwise than beneficial, his lordship the King replied^: " It is my will
ei that this coinage shall pass current, the penny for twenty sterlings,
" but that no one shall be compelled to take it ; and whosoever shall take
" it, shall be at liberty to exchange it wherever he may please, without
" hindrance therein ; and if he shall think proper, he may come to our
" Exchange, and shall have for every such golden penny nineteen 3 pence
" and one half-penny.
This year, on the Monday next after the Feast of Saint Hilary [13
January], it was provided that, whereas the Sheriffs at their own option
had taken money of the merchants of Normandy who bring woad into the
City, for leave to harbour the same; by reason whereof they
were excessively oppressed ; in future, the merchants should be
at liberty to import their woad, and should give to the Sheriffs seven
shillings for such leave on every 4 frail, besides one half-penny on
every quarter for custom.
1 A sterling was a silver penny. 3 L e. sterlings, or silver pennies.
2 By the ounce. 4 Large packages made of wicker or osier.
A.D. 1257.] CHARGE AGAINST THE MAYOR, AND ENQUIRY THEREON. 33
This year, shortly before the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed
Mary [2 February], a certain roll was found in the Wardrobe of his lord-
ship the King at Wyndlesore, sealed with green wax, and placed there by
some person unknown, in which were set forth many articles against the
Mayor ; to the effect that the City had been aggrieved by him and his
abettors, beyond measure, as well in respect of tallage as of other injuries
that had been committed by them. Wherefore, his lordship the King,
wishing to know the truth thereof, sent John Maunsel to London on the
Conversion of Saint Paul [25 January], and had the Folkmote sum-
moned on the Sunday following. Upon which day, he had the said roll
read before all the people, there being there present the 2 Earl of Glou-
cester, Henry de 3 Ba, and others of the Council of his lordship the
King, saying that the King would not allow his city to be aggrieved,
but desired to be certified as to what rich men had been favoured in the
tallages, and what poor men aggrieved, and whether the Mayor and his
advisers had appropriated anything out of the tallages to their own use;
and further, commanded all the Aldermen, early in the morning of the mor-
row, to summon their Wardmotes; and also, commanded that the men of
each Ward should there, in the absence of the Alderman, choose from their
number six-and-thirty men who before had been tallaged ; all of whom
were on the same day, about the 4 first hour, to appear at Saint Paul's,
before him and others of the King's Council, who should be sent thither.
And accordingly so it was done, and these six-and-thirty men appearing
on the morrow in the hall of the Bishop of London, in the presence
of John Maunsel [and] Henry de Ba, Justiciars, Henry de Wengham,
Chancellor, Philip Lovel, Treasurer, and others of the King's Council, the
aforesaid John spoke and gave orders on behalf of his lordship the King,
that the persons should certify them upon the said articles on oath.
But they said that, according to the laws of the City, they ought not to
make oath upon any inquest, except where it was a question of life and
limb, or where land was to be lost or gained ; but that they ought only to
be adjured by the oath which they had made unto the King, and in virtue
of the fealty in which they are bound unto God and the King ; and so,
1 Or, Candlemas. 3 Or, Bath.
2 Richard de Clare. 4 From six to seven in the morning.
F
34 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. I>- D - 1257 -
much altercation taking place between the Justiciars and the citizens,
nothing was done on that day.
A day therefore was named for the citizens, being the morrow, at the
Guildhall; upon which day, the before-named John Maunsel
coming into the Guildhall, together with the King's Council,
the citizens again refused to agree to make oath in the inquisition afore-
said. But on the morrow, on the Wednesday, that is to say, before the
Purification of the Blessed Mary [2 February], upon the King approach-
ing Westminster, the Mayor and citizens went forth to salute him, as
the usage is, as far as 1 Kniwtebrigge : the King however sent thither
a certain esquire, commanding them not to appear in his presence.
Wherefore the citizens, perceiving that the King was moved to anger,
returned home forthwith, without addressing the King. Afterwards,
on the Vigil of the Purification, the Mayor and a countless multitude
meeting in the Guildhall, Michael Tovy and Adam de Basing were sent
thither by his lordship the King, to say that the King was willing to
preserve all their franchises unimpaired ; but that, for the benefit of the
City, he was wishful that inquisition should be made, and that too upon
oath, by what persons his commons had been so aggrieved in reference to
tallages and other instances of transgression ; as also, that no one should be
punished unless he had offended, and that too, without detriment to the
community. In the same words John Maunsel and the others, sent by
the King, made affirmation ; and so, by reason of such words and pleasant
promises, the populace gave assent, crying aloud, 2 " Ya, ya, " to taking
the oath, in disparagement of their own franchises ; which in fact these
same most wretched creatures had not been the persons to secure.
Upon the same day, the said John forthwith seized the City into the
hand of his lordship the King, the Mayor, Sheriffs, and King's Cham-
berlain being removed, though no one of them had been in any way con-
victed ; and then delivered it into the custody of the Constable of the
Tower, and substituted Michael Tovy and John Addrien in place of the
Sheriffs. On the same day, there were delivered to the said John Maun-
sel all the rolls of the tallages that had theretofore been made; all which
1 Knightsbridge. an officer whose duty it was to collect prisage
2 The early form of 'Tea, Yea." and other revenues for the King.
3 In early times, the City Chamberlain was
A.D. 1257.] CHARGES AGAINST THE MAYOR, ADOPTED BY THE KING. 35
he caused to be sealed, and then returned them to the Chamberlain of the
City. After this, on the morrow of the Purification, and so from day to
day, there appeared before the said John in the Chamber of the Guild-
hall, or else before the 1 Constable and others who had been sent thither
by the King, six-and-thirty men of every Ward ; the same six-and-thirty
making answer together, but by themselves only, and unaccompa-
nied by any others of the Wards, and being sworn as to the arti-
cles aforesaid and many other points on which they had been questioned.
And this lasted until the first Sunday in Lent, which then fell on the Feast
of Saint Scholastica the Virgin and Austberta [10 February] ; so that the
said inquisition was made throughout twelve Wards, and this so secretly,
that nothing was revealed unto any one, either of the interrogatories put
by the Justiciars, or of the answers made by the citizens thereto, until
the day before-mentioned.
Upon which day, the King summoned before him at Westminster the
Mayor and Sheriffs, and all the Aldermen of the City, as well as the
six-aud-thirty men of each of the twelve Wards aforesaid, through whom
that inquisition had been made. These being assembled, all the Alder-
men were called by name, and four men of each Ward ; who accordingly
came into the Exchequer before the Barons of the Exchequer, and the Earl
of Gloucester, and the 2 Earl of Warwyk, and John Maunsel, and Henry
de Ba, and the Constable of the Tower, and others of the King's Council.
The Mayor also being summoned, together with Nicholas Bat and Nicholas
Fitz-Joce, Matthew Bukerel, John Tuleshan, and John le Minur, John
Maunsel said, in presence of all the other Aldermen and other persons,
that the King sued them for grievances and injuries committed against
the men of his city. After which, he caused to be read one portion of the
inquisition aforesaid, and said that through them and their counsels the
City had been aggrieved and ruined, and through this more especially,
that by them the mode of making tallage had been changed ; the roll of
the last tallage not having been read in the Guildhall before all the
people summoned therefor, in manner as was formerly wont to be done ;
but the moment the tallage was made, all the tallagers received their
license, the said roll not even being sealed. And thus had the Mayor
1 Of the Tower. - John de Plessets, Earl of Warwick, jure
uxoris.
36 CHEONICLE8 OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [* 1257 -
and others changed the roll at their own will, for the advantage of some
persons and to the loss of others.
To this answer was made, that for some time the tallage-roll used
to be read in the Guildhall before all the people, but that this practice
had been then left off for ten years and more. At length, after many
objections had been made by the Justiciars and answers given by the others
thereto, they made denial of force and injury, and [averred] that no
one had by them been aggrieved in the tallage or had been favoured
therein; as also, that the last tallage had been made by
men by the whole community elected, and sworn thereto.
Also, that the amount of this tallage was reduced to writing by the
tallagers ; which writings were still in the possession of William Fitz-
Bichard, one of such tallagers ; and this, according to the laws of the
City of London they made offer to prove. To this however Henry de
Baluster objected, asking whether they were ready to place themselves,
so far as this matter was concerned, for good and for evil, upon those
other Wards of the City, by which no inquisition had before been made.
Whereupon they said that, as to all trespasses imputed to them, they were
ready to defend themselves by the laws and customs of the City of
London. Enquiry was then made by John Maunsel of the Aldermen and
other citizens, what the custom of London was in such a case ; to which they
made answer, that for homicide the citizens of London ought to defend
themselves by the oaths of six-and-thirty men, and for trespass against the
King by twelve men, and for trespass against any other person by six
compurgators, the accused himself making oath the l seventh. John
Maunsel however, not content with this, and wishing to aggrieve the
persons before-mentioned, named the morrow for them to appear before
his lordship the King.
On the morrow the citizens appeared at Westminster ; on which day
John Maunsel caused to be read before the King, seated at the Ex-
chequer, the aforesaid inquisition that had been made in the City, all
those of the King's Council being then present, who had been there on
the preceding day, with many others beside. After this, the Aldermen
and citizens, on being summoned, appeared before the King. The
Mayor, however, and the men before-mentioned were called separately
1 Or, " swearing with the seventh hand," as it was generally called.
A.D. 1257.] CHARGES MADE AGAINST CERTAIN ALDERMEN. 37
by name ; and in like manner Arnulf Fitz-Thedmar and Henry Wale-
mound, who had not before been in any way accused. As to the Mayor
and Nicholas Bat, who, when at Windlesore, had opposed the inquisition
before the King, they were without answer ; wherefore they threw them-
selves upon the mercy of his lordship the King, saving always their
liberty and that of the City of London.
As to the other six men, the King caused them to be impleaded, for
that through counsel given by them to the Mayor, his city had been
aggrieved beyond measure, as well through tallages unjustly made as
other injuries inflicted upon the commons of London ; in addi-
tion to which, the King's beams and weights had been changed,
a thing that was not lawful to be done without the King's permission-
To this last, answer was made, that the beam and weights had not been
changed, but the form only and manner of weighing ; and this, for the
purpose of securing great advantage and greater accuracy, had been done
through the agency of more than two hundred trustworthy men of the
City. For whereas before, the draught of the beam used to incline
towards the wares, and by reason of such draught the weigher was in
the habit of giving greater weight to one man than to another, either
through favour, or through fear, or on receiving a bribe, a thing that had
been covertly done ; it had since been provided, that all wares which
are sold by the King's balance, should be weighed just like gold and
silver, and without any draught being allowed whatsoever ; the vendor,
in lieu of such draught, giving the buyer four pounds in every hundred.
But that through them or through their counsel the City had been
aggrieved in tallages or in other matters, they made denial, and were
ready to disprove the same, as well as all misdeeds to them imputed,
according to the laws and customs of the City.
Enquiry was also made of the other Aldermen, what was their custom
in such a case ; whereupon, after holding counsel, they appeared before
the King, and said the same as had been said the day before, namely,
that the citizens of London ought to defend themselves on charge of
trespass as against the King, by oath of twelve men of the City ; and that
such was their custom. But the King, not content with this, gave orders
to the Sheriffs, to convene the Folkmote on the morrow at Saint Paul's
Cross, whither John Maunsel would be sent by him, as well as some
38 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1257.
others of his Council, to make enquiry of the commons whether such was
their custom. Upon which day, on a Tuesday, namely, all the Aldermen
and citizens came to Saint Paul's Cross. But when the six men before-
named, who had been questioned by the King, understood from the mur-
murs of the populace that they would not support the Aldermen in the
answer that had been made by them in presence of the King, they went
to the persons who had been sent by the King, and who were then
in the house of a certain Canon of Saint Paul's, and said that they
declined to plead against his lordship the King ; and that they threw
themselves upon the mercy of his lordship the King, and prayed that
the King would cause inquisition to be made by such persons as he
might think proper, whether they were in any way guilty of any
crime, saving however their liberties unto them and the other
citizens. But the others declined to grant them any inquisition;
and so, they being at the King's mercy, John Maunsel and the others who
had been sent by his lordship the King, came to Saint Paul's Cross; and
one of them, using bland words, and, as it were, preaching unto the popu-
lace, while promising them that all their rights and liberties should be
preserved unimpaired by his lordship the King, further said, " supposing
ss that any bailiff or bailiffs of theirs should have treated them unjustly,
" and have inflicted many evils and hardships upon them and upon the
" City, supposing such a case, ought they, according to the law of the
" City, to defend themselves as against the King, upon his making suit,
" by the oaths of twelve men, and as against their fellow-citizens by the
" oaths of six, and so be acquitted of all the consequences of such an
" offence?" To which enquiry (no conference being first held among the
discreet men of the City, as is usually the practice), answer was made
by some of the populace, sons of divers mothers, many of them born
without the City, and many of servile condition, with loud shouts of
" Nay, nay, nay," in contravention of the privilege of the franchises that
had been granted unto the City of old, and by their predecessors, citizens
of blessed memory, obtained, and, until that time, strictly observed. And
thus and in such manner, without any shape of reason, were all the
Aldermen of the City disavowed.
Then, on the King's behalf, the said John commanded that all the
Aldermen, the Sheriffs, and the King's Chamberlain, should appear before
A.D. 1257.] DISGRACE OF ARNALD FITZ-THEDMAR. 39
the King on the morrow at Westminster. Accordingly on the morrow,
on a Wednesday, namely, all the parties aforesaid appeared in the Great
Hall at Westminster; where, after some little stay, his lordship the King,
having first taken counsel with his advisers in Saint Stephen's Chapel,
came to them, and he having taken his seat on the tribunal, Henry de
Ba, the Justiciar, gave judgment; to the effect that all the persons
aforesaid were degraded, and removed from their bailiwicks, and were
at the King's mercy, and held under arrest; it being declared that, with-
out the King's leave, no one of them should in future return to his baili-
wick. After this, the King at once giving his permission, they were
bailed, and returned home.
After all these things, at the suggestion of John Maunsel, the King
granted that, except the men before-named who had been questioned,
each of the others should have his bailiwick restored, if elected by the
commons of the City to any such. Whereupon, all the Aldermen, save
and except the persons before-mentioned, were restored to their
bailiwicks, Richard de Hadestok only excepted. Also, Thomas
Fitz-Thomas was restored to his Sheriffwick, but William Grapefige was
made Sheriff in place of Matthew Bukerel. William Fitz-Bichard also
was made Mayor of London.
Afterwards, from day to day, the Chamberlain of the City, before
John Maunsel and his people, gave in the account of the tallages made
in the days of the Mayoralty of John Tulesan and Ralph Hardel, there
being present many men of the City who had been elected thereto, of
very discordant and diverse sentiments thereon. In reference to which
account, no one of the eight men before-mentioned was convicted of
having done wrong in any respect. At this time, new Aldermen were
chosen by the Wards, and placed in each of the Wards of those who had
been deposed, in manner already stated; except indeed that the Ward
which belonged to the before-named Arnald Fitz-Thedmar remained in
the hand of the Mayor. It should also be known, that the said Arnald
Fitz-Thedmar was not in any way accused, except in reference to the
beam ; the mode of weighing by which was rectified by him and by the
others, in manner already mentioned in this record. Still however, it
was rather through the influence of hatred than because his deserts in
any way merited it, that he was classed among the others, as may be seen
40 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1257.
from the following facts. For afterwards, on the day before the Feast of
Saint Leonard [6 November] in the a 44th year of his lordship the King,
John Maunsel testifying in full Folkmote at Saint Paul's Cross, in
presence of his lordship the King and of his Council, that the King had
been certified that the said Arnald was unjustly degraded, he was re-
called to the favour of his lordship the King, and restored to his position.
In this year, there was a failure of the crops ; upon which failure, a
famine ensued, to such a degree that the people from the villages resorted
to the City for -food; and there, upon the famine waxing still greater,
many thousand persons perished ; many thousands more too would have
died of hunger, had not corn just then arrived from 2 Almaine.
In this year was held that 3 Mad Parliament at Oxford, about the
Feast of Saint Barnabas [11 June] ; in which Parliament it was provided
and ordained by certain Earls and Barons of England, that those bad cus-
toms should be abolished, through which the realm, in the time
of this King, had been so long and so immoderately oppressed and
aggrieved, and that, by this same King and others among the most power-
ful men in the realm. To which ordinances the King, though reluctantly,
gave his assent, and made oath to that effect. And to carry out this matter,
there were chosen the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lord Bishop
of Worcester, Sir Roger Bigot, Marshal, [and] Earl of Norfolk, Sir
Richard de Clare Earl of Gloucester, Sir Simon de Montfort Earl of
Leicester, Sir Humphrey de Bohun Earl of Hereford, the Earl of Ware-
wyk, the Earl of Albemarle, Hugh de Bigot, 4 Peter de Saveye, Peter de
Montfort, Roger de Mortimer, James de Audeleye, [and] John Maunsel.
At the same time also, the brothers of his lordship the King," on the
mother's side, namely, Sir Eymer [de Valence], Bishop Elect of Win-
chester, Sir William de Valence, who had married the daughter of Warin
de Munchenesey, Sir Geoffrey de Liseny, and Sir Guy de Liseny, would
not give their assent to such oath; but without leave withdrew from
the said Parliament, and set out for the sea-coast with their arms and
harness, and, if they only had had ships, would have embarked. After-
wards however, in a Parliament held at Winchester, they received leave
1 A. D. 1259. tendency of the writer's opinions to the cause
2 Germany. of the Baroiis.
3 This remark gives proof of the adverse 4 Peter of Savoy, the Queen's uncle.
A.D. 1257.] THE MAYOR ASSENTS TO CHARTER GRANTED TO BARONS. 41
from the Barons to depart from the realm of England, and a- day was
given them to be at Dover and set sail, the Sunday namely after the
Feast of Saint Silas the Apostle [13 July] ; but they were not allowed
to take with them any of their treasures, save only as much as might
suffice for their expenses. In the same manner, William de Saint Ermin
and many other foreigners had leave ; all of whom set sail on the Sunday
before-mentioned, or on the morrow.
Be it observed, that by reason of the aforesaid provision and statute,
so made by the said Parliament at Oxford, not being observed, the realm
of England was beyond measure disturbed, and many thousands of men
perished, as in this book is set forth hereafter. It should also be known,
that in the aforesaid Parliament at Oxford, a Justiciar over the whole of
England was elected by the Barons, in the person of Hugh
Bygot, brother of the Marshal, and the Tower of London was
delivered into his hands.
The same year, on the morrow of Saint Mary Magdalen [22 July]
his lordship the King being at Westminster, there came certain of the
twelve Barons before-mentioned to the Guildhall of London, namely, the
Earl Marshal, Sir Simon de Montfort, John Fitz-Geoffrey, and others,
bringing with them a certain Charter, to which were appended the seals
of many Barons, as also the seal of his lordship the King and of his son
Edward ; who thereby gave their assent, and made oath, that they would
hold and observe whatever the aforesaid Barons should provide for the
advantage and amendment of the realm ; the persons so sent putting the
Mayor and Aldermen, and others of the City, to the question whether
they would assent to the provision so made by them. The Mayor accord-
ingly, and other citizens, who could not obtain leave to speak thereon
with his lordship the King, at once holding conference among themselves,
consented to observe the said provision, and made oath so to do, and set
the common seal of the City to the charter before-mentioned, saving
however unto them all their liberties and customs. Afterwards, the Barons
before-mentioned from day to day held conference, sometimes at the New
Temple, sometimes elsewhere, as to reforming for the better the usages
and customs of the realm. After this, on the Nones [5th] of August, an
edict was published in the City, that no one of the King's household, nor
any other person, should take anything in the City, except at the will of
42 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. UfiT.
the vendors ; saving however unto his lordship the King his rightful
prisage of wine, that is to say, from every ship that owes full custom, two
tuns of wine at the price of forty shillings. And further, that if any one
should presume to contravene the same, and be convicted thereof, he
should immediately be imprisoned. After this, no one of the King's officers,
nor yet any of their people, took anything, without soon after paying the
vendor for the same : this, however, lasted for a short time only.
A. D. 1258. JOHN ADDRIEN, Draper,
EGBERT DE ^ORENHELLE, again, ^
This year, John de Gizors was chosen Mayor, and that too, even in
his absence. This year, after a Parliament held by the Barons at West-
minster, Hugh Bygot, the Justiciar, went to Saint Saviour's, and,
having Koger de Turkelby for his associate, held there all the Pleas
which pertain unto the Justiciars Itinerant in the County of 2 Suraye ;
and not only did he there amerce several 3 bailiffs and others
who had been convicted of offences committed against those
subject to them, but he caused them to be imprisoned, clerks as well as
laymen. And yet he ransomed one person for twenty marks, and
certain others for forty marks, and more ; while several others, for but
trifling reasons, he immoderately aggrieved.
In these pleas the men of 4 Suwerc and others of the County of
Suraye made complaint against the Sheriffs and citizens of London,
that they unjustly took custom without the Stone Gate on the Bridge,
seeing that they ought to possess no such rights beyond the Drawbridge
Gate. The citizens, coming with their Sheriffs who had been summoned
by the Justiciars, appeared at Saint Saviour's before the Justiciars, and,
bringing with them their Charters, said that they were not bound to
plead there, nor would they plead without the walls of the City ; but
without formal plea, they were willing to acknowledge that it was quite
lawful for the Sheriffs of London to take custom without the gate afore-
said, and that too, even as far as the 5 staples placed there, seeing that the
whole water of Thames pertains unto the City, and always did pertain
thereto ; and that too, sea-ward as far as the 6 New Wear. At length, after
1 Cornhill. 5 Probably for mooring vessels.
a Surrey. 6 In the close vicinity probably of the
3 Folio 77 is omitted in the numeration. present Yantlet Creek; which runs from <ho
4 Southwark. Thames t" thp Medway.
A.D.1258.] REGULATIONS AS TO BAKERS IN THE CITY. 43
much altercation had taken place between the Justiciars and the citizens,
the Justiciars caused inquisition to be made, on the oath of twelve
knights of Sureye and this, although the citizens had not put themselves
on such inquisition whether the Sheriffs of London had taken any
custom beyond their limits. Who said, upon oath, that the Sheriffs
aforesaid might rightfully take custom there, for that as far the staples
before-mentioned, the whole pertains unto the City, and no one has any
right upon the Thames, as far as the New Wear, save and except the
citizens of London.
After this, the Justiciar before-mentioned, having as his associate
Roger before-named, came to the Guildhall of London, and there held
Pleas from day to day, as to all those who wished to make plaint ; and
at once, without either making reasonable summons or admitting any
1 essoin, determined the same, observing no due procedure of justice ;
and that too against the laws of the City, as also against the laws and
customs of every freeman of the English realm. This however the
citizens persistently challenged, saying that no one except the Sheriffs
of London ought to hold pleadings, in the City as to trespasses there
committed ; but to no purpose. Still however, the citizens had judg-
ment done upon all persons abiding in the City, who had been
convicted, or had been cast in making a false charge. At the
same time also, the Justiciar summoned before himself and before the
Earl of Gloucester all the bakers of the City who could be found, to-
gether with their loaves ; and so, by some few citizens summoned before
them, judgment was given in reference to their bread ; those whose
bread did not weigh according to the assay of the City, not being placed
in the pillory, as they used to be, but, at the will of the Justiciar and
Earl aforesaid, exalted in the 2 tumbrel, against the ancient usage of the
City and of all the realm.
This year, on the Octaves of the Innocents [28 December] when the
assize of wine and ale was proclaimed in the City, the City crier pro-
claimed the assize as well without the Stone Gate situate on London
Bridge as elsewhere in the suburbs of the City.
In this year, Sir Richard, King of Almaine, brother of his lordship
1 See page 10 ante. means a high cart only, or a cucking-stool.
2 It seems somewhat doubtful whether this
44 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1258
the King, together with his Queen and children, passing through the
midst of France, crossed over and landed at Dover, and on the Vigil of
the Purification, of the Blessed Mary [2 February] came to London, the
City being excellently hung and arrayed.
This year, on the Monday before the Feast of Saint Gregory [12
March], provision was made among the judgments at Guildhall, that,
when a person brings the testament of any one deceased, in order to
prove the same in the Hustings, even though any person may claim a
right in a tenement by such testament devised, notwithstanding such
claim, probate shall immediately be taken thereof, the right however of
every one being reserved. For that such probate ratifies nothing, save
only the fact that it is the last will of the deceased. Consequently, not-
withstanding such probate, every one who has a right in the tenement
devised by such testament, through any other person than the testator,
may demand the same, by Writ of Right, or Writ in the nature of a
Writ of Entry, or in the nature of Writ of Mori $ Ancestor other than
the testator, or by Plaint of Intrusion ; provided always however, that
such plaints as are made without writ, be made within the term by the
usual customs of the City provided.
This year, a provision and statute was made, that all Pleas of debt as
to the citizens of London should be held before the Sheriffs only. In the
same year, before Easter, was begun the 1 New Work at the
Church of Saint Paul ; also, Fulk Basset, Bishop of London,
died just before Pentecost.
A. D. 1259. ADAM BRUNING, ) 01 .
}- Sheriffs.
HENRY DE COVENTRE,)
This year, within the quinzaine of Saint Michael there was a very
great wind, and a most dreadful tempest both by land and sea, so that
numberless vessels, going forth from the port of 2 Gernemue to fish,
were lost, together with their men.
In the same year, on the Friday before the Feast of Simon and
Jude [28 October], there was held a great and long Parliament ; and his
1 The Church of St. Faith in St. Paul's, and the " New Work."
the cross aisles. The years 1251 and 1256 3 Yarmouth in Norfolk,
have also been assigned to the commencement
A. D. 1259.] AMENDED REGULATIONS AS TO PLEADERS. 45
lordship the King, being in the Great Hall at Westminster, where many
Earls and Barons, and a countless multitude of people, had met, caused
the Composition to be openly and distinctly read, that had been made by
the Barons, as noticed in the 1 other book, as to amending the usages and
laws of the realm. The Archbishop of Canterbury, and many other
Bishops, arrayed in pontificals, pronounced sentence of excommunication
against all those who should make any attempt upon the said Composi-
tion. And then, his lordship the King took leave to cross over into France,
for the purpose of making peace with the King of France ; and delivered
his kingdom into the safe keeping of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the
Bishop of Worcester, [and] the Lords Roger Bigot, Hugh Bigot, and
Philip Basset.
In this year William Fitz-Richard was made Mayor.
In the same year, on the day before the Feast of Saint Leonard [6
November], his lordship the King came to the Cross of Saint Paul's, a
countless multitude of the City being there assembled in Folkmote, and
took leave of the people to cross over, just as he had done before at
Westminster ; and promised them that he would preserve all their liberties
unimpaired, and, for the amendment of the City, granted them certain
new statutes which he commanded to be inviolably observed; to the effect,
that in future it should not be necessary to have a pleader in any plea
moved in the City, either in the Hustings or in any Courts in the City,
save only, in pleas pertaining to the crown, or else pleas of land or of
distresses unjustly taken. But every one was to set forth his complaint
with his own lips, and the other side in like manner, without hindrance,
so that the Court, in its prudence, being certified as to the truth of the
matter, might render equal and righteous judgment unto the
parties. Also, that if with any pleader there should be an agree-
ment made for him to have part of the tenement for which he was plead-
ing, in respect of his pay, and he should be convicted thereof, he should
lose such share, and be suspended from his calling. The same too was to
be done as to the others, who, upon being convicted of such an offence,
were to lose their own portion, acquired, and be heavily punished as
well.
On the same day, John Maunsel said, on behalf of his lordship the
1 What this alludes to, it seems impossible to say. Perhaps " another leaf" is the meaning.
46 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1359.
King, that he had been certified that Arnulf Fitz-Thedmar, of whom
mention has been made above, had committed no offence,, and had been
unjustly indicted ; wherefore he recalled him to his peace and favour, and
commanded that he should be reinstated in his [former] position.
This year, upon the morrow of the Feast of Saint Leonard [6 Novem-
ber] his lordship the King took his departure from London for the sea-
coast; and on the Monday following, in the Hustings, the said Arnulf was
replaced in seisin of his Ward, from which he had before been deposed.
Afterwards, on the Feast of Saint Brice [13 November], which at
that time fell on a Friday, his lordship the King crossed over; having
first recalled to his grace and favour Nicholas Fitz-Joce, John le Minur,
and Matthew Bukerel, of whom mention has been made above. Ralph
Hardel, Nicholas Bat, and John Tulesan, were dead.
This year, just before Our Lord's Nativity, the seal of his lordship
the King was changed, he being still beyond sea; the l superscription
being to the following effect " Henricus Dei Gratia Rex Anglie,
(f Dominus Hibernie et Dux Aquitannie" " Henry by the Grace of God
" King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Acquitaine."
At this time also, a lasting peace was made between him and the
King of France, in form under-written ; that is to say, he quitted claim
unto the King of France as to all right and title which he had to
Normandy, Poitou, and Anjou, retaining unto himself only Gascoigne
and certain other parts of Acquitaine, for which he did homage to the
King of France. At the same time, the King of England gave his
daughter Beatrice in marriage to the son of the Earl of Bretagne.
This year, on the morrow of Saint Valentine [14 February], which
then fell on a Sunday, Henry de Wengham was consecrated Bishop of
London by Boniface Archbishop of Canterbury, in the Church of 2 Saint
Mary of Suwerk.
In the same year, when it had been arranged by Sir Edward, the
King's son, and the Earl of Gloucester, who were then at vari-
ance, that they should hold a general Parliament at West-
1 " As to this new Seal of the King, the the King held the sword and the sceptre ;
* prophecy was then fulfilled which says ' By " whereas, upon the new one, the sceptre with-
" ' reason of a wondrous change, the sword shall " out the sword." Marginal Note.
" <be severed from the sceptre,' a thing that 2 St. Mary Overy in Southwark.
" was then fulfilled. For upon his old Seal
A.D. 1259.] STRIFE BETWEEN PRINCE EDWARD AND EARL GLOUCESTER. 47
minster, three weeks after Easter Day, and it was also proposed that they,
and many other Earls, and Barons, and knights, should, with their horses
and arms, take up their abode within the City ; seeing that very great
loss and peril might have accrued therefrom to the citizens and to the
City, Sir Richard, King of the Romans, came to Westminster in Easter
week, and summoning the Mayor and certain discreet men of the City in
presence of himself and the Chief Justiciar, and Sir Philip Basset,
held conference with them as to avoiding this peril. Wherefore, it was
then provided, that neither Sir Edward, nor the said Earl, nor any one
else, as to whom any suspicion might be entertained, should be harboured
within the walls of the City ; which was accordingly done. It was also
provided, that all persons of fifteen years and upwards, each to the best
of his ability, should be well provided with arms ; and that all the City
Gates shoulcl be closed at night and watched by armed men, and should
not be opened in the daytime ; with the exception of Bridge Gate, Lud-
gate, and 1 Alegate, which also were to be well fortified with armed men.
Also, that the King before-mentioned, the Justiciars aforesaid, and Philip,
as well as those whom they might think proper to bring with them, and
against whom no suspicion existed, might be harboured within the City,
and, together with the citizens, protect the City if necessary.
Afterwards, on the second day before the Feast of Saint Mark the
Evangelist [25 April] his lordship the King, coming from the parts be-
yond sea, landed at Dover; and on the fifth day after the said Feast,
came to London and took up his abode in the hostel of the Bishop of Lon-
don, causing the Earl of Gloucester, and many others, at his will, to be
harboured within the City, the Gates in the meantime being well fortified
with armed men, by day and night. Sir Edward however and the
Earl of Leicester, and their followers, were lodged without the City,
both 2 at the Hospital of Jerusalem, and in all the other houses which lay
between the City and Westminster. The King of Almaine however took
up his abode in his own house at Westminster, as it was not necessary
for him to be in the City, while his lordship the King was making stay
there. Afterwards, the King having made a stay in the City of fifteen
days and more, returned from thence to Westminster on the 17th of the
v.
1 Aldgate. 2 In Clerkenwell.
48 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1259.
Calends of June [16 May], and a day was named for holding another
Parliament, the l quinzaine of Saint John the Baptist [24 June],
After this, the King of Almaine took his departure from London for
the sea-coast, on the Feast of Saint Botolph [17 June], that is to say;
and, on the third day after the said Feast, put to sea at Dover.
In the said Parliament, as varying and different opinions existed be-
tween his lordship the King and the Barons of England, a day was named
for holding a Parliament, the Feast of Saint Edward [5 January] namely.
A. D. 1260. RICHARD PIKARD, / ^
JOHN BE NORHAMTO^ Shenffs '
This year, on the Feast of the Translation of Saint Edward [13 Oc-
tober], John, son of the Earl of Bretagne, who had married the daughter
of his lordship the King, was made a knight, as also many other nobles,
at Westminster, amid the greatest hilarity and rejoicing.
In the same year, on the Monday before the Feast of Simon and Jude
[28 October], Sir Hugh le Despenser was made Justiciar of England;
and in the same year William Fitz-Richard was again made Mayor.
Afterwards, on the morrow of Simon and Jude, the King of Almaine,
returning from the parts beyond sea, came to London ; and on the follow-
ing day, the King of Scotland came, with his Queen; who, upon her lord
returning home, remained with her mother the Queen of England, until
the time of her delivery.
In this year, on the Monday after the Feast of Saint Edmund the
King [20 November], it was provided in full Hustings, that, because
such pleas as were moved by many kinds of Writs of his lordship the
King, could not in one day, between morning and 2 Vespers, or even
3 Complines, be, all of them, brought to a conclusion; from that day
forward, all pleas moved by Writ of Dower *Unde nihil habet, and all
pleas of Customs and Services, should be heard on the same day on
which the Common Pleas are heard.
The same year, after the Purification of the Blessed Mary [2 Feb-
ruary] the King came to London, and afterwards, on the Sunday before
the Feast of Saint Valentine [14 February], had the Folkmote sum-
1 I.e. & fortnight after. 3 Or Second Vespers, about 7 o'clock.
2 From about 3 or 4 in the afternoon to 4 "Of which she has nothing" meaning,
seven. thp woman making claim.
A.D. 1260.J AFFRAY WITH THE PEOPLE OF NORTHAMPTON. 49
moned at Saint Paul's Cross; whither he himself came, and the King
of Almaine, the Archbishop of Canterbury, John Maunsel, and many
others. The King also commanded that all persons of the age of twelve
years and upwards should make oath before their Alderman, in every
Ward, that they would be faithful unto him, so long as he should live,
and, after his death, to his heir ; which was accordingly done. Then all
the Gates of the City were shut, night and day, by the King's command,
the Bridge Gate, and the Gates of Ludgate and Alegate, excepted, which
were open by day, and well fortified with armed men.
Be it remembered, that in an affray that took place this year, at the
Fair of l Norhamptone, between the Londoners and the men of Norhamp-
tone, certain persons of Norhamptone were wounded, and one of them
afterwards died ; but whether he died from the injury so in-
flicted or by a natural death, is not known. The Bailiffs how-
ever of that town, who are always envious of the Londoners, seized four
men of London, imputing the death to them, and, after imprisoning them,
seized all their goods, as well as those of the other Londoners. Upon
hearing this, the Mayor and citizens, seeing that no Londoner is bound
to plead without the walls of the City, except in pleas as to tenures with-
out, obtained royal letters directing them to deliver up such persons to
the Mayor or to his messenger bearing such letters, that they might take
their trial before the King, as they ought to do, according to the laws of
the City; the said Bailiffs, however, would not let them go, either for
that writ or for another, which the Mayor obtained on a second request.
But, in contravention of the precepts of his lordship the King and of the
liberties of London, they kept them still more closely and more cruelly
confined ; and so they remained there until after the Purification of the
Blessed Mary [2 February] ; at which time the King came to London
and sojourned at the Tower.
On the morrow of his arrival, the Mayor and citizens went to his lord-
ship the King, and obtained from him a third writ for delivery of the
prisoners aforesaid, as also, another writ, directed to the Sheriff of the
County of Northamptone, to the effect that if the Bailiffs should be unwil-
ling to release them, he should enter their liberties and deliver them up
to the bearer of the letters of his lordship the King, to take them before
1 Northampton.
50 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1260.
his said lordship the King, there to do what 3 in accordance with the laws
of the City, they ought to do. These letters being obtained, behold !
news came that the aforesaid prisoners were at ^herringe near
Westminster, whither the Mayor and Bailiifs of Norehamptone had
brought them. Upon hearing this, the Mayor of London sent to them
certain citizens, carrying the writ before-mentioned : which writ being
read and understood, they still would not agree to deliver the prisoners
to the said messengers. Upon this therefore, the Mayor of London,
waiting upon the King with a countless multitude of people, shewed unto
him, making grievous complaint, how that the said Bailiffs, in despite of
his royal majesty, and to the very great disgrace of his City of London,
for all his third writ, would do nothing. The King, moved to
anger, upon this sent Peter de Nevile, a certain marshal of his
household, to Cherringe ; who immediately brought the prisoners before
the King, and they were delivered to the Mayor.
The citizens however forthwith made plaint against the people of Nor-
hamptone, of the trespass that had been committed against them, and their
contempt of the Writs of his lordship the King ; to which the others made
answer. As to this plaint and answer, the King named for them the next
day as a day for hearing judgment ; the giving and receiving of which
judgment was however, by collusion, respited from day to day for more
than five weeks ; at the end of which, on the third day before the
Feast of the Annunciation of Our Lady, the Mayor and citizens came to
the Tower, as also the Bailiffs of Norhamptone, and appeared before the
King in his Chamber there ; there being also present, the Chief Justiciar,
Philip Basset, John Maunsel, Robert Walerand, and others of the Council
of his lordship the King. The citizens hereupon demanded their judgment
that had been so respited, as between them and the people of Norhamtone,
in reference to their plaint and the answer made thereto. The people
of Norhamtone however said that they never made any answer to them,
but only to his lordship the King, seeing that they were not bound to
plead without the walls of their own borough; and made profert of a
Charter of his lordship the King to that effect, which had been made in
the one-and-fortieth year of the King now reigning. The citizens how-
1 This passage deserves remark, as confuting there in memory of the chvre reine, Eleanor,
the assertion that has been erroneously made, wife of Edward I.
that Charing owes its name to the cross erected
A.I>. 1260.] THE PEOPLE OF NORTHAMPTON PLEAD THEIR CHARTER. 51
ever said that that Charter ought not to avail them, seeing that they were
not then in the enjoyment of many of the articles contained therein, and
more especially, because they had made answer in all the Fairs of England.
For that they had made answer at the Fairs of 1 Saint Ives, 2 Saint
Botolph's, 3 Lenne, and 4 Stanford; and even here they had departed from
their Charter, by making answer to the plaint of the citizens. After
this, the record of the Justiciar's Roll was read, in which was specified the
answer that had been made by them unto his lordship the King as to con-
tempt of his writs, the same being openly and distinctly enrolled. But as
to the plaint of the citizens and the answer made by the burgesses thereto,
little or nothing was entered therein. The citizens however declared that
they had made plaint against them, to the effect that they had wrongfully
detained their own freemen, in contravention of the franchises of London,
after receiving the writs of his lordship the King, and did still detain the
chattels of the persons before-named ; and further, made plaint against
them as to other trespasses, whereby they had been injured and had re-
ceived damage to the value of ten pounds. To which the others
made answer, that in part they acknowledged and in part denied
the same, and as to the same they placed themselves upon the record of
the Bishops and Barons, who were present on that day, and demanded
judgment thereon. [The citizens] also demanded judgment as to the
new Charter of the burgesses, which ought to be of no validity, [they
said], as against the Charters of the citizens, of which they made profert;
namely, the Charter of King Henry the Second, of King Richard, of
King John, and that of his lordship the King now reigning, and that
they were then in enjoyment of all the liberties in the aforesaid Charters
contained.
At length, after much altercation had taken place between them, con-
ference and counsel was held thereon by his Barons before his lordship
the King; and because the Bishops and others who had been present on
the day of the plea being heard, were not then present, judgment was
respited until five weeks after Easter.
About the same time, during Lent, Philip de Boklaunde, a marshal
1 In Huntingdonshire. 3 Lynn, in Norfolk.
2 Saint Botolph's Town, or Boston, in Lin- 4 Stamford, in Lincolnshire,
colnshire.
52 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1260.
of his lordship the King, who had always claimed that the citizens of
London ought to make answer before the King's 1 Seneschal, whensoever
any one of the King's household might make complaint against them, im-
pleaded a certain merchant, in contravention of his liberties, who had been
born in the parts beyond sea. This plea was brought into the City before
the Sheriffs of London, and there determined.
In this year, the Bishop Elect of Winchester, who was consecrated
at Rome, and of whom mention has been made 2 above, died about the
Feast of Our Lord's Nativity, while coming to England with letters from
the Pope ; and, by assent of the Barons, William de Valence, his brother,
returned to England about Easter.
After this, when the five weeks after Easter had expired, judgment
in the aforesaid matter between the Londoners and the men of Nor-
hamtone, was again respited until the 3 quinzaine after the Feast of Saint
John [24 June].
Be it remembered, that at the Easter aforesaid, his lordship the King,
while at Winchester, made Philip Basset his Chief Justiciar,
without the assent of the Barons, who refused to admit him to
such office ; and so, for this reason and for other causes, there arose a dis-
sension between his lordship the King and the said Barons, and that too
without any manifest reason for the same.
A.D. 1261. PHILIP LE TAILLOUR,
Sheriffs.
RICHARD DE WALEBROK
,i
In this year, just before the Translation of Saint Edward [13 October]
the aforesaid dissension was allayed between his lordship the King and
his Barons, the King and his Queen then sojourning at 4 Saint Paul's,
and the King of Almaine at Saint Martin's le Grand ; a reconciliation
however, which did not last. On the contrary, the Barons, after this, in
some places removed the Sheriffs of his lordship the King, and appointed
others there, whom they styled " Wardens of the Counties ; " and further,
would not allow the Justiciars to do their duty, who had been sent
throughout the kingdom on Eyre.
1 Or " Steward." 4 p ro bably in the house of the Bishop Henry
2 See page 40, ante. de Wengham, who was in great favour with
:J Or fortnight's end. Henry III.
A.D.1261.] THE KING ABSOLVED FKOM HIS OATH BY THE POPE. 53
This year, Thomas Fitz-Thomas was made Mayor.
In this year, at Lent, his lordship the King caused to be read at
Saint Paul's Cross a certain Bull of Pope * Urban, who had been made
Pope the same year ; which confirmed the Bull of Pope 2 Alexander, his
predecessor, who had previously absolved the King and all the others of
the oath which they had made in the Parliament at Oxford, as before
noticed in this record. The King also sent his writ throughout all the
cities of England, commanding that no one should gainsay such absolution,
and further, that if any one should in deed or word presume to do the
contrary of such command, he should be taken, and not liberated without
order of his lordship the King,
In this year, the King of Almaine took his departure from London,
on the day before the Feast of Saint Alban [22 June], and crossed over
the third day after.
After this, on the Sunday next after the Feast of Peter and Paul
[29 June], his lordship the King took leave of the citizens of London,
at Saint Paul's Cross, to pass over into France, and on the morrow
departed from Westminster for the sea-coast, and the Queen with him ;
there being at that time beyond sea Sir Edward and Sir Edmund, sons
of his lordship the King. The King and Queen soon afterwards
crossed over.
About this time died Richard de Clare, Earl of Glou-
cester, and Henry de Wingham, Bishop of London.
After this, the King fell ill of a grievous sickness, about the Feast of
Saint Mary in the month of 3 September ; by reason of which sickness,
he remained in the parts beyond sea until after the Feast of Saint
Nicholas [6 December].
About the same time Richard Talebot, Dean of St. Paul's, was elected
Bishop of London ; who, returning from the parts beyond sea, where he
had been presented to his lordship the King, came over to England; but
falling ill, he took to his bed and died, just before the Feast of Saint
Michael, and before consecration.
1 Urban IV., previously Patriarch of Jeru- 3 On the eighth of that month ; being the
salem. Feast of her Nativity.
2 Alexander IV.
54 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1262.
A.D. 1262. OSBERT DE * SlJTHFOLCH, )
ROBERT DE 2 MUNPELERS, >
This year, Thomas Fitz- Thomas was again made Mayor of London.
In this year, just after the Feast of Saint Martin [11 November]
about the time of Vespers, a certain Jew having wounded a Christian
with an 3 anelace, in Colecherche Street, many Christians, indeed a count-
less multitude of people, ran in pursuit of the Jew, and broke into many
houses belonging to the Jews ; not content with which, afterwards at
nightfall they carried off all the goods of the said Jews, and would have
broken into many more houses, and carried off the goods, had not the
Mayor and Sheriffs repaired to the spot and driven away those offenders
by force of arms. For which reason, inquisition was made on the morrow,
and so from day to day, by the Mayor and Sheriffs in the Guildhall,
twelve men from each of the Wards of London, to whom no suspicion
attached in reference to that felony, being sworn thereunto. And after-
wards, all the Aldermen made inquisition upon this matter, each in his
own Wardmote ; and those who were indicted or accused, were taken by
the Sheriffs and imprisoned, part of them in Neugate and part in 4 Crepel-
gate. But afterwards, those who were free of the City and who could
find pledges, were liberated on surety.
In this year his lordship the King returned from France, and putting
to sea, together with the Queen, at Witsand, landed at Dover
on the Vigil of Saint Thomas the Apostle [21 December], and
on the Wednesday before the Epiphany [6 January] arrived in London.
This year there was a great frost and thick ice, the frost beginning on
the fifth day before the 5 Nativity and lasting for three whole weeks; the
Thames too was so frozen, that at one time it was covered from shore
to shore, so much so, that it had all the appearance of being able to be
crossed over on foot and on horseback.
In the same year, on the seventh day of February, were burnt, by
reason of a fire breaking out there, the Lesser Hall of his lordship the
1 Suffolk. 4 In the stations probably for the armed
2 Now Montpellier. watch, at the sides of, and perhaps over, the
3 A knife or dagger, worn in the girdle, at Gate.
the side. 5 Christmas Day.
A.D. 1262.] RESISTANCE OF PRISAGE BY CONSTABLE OF THE TOWER. 55
King at Westminster, the Chamber, the Chapel, the l Receiving-Room,
and many other official buildings as well.
In this year, just before 2 Saint Peter's Chair, the Mayor and citizens
of London shewed unto Sir Philip Basset, Justiciar of England, and
others of the Council of his lordship the King, at Westminster, that the
Constable of the Tower, in contravention of their franchises, wished to
arrest and seize vessels in the Thames before the Tower, and take
prisage of corn and other things, before they had reached the wharf;
further saying, that just then he had caused a vessel belonging to
Thomas de Basinges, laden with wheat, to be stopped before the Tower,
and was for taking one hundred quarters therefrom, at a price, by the
quarter, two pence less than it would have sold for when brought ashore.
To which the said Constable made answer, that this he was quite at
liberty to do, in behalf of his lordship the King ; whereupon, the citizens
replied, that attachments on the Thames pertain solely to the Sheriffs of
London, seeing that the whole water of Thames belongs to the City
from shore to shore, as far as the 3 Newe Were ; as had been repeatedly
shown before the Justiciars Itinerant at the Tower, and as had been
assented to at 4 Bermundesheie, by twelve knights of Sureye, upon oath,
before his lordship Hugh Bigot, Justiciar of England, then itinerant
there.
They said also, that his lordship the King takes no prisage of corn,
before the vessel has reached the wharf, and that then he is to have the
quarter of wheat at two pence less than it would sell for ; and this, only
for the support of his own household. Also, that neither the
Constable nor any other person is to have prisage of corn ; but
that, if he wishes to buy anything, he must buy it in the market of the City,
like the citizens, and at the option of the vendor ; and they entreated his
lordship the King, that he would preserve their liberties ; always claiming
however, that there they neither would, nor ought to, undergo judgment
or receive the same. Then, after conference had been held between the
Justiciars and others of the King's Council, Sir William de Wilton
1 This is probably the meaning of " Recep- and that at Antioch, 22 February.
" taculum." 3 See page 42, ante.
2 There were two Festivals of this name ; 4 Bermondsey.
that instituted at Rome was on 28 January,
56 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1262.
made answer to the citizens ; " His lordship the King is wishful that
<e your liberties be preserved, and it is our duty to be wishful that his
" rights be not lost ; and because we are ignorant what are the rights
" which pertain unto the Tower, we will make inquisition at the end of
" three weeks after Easter, of other persons who have been Constables
" there, what kind of l seisin his lordship the King has had there ; but the
" City, in the meantime, may enjoy its own seisin wholly and in peace,
tf saving however such claim on part of the Constable, as upon the said
" day he shall be able reasonably to shew." Whereupon, it was provided
by the citizens, and injunction was given to the Sheriffs, that they should
not allow the Constable to make any attachment on the Thames, and
should repel force by force, if necessary.
In this year, his lordship the King again gave his assent to the main-
tenance of the Statutes of Oxford, and sent his writs, in which the said
Statutes were set forth in writing, throughout all the Counties of
England, enjoining that the same should be observed, as well as others
which the Earl Marshal, the Earl of Leicester, Philip Basset, and Hugh
Bigot, were about to prepare : an ordinance which held good for no
long time.
Afterwards, on Sunday in Mid-Lent, many people of the City
meeting at Saint Paul's Cross, the Mayor did fealty to Sir Edward,
2 after the King's decease; and on the morrow all the Aldermen did the
same in the Guildhall, those who were absent through illness doing the
same at home, before the Mayor. On the Sunday following, all males
of twelve years of age and upwards, made the same oath before their
respective Aldermen, each in his own Wardmote.
In this year, before Pentecost, the Barons who had given
their assent to the observance of the Ordinances and Statutes made at
Oxford, sent a certain letter to his lordship the King, under the seal of
Roger de Clifford, requiring of him that he would maintain those Statutes;
and defied all those who should attempt to contravene the same, saving
always, the persons of the King, the Queen, and their children. Imme-
diately after this, the said Barons, with a great army, levied war against
all their adversaries, and, in the first place, at Hereford seized the
1 1. e. right. of '* post vitam suam."
2 This can be the only meaning apparently,
A. D. 1262.] ADDKESS OF THE BAKONS TO THE KING. 57
1 Bishop of Hereford, and all his Canons who were aliens, carried off all
their treasures, sold all that they could find upon their manors, and ravaged
many of the manors with fire. And in the same way they did as to all
the manors by which they passed, belonging to those, that is to say, who
attempted to infringe the said Statutes, ecclesiastics as well as others ; in
their churches also, they placed new rectors, and more especially in the
churches that were held by aliens, doing no harm to any persons except
their adversaries, but strictly maintaining the peace as towards them.
Seizing however the castles belonging to his lordship the King and
some others, they placed new constables in them ; all of whom they
made to swear fealty to his lordship the King, always carrying before
themselves the King's standard. After this, about the Feast of Saint
John [24 June], they sent a letter to the citizens of London, under the
seal of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, desiring to be certified by
them whether they would observe the said Ordinances and Statutes,
made to the honour of God, in fealty to his lordship the King, and to
the advantage of all the realm, or would in preference adhere to those
who wished to infringe the same.
And be it known, that the prayer of the Barons was to the following
effect : " The Barons do humbly and duteously request of his lordship
" the King, that the Ordinances and Statutes made at Oxford, and con-
" firmed by oath as well of his lordship the King as of the nobles, and
" after that, of all and singular of the realm of England, shall be strictly
" and inviolably observed. Provided however, that if anything in them,
" by award of good men thereunto elected, shall be found to the prejudice
if or injury of his lordship the King or of the realm, the same shall be
" wholly withdrawn therefrom ; and that if anything shall be doubtful
"or shall need correction, the same shall be made clear or
Fol. 85 A.
" corrected ; and that as to other points, those namely that are
" good and beneficial, security shall be provided that the same shall be
" for ever strictly observed. They do further request, that the realm shall
" in future be governed, under his lordship the King, by trusty and
" skilful natives of the same and not by others than such ; the same as in
i( all other kingdoms throughout the world is commonly done. "
Peter de Egeblaunch : who was obnoxious to them as being a native of Savoy.
I
58 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.B. 1262.
Upon receiving the message, the citizens shewed the same to his lord-
ship the King, who was then at the Tower, the King of Almaine, the
Queen, Sir Edward, and Robert Walrand being the only other persons
who were then present ; and they further said, that all the community was
willing to observe those Statutes which were to the honour of Gt)d, in
fealty to the King, and to the advantage of the realm ; which Statutes,
by the King's command, had before been ratified by the said community
by oath ; and further, that it was their wish that no knights [or] ser-
jeants, aliens by birth, should be allowed to sojourn in the City ; for that
it was through 1 them that all the dissensions had arisen between the King
and his Barons. After this, by the King's command, certain of the
citizens were sent to Dover with the King's Council, to treat for peace
with the Barons. On the occasion of which journey, answer was made
to the Barons, that all the community was willing to observe the said
Statutes, to the honour of God, in fealty to his lordship the King, and
to the advantage of the realm, saving always the liberties of London : and
thus was a league made between the Barons and the citizens, with this
reservation, " saving fealty to his lordship the King."
At this season, and indeed before, all aliens, both knights and ser-
jeants, were dismissed from the City ; who were afterwards placed by Sir
Edward in garrison at Wyndleshore. And at this time also the citizens
kept watch and ward, riding by night throughout the City with horse
and arms ; though among them a countless multitude of persons on foot
obtruded themselves; some evil-minded among whom, under pretext of
searching for aliens, broke open many houses belonging to other persons,
and carried off such goods as were there to be found. To restrain the
evil designs of these persons, the watches on horseback were therefore
put an end to, and watch was kept by the respective Wards, each person
keeping himself well armed within his own Ward.
Afterwards, on the Sunday before the Feast of Saint Margaret [20
July], the Barons came to London, and on the morrow the King and
Queen withdrew from the Tower to Westminster. At this
time, with the assent of his lordship the King, Hugh le De-
spencer was made by the Barons Justiciar of all England, and the Tower
of London delivered into his charge.
1 /. e. the aliens residing in the kingdom.
A.D. 1262.] VIOLENCE OF THE LONDON POPULACE. 59
Be it here remarked, that this Mayor,, during the time of his Mayor-
alty, had so pampered the City populace, that, styling themselves the
" Commons of the City," they had obtained the first voice in the City.
For the Mayor, in doing all that he had to do, acted and determined
through them, and would say to them, " Is it your will that so it shall be ?"
and then, if they answered " Ya, ya," so it was done. And on the other
hand, the Aldermen or chief citizens were little or not at all consulted
on such matter ; but were in fact just as though they had not existed.
Through this, that same populace became so elated and so inflated with
pride, that during the commotions in the realm, of which mention has been
previously made, they formed themselves into covins, and leagued them-
selves together by oath, by the hundred and by the thousand, under a
sort of colour of keeping the peace, whereas they themselves were mani-
festly disturbers of the peace. For whereas the Barons were only fight-
ing against those who wished to break the aforesaid Statutes, and seized
the property of such, and that too by day, the others by night broke into
the houses of the people of 1 Quercy and of other persons in the City,
who were not against the said Statutes, and by main force carried off the
property found in such houses, besides doing many other unlawful acts as
well. As to the Mayor, he censured these persons in but a lukewarm way.
Afterwards, these same persons, like so many Justiciars Itinerant,
wished to remove all 2 purprestures, new and old, observing no order of
trial ; and endeavoured to throw open lanes, which, by writ of his lord-
ship the King and with the sanction of the Justiciars Itinerant, the
community assenting thereto, had been stopped up and rented to certain
persons; so much so, in fact, that some of them they opened, with-
out judgment given, and in like manner did they remove certain pur-
prestures, and some of them after dinner 3 ; and this they did, not only
for the purpose of removing them, but for the opportunity of carrying
off the timber and other things there to be found.
After this, on the morrow of Saint Margaret [20 July], a writ of
his lordship the King was sent to the Mayor and citizens, and
was read in the Guildhall ; it being set forth therein, that the
1 A province in the S. of France, its capital or enclosing, common ground, or land belong-
being Cahors. ing to the Crown.
2 Alleged encroachments by building on, 3 This passage appears to be incomplete.
60 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1262
dissensions which existed between the King and the Barons had been
allayed, and that the King commanded that his peace should be strictly
observed, as well within the City as without; and that, when any one
should be known to contravene the aforesaid Statutes, he should be
arrested by the Bailiffs, and all his goods seized, and kept in safe
custody until the King should have issued his precept to other effect
thereupon. And further, that from that day forward all matters should
be conducted and determined according to the law of the land.
At this season, the Barons aforesaid, to conciliate still further the
good will of the citizens, addressed them, and said that they would make
provision, in case aught should be subtracted from their liberties; and
even more, that such other matters, as, consistently with justice and
honour, might tend to augment their liberties, if put in writing, they, the
Barons, would shew unto the King and his Council ; and that the King
would confirm the same with his seal, to be held by the said citizens and
their heirs for ever. The Mayor too had all the populace of the City
summoned, telling them that the men of each craft must make such pro-
visions as should be to their own advantage, and he himself would have
the same proclaimed throughout the City, and strictly observed. Accord-
ingly, after this, from day to day individuals of every craft of themselves
made new statutes and provisions or rather, what might be styled " abomi-
" nations," and that, solely for their own advantage, and to the intolerable
loss of all merchants coming to London and visiting the fairs of England,
and the exceeding injury of all persons in the realm. At this time too,
nothing whatever was done, or treated of, for the common advantage of
the City or for the increase of its liberties ; though still, the l aforesaid
enactments and provisions were not carried into effect.
After this, on the Vigil of Saint James [25 July] the Barons too
departed from London for Windleshore, with the view of besieging
the castle there : which Castle however was surrendered by Sir Edward,
and peace made, on the day after the Feast aforesaid, the King
and Barons still staying in the neighbourhood of 2 Fuleham ;
immediately after which, the aliens who were within the Castle re-
turned to their native land.
1 Those namely, made ly the various trades 2 Fulham.
within the City.
A.D. 1262.] SUIT WITH THE ABBOT OP WESTMINSTER. 61
At this time also, many nobles and others, making complaint, set forth
unto the King and his Council, that they, among others, had been plun-
dered, and that too unjustly, adding that they were not opposed to the
said Statutes of Oxford, and demanding justice : a matter however, which
was postponed until the quinzaine of Saint Michael.
Afterwards, on the second day after the Feast of Saint Matthew
[21 September], which then fell on a Sunday, his lordship the King, the
Queen, and their sons, with many nobles of England, crossed over to be
present at a conference with the King of France at Boulogne ; where
the pilgrimage of himself and of other Crusaders to the Holy Land was
treated of, as also the coronation of his l son as King ; there being there
present, nearly all the Dukes and nobles of France, Burgundy, Cham-
pagne, and Spain.
A.D. 1263. THOMAS DE FORD, ) n
> Sheriffs.
GREGORY DE KOKESLE,}
In 2 this year, on the day after the Octaves of Saint Michael, his lord-
ship the King, returning from Boulogne, arrived in England, and, on the
Friday after, reached London.
Be it observed, that whereas for many years there had been a dispute
between the Abbot of Westminster and the citizens of London as to
some liberties which the said Abbot, by a certain Charter, obtained of his
lordship the King, demanded in the County of Middlesex, at length, on
the Tuesday after the Octaves of Saint Michael in this year, the said dis-
pute was determined by judgment given at the Exchequer of his lordship
the King, in presence of Gilbert de Preston, Justiciar, by Writ of the
King thereunto specially deputed, and of the Barons of the Exchequer.
For, by verdict upon oath of twelve knights of the county of Middlesex,
it was decided that the Sheriffs of London may enter all vills and tene-
ments which the Abbot holds in Middlesex, even unto the gate of his
Abbey, and there in every way make summons and distraint, the same as
in the tenements of other freeholders of the County ; and that the tenants
of the Abbot are bound to do suit at the County Courts and at the Hun-
dred Courts, and to do all other services, as the freeholders of the
County aforesaid are wont to do. Afterwards, in process of time
1 Afterwards Philip the Third, of France. computed throughout from the Feast of St.
2 This passage shews that the years are Michael, 29 September.
62 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263.
the said Abbot and his Convent, by Charter sealed with the common
seal, remitted for ever unto the citizens all right of action which they
had in Middlesex by reason of the before-named Charter, obtained
of his lordship the King to the prejudice of the citizens : which how-
ever was not afterwards adhered to.
This year, in the Parliament held after the quinzaine of Saint Michael,
a dissension again arose between his lordship the King and the aforesaid
Earl of Leicester and his accomplices. For the King and Sir Edward,
and many nobles of the realm who adhered to them, desired that justice
should be done to all those, upon whom depredations or trespasses had
been unjustly committed ; while the other party would not consent thereto.
After this too, the King desired that those who were to be of his own
household, should be chosen and put in office by himself.
At this season, Sir Edward, under colour of paying a visit to his wife,
entered the Castle of Wyndeshor, and there continued to abide. The
King also, on the morrow, departed in the morning from Westminster in
the direction of the said Castle, and entered it with such of his own people
as he thought proper; many Earls and Barons following, who adhered to
him, while the Earl of Leicester and his accomplices were staying in
London. Afterwards, however, the two parties submitted the dispute to
the arbitration of the King of France.
This year, Thomas Fitz-Thomas was again elected Mayor by the
populace, the Aldermen and principal men of the City being but little
consulted thereon; and immediately after the election he was sworn, just
as he had been the two preceding years ; a thing that no other Mayor had
ever been, unless he had been first admitted by the King or his Barons
of the Exchequer. On the morrow however he was presented to the
aforesaid Barons at Westminster; but was not admitted, the King for-
bidding it by his writ, he being for many reasons greatly moved to anger
against the City.
After this, his lordship the King, who had before sent letters to the
King of France, signifying that he would abide by his arbitration as to
the dispute existing between himself and the Barons, crossed over in the
week of the Nativity, and Sir Edward and others of his Council, to hold
a conference with the King of France. Peter de Montfort also,
and certain others on part of the Barons, whose letters patent
A.D.1263.] AWARD OF THE KING OF FRANCE. 63
the aforesaid King also had, to the effect that they would abide by his
arbitration, crossed over.
Accordingly, the King before-mentioned, on the Wednesday before
the Conversion of Saint Paul [25 January], made known his award, the
tenor of which is as follows :
" We, the parties being convened at Amiens, his lordship the King of
" England in person, and some of the Barons personally, and others by
" their proctors, appearing before us, after hearing the allegations and
" defences on either side, and fully understanding the reasons by the
" parties alleged, considering that, by the provisions, ordinances, statutes,
" and obligations, of Oxford, and by the results which therefrom have
" ensued, and by reason thereof, the royal right and honour have been
" greatly impaired, [and] that disturbance of the realm, oppression, and
l( plunder of churches, and most grievous disasters to other persons of the
" said realm, ecclesiastical and secular, natives and aliens, have ensued ;
" as also, a thing that was reasonably to be apprehended, to the end
f< that evils still more grievous might not in future arise ; after taking
" counsel of good and high personages, do, by our award and our ordi-
" nance, quash and annul the aforesaid provisions, ordinances, statutes, and
ee obligations, by whatsoever name the same may be observed, and what-
" soever through them, or by reason of them, has ensued ; and this the
" more especially, as it appears that the Supreme Pontiff has by his
" letters pronounced the same quashed and annulled ; we ordaining, that
" as well the said King as the Barons, and such other persons as have agreed
" to this present compromise, and have in any way bound themselves to
" observe the aforesaid, shall wholly acquit and absolve themselves thereof.
" We do also add that, by force or virtue of the aforesaid provisions, or
" ordinances, or obligations, or of any power by the King granted thereon,
"no person shall make new statutes, or shall hold or observe those
(e already made ; nor ought any one, for non-observance of the aforesaid,
" to be held guilty of a capital crime or in any other way to be an enemy,
" or to undergo any punishment by reason thereof. We do also decide,
" that all letters made as to the aforesaid provisions, and by reason thereof,
" shall be null and void, and do further ordain that the same shall be
" restored by the Barons unto the King of England, and duly returned.
" We do also say and ordain, that all castles which have been delivered
64 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 12fi3.
" for safe custody, or by reason of the aforesaid, and which are still
" withheld, shall, by the said Barons unto the King be freely
6f restored, by the said King to be held, in such manner as, before the time
" of the aforesaid provisions, he was wont to hold the same. We do also
" say and ordain, that it shall be lawful unto the same King, freely to ap-
ff point, depose, institute, and remove, the Chief Justiciar, Chancellor, Trea-
" surer, Minor Justiciars, Sheriffs, and all other ministers and officials of his
" realm and his household whomsoever, at his own free will, in such manner
66 as, before the time aforesaid, he was wont. Also, we do revoke and quash
" the statute made, to the effect that the realm of England shall in future
" be governed by natives, as also that aliens shall depart therefrom, not
" to return, those only excepted whose stay the faithful subjects of the
ef realm should in common allow. We do ordain by our award, that it
" shall be lawful for aliens to remain in security within the said realm,
" and that the said King shall be at liberty to call aliens to his counsel,
" such as he shall deem to him to be advantageous and trustworthy, in
" such manner as before the time aforesaid he might do. Also, we do
" say and do ordain, that the said King shall have full power and free
" rule within his realm and the appurtenances thereof; and that he shall
" be in the same position and with the same plenary power, in all things
" and by all things, that he was in before the time aforesaid. We further
" are unwilling, nor by this present ordinance do we intend, in any way
" to derogate from the royal privileges, charters, liberties, statutes, or
" praiseworthy customs, of the realm of England, which before the time
" aforesaid existed. We do also ordain, that the said King shall withhold
" and remit all rancour as towards the said Barons, which against them he
" may entertain by reason of the premises, and the Barons also in like
" manner ; and that no person shall in future, himself or by any other, in
" any way aggrieve or offend another by reason of the premises, which
" unto us by way of compromise have been referred."
After this, his lordship the King returned to England from the parts
beyond sea. 1
The Barons however were not content with the award of the said
King of France, but immediately levied war upon Eoger de Mortimer
in the Marches of Wales ; and levelled all his castles, pillaged his lands,
1 "On the 15th of the Calends of March" (15 February). Marginal Note.
\
A.I>. 1263.] THE MANOR OF ISLEWORTH RAVAGED BY THE CITIZENS. 65
and burnt his manors and villas ; Sir Edward also, on coming to his suc-
cour with a strong force, was nearly taken prisoner. At this time also,
another Parliament was held at Oxford between his lordship the King
and the Barons aforesaid. The Londoners however, and the Barons of
the Cinque Ports, and nearly all the middle class of people throughout
the kingdom of England, who indeed had not joined in the reference to
the King of France, wholly declined his award.
Wherefore, the Londoners appointed one of their number, ^
Thomas de Piwelesdone by name, to be their Constable, and as
Marshal, Stephen Buckerel, at whose summons, upon hearing the great
bell of Saint Paul's, all the people of the City were to sally forth, and not
otherwise; being prepared as well by night as by day, [and] well armed,
to follow the standards of the said Constable and Marshal wheresoever
they might think proper to lead them. After this^ Hugh le Despenser,
the Justiciar, who then had charge of the Tower, with a countless multi-
tude of Londoners, went forth from the City, following the standards of
the aforesaid Constable and Marshal ; none of them knowing whither
they were going, or what they were to do. Being led however as far
as l Ystleworthe, they there laid waste and ravaged with fire the manor of
the King of Almaine, and plundered all the property there found, and
broke down and burned his mills ane fish-preserves, observing no truce,
at the very time that the said Parliament was in existence. And this was
the beginning of woes, and the source of that deadly war, through which
so many manors were committed to the flames, so many men, rich and
poor, were plundered, and so many thousands of persons lost their lives.
The Parliament however being concluded without any agreement
being arrived at, the Earl of Leicester came to London, and many of
the Barons with him. Immediately upon this, his lordship the King and
Sir Edward, with a strong force, fought at Norhamptone, and took that
place, and the Castle there as well, as also Peter de Montfort, and Simon,
son of the Earl before-mentioned, and all the Barons there found, together
with all their harness ; they also seized all the burgesses, the whole of
whom the King caused to be kept in safe custody. At this time, the
Barons and Londoners entered into a league by written instrument and
by oath, all in fact of twelve years of age and upwards ; to the effect that
1 Isleworth, in Middlesex. ?
66 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263.
they would stand together against all men, saving however their fealty to
their lord the King.
Afterwards, in the week before Palrn Sunday, the x Jewry in London
was destroyed, and all the property of the Jews carried off; as many of
them as were found, being stripped naked, despoiled, and afterwards
murdered by night in sections, to the number, that is to say, of more than
five hundred. And as for those who survived, they were saved by the
Justiciars and the Mayor, having been sent to the Tower before the
slaughter took place ; and then too, the Chest of 2 Chirographs was sent to
the Tower for safe custody. Then also, as well as before, much
money belonging to the men of Italy and of Quercy, which had
been deposited in the Priories and Abbeys about London for safe custody,
was dragged forth and carried off to London. Afterwards, in the week before
Easter, the Barons and the Londoners attacked Rochester and took it,
and laying siege to the Castle there, took the 3 bailey ; but, on hearing news
of the King's approach, they withdrew and returned to London in Easter
week. After this, on the Feast of Saint John Port Latin [6 May], the
Barons and Londoners went forth from the City to meet his said lordship
the King, who was then in the neighbourhood of 4 Liawes, with a very
great force. Making a halt there, the Barons sent letters to his lordship
the King, and the King sent them letters of his in answer ; and in like
manner tho King of Almaine and Sir Edward which letters see written
on the reverse of this leaf. On the ninth day after that day, which fell
on a Wednesday, very early in the morning, the contending parties met
without the town of Liawes ; and at the first onset, the greater part of
the Londoners, horse and foot, as well as certain knights and Barons, took
to flight towards London. The [other] Barons however, and those who
remained, fought with the King's army until nightfall, and after a count-
less multitude on either side had been slain, the Barons gained the victory,
and took the town of Liawes. The King of Almaine also was taken,
and many other Earls and Barons either surrendered themselves or were
slain. In this conflict, apart from the Kings and Sir Edward, five-and-
1 Or " Judaism." The district (in the 2 Or Starrs, mentioned in page 21 ante.
vicinity of the Guildhall) where the Jews 3 The courts of the castle, that lay between
lived ; who were regarded as peculiarly the the outer wall and the keep,
property of the King. * Lewes, in
A. D. 1263.] DEFEAT OF THE KING AT THE BATTLE OF LEWES. 67
twenty Barons, bearing banners, were either taken or slain; certain
Barons, however, of the King's army took to flight and escaped.
Be it remarked, that on the same night, between the King and the
Barons it was provided and ordained, that the Provisions of Oxford
should stand unshaken, and that if aught in them should need correc-
tion, the same should be duly corrected by four of the most noble men
of England, Bishops or persons of rank ; and that if any dissension
should arise between them, so much so that they could in no way come to
an agreement thereon, they should then abide by the decision of the
Count of Anjou and the Duke of Burgundy; if indeed the greater part
of the Barons should be willing to agree thereto. And that they would
faithfully observe this provision, the two Kings before-mentioned gave
their eldest sons, as hostages and prisoners, unto the Barons ; and it was
determined that a Parliament should be held in London at the Feast
of l Pentecost then next ensuing ; an arrangement which was never car-
ried into effect.
Afterwards, on the Tuesday before Ascension Day, the peace between
the King and the Barons was proclaimed in London, and on the morrow
the army of the Barons came to London, and his lordship the King with
his own people ; as also the King of Almaine and many prisoners,
who had been taken in the aforesaid battle; Sir Edward and
Sir Henry of Almaine, who were hostages, as already stated, being kept
in custody in Dover Castle. The King of Almaine however, and many
other prisoners, were put in the Tower of London. As to his lordship the
King, he was lodged at Saint Paul's, when many members of his house-
hold were removed from him ; added to which, nothing was allowed to
him or to the King of Almaine until they had delivered their hostages
unto the Barons.
2 Copy of the Letters which the Barons sent to his lordship the King, before
the Battle before-mentioned, and of the Letters which the said King, in
return., sent to them ; as also 9 of the Letters which the King of Almaine
sent to the Barons in return.
11 To their most excellent Lord, Henry, by the grace of God, the
" illustrious King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Acquitaine,
1 Or Whitsuntide. 2 Mentioned in page 66 ante.
68 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263.
" the Barons and other his faithful subjects, desiring to observe their oath
" and the fealty that is due unto G od and to him, health and devoted
" service, with all reverence and honour. Whereas by many proofs it is
" evident, that certain persons about you have suggested unto your lord-
" ship many falsehoods as to ourselves, and that too, intending as great
" evils as they may, not only unto ourselves but also unto you and the
(f whole of your realm ; be it known unto your Excellency, that it has'
" been our wish, with the fealty which unto you we owe, to maintain the
" safety and security of your person with all our might ; it being our
" purpose, to the utmost of our power, to aggrieve not only our own
" enemies, but also yours as well, and those of all your realm. Be pleased
"therefore, not to believe them as to the matters aforesaid;* for we shall
" always be found to be faithful unto you. And we, the Earl of Leices-
" ter and Gilbert de Clare, at the prayer of the others, for us and for
" them, here present, have hereto set our seals."
" Henry, by the grace of God, etc., to Simon de Montfort and
" Gilbert de Clare, and their accomplices. Whereas by the war and
(< general commotion in our realm, which by you have lately been raised,
" as also by the conflagrations and other enormous acts of devastation,
" it is manifestly evident that you do not regard the fealty that from
" you is due unto us, nor do care in any way for the safety of our
" person ; seeing too that you have outrageously aggrieved the nobles
" and other our faithful subjects, who with constancy do adhere
" unto their fealty to us, and do, to the utmost of your power,
" as by your letters you have signified unto us, purpose to aggrieve
" them ; we, considering the grievance of them to be our own grievance,
" and the enemies of them to be our own enemies, the more especially as
" our said faithful subjects, in the observance of their fealty, do faithfully
" and manfully aid us against your unfaithfulness, do care nothing for
" your assurances or for your love, but, as being our enemies, do defy
" you. Witness myself at Lewes, this 12th day of May, in the eight-
<( and-fortieth year of our reign."
" Richard, by the grace of God, King of the Romans, ever August,
" and Edward, of the illustrious King of England the first-born, and all
A.D. 1263.] DEFIANCE OF THE BARONS BY PRINCE EDWARD. 69
" other the Barons and nobles, who in the works of sincere fealty and
" devotion do testify their constant adherence unto the aforesaid King of
-"England, to Simon de Montfort, Gilbert de Clare, and all and singular
" other the accomplices of their perfidy. From your letters which you
" have sent unto the illustrious King of England, our most dear lord,
" we have heard that we by you are defied ; although this your verbal
" defiance has already been sufficiently proved unto us by fact of your
" hostility, in the destruction by fire of our property and the laying waste
" of our possessions. We therefore do wish you to know that you, as
" public enemies by enemies, are defied by all and singular of us ; and
" that from this time forward we will, with all our mind and our strength,
" wheresoever we shall have the means of so doing, do our utmost to
" inflict injury alike upon your persons and your possessions. And
" further, whereas you do falsely impute unto us, that we do give neither
" faithful nor good counsel unto our said King, you do say that which
" is not the truth. And if you, Sir Simon de Montfort, or Gilbert de
" Clare, do wish to assert that same in the Court of the said King, we
" are ready to procure for you a safe-conduct to come unto the said
" Court, and by another, your peer in nobility and in birth, to make proof
" of our innocence herein, and, as being a perfidious traitor, the falsehood
" of yourself. We all are content with the seals of the Lords aforesaid,
" that is to say, of the King of the Romans, and Sir Edward. Given at
" Lewes, this twelfth day of May."
After this, the King of Almaine was taken to the Castle of Berkam-
stede.
Then the Bishops and Barons held a Parliament, in which it was
ordained, as is set forth in the letters of his lordship the King, which he
himself made, and sealed with his seal ; which letters begin as follows :
" For the reformation of the present state of the realm, there shall be
"chosen three of the most discreet persons of the realm, etc." 1
At the same time provision was made as to depredators, as
Fol. 90 B.
well clerical as lay, how proceedings were to be taken against
them. Also, as to clerks who have borne arms in the war, or in the
company of robbers. Also, as to clerks and laymen who have carried
1 For the whole of this document, see the Liber Outtumarum, lately published, pp. 663, 664.
70 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263
off ecclesiastical property in one diocese, and have benefices or domiciles
in another ; when they cannot be reached with citation where they have
perpetrated their offences. Also, as to clerks and laymen who have made
clerks captive.
1 To the first, answer was made ; if any one should think proper to
act otherwise [than right], let due course of law be observed ; but where
rapine has been committed upon a church, either by clerk or layman,
or at their moving, or where violence has been committed upon an
ecclesiastical person by a person ecclesiastical or lay, or upon a layman
by a clerk ; because through fear of greater peril,, injuries committed
upon churches, as also those of a private nature, might, after many such
wrongful deeds had been left unpunished, possibly be checked through
the risk of such peril ; 2 1 do deem it in such cases to be agreeable and
expedient, that the Bishop shall in his diocese cause inquisition to be
made thereon, as to who, from whom, what, how much, and from what
place, has with violence stripped and despoiled the house ; and further,
that the names being specified, the persons shall be lawfully cited, and
in the case of notorious and manifest acts, after monition has issued,
condemnation shall follow. But in secret cases where there is denial,
purgation is to be awarded. And because a multitude is implicated
herein, it is expedient, I think, that there should be some little tending to
severity.
To the second, answer was made ; that clerks, bearing arms in actual
conflict, if on the side of those who were supporting justice and repelling
violence, shall for a time be suspended from office, and, after the period
of such suspension shall have expired, may be restored to office ; provided
however they have struck or wounded no one in the said conflict. From
this you may form a judgment what I think as to other like cases. But
where such persons have leagued themselves with robbers or depredators,
and have been partakers in robbing or depredation, especially of churches
and ecclesiastics, they must incur the peril of their order, and may by
strict right be deprived of their benefices : against such persons, when
accused, proceedings must be taken by way of inquisition, as already
stated.
1 The whole of this passage is evidently 2 It is probably the then Legate who is
corrupt and imperfect ; and its meaning can speaking,
only be guessed at.
A.D. 1263.] CONTEMPLATED INVASION OF ENGLAND. 71
To the third, answer was made ; that when misdoers betake them-
selves to other parts, so that citations cannot reach them there, an edict
must be publicly put forth by the Bishop, to the effect that the same
Bishop, at a certain time and place, will make inquisition as to such acts
of rapine and such depredators ; and notice must be given to all who are
in any way interested, that they may be present at such inquisition, if
they shall deem it expedient. And whoever shall be found guilty, shall
by the Bishop of the place in which he has committed the offence, be ex-
communicated, and execution of such sentence shall be demanded of the
Bishop in whose territory he has domicile or benefice. And if any person
shall wish to bring such offender to trial, the Bishop of the place
in which the offence was committed, must cite the Bishop in
whose diocese he has benefice or domicile, who in such case must do for
his peer whatever is necessary.
To the fourth, answer was made ; that those who make clerks captive
are by the Canon rendered excommunicate, and after satisfaction has been
made for the injuries committed, and the costs and damages, they must be
sent for absolution to the Apostolic See ; and if they shall have extorted
anything by way of ransom, the same shall be restored, simply or two-
fold, according to the award of the Bishop. Also, in this case, procedure
may be had by way of action, if there be any one who may wish to pro-
ceed by inquisition, in case the injured parties have shown a purpose to
act through the influence of fear, or through slothfulness, or collusion.
This ordinance was not at that season carried into effect.
At this season, because news came that through the Queen's con-
trivance, and that of Peter de l Sauveie, John Earl of Warenne, Hugh
Bigot, William de Valence, John Maunsell, and others, who were then
in the parts beyond the sea, certain aliens intended to invade the kingdom
of England by force of arms, a Writ of his lordship the King was sent to
the Sheriffs of England, to the effect under-written :
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, and
" Duke of Acquitaine, to the Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots, Priors, Earls,
" Barons, Sheriffs, Knights, freemen, and all the commons, of the County
" of Essex, greeting. Whereas we have heard for certain, that a great
" multitude of aliens, collecting ships from every quarter, are making
1 Savoy.
72 CHRONICLES OP THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263.
" preparations to enter our realm by force of arms, to the confusion and
" the everlasting disherison of us, and of all and singular persons in this
t( realm, unless indeed we shall deem it proper to meet them with a strong
" hand, we do command you, in virtue of the fealty in which unto us you are
" bound, and do strictly enjoin, that manfully and strenuously you do forth-
" with equip with horses and with arms, all knights and freeholders who
" shall thereunto suffice ; that so, you be with us at London, with all your
" array, on the Sunday next after the Feast of Saint Peter's Chains [1
" August], to proceed with us forthwith against such aliens, in defence by
" us and by you of all this realm. And you, the Sheriff, taking with you
" the l Keeper of the Peace of the same County, are to give notice unto
" the Bishops, Abbots, Priors, Barons, and all others who owe service unto
" us, and are strictly to enjoin on our behalf, by virtue of the fealty and the
' f homage in which unto us they are bound, and as they love themselves,
<e their lands and tenements, that each one of them do come, not only with
" the military service which unto us is due, but with all the might and
" power that he may, or else send unto us upon that day such horses, and
" arms, and chosen foot-soldiers, as he shall be able ; that so by their
" aid we may be enabled the more efficiently to meet this peril.
" And let no one, by reason of the shortness of this notice, and
<( because that it does not contain a reasonable time of summons, excuse
" himself; seeing that urgent necessity does not allow of postponement to
" a future day ; nor is it our intention or our wish, that even this shall be
"drawn into a precedent, to the prejudice of others. And further, from
" every vill, upon the same day, you are to summon eight, six, or four at
" the least, according to the size of such vill, of the best and most able
"foot-soldiers, well provided with befitting array, that is to say, with
" lances, bows and arrows, swords, arbalests, and axes, and have them
" provided therewith at the common expense for forty days. In the case
" also of cities, in like manner, castles, and boroughs, where there is a
" greater multitude of men, according to the extent and means of every
" such place, omit not, in manner aforesaid, to send as well foot as horse,
" in such numbers as, taking into consideration the nature of the business,
" you stall think proper to provide. Nor is any one to make allegation
1 Probably the official known at a later period as the " Clerk of the Peace."
A.n.1263.] PREPARATIONS MADE TO RESIST THE INVASION. 73
" of the approaching time of harvest, or of his being occupied with his
" family affairs of any other kind, seeing that it is more safe and more
" advantageous, with security to the person, to be in goods in some small
" measure damnified, than, with total loss of land and of goods, by the
" impious hands of those who, thirsting for your blood, will spare neither
" sex nor age, if they can prevail, to be delivered up to the sufferings
" of a cruel death. This our mandate therefore you are to have pub-
(f lished throughout your County in form aforesaid, and notice thereof
" given unto each, that, as they love our honour and that of our land and
i( their own lives, and as they would avoid their own disherison and the
" everlasting disherison of their posterity, they hasten to make prepara-
" tions as manfully and as efficiently as they may ; that so, all excuses
" laid aside, at the very latest, on the Sunday next after the Feast of
" Saint Peter's Chains [1 August] they appear at the place aforesaid.
" And you are to know, that if you shall find any persons to hold this
" mandate in contempt, or to be in reference thereto negligent and remiss,
" we shall heavily exact from their persons and their property for the
" same ; in such manner as against those whose fault it will not be, if we
" and our realm are delivered over to confusion and to everlasting dis-
(( herison. In testimony whereof, we have caused these our letters patent
" to be written. Witness myself, at Saint Paul's, London, this 7th day
" of July, in the eight-and-fortieth year of our reign."
After this, in obedience to the precept of the before-stated writ,
countless multitudes of horse and foot gathered together from all the
Counties of England ; and, well provided with arms, set out for the sea-
coast, to defend the realm against aliens ; and in like manner, number-
less ships of the Cinque Ports and other places put to sea with crews
well-armed, for the purpose of resisting the said aliens with a strong
hand.
Afterward?, about the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Mary
[15 August], his lordship the King and the Barons set out for
Dover, where there was a conference held between envoys sent
by the King and the Barons of England on the one hand^ and the aliens
whom the Queen of England, John Maunsell, Peter de Sauveie, and
their accomplices had induced, at a vast outlay, to make a descent upon
England.
74 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263.
Afterwards, about the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross,
[14 September], Sir Hugh le Despenser, Justiciar of England, Peter
de Montfort, and other nobles, the Bishop of London, the Bishop of
Worcester, and other Bishops, crossed over for the purpose of arranging
and confirming a treaty of peace.
At this time, the ecclesiastics throughout all England gave the tenth
part of the issues of their churches.
They were not sworn
A.D. 1264. EDWARD BLUND,
Sheriffs.
at the Exchequer
PETER FITZ- AUGER, ,
[ when presented.
This year, on the second day before the Feast of the Translation of
Saint Edward the Confessor [13 October], the King returned to London
from the sea-coast.
At this time, about the Feast of Simon and Jude [28 October], it
was provided that three Bishops should be chosen, unto whom should be
given by his lordship the King and the Barons, full power of reasonably
correcting all injuries clone to the Church in this kingdom between
Easter in the year of our Lord 1263 and the said time; a thing that the
Barons conceded in good faith, and by their letters patent confirmed the
same. And if any one should decline to be judged by the said Bishops,
he was to be excommunicated, and by the lay power compelled to make
satisfaction ; and it was then provided, that such Bishops should collect
all issues of benefices of aliens which had existed in contravention of the
Provisions of Oxford, and should deposit the same in safety, until peace
throughout the realm should be fully confirmed.
Be it remembered, that Thomas Fitz-Thomas, who in the preceding
year had been elected Mayor, though he had not been admitted, still
remained in office throughout the whole year : but in that year no Pleas
of Land were pleaded, save only Pleas of Intrusion, as also Pleas on
plaint made, which pertain to the Assizes; nor was any Hustings held.
Hence it was, that no affidavits as to tenements were sworn from foreign
Courts, nor was any testament proved. The same Thomas also was again
elected Mayor on the. Feast of Simon and Jude [28 October], and on the
morrow admitted by the King.
1 Or, regulations as to the sale of victuals, and other commodities, within the City.
A.I>. 1264.] PROVISIONS MADE AS TO LIQUID MEASURES. 75
In this year, it was provided in the Hustings, on the morrow of All
Souls [2 November], that all measures by which wine, ale, and other
liquors, are sold, should be of the same dimensions, the mouth of the
gallon being ordered to measure four inches across. On the same day, it
was enacted and provided that no advocate should be an 1 essoiner in the
Hustings, or in any other of the City Courts.
In this year, about the Nativity, the Barons of the March of Wales,
who before had adhered to the King and had been with him at the battle
of Liawes, and had afterwards fought at the head of a large army
in the March aforesaid, committing depredations and many mis-
chiefs, concluded peace at Gloucester, his lordship the King being there, as
also the Earls of Leicester and Gloucester, and many other nobles. Some of
these Barons however abjured the realm of England for a year and a day,
to proceed to Ireland in exile, and there to stay the whole of the said
year, their lands, tenements, and castles, remaining in the hands of the
Earl of Leicester in the meantime. But after such year should have
expired, and when the said Barons should have returned to England,
they were to abide by the award of their peers, and to be bound to be at
the sea-coast ready to cross over, on the twentieth day after our Lord's
Nativity ; an arrangement which did not hold good.
This year, on the Octaves of Saint Hilary [13 January], there came
to London, by summons of his lordship the King, all the Bishops,
Abbots, Priors, Earls, [and] Barons, of the whole realm, as also the
Barons of the Cinque Ports, [and] four men of every city and borough,
to hold a Parliament ; in which Parliament, on Saint Valentine's Day
[14 February], it was made known in the Chapter-House at Westmin-
ster, that his lordship the King had bound himself by his charter, on
oath, that neither he nor Sir Ed-ward, would from thenceforth aggrieve, or
cause to be aggrieved, the Earls of Leicester or Gloucester, or the citizens
of London, or any of those who had sided with them, on pretence of any
thing done in the time of the past commotions in the realm ; and he
thereby expressly gave orders, that the Charters of Liberties and of the
Forest, which had been made in the ninth year of his reign, together
1 An ageut or attorney, whose sole duty it support them before the Court,
was to pi offer essoins for defendants, and
76 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.I>. 1264.
with the other articles which had been enacted in the month of June in
the eight-and-fortieth year of his reign, should be inviolably observed.
Afterwards, on the day before the Feast of Saint Gregory [12
March], Sir Edward and Henry of Almaine, who had surrendered them-
selves as hostages at the battle of Liawes, until peace should be restored
in England, were delivered up to his lordship the King, free and quit,
before all the people in the Great Hall at Westminster ; and at the same
time there were read certain letters obligatory of his lordship the King
and Sir Edward, in which it is set forth how and under what penalties
they, upon oath, had promised to maintain the peace and tranquillity of
the realm. And then, nine Bishops, arrayed in pontificals, with lighted
tapers, pronounced excommunicate all those who should presume to do
aught against the Charters of Liberties and the Forest, or against the
Statutes which had been enacted in the preceding year. There were
also then read certain other letters of Sir Edward, in which, upon oath,
he promised to surrender three castles which he held in the
March of Wales ; the same to be given, by counsel of his lord-
ship the King, into the custody of men of the realm, not suspected, by
them to be held for three whole years.
He further promised, that he would give due care that the knights
of the March of Wales should duly fulfil what they had undertaken, and
that if they should not, he would prove their deadly enemy, and, by force
of arms, to the utmost of his power would compel them to do the same.
He further promised, that for three years from the Easter next ensuing
he would remain in England, and would not depart therefrom, without
leave of the Council. He further promised, that he would not bring, or
cause to bring, aliens into the realm of England ; and that if any should
come, and he by the Council of his lordship the King should be warned
thereof, he would, to the utmost of his power, resist the same. And faith-
fully to observe all these things he bound himself, upon peril of all the
lands, tenements, honours, and dignities, which he then possessed 01
should possess, if he should contravene any one of the articles aforesaid,
and the same should be manifestly proved. And for the more sure
observance thereof, Sir Henry of Almaine, of his own accord, offered
himself as hostage for Sir Edward aforesaid, to remain in custody of Sir
Henry de Montfort until Saint Peter's Chains [1 August] ; and if, in
A.D. 1264.] THE MAYOR AND ALDEKMEN DO FEALTY AT SAINT PAUL'S. 77
the meantime, any army of aliens should prepare to come into England
by force of arms, in such case the said Henry was to remain hostage
in the same custody for Sir Edward, until the Feast of All Souls [2
November] then next ensuing; that so, in the meantime it might be
ascertained how Sir Edward should be inclined to conduct himself as
towards the aliens aforesaid. 1
On the same day it was made known, that whereas his lordship the
King, before the battle of Liewes, had by counsel of his advisers defied
the Earls of Gloucester and Leicester, and those who adhered to them, it
was now provided that all free men of the realm of England should do
homage and fealty to him anew, saving however all articles in his letters
obligatory, and in the letters of Sir Edward, contained.
After this, on the 17th day of March, the Mayor and Aldermen ot
London in the Church of Saint Paul did 2 fealty to his lordship the King,
who was there present ; and on the Sunday following, all persons in the
City, of the age of twelve years and upwards, made the same oath, each
before his own Alderman, in his own Ward.
Afterwards, between Easter and Pentecost there arose certain dissen-
sions between the Earl of Gloucester and the Earl of Leicester, his lord-
ship the King being then at Gloucester. For the Earl of Gloucester
said, that many of the articles which had been prepared at Oxford and at
Liawes, had not been fully observed ; and those articles were
put in writing by the said Earl. Whereupon, the aforesaid
Earls of Gloucester and Leicester, upon oath and by their letters obliga-
tory, submitted to the arbitration of the Bishop of Worcester, Sir Hugh
le Despenser, Sir John Fitz-John, and Sir William de Munchensy ; which
arrangement however was not carried into effect.
In this year, by assent and consent of certain nobles of England,
namely the Earl of Leicester and his sons, the men of the Cinque Ports
roved about the sea in 3 keels and other vessels, plundering all those whom
1 "It should be known, that all the afore- ' taking the oath, dared to utter words so rash
" said letters of his lordship the King and of ' as these, saying unto his lordship the King
" his son, were quashed after the Battle of * in presence of the people ; ' My lord, so long
" Evesham, as set forth below in this book." ' 'as unto us you will be a good lord and King,
Marginal Note. ' ' we will be faithful and duteous unto you.' "
2 " Then, whose who were present might Marginal Note.
" see a thing wondrous and unheard of in this 3 A kind of merchant vessels,
"age; for this most wretched Mayor, when
78 CHRONICLES OP THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1264
they found coming into England or leaving it ; and they cruelly threw
men overboard into the sea, sparing no one, whether English or aliens.
Of all the plunder so acquired, the said Earl of Leicester and his sons
received a third part, it was said.
Afterwards, on the Thursday in the week of Pentecost, Sir Edward
departed from Hereford without leave, his lordship the King, the Earl of
Leicester, and many other Earls and Barons, then being there ; and took
his departure in the direction of Chester.
After this, Sir Edward, accompanied by the Earl of Gloucester and
the Barons of the March and others, as also the Earl of Warenne and
William de Valence, who had recently landed at 1 Penbrok, took
Gloucester and the Castle there. At this time, his lordship the King,
listening to evil counsel, gave and granted unto Leuwelin, Prince of
Wales, the greater part of the March, with the castles thereof, as also,
lands and castles of orphans, who were under age and in guardianship :
whereupon, Lewelin, as soon as ever he received seisin of any castle, at
once levelled the same, to the very great loss and detriment of the realm
of England. For the Welsh had never before entered into such a league
with the English, nor ever will enter into any such, without fraud and
estrangement through them thence ensuing. This gift his lordship the
King made unto the said Lewelin, in order that he might give him aid
against his son and his followers.
In the same year, upon the morrow of Saint Swithun [15 July],
Simon de Montfort the Younger, with other Barons and their adherents,
took and plundered Winchester, and destroyed the Jewry there; because
the citizens would not admit them into the City without his lordship the
King being present. After which, they laid siege to the Castle there;
but, upon hearing rumours of the approach of Sir Edward,
although he did not come, through fear they withdrew.
Be it remembered, that at the same time that the before-mentioned
dissension arose between the said Earls of Gloucester and Leicester,
it was provided and enacted among the Londoners, and confirmed by
oath of every person of twelve years and upwards, that the peace of
his lordship the King should be strictly observed within the City and
1 Pembroke.
A.D. 1264.] FOLLOWERS OF THE YOUNGER DE MONTFORT HANGED. 79
without ; and that if any person should contravene the same, and should
be convicted thereof, he should immediately undergo capital punishment,
notwithstanding any franchise that he might possess ; and this was pro-
claimed throughout all the City, as also by letters patent of the commons
of the City, published in the four adjoining Counties, in all hundreds
and vills within a distance from London of five-and-twenty miles :
wherefore, certain persons who had followed the army of Simon de Mont-
fort the Younger to London, and who had been convicted of the commis-
sion of robberies in J Stebenhe and 2 Hackenheie, were hanged, about
the Feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul [29 June].
After this, on the night after Saint Peter's Chains [1 August], Sir
Edward, the Earl of Warenne, William de Valence, and their adherents,
came with a strong armed force, to 3 Kenelworthe, and there found all
the army of Simon de Montfort the Younger buried in sleep. Upon
this, Sir Edward caused immediate proclamation to be made, that no one
of his people should slay any of the army of the said Simon ; but that
they should be taken alive. Accordingly, there were captured there
the Earl of Oxford, William de Munchensy, Adam de Newmarket,
Baldwin Wake, Hugh de Nevile, and many others, Barons, knights,
and serjeants, all of whom were carried prisoners to Gloucester,
having lost their horses and arms, and all their harness. As to Simon
before-named, he and certain others, taking to flight, threw themselves
into the Castle of Kenelworthe; while as many as were able, took to
flight and escaped.
Be it observed, that his lordship the King, with the Earl of Leicester
and his adherents, had been staying at Hereford for many weeks, being
unable to pass the Severn, as all the bridges had been broken down by
Sir Edward and the Earl of Gloucester; the said Edward, and the Earl
and the Barons of the March of Wales, with their army, preventing the
King from crossing over with his troops. At last, while the said Edward
was with his army at Kenelworthe, as already mentioned, his lordship
the King, with his forces, crossed the Severn at Worcester
on the morrow of Saint Peter's Chains [1 August], which 4 day
1 Stepney. /. e . the day after Saint Peter's Chains, or
2 Hackney. 2nd August.
3 Kenilworth, in Warwickshire.
80 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1264
then fell upon a Sunday. After this, on the Tuesday following, such
Tuesday being the third day after the Chains, and the fourth ot
August, they arrived at * Hevesham, where Sir Edward and the Earl
of Gloucester surprised them with all their army; and on the same day,
the two parties engaging without the said town, the said Edward and
the Earl of Gloucester gained the victory, and the Earl of Leicester
and his eldest son, Henry, were slain; Hugh le Despenser also, and
Peter de Montfort, and all the Barons and knights who had adhered
to them, were slain, a few only excepted, who however were badly
wounded and made prisoners. It was said also, that many knights and
men-at-arms on that side were slain, while on the other side but very
few lost their lives.
The head of the Earl of Leicester, it is said, was severed from his
body, and his testicles cut off and hung on either side of his nose ; and in
such guise the head was sent to the wife of Sir Roger de Mortimer, at
Wiggemor Castle. His hands and feet were also cut off, and sent to
divers places to enemies of his, as a great mark of dishonour to the
deceased ; the trunk of his body however, and that only, was given for
burial in the church of Evesham. On the same day and at the same
hour that the battle took place, there was a very great tempest at
London and elsewhere, accompanied with 2 coruscations, lightning, and
thunder.
After this, when certain news was heard of the battle aforesaid, all
the prisoners who had been taken at the battle of Liewes and put in the
Tower of London and the Castle of Windleshores, were set at liberty
and released without ransom. In like manner, the King of Almaine was
liberated from the Castle of Kenelworthe, and all the other prisoners who
had been taken by the said Earl of Leicester and his accomplices during
the aforesaid disturbances in the realm of England.
After this, about the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Mary [8
September], his lordship the King held a Parliament at Winchester,
where Simon de Montfort the Younger, who had a safe-conduct from
his lordship the King and Sir Edward, appeared; but as he was not
able at that season to make peace on his own terms, he withdrew and
1 Evesham, in Worcestershire. means something of the nature of the Aurora
2 The word " chorutcationes " here probably Borealie.
A.D. 1264.] FEAR OF THE KING'S VENGEANCE IN THE CITY. 81
threw himself into the Castle of Kenelworthe, whither he had summoned
many knights and men-at-arms, who still adhered to him. In the said
Parliament, it was provided that all who were taken at Kenelworthe, as
already noticed, as also those who were taken at the battle of Evesham,
as well as the heirs of those who were slain there, should be disinherited,
because, as it was said, they had in reality been against the King,
although fighting together with him as following his standard.
For it was resolved that he was not in full enjoyment of his
power, after he had been taken at the battle of Liawes ; but rather, under
the rod and power of the Earl of Leicester, who did whatever he pleased
with the King's seal, and all things pertaining unto the realm of England.
His lordship the King also then recalled all donations of lands, churches,
[and] prebends, which between the day of his capture and the day
aforesaid he had granted ; and all letters, charters, and writings, which
he and his son had executed by compulsion throughout the whole time
aforesaid, were recalled and made of no effect.
A.D. 1265. GREGORY DE KOKESLE,)
SIMON DE HADESTOK, $ S
On the morrow of Saint Michael, as the custom is, the Mayor and
citizens proceeded to Westminster, to present them to the Barons of the
Exchequer ; but finding no one there, they returned home. And so,
they were 1 not admitted Sheriffs. Be it remembered, that at the close of
the Parliament before-mentioned, his lordship the King had summoned
to Wyndleshores all the Earls, Barons, [and] knights, as many as he could,
with horses and arms, intending to lay siege to the City of London, [and]
calling the citizens his foes.
Then was all the City in great alarm. The fools and evil-minded
persons, however, who had previously been adherents of the Earl of
Leicester against the King, proposed fortifying the City against him ;
while the discreet men of the City, who always maintained their fealty
to his lordship the King although some part of them, but by compulsion,
1 " They were not admitted, because his * in the disturbances of the realm ; and he re-
" lordship the King had then taken the City " tained the same for nearly six years." Mar-
" into his own hands ; because that the citizens ginal Note.
" had been adherents of the Earl of Leicester
82 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. o. 1265.
had given their adherence to the said Earl, would not assent thereto ;
but, though they sent many letters, through men of the religious Orders,
to his lordship the King, for the purpose of beseeching his favour, it was
of no avail to them. At length, after holding counsel among themselves,
the whole community gave its consent to throwing themselves on the
mercy of his lordship the King, and made letters patent thereupon,
sealed with the common seal; eight men being selected to carry and
shew the same unto his lordship the King, and to present such letters to
him at Windleshores. Upon the road, they were met by Sir Roger de
Leiburne, who said that he, for the benefit and advantage of* the City,
had come to make arrangements for peace between his lordship the King
and the citizens : upon hearing which, the men who had been so sent,
returned home ; and the said Roger took up his quarters in the Tower
of London.
The next morning however, the said Roger went to the Church called
1 Berkinge Cherche ; where the Mayor and a countless multitude of the
citizens had met ; and then, summoning the Mayor and more discreet
men of the City, the said Roger said to them that if it was their wish to
become reconciled with his lordship the King, they must wholly subject
themselves unto the will of his lordship the King as to life and limb, and
as to all things inoveable and immoveable. The citizens accordingly
gave assent thereto, and caused letters patent to be made, sealed with the
common seal ; which letters the said Roger took with him to his lordship
the King at Windleshores.
Afterwards, on the Friday next after the Feast of Saint Michael,
the same Roger came to London, and on the morrow proceeded
to the Church before-mentioned ; the Mayor also and citizens
met there, to whom the same Roger said, that it was the desire of his
lordship the King, that all chains which had been placed across the
streets, should be removed, and that all the posts to which the said chains
had been attached, should be rooted up, and carried, all of them, to the
Tower; and so it was afterwards done.
It was also the wish of his lordship the King, that the Mayor and
principal men of the City should come to him at Windleshores, to con-
firm what was said in the letters aforesaid. The said Roger also brought
1 Allhallows Barking, near the Tower.
A. D. 1265.] THE MAYOR AND CHIEF MEN OF THE CITY ARRESTED. 83
letters patent of safe-conduct of his lordship the King, for the Mayor and
citizens,, so that they might safely go to Windleshores, there to stay and
thence to return, the same to last until the Monday then next ensuing,
and throughout the whole of the Monday aforesaid. Wherefore, on the
same day, the Mayor, and about forty of the more substantial men of
the City, set out and arrived at Stanes. On the morrow, which was a
Sunday, after the citizens had awaited the arrival of the said Roger until
the 1 third hour, he came, and then the Mayor and citizens accompanied
him to Windleshores ; where he entered the castle, the citizens remaining
without until evening. His lordship the King also then caused proclam-
ation to be made, that no knight, Serjeant, or other person, should pre-
sume to say or to do anything affronting to the citizens, seeing that they
had been summoned to the peace of his lordship the King.
After this, there were sent on part of his lordship the King, the said
Roger, and Sir Robert Walraven and others, to inform the Mayor and
citizens that the King was not then advised in what form to make known
his will unto them ; but that they were to enter the Castle, and on the
morrow should learn the same. Upon this, they entered, and all of them
were lodged in the 2 tower in safe custody, the letters of safe-conduct
granted by the King availing them nought. They also remained there
throughout the whole of that night and the whole of the follow-
ing day ; but at a later hour, were separated and sent into the
3 bailey of the Castle, and there lodged, all of them, the Mayor excepted,
Thomas de Piwelesdon, Michael Thovi, Stephen Bugerel, [and] John de
Flete, whose bodies the King gave to Sir Edward ; and they remained in
the tower.
After this, his lordship the King departed from Windleshores and
came to London, calling the citizens his enemies, and giving away more
than sixty houses belonging to citizens ; they, with all their families, being
expelled. In like manner also, he gave away all such goods belonging to
the citizens as they possessed without the City, as at 4 Lenne, for example,
5 Gernemue, and other sea-ports. He also took all their 6 foreign lands,
1 Nine in the morning. 5 Yarmouth, in Norfolk.
2 Or Keep. 6 /. e. lands without the liberties of the
3 See page 66 ante. City.
4 Lynn, in Norfolk.
84 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1265.
into his hands, and destroyed and wasted all goods there found. At this
time, Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes, Constable of the Tower, was made Warden
of the City, and styled l " Seneschal," appointing under him two Bailiffs,
John Addrien, namely, and Walter Hervi, who, in place of Sheriffs, were
to have charge of the City.
After this, the citizens aforesaid, who were in the bailey at Windle-
shores, were liberated by leave of his lordship the King and of his son,
and returned home, all of them, to London, on the Thursday next after
the Feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist [18 October], with the exception
of Richard Bonaventure, Simon de Hadestoke, William de Kent, Ead-
mund de Essex, and William de Gloucester, who remained.
At this time, his lordship the King had hostages taken for keeping the
peace, from more than sixty citizens, who accordingly were put in the
Tower ; and at the same time the King had the citizens spoken to, to the
effect that they must make fine to him for their offence. Upon this, after
holding conference, they made answer that the citizens had not equally
offended ; for that some of them had always maintained the peace of his
lordship the King, and whom in those times he used to call his friends.
Others again had been adherents of the Earl of Leicester ; but this, be-
cause compelled thereto. Many others again, evil-minded persons, had
spontaneously sided with the said Earl and his accomplices, committing
depredations both within the City and without. Wherefore it seemed
unto the citizens, that they ought not equally to be punished ; and they
accordingly entreated the King and his Council, that each of them might
individually be allowed to make fine in proportion to his offence, and that
every one might be punished according to his transgressions. And this
was granted them, though it was not carried into effect.
After this, on the Tuesday next after the Feast of Saint Nicholas [6
December], the King took his departure from Westminster for
Norhamptone, and on the same day, John de la Linde, knight,
and John Waleraven, clerk, were made Seneschals, the Tower of London
being delivered into their hands. On the same day, there came to West-
minster upon summons more than four-and-twenty of the most substantial
men of the City ; all of whom made oath before the Council of his lordship
the King, that they would faithfully and safely keep the City in his
1 Or, Steward.
A.D. 1265.] LETTER OF PARDON FROM THE KING TO THE CITIZENS. 85
behalf, Sir Roger de Leiburne telling them that his lordship the King
had delivered his City into their keeping, under the Seneschals before-
mentioned.
Be it remarked, that at the time when the City submitted itself unto
the mercy of his lordship the King, many persons in the City who had
spontaneously sided with the Earl of Leicester, took to flight ; having
committed depredations and many mischiefs within the City and without,
and, in the time of the aforesaid Mayor, styling themselves the " Commons
" of the City," having had the first voice there, the principal men thereof
being but little consulted in reference thereto.
Be it remarked, that in the week of Our Lord's Nativity in the same
year, in presence of Sir Roger de Leiburne and Robert Walraven, sent
by his lordship the King, who was then at Norhamptone, the citizens made
fine to his lordship the King in the sum of 20000 marks sterling, for all
trespasses and excesses during the disturbances of the realm imputed to
them ; in consideration whereof, he granted unto them his Charter, in form
under- written :
Letters of his lordship the King, whereby he remitted his indignation unto
the Citizens.
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, etc. to all men, etc.
" greeting. Know ye, that in consideration of a fine of 20000 marks,,
" which our citizens of London have made unto us as their ransom, by
" reason of trespasses or excesses against us, and our Queen, and Richard
" the illustrious King of Almaine, our brother, and Edward our eldest son,
" by them committed, or unto them imputed, we do, for ourselves and our
" heirs, so far as in us lies, wholly remit and pardon unto the said citi-
" zens and their heirs all such trespasses and excesses, in form as follows,
" that is to say ; that they shall have all issues of rents arising from houses
" and tenements as well in the City aforesaid as in the suburbs thereof,
" from the time of our Lord's Nativity last past, upon the understanding
" that from henceforth they shall, from such rents, satisfy all persons
" whatsoever in such manner as shall be right ; and shall have all goods
" and chattels of such misdoers within the same City, as, in the disturbances
" aforesaid, have been against us and Edward our eldest son,
" and who thereof have been, or shall be, indicted ; save and
86 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1265.
" except the goods and chattels of those whose bodies we have granted
" unto our said son, and except the houses, lands, tenements, and rents, of
" the same citizens, which are and ought to be our escheats, by reason of
" the trespasses aforesaid ; and shall have all goods and chattels of citizens
" of the same city in the parts of Flanders arrested, save and except the
" chattels and goods of those who by lawful inquisition may be found or
(f convicted to have been our enemies. And that all prisoners of the same
" city, except those whose bodies we have given unto our firstborn son
" aforesaid, shall from prison be delivered ; save also such prisoners as
" have by the same citizens been indicted and taken, and shall be indicted
" and taken. And that the hostages of the citizens aforesaid, for the safe-
" keeping of the same city unto us delivered, save and except the hostages
" of the prisoners of our son aforesaid, and the hostages of those who have
(f taken to flight, if any such there shall be, shall in like manner be set at
" liberty ; and that from the goods of such citizens as have died in the city
e< aforesaid, since the time that the said citizens have submitted themselves
" unto our will, a contribution shall be proportionally levied towards the
" said ransom, according to the means of the deceased, in the same manner
" as in regard to the means of the other citizens who are still living in the
" city aforesaid ; and in like manner it shall be done as to the goods of all
" men of the same city who are there in our 1 Exchange. We have also
" granted unto them, that all goods and chattels of the reputable men of
" the City aforesaid, which have been taken from each and every of them,
" from the time when the citizens aforesaid submitted themselves unto
" our will, without our warrant aforesaid, the goods of Richard de
" Walebrok excepted shall unto them be wholly restored ; and that the
" said citizens shall throughout all our territories and dominions, freely
" and without impediment on part of us or ours, as well by sea as by land,
" trade with their wares and merchandize, in such manner as they shall
" deem expedient, quit of all custom, toll, and 2 passage ; and shall sojourn
" wheresoever they shall think proper, in the same our realm, for purposes
" of business, in such manner as in past times they have been wont to do,
" until such time as of our counsel it shall as to the state of the city afore-
1 At the Tower, and acting as moneyers at a A toll levied for passing over ferries,
the Mint, or their assistants.
A.D. 1265.] ESCAPE OF SIMON DE MONTFORT THE YOUNGER. 87
" said be more fully provided. And that no one of the said city, as to
" whom it may manifestly be proved that in the disturbances aforesaid he
fe has been our enemy, or the enemy of our eldest son aforesaid, shall in
"future sojourn or be harboured in the city aforesaid. In testimony
" whereof, we have caused these our letters patent to be made. Witness
" myself, at Norhamptone, this tenth day of January, in the fiftieth year
" of our reign."
By reason of this ransom, then were set at liberty William
de Gloucester, Richard Bonaventure, William de Kent, [and]
Simon de Hadestoke ; Eadmund de Essex having been previously released.
After this, Simon de Montfort the Younger, while his. lordship the
King was at Norhamptone, threw himself upon his mercy, to abide by
the award of the King of Almaine and the Legate of his lordship the
Pope, then in England, and certain others, Barons of England. After-
wards, having come to London and made a stay for some time in the
Court of Sir Edward, not awaiting his award, he escaped stealthily
without leave and by night, making for Winchester, where he joined the
pirates of the Cinque Ports ; who then, as before, were seizing all the
merchants they could, whether coming to England or departing from
England, and either slaying them or plundering their goods. Still
however, these pirates did not dare to attack any foreign prince or
knight, coming in armed guise to England, or leaving it. This Simon
however afterwards crossed the seas.
The same year, in the week before Palm Sunday, Sir Edward re-
ceived into the favour of his lordship the King, his father, and of himself,
all the men of the Cinque Ports, as well misdoers as others ; and granted
that they should have all their liberties, and possess all their lands and
tenements. And in like manner it was granted unto knights, Serjeants,
and all others who had been their adherents in the disturbances aforesaid,
that they should freely have and hold all the possessions and lands, which
they had before held ; also, all acts of depredation and homicide by land
or by sea were forgiven, whatsoever the same might be, which they
had committed upon men of the realm of England, Ireland, ScotlancT,
Wales, and Gascoigne ; those lands namely, which belong to the dignity
of his lordship the King. And if any person of a land other than the
lands above-mentioned, should wish to proceed against such persons for
88 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1265.
depredations committed against them, or for homicide committed against
their kinsfolk, he was to come into the Court of the Cinque Ports aforesaid,
and there have justice awarded him. But for what reason or through what
necessity all the concessions aforesaid were made unto them, I know not.
The Bishops who, for their disobedience, were sent to Koine, must
not be past over in silence here. A year and a half before, when the
Queen of England, Peter de 1 Sauweye, the Earl of Warenne, Hugh
Bigot, and a countless multitude of knights and men-at-arms, together
with a large fleet, were in Flanders and intending to cross over to
England with a strong and armed force, against the Earl of Leicester
and his accomplices ; the Roman Legate, who is now 2 Pope, then being
in those parts, pronounced sentence of excommunication against
the said Earl and all who adhered to him in the disturbances of
the realm of England before-noticed, and placed the City of London
under ecclesiastical interdict, as well as all persons and places belonging
to the said Earl and his adherents; and this he enjoined upon certain
Bishops there, in order that they might publish his said sentence and
the aforesaid interdict throughout all England. And because they
failed to do so, 3 Ottoboni, who is now Legate from Rome., summoned
them before him at London, and addressed them, pronouncing them
contumacious. Wherefore, after much altercation had passed between
them for the reason aforesaid, and because they had shewed themselves
so luke-warm during the said disturbances in the realm, in not chiding
or rebuking those evildoers who were striving against his lordship the
King, the week before Palm Sunday in this year he suspended 4 Henry,
Bishop of London, and 5 Stephen, Bishop of Chichester, from duty and
benefice, sending them to Rome, to be punished according to their
deserts by his lordship the Pope.
After this, on the Monday next after the quinzaine of Easter, for
the same reason the same Legate suspended 6 John, Bishop of Win-
1 Savoy. 3 Ottoboni di Fresco; Cardinal of Saint
2 Guy le Gros or le Foulques ; previously Adrian, and Pope (for about five weeks) as
Archbishop of Narbonne and Cardinal Bishop Adrian V., in 1276.
of Sabina. As he died in November 1268, 4 Henry de Sandwich,
the present passage tends to shew that the 5 Stephen de Barksteed.
latter part of this Chronicle is by the hand of 6 John Gernsey.
a writer previous to that date.
A.P.12G5.] THE EXCHEQUER REMOVED TO SAINT PAUL'S. 89
Chester, from duty and benefice, naming a peremptory time for him to
appear in presence of his lordship the Pope, there to receive penance
according to his deserts.
About the same time, the Exchequer of his lordship the King was
transferred from Westminster to Saint Paul's, so that the Pleas in Bank
which used to be held at Westminster, were now held in the hall of the
Bishop of London ; the l Exchequer too being placed in the chamber of
the said 2 Bishop. The Legate however was lodged in the Tower of
London.
In the same year and at the same season, the persons who had been
deprived of their possessions, as already mentioned, collected in bands,
and fought by force of arms, in Norfolch, Suthfolch, and 3 Holand, as
also in divers other places throughout England, plundering many per-
sons; on which occasion, some of them entered Lincoln, certain persons
of that city siding with them, and plundered many of the citizens there.
The boroughs and vills also, through which some of them passed, made
fine to them, in order that they might not be attacked. Those however
who had entered Lincoln, on hearing news of the approach of Sir
Edward, withdrew.
At this time, about the Feast of the Apostles Philip and James
[1 May], his lordship the King held a Parliament at Norhamptone. To
this Parliament were sent formal messengers from the City of London,
begging his lordship the King that he would be pleased to
reinstate them in their former position, and that they might elect
Sheriffs from among themselves, who should be answerable to the King's
Exchequer for the ancient ferm. Whereupon, returning from the Par-
liament, they came to London on the Vigil of our Lord's Ascension, and
brought letters of his lordship the King, both close and patent, the tenor
of which is as follows :
Letters of his lordship the King as to leave to elect Bailiffs.
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland,
"and Duke of Acquitaine, to his well-beloved and trusty, the 4 Barons
1 The table so called, at which the officers of a Holland, or Hoyland, in Lincolnshire,
the Exchequer sat. 4 The Aldermen and tenants in capite were
2 Who was now in disgrace, and on his way so styled,
to Rome.
N
90 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1265.
" and citizens of London, greeting. Whereas we have granted unto you,
" that you may elect one of your fellow-citizens, a trusty and discreet
" person, who has heretofore constantly adhered unto his fealty to us and
" to Edward, our eldest son, the same to attend to the duties of Sheriff
" of Middlesex and of Warden of the City of London ; such person by
" you to be presented at our Exchequer, and there to take the oath of
" fealty, as the usage is, and to be answerable unto us at the Exchequer
" aforesaid for the ferm thereof; for which ferm the Sheriffs thereof
' ' respectively from of old have been wont there to be answerable ; all
" which things we have granted unto you of our own free will ; provided
(< however that the said Sheriff and Warden shall with the liberties of
" the Abbey of Westminster in no way interfere : we do command you
" that of your fellow-citizens you elect such a person thereunto, and
f( make known unto us his name. Witness myself, at Norhamptone, this
" first day of May, in the fiftieth year of our reign."
" Henry, by the grace of God etc., to all to whom these present
" letters shall come, greeting. Know ye, that we have granted unto our
" well-beloved Barons and citizens of London, that they may elect one of
" their fellow-citizens, a trusty and discreet person, who has heretofore
" constantly adhered unto his fealty to us and to Edward, our eldest son,
" the same to attend to the duties of Sheriff of Middlesex and of Warden
" of the City of London ; the name of such person to be made known
" unto us, that so he may be presented at our Exchequer, and there take
" the oath of fealty, as the usage is, and be answerable unto us at our
"Exchequer aforesaid for the ferm thereof; all which things we have
" granted unto them of our own free will. It is our will, however, that
se the said Sheriff and Warden shall with the liberties of the Abbey of
" Westminster in no way interfere. In testimony whereof we have
" caused these letters patent to be made. Witness myself, at Norhamp-
" tone, this 30th day of April, in the fiftieth year of our reign."
Accordingly, on the morrow, being the day of Our Lord's Ascension,
which on this occasion fell upon the Feast of Saint John Port Latin [6
May], the citizens met at the Guildhall, and William Fitz-Eichard was
elected by them and sworn, to attend to the office of Sheriff of Middlesex
and the Wardenship of the City of London, in form in the aforesaid letters
A.D. 1265.] RESISTANCE BY CITY POPULACE TO THE KING'S ORDERS. 91
contained: and on the morrow was presented to the Barons of the
Exchequer at Saint Paul's, and there admitted and sworn.
Be it remarked, that many of the common people, on the day that
the aforesaid election took place, gainsayed the same, crying
" Nay, nay," and saying, " We will have no one for Mayor,
" save only Thomas Fitz-Thomas, and we desire that he be released
" from prison, as well as his companions, who are at Windleshores."
Such base exclamations did the fools of the vulgar classes give utterance
to, on the previous Monday, in the same Guildhall. Wherefore his
lordship the King, on hearing rumours to this effect, fearing an insurrec-
tion of the populace against the principal men of the City, who main-
tained their fealty towards him, sent to London Sir Roger de Leiburne ;
who, on the Saturday next ensuing, came into the Guildhall with a
great retinue of knights and Serjeants, with arms beneath their clothes ;
whither a countless multitude of the City had already resorted, and that
without summons. And the same Sir Roger gave orders, on behalf
of his lordship the King, that all who were suspected, should be seized
and put in arrest, lest they might enter into some confederacy with
the enemies of his lordship the King. Wherefore, on the same day
there were taken more than twenty persons, no one of the populace
making any opposition thereto.
Be it remarked, that those who adhered unto his lordship the King
had frequent conflicts with their adversaries ; for example, on one occa-
sion in the County of Derby, where John de Eyvile, Baldwin Wake,
and the Earl of Ferrers, (who two days before had withdrawn from his
,. allegiance to the King, and had given in his adherence to them upon oath),
with many others, had met together, with horses and arms, in the vill
that is known as l Cestrefeld. Here Sir Henry of Almaine, Sir John de
Baliol, and others who maintained their fealty to his lordship the King,
surprised and attacked them, on the Vigil of Pentecost, many of them
being taken prisoners and many slain. The Earl of Ferrers also was
taken, and carried to the Castle of Windleshores. As to John de Eyvile
and Baldwyn Wake, they took to flight.
After this, on Friday in the week of Pentecost, Sir Edward attacked
Adam Gurdan and his accomplices in the wood of Aulton, where many
1 Now Chesterfield.
92 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1265
were slain and captured, and lost their all. Afterwards, on the fourth day
of June, Boneface, Archbishop of Canterbury, came to London from the
parts beyond sea, where he had been staying all the time of the aforesaid
disturbances in the kingdom of England.
In the same year, after the Feast of the Nativity of Saint John the
Baptist [24 June], his lordship the King laid siege to the Castle of
Kenelworthe, having with him a countless army of Earls, Barons, knights,
men-at-arms, and others who adhered to their fealty. The same year,
on the second of the Ides of July [12 August], at night, the wife of Sir
Edward was delivered of her first-born son, at Windleshores ; on hearing
news of which, the citizens of London caused proclamation to be made
in the City, that on the morrow the whole community should
Fol. 99 B. *
celebrate the same by doing no handicraft, for joyousness at the
birth of the said child. Accordingly on that day, all 1 selds and shops
being closed, all the men and women, clergy as well as lay, went on foot
and horseback to Westminster, to give thanks unto God for the birth of
the child, and to offer prayers for its safety. Also, throughout the streets
of the City there was dancing and singing of carols for joy, as is the usual
yearly custom upon the Feast of Saint John the Baptist [24 June].
The name that was given to the child was " John."
Be it observed, that on the Vigil of Saint Michael a writ of his lord-
ship the King was read in the Guildhall before all the people ; in which
was set forth, that he had given orders that the Charter of liberties which
he had granted unto his Barons of England, in the ninth year of his reign,
should be read before all the people, and that all the articles therein con-
tained should throughout the whole realm of England be strictly observed.
Also, in the same manner, at this time a writ of his lordship the King, in
like form, was sent to all the Sheriffs of England.
Also, on the same day there were immediately read certain letters
patent, setting forth that the King had delivered the City into the custody
of William Fitz-Bichard, who before had been elected by the citizens
Bailiff of the City ; as also, the SherifFwick of Middlesex, he making
payment, according to the ancient ferm, at the Exchequer. But these
letters were contrary to the aforesaid Charter, by which the City is
entitled to have all its franchises and free customs, and by virtue whereof
1 Or warehouses.
A.D. 1265.] REGULATIONS AS TO PROPERTY OF THE DISHERISONED. 93
the citizens ought to elect their own Sheriffs and Mayor. For which
reason, the citizens sent to the Court of his lordship the King envoys on
their behalf ; though the same William continued to be Warden of the
City and of Middlesex ; as the citizens declined to elect any one, in con-
travention of the letters aforesaid, without leave of his lordship the King.
Still however, they sent envoys to the Court, as already mentioned.
At the Feast of Saint Michael, in the year of our Lord 1266, Wil-
liam Fitz-Bichard, Warden of the City and of Middlesex, still continued
in his bailiwick ; but being removed on the Feast of Saint Martin [11
November], by election of the citizens, John Addrien and Luke de
Batencurt were made * Bailiffs of the City and of Middlesex.
In this year, about the Feast of Saint Michael, there were chosen
twelve men of the nobles of the realm, ecclesiastics as well as laymen,
in whose arbitration and ordinance were placed such matters as touched
the state of the realm, and of those more particularly who had been dis-
herisoned ; that so, whatever decision they might give thereon, the same
should be strictly observed. Accordingly, their ordinance was published
on the Sunday before the Feast of All Saints [1 November] at 2 Warewyc,
before his lordship the King and his Council, and a countless multitude
of Earls, Barons, and others, by the Legate, after his sermon; who
declared that no one of those who had been disherisoned should
Fol. 100 A.
lose his lands ; but that those who had most offended against his
lordship the King, should be ransomed at the value of their lands for five
years, and certain others at the value of theirs for two. As to those
whose offences had not been so great, the sum was to be the value of
their lands for half a year ; such ransoms to be the property of those who
then held such lands. It was also provided, that if any one could
immediately make payment of his ransom, he was immediately to have
back his lands ; and if unable to do so, he was to have back his land in
proportion to such part of his ransom as he was able to pay ; the residue
thereof remaining unto him who was then in possession of the land, until
the periods before-mentioned, unless in the meantime he should make
payment of the residue of his ransom. After the like form, it was
granted unto those who were in the Castle of Kenelworthe, if it should
be their wish, with the exception of Sir Henry de Hastinges, Sir John
1 I.e. Substitutes for Sheriffs. 2 Warwick.
94 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1266
de la Ware, and the person who had cut off the hand of an envoy of his
lordship the King. Those however who had been disherisoned, but had
been guilty of no offence, were to have their lands free, and their
damages by award of court. It should also be noticed that, first of all,
the Legate declared that the Charter which the King had granted unto
the Barons, and of which mention has been previously made, should in all
its points be strictly observed, etc. ; as is set forth in a certain writing
made thereon, a copy of which was sent to every County in the kingdom
of England, under seal of his lordship the King, there to be read.
After this, the messengers of the City returned from the Court,
bringing with them letters from his lordship the King, both close and
patent, on the Vigil, namely, of Saint Martin [11 November] ; whereby
it was granted unto them, that they should elect two Bailiffs of their
number to take charge of the City and the Sheriffwick of Middlesex, upon
payment of the ancient ferm. Wherefore, on the morrow there were
elected unto that office in the Guildhall, before all the people, l John
Addrien and Luke de Batencurt, who, being presented at the Exchequer,
were admitted and sworn.
After this, on the Feast of Saint Lucy the Virgin [13
December], the Castle of Kenelworthe was surrendered to his lordship the
King ; upon the siege of which castle, his lordship the King had been
engaged, with a great army, from the Feast of the Nativity of John the
Baptist [24 June] until that day ; his enemies and those who had proved
unfaithful, holding the said castle against him by force of arms.
In this year, before the Feast of Saint Michael preceding, those who
were called the 2 " disherisoned," threw themselves into the Isle of Ely,
fortifying it with arms ; and repeatedly sallied forth therefrom, laying
waste and burning manors in divers places in Esex, Norfolch, and
Suthfolch, as also in the County of 3 Cantebrigscire : they also took and
plundered the City of 4 Nore wych, and compelled the vills and boroughs
to pay ransom.
In this year, when the Earl of Gloucester, who by command of his
lordship the Legate was coming to London, was at Windleshores, the
1 This is a repetition, in more circumstantial 3 Cambridgeshire,
detail, of what has been already stated. 4 Norwich.
3 " Exheredati"
A.D. 1266.] EARL OF GLOUCESTER TAKES POSSESSION OF THE CITY. 95
citizens went to the said Legate, to advise with him as to whether the
Earl ought to enter the City ; who said, that he was certain that the
Earl was the King's friend, and that it would be a disgrace to deny
him admission into the City. Afterwards, on the Friday next before
Palm Sunday, the citizens sent certain of their fellow-citizens to the
Earl, who was approaching the City, to request him not to take
up his quarters within the City, by reason of the great number of his
troops ; which request he acceded to, and, passing through the middle
of the City, took up his quarters in 1 Suwerk, with his people. But on
the morrow, as the Legate. would not come to him on the other side of
the Bridge, by command of the Legate he came into London, to hold a
conference with him in the 2 Church of the Holy Trinity ; and so remained
in the City with his people. From this it is clear that the
Earl had entrance into the City by counsel and assent of the
Legate ; by whose counsel the citizens, by order of his lordship the King
and of the Queen, were required to abide. On the Monday following,
John de Ey vile and his confederates, who were called the " disherisoned,"
came to Suwerk and took up their quarters there : the citizens under-
standing which, put the City in a state of defence, and for greater safety
drew up the drawbridge, that they might not enter the City. For the
citizens themselves had not the means of attacking them without the
assistance of the Earl ; who declined to give them such assistance ; as in
fact it was through him, and at his instigation, that they had come so
near the City, and had committed much mischief in divers places.
After this, soon after Easter, the Earl took all the keys of the City
Gates, and delivered them to such of his own people as he thought
proper, for the purpose of watching all entrance into, and exit from,
the City; and always, in the meantime, they who had taken up their
quarters in Suwerk, had free admission, day and night, by the Bridge
into the City. Upon this, many citizens departed from the City, through
fear of his lordship the King ; and their goods the Earl ordered to be
carried off.
Thereupon, the low people arose, calling themselves the ee Commons
" of the City," as had been the case in the time of the Earl of Leicester,
and had the chief voice in the City ; so that many persons of the City,
1 Southwark. * At Aldgate.
96 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 126
and of the principal men even, were seized by them and put in the Earl's
keeping, because they had manifestly maintained their fealty towards
his lordship the King; their goods being either sequestrated by the
Earl or made away with. And then, by election of the said
populace, Robert de Lintone and Roger Marshal were made
Bailiffs; Sir Richard de Culeworth being also made High Bailiff of
the City by the Earl. Then all those who had been, as it were, out-
lawed from the City in the time of the Earl of Leicester, for breach
of the peace of his lordship the King, came into the City and were
spontaneously admitted ; and all those who had been imprisoned in
Newgate for the cause aforesaid, were set at liberty.
Afterwards, on the Wednesday after the close of Easter, the Legate
issued a prohibition of bells being rung in the City, and of divine service
being celebrated with song; but the same was to be performed in
silence ; the doors of the churches being closed, that so the enemies
of the King, known as the " disherisoned," might not be present at the
celebration of divine service. After this, at the end of three weeks
after Easter, his lordship the King came with his army to Hamme,
and took up his quarters there, in the Abbey of the monks ; and soon
after, the Legate left the Tower .and took up his abode in the same
Abbey, where for some time he turned the cloister of the monks into a
stable for his horses.
After this, from day to day his lordship the King and the Earl held
conference, through envoys, as to making peace; the Earl however,
always in the meantime, protecting the City and the entrance thereto
with armed men, against the army of his lordship the King.
Be it remarked, that during these commotions, the Earl did not
allow those who had come with him to commit acts of depredation with-
out the City ; though still, the persons who had their quarters beyond
the Bridge, committed depredations and many acts of mischief in Sureye,
Kent, and elsewhere. And even, alas for such wickedness !
Fol. 102 A. r .1
they went so far as to repair to Westminster and there despoil
the Palace of his lordship the King, breaking the seats, windows, and
doors, and carrying off whatever they could. And although the Earl had
daily caused proclamation to be made, that no act of depredation should
1 Substitutes for Sheriffs.
A.D. 12C6.] CRIMINALS EXECUTED BY DROWNING. 97
be committed, still, many persons in the City were plundered ; where-
upon, the Earl had judgment executed upon some of his own people.
For, on one occasion, where four men-at-arms of Sir William de Ferers
had been concerned in an act of depredation where one of the citizens
had been slain, he had them bound hand and foot and cast into the
Thames, and there drowned. And such was the sentence executed
during all this period upon those who were condemned.
Afterwards, in the week after the Feast of the Holy Trinity, peace
was made between his lordship the King and the Earl through the King
of Almaine and Sir Henry his son, and Philip Basset, who had frequently
intervened, as also through some other persons : so that the Earl and his
people withdrew thereupon from the City, and took up his quarters in
Suwerk; and his lordship the King, on the Saturday before the Feast of
the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist [24 June], came to London with
all his army, and took up his quarters there. And immediately thereupon,
he had his peace proclaimed, and granted to the disherisoned a truce for
eleven days from that day, that in the meantime they might treat for
peace ; and at the same time also, by precept of his lordship the King,
John Addrien and Luke de Batencurt were replaced in their bailiwick,
and all the Aldermen in their Wards, in which the Earl had previously
placed new Wardens [in their stead].
On the Monday following, about the 1 sixth hour, the Legate laid a
general interdict upon the City ; which however was taken off
about the third hour on the following day, upon two men making
oath before commissioners of his lordship the Legate at Saint Paul's, and
swearing upon the souls of all the commons, that they would abide by the
award of Holy Church. Also, at this time, the whole of the covered way
which the Earl had made between the City and the Tower, was entirely
broken up, and the timber carried away. At this time also, on the Vigil
of Saint John the Baptist [24 June], Sir Alan la 2 Suche was made Con-
stable of the Tower and Warden of the City by his lordship the King,
in presence of all the people, at Saint Paul's Cross.
On the Sunday after this, his lordship the King gave orders that on
the morrow twenty men should come from each Ward, in readiness to
1 Twelve in the clay, 2 More generally " Zouche."
O
98 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1266.
level the foss which the Earl had had made, that so the place thereof
might not be seen.
Be it remembered, that peace was made between his lordship the King
and the Earl of Gloucester in form underwritten, namely ; his lordship
the King remitted unto him and all of his household, fellowship, and
friendship, and unto all the people of London, all anger, rancour, and
indignation, and all ill-will, which he entertained towards them by reason
of trespasses and other things by them committed by land or by water,
since the said Earl had last departed from Wales, and while he was
making sojourn in the City. And his lordship the King was to hold them
acquitted thereof as towards all persons, and not to permit any one of
them to be molested or appealed by reason .of the trespasses aforesaid ;
save only, that such merchants as had not intermeddled with the war
were to have full right of action for recovery of chattels, only their own,
without amercement on behalf of his lordship the King, according to the
law of the land. Also, that grants of lands, houses, and rents,
which had been made, as well by the King as by the Earl, after
the aforesaid departure of the Earl from Wales, were to be wholly revoked.
The said Earl also bound himself by oath, that he would not wage war
against his lordship the King, and made letters thereupon, and found
sureties in a penalty of ten thousand marks. And this penalty was to
hold good, until it should be known from his lordship the Pope, whether
the same should appear to him to be a sufficient penalty; and whatsoever
his lordship the Pope should ordain thereupon, the said Earl was held
bound to observe. And this ordinance was to be made before the Feast
of the Purification of the Blessed Mary [2 February] then next ensuing.
On this occasion his lordship the King, by his letters patent and
under-written, agreed to forego as against the Londoners all the ill-will
which for the reasons aforesaid he had entertained towards them. At
the same time, at the instance of the King, the citizens promised the
King of Almaine one thousand marks for the damages which he had
sustained at Istleworthe.
Letters of his lordship the King, by way of forgiveness for the harbouring of
the Earl of Gloucester in the City.
1 Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland,
1 "Written in AngloNorman*
;
A.D. 126C.J LETTER OF FORGIVENESS TO THE PEOPLE OF LONDON. 9$
" and Duke of Acquitaine, to all those who this letter shall see or hear,
"greeting. Whereas by reason of the commotions that have of late
" existed in our territory, we have been moved to anger against the
" people of London, because of the sojourn of Gilbert de Clare, Earl of
" Gloucester and of Hertford, in the City aforesaid, and for other things
" which have been done since the late departure of the Earl from
" Wales for the City, and since his entry into the same ; as also, for things
" which have been done by the Earl and on part of others of his house-
" hold, and of his fellowship, and of his friendship, and by those of
" London within the City and without, in divers counties and .
" lands, as well by water as by J land ; we have, by the counsel
" and by assent of our dear brother the King of Almaine, and of the Earls,
" and Barons, and Commons, of our land, remitted and foregone, as
" against all those of London, all manner of wrath and of rancour, and of
" ill-will, and have granted and accorded, that unto them no harm or
" mischief we will do or will cause to be done, or will suffer to be done ;
"and that they shall not be molested or impleaded for the matters
" aforesaid, save only by merchants who have not interfered in the war,
" the which shall have their action according to the law of the land, if
<( they shall so wish ; 2 but that nevertheless, as regards them, or as regards
" others against whom they shall have offended, all the people of London
ff shall be quit, so far as we and our heirs are concerned, of all forfeits
" and amends ; and that, upon suit by such merchants, no one impleaded <
"shall suffer any harm or damage, such merchants being solely to
" receive their chattels. Besides this, we do will and do grant, that
" those of London, who are not in London upon the day on which this
" acquittance is made, shall go acquitted the same as the others ; that so,
" if they do nothing against our peace, between now and 3 then, they
" may of the peace that is now so made, be fully assured. And we have
" also granted and accorded, that all lands in London which have been
" seized by reason of this commotion since the time aforesaid, shall be
<( now restored unto them, and returned. And if there shall be any
" land that has been taken since the time aforesaid, by reason of the
1 This is probably the meaning ; though the state, and difficult to be understood,
passage seems to be imperfect. 3 The time of their return.
3 The original is here apparently in a corrupt
100 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 126C.
<e commotions aforesaid, the same shall forthwith be delivered. In witness
" of which thing, we, and our dear brother, Sir Richard, by the
" grace of God, King of Almaine, have unto this writing set
" our seals. Done at l Est Ratforcl, the sixteenth day of June, in the one
" and fiftieth year of our reign."
Soon after this, his lordship the King received into his peace John
de Ey vile, Nicholas de Segrave, William Marmeyun, and their confede-
rates, who had taken up their quarters on the other side 'of the Bridge.
About the same time, while his lordship the King was staying at London,
in a Parliament held at Wyndleshores, there being present his lordship
the King of Almaine, Sir Henry his son, Sir Philip Basset, and other
nobles of the realm of England, a reconciliation was effected between Sir
Edward and the Earl of Gloucester.
At the same time also, the Isle of Ely was surrendered to Sir Edward,
who received those whom he found there into the peace and favour of his
lordship the King, his father, and caused all the covered ways and fortifi-
cations, around it and within it, as well by land as by water, to be levelled
with the ground. In the same manner, all the fortifications, the barbican,
and the covered way, which had been made around Suwerk, his lordship
the King caused to- be destroyed and levelled, even so, that the place
where they were is no longer to be seen.
After this, his lordship the King, departing from London, set out for
2 Salopesbery with many Barons, and knights and others, foot and horse,
to hold a conference at Salopesbery with Lewelin, the Prince of
"Wales.
This year was more fruitful than any year in times past, in memory of
persons then living, as well in reference to fields, abundance of corn, trees,
and plenty of fruit, as well in woods and 2 spinneys, as in gardens and
vineyards.
Be it remarked, that on the Monday next before the Feast of Saint
Michael, when the commons had met in the Guildhall to elect the Sheriffs
according to their usages, there was sent a writ of his lordship the King to
Sir Alan la Zuche, Warden of the City, and to the citizens, commanding
that John Addrien and Luke de Batencurt should continue to be 4 Bailiffs
1 East Retford, in Nottinghamshire, 3 Small plantations.
8 Shrewsbury. 4 Substitutes for Sheriffs.
A.D. 1266.J MATTERS FOR INQUISITION THROUGHOUT ENGLAND. 101
until his arrival in London ; and accordingly, they continued to be BailiiFe
until the Easter next ensuing.
A.D. 1267. JOHN ADDRIEN, )
LUKE DE BATENCURT,}
In this year, his lordship the King, returning from Salopesbery,
after peace had been made between him and Lewelin, Prince of Wales,
arrived in London on the Vigil of Saint Edward, King and Confessor
[5 January].
In this year, about the Feast of Saint Michael, it was provided by
the Council of his lordship the King, that inquisition should be made
throughout all the realm of England, as to the points which are set forth
below in French, in this Book.
1 " Whereas the King of England hath given the lands of many
" persons, who had lands in divers Counties and in divers Hundreds,
" he doth therefore will, that inquisition be made who have been en-
" feoffed by him, and in what hundred, of lands of such persons ; [and]
tf that it be stated, who were against him in these commotions in his
" realm, and of what lands they are enfeoffed, and to whom such lands
" belonged, and who holds them now, and who have taken the
" revenues of such lands since that time, and what has become
" of the same. On the other hand, he doth wish to know, by inquisition
" made, who have taken the lands of others by force by reason ^of the
" aforesaid commotions in the realm, and still withhold the same, and
" have not restored them unto the King ; and who they are that hold
" the same, and by what warranty.
"He doth will that inquisition be made, who have been against him
" in this contest, either in deed or in word, and whether the lands or the
" goods of such have yet been given, or not, by the King or by any of his
" people.
" They shall make inquisition, as well of Archbishops, Bishops, [and]
( c of all persons of 2 religion, of whatsoever order they may be, as of par-
" sons, and of priests, and of clerks, and of all other manner of persons,
" whosoever they may be, who have openly promoted the advantage of
1 Written in Anglo-Norman in the original' 2 ! e. of orders of religion.
102 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. !>.. 1267.
" the Earl of Leicester, and were among those who held with him in mis-
(f leading the people by lies and by falsehoods, [and] by taking the Earl's
" part, and slandering the party of the King and his son.
" They shall make inquisition who have given aid by their money
" unto the Earl of Leicester, or unto those of his party, or have sent them
' ( any of their people to aid them, of their own free will, without being
" distressed therefor.
" They shall make inquisition which of such feoffees have made peace
" with their adversaries, and have taken of their monies ; and who have
" restored unto them their lands without the counsel of the King.
" He doth will that they make inquisition who have been
"the principal robbers, and who have been with them, and who
" have been robbed, and by what people, and of how much, and where,
" and for what reason, and where the robbers have been harboured.
"They shall make inquisition whether any lands of the King's
" demesne have been given by reason of these commotions, and who hold
" the same, and unto whom they have been given, and for what offence.
" They shall make inquisition who by, reason of the commotions have
" committed robberies, homicides, or arson, against the loyal subjects of
"the King.
"They shall make inquisition what outlaws have attached them-
" selves to the company of those who called themselves f the disherisoned,'
" and remain still in the country, and where they are harboured.
" They shall make inquisition who have bought the produce of the
" robberies that have been committed upon the loyal subjects of the King,
" in the time aforesaid.
"They shall^make inquisition whether any one of those has been
" robbed, who held with neither one party nor the other, but kept them-
" selves in the country ; and who it is that has robbed them, and of what.
" They shall make inquisition whether any church has been robbed
" in the time aforesaid, and by whom.
" They shall make inquisition whether any person has begged of the
" King the lands of any one, who in the time aforesaid has not been
" against the King, and still holds the same ; and who it is that does so.
" They shall make inquisition, who of their own free will have been
" bailiffs or servants of the Earl of Leicester."
A.D.1267.] INQUISITORS APPOINTED THROUGHOUT ENGLAND. 103
TJie Names of the Inquisitors in these Counties.
Eustace de Baliol; Adam de Gesemue; Richard de Middleton.
1 Everwyk Northumberland Cumberland Westmeriland
T -XT j.- i -n. T Fol. 106A.
L<ancastre JN otingnain JJer by.
The Names of the Inquisitors in these Counties.
Robert de Nevile ; Roger de Sumeri ; John le Bretun.
2 Nicole Northamtune L eicestre Ware wy k Roteland O xne-
ford Barkschere Bukingham Bedeford.
The Names of the Inquisitors in these Counties.
Adam de Greinvile ; Robert de Brehuse ; the Abbot of Schireburne ;
Richard de Chertedon.
3 Salopesbery Stafford Hereford Wyrecestre Gloucestre
Deveneschyre Sumersete Dorsetre Wylteschyre 4 Suhamptun.
The Names of the Inquisitors in these Counties.
William de Seint Oumer ; John Luvel ; Simon de Creye.
Sureye Susexe Kent Middelsexe Esexe Herteford Sutfolke
Nortfolke Cantebrigge Huntingdone.
Be it known that this provision, etc. 5
Beit remembered, that in time previous precept had been often
given in the Guildhall, before all the people, in behalf of his lordship the
King, under pain of life and limb, and proclamation had been made through-
out all the City to a like effect, that no persons should hold any parley,
conventicles by themselves, or covins, whereby the peace of his lordship the
King and of the City might in any way be disturbed ; but that all persons
of the City, rich as well as poor, should be, as it were, one body and one
man, faithfully and in fealty to maintain the peace of the King and of the
City ; that so, through such conventicles' and covins the City might not
again be put to confusion ; as had happened in the times of Thomas Fitz-
Thomas, the"' then Mayor of London, and of Thomas de Piwelesdone, his
confederate ; under whose rule the common people, by means of such
covins and confederacies made among them, had arisen against the
1 Yorkshire. 3 Shropshire.
2 Lincolnshire ; such being the name by 4 Southamptonshire, or Hampshire,
which it was called in the Anglo-Norman 3 The passage ends thus abruptly in the
language. original.
104 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1267.
principal men of the City, and had held all power in the City, so that the
superiors could neither appease them nor bring them to justice ; and such
was the beginning of confusion to the City. Besides which, command
was given and proclamation made, in like form, that no persons should
take revenge for battery or other injury inflicted upon him; but he was
to make complaint thereof unto the Bailiffs of the City, who were to do
such persons full justice thereupon.
Against this, it happened, about the Feast of Saint Katherine [25
November] in this year, that a dispute arose between certain of the craft
of the goldsmiths and certain of the craft of the tailors ; to whom adhered,
on the one side and the other, some of the trade of the 1 parmenters and
some of the 2 tawyers ; which persons held great assemblages, and for three
nights together went armed throughout the streets of the City,
Fol.l07A. n -. x
creating most severe conflicts among themselves. Hence, with-
out doubt, as was said, more than five hundred of these mischievous
persons were collected together at night, and in the affray many of them
were wounded; but still, no one would 3 act a part that belongs only to
the Bailiffs. For every one was waiting by force of arms to take ven-
geance on his adversary, against the peace and his own fealty to his lord-
ship the King : the Bailiffs and discreet men of the City understanding
which, had more than thirty of them seized and imprisoned in Neugate ;
and these, on the Friday next after the Feast of Saint Katherine [25
November], appeared before Laurence de Broc, the Justiciar assigned for
gaol delivery, who took proceedings against them in the King's behalf,
saying that they, against the peace and their fealty to his lordship the
King, had gone armed in the City, and had at night wickedly and felo-
niously wounded some persons, and had slain others, whose bodies, it was
said, had been thrown into the Thames.
They however denied violence and injury etc., and as to the same
put themselves upon the verdict of the 4 venue. But on the morrow,
those who by the said venue were found to have been in the conflict
1 Dealers in " parmentery," or broad- cloth, passage ; but it evidently is incorrectly tran-
* Who prepared fine leather with alum ; scribed and hopelessly corrupt.
the shoemakers also were sometimes called 4 Or " visnue," or " visnet ; " persons of the
"aZttfonV." vicinity,
3 This is probably near the meaning of the
A.D. 1267.] PERSONS HANGED FOR RIOT IN THE CITY. 105
aforesaid, were, by judgment of the said Justiciar, immediately hanged,
although not one among them had been convicted of homicide, l mayhem,
or robbery. Hence, one Geoffrey, surnamed " de Beverley," a parmenter
by trade, because certain of those misdoers had armed themselves in his
house, and he himself had been present with them in arms in the said
affray, was hanged, together with twelve others who had been indicted, as
well goldsmiths as parmenters and tawyers. All this however was done,
that others, put in awe thereby, might take warning, that so the peace
of his lordship the King by all within the City might be the more
rigid] v maintained.
_ * . Fol. 107 B.
Be it remembered, that in the same year it was ordained
by his lordship the King and his Council, that Justiciars Itinerant
should be sent throughout all the kingdom of England, beginning the
2 Iter immediately after the Feast of Saint Hilary [13 January].
Names of the Justiciars Itinerant in the Provinces underwritten.
Gilbert de Preston; John le Bretun; William de Helyun; John de
Eketun. Westmerland Northumberland Cumberland Lancastre
Euerwyk Notingham Dereby "Warewyk Leicestre Lincoln
Roteland.
Names of the Justiciars \_Itineranf] in the Provinces under-stated.
Nicholas de Turry; Kobert de Brus; Henry de Walnestre; Master
Richard de Stanes. Kent Middelsex Surey Susex Suharnpton
Wiltune Deveneschire Cornwall Essex Hereteford Norfolke
Sufolke.
Names of the Justiciars Itinerant in the Provinces underwritten.
Richard de Middeltun; Adam de Greinvile; Roger de Messenden;
John de Strode. Sumersete Dorsete Hereford Gloucestre Wor-
cestre Salopesbery Stafford Oxneford Barkschire Bukingham
Bedeford Norhamptune Cantebrigge Huntingdune.
Names of those who were then Sheriffs in England.
Fol. 108 A.
Robert de Layum, Sheriff of Everwykschire.
William de Huntercumbe, Sheriff of Norhumberland.
1 The maiming, or mutilation, f a limb 2 Or Eyre,' or Circuit,
necessary for defence in figlit.
106 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1267.
William de Deyre, Sheriff of Cumberland.
Simon de Hedune, Sheriff of Notingham.
John le Moine, Sheriff of Norhainpton.
Baldwyn de Seint Maur, Sheriff of Cantebrigge and of Huutingdone.
Robert de Norton, Sheriff of Sufolke and Norfolke.
Samson Foliot, Sheriff of Oxneford and Barkschire.
Richard de Heylham, Sheriff of Essex and of Hertford.
Ralph Sansaver, Sheriff of Sureye and of Susexe.
John de Hockele, Sheriff of Suhamptune.
Fulk Peinfurer, Sheriff of Kent.
William de Dun, Sheriff of Wiltune.
Andrew Wake, Sheriff of Sumersete and Dorsete.
William de Bikel, Sheriff of Deveneschire.
Richard de Hockel, Sheriff of Gloucestre.
Robert de Grele, Sheriff of Hereford.
William Bagot, Sheriff of Warewyk and Leicestre.
Walter de Hoptun, Sheriff of Salop and Stafford.
There was a most violent wind, on the morrow of Saint Hilary [13
January] in this year.
In this year, on the third day before the Annunciation of Our Lady
[25 March], which then fell on a Friday, his lordship the King summoned
before himself and his Council the citizens of London, and granted them
certain liberties, as set forth below in this book ; at the same time with-
drawing many articles of the City's franchises, until such time as they
should have more fully obtained his favour.
In the week before Palm Sunday in this year, the citizens of London,
by command of his lordship the King, chose six men, who were
Fol, 108 B. J . _.
presented before him at Westminster on the morrow of Palm
Sunday, on the second day of April, that is to say. And, at the same time,
his lordship the King, of his own free will, appointed two of them to be
Sheriffs of London and Middlesex, and to collect all issues of such Sheriff-
wick to the use of his lordship the King ; namely, William de Dureham
and Walter Hervy, John Addrien and Luke de Batencurt being re-
moved. At this time also, Sir Thomas de Eppegrave was made Warden
of the City and Constable of the Tower.
After this, about the Feast of Saint Mark the Evangelist, Ottoboni,
A.D 1267.] CHARTER GRANTED, ON PARDON OF THE CITIZENS. 107
Cardinal Deacon of Saint Adrian, Legate of the Apostolic See, held his
General Council in the Church of Saint Paul ; at which were present,
either in person or by their proctors, all the Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots
and Priors, Deans, Provosts, and Archdeacons, of all England, Ireland,
Scotland, and Wales.
Charter of his lordship the King, which he granted unto the Citizens of
London; with the hope of more fully obtaining his favour.
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, and
"Duke of Acquitaine, to the Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots, Priors,
" Earls, Barons, Justiciars, Sheriffs, Provosts, Ministers, and to all his
"bailiffs and faithful subjects, greeting. Know ye that we have granted,
(e for us and our heirs, unto our citizens of London, whom of late we
" have received unto our favour and peace, after divers trespasses and
" forfeitures of them and their community unto us made ; for the which,
" both as to life and limb, and all other things unto the said City pertain-
(f ing, they have submitted themselves unto our will ; that no one of
"them shall be forced to plead~without the walls of the aforesaid City as
" to anything, except tenures without the City, our moneyers and officers
(f excepted, and except as to those things which shall happen to be done
" against our peace, and which, according to the common law of our realm,
" are wont to be determined in the parts where such trespasses have been
" committed ; and also, except pleas concerning merchandize which are wont
" to be determined according to 1 Law-merchant, in boroughs and fairs ; but
" still, upon the understanding that such plaints shall be determined by
" four or five of the citizens of London aforesaid, who shall be
Fol. 109 A.
" present in the said boroughs or fairs; saving unto us the amerce-
" ments from thence in anywise arising, as to which unto us and our heirs,
" under pain of grievous forfeiture, they shall faithfully make answer.
" We have also granted unto the same our citizens acquittal of 2 murder
" in the City aforesaid and in the 3 Portsoken ; and that no one of the said
" citizens shall wage 4 battle ; and that as to pleas pertaining unto the
1 A special law, differing from the Common 3 The liberties of the City without the walls,
Law of England, and peculiar to merchants. in the vicinity of Aldgate.
2 A penalty paid by the inhabitants of the 4 Or judicial combat ; in support of the
hundred within which a murder was com- justice of his cause,
mitted,
108 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.B. 1267.
ff crown, those more especially which within the City aforesaid and the
" suburbs thereof may chance to arise, they may l deraign themselves
(f according to the ancient customs of the said City; this however
" excepted, that upon the graves of the dead it shall not be lawful to
ee make -oath in the precise words as to what the dead persons themselves
" would have said if they had been living ; but in place of such dead
" persons as before their death shall have been chosen to discharge by
(( oath those who may have been 3 appealed or charged as to matters
" pertaining unto the crown, other free and lawful men shall be chosen,
" who shall do the same without delay which by the deceased persons
f ' aforesaid should have been done, in case they had survived. And
ef also, that within the walls of the City, or even within the Portsoken
" thereof, no one shall take lodging by force or by livery of the 4 Marshal.
"/We have also granted unto the same citizens, that throughout all our ter-
" ritories and dominions, wheresoever they shall come with their wares and
" merchandize, as also throughout all sea-ports, as well on this side of the
" sea as beyond, they shall be quit of toll and 5 lastage, and of all other
(f custom, except everywhere our due and ancient 6 prisage of wine, that is
" to say, one tun before the mast, and another tun behind the mast, at the
<f rate of twenty shillings each tun, to be paid in such form as we and
" our predecessors have been accustomed to have such prises. And if
" any person in anv one of our territories, on this side the sea
Fol. 109 B.
" or beyond, or in the sea-ports on this side the sea or beyond,
(< shall take of the men of Lfondon, in contravention of this our grant, toll
" or any other custom, except the prisage aforesaid, after such person
1 /. 0. clear, exculpate, or exonerate. intended verdict would have been ; such oath
2 A custom common to the Teutones and having the same virtue as that of the deceased,
the Scandinavians in ancient times ; see the in favour of the person so accused.
Laws of Ine and of Ethelred, Thorpe's Ancient 3 L e. accused.
Laws and Institutes of England, pp. 59 and 123. 4 Of the King's household; whose right in
In the present instance allusion is made to a general, it was, to seize private residences when
privilege which, until then, had been allowed deemed necessary for the accommodation of the
in London to a person when accused; to the royal household.
effect that, when one of his compurgators or 5 A custom levied upon wares sold by the
jurors had died, whom he had selected to clear last.
or exonerate him by making oath as to his G A custom paid to the sovereign upon wines
belief of his innocence, it was allowable for the imported. Prisage was one of the Great Pre-
accused to say on oath, over the deceased rogative customs,
person's grave, what the precise nature of bis
A.D. 1267.] CHARTER GRANTED,, ON PAKDON OF THE CITIZENS. 109
" shall have 1 failed of right, the Sheriffs of London shall take -naam at
" London therefor. We have also granted unto them, that in each week
f( the Hustings shall be held once in the week, and that only for one day,
" but so that the matters which cannot be determined on that day shall
" be continued on the morrow, and no longer : and that, as to their lands
" and tenures within the City, right shall be done unto them according
' ' to the custom of the same City ; so nevertheless, that as well foreigners
te as others may make attorneys, as well in prosecuting as in defending,
" the same as elsewhere in our Court. And that they shall not be
" molested for 3 Miskenning in their pleas ; that is to say, if they shall
" not have altogether made their declaration aright. And that, as to all
" their debts which shall have been contracted in London, and as to
" securities unto them there made, pleas shall, according to the just and
" usual custom, there be held. And further, for the amendment of the
" City aforesaid, we do grant that all shall be quit of 4 Childwite, and of
" 5 Yeresgive, and of 6 Scotale; so that our Sheriffs of London, or any
f< other bailiff, shall make no Scotale. And that the said citizens may
"justly have and hold their lands and tenures, or securities, and also
" their debts, whosoever may owe the same. And that no merchant or
" other person shall meet merchants when coming by land or by water
f( with their merchandize and victuals towards the City, to buy or to sell
" again, until they shall have come to the said City, and shall
" have there exposed their merchandize for sale, under forfeiture
" of the thing bought and pain of imprisonment, from which without
" grievous punishment he shall not escape. And that no one shall expose
" his merchandize for sale, which owes custom, until the due custom shall
" have been levied, under forfeiture of all the wares as to which it shall
" happen to have been otherwise done. And that no merchant, stranger
" or other, shall buy or sell any wares which ought to be weighed or
1 Meaning, have failed to stand his trial. ' heriot' has been suggested, '. e. a contribu-
8 An Anglo-Saxon word, signifying goods tion of military stores ; also, a fine paid to the
seized by way of distress. King's ministers on entering upon an office.
3 A fault or variation in pleadings, punished A compulsory new year's gift to the sovereign,
with fine ; the word signifying miscounting or is perhaps the true meaning of the word,
mispleading. 6 Meaning probably, compulsory payments
4 The penalty for begetting a child upon the for licence to brew or sell ale. In other
superior lord's bond-woman. instances, this word admits of a different
5 The meaning of this word is unknown ; a interpretation.
110 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1267.
"ironed, except by our beam or 1 tron, under forfeiture of the wares
" aforesaid. Moreover, those debts which of their contracts or loans
" shall be owed unto them, they may, for their better security, cause to
" be enrolled in our Exchequer, upon the recognizance of those who
" shall stand bound to them in the said debts ; so nevertheless, that no
" debt be enrolled upon the recognizance of any person who is not there
< l known ; or unless it be made manifest as to his person by the testimony
" of six or four lawful men, who shall be sufficient to answer as well for
<( the debt as for the damages which any persons may have through such
" recognizance, if the same shall happen to have been falsely made under
" their name. And for every pound to be enrolled in the said Exchequer,
" one penny is to be paid to our use, for the charge of the support of
" those who to such enrolment must attend. And these liberties and
" free customs we have granted unto them, to hold to them and their
" heirs, so long as to us and our heirs they shall well and faithfully behave
" themselves ; together with other their just and reasonable customs
" which in time of us and our predecessors heretofore they have had, as
" well as to form and manner of pleading as to their tenures, debts, and
" securities, as to all other matters whatsoever touching both them and
" the said City; provided however, that such customs be not contrary to
" justice and right laws; saving in all things the liberties of the Church
" of Westminster, unto the Abbot and monks of the same place by the
" Charters of us and our predecessors, Kings of England,
Fol. 110 B.
" granted. But as concerning our Jews, and merchant-
" strangers, and other things out of our aforesaid grants touching us and
" our City aforesaid, we and our heirs shall provide as to us shall seem
" most expedient. These being witnesses, Richard King of Almaine,
<e our brother, Edward our eldest son, Edmund our son, Roger de
<{ Mortimer, Roger de Clifford, Roger de Leyburne, Robert Walerand,
e ' Roger Agulun, Master Godfrey Giffard our Chancellor, Walter de
( ' Merton, Master John de Cheshull Archdeacon of London, John de la
" Lyncle, William de Aette, and others. Given by our hand at West-
" minster, this 26th day of March, in the two-and-fiftieth year of our
" reign."
In the same year, the Legate departed from London for the sea-
1 A balance used for weighing coarse goods, and especially wool.
A.D.1267.] APPEAL AGAINST MASTER GODFREY DE SAINT DUNSTAN. Ill
coast on the fourth of the Nones [4] of July. In this year also, on the
morrow of Saint James the Apostle [25 July], Sir Stephen de Edde-
worthe was made Constable of the Tower of London, and "Warden of
that City. Afterwards, in the same year, 011 the morrow of Saint Peter's
Chains [1 August], the King of Almaine departed from London, to pass
over to his kingdom.
In this year, after Pentecost, Master Godfrey de Saint Dunstan, at
this 2 time Warden of the Bishopric of London, enjoined upon the Parish
priests of the City that they should pronounce certain of the chief men
of the City aforesaid, excommunicated, because they received probate
of testaments as to lands and tenements devised ; whereupon, the citizens
obtained of his lordship the King a certain writ, the tenor of which is as
follows : -
" Henry, by the grace of God etc., to Master Godfrey, Warden of the
"Bishopric of London, greeting. Whereas our citizens of London,
"time out of mind, by grant of our predecessors, Kings of
" England, and of ourselves, and in accordance with the ancient
" and approved custom, have been wont in their last will, at their own
" pleasure, to devise their lands and tenements within the liberty of the
" City aforesaid, and as to the same, to admit before them in their
" Hustings in London, probate of such testament ; you, as we have
" heard, in contravention of such customs and grants, have pronounced
(i sentence of excommunication against those admitting such probates in
" the City aforesaid, to the no small detriment of the same citizens and
" to the manifest prejudice of our crown and royal dignity ; at the
" which we wonder very much, and are moved thereat. We do there*
" fore command you, strictly enjoining, that, without loss of time by
" delay, you forthwith recall the sentence aforesaid against our said
" citizens by reason thereof pronounced ; and this, as you would avoid
" our indignation, you are in no-wise to omit, that so it may no further
" be needed for us to be importuned thereon, and thereby have in another
" manner to put our hand hereto. And know that unless you. shall do
" this, we shall so grievously take in hand you and yours, that you will
'.'feel yourselves in no slight manner visited therein. Witness, etc.
1 Or Whitsuntide. then absent at Rome.
2 Henry de Sandwich, the Bishop, being
112 CHKONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1267.
" Given at Wodestoke, in the month of July, in the two-and-fiftieth
" year of our reign."
By this royal mandate, the said Master was superseded in doing
execution therein.
Be it remembered, that many persons of the City of London left the
City, along with their goods, that nothing could be found whereby they
could be distrained to raise the proportion assessed upon them ; where-
fore, the citizens obtained royal letters in this form :
" Henry, by the grace of God, etc., to all bailiffs and his faithful
" subjects, unto whom these present letters shall come, greeting. Where-
" as certain persons of our City of London have departed from the same
<e city with their merchandize, and goods and chattels, seeking subterfuges
" therein, whereby they may clandestinely escape paying the
" tallage upon them assessed in regard of the fine of twenty
" thousand marks, which our citizens of the said city have made unto us
" for having our good will ; we have granted unto the same our citizens,
" that the goods and chattels of the persons who have so left the city
" aforesaid, wheresoever the same in our realm may happen to be found,
" may be arrested, until they shall have fully made satisfaction as to the
" tallage upon them assessed. And we do therefore command you, that
" you cause to be seized the merchandize, goods, and chattels, of the
" persons aforesaid who have so left the City, wheresoever the same in
" our realm may happen to be found, until they shall have fully paid
" the tallage aforesaid, as already mentioned. In testimony whereof, we
(f have caused these our letters patent to be made. Witness myself at
" Wodestok, this 14th day of July, in the two-and-fiftieth year of our
" reign."
In this year Sir Eadwafd and Sir Gilbert, Earl of Gloucester, and
many other nobles of the realm of England, assumed the Cross at Nor-
hamtone, on the Feast of Saint John the Baptist [24 June], to set out
in aid of the Holy Land.
A.D. 1268. The aforesaid WALTER HERVI,) _
A i - c Sheriffs.
And WILLIAM DE DUREHAM, )
These persons continued to be l Bailiffs in form aforesaid, and that,
1 Or Sheriffs.
!
A.D.126&] ItfSOLENT CONDUCT OF GIFFARD, ARCHBISHOP OF YORK. 113
without election by the citizens, and without precept of his lordship the
King.
In this year, when all the Baronage of the kingdom of England had
come to London, by precept of his lordship the King, to hold a Parlia-
ment there as to the state of the realm, there came thither Master Walter
Giffard, Archbishop of York ; who, in derogation of the dignity of the
Archbishop of Canterbury in his own diocese, had a cross carried
before him; such 1 diocese extending through all places from the river of
Humber to the South, as far as the sea. For which reason the said
Archbishop of Canterbury laid the City of London under interdict, as
also the district without the City for a distance of two miles
., ,,' ,. . . FoL112A.
on every side, so that no divine service was celebrated there,
except in silence ; and no bells were rung, save in the City only. Nor
yet, for all this, would the said Archbishop of York withdraw himself;
but through pride and haughtiness, in contravention of the liberties
and dignity of the Church of Canterbury, had this cross borne before
him so long as he remained in these parts. This he did after the
Feast of Saint Hilary.
In this year, there was a most severe winter ; and a great frost,
beginning before the Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle [30 November],
lasted until nearly the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary [2
February].
In this year, the water of Thames arose on the Feast of Saint Vincent
[22 January], reaching a greater height than it had ever done in the
time of any person then living ; so much so, that many manors, houses,
and even men, were overwhelmed by the inundation.
This year, in the first week of Lent, his lordship the King delivered
unto Sir Edward, his son, the City of London and the Tower; who
thereupon immediately made Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes Constable of the
Tower and Warden of the City.
In this year, Sir Edmund, son of his lordship the King, married
(Avelina) daughter of the Count of Aubemarle, in the Conventual
Church of Westminster, in presence of his lordship the King, the
Queen, Sir Edward, eldest son of his said lordship the King, and many
other nobles of the realm of England ; upon which day his lordship the
1 Or rather ' Province.'
Q
114 CHEONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1268.
King held a great and most noble Court in his Great Hall there, that
is to say, on the ninth day of April, which in this year was l Hokeday.
This year, upon the Feast of Saint Erkenwald, on the last day of
April, that is to say, by precept of his lordship the King, there were
chosen by the citizens, Robert de Corenhelle, 2 Thomas de Basinges,
Edward Blund, Walter le Poter, 3 William de Hadestoke, and
4 Anketil de Auverne; who, on the third day after, set out for
Wyndleshores to go before his lordship the King ; and on the morrow
the King chose from those six men Robert de 5 Corenhelle and Thomas
de Basinges, to be his Bailiffs and to be answerable unto him for the
issues of the Sheriifwick of London and Middlesex. Which Robert
and Thomas, on the Monday next after their return, were presented in
the Guildhall of London before the commons of that City, being the sixth
day of May. This year, on Wednesday in the week of Pentecost, Sir
Henry, son of the King of Alrnaine, married at Wyndleshores the
daughter of a certain noble of Acquitaine, Gaston de Byerne by name.
Be it remarked, that whereas his lordship the King, this time three
years before, had granted unto Sir Edward his son, to take custom of all
things coming by sea into England and from England going forth, and
such custom had been leased unto certain Italians upon yearly payment
to Sir Edward of a ferm of six thousand marks ; the said Italians exacted
the same custom of the citizens of London, and took sureties of them,
in contravention of their franchises. Wherefore the citizens went to
Sir Edward, and begged of him that he would not allow such a yoke of
servitude to be imposed upon them, in contravention of the franchises by
the Charters of his lordship the King, his father, and of his predecessors,
Kings of England, unto them granted : whereupon, Sir Edward, at their
entreaty, granted unto them acquittance of the custom aforesaid, givino-
Fol us A tliem ^ is letteri ^ P atent thereon. The citizens, however, made
court to him, giving him 200 marks.
Letters of Sir Edward as to remission unto the Citizens of the New Custom.
" Edward, of the illustrious King of England eldest son, to all per-
1 Or Hocktide ; see page 10 ante. 4 Alderman of the Ward afterwards known
2 Alderman of the Ward of Candlewick- as Farringdon Ward, from its Alderman
street. Nicholas de Farndone.
3 Alderman of Tower Ward. 5 Cornhill,
A.P. 1268.] LETTERS OF REMISSION OF THE NEW CUSTOM. 115
" sons to whom these present letters shall come, greeting in the Lord.
" Know ye, that we have granted, and by this our present writing have
" confirmed, unto all and singular the citizens of London, that they
< e shall for ever be free and acquitted, throughout all the realm of Eng-
fe land, of our new aid, which we have of the gift of our father, his
" lordship the King ; that so neither we, nor our heirs, nor any one
" through us, or for us, may exact aught of the citizens aforesaid by
(e reason of the said aid, or in any way claim the same ; but that the
(t aforesaid citizens and their heirs, as well for time past as for the present
(f and the future, may for ever enjoy such franchise and may remain free
fe and acquitted. In testimony whereof, we have unto them caused these
" our letters patent to be made. Given at x Cipeham, this 26th day of
" April, in the three-and-fiftieth of the reign of his lordship the King,
" our father."
Be it remembered, that about the Feast of Saint Andrew [30 No^
vember] last past, died Pope Clement the Fourth ; and after his death
the Roman See remained vacant for a long time, because the Cardinals,
with whom the election lies, were at variance; so that there was no
Pope for 2 three years and more.
Be it remembered, that on the Tuesday before the Feast of Saint
Laurence [10 August] Sir Edward departed from London, at the
request of the King of France that he would attend a conference with
him in France ; and proceeding by ship as far as Graveshend, found
staying there the King of Almaine, his uncle, who had arrived
from his own territories ; whereupon Sir Edward took up his
quarters at 3 Nortflete. On the morrow, the said King and Sir Edward
before-named held a great and long conference between them as to the
said Edward crossing over, and other matters as well ; after which, Sir
Edward set out for Dover. But the said King on the Thursday follow-
ing came to London, and his Queen with him, whom he had lately
married in the territories of Almaine, being the daughter of a certain
noble of that land. Afterwards, on the day before the Vigil of the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary [15 August], Sir Edward, Sir
Henry of Almaine, Sir Roger de Leyburne, Sir Robert Walraven, Sir
1 CMppenham. nine months, and two days.
2 In reality, this vacancy lasted two years, 3 Northfleet, near Gravesend,
116 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1269.
Gaston de Byerne, and many other knights and men-at-arms, crossed
over.
After this, on the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Mary [8 Sep-
tember] next ensuing, the said Edward landed at Dover, on his return
from the said conference ; where a convention had been made between
the said King of France and himself, in such form as in this book, in the
French language, is below set forth.
1 <( Louis, by the grace of God, King of France, to all those who these
se letters shall see, greeting. We do give you to understand, that between
"us and our very dear cousin, my lord Edward, eldest son of the noble
" King of England, there have been made by common accord, as to his
"departure on a pilgrimage beyond sea, the following covenants.
"We are bound to lend unto the aforesaid Edward 70,000 2 livres
" Tournois, reckoning in such sum 25,000 livres Tournois, which
" Gaston, Viscount de Byarne, was to have had of us for himself,
if and for his passage, and for that of his people whom he was to have
" taken in pilgrimage beyond sea with us; the aforesaid Edward having
" received the same Gaston and his people into companionship with
" himself: and from the same 70,000 livres, shall be delivered for horses,
" for provisions, for ships, and for passage, of the same Edward, whatever
" shall be needful unto him ; and the same shall be duly paid by our
" people, or by those whom we shall appoint thereunto, unto those of
(f whom the things aforesaid shall be taken or bought by the said
f< Edward, upon view of such persons as he shall see fit to appoint there-
" unto. And if there shall be any part thereof remaining over, the same
" shall be delivered unto the same Edward, wherever he shall
" be beyond sea, after he shall have come unto us. And the
" aforesaid monies, the said Edward is bound to repay unto us, that is to
ff say, 10,000 livres in each year, at the two terms underwritten, until
"we shall have been wholly repaid all the said 70,000 livres. And the
" first payment, that is to say, of 5,000 livres, shall begin in the middle
t( of March, in the year of Our Lord's Incarnation 1273 ; and the next
" payment, of another 5,000 marks, at the Nativity of Saint John the
1 This letter, as will be seen from the mime- 2 The livre Tournois was worth 20 sols, the
ration of the folios, has been inserted somewhat livre Parisis 25,
out of its proper order,
A.D. 12(39.] CONVENTION BETWEEN EDWARD AND KING OF FRANCE. 117
(e Baptist [24 June] next ensuing ; and so from year to year at those
" times, until such time as we shall have been fully paid. And these
"monies shall be paid each year at the Temple at Pan's, within the
(< quinzaine after the times above named, from the tribute monies of
tffl Burdeaus, by the hand of the Constable of the said Edward, or by him
" who shall hold his place, or else by command of the same. And the
" same Edward doth will that of such tribute, at each term, there shall
(e be nothing put to any other use, until such time as we shall wholly
" have had the payment for each such term ; the which tribute the
se aforesaid Edward has assigned unto us in manner aforesaid, and has
"bound himself thereunto, and has witnessed in his letter which he
ff has delivered unto us, that it is by the wish of our dear cousin the
" King of England, his father, for the amount of monies aforesaid. And
(f he doth will, that we shall be paid therefrom, each year from hence-
" forth, without fail, in manner as aforesaid. And as to this assignment
" and obligation, the same Edward is to let us have letters from
" our dear cousin the King of England, his father aforesaid,
" together with letters of his own. And if it should happen that, before
" the monies aforesaid shall be paid, the same Edward should hold more
" territory than he holds at the present time in the realm of France,
" the same Edward doth will that the same shall also be bound for the
" payment aforesaid. And, with all this, he doth charge for the payment
" unto us aforesaid, if default therein there shall be, his goods both
" moveable and immoveable, the which may be found in our realm.
" And further, he has promised unto us, that he will be, at the very
" latest, by the Assumption of Our Lady [15 August] next to come, at
" the port of 2 Eguemorte, ready to pass over, unless he shall have some
" excuse for delay, by reason whereof we may hold him excused. And
" if so be, that he shall not corne unto us by reason of such excuse as
" aforesaid, which may God forbid, he doth will and doth authorize,
" that of those tilings which his people shall have bought with the
" monies aforesaid, we shall retain and shall take that which we shall
te think fit, at the price at which the same shall have been bought ; and
" that the residue shall be sold by his people freely, without hindrance
1 Bordeaux. at the mouth of the Rhone.
2 Now Aigues Mortes, near Montpellier,
118 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1209.
sc by any person, and the monies which shall be the proceeds thereof
" shall be paid unto us, or at our order, in acquittance of the loan
" aforesaid ; and that which shall still remain wanting towards making pay-
* f ment in full of the said sum, shall be taken according to the assignment
" aforesaid, according to the meaning of the terms before-named. And
" further, the same Edward hath promised that he will endeavour, in good
" faith, to pass over and to come, so soon as ever he may, to the
" place where we shall be. And also, he has promised in good faith
" that he will do no aggrievance or damage, himself or by his people, in our
" territory, or in the territory of our brothers, which they have in our
' ' realm or without, either going on his pilgrimage, remaining thereon, or
" returning therefrom. And so long as he shall be on his pilgrimage with
" us, he will obey us in good faith, just as one of our Barons of our own
" realm, in l doing the service of Our Lord. And all these things afore-
" said the said Edward has sworn unto us, upon the Holy Evangelists,
" that he will strictly observe and loyally maintain, and in good faith
" wholly perform ; and more especially as to this article thereof, that is
" to say, his coming unto the port aforesaid and his passing on unto the
" place where we shall be, in manner as is before-mentioned. And the
" same Edward is to deliver at Paris, before Candlemas [2 February]
" next ensuing, one of his sons as a hostage, unto ourselves or at our
" command ; the which son shall be wholly acquitted of, and delivered
" from, such hostageship, so soon as the said Edward shall have come unto
" the place where we shall be ; and we will have him delivered, acquitted
" thereof, unto the said Edward his father. And if it should happen
" that the said Edward should die before he comes to us, or other hindrance
" should happen unto him, which may God forbid, whereby we should
" hold him excused, in manner^ as aforesaid, the child shall be delivered,
(i wholly acquitted, unto him, or unto his mother, or at her command, or
" unto the King of England his father, or unto the Queen his mother, or
" at their command, if it should have so happened that the mother of the
(( child has died first. And unto such delivery we are bound, ourselves
" as well as our heirs. And in witness of these things the same Edward
" has delivered unto us his present letters, sealed with his seal. And
1 /. e. in taking part in the rescue of the Holy Land from the infidels.
((
1
A.D. 1269.] PROCEEDINGS OF BE MONTFORT'S SUPPORTERS IN CITY. 119
" thereunto withal, our dear cousin Henry, eldest son of the King of
" Almaine, Gaston Viscount de Byarne, Thomas de Clare, brother of the
" Earl of Gloucester, Eoger de Leyburne, [and] Robert Walerand,
" Knights, have made oath upon the Holy Evangelists, at the request of
" the aforesaid Edward, that they will .endeavour in good faith, and
" will loyally give counsel and pains, that the aforesaid Edward shall
(i keep and accomplish the covenants aforesaid. And they
"have set unto the letters of the said Edward their seals,
<( with the seal of the said Edward, in witness of all these matters
(i aforesaid. And we, in witness of the matters aforesaid, have unto
" these present letters caused our seal to be set. This was done at
" Paris, the Wednesday next after the Feast of Saint Bartholomew the
Apostle [24 August], in the year of Our Lord 1269. "
The deeds and works of g;ood men are reduced to writine:, that
Fol. 114 A.
so, to their praise and endless glory, they may be handed down to
the memory of posterity; and in like manner ought the cruelties, the
malice, the perfidy, and the wickedness of the iniquitous, to be put in writ-
ing, that so, to their disgrace, reproach, and dishonour, the same may, in
future times, unto the whole world be notified. Hence it is, that it
ought not to be passed over in silence what wickedness and what cruelty
Thomas Fitz-Thomas and Thomas de Piwelesdon, and their iniquitous
accomplices, amid the many evils which they had committed during the
commotions in the kingdom of England, thought to perpetrate and hoped
to carry into effect : and the same would have been done, had it not been
prevented by the Battle of Evesham occurring. For at the time when
Sir Edward and the Earl of Gloucester, and their adherents, were at
Gloucester, the Earl of Leicester and his accomplices, as also his lordship
the King although not of his own free will being at Hereford, the
before-named Thomas and Thomas, and other wicked persons, holding con-
ference among themselves, whether or not at the command of the Earl
of Leicester I know not, made arrangement, and by oath confirmed the
same, that suddenly and unexpectedly they would put to death about forty
of the most lawful men of the City; and this, because they were faithful
to his lordship the King and to Sir Edward his son. For on a day named,
namely the Thursday after Saint Peter's Chains "[1 August], the whole
1 The narrative is here resumed ; as of somewhat previous date to the letter above inserted.
120 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1269.
of the commonalty was summoned to appear at the Guildhall, that so among
them the men aforesaid might be seized, and immediately put to death.
Accordingly, on that day the wicked persons before-mentioned came there
with arms beneath their clothes, their accomplices rushing in in troops,
ready and prepared with swords and other arms to perpetrate the felony
aforesaid; when, behold! news came of the battle which had been fought
at Evesham on the Tuesday preceding ; upon hearing which,
these wicked men of Belial abandoned their design, and so on
that day the innocent blood was saved.
The names of the principal persons whom it was so intended to slay :
John de Gizors ; William Fitz-Richard ; John Addrien, Draper ;
William de Durham; Gregory de Rokesle; Reginald de Suffolch ;
Arnald 1 Thedrnar ; Robert de Corenhelle ; Geoffrey de Wincestre ; John
Derkin ; Bartholomew de Chastel : between which last person and one of
the evil-minded there afterwards arose a wordy strife, the said Bartho-
lomew taking the part of Sir Edward, and the other one the part of the
Earl of Leicester.
A.D. 1269. Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes still continued to be Con-
stable of the Tower of London and Warden of the City, and the
aforesaid Robert and Thomas to be ~ Bailiffs of the City, without any new
election or presentation; and so continued until the 16th day of July
following.
Be it remarked, that in ancient times, it had been enacted and
provided as to nets, used for fishing in the Thames, that in the body of
such nets the meshes should be woven of such a size that a man's thumb-
nail might be able wholly to pass through them ; and that, if in any net
there should be found a single mesh otherwise woven, the whole of such
net was to be condemned. For which reason it was, that before the Feast
of Saint Michael in this year, as also after that Feast, there were many
nets seized and brought to the Guildhall, and there by twelve sworn men
of the City, who had no share in the said nets, adjudged to be in contra-
vention of the statutes aforesaid. But as to this decision, some of the
citizens thought differently ; and in fact, there were some who said, that
that part only ought to be burnt which was faulty and unfair, and that
the other parts, which were good and lawful, ought to be saved ; while on
1 Elsewhere called Fitz-Thedraar.' 3 Or Sheriffs,
A.D. 1269.3 ILLEGAL NETS BURNT IN WESTCHEPE. 121
the other hand, the City, in meeting of its commons, pronounced that the
net, a part of which is bad, is bad all over, for that the net could not be
of any avail for fishing as to the part which is bad, unless the other parts
before-mentioned were attached to it ; and that therefore it was proper
that the whole net should be burnt ; the same way in fact, that if a man's
right hand committed felony, his other hand, together with the whole of
his body, is wont to be punished ; and so likewise, where a man has
committed felony, all his adherents, and other consenting parties, would
be punished. And further, in accordance with the precedent
that on 1 another occasion such nets had been wholly burnt, the
citizens agreed in common that these should in the same manner be con-
demned ; and accordingly so it was done, for on the third day after the
Feast of Saint Michael, all those nets, about twenty in number, were
burnt in the middle of Westchepe ; so that nothing whatever of them
was saved.
Also, be it remarked, that at this time many of those nets were taken
at a distance from the Thames and without the liberties of the City ; but
this was done by authority of the Constable of the Tower of London,
who was Warden of the City.
Be it remembered, that in this year, after the Feast of Saint Michael,
as also, five weeks before the said Feast, his lordship the King sent his
writ unto the citizens of London, commanding them that, as they loved
him, they should hold themselves in readiness to do him the service of the
Butlery on the Feast of Saint Edward [5 January] then next ensuing ;
upon which day he had purposed to translate the body of that Saint, and,
himself and his Queen, to wear the crown. The citizens accordingly,
although at that time they were not bound as a matter of duty to such
service, for the purpose of gaining his good-will gave their assent thereto,
and made preparation, at great outlay and great expense, with noble vest-
ments of scarlet and of silk, and other raiment duly befitting. But when all
had been now prepared, and the citizens were ready to perform the said
service, behold! on the Vigil of Saint Edward, his lordship the King
caused proclamation to be made in the King's Hall at Westminster, as also
in Chepe in London, that he was not advised that he should wear his
crown on that occasion. For that it ought to suffice for him once to have
1 See the printed Liber Custumarum, p. 39, the 21st year of Henry 111.
R
122 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. o. 1269.
worn his crown ; and that no person, Londoner or others, was on the
morrow to take part in doing any service before him, but only those of his
own household. Any person however who should wish to come to the
dinner, would be admitted thereto gratuitously. And thus was this noble
service on part of the Londoners left out. However, on the morrow, the
citizens, who had made all due preparations, set out for Westminster,
carrying neither goblet nor cup, but offering their prayers in presence of
his lordship the King, together with their oblations, to the Saint. After
Mass too, those who wished, remained to dinner, while the others returned
home.
On the same day, the King had the body of the Saint before-men-
tioned translated from the spot where it had been placed, when first trans-
lated in the time of King Henry the Second ; the shrine in which it
lies, together with the body, being transferred to another spot,
Fol. 117 B. . '!
where it now lies. He also had a new l basilica made over the
Saint, all covered and adorned with the purest gold and costly gems.
It ought not here to be past over in silence, that the Archbishop
of York, still persisting in his pretensions, had his cross borne before him,
to the prejudice of the Church of Canterbury, and he himself upon this
day took precedence in the celebration of divine service ; upon which,
not one of the Bishops, who were there present arrayed in their ponti-
ficals, having come by the King's command, about thirteen in num-
ber, from various parts of England and the parts beyond sea, would
follow the said Archbishop in the procession when the body of the Saint
was carried round the exterior of the church ; but remained, all of them,
within the church. In like manner, when the body was deposited where
it now lies, he was the only one who censed it, all the other Bishops
remaining seated on the sedilia in the stalls of the monks. At this time
in fact, and so long as he remained in the neighbourhood of London, the
interdict continued, both in all places and in just such manner, as in
this Book is before set forth.
Be it remembered, that according to the custom of the City, all mer-
chant-strangers, coming into London, were wont to be harboured, to-
1 The word basilica does not seem to have fashioned like a miniature church. See Par-
any English equivalent, it meaning the upper ker's Glossary of Architecture, I. p. 65.
portion of a tomb of elaborate workmanship,
A.IX 1269.] REGULATIONS INFRINGED BY FOREIGN MERCHANTS. 123
gether with their merchandize, in hostels belonging to citizens ; and their
wares, which are sold by the hundredweight, such as wax, alum, and
the like, to be weighed by the balance of his lordship the King. Other
wares again, which are valued by the pound, such as pepper, ginger,
1 brasil, 2 grains, and the like, used to be weighed by various balances
at the 3 hosts' places, or else [valued] by the basket of them, the buyer
having upon every hundredweight four pounds for the draught; the
commodity being weighed with the pin standing midway, the same as
gold and silver are weighed. Afterwards, the Italians, the people of
Quercy, and the merchants of Provence, (who at first however were
but few in number), coming to the City with their merchandize, trans-
acted business in a similar manner ; but in process of time, when a great
number of merchants from the parts aforesaid, who were extremely rich,
had brought into the City a very great quantity of merchandize, in order
that the amount of such wares might remain unknown to the citizens,
they declined to be harboured in the hostels of the citizens, but built
houses in the City, and abode therein by themselves, housing there their
goods. And then too, weighing by balances of their own, they
sold their wares contrary to the custom of the City ; and even
went so far as, themselves to weigh by their own balances certain articles
which were sold by the hundredweight, and which ought to be weighed
by the King's balance ; to the prejudice of his lordship the King, and to the
loss and subtraction of his 4 pesage ; and this they did for many years.
Afterwards, when his lordship the King gave unto the citizens a new
Charter as to their liberties, in which it is set forth that no merchant-
stranger shall buy or sell any wares that ought to be weighed or troned,
except by the beam and tron of his lordship the King, under forfeiture of
the whole of such wares, and this too had been proclaimed throughout
all the City these merchants, nevertheless, continued to weigh as they
had previously done. But when the King and his Council were given
to understand this, his bailiffs, in accordance with his command, took all
the balances and weights of the said merchants, and, upon good sureties,
1 A kind of dyeing wood, the juices of which Glossary, p. 805.
were of a red colour. 3 Or keepers of the hostels, where the
2 The kermes, or Coccus ilicis and arborum, foreign merchants were lodged.
which was taken to be, not an insect but a 4 The duty charged for weighing goods by
seed. See the printed Liber Custumarum, the King's balance, tron, or beam.
124 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON, [A.D. 1269.
Attached the persons themselves. Afterwards, in this year, on the
Thursday next ensuing before the Feast of the Apostles Simon and Jude
[28 October], his lordship the King summoned the said merchants to
appear before himself and his Council at Westminster ; and because they
were convicted of having weighed by their balances against the King's
prohibition, and after proclamation had been made in the City, and
because their balances and weights, when examined in the King's Ex-
change, were found, it is said, to be untrue, they were adjudged to be
amerced and committed to prison ; immediately upon which, being about
twenty in number, they were taken to the Tower and there imprisoned.
On the morrow too, their balances and weights were burnt in 2 Westchep ;
and such parts thereof as could not be consumed by fire, were broken to
pieces with iron hammers, and wholly destroyed : this too was done in the
absence of the Warden and Bailiffs of the City ; and solely by Walter
Hervi. Then the said merchants made fine to the King in the sum of
one thousand pounds sterling ; and this under compulsion, as it were, they
being in dread of being thrust into a most noisome prison.
In this year, about the Feast of Saint Nicholas [6 December], a writ
of his lordship the King was sent unto the Warden, Bailiffs, and
Aldermen of the City ; in which it was set forth that he commanded,
that all those who, after the City had been restored to him, had with-
drawn themselves from it through fear of losing life or limb,
and had since returned, should be expelled from the City, that
so by them the venom might not again be diffused throughout the City :
whereupon, after the Warden, Bailiffs, and all the Aldermen, had met
together, and the aforesaid writ had been read and understood, the War-
den produced a certain roll which he had received in the 3 Wardrobe of
his lordship the King, in which were written the name? of many persons
who, during the commotions in the kingdom, voluntarily adhered to the
Earl of Leicester, committing depredations within the City and without ;
which roll was drawn up upon inquisition made by certain of the more
lawful citizens of the City, and, being sent to the King's Wardrobe,
was immediately afterwards delivered to him. This roll being read and
understood, and duly examined, the persons [therein mentioned] were
1 /. e. arrested and bound over. the Royal Charters and the accounts of the
- West Cheap ; the present Cheapside. King's expenditure were kept.
3 An office in the English Court, in which
A.D. 1269.] ADHERENTS OF DE MONTFORT BANISHED FROM THE CITY. 125
subjected to enquiry, and their names entered in a certain roll. After
this, on the fourth day before Our Lord's Nativity, a countless multitude
of people of the City meeting together in the Chamber of the Guildhall,
this matter was made known, and the aforesaid writ was read, of his
lordship the King, the names also being read, of those who were to be
removed from the City ; to which matter the whole populace gave its
assent.
After this, on the second day before Our Lord's Nativity, proclamation
was made throughout all the City, that those whose names had been read
before the people, in manner already stated, should, if then in the City,
betake themselves away from it, never to return ; while those who were
then sojourning without the City, were for the future never to return to
it, under pain of life and limb. And then, the names of the aforesaid
persons were published, and by the crier openly specified, being as
follow :
Thomas de Piwelesdone.
William de Heywode.
Richard de Coudres.
Richard le * Cofferer.
Robert de Dereby.
Albin de Dereby.
Ivo le 2 Linge-draper.
William le * Flauner.
Guido, his servant.
William May, Mercer.
Richard le Bret.
William de Basinges, Mercer.
Robert Baynard, Draper.
Henry de Hauvile.
Philip de Halstede.
4 Coc le Afeyte.
John, his brother.
Conrad, the Goldsmith.
1 Maker of coffers, or small boxes. cakes.
2 The Linendraper. 4 This name not improbably means Coc (^r
3 Probably, Maker of flauns, a kind of light Cook) the Dandy,' or ' the Affected.'
126 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. l-><;9.
Eadmund de Exeport.
John Fitz-Patrick, Goldsmith.
Henry, his brother.
Alexander le 1 Ferun.
Hubert, the Goldsmith.
F01.119A. -,,. T\/T 1 1
William Makerel.
Everard le 2 Batur.
Geoffrey de Ruhinges.
Roger Luveday.
Hawkin le 3 Plumer.
William de Bixle, Stockfishmonger.
John de 4 Oistregate.
Master Guido, the Tailor.
Henry Saunnays.
John de Cumbe.
Henry de Capelestone.
John de Coventre, Broker.
Richard Ayswy, Broker.
Hudde le Bereman.
Hobbe Lok.
John de Flete, Barber.
William the Clerk, Deacon.
Walter de Mulsham.
Richard Wombestrong.
Peter de Haywode, Fishmonger.
Eadmund, who was with Stephen Bukerel.
Colin Briante, Butcher.
Roger de Piwelesdon.
Richard, his brother.
Thomas tie Clavill.
Roger de Lydgate, Mercer.
1 Probably meaning the ' Ironmonger.' feathers.
This person was pardoned in the 13th Edward 4 A Watergate on the Thames, the lane
I. : see Letter- Book A. folio 74 b. running to which- was a great mart for shell-
2 Perhaps meaning, the 'Beater 'or 'Fuller' fish. The north end of the present London
of cloth. Bridge occupies its site.
3 /. e. the Feathermonger,' or Seller of
A.D.1269.] THE PILLORY BROKEN; IMPUNITY OF THE BAKERS. 127
Ralph de Dudington.
Robert Stor.
John, who was with John Heirun.
Gilbert le Armerer.
William Snacard.
Adam de 1 Ysemongere Lane.
Henry de Hudendene, Taverner.
John de Lanfare, 2 Chaluner.
The names of these persons remained in the hands of the Warden
and Bailiffs.
In this year, the pillory that stood in Chepe was broken through the
negligence of the Bailiffs, and for a long time remained unrepaired :
wherefore, in the meantime no punishment was inflicted upon the bakers,
who made their loaves just as they pleased ; so much so, that each of their
loaves was deficient in one third of the weight that it ought to weigh,
according to the award that had been made upon the assay of the Feast
of Saint Michael preceding : and this lasted for a whole year and more.
In the same year, all the free men of the kingdom of England, as well
of vills as of cities, and boroughs, and elsewhere, gave unto his lordship
the King one twentieth part of all their moveable goods, towards pay-
ment of his expenses on his expedition to the land of Jerusalem. But
afterwards, Sir Edward undertook that expedition, on behalf of his father
and himself.
In this year, Louis King of France, son of King Louis, son of Philip,
set out for the Holy Land, on the 14th day of March, which in this year
fell on a Friday. Shortly before this, Sir Edward had had one of his sons
taken to the King of France, in accordance with the covenants
Fol. 119 B.
in 3 writing that had lately been made between them. The King
however, feeling sufficient confidence in the said Sir Edward without any
hostage, sent his son back to England.
Be it remembered, that about Hokeday, almost all the Bishops, Earls,
Barons, Knights, and freeholders of the whole realm of England, by com-
mand of his lordship the King, met together in London ; and then was
held a Parliament at Westminster, upon many articles of the customs of the
1 Ironmonger Lane, in the City ; from the shalloons, so called from Chalons, in France,
A. S. isen, iron. where they were extensively manufactured.
2 Meaning perhaps, a dealer in chalons* or 3 See page 116 ante.
128 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1269.
realm of England, and more especially upon a dispute that had taken
place between Sir Edward and the Earl of Gloucester. Whereupon,
Sir Edward and the Earl, to put an end to the said dispute, wholly sub-
mitted themselves to the award of the King of Almaine ; which award
the said King of Almaine pronounced, in manner set forth in the next
leaf hereof.
Be it remembered, that after this, on the 13th day of May, there
came to Saint Paul's Cross nine Bishops, arrayed in their pontificals,
namely, Nicholas of Winchester, John of Hereford, Godfrey of Wor-
cester, Roger of Norwich, Laurence of Rochester, Roger of Chester,
Walter of Salisbury, [William] of Bath, and Anian of Saint Asaph in
Wales ; who caused to be read a certain Bull of Pope Innocent, con-
firmatory of the Charters of the Liberties of England and of the Forest,
which the King had executed unto the Barons of England, in the ninth
year of his reign ; and caused to be read, openly and distinctly before all
the people, the sentence which, in the year of Our Lord 1253, had been
pronounced in the Greater Hall at Westminster, before the King and
many nobles of England, by thirteen Bishops arrayed in pontificals,
against all transgressors of the said Charters. Which being read and by
the people understood, these nine Bishops pronounced excommunicated
all persons who since the sentence aforesaid had done, or procured to be
done, anything in contravention of any articles in the aforesaid Charters
specified. They also pronounced excommunicated all persons who,
during the continuance of the commotions in the realm, had laid violent
hands upon rectors or clerks, and who had taken and carried off goods
deposited in sacred places, to whomsoever they might belong; unless,
within the quinzaine after the day aforesaid they should come to make
amends, and make satisfaction 'at the award of the Diocesans of those
places. And this sentence was afterwards published in every church in
London by the parish priests thereof.
On the Tuesday before Pentecost, which then fell on the 27th
day of May, the King of Almaine pronounced his award, in form as
follows: that if Sir Edward shall in the month of September cross the sea
for the Holy Land, then the Earl of Gloucester shall cross the said sea
in the month of March following. And if the said Earl shall be willing
to undertake that expedition in behalf of his lordship the King, who has
CERTAIN PRIVILEGES RESTORED TO THE CITY. 129
assumed the Cross, in such case his lordship the King shall pay him 8000
silver marks, one half at the Feast of All Saints [1 November] next
ensuing, and the other half in the month of March following. But if he
shall think proper to undertake that expedition in his own behalf, then
his lordship the King shall pay him 2000 marks. And as security that he
will observe the award aforesaid, the said Earl shall deliver the Castle
of Tunbrigge, and the Castle of Henlege in the Marches of Wales, into
the hands of his lordship the King ; upon the understanding that, when
the King shall have been certified that he is in the Holy Land, the King
shall without delay have those castles delivered to such person as the
Earl may think proper ; but the Earl shall then repay to the King the
outlay which he shall have expended upon the keeping of the said
castles, while in his hands: which award however was not carried into
effect.
About the same time, that is to say 1 Pentecost, at the instance of Sir
Edward, his lordship the King granted unto the citizens that they might
have a Mayor from among themselves in such form as they were wont to
elect him. He also granted unto them, that they might have two Sheriffs
from among themselves, who should hold the Sheriffwick of the City and
of Middlesex to ferm, in such manner as they had previously been wont;
upon the understanding however, that whereas in past times they had
only paid yearly 300 pounds sterling of 2 blanched money, in future they
should pay yearly 400 pounds sterling counted out.
Accordingly, in the same week the citizens chose John Addrien,
Draper, to be Mayor of the City, and Philip le Taillour and Walter le
Poter, to be Sheriffs of the City. But because, after this had been done,
Sir Edward was not in the vicinity of London, they were not at once
presented unto his lordship the King, or before his arrival ; upon which,
Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes being no longer Warden of the City, the aforesaid
John was presented unto his lordship the King, and admitted ; that is to
say, on the 16th day of July following, which in that year fell on a
Wednesday. And on the Friday following, he was sworn before the
King ; and on the same day Philip and Walter before-named were pre-
1 Or Whitsuntide. Hence a payment in 'blank' or 'blanched'
a Silver melted down, or blanched, to ascer- money, meant a payment of so many pounds of
tain its fineness and freedom from alloy. tried and genuine silver.
8
130 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 12C9.
sented as Sheriffs at the Exchequer, and admitted. And then were
delivered unto the citizens all their ancient Charters of liberties which
were in the King's hands ; and it was granted unto them by his lordship
the King and by Sir Edward that they might fully enjoy the same, save
that, for the ferm of the City and County they were to pay 400 pounds
yearly, as already stated.
At this time, the citizens gave unto his lordship the King 100
marks sterling, with which was bought gold for repair of the
1 basilica of Saint Edward. They also gave unto Sir Edward 500 marks,
towards his expenses on the expedition to the Holy Land.
In this year, about the Feast of Saint Margaret [20 July] died
Boneface, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the 2 land of his birth.
Be it remembered, that in the Parliament held at Winchester in this
year, in the month of July, by assent of the Bishops and nobles of the
realm of England there present, the King delivered his cross, which he
had borne, unto Sir Edward, his son, that he might take his departure,
in behalf of himself and of his father, for the Holy Land. The King
also then granted unto him all the monies forthcoming from the twentieth
penny collected throughout all England from all free men of that realm,
of which mention has previously been made in this Book. And then Sir
Edward himself took his departure for 3 Portesmue, in order that he
might cross over from that place; he intending to pass through Gascoigne
and Spain, in order to hold a conference with the King of Spain, his
wife's brother ; but for want of a fair wind, after waiting nearly fifteen
days, he took his departure thence for Dover, and there he put to sea,
with his wife and all his retinue, on the 20th day of August, and with
all speed made for land beyond sea; and so, giving up the aforesaid
journey into Gascoigne and Spain, in haste he set out straight for the
parts where he might find the King of France.
Be it remembered, that in this year, about Easter last past, it was
provided by the common Council of his lordship the King, that^ cloths
coming into England from the parts beyond sea should contain at least
26 ells in length, and an ell and a half in breadth, under forfeiture of
the whole piece of cloth. And at the same time, orders were given to
1 See page 122 ante, 3 Portsmouth,
3 /. e. Savoy.
A.D.1370.] PRINCE EDWAED SETS SAIL FOR TUNIS. 131
the merchants that, after the Fair of l Saint Botolph then next ensuing,
they should not bring any cloths into England, under the penalty afore-
said, unless they should be of the said length and breadth, 2 burels of
Normandy excepted.
At the Feast of Saint Michael, A.D. 1270, were made Sheriffs,
GREGORY DE ROKESLE,
HENRY WALEYS.
These Sheriffs, immediately after the Feast of Saint Michael, had a
new pillory made, and erected it in the place where the old pillory had
previously stood, of which mention has been made in the preceding
leaf. After this, and after the Feast of the Translation of
Saint Edward [13 October], there came news to London that
the 3 King of France, who had assumed the Cross and was on his road to
the Holy Land, had died in a certain island, situate in the Mediterranean
Sea and inhabited by the Saracens ; as also one of his sons, and many
persons of noble and middle rank who had followed him in the Christian
army. For, leaving the straight road by sea for 4 Aeon, they made sail
with the view of taking the said island, and landed thereon ; which
island is very rich, it is said, and is called " Tuniz." But immediately after
the death of the said King, his son, 5 Philip by name, was elected King
of the French; whereupon Sir Edward, who had before bound himself to
the said King now deceased, so long as he should survive, although in no
way bound to his said son, put to sea, at his earnest entreaty, with a
strong and well-armed force, and many knights and men-at-arms, for the
purpose of joining him, it being the Thursday after the Feast of
Saint Michael ; and on the Sunday before the Feast of Saint Martin
[11 November] he landed at Tunes. But before his arrival, the King of
France, and his uncle Charles, had made peace with the King of Tunes .
whereupon, at the entreaty of the aforesaid King of France and of
Charles, upon good security being given to Sir Edward, he went with
them to Sicily, and landed at 6 Trapes, having brought his ships and all
his retinue in safety.
1 Botolph's Town, Botulstone, or Boston, in wore this cloth.
Lincolnshire. 3 Louis IX.
2 Coarse red or grey cloth, known in 4 The present Acre.
France as bureau. Hence the ' borel man' of 5 Philip III. or the Bold.
Chaucer ; a person of the humbler classes, who 6 Trapaui.
132 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.IX 1270.
Be it remembered, that about the Feast of Saint Giles [1 September]
last past, the Countess of Flanders seized all chattels found in Flanders
belonging to merchants of England,, Wales, Ireland, and even Gascoigne,
by reason of a certain yearly rent that she demanded of his lordship the
King of England ; and which rent, as she asserted, was many years in
arrear. She also forthwith sold the said chattels, and took to her own use
the monies received for the same, expelling from her territories all the
merchants aforesaid. Wherefore, Sir Edward, who then was still in
the parts of France, on his way to the Holy Land, as soon as he heard
news of such injustice and cruelty committed by the Countess upon the
men of his father and himself, wrote to his lordship the King, his father,
and to the Queen and his lordship the King of Almaine, as well as to all
the Council of the King and of the realm, to the effect that they should
harass the said Countess and her people in every way they might ; that
so, all the goods aforesaid that had been taken from the said merchants,
might be restored to them in full; and this, until ample satisfaction
should have been made unto his lordship the King for the injuries in-
flicted upon himself and his subjects.
Thereupon, after council had been held by order of his lordship the
King, all chattels belonging to the merchants of Flanders were taken
and seized ; which however were but few in number, because they, being
forewarned by the Countess, had sent nearly all their goods
out of the kingdom. At the same time also, it was forbidden by
writ of his lordship the King, sent to London and to all the sea-ports,
that any person, whether native or alien, should take any wool out of the
realm to the parts beyond sea. And so it was accordingly done, until
the Parliament which was held at Westminster after the Feast of the
Translation of Saint Edward [13 October] ; in which Parliament it was
provided and ordained, that all merchants, those of Flanders excepted,
might carry wool out of the kingdom, whithersoever they might think
proper, Flanders excepted. And then, by the King's order, all the mer-
chants who were in London appeared before his Council at Westminster,
and there made oath, that they would carry no wool to Flanders, nor
would have any fellowship with the Flemings, or sell them any wool.
And if any one should presume to contravene this, all his chattels coming
into England were to be rendered amenable to his lordship the King, and
A.D. 1270.] THE OATH OF FEALTY REQUIRED OF THE CITIZENS. 133
himself to be imprisoned. But if such person should absent himself and
not come into England, then his fellow-countryman who had come into
England, was to suffer the punishment aforesaid in his stead.
It should also be known, that the chattels which the aforesaid
Countess had seized, were valued at the sum of 40000 marks sterling.
In this year, John Addrien was again elected Mayor, on the Feast
of Simon and Jude [28 October], and, his lordship the King not being
at Westminster, was presented to the Barons of the Exchequer and
admitted. Also, after the King's return, he was presented to his said
lordship the King, and admitted ; that is to say, on the Thursday next
after the Epiphany of Our Lord [6 January], as by the Charter of the
Mayoralty bound.
Then was sent a writ of his lordship the King unto the citizens of
London, in form under- written.
" Henry, by the grace of God, etc., to the Mayor and Sheriffs, and
" to the whole community of his City of London, greeting. Whereas
" you, the Mayor, and certain of your fellow-citizens aforesaid, lately
" in our presence thereunto appointed, have made oath to the effect
" that you will constantly adhere to your fealty as towards us; and that,
<e if we shall go the way of all flesh, living Edward, our eldest son,
" unto the same Edward, and if, living John our son, we and the said
" Edward shall have departed this life, unto the same John, you will,
<f before all mortals, pay and observe the same fealty, and after his
" decease, unto the right heirs of the crown of England ; and whereas
fi we, for certain reasons, do will that each of you do make the same oath
" before our -well-beloved and trusty Master John de Chishull, our
" Treasurer, as he shall advise, and shall on his part observe
ft the same ; we do command you, that you, and all and every of
" you, do upon some certain day, in your Hustings or at the Cross in
" Saint Paul's Church-yard, make the same oath in form aforesaid.
" And forasmuch as we do will that the City aforesaid may for our and
<( your security and peace be so kept, that no one as to whom suspicion
" may be entertained may enter the same, whereby damage or peril unto
" us and yourselves may ensue ; we do command you, in virtue of the
<f fealty, homage, and love in which unto us you are bound, and do strictly
l< enjoin, that you cause the gates of your city to be sufficiently watched
134 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1270.
" by armed men during the day, and by night to be strictly and securely
" closed ; and that arms or horses, of the price of 100 shillings or more,
(i without the same City you do not sell, or allow the same to be taken
s: out of the said City by others than by those who notoriously are our
" friends ; and that you do not permit any gathering of men, as to the
e( which sinister suspicions might be entertained, or even any horses of
f< value, with arms, to enter the said City ; under forfeiture of all your
te goods, and also of the liberties of your City aforesaid. Witness myself
" at Wyndeshore, this 29th day of October, in the five-and-fiftieth year
" of our reign."
This writ was carried into effect on the 9th day of November, so far
as doing fealty unto his lordship the King. Afterwards, at the prayer
of the citizens, his lordship the King certified them by his writ as to who
were to be admitted into the City ; which writ, turn over this leaf and
you will find written.
Be it remembered, that in the previous month of July the citizens of
London sent a certain writing obligatory, sealed with the seal of the
commonalty, unto his lordship the King, who was then at the Parliament
at Winchester ; in which it was set forth that John Addrien, Mayor of
London, the Barons, citizens, and all the commons of the same city, had
bound themselves to the effect that they and their heirs, and those who
should come after them, should always and for all time be faithful unto
his lordship the King and his heirs, as against all persons. And that if
they or their heirs, or those who should come after them, should in com-
mon recede from their fealty to the said King or to his heirs, bearing
arms against him ; then, by the said writing they agreed that they
should forfeit life and limb without mercy, and be disherisoned, they
and their heirs for ever, and held excommunicate : and in many other
ways in the said writing did they bind themselves. Still however, if any
individual person, or individual persons, of the same City should do
aught against his or their fealty to the King or his heirs, they alone
were to be punished and to have judgment pronounced upon them
according to the law of the land, without loss to the other citizens.
" l Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of
"Ireland, and Duke of Acquitaine, to his well-beloved and
1 The object of this writ is mentioned above.
A.J>. 1270.] MEASURES ENJOINED FOR SAFE CUSTODY OF THE CITY. 135
"trusty the Mayor and Sheriffs of London, and to his citizens of the
"same city, greeting. Know ye, that for the security of ourselves and
" of you, and of the city aforesaid, we have of our counsel provided that
fe the same city and the gates thereof shall be faithfully and well kept
fe by day and by night ; that is to say, that at night the said gates shall
" be closed, and by day shall by armed men manfully and discreetly be
"kept, in form unto you made known thereon the day Before these
" presents. And also, that no persons, horsemen or footmen, or others,
"as to whom any suspicion may be entertained, or as to whom it may be
" suspected thafc it is their wish wrongfully to suggest anything sinister
" or evil as concerning ourselves, either in saying, preaching, or making
" any conventicles or covins, shall in future on any account be received
" into the city aforesaid or shall enter the same. And also, that no great
" earl or baron, whosoever he shall be, shall on any account be received
" within the city aforesaid, or shall enter the same, without our especial
" mandate therefor. And further, that no horse which exceeds in value
" the price of 100 shillings, shall be retained by any person within the
" said city. And also, that all armour, to whomsoever the same shall
" belong, great or small, shall by you be viewed, and unto those in
" whose keeping such armour is, be delivered, upon good security that
s: they will not let the same go out of their hands ; but rather shall, to
e: our behoof, safely keep the same, according to the reasonable price thereof
" by you to be assessed, in case that of such armour we shall stand in
" need ; you making the most careful enquiries thereon, as to where and
" in whose hands such armour may be found. We have further provided,
" that all persons banished from the city aforesaid, even if they be in
" the borough of Suwerk, or within the liberties of Westminster, or even
" within the suburbs of the said city, or elsewhere in the County of
" Middlesex, as to whom sinister suspicion is entertained or may be
" entertained, shall be taken or placed under arrest, and safely be kept,
"until we shall have given other commands as to the same. And
" therefore, we do command you, that you perform all the premises so
" manfully, trustily, and diligently, to the security and honour of our-
" selves and of you, that we may for all time from thenceforth be bound
"to commend your probity, diligence, and industry therein. Witness
1 This does not exactly correspond with the date of the preceding document.
136 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D.1270.
" myself at Windesore, this first clay of November, in the five-and-fiftieth
" year of our reign."
This year, on the third day after the Feast of the Conversion of Saint
Paul [25 January], about the x first hour, suddenly and unexpectedly, a
great part of the Tower of the Church of Saint ? Mary Arches, in
London, fell to the ground in Chepe, and more than twenty persons,
men and women, were killed.
In the same year, that is to say, at the end of the year 1270, in
the month of March, it befell that in the village of 3 Grenewyz,
near London, a sheep brought forth a monstrous animal, having two bodies
like those of a lamb, and only one head ; to which head the bodies adhered
by separate necks. Each body too had four feet and a tail. The head also
was that of a lamb, with four ears : but whether this prodigy was signifi-
cant of misfortune to any one is unknown. Still, it is a notorious fact
that the owner of the tenement, where the said sheep brought forth, a
man healthy and sound, and sufficiently sober and moderate in drink and
in food, in the same year suddenly and unexpectedly fell into a state of
paralysis, losing the power of speech and the use of his right hand.
News came, on the Sunday before the Annunciation of Our Lady
[25 March], through a letter sent by a person in the Christian army, to
the effect that, when the said Sir Edward had arrived at Trapes, as
written in the preceding leaf, and the army of the Christians had come
thither, on a conference being held between them, it was ordained and
ratified upon oath that, by reason of the route failing them, their passage
should be put off until the Feast of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
[24 June] three years from thence. The King of France, the King of
Sicily, and Sir Edward, as also the Count of 4 Peiters and the other
nobles of the Christian army, made oath to this effect ; but Sir Edward
made oath upon condition, if he should be able to shew unto the King of
France some reasonable cause for which he could not join such ensuing
expedition.
It should also be known, that when the whole army was united, it
seemed to them that they could not possibly have fought against the
Soldan. The King of France was setting out for France to receive his
1 Six o'clock in the morning. 3 Greenwich.
J Or, Saint Mary le Bow. 4 Poitou.
A.O. 1270.] TRANSACTIONS BEFORE TUNIS. 137
crown. The King of Sicily again was going to Constantinople against
the Greeks, and each of the nobles was returning to his own country.
Whereupon, Sir Edward remained until the month of May at Palermo,
and was then to cross over to l Aeon. But as to this, he made four con-
ditions; the first condition being, in 2 case a Pope should be created who
should forbid his passage until the great expedition. The second condi-
tion was, in case he should be detained by sickness. The thirdy in case his
father should die. The fourth, in case there should be a war in England.
It should also be known, that peace was made between the King
of Sicily and the King of Tunis, on the condition that the King
of Tunis should hold his kingdom of the King of Sicily, paying him as
much as he used to pay the Emperor Fretheric, and his son 3 Manfred,
and double the arrears which had accrued since the death of the said
Manfred, for five years, namely. He also paid the King of France and
the King of Sicily a very large sum of money ; while all the Christian
prisoners whom the King of Tunis had taken were liberated by him, and
he further granted that the Christians might celebrate divine service and
preach upon the Catholic faith throughout all his good towns, without
hindrance on part of the Saracens ; and that the Christians might go and
come into his territories, as theretofore they had been wont to do; in
addition to which, he would harbour no enemy of the King of Sicily.
It should also be known, that before peace was made between the
said kings, and the Christian army was in the island before-mentioned,
the people of 4 Conradin pitched their tents without their town, about
two miles in advance, and near the Christian army, there being between
the said two armies a plain as fine and as broad as that near Salesbery ;
and every day, they used to come so near to the Christian troops that
they could take aim at them with their bows. It also befell, that certain
Christians one day met the Saracens with a strong and well-armed force,
and so pursued them through the very midst of their tents, slaying
more than two hundred of them, and gaining a great number of their
pavilions. In this conflict, the King of France lost the marshal of his
1 Acre. * The supporters probably of Conradin,
2 At this time, the Papal See was vacant. lately put to death by Charles King of Sicily :
3 King of Sicily, and natural son of the and who had taken the side of the King of
Emperor Frederic II. Tunis.
T
138 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1270,
army,, and the Brethren of 1 Beaucaire one hundred of the lower rank.
It should also be known, that the King of Tunis never went forth from
his town, when the envoys of the Christian kings came to him for the
purpose of making peace, the Count of 2 Peinthein, that is to say, and
the Chancellor of Sicily, and other nobles of the Christian army. Indeed
the King of Tunis declined to rise from his chair to meet them ; but the
Prince of Arabia and the King of Bugia went forth from the town, and
held conference with the Christian envoys, until peace had been estab-
lished, as already mentioned. It should also be known, that in all the
Christian army there were not more than 1800 knights, out of whom 400
had died ; two of them being kings, namely, the King of France and the
King of Navarre, and five Counts, the Count de 3 Enevers, the Count de
Eu, the Count de la Marche, the Count de Mendome, and the Count de
Acele, as also sixty-seven bannerets, besides those of lower rank.
From what has been before written, it is manifest that this
4 Charles, the then King of Sicily, (who not long before had
seized that territory, and had taken the real heir to the kingdom, namely,
Conradin, son of Conrad, son of the Emperor Fretheric, and had cruelly
slain him in prison, together with fifteen nobles of the kingdom of Al-
maine), caused the whole army of the Christians, who had made prepara-
tions for crossing over to the Holy Land, to commit a grievous error,
and brought them with him to the said island, giving them to understand
that it was his intention utterly to destroy the Saracens that dwelt
therein. This however he did not do, but only brought with him the said
Christians for the purpose of subjecting that island to his own rule, as
previously set forth ; and thus did he defeat the passage of the Crusa-
ders, to the irrecoverable loss of all Christendom, and also to the very
great misfortune of the Holy Land.
Be it remembered, that about the Feast of Saint George [23 April]
in this year, there came news to London, that on the morrow of the
Feast of Saint Gregory [12 March] preceding, Simon and Guido, the
sons of Simon de Montfort, late Earl of Leicester, had slain Henry, son
of Sir Richard, King of Almaine, who was then under the safe-conduct
1 A town at the mouth of the Rhone, in the 3 Nevers ?
S. of Frante. 4 Charles I. King of Sicily, son of Louis
2 Ponthieu? VIII. of France.
A.I>. 1270.] MUKDER OF HENRY, THE KING'S NEPHEW. 139
of Philip, son of Louis, King of France, suddenly and unexpectedly,
while the said Henry was in a church, hearing divine service, in the city
of Viterbo, near Home.
Letters sent unto his lords/tip the King of Almaine, after the murder of
his son.
" Philip, by the grace of God, King of the Franks, to the excellent
-' prince, his most dear cousin and friend, Richard, by the same grace, the
*' illustrious King of the Romans and of Alinaine, and Earl of Cornwall,
" greeting and affection in sincere love. We would willingly have
-' brought news of a more pleasing nature to the notice of your
*< sereneness, had the divine mercy indulged us with the same ; but now
" are we compelled to announce unto you certain tidings full of
" sorrow and of sadness, which we, being at Yiterbo on the morrow
" of the Blessed Gregory, and hearing the divine service of the Mass
" in the Church of the * Friars Minors at Viterbo, from the
Fol. 124 B.
" relation of certain trustworthy persons have heard ; to the
" effect that Guido and Simon de Montfort, knights, on the same day and
" at the same hour, with an armed force attacked our most dearly beloved
" cousin Sir Henry, your eldest son, while in a certain other chapel at
" Viterbo, in front of his hostel there, for the purpose either of hearing
" Mass or of offering up his prayers ; and there, at the instigation of t he
" devil, slew him ; a matter which we impart to you not without intense
(t grief and anguish of heart. And how greatly we are afflicted thereat,
" and how disturbed, we propose by the Lord's favour to evince by real
(i results. But forasmuch as our well-beloved knight, Florence de
" Warenne, Admiral of our fleet, has, as we have understood, a son of
" his staying with the children of our dearest cousin Sir Edward, eldest
" son of the illustrious King of England ; and the same Florence has,
" as we have understood, always been against Guido and Simon afore-
" said, we entreat of your mightiness, with all the earnestness we
" may, that no inconvenience may to such child of our said knight
" arise ; that so, you may send back unto us safely and securely such
" child of our said Admiral and knight. Given at Viterbo, on the
<e morrow of the Feast aforesaid."
1 Or Franciscans.
140 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1270.
Tenor of the Letters which the King of Almaine sent unto the Friars
Minors of London for his Son.
" Richard, by the grace of God, King of the Romans, always August,
" to the Warden of the Friars Minors of London, and his well-beloved
" and duteous Convent of the same place, greeting and affection in sincere
(e love. We are compelled to announce unto your devotedness, news most
" dreadful and full of grief, to the effect that Simon and Guido, the
(f sons of that most wicked traitor, the late Simon de Montfort, satellites
" of Satan, on the morrow of Saint Gregory, at Yiterbo, with an armed
<s force attacked our dearly-beloved and eldest son Henry, while hearing
" the solemn service of the Mass in a certain chapel there, intent upon
" his prayers and imagining no evil, and cruelly slew him. And this, not
f( without great bitterness of heart do we, sorrowing, announce unto you,
66 making request that, devoutly celebrating his obsequies, you will for
" him suppliantly intercede with God, that so we may be enabled forth-
" with to return you worthy thanks for the same. Given at l Istleworthe,
(t this 24th day of April, in the fourteenth year of our reio-n."
Fol 125 A.
On the morrow of Our Lord's Ascension, which in this year
fell on the 15th day of May, the bones of Sir Henry of Almaine arrived
in London, and were thence taken to Heiles, to be buried in the 2 Abbey
of White Monks there, which had been founded by his father, in the
neighbourhood of Gloucester.
Copy of Letters, which his lordship the King sent unto the Mayor and
Sheriffs of London ; to the end that they should cause the same to he
proclaimed throughout all the City, as set forth below.
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, etc., to the Mayor and
" Sheriffs of London, greeting. Whereas the Countess of Flanders has
" caused the wools, goods, and divers merchandize of merchants of our
" realm, found within her territory and jurisdiction, to a countless
" amount of money, not only to be seized, but, what is worse, to the
(( irrecoverable loss of the merchants aforesaid, and to our own disgrace,
" to be sold, and has converted the proceeds arising therefrom to her own
1 Isleworth, in Middlesex. Gloucestershire.
2 The Abbey of the Cistercians at Hayles in
A.D. 1270.] PROCLAMATION AGAINST THE COUNTESS OF FLANDERS. 141
" use : we therefore, having before made it our study to provide against
" the grievance by the said Countess inflicted, have commanded, that all
" things throughout our realm belonging to the people of Flanders,
" wheresoever in our realm the same should be found, should be seized,
t( and safely kept, until we should have given other commands thereon.
" And whereas we since, at the requirement as well of the merchants of
" our realm, as of France, Normandy, and other kingdoms, who gave
" unto us pledges and other surety by corporal oath, that they would not
" take any wools unto the parts of Flanders or of Hainault, or would sell
" the same unto the Flemings, or unto any other merchants whomsoever
" of the said Countess wishing to sell the same, or would by any artifice
" or device part therewith, have, under the like form, given leave unto
" the same merchants to take wools out of our realm unto the parts
" beyond sea, to make their profit thereon. And whereas we have of
" late for certain understood, that the wools aforesaid, so by our leave
"taken out of our realm, are sold by the said merchants, at their
" pleasure, unto the said Flemings near their own parts, in contravention
" of the surety aforesaid, a thing that we will no longer in any way
" endure ; We of our counsel have determined, that all wools of our
" realm, in future to be exposed to sale, shall remain within our realm,
" and shall not on any account be taken unto any parts beyond sea
" whatsoever, before the Feast of Saint John the Baptist [24 June] next
" ensuing ; and do therefore, command you, that within the term
/ Fol. 125 B.
" aforesaid you do not take any wools out of our realm unto
" any land whatsoever, or through your districts allow the same to be
" taken; but that, if you shall find any such through your districts about
" to be taken out of our realm, you shall arrest and safely keep the
" same, for our commands thereon. Unless indeed the aforesaid Coun-
" tess, by her proxy and through the intervention of her envoys, unto
" whom we have named the ensuing Octaves of the Holy Trinity, as a
(f day for appearing before us in order to treat of this matter, shall have
" submitted herself unto our will, and you from us shall have received
" other commands hereon. And this, as you do love yourselves and all
" things which in our realm you would have, and our lasting indignation
" would avoid, you are on no account to omit. And you are to make
" known unto all persons of -your bailiwick who have wools for sale, that
142 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. IA.D. 1270.
" they must not despair as to the sale of their wools, seeing that the
(( merchants of our realm are ready to find us security that, unless the
" said Countess shall in the meantime make satisfaction to our mind as
" to the things which have been done, that so we may empower the
" Flemings to buy wools and to export them, as they were wont, they,
" the said merchants, will buy all wools belonging to every one, and will
" pay the money for the same, to the right and true value thereof. And
" for this cause, we shall signify unto you what arrangement shall
" be made between us and the said envoys on the Octaves aforesaid.
" You are also to cause proclamation to be made, that all workers of
" woollen cloths, male and female, as well of Flanders as of other lands,
" may safely come into our realm, there to make cloths ; upon the under-
" standing that those who shall so come and make such cloths, shall be
" quit of toll and tallage, and of payment of other customs for their
" work, until the end of five years from this time next ensuing. Wit-
" ness myself, at Westminster, this 18th day of May, in the five-and-
66 fiftieth year of our reign."
The aforesaid mandate of his lordship the King was proclaimed
throughout all the City on the 2 1 st day of May.
In this year, at 1 E,eyns, on the Feast of the Decollation of Saint
John the Baptist [29 August] the aforesaid Philip, son of Louis before-
mentioned, (who died in the island of Tunis, as already stated,) was
anointed King of France.
After the above mandate, the envoys of the said Countess came to
London on the day appointed for them, namely, the Octaves of the Holy
Trinity ; and hoping by bribes and promises to corrupt the Coun-
cil of his lordship the King, asked of him that the matter might
be postponed until the Feast of Saint Michael ; and that in the meantime
the merchants of England might trade in Flanders, and the Flemings in
the kingdom of England, as they had been wont. This however was a
very foolish request, and one contrary to all reason, seeing that in the
meantime they would be able to remove all their goods and chattels out
of the kingdom of England, and buy wool, and carry it to their own
country, sufficient for all their purposes for the next two or three years,
1 Rheims. The city of Rennes, in Brittany, was also sometimes so called.
i.D 1270.] THE FLEMINGS EXPELLED FKOM THE KINGDOM. 143
while the merchants of England, in the meantime, who had experienced
losses through the Countess of Flanders, would be altogether deprived
of their goods and chattels : and this accordingly was wholly denied
them. But after they had remained in London three weeks, they were
distinctly told by the King and his Council, on the Feast of the Comme-
moration of Saint Paul [30 June], that they must leave the kingdom
of England etc., as set forth in the Letters underwritten.
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, etc., to the Mayor
" and Sheriffs of London, greeting. Whereas the Countess of Flanders,
(( contrary to the duty of propriety and of honour, has not only caused
" the wools and other the merchandize and goods of ourselves as well as
" of others, great merchants of our realm, of late, within the territory and
" domains of the same Countess, to be seized ; but, what is even worse,
" to the disgrace and contempt of us and our great merchants aforesaid,
" to be sold; she converting to her own use the whole sum of money
" arising therefrom ; and the said Countess, by her envoys duly sent unto
" us many times to treat with us and our Council as to that trespass,
ee has hitherto made offer unto us of no competent amends therefor :
" wherefore, we by way of making distraint upon her and her subjects
" in our realm, until full satisfaction shall have been made for such
" trespass, against them are provoked to proceed ; after taking, with our
" Council, diligent consideration hereof, we have provided and enacted, that
" all goods of Flemings, Hainaulters, and other persons whomsoever, be-
" longing to the dominions of the said Countess, coming into our realm
" and dominions, and there now being, together with debts and deposits
" belonging to such Flemings and Hainaulters, in whose hands soever
" the same shall be found, whether religious or lay, shall be seized and
<e safely be kept ; and afterwards, in presence of our well-
" beloved and trusty, Nicholas Fitz-Adele de la Pole, Alex-
" ander le Riche of Andovere, Roger de Dunstaple of Winchester, and
" John de Gernemue, our clerk, whom to make appraisal of such goods,
" and inquisition as to those deposits and debts, we have deputed, the
" same shall, upon oath of good and lawful men, be appraised at the true
" and right value thereof. And that all and singular the Flemings and
" Hainaulters, and others of the dominions of the said Countess, whether
" merchants or others, save however those workmen, who with our
144 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1270.
"'leave shall come into our realm to make cloths, and those in l ; ke
f( manner excepted, who have married wives in our realm., and who
" have lands and certain domiciles therein, and for the greater part dwell
(f therein, and whom we deem to be native-born shall, under peril of
" life and limb, and loss of all their goods, depart from our realm before
" the Tuesday next ensuing after the Feast of the Apostles Peter and
" Paul next to come. And that all wools of our kingdom shall remain
" in the same, until we shall have made some other provision therefor.
" And we do therefore command you, that throughout all your bailiwick
" you do cause proclamation to be made, that all and singular the
" men of Flanders and Hainault, and others of the dominions of the said
" Countess, except the workmen aforesaid and others who have married,
" or are dwelling in our realm, as already mentioned, shall, under peril
<( of life and limb, within the time aforesaid depart from our realm empty -
" handed, saving unto themselves the necessary expenses for their passage.
" And that no one shall, under the like penalty, harbour or receive them
" or any one of them after the time aforesaid. And if after the time
<( aforesaid you shall find any such Flemings within your bailiwick, you
" shall take them, and at the same time the harbourers of them, and shall
" safely keep them in our prison, until we shall have given other com-
" mands as to the same. You are also to cause proclamation to be made,
" that all and singular the merchants of our realm whose merchandize
" and goods by the said Countess are seized or sold, as already men-
" tioned, shall come before us and our Council in presence of the ap-
" praisers aforesaid, and of our inquisitors, on the Octaves of the Feast of
"Saint Edward [13 October] next ensuing, ready to shew upon their
" oath, and that of their merchants, what goods, and of whom, have been
" sold by the said Countess, or seized, and . how much, and the rightful
f( value thereof, and to receive such compensation as shall be awarded to
" them respectively, for their goods so sold or seized. Upon the under-
" standing however, that if hereafter they shall be convicted of false
" suggestion or exaction as to the same, they shall thereby incur the loss
fe of all their goods. And that all and singular the l religious or
" those who from the aforesaid Flemings, Hainaulters, or others
"of the dominions of the said Countess, shall have received earnest-
1 Persons of the religious orders, who were vendors of the wool produced on their pastures.
A.&. 1270.] EXEMPTION REQUESTED FOR THE FRENCH MERCHANTS. 145
" money for purchase of their wools and other goods, and who are bound
ee to make payment unto them of any debts, shall then be there present
<f to deliver unto us such earnest-money and debts. And nevertheless,
" you are to distrain those persons so to do, by their lands and chattels
"in your bailiwick, whose names our said inquisitors shall unto you
" make known ; and for the purpose of making the said appraisements
" and inquisitions, you are to summon within your bailiwick, before
<f the aforesaid our appraisers and inquisitors, upon a certain day and at
fe a certain place, according as the same inquisitors shall unto you make
" them known, such and so many good and lawful men of your bailiwick
" as shall for appraising the goods aforesaid, and for knowing and making
" inquisition as to the truth concerning all the other matters aforesaid,
" suffice. And you are manfully to aid such inquisitors to do the same, in
" such manner as they shall unto you, in our behalf, make known. And
" you are in such manner to conduct yourselves in performing this our
" mandate, that we shall feel ourselves bound from henceforth to com-
" mend your trustiness in the same. Witness myself, at Westminster,
" this 28th day of June, in the five-and-fiftieth year of our reign."
The mandate aforesaid was cried throughout the City of London on
the morrow of the Commemoration of Saint Paul [30 June].
1 It should also be known, that the Tuesday which was named
for the Flemings to take their departure out of England must
be understood as the Tuesday next after the Feast of the Commemora-
tion of Saint Paul, namely, the seventh day of July.
At the same time, letters of his lordship the King were sent, in like
form, unto all the Sheriffs of the realm of England ; but in the letters
which were sent unto the Sheriffs in the more distant parts, a longer time
was given for the Flemings to take their "departure from England, namely,
until the morrow of Saint Margaret [20 July].
Afterwards, after the Feast of Saint John the Baptist [24 June],
the King of France, the Duke of " Branban, and other princes of the
parts beyond sea, sent letters unto his lordship the King, requesting that
their merchants might come into his territories, there to stay and thence
to depart, according to their ancient customs, in such manner as they
were wont, and that they might without hindrance take their wools and
1 Half of this leaf is cut out. 2 Brabant.
U
146 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.I>. 1270.
other their merchandize out of the realm, seeing that they had
V( } 1 9ft A
not offended against the King or his people ; but that the
Countess of Flanders solely should be punished, and those who were of
her dominions. Wherefore, after conference had been held before his
lordship the King, provision was made to the effect that all merchants,
except those of the dominions of the Countess of Flanders, might take
their wools out of the realm in form provided in the Parliament held at
Westminster on the Feast of the Translation of Saint Edward [13
October] last past ; which form has been set forth in the l sixth preceding
leaf of this Book ; but still, that every one should have writ of his lord-
ship the King for leave to do the same. As to those however, who were of
the dominions of Flanders, they were to remain and be in the same state
as had been provided after the Feast of the Holy Trinity last past;
namely, in such manner as is set forth in the letters of his lordship the
King which are written in the preceding leaf ; where you will find a mark
of reference like this f . Look at the end of this Book for certain
2 Statutes as to the Jews, which were made in the month of June this
year.
In this year died John, the eldest son of Sir Edward, a child five
years and not quite four weeks of age ; whose body was buried in the
Church of Westminster on the eighth day of the month of August,
opposite the basilica of Saint Edward, on the Northern side.
This year, on the Vigil of Saint Bartholomew [24 August], there
came news to London by letters of Sir Edward, that in the preceding
month of May, he, with his wife and all his retinue, had landed at 3 Acon
in the Holy Land.
Be it remarked, that when after the battle of Evesham, the citizens of
London submitted themselves, as to life and limb, and all things, moveable
and immoveable, to the will of his lordship the King, for the offences
imputed to them and by some of them committed, and his lordship the
King took the City into his hands, and placed Wardens there at his own
will ; at the same time he granted unto his Queen the custody of London
Bridge ; which custody she held in her hands for nearly six years, and,
removing the wardens appointed by the citizens, placed there wardens at
1 Properly the seventh. See p. 132 ante. 3 Acre.
2 These will be found in a future page.
A.I). 1270.] INQUISITION AS TO THE PROPERTY OF THE FLEMINGS. 147
her own option, who during all the time aforesaid collected all
issues of the rents and lands of the said bridge, converting the
same to I know not what uses, but expending nothing whatever upon the
repairs of the said bridge. At last, when the Queen before-mentioned
had for certain understood, that hereby great damage and peril had
befallen the said bridge, she resigned to the citizens the said custody
thereof; and accordingly, on the Feast of Saint Giles [1 September] in this
year, they elected two men as wardens of that bridge, in the same manner
as, before the battle of Evesham, it used to be kept.
Afterwards however, within the fifteen days next ensuing, the Queen,
at whose suggestion I know not, repented of the said resignation, and
abandoned her intention, retaining the said bridge in her own hands.
At the Feast of Saint Michael, Richard de Paris [and] John de
Buddele were made Sheriffs, it being in the year 1271, and at the end
of the fifty-fifth year of the King's reign.
In this year Walter Hervy was made Mayor.
In this year, at a Parliament held at Westminster, after the Feast of
the Translation of Saint Edward [13 October], there came before the
King's Council the persons, who by his command had been sent through-
out England to make inquisition as to the goods and chattels of the
Flemings, and said that the goods that had been found by them, in the
shape of debts and chattels, amounted to 8000 pounds, together with the
King's debt. At the same time also, it was provided by the Council of
his lordship the King, that all the merchants of England from whom the
Countess of Flanders had taken anything, should come to Westminster at
the approaching Feast of Saint Hilary [13 January], to shew and certify
the Council of his lordship the King, each by himself, as to the value of
the chattels which the said Countess had so taken from them, and then
to receive, each his own proportion, from the aforesaid goods of the
Flemings. It should also be known, that the chattels which the
Countess had taken from the English, amounted to 7000 pounds sterling,
besides chattels of the merchants of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, and of
tenants of Sir Edward.
Afterwards, at the Parliament held on the quinzaine of Saint Hilary,
certain persons whose goods had been taken in Flanders, as
already stated, and the Londoners more especially, in hope of
148 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYOKS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 127L
having some money out of the debts of the Flemings which were then
being collected throughout England, certified those who by his lordship
the King and his Council had been appointed thereto, each by his own
oath and the oaths of two others, what goods the Countess had taken
from them, and the value thereof. At the same time, all the persons as
to whom it had been found by the inquisition that had been previously
made, what they had of goods or debts belonging to the Flemings, were
instructed that they must produce all monies arising therefrom before the
Council of his lordship the King, in the first week of Lent. And then
too, inquisition was made at the same time by each of the City Wards, as
also by all merchant-strangers who were in the City, as to all those who
had had intercourse with any persons of the dominions of the Countess
of Flanders, either in the way of selling, or of buying, or of exchanging,
or of harbouring their goods ; and also, as to who had taken wools out of
England to the parts beyond sea, in contravention of the prohibition of
his lordship the King.
At this time also, many Flemings found in the City were arrested,
and kept in custody for some days; in order to be liberated from which,
they abjured the realm of England, not to return thither, so long as the
dispute before-mentioned should exist between the King of England and
the Countess of Flanders.
This year, in the week before the Annunciation of Our Lady [25
March], there was brought to London the under-written copy of letters
which the King of the Tartars, Albaga by name, had sent to Sir Edward,
who was then at Aeon, together with sixty thousand Tartars and Chris-
tians, it is said.
" By aid and by power of the living God, the 1 Chaan Albaga to Sir
" Edward, by the grace of God the most illustrious first-born of the
" King of England. Through the prudent men and discreet envoys
" sent unto us, 2 Brother Reginald Rossel, Godfrey de Wans,
" John le Parker, we have diligently come to an understanding
" of the words of the proposition made on your part. At the expressions
" of your good will we have been very greatly rejoiced. But seeing
" that, in the past year, the Saracen infidels, causing no slight injury to
1 Probably the word known in more recent ' 2 Or ' Friar.'
times as ' Cham' and 'Khan.'
A.D. 1271.] PROPOSITION MADE BY THE COUNTESS OF FLANDERS. 149
" the Christian faith, have inflicted very numerous losses upon very many
" of the Christians, and did in no way hesitate to lay waste their lands
" [and] possessions, it has pleased us that these, equally the enemies of
" us and of you, and who meditate hostility towards us both, should be
" surrounded by our valiant troops on either side, and, put to confusion
" by the supreme aid of the living God, be thoroughly rooted out.
" Therefore, being advised thereon, we have on our behalf made it our
" care to send unto you, in our name, Cemakar, the captain of our
" army, with a powerful force ; wherefore you, discreetly taking counsel
" with the said Cemakar, will in future make it your care, with due
" caution, to issue orders both as to the day and the month for engaging
" with the foe. Given at Maraga, this fourth day of the month of
" September."
In the beginning of the year 1 72, at the end of the month of March,
died Richard King of Almaine and Earl of Cornwall, brother of his
lordship Henry, King of England, it being the fifteenth year after his
Coronation; and was buried in the Abbey of 2 White Monks at Heyles,
which he himself had built.
In the same month there came news to London, that a new Pope had
been created at Rome, after the Papal See had been vacant for 3 three
years and more ; which Pope was called " Gregory," being the tenth
Pope of that name, and was consecrated on the tenth of the Calends of
April [23 March], which then fell on a Sunday.
In this year, after Easter, there came envoys who had been sent by
the Countess of Flanders unto his lordship the King, saying that it was
her wish to make satisfaction to all the merchants of his realm as to all
goods and chattels which had been taken in her territory, in manner
already stated ; upon condition however, that the said King should bind
himself by his letters patent to pay unto her the rent which she demanded
of him, as also all the debts which he and his Queen owed to the Flemings,,
within the three years then next ensuing ; and that in case he should not do
so, she might lawfully distrain all persons coming into Flanders
from the realm of England by their bodies and all their goods,
until satisfaction should have been made to her for whatever should be
1 /. e. 1272. 3 About two years and nine months, in
2 Or Cistercians. See page 140 ante. reality.
150 CHRONICLES OP THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1271.
in arrear. But upon hearing and understanding this haughty message,
the King, with his Council, was indignant thereat, and contemptuously
dismissed the said envoys, commanding them, on peril of life and limb,
to leave the kingdom of England within the three days next ensuing,
and that no one from the dominions of the said Countess, on the like peril,
should come into England. This was done on the sixth day of May.
Still however, by assent of the Council of his lordship the King, it was
allowed that wool should be taken out of the kingdom in the same man-
ner that it used to be in the preceding year ; with this addition however,
that every sack of wool should be marked with the mark of his lordship
the King ; so that, in case any sack should be found without a seal in
any ship when crossing the sea, the same should be forfeited. This mark
too was as follows, that is to say, upon each sack there was a cross to
be painted with *red earth lengthwise, above and below, as also another
cross, crosswise, above and below ; and for this mark the merchant was to
give one halfpenny for each sack. This regulation however, did not
last.
Throughout all this year, no punishment was inflicted upon the
bakers ; but they made loaves at their own will ; so much so, that each
loaf was deficient one third in weight, or one fourth at least.
This year, in the month of August, there befell at Norwich a certain
most unhappy calamity, and one hitherto unheard of by the world, as
among Christians ; for the Cathedral Church in honour of the Holy
Trinity, which had been founded there from of old, was burnt by fire
purposely applied, together with all the houses of the monks built within
the cloisters of the said church. And this took place through the pride
of the person who at that time was Prior of this Convent ; as from the
following facts may be ascertained. For by assent and consent
of this same Prior, the grooms and servants of the monks very
frequently went into the City, beating and wounding men and women,
both within their houses and without, and doing much mischief. This
Prior also used to endeavour to draw away men of the franchise from
the commons of the City, in order that they might be under his own
jurisdiction and severed from the commons. Also, whereas the monks
have a fair by ancient custom each year, it happened this year, about
1 Or ruddle.
A.D.127L] DESTRUCTION OF THE CATHEDRAL AT NORWICH. 151
the Feast of the Holy Trinity, that after the citizens had come with
their merchandize there, and the greater part of them, at the end of the
fair, had returned home, the servants of the monks, wickedly assaulting
those who remained, beat and wounded them, and slew some ; and for
this, they never cared to make any amends, but always persevering in
their malice and wickedness towards the citizens, perpetrated all manner
of mischief. The citizens however, no longer able to endure so many
evils, and such violence as this, assembled together and had recourse to
arms, in order that they might repel force by force ; which this most
wicked Prior understanding, brought over a great multitude of malevo-
lent persons from 1 Gernemue, who had been robbers, plunderers, and
malefactors, during the disturbances in the realm. All these persons,
coming by water to the Convent, ascended to the belfry where the bells
were hung, fortified it with arms, just as if it were a castle, and took
aim with their bows and arbalests therefrom, so that no one could pass
along the streets or lanes near the Convent, without being wounded.
The citizens, seeing these acts of violence, were of opinion that these
misdoers were acting manifestly against the peace of his lordship the
King, in thus setting up a spurious castle in his city. Accordingly,
meeting together, and coming to a determination to seize these persons
and to bring them to judgment in the King's name, they provided them-
selves with arms, and, approaching the closed gate of the court-yard, on
being unable to enter it by reason of the armed men by whom
Fol 1 SI A
it was defended, set fire to it, and ruthlessly burnt the gate.
The fire spreading however, the belfry was burnt, and all the dwellings
of the monks, as well as, according to what some say, the Cathedral
Church, alas ! together with all the relics of the Saints, books, and
ornaments, of the church ; so that whatever could be burnt, was reduced
to ashes, a certain chapel only excepted, which remained unburnt. The
monks however, and all who were able, took to flight and made their
escape ; though still, some persons on either side were slain.
But it ought to be known, that although it is allowable in every way
to harass and attack the King's enemies and those who break his peace,
even to the extent of applying fire, if necessary ; still however, it is not
lawful for Christians to set fire to churches or to other holy places.
1 Yarmouth, in Norfolk.
152 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1271.
His lordship the King however, on hearing this most shocking news,
was greatly grieved thereat ; and accordingly, in a fury and in great wrath
he set out for that city, and on his arrival had as many of the citizens
seized as were held suspected, and imprisoned in his castle. He also caused
some men who dwelt without the said city to be summoned, desiring to
learn from them the truth of this matter upon oath ; but when they
appeared before the Justiciars who by his lordship the King for this pur-
pose had been chosen, there came the Bishop of the place, l Roger by
name, one who was in no way inferior in wickedness and cruelty to his
Prior, and having no consideration for the ties of religion attaching to
his order or his rank, but, wholly destitute of all pity and mercy, and
desirous to the utmost of his ability to get all the citizens condemned to
death, in presence of all the people excommunicated all those who by
advocacy, for reward, or through feelings of pity or mercy, should spare
any one of the citizens, so that he should not undergo his trial. Conse-
quently, after his sentence pronounced, his lordship the King would shew
no favour to any one, although entreated so to do by many religious men
dwelling as well within the city as without. And then besides, no allow-
ance was made for the citizens, because the Prior and his accomplices had
been the origin and cause of all this misfortune, nor yet for the mischiefs
and many evils which the citizens had suffered through the said Prior
and his people ; but inquisition was only made, as to who were
present in that conflict ; all which persons, young men of the
city, in number about thirty-two, being indicted thereupon, were by the
jurors condemned to death, and, by Laurence de Broke, who is a Justiciar
at Neugate for gaol delivery, and was there present, sentenced to a most
cruel death ; in accordance with which, they were drawn and hanged,
and their bodies, after death, burnt with fire. A priest however and two
clerks, who were convicted upon clear evidence of having committed
robbery in that church, were delivered to the Bishop for judgment accord-
ing to the usage of Holy Church.
Afterwards, by the most truthful inquisition of forty knights dwelling
near the city, it was found that the church had been burnt by 2 that
accursed man, and not by fire of the citizens. For he had secretly had
'blacksmiths introduced into the tower of the church, who there forged
1 Roger de Skerning, or Skerving. 2 The Prior.
1
A.D. 1271.] WALTER HEEVI DEMANDED FOR MAYOR. 153
bolts and arrows to be used for shooting from arbalests into the city : and
when these blacksmiths saw the belfry burning, as already written, they
took to flight and never put out their own fire ; and this communicating,
the tower was set on fire and the church burnt. It was also found that
this most iniquitous Prior had purposed burning all the city ; for which
purpose, By three accomplices of his, he caused the city to be set on fire,
in three places. Some of the citizens, however, wishing to avenge their
misfortune, most sadly increased it. For they, during the self-same fire
burnt down the gate of the Priory aforesaid, of which mention has been
made above.
This wicked Prior too was convicted of homicide, of robbery, and of
numberless other cruelties and iniquities, both by him personally, and by
his iniquitous accomplices, committed. And therefore, the King had
him seized, and handed him over to his Bishop, to keep him in safe
custody in his prison, and produce him before the King at his command-
But afterwards, this same Prior, after the ecclesiastical manner, purged
himself before his Bishop, who shewed himself much too favourable to
him ; and thus did this most iniquitous man, alas ! go unpunished for
the crimes imputed to him. But after this, within the half year next
ensuing, the divine vengeance, I believe, overtaking him, Hhis most
iniquitous person died a wretched death.
Be it remembered, that in the time of John Horn and
Walter le Poter, Sheriffs of London, whose names are written
in the next leaf but one of this Book, when the citizens of London, as
the custom is, met together for the election of Mayor, in the Guildhall,
on the Feast of Simon and Jude [28 October], and the Aldermen and
more discreet citizens would have chosen Philip le Tayllur, the mob of
the City, opposing such election and making a great tumult, cried aloud,
" Nay, nay, we will have no one for Mayor but Walter Hervi," who
before was Mayor ; and against the will of the rest, with all their might,
placed him in the seat of the Mayoralty. The Aldermen however, and
many discreet men who sided with them, being unable to make head
against the vast multitude of a countless populace, immediately went to
his lordship the King and his Council at Westminster; and Walter
1 A full account of all these transactions, the History of Bartholomew de Cotton, recently
from a point of view highly favourable to the published under the Editorship of Mr. Luard,
Prior, William de Brunhani, will be found in pp. 146 149.
X
154 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1271.
Herevy, taking with him the populace, proceeded thither in like manner,
promising them, as he before had promised, that he would preserve
them, one and all, throughout the whole time of his Mayoralty, exempt
from all tallages, exactions, and tolls, and would keep the City acquitted
of all its debts, both as towards the Queen as towards all other persons,
out of the arrears in the rolls of the City Chamberlain contained.
But this name of <e arrears " he gave to whatever sums had been
released and remitted, by writ of his lordship the King sent to Sir Alan
de la Souche, the then Warden of the City, on the occasion of the great
tallage made by assent of all the citizens, to those among the citizens
who, beyond the sufficiency of their means, had been assessed towards the
loans made for the purpose of paying the City's ransom to his lordship
the King. This release too, and remission, was made by sworn men of
the venue, and of the trades of those in favour of whom such remission
was made ; and so, was openly and distinctly enrolled in the rolls of the
City Chamberlains, which rolls are of record. And besides this, his
lordship the King had lately written in behalf of some of them to the
same Mayor and to the Sheriffs of London, that they should have the
aforesaid rolls examined, and should not aggrieve them, or suffer them to
be aggrieved, in contravention of the enrolment in them contained.
But still, this Mayor, in contravention of the aforesaid enrolment and
of the mandate of his lordship the King, endeavoured to extort from the
said citizens a great sum of money ; and always made promises to the
populace with affirmation of his good faith, as already written; and
accordingly, the populace, believing it to be true as he had promised,,
became his adherents and submitted themselves to his will ; so much
so, that the people, by hundreds, by thousands, and by multitudes of
persons, without number, followed him at his command both on horseback
and on foot.
But on the Feast of Simon and Jude [28 October] before-mentioned,
the said Aldermen and their adherents, on coming before his lordship the
King and his Council, as already written, shewed unto them, with
grievous complaints, how that this populace by force had violently and
unjustly impeded their election, by those to whom the election
of Mayor and Sheriffs in the City of right more particularly
belongs than to any one else, and has always been wont to belong.
A.D. 1271.] WALTER IS WARNED BY THE KING'S COUNCIL. 155
They also cluteously besought his lordship the King and his Council,
that the King would be pleased to set his arm and his hand thereto, that
so this populace, calling itself the " Commons of the City," and excluding
the Aldermen and discreet men of the City, might not upraise itself
against his peace and against the peace of his realm, as had happened in
the time of the Earl of Leicester ; namely, when Thomas Fitz-Thomas
and Thomas de 1 Pullesdon had so exalted the populace of the City
above the Aldermen and discreet men of the City, that, when it was
necessary so to do, they could not make such populace amenable to
justice; through which, as a thing notorious to the whole world, a deadly
war arose in England.
The populace however, shewing no reason against this, but making a
great tumult in the King's Hall, so much so, that the noise reached his
lordship the King in bed, to which he was confined by a severe illness,
was continually crying aloud, <f We are the Commons of the City, and
" unto us belongs the election of Mayor of the City, and our will distinctly
" is, that Walter Herevy shall be Mayor, whom we have chosen. " But on
the other hand, the Aldermen shewed by many reasons, that unto them
belongs the election of Mayor, both because they the Aldermen are the
heads, as it were, and the populace the limbs, as also because it is the
Aldermen who pronounce all judgments in pleas moved within the City.
Of the populace, on the other hand, there are many who have neither
lands, rents, nor dwellings in the City, being sons of divers mothers,
some of them of servile station, and all of them caring little or nothing
about the City's welfare.
The populace however still kept crying aloud as before : whereupon,
the members of the King's Council, wishing to give offence to neither the
Aldermen's party nor that of the populace, and to the end that the King,
who was in a weak state, might not be in any way disturbed, dismissed them
until the morrow, and told the said Walter, that he must not come to
Court attended with such a vast multitude of people, but only with ten
or twelve persons, at most ; and after this had been told them, they all
returned to the City.
But the said Walter, caring nothing for the orders that had been
given him by the Council of his lordship the King, immediately after
1 Elsewhere written " Piwelesclon."
156 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1271.
dinner had all the people of the City summoned, except those who were
adherents of the Aldermen , and this too in the name of his lordship the
King, though the King knew nothing whatever about it, and commanded
them all, under heavy pecuniary penalties, to follow him. Accordingly,
on the morrow, a countless multitude went with him, both horse and
foot, to Westminster ; and there entering the King's Hall, set forth no
reasons, but, just as they had done before, kept crying aloud and
saying, " It is our will that Walter Herevy shall be our Mayor,
" because no person in the City is so fit and proper to govern us." The
Aldermen too were there present, awaiting the answer of his lordship
the King and his Council. The members however of the King's Coun-
cil told the Aldermen and the others who were adherents of the said
Walter, that they themselves should unanimously have given their assent
to any person in the City whom they might have thought proper to be
their Mayor; and that if they should present such a person unto his
lordship the King, the King would admit him to the Mayoralty. The
populace however always kept crying aloud, as already mentioned. For
all this, the parties aforesaid could obtain no answer from the King and his
Council for several days.
But the Aldermen, together with those who adhered to them, as
well as the said Walter, with a countless multitude of people, who were
summoned daily under the same penalty, and in every way in the same
manner as already noticed, attended daily at Westminster, until the
Feast of Saint Martin [11 November].
It should also be remarked, that when this Walter understood that
he was censured by some persons for wishing to be Mayor of the City,
who said, " No man ought to hold an office who covets it ; seeing that
" such people think nothing about the welfare of those subject to them,
" but only about their own promotion," this Walter, I say, thereupon
made answer to the people standing about him, affirming and swearing
by God and by his own soul, to the effect that he did not desire to be Mayor
or any other officer in the City, for his own sake ; but that solely from
love of God, and from motives of charity, he was willing to endure that
burden and that labour, that so he might support the poor of the City
against the rich, who wish to oppress them in the matter of the tallages
and expenditure of the City,
A.D.1371.] HENRY DE FEOWICK MADE WARDEN. 157
However, upon the Feast of Saint Martin before-mentioned, the
members of the King's Council, seeing that it would be of no use any
further to delay this matter, called before them the Aldermen, as well
as Walter and his adherents, and said to them, " His lordship the King
" wishes to preserve all your liberties unimpaired ; and as you cannot
ee unanimously agree to the election of the same person as Mayor, it is
(( his will, that both Walter Herevy and Philip le Taillur shall be removed
(( from the Mayoralty, and that you shall have a Warden from among
f( ourselves ( who for me may keep the City in my behalf, and in that
" ( of Edward my son.' " And immediately thereupon, Henry de Fro wick
was made Warden of the City, to keep the same until the Feast of Saint
Hilary [13 January] next ensuing ; but at whatever hour the
citizens should be willing unanimously to agree upon the same
person for Mayor, they were to present him to his lordship the King ;
and the King, removing Henry from the Wardenship of the City, would
willingly admit him to the Mayoralty.
After this, certain persons of the King's Council, namely, Walter de
Merton and others, came into the City, and for several days held confer-
ence with the said Aldermen and the said Walter, for the purpose of
making peace and concord ; whereupon, it was in common agreed that
five men should be chosen upon the Aldermen's side, and five on the side
of the said Walter ; and that the person whom they should elect should
be Mayor for that year.
The names of those chosen by the Aldermen were, John Addrian,
Walter le Poter, Henry le Waleys, Henry de Coventre, and Thomas de
Basinge. The names of those chosen by Walter Herevy were, Robert
Gratefige, Robert Hauteyn, Allan le 1 Hurer, Bartholomew le Spicer,
and Henry de Wyncestre.
This provision however and agreement was not carried into effect, as
may be seen in what is written below.
Be it remembered, that certain malicious men of Belial, as it was said,
proposed that, immediately the King was dead, they should rise against
the Aldermen and those who adhered to them, and deprive them of
all their goods and chattels to be found in the City ; thinking among
themselves that this might be done with impunity, while the realm was
1 I. e. a maker of Awres, or rough, shaggy caps.
158 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1271.
without a King. This however was erroneously supposed by them ; for
immediately after the King's death, the kingdom devolved upon his son
Sir Edward ; and when once all persons in the realm had done fealty to
him, then it is very evident that those under his rule who should have
perpetrated anything against the peace, ought to be just as severely
punished, as if it had been under the rule of his father when alive. But
however, these iniquitous persons were prevented, so that this iniquity
was not committed. For immediately the King was dead, on the morrow
of Saint Edmund the Archbishop [16 November], the Archbishop of
York, the Earl of Gloucester, and many other nobles of England, who
were then present, came into the City and caused peace to be proclaimed
as towards all persons, Jews as well as Christians ; after which, they
came into the Chamber of the Guildhall, where the Aldermen and the
aforesaid Walter, with a countless multitude of people, were assembled ;
and, upon hearing of the disagreement that existed between the Aldermen
and the said Walter, the Earl before-named, seeing such a vast multitude
of people adhering to this Walter, in order that the quiet of the City
might not be disturbed, requested that he might be admitted to
the Mayoralty. But the Aldermen told him that that matter
had been referred to the arbitration of ten men, in manner already stated.
The Earl however, disregarding this arbitration, commanded that on the
morrow, Friday namely, a Folkmote should be called together in the
Churchyard, at Saint Paul's Cross, and that he should continue to be
Mayor for that year, to whose election the greater part of the citizens
should agree.
On the morrow accordingly, all the City came into Saint Paul's
Churchyard, and the Archbishop, the Earl, Kobert Burnel, Walter de
Merton, and many other men of high rank, came to the Church of Saint
Paul ; and, entering the Chapter-house there, with some of the Alder-
men, advised them to agree to the election of this Walter, so long as he
should be Mayor for one year only, lest something still worse might
happen in the City. Accordingly, seeing that such was the wish of these
nobles, and that 011 that conjuncture nothing else could be done, the Alder-
men gave their assent thereto, and, calling the said Walter before them, he
was told what had been done. And then, by order of the aforesaid
Archbishop, Earl, and other nobles, the said Walter made oath, that he
A.D.127L] WALTER HERVI FINALLY ELECTED B1AYOR. 159
would not aggrieve, or allow to be aggrieved throughout all his Mayor-
alty, any one of those who had been against his election ; and so, declara-
tion was made by Walter de Merton before all the people at Saint Paul's
Cross, to the effect that the Aldermen had agreed that the said Walter
should be Mayor for one year.
On the fourth day after the King's death, namely, on the Feast of
Saint Edmund the King, [20 November] which then fell on a Sunday
his body, nobly attended, in such manner as befits royalty, was com-
mitted to the tomb in the Conventual Church of the Monks at West-
minster, before the great altar there. And after he had been buried,
the Archbishop of York, who had been celebrating Mass there, the Earl
of Gloucester, the Earl of Warenne, the Earl of Hereford, and other
Bishops, Barons, and all the nobles there present, made oath that they
would keep the peace in the realm, and would with all their strength
cause the same to be kept ; and that they would keep the kingdom in
behalf of Sir Edward, who was then in the Holy Land. The King's
Seal also was then broken, in presence of all the people.
Afterwards, on the Monday following, and so from day to day, the
Bishops and Barons met together at the 1 New Temple, for making refor-
mation of the state of the realm.
At this time a new Seal was made for Sir Edward, the inscription on
which is the same as it was while his father was living, the name only
upon the new Seal being changed. Walter de Merton also was made his
Chancellor.
A.D. 1272. JOHN HORN, }
nr . [ Sheriffs. FoLl84fl,
WALTER LE POTER, again,)
2 This year, on the sixth day of October, Eadmund, son of Richard,
the late King of Almaine and Earl of Cornwall, married the sister of
Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester and Hertford, Margaret by name,
in the Chapel of Reyslepe ; a town twelve miles distant from London,
on the West.
Afterwards, on the Feast of the Translation of Saint Edward, at
Westminster, Sir Eadmund, son of Richard, the late King of Almaine
1 On the site of the present Inner and history reverts to a period preceding the
Middle Temple. death of Henry III,
2 At this pointj it will be observed, the
160 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1272.
and Earl of Cornwall, was made a knight ; as also,, Henry de Laci, Earl
of Lincoln, and many other nobles of the kingdom of England and the
parts beyond sea, in number about fifty, it is said.
In this year, because dissensions had arisen on the Feast of Simon and
Jude in reference to the election of the Mayor, as in the two preceding
leaves is more fully set forth, his lordship the King, on the Feast of
Saint Martin [11 November] appointed Henry de Frowyk Warden, in
place of the Mayor.
About the same time, there came news to London that the Prior of
the Church of the Holy Trinity at Canterbury, who had been elected
Archbishop, and had been staying at Rome for some time, knowing and
fully understanding that he would be rejected, because his lordship the
Pope, upon examination of him, did not consider him sufficiently literate,
renounced his election; whereupon, his lordship the Pope bestowed
that dignity upon a certain Friar 1 Preacher, who was Provincial Prior
of all his Order throughout England, Scotland, and Wales, Robert de
2 Killewareby, by name.
Afterwards, on the Feast of Saint Edmund the Archbishop [16
November], Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, came to Westminster,
and in presence of his lordship the King, who was then at the point of
death, made promise upon oath that he would preserve the peace of the
kingdom of England, and would, to the utmost of his power, cause the
same to be observed; and that he would keep that kingdom in Sir
Edward's behalf. Afterwards, at a late hour on the -same clay the King
died, after a reign of fifty-six full years and twenty days ; and
was buried on the Feast of Saint Edmund the King [20 No-
vember], as set forth on the preceding leaf. ^** '
On the day after the Feast of Saint Edmund the Archbishop, Walter
Herevy was made Mayor, as is stated on the other side of the preceding
leaf; but he was not immediately presented, because since the King's
death there were no Barons at the Exchequer, up to that clay.
Afterwards, on the Vigil of Saint Andrew [30 November], the
Sheriffs before-mentioned were presented anew at the Exchequer, the
Barons sitting there, in the name of Sir Edward.
1 Or Dominican. 2 More commonly, " Kilwarclby."
A.D.1272.J FIRST WRIT FROM THE CHANCERY OF EDWARD I. 161
Copy of the first Writ that was issued from the Chancery of Sir
Edward, after the death of his Father.
" Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, and
" Duke of Acquitaine, to the Sheriff of * Nortffolk, greeting. Whereas
(i by reason of the death of his lordship King Henry, our father, now of
" famous memory, the governance of the realm has upon us by hereditary
<f succession, and by the will of the nobles of our realm, and their fealty
" unto us made, devolved ; by reason whereof, the said nobles and our
"faithful subjects, caused our peace in our name to be proclaimed, to all
" and singular of whom in this realm, as dispensing justice and main-
" taining peace, we are rendered debtors from henceforth ; we do command
" you, that throughout all "your bailiwick, in all cities and boroughs, fairs,
ef markets, and other places, you do cause our peace publicly to be pro-
" claimed, and strictly to be maintained, forbidding unto all and singular
" persons, that any one shall presume to commit any breach of our peace,
(c under peril of disherison, as also of loss of life and limb. For that we
" are, and shall be, ready to do full justice unto all and singular, by aid
" of the Lord, in all rights and other matters concerning them, against all
" persons whomsoever, great as well as small. Witness, W[alter], Arch-
" bishop of York, at Westminster, this 23rd day of November, in the first
" year of our reign."
After this, Sir Edmund, son of his lordship the King, came back to
London, from the Holy Land, on the tenth day of December, which
then fell on a Saturday.
2 This year, on the eleventh day of January, Sir William de Valence,
who was with Sir Edward, came to London from the Holy Land. On
the last day of the same month of January, the 3 Bishop of London came
to London from 4 Rome, whither he had been sent by the Legate.
T7r\l 1 P
Be it remembered, that about the month of May previous, it
befell at Aeon, in the Holy Land, that a certain Saracen, a malicious
traitor, who knew the French language, came to the Court of Sir Edward,
and assumed the character of one of the domestics there, as though he
had been one of his household ; and accordingly, one day approached him,
1 Norfolk. 4 "Whither he had been sent in disgrace,
a A.D. 1273. about six years before, for taking part with
3 Henry de Sandwich. the rebellious Barons.
Y
162 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1272.
saying that he wished to speak with him in private on a matter for his
own benefit and welfare. Whereupon, Sir Edward, who was too trust-
ing and gave an unreasonable degree of credit to this traitor, received
him in his chamber, no other person remaining there. Accordingly,
this wretch, having shut the door of the chamber, approached Sir
Edward, as though about to speak to him, and instantly, drawing a
poisoned dagger, attempted to slay him, giving him four most dangerous,
and almost deadly, wounds. Edward however, manfully exerting him-
self, with a strong hand threw the malefactor to the ground, and with the
traitor's own dagger cut him to pieces, blessed be God! and so slew him. 1
Afterwards, it became known that the Soldan had sent him to slay Sir
Edward*} just as the Old Man of the Mountains had been wont to do,
who, in the time of Richard, King of England, caused the Marquis de
Munferat to be assassinated, at Tyre in the Holy Land, by two of his
retainers, as related in the history of King Richard before-mentioned.
Be it remembered, that after the death of the before-named King, no
one, impleaded by his writ, was bound to make answer to his adversary,
unless his lordship Edward, King of England, his son, had by his writ
given command to carry his father's writ into effect.
This year, on the morrow of Saint Valentine [14 February], it was
made known by the Archdeacon of London to all the chaplains of that
City, that by command of his lordship the Pope all ecclesiastics in office,
throughout the whole of England, should for two consecutive years give
one tenth part of all their moveable possessions unto Sir Edward and Sir
Edmund, sons of the 2 King before-mentioned, on their return from the
Holy Land, for the purpose of defraying their expenses ; the Templars,
Hospitallers, and Cistercian Monks, ,only excepted.
Afterwards, on the first Sunday in Lent, which then fell on the 26th
day of February, the Archbishop elect of Canterbury, Robert de Kyle-
wareby by name, was consecrated in the Cathedral Church of the Holy
Trinity at Canterbury ; there being present the following of his suffragan
Bishops, namely, Laurence de Saint Martin, Bishop of Rochester,
Nicholas of Winchester, Godfrey of Worcester, Richard of
Lincoln, Hugh of Ely, Roger of Norwich, William of Bath,
1 Not a word is said about Queen Eleanor of probably a later date,
sucking the poison from the wound ; a fiction 5 Henry III.
A. D. 1272.] ENVOYS SENT BY THE POPE. 163
Roger of 1 Chester, Walter of Exeter. The Bishop elect also of Salis-
bury was present, Robert by name; and there were absent, Henry,
Bishop of London, and John, Bishop of Hereford, by reason of their
infirmities. As for Stephen, Bishop of Chichester, he was still at Rome,
whither he had been sent by Ottoboni, the Pope's Legate, as already
written.
Be it remembered, that in the month of November next preceding
there came envoys to London from his lordship the Pope, bringing
letters of the Pope ; but because his lordship the King was then dead,
and his son, who succeeded to the kingdom, was not present, the nobles
of England would not give the said envoys an answer ; whereupon the
said envoys, while staying in the meantime at the New Temple, sent
letters to his lordship the Pope. Still however, they took for their
expenses, sixteen shillings from every house of religion in England
established, no one being exempt, whether Templars, Hospitallers, or
Monks of the Cistercian Order.
On the day before the Annunciation of Our Lady [25 March], there
were read in the Guildhall of London letters of his lordship King
Edward, the tenor of which is as follows :
" Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland,
" and Duke of Acquitaine, to the Mayor, and Sheriffs, and Commonalty
" of London, greeting. We do know and do strongly hope, that so often
" as you have heard good tidings of us, your feelings have been gratified
" thereby, receiving an accession of joy and gladness ; even as at the
" present moment, when we do make known to you, that at the time of
" writing these presents, at 2 Caples in the land of Labor, near unto our
" dearest cousin the illustrious King of Sicily, we are as well and as un-
" impaired as, after the bitterness of grief that we have experienced by
" reason of the departure of his lordship the King, of happy memory, our
" late father, we might be ; a loss which, in submission to the divine
" will, we do patiently endure. But forasmuch as we should wish, and
" do desire, that all in our realm should enjoy peace and tranquillity, we
" do command you, in virtue of the fealty and love, in which unto us you
(e are bound, that, diligently giving attention thereunto, you make it
1 One of the then titles of the See of Lich- 2 Apparently Porto Salvo Chapel in
field and Coventry. Calabria.
164 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1272.
" your care, in our absence, so to conduct yourselves, that upon our
"arrival in England, whither we are now hastening, the Supreme aid
ee preceding us, we may be able to find you deserving therein. But for-
" asmuch as we have not yet had made our own royal Seal, we have had
" these presents, at our instance, enclosed under the Seal of his lordship
" the King of Sicily before-mentioned. Witness myself, at Caples, this
(f 19th day of January, in the first year of our reign."
Be it remembered, that after Stephen, Bishop of Chichester,
who had been sent to Rome by Ottoboni, Legate of his lord-
ship the Pope, as has been already stated in this Book, had obtained of
the Supreme Pontiff, the Lord Gregory the Tenth, his gracious per-
mission to return to his country and resume his dignity, on such his
return towards England, he conducted himself foolishly and indiscreetly ;
for he received into companionship Emeric de Montfort, for the purpose
of escorting him and bringing him with himself to England; a person
whom his lordship King Edward held in abhorrence, seeing that his
brothers had slain Sir Henry of Almaine, as already written. Where-
upon, his lordship the King immediately gave orders to the Constable of
Dover Castle, to cause the sea to be w,atched with ships and galleys on
every side, that he might not enter the kingdom of England. He also
commanded his Justiciars, to take into their hands the barony of the said
Bishop.
In this year, the same as in the three preceding years, no judicial
cognizance was taken of the London bakers ; but they, giving bribes to
the Mayor and Sheriffs, made their loaves at their own pleasure, so much
so, that every loaf was one third or one fourth lighter in weight than it
ought to be, to the great loss and detriment of the citizens and of all
persons coming into the City.
Be it remembered, that throughout the whole time of this Mayor's
Mayoralty he did not allow any pleading in the Hustings of Pleas of Land,
except very rarely ; the reason being, that he himself was impleaded as
to a certain tenement which Isabella Bukerel demanded of him by plea
between them moved.
In this year, his lordship the King, returning from the Holy Land
with a noble array and retinue, came to Paris" on the Thursday before
Saint Peter's Chains [1 August], which then fell upon the sixth of the
A.D. 1*72.] THE FLEMINGS EXPELLED FROM ENGLAND. 165
Calends of August [27 July], his Queen having set out for Gascoigne.
Aud on the morrow he did homage to the King of France for the lands
which he holds, and which he claims to hold, of him.
Shortly after, he set out with his suite for Gascoigne, certain
"Fol 1 37 A
Earls and other nobles of the kingdom of England accompany-
ing him, who had come as far as Paris, and even further, to meet him.
The letters under-written were read in the Guildhall on the Feast of
the Nativity of the Blessed Mary [8 September], in the year of Our
Lord 1273, and proclaimed throughout all the City in accordance with
the tenor thereof:
* f Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland,
" and Duke of Acquitaine, to his Mayor and Sheriffs of London, greeting.
" Forasmuch as the Countess of Flanders and her people have, within
" her territories and dominions, inflicted divers injuries and grievances
" upon us and our subjects, by reason whereof we are unwilling that
" they shall any longer come into our realm, or dwell in the same, or sell
" merchandize or follow business therein ; we do command you, and do
" strictly enjoin, that in our City of London you do cause it to be publicly
" proclaimed, that no one of them shall, under forfeiture of his body and
" his goods, presume to enter our territory or make sojourn there ; and if
" perchance any individual persons shall have received especial grant from
" his lordship King Henry, our father, or other our ancestors, to the
ee effect that they may come into our territory, sojourn therein, and there
" pursue their trade, you are to cause it to be proclaimed, that such
(i persons shall collect their merchandize and their debts before the Feast
" of Our Lord's Nativity next ensuing, and then, at the latest, depart
" from our realm, under like forfeiture, never to return. Given by the
" hand of Walter de Merton, our Chancellor, at Saint Martin's le Grand,
"in London, this 8th day of September, in the first year of our reign."
In this year, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who had been lately
consecrated, was enthroned and placed in the Archiepiscopal chair, on the
Day of Saint Lambert [17 September], which then fell on a Sunday;
upon which day, arrayed in his pall, he solemnly celebrated divine
service, and on the same day held a very great and most noble Court,
consisting of many of the Prelates and Barons of England.
At this time died Henry de Sandewych, Bishop of London, at a
166 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A. D. 1272.
certain manor of his called "Orsete," distant 18 miles from
London ; whose body was committed to the tomb on the 1 ninth
of the Calends of October [23 September], being the morrow of Saint
Matthew the Apostle [21 September], in the Church of Saint Paul at
London, in the place which he himself had selected on the day of his
enthronization, in case he should die in the realm of England.
A.D. 1273. PETER CUSIN,
T-y t Sheriffs.
ROBERT DE MELDEBURNE,
These were chosen Sheriffs, on the Monday before the Feast of Saint
Michael ; and, on the morrow of Saint Michael, as the custom is, they were
presented at Westminster to the Barons of the Exchequer, who were not
then sitting at the Exchequer, but in the Small Chamber next the
2 Receipt near the Thames, and there admitted ; but only remained such
until the Feast of Saint Andrew [30 November].
The same year, on the Saturday after the Feast of the Translation of
Saint Eadward [13 October], Friar Robert, the Archbishop of Canter-
bury, together with eight of his Suffragan Bishops, arrayed in pontificals,
in the Great Hall at Westminster, confirmed the sentence which had
been pronounced by Archbishop Boneface, his predecessor, and thirteen
Bishops, in the same hall, as already stated in this Book ; and again
pronounced excommunicate all those who by deed, counsel, favour, aid,
or assent, should secretly or openly disturb, or procure to be disturbed,
the peace of the King and of the realm.
After this, the nets of the fishermen on the Thames were seized, and
on the Monday before the Feast of Saint Luke [18 October] brought to
the Guildhall, and there judicially examined; and because they were not
lawful according to the statutes of the City, they were burnt in Westchep,
being 27 in number.
In this year, before the Feast of Saint Michael, and after that Feast,
by order of the Constable of Dovere, by reason of the injuries which the
Countess of Flanders had inflicted upon the merchants of England, as
already mentioned in this Book, the men of the Cinque Ports, with strong
and armed force, sailed about the seas with many ships and galleys, and
1 A mistake probably for the 10th ; as that * Or Counting-house, of the Exchequer,
day is the 22nd of September.
X.D. 1273.] BRIBERY OF ONE OF THE SHERIFFS. 167
stopped all ships which they found sailing, with wool on board, towards
Flanders, and seized all such goods belonging to the Flemings as they
found upon the sea. After this, it was forbidden by his lordship the
King that any wool should be taken out of the kingdom.
This year, on the Feast of Simon and Jude, Henry le Waleys
* Fol. 138 A.
was made x Mayor, and on the third or fourth day after was
presented to the Barons at the Exchequer, admitted, and sworn.
About the Feast of Saint Michael in this year, the princes of Almaine,
those namely unto whom belongs the election of an Emperor, chose a
certain prince of Almaine, 2 Radulf do Hanesberuth by name ; who in
the same month was crowned in the city of Aix by the Archbishop of
Cologne, and on the seat of 3 Charles the Grreat there enthroned.
Be it remembered, that on the Monday next before the Feast of
Saint Andrew [30 November] in this year, the Mayor and citizens of
London coming to the Guildhall, there to plead the common pleas, on the
same day several bakers were seized for the purpose of examining their
loaves, as to whether they weighed what they ought to weigh, according
to the assize that had been made in the City ; of whom, Peter Cusin,
the Sheriff, allowed one to go free, for a bribe which he received of him,
and did not produce him. Whereupon, this Peter, being accused thereof
in full Hustings, confessed that he had received sixty shillings of the
said baker, not to produce him with the other bakers ; and accordingly
he was deposed from his office, and the same was immediately promul-
gated throughout all the City, so that it became known to the Council of
his lordship the King and the Barons of the Exchequer ; who thereupon
summoned the Mayor, Sheriffs, and all the Aldermen, before them at the
Exchequer.
Upon whose appearance, it was said that such a trespass as this is
against the royal dignity, and they expressed a desire to know the truth
of this matter. Whereupon, answer was made by the citizens, producing
their Charters, that they are not bound to plead without the walls of the
City, and that the Sheriffs of London ought to enjoy the same liberties
which the other citizens enjoy ; and that the citizens may remove the
Sheriffs when necessary, and appoint others in their place, but must pre-
1 He was again Mayor of London from A.D. 3 Meaning Rodolph de Hapsburg.
1280 to 1283, and Mayor of Bordeaux in 1275. s Or Charlemagne.
168 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D.137S.
sent them at the Exchequer of his lordship the King. And this at last
was conceded to them, and a day was given them at Saint
Martin's le Grand in London ; whither the Justiciars of his
lordship the King came on the Feast of Saint Andrew [30 November],
as also, the Mayor and Sheriffs, and the citizens. Upon which day it was
found before them as to Peter Cusin, as already mentioned ; and it was
also found, upon inquisition made by certain great men of the City,
charged by their faith in God and by the oath which they had made unto
his lordship the King, that the other Sheriff, Robert de Meldeburne by
name, had given his assent to taking the sixty shillings before-mentioned,
and had been there present in form aforesaid ; and therefore, the same as
his fellow- Sheriff, he was deposed, and they were both amerced unto his
lordship the King. Also, on the day after the Feast of Saint Andrew
[30 November], the citizens elected Henry de Coventre and Nicholas
Fitz- Geoffrey of Winchester to be Sheriffs for the remainder of that year :
and they were presented at the Exchequer, and there admitted. But
when the aforesaid Peter Cosyn and his fellow-Sheriff appeared at the
Exchequer, the Barons found mentioned in their rolls a certain Sheriff
of London, namely, Simon Fitz-Mary, who for only a single amercement
had paid twenty pounds of silver ; whereupon, certain of the citizens,
bringing their Charters, challenged this, and said that the two Sheriffs
ought not to be amerced for one offence in more than twenty pounds in
all. Accordingly, the matter was postponed, until it could be more cor-
rectly ascertained as to the King's right therein. Peter however was
enrolled as a debtor in the sum of twenty pounds.
Be it remembered, that by procuring of the Mayor and certain prin-
cipal men of the City, several of those who had been banished from the
City four years before, by order of his lordship the King, as already
stated in this Book, were taken and imprisoned in Neugate, until it
should be known by what warranty they had returned to the City and
taken up their abode therein ; afterwards however, they were set at
liberty, upon abjuring the City until the arrival of his lordship the
King.
On the Feast of the Innocents [28 December] this year, John de
Burgh, the elder, entered the Tower of London, with all his household ;
his lordship the King, who was still in Gascoigne, having granted him
A.D. 1273.] ELECTION OF A BISHOP OF LONDON. 169
the custody thereof. He had previously however bestowed upon his
lordship the King all the lands and tenements which he possessed in the
kingdom of England, and had made him his heir to the same; upon con-
dition that his lordship the King should find him all the necessaries of
life, so long as he should live, and should also discharge his debts.
Be it remembered, that when it was made known to the Dean
and Chapter of Saint Paul's at London, by the royal letters
sent to them through their messengers, who had crossed over to his lord-
ship the King in Gascoigne, that they had leave to elect a Bishop: on
the morrow of Saint Nicholas [6 December], John de Chishelle, Dean
of that Church and Provost of Beverley, was elected Bishop ; who, on
the fourth day after, set out for the purpose of crossing the sea, that he
might be presented to his lordship the King. After being admitted by
his lordship the King, he returned to England, and on the Tuesday after
the Feast of Saint Gregory [12 March] came to Lambhethe, and was
confirmed by the Official at Canterbury, because the Archbishop was
not then in England. Afterwards, on the day but one before the Feast
of the Apostles Philip and James [1 May] in the year of Our Lord 1274,
he was consecrated by the Bishop of Saint Asaph, in the Chapel of the
Archbishop of Canterbury at Lambhethe ; and after being so consecrated,
crossed the Thames in a boat, and on landing, proceeded unshod to the
Church of Saint Paul, and there on the same day was enthroned.
Be it remembered, that in this year, on the Tuesday next before the
Feast of Saint Thomas the Apostle [21 December], the Mayor and
citizens meeting in the Guildhall, there came one of those persons to
whom Walter Herevy had granted charters, while Mayor ; who made
complaint to the Mayor and Sheriffs, that a certain person of his trade
had worked in contravention of the statutes contained in the charter
which he and the men of his trade had obtained. Upon this, enquiry
was made of him from whom they had had this charter ; whereupon,
producing a copy of such charter, he said that they had had it from
Walter Herevy, while Mayor. Walter also was present, and acknow-
ledged it, as also, all the charters which he had executed during his
Mayoralty. Upon this, answer was made by Gregory de Rokesle, one
of the Aldermen, on behalf of the Mayor and other more discreet citizens
of the City, that such charters ought not to have any force beyond the
170 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1273.
Mayoralty of the said Walter ; both because this Walter had executed
them at his own will, without the assent of the Aldermen and discreet
men of the City, as also, because such charters were solely made
for the benefit of the wealthy men of the trades to which they
were granted ; and to the loss and undoing of the poor men of those
trades, as also, to the loss and undoing of all the other citizens and of the
whole realm. Upon his saying this, there arose between the aforesaid
Gregory and Walter a wordy and most abusive dispute, in presence of
all the people. But afterwards, the said Walter, on leaving the Guild-
hall, went to the Church of Saint Peter in Chepe, and convened there
a great multitude of the people of those trades to which he had granted
charters ; telling them that the Mayor and others wished to infringe their
charters, but that if they would only adhere to him, he would maintain
them all in their integrity. And after this, throughout the whole of
that day and the next, he went through the streets and lanes of the
City, preaching and enticing the populace, if possible, to become ad-
herents of his against the Mayor and discreet men of the City. As soon
however as this became known to the Barons of the Exchequer and the
Council of his lordship the King, they were greatly moved thereat, and
fearing lest the King's peace in the City might next be broken by the
said Walter and his accomplices, held a conference among themselves ;
and a writ of his lordship the King was sent to the Mayor and Sheriffs
in form under-written.
" Edward, by the grace of God, King of England etc., to the Mayor
" and Sheriffs, and other his faithful citizens of London, greeting. Where-
" as from the information of you, the Mayor aforesaid, as also of Henry
" Coventre, Nicholas de Wyncestre, William de Durham, John Adrian,
" Arnold Tedmar, Gregory de Rokesle, Philip le Taylur, John de
" Gysors, John Horn, William de Hadestok, Robert de Meldeburn,
" Luke de Batyncurt, Reginald de Suffolch, [and] Gilbert de Dunton,
" we have understood that Walter Herevy, and certain others of divers
" trades of the same city, do manifestly threaten them, because that
(( they, together with other trusty persons of our city, have wished to
" annul certain statutes, contrary to right, made by certain men of the
" trades aforesaid, for their own gain and against the common advantage ;
" to the which statutes the same Walter, at the time when he was
A.D. 1273.] CHARTERS UNDULY GRANTED TO CERTAIN TRADES. 171
" Mayor, caused [his seal] to be set, it is said, contrary to the assent
" and consent of the aforesaid our faithful subjects, who expostulated against
" the same, and without consent of the commonalty aforesaid ; and also,
" do hold covins and conspiracies with certain of their adherents
" of suspicious character, at divers places and hours, as from the
" information aforesaid we have been truly certified ; we do command
" you, that from all and singular such persons you do take good security
" and sufficient mainprise, that through them, or others of their people,
" peril may not unto the said city, or to our aforesaid faithful subjects,
" arise, nor disturbance of our peace in the city aforesaid, in such manner
" as, there and elsewhere, by reason of such conspiracies and covins,
" the same has oftentimes been wont to happen. Given by the hand of
( Walter de Merton, our Chancellor, at Saint Martin's le Grand in London,
" on the twentieth day- of December, in the second year of our reign."
By virtue of this writ, the aforesaid Walter was attached, on the
second day before the Nativity, and upon the surety of twelve men
of the City released. Soon after this, after the Feast of Our Lord's
Circumcision [1 January], the Mayor and citizens meeting in the Guild-
hall, the men of the trades before-mentioned who held charters from the
said Walter, brought those charters before the Mayor ; to which only
one part of the seal of the Commonalty of London was appended ; all
these being given into the hands of the Mayor, that he might keep them
until some other provision as to the same should be made.
Afterwards, on the Monday after the Octaves of Saint Hilary [13
January], the Mayor had these charters brought into the Hustings
before all the people ; whereupon, they were distinctly and openly read,
and many articles contained in them expounded, which are manifestly
to the injury of all the City and all the realm ; and it was therefore
ordered, with the assent of all the commons of the City there present,
that those charters should be held as of no weight, and that the men of
the several trades should follow their crafts in such manner as before
they had been wont to do, at such hours and such places as they should
think proper, and carry their [wares] to sell, within the City and with-
out, wherever they might think proper ; but that their work must be
good and lawful, under pain of loss thereof. And this was accordingly
cried throughout all the City.
172 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1273.
1 " Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of
" Ireland, and Duke of Acquitaine, to the Mayor, Sheriffs, and
" Commons, of his city of London, greeting. For that in our absence,
" after that we had departed from England, you have conducted your-
" selves well and faithfully towards us and ours, we do give you especial
" thanks ; and do feel especially gratified for that, as we have heard, you
" do greatly desire our arrival in England. Wherefore we do request
" and ask of you, that, as in past times you have well behaved your-
" selves, so in future, to the increase of the honour of us and of you, you
" will endeavour so to conduct yourselves, that honour and advantage
" may unto us thence accrue, and we may be bound to return you especial
fe thanks therefor. Given at Boret, this 28th day of December, in
" the second year of our reign."
Afterwards, on the day of the Apostles Philip and James [1 May], in
the Guildhall there were read letters of his said lordship the King, in
form as follows :
" Edward, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland,
" and Duke of Acquitaine, to his well-beloved, the Mayor, Barons, and
" reputable men of London, greeting. From the relation of certain of
" our faithful subjects, we have more fully understood that for the
" solemnization of our Coronation, you are in divers manners making pre-
(e parations, in such way as unto our royal dignity and honour you do
" consider most conducive ; for the which, as we are bound to do, we
" do return you many and grateful thanks. But forasmuch as, on our next
" arrival at Paris, which will be in three weeks after the Feast of Pen-
" tecost, we do wish to hold a special conference with some persons of
" our city aforesaid, we do command that you then send thither four of
" your more discreet citizens unto us. For we do purpose, after arrang-
" ing our affairs there, to return, God willing, unto our land. We do
"further command you, that you cause peace and tranquillity, and
" sufficient justice, within the city aforesaid strictly to be observed.
" Given at Bordeaux, this third day of April, in the second year of
" our reign."
1 From a marginal Note, we learn that this citizens to the King, and was read iu the
Letter was in answer to Letters sent by the Guildhall on Septuagesima Sunday.
A.D. 1273.] IMPROVEMENTS EFFECTED IN CHEPE. 173
In this year, both before and after Penteeost, all the mea-
i ^r p , ^. . Fol. 141 A.
sures were broken to pieces by the Mayor of the City, by
which corn used to be sold in the City, and new ones made of larger
dimensions ; each of which measures was bound in the upper part with
an iron hoop, fastened on with iron nails, that so they might not at any
time be falsified. Each measure also, that is to say, each quarter, half
quarter, and bushel, was sealed with the Alderman's seal.
At the same time, the same Mayor had removed from Chepe all the
stalls of the butchers and fishmongers, as also, such stalls as had been
let and granted by the preceding Sheriffs to any persons, to have and to
hold the same in fee all the days of their life ; such persons having given
to the Sheriffs a great sum of money for the same. Hence it is manifest,
that this Mayor unjustly disseised them of their freehold. He however
affirmed that he did this, in order that no x refuse might be found
remaining in Chepe on the arrival of his lordship the King, who, it was
said, was shortly about to come into the City from the parts beyond sea.
He also commanded other commodities to be removed from Chepe,
which used to be sold there, because, as it seemed to him, the market-
place was too much crowded by such wares ; and he gave orders that those
wares should be sold in other places.
Afterwards, on the morrow of the Holy Trinity, the Mayor and
citizens coming into the Guildhall, to plead the common pleas, there
came certain fishmongers, and more especially those who had been
removed from Chepe, setting forth their plaints, how that they had been
disseised of their freehold in Chepe. To whom answer was made by the
Mayor, that this had been done by the Council of his lordship the King,
in order that there might be no refuse remaining in Chepe on his
arrival there. Walter Hervi however, to the utmost of his power,
supported the complaints of the said fishmongers against the Mayor and
Aldermen ; by reason whereof, a wordy strife arose, in presence of all
the people, between the said Mayor and Walter aforesaid. Hereupon,
the Mayor, moved to anger, together with some of the more
discreet men of the City, went to the Council of his lordship
the King at Westminster, and shewed them what had then taken place in
the Guildhall.
1 It was in a similar spirit probably that the Stocks Market, for butchers and fishmongers,
same Mayor, Henry le Waleys, founded the A.D. 1283.
174 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1273.
Accordingly, on the morrow, when the Mayor and citizens had come
to the Guildhall, to determine the pleas which had been begun on the
preceding day, a certain roll was shown and read before the said Walter
and all the people, in which were set forth many articles as to the pre-
sumptuous acts and injuries, of most notorious character, which the said
Walter had committed, while Mayor, against all the commons of the
City, and in contravention of his oath ; whereupon, the said Walter
was judicially degraded from his Aldermanry, and for ever excluded
from the Council of the City. Command was also given to the men
dwelling in that Aldermanry, to choose a fit and proper man to be
Alderman of Chepe, in his place, and to present him at the next Court
in the Guildhall ; which was accordingly done.
In the first place, this Walter had unrighteously attested that a
certain person had by writ of his lordship the King been admitted
attorney in the Court of his lordship the King as to Pleas of Land ;
whereas it was afterwards ascertained at Gildeforde that no writ there-
upon had ever been issued from the Chancery ; and so it is notorious,
that he falsely gave testimony as to that attorney, against his oath, and
against his fealty to his lordship the King, and to the disherison of the
adverse party.
Also, in the time of his Mayoralty, he received a writ of his lordship
the King, commanding him to appear at Westminster on a certain day,
there to shew by what right the citizens were to give seisin of the 1 Moor
to Walter de Merton. Whereupon he, who was the head of the City,
and ought to be the City's defender, made default, and did not return
the writ ; by reason whereof, the said citizens are in danger of losing the
said moor.
Also, whereas he, in the time of his Mayoralty, was bound to main-
tain and cause to be observed all assizes made by the Aldermen and
discreet men of the City, and proclaimed throughout the whole City, he
allowed ale to be sold in his Ward for three halfpence the gallon, and
confirmed such sale, setting the seal of his Aldermanry to a
Fol. 142 A. . J
certain unfair measure made against the statutes of the City,
which contained only the sixth part of a gallon.
Also, whereas he ought not in any way to take any part or receive
1 Finsbury Moor.
A.D. 1273.] CHARGES AGAINST WALTER HER VI. 175
any salary, contrary to his oath he takes fees throughout all the City, and
receives yearly a certain sum of money from the community of the fish-
mongers, upon the understanding that he shall support them in their
causes, whether just or unjust.
Also, as to the letters patent which certain persons of the trades
made, ordaining new statutes to their own proper advantage only, and
to the loss of all the City and all the realm ; to such letters, while he was
Mayor, he set a part of the seal of the community, which was in his own
hands, without assent of the Aldermen and other persons, for a great
sum of money which he received from the members of such trades ; a
matter which has been clearly set forth, and at sufficient length, in the
1 fourth and third preceding leaves of this Book. It has also there been
written, for what reason he was attached on the security of twelve
sureties.
Also, whereas corn, wine, and the like, when brought into the City
for sale, ought not to be taken back out of the City, but be sold in the
City, according to the law and custom of the City, he, taking a bribe,
such, for example, as from one merchant a tun of wine, from another a
pipe, and from another twenty shillings, allowed more than a thousand
tuns to be taken out of the City, in contravention of 9 his oath and to the
great loss of the City.
Also, at the time when there was a dispute between the higher and
lower orders in the City as to the election of Mayor, he, without the
assent of his lordship the King and the principal men of the City, caused
to be assessed among his accomplices, and those who then adhered to him,
a tallage to the amount of forty marks and more ; which money was
intended by them for the prosecution of their common interests. And
the whole of it was converted by him to his own use.
Also, by his procuring, certain persons of the City, of Stebney, of
Stratford, and of Hakeneye, came into full Hustings, bringing with
them a certain pleader, and made unjust complaint against the Mayor,
who had warranty sufficient for what he had done, namely, the
J , . Fol. 142 B.
Council of his lordship the King. This Walter however sided
with them, and supported their complaint, as set forth in the preceding
leaf of this Book.
1 The third and second, according to the notation of the present day.
176 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1273
On the 14th day of June in this year, which then fell on a Thursday,
the son of his lordship the King, 1 Aunfurs by name, who had been born
about the preceding Feast of All Saints [1 November] at Bordeaux in
Gascoigne, came to London from the parts beyond sea. The King had
had two daughters also born in the Holy Land, one of whom died, and
the other came with him and the Queen to Gascoigne ; and was after-
wards given to the Countess of 2 Puntif to rear, the mother of the said
Queen, and the former 3 Queen of Spain.
Afterwards, on the day before the Feast of Saint Botolph [17 June],
the citizens selected in the Guildhall Henry le Waleis, the Mayor,
Gregory de Rokesle, John Horn, and Luke de Batencurt, to cross over
to his lordship the King, in manner as he had lately requested by his
letters, already written in this Book ; who accordingly set out, with all
due honour, on the Monday next ensuing. They also chose William de
Dureham, Philip le Taylur, and Henry de Fruwyk, on the day afore-
said before the Feast of Saint Botolph, to be Wardens of the City in the
absence of the Mayor. There were also appointed by the Mayor, Walter
le Poter, Peter Cusin, and Eobert de Meldeburne, to hear at the Fair
of 4 Saint Botolph all complaints against citizens there made, and to
determine the same 3 , without interference of any Bailiff of the Fair ; in
such manner as the King had formerly granted unto the citizens, when
peace was restored between them, after the disturbances in the realm
that took place in the time of Sir Simon de Montfort.
Afterwards, at the end of one month after their departure, on the
17th of the Calends of August [16 July], that is to say, the said citizens
returned to London. After this, on the Vigil of Saint Margaret [20
July], Gregory de Rokesle and certain other citizens, as had been en-
joined upon them by his lordship the King, set out to cross the sea, for
the purpose of treating of peace between the said King and the Countess
of Flanders, at 5 Musteroil, on the third day after the Feast of Saint
Magdalen [22 July] at the latest.
In this year, eight days before the Feast of Saint John the
Baptist [24 June], because the Mayor was then absent on his
1 Intended for ' Alphonso.' Castille.
2 Ponthieu. 4 Boston, in Lincolnshire.
3 Being the wife of Ferdinand III. King of 5 Montreuil, in the Pas de Calais.
A.D. 1273.] ENQUIRY AS TO FLESH SOLD BY JEWS. 177
journey to the King in the parts beyond sea, the Sheriffs, together with
certain discreet men of the City, appeared before the Council of his lordship
the King at Westminster ; whereupon, the members of the Council, before
certain Jews there present, questioned them, thus saying: " It is notorious
" that the Jews kill with their own hands all beasts and fowls, whose
" flesh they eat. But some beasts they consider of their law, and some
" not ; the flesh of those which are of their law they eat, and not the
" flesh of the others. What then do the Jews do with the flesh of those
" which are not of their law ? Is it lawful for the Christians to buy
" and eat it ? " To which answer was made by the citizens, that if any
Christian should buy any such flesh of a Jew, he would be immediately
expelled ; and that if he should be convicted thereof by the Sheriffs of
the City or by any other person, he would lose such flesh, and it would
be given to the lepers, or to the dogs, to eat ; in addition to which, he
would be heavily amerced by the Sheriffs. " But if it seems to you that
* e this punishment is too light a one, let your discreetness make provision
" that such Christians shall be visited with a more severe punishment."
Whereupon, the members of the King's Council said ; " We will not
" have such persons visited with any more severe punishment, without
" his lordship the King ; seeing that this matter concerns the Jews, who
" belong to his lordship the King. But we do strictly command you,
" in virtue of the fealty in which you are bound unto his lordship the
" King, that you cause this custom throughout the City rigidly to be
" observed."
Of the l Synod held at Lyons by Pope Gregory the Tenth,
in the year of Our Lord 1274, in the months of June and July.
In the first place, ordinance was made as to giving aid to the Holy
Land.
Also, ordinances were made and enacted in the aforesaid Council, as
to elections, petitions, and provisions.
Of the noble provision made against the 2 Coronation of
his lordship King Eadward, son of King Henry, son of King
John.
1 The 14th General Council, from the 14th 1274. This description appears to have been
f May to the 1 4th of July. written at the moment when the preparations
2 The date is not given here, 19 August A.D. had been made.
A A
178 CHRONICLES OF THE MAYORS AND SHERIFFS OF LONDON. [A.D. 1273.
Be it remembered, that all the vacant ground within the enclosure of
his palace at Westminster, was most nobly built over with houses and
other offices, so that no part thereof could be found vacant. On the
South side of its old palace there, were built many palatial edifices in
every quarter, as many in fact as could be built there ; within which
were erected tables, firmly fixed in the ground ; and at these tables the
great men, and princes, and nobles are to be refreshed on the day of his
Coronation, and for fifteen days after the same; that so, all persons,
poor as well as rich, coming to celebrate the solemnities of his Corona-
tion, may there be gratuitously received, and no one rejected.
There are also erected within the said enclosure as many kitchens, in
which the victuals are to be prepared for the said solemnity ; and these
indeed without number. And lest these kitchens might not suffice, so
as not to admit of sufficient victuals being prepared therein, there have
been placed there numberless leaden cauldrons without the kitchens, in
which the flesh is to be boiled. It should also be remarked, that the
great kitchen, in which fowl and other victuals are to be roasted at the
fire, is uncovered at the top, so that all smoke may escape thereby.
As to the other utensils, which are requisite for serving so large a
Court, no one can take an account of them in writing. And as to the
tuns of wine which have been got in readiness for this occasion, no person
even knows how to number them. And indeed, to embrace everything,
never in times past has so great a plenty of delicacies and all good
things been prepared, which pertain to the entertainment of a most noble
Court.
Also, the Great Hall and the Lesser one have been whitened
anew and painted ; so that the eyes of those who enter them
and survey such great beauty, must be filled with joyousness and delight.
And if there has been anything within the enclosure of the Palace of
his lordship the King, broken or damaged through age or in any other
way, the same has been repaired and restored to good condition.
A.D. 1189.] ASSIZE OF BUILDINGS. 179
Additions to the Chronicles in the Liber de Antiquis Legibus.
[FITZ-AYLEWIN'S ASSIZE OF BUILDINGS, I. EICHAKD L]
In the year of Our Lord 1189, in the first year, namely, of
the reign of the illustrious King Richard, Henry Fitz-Aylewin
(who was the first Mayor of London) being then Mayor, it was by
the discreet men of the City [thus] provided and ordained, for the
allaying of the contentions that at times arise between neighbours in the
City touching boundaries made, or to be made, between their lands, and
other things; to the end that, according to the provisions then made and
ordained, such contentions might be allayed. And the said Provision and
Ordinance was called an " Assize."
To prosecute which Assize, and carry the same into effect, twelve
men of the City were elected in full Hustings ; and were there sworn,
that they would attend faithfully to carry out the same, and at the sum-
mons of the Mayor to appear, unless by reasonable cause prevented. It
is necessary however, that the greater part of the twelve men afore-
said should be present with the Mayor in carrying out the matter
aforesaid.
It should be known, that he who demands the Assize, must demand it
in full Hustings ; and the Mayor shall assign him a day within the next
eight days, for such Assize by the twelve men aforesaid, or by the
greater part of them, in manner already mentioned, to be determined.
[* But if a house, stone-wall, drain, rain-gutter, or any other edifice,
shall during the time of petition for the said Assize be built, immediately,
at suit of the party petitioning, [the other] shall be forbidden to proceed
any further with such building. And. if, notwithstanding such prohibi-
tion, any carpenters, stonemasons, or other workmen, or, even the owner
of the said building, shall persist in so building, they shall be sent to
prison.]
But if the Hustings be not sitting, as at the time of the Fair of Saint
2 Botolph, harvest-time, and the Fair held at Winchester, and a person shall
deem it necessary to demand the said Assize, the same shall be granted
1 This passage is not found in the present There is also a copy of the Assize in Li/>er
copy, the earliest in date, of the Assize; hut is Horn, preserved at Guildhall,
insetted from that in folio 211 A of Liber Albus. * ' Bartholomew,' in Liber Albus.
180 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A.D. 1189.
unto him gratuitously by the Mayor, some of the citizens being present
with such Mayor, and be determined by the twelve jurors aforesaid, in
manner already stated, or the greater part of them, and that always in
presence of the Mayor.
The Provision and Ordinance aforesaid, which has been called an
" Assize," is to the following effect :
When it happens that two neighbours wish to build between them-
selves a stone-wall, each of them ought to give one foot and a half of his
land ; and so at their joint cost they shall build a stone- wall between
them, three feet in thickness and sixteen feet in height. And if they
wish, they shall make a rain-gutter between them, at their joint cost, to
receive and carry off the water from their houses, in such manner as they
may deem most expedient. But if they should [not] wish to do so,
either of them may make a gutter by himself, to carry off the water that
falls from his house, on to his own land, unless he can carry it into the
King's highway.
They may also, if they agree thereupon, raise the said wall,
as high as they may please, at their joint cost. And if it shall
so happen that one wishes to raise such wall, and the other not, it shall
be fully lawful for him who so wishes it, to raise the part on his own foot
and a half, as much as he may please, and to 1 build upon his part, with-
out damage to the other, at his own cost ; and he shall receive the falling
water in manner already stated.
And if both shall wish to have 2 arches, such arches must be made on
either side, of the depth of one foot only ; that so the thickness of the
wall lying between such arches may be one foot. But if one shall wish
to have an arch, and the other not, tnen he who shall wish to have the
arch shall find free-stone, and cause it to be cut, and the arch shall be
set at their joint expense.
And if any one shall wish to build of stone, according to the Assize,
and his neighbour through poverty cannot, or perchance will not, then
the latter ought to give unto him who so desires to build by the Assize,
three feet of his own land ; and the other shall make a wall upon that
land, at his own cost, three feet thick and sixteen feet in height ; and he
who gives the land shall have one clear half of such wall, and may place
1 /. <?. place his joists arid rafters upon it. * Used as mnnbrips, or cupboards.
A,D. 1189.] ASSIZE OF BUILDINGS. 181
his 1 timber upon it and build. And they shall make a gutter, to receive
and carry off the water falling from their houses, in such manner as is
before mentioned as to a wall built between neighbours at their joint
expense. But it shall always be lawful for one desiring so to do, to
raise his own part at his own cost, without damage to the other. And
if they shall wish to have arches, they shall make them on either side, in
manner already stated. But nevertheless, he who shall have found the
land, shall find the freestone, and shall have it cut ; and the other at his
own cost shall set the same.
But this Assize is not to be granted unto any one, so as to cause any
doorway, inlet or outlet, or shop, to be narrowed or restricted, to the
annoyance of a neighbour.
This Assize is also granted unto him who demands it as to the land
of his neighbour, even though such land shall have been built upon,
provided the wall so built is not of stone.
If any person shall have his own stone-wall upon his own land, of the
height of sixteen feet, his neighbour ought to make a gutter under the eaves
of the house that is situate upon such wall, and to receive in it the
water falling from the said house, and lead it on to his own land,
unless he can carry it off into the highway ; and he shall, notwithstanding,
have no interest in the aforesaid wall, when he shall have built [a wall]
beside it. And in case he shall not have so built, he still ought always to
receive the water falling from the house built on such wall upon his own
land, and carry it off without damage of him unto whom the wall belongs.
Also, no one of those who have a common stone-wall built between
them, may, or ought to, pull down any portion of his part of such wall,
or lessen its thickness, or make arches in it, without the assent and will
of the other.
Also, concerning necessary-chambers in the houses of citizens, it is
enacted and ordained, that if the pit made in such chamber be lined with
stone, the mouth of the said pit shall be distant two feet and a half from
the land of the neighbour, even though they have a common stone-wall
between them. But if it shall not be lined with stone, it ought to be
distant three feet and a half from the neighbour's land. And as to such
pits, the Assize is afforded and granted unto every one who shall demand
1 Either the joists for flooring, or the wood for the superstructure and roof.
182 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A.D. 1189.
the same, in reference as well to those of former construction as to new
ones, unless the same should happen to have been made before the Pro-
vision and Ordinance aforesaid, which was enacted in the first year of
the reign of King Richard, as already mentioned. Provided always,
that by view of such twelve men as are before-mentioned, or the greater
part of them, it shall be discussed whether such pits have been reason-
ably made or not.
1 In the same manner, proceedings must be taken where disputes arise
as to any kinds of pits made for receiving water, whether clean or foul.
Also, if any person shall have windows looking upon his neighbour's
land, although he may have been for a long time in possession of the
view from such windows, and even though his predecessors may have
been in possession of the windows aforesaid, nevertheless, his neighbour
may lawfully obstruct the view from such windows by building opposite
to the same, or by placing [anything] there upon his own land, in such
manner as may unto him seem the most expedient ; unless the person who
has such windows, can shew any writing by reason whereof his neigh-
bour may not obstruct the view from those windows.
Also, if any person has corbels in his neighbour's w r all, the whole of
such wall belonging to his said neighbour, he may not remove the afore-
said corbels, that he may fix them in any other part of the said
wall, except with the assent of him to whom such wall belongs ;
nor may he put more corbels in the wall aforesaid than he had before.
Be it known, that if a person builds near the tenement of his neigh-
bour, and it appears unto such neighbour that such building is unjust
and to the injury of his own tenement, it is fully lawful for him to impede
the erection of such building, pledge and surety being given unto the
Sheriffs of the City that he will prosecute ; and thereupon such building
shall cease, until by the twelve men aforesaid, or the greater part of
them, it shall have been discussed whether such building is unjust or
not. And then it becomes necessary that he, whose building is impeded,
shall demand the Assize.
On the day appointed, and the twelve men aforesaid being duly sum-
moned, the Mayor of the City, with the twelve men aforesaid, ought to
1 This passage appears as a marginal note but occupies this place in the later copies,
(folio 46b) in the Liber de Antic/in'*
A.D. 1189.] ASSIZE OF BUILDINGS. 183
visit the tenements of the persons between whom the Assize is demanded,
and there, upon view of the twelve men aforesaid, or the greater part of
them, after hearing the case of the complainant and the answer of his
adversary, to settle such matter.
But either party may, on the day appointed, 1 essoin himself, and
have his day at the same place on that day fortnight.
But if the party complaining shall make default, his adversary shall
depart 2 without day, and the sureties of the complainant shall be amerced
by the Sheriffs. But if it shall be the person against whom the complaint
is made, that makes such default, the Assize shall nevertheless proceed,
according to the award of the twelve men aforesaid, or the greater part
of them ; and the award that shall be given by them ought by the Sheriffs
to be intimated unto him who has so made default, to the end that the
award so made may within the forty days next ensuing be carried into
effect.
Also, be it known, that so often as such award shall not within forty
days have been carried into effect, and complaint shall have been made
thereon unto the Mayor of London, in such case, two men of the Assize,
or three, ought by precept of the Mayor to proceed to the spot ; and if
they shall see that so it is, then shall he against whom such proceedings of
Assize were taken, be amerced by the Sheriff; and the Sheriff, at the
proper cost of such person, is bound to carry such judgment into effect.
Also, if a person has a wall built between himself and his neighbour,
entirely covered at the summit of such wall with his own roofing and
timber, although his neighbour may have in the aforesaid wall corbels or
joists for the support of his 3 solar, or even arches or aumbries ; in what-
ever way such neighbour may have the same in such wall, whether by
grant of him who owns the wall so covered, or of his predecessor, or even
without their knowledge, he may claim or have no more in the aforesaid
wall than he has in possession, without the assent of him who
owns the wall so covered ; and he ought to receive the water
falling from the house built upon such wall, under the eaves of the said
house, as before-mentioned in this Book, and to carry it off at his own
cost.
1 Put in a legal excuse for non-attendance. attendance.
2 /. f. absolutely dismissed from future 3 Upper room.
184 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A.U. 1189.
Also, if a person owns two parts in a wall, and his neighbour owns
only a third part, still, such neighbour may place his roofing on his own
part and build, as freely as he who owns the [other] two parts of such
wall. And in the same manner ought rain-gutters to.be made between
them, as already noticed in reference to those who have a wall wholly in
common between them ; provided always, that such portion be sixteen
feet in height.
Also, be it known, that the Assize aforesaid shall not proceed, unless
it shall be testified that he against whom the Assize is demanded, has
been summoned. And if the same shall be testified, then upon appearance
of him who demands the Assize, and of the twelve men of such Assize, or
the greater part of them, the Assize shall proceed, whether the party sum-
moned shall appear or not. Still however, he may essoin himself upon
the day aforesaid, and have his day upon that day fortnight, in manner
already stated.
Also, be it known, that if it shall be testified by the Sheriffs, that he
against whom the Assize is demanded was not in the City, then upon
such day the Assize shall stand over, and the Sheriffs shall inform those
who dwell in the tenement as to which such Assize is demanded, that he
whose tenement it is, must be warned to appear upon that clay fortnight ;
upon which day, whether he shall appear or not, in case he shall not have
essoined himself, the Assize shall proceed.
Also, if it shall so happen, by reason of some impediment, that the
men of the Assize do not proceed unto the land as to which such Assize
is demanded, then it will be necessary for such Assize to be demanded
afresh, either in the Hustings, or in such other way as is the usage at a
different season, as already stated in this Book.
But if they proceed unto the land, the parties pleading being present,
and the greater part of the twelve men aforesaid being absent, then al-
though the Assize will have to stand over, they may continue the pro-
ceedings of that day upon the morrow, or upon such day, within the
following fortnight, as they may please.
It should be remembered, that in ancient times the greater part of
the City was built of wood, and the houses were covered with straw and
stubble, and the like. Hence it happened, that when a sino-le
Fol. 47 B.
house had caught fire, the greater part of the City was destroyed
A.D. 1189.] ASSIZE OF BUILDINGS. 185
through such conflagration ; a thing that took place in the first year of the
reign of King Stephen, (as l set forth in the Chronicles before-written in
this Book,) when, by reason of a fire that broke out at London Bridge,
the Church of Saint Paul was burnt ; from which spot the conflagration
extended, destroying houses and buildings, as far as the Church of Saint
Clement Danes. After this, many of the citizens, to the best of their
ability to avoid such a peril, built stone houses upon their foundations,
covered with thick tiles, and [so] protected against the fury of the flames ;
whence it has often been the case that, when a fire has broken out in the
City, and has destroyed many buildings, upon reaching such houses, it
has been unable to do further mischief, and has been there extinguished ;
so that, through such a house as this, many houses of the neighbours have
been saved from being burnt.
Hence it is, that in the aforesaid Ordinance, called the "Assize," it
was provided and ordained, in order that the citizens might be encouraged
to build with stone, that every one who should have a stone-wall upon
his own land sixteen feet in height,, might possess the same as freely and
meritoriously as in this Book already stated ; it always being the duty,
that is to say, of such man's neighbour, to receive upon his own land the
water falling from the house built upon such wall, and at his own cost to
carry off the same. And if he shall wish to build near the said wall, he
is bound to make his own gutter under the eaves of the said house for
receiving the water therefrom. And this, to the end that such house
may remain secure and protected against the violence of fire when it
comes, and so, through it, many a house may be saved, and preserved
unharmed by the violence of the flames.
If any person shall wish to build the 2 whole of a wall upon his
own land, and his neighbour shall demand against him an Assize, it
shall be at his election either to join the other in building a wall in
common between them, or to build a wall upon his own land, and to
have the same as freely and meritoriously, as in manner already stated.
His neighbour however may, if he wishes, build another like wall, and
of like height, near unto the wall aforesaid : and in such case, rain-
1 This conflagration is briefly noticed (in Liber de Antiquis Legibus.
two lines) in the short Chronicle of the reign 2 /. e. the whole breadth of three feet,
of King Stephen contained in folio 35 A of the
B B
186 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A. p. 1189.
gutters, or a gutter, shall be made between them, in the same
manner as already stated in reference to a wall held in common.
It should be remarked, that when the men of the Assize shall visit
the land as to which such Assize is demanded, the parties litigating
being present, one of the men aforesaid ought always to ask him against
whom the Assize is demanded, if he knows aught by reason whereof
such Assize ought to stand over. And if he shall say that he does not,
such Assize shall immediately proceed. But if he shall say that he has
a deed from him who demands the Assize, or from some ancestor of his,
and shall make profert thereof, [benefit of] the same shall immediately
be allowed him. But if he shall say that he will have such deed at a
certain day and time, then a day shall be given him on that day fort-
night ; upon which day he may essoin himself, and shall have his day
at the end of another fortnight. Upon which day, if he shall produce
the said deed, [benefit of] the same shall be allowed him ; but if upon
such day he shall not appear, or if he shall appear and not produce
the deed, the Assize shall immediately proceed, without further delay.
It should be remarked, that this Assize proceeds in every way, as
before stated in this Book, both as to pleading and defending, as well
against persons under age as against those who are of full age ; that so,
by reason of the tender age of any person the Assize aforesaid shall not
be prevented. But forasmuch as such a person has no discretion where-
by to know how to plead or defend himself in any plea, it is necessary
that his guardian and he should be jointly summoned,; that so, his guar-
dian may wholly make answer for him, in every way that he would have
had to plead, if such cause had been his own ; and then, whatever shall
be done upon award, shall remain firm and established, without reclaim
on part of him who was so under age, when he shall have come of age.
Also, if any one shall make a pavement unjustly in the King's high-
way, to the nuisance of the City and of his neighbour, such neighbour
may rightfully prevent it, through the Bailiffs of the City ; and so it shall
remain, until the matter shall have been discussed and determined by the
men of the Assize.
It should also be known, that it does not pertain unto the men of the
Assize to take cognizance of any case of occupation where a person has
had peaceful possession for a year and a day.
A.D. 1189.] ASSIZE OF BUILDINGS. 187
1 Although a person shall have been in possession for a long time, the
water that drops from his house, it not having a wall of stone, falling
upon the vacant land of his neighbour, still, such neighbour may build
upon the said land, whenever he shall please, and may remove the eaves
of the said house. And in such case, the person [building] must carry
off the water that drops from the said house, without detriment to his
neighbour. The same is to be done also as to rain-gutters that dis-
charge themselves upon vacant ground.
But if a person's rain-gutter shall discharge itself into the gutter of
his neighbour, or shall run through the middle of his tenement, such
neighbour may not stop up that gutter ; and even if he shall pull down
that house, and shall not think proper to build it anew, he shall still
be bound to receive upon his own land the water falling from such gutter
as before he used to do. But it must be fully understood by the men of
the Assize, that the water discharged by such gutter was so received and
carried off.
These are the Names of the Sheriffs of London since the
/ -FT" n Fol. 58 A.
Coronation of King Richard.
A.D. 1188. Henry de 2 Cornhelle, Eichard Reyner. These were
made Sheriffs at the Feast of Saint Michael, in the year of Our Lord 1188.
A.D. 1189. John Herlisun, Eoger le Duk.
A.D. 1190. William de Haverylle, John Bokoynte.
A.D. 1191. Nicholas Duket, Peter Fitz-Nevelun.
A.D. 1192. Roger le Due, Roger Fitz-Alan.
A.D. 1193. William Fitz-Ysabel, William Fitz-Aluf.
A.D. 1194. Robert Besant, Jukel Alderman.
A.D. 1195. Godard de Antioche, Robert Fitz-Durant.
A.D. 1196. Robert Blund, Nicholas Duket.
A.D. 1197. Constantine Fitz-Aluf, Robert le Bel.
A.D. 1198. Arnald Fitz-Aluf, Robert Fitz-Barthelmeu.
A.D. 1199. Roger de Desert, Jacob Alderman.
A.D. 1200. Symon de Aldermanneberi, William Fitz-Aliz.
1 This and the next Ordinance are not added at the end of the Assize,
included in the text of the Liber de Antiquis 2 The peculiar spelling of these names has
Lfijibus ; but appear as marginal Notes in been exactly followed throughout,
lolios 45 and 46.. In the later copies, they are
188 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
A.D. 1201. Norreman le Blunt, John del Kai.
A.D. 1202. Walter le Brim, William le Chaumberleyn.
A.D. 1203. Thomas de Haverille, Hamund Brande.
A.D. 1204. John Waleran, Richard de Wincestre.
A.D. 1205. John Elylond, Edmund de le Hale.
A.D. 1206. Serle le Mercier, Henry de Saint Auban.
A.D. 1207. Robert de Wincestre, William Hardel.
A.D. 1208. Thomas Fitz-Neal, Peter le Due.
A.D. 1209. Peter le Juvene, William Wite.
A.D. 1210. Stephen le Gros, Adam de Wyteby.
A.D. 1211. Goce Fitz-Peter, John Gerland.
A.D. 1212. Constantine le Juvene, Ralph Elyland.
A.D. 1213. Martin Fitz-Aliz, Peter Bat.
A.D. 1214. Salomon de Basinge, Hugh de Basinge.
A.D. 1215. Andrew Nevelun, John Travers.
A.D. 1216. Beneit le 1 Seynter, William Blund.
A.D. 1217. Ralph Elyland again, Thomas Bokerel.
A.D. 1218. Goce le 2 Pesur, John Viel.
A.D. 1219. John Viel again, Richard de Wimbeldon.
A.D. 1220. Richard Renger, Goce le Juvene.
A.D. 1221. Richard Renger again, Thomas Lambert.
A.D. 1222. Thomas Lambert again, William Joynier.
A.D. 1223. John Travers again, Andrew Bokerel.
A.D. 1224. Andrew Bokerel again, John Travers again.
A.D. 1225. Roger le Due, Martyn Fitz-William.
A.D. 1226. Martyn Fitz-William again, Roger le Due again.
A.D. 1227. Henry de Cocham, Stephen Bokerel.
A.D. 1228. Stephen Bokerel again, Henry de Cocham again.
A.D. 1229. Robert Fitz-John, Walter de Wincestre.
A.D. 1230. John de Woburne, Richard Fitz- Walter.
A.D. 1231. Walter le Busle, Michael de Saint Helen.
A.D. 1232. Henry de Edelmeton, Gerard Bat.
A.D. 1233. Roger Blund, Simon Fitz-Mary.
'Probably meaning, the * Bell -maker ;' 2 The 'Weigher' or ' Balancemaker.' Given
given previously, in Latin, as ' Campanarius.' as Ponderator in p. 4.
See page 4 ante.
EAHLY SHERIFFS OF LONDON. 189
A.D. 1234. Ealph Eswy, John Norman.
A.D. 1235. Gerard Bat again, Eobert Hardel
A.D. 1236. Henry de Cocham again, Jurdan de Coventre.
A.D. 1237. John de l Walebroc, Gervaise Chaumberleyn.
A.D. 1238. John de Wilehale, John de Coudres.
A.D. 1239. Reiner de Bungey, Ralph Eswy again.
A.D. 1240. Michael Tovy, John de Gysors.
A.D. 1241. John Viel the Younger, Thomas de 2 Dureme.
A.D. 1242. Ralph Aswy, Goldsmith, Robert Fitz-John again.
A.D. 1243. Adam de Gyseburne, Hugh Blund, Goldsmith.
A.D. 1244. Nicholas Bat, Ralph de Bow.
A.D. 1245. Nicholas Bat again, Adam de Beverlee ; and
upon Nicholas being removed, Robert de Cornhull was made
Sheriff.
A.D. 1246. Simon Fitz-Mary, Laurence de Frowik.
A.D. 1247. William Viel, Nicholas Bat again.
A.D. 1248. Nicholas Fitz-Jocelin, Geoffrey de Wincestre.
A.D. 1249. John Tolesan again, Ralph Hardel.
A.D. 1250. Humfrey called " le 3 Fevre," William Fitz-Richard.
A.D. 1251. Nicholas Bat again, Laurence de Frowic again.
A.D. 1252. William de Dureme, Thomas de Wimburne.
A.D. 1253. Richard Picard, John de Norhamton.
A.D. 1254. William Aswy, Robert de Linton ; which persons being
removed within the year, there were substituted in their place Stephen
de Ostregate [and] Henry Walemund.
A.D. 1255. Matthew Bokerel, John le Minur.
A.D. 1256. William 4 Aswy, Draper, Richard de Ewelle.
A.D. 1257. Thomas Fitz-Thomas, Robert de Katalan. The said
Robert dying, Matthew Bokerel was made Sheriff in his stead; who
being removed, William Grapefige was made Sheriff.
A.D. 1258. John Adrian, Draper, Robert de Cornhulle again.
A.D. 1259. Adam Brouning, Henry de Coventre.
1 Or Walbrook. In p. 8 ante he is called 3 Or, ' The Smith.'
4 de Tulesan,' implying that his origin was 4 A different person apparently from the
from Toulouse. Walbrook was probably the preceding one ; who in page 22 ante, is described
place of his residence. See A.D. 1249. as a Mercer.
190 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
A.D. 1260. Richard Picard again, John de Norhamton again.
A.D. 1261. Philip le Tailur, Richard de Walebrok.
A.D. 1262. Osbert de Suffolch, Robert de Munpeylers.
A.D. 1263. Gregory de Rokesle, Thomas de Forde (the Battle of
Leues).
A.D. 1264. Edward Blund, Peter Aunger (the Battle of Evesham).
A.D. 1265. Gregory de Rokesle, Simon de Hadestock. These were
not admitted ; for his lordship the King at that time had taken the City
into his own hands, by reason that the citizens had adhered to the Earl
of Leicester during the disturbance of the realm; and so retained it
for nearly six years.
Hugh Fitz-Otes, Knight, was then Chamberlain of the City
of London, and Constable of the Tower, for some time. John
de la Linde, Knight, and John Walrant, Clerk, who were Wardens after
him, caused all the issues of the Sheriffwick of the City and of Middlesex
to be collected in the King's behalf, by such persons as they thought
proper, until the Feast of Saint John Port Latin [6 May] next ensuing ;
and then, with the consent of his lordship the King, by election of the
citizens, William Fitz-Richard was made Bailiff of the Sheriffwick at
the ancient ferm. This person continued in such bailiwick until the
Feast of Saint Martin [11 November] next ensuing, and then, by leave
of his lordship the King, the citizens chose to be their 1 Bailiffs
[A.D. 1266.] John Adrian and Luke de Batencourt.
Memorandum, that in the time of the above-written John and Luke,
Bailiffs, the Earl of Gloucester being in the City with his army, as
mentioned in the 2 following Book, the said John and Luke were re-
moved from their bailiwick and seized by the Earl, and Roger Marshal
and Robert de Lintone were made Bailiffs by the lower orders of the
City ; and continued to be such Bailiffs, so long as the Earl remained in .
the City.
These latter persons continued in their bailiwick, at the ancient
ferm, until the Feast of Saint Michael in the year of Our Lord 1267,
and afterwards until Palm Sunday; when, by choice of his lordship the
King, there were made Bailiffs of the Sheriffwick, Walter Hervy [and]
1 Substitutes for Sheriffs. cedes the Chronicles of the Mayor and Sheriffs,
2 It must be borne in mind that this pre- in the original volume.
EARLY SHERIFFS OF LONDON. 191
William de ^ureme. These persons continued in their bailiwick,
collecting all the issues of the Sheriffwick, in behalf of his lordship the
King, until the Feast of Saint Michael in the year '68, and from thence
until the sixth day of May.
[A.D. 1269.] Thomas de Basing, Kobert de Cornhulle.
These persons were made Bailiffs, by choice of his lordship the King,
on the 6th day of May, as already written, to collect all issues of the
Sheriffwick in behalf of his lordship the King ; and so continued until the
Feast of Saint Michael, and after, until the 16th day of July in the
year of Our Lord 1270. And then, at the instance of Sir Edward, the
City was restored unto the citizens; and it was granted unto them that
they might make a Mayor and Sheriffs of their number ; but still, that
they should pay into the Exchequer of his lordship the King 400 pounds
per annum. And then, on the aforesaid 16th day of July there were
made Sheriffs, Walter le Poter [and] Philip le Tailur.
These persons continued to be Sheriffs only until the Feast of Saint
Michael, next ensuing ; because, according to the custom of the City,
always at that Feast the Sheriffs of London are wont, and are bound, to
be elected, and on the morrow to be presented at the Exchequer of his
lordship the King.
A.D. 1270. Gregory de Rokesle, Henry le Waleys.
A.D. 1271. John de Bodele, Richard de Paris.
A.D. 1272. John Horn, Walter le Poter.
A.D. 1273. Peter Cusin, Kobert de Meldeburn.
These being deposed on the Feast of Saint Andrew [30 November],
there were elected Sheriffs
Henry de Coventre, [and] Nicholas He Wincestre.
\_A further account of the Wardens of London, A.D. 1265 1273.]
A.D. 1265. When the citizens of London submitted them-
selves unto the will of his lordship the King, for life and for
limb, and for all their goods, moveable and immoveable, by reason of the
offences imputed to them as being committed during the disturbance of
the realm, on the occasion of the contest between his lordship the King
and the Earl of Leicester and his accomplices, after the Feast of Saint
Michael, Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes was made both Warden of the City and
1 Durham.
192 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
Constable of the Tower of London, and so continued until the Feast of
Saint Nicholas [6 December] ; and then, after him, Sir John de la Lynde
and John Walerand, Clerk, were made Wardens of the City and Con-
stables of the Tower of London : which John de la Lynde having re-
mained there for some time and then taken his departure, the said John
Walerand continued in office until the Feast of Saint Michael next
ensuing.
A.D. 1266. And the same John so continued until the coming of
the Earl of Gloucester, as being in league with whom, he had first
come ; but whether he had foreknowledge of the evil designs of the said
Earl, I know not. And then, the City remained without a Warden of his
lordship the King, until peace had been restored between his lordship
the King and the said Earl ; when, upon the Vigil of Saint John the
Baptist [24 June], Alan la Zuche, Knight, was made Warden of the
City and Warden of the Tower, and so continued until the Feast of
Saint Michael next ensuing.
A.D. 1267. And after this, the same person continued in office until
Easter following ; when Sir Thomas de Ippegrave was made Warden
and Constable, and so continued until the Feast of Saint James [25
July] next ensuing ; when Sir Stephen de Eddeworthe was made
Warden and Constable, and so continued until the Feast of Saint
Michael.
A.D. 1268. He continued in office until the following Lent, when
the City and Tower were delivered into the keeping of Sir Edward by
his lordship the King ; who thereupon appointed Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes ;
who continued in office until the Feast of Saint Michael
A.D. 1269, and from then until the 16th day of July next ensuing;
upon which day, he being removed from the Wardenship of the City,
John Addrien, who had before been elected by the citizens,
was, by consent of his lordship the King, presented to the said
King, and admitted to the Mayoralty, on the 16th day of July ; and so
continued until the Feast of Simon and Jude [28 October] next ensuing.
The same John being elected Mayor on the Feast of Simon and Jude
A.D. 1270, and admitted, so continued throughout that year.
Walter Hervi was made Mayor on the Feast of Simon and Jude
A.D. 1271, for one year.
NAMES OF THE MAYORS. 193
Henry de Frowick was made Warden of the City by his lordship the
King, on the Feast of Saint Martin [11 November] A.D. 1272, and so
continued until the Feast of Saint Edmund [16 November].
Walter Herevy was made Mayor A.D. 1272 at Saint Paul's Cross, on
the second day after the Feast of Saint Edmund the Archbishop, in full
Folkmote, as is set forth in the Chronicles written in this Book; and so
continued for one year.
Henry le Waleys was made Mayor on the Feast of Simon and Jude
A.D. 1273.
NAMES OF THE MAYORS OF LONDON.
Henry Fitz-Eylwin of l Londonestane was the first Mayor of Lon-
don, being so made in the first year of the reign of King Richard ;
and continued to be Mayor until his death, a period of nearly five-
and-twenty years.
Roger Fitz-Alan, for one year.
Serlo le Mercer, for one year.
William Hardel, for one year.
Jacob Alderman from Easter until Pentecost ; Saloman de Basinges
for the remainder of the year.
Serlo le Mercer was made Mayor on the Feast of Simon and Jude
in the year of Grace 1216, and so continued for five years.
A.D. 1221. Richard Reinger, Mayor for 2 five years.
Roger le Due, Mayor for four years.
In the year of Grace 1230, Andrew Bukerel, Mayor for seven years.
Richard Reinger again, for one year.
William Joyenier, for one year.
Gerard Bat, for one year.
A.D. 1240. Reiner de Bungeye, for one year.
Ralph Eswy, for three years.
Michael Tovy, for one year.
The same person being also elected in the following year and not
admitted, the City was without a Mayor until the Feast of Saint Hilary
[13 January], when John de Gizors was made Mayor until the Feast of
Simon and .Jude [28 October],
1 London Stone. exactly agree with those given in the preceding
3 These numbers, it will be found, do not Chronicle.
C C
194 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
Peter Fitz-Alan, for one year.
Michael Tovy again, for two years.
Roger Fitz-Roger, for one year.
A.D 1250. John Norman, for one year.
Adam de Basinges, for one year.
John de Tuleshan, for one year.
Nicholas Bat, for one year.
Ralph Hardel, for three years.
The same until the Ides of February [13 February] in another year,
and then, William Fitz-Richard for the remainder of that year.
John de Gizors again, for one year.
William Fitz-Richard again, for two years.
A.D. 1261. Thomas Fitz-Thomas, for two years.
The same person was elected for a third year, and presented at the
Exchequer, but not admitted, though he still continued Mayor for one
year.
The same was again elected Mayor, and admitted for one year. This
was the *last Mayor of London, being so made on the Feast of Simon
and Jude A.D, 1264.
[Or THE JEWS IN ENGLAND.]
Be it remembered, that whereas in times past the Jews had
been allowed to follow many unlawful practices, which are both
to the dishonour of God and to the detriment of all the realm ; still, not con-
tented therewith, in the year of Our Lord 1271 they asked of his lordship
the King and his Council, that they might have wardship and 2 marriage of
Christian heirs under age, as also the advowsons of churches belonging
to those whose lands such Jews might hold in seisin. And this indeed,
through some of the Council of his lordship the King, who had been cor-
rupted by bribes, was almost conceded to them ; upon learning which, a
certain religious, belonging to the Order of the 3 Friars Minors, manfully
opposed the same, and went unto his lordship the King and his Council,
and said that that request was altogether to the dishonour of God and to the
1 This shews the early date of the present * Or maritage ;' i.e. the right of giving, or
insertion, and that it is of prior composition to rather selling, them in marriage,
the latter part of the preceding Chronicle. 3 Or Franciscans.
A.W. 1271.] OF THE JEWS IN ENGLAND. 195
very great disgrace of all Christendom ; for that in such case, Christians
would have to be subjected to Jews and be given in marriage by them. He
further said, that the Jews were in the habit of following many and
unlawful practices., to the dishonour of God and the detriment of all the
realm; and this the same man on many grounds convincingly proved
before his lordship the King and his Council. Wherefore, after counsel
had been taken by them in common, it was provided and enacted in
manner hereunder set forth.
Here are set forth certain matters first indited in reference to the Statutes
on the Jews.
"W[alter], by divine permission Archbishop of York, Primate of
" England, and G[odfrey], by the same grace, humble servant of the
" Church of Worcester, to their most dearly beloved friend in Christ,
" Master Richard de Stanes, Justiciar of his lordship the King, greeting,
" with continual increase of sincere love in Christ. Whereas the perfi-
" dious Jews, at all times adversaries of the Christian faith, who only
({ do dwell in this realm by favour of the princes thereof, are encouraged
" to gain possession of the common liberties and customs of the faithful
" of this realm of England, as by holding freehold, for example, and
" claiming other rights which unto freehold pertain ; from the which, if
" they should be able to obtain the same, very many evils would forthwith
" ensue. For it would thence arise that, by reason of such tenures, the
" faithful would have to make corporal oath to unbelievers as to doing
" fealty unto them: in addition to which, the faithful would have to do
" homage to unbelievers, as being their lords, and in like manner, un-
" believers to the faithful. Jews also, by reason of such tenures, would
" be presenting to churches ; and wardships, marriages, and escheats
" would come into the hands of unbelievers. Upon assizes too, and
" recognizances., and juries, by reason of such tenures, they would be
" frequently placed, and so Jews would be put on a par with the faith-
" ful, so far as pleas are concerned. There would also be the same
" law of the realm for Christians and for Jews, a thing that is con-
" trary to the holy sanctions of the Christian religion and of
. Fol. 154 B.
" ourselves. They might be able also in future times, through
" the agency of money, to gain possession not only of site and freehold,
196 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A.D. 1371.
(e but of baronies, which are immediately held of his lordship the King,
" as well. And forasmuch as, by these and other counsels which were
<f gradually waxing stronger, to the injury of the Christian faith, no small
" prej udice might have arisen, to the aggrievance of his lordship the
" King, and of his realm, and of the people of his realm ; of late at London,
" as you know, in presence of his most serene lordship the 1 King of
" Almaine and of the venerable father, K[oger] Lord Bishop of Coventry
t( and Lichefeld, and of ourselves, the whole Council also of his lordship
" the King of England there sitting, with unanimous will and common
" assent, to the honour of God and of his holy Church universal, as also,
" to the common advantage of the realm, after deliberate counsel thereon,
"it was healthfully provided and enacted, to the effect that no Jew
" shall from henceforth by deed or gift, or by any other title whatso-
" ever, have or hold either freehold, or rent, or house to be hired by
" Christians or by Jews, except only the house which he inhabits in his
" own proper person ; nor shall in future plead by writ, by law of
" the realm for Christians provided, as to any of the matters aforesaid.
" Nor shall writs on any account from the Chancery be granted unto
(f them as to the matters aforesaid ; and if such shall be granted, they
" are to be held as null and be void of strength and effect. Wherefore,
" seeing that from dilatoriness and delay of publication of such statute
" and provision, the Jews perhaps, and their supporters, insisting upon
" the nullity thereof, no small detriment might possibly in the meantime
" arise, we have thought it meet that by these presents your feelings of
" devoutness should be aroused, to the increase of the honour of God
" and to the exaltation of the Christian faith, and the advantage and
" profit of the English people, that so, giving aid to us therein, you may
" cause, with all the haste that you may, the said statute to be enrolled
ff wholly and completely, and solemnly to be published, for everlasting
(( remembrance thereof, by their lordships, the Chancellor of his lordship
" the King, the Justiciars of Bank, and the great men of the Court, who
" will the more readily be inclined to support you in so pious an object,
" and by such others as unto you shall seem expedient : you, in the
" execution hereof, so conducting yourselves, that you may be enabled to
1 Richard, Earl of Cornwall, brother of Henry III.
A.D. 1271.] OF THE JEWS IN ENGLAND. 197
" obtain remuneration therefor of the Most High, for the great increase
"of whose honour you strive. And from thence, so far as
Fol. 155 A.
"yourselves are concerned, may there accrue unto you the
" meed of high praise, as being a most devout son of the Church ; know-
" ing for certain, that although some, to the peril of their own souls, may
" labour to effect the enervation of the same statute, the Prelates will
" labour for the observance thereof, nor will permit, as indeed they
" ought not, that it shall remain unperfected, seeing that, from the
f< duties which are enjoined upon them, they are bound thereto, and that
tf the common and evident advantage so demands. Farewell. Given at
" Hadley, on the Feast of the Translation of the Blessed Thomas the
" Martyr [7 July], in the year of Our Lord 1271."
These are the Letters of the King of England as to the same.
" Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, Lord of Ireland, and
" Duke of Acquitaine, to his well-beloved and trusty, the Mayor and
(< Sheriffs of London, and all his bailiffs and faithful subjects, to whom
" these present letters shall come, greeting. Know ye, that to the
" honour of God and of the Church universal, and to the amendment
" and advantage of the land, and the relief of the Christians from the
" losses and grievances which they have sustained, by reason of the free-
" holds which the Jews of our realm claimed to hold in lands, tenements,
" fees, rents, and other tenures, and to the end that no prejudice may in
" future unto us or unto the commons of our realm, or unto such realm
'* itself, be generated, we have made provision, by counsel of the prelates,
" great men, and nobles, who are of our Council, and have also ordained
" and enacted, for us and for our heirs, that no Jew shall have freehold in
" any manors, lands, tenements, fees, rents, or tenures whatsoever, by deed,
" gift, feoffment, confirmation, or any obligation whatsoever, or in any
" other manner whatsoever ; provided however, that in future they shall
" inhabit their houses, wherein they dwell, in cities, burghs, or other towns,
" and shall have the same in such manner as in times past they have been
" wont to have them, and also may lawfully let other their houses, which
" they have to let, unto Jews only, and not unto Christians; upon the un-
" derstanding however, that it shall not be lawful for our Jews of London
" to buy more houses than they now possess, or in any other way whatso-
198 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A. D. 1271.
" ever within our City of London to obtain the same, whereby the parish
" churches of the same City, or the rectors thereof, may incur loss.
" Still however, the same Jews of London shall be able to repair their
" ancient houses and edifices which have already fallen into ruin and
" disrepair, and at their own will restore them to their former state.
" We have also, by the same counsel unto us given, provided and
" enacted, that as to inhabiting or letting their houses aforesaid, as
" before stated, no Jew shall plead or be enabled to plead by our original
66 writs of Chancery, but only before our Justiciars to the guar-
" dianship of the Jews assigned, and that, by the writs of Jewry
" heretofore accustomed and in use. But as to the lands and tenures of
" which the Jews before this present statute were enfeoffed, we do will
" that such enfeoffments and gifts shall be wholly annulled, and that those
" lands and tenements shall remain unto the Christians who may have
" conveyed the same unto them; provided however, that such Christians
" shall make satisfaction unto the same Jews for the monies or chattels
" in their deeds or chirographs named, without usury, which such Jews
" may have given unto the Christians for the gift or enfeoffment thereof.
" Upon this condition also, in addition thereto, that if those Christians
" shall not be able forthwith to make satisfaction for the same, it shall
"be lawful for the Jews aforesaid to let those tenements unto others,
" until by reasonable assessment, according to the true value thereof, the
" amount of such their chattels may, without usury, be levied there-
" from, saving however unto such Christians their right of dwelling
" therein ; and upon the understanding that the Jew receives his money or
" his chattels for the same by the hands of Christians, and not of Jews, as
" already mentioned. And if it shall happen that any Jew shall from
" henceforth receive from any Christian a feoffment of any fee or tene-
" ment, in contravention of the present statute, such Jew shall wholly
" lose the said tenement or fee, and the same shall be taken into our
"hand and safely kept, and those Christians, or their heirs, shall receive
" back such land or tenement from our hand; but upon the understanding,
" that they shall then pay unto us the whole of the money which from
" the same Jews for such feoffment they may have received ; or if their
" means shall not suffice thereunto, then they shall pay the true value
" of such tenements or fees unto us and our heirs yearly at our Ex-
A.I>. 1*71.] OF THE JEWS IN ENGLAND. 199
" chequer, by true and reasonable valuation thereof, until for such
" money or chattels full satisfaction shall unto us have been made. And
" as to nurses of children, bakers, brewers, and cooks, among the Jews,
" seeing that Jews and Christians are upon unequal footing as to religious
" belief, we do provide and enact, that no Christian man or woman
" shall presume to minister unto them in the offices aforesaid. And
" because that the Jews are still wont to receive at the hands of Chris-
" tians certain rents under the name of e fees,' arising from lands and
" tenements belonging to Christians, as perpetual payments, we do will
" and enact that the l statute that was then by us made thereon, shall be
" confirmed and be held established ; nor shall there be in any way by
" this present statute aught in derogation thereof. And we do there-
" fore command you, and do strictly enjoin, that you cause the provision,
" ordinance, and statute aforesaid, throughout the whole of your baili-
" wick publicly to be proclaimed, and strictly to be observed. In testi-
" mony whereof, we have caused these our letters patent to be made.
" Witness mvself, at Westminster, this 25th day of July, in the
* . Fol. 156 A.
" fi ve-and-fiftieth year of our reign."
Letters of the same King.
" H[enry], by the grace of God, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Normandy
" and Acquitaine, Earl of Anjou, to his well-beloved and trusty, Hugh
" de Pateshelle, his Treasurer, Philip de Asselles, and his fellows,
" Justiciars for wardship of the Jews assigned, Peter Grimbald, and
" the Mayor of London, greeting. Know ye, that for the amelioration
" of our realm, and for repressing the evilmindedness and falsehood of
" the Jews, on the morrow of Saint Eadmund [20 November] in the
" four-and-twentieth year of our reign, it was of our Council before us
" provided, S[tephen] de Segrave, Brother G[eoffrey] our Almoner,
" B[ertram] de Criolle, our Seneschal, Master S[imon] de Esteyland,
" G[eoiFrey] le Despenser, and other our faithful subjects being then
" present, at Winchester, that the keepers of the 2 Chest of London and
" the clerk-writers should be removed, and that by view of you and of
" the Constable of the Tower of London, and of two good and lawful
1 See the next article. Charters, or Chirographs, were kept.
* In the Exchequer, in which the Jews'
200 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES. [A.D. 1271.
" men of the City of London, whom you were to associate with your-
" selves therefor, other two of the lawful and more discreet Christians,
" and other two of the lawful Jews of London, were to be chosen, to
(f whose custody such chest was to be recommitted, and each and every
" of them was to have his own key thereof. By view also of you, two
" trusty clerks are to be chosen, who, making oath that they will faith-
" fully behave themselves in that office, shall in future attend to all
ff manner of writings that between Christians and Jews shall be made ;
" and who, in presence of the Christian who borrows the money and of
"the Jew who lends the same, being the parties between whom the
" writing is made, shall deliver that part of the writing to which the wax
" is attached, unto the chirographers aforesaid, to be deposited in such
" chest by the tenth day at the very latest from the time that such
" writing shall have been made. Also, the first part of the same writing
" shall remain with the Christian who shall have borrowed such money ;
" and the second part, which is called the f foot of the chirograph,' and
" which was wont to be replaced in the chest, shall remain with the Jew,
" from whom the money so owing shall have been borrowed : upon the
" understanding that it shall be lawful for him to claim his debt by such
" foot, and to implead in every way, the same as he was wont by that
"part to which the wax is attached; such part to which the wax is
" attached being replaced in the chest, as already mentioned. And if
" any Christian shall presume to keep out of the chest, and away from
" the chirographers aforesaid, or from the clerks aforesaid, that part of
" the chirograph to which the wax is attached, after the tenth day from
" the time that it shall have been made, he shall unto us be heavily
" amerced. But if the Jew shall so withhold the same, and shall be con-
" victed thereof, his 1 chattels shall unto us be forfeited. Also, the seal
" of the Christian, who shall have contracted such debt, must contain
" the proper name of him who so borrows, and that part which
" has to be replaced in the chest, must be sealed with the same.
" Also, every Jew, wherever he shall be abiding on the day of Saint
" Michael, must there continue to abide with all his family for the whole
" year then next ensuing, nor may he thence remove or transfer himself
" without our especial precept therefor. And we do will, that usury
1 Meaning his interest under the deed.
THE HISTORY OF ARNALD FITZ-THEDMAR. 201
et shall not run against debtors from the Day of Saint John the Baptist
" [24 June] in the three-and-twentieth year of our reign until the Day of
" our Lord's Nativity in the four-and-twentieth year of our reign. And
" we do forbid that any Jew shall otherwise lend his money than by the
" assize which by us and our predecessors has been commonly granted
" unto the Jews ; that is to say, that no one shall presume to take greater
" interest than at the rate of two pence in the pound each week. And
" therefore, we do command you that you cause the provision before-
" written to be enrolled and strictly to be observed. These present letters
ft also are to remain in the Chest of Chirographs of London, in the custody
" of the chirographers aforesaid, as a rule for their procedure therein.
(e Witness myself at Clarendon, this tenth day of December, in the four-
" and-twentieth year of our reign."
THE HISTORY OF ARXALD FITZ-THEDMAR.
There was a certain man dwelling in the city of Cologne,
Arnald by name, and surnamed " de Grevingge," who had a wife,
a native of the same city, whose name was Ode. Their life, after the
manner of the Christian religion, was simple and upright before God and
with man. Living for many years in wedlock a pious and righteous life,
they had remained without offspring. Hearing however by report how
many and great miracles God had wrought in England for the Blessed
Thomas, Archbishop of Canterbury, who at that period had recently
suffered martyrdom at the hands of impious men, they made a vow that
they would set out for England, for the purpose of visiting the sepulchre
of the said martyr.
Accordingly setting out, after they had crossed the sea, they came to
Canterbury, where the body of the said martyr reposes, and there
offering up their adorations to the Saint, they made a vow that if the
Lord should grant offspring unto them, they would devote it to the ser-
vice of the Lord; and that if it should prove of the male sex, they would
call him " Thomas," after the martyr's name, and would make him a
monk, that so in the same church, and in the same garb of religion, he
might serve God and the Blessed Martyr all the days of his life. When
all this had been done, they were unwilling to return home before they
had visited London, of which city, so noble and so famous, they had
D r>
202 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
heard the fame in their own land. Accordingly, coming to London, they
took up their abode there ; and after they had made a stay of some time,
the woman conceived; whereupon the husband, on learning that his wife
had so conceived, was unwilling to return home until after her delivery,
by reason of the peril that might befall her.
The time of her delivery having now arrived, she brought forth a
son, and his name was called " Thomas," in manner as his parents had
vowed. After this, by reason of the weak state of the infant, they con-
tinued their stay in London, without returning home, until she had
again conceived and been delivered of a daughter, who was named
" Juliana." In the meantime however, the mother of the before-named
Ode, who was most tenderly beloved by her and her husband, even more
than any others of their acquaintances, both friends and kinsfolk,
departed this life; by reason whereof, they never cared to return to
their own land, but, buying a house in the City of London, were made
citizens thereof. Thomas, their son, however, did not become a monk,
as his parents had vowed; but at the time when Kichard, King
of England, and Philip, King of France, with a countless multitude of
Crusaders, set out for the Holy Land, which Saladin had seized, and
when the Earl of Flanders, Baldwin by name, had gone upon the
Crusade and had taken possession of Constantinople by force
of arms, and been made Emperor thereof, the same Thomas
joined the army of the said Earl as a Crusader. Upon reaching Con-
stantinople however, he there departed this life.
As to his sister Juliana, she was married to a certain man of Almaine,
f( Thedmar " by name, a native of the city of Bremen. Living in wed-
lock a pious and righteous life, they had eleven children, six daughters
namely, and five sons. Of these daughters, two died before arriving at
marriageable years, while the other four were very advantageously
married in the City of London; and from them sprang a numerous
progeny, namely, sons and daughters, grandsons and granddaughters,
and other kinsfolk, more than I can enumerate. As to the five sons of
the aforesaid Thedmar and Juliana, one died under age, and three others
when they Had reached the age of twenty-four years. The fifth son
however, who, after his grandfather, was called " Arnald," lived long
after the death of all his brothers and sisters.
THE HISTORY OF ARNALD FITZ-THEDMAR. 203
It is of what happened in reference to him that I purpose here to
write ; namely, that while his mother was still pregnant of him she had
a dream to the following eifect. In a vision, she thought that the Prior
and Brethren of the Hospital of l Jerusalem, without London, sent for a
log of wood which was lying upon the fire in her house, as the custom is
in the houses of the citizens, and that accordingly the porters carried it
out of the house. After this, about the 2 ninth hour of the day the same
porters brought a slab of marble, which had been sent to the woman's
husband by the Prior and Brethren aforesaid, and then departed. Im-
mediately after which, as it appeared to her, the porters before-mentioned
brought back the log of wood, and told her that the log must be laid
upon the fire as long as it would last, and that , after it was wholly
consumed, the marble slab must be substituted in its place.
A certain skilful man thus expounded this dream, and said
to the woman as follows : " The log of wood signifies your husband, and
" the slab of marble the son who shall be born of you. The circumstance
" that the log of wood was not in the house when the slab of marble was
" sent thither about the ninth hour, signifies that your husband will not
" be at home, when your son is born ; whose birth will take place at the
" ninth hour of the day. The log of wood being afterwards brought
" back to be placed upon the fire, signifies that immediately after your
" son is born, your husband will return home, and will continue to be
" master of this house all the days of his life, and after him your son will
" succeed by right of inheritance to the house aforesaid." And so it
happened. For the woman's husband was not in the City, when she
was seized with the pains of labour; but had occasion to be staying
away from the City until after his wife had been delivered. But imme-
diately after the child's birth, which took place about the ninth hour, he
came home ; and afterwards remained there as master of the house all
the days of his life. After his death, his son Arnald, before-mentioned,
came into possession of the house by right of inheritance.
As to the difference however that there is between a log of wood and a
slab of marble, the expounder of the dream on that occasion gave no ex-
planation, and this matter may be known to God only. This Arnald was
1 7. e. St. John of Jerusalem, in Clerken- 2 Three in the afternoon,
well.
04 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
born in the year of Our Lord 1201, on. the Vigil of Saint Laurence
[10 August], at the ninth hour of the day.
Be it remembered, that after the commotions in the king-
dom of England in the time of the Earl of Leicester, the
citizens made fine with his lordship the King for the offences imputed to
them, and by certain persons committed, with the view of gaining his
good will, in the sum of 20000 marks sterling ; and at the same time
injunction was given to the citizens, with all haste to acquit the King of
a great sum of money as against the King of France. They were un-
able however within so short a time to assess this money upon each of the
citizens in equal and fair proportions ; and, by provision made in refer-
ence thereto, the citizens gave, some more, some less, with the view of
the more speedily paying the money to the King of France. After this,
the citizens made offer, a second and a third time, to discharge them-
selves by instalments of the sum due to his lordship the King/ After-
wards, his lordship the King being desirous to give one thousand marks to
the Duke of l Bruneswyc, who had lately married the Queen's cousin, he
sent his writ to the citizens, commanding that they should be assessed
before John Waleran, the then Warden of the Tower and of the City of
London, and William de Haselbech, in a sum of 1500 pounds. Accord-
ingly, the said John and William caused a sum of more than 560 pounds
to be assessed upon eight men, without inquest of their 2 venue, but by
the agency of certain malevolent persons of the City whom the said
John had chosen for the purpose. But after this, whatever was levied
by virtue of the said writ, was in due manner by the venue assessed. It
should also be known, that the whole of the assessment by the said writ
did not amount to 1000 pounds sterling.
At last, provision was made by the whole of the community, that
examination should be made by the men of the venue and by sworn men
of the trades, as to what persons had in previous times been aggrieved,
and who had been favoured : upon the result whereof, the said tallage
was to be ordained. Accordingly, upon this tallage many persons were
acquitted of all claim, more especially those who had been tallaged
before John and William aforesaid. At the same time also, award was
given as to Arnald Fitz-Thedmar, as is set forth in this leaf.
1 Brunswick. : Or v ij, uc t ; se e p. 10 ante.
THE HISTORY OF ARNALD FITZ-THEDMAR. 205
" As to Arnald Thedmar, it was found by his venue and
" by certain men of the other Wards, that the same Arnald is
(f unduly aggrieved ; for that the same Arnald, as concerns the ransom of
f( twenty thousand marks, first paid four marks and forty pence for the
!e house which he inhabits ; and after that, twenty marks by inquisition of
(( his neighbours. Then again, an increase of five marks, and after that,
ff one hundred marks, which were assessed before John Waleraund and
" William de Haselbech without award of his neighbours. After that,
" half a mark, and then after that, fifteen shillings upon his rent. There-
" fore it was awarded by the jurors that the same Arnald should stand in
" peace, and be acquitted of the aforesaid ransom and of the fine of one
"thousand marks, as towards his lordship the King of Almaine."
The above award is written in the Rolls of the City and of the
Chamberlains.
After this, Walter Hervi, in the time of his Mayoralty, taking with
him such of the citizens as he pleased, had brought before him all the
rolls of tallages which had been previously made in the City, and endea-
voured to extort from the citizens all the monies therein contained, and
would not make allowance to any one of those who had been aggrieved
beyond measure and beyond their means. Where a claim had been
withdrawn against any one by oath of his venue and by letters of his
lordship the King, he would pay no attention thereto. Accordingly at
this time, demand was made of the aforesaid Arnald Thedmar, of a very
large sum of money, which had been assessed upon him in an undue
manner and without any oath, as already stated. However, Arnald
waited upon his lordship King Henry, who was then living, and obtained
from him letters directed to the Mayor and citizens, to the effect that
they should not presume in any way to aggrieve him, in contravention of
the enrolment by the Chamberlains of the City ; and afterwards obtained
letters from Sir Edward, his son, to a like effect. This Walter however,
so long as he continued to be Mayor, did not cease to aggrieve Arnald, so
far as demanding of him that sum of money, or part thereof.
After this, Henry le Waleis was made Mayor, who, summoning
certain sworn citizens before him to examine the clear arrears of the City,
again unjustly demanded of him a certain sum in reference to the exac-
tion before-mentioned ; whereupon, he again obtained letters of his
206 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
lordship King Edward, which being read before the said Mayor and
citizens, they gave assent to the observance of the enrolment before-
mentioned. l
Copies of Letters of his lordship King Henry, and of Ids lord-
skip King Edward, his son, of which mention is made at the end
of this Book.
" Henry, by the grace of God, etc. Arnald Fitz-Thedmar, your
" fellow-citizen, hath shown unto us, that when our citizens of London
" lately made fine unto us in the sum of 20000 marks, for gaining our
" good will, he, the same Arnald, on the pretence aforesaid, by certain
ff persons who entertained ill-will towards him, was assessed in a certain
(C large sum of money unjustly, without inquisition of his venue, and
" beyond the sufficiency of his means thereunto ; of which sum of money,
" not without great hardship, he paid one hundred marks. Also, when
" after this, by our special command, in presence of our well-beloved and
" trusty Alan le Zuche, the then Warden of the City and Constable of
" our Tower of London, by the commons of all the City aforesaid strict
" enquiry was made, and award given, how much each citizen ought
" to pay in accordance with his means, as also how much each had
" already paid by way of contribution to the said fine ; and when, in
" accordance with the award then made, a general tallage was assessed
" upon the citizens aforesaid, it was found, on inquisition made upon the
" oaths of reputable men of the venue of the aforesaid Arnald and others,
" who had been deputed to assess the said tallage, that the said Arnald had
" already paid beyond the limits of his means : it was therefore provided
" by the same reputable men, in presence of Alan aforesaid, that the
" said Arnald, by reason of the payment of one hundred marks aforesaid,
" which, as well as other thirty-two marks, which at other times had
" been assessed upon him, he had fully paid, should be, and ought to be,
" wholly acquitted as well of the fine aforesaid as of the contribution of
" one thousand marks made unto our brother, the King of Almaine; he
(( invoking thereupon the testimony of the Rolls of the City Chamber-
" lains as to the tallage aforesaid. Being unwilling therefore that the
1 Reference is here made in the text to a of the volume,
continuation of this subject at the beginning
THE HISTORY OF ARNALD FITZ-THEDMAR. 207
" said Arnald, who has always faithfully and constantly adhered unto us
" and ours, should be unduly aggrieved, we do strictly enjoin that,
" searching the rolls aforesaid, you do exact of the said Arnald nothing
" whatever beyond the award and enrolment aforesaid, nor do in future
" molest him by reason of the fine aforesaid ; and that, if you shall have
<e made upon him any distress by reason of such further exaction, you
" do wholly release the same. Witness, etc."
" Edward, by the grace of God, etc., to the Mayor and Sheriffs of
" London, greeting. Arnald Fitz-Thedmar, your fellow-citizen, hath
" shown unto us, that when our citizens of London lately made fine unto
" his lordship King Henry our father, in the sum of 20000 marks, for
" gaming the good will of the same our father, he, the same Arnald, on
f( pretence of the fine aforesaid, etc. [as above, mutatis mutandis.^ '
For all the letters aforesaid, Walter Hervi, in the time of his
Mayoralty, would not desist from aggrieving the before-named
Arnald, in contravention of the enrolment.
1 After this, Henry le Waleys was made Mayor, who, together with
some citizens who had been sworn to examine the arrears of all the
tallages, as already mentioned, exacted of him a certain sum of money in
contravention of the said enrolment ; whereupon, he repaired to the Court
of his lordship the King, and again obtained letters of the King, directed
to the Mayor and citizens. These being read and understood, they agreed
to observe the said enrolment ; but still, expressed a wish that the said
Arnald should aid in discharging the Queen's 2 gold and other expenses
of the City. Wherefore an agreement was made between the Mayor and
citizens and the said Arnald, in manner below set forth, this also being
written in the Chamberlains' Roll.
" Be it remembered, that when a certain sum of money had been
" demanded of Arnald Fitz-Thedmar before Sir Henry le Waleys, Mayor
" of London, and certain other citizens whose names are below set forth,
" by the whole community of the City appointed and sworn to examine
" the arrears of all assessments and tallages in the City before made, and
te there had for some time been a dispute hereupon between the aforesaid
1 This, it will be remarked, is somewhat of 2 A perquisite anciently due to the Queen
a repetition of what has been already stated. Consort ; see p. 25 ante.
208 ADDITIONS TO THE CHRONICLES.
" Mayor and citizens and the said Arnald in reference thereto, at length
" the said contest between the said Mayor and citizens and the
" said Arnald was brought to a conclusion in form underwritten ;
" that is to say, that it was made satisfactorily evident to the said Mayor
" and citizens, by the rolls of great tallage made in the time of Sir Alan
" la Zouche, late Warden of the said City, that the said Arnald had been
" wholly acquitted of the ransom of 20000 marks, and of the fine of 1000
" marks to his lordship the King of Almaine, by reason of the 132 marks
" which at the same time he had paid, in manner as the said rolls fully
" record. It was also shown to them that the same Arnald had been often-
" times on other occasions aggrieved. It was therefore awarded by the
" said Mayor and citizens sworn thereunto, that the same Arnald, in
" consideration of six pounds which he then paid to them in aid of defray -
" ing the City's expenses, and of forty shillings which in the time of the
" Mayoralty of Sir Walter Hervi he had paid as a contribution to the
" Queen's gold, should be wholly acquitted of Queen's gold and of all
" tallages, assessments, double quarterages, twentieths, aids, loans, and
" expenses, in the City of London made, until the Feast of the Apostles
" Philip and James [1 May] in the second year of the reign of his lordship
" King Edward, son of King Henry ; there being present the aforesaid Sir
" Henry, the Mayor, and the others sworn, namely, Nicholas de Wyncestre,
" Sheriff, Stephen de Mundene and Hugh Mutun, Chamberlains, John,
" Walter le Poter, John de Norhampton, Ralph le Blund, Aldermen,
" Ralph de la More, Ralph de Brumle, Robert Grratefige, William de
" Farenedon, Hugh de Duntone, Thomas Heyrun, and Godfrey le
" Cofrer, and others."
INSERTIONS IN THE "LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS," OF A LATER
DATE. ,
Be it remembered, that at Vespers on the morrow of Saint
Luke [18 October], being a "Thursday, there was an eclipse
of the moon, which lasted throughout one quarter of the night, it being
the sixth year of the reign of King Edward of 1 Carnervan, son of King
Edward, etc.
1 Caernarvon ; meaning Edward II.
MAYORS AND SHERIFFS TEMP. EDWARD II. 209
Be it remembered, that in the l tenth year of Edward, John de
2 Sandegrave was Mayor of London.
In this year died Gilbert de Segrave, Bishop of London.
In this year there was a hard frost during Christmas week ; and
throughout this year continued the dearth of corn, and great mortality
among poor folk.
Be it remembered, that in the ninth year of Edward, son of King
Edward, began the dearth of corn : wheat was at first one mark, then
twenty shillings, and then thirty-two shillings, the quarter, and so
continued until the arrival of a new year. There was great mortality of
the people, and great dearth of all manner of victuals throughout the
kingdom.
Also, in the eleventh year of Edward, John de Sandegrave was Mayor
of London: John Priour and William Fourneys, Sheriffs.
Gilbert de Middletone, a knight of Northumberland, and his brother,
were drawn and hanged for treason.
In this year, the Pope ordered the Feast of the Holy Sacrament to
be held on the Thursday after the Trinity, as also grand pardon.
3 Sheriffs of London in the twelfth year of Edward, John
Poyntel and John de Dallinge. John de Sandegrave was
Mayor for three years.
In the thirteenth year of Edward, John de Prestone and Simon
d'Abindone, were Sheriffs of London. In this year, Hamo de 4 Gigewelle
was Mayor of London.
Also, in the fourteenth year of Edward, Reginald de Conduit and
William Prodomme, were Sheriffs. The 5 Iter was holden at the Tower
of London.
Also, in the fifteenth year of Edward, Richard Costentein and
Richard de Hakeneye, were Sheriffs. In this year was the war with
Scotland ; and the quarter of wheat was worth thirty shillings, at the
beginning of the sixteenth year of Edward.
1 A.D. 1316-7- 3 There is a line previous to this, giving
2 * Wengrave ' is the usual form of the name. Stephen de Abingdon as Mayor ; but in reality
The peculiar spelling of the surnames, which his mayoralty was in the 9th Edward II.
appear to have been entered by a person of 4 Properly * Chigwell.'
foreign extraction, has been here retained 5 Or 'Eyre' of the Justiciars. For an account
throughout. of it, sec the Librr CWS/MMW/WM, pp. 285 432.
E E
210 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
[In the sixteenth year of Edward], Hamo de 1 Jicevelle was Mayor.
John de 2 Gantan, Grocer, and Roger d'Eli, Fishmonger, were Sheriffs.
In the seventeenth year, Nicholas de Farendone was made Mayor by
the King. Adam de Sallesberi, Grocer, and John d'Oxenford, Vintner,
were Sheriffs.
Hamo de 3 Gikewelle was Mayor for two years, being the eighteenth
and the nineteenth years. The Sheriffs were Beneyt de 4 Fayleham,
Grocer, and John de 5 Haustone, Mercer ; and John Coton, Pelterer, and
Gilbert de Mordone, Fishmonger.
[In the twentieth year of Edward] the Sheriffs of London were
6 Rosser Chintecler, and Richard de 7 Rokinge. Richard de 8 Beytteyne
was Mayor of London. The King made prisoner in his own land.
Fol. 42 B. Charter of Liberties of the Bishop of London.
" Know all those who are and who shall be in time to come, that between
" Sir 9 Eustace, the Bishop of London, and the Chapter of Saint Paul in
" London, and the citizens of London, it is thus agreed, in love, as to the
" limits of the franchises which, as the said Bishop said, do pertain unto
" his Church, the citizens affirming the contrary. That is to say, that
" the aforesaid citizens have granted, that no Sheriff or bailiff of Lon-
" don shall from henceforth enter the 10 Soke of the Bishop in Cornhulle,
" to make attachment therein, if the plaint have not sooner been shown
" unto the Sheriff or unto a bailiff of London than unto the bailiffs of the
" Bishop. Also, that there be no thief found in that Soke, but that he
" shall be attached by the bailiff of the Bishop ; not even in a case
" where the bailiff of the Bishop has not been called : and upon the coming
" of him, the attachment is to be made. And if nevertheless the bailiff
" shall not come [to make such attachment], the attachment is to be
( ' made by the bailiffs of the City. Also be it, that if the thief is attached
" by the bailiffs of the City, he shall be delivered unto the bailiffs of the
" Bishop for judgment, in the Court of the Bishop within the same Soke.
1 Chigwell. 7 Properly ' Rothinge.'
2 Properly ' Grantham.' 8 Or ' Betoigne.'
3 Chigwell. 9 Eustace de Fauconberge, High Treasurer
4 Or * Folsham.' of England.
5 Properly Caustone.' I0 Or place of independent, and exclusive,
. 6 Given elsewhere as Roger Cliaunceler.' jurisdiction.
A.D. 1228.] CHARTER OF LIBERTIES OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON. 211
" And [in such case], when the thief shall be judged, one half of his
" chattels is to be delivered unto the Bishop, and the other half unto the
"bailiff of the City. And if the thief shall be taken or attached by the
" bailiffs of the Bishop, no one of the bailiffs of the City shall intermeddle
" with him or with his chattels, if he be found in such Soke. And if so
" be, that a baker of the tenants of the Bishop's Soke shall be found with
" bread of false weight in such Soke by the Sheriff, he is to be attached upon
" view of the bailiffs of the Bishop called thereunto, and the baker is to be
"judged in the Guildhall in presence of the bailiff, if he shall wish it to be ;
" and nevertheless he is not to be compelled by mandate. And if he be
" taken out of that Soke, he shall be judged in the Guildhall, whether the
" bailiff of the Bishop comes there or not, for that he has been taken with
" false bread. And if he be taken within the Soke or without, three times
" or more, with bread of false weight, and be attainted thereof, he shall
" be punished according to the custom of the City, that is to say,
" whether he be taken and attached within the Soke by the bailiffs of
" the Bishop, or taken and attached without the Soke by the bailiffs of
" the City. By the bailiffs of the Bishop he is to be 1 summoned, if he
" will appear. It is provided above all, that the bakers of the Soke of
" the King of Scotland are bound to aid the bakers of the Bishop's Soke
({ in paying unto the Sheriff 28 shillings of silver yearly, in manner as
" they were wont to do. All men upon lands of the Bishop's fee, or of
" the fee of Saint Paul, [and] of their successors, of which fees the
" Bishop and the Church of Saint Paul in London were seised upon the
" day that this agreement was made, shall be free and acquitted of all
" customs in 2 Smethfeud or elsewhere, as to all that which they shall
" buy for their own men, 3 with all that is born thereof and feeds; but
<c on all that which they shall buy for sale, the Sheriff of Lon-
(f don shall receive the customs due, wherever they nray then
" buy the same; and all the carts which are the property of the Bishop
" or the property of Saint Paul's, [carrying] the things of the Bishop, or
" of the Canons, or of the men of the fee of Saint Paul's, shall so far be
" free without custom paid. If so be that it is not the property of the
" Bishop or the property of Saint Paul's, no cart is to be hired to 4 carry
1 This passage is, to all appearance, imper- 3 This is perhaps the meaning of ov fee
feet. ' lur nest et pest'
2 Suiithficld. 4 From Smithficld.
212 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBLS. [A.D. 1228.
" the wares of any one to London. And if any one shall bring the wares
" of any person, who by reason of his franchise ought to go acquitted,
" then for his cart he shall give the custom that is due and customary.
" The same as to the Bishop and his successors, as to the citizens afore-
f( said. And if they shall bring the wares of any one who by reason of
" his franchise ought not to go acquitted, then such wares shall pay the
61 custom due, as aforesaid, and the cart shall go acquitted. No Sheriff
" or bailiff of London ought to enter any manor of the Bishop, or any
" manor of Saint Paul's, to ask or to take custom ; but they are to take
" the same in the customary and established places, that is to say, in
" Smethefeud or elsewhere, out of their manors or out of their fee.
" And be it also known, that it shall be fully lawful for the bailiffs of
" the City, without the bailiffs of the Bishop, to enter the Soke of the
" Bishop, to collect the King's dues or to distrain for his debts, saving
" all assizes unto the citizens of London, to secure thereby the common
fi good of the City, that are not [in contravention of] the articles aforesaid.
ff And to the end that this loving agreement may be sure and established
" for ever, and not broken, the aforesaid Bishop and Chapter have ap-
" pended their seals, and the citizens of London their seal of the com-
" monalty, with the seals of Sir Roger le Due, the Mayor of London,
" and of Sir Richard Feuker, to this present writing, in manner of a
" chirograph in four parts made. Of which parts, the two parts sealed
6< with the seal of the commonalty and with the seals of the aforesaid
(e Roger and Richard, are to remain unto the Bishop and the Chapter ;
" and the two parts sealed with the seals of the Bishop and the
" Chapter, are to remain with the citizens of London. This was made in
" the year of Grace 1228, the x twentieth of the Ides of May."
The fifth year of 2 Edward. Memorandum, that Peter de
3 Blaceney e, Sheriff of London, died eight weeks before Saint
Michael, and John de 4 Grantebrigge, Mercer, was sworn 5 Warden for
the aforesaid Peter in the bailiwick until the Saint Michael next ensuing,
in presence of the commonalty, upon the mainprise of the executors of
Peter aforesaid.
1 This is evidently an error, there being no Blakenev.
(such date. i Cambridge.
* Edward the Seeoud. * Of the Sheriffwick.
TRANSACTIONS IN THE KEIGN OF EDWARD II. 213
Memorandum as to the Sheriffs of London in the fifth year of
Edward: Simon de 1 Manewourhe,, 2 Bureller, Richard de Welleforde.
Memorandum, that upon the Day of Saint Simon and Saint Jude,
John de Gissors was chosen Mayor of London.
Memorandum, that Sir Piers de Gavastone, Earl of 3 Cornewayle,
was in the Castle of 4 Scardebourk, and the Earl of Warenne [and] the
Earl of 5 Penebrok laid siege thereto; to whom Sir Piers surrendered
himself, and they took him to the village of 6 Dadintone, and thither
came the Earl of Warewik, and took the said Piers, and carried him with
him and his people to the Castle of Warewik. And on the Monday before
Saint John [24 June], the aforesaid Sir Piers was beheaded in a field
between Warewik and 7 Cenilleworth, in presence o the Earl of
8 Launkattre [and] the Earl of Hereford.
Memorandum, that on the Monday next before the 9 Maudeleyne
[22 July], came the King, the Earl of Warenne, the Earl of Penebrok,
Sir 10 Henry de Beumond, [and] Sir Simon de Maule, Seneschal of the
Bishop of London, unto the Cross in Saint Paul's Churchyard, and many
of the City of London, to the meeting of the Folkmote ; and there made
oath, as well to hold their lordship in all rightfulness, as to maintain his
crown and to preserve the City to his heirs, as their inheritances.
Memorandum, that on the Vigil of Saint u Colas, and on
the next day as well, there was a great tempest of thunder and
lightning.
Memorandum as to the Sheriffs of London: James le Boteyller,
Draper, [and] William de Basinges, Woolstapler : Nicholas de Farendone,
Mayor of London. [A.D. 1308.]
James de Saint Edmund's, Bureller, and Roger le Paumer, 12 Blader,
Sheriffs : Thomas Homey n, Mayor of London.
Memorandum, that on the Sunday next before Our Lord's Nativity
it began to freeze ; and the frost lasted seven-and-twenty clays, so that
for nineteen days people went upon the ice over the Thames to the land
1 Properly ' Mereworthe.' 8 Lancaster.
2 Maker of burels, coarse russet cloths. 9 Feast of Saint Mary Magdalen.
3 Cornwall. 10 Henry de Beaumont, a Peer of Parliu-
4 Scarborough. ment.
5 Pembroke. n Probably for 'Scolace,' 01" Scholastica,'
6 Dedingtou, near Banbury. 13 February.
7 Kenilworth. > 2 Or Corndealer.
214 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
[on the other side]. King Edward went into Scotland, to war against
Robert de Brus.
Simon de Corp, Pepperer, and Peter de Blaceneye, Woolmonger,
were Sheriffs : Richer de Kef ham, Mayor of London.
Memorandum, that for one month before Saint Michael, and six
weeks after, there was a mortality among the people, in towns and in
1 upland, to great excess, from the malady of flux, by reason of the fruit
of that year being too much taken.
Be it remembered, that on the Sunday next after the beginning of
Lent, Henry de 2 Lasi, Earl of Lincoln, was brought from his house, with
Earls and Barons, and two knights armed, upon caparisoned steeds, and
four mounted valets carrying four banners with the arms of Earl Henry,
on the road unto the Church of Saint Paul ; and on the Sunday after,
he was buried on the right hand side of the altar of Our Lady, in the
3 New Work there, a great multitude being present.
The sixth year of Edward. Memorandum, that Sir Louis,
brother of the King of France, the Cardinal Blaunk, the Bishop
of 4 Peyters, Chamberlain of the Pope, came to the King at London, a
fortnight before Saint Michael, to treat of peace between the King and
his Earls.
Memorandum, that on the Day of Saint Brice the Bishop [13
November], was born Edward, son of King Edward of Carnerwan, in
the Castle of Windelsore, in the presence of the Cardinal Blaunc,
Monsire Louis of France, [and] the Lady 5 Margaret, Queen of England ;
by reason of which good news, the Mayor, and the Aldermen, and the
Commons of London, made feasts, and 6 carols of people in costume, for
a fortnight after, the Conduit running with wine ; and on this side of the
Cross of the Earl of r Grlousettre in Chepe, one tun of wine in a pavilion
to be drunk. And on the Vigil of Christmas next ensuing, Queen
Isabel rose from childbed in the Castle aforesaid, purified, with great
feasting, both upon the Vigil, and upon Christmas day, and on the
following day.
1 Country places. liberal contributor.
2 Or Lacy. 4 p o itiers.
3 Or St. Faith's Church, at the East end of * Step-mother of Edward II.
the Choir, begun A.D. 1256j3y Bishop Fulk 6 Dances probably, accompanied with songs.
Basset, and to which the Earl had been a " Gloucester.
PRELATES OF CANTERBURY AND LONDON. 215
Memorandum as to the Sheriffs of London the year aforesaid : John
Lambin, Fishmonger, and Richard de Weleford, elected to aid the other
by reason of the default of Richard de Horsam previously elected, who
absented himself at the election and at the presentation.
And the aforesaid Richard de Weleford died in the first quarter of
the year; and Adam Lodekin was Sheriff until the ensuing Saint
Michael, in his place sworn and presented.
Memorandum, that on the Yigil of the Ascension, King Edward,
and Isabel, Queen of England, crossed the sea and landed at l Wissant,
and went to Paris, where the King of France made his son a Knight, and
King of Navarre, with a great number of festivities, on the Day of
Pentecost.
In the following year, the Sheriffs of London were Robert Bordeyn
[and] Hugh de 2 Sarton.
Memorandum, that in the eighth year of King Edward, the cross
with the 3 ball, all gilt, was raised upon the belfry of Saint Paul's ; and the
Bishop of London, Gilbert de Segrave, deposited many precious things
in the said cross on the belfry, on the Friday next after Saint Michael
in the following year.
John de Peccam 4 elected Archbishop by the Pope.
Robert de 5 Wincilse elected Archbishop of Canterberi.
Memorandum, that the aforesaid Robert lies buried at Canterberi,
by the Cross of Robert de Michaelchurch.
Immediately after his 6 death, Thomas de Cobeham was elected
Archbishop of Canterberi, and rejected by the Pope; and Walter
Reinald, Bishop of 7 Wilsettre, was confirmed Archbishop of Canterbeyri
by the said Pope.
Richard de Graveshende, 8 Bishop of London.
Fol. 52 B.
9 Robert de Baudok, Bishop of London; and lies buried
in Saint Paul's.
1 Witsand, near Boulogne. 5 Winchelsea, A.D. 1293.
2 Properly ' Garton.' 6 A.D. 1313.
3 From other sources we learn that this 7 Worcester.
pomel, or ball, was of sufficient capacity to hold 8 A.D. 1280.
10 bushels of corn, the cross being 15 feet in 9 Properly Ralph de Baldock, or Baudake:
height. A.D. 1804.
4 A.D. 1278.
216 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
Gilbert de Segrave, elected 1 Bishop of London.
Bichaid de Neueport, elected 2 Bishop of London.
Memorandum, that on the Day of Saint Brice the Bishop,
[13 November,] in the year of King Edward, son of
Edward, at daybreak, there was an earthquake in London.
3 This year John de 4 Sandegrave was Mayor of London, by the
King's letters, [having been Mayor] the year before, and against the
entreaties of the community.
Also, in the 13th year of Edward, Hamo de 5 Gicewelle, Mayor.
Also, in the 14th year, Nicholas de Farendone was Mayor until the
20th day of February ; and from that day Sir Robert de 6 Cendale was
Warden, until the 20th day of May. And then Hamo de Gikewell was
Mayor by command of the King, in contravention of the franchise,
holding from time to time by writ of the King.
In the 15th year of Edward. The Sheriffs,, Richard Costentin,
Draper, and Richard de 7 Haceneye, Woolstapler. This year, in Lent,
8 Thomas, Earl of five Counties, was beheaded ; the 9 Earl of Hereford
died in battle ; and barons and knights were slain, or died, by judgment
imprisoned in the Castles.
Memorandum, that the gallon of Conduit water weighs ten
Fol. 55 B.
pounds four 10 shillings, by the ordinary weight.
Also, the gallon of Thames water weighs ten pounds sixteen pence,
by the same weight.
Also, the grocers' pound of wax and of fruit is to weigh 25 shillings,
the ounce 25 pence, and the quarter 6 shillings and 3 pence.
Be it remembered, that the n sterling must weigh 32 grains of corn in
number, from the middle of the ear ; and to the quarter of an ounce go
160 grains in number ; and to the half ounce go 320 grains ; and to the
whole ounce go 640 grains, the ounce, that is to say, of twenty sterlings:
and to the quarter of the pound go 1920 grains in number; and to the
1 A.D. 1313. 8 Thomas Plantagenet, Earl of Lancaster,
2 A.D. 1317. cousin of Edward II.
3 /. e. 12th Edward II. 9 Humphrey de Bohun.
4 Or Wengrave. 10 The shilling of silver weighed three-fifths
5 Chigwell. of an ounce.
6 Properly, ' Sandale,' or Sendale.' H Or silver penny.
7 Commonly, * Hakeney.'
CONTINUATION OF THE LIST OF MAYORS. 217
half pound go 3840 grains ; and to the pound of 20 shillings sterling go
7680 grains in number, divided into 12 ounces. And the weight of two
pounds, which amounts in number to 15360 grains, makes the quart of
liquor. And the weight of four pounds, which amounts in number to
30720 grains, makes the pottle. And the weight of eight pounds, which
amounts in number to 1 60440 grains, makes the gallon. And the
weight of thirty-two pounds, which amounts in number to 245760
grains, makes the old half bushel. And the weight of sixty-four pounds,
which amounts in number to 491520 grains, makes the bushel of wheat,
of the ancient standard. And the weight of 2 366 pounds, which amounts
in number to 3 19266180 grains of wheat, makes the half quarter. And
the weight of 512 pounds sterling, which amounts in number of grains of
wheat to 3932160, makes the measure of one quarter of eight bushels.
[ Continuation of the List of Mayors of London, subsequent to the period
of time comprised in the Chronicle.^
Gregory de 4 Rocele, elected Mayor of London the day of
Saint Simon and Saint Jude [28 October].
Henry le Waleys, elected 5 Mayor of London.
Gregory de Rokele, elected c Mayor of London.
7 Warden of London, John le Breton.
Warden of London, Ralph de 8 Sandwy.
9 Warden of London, John le Breton.
10 Henry le Waleys, elected Mayor of London the Day of
Saint Simon and Saint Jude [28 October].
11 Ellis Rossel, elected Mayor, the day before-named. Presented
to the Constable of the Tower for two years.
Also, John le Blount, elected 12 May or of London the day before-
named, and presented to Sir John de 13 Blacebrok, Under-Constable of
the Tower, by writ of the King, and received at the Outer Gate of the
Tower of London.
2
Properly 61440. 7 A.D. 1286.
Properly 256. 8 Or Sandwich, A.D. 1285, 12871292.
3 Properly 1966080. 9 A.D. 12931296.
4 Properly, Rokesley, Mayor A.D. 1274 I0 A.D. 1297, 8.
1280. " Or Elias Russel, A.D. 1299, 1300.
5 A.D. 12811283. "A.D. 13011307.
e AiD . 1284. 13 Or Blaekbrook,
F F
218 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
Also, John le Blount elected Mayor of London, the Day of Saint
Simon and Saint Jude [28 October], and presented to the Earl of
Warenne, the King's Lieutenant, in the Chamber jof the Archbishop of
York.
Also, John le Blound elected Mayor of London, the Day of Saint
Simon and Saint Jude, and presented at the Exchequer.
Also, John le Blound elected Mayor, and presented to the King at
Westminster.
Also, John le Blound elected Mayor the two following years, and
presented to King Edward.
William Coumbemartin elected Mayor, and so continued two days,
and died.
Also, John le Blond elected Mayor of London, the third day after
Saint Simon and Saint Jude, and presented at the Exchequer at West-
minster; and on the Wednesday next before Saint Martin [11 November]
presented at the Court of King * Edward, not as yet crowned, at the
hostel of the Archbishop of York.
John le Blond elected Mayor, and presented at the Exchequer on the
morrow of Saint Simon and Saint Jude, in the first year of King
Edward.
Nicholas de Farendone elected 2 Mayor of London, and received by
King Edward at Westminster on the morrow of Saint Simon and Saint
Jude, in the second year of his reign.
[ 3 Continuation of the List of Sheriffs of London.~\
John Horn, Ralph le Blond. Pleas at the Tower.
Robert d'Arras, Ralph le Fevre. This year the Mayoralty
was 4 sold and bought, to be held by him of the preceding year.
John Adrian, Walter 5 Leggleys.
William le Maserner, Robert de Basinges.
Ralph de la More, Thomas Box.
William de Farendone, Nicholas de 6 Winsettre.
1 The Second. Rokesley, who held the Mayoralty from A.D,
8 A.D. 1308. 1274 to 1280.
3 See page 191 ante. * Properly, Le Engleys,'
4 In reference, apparently, to Gregory de 6 Winchester.
CONTINUATION OF THE LIST OF SHERIFFS. 219
William le Maserner, Richard de Chigewelle. This year there was a
great frost.
^auncetin de Bettevile, Walter le Blound.
Jourdan 2 Godsep, Martin Box.
Steven de 3 Cornulle, Robert de 4 Rocele.
Walter le Blound, John Wade.
Thomas Cros, Walter Hauteyn.
Thomas de Stanes, William de Hereford.
William de Bettoyne, John de Caunteberi.
Fulk de Saint Edmund, Salaman le Cotiller.
Thomas Romeyn, William de Leyre.
Ralph le Blound, Hamo Box.
5 Helis Rossel, Henry le Bole.
Robert de 6 Rocele, Martin de Aumesberi.
Henry Box, Richard de 7 Glousettre.
8 Hadam de Halingberi, John de Donestaple.
Thomas de 9 Seuvouf, Hadam de 10 Foulam.
John de n Sterteford. William de Stertefourd.
Thomas Seli, Pelterer, Richer 12 le Mercer.
Memorandum, that on Monday, the Vigil of the 13 Tiffany
[6 January], in the beginning of the seven-and-twentieth year
of King Edward [I.], at daybreak, there was an earthquake, with loud
noise, for a short time, in London, Gloucester, [and] elsewhere, through-
out the kingdom.
Memorandum, that on the day of the Nativity of Our Lady [8 Sep-
tember], being a Tuesday, in the seven-and-twentieth year of the 14 King,
arrived at Dover the Lady Margaret, daughter of Philip, King of France,
and on the morrow came to Canterbury ; and on the Thursday after,
came Edward, King of England, to the Church of the Trinity at Canter-
bury, and espoused the aforesaid Margaret, Queen of England, she being
of the age of twenty years.
Properly, 'Anketin.' 6 For 'Adam.'
Properly, ' Godchep.' 9 For ' Suthfolke,' or ' Suffolk.'
Cornhill. 10 Fulbam.
Rokesley. n Stortford.
Properly Eliaa.' w Generally known as ' Richer de Refham.
Rokesley. 13 Or Epiphany.
Gloucester. u Edward I.
220 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
Memorandum, that on the Sunday next before Saint * Ed ward,
Queen Margaret came from the Tower through London to Westminster;
and the Earl of Bretagne, and the Count of Savoy, and the Mayor of
London, with his Aldermen, arrayed in suit, as also three hundred
burgesses of the City in suit. There were two 2 bretasches in the road
of Chepe, from which there were eight outlets discharging wine from
above; and the road was covered with cloths of gold, against her first
coming.
3 Sheriffs, Henry de Fingrie, Fishmonger, and John d'Armenters,
Draper.
Memorandum, that on the Sunday next before the Day of the
Annunciation of Our Lady [25 March], the bones of Sir 4 Edmund,
the King's brother, were brought to Saint Paul's from the new Abbey
of the Minoresses without 5 Alegate, and from Saint Paul's to West~
minster ; and the King accompanied his bones through the City on foot,
as also Earls, and Barons, and Bishops ; and on the next day, the bones
were interred at Westminster, on the left hand side of the altar of Saint
Peter there ; it being the eight-and-twentieth year of the King's reign.
Memorandum, that on the Day of Saint Stephen [26 December],
at the beginning of the eight-and-twentieth year, the 6 crocards and
pollards were proclaimed. They were cried down throughout England,
and continued current only until the Vigil of Easter Day next ensuing :
upon which Vigil it was forbidden that they should pass current. This
money came from Flanders, and was current in England throughout the
land for six years, to the great damage of all the realm.
Lucas de 7 Awerhinge, Richard de Campes, 8 Sheriffs.
Robert de Callere, Peter de 9 Bossam : being so made upon election
by Elis Rossel, Mayor, and the Aldermen, and presented to the Constable
of the Tower, at the Outer Gate.
As to the above Robert, there was a great dispute between the
Commons and the Aldermen in reference to his election ; so that they
1 It seems uncertain whether the 5th inferior value. They generally passed for one
January or 13th October is here meant. penny, but by proclamation their value was
Wooden towers. fixed at one halfpenny.
In the 28th of Edward I., A.D. 1300, 1. 7 Properly, ' Haveringe,' in Essex.
Edmund Plantagenet, who died A.D. 1295. 6 In the 29th and 30th years of Edward I.
Aldgate. 9 Or ' Bosenho.'
Crooked and polled, or clipped, coins of
EVENTS IN THE REIGN OF EDWARD I. 221
would not pay l the aforesaid Robert, and wished to annul the said elec-
tion ; but they did pay.
Memorandum, that on the Day of Saint Simon and Saint Jude [28
October] John le Blond was elected Mayor of London, and presented
to John de Blacebrok, Under-Constable of the Tower of London, assigned
by the King's writ, without the Outer Gate of the Tower aforesaid.
Memorandum, that John Botetourte and William Jige, Justiciars,
with John le Blount, Mayor of London, and their people, came to sit in
the Guildhall of London on the Tuesday next before Saint Dunstan
[19 May], to hear and determine in an action of trespass between
John le 2 Jauser, Elis Rossel, and John de 3 Geudeford and others, by
reason of the acting of the aforesaid John le Jauser in breach of the
franchise of the City, as was alleged by the Aldermen : and on the morrow
the said Justiciars, in the hall aforesaid, adjourned the parties until the
Saturday next, at the Leaden Hall. Upon which day, their oaths were
4 proffered in discharge of the accusation ; which [the judges] did not allow,
but held the aforesaid Elis and John, and several of the accused, as un-
defended, and to pay damages to the aforesaid John le Jauser of 1000
pounds ; because that the aforesaid Elis and the others would only acquit
themselves by 5 making their law, in a matter where the franchise did not
lie out of the 6 Iter. And the aforesaid John le Jauser died within a
fortnight after this, through an accident, at his own house.
Simon de Paris, Mercer, and Hugh Pourte, Fishmonger, 7 Sheriffs of
London.
Memorandum, that John le Blount was chosen Mayor of London on
the Day of Saint Simon and Saint Jude [28 October], and presented to
the Earl of Warenne, the King's Lieutenant, in the Chamber of the
Archbishop of York, before the King's Council.
William 8 Comartin, John de Boureford, Sheriffs of London.
1 The dues received by him in the capacity See Liber Albus, passim.
of Sheriff. 5 Trial by oath of compurgators was thus
2 Meaning ' le Chaucer,' the writing being called.
evidently that of a foreigner. 6 Held by the Justiciars at the Tower. This
3 Guilford. it is surmised is the meaning of " en cheusepar
* In conformity with the alleged privileges " la fransise en heyre dehors"
of the citizens of London, who, in most cases, 7 31 Edward I.
were allowed to discharge themselves by their 8 Properly Combe Martin, from the place
own oath and that of jurors or compurgators. in North Devon of that name.
222 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
John le Blound this year Mayor of London, and presented to
the Constable of the Tower of London on the morrow of Saint Simon
and Saint Jude, without the Outer Gate of the Tower aforesaid.
John de Lincoln, Vintner, Roger de Paris, Mercer, Sheriffs of London.
John le Blouut elected Mayor of London, and presented to the
Under-Constable of the Tower of London.
William Cosin, Reginald de 1 Souriderle, Sheriffs. The year of
2 Trailbaston.
Memorandum, that on Monday the Vigil of Saint Bartholomew [24
August], in the three-and- thirtieth year of King Edward, William le
3 Wales, a knight of Scotland, was adjudged in the King's Hall at
4 Neuwouttel, to be drawn, hanged, and beheaded, his bowels burnt, his
body divided into four parts, and his head cut off and exposed on a lance
on London Bridge, for treason committed against the aforesaid Edward,
King of England and Scotland.
Memorandum, that Robert le Brus, Earl of 5 Karrik, had himself
crowned King of Scotland, on the Day of the Annunciation of Our
Lady [25 March], in the four-and-thirtieth year of King Edward; and
levied war in Scotland against England.
Simon 6 Frisel, a Baron of Scotland, drawn, and hanged, and beheaded,
his body taken down and 7 burnt, at London, for treason.
The five-and-thirtieth year of Edward. [L] Memorandum,
Fol fi2 A
that on the Day of 8 Pentecost, Edward, Prince of Wales,
received his arms from King Edward, his father, he making one of three
hundred knights, and on the same day was dubbed at Westminster with
great display ; and on the morrow, Monsire Edward held his feast at the
New Temple, with eight hundred knights.
Geoffrey du Conduit, Simon Bollete, Sheriffs of London.
Memorandum, that John, Earl of 9 Asseles in Scotland, was hanged,
and his body 10 taken down beneath the gallows, and his head cut off and
carried on a lance to London Bridge, and his body burnt beneath the
gallows.
1 Properly Thunderley,' the present Thun- 6 Carrick.
dersley, in Essex. 6 Or ' Fraser.'
3 See under the 30th of Edward L, in the 7 In reality, it was hung in chains,
following Chronicle. 6 Or Whit-Sunday.
3 Wallace. Properly, ' Athol.'
4 Qy. Newbottle ? 10 L e. before he was dead
EVENTS IN THE REIGN OF EDWARD II. 223
Memorandum, that Edward, King of England, died on the Day
of the Translation of Saint Thomas of Canterbury [7 July], three
leagues from A Kardeul. Upon the Vigil of the Assumption of Our
Lady [15 August], the body arrived at the Abbey of Waltham, and
remained there until the Tuesday next before Saint Simon and Saint
Jude [28 October] ; upon which day, it was brought to the 2 Trinity of
London, and on the morrow was conveyed thence by King Edward, his
son, with the Earls and Barons, and with six knights, mounted and covered
with his arms, two hundred lighted torches being borne before him, unto
the Church of Saint Paul ; and on the morrow he was carried to West-
minster in form aforesaid, by Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots, and Priors ;
and on the Friday after, was interred the noble King Edward on the
left of the altar of Saint Peter, at the head of King Henry his father,
and by the side of Saint Edward, towards the North.
The first year of Edward. [II.]
Sheriffs, 3 Nicholas Hauteyn, Mercer, ... . Draper.
Memorandum, that on the Day of the Conversion of Saint Paul
[25 January], being Thursday, Edward, King of England, espoused
Isabel, daughter of the King of France, at 4 Boloyne, with great array ;
and came to London on the Day of Saint Peter's Chair [28 January] ;
and on the Saturday next ensuing, came the King and Queen, and Sir
Charles the Duke of Brebaunt, Sir Louys de Cleremound, the Count de
Breme, with one hundred knights of France, through the City of
London to the King's Palace at Westminster. And on the morrow,
which was Sunday, Edward, King of England, received the crown from
the hand of the Bishop of Winchester, substitute of the Archbishop of
Canterbury, with grand array upon that day ; and the citizens of
London served that day at the feast, with the Earl of Arundel and the
Mayor of London, in the Butlership before the King, with two hundred
cups ; four hundred men being arrayed in divers costumes upon that
day.
The second year of Edward. [II.]
Memorandum, that on the Day of Saint Michael, being Sunday,
1 Carlisle. Drury were Sheriffs.
2 In Aldgate. 4 Boulogne, in France.
3 In reality, Nicholas Pycot and Nigel
224 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
the Earl of Gloucester married the daughter of the Earl of 1 Wuollestre,
in Ireland, in the Abbey Church of Waltham, in presence of King
Edward, and the Earls and Barons ; and on the next day, the Earl's son
married the sister of the Earl of Gloucester in the same place, and received
his arms of King Edward.
Memorandum, that on Sunday in the beginning of Lent,
in the second year of King Edward, a whale was taken in the
Thames near 2 Grenewis, being twelve toises in length and five toises in
girth ; and it was brought to the Tower of London, and there cut up by
the Constable, Sir John de Cromwelle, acting for the King.
Parliament of his Lordship King Edward at the Friars s Preachers in
the City of London.
The Monday next after the Assumption of Our Lady [15 August], in
the fifth year of our Lord King Edward, son of King Edward, in
presence of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and many Bishops of the
land, Earls, and Barons. At which Parliament were sworn all the afore-
said Lords, and the Chancellor and Treasurer, and the Justiciars, and
the Barons of the Exchequer, and the Knights of all the Counties : and
the Mayor and Aldermen of London, with all the better folks of the City,
were sworn to keep and maintain all the Statutes ordained in the afore-
said Parliament, to the profit of the King and his people.
The which Parliament lasted fifteen days ; and at the next return of
our Lord the King to the House of the Friars Preachers in London, the
aforesaid Statutes were published by the Bishop of Salisbury, substitute
of the Archbishop of Canterbury, in Saint Paul's Churchyard,
in presence of many Bishops, and the Earls of Lancaster, of
Lincoln, and of Leicester, of 4 Ferys, of Salesbyri, Sir 5 Emeir de Valence,
Earl of 6 Penebrok, and the Earl of Warwyck, and the Earl of Hereford,
Sir Hugh de Ver, Earl of 7 Oxeneford, and the Earl of Arundel, and
many Barons of the land, that is to say, on the Monday next before
Saint Michael, in the year of our Lord the King aforesaid. And on the
1 If this means Ulster, the statement seems 3 Dominicans, or Black Friars,
incorrect ; as Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, 4 Ferrers.
had that title; and his only daughter was 5 More commonly, Aymer.'
married to Thomas Earl of Lancaster. 6 Pembroke.
3 Greenwich. 7 Oxford.
EVENTS IN THE REIGN OF EDWARD II. 225
Tuesday next after Saint Michael, came the Earl of Gloucester, Monsire
Henry de Percy, Sir Hugh Despencer, Sir Kobert le Fitz-Payn, Sir
Payn l Tipetout, the Chancellor, the Treasurer, and other Lords of the
King's Council, and pronounced the aforesaid Statutes by the grant and
the good will of our Lord the King to be maintained and confirmed
throughout his realm, at the Cross in Saint Paul's Churchyard aforesaid,
in presence of all the people. And on the Monday next before the
Day of Saint Edward the King [13 October], the aforesaid Statutes,
sealed with the King's Great Seal, were sent with his writs throughout
the Counties, for publication and confirmation of the aforesaid Statutes;
and on the same day, the King departed from London for his Castle of
2 Wyndelsore.
Memorandum, that on the Day of Saint Agnes, the Virgin and
Martyr [21 January], in the year aforesaid, was issued the King's writ,
with his letters under his Privy Seal, throughout all the Counties of
England; to publish thereby on behalf of Sir Piers de Gavastone, Earl
of Cornwall, his return by the King's command into his own land,
as being, as pure, good, and loyal, as before he was exiled by act of
the King, and assent of the Archbishop, Bishops, Earls, and Barons.
The which command came from York, and was published at London on
the Saturday next after the Conversion of Saint Paul [25 January].
In the seventh year of the reign of King Edward, son
Jb 01. 14:0 B.
of King Edward.
Be it remembered, that on the Sunday next before the Day of Saint
Luke the Evangelist [18 October], came the Earl of Lancaster, the
Earl of Warwyk, the Earl of Hereford, the Earl of Arundel, Sir Henry
de Percy, Sir Robert de Cliiford, Sir John Botetourte, and others not
named, into the Hall of Westminster, before the King on the high dais
there, kneeling to make obeisance unto their lord, and to ask pardon.
And he of his own free will granted it unto them, and gave them his
letter as to all offences up to that day committed ; and on the morrow
his general Parliament began.
Memorandum, that on the Vigil of the Nativity of Saint John the
Baptist [24 June], being Sunday, there came, the King of England, the
Earl of Gloucester, the Earl of Hereford, the Earl of 3 Penebrok, and
1 Or Tibetoft,.or Tiptoft. 3 Pembroke.
2 Windsor.
G G
226 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
many Barons of England, with banners displayed, unto near the Castle
of l Estrivelyn in Scotland, and gave battle to Robert de Brus, and all
his force, in the field. In which field, the discomfiture fell upon the
people of England, it being the Day of Saint John thence next ensuing.
And there died there the said Earl of Gloucester, Robert de Clifford,
Baron, Giles de Argenteym, Payn Tipetoft, William le Mareschal, and
other Barons and Knights, and the Earl of Hereford was taken prisoner,
John de Sagrave taken, Ralph de Monhermer taken, and other Barons
and Knights taken ; and the King made his escape without receiving
bodily harm, and returned to Berwyk.
[Notice given on the occasion of the 2 Robbery of the King's Treasury at
Westminster, 31 Edward /.]
" We do command you, on behalf of our Lord the King, upon pain of
" forfeiture of life and of limb, and of lands, and of chattels, and whatso-
" ever you may forfeit, that all those who have found aught of the treasure
" of our Lord the King, be it gold, or silver, or stone, or any other
" thing whatsoever, whether within the City or without, in whatsoever
" place it may be, coming from his Treasury at Westminster which has
" been broken open, shall come unto the Guildhall before the Mayor
" and Sheriffs, and restore what they shall have so found, between this
" and Sunday next ensuing, at the hour of Vespers. We do also
" command, on behalf of our Lord the King, under pain of forfeiture
" aforesaid, that all those who have sold or bought aught of the same
" treasure, or who know that any persons have sold or bought any of
" that same treasure, or who know that any persons have found any
" part thereof, or have the same in their keeping in any manner whatso-
" ever, shall come unto the Guildhall before the Mayor and Sheriffs, and
" shall shew and acknowledge what they know thereof, between this
" and Sunday next ensuing, at the hour of Vespers, in manner as is
" before stated. And whosoever shall not do the same on or before such
" day, the King will hold them as felons against him."
The 13th year of Edward [II.], at the beginning.
Memorandum, that the King, the Earl of 3 Langatre, the
1 Stirling. Edward I.
5 See the following Chronicle, s. a. 31 3 Lancaster.
EVENTS IN THE REIGN OF EDWARD II. 227
Earl Marshal, the Earl of l Risemond, the Earl of 4 Peneprok, the Earl of
Hereford, the Earl of Warrenne, the Earl of Artmdel, and many Barons,
went into Scotland to wage war against Robert de Brus.
The 20th year of Edward [II.].
Memorandum, that Queen Isabel and her son Edward,
and John de 3 Henaud, Edmund de 4 Wodestoce, Earl of Kent, Roger
de Mortimer, and the Knights of England who had been banished, and a
great number of men-at-arms from Henaud, arrived in England and
penetrated as far as 5 Bristoue, and there took the Earl of 6 Winsettre
[and] the Earl of Arondel, and sentenced them to death. After this,
they pursued the King, Hugh 7 le Despencer, [and] Robert de 8 Baudok,
Chancellor of England ; and took the King, and placed him in custody,
while Hugh and Robert they sentenced to death as traitors. The King
they deposed from the crown, and the same year he died by a sudden
death. Edward, his son, they had crowned at Westminster before his
father's death, and he went against the Scots, who by force of arms had
entered his territories ; but having made a treacherous alliance with
certain of the English, they returned to their own country.
In 9 this leaf are set forth what Charters were in the Chest
Fol. 159 A.
of the citizens in the year of Our Lord 1270 ; which Chest was
at that time in the custody of Arnald Fitz-Thedmar, under the keys of
Robert de Corenhelle, and Robert de Rokesle, and John Addrian,
Draper.
The Charter of King William the First, 10 written in English.
The Charter of King Henry the Second as to the Liberties of the
City, granted in the . . . year of his reign.
The Charter of King Richard as to the Liberties of the City, granted
in the . . . year of his reign.
1 .Richmond. 7 The Younger.
2 Pembroke. 8 Or Baldock.
3 Hainanlt. -" This entry, it will be observed, is of con-
4 Woodstock. siclerably earlier date than the greater part of
5 Bristol. the insertions.
c Winchester ; Hugh le Despenser received n< ' script a in AngHris.' ' Anglo-Saxon ' is
this title in the year 1322. strictly the meaning.
228 LATER INSERTIONS IN LIBER DE ANTIQUIS LEGIBUS.
" Whereas the tenure of edifices in the City of London is
Fol. 161 B.
" such, that in many places where no Mand has been sold, certain
" persons may chance to pierce the walls of their neighbours, in which
" they have no right of their own, nor ought to have, nor ought maliciously
(< to enjoy the occupation thereof, as by putting in the said walls beams, or
" corbels, or arches, or aumbries. And such occupations as aforesaid do
" take place in cellars and in rooms in which no persons can approach the
" same or can know thereof, save only the household of the occupier. And
" such occupations as these do last for many years, and are not perceived,
" so that no complaint can at an early moment be made thereon. It is
" hereby provided, that at whatsoever time it shall be first perceived by
" a person, however long after such occupation shall have been made of
(< his private wall, such person shall at the same time and hour be able
" to make his plaint thereon in the Hustings. And the Mayor shall give
" a day for the same ; upon which day the occupier shall be summoned
" to come before the Mayor and the folks of the 2 Assize. And if the
" aforesaid occupier shall not forthwith shew his warranty, to the effect
<e that he has rightfully wrought in that wall, then forthwith, at the cost
" of the aforesaid occupier, the said occupation is to be ousted, and the
" aforesaid wall restored to its proper state, as is before stated."
1 This document is evidently copied most can only be guessed at.
inaccurately, and, in some places, its meaning 3 Or Jury.
THE
FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON.
44 HENEY III. 17 EDWARD III.
THE
FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON,
44 Henry III. [A.D. 1259, 60]. William Fitz-Richard, Mayor.
Henry de Coventre and Adam Broning, l SheriiFs.
In this year two 2 Romans were slain in Westchepe, namely, Master
John le Gras and Beisantyn, by persons who were strangers. This
year a disagreement took place between Sir Edward and Richard, Earl
of Gloucestre, by whom the gates of London were shut, and guarded by
men-at-arms full five weeks and more ; because that the King was then
beyond sea to make terms with the King of France.
45 Henry III. [A.D. 1260, 1]. The said William, Mayor. 3 John
de Norhamtone and Richard Pikard, Sheriffs.
In this year, on Saint John's Night [27 December] at Christmas,
there escaped from Neugate Roger de Clere, Geoffrey de Toucestre, John
de Saint Auban, John de 4 Euerwik, and three others ; and for this
escape, Roger, the gaoler, was taken and imprisoned in Neugate.
46 Henry III. [A.D. 1261, 2]. The said William, Mayor. Philip le
Tailour and Richard de Walbrok, Sheriffs.
47 Henry III. [A. D. 1262,3], Thomas Fitz-Thomas, Mayor. Robert
de 5 Mounpelers and 6 Hubert de Suffolk, Sheriffs.
In this year began the war between the King and his Barons, for the
7 Provisions of Oxford. Then the 8 Bishop of Hereford was taken by
the Barons. In this year the New Hall at Westminster was 9 burnt.
1 Elected at the end of 43 Henry III., for 7 Extorted from Henry III. by Simon de
the following year. Montfort.
2 Followers of Richard, Earl of Cornwall, 8 Peter de Egeblaunch, a Savoyard. He
King of the Romans. was expelled from his Cathedral, and sent to
3 Alderman of Aldgate Ward. the Castle of Erdesley.
* York. 9 Mentioned in the Liber de Antiquis Legibus,
5 Moptpellier. *. a. 1262. See pp. 54, 55, ante.
6 In the Liber de Antiquis Legibus, ' Osbert.'
232 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON.
In this year the Queen was shamefully hooted and reviled at London
1 Bridge, as she was desiring to go from the Tower to Westminster ; and
this, because she had caused a gentle damsel to be put to death, the most
beauteous that was known, and imputed to her that she was the King's
concubine. For which reason, the Queen had her taken and stripped all
naked, and made her sit between two great fires in a chamber quite
closed, so that this very beauteous damsel was greatly terrified, for she
thought for certain that she should be burnt, and began to be in great
sorrow by reason thereof.
And in the meantime, the Queen had caused a bath to be prepared,
and then made the beauteous damsel enter therein ; and forthwith, she
made a wicked old hag beat this beauteous damsel upon both her arms
with a staff ; and then, so soon as ever the blood gushed forth, there
came another execrable sorceress, and brought two frightful toads upon
a trowel, and put them upon the breasts of the gentle damsel ; where-
upon they immediately seized her breasts and began to suck. Two
other old hags also held her arms stretched out, so that the beauteous
damsel might not be able to sink down into the water until all the blood
that was in her body had run out. And all the time that the filthy toads
were sucking the breasts of this most beauteous damsel, the Queen, laugh-
ing the while, mocked her, and had great joy in her heart, in being thus
revenged upon Kosamonde. And when she was dead, the Queen had the
body taken and buried in a filthy ditch, and with the body the toads.
But when the King had heard the news, how the Queen had acted
towards the most beauteous damsel whom he so greatly loved, and whom
he held so dear in his heart, he felt great sorrow, and made great lamenta-
tion thereat : "Alas ! for my grief; what shall I do for the most beauteous
" E-osamond ? For never was her peer found for beauty, disposition, and
" courtliness." And after he had for long made such lamentation, he
desired to know what had become of the body of the beauteous damsel.
Then the King caused one of the wicked sorceresses to be seized, and
1 From Wikes' Chronicle, we learn that on This indignation of the Londoners was aroused
this occasion, upon her barge approaching the by the avarice of Eleanor of Provence and her
Bridge (14th June), curses and imprecations countrymen. The writer has, by mistake,
were launched against her, arid she only applied the story of Fair Rosamond, according
escaped from a shower of mud, broken eggs, to a peculiar version of his own, to the wife of
and stones, by a speedy retreat to the Tower. Henry III. instead of Henry II.
THE LEGEND OF FAIR ROSAMOND. 233
had her put into great straights, that she might tell him all the truth
as to what they had done with the gentle damsel ; and he swore by
Almighty God that if she should lie in any word, she should have as
shocking a sentence as man could devise.
Then the old hag began to speak and to relate to the King all the
truth, how the Queen had wrought upon the most beauteous body of the
gentle damsel, and where and in what place they would find it. And in
the meantime, the Queen had the body of the most beauteous damsel
taken up, and commanded the body to be carried to a house of religion
which has " Godestowe " for name, near Oxenford, at a distance of two
leagues therefrom ; and had the body of Rosamond there buried, to colour
her evil deeds, that so no one might perceive the horrid and too shameful
deeds which the Queen had done, and she might exculpate herself from
the death of this most gentle damsel.
And then King Henry began td ride towards Wodestoke, where
Rosamond e, whom he loved so much at heart, was so treacherously mur-
dered by the Queen. And as the King was riding towards Wodestoke,
he met the dead body of Rosamonde, strongly enclosed within a chest,
that was well and stoutly bound with iron. And the King forthwith
demanded whose corpse it was, and what was the name of the person
whose dead body they bore. Then they made answer to him, that it was
the corpse of the most beauteous Rosamond. And when King Henry
heard this, he instantly ordered them to open the chest, that he might
behold the body that had been so vilely martyred. Immediately thereon,
they did the King's command, and shewed him the corpse of Rosamond,
who was so hideously put to death. And when King Henry saw the
whole truth thereof, through great grief he fell fainting to the ground,
and lay there in a swoon for a long time before any one could have con-
verse with him.
And when the King awoke from his swoon, he spoke, and he swore a
great oath, that he would take full vengeance for the most horrid felony
which, for great spite, had upon the gentle damsel been committed.
Then began the King to lament and to give way to great sorrow for the
most beauteous Rosamonde, whom he loved so much at heart. " Alas !
" for my grief,'' said he, " sweet^Rosamonde, never was thy peer, never
" so sweet nor so beauteous a creature to be found : may then the sweet
H H
234 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1263, 4.
" God, who abides in Trinity, on the soul of sweet Kosamonde have
" mercy, and may he pardon her all her misdeeds : very God Almighty,
" Thou who art the end and the beginning, suffer not now that this soul
" shall in horrible torment come to perish, and grant unto her true
" remission for all her sins, for thy great mercy's sake."
And when he had thus prayed, he commanded them forthwith to ride
straight on to Godestowe with the body of the lady, and there had her
burial celebrated in that religious house of nuns ; and there did he
appoint thirteen chaplains to sing for the soul of the said Rosamonde, so
long as the world shall last. In this religious house of Godestowe, I tell
you for truth, lieth the fair Rosamonde buried. May Very God Almighty
of her soul have mercy. Amen.
48 Henry III. [A.D. 1263,4]. Thomas Fitz-Thomas, Mayor. Gregory
de Rokesle and Thomas de la Forde, Sheriffs.
In this year, upon the fourth and fifth of the Ides [9 and 10] of
April, there was a l massacre of the Jews in London. In the same year,
upon the 6th of the Ides [10] of May, there was a great conflagration in
Milkstrete and Bredstrete in Westchepe. And on the next day was the
Battle of Lewes, that is to say, the Wednesday next before the 2 Feast of
Saint Dunstan. In this year there was seen in the firmament a star that
is called a " comet." At this time there were great conflagrations in
England, and 3 Istelworthe was burnt, and the 4 Jewry destroyed.
49 Henry III. [A.D. 1264, 5]. The said Thomas, Mayor. Edward le
Blount, Draper, and Peter Aunger, Sheriffs.
In this year there were great storms of thunder and lightning in
England, and by a flash of lightning a part was struck down of the belfry
of Saint Bartholomew's in London. In this year, upon the day of the
3 Gule of August [1 August], part of the Barons who held with the
Provisions of Oxenford were taken at 6 Keningworthe, being there in
company with Simon de Mountfort the Younger ; and upon the Tuesday
1 On the ground, according to Fabyan, that worth. See p. 65 ante.
a Jew had extorted more than legal interest 4 Or Jews' quarter, near the Guildhall,
from a Christian : upwards of 500 Jews were London.
killed on this occasion. See Liber de Antiqvis s ' Gula August/.' Probably meaning ' the
Lfgibus, p. 66 ante. ' Throat of August,' though there is some doubt
2 /. e. the Deposition of Saint Dunstan, the as to the origin of the name.
19th May. . 6 Kenilworth.
3 The Eurl of Cornwall's mansion at Isl(N
A. D. 1264,,'..] A WARDEN OF THE CITY APPOINTED. 235
after, was fought the Battle of Evesham, on the Vigil of Saint Oswald
[5 August].
50 Henry III. [A.D. 1265, 6]. Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes was made Warden
of London, and the Mayor and Sheriffs put down for five years, because
that the City had held with the Barons. In this year, Stephen Bokerel,
Thomas de x Peuleslond, Michael Thovy, Goldsmith, John the Capper of
Flete, and others, were sent for by letter of King Henry, that they
should come to him at Windesore ; and so soon as they had come, the
King commanded them to be put in prison, and delivered them to Sir
Edward, his son ; and he detained them in prison, each by himself, until
such time as they had been ransomed ; wherefore, they gave a large
amount of property to Sir Edward that they might be released, and part
of their lands Sir Edward caused to 'be given to knights of the land,
in disherison of them and of their heirs for ever, in case they should not
buy back the same with their own money.
51 Henry III. [A.D. 1266,7]. William* Fitz-Kichard, Warden. John
Adrian and Walter Hervi, Bailiffs. And this William Fitz-Ri chard
was Warden for the King only from the Feast of Saint Martyn [11
November] until Ascension Day [30 December] ; when the said John
Adrian and Walter Hervi were made Bailiffs under Sir John de la
Lynde and Sir John Walravene, who was then Constable of the Tower,
until Saint Michael. In this year, upon the 2 Day of Saint Cross in
August, Sir Edward had Gerveys Skyret drawn, who was taken from
the Churchyard of Saint Sepulchre's, for the death of Giles de Wode-
ham; for which reason, Master 3 Godfrey de Saint Dunstan was in great
tribulation for the franchise of Holy Church. In the same year, after
the Trinity, began the siege of *Kilingworth, and continued until the
Day of Saint Lucy [13 December] next ensuing, when the castle was
surrendered. In the same year, about Saint Michael, the disherisoned
conquered the Isle of Ely.
52 Henry III. [A.D. 1267,8]. Still there was no Mayor in London,
but John Adrian and Luke de Batencourt were Bailiffs under Sir John
1 Called Piwelesdon,' iii the Liber de August.
Antiquis Lerjilms. 3 Custos, or Warden, of the bishopric of
2 The Exaltation of the Holy Cross is pro- London
bably alluded to, 14th September, and not in 4 Keuilworth.
236 THE FKENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.. 1J67, 8.
de la Lynde. The same year,, on the Monday before Candlemas [2
February], the King removed from Westminster to Waltham, to go to
Saint Edmund's for the purpose of besieging the Isle of Ely.
53 Henry III. [A.D. 1268,9]. William Fitz-Richard, Warden.
Walter Hervy and William de Durham, Bailiffs.
In the same month, at the Parliament at Winchester, Philip le
Tailour and Walter le x Porter were made Sheriffs. And by assent of
the Prelates, Earls, and Barons, the King transferred his 2 cross to Sir
Edward his son, that he might go, as well for him as for himself, to the
Holy Land ; and granted him the twentieth pennies that were collected
in England. And after the 20th day of August, he and his wife, and
many of the great lords of the land, on the Crusade, crossed the sea at
Dover. And then were removed Walter and Philip from their Sheriff-
wicks, and Gregory de Rokesle and Henry Waleis were made Sheriffs
by the citizens.
54 Henry III. [A.D. 1269,70]. Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes, Warden.
Thomas de 3 Basingges and Robert de Cornhill, Bailiffs.
55 Henry III. [A.D. 1270]. Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes, Warden.
Walter le Porter and * Philip le Tailour, Sheriffs.
56 Henry III. [A.D. 1270,1]. 5 John Adrian, Mayor. Gregory de
Rokeslee and Henry le Waleis, Sheriffs.
In this year the belfry of [Saint Mary] 6 Arches fell to the ground.
57 Henry III. [A.D. 1271,2]. Walter Hervy, Mayor. John de
Bodele and Richard de Parys, Cordwainer, Sheriffs.
This Walter Hervi was made Mayor by election of the commons
against the will of the Aldermen, and he continued Mayor the year next
ensuing. In this year died King Henry, on the Day of Saint 7 Edmund
de 8 Pounteneye [16 November], and on the Day of Saint Edmund the
King [20 November] he was buried at Westminster. And as soon as
the interment had been made, Sir Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester,
1 More correctly, ' Poter.' 5 Alderman of Walbrook Ward.
2 The cross worn as a badge by the Cru- 6 Bow Church.
saders. 7 Archbishop of Canterbury, died 16 Nov.
3 Alderman of Candlewick Ward. The 1242.
family of the Basings gave name to the Ward K ' Seint Edmund the Confessor, that lith
of Bassishaw. their mansion house (Basing's ' at Poimteneye.' Cott. MS. JuL D. ix. fol.
jHaugh, or Hall) being there situate. 175.
Alderman of Bishopsgate Ward.
A.D. M72, 3.] ACCESSION OF EDWARD I. 237
and all the other great men of England, did fealty and homage to Sir
Edward, son of King Henry, who was at that time on pilgrimage in the
Holy Land, as is before stated.
EDWARD THE FIRST.
The Names of the Mayors, and the Marvels in the time of King
Edward, son of King Henry.
1 Edward I. [A.D. 1272, 3]. Walter Hervy, Mayor. John Horn
and Walter le Porter, Sheriffs.
2 Edward I. [A.D. 1273, 4]. Henry 1 Waleis, Mayor. 2 Henry de
Coventry and 3 Nicholas de Winchester, Sheriffs.
At this time Walter Hervi was deposed from his Aldermanry by
Henry Waleis. This year came King Edward and his wife from the
Holy Land ; and were crowned at Westminster on the Sunday next
after the Feast of the Assumption of Our Lady [15 August], being the
Feast of Saint Magnus [19 August]; and the Conduit in Chepe ran all
the day with red wine and white wine to drink, for all such as wished.
3 Edward I. [A.D. 1274, 5]. Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. Luke de
Batencourt and 4 Henry de Fro wick, Sheriffs.
In the same year was Adam de Bekke, Canon of the Church of Saint
Paul, slain just before the Vigil of Saint Andrew [30 November] : and
in this year, on the Saturday next before the Feast of Saint Bartholomew
[24 August], the prisoners escaped from Neugate. In the same year,
upon the Octaves of Saint Martyn [11 November], the Justiciars in Eyre
sat at the 5 Cross of Saint Peter, that is to say, Master Roger de Seton,
John de Cobham, and Salamon de Rochester.
4 Edward I. [A.D. 1275,6]. Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. 6 John
Horn and 7 Ralph de Blount, Goldsmith, Sheriffs.
In the same year was Michael Thovi, the Younger, hanged ; by
reason of murders and robberies which the Aldermen imputed to him.
1 Alderman of Cordwainers' Ward, and Piere, the Stone Cross ; which was its proper
Mayor of Bordeaux in 1275. appellation. It stood opposite the Bishop of
2 Alderman of Vintry Ward. Coventry's house, partly on the site of the
3 Alderman of Langbourn Ward. present Somerset House in the Strand.
4 A member of the Guild of Pepperers. and 6 Alderman of Bridge Ward.
Alderman of Cripplegate Ward. 7 Alderman of Bassishaw Ward.
5 Sub anno 1293 this is called In Croisse de
238 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A. i>. 1276, 7.
o Edward I. [A.D. 1276, 7]. Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. Ralph
d' Arras and Ralph le Fevre, Sheriffs.
This year, upon the Vigil of Saint 2 Vincent, Sir John Lovetot
and Sir Roger Loveday sat at the house of John Fitz-John, for the
acquittance of those who were indicted by twelve Wards upon articles
of larceny, and of harbouring clippers of the coin; and only three
persons were condemned, one man and two women. In this year, the
King went into Wales with his forces, and the City of London sent him
100 3 arbalesters.
6 Edward I. [A.D. 1277, 8], Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. John
Fitz-John Adrian and Walter le 4 Cornwaleis, Sheriffs.
In this year, the Mayor was presented at the Tower of London to Sir
5 Antony de Bek, and received on behalf of the King ; and there he
made the oath. And the Mayor received the Sheriffs in the Guildhall,
by the King's command, to spare them having to go into Wales. In the
same year, Lewlyn surrendered to the King, and gave him, for having
his peace, fifty thousand marks sterling, and made oath upon the holy
relics that he would come twice each year to the King's Parliament : and
then Leulyn espoused the daughter of Sir Simon de Mountfort, and this
year the said Leulyn did homage to the King.
7 Edward I. [A.D. 1278, 9]. Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. William
le 6 Mazerier and 7 Robert de Basinge, Sheriffs.
In this year the three 8 engines were made at the Tower. At this
time the King of Scotland came to London to the King's Parliament
from year to year, and hacl his mansion, most befitting for his sojourn,
between the abode of the 9 Bishop of Chichester and that of the Earl of
10 Lancaster, which is called n " Saveye," without the Bar of the New
Temple.
In the same year, upon the Octaves of Saint Martin [11 November],
1 Or ' Robert ; ' Alderman of Bread-street 6 Or Mazeliner ; Alderman of Aldersgate
Ward. Ward.
2 Either 22 January, 9 June, or 21 August. 7 Alderman of Candle wick Ward.
3 Or crossbowmen. 8 Of war.
4 Otherwise called 4 Lengleys.' 9 Stephen de Berksteed was the then Bishop.
5 Archdeacon, and afterwards Bishop, of )0 Edmund, second son of Henry 111.
Durham. " The Savoy.
A.D. 1278, 9.] PUNISHMENTS FOK CLIPPING THE COIN. 239
which was a Friday, just before 1 tierce, all the Jews of England were
seized by reason of the coin, which was vilely clipped and falsified, and,
upon the Feast of Saint Lucy [13 December] after, all the goldsmiths
of London, and all those of the Exchange, and many of the good folks
in town were seized, by reason of the purchase of bullion and the
exchange of large coin for 2 small, for which they had been indicted by
the Wards. And on the Monday next after the 3 Tiffany, the Justiciars
sat at the Guildhall for delivery thereon, namely, Sir Stephen de
Pevencestre, Sir Walter de Helyon, and Sir John de Cobham, and such
as they might think proper to associate with them ; and by reason of such
doings, three Christians and 293 Jews were drawn and hanged, for
clipping the coin.
In the same year, the Friars 4 Preachers of London began the founda-
tion of their new church at Castle Baynard; and Brother Robert de
5 Kilwardby, Archbishop of Canterbury, was sent for by the Pope to be
made a Cardinal. Also, Brother John de Pekham, who was a Friar
Minor and a Cardinal, was sent to England to be Archbishop of Canter-
bury, having been consecrated at the Court of Rome. In the same year
was held the Round Table at fi Kylingworthe.
In this year took place the great fire at Saint 7 Botolph's. In this
year the exchange was made at the Tower of London, of the new money,
sterling, halfpenny, and farthing, and Gregory de Rokesle [waa made]
Master of the Exchange throughout all England. This year 8 Murage
was levied on the 14th day of February in London, to continue for three
years ; but it was Mid-Lent before it was collected.
8 Edward I. [A.D. 1279, 80]. Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. 9 Thomas
Box and Ralph de la More, Sheriffs.
In the same year, Master John de Chishull, Bishop of London, died.
1 A canonical division of the day, beginning the three sons of Roger de Mortimer being
at 9 in the morning, and extending to Sext or knighted by Edward I. A great tournament
mid-day. was held, and the guests were sumptuously
2 And of inferior value. entertained at the Round Table, for three days,
3 A corruption of ' Theophaneia,' or Epi- at Mortimer's expense,
phany, 6th January. 7 Boston, in Lincolnshire.
* Dominicans, or Black Friars. 8 A toll levied for the repair of walls and
s Who contributed to the building of the fortifications.
Church of the Black Friars. 9 Alderman of Wai brook Ward.
6 Kenil worth. This was on the occasion of
240 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1280, 1.
9 Edward I. [A.D. 1280, 1]. Gregory de Rokesle, Mayor. l William
de Farendon and 2 Nicholas de Winchester, Sheriffs.
10 Edward I. [A.D. 1281, 2]. Henry Waleis, Mayor. William
Mazerier and Richard de Chikewell, Sheriffs.
In the same year, London Bridge was broken by the great frost that
befell. In this same year too, the Mayor first had the grain weighed
when going to the mill, and after that the flour ; and had the hurdle
provided, for drawing the bakers thereon.
11 Edward I. [A.D. 1282, 3]. Henry Waleis, Mayor. Walter le
Blount and 3 Angecelin de Bete vile, Sheriffs.
In this year was Leulyn, Prince of Wales, taken and beheaded, and
his 4 head sent to the Tower of London ; and Sir Edward, son of King
Edward, was 5 then born, upon Saint Mark's Day [25 April].
12 Edward I. [A.D. 1283, 4]. Henry Waleis, Mayor. Martyn Box
and 6 Jordan Godchep, Sheriffs.
In this year was 7 Davy, the brother of Leulyn, drawn, hanged, and
beheaded, and his head sent to the Tower of London. In the same year,
for the death of Laurence Duket, who was hanged in the church of Our
Lady at Arches, seven persons were drawn and hanged, that is to say,
Reginald de Lanfar, Robert Pinnot, Paul de Stybbenheth, Thomas
Corouner, John de Tholosane, Thomas Russel, and Robert Scot ; a
woman also, called Alice Atte Bowe, was burnt for the same deed ; and
Ralph Crepyn, Jordan Godchep, Gilbert le Clerk, and Geoffrey le Clerk,
were attainted of the felony, and remained prisoners in the Tower. 8
1 Member of the Goldsmiths' Company and 5 This is an error, as ho was born 25 April,
Alderman of Farringdon Ward, which he 1284.
purchased in 1279 from Ralph Flael ; and 6 Removed from office, for being impli-
from him it received its present name. The cated in the murder of Laurence Duket, next
Aldermanry descended to his son Nicholas, mentioned.
and was divided into the Wards Within and 7 Or David.
Without A.D. 1393. 8 The following were the main circumstances
2 Alderman of Langbourn Ward. of this case. Laurence Duket, a citizen of
3 More commonly, 'Anketin:' he was London, wounded one Ralph Cropin, or
Alderman of Bread Street Ward. Crepyn, in West Chepe. and fled to the church
4 It was carried through Chepe to the sound of Saint Mary le Bow. Being pursued thither
of trumpets, and crowned with a silver coronet; by certai persons, he was slain at night in
after which it was fixed on the pillory there, the steeple of the church, and the body was
and then conveyed to the Tower, crowned with then hanged in one of the windows, in such a
j vv way as to deceive the Coroner's inquest, who
A.D. 1284,5.] OFFENCE OF GREGORY DE ROKESLE. 241
13 Edward I. [A.D. 1284, 5]. Gregory de Eokesle, Mayor. * Stephen
de Cornhill and 2 Kobert de Eokesle, Sheriffs.
In this year, upon the Day of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, the City
of London was seized into the King's hand, because that Gregory de
Eokesle surrendered the seal at 3 Berkingchirche, and delivered it to
4 Stephen Esshwy.
14 Edward I. [A.D. 1285, 6]. Sir Ealph de 5 Sandwyz, Warden.
Walter le Blount, Fishmonger, and 6 John Wade, Sheriffs.
In this year the King passed over into France to a Parliament there,
to make reconciliation between r three Kings.
15 Edward I. [A.D. 1286, 7]. Sir Kalph de Sandwyz, Warden. 8 Thomas
Crosse and 9 Walter Hautein, Sheriffs.
In this year all the Jews of England were taken and imprisoned ;
and put to ransom on the morrow of Saint Philip and James [1 May].
16 Edward I. [A.D. 1287, 8]. The said Sir Ealph, Warden. 10 William
de Hereford and n Thomas de Stanes, Sheriffs.
17 Ed ward I. [A.D. 1288,9]. Sir John de Bretton, Warden. 12 William
de Betaigne and 13 John de Caunterbury, Sheriffs.
In the same year, the said Sir John de Bretton was removed, and
the said Sir Ealph made Warden as before, and then the King returned
from abroad.
returned a verdict of felo de se ; whereupon buried in the churchyard,
the body was dragged thence by the feet, and l Alderman of Bishopsgate Ward,
buried in a ditch without the City. It so 2 Alderman of Lime Street Ward.
happened however that a boy, who lay within 3 Allhallows Barking, near the Tower,
the church the same night, witnessed the trans- 4 The circumstances of this transaction are
action, and gave information against the mur- fully explained in folio 2 b of Liber Albus.
derers ; whereupon, numerous persons were 5 Or Sandwich,
apprehended and sixteen hanged. Alice atte 6 Alderman of Vintry Ward.
Bowe, who was burnt alive, as the chief con- 7 Philip IV., or the Fair, King of Franco,
triver of the murder, according to one account and the Kings of Arragou and Spain,
was the mistress of Crepyn, who, in the same 8 Member of the Fishmongers' Guild, and
account, is described as a clerk. Those who Alderman of Billingsgate Ward,
were imprisoned in the Tower, were only 9 Member of the Mercers' Guild, and Alder-
released on paying heavy penalties ; and the man of Coleman-street Ward,
church was placed under interdict, the doors 10 Alderman of Aldgate Ward,
and windows being filled with thorns until n Alderman of Bread Street Ward,
purification had been duly made. Duket's l2 Alderman of Queen-Hythe Ward,
remains also were disinterred, and becomingly l3 Alderman of Tower Ward.
I I
242 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1289, 90.
18 Edward I. [A.D. 1289, 90]. Sir Ealph de Sandwyz, Warden.
Fulk de Saint Edmund and 1 Salamon Coteller, Sheriffs.
In the same year, all the Justiciars were taken and put to ransom for
their treason. Immediately after the last Sunday in April, the 2 Earl of
Gloucester espoused the Lady Joanna of 3 Acre, the King's daughter,
at Westminster. In the same year, John, son of the Duke of Brabant,
married Margaret, his 4 other daughter. And after this, it was provided
by the King and his Council, upon prayer of the Pope, that all the
Jews in England were sent into exile between the Grule [1st] of August
and the Feast of All Saints [1 November], under pain of decapitation, if
after such Feast any one of them should be found in England.
The same year, one Sir Thomas de Weyland, a Justiciar, forswore
the land for his 5 knavery.
19 Edward I. [A.D. 1290, 1]. Sir Ralph de Sandwyz, Warden.
Thomas Kumeyn and 6 William de Ley re, Sheriffs.
In this year, upon the Vigil of Saint Andrew [30 November] died
7 Alianore, the wife of King Edward, and lies buried at Westminster.
Also, in this year died the 8 Queen, the mother of Sir Edward, and lies
buried at Aumesbury ; and on the Monday next before Saint Nicholas
[6 December] her heart was buried at the 9 Friars Minors at London.
20 Edward I. [A.D. 1291, 2]. Sir John de Bretton, Warden. 10 Ralph
le Blount and Hamond Box, Sheriffs.
In the same year, at Easter, the King .moved towards Scotland.
At this time the Normans came, like robbers by night, with a great
fleet, and landed just above the Hermitage at Dovere, and plundered
and burnt a great part of the town.
21 Edward I. [A.D. 1292, 3]. Sir Ralph de Sandwiz, Warden.
11 Henry le Bole and Elias Russel, Sheriffs.
1 Alderman of Broad Street Ward. * Or Eleanor. She died at Hardby in Lin-
3 Gilbert de Clare. colnshire, of a slow fever.
3 In the Holy Land ; where she was born 8 Eleanor of Provence, who died at an ad-
A.D. 1272, being the second daughter of vanced age in June 1291. Her body was
Edward I. buried in her Convent at Ambresbury.
4 His third daughter. Or Grey Friars. This church stood on
8 Causing a murder to be committed, and the site of the present Christ Church, Newgate-
harbouring the murderd^ street.
c Alderman of Baynard Castle Ward, and a 10 Alderman of Bassishaw Ward,
member of the Guild of Pepperers. Alderman of Bishopsgate Ward.
A.D. 1292,3.] VICTORIES GAINED BY THE CINQUE POKTS. 243
In this year, the discord began between the King of England and
Sir John le Baillol, who was then made King of Scotland. In this year,
the right hands of three men were cut off for theft. In this year, Sir
Ralph de Sandwyz was removed, and Sir John de Brettone was made
Warden. In the same year began the dissension between the 1 Ports
and the Normans, and the Ports conquered a large fleet.
22 Edward I. [A.D. 1293, 4]. Sir John le Breton, Warden. Robert
de Rokesle and Martyn de Aumesbury, Sheriffs.
In this year the King came from Scotland to London, to the Parlia-
ment there. The same year, the Justiciars Itinerant sat at the 2 Stone
Cross.
23 Edward I. [A.D. 1294, 5], Sir John le Breton, Warden. Richard
de Gloucester and Henry Box, Sheriffs.
The same year, the Ports conquered a great fleet of Spain. In this
year there arose so great a flood in the Thames, that it drowned a great
part of the lands of Bermundeseye and of all the country round about,
which is still called 3 e the Breach.'
24 Edward I. [A.D. 1295, 6]. Sir John le Breton, Warden. 4 John
de Dunstaple and Adam de Hallingbury, Sheriffs.
The same year died Sir Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester. And
at this time a war began between Sir John Baillol, King of Scotland,
and the King of England. In the same year the King conquered the
land of Wales and the land of Scotland ; and there were taken Sir John
Baillol, King of Scotland, and John Comyn the Younger, and other
barons and knights of Scotland, who were all sent to the Tower of
London.
In the same year 5 Thomas de Turbeville, knight, was drawn and
hanged for letters containing treason. At this time was fought the
Battle of Dunbarre, and there were slain of the Scots 26,300 men, and
on the side of the English no man of renown, Sir Patrick de Graham
1 Of England, the Cinque Ports more Thames passed its usual limits on the 18th
especially. For an account of these dissensions ' day of October, and then was made the great
and their consequences, see the History of " Breach at Retherhith ; and it overflowed the
Bartholomew Cotton, pp. 227 234. " plain of Bermundeseye and the precinct of
2 See page 237 ante. " Tothill."
3 ' Le Breche.' In the (Latin) Annals of 4 Alderman of Walbrook Ward.
Bermondsey (MS. Harl. 231. f, 46) we read 5 For particulars as to his crime, see the
that " In this year a flood of the waters of Appendix.
THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. t A. i>. 1295,6.
excepted ; and there were also taken at the same time, on the side of
the Scots, three Earls, seven Barons, eight-and-twenty knights, eleven
clerks, and l thirteen 2 pillards ; and these were scourged and sent to the
Tower of London.
25 Edward I. [A.D. 1296, 7]. Sir John le Breton, Warden. 3 Adam
de Fulham and Thomas de Suffolk, Sheriffs.
26 Edward I. [A.D. 1297,8]. Henry Waleis, Mayor. John de Storte-
ford and William de Storteford, Sheriffs. 4
The same year, King Edward received the oath of the Scots, at
Westminster, to the effect that they would never again arise against
England, or bear arms against him ; that is to say, Sir John le Corny n,
the Earl of Stratherne, the Earl of Carryk, four Bishops and two
Abbots, for all the clergy of Scotland ; and so they returned free to
their own country.
But nevertheless, in the same year the Scots entered England and
plundered in Northumberland, and made a knight, William 5 Waleis by
name, their chieftain. And then the Earl of 6 Warenne, Sir 7 Henry
Percy, Sir William Latimer, and Sir Hugh de Cressingham, the then
Treasurer, pursued William Waleis, and took the Castle of 8 Strivelyn,
and the next morning our people, close upon 6000 in number, issued
forth to give battle to the said William Waleis; and the said William
Waleis, with his forces, pursued our people back as far as the bridge of
Strivelyn, and there was Sir 9 Hugh de Cressingham, the Treasurer,
slain, and a great part of our people as well.
27 Edward I. [A.D. 1298, 9]. Henry Waleis, Mayor. 10 Richer de
Refham and 11 Thomas Saly, Sheriffs.
In this year, on the Vigil of the Tiffany [6 January] there was
1 Probably 130 ' is the meaning. 9 According to Prynne, lie was Canon of
2 Apparently, soldiers so called from their Saint Paul's and an insatiable pluralist,
marauding propensities. According to Hemingford, his skin was cut
3 Member of the Guild of Fishmongers, and into pieces, and preserved by the Scotch as
Alderman of Bridge Ward. relics : other writers say that saddles and
4 In this year the King restored to the City girths were covered with it. Wallace himself,
its liberties, on payment of a heavy fine. according to the Chronicle of Lanercost, had a
5 Or Wallace. sword-belt made of it.
6 John, Earl Warren, appointed governor I0 Alderman of Dowgate, or else of Bassi-
of Scotland by Edward I. shaw Ward ; most probably the former.
7 Nephew of Earl Warren. 1! Alderman of Aldgate Ward.
8 Stirling.
A.D.1298,!).] THE BATTLE OP FALKIRK. 245
an earthquake. At this time, -the King espoused Margaret, the sister
of the King of France.
28 Edward I. [A.D. 1299, 1300]. Elias Kussel, Mayor. l John
d'Armentiers and Henry de Fingry, Sheriffs.
At this time, upon Christmas Eve, pollards were assessed at the
value of one halfpenny, and at the following Easter were wholly for-
bidden. At this time, a great part of the Holy Land was gained by the
King of Tars, in the month of January and in March, it being the year
of Grace 1299 ; and on the Day of the Magdalen [22 July] next ensuing
the battle was fought at 2 Foukirke, and there were killed of the Scots
57317 men; and a valiant English knight, an Hospitaller, Bryan 3 Jay
by name, while pursuing William Waleis, who had taken to flight, put
spurs to his horse ; whereupon his horse leaped into a deep slough, and
when William Waleis saw this, he turned back and slew him.
29 Edward I. [A.D. 1300, 1]. Elias Russel, Mayor. Lucas de Haveringe
and Richard de Chaumps, Sheriffs.
In this year, at Candlemas, was the Parliament at 4 Nicole, and
there Sir Edward, the King's son, was made Prince of Wales and Earl
of Chester. At this time, the Count of Artois and four other Counts, and
people without number, were slain by 5 Peter Conow of Flanders. And in
the same year King Edward returned into Scotland, and came to the Castle
of Strivelyn, which was well furnished with men and with provisions for
seven years ; and the King could do nothing, so strong was the castle,
and so well defended. And then the King commanded two gibbets,
sixty feet in height, to be erected before the gates of the castle, and
swore a great oath that every person in the castle, whether earl, baron,
or knight, high or low, in case they should not immediately surrender
the castle, should be drawn and hanged upon the gibbets, without any
mercy being shown him. And when those within heard this, they soon
opened the gates, and surrendered to the King, and the King pardoned
them. And then all the great men of Scotland made oath that they
would each year come to Westminster, to his Parliament, and be at his
bidding.
1 Alderman of Langbourn Ward. Scotland.
2 Falkirk. 4 The Norman name for Lincoln.
3 Preceptor of the Knights Templars in * More generally known as ' Peter Coning.'
246 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1301, 2.
30 Edward I. [A.D. 1301, 2], John le Blount, Mayor. Peter de
Bosenho and l Robert le Callere, Sheriffs.
In this year, the Earl Marshal and the Earl of 2 Hereforde enfeoffed
the King with their lands and tenements, and the King was in seisin
forty days. The King re-enfeoifed the two Earls, to them and to
their heirs of their bodies begotten, and, in case they should have no
heir, with reversion to the King and to his heirs. In this year the
Exchequer was removed from 3 Euerwyk. And in the same year,
when the war had ceased and come to an end in Wales, Scotland,
and Grascoigne, in order to replace his great expenses that had been
incurred in the twenty years before, the King had justice done upon
malefactors ; and this was called 4 " Traylebastoun," and by it the King
gained great treasure, and by reason of this judicial process the com-
mons of the land were [ruled] in greater equity throughout all England
for two whole years.
31 Edward I. [A.D. 1302, 3]. John le Blount, Mayor. 5 Symon de
Paris and 6 Hugh Pourte, Sheriffs.
At this time the King's 7 Treasury was broken open at Westminster.
32 Edward I. [A.D. 1303, 4]. John le Blount, Mayor. John de
Boreford and 8 William Coumbemartin, Sheriffs.
At this time, Sir Roger Brabason and Sir William de Bereford sat
as Justiciars to make inquisition who had broken open the King's
Treasury at Westminster.
1 Alderman of Cordwainers' Street Ward. of jewels to a large amount, but part of them
2 Humphrey de Bohun, Earl of Hereford were ultimately recovered. In October 1303
and Essex. Walter Wenlock, Abbot of Westminster, with
3 York. 80 of his monks, was committed to the Tower
4 The Ordinatio de Trailbaston is extant on on the charge of stealing property to the value
the Parliament Rolls, (Pot. Parl I. 178). The of 100000. Twelve of them were kept in
offenders themselves were styled * Trailbas- prison two years, without trial ; but on Lady
tons,' and as they are described as murderers, Day 1305, the King, on coming to the church
robbers, and incendiaries, lurking in woods at Westminster to return thanks for his victory
and parks, they were probably so called from over the Scots, gave orders for their release
the fact of their going armed with clubs. A but, according to Walsingham, the persons so
description is given of them in Wright's Politi- appointed to discharge them, detained them
col Songs (1839) pp. 318323 ; see also pp. eight days longer out of pure malice. See
231, 383. P- 226 ante -
5 Alderman of Cheap Ward. 8 Alderman of Tower Ward, and member
6 Alderman of Bridge Ward. for the City at the Parliament at Northamp-
7 On this occasion the Treasury was robbed ton.
A.D. 1304,5.] WILLIAM WALEIS EXECUTED. 247
33 Edward I. [A.D. 1304, 5]. John le Blount, Mayor. John de
1 Nicole and 2 Roger de Paris, Sheriffs.
At this time William Waleis was taken in Scotland and brought to
London, on the 3 Day of Saint Dominic [4 August] ; and judgment was
given against him to be drawn, hanged, and beheaded, his entrails burnt,
and his body divided into four quarters, and his head fixed upon London
Bridge, on the Vigil of Saint Bartholomew [24 August],
34 Edward I. [A.D. 1305, 6]. John le Blount, Mayor. Reginald de
Tunderle and 4 William Cosyn, Sheriffs.
In this year, upon the Day of Pentecost, Sir Edward, son of King
Edward, was made a knight, and other ninety-two knights were also
made, as a mark of respect for him ; and on the 5 same day, the said
John le Blount, the Mayor, was made a knight. At this time, Simon
6 Frisel was drawn, hanged, beheaded, his entrails burnt, and the headless
body hung up again and watched by night ; and on the same day, 7 two
knights of Scotland were beheaded at the Tower of London.
In the same year also, the Bishop of St. Andrew's, Sir Robert le
Brus, the Earl of Carrik, and all the other Barons of Scotland, were
bound by oath and by other affiance at Westminster, that they would
never commit offence against England, under pain of disherison and loss
of life and limb ; and after making such affiance, they returned safe into
their own country.
At this time, in one night and one day, Holy Church, throughout all
England, was robbed by King Edward of all the treasure that was found
therein.
And soon after, the Scots by election made Robert le Brus their
king ; but Sir John le Comyn would in no manner consent to his being
crowned, wherefore Robert le Brus slew him in the Church of the Friars
1 Lincoln ; Alderman of Bassishaw Ward. He was a faithful adherent of Wallace, and
2 Alderman of Coleman Street Ward. was executed in the 49th year of his age.
3 This refers apparently to the date of his 7 Properly, a knight and his squire ; namely,
capture, as he was executed on the 23rd of Sir Herbert de Morham, a Scottish knight, but
August 1305, the day after his arrival in of French extraction, who had been imprisoned
London. and had forfeited his estates in 1297, but
4 Alderman of Queen-Hythe Ward. liberated under the promise of serving Edward
5 On this occasion the City paid ,2000 to in the Flemish war. His squire, Thomas de
the King. Boys, was executed with him.
6 The original form of the name of Fraser.
248 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1306, .
Minors at l Dounfrys ; and then, after that, at the Assumption of Our
Lady [15 August], King Edward made an incursion into Scotland, and
took the town of * Saint John, and encountered Sir Robert le Brus and
his company, of whom there were slain 24217 men of Scotland, and Sir
Robert Brus escaped by flight. At this battle were taken prisoners
the 2 Bishop of Glasgou, the 3 Bishop of Saint Andrew's, the Abbot of
Skone, and others, well armed in steel, like traitors against their oath,
and were presented to King Edward ; still he would not put them to
death by judicial process, seeing that they were prelates, but had them
all kept in their arms in safe custody, until such time as the King should
have commands from the Pope what to do with them.
35 Edward I. [A.D. 1306, 7]. Sir John le Blount, Knight, Mayor.
4 Edmund Bolet and 5 Geoffrey del Conduit, Sheriffs.
At this time the Earl of 6 Atheles was hanged and beheaded in
London. At this time, the two brothers of Robert Brus were taken in
Scotland, and hanged. In this year, upon the 16th day of April, Sir John
Waleis, brother of William Waleis, was hanged and beheaded. At this
time died the Lady Joanna of Acres, Countess of Gloucester ; and then
died King Edward, in the parts of Scotland, on the Friday of the
Feast of the Translation of Saint Thomas of Canterbury [7 July], and
upon the Vigil of the Assumption of Our Lady [15 August], his body
was brought to Westminster.
EDWARD THE SECOND.
The Names of the Mayors and Sheriffs, and other Marvels, in the time of
King Edward the Second.
1 Edward II. [A.D. 1307, 8]. Sir John le Blount, Knight, Mayor.
T Nicholas Pycot and 8 Neel Druerye, Sheriffs.
In this year, on the Friday after the Feast of Saint Luke [18
October], King Edward was nobly buried at Westminster. At this
time the Templars were destroyed. In this year, on the Sunday after
1 Dumfries. 4 Alderman of Candlewick Ward.
* Perth. * Alderman of Bridge Ward.
3 John Wishart, elected Bishop of Glasgow 6 John, Earl of Athol, an adherent of Robert
in 1272. Bruce. He was executed 7 Nov. 1306.
3 William Lamberton, Bishop of Saint 7 Alderman of Coleman Street Ward.
Andrew's in 1298. 8 Alderman of Billingsgate Ward.
.D. 1307, 8.]
ACCIDENTAL DEATH OF SIH JOHN B AC WELLE. 249
the Feast of 1 Saint Peter's Chair, the King and the Queen, Lady
Isabele, were crowned ; at which Coronation, Sir John Bacwelle, a
knight, was 2 killed by falling from a wall. In this year there waa a
great malady of the eyes, whereby many persons lost their sight.
2 Edward II. [A.D. 1308, 9]. 3 Nicholas de Farndon, Mayor. James
le Botiller and William de Basinge, Sheriffs.
3 Edward II. [A.D. 1309,10]. 4 Thomas Romeyn, Mayor. Roger
Palmere and James 5 Fouke, Sheriffs.
At this time came Sir Piers de Gaverstone into England, who had
been banished by King Edward the 6 Conqueror ; and was made Earl
of Cornwall, to the great detriment of all the realm. In this year there
was a very great frost on the Thames, so that many persons passed over
on foot, upon the ice, to Suthwerk, and back again to London. In this
year, judgment was given at Westminster against the 7 franchise, as to
the rights of bastardy ; to the effect that if any one should die without heir
and without testament made, his lands and tenements should escheat to
the King.
4 Edward II. [A.D. 1310, 1]. 8 Richer de Refham, Mayor. 9 Symon
Corp and 10 Peter de Blakeneye, Sheriffs.
5 Edward II. [A.D. 1311, 2]. u John Gisors, Mayor. 12 Richard de
Welforde and Simon de Mereworthe, [Sheriffs].
In the same year there was great discord between the King and the Earls
by reason of Sir Piers de Gaverstone, because that the treasure of the
land was lavished by him in vanity and great display ; and the said Sir
Piers entertained great indignation against the great men of the land,
1 28 January ; another feast so called was 8 Through his wrongful imprisonment of
held on 22 February. William de Hakford, Mercer, he was deposed
2 The monks of Westminster considered this from his office of Mayor, and deprived of his
as a judgment in their favour, there having Aldermanry.
been some litigation between him and the Con- 9 Alderman of Cordwainer Street Ward,
vent. He was pressed to death in the crowd. 10 He dying within the year, John de
3 Alderman of Farringdon Ward, and four Grauntebrigge was chosen in his place,
times Mayor of London. The date of his 1! Member of the Pepperers' Guild, Alder-
death seems not to be known, but he was man of. Vintry Ward, seven times Mayor,
living so late as A.D. 1363. and member for the City at the Parliament at
4 Alderman of Cordwainer Street Ward. York A.D. 1314.
5 Fulk, or Folke. la He dying within the year, his executor
6 Le. Edward I Adam Lotekyn, or Lucekyn, was elected in his
7 Meaning that of the City, probably. place.
K K
250 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D.1311,2.
and gave to each great man in the land a certain l nick-name in contempt
and mockery. Therefore, he was watched until out of the King's
company, and taken by the Earl of 2 Warwyk, and [by] counsel of other
great men of the land, and brought to Warwyk ; and afterwards, by their
advice, on the 19th day of June, at the hour of Vespers, he was taken to
a field called " Blakelowe," near a running stream known as " Gaversik,"
and there beheaded.
In this year there was pulled down an earthen wall near the Tower,
which Sir 3 John Cromwell had made ; and as to which there was a great
tumult on the same night, being the Vigil of Saint Matthew [21 Septem-
ber], between the commons of the City and Sir John de Cromwelle.
6 Edward II [A.D. 1312,3]. John Gisors, Mayor. 4 Adam Lucekyn
and 5 John Lambyn, Sheriffs.
In the same year was born Sir Edward de Wyndesore, son of the
King by Lady Isabele the Queen, daughter of the King of France, on
Monday the Feast of Saint Bryce [13 November] ; and upon the Day
of Saint Edmund de Pounteneye [16 November], he was baptized by
Sir Arnald the Cardinal. In this year, the Sunday after Candlemas
[2 February], the Fishmongers of London made pageant of a ship sailing
through the midst of Chepe, as far as Westminster. In this year also died
Robert de Winchelse, Archbishop of Caunterbury.
In this year the Iter was held in Kent, and there were as Justiciars,
Sir Hervy de Staunton, Henry Spygornel, William de Goldingtone,
and John de Motteforde. In this year died Ealph de Baldok, Bishop
of London.
7 Edward II. [A.D. 1313,4]. Nicholas de Farndon, Mayor. Hugh de
6 Barton and 7 Robert de Burdeyn, Sheriffs.
In this year, Sir Walter Reynold, Bishop of Worcester, was enthroned
Archbishop of Canterbury, on the Sunday next after the Feast of Saint
1 He called the Earl of Lancaster, the 'old * A member of the Guild of Fishmongers ;
hog,' or the 'stage-player, 5 the Earl of Glouces- the celebrated William Walworth was his
ter, the cuckold's bird,' the Earl of Pembroke, apprentice,
who was tall and pale, * Joseph the Jew,' and 5 Alderman of Bridge Ward,
the Earl of Warwick, * the black dog of 6 Or * Garton,' Alderman of Coleman Street
* Ardenne.' Ward, probably a member of the Guild of
3 Guy de Beauchamp, 9th Earl of Warwick. Pepperers or Spicers.
Constable of the Tower. ' A member of the Guild of Goldsmiths.
A.D. 1313,4.] THE CROSS OF ST. PAUL'S REPAIRED. 251
Peter's Chair [28 January]. In this year the King was discomfited at
1 Strivelyn in Scotland by Robert de Brus, on the Day of Saint John
the Baptist [24 June]. In this battle were slain the 2 Earl of
Gloucester, Sir Robert de Clifford, Sir Giles d'Argentein, and many
others; and the Earl of Hereford and other great lords were taken and
imprisoned at * Boclevile, and the 3 Earl of Penbroke, Sir Hugh le
Despencer, Henry de Beaumond, John de Cromwell, and others, fled
to Dunbar, and there put to sea and came to Berwyk.
In this year the cross of the belfry of Saint Paul's was taken down
and repaired ; and in the old cross certain relics were found, that is to say,
a 4 corporal with which they sing mass, white and entire, without any
defect ; and in this corporal was found a part of the wood of the Cross
of Our Lord Jesus Christ, wrought in the form of a cross ; a stone of
the sepulchre of Our Lord ; and another stone from the place where
God stood when he ascended into heaven ; and another stonejfrom Mount
Calvary, where the Cross of Our Lord was erected. There was also
found a purse, and in this purse a piece of red 5 sendal, in which were
wrapped some bones of the 6 Eleven Thousand Virgins, and other relics,
the names of which were unknown. These relics Master 7 Robert de
'Clothale shewed to the people during his preaching on the Sunday
before the Feast of Saint Botolph [17 June] ; and after the same, 'the
relics were replaced in the Cross, and many other new ones as well, on
the Day of Saint Francis [16 July].
8 Edward II. [A.D. 1314, 5]. John Gisors, Mayor. Stephen de
Abingdone and Hamo de Chikewelle, Sheriffs.
In this year died the Earl of Warwik. In this year there were such
great rains that the wheat failed, and all other things as well, in August;
and the rains lasted from Pentecost to Easter.
In this year, upon the Day of Saint James [25 July] before August,
there was one baker drawn upon the hurdle alone ; and because another
baker did not have the same sentence carried out, the same day the
1 Stirling. 6 Who, with Saint Ursula, according to the
2 Gilbert de Clare, eighth Earl. legend, were martyred by the pagans at
* Bothwell. Cologne.
3 Aymer de Valence, second Earl. 7 Chancellor of Saint Paul's Cathedral.
4 A fine linen cloth, with which the conse- These relics were kept in the cross, to preserve
crated elements are covered. the church from tempest.
* Silk texture of an inferior quality.
252 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1814,6.
Mayor before-mentioned was reviled by the people and called a * rogue ;
for which many persons were imprisoned and impoverished, through the
malice and false compassing of the said John Gisors, the Mayor.
9 Edward II. [A.D. 1315, 6]. 2 Stephen de Abingdon, Mayor. 3 Wil-
liam Bodeleyhg and 4 Hamo Godchep, Sheriffs.
In this year there was a great famine, so that people without number
died of hunger; and there was also a great pestilence among the rest of
the people. The quarter of wheat was sold at Pentecost this year, and
after, at 38 and 40 shillings ; salt also, at forty shillings, and two small
onions for one penny.
10 Edward II. [A.D. 1316, 7]. 5 John de Wengrave, Mayor. 6 William
de Caustone and 7 Ralph la Balaunce, Sheriffs.
The great dearth still continued. In July this year there was a
great thunder-storm, and a great fall of rain, which did vast 8 damage to
Flete Bridge and to Holborne Bridge.
11 Edward II. [A.D. 1317, 8]. John de Wengrave, Mayor. William
de Furneaux and John Prior, Sheriffs.
In this year, through collusion and conspiracy on part of the said
Mayor, there was great discord between the commons and him ; and
the commons provided certain points in their new 9 Charter, a thing
that was much against the will of the said John, the Mayor.
12 Edward II. [A.D. 1318, 9]. John Wengrave, Mayor, by pro-
curing letters from the King, and by consent of certain persons of influence,
against the will of the commons. 10 John Poyntel and John Dallingge,
Sheriffs.
In this year the new Charter was confirmed by the King, and cost
one thousand pounds. This same John Wengrave did much evil in his
time to the commons.
1 This is possibly the meaning of the word 7 Properly, 'Le Balaunccr,' 'meaning probably,
Rogier. ' a maker of Balances.'
3 Alderman of Dowgate Ward, and a mem- 8 From MS. Cott. Faustina A. VIII. fol.
ber of the Guild of Drapers. 175, we learn that this storm, which was con-
3 Member of the Vintners' Guild. fined to London, destroyed several houses and
4 Member of the Mercers' Guild and Alder- mills, as well as bridges, and carried away
man of Bread Street Ward. both men and children.
5 Recorder and Coroner of the City, and 9 The Charter confirmatory, granted them
Alderman of Cheap Ward. by Edward II.
6 Alderman of Bread Street Ward. "> Alderman of Bishopsgate Ward.
A. D. 1319,20.] SWOKDS FORBIDDEN TO BE WORN. 253
13 Edward II. [A.D. 1319, 20]. L Hamo cle Chikewell, Mayor.
2 John de Preston e and 3 Symon de Abingdone, Sheriffs.
In this year the King passed over into France to do his homage, and
the Queen with him. In this year 4 swords were forbidden, so that no
one was to wear them ; by reason of which, many swords were taken
and hung up beneath Ludgate, within and without. At this time many
of the people of the trades of London were arrayed in livery, and a good
time was about to begin.
14 Edward II. [A.D. 1320, 1]. Nicholas de Farndon, Mayor.
William Prodhomme and Reginald de Cunduyt, Sheriffs.
At this time, on Wednesday the morrow of Saint Hilary [13
January], the Justiciars Itinerant sat at the Tower of London, namely,
Sir 5 Henry de Staunton, William Herle, [and] Edmund Passelee.
In this year the Mayoralty of London was forfeited, by reason of an
offence which John Gysors had committed in the time when he was
Mayor, in having admitted Henry de Braundeston, a felon to the King,
to enjoy the franchise of London after such felony committed. For this
Henry had slain a man in Holy Church, at 6 Our Lady atte Hill. And
Sir Kobert de Kendale was made Warden, and continued such Warden
until Wednesday the morrow of 7 Saint Dun.-tan ; when the King granted
unto the commons, that they might elect a Mayor for the remaining time
until the 8 quinzaine of Saint Michael ; whereupon, Hamo de Chikewelle
was chosen Mayor.
In this Iter it was ordained, that no felon to the King should be held
to 9 mainprise until the Iter of the Justiciars. In this year a woman,
Isabele de Bury by name, slew the clerk of the Church of Allhallows
near London Wall; and kept herself within the same church for five
days, until the Bishop of London sent his letters to the effect that the
Church would not save her; whereupon, she was carried out of the
1 Member of the Guild of Pepperers, six times holding several benefices.
Mayor of London, and Alderman of Queen- 6 The Church of Saint Mary-at-Hill.
Hythe Ward. 7 I-e. the Deposition of Saint Dunstan, 19
2 Member of the Drapers' Guild. May.
3 Alderman of Tower Ward. 8 Or fortnight.
4 I.e. the wearing of them in public. 9 Or bail to produce the body. The incon-
6 Properly, Hervey de Staunton ; founder of venience of such bail will be appreciated from
Michael House at Cambridge, since embodied the fact that 44 years had elapsed since the
in Trinity College. He was an ecclesiastic, preceding Iter for the City of London.
254 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1320, 1.
church to Neugate, and the third day after was hanged. At this Iter
also, certain men in power, Aldermen and others, were indicted for false
conspiracy.
In this year began a disagreement between the great lords of the land
and Sir Hugh le Despenser, father and son, as to divers articles, and
evil, which the peers of the land imputed to them ; whereupon the Earl
of Hereford, the Mortimers, and many other great lords, ravaged their
lands and castles, and came with a great host of armed men to London,
upon the l Gule [1] of August ; and on the Vigil of the Assumption
of Our Lady [15 August], the Despensers, both father and son, in
presence of the King at Westminster, were banished. Still however,
the King retained the son in the realm, through the Cinque Ports ; and
the said Sir Hugh, the son, plundered 2 dromonds and other ships at sea,
in great numbers, of property that was coming towards England, and
great evil did he upon the water during this time.
15 Edward II. [A.D. 1321, 2]. Hamo-de Chikewelle, Mayor, elected
by the commons at the King's wish. 3 Richard Constantin and Richard
Hakeneye, Sherifis.
In this year, just before All Saints [1 November], the King assembled
his host and besieged the Castle of 4 Ledes, which belonged to Sir
Bartholemew Badlesmere, then 5 Seneschal to the King ; and the King
reached the castle on the Vigil of All Saints, but was kept out of it for a
fortnight : at the end of which time, Sir Bartholemew de 6 Burghaisse
and Lady Badlesmere, and others of their company, were sent to the
Tower of London; and thirteen persons who were in the castle were
hanged without the gate, and one 7 Watekyn Colpeper of Kent was
drawn and hanged at Winchilsse. And soon after this, the King caused
a Charter of 8 great service to be made, and wished in every way that
1 See page 234 ante. wards joined Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, in
2 Vessels of war. his opposition to the Despensers.
3 Alderman of Bassishaw Ward. 7 Possibly, Sir Thomas Colpeper, the go-
4 In Kent. The occasion of this siege was, vernor of the castle, is meant. His death is
an affront given to Queen Isabella by refusing mentioned in a subsequent page.
her a night's lodging while on her way from 8 Meaning, a Charter binding the citizens to
Canterbury. The citizens of London mate- serve the king in his future wars ; from which
rially aided the King. they considered themselves exempt, except
5 Or Steward. with their own freewill.
6 Bartholomew Lord Burghersh, who after-
A. . 1321, 2.] MANY NOBLES EXECUTED FOR TREASON. 255
the good people of London should have sealed it ; but the people of the
City would not accede to it, for all that the King could do.
At this time, the King went towards l Wircestre with a great host,
and at the Feast of Saint Luke [18 October] the people of London sent
to the King at Wircestre 380 men, persons well armed.
In this year, at the Conversion of Saint Paul [25 January] the two
Mortimers threw themselves upon the King's favour, and were taken to
the Tower of London by the Earl of Warenne, Robert 2 Lewer, and many
others, after dinner on Saturday, the Vigil of Saint Valentine [14 Feb-
ruary]. At this time, the Sheriff of Hereford was drawn and hanged at
Gloucester. At this time, on the third day of March, the people of
London sent to the King, a second time, 120 men-at-arms. At this time,
on the Tuesday after the Feast of Saint Gregory [12 March], being the
16th day of March, Sir Thomas de Lancaster, Earl of five Counties, was
taken at 3 Burghbrigge by one Sir Andrew de 4 Hercle; and Sir
Humphrey de Boun, Earl of Hereford, was slain, and many good folks,
Barons of the land, slain, or taken and imprisoned; and on the 21st day
of March the said Earl of Lancaster was beheaded at 5 Pountfreit. On the
6 same day also, William Fitz- William, Sir Waryn del Isle, Sir Henry
de Bradebourne, Sir Thomas Mauduyt, Sir William Tuchet, Sir
William Cheyne, Barons, and Thomas Page, esquire to the said Earl of
Lancaster, were all drawn and hanged at London, it being the Vigil
of Palm Sunday. Also, Sir John Moubray, Sir Roger de Clifford, and
Sir Gosselyn d'Eyville, were drawn and hanged at T Euerwik ; and Sir
Henry Tyeis was drawn and hanged at London.
Afterwards, on the Vigil of Easter, Sir Bartholomew Badlesmere,
who was a great Baron and Seneschal to the King at London, was
[seized] on his road to 8 Caunterbure ; and on Wednesday in Easter week
he was shamefully drawn, hanged, and beheaded at Caunterbure, near
his nephew Sir Bartholomew de Assebournham. Sir Francis de Alden-
ham was drawn and hanged at Windesore, on the Wednesday after
1 Worcester. 1322.
8 More properly, k Ewer, the ' Waterbearer.' 5 Pontefract.
For a mention of him, see the printed Liber 6 This date is contradicted by that which
Custvmarum, p. 684. follows, 3rd April.
3 Boroughbridge, in Yorkshire. 7 York.
4 Or Harcla, created Earl of Carlisle in 8 Canterbury.
2,56 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1521,2.
1 Paske Florie : Sir Henry de Moimtfort and Sir Henry de Wilingham
were drawn and hanged at 2 Bristuit : Sir John GifFard and Sir Roger
de Elmerigge were drawn and hanged at Gloucester: Sir William
Flemming was drawn and hanged at 3 Kerdyf : Sir Thomas Colepeper
was drawn and hanged at Winchelse : Sir Stephen Baret was drawn
and hanged at 4 Collyere. Sir Roger Dammory died a natural death
from sorrow, at Tuttebury. Sir Hughe de Audelee, the father, and
Sir John de Charltone, surrendered themselves ta the King's favour.
Sir John Butturd, Sir John de Kingeston, Sir Mchol Percy, Sir John
Mautravers the son, Sir John de Twyford, and Sir William Trussel,
fled beyond sea. Sir Robert de Holond, Sir Hugh de Audele the son,
and ninety-two other good knights were put in prison, and ransomed
at the King's will.
On the Vigil of Saint Margaret [20 July] next ensuing, the good folks
of London sent to the King, at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, one hundred men,
well armed and equipped. At this time the bushel of wheat was sold at
3s. Sd. At this time, on the second day of August, the two Mortimers were
adjudged at Westminster, before six Justiciars, to be drawn and hanged
for homicide and robberies which the King imputed to them ; but no
execution of this judgment was made by the King's writ. And the next
day, the King of his favour granted them their lives, on condition of
perpetual imprisonment. At this time, upon the Gule [1] of August,
the King went with his host into the parts of Scotland, and penetrated
full sixty miles into that land, and there great numbers of his people
died of hunger for want of food ; and the King had no encounter there,
but shamefully returned into England, and his people were greatly
wasted through great misfortunes and mishaps.
16 Edward II. [A.D. 1322, 3]. Hamo de Chikewelle, Mayor. John
de Grantham, Pepperer, and Roger de Ely, Fishmonger, Sheriifs.
In this year, the Scots made a descent upon Blakomore in England,
and robbed and burnt everywhere, and took great part of the King's
provisions ; for at this time he was in the vicinity of 5 Euerwik. In the
1 Or Pascha Floridum, Palm Sunday ; so 3 Cardiff,
called from the Hymn Occurrunt turbce cum * Colchester.
'Jloribus etpalmis,' sung on this day. 5 York.
2 Bristol.
A.D. 1322,8.] MIRACLES WROUGHT AT ST. PAUL'S. 257
same year, upon Thursday the third day of March, Sir Andrew de
Hercleye was made Earl of l Carlil by the King, because he had taken
the noble Earl Sir Thomas de Lancaster, and had slain Humphrey de
Bohun, Earl of Hereford. And in the same year the said Sir Andrew
was taken at Carlil ; and there he was drawn, hanged, and beheaded,
and his entrails burnt and [his body] quartered ; and his head was sent
to London on Sunday, the morrow of Saint Gregory [12 March],
At this time, on the 4th day of April, Hamo de Chikewelle, the
Mayor, the Aldermen, Sheriffs, and clerks, were summoned to appear
before the King at Westminster ; when the King, of his own will,
without any accusation made, ousted the said Hamo from his Mayoralty,
and made Nicholas de Farndone Warden of London. And the said
Hamo de Chikewelle, Hamo Godchep, Edmund Lambyn, and Roger
Palmere, Aldermen, followed the King's Court, to await his pleasure as
to what he might think proper to accuse them of.
At this time, God wrought many miracles in the Church of Saint
Paul, at the tablet there which the said Thomas of Lancaster made ; in
remembrance that the King had granted and confirmed the Ordinances
which were made by Saint Robert de Winchelse, Archbishop of Can-
terbury, and by all the great and wise men of England, to the great
profit of all the realm. In which place, the crooked were made straight,
the blind received their sight, and the deaf their hearing, and other
beneficial works of grace were there openly shown. At this time, the
sixth penny upon property was levied in London and other cities in
England, and in 2 upland the tenth penny, to the great distress and
impoverishment of the common people of the land. At this time, a truce
was made between the King of England and Sir Robert de Brus, to last
from the 12th day of June in the 3 16th year for thirteen years, upon
divers conditions between the parties confirmed, if loyally observed.
And after this, at the Translation of Saint Thomas [7 July], by the
King's writ, issued from. the Chancery, the tablet in the Church of
Saint Paul, as also the wax taper that was there offered in devotion to
the martyr, was with great rigour taken away and removed ; but still,
for all that, the devotion of the people was not wholly, put an end to,
1 Carlisle. 3 Of the reign of Edward II.
places.
258 TPIE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.o.1322,3.
oblations being still made at the pillar from which the tablet had been
hung.
The same year, after dinner on Friday, the third day before the Gule
[1] of August, the King's Exchequer came from Euerwik to Westmin-
ster, and great treasure therewith. At the same time, on Monday the
1 Feast of Saint Peter, on the Gule [1] of August, at night, Sir Roger
Mortimer, lord of Wigemor, by means of a potion subtly made, and given
the same evening to the 2 Constable and watch of the Tower, and to the
other persons therein, escaped from the Tower of London by a ladder
skilfully made of cord, and fled to Porchester ; where he took ship and
crossed the sea, and so reached the dominions of the Count of 3 Henaude.
At this, time, upon Thursday the morrow of the Exaltation of the Holy
Cross [14 September], the four burgesses who had followed the King's
Court, returned to London with a fair company of people.
17 Edward II. [A.D. 1323, 4]. Nicholas de Farndone, Mayor, not
elected or presented, but appointed at the will of the King. Adam de
Salesbury and John de Oxenford, Sheriffs.
At this time, at the Feast of Saint Martin [11 November] and after,
many good folks of London, and of other cities and towns of the land,
were arrested by a wicked ribald clerk, Thomas de Newebigging by
name, who held the King's commission therefor, and who imputed to
them that they had held converse with Sir Roger Mortimer, and coun-
selled his escape from the Tower. Also, at the Feast of Saint Nicholas
[6 December], by the King's will, Hamo de Chikewelle was made Mayor,
and Nicholas de Farndone removed from the office. In the 4 same year,
at Saint Hilary [13 January], the Justiciars of the Forest sat at Stratford.
In the same year, at the beginning of Lent, the King held his Par-
liament at Westminster, and then the King caused to be seized into his
hand all the lands and chattels which the 5 Bishop of Herford possessed ;
because that the King imputed to him that he had aided the Mortimers
against himself. And on the first Sunday in Lent, after this, a minstrel,
Roger Wade by name, a 6 crowder, solemnly celebrated his own inter-
1 The Feast of Saint Peter Ad Vincula, 4 I.e. the same year of the King's reign.
Saint Peter's Chains, or Saint Peter in Prison. 5 Adam de Orleton, Bishop of Hereford.
8 Sir Stephen de Segrave. 6 A player on the 'crowd,' (Welsh crwth) par-
3 Hainault. taking of the nature of the harp and the fiddle.
A.D.1323,4.] A MAN CELEBRATES HIS OWN INTERMENT. 259
ment, as though he had been dead, and had masses sung for his soul,
both he himself and others in his company making offering, so that many
persons marvelled thereat. And this he did, because he put no trust in
executors ; but by reason of this act, some persons of the religious Orders
would have withdrawn from him his l livery which he had bought
from them for the term of his life ; he himself however died soon after
Easter.
In the same year, at the Feast of Saint John [24 June], a disagree-
ment arose between the King of France and the King of England, by
reason of homage not being made for the territories of Gascoigne ; where-
upon, the King of England sent thither the Earl of Kent, his brother, and
other persons, to defend the land.
18 Edward II. [A.D. 1324, 5]. Hamo de Chigewelle, Mayor.
Beneit de Folsham and 2 John de Caustone, Sheriffs.
At this time, by the instigation of Sir Hugh le Despencer, at Saint
Michael the King had seized into his hand all the lands which the Queen
held in England, and removed all her household, French and others, and
put her upon her wages, twenty shillings per day. At Easter in this
year, the Queen crossed the sea to treat of peace. And at the 3 Feast of
the Holy Cross in May, the Earl of Warenne and the 4 Earl of Atheles,
and other great men, passed over from Portesmouthe, with one hundred
ships, for the parts of Gascoigne : for which passage the people of
London sent 140 men-at-arms.
About the same time, on Tuesday, that is to say, the fourth day of
July, four persons escaped from Neugate to the 5 Friars Minors, at the
hour of noon, and slew the porter, Nicholas de Westmille by name.
And at Saint Bartholomew [24 August] next ensuing, the King with his
Council was at Dover three weeks, to make preparation for his passage ;
and had sent over his purveyors, horses, and treasure, and had even gone
towards the ship to cross over, when, at the instigation of Sir Hugh
Despencer, he changed his mind, and did not cross over. However,
upon the Thursday next before the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy
1 Or daily allowance of the necessaries of .by the Empress Helena in 307 or 326 ; cele-
life. brated on the 3rd of May.
2 Member of the Mercers' Guild, and Alder- 4 David de Strabolgie, llth Earl of Athol,
man of Cordwainers' Street Ward. High Constable of England.
3 The Invention, or Discovery, of the Cross s Or Grey Friars, in the vicinity of Newgate.
260 TllE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1324, 1.
Cross [14 September], he sent Sir Edward de Windesore, his son and
heir, to do homage to the King of France in his stead.
In this year, at night on the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lady [8
September] which was on a Sunday, ten persons escaped from Neugate,
five of whom were brought back, and four escaped to the Church of Saint
Sepulchre, and one to the Church of Saint Bride; and afterwards, they
all 1 forswore England.
19 Edward II. [A.D. 1325-6]. Hamo de Chikewelle, Mayor.
Gilbert de Mordone and 2 John Cotoun, Sheriffs.
At this same time, proclamation was made by the King that no man
should be the bearer of letters from the Queen, or from his son, the heir
of England, who were then in the parts of France ; and that if any one
should carry such letter, he should be arrested, as well as the person to
whom such letter should be going, and they should be brought before the
King and his Council. At this time, the Queen wore plain apparel, like
a lady in grief who had lost her husband ; and by reason of the anguish
that she felt for maintaining peace, the common people greatly pitied her.
In this year, on the Sunday before the Conversion of Saint Paul
[25 January], one 3 Sir Roger Belers, Justiciar of the King, and a great
lord, was slain near Leycestre ; as to which there was a great outcry
made, and many persons were imprisoned. At this time, Sir Henry de
Beaurnond and other great men in power were attached and imprisoned
by the King, because they would not consent to do the will of Sir Hugh
Despencer, the son ; and then the King, by advice of his councillors, had
the Tower of London and other castles stored with provisions. Also, Sir
Hugh Despencer, the son, had all the carpenters, masons, and smiths
taken, who were then in London, and everywhere around it, and caused
all the turrets and 4 crenelles in the Tower to be repaired, and bars and
5 bretasches to be made at all the gates there, of the very stoutest timber that
in all England could be found; and had 6 mangonels, r springals, and other
manner of engines, made at great cost ; and yet this availed him nothing, for
1 As having gained the privilege of sane- 4 Battlements and embrasures,
tuary. 5 Bastions and similar defences.
2 Alderman of Walbrook Ward. 6 Engines for battering walls.
3 He was murdered in a valley near Reresby , 7 Engines for throwing missiles,
by Eustace de Folville and his two brothers.
A.D. 13-25, c.] THE BISHOP OF NORWICH PRONOUNCED A TRAITOR. 261
his purpose was thwarted in another way ; and all this was done through
fear of strangers coming over in company with the Queen.
In this year, on the Vigil of Candlemas [2 February], at night, Saint
1 Erkenwolde was placed in his new shrine in the Church of Saint Paul.
The King then gave orders that Sir William de 2 Hermine, Bishop of
Norwich, should be held as a traitor, and the King imputed to him that
he was the cause of the Queen and her son remaining in the parts of
France. And the common people greatly pitied the said William Hermyn,
seeing that he was a worthy man, and had laboured much to maintain the
well-being of the land. Then the King was at Dover,- and messengers
from the Pope came there to him, and returned with their answer privily ;
that there might be no common talk as to why they had come, or what
answer they had received. In this year there was a great drought in rivers
and in springs, so that there was a great want of water in many countries.
At this time, shortly before the Feast of Saint John [24 June], the town
of 3 Roiston was burnt, part of 4 Wandlesworth, and the Abbey of
5 Croxton near Leicester ; and at this time there happened other confla-
grations in England.
At this time, for want of fresh water, the tide from the sea prevailed
to such a degree that the water of the Thames was salt ; so much so, that
many folks complained of the ale being salt. At this time, at Saint
Barnabas [11 June] the English conquered the land of Gascoigne, which
the King of France had overrun, so that many persons were slain ; by
reason whereof, the King had proclamation made, on the Day of Saint
Margaret [20 July], that no Frenchman should trade in England, or
come into these parts ; and it was further set forth in the said proclama-
tion, that the Queen of England ought no longer to be called ' Queen.'
At the same time, all the English who were in France were arrested on
the same day, being a great multitude of people.
At this time the said Sir Edward, heir of England, and the Lady
1 Bishop of London in the 7th century. The Queen Isabella against her husband,
body was removed by night to the chapel of 3 Royston, in Hertfordshire.
the Blessed Virgin, to avoid too great a con- 4 Wandsworth, in Surrey.
fluence of the people. 5 This fire took place on St. Barnabas' Day
2 Otherwise, Ayreminne, Heyremin, or (11 June), through the negligence of the
Armine. He was Chancellor of England, and plumber, who was mending the leads.
Lord Treasurer, but gave active assistance to
262 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D.1325, 6.
Isabele his mother, Queen of England, collected about them a great array
of persons, and a great fleet, to come over to England with many men
from * Henaud ; and the King then gave orders for a great fleet to be
assembled, for the purpose of preventing the coming of his son, and of
the Queen and their company. But the mariners of England were
not minded to prevent their coming, by reason of the great anger they
entertained against Sir Hugh le Despencer ; and took counsel among
themselves to go into Normandy, where, upon their arrival, they
plundered and burnt, to the great damage of the land, though many
of our English people were there slain. And then, upon the Wednesday
before the Feast of Saint Michael, which itself fell on a Monday, the
Queen of England and her son, and the Mortimer, with a vast company
of great lords and men-at-arms, arrived at 2 Herwiche and Orewelle in
Essex, to destroy the enemies of the land.
20 Edward II. [A.D. 1326, 7]. Hamo de Chikewelle, Mayor. 3 Richard
de Rothinge, Taverner, and Roger Chaunceler, Sheriffs.
At this time, at Saint Michael, Lady Isabele, the Queen, and Sir
Edward, her son, sent their letters to the commons of London, to the
effect that they should assist in destroying the enemies of the land ; but
received no answer in return, as to their wishes thereon, through fear of
the King. Wherefore a letter was sent to London by the Queen and
her son, and was fixed at daybreak upon the Cross in Chepe, and a copy
of the letter on the windows elsewhere, upon Thursday, that is to say,
the Feast of Saint 4 Dionis [9 October], to the effect that the commons
should be aiding with all their power in destroying the enemies of the
land, and Hugh le Despencer in especial, for the common profit of all the
realm; and that the commons should send them information as to their
wishes thereon. Wherefore the Commonalty proceeded to wait upon the
Mayor and other great men of the City, at the 5 Friars Preachers in
London, upon the Wednesday before the Feast of Saint Luke [18
October] which then fell on a Saturday ; so much so, that the Mayor,
crying mercy with clasped hands, went to the Guildhall and granted the
1 Hainault. St. James, Garlick-Hythe, where he was buried.
2 Harwich, 4 Or ' Denis.'
3 According to Stowe, he rebuilt the Church of 5 Or Black Friars.
A.D.1326,7.] STAPULTON, BISHOP OF EXETER, MURDERED'. 263
commons their demand, and cry was accordingly made in Chepe, that the
enemies to the King, and the Queen, and their son, should all quit the
City upon such peril as might ensue. It happened also on the same day,
at the hour of noon, that some persons had recourse to arms, and seized
one John le Marchal, a burgess of the City, in his own house near
Walbrok, who was held as an enemy to the City and a spy of Sir Hugh le
Despencer; and he was brought into Chepe, and there despoiled and
beheaded.
Just after this, upon the same day and at the same hour, there came
one Sir Walter de 1 Stapulton, the then Bishop of 2 Exestre, and Trea-
surer to the King the year before, riding towards his hostel in Eldedeanes-
lane, to dine there ; and just then he was proclaimed a traitor ; upon
hearing of which, he took to flight and rode towards Saint Paul's Church,
where he was met, and instantly dragged from his horse and carried into
Chepe ; and there he was despoiled, and his head cut off. Also, one of
his esquires, who was a vigorous man, William Walle by name, took to
flight, but was seized at London Bridge, brought back into Chepe, and
beheaded ; while John de Padington, another, who was warden of the
manor of the said Bishop, without Temple Bar, and was held in bad
repute, was beheaded the same day in Chepe.
Upon the same day, towards Vespers, came the choir of Saint Paul's
and took the headless body of the said Bishop, and carried it to Saint
Paul's Church; where they were given to understand that he had died
under sentence ; upon which, the body was carried to the Church of
Saint Clement without Temple Bar. But the people of that church
put it out of the building ; whereupon certain women and persons in the
most abject poverty took the body, which would have been quite naked,
had not one woman given a piece of old cloth to cover the middle, and
buried it in a place apart without making a grave, and his esquire near
him, all naked, and without any office of priest or clerk ; and this spot is
called 3c the Lawless Church.' The same night, there was a burgess
1 Stapledon or Stapleton. According to at the back of the Bishop's house, without
Walsingham, the reason for this, was the fact Temple Bar ; but the Queen and her son, a
that the King by his advice had caused the jus- few months after, had it removed to Exeter
tices itinerant to hold their Eyre in London, so Cathedral,
that there was the less chance of criminals es- 2 Exeter,
caping punishment. According to one account, 3 Le Laweles Chirche.
his body was at first buried in a heap of sand
2(54 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A. D. 1326, 7.
robbed, John de Charltone by name. Also, on the Thursday following,
the Manors of Fynesbury and of 1 Yvilane, which belonged to Master
Robert Baldok, the King's Chancellor, were despoiled of the wines and
of all things that were therein, and many other robberies were committed
in the City.
Also, upon the same day, the commons of London were armed and
assembled at the Lede Halle on Cornhille, and the Constable of the Tower
there agreed with the commons that he would deliver unto them Sir
John de Eltham, the King's son; as also, the children of Sir Roger
Mortimer, Sir Moriz de Berklee, Sir Bartholomew de Burghasche, and
the other persons who had been imprisoned in the Tower, by reason
of the dissensions for which Sir Thomas de Lancaster and other great
men had been put to death ; those who were released being sworn unto
the commons that they would live and die with them in that cause,
and that they would maintain the well-being of the City and the peace
thereof. Also, there were sworn and received into the protection of the
City, the Dean of Saint Paul's, the Official of Canterbury, the Dean
of the Arches, the Abbots of Westminster and of Stratford, and all the
2 religious, and all the justices and clerks, to do such watch and ward as
unto them belonged to do.
At the same time, upon the Vigil of Saint Luke [18 October] the
tablet which Sir Thomas de Lancastre had had painted and hung
up in the Church of Saint Paul was replaced upon the pillar;
which tablet had been removed from the pillar by the rigorous command
of the King's writ. At the same time, the 3 Friars Preachers took to
flight, because they feared that they should be maltreated and annihi-
lated ; seeing that the commonalty entertained great enmity against
them by reason of their haughty carriage, they not behaving themselves
as friars ought to behave. At this time, it was everywhere the common
talk that if Stephen de 4 Segrave, Bishop of London, had been found,
he would have been put to the sword with the others who were be-
headed ; as well as some Justiciars and others, who betook themselves
elsewhere in concealment, so that they could not be found. At this
1 Ivy Lane. 4 A mistake for < Stephen de Gravesend.'
2 /. e. members of the religious Orders. Gilbert de Segrave, Bishop of London, died
3 Or Black Friars; who were warm sup- in 1316.
porters of Edward II.
A.D.1326,7.] FLIGHT OF EDWARD II. 265
time no pleas were pleaded in the Court of the Official of Caunterburi,
neither in Consistory nor before Commissary, except as to matters
touching matrimony or testament, for fear of producing dissensions
thereby. At this time, a counterfeit letter was forged, and read in the
Guildhall, in deceit of ^the people, to the effect that the King and
Queen were reconciled, and that the enemies of the land were taken,
a thing that was then wholly false. At this time, the King, in company
with his l enemies, took ship from 2 Bristowe, so that for a time no
one knew what had become of him ; and on Monday, the Vigil of
Saint Simon and Saint Jude [28 October], Sir Hugh le Despencer,
the father, was taken at Bristowe, and there hanged, drawn, and be-
headed, his head being sent to Winchester, because he was Earl of
Winchester.
At this time, on Saturday the Vigil of Saint Edmund [16 November],
the 3 Bishop of Winchester, who had come from the Queen, came to the
Guildhall, and was there admitted to be one of the community, to live
and die with them in the cause, and to maintain the franchise ; and he
brought letters from the Queen and from her son, to the effect that the
commons should elect a Mayor from among themselves; for before that,
there had been no Mayor, save only by the King's favour, seeing that
the Mayoralty had been 4 forfeited at the Iter of the Justiciars. There-
fore, they chose the same day one 5 Richard de Betoygne to be Mayor ;
who had then just come from the Queen, and who the same year suffered
great persecution from the King and Sir Hugh Despencer, the son.
At the same time, Sir Henry de Lancaster and other great men pursued
the King into Wales, near 6 Snaudon, so closely, that the King forsook
his enemies who had brought him away from his kingdom, and surrendered
himself to his liege people ; and there the enemies were taken, Sir Hugh
Despencer, Sir Robert de Baldok, and others in their company, and
were brought to Hereforde. Also, on the Monday following, the 7 Earl
'Meaning, the younger Despenser and 7 Edmund Fitz-Alan, 8th Earl of Arundel.
Robert Baldock. He was connected with the Despencers, and
2 Bristol. had promoted the execution of the Earl of
3 John de Stratford. Lancaster, but the chief reason for his own
4 See page 253 ante. execution, according to Walsingham, was a
5 Member of the Goldsmiths' Guild, and desire on part of Roger Mortimer, to obtain
Member for the City in 1327, 8. his estate at Clun, in Shropshire.
6 Snow don.
M M
266 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [4.D.1826,?.
of Aroundel was beheaded at Hereforde ; and, on the Wednesday after,
one 1 Bernard d'Espaygne, a wine-merchant, was beheaded in London, at
2 Nomanneslond, for treason which he had committed. Also, on Monday
the Vigil of Saint Katherine [25 November], Sir Hugh le Despencer,
the son, was hanged, drawn, and beheaded, and his entrails burnt, at
Hereforde, and one 3 Symon de Redingge, who had shown contempt for
the Queen, was drawn and hanged. Also, one Master Robert de Baldok,
who was the King's Chancellor, one of the greatest lords of the land,
the 4 Bishop of Hereforde, and the Prior of Hereforde, were put in prison.
Also, on Thursday, after dinner, the day before the Vigil of Saint
Nicholas [6 December], the head of Sir Hugh le Despencer, the son, was
carried, with sound of trumpets, through Chepe, to London Bridge ; and
there the head was fixed. At this time too, the King was sent to the Castle
of 5 Kelingeworthe, in the custody of Sir Henry, Earl of Lancaster. In
this year, the Queen and her son came to London, with a fine company
of great men of the land and of the burgesses of London, on the Sunday
next before the Tiffany [6 January], to hold a Parliament there ; so that,
on Tuesday the Day of Saint Hilary [11 January], the 6 Archbishop of
Caunterbury pronounced at Westminster, before all the Baronage of the
land, many articles against the King. By reason whereof all the people
agreed, and cried aloud, that he ought no longer to reign, but that they
should make his son, the Duke of 7 Gyene, king. Wherefore, Bishops,
Abbots, Priors, Earls, Barons, Knights, and burgesses, were sent to him
at the Castle of 8 Kylingworthe, to hear his will thereupon, if he would
agree to the crowning of his son, and abdicate the kingdom ; and if not,
the messengers were to withdraw their homage for all the land.
Whereupon, while the messengers were with the King, on the Sunday
before the Feast of Fabian and Sebastian [20 January], proclamation was
made in Chepe that all who owed service at the King's Coronation, or
1 Carte calls him ' Antony.' He was engaged had spoken too freely of the Queen's conduct,
in collecting the duty of two shillings per tun 4 This is evidently an error, as Adam de
on wines imported by foreign merchants. Orleton, Bishop of Hereford, was one of the
2 No Man's Land, was a piece of ground King's most active enemies,
(about three acres) situate without the walls, 5 Kenilworth.
on the North of the City, between the lands of 6 Walter Reynolds, Lord Chancellor and
the Abbot of W estminster and the Prior of St. Lord Treasurer.
John of Jerusalem. 1 Guyenne.
3 A member of the King's household, who 8 Kenilworth.
A.D.1326,7.] IMPRISONMENT AND DEATH OF EDWARD II. 267
t
who claimed to hold any service, should be present at the Coronation of
the new King, Sir Edward, Duke of Gyene, on Sunday the Vigil of
Candlemas [2 February.] At the same time, upon Tuesday the Feast of
Saints Fabian and Sebastian [20 January], Sir Walter Reynald, Arch-
bishop of Caunterbury, preached at the Guildhall of London, and seven
Bishops came with him ; and there he made oath, with the other Bishops,
in manner as the great men had before made oath. And because that
the commons of London had hostile feelings against the Archbishop for
many reasons, the said Archbishop agreed with the commons that he
would give them fifty tuns of wine, and, in addition thereto, would make
compensation the next day to every person who should wish by bill
reasonably to make plaint against him.
And then was Sir Edward of Carnarvan sent away to the Castle of
Berklee, from the Castle of Kelingworthe, through fear that he might
have been carried off by the abetting and procurement of a certain Friar
Preacher, Brother l Thomas Dunheued by name, and many others of that
Order who conspired with him; wherefore, he was taken, as well as
many others with him, and put into rigorous confinement at 2 Euerwik.
And then Sir Edward of Carnarvan had two keepers appointed, Sir
Thomas de Berkle and Sir John Mautravers, to keep him safely in
perpetual imprisonment. But by the abetting of certain persons, and
with the assent of his false keepers, he was traitorously and vilely
murdered by night, like false and disloyal perjurers as they were.
The said Edward reigned here nineteen years and a half, and lies
buried at Gloucester.
EDWARD THE THIRD.
These are the Names of the Mayors and Sheriffs in the time of
Edward the Third, born at Windesore, and other Marvels that have
happened in the same time.
1 Edward III. [A.D. 1326, 7]. Richard de Betaigne, Mayor.
Richard de Rothingge and Roger Chaunceler, Sheriffs.
This Edward of Windesore was made knight and crowned king, all
1 Thomas Dunhead. He had been commis- King's service. Being made prisoner, he was
sioned to the Pope by Edward, to solicit a confined in Pontefract Castle, and was killed
divorce from Isabel, and he now, according to in an attempt to make his escape,
some accounts, raised a body of men in the 2 York.
268 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1326, 7.
in one day, and was only fourteen years of age on the Day of Saint Bryce
[13 November] then last past ; after which, he held a great Parliament
at Westminster. In this Parliament the King granted to the citizens of
London all their franchises which they had before lost, and also granted
unto the City other franchises which the king had never before granted ; to
the effect that the Mayor should be Justiciar in the Guildhall, ana 1 that
before him should be condemned those who should be taken for felony or
for larceny within the liberties ; by reason whereof, on the eighth day
of May three persons were condemned to death, it being the Friday next
after the Feast of Saint John Port Latin [6 May],
At this time, at the Ascension, the young King, with a great force of
his land, prepared himself at Newcastle to go against the Scots, and had
from London 200 men mounted and well armed. At this period the Scots
had invaded England, as far as l Stannowe Park. And when our young
King came there, he pitched his tent and pavilions, and besieged the Park
for fifteen days. And by reason of the hatred that the great men of
England entertained against the Hainaulters, by consent, the Scots
escaped from the Park by night, whereas they might all have been
taken, killed, and overthrown. Also, by sanction of some traitors,
James Douglas effected an entrance among the pavilions of our young
King, to carry him off to the dominions of Scotland. But the said
James Douglas was descried by the watch in the host, and so took to
flight ; and his chaplain, a strong and vigorous man, was stopped and
slain. And then, the King and his people returned to 2 Euerwik ; and in
the meantime there arose a great dissension between the English and
the Hainaulters, by reason of which many of our English people were
slain in their houses. And from thence the King went to 3 Nichole, and
there held his Parliament. And at this time the death of Sir Edward of
Carnarvan, his father, was made public, who had been traitorously
murdered in the Castle of Berkle, as God knows. And then the Lady
Philippa, 4 daughter of the Count of Henaude, came to London, to be
married to our young King ; and soon after, the King espoused her at
1 Stanhope Park ; in the Bishopric of Dur- 4 Youngest daughter of William III., Count
ham. of Hainault, Holland, and Zealand, and Lord
2 York. of Friesland. She was married to King
3 Lincoln. Edvvftrd at York, January 24, 1328.
A.I>. 1327, 8.] INSOLENCE OF SIR ROGER MORTIMER. 269
Euerwyk, and held his Parliament there. And then came thither
messengers from Scotland, to treat of peace, and our young King sent his
messengers to the great men of Scotland, to know all their will thereon.
2 Edward III. [A.D. 1327,8]. Hamo de Chikewell, Mayor. Henry
Darcy and John Hauteyn, Sheriffs.
And then it was granted, ordained, and cried and published through-
out the two realms, by assent of the Lady Isabel the Queen, the King's
mother, and Sir Roger Mortimer, and others of their covin, that David
le Bruis, son of Robert le Bruis, late king of Scotland, should espouse
Lady Joanna of the * Tower; which espousals were celebrated with
great solemnity on the Sunday next before the Feast of Saint Margaret
[20 July], at Euerwyk. And then the Queen, Lady Isabel, and Sir
Roger Mortimer, assumed unto themselves royal power over many of
the great men of England and of Wales, and retained the treasures of
the land in their own hands, and kept the young King wholly in subjec-
tion to themselves ; so much so, that Sir Henry, Earl of Lancaster, who
was made chief guardian of the King at the beginning, at his Coronation,
by common consent of all the realm, could not approach him or counsel
him. Wherefore, Sir Henry the said Earl, by advice of many great
men of the land, and of the 2 Archbishop of Caunterbury and other
Bishops, was greatly moved against the Queen, Lady Isabel, and Sir
Roger le Mortimer ; with the view of redressing this evil, that so the
King might be able to live upon his own, without making extortionate
levies to the impoverishment of the people.
3 Edward III. [A.D. 1328, 9]. 3 John de Grantham, Mayor. Simon
Fraunceis and Henry Combemartin, Sheriffs.
In this year our young King crossed the sea, with a noble retinue, to
meet the King of France, and do homage for the territories of Gas-
coygne; and did not remain there long, but returned into England, and
at Caunterbury had grand jousts held ; and then after that, at London, in
4 Chepe. Never were there held in England any such famous jousts as
these.
1 So called from having been born in the- 3 A member of the Guild of Pepperers.
Tower of London. In consequence of her 4 It was on this occasion that the Queen
marriage with David Bruce, she received in and her ladies fell from a stage, erected near
derision, the name of ' Joan Makepeace' She Soper's Lane. The carpenters, however,
died without issue in 1357. through whose carelessness the accident had
2 Simon Mepham. happened, were pardoned at her intercession.
270 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1329, 30.
4 Edward III. [A.D. 1329,30]. 1 Simon Swanlond, Mayor. 2 Richard
Lacer and Henry Gisors, Sheriffs.
In the same year the Lady Philippa, the Queen, was crowned at
Westminster, on Sunday at the beginning of Lent : and in the ensuing
week, the King held his Parliament at Winchester. And there was Sir
Edmund de Wodestoke, Earl of Kent, arrested; who was son of a 3 king,
brother of a king, and uncle of our young King ; and right or wrong, he
was there condemned and 4 beheaded, and so put to death. And then
after this, in the same year, the King held his Council at Notingham ;
and there he perceived in divers manners that he had evil counsel, and
that his kingdom was on the point of being ruined, and the people as
well. Wherefore, the King took this greatly to heart. For the Queen,
his mother, and Sir Roger Mortimer, had all the land in their own
hands, and had collected a great host out of Wales and England, and
committed great havoc wherever they came ; so much so, that there was
no woman, wife or maiden, in all the country forty miles and more
about, who was not forsworn and undone before the very eyes of her
lord, greatly in his despite. And thus did they hold the young King
and John of Eltham, his brother, quite under.
And at this same time, as God willed it, the King, with his Council,
had Sir Roger le Mortimer privily seized in his bed in the Castle of
Notingham, and some others with him, and had them sent to the Tower
of London; whereas they themselves thought to have undone the King
and all of his blood. And then after this, Sir 5 Roger Mortimer, and
Sir Symon de Bereford, who was of his counsel, were drawn and hanged
at London.
5 Edward III. [A.D. 1330,1]. John de 6 Polteneye, Mayor.
7 Robert de Ely and Thomas Horewod, Sheriffs.
1 The same person probably, that in Devon's and is said to have been the first person
Issue Roll p. 133, is mentioned as selling large executed at Tyburn ; but according to Roger
quantities of cloth for the King's household, 10 of Wendover, William Fitz-Osbert, or Long-
Edward II. beard, was executed there in 1196.
2 Mercer, and Mayor in 1345. 6 Or Pountney. He was born at the village
3 Edward I., II., and III., are here alluded of Poutenei, or Pultonheath, in Leicestershire.
to. He was a member of the Drapers' Company,
4 21 March 1330, his estates being given to and four times Mayor, but never served the
Geoffrey, Mortimer's youngest son. office of Sheriff.
6 Mortimer was executed 29 November, 1330, 7 A member of the Fishmongers' Company.
A.D. 1830,1.] INVASION OF SCOTLAND. 271
In the same year, the King, with a great host, invaded the parts of
Scotland near Berwyk, and gave battle to the Scots, and fought them
foot to foot, and discomfited and slew of the Scots 60718 men. And
when they of Berwyk saw how that the battle was lost, they cried with a
loud voice unto Sir Edward, our young King, that they might of his
grace have life and limb ; and the King granted them life and limb ; and
they forthwith surrendered unto him the town of Berwyk, whereat the
whole of England had great joy ; and he then returned into England to
maintain the peace and to chastise misdoers.
6 Edward III. [A.D. 1331, 2]. John de Polteneye, Mayor. John
de Mokkinge and Andrew Aubri, Sheriffs.
7 Edward III. [A.D. 1332, 3]. John de Prestone, Mayor. Nicholas
Pike and John Husbonde, Sheriffs.
8 Edward III. [A.D. 1333, 4]. John Polteneye, Mayor. John
Hamond and William Haunsard, Sheriffs.
In the same year, the Duke of Bretagne came into England to do
homage to our young King, that he might hold his lands in l England in
peace. And in the same year the King made another expedition into
Scotland, because the people there would keep no peace, but would
always be at war ; and so the King passed through the land, but the
Scots always took to flight, so that no encounter could then take place.
Wherefore the King was very angry, and all his people then returned into
England, and he had the laws established, and the false and disloyal, and
the misdoers of his land, chastised.
9 Edward III. [A.D. 1334,5]. 2 Eeginald del Conduyt, Mayor.
John de Hinggestone and 3 Walter Turke, Sheriffs.
10 Edward III. [A.D. 1335, 6]! 4 Reginald del Conduyt, Mayor.
5 Walter de Mordone and Ralph de Up tone, Sheriffs.
11 Edward III. [A.D. 1336,7]. John de Polteneye, Mayor.
6 William Brikelesworthe and John de Northall, Sheriffs.
1 In Yorkshire and Northumberland, and 4 According to a more correct account,
elsewhere. Nicholas Wotton was Mayor in 1335, 6.
2 Member of Parliament for the City in 5 Member of the Fishmongers' Company.
1322 and 1327, and a member of the Vintners' 6 MS. Harl. 4199 f. 33b and Stowe (Survey)
Company. give the names of John Clarke and William
3 Mayor in 1350, and a member of the Fish- Curtis as Sheriffs,
mongers' Company.
272 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1337, 8.
12 Edward III. [A.D. 1337, 8]. l Henry Darcy, Mayor. 2 Walter
Nele and Nicholas Crane, Sheriffs.
In the same year, the Scots began once again to wage war against
our King; and the King, the third time, assembled a great host, and
made an expedition throughout the territories of Scotland, but could find
no one to oppose him ; whereat the King and all his host were very
indignant. And on his return towards England, the King laid siege to
the Castle of Dunbarre, and there remained full fifteen weeks ; until the
King of France wrongfully began to levy war against Sir Edward, our
young King. And then, messengers were sent to the King of France,
that is to say, the 3 Archbishop of Caunterbury, the 4 Bishop of Durham,
5 Sir Geoffrey Scrope, and Sir William de Clinton, Earl of Huntingdon,
to treat of peace between the two realms of France and England ; and they
proffered him great gifts, marriage, and great treasure, but the King of
France would in no wise consent thereto, or grant any terms, but would
wage war in every way, and seize the land of Gascoigne into his hand,
and all the lands that our young King had beyond the sea. And then,
when our young King perceived that the King of France would not do
otherwise, he sent for all the great men of England, and held a Parlia-
ment at Westminster, and took counsel to cross the sea and lead an
expedition against the King of France, who would have no peace : and
so he asked aid of all his land ; whereupon, there was granted unto him,
for carrying on his war, great treasure, and a great multitude of men-at-
arms, as also all the wool of England for two years, to be kept from the
commencement of his expedition.
13 Edward III. [A.D. 1338, 9]. Henry Darcy, Mayor. William
Pountfreit and Hughe Marberer, Sheriffs.
In this year, our young King provided himself with a great force of
English and of Welsh, and crossed the sea from Orewelle in Essex, and
arrived in Flanders ; and his people passed on unto the isle of 6 Cagent
1 Member of the Drapers' Company. 3 John Stratford,
a Bladesmith. He was a man of opulence, 4 Richard Aungerville, or De Bury.
and left lands for repair of. the highways 5 Chief Justice of the King's Bench.
about London, between Newgate and Wy- 6 Cadsand, an insulated tract of land
combe, Aldgate and Chelmsford, Bishopsgate between Sluys and Flushing, at the mouth of
and Wa,re, South wark and Rochester. the Scheldt.
A.D. 1888,9.] SUCCESSES AGAINST THE FRENCH. 273
and * slew all who could be found therein ; and there they obtained great
riches, and then ravaged the whole of the said island with fire. And
then our young King took his host, and went into Brabant, and sojourned
a long time at Andwerp, and there held his Parliament ; and there made
oath unto him all those of Flaundres, of Brabant, of Henaud, and of
Almaine, that they would live and die with him, our young King, in his
cause against the King of France. Also, our young King agreed that
he would be their liege lord, to live and die with them, and to defend and
maintain them at all times against all people in the world.
And when the alliance had been made by assent of the lands aforesaid,
Sir Edward, our young King, took his host and removed from Andwerp,
and began to make incursions in the territory of the King of France, and
ravaged it with fire on every side, and conquered more than 160 miles of
his land. And then was a certain day appointed for a battle to be fought
between the two kings. And when the time came that the battle should
have been fought, as to Philip de Yaloys, the King of France, his mind
changed, and he began to shudder when he saw our people all ready in
the field in battle array ; whereupon he retreated, like a disloyal knight,
and said, like a coward, that his heart misgave him that he should be
discomfited in any battle fought on that day. Wherefore, he retreated
with his host towards Paris ; to his own perpetual disgrace, and to the
lasting honour and victory of our own King of England. And at this
time did Philip de Valois lose the name and appellation of King of
France ; and to Sir Edward, our King, was given the 2 name and appel-
lation of rightful King of France and of England ; and the same was
acceded to by all the chivalry of Christendom.
And then our young King, the 3 Duke of Brabant, the 4 Count of
Henaud, the 5 Count of Julers, the Count of 6 Gerle, and many other great
men of divers lands, returned, each to his own country. But before
1 On the contrary, they took as many Earl of Cambridge 7 May, 1340, by Edward
prisoners as they could, and then burnt the III. ; whose niece, Mary, daughter of Remold,
town. second Duke of Gueldres, by Alianor,Edward's
3 By the advice, it is said, of Jacob van sister, he had married. The earldom was after-
Arteveldt, the celebrated brewer of Ghent. wards surrendered by him into the King's
3 John, Duke of Brabant. hands.
4 Count William, father-in-law of Edward. 8 The Duke of Gueldres, above-mentioned.
* William, 6th Marquis of Juliers ; created
N N
274 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1888, ,
that the host had departed, the l men of Almaine rifled the English of what
they had gained in that expedition, and slew many of our people. But
Sir Edward, our King, and the Duke of Brabant, and other great men,
caused this great strife to be put an end to and appeased, so that all were
reconciled. And then the King, with his people, returned to Andwerp
in Brabant, and sojourned there a long time, together with a great
council of all the great persons who had made oath unto him.
And never in the meantime, did Philip de Yaloys dare, with all his
proud vauntings, to approach our young King ; but said to all who were
about him, that he would suffer him to lie in peace and spend all that
he had, and more too than all his realm of England would be able to
supply ; so that he should make him either the richest king or the very
poorest in all the world. And then our young King took his leave of
the Duke of Brabant, and of all the great men of those parts who had
made oath unto him, to return to England, in order to regulate the state
of his realm, until a certain hour should come when they should be
better able to be revenged upon Philip de Valois, King of France.
Then our King returned unto England, and left the Queen, Lady
Philippa, there as a hostage, as also his children, in the custody of the
Duke of Brabant, and other great personages associated with him ; and
she sojourned at 2 Gaunt until the return of her lord. Also, at the same
time were taken prisoners Sir William Mountagu, Earl of Salesbury,
and 3 Sir Robert de Offorde, Earl of Suffolk, and brought to Paris in
mean guise. And then the King of France said to them, " Ah ! traitors,
" you shall be hanged ; seeing that you cannot make amends for the
" damage that your king and you have done in my land." " Certes,
" Sire," said Sir William Mountagu," you are in the wrong and our King
" in the right, and this will I prove against whosoever shall gainsay the
** same, as a loyal knight should do in a strange land." And then spoke
the Queen of France, and swore that never again should she be glad or
joyous, if they were not disgracefully put to death. " Sire," said the
King of * Beame, " it would be a great wrong, and a folly, to slay such
1 Or Germans. Earl himself. The two Earls were captured
3 Ghent. in the vicinity of Lille, and confined in the
3 According to Dugdale, it was Robert de market-place there.
Ufford, son of the Earl of Suffolk, and not the 4 Bohemia.
A.n.1338,9.] THE COASTS RAVAGED BY THE FRENCH. 275
" lords as these ; for if it should so happen that the King of England
" should again invade your realm of France, and take any peer of your
" realm, then might one of these go in exchange for another, who is one
(f of our own friends."
And so our Lord the King arrived at * Herwiz in Suffolke, and came
to London before the beginning of Lent, and sojourned there, and held
a Parliament at Westminster of all the great men of the land. And to
this Parliament there came messengers from Scotland, to sue for peace,
but no peace was granted them. At the same time also, Philip de Valoys
had as great a navy prepared as could be arrayed, of galleys, 2 pinnaces,
great barges, and all the large ships of Spain and Normandy, and
wherever else they could be found ; in order to prevent our young King
from coming back again into his land, and to seize and put all the realm
of England to the sword. At the same time also, he inflicted great
damage and great destruction upon England. For at this time the
towns of Suthamton and Portesmouthe were burnt by night, spoiled, and
the plunder carried off. Also, the 3 Castle of Gerneseye was taken, and
the people therein slain, through treason on part of the Constable of the
said castle. But when our young King heard this, and perceived the
great felony and compassing of his enemy, Philip de Valoys, he com-
manded in haste that all his navy of England should be made ready, and
every ship well equipped and victualled by a certain day named.
14 Edward III. [A.D. 1339, 40]. i Andrew Aubry, Mayor. William
de Thorneye and Roger de Forsham, Sheriffs.
In this year, all the mariners of England, by commission of our Lord
the King, had all their ships speedily assembled and victualled, and hardy
and vigorous men from all parts well equipped and armed at all points,
in every place to fight for life or death. And when the fleet of ships
of England was assembled in manner aforesaid, Sir Edward, our King,
and his people, were in the parts of Bury Saint Edmund's ; and from
thence he passed on to Orwelle, where he put to sea, with his people
beyond number, upon the Thursday next before the Nativity of Saint
1 Harwich, in Essex. at this period.
2 This is probably the meaning ofspynagtz. 4 Member of the Pepperers' Company, three
3 Probably, Castle Cornet in Guernsey, times Mayor, and Member for the City in 1337.
which was held by the French for three years
276 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON [A.D. 1339, 40.
John the Baptist [24 June], which was on a Saturday ; and upon the
[next] Friday morning, our King espied his enemies upon the sea, and
said, " Because our Lord Jesus Christ was put to death on a Friday, we
" will not shed blood upon that day."
The wind had then been in the East for the whole fortnight before
the King put to sea, but by the grace of Him who is Almighty, the wind
shifted immediately to the West ; so that, by the grace of God, the King
and his fleet had both wind and weather to their mind. And so they
sailed on until sunrise at break of day ; when he saw his enemies so
strongly equipped, that it was a most dreadful thing to behold ; for the
fleet of the ships of France was so strongly bound together with massive
chains, castles, 1 bretasches, and bars. But notwithstanding this, Sir
Edward, our King, said to all those who were around him in the fleet of
England, fe Fair lords and brethren of mine, be nothing dismayed, but
" be all of good cheer, and he who for me shall begin the fight and
" shall combat with a right good heart, shall have the benison of God
" Almighty ; and every one shall retain that which he shall gain."
And so soon as our King had said this, all were of right eager heart
to avenge him of his enemies. And then our mariners hauled their sails
half-mast high, and hauled up their anchors in manner as though they in-
tended to fly ; and when the fleet of France beheld this, they loosened
themselves from their heavy chains to pursue us. And forthwith our ships
turned back upon them, and the melee began, to the sound of trumpets,
1 nakers, viols, tabors, and many other kinds of minstrelsy. And then did
our King, with three hundred ships, vigorously assail the French with
their five hundred great ships and gallies, and eagerly did our people
exert great diligence to give battle to the French. Our archers and our
3 arbalesters began to fire as densely as hail falls in winter, and our
engineers hurled so steadily, that the French had not power to look or
to hold up their heads. And in the meantime, while this assault lasted,
our English people with a great force boarded their gallies, and fought
with the French hand to hand, and threw them out of their ships and
gallies. And always, our King encouraged them to fight bravely with his
1 See page 220 ante. kettledrum.
* A kind of drum, probably resembling our 3 Or cross-bowmen.
A. D. 1339, 40.] NAVAL VICTOEY GAINED BY THE ENGLISH. 277
enemies, he himself being in the l cog called " Thomas of Winchelsee."
And at the hour of 2 tierce there came to them a ship of London, which
belonged to 3 William Haunsard, and it did much good in the said
battle. For the battle was so severe and so hardly contested, that the
assault lasted from noon all day and all night, and the morrow until
the hour of 4 prime ; and when the battle was discontinued, no French-
man remained 5 alive, save only Spaudefisshe, who took to flight with
four-and-twenty ships and gallies.
And after this great battle gained, Sir Edward, our King, always main-
tained himself stoutly upon the sea, and would in no manner disembark
on land ; and there he held his 6 Parliament for a whole fortnight, to see if
any one of his enemies might think proper again to assail him. And then
did our young King disembark, and rode on to Bruges with a very fair
company, and there held festival for one whole week. And then after this,
Sir Edward, our King, took his host, with a very fair company of Dukes
[and] Earls of great lordship, and began to invade France against King
Philip de Valois, until he came to the strong city of 7 Tornaye ; and he
besieged the said city with a great host for a quarter of a year ; that is
to say, from the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist until the Feast of
Saint Michael. And there, there came to him the Duke of Brabant, with
8 150 men, mounted and well armed ; the Count of Henaud also came with
as many; so that his host all about covered seventeen miles of the
same country, it being a finer army than had ever yet been seen.
And while the siege of the strong city of Torneye was being
carried on, Sir 9 Robert the Count of Artoys, Sir Walter de Manny,
1 A kind of vessel so called in the Middle the narrator.
Ages. This word is still preserved in the 7 Tournay.
term ' cock-boat ' (cog-boat) . 8 This number is probably incorrect.
3 About 9 in the morning. 9 Count of Beaumont le Roger, a prince of
3 Probably, the same person who was the blood royal of France, descended from
Sheriff in the eighth year of this reign. Louis VIII. Being accused of employing
4 Six in the morning. forged writings, in order to obtain the county
5 This battle was fought off Sluys in Flan- and peerage of Artois, he was banished by his
ders, on the Eve of St. John the Baptist [23 brother-in-law, Philip of France, and was
June]. From ten to fifteen thousand of the hospitably received by Edward III. Seethe
French were^slain, and 4000 English. Poem, Vows of the Heron, Wright's Political
6 This expression must be regarded probably Poems (1859) .
as somewhat strained, and a liberty taken by
278 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1S39, 40.
g
1 Jacob de Artefelde, and many other great men, assembled a great
host of good people, horse and foot, well armed, and took their way
to the city of 2 Saint Thorner, and hastily assailed the said city, and
began to throw great stones with their engines, to destroy the city.
And when those within the city saw the compassing of our people
without, they took counsel among them to open the gates and give
battle to our people. And when our people perceived this, they with-
drew, and with a good will allowed a great multitude of people to come
out of the city. And when the people were all come forth from the city,
our men, with hearty good will, turned back, and boldly gave battle
to the French ; and all those who had taken the field met their death by
evil mishap, for of the French there were slain 5210 ; among which
dead were found ninety -five with 3 gilt spurs. So that our people
pursued the French as far as the gate of Saint Thomer, and there, right
at the portcullis, were the Frenchmen all slain. And as for those who
had 4 escaped within the gate, they did not dare come any more out
of the city, until our people had taken their departure for the siege of
Torneye. And in the meantime while the siege lasted, that is to
say, for a quarter of a year, our people from day to day made incursions
in the parts of France, and burnt, and took prey and prisoners, knights
and esquires of great renown ; and beasts, and corn, and other provisions
had they, belonging to the King of France, so that the country, all round
about the siege, was ravaged, burnt, and brought to destruction.
At this time, while the siege lasted, Sir Edward, our King, had
assault made upon the said city of Torneye six times each day, with
springals and mangonels, throwing huge stones, [and employing] engines
with 5 powder [and] wildfire; so that the engines with the great stones
broke down the towers and stout walls, churches, belfries, strong walls,
fine mansions, and rich habitations, throughout all the said city of
Torneye. Also, the people within the town were all but destroyed by
the great famine which prevailed in the said city. For the water,
running in a fine stream, which used to pass through the city, was
1 The popular and wealthy brewer of Ghent, 4 The writer, in the simplicity of his narra-
a powerful ally of Edward III. against Philip tive, is guilty of a contradiction here ; for he
of Valois. has twice said that they were all killed.
3 Saint Omer, in Picardy. 5 This early allusion to the use, no doubt,
3 I.e. knights ; esquires wearing silver spurs, of gunpowder, is deserving of notice.
A.D. 1889, 40.] SIEGE OF TOURNAY BY EDWARD III. 279
dammed up and withheld from them, so that neither horse nor other beast
was retained alive in all the said city ; for so closely were they pent
within the city, and so great was the famine, that the quarter of wheat
was worth four pounds sterling, the quarter of oats two marks, a hen's egg
six pence, and two onions one penny. And as for our people besieging it
without, throughout all the host of the King of England they had so
great a plenty of victuals, wine, bread, and flesh of every kind, that
nothing was wanting; praised be sweet Jesus Christ therefor !
Also, at this same time, those within the city of Torneye caused a
letter to be written to their king, Philip de Valoys, to the effect that he
must aid them with his forces with all haste, or that otherwise they would
be compelled of necessity to surrender the said city to the King of
England; for that their people, whom they had had in the city, were
killed, dead, and destroyed, and their provisions all consumed ; so that
they had nothing upon which to subsist, nor could any longer hold the
city against their adversary, the King of England. And when their
letter was written, they took a 1 vadlet, and arrayed him in "poor cloth
like a 2 Jacobin, and delivered him their letter, to carry to their King,
Philip de Valoys, and sent him by night out of a postern privily. And
when he had proceeded fully two miles from the city, at daybreak 3 Sir
Henry de Lancaster, Earl of Derby, met him away from the road, and
had him arrested and interrogated him; and the vadlet varied in his
words. And forthwith, Sir Henry had him searched, and found the
letter upon him ; and then at once they brought this Jacobin before the
King of England, and he was put upon peril of life and limb to tell all
the truth as to the strong city of Torneye. And the messenger forthwith
began his speech before the King ; " Sire," said he, " in nothing will I lie
" unto you ; certes, all their men-at-arms are slain, and there are left not
" more than two hundred men capable of defence ; nor victuals have they
" to sustain themselves beyond a fortnight."
And the same day, the Count of Henaud took a great force with him,
and rode to forage full twenty miles in the land beyond the siege, and
1 Or serving man. hospital for the pilgrims to Saint James (Ja-
2 The Dominicans, or Friars Preachers, cobus) of Compostella, in Spain,
were so called, from the fact of their monastery 3 Son of Henry, Earl of Lancaster,
in Paris having been previously occupied as a
280 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A. D 1339, 40.
took great prey in beasts belonging to France, and slew men-at-arms in
great numbers, and took six-and-twenty of the most valiant knights
whom Philip de Valoys at that time had, and had them taken as prisoners
to the King of England; beasts and provisions also without number.
For a person might then have had a good beeve for forty pence, a swine for
eighteen pence, a mutton for twelve pence, bread and wine in great
plenty ; blessed be God therefor !
And when the news came to Philip de Valois, how that he had lost
his valiant knights, and his people had been slain, his beasts and his
provisions taken and carried to his enemy, the King of England, he began
to sigh and be in great sorrow thereat. For he did not dare give battle
to our King of England ; but, like a coward and a recreant knight, he
made a lady, the 1 Gountess of Henaud, his messenger to come to our King
and his Council, and pray that he would cease, and no more spill the
blood of Christians or destroy their goods ; that so, peace might be between
the two realms, with truce otherwise at his will, and in such manner as
the parties might agree upon. And the said Philip de Valoys was also to
agree at the same time, that he should hold in peace Gascoigne, 2 Peyto,
Normandy, 3 Aungeo, and all the lands that had ever belonged to any one
of his ancestors in those parts, which he claimed of right to hold ; so that
there should be no further slaughter of people by land or by sea, no burning
or destruction, on the one side or the other, so long as the truce should
last ; as also, that merchants in either kingdom should be able safely to
pass in every place until a certain day named. Also, that no town, city,
or castle, was in the meantime to be better victualled, or more strongly
provided with men or with arms, than they were at that hour, under the
ordinance in such indenture made. And this covenant, in form aforesaid,
loyally to observe, Philip de Valoys made oath upon 1 he Saints of God ;
and every point in the indentures, between him and our King ordained,
loyally to observe, and in all things on his part to perform the same.
And then, when they had done this, all the prisoners of the great
lords, on the one side and on the other, were liberated, until a certain
day in the truce named ; upon condition, that if peace could between
1 Jane,Countess of Hainault; sister of Philip, a Poitou.
King of France, and mother of Philippa, Queen 3 Anjou.
of England.
A.D. 1839, 40.] THE SIEGE OF TOURNAY RAISED. 281
the two kingdoms be maintained, in such manner as is in the indentures
more fully contained, then in such case, all the aforesaid prisoners, of the
one side and the other, should, without ransom given, be for ever quit ;
and further, that if the parties should not be able to agree, nor by a
certain day from the truce to establish peace, in such case each prisoner,
on the one side and the other, should upon that same day deliver him-
self up at the place where he was before imprisoned. Then were Sir
William de Mountagu, Earl of Salesburi, Sir Robert de Offorde, Earl
of Suffolk, and many others, released ; and came to the [royal] abode
before that our Lord the King returned into England. All these things
were provided, by counsel of our Lord the King, by the great lords
beyond sea ; who would no longer give their sanction to the great war,
nor yet to the destruction of the land or to the loss of Christian blood.
And further, our Lord the King had no treasure anywhere wherewith
to maintain and pay his people, except at a great loss, wholly by borrow-
ing of merchants and paying great usury therefor. For he had no
treasures whatever of his own, nor yet arising from the wool which
had been granted him by the commons of England, to aid him in main-
taining his war against the King of France ; for during all the time
since his last passage, when he conquered his enemies in battle at sea,
never since could he obtain any thing whatever of his treasure from
England ; and this, through the covin and abetting of bad traitors who
of his Council were sworn.
15 Edward III. [A.D. 1340,1]. Andrew Aubry, Mayor, ^dam
Lucas and l Bartholomew Denmars, Sheriffs.
Then was raised the siege of Turneye, which had been continued
for a quarter of a year ; and our people made great lamentation thereat,
for they fully thought to have had the treasure and fine things as their
own for ever, and then was it all lost. And when the host was all
broken up, our King, with his people, took the road until he came to
the city of 2 Gaunt; and there he sojourned a long time, and held his
Parliament there, and took counsel which it would be best to do, to
remain there or to return to England. For every week he was sending
letters to his false guardians in England, requesting them to aid and
1 The residences of both these persons will tumarum, pp. 447, 8.
be found mentioned in the printed Liber Cos- 8 Ghent.
O O
282
THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1340, 1.
succour him with his own treasure which had been granted to him by all
the commons of England. And these false traitors, who had made oath
unto him, sent him back letters enough, to the effect that the collection
of the tenths of England, which had been granted to him, could not be
made, nor could the number of sacks of wool throughout all the realm
be raised ; and that they did not dare to act more rigorously through
fear of war, and lest the people might choose rather to rise against them
than give them any more. Also, that the collection of such monies as
they had received, did not suffice for the wages or for the fees of the
servants and officers of the King; nor yet to clear off the debts which
he himself owed for the expenses of his household ; to the payment of
which they had been assigned by command of the King himself.
And when they had sent their letters to such effect to their liege lord
the King, it so happened that there was one of them who had made oath
to the King, better disposed towards him than any of the rest ; and,
knowing all their private doings and contracts, he privily put them in
writing and all their affairs, as among themselves they had ordered them ;
as also, that unless he himself should privily come over to England, it
would be of no use to him to send them any more letters ; and further,
that no one ought to know it, by day or by night, until he should have
entered the Tower of London ; immediately upon which, he was to send
for the Mayor of the said city, and his own serjeants-at-arms ; and then,
without any longer delay, the whole of such certain persons ought
immediately to be seized and be brought into the Tower before him ; and
as for himself, he was to be no more spared than any of the others ; and
that then, the King would find treasure enough for carrying on his war,
and gaining the victory over his enemies.
And when the King had understood the letters that had so come to
him, he considered what would be the best to do, and immediately sent
for the Duke of Brabant and Jacob de Artefeld of Flaunders, and many
others of his Council, and prayed them most tenderly, with clasped hands,
that they would act faithfully for him as concerned his revenue, which
must be [collected] as speedily as ever he could arrange. For that it
behoved him to make a journey to England, by reason that there came
no treasure to pay his people, out of that which with good will had been
granted to him.
A.D. 1840, 1.] THE CORRUPT MINISTERS ARE SURPRISED. 283
And when he had thus said, he mounted his palfrey and rode until he
came to x Esclus in Flaunders, and there put himself on board ship, and
came privily to England. And the night after the Day of Saint Andrew
[30 November], the King with his company reached land, and with
lighted torches entered the Tower of London, so that no one there knew
of his coming. And immediately, he enquired for Sir Nicholas de la
Beche, the then Constable of the Tower, and guardian of the Duke, son
of the King of England. And the Under-Constable fell upon his knees
at the King's feet, and said, " Sire, he is out of town." Whereupon, the
King was very angry ; and commanded that the doors should be instantly
opened throughout, so that he himself might see all the things that were
within the Tower. And when the King had viewed all the things,
he hastily sent for Andrew Aubry, the then Mayor of London ; who
immediately came to speak with him. And when he came before the
King, he fell upon his knees and saluted him ; and the King commanded
him to rise, and, under pain of losing life and limb, to have brought
before him the same night, without receiving any respite, the Lord de
Wake, Sir John de Stonore, Sir William de la Pole, Sir John de
Polteneye, Sir Richard de Wyleby, Master John de Saint Paul,
Master Henry de Stratforde, cousin of the Archbishop of Caunterbury,
Master Michael Wathe, and Sir John de Thorp.
And all these were taken the same night by the Mayor and the
King's Serjeants, and brought to the Tower of London before the King,
and by his command were put in different rooms, each by himself, and
with each a keeper for his safe custody. And on the morrow, the King
gave prompt orders that Sir Nicholas de la Beche, the then Constable of
the Tower, should be sought for, as also Sir John de Molins, and brought
to him, wheresoever they might be found. Accordingly, they executed
the King's commands ; and Sir Nicholas de la Beche was found and
brought to the King, and Sir John de Molins took to flight.
And when all this had been done, on the Monday next after Saint
Andrew's Day [30 November], at sunrise, he took his way with certain
knights, and rode as far as Saint Alban's ; where he took up his quarters
in the Abbey, and forthwith sent for the Abbot of the house, and com-
manded him to shew him his buildings. And the Abbot did not dare
1 Sluys.
284 THE FRENCH CHKONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1340, 1.
gainsay him, but opened the doors throughout, and shewed the King
his rooms. And one door, which stood in a private corner, he concealed,
instead of shewing him; whereupon, the King asked him why he had
not opened that door. And the Abbot made answer, that he had not
the keys. " And who then has them ? " said the King. And the Abbot
answered him that the property of Sir John de Molyns was therein,
in safe keeping, and that he had the keys with him. " By Saint Mary,
" my Lady," said the King, " I will take keys of my own." So he made
a blacksmith open the locks, and Centered; and there he found great
riches and a great plenty of treasures, all of which he retained in his
own possession. And from thence he rode into the country around,
to his private friends, to learn news from them ; and then returned
to London.
And then were arrested Sir William de Sharshille, and Sir John
Chardelowe, Justiciars in x Bank, as they were sitting on the Assizes
at 2 Cauntebrigge, and were brought to the Tower of London. Then
also was Sir Thomas Ferreres taken ; and they were placed, each of
them, in different rooms. And then after this, by counsel of Sir
William de Killesby, they were all separated from one another into
different castles; that is to say, Sir Nicholas de la Beche was sent to
the Castle of 3 Tikhille, Sir John de Stonore to the Castle of doting-
ham, Sir John de Pulteneye to the Castle of Somertone, Sir William
de la Pole to the Castle of Devyses, Sir Eichard de Willeby and
Master Henry de Stratforde, cousin of the Archbishop, to the Castle
of Corf, Sir William de Scharshille to the Castle of 4 Kerfilii, Master
Michael de Wathe and Sir Thomas Ferreres to the Castle of Windesore;
and the others, Sir John de Chardelowe, Master John de Saint Paul,
and Sir John de Thorp, remained in prison in the Tower of London.
And then after this, the King removed his Treasurer, Sir Roger de
Northboruh, Bishop of Chester, and put in his place a knight, Sir
Robert Pervinke by name ; and also removed his Chancellor, the Bishop
of Chichester, brother of the Archbishop of Caunterbury, and put in
his place a knight, Sir Robert 5 Bouser by name. And then the King
1 I. e. of the King's Bench. . 4 Caerphilly.
2 Cambridge. s . Bourchier,' more correctly.
Tickhill, in the South of Yorkshire.
A.D. 1840, 1.] TKEASUKE OF SIR JOHN DE MOLEYNS SEIZED. 285
swore an oath, that never in his time should man of Holy Church be
his treasurer or chancellor, or in possession of any other great office
which unto the King pertains ; but that if any such persons should ever be
attainted of knavery, he would have them drawn, hanged, and beheaded.
And when he had done this, the King and Queen, and all the household,
removed from London to Gildeforde, and there he kept his Christmas.
And from thence the King removed to 1 Stokebogeys, which belonged to Sir
John de Molyns, and held a great feast there with all the great men of the
country, for three days. And from thence he removed to Dittone, a very
fine manor that also belonged to the said Sir John de Molyns, and there
the King found armour for eighty men, and of plate and treasure great
plenty; which the said Sir John de Molyns had put into little bags well tied,
and then into other great sacks well corded, and plunged them into a deep
pond ; for he fully intended another time to have returned to it ; but his
design and purpose was wholly frustrated, for the King retained it all as
his own property, in his own possession.
* And when the King had done this, he returned to London, on the
Wednesday next after New Year's Day, and began to hold his Privy
Council. And then orders were given to search and examine all the
rolls of offices held under the King, that is to say, the office of Treasurer,
Chancellor, Cofferers, Justiciars, Sheriffs and their clerks, taxors through-
out England, collectors of the tenths and of the wools which had been
granted unto the King for carrying on his war, and of all other ministers ;
that so, they might be ready with their rolls on a certain day appointed
at Westminster, before the King's auditors thereunto assigned throughout
England to hear and determine. And then, after the Wednesday
following the 2 Tiffany [6 January], Sir Richard de Willeby, one of the
King's Chief Justiciars, stood at the bar at Westminster, for two days,
before six persons, to make answer to divers articles as to which he had
been accused by Sir John Pervinke, Sir Robert de Sadingtone, Sir
William Scot, Sir Thomas de Wake, the Baron de Stafford, and Sir
John Darcy, who accused him of divers matters which he had done
against his liege lord the King.
And the said Sir Richard made answer to all their enquiries, until he
had become so weak that he could no longer speak, but as a favour,
1 Stoke Pogis, in Bucks. * Or Epiphany.
286 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1340, 1.
prayed to have the assistance of a man of the law, associated with him to
aid him in speaking : and with great difficulty would they grant him this
suit. And when he could no longer hold out in making answer to them,
the said Sir Richard threw himself upon the King's favour, and was
remanded to the Tower of London to await the King's pleasure. And
the same night there was so dreadful a tempest of wind and rain, of
lightning and thunder, that it battered to the ground and destroyed the
very fine work of the Church of the a Friars Minors at London.
Then, after the Tuesday next before the Conversion of Saint Paul
[25 January], all the officers in the King's Court were ousted and
removed by Sir William de Killesby, and on the Sunday next ensuing
proclamation was made throughout London that every one, both high
and low, who owed fealty or service unto the King, should be ready
at the Tower of London, for the first time, on the second Monday in
Lent, before Sir Robert Pervinke and his companions, Justiciars in
Eyre assigned. Then were certain points ordained by Sir William de
Killesby and others of the King's Council ; in the first place, that en-
quiry should be made as to all manner of oppressions, wrongs, damages,
grievances, and molestations, committed by each person who had been
minister of the King, and as to their behaviour towards our Lord the King
and the common people ; that is to say, as to Justiciars of the one Bench
and the other, assigned to hold pleas of the Forest, Justiciars for holding
the assizes and for gaol delivery, and all other Justiciars; also, as to eschea-
tors and sub-escheators, coroners, sheriffs, their clerks and their servants ;
also, as to taxors, sub-taxors, and their clerks ; as to admirals of fleets of
the navy, and others with them associated ; also, as to wardens, consta-
bles of castles for keeping the peace ; as to takers and receivers of wools,
and others with them associated ; as to assessors and vendors of the
King's wools, and others them assisting, the same at divers times
granted ; as to Barons of the King's Exchequer, and as to clerks, as well
of the Chancery as of the Exchequer, and other places of the King ; as
'to wardens of forests of vert, their clerks and the officers of the forests,
chases, and parks ; as to collectors of customs, controllers, 2 troners,
1 Or Grey Friars ; on the site of the present this occasion by the storm.
Christ Church, Newgate Street. It was com- 2 Weighers by the King's Tron, or Great
pleted A.D. 1327, and dedicated to St. Francis. Beam.
The great western window was destroyed on
A.D. 1840, l.] ESCAPE OF GRIFFYN OF WALES. 287
1 butlers, and their associates ; as to receivers of the King's monies
in the country, and as to those who conceal the same ; as to seneschals
and marshals, and their clerks ; also, as to keepers of the King's horses,
and their grooms ; as to purveyors for the King's hostel and for Sir
Edward, Duke of Cornewaile ; as to warders of gaols ; as to those 2 who
hold traitorous converse ; as to men-at-arms, 3 hobelers, and archers, and
as to their associates ; as to bailiffs in Eyre, and as to all other bailiffs, who-
soever they may be ; also, as to those who have falsely carried wools
or other merchandize out of the realm, against the prohibition, without
paying custom unto us ; as to those who maintain false pleas in assizes,
and other false suits ; also, as to misdoers within the Marches and other
remote places, in arms beating and wounding persons, until they have
exacted fines from them by way of ransom ; as to all manner of oppres-
sions, duresses, and grievances, by any person whatsoever committed,
whether archdeacon, dean, official, or sequestrators, and their com-
missaries and officers ; also, as to those who make change of money or
of other goods, or do in any other manner colourably practise usury ;
as to those who have falsely done anything by colour of their office, or
in other manner, for doing their duty, have either partaken with any
other person, favoured other persons, or of other persons have taken
tortiously.
Also, at this time 4 Trailebastoun lay throughout England, and
certain Justiciars were assigned to sit in every county for enquiry and
examination upon all the points before-named; and thus was great
duress inflicted upon the people throughout England. Then after this,
one GrifFyn of Wales, who had slain the brother and the wife of Jacob
de Artefelde of Flanders, and who had been taken and brought to the
Tower of London, and put in strong prison, and fettered with two
strong pairs of gyves and manacles, upon the evening of Saturday the
Octaves of Easter, filed through his irons, and broke out of prison, and
made his escape from the Tower. And a woman, " Ibote atte Knolle "
by name, was taken on account of the said Griffyn, as a felon against the
1 Persons who received the King's prisage cult to divine what is.
on butts of wine. 3 Light-horsemen, who rode on the horses
2 This is probably not the meaning of * de known as * hobbies.'
'choysours traiterousment;' but it seems diffi- 4 Seepage 246 ante.
288 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D 1340. 1.
King, because that she had come to him daily and had brought to him
privily .the things which he wished to have; and so, she was put in
prison for him.
And at the end of a fortnight after Easter, the King began to hold
his general Parliament at Westminster, and the Iter was then adjourned
until such time as the Parliament should be ended. And at this time Sir
Hugh d'Audelee, Earl of Gloucester, was appointed envoy to carry
in writing the message of the King and his Council, of England, to the
Parliament of France, then sitting at the city of Turnaye, to the effect
that if Philip de Yalois and his Council would establish and grant
the points comprised in the written message of the King of England,
there should be peace between them for ever ; and if not, that there
should be war forthwith, every man for himself, and that, without
any further respite beyond the day of the truce agreed to between
the two realms.
Then came all the great men of England to the King's Parliament,
but not the 1 Archbishop of Caunterbury, or his brother the 2 Bishop of
Chichester, or the Bishop of 3 Chester, who were excluded from Parlia-
ment for a whole week by the abetting of Sir William de Killesby, by
reason of the enmity that existed between him and the Archbishop.
Then, in the second week after this, the Earl of Warenne came to
the Parliament before the King, and found there Sir Robert Pervinke,
the Baron de Stafforde, Sir William Killesby, and Sir John Darcy, and
others who were not qualified for sitting in Parliament ; and he began his
speech and said, " Sir King, how goeth on this Parliament ? In former
' f days it used not to be thus ; now it is all changed in quite another
" manner : for those who ought to be the principal persons are excluded,
" and others, persons in trade, sit here in Parliament, who ought not to
" be at such Council ; but only the peers of the land who may aid you,
" Sir King, and maintain you in our great need. And on. this, Sir King,
" you ought to think." And forthwith Sir John Darcy quietly arose
and went out ; and then, after him, Sir William de Killesby and all the
others before-named, without saying a single word. Then arose the
Earl of Aroundel, and said to the King, " Sire, let the Archbishop enter
1 John de Stratford. 8 Roger de Northburgh.
* Robert de Stratford.
A.D. 1340, L] PREPARATIONS FOR INVADING FRANCE. 289
" into your presence, and if he can exculpate himself on certain points
" that are imputed to him, well be it : and if not, we will ordain there-
ff upon what is best to be done." The King granted his request, and
there were put in writing thirty -two articles against him : and the
Archbishop denied them all, and said that he was in no way guilty as
to any one point that had been alleged against him.
16 Edward III. [A.D. 1341,2], John * d' Oxenford, Mayor; which
John died in the same year, and then Simon Fraunceis was made
Mayor. Richard de Berking, Draper, and John de la Rokele, Grocer,
Sheriffs.
At the Feast of Saint Michael after this, our King caused to be
assembled a great host of vigorous men well armed, and all the navy of
England well victualled, in the parts of Sandwiz, Dovere, and Portes-
mouthe ; and remained there two months and more, wholly to collect
his host and his fleet of the ships of England. For these had been
granted to him from all the land, in aid of his war against his enemies.
And at the same time, Philip de Valoys had assembled on the
other side a great host of each nation, Basques, 2 Bydouese, Spaniards,
Genoese, and people of many other countries ; so much so, that it would
be a tremendous thing to say what was the amount of the people whom
he had gathered together against our King Edward, for the purpose of
preventing him from crossing beyond sea, so much in fear did he hold
him ; for battle against our King he dared not give.
Then our King, when he saw the malice and great wickedness of Philip
de Valoys, and that he had gathered together so great a multitude of people
of divers countries for the purpose of preventing our King from going be-
yond sea, speedily issued commands unto his host ; which was so noble a one
and so fine, that no king in the world had ever had such before ; for he had
three hundred large ships, besides 3 farcosts and galleys for carrying provi-
sions ; [in obedience whereto] the fleet of ships passed on to Portesmouthe.
This done, they all set sail with great gladness for the coast of 4 France,
and took all that they could find before them, by land and by sea, until
they came to Bretagne, to a country therein that is called " Little
1 Or John of Oxford. He was a member of the French side of the Pyrenees,
the Vintners' Company ; and was buried in 3 Coasting vessels used for traffic,
the Church of St. James, Garlick-Hythe. 4 'England,' erroneously, in orig.
2 People, apparently, of Bedous, a town on
PP
290 THE FRENCH CHRONICLE OF LONDON. [A.D. 1341, 2.
" Cornewaille :" and there our people landed , and stoutly prepared them-
selves to give battle to their enemies.
The same night that our lord the King landed, he came to a royal
manor, belonging to the Lord of Chalouns, where he found abundance of
all things ; but the people of the manor had all fled, so much so, that
there was not a single person remaining. And from thence, the King
and his host came to a rich abbey [the people of] which, invested with
cross and mitre, came to meet him, and knelt before him, crying mercy; and
our lord the King granted them his peace. And there also was a very
noble forest, in which our lord the King took his recreation, and hunted
for a fortnight, and captured such prey of divers beasts that it was quite
marvellous to tell of, that is to say, stags, does and roes, bulls, wild fowl,
wild boars, bears, l swans, foxes, and wolves, savage and wild, in such
great plenty there, that there was no numbering them.
And then he passed on with his host day by day through Bretagne,
until he came to the city of Nauntes ; but no damage did he do thereto,
for the said city he would not destroy. But there he turned aside
towards Philip de Valoys by another way, to know whether he would
dare give battle on his own territory. And then Philip de Valoys
caused to be broken down all the bridges in the country, so much so,
that neither our King nor his hgst could approach any nearer to him ;
but like a coward he requested of our King by his letters that he might
have a three years' truce. And hereupon, there were fourteen wise
persons to be chosen, of great renown, that is to say, seven for our King
and the other seven for Philip de Valois, to go to the Pope and there
treat for peace between the two realms of France and England, and
come to terms thereon. And if the same should not be concluded, at
the end of the truce so made, they were to be ready for waging war of
deadly battle for all future time. la such manner was the truce granted
for both parties, France and England.
17 Edward III. [A.D. 1342, 3]. Simon Fraunceis, Mayor. John
Lovekyn, and Richard de Keslingbury, Draper, Sheriffs.
In the same year, our King, Edward, returned to England, but great
buffeting had he at sea, he and all his host, from a dreadful tempest, by
1 This is perhaps the meaning of tinge : ' monkeys can hardly be meant.
A.D. 1342, 3.] EDWARD, PRINCE OF WALES. 291
reason whereof he lost many of his ships and a great part of his people.
And, on the morrow of 1 Hokkeday he began to hold his Parliament at
Westminster, with all the great men of England. And then Sir
Edward, the King's son, 2 Duke of Cornewayle, by assent of all the
great men of England, was made Prince of Wales.
1 Hock Tuesday, the second Tuesday after Duke of Cornwall 17th March, 1337, it being
Easter. See p. 10, ante. Matthew Paris, in the first creation of that title in England. He
the middle of the 13th century, is probably the was created Prince of Wales 12 May, 1343 ;
first who makes mention of it. the latest date alluded to in this Chronicle.
2 Edward the Black Prince, was created
APPENDIX.
The Treason of Sir Thomas de Turberville. See page 243, ante.
Turberville, who had been taken prisoner by the French, was induced, upon
his return to this country, to act as their spy, and to give them secret
information as to the state of affairs in England. For the due performance
of this compact, he made homage to the Warden of Paris, and gave his two
sons as hostages. He also made oath to a like effect ; and a deed was duly
executed, whereby land was secured to him to the value of one hundred livres.
On his arrival in London, he pretended that he had made his escape from
prison, and, availing himself of his opportunities, gave such information to
the King of France as to lead to attacks upon Hy the and Dover, and depredations
by the French in other parts of the kingdom. From a document formerly
preserved in the Tower, we learn that his mission extended not only to
England but to Wales, that he was arrested in the County of Kent, and that
his treasonable letter was preserved in the royal Treasury in the Tower.
From Langtoft's Chronicle we also gather that the letter of Turberville to
the Provost of Paris, was entrusted by him to one of his servants, who
was to accompany the two Cardinals, on their return to Paris, who had
been sent by the Pope, for the purpose of reconciling Edward and Philip,
King of France ; and that he was betrayed to a member of the King's Council
by the clerk who had written the letter for him.
The following extract is translated from the Latin History of Bartholomew
Cotton, (recently edited by Mr. Luard, under the direction of the Master of
the Rolls) pp. 304-306 :
' In the same year [A.D. 1295] a certain knight, Thomas Turbevile by name,
* who had been taken by the French at the siege of Rheims, and detained in
6 prison by the said King of France, came over to England with traitorous
'designs, and said that he had escaped from the prison of the said King of
' France ; whereupon, he was kindly received by our lord the King of England,
' and much honoured. But after he had remained some little time in the
' Court of our lord the King of England aforesaid, he attempted to send a
' certain letter to the King of France ; whereupon, his messenger carried the
' same to our lord the King of England, and gave him a full and open account
' of the treachery of his employer. The traitor, suspecting this, took to
294 APPENDIX.
' flight, but was taken shortly after. The tenor of his treasonable letter was
' as follows : l
" To the noble Baron and Lord Provost of Paris, sweet Sire, at the 2 Wood of
" Viciens, his liege man 3 at his hands, greeting. Dear Sire, know that I am
" come to the Court of the King of England, sound and hearty ; and I found
" the King at London, and he asked much news of me, of which I told him the
"best that I knew; and know, that I found the land of Wales in peace,
" wherefore I did not dare to deliver unto Morgan the thing which you well
" wot of. And know that the King has fully granted peace and truce ; but
" be you careful and well advised to take no truce, if the same be not to your great
" advantage ; and know that if you make no truce, great advantage will accrue
" unto you, and this you may say to the high Lord. And know that I found
" Sir John Fitz-Thoinas at the King's Court, for the purpose of treating of
" peace between him and the Earl of 4 Nichole as to the Earldom of 5 Ulvester ;
" but I do not yet know how the business will turn out, as this letter was
" written the day after that the Cardinals had been answered ; wherefore I
" did not dare touch at all upon the business that concerns you. And know
"that there is little watch kept on the sea-coast towards the South; and know
" that the Isle of 6 Wycht is without garrison ; and know that the King
" is sending into 7 Almaine two earls, two bishops, and two barons, to speak to,
" and counsel with, the King of Almaine as to this war. And know that the
" King is sending into Gascoigne twenty ships laden with wheat and oats, and
" with other provisions, and a large amount of money ; and Sir Edmund, the
" King's brother, will go thither, and the Earl of Nichole, Sir Hugh le Despenser,
" the Earl of Warwyk, and many other good folks ; and this you may tell to the
" high Lord. And know that we think that we have enough to do against those
*' of Scotland ; and if those of Scotland rise against the King of England, the
" Welsh will rise also. And this I have well contrived, and Morgan has
'* fully covenanted with me to that effect. Wherefore I counsel you forthwith
" to send great persons into Scotland ; for if you can enter therein, you will
" have gained it for ever. And if you will that I should go thither, send word
" to the King of Scotland, that he find for me and all my people at their charges
" honourably ; but be you well advised whether you will that I should go
" thither or not ; for I think that I shall act more for your advantage by
" waiting at the King's Court, to espy and learn by enquiry such news as may
" be for you ; for all that I can learn by enquiry I will let you know. And
" send to me Perot, who was my keeper in the prison where I was ;
" for to him I shall say such things as I shall know from henceforth,
1 In Norman French, in the original. 4 Lincoln.
2 The Bois de Vincennes, of the present 5 Ulster,
day. 6 Wight.
3 /. e. having made homage to him. 7 Germany.
APPENDIX. 295
" and by him I will send you the matters that I fully ascertain. And
"for the sake of God, I pray you that you will remember and be advised
" of the promises that you made me on behalf of the high Lord, that is to say,
" one hundred livres of land to me and to my heirs. And for the sake of God, I
" pray you on behalf of my children, that they may have no want so long as
" they are in your keeping, in meat or in drink, or in other sustenance. And for
" the sake of God, I pray you that you be advised how I may be paid here ; for
" I have nothing, as I have lost all, as well on this side as on the other ; and
" nothing have I from you, except your great loyalty, in which I greatly trust.
" Confide fearlessly in the bearer of this letter, and shew him courtesy. And
" know that I am in great fear and in great dread ; for some folks entertain
" suspicion against me, because that I have said that I have escaped from
" prison. Inform me as to your wishes in all things. Unto God [I commend
" you], and may he have you in his keeping."
' The said Thomas was seized on the Saturday next before the Feast of
* Saint Michael, and taken to the Tower of London ; and on the Saturday
' next after the Feast of Saint Faith [6 October] he had his trial, and
'departed in manner underwritten: l
' He came from the Tower, mounted on a poor hack, in a coat of 2 ray, and
* shod with white shoes, his head being covered with a hood, and his feet
' tied beneath the horse's belly, and his hands tied before him : and around him
' were riding six torturers attired in the form of the devil, one of whom held
* his rein, and the hangman his halter, for the horse which bore him had them both
* upon it : and in such manner was he led from the Tower through London
* to Westminster, and was condemned on the dais in the Great Hall there ; and
' Sir Roger Brabazun pronounced judgment upon him, that he should be
' drawn and hanged, and that he should hang so long as anything should be left
' whole of him ; and he was drawn on a fresh ox-hide from Westminster to
* the 8 Conduit of London, and then back to the 4 gallows ; and there is he
1 hung by a chain of iron, and will hang, so long as anything of him may remain.'
1 Written in Latin, the following descrip- 3 In Cheapside.
tion being in Norman French. 4 Probably, the Elms in West Smithfleld.
2 I, e. rayed, or striped, cloth.
INDEX.
Abingdon, Stephen de, Sheriff, 251; Mayor,
252.
Symon de, Sheriff, 209, 253.
"Abominations," novel application of the
term, 60.
Aeon, or Acre, 131.
Addrien, or Adrian, John, 42, 93, 94, 97,
101, 129, 133, 218, 235, 236, 238.
Aix, 29.
Albaga, King of the Tartars, his league
with Prince Edward, and Letter, 148.
Albemarle, Earl of, 40.
Alderman, Jacob, Sheriff, 2 ; Mayor, 4 ;
condemned to lose the Mayoralty, 4.
Aldernianebyri, or Aldermanbury, Symon
de, Sheriff, 2.
Aldermen of London, contemplated rising
against the, 157.
Ale, salt in, 261.
Alegate, or Aldgate, 11, 47, 220.
Alianora, Queen, of Provence. See Eleanor.
Almaine, or Germany, 26 ; corn imported
from, 40.
Almaine, Richard, King of, 43, 47, 48, 91,
97 ; taken prisoner, 66 ; Letter of, to the
Barons, 68; his award, 129; his son
murdered, 139; Letter thereupon, 139.
See Cornwall.
Henry of, 76.
"Amercement," meaning of the term, 11.
Amnesty pronounced in Parliament, 75.
Andwerp, or Antwerp, 273.
" Anelace," meaning of the word, 54.
Angevin, an, burnt to death, 3.
Antioch, Godard de, Sheriff, 2.
"Appealed," meaning of the term, 108.
Arbalesters, sent to King Edward I., by
the City, 238.
Arches, regulations concerning, 180.
Artefeld, Jacob de, of Flanders, 278, 282 ;
his wife slain, 287.
Artoys, Count of, besieges St. Oiner, 277.
Arundel, Earl of, his submission, 225;
beheaded, 266.
Asseles, Atheles, or Athol, Earl of, hanged,
222, 248.
Assize of ale and wine, 43.
of bread and ale, effects of non-
observance of, 22.
of buildings, the, 179.
" Assizes," meaning of the term, 74.
Atheles, or Athol, Earl of. See Asseles.
"Attached," meaning of the term, 10.
Aubry, Andrew, Mayor, 275.
Audeleye, James de, 40.
Aumesbury, Martin de, Sheriff, 219, 243.
Aunger, Peter, Sheriff, 234.
Awerhinge, or Haveringe, Lucas de, Sheriff,
220, 245.
Ba, or Bath, Henry de, Justiciar, 14, 18,
27, 33.
Bacwelle, Sir John, death of, 249.
Badlesmere, Sir Bartholomew, put to death,
225 ; his wife sent to the Tower, 254.
" Bailey," meaning of the term, 66.
Bailiffs amerced by the Justiciar, 42.
Baillol, Sir John, and King Edward, war
between, 243 ; imprisoned in the Tower,
243.
Bakers, City regulations concerning, 43 ;
lawlessness of the r 150; drawn on a
hurdle, 240, 251
Balaunce, Ralph la, Sheriff, 252.
Bardulf, William, 9.
'Barons, the, opposed to King John, enter
London, 4 ; remove the King's Sheriffs
and appoint others, 52 ; address of, to the
King, 57 ; seize the Bishop of Hereford,
Q Q
298
INDEX.
57 ; conciliate the City, 60 ; their Letter
to the King, 68.
Bartholomew's, Canons of Saint, 18.
Barton, or Garton, Hugh de, Sheriff, 250.
Basilica, a new, for St. Edward, 122.
Basing, Adam de, Mayor of London, 20.
Basinge, Robert de, Sheriff, 218, 238.
William de, Sheriff, 213, 249.
Basinges, Hugh de, Sheriff, 4.
Salomon de, Sheriff 4 ; Mayor, 4.
Thomas de, 55 ; Bailiff of the City, 1 14,
236.
Basques, the, 289.
Basset, Fulk, Bishop of London, 11.
Philip, 97.
Bastardy, rights of, 249.
Bat, Gerard, Sheriff and Mayor of London,
6, 7, 8 ; his interview with the King, 9.
Nicholas, Sheriff, 11,12,14,19; Mayor,
21 ; trial of, 35.
Batencurt, Luke de, Bailiff, 93, 94, 235;
Sheriff, 101, 237.
Bath, Peter, Sheriff, 3.
"Batur," probably meaning, "Fuller," 126.
Baudok, Robert de, (properly "Ralph,")
Bishop of London, 215.
Beams and Weights, 37.
Beaucaire, the Brethren of, 139.
Beauinond, Sir Henry de, 213, 260.
Beche, Sir Nicholas de la, surprised, 283.
Bek, Sir Antony de, 238.
Bekke, Canon Adam de, slain, 237.
Bel, Robert le, Sheriff, 2.
Belers, Sir Roger, Justiciar, slain, 260.
Bells, City, forbidden to be rung, 96.
Benetleye, Adam de, Sheriff, 12.
Bereford, Simon de, 270,
Sir William de, Justiciar, 246.
Berkeley Castle, Edward II., murdered in,
267.
Berking, Richard de, Sheriff, 289.
Berkingecherche, 82, 240.
Berkle, Sir Thomas de, 267.
Bermundesheie, or Bermondsey, 55 ; over-
flowed, 243.
Betevile, Angecelin, or Hauncetin, de,
Sheriff, 219, 240.
Betoygne, Richard de, Mayor, 2 10, 265, 267.
Bettoyne, William de, Sheriff, 219.
Beverley, the Provost of, elected Bishop
of London, 169.
Bigot, Hugh, Justiciar, 41, 88.
Bishops, three, chosen as Judges -in behalf
of the Church, 74.
Blacebrok, Sir John de, 217.
Blaceneye, or Blakeney, Peter de, Sheriff,
212, 214, 249.
Blackomore, the Scots make a descent on,
256.
Black Prince, the, created Prince of
Wales, 291.
"Blader," meaning " Corndealer," 213.
Blakelowe, Gaveston executed at, 250.
Blanched money, 129.
Blaunk, Cardinal, 214.
Blond, Blound, or Blount, Edward le, She-
riff, 74, 234.
Blount, John le, Mayor, 217, 218, 222, 246,
247, 248.
Ralph le, Sheriff, 216, 219, 237.
Walter le, Sheriff; 219, 279, 240.
Blund, Hugh, Sheriff, 10.
Norman, Sheriff, 2.
Peter, 18.
Robert, Sheriff, 2.
Roger, Sheriff, 7.
William, Sheriff, 4.
Bodele, John de, Sheriff, 236.
Bodeleyhg, William, Sheriff, 252.
Bohun, Humphrey de, Earl of Here-
ford, 40.
Boklaunde, Philip de, 51.
Bokointe, John, Sheriff, 1.
Bole, Henry le, Sheriff, 219, 242.
Bolet, Edmund, Sheriff, 248.
Bollete, Simon, Sheriff, 222.
Boloyne, or Boulogne, 223.
Bones of the Eleven Thousand Virgins,
a relic, 251.
Boreford, John de, Sheriff, 221, 246.
Bosenho, Peter de, Sheriff, 246.
Bossam, Peter de, Sheriff, 220.
Botetourte, John, Justiciar, 221.
Botiller, James le, Sheriff, 213, 249.
Bouser, Sir Robert, Chancellor, 284.
Bow, Ralph de, Sheriff, 11.
INDEX.
299
Bowe, Alice Atte, burned, 240.
Box, Hamo, Sheriff, 219.
Henry, Sheriff, 243.
Martin, Sheriff, 219, 240.
Thomas, Sheriff, 218, 239.
Brabant, Duke of, 223; marries a daugh-
ter of King Edward I., 242.
Brabason, Sir Roger, Justiciar, 246.
" Brandwodde," or " Brentwood," meaning
of the name, 7.
Brasil wood, 123.
Bream, William, 10, 11.
Bredstrete, 2; great fire in, 234.
Breme, Count de, 223.
Breton, Sir John le, Warden of the City ;
241,242,243, 244,247.
Brikelesworthe, William, Sheriff, 271.
Bristoue, or Bristol, 227.
Brond, Hamo, Sheriff, 3.
Broning, Adam, Sheriff, 23.
Brun, Walter, Sheriff, 2.
Bruneswik, or Brunswick, Duke of, 204.
Brus, David le, marries the Princess
Joanna, 269.
Robert le, 214 ; crowned, 222 ; his
oath at Westminster, 247; made King
by the Scots, 247 ; his two brothers
hanged, 248 ; truce between him and
Edward II., 257.
Bufle, Walter le, Sheriff, 6.
Bukerel, Andrew, Sheriff, 5 ; Mayor, 6.
Matthew, Sheriff, 24, 31; sued for
grievances, 35.
Stephen, Sheriff, 6 ; Marshal of Lon-
don, 65.
Thomas, Sheriff, 4.
Bunge, Reginald de, Sheriff, 8 ; Mayor, 9.
Burdeaus, or Bordeaux, 117.
Burdeyn, Robert de, Sheriff, 250.
" Burels," meaning of the term, 131.
Burghaisse, (Burghersh,) Sir Bartholomew
de, sent to the Tower, 254.
Bury, Isabel de, slays a clerk, 253 ; is ex-
ecuted, 254.
Butlership, the Mayor serves the King
in the, 223.
Butlery, service of the citizens in the royal,
121.
Bydouese, the, 289.
Cadsand, the Isle of, 272.
Caerphilly, the Castle of, 284.
Callere, Robert de, Sheriff, 220, 246.
Cambridgeshire laid waste by the Barons,
94.
Campes, Richard de, Sheriff, 220.
Canterbury, Archbishops of, mentioned,
10, 18; the Archbishop of, accuses Ed-
ward II., 266.
Capital punishment inflicted in the City, for
breaking the peace, 78.
Capper, John the, imprisoned and fined,
235.
Carnervan, or Caernarvon, 208.
Carols, 214.
Catelonie, Robert de, Sheriff, 31.
Caunterbury, John de, Sheriff, 219, 241.
Caustone, John de, Sheriff, 210, 259.
William de, Sheriff, 252.
Cendale, or Sandale, Robert de, Warden,
216.
Cenilleworth. See Kenilworth.
Cestrefield, or Chesterfield, conflict at, 91.
Chamberlain of the City, his duty, 34, 39.
Chamberleyn, Gervaise, Sheriff, 8.
William, Sheriff, 2.
Chardelowe, Sir John, Justiciar, 284.
Charlemagne, the seat on which he was
enthroned, 167.
Charter extorted by the Barons, 41 ; the
citizens refuse to seal a certain, 254.
Charter of Liberties of the Bishop of
London, 211.
Charters, granted to the City, 21, 22, 41,
107, 227, 252 ; the citizens stand upon
their, 18, 92 ; of the Forest, 75.
Chaumps, Richard de, Sheriff, 245,
Chaunceler, Roger, Sheriff, 210, 262, 267.
Chepe, or Market, 7, 266; pillory in, 127;
rejoicings in, 220 ; the Cross in, 262 ;
the Conduit in, runs with wine, 137.
Cherringe, or Charing, early mention of,
50.
Chichester, Stephen, Bishop of, suspended,
88.
Chigewelle, Richard de, Sheriff, 219, 240.
Chikewelle, Hamo de, Sheriff, 209, 250;
300
INDEX.
Mayor, 216, 253, 254, 256, 258, 260,
262, 269.
" Childewite," meaning of the term, 109.
Chirographer of the Jews, 17.
Chirographs, the Chest of, sent to the
Tower, 66.
Chishull, Master John de, 239.
Church, Holy, robbed .by King Edward, I.,
247.
Church, Lawless, a place so called, 263.
Cinque Ports, the, 73 ; pirates of the, 87 ;
pardoned by Prince Edward, 87 ; men
of the, prevent the export of wool, 167;
side with Edward II., 254.
Cipeham, or Chippenham, 115.
Cistercian Monks, the, 162.
Citizens of London, muster in arms at Mile
End, 7 ; fined one thousand pounds, 1 1 ;
keep Watch and Ward, 58 ; alarmed
by fears of the King's vengeance 81 ;
throw themselves on his mercy, 82 ;
houses of sixty, given away by King Henry,
83 ; sixty, taken as hostages, 84 ; pray
to be punished according to their
deserts, 84 ; pardoned by King Henry,
98 ; are fined 20,000 marks, 85 ; assess-
ment of, 130; fined 204. See Char-
ters, City, and London.
City of London, greatest part of the, burnt,
3; taken in hand by the King, 11; re-
delivered to the Mayor, 11 ; taken in
hand by the King, 15 ; tapestried, to
greet the wife of Prince Edward, 24;
seized into the King's hands, 34 ; ag-
grieved by the Mayor and others,
35, 37; hung and arrayed in honour
of the return of the Earl of Cornwall,
44 ; arming of persons from fifteen years
and upwards in, 47 ; resolution against
harbouring Prince Edward or the Earl of
Gloucester in, 47 ; about to be besieged,
81 ; houses seized by King Henry, 83 ;
the populace resist the King's orders,
91 ; keys of the, taken, 95 ; and Tower,
a covered way made between, 97 ; privi-
leges restored to the, 129 ; .seized into
the King's hand, 241 ; liberties restored
to the, 244. See Charters, and London.
Clare, Richard de, Earl of Gloucester, 33,
40 ; death of, 53.
Clerc, John le, condemned, 19.
Cleremound, Sir Louys de, 223.
Clerks, regulations concerning, 69, 70, 71.
Clinton, William, Earl of Huntingdon, 272.
Cloths, imported, regulations concerning,
130.
Cobeham, Thomas de, Archbishop of Can-
terbury, 215.
Coc, "the Dandy," 125.
"Cofferer," meaning of the term, 125.
" Cog," whence " cock-boat," 277.
Cokham, Henry de, Sheriff, 6, 7.
Colas, or, Scolace, Saint, 213.
Cologne, the Archbishop of, 28.
Combemartin, Henry, Sheriff, 269.
William, Sheriff and Mayor, 218, 221,
246.
Comet seen, 234.
" Commons" of the City, 59, 85, 95, 155.
Composition with the Barons, read at West-
minster Hall, 45.
Conipurgators, or jurors, 19.
Comyn, Sir John le, slain by Brus, 247.
John, the younger, sent to the Tower,
243.
Conduit, Geoffrey de, Sheriff, 222.
Reginald de, Mayor and Sheriff, 253,
271.
Conference, between Henry HI. and the
King of France, at Boulogne, 61 ; at
Dover, between the royal party and the
Barons, 73.
Conow, Peter, of Flanders, his victory, 245
Conradin, King of Sicily, 137.
Constantin, Richard, Sheriff, 254.
Corenhell, or Cornhill, Henry de, one of the
first two Sheriffs of London, 1.
Robert de, Sheriff, 42, 114, 236.
Stephen de, Sheriff, 219, 241.
Cornlmlle, or Cornhill, the Soke of, 210.
Cornwaleis, Walter de, Sheriff, 238.
Cornwall, Richard, Earl of, 13, 28.
Coronation of Richard I., persecution of the
Jews at, 1.
of Edward I., preparations for, 178.
Corp, Simon de, Sheriff, 214, 249.
INDEX.
301
Costentin, Richard, Sheriff, 209, 216.
Cosyn, William, Sheriff, 222, 247.
Cotiller, Salamon le, Sheriff, 219, 242.
Coton, John, Sheriff, 210, 260.
Coventre, Jordan de, Sheriff, 7.
Henry de, Sheriff, 44, 231, 237.
Crafts, extortionate proceedings of the
London, 60.
Crane, Nicholas, Sheriff, 272.
Crepelgate, or Cripplegate, 54.
Cressingham, Sir Hugh de, slain, 244.
Cromwelle, Sir John de, 224, 250, 251.
Cros, Thomas, Sheriff, 219. 241.
Cross, Crusaders, marked with the, 1.
Crown, Pleas of the, at the Tower of
London, 6.
Croxton Abbey burnt, 261.
Crusaders, the, diverted from Palestine, 138.
Culeworth, Sir Richard de, High Bailiff, 96.
Cusin, Peter, Sheriff, 166; convicted of
having taken a bribe, 167 ; deposed in
consequence, 167 ; enquiry by the Jus-
ticiars, 168.
Dadintone, or Deddington, 213.
Dallingge, John, Sheriff, 252.
Damiete, or Damietta, capture of, 17.
Darcy, Henry, Sheriff, 269.
Sir John, 285.
D'Armenters, John, Sheriff, 220, 245
D' Arras, Robert, Sheriff, 218, 238.
D'Audelee, Sir Hugh, 288.
Davy, brother of Leulyn, beheaded, 240.
Dearth, great, of corn, 209.
D'Eli, Roger, Sheriff, 210.
Denmars, Bartholomew, Sheriff, 286.
Depredators, clerical and lay, regulations
respecting, 69, 70, 71.
Desert, Roger de, Sheriff, 2.
D'Espaygne, Bernard, beheaded, 266.
Despenser, Sir Hugh le, Justiciar, 48 ;
the Tower delivered to, 58 ; slain, 80.
Sir Hugh le, the Elder, quarrels with
the Barons, 254 ; is banished, 254 ;
executed, 227, 265.
Sir Hugh le, the Younger, 254 ; exe-
cuted, 266.
" Disherisoned," the, rules as to their pro-
perty, 93 ; ordinances concerning the, 93 ;
fortify the Isle of Ely, 94 ; truce granted
to, 97.
Douglas, James, his plot to capture Ed-
ward III., 268.
Dover, 4, 21 ; plundered and -partly burnt
by the Normans, 242.
Dower, judgment regarding, 13.
D'Oxenford, John, Sheriff and Mayor,
210, 289.
Drawbridge toll remitted as to London
Bridge, 19.
Drawbridge Gate, the, 42.
Drowning, men executed by, 97.
Druerye, Neel, Sheriff, 223, 248.
Due, Peter le, Sheriff, 3
Roger le, Sheriff and Mayor, 1,
5,6.
Duket, Nicholas, Sheriff, 1, 2.
Dunbarre, the Battle of, 243.
Dunheued, Friar Thomas, apartizan of Ed-
ward, H., 267.
Dunstan, Godfrey de Saint, the citizens ap-
peal against, 111.
Dunstaple, John de, Sheriff, 219, 243.
Durdreych, or Dortrecht, 29.
Durham, Thomas de, Sheriff 9, 12.
William de, Sheriff, 20, 106, 112;
1 Warden, 176, 236.
Earthquakes at London, 13, 216,219, 244.
Eclipse of the sun, while Roger Bishop of
London is being buried, 9.
Eddeworthe, Sir Stephen de, Warden, 111.
Edelmeton, Henry de, Sheriff, 6.
Edmund, son of Richard, King of Amiaine,
his marriage, 159.
Sir, King Henry's son, , marriage of,
113.
Edward I., returns with his Queen from
Palestine, 164, 237; their Coronation, 178,
237; reconciles three kings, 241; his
two daughters married, 242 ; marries
Princess Margaret of France, 219, 220;
his death and burial, 223, 248; See
Edward, Prince (son of Henry III.).
Edward II., Coronation of, 249 ; his dis-
graceful flight from Scotland, 256
disagreement with the King of France,
259 ; his proclamation against Queen
302
INDEX.
Isabella, 260 ; false report of his being
reconciled with the Queen, 265; his im-
prisonment and death, 227, 267. See Ed-
ward, Prince, of Caernarvon.
Edward III., reign of, 267291.
Edward, Prince (son of Henry III.), fealty
sworn to, 20 ; goes to Gascoigne, to marry
the King of Spam's sister, 22 ; his titles,
23; returns to London, 25; maltreats
the Welsh, 31 ; at strife with the Earl
of Gloucester, 47 ; done fealty to, by the
Mayer and citizens, 56 ; given as a hos-
tage, 67 ; his defiant Letter to the Barons,
69 ; restored to the King, 76 ; his pro-
mises, 76; defeats Adam Gurdan at
Aulton, 91 ; reconciled to the Earl of
Gloucester, 100 ; assumes the Cross, 112;
and King of France, convention between,
116119; and Earl of Gloucester, award
concerning, 128 ; departs on the Crusade,
130, 236 ; his agreement with the other
Crusading princes, 137. See Edward I.
Edward, Prince, of Caernarvon, born, 240 ;
created Prince of Wales, 245 ; knighted,
222,247. See Edward II.
Edward, de Wyndesore (afterwards Ed-
ward HI.), born, 214, 250. See Edward
III.
Egeblaunch, Peter de, Bishop of Hereford,
57, 231.
Eleanor, of Provence, Queen, crowned, 7 ;
death of, 242 ; a Queen of that name
reviled for the murder of Fair Rosamond,
232.
English, the, in France, arrested, 261.
Eppegrave, Sir Thomas de, Warden, 106.
Esclus, or Sluys, 283 ; the Battle of, 276.
Esshwy, Stephen, obtains the City seal,
241.
Essoiners, or Attorneys, 75.
Essoins remitted, 10.
Eswy, Ralph, Mayor, 9, 10.
William, Sheriff, 22, 25.
Euerwick, or York, the Exchequer removed
from, 246, 258 ; King Edward III. marries
Philippa at, 268.
Evesham, the Battle of, 80, 235.
Ewelle, Richard de, Sheriff, 25.
Exchequer, the, transferred to St. Paul's, 89
removed from York, 246, 258.
Excommunication, pronounced by the Arch-
bishops and Bishops, against violators
of the Charters of Henry III., 20 ; formula
of, 20 ; pronounced, 45, 76, 128.
Exestre, or Exeter, Walter, Bishop of,
beheaded, 263.
Eyvile, John de, 91, 95, 100.
Falkirk, the Battle of, 245.
Famines, in England, 40, 209, 252.
Farendone, Nicholas de, Sheriff and Mayor,
210, 213, 216, 218, 249, 250, 253, 257,
258.
William de, Sheriff, 218.
Fauconberge, Eustace de, High Treasurer,
210.
Fayleham, or Folsham, Beneyt de, Sheriff,
210, 259.
Fealty, oath of, to Prince Edward and the
Queen, 20; required of the citizens, 133.
Ferers, Sir William de, 97.
"Ferm," or rent, meaning of the term, 21 ;
for the liberty of St. Paul's Church, 21.
Ferreres, Sir Thomas, captured, 284.
Ferrers, Earls of, 91, 224.
Ferrun, or Ironmonger, Alexander le, 17,
126.
Fevre, Humphrey le, Sheriff, 19.
Ralph le, Sheriff, 218, 238.
Fingrie, Henry de, Sheriff, 220, 245.
Fishmongers, of London, their pageant,
250.
Fitz-Alan, Peter, Mayor, 13, 14.
Roger, Sheriff and Mayor, 1, 3.
Fitz-Aliz, Martin, Sheriff, 3.
William, Sheriff, 2.
Fitz-Athelhulf, Constantine, Sheriff, 2;
hanged for treason, 5.
Fitz-Athulf, Arnulf, Sheriff, 2.
William, Sheriff, 2.
Fitz-Auger, Peter, Sheriff, 74.
Fitz-Barthelmeu, Richard, Sheriff, 2.
Fitz-Duraunt, Robert, Sheriff, 2.
Fitz-Eylwin, Henry, first Mayor of London,
1 ; death of, 3.
Fitz-Joce, Nicholas, Sheriff, 15; sued for
grievances, 35, 46.
INDEX.
303
Fitz-John, John, Sheriff, 238.
Robert, Sheriff, 6, 10.
Fitz-Mary, Symon, Sheriff 7 ; wastes the
property of the Sheriffwick, 7 ; refusal to
admit him to the Shrievalty, 8 ; surren-
ders his Aldermanry, 11 ; Sheriff, 13 ; his
Aldermanry restored to him, 16 ; again
taken from him, 16.
Fitz-Otes, Sir Hugh, Constable of the
Tower, 84, 113 ; Warden of London,
235.
Fitz-Peter, Geoffrey, Justiciar, death of, 4.
Joce, Sheriff, 3.
Fitz-Reyner, Richard, one of the first two
Sheriffs of London, 1.
Fitz-Richard, William, Mayor and Sheriff,
39, 45, 48, 90, 231, 235.
le Prestre (the Priest), Sheriff of
London, 19.
Fitz-Roger, Roger, Mayor, 17.
Fitz-Thedmar, Arnald, 37, 39, 40, 46;
marked for proscription, 120 ; history of
his family, 201 208 ; his unjust assess-
ment, 204 5 ; Letters concerning, 206 ;
oppressed by Henry le Waleys, 207 ; set-
tlement of the matter, 208. See the
Introduction, pp. viii x.
Fitz-Thomas, Thomas, Mayor, 31, 53, 62,
74, 231 ; his wicked designs, 119.
Fitz-Neal, Thomas, Sheriff, 3.
Fitz- Walter, Richard, Sheriff, 6.
Fitz-WiUiam, Martin, Sheriff, 5, 6.
Fitz-Yzabel, William, Sheriff, 2.
Flanders, clipped coins brought from, 220.
the Countess of, her injustice to
English merchants, 132; retaliation
upon, 1 32 ; her haughty proposal, 149 ;
her envoys summarily dismissed, 150.
See Flemings.
"Flauner," a, meaning of the word, 125.
Flemings, expelled from London, 143 ; in-
quisition as to the property of, 147;
arrested, 148. See Flanders.
Flux, great, from eating fruit, 214.
Flete Bridge, injured by a storm, 252.
Folkmote, convened at St. Paul's Cross, 37,
40, 45, 49, 213.
summoned, 33.
Folsham. See Fayleham.
Ford, Thomas de, Sheriff, 61, 234.
Forsham, Roger de, Sheriff, 275.
Fouke, James, Sheriff, 249.
Foukirke, or Falkirk, the Battle of, 245.
Foulam, or Fulham, Adam de, Sheriff,
219, 244.
Fourneys, William, Sheriff, 209.
" Frail," meaning of the term, 32.
France, Louis IX. King of, captured by the
Saracens, 19 ; arbitrates between Henry
and the Barons, 63, 64.
Franchises, certain, are recovered, 17; the
citizens refuse to recede from their, 18 ;
withdrawn, 106 ; restored, 268.
Fraser. See Frisel.
Fraunceis, Simon, Mayor and Sheriff, 269 ;
289.
French traders, enactments as to, 146, 261.
Fretheric, or Frederic, Emperor of the Ro-
mans, death of, 19.
Friars Preachers, the, 264.
Frisel, or Fraser, Simon, executed, 222,
247.
Frome, John de, 23.
Frowick, Henry de, Sheriff, 237 ; Warden
of London, 157, 160.
Frowyk, Laurence de, Sheriff, 13, 19.
Fuleham, or Fulham, 60.
Fulham. See Foulam.
Furneaux, William de, Sheriff, 252.
Garlaund, John, Sheriff, 3.
Gascoigne, or Gascony, 9, 20.
Gatesdene, John de, 18.
Gavastone, or Gaverstone, Sir Piers de, re-
called from banishment, 213, 249; his
nicknames for the nobles, 249, 250 ; his
execution, 213, 250.
Gernemue, or Yarmouth, 28, 29, 44, 83.
Gerneseye, the Castle of, 275.
Ghennok, or Glamorgan, 31.
Ghent, or Gaunt, 274, 281.
Giseburne, Adam de, Sheriff, 10.
Gisors, Henry, Sheriff, 270.
Gizors, John de, Sheriff, 8, 12 ; Mayor, 13,
23, 42, 213, 249, 250, 252, 253.
Glasgow, the Bishop of, 248.
Gloucester, Earl of, 77, 97, 98, 225 ; takes
304
INDEX.
possession of the City, 95; takes the
Cross, 112; his oath, 160; marries
King Edward's daughter, 242 ; dies,
243.
Gloucester, Cross of the Earl of, in Chepe,
214.
Richard de, Sheriff, 219, 243.
Godchep, Hamo, Sheriff; 252.
Jordan, Sheriff, 219, 240.
Godestowe, the religious house of, 234.
Golden pennies issued, 31, 32 ; con-
sidered detrimental by the citizens, 32.
Goldsmiths and tailors of London, at strife,
104 ; certain of the rioters hanged, 105.
Grantebrigge, or Cambridge, John de,
Warden, 212.
Grantham, John de, Sheriff, 210, 256;
Mayor, 269.
Grapefige, William, Sheriff, 31.
Gravesend, 115.
Graveshende, Richard de, Bishop of
London, 115.
Great Law, waging the, 19.'
Grenewyz, or Greenwich, 136, 224.
Grey Friars, Church of the, injured by
lightning, 286.
Grievances, enquiry into, committed by
ministers of Edward in., 286, 287.
Grocers' pound of wax or fruit, 216.
Gros, Stephen le, Sheriff, 3.
Griffyn of Wales, escape of, from the
Tower, 287.
Gueldres, or Gerle, Count of, 273.
Guildhall, the, 11, 13, 27, 34, 43.
Hackenheie, or Hackney, 79.
Hadestok, Simon de, Sheriff, 81.
William de, Alderman, 114.
Hainault. See Henaud.
Hainaulters, English hated by the, 268.
Hakeneye, Richard de, Sheriff, 209, 216.
Hale, Edmund de la, Sheriff, 3.
Hallingbury, Adam de, Sheriff, 219, 243.
Hamond, John, Sheriff, 271.
Hardel, Ralph, Sheriff, 17; Mayor, 22,
24, 25.
Robert, Sheriff, 7.
William, Sheriff, 3 ; Mayor, 4.
Harwich, or Herwiz, 262, 275.
Haselbech, William de, 204.
Haunsard, William, Sheriff, 271 ; good ser-
vice of his ship, 277.
Hauteyn, John, Sheriff, 269.
Nicholas, Sheriff, 223.
Walter, Sheriff; 219, 241.
Haverille, William de, 15, 18; Sheriff, 1.
Thomas de, Sheriff, 3.
Haveringe, Lucas de, Sheriff, 220, 245.
Helilaud, John, Sheriff, 3.
Ralph, Sheriff, 3, 4.
Henaud, or Hainault, Count of, 273.
Countess of, King Philip's envoy, 280.
John de, 227.
Henry, King, III., crowned, 4 ; asks leave
of the citizens, at St. Paul's Cross, ^to
pass over to Gascoigne, 9 ; crosses over,
9 ; returns home, 10 ; his sister married
to the Earl of Warenne, 13 ; assumes the
Cross, 17; his anger against the citizens,
34 ; his oath assenting to the Ordinances,
40 ; his promises at St. Paul's Cross, 45 ;
his seal changed, 46 ; return to London,
47; temporary reconciliation with the
Barons, 52 ; without the assent of the
Barons, appoints Basset Chief Justiciar,
52 ; absolved by the Pope from his oath
in Parliament, 53 ; writ concerning the
same, 53 ; crosses over to France, 53 ;
returns to England, 54 ; crosses over to
France, 61 ; captured at the Battle of
Lewes, 66; his Letter to the Barons, 67 ;
his Letters quashed, 77 ; cancels all
Charters granted after the Battle of
Lewes, 81 ; pardons the citizens, 85 ;
permits the election of Bailiffs, 90; his
letter of forgiveness to the citizens, 98,
99, 100; grants liberties to the citizens,
106; withdraws certain franchises, 106;
letters to the City, 133, 134 ; his procla-
mation against the Countess of Flan-
ders, 140 ; Letter concerning the Coun-
tess's envoys, 143; Letter concerning the
Jews, 199, 200; his death, 158, 236.
Henry, Prince, of Alinaine, a hostage, 67 ;
his marriage, 114; his death, 138 40.
Hercleye, Sir Andrew de, created Earl of
Carlisle, 257 ; hanged, 257.
INDEX.
305
Hereford, Adam Orleton, Bishop of, 258.
See Egeblaunch.
Humphrey de Bohun, Earl of, 40,
216, 225, 252.
William de, Sheriff, 219, 241.
the Sheriff of, hanged, 255.
Herevy, Walter, Sheriff, 106, 112 ; chosen
Mayor by the populace, 153 ; warned
by the King's Council, 153, 155; his
factious proceedings, 154; proceeds to
Westminster with a large following, 156 ;
his declaration of disinterestedness, 156;
elected Mayor, 159, 236, 267; his in-
justice, 205, 208.
Herlisun, John, Sheriff, 1; fails in
" making his law," 6 ; granted life and
limb, 6.
Hermine, Sir William, Bishop of Norwich,
declared a traitor, 261.
Hinggestone, John de, Sheriff, 271.
Hobelers, or light horsemen, 287.
Hockeday, or Hocktide, 10.
Holand, or Holland, in Lincolnshire, 89.
Holborne Bridge, injured by a storm, 252.
Homicide, foreigners attached in the City
for, 10.
Horewod, Thomas, Sheriff, 270.
Horn, John, Sheriff, 153, 159, 218, 237.
Hospital of Jerusalem, at Clerkenwell, 47,
203.
Hospitallers, the, 6.
Hoyland, or Holland, 29.
Husbonde, John, Sheriff, 271.
" Ibote atte Knolle " aids Griffyn of Wales,
287.
Innocent IV, Pope, 19.
Inquisition, throughout twelve Wards, 33,
35 ; throughout England, 101, 103.
Interdict, laid on England, 3 ; laid on the
City, 97 ; laid on the City, 'through the
Archbishop of York, 113.
Ireland, Barons exiled to, 75.
Isabel, Princess, of France, married to Ed-
ward II., 223 ; as Queen, deprived of her
title, 261 ; her letters to the citizens,
262, 265 ; her conduct, 266, 269, 270.
Isabella, Bang Henry's sister, wife of the
Emperor Frederic, 19.
Istleworthe, or Isleworth, ravaged with fire,
234.
" Iter," meaning of the term, 209.
Jacob Alderman, Sheriff, 2.
Jacobins, Dominicans, or Friars-Preachers,
279.
Jay, Brian, slain by Wallace, 245.
Jewry, of Winchester, destroyed, 78 ; of
London, burnt, 234.
Jews, to plead before the citizens in
certain cases, 17 ; a moiety of their move-
ables exacted by the King, 21 ; a
Christian child slain by, 25 ; their
punishment, 25 ; persecution of, 54 ;
slaughtered in London, 66 ; enquiry as to
flesh sold by, and the buyers and sellers
thereof, 177 ; concerning advowsons of
churches, etc., held by, 194; concerning
their wardships of Christians, 194, 195,
196 ; five hundred killed for extor-
tion, 234 ; drawn and hanged for clipping
coin, 239; all in England imprisoned,
241 ; banished from England, 242.
Jige, William, Justiciar, 221.
John, King, crowned, 2 ; death of, 4.
John, Prince, son of Edward I., birth of,
92 ; his death, 146.
Joynier, William, Sheriff, 5 ; Mayor, 8.
Jukel Alderman, Sheriff, 2.
Julers, or Juliers, Count of, 273.
Justiciar, a, over England, elected by the
Barons, 41 ; complaints against him, 43.
Justiciars and citizens, altercation between,
33, 34; Roll of, 51 ; Itinerant appointed,
105 ; Itinerant, 243, 253.
Juvene, Constantine le, Sheriff, 3.
Joce le, Sheriff, 5.
Peter le, Sheriff, 3.
Kaye, John de, Sheriff, 2.
Keels, or merchant vessels, 77.
Kendale, Sir Robert de, Warden, 253.
Kenilworth, 79, 81, 92, 94, 234, 235, 239, 266.
Keningtone, or Kennington, 8, 10.
Kermes, or grains, 123.
Keslingbury, Richard de, Sheriff, 290
Kidels (nets of a peculiar nature), sailors
seized with, in the Thames, brought to
London, amerced, and nets burnt, 8.
R R
306
INDEX.
Killesby, Sir William de, 284, 288.
Kilwardby, Robert de, Archbishop of Can-
terbury, 160, 162, 239.
Kniwtebrigge, or Knightsbridge, 34.
Korenhelle, or Cornhill. See Corenhell.
Koudres, John de, Sheriff, 8, 12, 13.
Lacer, Richard, Sheriff, 270.
Lacy, Henry de, Earl of Lincoln, burial of,
214.
Lamb, monstrous, yeaned, 136.
Lambert de Legis, John Herlisun charged
with his death, 6.
Lambhethe, or Lambeth, 169.
Lambin, John, Sheriff, 215, 250.
Lancaster, Henry, Earl of, guardian of
Edward III., 265, 269.
Thomas, Earl of, 213, 224, 225, 255.
"Lastage," meaning of the term, 108.
Laumbert, Thomas, Sheriff of London, 5.
Lawless Church, the, 263.
"Law-merchant," meaning of the term, 107.
Ledes, Castle of, 254.
Legate, the Pope's, turns the cloisters of
an Abbey into a stable, 96.
Leggleys, Walter, Sheriff, 218, 219.
Leiburne, Sir Roger de, his message, 82, 83.
Leicester. See Montfort.
Leuwelin, Prince of Wales, 31, 78, 101,
238, 239.
Lewes, Battle of. See Liawes.
Leyre, William de, Sheriff, 219, 242.
Liawes, or Lewes, the Barons defeat
Henry in. at, 66, 75, 234; results
of the battle, 67.
Lincoln, caUed "Nicole," 245.
Lincoln, John de, Sheriff, 222, 247.
Linde, John de la, 84, 235.
Linge-draper, or linendraper, 125.
Linton, Robert de, Sheriff, 22, 96.
Liseny, Sir Geoffrey de, 40.
Sir Guy de, 40.
Lodekin, or Lucekyn, Adam, Sheriff, 215,
281.
Londenestane, or London Stone, 1 .
London, custom of, for homicide, 36 ;
under Interdict, 88.
London, Eustace, Bishop of, charter to,
210,211,212.
Henry, Bishop of, suspended, 88. See
Newport, and Roger.
London Bridge, held by the Queen, 146 ;
resigned by the Queen, 147 ; again re-
sumed, 147 ; broken by a great frost,
240.
Louis, Prince, of France, lands in England,
and besieges the castle of Dover, 4 ;
departs from England, 4.
Monsire, of France, 214.
Love and reconciliation day appointed, 17.
Loveday, Sir Roger, 238.
Lovekyn, John, Sheriff, 290.
Lovetot, Sir John, 238.
Lucas, Adam, Sheriff, 281.
Lucekyn. See Lodekin.
Lundy, Isle of, 9.
Lynn, 51, 83.
Mad Parliament, the, 40.
" Making his law," meaning of the term,
6.
Manewourhe, Simon de, Sheriff, 213.
Manny, Sir Walter de, 277.
Marberer, Hughe, Sheriff, 272.
Marche, the Count de la, 9.
Margaret, daughter of King Henry, mar-
ried to the King of Scotland, 20.
Margaret, Queen, wife of Edward I., 214,
245.
Marisco, William de, drawn and hanged, 9.
Marshal of the King's houshold, his right
as to lodging, 108.
Marshal, Roger, Bailiff, 96.
Maserner, William le, Sheriff, 218, 240.
" Maudeleyne," meaning of the term, 213.
Maule, Sir Simon de, 213.
Maunsel, John, 34, 40, 73.
Mautravers, Sir John, keeper of Edward
n., 267.
"Mayhem," or "Maiming," what, 105.
Mayors of London, 193,194.
Measures, for liquids, regulations concern-
ing, 75.
Meldeburne, Robert -de, Sheriff, 166, 168,
170.
Mentz, Archbishop of, 29, 30.
Mercer, Richer le, Sheriff, 219.
Serlo le, Sheriff, 3 ; Mayor, 34.
INDEX.
307
Merchandize, weights for, 123.
Merchants, foreign, forced to use the legal
beam and tron, 123; imprisoned and
fined, 128.
Mereworthe, Simon de, Sheriff, 249.
Merleberge, or Marlborough, homage to
King John at, 3.
Merton, Walter de, Chancellor, 159.
Middletone, Gilbert de, hanged, 209.
MileEnde, 7.
Milkstrete, great fire in, 234.
Minur, John le, 46.
Miracles wrought in St. Paul's Church, 257.
" Miskenning," meaning of the term, 109.
Mokkinge, John de, Sheriff, 271.
Money, old, exchanged for new, 239.
Montfort, Guido de, aids in the murder of
Prince Henry, the King's nephew, 140.
Montfort, Peter de, 40, 46, 74 ; slain, 80.
Montfort, Simon de, Earl of Leicester,
40 ; his dissensions with the King, 62 ;
sanctions piracy, 78 ; slain, 80 ; ill-treat-
ment of his remains, 80 ; cruelty of his
supporters, 119; persons proscribed by
them, 120; his supporters banished the
City, their names, 124, 125, 126, 127.
See Liawes.
Montfort, Simon de, the Younger, 65;
plunders Winchester, 78 ; surprised at
Kenilworth, 79; meets the King at
Winchester, 80 ; retires to Kenilworth,
81 ; throws himself on the King's mercy,
87 ; joins the pirates of the Cinque
Ports, 87 ; crosses the seas, 87 ; murders
Prince Henry, the King's nephew, 140.
Mordone, Gilbert de, Sheriff, 210, 260.
Walter de, Sheriff, 271.
More, Ralph de la, Sheriff, 219, 239.
Mortality, great, 209, 214.
Mortimer, Roger de, 40 ; war levied upon,
by the Barons, 64 ; remains of De Mont-
fort sent to his wife, 80.
Mortimer, Roger, the Younger, accompanies
Queen Isabel, 227; escapes from the
Tower, 258 ; his insolence, 269 ; the first
person hanged at Tyburn, 270.
Mortimers, the, sentenced to be hanged,
256 ; sentence commuted, 258.
Munchanesey, William de, his attempt to
prove the will of his deceased wife, 26.
Munchensy, William de, 79.
Munferat, Marquis of, assassinated, 162.
Munpelers, or Montpelier, Robert de,
Sheriff, 54, 231.
" Murage," meaning of the term, 239.
Musteroil, or Montreuil, 176.
Mynur, John le, Sheriff, 24.
" Naam," what, 109.
Navarre, King of, with the army of the
Christians, 138.
Nele, Walter, Sheriff, 272.
Nets burnt at Westchep, 8, 22, 121, 166;
for fishing the Thames, seized for having
their meshes smaller than the prescribed
size, 120; seized by the Constable of
the Tower, beyond the liberties of the
City, 121.
ISTevelun, Andrew, Sheriff, 4, 188.
Peter, Sheriff, 1, 187.
Nevile, Hugh de, captured at Kenilworth,
79.
Peter de, sent by the King to Cher-
ringe, to obtain the delivery of the
four citizens of London, brought
thither by the Mayor and Bailiffs
of Northampton, 50.
Robert de, Inquisitor as to disorders
in the Midland Counties, 103.
Newcastle, preparations at, to invade Scot-
land, 268.
Newebigging, Thomas de, arrests many
citizens, 258.
Newgate, sailors imprisoned in, 8 ; those
imprisoned there for political offences
set free, 96 ; several of the banished
citizens, for returning to the City, im-
prisoned in, 168 ; prisoners escape from,
231.
New Hall at Westminster burnt, 231.
Newmarket, Adam de, captured at Kenil-
worth, 79.
New money, exchange of, at the Tower,
239.
Newport, Richard de, elected Bishop of
London, 216.
New Temple, meeting of Bishops and
308
INDEX.
Barons there, to confer upon the state
of the realm, 159.
New Work of St. Paul's commenced, 44.
Nicole. See Lincoln.
No Man's Land, where, 266.
Norfolk, disturbances there by the dis-
herisoned, 89, 94.
Norman, John, Sheriff, 7, 189; Mayor, 19,
194.
Normans land at, and plunder Dover, 242.
Northall, John de, Sheriff, 271.
Northampton, affray at the Fair of, be-
tween the Londoners and inhabitants,
49; Bailiffs of, refuse to deliver up to
the Mayor of London, upon the King's
precept, four citizens, accused of the
death of a man at the Fair, 49 ; citizens
of, claim their privilege of not pleading
without the walls of their own borough,
50 ; taken by the King, 65 ; Parliament
held there, 189.
Northampton, John de, Sheriff, 21, 189,
231.
Northborough, Roger de, Bishop of Chester,
removed as Treasurer to the King,
284.
Northumberland plundered by the Scots,
246.
Norton, Robert de, Sheriff of Suffolk and
Norfolk, 106.
Norwich, plundered by the disherisoned,
94; Cathedral burnt, 150; thirty-two
citizens of, hanged, drawn, and burnt, for
being concerned in the burning of the
Cathedral, 152.
Nottingham, Council held by Edward III.
at, 270.
Oath, the citizens refuse to take an, in the
arbitration of the question of tallage, 34 ;
certain, prescribed on the graves of the
dead, 108.
Onions, dearness of, 252.
Ottoboni, Cardinal and Deacon of St.
Adrian, and Legate of Rome, summons
the refractory Bishops to London, 88 ;
holds a General Council at Saint Paul's.
107.
Oxenford, John de, Sheriff, 220, 258.
Oxford, non-observance of the Statutes by
the Parliament of, produces disturbances
throughout the kingdom, 41 ; the Charter
drawn up by the Parliament of, ratified
by the King, 41 ; assented to by the
Mayor and citizens of London, 41 ; the
Earl of, captured at Kenilworth, and
taken to Gloucester, 79.
Oystergate, John de, expelled from the City,
126.
Stephen de, Sheriff, 24.
Page, Thomas, hanged, 255.
Palermo, Prince Edward at, 137.
Palmere, Roger, Sheriff, 213, 249.
Paris, Edward I. arrives at, and does
homage to the King of France, 165.
Paris, Richard de, Sheriff, 191, 236.
Roger de, Sheriff; 222, 247.
Simon de, Sheriff, 221, 246.
Parliament, Mad, of Oxford, ordains that
grievances be abolished, 40 ; at Oxford,
between the King and his Barons, 65 ;
held by the Bishops and Barons for the
reformation of the condition of the realm,
69; in London, 75; at Winchester, 81 ;
at Windsor, where a reconciliation is ef-
fected between the Prince of Wales and
the Earl of Gloucester, 100; held at the
Blackfriars, in London, 224; at Lincoln,
245.
Parmenters, take part in the disputes be-
tween the tailors and goldsmiths, 104;
what, 104.
Passelee, Edmund, Justiciar Itinerant, 253.
Patriarch of Jerusalem sends some of the
blood of Jesus to King Henry, 14.
Paul's Cross. See Saint Paul's Cross.
Paulina, wife of William de Munchanesey,
her will revoked, as being made by a
femme cover te, 26.
Peace between the King and the Barons
declared in London, 67.
Peinfurer, Fulk, Sheriff of Kent, 106.
Pekham, John de, elected Archbishop of
Canterbury by the Pope, 215, 239.
Pembroke, Richard Marshal, Earl of, ejects
Hubert de Burgh from sanctuary, 7 ;
Aymer de Valence, Earl of, lays siege
INDEX.
309
to Scarborough Castle, 213; attends
the King to St. Paul's Cross, 213; flies
to Dunbar after the Battle of Sterling,
251.
Penalties, attached to contravention of the
Charter granted by the King to the
citizens, 108 ; for vending goods in
transit^ 109.
Pennies, clipped, to be perforated, 14;
golden, new coinage of, of the value of
twenty sterlings, issued, 32 ; the circula-
tion of, remonstrated against by the
Mayor and citizens, 32.
Penny, one to be paid upon each pound
enrolled in the Exchequer, 110.
Pepperer, Andrew le, makes the Great Law }
proving his innocence, 19.
Percy, Sir Henry, pursues Wallace, 244.
Sir Nichol, flies the country, 256.
Perth taken by Edward I., 248.
Pervinke, Sir Robert, made Treasurer of
Edward in., 284.
"Pesage," what, 123.
Pestilence, a great, 252.
Pesur, Joce le, Sheriff, 4. 188.
Peter de Savoy. See Savoy.
Pevencestre, Sir Stephen de, Justiciar,
investigates the clipping of coin, 239.
Philip in., King of France, 131, 142 ;
Letter of, to Richard, King of the Ro-
mans, on the murder of his son, 139.
Philip de Valois, cowardice of, 273 ; pre-
pares a large navy, 275 ; sends the
Countess of Hainault to Edward III.,
to treat of peace, 280.
Philippa, daughter of the Count of Hainault,
espouses Edward HI., 268 ; crowned at
Westminster, 270 ; sojourns at Ghent,
274.
Pikard, Richard, Sheriff, 21, 189, 231.
Pike, Nicolas, Sheriff, 271.
Pilgrimage to the Holy Land discussed at
Boulogne between Henry IH. and the
King of France, 61.
Pillards, thirteen taken at Dundee, 244.
Pillory in Chepe broken, and bakers, in con-
sequence, escape punishment, 127; a new,
made, 131.
Pinnot, Robert, hanged, 240.
Piracy of men of the Cinque Ports, by
sanction of the Earl of Leicester, 77.
Piwelesdon, Richard, expelled the City, 126.
Roger de, expelled the City, 126.
Thomas de, appointed Constable by
the Londoners, 65 ; taken prisoner at
Windsor, in contravention of the
safe-conduct, 83 ; confusion in the
City in his time, 103 ; cruelties of,
119; expelled the City, 125 ; ex-
cites the populace, 155 ; attended by
a multitude to Westminster, 156;
sent to the King, at Windsor, 235.
Pleaders, not required by citizens in their
plaints, except in pleas of the Crown,
pleas of land, or of distresses, 45;
mulcted or suspended for consenting to
take part of the tenement pleaded for,
in payment, 45.
Pleas in Bank, formerly held at West-
minster, transferred to the Hall of the
Bishop of London, at Saint Paul's, 89.
Pleas of the Crown, held at the Tower, 6,
10, 19 ; held at Guildhall, resisted by the
citizens as contravening their rights, 43 ;
of debt, to be held before the Sheriffs
only, 44; of intrusion, and pleas on
plaint made, only, held in the year 1263,
74.
Plenty, a year of, 100.
Plumer, Hanekin le, expelled the City, 126 ;
meaning of the word, 126.
Poitiers, Bishop of, comes to London, 214.
Poitou, Henry HI. quits his claim on, to the
King of France, 46.
Pole, Nicholas Fitz-Adele de la, appointed
Inquisitor as to the property of Fle-
mings, 143.
Sir William de la, ordered to appear
before Edward III., 283 ; sent to
the Castle of Devizes, 284.
Pollards, prohibited, 220, 245.
Polteney, John de, Mayor, 270, 271 ;
ordered to appear before Edward IH.,
283 ; sent to Somertone Castle, 284.
Ponthieu, Count of, envoy to the King of
Tunis, 138.
310
INDEX.
Countess of, has charge of a daughter
of King Edward L, 176.
Porchester, Sir Roger Mortimer flies to,
258.
Ports of England conquer a fleet of Spain,
243.
Portsmouth burnt by the ships of the King
of France, 275.
Portsoken, the liberty of the City without
the walls, near Aldgate, 107 ; privileges
at, granted to the citizens by Charter,
107; exempted from forcible occupa-
tion, or livery of the King's Marshal,
108.
Posts to which chains in the streets were
attached, ordered to be rooted up and
taken to the Tower, 82.
Poter, Philip le, appointed with two others
to hear complaints during the absence of
the Mayor in Gascoigne, 176.
Walter le, Sheriff, 114, 129, 153, 155,
157, 159, 191, 236, 237.
Pountfreit, William, Sheriff, 272.
Pourte, Hugh, Sheriff, 221, 246.
Poyntel, John, Mayor, 209 ; Sheriff, 252.
Prebends bestowed by the King, recalled,
81.
Preston, Gilbert de, Justiciar, determines
the suit between the Abbot of West-
minster and the citizens of London,
61.
John de, Sheriff, 253 ; Mayor, 271.
Prior of Canterbury rejected by the Pope
for Archbishop, as being too illiterate,
160.
Prior of Norwich Cathedral, proved to have
set fire to it, 153 ; accused of having pur-
posed burning the whole city, 153 ;
purged by the Bishop, 153.
Priour, John, Sheriff, 209, 252.
Prisage of corn not taken before the vessel
reaches the wharf, 55 ; restricted to the
King, 55.
Prisage of wine, 42, 108.
Probate, of all testaments ordered, 44 ; of
Wills at the Hustings in the City, con-
firmed by Charter, 111.
Prodhomme, William, Sheriff, 209, 253.
Property, tax upon, 257.
Provence, Eleanor of. See Eleanor.
Provisions of Oxford ordered to be ob-
served, after the Battle of Lewes, 67.
Purprestures, attempted to be removed by
the populace, 59.
Pycot, Nicholas, Sheriff, 248.
Queen Hythe taken by the citizens of Lon-
don, at a rent, of Richard, Earl of Corn-
wall, 13.
Quercy, houses of the people of, resident
in London, broken into by night and
plundered, 59; money of the people
of, deposited in the Abbeys and Priories
about London, plundered, 66.
Rains, heavy, lasting from Pentecost to
Easter, 251.
"Receipt," the meaning of, 166.
Reconciliation between the King and the
Earl of Gloucester, terms of the, 98.
Redingge, Simon de, hanged, 266.
Refham, Richer de, Mayor, 214, 249 ;
Sheriff, 214, 244.
Reinald, Walter, Bishop of Worcester,
confirmed as Archbishop of Canterbury
by the Pope, 215; enthroned, 250;
preaches at Guildhall, 267.
Reinger, Richard, Mayor and Sheriff, 5, 8,
187, 193.
Relic of the Eleven Thousand Virgins found
in the belfry of St. Paul's, 251.
Rents of London Bridge collected on behalf
of the Queen, 147.
Report of the Inquisition as to the goods
of the Flemings, 147.
Richard I. sets out for Jerusalem, with
Philip, King of France, 1 ; made cap-
tive in Germany, 1 ; ransomed for 100,000
marks of silver, 1; liberated, and lands
at Sandwich, 2 ; slain, 2.
Richard, Earl of Cornwall, as King of the
Romans, receives the homage of the
Electors of Almaine in London, 28;
embarks at Yarmouth for Germany, 28 ;
crowned Bang of the Romans at Aix la
Chapelle, 30.
Richard, King of the Romans. See Al-
maine, Richard, King of.
INDEX.
311
Rochester taken by the discontented Barons
and Londoners, 66.
Rochester, Salamon de, Justiciar in Eyre,
sits at the Cross of St. Peter, 237.
Roger, Bishop of London, replaces Hubert
de Burgh in sanctuary at Brentwood, 7 ;
buried, 9.
Rokesle, Gregory de, Sheriff and Mayor, 61,
81, 131, 207, 234, 236, 237, 238, 241; in-
tended to be slain by the disaffected, 120 ;
included in the writ sent by the King
to the City, 170; with three others, pro-
ceeds to Gascoigne to the King, 176 ;
with others, appointed by the King as
mediator to effect a peace with the Coun-
tess of Flanders, 176 ; made Master of
the Exchange throughout England, 239.
John de la, Sheriff, 289.
Robert de, Sheriff, 219, 241, 243 ; has
charge, with others, of the chest
containing the Charters of the City,
227.
Romans, two slain in Westchepe, 231.
Rome, Henry de Sandwich, Bishop of
London, and Stephen de Barksteed,
Bishop of Chichester, sent as contuma-
cious to, 88.
Romeyn, Thomas, Sheriff, 242; Mayor, 249.
Rosamonde, The Fair, Legend of, 232.
Rossel, Reginald, envoy to the King of
the Tartars, 148.
Rotherhithe, Breach at, caused by the
overflow of the Thames, 243.
Rothinge, Richard de, Sheriff, 210, 262.
Round Table held at Kenilworth, 239.
Ruhinges, Geoffrey de, expelled the City,
126.
Russell, Ellas, Sheriff, 242; Mayor, 217,
245 ; concerned in an action of trespass,
221.
Thomas, hanged, 240.
Safe-conduct granted to the Mayor and
citizens of London on repairing to
Windsor, 88.
Sailors fined by the King at Keningtone,
and their nets burnt, 8.
of the Cinque Ports, pardoned for
their acts of piracy, 87.
Saint Albans, Henry de, Sheriff, 3, 188.
Saint Bartholomew's, belfry of, struck by
lightning, 234 ; Priors and Canons of,
set up a new tron or beam for weighing
heavy goods and wool, 13 ; desist from
the imposition of it, 14.
Saint Botolph (Boston), fire at, 239.
Saint Edward, his body translated, 121 ;
his basilica repaired with gold, 130.
Saint Ermin, William de, permitted to
leave England, 41.
Saint Heleyne, Michael de, Sheriff, 6, 188.
Saint Martin's-le-Grand, Richard, King of
the Romans, sojourns there, 52.
Saint Mary-le-Bow, tower of, falls, and
twenty persons killed, 136 ; belfry falls,
236.
Saint Maur, Baldwin de, Sheriff of Cam-
bridge and Huntingdon, 106.
Saint Omer besieged, 278.
William de, Inquisitor into the dis-
orders in the Southern and Eastern
Counties, 103.
Saint Paul, John de, ordered to appear
before Edward IH., 283; confined in
the Tower, 284.
Saint Paul's, London, dedicated, 8 ; Sheriffs
have seven pounds granted by Henry III.
for the liberty of the Church, 21; the King
and Queen sojourn there, 52 ; Henry HI.
lodges there after the Battle of Lewes,
67; Exchequer removed from West-
minster thither, 89 ; Henry de Sandwich,
Bishop of London, buried there, 166;
cross and ball gilt, 215 ; belfry taken
down, 251.
Saint Paul's Cross, solemn meeting of
Bishops at, to excommunicate all who
contravened the Charter granted by the
King to his Barons, 128 ; the King takes
leave of the citizens at, to pass into
France, 45, 53. See Folkmote.
Salisbury, Adam de, Sheriff, 210, 258.
Salisbury, the Earl of, taken prisoner in
France, 274; released at Tournay, 281.
Salt, dearness of, 252.
Saly (Sely), Thomas, Sheriff, 244.
Sanctuary broken at St. Sepulchre's, 235.
312
INDEX.
Sandwich, Henry de, Bishop of London,
sent by the Legate as contumacious to
Rome, 88 ; dies, 165.
Ralph de, Warden, 207, 241, 242 ;
removed, 243.
Sansaver, Ralph, Sheriff of Surrey and
Sussex, 106.
Saracen, a, attempts to slay Edward I. with
a poisoned dagger, 162.
Saracens, capture the King of France, and
defeat the Christian army, 19 ; slain by
the Christians, 137.
Sarton, Hugh de, Sheriff, 215.
Saunnays, Henry, expelled the City, 126.
Savoy, Peter de, appointed to enquire into
grievances complained of in the Parlia-
ment of Oxford, 40 ; conference between
him and his colleagues with the envoys of
the King's party at Dover, 73 ; conspires
for the invasion of England, 71.
Scarborough Castle besieged by the Earl
of Pembroke, 213.
" Scavage," what, 22.
Schireburne, the Abbot of, Inquisitor into
disorders in the Western Counties
during the disturbances, 103.
Scone, the Abbot of, taken prisoner, 248.
" Scotale," what, 109.
Scotland, King and Queen of, visit Henry
HI. at Woodstock, 25; visit London,
25, 48 ; the King of, comes to London,
where he has a mansion, 238, 242 ;
Robert le Brus causes himself to be
crowned King of, 222 ; war with, 243 ;
conquered, 243.
Scots, make oath at Westminster not to rise
against England, 244 ; invade England
as far as Stanhope Park, 268.
Scott, Robert, hanged, 240.
Scrope, Sir Geoffrey, sent to France to
treat of peace, 272.
Seal, of the King, and its superscription
changed, 46; of Edward I. made, 159;
of Henry HI. broken at his death, 159 ;
of the King of Sicily affixed to the
Letters sent by Edward I. to the City,
164; of the City surrendered by Gregory
de Rokesle, 241.
Sea-ports, property of citizens of Lon-
don at various, given away by the King,
83.
Segrave, Gilbert de, elected Bishop of
London, 216; dies, 209; deposits pre-
cious things in the Cross of the belfry of
St. Paul's, 215.
Nicholas de, received into the King's
peace, 100.
" Selds," what, 16 ; and shops closed in the
City in celebration of the birth of John,
eldest son of Prince Edward, 92.
Sell, Thomas, Sheriff, 219.
Seneschal, the title of the Warden of the
City, 84.
John Waleraven made, 84.
Sequestration of the goods of the chief
men of the City by the Earl of Glou-
cester, 96.
Serjeants, alien, dismissed the City, but
placed in garrison at Windsor, 58 ; and
clerks of the Sheriffs, sworn at West-
minster, 23.
Seton, Roger de, Justiciar, sits at the Cross
t)f St. Peter, 237.
Severn, bridges over the river, broken
down by Prince Edward, 79; crossed
at Worcester by Henry IH., 79.
Seynter, Benedict le, Sheriff, 4, 188.
Sharshille, Sir William de, Justiciar, ar-
rested, 284 ; sent to the Castle of Caer-
philly, 284.
Sheep produces a monstrous lamb with two
bodies, at Greenwich, 136.
Sheriff, of Middlesex, permission granted
to the citizens of London by the King,
at Northampton to elect one, 90.
Sheriffs of London, command given to them
to apprehend Hubert de Burgh, 6 ;
prohibited holding office two successive
years, 6, 12; seize the sailors found in
the nets standing in the Thames, 8 ;
appointed to hold the bailiwick of
Bridge Street, and of Queen Hythe,
upon payment of rent, 21 ; have seven
pounds yearly granted by the King for
the liberty of the Church of St. Paul,
2 1 ; the citizens demur to the responsi-
INDEX.
313
bility for the acts of the, 23 ; imprisoned
in the Tower for having permitted the
escape of a prisoner from Newgate, 24 ;
subsequently freed upon the surety of
the Mayor, but discharged from office,
24 ; ride to Newgate to receive charge
of the prisoners and fealty of all officials,
at the several Gates, and at Guildhall,
25; justified in taking toll upon the
Bridge as far as the Staples, 43 ; deter-
mine a plea of a Marshal of the King
against a merchant, 52 ; with the Mayor,
disperse a mob plundering the Jews, in
consequence of a Christian having been
wounded by one, 54; imprison those
convicted of the riot upon the Jews, 54 ;
ordered to resist any attachment made
by the Constable of the Tower on the
Thames, 56; not to interfere with the
liberties of the Abbey at Westminster,
90; prohibited from making Scotale,
109 ; permission granted to the City to
elect them upon payment of a fee, 129 ;
receive the King's letters not to aggrieve
the citizens with respect to the tallage of
the ransom, 154; questioned by the
King's Council as to the uses made by
the Jews of the flesh they do not eat,
177; received by the Mayor at Guild-
hall, 238.
of England, during the inquisition into
the disorders of the kingdom during
the disturbances, 105; have the
King's Letters sent to them respect-
ing the Flemings, 145.
of London and Middlesex appointed by
the King to collect all issues for his
use, 106.
Sheriffwick of London, the property of,
wasted by the Sheriff, Symon Fitz-Mary, 7.
Shilling, regulation of the weight of the,
216.
Shrewsbury, the King returns from, after
concluding peace with Leuwelin, Prince
of Wales, 101.
Sicily, the King of, peace between him and
the King of Tunis, 137; the Chancellor of,
envoy to the King of Tunis, 138 ; Conrad,
King of, defeats the object of the Crufa-
ders, 138.
Skerving, Roger de, Bishop of Norwich,
summoned by the King, 152.
Skyret, Gervays, drawn, for the death of
Giles de Wodeham, 235.
Sluys, the naval battle of, 267.
Smithfield, Freemen of the City exempted
from payment of scavage for beasts sold
at, 22.
Snacard, William, expelled the City, 127.
Soke, in Cornhill, exclusive privilege of the,
210 ; of the King of Scotland, bakers of
the, 211.
Soldan, relieved from the attack of the
Crusaders, 137; sends a Saracen to slay
Edward I., 162.
Southampton burnt by the ships of the
King of France, 275.
Southwark, great fire at, in 1212, 3 ; inha-
bitants of, make complaint against the
City, of custom imposed at the Stone
Gate on the Bridge, 42 ; the Earl of Glou-
cester takes up his quarters there, in
compliance with the wish of the citizens
of London, 95 ; banished persons found
there to be arrested, 135.
Spain, the sister of the King of, as bride of
Prince Edward, welcomed to London by
the nobles, bishops, and citizens, 24.
Sperling, Ralph, 12.
"Spinneys," what, 100.
Spygornel, Henry, Justiciar, 250.
Stamford given by Henry III. to his son
Edward upon his marriage, 23.
Stanes, Thomas de, Sheriff, 219, 241.
Stapledon, Walter, Bishop of Exeter, mur-
dered in Chepe, 263.
" Starrs " of the Jews, what, 21.
Statutes, new, and provisions, made by the
crafts of the City of London prejudicial
to merchants visiting the Fairs of Eng-
land, 60.
Statutes of Oxford, 40 ; again assented to
by Henry III., 56 ; Barons make war on
those who infringe them, 56; citizens
of London required by the Barons to
observe them, 57; the King requested
s s
314
INDEX.
to order that they be observed, 57;
when infringed, the party to be ar-
rested, 60 ; dispute relative to, between
the King and his Barons, determined
by the arbitration of the King of France,
63.
Staunton, Sir Hervey de, Justiciar, 250;
Justiciar Itinerant, 253.
Stephen, Bishop of Chichester, sent by the
Legate, as contumacious to Rome, 88 ;
permitted by the Pope to return to
England and resume his dignity, 164 ;
his barony ordered to be taken, by the
King's Justiciars, 164.
Stepney, the people of, complain at the
Hustings, 175.
Sterlings, new, made, 239.
Stirling, defeat of the English at, and many
noblemen slain, 226, 244 ; Castle taken,
244, 245; Battle of (Bannockburn),
251.
Stonore, Sir John, ordered to appear before
Edward HI., 283 ; sent to Nottingham,
284.
Stor, Robert, expelled the City, 127.
Stortford, John de, Sheriff, 219, 244.
William de, Sheriff, 244.
Stratford, Henry de, ordered to appear
before Edward III., 283 ; sent to Corfe
Castle, 284.
Stratford, the people of, complain at the
Hustings, 175.
Stratherne, Earl of, makes oath not to bear
arms against England, 244.
Streets, chains across the, of the City,
ordered by the King to beTemoved, 82.
Stybbenheth, Paul de, hanged, 240.
Suffolk laid waste by the disherisoned,
94.
Suffolk, the Earl of, taken prisoner in
France, 274; released at Tournay, 281.
Suffolk, Osbert de, Sheriff, 54, 231.
Reginald de, intended to be slain by
the disaffected, 120; included in the
Writ sent by the King to the City,
170.
Thomas de, Sheriff, 219, 244.
Sumeri, Roger de, Inquisitor into the dis-
orders in the Midland Counties during
the disturbances, 103.
Swords prohibited to be worn, 253.
Taillour, Philip le, Sheriff, 52, 129, 131,
190, 236 ; ordered to be removed from
the Mayoralty, 157; included in the
Writ sent by the King to the City,
170; appointed one of the Wardens
of the City during the absence of the
Mayor in Gascoigne, 176.
Tailors, the craft of, dispute between and
the goldsmiths, 104.
Talbot, Richard, Dean of St. Paul's, elected
Bishop of London, but dies before con-
secration, 53.
Tallage, grievances respecting, referred by
the King to arbitration, 33 ; inquisition
respecting, 35 ; rolls of, delivered to John
Maunsel, one of the King's Justiciars,
35 ; levied by the Mayor without assent
of the King and chief citizens, 175.
Tapers offered at the altar of St. Edward
by the citizens, at the request of the
King, 20.
Tars, King of, gains part of the Holy
Land, 245.
Tartars, the King of the, Letter of, to
Prince Edward, 148.
Tateshall, Iseuda de, fulfils the wage of the
Great Law, 19.
" Tawyers," what, 104; take part in the
disputes between the tailors and gold-
smiths, 104.
Tempest in London on the day of the Battle
of Evesham, 80.
Templars, ransom the King of France from
the Saracens, 19 ; Hospitallers, and Cis-
tercians, exempted from the tenths to
be paid to the King, 162; destroyed,
248.
Temple at Paris, the appointed place for
repayment of the loan made by the King
of France to Prince Edward, 117.
Tenements, devised, can be claimed by the
rightful inheritor, notwithstanding pro-
bate, 44 ; right of possessors of) secured
by Writ of Right, Writ of Entry, or Writ
of Mort d 1 Ancestor, 44.
INDEX.
315
Testaments, required to have immediate
probate, 44; probate on, permitted at
the Hustings, 111.
Thames, great rise of the water of, 21 ;
rights of the City upon the, extend to
the New Wear, 42; frozen over, 54;
attachments on the, belong only to the
Sheriffs, 55 ; whole water of the, from
shore to shore and as far as the New Wear,
belongs to the City, 55; four men-at-
arms of Sir William de Ferers drowned
in, by order of the Earl of Gloucester,
for' having robbed and slain a citizen, 97 ;
frozen for 27 days, 213, 249 ; floods Ber-
mondsey and the country adjacent, 243 ;
made salt by the rising of the sea, 261.
Tholosane, John de, hanged, 240.
Thomas a Becket translated, 5.
Thorneye, William de, Sheriff, 275.
Thorpe, John de, ordered to appear before
Edward HE., 263 ; kept in the Tower,
284.
Thunderley, Keginald de, Sheriff, 222.
" Tiffany," meaning of, 285.
Tipetoft, Payn, slain, 226.
Tolls for repair of walls, called " Murage,"
levied, 239.
Toucestre, Geoffrey de, escapes from New-
gate, 231.
Tournay, besieged by Edward III., 277;
siege raised, 284.
Tovy, Mychael, Sheriff, 8, 189; entrusted
with the City by Henry III., 1 1 ; Mayor,
11, 12, 193, 194; sent by the King to
the citizens to assure them of the pre-
servation of their franchise, 34 ; substi-
tuted for one of the elected Sheriffs, by
the King, upon dissatisfaction with the
City, 34 ; sent to the King at Windsor,
235 ; hanged, 237.
Thomas, taken prisoner at Windsor in
contravention of the safe-conduct,
83.
Tower, ninety-two Jews imprisoned in the,
for the murder of a child at Lincoln, and
eighteen of them hanged, 25; delivered
into the hands of Hugh Bygot, the Jus-
ticiar of England appointed at the Par-
liament of Oxford, 41 ; Constable of the,
attempts to seize vessels before the Tower,
and take prisage of corn, 55 ; delivered
into the charge of Hugh le Despencer,
Justiciar of England, 58 ; Jews sent there
to protect them from the populace, 66 ;
the Legate lodged there, 89 ; left by the
Legate, 96 ; merchants imprisoned in, for
using false weights, and the weights and
balances destroyed at Westchep, 124;
John Baillol, King of Scotland, sent
thither, 243.
" Trailbaston," what, 246 ; inquisitions of,
246, 287.
Trapani, Prince Edward lands at, 131.
Travers, John, Sheriff, 4, 5, 188.
Treasurer's office searched, 285.
Treasury of the King at Westminster
robbed, 226, 246.
Treves, Archbishop of, defeated, and com-
pelled to raise the siege of Bopardt, 29.
"Tron," what, 110.
Trussel, Sir William, flies the country,
256.
Tuchet, Sir William, hanged, 255.
Tulesan, John, Mayor, 20; summoned be-
fore the King's Inquisitor respecting tal-
lages, 35 ; degraded and removed from
his bailiwick, 39; Sheriff, 189, 194.
" Tumbrel," what it probably means, 43 ;
bakers whose bread is lighter than the
assay of the City, punished by being
placed in the, 43.
Tunbridge Castle to be delivered to the
King, as security, by the Earl of Glou-
cester, 129.
Tunis, King of, peace between him and the
King of Sicily, 137.
Prince Edward lands at, 131.
Turberville, Thomas de, drawn and hanged,
243 ; his treason described, 293.
Turke, Walter, Sheriff, 271.
Turkelby, Roger de, appointed associate
of the Itinerant Justiciar in the Pleas of
the County of Surrey, 42 ; and at the
Guildhall, 43.
Twyford, Sir John de, flies the country,
256.
316
INDEX.
Tyeis, Sir Henry, hanged, 255.
Ulster, Earl of, his daughter married to the
Earl of Gloucester, 224.
Uptone, Kalph de, Sheriff, 271.
Urban IV., Pope, a Bull of, read at
Saint Paul's Cross, absolving the King
from the oath made to the Parliament of
Oxford, 53.
Valence, Sir Eymer de, Bishop Elect of
Winchester, withdraws from the Parlia-
ment of Oxford, 40 ; has permission to
leave England, 41.
Sir William de, withdraws from the
Parliament of Oxford, 40; has per-
mission to leave England, 41 ; per-
mitted to return to England, 52 ;
conspires for the invasion of England,
71; with others, takes the Castle
of Gloucester, 78 ; returns from the
Holy Land, 161.
Victuals, in transitu, the forestalling of,
prohibited before reaching the City, 109.
Vills, compelled to furnish a contingent of
soldiers, well armed, for forty days, to
the Sheriff, to resist the threatened inva-
sion, 72 ; forced to pay ransom by the
disherisoned, 94.
Vintners summoned by the King's Justiciar,
for breach of the assize of wine, 27.
Viterbo, Henry, son of Richard, King of
the Romans, slain at, 139.
Vyel, John, Sheriff, 4, 188.
John Fitz-John, Sheriff, 9, 189.
Margery, the relict of, claims the third
of his chattels, 13; her cause ar-
gued at St. Martin's- le-Grand,
between the King's Justiciar and
the Mayor and citizens, 14, 16.
Wade, John, Sheriff, 219, 241.
Roger, a crowder, celebrates his own
interment, 258.
Wager of battle, citizens exempted from,
by charter, 107.
Wake, the Lord de, ordered to appear be-
fore Edward HI., 283.
Wake, Andrew, Sheriff of Somerset and
Dorset, 106.
Baldwin, captured at Kenilworth, 79 ;
with others, resorts to Chesterfield
with horses and arms, 91 ; takes
flight before the King's forces, 91.
Walebrok, John de, Sheriff, 187.
Richard de, Sheriff, 52, 190, 231;
goods of, excepted from the commu-
tation granted to the citizens gene-
rally, 86.
Waleraund, or Walraven, Henry de,
Sheriff, 24.
John, Sheriff, 3, 188 ; made Seneschal,
84 ; Warden of the City and Tower,
192; assesses the citizens towards a
portion for the King's cousin, 204 ;
Constable of the Tower, 235.
Robert, one of the King's Council, by
whom and the King the dispute
between the citizens of London and
Northampton is investigated, but
judgment deferred, 50 ; sent to the
citizens of London, while awaiting
the pleasure of the King without
-Windsor Castle, 83 ; witness to the
Charter granted to the citizens,
110; returns from beyond sea,
115; one of the sureties to the
King of France for Prince Edward,
119.
Wales, the parts of, in possession of Henry
III., given by him to his son Edward on
his marriage, 23 ; three castles in the
March of^ promised to be deli vered by the
Prince of Wales, to be held for three
years, 76 ; King Edward goes thither
with his forces, 238 ; conquered, 243.
Wales, Prince of, the son of Edward the
First made, 245.
Waleys, Henry le, Sheriff, 131, 236, 237;
chosen by the Aldermen for approval as
Warden of the City, 157; Mayor, 167,
193, 217, 240, 244 ; proceeds with three
others to the King in Gascoigne, 1 76 ;
and his colleagues, return from Gas-
coigne, 176.
Wallace, Sir John, brother of William,
hanged, 248.
William, adjudged to be hanged,
drawn, and quartered, 222; heads
INDEX.
317
the Scots, 244; slays Brian Jay,
245 ; taken and condemned, 247.
Walle, William, Esquire of the Bishop of
Exeter, beheaded in Chepe, 263.
Waltham, the Abbot of, differences between
him and the citizens of London with
respect to stallage, settled, 31.
Wandsworth, part of, burnt, 261.
Wardens, of the Bridge have their toll on
ships and property of citizens rescinded,
19 ; of the Gates, the Thames, and the
Gaol, sworn at Westminster, 23; ap-
pointed by the King for the assize of
wine, 27 ; of the assize of wine, empow-
ered to confiscate it when there is breach
of the assize, 27 ; of the Counties, ap-
pointed by the refractory Barons in lieu
of the Sheriffs appointed by the King,
52; of the City, Sir Hugh Fitz-Otes
made one, 84; of the City, permission
granted to the citizens to elect one, 90 ;
of the City, not to interfere with the
liberties of the Abbey of Westminster,
90 ; of the Bishopric of London, ordered
to withdraw sentence of excommunica-
tion against those who granted pro-
bate of testaments upon the Hustings,
111.
Ware, Sir John de la, exempted from the
ransom for disherison, 93, 94.
Wares, regulations as to the mode of
weighing, 26, 37 ; of citizens exempted
by Charter from toll throughout the
territories of the King, and at all sea-
ports, both in England and beyond the
sea, 108 ; forfeiture of, if sold before
custom paid, 109 ; sale of, prohibited
until weighed, 109; regulations as re-
gards their weighing, 123.
Warenne, John, Earl of, marries the King's
sister, daughter of the Count de la
Marche, 13; conspires for the inva-
sion of England, 71 ; with others, takes
the Castle of Gloucester, 78 ; arrives at
Kenilworth, and surprises the army of
Simon de Montfort, 79 ; makes oath to
keep the peace in the realm during the
absence of King Edward, 159 ; pur-
sues Wallace, 244 ; crosses to Gascoigne,
259.
John, Earl of, the Younger, lays
siege to Scarborough Castle, 213;
attends the King to Saint Paul's
Cross, 213 ; takes the Mortimers to
the Tower, 255.
Warwick, John, Earl of, appointed one of
the King's inquisitors respecting tallages,
35 ; appointed one of the inspectors of
grievances complained of in the Mad
Parliament of Oxford, 40.
Guy, Earl of, captures Piers de Gave-
stone, 213, 215 ; solicits pardon of
the King at Westminster, 225 ; dies,
251.
Watch and Ward kept by the citizens,
58.
Wathe, Michael, ordered to appear before
Edward III., 283; sent to Windsor
Castle, 284.
Waus, Godfrey de, Envoy to the King of
the Tartars, 148.
Wax, regulation of the weight of, 216.
Wears in the Thames, towards the West,
destroyed by order of Henry III., 22 ;
between London and the sea, destroyed
by the Sheriffs, 22.
Weigher, public, allowed a fee, 27.
Weights, regulation of, 123, 216.
Welleford, Richard de, Sheriff, 213, 249;
Mayor, 215.
Welsh, the, successfully resist the attack of
Henry III. at Glamorgan, 31 ; Henry IH.'s
league with the, 78.
Wengham, Henry de, Chancellor, one of
the referees respecting tallage, 33 ; con-
secrated Bishop of London, 46, 53.
Wengrave, John de, Mayor, 209, 216, 252.
Wenlock, Walter, Abbot of Westminster,
charged with breaking open the Royal
Treasury, 246.
Westmille, Nicholas de, slain, 259.
Westminster, Fair at, citizens of London and
other cities required by the King to send
their wares thither, 15 ; the Abbot of, re-
fused franchises by the Commons, which
had been granted them by charter, 18 ;
318
INDEX.
Henry III. appoints that the newly
elected Mayor, when the King is not
in London, shall be presented to the
Barons of the Exchequer at, 21 ; Parlia-
ment held there, confirming the Statutes
of the Parliament of Oxford, 45 ; Abbot
of, dispute of, with the citizens of London
determined in the Exchequer, 61 ; Ex-
chequer removed thence to St. Paul's,
89; citizens resort thither to offer
prayers for the safe delivery of the
Princess of Wales, 92 ; King's palace there
despoiled by the retainers of the Earl
of Gloucester, 96 ; Church of, exempted
from operation of the Charter to the
citizens, 110; banished persons found
there to be arrested, 135; John, son of
Prince Edward, buried there, 146 ;
Henry III. buried there, 159 ; prepara-
tions at, for the Coronation of Edward I.,
178 ; Edward I. buried there, 223, 248 ;
Edward II. crowned at, 223; Eleanor,
wife of King Edward, buried at, 242;
Barons of Scotland make oath at, 247.
Edward de, entrusted by the King's
writ with the City, 15.
Westminster Hall, assemblage of the people
there, to see the King take the Cross, 17.
Weyland, Sir Thomas de, a Templar, fore-
swears the country, 242.
Whale taken in the Thames, at Greenwich,
224.
Wheat, the King's privilege of having it at
twopence less per quarter than it sells at,
55 ; prices of, 209, 256.
Wiggemor Castle, head of the Earl of
Leicester sent thither to the wife of Sir
Roger de Mortimer, 80.
Wilehale, John de, Sheriff, 8, 189.
Wilingham, Sir Henry, hanged at Bristol,
256.
Willeby, Sir Richard, placed at the bar at
Westminster, 285.
William Longbeard (William Fitz-Osbert)
hanged, 2.
Wilton, Sir William de, answers the citizens
in reference to the Constable of the
Tower's claim of prisage, 56.
Winchelsea, Robert de, Archbishop of Can
terbury, 215, 250; buried at Canter-
bury, 215; his Ordinances confirmed by
Edward H., 257.
Winchester, Parliament at, 80, 134; taken
and plundered, 78.
Winchester, bishop Elect of, dies on the
road to England, 52 ; John Gernsey,
Bishop of, suspended by the Legate from
duty and benefice, 88, 89 ; the Bishop of,
brings letters from the Queen, 265.
Winchester, Geoffrey de, Sheriff, 15; in-
tended to be slain by the disaffected,
120.
Henry de, chosen by Walter Hervey
for approval as Warden of the City,
157.
Nicholas de, included in the writ sent
by the King to the City, 168 ; Sheriff,
191, 240, 218.
Robert de, Sheriff, 3, 188.
Walter de, Sheriff, 6, 188.
Winchester, the Earl of, taken and be-
headed, 227, 265.
Wind, violent, in 1267, 106.
Windsor, Castle of, delivered to the dis-
contented Barons, 60; occupied by the
King and Prince of Wales, 62 ; pri-
soners at, set at liberty without ransom,
80 ; Earls, Barons, and Knights, sum-
moned thither to lay siege to the City
of London, 81; deputation sent thither
to submit the City to the King's mercy,
82 ; the Mayor and citizens of London
ordered to repair thither, 83 ; certain
citizens imprisoned there, in contraven-
tion of the safe-conduct, set free, 84;
the remainder liberated by the King's
Letter from Northampton, 87.
Wine and ale measures, as also of all other
liquors, to be of the same dimensions, 75.
Wine, assize of, power of fining for breach
of, referred to the decision of the King,
27 ; King's prisage of, permitted in the
City, 42 ; prisage of, excepted from the
redemption from toll, 108; unduly re-
moved out of the City, 1 75 ; given to be
drunk on the birth of Edward of Caer-
INDEX.
319
narvon, 214; flowing in Chepe, on the
passage of Queen Margaret through the
City, 220; flowing at the Conduit of
Chepe, 236.
Winter, severe, and great frost, in 1268, 113.
Wite, William, Sheriff, 3, 188.
Woad, usages as to, by the Sheriffs,
annulled, 32 ; tax on its importation by
merchants, 32.
Wombestrong, Richard, expelled from the
City, 126.
Wool, permitted to be exported by all mer-
chants except those of Flanders, 132 ;
prohibited from being sold to Flemings,
132 ; prohibited from being exported,
141, 167; belonging to any foreign mer-
chants, except the Flemings, permitted
to be exported, 146 ; sacks to be marked
with the King's seal, 150.
Wool ships intercepted at sea by the men of
the Cinque Ports, 167.
Worcester, Edward II. marches thither, 255.
Worcester, Bishop of, appointed by the
King as inspector of grievances, com-
plained of in the Ordinances of the Mad
Parliament of Oxford, 40; appointed
one of the Wardens of the kingdom
during the King's absence in France, 45 ;
with others, passes over to France to
arrange a treaty of peace with the in-
vading malcontents, 74 ; one of the arbi-
trators to determine between the King
and the discontented Barons, 77.
Wouborne, John de, Sheriff, 6, 188.
Writ of Henry III. sent throughout the
kingdom, commanding that his abso-
lution from the oath to the Parliament
of Oxford shall not be gainsayed, 53 ;
of the King issued to the Sheriffs, relative
to the threatened invasion, 71 ; of Ed-
ward I. to the Sheriff of Norfolk, 161.
Writs of the Kong relative to the prohibited
sale of wools and other merchandize to
the Flemings, 140.
Wylebye, Sir Richard, ordered to appear
before Edward III., 283 ; sent to Corfe
Castle, 284.
Wymbeldon, Richard de, Sheriff, 4, 188.
Wymburne, Thomas de, Sheriff, 20, 189.
Wyteby, Adam de, Sheriff, 3, 188.
Yarmouth, property of the citizens of
London there, given away by the King,
83; inhabitants of, assist the Prior of
Norwich against the citizens of Norwich,
151. See Gernemue.
Yarmouth, John de, appointed inquisitor
as to the property of the Flemings, 143.
" Yeresgive," what, 109.
York, Walter Giffard, Archbishop of, con-
travenes the rights of the See of Canter-
bury, 113; contravenes the dignity of
the See of Canterbury at the Transla-
tion of the body of St. Edward, 122 ;
comes to the City to proclaim peace
after the death of Henry IH., 158.
York, the Exchequer removed from, 246,
258.
York and London, persecution of the Jews
at, commencing on the day of the Coro-
nation of Richard I., 1.
Zouche, Sir Alan la, made Constable of the
Tower, and Warden of the City, 97,
192 ; receives the King's writ for the
continuance of the Bailiffs, 100.
CORRIGENDA.
Page 23, line 13,/or " of Westminster," read " at Westminster."
Page 126, line 10,/or " Hawkin," read " Hanekin."
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676 Chronicles of the mayors
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