Tag Archives: Knowle

“The liberty of the town of Knowle”

In 1492 John and Robert Tayllour, sons of husbandman Richard Tayllour of Little Inkberrow, Worcestershire, killed their neighbour Thomas Mershe with a “battestaff.” Afterward, they fled to “the privilege or liberty of the town of Knowle.” This is the earliest evidence as far as I know for the sanctuary town of Knowle, Warwickshire. A manorContinue reading ““The liberty of the town of Knowle””

Hugh Harvey and the sanctuary town of Knowle

Hugh Harvey worked as a servant at The Goat Inn on the Strand near London. One day in 1537 he robbed a guest, royal chaplain Dr Richard Croke, of a bag of money and then scampered off to sanctuary. Rather than running to nearby Westminster Abbey, though, Harvey made his way westward towards Warwickshire, whichContinue reading “Hugh Harvey and the sanctuary town of Knowle”