Yorkist refugees in sanctuary during Henry VI’s 1470-71 readeption lived alongside the usual felons and debtors – including an apparent Lancastrian operative, working on war finances from within the sanctuary. A “travelling man” (in this case evidently meaning courier), Robert Byby, was assigned in December 1470 to convey some liquidated assets for the Lancastrian warContinue reading “Yorkist refugees and Lancastrian operatives in sanctuary”
Tag Archives: Westminster sanctuary
Edward IV and disdain for sanctuary
Edward IV was much less respectful of sanctuary than his rival Henry VI. Though by no means seeking to dismantle sanctuary altogether, he was in contemporary terms unprincipled in his disregard for the sacredness both of the refuge and of his own word. In this he followed the policy of his father, Richard duke ofContinue reading “Edward IV and disdain for sanctuary”
Murder with a staff in East Smithfield
In October 1475, John Gogh, yeoman of Theydon Garnon, Essex, attacked William Chadworth the younger, esquire, at East Smithfield outside London – he hit him on the head with a staff. Chadworth died from his wound early in the new year and, according to the indictment, Gogh then fled (on the feast of the Epiphany,Continue reading “Murder with a staff in East Smithfield”
Gamblers and cheaters
In 1477 François Narbone of Gascony lured Bernard, servant and kinsman of Diego de Castro, a Spanish merchant, into a London tavern; there by “false and subtle means” he cheated Bernard of £28 by playing with a loaded set of dice. Diego, enraged, had François arrested by London officials “to have him punished according toContinue reading “Gamblers and cheaters”
A murderer escaping punishment, or a false accusation?
A 1478 a London coroner’s inquest jury, convened over the body of John Aventry of London, gentleman, reported that one Richard Edriche, a London hackneyman, had lain in wait to attack Aventry. Edriche (they said) assaulted Aventry with a staff, giving him a wound from which he died about a month later. Edriche then (onContinue reading “A murderer escaping punishment, or a false accusation?”
A London mercer in sanctuary: John Baron
In 1476, with his wife Alice, mercer of London John Baron fled to sanctuary at Westminster to escape imprisonment for debt. (Kit French has written about the Barons in an article in Medieval Prosopography). John Baron is a good example of the advantage that merchants could take of sanctuary protection. On going into Westminster, heContinue reading “A London mercer in sanctuary: John Baron”
The queen, the prince, and the evil usurping uncle: Sanctuary and the coup of 1483
On 9 April 1483 Edward IV died, leaving as heir and spare two preteen princes. Edward IV’s brother, Richard of Gloucester, was named protector; by late April Richard was making moves to consolidate his protectorate. Or seize the throne. You pick. When Richard arrested members of her family in late April, the dowager Queen ElizabethContinue reading “The queen, the prince, and the evil usurping uncle: Sanctuary and the coup of 1483”
Piers Curtes, Keeper of the King’s Wardrobe
Amongst the political refugees from Richard III’s regime who took sanctuary in the waning months of Richard’s rule was Piers Curtes, a royal functionary and aspiring aristocrat who served as MP for decades and as keeper of the King’s Great Wardrobe from 1472 to 1485. Appointed originally by Edward IV (in whose household he hadContinue reading “Piers Curtes, Keeper of the King’s Wardrobe”
A Dutch slayer flees to Westminster
On 9 November 1485, a coroner held an inquest over the body of John Spencer of Westminster. The jurors reported that Dedirick Blase alias Dirrik Barbara, yeoman also of Westminster, was responsible. The jurors said that Blase had lain in wait for Spencer and assaulted him with a sword, killing him. Taking his sword withContinue reading “A Dutch slayer flees to Westminster”
A London goldsmith in trouble
Robert Myndrym, a London goldsmith, had numerous problems from the mid-1480s into the early 1490s, and found two different recourses to sanctuary helpful. The first time around 1485 he went to Westminster for debt. As his wife Margery explained in a Chancery petition, she went to visit him “as a true wife ought to doContinue reading “A London goldsmith in trouble”
Sanctuary Seekers in England, 1394-1557 