•To al the which shull heere or see these present lettres we, William Estfeld, Mair and AI- dremen of the cite of London, sende reuerences and gretynges. For as moclieJI as || amonges al olher dedes of merit and charite declaracion and beryug witnesse of trouth is on of the most co- mendable: therfore is it, that we signifie vnlo you be these present [| letteres, hough 3) the day raakyng of hem 4) there come and appered afore vs in the Kynges court in the Inner Charabre at the Gildhalle of the said cite: William Britte of the lown of || Occhecote 5) in the counte of Nor- haropton, yoman, John Feman of the same toune, yoman, iNicholas Baker of the same town, yoman, Henry Warner and John Joye, his sone, of the same town, yomen, late the servantz of Thomas Fferrers Esquier; and ther by their othes solempnely made upon a boke of the holi gospelles thei swore and deposed for verry trouth, as ihey wold answere afore God at the last jugement, that sone alter the

') So für: thenlonice. ') So für: porte.

') Hough, how. ') Hem, them. '■) Occhecote wird als ein zd dem Manerium de Harweden

gehöriges Manerium in Northamptonshire, welches der Ritler John Lovell durch seine Gemahlin Mathilde, Tochter des Robert von Holand, besass, angeführt zum Jahre 1407. 1461 findet sich Ochecote mit der Rezeichnung, dass es bei Chepingwarden in jener Shire lag, im Resitz des Richard Buckland, an den es mit dem im Texte besprochenen Hause beim Stahlhofe gelangt sein wird. Siehe Inquisitionum post Mortem. T. III. p. 316, T. IV. p. 313.

62 1438, März 6.

4

said Thomas Ferrers was dede, which was aboute Candelmasse, the VIIIth yeer of the regne of kyng Henry the fifle, >) fader to our soueraigne Lord, that now is, whan he had brought Quene Katerine into Engelond to be coroned, 4) they were witbholde and dwelle in seruice with Aldunce, late the wif of the said Thomas Ferrers, al the time of here widuhode and eke whan she was wedded to Sir Pelre Vincent of Porlugale, knyght, here husbonde that now is, and somwhat after. And they seid and declared be their said olhes, hough that sone after Lammesse the XV1 yeer of the regne of kyng Henry the flfte, 3) thei, being in seruice of the said Aldunce at the maner of Occhecote, were sent fore and comaunded bi here to come hider to London to thaccouplyng and manage belwene here and the said Petre Vincent than Esquier; be force of which coinaundement the saterday next afore thassumption of our Lady4) than next foloweng they cam to London vnto here beyng than in my Ladies Inne of Arundell in the parissh of seint Laurence Poulteney 5) and attended vpon here til the Monday next suyng. At which Monday, be the morning, thei went with here downe to the Swanne 6) in the said parissh, wher thei toke a bole and — for thei were sore taried in the water, bothe be the lowe ebbe and eke be the multitude of wcde and rayke — they toke a staire and loaded as sone as they might goodli at a Bisshopes Jnne on this half Westminster, whose Inne in certein they coude nat remembre, as thei seid. And from that ynne they went to gidres ouer the feldes til the cam lo seint Giles hospital withoute Holborn. T) In which goyng they doubted and dradde soore, that oou Thomas Porter, yoman of the said kynges, which pretended to have made a former contract with the said Aldunce, wold haue come with strong hande and taken.awey the said Aldunce fro theim, but he did nat. And als sone, as thei cam to the said hospital, thei met and fand ther the said Petre Vincent, which had do ordeined allhing redy for solempnizacion of their esposailles; and so the said Petre and she and the said witnesses, with theim went al logeder to the churchdoore of the said hospitall, and there a presl, a brother of the same house, with a grene crosse on his brest, was redy and wedded theim togider. And whan the mariage and masse was doone, for lakke of cuppes the said brother yave Iheim wyne to drinke in a cbalys, which wyne the said John Feman sware be his said olh, that he brought thider himself in bolelx. And after that, the said Aldunce with the said witnesses retourned horn ageyn be water to the said good Ladyes Jnne of Arundell. And the said Peter came thider be londe, where was a grete dyner purueyed, and that the said witnesses were there twey dayes after. Aud then after that the said Peter and Aldunce with the said witnesses rode togider out of London to the said maner of Occhecote. And there they dwelt continuelly togider til the said kynges Henry bones the V^e came into Engelond.8) And than the said Peter and Aldunce come to London to the said kynges enterment. Al these thinges the said witnesses sware, that they knewe certeinlich and

') Im Jabre 1421, Febraar 2. 5) Am 23. Februar 1421. ') Lammeste. St Pelri-Kellen-

feier, am 1. August 1422. ') August 15. ») Die Kirche des St. Lorenz Pulteney in Candlewick Ward,

östlich von Dowgate Ward, ist seit dem Brande vom Jahre 1666 nicht wieder hergestellt. Jenes Hotel der Lady Arundel scheint den Altertbumsforschern von London unbekannt. Vergl. unten zum Jahre 1441, Februar 28. *) The

Swan, Old Swan, Swans stairs, ein Landungsplatz nahe bei und im Westen von Londonbridge. ") St Giles

in the Gelds, früher Capelle des im Jahre 1101 von der Königin Mathilde gestifteten Hauses Tür Aussätzige, vom Könige Henry VIII. in eine Pfarrkirche umgewandelt. 8) 1422, November 10.

1441, Februar 20. 63

therfore they tel it, thefy) sawe it verrilich and therfore thei testifie it. In more cleere witnesse and declaracion wherof we haue do raade and sealed these present letteres vnder the seale of the mairalte of the said Cite, the VI* day of March, the yeer of the regne of kyng Henry the sixt after the conquest the XVP'1