A Brief London Chronicle, 1547-64

Two London Chronicles From the Collections of John Stow. Originally published by Camden Society, London, 1910.

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'A Brief London Chronicle, 1547-64', in Two London Chronicles From the Collections of John Stow, (London, 1910) pp. 44-49. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/camden-misc/vol12/no1/pp44-49 [accessed 25 March 2024]

A BRIEF LONDON CHRONICLE 1547-1564

K. Edward the 6. Hobilthor. (fn. 1) mayor

Ao 2.

This yere the kynges ship named the menyon did take a grete spaynysh shyp in the naro sease mannyd weth scott & halff ladyn wth costly goods.

The 15 day of May doctor Smyth (fn. 2) of Oxforde, yt did rede the dyvynite lector at Whitingdon colege, did recant at Poulis crosse.

Doctor Langriche, (fn. 3) archdeacon of Clefland in Yorkeshire, did willfully lepe out of the cloyster of saint Magnus into the Temse, willfully drownyd hymselff yn ye month of May.

Ao 2o J. Gressam, (fn. 4) mayor.

In the latter end of Januarii was soche vehement windes that damaged sore the western barges, & ye lade barges from London to Grauysende to London: a grocer of this citie, his wyfe, his seruant all were drownyd in a whery, sauyng the seruant & one of ye whery men.

In the latter ende Februarii one of the kynges bregendynes did take in the naro sease a frenche galeye, browght her into the ryuer of Temse.

In the sermones at saynt Mary Spittell the prechars invayed agaynst the masse. (fn. 5)

In June the bysshop of Winchestar was comytted to ye Towre.

Ao 3. Hamcott, (fn. 6) mayor.

Ther were dyuerse rebellions yn sondry placis of ye realme: the mayor & citizens of Exciter manfully kept ye city from the rebelles of Deuonshire, till thei wt in were almost famyshed.

This yere was partyes put yn by the nobilite of this realme for the safegard of the kinges royall person, but praysed be God it was gentilly quieted.

500 souldiers of Arde (fn. 7) com nere to Guysnes purposyng to had a great boty of catell; but ther were resisted by the men of Guysnes, & of ye men were 50 prisoners takyn, and 103 of them slayne.

Hill, mayor.

Ao 4o trynyte terme was reiournyd to myhelmas, ffor that the gentylmen shuld kepe the people quyete wt owt comosion. This mayor was a gode mynystrer of Justice, & a grete ponyssher of adultery.

[Jud (fn. 8) ] mayor.

In ao 5 be reson that or mony was so base the exchaunge to Andwarp was vnder 17 s. the li.

In May there cam a hoye to London wt Holond chese, whiche was solde for 2 d the lb., and that after the rate of Essex chese vj. s. the way.

Dobs, mayor.

Ao 6. the erle of Arundell & the lorde Paget were comytted prisoners to the Tower. The erle was afterward relesed, the lorde Paget by a chapter of ye knyghtes of the gartar dymyssed from the same order.

Barns, mayor.

Quene Mary.

When the bisshop of Win., chaunceler, did mynyster the othe to Justices of this realme he wolde not mynyster to Justice Halis, (fn. 9) ffor he sayde he had to talke wt him in maters of religion.

The ix. of September ye archebyshop of Cauntorbery and Mr Latymer wer comytted prisoners to the Tower.

T. Whight, mayor.

Ao 1°. the 13 of Nouember the lady Jane, before proclaymyd qwene, & the archebysshop of Cauntorbery wer araigned at the gwylde hall ffor treson, & shortly after she was beheded at the Tower hill.

In Feuerer the archebysshop of Cauntorbery, doctor Ridleye, & Mr Latymer were remouyd from the Tower to Oxford.

Ironmonger. (fn. 10)

In Marche died Julius, (fn. 11) bisshop of Rome, for whom ye qwene caused a solem funerall seruice to be done at Powlis.

In the iij. yere the qwen did remyt the first frute of Xths.

Garett, (fn. 12) mayor.

Doctor Gardynar, bisshop of Winchester & chaunceler died.

Ofley, mayor.

In January the bodies of Mr Bucor, & Mr Fabius (fn. 13) wer takyn out of theire grauys, & burnt in the market place of Cambrige:

v. Shipes of Brystow ladyn wt marchandise owt of Spayne were takyn by 7 ships of war of Fraunce.

In the tyme of the raigne of this qwene there were burnyd, and som allso that died in prison for religion, lityll vnder or ouer 2040 men & women.

In the begynnyng of Julii iij. shipes of this citye comyng from Andwarp ladin wt riche marchandise were takyn by Scottes and Frenchemen, whiche were estemyd to be better worth than 20000 li.

Quene Elisabeth. Leigh, mayor,

In ao 1o no thing to noate.

Hewet, mayor.

Ao 2o the qwene did send ij. of her ships to the see to take a pirate namyd Strangwysh, (fn. 14) who wt his ij. ships & ij. other capitaynes wt owt makyng of any resistence did yelde.

Chestar.

There was so grete scarsety of corne that ye mayor & citizens made prouyson for wheat & rye 30000 qrs from beyond the se.

Harpour, mayor.

The occasion whervppon the qwene did send to New hauyn was the lorde Vidame, capitayne of New hauyn, & the bayly of Roen, (fn. 15) the treasorer of Deep (fn. 16) offered the forsayde townys to the qwenes magesty, if it wolde please her to further them in theire procedinges of the gospell, for that her mageste is right inheritor to yem & to all Fraunce. (fn. 17)

Lodge, mayor.

Ao 5o in Marche all the English marchantes wt ther goodes & shipes wer arested al Burdeus.

The men of Plymmoth did take 14 brettysshe ships wt salt & wyne.

The men of Seaton & legis from the towne of Deepe did take 15 crayers to New hauyn wt vitayll at sondry tymes.

A man of Plymmoth namyd Hawkins, (fn. 18) did take a French ship comyng from Gynys wholely ladyn.

A crayer of Rye wt 30 men in her did take a ship in Deep rode, & if there had bene more men they might haue takyn one other ship.

A passenger of Douer sayling to Dunkirk was takyn by a hayne of Diepe comyng owt of Cales, & conuayed to Calies, & there put them to their ransom.

The forsayde hayne was well knowen to ye men of Douer, that he was a comen saylor betwene Diepe and Caleis: Thes men of Douer wt a crayer well mannyd lay in wayte for hym shortly after betwen Bolen and Cales, & did take him ladyn wt canuas & howsolde stuff to Dales, whiche was to them a gode recompence.

In this somer did fall so greate aboundance of rayne in Zeland that hops were so scant that they were solde in London for liij. s. iiij. d. the C.; & some bere breuars practised to brew wt brome & some wt bay beries.

John Whight, mayor.

In the begynnyng of Nouember 24 western ships did toke 17 bretisshe ships laden wt wyne, and if one of the had not bene to hasty, ther myght have takyn many mo: the brytons had 4 men of warre for theire waffters, but whan thei did see so grete a flete of englyshe men of war they fled.

Ao 6, in the begynnyng of December was so greate lyghtenyng & horrible thonder that the lyke was not seen wt the remembraunce of any man lyuyng. (fn. 19)

Remember the monstrous fysshe. (fn. 20)

In the month of July sesed the plage, that did begin the last yere.

In the 30 day of August it was enacted that all soche as wolde sell their waris, plate or howsold stuff to theire most aduantage, for the paying of or dettes or elles for the fordell of orphans, sholde bring the same waris &c. to Ledyn hall on Monday & Friday, there to be solde to them that wolde gyue most for it. (fn. 21)

In this yere was browght to ye citie great plente of frute, for ther cam in one market in to Southwark (fn. 22) cartes wt frute, in to Graschirche strete xiiij. cartes, besids a greate qwantytie that was browght on horsbacke, in panyers and dossars: this contynuyd the moste parte of the somer.

Footnotes

  • 1. Henry Hubbarthorne.
  • 2. Richard Smith (d. 1563) see D.N.B. liii. 101.
  • 3. Richard Langriche, Langridge, or Langreth, Rector of Weldrake, Yorkshire, Archdeacon of Cleveland from 1534, and prebendary of South Muskham, Southwell, from 1538 (Le Neve, Fasti, iii. 148, 432).
  • 4. Sir John Gresham.
  • 5. Of Wriothesley Chron. ii. 2.
  • 6. Sir Henry Amcotes.
  • 7. Ardres.
  • 8. 'dobs' was written in MS., but afterwards crossed out.
  • 9. Sir James Hales. See D.N.B. xxiv. 29. See also Grafton, Chronicle, ii. 537.
  • 10. This is inserted; 'ironmonger' had first been written after the next sentence. The mayor for 1554-55 was John Lion, grocer.
  • 11. Julius III died on 5th March, 1555; the service for him at St Paul's was on 17th April, see Wriothesley, Chron. ii. 127.
  • 12. Sir William Gerard.
  • 13. Martin Bucer, and Paul Fagius; the date of their exhumation was 6th Feb., 1557.
  • 14. Machyn, Diary, 206, 212-3. Strangwysh was brought to the Tower on 10th August 1559.
  • 15. Rouen.
  • 16. Dieppe.
  • 17. This seems to be quoted by Stow, Annales, 1101. ed. 1605.
  • 18. Presumably John Hawkyns, who came home from his first voyage to the Spanish Main in Sept., 1563.
  • 19. Summary p. 275; Annales p. 1103.
  • 20. No doubt a whale; it was driven ashore at Grimsby, was 19 yards long and yielded two tons of oil. See Summary, which is much fuller than Annales.
  • 21. Summary with considerably more detail. Omitted in Annales.
  • 22. The MS. is damaged.