_To the Kyng, oure Soverayn Lord, and to the right wyse and discrete
Lordis, assemblyd in this present Parlement._
[Sidenote: 1450]
Besechith mekly your homble liege man, John Paston, that where he, and
oder enfeffed to his use, have be pecybily poscessyd of the maner of
Gresham, within the counte of Norffolk, xx. yere and more, til the xvij.
day of Februarij, the yere of your nobill regne xxvi.,[127.2] that
Robert Hungerford, Knyght, the Lord Molyns, entred in to the seyd maner;
and how be it that the seyd John Paston, after the seid entre, sued to
the seid Lord Molyns and his councell, in the most louly maner that he
cowde, dayly fro tyme of the seid entre on to the fest of Mihelmes than
next folwyng, duryng which tyme divers communicasyons were had betwix
the councell of the seid Lord and the councell of your besecher. And for
asmych as in the seid communicasions no titill of right at any tyme was
shewed for the seid Lord but that was fully and clerly answeryd, so that
the seid Lords councell remitted your seid besecher to sewe to the seid
Lord for his finall and rightfull answer. And after sute mad to the seid
Lord be your seid besecher, as well at Salysbery as in other places to
his gret coust, and non answer had but delays, which causyd your seid
besecher the vj. day of Octobre last past to inhabite hym in a mansion
with in the seid town, kepyng stille there his poscession, on tille the
xxviij. day of Januarij last past, the seid Lord sent to the seid
mansion a riotous peple, to the nombre of a thowsand persones, with
blanket bendes[128.1] of a sute as riseres ageyn your pees, arrayd in
maner of werre, with curesse, brigaunders, jakks, salettes, gleyfes,
bowes, arows, pavyse,[128.2] gonnes, pannys with fier and teynes
brennyng therein, long cromes[128.3] to drawe doun howsis, ladders,
pikoys, with which thei myned down the walles, and long trees with which
thei broke up yates and dores, and so came in to the seid mansion, the
wiff of your besecher at that tyme beyng ther in, and xij. persones with
her; the which persones thei dreve oute of the seide mansion, and myned
down the walle of the chambre wher in the wiff of your seid besecher
was, and bare here oute at the yates, and cutte a sondre the postes of
the howses and lete them falle, and broke up all the chambres and
coferes within the seid mansion, and rifelyd, and in maner of robery
bare awey all the stuffe, aray, and money that your seyd besecher and
his servauntes had ther, on to the valew of cc_li._ [£200], and part
therof sold, and part ther of yaffe, and the remenaunt thei departed
among them, to the grete and outrageous hurt of your seid besecher,
sayng openly, that if thei myght have found ther yowr seid besecher and
on John Damme,[128.4] which is of councell with hym, and divers oder of
the servauntes of your seid besecher, thei shuld have died. And yet
divers of the seid mysdoeres and ryotous peple onknowyn, contrary to
your lawes, dayly kepe the seid maner with force, and lyne [_i.e._ lien,
lie] in wayte of divers of the frendis, tenauntes, and servauntes of
your seid besecher, and grevously vexe and trobill hem in divers wise,
and seke hem in her howsis, ransakyng and serchyng her shevys and strawe
in her bernes and other places with bore speris, swerdis, and
gesernys,[128.5] as it semyth, to sle hem if thei myght have found hem;
and summe have bete and left for ded, so that thei, for doute of here
lyves, dare not go home to here houses, ner occupy here husbondry, to
the gret hurte, fere, and drede, aswele of your seid besechere as of his
seid frendis, tenauntes, and servauntes. And also, thei compelle pore
tenauntes of the seid maner, now within ther daunger, ageyn ther wille,
to take feyned pleyntes in the courtes of the hundred ther ageyn the
seid frendis, tenauntes, and servauntes of your seid besecher, whiche
dare not apere to answere for fere of bodily harme, ne can gete no
copiis of the seid pleyntes to remedi them be the lawe, because he that
kepyth the seid courtis is of covyn with the seid misdoers, and was on
of the seid ryseres, which be coloure of the seid pleyntes grevously
amercy the seid frendes, tenauntes, and servauntes of your seid
besecher, to the[ir] outrageous and importabille hurte.
Please it your hynesse, consideryng that if this gret insurreccyon,
ryottis, and wrongis, and dayly continuans ther of so heynosly don a
geyn your crowne, dignite and peas, shuld not be your hye myght be duly
punysshed, it shall gefe grett boldnesse to them, and alle other
mysdoers to make congregacyons and conventicles riottously, on abille to
be seysed, to the subversyon and finall distruccyon of your liege peple
and lawes: And also, how that your seid besecher is not abille to sue
the commone lawe in redressyng of this heynos wrong, for the gret myght
and alyaunce of the seid Lord: And also, that your seid besecher canne
have non accyon be your lawe ageyn the seid riotous peple for the godis
and catellis be hem so riottously and wrongfully take and bore awey,
because the seid peple be onknowe, aswelle here names as here persones,
on to hym;--To purvey, be the avyse of the Lordis spirituall and
temporall assembled in this present Parlement, that your seid besechere
may be restoryd to the seid godis and catellis thus riottously take
away; and that the seid Lord Molyns have suche comaundment that your
seid besecher be not thus with force, in maner of werre, hold oute of
his seide maner, contrary to alle your statutes mad ageyn suych
forcibille entrees and holdyngs; and that the seid Lord Molyns and his
servauntes be sette in suche a rewle, that your seid besechere, his
frendis, tenauntes, and servauntes, may be sure and saffe from hurt of
here persones, and pesibly ocupy here londs and tenements under your
lawes with oute oppressyoun or onrightfull vexasioun of any of hem; and
that the seid riseres and causeres therof may be punysshed, that other
may eschewe to make any suche rysyng in this your lond of peas in tyme
comyng. And he shalle pray to God for yowe.
[Footnote 127.1: [Add. Charter 17,240, B.M.] The date of this
petition must be during the sitting of Parliament, in the
beginning of the year 1450. The first expulsion of John Paston
from Gresham is here clearly dated in February 1448. The
‘October last’ in which he re-entered might, so far as appears
in this petition, have been in the same year, but the letters
referring to this dispute in 1449 compel us to put it a
twelvemonth later.]
[Footnote 127.2: A.D. 1448.]
[Footnote 128.1: Bands of white woollen cloth?]
[Footnote 128.2: Pavises were large shields.]
[Footnote 128.3: Crome is a Norfolk word, signifying a staff
with a crook at the end of it.]
[Footnote 128.4: This person was returned to Parliament for
Norwich in October 1450.]
[Footnote 128.5: Battle-axes.]
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