(Vol. iii., p. 24.)
There can be little doubt that the sword respecting which P. inquires is in
the armoury at Goodrich Court. It was presented by Lord Viscount Gage to
the late Sir Samuel Meyrick, and exhibited by Dr. Meyrick to the Society of
Antiquaries, Nov. 23. 1826. The Doctor's letter is to be found in the
Appendix to the _Archæologia_ of that date, with an engraving of the sword.
He states that the arms on the pommel are those of Battle Abbey, that its
date is about A.D. 1430, and that it was the symbol of the criminal
jurisdiction of the abbot. At the dissolution of the abbey it fell into the
hands of Sir John Gage, who was one of the commissioners for taking the
surrender of religious houses.
Its entire length is 3 feet 5 inches, and the breadth of the blade at the
guard 2 inches. The Doctor considers it to be "the oldest perfect sword in
England." The arms are a cross, with a crown in the first and last
quarters, and a sword in the second and third. There are also the letters
T.L., the initials of the Abbot, Thomas de Lodelow, who held that office
from 1417 to 1437. This fixes its date in the reign of Henry V., though the
fact of the first William having been the founder of Battle Abbey has given
colour to the tradition of its having been his property.