Deeds:
A Descriptive Catalogue
of Ancient Deeds: Volume 2. Originally published by Her Majesty's Stationery
Office, London, 1894.
Essex: B. 3464. Grant by John de Bovill [Bonville?],
son of William de Bovill [Bonville?], of Ardlegh, to Ralph son of Walter de
Sancta Ositha, for 100s., of all the lands, &c., that Robert del Hel [de
Hele?] formerly held of the said William in Ardlegh, and the bodies of Richard
del Hel, son of Ralph de Campo and Leueva his wife, and of Richard son of
Robert del Hel, and Alice his sister, with their issue and chattels, paying to
him 8s. yearly, to the ward of Rouecestre 4¾d.,
to the sheriff's aid 3d., and towards 'Wardpani' [Wardpeny] 2d. Witnesses:—Hugh
Grosso, Ralph Martel, and others (named). [Henry III.- reign: 1216-1272] Seal.
Roll ref to Ralph de Sancta
Ositha: 361 JOHN DE FROWYK alias DE FROTHEWIC. - ESSEX - Inq. 16 June, 6 Edw. II. - Frothewic,
Chiche Ridel, Crustwic, and Earl’s Chiche. A messuage and 2 carucates land,
held of the heirs of Ralph de Sancta Ositha in chief by service of 1/4 knight’s
fee.
Lawrence his son, aged
15, is his next heir.
1263 Issues of Easter term, year 47 Henry
III [1263]
1) Richard of Tilbury, constable of the king’s Tower of
London, £10 for buying plants for making
a hedge [hey] in the king’s garden outside the Tower, and
other things needed for that garden.
Paid to Thomas, 100s. from the previous term.1 [CLR VI,
2303]
2) Elias of Rochester [aka: Ellis de Roffa], marshal of
the king’s horses, £11 15s. for the king’s harness, bought by himself, for both
palfreys and destriers, against Easter year 47. Paid to the same Elias by one
writ. [CLR VI, 2304, also covering the following entry]
3) Elias of Rochester [aka: Ellis de Roffa, 18s. for one
saddle with bridle for the use of master Henry of Ghent, keeper of the king’s
wardrobe, as a gift from the king himself.
Thus in the household of Henry III (1216 -72) Ellis
de Roffa was marshal of the kings horses, c.-72, having as his
subordinates William Atteforde, keeper of the .ing¶s destriers, and Thomas de
Tytelington, keeper of the .ing¶s palfreys.4 By the fourteenth century there
were obviously many more horses in the royal household, kept in various parts
of the country, which necessitated a larger staff to care for them.
Knights of the Household of Edward I:
Throughout the reign the largest single geographical area
from which household knights were recruited was the south east. Given-Wilson
found a similar pattern among the knights attached to Richard II's household
prior to the political crisis of the 1390s.
In 1285-6 five bannerets, William Leyburn, Guncelin de
Badlesmere,Peter de Champagne, John de la Mare, John St John, came from the south
east. Of the simple knights, sixteen came from the same area including Hugh de
Brok, Giles de Badlesmere, Robert de Creuker, William St Clare, Giles de
Fiennes, Guy Ferre, Robert FitzJohn, Ralph gorges, Elias Hauville [Hautville],
John Lovel, John de Merk, Geoffrey de Pitchford, Hugh Pecche [du
Pecche], John Russel and Andrew Sackville. Two others, Robert Giffard and
Richard de Boys, came from the south west.
Finally, John de Merk, a knight of the household from the
1280s onward, spent a great deal of time with the king's hawks and hounds
during his career. In 1285-6 he was with the hawks and hounds at Frompton from
9 to 24 January 1286. He continued to appear regularly in the hunting accounts
of subsequent years, notably in 1290, 1301 and 1303. John de Merk also
gained responsibility for the royal eyries at Windsor which had originally
being under the control of Geoffrey de Pitchford, the constable. 99
As falconers and ostringers the household knights had
many tasks to perform. Firstly, they were involved in the buying of new birds.
Thomas Hauville and John de Merk were out of court
from 28 December 1289 to 15 April 1290 with the gyrfalcons. They seem to have
spent most of the remainder of the year in court. On 3 November 1290 they
finally departed from the king's side, returning to the household on 21 April
1291. However, during a year of a major campaign the duties of these men as
falconers and ostringers seem to have been superseded by their military duties
as knights of the royal household. During the Caerlaverock campaign of
1299-1300 Thomas Bicknor, John Bicknor, Robert de Bavent, John de Merk and
Thomas Hauville were all in receipt of fees and robes as household knights. All
these men except Thomas Hauville received wages for serving in the king's army
in Scotland. Similarly in 1297 Thomas Bicknor, Robert de Bavent and John de
Merk all served in Flanders with the king.
The constable was also responsible for the felling of trees
upon the king's order. For instance in 1297 Walter de Beauchamp, constable of
Gloucester, was ordered to have 30 oak stumps felled in the wood of the Barton
near Gloucester. It was the duty of the constable to care for the animals
within the king's parks and forests. Geoffrey de Pitchford was ordered by the
king to ensure that hay and oats were provided for the winter season for the king's
deer at Windsor and Kenyton. Until they passed into the care of John de Merk,
Pitchford was also responsible for the king's mews at Windsor.
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