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all other comodities, as all other the heraulds hathe, and so by that means I trust in God, with your good lordship's favour, shortely to come to some end with my credytors, that I am indebted unto, and to be at lyberty, and so yerely to paye unto them a portition of my saide proffitts, as shall growe unto me. And your saide poore oratour, accordinge to his bounden dewtie, shall dayly praye to God for your noble grace in moche felicitie, with th❜increase of the same, long to contenewe.

Richard Turpyn, Windsor herald, died on the 17th of October, 1581. He was, says Anstis, "an officer of great industry, as will appear from his MSS. relating mostly to armory, now in the collector's keeping." *

In conclusion, I would remind the members of the Camden Society that this is the second time that we have been indebted for the preservation and use of historical works to the zeal and industry of "honest John Stowe." In the present instance, as in that of "The Historie of the Arrivall and Restoration of King Edward IV.," with which the series of this Society was commenced, his transcripts have at last, after the lapse of more than two centuries, conducted works to the press, of which the original manuscripts are now lost or unknown.

The above document I have been allowed to transcribe from Anstis's collections for the history of the officers of arms, lately belonging to Sir George Nayler, and now in the library of the College of Arms. manuscripts were dispersed after his death, and I am not aware where those of Turpyn above mentioned are now preserved.

To have obtained Richard Turpyn's own copy of the Chronicle of Calais would certainly have been more satisfactory, inasmuch as Stowe with all his merits was no great scholar, nor, whether from want of care on his own part, or on that of his printers, do we find that he edited with perfect accuracy. Passages from Turpyn's

chronicle are to be found interweaved in that of Stowe, and in three places "Richard Turpin" is quoted in his margin, viz. in May 1514, July 1520, and in 1527 for Wolsey's embassy. Under the year 1532 he has given the same list of names as in this volume, p. 42, but with several errors. The name of Donne is misprinted Deane, Semer is misprinted Femer, and Markam misprinted Marleant. I suspect further that, in the same place, Stowe transcribed "Sir John Page" for Sir John Gage, K.G. and "Sir Edward Santener" for Santmer or Seymour, afterwards the Duke of Somerset and protector.* Such instances of inaccuracy in our standard works contribute to justify that recurrence to original authorities which it is the practice of the Camden Society to adopt and recommend.

*So in p. 8 Dicky for Digby: and in p. 48 he has written "his" for "her;' see note, p. 187.

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CALAIS IN THE HANDS OF THE ENGLISH.

FROM the time that the town of Calais was surrendered to King Edward the Third in 1347, in the manner so picturesquely described by Froissart, it remained for two hundred and eleven years in most respects an English colony. The poorer inhabitants, to the number of more than seventeen hundred, had been sent away during the siege,* and never returned, finding refuge chiefly at St. Omer's.

When the conqueror commissioned sir Walter de Manny and his two marshals, the earl of Warwick and the earl of Stafford, to take possession of the town, he said, "Sirs, take here the kayes of the towne and castell of Calys; go and take possessyon there, and putte in prison all the knyhts that be there; and all other soudyours that came thyder symply to wynne their lyveng, cause theym to avoyde the towne, and also all other men, women, and chyldren; for I wolde re-people agayne the towne with pure Englysshemen." This plan Froissart says was fulfilled. "They made all maner of people to voyde, and kept there no mo persons but a preest and two other auncyent personages, such as knewe the customes, lawes, and ordynaunces of the towne, and to signe out the herytages howe they were devyded." "The kynge sent from London xxxvj burgesses to Calays, who were ryche and sage, and their wyves and chyldren, and dayly encreased the nombre, for the kynge graunted them such liberties and franchysses that men were gladde to go and dwell there.”

The names of the commanders and knights in the army of Edward the Third, at the time of his winning of Calais, with the amount of their respective retinues, and their armorial bearings, form the second part of the volume entitled, "Nomina et Insignia Gentilitia Nobilium Equitumque sub Edwardo primo rege militantium. Accedunt classes exercitus Edwardi tertii regis Caletem obsidentis. Edidit Edwardus Rowe Mores, 1748." The same roll occurs in manuscript in MS. Harl. 246, MS. Harl. 782, and MS. Cotton. Titus, F. I. p. 262.

In the Gentleman's Magazine for Oct. 1837, is "A brief memoir of the Campaigns of Edward the Third, in the years 1345, 1346, and 1347, ending with the surrender of Calais; with a Defence or Apology of Edward, as to his conduct to Eustace de St. Pierre and the other Burgesses on the Surrender of that Fortress :" by Christopher Godmond, Esq. the author of a drama entitled "The Campaign of 1346," 8vo. 1836.

+Froissart, in Lord Berners' translation.

It was not, however, until the last year of his reign that the style of the governing body was altered to the London type of a mayor and aldermen. By an old charter of Maud countess of Artois the community consisted of a bailiff, eskivyns or êchevins, and cornemans; the new municipality of a mayor and twelve aldermen was settled by act of parliament passed in the 50 Edw. III. 1377.* The staple of wool, which was also a corporation presided over by a mayor, was fixed at Calais in 1362. The mayor of the staple, when the captain made any expedition, kept watch in the town with one hundred billmen (gleyves) and two hundred archers, of the merchants and their servants, taking no wages of the king.†

No attempt will be here made to trace the history of Calais + during the first century and a half of the English occupation, for such an undertaking (as already remarked in the Preface) is beyond the design of this volume. Without entering into particulars, it is obvious that the possession of a town and port on the continent, situated at its nearest point to the English coast, and which afforded undisputed facilities for the debarcation and marshalling of troops, was of the first importance in military affairs; and that no charges would be spared that could tend to its defence and preservation. In 2 Ric. II. the annual expenditure of the crown for this purpose exceeded 24,000l.§ It was not less regarded in subsequent reigns; and though several documents in the present volume speak of disorder and decay, yet there are others which shew the vigorous efforts which were made for the reformation of abuses and the repair of all deficiencies. The report of the Venetian ambassador Michele, made to the senate of Venice

*Rot. Parl. vol. ii. pp. 358, 359.

+ Ibid. p. 358.

There are two French works on the history of the town, viz. "Les Annales de la Ville de Calais et du pays reconquis, par P. Bernard. Saint Omer, 1715," 4to.; and “Histoire de la Ville de Calais et du Calaisis, par le Febvre. Paris, 1768." 2 vols. 4to. ;— neither of which, strange to say, has the Editor been able to find in the public libraries of London. The extent of the disadvantages under which he may thus labour in writing these preliminary observations he is of course unable to estimate; but it is most probable that little, if any, of the subsequent contents of this volume have been anticipated. The works of Bernard and Le Febvre are not mentioned in M. Legros-Devot's recent report on the historical records of the town (hereafter noticed).

§ Speech of sir Richard l'Escrope on opening the parliament. Rot. Parl. vol. iii. p. 346.

on his return from England, only one year before the loss of Calais, proves that it was then esteemed as highly as ever:

"Another frontier (he says) besides that of Scotland, and of no less importance for the security of the kingdom, though it be separated, is that which the English occupy on the other side of the sea, by means of two fortresses, Calais and Guisnes, guarded by them (and justly) with jealousy, especially Calais, for this is the key and principal entrance to their dominions, without which the English would have no outlet from their own, nor access to other countries, at least none so easy, so short, and so secure; so much so, that if they were deprived of it, they would not only be shut out from the continent, but also from the commerce and intercourse of the world. They would consequently lose what is essentially necessary for the existence of a country, and become dependent upon the will and pleasure of other sovereigns, in availing themselves of their ports, besides having to encounter a more distant, more hazardous, and more expensive passage; whereas, by way of Calais, which is directly opposite to the harbour of Dover, distant only about thirty miles, they can, at any time, without hindrance, even in spite of contrary winds, at their pleasure, enter or leave the harbour (such is the experience and boldness of their sailors), and carry over either troops or anything else for warfare, offensive and defensive, without giving rise to jealousy and suspicion; and thus they are enabled, as Calais is not more than ten miles from Ardres, the frontier of the French, nor further from Gravelines, the frontier of the Imperialists, to join either the one or the other, as they please, and to add their strength to him with whom they are at amity, in prejudice of an enemy. For these reasons, therefore, it is not to be wondered at, that, besides the inhabitants of the place, who are esteemed men of most unshaken fidelity, being the descendants of an English colony settled there shortly after the first conquest, it should also be guarded by one of the most trusty barons which the king has, bearing the title of deputy, with a force of five hundred of the best soldiers, besides a troop of fifty horsemen.

"It is considered by every one as an impregnable fortress, on account of the inundation with which it may be surrounded, although there are persons skilled in the art of fortification, who doubt that it would prove so if put to the test. For the same reason, Guisnes is also reckoned impregnable, situated about three miles more inland, on the French frontier, and guarded with the CAMD. SOC.

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