Dalling's Petition

LETTER II.

A Petition to the Commons of England against S^r. William Paston
k^t, a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas by William Dalling.

PLESIT to the righte sage and wyse cōes of this p^rsent
     p^rlement that wher ev^ry Justice of the Kyng is sworne
that he shulde not take no fees ne reward for to be of councell
w^t noo man but oonly wyth our sov^rayne lorde the Kyng and
therto yei be swore.

     Plese it to Coīes of the p^rsent p^rlement that ¹ William Paston
on of the Justice of oure sov^rayne Lorde Kyng takyth div^rse
fees and rewardes of div^rses p^rsones w^tinne the shir of Norff’
and Suff’ and is with holde w^t ev^ry mate^r in the sayde contrees
that is for to sey of the Toune of Yernemuth l^s yerly of the
Abot of seyn Benetys xxvj^s viij^d of the Prio^r of seyn Feithes xx^s
and of my ²Lady Rothenhale xx^s” and of the Prio^r of Nor-
wich x^s and of the Prio^r of Penteney xx^s and of the toun of
Lenn xl^s and of the Prio^r of Walsyngham xx^s and of Kat^rine
³ Shelton x mrc ayeins the Kyng for to be of hir councell for to
destroye the right of the King and of his Warde that is for to sey
⁴ Raf soon and eyer of John Shelton.

           1434. 13 H. VI.

  On the back of this Petition, in a hand of the time, is written ?Falsa Billa Willi Dalling
“tra’ p’liament’ temp’e p^r. Hen^r. Grey t^rciodecimo Regis Hen^r. vj^ti.”

     By this endorsement the bill appears to have been declared a false one, and the petition
rejected; it may therefore be supposed that the accusations were ill-grounded. The reason
for the charge might be this, that when Sir William was an acting Lawyer he received
general retaining fees from corporations, religious societies, and persons of consequence,
to be their standing counsel, and which, possibly might be continued to him after he
became a judge, as a mark of their respect and as a reward for the good services he had
formerly done them; this might certainly give cause to suspect his impartiality when any
causes in which these societies, &c. were concerned came before him.

     This petition seems to originate from some part he had taken in favour of a lady,
whereby the wardship of a minor was made less valuable to the king, or, most probably,
to the person who had purchased it from the crown.

     Such a conduct in those times must have appeared very extraordinary, when the judges
were entirely under the regal control.

 ^r Sir William Paston, was born in 1378, became a judge of the Common Pleas, in
1430, and from the propriety of his conduct was called The Good Judge. The follow-
ing memorandum recorded by his widow of his death deserves notice, as it shows the
reverence paid to his corpse, by kneeling at the foot of the bed on which it lay.

     “On the thurseday at nyght before ou^r Ladys day the Assūpcon betwixt xj and xij
“of the clokk in the yer of o^r Lord God MCCCC and xliiij, the Sondays l’re on the D,
“died my husbond, God assoyle his sowle; and on the fryday after I sent for John
“Paston, John Dam, &c. and on the Wedynysday after cam John Paston, &c. And on
“the fryday John Paston, John Dam, and I yede into the chambre, and they desyred of
“me to see the Wyll, I lete them see it; and John Dam redde it, and when he had
“redde it, John Paston walkyd up and down in the chamb’e John Dam and I knelyd
“at the beddys fete.”

     Paper Mark. A Fleur de Lys, surmounted by a Coronet. Pl. XXI. N^o. 2.

² This sentence in the original has a line drawn over it. She was a widow of Sir John
Rothenhale, knight, and dying at Caister, by Yarmouth, in 1440, was buried in Norwich
cathedral.

     ³ Catharine, widow of William Shelton, esq. and daughter of Simon Barret, was
grandmother to Ralph, and died in 1456.

     ⁴ Sir Ralph Shelton, knight, son and heir of John Shelton, esq. was born in 1430, he
married Margaret, daughter of Robert Clere, esq. of Ormesby, and was high sheriff of
Norfolk, &c. in 1487. He died before 1500, and in the east window of the north isle of
Shelton church, in Norfolk, were the effigies of him and his wife, in surcoats of their
arms. He built both the church and hall, but the latter has been long in ruins.

   Paper Mark,
          On the Memorandum,
     A Fleur de Lys, surmounted
               by a Coronet.
                 Pl. XXI. N^o 2.

           LETTER II.

A Petition to the Commons of England against Sir William Paston,
Knight, a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, by William Dalling.

PLEASE it to the right sage and wise Commons of this
     present Parliament, that where[as] every Justice of the
King is sworn that he should not take no fees nor rewards
for to be of counsel with no man, but only with our Sovereign
Lord the King, and thereto they be sworn.

     Please it to [the] Commons of the present Parliament that
^rWilliam Paston one of the Justices of our Sovereign Lord [the]
King taketh divers fees and rewards of divers persons within the
shires of Norfolk and Suffolk, and is withhold with every matter
in the faid countries; that is to say,

          Of the Town of Yarmouth, l^s. yearly.

          Of the Abbot of St. Benet’s xxvj^s. viij^d.

          Of the Prior of St. Faith’s xx^s.

          Of my Lady ²Rothenhale xx³.
     Of the Prior of Norwich xl³.
     Of the Prior of Pentney xx³.
     Of the Town of Lynn xl³.
     Of the Prior of Walsingham xx³.

     And of Katharine ³ Shelton x marks [6l. 13s. 4d.] against the
King for to be of her counsel for to destroy the right of the King
and of his Ward, that is for to say, ⁴Ralph, son and heir of John
Shelton.

 On the back of this Petition, in a hand of the time, is written ?Falsa Billa Willi Dalling
“tra’ p’liament’ temp’e p^r. Hen^r. Grey t^rciodecimo Regis Hen^r. vj^ti.”

     By this endorsement the bill appears to have been declared a false one, and the petition
rejected; it may therefore be supposed that the accusations were ill-grounded. The reason
for the charge might be this, that when Sir William was an acting Lawyer he received
general retaining fees from corporations, religious societies, and persons of consequence,
to be their standing counsel, and which, possibly might be continued to him after he
became a judge, as a mark of their respect and as a reward for the good services he had
formerly done them; this might certainly give cause to suspect his impartiality when any
causes in which these societies, &c. were concerned came before him.

     This petition seems to originate from some part he had taken in favour of a lady,
whereby the wardship of a minor was made less valuable to the king, or, most probably,
to the person who had purchased it from the crown.

     Such a conduct in those times must have appeared very extraordinary, when the judges
were entirely under the regal control.

 ^r Sir William Paston, was born in 1378, became a judge of the Common Pleas, in
1430, and from the propriety of his conduct was called The Good Judge. The follow-
ing memorandum recorded by his widow of his death deserves notice, as it shows the
reverence paid to his corpse, by kneeling at the foot of the bed on which it lay.

     “On the thurseday at nyght before ou^r Ladys day the Assūpcon betwixt xj and xij
“of the clokk in the yer of o^r Lord God MCCCC and xliiij, the Sondays l’re on the D,
“died my husbond, God assoyle his sowle; and on the fryday after I sent for John
“Paston, John Dam, &c. and on the Wedynysday after cam John Paston, &c. And on
“the fryday John Paston, John Dam, and I yede into the chambre, and they desyred of
“me to see the Wyll, I lete them see it; and John Dam redde it, and when he had
“redde it, John Paston walkyd up and down in the chamb’e John Dam and I knelyd
“at the beddys fete.”

     Paper Mark. A Fleur de Lys, surmounted by a Coronet. Pl. XXI. N^o. 2.

² This sentence in the original has a line drawn over it. She was a widow of Sir John
Rothenhale, knight, and dying at Caister, by Yarmouth, in 1440, was buried in Norwich
cathedral.

     ³ Catharine, widow of William Shelton, esq. and daughter of Simon Barret, was
grandmother to Ralph, and died in 1456.

     ⁴ Sir Ralph Shelton, knight, son and heir of John Shelton, esq. was born in 1430, he
married Margaret, daughter of Robert Clere, esq. of Ormesby, and was high sheriff of
Norfolk, &c. in 1487. He died before 1500, and in the east window of the north isle of
Shelton church, in Norfolk, were the effigies of him and his wife, in surcoats of their
arms. He built both the church and hall, but the latter has been long in ruins.

   Paper Mark,
          On the Memorandum,
     A Fleur de Lys, surmounted
               by a Coronet.
                 Pl. XXI. N^o 2.

25

DALLING’S PETITION¹

     Prefixed to this document in Fenn is the following title:—’A Petition to the
Commons of England against Sir William Paston, Knight, a Judge of the Common
Pleas, by William Dalling.’ This heading, however, has been taken from a more
modern endorsement. No contemporaneous document, so far as I am aware, gives
Judge Paston the designation of knight, or speaks of him as Sir William. In this
petition itself he is called simply William Paston, one of the Justices; and although
his name occurs frequently on the Patent Rolls, in commissions of the peace, of gaol
delivery, and the like, down to the year of his death, the word ‘miles’ is never
appended to it.

     The original commencement of this document has been crossed out. It was
in these words:—

     Plesit to the righte sage and wyse Communes of this present Parlement,
that wher every Justice of the Kyng is sworne that he shulde not take no fees ne
reward for to be of councell with noo man, but oonly wyth our Soverayne Lorde
the Kyng, and therto thei be swore. And ther is oon Will’ Paston, one of the
Justice of our Soverayne Lorde in the Comene Place, taketh fees and rewarde.

     On the back of the original document is written, in a hand of the time, ‘Falsa
billa Will’i Dalling, ad Parliamentum tempore quo Henr. Grey fuit vicecomes ante
annum terciodecimum Regis Henr. vj^ti.’ Henry Grey was sheriff of Norfolk in 1430,
and again in 1433-4. The Parliament referred to must either have been that of 8
Hen. VI. (1429-30) or that of 12 Hen. VI. (1433), which sat till 21st December.
Probably the latter.

PLESE it to Commines of the present Parlement, that
     William Paston, on of the Justice of oure Saverayne
     Lorde Kyng, takyth diverse fees and rewardes of
diverses persones withinne the shir of Norffolk and Suffolk,
and is with holde with every matere in the sayde contrees, that
is for to sey:—Of the Toune of Yernemuth, l^s. yerly ; of
the Abot of Seyn Benetys. xxvjs. viijd.; of the Prior of Seyn
Feithes, xxs.; ‘and of my Lady Rothenhale,¹ xxs’; and of the
Prior of Norwich, xs.; and of the Prior of Penteney, xxs.;
and of the Toun of Lenn, xls.; and of the Prior of Walsyng-
ham, xxs.; and of Katherine Shelton,² x. mrc. ayeins the Kyng
for to be of hir councell for to destroye the right of the Kyng
and of his warde, that is for to sey, Raf,³ soon and eyer of
John Shelton.

¹ [From Fenn, iii. 14.]

¹ This sentence in the original has a line drawn over it. She was a widow of Sir
John Rothenhale, Knight, and dying at Caister, by Yarmouth, in 1440, was buried
in Norwich Cathedral.—F. See Nos. 13 and 15, ante.

     ² Catharine, widow of William Shelton, Esq., and daughter of Simon Barret, was
grandmother to Ralph, and died in 1456.—F.

     ³ Sir Ralph Shelton, Knight, son and heir of John Shelton, Esq., was born in
1430. He married Margaret, daughter of Robert Clere, Esq. of Ormesby, and was
High Sheriff of Norfolk.—F.

1433(?)

1434 (?)