Edward Plumpton to Sir Robert Plumpton

84 Edward Plumpton to Sir Robert Plumpton, 10 February [1489/90] (No.
      195, p. 132)

In my most humble & faythfull wyse I recomend me to your good
mastership & to my especyall good ladyes. Sir, at my departing I rode,
according to your co[m]andement, by my Lady Delphes,¹ a full
trobleous way in þat great snaw. Notwithstanding, I cold not speed of
your matters at þat tyme, but now she is at London & promyses me
well, þe which I trust, as yet, shall [speed]^a afore your atturney came
to London, within this vj dayes. He cometh euer at the last retorne, in
þe end of þe terme; þat causeth me to haue more business than
needeth. Your matters in the excheker is greuous: ther is iij wryttes
agaynst you, wherof I haue a dedimus potestatem out þe escheker, &
another out of þe chauncre, both [. . .]^b detected to Sir Guy Fayrfax,²
to resayue your hothes & my ladyes; þe serch & your copy of þe wrytts
out of one cort to another costeth much money, & the fees of them, &
great [. . .]^c <soliciting>. If I had them now redy, I wold haue sent
them to you: when they be, I pray God send to me a good messinger,
or els I must nedes send my seruant. Afore þe iiijth wrytte for the entre
into Wolfhountlands, [. . .]^d <all the> counsell þat I can gett can shew
no way, as yet, necessary for you, saue onely I haue labored þe wrytt
proceding [p. 133] agaynst you to be reteyned vnto [the]^e next terme, &
in þe meanetyme to purvey our remedy.³ Fech your pardon and my
ladyes, & send them both, for without they will helpe us, I wote not
well what to doe in the matter. Incontinent vpon þe comying here of
Master Farfax, ye & my lady ride to his place with your wrytts, for so
I am agreed with him, & as hastely as ye can <gett> down, send up
þe sayd wrytts with his sertyficat, for then we must haue a non molestando
out of þe chauncery to disharges.

     The premysses maketh my purce light. To wryte partyclarly þe
charges, I haue no tyme now. Bylby taketh to me no money. Neuer-
thelesse when <I haue, or> I may make any, your matters shall not
slake, nor abate, vnto such tyme as your mastership send, as is aboue
sayd. All other matters concernying you to þe kings grace & his counsell,
I can send to you no word therof as yet. I trust in short space to do,
with Gods grace, who preserue you. Wrytten in great hast, þe x day of
Feb:

Your <most humble> seruant                Ed: Plompton^f

Endorsed (p. 132): To my master Sir Robt Plompton kt

      ^a MS s<p>eep.

      ^b A word deleted.

      ^c charging deleted.

      ^d no deleted.

      ^e MS your.

      ^f Appended: Copied þe 7 of May 1613.

     ¹ Ellen, Lady Delves, widow of Sir John Delves of Doddington slain at Tewkesbury
1471. His son James was executed after the battle, and attainted in the following
Parliament. The reversal of the attainder in 1482 restored the heirs and feoffees to their
original status, although with exemption to James Blount, for certain lands in Staffs. The
matter at issue was Lady Delves’s dower lands in the Notts manor of Crakemarsh in
which Sir Robert had an interest, I. Rowney, ‘Arbitration in Gentry Disputes in the Late
Middle Ages’, History, lxvii (1982), 102; RP, vi, 436; 92; App. I, 4.

     ² The writ provided for the taking of evidence required in judicial proceedings in
chancery.

     ³ Robert Blackwall, attorney at the exchequer and Sir Robert’s tenant in Flagg, Derbys,
pleaded his landlord’s cause in the matter of a bovate of land called Wolfhuntlands in
Mansfield Woodhouse, so called because it was held by the service of winding a horn
and chasing the wolves out of Sherwood Forest, CPR, 1430–37, 124; 85, 147; CB, 798;
App. II, 67.

LETTER LXIII.

To my master, Sir Robart Plompton, Kt.

    In my most humble and faythfull wyse I recomend me to your
good mastership, and to my especyall good ladyes. Sir, at my de-
parting I rode accoding to your comandent by my lady Del-
phes,a a full trobleous way in that great snaw; notwithstanding,
I cold not speed of you matters at that tyme. But now she is at
London, and promyses me well; the which I trust, as yet, shall
speed, afore your aturney come to London, within this vi dayes.
He cometh ever at the last Retorne, in the end of the terme; that
causeth me to have more busines than nedeth. Your matter in
the Excheker is grevous; there is iij wryttes agaynst you.
Whereof, I have a dedimus potstantem out of the Escheker, and
another out of the Chauncre, both derected to Sir Guy Fayrfax,
to resayve your hothes and my ladyes. The serch and the copy
of the wrytts, out of one cort to another, costeth much money, and
the fees of them, and great soliciting. If I had them now redy,
I wold have sent them to you; when they be, I pray God send to
me a good messinger, or els I must neds send my servant. Afore
the iijth wrytte, for the entre into Woifhountlands, all the counsell
that I can gett, can shew no way, as yet, necessary for you; save
onely I have labored the wrytt proceding agaynst you to be re-
teyned unto the next terme, and in the meane tyme to purvey our
remedy. Fech your pardon and my ladyes, and send them both;
for without they will helpe us, I wote not well what to doe in the
matter. Incontinent upon the comyng home of master Farfax, ye
and my lady ride to his place b with your wryttws, for so I am
agreede with him; and as hastely as ye can gett down, send up the
sayd wrytts with his sertyfycat, for then we must have a non mo-
lestando out of the Chauncery to discharges. The premysses
maketh my purse light; to wryte partyclarly the charges, I have
not tyme now. Bylby taketh to me no money; neverthelesse when
I have, or may make any, your matters shall not slake, nor abate,
unto such tyme as your mastership send, as is above sayd. All
other matters concerning you to the Kyngs grace and his counsell,
I can send to you no word therof as yet. I trust in short space
to doe, with Gods grace, who preserve you. Wrytten in great
hast, the x day of Feb.
                                            Your most humble servant,
        (10 Feb. 1489-90.) c                                         ED. PLOMPTON.

a Lady Delphes. The family of Delves were owners of the manor of Crakemarsh,
com. Stafford, in which place th Plumptons had inherited lands by descent from the
Foljambes. Sir John Delves, kt. was slain at the battle of Tewkesbury, 4 May 1471,
and lies buried in the church of Wibbenbury, com. Cest. under an alabaster tomb,
having effigies of a man and his two wives, with the epitaph, Hic Jacet Johannes Delves
miles et Elena uxor ejus, necnon Johannes Delves armiger, filius et heres Predicti Joh' is,
&c. The son here named had been beheaded after the battle of Tewkesbury, and was
one of the few attainted in the following Parliament for being present at that field, by
the name of John Delves, late of Uttockeshater, in the county of Stafford, esq. BY
his wife, eventually the heiress of Babington, of Chilwell, com. Nott. he had left only
daughters; so that when the attainder was reversed, 22 Edw. Iv. 1482, the heirs
males, as well as the heirs generals, of the said John Delves, and every person feoffee
to the use of them, or any of them, were expressly declared to be restored by the act
to their original status, save only that the manor of Apedale, which had been granted
by letters patent to James Blounte, esq. (15 Edw. IV. 1475), was to remain to him and
to his heirs male. This same gentleman, afterwards Sir James Blount, kt. married
one of the daughters of John Delves, esq. in whose right, as coheir with Ellen, wife of
Robert sheffield, of Butterwicke, in com. Linc. esq. he had possession of Crake-
marsh, but of which some part was at this time yet held in dower by Lady Delves, the
second wife and relict of Sir John Delves, kt. the grandfather. The manor of Dod-
dington in Cheshire passed to the heirs male, and is the seat of present repre-
sentative of this branch of the family.

 b Sir Guy Fairfax, kt. one the Justices of the King's Bench, had his place at
Steeton in the Ainsty, com. Ebor.

    c This and the following dates are ascertained from a letter of the 6 Nov. 1500, (vide
postea) in which the suit respecting Wolf-hunt-land in Mansfield Woodhouse, com. Nott.
is spoken of as having been pleaded ten years ago, which reference carries us back to 1490;

and the renewed mention of the "great snow" warrants the conjecture, that the
severe winter, when the wild fowl fled away from the frozen meres of Lancashire to the
sea, was the one which is marked by the date of this letter.