[John] Paston to [The Duke of Suffolk]

534

[JOHN] PASTON TO [THE DUKE OF SUFFOLK]¹

THAT it please my lordis good grase to be good lord
     and supporter of Paston in his right and possession
     of the maner till his right can be lawfully or be trete
dispreved by his adversaries, consideryng that the said Paston
is my lordis homager and was nevir ayens his lordship and
that my lord is not gretly behold to do for the seid Pastons
adversaries as he understandith.

     And in case my lord woll not supporte the seid Paston in
his right but be indifferent athwyx bothe parties, that thanne
it please my lorde to have consideracion to the right of the
mater as folowyth in articles and ther upon to be remembird
whedir it be resonably desired by William Jenney or by
Debenham as his waged man or for his sake that Paston
shuld leve the possession or the takyng of the profitez of the
seid maner.

     First to be remembird that the seid maner aswell as the
maner of Nakton were Sir John Fastolffis, and that the seid
Paston of the seid maners toke estatis at Cotton and attorne-
ment of the tenauntis viij. or ix. yere goo, in such wise as the
tenauntes can reporte, and continued there in possession aswell
in the live of the seid Sir John as sithen, and hath take the
profitez therof sith the discese of the said Fastolff, except
for the terme of Mighelmes a yere passed, whech tyme the
tenauntes were compellid by fors of distresses to pay ayens
ther willes part of the seid profitez.
     And that also the title of the seid Paston to the seid
maner is not all only by the seid feffement but aswell by a
graunt and bargeyn made a thwyx the seid Fastolff and the
seid Paston as by the last will of the seid Fastolff, where by
the seid Paston ought to take the hole profitez of the seid
maner, and also it is lefull to the seid Paston to kepe the
seid maner with fors, consideryng he hath be in possession
iij. yere and more; hough be it, the seid Paston intendyth to
kepe the seid maner pesibly and non otherwise. And that the
pretense and cleyme of the seid Jenney is that he schuld be
infeffed with the seid Paston in the seid maner; by whech
pretense, if it were trewe, yet the seid Paston by reason shuld
not be put out of the seid maner, for who som evir had titell
therto by feffement or by executrie, Paston shuld be on that
had title; hough be it, the seid Paston cleymyth not in that
forme, but by the titell of his bargeyne and by the seid
Fastolffis will.

     Item, to be remembird, whech tyme as my lord had
wretyn his lettirs and sent his servauntes for the eyde and
supporte of the seid Paston to take the profitez of the seid
maner of Nakton as of the maner of Cotton, desyryng the
tenauntes to the seid Paston, the seid Jenney wold have no
consideracion therto; hough be it, though he were a feffe he
had no titell to take the seid profitez, consideryng he is non
executor, but presumptuously, havyng no consideracion to my
lordis lettir ner sendyng, compellid the tenauntis by distresses
to pay hym more besely thanne any feffe or executor, and now
at this same tyme hath be at Nakton and reseyvid as moch
mony as he coud gader there.

     Item, where at Mighelmesse the yere passed the seid
Paston sent his sone, a servaunt of my Lordis, and also
Richard Calle, servaunt to the seid Paston put to hym by
my Lordis fader,¹ to reseyve the profitez of the seid maner
as thei had do many yeres before, the seid Jenney ded arest
the seid Calle for a thef and as a thef caried hym to th’entent
that the tenauntes shuld be discoraged to pay the seid Paston.
Whech tyme, at the request of the said Calles kynred, it
pleased my lord to write to the seid Jenney and Debenham
for the deliverauns of the seid Calle; to which letteris they
nouther toke hede nor reputacion, but by that sotilte reseyved
the profitez of the seid maner, the seid Paston havyng non
help by my seid Lordis writyng nor sendyng.

     Wherfore please my Lordis good lordship to supporte the
seid Paston in kepyng of his right and possession till it be dis-
preved or knowe onlawfull, and the seid Paston will applye to
such meanes as it pleasith my Lord to take wherby the right
of the mater may be undirstond and determined.

     And also that it like my lord to remembir that it is not
behofefull for any prinse lightly to geve trust or to applye
to the desires of any persones that have geve hym cause of
mistrust.

     ¹ [Add. MS. 34,889, f. 182.] This petition must have been drawn up at the end
of 1462 or in the beginning of 1463, which would be considered still 1462 in the old
computation. It must have been fully three years after Fastolt’s death, which took
place on the 5th November 1459, and the imprisonment of Richard Calle in 1461
(see No. 487) is referred to as having taken place ‘at Michaelmas the year past.’
The nobleman to whom the petition is addressed seems to be the Duke of Suffolk.

     ¹ William de la Pole, the unfortunate Duke of Suffolk, murdered in 1450. It is
a piece of information which we do not meet with elsewhere, that Richard Calle
entered the service of the Pastons by this duke’s recommendation.

1462-3

1462-3

1462-3

LI

A.D. 1462-3

[JOHN] PASTON TO [THE DUKE OF SUFFOLK]

[Add. MS. 34,889, f. 182]

     This petition, No. 1055 in the Inventory of documents at the end of
Vol. III., must have been drawn up at the end of 1462 or in the beginning
of 1463, which would be considered still 1462 in the old computation. It
must have been fully three years after Fastolf’s death, which took place on
the 5th November 1469, and the imprisonment of Richard Calle in 1461
(see No. 420) is referred to as having,taken place ‘at Michaelmas the year
past.’ The nobleman to whom the petition is addressed seems to be the
Duke of Suffolk.

THAT it please my lordis good grase to be
     good lord and supporter of Paston in his
     right and possession of the maner till his
     right can be lawfully or be trete dispreved
by his adversaries, consideryng that the said Paston
is my lordis homager and was nevir ayens his lord-
ship and that my lord is not gretly behold to do for
the seid Pastons adversaries as he understandith.

     And in case my lord woll not supporte the seid
Paston in his right but be indifferent athwyx bothe
parties, that thanne it please my lorde to have
consideracion to the right of the mater as folowyth
in articles and ther upon to be remembird whedir
it be resonably desired by William Jenney or by
Debenham as his waged man or for his sake that
Paston shuld leve the possession or the takyng of
the profitez of the seid maner.

     First to be remembird that the seid maner aswell
as the maner of Nakton were Sir John Fastolffis,
and that the seid Paston of the seid maners toke
estatis at Cotton and attornement of the tenauntis
viij. or ix. yere goo, in such wise as the tenauntes can
reporte, and continued there in possession aswell in
the live of the seid Sir John as sithen, and hath take
the profitez therof sith the discese of the said Fastolff,
except for the terme of Mighelmes a yere passed,
whech tyme the tenauntes were compellid by fors
of distresses to pay ayens ther willes part of the seid
profitez.

 And that also the title of the seid Paston to the
seid maner is not all only by the seid feffement but
aswell by a graunt and bargeyn made a thwyx the
seid Fastolff and the seid Paston as by the last will
of the seid Fastolff, where by the seid Paston ought
to take the hole profitez of the seid maner, and also it
is lefull to the seid Paston to kepe the seid maner
with fors, consideryng he hath be in possession iij. yere
and more; hough be it, the seid Paston intendyth to
kepe the seid maner pesibly and non otherwise.
And that the pretense and cleyme of the seid Jenney
is that he schuld be infeffed with the seid Paston in
the seid maner; by whech pretense, if it were trewe,
yet the seid Paston by reason shuld not be put out
of the seid maner, for who som evir had titell therto
by feffement or by executrie, Paston shuld be on that
had title; hough be it, the seid Paston cleymyth not
in that forme, but by the titell of his bargeyne and
by the seid Fastolffis will.

     Item, to be remembird, whech tyme as my lord had
wretyn his lettirs and sent his servauntes for the eyde
and supporte of the seid Paston to take the profitez
of the seid maner of Nakton as of the maner of
Cotton, desyryng the tenauntes to the seid Paston,
the seid Jenney wold have no consideracion therto;
hough be it, though he were a feffe he had no titell
to take the seid profitez, consideryng he is non
executor, but presumptuously, havyng no considera-
cion to my lordis lettir ner sendyng, compellid the
tenauntis by distresses to pay hym more besely
thanne any feffe or executor, and now at this same
tyme hath be at Nakton and reseyvid as moch mony
as he coud gader there.

     Item, where at Mighelmesse the yere passed the
seid Paston sent his sone, a servaunt of my Lordis,
and also Richard Calle, servaunt to the seid Paston
put to hym by my Lordis fader,¹ to reseyve the
profitez of the seid maner as thei had do many yeres
before, the seid Jenney ded arest the seid Calle
for a thef and as a thef caried hym to th’entent that
the tenauntes shuld be discoraged to pay the seid
Paston. Whech tyme, at the request of the said
Calles kynred, it pleased my lord to write to the
seid Jenney and Debenham for the deliverauns of
the seid Calle; to which letteris they nouther toke
hede nor reputacion, but by that sotilte reseyved the
profitez of the seid maner, the seid Paston havyng
non help by my seid Lordis writyng nor sendyng.

     Wherfore please my Lordis good lordship to
supporte the seid Paston in kepyng of his right and
possession till it be dispreved or knowe onlawfull,
and the seid Paston will applye to such meanes as it
pleasith my Lord to take wherby the right of the
mater may be undirstond and determined.

     And also that it like my lord to remembir that it
is not behofefull for any prinse lightly to geve trust
or to applye to the desires of any persones that have
geve hym cause of mistrust.

¹ William Dela Pole, the unfortunate Duke of Suffolk, murdered in
1450. It is a piece of information which we do not meet with elsewhere.
that Richard Calle entered the service of the Pastons by this duke’s
recommendation.