men, advocates, proctors, witnesses, and their servants, whom she shall bring forward in the cause of the pre-contract between her and John, Earl of Surrey.1 He also at the same time granted protection, pending the suit, for John de Warenne and his men, advocates, proctors, and witnesses, and their servants, whom the earl shall bring forward in the cause of divorce between him and Joan de Bares.2 On February 23 a letter was enrolled from John de Warenne witnessing that he had granted that he would be bound to the King in £200 yearly, to be paid for the maintenance of Joan de Bar, while the plea of divorce between him and her shall pend in Court Christian; and for her expenses in the plea; for payment whereof he charges his lands and chattels in the counties of Surrey and Sussex. Mem.: That the earl came into Chancery before the King at Lincoln on the said day, and acknowledged the above deed. The conditions of the rehearing, and the provision to be made for Joan in the event of a divorce being granted, are set forth in the licence which the King issued in the following terms:- Lincoln. Feb. 24, 1316. Licence for John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, granted at his request, to bring his suit for a divorce against Dame Joan de Bars, the King's niece, in the Court Christian, before Mr. Gilbert de Middelton and Mr. William de Bray, canons of the church of S. Paul, London, and the prior of the Trinity, London: and that Maud de Neirford, upon withdrawing from her process of pre-contract, which she is bringing against him before Mr. Richard de Ringstede, official of the archdeacon of Norfolk, may commence proceedings anew against the said earl and Dame Joan, touching such pre-contract, before the above-named judges and others. Within the quarter of a year after the divorce is pronounced, the earl is to enfeoff Dame Joan of 740 marks yearly of land in the towns of Graham and Gretwelle, and the soke of Gretwell, and to give security for the due performance thereof. The earl is to be discharged from his recognizances of £200 a year for the sustenance of Dame Joan and the costs of his plea. By the King." There does not appear to be a record of the hearing of the two cases-Warenne's plea of kinship and Maud's plea of pre-contract. 1 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p. 401. 2 Ibid. Cal. Close Rolls, 1313-1318, p. 325. 4 Ibid. 5 Dr. Bensly, Norwich Registry, politely informs me: "I have searched between 1312 and 1316, both inclusive, in the earliest book of this registry, 1299-1325, the time of Bishop Salmon, without finding anything relating to Earl John de Warenna. The book appears to contain nothing but records of institutions. The Acts of Court book commence in 1490." (A letter dated 18 Oct., 1906.) 6 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p. 434. A divorce was evidently not obtained, as the sequel proves, and the provision above named for Joan was therefore null and void. Besides the obstacle of the dispensation (indult) permitting the marriage, there was the further difficulty of the law of the Church : (17) We forbid the receiving of the testimony of such men as accuse their wives of being too near of kin, or of those whom they produce as witnesses; but in all things let the ancient authority of the fathers be preserved. Synod of London, 1126.1 It is easy to see why Maud was induced to act as she did, but there is no mention of a previous contract in the Lambeth Registers." Probably this plea was not treated seriously. It appears from The Wardrobe Accounts that the King appointed Mr. Aymer de Juvenzano to prosecute in the Court of Arches at London, and elsewhere in England, on behalf of the Lady Joan de Bar, the suit, and for his expenses from July 1 to November 26 following. It would therefore be between those two dates that the matter was settled. 3 SURRENDER OF THE WARENNE ESTATES TO THE KING, Warenne was anxious for a resettlement of his estates concurrently with the divorce which he desired; and therefore on Thursday next after the Feast of SS. Peter and Paul (June 29') Warenne issued letters patent as follows, granting his estates to the King, with a view to their being regranted to him on special terms, with special remainders : To all, &c. Know that I have granted and given back, and altogether quitclaimed for myself and my heirs to the most excellent Prince and Lord, my most dear Lord Edward, by the grace of God, the illustrious King of England, my castle and vill of Reygate, and my manors of Dorkyng, Bechesworthe and Kenyngton, with their appurtenances, in the county of Surrey. My castle and vill of Lewes, my manors of Cokefelde, Cleytone, Dychenynge, Mechynge, Peckham, Brightelmestone, Rottyndene, Houndedene, Northsee, Redemelde, Kymere, Middeltone, Alyngtone, Worth, Picoumbe, and the vills of Iforde, Pydinghowe, Seforde, with their appurtenances, in the county of Sussex. My castles and vills of Conyngesburghe and Sandale, my manors of Wakefelde, Heytefelde, Thorne, Souresby, Braithewell, Fisshelake, Dewesbury and Halifax, with their appurtenances, in the county of York. Also my manors and vills of Staunford and Grantham, with all their appurtenances, in the county of Lincoln. 1 History of the Kings, Simeon, of Durham. 2 Sussex Archeol. Coll., vi., 124 note. 3 Archæologia, xxvi., p. 341 note. Cal. Roman Missal. And also my castles of Dynasbran and Castro Leonis, and my lands of Brumfelde, Yale and Wryghtlesham, with their appurtenances, in Wales. And all other my manors, hamlets, lands and tenements, wapentakes, and hundreds, with their appurtenances, in the aforesaid counties and Wales, in lordships, demesnes, and services, without any thing withheld, to have and to hold to the same lord the King and his heirs, with knights' fees, advowsons of churches, abbeys, priories, and other religious houses, homages and other services of free tenants, villains with their villanages and their offspring-sequelis, warens, chaces, parks, woods, vivaries, ponds and marshes, fisheries, pastures, royal liberties, and whatever else belongs to the said castles, manors, hamlets, lands, tenements, wapentakes and hundreds in any way whatever, without any retention, or reclamation by me or my heirs for ever. In proof of which I have caused these my letters patent to be made to my lord the King. Given at Westminster, Thursday next after the Feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul, in the 9th year of the reign of the said King. Test, &c.1 2 Warenne having thus surrendered his estates as above enumerated, the King proceeded to the appointment on July 1 of William Herle to take seisin of the above castles and estates in Wales; and the tenants of them were to do fealty and services to him in the King's name. Also on the same day (July 1), at Westminster, he appointed Geoffrey de Scrope to take seisin of the above-named castles and estates in Yorkshire, and the manors and towns of Staunford and Grantham in the county of Lincoln, in the King's name; and also to take fealty of the tenants thereof, who are to obey him in all matters.3 At the same time and place he appointed Richard de Lusteshalle, King's clerk, to take seisin of the castle and town of Reygate, the castle and town of Lewes, and all other the above-named estates in the counties of Surrey and Sussex, in the King's name, and to take the fealty of the tenants thereof, who were to obey him in all things.* Also on July 3, at Westminster, he appointed Richard Lovel and Roger de Northburgh to take seisin of the manor of Kenyngton, county of Surrey, in the King's name, and to take the fealty of the tenants, who are to obey him in all things." On July 4, at Windsor, the King regranted to Earl Warenne, for life, the towns of Staunford and Grantham, county Lincoln, as above named, which the earl had surrendered to the King. Vacated because otherwise below. On July 6, at Westminster, he ordered Geoffrey le 1 Transcript from Close Roll,9 Edw. II., m. 2 dors (Mr. S. J. Chadwick), and Cal. Close Rolls, 1313-1318, p. 347. June 24. 2 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p 485. 3 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p. 483. 4 Ibid. 5 Ibid., p. 485. Scrope to deliver to the earl, or his attorney, the castles of Conyngesburgh and Sandale, and all other his estates above named in the county of York, with all receipts while they were in his hands, which the King has regranted to him for life. Also on July 6, at Windsor, the King ordered the same William Herle to deliver the abovenamed castles and estates in Wales to John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, to whom he-the King-has regranted them for life, or to his attorney, with all goods therein.2 Writ de intendendo for the earl, directed to all the tenants of the said castles and lands." By the above surrender and regrants, the earl had entirely given up for himself and his heirs all his property in Yorkshire, Surrey and Sussex, the towns of Staunford and Grantham in Lincolnshire, and his estates in Wales. He received back from the King a life interest in them only, the King reserving the disposal of the 'remainders.' The transactions did not affect his properties in Norfolk and Essex, and anywhere else. Warenne had made provision for Joan in the event of the divorce being obtained, and it would appear, from what now took place, that the King and others expected that such would be the case. Was it intended that Warenne should marry Maud, and that the estates should be settled on her and her children in this way? But the position was for a time peculiar. Had it remained as then arranged, if the divorce had been obtained Joan would have had the annuity settled on her, and Warenne would have had a life interest only in the estates affected, and at his death they would have gone to the King, nothing going to Maud and her sons. Had he died before the decision, Joan would not have had any interest whatever either in the annuity or in these vast estates. But this state of things was made even worse for Joan, as will be seen. At Lincoln on August 4 of the same year the King, 'wishing to do the aforesaid earl a special favour,' granted him a fresh charter settling the estates as follows: 10 Edw. II., pt. 1, m. 28. 1316. Aug. 4. Lincoln. Regrant to John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, for his life, with remainder to John de Warenne son of Matilda de Neirford, and the heirs of his body; and failing such issue, to Thomas de Warenne, son of the said Maud de Neirford, and the heirs male of his body; with final remainder, failing such issue, to the heirs of the body of the said earl; of the undermentioned castles, manors, and lands, and towns, which the earl had surrendered to the King, and his heirs (the manor of Kenyngton, co. Surrey, excepted, which the King has retained to himself and his 1 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p. 485. 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. heirs), viz. the castle and town of Reygate, and the manors of Dorkyng, Kenyngton, and Bechesworth, county of Surrey. The castle and town of Lewes, and the manors of Cokefeld, Cleyton, Dychenyng, Mechyng, Peckham, Brightelmeston, Rottyngdene, Houndene, Northen, Radmeld, Kymere, Middelton, Alynton, Worth, and Picoumbe, and the towns of Iford, Pydinghowe, and Seford, county of Sussex. And all other manors, hamlets, and lands in those counties. And the castle of Dynasbran, and Holt Castle (Castro-Leonis), and the lands of Brumfeld, Yale, and Wryghtlesham, in Wales. With knights' fees, advowsons of churches, abbies, priories and other religious houses, homages and other services of free tenants, villeins, with their villeinages and issue, warrens, chaces, parks, woods, stews, ponds, marshes, fisheries, feedings, pastures, hundreds, liberties, and royalties.1 The same time and place. Regrant to John de Warenna, Earl of Surrey, for his life, with remainders to Matilda de Neirford, for her life, with subsequent successive remainders as above, to John de Warenna and to Thomas de Warenna, sons of the said Matilda, and to the heirs of the body of the said earl, of the undermentioned castles, towns, manors, hamlets and lands, which the earl has surrendered to the King and his heirs, viz.: the castles, towns, and manors of Conyngesburgh and Sandale; the manors of Wakefeld, Thorne, Haytefeld, Souresby, Braithewelle, Fisshelake, Dewesbury, and Halifax; and other manors, hamlets, &c., as above.2 The same time and place. Regrant of John de Warenna, Earl of Surrey, for his life, with reversion to the King and his heirs, of the manors and towns of Staunford and Grantham, co. Lincoln, together with the soke of the manor of Grantham, with knights' fees, advowsons of churches, &c., which the earl surrendered to the King and his heirs." In the following year (1317), on October 25, a deed of John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, was enrolled, rendering, granting, and releasing to the King the towns of Staunford and Grantham, with the soke and members, which the earl holds for life by demise from the King. Witnesses, J., Bishop of Winchester, J., Bishop of Ely, Ric., Bishop of London, Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke. Kenyngton, near Lambeth.* EARL WARENNE AND THOMAS, EARL OF LANCASTER. Dated at Whilst all this litigation was proceeding, public affairs went on as usual. Earl Warenne was himself also engaged in providing for the 1 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p. 528. 2 Ibid., pp. 528, 529. 3 Cal. Pat. Rolls, 1313-1317, p. 529. |
