In kept by persons in business, one of whom was a weaver. many parishes, in the Eastern part of the County, there was one person carrying on this trade.39 66 Harbour.-Between 1558 and 1576, there were several proposals laid before the Council for the repair of this then decayed Harbour." One plan, in 1570, was proposed by Adryan Skedam at an expense of £3,000; and another, in 1574, by De Trente, an Italian. At this time the Town suffered from the encroachments of the sea; and the Mayor, Jurats, and Commonalty, having, in 1626, made an application to the Duke of Buckingham for a patent for a general collection, for the repair of the Port and Harbour, obtained it in 1627. In its collection, however, in Lincolnshire, Mr. Luxford, a merchant, who had been deputed by the Justices of the Peace for Sussex to make it there, was very roughly handled by Mr. Hearne, a Lincolnshire Justice, who caused him to be whipped as a wandering rogue, though he showed both his letters patent and his deputation. Proceedings were instituted in the Star chamber by the Attorney-General against Hearne (in 1628-9) for this offence; and the defendant was committed, and fined £200 to the King, and directed to pay £50 damages to Mr. Luxford.40 HOSPITAL OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW OF RYE. Of this Hospital, of which little has been known, I am able to give some details. It was situate close to the town, though in the parish of Playden, and was under the care of the Abbot of Fécamp. At first it was for lepers, and then for the poor; both brothers and sisters being, according to the 59th article of the Customal, admissible with the assent of the mayor and commonalty. Its impoverished state, in 1379, was found on an inquisition," in the return to which the Jurors say that "Robert de Burton, pretending that he is Master of the Hospital (in the King's patronage, the temporalities of the Abbey of Fécamp being in the King's hands 41 Inq., 3 Rich. II., No. 108. 39 See ante, p. 63. 40 Ex. inf., Mr. S. Evershed. by reason of the war), hath felled and sold 75 large oaks, worth £20, at Brookland, parcel of the Hospital; that when he received possession of the Hospital, he found wheat and other corn there in the granges and fields, to the value of £10, for the support of the poor of the Hospital, which he wasted, and sold for his own use, and gave nothing of it to the poor of the Hospital; but permitted, and still does permit, them to beg daily in the streets of Rye. And when he came to the Hospital, he found the land belonging to it-at Playden and Brookland-well sown, and the hedges well kept up; but now they lye waste and open, without any inclosure, to the loss of the Hospital of £20. He also took and carried away the muniments, and bulls, and indulgences of the Hospital, which were worth 40s. a-year in oblations for support of its poor. The brazen vessels of the poor were taken for distress, to the value of 26s. 8d., for rent in arrear, in the time of the said Robert: so that the poor have no vessels in which they can prepare their dinners; and thus the said Robert has made waste, sale, destruction, and dilapidation of the Hospital and its goods, to the final destruction of it, if a remedy be not very soon applied." Mr. Holloway in his "Antiquarian Rambles through Kye," has marked the spot where the Hospital stood. It was on the north of the path now known as Deadman's Lane, leading from Mountfield to Dodeswell, since called Queen Elizabeth's well; and at the south-east corner of a meadow belonging to Stanes Brocket Brocket, Esq., on the west side of Rye Hill. After the dissolution of the Hospital, the site was granted in 1542 to Andrew, Lord Windsor. The nomination of the chaplain, who was called the WARDEN, was in the mayor and commonalty: his name in time of peace was to be sent to the Abbot of Fécamp, and in time of war to the Lord Chancellor, by one of whom he was to be presented to the Bishop of Chichester, to be by him instituted. The following is a list of the WARDENS, so far as I have been able to ascertain them with the dates, from the Patent Rolls: 1478 ............... William Tracy It is called the Hospital of Lepers ............ d. of John Waldeby res. R. Repyngdon .......... On Nomination of the .......... exch, with J. Hoton On Nomination of Mayor and Barons The same res. of J. Preston On Nomination of Mayor and Barons 13th December 18 Edw. IV. John More. Clerk of the d. W. Tracy 42 Two pieces of land in Playden, called Sharpe's, containing four acres Lore or less, holden of the Manor of Playden, by the yearly rent of 11d. heriot, &c., relief now forms part of the Horton Green Farm. SIX REASONS OF THE CINQUE PORTS SHOWING WHY THEY SHOULD CONTINUE EXEMPT FROM PAYMENT OF SUBSIDIES. BY THOMAS ROSS, Esq. THE following extracts from the Black Book of the Cinque Ports (1614), shewing "why they and their members should continue exempt from payment of subsidies to his matie according to their auncient libertyes, having never heretofore bene questioned for any such charge, and being exempt from the same by their auncient charters of graunts and conformacions made unto them by divers Kings of this Realme, and confirmed by Acte of Parliam'," may be interesting to our numerous subscribers, who may be glad to read from the records of the Brotherhood and Guestling the position of that ancient body, as described by themselves 250 years back, in which they give a statement of their grievances as well as the services rendered by them against the formidable Armada, &c. CONCERNING THEIR SERVICES UPON THE SEAS FOR THE DEFENCE OF THE REALME. 1614. THE CINQ PORTS AS APPEARETH IN THE BOOK OF ENTRYES. And by their auncient chres are bound to fynd yearely to the king uppon fourtye dayes sumons, seven and fiftye shippes, and in them one thou sond two hundred fourtye and fowre men, warelike appointed and victualled, at their owne coste, by the space of fifteene dayes, and afterwardes soe longe as the kinge shall please, upon the king's auncient allowance and futer entertaynment. This navye was aunciently called the king's navye, and was the onely navye wch the king had, and was trusted with the transporting of the king's person when he passed the seas, and of his armyes and forces, and at the excessive charges of the Cinq Ports, in the reigns of sundry kings of this realme. This navye hath oftenXVII. T tymes p' formed very great and memorable services, and obteyned famous victoryes against the enemyes of this kingdome, and in defence and to the honor of the kinges and realme, as is sett forth in the chronicles, yt. being aunciently a rare thing, if the raigne of any king passed wthout some acceptable service p' formed by the Cinq Ports by their said navye. And in the tyme of the late most worthey Queen Elizabeth of famous memory viz., in the yeare of our Lord 1588, they did, at their owne charge, furnishe out to the sea against the Spaniards, in her then maties service, six good servicable shippes of warre, every of them above eightye tonne, and one pinnace of thirtye tonne, upon her highness commandment, well appointed with men and ammunicion, at theire charge of foure thousand and three hundred pounds. It In the yeare of our Lord 1595,' in the voyage unto Cales [Cadiz], they were charged to p'vide and furnishe to sea, at theire charge, foure serviceable shipps of warre, every of them of the burthen of one hundred and three scorre tonnes, well manned and victualled, by the space of fyve monethes, at theire charge of four thousond pounds or thereabouts.2 It They were greatly charged wth the lodging, victualling, and transporting of sondries, at the voyage into Portugall, under General Norris and Sir Francis Drake, and into France, under the Lord Willowbye, and afterwardes under the Earle of Essex, and also at the siedge of Callace. It They were greatly charged in keping greate and warlike watches, and in a sort garrisons in their several townes, viz., in some townes fiftye, and in some sixtye, in the nyght tyme, and then furnished them with powder, shott, and other weapons, and to make fortifications against their severall townes. It Upon commandem' diverse smale fisher boates of the five ports have bene furnished with men to sea, to search and to espye where the enemye was, and to discover what number of shippes were at sea. The services of the five Cinq Portes, wth theire navye, have bene soe profitable and acceptable to the kings of this realme, as that by the same kings the ports have bene heretofore allowed to make diverse, not dwelling in the ports capiable of the liberties of the ports, wch would contribute to the charges of the navye of the ports. But these contribucions have bene long since restrayned, and ever synce the wholl charges thereof resteth upon the ports onely. "At an assembly held in October, 1596, fyve Shippes and one pinnace are offered to Her Malye to suppress her enemys in suchwise as heretofore hath byn already offered with their several Burthens, Ordinance, powder and shott for that purpose. "Rye one Shipp, 100 tonne; powder, 1000 weight; Ordnance 2 Sacres, 4 Mynions, 3 Falkons, and for every piece 20 Shott of all sorts. One Pynnace of Thirty Tonnes; Ordnance 4 Falkons; powder 300 weighte; Shott Twenty of all sorts for every piece." I give the above because it was the largest Ship sent by the ports—it is evident that after the fireing of 20 shot a return to harbour was necessary to obtain a fresh supply. In a petition to the Lord Warden in 1627, is the following-"and whereas o' late Sovereigne Ladye Queene Elizabeth for the better maintenance of the Navye of the Cinque Ports and in con. sideration of the good services wch the Barons of the ports at their owne chardgs p'formed in 1588 and 96 did by her letters patents in the 43 year of Her Raigne grant for Herself her heirs and successors, to the Barons of the said Cinque ports Townes and Members and their successors; that then their Reciants and Advocants should have and be allowed in the Exchequer out of every Fifteene graunted or to be graunted the some of £500 and noe more." 2 One of these ships of the ports, at the taking of Cadiz, was commanded by Thomas Lake of Hastings: see Suss. Arch. Coll., vol. xiv., p. 101. |