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Melville, Henry, A.M., LL.B., The Ancestry of John Whitney: Who, with His Wife Elinor, and Sons John, Richard, Nathaniel, Thomas, and Jonathan, Emigrated from London, England, in the Year 1635, and Settled in Watertown, Massachusetts; the First of the Name in America, and the One from Whom a Great Majority of the Whitneys Now Living in the United States Are Descended (New York, NY: The De Vinne Press, 1896).
CHAPTER IV
THE WHITNEYS OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY
Grant of the Castle of Clifford and the lordships of Clifford and Glas-
bury to Robert Whitney on account of the services of his father.
Description of Clifford. Connection by marriage of the Whitney and
Oldcastle families. Sir Robert Whitney, Sheriff, 1413; Member of
Parliament, 1410; Captain of Fortress Vire, 1420; Member of Par-
liament, 1422; Sheriff, 1428, 1433, 1437; died, 1441. Thomas
Whitney of Agincourt, 1415; granted land in France, 1419; Sir
Eustace Whitney; marriages; adventure as Royal Commissioner
in Wales; Member of Parliament, 1468. Robert Whitney attainted
as a Yorkist, 1459; Sheriff, 1475; marriage to Alice Vaughan; her
ancestry; Epithalamium by Lewis Glyn Cothi; marriage to Con-
stance Touchett; her descent from William the Conqueror.
CONTEMPORARIES.
Persons. Events.
King Henry IV. . . . . . . . 1399-1413 Persecution of Lollards . 1400-1420
King Henry V. . . . . . . . . 1413-1422 Battle of Pilleth . . . . . . 1402
King Henry VI. . . . . . . . 1422-1461 Battle of Agincourt . . . . . 1415
King Edward IV. . . . . . . . 1461-1483 Beginning of War of Roses . . 1455
King Edward V. . . . . . . . . . 1483 Battle of Blore Heath . . . . 1459
King Richard III. . . . . . . 1483-1485 Battle of Mortimer's Cross . . 1461
King Henry VII. . . . . . . . 1485-1569 Battle of Bosworth Field . . . 1485
Joan of Arc . . . . . . . . . . d. 1481 Introduction of Printing . . . 1474
William Caxton . . . . . . . . d. 1491 Discovery of America . . . . . 1492
THE fifteenth century was, as a whole, perhaps the
darkest in English history since the Norman
Conquest. "War, pestilence and famine wrought their
hideous work, sapping the energies that should have
74
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 75 gone into progress and expansion The forward movement toward political, religious and industrial freedom proved premature and abortive. All the achievements of the fourteenth century wore rendered void. Degeneration and decay characterized every as- pect of the national life. Politics dwindled into mere strife of faction, worship passed into formalism, the literary impulse ebbed and social relations became demoralized even to brutality,"1 and yet with all these disadvantages the Whitney family, judging from the glimpses we gain of it from time to time, seems to have made substantial improvement in its circum- stances. After the battle of Pilleth the King was asked to ransom Sir Edmund Mortimer, but, disbelieving the tale that he had fought bravely with his unfortunate followers, even engaging in single combat the great Glendower himself, he absolutely refused, character- izing him as . . . the foolish Mortimer; Who, on my soul, hath wilfully betrayed The lives of those that he did lead to fight Against the great magician, damn'd Glendower; Whose daughter, as we hear, the earl of March Hath lately married. Shall our coffers, then Be emptied to redeem a traitor home? Shall we buy treason? and indent with fears, When they have lost and forfeited themselves? No, on the barren mountains let them starve; For I shall never hold that man my friend Whose tongue shall ask me for one penny cost To ransom home revolted Mortimer.2 1 Coman's "Growth of the English Nation," p. 147. 2 "King Henry IV.," part I, act i, scene iii.
76 The Ancestry of John Whitney Mortimer, joined by Glendower, the Percies, and Earl Douglas, then threw off all disguise and made open rebellion against the King. A Welsh army poured down into the Marches. Clifford, then the property of the Earl of March, appears to have been spared, but Hay, Whitney, and Huntington castles were captured and burned, and the whole surrounding country was ravaged and stripped of its flocks and herds. Henry marched westward to meet his enemies, and at Shrewsbury, in 1403, completely routed them. The young Earl of March was seized and cast into prison, and his estates taken into the King's control, who, mindful of the services of Sir Robert Whitney, doubt- less an old friend, thus provided for his son: Patent Roll 5 Henry IV., 1st Part, No. 372 (1404). TRANSLATION. THE KING to all to whom, etc., greeting. Know ye that since the father of ROBERT WHITENEY esquire and his uncle and a great part of his relatives have been killed in our service at the capture of Edmund Mortemer, and his property has been burnt and destroyed by our rebels of Wales, so that the same Robert has not any castle or fortress where he can tarry to resist and punish our aforesaid rebels, as we accept. We of our special grace have granted to the same Robert the Castle of Clifford and the lordships of Clif- ford and Glasbury together with all the lands, tenements, rents, services, fees, advowsons, royalties, liberties, fran- chises, jurisdictions, escheats, fines, redemptions and other commodities whatsoever, to the same Castle and lordships in any manner belonging, and also full punishment and execution of all rebels who are or shall be of or in the above said lordships, with all forfeitures and escheats of the said rebels, which same Castle and lordships before that they were
RUINS OF CLIFFORD CASTLE, 1800.
From an old print in Duncumb's History of Herefordshire.
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 77 burnt, devastated and destroyed by our aforesaid rebels stood of the value of one hundred marks per annum as is said. To have to the same Robert the Castle and lordships afore- said with all the above said profits, commodities and appurte- nances from the fifteenth day of October last past until the full age of Edmund, son and heir of the Earl of March last deceased, and so from heir to heir until any one of the heirs aforesaid may arrive at his full age, without rendering any- thing therefor to us or to our heirs at our Exchequer during the minority of the heirs aforesaid. So always that the said Robert has repaired the aforesaid Castle and tarries in the same in the defense and keeping safe of the Castle and lordships aforesaid, during the war in the lordships above- said, and in case that the Castle and lordships aforesaid exceed the value of the aforesaid hundred marks per annum, the same Robert shall answer to us yearly at our Exchequer of the surplusage of them, as is just. In (testimony) of which, etc., Witness the King at Westminster the fourteenth day of February. By the King himself. A photograph is given showing the appearance of the original record. Glasbury was up the Wye, westward a few miles beyond Hay. Clifford Castle was only two miles from Whitney. Clifford has fall'n--howe'er sublime-- Mere fragments wrestle still with time; Yet, as they perish sure and slow, And rolling dash the stream below, They raise tradition's glowing scene-- The clue of silk, the wrathful Queen, And link in mem'ry's firmest bond The lovelorn tale of Rosamond. The place has a great interest for any one investi- gating the history of the Whitneys, not only because
78 The Ancestry of John Whitney
it thus became temporarily the residence of a mem-
ber of the family, and later (about 1580) was added
permanently to the Whitney estate, with which it
still remains, but because, from the slight remnants
of the old stronghold which the ravages of time and
the destructive hand of manl have spared us, may,
perhaps, be gained some idea of what the contem-
porary Whitney Castle may have been.
If we compare the illustration facing page 76, taken
from Duncumb, of its appearance at the beginning of
the present century, with the photographs of the pres-
ent day, facing pages 82, 84, it will be seen that there
is standing now scarcely a fourth as much as then.
The following regarding its history and that of
Joan de Clifford, "Fair Rosamond," as whose birth-
place it is principally known, is extracted from a
paper by the Rev. Walwyn Trumper, rector of Clif-
ford, contained in the printed proceedings of the
Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club for 1886-89.
Speaking of this region in the time of Edward the
Confessor, he says it was "one of the most valuable
and dangerously situated of all the English acquisi-
tions on the Welsh border; and that the building of
fortified places was much encouraged in this part of
the country is certified by the fact that of the small
number of castles recorded in 'Domesday' no less
than ten are named as standing in the Marches of
Monmouth and Hereford, amongst them Clifford.
The castle is reported to have been built, but more
likely repaired, by William Fitz-Osborne, Earl of
Hereford, a kinsman of William the Conqueror.
"William Fitz-Osborne was slain in Flanders in 1070,
l As in case of scores of other historic castles in England, stone has
evidently been quarried from it to construct farm buildings.
FACSIMILE OF PATENT ROLL, 5 HENRY IV. (1404), FIRST PART No. SHOWING GRANT OF CLIFFORD AND GLASBURY TO ROBERT WHITENEY.
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 79 and was succeeded by his son Roger, surnamed de Bretevil, who, having conspired against his King, was deprived of his estates. At the time of the Domes- day Survey, Ralf de Todeni, said to have married one of Roger's daughters, was in possession of the castle. Then it went with Margaret, Ralf's daughter, to Richard Fitz-Poutz in marriage. Simon Fitz- Walter, son of Richard Fitz-Poutz, founded the priory of Cluniac monks at Clifford, and he and his brother Richard are said by Dugdale to have adopted the surname of Clifford. Walter de Clifford, ancestor of the noble house of Clifford, son of Richard, a power- ful Marcher Baron, was, as far as can be made out, the father of Fair Rosamond. Walter, his son, was a man of still more power and influence; he married Margaret, daughter of Llewelyn, Prince of Wales, and was father of another Walter, who died in 1263, clos- ing the male line. Maud, his heiress, married first her cousin, William de Longue-épée (Longsword), great-grandson of Fair Rosamond, who was killed in a tournament at Blythe; secondly, John Giffard of Brimsfield, who forcibly carried her off, and obtained the King's permission to marry her. Giffard was a man of considerable parts. His possessions were large, he being at his death (27th Ed. I.) seized of Brunles (Brontlas) Castle, the Manor of Glasbury, and the Manor and Castle of Clifford. He opposed Simon de Montfort, and assisted Prince Edward to escape from Hereford. He also, with the help of Edmund Mortimer and Sir Ely Walwyn, defeated and killed Llewelyn, Prince of Wales, near Builth. "Maud's daughter Margery (by Longue-épée) mar- ried the Earl of Lincoln, Henry de Lacy, and in the in- quisition held upon de Lacy and his wife (4th Ed. II.)
80 The Ancestry of John Whitney the Manor and Castle of Clifford are included. After- wards the Castle was granted by the Crown to the Mortimers, and gave shelter to Richard II. and his uncle John of Gaunt. From this time it seems to have ceased to be a place of importance and most likely was of little use, as since the death of Llewelyn the Welsh gradually became peaceful. "Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, was Con- stable of the Castle in Edward IV.'s reign, and Edward Croft in the reign of Henry VII., but for what length of time it was inhabited it is impossible to say. The Manor of Clifford and its Castle were granted to Lord Clinton in 1547, for his services against the Scots, but remained in his family a very short time. They now are attached to the Whitney estate. "Roughly, the site of the Castle maybe divided into three parts--the inner ward, the outworks, and the outer ward. The inner ward is about 100 feet square, and here alone are there any walls standing; origi- nally no doubt there were several towers, but only one is now to be seen. There are two or three garde- robes still plainly visible. At the north front are two circular depressions marking the situation of the towers of the gatehouse, and between these is the entrance. This entrance leads from the outer ward, and is raised upon a causeway of earth, crossing the ditch which divided the outer from the inner ward, and which ran from the ravine on the east to the river, where a curtain protected it. The curtain now in sight is about six or seven feet high, but of course was originally much higher. The outwork lies south of the inner ward or central position, and separated. from it by a deep ditch. This is of a triangular form some thirty yards on a side; it shows no trace of
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 81 masonry whatever, and was most likely a timber structure. The outer ward is situated to the north of the inner ward and is of rather large extent. It was defended on the west by the river bank, and perhaps a low curtain; on the south by the ditch, across which passed the causeway to the inner ward, and on the east and north partly by a scarp, and partly by a curtain; also to a certain extent by the ravine. "In the centre is a mound of earth full of stones surrounded by a clump of trees, indicating possibly the position of a tower or enclosure of masonry. This outer ward was intended as a place of shelter and refuge for the villagers and cattle during the at- tacks of the Welshmen. The outer ward was ap- proached, as far as can be judged, from the north, and on either side, at some little distance from the gate, there seem to have been two towers, one at the river and one at the ravine corner, guarding the en- trance. The earthworks of the castle are probably very old, but the masonry of the present ruin is not supposed to be of earlier date than the time of Henry II. or III. The castle chapel, the chancel of which was standing in 1657, was situated at the east side of the outer ward. The castle park or hunting ground included, doubtless, the tract of land now called 'the Parks,' and extended down the Wye (which then ran with a much straighter course) towards Merbach Hill as far as Castleton Nab or Nap, and here formerly there must have been some building or small forti- fled enclosure. A little further down, at Lower Cas- tleton, is the site of either an old castle or fortress, which, when erected, must have been close to the stream and protected by it on the north side."
82 The Ancestry of John Whitney
"Fair Rosamond,
Joan de Clifford, sometimes called Ann,
Jane Clifford was her name, as books aver,
Fair Rosamund was but her nom de guerre,
was youngest daughter of Walter de Clifford, and
had a sister Lucia, married first to Hugh de Say of
Richard's Castle, and afterwards to one of the Morti-
mer family. Rosamond--Rosa mundi--was a term of
endearment given to Joan on account of her exceed-
ing beauty, and signifies 'Rose of the World.' It is also
interpreted as 'Rosa munda,' the fair Rose. She is
said to have been fair, with blue eyes and golden hair,
and of a complexion only to be found amongst English
women.
Her crisped locks like threads of gold
Appeared to each man's sight;
Her sparkling eyes, like orient pearls,
Did cast a heavenly light.
The blood within her crystal cheeks
Did such a colour drive,
As though the lillye and the rose
For mastership did strive.
"It is recorded that 'Henry II., being enamoured
upon Rosamond Clifford, a demoselle so fair, so
comely, so well favoured without comparison, that her
beauty did put all other women out of the Prince's
minde, insomuch as now she was termed 'Rosa
mundi,' that is 'Rose of the World,' and for to hide
her out of the sight of his jealous Juno, the Queen,
he built a labyrinth in his house, Woodstock, with
many inexplicable windings backward and forward,
which notwithstanding is nowhere to be seen at this
day.' . . . 'What the Queen (Eleanor) did to Rosa-
mond when she came to her is uncertain; but this is
RUINS OF CLIFFORD CASTLE, 1895, LAND SIDE.
"The ruined arch and fall'n parapet
With weeds o'errun, these only mark the place
Which echoed once with princely revelry;
Clifford long since hath lost its ancient race."
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 83
certain, that Rosamond lived but a short time after,
and lies buried in the Nunnery of Godstow, near to
Oxford.' Upon the tomb were inscribed these lines:
Hic jacet in tomba Rosa mundi, non Rosa munda;
Non redolet, sed olet, quae redolere solet.
"Henry II. had two sons by Rosamond Clifford:
1st, William Longue-épée, who married the daughter
and heiress of the Earl of Salisbury, and succeeded
to the title and estates of that powerful nobleman;
2d, Geoffrey, who was consecrated Bishop of Lincoln.
. . . With no better words can we take leave of her
than the following: .
Let him who travels past this spot,
Plead and adore the Cross alway,
And that his sins may be forgot,
For Fair Rosamund must he pray."
Just how long Whitney was allowed to retain the
guardianship of these lordships is uncertain; doubt-
less, however, it was through the entire reign of
Henry IV., for during this period the Earl of March
was kept in close confinement. The information we
have concerning his life is more definite and com-
plete than that relating to any of his predecessors, and
shows that his career was honorable and even brilliant.
Heretofore we have been unable to state anything
regarding the ladies who graced the castle on the
Wye, but are fortunate now in learning that young
Robert married Jane, daughter of Thomas Oldcastle,1
and niece of the famous Sir John Oldcastle, Lord of
Cobham. Eustace, their eldest son, was born in 1410.
About 1377 John Wyckliffe had begun to preach
1 "Visitation of Herefordshire," Weaver's ed., p. 35.
84 The Ancestry of John Whitney his powerful sermons against the abuses of the Church of Rome, and, more than a century before Luther, had started the first "Reformation." About 1380 he completed a translation of the Bible, which was secretly copied and circulated by the "poor priests," gaining him many followers, who were called by their enemies "Lollards," and most bitterly perse- cuted. The precious manuscripts continued to be read with locked doors at night, or men met in the forests to hear them expounded by preachers, who went about at the peril of their lives, so that the com- plaint was made by Wyckliffe's enemies that "com- mon men and women, who could read, were better acquainted with the Scriptures than the most learned and intelligent of the clergy." Numbered among them was the Oldcastle family, one of the best in the West of England, and, accord- ing to tradition, the late Sir Robert looked upon the new sect with favor. This much is certain: "Lol- lardism," if we may so call it, was preached in the church at Whitney, by its great missionary, William Swynderby, on August 1, 1390. Sir John Oldcastle, who, after Wyckliffe's death, became their leader, was burned at the stake by slow fire, at St. Giles's Fields, London, on Christmas day, 1417. Wyckliffe's body was exhumed and likewise burned, and his ashes thrown into the river Avon, but The Avon to the Severn runs, The Severn to the sea; And Wyckliffe's dust shall spread abroad Wide as the waters be. "Robert Whitney, Esquire," soon became "Sir Robert Whitney, Knight," and in the first year of Henry V. (1413) was sheriff of Herefordshire.
RUINS OF CLIFFORD CASTLE, 1895, AS SEEN FROM THE RIVER WYE.
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 85 Three years later, according to Duncumb, 3 Henry V. (1416), he represented Herefordshire in Parlia- ment. As lord of the Manor, he acted as patron of Whitney in 1417, 1428, 1429, and 1435, and of Pen- combe in 1419 and 1422. The ecclesiastical records describe him as "Nobilis vir Robertus Whyteney Eques." In 1428, 1433, and 1437 he was sheriff again, mak- ing four terms, and on the 9th of November, 1422, he took his seat for the second time as a member of parliament.1 Meanwhile he had found time to follow his king in those triumphs of English arms in France. Henry IV. died in 1413, leaving the throne to "Prince Hal" or "Harry of Monmouth," as he was called from his birthplace, not far from Whitney, on the banks of the Wye. He had been a gay and mis- chievous youth, whom Shakespeare depicts as Fal- staff's boon companion, but, sobered by the responsi- bilities of kingship, he "was changed into another man," and "able, upright, and generous, a brilliant warrior and a wise ruler, he was the best product of his age." Reviving again the claim of Edward III. to the French throne, he invaded France with a small army largely made up of his old friends and followers from Herefordshire and the Marches. At Agincourt, in 1415, he encountered an army of over fifty thousand horsemen, the best of the chiv- alry of France, magnificently arrayed. To oppose these he had less than seven thousand troops, of whom only about one thousand were horsemen, but 1 "Return of Members of Parliament," printed for House of Corn- mons, 1878.
86 The Ancestry of John Whitney
what they lacked in numbers, inspired by their leader,
they made up in pluck. Henry is represented as
saying to one of his nobles, who regretted that they
were so few,
. . . No, my fair cousin;
If we are marked to die, we are enough
To do our country loss; and if we live,
The fewer men, the greater share of honor.
The story of the battle--perhaps the greatest vic-
tory ever won by English arms--is too familiar to
need repetition. The matter is alluded to because it
is more than probable that Sir Robert Whitney was
present, and certain that several others, whose names
appear in the following pages, gained great distinction.
The names of but a small portion of the English
army have been preserved, but among those of the
hundred "lances" in the retinue of the Duke of
Gloucester appears "Thomas Whitney."
He was probably the brother of Sir Robert, and
was in the thickest of the fight. Gloucester and his
retinue were about the King, and against them natu-
rally the principal attack of the French was made.
Mindful of Thomas's valor, the King afterwards
granted him lands, the record of which is as follows:
Norman Roll, 7 Henry V., Part I. (Roll No. 644),
date 8 May, 1419, m. 62, No. 230.
TRANSLATION.
FOR THOMAS WHITENEY.
THE KING to all to whom, etc., greeting. Know ye that of
our special grace and for the good service which our beloved
THOMAS WHITENEY Esquire has performed to us and
may perform in future, we have given and granted to the
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 87
same Thomas, the lordships with all the lands, tenements,
rent, hereditaments, services and possessions with all their
appurtenances which were of John Pomrient rebel of us,
within the county of Averances. To have and to hold the
lordships aforesaid with the lands, tenements, rents, heredi-
taments, services and possessions abovesaid to the aforesaid
Thomas and his heirs male of his body issuing to the value
of five hundred francs by the year if they do not exceed
that value, by homage to be done to us and to our heirs,
and to render one Crossbow at our Castle of Chirburgh at
the Feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist every year,
and to do all other charges and services thereon due and
accustomed forever. Reserving, etc. Provided always that
the same Thomas and his heirs aforesaid be held to find
one man at arms and three archers to ride with us or our
heirs or our lieutenant during the present war at their own
proper costs, and the war being ended, of such kind of ser-
vices for the land aforesaid due and accustomed forever.
And also that the same Thomas and his heirs aforesaid or
their deputies there in their absence when there is need
shall go to our castle or town of Chirburgh with their
people and household well and fittingly arrayed and fur-
nished for war at their own proper costs, and upon this on
the behalf of us or of our said heirs they shall be reasonably
forewarned, and that the lordships, lands, tenements, rents,
hereditaments and possessions aforesaid or any parcel of the
same are not of the demesne of our duchy aforesaid or by
us before this time given and granted to any other person.
In witness whereof, etc., Witness the King at his castle of
Vernon upon Tayne the 8th day of May.
By the King himself.
By 1420 the conquest of France was completed,
and from Paris, just before his lamentable death, the
King gave out this commission to his faithful fol-
lower, Sir Robert:
88 The Ancestry of John Whitney
Norman Roll, 8 Henry V., Part II. (Roll No. 647),
date 6 December, 1420.
TRANSLATION.
Concerning the appointment of the Captain for Vire. THE
KING to all to whom, etc., greeting. Know ye that we being
fully confident of the trustworthiness and shrewdness of
our beloved and faithful ROBERT WHITNEY, have con-
stituted and appointed him, the same Robert, Captain of
our Castle and town of Vire. To have and occupy the office
aforesaid as long as he shall please us. Taking in the same
office the wages, fees and profits anciently due and accus-
tomed to that office. In witness whereof, etc. Witness the
King at Paris on the 6th day of December.
In running down the Whitney line we have found
that the head of the family in each generation was
knighted, but it has not been clear just how many of
his neighbors there were who gained the same dignity,
nor, consequently, how much social prominence its
bestowal conferred. Thomas Fuller, in his "Worthies
of England," before referred to, at page 46, states
that in 12 Henry VI. (1433), when commissioners
were appointed by the King to make up a list of the
"Gentry," there were in Herefordshire the estates of
but five knights:
Dom, Grey de Whitton, Chiv.
Walteri Lacy, Chivaler
Rudalphi de la Bere, Chival.
Roberti Whiteney, Chivaler
Johannis Baskerville, Chival.1
1 Duncumb gives the list a little differently, having Sir Roland Lein-
thall in place of De Whitton.
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 89 Sir Robert died in 1441, and we obtain the exact date from a record known as an "Inquisition post mortem." The following is a translation of the King's Writ, which forms the first portion of it: Inquisition Post Mortem, 21 Henry VI., No. 62 (1441). TRANSLATION. HENRY, by the grace of God King of England and France and Lord of Ireland, to his Escheator in the County of Hereford and the Marches of Wales adjoining to the same county, greeting. Because SIR ROBERT WHYTENEY, KNIGHT, held of us in chief on the last day he lived (when he closed his last day) as we accept, we command you that you take into our hand all the lands and tenements of which the same Robert was seized in his demesne as of fee in your bailiwick on the day he died without delay, and that you safely keep them until we order you otherwise. And by the oaths of upright and legal men of the same, your bailiwick, by whom the truth or the matter may be better known, that you diligently enquire how much of lands and tenements the aforesaid Robert held of us in chief as well in demesne as in service in the said your bailiwick on the day he died, and how much of others and by what service and how much those lands and tenements may be worth yearly in all things, and on what day the same Robert died, and who may be his nearest heir, and of what age. And the inquisition thereof distinctly and openly made, you send without delay to us in our chancery, under your seal and the seals of those by whom it was made, and this writ. Witness we ourselves at Westminster, on the fourth day of April, in the twenty-first year of our reign. (Endorsed) The execution of this writ appears in a certain Inquisition to this writ sewn. THOMAS FITZ HARRY, Escheator.
90 The Ancestry of John Whitney
The return annexed to the writ concludes, as
follows:
TRANSLATION.
And they (the jurors) say that the aforesaid Robert died
on the 12th day of the month of March last past, and that
EUSTACE WHITNEY is his son and nearest heir, and is
aged thirty years and more. In testimony of which thing,
the aforesaid Escheator as well as the aforesaid jurors
have placed their seals.
Eustace, afterwards Sir Eustace, was the head of
the family from 1441 till about 1470. According to
the Golden Grove pedigree, he married first Jenett,
daughter of Sir Thomas Russell, Knight, by daughter
of Sir John Ludlow, Knight, and second, Jane, daugh-
ter of Sir Robert Clifford, Knight. Robert, his eldest
son and heir, was by Jenett. As before remarked,
this pedigree is oftener wrong than right, but in this
particular it has an apparent confirmation by other
authorities.1
Through all the latter part of his life, England was
devastated by the civil contest known as "the Wars of
the Roses," the worst in all its history. During the
thirty years they continued, fourteen pitched battles
were fought, in a single one of which more English-
men were killed than in all the wars in France for
forty years. Eighty princes of the blood royal and
more than half the nobility of the realm perished.
Many old houses were extinguished, the men of the
family having all fallen in battle; many more were im-
poverished. "The land was laid waste by rival armies
in pursuit of plunder and revenge. Crops were de-
stroyed and cattle driven off; the very huts of the
1 "Genealogies of Morgan and Glamorgan," by George T. Clark.
BOSSES CARVED IN OAK AND EMBLAZONED.
Tower Ceiling, Clifford Church.
Walwyn Clifford Whitney Pennoyre
ancient of of of
Clifford. Clifford Castle. Whitney and Clifford. Moor, Clifford.
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 91 peasants were torn down and their owners left to naked beggary. Villages and towns were sacked and burned to the ground, and the countryside reduced to smoking ruins. More men died of want than were slain in battle. Famine and pestilence, the attendants of war, added their horror to the general distress. The fields lay untilled in many parts of the country. Pestilence followed close upon famine. The chroni- clers record some twenty outbreaks of 'the Death,' with hardly a space of five years free. Not only was the growth of population checked, but the number of souls actually fell below what it was in the thirteenth century. Suffering and the failure of accustomed restraints demoralized the nation. Loyalty, honor, all sense of obligation, weakened in this age of social disintegration. Treachery, breach of vows, barba- rous cruelty, characterized the party leaders. Their followers, not slow to imitate their example, robbed and murdered in their turn."1 Naturally in such confusion there could be but few authentic records, but there has come down a story about Sir Eustace which is interesting, to say the least. Told entirely from a Welsh standpoint, it probably differs very materially from his own report of the circumstance to the King. A shorter version can be found in "The Beauties of England and Wales," by Thomas Rees, F. S. A., page 120. The following is from the "Cambrian Register" for the year 1795, page 55, preserving the original spelling:2 1 Coman's "Growth of the English Nation," p. 160. 2 The "Register" publishes the following foot-note: "The original manuscript, of which this is a copy, was written in the early part of the reign of James the First; and, as it appears from some passages in it, by a person who claimed some relationship to the noble personage whose life it professes to give. There is every reason
92 The Ancestry of John Whitney
In those dayes, I say, tumultuarie, tempestuouse dayes,
about the two and thirtieth of Henrie the Sixt [1455]
when the flame burst out violentlie between the two royal
houses, and the surges of civill dissention went high within
our land; there was of Wales, among the manie that fished
in thos troublous seas, one Griffith ap Nicholas, a man for
power, riches, and parentage, beyonde all time greate men
in thos parts. This Griffith by marriage, was linked to
three greate houses, having a plentifull issue by all three;
valiant and couragiouse sonnes, to second him in all dangers;
daughters bestowed upon the men of greatest reckning and
account in all South Wales, and his eldest sonne being
matched to the chief house in North Wales, drew in like-
wise to himself a mightie alliance thence, soe that for power
and commaund, together with the fastness of his kindred
and friendes, in thos countries he had fewe equalls, noe su-
periours. He was a man alsoe full of welth, and had an
estate at lest of seven hundred pownd a year, old rent of
assize, and seaven strong castles, and seaven houses.
His chiefe spleene was towardes the English, in generall,
to whom he ever boare an implacable hate, and they noe
lesse to him, which howe lightlie he valued, may appeare by
these verses ensuing:
Ni chryn hwn ni chryna y had
Ni thorir wneythuriad,
Ni fflyg i'r sais briwdrais bren,
Ni ddiwraidd mwy na'r dderwen.
Nowe, this violent bent of Griffith ap Nicholas's inclina-
tion being discovered, there wanted not instrumentes among
the Welch, to spurr him on in the way of revenge, perswad-
therefore to suppose that tie documents made use of in the compila-
tion of this history were the most perfect and authentic then extant;
on which account it is hoped that it will be considered as no small ac-
quisition to the Biography of Wales. To say that the style is quaint
and pedantic is a censure that will generally apply to the age it was
written in, and readers any apology unnecessary."
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 93 ing him the times were nowe fitt and seasonable for such a purpose. Whereupon divers of them building upon his countenance and protection, made somewhat bold with those of the marches (a usuall thing betweene the Scotts and Eng- lish in the borders upon the like disturbances), robbing and stealing from them their cattle, and what else they could lay handes on, to the greate detriment, losse, and endamage- ment of those neighbouring counties, which Griffith ap Nich- olas, from time to time, passed over and tooke noe notice off. Manie complaintes weare made, but noe redresse. At length commissioners, the chiefest whereof, as I am told, was the Lord Whittney, were sent into Wales to examine thes abuses. Coming to Lanandiffry, a towne twentie mile dis- tant from Carmarthen, Griffith ap Nicholas, for soe goes the tale, which I the rather sett downe, because I have heard the same sweetned in the relation by that greate light and ornament of our church, Andrews, Bishop of Winches- ter, at his owne table; a man much given to the studie of the British tongue in his later dayes, and soe, perchance, by way of discourse with some of that Countrie, might catch up this tradition, Griffith ap Nicholas, I say, having notice thereof, mett them a mile or two beyond, upon the top of a hill, having foure or five in his companie raggedlie attired, and poorelier hors'd, leaving the rest of his trayne at distance to followe him, and to be ever readie at his beck and call upon occasion. In the meane time while he salutes the Commissioners, makes himself knowne unto them, and withall desires to attend them for their better guidance and conduction to the end of their journey. The Lord Whitt- ney hearing his name, and glad, as he thought, to have him in his toyle, whom he thought would play lest in sight, yet observing the poorness of his condition, and howe beg- garlie he was attended, it would not sinke into the Lord Whittney's head, that this was that greate Nicholas, soe much fam'd at court for the extraordinarie power and authoritie he had in his owne countrie, but rather some ex- cursor or boote hailer, in those unquiett times, flying abroad
94 The Ancestry of John Whitney for pray; or at the best but some scoutes, or espialls, sent out to discover his approach, and soe to give notice to male- factors to stand aloofe. Well, on they goe till they came to Abermarlais Castle, and there all those doubtes and feares were dispelled, and the trewe Griffith ap Nicholas discov- ered; for Thomas ap Griffith the younger, a stout and hardie gentleman, meeting his Father in that place, with a hundred tall men bravelie mounted, descended there from his horse, and kissed his father's stirrop, and desir'd to re- ceive his commandes, which the Lord Whittney perceaving, nowe doubtes and jealousies began to tumble in his braines; for, thought he, if Griffith ap Nicholas appeares thus in a hostile manner unto us, with multitudes of men prepar'd and fitted as for the field itt is not likelie he will obey our commission, or stand at all to the triall of justice, unlesse he be innocent. They have nott gon above five miles further in their way, to a house of his call'd Newton, but Owen ap Griffith the second sonne saluted them in a fair braver equipage, having two hundred horse attending, well mann'd, well arm'd. This Owen had much of his father's craft and subtiltie in him; he was bold besides, and active; he could, like the Cameleon, or Proteus-like, take all shapes, turne himself into all colours; an excellent artizan in dis- covering men's secretts, and observing their dispositions; the commissioners had not rested themselves above an hour or two, but he had div'd so farr into their counsells as to give him assurance his father was the cheefe man shott at in that commission, a thing they were ignorant off be- fore. Whereupon consultation was taken for to steale away his commission, which this Owen undertooke, and performed accordinglie. To Carmarthen at last they came, where in their way at Abergwilly, a small village, some mile this side the towne, Thomas ap Griffith the elder, a man of a sweete, mild, and gentle disposition, presentes his services first to his father, and then to the commissioners; he had five hundred tall men following him, and they well disciplin'd, whom be- fore in good order on foote he leades, even till they came to
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 95 the commissioners' lodging, and there Griffith ap Nicholas left them for that night, commaunding his three sonnes to attend them at supper, and to see them fairlie entreated. And nowe the Lord Whittney, and the rest, could have wished themselves safe at home, and their commission at an end, which they had little hope to execute among soe manie violentlie bent (as they thought) for his defence and safe- guard; yet fearing lest he should give them the slipp, they send for the major and sheriffes, to whom they showe their commission, requiring them, by vertue thereof, to be their assistant in the attaching of Griffith ap Nicholas, which they promised to obey, appointing the next morning for the fittest season. Nowe you must knowe after the Lord Whittney had read his commission to the Maior, he clap'd the same up in the sleeve of his cloake, which one of the sheriffes discover'd to Owen ap Griffith; Owen by this time had his desires, to be brief, to supper they goe, where the commissioners were soe well liquor'd, that for that night they forgott quite the errand they came for, by which meanes Owen ap Griffith had a fttt opportunitie cleanlie to ridd them of their commission, of which he gave his father present notice. The next morning the commissioners, the maior and sheriffes goe to the Shire Hall, wheather they sent for Griffith ap Nicholas, whom at his comming they arrested in the King's name, framing certain accusations against him, to which hee was presentlie to answeare. Griffith ap Nicholas, after he had made his obeysance, humbly desir'd his lordship to proceede against him in a faire and a legall way, and that his commission mought be publicklie read, otherwise he held himself nott bound to stand to the arrest, or to make anie answere to the charge. Reason good, said the Lord Whittney, and you shall both see it and heare it read, and soe putting his hand in the sleave of his cloak for the commission, he found that there t'was nott to be found, neyther did anie of his fellowes or followers knowe what was become of it, or whom they might charge. At length they had noe excuse to make but
96 The Ancestry of John Whitney to clap the miscarriage upon the neglect of servantes. Whereat Griffith ap Nicholas startes up in a furie, clapping his hatt upon his head, and looking about upon his sonnes and friendes: what says he, have we cozeners and cheaters. come hither to abuse the King's Majesty's power, and to disquiet his true harted subjects? then turning about to the commissioners, he rappes out a great oath, and sayes, ere the next day were at an end, he would hang them up all for traytours and imposters, and soe commanudes handes to be layed on them and to carrie them to prison. The com- missioners fearing he would be as good as his word, fell to entreate for pardon, and to desire they might eyther re- turne or send to court for a true certificate of this their employment: but nothing would serve the turne, unless the Lord Whittney would be bound by oath, to putt on Griffith ap Nicholas's blew coate, and weare his cognizance, and soe goe up to the King, to acknowledge his owne offences, and to justifie the sayd Griffith's proceedings; which (to preserve himself from danger) he willinglie un- dertooke, and accordingly performed. What was the issue of this greate affront, or howe digested by the state, I could never learne, onlie 'tis to be imagined that it was hushed up and smothered, as fearing, in thos wavering and tottring times, to precede in a rough and harsh way with one so potent among the Welch, as this man was. The York faction, symbolized by the white rose, triumphed in 1461, and seated on the throne, as Ed- ward IV., the young Earl of March, a descendant of Lionel, Duke of Clarence (see pedigree on page 67). In the seventh year of his reign (1468) Sir Eustace "went to assist the King in the Parliament at West- minster." The original election certificate is still preserved in the Record Office at London, and is quite a curiosity, the following being a translation:
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 97
PARLIAMENTARY WRITS.
7TH EDWARD IV. (1468) CO. HEREFORD.
This indenture made 29 May 7th Edward IV. between
Thomas Cornewall, Sheriff of the County of Hereford, of
the One Part, and Eustace Whiteney & Thomas Mon-
yngton, Knights for the Shire, aforesaid, James Bas-
kyrvile, Knight, John Devereux, Symon Milborne, Esq.,
Richard Croft, Thomas Monyngton, Thomas Bromewyche,
Sr., Thomas Bromwyche, Jr., John Bromewyche, Philip
Scudamore, William Scudamore, John Wallewayn of Longe-
ford, John Wallewayne of Alkerugge, John Harper, Sr.,
Thomas Wallewayn, Fulk Wallewayn, Roger Bloue, Robert
Whiteney, Roger Barowe, William Bourghill, William Sent-
beger, Thomas Dansey, Robert Wynnesley, John Dom-
byllon, Thomas Fitz Harry, Jr., and Rowland Leynthale,
Esquires, of the other part.
Witnesseth that the aforesaid Sheriff on the 9th day of
May, in the year above written, in the Castle of Hereford,
elected the said Eustace Whiteney and Thomas Monyngton,
Knights for the said County, to go to assist the King in
the Parliament at Westminster to be holden the 3d of
June next following, to have full and sufficient power
for themselves and the county aforesaid to make and ad-
vise in those matters which then in the same council of our
said Lord the King, by favor of our said Lord, shall be or-
dained and negotiated by virtue of a writ to this Indenture
affixed. In witness of which thing the aforesaid parties to
this indenture have affixed their seals at the day and place
abovesaid.
It will be noticed that a "Robert Whiteney, Es-
quire," was one of. the witnesses. He was Sir Eu-
stace's eldest son and heir, and by 1476 had suc-
ceeded him, and was Sheriff of Herefordshire.1
What is known of him indicates that he was about
1 Duncumb, vol.1., p. 139.
98 The Ancestry of John Whitney
the most enterprising Whitney we have yet discov-
ered. Long before his father's death his reputation
had become national. On the face of the record it
appears to have been that of a villain of the deepest
dye, but a little reading between the lines is neces-
sary, if we wish to discover his true character.
He appears upon the scene in 1459, when the war
had been raging about five years, the occasion being
a Petition of Parliament to the King, beginning in
these words (the record being in English):
ROTULI PARLIAMENTORUM
38TH HENRY VI. [1459] VOL. V, PAGE 367, NO. 36.
To the Kyng oure Soverayne Lord; Prayen the Commens
in this present Parlement assembled, that it please youre
Highnes to calle to youre moost gratious remembraunce,
the grete and lamentable compleynts of youre true pore Sub-
getts, universally thorough oute every partie of this youre
Realme, of Robberyes, Ravishments, Extortions, Oppres-
sions, Riottes, unlawfull Assemblies, wrongfull Enprisone-
ments doon unto theym, unto such tyme as youre said true
Subgetts have made aswell their enlargeyng, as for the
suertee of their lyves, fyne and raunsome at the will of such
mysdoers. And for as moche as the seid misdoers been so
favoured and assisted with persones of grete myght, hav-
yng towardes theym of their levery, expreessly ayenst youre
lawes, such multitude of Robbers, Rioters, and myschevous
persones, which in riotous and forcible maner distorbe and
lette aswell youre Justices of Assises as of Peas in every
partie of this youre Realme, that noon execution of youre
lawe may be had, so as youre said true Subgetts, though
dyvers of theym been persones of grete worship dare not
for fere and doute of their lyves, nether compleyne to youre
Highnes, ne sewe for remedie after the course of youre lawes,
but rather to suffre such wrongs withoute remedie; which
is not oonly to the displeasir of God, but also in derogation
Whitneys of the Fifteenth Century 99 of youre high auctorite and preemynence, and expressly ayenst youre lawes, to the universall gruge or all youre true Liege people within youre Realme, and lykely to growe to grete inconvenience, and myschef irreparable, onlesse than remedye therfor the souner be provided. Wherfore we youre said Commens, understonde and knowe that such persones whos names been specified in a Cedule to this Bille annexed, to the nombre of XXV; ben notariely and universally thorough oute all this your Realme famed and noysed, knowen and reputed severally, for open Robbers, Ravishers, Extortioners and Oppressours of youre Liege people, daily usyng and commyttyng the said abhomynable offences, to the grete gruge and utter undoyng of youre said true Subgetts, onlesse than dewe exe- cution and punysshon may be had upon the seid mysdoers of the said Offences. That it please youre said Highnes, to ordeyne and estab- lish, by th' avys and assent of the Lordes Spirituelx and Temporelx in youre present Parlement assembled, and by auctorite of the same, that Writts of Proclamation be made oute of youre Chauncerie, direct to your Shirrefs of London, Chargyng them by the same, that they ymmediately after the receipt of youre said Writts, do make open Proclama- tion III days next after the resceyvyng of the same, within youre said Citee, that the seid mysdoers and everiche of them, appere in their owen persones before youre Chaun- celler of Englond for the tyme beyng, within a moneth next after the said Proclamation; at which tyme if they ap- pere not, and have Londes and Tenementes to the yerely value of XX £., that then they forfait to youre Highnes the profittz of all their said Londes and Tenementes that they have, or that any oyer persone or persones stonden seased or possessed of to their use, unto the tyme that they appere. And in case the seid persones have no Londes nor Tene- mentes to the said value, and appere not, that then they stond atteint of disobeysaunce doon ayenst youre Highnes, and have enprisounment terme of their lyves." etc., etc.
Copyright © 2004, 2006, Robert L. Ward and the Whitney Research Group
