Dec. 10. 1853.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



571 



UVERIES WORN RY GENTLEMEN. 



(Vol. vi., p. 146. ; Vol. viii., p. 473.) 



The prevalence of the custom of the liveries of 

 noble and other pei'sons being worn by others 

 than the retainers of the family, in the reigns of 

 Henry VI. and Elizabeth, is exemplified by two 

 documents preserved amongst the MSS. of the 

 corporation of this borough. The first, which is 

 also curious as a specimen of the language of the 

 period, is an award under the seal of Margaret 

 of Anjou ; under whom, as they had previously 

 done under Katherine, queen of Henry V., the 

 corporation farmed the bailiwick of the town : 



" Margaret, by the grace of God, Quene of England 

 and of Ffraunce and Lady of Irland, Doughter of the 

 Kyng of Sicile and Jerlm. Be it knawen to all men 

 to whom this p'sent writyng (endented) shall come, 

 that whereas a certeyn Comission of my fuldoutfuU 

 Lord was directed to c'teyn psones to enquere as well 



of yevyng of lyu'e, as of other diu's articles 



before the Comissioners of the seyd Comission it was 

 p'sented by William Neuby and other of our tenntz of 



Leycestre that c'teyn psones, in Leyccstre, 



had taken clothyng of diu'rez p'sones, ayenst the forme 

 of the statut ; that ys to wete, that some of hem had 

 taken clothyng of the Viscount Beaumont, and some 

 of S' Edward Grey, Lord Fferrers of Growby, and 

 some of hem had taken clothyng of other diu'res jjsones, 

 by cause of which p'sentement diu'res psones, some of 

 the houshold of the seyd Lord Fferrers, and some of 

 the clothing of the said Lord, with other wele wllners 

 to the said Lord, as yet not to us knawen, by support- 

 aeon and favour, and for pleasance to the said Lord, as 



we ben enfo'med betyn and sore woundetyn 



the said William Neuby, and manesten to bete other 

 of our teniitz of Leycestre." She doth there- 

 fore " ordeyn, deme, and awarde " that the said Lord 

 Ferrers pay c. marks to William Neuby, that he " be 

 goode lorde to the said William Neuby ; and to all 

 other teniitz in our lordship of Leycestre ; and that 

 the said lord shall not geve any clothyng or liue'y to 

 any psone dwellyng within our said lordship," &c. . . . 

 " Yeven the xx day of May, the yere of the reign of my 

 most douted Lord Kyng Henr' the Sext, xxviL" 



The above extracts show one of the evils to 

 which the practice led ; another, mentioned in the 

 deed, was that of deerstealing. William Newby 

 was mayor of the town in 1425, 1433, and 1444-5. 



The second document is a curious letter from 

 the mayor and some members of the corporation 

 to George Earl of Huntington, lord-lieutenant of 

 the county, and a frequent resident in the town, 

 where a part of his mansion, called "Lord's 

 Place," and in which James I. was entertained, 

 still_ exists. ^ The draft of this letter forms part of 

 an interesting series of correspondence between 

 thecorporation and the earl, respecting the nomi- 

 nation of the parliamentary representatives of the 

 town in 1601. 



The earl recommended that Mr. (afterwards 

 Sir) William Herrick and Mr. Bromley should 

 be chosen, and in strong language warned them 

 against electing Mr. George Belgrave of Belgrave 

 (who had greatly offended him), as he hears " that 

 Belgrave still contineweth his great practising in 

 labouring to be chosen;" and he adds, "Goode 

 Mr. Mayor, be carefull of this, as you and the 

 rest will looke to make accompt of me." 



It appears that many members of the corpo- 

 ration were secretly favourable to Mr. Belgrave, 

 and he was elected, as explained in the following 

 letter : 



" Right Ho% oure humble dewties remeberd, &c., 

 may yt please yo"" good Lpp. to be c'tified, that upon 

 Tuesday morninge laste, being assembled for the choice 

 of o' Burgesses, Mr. George Belgrave p'sented him- 

 selfe amongest us, in a blewe coat w"" a bull head, af- 

 firminge and protestinge he was yo"" Lp's s'vt, and that 

 S' Henrie Harrington, verye late the night before, had 

 obteyned that favour of yo"' ho' in his behalfe ; and 

 muche bemoned his former undewtifull cariage towards 

 yo' Lp, w*'' a remorsive remembrance of many most 

 ho. favors receaved from yo' Lp and yo'' house, to- 

 wards his auncestors, him, and his; and, recommend- 

 inge his former suite to be one of oure Burgesses, being 

 demanded whether he had any letter from yo' Lp, an- 

 swered, that this (poyntinge at his coat and cogni- 

 zance) he hoped was a sufficient testimonie of y' Lp's 

 favour towards him, and of his submission towards yo' 

 ho' ; and further, that it was so late before S' Henrie 

 cold pcure yo' Lp's said favour, as that you cold not 

 well write, and, for the truth of the gmises, he offered 

 his corporal oathe. Whereupon we, thinkinge all this 

 to be true, made choyce of him, w"» Mr. Willm Her- 

 ricke, to be o' Burgesses. And now, tliis evening, wee 

 are credibly certified that y' Lp hath geven him no 

 suche entertaynem* ; and thus by his said lewde and 

 most dishonest dealinge, being much abused, we 

 thought it o' dewties forthew'i" to signifie the same 

 unto yo' Lp, humbly cravinge yo' Lp's most ho'able 

 favor for some reformacon of this vile practize. And 

 thus, w**" remembrance of oure dewties, wee humbly 

 take o' leaves. From Leic', this xx"" day of October, 

 1601. _ 



" Youre honor's most humble to comaunde, 

 Signed by " Willm Rowes, Maior, 

 Robert Heyricke," 

 And ten others. 



An angry and characteristic reply from the earl 

 follows, but with which, as it is printed in Thomp- 

 son's History of Leicester (p. 318.), I will not 

 trespass upon your valuable space. It may be 

 sufficient to say, that he tells the mayor that — 



" Notwithstanding this treacherous devise of that 

 cunninge pracfisore, I feare it will appeare, upon due 

 scanninge of this accydent, y' there remaynes a false 

 brother amongst you .... And as for y« p'sone hym- 

 self whoe hathe thus shameleslye sought to dishonoure 

 me and deceave you, I will, by the grace of God, take 

 suche order as in honor and lawfuUye I maye, bothe 



