286 Charles, Lord Stourton, ^-c. 



officers and resist the lawes, denied that ever he made any resistance, offering 

 to put his haude to any things the Council wold devise or require him to do in 

 this behalf: and upon that a letter was devised from him to my Ladie his wief 

 and to his servants at Sturton, to suffre the Sheriff to do his duetie and they to 

 avoid the possession quietly, which letter he subscribed : also another letter from 

 the Council to the Sheriff declaring the Lord Stourtons conformation, and willing 

 him to proceede in the execution of the writt and in ease he founde resistance 

 of force then with force the Sheriff to remove it, according to the ordre of the 

 lawes, foreseing that there be no spoyle of the Lord Stourton's goodes, but 

 gently dispatched, &c. 



And another letter to the Bishop of Sarum and the other Justices advertising 

 them of the whole, and requiring them to assiste the Sheriff if need be. 



Lord Stourton was then bound over in 1000 marks " to appear 

 personally before the Council twice a week, viz., Tuesday and 

 Saturday till he have further liberty :" but on the 29th July he 

 was discharged. 



But M"'. Agnes Eyce was not to reign loug in Stourton House, 



for it appears that a lease of it and of the Manor had been granted 



by the owner to a Mr. Fauntleroy,^ who with his wife had been 



turned out, together with the Lady Anne, on M"'. Agnes coming 



to take possession of her goods and stock. The Sheriff had 



exceeded his commission : whereupon, dated the day before Lord 



Stourton was set free, followed 



(No. 23.) 28th July 15oC^ A letter to the Sherif of Wiltes that if he have 

 dispatched (i.e. deprived) Fauntleroy and his wife of their possession in the 

 fearme of the manor of Stourton which he had none authoritie to doe, that then 

 he should see them restored againe and leave them in as good case as he found 

 them : as appeareth by the minute. (Council Book.) 



It now became Mr. Sheriff Mervyn's duty to re-instate Mr. 

 Fauntleroy, but upon proceeding so to do, the Lady in command 

 of the garrison, M"'. Agnes, barred the gates, denied all entrance 

 and threatened death to the first intruder. Upon this occasion 

 William Hartgill appeared as her upholder, and used some 



1 The Fauntleroys were a Dorsetshire family of Fauntleroy's Marsh near 

 Stoke (Hutchins's Dorset ii., 353, Old Edition), but they had some property in 

 Wilts. Edward 5th Baron Stourton, grandfather of Charles, married Agnes 

 Fauntleroy : and in Stourton Church there is a monument to them, without 

 inscription. A plate of their effigies is in Hoare's Modern Wilts, "Mere" p. 

 45. In 1551 William Fauntleroy and Cecilia his wife presented to the Rectory 

 of Stourton for that turn. (Ditto 169.) These must have been the Lessees 

 mentioned in the text. 



