PORTSDOWN HUNDRED 



PORTSMOUTH 



together in defence of the port, put the rest to flight, 

 and finally burnt the town. 3 " Some years later an 

 affray in the Isle of Wight, though it did not closely 

 affect the town, must have caused no little excitement 

 there. In 1293 some English sailors set upon certain 

 men of Bayonne and slew them, mistaking them for 

 Spaniards. It was in Portsmouth Church that they 

 swore to their mistake, and bound themselves to pro- 

 vide three chaplains at Portsmouth and three at 

 Bayonne to pray for the souls of the slain. 3 " The 

 defenceless state of the town is well shown by its 

 fate during the Hundred Years' War. Early in 1338 

 some ships and galleys which were reported to have 

 come from Normandy landed on the south coast and 

 plundered and burnt the towns and villages near 

 Southampton and Portsmouth, all the latter town 

 save only the parish church and the Domus Dei being 

 destroyed by fire.* !S The king, having compassion on 

 the misery of the townspeople, pardoned them 

 the triennial tenth and fifteenth then due," 4 and 

 in the following year gave them respite from the 

 exaction of wool. 3 " These concessions were ex- 

 tended from time to time;" 6 in 1339 efforts were 

 made to strengthen the defences of the town, and the 

 commissioners of array for the guard of the sea in 

 Oxfordshire were charged to increase their payment 

 for this purpose in order to provide a man-at-arms 

 and two archers to do guard at Portsmouth. 3 " In 1 342 

 further steps were taken to protect the town, which 

 had offered no resistance to the first French attack.* 89 

 In that year townsmen were released from payment 

 of all tallages and contributions to the king on con- 

 dition that they applied the contingent due from them 

 in walling and fortifying the town, this work being 

 under the sheriff's supervision. 1 * 9 An order was also 

 sent to the sheriff to cause the king's grant to be pro- 

 claimed, and to permit the men of Portsmouth to levy 

 customs in their town for the purpose of walling and 

 paving it.* 30 This last grant, however, proved more 

 hindrance than help, for when merchants discovered 

 that they must pay dues to the burgesses of Portsmouth 

 on selling their goods in the town, as well as custom 

 to the men of Southampton on entering the port, 

 they took their merchandise elsewhere, so that two 

 years after the grant of this doubtful privilege the 

 townsmen petitioned for its reversal. 331 



After the renewal of hostilities with France in 1369 

 the town was again burned by the enemy, whereupon 

 the impoverished inhabitants petitioned for respite 

 from the payment of ferm, 3 ** and after inquisition had 

 been made on the subject they were released from 

 payment for ten years. 3 * 3 The town is said to have 

 been again assaulted and plundered by the French 

 expedition which, under Jean de Vien, ravaged the 

 outh coast in 1377.*** There is a tradition that it 

 was again attacked in 1380. 



The necessity for strong fortifications having been 

 thus forcibly proved, Thomas earl of Kent, Nicholas 

 Sharnesfield, knight of the chamber, and Robert 

 Cholmelegh, king's esquire, were appointed to survey 

 Portsmouth and take order for its defence in i$86, 3M 

 and in 1421 Robert B.irbot was clerk of the king's 

 works there. 336 Within the three following years he 

 received over 690 for works about the town. These 

 included the erection of a new tower ' for the safe 

 custody of the king's ships,' and the construction of a 

 wharf at ' Chiderodd ' as a foundation for another 

 new tower. 337 No record of any former tower is at 

 present forthcoming, but from the wording of Robert 

 Barbot's account it might be inferred that the tower 

 built by him took the place of an older one, perhaps 

 built after the survey of 1386.*" Robert Thorpe 

 accounted for repairs about the ' castles ' of Portchester 

 and Portsmouth from 1441 to I443- 339 One of these 

 towers was still standing in 1483, when it was 

 mentioned in the grant of the government of the town 

 to John le Moyne. 340 It was doubtless identical with 

 the round tower which is shown at the mouth of the 

 harbour on a plan of the time of Henry VIII. 34 * 



In 1513 special instructions were given to the earl 

 of Arundel for the keeping of the tower and block- 

 houses at Portsmouth, 3 " and at about this date a large 

 storehouse was built and the old brew-houses were 

 repaired. 343 Nevertheless in 1518 Fox, then bishop 

 of Winchester, wrote to Wolsey : ' If war be intended 

 against England the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth 

 are too feeble for defence. Our manner is never to 

 prepare for war to our enemies be light at our 

 doors.' " 4 A few years later, in accordance with further 

 advice from the bishop urging that Portsmouth and 

 the Isle of Wight should be provided with artillery, 

 ' for if they be lords of the sea Calais will never be 

 lost,' M5 ten ships were engaged in carrying ordnance 

 to Portsmouth.* 46 Still, in 1526 the town was 'in 

 sore ruin and decay," 47 and when in 1538 a vessel 

 from Southampton, pursued by four French ships, ran 

 aground beside Palshyds Bulwarks, the ordnance of the 

 town was out of order and the Frenchmen boarded 

 and carried off their prize unresisted. 348 In the 

 following year new ramparts and fortifications were 

 well advanced owing to fear of a French war, 3 * 9 but 

 two years later the hastily-built ramparts were ' clean 

 fallen down ' and the king so annoyed that he went 

 in person to direct how they should be rebuilt. 340 In 

 1 544 Sir Anthony Knyvet, then governor of the town, 

 petitioned for more men to defend it, stating that 

 whereas there had formerly been a hundred gunners 

 there, there were latterly only fifty, besides four or 

 five hundred bakers and brewers and also labourers 

 repairing the wall, and reinforcement would be diffi- 

 cult in time of war owing to the single approach to 

 the isiand over Portsea Bridge.* 51 In 1545 arose 



821 A an. Man. Worcester (Rolls Ser.), 

 iv, 4.56. 



122 Cat. Close, 1288-96, p. 324. 



828 Tho. Walsingham, Hist. Atigl. 

 (Rolls Ser.), i, 200. 



824 Cal. Close, 1337-9, p. 406. 



8as Ibid. 1339-41, p. 102. 



828 Ibid. 1339-41, p. 476; 1341-3, 

 p. 699. 



W Part. R. ii, mi. These men 

 should have been supplied by the prior 

 and canons of Bicester. 



8a8 Cal. Pat. 1338-40, p. 1 80. 



829 Ibid. 1340-3, p. 563. 



880 Cal. Close, 1341-3, p. 603 . 



881 Cal. Pat. 1343-5, p. 322. 



882 Pat. 43 Edw. Ill, pt. 2, m. 22 d. 

 888 Cal. Pat. 1377-81, p. 313. 



884 Froissart, Chrm. translated \>j 

 Thomas Johncs, ii, 181 ; Pipe R. 2 Ric. 

 II, m. 2a. 



835 Cal. Pat. 1385-9, p. 214. 



886 Ibid. 1422-9, p. 68. 



W Foreign Accts. 10 Hen. VI, H. 



888 Barbot accounts for 50 ' pro con- 

 structione cuiusdam Nove Turris de avisa- 

 mento eiusdem nuper Regis (Henry V), 

 apud Portsmouth de rovo construende.' 



187 



838 Foreign Accts. 21 Hen. VI, A. 

 ^o Cal. Pat. 1476-85, p. 339. 

 841 Printed in Extracts from Portsmouth 

 Rec. 



848 L. and P. Hen. fill, i, p. 973. 



848 Ibid. p. 960. 



844 Ibid, ii (2), 3952. 

 844 Ibid, iii, 2207. 



846 Ibid. 2916. 



84 7 Ibid, iv, 2123. 



84 Ibid, xiii (i), 485. 



849 Ibid, xiv (i), 1091. 



850 Ibid, xv, 533. 



841 Ibid, juc (2), 719. 



