A HISTORY OF BUCKINGHAMSHIRE 



and is. 4.d, to a servant of the Dean of Windsor 

 for bringing his master's clothes for the players. 

 The payment for repair of the players' dresses 

 recurs every year at this time, except in 1536- 

 This is to be accounted for by the boys being 

 away at ' Heggeley ' (? Hedgerley), probably on 

 account of the plague at Eton ; for 6d. was paid 

 for a hogshead and gd. for the bringing of it 

 'to carry drink to the boys at Heggeley,' while 

 payments were made to Spensar, the costs for 

 cleaning the boys' inn (hospitium) there, and 2s. 

 for keys and locks for the doors, and 2s. 6d. was 

 paid for bringing them, or some of them, to the 

 college on election day. The same year cakes 

 and ale (caakys et al) were provided for the Bishop 

 of Lincoln, and the queen, Jane Seymour, paid 

 a visit to the college, when not only were ' flyne 

 cakes' provided, but sherry (secke) and claret 

 (clarett) at is. ^d. a gallon each, and apples and 

 pears to the extent of 2s. 2d. The king came 

 on St. Bartholomew's Day (24 August), but 

 seems to have preferred beer with his ' caks.' 

 Udal has been credited with producing a play at 

 Braintree while vicar there, recorded in the 

 churchwardens' accounts for 1534 as a play of 

 ' Placy Dacy alias St. Ewestacy ' i.e. ' Placidas 

 alias Sir Eustace.' But Udal did not become 

 vicar of Braintree till 27 September 1538. On 

 i October I538 108 'Nicholas Uvedale, professor 

 of the liberal arts, informator and schoolmaster of 

 Eton,' was licensed to hold the vicarage of Brain- 

 tree, ' with other benefices,' without personal 

 residence. So it is not very probable that he ever 

 went to Braintree or produced any plays there. 



In 1538, however, the accounts of Thomas 

 Cromwell, 107 the Lord Privy Seal, include a pay- 

 ment for ' Woodall, the scholemaster of Eton, 

 to playing before my lord, 5.' Presumably he 

 brought a troupe of boys with him. In that 

 year also he published a second edition of his 

 Flowers of Terence for Eton boys. 



The account of Thomas Tusser of his experi- 

 ence at the hands of Udal, though oft quoted, is 

 too picturesque not to be quoted once more. 

 Tusser began life as a chorister of St. Paul's. 



From Powles I went to Aeton sent, 



To learn straightwayes the Latin phrase ; 



Where fifty three stripes given to me at once I had ; 



For fault but small or none at all 



It came to pass thus beat I was ; 



See, Udall, see, the mercy of thee to mee, poor lad. 



If Cox was a greater beater than this he must 

 have been great indeed. Udal's reign of the rod 

 at Eton was brought to an abrupt conclusion by 

 his being brought up before the Privy Council, 108 

 14 March 1540-1, for 'being of counsel with' 

 two of the boys, Thomas Cheney, a relation of 

 the Lord Treasurer of the Household, and 



106 Pat. 30 Hen. VIII, pt. vi, m. 17. 



107 L. and P. Hen. 7111, xiv (2), 334. 



108 Pnc. P.O. viii, 152. 



Thomas Hoorde, for stealing some silver images 

 and chapel ornaments. He then confessed to a 

 much more scandalous offence with Cheney and 

 was sent to the Marshalsea Prison. He tried, 

 but failed, to get restored to Eton. Attempts 

 have been made to whitewash him. But his 

 own confession, and an abject letter of repentance 

 and promises of amendment addressed probably 

 to Wriothesley, a Hampshire man, and no doubt 

 a family friend, cannot be got over. From the 

 letter it would seem that he was a bad school- 

 master as well as an immoral one, since he puts for- 

 ward amongst other things 'myn honest chaunge 

 from vice to vertue, from prodigalitee to frugall 

 lyving, from negligence of teachyng to assiduitee, 

 from play to studie, from lightnes to gravitee.' 

 Unfortunately the account for 1541-2 is missing. 

 The last mention of Udal at Eton is in 15423, 

 when, after the bursar had ridden up to London 

 to the master (i.e. the provost) ' for the matter 

 of Udall,' Udal was paid '53*. ifd. in full satis- 

 faction of his salary in arrears and other things 

 due to him while he was teaching the children '; 

 but as on the other side of the account appears 

 an item of ' 6oj. received from Dr. Coxe for 

 Udall's debts,' it would not appear that any 

 money passed to Udal. He maintained himself 

 by translating in 1 542 Erasmus's Apophthegms into 

 English and divers other works. He seems to 

 have been made to resign his living at Braintree, 

 a successor being appointed 14 December 1544. 

 He purged himself, however, by composing the 

 Answer to the articles of the commoners of Devon- 

 shire and Cornwall when they rose in rebellion, 

 bloodily put down by the first lord of the house 

 of Russell in the summer of 1549, against the 

 First Prayer Book of Edward VI. Udal, as an 

 English author, evidently wrote 1M con amore 

 against the Cornishmen, who, because ' certen of 

 us understand no English, . . . utterly refusid this 

 new English,' demanded the old service in Latin, 

 and the calling in of the Bible and all other 

 books of Scripture in English, ' for we be in- 

 formed that otherwise the clergy shall not of long 

 time confound the heretics.' He was rewarded 

 by being made a canon of Windsor, 14 December 

 1551. On 5 January ' after the common reckoning 

 1552 ' (i.e. I55I-2), 110 he published a translation 

 of Erasmus's Paraphrases of the gospels, himself 

 translating the first three, while St. John was 

 being translated by the Princess Mary, till she 

 fell sick and handed her work over to Dr. Malet. 

 The work was done at the suggestion and ex- 

 pense of the Dowager Queen Katharine, in 

 whose charge Mary was, and the connexion 

 with Mary afterwards stood Udal in good stead 



109 Pocock, Troubles of the Prayer Book of 1 549 

 (Camden Soc. new ser. 37), 141, 193. 



110 The publication of the second volume, done by 

 Miles Coverdale, in June 1552, shows that the date, 

 'after the common reckoning January 1552,' was 

 according to the modern use, i.e. 15512 not 1552-3. 



184 



