A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



These lawless doings not infrequently ended in bloodshed. Perhaps the 

 worst case happened at the beginning of Lent, 1345, when Adam de Croft 

 and a large following, with banners flying, came to Liverpool while the jus- 

 tices were sitting there, and in their presence on Monday, 14 February, slew 

 Adam de Lever, GeofFrey son of Sir Henry de TrafFord, knt., and twenty-five 

 others, carried off their armour, and prevented the justices from redressing the 

 grievances of complainants.-" Fresh commissions were appointed to inquire 

 into the parlous state of the county, but matters had scarcely improved two 

 years later, when John, son of Robert de Dalton, knt., and many knights and 

 others chiefly from Lancashire, carried off Margery, widow of Nicholas de la 

 Beche, by night from the manor of Beaumes, near Reading, within the verge 

 of the court of the duke of Clarence, keeper of the Realm in the king's 

 absence abroad, and slew her uncle.-"" In the same year Lancaster Fair was 

 invaded by armed men, who wounded some, took the goods of others by force, 

 and imprisoned others until they extorted ransoms from them."^ About the 

 same time ^2,000 in money and goods to the value of ^3,000 were stolen from 

 Queen Isabella's treasury at Whalley, charters were carried off, and her houses 

 in Bowland Chase burnt."' Of course, such acts of violence were not in- 

 frequent at any time during the middle ages ; but they were abnormally 

 numerous in these years. The too common practice of granting crown par- 

 dons to felons on condition that they served in the royal armies did not tend 

 to improve matters. 



The difficulties in the way of enforcing order were increased by the 

 action of the sheriff, who, presuming on the earl's immunities, put obstacles 

 in the way of appeals to the king's courts, and the delivery of his writs. '''^ 



With the county thus disturbed, and in parts in an impoverished con- 

 dition, trouble was experienced in raising Edward's war taxes. In 1342 

 little or nothing had been collected of the wool subsidy imposed the year 

 before. The collectors arrested the bailiffs of the hundreds for refusing to 

 execute their orders, and were themselves summoned to Westminster to 

 account for the deficiency.''* It appears that a demand had been made for 

 three times the number of sacks (256) at first apportioned to the county."^ 

 On representations that it had not wool enough to meet the said apportion- 

 ment, and was greatly depressed by the frequent invasions of the Scots ^'^ 

 and other misfortunes, the larger demand was withdrawn and permission was 

 given to pay money in lieu of the rest at the rate of 9 marks a sack,'" though 

 the crown had already sold them to York merchants at 12 marks.-" 



Little or no recovery can have been possible before the great calamity 

 of the Black Death fell upon the unhappy county. Making every allowance 



'" Cal. Pat. 13+3-5, P- +99 ; C/w. 1346-9. PP- 48, 79 ; Coram RegeR, 344, m. 8 ; 345, m. 2 ; 347, 

 m. 3 d. ; 409, m. 15. 



-'' Cal. Pat. 1345-7, pp. 379, 384, 436, 543. See above, pp. 112, 150. 



»' Ibid. 1 345-7, p. 382. »' Ibid. 49, cf. 393. 



'" C"!. Close, 1 3 + 1-3, PP- 401, 470, 551- "' Ibid. 470, 492. 



'^This may be compared with the proportions of Westmorland (156), Cumberland (232), Yorkshire 

 (i 157), and Norfolk (2206). See Rot. Pari, ii, 131. 



'" Lancashire inter alia fiimished for service against the Scots 400 archers and 100 hobelers in Oct. 1332 

 {Focdcra iv, 534), 500 archers and 200 hobelers in Feb. 1333 (Cal. Close, 1333-7, PP- 87, 95) and 25 men-at- 

 arms and 1 20 archers in Jan. 1 340 {Rot. Pari, ii, 1 10), the last ' at the expense of the county to Carlisle, then 

 at the King's wages;' 125 archers accompanied the earl of Derby to Gascony in 1345 (Q.R. Memo. R. 

 20 Edw. Ill, m. IS </.), receiving 2,d. a day (L.T.R. Memo. R. 1 1 1, m. 207 d.). 



'■■ Cal Close, 1 341-3, p. 399. »M Ibid. 257. 



204 



