POLITICAL HISTORY 



that he dreamed that he was in the Chapter House at St. Paul's with the 

 other knights, busy with the matters then before them. He chanced to see 

 upon the floor seven golden coins, and picking them up went into the choir 

 that he might find who had dropped them. In vain he questioned monks 

 and others in the choir and in the body of the church. But at last an aged 

 monk approached and asked him what he held in his hand. To his answer 

 that they were seven golden coins the monk rejoined : ' Nay, they are the 

 seven gifts of the Spirit intrusted to you and your colleagues. The gold is 

 golden wisdom that has been granted to you that you may be able to reform 

 all that is amiss, and also to clothe your meaning in graceful language 

 when you speak before the magnates of this realm.' When he told the 

 knights his dream ' all were filled with joy and confident of divine assistance.' 

 The chronicler adds that he wrote down the tale, which he had from de la 

 Hoo himself, with his oath that it was true, in order that none might 

 I doubt that in all that the knights did to procure reform they were prompted 

 by the Holy Spirit."' 



Gerard Braybrook and John Trailly represented Bedfordshire "' in the 

 reactionary Parliament of 1 377, which voted an aid of ^. from every 

 lay man or woman over fourteen years of age, except ' notorious paupers ' and 

 public beggars."" The imposition of a second poll-tax of i s. was the occasion, 

 if not altogether the cause, of the great Peasants' Rising of 1 381, which began 

 in Kent and Essex, and extended to Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. 

 Archbishop Sudbury was murdered in London on 14 June, and next day the 

 men of St. Albans attacked the abbey and forced the abbot to grant them a 

 charter of liberties. Some tradesmen of Dunstable were at St. Albans that 

 day for the market and found the example too good to be neglected. Before 

 vespers Thomas Hobbes, mayor of Dunstable, invaded the priory at the head 

 of a riotous crowd, and greeted the prior, affecting to come as a messenger 

 from the king. ' Although it was a lie, the prior doffed his hood, bowed 

 to show proper deference to the king, and asked what his majesty would have 

 of him. " His orders are," said Hobbes, eyeing him fiercely, " that you 

 make out a charter of liberties for his burgesses of Dunstable, such as they 

 had in the days of King Henry the First." ' At first the prior refused ; but 

 after a while, as he thought of all that was going on in London and at 

 St. Albans, he gave way and a charter was prepared and sealed. But ' despite 

 its grand language and for all the wax with which it was sealed, it did not 

 last long.' Soon afterwards the king came to St. Albans and hanged John 

 Ball and others who had taken part in the outbreak."^ The prior then set 

 himself to recover the charter by soft words, but finding that method useless he 

 went to St. Albans and caused some of the townsmen to be brought there under 

 arrest, whereupon the charter was restored and promptly annulled. Instead, 

 however, of pressing for vengeance he incurred ' great expense and danger ' 

 to prevent the further punishment of the townsmen, and so the trouble came 

 to an end."^ 



The most notable Bedfordshire men of the early part of the 15th 

 century were Sir John Cornwall (Lord Fanhope), Reginald, Lord Grey de 



'«« Chron. An^L 1328-88 (Rolls Ser.), 70-72. '^' Ret. of Memb. of Pari. 



>"» Walsingham, Kht. Angl (Rolls Ser.), \, ^^^. '" Ibid, ii, 31-6. 



^'" Ann. Z)«»J/. 417-19. 



35 



