166 SOME OLD DOCUMENTS. 



exercer ledit office tant comme il nous plaira aux droits charges 

 profits privileges et prerogatives au dit office appartenant en telle 

 forme et maniere comme Denis le Marchant derrainement nostre 

 lieutenant en icelle nostre dicte Isle avoit pour lexercice du dit 

 office de lieutenant. Et donnons en mandement a tous nos autres 

 officers et subjets de nostre dicte Isle de Guernesey que au dit 

 Thomas de la Court en deuement exercant loffice dessus dit et 

 les choses concernans icellui ils obeissent aident et assistent 

 comme il appartient. En tesmoing de ce nous avons fait mettre 

 le seel de nos armes en cestes presentes. Donne a Londres le 

 premier jour davril Ian de grace Mil quatre cens soixante- 

 cinq. 



(D'apres l'original scelle du sceau d'armes en cire rouge 

 du comte de Warwick en la possession de Nicolas Lefebvre 

 Ecuyer.) 



VIDIMUS BY THE BAILIFF AND JURATS OF GUERN- 

 SEY 4th FEBRUARY 1477/8 OF LETTER OF JAMES 

 NORRES, GOVERNOR OF GUERNSEY. 



This document gives the name of a hitherto unknown 

 Governor of Guernsey, and throws a little light on the 

 government of the island during the six obscure years between 

 the death of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, Lord of the 

 Isles, at the battle of Barnet, 1471, and the appointment of 

 William de Courtney as Captain of Guernsey on November 

 4, 1477. It is what may be called a vidimus by the bailiff 

 and jurats of Guernsey on the 4th February 1477/8, of a 

 letter written in English, to Nicholas Henry, tils Jacques, by 

 James Norres, styled formerly Captain or Governor of 

 Guernsey, and Norres' signature is attested to by Thomas 

 Blondel, who was acting as his attorney in Guernsey. 



A point in Norres' letter deserving special notice is the 

 reference to an interview that Nicholas Henry had had at 

 Warwick with " my lorde " and to the orders given to him by 

 " my lorde." Who was this lord who was interested in 

 Guernsey affairs at Warwick? Certainly he was not Richard 

 Neville, Earl of Warwick, who had been killed at the battle 

 of Barnet in 1471, as the whole tenor of the letter shows that 

 the interview had recently taken place and to " my lorde " 

 being still alive. One cannot think of any possible connection 

 between Guernsey affairs and Warwick at tlrs date, unless a 

 suspicion that I have had for some time proves correct, 

 namely, that George, Duke of Clarence, who married Isobel, 

 the eldest daughter of Richard, Earl of Warwick, became 

 Lord of the Isles, when he was advanced to all the Warwick 

 honours by Letters Patent, 25th March, 1472. As will be 



