Surrey & South London Will Abstracts - Vol. 1 Register 'Spage' 1480-1490

• Production of this work
• Form of the text
• Courts of probate
• The Court of the Archdeacon of Surrey
• Spage
• Officers of the Court
• Places and circumstances of probate
• Description of the register
• The keeping of the register
• Forms of probate
• Character of the wills
• Illustrations of church equipment
• Chantries and fraternities
• Logged in users search the collection

Production of this work
The present text is based upon a transcript made for the late Dr A. V. Peatling, F.S.A., and by him presented to the Society shortly before his lamented death. For the labour of revision, comparison with the original, and calendaring of Latin entries the Society is indebted to Mr. Charles Lethbridge Kingsford, F.S.A., who has also compiled the Introduction. The Honorary Editor has read the proofs and with the Honorary Secretary has given assistance in occasional matters of detail. For the compilation of the Index we have to thank Mr. T. Craib, who has also assisted with the calendaring.


Form of the text
In this Calendar the Latin Wills, which are far the most numerous, are given in abstract only. The formal matter has been omitted, but all names and all bequests are given. In cases where the interpretation is open to question, or where there is something peculiar, the original is quoted; the English words and phrases which occasionally occur are given in inverted commas. The title "Dominus" which was given to priests is-following the analogy of the English Wills-translated by "Sir." The names of places are given in the spelling of the original, even where, as often happens, variants occur in the same Will. In the records of probate the modern form is used. The English Wills, which at this date are of interest apart from their contents, are given verbatim.
Meaningless abbreviations in English words, especially those of the abbreviated final ll and n, have been omitted and the punctuation and capitalisation of the original have also been modified; otherwise the text Wows the Society's ordinary riles.


Courts of probate
Anciently the jurisdiction in testamentary cases belonged (with certain exceptions such as the Courts of Husting in London and other towns, and some " Peculiars ") to the Ecclesiastical Courts, the authority of which was only abolished in 1857 The Prerogative Court of the Archbishop of Canterbury had jurisdiction over the whole Province, and the Wills of persons of rank and importance were very commonly proved in that Court.

But in every diocese the Bishop's Consistory Court had also jurisdiction throughout the whole area. In addition, the Bishop sometimes appointed a Commissary to grant probate of Wills in some specified area. Furthermore, every Archdeacon had his Court, which, subject to certain restrictions, exercised testamentary jurisdiction within the Archdeaconry. The powers of the Provincial Court, of the diocesan Consistory Court, of the Bishop's Commissary, and of the Archdeacon's Court were exercised concurrently. There were, however, certain small areas, known as Peculiars (generally some parish, group of parishes or manor) which had obtained a special right and lay outside the ordinary jurisdiction. The extant records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury begin in 1374. Those of the Consistory Court of the Bishop of Winchester go somewhat further back, the earliest dating from 1361. The Bishop of Winchester had also a Commissary for the county of Surrey, but the history of the Commissary of Surrey begins only with 1662. The Court of the Archdeacon of Surrey is thus the only one which deals exclusively with Surrey Wills till late in the seventeenth century. [See further Stubbs's valuable paper in the Report of the Royal Commission on Ecclesiastical Courts, Vol. i, pp.21-51, published in 1883, and G. W. Marshall's Handbook to the Ancient Courts of Probate.]


The Court of the Archdeacon of Surrey
This Court had power to grant probate of Wills, with jurisdiction extending over the County of Surrey, except the Peculiars. Its powers were, however, inhibited during six weeks in every year, and during three months at the primary visitation of the Bishop. [See Return of Probate of Wills, 1845, Pp. 58, 59] Consequently we find in the following Register no record in any year of the probate of Wills between the latter part of July and a date towards the middle of September. [To judge from the printed calendar of " Herringman " Register this rule was not observed between 1595 and 1600 probates being granted at short intervals throughout the year.] The See of Winchester fell vacant by the death of William Waynflete in August, 1486, but his successor's primary visitation does not seem to have fallen within the period covered by this volume.


Spage
Abstracts of Wills in the "Spage" Register are identified by the prefix SW/Spage_; thus SW/Spage_123 is the 123rd will in the Spage Register. The abstracts give the folio references for the original entry.

The "Spage" Register is the earliest record of the Archdeacon's Court which has been preserved. The first Will entered was proved on 16 July 1484, and the latest record of probate was on 25 January 1490. How long previously the Court had been in existence we cannot say. Three wills (SW/Spage_11, SW/Spage_160 and SW/Spage_253) of earlier date than 1484 have for some reason been inserted in "Spage," and one of these (SW/Spage_11), probate of which was granted on 19 October 1480, is stated to have been proved "coram nobis offic. Surr."; the Court was therefore in existence at least as early as 1480 No argument can be based on the absence of more ancient Registers, for the records may have been carelessly kept or lost. In the neighbouring Archdeaconry of London there is a Register covering the period from 1393 to 1415, whilst the next Register which has been preserved belongs to the 16th century. As explained in the Introductory Note to the Calendar of "Herringman" the later records of the Archdeaconry Court of Surrey extend with some gaps to 1821. They are now preserved at Somerset House **.


Officers of the Court
The testamentary work of the Archdeacon's Court was done by a subordinate styled his "Official," who in case of need appointed a commissary to act for him. The actual register was kept by the Official's Registrar. The heading of "Spage" shows that in July 1484, Oliver Dynham was Archdeacon of Surrey, and Master William Barker or Baker his Official. Oliver Dynham was son of Sir John Dynham (d. 1458), of Nutwell, Devon, and brother of Sir John Dynham - Lord Dynham - who was Lord Treasurer from 1485 to 1501. As Master Oliver Dynham, the King's Chaplain, he was given a prebend at St George's, Windsor, on 2 October 1480 [Cal. Pat. Rolls Edw. IV etc., p. 222.] He had already been collated Archdeacon of Norwich on 27 February 1477-8. [Le Neve, Fasti, ii. 484.] The date of his appointment as Archdeacon of Surrey is unknown, though "Spage" shows that it was before 16 July 1484. Le Neve only records that Oliver Dynham died Archdeacon of Surrey in 1500: he further alleges that William Smith, afterwards Bishop of Lincoln, was promoted to the See of Lichfield from the Archdeaconry of Surrey in 1493. [id. iii., 3o; the alleged authority appears to be Archbishop Morton's Register.] This latter statement must, it would seem, be erroneous, for Oliver Dynham appears as Archdeacon of Surrey in 1490 in the heading of "Mathewe " (the next Register to "Spage"). Moreover Oliver Dynham held the living of Frensham, Surrey, and a will was proved there "in domo residencie Domini Archidiaconi" in September 1494 [Register "Mathewe" f. 43; see SW/Mathewe_139]

In " Mathewe " (f. 61) there is also a note of the entry of office by Christopher Bainbridge post decessum Oliveri Dynham ultimi Archidiaconi. The date of this is about July 1500. Oliver Dynham had made his Will as Archdeacon of Surrey at Frensham on 22 April, 1500; he directed that he should be buried in his church of Frensham before the image of St Swithin, and appointed as his executors his brother John, "Dominus le Dynham", Thomas Villers and Richard Loche. The Will was proved on 31 May. [P.C.C. 9 Moone.] That Oliver Dynham, Archdeacon of Surrey, was also the Archdeacon of Norwich, appears to be certain from the fact that when on the same day - 1 November 1500 - appointments were made to the archdeaconry of Norwich and to the prebend at Windsor, both were stated to be vacant through the death of Oliver Dynham. [Cal. Pat. Rolls, Henry VII, i. 220, 222.] It is, however, remarkable that Dynham does not refer to himself as Archdeacon of Norwich in his Will, and that when appointed to his stall in 1480 he is not described as Archdeacon. The obscurity of Dynham's history justifies this account of him, but in "Spage" at all events there is no trace of any active concern of his in the Probate Court of his archdeaconry. The actual work of the Court was done by the Official. Of William Barker or Baker we know nothing beyond the appearance of his name in "Spage." He seems to have retained his office till at least as late as March 1488. (See SW/Spage_261.) In the records of probate his name occurs occasionally till that date. In the earlier years Edmund Colman twice grants probate as Official (see SW/Spage_85 and SW/Spage_131), and in the end of 1488 and beginning of 1489 his name occurs frequently in that capacity (see SW/Spage_274-302); he may have been Barker's deputy and have continued to act pending another appointment. Robert Bradon appears once as Official in 1488. (See SW/Spage_260.) In May 1489 Ambrose Ede appears as Official and during the small remainder of the Register his name is the only one which occurs. From SW/Spage_314 it seems clear that he was the superior officer and he continues as Official for some years in Register "Mathewe."


Places and circumstances of probate
The Official visited various places in his district periodically. Kingston, Guildford and Reigate are the places which occur most frequently. There is no evidence of regular progresses and presumably the Official attended at any place as occasion required. The Wills proved were generally, though not always, from parishes in the immediate neighbourhood. The Court was very commonly held in a church; at Guildford generally in Holy Trinity. As a rule no doubt the Official was present in person, though Barker is mentioned only in 12 probates out of the 261 Wills which fell within his term of office. Edmund Colman, however, as already noted, occurs twice as Official during the same period. When the Official could not attend in person the regular course would be for him to appoint a commissary. We get such an instance in SW/Spage_129, where John Cavyn is described as in hac parte commissario specialiter deputato. In another case SW/Spage_126 --- the record of a commission precedes the Will as follows Tercio die mensis Julii Mr. W. Barker, 0fficialis domini Archidiaconi Surr., commisit potestatem &c. ad approbandum &c. testamentum Willelmi Say subscriptum, et ad committendam in juris forma administracionem omnium bonorum dicti Willelmi executrici &c. et acquietandam eandem &c. Apud Lamehith. The record of, probate is accordingly given as before John Leke. In a third instance - SW/Spage_156 - we have a commission, without any subsequent entry of the Will. A curious entry is that for SW/Spage_184 when Barker is described as Reverendi &c. sequestratore. Since William Hyne, the testator, was a clerk it is possible that Barker was acting in some special capacity. The entry of probate on SW/Spage_160 is peculiar as taken before the Commissary General of the Diocese, but the Will in question was proved in 1482, and it was entered in "Spage" for some reason which does not appear.

The Registrar of the Court in 1484 was John Richardson, notary public, who from SW/Spage_314 appears to have been still in office in 1489. He probably retained his position at least till 1500, for in April of that year he was one of the witnesses to Oliver Dynham's will.


Description of the register
"Spage" is so styled after the common practice of calling a Register of Wills by the name of the first person whose Will is entered therein. It is a volume measuring 11 by 8 inches, and containing 101 numbered leaves of paper with an unnumbered foreleaf. The leaves are numbered throughout by a contemporary hand in Roman numerals; f.xlvi was by error repeated (the two leaves now being numbered 46a and 46b); on the other hand there is no f. 93, so that 101 remains as the true number of leaves. There are six foldings in the volume, viz. (A) ff 1-12, (B) ff: 13-22, (C) ff 23-46a, (D) ff: 46b-67, (E) ff 68-91, and (F)ff. 94-101. The first five foldings were enclosed within a wrapper of similar paper, which now forms the foreleaf and f. 92. This was presumably intended to complete the volume, and the final folding was made as an addition. Possibly the intention was to begin a new volume when Ambrose Ede became Official in the summer of 1489, but ultimately further entries were made and the Register continued to the end of the year (with the inclusion of two or three wills proved in 1490). The Register was bound in a parchment cover still preserved, with the title Liber Testamentorum accidentium in Archidiaconatu Surr. On the foreleaf is a note: Scrutate Registrum pro testamento Willelmi Atfield dam vixit de Shalford xxxta annis elapsis et qui migravit ab hac luce, ad instanciam Edmundi Elyot de Dunsfold. No entry of such a Will appears in the Register. The Register is headed on f.1 by the description below:

‘TESTAMENTA1 et Commissiones bonorum testatorum et intestatorum in[fra] Archidiaconalum Surr., Winton. dioc., decedentium, Coram circu[msfiecto]2 viro Magistro Willelmo Baker,3 inlegibus baccalario, [Officiali] Venerabilis Viri Magistri Oliveri Dynham, in Artibus Magistri, dicti Archidiaconatus Archidiaconi, probata ac Per ipsum approbata, etc. In mei Johannis Richardson, notarii publici, predicti Archidiaconatus Registrarii, Actorum scribe et registrato[rum et] registrandorum Custodis, presentia. Anno Domini Millesimo cccclxxx [iiii], Mensis Julii die xvi.' 1 Title as in original. 2 The margin of the leaf is frayed. 3 Generally called Barker

The fraying of the margin has caused the loss of some letters which, however, can easily be restored; the title " Officiali " appears to have been omitted through error before" Venerabilis." Through the accidental turning over of two leaves ff: 37 v and 38 r have been left blank. On f. 91 r there are only two imperfect entries, see p. 87 below. On f. 92 r there is a single Will, which belongs to 1490 and is probably an addition. The only entry on f. 92 v is a note: fiat procuratorium pro magistro hogone Garsett artium magistro Rectore ecclesie parochialis de Dunsfold Wintoniensis Diocesis dilectos &c. M. Gilbertum Burton in legibus umbacallarium Edward Hogeson notarium publicum Registrarium Surr. milonem hagge notarium et Edmundum Stawper literatum. This may have been written when f. 92 formed the end of the volume. It is clear that f. 93 was omitted through an error of numbering, when the final folding was added. On f. 94 there are entered only the part of a Will already copied, and the heading of another. The paper on which the Register is written is throughout in bad condition and the edges are much worn and frayed.


The keeping of the register
The greater part of the Register is in John Richardson's handwriting, though in the later portion other hands occur; one on ff: 85-7, 92, 96-7 and 99, another on ff: 90, 91, and a third on ff. 91 and 98. Richardson began keeping the Register carefully, and the first 100 entries are, on the whole, made in an orderly manner, though even here some entries, as SW/Spage_25, 26 and 40, 41, are out of place. Afterwards the entries are less careful, and towards the end they are very irregularly made, and there are several instances of repetition. [The repetition of SW/Spage_92 in SW/Spage_98, of SW/Spage_141 in SW/Spage_149, and of SW/Spage_231 in SW/Spage_265 was not detected till the Calendar was in print. Other instances are SW/Spage_256, 276, 281, 289, and 305.] In SW/Spage_109 and 223 we have the curious instance of the entry of variant copies of the same person's Will ; it will be observed that for SW/Spage_223 there is no record of Probate. It is, of course, impossible to say how far the transcripts of the Wills are perfectly accurate. The growing carelessness of the Register prevents one from feeling complete confidence. But probably there is for the most part nothing more serious than the occasional omission of a word of two; where necessary such omissions have been supplied in brackets. In SW/Spage_226, the date of probate, "19 Sept." instead of "19 Oct." seems to be an error. More serious is the error in SW/Spage_257 and 260 ; Juliana and William Garland were clearly wife and husband; the former is represented as making her Will as a widow eight days before her husband made his Will ; there has apparently been some confusion in the dates of the Wills, and perhaps in the dates of probate also. In SW/Spage_318 the date of probate appears to be correct, but the date given in the Will must be an error either on the part of the writer of the original, or of the transcriber; the copy of the Will was not written by Richardson, who, however, entered the record of probate. It is possible that some small errors may be accounted for by the practice (undoubtedly not infrequent) of copying from dictation: the case of si opem moriatur, noted below, might well be one of these,


Forms of probate
The Wills appear to have been copied in batches, and in the latter part at all events blanks were left for the record of probate, which was often not filled in. At the start the probate is given fully. The normal form was Probatum fuit suprascriptum testamentum, coram domino Officiali Archidiaconatus Surr. et per ipsum approbatum confirmatum, &c. Commissaque fuit administracio omnium et singulorum bonorum et debilorum ipsius defuncti &c. et eius huiusmodi testamenti concernentium &c., executoribus in eodem testamento nominatis cum debitis iuris forma iuratis et admissis Per eosdem. Et habeant acquietanciam quoad officium. Datum Guldeford xvj die Julii anno Domini Millesimo cccclxxxiiii. [This is the entry for John Mawdefyld - SW/Spage_2. That for William Spage is not fully decipherable.] Sometimes the name of the acting Official was inserted. [See SW/Spage_45, 64-6, 85.] The name of the place was often omitted. Occasionally there are entries of payments pro fine [See, for instance, SW/Spage_10, 21-23, 27, 28.] but there is nothing to show on what basis they were assessed. Where any of these peculiarities occur they are noted in the Calendar. In the latter part of the Register the record of probate becomes very perfunctory. That for SW/Spage_200 is "xii die mensis Septembris A0 domini Mcccclxxxvii probatum et approbatum fuit &c. et administracio commissa est executrici &c." When all the executors did not prove power is reserved as on SW/Spage_174 in the following form: Reservata potestate committendi similem administracionem Willelmo Lane executor' in eodem testamento nominato cum venerit. Sometimes the record ends as on SW/Spage_285 Commissa est administracio &c. executori &c. et dimittitur ex causa paupertatis.


Character of the wills
To turn to the Wills themselves, the great majority appear to be those of persons of comparatively humble position. More important Wills were proved either in the Bishop's Consistory Court, or in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. [As was Oliver Dynham's own will. ] The only Will of a person of any rank in life which is entered in "Spage" appears to be that of William Utteworth "gentleman " SW/Spage_129. " Sir" William Hyne - SW/Spage_184-and "Sir" Robert Rewmorgony - SW/Spage_210 - were chaplains, though Hyne seems to have been a man of some substance. Rewmorgony we learn from SW/Spage_67 was chaplain of Horsell. The testator's position in life is not often described. There are two yeomen (SW/Spage_39 and 211) and four husbandmen (SW/Spage_53, 67, 130 and 174). The Wills of people from the towns naturally include a number of craftsmen. (See especially the batch of Southwark Wills between SW/Spage_80 and 101.) John Croft of Guildford (SW/Spage_6) was apparently a weaver, Peter Been of Kingston (SW/Spage_30(a smith and a man of some wealth, and William Hookewey of Southwark (SW/Spage_134) a surgeon. Of the others a fair number held land and tenements, and there is a sprinkling of fairly well-to-do widows. Instances of the Wills of comparatively wealthy people are SW/Spage_30, 120, 123, and 160. The majority of the testators seem to have been engaged in agriculture and the bequests, even for church purposes, are often given in kind; the money bequests are generally of very small sums. The normal form of Will consists of directions for burial, gifts to the high altar of the parish church for tithes forgot and to the mother church of Winchester; very small bequests of money or goods to relatives may follow, but often there is no more than the bequest of the residue and nomination of executors and overseer. Occasionally there is provision for the "mortuary" given as a due to the church; usually it was the testator's best beaSt There is seldom evidence of the possession of much household stuff, though the amount of live stock disposed of is sometimes considerable, as in SW/Spage_109 160 184 and 197. Amongst several bequests for the repair of highways or bridges, the most noteworthy are two for " le Claper " between Wonersh and Bramley. (SW/Spage_29 and 40. See also SW/Spage_65, 67, 69, 197) The most noteworthy of all bequests is that by William Utteworth (SW/Spage_129) for the erection of a cross, carved with the martyrdom of St Thomas, on St Martha's Hill, by the side of the way along which the pilgrims went to Canterbury. The provision in John Sonde's Will (SW/Spage_50) that if his brother married money the horse bequeathed to him should go to Thomas Bysschope is so remarkable that one is inclined to suspect an error of the copyist and that the original Will had si ate moriatur (if he dies before me), or si awtem moriatur.


Illustrations of church equipment
One of the most interesting features of early Wills is the illustration which they afford of religious observances and of church equipment. In this respect the Wills in "Spage" are somewhat disappointing. Such material will most commonly be found where the testator was buried in the church. But of the Wills in "Spage" nine-tenths are of persons so humble that they were content with burial in the churchyard. There is mention of chapels within the churches in only a few instances: of St Mary at Chobham (SW/Spage_ 39); of St Mary at West Horsley, (SW/Spage_44); of St Mary at Trinity, Guildfor (SW/Spage_63); of St Mary in the churchyard at Leigh (SW/Spage_104); of St James at All Saints, Kingston (SW/Spage_121 and 123), and of St Mary in the same church (SW/Spage_221); of St Mary at Stoke next Guildford (SW/Spage_ 207); of the great chapel at Horsley (SW/Spage_210); of St Nicholas at All Saints, Carshalton (SW/Spage_213); and the Lady Chapel at Limpsfield (SW/Spage_294). Altars, other than the high altar, are mentioned occasionally ; the altar of St Mary at Horsell (SW/Spage_162); the altars of The Trinity, Our Lady and St Katherine at All Saints, Kingston (SW/Spage_190, 193, 228); and the altar of St Katherine at Waverley Abbey (SW/Spage_298). References to images are rather more frequent there were images of Our Lady, St James and St Christopher, at Peperharow (SW/Spage_43); of St James and St Mary at Horsell (SW/Spage_67) ; of St Michael and St Mary at Send (SW/SPAGE_78) and 195); of St Mary at Capel (SW/Spage_84); of All Saints at Witley (SW/Spage_153, 154); of St Katherine and of Our Lady of Pity at All Saints, Kingston (SW/Spage_123 and 233); of the High Cross at Long Ditton (SW/Spage_257 and 260); and of St Mary at Shalford (SW/Spage_300). John Drewe bequeathed £3 6s. 8d. for the painting of Our Lady at Farley (SW/Spage_197). Small bequests for lights at the church are, however, very numerous; a light, other than that before the rood, usually denotes the existence either of an altar or an image. The most noteworthy instance of lights is at All Saints, Kingston, where William Orme, in SW/Spage_123, specifically mentions the five lights, viz., Holy Trinity, the Cross, St Mary, St James and St Katherine; the same five lights are named in SW/Spage_128 and 168, whilst in SW/Spage_221 we get also the lights of St Mary of Pity and of the Cross of Comfort.. At Godalming there were also seven lights (SW/Spage_4, 55 and 157) whilst at Sheen (SW/Spage_144) and Banstead (SW/Spage_314) there were six. In a number of other cases there were two or more lights. [Altogether lights are mentioned in somewhat more than half the churches named. See further in the Subject Index.] In this connexion special reference must be made to the "branches" at St Nicholas, Guildforde (SW/Spage_8, 139, 140, 147); these were probably branched candelabra for holding the tapers burnt before an altar or image. Bequests for lights sometimes took the form of wax, and sometimes one or more pounds of wax were left to the church without further specification. In Wills of this class we are not likely to meet with many gifts for church building, though William Hyne left 20s. for the building of the steeple at Sheen (SW/Spage_184). Small bequests for the repair of the church or its ornaments are, however, not uncommon. The gifts to the fabric or work of the church, or of some part of it, as the steeple or the bells, were contributions to the fund out of which the building was maintained. Minor gifts to churches which are mentioned include vestments and breviaries; there is a bequest for altar cloths in SW/Spage_197, and one to buy a new cross in SW/Spage_ 284.


Chantries and fraternities
In about a dozen instances there are specific bequests for masses. But the only chantries mentioned are at Holy Trinity, Guildford (SW/Spage_279) and at Shere (SW/Spage_303 and 304). Considering how great a part the parish guild or fraternity played in the religious life of the 15th century, it is rather remarkable that there is mention of only nine Fraternities. Of these no less than six were at Southwark or in its neighbourhood; at Southwark there were Fraternities of St Mary and of St Barbara at St Olave's (SW/Spage_85, 150, 151), of St Mary at St Margaret's (SW/Spage_91 and 101), and of St Katherine at St Mary Magdalen's (SW/Spage_99); at Camberwell there was a Fraternity of St Giles (SW/Spage_75), and at St Mary Magdalen, Bermondsey, a Fraternity of Our Lady (SW/Spage_132). In the rest of the county the only Fraternities named are those of St John the Baptist at Trinity, Guildford (SW/Spage_50, 63 and 279), of the Holy Cross at Egham (SW/Spage_76, 196 and 238), and of The Trinity at All Saints, Kingston (SW/Spage_246). It is hardly to be supposed that there were no other Fraternities in the district and the absence of reference must, as in other cases, probably be explained by the humble rank of the majority of the testators.