Beaufort Herald

Beaufort Companye Newsletter July 2009 Volume 3, Issue 7

Inside this issue: Cry “Godde for Harry, Englande & St Geoorge !”

A gentleman from Brampton 2 Newark were excellent. Who would have thought so many people would be Balttlefield Commands 2 secret mummers :-)

Battle if Guinnegate 3 So hands up, who would like mumming plays at more events? And who wants Medieval Fast Food 4 to take part—We have the scripts and

Courtney Bonnville feud 5 most of the costumes ….its up to you.

How to make your livery 6 & 7 JAYNE E ..

George Bewick 8 Louder than a riot 8 The Beauforts on Tour Cookery Corner 8

Meet the Common ladies 8 Well its July already and the markets are waiting, “I will not buy too much, I will not…. Who am I kidding!” with Tewkesbury racing towards us In the next issuer: closely followed by Kelmarsh and ♦ Charles the Bold exhibition Wakefield.

♦ Daggers & Knives Big events, with greater emphasis on ♦ More personalities the action. But both Rievaulx and Relaxing at Newark ♦ Ludford Bridge Have you noticed how many Long may this continue groups have wanted to work with us so far this season? Also it makes sure we don’t just rest on our lau- Oxfords, Saville's, Wood- rels, and continue to strive ville's, Stanley's, Hospitillar & to improve. Burghs to name some. And very interesting & ex- All of which have brought citing, what next? their own unique blend of ac- Next Issue— August 2009 tivities and skills to events A

1 Personalities of the Wars of the Roses

Sir John HARLEY (b<1447 d>1494) Beaufort Companye Newsletter

of Brampton, nr Knighton, Herefordshire Battlefield Commands

Evidence of medieval verbal battle field commands Arms: Or a bend cotised sable. is virtually non existent in contemporary written Livery Badge Lion Rampant Gules sources. One of the exceptions are the French chronicle accounts of the Battle of Agincourt which Motto: Virtute et Fidele, (Valour and Faith) record that the English used the command "Nestroque ". Sir John Harley was the eldest son of Jeffrey de Harley of Bramp- ton (d1448-1449) by his second wife Julia Burley, daughter of Sir Many modern historians have tried to translate this John Burley. His grandfather, Sir Brian de Harley had successfully back into its original English form and the tradi- defended Brampton Castle against the welsh rebel Owen Glyndwr, tional view is that it was the order given by the and had benefited from the attainder of the Mortimer's, by being archery captain, Lord Erpingham, to loose the first made custodian of Wigmore Castle and associated lordship. The volley of arrows and was the French mis- 4 Wigmore connection may account for his Yorkist leanings. hearing "Now - Strike". Other alternatives associ- ated with the order to the archers are "Knee- Little is known of Sir John Harley before 1471 when he fought for Stretch", for the front row of archers to kneel, and the Yorkists at both Barnet and Tewkesbury, where he was "Nock-Stretch", an alternative (and in the writers knighted on the field of battle at Gastons, near Tewkesbury, 9 th 1 opinion a much more "medieval") version of the May 1471, by Richard of Gloucester. In February 1474 he was on more common "Nock-Draw" used on re-enactment a commission to array the lieges of Herefordshire against William, fields today. However Juliet Barker, in her recent John and Thomas Herbert and John and Roger ap Vaughan. 2 He 2 book on Agincourt, reassesses the point in the bat- was Sheriff of Shropshire in 1480 and was present at the corona- tle at which the order is supposedly given and tion of Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII in 1487. 5 He was liv- 4 based on the fact that three French chroniclers have ing in 10 Henry VII (1494), as he appears in a deed , wherein Wil- Erpyngham giving the order before the English liam Hoskins conveys lands in Byton and to him and Joan , his moved to their new position suggest that it was not wife. She was a daughter of Sir John Hackluyt of Eyton and they an order to loose arrows at all but a general order to had two children; Richard and Alice (married Richard Monington). advance toward the French battle line. Tantaliz- There is some confusion over whether it was he or his son Richard ingly the command "Knee-Stretch" is now who was elected Sheriff of Shropshire, in 1499, it was more proba- 3,4 very similar to the "Knee-Bend" order we Beau- bly Richard. forts use today. Ms Barker's argument is given His son Richard was Sheriff of Shropshire in 1499 , and his grand- weight by the fact that immediately after the com- son, also Sir John Harley played a distinguished part in the Battle of mand a second order was given: Flodden, 1513. A descendant Sir Robert Harley , K.B, MP was a " In the name of Almyghti God and of Saint prominent Parliamentarian during the Civil War. 4 George, Avaunt Baner! and Saint George this day thyn helpe!" Battle of Tewkesbury, Peter Hammond. Calendar of Patent Rolls, 1466-77. Supposedly from the Henry V himself and some- Calendar of Fine Rolls, 1471-1485 and 1485-1509 thing more associated with a general advance than Peerage of England, Collins an order once the archers had started lobbing clo- Select Papers chiefly relating to English Antiquities, J Ives, thyards. One final theory, and one which parallels 1773 Mark Hinsley Ms Barkers, argument is that the order meant "No Stakes" and was an order to remove the existing line of defensive stakes planted at the original Eng- lish battle line and advance with them toward the

French. As it is unlikely we will ever know the truth I leave it up to the reader to let their imagination take them back to a muddy field in France and decide on their own favourite ver- sion......

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Beaufort Companye Newsletter The Battle of Guinnegate 1479.

Following the death of Charles the Bold at the battle of Nancy 1477, the Duchy of Burgundy passed to Maximilian, King of the Romans, the son of the Holy Roman emperor, who had married Charles’s daughter Mary. Taking advantage of Burgundy’s weakness, the French aided by Rene, Duke of Lorraine and his Swiss allies, had overrun the Duchy and County of Burgundy and the Somme towns.

In 1479 Phillip de Crevecour, Sieur de Esquardes, known as “Lord Cordes” to the English, had invaded Flanders, with an army of 1,100 Lances of the French Ordonnance companies (7,700 men of which 4,400 were mounted combatants) and 10,000 infantry, 8,000 “Franc-Archiers” raised in imitation of the English bowmen, some of the Paris Militia armed with Polearms, a force of crossbow- men and 37 Serpentines (cannon). Maximillian’s victory was dearly Maximillian had raised an army of 21,000 men, comprising of 16,000 Flemish bought, his losses outnumbering those pikemen, 3600 German Mercenary’s and 500 English Archers under Sir Tho- of the French, (some accounts state mas Everingham. His army was weak in cavalry a mere 800 men and in guns, that 11,000 Burgundians were killed however Maximillian was confident in the training of his infantry and settled or taken), including 1,000 prisoners down to besiege Therouanne which had recently been captured by the French, and almost all of his cavalry, to challenging Esquardes to fight. French losses of approx of 5,000 men

Esquardes rose to the bait and moved on Therouanne and Maximillian took up a defensive position on the hill of Guinnegatte. The superior French cavalry at- tacked on a flank their march concealed by a wood, defeating the Burgundian cavalry which they outnumbered almost 5 to 1. Whilst the Franc-Archiers and French billmen drove the German crossbowmen and English archers back on to the pike phalanx. The garrison of Therouanne, marched to the sound of the guns (400 Lances and 1,500 crossbowmen) , attacked the Burgundian Camp, aided by the French mounted archers from the flanks. Unnerved by the defeat of their cavalry, their vulnerable flanks and rear and flayed by the heavy French cannon fire, the Burgundian foot began to falter. Some 4,000 of the Flemings are said to have fled at this point and a general rout was only averted by the personal ex- ample of Maximillian and Jacques de Savoie, Comte de Romont, who dis- mounted and fought on foot with their men.

From then on the battle turned against the French, as the French cavalry, led by and several cannon. Maximillian sub- d’Esquardes and his second in command de Torcy, left the field in pursuit of the sequently abandoned the siege of Burgundian men-at-arms (and their lucrative ransoms), leaving their foot lead- Therouanne, for which he was much erless. Likewise the garrison of Therouanne and the mounted archers had settled criticised as the garrison had been down to pillage the Burgundian camp. The Burgundians were able to regroup gravely weakened by the battle. and de Romont, with a portion of the infantry drove the French out of the camp. M Hinsley Maximillian with the remaining infantry withstood the attack of the Franc- Archiers who unable to penetrate the front of the pike blocks and suffered sorely from the shot of the Germans and the English interspersed among the pike. The French foot were ultimately routed, and their cannon overrun, when belatedly the French cavalry returned to the field, halting the Burgundian ad- vance and allowing the remainder of the French army to retire.

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The Cookshop - Medieval Fast Food Beaufort Companye Newsletter

A cook chops up meat in this boiled, great and small fish, coarser meats illumination from the 14th-century for the poor, more delicate for the rich includ- Luttrell Psalter (British Library.) ing that of game, fowls, and small birds." He went on to write that however great the multi- tude of soldiers and travellers entering the city the cookshop would not turn away custom at any hour of the day or night.

In medieval England the third alternative to eating at home or having a sit down meal in the local tavern medieval people was to use the cook- shop. These appeared wherever trade and travellers congregated and often became permanent in larger towns and cities located close to the markets and shops. In Bristol there are records of a row of cookshops in the High Street known as Cook’s Row with it’s own cooks Guild and even a Guild Hall.

In 1470 Bristol Town Council’s survey of Cook's Row recorded five cooks and reported that two of the cookshops had hearths at the front of the shop which actually encroached onto the street. Three of them were noted as having "dressing boards" (where the food would be prepared) that also encroached.

Meat could be stewed in a cauldron or roasted on a spit over an open fire and the enticing smell of cooking would waft down the street. Wil- liam Fitzstephen described a cookshop in London "There daily you may find food according to the season, dishes of meat, roast, fried and

Tee to Andy H. Louise & Jayne at Avoncroft Bristol's 1470 Regulations for cooks mention fish, chicken, wildfowl, geese and rabbits as well as pies, hot cakes, pancakes and wafers. “Is that a stave in your The Regulations also banned cooks from sell- ing re-heated meat and tossing stinking water hand or are you just into the High Street, but otherwise the Coun- pleased to see me?” cil's main concern was preventing the cooks from buying up all the best of the fresh pro- duce before the city's housewives had a chance to get at it.

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The Courteney – Bonville Feud

In 1437 the lucrative Stewardship of the Duchy of Cornwall was granted to Sir William Bonville in di- rect rebuke to Thomas Courteney, Earl of , an appointment which would trigger a long and bloody power struggle between the two families. By

1450, the newly created Lord Bonville had strength- ened his position at Court by aligning himself with the Royal favourite, Suffolk, and after his death, the

Duke of Somerset and as a consequence Devon was forced to attach himself to the Duke of York. By 1451 Devon was busy organizing pro-Yorkist riots across the West Country and in the summer felt con- fident enough to risk an encounter in the field with Bonville and besieged him within Taunton Cas- tle. Despite much plunder and violence, a major showdown was avoided when York 's unexpected arrival persuaded Devon to lift the siege. Devon was imprisoned and stripped of his offices with the result that Bonville was able to reinforce his dominance in the region by being made Steward of Cornwall and Constable of Castle for life. In late 1453 York was in a position to have Devon released and the following year, when the country was placed under York 's protectorship, Devon was able to resume his attacks on Bonville until the such time as the level of violence made York once more intervene. In 1455, following York ’s success at the first Battle of St. Albans, Devon upped the ante and ordered the murder of Nicholas Radford, a Jus- tice of the Peace and a former associate of Devon who was now a senior councillor to Bonville. On 23 October Devon’s son along with 100 men attacked When I said can I have the bill , this isn’t what I meant! Radford’s homes and, after promising that Radford and his goods would be preserved, stripped the place, turned Radford's sick wife out of bed and then struck Radford on the head with a glaive “ so that his brain fell out ” before cutting his throat. Devon then instigated a mock coroners inquest and funeral (accompanied by the singing of highly inappropriate songs) which even by the standards of the time generated revulsion and con- demnation throughout the country.

Devon, along with a reported 800 horsemen and 4,000 infantry, then ran amok. On the 3rd November he occupied Exeter , had Rad- ford’s valuables extracted from the cathedral and assaulted every citizens with connections to Bonville. This was followed on 15 November by besieging (with canon) , held by Devon ’s cousin, Sir Philip Courtenay, an ally of Bonville. Bon- ville attempted to relieve the castle but was repulsed and finally on 21 December 1455 battle was joined directly between Devon and Bonville on with the latter put to flight. After the engagement Devon was forced to surrender Exeter and submitted to York at Shaftesbury . Although Devon was imprisoned in the Tower he was released shortly afterward, pardoned and in a sudden switch of loyalties became the Queen’s ally. He died, possibly from poisoning, in early 1458 while trying to broker a peace between the warring sides. As a result of Devon’s switch of allegiance Bonville now threw his lot in with York and both his son and grandson perished at Wakefield . Bonville himself, aged nearly seventy was given custody of the King's person at the second battle of St Al- bans and following the Yorkist defeat he was, at the new ’s instigation, put on trial and executed. Devon would, in turn, lose his head shortly afterwards at Towton.

Ian Brandt

5 How to Make Your Livery Beaufort Companye Newsletter

Liveries make a fighting group and cement its identity on the field. To this end we propose two styles of livery for all members. For men at arms a tabard and for billmen and archers a short sleeved livery coat. All liveries will be halved and not quartered so blue is on the left (over the heart) both front and back with off white on the right, a single portcullis badge is permitted over the heart and should be in gold.

Man-at-arms Livery Tabard (Requires a minimum of three quarter harness) The tabard must be worn over breast and back plate but not the pauldrons, if it does not fit. It can be slightly open at the sides if neces- Back sary and should either lace or buckle at each side. The neck should be v- Measure fronted and v-backed. The lengths of front and back must be equal to centre of either the lowest fauld of the breastplate or just below the crotch. The the livery can be waisted to match the breastplate if desired . shoulder to the same How to make your man-at-arms livery Put on your harness and level as the measure your chest and waist measurements. Measure the length of the Front front and back of the livery from the centre line of the shoulder (these measurements are unlikely to be the same). Use these measurements to make a pattern for your own livery from the diagram.

I recommend making a pattern from blanket or old cotton or any other material and wearing it with your harness to make sure that both will work together. In this way any parts of the livery which catch can be Measure adjusted prior to sewing. centre of the To make your livery cut two halves of the outer from blue and white shoulder to leaving a 1.5 inch seam allowance. Cut a lining from white linen (cotton Front the bottom is acceptable) or white wool if desired. Sew the halves of the livery fauld or just outer together taking care to centre the neck hole. Pin the lining and below the outer together inside out and sew the perimeter. Turn inside out, pin and crotch sew the neck hole (preferably by hand). Add straps and badge as re- quired. Fabric Requirements

Tabard: 1- 1 ½ of each colour wool. An equivalent amount of white linen will be required.

Coat with short sleeves: 1 ½ – 2 ½ of each colour wool. An equivalent amount of white linen will be required.

Sourcing the Fabric: In order to keep the colour the same please source your fabric from Bernie the Bolt. He has a blue that we are using he will be able to identify if you mention the group name. Any ‘off-white’ colour should be suitable, avoid ultra-bleached white or strong cream.

Bernie will be at the Alternative Coventry Market, should you not be able to make it he can post fabric. His details are:

Bernard Hunt 01480 453390

Rectory Farmhouse

Cambridge Road

Godmanchester

Cambs [email protected]

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Billman and Archer’s Livery A flared short coat, open at the front with buttons or points or buckles. The coat gathers at the waist with a belt and is deliberately flared for this purpose. Coat lengths tended to shorten with time and an increase in social status so the longer your coat the poorer and more out of date you look! A livery coat must never be shorter than the top of the codpiece. The sleeves are pleated to give them volume and make them easier to fit. It is permitted for archers to shorten or tighten them if required for loosing but both sleeves should remain symmetrical. a a

Put on any armour you intend to wear and make the following measurements over your armour, jack etc. d • Shoulder seam – from the neck to the top b c d of the shoulder (where your seam of your shirt sleeve is) to get measurement (a)

• At the front measure from the centre of the shoulder to 1 or 2 inches below the crotch Front Back (b)

• At the back make an equivalent measure- ment to the same height as for the front (note: the centre of the shoulder to the top of the leg is a different measurement at both front and back) (c)

• Chest measurements - add four inches to Sleeve f this and divide the total by four to get meas- urement (d) e

• Sleeve length to be twice the circumfer- ence of the arm hole (e) see later for how to obtain this measurement.

Top of the shoulder to the elbow (f)

Using these measurements refer to the diagram below and make a two pattern pieces for the front and back of the garment with a 1.5 inch seam allowance

Pin or sew the two halves together at (a) and the seam under the arm. Put the pattern on over your armour and jack. Cut the arm- hole to size, it should allow free movement but not be too large as the sleeve will only give a minimal restriction. Cut the neck to a V shape front and back. The V can be reasonably deep if required but no lower than the sternum and equivalent at the back.

Measure the circumference of the arm hole and double it to get measurement (e). Cut the two front and back panels remember- ing to get one in each colour and cut a sleeve in each colour as well. Cut equivalent lining panels and remember to leave an inch and a half seam allowance on each cut.

Sew together the outer pieces for the body. Sew the sleeves into a tube at (f). Pin the seam of the sleeve to the under arm seam of the body and pleat the excess sleeve material until it fits the arm hole (note the curved side of the sleeve pattern sews to the armhole of the coat), repeat for the second sleeve. Repeat all for the lining. Turn both outer and lining inside out, put together and sew around the neck and down the front. Turn the garment inside out again so that the outside is on the outside, pin the sleeve seams and sew preferably by hand.

Note at this stage the bottom hem has still not been sewn. Put on the livery with your harness again and ask someone else to pin the hem level. Finally sew the hem preferably by hand.

7 Beaufort Companye Newsletter Bob a Job week begins! Soldiers seen crying into their KNOW YOUR BEAUFORTS beer! George Bewick Archer, Banner bearer, messenger, smothered Prince, footballer, shirt wrecker & dog walker What more could you ask for?

Cookery Corner, Part 12 Pyes de Pares (pies of Paris) Caption Competition: —Master Hield hears of the “try before you buy” offer at PERIOD: England, 15thC| SOURCE: Harleian MS 279 Authentic the “Striped” tent Pies of Paris. Take & cut good pieces of pork, and pieces of veal, Replies to: [email protected] together, & put in a good pot, & add fresh broth, & a quantity of wine, & bring to a boil until done; than take it from the fire, & let it IT'S OFFICIAL...... THE BEAUFORTS ARE cool a little; than add egg yolks, & ginger, sugar, & salt, & minced LOUDER THAN A RIOT. During the April St dates, & currants; then make good pastry, then pie shells, and add; George's Day Fayre at Morley a member of the mounted police contingent politely requested that cover the pie, and bake it, and serve. the raucous calls of "For God, England and St George" be halted temporarily while the Companye passed by MODERN RECIPE: 1 to 1 1/2 lbs. each of pork roast & beef roast the horses as it was scaring them. When Master Brandt pointed out that surely the horses were trained to han- 1 cup red wine 1 cup beef stock 1 1/2 cup currants 1 cup diced dle lots of noise in riot situations the officer replied " dates 8 egg yolks 1 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tbs. ginger 2 tbs. sugar yes, they are..... but not that loud". 1 9" pie shell with lid.

Chop meat into small pieces. Place in pot, add wine and broth. (If needed, add enough extra wine & broth so that the liquid just reaches the top of the meat.) Bring to a boil, then reduce heat & cook over medium heat until meat is done. Drain meat, reserving some of the liquid. Add remaining ingredients to meat, mixing thoroughly. Add enough of the reserved liquid to moisten meat mix- ture and make it just slightly runny. Place mixture in pie

shell, add lid, and bake at 375° F for 45 minutes or until a golden brown.

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