Pleas of the Crown; Assizes of Edward III, Henry IV, Henry V; in French; London?, England, 1410 × 1415

Title

Pleas of the Crown; Assizes of Edward III, Henry IV, Henry V; in French; London?, England, 1410 × 1415

Shelfmark

Exeter College MS. 134

Place of origin

London?, England

Date

1410 × 1415

Language

Anglo-Norman

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

parchment FHHF

Physical extent

185 leaves of which fol. 1 is a raised pastedown and fols. 2v–7v are blank. There are many other blank leaves or half-leaves.

Hands

Anglicana by several scribes, but with secretary a and sometimes r, and all strongly influenced by secretary. Punctuated by low point.

Decoration

On fol. 18r is a 10-line illuminated initial with extenders forming a bar-frame border on three sides; blue and rose are the only colours. On fols. 99v, 138r, and 175r are 5-, 7-, and 6-line illuminated initials respectively, each with colours blue and crimson. Elsewhere 1/3-line blue lombards flourished red, blue paraphs flourished red, red running titles. Alexander and Temple, no. 385.

Binding

Sewn on five bands between slightly cushion-bevelled wooden boards covered with pink whittawed leather (s. xv). The cords enter the boards through tunnels in the edge and are secured with wooden pegs. On the front cover are the remains of two pink leather straps each held by three nails and there are corresponding catches on the back cover, each held by a single nail.

Provenance

Probably written in London, on art-historical evidence between 1410 and 1415. On fol. 1v are ‘Johannes Tallemach de Benteley’, i.e. John Tollemache of Bentley, 1419–77, and, also in his hand ‘Fuit homo missus a deo cuius nomen erat Iches’.

On fol. 183v is ‘Est liber Lioneli Talemache’ and on fol. 184r, in the same hand, is ‘Possessor Huius libri est Lionelli Talmache De Helmyngham’, i.e. Lionel Tollemache of Helmingham Hall, Norfolk, d. 1552 (the first of seven successive owners named Lionel but datable from his handwriting). On these men see E. D. H. Tollemache, The Tollemaches of Helmingham and Ham (Ipswich, 1949), at pp. 30 and 32, 34–9 respectively.

At the top of fol. 2r is ‘Wallworthe’ (s. xv, unexplained). ‘Robert Gray’ (fol. 185v, in a legal hand of c. 1500) and ‘John Markham’ (three times, in a legal hand, s. xviin) and ‘Markham’ (once) on the same page are difficult to fit into a succession of owners.

‘Liber Lanceloti Lake Hospitij Lincoln. Anno Domini 1633º’ (fol. 2r) is the ex libris of the third son of Sir Thomas Lake of Canons who was admitted to Lincoln’s Inn in February 1625/6 and may provide the connection with the next known owners, the Glynne family, since William Glynne, son and heir of William Glynn of Lleyar, co. Caernarvon, was admitted there in 1631/2.

On fol. 2r is ‘53. Placita Coronæ de anno regis Edwardi tertii tricesimo; et Assisæ ab anno 19 Ed. III ad 8 Henr: IV. vide Catal: MSS Glynne Barti’ (s. xviii), referring to the catalogue of the library of Sir William Glynne (CMA. ii. 49–54, no. 1977. 53), with the majority of whose manuscripts the book came to Exeter by bequest of Joseph Sandford: see MS 87, History.

Exeter library identifications are, inside the front cover, the book stamp; on fol. 1r, the book stamp and ‘MS. 134’; on the spine, ‘12’ on a round paper label and ‘53’ on a square paper label.