Skip to main content
Service phase: Beta

This is a new way to search our records, which we're still working on. Alternatively you can search our existing catalogue, Discovery.

Item

William Melton, Archbishop of York; Abbot and convent of Fountains and their tenants;...

Catalogue reference: SC 8/11/504

What’s it about?

This record is about the William Melton, Archbishop of York; Abbot and convent of Fountains and their tenants;... dating from [1327] in the series Special Collections: Ancient Petitions. It is held at The National Archives, Kew.

Access information is unavailable

Sorry, information for accessing this record is currently unavailable online. Please try again later.

Full description and record details

Reference
SC 8/11/504
Date
[1327]
Description
Petitioners
William Melton, Archbishop of York; Abbot and convent of Fountains and their tenants; Community of Wharfedale.
Name(s)
Melton, William
Addressees
King and council.
Occupation
Archbishop of York
Nature of request
The petitioners request remedy concerning their lands and tenements which they hold in Wharfedale adjoining the free chase of Knaresborough. They show that King John once drew the lands into the forest, but afterwards disafforested them by his charter. However the foresters make charges upon the petitioners, take their profits from amercements for trespass, and extort corn from each bovate of land in Wharfedale as if their lands were in the forest.
Nature of endorsement
He should show the charter in Chancery, which once it has been seen in that place, and the keeper or steward of the forest of Knaresborough that they should cease taking those exactions of puture which they made, and they should not impede the archbishop or the others from doing what they wish with the wood, and they are not to intermeddle in anything which pertains to the forest against the tenor of the charter.
Places mentioned
Quervedale (Wharfedale), [West Riding of Yorkshire]
Knaresborough, [West Riding of Yorkshire].
People mentioned
John, King of England
Foresters of Knaresborough.
Note
Although this should be dated to 1328 by the heading in Rot. Parl., vol II, p.13 which records that this is from a Hale manuscript of petitions in parliament of 2 Edward III, the petition seems in fact to date from before July 1327 when it is referred to as part of ongoing proceedings over Wharfedale.
Related material

For a copy of the charter of King John see SC 8/11/505

For a duplicate of this petition see SC 8/257/12835

For a related petition see SC 8/257/12832

Held by
The National Archives, Kew
Former department reference
Parliamentary Petition 9006
Legal status
Public Record(s)
Language
French
Closure status
Open Document, Open Description
Publication note(s)
  • Calendar of Close Rolls, Edw III, vol. I, 1327-1330, (Public Record Office, 1896), pp.146-7 (writ to the justices to proceed with the matter concerning the forest)
  • Rotuli Parliamentorum; ut et Petitiones, et Placita in Parliamento, vol. II, Edw III, (Record Commission, 1783), pp.24b-25a (no.32) (full edition of a later copy of the original petition)
  • The Parliament Rolls of Medieval England, Ed. Paul Brand, Anne Curry, Chris Given-Wilson, Rosemary Horrox, W.M. Ormrod and J.R.S. Phillips, (Cambridge University Press, 2005), Appendix of Unedited Petitions, 1307-1337, Rotuli Parliamentorum II, pp. 13-30, no. 32 (summary of references)
Record URL
https://beta.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/id/C9060631/

Series information

SC 8

Special Collections: Ancient Petitions

See the series level description for more information about this record.

View series description

Catalogue hierarchy

Over 27 million records

This record is held at The National Archives, Kew

74,884 records

Within the department: SC

Records of various departments, arranged artificially according to type, and formerly...

18,283 records

Within the series: SC 8

Special Collections: Ancient Petitions

60 records

Within the piece: SC 8/11

501-550. Individual petitions are described , dated, and are available at item level.

You are currently looking at the item: SC 8/11/504

William Melton, Archbishop of York; Abbot and convent of Fountains and their tenants;...

Related records

Records that share similar topics with this record.