Merchants of the Hanse of Almain residing in the city of London.. . . of the present...

Petitioners

Merchants of the Hanse of Almain residing in the city of London.

Addressees

. . . of the present parliament.

Nature of request

The merchants of the Hanse of Almain residing in the city of London state that John Perveys and Ralph Barton, formerly sheriffs of London, in their time [wrongly] demanded from them various customs and payments, and they have been greatly harassed for these both by these sheriffs and by all Sheriffs since, contrary to the form and purport of [their charters]; and they have complained at various times and to various parliaments to have a remedy for this. And both when Thomas Knolles was Mayor of London, in the year of the reign of king . . . Mayor of the same city in the fifth year of the reign of Henry V, the merchants sued their complaint by process of law before the said Mayor; at which time the Mayor and Aldermen, seeing that the said merchants were unduly . . . contrary to the form and effect of their charters, decided that the merchants of the Hanse would henceforth be quit of such demands. However, Nicholas James and Thomas Wandesford, the current Sheriffs, refuse to let their merchandise pass without these customs and payments, and Ertmere Swart... and Tideman [Cri]stenbergh, merchants of the Hanse, have been bound by substantial recognisances in Chancery to sue before the said . . .. The merchants have always had a suitable person from the city of London, called an Alderman, to determine cases perpetrated . . . but now they are barred from having such a person. They request a remedy.

Nature of endorsement

. . . this petition by the Sheriffs of London, let the parties be instructed to appear before the lords of parliament on a certain day to be decided by them, to answer to the said petition. And as for having their Alderman as the petition mentions, the petitioners are to have their Alderman as they used to formerly.

Places mentioned

Almain (Almaine, Germany)

London.

People mentioned

John Perveys, sheriff of London

Ralph Barton, sheriff of London

Thomas Knolles, Mayor of London

Nicholas James, sheriff of London

Thomas Wandesford (Wansford), sheriff of London

Ertmere Swart..., merchant of the Hanse

Tideman [Cri]stenbergh, merchant of the Hanse.

For a related petition from the same petitioners, see SC 8/24/1180

For a related petition, see SC 8/24/1179

• Calendar of Close Rolls, Hen VI, vol. I, 1422-1429, (Public Record Office, 1933), pp.49-50 (writ of supersedeas resulting from this petition)
• Rotuli Parliamentorum; ut et Petitiones, et Placita in Parliamento, vol. IV, Hen V and Hen VI, (Record Commission, 1783), p.192a (no. 1) (full edition of a related petition from the same petitioners)