Received in the time of William de Grantham and

Nicholas Chaucer, Wardens, 1349.

WILCOT CANSTONE,

RICHARD GRace,

JENKYN GADFrey,
PHELYPOT FARNHAM,

SIR JOHN DE LONDRES, a

Parfon of St. Anthony,
WILLIAM HANAPSTEDE, JUN.

JOHN WESTON,

JOHN ZONGE,

JOHN FLAN,

THOMEKYN GRANTHAM,

JOHN OTERLE,

SIMON STAPILFORDE,

WILCOT COSYN.

1375.

The yearly meetings continued to be held regularly; 1350 to and, from 1350 to 1375* no variation took place, fave an increase in the number of the Fraternity. Their common stock was delivered, from year to year, to the newly-elected Wardens by their predeceffors, and the details may be found in the voluminous and monotonous entries of Wardens' accounts. In 1376, new Ordinances were made, fome of which continue in full vigour to the present day, particularly that which relates to the coronation of new Wardens in the presence of the livery. The following are extracts:

* I should here mention that, in 1359 occurs the first instance of a charitable allowance by the Company, viz. “6d. a week to Thomas Lutier," and, also, 6d. a week for falary to John Leanter, the firft Beadle of the Company.

Crowning the Mafters.

Drdinances made the 20th of August, 1376.

In the name of God and in the 50th year of the reign of King Edward the Third, for advancing the honour of God and his holy Church, and for enlarging the hour of charity, the Grocers of London, with one accord and confent, have ordained and established, to ftrictly observe, for ever, the following Drdinances :

They have ordained that all the Company of this Mystery shall affemble once in every year, in the month of May and dine together, which dinner shall be ordered and provided by the two Masters for the time being and, after dinner, or, in the quaint wording of the original, "when the mangerie was ended," the Wardens were to " come wyth garlonds on ther hedes," and the Company were to choose for their three Wardens for the year following, thofe " upon whom the forfeid garlondes fhallen bee fett," and to them should" bee delyvered" all money, papers, &c. which belonged to the Fraternity, under penalty of £10;

and, if it pleases the Mafters to choose one of the Company who should not be then prefent, the garland or chaplet shall be fent by the Company's Beadle to

the house of him who is so chofen and not prefent, and he shall accept of the office without any refusal, if he shall be in town, or, if out of town, he fhall accept of the office on his first return; or, if any of the Fraternity, whether prefent or abfent, being chofen in manner aforefaid, fhall refuse the office, he shall pay, within eight days enfuing, ten marks for the falary of a prieft for one year, or, otherwife, be turned out of the Company; and that the new Masters do accept the charges after-mentioned, that is to fay, that they shall convene four meetings in the year, principally to treat of the common business of the Mystery, namely, one meeting to be in the month of May, another in Auguft, the third in November and the fourth in February, to perform the above-mentioned articles and well and loyally keep and maintain all the ordinances already made, and to be made, for the common good, and by the common affent of the Fraternity; and they shall promise, bonâ fide, according to the utmost of their power, without having regard to any fingle profit or favour of any person, that they will render a true and faithful account of all their receipts to the new Masters, in the presence of fix good people of the Company, to be chosen for that purpose.

In 1379, the Company being fully and firmly eftablished, several additional regulations were made and, among the reft, one which appointed the first Court of Affiftants; fix affociates or affiftants were chofen to aid the Wardens in the discharge of their duties :

* In the original, the refolution is thus worded: "At ye furst congregacyon of ye Wardeyns there shall be chosin sir of ye Companie to be helpyng and counsellynge of y' fame Wardeyns for the peere followinge."

1379.

1383. Aldermen of the

they were to be elected annually and to forfeit 12d. every time they failed in their attendance.

The Company gradually increased in numbers; their affairs went on profperously and I cannot give a stronger Company. proof of the importance which they attained, than by ftating that, in the year 1383, there were no less than fixteen Aldermen of London, at one time, enrolled among their members; their names, many of which are of great celebrity, are as follows:

ALDERMAN SIR NICHOLAS BREMBRE,
SIR JOHN HADDELEY,
JOHN WARDE,

WILLIAM BARRETT,

ADAM CARLYL,

ADAM CHAUNGEOR,

JOHN HOO,

HUGH FALStolfe,

GEFFREY CREMYLFORD,

WILLIAM BADBY,

SIR WILLIAM STANDON,

RICHARD AYLESBURY,

JOHN FURNEUX,

WILLIAM EYVESHAM,

RICHARD PRESTOR,

JOHN CHURCHMAN.

The Fraternity, after holding their meetings for feveral years at the Abbot of Bury's, as before mentioned, at the Hotel of the Abbot of St. Cross, and at Fulsham's house at the Rynged Hall, appear to have taken up their temporary refidence in Bucklersbury, at a place called the Cornet's Tower, which had been

used by Edward the Third at the beginning of his reign, as his exchange of money and exchequer.* Here the Company began to exercise the functions entrusted to them, of fuperintending the public weighing of merchandize, a privilege procured for them, no doubt, by John Churchman, a member of the fellowship, fome account of whofe life will be found in another part of this volume. The lift of the weights attached to this establishment is detailed in a note, anno 1398, in which it is stated, that they are depofited “ in domo com. nræ. m. Gro. in Bokelersbury;" that is," in the house of our community of the mystery of Grocers in Bucklersbury."

Having afterwards obtained a license to purchase of the Lord Fitzwalter the chapel in the Old Jewry, as before stated, together with a portion of the faid Lord's domain, they proceeded in 1427, to build them

*"This tower, of late yeeres, was taken down by one Buckle, a Grocer, meaning, in place thereof, to have fet up and builded a goodly frame of timber; but the said Buckle, greedily labouring to pull down the old tower, a part thereof fell upon him, which fo fore bruised him, that his life was thereby fhortened, and another man married his widow, set up the new prepared frame of timber, and finished the work.” Stowe's Survaie, p. 276.

+ "So confiderable in the city were the Grocers long before that time, (the reign of Henry VI.) that they may be well presumed (time out of mind) to have had the management of the King's beam, as an office peculiar to them; not only as principally using the same, but as being originally vested therein, they having had all along (beyond the memory of man) the naming of the weighmaster, and the naming, placing, removing, and governing of the four porters attending that office, all to be elected out of their own Company, and to be fworn at their own hall, a privilege allowed them as their undoubted and feparate right, as ancient as that office itself, used in the city.”—Ravenhill, Short Account of the Company of Grocers.

‡ See page 3. .

1427.