STAC 5/N1/25

From Waalt

STAC 5/N1/25 - B A - 30 Eliz - - Dame Mary Newnham, Cicely Maydenhead widows v John Sherif, John King, John Colgan

Transcribed by Helen Good

Bill

To the Queenes moste exelente majestie

Moste Humble and lamentable Complayning sheweth unto your moste exelente majestye your Highnes moste humble and obedyent Subjectes, Dame Mary Newnham and Cycily maydenhead wydowes That whereas Jaques wingefielde Esquire decesed, your said Subjectes naturall Brother, late Mr of your Majestes Ordynaunce in your Highnes Realme of Ireland, was in his lief tyme leafullie possessed of & in dyvers mannors messuages Landes and Tenementes, within your majestes Realme of Ireland, for dyvers and many yeares yett enduringe, of a very greate value, and was also possessed of and in sundry goodes Chattles plate and juelles, wythin the Realme of Englande to the value of Two Thowsande poundes of lawfull English money, and so beinge thereof possessed; your said Subjectes and others his nearest kinred and alyes, dyd aswell duringe the healthe of the said Jaques wyngefield, as since in, or neare aboute Auguste laste paste, in the time of his laste sicknes whereof he dyed, often move and ernestlie solicite him the said Jaques wingefield to dispose of his said leases and termes for yeares in the premyses and also of all other his goodes and Chattles movable & unmovable eyther by his laste will and Testament, or otherwyse; but the said Jaques wingefield beinge in hope of longer lief, did still refuse to doe the same, answeringe neverthelesse as well to your said Subjectes, as to others his frendes which moved him thereunto, that he wolde deferr the doinge thereof untill his goinge into Irelande, And that after he had there determyned all such Accomptes wherewith by reason of his said office he staide Charged unto your Majestie: That then he wolde presentlie dispose of all his said leases Termes for yeare /\ goodes /\ and Chattle[ ] accordinge as he shold thinke meete. And where further the said Jaques wingefield in Auguste laste paste died intestate, possessed of the said leases goodes & Chattles, without any order taken for the disposinge eyther of the same leases and termes for yeares, or of any other his said goodes and Chattles movable or unmovable, your said Subjectes being his naturall Systers of the wholle bloode, and the nexte of his kinn, and havinge the admynistracion of all the leases goodes and Chattles which weare the said Jaques wingefielde to them in lawfully and duly Commytted, aswell by letters of admynistracion to them graunted by the Right Reverend father in god the now Archbushopp of Canterbury as otherwyse, dyd take upon them the admynistracion of all the said leases, goodes & Chattles of the said Jaques wyngefield, and were & are by vertue thereof lawfully intytuled thereunto, and did quietly & orderlye proceade in the admynistracion of sundry the same leases goodes and Chattles accordinglie. But nowe so yt ys, yf yt maye please your exelent majestie That one John Sherieffe sometymes servante to the said Jaque wingefield beinge ann Irishman borne, and beinge a man of whom the said Jaques had neyther likeinge or good opynion for the space of a yeare and more, before his death for that the same Sherieffe had both defrauded your majestie, of greate Somes of money and had greatlie and falsly abused and deceaved, his said Master in dyvers waightie thinges Committed to him in truste, by the same Jaques wingfield, Dyd sythence the laste of June in the xxixth year of your Majestes moste prosperous raigne; That is to say in or very neare about the moneth of September in the said xxixth yeare of your moste gracious Raigne upon his owne wicked heade and Imaginacion, wyttingly subtilly and falsly forge make and frame, or did Cause or procure, to be falsely wyttinglie, and subtily, forged and made a false forged and untrue writinge, in the name of the saide Jaques wingefiield, geavinge an untrue antedate to the same viz. the xvijth daye of Auguste .1586. mencyoninge and Conteynninge in the same, That the said Jaques wingefielde had thereby geaven and freely bestoed unto and upon the said John Sherieffe, all and singuler the landes goodes Tenementes Chattles movables and unmovables which the said Jaques had or might have aswell within the Realme of England, as also in the Realme of Irelande, and also all Arrerages that might growe or in any way Come unto the said Jaques as due unto him upon his Accomptes unto her Majestie by vertue of his office there; To have and to hold the whole occupynge and possession to the /\ use of the /\ said John Sherieffe or his Assignes for ever. To the which false and forged wrytinge so antedated, the said John Sherieffe did after the makinge thereof, That is to saye, in the said monethes of August or September in the said xxixth yeare of your Majestes moste happie and prosperous raigne, moste wickedly of his owne heade and Imaginacion sixe, or procure to be fixed, a peice of waxe, and made or Caused to be made a printe or Seale upon the same waxe, as though the same had bein Sealed by the same Jaques wingefielde, and the said John Sherieffe at the same tyme did also subscribe, or Caused to be subscribed unto the said false writinge, the name of the said Jaques wingfield, and did also after that wryte, or Cause to be wryten a subscripcion upon the same tyme false wrytinge, ymportinge, that the same was sealed and delivered in the presentes of one John Kinge beinge a Carpenter, and one John Colgon a dier, both Irishmen borne, and men of very poore and nedy estates & Condicion dependinge greatly upon the maynetenance and relieffe of the said John Sherief. And afterwardes the said John Sherieffe John Kinge and John Colgan in the moneth of november laste paste falsely and subtilly conspired together, howe they might geave Credite and Countenance to that false and forged Deed. Whereupon for further and better Colloringe and strenghtininge of the said lewde practises and forgery the said John Sherieffe John kinge and John Colgan in November last paste agreed, that the said John Sheryffe shold exhibyte the same false and forged writinge, before the Towne Clerke of the Cytie of London, And that there upon the said John kinge and John Colgon shold depose and Testyfie upon there Corporall othes, that the said false writinge was sealed and delivered by the said Jaques wingfield, unto the said Sherieffe at the daye, in which the said forged writinge was made to beare date, Accordinge to which said Conspinacy the said John Kinge and John Colgan, by the procurement and subornacion of the said John Sherieffe, in November aforesaid, took their corporall othes before Sir Thomas Ramsey, and Sir George Barnes knightes, Aldermen of the Cytye of London, to depose there knowledge truly touchinge the said wrytinge, and the sealinge and delivery thenell, where upon they repayred to William Sebright, Towne Clerke of the said Cytie of London, to be examyned thereof upon their said other, as wyrnesses on the behalf of the said Sheryffe, to prove the said false and forged wrytinge to be made, sealed , and delivered, by the said Jaques wingfield unto him the said John Thewyffe, and the said John kinge, and John Colgan, by the wicked procurement & subornacion of the said John Sherieffe, did moste wickedlie, falsely, and Corruptlly, severally sweare and depose upon there said Corporall othes in November aforesaid, before the said Towne Clerke, that the said Jaques wingefield in his last tyme. viz: in Auguste, was Twelvmoneth then paste, did willingly subscribe, seale, and delyver as his Acte and Deed absolutely, the said untrue and forged wrytinge, to the use of the said John Sherieffe, after which false and untrue deposicions so made, the said John Sherreffe in December last paste, for a further Credicte to the said false and forged wrytinge, Caused the said wrytinges to be inrowled within the office of the said Towne Clerke, and an exemplificion to be made of the same untrue deposicion, and the seale of the Cytye of london, to be fixed to the same forged wrytinge and the exemplificacion aforesaid where as in truth the said writinge was never made Sealed or delivered by the said Jaques wingefield nor by his pryvytie, or knowledge, But was wholly framed ingrossed and Contryved by the said Shereiffe and by his meanes after, or not longe before the decease of the said Jaques wingefield, By the makinge of which false, untrue othes, and deposicions, they the said John Kinge, and John Colgan, upon the Conspiracie aforesaid, and by the wicked subornacion & procurement of the said John Sherieffe, have moste Corruptly, wickedly, and falsly demeyned them selve, And for as much as the forgery Cospiracye false deposicions practices and offences aforesaid are most odyous and detestable and Contrary to your Majestes lawes and the quiet and good governement of your Realme and people and in Contempt thereof. And therefore worthie to be punyshed with all manner of severitie to Thende that other persons of like evell and wicked disposicions maye by thexample thereof be discorraged to Comitt the like maye yt therefore please your moste exelent majestie for the spedy punyshinge of the said offences and for the suppressinge of all such lewde and wicked practyces that the said John Sherieffe John kinge and John Colgan beinge nowe prysoners in the Fleete may accordinge to ann order already taken in your Majestes Courte of Stare Chamber in that behalf make present answere to the premyses to Thende that there upon such further order maye be taken for punyshinge of the said offendors as the qualytie of there offences deserveth and your said subjectes shall contynewally /\ accordinge /\ to their bounden duties praye for the long and blessed Raigne of your Majestie. &c.