William Collingbourne
Encyclopedia
William Collingbourne was an English landowner and administrator. He was an opponent of King Richard III
- corresponding with his enemies and penning a famous lampoon
- and was eventually executed for treason.
and Collingbourne Ducis
in Wiltshire
. His first known ancestor was a Thomas Colynborn, of Marleberg, who lived before 1377. Thomas' grandson Richard Collingbourne, of Bedewynde, was Clerk of the Peace in Wiltshire in 1390, Member of Parliament
for Marlborough in 1402 and Collector of Taxes in 1413 and 1417. He married Jean Russel and had three sons called Robert, John and William. This William attended college 1422-1427 and received several offices from 1441 to 1462. However, he was probably not the William Collingbourne of historical fame but rather his uncle, as a namesake is mentioned as the son of Robert Collingbourne.
Sometime before 1474, he married Margaret, daughter and heiress of John Norwood and widow to a Sir James Pykeryng. From her first marriage, Margaret had at least two children - Edward and Elen. Her second marriage produced two daughters: Margaret, who later married a George Chaderton, and Jane, who married a James Louder, MP for Marlbourough in 1491/92.
. In the 1470s, he was commissioner in the enquiry of farms for land grants and money in Wiltshire and involved in actions against trespasses and debts, mostly against defendants from Kent, which suggests that he had acquired property in that county as well.
Collingbourne held several administrative posts in Wiltshire; he served as sheriff in 1474 and 1481 and as Commissioner of Peace in 1475 and 1478-1481. In 1475 he was named as one who would "enquire into certain treasons, Lloardries, heresies and errors" in Dorset and Wiltshire, in a list that also included King Edward
's brothers, the Dukes of Clarence
and Gloucester
. After the execution of Clarence in 1478, Collingbourne was among those enquiring into his possession in the counties of Southampton and Wiltshire. In 1481 and 1482, he is mentioned as being in charge of two manors in Wiltshire. After the death of Edward IV in April 1483, he appointed to a Commission "to assess certain subsidies granted to the late King by the commons of the realm" and, in July, once more Commissioner of Peace.
acceeded the throne as King Richard III. Soon afterwards, Collingbourne positioned himself in opposition of the new King. In October, he was most probably involved in the Duke of Buckingham's revolt in favour of Henry Tudor
. Both Walter Hungerford
and John Cheyne, who had served with Collingbourne on the commissions of 1478 and April 1483, were among the leaders of the revolt.
Around 10 July in either 1483 or 1484, Collingbourne asked a Thomas Yate to contact Henry Tudor
, the Marquess of Dorset
and other opponents of Richard, "to declare unto them that they should very well to return into England with all such power as they might get before the feeat of St Luke the Evangelist
[18 October] next ensuring" and and furthermore to advice the French king, that negotiations with Richard were useless as the new King meant to make war on France.
The year of this correspondence is a matter of controversy: James Gairdner
placed it in context of Buckingham's rebellion - during which Henry Tudor indeed tried to land at - and hence dated in July 1483. Gairdner argued, among other things, that Collingbourne's correspondence located Henry Tudor at Britanny (which he had left by 1484) and that Henry's attempt to land at Poole
in Dorset
in November 1483 corresponds with Collingbourne's message. Such an interpretation would put the letter in the immediate aftermath of Richard's coronation on 6 July and before the new King set out for his royal progress; this would make Collingbourne - in Gairdner's words - "almost the very first man to make any move against the usurper". Accordingly, Gairdner's interpretation has been contradicted by other historians, most notably Paul Murray Kendall
, who dated the treasonous correspondence in July 1484 and thus in context of his lampoon. Kendall argued both the Marquess of Dorset's joining of Henry Tudor and negotiations with French amabassadors occurred only in 1484, whereas the mentioning of Britanny and Poole was not conclusive evidence.
Collingbourne was indicted not only for his correspondence with Henry Tudor, but also for "writing various bills and writings in rhyme", without specifying the rhymes. Robert Fabyan
's chronicle, published in 1516, first relate that in July 1484, Collingbourne pinned the following lampoon to the door of St. Paul's Cathedral:
The rhyme attacked King Richard and his three principal aides by referring to their names and heraldic emblems: the "hog" of course referred to King Richard, whose badge was a white boar, the "Lovell our dog" to Francis Viscount Lovell
, who was Richard's closest associate and had a silver wolf as emblem. The "cat" and the "rat" made fun of the names of William Catesby
, who furthermore had a white cat as his badge, and Richard Ratcliffe
. The two-liner was latter embellished, amended with an explanation, supposedly by the author himself, and included into the Mirror for Magistrates.
The reasons for Collingbourne's enmity are not entirely clear. In 1892, James H. Ramsay suggested that the lampoon was written "in revenge for the loss of offices in Wiltshire". Collingbourne's name does not appear among the commissions of peace in December 1483. Furthermore, in a letter of 3 June 1484, by King Richard asked his mother Cecily Neville, Duchess of York
that "my lord Chamberlain
... be your officer in Wiltshire in such as Colyngbourne had". This suggests that Collingbourne had been steward of the Duchess' Wiltshire lands and that both his correspondence and his lampoon were written in response to having lost this position. This loss may have been linked to his involvement in Buckingham's rebellion, either because he was dismissed or because he went into hiding. If his post was eventually filled by the Lord Chamberlain, Francis Viscount Lovell
, this would further explain Collingbourne's ire against Richard's closest associate.
, which included the Dukes of Suffolk
, Norfolk
, the Earls of Surrey
and Nottingham
, the Vicounts Lovell
and Lisle, three barons including Lord High Constable
Thomas Stanley
and five justices of the King's Bench
, including chief justice William Hussey
. The trial was held in early December at Guilhall
; Collingbourne was convicted of high treason and sentenced to death, Turburvyle sentenced to prison, apparently on a lesser charge.
Collingbourne was subsequently executed at Tower Hill
by hanging, drawing and quartering
. A story by Tudor historian John Stow
recounts his end: "After having been hanged, he was cut down immediately and his entrails were then extracted and thrown into the fire, and all this was so speedily done that when the executioners pulled out his heart he spoke and said, 'Oh Lord Jesus, yet more trouble!'"
Tudor author Edward Hall
relates that he was executed merely "for making a small rhyme", a claim taken up by later authors., but historian Charles Ross
pointed out, that Hall "carefully suppresses the fact that the real indictment against him was that he had been encouraging Henry Tudor
to land at Poole".
Richard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
- corresponding with his enemies and penning a famous lampoon
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
- and was eventually executed for treason.
Family background and marriage
Colingbourne's family originated from the villages bearing their name - Collingbourn AbbasCollingbourne Kingston
Collingbourne Kingston is a village and civil parish about south of the market town of Marlborough in Wiltshire, England. It is one of several villages on the River Bourne, which is a seasonal river usually dry in summer....
and Collingbourne Ducis
Collingbourne Ducis
Collingbourne Ducis is a village and civil parish on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England. It is one of several villages on the River Bourne, which is a seasonal river usually dry in summer.The United Kingdom Census 2001 recorded a parish population of 849....
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. His first known ancestor was a Thomas Colynborn, of Marleberg, who lived before 1377. Thomas' grandson Richard Collingbourne, of Bedewynde, was Clerk of the Peace in Wiltshire in 1390, Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Marlborough in 1402 and Collector of Taxes in 1413 and 1417. He married Jean Russel and had three sons called Robert, John and William. This William attended college 1422-1427 and received several offices from 1441 to 1462. However, he was probably not the William Collingbourne of historical fame but rather his uncle, as a namesake is mentioned as the son of Robert Collingbourne.
Sometime before 1474, he married Margaret, daughter and heiress of John Norwood and widow to a Sir James Pykeryng. From her first marriage, Margaret had at least two children - Edward and Elen. Her second marriage produced two daughters: Margaret, who later married a George Chaderton, and Jane, who married a James Louder, MP for Marlbourough in 1491/92.
Land owner and adminstrator
According to the sources, a William Collingbourne amassed land in north-east Wiltshire, but also acquired property in the City of LondonCity of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. In the 1470s, he was commissioner in the enquiry of farms for land grants and money in Wiltshire and involved in actions against trespasses and debts, mostly against defendants from Kent, which suggests that he had acquired property in that county as well.
Collingbourne held several administrative posts in Wiltshire; he served as sheriff in 1474 and 1481 and as Commissioner of Peace in 1475 and 1478-1481. In 1475 he was named as one who would "enquire into certain treasons, Lloardries, heresies and errors" in Dorset and Wiltshire, in a list that also included King Edward
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
's brothers, the Dukes of Clarence
George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence
George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, 1st Earl of Salisbury, 1st Earl of Warwick, KG was the third son of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and Cecily Neville, and the brother of kings Edward IV and Richard III. He played an important role in the dynastic struggle known as the Wars of the...
and Gloucester
Richard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
. After the execution of Clarence in 1478, Collingbourne was among those enquiring into his possession in the counties of Southampton and Wiltshire. In 1481 and 1482, he is mentioned as being in charge of two manors in Wiltshire. After the death of Edward IV in April 1483, he appointed to a Commission "to assess certain subsidies granted to the late King by the commons of the realm" and, in July, once more Commissioner of Peace.
Opponent of Richard III
In June 1483, the Duke of GloucesterRichard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
acceeded the throne as King Richard III. Soon afterwards, Collingbourne positioned himself in opposition of the new King. In October, he was most probably involved in the Duke of Buckingham's revolt in favour of Henry Tudor
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
. Both Walter Hungerford
Walter Hungerford
Walter Hungerford may refer to:*Walter Hungerford, 1st Baron Hungerford, d.1449, English nobleman and Speaker of the House of Commons*Walter Hungerford, 1st Baron Hungerford of Heytesbury, 1503–1540, first person in England to be executed under secular anti-homosexuality laws*Sir Walter Hungerford...
and John Cheyne, who had served with Collingbourne on the commissions of 1478 and April 1483, were among the leaders of the revolt.
Around 10 July in either 1483 or 1484, Collingbourne asked a Thomas Yate to contact Henry Tudor
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
, the Marquess of Dorset
Thomas Grey, 1st Marquess of Dorset
Thomas Grey, 7th Baron Ferrers of Groby, 1st Earl of Huntingdon and 1st Marquess of Dorset, KG , was an English nobleman, courtier and a man of mediocre abilities pushed into prominence by his mother Elizabeth Woodville's second marriage to the king, Edward IV.-Family:Thomas was born about 1455,...
and other opponents of Richard, "to declare unto them that they should very well to return into England with all such power as they might get before the feeat of St Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist was an Early Christian writer whom Church Fathers such as Jerome and Eusebius said was the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles...
[18 October] next ensuring" and and furthermore to advice the French king, that negotiations with Richard were useless as the new King meant to make war on France.
The year of this correspondence is a matter of controversy: James Gairdner
James Gairdner
James Gairdner was a British historian. Specializing in 15th century and Early Tudor history, he among other tasks edited the Letters and Papers, foreign and domestic, of the reign of Henry VIII series....
placed it in context of Buckingham's rebellion - during which Henry Tudor indeed tried to land at - and hence dated in July 1483. Gairdner argued, among other things, that Collingbourne's correspondence located Henry Tudor at Britanny (which he had left by 1484) and that Henry's attempt to land at Poole
Poole
Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
in Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
in November 1483 corresponds with Collingbourne's message. Such an interpretation would put the letter in the immediate aftermath of Richard's coronation on 6 July and before the new King set out for his royal progress; this would make Collingbourne - in Gairdner's words - "almost the very first man to make any move against the usurper". Accordingly, Gairdner's interpretation has been contradicted by other historians, most notably Paul Murray Kendall
Paul Murray Kendall
Paul Murray Kendall was an American academic and historian. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Frankford High School in 1928. In 1932 he received an Bachelor of Arts from the University of Virginia. He received an Master's degree in 1933, also from U of V...
, who dated the treasonous correspondence in July 1484 and thus in context of his lampoon. Kendall argued both the Marquess of Dorset's joining of Henry Tudor and negotiations with French amabassadors occurred only in 1484, whereas the mentioning of Britanny and Poole was not conclusive evidence.
Collingbourne was indicted not only for his correspondence with Henry Tudor, but also for "writing various bills and writings in rhyme", without specifying the rhymes. Robert Fabyan
Robert Fabyan
Robert Fabyan , chronicler, was born in London, of which hebecame an Alderman and Sheriff. He kept a diary of notable events, whichhe expanded into a chronicle, which he entitled, The Concordance of Histories. It covers the period from the arrival of Brutus in England tothe death of King Henry VII...
's chronicle, published in 1516, first relate that in July 1484, Collingbourne pinned the following lampoon to the door of St. Paul's Cathedral:
The rhyme attacked King Richard and his three principal aides by referring to their names and heraldic emblems: the "hog" of course referred to King Richard, whose badge was a white boar, the "Lovell our dog" to Francis Viscount Lovell
Francis Lovell, 1st Viscount Lovell
Francis Lovell, 9th Baron Lovell, 6th Baron Holand, later 1st Viscount Lovell was an English nobleman. He probably knew the later King Richard III of England from a young age, and was to become his lifelong friend and staunch ally....
, who was Richard's closest associate and had a silver wolf as emblem. The "cat" and the "rat" made fun of the names of William Catesby
William Catesby
William Catesby, esq. was one of Richard III of England's principal councillors. He also served as Chancellor of the Exchequer and Speaker of the House of Commons during Richard's reign....
, who furthermore had a white cat as his badge, and Richard Ratcliffe
Richard Ratcliffe
Sir Richard Ratcliffe was a close confidant of Richard III of England. He came from a gentry family in the Lake District, and became a companion of Richard when the latter was still Duke of Gloucester. He was one of Richard's trustees in the lordship of Richmond, and was named steward of Barnard...
. The two-liner was latter embellished, amended with an explanation, supposedly by the author himself, and included into the Mirror for Magistrates.
The reasons for Collingbourne's enmity are not entirely clear. In 1892, James H. Ramsay suggested that the lampoon was written "in revenge for the loss of offices in Wiltshire". Collingbourne's name does not appear among the commissions of peace in December 1483. Furthermore, in a letter of 3 June 1484, by King Richard asked his mother Cecily Neville, Duchess of York
Cecily Neville
Cecily Neville, Duchess of York was the wife of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and the mother of two Kings of England: Edward IV and Richard III....
that "my lord Chamberlain
Lord Chamberlain
The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the Great Officers of State....
... be your officer in Wiltshire in such as Colyngbourne had". This suggests that Collingbourne had been steward of the Duchess' Wiltshire lands and that both his correspondence and his lampoon were written in response to having lost this position. This loss may have been linked to his involvement in Buckingham's rebellion, either because he was dismissed or because he went into hiding. If his post was eventually filled by the Lord Chamberlain, Francis Viscount Lovell
Francis Lovell, 1st Viscount Lovell
Francis Lovell, 9th Baron Lovell, 6th Baron Holand, later 1st Viscount Lovell was an English nobleman. He probably knew the later King Richard III of England from a young age, and was to become his lifelong friend and staunch ally....
, this would further explain Collingbourne's ire against Richard's closest associate.
Trial and execution
In October or November Collingbourne was arrested together with a shipowner named John Turburvyle, charged with treason and put before a commission of oyer and terminerOyer and terminer
In English law, Oyer and terminer was the Law French name, meaning "to hear and determine", for one of the commissions by which a judge of assize sat...
, which included the Dukes of Suffolk
John de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk
John de la Pole, 2nd Duke of Suffolk, KG , known as "the Trimming Duke". He was the son of William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk and Alice Chaucer, daughter of Thomas Chaucer.-Life:...
, Norfolk
John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk
John Howard, 1st Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was an English nobleman, soldier, and the first Howard Duke of Norfolk...
, the Earls of Surrey
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was a prominent Tudor politician. He was uncle to Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, two of the wives of King Henry VIII, and played a major role in the machinations behind these marriages...
and Nottingham
William de Berkeley, 1st Marquess of Berkeley
William de Berkeley, 1st Marquess of Berkeley was an English peer, who also went by the nickname of William 'the Wass all'. He was buried at "St...
, the Vicounts Lovell
Francis Lovell, 1st Viscount Lovell
Francis Lovell, 9th Baron Lovell, 6th Baron Holand, later 1st Viscount Lovell was an English nobleman. He probably knew the later King Richard III of England from a young age, and was to become his lifelong friend and staunch ally....
and Lisle, three barons including Lord High Constable
Lord High Constable of England
The Lord High Constable of England is the seventh of the Great Officers of State, ranking beneath the Lord Great Chamberlain and above the Earl Marshal. His office is now called out of abeyance only for coronations. The Lord High Constable was originally the commander of the royal armies and the...
Thomas Stanley
Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby
Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby, KG was titular King of Mann, an English nobleman and stepfather to King Henry VII of England...
and five justices of the King's Bench
King's Bench
The Queen's Bench is the superior court in a number of jurisdictions within some of the Commonwealth realms...
, including chief justice William Hussey
William Hussey (judge)
Sir William Hussey , SL was an English judge who served as Chief Justice of the King’s Bench....
. The trial was held in early December at Guilhall
Guildhall, London
The Guildhall is a building in the City of London, off Gresham and Basinghall streets, in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap. It has been used as a town hall for several hundred years, and is still the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City of London and its Corporation...
; Collingbourne was convicted of high treason and sentenced to death, Turburvyle sentenced to prison, apparently on a lesser charge.
Collingbourne was subsequently executed at Tower Hill
Tower Hill
Tower Hill is an elevated spot northwest of the Tower of London, just outside the limits of the City of London, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Formerly it was part of the Tower Liberty under the direct administrative control of Tower...
by hanging, drawing and quartering
Hanged, drawn and quartered
To be hanged, drawn and quartered was from 1351 a penalty in England for men convicted of high treason, although the ritual was first recorded during the reigns of King Henry III and his successor, Edward I...
. A story by Tudor historian John Stow
John Stow
John Stow was an English historian and antiquarian.-Early life:The son of Thomas Stow, a tallow-chandler, he was born about 1525 in London, in the parish of St Michael, Cornhill. His father's whole rent for his house and garden was only 6s. 6d. a year, and Stow in his youth fetched milk every...
recounts his end: "After having been hanged, he was cut down immediately and his entrails were then extracted and thrown into the fire, and all this was so speedily done that when the executioners pulled out his heart he spoke and said, 'Oh Lord Jesus, yet more trouble!'"
Tudor author Edward Hall
Edward Hall
Edward Hall , English chronicler and lawyer, was born about the end of the 15th century, being a son of John Hall of Northall, Shropshire....
relates that he was executed merely "for making a small rhyme", a claim taken up by later authors., but historian Charles Ross
Charles Ross (historian)
Charles Derek Ross was an English historian of the Late Middle Ages, specialising on the Wars of the Roses. He was Professor of Medieval History at the University of Bristol until his death in 1986, when he was killed by an intruder in his own home.His best known works are his biographies of...
pointed out, that Hall "carefully suppresses the fact that the real indictment against him was that he had been encouraging Henry Tudor
Henry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
to land at Poole".