William Grindecobbe

Last updated

William Grindecobbe or Grindcobbe [1] was one of the peasant leaders during the English Peasants' Revolt of 1381. A Townsman of St Albans, [2] he was a substantial property owner there and has been described as a 'hero' of the revolt. [3]

Contents

Life

His name implies that he was a miller of grain. [4] He was one of a number of millers who took part in the revolt, and has been described as having been eloquent [5] and literate. [6] It has also been suggested that he was an excommunicate priest, [7] possibly an alumnus of St Albans Abbey. [8] It thus possible that he was motivated at least in part to rebel as a result of the pressures of papal taxation. [9]

Along with Wat Tyler and John Wrawe, he was one of the key leaders of the peasants during the revolt of 1381, [10] leading the townspeople of St Albans on 15 June. [11]

He was executed in 1381 along with John Wrawe and John Ball. His trial and execution was overseen by Henry le Despenser. [12]

Role in Peasants' Revolt

During the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, he became well known for his actions against the high lord Thomas de la Mare, Abbot of St. Albans. [12] He led a deputation to King Richard II, whom the rebels met at Mile End [13] which 'extorted' a letter from the King to the Abbot forcing the latter to give up the royal charters he held to the rebels. They ultimately destroyed the charters and a portion of the abbey itself. [7]

He was executed along with other leaders of the Revolt, and although his trial was deemed to have been fair, [12] it has also been described as being in the nature of a 'show trial.' [14] It has been suggested that he made a speech from the scaffold implicating John Wycliffe in the rebellion. [15]

Sources

Most of the details about his life have been derived from the writings of Thomas Walsingham, who was a monk resident in an abbey, [16] and may well have witnessed Grindecobbe's execution. [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard II of England</span> King of England from 1377 to 1399

Richard II, also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father died in 1376, leaving Richard as heir apparent to his grandfather, King Edward III; upon the latter's death, the 10-year-old Richard succeeded to the throne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peasants' Revolt</span> 1381 uprising in England

The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black Death in the 1340s, the high taxes resulting from the conflict with France during the Hundred Years' War, and instability within the local leadership of London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard of Conisburgh, 3rd Earl of Cambridge</span> 14th/15th-century English noble

Richard of Conisbrough, 3rd Earl of Cambridge was the second son of Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, and Isabella of Castile, Duchess of York. He was beheaded for his part in the Southampton Plot, a conspiracy against King Henry V. He was the father of Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, and the grandfather of King Edward IV and King Richard III.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wat Tyler</span> Leader of the 1381 Peasants Revolt

Walter "Wat"Tyler was a leader of the 1381 Peasants' Revolt in England. He led a group of rebels from Canterbury to London to oppose the institution of a poll tax and to demand economic and social reforms. While the brief rebellion enjoyed early success, Tyler was killed by officers loyal to King Richard II during negotiations at Smithfield, London.

Jack Straw was one of the three leaders of the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, a major event in the history of England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham</span> English military leader in the Hundred Years War and the Wars of the Roses, 1402–1460

Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham, 6th Earl of Stafford, 7th Baron Stafford, of Stafford Castle in Staffordshire, was an English nobleman and a military commander in the Hundred Years' War and the Wars of the Roses. Through his mother he had royal descent from King Edward III, his great-grandfather, and from his father, he inherited, at an early age, the earldom of Stafford. By his marriage to a daughter of Ralph, Earl of Westmorland, Humphrey was related to the powerful Neville family and to many of the leading aristocratic houses of the time. He joined the English campaign in France with King Henry V in 1420 and following Henry V's death two years later he became a councillor for the new king, the nine-month-old Henry VI. Stafford acted as a peacemaker during the partisan, factional politics of the 1430s, when Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, vied with Cardinal Beaufort for political supremacy. Stafford also took part in the eventual arrest of Gloucester in 1447.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Ball (priest)</span> English rebel and priest (c. 1338–1381)

John Ball was an English priest who took a prominent part in the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. Although he is often associated with John Wycliffe and the Lollard movement, Ball was actively preaching "articles contrary to the faith of the church" at least a decade before Wycliffe started attracting attention.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">England in the Middle Ages</span>

England in the Middle Ages concerns the history of England during the medieval period, from the end of the 5th century through to the start of the early modern period in 1485. When England emerged from the collapse of the Roman Empire, the economy was in tatters and many of the towns abandoned. After several centuries of Germanic immigration, new identities and cultures began to emerge, developing into kingdoms that competed for power. A rich artistic culture flourished under the Anglo-Saxons, producing epic poems such as Beowulf and sophisticated metalwork. The Anglo-Saxons converted to Christianity in the 7th century, and a network of monasteries and convents were built across England. In the 8th and 9th centuries, England faced fierce Viking attacks, and the fighting lasted for many decades. Eventually, Wessex was established as the most powerful kingdom and promoting the growth of an English identity. Despite repeated crises of succession and a Danish seizure of power at the start of the 11th century, it can also be argued that by the 1060s England was a powerful, centralised state with a strong military and successful economy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Albans School, Hertfordshire</span> Public school in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England

St Albans School is a public school in the city of St Albans in Hertfordshire. Entry before Sixth Form is for boys only, but the Sixth Form has been co-educational since 1991. Founded in 948 by Wulsin, St Albans School is not only the oldest school in Hertfordshire but also one of the oldest in the world. The school has been called "Britain's oldest public school" by the Daily Mail. Nicholas Carlisle, in 1818, described the school as "of very ancient origin, and of great celebrity" and the Good Schools Guide describes St Albans as a "traditional public school, with a rich history".

The Bad Parliament sat in England between 27 January and 2 March 1377. The initial summons for the parliament went out on 1 December 1376, and the writ dissolving it was dated 2 March 1377.

Richard of Wallingford, constable of Wallingford Castle and landowner in St Albans, played a key part in the English peasants' revolt of 1381. Though clearly not a peasant, he helped organise Wat Tyler’s campaign, and was involved in presenting the rebels’ petition to Richard II. The petition called for an end to feudal serfdom, the ending of services to a feudal lord, to abolish market monopolies and restrictions on buying and selling goods. Tyler refused to accept a charter offered by the king, despite Richard of Wallingford's encouragement.

Events from the 1380s in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Tresilian</span> Cornish lawyer

Sir Robert Tresilian was a Cornish lawyer, and Chief Justice of the King's Bench between 1381 and 1387. He was born in Cornwall, and held land in Tresillian, near Truro. Tresilian was deeply involved in the struggles between King Richard II and the Lords Appellant, and was eventually executed for his loyalty to the king.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Ufford, 2nd Earl of Suffolk</span> 14th-century British nobleman

William Ufford, 2nd Earl of Suffolk was an English nobleman in the reigns of Edward III and Richard II. He was the son of Robert Ufford, who was created Earl of Suffolk by Edward III in 1337. William had three older brothers who all predeceased him, and in 1369 he succeeded his father.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of North Walsham</span> Medieval battle in 1381, part of The Peasants Revolt

The Battle of North Walsham was a medieval battle fought on 25 or 26 June 1381, near the town of North Walsham in the English county of Norfolk, in which a large group of rebellious local peasants was confronted by the heavily armed forces of Henry le Despenser, Bishop of Norwich. The battle is significant for being the last occurrence of any major resistance during the English Peasants' Revolt.

John Wrawe was a rebel leader during the English Peasants' Revolt. He was executed in 1382.

In the early fourteenth century, tensions between villagers from Darnhall and Over, Cheshire, and their feudal lord, the Abbot of Vale Royal Abbey, erupted into violence over whether they had villein—that is, servile—status. The villagers argued not, while the Abbey believed it was due the villagers' feudal service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Fresshe</span> John Fresshe, Mayor of London 1394–95

John Fresshe was a citizen, alderman, and Mayor of London in the latter years of the fourteenth century. A merchant by trade, he was a member of the Mercers' Company, a medieval London trade guild, and has been described as one of London's "leading citizens at the end of the century".

"Away with the learning of clerks, away with it!" was a rallying cry of rebellious townspeople during the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 in Cambridge, during which they sacked the university and official buildings and burnt legal documents and charters en masse. The call is usually ascribed to Margery Starre. Starre is generally described as an "old woman", and she has been characterised as a beldam.

Sir Alan Buxhull K.G. was an English soldier and nobleman.

References

  1. ↑ "Grindcobbe". The Foragers. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  2. ↑ David Levine (19 February 2001). At the Dawn of Modernity: Biology, Culture, and Material Life in Europe After the Year 1000 . University of California Press. pp.  377–. ISBN   978-0-520-22058-4.
  3. ↑ Samuel K. Cohn, Jr; Douglas Aiton (2013). Popular Protest in Late Medieval English Towns. Cambridge University Press. pp. 324–. ISBN   978-1-107-02780-0.
  4. ↑ Patterson, Lee (2007). Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales: A Casebook. OUP. p. 16. ISBN   9780195175738 . Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  5. ↑ Lee Patterson (1990). Literary Practice and Social Change in Britain, 1380-1530. University of California Press. pp. 128–. ISBN   978-0-520-06486-7.
  6. ↑ Gerald Harriss; G. L. Harriss (9 November 2006). Shaping the Nation: England 1360-1461. OUP Oxford. pp. 231–. ISBN   978-0-19-921119-7.
  7. 1 2 Anthony Steel (22 August 2013). Richard II. Cambridge University Press. pp. 83–. ISBN   978-1-107-62208-1.
  8. ↑ Janet E. Burton; Karen Stöber (2008). Monasteries and Society in the British Isles in the Later Middle Ages. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. pp. 156–. ISBN   978-1-84383-386-4.
  9. ↑ Anthony Steel (22 August 2013). Richard II. Cambridge University Press. p. 64. ISBN   978-1-107-62208-1.
  10. ↑ Barker, Juliet (2014). England, Arise: The People, the King and the Great Revolt of 1381. Hachette. ISBN   9780748127887 . Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  11. ↑ Wright, Peter. "A Dream of John Ball: Historical Introduction". William Morris Archive. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  12. 1 2 3 Cooney, Sarah J., ""Social Upheaval and Social Change in England, 1381-1750 (M.A. Thesis)", Dissertations and Theses, Portland State University, retrieved 17 March 2017
  13. ↑ John Richard Green (2 July 2004). A History Of The English People, 1307-1461. The Minerva Group, Inc. pp. 144–. ISBN   978-1-4147-0257-5.
  14. ↑ Alastair Dunn (2004). The Peasant's Revolt: England's Failed Revolution of 1381. Tempus. p. 175. ISBN   978-0-7524-2965-6.
  15. ↑ Anthony Steel (22 August 2013). Richard II. Cambridge University Press. p. 89. ISBN   978-1-107-62208-1.
  16. ↑ Barker, Juliet (2014). 1381: The Year of the Peasants' Revolt. Harvard UP. ISBN   9780674744509 . Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  17. ↑ Alastair Dunn (2004). The Peasant's Revolt: England's Failed Revolution of 1381. Tempus. p. 173. ISBN   978-0-7524-2965-6.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.