In this series:
- Hedingham Castle Fact Sheet with Virtual Tour Link.
- Hedingham Castle 1485-1562 with Virtual Tour Link.
- A brief history of the Earls of Oxford and Castle Hedingham.
Periodically, between 1535 and 1543, John Leland, the great
antiquarian of the reign of England’s Henry VIII, toured England and
Wales. He may or may not have visited
visited Hedingham but he did find a source who he trusted regarding the area.
Mr. Sheffeld told me that afore the old Erle of Oxford tyme,
that cam yn with King Henry the vii., the Castelle of Hengham was yn much
ruine, so that al the building that now ys there was yn a maner of this old
Erles building, except the gate-house and the great dungeon toure.
Mr. Sheffelde told me that a litle beside Colne Priorie yn
Estsax, wher the Erie of Oxford usid to be buried, was a manor place of theirs,
the dikes and the plotte wherof yet remayne, and berith the name of the Haulle
Place. Syns the ruine of this manor place the Erles hath buildid hard by the
priory.[1]
Mr. Sheffield would seem to have been a local historian, of
sorts, of the region around Lincolnshire, where the Sheffield family was then
prominent. Perhaps he lived near the
present city of Sheffield, or, perhaps, he was a family representative living
in the city of London.
Mr. Sheffeld told me that Dalaunsun of Lincolnshir hath a
part of the [landes] of Vere of Lincolnshir, that [came out] of the house of
the Erles of [Oxfor]de.
The references in the Itinerary suggest that he lived in Lincolnshire.
John Vere, the 13th Earl of Oxford, had alternately supported different sides in the War of the Roses. At the time Edward IV finally defeated the forces of Henry VI, Vere was on the losing side and escaped to France. His lands were confiscated to the crown in 1471.
Upon Richard III’s usurpation of the English crown, Vere entered the service of Henry VII. This time on the victorious side, Henry VII returned his lands upon being crowned in 1485. After all of this, that Hedingham Castle was “yn much ruine” comes as no surprise.
Between 1485 and 1543, then, the Hedingham keep and gate house were refurbished and the surrounding baileys rebuilt to the condition the records describe during the second half of the 16th century. The moat was emptied and the drawbridge replaced by a fixed stone bridge precursor to the present brick successor.
John Vere, the 13th Earl of Oxford, had alternately supported different sides in the War of the Roses. At the time Edward IV finally defeated the forces of Henry VI, Vere was on the losing side and escaped to France. His lands were confiscated to the crown in 1471.
Upon Richard III’s usurpation of the English crown, Vere entered the service of Henry VII. This time on the victorious side, Henry VII returned his lands upon being crowned in 1485. After all of this, that Hedingham Castle was “yn much ruine” comes as no surprise.
Between 1485 and 1543, then, the Hedingham keep and gate house were refurbished and the surrounding baileys rebuilt to the condition the records describe during the second half of the 16th century. The moat was emptied and the drawbridge replaced by a fixed stone bridge precursor to the present brick successor.
The original grand hall seems still to have been in existence in a ruined state. Its foundation was made of brick suggesting (together with its ruined state) that it was constructed of wood.[2] The stone “front building” through which one entered the keep had already been demolished.
Hedingham and the surrounding areas were the main seat of
the Earls of Oxford as evidenced by some few documents such as Gregory Cromwell’s
1531 letter to his father, (and Henry VIII’s Chancellor) Thomas, describing his
being hosted to a fox hunting party by the 15th Earl at nearby Yeldham.[3] Moreso by Henry VIII’s grant of confiscated church
lands in the area to the same Earl, in 1536,[4]
and documents relating to Queen Elizabeth’s visit to the 16th Earl
at Hedingham in 1561.[5]
In 1548, shortly after the death of Henry VIII, the Lord
Protector, Duke of Somerset, used his growing power to gain possession of most
of the 16th Earl’s lands including Hedingham.[6] The castle and most of his lands were
returned by an act of Parliament in 1552.[7]
From that time until his death, the Earl
seems to have spent nearly all of his time at his seat hunting in his forested possessions. Occasionally he took a foreign dignitary hunting.
It is not clear that the Earls were always resident in
Hedingham while in Essex. The Queen also
visited the Veres’ nearby castle of Colchester, for a much shorter time, during
the same progress. Two years earlier,
the 16th Earl had also put up the Duke of Finland, suitor to Queen Elizabeth, at
the castle at Colchester.
[1] Itinerary
of John Leland, Vol. 2, 25
[2] Tipping,
H. Avery. English Homes, Period 1,
Volume 1. 1-2. “…from the fact of these foundations being almost entirely of brick the
inference may be drawn that the original buildings, save the wall and its
towers, were chiefly of timber, and so remained till the latter part of the
fifteenth century.”
[3] TNA
SP 1/68, f. 22. Transcription and
translation from Latin by Nina Green. The Oxford Authorship Site. http://www.oxford-shakespeare.com/StatePapersOther/SP_1-68_f_22.pdf
[4] TNA
C 66/668, mm. 26-7. Transcription and
translation from Latin by Nina Green. The Oxford Authorship Site. http://www.oxford-shakespeare.com/Chancery/C_66-668_mm_26-7.pdf
[5]
Vincent, John A. C. “Queen Elizabeth at Helmingham.” The
Genealogist. 82-90. Citing Nichols. The Progresses and Public
Processions of Queen Elizabeth. I. 98.
[6]
TNA E 328/345. Transcription and translation from Latin by Nina Green. The Oxford Authorship Site. http://www.oxford-shakespeare.com/NationalArchives/E_328-345.pdf
[7] HL/PO/PB/1/1551/5E6n35.
Transcription and translation from Latin by Nina Green. The Oxford Authorship Site. http://www.oxford-shakespeare.com/DocumentsOther/HL-PO-PB-1-1551-5E6n35.pdf
- Office of The Lord Great Chamberlain and the Earls of Oxford. March 10, 2019. "Edward de Vere Earl of Oxford, asks that as he is Great Chamberlain of England,… that it should please the King..."
- Connections: Henry II, Toulouse, 1159. November 27, 2018. “Once he became Chancellor, Becket never looked back. He abandoned his duties as Archdeacon and preaching duties attached to his other positions. He outfitted a lavish household and lived like a secular lord.”
- Did Shake-speare Die of a Stroke? August 03, 2014. "In October of 1601 De Vere begins to complain of his health again in letters to his brother-in-law, Robert Cecil, who was representing him in certain legal matters at Court."
- Check out the Medieval Topics Article Index for many more articles about this fascinating time.
- Check out the English Renaissance Article Index for many more articles and reviews about this fascinating time and about the Shakespeare Authorship Question.
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