Appendix C2: The composition of the Cambridge Parliament (Sept. 1388)
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The composition of the Cambridge Parliament of September 1388
By their actions and propaganda in the Merciless Parliament the Appellants had aroused expectations of reform at home and the introduction of a more vigorous foreign policy. Disillusion with their regime evidently grew rapidly in the summer of 1388, and the Commons of the Parliament held at Cambridge in the autumn were in a critical mood.1 Fifty-four of the Members of the Merciless Parliament (dissolved just three months earlier), had been re-elected to the new assembly, and were thus well placed to raise questions as to why the favourable replies to their petitions calling for administrative reforms had not been put into effect. They were joined by 92 other knights and burgesses who had served in the House on some earlier occasion, and were thus experienced parliamentarians, too; but no fewer than 104 of the 250 whose names are known were apparently complete newcomers to the Commons. Taken overall, the proportion of experienced Members in this particular Parliament was very low for Richard II’s reign as a whole: only 58% were not novices. In the lists below those who had sat in the Merciless Parliament are marked *.
POSSIBLE SYMPATHIZERS WITH THE KING
| Name | Status | Fee |
| *Annesley, Sir John | ‘King’s knight’ | £40 p.a. jointly with wife |
| *Cheyne, Sir Hugh | ten marks p.a.† | |
| *Lee, Sir Walter | ?knight of Household | |
| Sebrooke, Sir Laurence | former member of the King’s mother’s household | |
| Thorpe, John | ‘King’s esquire’ | £10 p.a.† |
| *Waldegrave, Sir Richard | ‘King’s knight’ | |
| Watford, Stephen | servant of Household | £10 |
| *Wightman, William | royal servant | 6d. per diem |
| *Wyly, John | royal servant | 6d. per diem |
† Granted by Edward III.
HOLDERS OF OFFICES IN THE CROWN’s APPOINTMENT FROM BEFORE FEB. 1388
| 1. Customs officials | |
| Beleyeter, Edmund | dep. butler, Bishop’s Lynn |
| Calche, Robert | dep. butler, Som. and Dorset |
| Gosselyn, Walter | pesager, Chichester and Lewes |
| *Hadley, Peter | controller, Exeter |
| *Ramsey, Ralph | collector, Gt. Yarmouth |
| Sherwind, Nicholas | searcher, Southampton Water |
| 2. Employed in royal castles and manors | |
| *Cheyne, Sir Hugh | keeper of Shrewsbury castle |
| *Jonet, William | constable of Narberth and Builth |
| 3. Other | |
| *Jonet, William | steward of lordships of Narberth, St. Clears, etc. |
| *Mapperley, Thomas | under sheriff, Notts. |
| Monceaux, Amand | escheator, Cumb., Northumb. and Westmld. |
| Scarle, Walter | escheator, Rutland and Northants. |
| *Waryn, Robert | coroner, Hunts. |
| *Wightman, William | spigurnel of the Chancery |
ASSOCIATES OF THE LORDS APPELLANT
| 1. Thomas of Woodstock, duke of Gloucester | |
| Algar, Ralph | A |
| Golafre, William | A, M (1378) |
| Montgomery, Sir Nicholas I | M (1380) |
| Ore, Robert | A |
| Poyle, Sir Thomas de la | M (1377) |
| *Waldegrave, Sir Richard | A |
| Walden, Sir Alexander | M (1378) |
| Walton, Ralph | M (1377) |
| 2. Richard Fitzalan, earl of Arundel | |
| *Annesley, Sir John | M (1387) |
| Bamme, Adam | A |
| Daneys, Sir John | M (1387) |
| Grenville, Sir John | M (1387) |
| *Strange, Sir John | A |
| *Turk, Sir Robert | M (1387) |
| *Waldegrave, Sir Richard | A |
| Wilcombe, Nicholas | A, R |
| 3. Thomas Beauchamp, earl of Warwick | |
| *Bagot, Sir William | A, prob. C |
| Besford, Alexander | A, C, R |
| *Lilling, Sir Nicholas | A, C, E, F, M, O, R |
| *Spyne, Guy | A, R |
| 4. Henry of Bolingbroke, earl of Derby | |
| *Annesley, Sir John | †M |
| Assheton, Sir John I | †M, R |
| *Bagot, Sir William | prob. C, R; †R |
| Bamme, Adam | †A |
| Bussy, Sir John | †O, R |
| *Clerk alias Okham, Geoffrey | O; †O |
| Croft, Sir John | †O |
| Fitzsymond, Sir John | †M |
| Hacon, John | †R |
| Hungerford, Sir Thomas | O; †C, E, O, R |
| Lambourne, Sir William | †M |
| *Lee, Sir Walter | †M |
| Montgomery, Sir Nicholas I | †A, M |
| Neville, Sir Robert | †F, M, R (£20 p.a.) |
| Perwych, Sir Roger | †R |
| *Strange, Sir John | †R (20 marks p.a.) |
| *Tilney, Sir Philip | †O |
| Walden, Sir Alexander | †M |
| *White, Sir John | †A, M, O |
| 5. Thomas Mowbray, earl of Nottingham | |
| *Bagot, Sir William | Att., prob. C, E, F, O, R |
† Associated with Henry of Bolingbroke's father, John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster
THOSE APPOINTED TO CROWN OFFICES BEFORE THE APPELLANTS RELINQUISHED POWER
| 1. Sheriffs (appointed on 1 Dec. 1388) | |
| Cheyne, Sir Ralph | Willts. |
| *Flamville, Sir William | Warws. and Leics. |
| Moigne, Sir John | Som. and Dorset |
| *Peckham, James | Kent |
| *Popham, Henry | Hants |
| Poyle, Sir Thomas de la | Oxon. and Berks. |
| Scarle, Walter | Rutland |
| Sebrooke, Sir Laurence | Glos. |
| Stafford, Sir Humphrey I | Staffs. |
| 2. Customs officials | |
| Calche, Robert | confirmed as dep. butler, Som. and Dorset 8 Oct. 1388 |
| Drew, Thomas | controller, Bishop’s Lynn 9 June 1388 |
| *Waleys, Robert | collector, Ipswich June 1388 |
| 3. Others | |
| Acton, Edward | escheator, Salop, Staffs. 30 Nov. 1388 |
| Clenhand, John | diplomatic envoy to Flanders, May 1388 |
| Horne, Richard | escheator, Hants and Wilts. 30 Nov. 1388 |
| *Lee, Sir Walter | constable, Colchester castle 23 Mar. 1388 |
| *Mitford, John | steward of Hexhamshire 20 Mar. 1388 |
| Vanner, Henry | diplomatic envoy to Flanders, May 1388 |
MEMBERS BENEFITING DIRECTLY FROM GRANTS MADE IN CHANCERY AND THE EXCHEQUER WHILE THE APPELLANTS WERE IN POWER
| Besford, Alexander | Sampford, John |
| Horne, Richard | Somery, John |
| *Lilling, Sir Nicholas | Stafford, Sir Humphrey I |
| Moyle, Thomas | *Strange, Sir John |
| Neville, Sir Robert | *Waldegrave, Sir Richard |
MEMBERS PARDONED IN 1397-8
At least 27 Members of the Cambridge Parliament died before royal pardons were issued in the year beginning October 1397. Of the survivors 26 (12%) received pardons from Richard II, ten of them for the active support they had rendered to the Appellants. Those pardons specifically relating to the recipients’ adherence to the Appellants are marked †; those enrolled on the patent roll, rather than on the supplementary pardon rolls, are marked ‡.
| Acton, Edward | 5 Feb. 1398 |
| Arnold, John I | 16 Apr. 1398 |
| Aston, Sir Thomas | 12 May 1398 |
| †*Bagot, Sir William | ‡1 Mar. 1398, †20 Oct. 1398 |
| *Berkeley, Sir John I | 10 June 1398 |
| †Besford, Alexander | †12 May 1398 |
| †*Bixton, Walter | †‡20 May 1398 |
| †Bussy, Sir John | †‡1 May 1398 |
| †*Cheyne, Sir Hugh | †12 May 1398 |
| Daneys, Sir John | 12 June 1398 |
| *Drew, Laurence | 14 June 1398 |
| *Francis, Sir Robert | 16 June 1398 |
| Golafre, William | 12 June 1398 |
| Harrowden, John | 12 June 1398 |
| Herlyngton, John | 15 June 1398 |
| †*Lilling, Sir Nicholas | †18 Oct. 1397, 16 June 1398 |
| *Mitford, John | 15 June 1398 |
| Mulsho, John | 12 June 1398 |
| †Sampford, John | †12 Oct. 1398 |
| Scarle, Walter | 15 May 1398 |
| †Somery, John | †26 Oct. 1398 |
| *Turk, Sir Robert | 5 June 1398 |
| *Waldegrave, Sir Richard | ‡14 Nov. 1398 |
| Walden, Sir Alexander | 7 June 1398 |
| †Walton, Ralph | †5 May 1398 |
| †*White, Sir John | †28 May 1398 |
Ref Volumes: 1386-1421
Author: J. S. Roskell
End Notes
- 1. J.A. Tuck, ‘The Cambridge Parliament, 1388’, EHR, lxxxiv. 225-43.
