20 April 1518 Will of Dame Scolast Esterfelde of Bristol, widow (proved 18 December 1518)

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In the name of god amen The xx th day of Aprill Anno Dni m ? v C and xviii
And the vii th yere of the Reigne of kyng henry the viii th I Dame Scolast Esterfelde widowe late wyfe of 
John Esterfelde late of the towne of Bristowe marchannt And before that the wyfe of Richard Barett late 
Citizen and haberdassher of london being hole of mynde and in good remembrannce and perfite memorey laude 
and praysinge be unto almighty god make ordeyn and dispoase this my present testament conteynyng therin 
my last wille in maner and fourme folowing that is to wit First I bequeth and Recomende my soule unto our
lorde Jhs Crist my maker Redemer and Savyour to the moost glorious virgyn her moder our lady saint mary
and to all the holy and blessed company of hevyn And my body to be buried in the holy Church of saint Warborowe 
in the Towne of Bristowe before the Image of our blessed lady of grace by my pewe there Item I bequeth to the high
awter of the Church of saint Warborowe aforsaid for my tithes and offerings necligently witholden in discharge 
of my soule and conference and to thentent that the Curate there shal pray for my soule iii s iiii d Item I bequeth 
to the mother Church of Worcetour xx d Item I bequeth to every persone of all the Almes houses in Bristowe at 
my burying a half peny lofe and a peny in money And asmoche at my monethes mynde And like wise I bequeth 
to every prisoner in Newgate at Bristowe at my said burying a half peny lofe and a peny in money and asmoche 
at my monethes mynde Item I bequeth to every of the foure orders of Freres in Bristowe for my burying and monethes 
mynde vi s viii d Item I will that every of the xii p???r torcheberars that shalbe at my burying and monethes mynde 
shalhave for their labours and to thentent they shall pray for my soule a white fryse gowne and two pense a pece 
in money Item I will that there be ordeyned by myn executours hereunderwriten to be as well at my dirige and
masse of Requiem As at my burying and monethes mynde xxiiii th preests ???? after the discrecons of my siad executor
Item I will that an honest preest of good and honest conversacion Immediatly after my decesse shall synge at the 
awter of our lady wtin the forsaid Church of saint Warborowe for my soule and the soules of my forsaid late husbands
and all xpen soules by the space of fyve yeres complete And I woll that the same preest shal yerely have for 
his salary and wages in that behalf vi l xiii s iiii d sterlinge Also I woll that the said preest shall sey for my soule 
and the soules abovesaid placebo and dirige two tymes in every weke that is to sey on wennesday and Frydaye 
wekely during the said fyve yeres Item I woll that there shalbe kept yerely in the said Church of saint Warborowe
by all the preests and Clerks of the same Church conveniently during xx yeres next after my decesse a solempue
obite for my soule and the soules of my said late husbandes and all cristen soules And I woll that there shall be 
expended upon every such obite that is to sey amongs preests and Clerks and for brede drynke and chese by the 
discrecion of myn executours underwriten vi s viii d sterlinge Item I bequeth my pall of blak velvet unto the Churche of 
saint Warmorowe to thentent that the proctours of the same Church for the tyme being shall yerely forever paye to the 
PARson of the said Churche of saint Warborowe for the tyme beinge iii d a yere for my name to be had int he bederall there 
contynually to be praide for Item I bequeth to Johane my daughter a gowne of violet in grayne furred wt blak shanks 
Item I woll that Immediatly after my decesse the wardeyns and Comynaltie of the Crafte of haberdasshers in
London for the tyme beyng shall entre into and upon my thre tenements sett in the parishe of saint Martyn 
next Ludgate in london And have the oversight lettyng and settinge of theym by the space of v yeres complete 
next after my decesse And receyve the Rents of them And see the rePARacions of them nedefull duely kept And 
the yerely quite Rient of xl s goinge out of them to the Cathedrall Church of saint Paule in london truely paide 
And the surplusage of the same Rents shall truely paye to myn executours yerely during all the meane tyme 
towards the fulfillyng and perfourmyng of the legacies and bequests in this my present testament expressed 
Item after the forsaid preest hath songe for my sould and the soules abovesaid in the forsaid Church of saint Warborowe 
at Bristowe by the space of v yeres complete as is above appoynted Then I wille that the wardeyne and Comyaltie
of the said Crafte of haberdasshers then being and their Successoures for the tyme beinge shalhave the use 


and oversight lettinge and setting of three of the said tenements that is to sey the tenement in the tenure of Thomas 
Sonnyff the tent in the tenure of William Charsey and the tent in the tenure of Edmond Smewyn by the space of
xx yeres complete And by all the meane tyme they to receyve all the Rents of them And to see the RePARacions of them
kept and the said quyte Rent of xl s paide And of and wt the residue of the said Rents I woll that they shall from 
thensforth contynuelly during xx yeres complete fynde an honest preest of good conversacion to singe in the said 
parishe Church of saint Martyn wtin Ludgate in London where the forsaid Richard Barett my late husband lieth 
buried at the awter of the blessed Trinitie and saint kateryn int he same Churche for my soule and the soule of 
the said Richard Barett and all xpen soules which preest I will shall twyse in every week on wennesday and fryday
wekely during the said xx yeres sey placebo and dirige for my said soule the soule of the said Richard Barett and all
cristen soules And I woll that the same preest shall have for his salary and wages during the said xx yeres vi l 
viii s iiii d sterlinge Also I woll that the same preest shall wayte and attende upon the said Crafte of haberdasshers 
at all their assemblyes upon lawfull warnyng as other Chapleyns use to doo during the said xx yeres Item I woll
that after the forsaid fyve yeres expyred the said wardeyns of the said Crafte of haberdasshers for the tyme beinge
shall kepe a solempne obite or Anniversary yerely wtin the said Church of saint Martyn by note that is to sey on
suche day as it shall fortune me to decesse placebo and dirige and masse of Requiem on the morne for my soule 
and the soule of the said Richard Barett and all cristen soules by the space of xx yeres complete next after my
decesse and I woll that there shalbe expended of the said Rents upon every such obite xx s sterlinge that is to sey 
vi s viii d therof amongs preests Clerks and for brede ale wyne wax and Rynging of bellys And xiii s iiii d residue 
therof I woll shalbe distributed amongs poure people of the said parishe where moost nede shalbe in fuell brede 
Drynk and chese Item after the forwaid fyve yeres next after my decesse be expired I woll that Miles Arnold my
daughter Julians son shalhave of the issues and profits comyng and growing of the said three tents an Annuell 
Rent of xl s sterlings yerely during his lyfe And yf it fortune him before that tyme to decesse one John
Mathewe my daughters sonne than lyving I woll that the said John Mathewe shalhave the said Annuell Rent of 
xl s yerely during his lyfe And the same Annuell Rent to be paide by thands of the wardeyns of the said Crafte 
for the tyme being at foure usuell termes in london And for lak of payment of the same Annuell Rent I woll that 
it shalbe leefull to the said Miles and John or either of them to whose possession it shall come to distreyn in the
forsaid three tenements for the said Annuell Rent as often as it shall fortune to be behinde Item I woll that 
Johane my daughter shalhave Immediatly after my decesse all that tenement wt thappurtenncs wherin Robert
Codnam nowe dwelleth sett next unto the said Church of saint Martyn To have and to hold the same tent to 
hir and tot he herres of her body lawfully begoten without any maner alienacion therof making And yf it 
fortune the said Johane to decesse wtout issue of hir body lawfully begotten or yf the said Johane or any of the 
Issue of hir body comyng be dispoased to make alienacion therof Than I woll that the said tent shall remayn 
to Julian Arnold my daughters Childe and to the heires of hir body lawfully begoten And yf it fortune the said 
Julian to decesse wtout issue of hir body lawfully begoten than I woll that the said tent shall remayn to the 
next and right heires of me the said Scolast forever Item after the said xx yeres be fully expyred and ended I geve 
wille and bequeth all the forsaid three tenements wt thappurtenncs to the wardeyns and Comaltie of the Fraternitie 
of saint kateryn of the Crafte of haberdasshers in London To have and to holde to them and to their Successours for
evermore To thentent that the same wardeyns and Comnaltie and their Successours wardeyns and Comnaltie of the said 
Crafte of haberdasshers for the tyme beynge shall after the said xx yeres expyred yerely contynually forevermore fynde 
an honest preest to synge in the forsaid Churche of saint Martyn at the awter of the holy Trinitie and saint kateryn forsaid 
for my soule and the soule of the said Richard Barett and all xpen soules which preest I woll shall twyse in evry weke
on wennysday and Fryday wekely forever say placebo and dirige for my soule and the soule of the said Richard Barett 
and all cristen soules And that every such preest for the tyme being shall wayte and attende uppon the said Crafte of 
haberdasshers at all their assemblyes as other Chapleyns use to doo And that the said wardeyns and Comnalite 
of the said Crafte and their Successours for the tyme beinge shall paye to evry suche preest for his yerely salary
x ???? sterlinge Also that the said wardeyns and Comnalite of the said Crafte and their Successours shall from 
thensforth yerely forevermore on the Day of my decesse come unto the forsaid Churche of saint Martyn in their best 
lyverey And there kepe a solempne obite or anniversary for my soule and the soule of the said Richard Barett and all
cristen soules that is to sey placebo and dirige over nyght and masse of Requiem on the morne by note And expend 
upon every suche obtie xx s sterlinge that is to sey iiii s therof amongs preests and Clerks being at the said obite and
for wax and Rynging of Bellys And xvi s residue therof to be distributed amongs por people of the said parishe of 
saint martyn and in other places of the warde of Faryndon wtin in London whether moost nede shalbe thought after 
their discresions And also that they from thensforth doo truely paye or cause to be paid the forsaid Annuell Rent of 
xl s yerely to the longer lyver of the forsaid Miles Arnold and John Mathewe as is aforesaid And over that from 
thensforth doo yerely forever paye the forsaid yerely quite Rent of xl s to the Cathedrall Church of saint paule 
in london And besids that from thensforth see the rePARacions of the said three tents sufficiently kept and mayntened 
And yf it fortune the said wardeyns and Comnaltie of the said Crafte of haberdasshers or their Successours for
the tyme beinge to be necligent or remysse and doo note fynde a preest after the fourme abovesaid or doo not kepe 
the said obite after the fourme aforsaid or do not paye yerely the said annuell Rent of xl s as is abovesaid or faill
or make defaute in performyng or doyng any other thing agoverehersed contrary to the fourme aforsaid That than 
as nowe and nowe as than I woll that the maister of the place of saint Thomas of Acrees of london and the C
brethern of the said place shalhave all the said three tenements with thappurtenccs To have and to holde to the 
said maister and Cobrethern and to their Successours maister and Cobrethern of the said place forevermore to 
thentent that the same maister and Cobrethern of the said place and their Successours shall yerely forever 
kepe and fynde a preest in the said Church of saint Martyn And holde and kepe an obite there And all other things


doo in like maner and fourme as is by me above declared and appoynted Item I bequeth to John Arnolde Chanon of kaynshm?
x ???? Item I bequeth to Miles Arnold x ???? Item I bequeth to Julian Arnolde x ???? The Residue of all my goods Catalls
and Detts after my detts be paide my funerall charges doon And these my legacies and bequests conteyned and expressed in 
this my present testament fulfilled and perfourmed I woll shalbe dispoased and distributed in dedes and weiks of pitee 
and charitie suche as by the discrecion of myn executour shalbe thought moost best to the pleasure of almighty god and for the 
welth of my soule the soules of my late husbands and all xpen soules And of this my present and last wille I make and 
ordeyn Stevyn Peycok haberdassher of the Citie of london my soole executoure And I bequeth to him for his labour in that 
behalf to be had v ???? sterlinge And I utterly Revoke and disadnull all and evry other testaments last willys executours 
Overseers legacies and bequests by me afore this tyme in any maner wyse named or declared And I wolle that this shall 
stande for my very testament and last wille and noon other Thise witnesse John Tofte Clerk Lewys Predyth Notary and
Nichas Moore with diverse other

Probatum fuit testamentum ... apud Lamehith 
[this paragraph continues in Latin to grant probate on 18 December 1518]
xviii Die mensis 
Decembris Anno Dni millimo quingentesimo xviii 
[to]
Stephan Pecok executoris 

Last Modified: Thursday, 22-Oct-2020 19:10:54 NDT