St. Mary Colechurch 105/22

Introduction

The block on the N. side of Poultry, between Old Jewry and Coneyhope Lane (Grocers' Hall Alley), included properties in the parishes of St. Mary Colechurch (105/22, 23) and St. Mildred Poultry (132/24, 25). In the early 13th century the whole property came into the possession of Geoffrey fitzPeter (d. 1213), who granted the shops along the Poultry frontage (105/23 and 132/24) to Shouldham Priory, Norfolk, and the land behind (105/22 and 132/25) to Chicksands Priory, Beds. Both these priories, of the Gilbertine order, were founded in the 12th century, Chicksands c. 1150 by Payn de Beauchamp and his wife Rose, widow of Geoffrey de Mandeville (d. 1144), earl of Essex, and Shouldham after 1193 by Geoffrey fitzPeter and his wife Beatrice, heiress of the de Mandeville estate and earldom. In the mid 13th century both Chicksands and Shouldham held land in London of the fee of John fitzGeoffrey, Geoffrey fitzPeter's son by a second marriage. (fn. 1)

There is a possibility that in the 12th century this block was part of an even larger property, extending from Old Jewry on the W. to the Walbrook stream on the E., which came to be divided between Gervase of Cornhill and Peter son of Alan or their respective heirs. Geoffrey fitzPeter had a rent from land which lay between Coneyhope Lane and Walbrook. This possibility will be discussed more fully in the forthcoming gazetteer entries concerning St. Mildred Poultry parish (see 132/8 and also 132/1, 24, and 25).

The properties of Chicksands Priory and Shouldham Priory came into the Crown's hands at the Dissolution and their constituent tenements were granted to two new owners in a different combination. 105/24 was formed at that time as a separate freehold from 105/23 and part of 105/22. The rest of 105/22, thereafter held with 132/24 and 132/25, is described under 105/22. There was also a property in St. Olave Jewry parish (142/X), held with the same. After the Great Fire and before rebuilding there was a further exchange of land to simplify boundaries and eliminate intermixtures.

On the street frontage the property corresponded to nos. 4-6 Old Jewry in 1858.

Twelfth to sixteenth century: 105/22 and 132/25

This was a large property, extending from Old Jewry to Coneyhope Lane and probably measuring about 125 ft. (38.1 m.) N.-S. The stone cellar 9 ft. (2.74 m.) in width, extending from Old Jewry to Coneyhope Lane, the S. wall of which lay 16-18 ft. (4.88 m. to 5.49 m.) to the N. of the Poultry frontage in the 17th century, was probably medieval and probably marked the S. boundary of this property. (fn. 2) At least at first, the whole Poultry frontage was occupied by shops belonging to Shouldham Priory (see 105/23 and 132/24), but by the 16th century the middle part of this row seems to have been held with 105/22 and 132/25 behind; this is described as 105/22J.

In 1212-13 Geoffrey fitzPeter, earl of Essex, granted and confirmed to Chicksands Priory all that land with houses and appurtenances which he had in the parish of St. Mary de Colcherche between the land and great synagogue of the Jews which had belonged to Abraham son of Raby to the N. (this land apparently lay in St. Olave parish immediately N. of 22) and the shops which Geoffrey had given to Shouldham Priory to the S. (23). Geoffrey fitzPeter's land had perhaps formerly been in the hands of a Jew, possibly Aaron of Lincoln (see 132/8). In 1250 the king ordered the justices of the Jews not to disseise the prior of Chicksands, by reason of an inquisition made of lands which had belonged to Jews in the time of King John, of the lands and tenements the prior held in London of the fee of John fitzGeoffrey, justiciar of Ireland. In response to an Exchequer inquiry of 1326, the prior of Chicksands claimed that his property here was quit of tallage since in 1252 the king had reinforced Geoffrey fitzPeter's gift, a grant which was later confirmed by Edward I. This royal grant presumably arose from the events of 1250. It is possible that later in the 13th century a part of the property was again (?) in Jewish hands, for shortly before 1280 Benedict son of Cok, a Jew, held half a messuage opposite Colechurch, and Deudo de Wynton' and Isaac de Warr' (? Warwick), Jews, held half a messuage and 3 other messuages in Colechirchelane. These messuages, however, may have been further N. than 105/22. In 1291 Chicksands Priory had property worth £6. 3s. 4d. p.a. in St. Mary Colechurch parish, £2. 13s. 4d. p.a. in St. Mildred Poultry parish, and 10s. p.a. in St. Stephen Coleman parish. (fn. 3)

In 1321 the properties belonging to Chicksands in these 3 parishes were held for life of the priory by Simon le Foundour. In that year Master Roger de la Beere, clerk, gave the priory a sum of money, in return for which they granted him a rent of £16 p.a. from the tenements for 40 years, with power of distraint. In 1322 Roger de Bere covenanted that the first agreement should be void if the priory paid him £180 in 3 instalments, in 1323, 1324, and 1325. Subsequently the properties were granted to Roger de Campes, citizen and ironmonger, and his wife Maud, to hold for their lives. In February 1354, after Roger's death, Maud and her second husband Robert Pycot, citizen and draper, surrendered the properties to the prior of Chicksands, who regranted them to hold until next Michaelmas, paying £6. 13s. 4d. at the Annunciation and £5. 13s. 4d. at Michaelmas. In 1392 Chicksands had rents of £12. 17s. 8d. and £11. 2s. 8d. in Cheap Ward (totalling £24. 0s. 4d.). No property in Coleman Street ward is recorded, but this may be an omission. A tenant at about this time may have been Thomas Pope, citizen and shearman, who by his will of 1396, proved in 1400, left his term in the tenement in which he lived in Old Jurylane in St. Mary Colechurch parish to his wife Maud and sons John and William. He also left them 10s. quit-rent from Maud's tenement in Coneyhope Lane in pultria. In 1412 the prior and chapter of Chicksands leased all their lands, tenements, and services in the parishes of St. Mary Colechurch, St. Mildred Poultry, St. Stephen Coleman Street, and St. Olave Old Jewry (the last probably being a property once in, or said to be in, St. Mary Colechurch parish), to Robert Tentirden, citizen and ironmonger, and his wife Agnes, for 101 years at £40 rent, bearing all burdens, charges, and repairs. £1 p.a. was to be allowed against the rent for 21 years, for repairs. In 1418, Agnes having died, Tentirden assigned his interest to William Fouler of 'Stentele' (?Stewkeley), Bucks., with all the same conditions, except that Fouler should render him £1 p.a. for the rest of the term. If this rent were in arrears, Tentirden might enter and distrain in the brewhouse called le Rose on the hoop in Old Jewry in St. Mary Colechurch parish, parcel of the property. (fn. 4)

By 1468 this lease seems to have been surrendered, possibly because the rent was by then unrealistically high, and Robert Chamberlayn, pewterer, held a part of the Chicksands property in St. Mary Colechurch parish (probably only part of 105/22) on a long lease expiring in 1533, for £3 p.a. Chamberlayn owed £80 to the 'commonalty and fellowship' of Pewterers, and assigned them his estate and term in this property, the grant to be void if he repaid the £80 in 1472. He got the prior of Chicksands to confirm the term to John Kendall, William Crowde, Stephen Todde, William Willebeye, Thomas Page, and Nicholas Walker, pewterers. John Loxden or Lokkesden paid the Pewterers £5. 6s. 8d. rent p.a. from 1468 to 1470. The rent may have been unpaid in 1470-1, and in 1471-2 John Haynys, draper, paid £13. 13s. 4d. arrears and current rent. Chamberlayn did not repay the £80, and in 1471-2 the Pewterers' Company paid £8. 5s. arrears (? and rent) to Chicksands. Thereafter £3 p.a. was paid until the end of the lease. The property held by the Pewterers included some in Poultry and some in Old Jewry, both in St. Mary Colechurch parish, but seems not to have included the brewhouse called the Rose in Old Jewry, in which the Pinners' Company held their dinner in 1470, or Chicksands' property in St. Mildred Poultry parish. (fn. 5)

In 1476 the rent paid by John Haynes went up to £8. 6s. 8d., which he continued to pay until 1485, when he probably died. In the meantime the company had twice produced its deeds and evidences for the priory. In 1482- 3, 15s. 9 1/2d. was allowed by the priory to the company for repairs, and in the same year 1s. 4d. was allowed by the company to Haynes for roofing a seler of his bed (sic; the meaning of this is not clear) for lack of repairs (by the company). From 1485 to 1489 John or William Schukkysbourht or Sickburgh and Ralph Hewett, Haynes's executors, paid the rent; from 1489 to 1496 William Shakburow, probably the same, paid. A new lease appears to have been made in 1495-6, and Richard Kyng, grocer, paid the £8. 6s. 8d. rent for the company's tenement in Old Jewry and Poultry from 1496 to 1512. In 1507-8 the privy in the tenement in Poultry was cleansed, for £2. 2s. 6d., and 5s. paid for a load of tiles. Edward Sell or Sool, grocer, paid the rent from 1512 to 1514, when the company evidently decided to lease 3 parts of the property separately. In 1514-15 Sool paid 9s. for court costs and the valuation of 'certain goods for house rent' (? as fixtures). Thomas Humberston, grocer, appears to have taken the house, but then paid £2 to be released (? from his agreement). The company spent £2. 13s. 3d. on repairs to the house in Poultry, for principal timbers, steps, carpentry work, daubing and tiles. (fn. 6)

From 1514-15 three separate rents, totalling £8. 16s. 8d., were paid to the company, which continued to pay the £3 rent to Chicksands. John Fautles paid £5 rent for the house in Poultry, James Holand, broker, £1. 6s. 8d. for a tenement in Old Jewry, and (Master) John Butler, grocer, £2. 10s. for the other house in Old Jewry, called the Pykt Hatche. John Fautles or Fawteles, citizen and grocer, paid his rent of £5 to 1522, and at some time in the early 16th century was in dispute with the Pewterers' Company over an entry leading into the Pewterers' tenement through a shop which he held of Shouldham Priory (see 105/23). Fawteles's widow paid the rent in 1522-3, and John Wendyn, grocer, paid from 1523 to 1533. The second tenement, in Old Jewry, was held by James Holland, who paid half a year's rent at £1. 6s. 8d. in 1514-15, James Lake or Lace, grocer, paid the same from 1515 to 1517, and (blank) Cobler (or possibly 'the Cobbler') paid in 1517-18. Robert Brewer paid this rent for the house in which he lived from 1518 to 1520, John Hill lived there in 1520-1, and John Stoke, grocer, paid the rent in 1521-2. The rent was paid by 'the tailor' from 1523 to 1525, and by John Baker from 1525 to 1531. Barnard Kyngsson paid from 1531 to 1533. The Pykt Hatche in Old Jewry was held by John Butler, grocer, who paid the £2. 10s. rent in 1515 and 1515-16, followed by John Wenden, grocer, who paid until 1518. The house was vacant for half of 1518-19, then Robert Dene, who lived there, paid £2. 6s. 8d. p.a. until 1522. The house was empty again for half of 1522-3 and three quarters of 1523-4. It was let at £1. 10s. p.a. for the remaining quarter, and from 1524 at £1. 6s. 8d. to John Hardy or Hardyng, haberdasher, until 1533. Since the repairs in 1514-15 the Pewterers had only paid 1s. for a ladder to the garret at Cobler's house in 1517-18, and some small repairs in 1519- 20 and 1523-4. The company paid the £3 rent to Chicksands, and received rents from its tenants, until 1533, when the long lease held by Chamberlayn in 1468 eventually expired. The company did not obtain a further lease, but in 1533 Chicksands leased a plot or tenement in Poultry (105/22J) to John Wenden, citizen and grocer, for 30 years at £4. 6s. 8d. rent. It is not certain which of Chicksands' other tenants, listed in 1538, then occupied the part of the property formerly held on lease by the Pewterers and their tenants. (fn. 7)

The names of the tenants or occupants of the rest of Chicksands's property in St. Mary Colechurch and St. Mildred Poultry in the later 15th and early 16th centuries are not known. In 1538, when the priory and its lands were surrendered to the Crown, the tenements were listed in a rental; the following description, based on that rental, is arranged in what is most probably the order from the northernmost tenement in Old Jewry southwards, then eastwards along Poultry, and northwards up Coneyhope Lane, in so far as it is possible to determine the order. William Hardyng held a tenement in St. Olave Old Jewry parish (142/X) on lease for 40 years from an uncertain date, at £1. 3s. 4d. rent. William and Martin Pery held the Rose in Old Jewry (105/22A) on lease for 60 years from 1531, at £6 rent. William Pery had probably been there since c. 1524, when as William Pery, brewer, he was assessed for subsidy on goods worth 100 marks (£66. 13s. 4d.). William Hoggson held a tenement in Old Jewry (105/22B) on lease for 30 years from an uncertain date, at £1 rent. Elizabeth Grene held a tenement at will in Old Jewry (105/22C) at 13s. 4d. rent, John Harfell held another (105/22D) at will at £1 rent, and Fulk Garretson a third (105/22E) at will at £1 rent. Robert Austen held two tenements (105/22F-G) probably in Old Jewry on lease for 21 years from 1533 at £2 rent, and William Smalwood another (105/22H) on lease for 50 years from an uncertain date at £1 rent. The corner properties belonged to Shouldham Priory (see 105/23). Chicksands had a tenement in Poultry in St. Mary Colechurch parish (105/22J), part of which must once have been part of Shouldham's row of 12 shops on Poultry, but was now held by John Wenden, citizen and grocer, on lease from Chicksands for 30 years from 1533 at £4. 6s. 8d. rent. John Wendon, grocer, had been assessed for subsidy in this parish c. 1524, on goods worth 200 marks (£133. 6s. 8d.). The Poultry property in St. Mildred's parish belonged to Shouldham (132/24, described under 105/23). The southernmost Chicksands property in Coneyhope Lane (132/25A), next to the corner tenement, was held by Ralph Westwood on lease for 50 years from 1529, at 16s. rent. Next to this was a tenement called the Black Bull (132/25B), held by Andrew Nollum, citizen and merchant, for 60 years from 1529 at £1. 5s. 4d. rent. The next tenements were probably those 4 tenements held at will by Andrew Nollum, Henry Richardson, the wife of James Presse, and William Hobson (132/25C-F), each at 10s. p.a. There were 2 more tenements in Coneyhope Lane (132/25G-H), adjacent to (probably backing onto) the brewhouse called the Rose, held by William Pery and his wife Margaret on lease for 40 years from 1530, at 6s. 8d. rent. Chicksands's rents and farms in St. Mary Colechurch parish totalled £18. 3s. 4d. and in St. Mildred Poultry parish totalled £4. 8s. (fn. 8)

Both the Chicksands and Shouldham properties came into the Crown's hands in 1538. In 1543 they were granted to William Wyat and Robert Austen, citizens and grocers, for £431. 6s. 4d. Wyatt had most of the Chicksands property in Old Jewry (142/X, 105/22A-D), all the Shouldham property in St. Mildred Poultry parish (132/24A-B), and all of the Chicksands properties in Coneyhope Lane (132/25A-H). Austen's property, described below as 105/24, comprised all the Shouldham property in St. Mary Colechurch parish (105/23A-B), 4 tenements once of Chicksands in Old Jewry (105/22E-H) and the Chicksands property in Poultry in St. Mary Colechurch parish (105/22J). Austen also seems to have held the whole of a long narrow cellar extending from Old Jewry to Coneyhope Lane, approximately 16 to 18 ft. (4.88 m. to 5.49 m.) back from the street, which was probably once part of Chicksands' property. It extended under the lands granted to Wyatt in St. Mildred Poultry parish. It is not clear whether Austen held any other property in that parish, attached to his properties in St. Mary Colechurch parish. After the Great Fire there was an exchange of land between Austen's and Wyatt's successors in these properties, and the parish boundary seems subsequently to have been on the same line as this new division. Whether it had followed that line before the Fire, or the old property boundary, is not certain. The properties granted to Wyatt are described under 105/22 and 132/24-5, and those granted to Austen as 105/24. (fn. 9)

Later sixteenth and seventeenth centuries: 142/x, 105/22a-d

Wyatt's property after 1543 consisted of 142/X, 105/22A-D, and 132/25A-H, as described above, and also 132/24A-D. The descent of 132/24-25 was the same as 105/22A-D but details of those properties are given under 132/24-25. A considerable part of Wyatt's property was held on long leases at low rents. He held the whole in chief for the service of 1/40 of a knight's fee and tenths (totalling £1. 19s. 4d.) on the current rents. These tenths or fee-farm rents continued to be paid until the Commonwealth. (fn. 10) In 1548 there was a variance in St. Mary Colechurch parish between Wyatt and [William] Pery and Martin Pery his son, lessees of the brewhouse called the Rose in Old Jewry (105/22A). There was a garret, used as a hayloft, in the Rose, measuring 34 ft. 6 in. (10.52 m.) N.-S. by 14 ft. 6 in. (4.42 m.) E.-W. The garret was in danger of falling and destroying Wyatt's houses (probably 22B and 22C) below, and the timbers were so severely decayed that it could not be repaired. The Perys, who were bound by their lease to do repairs, were to take down the garret and the tenements below, and rebuild from the ground up; Wyatt was to bear the cost of rebuilding the tenements, and the Perys the cost of rebuilding the hayloft. (fn. 11)

In 1550 Wyatt was licensed, for £7. 16s., to grant all the properties he held as above (142/X, 105/22A-D, 132/24-5) to Bartholomew Skerne (possibly Skrene?), citizen and draper, his heirs and assigns, for the consideration that a lease be made to Wyatt and his wife Anne, of the messuage in which they now lived (presumably part of the above, but it is not clear which), for 60 years at a peppercorn rent. This lease was to be void on the lessees' deaths. Skerne was also to pay them £33. 7s. 10d. p.a. in survivorship. It is not clear if there was a purchase price as well; it seems unlikely. In 1558 Skerne and his wife Jane, John Hethe, citizen and cooper, and his wife Margaret, granted all the properties to John Broke, citizen and draper. Wyatt's life tenure and annuity were not mentioned; possibly he and his wife were already dead. In the quitclaim to Broke the tenements then or late held by William Hoggeson (22B) and Elizabeth Grene (22C) were said to be 'newly rebuilt', probably as a result of the viewers' report of 1548. In 1560 John Broke was licensed to grant all the same properties to Francis Bername or Barneham, citizen and draper. In the quitclaim from Broke and his wife, the tenements were described as before except that Richard Blake had replaced William Hoggeson as tenant of 105/22B, possibly because a new lease had been granted. The other tenants had probably also changed but the leases listed in 1538 were still current. (fn. 12)

The descent of the freehold

Francis Barnham, alderman, died in 1576, leaving most of his properties in London in tail to his son Stephen, citizen and draper, who in 1578 with his wife Anne and Francis's widow Alice suffered a recovery by William and Richard Bennett of one messuage and curtilage in Old Jewry in St. Mary Colechurch parish, probably as part of a family settlement. In 1592 Stephen and Anne suffered a recovery by Richard Bennet and Abraham Cartwright of 5 messuages in St. Mary Colechurch parish, one in St. Olave Jewry parish, and 8 in St. Mildred Poultry parish. (fn. 13) Stephen Barnham died in 1607 or 1608, leaving his lands to his son Martin in tail, with remainder to his daughters Alice, Ursula, Elizabeth, and Benedicta. Ursula, wife of Sir Robert Swifte, kt., of Rotherham (Yorks.), was barred from claiming the lands in London, on pain of forfeiting her claim to the other lands. Martin Barnham died in 1620, having settled the descent of his estate by a deed of 1617 conveying it to Nicholas Jordan and William Newton, to hold to the uses of himself and his wife Jane for life, with remainder to his niece Juliana Mason, daughter of his late sister Alice, for a term of years, and then to his sister Elizabeth, wife of Walter Double, and their issue. In 1621, by a case and decree in Chancery, Ursula and Sir Robert Swift recovered their title to the London properties as part of her marriage settlement. (fn. 14)

Swift died in 1625, and by 1626 Ursula had married William, 7th lord Crichton of Sanquhar, 1st viscount Aire and subsequently (1633) 1st earl of Dumfries. His son William, later 2nd earl of Dumfries, had already married, c. 1618, when both were aged 13 or less, Penelope, daughter of Sir Robert Swift and Ursula. (fn. 15) In 1626 William, lord Aire, and Ursula conveyed 14 messuages and 14 shops in St. Mary Colechurch and St. Mildred parishes by fine to John, earl of Annandale, and James Maxwell, esquire, who were to hold them to the use of William lord Sanquhar the younger. William the father appears to have continued to hold the properties. In 1628 he sold his 5 messuages and 4 shops in St. Mary Colechurch parish and 9 messuages and 4 shops in St. Mildred Poultry parish, to John Mannyng, citizen and skinner, for £1500. This sale, though said to be absolute, was almost certainly a mortgage transaction. In 1632 Viscount Aire and Hester Manning, widow, executrix of John Manning, late merchant of London (son of John Mannyng above), were licensed to and did sell the properties in Old Jewry, Poultry, and Coneyhope Lane, as above, to Thomas Latomb, senior, citizen and weaver, John Thiellier, merchant, and Thomas Latomb, junior, citizen and weaver, for £1600. A 'repayment' of £1984 (probably a further mortgage) and a bond of £3000 were involved in this transaction. Ursula died in 1632, and in 1633 there was a further Chancery case, brought by Lord Aire and Thomas Latomb against Walter Double senior and Walter Double junior, apparently because the last named had refused, when of age, to release or make assurance of the London properties to Ursula's heirs. A writ of execution was obtained and in 1636 Walter Double the younger released to Aire and Latombe. Later in 1636 William, earl of Dumfries, released the tenements to Thomas Latomb, senior, John Thiellier, and Thomas Latomb, junior, in consideration of the £1984 secured by mortgage in 1632, and a further £716. (fn. 16)

John Thiellier released his claim in May 1637, Thomas Latomb senior died in July of that year, and Thomas Latomb junior in August. The heirs of Thomas Latomb junior were his sisters Jane Maurois, widow, Sarah wife of James Deleau, and Hester Latombe. The properties in St. Mary Colechurch and St. Mildred parishes were valued by inquisition at £8 p.a. clear. Jane Maurois died in 1636, leaving her estate equally to her sons Elias, James, and John Maurois, with cross remainders if they died under age. In 1640 Sarah, with her husband James Deleau, and Hester, now wife of John Adriaen, sold their two third shares in the properties in St. Mary Colechurch and St. Mildred Poultry parishes to Basil Nicoll, citizen and haberdasher, Richard Nicoll his son and heir, John Gualter, citizen and brewer, and Richard Gualter, citizen and innholder, for £1595. A fine was levied to exclude claims through Thomas Latomb, senior, Thomas Latomb, junior, and John Thiellier. Basil Nicoll had died by May 1651, when John and Richard Gwalter quitclaimed to Richard Nicoll. In July 1651 Richard Nicoll conveyed his two- thirds share in the property by lease and release to William Rogers, citizen and joiner, and Thomas Conn, citizen and scrivener, to hold to his own use and subsequently to the use of his wife and heirs.

In 1668 Elias Maurois, son and heir of Jane Maurois, held one third of the property and Elizabeth Nicoll, widow of Richard, and his son Basil, held the remaining two thirds. (fn. 17)

The descent of the leaseholds or tenancies, 105/22A-D and 142/X

The succession of tenants to the parts of the property 142/X and 105/22A-D (as defined in 1543) is less clear than the descent of the freehold. The tenants or leaseholders in 1543 were William Hardyng (142/X), William and Martin Pery (105/22A, the Rose), William Hoggeson (105/22B), Elizabeth Grene (105/22C, tenant at will), and John Harfell (105/22D, tenant at will). These names were repeated in the grants by Wyatt to Skerne in 1550, by Skerne and Hethe to Broke in 1558, and by Broke to Francis Barneham in 1560, except that in the last of these Richard Blake had replaced William Hoggeson. (fn. 18) It seems clear, however, that these were no longer all resident by 1558, and possibly some years earlier. Roger Medcalffe probably occupied one of the houses, though not 22A, as early as 1544, when he was assessed in this parish on goods worth £20. In 1556 Robert Downe, parishioner of St. Mary Colechurch, left 20 nobles to 'Medcawffs children in my parish at the Rose' (22A), suggesting that Medcalfe now occupied that tenement. In the tithe assessment of 1558 Robert Meatecalfe, brewer, occupied a house valued at £4 p.a.; John Randall, with a house valued at £2. 3s. 4d., and George Conyares, with a shop valued at £1. 6s. 8d., listed after 21F and before Meatecalfe, may have occupied parts of 22A and 142/X with him. Stephen Lanynge had a house valued at £5 p.a., possibly corresponding to 22B; William Wycotte rented a house by the year at 13s. 4d., probably identical with 22C; and John Carre and Thomas Slake occupied houses valued at £6 and £3 p.a. respectively, which seem to correspond with 22D, now divided into 2. (fn. 19)

Tithe accounts of 1571-4 for St. Mary Colechurch parish list Richard Billingsley, with a house rented at £4 p.a., Mrs. Munsey, with a house rented at £2. 13s. 4d., but only paying tithe on a valuation of £2, and John Cheake, with a shop worth £1. 6s. 8d. for which he refused to pay any tithe. These appear to correspond with Meatecalfe, Randall, and Conyares. 22B may have been empty, as the next name after Billingsley's is that of John Cage, who probably occupied the house 22C, now at £4 rent. Mrs. Carre held two houses, in one of which Thomas Slake lived, for a total of £8 rent. These appear to be 22D. In the parish's Easter Book of 1574 Richard Billingsley paid the due for his wife and 2 servants, Mrs. Monsey for her manservant, Mrs. Carve for 5 other communicants in her household and Mrs. Slacke for 4 others. Neither John Cheake nor John Cage is listed. Agnes Carre, widow, whose will was proved in 1580, was probably still resident in St. Mary Colechurch parish, though she was not buried there: she left small cash bequests to several named 'neighbours in Coneyhope Lane', and to other known parishioners of St. Mary Colechurch. It is possible that 22D, like 22A, backed onto Coneyhope Lane or onto tenements in the lane. (fn. 20)

In 1578 Alice, widow of Francis Barnham, and Stephen Barnham, citizen and draper, and his wife Anne, leased a tenement, probably identifiable as 22C, in St. Mary Colechurch parish in Old Jewry, late held or occupied by John Payne, citizen and goldsmith, and now by John Cage, citizen and salter, to Cage, for 33 years from 1579 at £6 rent and a fine of £100. Cage was to spend £66. 13s. 4d. in repairs in the first 10 years, and thereafter to do all repairs. In 1583 Stephen Barnham and his wife Anne added another 7 years to Cage's lease from 1623 (the lease must already have been extended once), at the same rent. In 1583 Stephen Barnham and Anne leased 2 messuages (22D) in Old Jewry, in St. Mary Colechurch parish, and a messuage, shop, and chamber in Coneyhope Lane, to Ralph Bressey, citizen and haberdasher, for 30 years from 1592 at £6 rent and £7. 6s. 8d. annuity, and £140 fine. One of the 2 messuages in Old Jewry was occupied by Bressey or his assigns and the other, adjoining it, was still inhabited by Thomas Slack. John Allen occupied the messuage in Coneyhope Lane and Bressey the shop and chamber over it. Bressey was to meet the cost of repairs. Also in 1583, Stephen Barnham and Alice leased the tenement (22B) on the S. side of the Rose in Old Jewry, with all shops, cellars, solars, etc., to Thomas Gawdbye, citizen and skinner, who was then occupying it, to hold for 28 years at £6. 13s. 4d. rent. Gawdbye was to repair, but not to alter or remove principal timbers in such a way as to damage the tenement, and he was to leave the wainscot and wainscot portals at present in the parlour or hall at the end of his term. Thomas Gadby had been a tithe-payer in the parish in 1571-4, but the position of his name in that list suggests he was then tenant of 26A on the S. side of Poultry; he was presumably the Thomas Gawdbie of St. Mary Colechurch parish who died in or before 1589. (fn. 21)

The lease of the Rose (22A) current in 1543 was due to expire in 1591. A new lease was probably made then or earlier to John Cornelis, citizen and goldsmith, who occupied it in 1591. In that year Stephen Barnham and his wife Anne leased to Cornelis another two messuages in Old Jewry for 50 years at £8. 13s. 4d. rent and £37 fine. One of the messuages, in St. Mary Colechurch parish, was 22B, said to be sometime held or occupied by Thomas Gawdby or his assigns, under the lease of 1583, and 'now or late' occupied by (blank) Hill. The other messuage, said to be in the parishes of St. Olave and St. Mary Colechurch, 'or either of them' probably corresponding to 142/X, was lately occupied by John Cheke, citizen and mercer, under a lease of 1576, and now by the same Hill. It lay on the N. side of the entry to the Rose, and measured on the ground floor 14 ft. (4.27 m.) N.-S. by 22 ft. 7 in (6.88 m.); on the first floor it included the space over the entry, and measured 22 ft. 2 in. (6.76 m.) N.-S. Cornelis was to repair and cleanse the 'privyes, sinckes, and seiges' at his own cost, and pay the quit-rents and other charges. The interests of the assigns of John Cheeke and Thomas Gawdbye, under their existing leases, were to be preserved. (fn. 22) It is notable both here and in St. Mildred Poultry parish that the rents reserved under these new leases were considerably higher than those due on the long leases current in 1538 and 1543.

In the early 17th century there appear to have been 5 tenants in Barnham's property in St. Mary Colechurch parish in Old Jewry. In a tithe account of 1602 they were Mr. Cornelius, with a house worth about £6, Mr. Barnes or Barnesh, for one worth over £8, Mr. Binckes, for one worth about £4, Mr. Leigh, for one worth about £8, and Mr. Brooke, for one worth about £2. (fn. 23) In a rate assesment of 1612, John Cornelius, Walter Clapton, Giles Bynckes, John Wythall, and Thomas Brook probably held the same 5 properties. In 1622 the occupants were David Bunnell, Ambrose Mudford, Giles Binckes, Thomas Cullicke, and Thomas Brookes. (fn. 24) In 1628 William, viscount Aire, mortgaged his properties to John Mannyng, citizen and skinner. The part in Old Jewry was described as a great messuage or tenement, with a shop lying on the N. side of the great gate or entrance, (both) now or late held by David Bonnell, merchant, or his assigns; a messuage or tenement and shop adjacent to the S. side of the great gate, now or late held by Ambrose Mudford, gentleman, or his assigns; a messuage or tenement and shop adjacent to the last, to the S., now or late held by Giles Bynckes or his assigns; another great messuage or tenement adjacent to the S. side of Binckes' house, now or late held by John Beholt (?), merchant, or his assigns; and another messuage or tenement and shop adjacent to the S. side of Beholt's house, now or late held by Thomas Brooke or his assigns. The properties in Poultry and Coneyhope Lane, conveyed in the same deed, are described under 132/24-5. (fn. 25)

Giles Bincks died in 1634-5, leaving his goods, chattels and leases to his wife Anne, probably to remain to his son Giles. David Bonnel, merchant, living in St. Mary Colechurch parish, died in 1637-8, probably succeeded by his son David. Bonnel may have been Dutch: he left £25 to the Dutch congregation, and his wife's family and his sister's husband had Dutch-sounding names. (fn. 26) In 1638 the 5 properties in St. Mary Colechurch parish were occupied by Mr. Bunnel (valued at £30 p.a.), Mr. Carroll (£16), Mr. Bincks (£12), Mr. Woodcock (£14), and Mr. Cary (house and shop, £13 p.a.). Possibly one of these tenements (? Bunnel's) lay partly in St. Olave Jewry parish, but none of the names occur in the list for that parish in 1638. (fn. 27) In 1645 Basil Nicoll, by this date owner of the freehold, was said to own, among other properties, two messuages in the parish of St. Olave in Old Jewry, formerly held by Thomas Arthington or his assigns and now by Alice Lawe, widow, or Bernard Osler, scrivener, or their assigns. The back part of these 2 messuages adjoined the yard belonging to 2 messuages belonging to Humphrey Nicolls, citizen and brown-baker (probably no relation), in Old Jewry in St. Olave parish, and had lights and windows opening towards that yard. Humphrey Nicolls confirmed these lights, at their present size, to Basil Nicoll, who in turn granted that his tenants would not throw water, filth, or rubbish from their windows into the yard. It seems very likely that Basil Nicoll's tenements in St. Olave Jewry parish adjoined his tenements, held by Bunnel and others, in St. Mary Colechurch parish, but they appear to have been acquired in some other way as the tenants are not listed in the mortgage conveyance of Viscount Aire to John Mannynge in 1638 and in subsequent transactions. (fn. 28)

In 1662 Jeromy Bonell occupied a house with 15 hearths in St. Mary Colechurch parish. Henry Saunders, with a house with 6 hearths, probably occupied another part of 22. It is not clear how many more separate households there may have been in 22 at this date, nor who occupied them. 'Mr. Bunndale' occupied a house with 15 hearths early in 1666, but Saunders is not named. The list of those persons whose houses were burnt in the Great Fire included Jeremiah Bonnole, Vincent Inge, Thomas Walker, Henry Sanders, and Thomas Hallowes, in that order. Walker and Hallowes, who also appear in the Hearth Tax returns, could have been tenants of parts of 24. (fn. 29)

After the Great Fire

After the Fire 2 foundations extending from Old Jewry to Grocers' Alley were surveyed, for Mr. Boneall (to the N.) and Henry Goss (to the S.). Together these probably comprised all of the Nicoll/Maurois holding in Old Jewry (105/22) with part of 132/25. There were possibly only 2 leaseholds at this time, but if so there were probably several subtenants. The N. foundation was surveyed for Boneall in April 1668, and had a frontage of 37 ft. 10 in. (11.53 m.) to Old Jewry. The S. neighbour on that frontage was Henry Sanders. The more southerly plot, described as 2 foundations in Old Jewry and Grocers' Alley, was surveyed in January 1670 for Henry Goss, who had presumably succeeded Sanders. It had a frontage of 39 ft. 2 in. (11.94 m.) to Old Jewry and was bounded to the N. by Mr. Bonell and to the S. by Mr. Renalds and Mr. Holmes (see 105/24). Later in 1670 there was a dispute between Gosse and Holmes concerning lights. Gosse claimed to have a light at first floor level above Holmes's kitchen, and Holmes to have an ancient light over a house of office in Gosse's yard. Holmes said that before the Fire his light had been stopped by building in Gosse's yard, and he had had to make lights into his house by means of an 'ayrey' at the top; Gosse said he was 'much dampnified' by Holmes's stopping-up of his lights. Holmes had also had a watercourse from his kitchen into Gosse's yard, of which he was now deprived. The settlement of this case is not recorded. (fn. 30) A description of the bounds of Cheap ward, made in 1701 but referring in several places to pre-Fire landmarks and inhabitants, refers to the house in which John Ducaine (had) lived, 'now made into 2 houses', apparently on the opposite side of Old Jewry to 142/1A and W. of Coneyhope Lane. This house was almost certainly 105/22, or part of it, but it is not certain when John Ducaine lived there; he is not otherwise known as an occupant before the Fire, but 105/22 does appear to have been divided into 2 houses in the post-Fire rebuilding. (fn. 31)