This Northumberland house, in the parish of St. Katherine Colman, belonged to Henry Percie, Earl of Northumberland, in the 33rd of Henry VI., but of late being left by the earls, the gardens thereof were made into bowling alleys, and other parts into dicing houses, common to all comers for their money, there to bowle and hazard; but now of late so many bowling alleys, and other houses for unlawful gaming, hath been raised in other parts of the city and suburbs, that this their ancient and only patron of misrule, is left and forsaken of her gamesters, and therefore turned into a number of great rents, small cottages, for strangers and others.
At the east end of this lane, in the way from Aldgate toward the Crossed friars, of old time were certain tenements called the poor Jurie, of Jews dwelling there.
Next unto this Northumberland house is the parish church of St. Katherine, called Coleman; which addition of Coleman was taken of a great haw-yard, or garden, of old time called Coleman haw, in the parish of the Trinity, now called Christ’s church, and in the parish of St. Katherine and All Saints called Coleman church.
Then have you Blanch Apleton; whereof I read, in the 13th of Edward I., that a lane behind the said Blanch Apleton was granted by the king to be inclosed and shut up. This Blanch Apleton was a manor belonging to Sir Thomas Roos of Hamelake, knight, the 7th of Richard II., standing at the north-east corner of Mart lane, so called of a privilege sometime enjoined to keep a mart there, long since discontinued, and therefore forgotten, so as nothing remaineth for memory but the name of Mart lane, and that corruptly termed Marke lane. I read that, in the third of Edward IV., all basket-makers, wire-drawers, and other foreigners, were permitted to have shops in this manor of Blanch Apleton, and not elsewhere, within this city or suburbs thereof; and this also being the farthest west part of this ward on that south side, I leave it, with three parish churches, St Katherine Christ church, St. Andrew Undershaft, and St. Katherine Colemans; and three halls of companies, the Bricklayers’ hall, the Fletchers’ hall, and the Ironmongers’ hall. It hath an alderman, his deputy, common councillors six, constables six, scavengers nine, wardmote men for inquest eighteen, and a beadle. It is taxed to the fifteen in London at five pounds.[144]
LIME STREET WARD
The next is Lime street ward, and taketh the name of Lime street of making or selling of lime there (as is supposed); the east side of this Lime street, from the north corner thereof to the midst, is of Aldgate ward, as is aforesaid; the west side, for the most part from the said north corner, southward, is of this Lime street ward; the south end on both sides is of Langborne ward; the body of this Lime street ward is of the high street called Cornehill street, which stretcheth from Lime street on the south side to the west corner of Leaden hall, and on the north side from the south-west corner of St. Mary street to another corner over against Leaden hall. Now for St. Mary street; the west side thereof is of this Lime street ward, and also the street which runneth by the north end of this St. Mary street, on both sides, from thence west to an house called the Wrestlers, a sign so called, almost to Bishopsgate. And these are the bounds of this small ward.
Monuments, or places notable, in this ward be these:—In Lime street are divers fair houses for merchants and others; there was sometime a mansion-house of the kings, called the King’s Artirce, whereof I find record in the 14th of Edward I., but now grown out of knowledge. I read also of another great house in the west side of Lime street, having a chapel on the south and a garden on the west, then belonging to the Lord Nevill, which garden is now called the Green yard of the Leaden hall. This house, in the 9th of Richard II., pertained to Sir Simon Burley, and Sir John Burley his brother; and of late the said house was taken down, and the forefront thereof new built of timber by Hugh Offley, alderman. At the north-west corner of Lime street was of old time one great messuage called Benbrige’s inn; Ralph Holland, draper, about the year 1452 gave it to John Gill, master, and to the wardens and fraternity of tailors and linen-armourers of St. John Baptist in London, and to their successors for ever. They did set up in place thereof a fair large frame of timber, containing in the high street one great house, and before it to the corner of Lime street three other tenements, the corner house being the largest, and then down Lime street divers proper tenements; all which the merchant-tailors, in the reign of Edward VI., sold to Stephen Kirton, merchant-tailor and alderman: he gave, with his daughter Grisild, to Nicholas Woodroffe the said great house, with two tenements before it, in lieu of a hundred pounds, and made it up in money £366 13s. 4d. This worshipful man, and the gentlewoman his widow after him, kept those houses down Lime street in good reparations, never put out but one tenant, took no fines, nor raised rents of them, which was ten shillings the piece yearly: but whether that favour did overlive her funeral, the tenants now can best declare the contrary.
Next unto this, on the high street, was the Lord Sowche’s messuage or tenement, and other; in place whereof, Richard Wethell, merchant-tailor, built a fair house, with a high tower, the second in number, and first of timber, that ever I learnt to have been built to overlook neighbours in this city.
This Richard, then a young man, became in a short time so tormented with gouts in his joints, of the hands and legs, that he could neither feed himself nor go further than he was led; much less was he able to climb and take the pleasure of the height of his tower. Then is there another fair house, built by Stephen Kirton, alderman; Alderman Lee doth now possess it, and again new buildeth it.
Then is there a fair house of old time called the Green gate; by which name one Michael Pistoy Lumbard held it, with a tenement and nine shops in the reign of Richard II., who in the 15th of his reign gave it to Roger Crophull, and Thomas Bromeflet, esquires, by the name of the Green gate, in the parish of St. Andrew upon Cornhill, in Lime street ward; since the which time Philip Malpas, sometime alderman, and one of the sheriffs, dwelt therein, and was there robbed and spoiled of his goods to a great value by Jack Cade, and other rebels, in the year 1449.