Philip Malpas, one of the sheriffs 1440, gave by his testament one hundred and twenty-five pounds, to relieve poor prisoners, and every year for five years, four hundred shirts and smocks, forty pairs of sheets, and one hundred and fifty gowns of frieze, to the poor; to five hundred poor people in London six shillings and eight pence; to poor maids’ marriages one hundred marks; to highways one hundred marks; twenty marks the year to a graduate to preach; twenty pounds to preachers at the Spittle the three Easter holidays, &c.
Robert Large, mercer, mayor 1440, gave to his parish-church of St. Olave in Surrey two hundred pounds; to St. Margaret’s in Lothberie twenty-five pounds; to the poor twenty pounds; to London bridge one hundred marks; towards the vaulting over the water-course of Walbrooke two hundred marks; to poor maids’ marriages one hundred marks; to poor householders one hundred pounds, &c.
Richard Rich, mercer, one of the sheriffs, 1442, founded alms houses at Hodsdon in Hertfordshire.
Simon Eyre, draper, mayor 1346, built the Leaden hall for a common garner of corn for the use of this city, and left five thousand marks to charitable uses.
Godfrey Bollein, mayor of London, 1458, by his testament, gave liberally to the prisons, hospitals, and lazar houses, besides a thousand pounds to poor householders in London, and two hundred pounds to poor householders in Norfolke.
Richard Rawson, one of the sheriffs, 1477, gave by testament large legacies to the prisoners, hospitals, lazar houses, to other poor, to highways, to the water-conduits, besides to poor maids’ marriages three hundred and forty pounds, and his executors to build a large house in the churchyard of St. Marie Spittle, wherein the mayor and his brethren do use to sit and hear the sermons in the Easter Holidays.
Thomas Ilam, one of the sheriffs, 1480, newly built the great conduit in Cheape, of his own charges.
Edward Shaw, goldsmith, mayor 1483, caused the Cripplegate of London to be newly built of his goods, &c.
Thomas Hill, grocer, mayor 1485, caused of his goods the conduit of Grasse Street to be built.
Hugh Clopton, mercer, during his life a bachelor, mayor 1492, built the great stone-arched bridge at Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, and did many other things of great charity, as in my Summary.