262702 Thomas at Towne

262702Thomas at Towne

Key Facts

Snapshot:	fought in the Hundred Years' War member of England's Parliament
Parents:	525404Thomas at Towne 525405Benedicta de Detlyng
Born:	probably by 1380 location unknown
Died:	by 16 July 1424 location unknown
Buried:	unknown

262702Thomas at Towne's mother is 525405Benedicta de Detlyng, as plainly shown in the Easter 1440 court record illustrated below1 and in her will.2 262702Thomas' father was undoubtably 525405 Benedicta's first husband, also named 525404Thomas at Towne, although no contemporary record explicitly says so. (The 1574 heraldic visitation of Kent affirms both relationships.3) 262702Thomas was appointed as an executor of his father's estate in 1399, so he was probably born by 1380.4

262702Thomas, his mother 525405Benedicta, and his maternal grandparents 1050810John de Detlyng and 1050811Joan mentioned in an Easter 1440 lawsuit record. Full page.1

"Thomas a Towne my sone" named in 525405Benedicta's will2

262702Thomas married 262703Joan Cheyne (as proven by two lawsuits she filed after his death5,6).

Joh͞n͞a que fuit ux̄ Thome Toune ("Johana who was the wife of Thomas Toune") mentioned in a lawsuit she filed in 1427. Full page.6

262702Thomas is mentioned in his stepfather 262696 Stephen Bettenham's will, dated 26 May 1412.7 A tax record for that same year (1412) shows that 262702Thomas owned property in Faversham.8 Later records strongly imply that 262702Thomas also had owned property in Throwley,1,5 almost certainly Town Place, which I've previously described elsewhere.

During the Hundred Years' War between England and France, in 1417 262702Thomas joined as a man-at-arms under Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester during the invasion of Normandy.9 A brief description of Humphrey's command reads, "[Humphrey's] men stormed and captured St. Lo, Carentan and Valognes. From here he joined the siege of Cherbourg before joining the King at the siege of Rouen. His command captured Ivry and the important bridge at Ivry during the English advance on Paris before he was sent back to England in 1419 [...]." 10 The siege of Rouen was a classic, nightmarishly brutal medieval siege and one of the major events of the war; you can read a more thorough history here: 1, 2, 3.

An illustration of the siege of Rouen10

In 1420 262702Thomas represented Kent in England's Parliament.11

262702Thomas had died by 16 July 1424.12 In 1427 his widow 262703Joan filed two lawsuits pertaining to her husband's estate.5,6

Sources Cited:

1: UK National Archives reference CP 40/717 (Court of Common Pleas / Plea Rolls / Chief Justice's roll, 18 Hen VI, Easter term), on an apparently unnumbered page pertaining to a lawsuit involving William Sonde et al. vs. John Ruton et al. I obtained an image of this record from: Anglo-American Legal Tradition, O'Quinn Law Library, University of Houston; <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no717/bCP40no717dorses/IMG_1261.htm>, accessed 29 March 2022. You can see AALT's index entry for this record at <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/Indices/CP40Indices/CP40no717/CP40no717Pl.htm> by searching "1262." As you can see, the original record is in Latin, so refer to the abstract in: George Wrottesley, Pedigrees from the Plea Rolls: Collected from the Pleadings in the Various Courts of Law, A.D. 1200 to 1500, from the Original Rolls in the Public Record Office, page 371.

2: Kent Archives reference U47/3/T45/14/Z1/15. Although I've shown small excerpts from the original record, a more legible transcription is in: Kent Archives reference U1823/14/Z1/15, folios 282-289; researcher Jared Nathan provided me with copies of these pages.

3: W. Bruce Bannerman, ed., The Visitations of Kent, Taken in the Years 1530-1 and 1574, Part 2 (Publications of the Harleian Society, volume 75, London, 1924), page 34.

4: UK National Archives reference CP 40/555 (Court of Common Pleas / Plea Rolls / Chief Justice's roll, 1 Hen IV, Michaelmas term) on an apparently unnumbered page. I obtained an image of this record from: Anglo-American Legal Tradition, O'Quinn Law Library, University of Houston; <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/H4/CP40no555/aCP40no555fronts/IMG_0236.htm>, accessed 7 April 2022. You can see AALT's index entry for this record at <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/Indices/CP40Indices/CP40no555/CP40no555Pl.htm> by searching "Betenham."

5: UK National Archives reference CP 40/664 (Court of Common Pleas / Plea Rolls / Chief Justice's roll, 5 Hen VI, Hilary term) on an apparently unnumbered page, a record pertaining to a lawsuit by Joan Toune (widow of Thomas Toune) against Stephen Bouns of Threulegh, husbandman. I obtained an image of this record from: Anglo-American Legal Tradition, O'Quinn Law Library, University of Houston; <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no664/aCP40no664fronts/IMG_0415.htm>, accessed 1 May 2022. You can see AALT's index entry for this record at <https://waalt.uh.edu/index.php/CP40/664> by searching "widow of Toune."

6: UK National Archives reference CP 40/664 (Court of Common Pleas / Plea Rolls / Chief Justice's roll, 5 Hen VI, Hilary term) on an apparently unnumbered page, a record pertaining to a lawsuit by Joan Toune (widow of Thomas Toune) against John Grymmesham of Faveresham, brewer. I obtained an image of this record from: Anglo-American Legal Tradition, O'Quinn Law Library, University of Houston; <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no664/aCP40no664fronts/IMG_0819.htm>, accessed 1 May 2022. You can see AALT's index entry for this record at <https://waalt.uh.edu/index.php/CP40/664> by searching "widow of Toune."

7: E. F. Jacob, ed., and H. C. Johnson, The Register of Henry Chichele, Archbishop of Canterbury: 1414-1443, Volume II (University Press, Oxford, 1937), pages 33-36. This a transcription of the will of Stephen Bettenham, which is in Latin. I privately obtained an English translation. I have been unable to find the original record that Jacob and Johnson transcribed.

8: Inquisitions and Assessments relating to Feudal Aids, with Other Analogous Documents Preserved in the Public Record Office; A.D. 1284-1431, Volume VI (His Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1920), page 474.

9: UK National Archives reference E 101/51/2, m2 (Records of the Exchequer / King's Remembrancer: Accounts Various / Army, Navy, and Ordnance / Muster roll of the army at Southampton. 5 Hen V). This record is indexed by the The Soldier in Medieval England project; 262702Thomas' entry in that index is as follows:

	Name: Towre, Thomas
	Rank: Man-at-Arms
	Service: Expedition, France
	Captain: Humphrey of Lancaster (1390 - 1447) duke of Gloucester
	Lieutenant / Sub-Captain: Towre, Thomas
	Commander: Henry V (1386 - 1422) King of England
	Service Date: 1417
	Source Type: Muster Roll
	Reference: TNA, E101/51/2, m2

10: Copied from: John Richard Green, A Short History of the English People, Volume II (Harper & Brothers, New York and London, 1899), page 523.

11: J. S. Roskell et al., ed., The History of Parliament: The House of Commons, 1386-1421 (History of Parliament Trust, 1993), profile for Thomas Town of Town Place in Throwley, Kent. I used an online version of the biography.

12: UK National Archives reference CM 31/145. I have not seen the original record and merely used the abstract at the link provided. Notice the phrase "the lands of the heirs of Thomas atte Towne." I found this reference in an unpublished article by Nathan Murphy, who in turn credits Todd Farmerie for finding it.