Now! Then! 2024! - Yorkshire On This Day

Excerpt

Before Luke Robinson, Esq., John Smith, otherwise calling himself John Thompson, sayeth he never went by other names than these two; sayeth, that he hath no certain abode, but where his friends do entertain him for the time. Being asked, amongst which friends he doth most reside, doth desire to be pardoned, because he is not willing to wrong his friends. He sayeth that he did come from Ruston in the night; last night from Mrs. Sayer’s house, there having been three days; and came from Mr. Trollop’s house in the bishopric of Durham about a fortnight ago, and came on foot. Being asked what places he did lodge at by the way, he is unwilling to wrong his friends, yet confesseth he lay at Yarm at an alehouse, and at an house beyond Black Hambleton, an alehouse; and that he lay at Stangrave at an ale house. Sayeth he hath been at the house beyond Hambleton before, but not at the other houses. He is by profession a schoolmaster; hath lived in diverse places, but will not name any; sayeth he is a Roman Catholic, and became one in the family of the Lady Anne Ingleby, and did live some time with old Mr. Vavasor of Heslewood five years, and from thence went to teaching scholars, and did teach Sir Francis Ireland his children. Being asked whether he did never teach in any other place, he will not answer. Being asked whether he be in orders from the Church of Rome or no, he sayeth he will not say he is or he is not, and will not answer positively to that question.

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.

Abbreviations:

• ER: East Riding
• GM: Greater Manchester
• NR: North Riding
• NY: North Yorkshire
• SY: South Yorkshire
• WR: West Riding
• WY: West Yorkshire

Comment

Comment

Raine notes:

Another seminary priest. Bishop Chaloner, in his Memoirs of the Missionary Priests, gives the following account of him: “He was one of the secular clergy. His name was Wilks, tho’ he was commonly known by the name of Tomson. He was born at Knaresbrough in Yorkshire, was taken at Malton upon a market-day, and set in the stocks to be gazed at by the people almost the whole day, till a cutler of the town making oath that he knew him to be Lord Evers his priest, he was sent to York Castle, tried and convicted, but died before execution.”

Christopher Cooper, of Old Malton, deposes that before day he met Smith and one William Thompson, “going on the back-side of the town on the foot way. He said they came from Rushton. Travailed early, for they had beasts going before, but the beasts were not his. He then got the constable to apprehend them, and Smith confessed that he came out of the North, and confessed that he was Roman Catholic and a schoolmaster.”

William Skelton, constable of Malton, says that the nightwatch of Old Malton brought the two to him as suspicious persons. “He did find popish papers about Smith, and the watchmen did bring small pieces of paper which they said they did see Smith scatter.”

Luke Robinson, Esq., of Thornton Risebrough, near Pickering, was an active magistrate and a very zealous Parliamentarian. He was bailiff and M.P. of Scarborough, and one of the Council of State. At the Restoration he was driven out of the House of Commons. He is thus alluded to in one of the old political ballads of that period:

Luke Robinson that clownado,
Though his heart be a granado,
Yet a high-shoe with his hand in his poke
Is his most perfect shadow.

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Original

Aug. 31, 1651. Before Luke Robinson, Esq., John Smith, otherwise calling himself John Thompson, sayeth he never went by other names than these two; sayeth, that he hath no certain abode, but where his friends do entertain him for the time. Being asked, amongst which friends he doth most reside, doth desire to be pardoned, because he is not willing to wrong his friends. He sayeth that he did come from Ruston in the night; last night from Mrs. Sayer’s house, there having been three days; and came from Mr. Trollop’s house in the bishopric of Durham about a fortnight ago, and came on foot. Being asked what places he did lodge at by the way, he is unwilling to wrong his friends, yet confesseth he lay at Yarm at an alehouse, and at an house beyond Black Hambleton, an alehouse; and that he lay at Stangrave at an ale house. Sayeth he hath been at the house beyond Hambleton before, but not at the other houses. He is by profession a schoolmaster; hath lived in diverse places, but will not name any; sayeth he is a Roman Catholic, and became one in the family of the Lady Anne Ingleby, and did live some time with old Mr. Vavasor of Heslewood five years, and from thence went to teaching scholars, and did teach Sir Francis Ireland his children. Being asked whether he did never teach in any other place, he will not answer. Being asked whether he be in orders from the Church of Rome or no, he sayeth he will not say he is or he is not, and will not answer positively to that question. He sayeth he was not beyond seas. Being asked whether a man may be qualified for an ecclesiastical person of that Church of Rome without he go beyond seas, he sayeth he must either go beyond the seas or be qualified by some person who comes from thence. Sayeth he was not in prison in his life but once, being carried before Sir Robert Barwicke about two years ago, who, upon examination, set him free. He sayeth he was then apprehended in Helmsley at one Daniel Emerson’s house, and was apprehended by Major Scarffe, and was then accused for being a priest, and he did not then deny that he was one. He hath been much at the Lord Ewres his house in the old lord’s time, but not since. He was borne in Nidderdale in Yorkshire, and his father’s name was William Smith. he did take the name of Thompson, because the times were troublesome for him. he came to Mrs. Sayers only to see her.

449 words.

Tags

Tags are assigned inclusively on the basis of an entry’s original text and any comment. You may find this confusing if you only read an entry excerpt.

• Ballad (18) ·
• Catholic Church (57) ·
• Commonwealth of England (8) ·
• County Durham (8) ·
• Hambleton District (5) ·
• Hambleton Hills (5) ·
• Hedge school (1) ·
• Helmsley (3) ·
• Knaresborough (6) ·
• Luke Robinson (died 1669) (1) ·
• 📌Malton, North Yorkshire (11) ·
• Nidderdale (3) ·
• North York Moors (8) ·
• Pub (19) ·
• Ruston, North Yorkshire (1) ·
• 📌Scarborough (19) ·
• Walking (18) ·
• 📌Yarm (7), market town on the south bank of the River Tees, a port before industry moved closer to the sea ·
• 📌York Castle (36) ·
• 📌York (164) ·

All tags.

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