Leicester Archdeaconry Court Proceedings
Case of Winter vs Petcher, 1597-98
Leicestershire Record Office 1D
41/4/673
1D 41/4/721
1D 41/11/30/121
The archdeaconry court proceedings and papers relating to this
case were found wrapped in bundles in an old box of church records
forming part of the Leicestershire Archdeaconry court archives.
They show little evidence of having been opened or consulted in
the last 400 years. Although some pages are damaged they appear
to be more or less intact as originally filed. The case is outlined
in An Appleby Adulterer before the Archdeacon, Leicestershire
Historian Vol. 2 no. 11 (1980/1); republished on www.applebymagna.org.uk
© Transcribed by Alan Roberts, 1980
The Examination of John Petcher of
Appleby L.R.O. 1D 41/4/673a
[Latin preamble] In dei noie amen
John Petcher of
Appleby
in this judgement
says and alleges in these
writings set out in law &c.
- Item testes
examinatum
witnesses produced
in court varii
et vacillantes
contrarij
falsa et a veritate alsene deponentes
infames
&c.
- Item
testes that Edward Taylor one of the
witnesses .. a man that hath noe land, lease, stocke or possessions
wherewithall to maintain his wife and children; hath not maintained
his familie by the trade of a blackesmith or anie other honest
occupation or trade for [divers?] yeares past, but hath for verie
povertie,ydleness, or some such other cause given over his occupation
of a blacksmith wherein he was trained and broughte uppe and hath
lived and doth live and maintain himself and his by badd, shiftie
and unhonest practices and such a one is and hath bene accompted,
reputed and taken as well in the town and parish where he dwelleth
as in other places thereabouts
- [Item] the said Edward Taylor all the time aforesaid, before
hath bene and is a man outlawed, and to divers persons
somes of monye indebted, hath not goods moveable [or] unmoveable
in the view or comon esticacion of his neigh[bours] worth £10
hath bene and is a comon defrauder of men by cosennage
or coneycatching and thereby hath gotten and doth gett a great
part of his maintenance: hath used and doth use manye sininster
practizes to gett mony or other comodities, and hath divers and
sundrie times effected these his practizes by the helpe of his
. William Taylor his sonne and Helene Taylor his wife, and
by both or one of them
- Item that the said Edward Taylor hath confessed before witnesses
that he comitted adulterie with one
wife and with the wife
of Roger Warrener and received of the said Roger to conceale a
burglarie intended to be comitted by him, in mony 10s, yarne worth
20s and a cowe worth £4
- Item Edward Taylor
and upon the highway robbe one John
W
called Lanceshaw the servannte
of Edward Winter and likewise upon the highwaye robbed one Margaret
Palm and threatened her that if she told any of his said Robberie
he wold saie that she gave him the monye which he tooke from her
that he should to be
with her. Also he stole candlesticke
out of the house of Frannces Joyner of Ashby and stole from him
a hatt band also
- Item that the said Edward Taylor
cosened fower younge
men of Appleby pretendinge that one whom he brought with him had
authoritie to take souldiers and by that meanes extorted from
the said younge fellowes 20s that they should not be taken for
souldiers
- Item that the said Edward Taylor
did take upon him falselie
to be a prometer and thereby extorted of John Petcher 12s and
also a certean summe of monye of one Crosherne of Measham by the
same meanes
Wathew [?] of Applebie and made him
one
horse, cosened him of a paire of bootes
John Snarston of
a cloake
.
- Item that the said Edward Taylor with
. Bosworth of Normanton
of a certene summe of mony or other goods to the valuee of seventie
markes more or lesse, and after when he had delivered back againe
unto the said Bosworth the summe of 20s in forme recompense of
the by the order of one Mr Johnson then of Heither as the said
Bosworth was going homeward he tooke from him the said 20s violentlie
and by force
- Item that the said Edward Taylor
did entice and perswade
one Elizabeth Prestwich to come from her father Thomas Prestwich
and steale from him a gownecloth and divers other goods and then
received her and the said goods into his house, lodged her there
with a roage or vagrante person
cosened her of the gowne
cloth and sente her away begginge
- Item the said Edward Taylor
beinge comitted to the prison
or common gaole in Leicester desired the underkeeper of the said
gaole to give him leave to goe awhile into the towne and swore
most deeplie that he would returne presentlie else wished that
the Devell might take him bodie and soule, but having such leave
hee came away (went his way) and retourned not at all neither
presentlie nor at anie time since
- Item that the said Helene one other of the presented witnesses
was and is the wife of the said Edward Taylor and like him in
she did steale a paire of shoes in Ashby and was comonlie
accompted to be light fingered, and of noe creditt or reputacion
at all and easie to be corrupted or induced by her said husband
to speake an untruth
- Item William Taylor one other of the
witnesses the sonne
of the said Edward and Helene and them and at their keepinge and
easie to be persuaded ..by them and what would give him steale
souse out of a Barne from Martin of Bosworth, steale Barlie sheaves
out of Appleby field and brought them to his fathers house,
stole Rye out of one Chandlers Sacks of Nottingham and stole
a horse out of George Smallers stable of Snarston, and was
riding away with him, and had ridden soe away if the said Smaller
had not mett him and stayed him
- Item
Edward, William or Helen
.
- Item that the said Edward Taylor toto tempo
always
..was and is indebted unto Robert Winter the
and unto Thomas
Winter, father of the said Robert and hath bene and is relieved
from the house or houses of the said Winters with bread, mony
and other victailes; and the said Edward & William his sonne
both or one of them have bene and are most comonlie at the house
or houses of the said Winters and there have bene and are releived
with meat and drinke: the said Robert Winter did send out the
said Edward by his said sonne in money 13s 4d and a loafe of bread
atone time and divers loafes and other victails at other times
since the beginning of this sute or a little before; and thereby
meanes to procure the said Edward and his wife & sonne to
be witnesses in this cause against the said John Petcher;
- Item that the said Robert Winter before [Atherston] had putt
away his wife Sara Winter
or made good this
promise
a reward unto the said Edward Taylor ... to watch the said Sara
and Petcher to take them in adulterie together; or gave or promised
such reward if he could or should soe take them together
- Item that the said Edward Taylor in consideration of the said
reward did watch the said Sara and Petcher and went upon the fair
Daie
unto the house of Hugh Draiton in Addeston ..where
at his first meeting he asked who were in the said Draitons
parlour and the said Draiton made answer that there were in the
parlour Nicholas Taylor and his wife and two others naming or
meaninge the said Sara and Petcher. Whereupon the said Edward
Taylor replied and said
I am glad of this for I will gaine
40s by Petcher and Sara meaninge by this by there being there
together. And thereupon the said Edward Petcher before he would
come into that same parlour where
the said Nicholas Taylor
and Sara [were] together: the said Sara and Petcher neither committing
adulterie nor in anie unhonest state behaving themselves
.
- Item that the said Helen Taylor and William Taylor neither
at the time when the said Edward came into the said parlour nor
at annie time that daie before or after specialle while the said
Sara and Petcher were there together did come into the said parlour
with the said Edward Taylor
- Item that the said Nicholas Taylor and his wife both or one
of them were put in the said parlour together with the said Sara
and Petcher the daie
speciallie for a good space before
and at the said Edward Taylor coming into the said parlour and
saw noe adulterie neither by the said Petcher and Sara, and needs
must have seene it if anie such thing had bene done
.
- Item the Daie upon the adulterie
[allegedly] committed
was a faire daie in Addeston wherein was an alehouse or victualling
at the time of the daie when, was about two or three of the clock
in the afternoon; the window of the parlour before mentioned did
open out into the street where the faire was kepte; the faire
was then at the chiefest
the house of the said Draiton was
about the hours aforesaid greatlie frequented with guests coming
in and out continualie; the hall of the said house had one, two
or three companies of people which sat there eating and drinking;
the door of the said parlour opened into the said hall and was
at the time aforesaid shut noe otherwise but with a latch onlie
- Item that divers or most men cominge into a victualling house
on a faire day speciallie if the[y] lacke a place to sitt in ,
do usuallie looke into a parlour or anie roome in the house where
guests use to be, to see whether there be anie roome that there
or any of their acquaintannce and will not sticke to drawe a latch
for that purpose
- Item that the parlour aforesaid
was and is a guesting
room or place where guests did before usuallie sat or drinke.
.
- Item that the window of the said parlour opening onto the streete
or highwaie being
was lettized or borded with carved bordes,
or bordes cutt through for letting in light or verie thicke latthed
- Item that the said Edward, Helene and William the presented
witnesses
about 2 or 3 of the clocke of the daie arlate
or at the time of that daie before or after, were neither severallie
nor all three together at the windowe of the parlour before mentioned,
nor did looke into the said windowe or profered soe to doe
- Item that William Granger, William Dudlie and Richard Dudlie
of Swepstone and his servant or one of them
speciallie about
2 or three of the clocke..[were] at the said parlour windowe in
the streete [awaiting?] there beastes to be sold, and must needs
have presented witnesses if they had bene at the said and had
looked in or profered to looke in but neither they nor anie other
that kept beasts there saw them or anie of them that daie, speciallie
at or about the houres aforesaid
- Item that the said Edward Taylor before presented the time
of adulterie speciallie before the beginning of this suit did
openlie before witnesses slander John Petcher articulate and called
him whorem[aster] and therefore hath deposed against him in such
sort as is contended in his examination, to help or releive or
excuse himself, and not for anie truth that is in the matter
- Item that if the said Sara and Petcher had comitted adulterie
the place, daie and time before mentioned then Hugh Drayton the
goodman of the house, his wife, servant or guests or at least
some of them must in all probabilitie have seene the fact committed,
but none of them sawer anie such fact or any likelihood thereof
though they were in the said house continuallie and always going
up and about from parlour to parlour to place and into the said
parlour all the daie aforesaid speciallie about the hours of 2
or 3 of the clocke in the afternoon
- Item that the said John Petcher since or about the feaste of
St Margaret 1597 was presented into this court upon a common fame
or vehement suspicion of the pretensed adulterie nowe objected
against him, and was by the judge of this court or his lawfull
deputies [permitted] his purgation thereupon. And a summons or
proclamation was made openlie in the parish church of Applebie
.
- Item that the said Robert Winter
and knowinge of the
..for as before inioyned, and did expose himself ... in the said
purgation and sought by all means to finde
the same
- Item that the said John Petcher after his purgation so enioyned
and did dewlie and lawfullie purge himself as well by his owne
oath as by the oather of fower of his honest neybours and thereupon
and
was declared and promised and have lawefullie and dewlie
p[urged himself and restored againe to his good name, and was
also thereupon finallie discharged and dismissed out of this court,
and this was done in the presence of the said Robert Winter or
his lawful deputie
- Item [in Latin]
.. parish de Applebie, Swepston, Adderston,
Newton
.&c &c.
The interrogation of Hugh Drayton, alehouse keeper of Atherstone
L.R.O. 1D 41/4/673c
- Imprimis interrogatur quilibet testis de
.
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis wheather he know one
Sara Winter wife of the said Robert Winter. Et ut supra.
-
Item interrogatur quilibot testis
. that the said
John Petcher hath bene apud bonos et graves infra parachar
de Applebie suspectus crimen incontinentie fornicacois due adulterii
cum eadum Sara ppetrasse. Et ut supra.
- Item on suit credit
that the said John Petcher
was presented by churchwardens of Applebie aforesayd upon suspicion
and public fame of the said
.
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
that it
is notorious publique and famous within Applebie aforesaid and
thereabouts, that the said Petcher hath lived incontinentlie with
the said Sara
- Item wherath he beleeveth this publique fame to be scandalous
and offensive to the religious and godlie in Applebie and also
wheare thereabouts
- Item wheather he be perswaded in consciounce that Edward Taylor,
William Taylor and Helene Taylor have sworne trulye in their depositions
or purged themselves in this cause
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
that since the
professed purgation made by the said Petcher at Leycester he the
said Petcher hath bene familier and at sondrye times kept companye
with the sayd Sara Winter at Leycester, Ashbye de la Zouch and
other places
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
wheather Robert
Winter articulate be owinge unto him. Et interrogatur ut supra
....
- Item wheather Edward Taylor, William Taylor or Elene Taylor
or anye of them be owinge unto him or to anye of them. Et ut
supra.
- Item si aliquis testis
deponere that Edward Taylor
articulate is commonlie reputed to be a shifter or coosener or
liver by sinister practises lett him declare by whom
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis intens deponere de pusa
confessione adulterii
nor any the pretended
cosenages,
the concealemente of burglaries or other misdemeanors pleaded
to have bene committed or done by the said Edward Taylor, William
Taylor, or Elene Taylor or any one of them mentioned in the 5,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 articles
interrogatur quomodo
hoc sciae
- Item interrogatur quilibet testis
wheather and
howe much the adulterie proved against Petcher concerneth him,
his creditt or house, et in puti ...
- Item interrogentum de apta et con
- Item interrogatur quilibut testis intens deponere that
the said Edward Taylor, Elene Taylor or William Taylor have bene
culpable in any the crimes mentioned in any [of] the articles
exhibited in their behalf.
- Item whether
have lived honestlie and
.
- Item interrogatur Hugo Drayton et Johanna Drayton testis
wheather the said John Petcher and Sara Winter weare alone
togeather without any companye in their parlour articulate at
Atherston aforesayd upon the said fayre daye and howe many howres
the towe wear so alone togeather. Et interrogetur ut supra.
- Item interrogatur dictus Drayton wheather at that time
he so called the sayd Taylor the sayd John Petcher and Sara Winter
weare alone togeather, and wheather the sayd Drayton stayd at
the sayd alehouse after the sayd Edward Taylor departed from the
sayd alehouse. Et interrogatur et supra.
- Item interrogatur dictus Drayton wheather upon his cominge
from the sayd alehouse that
Taylor did publish to the others
that he had taken the said Petcher and Sara Winter committing
adulterie
- Item interrogatur dictus Drayton wheather the sayd Petcher
did give or offer 6d to the said Edward Taylor to be silent and
not to speake of his adulterie. Et interrogatur ut supra.
-
Item interrogatur Galfridus Meassen testis
.wheather
he tolde Richard Aldrid of Applebie that he the sayd Meassen saw
Petcher and Sara Winter togeather betwixt two rye landes in Measham
fields and if he sayd so
wheather yt trew, ... lett him
express ... in what maner he sawe them theare togeather. Et
interrogature ut supra.
The examination of Edward Taylor L.R.O. 1D 41/4/673d
[Latin preamble] Interrogatur
John Petcher
Robert Winter
&c
- Imprimis
- Item
- Item
- Item
- Item
Adulterij apud Adderston Petcher uxore de Winter
viz Sara Winter articlata
. viz. whether were in a hygher
chamber or lower parlour what [doors]
. or windows the place
had, and whether the doors and windows were open or shutte and
if they were shutte how they were shutt
- Item
whether the windows were glased or without glasse
and whether anie number of windows speciallie the principall windowes
did open into the streete or highwaye in Adderston, and whether
a man standing in the streete or high way may see into the roome
where the said parties were
- Item
upon what day of the weeke was the faire articulate
whether
it were a markett day or a faire daie, and whether it was at the
beginninge, middle or end of the said markett daie or faire
.
- Item
whether the house in which the pretensed adulterie
is said to be committed were at that time an ale house, victualling
house or Inne, and whether there were great companies goinge and
cominge in and to the said house and in and to all
the
rooms thereof speciallie the nether roomes and that roome wherein
the said Petcher and Sara are pretensed to have committed adulterie
.
- Item
Edward Taylor
whether he
come to the
house of Draiton articulate and asked the goodman of the house
whether Petcher and woman were in the house or parlour and whether
did the said Draiton answer that they were there and one Nicholas
Taylor and his wife with them
whether did the said Edward
Taylor then replye or at annie time after said that he would have
40s by that
- Item interrogetur quilit testis where he was at the time
of the professed adulterie committed; in what place and who was
present with them
- Item
Edward Taylor whether he hath called the said John
Petcher whooremaster and when he did soe call him and howe often
.
- Item
whether he be outlawed
.
- Item whether he have acknowledged that he hath said the
of the bodie of one [Elizabeth?] wife
- Item
The evidence of Richard Dudley, William Chilwell and Thomas Burrowes
(30 March 1598) 1D41/4/721c
[Latin preamble]
- Imprimis that the professed witnesses
Winter viz Edward
Taylor his wife and sonne upon Adderston faire daie last did not
looke into the parlour window mentioned in their depositions before
such time as Richard Dudlie, William Chilwell and Thomas Burrowes
witnesses
Petcher and such other as kept their beastes
against the said parlour window were gone to dynner.
- Item that the said Dudlie, Chilwell and Burrowes and others
that kept beasts against the said parlour window the daie before
mentioned, came directelie from their said beasts into Hugh Draitons
house mentioned in the depositions and there dyned in the hall
of the said house and sate hard by the dore of the said parlour
- Item that the wife of one Nicholas Taylor cominge into the said
parlour dore and peeped in at some hole or crevis of the dore
while the said Dudlie and the others before mentioned were sitting
at dynner as is aforesaid and had a desire and meaning to see
whether the said Petcher and Sara were naughte together, but could
not not did see them in anie such sort, and was reproved of the
said Dudlie for her peeping in
.
- Item that the said Dudlie and the others before mentioned as
soone as they had ended their said dynner returned directlie to
their beastes and to the place where they were kept viz
before the said parlour window; and then neither coming nor returning
nor at anie time after did see the said Edward Taylor his wife
or sonne or anie of them either looking into the said parlour
window or nyghe unto yt or cominge from thence unto the said Draitons
house, or in the same house
- Item that the said Edward Taylor, his wife and sonne or anie
of them that had bene at the said window or looked into
and after lookinge in had come into the said Draitons house
into the
there while the said Dudlie and the others before
mentioned were at dynner or were coming thereunto or returning
from hie then that said Dudlie, Chilwell Burrowes and the others
before mentioned must needs have seene them
.
- Item that the said Dudlie, Chilwell Burrowes and others kept
their said beasts against the said window, and had their faces
always or most commonlie upon their beasts and upon the said windowe
- Item that the beasts upon Adderston faire last were soe thicke
against the said window that hardelie anie man, much lesse three
together would come unto the windowe before mentioned
- Item that the said Dudlie, Chilwell and Burrowes and the others
that dyned with them did leave some to keepe their beastes while
they were at dynner; which keepers nor anie of them did see the
said Edward Taylor, his wife and sonne or anie of them looking
into the said parlour window, nor at or about the same, which
they muste needs have seen if it had beene soe
- Item that the said Edward Taylor his wife and sonne and anie
of them were knowne unto the said Dudlie, Chilwell, Burrowes and
others and kept beastes as is aforesaid, as well upon as before
the faire daie before mentioned
- Item that the aid Petcher had not bene in companie with the
articulate Sara at anie time within the space of 6,5,4, 3 or 2
weeks nighe before the said faire daie, nor knowe of her then
being in Hugh Draitons house untill he was called in by the said
Nicholas Taylors wife or some other
- Item that the said Sara Winter had bene remaininge at the house
of the said Nicholas Taylor one, 2, 3 or 4 dayes continuallie
next before the faire daie; and was brought to Adderston faire
by the said Nicholas, his wife or one of them and
without
the
consent or procurement [?] of the articulate Robert
Winter, his father or mother in lawe
- Item that the said Sara was persuaded to come or was brought
to the said faire of purpose that she might there be intrapped
- Item that the said Edward Taylor and his wife and sonne and
anie or one of them since the time of their presented depositions
have bene dewlie gratified, rewarded or benefiited by the said
Robert Winter and by his the said Winters father and mother or
mother in lawe speciallie by carying of coales by bonding and
giving of monye, by giving bread vitailes and such like
.
Item that the said Nicholas Taylor and his wife or one of them
before Adderston faire daie last did use perswasions unto the
said John Petcher that he would procure a sute to be commenced
by the said Sara against Robert Winter her husband
for that
the said Robert Winter refuse to rehabite with her (as indeed
he did then refuse) and that the said Petcher would laie downe
monye for the charge of the said sute: and meante thereby to take
some advantage against the said Petcher: and had therein the advise
and counsell or direction of the said Edward Taylor: but the said
Petcher expresselie refuted to yeild to such perswasions and said
he would meddle therein for that it concerned not him or uttered
other words of refusall to like effecte
Item
Inscription relating to Interrogatories
30 March 1598 [Latin translation] 1D 41/4/721a
On which day Walker
alleged
.in the case of Winter
against Petcher
replied that he believes that the articles
exhibited in the schedule were specified to be extracted from
the Register of the court and to agree with the original and signed
by the hand of Henry Palmer and the same Henry to have been and
to be publically known and all and singular the things contained
in the same schedule to have been and to be done as is contained
in the same ... and otherwise he does not believe ...
Sworn Statements of Burrows, Dudley and Chilwell (6th
April 1598)
L.R.O. 1D 41/4/721b
Thomas Burrowes de Swepstone in Co. Leicester cottyer
.
Ad pr arld dicit et depuit that the articulate Edward Taylor
his wiffe nor sonne nor any one of them upon Adderston faire day
last did look into the parlour window menconed in their depositions
in this cause before such time as this deponent and his cotestes
Richard Dudley and William Chilwell were gone to dyner
for that this deponent and his foresaid cotestes did keep beastes
against the said window untill their going to dyner and needs
have seene them if any said thinge had been
Ad 2nd arld dicit et depouit
for that he
this deponent is one of the [plaintiffs?] articulate and thereby
knoweth the
. to be trewe
Ad 3rd arld dicit depouit
that the wife
of Nicholas Taylor articulate came unto the door of the parlour
articulate and peeped in at a hole or crevis of the same while
this deponentt and his said cotestes were sitting att dyner togeather
in Hugh Draytons house and was reproved of his cotestis William
Dudley for the same aler
deponte.
Ad 4th arld dicit et depouit
for anything
that this deponent knoweth to the contrary.
Ad 5th arcld dicit et depouit
his beastes
were kept against the window articulate.
Ad 6th arcld dicit et depouit that this deponent
had his face alwaies or most comonly upon his beastes and upon
the windowe articulate
Ad 7th arld dicit et depouit
for that the
he this deponent was pute with his beastes his self the most part
of the day.
Ad 8th arcld dicit et depouit that he this deponent
and his said coutestes did leave one to look to theire beastes
the day articulate while they went to dyner
Ad 9th arcld dicit et depouit that the artculate Edward
Taylor, his wiff and sonne are known unto this deponent and to
his coutes Chilwell and Dudley
Ad 10th arcld
&c &c.
Signed X Wm Burrowes
_________________________________________________________________Note
Richard Dudley of Swepston, co. Leicester, yeoman and William
Chilwell of Swepston, co Leicester, yeoman both swore to and signed
similar statements
LIBER ACTORUM entry for this case in L.R.O. 1D 41/11/30/121
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