1578. March 26. Vol. 628, p. 287a. May 29. Vol. 628, p. 288. 87. 88. 10th of May next, leaving the sword and authority to Sir William Drury, as our Justice. You shall bring with you our Auditor of that realm with perfect reckoning of our revenues and debts. We have taken order that 5,000l. shall presently be sent to our Treasurer there,t by way of advanceinent, to defray all charges for this next quarter until Midsummer. Upon your departure you shall take order that therewith our garrison may be paid, and that they may until Michaelmas be victualled, "as they have been with the money which you have agreed to receive in lieu of cesse." Manor of Greenwich, 20 March, 20 Eliz. Contemp. copy. Pp. 2. The QUEEN to the LORD DEPUTY (SYDNEY). By your letters of 25th November 1578 (sic), we understand the evil success of Thomas Chatterton's enterprise upon O'Hanlon's country, granted him by us. You were advertised by our Council to deal with him for the revocation of that grant, which to do and to compound the matter with him you thought you had not sufficient warrant. The premises considered, and that you wrote you could not then get of the tenants there above 60l. of yearly rent, we accept his resignation of that grant. If you can make 100l. ster. yearly there, we are pleased to grant him so much. He shall enjoy the same as of our gift during his life. Greenwich, 26 March 1578, 20 Eliz. The QUEEN to the LORD DEPUTY (SYDNEY). We have received letters from yourself and our Council there, excusing your abode and stay longer than was prescribed in our last letters, and imputing the same to the matters of cesse and to the conference appointed by us between you and our Chancellor (Gerrard). It has been necessary to stay the Chancellor here till now; so we will allow of your stay till his arrival. We now again signify our pleasure that you make your immediate repair hither. The bills for the Parliament sent hither by you have been considered. That for renewing the impost is very necessary; and it is also requisite that the composition for cesse be passed by Parliament. But many other inconveniences contained in those bills may be remedied by the Governor and Council. We require you to give credit to our Chancellor, who has greatly satisfied us and our Council touching the general and particular state of that country, not without great show of good affection and love to you. We have dispatched him *Thomas Jenyson. I 1578. May 29. Vol. 628, p. 289. May 29. Vol. 611, p. 351. 89. 90 and given a licence for transporting yarn in the name of his Greenwich, 29 May 1578, 20 Eliz. THE PRIVY COUNCIL to the LORD DEPUTY (SYDNEY). We have long since advertised you of the receipt of your letters brought by the Lord Chancellor of that realm. As to the cesse, the chief cause of his repair hither, we have sent you our opinions with the effect of all our dealings in that behalf. The Lord Chancellor is now licensed to repair to you. Touching the Parliament, her Majesty has heard the several laws reported, and thinks the same unneedful; but she will have a Parliament for the continuance of the subsidy. Touching the Earl of Clanricard, her Majesty stays resolution until you repair hither. For the nobilitation of Tirloughe Lenoughe, his L. (Gerrard ?) has the instruments. You require some learned [men] to be sent over to serve as justices there. One at least shall be sent over shortly to serve as Justice of the Common Place. By your letters of 30th April sent by Waterhouse, we perceive that the perfecting of the cesse is the principal cause of your stay. Upon the repair thither of the Lord Chancellor you are to enter into conference about that matter, to bring the same to some final and speedy end. Her Majesty has given order to the Earls of Kildare and Ormond to repair home. Your repair hither is to be with expedition. We have considered the depositions of certain persons touching the disorders of the soldiers that followed you in your journey to Kilkenny. The faults were not so great as we were informed. 29 May 1578. Contemp. copy. Pp. 21. SIR WILLIAM DRURY, LORD JUSTICE. "Instructions given by the Queen's Majesty, with the advice of her Highness' Council, to Sir Wm. Drury, Knight, [whom] she hath appointed Lord Justice of Ireland, and Wm. Gerrard, Esq. Lord Chancellor of the same land." They shall assemble the rest of the Council there, and "enter into the estate of the four provinces, Ulster, Connaught, Munster, and Leinster, how and by whom every or any of these estates be perturbed, how and in what sort at this day the loyal and true subjects are defended from the enemies, and at what charge to her Majesty and at what charge to the country. After, to consider whether any part of the garrison now in pay [may] be diminished and the country sufficiently defended. Then, to consider of all our castles and forts, which 1578. at this day at our charge are guarded and kept, what maintenance daily belongeth or is otherwise challenged to belong to every or any of them the said castles or forts, either in lands or customs.' "Also to confer and consider how the confines of our countries bordering upon the rebels, specially Leixie and Offally, be inhabited by the owners of the same lands, and whether by such persons or in such sort, with such armour and munition, as either by the laws of the land or in respect of their tenures they are bounden; wherein our will and pleasure is, that you effectually put those the laws of that land in execution, by which laws and through the deserts of owners of the lands we may lawfully demise the lands and appoint tenants." Also to consider how the Irish rebels, next borderers upon the Pale, may best be dealt with to bring them to civil order, especially the Tooles, Byrnes, and Kavernaughts, "who have over long been suffered to live in the like rude and disordered sort as do the most savage of the Irish." Also to call our Clerk of the Check, and "to peruse his check roll of the whole number of the soldiers and others in our pay, who be their captains, where they live and how employed, and whether all those to whom we give pay as soldiers be continually employed in service." You shall cause the said Clerk of the Check to reduce his manner of entering those in pay into his check roll according to the ancient order. Because we would be truly advertised of the debts we owe and of those due to us, you shall consider of the late notes laid down by our Auditor, and how all those to whom we remained in debt when Sir Henry Sydney last received the government, and who are not yet discharged, had and came by their warrants, whereby you may gather who are meetest speedily to be paid. We hope, with the revenue of the lands and the levying of the said debts, that those to whom we owe anything may be satisfied without suit to be made to us, and that "such as have patents of office there appertaining to our revenue, should have their yearly fees or the arrearages thereof paid by our Treasurer for the Wars, out of our treasure sent out of England; and therefore you shall charge our Treasurer with that default passed, and direct him not commit the like, what commandment soever any our governors there shall give to the contrary." We perceive how greatly religion and justice "be decayed in most parts, the parish churches fallen down, and there no service said or very seldom." You shall take "such order as all those the several parish churches decayed may be reedified, who in law are chargeable therewith, the parsons, vicars, or their farmers, compelled to keep curates.' You shall cause convenient places to be made or repaired wherein aptly to receive the justices in all times of sessions; also sufficient gaols. The said justices shall put in execution the 1578. laws against marriage and fostering with the Irish and using Irish laws and customs; and you shall appoint, in the towns where the sessions shall be kept, and in the good towns through which the passage of the justices lies, inns and places of lodging with convenient proportion of hay and corn, which they shall pay for. You shall peruse the instructions taken in the time of King Henry VIII. (then put in print,) delivered to Sir William Skevington, Deputy there. So many of them as you think meet for this present age shall be put in execution. We are wearied with the intolerable charges. Extraordinary. expenses are the chief consumer of our treasure. As often as any allowance exceeding 10l. shall be demanded, you shall stay the granting or sending of a warrant by your concordatum, until you have called together all those of our Council being within eight miles, so as you ever have the number of four besides yourself to confer and consider of the demand. Upon consideration of such sums as since the begnning of our reign have been answered to us "for subsidies, proffers of Mayors and Sheriffs, fines for liveries, the twentieth part for spiritual livings of the Crown, office [of] Clerk of the Hanaper, of the first fruits, fines for homage, forfeitures of merchandises, profits for wards, fines for leases, fines for alienations, fines in the Castle Chambers, forfeitures upon bonds and recognizances, [and] the fines of amercements cessed by the Commissioners in Causes Ecclesiastical," we find the same so small that we think we have not been answered of that which we ought to have received. The orders taken in the time of the Earl of Essex, set down in writing and subscribed by Gilbert Gerrard, AttorneyGeneral, for the speedy and due payment of our revenue, are to be executed. Before they pass any warrant to demise any part of our lands, or any pardon or protection for any offender, you and the Council shall consider of the same. The profits accruing thereby have rather been employed upon others than turned to our use. When any spiritual promotions fall void, they shall be bestowed upon apt and fit persons, eschewing corruption. You, the Lord Justice, and Lord Chancellor, with our Council, shall enter into the consideration of all officers and offices in our Court of Exchequer established to determine causes touching the revenue, and consider what appertains to the duty of those several offices, what fees they have, and whether our said revenue may not be received by fewer officers and at lesser charge. Be careful to see our people governed by justice, that they may defend themselves from all oppressions, exactions, spending, coynes, liveries, payments of black rent, or any other Irish tribute or payment. Search and try out what beefs the Irishry yield and pay us, and what they ought to yield. 92. Whereas upon the change of governors many good servitors in office have usually been displaced, and the friends and followers of the new governor admitted, although unfit, you shall have care that there be just matter inducing before you displace any. Have special consideration of all such as hold any their lands of us, that we be not defrauded of any service. At Michaelmas next, and so forth quarterly, send us a true accompt of the receipts and charges of the quarter, and a perfect certificate of your proceedings. Copy. Pp. 9.* PETITION of the GENTLEMEN of the PALE to the LORD We have remained prisoners since 6th February last until this 28th June for the matters of cesse. We had no intent to gainsay any part of the Queen's prerogative. We acknowledge that in times of necessity the Queen may lay charge upon her subjects here as fully as in England, and we submit us to the same; "the whole effect whereof we have by sundry other submissions, heretofore exhibited to your Honours, acknowledged in the plainest manner that we could devise." We beseech you, therefore, to take some good order for our discharges of fines and imprisonment, and also to reduce the charges of diet and fees of this Castle (which have been out of measure increased and enhanced since the time of the Earl of Sussex's government) to the old rates then used and accustomed. Signed: Thomas Delvin, Christopher Howthe, James Kidlen, P. Trimleston, Christopher Chevers, Oliver Plunkett, Thomas Nugent, Wm. Talbott, Nicholas Nugent, Jo. Nettervill, Patrick Nangle,† Tho. Nugent, George Plunkett, Patrick Bermyngham, James Nugent, Edward Plunkett, Lavelen Nugent. Contemp. copy. P. 1. 2. Another copy of the above. P. 1. The EXPENDITURE. "Ireland.—The Queen's Majesty's Charges there concerning the martial affairs, as well Ordinary as Extraordinary, for two whole years, beginning the 1st of October 1575, and ending ultimo Septembris 1577.” Diets, wages, and entertainments, 55,0167. 128. 1d.; extraordinaries, 17,2187. 78. 11gd. Total, 72,335l. Os. Ozd. * Dated in the margin, by Carew, "Anno 1579." There is another copy of these instructions in the Record Office, dated 29 May 1578. "Mangle" in MS. |