Appendix III — Miscellaneous

MISCELL ANEOUS

William Lymsey and Humfer y Johnson in England

On 11 June 15941 William Lymsey, Recorder, and Humfer y Johnson, Alderman, were chosen to go to Eng land as agents “for the obtaynenge of thear aunt yent L ands & Comons”. The text of their peti tion, their answer to an objection from Lord Burg hley, and an early description of the limi ts of the lands belong ing to Carrickfergus are all available. All three carr y the same date of 25 July 1594 which may be the date of their filing in the state archives.

Petition of Agents for the Town of Carrickfergus, 25th Jul y, 1594.2 To the Right Honble. the Lord Burghley, Lord High Treasurer of England. Most humbl y beseecheth your honorable Lordship, William Lymsey and Humfrey Johnson, agents for the town of Carrickfergus, to consider the substance of our demands, consisting in these two points following:- F irst, to have granted all the ancient land and common belonging to the town, which have continued in the possession and maunrance of the Corporation time out of mind the same being commanded by Her Highness to Sir Henr y Syddney to allot and appoint, which yet remains undone by reason of his revocation, as in our petition is more at large expressed. The like warrant we now crave to the Lord Deputy. Together also with the land belonging to the Abbey of Woodborn, adjoining to the town, which we now hold by concordatum from Her Highness, the same being surveyed at 20 Irish acres, which we are content shall be chiefl y to the use of the garrison there resident, so that in time of war we may have some relief thereof, for which we are content to pay the yearl y rent reserved to Her Highness, being 15s, sterling. Secondl y that it wd. please Her Majesty to finish the walling of the town, and make up the Peare as is specified in Her Highness’s gracious letters patents to us granted, and now in force; whereupon we do yield and agree to pay yearl y £40 rent to Her Majesty as in the said letters patents is mentioned. If your Honor did know the often slaughters, burnings, preys, spoils, and stealths made upon us, it were most lamentable, the which we could in particular lay down but for troubling your Lordship. And now of late since March last, upon bruit of the Earl of T irone’s going out, the countr y, taking that opportunity, did prey and spoil the most part of Her Majesty’s subjects in those parts, and the garrison being then called away by him that had the command of them, the town left naked and open to the enemy. Our Mayor then, with all the townsmen, were constrained to work all day and watch ever y night for their own safety and defence of Her Majesty’s town, which, being walled, they might with some boldness have issued out and resisted the enemy and saved their goods, as oftentimes they have done. And the land being alloted they would have ditched and entrenched the same, leaving some few and narrow passages to the enemy, whereby they should have been less able to do harm, and with more advantage be encountered, where now the townsmen durst not issue out for hazarding the town and their few goods in it. Right Honorable, if the great extremities by famine and otherwise were thoroughl y made known to Her Majesty, your Honor, and the rest of her honourable Council, no doubt Her Highness would think this too little, but would yield us much more than we now demand. And where it is enformed your Lordship the unreasonableness of our suit in seeking to take all from Her Majesty, as namel y, the abbey or palace, albeit the same is

1 Page 13 above. 2 Young (1896), page 18.

contained within Her Highness’s letters patents, yet we never hitherto made any penny profit thereof; and if the granting of the same shall seem prejudicial to Her Majesty, we are ready (having authority from the town), upon the dispatch of our suit, to surrender the same, and to yield to any other thing which to your Honour shall seem reasonable. Our town, in regard of your fatherl y care of all Her Majesty’s dominions and countries, did advise us especiall y both to acquaint and depend upon your Honour in all causes touching their suits. Therefore we humbl y beseech your Lordship not to believe any suggestion against us, for that we will inform your Honor nothing but truth, which we will maintain with the loss of our goods, liberties, and lives. W herefore, if anything seem to your Lordship to be unreasonable, we humbl y crave to have the same delivered in particular, which done, we doubt not but to satisf y your Lordship with reason. Thus craving pardon, with our hearty prayer to God for your Lordship’s long-continued health to the relief of poor suitors, We most humbl y take leave. Indorsed. The humble petition of Willm. Lymsey and Humfrey Johnson, agents for the town of Carrickfergus, in Ireland.

Answer to the Lord Treasurer’s Objections, Jul y 25, 1594.1 W here it seemeth good to your Lordship that a portion of land shall be reserved out of the ancient land belonging to the town of Carickfargus for the use of the garrison, and another portion for the use of the Queen’s Castle. Our answer is that the same lands have been belonging to the town time out of mind, being never severed therefrom, nor any man able to make title thereunto. And as touching provision for Her Majesty’s garrison, we are content that they shall have free grazing in the summer, with hay and winter provision for their horses and hackeneyes which they keep for Her Majesty’s service.

And for land to be laid to the Queen’s Castle out of the same, we do also answer that the Constable for the time being shall have like allowance as before for the garrison; and he being also a freeman of the town by our Charter, shall have over and besides the said grasing and hay, &c., as large a portion of land as the best freeman or alderman of the town shall have, yielding for his share such duties and charges as other townsmen do for the like proportion and quantity.

We humbl y beseech your Lordship to consider the premises, and to weigh the pitiful and distressed estate of that poor town; the innumerable killings, burnings, spoils, and stealths made upon them, with the often famine and miser y which they have sustained for the defence and safe keeping of that Her Majesty’s goole of the North: as also the great poverty which now of late they are brought unto by these late outrages, spoils, and stealths made upon them by their evil neighbours, which have lands enough of Her Majesty’s l ying near about us waste, by the space of 20 or 30 miles compass ever y way from our town lands, which in regard of them are but a handful, and therefore ver y hard to be taken from us.

We are further to inform your Honor, that we are at the yearl y charge of 50li. ster. at the least, with the garrison, in finding them houseroom, fire, bedding, besides other necessaries. And now since Februar y last we have been at more than 100li. ster. by the year in repairing and maintaining the ditches and rampirs until the wall shall be built.

We do assure ourselves the entertainment which the Constable hath of Her Majesty may well maintain the Castle without seeking to take away for his own private use that which is the relief of many a poor creature, and if he shall allege the contrar y we will

1 Young (1896), page 16.

undertake (if it shall stand with your Lordship’s liking) that the town shall keep as many warders, as sufficient men, and as well furnished, as are now there, for half the pay he hath for the same.

And as touching Wodborne, which is 20 Irish acres, we desire to have the same at such rent as it is surveyed, viz., 15s. ster., and yet the same to remain to the use of the garrison, for that they cannot keep their horses and hackneyes in any other place safe from the enemy, especiall y in time of war, provided that in such troublesome times we may have some relief thereof. We did upon the same consideration give unto Mr. Eggerton 10li. ster., that he should not hold the same in severalty to himself, after he had procured a grant thereof, whereunto he did agree, for that he perceived how necessaril y the same did lie for the safety of all our goods; and the Constable hath, notwithstanding, as great commodity and profit thereof as the whole town hath, and for that part of the town’s land which lieth west from Woodborne to the Earl’s meadow, the garrison and constable have the whole grasing and commodity thereof as well for summer as winter provision for their horses and hackneyes. The said ten plough lands is no such great compass or circuit as may perhaps seem to your Lordship, and we do now hold the same in a manner with as great commodity as when the same shall be alloted. For our chief purpose in seeking to have the same laid out, is to the end we may entrench and ditch it about, leaving some few narrow passages for the enemy to come in, by which means we hope to save our goods, which oftentimes heretofore we have lost, for that the land is not enclosed.

We must acknowledge ourselves bound to your Lordship for many favours, most humbl y beseeching your Honor for a good dispatch, and what good shall befal our town in these their suits must of right be attributed to your Lordship, for which they and their posterity shall to their uttermost for ever rest thankful.

Our answer to the L. Treasurer’s objections touching the lands. (Irish Correspondence, State Paper Of fice.)

Note of the Bounds of the Town Lands, Jul y 25th, 1594.1 At the west end of our ancient town standeth the Abbey of Woodborne, which hath belonging unto it 20 Irish acres of land, from the which land unto Earle’s Meddow we esteem to be a mile, which is as far as the town’s land reacheth in length westward; and from the sea-side, being south to the great mountain northward, about three-quarters of a mile.

At the north-east end of the town standeth a spyttel-house, whereunto is belonging 4 or 5 Irish acres of land, from which land unto Copplande water is about some quarter of a mile, which is as far as the town’s land extendeth that way in length. And from the seaside northward in breadth up to the hills, upon which hills there is a Loughe called Loughmourne, of a mile in length northward, which runneth into the river of Copplande water; and so westward from the Loughe above the hills there is moores, mosses, and heathy, bad ground as far as the end of the great hill called the Knockowe, whereunto adjoineth the Earle’s meadow, by the separation of a river coming out of the end of that hill, which doth part the town’s land and the Earle’s meadow, upon which hills of moor and heathy ground we have, time out of mind, had comen (sic) of Turbar ye heath and pasture in the summer-time, whereby our cattle in the heat of the day might be near the Lough for their refreshing.

1 Young (1896), page 19.

The wall undertaken by Mr. Lackforde was 8 foot at the foundation in breadth, to be built 16 foot high, and to be at the height of the said 16 foot 6 foot broad, and thereupon a vannor of 4 ft. high and 2 ft. broad, which in the full height is 20 ft. The charge of ever y pearch of the same height and breadth will stand in the building thereof at the least 15ëè ster. And there is yet unbuilt 90 pearches, besides three towers and two gates, which must be built 4 ft. higher than the rest, with frestone for the gates, towers, and spikeholes; as also 8 stancks of lime and stone, which must be made without the wall to keep the ditches full of water, which altogether will be above the number of 10 pearches. So the whole unbuilt is at the least 100 perches, which, after the rate aforesaid, doth amount to 1,500ëè ster., besides the charge of building up the keye or peare. (Irish Correspondence, State Paper Of fice.)

M‘Skimin’s claim of early divisions of land is incorrect

M‘Skimin1 claimed that divisions had taken place in 1595 and 1601 but this seems not to be so. W hat happened was that on 10 August 15952 an examination of the town’s accounts acknowledged that £35 was owed to the Recorder, Mr Lymsey, “for his charges & disbursments aboute the Townes sute as well in Eng land as at Dublin”. Af ter he was paid by the town, a list of existing landholders was drawn up showing what each owed the town in the mat ter, the rate being £2 for a whole share, £1 for a half share, and 10s for a quar ter share. Earlier that year, on 7 July,3 i t had been agreed that those admi t ted to the li ber ties and freedom of the corporation af ter that date but before a division of the lands took place, and who wished to claim a share of the land, should pay a sum equivalent to that to be paid by existing freemen. As a consequence of that, on 6 July 16014 another list was drawn up of those who were content to pay and the amounts they owed, and as no person in that list appeared in the earlier one, all presumably had been made free of the corporation af ter 7 July 1595. Rather than the lists marking a division, therefore, they simply indicated the amount to be paid to the town by those who were going to benefi t from the division of the land in order to cover the cost of Mr Lymsey’s expenses.

Fate of the lands

A detailed discussion regarding the fate of the lands up to the 1800s will be found in the Reports from Commissioners. 5

1 M‘Skimin page 296 and 297. 2 Page 14 above, 3 Page 22 above. 4 Page 23 above. 5 Report from Commissioners, star ting on page 772.