Peter de Brewes placed in Suffolk

Paul Mackenzie of QLD, Australia, has sent me his latest finding on the Peter de Brewes of Wiston question. He has transcribed and translated a document of 1353 concerning a debt of Peter de Brewes connected with his purchase of Chesham Bois manor. The document describes Peter as "knight of Suffolk". We had previously been unsure whether the Suffolk had been a misreading of Sussex but Paul has found a useful comparison with another document which confirms the reading as Suffolk. The lower picture shows the words "de Brewoes miles de com' Suff† " from the document in question. The upper picture shows the words "Robert de Ufford comes Suff†" from another roll. Robert de Ufford is known to be Earl of Suffolk, (comes Suff†) and the similarity of the formation is clear. Hence, we are now sure that, in 1353, Peter de Brewes was resident in Suffolk. The full story from Paul, including the transcriptions and translations, can be seen on this page at the BraoseWeb site.

Another John de Braose identified.

It was recently brought to my notice by a friend (That's you John.) that the list of priests for the church of St Nicolas at Old Shoreham, Sussex includes a name which looks like some form of John de Braose. This John was recorded as priest in 1294 and I was asked if I knew of him.

I had to say that I had no knowledge of any John de Braose who could be matched with the priest.

But I was looking up some references on Bidlington hospital this week and came across a connection. There is a court case (Coram Rege Roll, Hilary 2 Edw III, ro. 102) between Thomas de Braose and his kinsman, the baron, William de Braose. One of the arguments is whether Bidlington is a manor or a spiritual hospital. In this case the jurors say that William de Braose  presented John de Braose, his brother, as chaplain of the hospital. Most of the arguments seem quite confused but the confirmation that William had a brother John who was a priest seems to fit well with the person who was incumbent at Old Shoreham in 1294.

William de Braose's father, another William, had three wives, so the question left now is – which wife was John's mother?

The picture shows Old Shoreham church, depicted by S H Grimm in 1782. (Click on picture to see large version.)

Addition: The Bishop of Chichester's Register shows that Bishop Gilbert (1288 - 1305) admitted John de Brous to the chantry of the hospital of the Blessed Mary at Bidlington.

Further Addition: (extract from "The Story of Shoreham" by Henry Cheal pp195/6)
Circa 1295-6, John de Brewose, who was doubtless of the family of the Lord of Bramber. He is described in an Assize Roll 23 and 24 Edward I., as "parson of the Church of Old Shoreham," and as making complaint that Edmund Earl of Cornwall, Gilbert de Mulsham and eight other persons had unjustly deprived him of a plot of ground containing 60ft in length and 31 ft in width. The jurors said that " Gilbert and all the others except the Earl, unjustly disseised John de Brewose of the tenement he claims, therefore it is agreed that John recover possession thereof and his damages. Gilbert and the others in mercy, and. John de Brewose in mercy, for a false claim against the Earl, pardoned."