Will of Clement Cotton, Gentleman, 1502

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England
Surnames/tags: Cotton Moorehouse

This is a transcription of the register office copy of the will of Clement Cotton, gentleman of Cambridge, written on the 14 April 1502 and proved in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury on 1 June 1502^[1]

The will image from the National Archives site was good, the Ancestry image was not good, very dark and unreadable on the second page.

Transcription conventions:
Spelling, punctuation and line breaks are as per the original document.
Crossings through have been included struck out
Spelling, punctuation and line breaks are as per the original document.
Crossings through have been included struck out
Paragraph breaks at change of bequest, and bold text are my own for ease of reading.
Where present, the obsolete letter Thorn has been rendered as th, and ff has been rendered as F
Abbreviations and breviographs have been expanded in [square brackets]
The image quality was good and the writing very legible.
Non standard spelling as per usual for this time period, which has been transcribed verbatim.

Persons mentioned

• Clement Cotton Gentilman testator
• John Cotton my son[ne] age under twenty one
• Robert Moorehouse of Cambrigge joint executor and trustee and to have the rule and guiding of testator's son John
• my daughter Blanche
• Gregory my son[ne] age under twenty one
• Thomas Palm[er] my son[ne] in lawe asked to guide the testator's son Gregory
• my Cosyn John Pavise joint executor
• Willi[am] Cotton witness
• Oliv[er] Scales? witness
• my son[ne] Clement Cotton witness
• John Throleby witness
• Adam Sampull witness

[folio 77 recto]
In the name of gode amen The xiiij day of the moneth of Aprill The yere of oure lord god
m^t v^{c [2]} and five and the xvij yere of the reigne of King Henry the vij^th I Clement Cotton Gentilman being
of good mynde and hole memory make my Testament and Last Will in this man[ner] First I bequeth my
soule unto Almyghty god and to oure blessed lady saint mary and to all the holy company of hevyn and
my body to be buried in saint mary church in Cambrigge Without the Qwire doore ov[er] the right hande
therof if I decease in Cambrigge

It[e]m I will and require myn[e] executours that first and prinicpally they see
and make payment of all my dettes and duties to any man[ner] of p[er]sone or persones due immedialtely after my
decease Also I will that all my cofeoffes of and in all my landes and ten[emen]tes in Cambrigge with their appurten[an]ces
stande and be feoffees to the p[er]formance of this my last will folowingThat is to say /that they suffer
myn[e] executours to take the hole Issues and p[ro]fittes of all my said landes and tenamentes by an hole yere
immediately folowing after my decease Excepte of suche landes and ten[emen]tes Rentes and farmes With their app[ur]ten[an]ces
as I have and holde or any other to myn[e] use have liying within the Shraggery ^[3] in Cambrigge To thentent
that they with the same shall pay all my said dettes and also fynde an honest seculer prest after the discretions
of myn[e] executours to sing for my soule in saint mary church or eliswhere Where it shall please almyghty god
that I shalbe buried by the space of an hole yere And his service to be gynne immediately after my decease And to
have for his salary viij markes

It[e]m I geve and bequeth to ev[er]y prest dwelling or abiding with in the said parr[is]h
being at my dirge and masse the day of my buriall from the begynnyng therof unto thende of the same
iiij^d / And to ev[er]y clerke of the same parissh there being at the said dirge and masse of the age of xvj
yere and above ij^d to ev[er]y childe of the same parissh there being at the said dirge and masse
j^d

It[e]m I will that myn[e] executours distribute in almes the said of my buriall to powre people
equally amongst them x^s

Ite[e]m I will that all my landes and Tenements with ther app[ur]ten[an]ces liying and
being in the Shraggery in Cambrigge That John Cotton my son[ne] shall have all the said landes and
Tene[ment]es with there app[ur]ten[anc]es To hym and his assignes terme of his lif And that Robert Moorehouse
of Cambrigge shall have the Rule and guyding of hym and of the said landes and ten[ement]es unto that he come
unto thage of xxj yeres And I will that all my cofeoffes of the same stond ^[4] and be feoffes to
thentent aforesaid

It[e]m I will that my silv[er] plate and Juelles goods and Cattalles and all myne
moveables whatsoever they be That they be sold by myne executours to the best a[dva]ntage and p[ro]fitt therof
And that they money there of comyng and recyved togedire with my dettes to me Due That my daughter

[folio 78 recto] Blanche shall have of the same xx^li

It[e]m I geve and bequeathe to the Reparacion of the church of Musto---
xxvj^s viij^d To be perceyved and paid with the said money comyng of the sale of the said moveables.

It[e]m I geve
and bequeath to Gregory my son[ne] xx marc to be perceyved and paied with the money comyng of the
said moveables And that Thomas Palm[er] my son[ne] in lawe shall have the Rule and guyding of hym and of
the said money unto his age of xxj yeres to fynd hym with the same all my foresaid legattes and bequestes
to be p[er]formed if ther be sufficient and may be p[er]formed The Residue of all my goodes and Cattalles above not
bequethed nor assigned I geve and bequeth to myn[e] executours to dispose for the welo ^[5] of my soule as they
thynke it shalbe moost pleasure to almyghty god Whome I make and ordeyn my Cosyn John Pavise and
Robert Moorehouse And I geve to eyther of them xl^s for their labo[urs] on this behalf / Into Witnesse wherof
to this my last will and testament I have sett to my seale These Witnesseth Willi[am] Cotton Oliv[er] Scales?
my son[ne] Clement Cotton John Throleby Adam Sampull and other ..... the day and yere abovesaid

[Probate in Latin] the will written above was proved at Lambeth the first day of the month of June AD 1502 ... adminstration granted to Johann Parvise and Roberto Moorehouse executors named