Will of Thomas Heydon of North Court, Hertfordshire

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: [unknown]

This is a transcription of the register copy of the Will of [[ Thomas Heydon of Northchurch, Hertfordshire]] It was written on 25 April 1573 and proved at the Prerogative Court of Canterbury on 2 March 1573/4. ^[1]

Spelling, punctuation and line breaks as per the original
Paragraph breaks and bold text are my own for ease of reading
ff has been rendered as F, and ligatures and abbreviations have been expanded in [square brackets]

Persons mentioned:

• my lovinge wyfe Margaret
• my sonne Mighell Michael Heydon, son and heir, and executor of Testator's will
• my daughter Wenefryde
• Wenefryde's "late grandemother"
• George Knightley Esquier Wenefryde's uncle
• Sir Nicolas Hare knight decessed made a bequest to Wenefryde in his will
• my sonne William
• my lovinge nephew Franncis Heydon Esquier overseer of Testator's will
• Witnesses: Francis Heydon, Dorothy Shordyshe, John Temple, Thomas ?egey [? Negey], Henry Wetherhed, Thomas [illegible]

---

In the name of god amen I Thomas Heydon of Norcot courte in the
p[ar]ishe of North Churche in the Countie of Hertford gent the xv^th day of Aprill in the xv^th
Yere of the raigne of o[u]r soveraigne Lady quene Elizabeth ann d[o]mi[ni] 1573 Do ordayne &

[page 2]
Make this my last will & testament in manner & forme following, First I bequeathe my soule to Almighty god my
Savior & Redemer by whose blessed passion I trust to ^be saved & my body to be buryed in christian buryall where
it shall please god to call me to his mercye according to the discretion of my executor And because it is meete and
convenient that I should sett an order in suche things as it hath pleased god to geve me I have though good to declare
by this my last will and testament how and in what manner I wouldehave them bestowed / And that is where
I am possessed of a Lease of the scite of the manner of Nortcot court and the demeanes thereof for terme of divers
yeres yet to come my minde and will is that the said Farme of Norcot cort shall remaine to my lovinge wyfe
Margaret Immediately after my decesse together with the stock remainyng and being upon the said farme as well
corne as cattell and also all my goods within my house of Norcot except such catell and goods as I shall
hereafter by expresse words name and apoynt otherwise in this my last will /

And whereas I am sysed of
divers Lands and tenements whereof my wyfe is to be indowed I am contented att the specyall request of my
said wyfe to appoynt to her vj^L xiij^s iiij^{d [2]} yerely to be payd by my sonne Mighell to my said wyfe during her
life in recompense of her dowery which I charge him on my blessing quyetly to pay unto her accordingly /
And where I have in reversyon a Lease of the manner of Rowsham in the countie of Oxford I geve and
bequeath the said Lease to my daughter Wenefryde to the advanncement of her marryage so as she wilbe
Ruled by my sonne Mighell with thadvice of the ov[er]seers of this my will / And where my saide daughter
hath also of the bequest of her late grandemother toward the p[re]ferment of her marriage certeyne money
plate and goods remaininge in the hands and custody of George Knightley Esquier her uncle I will
and charge my sonne Mighell to call upon the said Mr Knightley for the delyvery of the said money plat
and goods to my said daughter prayinge the said Mr Knightley to be good to her as he always promysed me
he would / And where ther doth remaine in my house at Frossenden in the County of Suffolck p[ar]cell of the
saide money and goods for delyv[er]ye whereof to my daughter I stand bound to the said Mr Knightley I charge
my sonne MIghell to delyv[er] the saide money and goods to my daughter accordingly / And where I Sir
Nicolas Hare knight decessed did by his last will geve unto my daughter fyve marks in money or
there a boute as will more plainely appere by the said will I chardge my said sonne Mighell to pay the said bequest to
my said daughter att the day of her marryage as also I geve unto her besyde of my owne bequest twentye poundes in money
which I will and charge my sonne Mighell to pay unto her also at the day of her marriage

Item I give and bequeathe to my
sonne William one Annuity of vj^L xiij^s iiij^d by yere duringe his life payable out of all my Lands tennements and
hereditaments in Watford in the County of Herts / the first payment to begyne when my said sonne William shall come
to the age of xxiiij yeres / And I will my sonne Mighell to pay the said Annuity half yerely by even portions duringe
the life of my sayd sonne William

Item I geve to my sonne Mighell two of my best geldings except the gray geldinge
w[hi]ch I have alreddy geven to my wyfe / I geve also to my said sonne Mighell my sygnett of gold and all my apparell
for my bodye as also I geve unto my said sonne Mighell all my Lands tenements Leases and goods except before
bequeathed / whome also I do ordeyne and make my soule executor of this my last will and testament And I doe
desyer my lovinge nephew Franncis Heydon Esquier to be ov[er]seer of this my last will and testament / And for
paynes to be taken therein I do geve unto him xl^{s [3]} to be payed by my executor, Item I geve towarde the repayring of
the church of Northchurch aforesayde iij^s iiij^{d [4]} to be payed by my executor / Item I do geve to the pore of this
parrishe of Northchurche half a quarter of whete to be delyvered by my wyfe of my whete in my barne of
Norcot at the time of my buryall / And as touching my buryall whiche I will shalbe voide of all pomp I will that
the chardge thereof shalbe equally disbursed and borne by my sayd lovinge wyfe and my executor / And in wytnes
of this my laste will and testament I have hereunto put my hand and seale the day and yere first above written
in the sighte and presence of those whose names are underwritten / by me Thomas Heydon / per me ffrancisen
Heydon Dorothy Shordyshe John Temple per me Thomas ?egey ^[5] Henry Wetherhed by me Thomas ---

Probate [in Latin] at London 2 March 1573 [1573/4] to Michael Heydon the executor named in this testament.

Sources

1. ↑ Will: "England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858"
   The National Archives; Kew, Surrey, England; Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Series PROB 11; Class: PROB 11; Piece: 56
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 5111 #905001 (accessed 4 January 2022)
   Will of Thome Heydon of North Churche, Hertfordshire, England, granted probate on 2 Mar 1573/4
2. ↑ £6 8s 4d
3. ↑ 40 shillings
4. ↑ 3 shillings and 4d
5. ↑ looks possibly negey