[1176]William[FB], earle of Pembroke, the first earle of that family, was borne (I thinke I have heard my cosen Whitney say) in ... in Monmouthshire. Herbert, of Colbrooke in Monmouthshire, is of that family.
He was (as I take it) a younger brother, a mad fighting young fellow. 'Tis certaine he was a servant to the house of Worcester, and wore their blew-coate and badge. My cosen Whitney's great aunt gave him a golden angell[1177]when he went to London. One time being at Bristowe, he was arrested, and killed one of the sheriffes of the city. He made his escape through Back-street, through the (then great) gate, into the Marsh, and gott into France.
Memorandum:—upon this action of killing the sheriffe, the city ordered the gate to be walled-up, and only a little posterne gate or dore, with a turnestile for a foot-passenger, which continued so till Bristowe was a garrison for the king,and the great gate was then opened, in 1644, or 1645. When I was a boy there, living with my father's mother, who was maried to alderman John Whitson[LXXXVI.](who was my god-father), the story was as fresh as but of yesterday. He was calledblack Will Herbert.
[LXXXVI.]He was the greatest benefactor to the city that haz been since the Reformacion. He gave 500li.per annum at least to the city to maintain ... blew-coates, boies and maydes. He dyed about 1629; vide register.
[LXXXVI.]He was the greatest benefactor to the city that haz been since the Reformacion. He gave 500li.per annum at least to the city to maintain ... blew-coates, boies and maydes. He dyed about 1629; vide register.
In France he betooke himself into the army,
where he shewd so much courage, and readinesse
of witt in conduct, that in short time he
became eminent, and was favoured by
Upon the dissolution of the abbeys, he gave him the abbey of Wilton, and acountryof lands and mannours thereabout belonging to it. He gave him also the abbey of Remesbury in Wilts, with much lands belonging to it. He gave him Cardiff-Castle in Glamorganshire, with the ancient crowne-lands belonging to it.
Almost all the country held of this castle. It was built by Sir Robert Fitzhamond the Norman, who lies buried at Tewkesbury abbey with a memorial: and he built the abbey of Glocester. It afterwards came to Jasper, duke of Bedford, etc.; so to the crowne. I have seen severall writings of Sir John Aubrey's at Llantrithid in Glamorganshire, which beginne[1178]thus:—'Ego Jaspar, frater regum et patruus, dux Bedfordiae, comes Pembrochiae, et dominus de Glamorgan et Morgannog, omnibus ad quos hoc presens scriptum pervenerit, salutem, etc.'
He maried
He was made Privy Councellor and conservator of King Henry the Eight's[1179]will. He could neither write norread, but had a stamp for his name. He was of good naturall parts; but very cholerique. He was strong sett but bony, reddish-favoured, of a sharp eie[1180], sterne looke.
In queen Mary's time, upon the returne of the Catholique religion, the nunnes came again to Wilton abbey, and this William, earl of Pembroke, came to the gate (which lookes towards the court by the street, but now is walled-up) with his cappe in hand, and fell upon his knee to the lady abbesse[LXXXVII.]and the nunnes, crying peccavi. Upon queen Mary's death, the earle came to Wilton (like a tygre) and turnd them out, crying, 'Out ye whores, to worke, to worke, ye whores, goe spinne.'
[LXXXVII.]The last lady abbesse here was ... Gawen, of Norrington, belonging to Chalke, where that family haz been 400 yeares (sold about 1665 to Judge Wadham Windham).
[LXXXVII.]The last lady abbesse here was ... Gawen, of Norrington, belonging to Chalke, where that family haz been 400 yeares (sold about 1665 to Judge Wadham Windham).
He being a stranger in our country, and an upstart, was much envyed. And in those dayes (of sword and buckler), noblemen (and also great knights, as theLongs), when they went to the assizes or sessions at Salisbury, etc., had a great number of retainers following them; and there were (you have heard), in those dayes, feudes (i.e. quarrells and animosities) between great neighbours. Particularly this new earle was much envyed by the then lord Sturton of Sturton[FD], who would, when he went or returned from Sarum (by Wilton was his rode), sound his trumpetts, and give reproachfull challenging words; 'twas a relique of knighthood errantry.
From my great-uncles, the Brownes of Broad Chalke:—in queen Elizabeth's time, some bishop (I have forgot who) that had been his chaplain, was sent to him from the queen and council, to take interrogatories of him. So he takes out his pen and inke, examines and writes. When he had writt a good deale, sayd the earle, 'Now lett me see it.' 'Why,' qdthe bishop, 'your lordship cannot read it?' 'That's all one: I'le see it,' qdhe, and takes it and teares it to pieces: 'Zounds, you rascall,' qdhe, 'd'ee thinke I will have my throate cutt with a penknife?' It seemes they had a mind to have pick't a hole in his coate, and to have gott his estate.
'Tis reported that he caused himself to be lett bloud, and bled so much that it was his death, and that he should say as he was expiring, 'They would have Wilton—they would have Wilton,' and so gave up the ghost.
Memorandum:—this William (the founder of this family) had a little cur-dog which loved him, and the earl loved the dog. When the earle dyed the dog would not goe from his master's dead body, but pined away, and dyed under the hearse; the picture of which dog is under his picture, in the Gallery at Wilton. Which putts me in[1181]mind of a parallell storie in Appian (Syrian Warr):—Lysimachus being slaine, a dog that loved him stayed a long time by the body and defended it from birds and beasts till such time as Thorax, king of Pharsalia, finding it out gave it buriall. And I thinke there is such another story in Pliny: vide.
He was buried in ... of St. Paule's, London, where he had a magnificent monument, which is described, with the epitaph, by Sir William Dugdale, which vide.
[1182]This present earl of Pembroke (1680) has at Wilton 52 mastives and 30 grey-hounds, some beares, and a lyon, and a matter of 60 fellowes more bestiall than they.
Notes.[FB]Aubrey gives in trick the coat:—'party per pale azure and gules, 3 lions rampant argent [Herbert]; impaling, argent, 2 bars azure within a bordure engrailed sable [Parre],' surmounted by an earl's coronet.[FC]In error. It was Sir Thomas Parre's son William (brother of this Anne, countess of Pembroke) who was created marquess of Northampton in 1546/7.[FD]Charles Stourton, succeeded as 7th baron in 1548; executed for murder in 1557.
[FB]Aubrey gives in trick the coat:—'party per pale azure and gules, 3 lions rampant argent [Herbert]; impaling, argent, 2 bars azure within a bordure engrailed sable [Parre],' surmounted by an earl's coronet.
[FB]Aubrey gives in trick the coat:—'party per pale azure and gules, 3 lions rampant argent [Herbert]; impaling, argent, 2 bars azure within a bordure engrailed sable [Parre],' surmounted by an earl's coronet.
[FC]In error. It was Sir Thomas Parre's son William (brother of this Anne, countess of Pembroke) who was created marquess of Northampton in 1546/7.
[FC]In error. It was Sir Thomas Parre's son William (brother of this Anne, countess of Pembroke) who was created marquess of Northampton in 1546/7.
[FD]Charles Stourton, succeeded as 7th baron in 1548; executed for murder in 1557.
[FD]Charles Stourton, succeeded as 7th baron in 1548; executed for murder in 1557.