The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was undated but should have been between the 15th and the 22nd June due to the dates provided in nearby entries. It was described as Sir Henry’s offering at Mr Arthen’s burial. The amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. It is not certain who the Mr Arthen mentioned was and there is no other mention of the specific surname Arthen in the Middleton Manuscripts. Given J

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 14th June. It was described as a reward to Ralf Heberd and Lowkid, who were minstrels of the Lord of Derby. The amount was 3 shillings 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £73.55 today and at that time was about five days wages for a skilled tradesman. The Lord of Derby referenced in this entry, as it was in a previous post from the 1525 Accounts, would have been Edward Stanley

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 11th June. All of these entries concerned costs incurred when Sir Henry’s servant, John Lewissay, took Catesby to Southwell Grammar School in Nottinghamshire. As mentioned in a previous post, Catesby is thought to have been a ward of Sir Henry. The first entry was described as Lewissay’s costs to go to Southwell to carry Master Catesby to the school and the amount was 20 pen

The first entry for June in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was undated. It was described as payment for half a yard of black cloth for bands for the gentlewomen’s kirtles. The amount was 6 pence, which was the equivalent of about £11.03 today. The kirtle was the main garment in a medieval woman’s wardrobe and remained popular through the Tudor era. However, by the 17th century, it only remained commonly worn by middle or lower-class women. T

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were undated except for the month and, therefore, because of the preceding entry, must have been either the 30th or 31st. The first was described as a reward to Sir Henry’s huntsman when he broke his bow and the amount was 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £14.71 today. The second was described as the costs of a pursuivant lying at Avery’s and the amount was 6 pence, which was t

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 29th May. It was described as payment for 6 yards (5.48m) of Kendal cloth for a coat of cloth for Mr Catesby. The amount was 3 shillings 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £80.90 today. Kendal cloth was also known as Kendal Green. It was named from its manufacture in the Cumbrian town of Kendal and from its distinctive dyed green colour. The making of this fabric was already

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 26th May. It was described as Sir Henry’s reward toward the church ale at Aston. The Middleton Manuscripts suggest that this refers to Aston juxta Birmingham in Warwickshire. The amount was 20 pence, which was the equivalent of about £36.77 today. It is uncertain why Sir Henry went to this church ale. Furthermore, it is uncertain what this religious feast was honouring. Saints Peter

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was again undated, but must have occurred sometime between the 6th and the 25th May. It was described as Sir Henry’s reward toward an ale (feast) at Lea in Warwickshire. The amount was 8 pence, which was the equivalent of about £14.71 today. Lea refers to half of the settlement known today as Lea Marston, which directly borders the parish of Middleton to the south-east. For the same reason as

The 10th May 2026 is the 400th anniversary of a letter in the Middleton Manuscripts, which was written on 10th May 1626 by Dorothy Hastings née Willoughby to her sister, and owner of Middleton, Bridget Willoughby. Bridget was the eldest daughter of Sir Francis I Willoughby and Elizabeth Littleton and Dorothy was their second surviving daughter, according to the family history account of Cassandra Willoughby. In 1587, Dorothy married Sir Henry Hastings and her marriage dowry i

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was undated. It was described as payment for ale and banners for Cross Week. The amount was 6 pence, which was the equivalent of about £11.03 today. Cross Week was an alternative name for Rogation Week. Major Rogation always occurred on 25th April but Rogation Week occurred from the Sunday to Wednesday that immediately preceded Ascension Day. Ascension Day occurred 40 days after Easter Sunday,

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated Saturday 5th May. It was described as payment at Middleton Church for ale for Sir Henry. The amount was 1 penny, which was the equivalent of about £1.84 today. A church ale was essentially a feast centred around the drinking of ale. Originally, church ales were gatherings established to honour the patron saint of the church. Ales were normally held on a Sunday and in 1526 that would

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was probably dated 30th April. It is only probably because it was under the heading of April and was actually dated the 31st. It was described as a reward to someone who brought oranges from Birmingham. The amount was 2 pence, which was the equivalent of about £3.68 today. The last entry we had for oranges was in “ The Middleton Accounts of 1525: #5 ”. As mentioned in that post, Queen Catherin

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 29th April and came from different sections of the household accounts. The first was described as payment for stuff to make ink and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. The second was described as payment for a loaf of sugar that weighed 8lbs (about 3.63kg) and the amount was 4 shillings 2 pence, which was the equivalent of about £91.93 today.

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 28th April. It was described as payment for aqua vitae. The amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. In the Accounts #20, we explained the history of aqua vitae (known today as liquors such as brandy and whisky) and what it was made from. Given the two purchases of aqua vitae in close proximity in the accounts and the nature of how it was used medicinally

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was undated but, given the adjacent entries were dated the 26th and 28th April and this was not stated to have occurred “on the same day”, it can be assumed to be the 27th April. It was described as money paid to one of the Children of the Chapel when he went home to his friends. The amount was 12 pence, which was the equivalent of about £22.06 today. Children of the Chapel were primarily trai

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 26th April. The first was described as Sir Henry’s reward for the christening of the child of “Corssor” and the amount was 12 pence, which was the equivalent of about £22.06 today. It is unknown who Corssor was and no other mention of him has been found. The second entry was a reward to a friar from Coventry that brought aqua vitae to Middleton Hall and the amount was 20 pence

The next three entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 17th April. The first was described as payment for bread and wine at Easter at Drayton Bassett Church and the amount was 6 pence, which was the equivalent of about £11.03 today. The second was described as payment for oil and chrism and the amount was 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. Finally, the third was a payment to Sir William, the parish priest of

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 15th April. It was described as payment for showbread and wine. The amount was 1 penny, which was the equivalent of about £1.84 today. This entry poses a lot of questions that we have been unable to answer. There is no question that Sir Henry Willoughby was a very devout Catholic. However, showbread is categorically not a feature of the Catholic religion. It is only present in the Je

The 15th April 2026 is World Art Day. A number of reproductions of paintings of the Willoughby family are on display at Middleton Hall. To mark World Art Day, this post will focus on the artistic history of two of these paintings. The original paintings of Sir Francis I Willoughby and his wife Elizabeth Littleton were commissioned on 13th September 1573. In the Middleton household accounts, it was recorded that Sir Francis paid 10 shillings (about £119.11 today) for his portr

The next entry in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 was dated 4th April. It is a repeat of an entry from the previous April and was described as a reward to someone who had brought word of where red deer lay by the side of Maxstoke, Warwickshire. The amount was also 4 pence, which was the equivalent of about £7.35 today. This entry is not in the hunting season for almost all types and sex of deer. The hunting season for does (female deer) was S