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Archaeologia Cantiana -  Vol. 1  1858  page 64

On the Surrenden Charters

hood at Christ Church, and the brotherhood at St, Augustine's, and Sired, and AElfsige the Child,1 and many a good man beside, both within town and without."
   The "godmen" are especially the "boni et legales homines," the jury, whose presence implies that this instrument is the record of a solemn transaction before the boroughmoot, or even the shiremoot. Leofwine most likely lived at Boctun, i.e. Boughton, and the result of the instrument would have been, to attach Surrenden pastures to that estate for the future, which could only be done by a formal act. 
   The other document, of which I have given a facsimile, is an autograph letter of William of Wykeham, addressed to Sir John de Cobeham, the King's Ambassador to the Court of Rome (41 Ed. III).2 The date of the letter is evidently 1367. It is of exceeding interest, as tending to illustrate the assertion made by Froissart, that Edward III. obtained the Pope's grant of the Bishopric of Winchester to Wykeham, by remitting to the Duke of Bourbon a large portion of his ransom, as one of the prisoners of Poictiers, on condition of the Duke's using his influence with Urban for the appointment.
   "En ce temps, regnoit en Angleterre un pretre qui s'appeloit messire Guillaume Wikans. Icelui messire Gruillaume etoit si tres bien en la grace et amour du roi d'Angleterre, que par lui etoit tout fait, ni sans lui l'on ne faisoit rien. Quand icelui
   1 "Gild," or " Child," was a young nobles title.
    Sir John de Cobham, Lord Cobham, in June, 1367, was Ambassador from the King, on a special mission to the Court of Rome, as we find by an entry of letters of safe-conduct on the Patent Roll, 41 Ed. III., 1st pt. m.14:—
   "De salva gardia pro ambassatore Regis.—Rex universis, etc. etc. Sciatis, quod cum mittamus dilectum consanguineum et fidelem nostrum Johannem de Cobham ad Curiam Romanam in ambassiam nostram cum literis et aliis negociis nostris in dicta Curia prosequendis et fideliter, Deo annuente, expediendis, etc. etc.
   " Tested at Westminster, 3rd June."
This enables us to fix the date of our letter as haying been written in June, 1367.

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