Sir William Walworth (died 1385) was an English nobleman and politician who was twice

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...

(1374–75 and 1380–81). He is best known for killing Wat Tyler during the

Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Blac ...

in 1381.

Political career

His family came from

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

. He was apprenticed to John Lovekyn, who was a member of the Fishmongers Guild, whom he succeeded as

Alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members ...

of Bridge Ward in 1368. Walworth became Sheriff of London in 1370 and Lord Mayor of London in 1374. He was Member of Parliament for

the City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

in 1371, 1376, 1377, and 1383, as one of the two aldermanic representatives of the city. He is said to have suppressed

usury Usury () is the practice of making unethical or immoral monetary loans that unfairly enrich the lender. The term may be used in a moral sense—condemning taking advantage of others' misfortunes—or in a legal sense, where an interest rate is c ...

in the city during his term of office as Lord Mayor. His name frequently figures as advancing loans to

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father ...

. He opposed the king's uncle

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399) was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son (third to survive infancy as William of Hatfield died shortly after birth) of King Edward ...

in the city, where there was a strong opposition to John.

Business interests

William Walworth worked for a time in the Customs House under

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for '' The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

. John Gardner, in ''The Life and Times of Chaucer'', contends that Walworth were one of a number of important merchants, all friends of

Alice Perrers Alice Perrers, also known as Alice de Windsor (circa 1348 –1400) was an English royal mistress, lover of Edward III, King of England. As a result of his patronage, she became the wealthiest and most influential woman in the country. She ...

, who manipulated Edward III. Gardner contends that complaints in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

demonstrate that this group conspired to keep

food prices Food prices refer to the average price level for food across countries, regions and on a global scale. Food prices have an impact on producers and consumers of food. Price levels depend on the food production process, including food marketing ...

up, lent money to the king at inflated interest, and through personal and financial influence persuaded the king to issue edicts profitable to themselves.The Life and Times of Chaucer, Barns & Noble Inc., 1977.

Peasants' Revolt

Walworth's most famous exploit was his encounter with Wat Tyler during the

English peasants' revolt of 1381 The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black ...

, in his second term of office as Lord Mayor. In June of that year, when Tyler and his followers entered south London, Walworth defended

London Bridge Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It re ...

against them. He was with Richard II when he met the insurgents at Smithfield, and killed the rebel leader with his baselard. Walworth raised the city bodyguard in the king's defence, for which service he was rewarded by

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the ...

and a

pension A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...

. He subsequently served on two commissions to restore the peace in the

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Death and legacy

He died in 1385, and was buried in the church of

St. Michael, Crooked Lane St Michael, Crooked Lane, was an ancient parish church situated on the east side of Miles's Lane in Candlewick ward in the City of London. It was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London by Sir Christopher Wren, and demolished in 1831. History ...

, of which he was a considerable benefactor. Sir William Walworth was the most distinguished member of the Fishmongers Guild, and he invariably figured in the pageants prepared by them when one of their members attained the mayoralty. He became a favorite hero in popular tales, and appeared in Richard Johnson's ''

Nine Worthies of London ''Nine Worthies of London'' is a book by Richard Johnson, the English romance writer, written in 1592. Borrowing the theme from the Nine Worthies of Antiquity, the book, subtitled ''Explaining the Honourable Excise of Armes, the Vertues of the ...

'' in 1592. William Walworth is commemorated with a statue on Holborn Viaduct, near the boundary of the City of London. His wife, Margaret, survived him; she died before 1413.

References

Attribution: * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Walworth, William 1385 deaths Sheriffs of the City of London 14th-century lord mayors of London English MPs 1371 Year of birth unknown Members of the Parliament of England for the City of London Knights Bachelor English MPs 1376 English MPs January 1377 English MPs February 1383

Political career

Business interests

Peasants' Revolt

Death and legacy

See also

References