Babylon Graundfote Esq (c. 1420 – 1480) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

at several points between 1459 and 1465, and also served as Mayor of

Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

between 1463 and 1475.

Biography

Graundfote (whose surname was alternatively written as Gramfree) was born in 1420, presumably as the son of Richard Graunford of Broadwater,

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, a gentleman who was

pardoned A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

for an offence in the Pardon Roll of 1446. Graundfote's names, in the assessment of

Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indu ...

"show close association with the other side of the channel; thought it remains doubtful whether the surname comes from a Franch Grandfort or from an out-size in shoes". Graundfote was first mentioned as coming before the Gestling Hundred Court in 1447 at

Icklesham Icklesham is a village and civil parish in the Rother District, Rother district of East Sussex, England. The village is located about six miles (10 km) east of Hastings, on the main A259 Hastings to Rye, East Sussex, Rye road. The surround ...

in Sussex, as a plaintiff in a case against Alice Taillour and Jane Danyell, where it was alleged that Taillour, "a

common scold In the common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it i ...

e" has made use of " sorserie" to cause bodily harm on Graundfote.Wedgwood, History, p.388, His Majesty's Stationery Office, (1936) The Court awarded the aggrieved party an amercement of '' 4d'' from Taillour and ''12d'' from Danyell. Graundfote is recorded in 1449 as an elector in the county constituency of

. His subsequent activities until his election to Parliament in 1459 can be ascertained from the Chamberlain's Accounts of Rye which recounts that Graundfote was paid ''6s. 8d.'' for the hire of two horses to go to London in 1450, before later appearing on the list of Jurats for the year 1456/7, and being noted as having sold salt to the town of Rye at ''3s.'' a load. In 1459, the year of his election to the

Parliament of Devils The Parliament of Devils was an English Parliament held at Coventry in the Benedictine Priory of St. Mary's. The primary reason for calling the Parliament was to pass bills of attainder for high treason against Yorkist nobles following the Ba ...

, he was pardoned for an offence on the 20 January, noted as an "esq. of Winchelsea ''alias'' Rye". Despite this he was to serve as a King's bailiff of Rye from 1459 to 1461. In the year between 1459 and 1460, he was paid for 40 days at Parliament with an extra ''10s. 8d.'' "for riding up to London whence he was sent up to the King and the Lords, for the town, with excuse, what time it was not as it is now, blessed be God of the grace of amendment and so continue". From this in can be inferred that Graundfote was elected to the Parliament of the Devils convened at

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

in the Benedictine Priory of St Mary's, which first met on the 20 November 1459. Furthermore, from this account it can be inferred that his constituents wished that Graundfote had been kept at home after the invasion of the

Earl of Warwick Earl of Warwick is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom which has been created four times in English history. The name refers to Warwick Castle and the town of Warwick. Overview The first creation came in 1088, and the title was held b ...

from

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

in 1460. Graundfote was elected to the Parliaments of 1460, 1461, and 1463, serving in the House of Commons until retiring in 1465 along with fellow Rye Member of Parliament John Hamond. During the eighty-year period from 1439 to 1509, Graundfote was recorded as being the only man of the 2,600 who served in the House of Commons to have the Christian name of Babylon. In July 1461, he was appointed with the Mayor of neighbouring Winchelsea to a commission on piracy. From 1466 until 1474, Graundfote would serve as a King's bailiff of Rye, as he had done so before between 1459 and 1461. Graundfote was appointed Mayor of Rye in 1463 a position he would hold for over a decade, succeeding John Hamond.Wedgwood, History, p.412, His Majesty's Stationery Office, (1936) In 1466, Graundfote and his son John were granted the office of bailiff of Rye, a position that came with the caveat of a lifetime appointment for the two men. Despite this he was charged as an accessory before the

King's Bench The King's Bench (), or, during the reign of a female monarch, the Queen's Bench ('), refers to several contemporary and historical courts in some Commonwealth jurisdictions. * Court of King's Bench (England), a historic court of common law in t ...

in 1468, yet he would receive two pardons on the 28 January 1461 and again on 9 January 1472, when he was referred to as 'Babilo Graunfort of Rye, esq.'. Beginning from 1474, Graundfote would steadily retire from his various positions. That year he was recorded as handing over, sole, the bailivy of Rye to his son John, who by this point was a Yeoman of the Crown. On 28 August 1475 Graundfote retired as Mayor of Rye, yet his influence in local politics is seen when he was in attendance at the

Cinque Ports The confederation of Cinque Ports ( ) is a historic group of coastal towns in south-east England – predominantly in Kent and Sussex, with one outlier (Brightlingsea) in Essex. The name is Old French, meaning "five harbours", and alludes to ...

meeting in

New Romney New Romney is a market town in Kent, England, on the edge of Romney Marsh, an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to silt up. New Romney, one of the original Cinque Ports, was once a sea port, w ...

as Master Graundfote. In 1475, he was recorded as having been a shipowner, and having in his possession several workshops in the market and the strand, for which he is noted as having paid a rent of ''12d.''. While no notice of death has survived, Wedgwood concluded that Graundfote died around the year 1480, at which time he would have been around sixty years of age.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graundfote, Babylon English MPs 1459 English MPs 1460 English MPs 1461 English MPs 1463 Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain 1420s births 1480s deaths 15th-century English businesspeople People from Rye, East Sussex

Biography

See also

References