Richard Sheale of
Tamworth was a 16th-century pedlar and minstrel for the
Stanley family.
Life
Sheale was a minstrel-retainer of the
Earl of Derby
Earl of Derby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the en ...
about the middle of the 16th century.
He was technically an itinerant vagabond, and (probably a skilful) beggar. He obtained most of his income "on the road". He was honest in so far as he preferred to pay his debts. He was married and, with the help of his wife, managed to save sixty pounds. Unfortunately in that he was stopped by highwaymen while crossing Dunsmore Heath (in
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...
and about 7 miles from
Rugby) and his money stolen. He thought that he was safe carrying the money because of his reputation of his calling for poverty.
He wrote a song to tell of this tale, and possibly collected many times more by collection from the audience’s sympathy. Before his performance he pronounced that "his patron has given him letters, friends everywhere have contributed, and he hopes present company will do the same".
Sheale was like many other beggars of the time, in so far that his begging was better than his poetry, and much of the poetry or songs called on generous giving by the listeners.
By now, the days of the court jester were ending, yet there were still a few men, such as Richard Sheale, who managed, to some extent, to
fill the shoes of the previous courtly minstrel of the Middle Ages.
Such were several "known" beggars who were generally decent beings, singing songs to educate. Some would join the several guilds of minstrels which gave, or claimed to give, those licensed by them protection from the law against vagabonds. But in the words of the poem "A Minstrel in the Stocks" (From one of the Roxburghe Ballads):
[-
Beggars they are with one consent,
And Rogues by act of Parliament.
Richard Searle, like many other itinerants, was able to perform tricks which amazed their hosts. One such trick was to hold a sheep’a bladder full of blood under his shirt, he would then stab himself, shortly after "arising from the dead"
]
Works
These include :-
* The Hunting of the Cheviot (page 164)[
* An Elergy for Lady Margaret, Countess of Derby c1558 (page 175)][
* The Ballad of Chevy Chase – has been generally attributed to the Lancashire born minstrel Richard Sheale although it is a far better quality than anything else he is known to have written
]
See also
Geordie dialect words
Geordie ( ), sometimes known in linguistics as Tyneside English or Newcastle English, is an English dialect and accent spoken in the Tyneside area of North East England. It developed as a variety of the old Northumbrian dialect and became espec ...
John Collingwood Bruce
John Stokoe
Northumbrian Minstrelry by Bruce and Stokoe, 1882
Folk music of England
References
External links
The Songs and Travels of a Tudor Minstrel – Richard Sheale of Tamworth – by Andrew Taylor
Elizabethan rogues and vagabonds- and their representation in contemporary literature – by Frank Aydelotte
Northumbrian Minstrelsy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheale, Richard (or Rycharde)
English singers
English male songwriters
People from Tamworth, Staffordshire
15th-century deaths
16th-century births
Geordie songwriters