William Assenhall

Abt 1370 - Bef 1443  (~ 73 years)

• Name	William Assenhall  [1, 2]
  Birth	Abt 1370	of Guilden Morden, Cambridgeshire, England   [3]
  Gender	Male
  Death	Bef 22 Apr 1443  [4, 5]
  Person ID	I10869	Ancestry of PNH, TNH, and others | Ancestor of DK, Ancestor of TNH, Ancestor of UKL
  Last Modified	7 Jan 2018

  
  

  Family	Joan Burgh   d. Bef 1433
  Marriage	Bef Nov 1404
  Children	+ 1. Constance Assenhall   d. Aft Jun 1444
  Family ID	F258	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	26 Sep 2020

  
  

• Notes

  Also known as William Harpenden; Harpeden; William Asconhall; Asenhill; Asunhall, Essenhell, Hasehull. Knight of the shire for Cambridgeshire. Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire; Usher of the King's Chamber. The year given is my own guess from his likely age at various early events in his life. He could have easily been five years younger. Note: Richard II and Henry Bolingbroke/Henry IV, important patrons in his life, were both b. 1367. Events in his life, abstracted from his entry in the History of Parliament: 1390, valet to Henry Bolingbroke at the siege of Vilnius, Lithuania ("possibly"). 1392-93, valet to Henry Bolingbroke on pilgrimage to Jerusalem ("possibly"). Sep 1397, granted the late Earl of Arundel's grange at Tyburn, Middlesex, while a King's Esquire to Richard II. "In aid of the maintenance of his estate." 3 Feb 1398, witnessed the will of John of Gaunt. ("Plausibly." "[M]ay be identified with the William Harpeden esquire who witnessed the will made by Henry's father, John of Gaunt.") Apr 1399, granted, by Richard II, a life annuity of £20 charged on the Exchequer. May 1399, accompanied Richard II's expedition to Ireland. Feb 1400, annuity confirmed by the new king, Henry IV. He was also accepted as an esquire into Henry's household. 1402, among those escorting Henry's daughter to her wedding in Germany. 1403, send on royal business to Picardy. Nov 1404, marriage to Joan Burgh. She was the widow of Thomas Hasilden (1323-1387), controller of John of Gaunt's household. Nov 1404 - abt Mar 1413, usher of the King's chamber. Nov 1404, with his wife, granted an annuity of £40 for life, from the issues of the estates of the duchy of Lancaster in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. aft 1404, changed his name from William Harpeden to William Assenhall. 27 Jan 1406, appointed Justice of the Peace for Cambridgeshire. To Feb 1407, then 16 Jan 1414-Feb 1419, 8 Jul 1420-Feb 1425, 12 Feb 1429-d., and Cambridge 24 Nov 1429-Feb 1432. 1406, Knight of the shire, Cambridgeshire. And again in Oct 1416, 1422, 1423, 1425, 1426, and 1429. 1413 (or 1414 -- "in the first year" of Henry V's reign), appointed escheator of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire. To 12 Nov 1414. Aug 1415, served in Henry V's first campaign in France. Fell sick at the siege of Harfleur; returned to England 7 Oct. May 1416, knighted. May 1416, spent three months at sea in the force sent to relieve Harfleur. 4 Nov 1418, Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire, to 23 Nov 1419. Note that Wikipedia's article about this office lists him as "William Asconhall". Mar 1422, supplied a man-at-arms to join the royal armies in France. 1425, secured exemption, by letters patent good for 12 years, from holding royal office against his will. 1431, named executor of Sir John Tiptoft's estates. bef 1440, founded a perpetual chantry at Cambridge, in the house of the Carmelites.

  
  

• Sources

  [S789] The Wallop Family and Their Ancestry by Vernon James Watney. Oxford, 1928. [S339] Edward Peacock, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of London, Second Series, Vol. IV, p. 16. [S142] Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families by Douglas Richardson. Salt Lake City, 2013. [S47] The History of Parliament. Some citations point to entries from the printed volumes not yet added to the online site. [S73] Political Society in Lancastrian England: The Greater Gentry of Nottinghamshire by S. J. Payling. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991., year only.