Delivery of a barge, provided by the City to sere under the King, together with the rigging and tackle thereof, to William Martlesham, its master (1373)

This indenture, made on the 29^th day of July, in the 47^th year, etc., witnesseth that John Piel, Mayor, the Alderemen, and the Commonalty, of the City of London, have handed over and delivered, on the day of the making hereof, their barge, called ‘The Paul of London’, fully rigged, together with rigging and tackle thereof, unto William Martlesham, mariner, of the said city, and Master of the said barge, that is to say; - one mast with three topcastelles, 8 couples of new hedropes, 3 forstiez, and 2 couples of backstiez, 2 girdinez, 3 cranelynz, 2 upties, 2 pollanges, one seylyerde for the barge, one sail with 2 bonettes, 2 shetes, 2 thurgwals, 2 bowelynes, 2 stechynges, 2 trusses, 2 yerderopes, one rakke, and the rigging pertaining to the mast; 6 new cables, 5 anchors for the barge, one wyndyngrope, 2 haucers for boyropes, 2 touropes, 3 werpropes, 2 ketels for the barge, 60 teeldes, 16 skaltrowes, 2 roostrees, one grapenel, one cheyne of 16 fanthom, 2 waterfyles, 80 ores for the barge, 2 wyndyngbailles, 4 tables with trestles, 4 napes for the same, 5 dozen aguls for the barge, 40 pounds of filace, 2 dozen shovels, one dozen skopes; 2 great tankards, bound with iron; six pottz tankards; two boring bits; 4 sketfates; 20 poleybes; 2 wyndyng poleys; 2 skeyenes of potelwyne; 50 new palettes, stuffed; one pair of plates; 50 cloves of taleghwode, 20 chains of iron; 400 sheaves of arrows, with a tun; one beyl; 2 buttes of iron for one ketel; one trevyt; 2 bukeetes, with 2 beiles; one stremer; 3 standards; 16 baners; 2 boyes of corkille; one coler for the steyes; 2 brass pots; 2 hatchets; 2 hammers; one eschele; and 100 bords called ‘waynskott’; and 80 pavyz; 30 yards of large bever; also, 200 dartes; also, 30 launces; also, 4000 quarels for arblast.  Also, one boat for the same barge, with one mast, 4 couples of hedrope, one foresteye, one couple of baksteye, one uptye with 2 haliers, 2 yerdropes, one sail, 2 shettes, 2 thurghwalis, one bowelyne, one ankyr for the boat, one cable for the boat, 30 ores, one daviot, for the same boat: - the same to serve under our Lord the King in this present expedition upon the sea; he safely to keep and conduct the same, and, after the said expedition, to bring back and redeliver such barge and boat, and all the things aforesaid, unto the Mayor and Commonalty of the said city, for the time being, by reasonable account thereof; and to answer and make satisfaction for all that has been lost therefrom by his default, within 40 days next after such his return.  The which thing well and loyally to do in form aforesaid, he, the same William Martlesham, Master of the said barge, binds himself, his heirs, and his executors, and all his goods, moveable and immoveable, wherever, they may be found, on this side of the sea or beyond, to the Mayor and Commonalty aforesaid, and to their successors, hereby.  And for the greater certainty of doing so, John Maykyn, shipman, and Robert Hulle, shipman, have become sureties for the said William, master of the barge aforesaid;…

Notes:

All words in italics are the original words of the text.  T.H.Riley gives theses definitions for the following words:

topcastlles – platforms around the mast, from which to throw darts and missles at the enemy

hedropes – headropes

forsitiez – forestays

backstiez – backstays

girdinez – possibly main gear, or jear

cranelynz – crane-lines

upties – probably some kind of rope

pollanges – probably pulleys or blocks

seylyerde – sailyard

bonettes – bonnet, an additional slip laced to the foot of a sail

sheets – sheets, or sail ropes

bowelynes – bowlines

trusses – ropes for keeping the center of a yard to the mast

yerdropes – yard ropes

rakke – rack

wyndyngrope – winding rope

haucers – halsers

boyropes – buoy ropes

touropes – to-ropes

werpropes – warp-ropes

ketels – kettles

roostrees – perhaps crosstree

grapenel – grapnel, chain

ores – oars

wyndyngbailles – winding balls, perhaps some portion of the windlass

napes – tablecloths

aguls – probably sail needles

filace – string or thread

skopes – scoops

pottz tankards – tankards used to drink from

sketfates – vats

poleynes – pulleys

wyndyng poleys – winding pulleys

skeynes of poletwyne – skeins of pull-twyne, probably thin string

palettes – pallets

plates –armour plates

taleghwode – tailwood, long faggots

huche – hutch, a box or case

beyl – bail, probably for bearing up the tilt over the boat

buttes – butts, iron supports for either side of a kettle on the hearth

trevyt – trivet

bukettes – buckets with bails or circular handles

stremer – streamer, an ensign or pennon

baners – banners

boyes of corkille – buoys of cork

coler for the steyes – colour for the stays

eschele – scaling ladder

bords called waynskott – boards called wainscot, used in boarding the enemy’s ship

pavysz - large shields

bever – beaver, perhaps used to bandage wounds

quarels – square-headed arrows for crossbows

hedrope – head rope

foresteye – forestay

baksteye – backstay

uptye – uptie

hailers – haulyards

yerderopes – yardropes

zeylyerde – sailyard

shettes – sheets

daviot – davit

Originally from Letter Book G, fol. 304 in Norman French