• General Notes

  Thomas (Sir), of Blisworth and Deeping; Sheriff of Northants1329-30 and 1335-36; Chief Falconer to Edward III 1343-46,fought Battle of Crecy 1346; married Elizabeth, widow of John ofHeigham and daughter and heiress of Hugh Cransley, of Cransley,Northants, and died by 15 March 1346/7 while at Siege of Calais.
  
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  From The Wakes of Northamptonshire, p. 19:
  
  'He was among the knights of the county of Northampton that werereturned in Chancery in 1343, the same year as he was appointedChief Falconer to the King, and he was Sheriff of the county,1329-30 and 1335-6. By his marriage to Elizabeth Cransley heinherited the Manor of Cransley, which lies immediatelysouth-east of Kettering. Sir Hugh was a distinguished soldier,being among those who chose 200 archers to go to France in 1345.He fought with the Black Prince at Crecy and probably diedduring the siege of Calais in 1346.
  
  'Thomas, as Sheriff, was the chief officer of the Crown in thecounty at a very interesting time. The justices in eyre,(itinerant judges who rode the counties), were given powers bythe king to try a whole range of law cases and to review localadministration. The justices made a circuit round the countryevery seven years. By the beginning of the fourteenth century,it had ceased to operate on a regular basis: in 1329, Edward IIIwas determined to revive it as a regular form of judicialadministration. Two commissions were arranged, one inNottinghamshire and the other in Northamptonshire. The last eyreof the county had been in 1285 and a detailed review of eventsspanning the forty five years had to be undertaken. The eyre ofNorthampton lasted from November 1329 to June 1330. It was heldin Northampton Castle, in the great hall and other buildingsthere, which were especially repaired for the occasion. A fewdays before proceedings began, the incumbent Sheriff was removedand Thomas Wake, who had never served in the office before, wasappointed.
  
  'The work was very onerous. Whilst they were in session, thejustices held court six days a week, resting on Sunday, but withrecessions for holy days and festivals. After completing theirbusiness at Northampton in June, the justices immediately movedon to Bedfordshire. The range of cases which were heard wasenormous. We read of a murder at Haselbech on 27Ju1y 1328 and ofThomas le Corour who broke into the Earl of Lancaster's pound atHigham Ferrers on 14 May 1329 and stole a steer and two cows.The details of the eyre were carefully recorded by the lawreporters who were present. One man who was arraigned for felonyrefused all three juries which were offered to him. As a result,he was condemned to suffer the peine forte et dure in this form.He was to be stripped of all his clothing except the linen,placed in a clean-swept house and loaded with as many irons ascould be placed on him. He was to have a piece of bread on oneday and the next day a drink of whatever stagnant water wasfound nearby. This was to continue until he died.'

Details of Thomas' family with Elizabeth Wake