Richard Cooke
Events
Date of Birth: unknown.
Place of Birth: unknown.
Date of Death: 1456 or later.
Place of Death: unknown.
Relationships
Father: John Cooke.
Mother: Joan Rookley.
See the Commentary section.
Spouse: uncertain.
See the Commentary section.
Children:
(Complete source citations for facts about the children on this page are currently outside of the scope of this project.)
John Cooke married (1) Mary; married (2) Isabel, and married (3) Isabel.
Evidence
from Feudal Aids:
1428 [Insula Vecta]
Ricardus Coke tenent quartam partem f. m. in Rokeley, quod Adam de Rokeley quondam tenuit.
1431 [Insula Vecta]
Ricardus Couk de comitatu Sussexie, gentilman, seisitus fuit, ut de libero tenemento, dicto die Veneris, de iiijta parte un. f. m. in Roucle, in insula predicta.
[Abbas de Querre] de iija parte f.m. quondam Laurenti Russell in Caresbrok, non respondet, quia dividitur inter Johannam Russell, Thomam Rokeley, et Johannem Hawkyn.
from the Victoria County History of Hampshire (5: sub Arreton):
…In 1428 and 1431 Rookley was in the possession of Richard Coke or Cooke, a gentleman of Sussex, who was seised of a quarter fee there, another quarter held in 1346 by William Taunton and others not being answered for in 1428, as it was divided between Walter Veer and Thomas Lisle.
from Hay’s “History of Chichester”, cited in Attree:
Sussex Gentry, A.D. 1434.
Richard Cook, Esq.
from the Feet of Fines (abstract on Some Notes on Medieval Genealogy):
County: Hampshire
Place: Westminster
Date: One week from St John the Baptist, 19 Henry VI [1 July 1441].
Parties: Richard Dalyngrygge, esquire, and Sibel, his wife, and William Wayte of Denemed', esquire, and Margaret, his wife, querents, and Richard Cook', esquire, deforciant.
Property: The manor of Lymbourne and 12 pounds of rent in Estoke, Northstoke and Westheye in the Isle of Heylyng'.
Action: Plea of Covenant.
Agreement: Richard Dalyngrygge and Sibel and William and Margaret have acknowledged the manor and rent to be the right of Richard Cook', as those which he has of their gift, and have remised and quitclaimed them from themselves and the heirs of Margaret to him and his heirs for ever.
Warranty: Warranty against Edmund, abbot of Westminster, and his successors.
For this: Richard Cook' has granted to Richard Dalyngrygge and Sibel the manor and rent and has rendered them to them in the court, to hold to Richard Dalyngrygge and Sibel, of the chief lords for the lives of Richard and Sibel, and after the decease of Richard Dalyngrygge and Sibel the manor and rent shall remain to William Sydeney and Edmund Mille and the heirs of Edmund, to hold of the chief lords for ever.
Documents in the Isle of Wight Record Office indexed in the National Archive catalogue:
OG/C/53
Quitclaim
Of dower rights in the manor of Smallbrooke, Preston, Forsters, Brundeston and other lands and tenements in Isle of Wight.
(1) John Roucle and Margaret his wife, relict of Henry Haweles
(2) John Haweles
30 January 1442/3
OG/C/54
Feoffment to uses
Of lands in Budbridge, North Hale, South Hale, Pagham and Merston (in the parish of Arreton), Newport and Westbrooke (p. St. Helens)
(1) William Hawles and Elizabeth his wife
(2) Henry Trenchard, Robert Rempston and John Stour.
Witness: William Ringbourne, John Hacket, Lewis Mewys, Richard Cooke John Cheke, John Lisle
Dated "at Botebrigge"
1 October 1443
AC95/32.75
PETITION
Of Margery late wife of John Roucle who was seized of the manors of Brook and Budbridge, and also of certain lands in Brook and Budbridge, and in Hulverston, More, Mottiston, Freshwater, Chelton, Hampstede, Sussheford, Godyton, Northwood, Wroxall, Newport, Fairlee, Kete, Briddlesford and Brondeston in I.W.; and Upsombourne, Little Sombourne, Stourbridge, Sharprix Ford and Lymington, Hants; West Mordon, Dorset; and in the parishes of Rogate and South Herting, Sussex; and enfeoffed his estate to trustees John Lysle, John Stour and Thomas Bowreman with the intent that they should surrender the estates to the said John Rookley, when he should require them. When he did, they utterly refused to do as he asked to his great sorrow and trouble; that was the cause of his death, before which he declared his last will that the said feoffees should make an estate in the law of the said estates to George Bramset, Richard Trymayn, parson of Brixton, Richard Makeyt, vicar of Godshill, Robert Virsy and John Scotton, so that they could settle the manor of Brooke and lands in Hulverston, Chelton, Hampsteade, More and Freshwater in the Island and Sharprix out of the Island upon his poor bedeswoman (his wife) for life and then to Margerie, the wife of John Haket, and Joan, wife of said Thomas Bowreman, daughters of said John Roucle; with remainder failing issue of his daughters, to his cousin Richard Cook and his heirs forever; and as to the manor of Budbridge and the other lands they were to be sold by the trustees, with the council of his poor bedeswoman, but the feoffees have refused to surrender the estates to the trustees
1453
OG/D/9
Case for Consideration
The division of the estate of Thomas Vavasour who held lands in Rokely and left three daughters. Thomas Vavascour was seized of a close containing 12 acres called Cockescroft als. Herewardes Close in the town of Rokeley, I.W., with other lands. Inquiry whether Joan Vavascour, one of the daughters and heirs of Thomas le Vavascour was married to John Middlemarch and if 4 acres of land and 1 croft called Cockescroft which Richard Coke now holds and which John Wayte gave to Geoffrey Rokely were of the said Joan and if John Mohun died seized, after the death of Joan Coke, mother of the said Richard who died seized of it.
[1/3 traced through Norris, Mohun, Trafford families to Thomas Farringdon]
c 1455
OG/D/10
Relating to "Sybkens" als. "Herewards", puckpool by John Wayte of Puckpool, gent., that Richard Cook had no title to their lands nor any other of lands of Vavasseur but by the means of farm of one Gryme that farmed it of Gramford, which married Jonette Turberville, that was heiress to said Vavasseur
20 April 1455
OG/D/24
At Shalfleet. Grant of 1 acre of land (in Sutton?) between the land of Cook on south, and Henry Trenchard on north which (1) grants to (2) so that (1) and his heirs may hold it of (2) and their heirs
1) Peter Chiverdon of Shalfleet, I.W., husbandman
(2) Master Richard Wenneloc, vicar of [Shalfleet] William Wareham and John Paslew of said parish, husbandman
1465/6
JER/SEL/1A/4
Bond in 100 marks
John Coke of Caresbroke, I.W., esq., locum tenens for Earl Ryvers, bound to Thomas Bowerman of Broke, I.W., for merchandise taken from him at Southampton Staple.
Small seal of a fabulous beast in red wax and impressed on reverse of Staple seal
1474/5 February 19
E 40/9289
Feoffment by Richard Cooke of Dorton in the parish of Arreton and Edith his wife daughter, and heir of Walter Kent of the same, to Robert Beste of Neuport of a site in the High Street, Neuport, which Robert Kent alias Cant, her grandfather, bought, etc. Isle of Wight. 26 June, 17 Edward IV.
1477 June 26
Documents in the National Archive catalogue related to Sussex:
C 241/229/12
Debtor: Richard Cook of Rustington in Sussex, esquire.
Creditor: William Hore.
Amount: £7.
27 October 1443
C 1/26/240
Cook v Bramshot.
Plaintiff: Richard Cook, esq.
Defendant: John Bramshot.
Subject: Destruction of a mill in Rustington, descended from Sir John Browne, knt. Sussex.
1456-1460.
From the Calendar of the Patent Rolls:
1449 November 12. Westminster.
Richard Cook of Rustyngton, co. Sussex, esquire, for not appearing before the same [justices of the bench] to answer John Brandon, citizen and draper of London, touching a debt of 40s. London.
Harleian MSS 2169, a copy of a manuscript from the 1400s, gives this coat of arms for “Rycharde Cooke, Sousexchyre.”
Gules, three crescents 2 and 1 argent and a quarter ermine ; quarterly with, or, a cross azure. The quarter is rather–argent, a chess-rook between four ermine spots.
[The arms represent Cooke impaled with de Bohun.]
From a pedigree included in the 1563-4 Visitation of Yorkshire (p. 358). (My suggestions are in italics):
A. Sir John Lesle [Lisle] married Elizabeth Bosyne [Bohun].
B. Their daughter Eve married Thomas Rikle [Rookley/Roucle] and John Burforth.
C. Their daughter married a Cooke of Rustyngton.
D. Their son was Rychard Cooke.
E. His son was John Cooke.
A. Sir John Lesle [Lisle] married Elizabeth Bosyne [Bohun].
B. Their daughter Elsabeth married John Bramshott.
C. Their son was William Bramshott.
D. His sons were John Bramshott and George Bramshott.
Commentary
On Richard’s father:
The 1530 visitation of Sussex gives Thomas Cooke in all three pedigrees.
In Bramshott he is called “Tho. Cooke of Roskington in Sussex.”
In Cooke he is called “Tho. Cooke of Wickham”
In Cooke-Covert he is called “Tho. Cooke of Wickham”.
In the 1563-4 visitation of Yorkshire in the Sholmsted pedigree he is simply called “...Cooke of Rustyngton.”
Here is the evidence that leads me to think that the pedigrees in the Sussex visitations are incorrect, and that Richard’s father was really John.
A Thomas Cooke does not seem to occur associated with Rustington or Rookley in the records in the time period. However there is a John:
“John Cooke of Ruglington” is given as the father of Margaret, wife of Edward Bilton in the “Palmer” pedigree in the Sussex visitation. Jenyns calls him “John Cook, of Russinton, in Sussex, Esq.”
In 1411, John Cooke is receiving an annuity out of the manor of Russington.
In 1400, Walter Haket and his wife Julian held land in Farham and Hameldon. The remainder was to: (1) Henry Emery; (2) John Cooke of Wickham; (3) Thomas Haket; (4) the right heirs of Julian. In 1411, Thomas Haket held the other part of the manor of Russington that John Cooke was receiving an annuity from.
In 1389/90, Geoffrey Roucley gave 1/4 of the manor of Upper Brouke in the Isle of Wight to John Cook of Wykham and Joan his wife.
In a 1455 case, Richard Coke holds land in Rokley which his mother Joan had died seized of. The land hand previously been the gift of John Wayte to Geoffrey Rokely.
These records, combined with the identification of Richard’s mother which I discuss below, lead me to think that Richard’s father was John, not Thomas Cooke of Wickham.
(The Palmer pedigree in the Sussex visitation correctly gives his name as ‘John’.)
On Richard’s mother:
I believe the three pedigrees in the Sussex visitation give an incorrect mother to Richard.
In Bramshott, she is given as the daughter and heir of John Burford and Eva de Bohun, (who is given as the widow of Thomas Rokesley.)
In Cooke she is called “Eleanor d. & heire of Sr Tho. Rokesley knight”.
In Cooke-Covert she is called “Elianor d. & heire of …” and connected with a line to parents “Sr Thomas Rokesley knight” and “Eva d. & heire of Sr John Burford.”
A genealogical manuscript in the College of Arms (Vincent 121, p. 231, as given by Cooper) gives Thomas Rokesley as the husband of Eva de Bohun, but gives Eva a niece, also named Eva, married to Sir John Burford.
The Sholmsted pedigree in the Yorkshire visitation gives “...Rikle doghter & heyr” and the parents “Thomas Rikle” and “Eve Lesle”, who married secondly “John Burforth.” This pedigree is curious. I suspect it is a copy of an original from the 1400s, for these reasons:
(1) Spellings of surnames in the pedigree indicate that someone is copying names he can’t quite make out. For example, the surname ‘Bohun’ is rendered ‘Bosyne’. Presumably it had been written ‘Bohyne’ in the original. ‘Sholmsted’ is presumably a misreading of some spelling or other of ‘Shovelstrode’. And ‘Rikle’ should probably be ‘Rokle’.
(2) The pedigree is placed by the editor at the end of the pedigrees from the main manuscript (i.e., not where it should be alphabetically), and a note states, “This Pedigree is not in roundles, but in squares.”
(3) Richard Cooke’s son John Cooke is the youngest person in the pedigree, and he died about 1500. The neighbouring line ends with John Bramshott (who died in 1469) and his brother George.
(4) You would need to go back to the 1390s, to John Aske, to find someone who actually lived in Yorkshire.
Taken together, it looks like the Cooke and Bramshott parts of the pedigree, at least, are based on information given in the 1450s or 1460s.
In a 1455 case (OG/D/9, given above), Richard’s mother Joan Coke is stated to have died seized of land called “Cockescroft” in Rookley. This establishes her name as ‘Joan’, not ‘Eleanor’.
In a 1453 petition (AC95/32.75, given above), Richard Cook is stated to have been the cousin of John Rookley. This works nicely if Joan’s father was a Rookley, as the Yorkshire visitation gives if we assume ‘Rikle’ is either either a misreading of ‘Rokle’, or a variant of it.
On Eva de Bohun’s page, I show that in reality she married first John Barforth, who died without children, and then married John Rokle, a son of Geoffrey Rokle. John was the father of Joan, Richard’s mother.
On Richard’s wife:
If the 1477 feoffment by Richard Cooke of Dorton in the parish of Arreton is by the Richard of this page, then his wife was Edith Kent, daughter of Walter Kent and granddaughter of Robert Kent alias Cant. I think 1477 is perhaps a little late for the record to be referring to the Richard of this page, but it is not impossible.
Another possibility appears in the de Banco Rolls Hilary. 8 Henry VII [1492/3]:
Sussex.--Recovery by John Brode and John Hever against John Isley arm. and others of land in Framfeld, Buxstede, Ukfeld and Maghfeld.
Evidence in the case:
Richard Threle had children John Threle and Margaret Threle. Margaret married Richard Coke. Their son Richard Coke is called to warranty by the defendants.
References
Attree, F.W.T. “Lists of Sussex Gentry at Various Dates” in Sussex Archaeological Collections v. XXXIX (1894).
Cooper, William Durrant. “Midhurst: Its Lords and Its Inhabitants” in Sussex Archaeological Collections v. 20 (1868).
Feudal Aids: A.D. 1284-1431 v. 2 (1900).
Foster, Joseph. Two Tudor Books of Arms: Harleian MSS. nos. 2169 and 6163 (1904).
Jenyns, Roger. The Pedigree of the Ancient Family of the Palmers of Sussex. (1867). [The original is a pedigree from 1672.]
'Parishes: Arreton', in A History of the County of Hampshire: Volume 5, ed. William Page (London, 1912), pp. 139-151.
The Visitation of Yorkshire in the Years 1563 and 1564 (London, 1881).
The Visitations of the County of Sussex made and taken in the years 1530 and 1633-4 (London, 1905).
Whitehead, James Livesay. The Undercliff of the Isle of Wight, Past and Present. (1911).
Wood, H.J.T. “Pedigrees from the de Banco Rolls temp. Henry VII.” in The Genealogist ser. 2. v. 24 (1908).