British Popular Customs, Present and Past: Illustrating the Social and Domestic Manners of the People. Arranged According to the Calendar of the Year.Thiselton-Dyer, T. F. (Thomas Firminger)
History
British Popular Customs, Present and Past: Illustrating the Social and Domestic Manners of the People. Arranged According to the Calendar of the Year.
Thiselton-Dyer, T. F. (Thomas Firminger)
Folklore -- Great Britain; Great Britain -- Social life and customs
In a pamphlet also, entitled, _Certayne Collection of Anchiante Times,
concerninge the Anchiante and Famous Cittie of Chester_, published in
Lysons’ _Magna Britannia_ (1810, vol. ii. p. 585), is the following:
“That whereas the Companye and Corporation of Shoemakers within the
cittie of Chester did yearely, time out of memory of man, upon Tewsday,
commonly called Shrove Tuesday, or otherwise Goteddesse day afternoon,
at the Cross upon the Roode-Dee, before the Mayor of the said cittie,
offer unto the Company of Drapers of the same cittie a ball of leather,
called a foote-ball, of the value of 3_s._ 4_d._ or thereabouts: and by
reason of the greate strife which did arise among the younge persons of
the same cittie (while diverse parties were taken with force and strong
handes to bring the said ball to one of these three houses, that is to
say, to the Mayor’s house, or any one of the two Sheriffs’ houses of the
time being), much harme was done, some in the great thronge fallinge
into a trance, some having their bodies brused and crushed; some their
arms, heades, or legges broken, and some otherwise maimed, or in perill
of life: to avoid the said inconveniences, and also to torne and
converte the said homage to a better use, it was thought good by the
Mayor of the saide cittie and the rest of the Common-Council to exchange
of the said foote-ball as followeth: that in place thereof, there be
offered by the Shoemakers to the Drapers, six gleaves[10] of silver, the
which gleaves they appoynted to be rewards unto such men as would come,
and the same day and place, passe and overcome on foot all others: and
the said gleaves were presently delivered according to the runninge of
every one; and this exchange was made in the time when Henry Gee was
Mayor of Chester,[11] A.D. 1539, and in the thirty-firste yeare of Kinge
Henry the Eighth.
[10] An obsolete word for a hand-dart.
[11] The following is a copy of the order for the above-mentioned
change, extracted from “the Orders and Acts of Assembly, of the Mayor,
Aldermen, and Common Council of the City of Chester,” in the Town
Clerk’s Office:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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