Lady Honor Grenville, Viscountess Lisle's letter to her husband Sir John Basset, dated October 1539

Source:

Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Henry VIII, Volume 14, Part 2: August-December 1539, published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1895

https://www.british-history.ac.uk/letters-papers-hen8/vol14/no2/pp102-108

Above: Honor Grenville, Viscountess Lisle, photo courtesy of Lobsterthermidor at Wikimedia Commons.

Above: Sir John Basset, artist unknown.

The letter:

I received today your letters dated Windsor 24th ult., and am not a little glad to know your good news, and that the King has so well accepted you, praying God that his Grace will so continue. I have been sorry enough because I heard not from you since you went to the Court. Declare to the King your full mind, and trust not to promises or fair words, and follow your suits now your own self. I am glad your fur of sables is come safe, and that the Palsgrave is merry, to whom I pray that I may be recommended. Palmer of Guisnes has showed me, to-day, that a matter is brought before him by the law of Guisnes that you should give commandment to the sergeant royal of Guysnes to keep one Nicholas Pykeryng in prison as a rebel, and the sergeant denies that you gave it. Answered that I knew nothing of the matter, and he asked me to write of it to you. I pray you to defer writing to lord Russell to be good to my son touching the lands which the earl of Bridgewater doth destroy, as he will be of age within this month, and then you can license him to go himself to lord Russell with your letters. Till that time little hurt can be done. I know the earl of Bridgewater's appetite. The more he is spoken unto the worse he will be. I think he will be best to my son himself when he is of full age, and that he may be bound and take bonds. I hope you have received your French wine. It was nine days in the ship before he could have weather to go. It never came on land, but from one ship to the other, and the French ship went straight away. No one had any of it but you. I hope it is good, as I doubt not but it is as John Wonters saith. The other wine shall be kept till your coming home, which shall not be as soon as I would.