Sir Thomas Blount (died 1400) was a supporter of
Richard II of England
Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father die ...
.
Background
Blount was the eldest son of Sir Thomas Blount (c.1321-c.1407) and his wife, Joan Hakluyt.
He married in 1387 the widow of the former treasurer of the Exchequer, Sir Hugh Segrave. A second marriage gained him land in Wiltshire and Hampshire and allowed him to represent Wiltshire in Parliament in 1397 with Sir
Henry Green
Henry Green was the pen name of Henry Vincent Yorke (29 October 1905 – 13 December 1973), an English writer best remembered for the novels ''Party Going'', ''Living'' and '' Loving''. He published a total of nine novels between 1926 and 1952 ...
e.
Life at Court
At Richard II's coronation, Sir Thomas was deputy for John Hastings, earl of Pembroke, in the office of king's 'naperer,' or keeper of his linen, and he was in close attendance on Richard II throughout his reign. At its close, he declined to recognize the claim of Henry IV to supersede Richard.
After Henry's coronation (6 October 1399), he joined
John Holland, Earl of Huntingdon,
Thomas Holland, Earl of Kent,
the Earl of Salisbury, the
Earl of Rutland
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...
, the
Abbot of Westminster
The Abbot of Westminster was the head (abbot) of Westminster Abbey.
List
Notes
ReferencesTudorplace.com.ar{Unreliable source?, certain=y, reason=self published website; and Jorge H. Castelli is not an expert, date=January 2015
*
Westminster
...
, and others in an insurrection, now known as the
Epiphany Rising
The Epiphany Rising was a failed rebellion against King Henry IV of England in early January 1400.
Background
Richard II rewarded those who had supported him against Gloucester and the Lords Appellant with a plethora of new titles. Upon the usur ...
. Sir Thomas, who is described by contemporary chroniclers as a noble and wise knight, met the leading conspirators at dinner with the Abbot of Westminster on 18 December 1399, and there they agreed to surprise Henry at a tournament at Windsor.
But Henry discovered the plot through the treachery of the Earl of Rutland, and, summoning an army in London, advanced against the rebels, who had assembled in some hundreds near Windsor. The latter retreated before Henry, and managed to reach Cirencester, where many of them were captured (6 January 1400), but Blount, with a few friends, fled to Oxford, and was taken and executed on 12 January in the Green Ditch near the city. Eleven persons, described as Blount's servants, were condemned to outlawry at Oxford at the same time, and afterwards (19 February 1400) pardoned. Most of the other leading plotters were executed.
Execution
The revolting cruelty of Blount's death was described at great length by many contemporary chroniclers. He was first hanged, then cut down and eviscerated, although still alive and replying to the taunts of Sir Thomas Erpingham, the king's chamberlain, who directed the horrible procedure; he was finally beheaded and quartered, and his head was sent to London. His large estates were forfeited to the crown, but some were bestowed on
Sir Walter Blount (d. 1403), a distant relative, and his wife Sancha. With Sir Thomas Blount the Belton line of the Blount family became extinct.
One contemporaneous account read:
:Sir Thomas Blount was hanged; but the halter was soon cut, and he was made to sit on a bench before a great fire, and the executioner came with a razor in his hand, and knelt before Sir Thomas, whose hands were tied, begging him to pardon him his death, as he must do his office. Sir Thomas asked, "Are you the person appointed to deliver me from this world?" The executioner answered, "Yes, Sir, I pray you pardon me." And Sir Thomas kissed him, and pardoned him his death. The executioner then knelt down, and opened his belly, and cut out his bowels, and threw them into the fire. While Sir Thomas was dying, one Erpyngham, the king's chamberlain, insulting Blount, said to him, in derision, "Go, seek a master that can cure you." Blount only answered, "Te Deum laudamus! Blessed be the day on which I was born, and blessed be this day, for I shall die in the service of my sovereign lord, the noble King Richard". His head was soon after cut off and he was quartered.
His death is mentioned in
Shakespeare's
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
play ''
Richard II
Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father died ...
'' in the final act when
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
enters to tell
King Henry "The next news is, I have to London sent. The heads of
Salisbury
Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath.
Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...
,
Spencer, Blunt, and
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
."
Aftermath
Sir Thomas's cousin Nicholas, who aided him in the insurrection, escaped to Italy, and was outlawed. He entered the service of Galeazzo Visconti, duke of Milan, and fought with the Milanese against Rupert, emperor of Germany, from 1401 to 1404. He returned to England in 1404, and lived in concealment till Henry IV's death in 1413. On his return to this country he assumed the name of Croke. He married Agnes, daughter of John Heynes, by whom he became the ancestor of Sir John Croke and of Sir George Croke.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blount, Thomas
Year of birth missing
1400 deaths
14th-century English politicians
English MPs September 1397
People executed under the Plantagenets by hanging, drawing and quartering
People executed under the Plantagenets for treason against England
Medieval English knights
Thomas
Thomas may refer to:
People
* List of people with given name Thomas
* Thomas (name)
* Thomas (surname)
* Saint Thomas (disambiguation)
* Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church
* Thomas the Ap ...
Executed English people
English politicians convicted of crimes
People executed under the Plantagenets by decapitation