Nicholas Fastolf (??? - 1330) was an English-born judge who was a leading member of the early Irish judiciary; according to the most reliable source, he was the first judge to hold the office of Lord Chief Justice of Ireland. He was probably the direct ancestor of Sir John Fastolf, who is generally thought to have inspired Shakespeare's character Falstaff.

Family

He was born in Norfolk, one of the four sons of Thomas Fastolf of Reedham and Great Yarmouth.Ball F. Elrington ''The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921'' John Murray London 1926 Vol. 1 p.66 His brothers were Thomas Fastolf,

Bishop of St David's The Bishop of St Davids is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of St Davids. The succession of bishops stretches back to Saint David who in the 6th century established his seat in what is today the St Davids, city of ...

, Lawrence Fastolf,

auditor An auditor is a person or a firm appointed by a company to execute an audit.Practical Auditing, Kul Narsingh Shrestha, 2012, Nabin Prakashan, Nepal To act as an auditor, a person should be certified by the regulatory authority of accounting an ...

of the prerogative court of

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

, and Alexander, who was twice bailiff of Great Yarmouth.Baker, J.H. "Thomas Fastolf" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' Nicholas' wife was called Cicely or Cecilia: they had several children. Elrington Ball believed that he was the direct ancestor of Sir John Fastolf. Hugh Fastolf, who was MP for Great Yarmouth from 1361 to 1377, is thought to have been his nephew, a son of his brother Alexander.

Career

He served at least one term as bailiff of Great Yarmouth, sat as a burgess for Great Yarmouth in the Parliaments of 1309 and 1314 and became a Serjeant-at-law. In 1324 he was sent to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

as Lord Chief Justice. Elrington Ball regarded his appointment as a step of great importance in the development of the Irish judiciary, since, while some sources name

Walter l'Enfant Sir Walter l'Enfant the younger (died c.1317), lord of Carnalway, County Kildare was an Irish judge and landowner.Ball p.56 He was the son of Sir Walter l'Enfant, or l'Enfaunt (died c.1294) who, like his son, was a judge of the Court of the Justic ...

, in about 1300, as the first Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, Ball believed that Fastolf was the first.Ball pp.25-6 That, however, was not his contemporary title: he was usually referred to as "the justice following the Justiciar of Ireland".''Patent Roll 20 Edward II'' He exchanged the position for that of Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas in 1328, but returned to his earlier office the following year. His salary was 40 marks a year. National Archives ''Officers in Ireland anno primo R. Edwardi 111 with their yearly fees'' As a special favour the Crown promised him the custody of any heir who became a royal ward, and the right to hold his lands during his

minority Minority may refer to: Politics * Minority government, formed when a political party does not have a majority of overall seats in parliament * Minority leader, in American politics, the floor leader of the second largest caucus in a legislative b ...

, if the lands were worth less than £20.''Patent Roll 1 Edward III'' He was granted lands in

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

: in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

he lived in considerable state in an impressive mansion on Rochel Street (now Back Lane) near

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin. Until 1922 it was the ...

. He made a special contract with the Mayor of Dublin for a private water supply, which involved inserting a narrow pipe into the

cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by ...

of his neighbour and fellow judge Walter de Islip. He returned to England in 1330, and is heard of there acting as an

itinerant justice An eyre or iter, sometimes called a general eyre, was the name of a circuit travelled by an itinerant justice in medieval England (a justice in eyre), or the circuit court over which they presided, or the right of the monarch (or justices acting ...

, but died soon after 1330; his executors were his widow and his brother Lawrence. Elrington Ball calls him "a man of wealth and distinction".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fastolf, Nicholas 1330 deaths People from Great Yarmouth Year of birth unknown Lords chief justice of Ireland Chief Justices of the Irish Common Pleas