Cornwall

Who holds it

Name

Hugh Bardolf, with Osbert FitzWilliam as deputy

Title

Sheriff of Cornwall

Since

Easter 1199

Born

Not pinned

Family

As for Devon

Confidence

medium

The Cornwall list on Wikipedia is muddled for 1200-02 but agrees on Hugh Bardolf with Osbert FitzWilliam from Easter 1199.

Overlord

King John

What it holds

• The shire farm and courts
• The earldom's lands in hand (see Earldom of Cornwall)

How it was acquired

Shire since the tenth century; the earldom in hand since 1175.

Allies and rivals

The tinners; the priories of Bodmin, St Germans and Launceston; the bishop of Exeter's manors (Lawhitton, St Germans, Pawton).

How things stand that morning

Under the sheriff. Devon lies across the Tamar.

Wealth

Tin above all; fish, slate, wool. No figures.

Military

Launceston castle; the honours' knights.

Threats

• The forest law

Sheriff in 1200

Name

Hugh Bardolf

How

Sheriff and keeper of the earldom's lands, with Osbert FitzWilliam as under-sheriff

Since

Easter 1199

Hundreds

East, West, Trigg, Lesnewth, Stratton, Pydar, Powder, Kerrier and Penwith.

Forests

The whole county until the Cornish charter of 1204.

Castles

Launceston (royal); Trematon (Valletort); Cardinham and Restormel (Cardinan); Truro (state not pinned).

Places of note

• Launceston castle: Caput of the earldom

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Sheriff from the PRO list via Wikipedia, with a muddled entry for the following years.

On the map: Traced at a coarse scale along the Tamar.

Primary sources for England

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
• Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
• Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
• Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
• Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
• English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
• Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
• Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online

22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.