Published in Windlesora 35
© WLHG 2019
Records of the meetings of the Dean and Canons of St. George’s Chapel in the late sixteenth century are, for the most part, fairly mundane affairs concerning appointments of Canons and Poor Knights, and the granting of leases for properties around the country that were owned by the Chapter. Not all matters were straightforward however, occasionally disciplinary procedures had to be taken against those whose behaviour was not that of one who was part of a religious foundation. Such was the case in March 1596 of Edward Langford, one of the Singing Men, as these extracts show (the spelling has been modernised):
Whereas Edward Langford hath often times in his drunkenness committed great disorders as well as quarreling and brawling abroad in the Town and here within the Castle with divers persons as also in the Church in disturbing Divine Service to the displeasure of Almighty God and offence of his brethren and hath been divers times admonished as well publicly as privately…all of which notwithstanding the said Edward Langford did in the month of February at Morning Prayer again disquiet the whole choir.
For this, Langford made a solemn promise before the Dean and Canons ‘never hereafter to fall into that foul vice again’, failing which he was to quit the Chapel without wages or allowances. All went well for a time until April the following year, when he was “expelled the Chapel for his incorrigible behaviour“. No doubt this was much to the relief of all concerned, but Langford must have appealed to a higher authority, for in July of that year he was “newly admitted by Her Majesty’s special commandment“. Not that he repaid the Queen’s kindness, for at the end of September “being lately received again upon hope conceived of reformation of his manners’ he was admonished by the Dean to whom he had offered contemptuous words, both in the Quire and after prayers“.
The records are silent on the subject for nearly two years, though there must have been apprehension as to what Langford would do next. Things finally came to a head on 4th July 1599 when he:
fell into this extreme fury and madness following. He came to the Dean and danced before him and scorned him afterwards he dashed his head against the stone walls, brake his own head pitifully, rent of his clothes, went into his own lodgings, threatened to thrust a dagger into his wife’s belly, ran into the town naked, cursing and blaspheming, putting all men in fear that he would presently murder himself or others. Whereupon the Dean was forced to seck him in the town and, judging him mad, had him put in prison tied hand and foot and with two men to guard him and he continued a week in prison, refusing to eat, cursing and blaspheming most wickedly.
The other singing men promptly went to the Chapter House and presente a petition to the Dean; they had put up with Langford’s behaviour for seven years, enough was enough. Accordingly, on 16 July, Langford was brought before the Chapter to hear the sentence of dismissal pronounced, but realising that he had now reached the end of the road and seeing his outrages to be so notorious and so intolerable and so scandalous and dangerous to all men pre-empted the decision by ‘falling down upon his knees and with tears beseeched the Dean and Chapter to show some compassion upon him in regard of his poor wife and children and prayed us to accept his resignation and so save his credit. For the sake of his family, the Chapter with one consent gave him twenty marks (about £14) and he made his resignation between the hours of five and six of the clock after noon.
Nothing more is heard of Edward Langford after this, but given his propensity for drunkeness, his story is unlikely to have had a happy ending.
The Dean at this time was Christopher Urswick (1448c-1522) who was a priest and confessor of Margaret Beaufort, the mother of Henry VII and grandmother of Henry VIII. She was a crucial figure in the War of the Roses. Urswick is believed to have acted as an intermediary in the plot to put her son on the throne. He held several other important positions including three Archdeaconries (Wiltshire, Richmond and Norfolk), Dean of York (1488 to 1494), and was a Canon of St George’s Chapel (1492 to 1496). Urswick is also a minor character in Shakespeare’s play Richard III.