Source.—Three Fifteenth-Century Chronicles, pp. 66-68 and 94-99. (Camden Society.)

A.—A Proclamation made by Jack Cade, Captain of the Rebels in Kent.

These be the points, causes and mischiefs of gathering and assembling of us the King's liege men of Kent, the iiij day of June the year of our Lord Miiijcl, the which we trust to Almighty God to remedy, with the help and the grace of God and of our sovereign lord the King, and the poor commons of England, and else we shall die therefore:

We, considering that the King our sovereign lord, by the insatiable covetous malicious pomps, and false and of nought brought up certain persons, that daily and nightly is about his highness, and daily inform him that good is evil and evil is good, as Scripture witnesseth, Ve vobis qui dicitis bonum malum et malum bonum.

Item, they say that our sovereign lord is above his laws to his pleasure, and he may make it and break it as him list, without any distinction. The contrary is true, and else he should not have sworn to keep it, the which we conceived for the highest point of treason that any subject may do to make his prince run into perjury.

Item, they say that the commons of England would first destroy the King's friends and afterwards himself, and then bring the Duke of York to be King.... Item, they say the King should live upon his commons and that their bodies and goods be the King's; the contrary is true, for then needed him never parliament to sit to ask good of his commons.

Item, it is to be remedied that the false traitors will suffer no man to come into the King's presence for no cause without bribes where none ought to be had, nor no bribery about the King's person, but that any man might have his coming to him to ask him grace or judgement in such case as the King may give.

Item, the law serveth of nought else in these days but for to do wrong....

Item, we say our sovereign lord may understand that his false council hath lost his law, his merchandise is lost, his common people is destroyed, the sea is lost, France is lost, the King himself is so set that he may not pay for his meat and drink, and he oweth more than ever any King of England owed, for daily his traitors about him, where anything should come to him by his laws, anon they ask it from him.

Item, his true commons desire that he will avoid from him all the false progeny and affinity of the Duke of Suffolk... and to take about his noble person his true blood of his royal realm, that is to say, the high and mighty prince the Duke of York, exiled from our sovereign lord's person by the noising of the false traitor, the Duke of Suffolk and his affinity.

Item, taking of wheat and other grains, beef, mutton, and other victual, the which is unbearable hurt to the commons, without provision of our sovereign lord and his true council, for his commons may no longer bear it.

Item, the statute upon the labourers and the great extortioners of Kent.

B.—The Capture and Death of Cade.

... Then the commons of Kent arose and had chosen them a captain the which named himself John Mortimer, whose very true name was John Cade, and he was an Irishman, and so he come to Blackheath with the commons of Kent. And the King with all his lords made them ready with all their power for to withstand him.... And the Mayor of London with the commons of the city came unto the King beseeching him that he would tarry in the city and they would live and die with him and pay for the cost of his household an half year; but he would not, but took his journey to Kenilworth. And when the King was gone, the captain with the commons of Kent came again to Blackheath. And the iij^rd day of July he came to London; and as soon as they came to London they robbed Phillip Malpas. And the iiij^th day of July he beheaded Crowmer and another man at Mile End; and the same day at afternoon the Lord Say was fetched out of the Tower to the Guild Hall for the mayor to have judgement, and when he came before the mayor he said he would be judged by his peers. And then the commons of Kent took him from the officers and led him to the Standard in Cheap and there smote off his head. And then the captain did draw him through London, and over London Bridge to Saint Thomas, and there he was hanged and quartered, and his head and Crowmer's head and another man's head were set on London Bridge.... And the v^th day of July at night (and being Sunday) the commons of London set upon the commons of Kent, for they began to rob.... Then the xij^th day of July was in every shire proclaimed that what man that could take the aforesaid captain and bring him to the King quick or dead, should have a thousand marks, and as for any man that belonged to him x marks; for it was openly known that his name was not Mortimer, his name was John Cade.... And so one Alexander Iden, a squire of Kent, took him in a garden in Southsea the xiij^th day of July; and in the taking of him he was hurt and died that same night, and on the morrow he was brought into the King's Bench, and after was drawn through London and his head set on London Bridge.