RALPH RUDYARD
“Radulphus, lord of Rudyerd, who joined Lord Stanley with a large body of men at Bosworth
Field and by family tradition, was the one who slew Richard 3rd, August 22nd 1485; to
commemorate which Henry 7th allowed him to add to his shield, on a canton a rose or., in a
field gules.”
[John Sleigh: A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek in Staffordshire. pub. 1862, Leek, Robert Nall: London, John Russell Smill.
pp.157-163. Sleigh's italics]
Ralph Rudyard is of course, not the only candidate for that dubious honour and such family
traditions are notoriously difficult to substantiate. John Sleigh does not give the source of this
family tradition; it may possibly have been Reginald Burroughs Rudyard whom Sleigh indicates
was the "the present representative" of the family when he was writing. Sleigh did not footnote his
work according to modern academic standards and as this article will show, he could occasionally
be over confident in his assertions. Yet, despite these problems, Sleigh's "History ...." was a great
achievement which remains of central importance and the starting point for the history of Leek and
the surrounding area. The facsimile reproduction in 2005 of the expanded "luxury" 2nd edition of
his work attests to its continuing importance, not least for family histories. [John Sleigh: A History of the
Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition, 1883 Bemrose and Sons, London and Derby. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd. repr.
The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts.]
So what, if any, evidence can be found to support, or contradict, this family tradition? Who was
Ralph Rudyard? Did he join Lord Stanley? Was he involved in the melée at Sandeford? Did he
receive an augmentation to his shield? Did Ralph Rudyard strike the decisive blow that killed
Richard III?
The Rudyards are quite well documented in sources for Staffordshire local history and if
examination of the available sources shows that the family tradition is inaccurate and some of the
sources themselves can be problematic, there is, nevertheless, a good deal of information to be
found about the Ralph Rudyard whose descendants claimed for him the dubious honour of regicide.
BACKGROUND
The landscape has changed a good deal from that which Ralph Rudyard would have known: indeed
much of his manor now lies beneath the waters of two reservoirs on the north side of Leek. In
1797-8 the bottom of the valley between Biddulph Moor and Gun (a hill), was flooded to create a
reservoir to supply the Trent and Mersey canal system. Rudyard Lake became a popular resort in
the Victorian period, now chiefly remembered as the place after which the writer, Rudyard Kipling
was named. East of Rudyard, on the other side of Gun, lies another reservoir: Tittesworth, created in
1858 to supply the dying industry in Leek and enlarged a hundred years later to supply the town
with drinking water. [Victoria County History Staffordshire vol.7 pp. 235] But in the fifteenth century the
Rudyards were lords of both Rudyard and Tittesworth.
They were not really of lordly rank, nor knights: esquires - perhaps. But records [multiple examples in the
Collections for a History of Staffordshire, edited by The William Salt Archaeological Society] quite consistently refer to
them as lords or "dominus", for they were, time out of mind, "lords of the manor" of Rudyard and
Tittesworth. In 1507 the then "lord of Rudyard", Thomas, claimed to hold a court at Rudyard but
this would have been small, dealing only with manorial farming issues and minor squabbles
between tenants: the Rudyards themselves owed suit to their overlord, the earl of Shrewsbury's
court at Alton. [Victoria County History. Staffordshire. Volume 7 pp.217-8] Their land would have been mostly
grazing and meadows rather than the more labour intensive agriculture, as it is still, the names of
the fields reflecting their use: Broadmeadows; Oxhay; Horse Haylands: Oldhay Top;
Stockmeadows. [OS Landranger sheet 118] This northern part of Staffordshire was sparsely populated and
much of it was owned by monasteries, in particular by Ranulph de Blundeville's foundation,
Dieulacres, situated on the north side of Leek. The abbey's domain bordered the manor of Rudyard
and Tittesworth right down the eastern side. The assertive abbots of Dieulacres were the dominant
power in the Staffordshire Moorlands. [Victoria County History Staffordshire, volume 3 pp. 230-5]
The roads east-west, from the salt wiches of Cheshire to Derby and the north-south road which
since Roman times had brought lead and other minerals from the mining area around Buxton down
to Watling Street, crossed through Leek [Victoria County History Staffordshire, volume. 7 pp.98; 195; 220; 224] but
these were not the routes by which much political news would travel. No great magnate household
resided in, or passed though the Staffordshire Moorlands and I have found no record of any
medieval king ever having set foot in this backwater.
GENEALOGY AND SOURCES
John Sleigh gives a full pedigree of the Rudyard family, from "Wolferus de Tettesworth, dom' de
Rudyerd 1030-64" to "Reginald Burroughes Rudyerd, n. 1848 ... present representative". This
pedigree is supported in the accompanying text by records which he quotes in part or in full but
without referencing the source. At the side of the pedigree is printed by way of a footnote: Harl.
MSS; MS.Ped. in Coll: Her: Fuller; Knowledge of “Father Plott.” Old Deeds and abstracts of
Titles. Family Records. Leek and other Registers. [John Sleigh: A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition,
1883 Bemrose and Sons, London and Derby. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd., repr. The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge,
Wilts. pp. 125.] This is frustrating for the modern historian but to be fair to Sleigh, much of the
material he refers to would not have been catalogued when he was writing. Fortunately a lot of the
documents Sleigh refers to have since been published in the "Collections for a History of
Staffordshire" or can be found, still in manuscript form, in the William Salt Library in Stafford.
These confirm the accuracy of Sleigh's work.
The Victoria County History of Staffordshire also gives a succession of Rudyards beginning with
Wulfmaer (Sleigh has Wolferus) who held the manor before the Conquest and adds the information
that earlier, 1002-4 the thegn Wulfric Spot bequeathed Rudyard to Burton Abbey, though the abbey
does not seem to have gained possession of it. The Victoria County History's succession from the
Conquest to the early fifteenth century differs in places from that given by Sleigh, though overall is
very similar and confirms that the manor and lordship continued in unbroken inheritance in tail
male. However, for the 15th century Rudyards, the Victoria County History gives only: Thomas
succeeded by Ralph alive 1411 and Richard "evidently the lord in 1418" then "Thomas Rudyard
was lord in 1507". [VCH Staffordshire, vol. 7 pp.216-9] which obviously leaves a big gap in the pedigree
from 1418 to 1507, exactly where the Ralph who fought at Bosworth should be. This is puzzling
since one of the footnotes points to a record which gives clear evidence for the Ralph Rudyard who
was contemporary with Richard III. [VCH Staffordshire, vol. 7 pp.216-9. Fn. 83: HCS NS IV p179]
Sources which are likely to have formed the basis of the pedigree given by Sleigh would be
manuscripts or transcripts of three visitations of Staffordshire: in 1583; in 1614 and 1663-4. These
were edited by H. Sydney Grazebrook and published in 1883 (the same year as the publication of
the 2nd edition of Sleigh's "History ...") and 1885. [Collections for a History of Staffordshire, Edited by the William
Salt Archaeological Society, volume III pt.2 and volume V pt.2.] The first of these “The visitation of Staffordshire
made by Robert Glover, Somerset herald, mareschall to William Flower, Norrey Kinge of Armes,
1583” begins with the Ralph Rudyard who would have been contemporary with Richard III.
Grazebrook's edition of the 1583 visitation was taken from a manuscript in the William Salt Library
which Grazebrook designated the "Stukeley" from an inscription on the flyleaf. The Stukeley MS is
not the original, which according to Grazebrook, is probably one in the library of Queen's College
Oxford. “With this volume the Stukeley MS agrees in almost every particular. But in order to
perfect his MS, Mr. Salt caused it to be carefully collated with the reputed original; several missing
pedigrees were supplied and all variations noted. The gentleman employed in this was Mr. Thorpe,
who speaks of the Queen's College MS as "Glover's original Visitation, in an old vellum binding”. A
footnote lists the pedigrees that were thus added to the Stukeley, presumably by Mr. Thorpe; one of
them is Rudyerd. [Collections for a History of Staffordshire, ed. The William Salt Archaeological Society. Vol. III pt.2. ed:
Sydney Grazebrook, Esq. 1883, London, Mitchell & Hughes. pp. ix]
The "Stukeley" is still in the William Salt Library in Stafford. It has a pedigree for Rudyard
beginning with: "Rauf Rudierd of Rudierd; lyvinge anno 15 H 7 = .... daughter of Roger Savage, a
yonger of the house of Savage in Cheshire." [William Salt library SMS413 f 130] This would be the Ralph
who fought at Bosworth.
Sleigh adds the information that Ralph's wife was called Johanna Savage and that this Ralph, living
15 H 7, was the son of "Thomas de Rudyard; succeeded 21°.22° Henry VI ... married, 1464,
Cecelia, vel Seisley" [ [John Sleigh: A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition, 1883 Bemrose and Sons, London
and Derby. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd. repr. The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp. 128]
An entry in the Staffordshire Plea Rolls, De Banco, Easter 12 E IV (1472) confirms that Ralph was
indeed the son of Thomas but cannot have been the child of a marriage in 1464:
“John Oldfield, executor of the will of John Herpole and Thomas Belet and Elena his wife, his coexecutors, sued Ralph Rudyerd, gentilman, elsewhere called Ralph son of Thomas and heir ...
and Richard Richardson of Grendon, yeoman, for a debt of £10 ”
[Collections for a History of Staffordshire, ed. The William Salt Archaeological Society, New Series vol. IV. 1901, London, Harrison
& Sons. pp. 179.] Any child of a marriage in 1464, would have been at the most 8 years old in 1472 yet
this Ralph Rudyard is undoubtedly “son of Thomas and heir” as well as being old enough to be sued
for debt. Either Ralph was Thomas's son by an earlier marriage or the marriage date is wrong.
Sleigh also cites: "1476. Receipt from John Fitzherbert, for £17, to Ralph Rudyerd de Rudyerd, as
collector (together with John Mynors of Utoxater, [Uttoxeter] esq, Rd. Vawson de eadem; Henry q. Verdon? - lord of Caldon, and John Berdmore of ffroghole [Froghall] for Totmonslowe hundred,
for part payment of a subsidy granted under an Act of Parliament dated 6 Nov. 12 E.4, for
maintenance of 13,000 archers (architenentum) at 6d per diem each.” I have not found this
document but since he quotes it so fully we may presume it reliable. [John Sleigh, A History of the Ancient
Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and Derby, Bemrose & Sons. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd.. repr. The
Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp. 126] (The subsidy would have been for the campaign which ended
in
the treaty of Picquigny.)
Nevertheless, though there may be some problems and discrepancies in and between the Victoria
County History and Sleigh, the court records and Ralph's will (see below) give positive proof of the
existence of Ralph Rudyard, son of Thomas and heir, who was adult and active in the 1470's.
RALPH RUDYARD'S ASSOCIATES
Ralph Rudyard makes another appearance in the Plea Rolls a year after being sued for debt.
Although I have not found out what the affair was about, it is of interest because of the people
Ralph was associated with.
Coram Rege Easter 13 E IV: Alice, late wife of Roger Boydell, appealed in person: Roger Savage,
late of Checkley, gentilman, Nicholas Lye, late of Leek, gentilman, Thomas Storeson, late of
Cressewell, yoman, John Marler, late of Cresswalle, milner and Oto Caryngton, late of Lyek
gentilman, as principals in the death of her husband and she appealed William Lye, late of
Cressewalle, gentilman, Christopher Carynton, late of Lyek, gentilman, Robert Savage, late of
Lyek, gentilman, William Goold, late of Lyek, yoman, Ralph Rudiorte, late of Rudiorte, gentilman,
Lawrence Blagge, late of Maxfeld co. Chester yoman and 19 others named as accessories and the
sheriff returned that they could not be found. ..."
[Collections for a History of Staffordshire. Ed. The William Salt Archaeological Society. New Series volume IV, 1901, London,
Harrison & Sons. pp. 189]
Roger Savage would be or probably already was, Ralph's father in law. His home, Checkley is about
13 miles south of Leek (north of the A50 between Blythe Bridge and Uttoxeter) and like Rudyard,
part of the hundred of Totmonslow. Cresswell, where three of the other accused came from, lies
about a mile and a half west of Checkley. Roger was a cadet of the Cheshire family of which Sir
John Savage was the head. Sir John held the manor of Rushton Spencer which bordered Rudyard to
the north. [Victoria County History, Staffordshire, vol. 7 pp.223-29] Robert Savage was probably the overseer,
perhaps resident and therefore Ralph's neighbour. Of others mentioned in the indictment, the
Carringtons were also a Cheshire family. Another Cheshire connection close to Rudyard was that of
Sir Hugh Egerton of Wrinehill, a cadet of the Cheshire gentry family, who leased Wall Grange, on
the south western outskirts of Leek, about 2 miles from Rudyard, probably for one of his younger
sons. [Victoria County History, Staffordshire. volume. 7 pp.202-9]
The Ralph Rudyard who is credited with killing Richard III was a man who was adult and active
from at least 1472. He has appeared in court records for the usual matters and he has acted as one of
the collectors of the subsidy for Edward IV's campaign to France. His overlord was the Earl of
Shrewsbury. He was associated with cadet members of Cheshire gentry families, particularly the
Savage family, who were his neighbours and probably already his in-laws.
Ralph's knowledge of national politics was probably limited to whatever of general hearsay reached
the Staffordshire Moorlands. He and his neighbours were probably more concerned with local
issues. In 1483 Richard III appointed Thomas Wortley, one of his Yorkshire adherents, sheriff of
Staffordshire. Wortley was succeeded the next year by another of his trusted Yorkshire friends,
Marmaduke Constable. [http://en wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Sheriff_of_Staffordshire] Presumably Richard did so
because Henry Stafford, duke of Buckingham owned estates in Staffordshire including Stafford
castle. But there is no evidence of Staffordshire men being involved in Buckingham's rebellion.
These appointments are likely to have offended the gentry of the county, as did similar
appointments in the south of England and Richard may have done himself more harm than good by
them. [cf. Charles Ross, Richard III. 1981, Eyre Methuen, London. pp. 105-12 & 122]
TO BOSWORTH
In order to try and assess the likelihood of Ralph Rudyard being involved in the final melée in
which Richard III was killed, it seems to me necessary first to try to work out where and under
whose command, Ralph was most likely to have been serving on the battlefield and in what
capacity.
When Sleigh says Ralph Rudyard went "with a large body of men", this should be taken to mean
that he joined the muster for Totmonslow hundred. He would not have had a large body of retainers
of his own, though he would have been regarded as one of the leading men of the hundred.
In 1539, a Ralph Rudyard gent. is listed in the muster roll for Totmonslow hundred. This is Ralph's
grandson by his second son James. [William Salt Library, Stafford. SMS 413 p.130 and John Sleigh, A History of the
Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and Derby, Bemrose & Sons. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd.. repr.
The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp. 125]] He mustered as a mounted archer, having his own horse and
harness. [State Papers Henry VIII,vol. XIV pt. 1 No. 652 in Collections for a History of Staffordshire, Ed. The William Salt
Archaeological Society. New Series, vol. VI part 1 pp. 76.] It is therefore likely that mounted archer was the
service that the lords of Rudyard owed and that the Ralph who fought at Bosworth would have
served in the same way.
Rudyard was subject to the overlord's court at Alton, which by the fifteenth century had descended
to the earls of Shrewsbury. (Victoria County History Staffordshire. vol 7 pp 217-8) In 1485 therefore, Ralph's
overlord was the 4th earl, George Talbot, born 1468 and still a minor. [Handbook of British Chronology, ed.
Powicke and Fryde. 2nd edition 1961, Royal Historical Society] He seems to have been with the king and the royal
army. [Charles Ross, Richard III. 1981, London. Eyre Methuen Ltd. pp.212. and Bosworth Fielde. Text from Bishop Percy's Folio
Manuscript. Ballads and Romances, ed. J.W. Hales and F.J. Furnival, 3 vols. (London, 1868) III pp.233-59. From the Society website.
verse 57, line228 and verse 121 line 482 ] It is quite possible that when the muster was called, he would have
sent messages to his adherents. Sir Gilbert Talbot, (b. 1452) brother of the 2nd earl [Wikipedia]
mustered some 4-500 Shrewsbury adherents, no doubt claiming to be acting for his nephew. Given
that the earl was with the king at Nottingham and Sir Gilbert seems to have been mustering in the
Shropshire area, eventually meeting Henry Tudor at Newport, these instructions would almost
certainly have been contradictory. However, mustering the county levies was the responsibility of
the sheriff, or his acting deputy, who would be based at the Shire Hall in Stafford and would
probably instruct them muster there. But Richard's appointment of Montague Constable is likely to
have offended the county gentry who were the natural leaders of their hundreds, making them less
inclined to respond to the sheriff.
Richard III was sending calls to muster from 12 -13th August. Henry Tudor was writing to potential
supporters on the 14th. [Peter Hammond, Richard III and the Bosworth Campaign. 2010 Pen and Sword Books Ltd.
Barnsley, Yorks. pp.67] Messages for the county levies would have to travel from Nottingham via
Stafford and then be passed around the geographically extensive hundred. Any messages from the
earl of Shrewsbury and Gilbert Talbot would also have to travel, probably indirectly, to Alton.
Given the dates of the known letters and the logistics, Totmonslow hundred could not have
mustered before the 16th at the earliest. By that time any problem they may have had with
conflicting instructions was effectively solved for them because by then another more powerful
force was making its way through Staffordshire, much closer to Totmonslow: that of Sir William
Stanley.
The so-called Stanley ballads provide an excellent source from which the troop movements in the
week preceding the battle can be worked out. It is now accepted that the "The Ballad of Bosworth
Fielde" was originally written by a member Sir William Stanley's retinue who was present at the
events he relates. This gives the days of the week on which certain events occurred and a narrative
of the Stanleys' movements which is consistent with the fact that the day of the battle, 22nd August
was a Monday. [Handbook of Dates for Students of English History, edited by C.R. Cheney. 1945, reprinted with corrections
1978, 1981. Offices of the Royal Historical Society, London.] "Bosworth Fielde" is therefore a valuable source for
the Stanley troop movements during the week preceding the battle, particularly those of Sir
William.
According to "Bosworth Fielde"' Sir William moved his forces from Nantwich, where he had
mustered and paid his troops, to Stone on Tuesday (16th August). They remained camped at Stone
until Saturday when they went to Lichfield. [Bosworth Fielde. Text from Bishop Percy's Folio Manuscript. Ballads and
Romances, ed. J.W. Hales and F.J. Furnival, 3 vols. (London, 1868) III pp.233-59. From the Society website. verse 92, lines 365-368
and 387-390] For Ralph Rudyard and the men of Totmonslow hundred, this meant that from Tuesday
afternoon to Saturday morning, Sir William Stanley's forces were camped barely 5 miles from their
place of muster. They cannot have been unaware of the large force camped so close and the
Stanleys may well have been seeking to augment their troops with the Staffordshire hundreds, two
of which, Offlow and Cuttlestone commanded by Humphrey Stanley and Hugh Persall respectively,
joined Thomas. [Bosworth Fielde. Text from Bishop Percy's Folio Manuscript. Ballads and Romances, ed. J.W. Hales and F.J.
Furnival, 3 vols. (London, 1868) III pp.233-59. From the Society website. lines 460-4. Neither man would have had a large personal
retinue but would have been a leader of their hundred.] Moreover, there were connections with Cheshire families
and cadets of Cheshire families living in Totmonslow hundred. [see above] Roger Savage's home
Checkley, was less than two miles from Totmonslow. [OS Landranger sheet 127 SJ995 398 and sheet 128 SK028
380] Whether or not they knew of Sir William's intentions or that he had been proclaimed a traitor,
they probably wouldn't have had much enthusiasm for obeying a summons from Yorkshire sheriff
and Sir William would have been able to tell them that he was intending to join Sir Gilbert Talbot.
Add to this, the close proximity (and size) of Sir William's force and joining him would have been
the easiest and most natural (and probably most sensible) thing for them to have done.
This would make the family tradition as reported by Sleigh inaccurate, in stating that Ralph joined
"Lord Stanley" but it is very probable, indeed most likely, that he and the "large body of men",
Totmonslow hundred, joined Sir William. As part of Sir William Stanley's forces, he would have
been in the final melée at Sandeford.
AFTERMATH
After the battle, some no doubt helped to bury the dead, transporting bodies to the little church of
Dadlington. The bulk of the army would be dismissed to make their various ways home. For the
men of Totmonslow, the way was quite simple: west up Watling Street past Lichfield to where the
road the Romans had made to bring lead from the Derbyshire mines, joined Watling Street south of
Penkridge. That road would take them through Stafford and Hilderstone right back to Totmonslow.
[Victoria County History Staffordshire volume 7 pp. 98 and OS Landranger sheet 127] There they would disperse, most
of them like Ralph heading to homes further north, for Totmonslow lies at the south of the
geographically extensive hundred.
No record has been found of any reward for Ralph Rudyard, perhaps because he did not play a
decisive part in that final melée but perhaps also for another reason: he had little potential for future
use to Henry Tudor. North Staffordshire was relatively poor and thinly populated and the
monasteries, in particular Dieulacres, were the dominant power. Though as lord of Rudyard he
would no doubt claim gentry status and an impressively ancient pedigree, Ralph had nothing to
offer the new regime.
On 12 July 19 Henry VII (1504) Ralph purchased a tenement which lay within the manor of
Rudyard. [John Sleigh, A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and Derby, Bemrose & Sons. 2005
Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd.. repr. The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp.126-7] Sometime in the same
regnal year he wrote his will. Rev. William Hadfield, a Victorian antiquarian, copied it into one of
his notebooks from, what looks like: "Harl MSS ?6/8128 p9v" but which I haven't been able to trace
in the on-line catalogue. It may be inaccurate but since Hadfield's notebooks date from about 1840,
it is quite likely that it has been re-catalogued since then. The will is very simple: "I Ralph, son of
Thomas de Rudyard give to Thomas my son and heir all the lands, rents and services pertaining to
the lordship and manor of Rudyard, Leek to have himself and the male heirs of his body" and in
case of failure of heirs, to successively his second and third sons, James and John and lastly to his
daughter, Agnes and her heirs male. The will was witnessed by William Savage, knight and Richard
Sutton .[William Salt Library, Stafford. Hadfield Collection SMS 2/32/00 p2v] I have not found the date of Ralph's
death but his son Thomas was lord of Rudyard by 1507.[Victoria County History Staffordshire volume.7 pp.217]
Thomas left no heirs and James died before his brother. [William Salt Library, Stafford SMS413 p130] It was
James's son, another Ralph, who eventually inherited Rudyard and who mustered as a mounted
archer in 1539.
I have not found where Ralph was buried. His parish church was probably St. Michael and All
Angels at nearby Horton, a chapelry of Dieulacres but he may well have asked to buried at the
abbey. Since the Dissolution the former monastery and its domain lands have changed hands several
times. In 1597 it was acquired by Thomas Rudyard, Ralph's great grandson and it continued in the
Rudyard family until about 1723, when the senior line ended in two daughters who sold it. [Victoria
County History, Staffordshire. vol. 7 pp.191-202 Manor and Other Estates and John Sleigh, A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek.
2nd edition 1883, London and Derby, Bemrose & Sons. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd.. repr. The Cromwell Press,
Trowbridge, Wilts. pp.65]
HERALDRY
Sleigh quotes the family tradition that as a result of his having been "the one who slew Richard 3rd"
Ralph Rudyard "is said to have "received an augmentation to his family coat; on a canton a rose or.,
in a field gules".
There is no mention of Rudyard in the "Staffordshire coats of arms 1272-1327 from the Rolls of
Arms in MS in the British Museum" What this does show however, is that "argent fretty sable, a
canton gules", was at that time used, recorded and accepted as belonging to another Staffordshire
family: the Vernons of Harlaston. ["Early Rolls of Arms and Armorial Seals of Staffordshire", edited by Col. Wedgwood.
Collections for a History of Staffordshire, Ed. The William Salt Archaeological Society. 1913. facing pp.293]
In the footnotes to his pedigree, Sleigh describes a variety of arms used by earlier members of the
Rudyard family. Presumably his descriptions are taken from seals attached to manuscripts which he
had seen. Rev. William Hadfield made sketches in his notebook of seals.
According to Sleigh, Ranulph de Rudyard, alive 38º and 48º Henry III (1253-4 & 1263-4) used:
"argent fretty sable, a lion passant guardant with a label of three points" and Hadfield has a sketch
corresponding to that description. [John Sleigh, A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and
Derby, Bemrose & Sons. 2005 Ashbourne, Landmark Publishing Ltd.. repr. The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp.127 para. 6
fn 8 and William Salt Library, Stafford. SMS 2/32/00 p5v] However, "paly of eight, argent and sable, a bend
gules; on a canton of the last, a rose or" is attributed by Sleigh to: "Thomas, dominus de Rodyerd,
living 1330-'1-'3-'4 and '42 - '44" [John Sleigh, A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and
Derby, Bemrose & Sons. 2005 Ashbourne, The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp 128 para. 9, fn.2] but Hadfield has
sketched a seal corresponding to that description and attributed it to Henry de Rodierd, 10 R2
(1386-7) [William Salt Library, Stafford. SMS 2-32-00 p4] In addition, Hadfield has also sketched the seal of a
Ralph Rudyard alive 1301 which shows an arm holding what appears to be some sort of a crook
with a crescent moon and a star. [William Salt Library, Stafford. SMS 2-32-00 p3v] while Sleigh cites a "Thomas
de Rudyerd 22º and 23º Richard II" who he says "bore chequy argent and sable, on a canton gules a
rose or". [John Sleigh, A History of the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and Derby, Bemrose & Sons. repr. 2005,
The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge, Wilts. pp 128 No.11, fn 5] Clearly then, Ralph's forebears had used a variety of
designs for their seals, none of which correspond to the design they claimed in 1583, though one
used "argent fretty sable" and two others used the "canton gules a rose or".
Hadfield's copy of Ralph's will was taken from a manuscript with 9 or more pages, so presumably
this was some kind of register of wills and therefore would not have a seal showing what design
Ralph used. if he did. There is no reference in the wording of the will to his having set his seal to it.
The Stukeley MS copy of the 1583 Visitation by Somerset Herald, lists Thomas de Rudyard
(Ralph's great grandson) under the hundred of Totmonslow. The arms shown beside his name are
presumably sketched from a blazon by someone who had never seen them. It does indicate argent
fretty sable but the frets are drawn diagonally as is conventional and although it is only a squiggle,
it looks as if the rose on the canton is slipped (with a stem) rather than the rose of five petals.[William
Salt Library, Stafford. SMS 413 p. 89] However, at the bottom of the Rudyard genealogy as recorded at the
visitation and dated to August 1583, the Rudyard arms are drawn depicting the five petalled rose
and with the frets perpendicular and horizontal, which is unusual.[William Salt Library, Stafford. SMS 413
p.130] This distinction in the way the frets are drawn is clearly important because as has been shown
above, argent fretty sable etc, with the frets drawn diagonally, in the usual way, were the arms of
Vernon of Harlaston.
In a footnote to Ralph's son James, Sleigh asserts that was James who "resumed the ancient bearing,
viz. argent fretty sable, etc.; which continued to be borne by his descendants." [John Sleigh, A History of
the Ancient Parish of Leek. 2nd edition 1883, London and Derby, Bemrose & Sons. repr. 2005, The Cromwell Press, Trowbridge,
Wilts. pp 128 No 14, fn.8] Presumably Sleigh had seen a document with a seal of that design but he has
not given a reference. Neither has he cited any evidence of the earlier use of the whole design.
Moreover, this seems to contradict his statement that it was James' father Ralph, who was permitted
to add the canton and rose to his arms, to commemorate his killing of Richard III.
I have found no record of any award of arms or augmentation to Ralph. All that can be said is that
his forbears used a variety of designs but by 1583 the arms argent, fretty perpendicular-horizontal
sable, on a canton gules a rose or armed vert were in use by the Rudyard family and their right to
them accepted by Somerset Herald at the visitation. The design would continue to be used
consistently by Ralph's descendants. If there had been a dispute with the Vernons of Harlaston over
the right to bear arms argent fretty sable, then it is ironic to think that such a dispute would have
been arbitrated and judged by the Royal College of Arms, established by Richard III, the king
whom Ralph had helped to kill.
CONCLUSION
The family tradition which Sleigh cites is not accurate but neither is it entirely without foundation.
Of course, if Ralph Rudyard had joined Thomas, Lord Stanley, then he would not have been at
Sandeford. However, the proximity of Sir William Stanley's forces to the Totmonslow muster make
it almost certain that he and they would have joined Sir William. This places Ralph in the melée at
Sandeford. Richard III suffered multiple injuries and Ralph is likely to have been one of those
raining down blows but his was probably not the decisive blow.