John Fastolf
Encyclopedia
Sir John Fastolf KG
(c. 1378 – 5 November 1459) was an English
knight
during the Hundred Years War, who has enjoyed a more lasting reputation as in some part being the prototype of Shakespeare's Sir John Falstaff
. Many historians consider, however, that he deserves to be famous in his own right, not only as a soldier, but as a patron of literature, a writer on strategy and perhaps as an early industrialist.
gentleman, Sir John Fastolf of Caister-on-Sea
, and is said to have been squire to Thomas Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk
, before 1398, serving with Earl Thomas of Lancaster in Ireland
during 1405 and 1406. He claimed to have visited Jerusalem, as a boy, which must have been in the company of Henry Bolingbroke, later Henry IV of England.
in Wiltshire
. This marriage brought him great wealth.
in 1413 and in Northern France from 1415 to 1439, where he served under Henry V and the king's brother, the Duke of Bedford. He took part in the siege of Harfleur in 1415, but was invalided home and so missed Agincourt, though he returned to defend Harfleur against the French attempt to recapture it in the winter of 1415-16. He was Bedford's Master of the Household, and was Governor of the province of Maine
and Anjou
, and in February 1426 created a Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter
. Fastolf was also appointed a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, but the appointment was revoked in 1429. But later in this year he was superseded in his command by John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury
; and he became a somewhat controversial figure after the siege of Orleans - see below. During his time in France, he became the Baron of Sillé-le-Guillaume
and therefore a member of the peerage there, a position he never attained at home.
defeated the French and Scots at the Battle of the Herrings
. In his biography of Fastolf The Real Falstaff (2010), Stephen Cooper re-locates this battle. On 18 June of the same year an English force under the command of Fastolf and Talbot suffered a serious defeat at Patay
. According to the French historian Jehan de Waurin
, who was present, the disaster was due to Talbot's rashness, and Fastolf only fled when resistance was hopeless. Other accounts charge him with cowardice, and it is true that John, Duke of Bedford, at first deprived him of the Garter, though after inquiry he was honourably reinstated. This incident was unfavourably depicted by Shakespeare in Henry VI, Part 1
(act IV scene I).
Fastolf continued to serve with honour in France, and was trusted both by Bedford and by Richard of York
. He only came home finally in 1440, when past sixty years of age. But the scandal against him continued, and during Cade's rebellion
in 1451 he was charged by the rebels with having been the cause of the English disasters through 'diminishing the garrisons of Normandy
'.
She went on to take towns in the Loire valley, including Jargeau on June 12, 1429, even though Fastolf had attempted to reinforce with troops and gunpowder weapons. After a result of this string of unexpected sudden defeats, Talbot and Fastolf resolved to confront the French in battle to put an end to their success, thus leading to the battle of Patay where Fastolf barely escaped (he retreated to Paris) and Talbot was captured (Joan was leading this army and was present in the battle, although how much of a role she had in it is disputed).
showed that Fastolf made large sums of money in France, which he managed to transfer back to England and invest in real property. At the time, his reputation was mixed. One servant wrote of him: "cruel and vengible he hath been ever, and for the most part without pity and mercy" (Paston Letters
, i. 389); and this remark has become famous because it was recorded in the Paston Letter. Besides his share in his wife's property he had large estates in Norfolk and Suffolk, a house at Southwark
in London and where he also owned the Boar's Head Inn
. The site of his house at Southwark, known as Fastolf Place or Palace, was excavated in the 1990s, but only a few pieces of revetment were found.
From 1435, and more so in retirement, he was the author of numerous memoranda, which he fired off to the government of the day, about the strategy and policy to be pursued with regard to the war in France. These were preserved by his secretary William Worcester
and eventually published by the Reverend Joseph Stevenson
in the nineteenth century. He also sat at the centre of an important literary circle, which produced manuscripts in French and English for him.
His last years were troubled by litigation and disputes regarding his East Anglian estates, in which he was helped by both Paston and Sir William Yelverton, and by faction fighting at court which ultimately led to the so-called Wars of the Roses
. Paston and Yelverton would go on to be two of the main protagonists in the battles over his property after his death. Fastolf was inclined to sympathise with Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York
, whom he had known and served in France, but it would be an exaggeration to say that he ever became 'a Yorkist.' He was a widower throughout the last decade of his life, when he lived at Southwark and Caister, and he had no heir. He seems to have been a somewhat lonely figure, and made several attempts to draft a will, establishing a Chantry College at Caister Castle
.
in November 1459. He was buried next to his wife Millicent in St Benet's Abbey in a specially built aisle on the South side of the abbey church. During the last decade of his life he was a close political ally and friend to John Paston, a Norfolk landowner, who came to fame through the Paston Letters
, a collection of over 1,000 items of correspondence between members of the Paston family. His deathbed testament naming John Paston as his executor and heir led to many years of litigation. The ruins of St Benet's Abbey are hauntingly beautiful, and may still be visited, as may the ruins of Caister Castle. The Castle never became home to a chantry, as Fastolf intended. Instead, it passed to the Paston family. The bulk of Sir John's fortune passed to Magdalen College, Oxford, where he is remembered as a benefactor, and where there is a Fastolf Society.
as a cowardly knight who abandons the heroic Lord Talbot. In the first two folios the name of the character is given as 'Falstaffe' not Fastolf. When Shakespeare came to write Henry IV, part 1
, set in the early years of Fastolf's career, he created a disreputable boon companion for the young Prince Hal called Sir John Oldcastle
. The descendants of the real Oldcastle complained, so the name was changed to Sir John Falstaff, under which name he is identified in three later plays.
The tradition of Fastolf's braggart cowardice may have suggested the use of his name. Some writers have also suggested that Fastolf favoured Lollardy
, which was also associated with Oldcastle, so this circumstance may aided the adoption of the name. Stephen Cooper considers that there is in fact no evidence that Fastolf was a Lollard, and substantial indications that he was in fact Catholic like his one-time master Henry V.
Other points of resemblance between the historic Fastolf and the Falstaff of the dramatist are to be found in their service under Thomas Mowbray, and association with a Boar's Head Inn. But Falstaff is in no true sense a dramatization of the real soldier, more an amalgam of a few real personages with a dash of creative licence. Indeed the aged Falstaff dies early in the reign of Henry V, when Fastolf was mid-way through his career.
, in which he is seen as a contributor to the cause of England, wielding a longsword as his primary weapon.
He is the subject of a novel by Robert Nye
entitled Falstaff (Publisher: Allison & Busby; New Ed edition (1 Oct 2001))
Fastolf is also an opponent in Ensemble Studios
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
, in the game's Joan of Arc campaign. Fastolf fights on England's side and his unit is a lance wielding knight.
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
(c. 1378 – 5 November 1459) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
during the Hundred Years War, who has enjoyed a more lasting reputation as in some part being the prototype of Shakespeare's Sir John Falstaff
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare. In the two Henry IV plays, he is a companion to Prince Hal, the future King Henry V. A fat, vain, boastful, and cowardly knight, Falstaff leads the apparently wayward Prince Hal into trouble, and is...
. Many historians consider, however, that he deserves to be famous in his own right, not only as a soldier, but as a patron of literature, a writer on strategy and perhaps as an early industrialist.
Lineage and early career
He was son of a NorfolkNorfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
gentleman, Sir John Fastolf of Caister-on-Sea
Caister-on-Sea
Caister-on-Sea, also known colloquially as Caister, is a settlement in Norfolk in the United Kingdom, close to the large town of Great Yarmouth. It is a seaside resort and busy holiday destination on the "Golden Mile", with its main attraction being its sandy "Georgian Beach". It is home to Great...
, and is said to have been squire to Thomas Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk
Thomas de Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk
Thomas de Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk, KG, Lord Marshal and Earl Marshal was an English nobleman.-Life:...
, before 1398, serving with Earl Thomas of Lancaster in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
during 1405 and 1406. He claimed to have visited Jerusalem, as a boy, which must have been in the company of Henry Bolingbroke, later Henry IV of England.
Marriage
In 1408 he married Millicent, widow of Sir Stephen Scrope of Castle CombeCastle Combe
Castle Combe is a small village in Wiltshire, England, with a population of about 350. It is renowned for its attractiveness and tranquillity, and for fine buildings including the medieval church. The 14th century market cross, erected when the privilege to hold a weekly market in Castle Combe was...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. This marriage brought him great wealth.
Fastolf's career in France
He served in GasconyGascony
Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
in 1413 and in Northern France from 1415 to 1439, where he served under Henry V and the king's brother, the Duke of Bedford. He took part in the siege of Harfleur in 1415, but was invalided home and so missed Agincourt, though he returned to defend Harfleur against the French attempt to recapture it in the winter of 1415-16. He was Bedford's Master of the Household, and was Governor of the province of Maine
Maine (province)
Le Maine is one of the traditional provinces of France . It corresponds to the old county of Maine, with its center, the city of Le Mans.-Location:...
and Anjou
Anjou
Anjou is a former county , duchy and province centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day département of Maine-et-Loire...
, and in February 1426 created a Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
. Fastolf was also appointed a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, but the appointment was revoked in 1429. But later in this year he was superseded in his command by John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury
John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury
John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury and 1st Earl of Waterford KG , known as "Old Talbot" was an important English military commander during the Hundred Years' War, as well as the only Lancastrian Constable of France.-Origins:He was descended from Richard Talbot, a tenant in 1086 of Walter Giffard...
; and he became a somewhat controversial figure after the siege of Orleans - see below. During his time in France, he became the Baron of Sillé-le-Guillaume
Sillé-le-Guillaume
Sillé-le-Guillaume is a commune in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays-de-la-Loire in north-western France, named after Guillaume de Sillé....
and therefore a member of the peerage there, a position he never attained at home.
Successes and failure
After a visit to England in 1428, he returned to the war, and on 12 February 1429 when in charge of the convoy for the English army before OrléansOrléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
defeated the French and Scots at the Battle of the Herrings
Battle of the Herrings
The Battle of the Herrings was a military action near the town of Rouvray in France, just north of Orléans, which took place on 12 February 1429 during the siege of Orléans. The immediate cause of the battle was an attempt by French forces, led by Charles of Bourbon, Count of Clermont, to intercept...
. In his biography of Fastolf The Real Falstaff (2010), Stephen Cooper re-locates this battle. On 18 June of the same year an English force under the command of Fastolf and Talbot suffered a serious defeat at Patay
Battle of Patay
The Battle of Patay was the culminating engagement of the Loire Campaign of the Hundred Years' War between the French and English in north-central France. It was a decisive victory for the French and turned the tide of the war. This victory was to the French what Agincourt was to the English...
. According to the French historian Jehan de Waurin
Jehan de Waurin
Jehan de Waurin , French chronicler, belonged to a noble family of Artois, and was present at the battle of Agincourt....
, who was present, the disaster was due to Talbot's rashness, and Fastolf only fled when resistance was hopeless. Other accounts charge him with cowardice, and it is true that John, Duke of Bedford, at first deprived him of the Garter, though after inquiry he was honourably reinstated. This incident was unfavourably depicted by Shakespeare in Henry VI, Part 1
Henry VI, part 1
Henry VI, Part 1 or The First Part of Henry the Sixt is a history play by William Shakespeare, and possibly Thomas Nashe, believed to have been written in 1591, and set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England...
(act IV scene I).
Fastolf continued to serve with honour in France, and was trusted both by Bedford and by Richard of York
Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York
Richard Plantagenêt, 3rd Duke of York, 6th Earl of March, 4th Earl of Cambridge, and 7th Earl of Ulster, conventionally called Richard of York was a leading English magnate, great-grandson of King Edward III...
. He only came home finally in 1440, when past sixty years of age. But the scandal against him continued, and during Cade's rebellion
Jack Cade
Jack Cade was the leader of a popular revolt in the 1450 Kent rebellion during the reign of King Henry VI in England. He died on the 12th July 1450 near Lewes. In response to grievances, Cade led an army of as many as 5,000 against London, causing the King to flee to Warwickshire. After taking and...
in 1451 he was charged by the rebels with having been the cause of the English disasters through 'diminishing the garrisons of Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
'.
Encounters with Joan of Arc
During the 1429 siege of Orleans, the French had planned to abandon the city after they heard rumours (which were true rumours) that John Fastolf was coming with a force of men to reinforce the English besiegers. Jean Dunois (also known as the 'bastard of Orleans') decided not to tell Joan and to leave her out of leadership decisions, to which she famously respondedBastard, Bastard, in the name of God I command you that as soon as you hear of Fastolf's coming, you will let me know. For if he gets through without my knowing it, I swear to you that I will have your head cut off. The French leader conceded to her, and she successfully lifted the siege.
She went on to take towns in the Loire valley, including Jargeau on June 12, 1429, even though Fastolf had attempted to reinforce with troops and gunpowder weapons. After a result of this string of unexpected sudden defeats, Talbot and Fastolf resolved to confront the French in battle to put an end to their success, thus leading to the battle of Patay where Fastolf barely escaped (he retreated to Paris) and Talbot was captured (Joan was leading this army and was present in the battle, although how much of a role she had in it is disputed).
"Cruel and vengible he hath been ever"..
In the 1950s the Oxford academic K. B. McFarlaneK. B. McFarlane
Kenneth Bruce McFarlane was one of the 20th century's most influential historians of late medieval England. He was born on 18 October 1903 and was the only child of A. McFarlane, OBE. His father was a civil servant in the Admiralty and the young McFarlane's childhood was an unhappy one. This may...
showed that Fastolf made large sums of money in France, which he managed to transfer back to England and invest in real property. At the time, his reputation was mixed. One servant wrote of him: "cruel and vengible he hath been ever, and for the most part without pity and mercy" (Paston Letters
Paston Letters
The Paston Letters are a collection of letters and papers from England, consisting of the correspondence of members of the gentry Paston family, and others connected with them, between the years 1422 and 1509, and also including some state papers and other important documents.- History of the...
, i. 389); and this remark has become famous because it was recorded in the Paston Letter. Besides his share in his wife's property he had large estates in Norfolk and Suffolk, a house at Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
in London and where he also owned the Boar's Head Inn
Boar's Head Inn
The Boar's Head Inn may refer to a number of former taverns in London, of which the following are the most famous:* The Boar's Head Tavern, on Eastcheap, featured in historical plays of Shakespeare as a favourite of the fictional character Falstaff and his friends. It was the subject of essays by...
. The site of his house at Southwark, known as Fastolf Place or Palace, was excavated in the 1990s, but only a few pieces of revetment were found.
From 1435, and more so in retirement, he was the author of numerous memoranda, which he fired off to the government of the day, about the strategy and policy to be pursued with regard to the war in France. These were preserved by his secretary William Worcester
William Worcester
William Worcester , was an English chronicler and antiquary.-Life:He was a son of William of Worcester, a Bristol citizen, and is sometimes called William Botoner, his mother being a daughter of Thomas Botoner from Catalonia....
and eventually published by the Reverend Joseph Stevenson
Joseph Stevenson
Joseph Stevenson was an English Catholic archivist.-Biography:Though his parents were Presbyterians, he was educated at University College, Durham under the historian, James Raine, and afterwards at the University of Glasgow...
in the nineteenth century. He also sat at the centre of an important literary circle, which produced manuscripts in French and English for him.
His last years were troubled by litigation and disputes regarding his East Anglian estates, in which he was helped by both Paston and Sir William Yelverton, and by faction fighting at court which ultimately led to the so-called Wars of the Roses
Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic civil wars for the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York...
. Paston and Yelverton would go on to be two of the main protagonists in the battles over his property after his death. Fastolf was inclined to sympathise with Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York
Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York
Richard Plantagenêt, 3rd Duke of York, 6th Earl of March, 4th Earl of Cambridge, and 7th Earl of Ulster, conventionally called Richard of York was a leading English magnate, great-grandson of King Edward III...
, whom he had known and served in France, but it would be an exaggeration to say that he ever became 'a Yorkist.' He was a widower throughout the last decade of his life, when he lived at Southwark and Caister, and he had no heir. He seems to have been a somewhat lonely figure, and made several attempts to draft a will, establishing a Chantry College at Caister Castle
Caister Castle
Caister Castle is a 15th-century moated castle situated in the parish of West Caister, some north of the town of Great Yarmouth in the English county of Norfolk ....
.
Death and burial
He died at CaisterCaister-on-Sea
Caister-on-Sea, also known colloquially as Caister, is a settlement in Norfolk in the United Kingdom, close to the large town of Great Yarmouth. It is a seaside resort and busy holiday destination on the "Golden Mile", with its main attraction being its sandy "Georgian Beach". It is home to Great...
in November 1459. He was buried next to his wife Millicent in St Benet's Abbey in a specially built aisle on the South side of the abbey church. During the last decade of his life he was a close political ally and friend to John Paston, a Norfolk landowner, who came to fame through the Paston Letters
Paston Letters
The Paston Letters are a collection of letters and papers from England, consisting of the correspondence of members of the gentry Paston family, and others connected with them, between the years 1422 and 1509, and also including some state papers and other important documents.- History of the...
, a collection of over 1,000 items of correspondence between members of the Paston family. His deathbed testament naming John Paston as his executor and heir led to many years of litigation. The ruins of St Benet's Abbey are hauntingly beautiful, and may still be visited, as may the ruins of Caister Castle. The Castle never became home to a chantry, as Fastolf intended. Instead, it passed to the Paston family. The bulk of Sir John's fortune passed to Magdalen College, Oxford, where he is remembered as a benefactor, and where there is a Fastolf Society.
Shakespeare
Fastolf appears in Shakespeare's early play Henry VI, part 1Henry VI, part 1
Henry VI, Part 1 or The First Part of Henry the Sixt is a history play by William Shakespeare, and possibly Thomas Nashe, believed to have been written in 1591, and set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England...
as a cowardly knight who abandons the heroic Lord Talbot. In the first two folios the name of the character is given as 'Falstaffe' not Fastolf. When Shakespeare came to write Henry IV, part 1
Henry IV, Part 1
Henry IV, Part 1 is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. It is the second play in Shakespeare's tetralogy dealing with the successive reigns of Richard II, Henry IV , and Henry V...
, set in the early years of Fastolf's career, he created a disreputable boon companion for the young Prince Hal called Sir John Oldcastle
John Oldcastle
Sir John Oldcastle , English Lollard leader, was son of Sir Richard Oldcastle of Almeley in northwest Herefordshire and grandson of another Sir John Oldcastle....
. The descendants of the real Oldcastle complained, so the name was changed to Sir John Falstaff, under which name he is identified in three later plays.
The tradition of Fastolf's braggart cowardice may have suggested the use of his name. Some writers have also suggested that Fastolf favoured Lollardy
Lollardy
Lollardy was a political and religious movement that existed from the mid-14th century to the English Reformation. The term "Lollard" refers to the followers of John Wycliffe, a prominent theologian who was dismissed from the University of Oxford in 1381 for criticism of the Church, especially his...
, which was also associated with Oldcastle, so this circumstance may aided the adoption of the name. Stephen Cooper considers that there is in fact no evidence that Fastolf was a Lollard, and substantial indications that he was in fact Catholic like his one-time master Henry V.
Other points of resemblance between the historic Fastolf and the Falstaff of the dramatist are to be found in their service under Thomas Mowbray, and association with a Boar's Head Inn. But Falstaff is in no true sense a dramatization of the real soldier, more an amalgam of a few real personages with a dash of creative licence. Indeed the aged Falstaff dies early in the reign of Henry V, when Fastolf was mid-way through his career.
Later portrayals
Fastolf appears as a featured character in Koei's video game known as Bladestorm: The Hundred Years' WarBladestorm: The Hundred Years' War
Bladestorm: The Hundred Years' War is a historical fantasy video game for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms. It was published by Koei and developed by Omega Force....
, in which he is seen as a contributor to the cause of England, wielding a longsword as his primary weapon.
He is the subject of a novel by Robert Nye
Robert Nye
Robert Nye FRSL is an English poet who has also written novels and plays as well as stories for children. His bestselling novel Falstaff published in 1976 was described by Michael Ratcliffe as 'one of the most ambitious and seductive novels of the decade,' and went on to win both The Hawthornden...
entitled Falstaff (Publisher: Allison & Busby; New Ed edition (1 Oct 2001))
Fastolf is also an opponent in Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios was a video game developer initially established in 1995 as an independent company, but was owned by Microsoft from 2001 to 2009, when it was officially disbanded. Ensemble developed many real-time strategy games, including the Age of Empires game series, Age of Mythology, and Halo...
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings is a real-time strategy video game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft. Released in 1999 for the Microsoft Windows and Macintosh operating systems, it was the second game in the Age of Empires series...
, in the game's Joan of Arc campaign. Fastolf fights on England's side and his unit is a lance wielding knight.