The Will of Raph Cufflin
In the name of God Amen. The 4th day
of December at night in the yeare of our Lord God 1623 I Raph Cuflin of
Blaby in the Countie of Leicester wheelwright, being of good rembrance
thankes be unto God, doe make my laste will and testament in manner
following. first I bequeath my soule to the mercifull p(ro)tection of
allmighty God and my body to be buried in the churchyard of Blaby, when as
it shall please God to call me out of this present world, trusting to be
saved by the mercies of Christ Jesus my blessed saviour and by none other
means. And for those goods w(hi)ch God has blessed me w(it)h shall I give
and bequeath in manner and forme following; first I give to Zachary my
eldest sonne xiid. Item I give to John my second sonne seven acres lying
in Thorpe old fielde and the close lying in the west end of those lands.
Ite(m) I give to my sonne John fowre more lands *and (heads)* lying at the
northside of the aforesaide lands moreover I give to John my second sonne
the close in broodegreenes and the ley of furzes in high leyes, but he
shall not enter upon the fowre lands lying at the northside of the close
in oldfielde neither shall he enter upon the close in broodegreenes until
the discease of my wife but shall plow and dresse the foure lands in
oldfield and the close in Broodegreenes *for her* and my sonne John shall
have but halfe the furze ley until the discease of my wife but then he
shall have it all. Moreover I give to John my second sonne my teame,
timber, calfes, plows, cakes, steaves and all other things belonging to
his husbandry and his trade. Item I give to William my third sonne xiid.
Item I give to Henry my fourth sonne xiid. Item to my eldest daughter
xiid. Item to Mary my second daughter xiid. Item to Anne my third daughter
xiid. Item to Francis my fourth daughter xiid. And last of all I make my
wife full ececutor and give her all other goods moveable and immoveable
w(hi)ch are not heretofore named.
Raph Cuflin + his marke
Sealed and
delivered
in the presence of us
vid.-William Smith
Thomas
Brooks
Thomas [Varnham?] 14 January iux(t)a etc. 1623 (1624)
probatu(m)
fuit priori test(ament)um per relict. etc.
de bene etc.
Jurat. etc.
Notes by Janette Shepherd:
Words between asterisks*----* are
interlined with the main text or inserted as omissions in the text. There
is a portion of text deleted in the original which has been superseded by
the interlined section beginning "*mye funerall discharged -----*" I have
not attempted to transcribe this as it is so difficult to decipher and
obviously has no bearing on the substance of the will. I'm afraid I have
been unable to decipher the surname of the first witness nor the word
following the surname of the last witness who is probably the clerk
(perhaps the local vicar) who wrote out the will. He launches out into
Latin!
The final two lines are a note of the probates of the wills on
14 Jan. 1623 (1624 in the modern calendar)# the same day as Margaret
Cuflyn made her will, and on 21. Feb. 1623 (1624) after Margaret's
death.
Words which I have been unable to read or of which the reading
is doubtful have been shown in square brackets [-----]
Note. Until 1752
New Years day was the 25th March.
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