[MR] Wikipedia: Birth of John Paston

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

On this date in 1442 Sir John Paston (died 1479) was born in London.
Confusingly, he was the son of Sir John Paston (died 1466), and the brother
of his successor Sir John Paston (died 1504). Thankfully the brother was
the last of the Johns, and sensibly named his sons Christopher and William.
Why is this confusing? Well, all three Johns contributed to the famous
treasure trove of correspondence known as the "Paston Letters", which give
us a fascinating portrait of a Norfolk English gentry family in the 15th
century. It is somewhat difficult to keep the three Johns straight when
reading the letters (or glosses and commentaries).

The middle Sir John spent much of his short life defending his father's
claims to the estate of Sir John Fastolf. Sir John Paston the elder was the
attorney for Fastolf, and may have engaged in some dodgy manipulation of
his will to gain Fastolf's property. The ongoing struggle (both legal and
with arms) was one of many power plays during the Wars of the Roses. The
Pastons generally got the short end of the stick from rapacious and more
powerful neighbors.

A biographical sketch about the middle Sir John Paston is found at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Paston_(died_1479) . If you are curious
about the prior and subsequent Johns, links are provided in the text.

For more about the Paston Letters go to
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paston_Letters . The edited letters are
available in several modern works. The most common edition is THE PASTON
LETTERS edited by Norman Davis (Oxford University Press, reissued in 2008
as an inexpensive paperback in the Oxford World's Classics series; ISBN
9780199538379).

Yours Aye,

Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆