Episode 1565
Murder of William de Cantilupe
Tue, 2021-Aug-17 01:22 UTC
Length - 2:41
Direct Link
Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day where we read the summary of the featured Wikipedia article every day.
The featured article for Tuesday, 17 August 2021 is Murder of William de Cantilupe.
The murder of Sir William de Cantilupe by members of his household took place in Scotton, Lincolnshire, in March 1375. The family was a long-established and influential one in the county, traditionally providing royal officials to the Crown both in the central government and at the local level. Among William de Cantilupe's ancestors were royal councillors, bodyguards, as well as, distantly, Saint Thomas de Cantilupe.
William de Cantilupe's death by multiple stab wounds was a cause célèbre. The chief suspects were two neighbours—a local knight, Ralph Paynel; and the sheriff, Sir Thomas Kydale—as well as William de Cantilupe's entire household, particularly his wife Maud, the cook and a squire. The staff were probably paid to either carry out or cover up the crime, while Paynel had been in dispute with the family for many years; it is possible that Maud was conducting an affair with Kydale, during her husband's frequent absences on service in France during the Hundred Years' War.
The Treason Act 1351 laid down that the murder of a husband by his wife or servants was to be deemed petty treason. De Cantilupe's murder was the first to come within the purview of the act, as were the subsequent trials of Maud and several members of her staff. Multiple people were indicted for the crime, although only two were convicted and, in the end, executed for it. Others were also summonsed but, as they never appeared, were outlawed instead. Other influential local figures, such as the sheriff, were accused of aiding and abetting the criminals. The last trial and acquittal was in 1378, although the case had long-term consequences. No motive has been established for de Cantilupe's killing; historians consider it most likely that responsibility rested with de Cantilupe's wife, her lover, the cook and their neighbour, with a mix of motives including love and revenge.
This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 01:22 UTC on Tuesday, 17 August 2021.
For the full current version of the article, see Murder of William de Cantilupe on Wikipedia.
This podcast is produced by Abulsme Productions based on Wikipedia content and is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
Visit wikioftheday.com for our archives, sister podcasts, and swag. Please subscribe to never miss an episode. You can also follow @WotDpod on Twitter.
Abulsme Productions produces the current events podcast Curmudgeon's Corner as well. Check it out in your podcast player of choice.
This has been Joanna Standard. Thank you for listening to featured Wiki of the Day.
|
|
Buy WotD Stuff!!
