TREWINT, John

More may be added to the earlier biography.3 The Commons 1386-1421, iv. 660-1.

At an uncertain date before 1418 Trewint came into conflict with the unruly Adam Vivian*. The details of the dispute, which the two men submitted to the arbitration of Sir John Arundell that summer, are obscure, but it seems that the attempt at mediation came to nothing, for in the autumn of 1419 Trewint brought fresh litigation against his opponent under the terms of the bond guaranteeing the arbitration.4 CP40/635, rot. 321. In the short term, Trewint maintained good relations with Arundell at least, but their relationship had also turned sour by the second half of the 1420s, when Arundell was seeking the return of muniments and an account of financial dealings from his former servant.5 CP40/666, rot. 4.

It is unlikely that Trewint’s dismissal from the office of coroner in 1421 resulted from his poverty. His holdings at Trewint, Launcells, ‘Pendreyf’, Trevysyk and elsewhere in Cornwall still extended across some 200 acres.6 C1/573/41. Rather, it appears possible that John had deliberately sued out a writ to be relieved of the office in order to concentrate on his private practice, for in later years he can be found appearing in the Westminster courts as a surety for defendants of south-western origins.7 KB27/698, rex rot. 1.

Trewint’s extensive parliamentary experience provides sufficient explanation for his choice by the burgesses of Lostwithiel as their representative in Henry VI’s first Parliament, and it is thus likely that the recording of his name over an erasure on the schedule accompanying the sheriff’s indenture was a result of scribal incompetence rather than of any deliberate deception.8 C219/13/1.

Although Trewint left no legitimate issue, he had a bastard daughter, Elizabeth, who married the lawyer William Skenock*. In his lifetime Trewint entrusted his estates to Nicholas Aysshton* and Thomas Roscruk*, with instructions to settle them on Elizabeth and her descendants, should he die without legitimate heir.9 C1/573/42.