CUNDY, William (d.c.1413), of Hythe, Kent.

Cundy was party with other men of Hythe to the capture in March 1403 of a ship from Bilbao, which was taken to Sandwich for a division of the spoils. Assessments for maltolts made at Hythe in 1412-13 show him holding chattels worth £14, and trading in corn and cattle. Early in May 1412 he was one of a group of townsmen sent to Dymchurch to discuss with Archbishop Arundel’s steward the possibility of constructing a new harbour for Hythe. That same spring he entertained at his house a Hollander who had been brought over to advise on the excavation of a sluice near Rye. Also in May he went up to London for talks with the archbishop himself, then chancellor, about the royal grant which, made in 1401 after a great fire at Hythe, permitted the Port exemption from ship-service for a limited period; his brief was either to secure its prolongation or else ensure its enforcement. Subsequently, he made several visits to Dover in connexion with lawsuits which affected Hythe.2CCR, 1402-5, p. 56; Hythe jurats’ bk. C, ff. 6, 24, 27, 28, 37, 83, 85; Reg. 1, f. 27; CPR, 1399-1401, p. 477.

Cundy died at an unknown date before February 1414, when his widow accounted for maltolts in his place.3Jurats’ bk. C, f. 58.