Information of Richard Shortall

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The Informacion of Richard Shortall of Eniscorthy ge{nt} aged fortie yeares or thereabouts giuen in vpon oath on the behalfe of the Comonwealth Concerning the estate of Limericke in the barrony of Goary & County of wexford bellonging to the Lord Esmond Barron of Limericke deceased, & other estate [appertagning] to the said Lord Esmond
The examinant, being duely sworne & examined saith & informeth that the said Lord Esmond vpon his Intermarriage with the Lady Katheryne Ellis Gough did in consideracion of two lardge & valluable Jointures by him receiued (both the said Lady, the one in Right of her husband John Sherlocke esquire & the other in Right of her Latter husband Sir Edward Gough knight deceased) perfect a bond vnder his hand and seale of tenn thousand poundes ster to ffoulke Denne of ffedowne esquire, & to his heires to the vse of <z> the Lady Esmond and her heires on condicion that the said Lady Esmond (in case she suruiued the said Lord Esmond) should bee satisfied of fiue thousand poundes or should enjoy the estate reall & personall of the said Lord Esmond (then acquired or to be acquired) during her naturall life: That the said Lord Esmond did seauerall times endeauour to procure the said bond out of his Ladyes handes promising her abetter and more valluable consideracions; which the said Ladie would not condiscend vnto, but kept the said bond alwayes priuate Till her Lordes decease: And after his death she deliuered the said bond to this Informant to recouer the benniffit therof out of the handes, of Sir Thomas Esmond, who had vsurped the said estate of the Lord Esmond, contrary to the Covenants between the said Lord & Lady Esmond which [ ] bond the said Lady Injoyned the Informant to keep safely, & after her decease to deliuer vp the same to her eldest sonne, Patr Sherlocke or his sonne & heyre walter sherlocke, which this de Informant gaue vp accordingly to the said walter sherlock in whose hande{s} the same remaines: By vertue of which bond he the said walte{r} possessed himselfe of the Abey of St Katheryne neere waterford, & of seauerall parcells of tithes, Impropriacions & estate appertagning to the Lord Esmond, (according the tenor of the said bond of ten thousand poundes) In the actuall possession whereof the deponent said walter Continued, fro{m}
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<Laurence Lord Esmond of>

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about the 17th of ffebr 1647 (the time of the said Ladies deceas decease) till he was wrongfully (as this Informant Conceiueth) dispossessed thereof by Capt William Halsey, who hath a pretended title thereto, in Right of his wife: And the Informant further saith the said Lady Esmond was During her life of the Roman Catholicque profession, and dwelt at Limericke in the Irish quarters during her Naturall Life, And contributed to the Irish forces, as the Countrey generally did: And that the said Patricke and walter were papists, and Continued in the Irish quarters without remoouing themselues into the english quarters, the whole time of the rebellyon: And further saith that the Lord Esmond did about sumer 1642: in regard Sir Thomas Esmond had reuolted from the english obedience on whom the Lord Esmonds estate was formerly conferred) by <a> some Conveyance made by the said Lord Esmond, passe over his estate reall & personall to Laurence Esmond, third son to william Esmond of Johnstowne esquire, & his heires or for want of such heires to Laurence Esmond eldest sonne & heyre to the said Sir Thomas which C & to such other vses as is in the said Conveyance exprest to which Conveyance for the more certainetie this deponent refferreth himselfe the same remayning in the Custodie of the said Capt William Halsey, as this deponent credibly verilie beleiues and further saith not &c
Rich: Shortall
Sworne before vs the 2d of
March 1653
Wm: Moore
Edward: Withey
B Hussey
151