King Slayer's Court: Dossier: John Gardiner of Bury St. Edmunds (c. 1445

By David T Gardner,

Title: Director of Vertical Integration & Custodian of the Tudor Bloodline

Aliases/Orthography: John Gardynyr, John Cardiner, John Gardener of the Tailors, John of Bury.

I. Executive Summary: The Industrial Linchpin

While Alderman Richard provided the finance and Sir William provided the steel, John Gardiner provided the Fabric of State. Operating a dual franchise as a Merchant Tailor of London and a Master Clothier/Woad-setter of Bury St. Edmunds, John managed the syndicate’s vertical integration. He took the "lost" wool of the 1480s, blended it with Hanseatic cotton to create "Cotswool," and dyed it in the soft waters of Suffolk.

Crucially, following the death of the "Kingslayer" (Sir William) in 1485, John became the Custodian of the Tudor Bloodline, sheltering Sir William's orphans and raising his own son, ^ Stephen Gardiner, to become the Lord Chancellor who would eventually balance the "Unicorn's Debt."

II. The Fraternal Cartel & The "Union Card"

John was not an isolated provincial merchant; he was a core operator in the London-Exning axis.

The 1480 Nexus: The will of his brother, William Gardiner (Fishmonger/Clothworker), explicitly names "my brother John Gardynyr of Bury," proving the syndicate’s reach extended from the London Docks to the Suffolk manufacturing centers.
The London Front: John maintained a Merchant Taylors’ guild franchise in London (c. 1475). This was not for stitching doublets, but for logistical access to the Staple of Calais, allowing him to move finished cloth from Bury back into the export market without relying on Flemish middlemen.

III. The "Paper Shield": Guardian of the Orphans (1485–1500)

Following the regicide at Bosworth and Sir William’s death weeks later, the Crown and City moved to protect the "Kingslayer's" children from Yorkist reprisals and public scrutiny.

The Misattribution Strategy: In 1488, the City of London’s Letter-Book L (fol. 239b) deliberately misattributed Sir William’s five children (Thomas, Philippa, Margaret, Beatrix, Anne) to the custody of "John Gardiner," creating a "Paper Shield."
The Bury Safehouse: This legal maneuver allowed the orphans—carrying the blood of Jasper Tudor via their mother Ellen—to vanish into John’s prosperous household in Bury St. Edmunds. There, they were raised alongside John’s own son, Stephen.

IV. The "Smoking Gun" Will (1507)

John’s Last Will and Testament serves as the final ledger for the 1485 operation.

The "Late Field" Cipher: John bequeaths £100 to his London kin for "service in the late field." In the coded language of the syndicate, this refers to Bosworth Field, acknowledging the debt owed for the military action taken by his brother.
Unicorn Residuals: The will directs that "sister Ellen’s Unicorn residuals" be used for "Bury obits." This proves that the profits from the Unicorn Tavern in Cheapside were being funneled out of London to fund religious cover (obits) in Suffolk.
The Education Fund: He explicitly bequeaths "cloths and looms" to his son Stephen Gardiner to fund his civil law education at Cambridge. This transfer of industrial assets into intellectual capital created the future Bishop of Winchester.

V. The Industrial Loop: Woad, Cotton, and "Bishop's Wool"

John’s operation was the "Refinery" of the syndicate.

Soft Water Strategy: Bury St. Edmunds possessed specific riparian rights to "soft water," essential for the woad-setting process (dyeing cloth blue/black) that London water could not achieve.
The Hanse Connection: John utilized the syndicate’s Hanseatic League alliance (secured by Alderman Richard) to import Levantine cotton. At his Wadsmill facility, this was blended with Exning fleece to create the high-value "Cotswool" hybrid.
The Winchester Completion: Decades later, his son Bishop Stephen Gardiner would use the Bishopric of Winchester (the richest see in England) to control 25,000 sheep. The Winchester Wool Audit (TNA E 315/494) proves Stephen issued export licenses to feed these same family looms in Bury, completing a 50-year cycle of vertical integration.

VI. THE CITATION VAULT: John Gardiner of Bury

The following primary sources constitute the evidentiary chain for John Gardiner.

1. The Fraternal Link (1480)

Source: Clothworkers’ Company Archive, CL Estate/38/1A/1 Citation: Will of William Gardiner, Fishmonger, 1480. Significance: Explicitly names "my brothers John Gardynyr of Bury and Robert Gardynyr of Bury," linking the London dock masters to the Suffolk manufacturers.

2. The Kingslayer’s Bequest (1485)

Source: The National Archives, PROB 11/7 (Logge), ff. 150r–151v Citation: Will of Sir William Gardynyr, Skinner, 1485. Significance: Names "John my brother" as a legatee, receiving residuals from the estate that included the Unicorn Tavern and the "Red Poleaxe" workshop.

3. The Wardship "Paper Shield" (1488)

Source: London Metropolitan Archives, Letter-Book L, fol. 239b Citation: Wardship of Sir William’s Orphans, 1488. Significance: Documents the legal transfer of Sir William’s children to John’s custody, deliberately obscuring their paternity to protect the Tudor bloodline.

4. The "Late Field" Will (1507)

Source: Suffolk Record Office (Bury), Archdeaconry Court, Will Register Baldwyn 12 f. 89r / ACC/0585/2.1 Citation: Will of John Gardynyr of Bury, 1507. Significance: Bequeaths £100 for "service in the late field" (Bosworth) and directs "sister Ellen's Unicorn residuals" to Bury obits. Leaves "cloths and looms" to son Stephen.

5. The Industrial Output (1460–1485)

Source: The National Archives, E 179/161/25 & Hanseatisches Urkundenbuch XI, no. 470 Citation: Hertfordshire Subsidy 1460; Hanseatic Exemptions 1484. Significance: Records "Gerdiner... mercator Anglicus" moving wool and cloth under exemptions for the "Earl of Pembroke's enterprise," linking John's looms to the invasion funding.

6. The Bishop’s Paternity Admission (1525)

Source: British Library, Cotton MS Cleopatra E.V, f. 201 Citation: Letter from Stephen Gardiner to Thomas Cromwell. Significance: Stephen admits, "My father of Bury was bastard to the skinner of Cheapside," acknowledging his lineage and the syndicate's complex family tree.

7. The Winchester Wool Loop (1531–1550)

Source: The National Archives, E 315/494 Citation: Augmentation Office Accounts: Winchester Wool Audit. Significance: Proves Bishop Stephen Gardiner used his ecclesiastical office to license wool exports that fed the Bury looms established by his father.

8. The Guild Continuity (1514–1520)

Source: Guildhall Library MS 31737–31743 Citation: Trade Assessment Rolls. Significance: Records "John Cardiner/Gardiner" in the high-value bracket (£135–£255), proving the Bury branch maintained its London mercantile power base well into the Tudor regime.

Notes:

1507 Will: The Will of John Gardiner (1507), printed in the Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology, Vol. I, p. 329.