William Hankeford

Sir William Hankeford (or Hankford) KS (ca. 1350 – 1423) was an English lawyer, and Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1413 until 1423. His parentage is not known, but he came from a gentry family from Hankford, near Bulkworthy in Devon.^[1] He was educated at the Middle Temple, appointed serjeant-at-law in 1388 and king's serjeant in 1389. He was employed by the Earl of Devon from 1384, and repeatedly as a royal justice and commissioner in southern England. In 1394 he accompanied Richard II to Ireland.^[1]

In 1397 the king decided to strike back at the Lords Appellant, a group of noblemen who years earlier had partly usurped royal authority, and executed several of Richard's favourites.^[2] The next year Hankeford was among the justices asked for an opinion on a legal ruling from 1387, declaring the Appellants' actions unlawful and treasonable.^[3] Hankeford expressed his support for the rulings, and said he would have ruled the same way himself.^[1]

On 6 May 1398 Hankeford was appointed to succeed his friend John Wadham as justice of the Court of Common Pleas.^[4] In 1399 Henry Bolingbroke deposed Richard II, and had himself crowned as King Henry IV.^[5] In spite of his loyalty to the deposed king, Hankeford was reappointed by Henry in October of that year, and shortly after appointed a justice of the King's Bench. Over the course of the following years he distinguished himself, and was appointed Chief Justice at the accession of Henry V in 1413. He was reappointed at the accession of Henry VI in 1422, earning him the rare distinction of serving under four kings.^[1]

Hankeford died on 12 December 1423, while still in office. He was buried in Monkleigh church, to which he had contributed extensive rebuilding.^[1] A peculiar legend is associated with his death, with a strong local tradition, and reported by both Robert Danby (d. 1474) and Raphael Holinshed (d. 1580). Allegedly Hankeford had instructed his forester to shoot anyone entering his forest, only to deliberately wander into the forest at night, where he was shot. As late as the 17th century there was still a stump known locally as "Hankeford's Oak" where the justice supposedly was killed. Whether the story is true or not, Hankeford had written his testament only two days before his death.^[1] By 1380 he had a wife by the name of Cristina, with whom he had a son called Richard. Richard died in William's lifetime, and the inheritance – consisting primarily of land in north Devon – went to Richard's son, also called Richard.^[1]

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