The petition of Richard Brewer of Roundway, Wiltshire, Michaelmas 1661
To the Right hon[oura]ble & alsoe to the Right Wor[shi]p[fu]ll the kings Ma[jes]ties Justices of the Peace Now sitting att their Quarter Sessions att Marlborough for the County of Wiltes[hire]:
The humble Petic[i]on of Richard Brewer of Rundway in the parish of Bishopps Cannings w[i]thin ye sayd County husbandman:
Humbly Sheweth
That yo[u]r poore petic[i]on[er] about the begining of the late Warrs Listed himselfe a Trooper vnder one Capt[ain] Richard Atkins in the Regiment of one Collonell Thorneton since dec[ease]d & in the Brygard then vnder the Comaund of the [illegible] Right hon[oura]ble ye now Earle of Cleeveland for the service of the Late King Charles ye First, where he contynued for the space of three yeares after & was in seu[er]all fights & received seu[er]all grevious wounds & hurts in his body, head and Leggs and that att the Fight att Lamport in ye County of Som[er]s[e]t he was not only shott in ye Legg, but taken prison[e]r & carryed to Lyme garrison where through his loss of blood by ye meanes of it & of his former wounds and his much laying out before that tyme in the Feild being then forced as a prison[e]r to lay on the bare grownd in the prison att Lyme aforesayd for above halfe a yeare, his body was not only much galed & decayed but he had alsoe gotten a Joynt=Ague w[hi]ch contynued most part of his imprisonment on him yt broke & decayed alsoe seu[er]all of ye Joynts & Limbes of his body & made him soe much a Cripple yt he is almost vnable to doe any worke whereby to gayne a Livelyhood for himselfe wife & Fower smale children being very poore & having nothing else but his labour to meyneteyne them. And yo[u]r petic[i]on[e]r further sheweth yt after his inlargement out of Lyme Prison he came vpp vnto ye Devizes where he was a souldier in yt garrison for his sayd Late Ma[jes]tie in the Foote company of Capt[ain] Robert Chaloner & there stayed vntill it was taken and yt from thence hitherto hath contynued a faithfull & loyall subiect vnto his sayd Late Ma[jes]tie and to his most gratious Ma[jes]tie yt now is.
The pr[e]misses therefore considered yo[u]r petic[i]on[e]r humbly prayeth this Hon[oura]ble Bench to settle a Penc[i]on vppon yo[u]r poore petic[i]on[e]r for his life out of the County Stocke p[ro]vided by ye statute for ye Releife and meyneteynance of Maymed Souldiers & Marriners to be payd to yo[u]r petic[i]on[e]r in such manner as by this hon[oura]ble Bench shalbe thought fitt & appointed:
And yo[u]r Poore Pet[itione]r shall humbly pray &c
Theise are humbly to Certifie yt yo[u]r Pet[itione]r to our knowledges was a Souldier for the late kings Ma[jes]tie in the Devizes as he hath above declared, And we are credibly informed & doe verily beleive yt ye rest of the p[ar]ticulers menc[i]oned in this petic[i]on are true, witnes our hands.
John Kent
William Grove
Rob[ert] Chaloner
Robert Nicholas
John Rose
John Lewes
William Lewes