Usk, Thomas

(ca. 1350–1388)

   Thomas Usk was embroiled in the tumultuous London political scene of the 1380s, gaining some notoriety for switching parties and betraying his former leader. He was, however, supported by the king, RICHARD II, until Usk’s arrest and ultimate execution at the hands of the “Merciless Parliament” of 1388. At some point in the mid-1380s, Usk wrote his only surviving work, The TESTAMENT OF LOVE, a prose ALLEGORY based to a large extent on BOETHIUS’s CONSOLATION OF PHILOSOPHY. Usk was born in London. His father was a cap maker, and, like other tradesmen, Usk became a part of the political life of the city that was dominated by the trade guilds. Usk was a close supporter of the mayor John of Northampton, a leader of the Mercer’s Guild that controlled London economically until 1383, when Northampton was defeated for reelection by Nicholas Brembre, supported by the Victualers’ Guilds. When Northampton supporters rioted in London in early 1384, Brembre came down hard on the rioters, and arrested Northampton’s followers. Usk fled London, but was caught and arrested in 1384. It was at this point that Usk reversed his loyalties. It is possible that a private interview with the king himself ultimately swayed Usk’s decision. While neither Brembre’s nor Northampton’s parties seems to have been innocent of corruption, Brembre was a strong supporter of the king; Usk apparently decided that he was wrong to have supported Northampton, and issued what is called his “Appeal,” in which he details Northampton’s plots against Brembre, and suggests that he had also conspired with members of the court opposed to the king. Usk’s testimony helped to convict Northampton when he was brought to trial for treason in August of 1384, and when Northampton was condemned to death, he was saved only when the queen,ANNE OF BOHEMIA, stepped in and pleaded for clemency.Meanwhile Brembre put Usk in protective custody for three months, to keep him from possible retaliation by Northampton’s disciples. It seems likely that Usk wrote most of his Testament during this period of confinement, in part to justify his apparent betrayal of Northampton— though he probably continued to work on it at least until his final arrest in 1387. His shifting loyalties certainly worked in Usk’s favor from 1385 to 1387, as he benefited from Richard’s royal patronage. He became sergeant of arms to the king in 1385, and, in September of 1387, was appointed under-sheriff of Middlesex (including London). Fortune took a severe turn for Usk, however, when the king’s uncle, the duke of Gloucester, seized power and began to weed out the king’s advisers. Usk was arrested in late 1387. Following the execution of Nicholas Brembre, Usk was brought to trial before what became known as the “Merciless Parliament” on March 3, 1388.He was quickly convicted of treason and sentenced to be hanged, drawn, and beheaded the following day. The Testament of Love is Usk’s only literary legacy.

   Bibliography

   ■ Shoaf, R. Allen, ed. Thomas Usk: The Testament of Love. Kalamazoo:Medieval Institute Publications, 1998.