John Bussy
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Sir John Bussy (also Bushy; died 29th of July 1399) of Hougham in Lincolnshire was a member of parliament representing Lincolnshire or Rutland eleven times from 1383 to 1398 as a Knight of the Shire. He was also Speaker of the House of Commons at the three Parliaments between 1393 and 1398, during which he supported the policies of king Richard II. He was most famous for orchestrating the abdication of parliament's power to an eighteen-man subcommittee in order to concentrate power in the hands of the king's supporters.[1]
Bussy's pre-eminence at court and execution after Richard's abdication were dramatised by Shakespeare in Richard II, where he appears as one of three councillors (Bushy, Bagot and Greene) who are accused by Henry Bolingbroke (later Henry IV) of misleading the king. He also appears as a character in Thomas of Woodstock.
Early career
He was the son of Sir William Bussy and Isabel Paynell, the daughter of John Paynell. He married twice; firstly in 1382 to Maud, daughter of Sir Philip de Neville and secondly in 1386 to Mary, widow of Ralph Daubeney.[2] He owned lands in Lincolnshire.
In 1378 he secured a position with John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster, as the Steward of all his lands north of the Trent. He worked for the Duke until 1397 but had by then (1391) entered the service of Richard II. He was High Sheriff of Lincolnshire in 1383, 1385 and 1390.
Consolidation of power
He became a close confidant and advisor of Richard and together with Sir
Fall and death
When Henry Bolingbroke (
In English drama
- In Shakespeare's Richard II he is one of three councillors (Bushy, Bagot and Greene) accused by Bolingbroke of misleading the king.
- Bussy also appears in Thomas of Woodstock as "William Bushy", again portrayed as one of the king's favourites.[4]
References
- ^ Speakers of the House of Commons from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
- ^ "History of Parliament".
- ISBN 978-0-7190-3527-2, pg 128
- ^ Shakespeare and History website. Accessed 15 October 2014.
- Chris Give-Wilson, Chronicles of the revolution, 1397-1400: The Reign of Richard II (Barnes & Noble, 1997), pg 128