Philip Mede

Philip Mede (c. 1415-1475) (alias Meade, Meede, etc.) of Mede's Place in the parish of Wraxall in Somerset and of the parish of Saint Mary Redcliffe in Bristol, was a wealthy merchant at Bristol, then in Gloucestershire, and was twice elected a Member of Parliament for Bristol in 1459 and 1460, and was thrice Mayor of Bristol, in 1458-9, 1461-2 and 1468-9.

He was the son (possibly the brother) of Thomas Mede, Bailiff of Bristol in 1438, and Sheriff of Bristol in 1452. The Mede family, anciently atte Mede, was possessed, before 1461, of an ancient capital messuage with 100 acres of land at Overton, in the parish of Arlingham, still known as 'Medes Land' in 1900.

Philip was Bailiff of Bristol in 1444, Mayor of Bristol in 1458, succeeding the great William Canynges, and again in 1461 and 1468, and was a Member of Parliament for Bristol in 1460. He was lord of the manor of Barrow, in Tickenham. In 1461 he obtained valuable charters for the City of Bristol from King Edward lV. In 1470 he raised in a single night a contingent of fighting men to support William de Berkeley, 2nd Baron Berkeley (1426-1492), later created 1st Marquess of Berkeley, of Berkeley Castle (north of Bristol), in his private Battle of Nibley Green.

He married Isabel, of family unknown, by whom he had progeny including:

Philip Mede died in 1475, having dated his will on 11 January 1471. He ordered his body to be buried at the altar of St. Stephen, in the church of St Mary Redcliffe, to which he was a benefactor. His will included the following Latin text:

By his will Philip Mede founded and endowed a chantry, known as "Mede's Chantry". Its purpose was for a priest to say masses for the souls of Thomas Mede, Philip Mede and Isabel his wife, John Sharpe and Elizabeth his wife, and Richard Mede and Elizabeth and Anne his wives, as specified in his will. Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries and the subsequent suppression of chantries, the ornaments owned by the chantry were valued at 52 shillings and 8 pence and were in 1547-8 confiscated to the king's use. The income of the chantry at the Dissolution was £17 1 shilling, a large sum. It had been endowed with various lands, including the land now covered by 8-11 Park Row, Bristol, then comprising two gardens, a lodge and a close.

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