Sir Thomas Malory (c. 1416-1471)      /       William Caxton (c. 1422-1491), Malory's editor/printer/publisher

                            (approx. ages are in parentheses)

Born, 1414-18 (1416, Field ’93)                 Born, 1420-24 (1422, Painter, ‘77)

1438-9, succeeds father as                         24 June 1438, enrolled as apprentice

squire @Newbold Revel (22)                      in Mercer’s Company  (14?)

28 Dec. 1441, elector for return                  1441, Caxton’s master, Robert Large,

of parliament (25)                                          dies, WC inherits about £13 (17?)

1445, MP for Warwickshire                         c. 1444, Caxton leaves for the English merchant colony in Bruges (20?)

and possibly retainer of Earl of                   

Warwick, courted by Buckingham?

(29)               

1447-8, son & heir Robert born (31-2)        [Caxton may have married in 1443 or as late as 1471-2]

4 Jan. 1450, accused of lying in wait          2 Jan. 1450, sued in Bruges for £50 (26-8)

with 26 others to kill Buckingham (34)

6 & 31 August 1450, rape & theft charges.

6 Nov. 1450-24 May 1451 MP  (35)

June 1451, more theft & assault  (36?)

charges, start of 1452-60 imprisonment   

21 Oct. 1452 free on bail (32)                     29 Oct. 1452, Caxton to London for Mercers’ ceremony (28-30)

26 March 1453, orders for arrest (33)

1453-5 in London prisons (33-35)            1455, posts £666 13s 4d security bond (33)

1457, free on bail to Norfolk feofees 

Second son, Thomas, dies (41)        

1460 freed after Yorkist victory at               16 April 1460 imports 15 tons iron at

Northampton & capture of the Tower (44)      Middleburg (38)

March 29, 1461 may have fought

at Towton (28,000 killed out of total

forces of 50,000 on both sides)  (45)

?1462-8, re-imprisoned, begins work        June 1462, elected Governor of Bruges'

on Le Morte Darthur (46-52)                        (Burgundy, modern Netherlands) community of English Merchants (40)

4 March 1469-3 March 1470 finishes         1 March 1469 starts translating the

Le Morte Darthur       (54)                             Recuyell of the Histories of Troie (47)

14 March 1471 dies, perhaps in                 1471 continues translation while out

Tower of London w/ Henry VI,                      of office due to Lancastrian victory

who later dies on May 21 (55)                     at Barnet and Tewkesbury  (48)

                                                                        25 June 1471, to Cologne to learn

                                                                        printing w/ Johann Veldener

                                                                        1472-5 earliest print work (49-53)

                                                                         a daughter (Elizabeth) may have been born

                                                                         around this time--she was married in 1496.

                                                                        1475  1^st printed book (in French) at

                                                                        Cologne, Recuiel del histoire de Troie

                                                                        1475  1^st printed book (in English) at

                                                            Cologne, Recuyel of the lHistories of

Troie

                                                            1476 moves press to England, prints

                                                            2 minor Lydgate works and Cato (54)

                                                                        or est. 125 press-days

                                                            1477 1^st serious printing in England,

                                                            History of England (150 ll.) and Dictes

                                                            and Sayinges of the Philosophers (78 ll) or est. 271 press-days of operation

                                                            1478 est. 663 press-days (55)

Robert Malory, heir, dies                  1479 est. 318 press-days

Lady Elizabeth Malory (wife) dies

                                                            1480 est. 431 press-days

                                                            1481 est. 415 press-days

                                                            1482 est. 886 press-days

                                                            1483 est. 1541 press-days

                                                                        1484 est. 994 press-days

 1485  Henry Tudor (Henry VII)

defeats Richard III at Bosworth                    1485 Caxton prints Malory as Kyng Arthur and 2

other major works, est. 671 press days (63)

1486 est. 368 press-days

1487 est. 1356 press-days

1488 est. 764 press-days

1489 est. 469 press-days

1490 est. 358 press-days

1491 est. 319 press-days

 "Mawd Caxton" (wife?) was buried in 1490-91

Caxton dies during the winter of 1491 (69) &

pressman, Wynkyn de Worde, runs

the shop from 1491 to 1535.

                                                                        Daughter (Elizabeth) was married in 1496

1513  Nicholas Malory, Robert's son,

dies, leaving the estates to daughters

Dorothy (b. 1491-2) and Margery (b. 1503),

"the last Malorys of Newbold Revel" (Field, 1993, 191).