Dick Whittington's 500th Anniversary: Descendants Present at Ceremony The 500th anniversary of the death of Richard Whittington, four times Lord Mayor of London, was commemorate on October 2 in the Church of St. Michael Paternoster Royal, College Hill.
Whittington lived and worked in the parish of St. Michael. He rebuilt and endowed the church, and was afterwards buried la it, together with Dame Alice, his wife, a Fitzwarren. That building was destroyed in the great fire, and Wren put up the present building.
The service was attended in State by the Acting Lord Mayor (Sir Charles Johnston), accompanied by the Lady Mayoress (Lady Moore), by the Sheriffs, and by the Masters and Wardens of the Mercers' Company, the Vintners' Company, the Innholders' Company, and the Glaziers' Company. There were also present descendants and comections of the Whittington family.
Besides these weve representatives of the Wards of Vintry and Dowgate. All were robed as in Whittington's day.
The service included the reading of the lesson by Alderman Sir George Truscott (Lord Mayor, 1908-9), and Alderman Sir Charles Wakefield (Lord Mayor, 1915-16) read an address on Whittington, pointing out that the actual maw was far finer than the hero of the legend, and enumerating his great public works.
Sir Charles also alluded to the presence in church of the Earl of Coventry. The latter had come, im spite of his great ave of eighty-five, showing his pride at_his descent from John Coventry, Lord Mayor in 1426, who was the friend and executor of Whittington.
Controverting the legend that Whittington was a poor and illused orphan, Sir Charles pointed out that he was the third son of Sir William Whittineton, of Pauntley, Gloucestershire, and his mother belonged to a good Devonshire family named Mansel. Probably Whittington came to London when he was about twelve, and it was quite possible he came on foot. His brother was a high sheriff. Richard only followed the usual course of young sons by entering trade. Apprentices to the Guilds in those days had to be of gentle birth, and many of the great merchants claimed close kinship with the highest nobles. finished in July last. A two months' trial has' resulted in -the present difficulty.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.