These research notes are provided as-is and contain supplementary working research.

John de Gournay IV (G24) Notes

Research notes for g24-john-de-gournay-iv-fact-sheet.md. See .claude/rules/research-files.md for the paired-file rule.

Working Notes

Walsingham Priory benefaction — Edmund and John (DG-Supp Note 116)

2026-04-18 — DG-Supp Note 116 (pp. 789) preserves a revealing French passage from the Paris MS. Histoire des Seigneurs de Gournay about the later English Gournays:

The passage records that in a charter of Richard II in favour of the Priory of Walsingham, “Edmond de Gournay” (G23 Edmund) is named among those who had given property to the priory. In a subsequent charter of Henry IV, “Jean de Gournay” (likely Sir John Gurney, d. 1408 — the collateral) appears among Walsingham’s benefactors.

DG identifies the relevant charters in the Monasticon Anglicanum (Vol. VI, p. 74):

Pat. 8 Richard II, p. 2, m. 15 (1385): Edmund Gournay named alongside Stephen de Hales, Oliver de Calthorpe, Ralph de Shelton (all knights), and William de Walsham (clerk), granting the manors of Great Riburgh and Little Riburgh (Woodhall) to the Prior and Convent of Walsingham.

Significance for G24: This charter dates to 1385 — two years before Edmund’s death. But John IV (G24) would have been Edmund’s father. If John IV was “active 1354” and Edmund died 1387, John IV likely died c. 1370–1380. The Walsingham benefactions straddle the G24–G23 transition and confirm the family’s connections to major Norfolk religious houses and to the Calthorpe and Hales families.

The 1354 Harpley court — primary source (DG-II p. 356)

2026-04-18 — DG-II p. 356 states: “It was this John de Gurney who was Lord of Harpley, and held his court there on Friday the vigil of St. Laurence, 28th Edward III (1354).” The footnote cites: “Addit. MSS. Mus. Brit. No. 8,841, fol. 112, in Harpley.”

The vigil of St. Laurence = 9 August 1354. This is the first surviving manorial court record for any Gournay lord at Harpley — a specific dated document at the British Library. The fact sheet already captures this well.

DG-II p. 356 — the 1331 deed

2026-04-18 — John IV first appears in the 1331 deed of his great-uncle Rector John: “Son and heir of John de Gurney and Joan his wife, occurs in the deed of John, rector and patron of Harpley, 6th Edward III (1331).” This means John IV was alive (and presumably a child or young man) in 1331, and was recognized as the heir in the Rector’s deed.

No wife named

2026-04-18 — Confirmed negative across all sources: DG-I, DG-II, DG-Supp, Blomefield (Harpley entry) — no wife is named for John IV. His son Edmund married Katherine de Wauncy, which is the pivotal marriage, but John IV’s own wife is unknown.

Historical context — Black Death and Hundred Years’ War

2026-04-18 — John IV’s active years (c. 1330–1370) span two of the most traumatic events in medieval English history: the Black Death (1348–49) and the early victories of the Hundred Years’ War (Crécy 1346, Poitiers 1356). No evidence places him at either event, but the manorial court of 1354 — just five years after the plague — shows him actively managing his estates through the post-pandemic landscape.

Sir John Gurney (d. 1408) — the collateral

2026-04-18 — The collateral Sir John Gurney (sometimes called “John V” in DG numbering) is not G24. He is classified as collateral in AI-Rules §7 correction #3: “Sir John Gurney (d.1408) is collateral. Direct: Edmund G23 → Robert G22 → Thomas I G21 → Thomas II G20.” DG-Supp Note 121 provides the IPM (Inquisition Post Mortem) proving Sir John died 5 December 1408, with his son Edmund (aged 10) as heir — who then “died sine prole, and probably under age.” Sir John’s successor was therefore his nephew Thomas (G21).

This is critical for the lineage: the direct line skips Sir John entirely, passing from G23 Edmund through Robert (G22) to Thomas I (G21).

Landholdings

Place	Period	Notes
Harpley, Norfolk	fl. c. 1330–1370	First manorial court record: 9 August 1354 (BL Add. MSS. 8841, fol. 112)
Hardingham/Swathings, Norfolk	fl. c. 1330–1370	Inherited

Open Questions

BL Add. MSS. 8841: The 1354 manorial court roll (fol. 112) and the 1331 Rector John deed — can the British Library digitized Additional MSS be searched for these? A photograph of the 1354 court entry would be valuable.
John IV’s wife: No name in any source. Is she named in Blomefield’s Harpley or West Barsham entries, or in any IPM for John IV?
John IV’s death date: Not established. He was active 1354; his son Edmund died 1387. Narrowing the death to c. 1360–1375 would be useful. Any Norfolk escheat or IPM records?

Sources Consulted

DG-I, pp. 279, 286 (pedigree). [DG-I]
DG-II, pp. 355–358 (Harpley church chapter: 1331 deed, 1354 court, transition to Edmund). [DG-II]
DG-Supp, Note 116 (p. 789): Walsingham benefactions (Richard II and Henry IV charters). Edmund named in 1385 charter alongside Calthorpe, Hales, Shelton. [DG-Supp]
DG-Supp, Note 121 (pp. 793–794): Sir John Gurney (d.1408) IPM — collateral, not G24. Edmund son and heir, aged 10, died sine prole. [DG-Supp]
Blomefield, History of Norfolk, vol. viii, pp. 452–459 (Harpley). [Blomefield]
Monasticon Anglicanum, Vol. VI, p. 74 (Walsingham charters). [Dugdale-Mon]

Conflicting Information

None identified for John IV directly.

Fact Sheet Improvement Notes

1354 manorial court as primary source: The fact sheet handles this well. Adding the BL manuscript reference (Add. MSS. 8841, fol. 112) as a footnote would strengthen the documentary basis.
Walsingham connection: The family’s benefactions to Walsingham Priory (G23 Edmund in 1385, collateral Sir John in 1406) show consistent Norfolk gentry piety. John IV’s generation bridges the period.
Post-plague context: A sentence noting that the 1354 court was held just five years after the Black Death would add historical weight.