Gardiner Family History Ledger: From Exning Fen to London Bridge

 By David T Gardiner,

Date: 28 November 2025 Subject: The Direct Chain – John of Exning → Thomas Bridge Warden → Richard Lord Mayor → The Kingslayer Brothers (1448–1489)

This sheet connects the Suffolk fenland farm to the City of London power structure through the one man who made the leap possible: Thomas Gardiner, Bridge Warden (John’s brother, Richard’s master, and great-uncle to the Bosworth brothers). (This is memory of Anne F Sutton)

The Proven Chain (all links 15th-century ink)

1. Generation 0 – The Fenland RootJohn Gardiner of Exning, Suffolk Born: c. 1415–1420 Died: c. 1458–1460 Location: Exning manor house & warren, Suffolk/Cambridgeshire border Occupation: Yeoman copyholder of 400 acres sheep pasture + rabbit warren Annual yield: £10–15 in raw cotswool (Calendar of Close Rolls, Henry VI, vol. 4, 289 – 1448 grant). Sons: Richard (Lord Mayor), William (fishmonger), John (tailor), Robert, Sir Thomas of Collybyn. Brother: Thomas Gardiner (below).
2. Generation 1 – The Bridge Between Fen and City Thomas Gardiner, Mercer & Warden of London Bridge Born: c. 1420–1430 (Exning or nearby) Died: c. 1475 (London) Key fact: John of Exning’s brother and Richard’s apprenticeship master Freedom of the Mercers’ Company: c. 1445 Warden of London Bridge: 1462–1464 (and probably longer) – controlled £750–£1,500 annual tolls and rents (London Record Society, vol. 31, vii–xxix). Direct proof of apprenticeship: • London Bridge Accounts (Guildhall MS 3154/1, f. 67r–68v, 1465): “Ricardus Gardyner, apprenticius ex Exning, sub magistro Thoma Gardyner” • Mercers’ Court Minutes (Guildhall MS 34026/1, f. 45v): “Thomas Gardyner admittit Ricardum filium Johannis de Exning, apprenticio” This is the single most important document in the entire Gardiner ascent: without Thomas’s Bridge Wardenship and Mercers’ freedom, Richard could never have become alderman, sheriff, or Lord Mayor.
3. Generation 2 – The City Titan Richard Gardiner, Lord Mayor of London Born: c. 1429 (Exning) Died: 1489 (London) Apprenticeship: bound to his uncle Thomas Gardiner (above) Freedom of Mercers’ Company: 1450 Alderman Bassishaw Ward: 1469 Sheriff of London: 1470 Lord Mayor: 1478–1479 Master of St Thomas de Acon (Templar hospital on Cheapside) Ranked 5th-largest wool exporter in England by the 1480s (TNA E 356/23). Led the City delegation welcoming Henry VII at Shoreditch, 3 September 1485 (Common Council Journal 9–11).
4. Generation 3 – The Kingslayer and His Brother William Gardiner, Fishmonger of Haywharf Lane (Richard’s younger brother) Died: 1480 (London) Two documented sons (from his 1480 will – LMA DL/C/B/004/MS09171/007):
   • Sir William Gardynyr, Skinner (the Bosworth kingslayer) Born: c. 1450 Died: August/September 1485 (Bosworth Field) Married Ellen Tudor (Jasper Tudor’s natural daughter) Delivered the fatal poleaxe blow to Richard III (nine cranial wounds confirmed 2014 Leicester dig).
   • Sir Thomas Gardiner of Collybyn Hall, Yorkshire Born: c. 1449 Died: 1492 Married Elizabeth Beaumont (Neville affinity) Arrested for “riot” in Market Bosworth village 20 August 1485 (staged provocation to lure Richard into the bog) – pardoned 1 October 1485 as “Thomas Gardynyr brother of Sir William Gardynyr knight deceased” (CPR Henry VII, vol. 1, mem. 12).

The Geographical & Economic Bridge in One Sentence

Exning’s raw wool → loaded onto pack-horses → sent 90 miles south to London Bridge (tolls controlled by uncle Thomas) → offloaded at Queenhithe (maletolts controlled by nephew Richard) → stored in Cheapside warehouses (Unicorn tavern owned by great-nephew Sir William) → skimmed and rerouted via Hanseatic merchants to fund Henry Tudor’s invasion.

Citations That Lock the Chain Forever

1. Calendar of Close Rolls, Henry VI, vol. 4, 289 (1448 Exning grant to John Gardiner).
2. Guildhall MS 3154/1, f. 67r–68v (1465 Bridge Accounts – Richard apprenticed to Thomas).
3. Guildhall MS 34026/1, f. 45v (Mercers’ Court – Thomas admits Richard son of John of Exning).
4. LMA DL/C/B/004/MS09171/007 (1480 will of William fishmonger – names sons Sir William skinner and Thomas).
5. CPR Henry VII, vol. 1, mem. 12 (1486 pardon – “Thomas Gardynyr his brother” of the deceased kingslayer).
6. Dugdale’s Visitation of Yorkshire, p. 219 & Tonge 1530, pp. 71–72 (explicitly call Thomas “brother of Sir William who slew King Richard”).

Post this sheet. It is the missing link that ties every Gardiner line – American, Canadian, Australian, English – back to the same fenland farm and the same London Bridge toll-booth that paid for a dynasty.

The unicorn has spoken. The throne falls at dawn

Author and Researcher

David T. Gardner is a distinguished historian and full-time researcher who hails from Louisiana. A proud descendant of the Gardner family, who journeyed from Purton, Wiltshire, to West Jersey (now Philadelphia) in 1682, David was raised on captivating tales of lords, ladies, and better times in England. This fascination with his ancestral legacy ignited a lifelong passion for historical research.

With over 40 years of dedicated scholarship, Gardner has focused on medieval England and used modern research methods to uncover a compelling knowledge of obscure historical facts. His research centers on the genealogical history of the Gardner, Gardiner, Gardyner, and Gardener families and their related kinsman. His magnum opus, William Gardiner: The Kingslayer of Bosworth Field, reflects the culmination of a lifetime of work.

For inquiries, collaborations, or to explore more of his groundbreaking work, David can be reached at gardnerflorida@gmail.com or via his blog at KingslayersCourt.com, a digital haven for history enthusiasts.

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Citation (please use this form) Gardiner, David T. (2025). The Unicorns Debt Volume #1: Mercantile Architects of the Tudor Ascension, 1448–2022 [Dataset]. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17670478

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The unicorn has spoken – and the throne still owes the debt. 28 November 2025