The Gatehouse website record of a licence to crenellate for Hooton Hall granted on 1487 Aug 10

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In 1487 Aug 10, Sir William Stanley was granted, by Arthur, Duke of Cornwall, (In year 1 of his rule) a Chester licence to crenellate Hoton (Hooton Hall)

Comments

At this point Arthur was a babe of just under a year, so the licence can be seen as a both a reward from Henry VII and an assertion of the rights of the new Duke of Cornwall, as Earl of Chester.

Original source is;

exchequer of Chester

(In fact, the original source given is usually a transcription/translation of what are precious medieval documents not readily availably. It should be noted that these transcription/translations often date to the nineteenth or early twentieth centuries and that unwitting bias of transcribers may affect the translation. Care should also be taken to avoid giving modern meaning to the medieval use of certain stock words and terms. Licentia is best translated as 'freedom to' not 'permission'.)

Significant later sources are;

Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses Vol. 2 (Cambridge) p. 601
Ormerod, G., 1819, History of the County Palatine and city of Chester (London) Vol. 2 p. 230 online copy

Sir William Stanley (c.1435–1495)

Sir William Stanley (c.1435–1495), administrator and landowner, obtained a licence to crenellate in 1487. Sir William was Henry VII's step uncle and had been instrumental in the downfall of Richard III. He was associated with a conspiracy to replace Henry with the pretender Perkin Warbeck and was executed in 1495.
At the battle of Bosworth (22 August 1485) it was Sir William who at a critical stage committed his forces against Richard III. Polydore Vergil has William Stanley saving Henry's life, the great chronicle of London has him crowning Henry VII on the battlefield, and an early tradition has him being granted the spoils of the field by the grateful victor. On the accession of Henry VII Sir William Stanley was appointed chamberlain of the king's household... He was reputedly the richest commoner in England. (Bennett)

Biographical source include;

Michael J. Bennett, Sept 2004, ‘Stanley, Sir William (c.1435–1495)’ Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford University Press) online edn, Jan 2008 online copy (subscription may be needed)

More information about licences to crenellate can be found here.

Please do inform Gatehouse if you see any errors, can add information or can otherwise help to improve this resource. Please contact Gatehouse.