Galway (Galuy in Connaught in Ireland) was given a grant of murage dated 8/11/1395.
This was in the form of:-
Wording
18 Nov. 1395 Rathwire
In aid of the town of Galway (which is situated in the marches between the K.’s enemies and rebels, as well English as Irish, and by their daily attacks was very much impoverished) as well for the safety of his faithful people of the town, to be enclosed of a stone wall, as of the parts adjacent, and in aid of the paving of the town, GRANT to the provost, bailiffs and community of the town of Galway, and their successors, that they might, by themselves, or by those who should be by them thereto deputed, take for all articles for sale coming to the town, by land or by water, or passing from the same, the customs or tolls underwritten, for a term of 40 years, viz.:
from every pound of ginger, 1d;
from every pound of saffron, 2d;
from every pound of pepper, 1/4d;
fromevery pound of galingale, 1d;
from every pound of cloves, 1d;
from every pound of grains of paradise, 1d;
from all other sorts of spices, of the valued of 12d, 1/4d;
from 100 pounds of wax, 6d;
from 100 pounds of alum, 3d;
from each hide tanned, fresh (green) or salted, and put or to be put into juice in the town, and without, as far as the island that is called Eniskyreach, 1/2d;
from each pound of silk, 3d;
from each piece of legis, 4d;
from each piece of English cloth, 3d;
from each piece of Irish linen cloth, containing 12 yards, 1/2d;
from each hundred-weight of iron, 2d;
from each bundle of rods of iron, 1d;
from each sum of sables, 1d;
from 100 stone of Spanish iron, 4d;
from each fotmel of lead, 1/2d;
from each 100 pounds of scroff, 1d;
from all kinds of goods, of the value of 12d, 1/4d;
from 1000 spike-nails, 1d;
from each frail of batry , 8d;
from each large kettle or large dish, 4d;
from each 100 of batry, 4d;
from each ton of wine, 6d;
from each pipe of wine, 3d;
from each crannock of common malt, 1d;
from each crannock of best malt, 2d;
from each crannock of wheat, 2d;
from each sum of corn, 1/2d;
from each sum of butter, 1d;
from each last of butter, 1d;
from each stone of tallow, 1/2d;
from each mease (500) of herrings, 1/2d;
from each crannock of salt; 1d;
from each crannock of barley, beans and peas, 1d;
from each crannock of oats and other corn, 1d;
from each stone of wool, 1d;
from each sack of wool, 4d; from each hide, fresh or salted, 1/2d;
from hides of shorlings, 1d;
from 100 woolfells, 1d;
from 100 lambskins, 2d;
from any skins valued at 12d, 1/4d;
from each horse valued at 40s and more, 6d;
from each pack-horse, steer, bull, ox and cow, 1d;
from each calf, 1/4d;
from each large hog, 1d;
from each sheep or goat, 1/2d;
from each small hog, 1/2d;
from 100 each 100 rabbit-skins, 2d;
from 100 wool-fells, 3d;
from 100 dried fish, 1/2d;
from each horse-load of fish, 2d;
from each salmon, 1/4d;
from 1000 eels and merlings , 1d;
from every kind of timber, and also carts, small carts and boards valued at 4s, 1d;
from each falcon or hawk, 1d;
from each tercel or tercelet, 1/2d;
from each mill-quern, 1d;
from two hand querns, 1/4d;
from 12 crannocks of coal, 1d;
from each stone of butter, hogs lard, tallow and cheese, 1/2d;
from each ton of honey, 8d;
from each pipe of salmon, 18d
from each hundred-weight of glass, 1d;
from each hundred-weight of scalphyn or other fish, salt, dry or hard, 1d;
from 2000 onions, 1d;
from 8 sheaves of garlic, 1/4d;
from each new chest or box, and each 1000 dishes and wooden platters, 1/4d;
from 100 pounds of pitch or rosin, 1/2d;
from each 100 gads of steel, 1/2d;
from every kind of ware of the value of 12d, of which no mention is above made, 1/4;
from every kind of ware of the value of 6s and 8d, not above expressed, 1/2d;
and from every kind of the value of 13s and 4d, likewise not herein before contained, 1d;
ORDER to the provost, bailiffs and commonalty of the town of Galway that they should cause and order the customs and tolls, and every of them, from day to day, to be levied, collected and received and had in the town in the manner said. Provided always, that the monies arising therefrom should be faithfully expended on the murage and pavage of the town, and not otherwise; and they are to render their accounts before the T. of the lordship of Connacht and not at the Ex. of Ire.
Attested:
Roger Mortimer, earl of March and Ulster, Lt
----
March 12. 1402. Westminster. 3 Henry IV
Inspeximus and confirmation to the provost, bailiffs, burgesses and commonalty of the town of Galuy in Connaught in Ireland of the following :-—
1. Letters patent under the great seal used in Ireland, witnessed by Roger de Mortuo Mari, earl of March and Ulster, the king's kinsman and lieutenant in Ireland, Stephen Lescrope, lieutenant of the justice of Ireland, Alexander, bishop of Meath, chancellor of Ireland, James le Botiller, earl of Ormond, Gerald Fitz Morice earl of Kildare, Peter Rowe, justice of the bench, John Filtz Adam, justice of the common bench of Ireland, and others at Dublin 26 January, 19 Richard II, granting, by fine of 10 marks paid in the hanaper of chancery of Ireland, that the provost and burgesses shall each year elect a sovereign who shall take oath after the first election before the provost and afterwards before the sovereign of the preceding year for the good governance of the town and the maintenance of its laws and customs, that no merchant or other person residing in the town who is not a burgess shall buy or sell merchandise or victuals at retail within the liberty of the town, and that the burgesses shall have all liberties, franchise jurisdictions, privileges, cognition of pleas and customs which the burgesses of Drogheda have, saving the rights of the lord of the town.
2. Letters patent witnessed by the said lieutenant of Ireland at Rathwere, 8 November, 19 Richard II, granting to them murage and pavage for forty years, they rendering their accounts before the treasurer of the lordship of Connaught and not at the exchequer of Ireland.
By C. and for 5 marks paid in the hanaper
----
Nov. 8. 1549. 3 Edward VI
Charter of Galway, ratifying and confirming a charter of Richard the II., who, by letters patent, dated 26 January, 19° of his reign, granted licence to the Provost and co-burgesses of the town, to elect annually, for ever, from amongst themselves, a sovereign, who should swear to rule the town faithfully; that no foreign merchant should buy or sell any merchandize in the town, except in gross; and that they should have all privileges, immunities, tolls, and free customs, as freely as the burgesses of the town of Drogheda, reserving all fines which belonged to the lord of said town; and reciting and confirming a patent of Richard II., 18th November, 19°, granting them, in order to fortify and pave the town, the following tolls :—
for every pound of ginger one penny;
for every pound of saffron 2d.;
for every pound of pepper one farthing;
for every pound of galingale 1d.;
for every pound of cloves 1d.;
for every pound of grains of paradise 1d.;
for all other spices, worth 12d., one farthing;
for 100 pounds of wax 6d.;
for 100 pounds of alum 3d.;
for every hide, tanned, 1/2d.;
for every pound of silk 3d.;
for every piece of legis 4d.;
for every piece of English cloth 3d. ;
for every piece of Irish cloth, containing 12 yards, 1/2d.;
for every cwt. of iron 2d.;
for every bundle of iron rods 1d, ;
for every seme of sables 1d.;
for 100 stones of Spanish iron 4d.;
for every fotmel of lead 1/2d.;
for 100 pounds of scroff 1d.;
for all goods worth 12d. one farthing ;
for 1,000 spike nails 1d.;
for every frail of batry 8d.;
for every large kettle or dish 4d.;
for every 100 of batry 4d.;
for every ton of wine 6d.;
for every pipe of wine 3d.;
for every crannock of common malt 1d.;
for every crannock of best malt 2d.;
for every crannock of wheat 2d.;
for every seme of corn one halfpenny;
for every seme of butter 1d.;
for every last of butter 1d.;
for every stone of tallow 1/2d.;
for every mease (500) of herrings 1/2d.;
for every crannock of salt 1d.;
for every cranuock of barley, beans, and peas 1d.;
for every crannock of oats and other corn 1d.;
for every stone of wool 1d.;
for every sack of wool 4d.;
for every hide 1/2d. ;
for all hides, worth 12d., 1d.;
for 100 woolfells 1d.;
for 100 lambskins 2d.;
for other skins, worth 12d., 4d.;
for every horse, worth 40s. and upwards, 6d.;
for every pack horse, steer, bull, ox, and cow 1d.;
for every calf 1/4d.;
for every large hog 1d.;
for every sheep or goat 1/2d.;
for every small hog 1/2d.;
for 100 rabbit skins 2d.;
for 100 woolfells 3d.;
for every hundred dry fish one halfpenny;
for a horseload of fish 2d.;
for every salmon 1/4d.;
for 1,000 eels and merlings 1d.;
for every kind of timber and carts, small carts and boards, worth 4s., 1d.;
for every falcon or hawk 1d.;
for every tercel or tercelet 1/2d.;
for every millquern 1d.;
for two hand querns 1/4d.;
for 12 crannocks of coal 1d.;
for every stone of butter, hogs-lard, tallow, and cheese 1/2d.;
for every ton of honey 8d.;
for every pipe of salmon 18d.;
for every cwt. of glass 1d. ;
for every cwt. of scalphyn or other fish 1d.;
for 2,000 onions 1d.;
for 8 pounds of hemp and flax 1d.;
for 8 shanes of garlic 1/4d.;
for every new chest or box, and every 1,000 dishes and wooden platters 1/4d.;
for 100 lbs. of pitch or resin 1/2d.;
for 100 gads of steel 1/2d.;
for every kind of ware, worth 12d., 1/4d.;
for every kind of ware, worth 6s. 8d., 1/2d.;
for every kind of ware, worth 13s. 4d., 1d.;
to be expended on the murage and pavage of the town; which patent of Richard II. was ratified and approved of by a patent of King Henry (IV.), 12 March, 3° of his reign
Crannock: in Irish, Cranog; a basket or hamper for holding corn, lined with the skin of a beast, and supposed to hold the produce of 17 sheaves of corn, and to be equal to a Bristol-barrel.—Ledwich. Crannock of wheat, 8 pecks; crannock of oats, 16 pecks.
Granted by Richard II. (Regnal year 19). Granted at Rathwere.
Details of the petition which resulted in this grant can be seen
at this link. 
Primary Sources
A Calendar of Irish Chancery Letters, c. 1244-1509, PR 19 Ric. II
View CIRCLE recordMaxwell Lyte, H.C. (ed), 1905,
Calendar of Patent Rolls Henry IV (1401-05) Vol. 2 p. 86
online copyMorrin, J. (ed), 1861,
Calendar of the Patent and Close Rolls of Chancery in Ireland, of the Reigns of Henry VIII., Edward VI., Mary, and Elizabeth: 1514-1575 Vol. 1 p. 195-7
online copy
Secondary Sources
Coulson, Charles, 2009,
Murage Grants (Handwritten list and notes)
Thomas, A., 1992,
The Walled Towns of Ireland Vol. 2 (Irish Academic Press) p. 106-113
Hardiman, James, 1820,
The History of the Town and Country of the Town of Galway p. 61
online copy (States original not found in Ireland or London)
Comments
The extent of the Lieutenant's powers is notable, although Galway thought it prudent to get confirmation. Dublin was remote and Galway's links were by sea with Bristol, rather than across 'Irish' territory to Dublin. This concession is not so great - but pursued much further the united government of Ireland would suffer (Coulson).
Hardiman writes "on 8th Nov. 1396, a new and perpetual murage charter was granted to the inhabitants by Richard the Second." He knew of this charter only from later references and copies but the implication is that this was taken as a perpetual grant.
Edward IV confirmation appears to endorse a perpetual right to murage.
Record created by Philip Davis. This record created 16/03/2009. Last updated on 04/06/2012. First published online 5/01/2013.
