f 144 (29 September–29 September) (Allowances)
...
| Item payd to the marshall men | v s. |
| Item payd to the Trompetors | x s. |
f 145v
...
| Item paid to the players synce michallmas & at the commandement of master mayor | iiij s. vj d. |
...
'marshall men' are probably the entertainers of the knight marshal. In 1574–5 Abingdon paid 'the knight marshalls men.' The knight marshal of the queen's household was Robert Hopton. He had shared this post with his half-brother Sir Ralph Hopton since 1560 and became sole knight marshal on Ralph's death in 1571. He gave up the position in 1577 and died in 1590 (History of Parliament, http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1558-1603/member /hopton-robert-1590).
Record title: Chamberlains' Books
Repository:
BRO
Shelfmark: TEMP ACC 245/174
Repository location: Reading
At the time of publication, this document was held at the Berkshire Record Office, where it was on temporary deposit from the Abingdon County Hall Museum.
1557–81; English; paper; ii + 181 + ii; folios with accounts for the year 1557–8: 415mm x 150mm, rest slightly irregular in size averaging 300mm x 200mm; modern foliation top right-hand corner with various other modern numbering at the bottom of each folio; each year a separate booklet pasted to a stub 15mm wide to make up the present book; rebound in 1912 in brown cloth with leather corners and spine, red leather patches on front and spine with title stamped in gold, title on front cover: 'Borough of Abingdon | Chamberlains Accounts | 1557–1581,' title on spine: 'Chamberlains | Accounts | 1557–1581.'