Not much paperwork has survived to throw a light on Francis`s movements before his friend Richard of Gloucester became king, nor much about any relationships. While there is still a bit to give an idea about what estates he owned, fought for, lost, gained and put work into, there is even less about any personal actions he took, or preferences he had. A lot of what can be infered about him from the very little we still have is therefore based on speculation.
So it also is with Francis`s attitude towards learning and scholarship. While a little bit survives that makes it possible to make an educated guess, but until and unless new evidence is found, it must by necessity remain just that: a guess.While it is illuminating to think about what we have, it is important to keep this in mind.
It is, in fact, often stated on the internet, and even in non-fiction books such as Joe Ann Ricca`s "Francis: Viscount Lovel: Time Reveals All Things", that Francis was more of a bookish type, not a fighter. There is some truth in this as Francis was not a very active man, who seemed to avoid strenuous physical activities when possible; however, he could and did fight when called upon, and though, as pointed out in an earlier article, apparently talented at organisation, the evidence for an interest in scholarship is far less obvious and clear-cut.
Some of it, however, is to be found in accounts about his interactions with others, such as his apparent interest in Magdalen College. The first contact Francis had with it and its patron William Waynflete, Bishop of Winchester, was inauspicious, for it involved a quarrel about the ownership of some manors, which Waynflete claimed for the college through Francis grandmother. The specifics of this case are detailed in an earlier article, but as Joanna M. Williams points out, it "seems an amicable compromise was reached". In fact, once Francis received assurances of ownership of one of the disputed manors, Doddington, in 1483, he not only "[confirmed] the title of Magdalen College to the manor of East Bridgford", but "also conveyed the chapel of St Katherine and the estate of Warnage of his Wiltshire manor of Wanborough to Waynflete for the endowment of the college" (Williams).
This may have been part of the compromise, but was not at the time mentioned anywhere as such, as giving East Bridgford to the bishop was. It is also notable that the two manors in question were worth almost the same, so that Francis also conveying them the abovementioned chapel and estate would have put him at a distinct disadvantage in the deal. It seems unlikely he would have agreed to this when negotiations went on for nearly two years to make it a fair compromise for both parties.
Far more likely is that Francis, having become acquainted with the college, took a liking to it, which is supported by other evidence. In 1484, he "sold the hospitals of Saints John and James, Brackley, Northamptonshire, to Waynflete for 200 marks, again to be annexed to the college". (Williams) This shows that the previous quarrel did not, apparently, sour the relations between Francis and Waynflete and/or the college, and also that Francis remained interested in a good deal and was not freely giving away anything to them when he expected to be paid, again making it likely that him giving the chapel and estate were gifts he made of his own volition.
The clearest piece of evidence for this is, though, that, as Williams states, Francis "[maintained] a scholar called Rede at the new institution". She takes this to mean that Francis "also took a personal interest", tying in with the apparent gifts he made in 1483. Clearly, this did not directly benefit the college, so must have been made for other reasons.
It seems likely that Francis sponsored the man because of ties he himself had to him and/or his family, but that he was at Magdalen College, with which he had previous connections such as detailed is surely significant and indicates that he was taken with it, perhaps having grown to appreciate it during his dealings with it and its patron.
There is another indication that Francis liked to be associated with universities. When making arrangements for the event of his death, he instructed his wife Anne to "find two discreet priests of good repute" to read masses for his soul "in either the university of Oxford or Cambridge for thirty years". (Williams.) While there is nothing particularly notable about masses being read for benefactorers at universities and about this being requested, it is interesting that apparently Francis showed no preference for one of them, suggesting it was not his connection with either the university of Oxford or Cambridge which made him request so, but an appreciation of universities as a whole.
None of this, of course, gives much of an indication about Francis`s own attitude towards books or if he liked to read as his friend Richard seems to have done. It does suggest only a personal interest in universities, such as not all of his standing showed. Why he had this interest, we again can`t know. It can be speculated that it was because of an interest in them and in scholarship, which he perhaps always had or which he possibly developed during his acquaintance with Bishop Waynflete, but a speculation is all that it is.
The truth about this, sadly, must remain unknown. All we do know is that he seems to have had an interest in universities.
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