Roger Thornton (died 1429), the Dick Whittington of Newcastle, seems to have been a country boy seeking his fortune in town.At the Westgate came Thornton in With a hap, and a halfpenny, and a lambskin.He lived to become 'the richest marchant that ever was dwelling in Newcastell', and three times mayor of that town. He took the side of Henry IV against the rebel Earl of Northumberland (in whose cause Hotspur had fallen) and received on 28 July 1405 'in consideration of his services and of the losses he had sustained, and the charges he had borne in the late rebellion of the Earl of Northumberland, and others, the Foucher (Fugar) House in Whickham, as well as other estates in Cleveland.' He was later knighted and represented Newcastle in parliament several times, the last being the fifth year of the reign of Henry V.