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Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Baron Maurice de Berkeley & Isabel de Dover

4997416. Baron Maurice de Berkeley & 4997417. Isabel de Dover

10/19/1216, Henry III succeeded John as King of England. Louis of France also claimed the throne.

1218, Maurice born in England, heir & s/o 9994832. Thomas de Berkeley & 9994833. Joan de Somery.

By 1221, Isabel born in England, d/o 9994834. Sir Richard Fitz Roy & 9994835. Rose de Dover.

1221, Thomas granted to William Briwere [d.1226] the marriage of his son and heir Maurice, on condition that he would be married to the daughter of Richard FitzRoy and Rose of Dover. Rose was a great-granddaughter of Briwerre; she brought the barony of Chilham to FitzRoy. [This settlement was because Thomas had previously agreed to marry one of William’s daughters.] It was also agreed that Briwerre would acquit Thomas of 200 marks which he owed to the king, and that Thomas would make over to Briwerre his manors of Portbury and Arlingham for a term of 15 years. [Isabel is the King’s niece.]

Bef. 1242, Maurice “the Resolute” knighted.

5/1242, Maurice give a gift of 20 marks [to be paid], 20 marks to buy a horse, and paid 5 marks in hand, to outfit himself to sail with King Henry III to Gascony.

7/1242, Maurice at the battles of Taillebourgh and Saintes against the forces of the Count of Poitou and King Louis IX.  The 2 armies met with the superior sized French force winning. Ironically, many of the French nights opposing King Henry had been rescued by Richard I from prison in the crusades.

By 4/1243, Maurice returned to England.

12/14/1243, Maurice took livery of his father’s lands, paying a fine of £1000.

12/24/1243, Maurice at Windsor castle with King Henry III did homage for his lands.

12/27/1243, “Abbot William [Long] and the abbey of St. Augustine's; … confirmation by Maurice, son and heir of Thomas de Berkeley, of the grants made to the abbey.” (S) UKNA.

1243-47, Maurice heir to his younger brother Thomas, of all of his lands he had not granted to Kingswood Abbey.

1244, IPM of Lord Tho’ de Berkeley. “Also, they say he held all the aforesaid Lands by the Service of 5 Knights of the old Feoffment, whereof Sir Robert de Gurnay ought to acquit him of One Knight’s Fee and an Half, and Sir Nicholas Fitz Roger of Half a Fee; also they say that Maurice de Berkeley his Son is his next Heir, …” (S) Journals of the House of Lords, V60, 1828, P493.

5/12/1244, Covenant for lease from Dom. Maurice de Berkele to Perte de Wike … excepting the portion of land which belongs to his mother, Joan de Berkele, by right of dower. (S) Desriptivie Catalogue of The Charters …, Berke, 1892, P95.

1244, Joan de Berkele and her sister Margery sought an assize of novel disseizin at Gloucester against her son Maurice.

1246, Maurice arranged with the Exchequer to pay his debts at £40 a year, being pardoned £24 because of his recent service in Wales.

[––Maurice & Isabel––]

Bef. 7/12/1247, Maurice married Isabel [the King’s niece]. Isabel’s marriage portion was Essex manor of Great Wenden, worth £45 a year. (S) UKNA, Berkeley Castle Muniments.

1250, Maurice traveled with the king to Gascony.

11/11/1250, The king has pardoned to Maurice of Berkeley, son and heir of Thomas of Berkeley, the scutage … for the last army of the king in Gascony, in which Maurice was with the king by his order. (S) FRsHIII.

1251, Maurice was impleaded by William de Fourd for ½ hide in East Bray [inherited from his brother Thomas], a suit which was to be decided in a trial by battle. At Est-hay in Devon, Maurice defended the land issue in trial by battle, overcoming the champion of William de Fourd.

11/18/1251, Maurice of Berkeley and Isabel, his wife, as plaintiffs and William of Wilton and Rose, his wife, as impediments, a carucate of land in Great Wendon was assured to Maurice and Isabel and their heirs. [Rose, remarried, the mother of Isabel.]

8/2/1252 at Woodstock, Grant by Hen. III. to Joan de Berkeley, for life, and Maurice de Berkeley her son, of free warren in their manors of Wotton and Kamme, a weekly market at Wotton on Fridays, and a yearly fair of 3 days. (S)

 Ancient Deeds: V1, 1890.

5/30/1253, Protection for the following going with the king to Gascony … Maurice de Berkele … (S) CPRs.

1253, Maurice borrowed 60 marks from the king to furnish himself for travel with the king into Gascony.

8/6/1253, King Henry finally left for Gascony from Portsmouth with 300 ships.

8/29/1254 at Bordeaux, France, Mandate … as it was provided by the peace between the King and the King of Castile, that all prisoners taken in this war of the king in Gascony should be released on both sides. (S) CPRs.

8/1255, Maurice entertained King Henry III at Berkeley castle, after which he was exempted from demesnes taxes.

8/23/1257, Protection with clause … on the king’s service in Wales … Maurice de Berkele … (S) CPRs.

1257-60, Maurice in Lord Edward’s expedition into Wales; fighting for 3 years against Llewellyn. Maurice ordered “to attend to the safety of the Royal Person.”

1258, “Sir Maurice de Berkeley and Robert le Herde. … Maurice has granted to Robert a ditch with the watercourse of Dover', between Maurice's pasture called Oxenlese and Coulese and the land of Robert.” (S) UKNA.

6/1258, King Henry signed the Provisions of Oxford. These limitations by parliament [led by Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester] granted money to Henry in exchange for administrative reform. A “Council of 15” was formed to enforce the reforms.

1259, Maurice served in the Welsh wars of Henry III.

1259, Lord Edward led King Henry’s campaign against Welsh prince Llywelyn ap Gruffydd.

1/1261, King Henry decided to secretly send an emissary to the Pope to have the Provisions of Oxford voided.

2/1261, King Henry and Eleanor relocated to the Tower in London. Only Henry’s supporters were allowed inside the gates of London. Henry also brought in his banished Lusignan half-brothers and a mercenary army.

3/25/1261, Maurice summoned to attend the king in London, with all his power of horse and foot; retained to be of the King’s household at 40 marks a year and the usual robes. (S) CPRs.

4/13/1261, The papal bull was received absolving the King and Queen and their supporters from abiding with the Provisions of Oxford.

6/22/1261, The king has pardoned to Maurice of Berkeley the 100s. at which he was lately amerced before Gilbert of Preston and his associates, justices lately itinerant at Bristol, for the escape of a thief from his prison of Radeclyve. (S) FRsHIII.

8/10/1261, Out of compassion for the poverty of Isabel, the wife of Maurice of Berkeley, his niece, the King assigns to her, for the support of herself and her children, the manors of Harietsham and Trottiscliffe.

3/1262, King Henry repudiated the Provisions of Oxford.

5/29/1262, Maurice granted a charter of free warren for his lordship of Wendons Ambo, Essex; with a weekly market and annual fair. (S) Gaz. of Markets and Fairs in England and Wales to 1516.

4/12/1263, Simon de Montfort returned to England to lead a rebellion of young barons. King Henry and family withdrew to the Tower. There they developed a plan to suppress the rebellion of Simon de Montfort. Initially son Lord Edward retrieved £1000 from the treasury. The French relatives of Eleanor, the primary target of the rebellion, secretly returned to France. Henry of Almain, nephew of Henry, a Montfort supporter, was himself captured trying to capture the fleeing families in France.

1263, Maurice, returning from beyond the sea, was charged by the king with taking prisoners [of men at arms and foot] to the castle of Gloucester.

5/1264, After the capture of King Henry III at the battle of Lewes, Maurice lost his lands.

1264-65, Simon de Montfort effectively ruled England.

7/12/1264, King Henry III [under the control of Simon de Montfort] granted to Isabel the manors of Harrietsham and Trottiscliffe, Kent; which had been seized because of the recent disturbances, for the sustenance of herself and her children. (S) FRsHIII, CCRs.

8/4/1265, Lord Edward defeated Montfort at the battle of Evesham in Worcestershire, freeing his father, who had been wounded. With Simon’s death in the battle, the Provisions of Oxford were nullified.

10/1265, Maurice restored to his position with the King, including his annual payments. (S) CCRs.

1269, The jurors say that Maruice de Berkeley, the Chief Lord of Eggeton, unwilling to grant property in alms to the Hospital of the Holy Trinity at Berkeley. (S) Trans. Bristol & Glou., V9, 1884, P237.

12/25/1270, Acknowledgement that Maurice de Berkeleye, … collectors of the 20th in the county of Gloucester, … (S) CPRs.

1271, Roger de Clifford (2498704), joined by Maurice de Berkeley, led a ‘rebellion’ against King Henry III.

1271, Maurice obtained a royal pardon for joining the rebellion of Roger de Clifford for a fine of £20.

10/11/1271, “Maurice de Berkeley and Elias le Butiler … all the land which Thomas de Berkeley, Maurice's father … Witnesses: Sir Richard de Berkeley, Maurice's brother, …” (S) UKNA.

11/16/1272, Edward I succeeded Henry III as King of England.

1273, Maurice paid his Esquires at Berkeley yearly: a horse and boy, meat and drink, 2 robes, and 8 shillings.

Bef. 1276, Joan de Berkeley [Joan de (Somery), widow of Thomas Lord Berkeley … Joan has quitclaimed to the abbey whatever she has in the manor of Oslewrth … Witnesses: Sir Maurice de Berkeley, Joan's son, … (S) UKNA.

1276-7, Isabel died; buried at St. Augustine’s, Bristol.

[––Maurice––]

1277, Maurice served with his son Thomas in the 1st expedition against Llywelyn, Prince of Wales.

6/1277, King Edward was in Chester where he cleared a road through a dense forest, and started construction on the castles of Flint and Rhuddlan. King Edward made forays into the Welsh lands of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, prince of Wales, capturing Snowdonia and the isle of Anglesey.

1278, Maurice paid a fine of 300 marks to acquire the rights of Henry de Berkeley, Lord of Dursley, who quitclaimed, of the lordship of the manor of Berkeley. (S) UKNA, BCM.

11/12/1280, Grant by Edward I to Maurice de Berkeley of free warren in Berkeley Herness and in Portbury. (S)

 Ancient Deeds: V1, 1890. [Maurice granted 4 bucks, and son Thomas granted 2 bucks.]

4/4/1281, Maurice, knt. of Berkeley, Gloucestershire died; buried with Isabel.

4/9/1281, IPM of Maurice de Berkeley. Somerset: … Portbury. The foreign hundred … Thomas his son, aged 30, is his next heir. … Gloucester: [8 manors] … (S) CIsPM. [Maurice’s lands valued at £800 yearly. (S) Journals of the House of Lords, V60, 1828, P493.]

(S) Plantagenet Ancestry, P96. (S) The Great Governing Families of England, Sanford, P219. (S) Berkeley Manuscripts: Abstracts and Extracts, Fosbroke, 1821. (S) UKNA, BCM.

Family notes:

·         Maurice served 16 times in military service with 3 knights.

·         Maurice altered the  course of the river Doverte to bring water into pools around the castle. He also added walks and gardens outside the castle.

·         Maurice and his mother Joan were engaged in more than 40 lawsuits.

Children of Maurice and Isabel: [4 sons, 1 daughter]

i. Maurice de Berkeley, born ? in England.

1279, Maurice killed at a joust at Kenilworth.

ii. Thomas de Berkeley (2498708), born 1251 in England.

[There is convincing evidence that Thomas was the eldest son.]

iii. Robert de Berkeley, born ? in England.

1275, Robert and Simon jointly granted half the manor of Arlingham by their father.

Robert married Elizabeth, d/o Sir John de Acton & Margaret de Aller.

2/1289, Margaret de Acton settled a rent of 10s. and appurtenances in Blackford (Som.) on Robert and Elizabeth and their issue, with remainder to herself and her heirs.

iv. Simon de Berkeley, born aft. 1259 in England.

1270, Simon, under age, presented to the church of Slimbridge by his father.

By 1281, Simon died.

v. Maud de Berkeley, born ? in England.

Maud ‘lived long’, bought land in Nibley, and died without issue.


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