Hugh le Despenser

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: 1 Mar 1261, Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England

Notes:

Earl of Winchester. Called "The Elder", despite being the second of three consecutive Hughs Despenser. Fought at Falkirk, at the siege of Caerlaverock, and at Bannockburn.

"Sir Hugh le Despenser, of Loughborough, Arnesby, Parlington, Ryhall, &c., Wycombe, Compton-Basset and Wootton-Basset, &c., s. and h. [of Sir Hugh le Despenser who d. 4 Aug. 1265], b. 1 Mar. 1260/1. In 28 May 1281 he was given the administration of the lands which his father had forfeited, and had livery of his mother's lands, 8 Aug. 1281, although he was not of age till 1 Mar. following. He had livery of the manor of Martley, co. Worcester, 3 Mar. 1281/2, as h. of his father's first cousin, John le Despenser. He was with the King in Gascony in 1287. Was one of those ordered, 22 Aug. 1288, during the King's absence abroad, to abstain from violations of the peace. Was appointed Constable of Odiham Castle, 12 June 1294. Was appointed an envoy to treat with the King of the Romans, June 1294, with the King of France, 1 Jan. 1295/6, and with the King of France and the King of the Romans, Nov. 1296. He accompanied the King to Scotland in 1296. Was one of the proxies who swore to the treaty with the Count of Flanders, 5 Feb. 1296/7 to 18 Aug. 1307. Received instructions to threaten the Clergy, 21 Mar. 1296/7. One of the King's Council, 1297. Accompanied the King to Flanders in Aug. 1297. He was with the King in Scotland in 1300, 1303, 1304, and 1306. Was appointed an envoy to the Pope, Sep. 1300, to treat of peace with the King of France, 25 Apr. 1302, and an envoy to the Pope, Oct. 1305. In 1305 he was appointed and sworn, in Parl., a commissioner to treat with the Scots. At the Coronation of Edward II, 25 Feb. 1307/8, he was one of the four who carried the table (saccarium) on which were laid the royal robes. Constable of the castles of Devizes and Marlborough, 12 Mar. 1307/8 to 2 Dec. 1308. Constable of the Castle of Strigoil and Keeper of the town of Chepstow, 12 Mar. 1307/8 to 17 July (or 21 Aug.) 1310. Appointed Justice of the forests South of Trent during the King's pleasure, 16 Mar. 1307/8, and for life, 28 Aug. 1309. In the quarrel about Gavastone in 1308 he alone sided with the King against the Barons, who induced the King to promise to dismiss him from Court. He took part in the Baron's letter to the Pope, 6 Aug. 1309. Had licence to crenellate all his dwelling houses throughout the kingdom, 29 Sep. 1311. Keeper of the forests South of Trent, 14 June 1312 to 19 Feb. 1314/5. He was one of the King's deputies in the treaty with the magnates concerning the death of Gavastone, 20 Dec. 1312. Was pardoned for all arrears and debts to the King, 25 Mar. 1313, and accompanied him to Pontoise, 23 May following. He was excluded from the peace that was arranged between the King and the discontented barons in the autumn of 1313. Was at the battle of Bannockburn, 24 June 1314, and accompanied the King in his flight to Dunbar, and thence by sea to Berwick. A few months afterwards the party of the Earl of Lancaster obtained his dismissal from Court, and his removal from the council in Feb. 1314/5. A commission was appointed, 13 July 1315, to hear complaints against his acts of oppression as Keeper of the forests South of Trent. He was in the Scottish Wars in 1317. He was again specially excluded when peace was made with the Earl of Lancaster in Aug. 1318: to avoid the Earl, he is said to have gone "on pilgrimage" to Compostella. Was sent to set in order the affairs of Gascony, 28 Feb. 1319/20, and on missions to the King of France and the Pope in Mar. following. Was appointed Constable of Marlborough Castle, 2 May 1321. He was sum. for Military Service from 14 Mar. (1282/3) 11 Edw. I to 11 May (1322) 15 Edw. II, to attend the King at Shrewsbury, 28 June (1283) 11 Edw. II, to attend the King at Salisbury, 26 Jan. (1296/7) 25 Edw. I, to Councils from 8 Jan. (1308/9) 2 Edw. II to 1 July (1317) 10 Edw. II, and to Parl. from 24 June (1295) 23 Edw. I to 14 Mar. (1321/2) 15 Edw. II, by writs directed Hugoni le Despenser, whereby he is held to have become LORD LE DESPENSER. In May and June 1321 the barons of the Welsh Marches and their adherents ravaged the lands of the younger Despenser in Wales, and those of the elder throughout the country. In Aug. of that year both Despensers were accused in Parl., chiefly on account of the son's misconduct, of many misdeeds, viz., of accroaching to themselves royal power, counselling the King evilly, replacing good ministers by bad ones, &c. Wherefore they were disinherited for ever (19 Aug.), and exiled from the realm, not to return without the assent of the King and Parl. The elder Hugh accordingly retired to the Continent. His lands were taken into the King's hand, 15 Sep. 1321. The sentence on the Despensers was pronounced unlawful at a provincial council of the clergy about 1 Jan. 1321/2. In Mar. following the elder Hugh accompanied the King against the contrariants, and was present at the judgment on the Earl of Lancaster. The proceedings against the Despensers were annulled and cancelled in the Parl. of York, the lands of the elder Hugh being formally restored, 7 May 1322. Three days later, 10 May, the King granted him £20 a year from the issues of co. Hants, to be received nomine et honore comitis Wyntonie, and girded him with the sword as EARL OF WINCHESTER. He accompanied the King in his expedition against the Scots in Aug. 1322. He was appointed Keeper of the forests South of Trent, 27 June 1324, for life. He was sum. for Military Service from 20 Sep. (1322) 16 Edw. II to 1 May (1325) 18 Edw. II, to Councils from 20 Nov. (1323) 17 Edw. II to 20 Feb. (1324/5) 18 Edw. II, and to Parl. from 18 Sep. (1322) 16 Edw. II to 10 Oct. (1325) 19 Edw. II, by writs directed Hugoni le Despenser Comiti Wynton. He m. in or before 1286, without the King's lic. (fine of 2,000 marks, afterwards remitted), Isabel, widow of Sir Patric de Chaurces or Chaworces, of Kidwelly, co. Carmarthen, Somborne, Hants, &c. (who d.s.p.m. shortly before 7 July 1283), and da. of William (de Beauchamp), Earl of Warwick, by Maud, sister and coh. of Sir Richard fitz John, of Shere, Surrey, Fambridge, Essex, &c. [Lord FitzJohn], and 1st da. of Sir John fitz Geoffrey, of Shere and Fambridge. She d. shortly before 30 May 1306. On the King's flight to Wales in Oct. 1326 the Earl was dispatched to defend Bristol, which, however, he at once surrendered on the arrival of the Queen, 26 Oct. Next day he was tried--without being allowed to speak in his own defence--condemned to death as a traitor, and hanged on the common gallows. On his death, 27 Oct. 1326, at the age of 65, all his honours were forfeited, the sentence of 'Exile' passed on him in 1321 being re-affirmed in Parl., 1 Edw. III." [Complete Peerage]

"When the queen landed in England with an armed force in September 1326, she put out a proclamation against the Despensers. On the king's flight to Wales in October 1326, Earl Hugh was dispatched to defend Bristol, which, however, he at once surrendered on the arrival of the Queen. The next day, 27 October 1326, Sir Hugh le Despenser, Earl of Winchester, was tried -- without being allowed to speak in his own defence -- condemned to death as a traitor, and hanged on the common gallows, all honors forfeited. His head was sent to Winchester." [Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry]

Hanged in his armor, then beheaded and his body cut into pieces for the dogs.

Hugh married Isabel de Beauchamp between 10 Sep 1285 and 27 Jan 1287. Isabel (daughter of William de Beauchamp and Maud fitz John) died before 30 May 1306. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Philip le Despenser was born in of Parlington, Yorkshire, England; died on 24 Sep 1313.
2. Isabel le Despenser died on 4 Dec 1334; was buried in Grey Friars, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England.
3. Hugh le Despenser was born in of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England; died on 24 Nov 1326 in Hereford, Herefordshire, England; was buried in Tewkesbury Abbey, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England.
4. Elizabeth le Despenser died between 14 Mar 1327 and 17 Feb 1331.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: Bef 1224, of Ryhall, Rutland, England

Notes:

"Sir Hugh le Despenser of Loughborough, Burton, Hugglescote, Freeby, and Arnesby, co. Leicester, Parlington and Hilliam, co. York, Sibsey and Aukborough, co. Lincoln, Ryhall and Belmesthorp, Rutland, s. and h. of Sir Hugh le Despenser, of the same (who d. between 23 Feb. and 30 May 1238). He was b. in or before 1223. Had respite of knighthood, 11 July 1244. On 7 Nov. 1255 he was appointed Constable of Horston Castle for five years from the preceding Michaelmas. In Apr. 1257 he accompanied Richard, Earl of Cornwall, to Aachen, for the latter's coronation, on 17 May, as King of the Romans. At the Parl. of Oxford, in Jun 1258, he was one of the twelve elected by the Barons to redress grievances, and also one of the twelve elected to treat with the King's Council in Parl. Appointed Justiciar of England, 25 Oct. 1260, being the nominee of the Barons: he was deprived of his office by the King, May or June 1261. Attended Montfort's Parl. at Oxford in Apr. 1263. Appointed Justiciar of England and Constable of the Tower of London, about 15 July 1263, by the Barons, with the assent of the King. In Mar. 1264, when Constable of the Tower, he led the rioters who sacked the mansion at Isleworth of the King of the Romans. Was at the battle of Lewes, 14 May 1264. Appointed, by the counsel of the Barons, Constable of the Castles of Devizes and Oxford, 12 July, of Orford Castle, 18 July, and of Nottingham Castle, 15 Dec. 1264. Was appointed an arbiter to consider the peace between the King and the Barons, 11 Sep. 1264. He was sum. for Military Service against the Welsh, 14 Mar. (1257/8) 42 Hen. III and 25 May (1263) 47 Hen. III, by writs directed Hugoni le Despenser Justic' Anglie. He was appointed an arbiter between the Earls of Leicester and Gloucester in May 1265. He m., in or before 1260, Aline, da. and h. of Sir Philip Basset, of Wycombe, Bucks, Compton-Bassett and Wootton-Basset, Wilts, &c., Justiciar of England, by his 1st wife, Hawise, da. of Sir Matthew de Lovaine, of Little Easton, Essex. He joined the Earl of Leicester in his last campaign, and with him was slain at the battle of Evesham, 4 Aug. 1265. He was bur. in Evesham Abbey." [Complete Peerage IV:259.]

Hugh married Aline Basset before 1261. Aline (daughter of Philip Basset and Hawise de Hastings) was born about 1240 in of Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England; died before 11 Apr 1281. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: Between 1241 and 1249
• Alternate birth: 1245

Notes:

Also called Aliva.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: Bef 30 May 1238
• Alternate death: Bef 31 May 1238

Hugh married (Unknown). [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Ravilious (31 Dec 2003) hypothesizes that she may have been a daughter of Saher de Quincy and Margaret de Beaumont.

Notes:

"Justiciar of England 1261; one of the deputation of the Barons to the Council of Lyons 1245; Constable of the castles of Oxford, Bristol, Corfe, and Sherburne; Sheriff of four counties; made prisoner with 'tuenti wounde' at Lewes, 1264, and imprisoned by De Montfort at Dover Castle, but was liberated after the battle of Evesham, 1265; was one of the arbitrators by which the 'dictum de Kenilworth' was drawn up; a member of the King's Council 1270; d. 'Bonae Memoriae' 1271." [The Wallop Family, citation details below.]

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography has him as the son of a wife of Thomas Basset preceding Aline de Gai; they name this wife "Alice de Gray," but they also note that "the similarity of [the names Alice de Gray and Aline de Gai] is such that the possibility that Alan had only one wife cannot be excluded."

Philip married Hawise de Hastings. Hawise (daughter of Ralph de Hastings) was born in of Little Easton, Essex, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Asserted in CP, the ODNB, Ancestral Roots, and The Ancestry of Dorothea Poyntz as a daughter of Matthew de Lovaine (Louvain, Louvaine, etc.), but Andrew Lancaster pointed out on SGM in June 2016 that this appears to have been based on the assumption that Philip Basset held Wix because Matthew de Louvaine was his wife's father, rather than her overlord, "ignoring the possibility that the family had enfeoffed a cadet branch which evidently was expected to inherit."

Lancaster points to Clarence Smith's 1966 article "Hastings of Little Easton (part 1) in Transactions of the Essex Archaeological Society, Volume 2, Part 1. Says Lancaster: "[T]he snippets of evidence are small and the argument seems simple. [Smith] says CP asserts it was a free marriage when it was not. And then secondly he points to the clear evidence for an enfeoffed heiress being bought by the Bassets."

Quoting Smith:

"[Ralph de Hastings] was dead by Michaelmas 1210, leaving a daughter under age whose custody and marriage had been granted to Alan Bassett for 100 marks. It is not therefore surprising to find at the death of Sir Philip Basset of Wycombe, younger son of this Alan, in 1271, that he held under Sir Matthew de Lovaine the manor of Wix 'by courtesy of England of the inheritance of Helewisia his wife'. [...] G. W. Watson in the article on Despenser in the Complete Peerage, IV, p. 261, says that Sir Hugh Despenser married 'Aline, da. & h. of Sir Philip Basset of Wycombe, Bucks....by his first wife Hawise, da. of Sir Matthew de Lovaine of Little Easton, Essex,' to which is appended a footnote: 'She had, in free marriage, the manor of Wix, Essex, by the service of 20s. a year. Some genealogists say that she was da. of John de Grey of Eaton, Bucks.' Her fathering on Sir Matthew de Lovaine has no other support than the quite unwarranted assumption that she held Wix in free marriage: in fact she held it by inheritance as the Inquisition specifies, and Sir Matthew was her overlord but not her father."

The IPM of Philip Basset specified as evidence is IPM 56 H3, Calendar I, No. 807, p. 273.

John Watson said on SGM, 6 Jun 2016: "Clarence Smith's evidence that Ralph de Hastings was dead in 1210 and that his heiress was in the custody of Alan Basset is presumably taken from the Pipe Rolls of 12 John: 1209-1210, to which I have no access at the moment. (There is nothing in the fine rolls, close rolls, patent rolls, etc.) If anyone can confirm this, then I think it is a reasonable assumption that Hawise, first wife of Philip Basset was the daughter of Ralph de Hastings and not a daughter of Matthew de Louvain. She was presumably named after her grandmother, Hawise wife of William fitz Robert." Andrew Lancaster replied: "Yes, for the death 1210, Clarence-Smith cites the Pipe Rolls, PRS 26 NS, p. 35."

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: Bef 1218

Notes:

Also called Thomas Dispensator.

Thomas married Rohese. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: 1231
• Alternate death: 1232
• Alternate death: Abt 1233

Notes:

"Basset, Alan (d. 1232), administrator, was one of the three sons (probably the youngest) of Thomas Basset (d. c. 1182). He founded the Bassets of Wycombe, and was a noted servant of Richard I, John, and Henry III. In 1197 Richard I sent him on a diplomatic mission with William (I) Marshal to the counts of Flanders and Boulogne to detach them from their allegiance to King Philip of France, and shortly afterwards, with his elder brother Thomas, he attested as surety for Richard in France concerning the king's treaty with the count of Flanders against Philip. Between 1197 and 1199 he witnessed six more of Richard's documents in France. Following Richard's death, he was soon in attendance upon John; Alan, Thomas, and Gilbert Basset were all described as barons when they witnessed the homage of the king of Scots to John at Lincoln on 22 November 1200. In 1202 and 1203 Alan witnessed ten of John's charters in France, and, between 1200 and 1215, twenty-five royal charters in England. Remaining loyal to John, he is often recorded in that king's service, and received such rewards as numerous quittances of scutage. In 1215 he was named in Magna Carta as one of the 'noblemen' whose counsel the king relied upon, and he was among the royalist barons who attended John at Runnymede. He appears to have accompanied John on his expedition to the north of England in the winter of 1215 - 16. He was in Henry III's service by 14 December 1216. In 1217 he fought at the battle of Lincoln, and helped to pacify the kingdom afterwards, and in 1220 he was one of three ambassadors sent to France to arrange a four-year truce. He was still in royal service in 1228, but died late in 1232." [Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]

Alan married Aline de Gay. Aline (daughter of Philip de Gay and Cecily) was born in of Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire, England; died in 1230. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: Abt 1233

Notes:

Also called Aline de Grey.