| Notes |
- From the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography:
A leading supporter of Simon de Montfort, earl of Leicester (but no relation), [Peter de] Montfort was technically not a baron, for he held little directly from the king. He was, however, a substantial magnate. His chief seat was at Beaudesert, a low hill above Henley in Arden in Warwickshire, where extensive earthworks of the family castle still remain. Another important base was at Preston in Rutland.
In 1166 Montfort's great-grandfather, another Thurstin de Montfort, had held ten fees from the earl of Warwick, which made him the second greatest of his tenants. The connection with the earls of Warwick, however, played no discernible part in Peter's career, partly because the earldom was held from 1242 until 1263, in right of his wife, by a Poitevin favourite of the king, John de Plessis, who established few local roots. Much more important for Montfort was the family of his grandfather William (I) de Cantilupe (d. 1239), whose principal residence was at Aston Cantlow, only 4 miles from Beaudesert. His father died in 1216 and Montfort spent many years as Cantilupe's ward, developing what was to be a lifelong friendship with his son Walter de Cantilupe, bishop of Worcester from 1238 to 1266. The fleurs-de-lis of the Cantilupe coat of arms were incorporated into Montfort's seal.
It was probably ties of neighbourhood that drew both Montfort and Walter de Cantilupe into the circle of Simon de Montfort, for Beaudesert and Aston Cantlow are respectively 9 and 12 miles distant from Kenilworth, after 1244 Earl Simon's great base in England. In 1248 Montfort was in Earl Simon's retinue when the latter went out to Gascony as seneschal and thereafter there are numerous instances of the close connection between the two men. Peter de Montfort attested many of the earl's charters and was probably often in his company; in 1259 he was named as an executor of Simon de Montfort's will. His faithful service was rewarded with a grant of the manor of Ilmington in Warwickshire. Part of that service was doubtless to help Earl Simon build up his following of midlands knights, for Montfort was well connected locally -- in 1260-62 six knights of Warwickshire and Leicestershire acted as his pledges.
From 1254 onwards, while Montfort remained close to Earl Simon, his career developed independently. He was employed by Henry III on diplomatic missions, was given an important command in the Welsh marches, and by 1257 was on the royal council. He was also closely connected with Edward, the king's son, whom he had accompanied to Spain for his marriage to Eleanor of Castile in 1254. Fear of being ousted from Edward's entourage by the king's Poitevin half-brothers perhaps gave him a personal interest in the political upheaval of 1258, which began with the half-brothers' expulsion from England. In that upheaval Peter de Montfort played a leading part. He was one of the seven magnates whose confederation in April 1258 began the revolution; he was one of the baronial twelve who were to draw up the plans of reform; and he was one of the council of fifteen set up by the provisions of Oxford to govern England in the king's name. In all these capacities Earl Simon was a colleague. However, unlike the earl (who withdrew to France), Peter de Montfort accepted the king's recovery of power in 1261, and in the following year served the king and Edward as custodian of Abergavenny, which he tried in vain to protect from the attacks of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. None the less, when Earl Simon returned to England in April 1263 and raised once more the standard of the provisions of Oxford, Peter de Montfort joined him. This time he was to remain with him to the end. When the civil war commenced in March 1264, he was in command of the Montfortians in Northampton and was captured when the town fell to the king on 5 April. Released after Earl Simon's great victory at Lewes (14 May), Peter de Montfort was one of the council of nine imposed on the king (June 1264) and thenceforth played a major part in the direction of central government. In September he was one of those appointed to negotiate with the king of France and the papal legate in the abortive hope of finding some political settlement. His rewards during this period of power included a grant from the king of the manor of Garthorpe in Leicestershire. Montfort accompanied Earl Simon throughout his final campaign and died with him at the battle of Evesham on 4 August 1265. [...]
The support Peter de Montfort gave Earl Simon was of the first importance. While a close personal friend and follower, he also enjoyed his own power base in the midlands and an independent career in the service of the king and his son Edward. He possessed considerable abilities as a soldier, diplomat, and councillor. It is highly significant that Earl Simon retained the loyalty of such a man to the last.
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Abt 1205 - 1265 (~ 60 years)
[3, 4]