Hugh de Courtenay, 9th Earl of Devon
Encyclopedia
Hugh de Courtenay was the son of Hugh de Courtenay
of Okehampton
and Eleanor le Despenser, daughter of Lord Hugh le Despenser
, the significant advisers to King Edward II
. He was grandson of John de Courtenay of Okehampton by Isabel de Vere, daughter of Hugh, Earl of Oxford
. John's father Robert had married Mary, the youngest daughter of William de Redvers, who had died in 1293. According to the Complete Peerage, Hugh became 9th Earl of Devon
through the maternal line on extinction of the de Redvers inheritance.
, although was not recognised in the de facto Earldom until 1333.
. However the following year the tables were turned on the advent of the remarkable campaign of William Wallace
.
The following February 6th, 1298 he was summoned as a Lord in Parliament, and sat throughout the reign of Edward II and into the Mortimer Regency for Edward's son. He remained an important noble at Parliaments into the reign of Edward III. He was summoned as Hugoni de Curtenay with the confusing suffix of senior being known as Lord Courtenay.
Courtenay joined King Edward at the long siege of Caerlaverock Castle
, just over the Solway Firth
for a fortnight in July 1300. He proved himself a fine soldier and loyal adherent to the English crown. He had not been present at the disastrous encounter outside Stirling Castle
in 1298, during which half the English contingent were killed, including commander Hugh Cressingham
. But Edward was determined to march into Ayrshire to devastate Robert Bruce
's estates. Unfortunately the English army melted away into the forests as the army moved further northwards. Courtenay may have been with the English King when he sat down in Sweetheart Abbey
to receive Winchelsea, Archbishop of Canterbury
who had travelled north with a demanding missive from Pope Boniface
to cease hostilities. The King could not ignore this order. In September he disbanded troops and withdrew over the Solway Firth to Carlisle. The campaign had failed due to a shortage of money, so Parliament was recalled for January 1301. Before returning to London the English drew up a six months truce.
. The agenda included redrafting the Royal Forest
Charter, which had no precedent since it was first introduced in the reign of Henry II, 150 years earlier. Local juries were expected to "perambulate the forests" to gather evidence. But the King needed money and was required by Parliament to surrender his absolute authority and ownership of what became community forests.
was despatched into Scotland; the vanguard led by Aymer de Valence
, the King's half uncle. On 22 May, Courtenay was knighted by the Prince, presumably for his efforts against the Scots. In June the English occupied Perth. On 19 June, Valence, who had cut a swathe through the Lowlands fell on the Scots army at Methven
in the early dawn. The Bruce fled into the hills. Edward I was merciless as many prisoners were punished. That autumn the army returned to Hexham
. The war was all but over: there were however sieges at Mull of Kintyre
and Kildrummy Castle
, Aberdeenshire. Edward I committed many atrocities rounding up the Scots aristocracy and their women.
Then as Robert Bruce returned from exile in Ireland the English army started losing battles. The ailing King had one last campaign in which Courtenay played a major part. Struggling into the saddle to the Solway Firth, Edward I died at Burgh-on-Sands awaiting a crossing. In 1308 a new campaign was sent to quell Robert Bruce, and Courtenay was made a knight banneret
, one of the King's elite household.
During the reign of Edward II he was made a Lord Ordainer, one of the ruling council in the Lords. He was appointed to the King's Council on 9 Aug 1318. He was appointed the Warden of the coast of Devon and Cornwall in 1324 and then again in 1336, because his estates stretched across what is now Exmoor and Dartmoor. But he took the honours reluctantly and played a guarded game with King and Parliament. A veteran campaigner he aimed to ingratiate himself with the young Edward III, and so refused the Third Penny from the Exchequer. He was investigated; and on 22 Feb 1335 elevated to the Earldom of Devon, restored to his ancestral line.
for royal visitors to come to pay respects to a great soldier and statesman because his honours and titles were confirmed by Parliamentary writ on 3 Jan 1341.
He married Agnes de St John, daughter of John St John of Basing, Hampshire by Alice, daughter of Reynold FitzPiers. They had six children:
Hugh de Courtenay
Hugh de Courtenay was the son and heir of John de Courtenay of Okehampton. Hugh was born on 25 March 1248/9 or 1250/1. The doubt over the location of the conception and birth has posed problems for historians...
of Okehampton
Okehampton
Okehampton is a town and civil parish in West Devon in the English county of Devon. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor, and has an estimated population of 7,155.-History:...
and Eleanor le Despenser, daughter of Lord Hugh le Despenser
Hugh le Despenser, 1st Earl of Winchester
Hugh le Despenser , sometimes referred to as "the Elder Despenser", was for a time the chief adviser to King Edward II of England....
, the significant advisers to King Edward II
Edward II of England
Edward II , called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England from 1307 until he was deposed by his wife Isabella in January 1327. He was the sixth Plantagenet king, in a line that began with the reign of Henry II...
. He was grandson of John de Courtenay of Okehampton by Isabel de Vere, daughter of Hugh, Earl of Oxford
Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford
Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford was an English nobleman and the only known child and heir of Robert de Vere, 3rd Earl of Oxford.-Early Life:...
. John's father Robert had married Mary, the youngest daughter of William de Redvers, who had died in 1293. According to the Complete Peerage, Hugh became 9th Earl of Devon
Earl of Devon
The title of Earl of Devon was created several times in the Peerage of England, and was possessed first by the de Redvers family, and later by the Courtenays...
through the maternal line on extinction of the de Redvers inheritance.
Biography
On 28 Feb 1292, about the time of his marriage, Hugh succeeded to the Okehampton estate and to those de Reviers estates that had not yet been alienated to the Crown. He may have been styled Earl of Devon, the first of the Courtenay familyHouse of Courtenay
The House of Courtenay was an important dynasty in medieval France originating from the castle of Courtenay in the Gâtinais , going back to the 10th century. The dynasty descended from Athon, the first lord of Courtenay, apparently himself a descendant of the Counts of Sens and from Pharamond,...
, although was not recognised in the de facto Earldom until 1333.
Campaign against Scotland, 1297-1300
He did homage to Edward I on 20 June 1297 and was granted his own livery stable. At the time the King was with his army crossing the Tweed into Scotland. It is probable that the honour was in acknowledgement of Hugh's military achievements. That July the English defeated and humiliated the Scots at IrvineIrvine, North Ayrshire
Irvine is a new town on the coast of the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland. According to 2007 population estimates, the town is home to 39,527 inhabitants, making it the biggest settlement in North Ayrshire....
. However the following year the tables were turned on the advent of the remarkable campaign of William Wallace
William Wallace
Sir William Wallace was a Scottish knight and landowner who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence....
.
The following February 6th, 1298 he was summoned as a Lord in Parliament, and sat throughout the reign of Edward II and into the Mortimer Regency for Edward's son. He remained an important noble at Parliaments into the reign of Edward III. He was summoned as Hugoni de Curtenay with the confusing suffix of senior being known as Lord Courtenay.
Courtenay joined King Edward at the long siege of Caerlaverock Castle
Caerlaverock Castle
Caerlaverock Castle is a moated triangular castle, built in the 13th century, in the Caerlaverock National Nature Reserve area at the Solway Firth, south of Dumfries in the southwest of Scotland. In the Middle Ages it was owned by the Maxwell family. Today, the castle is in the care of Historic...
, just over the Solway Firth
Solway Firth
The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very...
for a fortnight in July 1300. He proved himself a fine soldier and loyal adherent to the English crown. He had not been present at the disastrous encounter outside Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep...
in 1298, during which half the English contingent were killed, including commander Hugh Cressingham
Hugh de Cressingham
Hugh de Cressingham was the treasurer of the English administration in Scotland during 1296-97. He was hated by the Scots and did not seem well liked even by the English. He was an advisor to John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey at the Battle of Stirling Bridge...
. But Edward was determined to march into Ayrshire to devastate Robert Bruce
Robert I of Scotland
Robert I , popularly known as Robert the Bruce , was King of Scots from March 25, 1306, until his death in 1329.His paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage , and...
's estates. Unfortunately the English army melted away into the forests as the army moved further northwards. Courtenay may have been with the English King when he sat down in Sweetheart Abbey
Sweetheart Abbey
Sweetheart Abbey , south of Dumfries, near to the Nith in south-west Scotland, was a Cistercian monastery, founded in 1275 by Dervorguilla of Galloway, daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway, in memory of her husband John de Balliol...
to receive Winchelsea, Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
who had travelled north with a demanding missive from Pope Boniface
Pope Boniface VIII
Pope Boniface VIII , born Benedetto Gaetani, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1294 to 1303. Today, Boniface VIII is probably best remembered for his feuds with Dante, who placed him in the Eighth circle of Hell in his Divina Commedia, among the Simonists.- Biography :Gaetani was born in 1235 in...
to cease hostilities. The King could not ignore this order. In September he disbanded troops and withdrew over the Solway Firth to Carlisle. The campaign had failed due to a shortage of money, so Parliament was recalled for January 1301. Before returning to London the English drew up a six months truce.
Parliament of 1301
Parliament met at LincolnLincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
. The agenda included redrafting the Royal Forest
Royal forest
A royal forest is an area of land with different meanings in England, Wales and Scotland; the term forest does not mean forest as it is understood today, as an area of densely wooded land...
Charter, which had no precedent since it was first introduced in the reign of Henry II, 150 years earlier. Local juries were expected to "perambulate the forests" to gather evidence. But the King needed money and was required by Parliament to surrender his absolute authority and ownership of what became community forests.
Campaigns against Scotland, 1301-1308
In 1306 the Prince of WalesPrince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
was despatched into Scotland; the vanguard led by Aymer de Valence
Aymer de Valence
Aymer de Valence, also known as Aymer de Lusignan or Thelmar de Valence, was a Bishop of Winchester around 1250.-Life:...
, the King's half uncle. On 22 May, Courtenay was knighted by the Prince, presumably for his efforts against the Scots. In June the English occupied Perth. On 19 June, Valence, who had cut a swathe through the Lowlands fell on the Scots army at Methven
Methven, Perth and Kinross
Methven is a large village in the Scottish region of Perth and Kinross, on the A85 road due west of the town of Perth. Methven is close to another Perthshire village, Almondbank...
in the early dawn. The Bruce fled into the hills. Edward I was merciless as many prisoners were punished. That autumn the army returned to Hexham
Hexham
Hexham is a market town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, located south of the River Tyne, and was the administrative centre for the Tynedale district from 1974 to 2009. The three major towns in Tynedale were Hexham, Prudhoe and Haltwhistle, although in terms of population, Prudhoe was...
. The war was all but over: there were however sieges at Mull of Kintyre
Mull of Kintyre
The Mull of Kintyre is the southwesternmost tip of the Kintyre Peninsula in southwest Scotland. From here, the Antrim coast is visible and an historic lighthouse, the second commissioned in Scotland, guides shipping in the intervening North Channel...
and Kildrummy Castle
Kildrummy Castle
Kildrummy Castle is a ruined castle near Kildrummy, in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, United Kingdom. Though ruined, it is one of the most extensive castles of 13th century date to survive in eastern Scotland, and was the seat of the Earls of Mar....
, Aberdeenshire. Edward I committed many atrocities rounding up the Scots aristocracy and their women.
Then as Robert Bruce returned from exile in Ireland the English army started losing battles. The ailing King had one last campaign in which Courtenay played a major part. Struggling into the saddle to the Solway Firth, Edward I died at Burgh-on-Sands awaiting a crossing. In 1308 a new campaign was sent to quell Robert Bruce, and Courtenay was made a knight banneret
Knight banneret
A knight banneret, sometimes known simply as banneret, was a Medieval knight who led a company of troops during time of war under his own banner and were eligible to bear supporters in English heraldry.The military rank of a knight banneret was...
, one of the King's elite household.
During the reign of Edward II he was made a Lord Ordainer, one of the ruling council in the Lords. He was appointed to the King's Council on 9 Aug 1318. He was appointed the Warden of the coast of Devon and Cornwall in 1324 and then again in 1336, because his estates stretched across what is now Exmoor and Dartmoor. But he took the honours reluctantly and played a guarded game with King and Parliament. A veteran campaigner he aimed to ingratiate himself with the young Edward III, and so refused the Third Penny from the Exchequer. He was investigated; and on 22 Feb 1335 elevated to the Earldom of Devon, restored to his ancestral line.
Inheritance
The styling of Hugh is often confused, but Edward III declared him to be Earl of Devon on 22 February 1334/5. He was the 9th Earl, but the first in the Courtenay creation. He died at Cowick near Exeter on 23 December 1340, and was buried there on 5 Feb 1341. It is possible that his body lay in stateLying in state
Lying in state is a term used to describe the tradition in which a coffin is placed on view to allow the public at large to pay their respects to the deceased. It traditionally takes place in the principal government building of a country or city...
for royal visitors to come to pay respects to a great soldier and statesman because his honours and titles were confirmed by Parliamentary writ on 3 Jan 1341.
He married Agnes de St John, daughter of John St John of Basing, Hampshire by Alice, daughter of Reynold FitzPiers. They had six children:
- John Courtenay (1300—1349), Prior of Lewes and Abbot of Tavistock Abbey.
- Sir HughHugh de Courtenay, 10th Earl of DevonSir Hugh de Courtenay was the 2nd Earl of Devon in England, born probably in Devon. His parents were Hugh, the 1st Courtenay Earl of Devon by Agnes de St John, daughter of Sir John St John of Basing. He was destined to become a great soldier in the Hundred years war in service of King Edward III...
(12 July 1303 — 2 May 1377), 10th Earl of Devon, a founding Knight of the GarterOrder of the GarterThe Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
. He married Margaret de Bohun, daughter of Humphrey, 4th Earl of HerefordEarl of HerefordThe title of Earl of Hereford was created six times in the Peerage of England. See also Duke of Hereford, Viscount Hereford. Dates indicate the years the person held the title for.-Earls of Hereford, First Creation :*Swegen Godwinson...
, and 3rd Earl of EssexEarl of EssexEarl of Essex is a title that has been held by several families and individuals. The earldom was first created in the 12th century for Geoffrey II de Mandeville . Upon the death of the third earl in 1189, the title became dormant or extinct...
by Princess Elizabeth of RhuddlanElizabeth of RhuddlanElizabeth of Rhuddlan was the eighth and youngest daughter of Edward I of England and Eleanor of Castile...
, daughter of King Edward LongshanksEdward I of EnglandEdward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
by Eleanor of Castile. - Robert Courtenay(1309—1334), of Moreton
- Eleanor Courtenay (c.1309, Wootton, Devon — c.1330). She married John de GreyJohn de GrayJohn de Gray was Bishop of Norwich in the English county of Norfolk, as well as being elected Archbishop of Canterbury, but was never confirmed as archbishop.-Life:...
, 3rd Baron Grey of CodnorBaron Grey of CodnorBaron Grey, of Codnor in the County of Derby, is a title in the Peerage of England. Sir Henry Grey, grandson of Richard de Grey and who saw military service under Edward I, was summoned to Parliament by writ in 1299...
. - Thomas Courtenay (1311 — c.1362). He married Muriel de Moels, daughter of Sir John, 4th Lord Moels.
- Elizabeth Courtenay (c.1313 — ?). She married Bartholomew de Lisle, Lord Lisle.