Roger de Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March
Encyclopedia
Order of the Garter
The 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...
(11 November 1328 - 26 February 1360) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
nobleman and military commander during the Hundred Years' War
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...
.
He was the son of Sir Edmund de Mortimer (died 1331) and Elizabeth de Badlesmere
Elizabeth de Badlesmere
Elizabeth de Badlesmere, Countess of Northampton was the wife of two English noblemen, Sir Edmund Mortimer and William de Bohun, 1st Earl of Northampton...
, and grandson of Roger de Mortimer, 1st Earl of March
Roger de Mortimer, 1st Earl of March
Roger de Mortimer, 3rd Baron Mortimer, 1st Earl of March , was an English nobleman and powerful Marcher lord, who had gained many estates in the Welsh Marches and Ireland following his advantageous marriage to the wealthy heiress Joan de Geneville, 2nd Baroness Geneville. In November 1316, he was...
.
Inheritance
The Mortimer family lands and titles were lost after the first Earl of MarchEarl of March
The title The Earl of March has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of England. The title derived from the "marches" or boundaries between England and either Wales or Scotland , and was held by several great feudal families which owned lands in those border...
's revolt and death by hanging in 1330, which was followed the next year by the death of Roger's father. Roger thus grew up with uncertain prospects, and re-acquired the family honours only gradually.
Around 1342, he received back Radnor
Radnorshire
Radnorshire is one of thirteen historic and former administrative counties of Wales. It is represented by the Radnorshire area of Powys, which according to the 2001 census, had a population of 24,805...
, and the next year the old family baronial seat at Wigmore, Herefordshire.
Heraldic Coat of Arms: Barry Or and azure, on a chief of the first three pallets between two gyronnies based of the second, over all an inescucheon argent.
Military career
As a young man he distinguished himself in the wars in FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, fighting at Crécy
Battle of Crécy
The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 near Crécy in northern France, and was one of the most important battles of the Hundred Years' War...
and elsewhere in the campaign of 1347. Afterwards he was given livery of the rest of his lands, was one of the original founders and seventh Knight of the Garter, and was summoned to parliament as a baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
both in 1348.
Earldom
In 1354, the sentence passed against Mortimer's treacherous grandfather, the first earl, was reversed, and the next year he was summoned to parliament as Earl of March. Also in 1355 he received a number of important appointments, including Constable of Dover CastleDover Castle
Dover Castle is a medieval castle in the town of the same name in the English county of Kent. It was founded in the 12th century and has been described as the "Key to England" due to its defensive significance throughout history...
and Warden of the Cinque Ports
Cinque Ports
The Confederation of Cinque Ports is a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex. It was originally formed for military and trade purposes, but is now entirely ceremonial. It lies at the eastern end of the English Channel, where the crossing to the continent is narrowest...
, and accompanied Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
's expedition to France.
Other honours
On 19 October 1356 his grandmother, Joan de Geneville, widow of the first earl, died, and Roger inherited her vast estates, including Ludlow CastleLudlow Castle
Ludlow Castle is a large, partly ruined, non-inhabited castle which dominates the town of Ludlow in Shropshire, England. It stands on a high point overlooking the River Teme...
, which was thereafter the Mortimer family seat and power base.
In the following years he became a member of the Royal Council, and was appointed Constable at the castles of Montgomery
Montgomery Castle
Montgomery Castle is a stone masonry castle looking over the town of Montgomery in Powys, mid Wales. It is one of many Norman castles on the border between Wales and England.- Motte & Bailey Castle :...
, Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley. It is split into Low Town and High Town, named on account of their elevations relative to the River Severn, which separates the upper town on the right bank from the lower on the left...
in Shropshire, and Corfe
Corfe Castle
Corfe Castle is a village and civil parish in the English county of Dorset. It is the site of a ruined castle of the same name. The village and castle stand over a gap in the Purbeck Hills on the route between Wareham and Swanage. The village lies in the gap below the castle, and is some eight...
in Dorset.
In 1359, and continuing into 1360, he was Constable of Edward III's invasion of France, fighting in the failed siege of Reims
Reims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
and capturing Auxerre
Auxerre
Auxerre is a commune in the Bourgogne region in north-central France, between Paris and Dijon. It is the capital of the Yonne department.Auxerre's population today is about 45,000...
. The English forces then moved into Burgundy, where Roger died suddenly at Rouvray
Rouvray
Rouvray may refer to the following communes in France:*Rouvray, Côte-d'Or, in the Côte-d'Or département*Rouvray, Eure, in the Eure département*Rouvray, Yonne, in the Yonne département*Rouvray-Catillon, in the Seine-Maritime département...
near Avallon
Avallon
Avallon is a commune in the Yonne department in Burgundy in center-eastern France.-Geography:Avallon is located 50 km south-southeast of Auxerre, served by a branch of the Paris-Lyon railway and by exit 22 of the A6 motorway...
.
Roger married Philippa Montagu (1332-1381), daughter of William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury
William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury
William I Montagu, alias de Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury, 3rd Baron Montacute, King of Mann was an English nobleman and loyal servant of King Edward III....
and Catherine Grandison and had by her three children:
- Roger Mortimer, who died young;
- Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March;
- Margery Mortimer.
Mortimer also had at least one illegitimate child:
- Sir Thomas Mortimer, who acted as his nephew's (Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March) deputy in Ireland (1982-1483) and stood trial for the slaying of Richard II's commander, Sir Thomas Molineux after the Battle of Radcot Bridge (1387).