Baron Scales is a title in the

Peerage of England The Peerage of England comprises all peerages created in the Kingdom of England before the Act of Union in 1707. In that year, the Peerages of England and Scotland were replaced by one Peerage of Great Britain. There are five peerages in t ...

Origin

Robert de Scales

The ancestors of the Baron Scales came into possession of the manors of Newsells,

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

and Rivenhall,

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

in 1255 by the marriage of Sir Robert de Scales to Alice de Rochester (or de Roffa/Rossa), whose family had held the manors since 1210. Robert died in 1256. Robert is probably the same Robert as mentioned in some, or all, of the following references:- * 1232-33 Sir Robert de Scales lord of the manors of Bedenested and Scolegh in Essex, Parva Willington in Kent and Lynne, Middelton and Ilsington in Norfolk.''

Book of Fees The ''Book of Fees'' is the colloquial title of a modern edition, transcript, rearrangement and enhancement of the medieval (Latin: 'Book of Fiefs'), being a listing of feudal landholdings or fief (Middle English ), compiled in about 1302, but f ...

'' * 1242-43 Sir Robert de Scales lord of the manors of Parva Wilmynton in Kent, Wilton, Hocwolde, Herdwic and Nudebonve in Norfolk, Wetherden and Wridelincton in Suffolk

Peter de Scales

Robert's eldest son who inherited his father's lands but died shortly afterwards in 1258.

Robert de Scales

Peter's younger brother who inherited their father's lands upons Peter's death in 1258. Robert was involved in several expeditions to France and had summons to Parliament. He was listed at Dover Castle from 1261-2, as was a Sir Radulfus de Escales. Upon Robert's death in 1266 he was succeeded by his son

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, who he had by his wife Muriel, and who was to become the first of the Baron Scales. Left a widow called ClemenciaPatent Rolls

History of the Barony

The Scales barony was created in 1299 by

writ In common law, a writ (Anglo-Saxon ''gewrit'', Latin ''breve'') is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, a ...

for

Scales Scale or scales may refer to: Mathematics * Scale (descriptive set theory), an object defined on a set of points * Scale (ratio), the ratio of a linear dimension of a model to the corresponding dimension of the original * Scale factor, a number w ...

. The last known holders were Elizabeth de Scales and her husband

Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers (c. 144025 June 1483), was an English nobleman, courtier, bibliophile and writer. He was the brother of Queen Elizabeth Woodville who married King Edward IV. He was one of the leading members of the Woodvi ...

. After Elisabeth's death in 1473, Anthony was summoned in her right. Anthony was beheaded by

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wake ...

on 24 Jun 1483 and the peerage fell into

abeyance Abeyance (from the Old French ''abeance'' meaning "gaping") is a state of expectancy in respect of property, titles or office, when the right to them is not vested in any one person, but awaits the appearance or determination of the true owner. ...

. However, after the death of Anthony, his younger brother

Edward Woodville Sir Edward Woodville (died 1488) was a member of the Woodville family during the Wars of the Roses. He survived the reign of Richard III in which several of his relatives were executed in a power struggle after the death of his brother-in-law ...

, a supporter of Henry Tudor, styled himself Lord Scales, having been bequeathed Elizabeth's land by his brother.C. P. Wilkins, "Woodville, Sir Edward (d. 1488), soldier and courtier", Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press 2011. Several people have subsequently tried to claim the title but none have been successful. The most recent was made by Sir Charles Robert Tempest who claimed to be a co-heir in 1857.House of Lords, ''Supplemental Case of the House of Lords''

Residences

The Scales family's main residences were Middleton in

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, Newsells in

and Rivenhall in

but also held other lands including Ouresby and Torneton in

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

.Patent Rolls

Barons Scales (1299)

* Robert de Scales, 1st Baron Scales (d. 1304) *

Robert de Scales, 2nd Baron Scales Robert de Scales was appointed Knight of the Order of the Bath by Prince Edward whom he accompanied in the Scottish wars and was given an exemption for life from sitting on assizes, juries, etc. against his will. He was summoned to Parliament fr ...

(d. 1324) *

Robert de Scales, 3rd Baron Scales Sir Robert de Scales was engaged in several military expeditions. In 1337 he went on the Kings Service overseas with Robert d'Ufford, 1st Earl of Suffolk and Peter de Scales (presumably his brother or son). He was summoned to Parliament from 134 ...

(d. 1369) *

Roger de Scales, 4th Baron Scales Roger Scales, 4th Baron Scales (1354–1387) was one of the 'eminent persons' forced by the rebels to march with them upon the insurrection of Jack Straw in 1381. He was a commissioner of the peace for Cambridgeshire and Norfolk for many of the ...

(d. 1386) *

Robert de Scales, 5th Baron Scales Lord Robert de Scales (1372–1402) was involved in an expedition to Aquitaine. He was Commissioner of the Peace for Norfolk from 1399 to 1401, and was the steward of the son and heir of Thomas de Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk due to his minority ...

(d. 1402) *

Robert de Scales, 6th Baron Scales Robert de Scales (c. 1395–1418) died unmarried, and at an early age, and was succeeded by his brother Thomas.Philip Morant, ''The History and Antiquities of the County of Essex'' On 8 May 1410 an order to seize Robert and deliver him to the Tre ...

(d. 1418) *

Thomas de Scales, 7th Baron Scales Thomas Scales, 7th Baron Scales (9 October 1399 – 20 July 1460) was an English nobleman and one of the main English military commanders in the last phase of the Hundred Years' War. The son of Robert de Scales, 5th Baron Scales (c. 1372–1402 ...

(d. 1460) *

Elizabeth de Scales Woodville, Baroness Scales Elizabeth Woodville, Countess Rivers and 8th Baroness Scales (died 2 September 1473), born Elizabeth de Scales, was the sole heir of Thomas Scales, 7th Baron Scales.Philip Morant, ''The History and Antiquities of the County of Essex'' Family E ...

(d. 2 September 1473)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scales 1299 establishments in England Abeyant baronies in the Peerage of England Noble titles created in 1299