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Geoffrey de Geneville, 1st Baron Geneville (c. 1226 – 21 October 1314) also known as Geoffrey de Joinville, was an Anglo-French noble, supporter of Henry III, who appointed him Baron of
Trim, County Meath Trim () is a town in County Meath, Ireland. It is situated on the River Boyne and has a population of 9,194. The town is noted for Trim Castle – the largest Norman castle in Ireland. One of the two cathedrals of the United Dioceses of Meat ...
, and, subsequently, a staunch supporter of
Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
.


Family and marriage

Geoffrey was Seigneur of
Vaucouleurs Vaucouleurs () is a commune in the Meuse department, northeastern France. It is situated on the river Meuse, approximately from Toul and Commercy. History Geoffrey de Geneville, 1st Baron Geneville (1225/33 – 21 October 1314) also known as G ...
in
Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...
, second son of
Simon of Joinville }; la, Symon de Jovisvillæ) was a French knight, who became the Lord of Joinville from 1204 until his death in 1233. He was also the hereditary seneschal of the County of Champagne. Biography Simon was the fourth son of Geoffrey IV of Joinvill ...
and Beatrix d'Auxonne (daughter of
Stephen III of Auxonne Stephen (or Étienne) III (died 1241) was Count of Auxonne. He was from the House of Ivrea, son of Stephen II, count of Auxonne (died after 1173) and Judith of Lorraine (c. 1140 – 1173). He was Stephen III in his House and Stephen II as count ...
), and younger brother of
Jean de Joinville Jean de Joinville (, c. 1 May 1224 – 24 December 1317) was one of the great chroniclers of medieval France. He is most famous for writing the ''Life of Saint Louis'', a biography of Louis IX of France that chronicled the Seventh Crusade.''V ...
. Geoffrey's half-sister was wife to one of
Eleanor of Provence Eleanor of Provence (c. 1223 – 24/25 June 1291) was a French noblewoman who became Queen of England as the wife of King Henry III from 1236 until his death in 1272. She served as regent of England during the absence of her spouse in 1253. ...
's uncles, Peter of Savoy, earl of Richmond. Geoffrey was thus one of the "Savoyards" who arrived in England in the retinue of Eleanor at the time of her marriage to King Henry III in 1236. Some time between 1249 and 8 August 1252, Henry III arranged Geoffrey's marriage to Maud (or 'Mathilda') de Lacy, widow of another ''Savoyard'', Pierre de Genève, himself also a relative of Queen Eleanor, who had died in 1249. Maud had been co-heiress to vast estates and lordships in Ireland, Herefordshire, and the
Welsh Marches The Welsh Marches ( cy, Y Mers) is an imprecisely defined area along the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods. The English term Welsh March (in Medieval Latin ...
, and the marriage is considered typical of Henry's 'policy' of appointing such 'aliens' to retain control of the outlying regions of the kingdom. Geoffrey thus came to control vast estates in Ireland centred at Trim, the Welsh borders at
Ludlow Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The t ...
,
Ewyas Lacy Ewyas Lacy was an ancient hundred in south-west Herefordshire. It was part of the ancient Welsh region of Ewyas claimed by the de Lacy family following the Norman Conquest. It equated to the modern civil parishes of Craswall, Cusop, Llancillo, Ll ...
and others in England. Maud and Geoffrey had at least four sons, Geoffrey, Simon, William and Peter (or Piers).


Political and military career

Geoffrey was both a military figure and political negotiator. He successfully pacified the Irish pro- Montfort and Royalist barons at this time that assisted the future
Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
's success at
Evesham Evesham () is a market town and parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon. It lies within the Vale of Evesha ...
. In 1267 he assisted Henry III with negotiations with
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd Llywelyn ap Gruffudd (c. 1223 – 11 December 1282), sometimes written as Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, also known as Llywelyn the Last ( cy, Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf, lit=Llywelyn, Our Last Leader), was the native Prince of Wales ( la, Princeps Wall ...
, the year of the
Treaty of Montgomery The Treaty of Montgomery was an Anglo-Welsh treaty signed on 29 September 1267 in Montgomeryshire by which Llywelyn ap Gruffudd was acknowledged as Prince of Wales by King Henry III of England (r. 1216–1272). It was the only time an English ...
. With another of his brothers, William, he accompanied Edward on the
Eighth Crusade The Eighth Crusade was the second Crusade launched by Louis IX of France, this one against the Hafsid dynasty in Tunisia in 1270. It is also known as the Crusade of Louis IX against Tunis or the Second Crusade of Louis. The Crusade did not see ...
in 1270, fought in
Welsh Wars This is an incomplete list of the wars and battles between the Anglo-Saxons who later formed into the Kingdom of England and the Britons (the pre-existing Brythonic population of Britain south of the Antonine Wall who came to be known later by the ...
, and went on diplomatic missions to Paris. He served as
justiciar of Ireland The chief governor was the senior official in the Dublin Castle administration, which maintained English and British rule in Ireland from the 1170s to 1922. The chief governor was the viceroy of the English monarch (and later the British monarch) ...
from 1273 to 1276 but had little success against the
Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...
Irish, being heavily defeated in 1274 and 1276. In 1280, he acted as Edward's envoy in Paris and to the papal curia, a mission repeated ten years later in 1290. In 1282, he was assistant to the
Marshal of England Earl marshal (alternatively marschal or marischal) is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the United Kingdom). He is the eighth ...
in the Welsh War of that year. In 1283, he granted his English lands to his son Peter (Piers) and focused his attention on Ireland. He and his wife defended their liberty rights in
Trim Trim or TRIM may refer to: Cutting * Cutting or trimming small pieces off something to remove them ** Book trimming, a stage of the publishing process ** Pruning, trimming as a form of pruning often used on trees Decoration * Trim (sewing), or ...
against the Dublin government, and defined military duties for his tenants. In 1297, he supported Edward in the crisis caused by royal demands for men and money for the war in France. Edward appointed Geoffrey as Marshal of England in place of the main dissenter Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk until the crisis was over. Geneville subsequently received a number of summonses to parliaments between February 1299 and November 1306.


Later life

Geoffrey's wife and their eldest son pre-deceased him, Maud dying on 11 April 1304. In 1308, aged about eighty, he conveyed most, but not all, of his Irish lordships to Roger Mortimer, husband of his eldest granddaughter and heir,
Joan Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters *:Joan of Arc, a French military heroine * Joan (surname) Weather events *Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multip ...
. He retired to the Dominican Black Friary at Trim, which he had established in 1263. He died 21 October 1314 and was buried there. Upon his death Joan succeeded him as "suo jure" Baroness Geneville.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geneville, Geoffrey de, Baron Geneville 1220s births Date of birth unknown People from Champagne (province) English people of French descent Christians of the Eighth Crusade Justiciars of Ireland 1314 deaths Lords Lieutenant of Ireland Barons in the Peerage of England