Nicholas Seagrave (after 1256 – 25 November 1321), lord of Stowe in Northamptonshire, was

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 ...

from 1308 to 1316. He was the second son of Nicholas of Seagrave, first Baron Seagrave and a leading supporter of

Simon de Montfort Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester ( – 4 August 1265), later sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from his namesake relatives, was a nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the ...

in his struggle with King Henry III. Nicholas Seagrave was first summoned to Parliament in 1295 and continued to be summoned until his death. In 1298 he fought in the

vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives fr ...

at the

Battle of Falkirk The Battle of Falkirk (''Blàr na h-Eaglaise Brice'' in Gaelic), on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence. Led by King Edward I of England, the English army defeated the Scots, led by William Wal ...

. In 1300 he was present at the siege of

Caerlaverock Caerlaverock (; gd, Cille Bhlàthain) is a civil parish in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The parish was historically in Dumfriesshire. The area includes: * Caerlaverock Castle, a 13th-century castle, located south of Dumfries, Scotland * Ca ...

in the retinue of

Henry de Bohun, 1st Earl of Hereford Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

, and in 1301 he sealed the barons' remonstrances to the pope as 'Nicholas de Seagrave, lord of Stow'. In 1301 he became involved in a dispute with

Walter Langton Walter Langton (died 1321) of Castle Ashby'Parishes: Castle Ashby', in A History of the County of Northampton: Volume 4, ed. L F Salzman (London, 1937), pp. 230-236/ref> in Northamptonshire, was Bishop of Lichfield, Bishop of Coventry and Lic ...

, bishop of

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...

, and in the same year he and his wife Alice were accused with many others of breaking houses belonging to

Ralph de Monthermer, 1st Baron Monthermer Ralph de Monthermer, 1st Baron Monthermer, Earl of Gloucester, Hertford, and Atholl (c. 1270 – 5 April 1325) was an English nobleman, who was the son-in-law of King Edward I. His clandestine marriage to the King's widowed daughter Joan greatly ...

. In the Scottish campaign of 1303-4 he became involved in another dispute, and when he was refused trial by combat he deserted the army to flee to France. On his return in 1305 he was apparently sentenced to death, but soon pardoned and restored to favour by King

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 ...

. He was one of

Edward II Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to t ...

's strongest supporters at the start of his reign, and in 1308 he was appointed Lord Marshal. However, he was an adherent of

Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster Thomas of Lancaster, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, 2nd Earl of Leicester, 2nd Earl of Derby, ''jure uxoris'' 4th Earl of Lincoln and ''jure uxoris'' 5th Earl of Salisbury (c. 1278 – 22 March 1322) was an English nobleman. A member of the House of Pl ...

, who became a leader of the opposition to the king. This made Seagrave's position at court increasingly untenable, and he was replaced in 1316. He died on 25 November 1321.J. S. Hamilton, ''Nicholas Seagrave (d. 1321), Oxford Online Dictionary of National Biography, 2004
/ref>

Coat of arms

His coat of arms - ''sable a lion rampant argent crowned or a label gules'' - appears on the following

rolls of arms Roll or Rolls may refer to: Movement about the longitudinal axis * Roll angle (or roll rotation), one of the 3 angular degrees of freedom of any stiff body (for example a vehicle), describing motion about the longitudinal axis ** Roll (aviation), ...

which verify his presence on the Scottish campaigns mentioned above: The Falkirk Roll (together with his eldest brother John); The Caerlaverock Poem (again with John); and The Stirling Roll (with brothers John, Henry, Simon and nephew Stephen). Of course, his arms are differenced from those of his eldest brother.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seagrave, Nicholas 13th-century births 1321 deaths Earls Marshal Younger sons of barons