Sir Peter Courtenay, KG, (1346–1405) was a soldier,

knight of the shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistributio ...

, Chamberlain to

King Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father d ...

and a famous jouster. His principal seat was

Hardington Mandeville Hardington Mandeville is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The village has a population of 585. History The Hardington part of the name of the village means ''settle ...

, Somerset. He was the fifth son of

Hugh de Courtenay, 2nd Earl of Devon Sir Hugh de Courtenay, 2nd/10th Earl of Devon (12 July 1303 – 2 May 1377), 2nd Baron Courtenay, feudal baron of Okehampton and feudal baron of Plympton, played an important role in the Hundred Years War in the service of King Edward III. Hi ...

(1303–1377) by his wife Margaret de Bohun (died 1391). He had several highly prominent elder brothers, but was the most flamboyant of them all: *Sir Hugh Courtenay, KG, (1326–1349). *Thomas Courtenay, Prebendary of Cutton, cleric. *Sir Edward Courtenay (1329–1372). Born at

Haccombe Haccombe is a hamlet, former parish and historic manor in Devon, situated 2 1/2 miles east of Newton Abbot, in the south of the county. It is possibly the smallest parish in England, and was said in 1810 to be remarkable for containing only two ...

, Devon. He was an ancestor of Edward Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon (1485 creation) (died 1509). *Robert Courtenay of Moreton *

William Courtenay William Courtenay ( 134231 July 1396) was Archbishop of Canterbury (1381–1396), having previously been Bishop of Hereford and Bishop of London. Early life and education Courtenay was a younger son of Hugh de Courtenay, 10th Earl of Devon ( ...

(1342–1396), Archbishop of Canterbury. * Sir Philip Courtenay (c.1345–1406) of Powderham. Courtenay was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

ed by the

Black Prince Edward of Woodstock, known to history as the Black Prince (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), was the eldest son of King Edward III of England, and the heir apparent to the English throne. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, suc ...

after the

Battle of Najera A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

in 1367, at the same time as his brother Sir Philip. In 1378 whilst on a naval expedition with his brother Sir Philip, under the command of Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel and

William de Montacute, 2nd Earl of Salisbury William Montagu, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, 4th Baron Montagu, King of Mann, KG (25 June 1328 – 3 June 1397) was an English nobleman and commander in the English army during King Edward III's French campaigns in the Hundred Years War. He was one ...

, the fleet was attacked by Spaniards off the coast of Brittany and Sir Peter and his brother were captured. His ransom was paid by two wealthy burgesses of Bristol. SirPeterCourtenay(Died1405)BrassExeter

Courtenay married Margaret Clyvedon, daughter of John de Clyvedon by his wife Elizabeth. He died on 2 February 1405 and was buried in Exeter Cathedral, where his monumental brass, much worn-away, exists set into a slab in the floor of the south aisle. It was reported by Lysons in 1822 as being then situated further to the west in or near the now demolished Courtenay

chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or # a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area i ...

chapel, near to the chest tomb of his parents, which has also been moved. He is shown full-length, in armour, with hands together in prayer. His figure is surrounded by a ledger line on which was formerly visible the following inscribed Latin verse, transcribed by John Prince in his ''Worthies of Devon'': Prince, John,
The Worthies of Devon
'. A new edition, with notes. London, 1810. p.255.

Devoniae natus, comitis Petrusque vocatus, Regis cognatus, camerarius intitulatus: Calisiae gratus, capitaneus ense probatus. Vitae privatus, fuit hinc super astra relatus. Et quia sublatus, de mundo transit amatus. Caelo firmatus, maneat, sine fine beatus.

Prince included the following English translation:

The Earl of Devonshire's son, Peter by name, Kin to the King, Lord Chamberlain of fame. Captain of Calais, for arms well approved; Who dying, was above the stars removed. And well beloved, went from the world away, To lead a blessed life in Heaven for aye.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Courtenay, Peter (died 1405) 1346 births 1405 deaths English MPs February 1383 Knights of the Garter Medieval English knights

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

Military personnel from Devon Burials at Exeter Cathedral Younger sons of earls