![Old Madely Manor remains, Staffordshire](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Old_Madely_Manor_remains%2C_Staffordshire.jpg)
Ralph de Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford, 2nd Baron Stafford (24 September 1301 – 31 August 1372),
KG, of
Stafford Castle
Stafford Castle is an ancient Grade II listed castle situated two miles west of the town of Stafford in Staffordshire, England. From the time of the Norman Conquest and as recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 it was the seat of the powerful Ang ...
and
Madeley Castle in
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
, was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
nobleman
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteristi ...
and a notable soldier during the
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...
against
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
Early life and family
Ralph was born on 24 September 1301, the son of
Edmund de Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford
Edmund de Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford (1272/1273 – 1308), was the son of Nicholas de Stafford, who was summoned to parliament by writ on 6 February 1299 by King Edward I.
The origins of the Stafford family
The Staffords were first found in ...
and Margaret Basset.
Having lost his father at the age of seven, Ralph grew up in the midlands with his mother's relatives, including her second husband Thomas Pipe. He had his first experience of royal service, along with his brothers and stepfather, when he joined the retinue of Ralph, 2nd Lord Basset.
[Ralph Stafford, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography](_blank)
Career
Stafford was made a
Knight banneret
A knight banneret, sometimes known simply as banneret, was a medieval knight ("a commoner of rank") who led a company of troops during time of war under his own banner (which was square-shaped, in contrast to the tapering standard or the penn ...
in 1327 and was fighting the Scots shortly afterwards. He supported the plot to free
Edward III of England
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ro ...
from the control of
Roger Mortimer, which earned the king's gratitude. By the summer of 1332, he was a commissioner of the peace in Staffordshire and had served abroad on royal business, accompanying
Hugh de Audley, 1st Earl of Gloucester
Hugh de Audley, 1st Earl of Gloucester, 1st Baron Audley (c. 1291 – 10 November 1347) of Stratton Audley in Oxfordshire, and of Gratton in Staffordshire, served as Sheriff of Rutland and was the English Ambassador to France in 1341.J. R. Ma ...
. He was also still fighting the Scots, commanding archers at the
Battle of Dupplin Moor
The Battle of Dupplin Moor was fought between supporters of King David II of Scotland, the son of King Robert Bruce, and English-backed invaders supporting Edward Balliol, son of King John I of Scotland, on 11 August 1332. It took place a lit ...
on 11 Aug 1332 and on three further Scottish campaigns.
He was first summoned to Parliament by writ as Lord Stafford on 29 November 1336 and continued to attend until 1350.
His military career continued, accompanying King Edward to France in 1338 as an advisor and being present at the naval
battle of Sluys
The Battle of Sluys (; ), also called the Battle of l'Écluse, was a naval battle fought on 24 June 1340 between England and France. It took place in the roadstead of the port of Sluys (French ''Écluse''), on a since silted-up inlet betwee ...
on 24 June 1340. He also fought at the relief of
Brest
Brest may refer to:
Places
*Brest, Belarus
**Brest Region
**Brest Airport
**Brest Fortress
* Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria
* Břest, Czech Republic
*Brest, France
** Arrondissement of Brest
**Brest Bretagne Airport
** Château de Brest
*Br ...
and the siege of
Morlaix
Morlaix (; br, Montroulez) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.
Leisure and tourism
The old quarter of the town has winding streets of cobbled stones and overhan ...
. He was captured at
Vannes
Vannes (; br, Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago.
History Celtic Era
The name ''Vannes'' comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who lived ...
but was exchanged in time to negotiate a truce at
Malestroit
Malestroit (; ) is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western Francebr>INSEE commune fileThe town is on the river Oust and part of the Nantes-Brest canal. It has several half-timbered houses.
Twinning
Malestroit, whose i ...
.
On 6 January 1341, he was made
Steward of the Royal Household
The Lord Steward or Lord Steward of the Household is an official of the Royal Household in England. He is always a peer. Until 1924, he was always a member of the Government. Until 1782, the office was one of considerable political importance ...
but resigned that post on 29 March 1345 having assumed the office of Seneschal of
Aquitaine
Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquità nia ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 January ...
, an English possession in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, where he stayed for about a year. He took part in the
Gascon campaign of 1345
The Gascon campaign of 1345 was conducted by Henry of Grosmont, Duke of Lancaster, Henry, Earl of Derby, as part of the Hundred Years' War. The whirlwind campaign took place between August and November 1345 in Gascony, an Kingdom of England, En ...
including the battles of
Bergerac and
Auberoche, the
siege of Aiguillon
The siege of Aiguillon, an episode in the Hundred Years' War, began on 1 April 1346 when a French army commanded by John, Duke of Normandy, laid siege to the Gascon town of Aiguillon. The town was defended by an Anglo-Gascon army under R ...
, from where he escaped prior to its lifting, a raid on
Barfleur
Barfleur () is a commune and fishing village in Manche, Normandy, northwestern France.
History
During the Middle Ages, Barfleur was one of the chief ports of embarkation for England.
* 1066: A large medallion fixed to a rock in the harbour ...
and the English victory at the
Battle of Crecy
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 ...
, on 26 August 1346. He became one of the twenty-six founding members and the fifth knight of the
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George C ...
in 1348.
In November 1347, his wife's father died; they were able to take possession of his estates without paying the king's homage, an indication of the relationship between them. Ralph was now a very wealthy man, from his estates and from the many prizes from the French war.
Edward III created a number of new peerage titles to honour his war captains and to mark his jubilee year. Ralph was created the 1st Earl of Stafford on 5 March 1350, with an annuity of 1000 marks. He now replaced
Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster
Henry of Grosmont, Duke of Lancaster (– 23 March 1361) was an English statesman, diplomat, soldier, and Christian writer. The owner of Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, Grosmont was a member of the House of Plantagenet, which was ruling o ...
as the king's
lieutenant in Gascony. He committed to serve with 200 men at his own expense with the expectation of this being doubled in March 1353 at the king's expense. The campaigns provided several captives that were ransomed, but were ultimately unsuccessful, leading to the appointment of
Edward, Prince of Wales to command.
Even at the age of sixty, Stafford continued to command troops and act as a royal envoy, both in France and in Ireland in 1361, accompanying
Lionel of Antwerp
Lionel of Antwerp, Duke of Clarence, (; 29 November 133817 October 1368) was the third son, but the second son to survive infancy, of the English king Edward III and Philippa of Hainault. He was named after his birthplace, at Antwerp in the Duc ...
to try and restore English control.
Marriages and children
Around 1326, Stafford married his first wife, Katherine de Hastang. Katherine was the daughter of Sir John de Hastang, Knight, of
Chebsey
Chebsey is a small village in Staffordshire 2.5 miles southeast of Eccleshall on a confluence of Eccleshall water and the River Sow some 5 miles northwest of Stafford. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 566. It comprise ...
,
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
. Ralph and Katherine had two daughters:
*Margaret Stafford, married Sir John de Stafford, Knight, of "Broomshull" (
Bramshall
Bramshall is a village to the west of Uttoxeter, within the parish of Uttoxeter Rural, in Staffordshire. It has a new housing estate to the north of it.
History
It was sometimes known as Broomshull, Bromshall etc., (Domesday Book: Branselle) an ...
near
Uttoxeter
Uttoxeter ( , ) is a market town in the East Staffordshire district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is near to the Derbyshire county border. It is situated from Burton upon Trent, from Stafford, from Stoke-on-Trent, from De ...
, Staffordshire) and
Amblecote
Amblecote is an urban village and one of the most affluent areas in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England. It lies immediately north of the historic town of Stourbridge, extending about one and a half miles from it, an ...
in the parish of
Old Swinford
The name Oldswinford is now used for a small area of Stourbridge, close to the parish church.
History
Originally, it was an extensive ancient parish, covering the whole of the former Municipal Borough of Stourbridge, except Pedmore. This included ...
, Worcestershire, ancestor of several prominent Stafford lines, most notably Stafford of
Hooke Hooke may refer to:
* Hooke, Dorset, England
** River Hooke, nearby watercourse
* Robert Hooke (1635–1703), English natural philosopher who discovered Hooke's law
* Hooke (surname), a surname
* Hooke (lunar crater)
* Hooke (Martian crater)
* ...
in Dorset, Stafford of
Southwick in Wiltshire and Stafford of
Grafton in Worcestershire.
*Joan Stafford, married Sir Nicholas de Beke, Knight.
He later sensationally abducted
Margaret de Audley, 2nd Baroness Audley
Margaret de Audley, ''suo jure'' 2nd Baroness Audley and Countess of Stafford (c. 1318 – 7 September 1349G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, ''The Complete ...
, daughter of
Hugh de Audley, 1st Earl of Gloucester
Hugh de Audley, 1st Earl of Gloucester, 1st Baron Audley (c. 1291 – 10 November 1347) of Stratton Audley in Oxfordshire, and of Gratton in Staffordshire, served as Sheriff of Rutland and was the English Ambassador to France in 1341.J. R. Ma ...
and
Margaret de Clare
Margaret de Clare, Countess of Gloucester, Countess of Cornwall (12 October 1293 – 9 April 1342) was an English noblewoman, heiress, and the second-eldest of the three daughters of Gilbert de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford and his wife Joan of ...
, who was worth at least £2,314 a year, more than ten times his own estates. Her parents filed a complaint with King Edward III of England, but the King supported Stafford's actions. In compensation, the King appeased Hugh and Margaret by creating Hugh the 1st
Earl of Gloucester
The title of Earl of Gloucester was created several times in the Peerage of England. A fictional earl is also a character in William Shakespeare's play ''King Lear.''
Earls of Gloucester, 1st Creation (1121)
*Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (1100â ...
. Margaret de Audley and Stafford married before 6 July 1336 and they subsequently had two sons and four daughters:
* Ralph de Stafford (d. 1347), married
Maud of Lancaster, daughter of
Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster
Henry of Grosmont, Duke of Lancaster (– 23 March 1361) was an English statesman, diplomat, soldier, and Christian writer. The owner of Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, Grosmont was a member of the House of Plantagenet, which was ruling o ...
and
Isabel de Beaumont
Isabel de Beaumont, Duchess of Lancaster, of the House of Brienne ( – 1361) was an English noblewoman, being the youngest daughter and child of Henry de Beaumont, Earl of Buchan and Alice Comyn.
Family
Isabel was born in about 1320. She ...
in 1344.
[ A general and heraldic dictionary of the peerages of England, Ireland and Scotland, extinct, dormant and in abeyance](_blank)
by John Burke. Publisher Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, 1831. pg 488. From Google books, checked 30 March 2011
*
Hugh de Stafford, 2nd Earl of Stafford
Hugh may refer to:
*Hugh (given name)
Noblemen and clergy French
* Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks
* Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II
* Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...
, born circa 1336 in
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
, England, married
Philippa de Beauchamp
Philippa de Stafford, Countess of Stafford (before 1344 – 6 April 1386), was a late medieval English noblewoman and the daughter of Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick, KG, and Katherine Mortimer. Her maternal grandfather was the po ...
; they were the ancestors of the
Dukes of Buckingham
Duke of Buckingham held with Duke of Chandos, referring to Buckingham, is a title that has been created several times in the peerages of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. There have also been earls and marquesses of Buckingham.
H ...
(1444 creation).
* Elizabeth de Stafford, born circa 1340 in Staffordshire, England, died 7 August 1376, married firstly Fulk le Strange;
married secondly,
John de Ferrers, 4th Baron Ferrers of Chartley
John de Ferrers, 4th Baron Ferrers of Chartley (c. 1331 – 3 April 1367) was the son of Robert de Ferrers, 3rd Baron Ferrers of Chartley and a woman named Margaret.
John de Ferrers was born in Southhoe, Huntingdonshire. He inherited the title o ...
; married thirdly Reginald de Cobham, 4th
Baron Cobham
The title Baron Cobham has been created numerous times in the Peerage of England; often multiple creations have been extant simultaneously, especially in the fourteenth century.
The earliest creation was in 1313 for Henry de Cobham, 1st Baron ...
.
* Beatrice de Stafford, born circa 1341 in Staffordshire, England, died 1415, married firstly, in 1350,
Maurice FitzGerald, 2nd Earl of Desmond
Maurice FitzMaurice FitzGerald, 2nd Earl of Desmond (d. 1358) (Maurice Óg) was the son of Maurice FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Desmond, Burke, Bernard, A Genealogical History of the Dormant, Abeyant, Forfeited, and Extinct Peerages of the British Emp ...
(d. June 1358); married secondly,
Thomas de Ros, 4th Baron de Ros
Thomas Ros, 4th Baron Ros of Helmsley (13 January 1335 – 8 June 1384) was the son of William Ros, 2nd Baron Ros and Margery de Badlesmere.
In 1364, he accompanied the king of Cyprus to the Holy Land; and was in the French wars, from 1369 to 1 ...
, of Helmsley; married thirdly Sir Richard Burley,
Knt.
* Joan de Stafford, born in 1344 in Staffordshire, England, died 1397, married firstly,
John Charleton, 3rd Baron Cherleton
John Charlton (also Charleton or Cherleton), 3rd Baron Cherleton, 3rd Lord Charlton of Powys (c. 1336–1374). He was the son of John Charleton, 2nd Baron Cherleton (d. 1360) and his wife, Maud Mortimer, daughter of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of Mar ...
;
married secondly
Gilbert Talbot, 3rd
Baron Talbot
Baron Talbot is a title that has been created twice. The title was created first in the Peerage of England. On 5 June 1331, Sir Gilbert Talbot was summoned to Parliament, by which he was held to have become Baron Talbot.
The title Lord Talbot, ...
.
* Katherine de Stafford, born circa 1348 in Staffordshire, England and died in December 1361. On 25 December 1357, she married Sir
John Sutton III
Sir John de Sutton III (1339 – c. 1370) was the 2nd Baron Sutton of Dudley and heir of Dudley Castle. He was the son of Sir John de Sutton II, the first Lord of Dudley, and Isabella de Cherleton. John III married twice, with the first on 25 De ...
(1339 – c. 1370 or 1376), Knight, Master of
Dudley Castle
Dudley Castle is a ruined fortification in the town of Dudley, West Midlands, England. Originally a wooden motte and bailey castle built soon after the Norman Conquest, it was rebuilt as a stone fortification during the twelfth century but subs ...
, Staffordshire.
Burke reports that she died without issue. However, Burke is often erroneous and incomplete, and later evidence supports that she is the mother of
John Sutton IV
Sir John de Sutton IV (6 December 1361 – 10 March 1396) is the 3rd Baron Sutton of Dudley, and heir of Dudley Castle. He was the son of Sir John de Sutton III, 2nd Lord of Dudley, and Katherine de Stafford, youngest daughter of Ralph de Staff ...
, 3rd Baron Sutton of Dudley, probably having died in childbirth.
[Plantagenet Ancestry of Seventeenth Century Colonist by David Faris, 1st Edition, 1996, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, pg 90]
Death
He died on 31 August 1372 at
Tonbridge Castle
Tonbridge Castle is a 13th century castle situated in Tonbridge, Kent, England.
Early history
Following the Norman Conquest, Richard Fitz Gilbert was granted land in Kent to guard the crossing of the River Medway. He erected a simple Motte-and- ...
,
Kent, England
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces the ...
.
He was buried at
Tonbridge Priory
Tonbridge Priory was a priory in Tonbridge, Kent, England that was established in 1124. It was destroyed by fire in 1337 and then rebuilt. The priory was disestablished in 1523. The building stood in 1735, but was a ruin by 1780. The remains of t ...
,
next to his second wife and her parents.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stafford, Ralph Stafford, 1st Earl Of
01
Garter Knights appointed by Edward III
1301 births
1372 deaths
Knights banneret of England
Ralph
Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf").
The most common forms ...
Peers created by Edward III