Richard Marshal, 3rd Earl of Pembroke (119115 April 1234), was the son of
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146 or 1147 – 14 May 1219), also called William the Marshal (Norman French: ', French: '), was an Anglo-Norman soldier and statesman. He served five English kings— Henry II, his sons the "Young King" ...
and brother of
William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke
William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (French: ''Guillaume le Maréchal'') (11906 April 1231) was a medieval English nobleman and was one of Magna Carta sureties. He fought during the First Barons' War and was present at the Battle of Lincoln (1 ...
, whom he succeeded to the
Earldom of Pembroke
Earl of Pembroke is a title in the Peerage of England that was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title, which is associated with Pembroke, Pembrokeshire in West Wales, has been recreated ten times from its origin ...
and
Lord 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 eigh ...
upon his brother's death on 6 April 1231.
Early life
Richard was the son of
William Marshal
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146 or 1147 – 14 May 1219), also called William the Marshal (Norman French: ', French: '), was an Anglo-Norman soldier and statesman. He served five English kings— Henry II, his sons the "Young King" ...
and his wife
Countess Isabel. His father's biography calls Richard his 'second born child' after his elder brother
William Marshal the younger, who was born in 1190. Like all of Marshal's sons he was educated to a high standard in the liberal arts. During his father's troubles in 1207 or 1208 with King John, Richard was demanded by the king as a hostage for his father. Though later liberated, he was required again by the king in 1212. He was knighted soon after by King John himself, and remained a knight in the king's household, accompanying the king on his expedition to
Poitou
Poitou (, , ; ; Poitevin dialect, Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a Provinces of France, province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe.
Geography
The main histori ...
in 1214, during which he had a serious bout of illness. Following the end of the Barons' War in 1216 he appears to have crossed over to France and when news of his father's death reached the court of
King Philip II Augustus of France in 1219 Richard was in the household of the French king. His placement there was no doubt because his parents had already determined he was to succeed to his mother's Norman lands, as was provided for in his father's last testament.
Capetian Baron
Following his mother's death in March 1220 Richard Marshal came into her considerable Norman lands centred on the castles of
Longueville and
Orbec
Orbec () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.
Population
International relations
Orbec is twinned with:
*Kingsteignton UK since 1979
*Frammersbach (Germany) since 1987
See also
*Communes of ...
. However, his parents did not take the opportunity in their final dispositions to resolve the problem of the divided Marshal allegiance between the kings of England and France, as Richard was also allotted an English lordship of
Long Crendon
Long Crendon is a village and civil parish in west Buckinghamshire, England, about west of Haddenham and north-west of Thame in neighbouring Oxfordshire.
The village has been called Long Crendon only since the English Civil War.Birch, 1975, ...
in
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-eas ...
. In June 1220 Richard and his elder brother met King Philip II at
Melun
Melun () is a Communes of France, commune in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region, north-central France. It is located on the southeastern outskirts of Paris, about from the kilome ...
where the king accepted the arrangement and took Richard's homage. Around 1222 Richard's links to France were increased by his marriage to the twice-widowed Gervasia de
Dinan
Dinan (; ) is a walled Breton town and a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in northwestern France. On 1 January 2018, the former commune of Léhon was merged into Dinan.
Geography
Its geographical setting is exceptional. Instead o ...
, heir to the eastern Breton lordship of her father Andrew de
Vitré. Richard was able to use the marriage to secure control of Gervasia's claims to the manors of
Ringwood in
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
and
Burton Latimer
Burton, Burtons, or Burton's may refer to:
Companies
* Burton (retailer), a clothing retailer
**Burton's, Abergavenny, a shop built for the company in 1937
**The Montague Burton Building, Dublin a shop built for the company between 1929 and 1 ...
in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
. In 1230 on campaign in
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...
Richard's elder brother, Earl William, for whatever reason, extracted from his friend
King Henry III a promise that should he not survive the campaign the king would not resist Richard's succession to the Marshal English lands, despite his being a sworn man of
King Louis of France. As it happened the earl contracted an illness after his return from Brittany in 1231 and died childless on 6 April, leaving the earldom to Richard.
Earl of Pembroke
King Henry III was as good as his word to the late earl and readily welcomed Richard Marshal into his court on his arrival in England on 25 July 1231. It was the new earl's bad fortune that his brother's death helped clear the way for King John's exiled favourite,
Peter des Roches, bishop of Winchester, to return to England, and plot the downfall of the justiciar,
Hubert de Burgh
Hubert de Burgh, Earl of Kent (; ; ; c.1170 – before 5 May 1243) was an English nobleman who served as Chief Justiciar of England and Ireland during the reigns of King John and of his son and successor King Henry III and, as a consequen ...
. One the bishop's first victims on seizing power in 1233 was
Gilbert Basset
Gilbert Basset (died 1241) was an English baronial leader during the reign of King Henry III.
Early life
Basset was the eldest son of Alan Basset, baron of Wycombe. About 1231 he appears to have negotiated a truce with Llewellyn of Wales on ...
, one of the former followers of the late Earl William.
Peter de Maulay
Peter de Maulay or Peter de Mauley (died 1241) was a nobleman and administrator who was one of King John of England's "evil counsellors". First appearing in the historical record in 1202, Maulay was in England by 1204 and serving as an official ...
, one of Des Roches's foreign followers, demanded a manor back which had passed in the meantime to Basset. The king backed Des Roches against Basset. When Basset resisted, the king abused him as a traitor and after a failed demonstration against the decision, Basset fled to the shelter of the southern
March of Wales
The Welsh Marches ( cy, Y Mers) is an imprecisely defined area along the Wales-England border, border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods.
The English term Welsh Mar ...
, where Earl Richard felt obliged to give his brother's ally shelter and adopt his cause. Richard was too suspicious to meet with the king at Gloucester in mid August 1233 for requested peace talks, and the Bishop of St Davids, one of the earl's cousins, was sent by the king to add to the pressure by threatening to break off their relationship as lord and man. As temperatures rose, Richard was faced by demands from royal bailiffs in September for his garrison to surrender
Usk Castle
Usk Castle ( cy, Castell Brynbuga) is a castle site in the town of Usk in central Monmouthshire, south east Wales, United Kingdom. It was listed Grade I on 16 February 1953. Within the castle, and incorporating parts of its gatehouse, stands ...
which it did. For a while negotiations were attempted as the earl hesitated on the brink of open rebellion. But the die was cast in late September when Basset and his ally
Richard Siward
Richard Siward (died 1248) was a distinguished 13th-century soldier, adventurer and banneret. He rose from obscurity to become a member of King Henry III's Royal Council and husband of Philippa Basset, the widowed countess of Warwick.
Origins
L ...
with what has to have been Earl Richard's consent made a spectacular cavalry raid across England, which at one point threatened London.
The Marshal War

Earl Richard may have been hesitant about committing to open rebellion, but once the decision was made, he did what he could to win. He took the strategic decision to ally with
Prince Llywelyn ab Iorwerth of Gwynedd, otherwise his family's long-term enemy. With Welsh support, in mid-October 1233 his army swept across South Wales, besieging and seizing the castles of
Usk,
Abergavenny,
Newport
Newport most commonly refers to:
*Newport, Wales
*Newport, Rhode Island, US
Newport or New Port may also refer to:
Places Asia
*Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay
Europe
Ireland
*Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...
and
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
in quick succession. Not all went well, however. According to the chronicler
Roger of Wendover
Roger of Wendover (died 6 May 1236), probably a native of Wendover in Buckinghamshire, was an English chronicler of the 13th century.
At an uncertain date he became a monk at St Albans Abbey; afterwards he was appointed prior of the cell of ...
in his ''
Flores Historiarum
The ''Flores Historiarum'' (Flowers of History) is the name of two different (though related) Latin chronicles by medieval English historians that were created in the 13th century, associated originally with the Abbey of St Albans.
Wendover's ...
'' (''Flowers of History''), Marshal and his
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 G ...
s then came to
Monmouth
Monmouth ( , ; cy, Trefynwy meaning "town on the Monnow") is a town and community in Wales. It is situated where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. Monmouth is northeast of Cardiff, and west of London. ...
to reconnoitre the town before besieging it. However, they were seen coming towards the
castle walls
A curtain wall is a defensive wall between two fortified towers or bastions of a castle, fortress, or town.
Ancient fortifications
Evidence for curtain walls or a series of walls surrounding a town or fortress can be found in the historical so ...
by
Baldwin III, Count of Guînes Baldwin III, Count of Guînes (1198–1244) was a Flemish nobleman. He inherited the war-torn County of Guînes, now in northern France, while Philip II of France was still on the throne, and suffered the repercussions of Philip's expansion of the F ...
. He was a nobleman of
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
who, with his mixed force of Flemings and Poitevins, had been entrusted by King Henry with defending the town. The local lord,
John of Monmouth
John of Monmouth (c. 1182 – 1248) was an Anglo-Norman feudal lord of Breton ancestry, who was lord of Monmouth between 1190 and 1248. He was a favourite of both King John and his son, Henry III, and one of the most powerful royal allies ...
, was absent from the battle.
Baldwin wrongly thought that Marshal had only a few followers with him, and rode out with his forces to pursue him, but Marshal turned the tables. It was said of Marshal that he put up a gallant defence against Baldwin's men in this skirmish, but though his army repulsed Baldwin's forces the castle remained defiant. However despite these local successes, Earl Richard failed to gain any wider support amongst his fellow earls and barons, and ― apart from some daring mounted raids out of the March and deep into England ― he did not have the resources or allies to carry the war to the king and his hated advisers.

It may have been the stalemate in the war in England that persuaded Earl Richard to sail for Ireland on 2 February 1234, finding his province of
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 ...
to be loyal and committed. Here he found that his able younger brother, Gilbert Marshal, had managed since summer 1233 to institute a truce between his party and the king's justiciar
Maurice fitz Gerald and his allies, the rival regional lords
Walter de Lacy and
Richard de Burgh. This appears to have frustrated the earl, but around mid-March, he seized the opportunity to attack De Burgh who had come out more strongly for the king, and so he organised a raid against him, in alliance with the Irish of the province of
Thomond
Thomond (Classical Irish: ; Modern Irish: ), also known as the kingdom of Limerick, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Clare and County Limerick, as well as parts of County Tipperary around Nenag ...
which alarmed the earl's enemies by taking several De Burgh castles in quick succession. De Burgh and De Lacy retaliated by their own rapid strike out of
Meath Meath may refer to:
General
* County Meath, Republic of Ireland
**Kingdom of Meath, medieval precursor of the county
** List of kings of Meath
** Meath GAA, including the intercounty football and hurling teams
** Diocese of Meath, in the Roman Cath ...
which besieged the Marshal castle of
Kildare
Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cent ...
. On 1 April 1234, Earl Richard and a small column of cavalry reached the siege lines on the
Curragh
The Curragh ( ; ga, An Currach ) is a flat open plain of almost of common land in County Kildare. This area is well known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the ...
. Attempted negotiations by the Templar brothers failed and in the succeeding mêlée the earl was cut off from his men, surrounded and unhorsed. He suffered a fatal wound during his capture. He lingered for two weeks but died of his injuries on 15 April 1234, while the justiciar and his allies subdued Leinster. Richard was buried in the
Franciscan
, image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg
, image_size = 200px
, caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans
, abbreviation = OFM
, predecessor =
, ...
friary of
Kilkenny. He was succeeded by his brother,
Gilbert Gilbert may refer to:
People and fictional characters
*Gilbert (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
*Gilbert (surname), including a list of people
Places Australia
* Gilbert River (Queensland)
* Gilbert River (South A ...
, at the time a clergyman, who had to deal with the aftermath of salvaging the Marshal fortunes and prosecuting the inevitable formal feud between his family and his brother's killers.
[''Acts and Letters'', pp. 24-6.]
The death of Richard Marshal ended the long connection between the Marshals and their Continental lands, as his brother Gilbert did not succeed them. Little is known subsequently of Richard's widow Gervasia, who died in 1238 or 1239. She was childless by him, though had several heirs from her two previous husbands.
Notes
Sources
*
*
* Daniel Power, 'The French Interests of the Marshal Earls of Striguil and Pembroke', ''Anglo-Norman Studies'', 25 (2003), 199-25.
* ''Acts and Letters of the Marshal Family 1156-1248: Earls of Pembroke and Marshals of England,'' ed. David Crouch, Camden Society 5th series, 47 (Cambridge: CUP, 2015).
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pembroke, Richard Marshal, 3rd Earl Of
1191 births
1234 deaths
Norman warriors
Richard
Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'stro ...
Earls Marshal
Normans in Ireland
13th-century Irish people