Roger de Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, 6th Earl of Ulster (11 April 137420 July 1398) was an English nobleman. He was considered the
heir presumptive
An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...
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 ...
, his mother's first cousin.
Roger Mortimer's father, the
3rd Earl of March, died in 1381, leaving the six-year-old Roger to succeed to his father's title. The
wardship
In law, a ward is a minor or incapacitated adult placed under the protection of a legal guardian or government entity, such as a court. Such a person may be referenced as a "ward of the court".
Overview
The wardship jurisdiction is an ancient ...
and marriage of Roger was acquired by
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent (135025 April 1397) was an English nobleman and a councillor of his half-brother, King Richard II of England.
Family and early life
Thomas Holland was born in Upholland, Lancashire, in 1350. He was the eldest s ...
who married him off to his daughter
Alianore. During his lifetime, Mortimer spent much time in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
; he served several tenures as
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the King ...
and died during a battle at Kellistown,
Co. Carlow. He was succeeded by his young son,
Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March
Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, 7th Earl of Ulster (6 November 139118 January 1425), was an English nobleman and a potential claimant to the throne of England. A great-great-grandson of King Edward III of England, he was heir presumptive ...
.
Early life
Roger Mortimer was born 11 April 1374 at
Usk in
Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, wit ...
.
[.] He was the eldest son of
Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March
Edmund de Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March and ''jure uxoris'' Earl of Ulster (1 February 135227 December 1381) was the son of Roger Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March, by his wife Philippa, daughter of William Montagu, 1st Earl of Salisbury and Catherine G ...
, by his wife
Philippa of Clarence
Philippa of Clarence (16 August 1355 – 5 January 1382) was a medieval English princess and the '' suo jure'' Countess of Ulster.
Biography
She was born at Eltham Palace in Kent on 16 August 1355, the only child of Lionel of Antwerp, 1st ...
, the daughter of
Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence (the second surviving son of
King Edward III
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 r ...
) by his wife
Elizabeth de Burgh, 4th Countess of Ulster
Elizabeth de Burgh, Duchess of Clarence, ''suo jure'' 4th Countess of Ulster and 5th Baroness of Connaught (; ; 6 July 1332 – 10 December 1363) was a Norman-Irish noblewoman who married Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence.
Family
Eliza ...
. Philippa passed on a strong claim to the English crown to her children. Roger had a younger brother,
Edmund Mortimer, and two sisters,
Elizabeth, who married
Henry 'Hotspur' Percy
Sir Henry Percy (20 May 1364 – 21 July 1403), nicknamed Hotspur, was an English knight who fought in several campaigns against the Scots in the northern border and against the French during the Hundred Years' War. The nickname "Hots ...
, and Philippa, who first married
John Hastings, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, secondly
Richard de Arundel, 11th Earl of Arundel, and thirdly Sir Thomas Poynings.
Wardship
According to R. R. Davies, the wardship of such an important heir was an "issue of political moment in the years 1382–4". Eventually, on 16 December 1383, Mortimer's estates in England and Wales were granted for £4000 per annum to a consortium consisting of Mortimer himself, the Earls of
Arundel
Arundel ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Arun District of the South Downs, West Sussex, England.
The much-conserved town has a medieval castle and Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel has a museum and comes second behind much larg ...
,
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land ...
, and
Warwick
Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...
, and
John, Lord Neville. The guardianship of Mortimer's person was initially granted to Arundel, but in August 1384, at the behest of
Joan of Kent
Joan, Countess of Kent (29 September 1326/1327 – 7 August 1385), known as The Fair Maid of Kent, was the mother of King Richard II of England, her son by her third husband, Edward the Black Prince, son and heir apparent of King Edward III. ...
, the mother of King Richard II, Mortimer's wardship and marriage were granted for 6000 marks to
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent
Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent (135025 April 1397) was an English nobleman and a councillor of his half-brother, King Richard II of England.
Family and early life
Thomas Holland was born in Upholland, Lancashire, in 1350. He was the eldest s ...
, Joan's son and Richard's half-brother. On or about 7 October 1388,
at the age of 14, Mortimer was married off to his warder's 18 year old daughter
Eleanor Holland, King Richard II's half-niece.
[.] Mortimer did
homage
Homage (Old English) or Hommage (French) may refer to:
History
*Homage (feudal) /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/, the medieval oath of allegiance
*Commendation ceremony, medieval homage ceremony Arts
*Homage (arts) /oʊˈmɑʒ/, an allusion or imitation by one arti ...
and was granted livery of his lands in Ireland on 18 June 1393, and of those in England and Wales on 25 February 1394.
[.]
King Richard had no issue, thus Mortimer, a lineal descendant of Edward III, was next in line to the throne and married to his half-niece. G. E. Cokayne states that in October 1385 Mortimer was proclaimed by the king as heir presumptive to the crown.
However, according to R. R. Davies, the story that Richard publicly proclaimed Mortimer as heir presumptive in Parliament in October 1385 is baseless, although contemporary records indicate that his claim was openly discussed at the time.
He was
knighted
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 ...
by
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 ...
on 23 April 1390.
Career
After he came of age, Mortimer spent much of his time in Ireland. King Richard had first made Mortimer his
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the King ...
on 24 January 1382 when he was a child of seven, with his uncle, Sir Thomas Mortimer, acting as his deputy. The king reappointed Roger Mortimer as his lieutenant in Ireland on 23 July 1392, and in September 1394, Although he was nominally the king's lieutenant, he made little headway against the native Irish chieftains. On 25 April 1396, the king appointed him lieutenant in
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...
,
Connacht
Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms ( Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and ...
, and
Meath, and Mortimer was in Ireland for most of the following three years. In April 1397, the king reappointed him lieutenant for a further three years.
[; .]
Mortimer's residence in Ireland ensured that his political role in England was a minor one. His closest relationships in England appear to have been with family members, including his brother,
Edmund
Edmund is a masculine given name or surname in the English language. The name is derived from the Old English elements ''ēad'', meaning "prosperity" or "riches", and ''mund'', meaning "protector".
Persons named Edmund include:
People Kings an ...
, to whom he granted lands and annuities; the Percy family, into which his elder sister
Elizabeth had married; and the
Earl of Arundel
Earl of Arundel is a title of nobility in England, and one of the oldest extant in the English peerage. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and is used (along with the Earl of Surrey) by his heir apparent as a courtesy title. The ...
, who had married his younger sister, Philippa.
As Davies points out, Mortimer's "wealth and lineage meant that, sooner or later, he would be caught up in the political turmoil of Richard II's last years." On 4 September 1397, he was ordered to arrest his uncle, Sir
Thomas Mortimer, for treason regarding his actions at the
Battle of Radcot Bridge, but made no real attempt to do so. Even more inauspiciously, when summoned to a Parliament at
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
in January 1398, he was 'rapturously received', according to
Adam Usk
Adam of Usk ( cy, Adda o Frynbuga, c. 1352–1430) was a Welsh priest, canonist, and late medieval historian and chronicler. His writings were hostile to King Richard II of England.
Patronage
Born at Usk in what is now Monmouthshire (Sir Fynwy) ...
and the Wigmore chronicler, by a vast crowd of supporters wearing his colours. These events excited the king's suspicions, and on Mortimer's return to Ireland after the Parliament in January 1398, 'his enemy,
the Duke of Surrey, his brother-in-law, was ordered to follow and capture him'.
Death
On 20 July 1398, at the age of 24, Mortimer was slain in a skirmish at either Kells,
County Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...
, or Kellistown,
County Carlow
County Carlow ( ; ga, Contae Cheatharlach) is a Counties of Ireland, county located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region of Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Carlow is the List of Irish counties by ...
. The Wigmore chronicler says that he was riding in front of his army, unattended and wearing Irish garb, possibly illegally, and that those who slew him did not know who he was. He was interred at
Wigmore Abbey
Wigmore Abbey was an abbey of Canons Regular with a Wigmore Abbey Grange, grange, from 1179 to 1530, situated about a mile (2 km) north of the village of Wigmore, Herefordshire, Wigmore, Herefordshire, England: grid reference SO 410713.
Onl ...
.
[; ] The King went to Ireland in the following year to avenge Mortimer's death.
Mortimer's young son,
Edmund
Edmund is a masculine given name or surname in the English language. The name is derived from the Old English elements ''ēad'', meaning "prosperity" or "riches", and ''mund'', meaning "protector".
Persons named Edmund include:
People Kings an ...
, succeeded him in the title and claim to the throne. The Wigmore chronicler, while criticising Mortimer for lust and remissness in his duty to God, extols him as 'of approved honesty, active in knightly exercises, glorious in pleasantry, affable and merry in conversation, excelling his contemporaries in beauty of appearance, sumptuous in his feasting, and liberal in his gifts'.
Marriage and children
By his wife
Alianore Holland he had two sons and two daughters:
*
Anne Mortimer (1388-1411) (born when her father was aged 14) who married
Richard of Conisburgh, 3rd Earl of Cambridge
Richard of Conisbrough, 3rd Earl of Cambridge (20 July 1385 – 5 August 1415) was the second son of Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, and Isabella of Castile, Duchess of York. He was beheaded for his part in the Southampton Plot, a conspiracy ...
(1385-1415), of the
House of York
The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of Yor ...
(her paternal grandmother's first cousin), a grandson of King Edward III (Anne herself being a great-great-grand-daughter of King Edward III). Anne Mortimer's grandsons were King Edward IV and King Richard III.
*
Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March
Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March, 7th Earl of Ulster (6 November 139118 January 1425), was an English nobleman and a potential claimant to the throne of England. A great-great-grandson of King Edward III of England, he was heir presumptive ...
(1391–1425)
*Roger Mortimer (23 April 1393c. 1413)
*Eleanor Mortimer (born 1395–1422), who married
Sir Edward de Courtenay
Sir Edward Courtenay (c.1385 – c. August 1418) was the eldest son of Edward de Courtenay, 11th Earl of Devon (d. 5 December 1419). He fought at Agincourt, and was killed in a sea battle in Henry V's continuing campaigns in Normandy.
Family
...
(died 1418), and had no issue. Married secondly
John Harpeden.
In June 1399, Roger Mortimer's widow, Alianor, married
Edward Charleton, 5th Baron Cherleton, by whom she had two daughters:
[.]
*Joan, who married
John Grey, 1st Earl of Tankerville, brother of
Sir Thomas Grey, executed for his part in the
Southampton Plot
The Southampton Plot was a conspiracy to depose King Henry V of England, revealed in 1415 just as the king was about to sail on campaign to France as part of the Hundred Years' War. The plan was to replace him with Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of M ...
which aimed to replace King
Henry V Henry V may refer to:
People
* Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026)
* Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125)
* Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161)
* Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227)
* Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...
with Eleanor's son, Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March. Joan was co-heiress in 1425 to her half-brother, Edmund Mortimer, 5th Earl of March.
*Joyce, who married
John Tiptoft, 1st Baron Tiptoft
John Tiptoft, 1st Baron Tiptoft (died 27 January 1443) was a Knight of the Shire for Huntingdonshire and Somerset, Speaker of the House of Commons, Treasurer of the Household, Chief Butler of England, Treasurer of the Exchequer and Seneschal of ...
.
Alianor died 6 or 18 October 1405.
Ancestry
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*Wigmore Chronicl
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mortimer, Roger, 4th Earl of March
1374 births
1398 deaths
14th-century English nobility
People from Usk
Heirs to the English throne
Earls of March (1328 creation)
Earls of Ulster (1264 creation)
English military personnel killed in action
Roger
Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...
Lords Lieutenant of Ireland
Knights Bachelor