Sir Stephen de Exeter was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

and

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 ...

, fl. 1280–1316. The son of one Stephen de Exeter (dead by 1280) and his wife Johanna (alive 1280), Sir Stephen was a member of the de Exeter family of Meath and

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 Delbhn ...

in Ireland. Prominent members of the name included

Jordan de Exeter Jordan de Exeter (floruit, fl. 1239–58), also known as Jordan d'Exeter, was an Anglo-Normans, Anglo-Norman knight, Sheriff of Connacht, and ancestor of the Clan Siurtain Gaileng/Mac Siurtain/Mac Jordan of Connacht. Life and family De Exeter t ...

Jordan Óge de Exeter Jordan Óge de Exeter (floruit, fl. 1269–1319) was an Anglo-Irish knight and Sheriff of Connacht. The younger son of Jordan de Exeter and Basilia de Bermingham, Jordan Óge first came to notice as Sheriff of Connacht in 1269 in Ireland, 1269, ...

and

Sir Richard de Exeter Sir Richard de Exeter (died 1327) was an Anglo-Norman knight and baron who served as a judge in Ireland.Ball p.23 Biography The son of Richard de Exeter (his father married three times, and his mother's identity is uncertain), Sir Richard held ...

, though the exact relationship between the differing branches remains obscure. De Exeter and his mother filed a suit against one R. Fleming at

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

in 1280. He is recorded as participating in the Meath

inquisitions The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

of 1290, the lordship in which he held land. He is also recorded as owning the manor of Dunreeghan in

Erris Erris is a barony in northwestern County Mayo in Ireland consisting of over , much of which is mountainous blanket bog. It has extensive sea coasts along its west and north boundaries. The main towns are Belmullet and Bangor Erris. The name Er ...

, along with other places in

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

and at Athemethan,

County Waterford County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...

. He was killed at Athelehan (

Strade Straide (), or Strade, is a village in County Mayo, Ireland. It is located on the N58 national secondary road between Foxford and Castlebar. The name Strade is an anglicisation of the Irish words ''an tsráid'', meaning ''the street''. Straid ...

) in 1316, and was described as its lord. He had a wife named Matilda (alive 1320) and a son, Stephen (alive 1302). T.H. Knox believed that his father was the ancestor of the Mac Stephen clans of Gallen and Rathfran, possibly via the brothers Meilec and Thomas Duff, sons of Stephen de Exeter, which would make them brothers of Sir Stephen.

References

*Knox, Hubert Thomas. ''The History of the County of Mayo to the Close of the Sixteenth Century. With illustrations and three maps.'' Originally published 1908, Hogges Figgies and Co. Dublin. Reprinted by De Burca rare books, 1982. . 13th-century births 1316 deaths De Exeter, Stephen People from County Mayo Norman warriors 14th-century Irish people {{Ireland-noble-stub