Sir Thomas Grey (d. before March 1344) of Heaton Castle in the parish of Cornhill-on-Tweed, Northumberland, was a soldier who served throughout the Wars of Scottish Independence. His experiences were recorded by his son Thomas Grey in his chronicles, and provide a rare picture of the day to day realities of the Wars. His career, blemished by his suicidal charge at the

Battle of Bannockburn The Battle of Bannockburn ( gd, Blàr Allt nam Bànag or ) fought on June 23–24, 1314, was a victory of the army of King of Scots Robert the Bruce over the army of King Edward II of England in the First War of Scottish Independence. It was ...

, a contributing factor to the devastating English defeat, is perhaps best known for his role in the tale of Sir William Marmion, the chivalric knight of Norham Castle.

Career and life

Early life

Grey was serving under William de Hesilrig, Sheriff of Clydesdale as early as 1297. Following William Wallace's nighttime assassination of the Sheriff at Lanark, Grey was left for dead, stripped naked in the snow. He only survived because of the heat from the houses burning around him and was rescued the next day and his wounds healed. Grey was knighted before September 1301 and served with the king's lieutenant for Scotland, Patrick IV, Earl of March at Ayr. In May 1303 Grey found himself under the command of

Hugh Audley Hugh Audley (baptised 13 January 1577 – 15 November 1662), also known as ''The Great Audley'', was an English moneylender, lawyer and philosopher. Following his death, he was the feature of a popular 17th-century pamphlet titled ''The way to be ri ...

encamped at Melrose Abbey when they were attacked at night by a much larger force led by

John Comyn John Comyn III of Badenoch, nicknamed the Red (c. 1274 – 10 February 1306), was a leading Scottish baron and magnate who played an important role in the First War of Scottish Independence. He served as Guardian of Scotland after the forced ...

. Grey was beaten to the floor and taken prisoner but most of his comrades were slain.

Siege of Stirling Castle (1304)

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...

had captured most of Scotland by April 1304 and embarked upon a nineteen-week siege of the last significant uncaptured fortress at

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...

using twelve siege engines which included the massive trebuchet called " Warwolf". Grey fought at the siege under the command of Henry de Beaumont. A hook thrown from a siege machine ensnared de Beaumont one day, and was about to haul him to his death upon the castle walls, when Grey freed him in the nick of time and dragged him to safety. Just as Grey had performed this act of bravery he was struck in the head by a large bolt fired from a springald (a large multi-man crossbow) just below his eyes. He collapsed to the ground lifeless and preparations for a quick burial were made. Just as the funeral ceremony started, Grey suddenly stirred and opened his eyes, much to the astonishment of the funeral party. He subsequently staged a full recovery. It is from this event that Grey perhaps adopted a ram's head as the crest of his coat of arms as a light-hearted reference to his thick skull. Grey became closer to the Beaumont family, who were kinsmen of both the king and queen, and was drawn into court life. In 1305 Grey acted as attorney for de Beaumont's sister Isabella de Vesci. In December 1307 Grey took custody of Robert Bruce's sister Christina following the execution of her husband

Christopher Seton Sir Christopher Seton (1278–1306), also known as Christopher de Seton, was a 13th-century noble, who held lands in England and Scotland. He was a supporter of Robert the Bruce and obtained Robert's sister's hand in marriage. Present durin ...

for his part in the murder of

, Guardian of Scotland.

Ambush at Cupar Castle (1308)

Upon the death of Edward I he was succeeded by his son

Edward II Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to t ...

and Grey attended the coronation at Westminster Palace in February 1308. As Grey returned to

Cupar Castle Cupar Castle was a royal castle at Cupar, Fife, Scotland. It was located on a small hill or motte that is known as Castle Hill next to Castlehill Primary School in Cupar. No vestiges of the castle remain above ground. History The castle was bui ...

, of which he was the then warden, he was ambushed by Walter de Bickerton, a supporter of Bruce. Grey was heavily outnumbered, having only 26

man-at-arms A man-at-arms was a soldier of the High Medieval to Renaissance periods who was typically well-versed in the use of arms and served as a fully- armoured heavy cavalryman. A man-at-arms could be a knight, or other nobleman, a member of a kni ...

compared to the 400 men commanded by Bickerton. Deciding that he could not avoid the ambush he decided to charge the heart of Bickerton's men using lance and the shock of his horse to down many of the enemy. Seeing the success of his aggression he was joined by his men at arms and together they succeeded in overthrowing many of the enemy and stampeded their horses. Before starting the charge, Grey had instructed his

grooms A bridegroom (often shortened to groom) is a man who is about to be married or who is newlywed. When marrying, the bridegroom's future spouse (if female) is usually referred to as the bride. A bridegroom is typically attended by a best man an ...

to follow at a distance carrying a battle standard. As they came into view of Bickerton's confused men they mistook the grooms for another formation of soldiers and took flight. Grey and his men drove one hundred and eighty of Bickerton's abandoned horses to his castle as booty.

Battle of Bannockburn (1314)

Grey's capture at the

was undoubtedly the low point of his career. Grey served under Beaumont and Robert Clifford when they tried to go around the Scottish army on the first day of the battle and met with defeat at the hands of the forces of Sir Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray. On the second day of the battle, the English were heavily defeated and the king fled the field with a force of some 500 knights and was pursued by Sir James Douglas with only a small force, leaving hundreds of English dead on the field and a large number of English nobles and knights taken prisoner.

Norham Castle

Following their victory at Bannockburn, the Scottish attacked and raided the north of England repeatedly over the ensuing years. Grey was garrisoned at Berwick-upon-Tweed in 1318 which fell to Bruce following an eleven-week siege. Grey was subsequently recompensed £179 arrears of wages for himself and 14 man-at-arms and for horses he had lost. In 1317 Grey's patron de Beaumont and his brother

Louis de Beaumont Lewis de Beaumont ( ; died 1333) was Bishop of Durham during the last half of the First War of Scottish Independence. Ancestry Lewis was born before 1270, son of Louis de Brienne and Agnès de Beaumont-au-Maine and grandson of John of Brienne, ...

, soon to be installed as Bishop of Durham, were kidnapped by Guy de Middleton before being freed by William de Felton. Middleton was executed and his lands confiscated. In May 1319, as reward for his services, Grey was granted 108 acres at Howick, Northumberland that formerly belonged to a supporter of Middleton, John Mautulent. Grey was appointed in 1319 as Sheriff of Norham and Islandshire and

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

of Norham Castle where he was to be based for 11 years. During this time Norham remained under a state of almost perpetual siege and it is Grey's rescue of

William Marmion William Edward Marmion (22 October 1845 – 4 July 1896) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 1870 to 1890, and a member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1890 to 18 ...

that he is probably best known for. A two-year truce expired in 1322 and Grey promised the king to recruit an extra 20 men at arms and 50 hobelars to reinforce Lewis de Beaumont's existing garrison to protect both Norham castle and the March. By 17 September Norham found itself besieged by 100 Scottish men at arms and 100 hobelars. The king sent Grey money to pay his garrison and requested that he send frequent reports of the situation and reassured the people around the castle that any losses in crops and goods would be made up to them. Edward II agreed to a 13-year truce with Bruce in May 1323 and, three months later, Grey was given permission to go to Scotland to resupply Norham Castle with corn and ammunition and to replace its ploughs and carts which had been destroyed in the preceding years. He imprisoned 80 Scots at Norham who had, coming from overseas, landed at

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...

and attempted to reach Scotland and on 2 October was ordered to send them to the

Sheriff of York A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

at York Castle. On 9 July 1325 Grey was ordered to accept back into the king's peace all those of Northumberland who had joined the Scottish through poverty or other urgent needs.

Later career

During the buildup to the impending Invasion of England of 1326 Grey was first granted more land at Howyk and then in August ordered to join John de Sturmy, Admiral of the Fleet of the North, alongside other captains and their ships, to help defend the hugely unpopular Edward II from his wife Isabella and her lover Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March. Grey was ordered to "compel" ships from Northumberland ports to join the fleet and to supervise their departure for

Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitari ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

in early September. No naval conflict occurred and, landing at Orwell on 24 September, Isabella and Mortimer seized control of England with virtually no opposition, with most of Edward's orders having been ignored. Edward II was imprisoned and replaced on the throne by

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 ...

. Edward III resumed hostilities with the Scottish and, shortly after the defeat of the Scottish at Halidon Hill in July 1333, Grey was appointed as deputy constable of Berwick. In about 1334 Grey was granted Mitford Castle and the hamlet of Mollisdoun and in October 1335 he was granted custody of the lands and marriage of the heir of Andrew de Grey in Berwick.

Family and descendants

Grey married Agnes de Bayles and had the following issue: * Sir Thomas Grey, Soldier and Chronicler * Margaret Grey (d. 27 May 1378), married John Eure de Aton Thomas is an ancestor of the Earl Greys of Tankerville, Baronet Grey of Chillingham, Baron Greys of Powis and Baron Greys of Werke.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Norham Castle English Heritage Site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, Thomas English people of the Wars of Scottish Independence Knights banneret of England English knights Year of birth unknown 1344 deaths 13th-century English people 14th-century English people People from Northumberland History of Northumberland