Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk (1 June 13004 August 1338), was the fifth son of King
Edward I of England
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 vas ...
(1239–1307), and the eldest child by his second wife,
Margaret of France, the daughter of King
Philip III of France
Philip III (1 May 1245 – 5 October 1285), called the Bold (french: le Hardi), was King of France from 1270 until his death in 1285. His father, Louis IX, died in Tunis during the Eighth Crusade. Philip, who was accompanying him, returned ...
. He was, therefore, a younger half-brother of
King 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 the ...
(reigned 1307–1327) and a full brother of
Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent
Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent (5 August 130119 March 1330), whose seat was Arundel Castle in Sussex, was the sixth son of King Edward I of England, and the second by his second wife Margaret of France, and was a younger half-brother o ...
. He occupied the office of
Earl Marshal
Earl marshal (alternatively marschal or marischal) is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the U ...
of England.
Early life
Thomas of Brotherton was born 1 June 1300 at the manor house at
Brotherton,
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...
, while his mother was on her way to
Cawood
Cawood (other names: ''Carwood'') is a large village (formerly a market town) and civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England that is notable as the finding-place of the Cawood sword. It was historically part of the West Ri ...
, where her confinement was scheduled to take place. According to Hilton, Margaret was staying at
Pontefract Castle
Pontefract (or Pomfret) Castle is a castle ruin in the town of Pontefract, in West Yorkshire, England. King Richard II is thought to have died there. It was the site of a series of famous sieges during the 17th-century English Civil War ...
and was following a hunt when she went into labour. The chronicler
William Rishanger records that during the difficult delivery his mother prayed, as was the custom at the time, to
Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), was an English nobleman who served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then ...
, and Thomas of Brotherton was thus named after the saint and his place of birth.
King Edward I hastened to the queen and the newborn baby and had Thomas presented with two cradles. His brother Edmund of Woodstock was born in the year after that. They were overseen by wet nurses until they were six years old. Like their parents, they learned to play chess and to ride horses. They were visited by nobles and their half-sister
Mary of Woodstock
Mary of Woodstock (11 March 1278 – before 8 July 1332) was the seventh named daughter of Edward I of England and Eleanor of Castile. She was a nun at Amesbury Priory, but lived very comfortably thanks to a generous allowance from her parents. ...
, who was a nun. Their mother often accompanied their father on his campaigns to Scotland, but kept herself well-informed on their well-being.
Thomas's father died when he was 7 years old. Thomas's half-brother Edward, became king of England (
Edward II) and Thomas was
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.
...
until his nephew, the future
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 ...
, was born in 1312. The
Earldom of Cornwall
The title of Earl of Cornwall was created several times in the Peerage of England before 1337, when it was superseded by the title Duke of Cornwall, which became attached to heirs-apparent to the throne.
Condor of Cornwall
* Condor of Cornwall, ...
had been intended for Thomas, but his brother the King instead bestowed it upon his
favourite
A favourite (British English) or favorite (American English) was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In post-classical and early-modern Europe, among other times and places, the term was used of individuals delegated s ...
,
Piers Gaveston
Piers Gaveston, Earl of Cornwall (c. 1284 – 19 June 1312) was an English nobleman of Gascon origin, and the favourite of Edward II of England.
At a young age, Gaveston made a good impression on King Edward I, who assigned him to the househ ...
, in 1306. When Thomas was 10 years old, King Edward II assigned to him and his brother Edmund, the estates of
Roger Bigod, 5th Earl of Norfolk, who had died without heirs in 1306.
Career
In 1312, Thomas was titled
Earl of Norfolk
Earl of Norfolk is a title which has been created several times in the Peerage of England. Created in 1070, the first major dynasty to hold the title was the 12th and 13th century Bigod family, and it then was later held by the Mowbrays, who we ...
by Edward II, and on 10 February 1316 he was created
Earl Marshal
Earl marshal (alternatively marschal or marischal) is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the U ...
. While his brother was away fighting in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, he was left Keeper of England. He was known for his hot and violent temper. He was one of the many victims of the unchecked greed of the king's new favourite,
Hugh Despenser the Younger
Hugh le Despenser, 1st Baron le Despenser (c. 1287/1289 – 24 November 1326), also referred to as "the Younger Despenser", was the son and heir of Hugh le Despenser, Earl of Winchester (the Elder Despenser), by his wife Isabella de Beaucham ...
and his father
Hugh Despenser the Elder
Hugh le Despenser (1 March 126127 October 1326), sometimes referred to as "the Elder Despenser", was for a time the chief adviser to King Edward II of England. He was created a baron in 1295 and Earl of Winchester in 1322. One day after being ...
, who stole some of the young earl's lands.
He allied himself with
Queen Isabella and
Roger Mortimer when they invaded England in 1326, and stood as one of the judges in the trials against both Despensers. When his nephew
Edward III reached his majority and took the government into his own hands Thomas, who had helped with the deposition, became one of his principal advisors. It was in the capacity of Lord Marshal that he commanded the right wing of the English army at the
Battle of Halidon Hill on 19 July 1333.
Thomas died on 4 August 1338, and was buried in the choir of the
Abbey of Bury St Edmunds.
[ Thomas F. Tout, (1886) "Thomas of Brotherton" in Dictionary of National Biography] As he had no surviving sons, Thomas was succeeded by his daughter, Margaret, as Countess of Norfolk. She was later created Duchess of Norfolk for life in 1397.
As a son of
Edward I of England
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 vas ...
, Thomas was entitled to bear the
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...
of the
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England (, ) was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from 12 July 927, when it emerged from various History of Anglo-Saxon England, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, ...
, differenced by a ''label argent of three points''.
Marks of Cadency in the British Royal Family
/ref>
Marriages and issue
Thomas married firstly, before 8 January 1326, Alice de Hales (d. before 12 October 1330), daughter of Sir Roger de Hales of Hales Hall in Loddon in Roughton, Norfolk
Roughton is a village and a civil parish in the England, English county of Norfolk. The village is south of Cromer, north of Norwich, and north-west of North Walsham. It straddles the A140 road, A140 between Cromer and Norwich and the B1436 ro ...
, a coroner, by his wife, Alice Skogan, by whom he had a son and two daughters:
*Margaret, Duchess of Norfolk
Margaret of Norfolk or Margaret of Brotherton, in her own right Countess of Norfolk (sometimes surnamed as "Margaret Marshal"; –24 March 1399), was the daughter and eventual sole heir of Thomas of Brotherton, eldest son of King Edward I of Engl ...
, who married firstly John Segrave, 4th Baron Segrave
John Segrave, 4th Baron Segrave (4 May 1315 – 1 April 1353) was an English peer and landowner in Leicestershire and Yorkshire. His family title of Baron Segrave is drawn from a village now spelled Seagrave, which uses a coat of arms imitated fro ...
, and secondly Wauthier de Masny.
* Edward of Norfolk, who married Beatrice Mortimer, daughter of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March
Roger Mortimer, 3rd Baron Mortimer of Wigmore, 1st Earl of March (25 April 1287 – 29 November 1330), was an English nobleman and powerful Marcher Lord who gained many estates in the Welsh Marches and Ireland following his advantageous marria ...
, but died without issue before 9 August 1334.
*Alice of Norfolk
Alice may refer to:
* Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname
Literature
* Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll
* ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...
, who married Edward Montagu, 1st Baron Montagu.
Thomas's wife Alice died by October 1330, when a chantry
A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings:
# a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or
# a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area i ...
was founded for her soul in Bosham, Sussex.
Thomas married secondly, before 4 April 1336, Mary de Brewes (died 11 June 1362), widow of Sir Ralph de Cobham, (died 5 February 1326), and daughter of Sir Peter de Brewes (died before 7 February 1312) of Tetbury
Tetbury is a town and civil parish inside the Cotswold district in England. It lies on the site of an ancient hill fort, on which an Anglo-Saxon monastery was founded, probably by Ine of Wessex, in 681. The population of the parish was 5,250 in ...
, Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
, by Agnes de Clifford (died before 1332), by whom he had no surviving issue.
Family
Ancestry
Family tree
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*Mortimer, Ian. ''The Greatest Traitor'', 2003.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas Of Brotherton, Earl Of Norfolk
1300 births
1338 deaths
1st Earl of Norfolk
Earls Marshal
Heirs to the English throne
House of Plantagenet
People of the Wars of Scottish Independence
13th-century English people
14th-century English nobility
Sons of kings
Children of Edward I of England