William le Latimer (died 5 December 1304), Lord of Corby and Billinges was an English noble. He was a crusader and served in English campaigns in Wales, Gascony, France and Scotland.

Biography

William was the eldest son of William le Latimer and Alice Hansard. He took the cross in 1271 and went on Prince

Edward Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...

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to the

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and was summoned to serve in Wales in December 1276 and again in May 1282. At the defeat of the English at

Menai Straits The Menai Strait ( cy, Afon Menai, the "river Menai") is a narrow stretch of shallow tidal water about long, which separates the island of Anglesey from the mainland of Wales. It varies in width from from Fort Belan to Abermenai Point to f ...

on 6 November 1282, he escaped the rout of the English forces by riding through the midst of the waves. He was present in parliament on 29 May 1290, however his the first recorded writ of summons is dated 29 December 1299. In April 1292, William was summoned to attend at Norham equipped for the field. He sailed in the expedition for

Gascony Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part o ...

which left

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

on 3 October 1292, reaching Chatillon on 23 October. At the beginning of 1295, Latimer was in command at Rions and seems to have remained in Gascony till 1297, after which he was employed in Scotland, and was present at the Battle of Stirling Bridge on 10 September 1297, when the English were defeated by William Wallace. In 1298 he accompanied Edward I to Scotland, and was present at the

battle of Falkirk The Battle of Falkirk (''Blàr na h-Eaglaise Brice'' in Gaelic), on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence. Led by King Edward I of England, the English army defeated the Scots, led by William Wal ...

on 22 July. In August, Latimer was in command at Berwick Castle. The following year, in April, he was appointed a commissioner to treat for the exchange of prisoners, and was one of those summoned to attend the council at York in July for the consideration of the affairs of Scotland. In July, he was engaged in a raid into Galloway, and in August was again at Berwick, being at this time the king's lieutenant in the Marches. William was at the siege of Caerlaverock, appointed in October 1300 again as keeper of Berwick and in September 1302 was in command at

Roxburgh Castle Roxburgh Castle is a ruined royal castle that overlooks the junction of the rivers Tweed and Teviot, in the Borders region of Scotland. The town and castle developed into the royal burgh of Roxburgh, which the Scots destroyed along with the ca ...

. In February 1301, he was present in the parliament at Lincoln, and was one of the barons who signed the Baron's Letter to

Pope Boniface VIII Pope Boniface VIII ( la, Bonifatius PP. VIII; born Benedetto Caetani, c. 1230 – 11 October 1303) was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 December 1294 to his death in 1303. The Caetani, Caetani family was of b ...

. Latimer died on 5 December 1304, and was buried at Empingham,

Rutland Rutland () is a ceremonial county and unitary authority in the East Midlands, England. The county is bounded to the west and north by Leicestershire, to the northeast by Lincolnshire and the southeast by Northamptonshire. Its greatest len ...

. He was succeeded by his eldest son William. His wife Alice died in 1316.

Marriage and issue

William married Alice, elder daughter and co-heiress of Walter Ledet, Lord of Braybrooke and Ermentrude de Lisle. The wardship of Alice and her sister Christiana was held by the father of William Latimer, who married them to his sons. William and Alice had the following issue:Nicolas & Courthope, p. 280. *William Latimer, married Lucy de Thweng, had issue. *John Latimer (died 1299), married Isabel de Sherstede, without issue. *Joan Latimer (died 1308), married Alexander Comyn, had issue. *Christina Latimer, married Robert de Bosco, had issue.

Citations

References

*Nicholas Harris Nicolas; William Courthope (1857), Historic Peerage of England (hardback), London: John Murray. * {{morecat, date=May 2023 Year of birth unknown 1304 deaths 13th-century English people 14th-century English people