Aveline de Forz, Countess of Aumale and Lady of Holderness (20 January 1259 – 10 November 1274) was an English noblewoman. A great heiress, in 1269 she was married to

Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster Edmund, 1st Earl of Lancaster (16 January 12455 June 1296), also known as Edmund Crouchback, was a member of the royal Plantagenet Dynasty and the founder of the first House of Lancaster. He was Earl of Leicester (1265–1296), Lancaster (1267� ...

, the second son of

Henry III of England Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of John, King of England, King John and Isabella of Ang ...

. She died five years later, and the marriage produced no children.

Life

Aveline de Forz was born on 20 January 1259 at

Burstwick Burstwick is a village and civil parish in the Holderness region of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated about east of Hull city centre. It lies on the B1362 road. History Burstwick is described as a ''caput'', or principal ...

Holderness Holderness is an area of the East Riding of Yorkshire, on the north-east coast of England. An area of rich agricultural land, Holderness was marshland until it was drained in the Middle Ages. Topographically, Holderness has more in common wit ...

. Her parents were

William de Forz, 4th Earl of Albemarle William de Forz, 4th Earl of Albemarle (died 1260) ( Latinised as ''de Fortibus'', sometimes spelt Deforce) played a conspicuous part in the reign of Henry III of England, notably in the Mad Parliament of 1258. William married twice. His fir ...

and Isabella Redvers, Countess of Devon and the Isle of Wight.

Marriage

Queen Eleanor Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It was the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages">Provençal dialect ...

, the consort of

, arranged the marriage between Aveline and their second son

. Eleanor negotiated with Aveline's mother Isabella and grandmother

Amice The amice is a liturgical vestment used mainly in the Catholic Church, Roman Catholic church, Western Orthodox church, Lutheranism , Lutheran church, and some Anglicanism , Anglican, Armenian Catholic , Armenian, and Polish National Catholic C ...

to secure the alliance. On 8 or 9 April 1269, Aveline was married to Edmund at

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

. Given that Aveline was only ten years old, the marriage was not consummated until 1273, when she turned fourteen. With marriage to the great heiress, the already wealthy Edmund hoped to gain the earldoms of Devon and Aumale as well as the lordships of Holderness and the Isle of Wight. Her last surviving brother, Thomas, died in 1269, and she inherited his titles, becoming

Countess of Aumale The County of Aumale, later elevated to a Duchy, was a medieval fief in the Duchy of Normandy, disputed between France and England during parts of the Hundred Years' War. Norman nobility Aumale was a medieval fief in the Duchy of Normandy and, ...

. Her lands fell into King Henry's custody. However, Aveline died on 10 November 1274 at

Stockwell Stockwell is a district located in South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. It is situated south of Charing Cross. History The name Stockwell is likely to have originated from a local well, with "stoc" being Old Englis ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, which prevented Edmund from inheriting the lands. They had no children. Aveline was buried in

, the first tomb to be placed in its new church. The historian

Peter Coss Peter R. Coss is a British historian, specialising in the history of the English medieval gentry. He is Emeritus Professor of Medieval History at the School of History, Archaeology, and Religion at Cardiff University, Wales. His research interest ...

has called the tombs of her and

Eleanor of Castile Eleanor of Castile (1241 – 28 November 1290) was Queen of England as the first wife of Edward I. She was educated at the Castilian court and also ruled as Countess of Ponthieu in her own right () from 1279. After diplomatic efforts to s ...

"two of the finest female effigies of the thirteenth century."

References

;Works cited * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aumale, Aveline de Forz, Countess of 1259 births 1274 deaths English countesses Daughters of British earls Earls of Albemarle 13th-century English nobility 13th-century English women Burials at Westminster Abbey 13th-century English landowners English women landowners 13th-century women landowners People from Holderness