Humphrey IV de Bohun, 2nd Earl of Hereford, 1st Earl of Essex (1204 – 24 September 1275) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman and soldier who served as hereditary Constable of England.

Origins

He was the eldest son and heir of Henry de Bohun, 1st Earl of Hereford (1176–1220) by his wife Maud de Mandeville (''alias'' Maud FitzGeoffrey), daughter and heiress of Geoffrey Fitz Peter, 1st Earl of Essex.

Career

He was one of the nine godfathers of Prince Edward, the future King

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 125 ...

. He served as Sheriff of Kent for 1239–40. In 1258, after returning from a

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...

to the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

, Humphrey fell away, like his father, from the royal cause to that of the barons. He served as a nominee of the opposition on the "committee of twenty-four" which was appointed in the Oxford Parliament of that year, to create the Provisions of Oxford to reform the administration. The alliance of Simon de Montfort with

Llywelyn ap Gruffudd Llywelyn ap Gruffudd ( – 11 December 1282), also known as Llywelyn II and Llywelyn the Last (), was List of rulers of Gwynedd, Prince of Gwynedd, and later was recognised as the Prince of Wales (; ) from 1258 until his death at Cilmeri in 128 ...

of North Wales brought Bohun back to royal allegiance. He headed the first secession of the Welsh Marchers from the party of the opposition (1263), and was among the captives whom the Montfortians took at the

Battle of Lewes The Battle of Lewes was one of two main battles of the conflict known as the Second Barons' War. It took place at Lewes in Sussex, on 14 May 1264. It marked the high point of the career of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, and made ...

in 1264.{{EB1911, inline=1 , wstitle=Bohun , volume=4 , page=137 He was amongst the victors at the

Battle of Evesham The Battle of Evesham (4 August 1265) was one of the two main battles of 13th century England's Second Barons' War. It marked the defeat of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, and the rebellious barons by the future King Edward I, who led t ...

in 1265, which extinguished the power of de Montfort, at which, however, his eldest son, Humphrey V de Bohun, was mortally wounded. Humphrey was selected as one of the twelve arbitrators to draw up the Dictum of Kenilworth (1266), by which the disinherited rebels were allowed to make their peace.{{cn, date=January 2023

Marriages and issue

He married twice: *Firstly, in about 1236, to Maud de Lusignan (c. 1210 – 14 August 1241), daughter of Raoul I of Lusignan, Comte d'Eu, second husband of Alix d'Eu, 8th Comtesse d'Eu.{{sfn, Pollock, 2015, p=101 She died in 1241 and was buried at Llanthony,

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

, together with her husband. By Maud he had issue including: **Humphrey V de Bohun (died 1265), eldest son and

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

, who predeceased his father, having shared with him in the victory at the

(1264), which he did not long survive. The earldom, therefore, passed to his son Humphrey VI de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford, 2nd Earl of Essex (c. 1249 – 1298). **Henry de Bohun **Geoffrey de Bohun **Ralph de Bohun, Cleric; ** Maud de Bohun, who married firstly Anselm Marshal, 6th Earl of Pembroke; secondly Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester; ** Alice de Bohun, who married Roger V de Toeni; **Eleanor de Bohun, who married Sir John de Verdun, Baron of Westmeath *Secondly, he married Maud de Avenbury (died 8 October 1273), by whom he had two further sons: **John de Bohun **Sir Miles de Bohun {{Earls of Essex family tree

Death and burial

He died in 1275 in

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

and was buried at Llanthony Secunda in

. He was succeeded by his grandson Humphrey VI de Bohun (c. 1249 – 1298).

Notes

References

*{{cite book , first=M. A. , last=Pollock , title=Scotland, England and France After the Loss of Normandy, 1204-1296 , publisher=The Boydell Press , year=2015 * Complete Peerage {{S-start {{s-reg, en {{s-bef, before = Henry de Bohun {{s-ttl, title = Earl of Hereford , years = 1220–1275 {{s-aft, rows = 2 , after = Humphrey VI de Bohun {{s-new, creation {{s-ttl, title = Earl of Essex , years = 1239–1275 {{s-off {{succession box , title= Lord High Constable , before= Henry de Bohun , after= Humphrey VI de Bohun , years=1220–1275 {{S-end {{DEFAULTSORT:Hereford, Humphrey de Bohun, 2nd Earl 1204 births 1275 deaths 02 01 13th-century English nobility High sheriffs of Kent Bohun family