William de Botreaux (1337–1391) (pronounced "But'ry") (or Bottreaux, corrupted to Boterel, Battrell, Bartle, etc.) was a prominent British West-Country baron during the reigns of

King Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

(1327–1377) and

King Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales (later known as the Black Prince), and Joan, Countess of Kent. R ...

(1377–1399).

Origins

He was the son and heir of William de Botreaux (d. 22 July 1349) of Forrabury, Cornwall (renamed after his family

Boscastle Boscastle () is a village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, in the civil parish of Forrabury and Minster (where the 2011 Census population was included) . It is south of Bude and northeast of Tintagel. The harbour ...

, anciently "Bottreaux Castle", )

Sheriff of Cornwall Sheriffs and high sheriffs of Cornwall: a chronological list: The right to choose high sheriffs each year is vested in the Duchy of Cornwall. The Privy Council of the United Kingdom, Privy Council, chaired by the sovereign, chooses the sheriff ...

, by Isabel de Moels, younger daughter and co-heiress (with her sister Muriel, the wife of Thomas Courtenay (d. 1363) 5th son of Hugh de Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon) of John de Moels, 4th Baron Moels(d.1337), of East Berkhampstead, Hertfordshire and

feudal baron A feudal baron is a vassal holding a heritable fief called a ''barony'', comprising a specific portion of land, granted by an overlord in return for allegiance and service. Following the end of European feudalism, feudal baronies have largely be ...

of a moiety of

North Cadbury North Cadbury is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish west of Wincanton, by the River Cam, Somerset, River Cam, in Somerset, England. It shares its Parish councils in England, parish council with nearby Yarlington and its civil ...

, Somerset, by his wife Joan Lovel, daughter of Richard Lovel of

Castle Cary Castle Cary () is a market town and civil parish in south Somerset, England, north west of Wincanton and south of Shepton Mallet, at the foot of Lodge Hill and on the River Cary, a tributary of the Parrett. History The word Cary derives ...

, Somerset. The family is believed to have come from ''

Les Bottereaux Les Bottereaux () is a commune in the Eure department in Normandy in northern France. The Anglo-Norman family of the Barons Botreaux probably originated here. Population See also *Communes of the Eure department The following is a list ...

'', in Upper Normandy near Evreux, France. His father William (d. 1349) was the son of Reynold (d. 1346), son of William (d. c. 1342), son of William (d. 1302), son of Reynold (d. 1273).

Career

He was born on 1 September 1337 at Botelet near Herodsfoot, three miles northeast of Lanreath, Cornwall. Botelet is 20 miles south of the family's ancient seat of

on the north Cornish coast. He received

livery A livery is an identifying design, such as a uniform, ornament, symbol, or insignia that designates ownership or affiliation, often found on an individual or vehicle. Livery often includes elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or ...

of his lands on 27 September 1359. In 1359, he took part in the expedition to

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

and in 1380, he was in the expedition to support Portugal against Spain.

Created Baron by writ

During the reign of

he was first summoned to

parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

by writ addressed to ''Willelmo de Botreaux'' on 24 February 1367/8. He thus became the 1st Baron Botreaux. He was likewise summoned on several further occasions the last of which was 12 September 1390.

Armorials

The armorials of de Botreaux are: ''Argent, a

griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...

segreant gules armed azure''.

Marriage

In February 1369/70 he married Elizabeth Daubeny (d. 29/5/1433), daughter of Ralph Daubeny, 2nd Baron Daubeny (1305–c. 1342) by Katherine Thweng, sister and co-heiress of Thomas Thweng, 4th Baron Thweng.

Progeny

He left the following progeny by Elizabeth Daubeny: * William de Botreaux, 2nd Baron Botreaux (1367–1395) *John de Botreaux (3rd son), lived at Molland-Bottreaux, Devon.

Death

He died on 10 August 1391.Inquest ''post mortem'' dated 1391–2 Before 1421 his widow Elizabeth became a nun at Tarrant Abbey, Dorset.

References

Sources

*G. E. Cokayne ''Complete Peerage''; vol 2, pp. 241–242 {{DEFAULTSORT:Botreaux, William De Botreaux, 1st Baron 1337 births 1391 deaths Peers created by Edward III Barons Botreaux