|
The
marriage of Humphrey VII to Elizabeth Plantagenet, daughter
of Edward I was the very pinnacle of the DeBohun dynasty's
rise to power. So much was Humphrey in favour with the
royal family, he carried the State sceptre at the coronation
of Edward II. This is hardly surprising since the DeBohuns
had been faithful comrades in arms with Edward I and
had played key roles in many of his campaigns.
This
happy state of affairs was not to last long, as it became
clear that the newly crowned Edward II was a weak and
ineffective ruler. This was compounded by the new Kings'
relationship with his favourite, Piers Gaveston. The
nobility despised Gaveston, the son of a French knight.
Such was the hatred of the Barons towards Gaveston that
they resolved to be rid of him. The Barons murdered
him in Warwick castle. Here again, the name of DeBohun
is prominent amongst those involved. Needless to say,
this put yet more strain on the already tense relations
between DeBohun, the King and the other Baron involved
in the murder. Possibly out of spite, or simply to show
his displeasure, Edward II started to bypass DeBohun
and his position as Lord High Constable. Without consulting
DeBohun, Edward raised troops himself. This slight was
further compounded when Edward conducted his own campaigns
in the Welsh Marches, sometimes on DeBohuns' own lands.
So bad did relations between the two become, that on
one occasion, DeBohun is recorded to have forced a messenger
of the King to eat the Royal warrant he carried, along
with the seals on it.
At
the Battle of Bannockburn, DeBohun was in open dispute
with Edward II, so he deliberately arrived late. The
delayed arrival of the DeBohun retinue must certainly
have made Edward sweat, as the DeBohun retinue accounted
for one fifth of the English army. To add insult to
injury, DeBohun refused to fight with the rest of the
English army, for he was a seasoned campaigner in his
own right and must have realized that the Scots would
have a massive advantage, should the battle take place
where it did. Instead, (and rather sensibly, all things
considered), DeBohun led his own forces and a contingent
of Welsh troops in a direct march on Stirling castle.
He would have succeeded in relieving the castle, but
for a timely intervention by Bruce himself and his force
of Scots cavalry. In this skirmish (although there are
a number of different accounts) Henry DeBohun (Sir Humphrey's
son) was famously slain by Bruce, who avoided the lance
charge of the young DeBohun and killed him with a savage
axe blow to the head.
Sir
Humphrey was captured during the battle and such was
his status, exchanged for Bruce's wife who was being
held hostage by the English. It took four months for
this exchange to take place. There can be little doubt
that Edward was at least partially responsible for the
delay, once again spitefully showing his displeasure
with DeBohun.
Relations
between Edward and Sir Humphrey seem to have improved
following his release from the Scots, but the damage
had been done and although workable, their relationship
was luke-warm at best. The relationship was now more
like an armed truce, but for the time being there was
an element of co-operation and something of a thaw between
the two. This happy state of affairs was not to last
however and came to boiling point after Edward took
a new favourite, one Hugh Despencer the younger. Edward
heaped lavish gifts and titles on Young Hugh, to growing
irritation of the rest of the nobility. The final straw
was when Edward granted Hugh Despencer the title of
Lord of the March. This was too much for DeBohun and
in conjunction with Thomas of Lancaster (the Kings'
cousin) and several other nobles rose in rebellion against
Edward. The rebellious Barons gave battle to the forces
loyal to Edward at Boroughbridge in March 1322.
Thomas
of Lancaster showed his cowardice, sued for peace and
threw himself on the Kings' mercy. This was devastating
blow to the rebels, but they fought on, trying to extricate
themselves from their deadly predicament. DeBohun was
slain trying to force a crossing of a bridge, by a Welsh
pike man loyal to the King.
The
body of Sir Humphrey DeBohun was interred and remains
to this day at Friars Preachers, York.
Family
History:
The
DeBohun dynasty was one of the greatest of the middle
ages, able to trace the rise in its' fortunes back to
the "great adventure" of William I. The first
Humphrey DeBohun was a close companion of Duke William.
He is shown in the Bayeux tapestry seated at Duke Williams'
right hand during a feast prior to the embarkation of
the invasion fleet. Although Humphrey "the old"
probably did not take an active part in the Battle of
Hastings, due to his advanced years, two of his sons
most certainly did. Following Williams' victory on Senlac
Hill, and subsequent coronation, he granted lands and
titles to the DeBohun family.
Although
the first titles were relatively minor, by carefully
arranged marriages the DeBohun family began climbing
to the top of medieval society. During the early 12th
century, by marriage, Humphrey III became the first
DeBohun to accede to the title of Earl of Hereford.
This took the dynasty to the very top of society. In
addition to the Earldom of Hereford, he also inherited
the title of "Lord High Constable of all England".
In one fell swoop, not only had Sir Humphrey become
a great magnate in his own right, he had also become
arguably one of the most powerful men in England.
Though
now at the top of society, the DeBohuns were not finished
yet with their ambitions or their quest for land and
therefore power. During the thirteenth century, again
by marriage, they acquired the hereditary title of Earls
of Essex from the Longspee family.
By
and large, the DeBohuns were loyal to their kings, but
on occasion stood up to one that was overbearing or
incautious. John was one King that pushed them too far.
A coalition of great nobles, including the DeBohuns
forced King John to sign the Magna Carta. In order to
enforce this landmark document, DeBohun was elected
along with a number of other Barons as a "Kings'
Ordainer". This meant that the Kings' hands were
tied on most matters and could only pass new laws, raise
taxes and so on, only with the consent of his Ordainers.
|
