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Guest Post: Feisty Females: Writing Lincolnshire’s Medieval Women by Rosanna McGlone

14/06/202516/06/2025Sharon Bennett ConnollyLeave a comment

The great Cowcher Book — *The Great Cowcher Book*

It is a pleasure to welcome my good friend Rosanna McGlone to History … the Interesting Bits to chat about her new book, Feisty Females, a series of short stories inspired by The Great Cowcher Book. Although Feisty Females is Rosanna’s ‘baby’, I feel like its Godmother as we have chatted frequently, over coffee, about the women she included, included Nicholaa de la Haye, Alice de Lacey, Blanche of Lancaster and Gwenllian of Wales – women my readers, I know, are well acquainted with!

Rosanna would meet me, armed with questions about the history of these women and the world they lived in. Then she went away and came back having put her own mark on their stories. And what a fascinating collection of stories it is!

It is a joy to see this project come to fruition. So, over to Rosanna to tell you a little about the process of researching and writing Feisty Females: Old Bolingbroke through our Imaginations.

Feisty Females: Writing Lincolnshire’s Medieval Women by Rosanna McGlone

Henry IV effigy — *Henry IV*, *Canterbury Cathedral*

You’ve heard of the Domesday Book, right? But do you know the second most important medieval record book? If you don’t, let me reassure you. Until I received this commission, neither did I. According to staff at the National Archives it’s The Great Cowcher Book, a medieval land registry commissioned by Henry IV to provide a record of lands within the Duchy of Lancaster. Receiver General John Leventhorpe was assigned to visit the 18,000 hectares of rural estates in England and Wales including Cheshire and Lancashire in the West and The Honor of Bolingbroke in Lincolnshire in the East which make up the Duchy of Lancaster. In doing so, he gathered a total of 161 folios and 2,433 charters written in either Latin or medieval French.

What exactly do the two volumes of The Great Cowcher Book contain? As well as including transactions such as the bestowing of Old Bolingbroke Castle to John of Gaunt and his wife Blanche of Lancaster, the book also covers more minor land transactions between people of much lower status.

Additionally, the Great Cowcher Book provides a record of disputes which had been brought before the court seeking resolution.

I was commissioned, and funded, by a number of organisations including the Arts Council, Lincoln County Council, the community of Old Bolingbroke and others to write a creative response to this unique material. Thus, it is from this medieval register that my book of short stories, Feisty Females: Old Bolingbroke through our Imaginations was crafted.

The beautiful medieval manuscripts have recently been translated into English and I received the information on a rather less romanticised, Excel spreadsheet! The columns display the following headings, however not all of them have been populated for each of the more than 5,000 entries: regnal year, name of vendor, name of buyer, land to be purchased; witnesses to the contract; any special conditions, the original language of the manuscript.

As I poured over in excess of 1,200 entries pertaining to The Honor of Bolingbroke, my key focus, I was struck by the names: Walter son of Andrew; Adam, Hugh, Odo Galle of Saltfletby; Gilbert, Ranulf, Clement Prior of Spaldying, William de Rusmar, Henry de Lascy, Simon le Bret, God and his church.

Where were all of the women? As I note in the introduction to my book, His-tory is so often that, a record of the past through the male lens. For me, it was important to offer a different perspective. Out of the more than 5,000 entries within the Great Cowcher Book there are few female landowners. Yet, I was mindful that any females who did appear would have something remarkable about them to succeed in the male dominated medieval world.

Nicholaa de la Haye effigy — *Tomb effigy of Nicholaa de la Haye*

Women such as Nicholaa de la Haye, the first female Sheriff of Lincoln and Castellan of Lincoln Castle who withstood not one, but three separate sieges on the castle and earned the respect of King John himself.

Another feisty female for whom I have particular affection is Alice de Lacy, a woman whose story is too incredible to be true, at least that’s what I thought when I read it. Kidnappings, rape, imprisonment by the king, threats of being burnt to death, really how could I possibly capture all of Alice’s turbulent life in a mere 3,000 words? The answer is, I couldn’t. Therefore, I focused upon the catalyst for her troubles, her inheritance. Two bizarre childhood accidents occurred to her brothers which, in my opinion, determined the course of Alice’s life. Firstly, her young brother Edmund fell down a well at Denbigh Castle and died. Then, barely six months later, her other brother, John fell off the battlements at Pontefract Castle. He too perished leaving Alice- still a child herself- as sole heir to her parents, Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, and Margaret Longespee, Countess of Salisbury.

Whilst all of the other stories are set in medieval times, for Alice’s story I use the framework of a police interview in which she is pushed to reveal the truth of those inciting incidents.

The women with the most charters in the Great Cowcher Book is Hawise de Quincy, first Countess of Lincoln, who has a remarkable 40 entries. Whilst the vast majority of these relate to land acquisitions, the one upon which my tale focuses concerns a dispute was between Hawise and Philip de Kyma. To quote the Great Cowcher, this disagreement was

‘…concerning a certain obstruction of a certain watercourse made by the said Philip in Torp to the nuisance of the port of the said Hawise in Weynfled. Because it was then clear the land of both sides of that watercourse towards the port of Weynfled is of the said Philip…’

And so on… In essence, Philip de Kyma was preventing Hawise de Quincy from accessing her port and, therefore, the valuable port fees. So, what was she to do? This is what my story explores. Does pragmatism work, or must Hawise resort to womanly wiles?

Gwenllian of Wales — *Memorial to Gwenllian, Sempringham Priory*

An incredibly wronged female in Feisty Females is Gwenllian, the last Princess of Wales who was incarcerated in a Lincolnshire Priory from which there was little chance of escape, unless she had inside help…

In all cases, bar one, the women come from the Great Cowcher book, however in Matilda’s case my desire to write on the specific topic of that story arose first, based on a certain building referenced in The Great Cowcher. Matilda’s Story begins thus:

It was the day after Candlemas that we held my brother’s funeral. There was just one problem: he wasn’t dead.

It has been a pleasure to learn more about these characters and to bring them to life for readers, giving them voices after 800 years, or more, of silence. The book is a celebration of the female power which was understood by Chaucer who, himself, makes an appearance in Blanche’s Story. In the epigraph to my book Chaucer describes women thus:

‘And what is better than wisedoom? Womman.

And what is better than a good woman? Nothyng.’¹

*

Notes: 1. Geoffrey Chaucer, ‘The Tale of Melibee’ The Canterbury Tales.

Images: The Great Cowcher Book (DL 42/2, fol. 231r, the property of His Majesty The King in Right of His Duchy of Lancaster and is reproduced by permission of the Chancellor and Council of the Duchy of Lancaster.); Photos of Henry IV, Nicholaa de la Haye and Gwenllian of Wales are ©Sharon Bennett Connolly FRHistS.

To Buy the Book:

Just click on the link to buy: Feisty Females

About the Author:

Rosanna McGlone is a writer and journalist. Her book, The Process of Poetry -which explores the development of early drafts of poems by some of the country’s leading poets- was number 1 on Amazon and featured on Radio 4’s Front Row. The sequel, The Making of a Poem, focuses on the work of Australian foremost poets. She has written more than 100 features for the national press, including: The Guardian, The Independent, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian. Rosanna has written memoirs, community plays and collected oral histories. Feisty Females, a creative response to The Great Cowcher Book, a medieval book, is out on June 8^th 2025.

To find out more follow Rosanna at @rosannamcglone.bsky.social

My Books:

Signed, dedicated copies of all my books are available through my online bookshop.

Out Now! Scotland’s Medieval Queens

Scotland’s history is dramatic, violent and bloody. Being England’s northern neighbour has never been easy. Scotland’s queens have had to deal with war, murder, imprisonment, political rivalries and open betrayal. They have loved and lost, raised kings and queens, ruled and died for Scotland. From St Margaret, who became one of the patron saints of Scotland, to Elizabeth de Burgh and the dramatic story of the Scottish Wars of Independence, to the love story and tragedy of Joan Beaufort, to Margaret of Denmark and the dawn of the Renaissance, Scotland’s Medieval Queens have seen it all. This is the story of Scotland through their eyes.

‘Scotland’s Medieval Queens gives a thorough grounding in the history of the women who ruled Scotland at the side of its kings, often in the shadows, but just as interesting in their lives beyond the spotlight. It’s not a subject that has been widely covered, and Sharon is a pioneer in bringing that information into accessible history.’ Elizabeth Chadwick (New York Times bestselling author)

Available now from Amazon and Pen and Sword Books

Also by Sharon Bennett Connolly:

Heroines of the Tudor World tells the stories of the most remarkable women from European history in the time of the Tudor dynasty, 1485-1603. These are the women who ruled, the women who founded dynasties, the women who fought for religious freedom, their families and love. Heroines of the Tudor World is now available for pre-order from Amberley Publishing and Amazon UK. Women of the Anarchy demonstrates how Empress Matilda and Matilda of Boulogne, unable to wield a sword themselves, were prime movers in this time of conflict and lawlessness. It shows how their strengths, weaknesses, and personal ambitions swung the fortunes of war one way – and then the other. Available from Bookshop.org, Amberley Publishing and Amazon UK. King John’s Right-Hand Lady: The Story of Nicholaa de la Haye is the story of a truly remarkable lady, the hereditary constable of Lincoln Castle and the first woman in England to be appointed sheriff in her own right. Available from all good bookshops Pen & Sword Books, bookshop.org and Amazon.

Defenders of the Norman Crown: The Rise and Fall of the Warenne Earls of Surrey tells the fascinating story of the Warenne dynasty, from its origins in Normandy, through the Conquest, Magna Carta, the wars and marriages that led to its ultimate demise in the reign of Edward III. Available from Pen & Sword Books, Amazon in the UK and US, and Bookshop.org. Ladies of Magna Carta: Women of Influence in Thirteenth Century England looks into the relationships of the various noble families of the 13th century, and how they were affected by the Barons’ Wars, Magna Carta and its aftermath; the bonds that were formed and those that were broken. It is now available in paperback and hardback from Pen & Sword, Amazon, and Bookshop.org. Heroines of the Medieval World tells the stories of some of the most remarkable women from Medieval history, from Eleanor of Aquitaine to Julian of Norwich. Available now from Amberley Publishing and Amazon, and Bookshop.org. Silk and the Sword: The Women of the Norman Conquest traces the fortunes of the women who had a significant role to play in the momentous events of 1066. Available now from Amazon, Amberley Publishing, and Bookshop.org.

Alternate Endings: An anthology of historical fiction short stories including Long Live the King… which is my take what might have happened had King John not died in October 1216. Available in paperback and kindle from Amazon.

Podcast:

Have a listen to the A Slice of Medieval podcast, which I co-host with Historical fiction novelist Derek Birks. Derek and I welcome guests, such as Bernard Cornwell and Michael Jecks, and discuss a wide range of topics in medieval history, from significant events to the personalities involved.

Every episode is also now available on YouTube.

Don’t forget! Signed and dedicated copies of all my books are available through my online store.

For forthcoming online and in-person talks, please check out my Events Page.

You can be the first to read new articles by clicking the ‘Follow’ button, liking our Facebook page or joining me on Twitter, Threads, Bluesky and Instagram.

The Women Behind Magna Carta

27/08/202327/08/2023Sharon Bennett Connolly8 Comments

Throughout my research into medieval women, two ladies in particular have popped up a number of times: Nicholaa de la Haye and Matilda de Braose. Their unique stories drew me into their world, and the turbulent times of King John. They were the spark that led me to look into the story of Magna Carta; how its clauses were influenced by women and how women used it to protect their own rights. Magna Carta was, perhaps, the first step on the long road to democracy in England, and many women played key roles in its creation and development.

The Magna Carta of 1215 reflects the needs and events of the time in which it was issued; an England on the brink of civil war, disaffected barons demanding redress, the Church and cities such as London looking for protection. It was drawn up by barons looking for redress and legal protection from a king whose word could no longer be trusted, who meted out arbitrary punishments and heavy taxes. It was not a charter that was intended to form the protection and legal rights of every man, woman and child in the land; though it has come to be seen as just that in subsequent centuries. Indeed, the common man does not get a mention, and of the sixty-three clauses, only eight of them mention women as a gender.

The significance of women in the Magna Carta story is not just their limited inclusion in the charter itself, but also in their experiences of the unsettled times in which they lived, in their influence on the charter itself and in their use of its clauses to exact redress for injustices they had experienced. The political crisis which saw the issuing of Magna Carta, and the civil war which followed, was not just significant to the barons involved, but to their wives and families, tenants and retainers. The conflict tore families apart as they took sides in the struggle and saw more than one baron change sides mid-crisis. Wives and daughters were caught in the middle, often torn by divided loyalties; between their birth family and the family into which they had married; between their fathers and their husbands. For instance, Matilda Marshal was the eldest daughter of William Marshal, a man known for his staunch loyalty to the crown, but she was married to Hugh Bigod, son of Roger, second Earl of Norfolk, one of the leaders of baronial opposition.

Tomb of Nicholaa de la Haye, St Michael’s Church, Swaton

Although they had very different experiences, they shared a number of similarities. Probably born within a few years of each other, they were contemporaries and both were key figures in the reign of King John, though for very different reasons. While Nicholaa de la Haye was a staunch supporter of the man who is, arguably, England’s most despised king in history, Matilda de Braose was one of his most female victims. Matilda’s family were harassed to Ireland and back by John, before she and her eldest son were left in a prison cell to starve to death; they were found after 11 days, Matilda’s head resting on her son’s chest, her son’s cheeks bearing the bite marks as evidence of lengths Matilda went to in her desperation to stay alive. It was Matilda’s experiences at the hands of King John that inspired clause 39 of Magna Carta, that clause that is still the cornerstone of British justice to this day:

‘No man shall be taken, imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land’

Nicholaa de la Haye, on the other hand, had been a long-time supporter of King John. She first successfully defended Lincoln Castle, in support of John, in the siege of 1191; the siege lasted 40 days before William Longchamp, the hated justiciar, gave up and went home. In 1216, Nicholaa successfully defended it again, this time paying off the rebel barons so that they would lift the siege. In the aftermath, John came north and ravaged the Isle of Axholme, where the barons had retreated to, with ‘fire and sword’. It was after this even that Nicholaa, now in her 60s and recently widowed, offered to relinquish custody of the castle. John refused to accept her resignation and in October, hours before his death, appointed Nicholaa Sheriff of Lincolnshire: she was the first ever female sheriff in England.

Although Nicholaa de la Haye and Matilda de Braose were the major influences behind my book, Ladies of Magna Carta, they were not the only women to make an impression on the Magna Carta story. The deeper I dug, the more stories I uncovered that deserved to be told. Matilda’s own daughter, Loretta de Braose, was one such. Recently widowed following the death of her husband, Robert de Breteuil, Earl of Leicester, Loretta had been forced by John to relinquish her dower rights; Magna Carta clauses 7 and 8 of Magna Carta, protecting widows’ rights:

Clause 7:

After her husband’s death, a widow shall have her marriage portion and her inheritance at once and without any hindrance; nor shall she pay anything for her dower, her marriage portion, or her inheritance which she and her husband held on the day of her husband’s death; and she may stay in her husband’s house for 40 days after his death, within which period her dower shall be assigned to her.

Clause 8:

No widow shall be compelled to marry so long as she wishes to live without a husband, provided that she gives security that she will not marry without our consent if she holds of us, or without the consent of the lord of whom she holds, if she holds of another.

Furthermore, there are two women who can be clearly identified in Magna Carta itself, though they are not named, they are two Scottish princesses. The sisters of King Alexander II had been held hostage in England since 1209, when John forced the humiliating Treaty of Norham on their ailing father, King William the Lion. Clause 59 promised:

‘We will treat Alexander, king of Scots, concerning the return of his sisters and hostages and his liberties and rights in the same manner in which we will act towards our other barons of England, unless it ought to be otherwise because of the charters which we have from William his father, formerly king of Scots; and this shall be determined by the judgement of his peers in our court.^’

Women not only influenced the clauses of Magna Carta, however, they also used Magna Carta to assert and protect their own rights. Women such as Ela of Salisbury, who used the promises of Magna Carta to avoid an unwelcome marriage proposal when her husband, William Longspée was missing and feared dead. Or Isabel d’Aubigny, Countess of Arundel, who proclaimed ‘Where are the liberties of England, so often recorded, so often granted and so often ransomed’, when King Henry III foolishly attempted to steal land that was rightfully hers. She must have been a fearsome opponent, as Henry responded to one of her petitions, saying that he would grant her leniency ‘so long as she says nothing opprobrious to us as she did when we were at Westminster!’

And then there were the women for whom Magna Carta offered no protection or respite. Women such as Eleanor of Brittany, for whom even clause 39 could be of no help. Their royal blood and ability to be a focus for opposition to the crown meant that successive kings would keep them imprisoned, either in castles, as with Eleanor, or in a rural convent, as with Gwenllian of Wales, orphan daughter of Llywelyn, Prince of Wales and his wife, Eleanor de Montfort, who was herself a granddaughter of King John.

It was Eleanor’s mother, also Eleanor, the youngest daughter of King John and not a year old at her father’s death, who, as the wife of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, would continue the struggle to curb the powers of the crown in the Second Barons’ War. She herself was defending Dover Castle when her husband was killed at the Battle of Evesham. She spent her final years in French exile. Her struggles to obtain her dower lands from the powerful Marshal family, guaranteed in Magna Carta, were a major component of Eleanor’s own dissatisfaction with her brother, Henry III.

It is through the stories of these remarkable women and the relationships of the various noble families of the 13th century, that I wanted to examine how they were affected by the First Barons’ Wars, Magna Carta and its aftermath. It is a study of the bonds that were formed and those that were broken among the women of the great families of 13th century England, including the royal families of England and Scotland, the Marshals, the Bigods, the Salisburys, Braoses and Warennes.

Their stories are inspirational, if heartbreaking at times.

Images:

Sources:

Richard of Devizes, The Chronicle of Richard of Devizes; Roger of Howden (Hoveden), The Annals of Roger of Howden; The Plantagenet Chronicles edited by Elizabeth Hallam; Brassey’s Battles by John Laffin; 1215 The Year of Magna Carta by Danny Danziger & John Gillingham; The Life and times of King John by Maurice Ashley; The Plantagenets, the Kings Who Made England by Dan Jones; England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings by Robert Bartlett; lincolnshirelife.co.uk; catherinehanley.co.uk; magnacarta800th.com; lothene.org; lincolncastle.com; The Sheriff: The Man and His Office by Irene Gladwin; Louise Wilkinson, Women in Thirteenth Century Lincolnshire; Richard Huscraft, Tales from the Long Twelfth Century; J.W.F. Hill, Medieval Lincoln; swaton.org.uk; oxforddnb.com; Stephen Church, King John: England, Magna Carta and the Making of a Tyrant; Marc Morris, King John; Pipe Rolls; Red Book of the Exchequer

My Books

Signed, dedicated copies of all my books are available through my online store.

Out now: King John’s Right-Hand Lady: The Story of Nicholaa de la Haye

In a time when men fought and women stayed home, Nicholaa de la Haye held Lincoln Castle against all-comers, gaining prominence in the First Baron’s War, the civil war that followed the sealing of Magna Carta in 1215. A truly remarkable lady, Nicholaa was the first woman to be appointed sheriff in her own right. Her strength and tenacity saved England at one of the lowest points in its history. Nicholaa de la Haye is one woman in English history whose story needs to be told…

King John’s Right-Hand Lady: The Story of Nicholaa de la Haye is now available from Pen & Sword Books, bookshop.org and Amazon.

Coming 15 January 2024: Women of the Anarchy

On the one side is Empress Matilda, or Maud. The sole surviving legitimate child of Henry I, she is fighting for her birthright and that of her children. On the other side is her cousin, Queen Matilda, supporting her husband, King Stephen, and fighting to see her own son inherit the English crown. Both women are granddaughters of St Margaret, Queen of Scotland and descendants of Alfred the Great of Wessex. Women of the Anarchy demonstrates how these women, unable to wield a sword, were prime movers in this time of conflict and lawlessness. It show how their strengths, weaknesses, and personal ambitions swung the fortunes of war one way – and then the other.

Available for pre-order from Amberley Publishing and Amazon UK.

Also by Sharon Bennett Connolly:

Defenders of the Norman Crown: The Rise and Fall of the Warenne Earls of Surrey tells the fascinating story of the Warenne dynasty, of the successes and failures of one of the most powerful families in England, from its origins in Normandy, through the Conquest, Magna Carta, the wars and marriages that led to its ultimate demise in the reign of Edward III. Defenders of the Norman Crown: Rise and Fall of the Warenne Earls of Surrey is now available from Pen & Sword Books, Amazon in the UK and US, and Bookshop.org.

Ladies of Magna Carta: Women of Influence in Thirteenth Century England looks into the relationships of the various noble families of the 13th century, and how they were affected by the Barons’ Wars, Magna Carta and its aftermath; the bonds that were formed and those that were broken. It is now available in paperback and hardback from Pen & Sword, Amazon, and Bookshop.org.

Heroines of the Medieval World tells the stories of some of the most remarkable women from Medieval history, from Eleanor of Aquitaine to Julian of Norwich. Available now from Amberley Publishing and Amazon, and Bookshop.org.

Silk and the Sword: The Women of the Norman Conquest traces the fortunes of the women who had a significant role to play in the momentous events of 1066. Available now from Amazon, Amberley Publishing, and Bookshop.org.

Podcast:

Have a listen to the A Slice of Medieval podcast, which I co-host with Historical fiction novelist Derek Birks. Derek and I welcome guests, such as Bernard Cornwell, and discuss a wide range of topics in medieval history, from significant events to the personalities involved.

Signed and dedicated copies of all my books are available through my online store.

For forthcoming online and in-person talks, please check out my Events Page.

You can be the first to read new articles by clicking the ‘Follow’ button, liking our Facebook page or joining me on Twitter and Instagram.

10 Facts About Women and Magna Carta

02/04/202226/07/2023Sharon Bennett Connolly10 Comments

Magna Carta is probably the most significant charter in English history and, today, its importance extends beyond England’s shores, holding a special place in the constitutions of many countries around the world. Despite its age, Magna Carta’s iconic status is a more modern phenomena, seen in the influence it has had on nations and organisations throughout the world, such as the United States of America and the United Nations, who have used it as the basis for their own 1791 Bill of Rights and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, respectively.

Originally called the Charter of Liberties, it was renamed Magna Carta, or Great Charter, in 1217, when the Charter of the Forest (see Appendix C) was issued. Sealed (not signed) in the meadow at Runnymede in June 1215, the legacy of Magna Carta, down through the centuries, has enjoyed a much greater impact on history and the people of the world than it did at the time of its creation. As a peace treaty between rebellious barons and the infamous King John, it was an utter failure, thrown out almost before the wax seals had hardened, not worth the parchment it was written on.

The Magna Carta of 1215 reflects the needs and events of the time in which it was issued; an England on the brink of civil war, disaffected barons demanding redress, the Church and cities such as London looking for protection. It was not a charter that was intended to form the protection and legal rights of every man, woman and child in the land; though it has come to be seen as just that in subsequent centuries. Indeed, the common man does not get a mention, and of the sixty-three clauses, only eight of them mention women as a gender. Only one clause uses the word femina – woman – and that is a clause which restricts the rights and powers of a woman, rather than upholding them.

10 Facts About Women and Magna Carta

1. As queen, Isabelle d’Angoulême is mentioned in Clause 61, the security clause of Magna Carta:

‘…And if we or our justiciar, should we be out of the kingdom, do not redress the offence within forty days from the time it was brought to the notice of us or our justiciar, should we be out of the kingdom, the aforesaid four barons shall refer the case to the rest of the twenty-five barons and those twenty-five barons with the commune of all the land shall distrain and distress us in every way they can, namely by seizing castles, lands and possessions, and in such other ways as they can, saving our person and those of our queen and our children, until, in their judgement, amends have been made; and when it has been redressed they are to obey us as they did before…’

2. Other than Isabelle d’Angoulême, only 2 women can be positively identified in the text of Magna Carta. Though they are not named, the Scottish princesses, Isabella and Margaret appear in clause 59 as the ‘sisters’ of Alexander II, King of Scots:

‘We will treat Alexander, king of Scots, concerning the return of his sisters and hostages and his liberties and rights in the same manner in which we will act towards our other barons of England, unless it ought to be otherwise because of the charters which we have from William his father, formerly king of Scots; and this shall be determined by the judgement of his peers in our court.^’

3. Magna Carta restricts the right of women to accuse others of murder. Clause 54 states:

‘No one shall be taken or imprisoned upon the appeal of a woman for the death of anyone except her husband.’

In a time when a man had the right to face his accuser in trial by combat to prove his innocence, this right would be automatically removed if his accuser was a woman; women were not allowed to use force of arms. A female accuser was seen as being able to circumvent the law, and therefore the law was open to abuse. It was merely that a woman may make a false accusation, rather that a woman may be manipulated by her menfolk to make an accusation, knowing that she would not be required to back it up by feat of arms. Whereas her husband, father or brother may have been challenged to do just that.

Clause 54 was used on 5 July 1215, when King John ordered the release of Everard de Mildeston, an alleged murderer. Everard had been accused of the murder of her son, Richard, by Seina Chevel. The charge was therefore forbidden under the terms of Magna Carta, and the accused released.

4. The experiences of Loretta de Braose are believed to have inspired Clauses 7 and 8, which sought to protect the rights of widows. Clause 7 established that:

‘After her husband’s death, a widow shall have her marriage portion and her inheritance at once and without any hindrance; nor shall she pay anything for her dower, her marriage portion, or her inheritance which she and her husband held on the day of her husband’s death; and she may stay in her husband’s house for 40 days after his death, within which period her dower shall be assigned to her.’

5. Clause 8 allowed that a widow was to be free to choose whether or not to remarry, so long as she paid for the privilege:

‘No widow shall be compelled to marry so long as she wishes to live without a husband, provided that she gives security that she will not marry without our consent if she holds of us, or without the consent of the lord of whom she holds, if she holds of another.’

The clauses protecting widows were intended to protect the inheritances of underage heirs, rather than the rights of the women themselves.

6. Clause 11 protects a wife from having to repay the debts of her dead husband from her dower:

‘And if a man dies owing a debt to the Jews, his wife may have her dower and pay nothing of that debt; and if he leaves children under age, their needs shall be met in a manner in keeping with the holding of the deceased; and the debts shall be paid out of the residue, saving the service due to the lords. Debts owing to others than Jews shall be dealt with likewise.’

This clause would have saved many-a-widow from poverty!

7. Clause 12 allows the king to raise a ‘reasonable’ aid or scutage (taxes) to pay towards the first marriage of his eldest daughter:

Joan of England, King John’s oldest daughter

‘No scutage or aid shall be levied in our realm except by the common counsel of our realm, unless it is for the ransom of our person, the knighting of our eldest son or the first marriage of our eldest daughter; and for these only a reasonable aid is to be levied. Aids from the city of London are to be treated likewise.’

This not only guaranteed the king the opportunity to raise money towards the marriage of his eldest daughter – it limited him from imposing taxes to pay towards the marriage of any younger daughters, limiting the liability of the populace.

8. Clause 15 allows that no lord could raise a tax from his free men except to ransom his person, knight his eldest son and marry his eldest daughter once:

‘Henceforth we will not grant anyone that he may take an aid from his free men except to ransom his person, to make his eldest son a knight and to marry his eldest daughter once; and for these purposes only a reasonable aid is to be levied.’

9. The fate of Matilda de Braose, left to starve to death in John’s dungeons, is thought to have influenced clauses 39 and 40 of Magna Carta. Clause 39 states;

‘No man shall be taken, imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.’

Clause 40 promised:

‘To no one will we sell, to no one will we deny or delay right or justice.’

Clause 39 could not prevent the perpetual imprisonment of women of royal blood, such as Eleanor of Brittany and Gwenllian of Wales. Their royal blood made them a focus for rebellion and opposition and therefore a threat to the throne and the stability of the kingdom.

10. Ela of Salisbury used clause 8 of Magna Carta to support her rejection of an unwelcome offer of marriage:

‘No widow is to be distrained to marry while she wishes to live without a husband.’

The clause got Ela out of a sticky situation. Reports of her husband’s death were premature and he returned home shortly after. Tricky situation avoided…

11. Clause 6 of Magna Carta dictated that

‘Heirs shall be given in marriage without disparagement, yet so that before a marriage is contracted it shall be made known to the heir’s next of kin.’

This clause should have effectively protected women from being forced to marry below their station, though it did not always work.

12. Isabel d’Aubigny famously invoked Magna Carta when Henry III commandeered land and rights that were rightly hers, proclaiming;

‘Where are the liberties of England, so often recorded, so often granted, and so often ransomed?’

13. The Rt. Hon. Fiona Woolf, C.B.E., called Magna Carta

‘the single most important legal document in history. The foundation for global constitutions, commerce and communities. The anchor for the Rule of Law.’

You may have noticed that there were 13 facts, rather than the 10 as advertised – my apologies. I got carried away!

Sources:

Rich Price, King John’s Letters Facebook group; Robert Bartlett England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings 1075-1225; Dan Jones The Plantagenets; the Kings who Made England; The Plantagenet Chronicle Edited by Elizabeth Hallam; Maurice Ashley The Life and Times of King John; Roy Strong The Story of Britain; Oxford Companion to British History; Mike Ashley British Kings & Queens; David Williamson Brewer’s British Royalty; Ralph of Diceto, Images of History; Marc Morris, King John; David Crouch, William Marshal; Crouch and Holden, History of William Marshal; Crouch, David, ‘William Marshal [called the Marshal], fourth earl of Pembroke (c. 1146–1219)’, Oxforddnb.com; Flanagan, M.T., ‘Isabel de Clare, suo jure countess of Pembroke (1171×6–1220)’, Oxforddnb.com; Thomas Asbridge, The Greatest Knight; Chadwick, Elizabeth, ‘Clothing the Bones: Finding Mahelt Marshal’, livingthehistoryelizabethchadwick.blogspot.com; Stacey, Robert C., ‘Roger Bigod, fourth earl of Norfolk (c. 1212-1270)’, Oxforddnb.com; finerollshenry3.org.uk; Vincent, Nicholas, ‘William de Warenne, fifth earl of Surrey [Earl Warenne] (d. 1240)’, Oxforddnb.com.

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Guest Post: The Women of the House of Montfort by Darren Baker

20/12/202020/12/2020Sharon Bennett Connolly2 Comments

It is a pleasure to welcome historian Darren Baker to History … the Interesting Bits today, with a guest article about the women of the family of Simon de Montfort. Darren is the author of The Two Eleanors, a book telling the dual biography of Eleanor of Provence, wife of Henry III, and Eleanor of England, wife of Simon de Montfort. Darren’s latest book, Crusaders and Revolutionaries of the Thirteenth Century: De Montfort, was released in November from Pen & Sword and is a stunning biography of the the Montfort family.

So, over to Darren …

The Women of the House of Montfort

Darren Baker

King Philip I of France leaving his wife for Bertrade de Montfort

The house of Montfort arose some 50 kilometres west of Paris in a place known today as Montfort l’Amaury. Their family name ‘de Montfort’ is usually associated with two Simons, father and son, the relentless Albigensian crusader and the determined English revolutionary, both men of the 13th century. Other family members went further afield and established lordships in Italy and the crusader states.

Less known is the prominence of the de Montfort women. Their influence reaches back to the 11th century, starting with Isabella. Her father, Simon I, gave her in marriage to Ralph de Tosny, who in turn forced his sister Agnes to marry this first Simon. When Isabella fell out with her father’s children with Agnes, she put on armour and led a body knights in the field against her half-brothers.

Isabella’s half-sister Bertrade was married to Fulk IV of Anjou. She grew tired of his lecherous ways and took as her next husband the king of France, Philip I, who deserted his wife to marry her. Hoping to see her son with Philip succeed to the throne over her stepson Louis (VI), Bertrade had the older youth poisoned, but the attempt failed and brought about her disgrace. She died in a nunnery in 1117, not living to see her son from her first marriage, Fulk V of Anjou, become king of Jerusalem.

Two generations later, Simon III stood loyally by the English in their fight with the French. He was rewarded with marriages for his three children into the Anglo-Norman nobility. His oldest son Amaury V married Mabel, daughter of the earl of Gloucester, the next son Simon IV married Amicia, daughter of the earl of Leicester, and daughter Bertrade II married Hugh, the earl of Chester. This Bertrade was the mother of the legendary Ranulf de Blondeville, arguably the last of the great Anglo-Norman barons.

The senior branch of the house of Montfort died out in 1213, but Amicia’s son Simon V (the crusader), who was already the count of Montfort, inherited the earldom of Leicester. It was confiscated by King John in 1207 and ended up in the custody of Ranulf. It was from Ranulf that Simon VI acquired Leicester in 1231 and became an English noble, but that’s getting ahead of the story.

Simon V’s wife was Alice de Montmorency. She was very much an active crusader against the Albigensians and often participated in her husband’s war councils. Their daughter Petronilla was born during the crusade and baptised by Dominic de Guzman, founder of the Dominican order. After Simon’s death in 1218, Alice placed Petronilla in a nunnery, where she became the abbess later in life. Alice’s oldest daughter Amicia founded the nunnery of Montargis, south of Paris, and died there in 1252.

In England, Alice’s son Simon VI rose high in royal favour and married Eleanor, the youngest sister of King Henry III and widow of William Marshal II. Together she and Simon had five sons and one daughter. The clash between Eleanor’s husband and brother ended in civil war and Simon’s death in 1265 at the battle of Evesham. Eleanor left England to live out the rest of her life in Montargis and took her namesake daughter with her.

Guy de Montfort was the only one of Eleanor’s sons to marry. He found service under Charles of Anjou, the king of Sicily, and rapidly advanced to become the count of Nola. He received a Tuscan heiress as his bride, but he scandalised the family in 1271 by vengefully murdering his cousin. Guy escaped punishment for the most part and had two daughters, of whom only the youngest Anastasia survived to adulthood. She became the countess of Nola at her father’s death in 1292 and married into the Orsini family of Rome.

Eleanor de Montfort died in 1275, living long enough to see her daughter marry Llywelyn of Wales by proxy. Later that year, the boat carrying young Eleanor and her brother Amaury VIII was captured by the forces of their cousin King Edward I, who had been alerted to their intentions. Eleanor was confined at Windsor Castle and not freed to marry Llywelyn until 1278.

She died four years later giving birth to a daughter Gwenllian. When Llywelyn was then killed, the baby girl was placed in a nunnery in Lincolnshire. By the time of her death in 1337, the de Montfort family, once so admired and respected across Europe and the Mediterranean, seemed long extinct. But their fortunes were about to be revived.

This part of the story goes back to Simon V and Alice’s oldest son Amaury VII, who succeeded his father as the count of Montfort. He was followed by his son John, whose wife was pregnant when he left on crusade and died overseas. The daughter born to her, Beatrice, became the countess of Montfort when she came of age. She married Robert of Dreux and had a daughter Yolande, who became the second wife of King Alexander III of Scotland in 1285 in the hope of producing an heir to that throne.

It didn’t happen, and after Alexander died, Yolande married Arthur II of Brittany. Their son John succeeded her as the count of Montfort, and when his half-brother the duke of Brittany died in 1341 without an heir, John put in a claim for the duchy. It turned into a war of succession, which was won by his son, another John of Montfort, in 1365, a hundred years after Evesham.

In 1386, this John of Montfort took as his third wife the famous Joan of Navarre. She was the mother of his children and after his death became the queen of England with her marriage to King Henry IV. It was through her and Yolande that the Montfort family line returned to England.

About the Author:

Darren Baker was born in California, raised in South Carolina, and came to Europe in 1990, settling permanently in the Czech Republic. A former submariner in the US Pacific fleet, he later studied languages at the University of Connecticut and works as a translator. A trip to the UK inspired him to revisit the events of 13th century England, which he does on his website simon2014.com and in his books. His newly released Crusaders and Revolutionaries of the Thirteenth Century: De Montfort is his fourth on the subject.

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Ladies of Magna Carta: Women of Influence in Thirteenth Century England looks into the relationships of the various noble families of the 13th century, and how they were affected by the Barons’ Wars, Magna Carta and its aftermath; the bonds that were formed and those that were broken. It is now available from Pen & Sword, Amazon and from Book Depository worldwide.

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The Women of the House of Montfort

Darren Baker

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