Geoffrey le Scrope
Sir Geoffrey le Scrope (1285 – 2 December 1340) was an English lawyer, and Chief Justice of the King's Bench for four periods between 1324 and 1338. He was the son of Sir William le Scrope, who was bailiff to the earl of Richmond in Richmondshire. Geoffrey’s older brother Henry was also a lawyer, and served as Chief Justice twice, 1317–23 and 1329–30.
In the baronial conflicts of the reign of Edward II he was a loyal adherent of the crown. He was involved in the proceedings both against Thomas of Lancaster and Andrew Harclay. He was knighted in 1323, and became Chief Justice for the first time the next year. He managed, however, to survive politically the overthrow both of Edward II in 1326 and of Roger Mortimer in 1330.
After retiring as a justice, he campaigned with Edward III in Flanders, and distinguished himself as a soldier. He was also one of the instigators behind the king’s actions against Archbishop Stratford in 1340. He died at Ghent the same year, probably on December 2nd, and was buried at Coverham Abbey, Yorkshire. Geoffrey and his wife Ivette (de Ros) had five sons. Their eldest son, Henry (whose daughter Joan married Henry Fitzhugh), became the first Baron Scrope of Masham.
References
- E.L.G. Stones, 'Sir Geoffrey le Scrope (c.1285–1340), chief justice of the king's bench', English Historical Review, 69 (1954), pp. 1–17.
- Brigette Vale, 'Scrope, Sir Geoffrey (d. 1340)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 7 Aug 2006. The first edition of this text is available at Wikisource: . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.