Alan de la Zouche († 1270)

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Alan de la Zouche (also Zouch ) (* 1203 ; † August 10, 1270 ) was an English military man and nobleman. He was one of the closest confidants of King Henry III.

Life

Rise as a follower of the king

Alan de la Zouche came from the Zouche family . His grandfather, Alan de la Zouche , moved from Brittany to England in the 1170s . Alan was the eldest son of his son Roger de la Zouche and after his death in 1238 he inherited estates in Shropshire , Leicestershire and Devon . His younger brother Eudo later acquired estates in Northamptonshire by marriage , where he started a branch of the family. Alan de la Zouche entered the service of King Henry III. In 1242 he was one of the knights who captured the pirate William de Marisco on the island of Lundy . He then served until 1243 during the Saintonge War in Gascony . In 1250 he was appointed judge for Perfeddwlad , the Chester County areas in North East Wales. For this office he paid a fee of 1,000 marks , which presumably surpassed the previous incumbent. He openly displayed the wealth that he had acquired through his office, boasting that all of Wales was now subjugated. However, his high-handed and insensitive exercise of office led to a review of his work in 1252 by a commission formed from two royal officials and two Welsh men to investigate the complaints against him. Since the commission found no wrongdoing on the part of him, this increased the resistance of the Welsh people to the English rule. In 1256 the Welsh revolted, whereupon another Anglo-Welsh war broke out, in which Perfeddwlad was quickly conquered by the Welsh prince Llywelyn ap Gruffydd . Zouche had previously entered the service of the heir to the throne Edward , to whom his father had transferred royal property in Wales, Ireland and Chester in 1254 . From June 1256 to October 1258 Zouche served as its Justiciar of Ireland .

Role during the war of the barons

When there was a power struggle between the king and a noble opposition under Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester in 1258 , Zouche had the opportunity to prove his loyalty to the king. From October 1261 to January 1263 he served several times as steward of the royal household , in gratitude he received lucrative offices such as from 1261 to 1264 that of sheriff of Northamptonshire, from June 1261 that of Justice of the Forests south of Trent , from 1261 to 1264 he was constable of Rockingham Castle and from 1261 to 1263 constable of Northampton Castle . Zouche's experiences in Wales led the king to entrust him with the defense of the Welsh Marches against Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in the war against Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in December 1262 . On December 12, 1263, the king designated him as one of the barons, which he implemented the expected arbitration award of the French King Louis IX. , of the Mise of Amiens , and on December 24, 1263 the king appointed him royal commandant for Devon , Somerset and Dorset . During the Second War of the Barons , Zouche had to surrender to the Battle of Lewes on May 14, 1264 , but then fled to the Lewes Monastery , where he disguised himself as a monk. However, he was recognized and imprisoned. After the victory of the royal party in the Battle of Evesham on August 4, 1265, he played an important role in pacifying the empire. He was one of the twelve mediators who negotiated the terms for the surrender of Kenilworth Castle in 1266 and served as a judge to hear the objections of the so-called disinherited , the remaining rebels. The king rewarded him with valuable gifts and gave him from June 1267 to April 1268 the lucrative office of overseer of London , which he the duties of Mayors took over, as well as the Constable of the Tower .

death

In 1270 there was a dispute between Zouche and John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey , probably over the estates of Ashby and Chadstone in Northamptonshire. Its owner David Ashby was expropriated as a supporter of the rebels after the king's victory. The property had been awarded to Zouche, but Warenne, as the guardian of Ashby's granddaughter, also claimed the property. On July 1, 1270 there was a dispute between Warenne and Zouche in Westminster Hall , in which Warenne and his companions assaulted Zouche. They wounded him so badly that he died of his injuries a few weeks later. Warenne had to publicly express his remorse for this attack and offered the king a fine of 10,000 marks.

Marriage and inheritance

Zouche had married Helen de Quincy († 1296), one of the daughters and co-heirs of Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester , before 1242 . After the death of his father-in-law, he was able to secure part of the inheritance in 1267. He had supported both the Knights Templar and the Cistercian Abbey of Buildwas in Shropshire with foundations. His son Roger la Zouche († 1285) became his heir.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Prestwich: Edward I . Berkeley, University of California Press, 1988, ISBN 0-520-06266-3 , p. 17
personal data
SURNAME Zouche, Alan de la
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Zouch, Alan; Zouche, Alan la
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English nobleman
DATE OF BIRTH 1203
DATE OF DEATH August 10, 1270