Elizabeth Berkeley

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Berkeley Castle, controversial between Elizabeth and her cousin James

Elizabeth Berkeley , Countess of Warwick , suo jure 4th Baroness Lisle (* around 1386; † December 28, 1422 ) was an English magnate . One of the longest-running inheritance disputes in English history arose over her father's inheritance, and it was not ended until 1609.

Origin, inheritance and marriage

Elizabeth Berkeley was the only child of Thomas Berkeley, 5th Baron Berkeley and his wife Margaret . As the only child, she was a wealthy heir, with a family agreement of 1349 Berkeley Castle with the estates of the Hundred of Berkeley and other lands to a male heir. In addition, Elizabeth's mother was the only child and the heir of her father Warin de Lisle, 2nd Baron Lisle . After her mother's death in 1392, Elizabeth inherited the titles of Baron Lisle and Baron Tyes and possessions primarily in Wiltshire , Berkshire , Oxfordshire and south-west England, but Elizabeth left these estates to her father until his death in 1417. In 1392, her father agreed with Thomas de Beauchamp, 12th Earl of Warwick , that she should marry his eldest son Richard de Beauchamp . The marriage took place before October 5, 1397, and when her husband became 13th Earl of Warwick in 1403 , Elizabeth was given the courtesy title of Countess of Warwick .

Inheritance dispute with James Berkeley

When Elizabeth's father died on July 13, 1417, the next male heir to the family was her cousin James Berkeley , who was to receive part of the Berkeley inheritance under the 1349 Agreement. Elizabeth and her husband did not want to accept the old inheritance rule, among other things because it would cut up the land ownership and destroy the supremacy of the family in south-west England. This led to an inheritance dispute with James Berkeley, who was in Dorset when Elizabeth's father died . Elizabeth and her husband, on the other hand, had been to either Berkeley or Wotton-under-Edge , so that they had been able to occupy the disputed estates. To do this, she had taken over her father's deeds and papers, which enabled her to prevent her from taking stock of the possessions after her father's death, the inquisition post mortem . It was not until December 1, 1417 that James Berkeley was awarded the goods to which he was entitled under the inheritance contract. Elizabeth continued to contest his right of inheritance. From 1420 to 1421 she held Berkeley Castle, after which James occupied Wotton-under-Edge before July 1421. Joan Beauchamp , the widow of William de Beauchamp, 1st Baron Bergavenny , a cousin of Elizabeth's husband, had previously tried unsuccessfully to mediate between the two. At the end of July 1421, Elizabeth and James Berkeley had to appear before the Privy Council , but even there no agreement could be reached in the inheritance dispute. James was now supported by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester , which placed him in a stronger position. Before an agreement could be reached, Elizabeth died. She was buried in Kingswood Abbey .

Others

Numerous invoices from Elizabeth's household from 1420 and 1421 have been preserved, so that many details of her everyday life are known. The accounts made it possible to trace her travels and when she met her husband, who was serving in the military in France during the Hundred Years War . In addition, the bills provide information about the structure and costs of your household, including the costs of entertaining guests, food and everyday items. It can also be seen that Elizabeth did not have her extensive possessions administered centrally, but by several, largely independent administrators.

Family and offspring

Elizabeth had three daughters with her husband:

  1. ∞ Thomas de Ros, 8th Baron de Ros
  2. ∞ Edmund Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset

With Elizabeth's death, her inheritance was divided among her three daughters. The title Baron Lisle, however, fell in Abeyance . Her husband Richard married Isabel le Despenser, 5th Baroness Burghersh , in 1423 . At the end of 1425 he was able to achieve an equalization over the Berkeley legacy with James Berkeley. However, when Richard de Beauchamp died in 1439, Elizabeth's daughters continued the inheritance dispute with James Berkeley and, after his death in 1463, with his son William with several trials, but also with armed conflicts.

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predecessor Office successor
Margaret de Lisle Baroness Lisle
around 1392–1422 		Title abeyant
personal data
SURNAME Berkeley, Elizabeth
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Beauchamp, Elizabeth, Countess of Warwick
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English magnate
DATE OF BIRTH around 1386
DATE OF DEATH December 28, 1422