Thomas Gurney (knight)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sir Thomas Gurney (also de Gurney ) († before July 7, 1333 in Bayonne ) was an English knight. He is considered one of the murderers of the deposed King Edward II.

origin

Thomas Gurney came from a family of gentry of Somerset . He was a son of his father of the same name, Thomas Gurney , a knight who owned land in Englishcombe and Farrington Gurney . His father took part in several campaigns in the war with Scotland until 1301 and apparently died a little later. Another Thomas Gurney († 1343) from East Harptree was a distant cousin of the younger Thomas Gurney.

Served as a vassal of the Berkeley

Probably the younger Thomas Gurney served in Somerset's tax collection in 1307. As a vassal of Maurice de Berkeley , Gurney belonged in 1316 to the garrison of Berwick , an important border town with Scotland. Since the Berkeley were vassals of the Earl of Pembroke , Gurney was also part of the Pembroke retinue. In April 1318 Gurney received the livery of a ride from the royal household. On July 31, 1318, however, he supported Thomas de Berkeley , a son of Maurice de Berkeley, and his followers when they raided a hunting park of the Earl of Pembroke in Gloucestershire . Despite Pembroke's attempts to hold the attackers accountable, the accused could never be brought to justice. This was largely because the Berkeley family, thanks to their influence in the region, was able to prevent or delay a lawsuit. Together with Thomas de Berkeley and John Maltravers , Gurney even captured the coroners of Gloucestershire in the autumn of 1318 , so that the trial failed again. A little later, Gurney, in the wake of Maurice de Berkeley, also changed to the service of the powerful Marcher Lords Roger Mortimer of Wigmore . Presumably he supported Mortimer when he rebelled against King Edward II in the Despenser War from 1321 . On December 7, 1321, the king ordered the confiscation of Gurney's possessions. The king was able to put down the rebellion in the spring of 1322. Gurney was captured and incarcerated as a rebel in the Tower of London . On July 1, 1324, he was pardoned and given back his possessions, subject to a £ 100 fine. In January 1325 he was called up for military service in Gascony during the War of Saint-Sardos .

Role in the death of Edward II.

In autumn 1326 Roger Mortimer and Queen Isabelle were able to overthrow Edward II's reign. Gurney may not have returned to England after completing his military service, but instead joined Mortimer in France, which is unlikely. For the underage new King Edward III. In fact, Mortimer took over the reign. On February 14, 1327, Gurney was released from punishment for his involvement in the 1321 rebellion. In April 1327 Mortimer put Thomas de Berkeley and John Maltravers in charge of the deposed king, who was imprisoned at Berkeley Castle . Gurney was one of the knights who were supposed to guard the king. After several attempts to free the deposed king, William Ockley allegedly came to Berkeley with letters from Mortimer. Eduard II was probably murdered a little later. On September 22nd, Gurney broke with letters from Thomas de Berkeley to King Edward III. on. Late in the evening of September 23rd, he probably reached the king in Lincoln and told him of his father's death. Over the next several years Gurney received various minor shows of favor from the government, including becoming the guardian of the young Hugh Despenser .

Indictment, conviction and escape

Initially it was believed that the deposed king died of natural causes. Then it was even suspected that he was not dead at all, but that Mortimer was still being held prisoner. In 1330, the Earl of Kent , a half-brother of Edward II, believed that the deposed king was being held in the care of Gurney at Corfe Castle . Mortimer used this to condemn Kent as a traitor and have him executed. In October 1330, however, Mortimer was himself through a coup d'état by the young Edward III. overthrown and shortly afterwards executed as a traitor. During a parliamentary meeting in November 1330, Gurney and William Ockley were accused of murdering the deposed king. He was sentenced to death in absentia. Edward III. had him pursued to find out the truth about his father's fate. A bounty of £ 100 alive or 100 marks dead was placed on Gurney . Gurney had fled England beforehand. Presumably he first traveled to south-west England, where he had relatives. Together with John Maltravers, who was also persecuted, he escaped from the small port of Mousehole by ship with the help of locals .

Capture and Death

In a court case in March 1331 the charges against Gurney for the murder of Edward II were confirmed. Gurney was recognized by an English pilgrim in the Castilian town of Burgos in the same year . She accused him of regicide, whereupon Gurney was arrested. Before English officials could take him over there, he was able to escape to Aragon . He fled to Italy, where William of Cornwall was able to find him in Naples and had him arrested. After the English government learned of this, they sent William of Thwing to Italy to bring Gurney to England. Thwing brought Gurney by ship to Collioure near Perpignan and then on to Bayonne in Gascogne, which belongs to England. Gurney died there in the early summer of 1333. Allegedly Oliver Ingham , the Seneschal of Gascony, is said to have executed him by beheading him after Gurney had confessed his involvement in the death of the deposed king. Gurney was probably sick and died as a result of his illness. Thwing traveled back to England and informed Edward III. on July 7, 1333 on the death of Gurney.

Family, descendants and inheritance

Gurney had married Joan , a daughter of Matthew Furneaux . She was the widow of Thomas Tryvet and in March 1331 she received back the confiscated goods in Somerset and Wiltshire , which she had received as Wittum after the death of her first husband. In addition she received from Gurney's estates West Harptree and in May 1331 for an annual rent also the estates of Englishcombe and Farrington. Gurney had several children with her, including:

  • Thomas Gurney
  • John Gurney, Lord of Knowle
  • Matthew Gurney († 1406) ⚭ Alice Beauchamp
  • Edmund Gurney
  • Joan Gurney ⚭ Matthew Branch

His eldest son Thomas applied in November 1339 that he received the goods as a fief when he came of age as his father's heir. These were then given to him in March 1340.

rating

Though most contemporary chroniclers like Adam Murimuth viewed Gurney as one of the murderers of Edward II. the exact circumstances of the death of Edward II remain unclear. Whether Roger Mortimer actually instructed William Ockley and Gurney to murder the king, or whether the two of them murdered the king in a panic after repeated attempts to free the king cannot be clarified. The king may also have died of natural causes.

literature

  • Roy Martin Haines: Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe in the County of Somerset, Regicide? In: Proceedings of the Somerset Archeology and Natural History , 147 (2003), pp. 45-65

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 50
  2. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 49
  3. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 50
  4. ↑ John Roland Seymour Phillips: Aymer de Valence, earl of Pembroke, 1307-1324. Baronial politics in the reign of Edward II. Clarendon, Oxford 1972, ISBN 0-19-822359-5 , p. 256
  5. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 51
  6. ↑ John Roland Seymour Phillips: Aymer de Valence, earl of Pembroke, 1307-1324. Baronial politics in the reign of Edward II. Clarendon, Oxford 1972, ISBN 0-19-822359-5 , p. 262
  7. ↑ John Roland Seymour Phillips: Aymer de Valence, earl of Pembroke, 1307-1324. Baronial politics in the reign of Edward II. Clarendon, Oxford 1972, ISBN 0-19-822359-5 , p. 265
  8. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 361
  9. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 52
  10. ↑ Natalie Fryde: The tyranny and fall of Edward II, 1321-1326 . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2003. ISBN 0-521-54806-3 , p. 62
  11. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 53
  12. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 53
  13. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 54
  14. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 548
  15. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 54
  16. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 566
  17. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 572
  18. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 573
  19. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 574
  20. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 547
  21. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , 59
  22. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 575
  23. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 575, n322
  24. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 61
  25. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , 63
  26. ↑ Natalie Fryde: The tyranny and fall of Edward II, 1321-1326 . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2003. ISBN 0-521-54806-3 , p. 201
  27. ^ Haines, Sir Thomas Gurney of Englishcombe , p. 62
  28. ↑ Seymour Phillips: Edward II . New Haven, Yale University Press 2010. ISBN 978-0-300-15657-7 , pp. 581
personal data
SURNAME Gurney, Thomas
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gurney, Sir Thomas; De Gurney, Thomas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English knight
DATE OF BIRTH 13th Century
DATE OF DEATH before July 7, 1333
Place of death Bayonne