Hugh Despenser the Elder
Hugh le Despencer, 1st Earl of Winchester | |
|---|---|
| Earl of Winchester | |
 Arms of Despencer: Quarterly 1st & 4th: Argent; 2nd & 3rd: Gules, a fret or, over all a ribbon sable | |
| Predecessor | none |
| Successor | Lewis de Bruges |
| Other names | The Elder Despenser |
| Born | 1 March 1261 |
| Died | 27 October 1326 Bristol, Gloucestershire |
| Nationality |  English |
| Wars and battles | Despenser wars War of Saint-Sardos Isabella's Campaign Siege of Bristol † |
| Offices | Advisor of Edward II of England |
| Spouse(s) | Isabella de Beauchamp |
Hugh le Despenser (1 March 1261 – 27 October 1326), sometimes referred to as "the Elder Despenser", was for a time the chief adviser to King Edward II of England.[1]
He was the son of Hugh le Despencer, 1st Baron le Despencer (or Despenser), and Aline Basset, only daughter and heiress of Philip Basset. His father was killed at the Battle of Evesham when Hugh was just a boy, but Hugh's patrimony was saved through the influence of his maternal grandfather (who had been loyal to the king).[2]
He married Isabella de Beauchamp, daughter of William de Beauchamp, 9th Earl of Warwick and Maud FitzJohn. He served Edward I on numerous occasions in battle and in diplomacy and was created a baron by writ of summons to Parliament in 1295. His son, Hugh Despenser the Younger, became a favourite of Edward II, in what is widely believed to be a homosexual relationship. [3] Hugh the Elder was loyal to his son and the King, which worried the barons. To that time, his highest office was justice of the forests.[4]
He was one of the few barons to remain loyal to Edward during the controversy regarding Piers Gaveston. Despenser became Edward's loyal servant and chief administrator after Gaveston was executed in 1312, but the jealousy of other barons - and, more importantly, his own corruption and unjust behaviour - led to his being exiled along with his son Hugh Despenser the younger in 1321, when Edmund of Woodstock, Earl of Kent replaced him as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports.
Edward found it difficult to manage without them, and recalled them to England a year later, an action which enraged the queen, Isabella, the more so when Despenser was created Earl of Winchester.
Death
When Isabella and her lover, Roger Mortimer, led a rebellion against her husband Edward, they captured both Despensers—first the elder, later the younger. Queen Isabella interceded for Hugh the elder, but his enemies, notably Roger Mortimer and Henry, Earl of Lancaster, insisted both father and son should face trial and execution.
The elder Despenser was hanged immediately in his armour at Bristol on 27 October 1326. He was then beheaded and his body cut into pieces for the dogs. His head was sent for display to Winchester, which had supported the king.[5]
Notes
- ^ . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
- ^ Fryde 28
- ^ "Abbey body identified as gay lover of Edward II". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
- ^ Gwilym Dodd, Anthony Musson, The Reign of Edward II: New Perspectives, pp. 214-217.
- ^ Rev. John Milner, History of Antiquities of Winchester, p. 213.
References
- Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists Who Came to America Before 1700 by Frederick Lewis Weis, Lines: 72-31, 74-31, 74A-31, 93A-29
- Fryde, Natalie (1979). The tyranny and fall of Edward II, 1321-1326. ISBN 0-521-54806-3.
- Karau, Björn: Günstlinge am Hof Edwards II. von England - Aufstieg und Fall der Despensers, MA-Thesis, Kiel 1999. (Free Download: http://www.despensers.de/download.htm)
- – via Wikisource.
- Hunt, William (1888). "Hugh Despenser". Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 14.
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