Gilbert (Clare) de Clare (1243 - 1295)

Born 2 Sep 1243 in Christchurch, Hampshire, England

Ancestors

Husband of Joan (Plantagenet) de Clare — married 23 Apr 1290 in Westminster, Middlesex, England

Descendants

Died 7 Dec 1295 at age 52 in Monmouth Castle, Monmouthshire, Wales

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Biography

Birth and Parents

Gilbert was the son and heir of Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, and his second wife Maud de Lacy. He was born at Christchurch, Hampshire on 2 September 1243.^[1][2] He was called "Gilbert the Red":^[3] according to Dugdale's Monasticon Anglicanum, this was because of the colour of his hair.^[4]

First Marriage

Gilbert married Alix de Lusignan/de la Marche in the spring of 1253.^[1][2] They had two children:

• Isabel, who married Guy de Beauchamp and Maurice de Berkeley^[1][2] and who was born on 10 March 1262/3^[5][6]
• Joan, who married Duncan of Fife^[1][2][7]

Simon de Montfort's Rebellion and its Aftermath

Gilbert's father died in 1262, when Gilbert was 19. He inherited the Earldoms of Gloucester and Hertford but Henry III took his father's vast estates into royal possession, Gilbert still being under age. Gilbert sought to have them immediately delivered to him, but Henry III refused. His wardship was assigned to Humphrey de Bohun.^[3][4][8] Gilbert also objected to the size of the dower awarded to his mother, and the inclusion in it of important places and castles.^[3]

In March 1263 Gilbert declined to pay homage to Henry III's son, the future Edward I. Two months later he was with Simon de Montfort at Oxford when Henry III was compelled to agree to adhere to the 1258 Provisions of Oxford, which imposed constitutional reforms on the king. In the summer of that year he gained control of his inheritance,^[4] agreeing to pay a fine of £1000. He stayed neutral when the baronial opposition and Henry III asked Louis IX of France to arbitrate between them.^[3]

That neutrality did not last. One element in Simon de Montfort's rebellion was anti-Jewish: on 5 April 1264 Gilbert attacked and killed Jews at Canterbury, Kent.^[4] He joined in Simon de Montfort's siege of Rochester, Kent, which they captured on 15 April. Soon after, royalist forces seized Gilbert's castle at Tonbridge, Kent: his wife Alix de Lusignan, half-niece of Henry III, was allowed to go. On 14 May 1464 he fought on Simon de Montfort's side in the Battle of Lewes: he was knighted on that day. The battle was a major royal defeat. Gilbert became one of the most powerful barons in England, and was rewarded with extensive lordships and lands.^[3] On 24 September 1264 orders were given for him to be put in possession of his father's Irish castles and lands.^[9]

On 20 October 1264 Gilbert was excommunicated for his opposition to Henry III. But he became increasingly unhappy with Simon de Montfort's governance of the country. In February 1265 he went to the Welsh marches, either suspecting his life was in danger^[3] or because his lands there were being raided by the Welsh.^[4] A reconciliation with Simon de Montfort lasted only very briefly, and may never have been more than a sham on Gilbert's part. An attempt by him to capture Henry III and Simon failed,^[4] and the future Edward I managed to escape from detention, assisted by Gilbert's brother Thomas. Gilbert and some other leading barons joined Edward at Ludlow, Shropshire, where Edward undertook to support good government. Simon de Montfort then declared Gilbert a rebel. On 2 August 1265 Gilbert took part in fighting outside Kenilworth Castle, Warwickshire in which forces loyal to Simon de Montfort were taken by surprise after a night march and overcome.^[3][10] (Cokayne's Complete Peerage gives the date as 16 July: this appears to be incorrect.^[4]) Three days later, on 4 August, he fought alongside Edward I in the Battle of Evesham, in which Simon de Montfort and the rebels were decisively defeated:^[3] he commanded a large part of the royalist army.^[4] On 5 October 1265 Gilbert was formally pardoned for his previous rebellion.^[11]

Rewards soon followed. In October 1265, Gilbert was granted the custody of lands of Humphrey de Bohun (grandson of the Humphrey whose ward he had been himself). The next year he was forgiven £900 of the fine he had agreed to pay in 1263 for possession of his inheritance.^[3][12]

On the 8th day before the kalends of December 1265 (ie 24 November 1265) the sentence of excommunication pronounced against Gilbert for joining in Simon de Montfort's rebellion was lifted.^[13]

Later Years of Reign of Henry III

Over the next few years Gilbert had an uneasy relationship with Henry III. In the spring of 1266 Gilbert sought to gain possession of some of the lands granted to his mother as dower. Henry responded by temporarily taking control of Glamorgan. It was not until January 1267 that the dower of Gilbert's mother was reduced.^[3]

In addition Gilbert did not receive a sufficient share of the rebels' lands to recognise the major role he had played in their defeat. In 1266-7 Gilbert - who had earlier been a strong advocate of confiscating rebels' estates - pressed for concessions to them. In early 1267 he condemned Henry for retaining aliens in key government roles. After Henry rejected these demands, Gilbert, along with many rebels, occupied London in April 1267. Over the next few weeks an agreement was reached under which Henry agreed to the restoration of rebel lands and Gilbert offered a surety of 10000 marks as guarantee of his future good conduct towards the king: this was a very large sum for the time, but the Pope not only doubled it but also imposed other penalties: Henry waived these additional penalties in 1268.^[3][4]

Relations with the king appeared to be patched up. In June 1268 Gilbert agreed to go with the future Edward I on crusade. In October he was authorised to make a claim for Bristol. But goodwill did not last. Gilbert was unhappy with a 1267 treaty with the Welsh because it ran counter to his plans to subdue Welsh rulers of parts of Glamorganshire. There were rumours that Edward was pursuing a liaison with Gilbert's first wife Alix de Lusignan (he formally separated from her in 1271). In May 1269 Henry III sought to deprive him of some manors in Dorset. Gilbert stayed away from Parliaments which Henry convened. When Edward left on crusade, Gilbert did not accompany him, despite the threat of excommunication and a very hefty fine.^[3]

In 1268 Gilbert began the construction of a large castle at Caerphilly, Glamorgan to help cement his control of the area.^[14][15][16]

In 1272 Gilbert's sister Margaret was married to Henry III's nephew Edmund. In November that year Gilbert attended the dying king and promised to safeguard the realm for Edward I.^[3]

Early Reign of Edward I

Following Henry III's death, Gilbert swore fealty to Edward I. He was joint guardian of the kingdom while Edward was on crusade. When the new king returned in 1274, Gilbert hosted him at Tonbridge Castle.^[4] Accompanied by a large retinue, he attended Edward's coronation at Westminster Abbey on 19 August 1274.^[3]

Again there was a somewhat uneasy relationship between Gilbert and the royal administration. Gilbert's claim to Bristol was rejected, and the king appropriated some of the rights Gilbert had assumed. He still took part in Edward's campaigns in Wales from 1277 onwards.^[3] In 1278 he escorted King Alexander of Scotland to London to pay homage to Edward I.^[4]

Second Marriage

In May 1283 Gilbert was contracted to marry Joan, daughter of Edward I, if he secured an official divorce from Alix de Lusignan, and if he obtained a papal dispensation for the marriage, as Joan was a first cousin once removed of Alix. In 1285 his marriage to Alix was formally dissolved: he granted her properties in several counties. A dispensation for his marriage to Joan was dated 16 November 1289, and they married in Westminster Abbey on 23 April 1290.^[1][2] Before the marriage, Edward I required Gilbert to surrender all his lands: they were restored soon after the ceremony.^[3] Gilbert and Joan had the following children:

• Gilbert, born at Winchcombe, Gloucestershire in May 1291^[1][2]
• Eleanor, who married Hugh le Despenser and William la Zouche^[1][2] and who was born at Caerphilly, Glamorgan, Wales in the autumn of 1292 - her mother was churched (ie there was a service to give thanks for her recovery from childbirth) on 23 November 1292^[5][6]
• Margaret, who married Piers Gaveston and Hugh de Audley,^[5][6] said to be 18, 20, 21 or 22 in 1314 when she inherited from her brother Gilbert,^[17][18] pointing to a birth year in the range 1292-1296
• Elizabeth, who married John de Burgh, Thebaud de Verdun and Roger Damory^[5][6] and who may have been born at Caerphilly, Glamorgan, Wales in November 1295^[19][20]

Last Years

The death of Gilbert's mother in 1289 put him in possession of her dower lands, greatly increasing his extensive landholdings.^[3][21]

The next year lengthy disputes with his former ward Humphrey de Bohun came to a head, with Humphrey appealing to the king. Gilbert declined to answer the charges laid against him, instead raiding Humphrey's prooperty. Both men were summoned to appear before Edward I and sentenced to imprisonment, with Glamorgan - one of the bones of contention between them - confiscated from Gilbert, and a fine of 10000 marks imposed. Glamorgan was soon restored, and the fine was not paid.^[3][4]

In the summer of 1293 Gilbert was put in charge of Edward I's forces in Ireland, and he was there with his second wife until some time the next year, when there was a Welsh rebellion and he lost control of Glamorgan to the rebels.^[4] When a peace agreement with the Welsh was reached the next year against Gilbert's wishes, Edward I again took temporary control of Glamorgan: it was restored to Gilbert in October 1295.^[3]

Death

Gilbert died at Monmouth Castle, Monmouthshire, Wales on 7 December 1295. He was buried at Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucestershire.^{[5][6][4][22]} Inquisitions Post Mortem were held in 1296. They show him holding very extensive lands across many English counties, and in Glamorgan and Monmouthshire in Wales. His son Gilbert, then a young child, was found to be his heir.^[23][24]

His second wife Joan survived him, marrying Ralph de Monthermer, one of her household knights,^[3] in 1297.^[5][6]

Baronies

Gilbert held the following Baronies:

• Gloucester^[25]
• Clare, based in Suffolk^[26]
• Field Dalling, based in Norfolk^[27]
• a share in Long Crendon, based in Buckinghamshire^[28]
• a share in Southoe, based in Huntingdonshire^[29]

For information about baronies, see categories, below.

Coat of Arms

Or three chevrons gules (gold background and three red chevrons) - see images on the profile.

Research Notes

Numbering of Earls of Gloucester

Gilbert was 6th Earl of Gloucester by the numbering used by Cokayne, which is the general guide used for WikiTree.^[4] The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography^[3] and Wikipedia^[30] say he was 7th Earl of Gloucester: the difference is explained by Wikipedia stating that King John of England held the earldom for a period before it was granted to Gilbert's grandfather, and including John in the numbering.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6} Douglas Richardson. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 4 vols, ed. Kimball G. Everingham, 2nd edition (Salt Lake City: the author, 2011), Vol. I, pp. 466-474, CLARE 4, Google Books
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6} Douglas Richardson. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols, ed. Kimball G. Everingham (Salt Lake City: the author, 2013), Vol. II, pp. 195-206, CLARE 8
3. ↑ ^{3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20} Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, entry by Clive H Knowles for 'Clare, Gilbert de [called Gilbert the Red], seventh earl of Gloucester and sixth earl of Hertford (1243–1295)', print and online 2004
4. ↑ ^{4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14} G E Cokayne. The Complete Peerage, revised edition, Vol. V, St Catherine Press, 1926, pp. 702-710, Internet Archive
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5} Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, Vol. I, pp. 136-138, BEAUCHAMP 5, Google Books
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5} Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. I, pp. 287-289, BEAUCHAMP 10
7. ↑ G E Cokayne. Complete peerage, revised edition, Vol. V, St Catherine Press, 1925, pp. 373-374, Internet Archive
8. ↑ G E Cokayne. The Complete Peerage, revised edition, Vol. VI, St Catherine Press, 1926, p. 503, viewable on Familysearch (image page 515)
9. ↑ Calendar of the Patent Rolls, Henry III, A.D. 1258-1266, HMSO, 1910 (Kraus ReprintCorporation, 1971), p. 350, viewable on Familysearch (image 358)
10. ↑ Sophie Ambler. The Surrender of Gloucester Castle, in English Government and Administration (ed. Nigel Saul and Nicholas Vincent), Pipe Roll Society/The Boydell Press, 2023, p. 269
11. ↑ Transcript (in Latin) in Friendship ('Amicitia') in the Politics of Mid Thirteenth Century England by Peter Coss in English Government and Administration (ed. Nigel Saul and Nicholas Vincent), Pipe Roll Society/The Boydell Press, 2023, pp. 290-291
12. ↑ Calendar of the Patent Rolls, Henry III, A.D. 1258-1266, p. 553, viewable on Familysearch (image page 561)
13. ↑ 'Regesta 32: 1265-1268', in Calendar of Papal Registers Relating To Great Britain and Ireland: Volume 1, 1198-1304, ed. W H Bliss (London, 1893), pp. 425-435, British History Online, accessed 1 January 2024
14. ↑ Website of Cade (Welsh Government's historic environment service, Caerphilly Castle, accessed 1 January 2024
15. ↑ Wikipedia: Caerphilly Castle
16. ↑ Castles of Wales website, Caerphilly Castle, accessed 1 January 2024
17. ↑ Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, Vol. IV, p. 69, STAFFORD 5
18. ↑ Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. V, p. 79, STRATTON AUDLEY 10
19. ↑ Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, Vol. I, p. 359, BURGH 6, Google Books
20. ↑ Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. II, p. 19, BURGH 6
21. ↑ Calendar of the Close Rolls, Edward I, A.D. 1288-1296, HMSO, 1904, p. 6, Internet Archive
22. ↑ William Dugdale. Monasticon Anglicanum, new edition, Vol. II, 1819, p. 55, Google Books
23. ↑ 'Inquisitions Post Mortem, Edward I, File 77', in Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem: Volume 3, Edward I, ed. J.E.E.S. Sharp and A.E. Stamp (London, 1912), pp. 232-255, British History Online (entry 371), accessed 31 December 2023
24. ↑ Sidney J Madge (ed.). Abstracts of Inquisitiones Post Mortem for Gloucestershire, Part IV, British Record Society, 1903, pp. 177-184, Internet Archive
25. ↑ I J Sanders. English Baronies, a Study of their Origin and Descent 1086-1327, Oxford University Press, 1960, p. 6
26. ↑ I J Sanders, English Baronies, pp. 34-35
27. ↑ I J Sanders, English Baronies, p. 44
28. ↑ I J Sanders, English Baronies, p. 63
29. ↑ I J Sanders, English Baronies, pp. 80-81
30. ↑ Wikipedia: Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester

See also:

• Altschul, Michael. A Baronial Family in Medieval England: The Clares, 1217-1314, John Hopkins Press, 1965, partially viewable as a PDF on https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=HhO9DwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false Google Books]
• Cawley, Charles. Gilbert de Clare d.1295, entry in “Medieval Lands” database
• Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Vol. 7, pp. 378-382, entry for 'CLARE, GILBERT de, called the 'Red,' ninth Earl of Clare, seventh Earl of Hertford, and eighth Earl of Gloucester (1243-1295)', Wikisource
• Hartland, Beth. English Lords in Late Thirteenth and Early Fourteenth Century Ireland: Roger Bigod and the de Clare lords of Thomond, in 'English Historical Review', Vol. CXXII, No. 496 (2007), pp.318-348, viewable on Academia (registration - free - required) - mostly about Gilbert's brother Thomas; see especially pp. 339-340

Acknowledgments

Magna Carta Project

This profile was re-reviewed for the Magna Carta Project in Dec 2018 by Noland-165 and further revised by Michael Cayley in January 2024.

Gilbert de Clare is the grandson of Magna Carta surety barons John de Lacy and Gilbert de Clare, the great-grandson of Richard de Clare, and the great-great-grandson of Saher de Quincy and appears in project-approved/badged trails to the following Gateway Ancestor(s):

• Charles Barnes: trail to the Clares badged July 2022. See the trail HERE.
• Elizabeth Haynes: trails badged July 2022. See them HERE.
• George Reade: badged 2015, see the trails HERE.

Gilbert (Clare) de Clare also appears in unbadged trails (needing work) to the following Gateways:

• Kempe Gateways (Richard, Edward, Edmund and Matthew): trail not yet developed and can be viewed HERE.

See Base Camp for more information about identified Magna Carta trails and their status. See the project's glossary for project-specific terms, such as a "badged trail"