Thomas Chaucer
Encyclopedia
Thomas Chaucer was the Speaker of the English House of Commons
and son of Geoffrey Chaucer
and Philippa Roet.
. Early in life Thomas Chaucer married Matilda (Maud), second daughter and coheiress of Sir John Burghersh, nephew of Henry Burghersh
. The marriage brought him large estates, and among them the manor of Ewelme
, Oxfordshire
. His connection with the Duke of Lancaster
was also profitable to him: his mother's sister, Katherine de Roet, was Katherine Swynford, first the mistress of John of Gaunt, and then his third Duchess of Lancaster. Swynford had four children by John of Gaunt: John, Henry, Joan and Thomas Beaufort, all of whom became very powerful - John's family becoming Earls and later Dukes of Somerset, Henry a Cardinal, Thomas became Duke of Exeter, Joan, Countess of Westmorland, and grandmother of Kings Edward V
and Richard III
. Thomas Chaucer's Beaufort first cousins became even more powerful when their half-brother Henry IV
became King. Thomas was able to buy Donnington Castle
for his only daughter Alice
.
He was Chief Butler of England
for almost thirty years, first appointed by Richard II
, and on 20 March 1399 received a pension of twenty marks a year in exchange for offices granted him by the Duke, paying at the same time five marks for the confirmation of two annuities of charges on the Duchy of Lancaster
and also granted by the Duke. These annuities were confirmed to him by Henry IV, who appointed him constable of Wallingford Castle
, and steward of the honours of Wallingford
and St. Valery and of the Chiltern Hundreds
. About the same time he succeeded Geoffrey Chaucer as forester of North Petherton Park, Somerset
. On 5 November 1402 he received a grant of the chief butlership for life.
He served as High Sheriff of Berkshire
and Oxfordshire for 1400 and 1403 and as High Sheriff of Hampshire
for 1413. He attended fifteen parliaments as knight of the shire for Oxfordshire
(1400–1, 1402, 1405–6, 1407, 1409–10, 1411, 1413, 1414, 1421, 1422, 1425–6, 1427, 1429, 1430–1) and was Speaker of the House five times, a feat not surpassed until the 18th century. He was chosen speaker in the parliament that met at Gloucester
in 1407, and on 9 November reminded the king that the accounts of the expenditure of the last subsidy had not been rendered. The chancellor interrupted him, declaring that they were not ready, and that for the future the lords would not promise them. He was chosen again in 1410 and in 1411, when, on making his ‘protestation’ and claiming the usual permission of free speech, he was answered by the king that he might speak as other speakers had done, but that no novelties would be allowed. He asked for a day's grace, and then made an apology. He was again chosen in 1414. On 23 February 1411 the queen gave him the manor of Woodstock and other estates during her life, and on 15 March the king assigned them to him after her death.
In 1414 he also received a commission, in which he is called domicellus, to treat about the marriage of Henry V
, and to take the homage of the Duke of Burgundy
. The next year he served with the king in France, bringing into the field twelve men-at-arms and thirty-seven archers, and was present at the Battle of Agincourt
. In 1417 he was employed to treat for peace with France.
On the accession of Henry VI
he appears to have been superseded in the chief butlership, and to have regained it shortly afterwards. In January 1424 he was appointed a member of the council, and the next year was one of the commissioners to decide a dispute between the Earl Marshal
and the Earl of Warwick
about precedence. In 1430–1 he was appointed one of the executors of the will of the Duchess of York. He was very wealthy.
Thomas Chaucer died at Ewelme
on 18 November 1434.
and her grandson John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln was the designated heir of Richard III
. John and several of his brothers were later executed when Richard lost power. They left descendants, however, who included the Earls of Rutland and Portmore, William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle
, who foiled the Gunpowder Plot
and Sir Francis Sacheverel Darwin
(through his mother, Elizabeth Collier, natural daughter of the Earl of Portmore).
Attribution
Speaker of the British House of Commons
The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the United Kingdom's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is John Bercow, who was elected on 22 June 2009, following the resignation of Michael Martin...
and son of Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
and Philippa Roet.
Life
Chaucer seems to have done well from his father's standing (as both a poet and also an administrator); this despite suggestions that Geoffrey Chaucer fell out of favour with Henry IVHenry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
. Early in life Thomas Chaucer married Matilda (Maud), second daughter and coheiress of Sir John Burghersh, nephew of Henry Burghersh
Henry Burghersh
Henry Burghersh , English bishop and chancellor, was a younger son of Robert de Burghersh, 1st Baron Burghersh , and a nephew of Bartholomew, Lord Badlesmere, and was educated in France....
. The marriage brought him large estates, and among them the manor of Ewelme
Ewelme
Ewelme is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, northeast of the market town of Wallingford.To the east of the village is Cow Common and to the west, Benson Airfield, the north-eastern corner of which is within the parish boundary.The solid geology is chalk...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. His connection with the Duke of Lancaster
Duke of Lancaster
There were several Dukes of Lancaster in the 14th and early 15th Centuries. See also Duchy of Lancaster.There were three creations of the Dukedom of Lancaster....
was also profitable to him: his mother's sister, Katherine de Roet, was Katherine Swynford, first the mistress of John of Gaunt, and then his third Duchess of Lancaster. Swynford had four children by John of Gaunt: John, Henry, Joan and Thomas Beaufort, all of whom became very powerful - John's family becoming Earls and later Dukes of Somerset, Henry a Cardinal, Thomas became Duke of Exeter, Joan, Countess of Westmorland, and grandmother of Kings Edward V
Edward V of England
Edward V was King of England from 9 April 1483 until his deposition two months later. His reign was dominated by the influence of his uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who succeeded him as Richard III...
and Richard III
Richard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
. Thomas Chaucer's Beaufort first cousins became even more powerful when their half-brother Henry IV
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
became King. Thomas was able to buy Donnington Castle
Donnington Castle
Donnington Castle is a ruined medieval castle, situated in the small village of Donnington, just north of the town of Newbury in the English county of Berkshire.- History :...
for his only daughter Alice
Alice de la Pole
Alice de la Pole, Duchess of Suffolk was an English Lady of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.Alice was born Alice Chaucer, daughter to Thomas Chaucer and Matilda Burghersh. Her grandfather was the poet Geoffrey Chaucer. When she was 11 she married Sir John Philip. The couple lived briefly at...
.
He was Chief Butler of England
Chief Butler of England
The Chief Butler of England is an office of Grand Sergeanty associated with the feudal Manor of Kenninghall in Norfolk. The office requires service to be provided to the Monarch at the Coronation, in this case the service of Pincera Regis, or Chief Butler at the Coronation banquet.The manor of...
for almost thirty years, first appointed by Richard II
Richard II of England
Richard II was King of England, a member of the House of Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III...
, and on 20 March 1399 received a pension of twenty marks a year in exchange for offices granted him by the Duke, paying at the same time five marks for the confirmation of two annuities of charges on the Duchy of Lancaster
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Cornwall. It is held in trust for the Sovereign, and is used to provide income for the use of the British monarch...
and also granted by the Duke. These annuities were confirmed to him by Henry IV, who appointed him constable of Wallingford Castle
Wallingford Castle
Wallingford Castle was a major medieval castle situated in Wallingford in the English county of Oxfordshire , adjacent to the River Thames...
, and steward of the honours of Wallingford
Honour of Wallingford
The Honour of Wallingford was a medieval English honour located circa 1066 to 1540 in present-day Oxfordshire.The Honour of Wallingford was established after the Norman conquest of England, which began in 1066. The Honour initially encompassed Wallingford and Harpsden and thereafter gained...
and St. Valery and of the Chiltern Hundreds
Chiltern Hundreds
Appointment to the office of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the three Chiltern Hundreds of Stoke, Desborough and Burnham is a sinecure appointment which is used as a device allowing a Member of the United Kingdom Parliament to resign his or her seat...
. About the same time he succeeded Geoffrey Chaucer as forester of North Petherton Park, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. On 5 November 1402 he received a grant of the chief butlership for life.
He served as High Sheriff of Berkshire
High Sheriff of Berkshire
The High Sheriff of Berkshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'....
and Oxfordshire for 1400 and 1403 and as High Sheriff of Hampshire
High Sheriff of Hampshire
This is a list of High Sheriffs of Hampshire, the title was often given as High Sheriff of the County of Southampton until 1959.-List of High Sheriffs:*1070–1096: Hugh de Port *1105: Henry de Port *1129: William de Pont de l'Arche...
for 1413. He attended fifteen parliaments as knight of the shire for Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Oxfordshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1885. It was represented by two Members of Parliament. In 1832 this was increased to three...
(1400–1, 1402, 1405–6, 1407, 1409–10, 1411, 1413, 1414, 1421, 1422, 1425–6, 1427, 1429, 1430–1) and was Speaker of the House five times, a feat not surpassed until the 18th century. He was chosen speaker in the parliament that met at Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
in 1407, and on 9 November reminded the king that the accounts of the expenditure of the last subsidy had not been rendered. The chancellor interrupted him, declaring that they were not ready, and that for the future the lords would not promise them. He was chosen again in 1410 and in 1411, when, on making his ‘protestation’ and claiming the usual permission of free speech, he was answered by the king that he might speak as other speakers had done, but that no novelties would be allowed. He asked for a day's grace, and then made an apology. He was again chosen in 1414. On 23 February 1411 the queen gave him the manor of Woodstock and other estates during her life, and on 15 March the king assigned them to him after her death.
In 1414 he also received a commission, in which he is called domicellus, to treat about the marriage of Henry V
Henry V of England
Henry V was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of 35 in 1422. He was the second monarch belonging to the House of Lancaster....
, and to take the homage of the Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Saône which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's kingdom of West Franks...
. The next year he served with the king in France, bringing into the field twelve men-at-arms and thirty-seven archers, and was present at the Battle of Agincourt
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...
. In 1417 he was employed to treat for peace with France.
On the accession of Henry VI
Henry VI of England
Henry VI was King of England from 1422 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471, and disputed King of France from 1422 to 1453. Until 1437, his realm was governed by regents. Contemporaneous accounts described him as peaceful and pious, not suited for the violent dynastic civil wars, known as the Wars...
he appears to have been superseded in the chief butlership, and to have regained it shortly afterwards. In January 1424 he was appointed a member of the council, and the next year was one of the commissioners to decide a dispute between the Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England...
and the Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick
Earl of Warwick is a title that has been created four times in British history and is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the British Isles.-1088 creation:...
about precedence. In 1430–1 he was appointed one of the executors of the will of the Duchess of York. He was very wealthy.
Thomas Chaucer died at Ewelme
Ewelme
Ewelme is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire, northeast of the market town of Wallingford.To the east of the village is Cow Common and to the west, Benson Airfield, the north-eastern corner of which is within the parish boundary.The solid geology is chalk...
on 18 November 1434.
Family
Alice married William de la Pole, 1st Duke of SuffolkWilliam de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk
William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk, KG , nicknamed Jack Napes , was an important English soldier and commander in the Hundred Years' War, and later Lord Chamberlain of England.He also appears prominently in William Shakespeare's Henry VI, part 1 and Henry VI, part 2 and other...
and her grandson John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln was the designated heir of Richard III
Richard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
. John and several of his brothers were later executed when Richard lost power. They left descendants, however, who included the Earls of Rutland and Portmore, William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle
William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle
William Parker, 13th Baron Morley, 4th Baron Monteagle was an English peer, Lord of Morley, Hingham, Hockering, &c., in Norfolk, the eldest son of Edward Parker, 12th Baron Morley , and of Elizabeth Stanley, daughter and heiress of William Stanley, 3rd Baron Monteagle .When quite a youth he...
, who foiled the Gunpowder Plot
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...
and Sir Francis Sacheverel Darwin
Francis Sacheverel Darwin
Sir Francis Sacheverel Darwin was a physician and traveller who was knighted by King George IV.- Early life :...
(through his mother, Elizabeth Collier, natural daughter of the Earl of Portmore).
External links
Attribution