William Dacre (1357 - 1399)

Born 1357 in Gilsland, Northumberland, England

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 20 Jul 1399 at about age 42 in Priory, Lanercost, Cumberland, England

Biography

William was born in about 1357 probably at Gilsland, Northumberland, England. He was the son of Hugh Dacre and Elizabeth (Maxwell) Dacre. He succeeded his father on the latter's death in 1383, and became the fifth Baron Dacre.

His Marriage

There is some uncertainty about his marriage. Previous versions of this profile mentioned his marriage to Joan Douglas in about 1392, but his son Thomas was born in 1387. The various possibilities are discussed on Joan's Profile, but one possibility is that the marriage was organised as part of a settlement to end a long standing feud between the Douglases and the Dacres, and took place around 1385.

His Career

He became involved in Cumberland and the Scottish Marches soon after succeeding his father. in 1384, he was commanded with others to arrest robbers who the sheriff did not dare to. ^[1]

In 1385, he was commanded to enquire into people in Cumberland and Scotland conspiring together against the king.^[2] He served under Richard Scrope in Scotland ^[3] In 1388 he was appointed to a Commission of Array to defend the marches of Scotland. ^[4]

In 1388, he was also summoned to Parliament, and warned to stop making excuses for not attending. ^[5]

Scrope vs Grosvenor

He was subsequently involved in testifying to a case in the Chancery Court between Richard Scrope and Robert Grosvenor over who was entitled to use two Coats of Arms that were identical. Among others who testified were John of Gaunt, Geoffrey Chaucer and Owyn Glyndowr. ^[6]

Death

William died in 1399, leaving his heir Thomas a 12 year old minor. All his estates were put into the control of the King's brother Ralph de Neville for the duration of Thomas's minority. ^[7]

Research Note

Some sources give him a knighthood, but this is not recognised by Shaw, The Knights of England, a leading authority on this subject, so the Title "Sir" has been removed pending further research.

Sources

1. ↑ Patent Roll 8 Richard II Pt I Membrane 43d 1384 at https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015009337612&view=2up&seq=504&skin=2021&size=175 (Accessed October 11 2021)
2. ↑ Patent Roll 8 Richard II Pt II Membrane 37d at https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015009337612&view=2up&seq=596&skin=2021&size=175 (Accessed October 11 2021)
3. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "William Dacre, 5th Baron Dacre," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Dacre,_5th_Baron_Dacre&oldid=1013049334 (accessed October 11, 2021).
4. ↑ Patent Roll 11 Richard II Pt II Membrane 2d at https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015009141402&view=2up&seq=501&skin=2021&size=200 (Accessed October 11 2021)
5. ↑ Close Roll 11 Richard II Membrane 13d at https://archive.org/details/calendarofclo03grea/page/478/mode/2up?q=Dacre (Accessed October 11 2021)
6. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Scrope v Grosvenor," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Scrope_v_Grosvenor&oldid=1048581497 (accessed October 11, 2021).
7. ↑ Patent Roll 1 Henry IV Pt I Membrane 19 at https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015031079463&view=2up&seq=34&skin=2021&size=175 (Accessed October 11 2021)