Roger (Mortimer) de Mortimer (abt. 1256 - 1326)

Born about 1256 in Wigmore, Herefordshire, England

Ancestors

Died 3 Aug 1326 at about age 70 in London, England

Biography

NOTE: See MedievalGenealogy.org - Corrections and Additions to the Complete Peerage Vol. 9, p. 254 for proposed changes to this profile (not completed as of 11/16/18)

Name

Roger Mortimer de Chirk ^[1]

1260 Birth

Roger Mortimer de Chirk was born about 1260^[1]

He was the third son of Roger Mortimer, a powerful Marcher lord in the Welsh border territories, and Maud de Braose, Baroness Mortimer. She was also an important Marcher landowner in her own right. ^[1]

The family were from the second rank of parvenu nobility elevated by the king as a reward for fierce loyalty to the Plantagenet dynasty, But he was said to be a lecherous and violent man. ^[2]

1277 Murder of Powys heirs

In 1277, the Lord of North Powys died leaving two young sons. Mortimer was appointed by King Edward Longshanks to be their guardians. Four years later their bodies washed up in the River Dee, and Mortimer was accused of their murder. They were the last in a royal line, and Mortimer, guilty or not, was granted their lands. It is possible that Mortimer needed the lands to raise his nephew, Roger, as his guardian. ^[3]

1282 Welsh Wars

In 1282, the Welsh wars broke out, and Chirk, a professional soldier, was a Captain in the royal army. ^[1]

1285 Marriage to Lucy de la Wafre

In 1285, but no later than 9 June 1286, Roger married Lucy de la Wafre, the daughter of Sir Robert la Wafre Lord of Hopton Wafre, by whom he had one legitimate son, also named Roger. On 8 June 1286 Roger de Mortimer presented at the manor of Tedstone Wafre. ^[4]

1295 Construction of Chirk Castle

At some point, probably after 1295, he began work on Chirk Castle, possibly designed by James of St George, the architect of Beaumaris Castle, but the castle remained unfinished at the time of Lord Chirk's death. ^[1]

1298 Lord of Chirk

On 6 February 1298 he was created Lord of Chirk. On 22 May 1306, Mortimer was knighted at Westminster during Whitsuntide.^[1]

Welsh acquisitions

The Mortimers acquired huge estates taking ruthless control of Welsh strongholds. Roger was also granted the constableships of Blaenyllfori and Dinas in north Wales. Such was his power he was effectively a surrogate prince of wales. ^[1]

1316 Llewelyn Bren's Attack

On 28 January 1316, the Sheriff of Glamorgan and his men holding court outside the walls of Caerphilly Castle were attacked by a gang of Welshmen led by Llewelyn Bren. He had declared war on the maladministration of Payn de Turberville, a new royal appointee. ^[1]

Years of famine and punitive taxation led Llewelyn to desperate measures in defence of his people. The Earl of Hereford and the Mortimers were ordered to raise men to crush the rebellion. A royal army of 2,150 marched north from Bristol to relieve Caerphilly, and Llewelyn surrendered at the head of the valleys. ^[1]

1326 Imprisonment at Tower of London and Death

Chirk lost status in London when troubles erupted in Wales, but when they were suppressed, his status was restored. However, in a later conflict with the king's forces, Chirk was less fortunate. Outnumbered, Roger Mortimer of Chirk and his nephew, Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, later the lover and ally of Isabella of France, negotiated a surrender, thereby avoiding instant execution. They were sent to the Tower of London where they were kept in poor conditions. Lord Chirk died in the Tower, apparently of injuries sustained during the war, on 3 August 1326. He was buried in St Augustine's Priory, Bristol.^[1]

His nephew, Roger Mortimer, managed to escape the Tower and fled to France, from where he ultimately joined Isabella in successful rebellion against Edward II in 1326. Roger Mortimer of Wigmore eventually completed Chirk Castle before his death in 1330.^[1]

1338

In 1338, Henry de Ferrers received a general pardon for all his offences, including the capture of Roger de Mortimer, Earl of March ^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10} Wikipedia: Roger Mortimer de Chirk Baron of Chirk. Accessed August 29, 2015
2. ↑ Weir, A, Isabella, she-wolf of France, Queen of England, London: Jonathan Cape, 2005. pp 10-14. Cited by Wikipedia.
3. ↑ Ian Mortimer. The Greatest Traitor: The Life of Sir Roger Mortimer, Ruler of England Accessed April 26, 2018 jhd
4. ↑ Canterbury and York Society, vol. 6, p. 526 (1909); cf. John Duncumb, Collections towards the History and Antiquities of the County of Hereford, vol. 2, part 1, p. 263, which gives the date as 1285. Cited by Wikipedia.
5. ↑ Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry (2013) Volume III, p. 153

See also: Doubleday, H.A. and Lord Howard de Walden, ed., The Complete Peerage or A History of the House of Lords and All Its Members From The Earliest Times, London: The St Catherine Press, 1936. Accessed online at LDS, Vol. IX, pp. 251-254.

Acknowledgements

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