Blogs
The Battle of Barnet 1471 – Pivotal and Impactful
As battles during the Wars of the Roses go, Barnet may not have had the final say but it was certainly impactful. It was a clash where the Yorkist Edward IV pitted his wits against his Lancastrian foe, the Earl of Warwick, and decisively won. But as battles during the Wars of the Roses also…
Read MoreThe Battle of Losecoat, 12th March 1470: Salted wounds, without curing
Think Wars of the Roses. Think Yorkists, Lancastrians, and a melting pot of politics. Think Richard Neville, the 16th Earl of Warwick, in a twirl as he swaps his allegiance left, right, and centre. And think Edward IV needing eyes in the back of his head. 1469 had been a tough year for Edward, the…
Read MoreThe Lordship of Hexted – Reformed and Royally Loyal
If a title with a steady(ish) history but flashes of loyal fortitude is of interest… then the Lordship of Hexted is for you. Hexted (aka. Heghsted) is a title that was in active use for several hundred years, however its connection with England’s past is of greatest significance at one particular moment in history, and…
Read MoreThe Lordship of Younges – A ladyship in all but name
Do you like discovering new facts? We thought so… because we do too. So how’s this for your fact for today… Did you know that in 1682 the person who was Baroness Wentworth was also the Lord of Younges? Yup… that’s right. The grand-daughter of the 1st Earl of Cleveland, Henrietta Maria, held both titles.…
Read MoreThe Lordship of Brettgrave – Rubbing shoulders with royalty
The Lordship of Brettgrave came into being in 1197, after the Norman Conquest. The Abbot of Chertsey decided to create it as an entity for Sampson de Horton, and separated it from his own holding in Epsom Manor. In doing it this way, both the Lordship and the manor still remained subordinate to the Epsom…
Read MoreThe Lordship of Entwistle: From Edgeworth to Edgehill and beyond
As we’ve said in previous articles, although Lordships were often in place before William the Conqueror invaded, it was William who formalised their existence. Entwistle is very different in this respect, however. It was created in 1212, under King John’s reign, by one of his trusted knights, William… and it’s proved to have quite some…
Read MoreThe Lordship of Shoddesden – A holding with pre-Norman provenance
Shoddesden is an interesting title. It’s one of those that actually has clear roots from before the Norman Invasion, which is unusual because it was William the Conqueror who formalised the process mostly. Shoddesden has deep history, therefore; it’s really old. The initial title holder was Aghmund (or Agemund) of Wellow. Aghmund was a Saxon…
Read MoreLordship of Penland – A title that paid its way
We’re not going to beat about the bush here… There are quite a few ‘Johns’ linked to the lineage of the Lordship of Penland, so we apologise in advance if things get a bit confusing. But we do feel that’s a fitting introduction to a title whose history began around the time of the signing…
Read MoreThe Barony of Wycombe: Kings, castles, and constitutional history
The Barony of Wycombe is one of the few titles that’s so closely associated with negotiations that influence the rights of individuals even today that it’s hard to dismiss. In active use nine hundred years ago, but for only one century, you could say it made the most of its time whilst it could. And…
Read MoreLordship of Passelewes – An extraordinary link to England’s past
The Lordship of Passelewes is one of those titles that enjoyed quite a considerable length of time in ‘use’ before it left the stage. First noted in 1166, though it’s likely it was in existence before this, its last recorded reference was then made in 1801. Yes, there really are hundreds of rich years of…
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