Notes:

Margaret de Quincy, 2nd Countess of Lincoln suo jure (c. 1206 - March 1266) was a wealthy English noblewoman and heiress having inherited in her own right the Earldom of Lincoln and honours of Bolingbroke from her mother Hawise of Chester, received a dower from the estates of her first husband, and acquired a dower third from the extensive earldom of Pembroke following the death of her second husband, Walter Marshal, 5th Earl of Pembroke. Her first husband was John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln, by whom she had two children. He was created 2nd Earl of Lincoln by right of his marriage to Margaret. Margaret has been described as "one of the two towering female figures of the mid-13th century".

Family

Margaret was born in about 1206, the daughter and only child of Robert de Quincy and Hawise of Chester, herself the co-heiress of her uncle Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester. Hawise became suo jure Countess of Chester in April 1231 when her brother resigned the title in her favour.

Her paternal grandfather, Saer de Quincy, 1st Earl of Winchester was one of the 25 sureties of the Magna Carta; as a result he was excommunicated by the Church in December 1215. Two years later her father died after having been accidentally poisoned through medicine prepared by a Cisterian monk.

Life

On 23 November 1232, Margaret and her husband John de Lacy, Baron of Pontefract were formally invested by King Henry III as Countess and Earl of Lincoln. In April 1231 her maternal uncle Ranulf de Blondeville, 1st Earl of Lincoln had made an inter vivos gift, after receiving dispensation from the crown, of the Earldom of Lincoln to her mother Hawise. Her uncle granted her mother the title by a formal charter under his seal which was confirmed by King Henry III. Her mother was formally invested as suo jure 1st Countess of Lincoln on 27 October 1232 the day after her uncle's death. Likewise her mother Hawise of Chester received permission from King Henry III to grant the Earldom of Lincoln jointly to Margaret and her husband John, and less than a month later a second formal investiture took place, but this time for Margaret and her husband John de Lacy. Margaret became 2nd Countess of Lincoln suo jure (in her own right) and John de Lacy became 2nd Earl of Lincoln by right of his wife. (John de Lacy is mistakenly called the 1st Earl of Lincoln in many references.)

In 1238, Margaret and her husband paid King Henry the large sum of 5,000 pounds to obtain his agreement to the marriage of their daughter Maud to Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford, 2nd Earl of Gloucester.

On 22 July 1240 her first husband John de Lacy died. Although he was nominally succeeded by their only son Edmund de Lacy (c.1227-1258) for titles and lands that included Baron of Pontefract, Baron of Halton, and Constable of Chester, Margaret at first controlled the estates in lieu of her son who was still in his minority and being brought up at the court of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. Edmund was allowed to succeed to his titles and estates at the age of 18. Edmund was also Margaret's heir to the Earldom of Lincoln and also her other extensive estates that included the third of the Earldom of Pembroke that she had inherited from her second husband in 1845. Edmund was never able to become Earl of Lincoln, however, as he predeceased his mother by eight years.

As the widowed Countess of Lincoln suo jure, Margaret was brought into contact with some of the most important people in the county of Lincolnshire. Among these included Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, the most significant intellectual in England at the time who recognised Margaret's position as Countess of Lincoln to be legitimate and important, and he viewed Margaret as both patron and peer. He dedicated Les Reules Seynt Robert, his treatise on estate and household management, to her.

Marriages and issue

Sometime before 21 June 1221, Margaret married as his second wife, her first husband John de Lacy of Pontefract. The purpose of the alliance was to bring the rich Lincoln and Bolingbroke inheritance of her mother to the de Lacy family. John's first marriage to Alice de l'Aigle had not produced issue; although John and Margaret together had two children:

Maud de Lacy (25 January 1223- 1287/10 March 1289), married in 1238 Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, by whom she had seven children.
Edmund de Lacy, Baron of Pontefract (died 2 June 1258), married in 1247 Alasia of Saluzzo, daughter of Manfredo III of Saluzzo, by whom he had three children, including Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln.

She married secondly on 6 January 1242, Walter Marshal, 5th Earl of Pembroke, Lord of Striguil, Lord of Leinster, Earl Marshal of England, one of the ten children of William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke and Isabel de Clare, 4th Countess of Pembroke. This marriage, like those of his four brothers, did not produce any children; therefore when he died at Goodrich Castle on 24 November 1245, Margaret inherited a third of the Earldom of Pembroke as well as the properties and lordship of Kildare. Her dower third outweighed any of the individual holdings of the 13 different co-heirs of the five Marshal sisters which meant she would end up controlling more of the earldom of Pembroke and lordship of Leinster than any of the other co-heirs; this brought her into direct conflict with her own daughter, Maud whose husband was by virtue of his mother Isabel Marshal one of the co-heirs of the Pembroke earldom. As a result of her quarrels with her daughter, Margaret preferred her grandson Henry de Lacy who would became the 3rd Earl of Lincoln on reaching majority (21) in 1272. She and her Italian daughter-in-law Alasia of Saluzzo shared in the wardship of Henry who was Margaret's heir, and the relationship between the two women appeared to have been cordial.

Death and legacy

Margaret was a careful overseer of her property and tenants, and gracious in her dealings with her son's children, neighbours and tenants. She received two papal dispensations in 1251, the first to erect a portable altar; the other so that she could hear mass in the Cisterian monastery. Margaret died in March 1266[9] at Hampstead. Her death was recorded in the Annals of Worcester and in the Annals of Winchester. She was buried in the Church of the Hospitallers in Clerkenwell.

Margaret was described as "one of the two towering female figures of the mid-13th century"; the other being Ela, Countess of Salisbury.

Margaret married John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln Bef 21 Jun 1221. John (son of Roger de Lacy) was born 1192; died 22 Jul 1240; was buried Chester, Cheshire, England. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Maud de Lacy, (25 January 1223 - 1287/10 March 1289), was an English noblewoman, being the eldest child of John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln, and the wife of Richard de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford, 6th Earl of Gloucester.

Maud de Lacy had a personality that was described as "highly-competitive and somewhat embittered". She became known as one of the most litigious women in the 13th century as she was involved in numerous litigations and lawsuits with her tenants, neighbours, and relatives, including her own son. Author Linda Elizabeth Mitchell, in her Portraits of Medieval Women: Family, Marriage, and Politics in England 1225-1350', states that Maud's life has received "considerable attention by historians".

Maud was styled Countess of Hertford and Countess of Gloucester upon her marriage to Richard de Clare. Although her mother, Margaret de Quincy, was suo jure Countess of Lincoln, this title never passed to Maud as her mother's heir was Henry de Lacy, the son of Maud's deceased younger brother Edmund de Lacy, Baron of Pontefract.

Her eldest son was Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford, 7th Earl of Gloucester, a powerful noble during the reigns of kings Henry III of England and Edward I.

Family

Maud de Lacy was born on 25 January 1223 in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England, the eldest child of John de Lacy, 2nd Earl of Lincoln, a Magna Carta Surety, and Margaret de Quincy, 2nd Countess of Lincoln suo jure.

Maud had a younger brother Edmund de Lacy, Baron of Pontefract who married in 1247 Alasia of Saluzzo, by whom he had three children.

Her paternal grandparents were Roger de Lacy, Baron of Pontefract and Maud de Clare, and her maternal grandparents were Robert de Quincy and Hawise of Chester, 1st Countess of Lincoln suo jure.

Maud and her mother, Margaret, were never close; in point of fact, relations between the two women were described as strained. Throughout Maud's marriage, the only interactions between Maud and her mother were quarrels regarding finances, pertaining to the substantial Marshal family property Margaret owned and controlled due to the latter's second marriage on 6 January 1242 to Walter Marshal, 5th Earl of Pembroke almost two years after the death of Maud's father, John de Lacy in 1240. Despite their poor rapport with one another, Maud was, nevertheless, strongly influenced by her mother.

The fact that her mother preferred her grandson, Henry over Maud did not help their relationship; Henry, who was also her mother's ward, was made her heir, and he later succeeded to the earldom of Lincoln.

Marriage to the Earl of Gloucester

On 25 January 1238 which was her fifteenth birthday, Maud married Richard de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford, and 6th Earl of Gloucester, son of Gilbert de Clare, 4th Earl of Hertford, 5th Earl of Gloucester, and Isabel Marshal. Maud was his second wife; his first marriage, which was made clandestinely, to Megotta de Burgh, ended in an annulment. Even before the annulment of the Earl's marriage to Megotta, Maud's parents paid King Henry III the enormous sum of 5,000 pounds to obtain his agreement to the marriage. The King supplied her dowry which consisted of the castle of Usk, the manor of Clere, as well as other lands and manors.

Throughout her marriage, Maud's position as the wife of the most politically-significant nobleman of the 13th century was diminished by her mother's control of a third of the Marshal inheritance and her rank as Countess of Lincoln and dowager countess of Pembroke.

Richard being the heir to one-fifth of the Pembroke earldom was also the guarantor of his mother-in-law's dowry.

In about 1249/50, Maud ostensibly agreed to the transfer of the manor of Navesby in Northamptonshire, which had formed the greatest part of her maritagium [marriage portion], to her husband's young niece Isabella and her husband, William de Forz, 4th Earl of Albemarle as part of Isabella's own maritagium. Years later, after the deaths of both women's husbands, Maud sued Isabella for the property, claiming that it had been transferred against her will. Isabella, however, was able to produce the chirograph that showed Maud's participation in the writing of the document; this according to the Common Law signified Maud's agreement to the transaction, and Maud herself was "amerced for litigating a false claim".

Issue

Together Richard and Maud had seven children:

Isabel de Clare (1240 - before 1271), married as his second wife, William VII of Montferrat, by whom she had one daughter, Margherita. She was allegedly killed by her husband.
Gilbert de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford, 7th Earl of Gloucester (2 September 1243 - 7 December 1295), married firstly Alice de Lusignan of Angouleme by whom he had two daughters; he married secondly Joan of Acre, by whom he had issue.
Thomas de Clare, Lord of Thomond (1245 - 29 August 1287), married as her first husband Juliana FitzGerald, daughter of Maurice FitzGerald, 3rd Lord of Offaly and Maud de Prendergast, by whom he had issue including Richard de Clare, 1st Lord Clare and Margaret de Clare, Baroness Badlesmere.
Bogo de Clare, Chancellor of Llandaff (21 July 1248 - 1294)
Margaret de Clare (1250 - 1312/1313), married Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall. Their marriage was childless.
Rohese de Clare (17 October 1252 - after 1316), married Roger de Mowbray, 1st Baron Mowbray, by whom she had issue.
Eglantine de Clare (1257 - 1257)

Widowhood

On 15 July 1262, her husband died near Canterbury. Maud designed and commissioned a magnificent tomb for him at Tewkesbury Abbey where he was buried. She also donated the manor of Sydinghowe to the "Priory of Legh" (i.e. Canonsleigh Abbey, Devon, for the soul of Richard, formerly her husband, Earl of Gloucester and Hertford by charter dated to 1280. Their eldest son Gilbert succeeded Richard as the 6th Earl of Hertford and 7th Earl of Gloucester. Although Maud carefully arranged the marriages of her daughters, the King owned her sons' marriage rights.

She was involved in numerous lawsuits and litigations with her tenants, neighbours, and relatives, including her eldest son Gilbert, who sued her for admeasurement of her dowry. In her 27 years of widowhood, Maud brought 33 suits into the central courts; and she herself was sued a total of 44 times. As a result she was known as one of the most litigious women in the 13th century. She endowed many religious houses, including the Benedictine Stoke-by-Clare Priory, Suffolk (re-established in 1124 by Richard de Clare, 1st Earl of Hertford having been moved from Clare Castle) and Canonsleigh Abbey, Devon, which she re-founded as a nunnery. She also vigorously promoted the clerical career of her son, Bogo, and did much to encourage his ambitions and acquisitiveness. She was largely responsible for many of the benefices that were bestowed on him, which made him the richest churchman of the period. Although not an heiress, Maud herself was most likely the wealthiest widow in 13th century England.

Maud died sometime between 1287 and 10 March 1289.

Maud married Richard de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford 6th Earl of Gloucester 02 Feb 1237/38. Richard (son of Gilbert de Clare, 4th Earl of Hertford 5th Earl of Gloucester and Isabel Marshal) was born 04 Aug 1222; died 14 Jul 1262, Waltham, Kent, England; was buried 28 Jul 1262, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Thomas de Clare, Lord of Inchiquin and Youghal (c. 1245 - 29 August 1287) was a Hiberno-Norman peer and soldier. He was the second son of Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester and his wife Maud de Lacy. On 26 January 1276 he was granted the lordship of Thomond by Edward I of England; he spent the next eight years attempting to conquer it from the O'Brien dynasty, kings of Thomond.

Career

Thomas was born in about 1245 in Tonbridge, Kent, England, the second eldest son of Richard de Clare and Maud de Lacy. Thomas was a close friend and intimate advisor of Prince Edward of England, who would in 1272 accede to the throne as King Edward I. Together they went on Crusade. He held many important posts such as the Office of the Governor of Clochester Castle (1266), Governor of The City of London (1273). He was made Commander of the English forces in Munster, Ireland and created Lord of Inchiquin and Youghal. On 26 January 1276, he was granted the entire lordship of Thomond by King Edward.

That same year, he jointly commanded a Norman army along with Sir Geoffrey de Geneville, Justiciar of Ireland against the Irish clans of County Wicklow. They were joined by a contingent of men from Connacht led by his father-in-law Maurice FitzGerald, 3rd Lord of Offaly. Thomas and Justiciar de Geneville's forces attacked the Irish at Glenmalure, but they were soundly defeated and suffered severe losses.

Civil war raged in Thomond between the rival factions of the O'Brien dynasty. In 1276, Brian Ruad, the deposed King of Thomond appealed to Thomas for support to help him regain his kingdom from his great-nephew Toirrdelbach MacTaidg O' Brien, who had usurped the throne. In return for his aid, Brian Ruad promised that Thomas would be allowed to colonise all the land between Athsollus in Quin and Limerick. Together, Thomas and Brian Ruad expelled Toirrdelbach MacTaidg O'Brien and recaptured Clonroad which the latter had taken from Brian Ruad. O'Brien escaped to Galway where he elicited the help of his cousin William de Burgh, and in 1277 together with the assistance from clans, MacNamara and O'Dea they defeated the combined forces of Thomas and Brian Ruad. The latter fled to Bunratty Castle, but Thomas had his former ally hanged and drawn for treason. The civil war continued for the next seven years, with Thomas supporting Brian Ruad's son Donnchad against Toirrdelbach; however, following the drowning death of Donnchad in 1284, Toirrdelbach emerged the victor. Thereafter until his death in 1306, Toirrdelbach MacTaidg O'Brien ruled as undisputed King of Thomond and Thomas had no choice but to accommodate him. O'Brien rented part of Bunratty Manor at £121 per annum.

In 1280, Thomas embarked on a castle-building project at Quin, but was disrupted in his efforts by the O'Briens and MacNamaras.

Marriage and children

In February 1275, he married Juliana FitzGerald, the 12-year old daughter of Maurice FitzGerald, 3rd Lord of Offaly and Maud de Prendergast. Thomas and his wife made their principal residence at Bunratty Castle, which he had constructed in stone, replacing the earlier wooden structure. Together they had four children:

Maud de Clare (c. 1276-1326/27), married firstly, Robert de Clifford, 1st Baron de Clifford, by whom she had issue; and secondly Robert de Welle
Gilbert de Clare, Lord of Thomond, (3 February 1281-1308)
Richard de Clare, Steward of Forest of Essex, 1st Lord Clare, Lord of Thomond (after 1281 - 10 May 1318), married a woman by the name of Joan, by whom he had one son, Thomas. He was killed at the Battle of Dysert O'Dea.
Margaret de Clare (c. 1 April 1287 - 22 October 1333/3 January 1334), married firstly, Gilbert de Umfraville; and secondly Bartholomew de Badlesmere, 1st Baron Badlesmere, by whom she had issue.

Death

Thomas was killed in battle on 29 August 1287 leaving behind four children, the youngest, Margaret being not quite five months old. He was succeeded as Lord of Thomond by his eldest son, Gilbert who was six years old. His widow Juliana, aged 24 years, would go on to marry two more times.

Thomas married Juliana FitzGerald, Lady of Thomond Feb 1274/75. Juliana (daughter of Maurice FitzGerald, 3rd Lord of Offaly and Maud de Prendergast, Lady of Offaly) was born Abt 1263, Dublin, Ireland; died 24 Sep 1300. [Group Sheet]

Maud married Robert de Welles Aft 1314. [Group Sheet]

Maud married Robert de Clifford, 1st Baron de Clifford 03 Nov 1295, Herefordshire, England. Robert (son of Roger Clifford and Isabella de Vieuxpont) was born Abt 1274, Herefordshire, England; died 24 Jun 1314; was buried 1314, Shap, Westmorland, England. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

A descendant of Strongbow, he succeeded his older brother, Gilbert, in 1308 as Lord of Thomond. In 1309, and then again between 1312 and 1316, he was sheriff of Cork. Forced to put down a number of rebellions, he was eventually killed while commanding his forces at the Battle of Dysert O'Dea near what is now Ennis, County Clare. He was nominally succeeded by his son, Thomas, who was born in 1318 and died three years later; at that point the Anglo-Norman presence in Thomond disappeared.

The Battle of Dysert O'Dea took place on 10 May 1318 at Dysert O'Dea near Corofin, Ireland. It was part of the Bruce campaign in Ireland. The Norman Richard de Clare attacked the Gaelic Irish chieftain Conchobhar Ó Deághaidh, chief of the Cineal Fearmaic and ally of Muirchertach Ó Briain, but he was defeated.

Precursors to War

The Bruce invasion of Ireland enabled the outbreak of a number of small wars that had little, if anything, pertaining to the Scots. Perhaps the most notable was the battle at Dysert O'Dea which erupted in Brian Boru's old Kingdom of Thomond in 1318.

Two factions of the O'Brien clan had been fighting for generations for supremacy in Thomond. Murtough O'Brien, the descendant of Thurlough O'Brien was the rightful King of Thomond. A challenger appeared in the form of Mahon O'Brien, allied with the opposing faction of the family, which paid its homage to Brian O'Brien. This side of the family was allied with the powerful Anglo-Norman Richard de Clare, a descendant of Strongbow. De Clare ruled over much of western Ireland from his castle at Bunratty, yet the English respected Thomond as a sovereign state and remained outside its borders. However, de Clare's alliance with Mahon O'Brien provided an excuse to invade Thomond. His pale Englishmen would meet in a pitched battle against Murtough's Irish in the Battle of Dysert O'Dea near what is now Ennis, County Clare.

During this time, Donnchadh, an ally of de Clare, was overwhelmingly defeated in the Battle of Lough Raska near Corcomruadh Abbey.

Order of battle

When news arrived of his allies' defeat at Corcomruadh, Richard de Clare decided to attack the Gaelic stronghold at Dysert O'Dea. His troops arrived at Ruan on the morning of May 10, 1318, and were divided into three columns. The first division was headed by de Clare's son and marched northwards to Tullach O'Dea in an effort to cut off any help which might arrive from O'Connor of Ennistymon. The second column travelled southwards towards Magowna to quell any support from that direction. The third division was commanded by de Clare himself and marched westwards towards Dysert O'Dea, the home of Conor O'Dea. O'Dea intentionally made his forces look few in number, for some time fighting in retreat, and when de Clare charged for an attack the Anglo-Normans were ambushed. Richard de Clare was felled by an axe and his son was killed by a Feilim O'Connor. The O'Deas were reinforced by the O'Connors who were followed by the O'Briens, O'Hehir and MacNamaras and the English were soon defeated. Following their victory, the Irish marched back to the De Clare settlement, only to find that de Clare's wife had set it aflame, including Bunratty Castle, and had returned to England.

Over eighty Englishmen of noble birth and many foot soldiers were killed in the battle. The Kingdom of Thomond remained beyond foreign control for over two hundred years, until 1570.

Notes:

Margaret de Clare, Baroness Badlesmere (c.1 April 1287 - 22 October 1333 / 3 January 1334) was a Norman-Irish noblewoman, suo jure heiress, and the wife of Bartholomew de Badlesmere, 1st Baron Badlesmere.

She was arrested and subsequently imprisoned in the Tower of London for the duration of a year from November 1321 to November 1322, making her the first female prisoner in the Tower's history. She was jailed on account of having ordered an armed assault on Isabella of France, Queen consort of King Edward II of England. Before Margaret had instructed her archers to fire upon Isabella and her escort, she had refused the Queen admittance to Leeds Castle where her husband, Baron Badlesmere held the post of governor, but which was legally the property of Queen Isabella as part of the latter's dowry. Margaret surrendered the castle on 31 October 1321 after it was besieged by the King's forces using ballistas. Edward's capture of Leeds Castle was the catalyst which led to the Despenser War in the Welsh Marches and the north of England.

Upon her release from the Tower, Margaret entered a religious life at the convent house of the Minorite Sisters outside Aldgate. King Edward granted her a stipend to pay for her maintenance.

Family

Margaret was born at Bunratty Castle in Thomond, Ireland on or about 1 April 1287, the youngest child of Thomas de Clare, Lord of Thomond and Juliana FitzGerald of Offaly, and granddaughter of Richard de Clare, Earl of Hertford and Gloucester.

She had two brothers, Gilbert de Clare, Lord of Thomond, and Richard de Clare, 1st Lord Clare, Lord of Thomond, who was killed at the Battle of Dysert O'Dea in 1318; and an elder sister, Maud, whose first husband was Robert de Clifford, 1st Baron de Clifford. Margaret also had an illegitimate half-brother, Richard the Clerk.

Her father was killed in battle on 29 August 1287, when she was almost five months of age. Her mother married her second husband, Nicholas Avenel sometime afterwards, but the exact date of this marriage is not known. Between 11 December 1291 and 16 February 1292, Margaret acquired another stepfather when her mother married her third husband, Adam de Cretynges.

Margaret became co-heiress to her nephew Thomas de Clare, son of her brother Richard, by which she inherited the manors of Plashes in Standon, Hertfordshire and lands in Thomond, Limerick and Cork in 1321 upon the death of Thomas at the age of three.

Marriages

She married firstly before the year 1303, Gilbert de Umfraville, son of Gilbert de Umphraville, Earl of Angus, and Elizabeth Comyn. Upon their marriage, the Earl of Angus granted Gilbert and Margaret the manors of Hambleton and Market Overton; however, when Gilbert died childless prior to 1307, the manors passed to Margaret.

On an unrecorded date earlier than 30 June 1308, she married secondly, Bartholomew de Badlesmere, an English soldier and court official who was afterwards created 1st Baron Badlesmere by writ of summons. He had held the post of Governor of Bristol Castle since 1307, and from then onwards proceeded to accumulate many renumerative grants and offices. Margaret's marriage to Badlesmere had been arranged by her brother-in-law, Baron Clifford; Badlesmere having been one of Clifford's retainers during the Scottish Wars in the early 1300s. Clifford was later killed at the Battle of Bannockburn, where Badlesmere also fought.

Margaret was styled as Baroness Badlesmere on 26 October 1309 (the date her husband was by writ summoned to Parliament by the title of Baron Badlesmere) and henceforth known by that title.

The marriage produced four daughters, and a son and heir, Giles Badlesmere. The couple's principal residences were Castle Badlesmere and Chilham Castle, both in Kent.

Badlesmere was appointed steward of King Edward II's household in 1318; a position which brought him much power and influence in the royal council. He was one of the middle party, which resented the King's favourites, the Despensers, yet also equally opposed Edward's staunch enemies such as his immensely powerful cousin Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, who in addition to having been one of the wealthiest nobles in England, was the leader of the Lords Ordainers. These men, drawn from the peerage and clergy, were the 21 signatories of the Ordinances of 1311; a series of regulations forced upon the King with the aim of restricting his administrative prerogatives, and setting up a baronial oligarchy in the realm.

Margaret was visiting Cheshunt Manor in Hertfordshire in 1319, when she was taken hostage by a group of sixty people, both men and women. Her captors demanded a ransom of £100 for her release. She was held prisoner for one night before her prompt rescue the following day by the King's favourite, Hugh Despenser the Younger. Hugh was married to Margaret's first cousin, Eleanor de Clare, eldest daughter of Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester and Joan of Acre (This also made Eleanor a first cousin of Edward II). The King ordered the arrest and imprisonment of 20 of Margaret's kidnappers; they all, however, were eventually pardoned.

Issue

The five children of Margaret and Baron Badlesmere:

Margery de Badlesmere (1308/1309- 18 October 1363), married before 25 November 1316 William de Ros, 3rd Baron de Ros of Hamlake, by whom she had six children.
Maud de Badlesmere (1310- 24 May 1366), married firstly, Robert FitzPayn; secondly, John de Vere, 7th Earl of Oxford, by whom she had seven children.
Elizabeth de Badlesmere (1313- 8 June 1356), married firstly in 1316 Sir Edmund Mortimer, eldest son of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March and Joan de Geneville, 2nd Baroness Geneville; she married secondly in 1335, William de Bohun, 1st Earl of Northampton. Both marriages produced children.
Giles de Badlesmere, 2nd Baron Badlesmere (18 October 1314- 7 June 1338), married Elizabeth Montagu, but did not have any chldren by her.
Margaret de Badlesmere (born 1315), married Sir John Tiptoft, 2nd Lord Tiptoft, by whom she had one son, Robert Tiptoft.

Assault on Queen Isabella

The siege of Leeds Castle

Margaret's husband, Baron Badlesmere was appointed Governor of the Royal Castle of Leeds in Kent in the fifth year of Edward II's reign (1312). In October 1321, nine years after his assumption of the office, the queen consort Isabella went on a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Thomas at Canterbury. She decided to interrupt her journey by stopping at Leeds Castle which legally belonged to her as the fortress and its demesne were Crown property and part of her dowry to be retained in widowhood. Badlesmere, who by then had become disaffected with King Edward and had joined the swelling ranks of his opponents, was away at a meeting of the Contrariants in Oxford at the time and had left Margaret in charge of the castle. Shortly before, Baron Badlesmere had deposited all of his treasure and goods inside Leeds Castle for safe-keeping.

Due to her strong dislike of Isabella as well as her own belligerent and quarrelsome character, Margaret refused the Queen admittance. It was suggested by Francis Lancellott that Margaret's antipathy towards Queen Isabella had its origins in about 1317 when she had asked Isabella to use her influence on behalf of a friend who was seeking an appointment in the Exchequer Office. When Isabella refused her request, for reasons unknown, a quarrel ensued and henceforth Margaret became the Queen's enemy. Margaret allegedly used the following insolent words to Isabella's marshal, whom she met on the lowered drawbridge, that "the Queen must seek some other lodging, for I would not admit anyone within the castle without an order from my lord [Baron Badlesmere]". After issuing her message, she subsequently ordered her archers to fire upon Isabella from the battlements when the Queen (having apparently ignored Margaret's communication) approached the outer barbican, in an attempt to enter the castle by force. The unexpected, lethal volley of arrows, which killed six of the royal escort, compelled Isabella to make a hasty retreat from the castle and to seek alternative accommodation for the night. Historian Paul C. Doherty suggests that the pilgrimage was a ruse on the part of the King and Queen in order to create a casus belli. Edward would have known beforehand that Baron Badlesmere was with the Contrariants in Oxford and had left Leeds Castle in the hands of the belligerently hostile Baroness Badlesmere; therefore he had given instructions for Isabella to deliberately stop at Leeds aware she would likely be refused admittance. Using the insult against the Queen as a banner, he would then be able to gather the moderate nobles and outraged populace to his side as a means of crushing the Contrariants.

When King Edward heard of the violent reception his consort was given by Margaret, he was predictably outraged and personally mustered a sizeable force of men "aged between sixteen and sixty", including at least six earls, to join him in a military expedition which he promptly led against Margaret and her garrison at Leeds Castle to avenge the grievous insult delivered to the Queen by one of his subjects. Following a relentless assault of the fortress, which persisted for more than five days and with the King's troops using ballistas, Margaret surrendered at curfew on 31 October having received a "promise of mercy" from Edward. Throughout the siege, she had expected the Earl of Lancaster to arrive with his soldiery to relieve her, but this he had refused to do; nor had any of the other Contrariants or the Marcher Lords come to her assistance, which left her to defend the castle with merely her husband's nephew, Bartholomew de Burghersh, and the garrison troops. Baron Badlesmere, although supportive of Margaret's conduct, had during that crucial time, sought refuge at Stoke Park, seat of the Bishop of Lincoln; however he did manage to despatch some knights from Witney to augment the garrison troops in the defence of Leeds. Once King Edward had gained possession of the castle and the Badlesmere treasure within, the seneschal, Walter Colepepper and 12 of the garrison were hanged from the battlements. Margaret was arrested and sent as a prisoner, along with her five children and Bartholomew de Burghersh, to the Tower of London; she therefore became the first woman imprisoned in the Tower. On her journey to the fortress, she was insulted and jeered at by the citizens of London who, out of loyalty to Isabella, had followed her progression through the streets to vent their fury against the person who had dared maltreat their queen.

Aftermath

The King's military victory at Leeds, accomplished with the help of six influential earls including the Earls of Pembroke and Richmond, encouraged him to reclaim and assert the prerogative powers that Lancaster and the Lords Ordainers had so long denied him. The dominant baronial oligarchy broke up into factions. Many of the nobles who had previously been hostile to Edward rushed to his side to quell the insurrection of the Marcher Lords, known as the Despenser War, which had erupted in full force after the King defiantly recalled to England the two Despensers (father and son,) whom the Ordainers had compelled him to banish in August 1321. The first sparks to the uprising had been ignited when, prior to his expulsion, the rapacious Hugh le Despenser the Younger had persuaded the infatuated King to grant him lands in the Welsh Marches which rightfully belonged to entrenched Marcher barons such as Roger Mortimer, his uncle Roger Mortimer de Chirk, and Humphrey de Bohun, 4th Earl of Hereford, a staunch Ordainer albeit the King's brother-in-law. They had formed a confederation and made devastating raids against Despenser holdings in Wales; and Mortimer led his men in an unsuccessful march on London. These mutinous events, in addition to other incidents which created a tense situation and called for a mobilisation of forces throughout the realm, eventually led to the Ordainers constraining the King to exile the favourites. However, subsequent to his capture of Leeds Castle and the harsh sentences he had meted out to the insubordinate Margaret de Clare and her garrison, King Edward defied the Contrariants by persuading the bishops to declare the Despensers' banishment illegal at a convocation of the clergy, and he summoned them home. This act had dire consequences in addition to the Despenser War: it paved the way for the complete domination of the grasping Despensers over Edward and his kingdom, leading to Roger Mortimer and Queen Isabella's 1326 Invasion of England, their assumption of power, the execution of the two Despensers, and finally, Edward's deposition.

Imprisonment in the Tower of London

Margaret was the first woman imprisoned in the Tower of London

Baron Badlesmere excused his wife's bellicose actions at Leeds with his declaration that when he had left Margaret in charge of Leeds, he had given her strict instructions not to admit anyone inside the castle without his specific orders. This, he had insisted, included the Queen, with the words that "the royal prerogative of the King in the case of refusal of entry should not be assumed to provide a legal right for the Queen, who was merely his wife". As a result of Margaret's imprisonment, Badlesmere remained firmly aligned with the King's opponents; shortly afterwards he participated in the Earl of Lancaster's rebellion. Badlesmere fought in the Battle of Boroughbridge on 16 March 1322, and was captured when the battle had ended with Lancaster and the rebels having been soundly defeated by the numerically-superior royalist army. Lancaster was beheaded four days after his surrender; less than a month later on 14 April 1322, Badlesmere was attainted and hanged, drawn and quartered at Blean in the vicinity of Canterbury. His severed head was then attached to a pole placed on Burgate, one of the principal Roman gates into Canterbury's city walls.

Margaret remained imprisoned in the Tower, uncertain of her fate, until 3 November 1322. She was released from the Tower due to her son-in-law William de Ros's successful negotiation, on her behalf, with the King. Presumably her children were also released with her, although no exact dates are given for their liberation.

The Minorite Sisters

Margaret retired to the convent house of the Minorite Sisters, outside Aldgate, where the abbess Alice de Sherstede was personally acquainted with Queen Isabella, who took an interest in the convent's business affairs. The King granted Margaret a stipend of two shillings a day for her maintenance, which was paid to her by the Sheriff of Essex. She also received a considerable proportion of her late husband's manors for her dowry.

Edward demonstrated his good will toward Margaret again on 1 July 1324, by giving her "permission to go to her friends within the realm whither she will, provided that she be always ready to come to the king when summoned".

Her son Giles obtained a reversal of his father's attainder in 1328, and succeeded by writ to the barony as the 2nd Baron Badlesmere. By this time Edward III had ascended the throne; however, the de facto rulers of England were Queen Isabella and her lover, Marcher Lord Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March (father-in-law of Margaret's daughter Elizabeth), who jointly held the Office of Regent for the new king. Edward II had been deposed in January 1327 and allegedly murdered in September by Mortimer's hired assassins.

Margaret died between 22 October 1333 and 3 January 1334.