Westmoreland

THE BARONY OF WESTMORLAND encompasses the east and west wards of the historic county of Westmoreland, with the remainder of the county forming the barony of Kendal. Within the barony lay a number of manors including the important seigniories of Appleby and Brough. It included castles at both these sites and at Brougham and Pendragon and the forests of Mallerstang, Ogelbird and Stainmore. The barony was originally held by the service of a knight’s fee from the King.

After the Norman conquest of 1066 the victorious King William gifted the whole of the county of Cumberland and the Barony of Westmoreland to Ralph Meschines. There appears to be some confusion as to which Ralph this was and how many held the Barony until it passed from this family since there appears to have been two, father and son. In some accounts the father, in 1088 Meschines granted his churches of St Michael’s and St Lawrence and his castle, all in Appleby, to the Abbey of St Mary in York. In others it is the son. It seems probable that the younger Ralph Meschines, was granted the Earldom of Chester by Henry I (1100-1135). The Barony of Westmoreland then passed to Ralph’ sister, the unnamed wife of Robert D’Estrivers. We know very little of D’Estrivers save that his heir was his daughter, Ibria, who took the Barony in marriage to Ralph Engayne. Again this is an elusive figure and all we know it that he was succeeded by his son, William. He, in turn, was succeeded by his daughter Ada, the wife of Simon Morville.

Moreville was succeeded by his son, Roger, who in turn was succeeded in the Barony by his son, Hugh. Hugh was one of the four knights who murdered Thomas Becket, supposedly on the orders of Henry II. This is one of the most famous events of mediaeval history and Hugh appears to have been an ideal assassin since he saw loyalty as a virtue. Though his character has been blackened by his deeds it seems as though Morville began he career as just another well connected landowner. Records show that he was a regularly at the court of Henry II (1154-1189) and witnessed a number of grants and charters. He married Helwis de Stuteville and through this union became possessed Knaresborough Castle. In 1170 he was recorded as holding the Barony of Westmoreland as well as other estates in Cumberland. At court, Morville had been an advisor to Thomas Becket when the cleric was Chancellor but had always, in loyalty, belonged to the King’s party. When Henry, vexed by Becket’s apparent betrayal, to the extent that he famously denounced the archbishop and called for action against him, Morville was roused to action and placed himself at the service of the King. Morville travelled from France, in the company of three other knights, Sir William Tracey, Sir Reginald FitzUrse and Sir Richard Brito to Canterbury. Morville and his companions approached the cathedral in full armour and Becket was thrust inside by one of his monks. The four knights entered the church crying out, “Where is Thomas Becket, traitor to the King and the country?” Becket replied, “Here I am, no traitor to the King, but a priest”. One of the four retorted, “Fly from the Church, or you are a dead man” They then tried to force Becket outside but he wouldn’t move. As though accepting his martyrdom, Becket, placed his hands together to pray and he was struck. After a third blow he fell to his knees, crying out; “For the name of Jesus I am ready to die”. Then the fatal blow was struck. During this struggle Morville had been at the door t.o hold back the crowd which had gathered at sword point. He was therefore not guilty of striking Becket, but he was complicit all the same.

Once Becket was dead the four fled to Saltwood Castle in Kent. From here they were forced to flee to Scotland before ending up at Morville’s Yorkshire castle at Knaresborough. They remained here for a year and despite there whereabouts being known both locally and to the King, they were not arrested. They were shunned by the local landowners. Eventually the Pope intervened and demanded all four leave for the holy land to do penance. It seems likely this happened and on his return to England Morville was taken up by the king once more as a favourite. However, as a result of his deed his lands in Cumberland and Westmoreland were declared forfeit to the Crown, in w-hose hands it remained for a number of years. It was after this time that the Barony was invaded by William of Scotland and the castle and town of Appleby were sacked and destroyed. (For a description of this see the particulars for the Lordship of Appleby in this catalogue).

During the reign of John (1199-1216), Westmoreland was granted, together with the lucrative custody of the castles of Appleby and Brough and the ‘sheriffwick and rent of the county of Westmoreland’ in perpetuity to, Robert Veteripont, son of William Veteripont and Maud de Morville.

This unusual incidence of a hereditary office of sheriff, vested in the Barony lasted until 1849. The Veteriponts were a Norman family and Robert was known and noted for being ‘a man of great parts and employments, and was trusted with the custody and disposal of much of the king’s treasure.’ Coming from King John, this trust must have been well earned. As well as handling the king’s cash, Veteripont was given custody of a number of castles and towns, including Windsor, Bowes, Salisbury and Carlisle. He was a great benefactor of nearby Shap Abbey and as a gift to that house he granted to it Milburn Grange and ‘the tithes of the renewal of all the beasts taken by him or his men in all the forests in Westmoreland.’ This was a generous gift given the extent of forest in the Baronial territory and the Anglo-Norman proclivity towards the hunt. The grant to Veteripont was extensive, as well as the Barony it included the manors of Appleby, Brough, Langton, Brougham, Kirkby Thore, Kirkby Stephen, Winton, Mallerstanåg amongst others. The Sheriffwick of Westmoreland was a parcel of the Barony and held by a separate knights fee. The Barony itself was held now by the service of four knights fees.

Veteripont was obviously a man of importance and was well rewarded. His was given charge of the custody and disposal of French prisoners and served as Sheriff of Caen in Normandy and was sheriff eleven times of various counties in England. His was entrusted with the education of John’s niece, the daughter of William Longspee and that of Prince Richard, later Earl of Cornwall.

Robert married Idonea, daughter and heir of John Builly and on his death, in 1228 the Barony passed to their son, John. John married well, the daughter of Wiliam Ferrers, earl of Derby, but did not live long enough to establish his place in history. He was succeeded by his son Robert, in 1242. As he was underage at the time of his father’s death, this Robert became a royal ward. During his minority his baronial lands seem to have decayed somewhat. Appleby Castle, the seat of the barony was given over to Hubert de Burgo and under his custody the fabric of the castle fell into disrepair. The barony was held in custody by the prior of Carlisle but his management of his ward’s lands proved disastrous. Through the wards and manors of the barony land became untilled, trees were cut down and game was poached. Once he reached his majority however Robert took a firm grip on the Barony and began to task of restoring his income. During the ensuing years, Veteripont became closely allied with the party of Simon de Montfort, which ranged against Henry III (1216-1272). In the civil war which followed, Robert fought in a number of the great baronial battles but died of wounds he received either at the battle of Lewes in May 1264 or Evesham in August the following year. Once more the Barony of Westmoreland was seised by the Crown and was restored to the family into the possession of Veteripont’s daughters Isabella and Idonea. This was achieved through the intercession of Prince Edward. He wrote to his father arguing that neither daughter had taken part in the rebellion and that the Barony could revert to the Crown if they died without producing heirs. Henry agreed and the Barony and lands were restored to Isabella and Idonea on this condition. The girls were committed into the wardship of Roger de Clifford and Roger de Leybourne, who, not surprisingly, married them off to their eldest sons.

The Barony continued to be divided between the two women until the death of Idonea and the whole estate became invested in Isabella’s son, Robert de Clifford. Whilst Isabella and Idonea were still alive it seems as though the former acted as Baron and she is said to have undertaken her duties as Baron very seriously. She fulfilled her hereditary role as Sheriff of Westmoreland, perhaps the only woman to hold such a position during this period, and regularly attended courts. She claimed the right to appoint an under-sheriff, with Idonea providing consent. An example of this fairly unique female power was demonstrated at Michaelmas, 1286, when is is recorded that; Isabella de Clifford, Sheriff of Westmoreland, presented to the barons of the exchequer Robert Morville her under-sheriff by her letters patent which the said Robert produced before the said barons: who was admitted and took the oath faithfully to execute his office and to answer to her and Idonea her sister parcenter of the inheritance. Despite Isabella’s leading role in political affairs, the income generated by the estate was divided equally between the two sisters. Even after Isabella’s death the division of the Barony continued to be important. In an episode from 1295, Isabella’s heir, Robert de Clifford presented Ralph de Manneby to be under-sheriff, but the government demanded to know first, what Idonea thought about the matter. Robert was then required to produce evidence of this.

Three years earlier the King Edward had demanded from Idonea, at Appleby, 1,600 acres of wood and 1,000 acres of pasture in Kirby Stephen and Brougham, as well as the manors of Appleby and king’s Meaburn. This was no doubt in a bid to raise war funds and appeared to be justified by way of the Crown’s previous restoration of the Barony to Idonera and her sister. At the King’s court Idonea argued that the estate had lawfully passed to her and her son in turn and she prayed aid of him (Edward). Edward’s justices found in her favour but then demanded from her by what right she claimed free warren, assize of ale and waste within the various manors of the Barony, of which there were many. Idonea presented writs to the court showing the legality of her claim, as her inheritance from her father. Robert de Veteripont. The jury seem to have found partly in favour of the King for the claim of Robert de Clifford was held until he reached his majority.

Eventually the whole of the Barony did indeed became the possession of Robert de Clifford. The family of Clifford were an ancient and noble one, with their ancestral estates being in Herefordshire and Robert was among the most illustrious of his family. He was evidently of a martial spirit and in 1295, aged 23, he was made a King’s Captain and Keeper of the Marches in the north toward Scotland. He appears to have raised an army and made several skirmished into that country. A year later he was summoned by Edward to Carlisle to march with the king in a general invasion of England’s northern neighbour. Any lingering dispute over the Westmoreland Barony was obviously forgotten since Clifford was then made one of four guardians of Edwards’ son and heir, Edward. On his accession as Edward II, the new king made Clifford admiral of all England and Lord Marcher. In addition he was bestowed him with the Barony of Skipton in Yorkshire.

Clifford was married to Maud de Clare, a niece of the powerful Earl of Gloucester and his wife, a daughter of Edward I. During early part of the reign of Edward II, Clifford was involved in the King’s catastrophic Scottish Wars. In a bid to turn attention away from the crisis that had arisen over his favouritism toward Piers Gaveston, Edward made half-hearted bid to defeat the Scots, led by the the inspirational leadership of Robert Bruce. The campaign ended with ignominious defeat at Bannockburn, in 1314, and here Robert de Clifford was killed.

Like his father before him, Roger de Clifford was a minor when he inherited his estates. Unluckily he reached his majority at a time of extreme turmoil. England under Edward II had descended into virtual chaos with the barons led by the Earl of Lancaster ranged against the King. Roger supported the former and was attainted for treason. Once more the Barony of Westmoreland was forfeited to the Crown. Despite the general military anarchy the king’s bureaucracy appeared to work sufficiently well since in 1326 there is record of the constable of the King’s castle of Appleby, receiving cornage (rental) from the baronial tenants and fulfilling the baron’s pledge to supply cozrnage to Shap Abbey. Meanwhile, Edward had granted out portions of the Barony, including the castle and manors of Brougham, Mallerstang, King’s Meaburn and Kirkby Stephen to his loyal supporter, Sir Andrew de Harclay. Harclay also claimed Whinfell forest and the sheriffwick, acting, more or less, as the Baron himself. This state of affairs was short lived. Once Edward II had been deposed by his Queen Isabella and Sir Roger Mortimer, and the former had been removed by the new King , Edward III, the whole of the Westmoreland estate was returned to Roger. Unfortunately for him, he had only a month to enjoy his restored lands before he died.

Roger was succeeded by his son Robert who then, on the death of Idonea de Veteripont, inherited the entire estate. Sensibly, Robert remained loyal to Edward and lived a peaceful life. He died at Shap Abbey in 1344. The Barony then descended to his son Robert, who was a underage, and thus became a royal ward. As a young man he served the King in France and was present with the Black Prince at the Battle of Cressy. As a reward for his service he received letters patent and is the first member of the family to be known as Lord Clifford. His son and heir was his second son, Roger who has been described as a man of ‘much gallantry and valour’ and ‘one of the wisest men of his time’. He continued the family’s fighting tradition, and took part in both Scottish and French wars. He was a great admirer of buildings and architecture and undertook a systematic renewal of the Baronial castles of Appleby and Brough, making then inhabitable after the destruction wreaked during the numerous Scottish invasions of the 14th century. He died, after a lifetimes devoted service to the Crown, in 1392.

The Barony of Westmoreland then passed to Roger’s son, Thomas though his two younger sons, profited from their father’s connections to become notable men themselves. Sir William Clifford was governor of the strategically important Berwick Castle, and Sir Lewis, after serving the Duke of Lancaster in France, during the later years of the reign of Edward III, became a Knight of the Garter and founded the dynasty which today survives as the Lords Clifford of Chudleigh, in Devon. Thomas was by all accounts a wild youth and was, for a time, a favourite of Richard II(1377-1399). He was banished from England in 1387 after the brief civil war which had followed the King’s defiance of Parliament. A year later, the Baronial castle at Appleby was again destroyed by the Scots in a serious incursion into English territory. Thomas could do nothing about this since he had fled to Germany to fight the ‘infidels’. He was killed there, in 1393, at the battle of Spruce.

One more the Barony descended to a minor. John de Clifford was only two years old when his father was killed and he was taken as a royal ward. As a result the Barony was granted, first to Richard’s consort, Anne of Bohemia, who then granted it to John’s mother, Elizabeth to beheld until John’s majority. As he grew John became a favourite at court and accompanied Henry V (1413-1422) on his famous French campaign, being present at Agincourt. Later he was made a Knight of the Garter but was killed at Meaux, after being shot with a cross-bow bolt in 1422. Yet again therefore the Barony descended to child, John’s eldest son was seven years old at the time of his death. When he reached maturity he again donned armour and fought for Henry VI (1422-1461) in France. He is recorded as having acted with daring and courage at the assault on Poitiers, in 1438. It was deep winter and the ground was covered in snow. Clifford had himself and his men clothed in white, a very early example of camouflage, and he was able to surprise the town’s defenders and take it. He successfully repulsed a bid by the French to retake Poiters in 1440. As the dispute between the houses of York and Lancaster descended into civil war, Clifford was recalled by Henry and became a leading Lancastrian commander. He was killed at the Battle of St Albans in 1455 and was buried at the abbey there. He left nine children, his heir being his eldest son, John.

This John was also killed in the Wars of Roses, on the day before the Battle of Towton, being shot in the neck with an arrow. His heir, Henry was, perhaps rather predictably, only seven years old when his father was killed. After the Yorkist victory of Edward IV (1461-1483), his was deprived of the Barony. Remarkably he spent most of the period living as a shepherd in Yorkshire and Cumberland. During this time the Barony was granted out to Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who retained it as Richard III (1483-1485). After Henry Tudor’s victory at Bosworth in 1485, Clifford was restored to his estates in full. After a life as a peasant, Clifford could neither read, nor write but this did not prevent him from taking full control of the restoration of baronial lands, which had fallen into decay during the civil war. On his death, in 1523 the Barony and the rest of the Cliffords estates passed to his son, Henry.

This Baron of Westmoreland was created Earl of Cumberland by Henry VIII (1509-1547) and held the offices of Lord President of the North and Lord-Warden of the Marches. He raised armies for Henry and on a number of occasions waged war in Scotland. He married twice, firstly the daughter of the Earl of Shrewsbury, the second the daughter of the Earl of Northumberland, thus putting himself in the first rank of Tudor Noblemen. The Barony remained in the Clifford family for a number of ensuing generations, and included Anne de Clifford, the only daughter of George, the 3rd Earl of Cumberland. She was able to hold the barony by way of the entail made by King John upon Robert Veteripont. Originally it had passed to her uncle, Francis Clifford, with Anne to receive £15,000, however, on the advice of her mother, she contested the settlement. This case rumbled on for number of months, during which time Anne married Lord Buckhurst. In the same year a court at York granted possession of the Westmoreland Barony to her Uncle and his son. Both men died within a short period of each other and Anne therefore became sole inheritor of the whole estate. After the death of Lord Buckhurst Anne married Philip Herbert, the earl of Pembroke and Montgomery. He died after a few years and she then remained widow for 27 years, living between Skipton and Appleby Castles, both of which she repaired and restored. she lived until 1675 and was noted in the north for her public and private acts of charity. In 1653 she wrote:

‘I continued to live in Appleby Castle a whole year (1651), and spent much

time in repairing it and Brougham Castle, to make them habitable as I could.

And in this year, the 21st of April, I helped to lay the foundation stone

of the middle wall of the great tower called Caesar’s Tower, to the end it

might be repaired again and made habitable, it if pleased God..which tower

was wholly finished and covered with lead, the later end of July 1653.’

After Anne’s death the Barony along with all the family’s estates passed to her daughter, Margaret who was married to John, Lord Tufton, whose father had been made the Earl of Thanet, by Charles I, in 1628. Through this marriage therefore the Barony came into the family which still holds it today.

The Tufton family were not as politically active as the Clifford’s had been and had descended from the Toketon family, who had lived in Northamptonshire during the reign of Edward III. They had worked themselves up the social scale steadily and by the mid 17th century had become peers and possessed of a sizeable estate in Kent. After Anne’s death the Barony descended to the 4rd Earl (Nicholas, the 3rd Earl had died some years previously), John, who died, without issue in year later. The title and estates then passed, in rapid succession to John’s brothers; first Richard, the 5th Earl, who died in 1683, then Thomas, the 6th Earl, who died in 1729. The Earldom and the Barony of Westmorland then descended to his nephew, Sackville Tufton, who became 7th Earl of Thanet.

It was during the tenure of the 7th Earl that a dispute arose between the tenants of the Westmoreland estate and their landlord. Sackville was unhappy with the fines paid by his tenants and demanded more but the aggrieved tenants sought legal redress. The case dragged on for almost ten years before finally being settled before a court of Chancery in 1739. At this session the tenants together produced 11 witnesses whose combined ages totaled almost 1,000 years, in a bid to show that their rights had been firmly and anciently established. The court found that for the tenants of the Barony and the included manors; ‘hold their tenements according to ancient custom of tenant rights, and as customary estates of inheritance, descendible from ancestor to heir, under ancient yearly rents, and such general and dropping fines as were then settled by arbitration, which also determined the right of tenants to get turf, peat etc, for their own use; to cut and sell underwood; to mortgage, lease or demise their tenements for any term not exceeding three years; and to exchange lands lying intermixed in common fields for lands of equal value in the same manor, without license or fine.

By this time many of the tenants of the Barony had been enfranchised and this process continued well into the 19th century.

The Tufton family have continued to hold the Barony of Westmoreland and today it is in the hands of their descendant, Lord Hothfield, the Vendor.

Rights, customs and incidents

She claimed the right to appoint an under-sheriff, with Idonea providing consent.
Edward’s justices found in her favour but then demanded from her by what right she claimed free warren, assize of ale and waste within the various manors of the Barony, of which there were many.
At this session the tenants together produced 11 witnesses whose combined ages totaled almost 1,000 years, in a bid to show that their rights had been firmly and anciently established.
The court found that for the tenants of the Barony and the included manors; ‘hold their tenements according to ancient custom of tenant rights, and as customary estates of inheritance, descendible from ancestor to heir, under ancient yearly rents, and such general and dropping fines as were then settled by arbitration, which also determined the right of tenants to get turf, peat etc, for their own use; to cut and sell underwood; to mortgage, lease or demise their tenements for any term not exceeding three years; and to exchange lands lying intermixed in common fields for lands of equal value in the same manor, without license or fine.

Historical holder / succession information

1. her and her son in turn and she prayed aid of him (Edward) [source claim requiring identity review]
   passed_to · historical_holder_or_transferee
   Source wording: At the King’s court Idonea argued that the estate had lawfully passed to her and her son in turn and she prayed aid of him (Edward).