Notes:

Sir Walter Devereux of Bodenham was a prominent knight in Herefordshire during the reign of Edward III. He was a member of Parliament, sheriff, and Justice of the Peace for Hereford.

Ancestry and Childhood
Sir Walter Devereux of Bodenham was born about 1339, the son of William Devereux of Bodenham and Anne, daughter of Sir John Barre.[1][2] His great-grandfather was William Devereux, Baron Devereux of Lyonshall by his first wife, Alice de Grandison.

He was a close ally of his uncle, John Devereux, 1st Baron Devereux of Whitchurch Maund.[3] The Baron was a friend of Edward, the Black Prince, and a member of Richard II's council of regency, and his influence promoted the career of Walter Devereux.[4]

His arms were: Argent a fesse gules, in chief three torteaux.

Career
An oyer and terminer commission was called on 11 Sep 1357 for a complaint by Sir Richard de Acton that Walter Devereux was among a number of individuals that broke into his park at Aily, Somersetshire, hunted and carried away a great part of the deer therein, and then killed livestock worth 10 marks.[5] Another commission was called in 1362 on a complaint by the abbot of Abbotsbury that Walter Devereux was among a number of individuals who tore up stones for metes and bounds in his lands in Tolpuddle (Dorsetshire), felled trees, broke a stank erected to store water for times of drought, carried away fish and timber, trod down and consumed with cattle his crops and grass, and so molested his bondmen there that they cannot hold his bondage.[6]

On coming of age, Walter Devereux, like his father, joined the retinue of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford. On 4 October 1363 Devereux was granted the wardship of the lands in Bodenham of Thomas Lucy,[a] comprising annual rent of 8 marks and 2 carucates of land, for payment of 8 marks yearly to the exchequer.[7] Following the death of Thomas Lucy on 26 November 1369, Devereux was granted the wardship of his brother and heir, William de Lucy. He testified on 20 November 1374 on William Lucy's coming of age to his holding in Bodenham, Herefordshire.

Devereux was a knight by the time he was nominated on 13 February 1364 as attorney by Brother Thomas de Burley, prior of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem in Ireland, preceptor of Dynemor, Carewy and Upledne, who was going to Ireland on the king's service.[8] Also in 1364 the Earl of Hereford granted Bykenhull manor in Oxfordshire to Walter Devereux, and he subsequently traded the manor with the earl for Southam manor in Gloucestershire. These transfers were done without license, and following the earl's death in 1373, the king voided his claim to the manor.[9]

On 15 May 1366 Devereux was assigned to inquire into the complaint of Gilbert and Elizabeth Giffard that the Prior of Saint Oswald's was not maintaining the chapel on Kingshome manor, Gloucestershire, that was held in the king's hand because Elizabeth was underage.[10] He was appointed Justice of the Peace for Gloucestershire on 16 May 1366,[11] and again on 10 July 1368.[12] On 8 Aug 1368 he was appointed to investigate a complaint by Sir John de Burley that Emery le Botiller and others broke into his park at Harsfeld, Gloucestershire, hunted deer, cut down trees, and then carried them away with other goods.[13]

Walter Devereux, as a retainer of the Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, served with him in France.[4][14] In May 1369 he was granted protection and appointed an attorney for 1 year while overseas in France.[15] Devereux was with the forces John of Gaunt led to Calais, and participated in his raids into northern France. He was at the siege of Harfleur in October 1369 that had to be abandoned due to an outbreak of plague and dysentery. He fought at the Battle of the Ford of Blanchetaque on the Somme River, and returned with the army to Calais by mid-November.

Following the death of Humphrey de Bohun on 10 January 1373, Walter Devereux was shown holding 1 fee in Bodenham at his inquiry post-mortem. Devereux was granted the custody of all castles and keeping of all the forests, chases, and parks in Wales and the Marches, which had been held by the said Earl, while they remained in the king's hands.[16][17] On 16 July Walter Devereux; John ap Rees, and Richard Sergeant were appointed to collect for one year the issues and profits of all castles, lordships and lands in England and the Welsh Marches of the earl of Hereford to be used for the payment of the debts of both Humphrey de Bohun and his father, William de Bohun, earl of Northampton.[18]

He was sometime sheriff of Somerset and Dorset.[4] On 4 October 1375 Walter Devereux was appointed sheriff of Herefordshire.[19] Devereux transferred his affinity to Thomas of Woodstock at this time following his marriage to Humphrey de Bohun's eldest daughter, Eleanor, in 1376.

Following the death of his father, William Devereux, in January 1377, Walter Devereux inherited the family lands. On 3 March 1377 he was granted the wardship of Sir Simon de Burley along with his cousin John Devereux, and John Joyce while they were in the king's hands, and was appointed to investigate who was encroaching on this holding.[20]

On 8 March 1377 he was appointed Justice of the Peace,[21] and assigned on 29 April 1377 to raise troops in Herefordshire to repel an anticipated invasion.[22] On 12 May 1377 Walter Devereux was assigned to make inquisitions by oath of the men of the lordships of Brecombe, Haye, Huntington and Caldecotes in Wales touching all seditions, oppressions, champerties, ambidextries, falsities and deceptions, damages, grievances and excesses perpetrated there; as well in forests, stews, waters, assarts and purprestures as elsewhere; and touching all wards, marriages, reliefs, escheats, lands and other profits and emoluments pertaining to the king which have been concealed, withdrawn or occupied; also to make due restitution of the latter, and to hear and determine the premises at the suit of the king or others; and commission to them to be justices to take hearings in all personal pleas, as well of accounts, errors and attaints, as all others, and to correct what has been wrongly done therein and punish delinquents.[23] Devereux was again appointed on 2 July 1377 as Justice of the Peace for Herefordshire.,[24] and on 20 July, following the death of Edward III and ascension of Richard II, he was also among those assigned as keepers of the city of Hereford. They were instructed to stay upon its sage custody and for conservation of the peace therein, with full power to see that all men of the city and suburbs, according to their condition and means, are suitably armed, arrayed, and kept ready to resist the king's enemies, compelling them if need be, by distress or imprisonment.[25]

He obtained a license for an annual fair of three days continuance in Bodenham on 12 July 1378. The days of the fair were to be those of the Assumption (15 August), the day preceding, and the day following.[26] He also was granted a weekly market in Bodenham to occur on Tuesdays.[2] Devereux also represented Herefordshire in the Parliament of October 1378.[27][28] and April 1379.[29] On 8 Aug 1379 Walter Devereux was instructed to investigate a report that the tax assessors of the king's subsidy in Herefordshire had failed to collect the full amount due, and to insure that any errors are corrected.

On 26 May 1380 Walter Devereux and his liege, Thomas of Woodstock, were appointed Justice of the Peace for Herefordshire.[30] On 22 June 1380 he was granted protection and appointed an attorney for 1 year while overseas in France serving in the company of Thomas of Woodstock, Earl of Buckingham.[31] In July Woodstock led an army across the channel to Calais to bring support to John IV, Duke of Brittany in his resistance to Charles V of France. The army marched east of Paris where it confronted Philip the Bold at Troyes, but the French refused battle and the two armies marched away. On 16 Sep 1380 Charles V died, and the French defense was thrown into disarray. Thomas of Woodstock led a chevauchée westward, and in November laid siege to Nantes. In January 1381 the Duke of Brittany reconciled with the new French King, Charles VI, and Woodstock was forced to abandon the siege due to dysentery and the collapse of his alliance.

By June Devereux was back on the Welsh Marches during the Peasants’ Revolt. He was mandated on 7 July 1381 to issue a proclamation regarding the murder under pretext of royal authority of Simon, Archbishop of Canterbury; Robert de Hales, Prior of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem; Chief Justice John de Cavendish; and others by the rebels.[32] He also was appointed to a Commission of array, empowered to forbid unlawful assemblies, and to resist and punish the insurgents.[33] In November 1381 he represented Herefordshire in Parliament,[19] and was appointed Justice of the Peace on 14 December.[34]

He again represented Herefordshire in Parliament in February 1382,[19][35] Also attending Parliament was his son of the same name, and they both were appointed to a royal commission.[4][36] He was assigned on 8 February 1382 to arrest William de Solers who had been outlawed for not appearing before the king for disseising John ap William ap Jankin and his wife of Dorstone manor,[37] and on 16 February 1382 to arrest the individuals responsible for disseising John de Walleford of the manor of Brocton.[38]

On 8 March 1382 Walter Devereux was among those appointed Justice of the Peace for Herefordshire, empowered to arrest, imprison and punish rebels, and appointed a commissioner of Oyer and terminer with power to arrest, imprison and punish any who refused to assist him.[39] He attended Parliament again in May, and had his appointment as Justice of the Peace reaffirmed in on 12 August 1382. Devereux represented Herefordshire in the Parliaments of October 1382 and February 1383.[40] On 6 March 1383 Walter Devereux and Richard de Eton of the county of Hereford commitment by mainprise to John Burlev, Richard Burley and Roger Bierd the keeping of the manors of Mauwardyn, Blenleveny and Orleton, previously held by the late Edmund earl of March, and to hold the same until the lawful age of Roger, the earl's son and heir.

Death
Walter Devereux died sometime after March 1383.[41]

Provided is an excerpt from Mansions and Manors of Herefordshire[42] describing his home, and burial in the church of Bodenham Devereux: The manor-house, formerly called “Devereux Court” and now the “Moat,” is situated near the Church, and is a timber mansion of great antiquity. It probably formed the residence of Sir Walter Devereux who was the Sheriff, 50 and 51 Edward III, and whose monument was to be seen in the church forty years ago. Dingley (Hist. from Marble. Part I, ccxxxvi.) gives a sketch of it, from which we gather that it represented a knight in chain-armour with a sleeveless surcoat over the hawberk. The sword is on the right side and attached to a jeweled belt. The hands are crossed above the breast, on which are depicted the arms of Devereux. These are repeated at intervals on the upper plinth, where a French inscription is partially legible. Sir Walter obtained licence for a market and fair at his manor of Bodenham, and probably contributed largely to the re-building of the church, in the windows of which were to be seen the arms of Devereux and the cognizance of Richard II – the white hart lodged – together with the arms of that monarch and those of Delabere, Lucy, and Brydges. All these memorials have now perished; the alabaster slab, on which the effigy of Sir Walter was incised, was broken into fragments at the restoration of the church in 1834.

Marriage
He married a woman named Maud[4][43][b] and had children:

Walter Devereux[44] of Bodenham and Weobley (c. 1361)
Ann Devereux (c. 1363) who married Roger Vaughan of Lechryd.[45]

Family/Spouse: Devereux, Maud. Maud was born in UNKNOWN in England; died in DECEASED in England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Devereux, Sir Walter IV was born in 1361 in Bodenham, Herefordshire, England; died on 25 Jul 1402 in Herefordshire, England; was buried after 25 Jul 1402 in Weobley, Herefordshire, England.

William married Barre, Anne Margaret. Anne (daughter of Barre, John) was born in 1312 in Hereford, Herefordshire, England; died in 1358 in Hereford Whitchurch, Hereford, Herefordshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FSID: 9CJQ-SYB

Other Events and Attributes:

• FSID: 9CNK-KNB
• Name: Stephen
• Name: Stephen D'Evereux
• Name: Stephen Devereux
• Name: Stephen Devereux of Bodenham and Burghope
• Name: Steven Devereux
• Name: Walter Devereaux
• Birth: Between 8 Jan 1281 and 7 Jan 1282, Bodenham, Herefordshire, England

Stephen married Devereux, Cecily in 1301 in Hereford, Herefordshire, England. Cecily was born in 1282 in Bodenham, Herefordshire, England; died in DECEASED in England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Appointments / Titles: Lord Devereaux
• FSID: GZC4-43F

Notes:

Sir Walter Devereux of Bodenham[1] was a member of a prominent knightly family in Herefordshire during the reigns of Edward I, and Edward II. He gave rise to the Devereux Barons of Whitchurch Maund, Earls of Essex and Viscounts of Hereford.

Ancestry and Childhood

Walter Devereux[2] was born about 1266, the son of Baron William Devereux of Lyonshall[3] and his first wife, Alice Grandison.[3][4] His mother died while he was still young, and his father married a second time to Lucy Burnell.[2] She gave birth to his half-brother, John Devereux of Frome,[2] whose descendants would later contend with his son, Stephen, over control of their patrimony.[4][a] His father spent his life struggling to regain control of the lands forfeited by Walter’s grandfather who had died in rebellion at the Battle of Evesham in 1265, and were subject to the Dictum of Kenilworth. Walter Devereux’s coat of arms was the same as his father: argent a fesse gules, in chief three torteaux.

Marriage

Walter Devereux married Margery de Braose[2][3] of Pipton and Brecon about 1287. [b] They had at least 2 children: Stephen Devereux of Bodenham and Burghope[1][2][3][5] about 1290, and John Devereux of Manne (Whitchurch Maund)[2][3][6] in 1302.

Career

During his father’s lifetime Walter Devereux was established in the ancestral Devereux manors of La Fenne (Bodenham) and Whitchurch Maund.[7] Large parts of Bodenham had been in the possession of his family since the Domesday Survey when they were held by a William Devereux. As a retainer of Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford,[8] he probably participated in the private feud his lord had with the earl of Gloucester.

Walter acknowledged a debt of 77s 4d to Laurence Lodelawe on 8 May 1289.[9] Devereux was a knight prior to 1290 when he witnessed his father's grant to the Priory and Convent of St. Guthlac of Hereford.[10] He was listed among the knights witnessing Roger Ragun’s bond to pay John Pennebruge 40s yearly for life on 12 Nov 1291.[11] Devereux was probably knighted for participation in the campaigns against the Welsh that his father, William Devereux, was involved in.

On 26 May 1296 Letters of Protection were issued for Walter Devereux who was to be serving in Scotland with Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford.[12] Walter Devereux was identified as holding over 20L in lands and rents in Herefordshire in 1297, and as such was summoned to perform military service beyond the seas.[13] He was instructed to muster at London on 7 July 1297. He fought under Humphrey de Bohun at Falkirk. A Walter de Bodenham was listed among the men that Edward I led in the invasion of Scotland in 1298, and who fought at the Battle of Falkirk.[14] He was identified among the horse belonging to the royal household, and as possessing a 'runicum' (horse of lesser grade) which was spotted iron-grey with a white right front foot and valued at 12 marks.

At the inquiry post-mortem on 7 January 1299 following the death of Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford, Walter Devereux held one knight fee of the honor of Brecknock.[15]

On the subsidy rolls for 1303 Walter Devereux is shown holding 1/2 fee in Bodenham, county Herefordshire. He was assessed 20 shillings.[16]

In 1304 he was listed as holding in custody some of the lands of the under-age Roger Mortimer, the future Earl of March. Roger was the son of Edmund Mortimer, 2nd Baron Mortimer, who had died on 17 July 1304, and his widow, Margaret, Baroness de Mortimer, had filed suit against Hugh de Aldytheleye and Isolda his wife over various parts of the estate.[17] When being summoned to court on a follow up document dated 29 Sep 1305, Walter Devereux was identified as having died.[18]

A grant in 1317 by Thomas Swonild to Thomas de Hueton and his sons, Walter and Hugh, described the croft as lying in the town of la More between the land late of Sir Walter Devereus and the Tyne brook.[19] This was witnessed by his son, John Devereux.

References

Anthony Story. Inquisitions and Assessments Relating to Feudal Aids: 1284-1431, Volume II: Dorset to Huntingdon. (London: Public Record Office, 1900). Pages 378, 384, 394
Morgan G. Watkins. Collections Towards the History and Antiquities of the County of Hereford in continuation of Duncumb’s History, Hundred of Radlow. (High Town [Hereford]: Jakeman & Carver, 1902). Page 42 to 49. Parish of Castle Frome, Genealogy contributed by Lord Hereford
Evelyn Philip Shirley. Stemmata Shirleiana. (Westminster: Nichols and Sons, 1873). page 103 to 104
F.W. Maitland (Editor). Year Books of Edward II. Volume III, 3 Edward II, AD 1309-1310. (London: Benard Quaritch, 1905) Page 16 to 20. 1310, Hillary Term
Placitorum in domo capitulari Westmonasteriensi asservatorum abbrevatio, temporibus regum Ric. I., Johann., Henr. III, Edw. I, Edw. II. Printed by Command of His Majesty King George III in pursuance of an address of The House of Commons of Great Britain. 1811. page 304
George Frederick Beltz. Memorials of the Order of the Garter. (London: William Pickering, 1841). Page 323 to 327
William Henry Cooke. Collections Towards the History and Antiquities of the County of Hereford in continuation of Duncumb’s History. Hundred of Grimsworth. London: John Murray, Albermarle Street. 1892, Page 2, Parish of Bishopstone
J.E.E.S. Sharp (Editor). Institute of Historical Research, Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem, Volume 4: Edward I. (London,1906). 552. Humphrey de Bohun alias de Boun, Earl of Hereford and Essex, Writ, 7 January 27 Edward I (1299)
HC Maxwell Lyte (editor). Calendar of Close Rolls, Edward I, Volume 3, 1288-1296. (London, 1904). 8 May 1289, Westminster, Walter de Everoys of Bodinham
Collectanea Topograhica et Genealogica, Volume IV. (London: John Bowyer Nichols and Son, 1837). Page 246
HC Maxwell Lyte (editor). Calendar of Close Rolls, Edward I, Volume 3, 1288-1296. (London, 1904). 12 November 1291, Worcester, Walter de Evereuse
Grant Simpson and James Galbraith (editors). Calendar of Documents Relating to Scotland Volume V (supplementary). AD 1108-1516. (Edinburgh: Scottish Record Office, 1970). Part II: Rotuli Scotiae, Letters of Protection, Page 399, 2152, May 26 1296
Francis Palgrave (editor). The Parliamentary Writs and Writs of Military Summons Together with the Records and Muniments. (London: Printed by command of King George IV, 1827). Vol. 1, Page 286, number 15. 1297 (25 Edward I)
Henry Gough (editor). Scotland in 1298; Documents Relating to the Campaign of King Edward the First in that Year, and Especially to the Battle of Falkirk. (London: Alexander Gardner, 1888). Page 191, Rolls of the Horse. Horses belonging to the Royal Household. 26 Edward I (1298), July 1
J. E. E. S. Sharp (editor). Institute of Historical Research. Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem, Volume 4: Edward I. (London, 1906). 552. Humphrey de Bohun alias de Boun, Earl of Hereford and Essex. Writ, 7 January 27 Edward I (1299)
Anthony Story. Inquisitions and Assessments Relating to Feudal Aids: 1284-1341, Volume II: Dorset to Huntingdon. (London: Public Record Office, 1900). Page 378
Major General Hon. George Wrottesley (editor). Staffordshire Historical Collections, Volume 7, part 1. (London: Staffordshire Record Society, 1883). Banco Roll. 33 Edward I, Hillary Term. Walter de Evereus
Major General Hon. George Wrottesley (editor). Staffordshire Historical Collections, Volume 7, part 1. (London: Staffordshire Record Society, 1883). Banco Roll. 33Edward I, Michaelmas Term. Walter Deverous
H.C. Maxwell Lyte. 'Deeds: C.6601 - C.6700', in A Descriptive Catalogue of Ancient Deeds: Volume 6, ed. (London, 1915), pp. 366-377 [1] [accessed 18 December 2014].

Notes

The early death of Walter Devereux's mother, Alice de Grandison, and the granting for life of some of the attainted Devereux lands directly to his step-grandmother, Maud de Giffard, facilitated the passage of lands to John Devereux including Frome, Holme Lacy, Stoke Lacy, and Lower Hayton.

Margery was probably the daughter of John de Braose, Lord of Corsham in Wiltshire and Lord of Glasbury on Wye (of which Pipton was part).

Walter married de Braose, Margaret in 1286. Margaret (daughter of de Braose, Sir Richard and de Rus, Lady Alice) was born in 1264 in Lincolnshire, England; died in 1335 in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• FSID: LZN3-939