Dear Newsgroup ~
The authoritative Complete Peerage, 9 (1936):380-383 (sub Mowbray) has
a good account of the life history of Sir John de Mowbray, Knt., 3rd
Lord Mowbray, who died in 1361. His marriages to Joan of Lancaster
and Elizabeth de Vere are well known, and are well do***ented by
Complete Peerage.
However, it appears that Complete Peerage was unconvinced that John de
Mowbray had earlier married and divorced Maud de Holand, daughter of
Robert de Holand, Knt., 1st Lord Holand. No mention is made of the
marriage in the main text. In fact, all discussion of this possible
marriage was discretely placed in a footnote of the text on page
383. As a consequence, as recently as this year, Gary Boyd Roberts
cast doubt on Maud de Holand's subsequent remarriage to Sir Thomas de
Swinnerton, by stating that "Mr. Brayton rejects the Holand-Swinnerton
marriages [sic] on pp. 452, 454-455." [Reference: Gary Boyd Roberts,
The Royal Descents of 600 Immigrants (2008): 875]. The Mr. Brayton
in question is John Anderson Brayton. No reason is given for his
alleged rejection of Maud de Holand's marriage to Sir Thomas de
Swinnerton.
Certainly,.Complete Peerage was aware of claims that John de Mowbray
had married Maud de Holand. In a footnote c on page 383 of Mowbray
account, it indicates that The Coucher Book of Furness Abbey (Chetham
Soc.), ii., p. 292 specifically states that John de Mowbray had in
fact been married to and divorced from a daughter of Sir Robert de
Holand, Knt., 1st Lord Holand. The actual passage in question in the
Coucher Book reads in Latin as follows:
"Qui quidem Johannes duxit uxorem filiam Roberti de Holand, sed
divortio inter eos celebrato legitime postea duxit in uxorerm Johannem
sororem Henrici primi ducis Lancastrie ....:"
This quoted material may be viewed at the following weblink:
http://books.google.com/books?id=3DPkYJAAAAIAAJ&dq=3Deditions%3A0l2bpcdgGaDZ=
lVRQAmydzl7&q=3DHoland&pgis=3D1#search
In the same footnote on page 383 of the Mowbray account, Complete
Peerage further reveals that John de Mowbray had license in 1332 to
settle two manors on Maud de Holand, daughter of Robert de Holand for
life, citing Calendar of Patent Rolls, 1330-1334, pg. 368.
The Patent Rolls item in question may be viewed at the following
weblink:
http://sdrc.lib.uiowa.edu/patentrolls/e3v2/body/Edward3vol2page0368.pdf
While Complete Peerage admits that there may have been "some contract
of marriage," it seems to have determined the evidence was
insufficient to conclude that John de Mowbray and Maud de Holand had
actually been married. And, no mention whatsoever was made by
Complete Peerage of Maud de Holand's later marriage to Sir Thomas de
Swinnerton, 3rd Lord Swinnerton. Indeed, in its later treatment of
the Swinnerton family, Complete Peerage, 12(1) (1953): 588 (sub
Swynnerton) says only that Sir Thomas de Swinnerton is "said to have
married Maud." Regarding the identification in print by Canon
Bridgeman of the wife of Sir Thomas de Swinnerton being Maud, daughter
of Sir Robert de Holand, Lord Holand, Complete Peerage curtly
dismisses Bridgeman by saying: "There does not seem to be any record
of evidence of this marriage."
In truth, John de Mowbray did marry and divorce Maud de Holand,
daughter of Sir Robert de Holand, 1st Lord Holand. And, Maud de
Holand did subsequently marry Sir Thomas de Swinnerton, 3rd Lord
Swinnerton, just as claimed by Canon Bridgeman. The evidence of these
two marriages can be found in three do***ents which are available in
the helpful online A2A Catalogue. These do***ents are labelled #1,
2, and 3 below. All are drawn from the Berkeley Castle Muniments
catalogue.
In the first do***ent, John de Mowbray the elder grants his son and
heir, John de Mowbray the younger, and Maud his wife three manors in
York****re, which manors are named. This do***ent is undated. In the
second do***ent dated 1332, Maud daughter of Robert de Holand releases
the three manors in question in York****re back to John de Mowbray the
younger, in return for a grant of two manors for life, namely Ryarsh,
Kent and Crick, Northampton****re. In the third do***ent dated 1342,
Maud, then wife of Sir Thomas de Swinnerton, is stated to be holding
the manors of Ryarsh, Kent and Crick, Northampton****re for life. That
Maud de Swinnerton is the same person as Maud de Holand is confirmed
by Canon Bridgeman who re****ted that there was formerly in Swinnerton
Church an effigy of a woman over whom was written, Mati[l]dis de
Swynnerton [that is Maud de Swinnerton], with a ****eld giving the arms
of Holand, viz: Azure, s=E9m=E9e of fleurs-de-lys argent, a lion rampant
guardant argent.
Maud de Holand, widow of Sir Thomas de Swinnerton, was known to be
living in 1364=961365. My research indicates that Maud must have died
sometime before 10 May 1380, when the manor of Crick, Northampton****re
which had been assigned to her for life was back in the possession of
the Mowbray family [see Calendar of Patent Rolls, 1377=961381 (1895):
488].
For interest's sake, the following is a list of the 17th Century New
World immigrants that descend from Maud de Holand and her second
husband, Sir Thomas de Swinnerton, 3rd Lord Swinnerton:
Robert Abell, Thomas Bressey, Obadiah Bruen, Agatha, Alice, Eleanor,
Jane & Martha Eltonhead, John Fenwick, Thomas Gerard, Oliver
Manwaring, Thomas Owsley, Anthony Savage, James Taylor, Amy Wyllys.
Do you see your immigrant ancestor in this list? If so, I'd
appreciate hearing from you here on the newsgroup.
Best always, Douglas Richardson, Salt Lake City, Utah
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Source: A2A Catalogue (http://www.a2a.org.uk/search/index.asp)
Do***ent #1:
Berkeley Castle Muniments
Reference: BCM/D/1/1/1
Creation dates: [c. 1319]
Scope and Content
John de Moubray, lord of the Isle of Axholme and of Gower; and John
his eldest son and Maud, the son's wife. n.d.
John has granted to John and Maud the manors of Kyrkeby Malasart,
Burtone in Lounesdale and Hovyngham, to them and their issue, saving
to John [the father] the right to hunt when he wishes.
Witnesses: Sir Thomas earl of Lancaster, Sir William de Roos of
Helmsley, William le Latymer, Edmund Dayncourt, Henry son of Hugh,
William son of William, John Beek.
[Please quote GC3253 at Berkeley Castle Muniments when requesting this
file]
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Do***ent #2:
Berkeley Castle Muniments
Reference: BCM/D/1/1/2
Creation dates: [1332]
Language: French
Scope and Content
Sir John Moubray, lord of the Isle of Axholme, and Maud daughter of
Sir Robert de Holand.
Dated: 26 Oct. 6 Edward III [1332].
In the presence of Sir Ralph de Neville, Sir Robert de Ufford, Sir
Roger Swynnertone, and Sir John Darcy, the dispute between John and
Maud has been settled, viz. that Maud has quitclaimed to John the
manors of Hovyngham, Kyrkebymalasart, Burtone en Lounesdale and all
other lands and holdings which he has in England and Wales, and for
this John has granted to her for her life the manors of Ryesse (Kent),
and Crek (Northants.).
At: York.
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Do***ent #3:
Berkeley Castle Muniments
Reference: BCM/D/1/1/9
Creation dates: [1343]
Language: French
Scope and Content
William de Mountagu, earl of Salisbury, Sir Edward de Mountagu his
brother, and Lady Alice, Edward's wife; and Sir John lord of Moubray
and Lady Joan his wife. 13 March 1342
An agreement has been made for a double marriage between John, son and
heir of John de Moubray, and Audrey, eldest daughter of Edward, and
between Edward son and heir of Edward, and Blanche, daughter of John
de Moubray, in this manner, viz. that the solemnities will be
performed at the nativity of John the Baptist next [24 June 1343] at
Moubray's expense, and Moubray will grant to John and Audrey and their
issue 300 marks of land, viz. the manor of Melton Mowbray to the value
of =A390 and the remainder from the reversion of the manors of Creke
(Northants.) and Ryasshe (Kent) which Maud wife of Sir Thomas de
Swynarton holds for life, and Schidestoke (Warws.) which Sir Richard
de Pessale holds for life; and Edward will grant to Edward and Blanche
and their issue 100 marks of land and 200 marks of cash a year; and
William and Edward will pay to Moubray =A31,000 at terms, and both
fathers promise that none of their lands will be eloined from the
right heirs.
At: Knepp.
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