General Notes

ID: I00365
Name: Thomas DE BERKELEY , 1st Lord
Sex: M
Birth: 1245
Death: 1321
Burial: St. Augustine's at Bristol
Note:
From Dave Berkeley's homepage athttp://www.rotwang.freeserve.co.uk/Index.html

This lord was one of the most remarkable men of his age. Smyth calls him-

"A man of men; a man for all hours and all affairs; a man at home andabroad, in peace and in war, in the foreign embassies of his Prince, and,in his country governments, of an universal understanding. And for hisprivate husbandries and house keepings he admitted of few compeers. Awise, devout, and honest lord, much to be preferred above the best of hissix forefathers."

After his succession to the Barony he devoted himself very much to themanagement and improvement of his estates, keeping many of his manors inhis own hands, of which most minute and accurate accounts were kept,showing how the demesne lands were stocked and farmed, and how theproduce was disposed of. Like several of his predecessors he granted awaymuch land in fee, reserving what was then the full annual value as achief rent; the object of this was to maintain the revenue of the estateat its then value, thinking that from the disturbed state of the kingdomit was more likely to diminish than to increase. His standing householdconsisted of upwards of 300 persons, of the various ranks of knights,esquires, yeomen, grooms, and pages, besides of others of less degree.

Lord Berkeley's public, civil, and military employments were as numerousas his domestic engagements. From the battle of Evesham in 1265, to 1319,he was almost constantly in arms and served in nearly every engagement inthe civil wars, as well as against the French, Scots, and Welsh, duringthat turbulent period. In 1295 he was sent as ambassador to the king ofFrance. In 1307, he was appointed with the Bishop of Worcester to go onan embassy to Rome, but their mission was stopped by the death of theking (Edward I) at Carlisle. Lord Berkeley was present at the coronationof Edward II and soon afterwards went with his two sons Maurice and Johnto France to witness the king's marriage with the Princess Isabella,little thinking probably, to what a tragedy that marriage would lead, andhow great a share his family were destined to take in it! At thedisastrous battle of Bannockburn, lord Berkeley and his son Thomas wereboth among the prisoners, but Maurice escaped, and aided in effecting theransom of his father and brother. In 1319, lord Berkeley was again inarms, though 74 years of age, and joined the royal army at Newcastle withhis son Maurice and Maurice�s two sons, there being thus threegenerations of Berkeleys in the field at once; this was Thomas lordBerkeley's 28th campaign and it was his last. After his return home hewas several times written to by the king, Edward II, requiring him torepress the local and partial insurrections which were caused by thediscontents occasioned by the King's weakness and incapacity and hisdevotion to favourites.

Thomas, 6th lord Berkeley, died in 1321, and was buried with hisforefathers in St. Augustine�s under an arch between the vestry and thesouth aisle. [end of Dave Berkeley's info].


Father: Maurice DE BERKELEY
Mother: Isabel DE CREOAN

Marriage 1 Joan DE FERRERS
Married: ABT. 1267
Children
Maurice DE BERKELEY , 2nd Lord b: APR 1281