(Redirected from Barons of Halton)
Halton Castle in the 18th century
The 'Barony of Halton', in
England, comprised a succession of 15
barons. After the
Norman conquest,
William the Conqueror divided his kingdom into three earldoms, namely
Shrewsbury,
Hereford and
Chester.
Hugh Lupus was appointed
Earl of Chester and in turn he appointed his cousin, Nigel of
Cotentin, as the first Baron of Halton.
[1] Halton is a village in North-West
Cheshire. At its centre is a rocky prominence on which was built
Halton Castle, the seat of the Barons of Halton.
The Barons
In order, with the dates they held the title, the Barons of Halton were as follows.
1 Nigel of Cotentin
:(c. 1070-
1080)
He was also the hereditary
Constable of Chester. In
1077 he fought against the
Welsh at the
Battle of
Rhuddlan.
[2] It is almost certain that he built a
motte-and-bailey castle on Halton Hill but nothing remains of it today.
[3]
2 William FitzNigel
:(1080-
1134)
The son of Nigel of Cotentin. He also held the honour of being the
Marshal of the Earls' host, which was an important position in the
Norman military hierarchy. In addition to his land in Halton, his estate included land in other parts of Cheshire and also in
Normandy.
[4] He married the eldest daughter of Yorfid, the baron of
Widnes. Yorfid left no male heir and on his death the
Lancashire manors of Widnes, Appleton,
Cronton and
Rainhill came to William.
[5] In
1115 he established a
priory of the
Augustinian Order of
Canons Regular in
Runcorn.
[6] He was buried at Chester.
[7]
3 William FitzWilliam
:(1134-
1150)
The son of William FitzNigel. In 1134 he moved the priory from Runcorn to a site to the east of Halton. This became
Norton Priory.
[8] William died childless in Normandy.
[9]
4 Eustace FitzJohn
:(1150-
1157)
He obtained the title by marriage, his second wife being the sister of William FitzWilliam. He had inherited the barony of
Knaresborough and by his first marriage had also gained the baronies of
Malton and
Alnwick.
He was killed fighting the Welsh.
5 Richard FitzEustace
:(1157-
1171)
The son of Eustace FitzJohn. He married into the
de Lacy family of
Yorkshire.
[10]
6 John FitzRichard
:(1171-
1190)
The son of Richard FitzEustace. He was a
Governor in
Ireland for
Henry II. Being a patron of
science, he maintained an
astronomer at Halton Castle. He founded a
Cistercian monastery at
Stanlow.
In 1190 he granted the second known
charter for a
ferry at Runcorn Gap. He served with
Richard I in the
Third Crusade and died at the siege of
Tyre.
[11]
7 Roger de Lacy
:(1190-
1211)
The son of John FitzRichard. He adopted the surname of de Lacy. He was a renowned soldier and was nicknamed "Hell" Lacy for his military daring. In
1192 he was also serving with Richard I in the Third Crusade. Later he served
King John in the unsuccessful attempt to thwart the French conquest of Normandy following which he was made
High Sheriff of Lancashire. He was buried in the abbey founded by his father at Stanlow.
8 John de Lacy
:(1211-
1240)
The son of Roger. He opposed King John and was one of the barons entrusted with the duty of ensuring that the king kept the agreements made in
Magna Carta. By marriage he gained more titles, including that of the Earldom of
Lincoln. He also gained the
manor and the castle of
Bolingbroke. He was also buried at Stanlow.
[13]
9 Edmund de Lacy
:(1240-
1258)
Son of John, and of whom little is known, except that he was also buried at Stanlow.
[14]
10 Henry de Lacy
Main articles: Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln
:(1258-
1310)
Son of Edmund. He was educated at court and became Chief Councillor to
Edward I. While the king was engaged on military conflicts with the
Scots, Henry was appointed
Protector of the Realm.
He transferred the monastery from Stanlow to
Whalley.
He died at his
London home,
Lincoln's Inn and was buried in the old
St Paul's cathedral.
11 Thomas, Earl of Lancaster
Main articles: Thomas Plantagenet, 2nd Earl of Lancaster
(1310-
1322)
Thomas gained the barony of Halton though his marriage to Alice, Henry's daughter. He took up arms against
Edward II in
1322. However this rebellion was unsuccessful. He was defeated at the
Battle of Boroughbridge and then imprisoned in his own castle at
Pontefract. A few days later he was beheaded outside the city. Later a cult of
martyrdom developed around him.
[15]
12 Sir William Glinton (?)
:(1322-
1351)
There is some uncertainty about the 12th baron. It has been suggested that it was Sir William Glinton. He was a distinguished
knight who may have held the honour as a non-hereditary arrangement or he may have held it during the the life of Alice, widow of Thomas of Lancaster.
Another suggestion is that the 12th baron was Thomas' brother, Henry Wryneck.
[16]
13 Henry Grosmont
Main articles: Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster
:(1351-
1361)
Henry gained the barony of Halton as nephew of Thomas of Lancaster. He was appointed as the 1st
Duke of
Lancaster, one of the first Knights of the
Order of the Garter.
[17] He served the king in
France and died of the
plague.
He was buried at
Leicester.
[18]
14 John of Gaunt
Main articles: John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
:(1361-
1399)
John of Gaunt gained the barony by his marriage to
Blanche, daughter and heiress of the 13th baron. He was appointed
regent during the infancy of
Richard II.
He was also buried in St Paul's cathedral.
15 Henry Bolingbroke
Main articles: Henry IV of England
:(1399-
1413)
Henry Bolingbroke was the eldest son of John of Gaunt. He was banished from England by Richard II and at the time of his father's death he was in
exile in France. When he returned to England to claim his estates the people rallied round him. Richard II was desposed and Henry was appointed
King Henry IV. Henry procured an Act of Parliament to ordain that the
Duchy of Lancaster would remain in the personal possession of the reigning monarch and the barony of Halton is now vested in that dukedom.
[19]
Notes
1. Nickson, 134.
2. Whimperley, ''Barons of Halton'', 8–9.
3. McNeil, 1.
4. Whimperley, ''Barons of Halton'', 9.
5. Starkey, 8.
6. Nickson, 136.
7. Whimperley, ''Halton Castle'', 1.
8. Starkey, 9.
9. Starkey, 30.
10. Whimperley, ''Barons of Halton'', 10.
11. Nickson, 144.
12. Kingsford, C. L., rev. Paul Dalton (2004) 'Lacy, Roger de (d. 1211)' ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press [1] Retrieved on 2 March 2007.
13. Starkey, 31.
14. Whimperley, ''Barons of Halton'', 11.
15. Nickson, 145.
16. Whimperley, ''Barons of Halton'', 13.
17. Nickson, 146.
18. Whymperley, ''Halton Castle'', 2.
19. Nickson, 146–147
References
★ McNeil, Robina (ed.) (1987) ''Halton Castle: A Visual Treasure'', Liverpool: North West Archaeological Trust.
★ Nickson, Charles (1887) ''History of Runcorn'', London and Warrington: Mackie & Co..
★ Starkey, H. F. (1990) ''Old Runcorn'', Halton: Halton Borough Council.
★ Whimperley, Arthur (1981) ''Halton Castle: An Introduction & Visitors' Handbook'', Widnes: Arthur Whimperley.
★ Whimperley, Arthur (1986) ''The Barons of Halton'', Widnes: MailBook Publishing.
External links
★
Halton Castle
★
Some History of Norton Priory and Runcorn
★
Norton Priory Museum & Gardens
★
The Runcorn and District Historical Society
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