Page:The Complete Peerage Ed 2 Vol 2.djvu/76

 6o BEAUMONT Knight in 1308, and was sum. to Pari, from 4 Mar. (1308/9) 2 Edw. II to 20 Oct. (1332) 6 Edw. Ill, by writs directed Henrico de Bellomonte, whereby he may be held to have become LORD BEAUMONT ;(") and from 22jan. (1333/4) C") 7 Edw. Ill to 16 Nov. (1339) 13 Edw. Ill, as EARL OF BUCHAN.(') This latter designation was from his having >«., about 13 10, certainly before 14 July 13 10, Alice, ist da. and coh. of Alexander Comyn, Sheriff of Aberdeen (1305), probably by Joan, sister of William le Latimer, his wife,('') and niece and heir of line to John (Comyn), Earl of Buchan [S.], with whom he had divers lands, of which he had livery (1312-13) 6 Edw. II. On 16 Mar. 13 10, he had a grant of the Lordship of the Isle of Man(') for life "by the services which the Lords thereof had usually performed to the Kings of Scotland,"^) and appears to have held the same till 20 Oct. 13 1 2. He was Warden and Constable of divers castles, &'c., was on many embassies to France (1312 to 1331), and on one to Pope Clement V in 13 1 2. He fought at Boroughbridge ex parte Regis, 16 Mar. i32i/2.(«) He was P.C. and Constable of England, 1322. On 5 June 1323, he was imprisoned for contempt and disobedience at the Council.C") Not- withstanding these high preferments, he sided against the King, whose escape he prevented, and who consequently was, shortly afterwards, mur- dered at Berkeley Castle. For this he was rewarded by a grant of Lough- borough Castle, in 1334. In 1336 he was Constable of the Army, and in 1338 Justiciar of Scotland. He d. 10 Mar. 1339/40. Will pr. Jan. 1342, at Lincoln. His widow, "reputed to be of full age" Dec. 13 12, d. in 1349, before 10 Aug. II. 1340. 2. John (Beaumont), Lord Beaumont, s. and h. (aged 22 at his father's death), who had been knighted 2 May 1338, and who had served in France in 1339. He was sum. to Pari. 23 Feb. (1342/3) 16 Edw. Ill, by writ directed "Johanni de Bello Monte,'' but second wife of Edward I. The Beaumont arms could hardly be explained (as ' Hermentrude ' supposes) if the English Beaumonts were male descendants of the royal house of France. For it is not conceivable that any member of that family would have so far differenced his arms as to have assumed a lion rampant for the principal charge. It might be supposed that Louis, the Vicomte de Beaumont adopted the fleur de lis and obtained his christian name because he was nearly related to the Kings of France, but he was, in fact, not so related." (^) As to how far these early writs of summons did in fact create any peerage title see Appendix A in the last vol. V.G. ('') He is described as Earl of Buchan in Close Roll, 20 Dec. 1330. V.G. {'=) There is proof in the Rolls of Pari, of his sitting. {^) As his widow she long resided, with the abovenamed Alice, at Malton, co. York. See an article on the Earldom of Buchan, by Joseph Bain, in Genealogist, N.S., vol. iv, p. 194. {^) See vol. i, p. 81, note "a" as to the grant of this island by Robert I [S.] in 1324. (') See Dugdale. (*) For an account of this battle see Appendix C in this volume. ('') See Close Roll, where he is called " Baron." V.G.