Mountford family

The Mountford family (also spelled "Mountfort" in contemporary sources, and "Montfort" by later sources) were a gentry family who held lands in Coleshill, Warwickshire during the late Middle Ages.[1][2] They were involved in an inheritance dispute in 1452 which was caused by the disinheritance of a senior line, in favour of the sons of a second wife.[3] The family was descended from Sir John Mountford.

Sir John was born the illegitimate son of Peter, third Baron of Beaudesert, Warwickshire, and Lauren Ullenhall. When Peter died in 1369, Sir John inherited four manors that his father had transferred to him from the legitimate line. Sir John added another three manors to his land holdings by marrying Joan, who was the heir of Clinton of Coleshill.[2]

The men of the Mountford family were knights.[4] Sir John's son, Baldwin Mountford entered the service of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster. Baldwin died in Spain in 1386 trying to press the Duke's claim to Castile.[1] Baldwin had two sons who were under the guardianship of William Bagot. The elder son, named John after his father, died in 1394.[2]

Baldwin's second son, Sir William Mountford, had developed a close relationship with Richard Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick. He was knighted after returning from the Hundred Years' War in France. William made an advantageous marriage with Margaret (heir of Sir John Peche), which significantly increased the family's landholdings in Warwickshire. By 1436, Sir William was the wealthiest landowner in Warwickshire below the rank of baron.[1]

Sir William eventually developed connections with Henry VI's court, which he used in an attempt to disinherit the senior line of his family, in favour of the children of his second wife. [2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Griffiths 1964, ch. 21.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Carpenter 2004.
  3. ↑ Harriss 2006, p. 147.
  4. ↑ Mercer 2010, p. 93.

Bibliography

  • Carpenter, Christine (2004). "Mountford family (per. c.1370–1495)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/52788. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  • Griffiths, Ralph A. (1964). King and Country: England and Wales in the Fifteenth Century. A&C Black. ISBN 978-1-85285-018-0.
  • Harriss, Gerald (November 9, 2006). Shaping the Nation: England 1360-1461. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-921119-7.
  • Mercer, Malcolm (2010). The Medieval Gentry: Power, Leadership and Choice During the Wars of the Roses. A&C Black. ISBN 978-1-4411-9064-2.
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