William Marshal, The Greatest Knight?
An image of William Marshal’s tomb
William Marshal (also known as William the Marshal) is often known as the Greatest Knight. Born in 1146 or 1147 he served five English Kings with distinction. He eventually died in 1219 and is buried at Temple Church in London, after joining the Templar Knights on his deathbed.
After being knighted in 1166 William spent years as a knight-errant (a wondering knight), as well as a highly successful tournament knight. In 1189 he married Isabel de Clare and became the de facto Earl of Pembroke, though the title was not actually granted until 1199.
When King John died in 1216, William was appointed the guardian of his son and heir, nine year old Henry III, alongside being Henry’s regent. Being regent, he acted as king on a temporary basis, effectively until Henry would come of age, though William would not live to see him come of age, dying three years later. Just before his death he joined the Knights Templar, fulfilling an oath he made while on crusade.
Early Life
During the fifteen year civil war known as ‘The Anarchy’ William’s father, John, initially supported King Stephen he took the throne in 1135, though he later switched sides to support Empress Matilda in 1139.
During the siege of Newbury Castle in 1152 by King Stephen, William was used as a hostage by Stephen in an attempt to ensure that John kept his promise to surrender the castle. However John did no such thing, instead using the time to reinforce the castle and alert Matilda’s forces. When John refused to surrender the castle, Stephen threatened first to hang William, then to launch him from a type of trebuchet towards the castle. However Stephen allegedly could not bring himself to harm the young William. William remained a hostage for months, until the Civil War ended in November 1153.
As the younger son of a minor nobleman, there was little for William to inherit, certainly no lands or fortune. Around the age of twelve, William was sent to the household of William de Tancarville in Normandy, a cousin to younger William's mother. Here was where William Marshal nbegan his straining as knight. In 1166 William was knighted while on campaign in Upper Normandy which was then being invaded from Flanders. According to contemporaries, William acquitted himself well in combat, though he was not wholly successful. War in that time was not just fought for honour or politics but for profit as well. On the profit front, William struggled.
1167 was the year William found his true calling however, when he was sponsored into his first tournament by de Tancarville. It is as a tournament knight he found his fame and fortune.
However he did not solely compete in tournaments. In 1168 he was in the service of his maternal uncle, Patrick, Earl of Salisbury. Later in that year Patrick was escorting Queen Eleanor on a journey near the boundary of Aquitaine, and William was part of the escort. Guy de Lusignan was trying to capture Queen Eleanor, and ambushed the party. Queen Eleanor escaped unharmed, but Patrick was killed and William, wounded in the thigh, was captured, taken prisoner and held for ransom. Someone in the castle seemed to take pity on William, as they smuggled him clean bandages with his food, allowing him to stave off infection. Queen Eleanor eventually paid the ransom herself, as she was reportedly impressed with tales of his bravery, and he would remain a member of her household for the next two years, further increasing his reputation.
Service to Young King Henry
In 1170 William was appointed as tutor-at-arms for Henry II’s son, Henry the Young King. During the Young Kings’ revolt of 11773-1174 he was fiercely loyal to the Young King, but little is known about his specific activities. After the rebellion failed the Young King and his retinue, including William traveled with Henry II for around eighteen months before they got permission to travel to Europe to participate in the tournament scene. William (and indeed the Young King) did very well in the tournaments and made a small fortune during their time there.
In late 1182 William was accused of having an affair with his master's wife, Margaret of France. While it cannot be proven either way, many modern historians feel that the charges were false, and fabricated by Williams' enemies at court. The historian David Crouch feels that the charge was actually one of lese-majeste (defaming the monarch), and the charge of adultery was merely a distraction introduced by a near contemporary historian. The charge of lese-majeste Crouch feels he was most probably guilty. Whether the charges were true or not, by 1183 William had been removed from the Young King’s service.
In 1183 the Young Henry declared war against his brother, Richard (who would go on to become Richard I ‘The Lion Heart’. His father, Henry II would side with Richard. By May of 1183 William had been cleared of all charges and returned to the Young Kings service.
In late May 1183 the Young King became ill, most likely with dysentery, and would go on to die on 11th June 1183. While on his deathbed, the Young King, only 28, would ask William to fulfil a vow he had taken in 1182 to go on Crusade. After receiving Henry II’s blessing (who probably just wanted William out the way) he travelled to Jerusalem. Nothing is known of his two years on Crusade other than he fulfilled the Young Kings vow and secretly committed to joining the Knights Templar on his deathbed. Historians disagree why his time on Crusade receives no coverage in the otherwise detailed History of William Marshall, written by a near contemporary. Historians generally fall into three main camps. One camp says that it was due to William's own discretion, another camp says he may not have done anything to truly note down and only taken part in small military engagements, the final camp purports that his contemporaries may have found his tales too outlandish to be true.
Favour from Royalty
After his return from the Middle East in late 1185-early 1186, William returned to Henry II’s court and served as a loyal captain throughout the many issues of his final years. Henry II gave William the large royal estate of Cartmel in Cumbria.
In 1188 Philip II of France attempted to seize the disputed region of Berry in France. Henry II summoned William to his side. The letter summoning him survives to this day and makes sarcastic comments about William’s complaints he had not been properly rewarded for his service to the King. He promises William the hand in marriage and lands of Dionisia, a Lady in Berry. However in the resulting campaign Henry II fell out with his heir, Richard. Richard would consequently ally with Phillip II against his father.
In 1189, Henry II was fleeing from Le Mans to Chinon with his son and heir, Richard, giving chase. During the chase, William is said to have held a stand against Richard's forces and indeed, unhorsed Richard in combat. He is said to have been the only person to ever unhorse Richard. However when Henry II died, the now Richard I welcomed him to his court. He apparently recognised William’s great skill and the fact he was loyal to the crown as opposed to his father, and as the no rightful wearer of the crown, William would now be loyal to him.
Henry II had offered William the hand and estates of Isabel de Clare, but had not completed all the arrangements. Richard I however confirmed the offer in 1189 Willaim married the much younger daughter of Richard de Clare. She was 17 or 18 at the time as opposed to William being over forty. However her father had been Earl of Pembroke and William now acquired large estates of land in England, Wales, Normandy and Ireland. However some estates were excluded. For example William would not obtain Pembroke or the title of Earl until 1199. Nonetheless, this deal transformed a knight of no land into one the largest landowners, and richest men in the Kingdom. Cometemporaries said although the marriage was a reward for William, the couple grew to love each other and had five sons and five daughters. It is notable that William never took a mistress as would be normal at the time.
William was included in the council or regency which King Richard set up upon his departure for the Third Crusade in 1190. When William Longchamp, the Justiciar was expelled by John, Richard I’s brother, William sided with John. However William soon discovered the interests of John were different from those of Richard. Hence, he took up arms with loyalists to King Richard against John in 1193. Before Richard's return in 1194, William's elder brother, John Marshal was killed while defending Marlborough for John. Upon his return Richard allowed William to succeed his brother as Earl Marshal, and William would often be known as ‘The Marshal’. The Marshal served his King, Richard in wars in Normandy against Phillip II. When Richard was on his death bed, dying of either gangrene or sepsis from an arrow wound, he appointed The Marshal as custodian of Rouen and the Royal Treasure during the interregnum.
Serving King John and the Magna Carta
When John became King John in 1199, William supported him against those who maintained the claims of John’s nephew Arthur of Brittany, who was a teenager at the time. William was heavily engaged in the defence of Normandy between 1200 and 1203. He sailed personally with King John when he abandoned the duchy in December of 1203. He had a falling out with the King during this time, and was sent with the Earl of Leicester to negotiate the truce with Phillip II in 1204. Maybe because of this falling out, he took this opportunity to negotiate the continued possession of his lands in Normandy.
As part of this negotiation he paid homage exclusively to Phillip II, which caused much offence to John and caused a huge row at court. This became outright hostility in 1207 when John moved against several Irish land magnates, including William. He departed for Leinster in 1207, but John recalled him to court in autumn of 1208 and humiliated him, while the Justiciar loyal to John (Meilyr fitz Henry) invaded Williams lands and burned the town of New Ross.
However, Countess Isabel would defeat Meilyr’s forces and The Marshal would return to Leinster. However in the midst of the Barons War, William remained loyal to John, returning to English court in 1213. On the 15th June 1215 at Runnymede the Magna Carta was sealed and William was one of the few English earls to have remained loyal to John throughout the First Barons War. Ultimately, despite their differences, it was William John trusted to make sure his nine year old son, Henry, would get to the throne. William also took responsibility for the King's funeral and burial.
Regent
On the 11th November 1216 at Gloucester, William Marshal became the most powerful man in the land. He was named by the Kings Council to serve as protector to King Henry III (nine years old at the time) and Regent of the Kingdom. Despite his age (around seventy years old at the time) he waged war against Prince Louis and the remaining rebel barons with spectacular energy, fighting and winning the Second Battle of Lincoln in 1217. He was preparing to besiege Louis in London when the naval victory in the straits of Dover rendered it unnecessary.
The Marshal was criticised for how generous the terms with Louis and the rebels in September 1217 were. However he simply wanted to remove the French force from England as quickly as possible to secure peace for his young liege. Both before and after peace in 1217 he reissued the Magna Carta.
Death and Legacy
William Marshal had always enjoyed great health in his life. However this changed in 1219 when he was ‘plagued by illness and pain’. By March, William himself became aware he was dying. He summoned his eldest son, also called William, and his household knights and left the Tower of London for his estate in Berkshire near Reading where he called a meeting. At this meeting was the Barons of the Kings Council, young Henry III, the Papal legate, Hubert de Burgh who was the Royal Justiciar and Bishop of Winchester (Henry III’s guardian). William rejected the Bishops claim to the regency, apparently not trusting him, and entrusted it to Papal Legate, Pandulf Verraccio. Fulfilling the vow he made on crusade, he was invested in the Order of the Knights Templar on his deathbed.
On the 14th May 1219 at Caversham, perhaps the greatest Knight in history died peacefully surrounded by his friends and family. He was buried in Temple Church in London, where his tomb can still be viewed.