Payne de Beauchamp

That he was a brother of Miles (I. B.) we know from a charter to Shrewsbury Abbey. [36] He himself was a benefactor to the Canons of St. Paul in Bedford, who were afterwards constituted the Priory of Newnham; [37] between 1147 and 11 53, he and his wife were benefactors of the Priory of Chicksand. [38] About 1 144 he married Roheis, widow of Geoffrey de Mandeville, first Earl of Essex, and daughter of Aubrey de Vere, Great Chamberlain and Justiciary. Before 115 5-6, when apparently his property was at farm for his son Simon [39] (II. B.), he was dead.

Miles de Beauchamp (I. B.)

In the Pipe Roll of 11 30-1 Miles was excused for Danegeld in Beds, and Bucks. He witnessed a charter to Shrewsbury Abbey^^ dated by Eyton about 1138 to 1 141, the second charter of the Empress Matilda to Geoffrey de Mandeville in 1142, and others about the same time.^® As being the only brother mentioned by name at the defence of Bedford Castle in II38^^ and as appearing in the Pipe Roll of 11 30-1, while Payn does not so appear, he was probably the elder of the surviving brothers; but, if so, he must have died without heir male, since Payn certainly inherited the Barony. By 1 141 Miles had recovered Bedford Castle from Hugh Pauper.^^

The subsequent history of the castle during Stephen's reign is obscure ; but its possession was obviously contested. In 1146, Ralph, Earl of Chester, who had been among Stephen's opponents, went over to his side; "coming with the King, he manfully took the city of Bedford, which had ever weakened the royal power, and committed it when taken to the king."^^ A story in Blomefield's History of Norfolk, there assigned to "about 1150," probably refers to this attack.^" The castle may then have been held for Stephen till 11 53, when Henry Duke of the Normans (later our Henry H.) appears at least to have attacked it^^'; after the reduction of the castle of Crowmarsh (Wallingford), he is recorded as having besieged Stamford, and thus appears to have captured Bedford on his way; two years later the burgesses of Bedford owe 20 marks to the Exchequer,^^ " because they were in the castle against the King."

An entry in the Testa de Nevill (p. 260), that " Miles owes 52 knights in the county of Bedford " is probably a scribal error. If correct, it could only refer to this Miles, and would indicate that he preceded Payn in the barony, which is quite possible ; but other entries of the same batch deal with men who lived later than John and Richard I. ; that is, later than any Miles of the Bedford family yet traced, though the name persists in the family of Beauchamp of Eaton [Socon].

The compiler of the Testa was, therefore, probably mistaken.

The Annalist of Bermondsey probably intended to refer to this Miles, when he recorded^^ that the mill of Bedford was given to Bermondsey by Miles with the consent of his heir Payn in 11 81; the date seems impossibly late, but this annalist's dates cannot be relied upon ; there is a confirmation of this gift by Henry 11.^* The mill belonged to the Bedford family, for Simon (H. B.) granted a tenth from it to St. Paul in Bedford at a later date.^^ The entry therefore probably refers to Miles (I. B.) ; and " Payn his heir " (not " son and heir ") was in that case probably his brother, and probably younger.

Payn de Beauchamp.

That he was a brother of Miles (I. B.) we know from a charter to Shrewsbury Abbey.^® He himself was a benefactor to the Canons of St. Paul in Bedford, who were afterwards constituted the Priory of Newnham;^^ between 1147 and 1153, he and his wife were benefactors of the Priory of Chicksand.^®^ About 1144 he married Roheis, widow of Geoffrey de Mandeville, first Earl of Essex, and daughter of Aubrey de Vere, Great Chamberlain and Justiciary. Before 1155-6, when apparently his property was at farm for his son Simon^^ (II. B.), he was dead.

(The manor of Belchamp Walter was).... held by her second husband, Peganus , or Payne de Beauchamp, baron of Bedford.

Payne de Beauchamp's son, Simon de Beauchamp, was steward of the household to King Stephen. His son and successor, William, acquired military fame by his prowess and conduct, but proving unfaithful to King Henry III his castle at Bedford was ordered to be demolished.

Henry III of England besieged the castle in 1224 following a disagreement with Falkes de Breauté; the siege lasted eight weeks and involved an army of as many as 2,700 soldiers with equipment drawn from across England. After the surrender of the castle, the king ordered its destruction.

On William (de Beauchamp)'s death, in 1264, he was succeeded by the third and last brother (John de Beauchamp?); but, sometime in that year, being among the barons who rose in arms against King Henry III, he was slain at the battle of Evesham (1265), and his confiscated lands given to prince Edward, the king's eldest son.

Maud, the eldest daughter of William de Beauchamp, was married to Roger de Mowbray.

Beatrix became the wife of Thomas Fitz-Otho, and, on his death, was married to William Montchensy, of Edwardstown.
Ella, the youngest of these sisters, was married to Baldwin Wake, to whom she bore Ida, married to John de Steyngreve,
Elizabeth, the wife of John de Horbiry; and Joan, married to Michael Picket.

These co-heiresses and their husbands, or joint heirs, upon paying their compositions, in pursuance of the "Dictum of Kenelworth," J(oan) had livery of the barony of Bedford, and the great estates which belonged to them, and, in 1278, on the death of Avicia, widow of William Beauchamp, of Bedford, a partition was made between these co-heiresses.

Roger de Mowbray, the son of Maud de Mowbray (daughter of William de Beauchamp), held lands here in 1281, of the earl of Oxford; his successor was his son John (de Mowbray)
and John de Steyngreve, on his death in 1295, also had possessions here.
Isabel, his only daughter, was married to Simon de Pateshull, who, in her right, held these lands at the time of his death, in 1296.

He left a son named John, and Isabel, his widow, was married to Walter de Tey (born between circa 1250 and circa 1270).

In 1286, William de Montchensy died, holding this manor and other estates, of the inheritance of his wife Beatrix, deceased, formerly wife of Thomas Fitz-Otho. His son William was his heir.

There is no evidence of the presence in England of any Beauchamp earlier than Domesday Book; and the only Beauchamp there mentioned by name is Hugh de Beauchamp of Bedford. But the Walter named as a subtenant of some property in Worcestershire, under Urse d'Abitot and others, may be identified, almost certainly, with the Walter de Beauchamp who married Urse's daughter (fn 1) and succeeded to his great estates, as also to the title and some of the lands of Urse's brother, Robert the Dispenser. (fn 2) No evidence of any relationship between Walter and Hugh has been adduced as yet.

Of the origin of the founder of the family nothing appears to be known. His name — de Bello Campo, Belcamp, or Beau Champ — is evidently taken from one of the several places of that name, the " Fair Field," in Normandy or Picardy. Mr. Round ingeniously suggests that it is to be sought in the Calvados.

The Roman figures after the names of the Beauchamps refer to their position in the family table at the end of this memoir.
The B. (standing for Bedford), is added after the figure, in order for the future to distinguish them from their contemporaries, the Beauchamps of Eaton Socon, who often bore the same fore-names ; that family, it is hoped, will form the subject of a future article by the present writers.

HUGH DE BEAUCHAMP (1. B.) was the founder of the line. He appears at Domesday (1086) as holding some 43 manors; these lay almost wholly in Beds. ; he had, however, a fifteen-hide manor at Linslade, a four-hide manor at Lathbury, and a small holding in Soulbury, all in Bucks. ; as well as the six-hide manor of Bengeo, co. Herts. ; the fourhide manor of Hunsdon,^ in Herts., was also "of his fee." The method by which he acquired the Bedfordshire lands has been discussed in the " Notes on Domesday " below. Ralf Taillebois, who there is suggested to have been Hugh's father-in-law, seems to have been succeeded by Hugh in his pubHc capacity of Sheriff, as well as in his lands. Ralf had been Sheriff of Bedfordshire before 1086,^ but had died before that date^ ; the inference that Hugh succeeded him as Sheriff is strongly supported by two precepts of WilHam the Conqueror.^ The first of these is addressed to Ralf Taillebois and Peter de Valognes "and all faithful servants French and EngHsh in whose Sheriffwicks (vicecomitatibus) or bailiwicks (ministris)," etc. The second is addressed to Peter de Valognes and Hugh de Beauchamp "and all my sheriffs." From other sources we know that Peter de Valognes was Sheriff of Essex and Herts. in 1086, and that Ralf Taillebois was Sheriff of Beds, before that date ; the inference is that Hugh de Beauchamp replaced Ralf in his office. Hugh witnessed a charter of WilHam H.® and another of 1080.^ But there is evidence that Hugh lived on into the reign of Henry I. ; by a charter preserved in the Newnham Cartulary,^" is recorded that the King gave Stanbridge [co. Beds.] to his Queen Matilda, and that she gave it with his consent to Hugh de Beauchamp; this charter must have been given between Matilda's marriage (1100) and her death (1118)

Manor of Lathbury
"A mesne lordship of this manor was held in 1223 and 1229 (fn. 16) by Mabel de Bidun, one of the five sisters and co-heirs of John de Bidun. (fn. 17) Her heir Miles de Beauchamp was living in 1254, (fn. 18) and was succeeded about ten years later by his son Richard, (fn. 19) mesne lord in the later 13th century. (fn. 20)" [1]

Manor of Wootton
"Amabel, second sister of John de Bidun II, obtained a grant from Ralph fitz John in 1219; (fn. 26) in 1225–6 she had leave to assart 8 acres of wood in Wootton, and when her daughter Sibyl gave them to St. Andrew's Priory she confirmed, as did Miles de Beauchamp, her son and heir. (fn. 27) As 'lady of Wootton' she, with Robert fitz Geoffrey her nephew, recovered the advowson, 1231–2, from Lavendon Abbey. (fn. 28) Miles the son was joint lord 1242–3, (fn. 29) and died in 1264 leaving a son and heir Richard, still living 1292, (fn. 30) but not mentioned in Wootton. Miles (once called Miles de Wootton) had given lands here to his sons William and Geoffrey, who gave part to the parson's foster-son, but seem to have kept lands and definitely taken the name Wootton. (fn. 31)" [2]