Another page in the Botetourt story
I think that is more than likely that Thomas de Botetourt is the person that had the chantry chapel in St. Mary's church built. It was either for him or his son or father, both Sir John de Botetourt. The dates that I have for Thomas do not make sense as he seems to have married (before 1318) before he was born in 1322 and died in 1322.
According to Thomas Wright he is recorded as being a resident of Mary Hall and that could be how the hall got its name, or visa-versa. The dedication of churches to a saint seems to be a secondary pastime. i.e. St. Mary as there was a wall painting of the Madonna found - or it could be why a madonna was painted there.
The spouse of Thomas seems to be inconsistant - Wikitree says Joane de Somery, daughter of Sir Roger de Somery, Baron Dudley - Wikipedia say that Joan the daughter of Sir Roger de Somery married John le Strange.
Thomas' son John de Botetourt, 2nd Lord married a member of the Zouche family.
This marriage and the fact that there were two Sir John de Botetourts give rise to confusion.
Wikitree: He married Joane de Somery, daughter of Sir Roger de Somery, Baron Dudley and Agnes, before 1318.[2]
I will have to look up the footnotes on the Wikitree page.
John Lloyd Marlow seems to have picked up on the Sir Baldwin Freville - things are getting even more confused!
This makes my page Belchamp Walter - The Botetourt Years even more tortuous.
Further research revealed a castle in Birmingham the Thomas and Joan were resident in around the late 14th or early 15th century. The castle was passed on to their son John but he was too young to manage the estate was run by his cousin Joyce and her husband Sir Hugh Burnell.
Joyce and Hugh Burnell's marriage and Hugh's history can be found on the WikiTree page.
Thomas de Botetourt d. 1322 (abt. 1292 - abt. 1322)
Thomas de Botetourt was the first son of Sir John de Botetourt (1st Lord Botetourt)
There was chantry chapel to the Botetourt family in the church of St. Mary Belchamp Walter. All that remains is the ornate entry arch which is very much defaced. The dedication of the chantry is definitely to the Botetourts, but who was buried and commemorated there we are not sure.
Again, the Wikitree profile does contain some collabrating information but also introduces some that does not make sense (at the moment). For example: there is no mention of Framlingham castle on the Framlingham related websites, the village, the castle and any other sites that I can find.
The Wikitree profile:
Father: - Sir John Botetourt, 1st Lord Botetourt, Admiral of the North Fleet, Constable of St. Briavels Castle, Governor of Framlingham Castle b. c 1260, d. 25 Nov 1324
Mother: - Maud FitzThomas b. c 1270, d. c 27 Nov 1328
Sir Thomas Botetourt was born circa 1292 at of Upton, Norfolk, England; Age 30 in 1322.[1]
He married Joane de Somery, daughter of Sir Roger de Somery, Baron Dudley and Agnes, before 1318.[2]
They had 1 son (Sir John, 2nd Lord Botetourt) & 1 daughter (Maud, wife of Sir Reynold, 4th Lord Grey of Wilton).[3][4]
Sir Thomas Botetourt died circa 28 July 1322.[5]
Joane de Somery
Joane or Joan was the recorded wife of Thomas.
Joan's heritage needs to be researched further.
Top
Following the Wikitree reference for Thomas:
The royal descents of 600 immigrants to the American colonies or the United States - Roberts, Gary Boyd
Sir John, 2nd Lord Botetourt
The Botetourt family had substancial wealth and their descendants were also beneficiaries of this in
addition to that of marriges to other wealthy families.
The wealth of the Botetourt family was passed down through John (2nd Lord) and the "substantial Botetourt inheritance,"
was mentioned in the account of Sir Robert Moton of Peckleton
and Hugh, Lord Burnell.
Peckleton is in Leicestershire and the name Bartholomew Brokesby is associated with this inheritance.
Residence at Mary Hall, Belchamp Walter
Although I have not seen this confirmed elsewhere, Thomas Wright records that he was the owner of Mary Hall, Belchamp Walter.
According to Thomas Wright, Mary Hall was purchased after 1276 from John Manduit who supposedly owned the manor
from 1270 to 1276.
It is my suspicion that Thomas Botetourt as a resident of the vicinity of Belchamp Walter church is in fact
the father of Sir John de Botetourt who the memorial in the church was erected in memorial. The information
that was included in the description of the chantry chapel that was written for the church in 1965 (Philip Raymond) was incorrect. i.e. the chantry was not built to honour John Botetourt 1st Lord Botetourt. In fact I am pretty sure it wasn't the 2nd lord Botetourt either.
Thomas Botetourt was married to Joan de Somery and apparently lived in Weoley Castle, near Birmingham.
Weoley Castle
Somery to Botetourt
When John Somery died he left no heir to his estates so they were divided between his two sisters, Margaret and Joan. Margaret was married to John de Sutton and stayed at Dudley Castle. Joan was married to Thomas de Botetourt and went to live at Weoley Castle. The close links between Dudley and Weoley thus came to an end in 1322.
The Botetourts were Lords of Aston, Bordesley and Heyborn in the County of Warwick.
Joan and John may have been responsible for improving Weoley Castle by building a more permanent kitchen and a stone Great Hall. They may have had stained glass in the chapel windows and and patterned floor tiles. For added security they may also have added the gateway, with inner and outer towers, and the drawbridge over the moat. About this time a Lady Chapel was added to the parish church of St. Lawrence in Northfield.
In 1339, on Joan's death her son John took over. He was very young at the time but eventually became knighted by King Edward III. When he died in 1384 his cousin Joyce was his nearest heir and she and her husband Sir Hugh Burnell became the landlords.
The Botetourt inheritance continues.............. The Peshall family
Botetourt to Burnell to Berkeley
Sir Hugh Burnell Knight was Govemor of Bridgnorth Castle and was summoned to Parliament from time to time in his role as Baron of Weoley Castle.
Sir Hugh and Joyce made several changes to Weoley Castle. They improved the Great Hall and the kitchen and built the nearby octagonal tower. They may have built the large guest house. Joyce died childless on New Years Day 1407 but Hugh lived on for nine more years.
There were five people who laid a claim to the estate at this time. Three of them were Botetourts; Maud, Agnes and Catherine. Joyce Peshall and Joyce Wykes were cousins. Maud and Agnes were nuns and were not interested. The estate was shared by the two Joyces and Catherine.
The Joyces sold their share to a Lady Beauchamp but two years later a court decided that the estate should belong to Catherine. She had married Sir Maurice Berkeley and was now lady Berkeley.
Now Weoley Castle was under the ownership of the sixth feudal family. Sir Thomas Berkeley took over in 1464 when both his parents died. He fought at the Battle of Bosworth Field for King Richard III. But Henry Tudor won the battle and took his lands off him. They changed hands a few times and eventually the estates of Weoley and Northfield were sold to Richard Jervoise, a rich merchant from london.
