Roger de Northwood

Personal and Family Information

Roger was born about 1215 in Kent, England, the son of Stephen de Northwood / de Baskerville but his mother is unknown.

He died on 9 NOV 1285. The place is not known.

He had two marriages/partners. His first wife was Bona “Bonafilia” de Waltham, who he married in BEF 1248. The place has not been found. Their only known child was John (1254-1319).

His second wife was Juliana. They were married, but the date and place have not been found. They had no known children.

Pedigree Chart (3 generations)

Events

Notes

Note 1

!Stylename: de Northwood, Sir Roger, I., Constable of Dover Castle, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports [~1215-1286]

!Notes: In our research into the origin of the Hawkins line, we ran into Sir Roger de Northwode [c. 1215–1286] who was Constable of Dover Castle until

about 1259, and held the office of Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports. Looking a bit farther, his father was Sir Stephen de Northwode, Knight,

who was seized of 310 acres of land, 500 acres of marsh in the Isle of Shepeye, in the county of Kent. As Sir Roger was a likely close

relative of John and William, we can look back to how he might fit in the family. First, I can find no earlier Northwoods than Sybil's line and

Stephen. Our best estimate would place Stephen as born about 1190. This is the very year that Sybil's husband Ralph de Baskerville was murdered

and Sybil was about 41. If she was pregnant at that time, her child might not have been listed in any will or recognized in legal documents.

As the oldest daughter, he would likely have spent time with Ysolda while he was growing up. Gentry or noble families of the time tended to

dedicate one younger son to the king's military. Thus, if Stephen was the youngest son, he may have entered the king’s service, earned

knighthood, and received his own properties, which would explain his absence from the Northwood deeds. So, it is very likely that when John de

Northwood and William de Northwood made their way to Kent and visited Sir Roger, they were actually visiting a first cousin.

!Source: Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Northwood, Roger de https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography,_1885-1900/Northwood,_Roger_de

NORTHWOOD or NORTHWODE, ROGER de , baron of the exchequer, was son of Stephen de Northwood, who is said to have been the son of one Jordan de Sheppey, and to have acquired a grant of the manor of Northwood Chasteners, Kent, whence the family derived its name . The account which describes him as son of a crusader called Roger is clearly a fiction based on the brass of a cross-legged knight in Minster Church [see under Northwood, John]. Roger first occurs in 1237 as witness to a deed in the exchequer, where he was no doubt employed , and in 1258 was executor for Reginald de Cobham. According to Hasted he was for a short time warden of the Cinque ports, apparently in 1257. In 1259 he was a justice in Kent . He was a baron of the exchequer previously to 20 Nov. 1274, and appears in this capacity in most years till the time of his death. He also appears as acting on various commissions of a judicial nature: thus on 11 Nov. 1280 he was appointed to inquire into the repair of Rochester bridge, on 18 Feb. 1282 he was on a commission of oyer and terminer in Middlesex, on 1 May of this year he was on a commission to inquire as to amercements in Kent, and on other commissions on 20 Aug. 1284 and 20 May 1285 . In 1277 he was excused from service in Wales as being employed at the exchequer, and on 28 Oct. 1284 is mentioned as witnessing a writ in the exchequer . He died on Friday, 9 Nov. 1285 . He married, before 1248, Bona, daughter of Henry de Waltham; she is sometimes called Bona FitzBernard. His son John [q. v.] is separately noticed.

[Hasted's History of Kent; Madox's Hist. of the Exchequer, i. 726, ii. 20, 62, 112, 320–1; Dugdale's Baronage, ii. 70; Foss's Judges of England, iii. 136–7; Archæologia Cantiana, ii. 9–42; other authorities

Note: >>>> Stephen was seized of the land in Sheppey, so his father was not Jordan de Sheppey. Stephen had the name Northwode prior to any Kent land being called that. <<<<

!Source: Roger Northwode https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Northwode

Sir Roger de Northwode [c. 1230 – 9 November 1286] held the posts of Warden of the Cinque Ports and Baron of the Exchequer.[1]

He was a son of Sir Stephen de Northwode, Knight and his wife, Joan. Both parents were born before 1178. He may have been born earlier than 1230, possibly circa 1215. He married twice: first to Bona [probably de Waltham] and second to Juliana.

Some confusion exists over when he received his knighthood, as it is cited that in September 1265, when he served as steward of the Archbishop of Canterbury, he was also "a knight commissioned in Kent to take the lands of the rebels into the king's hands".

It has also been stated that [again] in September, but of 1275, he received his knighthood. Therefore, he was knighted sometime between September 1265–75; this much is certain, and he was thereafter commissioned on numerous public services. Specifically he was appointed Constable of Dover Castle and held this office until about the turn of 1259. He was also Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports after 1255 but before 1258 when he was replaced by Nicholas de Moels.

De Northwode 'took an interest in the old monastery of St. Sexburge for it had been long neglected. He made many repairs and donated to the monastery, "wherefore among the servants of God, he is to this day called the restorer of that house."'

References

Lee, Sidney, ed. [1895]. "Northwood, Roger de" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 41. London: Smith, Elder & Co.

General references

Griffin, Ralph [1928]. "Brasses in Barham Church". Archaeologia Cantiana. 40. Kent Archaeological Society: 1–24.

Note: He would not have to be dubbed to be counted a knight, although he likely was, as he would have inheritted the title from his father.

!Source: Kent Archealogical Society - Genealogical Notices of the Northwoods

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65df7835178a9d2b20f8d501/t/6752cc1d760be61157e07217/1733479458899/archaeologia_cantiana_002-02_genealogical_notices_of_the_northwoods.pdf

page 9

GENE.A.LOGIC.AL NOTICES OF THE NORTHWOODS.

[FROM THE SURRENDEN COLLECTION.]

A GENUINE Roll, devoted to the biographical and genea

logical recOl'ds of a distinguished family, and bearing

date as early as the fourteenth century, is of rare oc

cul'l'ence. We have the gratification of pi·esenting our

readers with the transcript of one, written between the

years 1385 and 1405, as is evidenced by the handwriting

and by its own statements. It seems to have been the

work of some one in the service of the family whose

history it relates-probably Thomas Brumpston, who is

mentioned at the close of this paper-and it can hardly

fail to be of great interest to all lovers of genealogical

research, especially as it contains most circumstantial de

tails of the descent of a baronial family of great wealth

and importance in the county, whose representatives at

this moment are among the coheirs to the baronies of

Thurnham, Grandison, Northwood, etc. etc. There are

little biographical sketches and touches of character

thrown in here and there, relating to more than one

knightly family in this county, which we cannot doubt

will be considered sufficient to warrant the insertion of

this Record. There is moreover one circumstance at

taching to this Roll, that adds greatly to its value. It

cites undeniable authority for most of its stat_ements,

many of them to this day of easy reference, being still

among the 1·ecords of the different Courts. Other facts

are quoted from the lips of then living \vitnesses, and

10 GENEALOGICAL NOTICES

with very few exceptions the authenticity of its state

ments is unquestionably satisfactory.

The Roll itself, as stated above, is in the handwriting

of the latter part of the fom-teenth century; it is 7½ inches

wide, and consists of several membranes stitched to

gether. It was found in the Surrenden collection, in a

box containing the ancient muniments relating to the

:inanor of Thurnham. This manor being still the pro

perty of Sir Edward Dering, the _contents of this box

are actually legal evidence, being, as the language of

the Courts has it, in " right custody." These muniments

continue in almost unbroken series from the time of

Henry II. to the present day. They commence with the

original grant of the Church of Aldington, i -r.f in 'l'hurn

ham, by William Fitz-Helte to the Priory of Combwell,

temp. Hen. II. They then continue through the De

Thurnhams [one of whose cohehs2 seems to have brought

the estate into the family of Northwood], the North

woods, and the Wottons, [to whom the Northwoods

alienated] down to Catherine, Lady Stanhope, [the

daughter and coheiress of Thomas, Lord Wotton], who

in the middle of the seventeenth century alienated to

Godden; and onward thence to the present day.

In the earlier part of these muniments, the descent

of the baronial family of De Thurnham to its extinction

in coheirs is fully developed, and among them we have

their grants of the Church of Thurnham, etc. etc. etc.,

to the Priory of Combwell; but this portion must

be deferred to a future paper, the present one being

confined to the subject-matter of the Roll before us, viz.

the descent of the N orthwoods, or N orthwodes.

It begins with the following introduction :-

" Quia. ad sertam et rectam veritatis agnicionem quis, si quod

transactum. tempus fuerit a facto cujuscunque rei per humanalll

memoriam, que labilis est et inserta, nequaquam, aut raro,

* For the Notes to which the figures refer, seep. 29 at seq.

OF THE NORTHWOODS. 11

potest pervenire, huic est quod ea que veraciter in parte per

diversa recorda, et in parte per informacionem quorundam :fi.de

lium materiam subscriptam limpide cognoscentium, cum max

ima diligencia et sumptuosa investigacione approbatur ad per

petuam memoriam omnium hanc paginam inspicientium, ut

subsequitur, redigitur in scriptis ut magis ambiguitas si qua

de dicta subscripta materia imposterum evenerit proculdubio

amputa.retur et clarius ad serenandam cujuscumque conscienciam

interponentis de eadem sertitudinalius potuit apparere."

Then commences the chronicle of the Northwodes,

w1i.tten in Latin, which we render into English; and to

secure om·selves from error, we make the translation a

servilely literal one :-

"In the first place, Sir Stephen de Northwode, Knight, <<<< Note that Stephen was called de Northwode before he was granted any land, so he was not named after land in Kent.

was seized of 310 acres of land, 500 acres of marsh

in the · Isle of Shepeye, and four score and ten acres

of marsh with their pertinencies in Upcherche, and

of other manors, lands, and tenements in the county

of Kent. And he had a son, by name Sir Roger, who <<<<

succeeded by inheritance to those manors, lands, and

tenements, after the death of the said Sir Stephen his

father, as in fact appears by the letters patent of the

Lord Henry, late King· of England, son of King John,

the date whereof is 8th January, in the forty-first year

of his reign, by which the said late King granted, tb,at

those tenements in Shepeye and Upcherche [contained

in the said letters patent], which are now called North

wode Scepeye, which were formerly held of the said late

King, as of his manor of Myddelton,8 in Gavelkind,

should henceforth be held, by the said Sir Roger, of the

said late King and his heirs, by service of the twentieth

part of one knight's-fee, and by certain services also

annually to be rendered. Which Sir Roger manied

Bona Fitzbernard,4 aad on account of the great affec

tion which the same Sir Roger bore to the monastery

of St. Sixburge, in the same island,-considering that

the said monaste1-y, owing to defect of right government;

12 GENEALOGICAL NOTICES

had fallen to ruin,-he, with no sparing bounty, relieved

it from the greatest penury ; wherefore, among the ser

vants of God there, he is to this day called the restorer

of that house. Of which Sir Roger and Bona issued

Sir John de N orthwode. The said Roger died the 9th

day of November, in the year of our Lord 1286, and

the fifteenth 5 year of the reign of Edward, son of the

aforesaid King, and he and the said Bona are buried

before the altar of the parish church of Menstre, in

Shepeye. And the said Sir John succeeded him as son

and heir, and did homage and relief to the said Lord

Edward, late King of England, for his lands coming

to him by inheritance after the death of the said Sir

Roger, as appears among the Records6 of the Exchequer,

in Easter Term, the eighteenth year of the foresaid

Lord Edward. Which Sir John manied the Lady Joan

de Badlesmere, lady of, the manors of Horton near

Canterbury, and Beausfelde near Dover in the county

of Kent; she possessed also certain tenements in South

werke, in the county of Surrey, and rents in the city

of London. Of which Sir John and Joan issued Sir

John, the eldest' son, James, Thomas, Richard, Simon,

and Humphrey. The said James died without heir of

his body. Sir John, the eldest son,7 mauied Agnes,

one of the daughters of Sir . William de Grandisson

and Sibilia his wife, and, with the consent of the said

Sir John, his father, endowed the said Agnes with the

manor of Northwode Chasteners at the door of the

church.8….

!Source: Kent Archealogical Society - Genealogical Notices of the Northwoods. PEDIGREE DEDUCIBLE FROM THIS ROLL AND THE NOTES.

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65df7835178a9d2b20f8d501/t/6752cc1d760be61157e07217/1733479458899/archaeologia_cantiana_002-02_genealogical_notices_of_the_northwoods.pdf

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Sir Stephen de Northwode = ?

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Sir Roger de Northwode = Bona Fitzberwrd alias Bonafilia Je Wautham,

41 Hen. ID., 1257. heir to her brother, 50. Hen. Ill., 1265.

Ob. Nov. 9, 1285. See note 4, Appendix, p. 82.

13 Edw.I.