Sir Nicholas de Loveyne

Sir Nicholas de Loveyne (died 24 September 1375) was a major English property owner and courtier, who held a number of senior positions in the service of King Edward III.

Background

The parentage of Sir Nicholas de Loveyne has not been firmly established. There is evidence that suggests he may have been a son of Sir Thomas de Loveyne, whose father Sir Matthew de Loveyne held land in Little Easton, Essex in 1300.^[1]

He married twice, both of his wives having the Christian name Margaret. This has been one reason for confusion about his marriages and the associated relatives, a subject that is comprehensively discussed with extensive reference to original sources in two articles by Walter Lee Sheppard Jr.^[2]

First Marriage

Sir Nicholas’ first wife was Margaret, daughter of John de Bereford, a citizen of London, and widow of Sir John de Pulteney, who died on 8 June 1349.^[3] Margaret’s marriage to Nicholas evidently took place between that date and 1 September 1350.^[4] On 12 October of the same year Nicholas obtained custody of the lands and marriage of William de Pulteney, the son and heir of Margaret’s first husband.^[5] William de Pulteney died on 20 January 1366/7 and it appears from the evidence given at an inquisition post mortem held on 2 July 1367 that his mother was still alive on the latter day.^[6]

There is no definite evidence of any children from Nicholas’ first marriage. However, it is possible that one “Guy de Loveyne” who on 22 April 1365 was included in an indenture that entailed much of the de Pulteney estates and who does not appear to be recorded subsequently may have been a child of that marriage who presumably died young.^[7]

Second Marriage and family

Nicholas married Margaret de Vere, the widow of Henry de Beaumont, 3rd Baron Beaumont, who had died on 25 July 1369.^[8] Margaret was a daughter of John de Vere, 7th Earl of Oxford and his wife Maud de Badlesmere. The marriage must have taken place without royal consent, as on 9 May 1375 a pardon was granted to the couple for Margaret having married without the King’s licence.^[9]

Nicholas and Margaret’s son Nicholas was described as aged “5 years and more” in 1375,^[10] but as late as 26 October 1369 Margaret had not yet remarried,^[11] indicating that the marriage of Nicholas and Margaret took place at the end of 1369 or early in 1370.

Nicholas and Margaret had two children:

• Nicholas de Loveyne (born c.1370)
• Margaret de Loveyne (c.1372-1408)

Career

On 1 June 1349, Nicholas de Loyeyne was described as a King’s yeoman when he was granted custody of the lands of Margaret, daughter of William de Hardeshull along with control of her marriage.^[12]

On 8 June 1361, Edward III granted him an annuity of £50 “for long service”.^[13]

Between July 1361 and August 1363, Sir Nicholas de Loveyne, “knight of the King’s chamber”, was serving as ambassador to the Holy See of the King, Queen and Prince of Wales. This was during that period when the popes resided at Avignon, those in office whilst Sir Nicholas was there being Innocent VI and Urban V. It appears from the surviving records that much of Nicholas’ work involved promoting the King’s case for the appointment of particular individuals to ecclesiastical positions in cases where papal approval was required.^[14]

On 26 June 1364, Nicholas was appointed steward of the lordships of Ponthieu and Montreil, for which he was paid 200 marks a year.^[15]

On 19 July 1364, the King ratified an appointment for life that had been made by Queen Philippa of Nicholas de Lovaigne as constable and porter of Pevensey Castle.^[16]

On 17 November 1367, Nicholas was granted a licence to cross overseas from the port of Dover to the King’s lordship of Ponthieu, where he was governor, with his own money and harness as well as ten horses and ten men.^[17]

Property

Many of Nicholas’ property holdings are included in the list that follows. However, it may not be complete and not all of the properties were necessarily held at the same time.^[18][19][20] The manors of Aldebury, Coulyngle, Hedgecourt and Nutfield do not appear in any of the three immediately preceding sources but the references to them appear after the relevant entries below.

• In Cambridgeshire: The manors of Ditton Camoys at Woodditton,^[21]Swaffham Prior and Cheveley.
• In Essex: The advowson of Eselyng (the stated county may be a mistake for Eastling, Kent).
• In Hertfordshire: The manor of Shenley.
• In Kent: The manors of Penshurst, Yenesfield, Northpark and Ospringe and Southall in Woolwich.^[22] Property at Tonbridge, Leigh, Bidborough, Speldhurst and Chiddingstone.
• In Leicestershire: The manors of Misterton and Pulteney.
• In the City of London: The inn called Coldharbour, the Hay Wharf and other property in the parish of All-Hallows-the-Great.
• In Middlesex: The manor of Poplar. Property at Stepney, East Ham, Stratford, Edmonton, Hackney, Bromley-by-Bow and Old Ford.
• In Northamptonshire: Property at Welford.
• In Oxfordshire: The manors of Barton St John and Stanton St John.
• In Suffolk: The manor of Withersfield with appurtenances at Horset and Haverhill.
• In Surrey: The manors of Aldebury in the parish of Merstham^[23] and Nutfield.^[24]
• In Sussex: The manor of Littleworth.
• In Surrey & Sussex: The manors of Hedgecourt and Coulyngle,^[25] extensive details of which appear on the website of Felbridge and District History Group.^[26]
• In Warwickshire: Property at Napton and Shotteswell.

Death

Sir Nicholas died on 24 September 1375.^[27] His will was made at Poplar four days earlier and directed that he be buried in the parish church of Penshurst or in the Abbey of St Mary of Graces. The will was proved on 25 November 1375.^[28]

References