The De Lacy Constables of Chester and Earls of Lincoln: the transformation of an honour (1190-1311)

This thesis examines the lives, careers and fortunes of the de Lacy constables of Chester and earls of Lincoln, Roger, John, Edmund and Henry de Lacy, between 1190 and 1311, and sheds light on a family who have been relatively neglected within existing scholarship. This thesis charts the family’s rise from local baronial magnates to comital status with two earldoms, and their position as one of the richest tenants-in-chief of the crown.

This study establishes how the family, as a whole, was able to take advantage of the opportunities arising over four generations, one hundred and twenty one years and the reigns of five kings, to develop and maintain its lordship. The thesis explores the mechanisms they used and were able to take advantage of, during such a vibrant period of history, which included tumultuous civil wars and dynamic political change. It examines in detail the political careers of each of the de Lacy constables in turn and explores their relationships with royal government and the affect of Magna Carta and Plantagenet rule on this family. It then explores the development of the de Lacy family’s honorial estates through each generation and the strategies they employed to expand their dominions. It also discusses the family’s patronage and the evolution of their various associations with religious communities and how this compared to contemporary trends. The examination of the de Lacy affinities, in particular, is the first to explore their composition and development across four generations of this family, identifying the men who were in their service and the transition from a baronial to comital following. This study of the de Lacy constables therefore sheds new light on the development of baronial families and the transformation of their honours during this period of history.