Aline was the eldest daughter of Hugh
Despenser the elder and Isabella Beauchamp. Her actual date of birth is not
known, nor is whether she was born before or after Hugh Despenser the younger,
the oldest son. She was, however, the first to be married, and while that is
not a guarantee of precedence, it does make it more likely that Aline was Hugh
and Isabella's first child. Kathryn Warner in her post about Hugh Despenser's
siblings here comes to much the same conclusion. Hugh and Isabella probably
married in early 1286, which gives a possible year of birth being 1287, with
Hugh jnr. being born in 1288/89.
By the time she was about ten, her father
had already started to try and obtain a good marriage for her. There is a mention in the Patent Rolls dated
January 1st 1296 of the ratification of a transfer of the marriage of the heirs
of Philip Burnell to Hugh Despenser senior [1]. Philip Burnell was the nephew
and heir to the powerful Robert Burnell, the former Bishop of Bath and Wells
and Chancellor of England. When Robert died in 1292, Philip inherited a vast
estate, including around 82 manors. Unfortunately Philip didn't live much
longer to enjoy them, dying in 1294 in serious debt, aged 29. Edward's mother
was Maud Fitzalan, sister to Richard Fitzalan the earl of Arundel. His sister
Maud, or Matilda, was named after her.
Philip Burnell's death left Edward Burnell
a ward, primarily of the king, as he was far too young to inherit his father's
estates. It appears that Edward I then gifted the wardship (and marriage) to
the earl of Pembroke, who in turn, as noted above, appeared to have transferred it to Hugh the
elder, presumably for a fee. That should have been the last of it but in May 1302
comes another (puzzling) officially recorded grant:
Letters patent of Anthony, bishop of Durham, being a grant by him to Sir Hugh le Despenser, for 1000 marks, of the marriage of Edward, son and heir of Sir Philip Burnel, for the purpose of marrying him to Alina, Sir Hugh's eldest daughter. [2]
So it must be assumed that something went
wrong with the previous grant, that the wardship somehow became the property of
Anthony Bek, and Hugh the elder spent a frustrating six years trying to get his
hands on the prize he so wanted for his daughter. And seeing as Hugh senior had
finally got what he wanted, it must also be assumed that the marriage took
place soon after this date.
Edward finally came of age in 1307, doing
homage to Edward for his lands on December 6th 1307 [3]. In December 1311 he
was summoned to parliament for the first time and became known as Lord Burnell.
He seems to have been active in the wars against Scotland and was therefore
most likely at Bannockburn. However, the following year tragedy struck the
Burnell line again when he died, like his father, aged 29. Even worse, the couple
was childless.
Edward Burnell's sister, Matilda, now
became his sole heir. She had married John, Lord Lovel of Titchmarsh at some
point before 1312, but he was killed at Bannockburn in 1314. This meant that
when her brother died, she suddenly became a very attractive marriage partner -
and she didn't stay on the shelf for long. She had married again by 4th
December 1315 and her new husband was Sir John de Haudlo, a very loyal retainer
of, you've guessed it, Hugh Despenser the elder! For more about this
'arrangement', and also the subsequent remarriage of her mother, read Kathryn
Warner's article about them here.
But back to Aline. Although most of her
late husband's wealth now went to his sister and her husband, Aline still
retained her dower manors - those she'd held jointly with Edward. She was still
reasonably wealthy and could have made another profitable marriage but it seems
that she never married again. The only plausible reason for this is that she
did not wish to and so probably took a vow of chastity - the only way an
unmarried woman could hold on to her land in those days.
In 1321, her father granted her the manor
of Martleye (Martley) in Worcestershire and she took possession without licence from the
king. Although she was called to account for it, she was never fined and was
actually pardoned (hardly surprising considering it was one of Edward's most
trusted friends and counsellors who had given it to her!) [4]. Martleye was one
of her manors attacked by Malcolm Musard probably sometime between May 1321
and December 1323. Musard had once been a friend to Despenser senior, and was
the previous owner of Martleye. He had wavered in his allegiance during 1318 by
siding with the earl of Lancaster, but by 1321 seemed to be firmly back in the
royal stable again. He was even appointed keeper of Hugh the younger's castle
of Hanley in 1321 and sent to arrest rebels in 1322. However, by 1323, it
appears that Edward suspected him of being on the wrong side again and he was
arrested in December of that year. Musard was imprisoned in the Tower of London
for a couple of years.
By
August 1326, when things were starting to go badly for Edward, Musard
was pardoned for:
His adherence to the rebels and of the outlawry in the county of Worcester published against him while he was in prison on that account, for non-appearance before the king to answer touching a plea of trespass of Alina Burnel, on condition that he surrender forthwith to gaol, and stand his trial if the said Alina will proceed against him; with restitution to him of his lands taken into the king's hands on account of such adherence. [5]
The beginning of the year of 1326 saw Aline
appointed as the constable of Conway Castle in Wales [6]. This was an
incredible honour to be bestowed upon a woman: the only other woman to be so
awarded was Isabella de Vesci with the keeping of Bamburgh Castle in 1304. No
doubt her brother and father had some influence upon Edward's decision, but why
it was thought of as a good idea in the first place is a mystery. Sadly for
Aline, it did not last long. With the invasion of Isabella and Mortimer and the
need for Edward and Hugh to flee London, she was replaced as constable by her
steward, William de Ercalewe (another man very loyal to the Despensers and to
Edward II).
The death of her brother and father and the
deposition of Edward must have made Aline fearful for her own future. But
remarkably she was left untouched by the new Isabella/Mortimer regime, as was
Ercalewe and de Haudlo. Maybe as a sign of her gratefulness, or maybe as a way
of escaping the pressure cooker that the country was becoming under the new
rule, she decided to go on pilgrimage to Santiago - the place her father had
gone in 1319. Three grants of protection were issued in November 1329, April
1330 and finally in February 1331. Hopefully, after the false starts, she
managed to make it to Spain and pay her respects.
She seems to have had a peaceful life
during the reign of Edward III. In 1338 she was granted alienation in mortmain for some pieces of land to give to two chaplains who were to celebrate a daily service in the chapel of St
Giles at Lolleseye (Lulsey) in Worcestershire. Prayers were to be said for the
souls of her late husband, her brother, as well as her nephew (Hugh the even
younger), the faithful William de Ercalewe and Walter de Lench, a neighbouring
landowner [7]. Interestingly her father was not included amongst this list of
men who she had great fondness and love for, nor were any other members of her
family.
According to the Fine Rolls and an IPM,
Aline died on 16th May 1363, well into her seventies [8]. With no heirs, her
dower manors reverted back to the heir of her sister-in-law: Nicholas Burnell.
[1] Calendar of the Patent Rolls 1292-1301,
p.179
[2] A Descriptive Catalogue of Ancient
Deeds, Volume 4, No. A.6278
[3] Calendar of the Close Rolls 1307-1313,
p.11
[4] Calendar of the Patent Rolls 1321-1324,
p.30
[5] Calendar of the Patent Rolls 1324-1327,
p.304
[6] Calendar of the Patent Rolls 1324-27,
p.215
[7] Calendar of the Patent Rolls 1334-1338,
p.50
[8]
Calendar of the Fine Rolls 1356-1368, p.277, and Chan. Inq. p. m. 37 Edw. III
(1st nos), 14 (C 135/177/12)
