Biography of John Dunkeld 9th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl Chester 1207-1237

Paternal Family Tree: Dunkeld

Maternal Family Tree: Mathilde Unknown Countess Évreux 1120-1169

In 1184 Simon Senlis 7th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl of Northampton 1138 1184 7th Earl of Northampton (age 46) died. His half first cousin [his father] David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon (age 32) succeeded 8th Earl Huntingdon.

Before 1194 [his father] David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon (age 42) and [his mother] Matilda Gernon Countess Huntingdon (age 22) were married. She by marriage Countess Huntingdon. She the daughter of Hugh de Kevelioc Gernon 5th Earl Chester and Bertrade Montfort Countess Chester. He the son of Henry Dunkeld 3rd Earl Huntingdon 1st Earl of Northumbria and Ada Warenne Countess Huntingdon and Northumbria. She a great x 2 granddaughter of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England.

In 1207 John Dunkeld 9th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl Chester was born to David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon (age 55) and Matilda Gernon Countess Huntingdon (age 36). He a great x 3 grandson of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England.

Around 1215 Reginald de Braose 9th Baron Abergavenny and [his future sister-in-law] Gwladus verch Llewelyn "Dark Eyed" Aberffraw (age 20) were married. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.

In 1219 John "Tadody aka Fatherless" Braose (age 22) and [his future sister-in-law] Margred verch Llewellyn Aberffraw Baroness Clifford were married. They were half fourth cousins. He a great x 3 grandson of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.

On 17 Jun 1219 [his father] David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon (age 67) died. His son John Dunkeld 9th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl Chester (age 12) succeeded 9th Earl Huntingdon. [his future wife] Elen ferch Llewellyn Aberffraw Countess Huntingdon and Mar (age 1) by marriage Countess Huntingdon.

Before 1220 Walter Clifford 3rd Baron Clifford and [his future sister-in-law] Margred verch Llewellyn Aberffraw Baroness Clifford were married. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.

Around 1222 John Dunkeld 9th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl Chester (age 15) and Elen ferch Llewellyn Aberffraw Countess Huntingdon and Mar (age 4) were married. He the son of David Dunkeld 8th Earl Huntingdon and Matilda Gernon Countess Huntingdon (age 51). They were second cousin twice removed. He a great x 3 grandson of King Henry I "Beauclerc" England. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.

Around 1230 Ralph Mortimer (age 39) and [his sister-in-law] Gwladus verch Llewelyn "Dark Eyed" Aberffraw (age 35) were married. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.

On 26 Oct 1232 [his uncle] Ranulf de Blondeville Gernon 6th Earl Chester 1st Earl Lincoln (age 62) died at Wallingford Castle [Map]. His nephew John Dunkeld 9th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl Chester (age 25) succeeded 7th Earl Chester.

Flowers of History 1233. How the bishop of Winchester bribed the confederates of the earl marshal.

Peter bishop of Winchester, who endeavoured by all the means in his power to weaken the cause of the earl marshal and his confederates, bribed the earls of Chester (age 25) and Lincoln (age 40) by the gift of a thousand marks to abandon the marshal and the cause of justice, and to come over to the king's party; for Richard, the king's brother (age 23), who at first adhered to the cause of the marshal, had some time before returned to the king's side. When the marshal discovered this, he entered into a confederacy with Llewellyn the prince of North Wales, and some other chiefs of that province, and they mutually made oath that neither of them would make peace with king Henry without the consent of the other. On the day following the assumption of Saint Mary, a great many soldiers arrived at Dover from the continent and went to the king at Gloucester, on which he led his army forward to the city of Hereford, attended by a host of these and many others.

In 1233 [his mother] Matilda Gernon Countess Huntingdon (age 62) died.

Flowers of History 1233. How the marshal was warned of treachery against him.

The earls and barons in grand knightly array proceeded to London on the 1st of August to the appointed conference, and amongst the rest was Richard earl marshal (age 42), who took up his abode with his sister (age 32), the wife of Richard the king's brother (age 24) ; she then asked him the reason of his journey, to which he replied, that he had come to attend the conference. She then said to him, "Know, my dear brother, that your enemies are plotting to take you prisoner, and they will give you up to the king and the bishop of Winchester, in order that they may serve you the same as they did the earl of Kent (age 63)." The marshal would hardly believe these words of his sister's, until she showed by evident proofs the manner of his capture, and by whom he would be taken. He then began to believe her, and when night came on he took the road, and did not draw rein till he arrived in Wales. There came to the conference the earls of Chester (age 26) and Lincoln (age 41), the earl of Ferrers, and earl Richard the king's brother (age 24), with some other earls and several barons, but nothing was done there on account of the absence of the earl marshal and Gilbert Bassett (age 45), and some other nobles who did not make their appearance ; on which the king, by the advice of Peter bishop of Winchester, and Stephen Seagrave, sent letters to all the nobles of the kingdom who owed him knight's service, inviting them to come, provided with horses and arms, to Gloucester, on Sunday before the Assumption of the blessed virgin Mary. Richard Marshal and some others however, who were confederated, refused to come at the time appointed, and the king, treating them as traitors, burnt their villages, destroyed their parks and warrens, and besieged their castles. The nobles who were confederated with one another, it was said, were the earl marshal, Gilbert Bassett (age 45) and his brothers, all distinguished soldiers, Richard Siward, a man trained to arms from his youth, Walter de Clifford, a chosen knight, and many others who joined their cause ; all of these the king, without any trial in his court by their peers, ordered to be declared banished and proscribed men, and gave their lands to his Poictevin servants, ordering their persons to be seized wherever they were found in the kingdom.

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Wedding of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence

Chronica Majora. 19 Jan 1236. There were assembled at the king's (age 28) nuptial festivities such a host of nobles of both sexes, such numbers of religious men, such crowds of the populace, and such a variety of actors, that London, with its capacious bosom, could scarcely contain them. The whole city was ornamented with flags and banners, chaplets and hangings, candles and lamps, and with wonderful devices and extraordinary representations, and all the roads were cleansed from mud and dirt, sticks, and everything offensive. The citizens, too, went out to meet the king (age 28) and queen (age 13), dressed out in their ornaments, and vied with each other in trying the speed of their horses. On the same day, when they left the city for Westminster, to perform the duties of butler to the king (which office belonged to them by right of old, at the coronation), they proceeded thither dressed in silk garments, with mantles worked in gold, and with costly changes of raiment, mounted on valuable horses, glittering with new bits and saddles, and riding in troops arranged in order. They carried with them three hundred and sixty gold and silver cups, preceded by the king's trumpeters and with horns sounding, so that such a wonderful novelty struck all who beheld it with astonishment. The archbishop of Canterbury (age 61), by the right especially belonging to him, performed the duty of crowning, with the usual solemnities, the bishop of London assisting him as a dean, the other bishops taking their stations according to their rank. In the same way all the abbats, at the head of whom, as was his right, was the abbat of St. Alban's (for as the Protomartyr of England, B. Alban, was the chief of all the martyrs of England, so also was his abbat the chief of all the abbats in rank and dignity), as the authentic privileges of that church set forth. The nobles, too, performed the duties, which, by ancient right and custom, pertained to them at the coronations of kings. In like manner some of the inhabitants of certain cities discharged certain duties which belonged to them by right of their ancestors. The earl of Chester (age 29) carried the sword of St. Edward, which was called "Curtein", before the king, as a sign that he was earl of the palace, and had by right the power of restraining the king if he should commit an error. The earl was attended by the constable of Chester (age 44), and kept the people away with a wand when they pressed forward in a disorderly way. The grand marshal of England, the earl of Pembroke (age 39), carried a wand before the king and cleared the way before him both, in the church and in the banquet-hall, and arranged the banquet and the guests at table. The Wardens of the Cinque Ports carried the pall over the king, supported by four spears, but the claim to this duty was not altogether undisputed. The earl of Leicester (age 28) supplied the king with water in basins to wash before his meal; the Earl Warrenne performed the duty of king's Cupbearer, supplying the place of the earl of Arundel, because the latter was a youth and not as yet made a belted knight. Master Michael Belet was butler ex officio; the earl of Hereford (age 32) performed the duties of marshal of the king's household, and William Beauchamp (age 51) held the station of almoner. The justiciary of the forests arranged the drinking cups on the table at the king's right hand, although he met with some opposition, which however fell to the ground. The citizens of London passed the wine about in all directions, in costly cups, and those of Winchester superintended the cooking of the feast; the rest, according to the ancient statutes, filled their separate stations, or made their claims to do so. And in order that the nuptial festivities might not be clouded by any disputes, saving the right of any one, many things were put up with for the time which they left for decision at a more favourable opportunity. The office of chancellor of England, and all the offices connected with the king, are ordained and assized in the Exchequer. Therefore the chancellor, the chamberlain, the marshal, and the constable, by right of their office, took their seats there, as also did the barons, according to the date of their creation, in the city of London, whereby they each knew his own place. The ceremony was splendid, with the gay dresses of the clergy and knights who were present. The abbat of Westminster sprinkled the holy water, and the treasurer, acting the part of sub-dean, carried the Paten. Why should I describe all those persons who reverently ministered in the church to God as was their duty? Why describe the abundance of meats and dishes on the table & the quantity of venison, the variety of fish, the joyous sounds of the glee-men, and the gaiety of the waiters? Whatever the world could afford to create pleasure and magnificence was there brought together from every quarter.

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On 06 Jun 1237 John Dunkeld 9th Earl Huntingdon 7th Earl Chester (age 30) died. Matthew Paris suggests he was poisoned by his wife [his wife] Elen ferch Llewellyn Aberffraw Countess Huntingdon and Mar (age 19). Earl Huntingdon extinct. Earl Chester merged with the Crown .

Chronica Majora. Before 24 Jun 1237. In the same year, the emperor Frederick (age 42), by special messengers and imperial letters, summoned all the great Christian princes of the world to assemble on the day of St. John the Baptist's nativity, at Vaucouleurs, which is on the confines, or near the confines, of the empire and the French kingdom, there to discuss some difficult matters concerning the empire as well as the kingdom. The king of France, as if entertaining suspicion of this conference, proceeded at the time fixed to the place appointed, attended by a large army, which he had assembled for the purpose, and thus set dreadful and pernicious example to others, inasmuch as he went to discuss matters of peace in the same way as he would to attack his enemies. The king of England (age 29) made reasonable excuses for not coming in person; but sent a peaceful embassy, consisting of some of the chief men of the kingdom; namely, Richard earl of Cornwall (age 28), his brother, with some other nobles, fit to manage a conference, under the guidance of the venerable archbishop of York (age 57) and the bishop of Ely, and other trustworthy persons selected for the purpose. The bishop of Winchester, although selected before all others, absolutely refused to go, and, not without reason, gave the following as the cause for excusing himself: "My lord king," said he "you lately laid a heavy complaint against me before the emperor, telling him that I, with some other nobles, disturbed your kingdom: whether you did this with justice, or unjustly, God knows; but I trust that I have saved my conscience in every respect. But if your words were now placed with confidence in my mouth and in your letters, and should declare that I was a familar and faithful friend of yours; all this would appear as contrary, and he would accuse both you and me of instability; and this would blacken your fame in a great degree. Therefore, because it would be manifestly to your dishonour, I will not go on any account." And in the opinion of many, this reply gave sufficient excuse for him. When all preparations had been made, and they were all ready to set sail on this journey, they were met by letters from the emperor, to say that he could not go to the conference then, as he had purposed; but that what he could not do then, should, by God's favour, be carried into effect on the Nativity of St. John the Baptist in the following year; and thus each and all of them returned without effecting anything. In this year, on the day of the Supper, the bishop of Hereford consecrated the holy unction in the church of St. Albans [Map]. About this time, too, John Scott (deceased), earl of Chester, closed his life about Whitsuntide, having been poisoned by the agency of his [his former wife] wife (age 19), the daughter of [his former father-in-law] Llewellyn (age 65). The life of the bishop of Lincoln (age 69), too, was also attempted by the same means, and he was with difficulty recalled from the gates of death. In the same year, in the week before Whitsuntide, there fell storms of hail which exceeded the size of apples, killing the sheep; and they were followed by continued rain.

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In 1253 [his former wife] Elen ferch Llewellyn Aberffraw Countess Huntingdon and Mar (age 35) died.

Before Aug 1257 Robert Quincy and [his former wife] Elen ferch Llewellyn Aberffraw Countess Huntingdon and Mar were married. He the son of Saer Quincy 1st Earl Winchester and Margaret Beaumont Countess Winchester. They were half third cousin once removed. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.

Gruffydd ap Llewellyn Aberffraw and Senana ferch Caradog were married. They were second cousin once removed. He a grandson of King John "Lackland" of England.

Donald Mar 7th Earl Mar and Elen ferch Llewellyn Aberffraw Countess Huntingdon and Mar were married. She by marriage Countess Mar. He the son of Donald Mar 6th Earl Mar. She a granddaughter of King John "Lackland" of England.