John le Strange, 1st Baron Strange of Knockyn

Coat of arms of John le Strange, Lord of Knockin, Gules, two lions passant Argent..

John le Strange, 1st Baron Strange of Knockyn (died 1309), Lord of Knockyn was an English noble. He fought in the wars in Wales, Gascony and Scotland. He was a signatory of the Baron's Letter to Pope Boniface VIII in 1301.

Biography

John was the eldest son of John le Strange and Joan de Somery, ^[1] and a grandson of Marcher Lord John Lestrange and Roger de Somery II, Baron of Dudley Castle.

His great-grandfather was the Earl William d'Aubigny of Arundel Castle, grandson of Queen Adeliza of Louvain, a direct descendant of Charlemagne through Herbert II, Count of Vermandois. ^{[2] [1] [3]}

Le Strange fought in the Edwardian conquest of Wales, the Gascon War, and the Wars of Scottish Independence, along his uncle, Commander Roger le Strange, Baron Strange. ^[4]

He was involved in the siege of Caerlaverock Castle along with Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, and the Siege of Stirling Castle in 1304 against Sir William Oliphant. ^[5]

He was a signatory of the Baron's Letter to Pope Boniface VIII in 1301. He is recorded having debts toward Italian bankers, Acius Jacobin of Florence and Pelegrin de Kyatrino of Lucca, as well to Nutus of Florence, King Edward I's merchant. ^{[6] [7]}

During the reign of Edward II of England, Le Strange is recorded having a manor in Warwickshire, held for knight's service to Guy de Beauchamp, 10th Earl of Warwick, a manor in Cambridge for the same reason to Robert Orford, Bishop of Ely, and other manors in Gloucester, Oxford and Salop. ^[8]

Marriages and issue

John married firstly Alianora, daughter of Ebulo de Montibus, ^[9] the Governor of Windsor Castle, Stirling Castle and Edinburgh Castle, ^[10] by his wife Joan de Bohun, they had the following issue:

• John le Strange
• Hamo le Strange
• Eubulo le Strange (died 1335), married Alice de Lacy, Countess of Lincoln, widow of Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, of the royal House of Lancaster, and was without issue.

He married secondly Maud, daughter of John de Walton, they had the following issue:

• John la Strange of Walton d' Eiville
• Elizabeth le Strange, who married Lord Gruffydd ap Madog of Rhythallt; they were the parents of the Welsh prince Gruffudd Fychan II. ^[11] Their grandson was the last Welsh prince of Wales, Owen Glendower. ^[11]

Citations

1. Cokayne, p.273.
2. Hilton, Lisa. Queens Consort: England's Medieval Queens from Eleanor of Aquitaine to Elizabeth of York. New York: Pegasus Books, 2010. p. 61, Line of Ida of Chiny
3. Bradbury, Jim (2007). The Capetians: Kings of France, 987–1328. Hambledon Continuum, p. 36
4. Nicholas, p.233.
5. Le Strange records; a chronicle of the early LeStranges of Norfolk and the March of Wales A.D. 1100-1310, London, New York, Longmans, Green, 1916, p. 210-211-215-243
6. Le Strange records; a chronicle of the early LeStranges of Norfolk and the March of Wales A.D. 1100-1310, London, New York, Longmans, Green, 1916, p. 190-191
7. The Calendars of the Patent and Pipe Rolls, Request to the Mayor and bailiffs of Whytsaund to permit Nutus de Florencia, 1276
8. J E E S Sharp, A E Stamp, 'Inquisitions Post Mortem, Edward II, File 16', in Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem: Volume 5, Edward II (London, 1908), British History Online , accessed 13 August 2025.
9. Geoffrey H. White, editor, STRANGE or LESTRANGE (of Knokyn), The Complete Peerage, volume 12, part 1. Skelmersdale to Towton (1953)
10. Michael Ray . 2017. A Vaudois servant of Henry III, Ebal II de Mont (Ebulo de Montibus).
11. LeStrange records; a chronicle of the early LeStranges of Norfolk and the March of Wales A.D. 1100-1310, London, New York, 1916, p. 254

References

• Cokayne, George Edward. (1896) "Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom". G. Bell & Son Vol. VII/1.
• Nicolas, Nicholas Harris, ed. (1828). The Siege of Caerlaverock in the XXVIII Edward I. A.D. MCCC; with the Arms of the Earls, Barons, and Knights, who were present on the occasion; with a Translation, a History of the Castle, and Memoirs of the Personages Commemorated by the Poet. London: J. B. Nichols and Son.