Sir Rowland Lenthall, Sr., of Hampton Court, Knight

The ancestor of this ancient and distinguished family, Sir Rowland Lenthall of Hampton Court in the county of Hereford, was high in favour with King Henry IV to whom he was master of the robes. He was one the lords marchers, and for some time ambassador to the Parisian court. Sir Rowland accompanied Henry V to France and having a command at the Battle of Agincourt made so many prisoners in celebrated conflict that he completed with the produce of their ransom the new buildings at Hampton Court. In that mansion preserved a picture engraved by Vertue and said to be an undoubted original Henry IV pendant from the neck is chain and medallion on which are the arms of the Fitz Alans Earls of Arundel. (1)

• lived at Bessels Leigh Manor, Berkshire, England
• lived at Maenan Hall, Caernarvonshire, Wales.
• held the office of Justice of the Peace (J.P.) for Oxfordshire.1
• held the office of Justice of the Peace (J.P.) for Berkshire.1
• Chamberlain of the Household to Queen Katherine of France
• Master of the Robes to Henry IV
• Sheriff of Herfordshire
• Constable of HaverfordWest

Family

• son of Roger Lenthall

Married

1. before 1415 to Margaret Fitz Alan de Arundel, daughter of Sir Richard Fitz Alan, Earl of Arundel, Earl of Surrey, Knight of the Garter & Elizabeth de Bohun
2. before 1430 to Lucy de Grey, daughter of Sir Richard de Grey, 1st Lord Grey (of Codnor) and Elizabeth Basset.1

Children of Rowland Lenthall and Margaret Fitz Alan

1. Edmund, Esq.
2. Henry, Esq.

Children of Rowland Lenthall and Lucy de Grey

1. Rowland Lenthall3 d. c 1488
2. John Lenthall3 d. 1498
3. Eleanor Lenthall3 d. b 1498
4. Elizabeth Lenthall+3
5. Katherine Lenthall+3 note: Vivians 'Visitations of the County of Devon', p 169, says that Catherine was the daughter of Rowland Lenthall by his wife Margaret Arundell, but both Burke's Peerage & Baronetage, 104th Edition, 1967, p 2908, and Cokayne's Complete Peerage say was Roland's daughter by his wife Lucy De Grey.

Notes

• from Brian Viner: 'Henry VI gave Sir Rowland a licence to crenellate ... The Independent, THURSDAY 04 JUNE 2009

"Surrey might have its Hampton Court of Henry VIII fame, but here in Herefordshire we have an even more venerable Hampton Court, of Henry VI fame. Actually, its history goes back even further than that, because Henry's grandfather Henry IV gave the estate to Sir Rowland Lenthall, who'd very sensibly married the king's cousin, and was subsequently knighted at the Battle of Agincourt. Sir Rowland had the house rebuilt in 1427 and seven years later Henry gave him a licence to crenellate, which in my humble opinion is a privilege overdue a revival. Whatever, Sir Rowland's crenellations are still there, indeed Hampton Court is almost Disneyesque, a perfect manifestation of an American's idea of what a small English castle ought to look like, which is no doubt why it ended up in the hands of the Van Kampen family of Chicago, Illinois. ..."

Sources

1. A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain and ... By John Burke Page 178.
2. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families. By Douglas Richardson, Kimball G. Everingham Page 338
3. http://www.gatehouse-gazetteer.info/LOC/14341106.html Comments: King writes "licence to make a fortalice." Possibly a licence acquired for the 'topping out' ceremony and a reward to the son of a noted soldier. Certainly the younger Rowland would have much to live up to and he and his wife would want to spend the riches derived from the French wars on as fashionable and high status a house as possible. Original source is; Lyte, H.C. Maxwell (ed), 1907, Calendar of Patent Rolls (1429-36) p. 446 view online copy

Citations

1. [S37] Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 2, page 1666. Hereinafter cited as Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition.
2. [S37] Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition, volume 2, page 1667.
3. [S37] Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition.

Links

• http://www.hamptoncourt.org.uk/
• http://thepeerage.com/p32802.htm
• http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/GREY1.htm
• http://www.geneajourney.com/fzalan.html