Roger de Mortimer 1st earl of March

Roger de Mortimer, 1st earl of March 1287?-1330, English nobleman. He inherited (c.1304) the vast estates and the title of his father, Edmund, 7th baron of Wigmore. Appointed lieutenant of Ireland in 1316, he was instrumental in securing the defeat of Edward Bruce and thus was able to consolidate his own holdings in Ireland. His principal estates, however, were in the Welsh Marches, and he joined (1321) the other Marcher lords in opposition to Edward II and the Despensers (see Despenser, Hugh le ). He submitted to the king in 1322 and was imprisoned, but in 1323 he escaped to France. When Edward II's queen, Isabella , came to France in 1325, Mortimer became her lover. Together they invaded England in 1326 and routed Edward, whom they forced to abdicate (1327) and later had murdered. Having secured the crown for young Edward III , Mortimer, with Isabella, virtually ruled England and acquired great wealth. He became earl of March in 1328. Finally in 1330 he was seized by Edward III, tried and convicted by Parliament, and executed as a traitor.

Bibliography: See biography by I. Mortimer (2006).

Mortimer, Roger de, 8th Baron of Wigmore and 1st Earl of March (c.1287–1330) English noble. In 1326 he invaded England with his lover Isabella of France, forcing her husband Edward II to abdicate in favour of her son, the future Edward III. Mortimer and Isabella acted as regents for the young Edward until 1330, when the monarch assumed royal power and had Mortimer executed.

Mortimer, Roger, 1st earl of March (c.1287–1330). A lord of the Welsh march, with major interests in Ireland, Roger Mortimer was one of the rebels who surrendered to Edward II in 1321. He made a dramatic escape from the Tower of London in 1324, and went into exile in Paris; it is probably there that he became Queen Isabella's lover. He was at her side during the invasion of 1326, and after the deposition of Edward II early in 1327 he, with the queen, dominated government until 1330. He became earl of March in 1328, and had no reservations in displaying his power, wealth, and position. This regime proved to be as corrupt and incompetent as that of the Despensers which it succeeded, and in 1330 in a remarkable coup the young king, Edward III, with a small group of followers seized Mortimer at Nottingham. His execution followed trial in Parliament.

Michael Prestwich