Ralph (Cromwell) de Cromwell (abt. 1393 - 1456)

Ancestors

Ralph Cromwell was a member of the aristocracy in British Isles.

Biography

Ralph de Cromwell, 3rd Lord Cromwell (c. 1393 - Jan 1455/6) was the son of Ralph de Cromwell, 2nd Lord Cromwell and Joan.

He was aged 26 on the death of his grandmother in 1419.^[1]

He joined the household of Thomas, duke of Clarence (d. 1421), and went with the duke to France in 1410 and 1412. Clarence placed Cromwell in command of garrisons of Bec, Poissy, and Pontoise. He also participated in the invasions of Henry V, and was at the capture of Harfleur and Agincourt in 1415, and the capture of Caen in 1417. In 1420 he was one of the negotiators of the treaty of Troyes. In 1421 Cromwell was made captain of Harfleur. In 1422 he was one of the four knights on the council to govern England after the death of Henry V, and from that time he was dedicated to administrative functions.^[2]

He m. bef. 4 July 1424 Margaret Deincourt, daughter of Sir John Deincourt, 5th Lord Deincourt and Joan de Grey, suo jure Baroness Grey of Rotherfield, daghter of Robert de Grey, 5th Baron Grey of Rotherfield.^[3]

He made his will at Collyweston, Northamptonshire, on 8 December 1451. The will was proved at in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury at Lambeth on 19 February 1455/56 by the executors John Sacheverell (1390-abt.1459) and William Venour.^[4]

He died on 4 January 1455/6, without issue, and was buried with his wife in Tattershall Collegiate Church, Lincolnshire. ^[3]

At his death the title was considered extinct, but by modern doctrine the Barony fell into abeyance between his two nieces by his sister Maud de Cromwell: Maud, Lady Willoughby de Eresby later Lady Nevill, and Joan, Lady Bourchier later Lady Radcliffe. Joan dsp. on 10 Mar 1490 at which point the barony devolved upon Maud, who dsp in 1497. The Barony fell into abeyance again among the descendants of his aunts Amice, Maud and Elizabeth. The title was called out of abeyance 16 July 1923 in favor of a descendant of Maud Lady FitzWilliamm Robert Godfrey Wolseley [Berwicke-Copley].^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ King's College London, 2014. Mapping the Medieval Countryside [online]. Available at http://www.inquisitionspostmortem.ac.uk/view/inquisition/21-332/ [Accessed: 2/10/2021]. Note Complete Peerage, 2nd ed. Vol. 3 p. 552 says 16 instead of 26.
2. ↑ A. C. Reeves, Cromwell, Ralph, third Baron Cromwell (1393?–1456), ODNB.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Cromwell, Baron (E, 1375) Cracroft's Peerage
4. ↑ Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. Original data: The National Archives; Kew, Surrey, England; Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Series PROB 11; Class: PROB 11; Piece: 4. Ancestry uk Record 5111 #869845

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