Alice de Toeni

Alice de Toeni, 10th Countess of Warwick (26 April 1284- 1 January 1325) was the second wife of Guy de Beauchamp, 10th Earl of Warwick (1272- 12 August 1315), an English nobleman in the reign of Kings Edward I and Edward II. He was one of the principal opponents of Piers Gaveston, a favourite of Edward II.

He was her second husband. She would have a total of three husbands.

Family and lineage

Alice de Toeni was born on 26 April 1284 in Flamsted, Hertfordshire the only daughter of Ralph VII de Toeni, Lord Toeni of Flamsted (1255- 1295) and his wife, Mary, about whom nothing is known except that she was born in Scotland. Alice's paternal grandparents were Roger V de Toeni, Lord Flamsted and Alice de Bohun. The latter was a daughter of Humphrey de Bohun, 2nd Earl of Hereford and Maud de Lusignan. Alice had an older brother Robert de Toeni, Lord Toeni of Flamsted (4 April 1276- 1309), who married Maud, the daughter of Malise, 6th Earl of Strathearn, but died childless in 1309. Alice became his heir. Her inheritance included manors in Essex, Worcestershire, Wiltshire, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, and the Welsh Marches.

Marriages and children

In 1300, when Alice was 16, she married her first husband, Sir Thomas Leybourne (died May 1307), son of Sir William Leybourne, by whom she had one daughter:Juliana de Leybourne (1303/1304- 1367), married firstly, John, Lord Hastings, by whom she had issue, secondly Thomas le Blount, and thirdly, William Clinton.

On 28 February 1310, less than three years after the death of her first husband, Alice married secondly Guy de Beauchamp, 10th Earl of Warwick, son of William de Beauchamp, 9th Earl of Warwick and Maud FitzGeoffrey. He had been previously married to Isabel de Clare, the daughter of Gilbert de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester and Alice de Lusignan of Angouleme, but the marriage, which having produced no children, was annulled. Guy had already distinguished himself in the Scottish Wars and was one of the Ordainers, who sought to restrict the powers of the King. Guy de Beauchamp was one of the chief adversaries of Piers Gaveston, King Edward's favourite, who often referred to Guy as "The Mad Hound", due to the Earl's habit of foaming at the mouth when angry. [Thomas B. Costain,"The Three Edwards", p. 141] In 1312, Guy de Beauchamp captured Gaveston and took him to his principal residence Warwick Castle where Gaveston was held prisoner and afterwards murdered.

Alice and Guy had two sons and five daughters:
# Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick (14 February !313/1314- 13 November 1369), married Katherine Mortimer, by whom he had eleven children.
# John de Beauchamp, Lord Beauchamp KG (1315- 2 December 1360), carried the royal standard at the Battle of Crecy
# Elizabeth de Beauchamp (c.1316- 1359), married in 1328, Thomas of Astley, 3rd Lord Astley, by whom she had a son William of Astley, 4th Lord Astley.
# Maud de Beauchamp (died 1366), married Geoffrey de Say, 2nd Lord Say, by whom she had issue.
# Isabella de Beauchamp, married John Clinton.
# Emma de Beauchamp, married Rowland Odingsells.
# Lucia de Beauchamp, married Robert de Napton.Following the sudden death of Guy de Beauchamp at Warwick Castle on 28 July 1315, which was rumoured to have been caused by poisoning, Alice married thirdly on 26 October 1316, William la Zouche de Mortimer, 1st Lord Zouche of Ashby, by whom she had a son and daughter:
# Alan la Zouche de Mortimer (born 15 September 1317)
# Joyce la Zouche de Mortimer (born 1318)

Death

Alice de Toeni died on 1 January 1325 at the age of forty. The de Toeni lands and manors passed to her eldest son Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick.

Her widower, Lord Zouche, later abducted and married Eleanor de Clare, widow of Hugh Le Despenser, the Younger. Lord Zouche had been one of Le Despenser's captors and had led the seige of Caerphilly Castle.

References