Maud de St. Valéry was born in France in about 1154, she was the daughter of Bernard de St. Valéry. Her paternal grandfather was Reginald de St. Valery.
She married William de Braose, Lord Abergavenny, 4th Lord of Bramber about 1166. He was the son of William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber and Bertha of Hereford de Pitres
In 1208, William de Braose quarrelled with his friend and patron King John. John demanded Maud's son William be sent to him as a hostage for her husband's loyalty. Maud refused, and stated loudly within earshot of the King's officers that "she would not deliver her children to a king who had murdered his own nephew (Arthur of Brittany)." Maud tried to make amends but King John refused to be mollified and quickly led a force to the Welsh border and seized all of the castles that belonged to William de Braose. Maud and her son escaped but were apprehended on the Antrim coast while trying to sail for Scotland. After being briefly held at Carrickfergus Castle, they were sent to England.
They were first imprisoned at Windsor Castle, but were shortly afterwards transferred to Corfe Castle in Dorset where they were walled alive inside the dungeon. Maud and William both starved to death. Her husband died a year later in exile in France.
The manner in which Maud and her son William met their deaths so outraged the English nobility that Magna Carta, which King John was forced to sign in 1215, contains clause 39; it reads:
No man shall be taken ,imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.
She married William de Braose, Lord Abergavenny, 4th Lord of Bramber about 1166. He was the son of William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber and Bertha of Hereford de Pitres
In 1208, William de Braose quarrelled with his friend and patron King John. John demanded Maud's son William be sent to him as a hostage for her husband's loyalty. Maud refused, and stated loudly within earshot of the King's officers that "she would not deliver her children to a king who had murdered his own nephew (Arthur of Brittany)." Maud tried to make amends but King John refused to be mollified and quickly led a force to the Welsh border and seized all of the castles that belonged to William de Braose. Maud and her son escaped but were apprehended on the Antrim coast while trying to sail for Scotland. After being briefly held at Carrickfergus Castle, they were sent to England.
They were first imprisoned at Windsor Castle, but were shortly afterwards transferred to Corfe Castle in Dorset where they were walled alive inside the dungeon. Maud and William both starved to death. Her husband died a year later in exile in France.
The manner in which Maud and her son William met their deaths so outraged the English nobility that Magna Carta, which King John was forced to sign in 1215, contains clause 39; it reads:
No man shall be taken ,imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.
Maud de St. Valéry was born in France in about 1154, she was the daughter of Bernard de St. Valéry. Her paternal grandfather was Reginald de St. Valery.
She married William de Braose, Lord Abergavenny, 4th Lord of Bramber about 1166. He was the son of William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber and Bertha of Hereford de Pitres
In 1208, William de Braose quarrelled with his friend and patron King John. John demanded Maud's son William be sent to him as a hostage for her husband's loyalty. Maud refused, and stated loudly within earshot of the King's officers that "she would not deliver her children to a king who had murdered his own nephew (Arthur of Brittany)." Maud tried to make amends but King John refused to be mollified and quickly led a force to the Welsh border and seized all of the castles that belonged to William de Braose. Maud and her son escaped but were apprehended on the Antrim coast while trying to sail for Scotland. After being briefly held at Carrickfergus Castle, they were sent to England.
They were first imprisoned at Windsor Castle, but were shortly afterwards transferred to Corfe Castle in Dorset where they were walled alive inside the dungeon. Maud and William both starved to death. Her husband died a year later in exile in France.
The manner in which Maud and her son William met their deaths so outraged the English nobility that Magna Carta, which King John was forced to sign in 1215, contains clause 39; it reads:
No man shall be taken ,imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.
She married William de Braose, Lord Abergavenny, 4th Lord of Bramber about 1166. He was the son of William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber and Bertha of Hereford de Pitres
In 1208, William de Braose quarrelled with his friend and patron King John. John demanded Maud's son William be sent to him as a hostage for her husband's loyalty. Maud refused, and stated loudly within earshot of the King's officers that "she would not deliver her children to a king who had murdered his own nephew (Arthur of Brittany)." Maud tried to make amends but King John refused to be mollified and quickly led a force to the Welsh border and seized all of the castles that belonged to William de Braose. Maud and her son escaped but were apprehended on the Antrim coast while trying to sail for Scotland. After being briefly held at Carrickfergus Castle, they were sent to England.
They were first imprisoned at Windsor Castle, but were shortly afterwards transferred to Corfe Castle in Dorset where they were walled alive inside the dungeon. Maud and William both starved to death. Her husband died a year later in exile in France.
The manner in which Maud and her son William met their deaths so outraged the English nobility that Magna Carta, which King John was forced to sign in 1215, contains clause 39; it reads:
No man shall be taken ,imprisoned, outlawed, banished or in any way destroyed, nor will we proceed against or prosecute him, except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land.
Gravesite Details
Maud de St. Valéry and her son, William, were walled up in their castle to starve (and die) by John Lackland, so they might not be 'buried'
Family Members
See more de Braose or de St. Valéry memorials in:
- Find a Grave de Braose or de St. Valéry
