Key Facts

Snapshot:	knight; served in Gascony and Scotland rebelled against King Edward II, and was subsequently imprisoned then became an indentured servant
Parents:	16812996Roger de Shurland His mother's identity is unknown.
Born:	by the early 1270's location unknown
Died:	circa 1324 location unknown
Buried:	in St. Mary and St. Sexburgha Church, Minster on Sea, Isle of Sheppey, Kent, England church's coordinates: N51.4221 E0.8120

This profile draws heavily from: Nigel Saul, "An Early Private Indenture of Retainer: The Agreement Between Hugh Despenser the Younger and Sir Robert De Shirland," English Historical Review, volume 128, number 532, pages 519-534. The article contains additional information and context beyond what I've described here.

8406498Robert de Shurland is the son of 16812996Roger de Shurland, as explained below. 8406498Robert must have been born by the early 1270's since he left England on a military campaign in 1294.2

Problem: Resolved Who was 8406498Robert's father? 16812996Roger de Shurland owned manors at Ufton and Shurland, as proven by a fine dated 5 March 1275.3 16812996Roger de Shurland and his (apparently newly aqcuired) manors at Ufton and Shurland are mentioned in this 1275 fine. Full page.3 8406498Robert later owned manors at both Ufton4 and Shurland.5 The apparent inheritance suggests that 16812996Roger was 8406498Robert's father. 16812996Roger de Shurland is included on the Dering Roll. The relevant portion is copied below,6 alongside an idealized image of the same.7 Several decades later, 8406498Robert used arms with a matching description to represent himself at a tournament.8 This strongly implies a father-son relationship.

On 18 June 1294 8406498Robert was issued a letter of protection (to prevent lawsuits, etc. against him while overseas) and then traveled to Gascony, presumably to fight in England's Gascon campaign.2 He was issued a similar letter in October 1295,9 so he probably had a lengthy stay in Gascony.

After returning to Britain, in 1300 8406498Robert participated in the English siege of Caerlaverock Castle.10,11 The castle was occupied by Scottish freedom fighters who had been attacking English positions in the area. Although partly in ruins, the castle still stands today at coordinates N54.976 E3.524. The siege was ultimately successful. The following year 8406498Robert was granted free warren for his Ufton property,4 perhaps as a reward for his service at Caerlaverock.

Caerlaverock Castle, which 8406498Robert helped lay siege to in 130012

In 1303 8406498Robert went with English forces to the far north of Scotland,13 and in 1304 participated in the siege of Stirling Castle.14 The siege ended in a substantial victory for the English invaders. On 1 July 1307 he was again issued protection,15 apparently while he went on another campaign in Scotland.

In late 1308 or early 1309 8406498Robert participated in a tournament at Dunstable. A document pertaining to the tournament includes a description of 8406498Robert's arms,8 which can thus be illustrated as shown below.7 As explained in this letter,16 the tournament may have had political undertones/significance, since many of the attendees were allies of Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, the future leader of a (failed) baronial rebellion against King Edward II; more on the rebellion below.

8406498Robert's arms as used at a tournament in 1308 or 1309

In June 1314 8406498Robert fought at the Battle of Bannockburn,17 which (unlike 8406498Robert's previous sieges/campaigns) ended with a landslide Scottish victory. England's King Edward II abandoned his army and fled for his life. The English survivors scattered, hoping to sneak back to England, but many were hunted down or killed by Scottish locals. The English casualty toll was massive, yet 8406498Robert was fortunate to return to England. In August he was summoned to a muster at Newcastle, England's stronghold near the Scottish border.18

The following year he joined yet another expedition against Scotland;19 a record pertaining to this expedition shows that 8406498Robert's horse was worth more than many of his comrades' horses.20 He was also present during the siege of Berwick a few years later,21 but there the English defenders lost, and the Scots took Berwick Castle. Today the castle lies in ruins at coordinates N55.7738 E2.0116.

The ruins of Berwick Castle.22 8406498Robert participated in the unsuccessful defense of Berwick against Scottish forces in 1318.21

A record dated 8 August 1319 passingly mentions 8406498Robert's property on the Isle of Sheppey.23

In 1322 8406498Robert joined an ill-fated rebellion against King Edward II. Nigel Saul's article provides an outstanding, well-written, evidence-based narrative of 8406498Robert's motives and involvement in the rebellion within the broader sociopolitical climate, so if you're interested in this topic I strongly encourage you to read it. To summarize briefly, though: 8406498Robert was a close associate of Bartholomew Badlesmere, who (like many others) had personal, political, and financial motives to oppose the Despensers' ties to the King. Badlesmere contrived a false allegation, backed by using 8406498Robert as a "witness," to try (unsuccessfully) to have the Younger Despenser ordered into exile. Widespread animosity against the Despensers soon turned to outright violence, culminating in the Battle of Boroughbridge in March 1322, which 8406498Robert participated in.24 The rebels were far outnumbered and had little chance of success. After their surrender, the leading rebels were tortured to death (including 8406498Robert's son-in-law, 4203248William Cheyne), but 8406498Robert was imprisoned in the Tower of London, apparently for about a year. A record dated 11 February 1323 mentions an upcoming court appearance,25 and he was released on 13 April.26

Saul discusses and transcribes (a later copy of) an undated but apparently contemporaneous record that shows that 8406498Robert became an indentured servant of his heretofore enemy Hugh Despenser the Younger.27 The record itself is uncommonly brief, and all of the terms are in the Younger Despenser's favor. Saul presents an array of evidence that strongly suggests that 8406498Robert's servitude was a required condition to secure his release from prison.

The last known record to mention 8406498Robert while he was still alive is dated 8 July 1323, when he was issued protection to travel beyond seas in service of the king.28 His destination is unknown, but Saul suggests that he may have returned to Gascony due to rising tensions with the French around this time.

He probably died not long thereafter, yet we don't find the usual estate-related records one might expect. Saul explains:

Normally in the early fourteenth century a knightly landowner’s demise was followed by the temporary seizure of his lands by the escheator and the holding of an inquisition post-mortem. In Shirland’s case, strangely, no such procedure appears to have happened; at least, there is no evidence of it, as there should be, on the Fine Rolls. It is unlikely that Shirland held all of his lands from lords other than the king, which would have rendered such a procedure redundant. It is therefore tempting to wonder whether the younger Despenser took advantage of his retainer’s death to mount a bid to secure possession of his lands. If he did do so, it would have been another action entirely in character with his behaviour.

The tomb shown below lies in St. Mary and St. Sexburgha Church, Minster on Sea, Isle of Sheppey, Kent, which is at coordinates N51.4221 E0.8120.29,30

The tomb is generally believed to be 8406498Robert's, and there's evidence to support this belief. Saul describes the tomb at length, and it may be worthwhile to read his entire description, but I've copied a few excerpts below. (See the original article for its internal source citations; those aren't included below.)

[...] Not uncommonly when knightly lineages died out, the last male representative was honoured by a big, eye-catching monument which kept alive not only his own name but that of the whole family. Such was to be the case with the last of the de Shirlands. [...] Since Robert in his last unhappy years would have been in no position to arrange commemoration on any size or scale, the commissioning of the monument was almost certainly undertaken by his daughter. [...] The entire composition would originally have been adorned with extensive painted decoration, that on the back panel probably depicting a resurrection scene, all of this now lost. Today, there is no obvious means of identifying the knight commemorated; the inscription—assuming there was one—is lost, and so likewise are the shields which would probably have been painted on the front of the chest and perhaps, too, on the architectural surrounds. Weever, writing in the 1630s, was the first to suggest that the person commemorated was none other than Sir Robert de Shirland, observing that the family seat of Shirland lay very close to Minster. C.A. Stothard, in letterpress accompanying his engraving of the monument, published in 1817, noted that the padded surcoat of the effigy had been painted with lions rampant on an azure ground, the arms of de Shirland. The monument can be assigned a date in the 1320s on the evidence of the canopy surrounds, notably the fine ogee cinquefoil cusps, and the presence of a helm as a support under the head. If the person commemorated is actually a de Shirland, as seems certain on the basis of the heraldic evidence, there seems little doubt that that person was Robert and not his father, Roger, who had died before 1290.

What is especially interesting about the tomb, and what makes it relevant to an understanding of Shirland’s career, is its use of imagery relating to the warhorse. In an English context, this is highly exceptional. [...] It is found on only a small minority of examples, all of them early fourteenth century in date; Shirland’s forms one of this group. [...]

[...] His tomb was adorned with the imagery of his most valuable asset, his warhorse. His standing as an elite warrior was being proclaimed. The monument conveys a triumphalist, indeed a highly status-conscious message.

We can be confident that this was a mode of funerary representation of which Shirland would have approved, for it afforded a perfect reflection of his self-image. Although his death had occurred at a time when his personal affairs were in disarray and his family honour besmirched, he was represented on his tomb monument with all the trappings and accoutrements of his knightly profession. In his prime he had excelled, above all, as a fighting knight [...]. He had never been greatly attracted by local politics or administration. [...] Behind the splendour and bombast of Shirland’s own monument, however, lay a story of family crisis. Not only was the hapless Sir Robert the last of his line, a fate which would have distressed the head of any noble lineage in the Middle Ages, but there was also the disaster that in old age he had been broken and humiliated by the younger Despenser. The story of his downfall and bondage is only vaguely hinted at in the terms of his indenture of retainer. Nonetheless, reading between the lines, we need have little doubt that that is the personal tragedy which lies behind it."

A record dated 6 July 1334 (thus about ten years after 8406498Robert's death) mentions his widow Margaret and implies that she was still living.5 Unfortunately, I know nothing else about her.

The same record also proves that 8406498Robert had owned a manor at Shurland. That manor no longer exists, but it was probably at the same place where Shurland House now stands: coordinates N51.40753 E0.86513.

Sources Cited:

1: C. A. Stothard, The Monumental Effigies of Great Britain [...] (London, 1817), an insert between pages 38 and 39.

2: Rôles Gascons, Volume III (1290-1307), page 162, entry #2825; page 133, entry #2603.

3: UK National Archives reference CP 25/1/284/20, number 26 [or 27?]. I obtained an image of this record from: Anglo-American Legal Tradition, O'Quinn Law Library, University of Houston; <http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT7/CP25(1)/CP25_1_284_20-22/CP25_1_284_20/IMG_0032.htm>, accessed 1 July 2022. You can read an abstract of this record here (It may help to search for the word Schyrlaund.); as you can see, this index states that the record is #26, although the image is clearly labeled #27.

4: Calendar of the Charter Rolls Preserved in the Public Record Office, Volume III: Edward I, Edward II, A.D. 1300-1326 (1908), page 21.

5: Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem and Other Analogous Documents Preserved in the Public Record Office, Volume VII, Edward III (London, 1909), page 416.

6: British Library Additional Roll 77720, folio 1r.

7: Wikimedia user Rs-nourse, "The Dering Roll of Arms - Panel 1 - 1 to 54.png" (online image), Wikimedia, <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Dering_Roll_of_Arms_-_Panel_1_-_1_to_54.png#file>. The author has shared this image under a Creative Commons BY-SA 3.0 unported license.

8: Collectanea Topographica et Genealogica, Volume 4 (London, 1837), page 69, entry #143. The transcriber apparently is referring back to Cotton MS Otho D IV folio 92.

9: Rôles Gascons, Volume III (1290-1307), page 294, entry #3894; page 319, entry #4104.

10: UK National Archives reference C 47/2/13/8; cited and described in: Nigel Saul, "An Early Private Indenture of Retainer: The Agreement Between Hugh Despenser the Younger and Sir Robert De Shirland," English Historical Review, volume 128, number 532, page 522. Saul's description reads, "In 1300 he served on Edward I’s expedition to besiege Caerlaverock Castle, again in the company of the earl of Lincoln.

11: Thomas Philipott, Villare Cantianum; or, Kent Surveyed and Illustrated, 2nd edition (1776), pages 121-122.

12: Michael Walsh, "Caerlaverock Castle - panoramio (4).jpg" (photo taken 6 June 2014), Wikimedia, <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Caerlaverock_Castle_-_panoramio_(4).jpg>. Mr. Walsh has shared this image under a Creative Commons BY 3.0 license.

13: UK National Archives reference E 101/612/11, membrane 2d; cited and described in: Nigel Saul, "An Early Private Indenture of Retainer: The Agreement Between Hugh Despenser the Younger and Sir Robert De Shirland," English Historical Review, volume 128, number 532, page 522. Saul's description reads, "In 1303 he joined Edward a second time; this time on his march to the far north of Scotland, serving as a knight in the retinue of the prince of Wales."

14: Calendar of Chancery Warrants: A.D. 1244-1326 (London, 1927), page 223.

15: Calendar of Documents Relating to Scotland, Preserved in Her Majesty's Public Record Office, London, Volume 5: 1108-1516 supplementary (1881, London), page 446.

16: F. B. Stitt, "A Dunstable Tournament, 1308-9," The Antiquaries Journal, Volume 32, Issue 3-4 (October 1952), pages 202-203.

17: UK National Archives reference C71/6, membrane 3. Cited in: Nigel Saul, "An Early Private Indenture of Retainer: The Agreement Between Hugh Despenser the Younger and Sir Robert De Shirland," English Historical Review, volume 128, number 532, page 522. Saul's description reads, "After Lincoln’s death in 1311, Shirland performed service principally in the company of the Midlands lord, Sir Richard de Grey of Codnor (Derbyshire). It was under de Grey that he fought at the battle of Bannockburn in June 1314. His role in the desperate encounter is uncertain; he escaped capture, however, [...]."

18: Francis Palgrave, ed., The Parliamentary and Writs and Writs of Military Summons, Volume 2, Division 2, page 428. Described in: Saul, op. cit., page 522.

19: UK National Archives reference C71/7, membrane 3. Cited in: Saul, op. cit., page 522. Saul's description reads, "In 1315 he took part in another expedition against the Scots, this one under the earl of Pembroke, again serving with de Grey."

20: UK National Archives reference E101/15/6, membrane 2. Cited in: Saul, op. cit., page 522. Saul's description reads, "His fine horse, which he had valued, was recorded as worth 50 marks, a figure exceeded in the retinue only by the destrier of de Grey himself."

21: UK National Archives reference C71/10, membranes 5 and 12. Cited in: Saul, op. cit., page 522. Saul's description reads, "He was to serve under de Grey on two further occasions, in 1318 and at the siege of Berwick in 1319."

22: James Allan, "Berwick castle walls," Geograph, <https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1379713>. Mr. Allan has shared this image under a Creative Commons BY-SA 2.0 license.

23: Calendar of the Close Rolls Preserved in the Public Record Office, Edward II, Volume VII, 1318-1323 (London, 1895), page 154.

24: Francis Palgrave, Parliamentary Writs and Writs of Military Summons [...], Volume II, Division II (1830), appendix page 201.

25: Calendar of the Close Rolls Preserved in the Public Record Office, Edward II, Volume VII, 1318-1323 (London, 1895), page 627. Described in: Saul, op. cit., page 522. Saul's entry reads, "A couple of months earlier, in February, the constable of the Tower had been ordered to arrange for him to be brought before the king once suitable mainpernors had been arranged."

26: Calendar of the Patent Rolls Preserved in the Public Record Office: Edward II, Volume IV, A.D. 1321–1324 (London, 1904), page 276.

27: British Library, Egerton MS 3789, folio 98v. Transcribed and described in: Saul, op. cit.

28: Calendar of the Patent Rolls Preserved in the Public Record Office: Edward II, Volume IV, A.D. 1321–1324 (London, 1904), page 247.

29: Michael Garlick, "Minster Abbey: The Baron Robert de Shurland (d.1327) monument" (photograph taken 14 December 2016), Geograph, <https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5227639>.

30: Michael Garlick, "Minster Abbey: The Baron Robert de Shurland (d.1327) monument with lovely Decorated canopy" (photograph taken 14 December 2016), Geograph, <https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5227641>.