Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk

English Royalty
House of Plantagenet

Henry II Children    William, Count of Poitiers    Henry the Young King    Richard I    Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany    King John    Matilda of England    Leonora of England    Joan of England Richard I John Children    Henry III    Richard, Earl of Cornwall    Joan of England    Isabella of England    Eleanor of England Henry III Children    Edward I    Margaret of England    Beatrice of England    Edmund, Earl of Lancaster Edward I Children    Joan of England, Countess of Gloucester    Alphonso, Earl of Chester    Edward II    Thomas, Earl of Norfolk    Edmund, Earl of Kent Edward II Children    Edward III    John, Earl of Cornwall    Eleanor of England    Joan of England Edward III Children    Edward, Prince of Wales    Lionel, Duke of Clarence    John, Duke of Lancaster    Edmund, Duke of York    Thomas, Duke of Gloucester    Joan of England    Isabella of England Grandchildren     Richard II     Philippa, Countess of Ulster     Philippa of Lancaster     Elizabeth of Lancaster     Henry IV     Catherine of Lancaster     Edward, Duke of York     Richard, Earl of Cambridge     Constance of York     Anne of Gloucester Richard II

Thomas of Brotherton, 1st Earl of Norfolk (June 1, 1300 – August 4, 1338) was the son of Edward I of England and Marguerite of France. He was named in honor of St. Thomas.

His father died when he was 7 years old. Thomas' half-brother, Edward, now became king of England. The Earldom of Cornwall had been intended for Thomas, but Edward instead bestowed it upon his favorite, Piers Gaveston, in 1306. When he was 10 years old, his brother Edward II of England assigned him and another brother, Edmund, the estates of Roger Bigod, 5th Earl of Norfolk who had died without heir in 1306.

In 1312 he was titled, "Earl of Norfolk" and on February 10, 1316 he was created Marshal of England. When his brother went to Scotland in the war, he was left Keeper of England. Thomas was known for having a hot and violent temper. He was one of the many victims of the unchecked greed of Hugh the younger Despenser, who stole some of the young earl's lands. He allied himself with Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March when they invaded England in 1326, and stood as one of the judges in the trials against both Despensers.

He married first, probably in 1319, to Alice Hayles, daughter of Sir Roger Hayles and Alice Skogan. She was supposed to have been a great beauty. Her father was the coroner of Norfolk, a title that held a different meaning in the 14th century than it does today; his post demanded that he collect and protect revenues for the king. Thomas and Alice had three children:

1) Edward of Norfolk (c. 1320 - 1334)

2) Margaret, Duchess of Norfolk (c. 1320 - 1399)

3. Alice of Norfolk (1324 - 1352)

Alice Hayles died in 1330, when a chantry was founded for her soul in Bosham, Sussex. Thomas was married before March 28 1335 to Mary Brewes, widow of Ralph de Cobham, Lord Cobham. He died in September 1338, and was buried in the Abbey of Bury St. Edmunds. Thomas was also an ancestor of two of the wives of Henry VIII of England, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard.

Sources

Mortimer, Ian. The Greatest Traitor, 2003.

Preceded by: The Lord Segrave	Lord Marshal 1315–1338	Succeeded by: The Countess of Norfolk
Preceded by: New Creation	Earl of Norfolk	Succeeded by: Margaret Plantagenet