Aubrey de Vere, 10th Earl of Oxford

Aubrey de Vere, 10th Earl of Oxford
Hedingham Castle, Essex, seat of the Earls of Oxford
Spouse(s)	Alice Fitzwalter
Issue Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford John de Vere Alice de Vere
Noble family	De Vere
Father	John de Vere, 7th Earl of Oxford
Mother	Maud de Badlesmere
Born	1338 – 1340
Died	23 April 1400

Aubrey de Vere, 10th Earl of Oxford (c. 1338 – 15 February 1400) was the third son of John de Vere, 7th Earl of Oxford and Maud de Badlesmere, daughter of Bartholomew de Badlesmere, 1st Lord Badlesmere.^[1]

Aubrey de Vere had three brothers, John, Thomas, and Robert, and three sisters. Margaret, Maud and Elizabeth.^[2] His eldest brother, John, married the daughter of Hugh Courtenay, Earl of Devon, but died in 1350 in his father's lifetime.^[3] Another brother, Robert, also died in his father's lifetime. Aubrey de Vere's third brother, Thomas, succeeded his father as 8th Earl of Oxford, and was in turn succeeded by his only son, Robert de Vere, 9th Earl of Oxford, who died in 1392 without issue, leaving Aubrey de Vere to inherit the earldom.^[4]

In 1360 Aubrey de Vere was made steward of the royal forest of Havering in Essex. In 1367 was retained to 'abide for life' with the Black Prince, with a substantial allowance. He was knighted, made constable of Wallingford Castle in 1375 and also given the honours of Wallingford and St. Valery, though he gave up Wallingford in 1378 for Hadleigh Castle. Edward III used him as an ambassador in seeking peace with France. In 1381, de Vere became a Chamberlain of the Royal Household and member of the privy council. In 1388 his nephew, Robert de Vere, Duke of Ireland and 9th Earl of Oxford was deemed a traitor, causing Aubrey to lose his post of chamberlain. However, after Robert’s death in 1392, the king gave Aubrey the title of Earl of Oxford allowing him to take a seat in parliament. Aubrey’s son, Richard became the 11th Earl of Oxford on his death.

Footnotes

1. Richardson IV 2011, p. 270.
2. Richardson IV 2011, p. 267.
3. Richardson IV 2011, p. 268.
4. Richardson IV 2011, pp. 268-70.

References

•  Lee, Sidney, ed. (1899). "Vere, Aubrey de (1340?-1400)". Dictionary of National Biography. 58. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
• Richardson, Douglas (2011). Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, ed. Kimball G. Everingham. IV (2nd ed.). Salt Lake City. ISBN 1460992709