Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford
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Hugh de Vere | |
|---|---|
| 4th Earl of Oxford | |
 Hedingham Castle, Essex, seat of the Earls of Oxford | |
| Born | c. 1207 unknown |
| Died | before December 1263 unknown |
| Noble family | de Vere |
| Spouse | Hawise de Quincy |
| Issue | Robert de Vere, 5th Earl of Oxford Isabel de Vere Lora de Vere Margaret de Vere |
| Father | Robert de Vere, 3rd Earl of Oxford |
| Mother | Isabel de Bolebec |
Hugh de Vere, 4th Earl of Oxford (c. 1207 – December 1263) was the only son and heir of Robert de Vere, 3rd Earl of Oxford and Isabel de Bolebec, daughter and eventually sole heiress of Hugh de Bolebec.
Hugh de Vere was born about 1207. Hugh's mother, Isabel de Bolebec, Countess of Oxford, purchased her minor son's wardship in 1221 from the crown for 6000 marks.[1] Hugh did homage to King Henry III in October 1231, and was knighted by the King at Gloucester on 22 May 1233.[2] Two days later the King 'girt him with the sword of the Earldom of Oxford and directed the sheriff to let him have what he ought to have in the name of the Earldom of Oxford as his predecessors had had'.[3]
Career
He inherited the office of Master Chamberlain of England which had been granted to his great-grandfather Aubrey de Vere II. By right of that office, he participated in the coronation of Queen Eleanor in 1236. Earl Hugh was a critic of King Henry from 1246, and in 1258 and 1259 was elected to serve on various baronial committees attempting to reform royal government.[4] The earl purchased the right to hold a market at the town on his primary estate, Castle Hedingham in Essex, and founded a chantry and hospital there.[5]