Sir Hugh Calveley (died 23 April 1394) was an English soldier and commander, who took part in the Hundred Years' War. Various other spellings of his name exist: Calverley, Caverle, Calvelegh, Kerverley, Calverlee, Calvyle, Kalvele, Calviley, and Calvile. A map of Europe in the 1430s, near the end of the Hundred Years War The Hundred Years War is the name modern historians have given to what was actually a series of related conflicts, fought over a 116-year period, between England and France, and later Burgundy; beginning in...

His coat of arms and crest are blazoned as "argent a fess gules between three bulls sable"; his crest was "a bull's head sable, crowned argent". A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... Crest is a heraldic term. ... This is an article about Heraldry. ...

Birth

Hugh Calveley was born the eldest son of David de Calveley of Lea, and his wife, Joanna. The family held the manor of Calveley in Bunbury, Cheshire. Estimates of the year of his birth range from 1315 to 1333.

The Breton Civil War

Along with many other Englishmen, the young Hugh Calveley served in Brittany, supporting Jean de Montfort's English-backed bid to become Duke of Brittany against the French-backed claimant, Charles de Blois. Traditional coat of arms This article is about the historical duchy and French province, as well as the cultural area of Brittany. ... John IV of Montfort (in French Jean IV de Montfort) (1295 - September 16, 1345), was duke of Brittany, from 1341 to his death. ... Charles of Blois (died September 29, 1364), was duke of Brittany, from 1341 to his death. ...

An anonymous Breton poet's account of the Battle of the Thirty in 1351 has "Hue de Caverle" as a knight fighting on the English side (where he was defeated, captured, to be ransomed later). One estimate of the date of his knighthood is 1346, though documents from 1354 do not refer to him as a knight, and there is some evidence that he was only knighted later, in 1361. The Combat of the Thirty was a famous battle fought on March 27, 1351, during the Breton civil war (part of the Hundred Years War) between Jean de Montfort (supported by the English) and Charles de Blois (supported by the French). ... The silver Anglia knight, commissioned as a trophy in 1850, intended to represent the Black Prince. ...

In 1354, Calveley was captain of the English-held fortress of Becherel. He planned a raid on the castle of Montmuran on April 10, to capture Arnoul d'Audrehem, Marshal of France, who was a guest of the lady of Tinteniac. Bertrand du Guesclin, in one of the early highlights of his career, anticipated the attack, posting archers as sentries. When the sentries raised the alarm at Calveley's approach, both du Guesclin and d'Audrehem hurried to intercept. In the ensuing fight, Calveley was unhorsed by a knight named Enguerrand d'Hesdin, captured, and later ransomed. Arnoul dAudrehem (ca. ... Statue of du Guesclin in Dinan Bertrand du Guesclin (c. ...

In 1359 Sir Robert Knolles and Calveley invaded the Rhône Valley. with Hugh Calveley. The city of Le Puy fell to them in July. The campaign ended when their way to Avignon was barred by the army of Thomas de la Marche, Deputy for Louis II, Duke of Bourbon, at which point both English commanders retreated. Robert Knolles ( 14th century) was an important English soldier of the Hundred Years War, who, operating with the tacit support of the Crown, succeeded in taking the only two major French cities, other than Calais and Poitiers, to fall to Edward III . ... Louis II of Bourbon (1337 – 1410) was the third Duke of Bourbon. ...

At the battle of Auray on 29 September 1364, Calveley had the command of the reserve division of the forces of Jean de Montfort, under the command of Sir John Chandos. Charles de Blois was killed at Auray, enabling Jean de Montfort to claim the Duchy without further conflict.

The Iberian Campaigns

After the conclusion of the Breton civil war, Calveley, along with many other soldiers, found himself unemployed. These soldiers, banding together in the Free Companies, continued to support themselves by raiding widely, causing a huge problem for the Kingdom of France.

The solution to the problem was found when Aragon, France and the Papacy agreed to provide money to pay for the Free Companies to wage a campaign to support Count Enrique of Trastamara's bid for the throne of Castile, which at the time was held by Enrique's half-brother, Pedro the Cruel. Calveley signed up as the most prominent of the English captains on this campaign, in which he was involved from 1365 to 1367, ironically serving alongside Bertrand du Guesclin, his once and future enemy. For his services to Enrique, he was made Count of Carrion. He married one of the Aragonese queen's ladies-in-waiting, named Constanza, daughter of a Sicilian baron. Henry of Trastamara (January 13, 1334 Sevilla - May 29, 1379 Santo Domingo de la Calzada), was the illegitimate son of Alfonso XI of Castile and Leonora de Guzman, and half brother to Peter I of Castile the Cruel. ... Peter I (August 30, 1334 – March 23, 1369; Spanish: Pedro I), sometimes known as Peter the Cruel or Pedro the Cruel, was the king of Castile from 1350 to 1369. ...

Pedro the Cruel, having fled from Castile, invoked his alliance with England. Calveley was called back to the service of England by the Black Prince, and now took prominent part in Pedro's counter-campaign, culminating in the decisive battle of Najera. At Najera, Calveley was once again in the rearguard, sharing command with the Count of Armagnac. The two commaders had the glory of delivering the final blow to the faltering enemy infantry by a cavalry charge. Enrique of Trastamara escaped from the battle. Though his title as Count of Carrion had been granted by Enrique, Pedro confirmed it upon reclaiming the Castilian throne. Edward the Black Prince - illustration from Cassells History of England circa 1902 Effigy on the Black Princes tomb in Canterbury Cathedral Edward, Prince of Wales, known as the Black Prince (June 15, 1330 - June 8, 1376) was the eldest son of King Edward III of England. ... Battle of Najera from 15th century manuscript, the English and Pedro are on the left The Battle of Najera also known as the Battle of Navarette was fought in 1367 between English and Franco-Castillian forces. ...

In the spring of 1367, the Black Prince sent Calveley as an emissary to Aragon, to arrange the diplomatic isolation of the fugitive Enrique. Calveley successfully convinced Pedro the Ceremonious to renounce his support for Enrique. Peter IV of Aragon (1319-1387), king of Aragon (1336-1387), the Ceremonious or el del punyalet (the one of the little dagger). ...

Resumed War with France

When hostilities resumed between England and France in 1369, Calveley was once again involved, first in raiding the possessions of Gascon nobles who had defected to the French. He took part in at least three further campaigns in the period to 1374.

From 1375 to 1378, Calveley was military governor of the important port of Calais. Thereafter, he became one of the two Admirals of the English fleet, taking part in several sea battles.

In July 1380, he was involved in a raid on Brittany led by Sir John Arundel, Marshal of England. On their return voyage, 20 ships and about 1000 men were lost at sea in a storm. Calveley was one of only 8 survivors.

In 1383, he took part in the Norwich Crusade, preached by the Roman pope against his rival at Avignon, but this campaign turned into an embarrassing failure when France bribed a large number of the participants.

Late Career

Calveley's final military engagement was in 1386, when he joined John of Gaunt in an unsuccessful campaign to secure the Castilian throne. John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (June 24, 1340 - February 3, 1399), the third surviving son of King Edward III of England, gained his name because he was born at Ghent in 1340. ...

In July 1388, he joined the English Peace Commissioners negotiating a truce with France. In his later life, he also served as a Justice of the Peace, and a parliament representative.

Death and Burial

Calveley died without issue on St George's Day, 23 April, 1394. His tomb effigy is in St Boniface's church in Bunbury, Cheshire, though there is some doubt as to whether he was in fact buried there. The effigy was likely commissioned by Sir Robert Knowles.

Titles and Honours

• Knight, dubbed sometime between ca 1346 and 1361.
• Commander of Becherel, 1354.
• Count of Carrion, from 1366.
• Seneschal of Calais, 1375 to 1378.
• Keeper of the Channel Islands, from 1378 for life.
• Captain of Brest.
• Admiral of the West.
• Justice of the Peace for Berks County
• Member of Parliament for Rutland

A seneschal was an officer in the houses of important nobles in the Middle Ages. ... Location within France The Burghers of Calais, by Rodin, with Calais Hotel de Ville behind J.M.W. Turner: Calais Pier Calais (Dutch: Kales) is a town in northern France, located at 50°57N 1°52E. It is in the département of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is... Brest is the name of several cities: City in Belarus: Brest, Belarus, formerly in Russia and the Soviet Union and formerly known as Brest-Litovsk. ...

References

• Stephen Turnbull, The Book of the Medieval Knight (Arms and Armour Press, London, 1985, p.50
• http://www.bunbury.org.uk/johnpapers/sirhugh1frame.htm
• http://www.bunbury.org.uk/papers/Sir_Hugh_frameset.html
• http://www.labelle.org/hyw1380.html
• http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/9507/research-hc-paper.html
• http://www.arrakis.es/~jlserrano/repercusssions.htm