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Birth:          1 Mar 1261 Winchester, Hampshire, England
Death:          27 Oct 1326 

Notes
familysearch.org
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_le_Despenser,_1st_Earl_of_Winchester
Hugh le Despenser (1 March 1261 – 27 October 1326), sometimes referred to as "the 
Elder Despenser", was for a time the chief adviser to King Edward II of England.[1]
Ancestry[edit]

He was the son of Hugh le Despencer, 1st Baron le Despencer (or Despenser), and 
Aline Basset, only daughter and heiress of Philip Basset. His father was killed at the 
Battle of Evesham when Hugh was just a boy, but Hugh's patrimony was saved 
through the influence of his maternal grandfather (who had been loyal to the king).[2] 
He married Isabella de Beauchamp, daughter of William de Beauchamp, 9th Earl of 
Warwick and Maud FitzJohn.

Life[edit]

He served Edward I on numerous occasions in battle and in diplomacy and was 
created a baron by writ of summons to Parliament in 1295. His son, Hugh Despenser 
the Younger, became a favourite of Edward II, in what is believed to be a homosexual 
relationship. [3] Hugh the Elder was loyal to his son and the King, which worried the 
barons. To that time, his highest office was justice of the forests.[4]

He was one of the few barons to remain loyal to Edward during the controversy 
regarding Piers Gaveston. Despenser became Edward's loyal servant and chief 
administrator after Gaveston was executed in 1312, but the jealousy of other barons – 
and, more importantly, his own corruption and unjust behaviour – led to his being 
exiled along with his son Hugh Despenser the younger in 1321, when Edmund of 
Woodstock, Earl of Kent replaced him as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports.

Edward found it difficult to manage without them, and recalled them to England a year 
later, an action which enraged the queen, Isabella, the more so when Despenser was 
created Earl of Winchester in 1322. Although not as bad as his son, Despencer the 
Elder was accused by a significant number of people of widespread criminality during 
the next few years, often involving false accusations of trespass or theft and the 
extortion of money or land.

Death[edit]

When Isabella, Queen of England, and her lover, Roger Mortimer, led a rebellion 
against her husband Edward, they captured both Despensers—first the elder, later the 
younger. Queen Isabella interceded for Hugh the elder, but his enemies, notably 
Roger Mortimer and Henry, Earl of Lancaster, insisted both father and son should face 
trial and execution.

The elder Despenser was hanged immediately in his armour at Bristol on 27 October 
1326. He was then beheaded and his body cut into pieces for the dogs. His head was 
sent for display to Winchester, which had supported the king.[5]

Following his death, pardons were issued to thousands of people who had been falsely 
accused by Despenser.

Family[edit]

Hugh and his wife, Isabella, had a son, Hugh Despenser the Younger and two 
daughters, Aline (c. – 1353) and Isabel (d. 1334). Isabel married, as his second wife, 
John Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings and had issue.

Parents
LE DESPENCER Hugh (1223 - 4 Aug 1265)
BASSETT Aline (Iline) (Alice) (1246 - BEF 11 Apr 1281)

Siblings
LE DESPENCER Hugh ("the elder") (1 Mar 1261 - 27 Oct 1326)
LE DESPENCER Joan (1263 - 1322)

Marriage To DE BEAUCHAMP Isabel (ABT 1263 - BEF 30 May 1306)
    m.  

Notes

Parents
DE BEAUCHAMP William (1237 - Jun 1298)
FITZ JOHN Maud (ABT 1238 - 16 Apr 1301)

Children by DE BEAUCHAMP Isabel ABT 1263 - BEF 30 May 1306
LE DESPENCER Hugh ("the younger") (1 May 1286 - 24 Nov 1326)
LE DESPENSER Margaret (ABT 1292 - )

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