Leicestershire and Warwickshire

Who holds it

Name

Reginald Basset or Robert de Harcourt (not pinned)

Title

Sheriff of Warwickshire and Leicestershire

Since

The lists give Reginald Basset for 1199 and Robert de Harcourt for 1200 (Harcourt also for 1198)

Family

Robert de Harcourt's sister Alice is the countess of Warwick.

Confidence

low

Whether the change from Basset to Harcourt fell at Michaelmas 1199 or in 1200 is not pinned.

Overlord

King John (the Exchequer)

What it holds

• The farm of the two shires
• Kenilworth castle (royal)
• The profits of the shire courts at Leicester and Warwick

How it was acquired

A shire of the English kingdom since before the Conquest.

How things stand that morning

At peace.

Wealth

Wool and corn of the Leicestershire wolds and the Warwickshire Feldon; woodland and assarts of Arden; the markets of Leicester, Coventry and Warwick.

Military

The shire levy; Kenilworth castle.

Sheriff in 1200

Reginald Basset (listed for 1199) or Robert de Harcourt (listed for 1200): not pinned. Under Richard the office was held by Hugh de Nonant, bishop of Coventry (1190-92), then by Reginald Basset, Gilbert de Segrave and William d'Aubigny.

Hundreds

Leicestershire: Framland, Gartree, Goscote, Guthlaxton and Sparkenhoe. Warwickshire: Barlichway, Hemlingford, Kineton and Knightlow.

Forests

Little royal forest: the forest of Leicester and Charnwood are the earl of Leicester's chases; Sutton chase is the earl of Warwick's; the Arden woodland is not under forest law.

Castles

Royal: Kenilworth. Earls': Leicester, Hinckley, Mountsorrel (Leicester); Warwick (Warwick); Coventry (Chester). Barons': Belvoir (Aubigny), Castle Donington (Lacy), Tamworth (Marmion), Beaudesert by Henley-in-Arden (Montfort of Beaudesert), Brinklow (Mowbray motte).

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Sheriff on 1 January 1200 not pinned between two names.

On the map: Historic county outlines, approximate; Warwickshire includes Birmingham and Sutton Coldfield.

Primary sources for England

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
• Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
• Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
• Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
• Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
• English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
• Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
• Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online

22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.