Eustace Folville

Eustace Folville
Born	c.1288
Died	1347
Residence	Ashby Folville
Known for	Slaying of Sir Roger de Beler
Criminal charge	Murder, Rustling, Highway Robbery, Kidnapping
Parent(s)	Sir John Folville & Alice
Conviction(s)	None
Killings
Victims	Sir Roger de Beler
Date	1326

Eustace Folville (died 1347 aged almost 60) is credited with killing/assassinating the unpopular Sir Roger de Beler, Baron of the Exchequer and henchman of the despised Hugh le Despencer and ineffective King Edward II. He was the most active member of the Folville Gang who engaged in acts of vigilantism and outlawry in Leicestershire in the early 1300s, often on the behalf of others.

Eustace was the second out of seven sons of Sir John Folville, a respectable member of the gentry who acted on many occasions as a Commissioner or Knighe Shire for both Rutland and Leicestershire. Eustace's elder brother, also Sir John Folville, inherited all of his father's lands in 1309 and kept out of most (but not all) of the law-breaking of his younger brothers.

Upon the death of the well respected King Edward I, aka the "Hammer of the Scots", he was succeeded by his son Edward II who did not inherit his father's abilities. Edward II promoted a young French knight called Piers Gaveston ahead of the existing aristocracy and his corruption and abusive nature meant that relations between the King and his subjects soon broke down. Piers was exiled but returned and was executed by Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster in 1312.

Gaveston was soon replaced in the affections of the king by another knight, Hugh Despenser the Younger. Despencer's greed and corruption became rampant and relations between him and the baronage disintegrated and resulted in the Despenser War of 1321-22, led by the Marcher Lords Roger Mortimer and Humphrey de Bohun. This culminated in the Battle of Boroughbridge on 16 March 1322 which was won by the King and Despencer and saw Gaveston's killer, Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster (King Edward's cousin), himself executed.

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Wikipedia