Peter de Montfort
| Peter de Montfort | |
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Arms of Peter de Montfort: Bendy of eight or and azure, as shown on the Dering Roll (1270/80)
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| Prolocutor of the English Parliament | |
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In office 1258–1264 |
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| Monarch | Henry III |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1205 |
| Died | 4 August 1265 (aged 59–60) Battle of Evesham |
| Spouse(s) | Alice Audley |
| Children |
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| Mother | daughter of William I de Cantilupe |
| Father | Thurstan de Montfort |
Peter de Montfort (or Piers de Montfort) (c. 1205 – 4 August 1265) of Beaudesert Castle was an English magnate, soldier and diplomat. He is the first person recorded as having presided over Parliament as a parlour or prolocutor, an office now known as Speaker of the House of Commons. He was one of those elected by the barons to represent them during the constitutional crisis with Henry III in 1258. He was later a leading supporter of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, against the King. Both he and Simon de Montfort were slain at the Battle of Evesham on 4 August 1265.
Peter de Montfort was the son of Thurstan de Montfort (d.1216) by a daughter of William I de Cantilupe (d.1239) of Aston Cantilupe, Warwickshire, Steward of the Household to King John.
Montfort's principal estate was at Beaudesert Castle near Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire, said to have been built by an earlier Thurstan de Montfort (died c.1170) on land granted by his great-uncle, Henry de Newburgh, Earl of Warwick; in 1141 Thurstan de Montfort had from the Empress Maud a charter for a market to be held at the castle every Sunday. It is thought to have been Peter de Montfort who walled the inner bailey in stone, work said to have been completed in January 1216.
After his father's death, Peter de Montfort's wardship was granted by King John to his grandfather, William I de Cantilupe (d.1239), and during that time Montfort developed a lasting friendship with his uncle, Walter de Cantilupe, Bishop of Worcester from 1238 to 1266. In 1236 he made a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella in the company of another of his uncles, William II de Cantilupe (d.1251). In 1242 he attended Henry III on an expedition to Poitou. At some earlier date, he took part in a prohibited tournament at Cambridge, as a result of which the King took his lands from him; they were restored in 1245.
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