Sir Robert Hales ( – 14 June 1381) was Grand Prior of the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there ...

of England,

Lord High Treasurer The Lord High Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Acts of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third-highest-ranked Great Officer of State in England, below the Lord H ...

, and

Admiral of the West The Admiral of the West, also known as Admiral of the Western Seas or Admiral of the Western Fleet, was formerly an History of the Royal Navy, English Navy appointment. The postholder was chiefly responsible for the command of the English navy's ...

. He was killed in the

Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black ...

Career

In 1372 Robert Hales became the Lord/Grand Prior of the Knights Hospitallers of England.

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales (later known as the Black Prince), and Joan, Countess of Kent. R ...

appointed him

, so he was responsible for collecting the hated

poll tax A poll tax, also known as head tax or capitation, is a tax levied as a fixed sum on every liable individual (typically every adult), without reference to income or resources. ''Poll'' is an archaic term for "head" or "top of the head". The sen ...

. He was appointed

from 24 November 1376 to 24 November 1377. He was beheaded on 14 June 1381 on

Tower Hill Tower Hill is the area surrounding the Tower of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher gro ...

during the

. His estate and assets were inherited by his brother, Sir Nicholas de Hales, the progenitor of many prominent English Hales families. Robert Hales was present at many latter-day crusader expeditions, and is recorded as leading a contingent of hospitaller knights at the sacking of Alexandria. Hales was described by the chronicler

Thomas Walsingham Thomas Walsingham (died c. 1422) was an English chronicler, and is the source of much of the knowledge of the reigns of Richard II, Henry IV, Henry V and the latter reign of Edward III depicting the decline of the state of affairs of the E ...

as a "Magnanimous knight, though the Commons loved him not".

Personal life

He was the son of Nicholas Hales and his brother was Sir Nicholas de Hales, who inherited his father's estates in Kent.Burke, John. , -

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hales, Robert 1320s births 1381 deaths English admirals

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

Priors of Saint John of Jerusalem in England People from High Halden Lord high treasurers of England Year of birth uncertain Christians of the Alexandrian Crusade 14th-century English military personnel