Sir Walter de Norwich (died 1329) was an English statesman who served as

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 ...

Chief Baron of the Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who pres ...

and as a

Baron of the Exchequer The Barons of the Exchequer, or ''barones scaccarii'', were the judges of the English court known as the Exchequer of Pleas. The Barons consisted of a Chief Baron of the Exchequer and several puisne (''inferior'') barons. When Robert Shute was ...

between 1311 and 1329.

Early life

Walter de Norwich was possibly the son of Geoffrey de Norwich. Though, other sources have suggested he was the son of Sir John de Norwich, Lord of Mettingham. The first reference to Norwich was in 1297; which stated that he held the manor Stoke,

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

Career

Norwich was in the royal service on 15 March 1308 as a

remembrancer The Remembrancer was originally a subordinate officer of the English Exchequer. The office is of great antiquity, the holder having been termed remembrancer, memorator, rememorator, registrar, keeper of the register, despatcher of business. The R ...

, and on 24 November 1308 he became a clerk of the Exchequer. He became a

on 29 August 1311 but resigned on 23 October to act as

. He became a Baron of the Exchequer again on 3 March 1312 and became

on 8 March 1312. He became lord High Treasurer again on 17 May 1312 whilst retaining his position as Chief Baron, before leaving the position on 4 October 1312. On 26 September 1314, he was appointed Lord High Treasurer and resigned as Chief Baron two days later. He resigned as Lord High Treasurer on 27 May 1317, but became Chief Baron again until at least 1320. In April 1318, in his capacity as a Baron of the Exchequer, Norwich was present at the parliament held in Leicester to attempt a reconciliation between the King and

Thomas of Lancaster Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster ( 1278 – 22 March 1322) was an English nobleman of the first House of Lancaster of the royal House of Plantagenet, Plantagenet Dynasty. He was Earl of Lancaster, Earl of Leicester, Leicester, and Earl of Derby, D ...

. He again served as Lord High Treasurer from 29 September 1319 to 18 February 1320. In 1321, Norwich was a judge in the trial of Roger Mortimer of Chirk and of Roger Mortimer of Wigmore. He became Chief Baron again on 2 February 1327 under new king

Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

, despite his condemnation of the Mortimers whose sentences were both eventually cancelled.

Personal life and death

Norwich was married to Catherine, daughter of John de Hedersett and widow of Peter Bracuhe. They had three sons:

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, Roger and Thomas. Their son,

, became a Member of Parliament (MP). Their daughter, Margaret, married firstly to Sir Thomas Cailey and then to Robert Ufford, 1st Earl of Suffolk. Walter de Norwich died in 1329 and was buried in

Norwich Cathedral Norwich Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Norwich and the mother church of the dioc ...

. He was survived by his wife.

References

{{House of Plantagenet Lord High Treasurers Lord high treasurers of England 1329 deaths 14th-century government officials