Walter de Huntercombe, 1st Baron Huntercombe


Walter de Huntercombe, 1st Baron Huntercombe was an English military commander during the Wars of Scottish Independence and a Governor of Edinburgh Castle.
Around 1283 Huntercombe took part in a military expedition into Wales which was part of the wider Conquest of Wales by Edward I. On 4 June 1290, Huntercombe took possession of the Isle of Man for King Edward I; the island had previously been under the control of the Scots. In early 1293 Edward I ordered Huntercombe to relinquish the island to John Balliol, the King of Scots. and Edward's vassal.
In 1294 Edward summoned Huntercombe to Portsmouth because of the French occupation of the Duchy of Gascony. In June 1295 he was rewarded for his service by being created Baron Huntercombe. His arms were ermine, two bars gemells gules.

The Wars of Scottish Independence

In 1296 and 1297 Huntercombe took part in the Wars of Scottish Independence. By his own testimony, he was at the Capture of Berwick with 20 mailed horses, and at the Battle of Stirling Bridge with 32 horses. In 1298 he was appointed Governor of Edinburgh Castle. Huntercombe was also appointed Sheriff of Edinburgh, Linlithgow and Haddington. In 1307 he successfully petitioned the King to be released from the duty to pay scutage for the two Scottish wars, in addition to being granted permission to levy scutage from his tenants. Huntercombe argued for these privileges on the basis that he had served in both wars.
Huntercombe died in 1313 without issue, and his barony became extinct.