Roger Mortimer
From Ex illis wiki
(B. 1287, 22 years old in 1309)
Earl of Cornwall (1304-1308), Lord of Cornwall (1308-)
Roger Mortimer is the young Earl of Cornwall. He is born in Hereford, where his father possesses small lands. When the latter dies in 1302, Mortimer is not old enough to take care of himself. Piers Gaveston is given the wardship of his land by King Edward I.
Young Roger Mortimer fights for the English army during the Battle of Basingstoke as his uncle's squire , Roger Mortimer of Chirk, and refuses to follow Edward II and the young knights when they desert the battlefield, bored by the wait. He battles bravely against the Normans, and King Edward notices his courage and good fighting skills.
On the King’s return to London after he hunts down his son in Cornwall, Roger Mortimer is granted the vacant earldom of Cornwall, first entitled to Piers Gaveston, newly banished from the kingdom of England. He is also knighted at the young age of eighteen years old in 1305. From this moment on, he becomes one of the most popular barons at the royal court, and the eyes of Prince Edward’s beautiful young wife often fall on him. He finally declares himself, and they begin a secret affair.
When Prince regent Edward calls Gaveston back in 1308, Roger Mortimer proclaims the independence of his earldom, influenced by his mistress, the fiery-tempered Isabelle of France.
In 1309, he is preparing to resist Gaveston's future assault on his land, hoping he will be able to win the day.
