Individual Details

William Malet II, Magna Carta Baron

(Bef 1175 - 1217)



Magna Carta Surety, 1215.

Sheriff of Somerset, Devon & Dorset, 1209.
Held the barony of Curry Mallet, Somerset.

William Malet (fl. born before 1175–1215) was one of the guarantors of Magna Carta. Also known as William II Malet. He was lord of Curry Mallet and Shepton Mallet in Somerset, and served as High Sheriff of Somerset and Dorset for 1209. The precise nature of his relationship to the earlier Malets is disputed. His first wife is unknown. His second wife was Alice Basset, daughter of Thomas Basset.

http://www.brookfieldpublishing.com/Barons/Barons/baron_william_malet.htm
WILLIAM MALET, the Surety, was mentioned as a minor in the year 1194, in connection with an expedition made that year into Normandy. His principal estate was Curry-Malet. From 1210 to 1214 he was sheriff of counties Somerset and Dorset. He then joined the Barons against King John and became one of the Sureties. He had lands in four counties which were confiscated and given to his son-in-law, Hugh de Vivonia, Thomas Basset, and to his father-in-law, and Malet was excommunicated by the Pope in 1216. He was also fined 2,000 marks, but the sum was not paid until after his death, and at that time 1,000 marks were remitted, being found due to him for military service to King John in Poitou. It is interesting to note that there were five contemporary relatives named Malet, all of whom held lands in England or in Jersey. William Malet died about 1217, having married Mabel, called also Alice and Aliva, daughter of Thomas Basset of Headington. Nothing now remains of Malet's estate of Curry-Malet.

Wikipedia:
Like knights, baronets use the style "Sir" before their Christian name. Baronetesses in their own right use "Dame", while wives of baronets use "Lady", followed by the husband's surname, by longstanding courtesy. However, unlike knighthoods - which apply to an individual only - a baronetcy is hereditary. The eldest son of a baronet who is born in wedlock succeeds to the baronetcy upon the death of his father, but he will not be officially recognised until his name is on the Roll. With a few exceptions granted at creation by special remainder in the Letters Patent, baronetcies can be inherited only by or through males. Wives of baronets are not baronetesses; only females holding baronetcies in their own right are baronetesses.
A full list of extant baronets appears in Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, which also covers some extinct baronetcies.
A baronetcy is not a peerage, so baronets, like knights, are commoners as opposed to noblemen. According to the Home Office there is a tangible benefit to the honour. According to law, a baronet is entitled to have "a pall supported by two men, a principal mourner and four others" assisting at his funeral. Originally baronets also had other rights, including the right to have the eldest son knighted on his 21st birthday. However, beginning in the reign of George IV, these rights have been gradually revoked by Order in Privy Council on the grounds that sovereigns should not be bound by acts made by their predecessors.

The Malet Baronetcy, of Wilbury in the County of Wiltshire, is a title in the Baronetage of Great Britain. It was created on 24 February 1791 for Charles Malet, for diplomatic services in India.[2] The second Baronet was Minister to the German Confederation from 1852 to 1866. The fourth Baronet was Ambassador to Germany between 1884 and 1895. The eighth Baronet was a Colonel in the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars and High Sheriff of Somerset from 1966 to 1967.
The Malet (pronounced "Mallet") family is of great antiquity. William Malet accompanied William the Conqueror to England. His son Robert Malet was the first Lord Great Chamberlain of England. William Malet was one of the guarantors of the Magna Carta. Sir Baldwin Malet was Solicitor-General to Henry VIII. Sir Thomas Malet was to be created a Baronet for his services during the Civil War but died before the patent had passed the Great Seal.

George Washington apparently also descended from William Malet, through the daughter Mabel.

Events

BirthBef 1175Curry Mallet, Somerset, England
Magna Carta Surety15 Jun 1215Kay's Magna Carta Surety - Baron
Death1217
Marriage[Malet]

Families

SpouseAlice Basset ( - )
Spouse[Malet] ( - )
ChildHawise Malet ( - 1287)
ChildMabel Malet (1194 - 1249)
ChildBertha Malet (1197 - 1221)
FatherGilbert Malet ( - 1194)
MotherAlice Picot ( - )