Valence, Aymer de, earl of Pembroke (c.1270–1324). Valence's father William was a half-brother of Henry III, being a son of John's widow Isabella by her second marriage, and came to England in 1247. He fought on the king's side in the baronial wars and commanded against the Welsh in the 1280s. Aymer de Valence inherited in 1296 and spent his early years campaigning in Scotland, fighting at Falkirk (1298) and defeating Robert I Bruce at Methven in 1306. The following year he was himself defeated by Bruce at Loudoun Hill. In 1307 he was recognized as earl of Pembroke by virtue of his mother, a granddaughter of William Marshal, earl of Pembroke (d. 1219). In Edward II's reign he was at first an Ordainer but switched to the king's side after the murder of Gaveston, who was seized from his custody. He fought with the king at Bannockburn and was subsequently employed watching the Scots and on diplomatic missions. His widow founded Pembroke College, Cambridge.

J. A. Cannon

Methven, battle of, 1306. On 19 June 1306 a small force under Robert I Bruce was surprised and routed at Methven, near Perth, by an army commanded by Aymer de Valence, earl of Pembroke, acting for Edward I. Bruce fled, his wife and young daughter were captured, and his brother Neil subsequently taken prisoner and hanged at Berwick. But within a year Bruce regained the initiative.

J. A. Cannon