Resource

B y J. M. W. Bean.
The military exploits of the Percies in the fourteenth century have led to the almost instinctive association of their name with the Border warfare in which the fortress of Alnwick played a very important part. It is, however, wrong to think of the Percies as a Border family throughout their history. They acquired their first Border estates—those of the barony of Alnwick—in the beginning of the fourteenth century. The family had possessed great estates in Yorkshire since the Conquest, while Petworth in Sussex was obtained in the middle of the twelfth century. From the time of the early Normans the lords of Alnwick had been the Vescis.

The last Vesci lord of Alnwick was William Vesci, who died in 1297 without lawful issue. It was his death which eventually gave the Percy family the opportunity to acquire the castle, manor and barony of Alnwick.