Titles:
Earl of Pembroke (1189 m - 1st)

William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146–1219) was an English aristocrat and statesman. He has been described as the "greatest knight that ever lived" (Stephen Langton). Before him, the hereditary title of "Lord Marshal" designated a sort of head of household security for the king of England; by the time he died, when people in Europe (not just Britain) said, "the Marshal," they meant William.

When William was five or six, his father's castle was being besieged by King Stephen, who offered a truce for negotiations on condition that William serve as a hostage. His father agreed, then broke the truce by re-provisioning the castle and bringing in reinforcements. When told by the king's messenger that William had to die, his father--with four older sons--said that he still had the anvil and hammers to forge better sons. Fortunately for William, Stephen spared his life.

William was as renowned in his day as professional athletes are now. In fact, William was the 12th century equivalent for several years in his youth, enjoying spectacular success at tournaments and becoming rich from his winnings. William was the subject of one of the first English popular biographies, "The Story of William Marshall", which appeared shortly after his death. It makes frequent mention of the value of particular war horses, much the way later biographies of sporting figures would describe cars, and includes tournament statistics.

William witnessed the signing of the Magna Carta,

Regent of England for three years during the minority of King Henry III.

As King John lay dying, he entrusted the care of his son Henry III to William Marshall, saying, "In his loyalty, above that of any man, I put my trust."

He served the kings of England for forty-nine years: through the rest of Henry II's reign, all of Richard I's, all of John's, and three years into that of Henry III.

A character in Shakespeare's play, King John.

Portrayed by Nigel Stock in the 1968 film, "Lion in Winter".