Walter Devereux (1387–1419)
Walter Devereux assumed a position in the retinue of Henry IV following the death of his father on 25 July 1402 at the Battle of Pilleth. On 13 December 1402 Sir Edmund Mortimer declared his rebellion against Henry IV, but Devereux stayed loyal to the king. He was probably present at the Battle of Shrewsbury on 21 July 1403, and subsequently was knighted. Sir Walter Devereux was placed on a Commission of array for Herefordshire on 8 September 1403 to raise troops for the defense against the king’s enemies who have lately invaded the realm. It is probable that Devereux was present when Henry IV faced off with a combined Welsh and French force in South Wales during the summer of 1405, but no major battle occurred and the English force had dispersed by October of that year. Devereux remained an important supporter of the efforts to suppress the rebellion in Wales as Prince Henry assumed responsibility for the fight. Walter Devereux would be among 14 men below the rank of baron who would be retained for life by Prince Henry (the future Henry V).
Walter Devereux (died 1402)
In the “Wonderful Parliament” of 1 October 1386 Richard II was forced to accept a commission of 11 members to control the royal household for 1 year to counter growing anger with his financial excesses. Walter's cousin and ally, Baron John Devereux, was a member of the commission. The Lords Appellant led this movement and included Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester; Richard FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel; Thomas de Beachamp, Earl of Warwick; and later Henry Bolingbroke, Earl of Derby; and Thomas de Mowbray, Earl of Nottingham. The Earl of Arundel was appointed admiral of the fleet on 10 December 1386, and Sir Walter Devereux served under Captain Sir Thomas Mortimer in his naval expedition. Arundel took command of the fleet on 16 March 1387 at Sandwich, and led them in the Battle of Cadsand on 24 March. Fought off Margate, the English were victorious over a Franco-Flemish fleet ending the threat of a French invasion. The English pursued the remnants of the enemy to Sluis, and then pillaged the surrounding countryside before bringing the fleet back to England on 14 April. They then made another foray to Brest in Brittany before returning to England in June 1387.