On 20th November 1272, the feast day of St Edmund the Martyr, Henry III was buried beside St Edward the Confessor in Westminster Abbey. His funeral was attended by his queen, Eleanor of Provence and many English magnates including Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, Humphrey de Bohun, Earl of Hereford and John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal. None of the king’s living children, Edward, Margaret, Beatrice and Edmund were even in England at this time.

On 20th August 1270, Prince Edward (later Edward I), his brother-in-law John of Brittany and John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal, left England on Crusade, having committed to such the previous year.

On 24th June 1268, John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal, took the cross and vowed to go on crusade to the Holy Land at the urging of Pope Clement IV. John was in illustrious company as Prince Edward (later Edward I), his brother Edmund of Lancaster, their cousin Henry of Almain, their uncle William de Valence, Gilbert de Clare the Earl of Gloucester and numerous other English noblemen similarly made the vow.

In early October 1263, John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal, along with Henry of Almain, the Earl of Norfolk and his brother, Hugh Bigod, and many Marcher lords, deserted Simon de Montfort and rejoined the court party of Henry III at Windsor Castle. After the king’s proclamation that summer that he would observe the Provisions of Oxford, de Montfort’s unworkable demand to expel all foreigners from England and refusal to allow any of his supporters to be brought to justice for that summer’s violence caused many of his supporters to drift away.

On 12th June 1261, John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal, joined Simon de Montfort, the Earls of Gloucester and Norfolk, Norfolk’s brother Hugh Bigod and Hugh Despenser in uniting against Henry III’s rejection of the Provisions of Oxford. Henry had sought Pope Alexander IV’s support in invalidating the Provisions (demanding Henry’s powers be subject to a Council of Fifteen) as an oath that had been forced upon the king ‘by a kind of compulsion’. Henry had published the papal letters on this day in his great hall at Winchester, the feast of Whitsun, one of the three feast days during the year (the others being Easter and Christmas) when the kings of England traditionally summoned their nobles for assembly and feasting.

On 17th April 1239, William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal, was with, amongst others, John de Lacy, the Earls of Derby, Hereford and Essex, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Bishops of Bath, Exeter, Ely, Lincoln, Worcester and Carlisle at the opening of Parliament when a charter was confirmed granting Amaury de Montfort’s transfer to his younger brother Simon of the rights and earldom of Leicester. This was to become a foundation for Simon’s later ‘parliamentary forays’ against Henry III.

On 13th August 1231, William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey and lord of Sandal, along with the Earls of Kent, Chester, Derby, Aumale and Hereford, John de Lacy and various clerics and knights of the royal household were at Castle Matilda in the Marches – the lands between English rule and Wales – to witness Simon de Montfort paying homage to King Henry III. The ritualistic exchange (preserved even now in the English posture of prayer symbolizing homage to the heavenly Lord) between Simon and Henry proceeded: ‘ Sire, I become your man in respect to the tenement I hold of you, and I will bear you fidelity and loyalty in life and limb and earthly honour, and I will bear you fidelity against all men.’ Henry replied: ‘And I receive you as my man and will bear you fidelity as my man’ before kissing Simon, who then delivered his oath with his right hand on a sacred object (Bible or relic).

In early May 1265, John de Warenne, 6th earl of Surrey and owner of Sandal Castle, landed on the coast of Pembrokeshire along with William de Valence and a force of 120 men. John was joining with Gilbert de Clare, the 6th earl of Gloucester – some historians show Gilbert as the 7th earl –  in the ongoing struggle between Simon de Montfort and King Henry III. Gilbert had decided to change sides and withdraw his support of Simon which would eventually lead to Simon’s death at the Battle of Evesham on 4th August 1265. It is not known for sure whether John de Warenne was at the Battle of Evesham, but it is highly likely.

On 22nd August 1263, John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and owner of Sandal Castle, was made Joint Commissioner by Henry III to ‘treat with the Welsh’.

On 30th November 1205, William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey and owner of Sandal Castle, was Joint Envoy and Escort to William, King of Scotland, probably concerning preparation for discussions between William and King John over Northumberland still in English hands.