Notes:

He was the son of Gilbert, Comte de Brionne and Gunnora d'Aunou. He married Rohese Giffard, daughter of Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville and Agnes Ermentrude Fleitel, circa 1054. He died circa 1090. He was buried at St. Neots, Huntingdonshire, England.

He was also known as Richard de Clare. He gained the title of Lord of Bienfaite [Normandy]. Richard fitz Gilbert also went by the nick-name of Richard de Bienfaite. He gained the title of Lord of Orbec [Normandy]. Circa 1066 he accompanied William the Conqueror to England. He received 176 Lordships, 95 in Suffolk. He was created 1st Lord of Clare [feudal baron]. In 1075 He helped to suppress the revolt. He held the office of Joint Chief Justiciar. He has an extensive biographical entry in the Dictionary of National Biography.

Dictionary of National Biography

Clare, Richard de d. 1090?, founder of the house of Clare, was a son [see Clare, family of] of Count Gilbert. Though here, for convenience, inserted among the Clares, he was known at the time as Richard de Bienfaite, Richard the son of Count Gilbert, Richard FitzGilbert, or Richard of Tonbridge, the last three of these styles being those under which he appears in Domesday. He is, however, once entered (in the Suffolk invasiones) as Richard de Clare (Domesday, ii. 448 a). It was probably in 1070 that, with his brother, he witnessed a charter of William at Salisbury (Glouc. Cart. i. 387). On William's departure for Normandy he was appointed, with William of Warrenne, chief justiciar (or regent), and in that capacity took a leading part in the suppression of the revolt of 1075 (Ord. Vit. ii. 262). He is further found in attendance on the king at Berkeley, Christmas 1080 (Glouc. Cart. i. 374), and again, with his brother, at Winchester in 1081 (Mon. Angl. iii. 141). The date of his death is somewhat uncertain. Ordericus (iii. 371) alludes to him as lately (nuper) dead in 1091, yet apparently implies that at this very time he was captured at the siege of Courcy. From Domesday we learn that he received in England some hundred and seventy lordships, of which ninety-five were in Suffolk, attached to his castle of Clare. In Kent he held another stronghold, the castle of Tunbridge, with its appendant Lowy (Lega), of which the continuator of William of Jumièges asserts (viii. 37) that he received it in exchange for his claim on his father's comté of Brionne, while the Tintern Genealogia (Monasticon Anglican. v. 269) states that he obtained it by exchange from the see of Canterbury, which is confirmed by the fact that, in later days, it was claimed by Becket as having been wrongly alienated, and homage for its tenure exacted from the earls (Materials, iii. 47, 251). By Stapleton (ii. 136) and Ormerod (Strig. 79) it has been held that he received the lordship of Chepstow as an escheat in 1075, but for this there is no foundation. The abbey of Bec received from him a cell, afterwards an alien priory, at Tooting (Mon. Angl. vi. 1052-3). He married Rohaise, the daughter of Walter Giffard the elder (Ord. Vit. iii. 340), through whom his descendants became coheirs to the Giffard estates. She held lands at St. Neot's (Domesday), and there founded a religious house, where her husband is said to have been buried (Mon. Angl. v. 269). She was still living as his widow in 1113 (ib. iii. 473), and is commonly, but wrongly, said to have married her son-in-law, Eudes the sewer (Eudo Dapifer). By her Richard FitzGilbert left several children (Ord. Vit. iii. 340). Of these Roger, mentioned first by Ordericus, was probably the eldest, though he is commonly, as by Stapleton (ii. 136), styled the second. He had sided with Robert in the revolt of 1077-8 (Ord. Vit. ii. 381), and is said by the continuator of William of Jumièges (viii. 37) to have received from Robert the castle of Hommez in exchange for his claims on Brionne, but it was, according to Ordericus (iii. 343), his cousin Robert FitzBaldwin who made and pressed the claim to Brionne. Roger, who witnessed as Roger de Clare (apparently the earliest occurrence of the name) a charter to St. Evreul (Ord. Vit. v. 180) about 1080, was his father's heir in Normandy, but left no issue. The other sons were Gilbert (d. 1115?) [qv.], the heir in England, Walter [see Clare, Walter de], Robert, said to be ancestor of the Barons FitzWalter (but on this descent see Mr. Eyton's criticisms in Add. MS. 31938, f. 98), and Richard a monk of Bec (Ord. Vit. iii. 340), who was made abbot of Ely on the accession of Henry I (ib. iv. 93), deprived in 1102, and restored in 1107 (Eadmer, v. 143, 185). There was also a daughter Rohaise, married about 1088 to Eudes the sewer (Mon. Angl. iv. 609).

Sources:

Ordericus Vitalis, ed. Société de l'Histoire de France
William of Jumièges and his Continuator
Domesday
Monasticon Anglicanum (new ed.)
Eadmeri Historia (Rolls Ser.)
Cartulary of St. Peter's, Gloucester (ib.)
Materials for the History of Becket (ib.)
Add. MSS. (Brit. Mus.)
Stapleton's Rolls of the Norman Exchequer
Ormerod's Strigulensia.

Contributor: J. H. R. [John Horace Round]

Published: 1887

Richard fitz Gilbert (c. 1030 - 1091), was a Norman lord who participated in the Norman conquest of England in 1066. He was also known as "de Bienfaite", "de Clare", and "de Tonbridge".

Biography

According to the medieval chronicler Gerald of Wales, the first of this great family, Richard de Clare, was the eldest son of Gilbert, surnamed Crispin, Count of Brionne, in Normandy. This Richard fitz-Gilbert came into England with William the Conqueror, and received from him great advancement in honour and possessions.

The Dictionary of National Biography and other sources are vague and sometimes contradictory about when the name de Clare came into common usuage, but what we do know is that Richard fitz Gilbert (of Tonbridge), the earliest identifiable progenitor of the family, is once referred to as Richard of Clare in the Suffolk return of the Domesday Book.

Rewards

He was rewarded with 176 lordships and large grants of land in England, including the right to build the castles of Clare and of Tonbridge. Richard fitz Gilbert received the lordship of Clare, in Suffolk, where parts of the wall of Clare Castle still stand. He was thus Lord of Clare. Some contemporaneous and later sources called him Earl of Clare, though many modern sources view the title as a "styled title".

He served as Joint Chief Justiciar in William's absence, and played a major part in suppressing the revolt of 1075.

Rebel Baron

On William's death, Richard and other great Norman barons, including Odo of Bayeux, Robert, Count of Mortain , William fitz Osbern and Geoffrey of Coutances, led a rebellion against the rule of William Rufus in order to place Robert Curthose on the throne. However, most Normans in England remained loyal. William Rufus and his army successfully attacked the rebel strongholds at Tonbridge, Pevensey and Rochester.

Death and succession

He was buried in St. Neot's Priory in 1091. His widow was still living in 1113. His lands were inherited by his son, Gilbert fitz Richard.

Family

He was the son of Gilbert "Crispin", Count of Brionne, grandson of Richard I of Normandy. In spite of this, sources as far back as the Annals of the Four Masters claim that Richard's great-grandson, Richard "Strongbow", was the direct descendant of Robert "the Devil", father of William the Conqueror.

Richard married Rohese Giffard, daughter of Sir Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville and Agnes Flaitel, and had the following children:

Walter de Clare, Lord of Nether Gwent, d. 1138
Richard fitz Richard de Clare, Abbot of Ely, d. 1107
Roger fitz Richard de Clare, received Norman lands and d. 1131, apparently without issue
Gilbert fitz Richard, d. 1115, succeeded his father as Earl of Clare
Robert fitz Richard, Lord of Little Dunmow, Baron of Baynard, d. 1136
Rohese de Clare, d. 1121, m. (ca. 1088), Eudo de Rie.
Adelize de Clare, d. 1138. m. Walter Tirel

Surrey

Richard's Surrey lands had a value of £241: 30% of the value of his English lands. Within Surrey, Richard fitz Gilbert owned manors in the following places: Albury, Beddington, Bletchingley, Buckland, Chelsham, Chessington, Chipstead, Chivington, Effingham, Apps in Elmbridge, Farleigh, Immerworth (Kingston upon Thames), Long Ditton, Mickleham, Molesey, Ockley, Old Malden, Shalford, Streatham, Tandridge, Tolworth, Tooting, Walton-on-Thames, Warlingham, Tillingdon, and Woldingham.

Richard married Rohese Giffard Abt 1054. Rohese (daughter of Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville and Agnes Ermentrude Fleitel) was born 1034, Longueville, Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France. [Group Sheet]

1. Robert fitz Richard died 1134.
2. Roger fitz Richard
3. Gilbert Fitz Richard was born Bef 1066, Clare, Suffolk, England; died 1114.

Other Events:

• Name:

Notes:

He is the son of Godfrey, Comte de Brionne. He married Gunnora d'Aunou. He gained the title of Comte de Brionne [Normandy]. Benefactor of the Abbey of Bec in Normandy. He was also known as Gilbert 'Crispin' de Brionne.

Gilbert (or Giselbert) (1000-1040) was a Norman noble, Count of Eu, and Count of Brionne in northern France.

Parentage

Gilbert was son of Geoffrey, Count of Eu (b. 962) who was an illegitimate child of Richard the Fearless.

Life

He inherited Brionne, becoming one of the most powerful landowners in Normandy. He married Gunnora d'Aunou in 1012. He had children by his wife and a mistress.

Gilbert was a generous benefactor to Bec Abbey founded by his former knight Herluin in 1031.

When Robert II, Duke of Normandy died in 1035 his illegitimate son William inherited his father's title. Several leading Normans, including Gilbert of Brionne, Osbern the Seneschal and Alan of Brittany, became William's guardians.

Death

A number of Norman barons including Raoul de Gacé would not accept an illegitimate son as their leader. In 1040 an attempt was made to kill William but the plot failed. Gilbert however was murdered while he was peaceably riding near Eschafour. It is believed two of his killers were Ralph of Wacy and Robert de Vitot. This appears to have been an act of vengeance for wrongs inflicted upon the orphan children of Giroie by Gilbert, and it is not clear what Raoul de Gacé had to do in the business. Fearing they might meet their father's fate, his sons Richard and his brother Baldwin were conveyed by their friends to the court of Baldwin, Count of Flanders.

Children

Gilbert was ancestor of the English house of de Clare, of the Barons Fitz Walter, and the Earls of Gloucester and Hertford.
Sir Richard Fitz Gilbert(Richard de Clare) (1030-1091), m. Rohese Giffard (1034-aft. 1113)
Baldwin FitzGilbert (d. 1090)

Gilbert married Gunnora d'Aunou 1012. Gunnora was born Abt 984, Normandy, France. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Name:
• Name:

Notes:

Geoffrey of Brionne (962 - died after 1023), was Count of Eu and Brionne in the early eleventh century.

Biography

Although he was an illegitimate son of Duke Richard I of Normandy, we know very little of his life. The name of his mother is unknown.

According to Robert Torigni, Geoffrey probably received the title of Count of Eu from his half-brother, Duke Richard II. Whether he was given the title of Count of Brionne is doubtful. Orderic Vitalis wrote that Geoffrey's father gave him the castle and the county of Brionne, Robert Torigni speaks instead of a simple assignment of the fortress, according to the last testament of Richard II.

Marriage and children

By an unknown wife, he had a son:

Gilbert, Count of Brionne, who succeeded him as head of the county of Eu.

Geoffrey of Brionne (962 - c. 1010), also called Godfrey was Count of Eu and Brionne[a] in the late tenth and early eleventh centuries.

Life

He was an illegitimate son of Duke Richard I of Normandy, by an unnamed concubine. The county of Eu was an appanage created for Geoffrey by his brother Richard II of Normandy in 996 as part of Richard's policy of granting honors and titles for cadet members of his family. The citadel of Eu played a critical part of the defense of Normandy[3]; the castle and walled town were on the river Bresle, just two miles from the English Channel. It had long been an embarkation point for England and in time of war was often one of the first place attacked.

The castle of Brionne had been held by the Dukes of Normandy as one of their own homes but Richard II also made a gift of Brionne to his half-brother Geoffrey, who held it for life passing it to his son Gilbert and was only returned to the demesne of the Duke after his murder.

Both Geoffrey (Godfrey) and his son Gilbert are styled counts in a diploma to Lisieux given by Duke Richard II, but without territorial designations. Geoffrey died c. 1010.

Issue

Geoffrey was the father of:

Gilbert, Count of Brionne, who succeeded his father as Count of Eu & Brionne.

Other Events:

• Name:

Notes:

Richard I, 3rd Duc de Normandie was born on 28 August 933 at Fecamp, Normandy, France. He was the son of Guillaume I 'Longsword', 2nd Duc de Normandie and Sprota. He married, firstly, Emma de Paris, daughter of Hugues of Neustria, Comte de Paris and Hedwig von Sachsen, in 960. He married, secondly, Gunnor de Crêpon, daughter of unknown de Crepon, in 962. He died on 20 November 996 at age 63 at Fecamp, Normandy, France. Richard I, 3rd Duc de Normandie also went by the nick-name of Richard 'the Fearless' (French, Sans Peur). He succeeded to the title of 3rd Duc de Normandie on 17 December 942; he is considered the first to have held that title.

Birth

He was born to William I of Normandy, ruler of Normandy, and Sprota. He was 10 years old when his father died on 17 December 942. His mother was a Breton concubine captured in war and bound to William by a Danish marriage. After William died, Sprota became the wife of Esperleng, a wealthy miller; Rodulf of Ivry was their son and Richard's half-brother.

Life

When his father died, Louis IV of France seized Normandy and split the lands, giving lands in lower Normandy to Hugh the Great. Louis kept Richard in confinement at Lâon, but he escaped with the assistance of Osmond de Centville, Bernard de Senlis (who had been a companion of Rollo of Normandy), Ivo de Bellèsme, and Bernard the Dane (ancestor of families of Harcourt and Beaumont).

In 946, Richard agreed to "commend" himself to Hugh, Count of Paris. He then allied himself with the Norman and Viking leaders, drove Louis out of Rouen, and took back Normandy by 947. The rest of his reign was mainly peaceful, apart from conflict with Theobald I, Count of Blois marked by the restoration of Church lands and monasteries.

Richard cemented his alliance with Hugh by marrying his daughter Emma. When Hugh died, Richard became vassal to his son Hugh Capet who became king in 987. Although married to Emma, they produced no offspring. His children were from his relationship with Gonnor, a woman of Danish origin who gave him an heir, Richard.

He quarrelled with Ethelred II of England regarding Danish invasions of England because Normandy had been buying up much of the stolen booty.

Richard was bilingual, having been well educated at Bayeux. He was more partial to his Danish subjects than to the Franks. During his reign, Normandy became completely Gallicized and Christianized. He introduced the feudal system and Normandy became one of the most thoroughly feudalized states on the continent. He carried out a major reorganization of the Norman military system, based on heavy cavalry.

Marriages

His first marriage (960) was to Emma, daughter of Hugh "The Great" of France, and Hedwiga de Sachsen. (She is not to be confused with Emma of France.) They were betrothed when both were very young. She died 19 March 968, with no issue.

Richard & his children

According to Robert of Torigni, not long after Emma's death, Duke Richard went out hunting and stopped at the house of a local forester. He became enamoured of the forester's wife, Seinfreda, but she being a virtuous woman, suggested he court her unmarried sister, Gunnor, instead. Gunnor became his mistress, and her family rose to prominence. Her brother, Herefast de Crepon, may have been involved in a controversial heresy trial. Gunnor was, like Richard, of Norse descent, being a Dane by blood. Richard finally married her to legitimize their children:

Richard II "the Good", Duke of Normandy (996), died 1026.
Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, Count of Evreux, died 1037.
Mauger, Earl of Corbeil, died after 1033
Robert Danus, died between 985 and 989
another son (On tapestry name looks like Lillam, Gillam, Willam)
Emma of Normandy (c.985-1052) wife of two kings of England.
Maud of Normandy, wife of Odo II of Blois, Count of Blois, Champagne and Chartres
Hawise of Normandy (b. ca. 978), d. 21 February 1034. m. Geoffrey I, Duke of Brittany

Mistresses

Richard was known to have had several other mistresses and produced children with many of them. Known children are:

Geoffrey, Count of Eu, (b. ca. 970)
William, Count of Eu (ca. 972-26 January 1057/58)[2] m. Leseline de Turqueville (d. 26 January 1057/58).
Beatrice of Normandy, Abbess of Montvilliers d.1034 m. Ebles of Turenne (d.1030 (divorced)
Robert
"Papia" m. Gilbert de St Valery (based on a claim his wife as a daughter of "Richard of Normandy" -- the only Richard who chronologically fits is Richard I. Name is not confirmed in any source. ref)

Possible other children

Late chroniclers claimed that two of the De Hautevilles of Naples/Sicily were nephews of "Duke Richard". As the two were children of Tancred of Hauteville by different mothers, this would mean that both of Tancred's wives had been sisters of a Duke Richard, and by chronology, of Richard II, although this is not backed up by contemporary source. If true, Richard would have had at least two more illegitimate children:

Fressenda (ca. 995-ca. 1057)
Muriella

Death

He died in Fecamp, France on 20 November 996 of natural causes.

Richard I of Normandy (933-996), also known as Richard the Fearless (French, Sans Peur), was the Duke of Normandy from 942 to 996. He was called dux by Dudo of Saint-Quentin, who Richard commissioned to write his De moribus et actis primorum Normanniae ducum (Concerning the Customs and Deeds of the First Dukes of the Normans), but this use of the word dux may have been in the context of a war leader and not a title. If he didn’t introduce feudalism into Normandy he greatly expanded it. By the end of his reign most important landholders held their lands in feudal tenure.

Birth

He was born to William I of Normandy, princeps[4] or ruler of Normandy, and Sprota. He was also the grandson of the famous Rollo.He was about 10 years old when his father was killed on 17 December 942. His mother was a Breton concubine captured in war and bound to William by a Danish marriage. William was told of the birth of a son after the battle with Riouf and other Viking rebels, but his existence was kept secret until a few years later when William Longsword first met his son Richard. After kissing the boy and declaring him his heir, William sent Richard to be raised in Bayeux. After William was killed, Sprota became the wife of Esperleng, a wealthy miller; Rodulf of Ivry was their son and Richard's half-brother.

Life

When his father died, Louis IV of France seized Normandy, installed the boy Richard in his father's office, then placed him in the care of the count of Ponthieu. The king then split the lands, giving lands in lower Normandy to Hugh the Great. Louis kept Richard in confinement at Lâon, but he escaped with the assistance of Osmond de Centville, Bernard de Senlis (who had been a companion of Rollo of Normandy), Ivo de Bellèsme, and Bernard the Dane (ancestor of families of Harcourt and Beaumont).

In 946, Richard agreed to "commend" himself to Hugh, Count of Paris. He then allied himself with the Norman and Viking leaders, drove Louis out of Rouen, and took back Normandy by 947.

In 962 Theobald I, Count of Blois attacked Rouen, Richard’s stronghold, but his army was defeated by the Normans and retreated never having crossed the Seine. Lothair king of the West Franks stepped in to prevent any further war between the two.

Afterwards and until his death in 996 Richard concentrated on Normandy itself and had less dealings in Frankish politics and petty wars. He built up the Norman Empire not by expansion, but by stabilizing and uniting his followers into a cohesive and formidable principality.

Richard used marriage to build strong alliances . His marriage to Emma connected him to the Capet family. His wife Gunnor, from a rival Viking group in the Cotentin, formed an alliance to that group, while her sisters form the core group that was to provide loyal followers to him and his successors. His daughters provided valuable marriage alliances with powerful neighboring counts as well as to the king of England.

He also built on his relationship with the church, restoring their lands and insured the great monasteries flourished. His reign was marked by an extended period of peace and tranquility.

Marriages

His first marriage (960) was to Emma, daughter of Hugh "The Great" of France, and Hedwiga de Sachsen. They were betrothed when both were very young. She died after 19 March 968, with no issue.

Richard & his children

According to Robert of Torigni, not long after Emma's death, Duke Richard went out hunting and stopped at the house of a local forester. He became enamoured of the forester's wife, Seinfreda, but she being a virtuous woman, suggested he court her unmarried sister, Gunnor, instead. Gunnor became his mistress, and her family rose to prominence. Her brother, Herefast de Crepon, may have been involved in a controversial heresy trial. Gunnor was, like Richard, of Norse descent, being a Dane by blood. Richard finally married her to legitimize their children:

Richard II "the Good", Duke of Normandy
Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, Count of Evreux
Mauger, Earl of Corbeil
Emma of Normandy, wife of two kings of England
Maud of Normandy, wife of Odo II of Blois, Count of Blois, Champagne and Chartres
Hawise of Normandy m. Geoffrey I, Duke of Brittany
Papia of Normandy
William, Count of Eu

Mistresses

Richard was known to have had several other mistresses and produced children with many of them. Known children are:

Geoffrey, Count of Eu
William, Count of Eu (ca. 972-26 January 1057/58), m. Lasceline de Turqueville (d. 26 January 1057/58).
Beatrice of Normandy, Abbess of Montvilliers d.1034 m. Ebles of Turenne (d.1030 (divorced)
"Papia"

Other claims

The two wives of Tancred of Hauteville were claimed to be daughters of 'Richard of Normandy' (either I or II), although sources are late and considered untrustworthy.

Fressenda or Fredesenda (ca. 995-ca. 1057)
Muriella

Death

He died in Fecamp, France on 20 November 996.

Richard — Unknown. [Group Sheet]