Eunice — Roger de Pitres. [Group Sheet]

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Walter de Gloucester (also Walter FitzRoger or Walter de Pitres) (1065-1129) was an early Norman official of the King of England during the early years of the Norman conquest of the South Welsh Marches.

Lineage

He was the only son of Roger de Pitres and his wife, Eunice de Balun.

Titles

Walter de Gloucester was hereditary High Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 1097 and from 1104 to 1121 and lived in Gloucester Castle of which he was constable, making improvements to this early fortification.

In 1121 he retired to become a monk at Llantony Abbey and was succeeded by his son Miles.

Family

He was married to Bertha, a relative of Hamelin de Balun. They were the parents of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford and a daughter, Matilda, who married a Richard Fitz Pons.

Walter — Bertha de Ballun. [Group Sheet]

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Miles FitzWalter of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford, Lord of Brecknock (1100 - 24 December 1143) was the son of Walter of Gloucester, who served as hereditary sheriff of that county between 1104 and 1121.

Miles (sometimes Latinized Milo) succeeded his father about the latter year. He was high in the service of Henry I between 1128 and 1135. He was appointed Sheriff of Staffordshire (1128-1130) and Sheriff of Herefordshire (1128-1135). He was Constable of England and combined the hereditary office of Sheriff of Gloucester with that of local justiciar for Gloucestershire.

Miles founded Llanthony Secunda Priory, Gloucester, in 1136.

Civil war allegiances

After the death of King Henry he declared for Stephen, at whose court he appears as constable in 1136. King Stephen granted him the honour of Gloucester and Brecknock. However, in 1139, when the empress Matilda appeared in England, he declared for her, and placed the city of Gloucester at her disposal; he was further distinguished by sacking the nearby royalist city of Worcester, attacking Stephen's siege works at Wallingford Castle and reducing the county of Hereford. He was retained as her Constable.

Earldom

In 1141, he was rewarded with the earldom of Hereford when Matilda ruled the country. He remained loyal to the Empress after her defeat at Winchester the same year. John of Salisbury classes him with Geoffrey de Mandeville and others who were non tam comites regni quam hostes publici. The charge is justified by his public policy; but the materials for appraising his personal character do not exist.

Family and children

He married Sibyl de Neufmarché, daughter of Bernard de Neufmarché, Lord of Brecon and Nest, granddaughter of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, in 1121. Their children were:

Margaret de Gloucester, married Humphrey II de Bohun, by whom she had issue.
Bertha of Hereford, married William de Braose before 1150, by whom she had issue.
Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford. Hereditary Sheriff of Gloucestershire until 1155.
Walter de Hereford died after 1159 in the Holy Land. He was hereditary Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 1155-1157 and High Sheriff of Herefordshire in 1155-1159.
Henry Fitzmiles Henry of Hereford, died 12 April 1165. He succeeded to the title of Baron Abergavenny in 1141/42.
William de Hereford. He died before 1160 without issue.
Mahel de Hereford, died October 1165 at Bronllys Castle, Breconshire, Wales, mortally hurt when a stone dropped from the tower during a fire; died without issue. Buried at Llanthony Priory.
Lucy of Gloucester, married Herbert FitzHerbert of Winchester, Lord Chamberlain, by whom she had issue. Buried at Llanthony Priory.

Miles was accidentally killed by an arrow while deer hunting in the Forest of Dean in 1143. He was succeeded by his eldest son Roger, who died childless. The grandson of his daughter Margaret was later granted the recreated Earldom.

Miles married Sybil de Neufmarché Abt May 1121. Sybil (daughter of Bernard de Neufmarché, Lord of Brecon and Nest) was born Abt 1100, Brecon, Breconshire, Wales; died Aft 1143, Hempsted, Gloucestershire, England; was buried Hempsted, Gloucestershire, England. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Maud de Pitres of Gloucester

Matilda — Richard FitzPons, Lord of Cantref Bychan. Richard (son of Pons FitzPons) was born Abt 1080; died 1129. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Death: Between 1159 and 1163

Notes:

He married Isabel. He was murdered between 1159 and 1163 by an unknown person , killed by Seisyll ap Dynwal. He held the office of King's Constable. He succeeded to the title of Lord Abergavenny [Feudal] circa 1160.

Notes:

Margaret of Hereford (1122/1123 - 6 April 1197) was an English noblewoman and the eldest daughter of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford by his wife, the wealthy Cambro-Norman heiress Sibyl de Neufmarché. Margaret married Humphrey II de Bohun, by whom she had five children. Margaret held the office of Constable of England and as a widow, exercised lordship of Herefordshire until her own death. She was the benefactress of several religious institutions.

Family

Margaret was born in about 1122/1123, the eldest child of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford and Sibyl de Neufmarché, heiress to one of the most substantial fiefs in the Welsh Marches. She had five younger brothers and two sisters. These were: Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford, Walter de Hereford, Henry Fitzmiles, Mahel de Hereford, William de Hereford, Bertha of Hereford, and Lucy of Hereford. The Historia fundationis cum fundatoris genealogia of Abergavenny Priory named Margaretam, Bertram and Luciam as the three daughters of Miles and Sibyl.

Marriage and issue

She married Humphrey II de Bohun, an Anglo-Norman aristocrat and steward of King Henry I of England, on an unknown date before 1139. Like Margaret's father, Humphrey later supported Empress Matilda against her rival King Stephen during the period of civil war that raged over England, known to history as The Anarchy. Together Margaret and her husband founded Farleigh Priory although the charter is undated. The marriage produced a total of five children:

Humphrey III de Bohun (died 1180), married as her second husband, Margaret of Huntingdon, Duchess of Brittany, by whom he had issue. Held the office of Constable of England.
Milo de Bohun (died young)
Richard de Bohun (died young)
Matilda de Bohun (1140/1143 - after 1194/1199), married firstly Henry d'Oilly, by whom she had issue; secondly Juhel de Mayenne; thirdly Walter FitzRobert
Margaret de Bohun (died before 1196), possibly married Waleran de Beaumont, 4th Earl of Warwick, although Warwick's wife is alternatively named as Margery d'Oilly, who was her niece. The 1192 birthdate of his son and heir makes Margery d'Oilly the likely spouse.

Lordship of Herefordshire and Constable of England

Following the death of her father in a hunting accident in 1143, and sometime before Margaret's husband died in about 1165, all five of her brothers died without legitimate offspring. After her eldest brother Roger's death, the earldom of Hereford fell into abeyance. As a consequence of these events, Miles' lands and properties were divided between Margaret and her two sisters. Being the eldest daughter, she received the lordship of Herefordshire and the office of Constable of England. This office was later passed to her eldest son Humphrey, grandson Henry, and would continue to be held by her direct descendants. As a widow she exercised lordship until her own death, over thirty years later. In her book Women of the English Nobility and Gentry 1066-1500, Jennifer C. Ward described Margaret as having exemplified "the roles which a woman could play in her estates". As lady of Herefordshire, she fulfilled her duties to her overlord King Henry II, having in 1166 returned the carta which named her knights; it documented 17 knights' fees of the old enfeoffment and three and three quarters of the new. She aided the King in the marriage of one of his daughters, and in 1167-1168 made an account to the Red Book of the Exchequer for her assistance. She also accounted to the Exchequer at the end of King Henry's reign and during that of his successor, King Richard I for scutage due to her from her vast holdings. In the lordship over which she ruled, she used her father as role model, having confirmed earlier grants of land to her tenants and made her own land grants to those who served her well.

Margaret was a generous benefactress of several religious institutions, and she strove to carry out her late brothers' grants. She gave all her land in Quedgeley, Gloucestershire for the salvation of her brothers' souls. Her own grant was given to save the souls of King Henry II, her chidren, parents, husband, and the rest of her family.

Death and legacy

Margaret died on 6 April 1197 and was buried in Llanthony Secunda Priory in Gloucester which had been founded by her father and where her mother, Sibyl had entered a religious life after her husband's untimely death. Margaret herself had made endowments to the Augustian priory. Two years following Margaret's death, King John confirmed the possessions of Llanthony Secunda Priory by charter which was dated 30 July 1199. These included the donation of duas partes de Onedesleye made by Margar de Bohun in accordance with the division made inter ipsam et Luciam suam sororem.[ On 28 April 1200, King John recreated the earldom of Hereford for Margaret's grandson Henry, of whom she had had custody during his minority.

Margaret married Humphrey de Bohun, II Bef 1139. Humphrey (son of Humphrey de Bohun, I and Maud) died Abt 1165. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

He died circa 1164, without issue. He held the office of King's Constable. He succeeded to the title of Lord Abergavenny [Feudal] circa 1163. In January 1163/64 he was present at the Council of Clarendon.

Notes:

Bertha of Hereford, also known as Bertha de Pitres (born c.1130), was the daughter of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford, and a wealthy heiress. She was the wife of William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber to whom she brought many castles and Lordships, including Brecknock, Abergavenny, and Hay.

Family

Bertha was born in England in about 1130. She was the second daughter of Miles of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford (1097- 24 December 1143) and Sibyl de Neufmarché. She had two sisters, Margaret of Hereford, who married Humphrey II de Bohun, by whom she had issue, and Lucy of Hereford, who married Herbert FitzHerbert of Winchester, by whom she had issue. Her five brothers, included Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford, Walter de Hereford, Henry Fitzmiles, William de Hereford, and Mahel de Hereford.

Her paternal grandparents were Walter FitzRoger de Pitres, Sheriff of Gloucester and Bertha de Balun of Bateden, a descendant of Hamelin de Balun, and her maternal grandparents were Bernard de Neufmarché, Lord of Brecon, and Nesta ferch Osbern. The latter was a daughter of Osbern FitzRichard of Richard's Castle, and Nesta ferch Gruffydd. Bertha was a direct descendant, in the maternal line, of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn (1007- 5 August 1063) and Edith (Aldgyth), daughter of Elfgar, Earl of Mercia.

Her father Miles served as Constable to King Stephen of England. He later served in the same capacity to Empress Matilda after he'd transferred his allegiance. In 1141, she made him Earl of Hereford in gratitude for his loyalty. On 24 December 1143, he was killed whilst on a hunting expedition in the Forest of Dean.

Marriage and issue

In 1150, she married William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber (1112-1192), son of Philip de Braose, 2nd Lord of Bramber and Aenor, daughter of Judael of Totnes. William and Bertha had three daughters and two sons, including William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber.

In 1173, her brothers all having died without issue, she brought the Lordships and castles of Brecknock and Abergavenny, to her husband. Hay Castle had already passed to her from her mother, Sibyl of Neufmarche in 1165, whence it became part of the de Braose holdings.

In 1174, her husband became Sheriff of Hereford.

Her children include:

William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber, (1144/1153- 11 August 1211, Corbeil), married Maud de St. Valery, daughter of Bernard de St. Valery, by whom he had 16 children.
Roger de Braose
Bertha de Braose (born 1151), married c.1175, Walter de Beauchamp (died 1235), son of William de Beauchamp and Joan de Walerie, by whom she had issue, including Walcherine de Beauchamp who married Joan Mortimer.
Sibyl de Braose (died after 5 February 1227), married William de Ferrers, 3rd Earl of Derby (1136- 21 October 1190 at Acre on crusade), son of Robert de Ferrers, 2nd Earl of Derby and Margaret Peverel, by whom she had issue.
Maud de Braose, married John de Brompton, by whom she had issue.

Legacy

Bertha died on an unknown date. She was the ancestress of many noble English families which included the de Braoses, de Beauchamps, de Bohuns and de Ferrers; as well as the Irish families of de Lacy and de Burgh.

Bertha married William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber Bef 1150. William (son of Philip de Braose, 2nd Lord of Bramber and Aenor de Totnes) was born Bef 1135; died Aft 1179. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

He died before 1166 at Bronllys Tower, Breconshire, Wales, mortally hurt by a stone dropped from the tower, without issue. He held the office of King's Constable. He succeeded to the title of Lord Abergavenny [Feudal] circa 1164.

Notes:

He died circa 1160, without issue. He held the office of King's Constable. He succeeded to the title of Lord Abergavenny [Feudal] in 1155. He held the office of Sheriff of Gloucester between 1155 and 1157. He held the office of Sheriff of Hereford between 1155 and 1159.

Notes:

He died in 1155, without issue. He held the office of King's Constable. He was a monk in 1155 at Gloucestershire, England. He succeeded to the title of Lord Abergavenny [Feudal] in 1155. He succeeded to the title of Earl of Hereford in 1155.

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Walter I de Clifford (1113-1190) was an Anglo-Norman marcher lord of Bronllys Castle on the Welsh border, and Clifford Castle (from the 1130s), in Herefordshire. He is now best known for his daughter, Rosamund Clifford, with Margaret de Toeni, daughter of Ralph de Toeni.

He was the son of Richard FitzPons and Matilda, who the sister of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford.

Walter's other children were:

Walter II de Clifford
Gilbert
Richard
Amicia, married Osbern fitz Hugh of Richards Castle
Lucia, married Hugh de Say of Clun Castle
Rosamund Clifford, known as "the fair Rosamund", the mistress of King Henry II.

Walter — Margaret de Toeni. (daughter of Ralph de Tosny) [Group Sheet]