by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

King Edward III of England, father of Sir John de Southeray; Credit – Wikipedia

Sir John de Southeray (circa 1364 – 1383) was the eldest of the three illegitimate children of King Edward III of England and his mistress Alice Perrers. Alice’s family surname was Salisbury and they worked as goldsmiths. Janyn Perrers, who would become Alice’s first husband, became an apprentice to the Salisbury family in 1342. It appears that around 1359, Janyn Perrers did some work for the royal court because in a royal writ he is described as “our beloved Janyn Perrers, our jeweler”. There is a possibility that he met King Edward III in his capacity as a goldsmith and jeweler and that Alice may have accompanied him.

Shortly after her husband died in 1361 or 1362, Alice became a lady-in-waiting to Philippa of Hainault, the wife of King Edward III. Even if Alice had not previously met King Edward III, they certainly became acquainted while she served as a lady-in-waiting. Alice, who was about 24 years old, gave birth to the first of her three children by Edward III in 1364, when the king was 56 years old.

King Edward III and Alice’s eldest child John had two younger sisters:

• Jane (circa 1365 – ?), married Richard Northland
• Joan (circa 1366 – circa 1431), married Robert Skerne, a lawyer and Member of Parliament

John had fourteen royal half-siblings from the marriage of his father King Edward III to Philippa of Hainault:

• Edward, Prince of Wales, the Black Prince (1330 – 1376), married Joan, 4th Countess of Kent, had two sons, only the future King Richard II survived childhood
• Isabella of England (1332 – 1379) married Enguerrand VII de Coucy, 1st Earl of Bedford, had two daughters
• Joan of England (circa1334 – 1348), died of the plague on the way to marry Pedro of Castile
• William of Hatfield (born and died 1337)
• Lionel of Antwerp, 1st Duke of Clarence (1338 – 1368), married (1) Elizabeth de Burgh, 4th Countess of Ulster, had one daughter (2) Violante Visconti, no children
• John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (1340 – 1399), married (1) Blanche of Lancaster, had seven children including King Henry IV of England (2) Infanta Constance of Castile, had one daughter and one son (3) Katherine Swynford (formerly his mistress), had three sons and one daughter (Note: All monarchs of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom since King Henry IV are descended from John of Gaunt, and most European monarchies are also descended from John. The Houses of Lancaster, York, and Tudor were all descended from John of Gaunt’s children.)
• Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York (1341 – 1402), married (1) Infanta Isabella of Castile, had two sons and one daughter (2) Joan Holland, no children
• Blanche of the Tower (born and died March 1342)
• Mary of Waltham (1344 – 1362), married John V, Duke of Brittany, no children
• Margaret of Windsor, Countess of Pembroke (1346 – 1361), married John Hastings, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, no children
• Thomas of Windsor (1347 – 1348), died of the plague
• William of Windsor (born and died 1348), died of the plague
• Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester (1355 – 1397), married Eleanor de Bohun, had one son and four daughters

In January 1377, the nearly thirteen-year-old John married seventeen-year-old Maud de Percy, the daughter of Henry de Percy, 3rd Baron Percy. The marriage was childless and in 1380, Maud obtained an annulment, claiming to have been married to John without her consent. Later in 1377, on April 23, St. George’s Day, John was knighted by his father King Edward III at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, along with John’s ten-year-old nephews, the future King Richard II, and the future King Henry IV, who would usurp the throne from his cousin King Richard II in 1399. On June 17, 1377, four days before his death, King Edward III gave his illegitimate son John his own coat of arms. Upon the death of King Edward III, John’s nephew Richard, the son of the deceased Edward, Prince of Wales, the Black Prince, succeeded his grandfather as King Richard II.

From 1381 to 1382, Sir John de Southeray took part in the Fernandine Wars, a series of three wars between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Crown of Castile. He accompanied the English military expedition in support of Castile, commanded by his half-brother Edmund of Langley, 1St Duke of York. During the unsuccessful Castilian campaign, John led a contingent of English soldiers. After his troops went unpaid, John incited them to mutiny. Unlike his troops, John was never punished for his actions. John’s death date is uncertain. It is assumed he died in 1383, aged about nineteen. The last mention of Sir John de Southeray in contemporary chronicles is in 1383, when he asked a man named Ralph Basing to pay him a debt.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Flantzer, Susan. (2022). Alice Perrers, Mistress of Edward III, King of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/alice-perrers-mistress-of-edward-iii-king-of-england/
• Flantzer, Susan. (2015). King Edward III of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-edward-iii-of-england/
• John de Southeray. geni_family_tree. (2022). https://www.geni.com/people/John-de-Southeray/6000000003650779410
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2022). John de Southeray. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_de_Southeray
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2022). John de Southeray. Wikipedia (French). https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_de_Southeray

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

Adam FitzRoy’s father King Edward II of England (in red) in a contemporary illustration; Credit – Wikipedia

Born circa 1307, possibly at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England, Adam FitzRoy was the illegitimate son of King Edward II of England and an unknown mother. His mother could have been one of the ladies or maids of his father’s second wife Margaret of France who was younger than her stepson Edward. Adam was probably born before his father succeeded to the throne in 1307 and certainly before his father married Isabella of France, daughter of King Philippe IV of France, in 1308. Adam’s surname FitzRoy comes from the Anglo-Norman Fitz, meaning “son of” and Roy, meaning “king”, implying the original bearer of the surname was a child of a king. Adam’s paternal grandparents were King Edward I of England and his first wife Eleanor of Castile.

Adam had four royal half-siblings from his father’s marriage with Isabella of France:

• King Edward III of England (1312 – 1377), married Philippa of Hainault, had fourteen children
• John of Eltham, 1st Earl of Cornwall (1316 – 1336), unmarried
• Eleanor of Woodstock (1318 – 1355), married Reinoud II of Guelders, had two children
• Joan of The Tower (1321 – 1362), married King David II of Scotland, no children

Adam is first mentioned in King Edward II’s wardrobe account of 1322: Ade filio domini Regis bastardo (Adam, bastard son of the lord king). Between June 6, 1322 and September 18, 1322, Adam was given a total of thirteen pounds and twenty-two pence to buy himself armatura et alia necessaria (armor and other necessaries) to participate in King Edward II’s campaign in Scotland planned for the autumn of 1322, in the First War of Scottish Independence (1296–1328) against the formidable Robert Bruce, King of Scots. Edward II had taken up arms against Robert the Bruce before. In 1314, he attempted to complete his father’s campaign in Scotland. This resulted in a decisive Scottish victory at the Battle of Bannockburn by a smaller army led by Robert the Bruce, King of Scots. In 1320, the Declaration of Arbroath was sent by a group of Scottish nobles to the Pope affirming Scottish independence from England.

Statue of Robert the Bruce in Stirling, Scotland; Credit – By Ally Crockford – Own work, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28842870

King Edward II assembled an army of about 23,000 men including his illegitimate son Adam who was probably about 15 -17 years old. Edward II and his army reached Edinburgh, Scotland, and plundered Holyrood Abbey. However, Robert the Bruce purposefully avoided battle with Edward II and lured his army inland. With the English army inland, the plans to supply the English army by sea failed and the English ran out of supplies and had to retreat to Newcastle, England. Many English soldiers became ill with dysentery and died. On September 18, 1322, the teenage Adam FitzRoy died, probably from dysentery. On September 30, 1322, Adam was buried at Tynemouth Priory in Tynemouth, England. His father King Edward II was unable to attend the funeral due to the continuation of his Scottish campaign. However, he paid for a silk coverlet with gold thread to cover the body of his son.

The ruins of Tynemouth Priory; Credit – By Agnete – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62804912

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Flantzer, Susan. (2016). King Edward II of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-edward-ii-of-england/
• Flantzer, Susan. (2017). Robert I, King of Scots (Robert the Bruce). Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/robert-i-king-of-scots-robert-the-bruce/
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2021). Adam Fitzroy. Wikipedia (German). https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_FitzRoy
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Adam Fitzroy. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_FitzRoy
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Adam Fitzroy. Wikipedia (French). https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_FitzRoy
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2022). Фицрой, Адам. Wikipedia (Russian). https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A4%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B9,_%D0%90%D0%B4%D0%B0%D0%BC
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2024). Tynemouth Castle and Priory. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tynemouth_Castle_and_Priory

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

Richard FitzRoy’s father King John of England; Credit – Wikipedia

Richard FitzRoy, born circa 1185/1186, was the illegitimate son of King John of England and Ela de Warenne. His surname FitzRoy comes from the Anglo-Norman Fitz, meaning “son of” and Roy, meaning “king”, implying the original bearer of the surname was a child of a king. Richard was also called Richard de Chilham and Richard de Dover. His paternal grandparents were King Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Richard’s maternal grandparents were Hamelin de Warenne, Earl of Surrey and Isabel de Warenne, 4th Countess of Surrey, one of the wealthiest heiresses in England.

Richard’s maternal grandfather Hamelin de Warenne, originally Hamelin of Anjou, was the illegitimate son of Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou who was married to Empress Matilda, Lady of the English, the only surviving child of King Henry I of England. Geoffrey and Matilda were the parents of King Henry II of England so therefore Hamelin was the elder half-brother of King Henry II, and the uncle to Henry II’s children including King Richard I and King John.

Richard’s royal half-siblings (l to r) Henry, Richard, Isabella, Eleanor, and Joan; Credit – Wikipedia

King John had several long-term mistresses and around twelve illegitimate children, Richard’s half-siblings. Richard had five royal half-siblings from his father’s marriage to Isabella of Angoulême, Countess of Angoulême in her own right:

• King Henry III of England (1207 – 1272), married Eleanor of Provence, had five children including King Edward I of England
• Richard, Earl of Cornwall, King of the Romans (1209 – 1272), married (1) Isabel Marshal, had three sons and a daughter, only one son survived childhood, Isabel died in childbirth (2) Sanchia of Provence, had two sons, only one son survived childhood (3) Beatrice of Falkenburg, no children
• Joan of England (1210 – 1238), married Alexander II, King of Scots, no children
• Isabella of England (1214 – 1241), married Friedrich II, Holy Roman Emperor, had at least four children
• Eleanor of England (1215 – 1275), married (1) William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, no children (2) Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, had seven children

Before May 11, 1214, Richard married Rohese de Dover, the only child and heiress of Fulbert II de Dover and Isabel de Briwere of Devon. Through his marriage, Richard received Chilham Castle in Chilham, Kent, England and about a dozen fiefs in Kent and Essex, and became 1st Baron of Chilham.

Richard and Rohese had three children:

• Richard de Dover, Baron of Chilham (circa 1220 – 1270) married Matilda, 6th Countess of Angus, had two children
• Isabella de Dover (circa 1225 – 1276), married Sir Maurice de Berkeley, had eight children
• Lorette de Dover (circa 1228 – 1275), married (first wife) Sir William Marmion, 2nd Baron Marmion, had one son

Battle of Sandwich, showing the capture of the French flagship & the killing of Eustace the Monk; Credit – Wikipedia

During the First Barons’ War (1215 – 1217), when a group of barons, with the support of King Philippe II of France, rebelled against Richard’s father King John of England, Richard supported his father as one of the commanders of the royal army. On August 24, 1217, during the naval Battle of Sandwich, Richard, in command of a ship, attacked and captured the French flagship and personally killed Eustace the Monk, the commander of the French fleet. Richard’s father King John died on October 19, 1216, and was succeeded by his nine-year-old son King Henry III of England. The First Barons’ War continued after King John’s death, but the great William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, who served four English kings – Henry II, Richard I, John, and Henry III – managed to get most barons to switch sides from working with France to the new King Henry III and attacking the French.

Richard was the constable of several castles including the important Wallingford Castle in Berkshire, England, and served as Sheriff of Berkshire. He took part in the Fifth Crusade during the successful Siege of Damietta (1218 – 1219) in Egypt and then returned to England. In 1223, Richard accompanied his half-brother King Henry III on a campaign in Wales, and in 1225 he accompanied Alexander II, King of Scots, who was married to his half-sister Joan of England, on his pilgrimage to Canterbury.

In May 1230, King Henry III organized a campaign attempting to regain some of the Norman and Angevin French ancestral territories that his father had lost, and Richard accompanied his half-brother. The campaign did not go well. Henry III made a truce with King Louis X of France and returned to England having achieved nothing but a costly fiasco. After that, Richard had a career in royal service, mostly in command of castles on the Welsh border.

St. Mary’s Church and Churchyard in Chilham, Kent, England; Credit – www.findagrave.com

Richard FitzRoy, died before June 24, 1246, aged around sixty, at Chilham Castle in Chilham, Kent, England. All that is left of the Norman castle is the keep. A manor house, also called Chilham Castle, was built on the property in 1616 and still exists. It is thought that Richard was buried at St. Mary’s Churchyard in Chilham, Kent, England.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Flantzer, Susan. (2016). King John of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-john-of-england/
• Richard Fitzroy (1186-1246) – Find a Grave… Find a Grave. (n.d.). https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/157307212/richard-fitzroy
• Richard Fitzroy, Baron of Chilham. geni_family_tree. (2023, August 13). https://www.geni.com/people/Richard-fitzRoy-Baron-of-Chilham/6000000013116383679
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Richard Fitzroy. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_FitzRoy
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2024). Ричард Фицрой, 1-й барон Чилхем. Wikipedia (Russian). https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A0%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B4_%D0%A4%D0%B8%D1%86%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B9,_1-%D0%B9_%D0%B1%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD_%D0%A7%D0%B8%D0%BB%D1%85%D0%B5%D0%BC

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

Drawing of William Longespée from his effigy in Salisbury Cathedral; Credit – Wikipedia

Born circa 1176, William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury was the illegitimate son of King Henry II of England and his former royal ward and then mistress Ida de Tosny. His surname Longespée probably refers to William’s height and the oversized weapons he used. William’s paternal grandparents were Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, Touraine, and Maine and Empress Matilda, Lady of the English, the only surviving legitimate child of King Henry I of England. His maternal grandparents were Ralph de Tosny, V, Lord of Flamstead (in Hertfordshire, England) and Margaret de Beaumont. Henry II had several long-term mistresses and around twelve illegitimate children, William’s half-siblings.

13th-century depiction of William’s royal half-siblings, (l to r) William, Young Henry, Richard, Matilda, Geoffrey, Eleanor, Joan, and John; Credit – Wikipedia

William had eight royal half-siblings from his father’s marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine:

• William IX, Count of Poitiers (1153 – 1156), died in childhood
• Henry the Young King (1155 – 1183), married Marguerite of France, no children
• Matilda of England, Duchess of Saxony and Bavaria (1156 – 1189), married Heinrich the Lion, Duke of Saxony and Bavaria, had five children, including Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor
• King Richard I of England (1157 – 1199), married Berengaria of Navarre, no children
• Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany (1158 – 1186), married Constance, Duchess of Brittany, had three children
• Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile (1162 – 1214), married King Alfonso VIII of Castile, had twelve children including King Enrique I of Castile; Berengaria, Queen Regnant of Castile and Queen of León; Urraca, Queen of Portugal; Blanche, Queen of France, and Eleanor, Queen of Aragon
• Joan of England, Queen of Sicily (1165 – 1199), married (1) King William II of Sicily, no surviving children (2) Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse, had two children, Joan died in childbirth with her third child who also died
• King John of England (1166 – 1216), married 1) Isabella, 3rd Countess of Gloucester, marriage annulled, no children (2) Isabella, Countess of Angoulême; had five children, including King Henry III of England; Joan of England, Queen of Scots, and Isabella of England, Holy Roman Empress

William’s mother Ida de Tosny married Roger Bigod, 2nd Earl of Norfolk and the couple had at least eight children, William’s half-siblings:

• Margery Bigod (1174 – 1237), married William de Hastings, Steward to King Henry II, had at least two children
• Hugh Bigod, 3rd Earl of Norfolk (circa 1182 – 1225), married Maud Marshal, had four children
• Mary Bigod (1188 – 1237), married Ranulf FitzRobert, 4th Lord Middleham and Spennithorne, had at least one son
• William Bigod (circa 1188 – ?), married Margaret de Sutton
• Roger Bigod (1198 – 1230)
• Ralph Bigod (circa 1201 – circa 1214), died in childhood
• John Bigod
• Ida Bigod

William’s father King Henry II of England; Credit – Wikipedia

King Henry II acknowledged William as his son but little is known about William’s childhood. According to William’s own statements, he grew up at times with Hubert de Burgh, later Earl of Kent and Chief Justiciar of England and Ireland during the reigns of King John and his son and successor King Henry III. In 1188, when William came of age, his father gave him the town of Appleby in Lincolnshire, England.

In 1196, William married a great heiress Ela of Salisbury, 3rd Countess of Salisbury, the only child of William FitzPatrick, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, and Eléonore de Vitré. Earlier in 1196, Ela’s father had died and she succeeded to the title of her father as 3rd Countess of Salisbury in her own right. After the marriage, William became the 3rd Earl of Salisbury by Jure uxoris, by right of his wife. Because Ela was only eleven years old, the couple did not have children for several years.

William and Ela had at least nine children:

• Ida Longespée (circa 1205 – 1269), married (1) Ralph de Somery of Dudley, no children (2) William de Beauchamp, Baron of Bedford, had seven children
• Isabella Longespée (circa 1208 – 1268), married William de Vesci, no children
• William Longespée the Younger (circa 1209 – 1250), married Idoine de Camville, had four children, killed during the 7th Crusade
• Mary Longespée (1209 – 1262), married Sir Robert de Ros, 1st Baron Warke, had five children
• Petronella Longespée (1209 – ?), a nun
• Richard Longespée (circa 1214 – ?), Clerk and Canon at Salisbury Cathedral
• Stephen Longespée, Seneschal of Gascony and Justiciar of Ireland (circa 1216 – 1260), married Emmeline de Riddlesford, had two daughters
• Ela Longespée (circa 1217 – 1298), married (1) Thomas de Beaumont, 6th Earl of Warwick, no children; married (2) Philip Basset, no children
• Nicholas Longespée, Bishop of Salisbury (circa 1218 – 1297)

Effigy of William’s half-brother King Richard I; By Adam Bishop – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17048652

William participated in the campaigns (1193 – 1198) of his half-brother King Richard I of England in the Duchy of Normandy (now in France) to recover the land seized by King Philippe II of France while Richard was participating in the Third Crusade. William was closest in age to King John, the youngest of his father’s legitimate children, who succeeded to the English throne in 1199. During King John’s reign, William was at court on important ceremonial occasions and held several positions: High Sheriff of Wiltshire, Lieutenant of Gascony, Constable of Dover, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, Lord Warden of the Welsh Marches, and Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire.

Effigy of William’s half-brother King John; Credit – Wikipedia

William was a commander during the 1210 – 1212 Welsh and Irish campaigns of his half-brother King John of England and participated in the Anglo-French War of 1213–1214. In 1213, he led the English fleet in the Battle of Damme in which the English seized or destroyed a good portion of the French fleet. On July 27, 1214, William commanded the right flank of an English coalition army against France at the Battle of Bouvines, the last battle of the Anglo-French War of 1213–1214. The battle ended in defeat for the English coalition and capture for William when the priest-soldier Philippe de Dreux, Bishop of Beauvais threw a mace at his head. William was unhorsed and taken prisoner and the English soldiers fled. Because of the resounding French victory, all the Norman and Angevin French ancestral territories, Normandy, Maine, Touraine, Anjou, and Poitou, were lost forever to the English crown.

While King John was trying to save his French territories, his discontented English barons led by Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury, were protesting John’s continued misgovernment of England. The result of this discontent was the best-known event of John’s reign, the Magna Carta, the “great charter” of English liberties, forced from King John by the English barons and sealed at Runnymede near Windsor Castle on June 15, 1215. Among the liberties were the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown.

William had returned to England during King John’s troubles with the English barons and was one of the few barons who was loyal to John. Infuriated by being forced to agree to the Magna Carta, John turned to Pope Innocent III, who declared the Magna Carta null and void and the rebel barons excommunicated. The conflict between John and the barons was transformed into an open civil war, the First Barons’ War (1215 – 1217). William was one of the leaders of King John’s army in the south of England. However, the rebel barons appealed to King Philippe II of France, and offered his son, the future King Louis VIII of France, the English crown. After Louis of France landed in England as an ally of the rebel barons, William went over to the rebel side because he thought John’s cause was lost.

William’s half-brother King John died of dysentery on October 19, 1216. He was succeeded by his nine-year-old son King Henry III of England. The First Barons’ War continued after King John’s death, but the great William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, who served four English kings – Henry II, Richard I, John, and Henry III – managed to get most barons to switch sides from Louis of France to the new King Henry III and attack Louis. The Magna Carta was reissued in King Henry III’s name with some of the clauses omitted and was sealed by the nine-year-old king’s regent William Marshal. William Longespée supported his nephew King Henry III and held an influential place in the government during the young king’s minority.

William’s tomb in Salisbury Cathedral; Credit – By Bernard Gagnon – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7140363

In 1225, returning to England from Gascony (now in France), William was shipwrecked off the coast of Brittany (now in France). He spent several months in a monastery on the French island of Île de Ré.  Shortly after returning to England, William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, aged about fifty, died on March 7, 1226, at his home, Salisbury Castle in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England which was part of Old Sarum and no longer exists. He was buried at Salisbury Cathedral where he had laid the foundation stones in 1220.

William’s wife Ela never remarried. Three years after William’s death, Ela founded Lacock Abbey in Lacock, Wiltshire, England. In 1238, she entered Lacock Abbey as a nun and was Abbess from 1240 – 1257. Ela survived her husband William by thirty-five years, dying on August 24, 1261, aged about seventy-three, and was buried in Lacock Abbey.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ashley, Mike. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens. Carroll & Graf Publishers.
• Flantzer, Susan. (2016). King Henry II of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-henry-ii-of-england/
• Flantzer, Susan. (2016). King John of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-john-of-england/
• Ida De Tosny, Countess of Norfolk. geni_family_tree. (2022). https://www.geni.com/people/Ida-de-To%C3%ABny-Countess-of-Norfolk/6000000006428477266
• Weir, Alison. (2008). Britain’s Royal Families – The Complete Genealogy. Vintage Books.
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Ela of Salisbury, 3rd Countess of Salisbury. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ela_of_Salisbury,_3rd_Countess_of_Salisbury
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Ida de Tosny. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ida_de_Tosny
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). William Longespée, 3. Earl of Salisbury. Wikipedia (German). https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Longesp%C3%A9e,_3._Earl_of_Salisbury
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2024). William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Longesp%C3%A9e,_3rd_Earl_of_Salisbury
• William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury. geni_family_tree. (2023). https://www.geni.com/people/William-Longesp%C3%A9e-3rd-Earl-of-Salisbury/6000000006232319371

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

King Henry II of England, the father of Geoffrey, Archbishop of York; Credit – Wikipedia

Geoffrey, Archbishop of York, born circa 1152, was the illegitimate son of King Henry II of England, who ascended the throne of England in 1154. Henry II had several long-term mistresses and around twelve illegitimate children. Geoffrey was probably conceived during one of Henry’s sojourns to England. At the time of Geoffrey’s birth, Henry was involved in The Anarchy, the long civil war (1135 -1153) fought over the English throne, between Henry’s mother Empress Matilda and her first cousin King Stephen of England. Fighting occurred in England and the Duchy of Normandy (now in France) and Henry went back and forth across the English Channel. Geoffrey’s paternal grandparents were his namesake Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, Touraine, and Maine, and Empress Matilda, Lady of the English. Empress Matilda was the widow of Heinrich V, Holy Roman Emperor and she used her style and title from her first marriage for the rest of her life. More importantly, Matilda was the only surviving, legitimate child of King Henry I of England and Duke of Normandy.

The identity of Geoffrey’s mother is uncertain. She may have been named Ykenai and there is speculation that she could have been a prostitute, the daughter of a knight, a Welsh hostage, a servant, or a daughter of one of the royal servants. It appears that Geoffrey was the eldest of Henry II’s children, legitimate or illegitimate, and was probably born before Henry II married Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine in her own right. There is no evidence that Henry II had any doubts that Geoffrey was his son. Geoffrey was raised with Henry II’s legitimate children.

13th-century depiction of Geoffrey’s royal half-siblings: (l to r) William, Young Henry, Richard, Matilda, Geoffrey, Eleanor, Joan, and John; Credit – Wikipedia

Geoffrey had eight royal half-siblings from his father’s marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine:

• William IX, Count of Poitiers (1153 – 1156), died in childhood
• Henry the Young King (1155 – 1183), married Marguerite of France, no children
• Matilda of England, Duchess of Saxony and Bavaria (1156 – 1189), married Heinrich the Lion, Duke of Saxony and Bavaria, had five children, including Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor
• King Richard I of England (1157 – 1199), married Berengaria of Navarre, no children
• Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany (1158 – 1186), married Constance, Duchess of Brittany, had three children
• Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile (1162 – 1214), married King Alfonso VIII of Castile, had twelve children including King Enrique I of Castile; Berengaria, Queen Regnant of Castile and Queen of León; Urraca, Queen of Portugal; Blanche, Queen of France, and Eleanor, Queen of Aragon
• Joan of England, Queen of Sicily (1165 – 1199), married (1) King William II of Sicily, no surviving children (2) Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse, had two children, Joan died in childbirth with her third child who also died
• King John of England (1166 – 1216), married 1) Isabella, 3rd Countess of Gloucester, marriage annulled, no children (2) Isabella, Countess of Angoulême; had five children, including King Henry III of England; Joan of England, Queen of Scots, and Isabella of England, Holy Roman Empress

Henry II’s plan was for Geoffrey to enter the Church and so Geoffrey was sent to schools in Northhampton, England and Tours, County of Torraine, one of Henry’s possessions, now in France. Before 1170, the teenage Geoffrey took minor orders, lower ranks of Roman Catholic Church ministry. In 1170, when he was about eighteen years old, Geoffrey was appointed Archdeacon of Lincoln in the Diocese of Lincoln, responsible for the oversight of church buildings and some supervision, discipline, and pastoral care of the clergy. However, there is little evidence that he ever performed these responsibilities.

As Henry II’s legitimate son got older, tensions over the future inheritance of Henry’s vast Angevin Empire which included all of present-day England, half of France, and parts of Ireland and Wales. In 1173, Henry II’s legitimate sons Henry, Richard, and Geoffrey (John was too young, only seven years old) rebelled in protest during the Revolt of 1173 – 1174 and, were joined by their mother Eleanor of Aquitaine. Henry II’s illegitimate son Geoffrey fought for him in northern England during the campaigns of the revolt. After the defeat of his legitimate sons, Henry II told his illegitimate son Geoffrey, “You alone have proved yourself my lawful and true son. My other sons are really the bastards.” From then on, Geoffrey was one of his father’s most valued counselors.

Geoffrey’s appointment as Archdeacon of Lincoln was only a stepping stone in Henry II’s plans. In May 1173, Henry arranged for Geoffrey to be elected Bishop of Lincoln. However, Pope Alexander III refused to confirm Geoffrey’s election. Geoffrey was not ordained as a priest, was under the age to become a bishop, and his illegitimate birth prevented him from holding a religious office. Eventually, under duress, Pope Alexander II issued the necessary dispensations and confirmed Geoffrey as Bishop of Lincoln in 1175. However, since he was not ordained another bishop carried out Geoffrey’s duties in the Diocese of Lincoln. In 1181, Pope Lucius III demanded that Geoffrey be ordained or resign. Geoffrey did resign but as compensation, his father King Henry II appointed him Chancellor of England in 1181.

By 1189, only two of Geoffrey’s legitimate brothers were still living, Richard, Eleanor’s favorite and the heir since his elder brother’s death, and John, the youngest child and Henry II’s favorite. King Philippe II of France successfully played upon Richard’s fears that Henry would make John King, and a final rebellion broke out in 1189. Decisively defeated by Philippe and Richard and suffering from a bleeding ulcer, King Henry II retreated to his favorite residence, the Château de Chinon in Anjou, now in France. Only Henry II’s illegitimate son Geoffrey was at his deathbed when he died on July 6, 1189.

King Henry II had made a deathbed wish that Geoffrey be named Archbishop of York. King Richard I did nominate his half-brother Geoffrey as Archbishop of York but probably did so to eliminate a potential rival for the throne. However, Richard insisted that Geoffrey resign his position as Chancellor of England and be ordained as a priest, and his ordination as a priest took place on September 23, 1189.

Geoffrey’s ambitions may have included becoming King of England, and that may account for some of the issues that he had with King Richard I and King John, his two surviving legitimate half-brothers. Geoffrey’s life was full of quarrels. He spent much of his time as Archbishop of York quarreling with the bishops under him and the clergy of York Cathedral. Geoffrey argued with William de Longchamp, King Richard II’s Chancellor and his Regent went Richard went off to fight in the Third Crusade. He had continued disagreements with his half-brothers King Richard II and King John who succeeded Richard in 1199. In 1207, Geoffrey had his final quarrel with King John when he refused to allow the collection of taxes. Geoffrey excommunicated anyone who attempted to collect the taxes in the Diocese of York. In retaliation, King John confiscated Geoffrey’s estates. Geoffrey obtained the support of Pope Innocent III, who ordered King John to restore Geoffrey’s possessions, but in the meantime, Geoffrey fled to the Duchy of Normandy where remained for the rest of his life.

On December 12, 1212, Geoffrey died aged around sixty, at the Notre-Dame-du-Parc Priory in Rouen, then in the Duchy of Normandy, now in France, where he had been living for a few years and where he possibly became a monk. He was buried at the monastery church.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ashley, Mike. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens. Carroll & Graf Publishers.
• Flantzer, Susan. (2016). King Henry II of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-henry-ii-of-england/
• Weir, Alison. (2008). Britain’s Royal Families – The Complete Genealogy. Vintage Books.
• Weir, Alison. (1999). Eleanor of Aquitaine, By Wrath of God, Queen of England. Jonathan Cape.
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Geoffrey (Archbishop of York). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_(archbishop_of_York)
• Ykenai. geni_family_tree. (2022, April 26). https://www.geni.com/people/Ykenai/6000000026108697539

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

King Stephen of England, father of Gervase of Blois, Abbot of Westminster; Credit – Wikipedia

Born circa 1115 – 1120, Gervase of Blois was the son of King Stephen of England and his mistress Damette (circa 1103 – 1152), from the Duchy of Normandy, then a possession of the King of England, now part of France. Gervase’s paternal grandparents were Stephen II, Count of Blois and Adela of Normandy and England, a daughter of King William I of England (the Conqueror).

Gervase had three full siblings:

• Almaric of Blois
• Ralph of Blois
• Sybille of Blois, Lady of Champagne (circa 1115 – 1141), married Hervé II, Viscount Count of Léon, had at least three children

Gervase had five royal half-siblings from the marriage of his father King Stephen to Matilda of Boulogne:

• Baldwin of Blois (circa 1126 – 1135)
• Eustace IV, Count of Boulogne (circa 1129 – 1153) married Constance of France, no children
• Matilda of Blois (circa 1133 – circa 1137), died in childhood
• Marie of Blois, Countess of Boulogne (circa 1136 – 1182) married Matthew of Alsace, had two daughters
• William of Blois, Count of Boulogne (circa 1137 –  1159) married Isabel de Warenne, no children

A scene from the Bayeux Tapestry showing the funeral procession of Edward the Confessor with the church Edward built on the left. This is the only contemporary depiction of Edward’s church, the church that Gervase would have know; Credit – Wikipedia

Today, we think of Westminster Abbey as just a church. However, it was first known as St. Peter’s Abbey, founded by Benedictine monks in 960 under the patronage of King Edgar the Peaceful (reigned 943 – 975) and St. Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. King Edward the Confessor (reigned 1042 – 1066) began rebuilding St. Peter’s Abbey to provide himself with a royal burial church. This church became known as the “west minster” to distinguish it from (old) St. Paul’s Cathedral (the east minster) in the City of London. The new church was consecrated on December 28, 1065. However, until the dissolution of the monasteries (1536 – 1541) during the reign of King Henry VIII, there was also a monastery of monks at Westminster Abbey. The definition of the word abbey is “a large church with buildings next to it where monks and nuns live.” The head of a monastery is an abbot.

In 1138, when Gervase was no older than his early 20s, his father arranged for him to be appointed Abbot of Westminster, giving Westminster Abbey hope of receiving additional royal funds. Gervase was certainly too young to hold this position, and he was neither a monk nor a priest. Alberic of Ostia, the papal legate to England, immediately ordained Gervase as a priest, presumably after the necessary dispensation due to his illegitimate birth which would have prevented him from holding a religious office.

In 1139, Gervase attended the Second Lateran Council in Rome, the tenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church. Pope Innocent II sent Gervase a papal bull in 1141 outlining how to reform the finances and the estate management of Westminster Abbey. Over the years, historians have disagreed over whether Pope Innocent II was referring to long-standing issues of financial malpractice, or ones that had appeared during Gervase’s time as Abbot of Westminster.

Working with with Osbert de Clare, Prior of Westminster, Gervase tried unsuccessfully to canonize as a saint King Edward the Confessor who was buried at Westminster Abbey. Edward the Confessor would not be canonized until 1161, nearly a year after his death. In 1148, Gervase was proposed as one of the three candidates to be Bishop of Lincoln, but someone else was appointed.

King Henry II of England; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1154, King Stephen died and was succeeded by his former rival in the terrible civil war known as The Anarchy, King Henry II. King Stephen, a nephew of King Henry I, had raced to England upon hearing of the death of his uncle King Henry I, usurping the English throne from King Henry I’s only surviving legitimate child Empress Matilda. The fight for the English throne between first cousins Stephen and Matilda caused a terrible fifteen-year civil war. King Henry II was Matilda’s son and he had no love lost for King Stephen, his relatives, and his supporters, including Gervase, Stephen’s illegitimate son. King Henry II accused Gervase of mishandling the abbey’s estates and he was dismissed as Abbot of Westminster in 1157. Gervase was replaced as Abbot of Westminster by Laurence of Durham, a supporter of King Henry II. Gervase died on August 25, 1160, and was buried in the south cloister of the old Westminster Abbey.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ashley, Mike. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens. Carroll & Graf Publishers.
• Flantzer, Susan. “Westminster Abbey in London, England.” Unofficial Royalty, 2021, www.unofficialroyalty.com/westminster-abbey-in-london-england/
• “Gervaise de Blois, Abbot of Westminster.” Geni_family_tree, 2022, www.geni.com/people/Gervaise-de-Blois-Abbot-of-Westminster/6000000000769948404.
• “Gervase de Blois.” Westminster Abbey, www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/gervase-de-blois.
• Weir, Alison. (2008). Britain’s Royal Families – The Complete Genealogy. Vintage Books.

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

King Henry I of England, father of Henry FitzRoy; Credit – Wikipedia

Born 1103 or 1105, and certainly by 1109, Henry FitzRoy was the illegitimate son of King Henry I of England and Princess Nest ferch Rhys, a Welsh princess, the daughter of Rhys ap Tewdwr, the last king of Deheubarth, and Gwladys ferch Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn. Through his son Gruffydd ap Rhys, Nest’s father is an ancestor of the House of Tudor. After the death in battle of Nest’s father, the Kingdom of Deheubarth was conquered by the English. As the daughter of the last king of Deheubarth, Nest was a valuable asset and was taken as a hostage to the court of King William II Rufus of England. Although only about fourteen years old at the time, Nest caught the eye of the brother of King William II Rufus, the future King Henry I, and gave birth to his son, Henry FitzRoy. Henry’s surname FitzRoy comes from the Anglo-Norman Fitz, meaning “son of” and Roy, meaning “king”, implying the original bearer of the surname was a child of a king. Henry FitzRoy’s paternal grandparents were King William I of England (the Conqueror) and Matilda of Flanders.

King Henry I holds the record for the British monarch with the most illegitimate children, 25 or so illegitimate children who were Henry FitzRoy’s half-siblings.

Henry FitzRoy’s royal half-siblings, the children of his father King Henry I and his first wife Matilda of Scotland:

• Empress Matilda, Lady of the English (1102 – 1167), married (1) Heinrich V, Holy Roman Emperor, no children (2) Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, had three sons including King Henry II of England
• William Ætheling, Duke of Normandy (1103 – 1120), married Matilda of Anjou, no children, William Ætheling, King Henry I’s only legitimate son and heir, died in the sinking of the White Ship

Henry FitzRoy also had five half-siblings from his mother’s marriage to Gerald FitzWalter of Windsor:

• William FitzGerald, Lord of Carew and Emlyn (circa 1100 – 1173), married Maria de Montgomery, has twelve children
• Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Llanstephan, Naas, and Maynooth (circa 1105 – circa 1176), married Alice de Montgomery, had seven children
• David FitzGerald, Archdeacon of Cardigan and Bishop of St David’s (1106 – 1176)
• Angharad FitzGerald (circa 1104 – 1176), married William Fitz Odo de Barry, had five children
• Gwladys FitzGerald (1110 – 1136), married John de Cogan, had one son

Henry FitzRoy was married but his wife’s name is unknown. Henry and his wife had four children:

• Meiler FitzHenry, Justiciar of Ireland (? – 1220), wife’s name is unknown, had at least one daughter
• Robert FitzHenry (? – circa 1180)
• Elizabeth FitzHenry (? – circa 1164)
• Amabilis FitzHenry (? – 1185), married Walter de Riddlesford, I, Baron of Bray, County Wicklow and Kilkea, had two children

The ruins of Narbeth Castle; Credit – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narberth_Castle#/media/File:Narberth_castle_pembrokeshire.jpg:~:text=By%20WestWalesP%20%2D%20Own%20work%20by%20uploader%20as%20Gwala%20Images%2C%20CC%20BY%2DSA%203.0%2C%20https%3A//commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php%3Fcurid%3D6894688

Henry FitzRoy was given land in Narberth and Pebidiog in Pembrokeshire, Wales by his father King Henry I, and was considered Lord of Narberth Castle. In 1157, during the reign of his nephew King Henry II of England, Henry FitzRoy led an English expedition to Wales to attack the Welsh forces under Owain Gwynedd, King of Gwynedd. On the Isle of Anglesey off the north-west coast of Wales, Henry’s forces torched the churches in Llanbedrgoch and Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf. During the next night, Owain Gwynedd’s forces gathered and then ambushed and defeated the English army the next morning, killing Henry FitzRoy in “a shower of lances”. His burial site is unknown.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ashley, Mike. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens. Carroll & Graf Publishers.
• Flantzer, Susan. (2015). King Henry I of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-henry-i-of-england/
• Henry Fitzroy. geni_family_tree. (2022). https://www.geni.com/people/Henry-FitzRoy/6000000002134174332
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023b). Nest Ferch Rhys. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nest_ferch_Rhys
• Nest Verch Rhys. geni_family_tree. (2022). https://www.geni.com/people/Nest-verch-Rhys/6000000002931039490
• Princess Nest. Historic UK. (2023). https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofWales/Princess-Nest/
• Weir, Alison. (2008). Britain’s Royal Families – The Complete Genealogy. Vintage Books.
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Henry Fitzroy. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_FitzRoy_(died_1158)
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2022). Henry FitzHenry. Wikipedia (German). https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_FitzHenry

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

Reginald’s father King Henry I of England holding a model of  Reading Abbey, which he founded and where he and his son Reginald were buried; Credit – Wikipedia

Reginald de Dunstanville, Earl of Cornwall, one of the many illegitimate children of King Henry I of England, was born circa 1110, in Dénestanville, Duchy of Normandy, then a possession of the King of England, now in France. He was the son of King Henry I and his mistress Lady Sybilla Corbet of Alcester (1077 – circa 1157), the daughter of Robert Corbet of Alcester, Constable of Warwick, and Adèle d’Alcester, Reginald’s maternal grandparents. His paternal grandparents were King William I of England (the Conqueror) and Matilda of Flanders. Reginald’s surname probably refers to the place of his birth.

King Henry I holds the record for the British monarch with the most illegitimate children, 25 or so illegitimate children who were Reginald’s half-siblings.

Reginald had four full siblings, the children of King Henry I and Lady Sybilla Corbet of Alcester:

• Sybilla of Normandy, Queen of Scots (circa 1092 – 1122), married Alexander I, King of Scots, no children
• William Constable (circa 1105 – circa 1187), married Alice Constable
• Gundred FitzRoy (1114 – 1130)
• Rohese FitzRoy (circa 1114 – 1176, married Henry de la Pomerai, had two children

Reginald had two royal half-siblings from his father’s marriage to Matilda of Scotland:

• Empress Matilda, Lady of the English (1102 – 1167), married (1) Heinrich V, Holy Roman Emperor, no children (2) Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, had three sons including King Henry II of England
• William Ætheling, Duke of Normandy (1103 – 1120), married Matilda of Anjou, no children, William Ætheling, King Henry I’s only legitimate son and heir, died in the sinking of the White Ship

Reginald’s mother married Herbert FitzHerbert, Lord of Blaen Llyfni. Reginald had four half-brothers from her mother’s marriage:

• Robert FitzHerbert (circa 1106 – 1147), unmarried
• Henry FitzHerbert (circa 1110 – ?)
• William FitzHerbert (1118 – 1132)
• Herbert FitzHerbert, Lord of Blaen Llyfni, Lord Chamberlain of King Henry II of England (1125 – 1204), married Lucy FitzMiles de Gloucester and Hereford, had five children

Reginald married Beatrice FitzRichard (1114 – 1162), the daughter and heiress of William FitzRichard, Lord of Cardinham, a wealthy landowner in Cornwall, England.

Reginald and Beatrice had six children:

• Nicholas de Dunstanville (1136 – 1175)
• Emma de Dunstanville (died after 1208), married her cousin Guy IV de Laval, Lord of Laval, had two children
• Hawise de Dunstanville (1138 – 1162), married Richard de Redvers, 2nd Earl of Devon, Lord of The Isle of Wight, had two sons
• Maud de Dunstanville (1143 – 1207), married Robert II de Beaumont, Comte de Meulan, had nine children
• Ursula de Dunstanville (circa 1145 – ?), married Walter de Dunstanville, Baron of Castlecomb, had two children
• Sarah de Dunstanville (circa 1137 – 1206), married Aimar V, Viscount of Limoges, had six children

14th-century depiction of the sinking of the White Ship; Credit – Wikipedia

After the death of King Henry I’s only legitimate son William Ætheling in the sinking of the White Ship, King Henry I gathered his nobles at Westminster where they swore to recognize his daughter Empress Matilda and any future legitimate heir she might have as his successors. However, upon hearing of Henry I’s death on December 1, 1135, Stephen of Blois, one of Henry I’s nephews, quickly crossed the English Channel from France, seized power, and was crowned King of England on December 22, 1135. This started the terrible civil war between Stephen and his first cousin Empress Matilda known as The Anarchy.

Reginald’s half-sister Empress Matilda, Lady of the English; Credit – Wikipedia

Reginald supported his half-sister Empress Matilda over his cousin King Stephen during the eighteen-year-long civil war. It is most likely that Reginald was created Earl of Cornwall because of his support. Finally, in 1153, Stephen and Matilda’s son Henry FitzEmpress agreed upon a negotiated peace, the Treaty of Winchester, in which Stephen recognized Henry FitzEmpress as his heir. Reginald was present at the side of his nephew Henry FitzEmpress during the negotiations. After Henry FitzEmpress returned to the Duchy of Normandy, Reginald remained in England as his nephew’s official representative.

Reginald’s nephew KIng Henry II of England; Credit – Wikipedia

King Stephen died on October 25, 1154, and Henry FitzEmpress ascended the throne as King Henry II, the first Angevin King of England. During Henry II’s reign, Reginald was one of his closest advisors. Contemporary chroniclers recognized him as one the most powerful nobles in England along with Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester.

Reginald played an important role in the great crises during the reign of King Henry II. With Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester, he acted as an intermediary between Henry II and Thomas Becket. During the Revolt of 1173 – 1174, a rebellion against King Henry II by his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, three of his sons (Henry the Young King, the future King Richard I, and Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany), and their rebel supporters, Reginald led the campaigns in England against the rebels.

Ruins of Reading Abbey; Credit – By Hugh Llewelyn from Keynsham, UK – Reading Abbey, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=83341027

Reginald de Dunstanville, Earl of Cornwall died on July 1, 1175, aged about 65, in Chertsey, Surrey, England. He was buried at Reading Abbey in Reading, England, founded by his father King Henry I “for the salvation of my soul, and the souls of King William, my father, and of King William, my brother, and Queen Matilda, my wife, and all my ancestors and successors.” Upon his death in 1135, King Henry I was buried at Reading Abbey. Sadly, Reading Abbey was left in ruins in 1538 during King Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries. Hugh Faringdon, the last abbot was tried and convicted of high treason and hanged, drawn, and quartered in front of the Reading Abbey Church.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

Works Cited

• Ashley, Mike. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens. Carroll & Graf Publishers.
• Flantzer, Susan. (2015). King Henry I of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-henry-i-of-england/
• Réginald de Dunstanville, 1st Earl of Cornwall. geni_family_tree. (2022c, April 26). https://www.geni.com/people/R%C3%A9ginald-de-Dunstanville-1st-Earl-of-Cornwall/6000000002043182579
• Weir, Alison. (2008). Britain’s Royal Families – The Complete Genealogy. Vintage Books.
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023). Reginald de Dunstanville, 1. Earl of Cornwall. Wikipedia (German). https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reginald_de_Dunstanville,_1._Earl_of_Cornwall
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2022). Reginald de Dunstanville, Earl of Cornwall. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reginald_de_Dunstanville,_Earl_of_Cornwall
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023b, November 10). Réginald de Dunstanville. Wikipedia (French). https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%A9ginald_de_Dunstanville

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2024

King Henry I of England, father of Richard of Lincoln; Credit – Wikipedia

Richard of Lincoln was one of the three children – one legitimate (Henry I’s only legitimate son and heir) and two illegitimate – of King Henry I of England who were killed in the tragic sinking of the White Ship in 1120. Richard was born before 1101. His mother was probably Ansfride (circa 1070 – 1164), who was sometimes called a mistress and sometimes called a concubine. Ansfride was the widow of Anskill of Abingdon, a knight and a tenant of Abingdon Abbey in Abingdon, England, who died following a few days of harsh treatment after being imprisoned by King William II Rufus, King Henry I’s brother and predecessor. Richard’s paternal grandparents were King William I of England (the Conqueror) and Matilda of Flanders.

King Henry I holds the record for the British monarch with the most illegitimate children, 25 or so illegitimate children who were Richard’s half-siblings.

Richard’s probable full siblings:

• Juliane of Fontevrault (circa 1090 – 1136), married Eustace de Pacy, Lord of Pacy, Breteuil, and Pont-Saint-Pierre, had two sons and two daughters
• Fulk FitzRoy (circa 1092 – 1132), a monk at Abingdon Abbey

Richard had two royal half-siblings from her father’s marriage to Matilda of Scotland:

• Empress Matilda, Lady of the English (1102 – 1167), married (1) Heinrich V, Holy Roman Emperor, no children (2) Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, had three sons including King Henry II of England
• William Ætheling, Duke of Normandy (1103 – 1120), married Matilda of Anjou, no children, William Ætheling, King Henry I’s only legitimate son and heir, died in the sinking of the White Ship

Richard was brought up and educated by Robert Bloet, Bishop of Lincoln, who had also educated Richard’s half-brother Robert FitzRoy, 1st Earl of Gloucester, another illegitimate son of King Henry I.

Richard fought in the war between his father and King Louis VI of France in which King Henry I had to defend his territories in the Duchy of Normandy, now part of France. Richard was at his father’s side during the siege of the castle of Évreux being held by Henry I’s most detested enemy, Amaury III de Montfort. Richard was also at the Battle of Brémule on August 20, 1119, where the decisive English victory led to Louis VI’s accepting Richard’s half-brother William Ætheling as Duke of Normandy. In 1120, Richard was betrothed to Amice de Gaël, daughter of Raoul II de Gaël, Lord of Gaël, Montfort, and Breteuil. However, the marriage never took place because of the tragedy of the White Ship on November 25, 1120.

Because the Kings of England still held Normandy (in France) and were Dukes of Normandy, they were often in Normandy, and this was the case in November 1120. After the successful military campaign in which King Henry I of England had defeated King Louis VI of France at the Battle of Brémule, the English were finally preparing to return to England. King Henry I was offered the White Ship for his return to England, but he had already made other arrangements. Instead, Henry suggested that his only son and heir William Ætheling, Duke of Normandy sail on the White Ship along with his retinue which included William’s illegitimate half-brother Richard of Lincoln, William’s illegitimate half-sister Matilda, Countess of Perch, Richard d’Avranches, 2nd Earl of Chester and many of the heirs of the great estates of England and Normandy.

The sinking of the White Ship; Credit – Wikipedia

William Ætheling and his retinue boarded the ship in a festive mood and barrels of wine were brought on board to celebrate the return to England. Soon both passengers and crew were inebriated. By the time the ship was ready to set sail, there were about 300 people on board, including many high-ranking people of Norman England. William and his retinue ordered the captain of the White Ship to overtake the ship of King Henry I so that the White Ship would be the first ship to return to England. Unfortunately, the White Ship hit a submerged rock and capsized.

An 1866 watercolor by Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Louise showing a scene from the sinking of the Blanche Nef or White Ship. A male figure, probably William Ætheling, is shown in a lifeboat to the lower left. He is shown full-length, standing with his hands clasped together and looking up towards his half-sister Matilda, Countess of Perche who is still on board the ship. Drowning men are shown trying to climb into the small boat which is soon to capsize; Credit – Royal Collection Trust / © His Majesty King Charles III 2023

William’s bodyguard quickly got the heir to the throne into the safety of a dinghy. However, William Ætheling heard the screams of his half-sister Matilda, Countess of Perche, and ordered the dinghy to turn back to rescue her. At this point, the White Ship began to sink and the many people in the water desperately sought the safety of William’s dinghy. The chaos and the weight were too much causing William Ætheling’s dinghy to capsize and sink without a trace. The contemporary chronicler Orderic Vitalis claimed that only two people survived the shipwreck by clinging to a rock all night.

The people of the coastal communities of Normandy found bodies washed up on the beaches. Charles Spencer writes in his book The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I’s Dream that among the bodies found was that of Richard of Lincoln. He had been in the water long enough to lose his facial features which had been eaten, rotted, or cut up by the rocks. Richard was identified by his clothing.

King Henry I mourning the loss of three children in the sinking of the White Ship; Credit – Wikipedia

The sinking of the White Ship caused King Henry I to lose two illegitimate children, Richard of Lincoln and Matilda FitzRoy, Countess of Perche, and most importantly, King Henry I’s only son William Ætheling. King Henry I holds the record for the British monarch with the most illegitimate children, 25 or so illegitimate children, but the tragedy of the White Ship left him with only one legitimate child, his daughter Matilda. Henry I’s nephews were the closest male heirs. In January 1121, Henry married a second time to Adeliza of Louvain, hoping for sons, but the marriage remained childless. On Christmas Day in 1226, King Henry I of England gathered his nobles at Westminster where they swore to recognize his daughter Matilda and any future legitimate heir she might have as his successors. That plan did not work out. Upon hearing of Henry I’s death on December 1, 1135, Stephen of Blois, one of Henry I’s nephews, quickly crossed the English Channel from France, seized power, and was crowned King of England on December 22, 1135. This started the terrible civil war between first cousins Stephen and Matilda known as The Anarchy. England did not see peace for more than 18 years until Matilda’s son acceded to the throne as King Henry II of England in 1154.

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Works Cited

• Ansfride Concubine #3 of Henry I King of England. geni_family_tree. (2022a, August 22). https://www.geni.com/people/Ansfride-Concubine-3-of-Henry-I-King-Of-England/6000000001563248849
• Beauclerk-Dewar, Peter, & Powell, Roger. (2006). Right Royal Bastards – The Fruits of Passion. Burke’s Peerage & Gentry LLC.
• Flantzer, Susan. (2015). King Henry I of England. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/king-henry-i-of-england/
• Flantzer, Susan. (2015). The Sinking of the White Ship and How It Affected the English Succession. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/november-25-1120-the-sinking-of-the-white-ship-and-how-it-affected-the-english-succession/
• Spencer, Charles. (2022). The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I’s Dream. William Collins.
• Weir, Alison. (2008). Britain’s Royal Families – The Complete Genealogy. Vintage Books.
• Wikimedia Foundation. (2023e). Richard of Lincoln, illegitimate son of Henry I of England. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_of_Lincoln_(illegitimate_son_of_Henry_I_of_England)