Roger Clare, Earl of Hertford

CLARE

1. GODFREY de BRIONNE

b.c.953
d.c.1015

Godfrey was the illegitimate son of Richard, "The Fearless", Duc de Normandie. He was the Comte de Brionne, Normandy and was also known as Godfrey d'Eu.

Issue-

· 2I. GILBERT- b.c.1000, m. GUNNORA

2I. GILBERT de BIENFAITE (GODFREY 1)

b.c.1000 Normandy
m. GUNNORA d'AUNOU
d.c.1040 Assassinated

Gilbert, Comte de Brionne was also known as Gilbert 'Crispin' de Brionne. He inherited Brionne, becoming one of the most powerful landowners in Normandy.

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.

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.

Issue-

· 3I. RICHARD- b.c.1024, m.c.1054 ROHESE GIFFARD, d.c.1090, bur. St. Neots, Hunts.

· 13II. BALDWIN- m. EMMA, d. 1095

Ref:

"The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new edition"- G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors- vol. III, p. 242

3I. RICHARD, Lord of Bienfaite et Orbec, Normandy (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2)

b.c.1024 Bienfaite, Normandy
m.c.1054 ROHESE GIFFARD (b.c.1034 Longueville, Normandy, d. after 1113), d. of Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville sur Scie and Agnes Ermentrude Fleitel
d.c.1090
bur. St. Neots, Huntingdonshire

"Richard de Clare, founder of the house of Clare, was a son 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. 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. He is further found in attendance on the king at Berkeley, Christmas 1080 and again, with his brother, at Winchester in 1081. The date of his death is somewhat uncertain. Ordericus 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 that he received it in exchange for his claim on his father's comté of Brionne, while the Tintern Genealogia 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. By Stapleton and Ormerod 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. He married Rohaise, the daughter of Walter Giffard the elder, 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. She was still living as his widow in 1113 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. Of these Roger, mentioned first by Ordericus, was probably the eldest, though he is commonly, as by Stapleton, styled the second. He had sided with Robert in the revolt of 1077-8, and is said by the continuator of William of Jumièges to have received from Robert the castle of Hommez in exchange for his claims on Brionne, but it was, according to Ordericus, 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 about 1080, was his father's heir in Normandy, but left no issue. The other sons were Gilbert (d. 1115?), the heir in England, Walter, Robert, said to be ancestor of the Barons FitzWalter, and Richard a monk of Bec, who was made abbot of Ely on the accession of Henry I, deprived in 1102, and restored in 1107. There was also a daughter Rohaise, married about 1088 to Eudes the sewer."(1)

Ruins of Clare Castle

Clare Castle is a ruin in the small town of Clare in Suffolk. The first structure on the site was a wooden castle which was erected around 1070 on a high motte overlooking two baileys. In the 12th or 13th century a stone castle was erected by later members of the de Clare family who also by now had large holdings in south Wales and Thomond in North Munster. Initially there was a polygonal shell keep with unusual triangular buttresses. Later the castle was strengthened with stone walls on top of the earth banks, three towers and a gateway. All that now remains of the castle is a high mound with a ruined tower. The extensive earth ramparts, which cover about 20 acres have been developed into Clare Castle Country Park.

Issue-

· I. Roger- d.s.p.

· 4I. GILBERT- m. ADELIZE de CLERMONT, d. 1117

· III. Walter- Lord of Nether Gwent, d. 1138

· IV. Robert- Lord of Little Dunmow, Baron of Baynard, d. 1136. ancestor of the Barons FitzWalter

· V. Richard- Richard was a monk of Bec and then abbot of Ely

· VI. Rohaise- m.c.1088 Eudes the sewer

· VII. Adelize- m. Walter Tirel, d. 1138

Ref:

(1) Dictionary of National Biography- H.C.G. Matthew ed., Oxford Univ. Press

4I. GILBERT de CLARE (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3)

b. before 1066 Clare, Suffolk
m. ADELIZA de CLERMONT, d. of Hugues de Clermont and Marguerite de Montdidier
d. 1114

Gilbert FitzRichard was also known as Gilbert de Tonbridge and Gilbert de Clare. He was granted the lands and lordship of Cardigan by Henry I including Cardigan Castle. He succeeded to the title of Lord of Clare c.1090. In 1090 he founded the Cluniac Priory at Stoke-by-Clare.

Issue-

· 5I. RICHARD- b.c.1084, m. ALICE de MESCHINES, murdered 15 Apr. 1136 Abergavenny

· 6II. GILBERT- b.c.1100, m.c.1130 ISABEL de BEAUMONT, d.c.Jan. 1147, 1st Earl of Pembroke

· III. Walter- d. 1149

· IV. Margaret- m. Sir William de Montfitchet, Lord of Stanstead Mountfitchet

· 15V. ADELIZE/ALICE- m. AUBREY de VERE

· VI. Baldwin- m. Adeline de Rollos

· VII. Hervey-

· VIII. Rohese- m. Baderon of Monmouth

· IX. Margaret-

Ref:

5I. RICHARD de CLARE (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3, GILBERT 4)

b.c.1084
m. ALICE de MESCHINES (b.c.1086, d.c.1136), d. of Ranulph le Meschin, Earl of Chester
murdered 15 Apr. 1136 Abergavenny, Monmouthshire

"Richard de Clare was son and heir of Gilbert FitzRichard and was probably the first of his family who adopted the surname of Clare. He is generally believed to have been also the first of the earls of Hertford, and to have been so created by Stephen, if not by Henry I. It may be doubted, however, whether there is ground for this belief. It is as Richard FitzGilbert that he figures in 1130 when the Pipe Roll reveals him in debt to the Jews, and under the same that he appears when surprised and killed by the Welsh under command of Iorwerth ab Owain near Abergavenny on his way to Cardigan either in 1135, or more probably 1136, on 15 April. His death was the signal for a general rising, and his castles were besieged by the rebels. His widow, Adelize, took refuge in Cardigan castle which was successfully defended by Robert fitz Martin. She was rescued by Miles of Gloucester, but his brother Baldwin, whom Stephen despatched to suppress the rising and avenge his death, failed discreditably. Richard, who was buried at Gloucester, was founder of Tunbridge Priory, and about 1124 removed the religious house which his father had founded at Clare to the adjacent hill of Stoke. He married a sister of Randulf, earl of Chester, whose name is said by Brooke to have been Alice."(1)

Tunbridge Priory

Issue-

· I. Gilbert- c. 1152, 1st Earl of Hertford

· 7II. ROGER- m. MAUD de St. HILARY, d. 1173

· III. Alice- m.1. c.1133 Sir. William de Percy, Lord of Topcliffe, 2. Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd

· IV. Robert- probably d.s.p.

· V. Rohese- m. Gilbert de Gant, Earl of Lincoln

Ref:

(1) Dictionary of National Biography- H.C.G. Matthew ed., Oxford Univ. Press

7II. ROGER- (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3, GILBERT 4, RICHARD 5)

m. MAUD De St. HILARY (m.2. William d'Aubigny, 2nd Earl of Arundel (d. 24 Dec. 1193)), d. of James de St. Hilary and Aveline
d. 1173

"Roger de Clare, fifth Earl of Clare and third Earl of Hertford, was the younger son of Richard de Clare, and succeeded to his brother Gilbert's titles and estates in 1152. In 1153 he appears with his cousin, Richard Strongbow, earl of Pembroke, as one of the signatories to the treaty at Westminster, in which Stephen recognises Prince Henry as his successor. He is found signing charters at Canterbury and Dover in 1156. Next year, according to Powell, he received from Henry II a grant of whatever lands he could conquer in South Wales. This is probably only an expansion of the statement of the Welsh chronicles that in this year (about 1 June) he entered Cardigan and stored the castles of Humfrey, Aberdovey, Dineir, and Rhystud. Rhys ap Gruffudd, the prince of South Wales, appears to have complained to Henry II of these encroachments, but being unable to obtain redress from the king of England sent his nephew Einion to attack Humfrey and the other Norman fortresses. The Annales Cambriæ seem to assign these events to the year 1159 and the Brut adds that Prince Rhys burnt all the French castles in Cardigan. In 1158 or 1160 Clare advanced with an army to the relief of Carmarthen Castle, then besieged by Rhys, and pitched his camp at Dinweilir. Not daring to attack the Welsh prince, the English army offered peace and retired home. In 1163 Rhys again invaded the conquests of Clare, who, we learn incidentally, had at some earlier period caused Einion, the capturer of Humfrey Castle, to be murdered by domestic treachery. A second time all Cardigan was wrested from the Norman hands and things now wore so threatening an aspect that Henry II led an army into Wales in 1165, although, according to one Welsh account, Rhys had made his peace with the king in 1164, and had even visited him in England. The causes assigned by the Welsh chronicle for this fresh outbreak of hostility are that Henry failed to keep his promises—presumably of restitution—and secondly that Roger, earl of Clare, was honourably receiving Walter, the murderer of Rhys's nephew Einion. For the third time we now read that Cardigan was overrun and the Norman castles burnt, but it is possible that the events assigned by the Annales Cambriæ to the year 1165 are the same as those assigned by the Brut y Tywysogion to 1163.

In the intervening years Clare had been abroad, and is found signing charters at Le Mans, probably about Christmas 1160, and again at Rouen in 1161. In July 1163 he was summoned by Becket to do homage in his capacity of steward to the archbishops of Canterbury for the castle of Tunbridge. In his refusal, which he based on the grounds that he held the castle of the king and not of the archbishop, he was supported by Henry II. Next year he was one of the recognisers of the constitutions of Clarendon. Early in 1170 he was appointed one of a band of commissioners for Kent, Surrey, and other parts of southern England. His last known signature seems to belong to June or July 1171, and is dated abroad from Chevaillée. He appears to have died in 1173, and certainly before July or August 1174, when we find Richard, earl of Clare, his son, coming to the king at Northampton.

Tonbridge Castle

Richard Fitz Gilbert was granted the land in Tonbridge, Kent to guard the crossing of the River Medway and erected a simple Motte-and-bailey castle. To dig the moat and erect the motte 50,000 tonnes of earth were moved. In 1088, the family rebelled against King William II who besieged the castle. After holding for two days the castle fell and as punishment the king had both the castle and the town of Tonbridge burnt to the ground. Before 1100, the de Clares replaced the wooden castle with a stone shell keep. This was reinforced during the thirteenth century, and in 1295 a stone wall was built around the town. The twin towered gatehouse was built by Richard de Clare, sixth Earl of Hertford or his son Gilbert. Construction of the gatehouse took 30 years, being completed in 1260. The gatehouse shares many similarities with the ones at Caerphilly Castle built by Gilbert in 1268-1271. The great seal of England was temporarily kept here during one of Edwards visits to France. The mansion was added in 1793.

Clare married Matilda, daughter of James de St. Hilary, as we learn from an inspeximus (dated 1328) of one of this lady's charters to Godstow. He was succeeded by his son Richard, who died, as it is said, in 1217. Another son, James, was a very sickly child, and was twice presented before the tomb of Thomas à Becket by his mother. On both occasions a cure is reported to have been effected."(1)

Issue-

· 8I. RICHARD- m. AMICE FITZROBERT, Countess of Gloucester (d. 1 Jan. 1224/5), d. c.28 Nov. 1217

· II. Aveline- m.1. Geoffrey FitzPiers, Earl of Essex, 2. Sir William Muchensyd. before 4 June 1225

· III. Mabel- m.c.1175 Nigel de Mowbray, d. 1204

· IV. James-

· V. Roger- d. 1241 Middleton, Norfolk

· VI. John-

· VII. Henry-

Ref:

(1) Dictionary of National Biography- H.C.G. Matthew ed., Oxford Univ. Press

"Pedigrees of Some of the Emperor Charlemagne's Descendants"- Vol.II, p.87

8I. RICHARD (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3, GILBERT 4, RICHARD 5, ROGER 6)

b.c.1153
m.c.1180 (divorced 1200), AMICE FITZROBERT (d. 1 Jan. 1224/5), d. of William Fitz Robert, Earl of Gloucester
d. c.28 Nov. 1217

Sir Richard was the 6th Lord of Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford and Gloucester. He was present at the coronations of King Richard the Lionheart at Westminster on 3 Sept. 1189 and King John on 27 May 1199. He was also present at the homage of King William the Lion of Scotland at Lincoln.

In 1176, king Henry II engaged his son John (the future king) to Isabel, the younger sister of Amice. As part of this arrangement, he disinherited her sisters from their rights to inherit the Gloucester earldom, compensating their husbands, the Earl of Hertford and the future Count of Evreux with £100 annuities. Sometime before 1198, Earl Richard and his wife Amice were ordered to separate by the Pope on grounds of consanguinity. They separated for a time because of this order but apparently reconciled their marriage with the Pope later on.

He sided with the Barons against King John, even though he had previously sworn peace with the King at Northampton, and his castle of Tonbridge was taken. He played a leading part in the negotiations for Magna Carta, being one of the twenty five sureties. On 9 November 1215, he was one of the commissioners on the part of the Barons to negotiate the peace with the King. In 1215, his lands in counties Cambridge, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex were granted to Robert de Betun. He and his son were among the Barons excommunicated by the Pope in 1215.

Issue-

· 9I. GILBERT- b.c.1180, m. 9 Oct. 1217 ISABEL MARSHALL (d. 17 Jan. 1239/0 Berkhampstead), d. 25 Oct. 1230 Penros, Brittany

Ref:

9I. GILBERT (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3, GILBERT 4, RICHARD 5,ROGER 6, RICHARD 7)

b.c.1180
m. 9 Oct. 1217 Tewkesbury Abbey, Gloucestershire, ISABEL MARSHALL (b. 9 Oct. 1200 Pembroke Castle, m.2. 13 Mar. 1231 Fawley Church, Buckinghamshire, Richard Plantagenet, 1st Earl of Cornwall & King of the Romans (b. 5 Jan. 1209 Winchester Castle, d. 2 Apr. 1272 Berkhamsted Castle), d. 17 Jan. 1240 Berkhamsted Castle, Hertfordshire) d. of Sir William Marshall, 3rd Earl of Pembroke
d. 25 Oct. 1230 Penros, Brittany

"Gilbert de Clare, seventh Earl of Clare, fifth Earl of Hertford, and sixth Earl of Gloucester was the son of Richard, sixth earl of Clare and Hertford by his wife Amicia, one of the three coheiresses of William, earl of Gloucester. On the death of his mother and the failure of issue to her two sisters, Mabel and Isabella (the divorced wife of King John, afterwards married to Geoffrey de Mandevil and Hubert de Burgh), he succeeded to the vast Gloucester estates apparently in the year 1217. He also inherited the estates of his grandmother, Maud de St. Hilary, and a moiety of the honour of Giffard from his father, who had been confirmed in this possession by Richard I as one of the coheirs of his ancestress, Rohais, daughter of Walter Giffard, earl of Buckingham. According to Dugdale his father died in 1206, but this is evidently a mistake, as both Richard, earl of Clare, and his son Gilbert appear in the patent rolls of 14 John, while the Earl of Clare and Gilbert de Clare are to be found among the twenty-five barons appointed to carry out the great charter in June 1215, and were both excommunicated by Innocent III in the beginning of 1216. After the death of John he sided with the dauphin, and is said to have been taken prisoner at the battle of Lincoln by William Marshall, the earl of Pembroke, who married him to his daughter Isabella on St. Denis's day, 9 Oct. 1217. In 1223 he accompanied his brother-in-law, Earl Marshal, in an expedition into Wales. In February 1225 he was present at the confirmation of the great charter at Westminster. Two years later we find him taking the part of Richard, earl of Cornwall, in his quarrel with the king, demanding a renewal of the forest acts and ascribing all the faults of the government to Hubert de Burgh. About May 1230 he appears to have attended Henry III abroad on his expedition to Brittany; but died in ipso reditu, at Penros in that duchy, 25 Oct. 1230. He seems to have made his first will before starting on this campaign, 30 April 1230, at Suwik-super-Mare; his second, just before his death, on 23 Oct. His body was conveyed to Plymouth, and thence, by way of Cranborne, to Tewkesbury, where he was buried before the great altar on the Sunday following St. Martin's day, in the presence of an innumerable concourse. To Tewkesbury Abbey he was a great benefactor in his lifetime, and bequeathed it a silver cross and the wood of Mutha. His widow Isabella set up a memorial stone 28 Sept. 1231. In the course of the same year she married Richard, earl of Cornwall. Clare was engaged in many Welsh expeditions. He is found fortifying Builth Castle in 12 John. In 1228 he set out with a great army against the Welsh, on which occasion we read that he found silver, iron, and lead. The same year he captured Morgan Cam and sent him prisoner to England, but a little later released him for hostages. His widow, Isabel, died 17 Jan. 1239-40, and was buried at Beaulieu. Her heart, however, was brought to Tewkesbury by the prior in a silver-gilt casket (cuppa) and interred before the great altar." (1).

Tewkesbury Abbey

Issue-

· I. Agnes- d.s.p.

· II. Amice- b.c.1220, m.1., int. Oct. 1226, Baldwin de Reviers, 6th Earl of Devon (d. 1245), 2. after 1246 Robert de Guines (d. 1283), d. 1284

· III. Richard- b. 4 Aug. 1222, m. 25 Jan. 1237/8 Maud De Lacy (d. before 10 Mar. 1288/9), d. 15 July 1262. Sir Richard was the Earl of Gloucester and Hertford.

· 10IV. ISABEL- b. 2 Nov. 1226, m. May 1240 ROBERT BRUCE (b. 1226, d. 31 Mar. 1295), d. after 1264

· V. William- d.s.p. 1258

· VI. Gilbert- Gilbert was a priest

Ref:

(1) Dictionary of National Biography- H.C.G. Matthew ed., Oxford Univ. Press

"Britain's Royal Family: A Complete Genealogy"- Alison Weir, The Bodley Head, London, 1999- p. 68
"The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new edition"- G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors- Vol. II, p. 359; vol. III, p. 244
"Pedigrees of Some of the Emperor Charlemagne's Descendants"- Vol.II, pp.87,114

6II. GILBERT- 1st Earl of Pembroke (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3, GILBERT 4)

b.c.1100 Tonbridge, Kent
m.c.1130 ISABEL de BEAUMONT (b.c.1102, mistress of Henry I, d.c.1172)
d.c. Jan. 1147

Seal of Gilbert fitz Gilbert from Lansdowne Manuscript 203

Gilbert de Clare became a baron, that is, a tenant-in-chief, obtaining the estates of his paternal uncles, Roger and Walter, which included the baronies and castles of Bienfaite and Orbec in Normandy, the lordship of Nether Gwent and the castle of Striguil (later Chepstow). King Stephen created him Earl of Pembroke, and gave him the rape and castle of Pevensey. Gilbert de Clare decided to live near the roof in the Great Hall so he could see what was going on at all times.

After Stephen's defeat at Lincoln on 2 February 1141, Gilbert was among those who rallied to Empress Matilda when she recovered London in June, but he was at Canterbury when Stephen was recrowned late in 1141. He then joined Geoffrey's plot against Stephen, but when that conspiracy collapsed, he again adhered to Stephen, being with him at the siege of Oxford late in 1142. In 1147 he rebelled when Stephen refused to give him the castles surrendered by his nephew Gilbert, 2nd Earl of Hertford, whereupon the King marched to his nearest castle and nearly captured him. However, the Earl appears to have made his peace with Stephen before his death the following year.

Issue-

· 11I. RICHARD- b.c.1130, m. Aug. 1170 AIFE Mac MURCHADA, d. 5 Apr. 1176 Dublin

· II. Basilea- m. Raymond le Gros FitzWilliam

Ref:

11I. RICHARD (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2, RICHARD 3, GILBERT 4, GILBERT 5)

b.c.1130
m. Aug. 1170 AOIFE Mac MURCHADA,(see LEINSTER) d. of Diarmuid MacMurrough, King of Leinster and Mor O'Toole
d. 5 Apr. 1176 Dublin

Richard was known as Strongbow and was invited by Diarmuid MacMurrough, Ling of Leinster to help expell his enemies in Ireland. Diarmuid gave Richard his daughter Aife in marriage and the heirship of the kingdom of Leinster. This invitation by Diarmuid to Richard gave the English a foothold in Ireland which occupation was to last for almost 750 years. I must say that in all my ancestor digging over the years I have yet to find relatives who led to the misery of an entire race of people for centuries such as Richard and Diarmuid. As a consequence of the invasion, Richard was Lord of Leinster, Striguil, Earl Marshal and Justiciar of Ireland.

"Richard de Clare, or Richard Strongbow, second Earl of Pembroke and Strigul, was son of Gilbert Strongbow, or De Clare, whom Stephen created earl of Pembroke in 1138, and grandson of Gilbert de Clare. His mother was Elizabeth, daughter of Robert de Beaumont, earl of Leicester and Mellent. He appears to have succeeded to his father's estates in 1148; but the name of Richard, count of Pembroke, first appears among the signatures to the treaty of Westminster (7 Nov. 1153), which recognised Prince Henry as Stephen's successor. It appears that he was allowed to retain his title even after the accession of Henry II, when so many of Stephen's earldoms were abolished; but according to Giraldus Cambrensis he had either forfeited or lost his estates by 1167-8. We learn from Ralph de Diceto that he was one of the nobles who accompanied Princess Matilda on her marriage journey to Minden in Germany early in 1168.

According to the Irish historians it was in 1166 that Dermot, driven from Leinster by the combined forces of Roderic O'Connor, king of Connaught, and Tighernan O'Ruarc, king of Breifni, appealed to Henry for aid in the recovery of his kingdom. This date, according to Giraldus, seems two years too early. Henry gave letters empowering any of his subjects to assist the dethroned monarch, who secured the services of Earl Richard, promising in return for his assistance to give him his eldest daughter in marriage, together with the succession to Leinster. The earl engaged to cross over with an army in the ensuing spring; but stipulated that he must have express permission from Henry before starting. Earlier aid was promised by Robert FitzStephen and Maurice FitzGerald, who appear to have crossed over to Wexford about 1 May 1169. If this date be correct, the meeting of Dermot and the earl must have taken place about July 1168, to which year Hoveden assigns the invasion of Ireland. In the conquest of Wexford and the expeditions against Ossory and Dublin Earl Richard took no part; but according to Giraldus he was represented in this campaign by his nephew, Hervey de Mountmaurice.

It was apparently towards the close of this year that Dermot, despairing of the arrival of the Earl of Strigul, offered his daughter to Robert FitzStephen and Maurice FitzGerald, and on their refusal sent a pressing invitation to the earl: The swallows have come and gone, yet you are tarrying still. On receiving this letter, Earl Richard, after much deliberation, crossed over to Henry and received the requisite permission to carve out a heritage for himself in foreign lands; but, according to Giraldus, the king granted his request ironically rather than seriously. A much later writer, Trivet (c. 1300), has preserved a tradition that the earl had been an exile in Ireland previous to this.

Before crossing to Ireland himself, Earl Richard sent forward a small force under one of his own men, Raymond le Gros, the nephew of FitzStephen and FitzGerald. Landing near Waterford about the beginning of May 1170, he was immediately joined by Hervey de Mountmaurice. According to the Anglo-Norman Poet, Earl Richard crossed very soon after; both accounts agree that he appeared before Waterford with from twelve to fifteen hundred men on St. Bartholomew's eve (23 Aug.) Within two days the city had fallen; but Dermot, accompanied by Maurice and Robert, came up in time to save the lives of the captives. The marriage between Eva and the earl was celebrated at once, and the whole army set out for Dublin, after setting an English guard at Waterford. If the Anglo-Norman Poet may be trusted, there were from four to five thousand English who took part in the march to Dublin, before which town they arrived on 21 Sept. Meanwhile, Roderic of Connaught had mustered thirty thousand men for its relief. While peace negotiations were going on, Milo de Cogan and Raymond le Gros took the city by assault, without the consent of either Dermot or the earl. Asculf MacTurkill, the Danish ruler, was driven into exile, and his town handed over to Earl Richard, who appears to have resided here till the beginning of October, when he started to attack O'Ruarc in Meath, leaving Dublin in charge of Milo de Cogan. From Meath he seems to have withdrawn to Waterford for the winter; while Dermot took up his abode at Ferns, where he died on 1 May 1171.

Meanwhile, Henry II, who had grown jealous of his vassal's success, had forbidden the transport of fresh forces to Ireland, and ordered all who had already crossed to return by Easter 1171 (28 March). To prevent the enforcement of this decree, the earl despatched Raymond le Gros to the king in Aquitane, with instructions to place all his conquests at the king's disposal.

On the death of Dermot there was a general combination against the English. All the earl's allies, excepting some three or four, deserted him, and a force of sixty thousand men was collected under Roderic O'Connor to besiege Dublin about Whitsuntide (16 May) 1171. Earl Richard, to whose assistance Raymond le Gros had already returned, sent for aid to FitzStephen at Wexford, from which place he received a reinforcement of thirty-six men, a step which so weakened the Wexford garrison, that it had to surrender later (? c. 1 July). On hearing of this disaster the earl, fearing starvation, offered to do fealty to Roderic for Leinster. Roderic, however, refused to concede more than the three Norse towns, Waterford, Dublin, and Wexford; if these terms were rejected, he would storm the town on the morrow. In this emergency the earl ordered a sudden sally in three directions, led by Milo, Raymond, and himself. A brilliant success was achieved; the siege was raised, and the earl was left free to set out to the relief of FitzStephen, whom the Irish had shut up in the island of Becherin. Dublin was once more entrusted to Milo de Cogan. On his march through Idrone he was attacked by O'Ryan, the king of this district; but hearing that the Irish had left Wexford for Becherin, he proceeded to Waterford, whence he sent a summons to his brother-in-law, the king of Limerick, to aid in an attack on MacDonchid, the king of Ossory. The Anglo-Norman Poet says that it was only the chivalrous honour of Maurice de Prendergast that now prevented the earl from acting with the utmost treachery to the latter king. The earl then departed for Ferns, where he stayed eight days before going in pursuit of Murrough O'Brien, who was put to death at Ferns, together with his son. About the same time, acting as the over-king of Leinster, he confirmed Muirchertad (Murtherdath) in his kingdom of Hy-Kinsellagh (near Wexford), and gave the pleis of Leinster to Donald Kevenath, the faithful son of Dermot. Probably about the middle of August Hervey de Mountmaurice returned from a second mission to the king, and urged the earl to lose no time in making peace with Henry personally. After entrusting Waterford to Gilbert de Borard, Strongbow crossed over to England with Hervey, found the king at Newnham in Gloucestershire, and, after much trouble, succeeded in pacifying him, by the resignation of all his castles and maritime cities. On 18 Oct. the king reached Waterford, which was at once handed over to Robert FitzBernard. From Waterford the king marched through Ossory to Dublin, receiving the homage of the Irish princes as he went. He spent Christmas at Dublin, which on his departure he gave in charge to Hugh de Lacy. It would seem that during the greater part of the six months Henry spent in Ireland Earl Richard kept his own court at Kildare.

A Dyvelin esteit li reis HenrizEt à Kildare li quens gentils.

That the king to some extent distrusted the intentions of his great vassal is evident by the steps he took to weaken the earl's party and power.

Towards the beginning of Lent (c. 1 March 1172) Henry reached Wexford. Three or four weeks later came the news of the threatened rebellion of his sons; but his passage to England was delayed till Easter Monday (17 April). Before leaving Ireland he had made Hugh de Lacy lord of Meath, and entrusted Wexford to William FitzAldhelm. Meanwhile, Earl Richard withdrew to Ferns, where he married his sister Basilia to Robert de Quenci, who was given the constableship of Leinster.

For the next two years Kildare seems to have been Earl Richard's headquarters, whence he appears to have made forays on the district of Offaly. On one of these expeditions Robert de Quenci was slain, upon which Raymond le Gros demanded the widow in marriage. This request, which implied a claim to the constableship of Leinster and the guardianship of Basilia's infant daughter, was refused, although the refusal seems to have cost the earl the services of Raymond and his followers, who at once returned to Wales.

On the breaking out of the rebellion of 1173 (c. 15 April 1173) Henry summoned the earl to his assistance in Normandy, where, according to the Anglo-Norman Poet, he was given the castle of Gisors to guard. From Ralph de Diceto we know that he was present at the relief of Verneuil (9 Aug.). He was apparently dismissed before the close of the first year of war, and as a reward of his fidelity received the restoration of Wexford, Waterford, and Dublin. On reaching Ireland he at once despatched Robert FitzBernard, FitzStephen, and others to aid against the rebels in England, where, if we may trust the Anglo-Norman Poet, the Irish forces were present at the overthrow of the Earl of Leicester (17 Oct.) at Bury St. Edmunds.

On Raymond's departure Earl Richard gave the constableship to Hervey de Mountmaurice. Dissatisfied with his generalship, the troops clamoured for the reappointment of Raymond, whom Henry had sent back to Ireland with the earl, and their request was granted. About the latter part of 1174 the earl led his army into Munster, against Donald of Limerick, and met with the great disaster that forced him back to Waterford, where he was closely besieged by the Irish, while Roderic O'Connor advanced to the very walls of Dublin. In this emergency the earl sent over a messenger begging that Raymond would come to his aid, and promising him his sister's hand. The two nobles met in an island near Waterford. Earl Richard was brought back to Wexford, where the marriage was celebrated. On the next day Raymond started to drive the king of Connaught out of Meath. It was now that, at Raymond's suggestion, the earl gave his elder daughter Alina to William FitzMaurice. To Maurice himself he assigned Wicklow Castle; Carbury to Meiler FitzHenry, and other estates to various other knights. Dublin was handed over to the brothers from Hereford. With his sister Earl Richard granted Raymond Fothord, Idrone, and Glaskarrig. It appears that the earl was now supreme in Leinster, having hostages of all the great Irish princes.

It was probably in 1175 that Earl Richard was called upon to relieve Hugh de Lacy's newly built castle of Trim. After this success he withdrew to Dublin, having determined to send his army under Raymond against Donald O'Brien of Limerick. He does not seem to have taken any personal share in the latter expedition (c. 1 Oct. 1175), and indeed may possibly have been in England in this very month. After the fall of Limerick Hervey persuaded the king to recall his rival Raymond, whom, however, the peril of the English garrison detained in Ireland long after the receipt of the summons, since the earl's men refused to advance under any other leader. On Tuesday, 6 April 1176, Raymond once more entered Limerick, from which town he soon started for Cork, to relieve Dermot Macarthy, prince of Desmond. While thus engaged he received a letter from his wife, Basilia, informing him that that huge grinder which had caused him so much pain had fallen out. By this phrase he understood that Earl Richard was dead (c. 1 June according to Giraldus; but 5 April according to Diceto). After Raymond's arrival the earl was buried in the church of the Holy Trinity, where his tomb is still shown. Other accounts make him buried at Gloucester.

Earl Richard seems to have left an only daughter, Isabella by name. At the age of three she became the heiress to her father's vast estates, and was married by King Richard to William Marshall in 1189. The question as to whether he had other issue has been fiercely contested by genealogists; but there seems to be no reason for doubting that he was married before espousing Dermot's daughter. The earl's daughter, Alina, mentioned above, cannot well have been his child by Eva. In the Irish Annals we read of a predatory expedition led into Kildare by the earl's son. A Tintern charter granted by the younger William Marshall, and dated Strigul 22 March 1206, makes mention of Walter, filius Ricardi, filii Gilberti Strongbowe, avi mei. But even this evidence can hardly be considered to confirm the current story as to how the earl met his son fleeing before the enemy and, enraged at such cowardice, clave him asunder with his sword. A tomb is still shown in Christ Church, Dublin, which passes for that of Richard Strongbow. This monument, which is described as displaying the cross-legged effigy of a knight, is said to have been restored by Sir Henry Sidney in 1570. On the left lies a half-figure of uncertain sex, which is popularly supposed to represent the earl's son. On it are inscribed the lines: Nate ingrate mihi pugnanti terga dedisti: Non mihi sed genti, regno quoque terga dedisti.

"This: ayncyent: monument: of: Rychard: Strangbowe: called: comes: Strangvlensis: Lord: of: Chepsto: and: Ogny: the: fyrst: and: pryncypall: invader: of: Irland: 1169: Qui: Obiit: 1177.:
The: monument: was: brocken: by: the: fall: of: the: roff: and: bodye: of: Christeschurch: in: Anna: 1562:
and: set: up: agayne: at: the: chargys: of: the: Right: Honorable: Sr: Henry: Sydney: Knyght: of: the: noble: order: L: President: of: Wailes: L: Deputy: of: Irland: 1570."

But there is no evidence as to the original state of this monument or the extent of Sir Henry's restorations. The whole legend was well known to Stanihurst in 1584; but it may date much further back than the sixteenth century.

Strongbow's original tomb

The "new" tomb, built in the 16th century

According to Giraldus's rhetorical phrase, Richard de Clare was vir plus nominis hactenus habens quam ominis, plus genii quam ingenii, plus successionis quam possessionis. More trustworthy, perhaps, is Giraldus's personal description of the earl: A man of a somewhat florid complexion and freckled; with grey eyes, feminine features, a thin voice and short neck, but otherwise of a good stature. He was rather suited, continues the same historian, for the council chamber than the field, and better fitted to obey than to command. He required to be urged on to enterprise by his followers; but when once in the press of the fight his resolution was as the standard or the rallying-point of his side. No disaster could shake his courage, and he showed no undue exhilaration when things went well. In the pages of Giraldus the earl appears as a mere foil to the brilliant characters of the Fitzgeralds, and is never credited with any very remarkable military achievement. On the other hand, in the pages of the Anglo-Norman Poet he fills a much more prominent position; he leads great expeditions, and is specially distinguished at the siege of Dublin. But even in the verse of this writer his special epithets are, li gentils quens, le bon contur. It is more rarely that we find him styled li quens vailland.

The two principal authorities for the career of Richard Strongbow are Giraldus Cambrensis and a poet who, towards the close of the twelfth century, wrote an account of the conquest of Ireland in Norman-French verse. The narrative of the latter, according to its author's statement, is largely based on the information derived from Dermot's interpreter or clerk, Maurice Regan. In many points these two writers are not in absolute accord, and the chronology is rendered still more obscure by the fact that the Anglo-Norman Poet gives no yearly dates at all, while Giraldus is not entirely consistent with himself. Each author supplies much that is peculiar to himself. At other times, when they seem to differ it may be that they refer to different occasions. The latter view has been taken in the article in the case of Raymond's return to England."(1)

Issue-

· 12 I. ISABEL- b.c.1175, m. Aug. 1189 London, WILLIAM MARSHALL, Earl of Pembroke (b.c.1146, d.c. Apr. 1219 Caversham), d. 1220

Ref:

(1) Dictionary of National Biography- H.C.G. Matthew ed., Oxford Univ. Press

13II. BALDWIN (GODFREY 1, GILBERT 2)

m. EMMA ______
d. 1095

Baldwin Fitz Gilbert, Seigneur de Meules was Sheriff of Devon and Lord of Okehampton. He was made castellan of Rougemont Castle in Exeter by William the Conqueror.

Issue-

· 14I. MATILDA- m. WILLIAM d'AVRANCHES (d. before 1130)

Ref:

Dictionary of National Biography- Leslie Stephen, Ed., Oxford University Press- see Round's Clare article
The Complete Peerage- St. Catherine Press, London- Vol. IV, pp. 308-9, p. 317
Domesday People- K.S.B. Keats-Rohan, Boydell Press, 1999- pp. 164, 363
Domesday Descendants- K.S.B. Keats-Rohan, Boydell Press, 2002- p. 263
Tim Powys-Lybbe's web page at: http://www.tim.ukpub.net

Return to Home Page