Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Earl of Gloucester

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

Robert "of Caen" was also called Robert the Consul; Earl of Gloucester in
1122, founder of the Margam Abbey; his mother is either the king's
mistress, Sibyl Corbet (daughter of Robert Corbet, Burgess of Caen), or
Nesta of Wales, who became wife of Gerald of Windsor.{ref. "Royal
Ancestors...," Collins, p.58} His granddaughter Avisa was the first wife of
King John. The family's story is told by Thomas B. Costain, "The
Conquering Family" (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1949).

Robert married Hammond, Mabel Fitz about 1120. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Robert, Earl of Gloucester William Fitz died on 23 Nov 1183.
2. Gloucester, Maud of was born in de Caen; died on 29 Jul 1189.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: Duke of Normandy

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

Henry I had 20 or 21 bastard children re: N.E.Hist.Gen.Register 4/1965, pp.95-96. His form of government was "severe and grasping; but he `kept good peace' and honorably distinguished himself among contemporary statesmen in an age when administrative
reform was in the air. He spent more time in Normandy than in England. But he showed admirable judgment in
his choice of subordinates...." -Encyclopedia Britannica (1956 Ed., 11:432). He was King of England, 1100-35, and Duke of Normandy (1106-35); his coronation at Westminster Abbey was on Sunday, 08-05-1100. Thomas B. Costain offers a popular account of
his reign in "The Conquering Family" (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1949, pp.43-77). The "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle" described him as the "lion of justice."

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

William was described by a Norman monk "as a burly warrior with a harsh

gutteral voice, great in stature but not ungainly" - probably 5'10",

full-fleshed in face, of "russet hair" {-"William the Conqueror...," David

C. Douglas [London, 1966]}.  A primary source by a contemporary is "The

Ecclesiastical History of England and Normandy," Ordericus Vitalis, trans.

Thomas Forester (London: Henry G. Bohn, 1854).

     ----- Compton's Encyclopedia (America On-Line, 1995):

William I (born 1027, ruled 1066-87), called William the Conqueror, was an

illegitimate son of Robert I, duke of Normandy. His mother was a tanner's

daughter. William succeeded his father when he was only 7 years old. At 24 he

had made himself the mightiest feudal lord in all France by various

conquests, but his ambition was not satisfied. He laid plans to become king

of England also.

   William married Matilda, daughter of Baldwin V, count of Flanders, in

1053. She was descended from the old Anglo-Saxon line of kings. Among their

children were four sons: Robert, future duke of Normandy; Richard, who died

as a youth; William Rufus, who succeeded his father as king of England; and

Henry, who succeeded William Rufus. One daughter, Adela, became the mother of

England's King Stephen.

   Edward the Confessor, king of England, was William's cousin. William used

his connection with Flanders to put pressure on Edward to extort a promise

that he would become heir to the English throne. It is probable that Edward

made some kind of pledge to William as early as 1051. Edward died childless

on Jan. 5, 1066. William then claimed the throne on the basis of this

promise. The English, however, chose Harold, earl of Wessex, as their king.

   William prepared a large expedition and set sail for England. On Oct. 14,

1066, he defeated and killed Harold at Hastings in one of the decisive

battles of the world. Then he marched on London, and on Christmas day he was

crowned king.

   After subduing England's powerful earls, William seized their lands for

his Norman nobles and ordered the nobles to build fortified stone castles to

protect their lands. As payment for their fiefs, the nobles supplied the king

with armed knights. French became the language of the king's court and

gradually blended with the Anglo-Saxon tongue.

   William won the loyalty of the mass of the people by wisely retaining the

old Anglo-Saxon laws, courts, and customs with only a few changes. Thus the

principle of self-government, which lies at the root of the political system

of English-speaking peoples, was preserved and strengthened. At the same

time, William taught the English the advantages of a central government

strong enough to control feudal lords.

   Toward the end of his reign, William ordered a great census to be taken of

all the lands and people of England. This survey was called Domesday Book.

Two of the original books may still be seen at the Public Records Office in

London. "So very narrowly did he cause the survey to be made," complained the

old Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, "that there was not a single rood of land, nor an

ox, or a cow, or a pig passed by, and that was not set down in the accounts."

   William was often on the continent dealing with his widespread holdings.

He died there in 1087 from injuries received while warring with Philip I of

France. William was a man of great stature and had a tremendous voice. Such

was the good order he established that, according to a quaint historian of

his time, "any man, who was himself aught, might travel over the kingdom with

a bosom of gold unmolested, and no man durst kill another, however great the

injury he might have received from him." He was succeeded in Normandy by his

eldest son, Robert, and in England by his second son, William II, called

William Rufus.

- - - - - - - - -

Regarding the location of the Battle of Hastings, this site on the World Wide

Web is helpful and provocative: http://www.cablenet.net/pages/book/index.htm#PART57

I married Flanders, Matilda ("Maud") of in 1053 in Eu in Normandy. Matilda (daughter of Baldwin, Count of Flanders V and Adelaide Princess of France) was born in 1032; died on 3 Nov 1083; was buried in Holy Trinity Abbey, Caen, Normandy. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

Robert I was Duke 1028-35. His wife is Estrith, sister of Canute the Great
(no issue). Robert was called "Robert the Devil", accused of poisoning his
brother (whom Robert succeeded as Duke); he sheltered the exiled English
princes, Edward and Alfred; he died returning from a pilgrimage to
Jerusalem.

I + Falaise, Herleve of. Herleve was born about 1012; died about 1050. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

Herleve is daughter of Robert, a tanner of Falaise. She is called Robert's
"Danish" wife [not married before clergy]. She was previously a mistress to
Robert I [The Devil], Duke of Normandy (parents of WIlliam the Conqueror)...
having two other children, Odo & Robert. Then she "married" Herlouin.

Notes:

Married:
never married?

Other Events and Attributes:

• Occupation: le Debonaire

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

The daughter of Baldwin V, Maud, married William the Conqueror (William I
of England); she is also known as Matilda of Flanders. Baldwin V was Count
1036-67 and "greatly extended his power", obtaining from the Emperor the
area between the Scheldt and Dender as an imperial fief along with the
marggravate of Antwerp. He was so powerful that he became regent on the
death of Henry I of France in 1060.

V married Adelaide Princess of France in 1028 in Paris, France. (daughter of Robert, King of France II and Taillefer, of Provence Constance de) was born in 1009; died on 8 Jan 1079 in Messinesmonastre. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

[dunbar_tree.FTW]

Adelaide (also known as Adelisa of France) may be daughter of Robert II and
another wife.