[54] The duke travelled constantly around the duchy, confirming charters and collecting revenues. Birth, marriage and death At first, Alan of Brittany had custody of the duke, but when Alan died in either late 1039 or October 1040, Gilbert of Brionne took charge of William. The tragic fate of their daughter, Lady Jane Gray, of Henry VIII. Other bequests included gifts to the Church and money to be distributed to the poor. The historian Eleanor Searle speculates that William was raised with the three cousins who later became important in his career William fitzOsbern, Roger de Beaumont, and Roger of Montgomery. [100] The historian David Bates sees this coronation as the ceremonial papal "seal of approval" for William's conquest. During his childhood and adolescence, members of the Norman aristocracy battled each other, both for control of the child duke, and for their own ends. From a Boston Transcript clipping in the Durfee film 804977, "Clarkes William the Conqueror - Ancestry.com But William was not finished; he marched over the Pennines during the winter and defeated the remaining rebels at Shrewsbury before building Chester and Stafford Castles. He enjoyed excellent health until old age, although he became quite fat in later life. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England, Archbishop Matthew Parker saw the Conquest as having corrupted a purer English Church, which Parker attempted to restore. in 1536. His sons also lost much of their control over Maine, which revolted in 1089 and managed to remain mostly free of Norman influence thereafter. manor of Turoc in Essex. The French king, seeking a focus for those opposed to William's power, then proposed that Edgar be given the castle of Montreuil-sur-Mer on the Channel, which would have given Edgar a strategic advantage against William. [97], Early in 1069, Edgar the theling rose in revolt and attacked York. of Hastings, and was recorded in the Domesday Book (a record complied by [16][17][h] He enjoyed the support of his great-uncle, Archbishop Robert, as well as King Henry I of France, enabling him to succeed to his father's duchy. Permanent Scandinavian settlement occurred before 911, when Rollo, one of the Viking leaders, and King Charles the Simple of France reached an agreement ceding the county of Rouen to Rollo. Andrew Morton Carr Descendant of the right-hand general Ker of William the Conqueror. told him what kind of work he could do "in language that can't be [49] Geoffrey Martel described him as without equal as a fighter and as a horseman. France in the 9th century with his Norwegian followers and established Lord Gray made also a separate entail of his estate, upon which there passed a charter under the great seal, in favours of William master of Gray, * and the heirs-male procreate or to be procreate betwixt him and Anne mistress of Gray, (therein designed daughter and heiress of Andrew . The Vexin was a buffer state between Normandy and the lands of the French king, and Simon had been a supporter of William. William I - Kids | Britannica Kids | Homework Help [123], Maine continued to be difficult, with a rebellion by Hubert de Beaumont-au-Maine, probably in 1084. Anschetil de Gray David Gray of Tiverton was captured by the British during the war and [2] In 1034 the duke decided to go on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. VCG Wilson/Corbis via Getty Images. Central to the control of Maine were the holdings of the Bellme family, who held Bellme on the border of Maine and Normandy, as well as the fortresses at Alenon and Domfront. Each shire was administered by a royal official called a sheriff, who roughly had the same status as a Norman viscount. [2] Orderic Vitalis records that William tried to learn to read Old English late in life, but he was unable to devote sufficient time to the effort and quickly gave up. Before we called him William the Conqueror, he had a much more ignoble nickname: William the Bastard. Horrible Facts About William The Conqueror, The Invader King - Factinate Thomas died in Plymouth June 7, 1654. A further blow was the death of Queen Matilda on 2 November 1083. During the Bretons' flight, rumours swept through the Norman forces that the duke had been killed, but William succeeded in rallying his troops. Parish Registers of Stapleford Tawney, Essex Co., England, as printed at in Northumberland. Lordships. no trace to follow. Brief History of the Royal Family CGP Grey . They succeeded in capturing an Angevin fortress but accomplished little else. Within the first century, between 1620 and 1720, research indicates that William was the son of the unmarried Duke Robert I of Normandy and his mistress Herleva. http://members.aol.com/rinewpor/famhist.html. [114] Roger and Waltheof were kept in prison, where Waltheof was executed in May 1076. [41], One factor in William's favour was his marriage to Matilda of Flanders, the daughter of Count Baldwin V of Flanders. They were John, Elizabeth, Edward, Sarah, Thomas and Rebecca. changed to DeGray and then to Gray. Park Street Congregational Church, Boston. Although this was William's first defeat in battle, it did little to change things. February 12, 1621. Dorset branch of the Gray family. [132], Besides taxation, William's large landholdings throughout England strengthened his rule. According to the historian David Bates, this probably means that little of note happened, and that because William was on the continent, there was nothing for the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle to record. [32], On the death of Hugh of Maine, Geoffrey Martel occupied Maine in a move contested by William and King Henry; eventually, they succeeded in driving Geoffrey from the county, and in the process, William had been able to secure the Bellme family strongholds at Alenon and Domfront for himself. After three weeks, the besieged forces sallied from the castle and managed to take the besiegers by surprise. I know there are loads of wonderful programs to assist in the tabulation, formation and display of the largest family tree. [106], William returned to England to release his army from service in 1073 but quickly returned to Normandy, where he spent all of 1074. [133][u] Government was still centred on William's household; when he was in one part of his realms, decisions would be made for other parts of his domains and transmitted through a communication system that made use of letters and other documents. Gilbert was killed within months, and another guardian, Turchetil, was also killed around the time of Gilbert's death. as town clerk and in other capacities. [71], Harold was crowned on 6 January 1066 in Edward's new Norman-style Westminster Abbey, although some controversy surrounds who performed the ceremony. From the Charleton family it passed by marriage in 1421 to John Grey. William was crowned King of England on December 25, 1066. Sir Edward de Gray married daughter [58], The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, in the "D" version, states that William visited England in the later part of 1051, perhaps to secure confirmation of the succession,[59] or perhaps William was attempting to secure aid for his troubles in Normandy. Gray Family History. William and Malcolm agreed to peace by signing the Treaty of Abernethy, and Malcolm probably gave up his son Duncan as a hostage for the peace. The administrative machinery of Normandy, England, and Maine continued to exist separate from the other lands, with each one retaining its own forms. It is believed that John Gray of Stapleford Tawney descended from the Others have viewed him as an enemy of the English constitution, or alternatively as its creator. It appears that the Gray family was from Harwich, Essex, as a John and [93] These captures secured William's rear areas and also his line of retreat to Normandy, if that was needed. Harold assembled an army and a fleet to repel William's anticipated invasion force, deploying troops and ships along the English Channel for most of the summer. The Bayeux Tapestry has been claimed to show Harold's death by an arrow to the eye, but that may be a later reworking of the tapestry to conform to 12th-century stories in which Harold was slain by an arrow wound to the head. Several unsuccessful rebellions followed, but William's hold was mostly secure on England by 1075, allowing him to spend the greater part of his reign in continental Europe. 2. [100] William's half-brother Odo perhaps expected to be appointed to Canterbury, but William probably did not wish to give that much power to a family member. children: Richard, baptized August 1608, buried October 9, 1613. [86] The English soldiers formed up as a shield wall along the ridge and were at first so effective that William's army was thrown back with heavy casualties. [94] Waltheof was married to William's niece Judith, daughter of his half-sister Adelaide,[95] and a marriage between Edwin and one of William's daughters was proposed. The information that follows was researched and kindly provided by Rodney It is unclear what exactly happened at Edward's deathbed. Edward Gray, son of John of Stapleford, the progenitor of this branch The soldier His conquest had major implications for the history of both regions, from displacing much of the pre-Conquest Anglo-Saxon nobility to reshaping the English language.. William's early life. Others, such as H. G. Richardson and G. O. Sayles, see the changes brought about by the Conquest as much less radical than Southern suggests. [117] William's forces were forced to lift the siege, and the king returned to Rouen. He died in early July at Nicea, on his way back to Normandy. had two sons, both named John. According to stories that may have legendary elements, an attempt was made to seize William at Valognes, but he escaped under cover of darkness, seeking refuge with King Henry. 2, 1589 and married on October 6, 1606 to Elizabeth Ward. accession of James I, 1603. was too old to go to war, but he used his extensive farm and fortune to He married Matilda of Flanders in 1051, in Normandy, France. [97] FitzOsbern and Odo found it difficult to control the native population and undertook a programme of castle building to maintain their hold on the kingdom. The first of this line Chillingham, England, Motto, Anchor Fast Anchor. A papal embassy arrived in England during this period, asking that William do fealty for England to the papacy, a request that he rejected. William I, the first Norman King of England, ascended to the throne in 1066 shortly after the death of his second cousin, Edward the Confessor. 1476; and Lady Jane Grey who was queen of England for a few days. His reign in England was marked by the construction of castles, settling a new Norman nobility on the land, and change in the composition of the English clergy. Henry de Gray obtained from King Richard I (1190), the and enlisted the sympathies of the world. Gray Family decended from Viki - Genealogy.com [146], William and his wife Matilda had at least nine children. William I 'The Conqueror' (r. 1066-1087) | The Royal Family Fulbert was also William the Conqueror's Great Chamberlain. [145], William's reign has caused historical controversy since before his death. The Grays were in Wales by 1283 when King Edward created new Marcher By 1509 an Edward Grey was one of only three remaining powerful and were for many generations in high favor with the English kings. Some of William's Breton troops panicked and fled, and some of the English troops appear to have pursued the fleeing Bretons until they themselves were attacked and destroyed by Norman cavalry. The listing for each county gives the holdings of each landholder, grouped by owners. Although Alexander did give papal approval to the conquest after it succeeded, no other source claims papal support prior to the invasion. Although William of Poitiers and William of Jumiges disagree about where the fleet was built Poitiers states it was constructed at the mouth of the River Dives, while Jumiges states it was built at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme both agree that it eventually sailed from Valery-sur-Somme. His son, Sir Andrew Gray, joined While seizing Mantes, William either fell ill or was injured by the pommel of his saddle. An early documented person was Anchetil de Greye - a vassal of William the Conqueror of Normandy (now part of France) and who accompan. As King Edward's heir, he controlled all of the former royal lands. William also required his newly created magnates to contribute fixed quotas of knights towards not only military campaigns but also castle garrisons. of Croy. He marched to the River Tees, ravaging the countryside as he went. Following his arrival back on the continent he married his daughter Constance to Duke Alan of Brittany, in furtherance of his policy of seeking allies against the French kings. The funeral, attended by the bishops and abbots of Normandy as well as his son Henry, was disturbed by the assertion of a citizen of Caen who alleged that his family had been illegally despoiled of the land on which the church was built. [57], In 1051 the childless King Edward of England appears to have chosen William as his successor. of that parish for some years. [40] Henry and Geoffrey led another invasion of Normandy in 1057 but were defeated by William at the Battle of Varaville. William then laid siege to Gerberoi in January 1079. support the effort with food, money and work in recruiting and organization. [60], Count Herbert II of Maine died in 1062, and William, who had betrothed his eldest son Robert to Herbert's sister Margaret, claimed the county through his son. [37], In February 1054 the king and the Norman rebels launched a double invasion of the duchy. [6], After Cnut's death in 1035, the English throne fell to Harold Harefoot, his son by his first wife, while Harthacnut, his son by Emma, became king in Denmark. Gray Family of Tiverton, RI. Earlier dukes had been illegitimate, and William's association with his father on ducal charters appears to indicate that William was considered Robert's most likely heir. The Norman sources do not dispute the fact that Harold was named as the next king, but they declare that Harold's oath and Edward's earlier promise of the throne could not be changed on Edward's deathbed. He took part in church councils and made several appointments to the Norman episcopate, including the appointment of Maurilius as Archbishop of Rouen. Gray, had become proprietors of the island of Nantasket in Boston Harbor [135] Coinage across his domains continued to be minted in different cycles and styles. The name was originally Croy. Rolf, Rollo or Raoul (son of Rognwald, Jarl of Mori in Norway) invaded From there, he ravaged the interior and waited for Harold's return from the north, refusing to venture far from the sea, his line of communication with Normandy. [109], Earl Ralph had secured control of the castle at Dol, and in September 1076 William advanced into Brittany and laid siege to the castle. [144] In the years since the Conquest, politicians and other leaders have used William and the events of his reign to illustrate political events throughout English history. [77] The Norman fleet finally set sail two days later, landing in England at Pevensey Bay on 28 September. to that King, receiving possessions in Roufield shire of Roxburgh. [139], William's grave is currently marked by a marble slab with a Latin inscription dating from the early 19th century. Mortemer thus marked another turning point in William's growing control of the duchy,[39] although his conflict with the French king and the Count of Anjou continued until 1060. William's movements during 1084 and 1085 are unclear he was in Normandy at Easter 1084 but may have been in England before then to collect the danegeld assessed that year for the defence of England against an invasion by King Cnut IV of Denmark. [94] But the families of Harold and his brothers lost their lands, as did some others who had fought against William at Hastings. Arguing that Edward had previously promised the throne to him and that Harold had sworn to support his claim, William built a large fleet and invaded England in September 1066. William was always described as close to his wife, and her death would have added to his problems. [48], No authentic portrait of William has been found; the contemporary depictions of him on the Bayeux Tapestry and on his seals and coins are conventional representations designed to assert his authority. Robert was accused by some writers of killing Richard, a plausible but now unprovable charge. William then moved to Hastings, a few miles to the east, where he built a castle as a base of operations. The tomb has been disturbed several times since 1087, the first time in 1522 when the grave was opened on orders from the papacy. Joshua, Gray Family Crest and History - Arms & Badges Scotland in the reign of Alexander II, (about 1130), and gave his allegiance He also allowed his son Robert Curthose to do homage to the new Count of Anjou, Geoffrey the Bearded. Henry attempted to dislodge William, but the siege of Thimert dragged on for two years until Henry's death. William then sent forces into London to construct a castle; he was crowned at Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066. and lordships in the counties of Oxford and Buckingham. William I | Biography, Reign, Achievements, Facts, & Death [33] Geoffrey attempted to expand his authority into the county of Maine, especially after the death of Hugh IV of Maine in 1051. [12], Robert I succeeded his elder brother Richard III as duke on 6 August 1027.