Robert "The King's Son" (Robert "The King's Son") "Earl of Meullent Robert" de Caen 1st Earl of Gloucester (± 1090-1147) » Stamboom Homs

Persoonlijke gegevens Robert "The King's Son" (Robert "The King's Son") "Earl of Meullent Robert" de Caen 1st Earl of Gloucester

Bronnen 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Alternatieve namen: Robert of Gloucester; Duke of Gloucester, The King's Son, Robert Gloucester
Roepnaam is Earl of Meullent Robert.
Hij is geboren rond 1090 TO ABT 1090 in Caen, Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France, .
Hij werd gedoopt in illegtament son King Henry.
Alternatief: Hij werd gedoopt in illegtament son King Henry.
Alternatief: Hij werd gedoopt in illegtament son King Henry.
Alternatief: Hij werd gedoopt in "The Counsel".
Alternatief: Hij werd gedoopt op 21 april 1928.
Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk in SUBMITTED.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk in SUBMITTED.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk in SUBMITTED.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk in SUBMITTED.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk in SUBMITTED.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 21 april 1928.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 2 september 1933.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 2 september 1933.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 2 september 1933.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 2 september 1933.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 2 september 1933.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 28 juni 1941.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 28 juni 1941.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 28 juni 1941.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 22 april 1992.
Alternatief: Gedoopt (op 8-jarige leeftijd of later) door het priesterschapsgezag van de LDS-kerk op 30 augustus 1994.
Beroepen:

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{geni:job_title} Comte, de Gloucester, de Bristol, Baron, de Creuilly, de Torigny
rond 1102 TO ABT 1147 in Consul, Earl Of Gloucester.
rond 1122 TO ABT 1147 in Earl of Gloucester.

Hij is overleden op 31 oktober 1147 in Bristol Castle. Bristol, England.
{geni:event_description} Became feverish.
Hij is begraven rond oktober 1147 in Priory Of St. James, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England.
{geni:event_description} Outside the Castle.
--------------------
Outside the castle.
Een kind van Henry I "Beauclerc" of England en Concubine #1 Unknown woman de Caen
Deze gegevens zijn voor het laatst bijgewerkt op 5 maart 2012.

Gezin van Robert "The King's Son" (Robert "The King's Son") "Earl of Meullent Robert" de Caen 1st Earl of Gloucester

Hij is getrouwd met Maud / Mabel (Sibyl) fitzRobert de Creully.

Zij zijn getrouwd rond 1115 te Gloucestershire, EnglandGloucestershire.

Kind(eren):

Roger FitzRobert Bishop of Worcester ± 1113-1184

Notities over Robert "The King's Son" (Robert "The King's Son") "Earl of Meullent Robert" de Caen 1st Earl of Gloucester

GIVN Robert
SURN De Mellment
NSFX 1st Earl of Gloucester
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH Brøderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH Brøderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH Brøderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
DATE 9 SEP 2000
TIME 13:17:52

Weis, p. 112- Earl of Gloucester; natural son of the king - the great "Robert of Gloucester"

Source #2: Marcellus Donald Alexander R. von Redlich, "Pedigrees of Some of the Emperor Charlemagne's Descendants" (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co, Inc, 1988 reprint of 1941 edition),
p. 125

Source #3: Gary Boyd Roberts, "The Royal Descents of 500 Immigrants to the American Colonies or the United States, Who Were Themselves Notable or Left Descendants Notable in American History" (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co, Inc., 2001) p. 406; 396

Source #4: T. Anna Leese, "Blood Royal: Issue of the Kings and Queens of Medieval England, 1066-1399: The Normans and Plantagenets" (Heritage Books, Inc, 1996), pp. 25-26

Earl of Gloucester

Notes: It is not made clear which of Henry's wifes was Roberts mother. The Complete Peerage vol.V,pp683-686.

[rmosher154.ged]

Illeg, son of King Henry I by Nesta, Sibyl, or Isabel all concubines of the King. 1st Earl of Gloucester. Supported 1/2 sister Maud against Stephen.

Name Prefix: Earl Name Suffix: Of Gloucester Cause of Death: Fever.

REFERENCE: 2385

[v37t1235.ftw]

Facts about this person:

Fact 1
Earl of Gloucester

[Source: Who's Who in Early Medieval England, Christopher Tyerman, Shepheard-Walwyn, Ltd., London, 1996]
ROBERT, EARL OF GLOUCESTER had all the kingly attributes except one: legitimacy. The eldest of Henry I's twenty or so bastards, literate, intelligent, brave, adept at the factional politics of court, and a patron of both the church and the arts, Robert had to stand back to watchothers compete for the throne, literally so in 1127 when he lost his claim to precedence over his cousin Stephen of Blois when doing homageto his half-sister the Empress Matilda. It was some measure of an increase in orderliness and legal propriety that William the Bastard could inherit a duchy and win a crown, while his grandson, Robert, whose personal crudentials were second to none, had to be content with a supporting role.
Under Henry I, Robert was prominent in a party consistently loyal to the king. In 1119, Robert fought at Brémule against the king of Franceand in 1123 against the Norman rebels; in 1126, he was given custody of his uncle Robert Curthose. Despite acquiescing in Matilda's succession, he still fought against the Angevins on Henry's behalf in the 1130s. Robert's reward was in lands in South Wales and the West Country and the earldom of Gloucester (1122). After Henry's death in 1135, it was not his loyalty to the Empress which swayed him so much as his own self-interest: arguably, his hesitation in deciding where that lay allowed Stephen to grab the throne.
Admired by William of Malmesbury, Robert has traditionally been seen as a noble, chivalrous defender of the hereditary rights of his half-sister. His actions between 1135 and 1139 suggest more selfish motives.His unusual conditional homage to Stephen in 1136 signalled his importance to the new king but it may also have been forced on him by his isolation among the English baronage and the threat to his lands in South-East Wales posed by a Welsh revolt, the crushing of which, it has recently been suggested, may have prompted Robert's literary protégé, Geoffrey of Monmouth, to write his 'History of the Kings of Britain.' Although Robert cooperated with Stephen at the siege of Exeter in 1136,he soon became alienated from the new regime, not least because of the favours granted to the Beaumont twins, Waleran of Meulan and Robertof Leicester, old rivals from the court of Henry I. Opposition to theBeaumonts provide a leitmotif in the rest of Robert of Gloucester's career, not least in the fighting at Wareham (1138), Worcester (1139) and Tewkesbury (1140).
It was probably the growing influence of Waleran of Meulan in particular that led to Robert distancing himself from the king in Normandy in1137 and his fears of assassination by the royalist mercenary, William of Ypres. In 1138, the formal break with Stephen occurred, but after the failure of the Angevins to capture Normandy in 1138-9, Robert, perhaps in desperation lest his English estates would be lost, landed at Arundel with Matilda to dispute the English throne. In England, Robert provided the judicious advice, material support and personal charmthat Matilda so conspicuously lacked. That she retained followers at all may in part have been the achivement of her gregarious and generous half-brother with his knack for friendship. Although playing the leading military role on the Empress's side, Robert also managed to use the civil war to build an almost impregnable power-base for himself inSouth-West England, centred on Bristol, a control that the vicissitudes of the wider dynastic struggle did little to challenge. 1141 saw his greatest triumph in the crushing defeat of the king at Lincoln in February, but his victory exposed the vulnerability of his position. Unless he looked after his own interests, he would have no more guarantee of security at an Angevin than at a Blois court. The former suddenly looked a forlorn prospect after the Rout of Winchester in September, where only Robert's personal courage and chivalry secured Matilda'sescape at the price of his own capture.
The subsequent exchange of Robert for Stephen inaugurated stalemate, during which Robert consolidated his hold over the South-West (just ashis rival Robert of Leicester extended his grip on the Midlands). To the end, Robert was inflexible, not only over the Angevin claim but, more damaging to prospects of civil peace, in harbouring the factional rivalries and grudges of the 1130s. Robert's death in 1147 allowed English magnates to make private accomodations with each other: Robert's own son, William, even married Robert of Leicester's daughter, Hawise of Beaumont, c. 1150. It may be no coincidence that only a few months after her faithful defender died, Matilda left England.
If Robert of Gloucester was a vigorous politician, he was also one ofthe leading literary patrons of his generation. Apparently something of an intellectual himself, eager at quoting Biblical analogies, Robert was the focus of a group of writers which included the historian William of Malmesbury and the historical romancer Geoffrey of Monmouth, writers of secular narrative histories whose interest in the epic pastof Britain was presumably shared by their patron. William of Malmesbury's revised 'Gesta Regum' was dedicated to him, as was his 'Historia Novella' which extensively eulogises the earl. Not only was Robert oneof the dedicatees of Geoffrey of Monmouth's 'History,' but he circulated copies of it to his monastic foundations and to his friends, including Walter Espec. Inside the nobility's metal helmet and chain mail were men of cultivation and intellectual curiosity. Robert employed mercenaries such as the bestial psychopath Robert FitzHubert; at the sametime he fostered a literary genre that captured the imagination of the civilised world.

--Chief supporter of the royal claimant Matilda during her war with King Stephen of England (reigned 1135–54).
--The illegitimate son of King Henry I of England (reigned 1100–35), he was made Earl of Gloucester in 1122. After the death of Henry I and usurpation of power by Stephen (December 1135), Gloucester became the leader of the party loyal to Matilda, his half sister, who had been designated heir to the throne by Henry I. He took Matilda to England in September 1139 and at the head of her forces won from Stephen most of western England and southern Wales. In February 1141 he captured Stephen at Lincoln and imprisoned him in Bristol. Later that year Gloucester was captured at Winchester, Hampshire, and exchanged for the king. He continued to be the mainstay of Matilda's cause until his death. The 12th-century chroniclers considered Gloucester an able and sagacious leader.

Illegitimate son of Henry I, he became the chief supporter of the royal
claimant Matilda during her war with King Stephen of England. In February
1141 he captured Stephen and imprisoned him in Bristol. Later that year
Robert was captured and exchanged for King Stephen. The 12th-century
chroniclers considered Robert an able and sagacious leader.

Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (c. 1090 – October 31, 1147) was an illegitimate son of Henry I of England, and one of the dominant figures of the English Anarchy period. He was also known as Robert de Caen Count of Meulan "the Consul" and as Robert "the Consul" de Caen.

Robert was probably the eldest of Henry's many illegitimate children. He was born at Caen in Normandy before his father's accession to the English throne. His mother is not known for certain, though recent scholarship suggests she was a member of the Gay family, minor nobility in Oxfordshire. William of Malmesbury refers to Robert's "Norman, Flemish, and French" ancestry, but this may be a reference only to his father's side of the family. Robert was acknowledged at birth, and raised at his father's court. He had a reputation of being an educated man, not altogether surprising considering his father's scholarly inclinations. He was a patron of William of Malmesbury and Geoffrey of Monmouth.

In 1119, Robert fought at the Battle of Bremule; he was already one of King Henry's foremost military captains. In 1122, he was created Earl of Gloucester.

At his father's death, in the struggle between the Empress Matilda and Stephen for the English throne, he at first declared for Stephen, but subsequently left Stephen's service and was loyal to Matilda, his half-sister, until his death. According to the Gesta Stephani:

"Among others came Robert, Earl of Gloucester, son of King Henry, but a bastard, a man of proved talent and admirable wisdom. When he was advised, as the story went, to claim the throne on his father's death, deterred by sounder advice he by no means assented, saying it was fairer to yield it to his sister's son (the future Henry II of England), than presumptuously to arrogate it to himself."
At the Battle of Lincoln, he captured Stephen, whom he imprisoned in the custody of his wife, Mabel. This advantage was lost, however, when Robert fell into the hands of Stephen's partisans at Winchester, covering Matilda's escape from a failed siege. Robert was so important to Matilda's cause that she released Stephen to regain Robert's services. In 1142 she sent Robert to convince her husband Geoffrey of Anjou to join her cause. Geoffrey refused to go to England until he conquered Normandy, so Robert stayed in France to help him until he learned of Matilda being besieged at Oxford. He hastened back to England, along with Matilda's young son Henry. In 1144 one of Robert's own sons, Philip, declared for Stephen and so Robert found himself and his son on opposite sides.

Robert fought tirelessly on Matilda's behalf until his death in 1147 from a fever at Bristol. One of his illegitimate sons was Richard, Bishop of Bayeux (died 1142).

[edit]
Family and children
He married in 1107 to Mabel of Gloucester (1090 – 1157), daughter of Robert Fitzhamon and Sibyl de Montgomerie, thereby receiving lordship of Gloucester and Glamorgan. Their children were:

William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, died 1183
Mabira de Caen, born circa 1110, wife of Jordan de Cambernon, Lord Cambernon.
Roger Fitz Robert, Bishop of Worcester, (1112, Bristol – 9 August 1179, Tours).
Richard Fitz Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, (1114, Bristol – 1175).
Hamon Fitz Robert (1116, Bristol – 1159, Toulouse), slain at the siege of Toulouse in 1159.
Robert Fitz Robert, born circa 1118.
Maud Fitz Robert of Gloucester, (1120 – 1189), wife of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester.
Philip Fitz Robert, Castellan of Cricklade, (1122 – after 1147).
[edit]
References
David Crouch, "Robert of Gloucester's Mother and Sexual Politics in Norman Oxfordshire", Historical Research, 72 (1999) 323-332.
Given-Wilson & Curteis. The Royal Bastards of Medieval England

Preceded by:
New Creation Earl of Gloucester
1122-1147 Succeeded by:
William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester

Illegitimate son of Henry I, he became the chief supporter of the royal
claimant Matilda during her war with King Stephen of England. In February
1141 he captured Stephen and imprisoned him in Bristol. Later that year
Robert was captured and exchanged for King Stephen. The 12th-century
chroniclers considered Robert an able and sagacious leader.

Earl of Gloucester - 1122-1247

It is said Robert assisted his half-sister, Maud to reclaim the English Throne from King Stephen. Matilda invaded her rightful English domain and so began a long-standing Civil War from the powerbase of her half-brother, Robert of Gloucester, in the West Country.

__________________________ Source: Wikipedia
Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (c.1090 - October 31, 1147) was an illegitimate son of King Henry I of England, and one of the dominant figures of the period of English history sometimes called The Anarchy. He is also know as Robert of Caen, and Robert "the Consul", though both names afre used by later historians an have little contemportary justification, other than the fact that Robert's clerks made a practice of uning the Latin word consul rather than the more common title of Earl.
__________________________

Robert was the eldest of Henry's many illegitimate children. He was born well before his father's accession to the English throne, probably in the late 1080s, as he had himself had a son by 1104. Although generally said to have been the son of «u»Sybil Corbet «/u» his mother is not known for certain. Recent scholarship (D. Crouch) suggests she was a member of the Gay or Gayt family, minor English nobility in Oxfordshire, one of whose members was called his cousin. Another suggestion (K. Thompson) is that his mother was a Norman woman who was connected to ghe Gays. William of Malmesbury refers to Robert's "Norman, Flemish, and French" and not English ancestry, but this may be a reference only to his father's side of the family.
Robert was acknowledged at birth, though in view of the vicissitudes of his father's career between 1087 and 1096 it is unlikely he was raised in his household. He was educated to a high standard, was literate in Latin and had a serious interest in both history and philosophy, which indicates that he was at least partly raised in a clerical household, a suggestion made all the more likely as his first known child, born around 1104, wa born to a daughter of Samson, Bishop of Worcester (died 1112) who up till 1096 had been a Royal Chaplain and Treasurer of Bayeux. It may be signigicant that his next brother Richard was brought up in an episcopal household, that of RobertBloet, bishop of Lincoln. Robert later received dedications from both Geoffrey of Monmouth and William of Malmesbury. William's Historia Novella' contains a flattering portrait of the Earl.
Robert appears at court in Normandy in 1113, and around 1114 he married Mabel, eldest daughter and heir of Robert Fitzhamon, who brought him the substantial honour of Gloucester in England. Glamorgan in Wales and the honours of Sainte-Scholasse-sur-Sarthe and Evercy in Normandy, as well as Creully. In 1121 or 1122 his father created him Earl of Gloucester.

Robert developed a role as one of his father's principal aides and Captains. In 1119, he fought at the Battle of Bremule, and in 1123-24 he was one of the King's chief commanders during the Norman rebellion. Following the drowning of the King's only legitimate son, William Adelin, in 1120, Robert became increasingly caught up in his father's attempts to ensure the succession of the Empress Matilda, Robert's half-sister. It was to Robert's custody in his castle of Cardiff that his uncle, the deposed Duke Robert Curthose was eventually confinded in 1126. On 1 January 1127 it was Robert who was one of the first to swear to accept Matilda as Queen after Henry's death. His father at some point gave him the keping of the castles of Dover and Canterbury, and thus control of Kent and the cross-Channel route. When King Henry fell mortally ill at Lyons-la-Forét in Normandy on 25 November 1135, Earl Robert was at his side and was one of the magnbates who swore to stay with the King's body until it was buried. The King died a week after falling ill, on 1 December 1135.
After his father's death, Robert attended a series of conferences in Normandy and eventually accepted as King «u»Theobald IV«/u», Count of Blois and King Henry's oldest nephew by his sister Adela. However, during the meeting with Theobald, news reach the Norman magnates that Theobald's younger brother, Stephen of Mortain and Boulogne, had been accepted and crowned as King in England. Robert eventually accepted this and at Easter 1136 attended the new King's ceremonial court. He does not seem to have seriously considered supporting the «u»Empress Matilda«/u», and did not assist her invasion of southern Normandy. There is evidence in the contemporary source, the «i»Gesta Stephani«/i», that Robert was proposed by some as a candidate for the throne, but his illegitimacy ruled him out:
"«i»Among others came Robert, Earl of Gloucester, son of King Henry, but a bastard, a man of proved talent and admirable wisdom. When he was advised, as the story went, to claim the throne on his father's death, deterred by sounder advice he by no means assented, saying it was fairer to yield it to his sister's son (the future «u»Henry II of England«/u», than presumptuously to arrogate it to himself«/i»."
This suggestion cannot have led to any idea that he and Stephen were rivals for the Crown, as «u»Geoffrey of Monmouth «/u» in 1136 referred to Robert as one of the 'pillars' of the new King's rule.
Robert of Gloucester had other distractions in 1136 which put the succession question out of his mind. The Welsh princes of south east Wales rose against the Anglo-Norman settlers of the «u»Welsh Marches «/u» in April and Robert spent much of the year stabilising the situation in that region. He reached peace treaties with the «u»Welsh «/u» and recognised the gains of «u»Morgan ab Owain «/u» (died 1158), who called himself King of «u»Glamorgan «/u». In England, Robert of Gloucester soon became disenchanted with King Stephen, and by the end of 1137 had withdrawn from his Court. It is clear that he was disgruntled that he did not occupy the central place in politics that he had in the last reign. He was also alarmed at the favour with which the King regarded his Flemish mercenary general, «u»William of Ypres«/u», and the rising power of the Beaumont twins, «u»Waleran de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Worcester «/u», and «u»Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester«/u». In 1138, Robert declared his support for the Empress Matilda, but he was defeated in Normandy by Waleran and his English allies were crushed by Stephen and driven back on his fortress of «u»Bristol«/u».
Earl Robert took a great gamble and sailed for England with his half-sister, the Empress, his wife and a company of knights. They landed at «u»Arundel«/u» on 30 September 1139, and were welcomed into «u»Arundel Castle «/u» there, the possession of Queen «u»Adeliza«/u», Matilda's stepmother. Robert left for Bristol immediately. In his absence the castle was blockaded by King Stephen, opening the possibility that he might seize his dynastic rival. The King in the end let the Empress and Countess depart, under escort, to Bristol.
With Earl Robert and the Empress in England and based in the «u»West Country«/u» and «u»Severn«/u» valley, the civil war had begun. The Earl's first moves are revealing. He commanded raids against «u»Wareham «/u» in Dorset and «u»Worcester«/u». Both were possessions of the «u»Beaumonts«/u». He took «u»Robert of Leicester«/u»'s lands in Dorset for his own. He did much the same to other royalists within his area, mass deprivations which were at the heart of what is called «u»the Anarchy«/u». Although secure in a heartland of support, Earl Robert did not find it easy to recruit wider support and break out. The King succeeded in containing him along the line of the «u»Cotswold Hills«/u», with such effect that both sides were willing to send representatives to a peace conference held at «u»Bath«/u» in August 1140, though nothing came of it.
Earl Robert's big opportunity came at Christmas 1140, when King Stephen fell out with «u»Earl Ranulf II of Chester«/u». Ranulf's failed negotiations with the King to secure «u»Lincoln Castle «/u» led him to ally with Robert, his father-in-law. They united their forces at «u»Castle Donington «/u» in January 1141, including a host of Welsh mercenaries allied to Earl Robert. On 2 February 1141 the Earls met and defeated King Stephen at the «u»Battle of Lincoln«/u». With the King captive, Empress Matilda should have secured the throne, but a combination of stubborn royalist support, the Empress's miscalculation and military misjudgement led to her failure. On 14 September 1141 Earl Robert and the Empress were trapped by a royalist army in an ill-judged attempt to seize control of «u»Winchester«/u». Earl Robert was captured fighting a rearguard action against the forces of «u»Matilda of Boulogne«/u», Stephen's wife, at the river crossing of «u»Stockbridge«/u» to allow his sister to escape. Earl Robert was imprisoned for two months at «u»Rochester«/u» Castle before he was released in an exchange with King Stephen. The cross-over point in the joint release was on 1 November 1141 at Winchester, where the two men had a chance to exchange friendly remarks, and the Earl apparently assured the King that there was nothing personal in the fight as far as he was concerned.
The war continued and it rapidly became evident that it was a stalemate. The Empress's husband refused to commit the resources to tip the balance in England, only agreeing to discuss matters with the Earl. In June 1142 Robert crossed from «u»Wareham«/u» to «u»Normandy«/u» and stayed there till the end of October. He came back with no reinforcements, but with his nephew Henry, the son of the Empress. In the meantime the Empress had been trapped in «u»Oxford«/u». Nothing could be done to release her, and she had to manage her own escape from the castle.
Robert continued the struggle but with less and less hope of ultimate victory. The King also had limited resources, but managed slowly to push towards Robert's centres of «u»Bristol«/u» and «u»Gloucester«/u». At the end of 1145 Philip, Earl Robert's son and military Captain, defected to Stephen, taking with him the strategic castles of «u»Cricklade«/u» and «u»Cirencester«/u». With Gloucester and Bristol under threat, the Earl opened negotiations in the autumn of 1146. The pressure continued in 1147, and it was in a desperate attack on «u»Farnham«/u» in «u»Surrey«/u» in the late summer of that year that Earl Robert fought his last unsuccessful action of the war. He retired to Bristol to gather new forces, but became feverish. He died on 31 October 1147 and was buried in the priory of St James he had founded outside the castle.

_MED website
ABBR Enf-Bry
TITL http://www.gendex.com/users/Enf_Bry/Enf_Bry/index.html
Dead
DATE 20 JUL 1999

OCCU 1st Earl of Gloucester ..
SOUR COMYNI.GED (Compuserve), #1866 says ABT 1090;
HAWKINS.GED ABT 1088; www.gendex.com says 1090;
BOOTH.TAF (Compuserve), 143300 says BEF 1100;
SOUR The Conquering Family, Thomas B. Costain, p. 19;
COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #851;
BOOTH.TAF (Compuserve), 143300;
SOUR gendex.com/users/daver/rigney/D0001
Robert Fitz-Roy; his granddaughter was Avisa - The Conquerors, Thomas B.Costa
Earl of Mellent - Americans of Royal Descent, Charles H. Browning, p. 25
Robert the Consul - p. 25; Earl of Glamorgan, 1st Earl of Caen -COMYNI.GED
(Compuserve), #1866; COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #183 says his parents wereHenry
I and Sibyl (mistress) Corbet - NLP
ROBERT DE CAEN, son of HENRY I and NESTA: Rober of Gloucester was one ofHenry's score of natural children, the best of the lot ... He was a manof loft ideals, of great courage and compassion, a
capable leader and soldier - The Conquering Family, Thomas B. Costain, p.9
Earl of Glamorgan - COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #851

ALIA Robert /De Glouchester/

GIVN Robert "The King's Son" De
SURN CAEN
AFN V9V7-BV
PEDI adopted
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
DATE 21 OCT 2000
TIME 08:01:25

GIVN Robert "The King's Son" De
SURN CAEN
AFN V9V7-BV
PEDI adopted
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
DATE 21 OCT 2000
TIME 08:01:25

1st Earl of Gloucester 1120.

1st Earl of Gloucester 1120.

(Research):Robert de Council, natural son to Henry I

_MED website
ABBR Enf-Bry
TITL http://www.gendex.com/users/Enf_Bry/Enf_Bry/index.html
Dead
DATE 20 JUL 1999

OCCU 1st Earl of Gloucester ..
SOUR COMYNI.GED (Compuserve), #1866 says ABT 1090;
HAWKINS.GED ABT 1088; www.gendex.com says 1090;
BOOTH.TAF (Compuserve), 143300 says BEF 1100;
SOUR The Conquering Family, Thomas B. Costain, p. 19;
COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #851;
BOOTH.TAF (Compuserve), 143300;
SOUR gendex.com/users/daver/rigney/D0001
Robert Fitz-Roy; his granddaughter was Avisa - The Conquerors, Thomas B.Costa
Earl of Mellent - Americans of Royal Descent, Charles H. Browning, p. 25
Robert the Consul - p. 25; Earl of Glamorgan, 1st Earl of Caen -COMYNI.GED
(Compuserve), #1866; COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #183 says his parents wereHenry
I and Sibyl (mistress) Corbet - NLP
ROBERT DE CAEN, son of HENRY I and NESTA: Rober of Gloucester was one ofHenry's score of natural children, the best of the lot ... He was a manof loft ideals, of great courage and compassion, a
capable leader and soldier - The Conquering Family, Thomas B. Costain, p.9
Earl of Glamorgan - COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #851

ALIA Robert /De Glouchester/

GIVN Robert "The King's Son" De
SURN CAEN
AFN V9V7-BV
PEDI adopted
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
DATE 21 OCT 2000
TIME 08:01:25

GIVN Robert "The King's Son" De
SURN CAEN
AFN V9V7-BV
PEDI adopted
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
REPO @REPO1097@
TITL Ancestral File (R)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
ABBR Ancestral File (R)
_MASTER Y
DATE 21 OCT 2000
TIME 08:01:25

1st Earl of Gloucester 1120.

1st Earl of Gloucester 1120.

(Research):Robert de Council, natural son to Henry I

[alfred_descendants10gen_fromrootsweb_bartont.FTW]

(natural son of Henry I), called "teh Counsul," Earl of Gloucester, 1122-1147; m. Maud. Weis 124-26.

Ist Earl of Gloucester, 1094-1147

Robert, EARL OF GLOUCESTER, by Mabel, daughter and heir of Robert FITZ-HAMOND, lord of Tewkesbury. [Complete Peerage]

--------------------------------------

[From Burke's Peerage-see source for details]

An undoubted Earl of Gloucester, perhaps the first authentic one, at any rate after the Conquest, is Robert FitzHamon's son-in-law, another Robert, who was an illegitimate son of Henry I and was so created 1122. The Earldom passed to his eldest son, William FitzRobert, and from him to John, later King John and husband from 1189 to 1199 (when he divorced her) of Isabel, the youngest of William FitzRobert's three daughters. On John's coming to the throne the title did not merge in the Crown for it was not his in his own right but in right of his wife.

---------------------------------------

Curt Hofemann, (XXXXX@XXXX.XXX), provided the following information in a post-em, including an indication that he was a son of Sybil Corbet. I believe that Robert was born too early to be a son of Sybil. Certainly The Complete Peerage did not indicate he was her son (although there was a confused reference to Sybil daughter of Robert Corbet, burgess of Caen, which has been refuted):

Birth: ABT 1090 in Caen, Calvados, Normandy, France

born: about 1090 [Ref: ES III:354, Paget p11, Watney p404 & 494, Weis AR7 124:26], father: [Ref: CMH p600, Paget p11, Sheppard Apr65 p96, Weis AR7 124:26]

Research note 1: mother Sibyl Corbet [Ref: Weir RoyalFam p48]
Research note 2: illegitimate son of Henry I, probably by Sibil, dau of Robert Fitz Corbet, burgess of Caen [Ref: Watney p404]
Research note 3: shown as son of Sibilla Corbet, but "There is no certain evidence to show that Sybilla really was Robert's mother, who may have been an unknown woman of Caen" [Ref: Weir RoyalFam p48]

Death: 31 OCT 1147 in Bristol, Gloucestershire, England

died 31 Oct 1147 [Ref: ES III:354, Paget p11, Watney p404 & 494] 1147 [Ref: CMH p600, Weis AR7 124:26, Weis AR7 63:26], place: [Ref: Paget p11, Watney p404 & 494, Weis AR7 124:26]

Burial: Priory of St. James, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England

Research note: Buried Tewkesbury [Ref: Paget p11]

married 1119 Maud (Mabel) FitzHammon
date: [Ref: Watney p404 & 494], names: [Ref: Paget p11, Turton, Weis AR7 63:26 & 124:26]

1122-1147 Earl of Gloucester [Ref: Weis AR7 124:26]
Earl of Gloucester, created between Jun and Sep 1122 [Ref: Paget p11]

Robert, earl of Gloucester (d. 1147). An illegitimate son of Henry I, who supported the claim to the throne of his half-sister Matilda in 1135. He invaded England with her in 1139 and captured King Stephen at Lincoln in feb 1141. A few months later he was himself taken prisoner and exchanged for the king. His death from fever at Bristol effectively ended Matilda's bid for the throne. [Ref: Dict of Brit History, pg 305]

Here is a (not so) brief biography of Robert, Earl of Gloucester, probably the best-known of Henry's spectacular brood of bastards. It is largely a paraphrase of the information in CP.
Robert 'of Caen', Earl of Gloucester, born circa 1090 in Caen, Normandy; married 1107 Mabel fitz Robert FitzHamon (died 1157). Robert died 31 Oct 1147 in Bristol, England; buried at the Priory of St. James, Bristol. [children are at foot of bio] Sources: Given-Wilson & Curteis 'The Royal Bastards of Medieval England' pp 63, 75 Cokayne 'Complete Peerage' (Gloucester) Sanders, 'English Baronies: A study of their origins and descent'.
Robert was born about 1090, probably in Caen, Normandy (hence he was known as 'Robert of Caen'). His mother was probably an unknown woman of Caen and not Sibyl Corbet, as is stated by CP and others. He was acknowledged by his father King Henry I from his birth, and was raised at court from the time of his father's accession to the throne and educated under his direct supervision. Robert had a reputation for learning and literary appreciation, rare attributes at this time, which were undoubedly fostered by his scholarly father. By the time he was in his early twenties he was one of his father's leading military captains and advisers.
In 1107 he received from Henry the hand of a wealthy heiress, Mabel of Gloucester, daughter of Robert FitzHamon, who brought with her the barony of Gloucester and lordship of Glamorgan. They had a mansion at Tewkesbury.
Robert fought at the Battle of Bremule in 1119, where Henry defeated King Louis VI of France. In 1122, after the death of his legitimate half-brothers, the earldom of Gloucester was created for his benefit.
In 1123, he led a force to assist in the capture of the castle of Brionne, which was held by rebel Norman barons. In 1126 he had custody of his uncle, the imprisoned rebel, Robert, Duke of Normandy.
In 1127 he did homage to his half-sister the Empress Matilda, recognizing her as their father?s successor to the throne. Henry looked to him to protect Matilda's interests after his death. Robert was with his father when he died in 1135, and it was Robert who made the funeral arrangements.
Robert was a significant figure in the struggle for succession between Stephen (his cousin) and Matilda. Robert and Stephen had been fierce rivals at the English court since 1127, and some barons encouraged Robert to claim the throne himself (after all, his grandfather William the Conqueror had also been illegitimate), but when Stephen was chosen as king, Robert eventually did conditional homage to him for his English lands.
In 1137 he accompanied King Stephen to Normandy, where Matilda was raising support, and a quarrel ensued between the men when Stephen tried to ambush Robert. Robert then threw his support behind Matilda, who was in Normandy, and obtained the surrender of Caen and Bayeux to her husband Geoffrey, Count of Anjou. In September 1139 Robert landed in England with Matilda and took her to Arundel Castle. He then made his way to Bristol Castle, which had remained loyal to him, and was later joined there by Matilda.
Robert became her commander-in-chief in the civil war which followed. Unlike most barons of the time, he fought his battles within the rules of warfare and was not unnecessarily violent or cruel, but was also regarded as brave and a good commander. He was also known for his respect for law and justice, and his integrity and chivalry. Between 1139 and 1141, he progressively took control of most of the south-west.
In early 1141, Robert obtained word that Stephen was besieging Lincoln Castle. Robert quickly moved there and forced battle by personally swimming across the River Trent and requiring his troops to follow. In the battle, many of Stephen's knights fled and Stephen was captured by Robert; he was imprisoned at Bristol in the care of Robert's wife Mabel.
Matilda went to London to be crowned, but she made herself unpopular with the Londoners and they were forced to flee. While beseiging Winchester, they themselves were surrounded. Robert engaged Stephen's queen's army for long enough to allow Matilda to escape, but he himself was captured and place in the custody of Stephen's queen at Rochester. Stephen and Robert were then returned to their respective camps in an even exchange, although Robert had wanted some of his supporters released to compensate for his lower status. The even exchange reflected Robert?s value to Matilda as her main supporter and battle leader.
In 1142 Matilda sent Robert to Anjou to attempt to convince her husband Geoffrey to come to her aid. Geoffrey declined to help until he had conquered Normandy, so Robert joined in his campaign. However, hearing that Matilda was besieged at Oxford, he hurried back to her assistance. He took Matilda and Geoffrey's son, nine year old Henry (the future King Henry II), with him. Despite some more victories, Matilda's support had gradually dwindled; Robert was unable to continue to press her cause, although he continued to support his nephew Henry. He did however retain control of most of the West Country, imposing law and order there. In 1144 one of Robert's sons, Philip, rebelled against his father in support of Stephen.
In 1147 thirteen year old Henry arrived in England with mercenary troops, meaning to conquer England. After a couple of weeks he turned up on Robert's doorstep in Bristol asking for money to pay the troops. Robert marched him straight to Wareham and put him on a ship, paying the captain to make sure he got back to his father in Normandy. Henry later regarded Robert as one of the formative influences on his life, the man who had made it possible for him to become king of England.
Later in 1147 Robert died of a rapid fever at Bristol, even though he was still very fit and able to lead an army himself. After his death Matilda's cause collapsed completely, a measure of his indispensability to her.
Robert was a patron of scholars, including some of the best-known medieval chroniclers such as William of Malmesbury and Geoffrey of Monmouth, and was known for his own cleverness and literary ability. One of his enemies, Baldwin fitz Gilbert, described him in terms which suggested he was all bark and no bite - a man who threatened much but did little, eloquent but lazy. His record as a soldier would tend to refute this last point, at the very least. He was also a generous benefactor of the Church, founding the Benedictine priory of St. James just outside Bristol and a Cistercian abbey at Margam, South Wales, and suppporting abbeys at Tewkesbury, Gloucester, and Neath. He was buried in a magnificent green jasper tomb at his foundation of St. James [CP queries the site of his burial, also claimed for Tewkesbury]. [Ref: Suzanne Doig ((XXXXX@XXXX.XXX)) 14 Sep 1998 messaage to soc.genealogy.medieval]

Regards,
Curt

(4) ROBERT the King’s son, whose mother Ede or Edith was apparently da. of Forn, probably identical with Forn Sigulfson, lord of Greystoke (Cumberland) and a tenant-in-chief in co. York; which Edith, after her liaison with Henry I, m. Robert de Oilli, a royal Constable and constable of Oxford Castle. Robert held land in Devonshire in 1130. He supported his half-sister, the EMPRESS Maud, in the Civil War. He was a great tenant-in-chief, his servitium debitum being 100 knights. He m. Maud, dame du Sap in Normandy, widow of William de Courcy, and da. and h. of Robert de Avranches, by whom he had an only daughter. He d. 31 May 1172.

[Complete Peerage]

[plantagenet.ged]

- Earl of Gloucester

[BIGOD-Mel Morris,10Gen Anc.FTW]

Earl of Gloucester

NSFX Earl of Gloucester
NPFX Sir
TYPE Book
AUTH A or c:Weis, Frederick Lewis
PERI Ancestral Roots
EDTN 7th
PUBL Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore, MD (1999)
TEXT 124-26
died of feverEarl of Gloucester
TYPE E-Mail Message
AUTH Dave ((XXXXX@XXXX.XXX))
TITL Re: HENRY I, King of England [some sources listed]
DATE 13 Dec 1998
LOCA (XXXXX@XXXX.XXX)/PowerMac 6500>Applications>Reunion>Documents-source
DATE 25 JUN 2000

[BIGOD-Mel Morris,10Gen Anc.FTW]

OCCU 1st Earl of Gloucester ..
SOUR COMYNI.GED (Compuserve), #1866 says ABT 1090;
HAWKINS.GED ABT 1088; www.gendex.com says 1090;
BOOTH.TAF (Compuserve), 143300 says BEF 1100;
SOUR The Conquering Family, Thomas B. Costain, p. 19;
COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #851;
BOOTH.TAF (Compuserve), 143300;
SOUR gendex.com/users/daver/rigney/D0001
Robert Fitz-Roy; his granddaughter was Avisa - The Conquerors, Thomas B. Costa
Earl of Mellent - Americans of Royal Descent, Charles H. Browning, p. 25
Robert the Consul - p. 25; Earl of Glamorgan, 1st Earl of Caen - COMYNI.GED
(Compuserve), #1866; COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #183 says his parents were Henry
I and Sibyl (mistress) Corbet - NLP
ROBERT DE CAEN, son of HENRY I and NESTA: Rober of Gloucester was one of Henry's score of natural children, the best of the lot ... He was a man of loft ideals, of great courage and compassion, a
capable leader and soldier - The Conquering Family, Thomas B. Costain, p. 9
Earl of Glamorgan - COMYNX.ARC (Compuserve), #851

[BIGOD-Mel Morris,10Gen Anc.FTW]

SURN Caen ( England)
GIVN Robert " The Consul" ( The Kings Son)
NSFX Earl of Gloucest
_UID 22897B6F75FFD411B9FE90B0FC4EB12E0ECA
DATE 25 Mar 1998
TIME 03:06:49

SURN Caen
GIVN Robert "The King's Son" de
NSFX Earl of Gloucester
AFN V9V7-BV
_UID 84EE08966B5D9A40B515AC10AE5E8B9D6C9F
REPO @REPO19@
TITL Ancestral File (TM)
AUTH The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
PUBL June 1998 (c), data as of 5 JAN 1998
DATE 23 Dec 2000
TIME 00:00:00

SURN England
GIVN Robert of Gloucester de
NSFX The King's Son
_UID EE797B6F75FFD411B9FE90B0FC4EB12ECA9A
DATE 25 Mar 1998
TIME 03:08:51

[BIGOD-Mel Morris,10Gen Anc.FTW]

GIVN Robert
SURN De Mellment
NSFX 1st Earl of Gloucester
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH BrAiderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH BrAiderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH BrAiderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
DATE 9 SEP 2000
TIME 13:17:52

Kinship II - A collection of family, friends and U.S. Presidents
URL: http://worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:2902060&id=I575149934
ID: I575149934
Name: Robert "The King's Son" De CAEN
Given Name: Robert "The King's Son" De
Surname: CAEN
Sex: M
Birth: Abt 1090 in Of, Caen, Normandy, France
Death: 31 Oct 1147 in , Bristol, Gloucestershire, England
Burial: St James Priory, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England
Change Date: 15 Apr 2003 1 1 1 1 1
Note: Ancestral File Number: V9V7-BV

Father: Henry I of ENGLAND b: 1068 in , Selby, Yorkshire, England
Mother: Mrs-Henry I, Concubine Of ENGLAND b: Abt 1070 in Of, Caen, Calvedos, France

Marriage 1 Maud (Mabel) (Sibyl) FITZHAMMON b: Abt 1094 in Of, , Gloucestershire, England
Married: Abt 1115 in Of, , Gloucestershire, England
Note: _UID3186385887E12F4A87DE999029D1B72C9342
Children
Roger FITZROBERT b: Abt 1112 in Of, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England
Hamon FITZROBERT b: Abt 1116 in Of, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England
Mabel FITZROBERT b: Abt 1118 in Of, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England
William "Mafonache" FITZROBERT b: Abt 23 Nov 1116 in Of, , Gloucestershire, England
Maud FITZROBERT b: Abt 1120 in Of, , Gloucestershire, England
Philip FITZROBERT b: Abt 1122 in Of, , Gloucestershire, England
Richard FITZROBERT b: Abt 1114 in Of, Cruelly, Normandy, France
Robert FITZROBERT b: Abt 1128 in Of, , Gloucestershire, England

Sources:
Author: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Title: Ancestral File (R)
Publication: Copyright (c) 1987, June 1998, data as of 5 January 1998
Repository:

[BIGOD-Mel Morris,10Gen Anc.FTW]

Illeg.

Here is a (not so) brief biography of Robert, Earl of Gloucester, probably the best-known of Henry's spectacular brood of bastards. It is largely a paraphrase of the information in CP.
Robert 'of Caen', Earl of Gloucester, born circa 1090 in Caen, Normandy; married 1107 Mabel fitz Robert FitzHamon (died 1157). Robert died 31 Oct 1147 in Bristol, England; buried at the Priory of St. James, Bristol. [children are at foot of bio] Sources: Given-Wilson & Curteis 'The Royal Bastards of Medieval England' pp 63, 75 Cokayne 'Complete Peerage' (Gloucester) Sanders, 'English Baronies: A study of their origins and descent'.
Robert was born about 1090, probably in Caen, Normandy (hence he was known as 'Robert of Caen'). His mother was probably an unknown woman of Caen and not Sibyl Corbet, as is stated by CP and others. He was acknowledged by his father King Henry I from his birth, and was raised at court from the time of his father's accession to the throne and educated under his direct supervision. Robert had a reputation for learning and literary appreciation, rare attributes at this time, which were undoubedly fostered by his scholarly father. By the time he was in his early twenties he was one of his father's leading military captains and advisers.
In 1107 he received from Henry the hand of a wealthy heiress, Mabel of Gloucester, daughter of Robert FitzHamon, who brought with her the barony of Gloucester and lordship of Glamorgan. They had a mansion at Tewkesbury.
Robert fought at the Battle of Bremule in 1119, where Henry defeated King Louis VI of France. In 1122, after the death of his legitimate half-brothers, the earldom of Gloucester was created for his benefit.
In 1123, he led a force to assist in the capture of the castle of Brionne, which was held by rebel Norman barons. In 1126 he had custody of his uncle, the imprisoned rebel, Robert, Duke of Normandy.
In 1127 he did homage to his half-sister the Empress Matilda, recognizing her as their father?s successor to the throne. Henry looked to him to protect Matilda's interests after his death. Robert was with his father when he died in 1135, and it was Robert who made the funeral arrangements.
Robert was a significant figure in the struggle for succession between Stephen (his cousin) and Matilda. Robert and Stephen had been fierce rivals at the English court since 1127, and some barons encouraged Robert to claim the throne himself (after all, his grandfather William the Conqueror had also been illegitimate), but when Stephen was chosen as king, Robert eventually did conditional homage to him for his English lands.
In 1137 he accompanied King Stephen to Normandy, where Matilda was raising support, and a quarrel ensued between the men when Stephen tried to ambush Robert. Robert then threw his support behind Matilda, who was in Normandy, and obtained the surrender of Caen and Bayeux to her husband Geoffrey, Count of Anjou. In September 1139 Robert landed in England with Matilda and took her to Arundel Castle. He then made his way to Bristol Castle, which had remained loyal to him, and was later joined there by Matilda.
Robert became her commander-in-chief in the civil war which followed. Unlike most barons of the time, he fought his battles within the rules of warfare and was not unnecessarily violent or cruel, but was also regarded as brave and a good commander. He was also known for his respect for law and justice, and his integrity and chivalry. Between 1139 and 1141, he progressively took control of most of the south-west.
In early 1141, Robert obtained word that Stephen was besieging Lincoln Castle. Robert quickly moved there and forced battle by personally swimming across the River Trent and requiring his troops to follow. In the battle, many of Stephen's knights fled and Stephen was captured by Robert; he was imprisoned at Bristol in the care of Robert's wife Mabel.
Matilda went to London to be crowned, but she made herself unpopular with the Londoners and they were forced to flee. While beseiging Winchester, they themselves were surrounded. Robert engaged Stephen's queen's army for long enough to allow Matilda to escape, but he himself was captured and place in the custody of Stephen's queen at Rochester. Stephen and Robert were then returned to their respective camps in an even exchange, although Robert had wanted some of his supporters released to compensate for his lower status. The even exchange reflected Robert?s value to Matilda as her main supporter and battle leader.
In 1142 Matilda sent Robert to Anjou to attempt to convince her husband Geoffrey to come to her aid. Geoffrey declined to help until he had conquered Normandy, so Robert joined in his campaign. However, hearing that Matilda was besieged at Oxford, he hurried back to her assistance. He took Matilda and Geoffrey's son, nine year old Henry (the future King Henry II), with him. Despite some more victories, Matilda's support had gradually dwindled; Robert was unable to continue to press her cause, although he continued to support his nephew Henry. He did however retain control of most of the West Country, imposing law and order there. In 1144 one of Robert's sons, Philip, rebelled against his father in support of Stephen.
In 1147 thirteen year old Henry arrived in England with mercenary troops, meaning to conquer England. After a couple of weeks he turned up on Robert's doorstep in Bristol asking for money to pay the troops. Robert marched him straight to Wareham and put him on a ship, paying the captain to make sure he got back to his father in Normandy. Henry later regarded Robert as one of the formative influences on his life, the man who had made it possible for him to become king of England.
Later in 1147 Robert died of a rapid fever at Bristol, even though he was still very fit and able to lead an army himself. After his death Matilda's cause collapsed completely, a measure of his indispensability to her.
Robert was a patron of scholars, including some of the best-known medieval chroniclers such as William of Malmesbury and Geoffrey of Monmouth, and was known for his own cleverness and literary ability. One of his enemies, Baldwin fitz Gilbert, described him in terms which suggested he was all bark and no bite - a man who threatened much but did little, eloquent but lazy. His record as a soldier would tend to refute this last point, at the very least. He was also a generous benefactor of the Church, founding the Benedictine priory of St. James just outside Bristol and a Cistercian abbey at Margam, South Wales, and suppporting abbeys at Tewkesbury, Gloucester, and Neath. He was buried in a magnificent green jasper tomb at his foundation of St. James [CP queries the site of his burial, also claimed for Tewkesbury]. [Ref: Suzanne Doig 14 Sep 1998 messaage to soc.genealogy.medieval]

!Name is; Robert, "de Caen" Earl Of /GLOUCESTER/

!From "Ancestral Roots of 60 Colonist" by WEIS, 6th ed, line 124, page 113; "Robert de Caen (natural son of Henry I), b ca 1090 d Bristol 31 Oct 1147, called `the Consul', Earl of Gloucester, 1122-1147; m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON, Lord of Crelly in Calvados, Baron of Thoringni, and Sybil, dau of Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury. (CP IV 670 chart iii; V 736; VII 677; chart III; V 736; VII 520)." Line 125, page 113; Robert de CAEN (124-26) m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON."

!There are many more generations of ancestry for King Henry I, of England. They go beyond the natural intent of this Compiler's genealogical interest.

!From "Ancestral Roots of 60 Colonist" by WEIS, 6th ed, line 124, page 113; "Robert de Caen (natural son of Henry I), b ca 1090 d Bristol 31 Oct 1147, called `the Consul', Earl of Gloucester, 1122-1147; m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON, Lord of Crelly in Calvados, Baron of Thoringni, and Sybil, dau of Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury. (CP IV 670 chart iii; V 736; VII 677; chart III; V 736; VII 520)." Line 125, page 113; Robert de CAEN (124-26) m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON."

!There are many more generations of ancestry for King Henry I, of England. They go beyond the natural intent of this Compiler's genealogical interest.
!Name is; Robert, "de Caen" Earl Of /GLOUCESTER/

GIVN Robert
SURN De Mellment
NSFX 1st Earl of Gloucester
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH Brøderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH Brøderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
REPO @REPO80@
TITL World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
AUTH Brøderbund Software, Inc.
PUBL Release date: July 1, 1997
ABBR World Family Tree Vol. 11, Ed. 1
Customer pedigree.
Source Media Type: Family Archive CD
PAGE Tree #0163
DATA
TEXT Date of Import: 18 Dez 1998
DATE 9 SEP 2000
TIME 13:17:52

!From "Ancestral Roots of 60 Colonist" by WEIS, 6th ed, line 124, page 113; "Robert de Caen (natural son of Henry I), b ca 1090 d Bristol 31 Oct 1147, called `the Consul', Earl of Gloucester, 1122-1147; m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON, Lord of Crelly in Calvados, Baron of Thoringni, and Sybil, dau of Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury. (CP IV 670 chart iii; V 736; VII 677; chart III; V 736; VII 520)." Line 125, page 113; Robert de CAEN (124-26) m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON."

!There are many more generations of ancestry for King Henry I, of England. They go beyond the natural intent of this Compiler's genealogical interest.
!Name is; Robert, "de Caen" Earl Of /GLOUCESTER/

{geni:occupation} 1st Earl of Gloucester, THE CONSOL', Baron of Okenhampton, Baron, de Creuilly, de Torigny, First Earl of Gloucester, Earl of Gloucester, Earl of Gloucester/Sir, Earl of Gloucester (Sir), 1st earl of Glouchester, illigtimate son of Henry I of England

{geni:about_me} http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert,_1st_Earl_of_Gloucester

Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (c. 1090 – October 31, 1147) was an illegitimate son of King Henry I of England, and one of the dominant figures of the period of English history sometimes called The Anarchy. He is also known as Robert of Caen, and Robert "the Consul", though both names are used by later historians and have little contemporary justification, other than the fact that Robert's clerks made a practice of using the Latin word consul rather than the more common comes for his title of 'Earl'.

Early life

Robert was the eldest of Henry's many illegitimate children. He was born well before his father's accession to the English throne, probably in the late 1080s, as he had himself had a son by 1104. Although generally said to have been the son of Sybil Corbet, his mother is not known for certain.

Robert was acknowledged at birth, though in view of the vicissitudes of his father's career between 1087 and 1096 it is unlikely he was raised in his household. He was educated to a high standard, was literate in Latin and had a serious interest in both history and philosophy, which indicates that he was at least partly raised in a clerical household, a suggestion made all the more likely as his first known child, born around 1104, was born to a daughter of Samson, Bishop of Worcester (died 1112) who up till 1096 had been a Royal Chaplain and Treasurer of Bayeux. It may be significant that his next brother Richard was brought up in an episcopal household, that of Robert Bloet, bishop of Lincoln. Robert later received dedications from both Geoffrey of Monmouth and William of Malmesbury. William's 'Historia Novella' contains a flattering portrait of the Earl.

Robert appears at court in Normandy in 1113, and around 1114 he married Mabel, eldest daughter and heir of Robert Fitzhamon, who brought him the substantial honour of Gloucester in England, Glamorgan in Wales and the honours of Sainte-Scholasse-sur-Sarthe and Évrecy in Normandy, as well as Creully. In 1121 or 1122 his father created him Earl of Gloucester.

Career at court

St Marys Church, Luton town centre, founded in 1121 by Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester.Robert developed a role as one of his father's principal aides and Captains. In 1119, he fought at the Battle of Bremule, and in 1123-24 he was one of the King's chief commanders during the Norman rebellion. Following the drowning of the King's only legitimate son, William Adelin, in 1120, Robert became increasingly caught up in his father's attempts to ensure the succession of the Empress Matilda, Robert's half-sister. It was to Robert's custody in his castle of Cardiff that his uncle, the deposed Duke Robert Curthose was eventually confided in 1126. On 1 January 1127 it was Robert who was one of the first to swear to accept Matilda as Queen after Henry's death. His father at some point gave him the keeping of the castles of Dover and Canterbury, and thus control of Kent and the cross-Channel route. When King Henry fell mortally ill at Lyons-la-Forêt in Normandy on 25 November 1135, Earl Robert was at his side and was one of the magnates who swore to stay with the King's body until it was buried. The King died a week after falling ill, on 1 December 1135.

Relationship with King Stephen

After his father's death, Robert attended a series of conferences in Normandy and eventually accepted as King Theobald IV, Count of Blois and King Henry's oldest nephew by his sister Adela. However, during the meeting with Theobald, news reach the Norman magnates that Theobald's younger brother, Stephen of Mortain and Boulogne, had been accepted and crowned as King in England. Robert eventually accepted this and at Easter 1136 attended the new King's ceremonial court. He does not seem to have seriously considered supporting the Empress Matilda, and did not assist her invasion of southern Normandy. There is evidence in the contemporary source, the Gesta Stephani, that Robert was proposed by some as a candidate for the throne, but his illegitimacy ruled him out:

"Among others came Robert, Earl of Gloucester, son of King Henry, but a bastard, a man of proved talent and admirable wisdom. When he was advised, as the story went, to claim the throne on his father's death, deterred by sounder advice he by no means assented, saying it was fairer to yield it to his sister's son (the future Henry II of England), than presumptuously to arrogate it to himself."

This suggestion cannot have led to any idea that he and Stephen were rivals for the Crown, as Geoffrey of Monmouth in 1136 referred to Robert as one of the 'pillars' of the new King's rule.

Robert of Gloucester had other distractions in 1136 which put the succession question out of his mind. The Welsh princes of south east Wales rose against the Anglo-Norman settlers of the Welsh Marches in April and Robert spent much of the year stabilising the situation in that region. He reached peace treaties with the Welsh and recognised the gains of Morgan ab Owain (died 1158), who called himself King of Glamorgan. In England, Robert of Gloucester soon became disenchanted with King Stephen, and by the end of 1137 had withdrawn from his Court. It is clear that he was disgruntled that he did not occupy the central place in politics that he had in the last reign. He was also alarmed at the favour with which the King regarded his Flemish mercenary general, William of Ypres, and the rising power of the Beaumont twins, Waleran de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Worcester, and Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester. In 1138, Robert declared his support for the Empress Matilda, but he was defeated in Normandy by Waleran and his English allies were crushed by Stephen and driven back on his fortress of Bristol.

The Civil War, 1139-1147

Earl Robert took a great gamble and sailed for England with his half-sister, the Empress, his wife and a company of knights. They landed at Arundel on 30 September 1139, and were welcomed into Arundel Castle there, the possession of Queen Adeliza, Matilda's stepmother. Robert left for Bristol immediately. In his absence the castle was blockaded by King Stephen, opening the possibility that he might seize his dynastic rival. The King in the end let the Empress and Countess depart, under escort, to Bristol.

With Earl Robert and the Empress in England and based in the West Country and Severn valley, the civil war had begun. The Earl's first moves are revealing. He commanded raids against Wareham in Dorset and Worcester. Both were possessions of the Beaumonts. He took Robert of Leicester's lands in Dorset for his own. He did much the same to other royalists within his area, mass deprivations which were at the heart of what is called the Anarchy. Although secure in a heartland of support, Earl Robert did not find it easy to recruit wider support and break out. The King succeeded in containing him along the line of the Cotswold Hills, with such effect that both sides were willing to send representatives to a peace conference held at Bath in August 1140, though nothing came of it.

Earl Robert's big opportunity came at Christmas 1140, when King Stephen fell out with Earl Ranulf II of Chester. Ranulf's failed negotiations with the King to secure Lincoln Castle led him to ally with Robert, his father-in-law. They united their forces at Castle Donington in January 1141, including a host of Welsh mercenaries allied to Earl Robert. On 2 February 1141 the Earls met and defeated King Stephen at the Battle of Lincoln. With the King captive, Empress Matilda should have secured the throne, but a combination of stubborn royalist support, the Empress's miscalculation and military misjudgement led to her failure. On 14 September 1141 Earl Robert and the Empress were trapped by a royalist army in an ill-judged attempt to seize control of Winchester. Earl Robert was captured fighting a rearguard action against the forces of Matilda of Boulogne, Stephen's wife, at the river crossing of Stockbridge to allow his sister to escape. Earl Robert was imprisoned for two months at Rochester Castle before he was released in an exchange with King Stephen. The cross-over point in the joint release was on 1 November 1141 at Winchester, where the two men had a chance to exchange friendly remarks, and the Earl apparently assured the King that there was nothing personal in the fight as far as he was concerned.

The war continued and it rapidly became evident that it was a stalemate. The Empress's husband refused to commit the resources to tip the balance in England, only agreeing to discuss matters with the Earl. In June 1142 Robert crossed from Wareham to Normandy and stayed there till the end of October. He came back with no reinforcements, but with his nephew Henry, the son of the Empress. In the meantime the Empress had been trapped in Oxford. Nothing could be done to release her, and she had to manage her own escape from the castle.

Robert continued the struggle but with less and less hope of ultimate victory. The King also had limited resources, but managed slowly to push towards Robert's centres of Bristol and Gloucester. At the end of 1145 Philip, Earl Robert's son and military Captain, defected to Stephen, taking with him the strategic castles of Cricklade and Cirencester. With Gloucester and Bristol under threat, the Earl opened negotiations in the autumn of 1146. The pressure continued in 1147, and it was in a desperate attack on Farnham in Surrey in the late summer of that year that Earl Robert fought his last unsuccessful action of the war. He retired to Bristol to gather new forces, but became feverish. He died on 31 October 1147 and was buried in the priory of St James he had founded outside the castle.

Family and children

He married, around 1114, Mabel of Gloucester (died 1156), daughter of Robert Fitzhamon and Sibyl de Montgomery. Their children were:

William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, died 1183. He married Hawise (died 1197) daughter of Robert II, Earl of Leicester.

Roger, Bishop of Worcester, (died 9 August 1179, Tours).

Hamon, killed at the siege of Toulouse in 1159.

Robert. (died before 1157) Also called Robert of Ilchester in documents. He married Hawise, (died after 1210) daughter of Baldwin de Redvers and Adeliz. Their daughter Mabel married Jordan de Cambernon.

Matilda, (died 1189), wife of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester.

Philip, Castellan of Cricklade, (died after 1147). He took part in the Second Crusade.

Earl Robert had an illegitimate son, Richard, bishop of Bayeux (1135-1142), by Isabel de Douvres, sister of Richard de Douvres, bishop of Bayeux (1107-1133).

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Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester1

b. circa 1090, d. 31 October 1147

Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester|b. c 1090\nd. 31 Oct 1147|p367.htm#i6831|Henri I "Beauclerc", roi d' Angleterre|b. 1070\nd. 1 Dec 1135|p364.htm#i5013|unknown mistress of Henry I||p58.htm#i8437|Guillaume I "le Conquérant", roi d' Angleterre|b. bt 10 Sep 1028 - 9 Sep 1029\nd. 9 Sep 1087|p352.htm#i5000|Queen of England Mathilda van Vlaanderen|b. 1032\nd. 2 Nov 1083|p351.htm#i5001|||||||

FatherHenri I "Beauclerc", roi d' Angleterre2,3 b. 1070, d. 1 December 1135

Motherunknown mistress of Henry I4

The 12th-century chroniclers considered Gloucester an able and sagacious leader.2 Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester was bastard son of Henry I, by mother unknown.3 Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester also went by the name of Robert "the Consul". He was born circa 1090 at Caen, Normandy, France.2,3 He was the son of Henri I "Beauclerc", roi d' Angleterre and unknown mistress of Henry I.2,3,4 Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester married Mabel FitzHamon, daughter of Robert fitz Hamon, Lord of Glamorgan and Sybil de Montgomery, in 1115 at Gloucestershire, England.5 1st Earl of Gloucester at England between 1122 and 1147.2,6 Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester was created Earl of Gloucester between June 1122 and September 1122.3 The Charter to Salisbury, by King Henry I. In attendance 5 Earls: Chester, Gloucester, Surry, Leicester, and Warwick. On 8 September 1131 at Northampton, England.7 He was one of the 5 Earls who witnessed the Charter to Salisbury granted at the Northampton Council of Henry I on 8 September 1131 at Northampton, England.7 He was the chief supporter of the royal claimant Matilda during her war with King Stephen of England between 1135 and 1154.2 He was became the leader of the party loyal to Matilda, his half sister, who had been designated heir to the throne by Henry I in December 1135.2 Geoffrey of Monmouth dedicated his work, History of the Kings of England, to him. "To you, therefore, Robert earl of Gloucester, this work humbly sues for the favour of being so corrected by your advice, that may not be thought to be the poor offspring of Geoffrey of Monmouth, but when polished by your refined with and judgement, the production of him who had Henry the glorious king of England for his father, and whom we see an accomplished scholar and philisopher, as well as a brave soldier and expert commander; so that Britain with joy acknowledges, that in you she possesses another Henry." In 1139.8 He took Matilda to England and at the head of her forces won from Stephen most of western England and southern Wales in September 1139.2 He captured King Stephen at Lincoln and imprisoned him in Bristol in February 1141.2 He was captured at Winchester, Hampshire, and exchanged for the king after February 1141.2 He died on 31 October 1147 at Bristol, Gloucestershire, England.2,3 He was the predecessor of William FitzRobert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester; 2nd Earl of Gloucester.9 Robert fitz Roy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester was buried in the Priory of St. James, Bristol, Gloucestershire, England.3

Family

Mabel FitzHamon b. circa 1094, d. 1157

Children

* William FitzRobert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester+ b. c 23 Nov 1116, d. 23 Nov 1183

* Maud of Gloucester+ b. c 1124, d. 29 Jul 118910

Citations

1. [S206] With additions and corrections by Walter Lee Sheppard, Jr. and assisted by David Faris Frederick Lewis Weis, Weis: AR 7th ed., 124-26.

2. [S862] Various EB CD 2001, "Gloucester, Robert, Earl of.".

3. [S215] Revised by others later George Edward Cokayne CP, XI:Appendix D, pg. 106.

4. [S215] Revised by others later George Edward Cokayne CP, XI:App. D, pg. 106.

5. [S1278] K.S.B. Keats-Rohan, Domesday Descendants, pg. 903.

6. [S215] Revised by others later George Edward Cokayne CP, V:683.

7. [S215] Revised by others later George Edward Cokayne CP, III:166-167.

8. [S624] Geoffrey of Monmouth, Geoffrey of Monmouth.

9. [S215] Revised by others later George Edward Cokayne CP, V:687.

10. [S215] Revised by others later George Edward Cokayne CP, III:167.

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From http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ENGLAND,%20Kings%201066-1603.htm#RobertFitzEdithdied1172

ROBERT FitzEdith [FitzRoy] (-31 May 1172). Symeon of Durham names "Rodberto filio Edæ et Henrici regis notho"[215]. Guillaume de Jumièges names Robert as illegitimate son of King Henry I "encore jeune et sans établissement"[216]. Landowner in Devon 1130. He supported his half-sister Empress Matilda during the civil war[217]. The Red Book of the Exchequer refers to "Robertus filius Regis lix l xvii s i d, et de novo i m" in Devonshire in [1167/68][218]. m (1142) as her second husband, MAUD Avenell, widow of ROBERT d´Avranches, daughter & heiress of RANULF Avenill & his wife Alice --- (-21 Sep 1173). The Fundationis et Fundatorum Historia of Ford Abbey records that “domina Alicia uxor domini Randolphi Avenell filia sua…unicam filiam…Matildam” married “Roberto filio regis Henrici primi notho” after the death of her first husband “Roberto de Abrincis id est de Averinges”[219]. She was heiress of the honour of Okehampton, Devon. Robert & his wife had one child:

a) MAUD (-1224). The Fundationis et Fundatorum Historia of Ford Abbey names “Matildam” as the daughter of “Roberto filio regis Henrici primi notho” and his wife “Roberto de Abrincis id est de Averinges”, adding that she married “Reginaldo de Courtenay…filio suo Willielmo de Courtenay”[220]. Dame du Sap. m GUILLAUME de Courtenay, son of RENAUD Sire de Courtenay & his first wife Helvise de Donjon (-before 1190).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Natural son of Henry I of England. [Ped. of Charlemagne]

'The Consul', Earl of Gloucester, 1122-47. [Ped. of Charlemagne]

Initially supported Stephen of Blois as successor of his father, Henry I. Robert led a revolt against Stephen in 1138 which stripped Stephen of Caen and half of Normandy. During the next 17 years England was in a constant state of dissension between the factions wishing to be on the throne. At one point Earl Robert was captured during a battle at Devizes. Later in 1142 Stephen himself was besieged and exchanged himself for Earl Robert. [WBH - England]

Earl of Mellent, who was created, in 1109, Earl of Gloucester, natural son of Henry I by Elizabeth de Bellomont. [Magna Charta Barons, p. 88]

Chief of King Stephen's nobles. A plot which Robert of Gloucester had been weaving from the outset of Stephen's reign came to a head in 1138, and the Earl's revolt stripped Stephen of Caen and half Normandy. [Nations of the World - England, p. 162-3]

Lincoln Castle, Feb 1141 -- Robert comes to the aid of Ranulf of Chester who is being beseiged in his castle by King Stephen. Robert's superior forces soon overpower Stephen who refuses to flee. Stephen is captured and held in Robert's castle in chains. In November Robert and his half-sister Empress Matilda met Stephen's forces outside Winchester and this time Earl Robert was captured. Robert and Stephen were then exchanged, but Stephen is king again. The civil war is not over. [Chronicle of the Royal Family, p. 45]

Illegitimate son of Henry I; 1st Earl of Gloucester, m. Mabel FitzHamon; father of Maud of Gloucester, Mabira de Caen and William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester. [The Royal Descents, p. 387, 389, 396]

Patron of Geoffrey of Monmouth, the historian who wrote HISTORIA REGUM BRITANNIAE (The History of the Kings of Britain). After his father King Henry I's death in 1135, Robert was the most dedicated defender of the right of his half-sister, Matilda, to succeed their father; he and his fellow Marcher Lords refused to acknowledge the authority of Stephen, Henry's nephew and the anointed king of England. [A History of Wales, p. 124]

Earl of Gloucester; natural son of Henry I, king of England, and Elizabeth de Bellomont; m. Mabel FitzHamon; father of Maud of Gloucester. [Charlemagne & Others, Chart 2917]

Natural son of Henry I and a Welsh princess named Nesta who had been made a prisoner during some fighting along the Marches. He was a man of lofty ideals, of great courage and compassion, a capable leader and soldier. Present at his father's death. [The Conquering Family, p. 9]

Earl of Gloucester; d. 1147; m. Mabel, dau. of Robert Fitz Hamon; father of William Fitz Robert. [Ancestral Roots, p. 66]

Son of Henry I, king of England, by an unknown mistress. [Ancestral Roots, p. 112]

Earl of Gloucester; m. Mabel Fitz Hamon; father of Philip Fitz Robert; died 31 Oct 1147 of fever in Bristol, England. [Charlemagne & Others, Chart 2968]

The open declaration of Robert of Gloucester for Matilda in 1138, and the landing of the empress herself in the following year, were followed by the secession from Stephen of the greater part of Western England. [The Victoria History of the Counties of England, p. 358]

The southwestern counties rose at the instigation of Robert of Gloucester (illegitimate son of Henry I and brother to Matilda), who had thrown off his allegiance to Stephen and fled abroad, allegint that Stephen was a usurper of the throne. In the fall of 1139, Robert and his sister Matilda came back to England from abroad. The arrival converted the unrest, already manifest, into a civil war which lasted for 14 years. In 1141 King Stephen was defeated. He was sent to prison in Bristol but the civil war went on. Year after year Matilda lost ground. The death of Robert of Gloucester, in 1147, deprived hr of her chief support and the following year she retired to Anjou and gave up her struggle. [The Fosters of Flanders, England, and America, p. 9]

Robert, Earl of Gloucester, was responsible for the building in masonry of a polygonal keep at Cardiff, probably a precaution taken against the Welsh uprising of 1136, which followed the death of Henry I the previous year, and which resulted in general civil discontent. The keep dominates the castle enclosure not only by its extraordinary height, but by its sheer size. [The Castles of Wales, p. 62]

When Robert the Consul became Lord of Cardiff Castle in the 12th century it already had a history going back over a thousand years. The Romans built their first fort on the site almost 2000 years ago.

His father, Henry I, raised Robert to the earldom of Gloucester and made him lord of Glamorgan in 1122. The earl or 'consul' of Gloucester dominated the political scene in England after the death of his father during the long and bitter struggle for the throne between Matilda and Stephen. It was 'Robert the Consul', lauded on all sides as a brave soldier, wise statesman and patron of the arts, who is credited with having built the first stone keep of Cardiff Castle, and it was in the keep that he imprisoned at King Henry's behest, another Robert--the second duke of Normandy and his father's older brother--from 1126 until Robert of Normandy's death in 1134.

Robert 'the Consul' died in 1147, to be succeeded by his son William. [Cardiff Castle].

He was the chief supporter of the royal claimant Matilda during her war with King Stephen of England (reigned 1135-54).
...............................

The illegitimate son of King Henry I of England (reigned 1100-35), he was made Earl of Gloucester in 1122. After the death of Henry I and usurpation of power by Stephen (December 1135), Gloucester became the leader of the party loyal to Matilda, his half sister, who had been designated heir to the throne by Henry I. He took Matilda to England in September 1139 and at the head of her forces won from Stephen most of western England and southern Wales. In February 1141 he captured Stephen at Lincoln and imprisoned him in Bristol. Later that year Gloucester was captured at Winchester, Hampshire, and exchanged for the king. He continued to be the mainstay of Matilda's cause until his death. The 12th-century chroniclers considered Gloucester an able and sagacious leader.

Copyright © 1994-2000 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

http://www.mindfreedom.net/gen/t-s-p/p123.htm#i8393

--------------------

Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (c. 1090 – 31 October 1147) was an illegitimate son of King Henry I of England, and one of the dominant figures of the period of English history sometimes called The Anarchy. He is also known as Robert of Caen, and Robert "the Consul", though both names are used by later historians and have little contemporary justification, other than the fact that Robert's clerks made a practice of using the Latin word consul rather than the more common comes for his title of 'Earl'.

--------------------

Ancestor of Thomas Jefferson.

Earl of Caen

Wife Mabel Fitzhammon

Children - Richard Fitzrobert, Matilda Fitzrobert, William Fitzrobert, Roger Fitzrobert, Hamon Fitzrobert, Richard Fitzrobert, Mabel Fitzrobert

from http://www.devinthorpe.com/gen/ped/pedg73.htm#6296 :

66454970. Robert Earl of Caen was born about 1090 in Of Caen, Calvados, Frn. He died on 31 Oct 1147 in Bristol, Gloucestershire, Eng. He was buried in Prioryofst James, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Eng. He married Mabel or Maud Fitzhamon Countess about 1109 in , , Eng.

The 12th-century chroniclers considered Robert FitzRoy de Caen, 1st Earl of Gloucester, an able and sagacious leader.

Robert was the bastard son of King Henry I by an unnamed mistress.

He also went by the name of Robert "the Consul."

Robert married Mabel FitzHamon, daughter of Robert fitz Hamon, Lord of Glamorgan and Sybil de Montgomery, in 1115 in Gloucestershire.

He was created Earl of Gloucester between June 1122 and September 1122.

Robert was one of the 5 Earls who witnessed the Charter to Salisbury granted at the Northampton Council of King Henry I on 8 September 1131 in Northampton.

Robert was the chief supporter of the royal claimant Matilda during her war with King Stephen of England between 1135 and 1154.

Geoffrey of Monmouth dedicated his work, History of the Kings of England, to Robert. "To you, therefore, Robert earl of Gloucester, this work humbly sues for the favour of being so corrected by your advice, that may not be thought to be the poor offspring of Geoffrey of Monmouth, but when polished by your refined with and judgment, the production of him who had Henry the glorious king of England for his father, and whom we see an accomplished scholar and philosopher, as well as a brave soldier and expert commander; so that Britain with joy acknowledges, that in you she possesses another Henry."

Robert took Matilda to England and at the head of her forces won from Stephen most of western England and southern Wales in September 1139. He captured King Stephen at Lincoln and imprisoned him in Bristol in February 1141. Robert himself was captured at Winchester, Hampshire, and exchanged for the King after February 1141. Robert died on 31 October 1147 in Bristol, Gloucestershire--apparently in prison.

See "My Lines"

( http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cousin/html/p367.htm#i6831 )

from Compiler: R. B. Stewart, Evans, GA

( http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cousin/html/index.htm )

--------------------

Via http://www.stepneyrobarts.co.uk/14591.htm :

Robert was an illegitimate son of Henry I and one of the dominant figures of the period of English history sometimes called The Anarchy. He is also known as Robert of Caen, and Robert "the Consul", though both names are used by later historians and have little contemporary justification, other than the fact that Robert's clerks made a practice of using the Latin word consul rather than the more common comes for his title of 'Earl'.

Robert was the eldest of Henry's many illegitimate children. He was born well before his father's accession to the English throne, probably in the late 1080s, as he had himself had a son by 1104. Although generally said to have been the son of Sybil Corbet, his mother is not known for certain.

Robert was acknowledged at birth though in view of the vicissitudes of his father's career between 1087 and 1096 it is unlikely he was raised in his household. He was educated to a high standard, was literate in Latin and had a serious interest in both history and philosophy, which indicates that he was at least partly raised in a clerical household, a suggestion made all the more likely as his first known child, born around 1104, was born to a daughter of Samson, Bishop of Worcester (died 1112) who up till 1096 had been a Royal Chaplain and Treasurer of Bayeux. It may be significant that his next brother Richard was brought up in an Episcopal household, that of Robert Bloet, bishop of Lincoln. Robert later received dedications from both Geoffrey of Monmouth and William of Malmesbury. William's 'Historia Novella' contains a flattering portrait of the Earl.

Robert appears at court in Normandy in 1113 and around 1114 he married Mabel, eldest daughter and heir of Robert Fitzhamon, who brought him the substantial honour of Gloucester in England, Glamorgan in Wales and the honours of Sainte-Scholasse-sur-Sarthe and Évrecy in Normandy, as well as Creully. In 1121 or 1122 his father created him Earl of Gloucester.

Robert developed a role as one of his father's principal aides and Captains. In 1119 he fought at the Battle of Bremule, and in 1123-24 he was one of the King's chief commanders during the Norman rebellion. Following the drowning of the King's only legitimate son, William Adelin, in 1120, Robert became increasingly caught up in his father's attempts to ensure the succession of the Empress Matilda, Robert's half-sister. It was to Robert's custody in his castle of Cardiff that his uncle, the deposed Duke Robert Curthose was eventually confided in 1126. On 1 January 1127 it was Robert who was one of the first to swear to accept Matilda as Queen after Henry's death. His father at some point gave him the keeping of the castles of Dover and Canterbury, and thus control of Kent and the cross-Channel route. When Henry fell mortally ill at Lyons-la-Forêt in Normandy on 25 November 1135, Earl Robert was at his side and was one of the magnates who swore to stay with the King's body until it was buried. The King died a week after falling ill on 1 December 1135.

After his father's death, Robert attended a series of conferences in Normandy and eventually accepted as King Theobald IV, Count of Blois and Henry's oldest nephew by his sister Adela. However, during the meeting with Theobald, news reach the Norman magnates that Theobald's younger brother, Stephen of Mortain and Boulogne, had been accepted and crowned as King in England. Robert eventually accepted this and at Easter 1136 attended the new King's ceremonial court. He does not seem to have seriously considered supporting the Empress Matilda and did not assist her invasion of southern Normandy. There is evidence in the contemporary source, the Gesta Stephani, that Robert was proposed by some as a candidate for the throne but his illegitimacy ruled him out:

"Among others came Robert, Earl of Gloucester, son of King Henry, but a bastard, a man of proved talent and admirable wisdom. When he was advised, as the story went, to claim the throne on his father's death, deterred by sounder advice he by no means assented, saying it was fairer to yield it to his sister's son (the future Henry II of England), than presumptuously to arrogate it to himself."

This suggestion cannot have led to any idea that he and Stephen were rivals for the Crown, as Geoffrey of Monmouth in 1136 referred to Robert as one of the 'pillars' of the new King's rule.

Robert of Gloucester had other distractions in 1136 which put the succession question out of his mind. The Welsh princes of south east Wales rose against the Anglo-Norman settlers of the Welsh Marches in April and Robert spent much of the year stabilising the situation in that region. He reached peace treaties with the Welsh and recognised the gains of Morgan ab Owain (died 1158), who called himself King of Glamorgan. In England Robert of Gloucester soon became disenchanted with Stephen and by the end of 1137 had withdrawn from his Court. It is clear that he was disgruntled that he did not occupy the central place in politics that he had in the last reign. He was also alarmed at the favour with which the King regarded his Flemish mercenary general, William of Ypres, and the rising power of the Beaumont twins, Waleran de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Worcester, and Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester. In 1138 Robert declared his support for the Empress Matilda but he was defeated in Normandy by Waleran and his English allies were crushed by Stephen and driven back on his fortress of Bristol.

Earl Robert took a great gamble and sailed for England with his half-sister, the Empress, his wife and a company of knights. They landed at Arundel on 30 September 1139 and were welcomed into Arundel Castle, the possession of Queen Adeliza, Matilda's stepmother. Robert left for Bristol immediately. In his absence the castle was blockaded by Stephen, opening the possibility that he might seize his dynastic rival. The King in the end let the Empress and Countess depart, under escort, to Bristol.

With Earl Robert and the Empress in England and based in the West Country and Severn valley, the civil war had begun. The Earl's first moves are revealing. He commanded raids against Wareham in Dorset and Worcester. Both were possessions of the Beaumonts. He took Robert of Leicester's lands in Dorset for his own. He did much the same to other royalists within his area, mass deprivations which were at the heart of what is called the Anarchy. Although secure in a heartland of support, Earl Robert did not find it easy to recruit wider support and break out. The King succeeded in containing him along the line of the Cotswold Hills with such effect that both sides were willing to send representatives to a peace conference held at Bath in August 1140, though nothing came of it.

Earl Robert's big opportunity came at Christmas 1140 when Stephen fell out with Earl Ranulf II of Chester. Ranulf's failed negotiations with the King to secure Lincoln Castle led him to ally with Robert, his father-in-law. They united their forces at Castle Donington in January 1141 including a host of Welsh mercenaries allied to Earl Robert. On 2 February 1141 the Earls met and defeated Stephen at the Battle of Lincoln. With the King captive Empress Matilda should have secured the throne but a combination of stubborn royalist support, the Empress's miscalculation and military misjudgement led to her failure. On 14 September 1141 Earl Robert and the Empress were trapped by a royalist army in an ill-judged attempt to seize control of Winchester. Earl Robert was captured fighting a rearguard action against the forces of Matilda of Boulogne, Stephen's wife, at the river crossing of Stockbridge to allow his sister to escape. Earl Robert was imprisoned for two months at Rochester Castle before he was released in an exchange with Stephen. The cross-over point in the joint release was on 1 November 1141 at Winchester where the two men had a chance to exchange friendly remarks and the Earl apparently assured the King that there was nothing personal in the fight as far as he was concerned.

The war continued and it rapidly became evident that it was a stalemate. The Empress's husband refused to commit the resources to tip the balance in England only agreeing to discuss matters with the Earl. In June 1142 Robert crossed from Wareham to Normandy and stayed there until the end of October. He came back with no reinforcements but with his nephew, Henry, the son of the Empress. In the meantime the Empress had been trapped in Oxford. Nothing could be done to release her and she had to manage her own escape from the castle.

Robert continued the struggle but with less and less hope of ultimate victory. The King also had limited resources but managed to slowly push towards Robert's centres of Bristol and Gloucester. At the end of 1145 Philip, Earl Robert's son and military Captain, defected to Stephen, taking with him the strategic castles of Cricklade and Cirencester. With Gloucester and Bristol under threat, the Earl opened negotiations in the autumn of 1146. The pressure continued in 1147 and it was in a desperate attack on Farnham in Surrey in the late summer of that year that Earl Robert fought his last unsuccessful action of the war. He retired to Bristol to gather new forces but became feverish. He died on 31 October 1147 and was buried in the priory of St James he had founded outside the castle.

He married, around 1114, Mabel of Gloucester (died 1156), daughter of Robert Fitzhamon and Sibyl de Montgomery. Their children were:

1.William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, died 1183. He married Hawise (died 1197) daughter of Robert II, Earl of Leicester.

2.Roger, Bishop of Worcester, (died 9 August 1179, Tours).

3.Hamon, killed at the siege of Toulouse in 1159.

4.Robert. (died before 1157) Also called Robert of Ilchester in documents. He married Hawise, (died after 1210) daughter of Baldwin de Redvers and Adeliz. Their daughter Mabel married Jordan de Cambernon.

5.Matilda, (died 1189), wife of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester.

6.Philip, Castellan of Cricklade, (died after 1147). He took part in the Second Crusade.

Earl Robert had an illegitimate son, Richard, bishop of Bayeux (1135-1142) by Isabel de Douvres, sister of Richard de Douvres, bishop of Bayeux (1107-1133). 56

. His mother is uncertain.
--------------------
Baron de Creully & Torigni was born in 1100 at Caen, France.
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Earl of Gloucester, Baron de Creully & Torigni
--------------------
Robert, Earl of Gloucester, Baron de Creully & Torigni was born in 1100 at Caen, France. He married Maud FitzHamon, daughter of Robert FitzHamon and Sybil Montgomery, in 1119. Robert, Earl of Gloucester, Baron de Creully & Torigni died on 31 October 1147 at Bristol, Gloucestershire, England. http://our-royal-titled-noble-and-commoner-ancestors.com/p158.htm#i4734

1. Not shown in The Complete Peerage, but shown by Weir as a son of an unknown spouse of Henry I. Unknown GEDCOM info: MH:N228 Unknown GEDCOM info: DC412931-BF40-4163-80C6-2DFE4636F620

Ancestral File Number: V9V7-BV
[mary Stewart1.FTW]
?? Line 1546: (New Pennsylvania F RIN=5852)
1 NAME Robert "The King's Son" de /Caen/
?? Line 1547: (New PAF R IN=5852)
1 TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/

REF: Weis Ancestral Roots (63:26), (124:26), (124A:26), (125:26),(132A:27): He was an illigitimate son of King HENRY I. According to "TheDictionary of National Biography", his mother was probably an unknownFrench woman. This birth was before HENRY became king. On insufficientgrounds some claim his mother to be Nesta, dau. of RHYS AP TEWDR, King ofDehubarth. In his "Complete Peerage", Cockayne is of the opinion that hismother was most likely SIBYL CORBET. He fought at the Battle of Bremulein 1119, where his father defeated King LOUIS VI of France (RIN 1531). In1122 he was created Earl of Gloucester. In 1123, he led a force to assistin the capture of the castle
of Brionne, which was held by rebel Norman barons. In 1126 he had custody
of the imprisoned rebel, Robert, Duc de Normandie. In 1127 he did homage
to the EMPRESS MATILDA, recognizng her as his father's successor to the
throne. When Stephen was chosen as king over the EMPRESS MATILDA, Robertdid homage to him for his English lands. In 1137 he accompanied KingStephen to Normandie where a quarrel ensued. He then threw his support toMATILDA, who was in Normandie, and obtained the surrender of Caen andBayeux to her husband, GEOFFREY PLANTAGANET, Count of Anjou (RIN 787). InSep. 1139 he landed in England with MATILDA and took her to ArundelCastle. He became her commander-in-chief in the civil war which followed.
Robert was captured by Stephen's forces, but Stephen had also beenpreviously captured by MATILDA's. The two were returned to theirrespective camps in an even exchange. MATILDA sent Robert to Anjou toattempt to convince her husband, GEOFFREY, to come to her aid. GEOFFREY
declined to help until he had conquered Normandie, so Robert joined in his
campaign. However, hearing that MATILDA was beseiged at Oxford, he hurried
back to her assistance. He took MATILDA's and GEOFFREY's son, HENRY (the
future King HENRY II) with him. In 1143 Robert defeated Stephen at Wilton
and in 1144 he blockaded Malmesbury, Stephen refusing battle. MATILDA's
support had gradually dwindled, so Robert was unable to continue to press
her cause. In 1147 Robert sent HENRY back to Anjou. Later that yearRobert died of fever at Bristol.

[Source: Who's Who in Early Medieval England, Christopher Tyerman,Shepheard-Walwyn, Ltd., London, 1996]

ROBERT, EARL OF GLOUCESTER had all the kingly attributes except one:legitimacy. The eldest of Henry I's twenty or so bastards, literate,intelligent, brave, adept at the factional politics of court, and apatron of both the church and the arts, Robert had to stand back to watchothers compete for the throne, literally so in 1127 when he lost hisclaim to precedence over his cousin Stephen of Blois when doing homage tohis half-sister the Empress Matilda. It was some measure of an increasein orderliness and legal propriety that William the Bastard could inherita duchy and win a crown, while his grandson, Robert, whose personalcrudentials were second to none, had to be content with a supporting role.

Under Henry I, Robert was prominent in a party consistently loyal to theking. In 1119, Robert fought at Brémule against the king of France and in1123 against the Norman rebels; in 1126, he was given custody of hisuncle Robert Curthose. Despite acquiescing in Matilda's succession, hestill fought against the Angevins on Henry's behalf in the 1130s.Robert's reward was in lands in South Wales and the West Country and theearldom of Gloucester (1122). After Henry's death in 1135, it was not hisloyalty to the Empress which swayed him so much as his own self-interest:arguably, his hesitation in deciding where that lay allowed Stephen tograb the throne.

Admired by William of Malmesbury, Robert has traditionally been seen as anoble, chivalrous defender of the hereditary rights of his half-sister.His actions between 1135 and 1139 suggest more selfish motives. Hisunusual conditional homage to Stephen in 1136 signalled his importance tothe new king but it may also have been forced on him by his isolationamong the English baronage and the threat to his lands in South-EastWales posed by a Welsh revolt, the crushing of which, it has recentlybeen suggested, may have prompted Robert's literary protégé, Geoffrey ofMonmouth, to write his 'History of the Kings of Britain.' Although Robertcooperated with Stephen at the siege of Exeter in 1136, he soon becamealienated from the new regime, not least because of the favours grantedto the Beaumont twins, Waleran of Meulan and Robert of Leicester, oldrivals from the court of Henry I. Opposition to the Beaumonts provide aleitmotif in the rest of Robert of Gloucester's career, not least in thefighting at Wareham (1138), Worcester (1139) and Tewkesbury (1140).

It was probably the growing influence of Waleran of Meulan in particularthat led to Robert distancing himself from the king in Normandie in 1137and his fears of assassination by the royalist mercenary, William ofYpres. In 1138, the formal break with Stephen occurred, but after thefailure of the Angevins to capture Normandie in 1138-9, Robert, perhapsin desperation lest his English estates would be lost, landed at Arundelwith Matilda to dispute the English throne. In England, Robert providedthe judicious advice, material support and personal charm that Matilda soconspicuously lacked. That she retained followers at all may in part havebeen the achivement of her gregarious and generous half-brother with hisknack for friendship. Although playing the leading military role on theEmpress's side, Robert also managed to use the civil war to build analmost impregnable power-base for himself in South-West England, centredon Bristol, a control that the vicissitudes of the wider dynasticstruggle did little to challenge. 1141 saw his greatest triumph in thecrushing defeat of the king at Lincoln in February, but his victoryexposed the vulnerability of his position. Unless he looked after his owninterests, he would have no more guarantee of security at an Angevin thanat a Blois court. The former suddenly looked a forlorn prospect after theRout of Winchester in September, where only Robert's personal courage andchivalry secured Matilda's escape at the price of his own capture.

The subsequent exchange of Robert for Stephen inaugurated stalemate,during which Robert consolidated his hold over the South-West (just ashis rival Robert of Leicester extended his grip on the Midlands). To theend, Robert was inflexible, not only over the Angevin claim but, moredamaging to prospects of civil peace, in harbouring the factionalrivalries and grudges of the 1130s. Robert's death in 1147 allowedEnglish magnates to make private accomodations with each other: Robert'sown son, William, even married Robert of Leicester's daughter, Hawise ofBeaumont, c. 1150. It may be no coincidence that only a few months afterher faithful defender died, Matilda left England.

If Robert of Gloucester was a vigorous politician, he was also one of theleading literary patrons of his generation. Apparently something of anintellectual himself, eager at quoting Biblical analogies, Robert was thefocus of a group of writers which included the historian William ofMalmesbury and the historical romancer Geoffrey of Monmouth, writers ofsecular narrative histories whose interest in the epic past of Britainwas presumably shared by their patron. William of Malmesbury's revised'Gesta Regum' was dedicated to him, as was his 'Historia Novella' whichextensively eulogises the earl. Not only was Robert one of the dedicateesof Geoffrey of Monmouth's 'History,' but he circulated copies of it tohis monastic foundations and to his friends, including Walter Espec.Inside the nobility's metal helmet and chain mail were men of cultivationand intellectual curiosity. Robert employed mercenaries such as thebestial psychopath Robert FitzHubert; at the same time he fostered aliterary genre that captured the imagination of the civilised world.

Earl of Gloucester

He was an illegitimate child.

from "Our Folk" by Albert D Hart, Jr.

! (1) (1094)-1147 Oct 31, illegit. s. of Henry I; cr. 1st Earl of Gloucester
1122

Died of Fever
N: 5226Acceded: Aug 1122. Interred: St. James Priory, Bristol.A Found er Of St. James Priory, Bristol.Lord Of Thoringni, Etc.When Stephen Beca me King, Did Homage To Him For English Lands.Of Caen, Normandy, FranceH ad Custody Of His Uncle, Robert Of Normandy.( Illegitimate Son Of Henr y, I. King Of England)Led Force To Capture Brionne Castle Held By Rebe ls In Normandy.Distinguished Soldier & Powerful Magnate In The West Countr y.1st Earl Of Gloucester, Of CaenFrance (Natural Son Of Henry Beauclerk)Ea rl Of Gloucester. Lord Of Corboil.In Battle Of Bremule Where His Father De feated Louis VI Of France.
BIRT: RIN MH:IF72456
DEAT: RIN MH:IF72457
BURI: RIN MH:IF72458

!From "Ancestral Roots of 60 Colonist" by WEIS, 6th ed, line 124, page 113; "Robert de Caen (natural son of Henry I), b ca 1090 d Bristol 31 Oct 1147, called `the Consul', Earl of Gloucester, 1122-1147; m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON, Lord of Crelly in Calvados, Baron of Thoringni, and Sybil, dau of Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury. (CP IV 670 chart iii; V 736; VII 677; chart III; V 736;VII 520)." Line 125, page 113; Robert de CAEN (124-26) m Maud, dau of Robert Fitz HAMON."

!There are many more generations of ancestry for King Henry I, of England. They go beyond the natural intent of this Compiler's genealogical interest.
!Name is; Robert, "de Caen" Earl Of /GLOUCESTER/

! (1) (1094)-1147 Oct 31, illegit. s. of Henry I; cr. 1st Earl of Gloucester
1122

Son of King Henry I of England.

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)
!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,
!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99
?? Line 732: (New PAF RIN=7638)
1 NAME Robert "The King's Son" De /CAEN/
?? Line 733: (New PAF RIN=7638)
1 TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/
?? Line 2084: (New PAF RIN=9441)
1 NAME Robert "The King's Son" De /CAEN/
?? Line 2085: (New PAF RIN=9441)
1 TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/
Line 1120 from GEDCOM File not recognizable or too long:
NAME Robert "The King's Son" De /CAEN/
Line 1121 from GEDCOM File not recognizable or too long:
TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/
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NAME Robert "The King's Son" De /CAEN/
Line 5605 from GEDCOM File not recognizable or too long:
TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/
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NAME Robert "The King's Son" De /CAEN/
Line 710 from GEDCOM File not recognizable or too long:
TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/
Line 2772 from GEDCOM File not recognizable or too long:
NAME Robert "The King's Son" De /CAEN/
Line 2773 from GEDCOM File not recognizable or too long:
TITL [Earl of Gloucester]/

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)
!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,
!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99

BIOGRAPHY: Robert fought at the Battle of Bremule in 1119, in which his father defeated King Louis VI of France. He served his half-sister Empress Matilda as commander in chief of her forces in the wars with King Stephen.

Robert was the eldest of Henry's many illegitimate children. He was born well before his father's accession to the English throne, probably in the late 1080s, as he had himself had a son by 1104. Although generally said to have been the son of Sybil Corbet, his mother is not known for certain.

Robert was acknowledged at birth, though in view of the vicissitudes of his father's career between 1087 and 1096 it is unlikely he was raised in his household. He was educated to a high standard, was literate in Latin and had a serious interest in both history and philosophy, which indicates that he was at least partly raised in a clerical household, a suggestion made all the more likely as his first known child, born around 1104, was born to a daughter of Samson, Bishop of Worcester (died 1112) who up till 1096 had been a Royal Chaplain and Treasurer of Bayeux. It may be significant that his next brother Richard was brought up in an episcopal household, that of Robert Bloet, bishop of Lincoln. Robert later received dedications from both Geoffrey of Monmouth and William of Malmesbury. William's 'Historia Novella' contains a flattering portrait of the Earl.

Robert appears at court in Normandy in 1113, and around 1114 he married Mabel, eldest daughter and heir of Robert Fitzhamon, who brought him the substantial honour of Gloucester in England, Glamorgan in Wales and the honours of Sainte-Scholasse-sur-Sarthe and Évrecy in Normandy, as well as Creully. In 1121 or 1122 his father created him Earl of Gloucester.

Earl Robert took a great gamble and sailed for England with his half-sister, the Empress, his wife and a company of knights. They landed at Arundel on 30 September 1139, and were welcomed into Arundel Castle there, the possession of Queen Adeliza, Matilda's stepmother. Robert left for Bristol immediately. In his absence the castle was blockaded by King Stephen, opening the possibility that he might seize his dynastic rival. The King in the end let the Empress and Countess depart, under escort, to Bristol.

With Earl Robert and the Empress in England and based in the West Country and Severn valley, the civil war had begun. The Earl's first moves are revealing. He commanded raids against Wareham in Dorset and Worcester. Both were possessions of the Beaumonts. He took Robert of Leicester's lands in Dorset for his own. He did much the same to other royalists within his area, mass deprivations which were at the heart of what is called the Anarchy. Although secure in a heartland of support, Earl Robert did not find it easy to recruit wider support and break out. The King succeeded in containing him along the line of the Cotswold Hills, with such effect that both sides were willing to send representatives to a peace conference held at Bath in August 1140, though nothing came of it.

Earl Robert's big opportunity came at Christmas 1140, when King Stephen fell out with Earl Ranulf II of Chester. Ranulf's failed negotiations with the King to secure Lincoln Castle led him to ally with Robert, his father-in-law. They united their forces at Castle Donington in January 1141, including a host of Welsh mercenaries allied to Earl Robert. On 2 February 1141 the Earls met and defeated King Stephen at the Battle of Lincoln. With the King captive, Empress Matilda should have secured the throne, but a combination of stubborn royalist support, the Empress's miscalculation and military misjudgement led to her failure. On 14 September 1141 Earl Robert and the Empress were trapped by a royalist army in an ill-judged attempt to seize control of Winchester. Earl Robert was captured fighting a rearguard action against the forces of Matilda of Boulogne, Stephen's wife, at the river crossing of Stockbridge to allow his sister to escape. Earl Robert was imprisoned for two months at Rochester Castle before he was released in an exchange with King Stephen. The cross-over point in the joint release was on 1 November 1141 at Winchester, where the two men had a chance to exchange friendly remarks, and the Earl apparently assured the King that there was nothing personal in the fight as far as he was concerned.

The war continued and it rapidly became evident that it was a stalemate. The Empress's husband refused to commit the resources to tip the balance in England, only agreeing to discuss matters with the Earl. In June 1142 Robert crossed from Wareham to Normandy and stayed there till the end of October. He came back with no reinforcements, but with his nephew Henry, the son of the Empress. In the meantime the Empress had been trapped in Oxford. Nothing could be done to release her, and she had to manage her own escape from the castle.

Robert continued the struggle but with less and less hope of ultimate victory. The King also had limited resources, but managed slowly to push towards Robert's centres of Bristol and Gloucester. At the end of 1145 Philip, Earl Robert's son and military Captain, defected to Stephen, taking with him the strategic castles of Cricklade and Cirencester. With Gloucester and Bristol under threat, the Earl opened negotiations in the autumn of 1146. The pressure continued in 1147, and it was in a desperate attack on Farnham in Surrey in the late summer of that year that Earl Robert fought his last unsuccessful action of the war. He retired to Bristol to gather new forces, but became feverish. He died on 31 October 1147 and was buried in the priory of St James he had founded outside the castle.

He married, around 1114, Mabel of Gloucester (died 1156), daughter of Robert Fitzhamon and Sibyl de Montgomery. Their children were:

William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, died 1183. He married Hawise (died 1197) daughter of Robert II, Earl of Leicester.
Roger, Bishop of Worcester, (died 9 August 1179, Tours).
Hamon, killed at the siege of Toulouse in 1159.
Robert. (died before 1157) Also called Robert of Ilchester in documents. He married Hawise, (died after 1210) daughter of Baldwin de Redvers and Adeliz. Their daughter Mabel married Jordan de Cambernon.
Matilda, (died 1189), wife of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester.
Philip, Castellan of Cricklade, (died after 1147). He took part in the Second Crusade.
Earl Robert had an illegitimate son, Richard, bishop of Bayeux (1135-1142), by Isabel de Douvres, sister of Richard de Douvres, bishop of Bayeux (1107-1133).

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)
!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,
!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99

"OF CAEN"; EARL OF GLOCESTER; NATURAL SON

[large-G675.FTW]

REF: Weis Ancestral Roots (63:26), (124:26), (124A:26), (125:26),(132A:27): He was an illigitimate son of King HENRY I. According to "TheDictionary of National Biography", his mother was probably an unknownFrench woman. This birth was before HENRY became king. On insufficientgrounds some claim his mother to be Nesta, dau. of RHYS AP TEWDR, King ofDehubarth. In his "Complete Peerage", Cockayne is of the opinion thathis mother was most likely SIBYL CORBET. He fought at the Battle ofBremule in 1119, where his father defeated King LOUIS VI of France (RIN1531). In 1122 he was created Earl of Gloucester. In 1123, he led aforce to assist in the capture of the castle
of Brionne, which was held by rebel Norman barons. In 1126 he had custody
of the imprisoned rebel, Robert, Duke of Normandy. In 1127 he did homage
to the EMPRESS MATILDA, recognizng her as his father's successor to the
throne. When Stephen was chosen as king over the EMPRESS MATILDA, Robertdid homage to him for his English lands. In 1137 he accompanied KingStephen to Normandy where a quarrel ensued. He then threw his support toMATILDA, who was in Normandy, and obtained the surrender of Caen andBayeux to her husband, GEOFFREY PLANTAGANET, Count of Anjou (RIN 787). InSep. 1139 he landed in England with MATILDA and took her to ArundelCastle. He became her commander-in-chief in the civil war which followed.
Robert was captured by Stephen's forces, but Stephen had also beenpreviously captured by MATILDA's. The two were returned to theirrespective camps in an even exchange. MATILDA sent Robert to Anjou toattempt to convince her husband, GEOFFREY, to come to her aid. GEOFFREY
declined to help until he had conquered Normandy, so Robert joined in his
campaign. However, hearing that MATILDA was beseiged at Oxford, hehurried
back to her assistance. He took MATILDA's and GEOFFREY's son, HENRY (the
future King HENRY II) with him. In 1143 Robert defeated Stephen at Wilton
and in 1144 he blockaded Malmesbury, Stephen refusing battle. MATILDA's
support had gradually dwindled, so Robert was unable to continue to press
her cause. In 1147 Robert sent HENRY back to Anjou. Later that yearRobert died of fever at Bristol.

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)
!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,
!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99

[From Burke's Peerage-see source for details]

An undoubted Earl of Gloucester, perhaps the first authentic one, at any rate after the Conquest, is Robert FitzHamon's son-in-law, another Robert, who was an illegitimate son of Henry I and was so created 1122. The Earldom passed to his eldest son, William FitzRobert, and from him to John, later King John and husband from 1189 to 1199 (when he divorced her) of Isabel, the youngest of William FitzRobert's three daughters. On John's coming to the throne the title did not merge in the Crown for it was not his in his own right but in right of his wife.

[From Burke's Peerage-see source for details]

An undoubted Earl of Gloucester, perhaps the first authentic one, at any rate after the Conquest, is Robert FitzHamon's son-in-law, another Robert, who was an illegitimate son of Henry I and was so created 1122. The Earldom passed to his eldest son, William FitzRobert, and from him to John, later King John and husband from 1189 to 1199 (when he divorced her) of Isabel, the youngest of William FitzRobert's three daughters. On John's coming to the throne the title did not merge in the Crown for it was not his in his own right but in right of his wife.

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)

!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,

!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99

Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester (c. 1090 - October 31, 1147) was an illegitimate son of King Henry I of England, and one of the dominant figures of the period of English history sometimes called The Anarchy. He is also known as Robert of Caen, and Robert "the Consul", though both names are used by later historians and have little contemporary justification, other than the fact that Robert's clerks made a practice of using the Latin word consul rather than the more common comes for his title of 'Earl'.

Early life
Robert was the eldest of Henry's many illegitimate children. He was born well before his father's accession to the English throne, probably in the late 1080s, as he had himself had a son by 1104. There are numerous references noting him to have been the son of Sybil Corbet, heiress to Robert Corbet, Lord of Alcester, who's family had land in both England and Normandy. He was born in Caen, Normandy and was the first of several children between Henry and his Mistress Sybil Corbet. [1]

Robert was acknowledged at birth, though in view of the vicissitudes of his father's career between 1087 and 1096 it is unlikely he was raised in his household. He was educated to a high standard, was literate in Latin and had a serious interest in both history and philosophy, which indicates that he was at least partly raised in a clerical household, a suggestion made all the more likely as his first known child, born around 1104, was born to a daughter of Samson, Bishop of Worcester (died 1112) who up till 1096 had been a Royal Chaplain and Treasurer of Bayeux. It may be significant that his next brother Richard was brought up in an episcopal household, that of Robert Bloet, bishop of Lincoln. Robert later received dedications from both Geoffrey of Monmouth and William of Malmesbury. William's 'Historia Novella' contains a flattering portrait of the Earl.

Robert appears at court in Normandy in 1113, and around 1114 he married Mabel, eldest daughter and heir of Robert Fitzhamon, who brought him the substantial honour of Gloucester in England, Glamorgan in Wales and the honours of Sainte-Scholasse-sur-Sarthe and Évrecy in Normandy, as well as Creully. In 1121 or 1122 his father created him Earl of Gloucester. Through his marriage to Mabel he became second Lord of Glamorgan, and gained possession of Cardiff Castle, and was responsible for the building of the stone keep there, which remains as the best preserved Norman shell keep in Wales, and one of the best in the British Isles. Robert had considerable authority and autonomy, to the extent that he even minted his own coinage, today preserved in the British Museum.

Career at court

Robert developed a role as one of his father's principal aides and Captains. In 1119, he fought at the Battle of Bremule, and in 1123-24 he was one of the King's chief commanders during the Norman rebellion. Following the drowning of the King's only legitimate son, William Adelin, in 1120, Robert became increasingly caught up in his father's attempts to ensure the succession of the Empress Matilda, Robert's half-sister. It was to Robert's custody in his castle of Cardiff that his uncle, the deposed Duke Robert Curthose was eventually confined in 1126 until his death there in 1134. On 1 January 1137 it was Robert who was one of the first to swear to accept Matilda as Queen after Henry's death. His father at some point gave him the keeping of the castles of Dover and Canterbury, and thus control of Kent and the cross-Channel route. When King Henry fell mortally ill at Lyons-la-Forêt in Normandy on 25 November 1135, Earl Robert was at his side and was one of the magnates who swore to stay with the King's body until it was buried. The King died a week after falling ill, on 1 December 1135.

Relationship with King Stephen
After his father's death, Robert attended a series of conferences in Normandy and eventually accepted as King Theobald IV, Count of Blois and King Henry's oldest nephew by his sister Adela. However, during the meeting with Theobald, news reach the Norman magnates that Theobald's younger brother, Stephen of Mortain and Boulogne, had been accepted and crowned as King in England. Robert eventually accepted this and at Easter 1136 attended the new King's ceremonial court. He does not seem to have seriously considered supporting the Empress Matilda, and did not assist her invasion of southern Normandy. There is evidence in the contemporary source, the Gesta Stephani, that Robert was proposed by some as a candidate for the throne, but his illegitimacy ruled him out:

"Among others came Robert, Earl of Gloucester, son of King Henry, but a bastard, a man of proved talent and admirable wisdom. When he was advised, as the story went, to claim the throne on his father's death, deterred by sounder advice he by no means assented, saying it was fairer to yield it to his sister's son (the future Henry II of England), than presumptuously to arrogate it to himself."
This suggestion cannot have led to any idea that he and Stephen were rivals for the Crown, as Geoffrey of Monmouth in 1136 referred to Robert as one of the 'pillars' of the new King's rule.

Robert of Gloucester had other distractions in 1136 which put the succession question out of his mind. The Welsh princes of south east Wales rose against the Anglo-Norman settlers of the Welsh Marches in April and Robert spent much of the year stabilising the situation in that region. He reached peace treaties with the Welsh and recognised the gains of Morgan ab Owain (died 1158), who called himself King of Glamorgan. In England, Robert of Gloucester soon became disenchanted with King Stephen, and by the end of 1137 had withdrawn from his Court. It is clear that he was disgruntled that he did not occupy the central place in politics that he had in the last reign. He was also alarmed at the favour with which the King regarded his Flemish mercenary general, William of Ypres, and the rising power of the Beaumont twins, Waleran de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Worcester, and Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester. In 1138, Robert declared his support for the Empress Matilda, but he was defeated in Normandy by Waleran and his English allies were crushed by Stephen and driven back on his fortress of Bristol.

The Civil War, 1139-1147
Earl Robert took a great gamble and sailed for England with his half-sister, the Empress, his wife and a company of knights. They landed at Arundel on 30 September 1139, and were welcomed into Arundel Castle there, the possession of Queen Adeliza, Matilda's stepmother. Robert left for Bristol immediately. In his absence the castle was blockaded by King Stephen, opening the possibility that he might seize his dynastic rival. The King in the end let the Empress and Countess depart, under escort, to Bristol.

With Earl Robert and the Empress in England and based in the West Country and Severn valley, the civil war had begun. The Earl's first moves are revealing. He commanded raids against Wareham in Dorset and Worcester. Both were possessions of the Beaumonts. He took Robert of Leicester's lands in Dorset for his own. He did much the same to other royalists within his area, mass deprivations which were at the heart of what is called the Anarchy. Although secure in a heartland of support, Earl Robert did not find it easy to recruit wider support and break out. The King succeeded in containing him along the line of the Cotswold Hills, with such effect that both sides were willing to send representatives to a peace conference held at Bath in August 1140, though nothing came of it.

Earl Robert's big opportunity came at Christmas 1140, when King Stephen fell out with Earl Ranulf II of Chester. Ranulf's failed negotiations with the King to secure Lincoln Castle led him to ally with Robert, his father-in-law. They united their forces at Castle Donington in January 1141, including a host of Welsh mercenaries allied to Earl Robert. On 2 February 1141 the Earls met and defeated King Stephen at the Battle of Lincoln. With the King captive, Empress Matilda should have secured the throne, but a combination of stubborn royalist support, the Empress's miscalculation and military misjudgement led to her failure. On 14 September 1141 Earl Robert and the Empress were trapped by a royalist army in an ill-judged attempt to seize control of Winchester. Earl Robert was captured fighting a rearguard action against the forces of Matilda of Boulogne, Stephen's wife, at the river crossing of Stockbridge to allow his sister to escape. Earl Robert was imprisoned for two months at Rochester Castle before he was released in an exchange with King Stephen. The cross-over point in the joint release was on 1 November 1141 at Winchester, where the two men had a chance to exchange friendly remarks, and the Earl apparently assured the King that there was nothing personal in the fight as far as he was concerned.

The war continued and it rapidly became evident that it was a stalemate. The Empress's husband refused to commit the resources to tip the balance in England, only agreeing to discuss matters with the Earl. In June 1142 Robert crossed from Wareham to Normandy and stayed there till the end of October. He came back with no reinforcements, but with his nephew Henry, the son of the Empress. In the meantime the Empress had been trapped in Oxford. Nothing could be done to release her, and she had to manage her own escape from the castle.

Robert continued the struggle but with less and less hope of ultimate victory. The King also had limited resources, but managed slowly to push towards Robert's centres of Bristol and Gloucester. At the end of 1145 Philip, Earl Robert's son and military Captain, defected to Stephen, taking with him the strategic castles of Cricklade and Cirencester. With Gloucester and Bristol under threat, the Earl opened negotiations in the autumn of 1146. The pressure continued in 1147, and it was in a desperate attack on Farnham in Surrey in the late summer of that year that Earl Robert fought his last unsuccessful action of the war. He retired to Bristol to gather new forces, but became feverish. He died on 31 October 1147 and was buried in the priory of St James he had founded outside the castle.

Robert's illustrious life and career is colourfully illustrated on the walls of the Banqueting Hall at Cardiff Castle, in a series of neo-Gothic murals created by HW Lonsdale in the 19th Century, as part of the transformation of the castle undertaken by William Burges (architect) for his patron John, 3rd Marquess of Bute.

Family and children
He married, around 1114, Mabel of Gloucester (died 1156), daughter of Robert Fitzhamon and Sibyl de Montgomery. Their children were:

William Fitz Robert, 2nd Earl of Gloucester, died 1183. He married Hawise (died 1197) daughter of Robert II, Earl of Leicester.
Roger, Bishop of Worcester, (died 9 August 1179, Tours).
Hamon, killed at the siege of Toulouse in 1159.
Robert. (died before 1157) Also called Robert of Ilchester in documents. He married Hawise, (died after 1210) daughter of Baldwin de Redvers and Adeliz. Their daughter Mabel married Jordan de Cambernon.
Matilda (Maud), (died 1189), wife of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester.
Philip, Castellan of Cricklade, (died after 1147). He took part in the Second Crusade.
Earl Robert had an illegitimate son, Richard, bishop of Bayeux (1135-1142), by Isabel de Douvres, sister of Richard de Douvres, bishop of Bayeux (1107-1133).

References
^ Given-Wilson, Chris; Curteis, Alice (1988). The Royal Bastards of Medieval England. London: Routledge. p. 74. ISBN 0-415-02826-4.
J. Bradbury, Stephen and Matilda: The Civil War of 1139-53 (Stroud, 1996)
D. Crouch, "Robert of Gloucester's Mother and Sexual Politics in Norman Oxfordshire", Historical Research, 72 (1999) 323-332.
D. Crouch, 'Robert, earl of Gloucester and the daughter of Zelophehad,' Journal of Medieval History, 11 (1985), 227-43.
D. Crouch, The Reign of King Stephen, 1135-1154 (London, 2000).
C. Given-Wilson & A. Curteis. The Royal Bastards of Medieval England (London, 1984)
The Personnel of the Norman Cathedrals during the Ducal Period, 911-1204, ed. David S. Spear (London, 2006)
Earldom of Gloucester Charters, ed. R.B. Patterson (Oxford, 1973)
R.B. Patterson, 'William of Malmesbury's Robert of Gloucester: a re-evaluation of the Historia Novella,' American Historical Review, 70 (1965), 983-97.
K. Thompson, 'Affairs of State: the illegitimate children of Henry I,' Journal of Medieval History, 29 (2003), 129-151.
W.M.M. Picken, 'The Descent of the Devon Family of Willington from Robert Earl of Gloucester' in 'A Medieval Cornish Miscellany', Ed. O.J. Padel. (Phillimore, 2000)

Illegitimate son of Henry I of England; 1st earl of Gloucester [1120]. Robert did homage to King Stephen after he had seized the throne following Henry's I's death in 1136, but quarrelled with him in 1138 and had his English and Welsh estates seized. In 1139 he joined Matilda, Henry's daughter and his half-sister, in her attempt to press her claim to the English throne. He captured Stephen at Lincoln in 1141, but was taken prisoner himself at Stockbridge and exchanged for Stephen. Robert defeated Stephen once more, at Wilton in 1143, and, despite Matilda's arrogance, remained her principal supporter until his death

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)
!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,
!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99

EARL OF (d. 1147), was a natural son of Henry I. of England. He was born, before his father's accession, at Caen in Normandy; but the exact date of his birth, and his mother's name are unknown. He received from his father the hand of a wealthy heiress, Mabel of Gloucester, daughter of Robert Fitz Hamon, and with her the lordships of Gloucester and Glamorgan. About 1121 the earldom of Gloucester was created for his benefit. His rank and territorial influence made him the natural leader of the western baronage. Hence, at his father's death, he was sedulously courted by the rival parties of his half-sister the empress Matilda and of Stephen. After some hesitation he declared for the latter, but tendered his homage upon strict conditions, the breach of which should be held to invalidate the contract. Robert afterwards alleged that he had merely feigned submission to Stephen with the object of secretly furthering his half-sister's cause among the English barons. The truth appears to be that he was mortified at finding himself excluded from the inner councils of the king, and so resolved to sell his services elsewhere. Robert left England for Normandy in 1137, renewed his relations with the Angevin party, and in 1138 sent a formal defiance to the king. Returning to England in the following year, he raised the standard of rebellion in his own earldom with such success that the greater part of western England and the south Welsh marches were soon in the possession of the empress. By the battle of Lincoln (Feb. 2, 1141), in which Stephen was taken prisoner, the earl made good Matilda's claim to the whole kingdom. He accompanied her triumphal progress to Winchester and London; but was unable to moderate the arrogance of her behaviour. Consequently she was soon expelled from London and deserted by the bishop Henry of Winchester who, as legate, controlled the policy of the English church. With Matilda the earl besieged the legate at Winchester, but was forced by the royalists to beat a hasty retreat, and in covering Matilda's flight fell into the hands of the pursuers. So great was his importance that his party purchased his freedom by the release of Stephen. The earl renewed the struggle for the crown and continued it until his death (Oct. 31, 1147); but the personal unpopularity of Matilda, and the estrangement of the Church from her cause, made his efforts unavailing. His loyalty to a lost cause must be allowed to weigh in the scale against his earlier double-dealing. But he hardly deserves the extravagant praise which is lavished upon him by William of Malmesbury. The sympathies of the chronicler are too obviously influenced by the earl's munificence towards literary men.

!RESEARCH NOTES:
1. Some authorities claim the mother of Robert, Earl of Gloucester to be Nesta, daughter of Rhees ap Tewder, Prince of South Wales; however, she is more likely to be a French woman from Normandy since Robert was born in Caen, France (see Dict. of Nat'l Biog.)
!RESEARCH NOTES:
2. It is known that Robert had one or two other sons whose names and dates of birth are not known !SOURCES: 1. The Complete Peerage,
!SOURCES:
1. The Complete Peerage, G.E.C., Eng. V, v. 5, p. 683-89, 736
2. Espolin (GS #12462, pt 1, p. 101)
3. Dict. of Nat'l Biog., Eng. Pub. A, v. 48, p. 356-58
4. Kings of England, Eng. 176, p. 30, 45-47
5. Bristol and Gloucs. Arch. Soc., Gloucs. Pub. A, v. 32, p. 204
6. Gen. Hist. 25, pt 1, p. 100
7. Plantagenet Ancestry, Eng. 116, p. 99

The illegitimate son of King Henry I of England (reigned 1100-35), Robertwas made Earl of Gloucester in 1122. After the death of Henry I andusurpation of power by Stephen (December 1135), Gloucester became theleader of the party loyal to Matilda, his half sister, who had beendesignated heir to the throne by Henry I. He took Matilda to England inSeptember 1139 and at the head of her forces won from Stephen most ofwestern England and southern Wales. In February 1141 he captured Stephenat Lincoln and imprisoned him in Bristol. Later that year Gloucester wascaptured at Winchester, Hampshire, and exchanged for the king. Hecontinued to be the mainstay of Matilda's cause until his death.Chroniclers considered Gloucester an able and sagacious leader.

The illegitimate son of King Henry I of England (reigned 1100-35), Robertwas made Earl of Gloucester in 1122. After the death of Henry I andusurpation of power by Stephen (December 1135), Gloucester became theleader of the party loyal to Matilda, his half sister, who had beendesignated heir to the throne by Henry I. He took Matilda to England inSeptember 1139 and at the head of her forces won from Stephen most ofwestern England and southern Wales. In February 1141 he captured Stephenat Lincoln and imprisoned him in Bristol. Later that year Gloucester wascaptured at Winchester, Hampshire, and exchanged for the king. Hecontinued to be the mainstay of Matilda's cause until his death.Chroniclers considered Gloucester an able and sagacious leader.

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Voorouders (en nakomelingen) van Robert "The King's Son" de Caen

Guillaume I 'le Conquérant' FitzRobert de Normandie
1024-1087

Matilda van Vlaanderen
± 1031-1083

Henry I "Beauclerc" of England
± 1068-1135

Concubine #1 Unknown woman de Caen
± 1070-± 1130

Robert "The King's Son" de Caen
± 1090-1147

± 1115

Maud / Mabel (Sibyl) fitzRobert de Creully
± 1135-1189



					Roger FitzRobert Bishop of Worcester ± 1113-1184

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Doopdag 30 augustus 1994

Doopdag 30 augustus 1994

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Van dinsdag 7 november 1989 tot maandag 22 augustus 1994 was er in Nederland het kabinet Lubbers III met als eerste minister Drs. R.F.M. Lubbers (CDA).
Van maandag 22 augustus 1994 tot maandag 3 augustus 1998 was er in Nederland het kabinet a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabinet-Kok_I" class="extern">Kok I met als eerste minister W. Kok (PvdA).
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1147 » Robert van Gloucester, bastaardzoon van Hendrik I van Engeland
1448 » Johannes VIII Palaiologos (56), Byzantijns keizer
1534 » Alfonso I d'Este (58), hertog van Ferrara en Modena en Reggio
1641 » Cornelis Jol (44), bijgenaamd "Houtebeen", admiraal van de West-Indische Compagnie
1664 » Willem Frederik van Nassau-Dietz, vorst van Nassau-Dietz en stadhouder van Friesland, Groningen en Drenthe
1723 » Cosimo III de' Medici, groothertog van Toscane

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Stamboom Homs » Robert "The King's Son" (Robert "The King's Son") "Earl of Meullent Robert" de Caen 1st Earl of Gloucester (± 1090-1147)