Ranulf de Blondeville

Yesterday I mentioned how Roger de Lacy was required, as Constable of Chester, to support Ranulf de Blondeville. Ranulph was his overlord, being the Earl of Chester (the 4th Earl or the 6th Earl, depending on how you counted). He was born in 1170, and became earl on the death of his father when Ranulph was only 11 years old.

He came into his majority in 1188 or 1189, and was knighted. In 1189 he also married Constance, Duchess of Brittany. She had been married to Henry II's son Geoffrey II, who had died in 1186 at 27 years of age. Henry wanted Brittany under his control, so pushed the marriage to one of his vassals. Through this marriage Ranulph also became the Earl of Richmond.

Ranulph styled himself "Duke of Brittany," but he had no real influence there and no one else considered him to be the duke, nor did he spend a lot of time there. When Henry's son Richard was in power, he summoned Constance and her son by Geoffrey, Arthur, to Rouen. Arthur had, however, been quietly taken to the court of Philip II of France, Richard's rival, to be raised with Philip's son Louis VIII. The people of Brittany did not want England dictating their duchess's husband or trying to rule them, especially in absentia. Constance requested a divorce on the grounds of desertion, and got it in 1199.

In 1200 Ranulph married Clemence of Fougères, of a Norman family, to extend his contacts in Normandy. King John was suspicious of him, especially since Ranulph had opposed Prince John's power grab while King Richard was on Crusade, but John overcame concerns about Ranulph by first confiscating his estates and then, after deeming Ranulph had learned his lesson, returning them and showering Ranulph with gifts to further ensure loyalty. Ranulph became a strong supporter of John afterward, supporting him in the First Barons War.

Ranulph was a witness to the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 and, because he had barons under his earldom, created his own "Magna Carta of Chester" to appease them. (Magna Carta dd not apply to the earldom of Chester, which was a separate feudal domain.)

There was a lot of fighting to come, even after Magna Carta, and I'll go into that and Ranulph's death and his burial in three separate places, but ponder this question between now and next time: how was he either the 4th or the 6th earl?

See you here tomorrow.

The Town of Sandwich

So...Sandwich. Most people just think about the food item that shares its name, but it has had more history than that, and not just as a Cinque Port. Its significance as a port in southeast England helped to weave it through many events that have been mentioned in this blog before.

The name Sondwic is mentioned first in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, covering events in England from the 800s to 1154. The Domesday Book, an account of all property in England so the new Norman rulers knew what they had, calls it Sandwice. The suffix -wic is Anglo-Sacon for a fortified place where trade takes place (a town). The name means a market town on sandy soil, appropriate for a coastal location.

When Rome invaded Britain in 43 CE, Sandwich was their landing point (technically, a town called Stonar across the river Stour from Sandwich, but Stonar disappeared in the 14th century).

King Cnut (c.990 - 1035) had history with Sandwich, initially leaving a pile of bodies strewn across the beach when he fled to Denmark after fighting with King Æthelred the Unready, but then later giving special rights to the church at Sandwich.

When Richard Lionheart was released from captivity after the Third Crusade and returned to England, Sandwich was his choice of landing port.

During the First Barons War (mentioned here) against King John, Prince Louis (later King Louis VIII) of France landed at sandwich to support the barons against John. The Battle of Sandwich was part of the First Barons War, and had the participation of Eustace, the Pirate Monk.

In the 14th century, a hospital (an almshouse for the poor) was established, named for St. Thomas Becket and still standing (see illustration).

In 1660, an earldom was created to bestow on Admiral Sir Edward Montagu. The 4th Earl of Sandwich was First Lord of the Admiralty and sponsored the voyages of Captain Jame Cook, who named the Sandwich islands for the Earl. The 4th Earl, John Montagu, is also credited with the naming of a food item when asking for meat between two pieces of bread so that he would not have to stop his activities. It bears mentioning, however, that a 1st century CE rabbi, Hillel the Elder, put the lamb and bitter herbs of the Seder between two pieces of matzoh, so this concept predates Montage by several centuries. (I doubt, however, that you'd get anything but blank stares of you ask for a "roast beef hillel" next time you want lunch.)

In a more serious vein: once again, I find a gap in my reporting: although King Cnut has had several references in this blog going back over a decade, he himself has not had his story told. Stay tuned.

Two Men and a Car

Redvers Coat of Arms

William de Redvers, 5th Earl of Devon, died 10 September 1217; he was born sometime before 1146, (the year his mother died). His coat of arms was a lion rampant (facing left). At Richard Lionheart's coronation, four earls supported the canopy under which he walked in the procession. William was one of the canopy bearers. Prior to Richard's accession, William was loyal to King John.

Falkes de Breauté, with no particular aristocratic standing (he is rumored to have been illegitimate), died in 1226. His coat of arms was a griffin. He, too, had been loyal to King John. Falkes rose to prominence during the First Barons War when John faced a revolt from his barons. Falkes was prominent in many military engagements on behalf of John.

With their loyalty to King John (at a time when he needed men faithful to him), these two men probably crossed paths more than once. At least one of those times, however, was not in a good way.

William had a son, Baldwin, who would become the 6th Earl of Devon after William's death. Baldwin married Margaret Fitzgerald, the daughter of King John's chamberlain. Baldwin and Margaret had a son, also named Baldwin. Sadly, the elder Baldwin died on 1 September 1216.

Evolution of Vauxhall griffin

Falkes, with no title or fortune to his name, took it upon himself to improve his standing by kidnapping the widowed Margaret and forcing a marriage. William objected, but John approved, choosing to reward Falkes for exemplary service. Falkes received not only Margaret's dowry from her father, but also, when William died in 1217, the estates connected to the Devon title, since he was now regent for the younger Baldwin, who became the 6th Earl of Devon.

Part of Margaret's dowry was an area in London dominated by a manor which, because of her new husband, became known as Falkes' Hall. The name morphed through the years once the original reason for the name faded into history, first becoming "Foxhall" and later "Vauxhall." In 1857, a Scottish engineer founded a company in Vauxhall which later became the Vauxhall Iron Works and then, in 1907, the Vauxhall Motor Company. This company used, as its logo, the griffin of Falkes de Breauté.

So...if Falkes had not kidnapped William's daughter-in-law, the area in London known as Vauxhall would not have been given that name; moreover, whatever name it did get, the logo of an automobile company coated there might have been a lion rampant, which might have caused problems for the French Peugeot line of automobiles.