Henry de Ferrers
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Henry de Ferrers (also known as Henri de Ferrières) was a Norman soldier is thought to have taken part in the conquest of England and the Battle of Hastings of 1066 and, in consequence, was rewarded with much land in the subdued nation.
His elder brother William fell in the battle. William and Henri were both the sons of Walkeline de Ferrers (d.c. 1040)Seigneur of Ferrières-Saint-Hilaire, Eure in upper Normandy.[2]
[edit] The landholdings
Henry became a major land holder and was granted 210 manors throughout England and Wales, but notably in Derbyshire[3][4] and Leicestershire[3], by King William for his conspicuous bravery and support at Hastings.
He first served William I as castellan of Stafford, and in about 1066 or 1067 he was granted the lands in Berkshire and Wiltshire of Goderic, former sheriff of Berkshire, and, by the end of 1068 he also held the lands of Bondi the Staller in present day Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Northamptonshire, and Essex. He is thought to have been appointed the first Anglo-Norman High Sheriff of Berkshire.
Following this in 1070 was the Wapentake of Appletree, which covered a large part of south Derbyshire, granted to Henry on the promotion of Hugh d'Avranches to become Earl of Chester. At the centre of this was Tutbury Castle [5] where he rebuilt and founded the priory in 1080.
His major landholdings, however, were those of the Anglo-Saxon Siward Barn, [6] following a revolt in 1071, including more land in Berkshire and Essex and also Gloucestershire, Warwickshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
These included part of the wapentakes of Litchurch and Morleyston, which contained an area later to be known as Duffield Frith. To command an important crossing over the Derwent he built Duffield Castle. In the wapentake of Hamston was the west bank of the River Dove, where he built Pilsbury Castle. Both these were of typical Norman timber motte and bailey construction. The latter history of Pilsbury is unknown, but Duffield was rebuilt as a stone fortress sometime in the Twelfth century.[7]
He was a key administrator in Derbyshire and Staffordshire, and among the most powerful Anglo‑Norman magnates. In 1086 he was a legatus ('commissioner’) on the West Midland circuit of the Domesday survey.
[edit] Henry's Family
Henry had by his wife, Bertha, three sons - Enguenulf, William and Robert. A daughter, Amicia, married Nigel d'Aubigny, probably the brother of Henry I's butler. Henry had built Duffield Castle to protect and administer the Frith, and he placed it in the charge of Eugenulph. [8] Meanwhile William inherited the family's Norman estates. He joined Robert Curthose and was captured at Tinchebrai.
The date of Henry de Ferrers' death is uncertain, but it would seem to be between 1093 and 1100. He was buried in Tutbury Priory.
Enguenulf died shortly afterwards and the English estate passed to Robert, who King Stephen later made the first Earl of Derby.
His family tree is well researched and various people are said to be descended from this line.[9]. These include, George the First, Lady Diana, George Washington and Winston Churchill.
de Ferrers Specialist Technology College, a secondary school in Burton on Trent, is named after the de Ferrer family.
[edit] References
- ^ Public domain image from Wikimedia Commons accessed May 2007
- ^ Marios Costambeys, ‛Ferrers, Henry de (d. 1093x1 100)’, Oxford Dictionary ofNational Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 2007 61, accessed 28 Oct 2007
- ^ a b Domesday Book: A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 2003. p. 656-7 744-9 ISBN 0-14-143994-7
- ^ A listing of Henry's manors in Derbyshire
- ^ Marios Costambeys, 'Ferrers, Henry de (d. 1093x1 100)’, Oxford Dictionary ofNational Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 2007 [ 61, accessed 28 Oct 2007]
- ^ Siward Barn fought beside Hereward the Wake at Ely. He held many estates in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and further north. Some literature refers to him as Earl of Northumbria. However the Siward who was Earl of Northumbria had died in 1055. The earl at that time was Morcar. There were a number of Siwards at that time. Among the literature there is a reference to Siward Barn the Red and Siward Barn the White, the sons of Osberne Bulax, who could have been the eldest son of the first Siward
- ^ Turbutt, G., (1999) A History of Derbyshire. Volume 2: Medieval Derbyshire, Cardiff: Merton Priory Press
- ^ Bland, W., 1887 Duffield Castle: A lecture at the Temperance Hall, Wirksworth Derbyshire Advertiser
- ^ Tree of Henry de Ferrers Roottsweb.com accessed June 2007
