Bertram de Verdon

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The ruins of Croxden Abbey founded by Verdon

Bertram de Verdon (also Verdun ) († 1192 in Jaffa ) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman and judge.

origin

Bertram de Verdon came from an Anglo-Norman family. He was a son of Norman de Verdon and his wife Luceline. His mother was the daughter of Geoffrey of Clinton , one of the most important officials in the court of King Henry I. From his father Bertram inherited mainly property in Staffordshire . There he began building Alton Castle in the 1170s .

Service under Heinrich II.

In 1170 Bertram de Verdon succeeded William Basset Sheriff of Warwickshire and Leicestershire , presumably after Basset was released on Easter 1170. Verdon held this office until 1184. In 1173 he supported Henry II during the rebellion of his sons . From 1175 to 1178 he served as a judge at the court, and from 1175 to at least 1179 he served as a traveling judge in a total of eight counties. In March 1177 he belonged to an English embassy that traveled to King Ferdinand II of León . They should inform him of Henry II's plan to make a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela .

Seneschal of Ireland

In 1185 Verdon belonged to the army of the youngest son of the king, John Ohneland , with whom he tried to enforce his rule as Lord of Ireland . After the expedition failed, Johann Verdon was appointed Seneschal of Ireland before returning to England that same year. As a Seneschal, Verdon resided in a stately home in Dublin , and after the death of Hugh de Lacy in 1186 he became the administrator of Drogheda Castle . Johann rewarded his services with estates, from which a little later the baronies Upper and Lower Dundalk in County Louth emerged. To the west of Dundalk , Verdon built an estate, later called Castletown , and a church, which he dedicated to John the Baptist . Either he or his son Nicholas founded a branch of the Lords of the Cross of Bologna in Seatown near Dundalk, dedicated to St. Leonhard . Before the end of 1189, Verdon left Ireland again.

Participation in the crusade and death

Verdon now entered the service of King Richard I , who had become his heir after the death of his father Henry II. He testified to the king's documents and from 1190 took part in the king's crusade to Palestine . During the winter in Sicily in November 1190 he served as a hostage for the armistice between Richard I and King Tankred of Sicily . On January 23, 1191, he testified to a document from the king in Messina . Verdon arrived in Palestine in June 1191. On August 21, the king and Stephen de Longchamp entrusted him with securing the conquered Acre while the king tried to conquer Jerusalem. He was also responsible for the safety of Richard's wife Berengaria and his sister Johanna . The next year, Verdon died in Jaffa .

Family, descendants and inheritance

In his first marriage, Verdon Maud , a daughter of Robert de Ferrers, 2nd Earl of Derby . The marriage remained childless. In his second marriage he married Rohese , whose origin is unclear. With her he had at least six sons and a daughter, including:

His heir was initially his son Thomas, whom Verdon had married to Eustachia , the daughter and heiress of Baron Gilbert Basset from Bicester . After the childless death of Thomas, Verdon's younger son Nicholas inherited the estates. After Nicholas' death, his only daughter, Rohese, became his heir.

As early as 1176, Verdon had founded the Cistercian Abbey of Croxden in Staffordshire, to which he had given parts of his goods.

literature

  • AJ Otway-Ruthven: The partition of the de Verdon lands in Ireland in 1332 . In: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy , 66C (1967-68), pp. 401-445

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Adrian Pettifer: English Castles: A Guide by Counties. Woodbridge: Boydell, 1995. ISBN 978-0-85115-782-5 , p. 226.
personal data
SURNAME Bertram de Verdon
ALTERNATIVE NAMES De Verdun, Bertram
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Anglo-Norman nobleman and judge
DATE OF BIRTH 11th century or 12th century
DATE OF DEATH 1192
Place of death Jaffa