Gerard de Canville

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Gerard de Canville (also Camville ) († 1214 ) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman.

Origin and advancement under Heinrich II.

Gerard de Canville came from the Canville family , originally from Canville-les-Deux-Églises in Normandy . He was a son of Richard de Canville , Lord of Middleton Stoney in Oxfordshire and his first wife Alice. His father was a loyal vassal of King Henry II. This is probably why Gerard de Canville was in the king's favor, for whom he attested numerous documents from 1174 onwards. In 1176 he was allowed to inherit almost all of his father's possessions after his father's death. These included Middleton Stoney and Godington in Oxfordshire Avington in Berkshire and lands near King's Sutton and Duddington in Northamptonshire . Apparently he also received the Honor of Mowbray , which was owned by his uncle Walter de Canville in 1166 and included the nine Knight's fee . In 1180 the king remitted him £ 800, which his father still owed the king. Before 1185 Canville married Nicola de la Haye , the eldest daughter of Richard de la Haye († 1169) and widow of William Fitzerneis . Nicola was co- heir to estates in Normandy and Lincolnshire and heir to the inheritance of the Constable of Lincoln Castle . After Richard I became king in 1189, he confirmed this inheritance to Canville for a fee of 700 marks .

Role in Richard I's absence on the crusade

While Richard I was on the crusade in Palestine , Canville paid homage to his brother Johann Ohneland for Lincoln Castle in 1191 . In doing so, he openly opposed the royal justiciar and chancellor William de Longchamp , whom the king had appointed as regent. Longchamp then set Canville off as sheriff and named William de Stuteville as his successor. To this end, he ordered the surrender of the royal Lincoln Castle. Canville then turned to his new liege, Johann Ohneland, whereupon Longchamp began the siege of Lincoln Castle. This was resolutely defended by Canville's wife Nicola, and when Johann Ohneland in return besieged and conquered Longchamp's castles Nottingham and Tickhill , Longchamp was forced to compromise with Johann Ohneland in Winchester on July 28, 1191 . He had to accept that Canville will be reinstated as sheriff until the case was finally decided by the royal court. A little later Longchamp, who was also Bishop of Ely, was overthrown and had to leave England. After his escape, he excommunicated a number of opponents, including Canville .

Gerard de Canville was now dependent on the favor of Johann Ohneland, who appointed him administrator of the Honor of Wallingford . Canville also supported him when Johann openly rebelled against his brother from 1193 onwards. As a result, Richard I expropriated him on his return in 1194 and removed him from his offices. His successor as sheriff was Simon of Kyme († 1220). In return for the payment of a heavy fine of 2,000 marks, Canville acquired his possessions and the benevolence of the king back, while his wife Nicola paid another 300 marks to get the right to marry their daughter according to her will. William de Longchamp, who had returned to England in the king's entourage, accused Canville of hiding robbers in court. In addition, he accused him of supporting Johann Ohneland in the conquest of Nottingham and Tickhill. Canville denied these allegations and was ready to prove his innocence in a duel .

Loyal vassal of Johann Ohneland

When Johann Ohneland succeeded his brother as king in 1199, he reinstated Canville as constable of Lincoln Castle and reappointed him as sheriff of Lincolnshire. Probably because of his offices, Canville was present in 1200 when the Scottish King William I paid homage to the English king in Lincoln for his English possessions. As sheriff, Canville assisted the residents of Holland in Lincolnshire in their protracted dispute with Croyland Abbey over pastureland. 1205 Canville was replaced as sheriff. After Pope Innocent III. In 1208 the interdict imposed on England, Canville supervised the administration of the possessions of the Diocese of Lincoln, whose income fell to the king. From 1208 to 1209 he served as a traveling royal judge in Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire . Even after that, he remained a loyal supporter of the king, although little is known of him until his death in late 1214. In 1201 he granted his inherited estate, Middleton Stoney, the right to hold a weekly market. The benefice occupation law he gave Middleton the Prämonstratenserniederlassung Barlings Priory in Lincolnshire, which had been founded by his wife's family.

Family and offspring

Canville and his wife had at least one son and daughter. His son Richard , who became his heir, he married in 1200 to Eustachia, the daughter and heiress of Gilbert Basset († 1205), Lord of Bicester , and widow of Thomas de Verdon. Canville had offered the king £ 1,000 for her guardianship. Nothing more is known about Canville's daughter.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Sidney Painter: William Marshal: knight-errant, baron, and regent of England. University of Toronto Press, Toronto 1992, ISBN 0-8020-6498-1 , p. 106
personal data
SURNAME Canville, Gerard de
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Camville, Gerard de
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Anglo-Norman nobleman
DATE OF BIRTH 12th Century
DATE OF DEATH before January 1215