William de Cantilupe, 1st feudal Baron of Eaton Bray

William l de Cantilupe

• Gender: Male
• Birth: 1158 - of Chilton Cantelo, Somerset, England
• Death: April 07, 1239 (80-81) of Reading, Berkshire , England
• Place of Burial: Studley Priory, Horton-cum-Studley, Oxfordshire, England
• Son of Walter de Cauntelo and Amice
• Husband of Masceline de Bracy

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Biography

William I de Cantilupe (c. 1159 - 7 April 1239) (anciently Cantelow, Cantelou, Canteloupe, etc., Latinised to de Cantilupo)[2] 1st feudal baron of Eaton (Bray) in Bedfordshire, England, was an Anglo-Norman royal administrator who served as steward of the household to King John and as Baron of the Exchequer.

Origins

He was born in about 1159 in Buckinghamshire,[citation needed] the son of Walter de Cantilupe, recorded in 1166 as a minor landowner in Essex and Lincolnshire, who was a younger brother of Fulk de Cantilupe (died 1217/18), Sheriff of Berkshire in 1200/1.[3]

The de Cantilupe family which came to England at some time after the Norman Conquest of 1066 originated at one of several similarly named manors in Normandy, from which they took their name: Canteloup in Calvados, 11 miles east of Caen[4] or Chanteloup in Bréhal,[5] Manche, or Canteloup in Manche east of Cherbourg on the tip of the Cherbourg Peninsula.

Career

Under King John

In 1198 Cantilupe was steward to John, Count of Mortain, the future King John, in which year his uncle Fulk de Cantilupe was also a member of John's household. From 1200 to 1204 he served as Sheriff of Worcestershire and in 1204 as Under-Sheriff of Herefordshire. In 1205 he took part in the ineffectual expedition to Poitou. In 1207, he was Sheriff of Worcestershire, serving until the end of the John's reign in 1216. In 1209, following his appointment as Sheriff of Warwickshire and Sheriff of Leicestershire, his main residence became Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire.[6]

Cantilupe was granted several manors formerly held by rebel barons during 1215–16, at the time of the signing of Magna Carta in 1215. He was commissioned by John to negotiate the return of such rebels to peaceable relations. He served as gaoler of baronial hostages, which action probably gained him the description by the contemporary chronicler Roger of Wendover as one of John's "evil counsellors".[7]

In 1204, Cantilupe was granted the Warwickshire manor of Aston, to which as was usual for the purpose of differentiation, was appended his family name, now Aston Cantlow. This manor had previously been held by William de Tankerville "the Chamberlain" before it escheated to the crown.[8]

In 1205 Cantilupe was granted the manor of Eaton,[9] in Bedfordshire, (from the 16th-century "Eaton Bray") which became the caput of the Cantilupe feudal barony, where he built a castle described by the monks of nearby Dunstable Priory in the Annals of Dunstable as being "a serious danger to Dunstable and the neighbourhood".[10] The grant was for knight-service of one knight and was in exchange for the manor of Great Coxwell, Berkshire, which had been granted to him previously[11] but the grant was deemed compromised.[12] Eaton had been held at the time of William the Conqueror by the latter's uterine half-brother Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, but later escheated to the crown.

Under King Henry III

Following the death of King John in 1216, many of the royal appointees to governorships of royal castles were reluctant to hand over their castles to the regency council which governed during the minority of his son, Henry III. They believed themselves obliged to hold their castles until Henry should have achieved 14 years of age,[13] when he would be able to follow his own policy.[14] These many refusals met with a forceful response from the council.

In 1217, under the regency council, during which year he was a Baron of the Exchequer, Cantilupe was at the siege of Mountsorrel Castle, Leicestershire, which was razed to the ground, and was also at the Second Battle of Lincoln. He served the council at the siege of Bedford in 1224.[6] He later served in Wales (1228 and 1231) and Brittany (1230).

Marriage and issue

He married Mazilia (or Marcelin/Mascelin) de Braci, daughter and heiress of Adulf de Braci of Mentmore in Buckinghamshire,[15] who brought him that manor and others in Kent, and by whom he had issue including:

1. William II de Cantilupe (died 1251), eldest son and heir, who following in his father's footsteps served as steward of the household to King Henry III, son of King John;
2. Walter de Cantilupe (1195–1266), Bishop of Worcester, of which see his father had custody in 1208.
3. John I de Cantilupe[16] (fl.1251) of Hempston Cauntelow (now Broadhempston)[17] near Totnes in Devon, who married Margaret Cumin, heiress of Snitterfield[18] in Warwickshire. John's grand-daughter and eventual sole heiress was Eleanor de Cantilupe (d.post-1344), who before 1321 married Sir Thomas West[19] (d.1343), of Swallowcliffe, Wiltshire and Roughcombe Castle in Tisbury, Wiltshire, MP for Warwickshire in 1324;[20] by whom she was the grandmother of Thomas West, 1st Baron West (1365–1405), who married Joan la Warre, heiress of Baron La Warre, whose younger son was Reynold West, 3rd Baron West, 6th Baron La Warre (1395–1450).[21] His descendants survive today as Earls De La Warr and quarter the arms of Cantilupe of Hempston as Azure, three leopard's heads reversed jessant-de-lys or.[22]
4. Nicholas de Cantilupe, of whom Dugdale (1656) stated "I find no more than the bare mention";[23] [next generation?]
5. Isabel de Cantilupe, who married Stephen Devereux.[24][25][non-primary source needed][26][non-primary source needed] [sister rather than daughter?]

Death and burial

Cantilupe died on 7 April 1239[27] and was buried at Studley Priory, Warwickshire.

Manors held

Among the many manors held by Cantilupe were:[citation needed]
Eaton, Bedfordshire.
Ipsley, Warwickshire, as tenants of which the Hubbard family took the later arms of Cantilupe ("Cantilupe modern"), 3 leopard's faces jessant-de-lys.
Brentingby, Leicestershire, as tenants of which the Woodforde family took the later arms of Cantilupe ("Cantilupe modern"), reversed.[28]
Calne, Wiltshire.
Calstone, Wiltshire.

Notes

Original full legend probably: SIGILLUM WILLELMI DE CANTILUPO (Seal of William de Cantilupe).[citation needed] His seal was on occasion used to authenticate the letters of the young King Henry III.[1] The arms of his descendants evolved in the late 13th century to 3 leopard's faces jessant-de-lys

Family

https://myfamilysearch.net/getperson.php?personID=I6538&tree=2005217a

1.Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial & Medieval Families, Douglas Richardson (2013):

WILLIAM DE CANTELOWE, Knt., of Leigh, Dorset, Ellesborough and Mentmore, Buckinghamshire, Meole Brace, Shropshire, Barcheston and Studley, Warwickshire, Caine, Wiltshire, etc., Steward of the Household of John, Count of Mortain, 1198, Sheriff of Worcestershire, 1200-15, Sheriff of Warwickshire and Leicestershire, 1201-4, 1209-23, itinerant Justice in Staffordshire, 1203, Sheriff of Herefordshire, 1204-5, Steward of the King's Household, 1204-22, a Norman by birth. He married MASCELINE (or MAZRA) DE BRACY (or BRASCY, BRACI), daughter of Audulf de Bracy, of Meole Brace, Shropshire, Eaton Bray, Bedfordshire, Mentmore, Buckinghamshire, etc. They had four sons, William, Knt., Robert, Walter [Bishop of Worcester], and Matthew [Rector of Ribston, Yorkshire and Alvechurch, Worcestershire], and one daughter, (wife of Thurstan de Montfort).

Children of William de Cantelowe, by Masreline (or Mazra) de Bracy:

• i. WILLIAM DE CANTELOWE, Knt. [see next]. Married 1) Millicent de Gournay 2) Maud Fitz Geoffrey
• ii. ROBERT DE CANTELOWE, of Meole Brace, Shropshire and Bingley, Yorkshire. …
• iii. [MASTER] WALTER DE CANTELOWE, King's clerk, Archdeacon of Stafford, Bishop of Worcester. …
• iv. MATTHEW DE CANTELOWE, clerk, Rector of Ribston, Yorkshire, 1231, Rector of Alvechurch, Worcestershire. …
• v. ___ DE CANTELOWE, married THURSTAN DE MONTFORT, of Beaudesert, Warwickshire [see MONTFORT 4].

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Research Notes

Richardson does not name a second wife, Maud Doyley.[1]

His wife Mesceline was married to him in, say, 1181, if she was born in 1163 and married at 18, and she was still living in 1220. This leaves only William's final 19 years available for marriage to a second wife.

http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ENGLISHNOBILITYMEDIEVAL3.htm#Willia...

• a) WILLIAM [II] de Cauntelo (-7 Apr 1239). "William de Cantelupe son of Walter de Cantelupe" donated rent received "annually from Samson his free man of Leg" to Montacute priory by undated charter, witnessed by "William de Cantelupe my son and heir…Gilbert de Sai…"[1073]. The Testa de Nevill lists knights who held land in Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, dated to [1208/10]: "Willelmus de Cantilupo" held "Eiton"[1074]. The Red Book of the Exchequer records "Thomas Mauduit et Willelmus de Kantilupo" holding five knights’ fees in Shropshire, and one "in Eytone" in Bedfordshire, in [1210/12][1075]. Matthew Paris names “...Willelmus de Cantelu et Willelmus filius eius, Fulco de Canteleu...” among the "consiliarios iniquissimos” of King John[1076]. Henry III King of England ordered "Willelmus de Cantilupo senior…" to enquire into the state of the forests "de comitatu Herefordie" dated [Jul] 1219[1077]. Matthew Paris records the death "VII Id Apr” 1239 of “Willelmus de Cantelupo pater...episcopi Wigorniæ”[1078].

m ---. The name of William’s wife is not known.

William [II] & his wife had [four] children:

• i) WILLIAM [III] de Cauntelo (-1251). "William de Cantelupe son of Walter de Cantelupe" donated rent received "annually from Samson his free man of Leg" to Montacute priory by undated charter, witnessed by "William de Cantelupe my son and heir…Gilbert de Sai…"[1079]. - see below.
• ii) WALTER de Cauntelo . Henry III King of England granted "ecclesiam de Penred" to "clericum nostrum Walterum de Cantilupo filium…Willelmi de Cantilupo" dated 20 Aug 1223[1080]. Bishop of Worcester.
• iii) [JOHN de Cauntelo (-after 24 Jul 1236). His probable parentage is confirmed by the following donation, summarised by Dugdale. The chronology suggests that he was the son of William [II] rather than William [III], especially as the latter was probably the father of John de Cauntelo who married Margery de Harcourt (see below), although the question is not without doubt. The original charter has not been located. “Johes de Cantilupo filius Willi de Cantilupo” donated property “in Buxle” to Bordesley St Mary, Worcestershire, undated[1081]. m MARGERY Comyn, daughter of WILLIAM Comyn & his wife Margery --- (-after 24 Jul 1236). King Henry III, seeing that "Alicia de Moyun has deceived him by the suggestion that there was another lawful heir to the manor of Sturton than Margery daughter of William Cumin”, ordered the sheriff of Warwick “to give Alicia seizin as custodian to cause John de Cantilupe and the said Margery his wife to have such seizin”, dated 24 Jul 1236[1082]. Dugdale summarises the following donation, the full text of which links to the earlier donation made by her husband. The original charter has not been located. “Margeria de Cantilupo quondam uxor Johis de Cantilupo in libera viduitate” donated property “de Snitenfeld...” to Bordesley St Mary, Worcestershire, and confirmed a donation of land held from “Willi Comin patris mei”, undated[1083].]
• iv) [--- . The reference to the demise of Thurstan [III]’s land to William de Cauntelo (presumably identified as William [II]%29 by King John when Thurstan was of age (King John received the homage of "Tustan de Montiforti" and granted him his land on condition that he demised it for two years to "Willo de Cantilupo" by order dated 1205[1084]) suggests a close relationship between the two: maybe William was Thurstan’s father-in-law or brother-in-law. The chronology of the Cauntelo family is insufficiently clear to decide definitely between these two possibilities. However, Thurstan’s suggested date of birth does suggest that his wife (if she was a Cauntelo) would more likely have been William [II]’s daughter, especially bearing in mind the marriage date of William [II]’s son William [III]. She is therefore shown here for presentational purposes as the possible daughter of William [II], acknowledging that she could alternatively have been the daughter of Walter. The fact that King John granted the marriage of Thurstan’s older son to William de Cauntelo, and that Thurstan [III] named his younger son William, also suggest a connection between the two families. m THURSTAN [III] de Montfort, son of HENRY [II] de Montfort & his wife --- ([1183/87]-1216, before 21 Nov).]

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Origins

The industry standard, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, has a good biography of Sir Wiliam de Cantelowe. Regarding Sir William's parentage, the following information is provided:

"Cantilupe [Cantelupe], William (I) de (d. 1239), baron and administrator, was of Norman descent, probably the son of Walter de Cantilupe, in 1166 a minor landholder in Essex and Lincolnshire."

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Pedigree

From Douglas Richardson

CANTELOWE FAMILY
1. WILLIAM DE CANTELOWE, married _____.
2. WALTER DE CANTELOWE, living 1216, married AMICE _____.
3. WILLIAM DE CANTELOWE, died 1239, married MASCELINE (or MAZRA) DE BRACY.
4. WILLIAM DE CANTELOWE, Knt., died 1251, married (1st) c. 1215/6 MILICENT DE GOURNAY; (2nd) after 1232 MAUD FITZ GEOFFREY, died 1261.
5 (by1). WILLIAM DE CANTELOWE, Knt.,died 1254, married before 1241 EVE DE BREWES

Aston Cantlow

Source: Sir William Dugdale. (1730). “The Antiquities of Warwickshire Illustrated: From Records, Leiger ...,” Volume 2. Page 833. < GoogleBooks >

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References

1. “Parentage of Sir William de Cantelowe, Steward of the King's Household (died 1239)” Douglas Richardson, Dec 3, 2010 < soc.gen.medieval >
2. http://fmg.ac/Projects/MedLands/ENGLISHNOBILITYMEDIEVAL3.htm#Willia...
3. https://soc.genealogy.medieval.narkive.com/gDD52pKR/cantelowe-versu...
4. Notes: William de Cauntelo the elder, steward of the household to King John. [Complete Peerage IX:123 note (a)]William de Cauntelo, the elder
5. Reference: GenealogieOnline Family Tree Index - SmartCopy: Aug 3 2021, 21:29:07 UTC
6. < Stirnet - 'Devereux1' > a. Stephen Devereux of Frome & Lyonshall (a 1222) the first given by BE1883 Collins identifies Stephen's wife as Isabel. Various web sites name her ... m. Isabel de Cantelou (dau of William Cantelou or Cantilupe by Mecelin, dau of Adulph de Braci)
7. https://our-royal-titled-noble-and-commoner-ancestors.com/p225.htm#... Cites
   1. S1788] Unknown author, Some Early English Pedigrees, by Vernon M. Norr, p. 97.
   2. [S4] Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. II, p. 73.
   3. [S4] Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. II, p. 73-75.
   4. [S4] Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. II, p. 75-76.
   5. [S4] Douglas Richardson, Royal Ancestry, Vol. IV, p. 131.
8. Vernon M. Norr. Some Early English Pedigrees. Page 97. < FamilySearch book >
9. https://myfamilysearch.net/getperson.php?personID=I6538&tree=2005217a
10. http://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Cantilupe-2
11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_de_Cantilupe_(died_1239)_
12. https://myfamilysearch.net/getperson.php?personID=I6539&tree=2005217a Cites:
    1. Richardson, Douglas. (2013). "Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families", Salt Lake City: the author, Vol. II, p.74
13. Vernon M. Norr. Some Early English Pedigrees. Page 97. < FamilySearch book >; (document attached).
14. Dugdale, William. "The Antiquities of Warwickshire Illustrated; From Records, Leiger-Books, Manuscripts, Charters, Evidences, Tombes, and Armes", London: Thomas Warren,1656, Archive.org, p. 613; "Sibyl de Cantelowe, married Geoffrey Pauncefote, of Exhall, Warwickshire. . . . [Early in the 13th century Richard Corbizun . . . granted the manor to William de Cantilupe, who passed it to his sister Sybil and her huband Geoffrey Pauncefote]" < Archive.Org >; page 833. < GoogleBooks >
15. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aston_Cantlow Aston Cantlow is a village in Warwickshire, England, on the River Alne 5 miles (8.0 km) north-west of Stratford-upon-Avon and 2 miles (3.2 km) north-west of Wilmcote, close to Little Alnoe, Shelfield, and Newnham. … in 1204 King John (1199–1216) granted it to William I de Cantilupe (died 1239), from whose family [1] the village takes its name.
    1. 'Parishes: Aston Cantlow', in A History of the County of Warwick: Volume 3, Barlichway Hundred, ed. Philip Styles (London, 1945), pp. 31-42. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/warks/vol3/pp31-42 [accessed 26 September 2023].