Warenne (Surrey)

Who he is

Name

Hamelin de Warenne (Hamelin of Anjou) and Isabel de Warenne

Title

Earl of Surrey (earl Warenne) by right of his wife; she is countess in her own right

Since

Isabel succeeded her father William de Warenne in 1148; Hamelin married her in April 1164 and took the earldom in her right

Born

Hamelin about 1130; Isabel about 1137

Family

Hamelin is the illegitimate son of Count Geoffrey of Anjou, so half-brother of Henry II and half-uncle of King John. Isabel was first married to William of Blois, King Stephen's son (died 1159). Their son and heir is William de Warenne, born about 1166, in his thirties. Daughters: Adela, mother by King John of Richard (later of Chilham), so John's son is Hamelin's grandson; Maud; Isabel.

Confidence

high

Hamelin stayed loyal to Henry II and to Richard; he sided with the chancellor Longchamp during Richard's absence, attended Richard's second crowning in 1194 and John's coronation in 1199. He is about seventy and dies on 7 May 1202; Isabel dies in 1203.

Overlord

King John

What it holds

• Lewes castle and the rape of Lewes (central Sussex), with the borough of Lewes and the port of Meeching (Newhaven)
• Lewes priory of St Pancras, the first Cluniac house in England, the family's foundation
• Reigate castle and Dorking in Surrey, and the third penny of the county of Surrey
• Castle Acre castle and priory in Norfolk
• Conisbrough castle and the manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire (eno records)
• Mortemer and Bellencombre in Normandy (France map)

How it was acquired

Inherited by Isabel from the Warenne earls (the first William de Warenne received Lewes from the Conqueror); Hamelin by marriage, 1164.

Allies and rivals

Bound to the crown by blood; neighbours of the Braose at Bramber and the honour of the Eagle at Pevensey.

How things stand that morning

Holds all in peace. The heir William is grown and active.

Wealth

Sussex downland sheep and Wealden iron and wood; the Surrey manors; the Yorkshire and Norfolk estates. No figures.

Military

Lewes, Reigate, Castle Acre and Conisbrough castles; the knights of the honour of Warenne.

Threats

• The old earl's age

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

1. 7 May 1202 (beyond 1200)Hamelin dies; William succeeds.Depends on: Natural death Stopped by: Nothing likely

Places of note

• Lewes castle: Caput of the rape
• Reigate castle: Warenne castle in Surrey
• Castle Acre: Warenne castle and priory in Norfolk

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: A well-documented comital family.

On the map: The rape boundaries are approximate. The Yorkshire lordships are left to the eno researcher.

Primary sources for England

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
• Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
• Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
• Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
• Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
• English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
• Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
• Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online

22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.