Ellie Wood Keith Genealogy

Count of Meulan Robert I De Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester, Comte de Meulan

Count of Meulan Robert I De Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester, Comte de Meulan

Male Abt 1046 - 1118  (~ 72 years)

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  • Name Robert I De Beaumont 
    Title Count of Meulan 
    Suffix 1st Earl of Leicester, Comte de Meulan 
    Born Abt 1046 
    Gender Male 
    History REMARKS:
    Was with William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings

    BIOGRAPHY
    Robert was born about 1046, the son of Roger \'Barbatus\' de Beaumont, sire de Beaumont et de Pont-Audemer, and Adeline de Meulan. When very young he accompanied Duke William of Normandy to England and distinguished himself at the Battle of Hastings, and received large grants of lands in the county of Warwick, with smaller holdings in the counties of Leicester and Wiltshire.

    On 14 July 1080 as Robert de Bellomonte he witnessed the foundation charter of Lessay, and next year he inherited from his mother\'s family the comté of Meulan. After the death of William the Conqueror he adhered to his son William II Rufus and was high in favour at his court. He quarrelled with Duke Robert Curthose of Normandy about the castellanship of Brionne, in consequence of the exchange of Brionne for Ivry made by his father.

    He was imprisoned but was released at the intervention of his father Roger, who eventually succeeded in obtaining Brionne in fee. He succeeded to the greater part of his father\'s lands in Normandy, including Beaumont, Pont-Audemer, Vatteville and Brionne. This paternal inheritance, added to his French county and his great possessions in counties Warwick and Leicester, made him one of the most powerful vassals of the Crown.

    In 1096 Robert married Elisabeth de Vermandois, daughter of Hugues I Magnus, comte de Vermandois et de Valois, and Adelaide, comtesse de Vermandois et de Valois. They had six children of whom two sons and a daughter would have progeny.

    Robert became one of the chief lay ministers of William Rufus, with whom he sided against Duke Robert Curthose in 1098, and when William invaded the French Vexin in 1097 he received William\'s troops in his fortresses of the comté of Meulan.

    After the death of William Rufus he became one of the chief advisers of Henry I. On the death of Ives de Grandmesnil on crusade, Robert retained his estates, which Ives had mortgaged to him about 1102. Thereby he acquired one-quarter of the town of Leicester, the whole of which was later granted to him by the king. Robert thus added largely to his already vast possessions.

    In 1104 he was one of the Norman barons who adhered to Henry on his arrival in Normandy. He was present in the king\'s army in the victory over Robert Curthose at Tenchebrai on 28 September 1106. In 1110 he was besieged at Meulan by Louis VI, king of France, who took the castle by storm, but in the following year he retaliated by a raid on Paris, which he plundered.

    After obtaining the whole town of Leicester he is said to have become earl of Leicester, but being already count of Meulan, he was never so styled.   [1
    History Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester (c.?1040/1050 – 5 June 1118), also known as Robert of Meulan, Count of Meulan, was a powerful Norman nobleman, one of the companions of William the Conqueror during the Norman Conquest of England, and was revered as one of the wisest men of his age. Chroniclers spoke highly of his eloquence, his learning, and three kings of England valued his counsel. He was granted considerable lands in the Midlands by William and Henry I and made the Earl of Leicester.[1]  [2
    Died 5 Jun 1118 
    Buried Preaux Abbey, Normandy, France Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I800  Ellie Wood Keith
    Last Modified 17 Mar 2018 

    Father Roger \'Barbatus\' de Beaumont, Sire de Beaumont et de Pont-Audemer ,   b. Abt 1015,   d. 29 Nov 1094  (Age ~ 79 years) 
    Relationship putative 
    Mother Adeline de Meulan,   d. 8 Apr 1081 
    Relationship putative 
    Family ID F1414  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 1 Elisabeth (Isabel) De Vermandois,   b. About 1081,   d. Abt 31 Mar 1131  (Age ~ 50 years) 
    Married 1096 
    Children 
    +1. Isabel Elizabeth De Beaumont De Clare,   b. 1105, Leicester, Leicester Unitary Authority, Leicestershire, England Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1172, Cararthen, Carmarthenshire, Wales Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 67 years)  [putative]
    Last Modified 23 Mar 2018 
    Family ID F437  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 2 Elisabeth (Isabel) De Vermandois,   b. About 1081,   d. Abt 31 Mar 1131  (Age ~ 50 years) 
    Married 1096 
    Children 
    +1. Robert II \'le Bossu\' de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester,   b. 1104,   d. 5 Apr 1168  (Age 64 years)
    Last Modified 23 Mar 2018 
    Family ID F1546  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 3 Elisabeth (Isabel) De Vermandois,   b. About 1081,   d. Abt 31 Mar 1131  (Age ~ 50 years) 
    Married 1096 
    Children 
    +1. Galeran IV de Beaumont, Comte de Meulan-sur-Seine, 1st Earl of Worcester,   b. 1104,   d. Apr 1166, Preaux Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 62 years)  [putative]
    Last Modified 19 Apr 2018 
    Family ID F1403  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Photos
    Battle of Hastings
    Battle of Hastings

  • Sources 
    1. [S64] Genealogics, Leo Van de Pas, http://www.genealogics.org/getperson.php?personID=I00120986&tree=LEO.

    2. [S12] Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_de_Beaumont,_1st_Earl_of_Leicester.