Misplaced Pages

#718281

34-412: The earliest well-documented progenitor of this family was Robert , whose charter to the monks at Montacute from around 1121 names his parents, Martin and Geva. Geva is known to have been the daughter and heiress of Serlo de Burci , bringing the lands of her father to her marriage, which included Low Ham, Pylle, and Hornblotton. By her second marriage to William de Falaise , which had occurred by 1086, she

68-572: A fair at his manor of Combe Martin in Devon, every year until he should come of age, which occurred before September 1231. In 1245 he was ordered to take action against the King's enemies in Gloucestershire, and in 1253 he had orders to attend "diligently" to the King's affairs while he was abroad. In 1257 he had custody of the castles of Cardigan and Kilgarran, but in that year was taken prisoner by

102-965: A messuage (dwelling house) and land in the manor of Blagdon to the canons of St. Augustine's in Bristol sometime between 1170 and 1183, and also confirmed to the church of St. Michael a grant of land in Uphill. In 1198 he made an exchange of lands in Combe Martin, Devon, with Warin de Morcells, who had married his sister, Sibyl. He married Angharad, daughter of Rhys ap Gruffydd, Prince of South Wales, who nonetheless expelled William from his castle of Nevern, which Rhys then gave to his own son. He died in either 1208 or 1209, his widow surviving him. William Fitz Martin, son of William and Angharad, in 1209 had letters of protection while staying in Wales. In 1212 he held Blagdon, Dartington, and other manors. He died while still

136-413: A relatively young man before 15 Feb 1215/6, when the custody of his lands and his heir was granted to Fulk de Breaute. His wife, Avice de Toriton was likely a sister of Fulk. Avice remarried to Nicholas de Bolewill and was apparently still living in 1246. Nicholas Fitz Martin, was son of William and Avice and a minor at his father's death. In 1222, while still under age, the King granted him licence to have

170-480: A widow acted in her own right." Robert's half-sister, Emma de Falaise, married William de Courcy, a son of Richard de Courcy of Courcy-sur-Dives, Normandy . They received the manor of Stoke (renamed Stoke-Courcy, now Stogursey ) in Somerset from William, and were grandparents of John de Courcy . This made Robert fitz Martin a brother-in-law of William de Courcy, who "was most active in royal administration during

204-600: The Bishop of St. David's in Wales. He died 1282, having married twice: the name of his first wife is not known but he remarried to Isabel in 1259 or 1260. Nicholas Fitz Martin, was heir to his father's feudal baron of Blagdon , Somerset, but died in his father's lifetime. His widow, Maud, whom he married before 1257, was heiress of the feudal barony of Barnstaple , Devon, as the daughter of Guy de Brian and Eve de Tracy. Maud then married Geoffrey de Camville (died 1308), of Clifton Campville , Staffordshire, who had summons to attend

238-560: The King's absence. In September 1308, after the death of Geoffrey, Lord Canville, he succeeded to the inheritance of his mother. In 1309 he joined in the Barons' letter to the Pope and in 1310 he was chosen as one of the fifteen ordainers to draw up ordinances for the reform of the kingdom. He was conservator of the peace for Devon in 1314, and in February 1314 or 1315 he was appointed justice of

272-572: The Norman forces broke and were pursued as far as the River Teifi . Many of the fugitives tried to cross the bridge, which broke under the weight, with hundreds said to have drowned, clogging the river with the bodies of men and horses. Others fled to the town of Cardigan, which however was taken and burned by the Welsh. However, Robert fitz Martin successfully managed to defend and hold the castle. It

306-537: The Norman lords in South Wales in resisting the sons of Gruffydd, and witnessed several charters of the Empress Maud , to whom he was adhered. During The Great Revolt 1136–1137 much of Kemes was reclaimed by the Welsh (once again becoming Cemais ). Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare , lord of Ceredigion , was ambushed and killed by the men of Iorwerth ab Owain. News of his death led to an invasion of Ceredigion by

340-490: The Welsh, and his tenants were used by the King to contribute to his ransom. The following year he was constable of Carmarthen. In 1268, being a justice in Surrey, he was allowed 50 marks out of the fines of that county for his expenses. In 1271, the King's son, Edmund, gave him custody of the castles and counties of Carmarthen and Cardigan, and in 1278 he was one of the justices appointed to hear and determine complaints concerning

374-571: The West and South Wales and keeper of the castle of Carmarthen and other of the King's castles there. In 1318, he was a member of the standing royal council and in November of that year he was in the King's service in the marches of Scotland. In November 1321, he and Hugh de Courtenay were ordered to attack any who might rise against the King in Cornwall and Devon, and he was also ordered to abstain from

SECTION 10

#1732787647719

408-416: The attendance of the husband as tenant of the lands at the lord 's court , or to mean simply that the husband is acknowledged tenant by the courts of England. The requisites necessary to create a tenancy by courtesy are: In the case of lands held under gavelkind tenure the husband has a right to courtesy tenure whether there is issue born or not but the courtesy extends only to a moiety (i.e. half) of

442-467: The church. He married Maud Peverell and with her founded St Dogmaels Abbey between 1115 and 1119. Maude was a sister or daughter of William Peverel the Younger . The couple are not recorded as having any children. Not later than 1120, Robert Fitz Martin and Maud Peverel, his wife, granted to Savigny Abbey land at Vengeons (la Manche) which had belonged to William Peverel . In 1134, he joined with

476-705: The disputed rights in Kemeys. He was summoned to Parliament from 24 June 1295 to 24 September 1324, whereby he is held to have become Lord Martin. He served in Gascony between 1295 and 1297, and in September 1297, while staying at Ghent on the King's service, he made an agreement with John de Hastings, Lord of Abergavenny, by which William, son and heir of said John de Hastings was to marry Eleanor, elder daughter of William Martin, and Edmund, son and heir of William Martin should marry Joan, elder daughter of John de Hastings. This

510-400: The first decade of the reign" of Henry I , to whom de Courcy was a royal dapifer . Robert inherited property from his maternal grandfather, Serlo de Burci, in Somerset , Dorset, and Devon . Early in the reign of Henry I he succeeded to his father's Marcher Lordship of Kemes, setting his Caput baroniae at Nevern ( Nanhyfer ). Nevern Castle stood on a spur of the hill northwest of

544-471: The king at Portsmouth, with horse and arms, to embark in the expedition then proceeding to Gascony. He was subsequently summoned to parliament as Baron Camville, of Clifton , in the county of Stafford, from 23 Jun 1295 to 22 February 1307. Camville survived her by about 29 years during which time he retained possession of the barony under the courtesy of England . The barony of Barnstaple was recovered on Geoffrey's death by Maud's son William I Fitz Martin, who

578-566: The lost territory of Kemes/Cemais. The family would continue to hold lands in both England and Wales until the extinction of the senior line in 1326. Cadet lines still flourish in England, Wales, Ireland and beyond. Courtesy tenure Courtesy tenure (or curtesy/courtesy of England ) is the legal term denoting the life interest which a widower (i.e. former husband) may claim in the lands of his deceased wife, under certain conditions. The tenure relates only to those lands of which his wife

612-868: The meeting of the "good peers" convened by Thomas, Earl of Lancaster. The following February he was ordered to Coventry to resist the Earl of Lancaster. He died before 8 October 1324, when the writ to the escheator was issued. William Martin (II), son and heir of William and Eleanor, died without an heir before 4 April 1326, when by modern usage the Barony of Martin is held to have fallen into abeyance between: his surviving sister, Eleanor (who would herself die without progeny in 1342), wife of Philip de Columbers and widow of William de Hastings; and James, Lord Audley, son of his younger sister Joan (died 1322), who had first married Henry de Lacy, and secondly, Nicholas de Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Heleigh Castle , Staffordshire. The last of

646-569: The senior line of the family, Eleanor, died in 1342. By this stage, junior branches of the family were already established in Waterston, Dorset (later of Athelhampton ); St. David's , Wales ; and by 1365 Thomas Martyn had settled in the town of Galway , Ireland . The Martyn family in Devon continued in several branches, at Oxton, Lindridge, Tonacombe, Hempston, Plymouth, etc. Robert fitz Martin Robert fitz Martin ( c. 10?? – c. 1159)

680-514: The sister of Robert's former enemy, Gruffydd ap Rhys. 2. Sybil - married Warin de Morcells 3. Robert Robert fitz Martin seems to have died about 1159, survived by his wife Alice and their children. Of them, Robert fitz Robert was dead by 1162 and buried in Totnes Priory. Sybil is known to have married a Warin de Morcelles and was alive in 1198. William's eldest son inherited the family property and, via his marriage with Angharad, regained

714-654: The sons of Gruffudd ap Cynan . Around Michaelmas they made an alliance with Gruffydd ap Rhys of Deheubarth . The combined forces made for Cardigan, and engaged the Normans at the Battle of Crug Mawr , two miles outside the town. The Normans were led by Robert fitz Martin, of the Noble House of Blois, supported by the constable of Cardigan Castle (a Stephen ), with the aid of Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Lanstephan and Maurice's brother, William. After some hard fighting,

SECTION 20

#1732787647719

748-411: The sons of Gruffydd, and witnessed several charters of the Empress Maud , to whom he was adhered. In 1155, Henry II confirmed to him the lands of his grandfather, Serlo de Burci, with all their liberties. Maud predeceased him, and he then married Alice de Nonant, daughter of Roger de Nonant, who survived him and remarried in or before 1175. William Fitz Martin, son and heir of Robert and Alice, granted

782-564: The suzerainty of William the Conqueror ), consequent attack on Worcester , and death in battle. Martin had sailed from Devon, and after landing at Fishguard , met little resistance (other than a skirmish at Morvil ), becoming Marcher Lord of the area - Kemes (the name of the Lordship being a garbled version of Cemais , the name of the former Cantref); his Lordship stretched between Fishguard and Cardigan . Geva de Burci's second husband

816-436: The wife's lands and ceases if the husband marries again. The issue must have been capable of inheriting as heir to the wife, so that if for example a wife were seised of lands in tail male the birth of a daughter would not entitle the husband to a tenancy by courtesy. The title to the tenancy vests only on the death of the wife. The Married Women's Property Act 1882 did not affect the right of courtesy so far as relating to

850-588: The wife's undisposed-of realty, and the Settled Land Act 1884 , section 8, provided that for the purposes of the Settled Land Act 1882 the estate of a tenant by courtesy is to be deemed an estate arising under a settlement made by the wife. The application of Courtesy (as spelled in Scots law) was abolished by Section 10 of the Succession (Scotland) Act 1964, in respect of all deaths occurring after

884-453: Was William de Falaise , with whom she had daughters, Emma and Sybil. "Emma de Falise married William de Courcy as her second husband. Earlier, she had been briefly married to William fitz Humphrey, but was evidently a widow soon after 1100 for, by 1106, she and her sister, Sybil, attested their father's charter without mention of their husbands. As a bride's possessions passed to her husband on marriage, he would normally attest before her but

918-520: Was a knight from Devon whose father, Martin de Turribus, was the first Norman Lord of Kemes , in what had previously been the Dyfed part of Deheubarth . Fitz Martin inherited the Lordship of Kemes from his father, and founded St Dogmaels Abbey c. 1118. He was the first of the FitzMartin line. His descendants continued to hold lands in England and Wales until the 14th century. Robert fitz Martin,

952-583: Was a benefactor to various monasteries, giving land at Compton to Goldcilffe, the church of Blagdon to Stanley in Wiltshire, and the manor of Teignton to Montacute Priory in Somerset. He founded the abbey of St. Dogmael c. 1118. Not later than 1120, Robert Fitz Martin and Maud Peverel, his wife, granted to the abbey of Savigny land at Vengeons (la Manche) which had belonged to William Peverel . In 1134, he joined with other Norman lords in South Wales in resisting

986-496: Was aged 25 when he received livery of his inheritance 1 April 1282. He had married before January 1281/82 to Eleanor Fitz Piers, daughter of Sir Reginald Fitz Piers and Joan de Vivonia. About this time he was charged to have no dealings with the Welsh rebels, and in this and subsequent years was frequently summoned to service against the Welsh and was ordered to continually dwell in the Welsh marches. In November 1290 he came to an agreement with William de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, as to

1020-421: Was confirmed by the King 3 November 1297, and on 10 April 1298, he was granted custodies and marriages, in recompense for his losses in a storm at sea while coming with the King from Flanders. In either 1300 or 1301, and later years, he was commissioner of over and terminer in Devon, and in 1304 he was one of a commission to treat with the Scots. In December 1307 he was one of the keepers of the peace in Devon during

1054-625: Was in her lifetime actually seised (or sasined in Scots law) and not therefore to an estate of inheritance . The customs and the meaning of the word has considerable doubt. It has been said to be a tenure peculiar to England and to Scotland , hence called the courtesy of England and the courtesy of Scotland, yet this is erroneous, for it is found also in Germany and France . The Mirroir des Justices ascribes its introduction to King Henry I (1100–1135). The historian K. E. Digby states it to be connected with curia , having reference either to

FitzMartin - Misplaced Pages Continue

1088-451: Was of a Frankish noble house of Blois , the great-grandson of the bellicose Eudus II , Count of Blois . He was born some time in the late 11th century to a knight of William the Conqueror , Martin de Turribus and his wife Geva de Burci, heiress of Serlo de Burci . Martin had participated in the seizure of Rhys ap Tewdwr 's lands, following the latter's refusal to acknowledge the suzerainty of William Rufus (despite having acknowledged

1122-531: Was the only one to remain in Norman hands at the end of the war. Robert spent the years 1136–1141 serving the Empress Maud during The Anarchy , and her son, Henry II . His activities from 1142 to 1155 are unknown. In 1155, Henry II confirmed to him the lands of his grandfather, Serlo de Burci, with all their liberties. By the reign of Henry II Maud had died and Robert fitz Martin had a new wife – Alice de Nonant of Totnes (died 1194) – and three children: 1. William - married in 1159, Devon, England, Angharad,

1156-493: Was to pass to her son and heir, Robert, additional land in Devonshire. From the patronymic of this Robert fitz Martin ("son of Martin") subsequent family members took 'fitz Martin' as a surname, independent of the names of their fathers, until in the mid-13th century, when they began to use simply Martin. Robert Fitz Martin succeeded to the lands which Serlo de Burci had held in 1086, and also to land held by his stepfather. He

#718281