Sir William I Longespee [a], "Long Sword", b abt 1178, Woodstock Manor, Oxfordshire, England, d 7 Mar 1225/26, Salisbury Castle, Wiltshire, England. He md Ela Fitz Patrick of Salisbury 1198, daughter of Sir William Fitz Patrick, Earl of Salisbury, and Eleanor de
Vitre.
Children of William Longespee and Ela of Salisbury were:
- Sir William II Longespee, Earl of Salisbury, b abt 1208. See LINE A
- Ida Longespee b abt 1210, of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, d abt 1269. She md [1] Ralph de Somery, [2] Sir William de Beauchamp, Lord of Bedford, abt 1232, son of Simon de Beauchamp and Isabel.
- Sir Stephen Longespee, Earl of Ulster, b abt 1216. See LINE B
- Ela Longespee b 1217, d 8 Feb 1296/97; md Sir Philip Basset.
Sir William II Longespee [b], Earl of Salisbury, b abt 1208, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, d 8 Feb 1249/50, slain, Al-Mansura, Egypt. He md Idonea de Camville Jun 1226, daughter of Richard de Camville and Eustacia Basset.
Children of William II Longespee and Idonea de Camville were:
- Ida/Idonea Longespee b abt 1228, d abt 1269. She md Sir Walter Fitz Robert, Lord of Little Dunmow, abt 1242, son of Sir Robert Fitz Walter, Magna Carta Surety, and Rohese.
- Ela Longespee b abt 1230, Northamptonshire, England, d bef 22 Nov 1299. She md James de Audley, Justiciar of Ireland, 1244, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, son of Henry de Aldithley and Bertrade de Mainwaring.
Sir Stephen Longespee, Justiciar of Ireland, Seneschal of Gascony, b abt 1216, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, d abt 1260, Sutton, Northamptonshire, England. He md Emmeline de Ridelisford abt 1242, daughter of Walter de Ridelisford and Annora.
Children of Stephen Longespee and Emmeline de Ridelisford were:
- Ela Longespee b abt 1244, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, d 19 Jul 1276. She md Sir Roger la Zouche, Lord of Ashby, bef 1267, Northamptonshire, England, son of Sir Alan la
Zouche, Lord of Ashby, and Helen/Elena de Quincy. - Emmeline Longespee b abt 1246, Sutton, Northamptonshire, England, d 1291; md Sir Maurice Fitz Maurice Fitz Gerald, Justiciar of Ireland, abt 1260.
NOTES:
a. He received the earldom of Salisbury and the marriage of Ela by Richard I in 1196. He was with that King in Normandy, 1196-98, and was present at John's coronation 27 May 1199. He served as Sheriff of Wiltshire from 1199-1202, 1203-1207, and from 1215 until his death. In 1202 he was on a diplomatic mission to France, one of an escort of Llewelyn to a meeting with King John at Worcester in 1204, escorted William the Lion, King of Scots, to his meeting with King John at York in Nov 1206, and headed an embassy in Mar 1209 to the prelates and princes of Germany. He was keeper of the castle of Avranches in 1204, Keeper of the March of Wales in 1209, keeper of Dover Castle, and accompanied the King in his expedition to Ireland in 1210. In May 1213 he was preparing an expedition, of which he was joint commander, to aid the Count of Flanders against France, and in 1214, as Marshal of the King of England, he commanded combined forces which recovered almost all of Flanders for the Count. But on 27 Jul 1214, he and the Counts of Boulogne and Flanders were captured at the battle of Bouvines, his release being negotiated in Feb 1214/15. He was with the King at Runnymeade iin 1215, but when King Louis entered Winchester in mid-1216, he surrendered Salisbury Castle to him, whereupon his lands were siezed by 20 August. He had returned to his allegiance before 7 Mar 1216/17, when his lands were restored. He served as sheriff of Somerset and Devon 1216-17, and received a grant of Sherborne Castle and the co. of Somerset in that same year. He was with the Earl Marshal at the relief of Lincoln, and with Hubert de Burgh in the victory over the French fleet off Thanet, and was one of the guarantors of the truce with Louis at Lambeth. In Oct 1223, he was with the King in the successful expedition against Llewelyn, and in 1224 was keeper of the castles of Bridgnorth and Shrewsbury, as well as Sheriff of Salop and Staffordshire 1223-24. In 1225 he went with the young Earl of Cornwall, as supervisory commander, on a successful expedition to Gascony, and having remained active his entire life, died early the following year. Widow Ela was required to surrender Salisbury in Mar 1225/26, but the co. of Wiltshire was granted her "during her pleasure" 22 Jan 1226/27. She founded Lacock Abbey 1229 where she took the veil in 1238, and was Abbess, 1240-57.
b. First son and heir, he was a minor at his father's death. He took part in the King's expedition to Brittany in 1230, and was knighted by the King at Gloucester 1233. Shortly after, he was with the King at Grosmont in his unsuccessful expedition against the recalcitrant barons in the West, and in 1237-38 made an unsuccessful claim, by hereditary right, to gain custody of Salisbury Castle. In 1236, he had taken the Cross, and went on Crusade from Jun 1240 to eary 1242. In 1242-1243 he took part in the expedition to France, and in 1245 was on service in Wales. In 1247 he again took the Cross and as leader of the English Crusaders, he died, fighting heroically, at Mansura on the Nile, and was later buried at Acre in Palestine.
CP: Vol XI[379-383]; AR: Line 30[26-27], Line 31[26-28], Line 122[28-30], Line 122A[28-29].
Return to TOP of this page
Return to INDEX FOR LONGESPEE
Return to MAIN INDEX
Return to HOME