Origins of the Despenser: Geoffrey, father of Thomas
John P. Ravilious
Hello All,
Following on Clive West's kind contribution of last week, I was
able to review a copy of Nichol's History of Leicester. In
particular, I was interested to see what was stated there, given
Clive's notation of several charters of Thomas le Despenser,
including one which stated (in translation), "I Thomas Dispensator,
son of Geoffrey (Galfridus) Dispensator, have given and confirmed
ten bovates in land at Burton with the consent of Asketill de
Berges, my lord of the same land."
I am very pleased to confirm Clive's statements en toto. There
are several charters dealing with the same 10 bovates in Burton,
including one in particular, titled " Thomas Dispensator. (14.b.)
" by Nichols, which states in part,
" ... Thomas Dispensator, filius Gaufridi Dispensatoris,
salutem........ x bovatas terre, cum omnibus pertinentiis
suis, in campo de Burtona, concessu Asketilli de Berges
domini mei de eadem terra,... " [1]
The full text of one of the charters of Thomas, involving the
confirmation of another gift of his father Geoffrey, is given
below [2], which likewise makes it quite clear that Thomas'
father was Geoffrey le Despenser, and not his brother Hugh as most
recently conjectured. Based upon prior research (most of which
has been posted to prior SGM threads), this is Geoffrey le
Despenser, brother of Ivo de Alspath (sometime constable of
Coventry castle for Earl Ranulf of Chester) [3].
Perhaps not as important as proving this relationship, the
existence of these charters is most interesting: it is amazing to
Clive and myself (and likely others) that these details had not
been more widely published. The edition of the Calendar of the
Charter Rolls provided an abstract of Garendon charters in 1912,
including one for the grant by Thomas le Despenser of the same 10
bovates in Burton, taken from the same source as that used by
Nichols (BL Lansdowne MS 415), but no notice of parentage was
made [4]. More recently, Geoffrey Barraclough and David Postles
have used the same source used by Nichols in the Garendon
appendix to his work [5]. The edition of Monasticon Anglicanum
now available online gives perhaps a sense of how this came about:
' As Mr. Nichols has been equally copious in his abstract
and analysis of this Register also, no further account
of it will be needed here. " [6]
In addition to the matter of Thomas le Despenser's paternity,
one of the charters cited also involves Thomas' wife, and a son
Geoffrey. As Clive had advised, this charter renders her name as
'Recuare', and evidences that Thomas had a son Geoffrey who
predeceased him - evidently a younger son later being named
Geoffrey in his stead:
' Tomas Dispensator. (4.b.)
Sciatis me dedisse, concessione & bona voluntate uxoris
mee Recuare & heredum meorum & hac carta mea confirmasse, Deo et
ecclesie Sanct Marie de Gerondonia, et monachis....etc etc..
x bovatas terra cum omnibus pertinentiis suis in campo de Burton
concesssu Asketilli de Berges domini mei de eadem terra, liberas
et quitas ab omni terreno servicio et consuetudine mihi &
heredibus meis pertinente, salvo forensi servicio; & excepto
quod annuatim dabunt mihi & heredibus meis 2 solidus ad festum
Sancte Crucis post Pascham. Preterea dedi eisdem monachis
....etc.....pro salute anime mee & patris & matris mee, &
precipue pro anima filii mei Gaufridi 1111 solidos quos pro
predicta terra ......etc.... Ut inde habeat annuatim conventus
pitanciam in die anniversario eiusdem fillii mei, hoc est
crastino Nativitatis Sanct Marie. ........etc etc......
Hiis testibus; Roberto comite Legrecestrie, Petronilla
comitissa. ' [7]
I will post a corrected pedigree (with documentation) of the
Despenser descent to the list in short order. The descent from
NN (possibly William) de Queniborough now appears to be as follows:
NN de Queniborough
of Queniborough and Burton on the Wolds, co. Leics.
[possibly 'Willelmus' who held lands in Stache and Queniborough,
Leics. of Geoffrey de la Guerche at Domesday Book, in 1086 ]
I
_____I_________________________________________
I I I I
NN, a daughter Thurstan de Radulf de Herbert de
= Hugh de Berges Queniborough Queniborough Queniborough
I
I
Ansketil de Berges
of Burton on the Wolds, co. Leics.
= Rohese
____I_____________________________________________
I I I
Hugh de Berges Geoffrey le Despenser Ivo de Alspath
(de Prestwold) 'dispensator' constable of
of Burton on the I Coventry
Wolds, co. Leics. I________________
I ______________I________
I I I
Ansketil de Prestwold Thomas 'dispensator' Elias
(als 'de Berges') of of Burton on the Wolds of Arnesby
Burton and Prestwold d. 1207 and
= Dionisia = 'Recuare' Loughborough
I I____________
___I________ ________________I_______________
I I I I I I
Thomas Elias de Geoffrey 'I' Hugh le Thomas I
heir; Prestwold dvp bef Despenser I
d.v.p. = Sibilla 1207 d. ca. 1238 I
_________I
___________________________________I__
I I I I
Rohese Henry Robert Geoffrey 'II'
= Stephen de of Martley
Segrave
(d. 1241)
Again, many thanks to Clive for his magnificent find, and
sharing this with the list.
Cheers,
John *
NOTES
[1] John Nichols, The History and Antiquities of the County of
Leicester (London: Printed by and for J. Nichols), Vol. III
part 2 (1804), p. 817.
[2] Ibid., p. 815:
' Tomas Dispensator. (12.a.)
Omnibus filius sancte matris ecclesiae Tomas Dispensator,
filius Gaufridi Dispensatoris, salutem. Sciatis me concessise &
confirmasse donationem patris mei, quam fecit monachis de
Geraldonia[m], videlicet, de tota[m] terra[m] quam reclamavit in
Stantona[m]. Et sicut ille prefatam donationem eoram monachis &
multis aliis festibus super altare posuit, sic & ego manu mea[m]
eandem donationem super altare Dei obtuli & concessi, ut monachi
eam teneant libere & quiete a me, & a cunctis heredibus meis, in
perpetuam elemosinam. Semitam quoque in campo eorum, per quam
ego & homines mei incedere solebamus, que erat ad gravamen eorum,
& ad detrimentum segetum, quietam omnino concessi.
Hii fuerunt testes; Willielmus abbas Legrecestrie, Hugo
Barre, Willielmus Burdet, Willielmus de Widevill, Gaufridus
filius Algot, Willielmus de Rudevill, Gillebertus filius Picot,
Gillebertus de Segrave, Radulphus Fridei, Ricardus filius
Nicholai, Gaufridus Ostianus, Gilbertus Forestarius, Asketillus
de Torp, Johannes Constantin, Gaufridus de Curci, Ranulphus
Leblud. '
[3] cf. threads including <Origins of the Despensers> (Dec 2002-
Jan 2003), <The Family of Ivo de Alspath (a Despenser
link ?)> (Dec 2002) and <Origins of the Despensers (redux)>
(Dec 2003), among others.
[4] Calendar of the Charter Rolls, preserved in the Public Record
Office (London, 1912), IV:475, grants confirmed by the king
12 July 1340, along with a royal charter dated 13 December 4
Edward III, at the request of Walter, abbot of Garendon.
The list of grants runs through pp. 472-481.
[5] In "Medieval Palaeography: Transcriptions and Translations
of Charters," Dr. David A. Postles, University of Leicester,
"http://www.le.ac.uk/elh/pot/char2.html", cites extract from
twelfth-century charters from the cartulary of Garendon
Abbey. Geoffrey Barraclough's work on the Charters of the
Anglo-Norman Earls of Chester likewise used this collection
concerning Ivo de Alspath and others.
[6] Sir William Dugdale, Monasticon Anglicanum (London: Harding
& Lepard; and Longman Rees Green), V:328-9. This can be
viewed at
http://monasticmatrix.usc.edu/bibliographia/index.php?function=detail&id=2659
[7] Nichols, ibid., Vol. III, Part 2, pp. 810-811. Text
provided by Clive West.
* John P. Ravilious
tyran...@gmail.com
For giving me some information to trace my le Despenser ancestors back a few more generations. Not so obviously Norman-French as I had thought.
R.M. O'Donnell
Mark Downen
Does anyone know whether the Hugh le Despenser in John's pedigree is
the same Hugh le Despenser who married Aline de Basset, daughter of
Phillip de Basset?
Mark mailto:mrdo...@gmail.com
CE Wood
Their son, Hugh, 1st Baron Despenser, married Aline de Basset.
CE Wood