Turstin FitzRolf - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Turstin FitzRolf was a Norman magnate, one of the few "Proven Companions of William the Conqueror

Companions of William the Conqueror

William the Conqueror had men of diverse standing and origins in France, under his command at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, along with others completing his Norman conquest of England until after the Harrying of the North and before the Anarchy....

" who fought at the Battle of Hastings

Battle of Hastings

The Battle of Hastings occurred on 14 October 1066 during the Norman conquest of England, between the Norman-French army of Duke William II of Normandy and the English army under King Harold II...

in 1066. As his name indicates, he was the son of (fils de) a certain Rolf, synonymous with Rou (Norman-French popular form) and Rollo (latinization). His first name appears as Tosteins, Thurstan and other variants. He appears to have originated in Bec-de-Mortagne

Bec-de-Mortagne

Bec-de-Mortagne is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:A farming village situated in the wooded valley of the river Ganzeville, in the Pays de Caux, some northeast of Le Havre, at the junction of the D69 and the D28.-History:The...

, Pays-de-Caux, Normandy, according to the Roman de Rou poem written by Wace

Wace

Wace was a Norman poet, who was born in Jersey and brought up in mainland Normandy , ending his career as Canon of Bayeux.-Life:...

in about 1170. He was recorded in the Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

of 1086 as holding as a sub-tenant, the castle of Caerleon

Caerleon

Caerleon is a suburban village and community, situated on the River Usk in the northern outskirts of the city of Newport, South Wales. Caerleon is a site of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman legionary fortress, Isca Augusta, and an Iron Age hill fort...

, at the southern end of the English frontier with unconquered Wales. He also appears to have been the first holder of the extensive Barony of North Cadbury

North Cadbury

North Cadbury is a village west of Wincanton in the River Cam in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. It shares its parish with nearby Yarlington and includes the village of Galhampton, which got its name from the settlement of the rent-paying peasants, and the hamlet of...

, Somerset, which included several manors in nearby counties. He is chiefly remembered as the standard bearer of William the Conqueror

William I of England

William I , also known as William the Conqueror , was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II...

at Hastings, as recorded by the reliable 12th.c. Chronicler Orderic Vitalis

Orderic Vitalis

Orderic Vitalis was an English chronicler of Norman ancestry who wrote one of the great contemporary chronicles of 11th and 12th century Normandy and Anglo-Norman England. The modern biographer of Henry I of England, C...

Origin

Turstin appears to have originated in Bec-de-Mortagne

Bec-de-Mortagne

, Pays-de-Caux, Normandy, about 5 miles SE of Fécamp

Fécamp

Fécamp is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:Fécamp is situated in the valley of the river Valmont, at the heart of the Pays de Caux, on the Albaster Coast...

, according to the Roman de Rou

Roman de Rou

Roman de Rou is a verse chronicle by Wace in Norman covering the history of the Dukes of Normandy from the time of Rollo of Normandy to the battle of Tinchebray in 1106...

poem written by Wace

Wace

Wace was a Norman poet, who was born in Jersey and brought up in mainland Normandy , ending his career as Canon of Bayeux.-Life:...

(c.1115-1183):

Tosteins fitz Rou-le-Blanc out non,

Al Bec en Caux aveit meison

(Turstain FitzRou le Blanc au nom, au Bec-en-Caux avait maison: Turstin FitzRou the White by name, had home at Bec-en-Caux)

Disambiguation

At the time of the Domesday Survey in 1086 there existed various other prominent Turstins as follows, which should not be confused.

Turstin Sheriff of Cornwall

This Turstin is recorded in Domesday as holding 27 manors in Cornwall from Robert, Count of Mortain

Robert, Count of Mortain

Robert, Count of Mortain, 1st Earl of Cornwall was a Norman nobleman and the half-brother of William I of England. Robert was the son of Herluin de Conteville and Herleva of Falaise and was full brother to Odo of Bayeux. The exact year of Robert's birth is unknown Robert, Count of Mortain, 1st...

, 1st Earl of Cornwall. He was described consistently as “Turstin the Sheriff”. In none of these Cornwall entries is he described as “FitzRolf” or variants thereof.

Turstin the Fleming of Wigmore

This Turstin was the husband of Agnes de Merleberge, da. Of Alured de Merleberge who held the Herefordshire

Herefordshire

Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...

manors of Ewyas Harold

Ewyas Harold

Ewyas Harold is a village and civil parish in the Golden Valley in Herefordshire, England, near to the Welsh border with present day Monmouthshire and about half way between the towns of Abergavenny and Hereford. It lies on the Dulas brook, and is contiguous with the neighbouring village of...

and "Cowarn" (mod: Little Cowarne & Much Cowarne

Much Cowarne

Much Cowarne is a village and civil parish in the English county of Herefordshire, located off the A417 about 16 miles from Hereford and 10 miles from its post town of Bromyard.-Geography:...

) in chief

Tenant-in-chief

In medieval and early modern European society the term tenant-in-chief, sometimes vassal-in-chief, denoted the nobles who held their lands as tenants directly from king or territorial prince to whom they did homage, as opposed to holding them from another nobleman or senior member of the clergy....

. Turstin Flandrensis (i.e. Turstin of Flanders or "Turstin the Fleming") is referred to in 3 entries in Domesday, in respect of lands close to Wigmore

Wigmore Castle

Wigmore Castle is a ruined castle which is barely visible from the village of Wigmore in the northwest region of Herefordshire, England.- History :...

in the Welsh Marches

Welsh Marches

The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...

, but only as a sub-feoffee of 2 of these manors, not as tenant-in-chief

Tenant-in-chief

. The manors in question are:

Cowarn, held by Agnes “the wife of Turstin de Wigmore”, held from her father Alured de Merleberge.
Stratford, Herefordshire, now a small village 4 miles north of Tewkesbury
Tewkesbury
Tewkesbury is a town in Gloucestershire, England. It stands at the confluence of the River Severn and the River Avon, and also minor tributaries the Swilgate and Carrant Brook...

, held by Turstin from his father-in-law Alured.
Wigmore. In 1086 this was held by

Ralph de Mortimer

Ranulph de Mortimer

Ranulph I de Mortimer of Mortemer-sur-Eaulne, was a Marcher Lord from the Montgomery lands in the Welsh Marches. In England, he was Lord of Wigmore in Herefordshire. In Normandy, he was the Seigneur of St. Victor-en-Caux. Ranulph was the founder of the English House of Mortimer of Wigmore...

, but the entry states that it was formerly held by Turstin the Fleming, who had been granted it by William FitzOsbern, 1st Earl of Hereford

William Fitzosbern, 1st Earl of Hereford

William FitzOsbern , Lord of Breteuil, in Normandy, was a relative and close counsellor of William the Conqueror and one of the great magnates of early Norman England...

between 1066 and 1070. It appears that Turstin's overlord in 1086, by then Roger the son of William FitzOsbern, had been ousted following his rebellion against William Rufus, and thus Turstin had lost his position as a sub-feoffee.
The stated place of origin in Domesday of this Turstin in the "county" of Flanders

Flanders

Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

is about 150 miles north of Bec in Normandy, the place of origin given by Wace for Turstin FitzRolf of Bec. There thus seems little valid reason for a confusion of the 2 identities, unless of course Wace himself is in error, for Domesday certainly is reliable in providing correct nomenclatures. Turstin of Flanders had a son called Eustace who granted to the Abbey of St Peter's

Gloucester Cathedral

Gloucester Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity, in Gloucester, England, stands in the north of the city near the river. It originated in 678 or 679 with the foundation of an abbey dedicated to Saint Peter .-Foundations:The foundations of the present...

, Gloucester, 1 hide called "Sudenhale" in Pencombe

Pencombe

Pencombe is a township, parish, and village located in Herefordshire, England. It is from Bromyard, the local market town with schools and a hospital, and about from Hereford, in each case reached by narrow roads...

, Herefordshire, 1 mile NW of Little Cowarne.

Turstin de Crispin de Bec Crispin

The family of Crispin was associated with Bec Abbey

Bec Abbey

Bec Abbey in Le Bec Hellouin, Normandy, France, once the most influential abbey in the Anglo-Norman kingdom of the twelfth century, is a Benedictine monastic foundation in the Eure département, in the Bec valley midway between the cities of Rouen and Bernay.Like all abbeys, Bec maintained annals...

at Le Bec Hellouin (also known as Bec Crispin or Bec Crespin) in the Eure departement, on the River Risle approximately 30 miles south east of Le Harvre. Bec-de-Mortagne

Bec-de-Mortagne

in the Pays-de-Caux, on the other hand is about 20 miles north-east of Le Harvre. The name Turstin was common in this family, and for this reason it seems that Stacey Grimaldi

Stacey Grimaldi

Stacey Grimaldi , was an English lawyer and antiquary.-Life:Stacey Grimaldi was descended from the house of Grimaldi: he was the great-grandson of Alexander Grimaldi of Genoa, who quitted that city after its bombardment by Louis XIV in 1684, and whose father of the same name had been doge of Genoa...

, writing in 1832, confused some of the Turstins of Domesday as the same person.

Turstin, Count of Avranchin

Alfred Ellis in his 1879 article Landholders of Gloucestershire in the Domesday Book suggests the existence of yet another prominent Toustain FitzRou from the family of the Viscounts of the Avranchin

Avranches

Avranches is a commune in the Manche department in the Basse-Normandie region in north-western France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. The inhabitants are called Avranchinais.-History:...

, even further south from Le Harvre than Le Bec Hellouin mentioned above. This person he states to have witnessed a charter of William FitzOsbern, Earl of Hereford, to Lyre Abbey, (printed in Gallia, Chr. XI, Instr., p.123). His reasoning is that Wace referred to Turstin the standard-bearer as "Le Blanc", i.e. "white-haired", apparently in order to differentiate him from another Turstin FitzRolf, who presumably had darker hair. Richard, Vicomte of the Avranchin, was the son of Turstin Goz and the father of Hugh d'Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester

Hugh d'Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester

Hugh d'Avranches , also known as le Gros and Lupus was the first Earl of Chester and one of the great magnates of early Norman England.-Early career:...

Fights at Hastings

Orderic Vitalis

(d.1142) wrote sometime after 1110: “Turstinus filius Rollonis vexillum Normannorum portavit” (Turstin son of Rollo carried the standard of the Normans).

Wace

Wace

Wace was a Norman poet, who was born in Jersey and brought up in mainland Normandy , ending his career as Canon of Bayeux.-Life:...

wrote in his cronicle Roman de Rou

Roman de Rou

Roman de Rou is a verse chronicle by Wace in Norman covering the history of the Dukes of Normandy from the time of Rollo of Normandy to the battle of Tinchebray in 1106...

as follows (loosely translated and dramatised by Sir Edward Creasy

Edward Shepherd Creasy

Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy was an English historian. He was born in Bexley, England. He was educated at Eton College and King's College, Cambridge and called to the Bar in 1837. In 1840, he began teaching history at the University of London. He was knighted in 1860 and assumed the position of...

(d.1878)):

"Then the Duke called for the standard which the Pope had sent him, and,
he who bore it having unfolded it, the Duke took it and called to Raoul de Conches
Raoul II of Tosny
Raoul II de Tosny seigneur de Conches-en-Ouche was a Norman nobleman of the house of Tosny, son of Roger I of Tosny. He was active in Normandy, England and Wales.-Victor at Hastings in 1066:...

. “Bear my standard” said he “for I would not but do you
right; by right and by ancestry your line are standard-bearers of
Normandy, and very good knights have they all been”. But Raoul said that
he would serve the Duke that day in other guise, and would fight the
English with his hand as long as life should last.

Then the Duke bade Walter Giffard
Walter Giffard, 1st Earl of Buckingham
Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville, 1st Earl of Buckingham was a Norman magnate and one of the few proven Companions of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The caput of his feudal honour was at Crendon, Buckinghamshire....

bear the standard. But he was old and
white-headed, and bade the Duke give the standard to some younger and
stronger man to carry. Then the Duke said fiercely, “by the splendour of
God, my lords, I think you mean to betray and fail me in this great
need”. Giffard replied “Sire, not so! we have done no treason, nor do I
refuse from any felony toward you; but I have to lead a great chivalry,
both hired men and the men of my fief. Never had I such good means of
serving you as I now have; and, if God please, I will serve you; if need
be I will die for you, and will give my own heart for yours”. "By my faith” quoth the Duke, “I always loved thee, and now I love
thee more; if I survive this day, thou shalt be the better for it all
thy days”. Then he called out a knight, whom he had heard much praised,
Tosteins Fitz-Rou le Blanc by name, whose abode was at Bec-en-Caux. To him he delivered the standard, and Tosteins took it right cheerfully,
and bowed low to him in thanks, and bore it gallantly and with good
heart. His kindred still have quittance of all service for their
inheritance on this account, and their heirs are entitled so to hold
their inheritance forever".

It is thought by some that Turstin is depicted on the Bayeux Tapestry

Bayeux Tapestry

The Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidered cloth—not an actual tapestry—nearly long, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England concerning William, Duke of Normandy and Harold, Earl of Wessex, later King of England, and culminating in the Battle of Hastings...

as standard bearer, yet the mounted knight so depicted is more likely to be Eustace II, Count of Boulogne , due to the embroidered annotation above E...TIUS, apparently a Latinised form of Eustace. The figure is shown in conversation with Duke William, and points to the rear, urging a retreat, as he is recorded as having done by William of Poitiers

William of Poitiers

William of Poitiers was a Norman chronicler most famous for his eulogistic account of Duke William of Normandy , called the Gesta Guillelmi II ducis Normannorum.-Life:...

"With a harsh voice he (Duke William) called to Eustace of Boulogne, who with 50 knights was turning in flight and was about to give the signal for retreat. This man came up to the Duke and said in his ear that he ought to retire since he would court death if he went forward. But at the very moment when he uttered the words Eustace was struck between the shoulders with such force that blood gushed out from his mouth and nose and half dead he only made his escape with the aid of his followers".

Yet the matter is not certain as William of Poitiers does not mention Eustace as having been a standard bearer, whilst the figure otherwise so convincingly Eustace in the Tapestry clearly is holding what appears to be the papal banner, depicting a cross.

Holds Caerleon Castle

Caerleon Castle

Caerleon

was a Motte and Bailey castle erected by the Norman invaders on the site of a Roman castle known as Ischia. It was located on the western bank of the River Usk

River Usk

The River Usk rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain of mid-Wales, in the easternmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially it flows north into Usk Reservoir, then east by Sennybridge to Brecon before turning southeast to flow by Talybont-on-Usk, Crickhowell and...

, which formed the early western border of England with Wales, thus it appears to have been just within Welsh territory. Turstin did not hold the castle directly from the king, but from William de Scohies (or de Ecouis), a magnate with lands in Hereford and the Marches, Norfolk and in several other counties. Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

of 1086 recorded Turstin as holding the manor of Caerleon, which consisted of eight carucates of land west of the Usk. On the manor were 2 serfs and one plough within the demesne

Demesne

In the feudal system the demesne was all the land, not necessarily all contiguous to the manor house, which was retained by a lord of the manor for his own use and support, under his own management, as distinguished from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants...

lands. Also listed on the manor were 3 Welshmen with 3 ploughs, who were permitted to continue their Welsh customs (leges Walensi viventes). The manor was valued at 40 shillings. It should also be noted that he held Aust

Aust

Aust is a small village in South Gloucestershire, England, the historical site of the eastern terminal of the Aust Ferry crossing route over the River Severn between England and Wales, believed to have been used in Roman times as a continuation of Icknield Street which led from Eastern England...

in Gloucestershire on the east bank of the River Severn

River Severn

The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...

estuary, an important crossing point into Chepstow

Chepstow

Chepstow is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, close to its confluence with the River Severn, and close to the western end of the Severn Bridge on the M48 motorway...

, Wales, just east of Caerleon.

English Manors held by Turstin

The Domesday Book records Turstin FitzRolf as holding the following manors in 1086, presumably all royal grants for loyal service:

Held from the King

Gloucestershire:

Alvington
Alvington
Alvington is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England, situated on the A48 road, six miles north-east of Chepstow in Wales. The parish has a total population of 484.- History of Alvington:...

, Gloucestershire (Alwintune)
Ampney Crucis
Ampney Crucis
Ampney Crucis is a village and civil parish in the Cotswolds, part of the Cotswold District of Gloucestershire, England. The parish has a population of 609. In the Domesday Book of 1086 it was held by Turstin FitzRolf....

, Gloucestershire (Omenel). There were 2 other holdings here, “Baldwin” from the King and Humphrey the Chamberlain.
Fretherne
Fretherne
Fretherne is a settlement in Gloucestershire, England. It forms the civil parish of Fretherne with Saul with the village of Saul.In the Domesday Book of 1086 it is recorded as held by Turstin FitzRolf....

, Gloucestershire (Fridorne)
Hillesley
Hillesley
Hillesley is a village in Gloucestershire, England. It was transferred from the county of Avon in 1991 and is now in Stroud District. The village forms part of the civil parish of Hillesley and Tresham...

, Gloucestershire (Hildeslei). Sub-enfeoffed to Bernard (Pancevolt?)
King's Stanley
King's Stanley
King's Stanley is a village in Gloucestershire, England, situated southwest of the town of Stroud. The village is part of what is known locally as 'The Stanleys', along with its neighbours Leonard Stanley and Stanley Downton...

, Gloucestershire (Stantone). Tovi also held a manor here.
Oakley, Gloucestershire
Oakley, Gloucestershire
Oakley is a district of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, England. It is home to the smaller of Cheltenham's two GCHQ sites, and residential housing including private, council-owned and social housing. It backs onto Cleeve Hill and Harp Hill, greenbelt land and part of the Cotswold hills, including a...

(Achelie). There were 3 manors here, thought to have lain to the immediate west of Cirencester, by Coates. Turstin's is thought to have been Oakley Wood.
Tortworth
Tortworth
Tortworth is a hamlet, and civil parish, near Thornbury in South Gloucestershire, England. It has a population of 150, and is noted for a huge and ancient chestnut tree, believed to be over 1000 years old. The tree, in St...

, Gloucestershire (Torteword)

Somerset:

Blackford, Somerset
Blackford, Somerset
Blackford is a village in Somerset, England, situated beside the A303 road, south west of Wincanton in the South Somerset district. There are two other places called Blackford in Somerset — one is a village near Wedmore, the other a tiny hamlet between Porlock and Minehead.It is part of the...

(near Wincanton) (Blacheford/Blachafort). There were 2 manors here, one held by Glastonbury Abbey
Glastonbury Abbey
Glastonbury Abbey was a monastery in Glastonbury, Somerset, England. The ruins are now a grade I listed building, and a Scheduled Ancient Monument and are open as a visitor attraction....

, sub-enfeoffed to “Alwaker”, the other held by Turstin sub-enfeoffed to “Alfward”.
Little Keyford, Somerset (Caivel/Chaivert/Kaivert). 2 manors, one held by Geoffrey de Montbray
Geoffrey de Montbray
Geoffrey de Montbray , bishop of Coutances , a right-hand man of William the Conqueror, was a type of the great feudal prelate, warrior and administrator at need....

, Bishop of Coutances, sub-enfeoffed to “Nigel”, the other held by Turstin, sub-enfeoffed to “Norman”.
Maperton
Maperton
Maperton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated south west of Wincanton in the South Somerset district. The village has a population of 150. However this number includes Elliscombe House care home which alone has an average of 40 residents.-History:The name of the village...

, Somerset (Malpertone/Malperettona). Sub-enfeoffed to “Geoffrey”.
North Cadbury
North Cadbury
North Cadbury is a village west of Wincanton in the River Cam in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. It shares its parish with nearby Yarlington and includes the village of Galhampton, which got its name from the settlement of the rent-paying peasants, and the hamlet of...

, Somerset (Cadeberie/beria). The later caput
Caput
The Latin word caput, meaning literally "head" and by metonymy "top", has been borrowed in a variety of English words, including capital, captain, and decapitate...

of the eponymous barony which retained many of Turstin's landholdings.
Pitcombe
Pitcombe
Pitcombe is a village and civil parish south-west of Bruton and from Wincanton in Somerset, England. It has a population of 549. The parish includes the hamlets of Cole and Godminster....

, Somerset (near present Godminster Farm) (Pidecome/coma)
South Cadbury
South Cadbury
South Cadbury is a village and civil parish in the South Somerset council area of the English county of Somerset. The parish includes the village of Sutton Montis...

, Somerset (Sudcadeberie/Sutcadaberia/deberia). Sub-enfeoffed to Bernard Pancevolt “a clerk and an Englishman”. Thought to be the site of Camelot Castle
Camelot
Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and eventually came to be described as the fantastic capital of Arthur's realm and a symbol of the Arthurian world...

.
Syndercombe, Somerset (now flooded by Clatworthy Reservoir
Clatworthy Reservoir
Clatworthy Reservoir is situated near Clatworthy in the Brendon Hills on the edge of the Exmoor National Park in west Somerset, England. It is run by Wessex Water and has a capacity of , supplying some 200,000 homes...

) (Sindercome)
Woolston, Somerset (in South Cadbury) (Ufetone/tona/tuna). There were 2 holdings here: Robert, Count of Mortain
Robert, Count of Mortain
Robert, Count of Mortain, 1st Earl of Cornwall was a Norman nobleman and the half-brother of William I of England. Robert was the son of Herluin de Conteville and Herleva of Falaise and was full brother to Odo of Bayeux. The exact year of Robert's birth is unknown Robert, Count of Mortain, 1st...

, 1st Earl of Cornwall, held one part, sub-enfeoffed to “Drogo”, the 2nd part was held by Turstin FitzRolf, seb-enfeoffed to “Leofgeat”. The connection to Robert Mortain should not be taken as evidence of any identity of Turstin with Turstin Sheriff of Cornwall, as Robert held many hundred manors throughout the kingdom.

Berkshire:

Sparsholt
Sparsholt
Sparsholt may refer to:* Sparsholt, Hampshire* Sparsholt, Oxfordshire...

, Berkshire (now Oxon.)
Coleshill
Coleshill
Coleshill may refer to:In demography*Coleshill, Buckinghamshire, England*Coleshill, Oxfordshire , England*Coleshill, Warwickshire, England**Coleshill railway station**Coleshill Parkway railway station**Coleshill Town F.C....

, Berkshire. (now Oxon.)Turstin held 1 of 5 manors here.
Childrey
Childrey
Childrey is a village and civil parish about west of Wantage in the Vale of White Horse. The parish was part of the Wantage Rural District in Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred the whole of the Vale of White Horse from Berkshire to Oxfordshire.Childrey was originally an island...

, Berkshire (now Oxon.) (“Celrea”). Turstin held 1 of 3 manors here, sub-enfeoffed to Roger.
Upton, Berkshire (now Oxon.). (“Optone”)

Buckinghamshire:

Little Kimble, Buckinghamshire (“Kemble Parva”). Sub-enfeoffed to Albert.
Hardwick
Hardwick, Buckinghamshire
Hardwick is both a village and a civil parish within the Aylesbury Vale district in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the Aylesbury Vale, about four miles north of Aylesbury....

, Buckinghamshire (“Harduic”). 1 of 3 manors held by Turstin, others held by Robert of Mortain and Miles Crispin
Miles Crispin
Miles Crispin , also known as Miles or Milo of Wallingford, was a wealthy Norman landowner, particularly associated with Wallingford Castle in Berkshire...

, both sub-enfeoffed.

Dorset:

Gillingham
Gillingham, Dorset
Gillingham is a town in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. The town is the most northerly in the county. It is 3 miles south of the A303 lying on the B3092 and B3081. It is near to the town of Shaftesbury which lies 7 miles to the south east. Neighbouring hamlets included Peacemarsh, Bay...

, Dorset (“Gelingeham”) Turstin held 1 manor of 5 or 6, subenfeoffed to Bernard (Pancevolt?)
Allington
Allington, Dorset
Allington is a large village and civil parish in Dorset, England. The village has a population of 614 according to the 2001 Census.Allington Hill is an Iron Age hill fort risingto 90m above the village, now managed by the Woodland Trust...

, Dorset (“Adelingtone”)
Nyland, Dorset (“Iland”/”Inlande”) 1 of 2 manors held by Turstin, the other by Robert of Mortain.
Stoke Wallis, Dorset (“Stoche”) 1 of 2 manoprs held by Turstin, sub-enfeoffed to Ranulf.

Herefordshire:

Little Marcle, Herefordshire (“Merchelai”). 1 of 2 manors held by Turstin, sub-enfeoffed to another “Turstin”. The other manor was held by Roger de Lacy.

Hampshire:

Newton Valence
Newton Valence
Newton Valence is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 4.4 miles south of Alton, just off the A32 road....

, Hampshire (“Newentone”)

Held from Bishop of Worcester

Gloucestershire:

Aust
Aust
Aust is a small village in South Gloucestershire, England, the historical site of the eastern terminal of the Aust Ferry crossing route over the River Severn between England and Wales, believed to have been used in Roman times as a continuation of Icknield Street which led from Eastern England...

, Gloucestershire (Austreclive). 5 hides.
Gotherington
Gotherington
Gotherington is a village north of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, England. It is surrounded on the north by the villages of Woolstone and Oxenton, and to the south by Woodmancote and Bishop's Cleeve. It has a population of around 1,200.-History:...

, Gloucestershire (Godrinton).

Held from Abbot of Westminster

Glos./Worcs.:

Hasfield, Gloucestershire (Hasfelde). 1 ½ hides.
Eckington, Worcestershire
Eckington, Worcestershire
Eckington is a small village near to the southern border of the English county of Worcestershire, according to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,202....

(“Aichintune”) 1 of 3 manors held by Turstin.

Held from Walter Giffard

Walter Giffard, 1st Earl of Buckingham

Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville, 1st Earl of Buckingham was a Norman magnate and one of the few proven Companions of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The caput of his feudal honour was at Crendon, Buckinghamshire....

(d.1102) was a Norman magnate and fellow proven Companion of William the Conqueror

Companions of William the Conqueror

at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The caput of his feudal honour was at Crendon, Buckinghamshire.

Great Missenden
Great Missenden
Great Missenden is a large village in the Misbourne Valley in the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire, England, situated between the towns of Amersham and Wendover. It closely adjoins the villages of Little Missenden and Prestwood. The narrow High Street is bypassed by the main A413 London to...

, Buckinghamshire

Succession

Clearly Turstin had "kindred" and "heirs" as referred to by Wace, yet these may have been in Normandy only, since no record of any familial inheritance exists for his English holdings. Turstin is said by some sources to have had a son named Ralph (FitzTurstin) who went on crusade to the Holy Land, where he died. Most of Turstin's lands, which later constituted a feudal barony, did not pass to his son, if indeed such existed, but to another apparently unrelated Norman magnate Wynebald de Ballon

Wynebald de Ballon

Wynebald de Ballon ,, was an early Norman magnate. He was a son of Drogo de Ballon and appeared in England accompanied by his brothers, Hamelin de Ballon, later created 1st Baron of Abergavenny, and Wynoc de Ballon, about whom little is recorded...

, who served for a time as seneschal of Caerleon Castle, whilst his elder brother Hamelin de Ballon had founded Abergavenny Castle

Abergavenny Castle

Abergavenny Castle is a castle in the market town of Abergavenny, Monmouthshire in south east Wales.- A naturally fortified site :The castle was sited above the River Usk overlooking the river valley and the confluence of the rivers Gavenny and Usk. The site would have been naturally defensible in...

15 miles higher up the River Usk, and founded a barony seated at Much Marcle, i.e. next to, and possibly subsuming, Turstin's own manor of Little Marcle. Wynebald also inherited, almost intact, the lands comprising Turstin's fief, which is known collectively as the barony of North Cadbury. The reason for this transfer is not clear, whether by death or by his having fallen out of royal favour. It is possible that Turstin was a supporter of Duke Robert of Normandy, the Conqueror's eldest son who tried to wrest the kingdom of England from William Rufus

William II of England

William II , the third son of William I of England, was King of England from 1087 until 1100, with powers over Normandy, and influence in Scotland. He was less successful in extending control into Wales...

, his younger brother who had had himself crowned very rapidly at Westminster following the Conqueror's death. Turstin would therefore have found himself on the losing side, and as is known to have happened to others in that situation, would have forfeited his lands. It is interesting to note that such banishment is known to have been the fate of Turstin's other 2 neighbours at Oakley in Gloucestershire, Gislebert FitzTurold and Roger de Lacy, both banished from the kingdom in 1088.

Sources

Transactions of the Bristol & Gloucestershire Archaeological Society, 1879–80, vol.4, On the Landholders of Gloucestershire Named in Domesday Book, by Alfred S. Ellis, esp. chap. LXVII, TVRSTINVS FILIVS ROLF, pp. 186–188 (www.bgas.org.uk)http://www.bgas.org.uk/tbgas/bgc001.htm#p004086
www.domesdaybook.co.uk; http://www.domesdaybook.co.uk/
Douglas, D.C. & Greenaway, G.W. (eds.) English Historical Documents 1042-1189, London, 1959.

External Sources

Whitney Research Group & Tim Doyle, 2006. Article on Turstin the Fleming of Wigmore, apparently confounded with Turstin of Bec-en-Caux
Ancestry of Robert Roy and Related Families by Robert Roy, 2010. Article on Turstin the Fleming, apparently confounded with Turstin of Bec-en-Caux
genealogy.com Refers to and quotes from the article by Stacy Grimaldi in Gentleman's Magazine of Oct. 1832 which confuses the Grimaldi-Crispin family of Le Bec Hellouin with Turstin from Bec in Pays de Caux, in Normandy.

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