Bertha of Hereford, also known as Bertha de Pitres (born c. 1130), was the daughter of

Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford Miles FitzWalter of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford (died 24 December 1143) (''alias'' Miles of GloucesterSanders, I.J. English Baronies: A Study of their Origin and Descent 1086-1327, Oxford, 1960, p.7) was a great magnate based in the west of ...

, and a wealthy heiress,

Sibyl de Neufmarché Sibyl de Neufmarché, Countess of Hereford, ''suo jure'' Lady of Brecknock (Wiktionary:circa, c. 1100 – after 1143), was a Cambro-Norman Nobility, noblewoman, heiress to one of the most substantial fiefs in the Welsh Marches. The grea ...

. She was the wife of

William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Eng ...

to whom she brought many castles and Lordships, such as

Brecknock Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the count ...

(including

Hay Castle Hay Castle ( cy, Castell y Gelli) is a medieval fortification and 17th-century mansion house in the small town of Hay-on-Wye in Powys, Wales. Originally constructed as part of the Norman invasion of Wales, the castle was designed as a ringwork o ...

), and

Abergavenny Abergavenny (; cy, Y Fenni , archaically ''Abergafenni'' meaning "mouth of the River Gavenny") is a market town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales. Abergavenny is promoted as a ''Gateway to Wales''; it is approximately from the border wi ...

Family

Bertha was born in England in about 1130. She was a daughter of Miles, Earl of Hereford (1097- 24 December 1143) and

. She had two sisters,

Margaret of Hereford Margaret of Hereford (also Margaret de Bohun née Margaret of Gloucester, 1122/1123 – 6 April 1197) was an English noblewoman and the eldest daughter of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford by his wife, the wealthy Cambro-Norman heiress Si ...

, who married

Humphrey II de Bohun Humphrey II de Bohun (died 1164/5) of Trowbridge Castle in Wiltshire and of Caldicot Castle in south-east Wales, 4th feudal baron of Trowbridge, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman, the third generation of the Bohun family settled in England after the Nor ...

, by whom she had issue, and Lucy of Hereford, who married Herbert FitzHerbert of Winchester, by whom she had issue. Her brothers included

Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl of Hereford, (before 1125 – 1155) was an English noble who played an active and influential part in the wars between Empress Matilda and King Stephen (a civil war known as the Anarchy). Biography Roger was the so ...

Walter de Hereford Walter of Hereford was a holder of the feudal title Baron Bergavenny or Lord Abergavenny in the Welsh Marches in the mid twelfth century. Lineage Walter of Hereford was a son of Miles of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford, and Sibyl of Neufmarch ...

, Henry Fitzmiles,

William de Hereford William of Hereford, Baron Abergavenny was a holder of the feudal lordship of Abergavenny in the Welsh Marches in the mid twelfth century. Lineage William of Hereford was a son of Miles of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford and his wife Sybil de ...

, and

Mahel de Hereford Mahel of Hereford was a holder of the feudal lordships of Brecon and Abergavenny in the Welsh Marches in the mid 12th century. Lineage Mahel of Hereford was a younger son of Miles of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford and his wife Sibyl of Neufm ...

. Bertha's paternal grandparents were Walter FitzRoger de Pitres, Sheriff of Gloucester and Bertha de Balun of Bateden, a descendant of

Hamelin de Balun Hamelin de Ballon (or Baalun, Baalan, Balun, Balodun, Balon, etc.) (born ca. 1060, died 5 March 1105/6) was an early Norman Baron and the first Baron Abergavenny and Lord of Over Gwent and Abergavenny; he also served William Rufus.J. Horace R ...

, and her maternal grandparents were

Bernard de Neufmarché Bernard de Neufmarché (), also Bernard of Newmarket or Bernard of Newmarch was the first of the Norman conquerors of Wales. He was a minor Norman lord who rose to power in the Welsh Marches before successfully undertaking the invasion and con ...

, Lord of Brecon, and Nesta ferch Osbern. The latter was a daughter of Osbern FitzRichard of

Richard's Castle Richard's Castle is a village, castle and two civil parishes on the border of the counties of Herefordshire and Shropshire in England. The Herefordshire section of the parish had a population of 250 at the 2011 Census. The Shropshire section o ...

, and Nesta ferch Gruffydd. Bertha was a direct descendant, in the maternal line, of

Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Gruffydd ap Llywelyn ( 5 August 1063) was King of Wales from 1055 to 1063. He had previously been King of Gwynedd and Powys in 1039. He was the son of King Llywelyn ap Seisyll and Angharad daughter of Maredudd ab Owain, and the great-gre ...

(1007- 5 August 1063) and Edith (Aldgyth), daughter of Elfgar, Earl of

Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ye ...

. Bertha's father Miles served as

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

to King

Stephen of England Stephen (1092 or 1096 – 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. He was Count of Boulogne '' jure uxoris'' from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 1135 u ...

. He later served in the same capacity to

Empress Matilda Empress Matilda ( 7 February 110210 September 1167), also known as the Empress Maude, was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war known as the Anarchy. The daughter of King Henry I of England, she moved to Germany as ...

after he'd transferred his allegiance. In 1141, she made him Earl of Hereford in gratitude for his loyalty. On 24 December 1143, he was killed whilst on a hunting expedition in the Forest of Dean.

Marriage and issue

In 1150, Bertha married William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber (1112–1192), son of Philip de Braose, 2nd Lord of Bramber and Aenor, daughter of Judael of Totnes. William and Bertha had three daughters and two sons, including William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber. In 1173, Bertha's brothers all having died without issue, she brought the Lordships and castles of Brecknock and Abergavenny, to her husband. Hay Castle had already passed to her from her mother, Sibyl of Neufmarche in 1165, whence it became part of the de Braose holdings. In 1174, Bertha's husband became

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

of Hereford. Bertha's children include *

William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber William de Braose, (or William de Briouze), 4th Lord of Bramber (1144/1153 – 9 August 1211), court favourite of King John of England, at the peak of his power, was also Lord of Gower, Abergavenny, Brecknock, Builth, Radnor, Kington, L ...

, (1144/1153- 11 August 1211, Corbeil), married Maud de St. Valery, daughter of Bernard de St. Valery, by whom he had 16 children. * Roger de Braose or Reynold de Briouse * Sibyl de Braose (died after 5 February 1227), married

William de Ferrers, 3rd Earl of Derby William I de Ferrers, 3rd Earl of Derby (died 31 December 1189) was a 12th-century English Earl who resided in Tutbury Castle in Staffordshire and was head of a family which controlled a large part of Derbyshire known as Duffield Frith. He was a ...

(1136- 21 October 1190 at

Acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...

), son of

Robert de Ferrers, 2nd Earl of Derby Robert II de Ferrers, 2nd Earl of Derby (c. 1100 – 1162) was a younger, but eldest surviving son of Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby and his wife Hawise. He succeeded his father as Earl of Derby in 1139 (William, his elder brother, havin ...

and

Margaret Peverel Margaret Peverell, Countess of Derby (b. circa 1114, Nottinghamshire, England), was an English noblewoman who lived at Tutbury Castle in Staffordshire, England. Family and marriage Margaret was the daughter of William Peverel the Younger of P ...

, by whom she had issue. * Maud de Braose, married John de Brompton, by whom she had issue.Eyton's Antiquities of Shropshire, Vol 4, p 246

Legacy

Bertha died on an unknown date. She was the ancestress of many noble English families which included the de Braoses, de Beauchamps, de Bohuns and de Ferrers; as well as the Irish families of de Lacy and de Burgh.

Ancestry

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bertha of Hereford Anglo-Normans Anglo-Norman women 1130s births Year of death unknown Daughters of British earls 12th-century English women 12th-century English people