Oliver fitz Regis or Oliver Fitzroy (died 1218/1219) was an illegitimate son of

John, King of England John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Empi ...

. Oliver's mother was Hawise (Hadwisa), a sister of

Fulk FitzWarin Fulk FitzWarin (1160x1180 – c. 1258), variant spellings ( Latinized ''Fulco filius Garini'', Welsh ''Syr ffwg ap Gwarin''), the third (Fulk III), was a prominent representative of a marcher family associated especially with estates in Shrops ...

. He was probably born before John became king in 1199. Oliver fought for his father during the

First Barons' War The First Barons' War (1215–1217) was a civil war in the Kingdom of England in which a group of rebellious major landowners (commonly referred to as barons) led by Robert Fitzwalter waged war against King John of England. The conflict resulte ...

. In June 1216, he was in command of

Wolvesey Castle Wolvesey Castle, also known as the "Old Bishop's Palace", is a ruined building in Winchester, Hampshire, England that was a bishop's palace, and was briefly fortified during the later years of Henry of Blois, the Bishop of Winchester. Histor ...

when it was besieged by Prince Louis of France and the rebel barons. In April 1217, as Louis approached

Dover Castle Dover Castle is a medieval castle in Dover, Kent, England and is Grade I listed. It was founded in the 11th century and has been described as the "Key to England" due to its defensive significance throughout history. Some sources say it is the ...

from the sea, Oliver and

William of Cassingham William of Cassingham (or Willikin of the Weald) (died 1257) was a country squire of Cassingham (now Kensham) in Kent at the time of the First Barons' War. During that conflict, he raised a guerrilla force of archers which opposed the otherwise ...

attacked the small force which Louis had left behind after the failed siege of Dover in 1216. As a result, Louis was forced to land at

Sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

. In October 1215, Oliver's father rewarded him with a cask of wine. In November 1215, he was given the castle of Tonge. The regents of his half-brother, Henry III, confirmed this grant in June 1217. In July 1216, he was granted the manor of

Erdington Erdington is a suburb and ward of Birmingham in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Warwickshire and located northeast of central Birmingham, bordering Sutton Coldfield. It was also a council constituency, managed by its o ...

. In March 1218, he granted control of the estate of Hamedon until Eve de Tracy could reclaim by payment of sixty marks. Eve was probably Oliver's mother's sister. Oliver joined the

Fifth Crusade The Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) was a campaign in a series of Crusades by Western Europeans to reacquire Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land by first conquering Egypt, ruled by the powerful Ayyubid sultanate, led by al-Adil, brother of Sala ...

in 1218. In doing so, he may have been discharging his late father's unfulfilled vow. He raised 100 marks for his venture by pawning a royal wardship. With a group of English crusaders, he landed at the siege of Damietta in September or August. He died at Damietta in late 1218 or early 1219. It is unclear if he died of an illness or in battle. His body was returned to England and buried in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

. There is no record that he married.

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Works cited

* * * * * * {{refend 1190s births 1210s deaths Children of John, King of England People of the Barons' Wars Christians of the Fifth Crusade Sons of kings