Peter de Preaux, known in his time in the

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intelligib ...

language as Pierre de Préaux, (died 1212) was a

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

in the service of the

Angevin Angevin or House of Anjou may refer to: *County of Anjou or Duchy of Anjou, a historical county, and later Duchy, in France **Angevin (language), the traditional langue d'oïl spoken in Anjou **Counts and Dukes of Anjou * House of Ingelger, a Frank ...

kings of England. Osbert, Peter's father, was a minor Norman baron in the Roumois (the neighborhood of

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

, the capital of Normandy). He held the tower and ville of Preaux as well as land at

Darnétal Darnétal (; Norman: ''Dernétal'') is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography A light industrial suburban town surrounded by woodland, situated some east of the centre of Rouen at the junct ...

. Osbert also owned a scattering of manors in England. Peter, as the second son of the sire de Preaux, had few prospects for a landed estate. He, along with his brothers John, William, and Enguerrand were part of the royal household from a very early age. Peter would serve in succession, Henry II,

Richard I Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

, and

John 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 Emp ...

. Peter and William were known throughout the tournament circuit of the day as fierce warriors and competent knights. Sometime prior to 1189 CE, Osbert had died. John, the eldest son succeeded him to the family barony.

Crusade

Peter and William accompanied King Richard on

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 ...

in 1190. Peter was assigned the dignity of royal

standard-bearer A standard-bearer, also known as a flag-bearer is a person (soldier or civilian) who bears an emblem known as a standard or military colours, i.e. either a type of flag or an inflexible but mobile image, which is used (and often honoured) as a ...

over the hereditary standard-bearer of England, Robert Trussebut. Peter and William were known to be with the King at Vezelay, Marseille, Sicily, the conquest of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

, the

Siege of Acre Siege of Acre may refer to: * Siege of Acre (1104), following the First Crusade *Siege of Acre (1189–1191), during the Third Crusade * Siege of Acre (1263), Baibars laid siege to the Crusader city, but abandoned it to attack Nazareth. *Siege of A ...

, the

Battle of Arsuf The Battle of Arsuf took place on 7 September 1191, as part of the Third Crusade. It saw a multi-national force of Crusaders, led by Richard I of England, defeat a significantly larger army of the Ayyubid Sultanate, led by Saladin. Followin ...

, the march to Jaffa, the advance on Jerusalem, Darum, and last but not least, the Battle of Jaffa. After the truce had been established between Richard and

Saladin Yusuf ibn Ayyub ibn Shadi () ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known by the epithet Saladin,, ; ku, سه‌لاحه‌دین, ; was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from an ethnic Kurdish family, he was the first of both Egypt and ...

, Peter was assigned an important mission with other household knights, including

William des Roches William des Roches (died 1222) (in French Guillaume des Roches) was a French knight and crusader who acted as Seneschal of Anjou, of Maine and of Touraine. After serving the Angevin kings of England, in 1202 he changed his loyalty to King Philip II ...

and

Gerard de Fournival Gerard is a masculine forename of Proto-Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. Like many other early Germanic names, it is dithematic, consisting of two meaningful constituents put together. In this ca ...

. The crusading host had been permitted by the Muslims to complete the pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Peter, and his band, had been sent ahead of the first battalion to obtain safe conducts. According to the chronicle of the crusade attributed to

Geoffrey of Vinsauf Geoffrey of Vinsauf ( fl. 1200) is a representative of the early medieval grammarian movement, termed ''preceptive grammar'' for its interest in teaching '' ars poetria''. ''Ars poetria'' is a subdivision of the grammatical art (''ars grammatica ...

, Peter had fallen asleep at one of the villages where he was to meet a

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...

embassy. The crusaders charged ahead without receiving their safe conducts. When Peter and company had awaken, they realized that they were already behind the Christian host. Peter made all haste to catch up. He was then reprimanded by the column's commander, the king's cousin, Andrew of Chauvigny. King Richard's last act prior to departing the

Holy Land The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...

for Europe was to ransom Peter's brother, William. He had been captured by Saladin's forces a year prior while personally keeping the King from being captured. William and Peter returned to Normandy in late 1192.

France

Peter served King Richard throughout his wars against

Philip II of France Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French ...

, 1194–1199. During the last years of Angevin rule in Normandy 1202–1204,

made both Peter and William important territorial military governors in Normandy. Peter was made Governor of the Channel Islands, King John granting total lordship of the islands to Peter by 1203. and William was made bailiff of the Oximin. By December 1203, King John left an already invaded Normandy, never to return. John of Preaux sided at this point with Philip of France. King John had left the defense of the capital with Peter as commander. His force included Henri d'Estouteville, Robert d'Esneval, Richard de Villequier, Thomas de Pavilly, Peter de Hotot and many knights of Robert,

count of Alençon Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility.L. G. Pine, Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty'' ...

who did not follow their lord into his treason against King John. By spring of 1204,

was surrounded by the forces of the King of France. Normandy had been lost. Peter, in agreement with the leading men of the city, surrendered to Philip of France. Peter then took ship to England where he was well received by King John as he brought the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

, of which he was the Governor, under the control of the English Crown.

Family

Peter was granted some of the lands of his brother John as ''Terra Normanorum''. In addition, Peter married in 1201 Mary de Vernon, daughter of William de Vernon, 5th Earl of Devon and the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

. Peter retired to a quiet life on his new English estates. It is believed that he died sometime in the year 1212.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Preaux, Peter De 12th-century births 1212 deaths Norman warriors Preux, Peter de Christians of the Third Crusade Preux, Peter de

Crusade

France

Family

See also

References