Ranulf de Soules 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 ...

who came to Scotland with David I and served as his cupbearer.M'Michael T., Feudal Family. pp.163-93

Early life

Ranulf was probably born in the Cotentin Peninsula at Soules, the family's seigneurie near

Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.David I gathered around him from

Henry I of England Henry I (c. 1068 – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in ...

's area of influence in northern France; he was therefore likely of a similar age to David. As David's tenant, Ranulf held

Great Doddington Great Doddington is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire in the United Kingdom, close to Wellingborough and just off the A45. At the time of the 2001 census, the parish's population was 1,061 increasing to 1,123 at the 2011 census. ...

on the former's Honour of Huntingdon. His ties to Great Doddington are confirmed when, as a settler in Scotland, he later granted the Church of Great Doddington,(Ecclesiam de Dodintona juxta Bertonam) to

Jedburgh Abbey Jedburgh Abbey, a ruined Augustinian abbey which was founded in the 12th century, is situated in the town of Jedburgh, in the Scottish Borders north of the border with England at Carter Bar. History Towards the middle of the 9th century, when th ...

. He apparently accompanied David to Cumbria around 1112 when the latter was essentially governor or titular earl of that region under England's King Henry and was encouraged by David to build Liddel Castle in Liddesdale to control that unruly area. Ranulf de Soulis built Liddel Castle, a

motte and bailey A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or Bailey (castle), bailey, surrounded by a protective Rampart (fortification ...

structure, at the junction of the Liddel and Esk rivers. This castle, the earthworks of which remain, therefore was probably built around 1115–1118, although apparently the first written mention of it was in an 1165 charter that William the Lion granted to the Canons of

. It is not to be confused with nearby

Hermitage Castle Hermitage Castle is a semi-ruined castle in the border region of Scotland. It is under the care of Historic Scotland. The castle has a reputation, both from its history and its appearance, as one of the most sinister and atmospheric castles in ...

, a later structure, or with

Liddel Strength Liddel Strength is an ancient monument near Carwinley, Cumbria, in northwest England. It consists of the earthwork remains of an Anglo-Norman border fortification (the seat of the barony of Liddel) destroyed by the Scots in 1346 (a wooden motte ...

that was built in the same region, but just within England, by Turgot de Rossedale, from a Yorkshire family.

Cupbearer

David appointed him as his Cup-bearer, the first person in the Norman tradition to hold that office in Scotland; after David's death he was cupbearer to Malcolm IV and later to William the Lion in the early part of his reign. The cupbearer (pincerna or butler) was not a major official at court, but it and other similar appointments gave their possessors influence at court and in affairs of state beyond the duties implied by their titles. Essentially, they became confidants and advisors to the King. The court was highly mobile in these times and court officials, such as the cupbearer, would often accompany the King on his excursions. Ranulf de Soulis witnessed a number of David's, and later Malcolm IV's and William's charters.

Legacy

According to Laurie,Laurie 1905 p.309 Ranulf died shortly before 1170. He was succeeded as Lord of Liddesdale by his nephew, who was also named Ranulf and who was the son of his brother, William.

Notes

Citations

References

* *Barrow, G.W.S.(1973).''The Kingdom of the Scots, Government, Church and Society from the eleventh to the fourteenth century'',325.New York: St Martin's Press. * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Soulis, Ranulf Scottish knights 12th-century Scottish people Lords of Liddesdale