Sir William Russell (1257–1311) was an English nobleman, knight, and holder of a ''

moiety Moiety may refer to: Chemistry * Moiety (chemistry), a part or functional group of a molecule ** Moiety conservation, conservation of a subgroup in a chemical species Anthropology * Moiety (kinship), either of two groups into which a society is ...

'' of the

feudal barony A feudal baron is a vassal holding a heritable fief called a ''barony'', comprising a specific portion of land, granted by an overlord in return for allegiance and service. Following the end of European feudalism, feudal baronies have largely been ...

North Cadbury North Cadbury is a village and civil parish west of Wincanton, by the River Cam, in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England. It shares its parish council with nearby Yarlington and its civil parish includes the village of Galhampton, w ...

, Somerset, but spent most of his life engaged in the administration and defence of the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

, where he obtained by marriage the manor of

Yaverland Yaverland is a village on the Isle of Wight, just north of Sandown on Sandown Bay. It has about 200 houses. About of a mile away from the village is the Yaverland Manor and Church. Holotype fossils have been discovered here of ''Yaverlan ...

. He served as constable of

Carisbrooke Castle Carisbrooke Castle is a historic motte-and-bailey castle located in the village of Carisbrooke (near Newport), Isle of Wight, England. Charles I was imprisoned at the castle in the months prior to his trial. Early history The site of Carisb ...

, and sat in

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

on two occasions, firstly as burgess for

Great Bedwyn Great Bedwyn is a village and civil parish in east Wiltshire, England. The village is on the River Dun about southwest of Hungerford, southeast of Swindon and southeast of Marlborough. The Kennet and Avon Canal and the Reading to Taunton ...

, Wiltshire, and then for the

County of Southampton Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire is ...

. As a baron his military service was called on several times by King Edward I ''Hammer of the Scots''.

Origin

William Russell was the third son and eventual heir of Sir Ralph Russell (b. 1204), son of Sir John Russell (d. c. 1224) of

Kingston Russell Kingston Russell is a settlement and civil parish west of Dorchester, in the Dorset district, in the county of Dorset, England. In 2001 the parish had a population of 35. The parish touches Compton Valence, Littlebredy, Long Bredy and Winterbo ...

, Dorset, steward of Kings

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

(1199–1216) and his young son Henry III (1216–1272). Shortly before his death King John had granted Russell the manor of Kingston by

grand serjeanty Under feudalism in France and England during the Middle Ages, tenure by serjeanty () was a form of tenure in return for a specified duty other than standard knight-service. Etymology The word comes from the French noun , itself from the Latin , ...

, which grant was confirmed by Henry. William had inherited from his mother Isabel de Newmarch a ''

'' of the Newmarch barony of North Cadbury, and it was this holding ''per baroniam'' which, although the other half had gone to

Nicholas de Moels Nicholas de Moels or Nicholas Molis (born c. 1195 - died 1268 or 1269) of North Cadbury in Somerset, was an AngloNorman royal administrator and household knight of King Henry III. In this capacity he was assigned many and varied offices and du ...

, the husband of Isabel's sister Hawise de Newmarch, nevertheless brought him membership of the

baronage {{English Feudalism In England, the ''baronage'' was the collectively inclusive term denoting all members of the feudal nobility, as observed by the constitutional authority Edward Coke. It was replaced eventually by the term '' peerage''. Or ...

, with all the onerous duties which accompanied such a dignity.

Marriage to Katherine de Aula

In about 1280 William married Katherine de Aula, heiress of the de Aula family of the Isle of Wight, who brought to the Russell family the manor of

, Isle of Wight.

Career

Sir William Russell was seated at Yaverland for the remainder of his life and played a central role in the defence of the Island from the frequent attacks by the French. He was appointed as one of three Wardens of the Island and Constable of

, the ''

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