William de Mohun of Dunster, Earl of Somerset (c. 1090 – c. 1155), 2nd
feudal baron of Dunster, was a favourite of
Empress Matilda and a loyal supporter of her in the war against
King Stephen, during which he earned the epithet of the "Scourge of the West".
Life
William was the son of
William de Moion, who was seigneur of
Moyon
Moyon () is a former commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Moyon Villages.Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy. . The elder William was
High Sheriff of Somerset
The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government ...
in 1084.
During the war between Matilda and Stephen, Stephen marched against Mohun's castle at Dunster, but finding it too hard to take, he left Henry de Tracy to keep Mohun under siege.
Empress Matilda conferred upon him the title
Earl of Somerset
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...
, in 1141. In the foundation charter of the priory at Bruton
, he describes himself as "Willielmus de Moyne, comes Somersetensis".
Unlike
Baldwin de Redvers
Baldwin de Redvers, 1st Earl of Devon (died 4 June 1155), feudal baron of Plympton in Devon, was the son of Richard de Redvers and his wife Adeline Peverel.
He was one of the first to rebel against King Stephen, and was the only first rank magnat ...
who was created
Earl of Devon
Earl of Devon was created several times in the English peerage, and was possessed first (after the Norman Conquest of 1066) by the de Redvers (''alias'' de Reviers, Revieres, etc.) family, and later by the Courtenay family. It is not to be co ...
by Matilda at around the same time, William's title was not recognised by Stephen or
Henry II, Matilda's son, and his descendants did not use the title.
Family
William de Mohun, Earl of Somerset, married Agnes de Gaunt, daughter of Walter de Gaunt and Maud of Brittany, daughter of
Stephen, Count of Tréguier, 3rd Lord of Richmond (born btw. 1058/62died 21 April 1136), (he is sometimes misidentified as "Stephen, Count of Brittany").
[Weis, Frederick Lewis. ''Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists Who Came to America before 1700''. Eighth ed. (2004): p. 137 ine 143:24(author states, "AGNES DE GAUNT, m. William de Mohun, adult by 1131, d. in or bef. 1155, Earl of Somerset, held barony of Dunster, Somerset, son of Sir William de Mohun, d. aft. 1190, lord of Dunster, Sheriff of Somerset, 1084, 1086, by his wife Adeliz.").]
References
Sources
*
*''Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists Who Came to America Before 1700'' by Frederick Lewis Weis; Line 143-24
*G. E. C., ed. Geoffrey F. White. ''The Complete Peerage''. (London: St. Chaterine Press, 1953) Vol. XII, Part 1, p. 36-38.
*
1090s births
1155 deaths
Earls of Somerset
Peers created by Empress Matilda
{{England-earl-stub