Robert I de Brus, 1st Lord of Annandale and 1st Lord of Skelton (–1141), was an early-12th-century Anglo-Norman lord and the first of the
Bruce dynasty to hold lands in Scotland. A monastic patron, he is remembered as the founder of
Gisborough Priory
Gisborough Priory is a ruined Augustinian priory in Guisborough in the borough of Redcar and Cleveland, North Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1119 as the Priory of St Mary by the Norman feudal magnate Robert de Brus, an ancestor of the Sc ...
in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
, England, in present-day
Redcar and Cleveland
Redcar and Cleveland is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. Its council has been a unitary authority since 1996.
The borough was created in 1974 as Langbaurgh, and was one of four ...
, in 1119.
[Sherlock, Stephen.]
Gisborough Priory: Information for Teachers
English Heritage. 2001. 1 Oct 2008.
Biography

Robert is given conflicting parentage by antiquarians. When Robert I died, his first son Adam gave churches founded by an Adam de Bruis in the fief of Brix,
Normandy
Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy.
Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
, to the abbey of Saint Saviour le Vicomte. (
Robert II, Robert I's second son, acted as a witness for this donation). This grant was later confirmed by a Peter, son of William the Forester de Bruis. William is assumed to be Robert I's younger brother, making Peter the nephew of Robert, with all of them claiming Adam, 2nd Lord of Skelton, as their kinsman and overlord.
[Blakely, Ruth Margaret. ''The Brus Family in England and Scotland: 1100–1295'', p. 6]
Cokayne states that the family name is derived from the place name ''Bruis'', now
Brix, Manche
Brix () is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in northwestern France.
History
The origin of the name derives from the Gaulish root ''brut-''.
Brix is known primarily as being the assumed origin of the Bruce family, which emigrated ...
in the arrondissement of
Valognes
Valognes () is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.
Geography
Valognes is situated in the Cotentin Peninsula, southeast of Cherbourg. Valognes station has rail connections to Caen, Paris and Cherbourg.
His ...
in the
Cotentin Peninsula
The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its west lie the Gu ...
,
Normandy
Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy.
Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
. They came to
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
after King
Henry I of England
Henry I ( – 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 1087, Henr ...
's campaign in Normandy.
What is known clearly is that this Robert de Brus is first mentioned during the period 1094 and 1100, as a witness to a charter of
Hugh, Earl of Chester, granting the church of
Flamborough
Flamborough is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north-east of Bridlington town centre on the prominent coastal feature of Flamborough Head.
The most prominent man-made feature o ...
, Yorkshire, to
Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey was a 7th-century Christian monastery that later became a Benedictine abbey. The abbey church was situated overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England, a centre of the medieval Northumbrian ...
. Possibly the Earl of Chester in about 1100–1104 enfeoffed Robert of certain portions of his Cleveland fee in Lofthouse, Upleatham, Barwick, Ingleby, and other places.
Between 1103 and 1106, Robert de Brus attested with Ralph de Paynel and 16 others a charter of
William, Count of Mortain
William of Mortain (bef. 1084–aft. 1140) was Count of Mortain and the second Earl of Cornwall of 2nd creation.
Life
William was the son of Robert, Count of Mortain, the half-brother of William I of England and Maud de Montgomery, daughter of R ...
, to the abbey of
Marmoutier
:''See Marmoutier Abbey (Tours) for the former abbey in Tours.''
Marmoutier (; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin département in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The origin of the place is the former Marmoutier Abbey, of which the abbey church ...
. In 1109 at a Council of all England held at
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...
, he attested the charter of King Henry I confirming to the church of
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England
**County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States
Durham may also refer to:
Places
...
certain possessions which the men of
Northumberland
Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...
had claimed.
From 1109 to 1114, he appears in early charters in possession of numerous other manors and lands in Yorkshire, and in the same period he attested a charter of Henry I issued at Woodstock, Oxfordshire. He appears in the Lindsey Survey made 1115–1118 in possession of even further lands. There is a strong presumption that the King had given Robert his Yorkshire fee soon after the
battle of Tinchebray
The Battle of Tinchebray (alternative spellings: Tinchebrai or Tenchebrai) took place on 28 September 1106, in Tinchebray (today in the Orne ''département'' of France), Normandy, between an invading force led by King Henry I of England, and th ...
(28 September 1106).
Robert was present at the great gathering of northern magnates at Durham in 1121, and sometime during the period 1124–1130 he was with the King at Brampton. About 1131 he was in the retinue of Henry I at Lions, in Eure. At about the same time he attested with three of his personal knights a confirmation with Alan de Percy to the monks of Whitby.
It is said that Robert had been given some 80 manors in Yorkshire by King Henry. It is evident that Robert kept up his connections with other Normans too. A member of the Feugères family, of Feugères, Calvados, arr. Bayeux, canton of Isigny, witnessed charters of this Robert de Brus circa 1135 in Yorkshire.
Scotland
The friendship between Robert de Brus and David FitzMalcolm (after 1124 King
David I of Scotland
David I or Dauíd mac Maíl Choluim (Scottish Gaelic, Modern Gaelic: ''Daibhidh I mac haoilChaluim''; – 24 May 1153) was a 12th century ruler and saint who was David I as Prince of the Cumbrians, Prince of the Cumbrians from 1113 to 112 ...
), who was present in France with King Henry and was granted much of the
Cotentin Peninsula
The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its west lie the Gu ...
, may have commenced at least as early as 1120, at Henry's Court. When
David
David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament.
The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Dam ...
became king, he settled upon his military companion and friend the
Lordship of Annandale, in 1124,
There is, however, scant evidence that this Robert ever took up residence on his Scottish estates.
After the death of King Henry, David refused to recognise Henry's successor, King
Stephen
Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...
. Instead, David supported the claim of his niece and Stephen's cousin,
Empress Matilda
Empress Matilda (10 September 1167), also known as Empress Maud, was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war known as the Anarchy. The daughter and heir of Henry I, king of England and ruler of Normandy, she went to ...
, to the English throne and taking advantage of the chaos in England due to the disputed succession there, he took the chance to realise his son's claim to Northumberland. Robert de Brus of Annandale could not countenance these actions and as a result he and King David parted company, with Robert bitterly renouncing his homage to David before taking the English side at the
Battle of the Standard
The Battle of the Standard, sometimes called the Battle of Northallerton, took place on 22 August 1138 on Cowton Moor near Northallerton in Yorkshire, England. English forces under William of Aumale repelled a Scottish army led by King Davi ...
in 1138.
Before the battle, Robert had made an impassioned plea to David, calling to his remembrance how he and other Normans had by their influence in Scotland, as far back as 1107, obliged King Alexander to give a part of the Scottish Kingdom to his brother David. The appeal was in vain. Robert, and his eldest son Adam, joined the English army, while his younger son, Robert, with an eye on his Scottish inheritance, fought for David.
Marriage
Robert de Brus, 1st Lord of Annandale, married a woman named Agnes. She has been identified in various old sources as either Agnes de Pagnall, daughter of Foulques de Pagnall (Fulk de Paynel) of
Carleton, North Yorkshire
Carleton-in-Craven is a small village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England, and situated just over south-west from the market town of Skipton.
The village had a population of 1,118 at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 ...
, or Agnes de Bainard, daughter of Geoffrey de Bainard,
Sheriff
A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...
of
York
York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
. It has also been reported that he married twice to both of the above women. More modern research has revealed that both of these wives are unsubstantiated.
Evidence from charters involving Robert de Brus indicates that his wife Agnes was an heiress of the Surdeval family. Her exact parentage is not known, she may have been an unrecorded daughter of Richard de Sourdeval, who held many manors in the Yorkshire region. Alternatively, she may have been a daughter of either Richard's son Robert, or his daughter Matilda Maude de Sourdeval who married Ralph (Radulf) Paynel, Sheriff of Yorkshire.
Robert and Agnes had the following children:
* Adam I de Brus, eldest son and heir upon whom devolved, under feudal law, all the English estates. He only survived his father by 22 months, married Joanna de Meschines. He had a son also named Adam, whose recorded male line ended with
Peter III de Brus in 1272, but whose daughter Isabel married Henry de Percy, son of
Joscelin of Louvain
Joscelin of Louvain, also spelled Jocelin de Louvain and Jocelyn of Leuven, (1121/36–1180) was a nobleman from the Duchy of Brabant who settled in England after his half-sister Adeliza of Louvain married King Henry I. There Joscelin married a ...
, and became the ancestress of all the
Percy Earls
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used.
The titl ...
and
Dukes of Northumberland
Duke of Northumberland is a noble title that has been created three times in English and British history, twice in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of Great Britain. The current holder of this title is Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of N ...
.
*
Robert II de Brus, the younger son, upon whom his father had settled the Scottish Lordship of
Annandale, plus several wheat-producing ploughlands at
Skelton, Yorkshire, in his lifetime. Eventual ancestor of
Robert the Bruce
Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...
and all subsequent monarchs of Scotland.
* Agatha de Brus, married Ralph FitzRibald of Middleham.
Death
In 1119 Robert de Brus founded the
Augustinian monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...
of
Gisborough Priory
Gisborough Priory is a ruined Augustinian priory in Guisborough in the borough of Redcar and Cleveland, North Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1119 as the Priory of St Mary by the Norman feudal magnate Robert de Brus, an ancestor of the Sc ...
and installed his younger brother William de Brus as the first Prior there. The priory would be used as a family mausoleum for generations of the Brus family.
Robert de Brus died on 11 May 1141 at Skelton Castle in Yorkshire, England. As the founder of Gisborough Priory, he was buried inside the church, in the place of honour between the Canon's stalls in the Quire.
Priory histories record his death and his burial there. He was survived by his wife Agnes, and his children. Robert's son, Adam de Brus, Second Lord of Skelton, would be buried there in 1143, and his son Robert, Second Lord of Annandale, would be buried there after his death in 1194. Both the Scottish and English sides of the family would be laid to rest there, the last being Robert de Brus, Fifth Lord of Annandale in 1295. Eventually a great Cenotaph would be placed there honoring the Brus Family and commemorating its most famous descendant
King Robert Bruce (Brus) of Scotland.
[The Brus Cenotaph, https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/gisborough-priory/history/]
Footnotes
References
*
Duncan, A.A.M.'de Brus, Robert (I), Lord of Annandale (d. 1142)' ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...
'',
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2004, . Retrieved 28 October 2008.
*
Oram, Richard
Professor Richard D. Oram F.S.A. (Scot.) is a Scottish historian. He is a professor of medieval and environmental history at the University of Stirling. He is also the director of the Centre for Environmental History and Policy at the University ...
, ''David: The King Who Made Scotland'', (Gloucestershire, 2004)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brus, Robert De, 1st Lord of Annandale
Brus, Robert I de
Brus, Robert I de
Year of birth uncertain
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...
Lords of Annandale
People from the Duchy of Normandy
12th-century nobility
12th-century Normans
11th-century Normans
11th-century nobility