William d'Aubigny (c. 110912 Oct 1176), also known as William d'Albini, William de Albini and William de Albini II, was an English nobleman. He was son of
William d'Aubigny and Maud Bigod, daughter of
Roger Bigod of Norfolk.
William fought loyally for King
Stephen of England
Stephen (1092 or 1096 – 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. He was Count of Boulogne '' jure uxoris'' from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 113 ...
, who created him first
Earl of Arundel
Earl of Arundel is a title of nobility in England, and one of the oldest extant in the English peerage. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and it is used (along with the earldom of Surrey) by his heir apparent as a courtesy title ...
(more precisely,
Earl of Sussex) and then
Earl of Lincoln
Earl of Lincoln is a title that has been created eight times in the peerage of England, most recently in 1572. The Hereditary peerage, earldom was held as a subsidiary title by the Duke of Newcastle, Dukes of Newcastle-under-Lyne, from 1768 to 1 ...
. In 1153 he helped arrange the truce between Stephen and
Henry Plantagenet
Henry II () was Monarchy of the United Kingdom, King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189. During his reign he controlled Kingdom of England, England, substantial parts of Wales in the High Middle Ages, Wales and Lordship of Ireland ...
, known as the
Treaty of Wallingford, which brought an end to
The Anarchy
The Anarchy was a civil war in England and Duchy of Normandy, Normandy between 1138 and 1153, which resulted in a widespread breakdown in law and order. The conflict was a war of succession precipitated by the accidental death of William Adel ...
. His first known appearance as "earl" was at Christmas 1141.
When Henry Plantagenet ascended the throne as
Henry II
Henry II may refer to:
Kings
* Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014
*Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154
*Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...
, he confirmed William's earldom and gave him direct possession of
Arundel Castle
Arundel Castle is a restored and remodelled medieval castle in Arundel, West Sussex, England. It was established by Roger de Montgomery in the 11th century. The castle was damaged in the English Civil War and then restored in the 18th and earl ...
(instead of the possession in right of his wife (died 1151) he had previously had). He remained loyal to the king during the 1173 revolt of
Henry the Young King
Henry the Young King (28 February 1155 – 11 June 1183) was the eldest son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine to survive childhood. In 1170, he became titular King of England, Duke of Normandy, Count of Anjou and Maine. Henry th ...
, and helped defeat the rebellion.
In 1143, as
Earl of Lincoln
Earl of Lincoln is a title that has been created eight times in the peerage of England, most recently in 1572. The Hereditary peerage, earldom was held as a subsidiary title by the Duke of Newcastle, Dukes of Newcastle-under-Lyne, from 1768 to 1 ...
, he made two charters confirming a donation of land around
Arundel in
Sussex
Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
to the
abbey of Affligem in
Brabant, with William's brother, Olivier, present.
He was the builder of the
castle
A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
at
Castle Rising, Norfolk.
William is the first proven English supporter of the crusader
Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem and before 1146 had granted them land at
Wymondham
Wymondham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the South Norfolk district of Norfolk, England. It lies on the River Tiffey, south-west of Norwich and just off the A11 road (England), A11 road to London. The pari ...
and built a
Leper Hospital near his castle in Norfolk.
His wife, Adeliza, was also a major benefactor to leper hospitals at
Wilton, Wiltshire
Wilton is a town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Wiltshire, England. Lying about west of the city of Salisbury, and until 1889 the county town of Wiltshire, it has a rich heritage dating back to the Anglo-Saxons. The parish had ...
and Arundel
and his cousin,
Roger de Mowbray and his family, were to become the most significant patrons of the Order's headquarters at
Burton Lazars Hospital.
Marriage
William was an important member of
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 household, and after the king's death he married Henry's widow,
Queen
Queen most commonly refers to:
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen (band), a British rock band
Queen or QUEEN may also refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Q ...
Adeliza of Louvain, in 1138. William and Adeliza were parents to the following children:
*
William d'Aubigny, 2nd Earl of Arundel
* Reynor
* Henry
* Geoffrey
* Alice
* Olivia
* Agatha
References
Sources
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arundel, William d'Aubigny, 1st Earl Of
1100s births
1176 deaths
12th-century English nobility
Anglo-Normans
Earls of Lincoln
*01
Earls of Sussex
Peers created by King Stephen