Family Tree Part 4: Descendants of William the Conqueror

As I have researched the family tree, I am always amazed at the branches that I discover. Amazingly, there are no less than 10 branches that all go back to William the Conqueror, all of them through my grandfather, Raymond Mills. They are all fascinating to explore and I hope to show several of them on this blog. Today I will highlight one of the more interesting of them.

1. William the Conqueror (King William I of England), b. Oct 14, 1024, Falaise, Normandy; d. Sep 9, 1087, France.
m. Matilda of Flanders, b. abt 1031, Flanders; d. Nov 2, 1083, Normandy.

Note: King of England was an illegitimate child of Robert I, Duke of Normandy, who died in 1035 while returning from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. At only eight years of age, William became the new Duke of Normandy. By 1064, he had conquered and won two neighboring provinces Brittany and Maine. In the meantime, the childless King of England Edward the Confessor, whose mother was a sister of William’s grandfather—promised William succession to the English throne. However, when Edward died in 1066, his brother-in-law and most powerful of the English lords, Harold Goodwin, claimed the throne of England for himself (despite an oath he made to William to support his claim). The Witan, a council of English lords that commonly took part in deciding succession, supported Harold. William, angered by the betrayal, decided to invade England and enforce his claim.

William assembled a fleet and an army on the French coast, but due to unrelenting north winds, their advance was delayed for several weeks. In the meantime, the Norwegian army invaded England from the North Sea. Harold, who had been preparing for William’s invasion from the south, rapidly moved his army north to defend England from Norway. After defeating the Norwegians, Harold unwisely marched his troops back down to meet William, without a rest. On October 14, 1066, the two armies met in the famous Battle of Hastings. King Harold and his two brothers were killed in the battle, and since no one of stature remained to raise a new army, William’s path to the throne was clear. He was crowned King William I of England on Christmas Day.

2. King Henry I of England, b. abt 1068, Selby, England; d. Dec 1, 1135, near Gisors, France.
m. Matilda of Scotland, (dau of King Malcolm III of Scotland and Saint Margaret) b. 1080; d. May 1, 1118, Westminster Palace.

Note: Henry was the youngest son of William the Conqueror and brother to William II. When William II was killed while hunting with Henry, he seized the royal treasure and assended to the throne. In 1101, his brother Robert, Duke of Normandy, invaded England. He was halted by Anslem, Bishop of Canterbury, and his army withdrew. In 1106, war broke out again between the brother. Henry defeated Robert, and kept him prisoner for the rest of his life, while taking possession of Normandy. He had no male heirs, just a daughter named Matilda. Upon Henry's death, his nephew, Stephen, took the throne.

3. Empress Matilda, b. February 1102; d. Sep 10, 1167.
m. Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, aka Geoffrey "le Plantagenet" (son of Fulk V and Ermengarde Countess of Maine), b. Aug 24, 1113, Anjou (now part of France); d. Sep 7, 1151, Chateau-et-Loire, France.

Note: Empress Matilda (sometimes Maud or Maude; later Countess of Anjou and Lady of the English) was the daughter and dispossessed heir of Henry I of England. She was married to Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor, and then to Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, by whom she became the mother of Henry II of England. Matilda was the first female ruler of the Kingdom of England. Her failure to secure that rule meant that her undisputed period of reign in 1141 was extremely brief. (Wikipedia)

4. King Henry II of England, b. Mar 5, 1133, Le Mans, Sarthe, France; d. July 6, 1189, Chinon, Indre-et-Loire, France.
m. Eleanor of Aquitaine (William X, Count Of Poiton, Duke Of Aquitaine and Aenor De Chatellerault), b. 1121, Chateau de Belin, Gironde, France; d. Mar 31, 1204, Mirabell Castle, Tarn-et-Garonne, France.

Note: Eleanor was the only woman ever to be married to 2 different kings (Louis VII of France and Henry II of England), and the mother of 2 different kings (Richard the Loin-Heart and King John). She was portayed by Katherine Hepburn in the movie The Lion In Winter.

Henry was the first Plantagenet King of England. He inherited Normandy, Anjou, and Maine. He gained the duchy of Aquitaine through his marriage to Eleanor. In 1152 he invaded England. The following year, he forced King Stephen to name him heir to the throne. He was crowned king following Stephen's death in 1154. He had Thomas à Becket murdered for not accepting his Constitutions of Clarendon, designed to limit clerical privileges. Henry's son succeeded him as Richard I, the Lion-Hearted. Henry was portrayed by Peter O'Toole in the movie The Lion In Winter.

5. King John of England (John Lackland), b. Dec 24, 1166, Kings Manor House, Oxford, England; d. Oct 19, 1216, Newark, Nottinghamshire, England.
m. Isabella De Taillefer (dau of Aymer De Taillefer and Alix De Courtenay), b. abt 1188, France; d. May 31, 1246, Fontevrault Abbe, Fontevrault, Maine-Et-Loire, France.

Note: In 1177, John was made lord of Ireland by his father. He made several bungling attempts to usurp the crown while his brother, King Richard The Lion-Heart was being held prisoner in Austria. He succeeded Richard in 1199, upon Richard's death. In 1200, he divorced his wife Isabel (Hadwisa) of Gloucester to marry Isabella of Angoulême. John had nearly all his English possessions in France seized by Philip II in 1204. In 1215, he signed the Magna Carta. King John is the villain of the legendary Robin Hood. John died in 1216 after a brief illness, and was succeeded by his 9 year old son, Henry III.

6. King Henry III of England, b. Oct 1, 1206, Winchester, England; d. Nov 16, 1272, Westminster, England.
m. Eleanor of Provence (dau of Raimond Berenger Provence V and Beatrice Countess of Savoy), b. abt 1233, France; d. June 24, 1291, Amesbury, Wiltshire, England.

Note: Henry succeeded his father John to the throne of England at the age of 9. He ruled under the regency of William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke. In 1227, he began his personal rule. Henry ruled England for 56 years. After his son, Edward, led royal troops to victory over Simon De Monfont's troops, Henry ruled in name only, as Edward held all the power. Edward became Edward I on his father's death.

7. King Edward I of England (Edward Longshanks), b. June 17, 1239, London, England; d. July 7, 1307, Burgh-by Sands.
m. Princess Marguerite of France (dau of King Philip III of France and Maria De Brabant), b. aft 1274; Feb 14, 1317, Marlborough Castle.

Note: Edward became King of England upon his father's death in 1272, even though he held power over his father for several years before that. In 1290, he expelled all the Jews from England. He spent 5 years fighting Welsh barons, who were subdued in 1283. In 1296, he began an attempt to take over Scotland. He was opposed by William Wallace, known as Braveheart. He defeated Wallace in 1298, but did not conquer Scotland. At the same time, he was also directing a war in France against Philip IV. He signed a peace treaty with Philip IV in 1303 and he married a sister of the the French King. He died on his way to crush a new revolt by the Scots. In the movie Braveheart, he is portrayed by Patrick McGoohan.

(Princess Marguerite was King Edward's second wife. His first wife, Eleanor of Castile, was the daughter of King Ferdinand III of Castile. Another branch of the family descends throught Edward and Eleanor's son, King Edward III.)

8. Thomas of Brotherton (1st Earl of Norfolk), b. June 1, 1300, Brotherton, England; d. Aug 4, 1338.
m. Alice Hayles (dau of Sir Roger Hayles and Alice Skogan).

Note: Thomas of Brotherton was the 1st Earl of Norfolk. His father died when he was 7 years old. Thomas' half-brother, Edward, now became king of England. The Earldom of Cornwall had been intended for Thomas, but Edward instead bestowed it upon his favorite, Piers Gaveston, in 1306. When he was 10 years old, his brother Edward II of England assigned him and another brother, Edmund, the estates of Roger Bigod, 5th Earl of Norfolk who had died without heir in 1306.
In 1312 he was titled, "Earl of Norfolk" and on February 10, 1316 he was created Marshal of England. When his brother went to Scotland in the war, he was left Keeper of England. Thomas was known for having a hot and violent temper. He was one of the many victims of the unchecked greed of Hugh the younger Despenser, who stole some of the young earl's lands. He allied himself with Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March when they invaded England in 1326, and stood as one of the judges in the trials against both Despensers.

9. Margaret of Norfolk, b. 1320, d. Mar 24, 1399.
m. Baron John De Segrave, b. 1315, d. 1353.

Note; Margaret, Duchess of Norfolk (also Countess of Norfolk, Lady Manny and Lady de Segrave, later construct Plantagenet) was Countess of Norfolk from 1338 to 1399. She became heiress to the Earldom after the death of her childless brother, Edward, in 1334.
In 1338, Margaret inherited the Earldom of Norfolk when her father died, becoming the 2nd Countess of Norfolk. Along with this title came the office of Lord Marshal. To date, she is the only woman to have served in this position (or, as it was called in the future, Earl Marshal).
In 1350, Margaret and John de Segrave began seeking a divorce based on the premise that they were contracted in marriage before she was of age, and that she had never consented to marry him. Furthermore, she had begun a relationship with a knight of great renown, Sir Walter Manny, 1st Baron Manny, as she crossed the channel in October 1350 to meet with him in Calais, without the king's permission. The inquisition regarding this incident shows that Margaret illegally crossed the Channel and met with Manny's servant, who broke his lantern with his foot so she could pass unnoticed.
John de Segrave died in 1353, before their divorce could be finalized; the next year Margaret wed Walter Manny. Sir Walter died in 1371. Margaret never remarried, and as a widow was created Duchess of Norfolk for life in 1397. Margaret, Duchess of Norfolk, died in 1399 and was buried in the choir of the Grey Friars, London.

10. Elizabeth De Segrave, b. OCt 25, 1338, Abbey, Croxton, Leicestershire, England; d. 1375.
m. Lord/Baron John de Mowbray III (son of Lord John de Mowbray II and Lady Joan Plantagenet), b. June 25, 1340, Epworth, Isle of Axholme, Lincolnshire, England; d. Oct 19, 1368, Constantinople, Turkey.

Note: John de Mowbray was the 4th Baron Mowbray. As was the custom of lords at the time, de Mowbray served in the French wars. The 4th Baron took the cross and met his end near Constantinople, fighting against the Turks.

11. Sir Thomas de Mowbray I, Duke of Norfolk, b. Mar 22, 1366, Epworth, Isle of Axholme, Lincolnshire, England; d. Sep 22, 1399, Venice, Italy.
m. Lady Elizabeth FitzAlan (dau of Richard FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel and Elizabeth De Bohun), b. 1366, Derbyshire, England; d. July 8, 1425, Heveringham, Nottingham, England.

Note: Lady Elizabeth had four husbands and at least five children.

Note: Thomas de Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk was an English nobleman.
On 10 February 1382, he succeeded his brother John as 6th Baron Mowbray and 7th Baron Segrave, and soon afterwards was created Earl of Nottingham, a title that had also been created for his elder brother. Three years later he was appointed Earl Marshal of England, and in that capacity he fought against the Scots and then against the French.
Lord Nottingham was one of the Lords Appellant to King Richard II who deposed some of King Richard's court favorites in 1387. The King's uncle, Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester, was imprisoned at Calais, where Nottingham was Captain. When Gloucester was killed in 1397, it was probably at the King's orders and probably with Nottingham's involvement. A few weeks later he was created Duke of Norfolk. His aged grandmother, the Countess of Norfolk, was still alive; she was created Duchess of Norfolk for life. When she died the next year he also became 3rd Earl of Norfolk.
Later, in 1398, Norfolk quarrelled with Henry of Bolingbroke, 1st Duke of Hereford (later King Henry IV), apparently due to mutual suspicions stemming from their roles in the conspiracy against the Duke of Gloucester. The King banished them both. After Hereford returned and usurped the throne, Norfolk was stripped of the Dukedom of Norfolk, though he retained his other titles. He died of the plague in Venice, on 22 September 1399.

12. Margaret De Mowbray, b. 1387, Norfolk, Essex, England; d. July 8, 1425.
m. Sir Robert Howard, K.G. (son of John Howard and Alice Tendring), b. abt 1383; d. 1436.

13. Lord/Sir John Howard, d. Aug 22, 1485.
m. Catherine De Moleyns, d. Nov 3, 1465.

Note: John Howard was created 1st Duke of Norfolk (of the 3rd creation) on June 28, 1483. The title had become extinct, firstly upon the death of John de Mowbray, 4th Duke of Norfolk (1444–1476), who had been 4th Duke of Norfolk (of the 1st creation) from 1461 until 1476, and again upon the illegitimisation on June 25, 1483 of Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York, who had been created Duke of Norfolk after marrying Anne Mowbray, the daughter of the late Norfolk.
John Howard was known as "Jack (or "Jock," hence: "Jockey") of Norfolk". He had the support of Edward IV of England who made him Constable of Norwich Castle, Sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk, Treasurer of the Royal Household. For his support of Richard III during the desposition of Edward V in 1483, he was created Duke of Norfolk, Earl Marshal of England, and Lord Admiral of all England, Ireland, and Aquitaine.
He was married first to Katherine Moleyns (1424-1465), the daughter of William de Moleyns and Margery Whalesborough; and then to Margaret Chedworth (1436-1494), the daughter of Sir John Chedworth and Margaret Bowett. [1] Margaret Bowett's parents were Nicholas Bowett of Rippingale, Lincolnshire, England and Elizabeth La Zouche of Harringworth, Northampton, England.
He died at the Battle of Bosworth Field. The night before, someone had left him a note warning him that King Richard III, his "master," was going to be double-crossed (which he was): “Jockey of Norfolk, be not too bold, For Dickon, thy master, is bought and sold.”
He was buried in Thetford Priory, but his body seems to have been moved at the Reformation, possibly to the tomb of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk at Framlingham Church. The monumental brass of his first wife Katherine Moleyns can, however, still be seen in Suffolk.
He was the great-grandfather of Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, the second and fifth Queen consorts, respectively, of Henry VIII of England. His daughter, Margaret, by Katherine Moleyns, married Sir John Wyndham. His son, Thomas, became duke after him. (Wikipedia)

14. Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk, b. 1443, Stoke Newland, Suffolk, England; d. May 21, 1524, Farlingham Castle, Farlingham, Norfolk, England.
m. Elizabeth Tilney (dau of Sir Frederick Tilney), b. 1455, Ashwellthorpe, Norfolk, England; d. April 4, 1497, Farlingham Castle, Farlingham, Norfolk, England.

Note: Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (1443 – 21 May 1524) was an English soldier and statesman. Howard went to Ipswich School in his youth. As the Earl of Surrey, Howard fought for King Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, following which he was imprisoned for several years before having his titles and estates restored. He continued in the service of the Tudor dynasty. Beginning in 1497, Howard and the English repelled Scottish assaults at Norham Castle, a stronghold of the Bishopric of Durham, among others. In 1502, a treaty was signed between Scotland and England ending hostilities for a time, and Howard was able to rest from his military career for a while. He was appointed Lieutenant General of the North.
In 1511, Lord Surrey was appointed Warden-General of the Northern Marches. In 1513, the Scots invaded England to meet their treaty obligations to France under the Auld Alliance. At the Battle of Flodden Field, the English, under Howard's command, crushed the Scots. With victory, Lord Surrey was restored as Duke of Norfolk in 1514, which title had been forfeit since 1485 because of his father's support of Richard.
Thomas was the grandfather of two of King Henry VIII's wives, Anne Bolyn and Catherine Howard. He was also the great-grandfather of Queen Elizabeth I.

15. Muriel Howard, b. 1486, Buckingham Castle, Norfolk, England; d. Dec 14, 1512, Lambeth, England.
m. Edward Knyvett.

16. Anne Bourchier Knyvett.
m. Richard Sayre (son of John Sayer), b. 1508, Colchester, England; d. 1540, Amsterdam, Holland.

17. John Bourchier Sayre, b. 1528; d. Holland.
m. Elizabeth Hawkins (dau of William Hawkins [a confidant of King Henry VIII] and Joan Trelawney), b. 1532; d. 1595.

18. John Bourchier Sayer, b. abt 1561, Plymouth, England; d. 1625, Amsterdam, Ntherlands.
m. Marie LaMoral VonEgmont (dau of Philip LaMoral VanEgmont), b. 1561.

19. Richard Sears, b. 1590; d. 1676, Yarmouth, MA.
m. Dorothy Thacher, d. 1680.

Note: Richard landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts Colony from England on May 8, 1630 with the last of the Leydon (Leidon) Colony, from which the Mayflower Pilgrims were a part.

20. Lt. Silas Sears b. 1638, Marbelhead, MA; Jan 13, 1697, Yarmouth, Maine.
m. Anna Bursell (dau of James Bursell), d. Mar 4, 1725.

21. Josiah Sears, b. abt 1675, Yarmouth, MA; d. 1727, Provincetown, MA.
m. Mercy Howes (dau of Captain Stephen Howes and Rebecca Howes), b. 1679; d. May 20, 1720, Bridgewater, MA.

22. Josiah Sears, b. Aug 25, 1708, Chatham, Massachusetts; d. Jan 1722, Eastham, Massachusetts.
m. Azubah Knowles (dau of Col. Samuel Knowles, Jr. and Bethia Brown), b. Feb 6, 1714; d. March 1762.

Note: Josiah Sears was a cordwainer.

23. Mercy Sears, b. Aug 23, 1737, Eastham, Massachusetts; d. Between 1800 & 1810.
m. Capt. Archelaus Harding, Sr. (son of John Harding and Elizabeth Young), b. May 31, 1740, Eastham, Massachusetts; d. Mar 16, 1829.

Note: In 1790, Archelaus and Mercy were living in Frankfort, Maine.

24. Archelaus Harding, Jr., b. Jan 17, 1774; d. Dec. 25, 1859.
m. Hannah Moore, b. 1785; d. Mar 10, 1840, Prospect, Maine.

25. Hannah Files Harding, b. Mar 23, 1821.
m. Edward Avery (son of Enoch Avery and Margaret Shephard), b. June 1, 1812, Jefferson, Maine; d. Aug 31, 1886, Prospect, Maine.

26. Byron Cousins Avery, b. Nov. 13, 1853, Prospect, Maine; d. June 8, 1915.
m. Almeda Harriman (dau of Albert S. Harriman and Rebecca Ginn), b. Oct 15, 1857; d. May 2, 1919.

Note: Byron lived in the "old Harriman homestead at the Ferry on the west bank of the Penobscot (River) ... close beside Fort Knox" "Kept a country store in Prospect Ferry, with his father-in-law"
Almeda had a twin sister, Alfreda.

27. Evelyn Roberts Avery, b. 1884, d. 1957.
m. Percy Atwood Mills (son of Albert Reed Mills and Sarah Frank Douglass), b. Jan 23, 1882, West Brooksville, Maine; d. Sep 25, 1951, Bangor, Maine.

Note: Percy ran a general store at the ferry landing in Prosect, Maine. After the ferry stopped running following the opening of the Waldo-Hancock Bridge, Percy moved the store up to the main road. Percy served as a selectman in the town of Prospect. Was a member of the Fort Knox Lodge and Riverview Rebekah Lodge of Bucksport.

28. Raymond Douglass Mills (my grandfather)