Hamelin de Ballon (or Baalun, Baalan, Balun, Balodun, Balon, etc.) [1] (born ca. 1060, [2] died 5 March 1105/6) was an early Norman Baron and the first Baron Abergavenny and Lord of Over Gwent and Abergavenny; he also served William Rufus. [3]
Hamelin is traditionally made son of a Drogo (or Dru) de Ballon, lord of Ballon, today a commune in the department of Sarthe, Pays de la Loire. It was located within the medieval County of Maine, invaded and conquered by Duke William of Normandy in the early 1060s, just before his invasion of England.
Hamelin de Ballon and his brother Wynebald de Ballon appear first to have come to England during the reign of William II. Wynebald was granted lands in Gloucestershire and Somerset out of those forfeited by Turstin FitzRolf, and was made seneschal of Caerleon, referring to himself as one of Henry I's most important noblemen. Hamelin was given lands in southeast Wales, in what was to become the Welsh Marches, and in Wiltshire, where he held Castle Eaton, Cheverel and Sutton. He sited the early motte and bailey version of Abergavenny Castle and organised the early Norman protection of the settlement of what became the town of Abergavenny. Together with his brother Wynebald, he also founded the Benedictine Priory in the town as an alien cell of St Vincent, Le Mans, ca. 1100. He was already a benefactor of the latter foundation. [3] [4]
Hamelin had two sons, William de Ballon and Matthew de Ballon, both of whom predeceased him without issue. [5] His heirs were thus his two daughters. Emmeline de Ballon married Reginald, son of Roger, Earl of Hereford. His other daughter's name is unknown, but she was the mother of Hugh de Gundeville, administrator and justiciar of king Henry II. [6]
Hamelin was succeeded in some of the lands and the de facto title Baron Abergavenny by a favourite of king Henry I of England, Brian Fitz Count, who held it, like his other lands, in right of his wife. [7]
Robert Fitzhamon, or Robert FitzHamon, Seigneur de Creully in the Calvados region and Torigny in the Manche region of Normandy, was the first Norman feudal baron of Gloucester and the Norman conqueror of Glamorgan, southern Wales. He became Lord of Glamorgan in 1075.
William de Braose,, 4th Lord of Bramber, court favourite of King John of England, at the peak of his power, was also Lord of Gower, Abergavenny, Brecknock, Builth, Radnor, Kington, Limerick, Glamorgan, Skenfrith, Briouze in Normandy, Grosmont and White Castle.
Aust is a small village in South Gloucestershire, England, about 10 miles (16 km) north of Bristol and about 28 miles (45 km) south west of Gloucester. It is located on the eastern side of the Severn estuary, close to the eastern end of the Severn Bridge which carries the M48 motorway. The village has a chapel, a church and a public house. There is a large area of farmland on the river bank, which is sometimes flooded due to the high tidal range of the Severn. Aust Cliff, above the Severn, is located about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) from the village. The civil parish of Aust includes the villages of Elberton and Littleton-upon-Severn.
The title Baron Bergavenny was created several times in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of Great Britain, all but the first being baronies created by error. Abergavenny is a market town in South East Wales with a castle established by the Norman lord Hamelin de Balun c. 1087.
Miles FitzWalter of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford was a great magnate based in the west of England. He was hereditary Constable of England and Sheriff of Gloucestershire.
Roger de Breteuil, 2nd Earl of Hereford, succeeded in 1071 to the earldom of Hereford and the English estate of his father, William Fitz-Osbern. He is known to history for his role in the Revolt of the Earls.
FitzMartin or Fitz Martin was the surname of a Norman family based in England and Wales between 1085 and 1342.
de Lacy is the surname of an old Norman family which originated from Lassy, Calvados. The family took part in the Norman Conquest of England and the later Norman invasion of Ireland. The name is first recorded for Hugh de Lacy (1020–1085). His sons, Walter and Ilbert, left Normandy and travelled to England with William the Conqueror. The awards of land by the Conqueror to the de Lacy sons led to two distinct branches of the family: the northern branch, centred on Blackburnshire and west Yorkshire was held by Ilbert's descendants; the southern branch of Marcher Lords, centred on Herefordshire and Shropshire, was held by Walter's descendants.
Abergavenny Castle is a ruined castle in the market town of Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, Wales, established by the Norman lord Hamelin de Balun c. 1087. It was the site of a massacre of Welsh noblemen in 1175, and was attacked during the early 15th-century Glyndŵr Rising. William Camden, the 16th-century antiquary, said that the castle "has been oftner stain'd with the infamy of treachery, than any other castle in Wales."
Seisyll ap Dyfnwal was a 12th-century Welsh Lord of Gwent Uwchcoed.
North Cadbury is a village and civil parish 5 miles (8 km) west of Wincanton, by the River Cam, in the Unitary Authority of Somerset, England. It shares its parish council with nearby Yarlington and its civil parish includes the village of Galhampton, which got its name from the settlement of the rent-paying peasants, and the hamlet of Woolston.
Wynebald de Ballon, (c.1058–c.1126), was an early Norman magnate. He appeared in England during the reign of William Rufus, along with his brother, Hamelin de Ballon, later created 1st Baron of Abergavenny.
John de Baalun or Balun, was a justice itinerant and baron.
Turstin fitz Rolf, also known as Turstin le Blanc and Tustein fitz Rou played a prominent role in the Norman conquest of England and is regarded as one of the few proven companions of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
The House of Braose was a prominent family of Anglo-Norman nobles originating in Briouze, near Argentan, Orne, Normandy. Members of this family played a significant part in the Norman conquest of England and subsequent power struggles in England, Wales and Ireland in the 11th to 14th centuries.
Brian fitz Count was descended from the Breton ducal house, and became an Anglo-Norman noble, holding the lordships of Wallingford and Abergavenny. He was a loyal adherent of Henry I, King of England, and a staunch supporter of his daughter, the Empress Matilda, during the Anarchy (1135–1153).
The Manor of Dyrham was a former manorial estate in the parish of Dyrham in South Gloucestershire, England.
The feudal barony of Bampton was one of eight feudal baronies in Devonshire which existed during the mediaeval era, and had its caput at Bampton Castle within the manor of Bampton.
The feudal barony of Gloucester or Honour of Gloucester was one of the largest of the mediaeval English feudal baronies in 1166, comprising 279 knight's fees, or manors. The constituent landholdings were spread over many counties. The location of the caput at Gloucester is not certain as Gloucester Castle appears to have been a royal castle, but it is known that the baronial court was held at Bristol in Gloucestershire.
There have been four different baronies held by the Marmion family, two feudal baronies, one purported barony created by Simon de Montfort and one barony by writ.