E-mail from 13th July 2002

Dear Mr. Marek, 

I've checked out the new page and so far everything has worked fine. While 
I'm at it, I thought I'd send you some information on this page: 
http://genealogy.euweb.cz/anjou/anjou3.html 

A9. [illegitmate, apparently by Rosamund Clifford] William Longespee 

William Longspee, illegitimate son of King Henry II, made the 
following charter to Bradenstoke Priory: 

"Gift in alms by William Longespee, earl of Salisbury, for the 
souls of Ela, his wife, and the Countess Ida, his mother..." 

And then: 

"Gift in alms by William Longespee, earl of Salisbury, for the 
soul of Countess Ida, his mother..." 

Since William himself identifies his mother as being "Countess 
Ida", this effectively removes any notion that Rosamund Clifford had 
anything to do with his maternity. The only Countess Ida known in England 
was the wife of Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk. Her identification as the 
mother of William Longspee is proven by a recently discovered list of 
English prisoners captured by French forces in 1214 after the battle in 
Bouvines, Flanders. Among the captives is: 

"Rad[ulfus] Bigot, frater comitis Salesbir[iensis]" which, of 
course, translates as "Ralph Bigod, brother of the earl of Salisbury." 

This Ralph Bigod was the son of Roger Bigod and Countess Ida. The 
Earl of Salisbury mentioned is obviously his half-brother, William 
Longspee, who died 7 March 1225. William Longspee also had a daughter 
named Ida, and was appointed guardian to another Roger Bigod, the young 
son of his half-brother Hugh (another son of Roger and Ida). An added 
factor is that William Longspee's grandson married a great-niece of 
Rosamund, which would have required a dispensation had Rosamund been 
William's mother. No such dispensation has been found. 

Sources: 
London, Vera C. M., ed. *The Cartulary Bradenstoke Priory* 
Volume XXXV for the year 1979, Wiltshire Record Society. 

A10. [illegitimate, apparently by Rosamund Clifford] Geoffrey 

See above. There is no evidence Rosamund Clifford ever bore a 
child during the two years she served as Henry's mistress, from 1174 to 
her death in 1176. The tradition linking her to William and Geoffrey is 
more romantic than truthful. 
According to Given-Wilson and Curteis, Geoffrey was "...the son 
of a woman called Ykenai or Hikenai whose identity is mysterious. One 
chronicler said she was a woman of low birth and character, but she may 
in fact have been the daughter of a knight." Whatever the case, she was 
not named Rosamund Clifford. 

Soures: 
"The Royal Bastards of Medieval England" by Chris Given-Wilson 
and Alice Curteis, Barnes and Noble Books [1995]; New York. 

B6. [illegitimate by Agatha Ferrers] Richard Fitzroy of Chilham 

Richard was often called "Richard de Warenne" as well as Fitzroy 
and Fitzjohn, which gave rise to the theory that his mother was King 
John's first cousin, a daughter of the heiress Isabella de Warenne by 
Hamelin Plantagenet (a half-brother of King Henry II). 
According to Given-Wilson and Curteis, "One of John's bastards, 
however was undoubtedly the son of the sister of William of Warenne, 
earl of Warenne." This William of Warenne was the son of Isabella de 
Warenne and Hamelin Plantagenet; he took his mother's surname. He had 
the following sisters: 

1) Isabella, married Guilbert de l'Aigle, Lord of Pevensey. 
2) Matilda, married the Comte d'Eu. 
3) Ela, married William Fitzwilliam of Sprotborough. 

Richard Fitzroy de Warenne married Rose of Dover and had two 
daughters, named Lorette and Isabella. Based on the admittedly flimsy 
onomastics, I'd suggest it was Isabella de Warenne, wife of the Lord of 
Pevensey, was his mother. 

Soures: 
"The Royal Bastards of Medieval England" by Chris Given-Wilson 
and Alice Curteis, Barnes and Noble Books [1995]; New York. 

B7. [illegitimate by Agatha Ferrers/Clemence Dauntsey !dwid!] Joan 

Her mother is only named in the Tewkesbury Annals, where she is 
called "regina Clementia", hence "Queen Clemence". Of course, there was 
no Queen Clemence and Joan is well known to have been illegitimate, so 
this is probably a case of a monk trying to be courteous about the issue 
of his princesses' dubious legitimacy. The exact identity of Clemence is 
hotly debated, and until further information becomes available, I'd 
recommed just listing her as Clemence. 

D21. [illegitimate by a dau.of the Earl of Kildare] John Walter Fitzroy 
Botetourte 

The evidence for John Botetourt being a bastard of Edward I is 
extremely slim. A single MS of the Hayles abbey chronicle inserts his 
name in an isolated roundel in the vignette pedigree of Edward's children 
by his Queen. This MS suffers from numerous mistakes -- King John is 
given a son named William who never existed, and likewise King Henry III 
is given a daughter Matilda who is equally fictious. The royal wardrobe 
accounts mention John Botetourt often, but never identify him as a son 
of the King. His reputed half-brother, King Edward II, sent out a roll of 
letters in 1204-1205 which mention his cousins, the descendents of the 
bastard children of Edward's great-uncle Richard of Cornwall, but oddly 
enough Edward's letters never address John Botetourt as his own brother. 

Given what we now of Edward's fidelity (he was extremely devoted 
to both his wives) and the curious lack of contemporary verification, I 
would say that John Botetourt should be discounted as an illegitimate son 
of Edward I. 

Sources: 

"Edward I" by Michael Prestwhich, Berkeley CA/London 1988. 
"Eleanor of Castile" by John Carmi Parsons, note 149, p.274. 

Jessica Bonner TLHarrisnatnwide@aol.com


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15th July 2002