Chapter II · THE FIRST CHARTER OF THE KING.

Geoffrey de Mandeville was the grandson and heir of a follower of the conqueror of the same name. From Mandeville, a village, according to Mr. Stapleton, near Trevières in the Bessin,[98] the family took its name, which, being Latinized as "De Magnavilla," is often found as "De Magnaville." The elder Geoffrey appears in Domesday as a considerable tenant-in-chief, his estates lying in no less than eleven different counties.[99] On the authority of the Monasticon he is said by Dugdale to have been made constable of the Tower. Dugdale, however, has here misquoted his own authority, for the chronicle printed by him states, not that Geoffrey, but that his son and heir (William) received this office.[100] Its statement is confirmed by Ordericus Vitalis, who distinctly mentions that the Tower was in charge of William de Mandeville when Randulf Flambard was there imprisoned in 1101.[101] This may help to explain an otherwise puzzling fact, namely, that a Geoffrey de Mandeville, who was presumably his father, appears as a witness to charters of a date subsequent to this.[102]

Geoffrey de Mandeville founded the Benedictine priory of Hurley,[103] and we know the names of his two wives, Athelais and Leceline. By the former he had a son and heir, William, mentioned above, who in turn was the father of Geoffrey, the central figure of this work.[104]

The above descent is not based upon the evidence of the Monasticon alone, but is incidentally recited in those royal charters on which my story is so largely based. It is therefore beyond dispute. But though there is no pedigree of the period clearer or better established, it has formed the subject of an amazing blunder, so gross as to be scarcely credible. Madox had shown, in his History of the Exchequer (ii. 400), that Geoffrey "Fitz Piers" (Earl of Essex from 1199 to 1213) was Sheriff of Essex and Herts in 1192-94 (4 & 5 Ric. I.). Now Geoffrey, the son of Geoffrey "Fitz Piers," assuming the surname of "De Mandeville," became his successor in the earldom of Essex, which he held from 1213 to 1216. The noble and learned authors of the Lords' Reports on the Dignity of a Peer began by confusing this Geoffrey with his namesake the earl of 1141, and bodily transferring to the latter the whole parentage of the former. Thus they evolved the startling discovery that the father of our Geoffrey, the earl of 1141, "was Geoffrey Fitz Peter [i.e. the earl of 1199-1213], and probably was son of Peter, the sheriff at the time of the Survey."[105] But not content even with this, they transferred the shrievalty of Geoffrey "Fitz Piers" from 1192-94 (vide supra)[106] to a date earlier than the grant to Geoffrey de Mandeville (his supposed son) in 1141. Now, during that shrievalty the Earls "of Clare" enjoyed the tertius denarius of the county of Hertford. Thus their lordships were enabled to produce the further discovery that the Earls "of Clare" enjoyed it before the date of this grant (1141), that is to say, "either before or early in the reign of King Stephen."[107] The authority of these Reports has been so widely recognized that we cannot wonder at Courthope stating in his Historic Peerage of England (p. 248) that "Richard de Clare ... was Earl of Hertford, and possessed of the third penny of that county, before or early in the reign of King Stephen." Courthope has in turn misled Dr. Stubbs,[108] and Mr. Doyle has now followed suit, stating that Richard de Clare was "created Earl of Hertford (about) 1136."[109] It is therefore something to have traced this error to its original source in the Lords' Reports.

The first mention, it would seem, of the subject of this study is to be found in the Pipe-Roll of 1130, where we read—

"Gaufridus de Mandeville reddit compotum de Dccclxvjli. et xiiis. et iiijd. pro terra patris sui. In thesauro cxxxiiili. et vis. et viiid.

"Et debet Dcc et xxxiijli. et vjs. et viijd." (p. 55).

As he had thus, at Michaelmas, 1130, paid only two-thirteenths of the amount due from him for succession, that is the (arbitrary) "relief" to the Crown, we may infer that his father was but lately dead. He does not again meet us till he appears at Stephen's court early in 1136.[110] From the date of that appearance we pass to his creation as an earl by the first of those royal charters with which we are so largely concerned.[111]

The date of this charter is a point of no small interest, not merely because we have in it the only surviving charter of creation of those issued by Stephen, but also because there is reason to believe that it is the oldest extant charter of creation known to English antiquaries. That distinction has indeed been claimed for the second charter in my series, namely, that which Geoffrey obtained from the Empress Maud. It is of the latter that Camden wrote, "This is the most ancient creation-charter that I ever saw."[112] Selden duly followed suit, and Dugdale echoed Selden's words.[113] Courthope merely observes that it "is presumed to be one of the very earliest charters of express creation of the title of earl;"[114] and Mr. Birch pronounces it "one of the earliest, if not the earliest, example of a deed creating a peerage."[115] In despite, however, of these opinions I am prepared to prove that the charter with which we are now dealing is entitled to the first place, though that of the Empress comes next.

We cannot begin an investigation of the subject better than by seeking the opinion of Mr. Eyton, who was a specialist in the matter of charters and their dates, and who had evidently investigated the point. His note on this charter is as follows:—

"Stephen's earlier deeds of 1136 exhibit Geoffrey de Magnaville as a baron only. There are three such, two of which certainly, and the third probably, passed at Westminster. He was custos of the Tower of London, an office which probably necessitated a constant residence. There are three patents of creation extant by which he became Earl of Essex. Those which I suppose to precede this were by the Empress. The first of them passed in the short period during which Maud was in London, i.e. between June 24 and July 25, 1141. The second within a month after, at Oxford. In the latter she alludes to grants of lands previously made by Stephen to the said Geoffrey, but to no patent of earldom except her own. Selden calls Maud's London patent the oldest on record. It is not perhaps that, but it is older than this, though Dugdale thought not. Having decided that Stephen's patent succeeded Maud's, it follows that it (viz. this charter) passed after Nov. 1, 1141, when Stephen regained his liberty and Geoffrey probably forsook the empress. The king was at London on Dec. 7. In 1142 we are told (Lysons, Camb., 9) that this Geoffrey and Earl Gilbert were sent by Stephen against the Isle of Ely. He is called earl. We shall also have him attesting a charter of Queen Matilda (Stephen's wife).

"In 1143 he was seized in Stephen's court at St. Alban's.

"In 1144 he is in high rebellion against Stephen, and an ally of Nigel, Bishop of Ely. He is killed in Aug., 1144.

"On the whole then it would appear that the Empress first made him an earl as a means of securing London, the stronghold of Stephen's party, but that, on Stephen's release, the earl changed sides and Stephen opposed Maud's policy by a counter-patent (we have usually found counter-charters, however, to be Maud's). We have also a high probability that this charter passed in Dec., 1141, or soon after; for Stephen does not appear at London in 1142, when Geoffrey is earl and in Stephen's employ."[116]

Here I must first clear the ground by explaining as to the "three patents of creation" mentioned in this passage, that there were only two charters (not "patents") of creation—that of the king, which survives in the original, and that of the Empress, which is known to us from a transcript. As to the latter, it certainly "passed in the short period during which Maud was in London," but that period, so far from being "between June 24 and July 25, 1141," consisted only of a few days ending with "June 24, 1141." The main point, however, at issue is the priority of the creation-charters. It will be seen that Mr. Eyton jumped at his conclusion, and then proceeded: "Having decided," etc. This is the more surprising because that conclusion was at variance with what he admits to have been his own principle, namely, that he had "usually found counter-charters to be Maud's."[117] In this case his conclusion was wrong, and his original principle was right. I think that Mr. Eyton's error was due to his ignorance of the second charter granted by the king to Geoffrey.[118] As he was well acquainted with the royal charters in the duchy of Lancaster collection it is not easy to understand how he came to overlook this very long one, which is, as it were, the keystone to the arch I am about to construct.

It is my object to make Geoffrey's charters prove their own sequence. When once arranged in their right order, it will be clear from their contents that this order is the only one possible. We must not attempt to decide their dates till we have determined their order. But when that order has been firmly established, we can approach the question of dates with comparative ease and confidence.

To determine from internal evidence the sequence of these charters, we must arrange them in an ascending scale. That is to say, each charter should represent an advance on its immediate predecessor. Tried by this test, our four main charters will assume, beyond dispute, this relative order.

First charter of the king.

First charter of the Empress.

Second charter of the king.

Second charter of the Empress.

The order of the three last is further established by the fact that the grants in the second are specifically confirmed by the third, while the third is expressly referred to in the fourth. The only one, therefore, about which there could possibly be a question is the first, and the fact that the second charter represents a great advance upon it is in this case the evidence. But there is, further, the fact that the place I have assigned it is the only one in the series that it can possibly occupy. Nor could Mr. Eyton have failed to arrive at this conclusion had he included within his sphere of view the second charter of the king.

It is clear that Mr. Eyton was here working from the statements of Dugdale alone. For the three charters he deals with are those which Dugdale gives. The order assigned to these charters by Dugdale and Mr. Eyton respectively can be thus briefly shown:—

Right order 1 2 3 4

Eyton's order 2 4 1

Dugdale'a order 1 4 2

How gravely Mr. Eyton erred in his conclusions will be obvious from this table. But it is necessary to go further still, and to say that of the seven charters affecting Geoffrey de Mandeville, three would seem to have been unknown to him, while of the rest, he assigned three, one might almost say all four, to a demonstrably erroneous date. It may be urged that this is harsh criticism, and the more so as its subject was never published, and exists only in the form of notes. There is much to be said for this view, but the fact remains that rash use is certain to be made of these notes, unless students are placed on their guard. That this should be so is due not only to Mr. Eyton's great and just reputation as a laborious student in this field, but also to the exaggerated estimate of the value and correctness of these notes which was set, somewhat prominently, before the public.[119]

Advancing from the question of position to that of actual date, we will glance at the opinion of another expert, Mr. Walter de Gray Birch. We learn from him, as to the date of this first creation-charter, that—

"The dates of the witnesses appear to range between A.D. 1139 and A.D. 1144.... The actual date of the circumstances mentioned in this document is a matter of question.... He [Geoffrey] was slain on the 14th of September, A.D. 1144, and therefore this document must be prior to that date."[120]

We see now that it is by no means easy to date this charter with exactness. It will be best, in pursuance of my usual practice, to begin by clearing the ground.

If we could place any trust in the copious chronicle of Walden Abbey, which is printed (in part) in the Monasticon from the Arundel manuscript, our task would be easy enough. For we are there told that Stephen had already created Geoffrey an earl when, in 1136, he founded Walden Abbey.[121] And, in his foundation charter, he certainly styles himself an earl.[122] But, alas for this precious narrative, it brings together at the ceremony three bishops, Robert of London, Nigel of Ely, and William of Norwich, of whom Robert of London was not appointed till 1141, while William of Norwich did not obtain that see till 1146!

Dismissing, therefore, this evidence, we turn to the fact that no creation of an earldom by Stephen is mentioned before 1138. But we have something far more important than this in the occurrence at the head of the witnesses to this creation-charter, of the name of William of Ypres, the only name, indeed, among the witnesses that strikes one as a note of time. Mr. Eyton wrote: "A deed which I have dated 1140 ... is his first known attestation."[123] I have found no evidence contrary to this conclusion. It would seem probable that when the arrest of the bishops "gave," in Dr. Stubbs' words, "the signal for the civil war," Stephen's preparations for the approaching struggle would include the summons to his side of this experienced leader, who had hitherto been fighting in Normandy for his cause. Indeed, we know that it was so, for he was at once despatched against the castle of Devizes.[124]

Happily, however, there remains a writ, which should incidentally, we shall find, prove the key to the problem. This, which is printed among the footnotes in Madox's Baronia Anglica (p. 231), from the muniments of Westminster Abbey, is addressed "Gaufrido de Magnavilla" simply, and is, therefore, previous to his elevation to the earldom. Now, as this writ refers to the death of Roger, Bishop of Salisbury, it must be later than the 11th of December, 1139.[125] Consequently Geoffrey's charter must be subsequent to that date. It must also be previous to the battle of Lincoln (February, 1141), because, as I observed at the outset, it must be previous to the charter of the Empress. We therefore virtually narrow its limit to the year 1140, for Stephen had set out for Lincoln before the close of the year.[126] Let us try and reduce it further still. What was the date of the above writ? Stephen, on the death of Bishop Roger, hastened to visit Salisbury.[127] He went there from Oxford to spend Christmas (1139), and then returned to Reading (Cont. Flor. Wig.). Going and returning he would have passed through Andover, the place at which this writ is tested. Thus it could have been, and probably was, issued at this period (December, 1139). Obviously, if it was issued in the course of 1140, this would reduce still further the possible limit within which Geoffrey's charter can have passed. Difficult though it is to trace the incessant movements of the king throughout this troubled year, he certainly visited Winchester, and (probably thence) Malmesbury. Still we have not, I believe, proof of his presence at Andover.[128] And there are other grounds, I shall now show, for thinking that the earldom was conferred before March, 1140.

William of Newburgh, speaking of the arrest of Geoffrey de Mandeville, assures us that Stephen bore an old grudge against him, which he had hitherto been forced to conceal. Its cause was a gross outrage by Geoffrey, who, on the arrival of Constance of France, the bride of Eustace the heir-apparent, had forcibly detained her in the Tower.[129] We fix the date of this event as February or March, 1140, from the words of the Continuator of Florence,[130] and that date agrees well with Henry of Huntingdon's statement, that Stephen had bought his son's bride with the treasure he obtained by the death of the great Bishop of Salisbury (December 11, 1139).[131]

It would seem, of course, highly improbable that this audacious insult to the royal family would have been followed by the grant of an earldom. We might consequently infer that, in all likelihood, Geoffrey had already obtained his earldom.

We have, however, to examine the movements of Stephen at the time. The king returned, as we saw, to Reading, after spending his Christmas at Salisbury. He was then summoned to the Fen country by the revolt of the Bishop of Ely, and he set out thither, says Henry of Huntingdon, "post Natale" (p. 267). He may have taken Westminster on his way, but there is no evidence that he did. He had, however, returned to London by the middle of March, to take part in a Mid-Lent council.[132] His movements now become more difficult to trace than ever, but it may have been after this that he marched on Hereford and Worcester.[133] Our next glimpse of him is at Whitsuntide (May 26), when he kept the festival in sorry state at the Tower.[134] It has been suggested that it was for security that he sought the shelter of its walls. But this explanation is disposed of by the fact that the citizens of London were his best friends and proved, the year after, the virtual salvation of his cause. It would seem more likely that he was anxious to reassert his impaired authority and to destroy the effect of Geoffrey's outrage, which might otherwise have been ruinous to his prestige.[135]

It was, as I read it, at the close of Whitsuntide, that is, about the beginning of June, that the king set forth for East Anglia, and, attacking Hugh Bigod, took his castle of Bungay.[136]

In August the king again set forth to attack Hugh Bigod;[137] and either to this, or to his preceding East Anglian campaign, we may safely assign his charter, granted at Norwich, to the Abbey of Reading.[138] Now, the first witness to this charter is Geoffrey de Mandeville himself, who is not styled an earl. We learn, then, that, at least as late as June, 1140, Geoffrey had not received his earldom. This would limit the date of his creation to June-December, 1140, or virtually, at the outside, a period of six months.

Such, then, is the ultimate conclusion to which our inquiry leads us. And if it be asked why Stephen should confer an earldom on Geoffrey at this particular time, the reply is at hand in the condition of affairs, which had now become sufficiently critical for Geoffrey to begin the game he had made up his mind to play. For Stephen could not with prudence refuse his demand for an earldom.[139]

The first corollary of this conclusion is that "the second type" of Stephen's great seal (which is that appended to this charter) must have been already in use in the year 1140, that is to say, before his fall in 1141.

Mr. Birch, who, I need hardly say, is the recognized authority on the subject, has devoted one of his learned essays on the Great Seals of the Kings of England to those of Stephen.[140] He has appended to it photographs of the two types in use under this sovereign, and has given the text of nineteen original sealed charters, which he has divided into two classes according to the types of their seals. The conclusion at which he arrived as the result of this classification was that the existence of "two distinctly variant types" is proved (all traces of a third, if it ever existed, being now lost), one of which represents the earlier, and the other the later, portion of the reign.[141] To the former belong nine, and to the latter ten of the charters which he quotes in his paper. The only point on which a question can arise is the date at which the earlier was replaced by the later type. Mr. Birch is of opinion that—

"the consideration of the second seal tends to indicate the alteration of the type subsequent to his liberation from the hands of the Empress, and it is most natural to suppose that this alteration is owing to the destruction or loss of his seal consequent to his own capture and incarceration" (p. 15).

There can be no doubt that this is the most natural suggestion; but if, as I contend, the very first two of the charters adduced by Mr. Birch as specimens of the later type are previous to "his capture and incarceration," it follows that his later great seal must have been adopted before that event. One of these charters is that which forms the subject of this chapter; the other is preserved among the records of the duchy of Lancaster.[142] At the date when the latter was granted, the king was in possession of the temporalities of the see of Lincoln, which he had seized on the arrest of the bishops in June, 1139. As Alexander had regained possession of his see by the time of the battle of Lincoln, this charter must have passed before Stephen's capture, and most probably passed a year or more before. We have then to account for the adoption by Stephen of a new great seal, certainly before 1141, and possibly as early as 1139. Is it not possible that this event may be connected with the arrest of the chancellor and his mighty kinsmen in June, 1139, and that the seal may have been made away with in his and their interest, as on the flight of James II., in order to increase the confusion consequent on that arrest?[143]

And now we come to Geoffrey's charter itself[144]:—

"S. Rex Ang[lorum] Archiepiscopis Episcopis Abbatibus Comitibus Justiciis Baronibus Vicecomitibus et Omnibus Ministris et fidelibus suis francis et Anglis totius Angliæ salutem. Sciatis me fecisse Comitem de Gaufr[ido] de Magnauillâ de Comitatu Essex[e] hereditarie. Quare uolo et concedo et firmiter precipio quod ipse et heredes sui post eum hereditario jure teneant de me et de heredibus meis bene et in pace et libere et quiete et honorifice sicut alii Comites mei de terrâ meâ melius vel liberius vel honorificentius tenent Comitatus suos unde Comites sunt cum omnibus dignitatibus et libertatibus et consuetudinibus cum quibus alii Comites mei prefati dignius vel liberius tenent.

"T[estibus] Will[elm]o de Iprâ et Henr[ico] de Essexâ[145] et Joh[ann]e fil[io] Rob[erti] fil[ii] Walt[eri][146] et Rob[erto] de Nouo burgo[147] et Mainfen[ino] Britoñ[148] et Turg[esio] de Abrinc[is][149] et Will[elm]o de S[an]c[t]o Claro[150] et Will[elm]o de Dammart[in][151] et Ric[ardo] fil[io] Ursi[152] et Will[elm]o de Auco[153] et Ric[ardo] fil[io] Osb[erti][154] et Radulfo de Wiret[155] (sic) et Eglin[o][156] et Will[elm]o fil[io] Alur[edi][157] et Will[elmo] filio Ernald[i].[158] Apud Westmonasterium."

Taking this, as I believe it to be, as our earliest charter of creation extant or even known, the chief point to attract our notice is its intensely hereditary character. Geoffrey receives the earldom "hereditarie," for himself "et heredes sui post eum hereditario jure." The terms in which the grant is made are of tantalizing vagueness; and, compared with the charters by which it was followed, this is remarkable for its brevity, and for the total omission of those accompanying concessions which the statements of our historians would lead us to expect without fail.[159]

We must now pass from the grant of this charter to the great day of Lincoln (February 2, 1141), where the fortunes of England and her king were changed "in the twinkling of an eye" by the wild charge of "the Disinherited," as they rode for death or victory.[160]