The Hissem-Montague Family

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This early family has been well documented for one so early in England's history. They were related to the Ducal family of Normandy through the Gunnor, wife of Richard I, Duke of Normandy. Her neice, Joscelina, married Hugh de Montgomery.

"The earliest records of the family of Montgomery place its origin in the northern part of France in the ninth century, and the name it is suggested, probably had its origin, or is a corruption descent of Mons Gomeris. "Gomer's Mount" the ancient Gauls claiming descent from Gomer, son of Japhet, the family taking their name from the locality or territory over which they ruled as feudal lords." - from "Colonial Families of Philadelphia" by John W Jordan, 1911

A mythological descent includes,
(-13) Radbert, King of Gardarige (c638) who married Aud, the daughter of Ivar Vidgarne, King in Sweden,
(-12) Randver (c670),
(-11) Sigurd, King in Sweden (c730-812),
(-10) Halfdan Sigurddson (c750),
(-9) Ragnar Halfdansson of Uppsala who married Asberg Sigurdsdottir,
(-8) Ingvar Ragnarsson (c873), and
(-7) Gomer Ingvarisoon (c844-911).

From "Colonial Families of Philadelphia" - "The first known to bear the name, according to William, surnamed Calculus, the monk, of Jumieges, the earliest historian of Normandy, who died 1099. Whose work remains to this day an authority on the events of his time, was Roger de Montgomerie, who was Count of Montgomerie before the conquest of Normandy by the Northmen under Duke Rollo, A. D. 912. A native of Neustria, his ancestors were doubtless for many generations back natives of that province. When conquered it became known as Normandy, and he probably belonged to that numerous class of natives of noble lineage who welcomed Rollo as a relief from the internecine struggles with France was rent by the ambitious designs of the descendants of Charlemagne."

If the above is true, and Roger was the Count before Rollo's conquest in 912, then he must have been at least in his thirties at the time, or born in about 880.

Roger de MOnte Gomerii or Gummeri. He married Hiemois. He had two sons, Roger [or William], and Bernard, who fathered the de Beaumont line of England.

Vicomte, of St. Germain de Montgomery, Calvados, Normandy, France. His motte, that is the raised hill and surronding ditch of a no-longer existing fortification, still survives. It has never been excavated.

Alternately he may be William de Montegomeri who married Elizabeth de Tripon.

Or Hugh. Seigneur de Montgomery. He was born in about 980 in St. Germain, Normandy. He married Josceline de Pontaudemer, the daughter of Tourude de Harcourt [Thorold de Ponteaudemer], Sire de Pont-Audemer. Second he married Wevia (Aveline) Duceline de Crepon or Sainfrie (Sibell) de Crepon, her sister. There is little agreement on these women's names, but all concur on the relationship to Gunnor, wife of Duke Richard I.

Wevia was the daughter of Herbastus [Herfast], Prince of Denmark, and Cyrid, Queen of Sweden. Her sister was Duchess Gunnora [Gonner], the wife of Duke Robert, and mother of William the Conqueror. Wevia's brother was Osberne, Seneschal of Normandy and the guardian of young Duke William.

He had large holdings in central Normandy, chiefly in the valley of the Dives. Hugh died in 1034.

Of St. Germain, Normandy. Some descents leave out Roger and make Hugh the father of the Earl of Arundel, below. Others consider him to be the earliest of the family that can be authentically traced.

Roger's wife maya have been Emma, but others cite Josceline de Bolbec, the daughter of Osberne. Their children were Roger, Hugh [Hugo], Robert, William, Gilbert, and Mabel. All but Roger were murdered in revenge for William's killing of Osberne de Crepon, the Duke's guardian and their uncle, during the Duchy's war of succession.

Roger's children were,
(-1) Roger de Montgomery II (1022)
(-1) William de Montgomerie (c1020)
(-1) Hugh de Montgomerie (c1020)
(-1) Robert de Montgomerie (c1020)
(-1) Gilbert de Montgomerie (c1020)
(-1) Mabel de Montgomerie (c1020)

Count of Montgomery and Viscount of Exmes, in Orne, Normandy. Despite his brothers' rebellions, he was a close friend of the Duke and, through the marriages of his forebears, closely related to him. He had been born between 1005 and 1022 in Normandy. He became one of William's principal councillors. He was entrusted with the government of the Duchy during the invasion of 1066, though he contributed 60 ships to William's force. Some sources claim that Roger commanded a wing at the Battle of Hastings, but this was probably a reference to his son, Robert, below.

In 1048 [or c1052] he married Mabel de Talvas of Alencon, the daughter of William de Talvas, Seigneur de'Alencon and Belleme, who famously cursed William I in his cradle. Mabel was said to be an extremely strong willed woman, shrewd, politically adept, but also cruel. She was killed in her bath in 1082 by a Norman lord who she had succeeded in disinheriting. Roger became Seigneur of Belleme and Count of Alencon by right of his wife upon the death of her uncle, Ivo de Belleme, the Bishop of Sees.

After William I's victory at Hastings he became the First Earl of Arundel and Shrewsbury, and held the city of Chichester. Arundel was the site of a formerly vast roman villa which had been connected by its own road to Stane Street, the Roman road which ran from London to Chichester, but abandoned seven centuries previous. He became lord of Montgomery, in north Wales, by conquest. He built many castles including Montgomery, Shrewsbury, Arundel, Ludlow, Clun, Hopton and Oswestry. From a poem about Earl Roger:

He returned to Normandy with Queen Matilda and William's son, Robert, as William's representative in Normandy. He became head of the council that governed the Duchy of Normandy in the Conqueror's frequent absences in England.

He rebelled against William I's son, William Rufus, in 1088 in favor of his elder brother, Robert Curthose. However the King eventually won Roger over to his side. When the rebellion collapsed he was thus able to hold on to his land holdings in England.

He later married Adelaide de Puiset, a more amiable and virtuous woman. She was the daugther of Everard de Puiset. He died on 27 July 1094 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England and was buried in the Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul. See also "The Conqueror and His Companions" by J.R. Planche, 1874.

Arms: Azure, a rampant lion or. He had ten children,

The wife of Robert Fitz Hamon of Gloucester. He was a great-grandson of Richard I, Duke of Normandy, through his son, Mauger, and Hamon "Dentatus" [of the teeth]. Robert's uncle was William "the Warling" who lost the county of Mortagne to Robert de Burgh, half-brother of William I. Robert Fitz Hamon was Lord of Corboil [Corbeil], Creulli [Creil], and Thoringni [Thurgau] in Normandy. Lord of Glamorgan and of Tewkesbury.

Of Perche, Farnce. The eldest son of Rober. He is sometimes referred to as Roger, even in those descents that list Roger of Poitou as his brother. The confusion about whether Robert's father, Roger, was at Hastings is probably due to Robert's presence there.

Robert was characterized as one of the most brutal men of a brutal era. He was an early supporter of Robert Curthose against his father, William I, and aided him in the rebellionof 1077. He was pardoned for this.

Robert succeeded to his mother's estates in Normandy in 1082 and was made Count of Alencon and Belleme. In 1088 he joined the rebellion against William Rufus, King of England, in an attempt to put his brother, Robert Curthose, on the throne. This rebellion failed and Robert returned to Normandy where he fought with his cousin, Geoffrey, over possessions in the county of Mortagne-au-Perche, including the great castle of Domfront.

Upon the death of Earl Rober in 1094, Robert succeeded to the family's Norman estates, while his brother, Hugh, succeeded to the English ones. Upon Hugh's death in 1098 Robert succeeded to those estates as well, becoming the third Earl of Shrewsbury and Arundel, and Lord of Montgomery. Robert had to "purchase" these from William Rufus for 3000 pounds.

Robert married Agnes of Ponthieu, the daughter of Guy I, the Count of Ponthieu, and Ada.

After the death of William "Rufus" in 1100 his brother, Henry, seized the throne. Henry's elder brother, Duke Robert of Normandy, had been on crusade, but quickly returned. In 1101 he landed at Portsmouth to claim the throne. Many of the Barons, led by Robert de Montgomery, with his brothers, Roger and Arnulf, and his cousin, William of Mortain, supported him. When conflict was avoided and an agreement was made that left Henry I with the English throne, the Montgomery's were left badly exposed. In 1102 Henry I overthrew Robert and his brothers who were with him in Arundel castle when it fell. He was exiled and his lands in England were forfeited to the crown. Henry brought an army over to Normandy and finally put Duke Robert's pretensions to an end at the battle of Tinchebrai, jailing the Duke for the rest of his life.

Earl Robert continued to support Robert Curthose, attempting to free the Duke, but he was finally seized in 1112 and jailed himself. Robert died in prison at Warham castle, Dorset in 1131 after starving himself. The Castle and Honor of Arundel eventually fell to the FitzAlan family.

His children were,
(2) Adelbert III de Montgomery
(2) William Talvas (c1080)

The possible first son of Robert. Adelbert's daughter, Ponce, married Wulgrim II Taillefer, the Count of Angouleme.

Of Shrewsbury. Also known as Duke Guillaume III D'Alencon. The son of Robert and his second wife, Agnes of Ponthieu. He was Baron de Talvas and Count of Ponthieu and Alencon. He married Aliss/Helie de Bourgogne 'Ela Borel', the daughter of Eudes I Borel, Duke of Burgundy. He died on 30 June 1171. Their son, Guy II, was Count of Ponthieu.

Roger's second son, Hugh succeeded to his father's English estates of Arundel, Chichester and Shrewsbury in England and was made the Second Earl of Arundel and Shrewsbury, and Lord of Montgomery, on the Welsh marches. In 1098, he joined forces with Hugh d'Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester, in an attempt to recover Anglesey, which was lost by Hugh of Chester in the Welsh revolt of 1094. He was killed there while fighting off a raid by King Magnus "Barefoot" of Norway at the eastern end of the Menai Straits. He was shot dead by an arrow said to have been fired by Magnus himself. The Welsh knew him as "Hugh Goch," or Hugh the red-headed.

Hugh's English estates were intended for his younger brother, Arnulph, but his elder brother, Robert, out maneuvered him and succeeded as the 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury. This must have made family reunions difficult.

The third son was Count Roger. He was called de Poitou in consequence of his marriage to Almodis de la Marche, the daughter of Alberic [Adalbert] III, Count de la Marche in Poitou. She was heiress of the childless Boso III.

Sometime after 1086 Roger was made the first Earl of Lancashire, though it was a very poor region at the time. He held some 45 coastal holdings from West Derby north to the Ribble, an area generally known as the Argarmeles. He also held lands in Essex, Suffolk, and Hampshire. Note that the Gernet's held lands in those regions as well. Were they sub-enfeooffed of Roger for those as well?

He joined in the rebellions of 1088 and 1094 against William Rufus, in 1101 against Henry I. He was in Arundel Castle with his brother Robert and Arnulph when they yielded to Henry. All were allowed to retire to Normandy, but forfeited their English possessions. Roger settled on his wife's property in Poitou.

His children were Aldebert IV, Boso IV, and Odo II of La Marche, and Ponce, who married Vulgrin II, the Count of Angouleme.

Philip remained in Normandy and later accompanied Duke Robert of Normandy on the first crusade to the Holy Land and died there in 1098 at the siege of Antioch. He probably died of a fever contracted in the wet/cold winter and exascerbated by the starvation conditions. His nickname meant Grammarian or Clerk. This probably meant that he had received an education and was possibly training for the priesthood. However, he clearly did not finish this education for he married and had a daughter, Matilda. She succeeded her Aunt Emma as Abbess of Alemenesches in 1113.

Also as Arnald, the youngest son of Roger and Mabel. Of St. Germain, Normandy. Arnulph became, by conquest, the 1st Earl of Pembroke, in south Wales, and built a castle there. In 1096 when Rufus gave him the lordship of Holderness.

He married Lafracoth [Lafracota] O'Brien, the daughter of Murtagh [Muirchertach] O'Brien, the King of Ireland, and Dubchoblaig ingen Diarmait, in about 1100. Murtagh was not a loving father-in-law. He carried off Lafracoth and tried to murder his son-in-law. Murtagh supported Arnulph, however in the rebellion of 1101. In the defeat of that rebellion Arnulph was deprived of his lands and exiled by King Henry I in 1102.

Arnulph was subsequently in the entourage of Fulk V, Count of Anjoy. He died in 1125. His children were Alice, who married Maurice Fitz Gerald, the Lord of Maynooth and Naas, and Robert de Montgomerie.

Robert married Marjory FitzAlan, the daughter of Walter FitzAlan, First hereditary High Steward of Scotland. He became the First Earl of Eaglesham, Renfrewshire, Scotland after receiving those lands as dowry from Walter. He died in 1178.

Earl of Eaglesham.

Third Earl of Eaglesham. John married Helen, the daughter and co-heiress of Robert de Kent of Innerswick.

The Abbess of Almenache [Alemenesches].

Or Matildis/Maud. The wife of Robert de Burgo [de Brugh], Count of Mortain and Earl of Cornwall, as well as being the half-brother of William I. He was the son of Herluin de Conteville and Herleve de Falaise, the mother of William I. Robert received the lands of Mortain from his half brother, King William, when they were forfeited by William "the Warling" for rebelling against "the Conqueror."

Their son was William of Mortain. He joined in the rebellion of 1101 against Henry I and was captured at the battle of Tincherbrai. He was jailed along with Duke Robert Curthose.

The wife of Hugh de Chateauneuf-en-Thimerais.

The son of Roger and his second wife, Adelaide [Adeliza] de Puiset. He took holy orders and was chaplain to William Rufus and Henry I.

Of St. Germain, Normandy. He succeeded his father as Count. He was accused of the murder of Osberne de Crepon, High Steward of Normandy and the guardian of the infant Duke William. He was besieged and killed in his castle by Baron de Glos, Osberne's successor as Steward.

He was killed in the aftermath of the murder of Osberne de Crepon.

He was killed in the aftermath of the murder of Osberne de Crepon.

He may have been amongst the brothers killed in the aftermath of the murder of Osberne de Crepon, though there is also a story that he was "accidently" poisoned in 1063 by Mabel Talvas, his brother's wife. Mabel, as you'll read below, had a notorious reputation. It seems she was actually trying to poison someone else.

She married Gervase de Chateuaneuf. Their son was Hugo.

Other excellent sites about the Montgomery family include Our Folk by Albert Douglass Hart, Jr., and Montgomerie Family .

Steve Hissem
San Diego, California