The Line of Descent From Ernold de Builli of Kimberworth, Yorkshire
Back to The Bowles of Yorkshire Some of the Bowles lines in England may have descended from Ernold de Builli of Kimberworth, Yorkshire. Ernold was the younger brother of Roger de Busli, one of William, Prince of Normandy's, supporters. (See The de Busli/de Builli Surname) Roger had received a large grant of land in Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire from King William after his successful conquest of England in 1066. The grant under which Roger had sold his right to the tithes of the ville of Busli to help finance the invasion shows that Ernold had also owned a share of the tithes and had also signed the grant. While Ernold didn't receive land from the king for that support, Roger granted him a sub-tenancy of a part of his demesne just to the west of where he had established his own capital at Tickhill. In order to secure their hold throughout England after 1066 the Norman Lords quickly built a network of castles where they established themselves and their loyal retainers. Roger built his main castle at Tickhill in South Yorkshire and several other castles throughout his land which were held by knights who had accompanied him from Normandy. Ernold was established at Kimberworth castle and would have appointed knights to occupy his other two manors at Maltby and Sandbeck. See Roger de Busli of Tickhill, Yorkshire, The de Busli Family Tree and The de Busli Origins in Normandy for more on the above.
The Domesday Book, written in 1086 as a record
of all the landholdings in England, shows just how extensive
Roger's
holdings were. Many of his estates were held by knights which
had accompanied him from Normandy. See
Roger de Busli's Holdings in the Domesday
Book However at this time Kimberworth and Maltby were still held by Roger so possibly Ernold had remained in Normandy
initially and only joined his brother in England between 1086 and
Roger's death in 1099.Most of Roger's vast holdings had been 'en capite' that is they were assigned to him directly by grant from the king but only for the term of his natural life. When Roger died his heir was his 4 year old son, Roger II, whom the king made the ward of Robert de Belesme, possibly a cousin of the de Busli's. When Roger II died two years later, de Belesme claimed his estate but King William distrusted him and took Roger's capital holdings back into his own escheat. Roger's other landholdings, acquired from other Norman nobles, were left to his young son. When Roger II died that land went to his heir, his cousin Jordan de Builli, his Uncle Ernold de Builli's eldest son. For a description of Roger de Busli's capital and personal landholdings see Roger de Busli's Landholdings Ernold's holdings at Kimberworth, Maltby and Sandbeck also remained in his own hands after Roger's death and were passed down to his heir. The line of inheritance from Ernold was his eldest son Jordan (ca. 1070- after 1101) and then Jordan's eldest son Richard de Builli of Kimberworth (ca. 1100- ca. 1179) who is best known for having granted a portion of his land to found Roche Abbey in 1147. Richard's eldest son, Richard de Builli of Elrichethorpe (which was also part of Ernold's original holding) pre-deceased his father, probably in 1169 the year that he granted his holding at Elrichethorpe to Roche Abbey as well, so Richard Sr's heir was his second son John de Builli. John's story is well known including the fact that his heirs were his two daughters. A battle in the courts between two of Roger de Busli's descendants from 1219 to 1222 produced an accurate pedigree for the de Busli family which showed that the direct line of inheritance from Ernold de Builli ended with John de Builli of Kimberworth who died in 1213. The direct line yes, but not all the de Busli lines.
The Line of Descent from Ernold de Builli
First considering Richard de Busli of Elrichethorpe (ca. 1145-after 1169). Elrichethorpe was the manor just on the northern edge of the land which his father Richard de Busli of Kimberworth (ca. 1100- ca. 1169) had granted to found the Abbey of Roche in 1147. Bannerman knew of this Richard de Busli Jr but in his article he stated that this Richard had predeceased his father and had no children. He may have assumed that as he knew that his brother, John, was Richard Sr.’s heir. However, there is a charter from a Richard de Busli of Elrichethorpe in 1169 which grants his land of Elrichethorpe to the Abbey of Roche and also refers to a grant of land to the Abbey which ‘his father gave them’. That proves that Richard de Busli of Elrichethorpe was indeed Richard de Builli of Kenilworth's son as only Richard Jr. could refer to his father's charter to the abbey like that. The charter was witnessed by William, his son and heir, Robert his son and another Robert de Busli. A William de Builli and his brother Robert also signed as witnesses on a grant of land in the Lacy fee which is dated from between 1159 and 1170. The other Robert de Builli could have been a younger brother of John and Richard Jr's. The Lacy fee (sometimes the Honour of Lacy or the Honour of Pontefract) was a large area of Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire which had been granted to Ilbert de Lacy, Lord of Pontefract, which was adjacent and even intermixed with Roger de Bully's Honour of Tickhill. Some manors such as Frickley, Elston and Shelton were even held jointly by de Lacy and de Bully. With de Bully's death his Honour of Tickhill was taken back into the King's hands. This was a time when lands passed frequently between different Lords either between them by agreements, as a result of inquisitions post mortem findings or as the King's favour was given and withdrawn with only some record of this flow surviving today. However many of de Bully's retainers such as Turold of Quiévrecourt, Fulk of Lisors and Roger of Lovetot who had each held several manors under him, continued to hold land in this area. Junior lines of the de Builli family were also involved in these transactions as the Lacy fee grants above show.
A
Ralfe (Ralph) de Bully held 50 acres of land at Ramesholme in Snaith
parish from Cecill de Ramesholme in 1208/09 and at Baune (Balne) near
Selby in North Yorkshire from Hugh son of Ralph de Polington and is
mentioned frequently throughout a record of the charters held by Selby
Abbey. A Robert de Builly is mentioned in a Selby Abbey charter
dated in 1255. Selby Abbey was built by Ilbert de Lacy, Lord of
Pontefract in 1069 who held the Honour of Lacy which was adjacent to and
even intermixed with Roger de Busli's Honour of Tickhill.
Even earlier, Roger II's heir was his cousin Jordan de
Builli (ca. 1070-?), who was stated to be the eldest son of Ernold de Builli, implying that
Ernold had other sons as yet undocumented.
In the 'Parishes: Cotgrave' section of Robert
Thoroton's 'History of Nottinghamshire: Volume 1 (Nottingham 1790)'
here there
is a record of a charter from 1147 in which Hugo de Buron granted to the
Monastery of Lenton his holdings in the Town of Cotesgrave 'except the
knights which he kept in his own hand for the service of the King and
for his son and heir'. The charter was witnessed by his men
including a Hugo (Hugh) de Busli who was his chamberlain. I have
some doubt about this reference as Thoroton's reference was Dugdale's
Monasticon Anglicanum in which I was able to locate the record of this
charter however the witnesses to the charter were not listed. A
Richard de Bussei is mentioned on that page as connected to Hugh de
Buron and the de Bussei name is often confused with de Busli. If
the witnesses to the charter are recorded in some other source they may
actually have included a Hugo de Bussei. If it was de Busli, as the
name had only arrived in England in 1066 and Cotgrave was
almost completely surrounded by Roger de Busli's manors of Clipston,
Owthorpe, Tollerton and Holme and we know from the court document that
Roger had no other children, it would be fairly safe to assume that Hugh was a
descendant in Ernold's line.
He would have been contemporary with Jordan's eldest son Richard de
Builli (ca. 1100-ca. 1179), most likely Richard's younger brother or his
cousin, a son of a younger brother of Jordan's.
Note: Thoroton states that Hugh de Buron held the
manor of Cotgrave from Roger Pictavensis who retained other parts of the
town of Cotgrave as part of his fee. In 1166 King Henry II
confirmed
to the monks of Swineshead the
part of the Town of Cotgrave which was in the Fee
of Roger Pictavensis which Robert de Gresley and Albert his son had
given to the Church of Swineshead along with 14 acres which Robert
Rosell gave them and the exchanges which Roger de Burun and his Men made
with the monks.
ref. As a side note, this establishes a possible connection
before 1166 between
Hugh de Busli and the monks of Swineshead, co. Lincolnshire where the Bolles
appeared a few years later.