Roger de Breteuil, 2nd Earl of Hereford
Roger de Breteuil, 2nd Earl of Hereford (born 1056 to after 1087), succeeded to the earldom of Hereford and the English estate of William Fitz-Osbern in 1071.
Disobeying King William
He did not keep on good terms with William the Conqueror, and in 1075, disregarding the King's prohibition, married his sister Emma to Ralph Guader, Earl of Norfolk, at the famous bridal of Norwich.
Revolt of the Earls
Immediately afterwards the two earls rebelled. Roger, who was to bring his force from the west to join forces with those of the Earl of Norfolk, was held in check at the River Severn by the Worcestershire fyrd which the English Bishop Wulfstan, Walter de Lacy, and other Normans brought into the field against him.
Trial, sentence, and reprieve
On the collapse of his confederate's uprising, Roger was tried before the Great Council, deprived of his lands and Earldom in 1075, and sentenced to perpetual imprisonment. He was released, with other political prisoners, at the death of William I in 1087.
Family
Roger left two sons, Roger and Reginald. Both may have been born after his release in 1087.
- Roger received lands in the Savoy region, and went on to head the House of Candia, he married one of the daughters of the Count of Geneva. He took the name Roger de Candie, leaving his descendants the castle of Candia and lands in Northern Italy.
- Reginald married Emmelind Ballon, the daughter of Hamelin de Balun of Abergavenny and took her surname. He died before 1166, leaving his descendants the lordship of Much Marcle with its castle.
References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.- Remfry. P.M., The Herefordshire Beacon and the Families of King Harold II and the Earls of Hereford and Worcester (ISBN 1-899376-73-9)