Family Tree History & Research
Wed, Feb 21, 2018
A Few Stories of Knights & Warriors & Chivalric Ancestors
As I continue my research into the old Family Tree, I came upon a few more interesting ancestral kin who made names for themselves in the annals of history. Come along on my latest journey into my mother's family lines and my recent discoveries.
Robert Guiscard
Robert Guiscard (1015 – 1085), widely known as the Wily or the Weasel, was a Norman knight who settled in southern Italy about 1047. After a series of adventures, he made himself Duke of Apulia in 1059, and transformed southern Italy into a Norman domain by extending his rule over Calabria, Naples, and Sicily, laying the foundations for the Kingdom of Sicily.
Guiscard was a descendant of Vikings who settled in northwest France, learned French, married the locals, and came to be known as Normans. In 911, the French made a face-saving agreement with their leader, Duke Rollo, whereby they recognized him as feudal lord of Normandy in exchange for the Normans’ conversion to Catholicism and protection of Paris from other Vikings.
In the early 11th century, some Norman knights passed through Italy en route to pilgrimage to Jerusalem. They found Italy agreeable, and stayed, finding employment as mercenaries for Italian lords who were impressed by the Norman lancers’ cavalry charges. Those Norman knights’ sons, of whom Robert Guiscard was one, eventually formed an independent army, and in 1047, Guiscard used them to make himself Duke of Apulia, and from there, he led an invasion of southern Italy in 1053, warring against the Pope.
The Pope was defeated and captured, and compelled to bless Guiscard as king of Calabria – the toe of the Italian boot. That angered the Byzantines, as Guiscard had designs on Bari, their naval base in Italy. A rift opened between Rome and Constantinople, which culminated in 1054 with the Pope excommunicating the entire Eastern Church – a schism between the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches that is ongoing to this day, all thanks to Guiscard.
In 1060, he sent his younger brother Roger to wrest Sicily from the Arabs. In the meantime, Guiscard seized Bari from the Byzantines, then took the war to Constantinople by invading Greece in 1081. He won a hard fought victory in which the Normans suffered heavy losses, and was forced to return to Italy to raise more men and supplies. He found the men, but had no money for supplies, so to raise the funds, he sacked Rome harder than it had been sacked since the barbarian invasions centuries earlier. His machinations finally came to an end when a sudden illness took him in 1085.
At some point, while roiling the Mediterranean world, Guiscard fell in love with a six foot Amazon named Sichelgaita, who went into battle, armed and armored at his side. So he divorced his wife, married Sichelgaita, and to please his new woman, disinherited his oldest son by his first wife, Bohemond. That compelled Bohemond to join the First Crusade in search of his own fortune, and set him on the road to adventures as grand and rollicking as those of his father.
Robert Guiscard (Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia) is My 28th great grandfather
My Pedigree (Lineage) to Robert:
John Repinski
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Henry Chester Dietz
his father
→ Eleanor May Dietz
his mother
→ Mary E. Brown
her mother
→Mary Elizabeth Smith
her mother
→ Ziba Smith
her father
→ Elizabeth Smith
his mother
→ Esther Sayles
her mother
→ Major Sylvanus Scott
her father
→ John Scott
his father
→ Katherine Scott
his mother
→Reverend Francis Marbury, I
her father
→ William Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Robert Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Anne Marbury
his mother
→ Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
her father
→Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
his father
→ Sancha Blount, Lady de Ayala
his mother
→ Dª. Inés Alfonsa de Ayala, señora de Malpica
her mother
→ Fernán Pérez de Ayala, IX señor de Ayala
her father
→ D. Pedro López de Ayala, Señor de Unza
his father
→ Sancho López de Ayala, Señor de Mena y Unza
his father
→ Pedro López de Ayala
his father
→D. Lope el Cabeza brava Díaz, señor de Vizcaya
his father
→ D. María Manrique de Lara
his mother
→ Ermesenda de Narbona
her mother
→Aimeric II de Narbonne, Vizconde de Narbonne
her father
→ Mafalda de Pulla-Calàbria, comtessa consort de Barcelona
his mother
→ Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia (Robert Guiscard)
her father
Tancred of Hauteville, Prince of Galilee (circa 1075 – 1112), one of the Italo-Norman leaders of the First Crusade, was a maternal grandson of Robert Guiscard and a nephew of Bohemond I of Antioch. He became Prince of Galilee, and when his uncle Bohemond was captured, Tancred became regent of the Principality of Antioch until Bohemond’s release in 1103.
During the Crusaders march on Syria, Tancred had distinguished himself and demonstrated his tactical brilliance by seizing 5 important strong points whose capture secured passage through the Cilician Gates – a vital pass through the Taurus Mountains. After the Crusaders passed through and reached Antioch, he also played a prominent role in that city’s capture.
While his uncle Bohemond stayed behind to secure Antioch, Tancred accompanied the rest of the Crusaders to Jerusalem and took part in its siege. When the city was stormed on July 15th, 1099, Tancred was one of the first two Crusaders to enter Jerusalem. After the city was captured, its population massacred, and the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem founded, Tancred was made Prince of Galilee.
When Bohemond was captured by the Turks in 1100, Tancred became regent of the Principality of Antioch until his uncle’s release in 1103, and resumed the regency when Bohemond left for Europe in 1104. As regent of Antioch, as well as Edessa from 1104 – 1108, Tancred became the chief Crusader lord of northern Syria. In that capacity, he warred continuously with both the Muslims, as well as the Byzantines, until his death.
her son
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1147 – 1219), was one of the most prominent knights of Medieval England, who served four English monarchs – Henry II, Richard I, John I, and Henry III – as a soldier, statesman, advisor, marshal, and regent. Due to his tireless efforts, he saved the Plantagenet dynasty from destruction, allowing its continuation for centuries to come.
William Marshal was born in 1147 to a minor noble who served in king Stephen’s court. During a civil war between the king and a rival claimant, the empress Matilda, William’s father switched his allegiance to Matilda, but was besieged by the king and forced to surrender, handing over his son William as hostage. William’s father reneged, however, and when the king threatened to kill the child, his father responded that he still had the “hammer and anvil” with which to forge more and better sons. Fortunately, the king could not bring himself to execute a child, so William was kept a prisoner until the civil war ended.
Stephen was succeeded by Henry II, during whose reign William came of age, and after demonstrating his prowess, he was made guardian to Prince Henry, the king’s eldest son. The prince died young, however, so William returned to the king’s side and fought with him in France until the monarch died in 1189. After the new king, Richard I the Lionheart, ascended the throne, William married a wealthy heiress and became earl of Pembroke, with vast estates.
When king Richard went Crusading in 1190, he appointed William to the council of regents. Richard was captured on the way back from the Crusades, and when his younger brother John tried to usurp the throne, William joined other barons in fighting him. He eventually reconciled with John, and helped him ascend the throne peacefully after Richard’s death in 1199.
By 1213, he was king John’s closest advisor, and remained loyal to him during the baronial rebellion that forced the king into signing the Magna Carta in 1215. John died during a civil with his barons, who had invited Louis of France to be their king. Designated regent of John’s minor son, Henry III, William Marshal defeated the barons and Louis of France, and in his last significant act, compelled them to sign a peace in 1217 that restored peace to the realm.
William Marshall, Sir, 1st Earl of Pembroke is your 25th great grandfather.
My Pedigree (lineage) to William:
John Repinski
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Grace Elizabeth Dietz
his mother
→ Henry Allen Pope
her father
→Thomas Paschal Pope
his father
→ Thomas Faunce Pope
his father
→ Mitchell Pope
his father
→ Elnathan Pope, Jr.
his father
→ Rebecca Pope
his mother
→Rebecca Mitchell (Cushman)
her mother
→ Rev. Isaac Cushman, Sr.
her father
→ Rev. Thomas Cushman
his father
→ Deacon Robert Cushman
his father
→Thomas Coucheman
his father
→ Joan Cushman
his mother
→ Elizabeth Crofte
her mother
→ Sir John Seymour
her father
→ John Seymour, Sheriff of Wiltshire
his father
→Sir John Seymour, of Wolfhall
his father
→ Roger Seymour, of Hatch Beauchamp
his father
→ William Seymour, MP
his father
→ Sir Roger St. Maur
his father
→Roger Seymour de St Maur (II)
his father
→ Roger de St. Maur, I
his father
John Repinski
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Henry Chester Dietz
his father
→ Eleanor May Dietz
his mother
→ Mary E. Brown
her mother
→Mary Elizabeth Smith
her mother
→ Ziba Smith
her father
→ Elizabeth Smith
his mother
→ Esther Sayles
her mother
→ Major Sylvanus Scott
her father
→ John Scott
his father
→ Katherine Scott
his mother
→Reverend Francis Marbury, I
her father
→ William Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Robert Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Anne Marbury
his mother
→ Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
her father
→Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
his father
→ Sancha Blount, Lady de Ayala
his mother
→ Dª. Inés Alfonsa de Ayala, señora de Malpica
her mother
→ Fernán Pérez de Ayala, IX señor de Ayala
her father
→ D. Pedro López de Ayala, Señor de Unza
his father
→ Sancho López de Ayala, Señor de Mena y Unza
his father
→ Pedro López de Ayala
his father
→D. Lope el Cabeza brava Díaz, señor de Vizcaya
his father
→ D. María Manrique de Lara
his mother
→ Ermesenda de Narbona
her mother
→Aimeric II de Narbonne, Vizconde de Narbonne
her father
→ Mafalda de Pulla-Calàbria, comtessa consort de Barcelona
his mother
→ Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia (Robert Guiscard)
her father
Learn a bit more about my 28th Great Grandfather
Styling himself Bohemond I, Prince of Antioch, he had to defend his principality against his Muslim neighbors as well as the Byzantines.
Bohemond Guiscard ( Boemondo I, Principe d'Antiochia) is my 28th great uncle.
Bohemond I, Prince of Antioch
Bohemond I (circa 1055 – 1109) was the eldest son of Robert Guiscard, and took after him as a gifted warrior and capable diplomat, and also as a treacherous, ambitious, and duplicitous leader. Bohemond’s disinheritance in favor of the offspring of his father’s new wife, forced the son to seek his own fortunes, and he found them in the First Crusade.
In the late 11th century, the Byzantines were threatened by the Seljuk Turks, who had defeated them decisively at Manzikert in 1071 and wrested their heartland of Anatolia. They appealed to the Pope for help, and in 1095, the Pope organized a gathering of thousands of notables at Clermont in France, where he issued a call to arms to defend the Byzantines and seize Jerusalem from the Muslims.
In the late 11th century, the Byzantines were threatened by the Seljuk Turks, who had defeated them decisively at Manzikert in 1071 and wrested their heartland of Anatolia. They appealed to the Pope for help, and in 1095, the Pope organized a gathering of thousands of notables at Clermont in France, where he issued a call to arms to defend the Byzantines and seize Jerusalem from the Muslims.
The Pope’s appeal was wildly successful, and thousands took the cross and took to arms, inaugurating centuries of warfare that came to be known as the Crusades.
After an early disorganized mob of religious enthusiasts led by an eccentric named Peter the Hermit was massacred, a more disciplined force of knights and men at arms, led by great lords such as Bohemond, arrived at Constantinople.
That put the Byzantine emperor in a quandary, as the new arrivals not only had divided loyalties, but Bohemond in particular had been a sworn enemy until quite recently, having fought the Byzantines for decades at his father’s side. So the emperor extracted from Bohemond and the others an oath to return to the Byzantines all territories recaptured from the Turks. Bohemond, who saw the Crusade merely as an opportunity to win himself a realm, swore.
The Crusaders were then ferried across the Bosporus into Anatolia, and marched south.
In October of 1097, Bohemond and his Normans were the first to arrive at Antioch, which they immediately invested.
He played a leading role in the siege and in beating back Muslim attempts to relieve the city, and eventually made contact with a Muslim commander inside the city, who helped Bohemond and his men scale the walls at night and seize Antioch.
He held the city for the Byzantine emperor, on condition that the latter come to the Crusaders’ aid against an expected Muslim counterattack.
He held the city for the Byzantine emperor, on condition that the latter come to the Crusaders’ aid against an expected Muslim counterattack.
The Byzantines sent reinforcements, but halfway to Antioch they received false intelligence that it had already been recaptured by the Muslims, and turned back, compelling the Crusaders to withstand a Muslim siege on their own.
Surviving the siege, Bohemond reasoned that he was relieved of his oath to the Byzantines since they had failed to fulfill their part of the deal. So he kept Antioch for himself, while the remaining Crusaders continued on to capture Jerusalem.
Styling himself Bohemond I, Prince of Antioch, he had to defend his principality against his Muslim neighbors as well as the Byzantines.
In 1100, he was captured by the Turks in an ambush, but released in 1103 and returned to Antioch.
In 1107 he launched a Crusade against… the Byzantines.
He landed in the Balkans, but things did not go well, and he was eventually compelled to accept terms allowing him to continue as ruler of Antioch, but as a vassal of the Byzantines.
It was a humiliating climb down, after which Bohemond faded from history, and little is known of his life thereafter until his death in 1119.
My Pedigree (Lineage) to Behomond:
John Repinski
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Henry Chester Dietz
his father
→ Eleanor May Dietz
his mother
→ Mary E. Brown
her mother
→Mary Elizabeth Smith
her mother
→ Ziba Smith
her father
→ Elizabeth Smith
his mother
→ Esther Sayles
her mother
→ Major Sylvanus Scott
her father
→ John Scott
his father
→ Katherine Scott
his mother
→Reverend Francis Marbury, I
her father
→ William Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Robert Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Anne Marbury
his mother
→ Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
her father
→Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
his father
→ Sancha Blount, Lady de Ayala
his mother
→ Dª. Inés Alfonsa de Ayala, señora de Malpica
her mother
→ Fernán Pérez de Ayala, IX señor de Ayala
her father
→ D. Pedro López de Ayala, Señor de Unza
his father
→ Sancho López de Ayala, Señor de Mena y Unza
his father
→ Pedro López de Ayala
his father
→D. Lope el Cabeza brava Díaz, señor de Vizcaya
his father
→ D. María Manrique de Lara
his mother
→ Ermesenda de Narbona
her mother
→Aimeric II de Narbonne, Vizconde de Narbonne
her father
→ Mafalda de Pulla-Calàbria, comtessa consort de Barcelona
his mother
→ Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia (Robert Guiscard)
her father
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Henry Chester Dietz
his father
→ Eleanor May Dietz
his mother
→ Mary E. Brown
her mother
→Mary Elizabeth Smith
her mother
→ Ziba Smith
her father
→ Elizabeth Smith
his mother
→ Esther Sayles
her mother
→ Major Sylvanus Scott
her father
→ John Scott
his father
→ Katherine Scott
his mother
→Reverend Francis Marbury, I
her father
→ William Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Robert Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Anne Marbury
his mother
→ Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
her father
→Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
his father
→ Sancha Blount, Lady de Ayala
his mother
→ Dª. Inés Alfonsa de Ayala, señora de Malpica
her mother
→ Fernán Pérez de Ayala, IX señor de Ayala
her father
→ D. Pedro López de Ayala, Señor de Unza
his father
→ Sancho López de Ayala, Señor de Mena y Unza
his father
→ Pedro López de Ayala
his father
→D. Lope el Cabeza brava Díaz, señor de Vizcaya
his father
→ D. María Manrique de Lara
his mother
→ Ermesenda de Narbona
her mother
→Aimeric II de Narbonne, Vizconde de Narbonne
her father
→ Mafalda de Pulla-Calàbria, comtessa consort de Barcelona
his mother
→ Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia (Robert Guiscard)
her father
Tancred of Huateville
Tancred of Hauteville, Prince of Galilee (circa 1075 – 1112), one of the Italo-Norman leaders of the First Crusade, was a maternal grandson of Robert Guiscard and a nephew of Bohemond I of Antioch. He became Prince of Galilee, and when his uncle Bohemond was captured, Tancred became regent of the Principality of Antioch until Bohemond’s release in 1103.
During the Crusaders march on Syria, Tancred had distinguished himself and demonstrated his tactical brilliance by seizing 5 important strong points whose capture secured passage through the Cilician Gates – a vital pass through the Taurus Mountains. After the Crusaders passed through and reached Antioch, he also played a prominent role in that city’s capture.
While his uncle Bohemond stayed behind to secure Antioch, Tancred accompanied the rest of the Crusaders to Jerusalem and took part in its siege. When the city was stormed on July 15th, 1099, Tancred was one of the first two Crusaders to enter Jerusalem. After the city was captured, its population massacred, and the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem founded, Tancred was made Prince of Galilee.
When Bohemond was captured by the Turks in 1100, Tancred became regent of the Principality of Antioch until his uncle’s release in 1103, and resumed the regency when Bohemond left for Europe in 1104. As regent of Antioch, as well as Edessa from 1104 – 1108, Tancred became the chief Crusader lord of northern Syria. In that capacity, he warred continuously with both the Muslims, as well as the Byzantines, until his death.
Tancred Margrabia of Hauteville, Prince of Galilee is my first cousin 28 times removed.
My Pedigree (Lineage) to Tancred:
John Repinski
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Henry Chester Dietz
his father
→ Eleanor May Dietz
his mother
→ Mary E. Brown
her mother
→Mary Elizabeth Smith
her mother
→ Ziba Smith
her father
→ Elizabeth Smith
his mother
→ Esther Sayles
her mother
→ Major Sylvanus Scott
her father
→ John Scott
his father
→ Katherine Scott
his mother
→Reverend Francis Marbury, I
her father
→ William Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Robert Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Anne Marbury
his mother
→ Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
her father
→Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
his father
→ Sancha Blount, Lady de Ayala
his mother
→ Dª. Inés Alfonsa de Ayala, señora de Malpica
her mother
→ Fernán Pérez de Ayala, IX señor de Ayala
her father
→ D. Pedro López de Ayala, Señor de Unza
his father
→ Sancho López de Ayala, Señor de Mena y Unza
his father
→ Pedro López de Ayala
his father
→D. Lope el Cabeza brava Díaz, señor de Vizcaya
his father
→ D. María Manrique de Lara
his mother
→ Ermesenda de Narbona
her mother
→Aimeric II de Narbonne, Vizconde de Narbonne
her father
→ Mafalda de Pulla-Calàbria, comtessa consort de Barcelona
his mother
→ Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia (Robert Guiscard)
her father
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Henry Chester Dietz
his father
→ Eleanor May Dietz
his mother
→ Mary E. Brown
her mother
→Mary Elizabeth Smith
her mother
→ Ziba Smith
her father
→ Elizabeth Smith
his mother
→ Esther Sayles
her mother
→ Major Sylvanus Scott
her father
→ John Scott
his father
→ Katherine Scott
his mother
→Reverend Francis Marbury, I
her father
→ William Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Robert Marbury, Esq.
his father
→ Anne Marbury
his mother
→ Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
her father
→Sir Thomas Blount, Kt.
his father
→ Sancha Blount, Lady de Ayala
his mother
→ Dª. Inés Alfonsa de Ayala, señora de Malpica
her mother
→ Fernán Pérez de Ayala, IX señor de Ayala
her father
→ D. Pedro López de Ayala, Señor de Unza
his father
→ Sancho López de Ayala, Señor de Mena y Unza
his father
→ Pedro López de Ayala
his father
→D. Lope el Cabeza brava Díaz, señor de Vizcaya
his father
→ D. María Manrique de Lara
his mother
→ Ermesenda de Narbona
her mother
→Aimeric II de Narbonne, Vizconde de Narbonne
her father
→ Mafalda de Pulla-Calàbria, comtessa consort de Barcelona
his mother
→ Roberto il Guiscardo, duca di Puglia (Robert Guiscard)
her father
→ Emma Guiscardo Margrabia
his half sister
→ Tankred - Tancred her son
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1147 – 1219), was one of the most prominent knights of Medieval England, who served four English monarchs – Henry II, Richard I, John I, and Henry III – as a soldier, statesman, advisor, marshal, and regent. Due to his tireless efforts, he saved the Plantagenet dynasty from destruction, allowing its continuation for centuries to come.
William Marshal was born in 1147 to a minor noble who served in king Stephen’s court. During a civil war between the king and a rival claimant, the empress Matilda, William’s father switched his allegiance to Matilda, but was besieged by the king and forced to surrender, handing over his son William as hostage. William’s father reneged, however, and when the king threatened to kill the child, his father responded that he still had the “hammer and anvil” with which to forge more and better sons. Fortunately, the king could not bring himself to execute a child, so William was kept a prisoner until the civil war ended.
Stephen was succeeded by Henry II, during whose reign William came of age, and after demonstrating his prowess, he was made guardian to Prince Henry, the king’s eldest son. The prince died young, however, so William returned to the king’s side and fought with him in France until the monarch died in 1189. After the new king, Richard I the Lionheart, ascended the throne, William married a wealthy heiress and became earl of Pembroke, with vast estates.
When king Richard went Crusading in 1190, he appointed William to the council of regents. Richard was captured on the way back from the Crusades, and when his younger brother John tried to usurp the throne, William joined other barons in fighting him. He eventually reconciled with John, and helped him ascend the throne peacefully after Richard’s death in 1199.
By 1213, he was king John’s closest advisor, and remained loyal to him during the baronial rebellion that forced the king into signing the Magna Carta in 1215. John died during a civil with his barons, who had invited Louis of France to be their king. Designated regent of John’s minor son, Henry III, William Marshal defeated the barons and Louis of France, and in his last significant act, compelled them to sign a peace in 1217 that restored peace to the realm.
My Pedigree (lineage) to William:
→ Marlene Grace Repinski
my mother
→ Raymond Harold Dietz
her father
→ Grace Elizabeth Dietz
his mother
→ Henry Allen Pope
her father
→Thomas Paschal Pope
his father
→ Thomas Faunce Pope
his father
→ Mitchell Pope
his father
→ Elnathan Pope, Jr.
his father
→ Rebecca Pope
his mother
→Rebecca Mitchell (Cushman)
her mother
→ Rev. Isaac Cushman, Sr.
her father
→ Rev. Thomas Cushman
his father
→ Deacon Robert Cushman
his father
→Thomas Coucheman
his father
→ Joan Cushman
his mother
→ Elizabeth Crofte
her mother
→ Sir John Seymour
her father
→ John Seymour, Sheriff of Wiltshire
his father
→Sir John Seymour, of Wolfhall
his father
→ Roger Seymour, of Hatch Beauchamp
his father
→ William Seymour, MP
his father
→ Sir Roger St. Maur
his father
→Roger Seymour de St Maur (II)
his father
→ Roger de St. Maur, I
his father
→ William St. Maur, de Boyville
his father
→ Eva Marshal, Baroness Abergavenny
his mother
→William Marshall, Sir, 1st Earl of Pembroke
her father
his father
→ Eva Marshal, Baroness Abergavenny
his mother
→William Marshall, Sir, 1st Earl of Pembroke
her father
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