Section Two: William II de Warenne, Second Earl of Surrey and his wife Isabel de Vermandois

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Growing Power and Influence

When Guillaume de Warenne, the first Earl of Surrey died, in 1088, his vast English estates in Sussex, Norfolk and Yorkshire, plus his Norman lands at Bellancombre and Mortemer, passed to his eldest son, William II de Warenne. He would hold the earldom for 50 years (apart from a 2-year break) until his death. Aged around 18-20 when his father died, William II inherited not only land and wealth but also the noble title of his father. William II had grown up in a world transformed by conquest. His father’s loyalty to the crown had secured the Warenne family’s place among the Norman aristocracy, and he intended to continue that tradition.

By 1090, Warenne was already engaged in fighting on behalf of King William Rufus, third son of the Conqueror, opposing Duke Robert Curthose of Normandy, eldest son of William the Conqueror, who continued to pursue the English throne, wishing to add it to his Dukedom of Normandy.

But, when Robert Curthose invaded England in 1101, Warenne was one of the Barons who changed sides and joined Curthose to fight against the new English King (the Conqueror’s fourth son), Henry I. The reasons for him switching sides has been speculated. It is known that he bore a grudge against Henry because they both wanted to marry Mathilda (Editha) of Scotland, daughter of the King of Scots Malcolm II Canmor. She eventually married Henry.

King Henry then considered marrying off one of his illegitimate daughters to Warenne, but the laws of consanguinity forbade it, because William II De Warenne was a 2x great nephew of Duchess Gunnora of Normandy and King Henry was her 2x great grandson, so they were distant cousins. Warenne was again disappointed – he had not obtained a royal wife and became embittered.

Whatever the reasons he changed sides, it turned out that he had chosen the wrong side. When Curtose surrendered to his brother and came to terms, Warenne was one of the casualties of war, being stripped of his title and lands and exiled to his properties in Normandy. Curtose returned to England two years later, when he, for some reason, convinced his brother, King Henry to return William de Warenne’s title and lands, perhaps because they were kin.

Now in the service of King Henry, Warenne became one of the commanders on Henry’s side (against Robert Curthose) at the Battle of Tinchbrai in 1106, where Henry defeated Robert Curthose and brought Normandy under English control, also taking prisoner Edgar the Atheling, claimant to the throne through his Anglo-Saxon family. Curthose spent his last 30 years as a prisoner of his younger brother. Warenne’s his loyalty was now proven and he became one of Henry’s most loyal magnates. How fortunes changed in those turbulent times!

A Marriage of Nobility: Isabel de Vermandois

If William’s political loyalty strengthened his position, his eventual marriage elevated it to dazzling new heights. William II de Warenne left it late in life to marry. At 50, he still had no male heir and just two illegitimate daughters by a mistress. One of those daughters married Godric FitzKetelborn, Lord of Emley, near Huddersfield, son of Ketelborn FitzWilliam of Upper Hopton probably an Anglo-Saxon with a Normanised name.

At last Warenne acquired the royal-blooded bride who would enable him to climb even further in power and influence. Isabel (AKA Elizabeth) de Vermandois, was a woman of exceptional lineage and influence. Isabel was the daughter of Hugh Magnus, Count of Vermandois and granddaughter of King Henry I of France, placing her in the Capetian royal dynasty. Through this marriage, the Warenne family gained a direct connection to the French royal house, a distinction few English nobles could claim.

Isabel’s life, however, was far from ordinary. Born about 1085, she had been married off to Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester, one of the most powerful men in England and a close adviser to Henry I. Their arranged marriage took place when she was 11 and he 47, and produced nine children, including Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester.

Henry of Huntingdon, 12th-century English chronicler, reported that Warenne seduced Isabel, even before her husband’s death and plotted to kidnap her when Beaumont refused a divorce. Although this may not be true, after Robert de Beaumont’s death in 1118, Isabel married Warenne in some haste, creating a powerful alliance between two Kingdoms of England and France. She was no more than 33 and Warenne about 50 and it was his first marriage. Isabel gave birth to their first child, another William, a few months later in February 1119, a much needed heir, as Warenne’s younger brother Rainald had already died without issue.

This marriage was a strategic move that consolidated Warenne’s power and influence. Isabel brought with her prestige, experience, and connections that extended deep into the aristocracy of both England and France and provided two male heirs for Warenne.

Children

William II and Isabel had several children:

• William III de Warenne, 3rd Earl of Surrey 1119-1148, who inherited the title and continued the family’s prominence but died on Crusade, leaving only a daughter as heir.
• Gundreda, who married Roger de Beaumont, 2^nd Earl of Warwick (a cousin of her half-siblings) and then William FitzGilbert 5^th Baron Kendal. She is most remembered for expelling King Stephen’s garrison from Warwick Castle. Her descendants married into many of the noblest families in the realm.
• Ada, whose marriage to Henry of Scotland linked the Warenne family to the Scottish royal house and she became mother to two Scottish Kings.
• Reginald de Warenne, keeper of Norwich Castle. He became Baron of Wormegay through his marriage to Adeline, daughter of William, lord of Wormegay. Reginald was involved in the process that led to the peaceful ascension of Henry fitzEmpress (son of Mathilda) to the throne of England in 1154.

Isabel de Vermandois: A Woman of Intrigue

Isabel de Vermandois was known for her beauty, charm, and intelligence. Writers of her time described her as lively and strong‑willed, with a level of ambition and independence that was rare for women then. Through her two marriages, she was connected to two of England’s most powerful earldoms, and through her 14 children she became the founding figure of many noble families that went on to influence medieval politics.

Her descendants would include not only future Earls of Surrey and Leicester but also descendants of the Scottish royal line, thanks to her daughter Ada de Warenne’s marriage to Henry of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdon. She is also the direct ancestor of many ordinary folk throughout the country. (I am directly descended from five of those children and if you are from West Yorkshire, you may be too).

The Warenne Estates and Influence

Warenne patronised the Priories of St Pancras (at Lewes), Castle Acre, Wymondham, Pontefract and Bellancombre, also gave support to the Abbeys of St Evroult and St Amand. Lewes Priory, founded by William’s parents, continued as an important religious centre and showed the Warenne family’s devotion and generosity…or their wish to buy their passage to an everlasting life after death.

In 1090, he set about building a new Priory at Castle Acre to replace the one founded by his parents. Its remains show today a glimpse of the Romanesque grandeur it must have displayed before the Dissolution of the Monasteries, when the church was demolished and many of its buildings dismantled.

Under William II, the Warenne estates continued to flourish. In about 1107, the Sandal estates passed to him; he built Sandal Castle, as a timber motte and bailey structure and he established it as his “Seat”, which served as the administrative, judicial, and economic centre of his estate.

No later than 1121, William was granted the Manor of Shelf, north-east of Halifax and the Manor of Wakefield, a sprawling estate that would remain central to the Warenne legacy and remained one of his most important acquisitions.

The family kept firm control of their castles at Sandal and Conisbrough in Yorkshire, Castle Acre in Norfolk and Lewes in Sussex, as strong symbols of Norman power and rule.

William II’s wealth and influence made him one of the most powerful magnates of his generation. His loyalty to Henry I ensured stability for his family during a period of political turbulence, and his marriage to Isabel ensured that the Warenne name was placed among the aristocratic elite of Europe.

Death and Legacy

William II died on 11 May 1138 and was buried at Lewes Priory, near his parents. Isabel continued to wield influence until her death in 1147/48 at the Prieuré Saint-Nicaise de Meulan, Diocèse de Chartres, Seine-et-Oise, France. Through her, the Warenne family’s bloodline flowed into some of the most powerful dynasties of medieval Britain.

The story of William II de Warenne and Isabel de Vermandois is one of ambition and power. Their marriage shows how Norman noble families used loyalty, military service, and carefully planned marriages, for themselves and their offspring, to secure their family’s future and influence for generations.