Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester facts for kids

Seal of Ranulf, Earl of Chester and Lincoln. His shield shows a sheaf of wheat.

Ranulf de Blondeville (born 1170, died 26 October 1232) was a very powerful English nobleman. He was the 6th Earl of Chester and also the 1st Earl of Lincoln. Ranulf was known for being loyal to the kings of England, especially King John and later his son, King Henry III. He was one of the last great lords from the time of the Norman Conquest.

Ranulf's Early Life

Ranulf was born in 1170 in Montgomeryshire, Wales. He was the oldest son of Hugh de Kevelioc, the 5th Earl of Chester. People said he was small in size.

Ranulf became the Earl of Chester when he was only eleven years old. This meant he inherited a lot of land and power. He was made a knight in 1188 or 1189. This gave him full control over his family's lands in England and France.

His Lands and Castles

Ranulf de Blondeville inherited many important lands. These included the area of Avranches in France and the County of Chester in England. He lost his French lands in 1204 when the French king took over Normandy.

Even after that, he still owned a lot of land in England. He could gather many knights for the king's army. Later, he also gained the Earldom of Lincoln in 1217.

Ranulf was also the overlord of other important areas. These included Clitheroe, Pontefract, Halton, and Bowland. These were large areas with many smaller lands connected to them. He also owned several developing towns like Frodsham and Macclesfield.

The Earl owned many castles. In Chester, he had Chester Castle and Shotwick Castle. When he became Earl of Lincoln, he got or built Lincoln Castle, Bolingbroke Castle, Beeston Castle, and Chartley Castle. He also temporarily controlled Wallingford Castle.

Ranulf's Adventures and Battles

Marriage and Early Challenges

In 1188 or 1189, Ranulf married Constance of Brittany. She was the widow of King Henry II's son, Geoffrey. King Henry II wanted Constance to marry someone he could trust. This marriage gave Ranulf control of the Earldom of Richmond. But the marriage was not happy, and they separated.

In 1196, King Richard I chose Constance's son, Arthur, as his possible heir. Richard asked Constance and Arthur to come to Normandy. But Ranulf kidnapped Constance. King Richard was very angry and went to Brittany to rescue Arthur. Arthur was secretly taken to the French court. In 1199, Constance escaped from Ranulf, and their marriage ended.

In 1200, Ranulf married Clemence of Fougères. He had been against King John in the past. But King John gave Ranulf many gifts to keep him loyal. However, the King still didn't fully trust Ranulf. In 1204–5, Ranulf's lands were taken away for a short time. This made Ranulf decide to be completely loyal to the king from then on.

After this, Ranulf received many royal favors. He fought in King John's wars against the Welsh from 1209 to 1212. He also helped make peace with the Pope in 1213–14. He was with the king in France in 1214.

Helping the Young King

Ranulf stayed loyal to King John during a civil war in 1215–16. He was one of the few powerful lords who signed the Magna Carta in 1215. He later changed it to help his own lords in Chester. Ranulf played a big part in the war because he had so much land and so many castles. He stood with King John, while many other nobles were against him.

When King John died in 1216, Ranulf's power grew even more. Many people thought Ranulf would become the regent for the young King Henry III. A regent is someone who rules for a child king. But Ranulf said he did not want to be regent. This avoided any arguments.

The Big Battle at Lincoln

Before King John died, some rebel lords had offered the English throne to Louis, the French prince. Louis had invaded England in 1216. Ranulf helped to re-issue the Magna Carta in 1216 and 1217. He also used his military skills to defeat the rebels at Lincoln in 1217. Ranulf was in charge of stopping the northern lords from joining Louis in the south.

Ranulf decided to attack a castle at Mountsorrel. This castle belonged to an enemy whose family had taken land from Ranulf's grandfather. Louis sent soldiers to help the castle. But when they arrived, Ranulf and his army were gone. They had gone to Lincoln to fight a French army that was attacking the castle there.

At Lincoln, a big battle took place between the Royalists (King Henry's supporters) and the French forces. The Royalists won the battle. They captured many rebel lords. After the battle, King Henry III made Ranulf the Earl of Lincoln on May 23, 1217, to thank him for his help.

A Journey to the Holy Land

In 1218, Ranulf decided to go on a crusade. A crusade was a religious war to take back holy lands. He traveled to Egypt with other English earls. The weather was very difficult, with a cold winter and a hot summer.

In September 1219, the Sultan (the Muslim ruler) offered the crusaders a deal. He would give them important cities like Jerusalem if they stopped fighting in Egypt. Earl Ranulf and other English lords wanted to take the offer. But the church leaders and military orders refused.

On November 5, they attacked and captured the city of Damietta. But the army was unhappy. Earl Ranulf left Damietta in September 1220 and returned to England. He found that his rival, William Marshal, had died. The government was now led by Hubert de Burgh.

Later Years and Important Buildings

From 1220 to 1224, there were disagreements between government officials and old loyalists of King John. Ranulf tried to resist some of the government's policies. Ranulf built Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire around 1220. This castle later became the birthplace of King Henry IV. He also built Chartley Castle and Beeston Castle.

Ranulf also made an alliance with Llywelyn the Great, a powerful Welsh prince. Llywelyn's daughter married Ranulf's nephew, John the Scot, who would later inherit Ranulf's lands.

In his final years, Ranulf was seen as a wise, older statesman. He helped with the re-issue of the Magna Carta in 1225. He also led King Henry III's army on a trip to France in 1230–1231. He made a truce with the King of France that lasted for three years.

Ranulf always looked out for his own interests. He managed to avoid some taxes on his lands. His only big failure was not avoiding a tax in 1232.

Ranulf's Death

Ranulf died at Wallingford on October 26, 1232, when he was sixty years old. Parts of his body were buried in different places. His heart was buried at Dieulacres Abbey, which he had founded. The rest of his body was buried at St Werburg's in Chester.

His many lands were divided among his four sisters: Matilda, Mabel, Agnes, and Hawise. Before he died, Ranulf also gave the Earldom of Lincoln to his youngest sister, Hawise. She officially became the Countess of Lincoln the day after Ranulf died. She then gave the earldom to her daughter and son-in-law.

After Ranulf's death, his nephew, John the Scot, became the Earl of Chester.

Images for kids

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  The ruins of Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, built by Ranulf

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  Wallingford Castle in Oxfordshire