Richard I, Duke of Normandy

This article is missing citations or needs footnotes. Please help add inline citations to guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (May 2009)

Richard I "the Fearless"
Richard the Fearless as part of the Six Dukes of Normandy statue in the town square of Falaise.
Duke of Normandy
Predecessor	William I
Successor	Richard II
Born	28 August 933 Fécamp Normandy, France
Died	20 November 996 Fécamp Normandy, France

Richard I of Normandy (born 28 August 933, in Fécamp Normandy, France died 20 November 996, in Fécamp) was the Duke of Normandy from 942 to 996; he is considered the first to actually have held that title. He was called Richard the Fearless (French, Sans Peur).

Birth

He was born to William I of Normandy, ruler of Normandy, and his wife, Sprota. He was still a boy when his father died in 942. His mother was a Breton concubine captured in war and bound to William by a Danish marriage. After William died, Sprota became the wife of Esperleng, a wealthy miller; Rodulf of Ivry was their son and Richard's half-brother.^{[citation needed]}

Life

Richard was still a boy when his father died, and so he was powerless to stop Louis IV of France when he seized Normandy. Louis kept him in confinement in his youth at Lâon, but he escaped with the assistance of Osmond de Centville, Bernard de Senlis (who had been a companion of Rollo of Normandy), Ivo de Bellèsme, and Bernard the Dane (ancestor of families of Harcourt and Beaumont). In 968, Richard agreed to "commend" himself to Hugh, Count of Paris. He then allied himself with the Norman and Viking leaders, drove Louis out of Rouen, and took back Normandy by 947. He later quarrelled with Ethelred II of England regarding Danish invasions of England because Normandy had been buying up much of the stolen booty.

Richard was bilingual, having been well educated at Bayeux. He was more partial to his Danish subjects than to the Franks. During his reign, Normandy became completely Gallicized and Christianized. He introduced the feudal system and Normandy became one of the most thoroughly feudalized states on the continent. He carried out a major reorganization of the Norman military system, based on heavy cavalry. He also became guardian of the young Hugh, Count of Paris, on the elder Hugh's death in 956.

Marriages

He married 1st (960) Emma (not to be confused with Emma of France), daughter of Hugh "The Great" of France, and Hedwiga de Sachsen. They were betrothed when both were very young. She died 19 Mar 968, with no issue.

According to Robert of Torigni, not long after Emma's death, Duke Richard went out hunting and stopped at the house of a local forester. He became enamoured of the forester's wife, Seinfreda, but she being a virtuous woman, suggested he court her unmarried sister, Gunnor, instead. Gunnor became his mistress, and her family rose to prominence. Her brother, Herefast de Crepon, may have been involved in a controversial heresy trial. Gunnor was, like Richard, of Norse descent, being a Dane by blood. Richard finally married her to legitimize their children:

• Richard II "the Good", Duke of Normandy (966)
• Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, Count of Evreux, died 1037.
• Mauger, Earl of Corbeil, died after 1033
• Robert Danus, died between 985 and 989
• another son
• Emma of Normandy (c.985-1052) wife of two kings of England.
• Maud of Normandy, wife of Odo II of Blois, Count of Blois, Champagne and Chartres
• Hawise of Normandy (b. ca. 978), d. 21 February 1034. m. Geoffrey I, Duke of Brittany

Mistresses

Richard was known to have had several other mistresses and produced children with many of them. Known children are:

• Geoffrey, Count of Brionne, (b. ca. 970)
• William, Count of Eu (ca. 972-26 January 1057/58) m. Leseline de Turqueville (d. 26 January 1057/58).
• Beatrice of Normandy, Abbess of Montvilliers d.1034 m. Ebles of Turenne (d.1030 (divorced)
• Robert
• Papia m. Gilbert de St Valery.

Possible other children

Long after his death, the De Hautevilles of Naples/Sicily claimed that their ancestor Tancred of Hauteville had married two daughters of Richard I, but this is not backed up by any primary or secondary source. If true, Richard would have had at least two more illegitimate children:

• Fressenda (ca. 995-ca. 1057)
• Muriella

Death

He died in Fecamp, France on 20 November 996 of natural causes.

Depictions in Fiction

The Little Duke, a Victorian Juvenile novel by Charlotte Mary Yonge is a fictionalized account of Richard's boyhood and early struggles.

Genealogy

Diagram based on the information found on Wikipedia

Sources

• McKitterick, Rosamund. The Frankish Kingdoms under the Carolingians 751-987, 1993.
• Searle, Eleanor. Predatory Kinship and the Creation of Norman Power, 840-1066, 1998.
• The Henry Project: Richard I of Normandy
• Genealogy of the Dukes of Normandy

v • d • e Dukes of Normandy Norman Dukes Rollo · William I · Richard I · Richard II · Richard III · Robert I · William II · Robert II · Henry I · William III · Matilda · Stephen · Geoffrey · Henry II · Richard IV · John I French Dukes John II · Charles I · Charles II · Louis (Claimant) English Dukes Henry III · Edward I · Edward II · Edward III · Richard V · Henry IV  · Edward IV · Edward V · Richard VI · Henry VII · Henry VIII · Edward VI · Jane · Mary I · Elizabeth I · James I · Charles III · Charles IV · James II · William IV with Mary II · William IV British Dukes Anne · George I · George II · George III · George IV · William V · Victoria · Edward VII · George V · Edward VIII · George VI · Elizabeth II