FEUDAL BARONAGE 



called William^ between them. On Mathew's death in 1226 the honour 

 fell into abeyance and the estates were distributed among his five sisters, 

 co-heiresses.** 



One other ' honour ' — that of Briwere — deserves mention, although not 

 an honour in the same sense as those already described, but only a huge 

 agglomeration of estates in the hands of a single individual to which by 

 analogy the term honour is applied. Some of these estates were bestowed by 

 the crown, such as Axminster,* and were held of it in chief ; others were 

 acquired by purchase and were held of the various honours of Mortain, 

 Barnstaple, Okehampton, Totton, Berry, and Bradninch, to which they 

 belonged.* William Briwere, the judge who created the original honour of 

 Briwere in Richard I's time — his name is variously written Briewerre, 

 Briegwere, Briguere, Briwere, Briwarr, and Bruere ' — does not appear to 

 have been connected with the county before 1 179° ; for his family must not 

 be confounded with that of Ralf de Brueria '' in Domesday, an under-tenant 

 of Baldwin, although in the twelfth century the two families were connected 

 by marriage.* Sheriff of Devon from 1 179 to 1 189, of Cornwall in 1202—3, 

 of Dorset in 1209-10,' William Briwere" acquired a large number of manors 

 in these counties, which on his death in 1226 passed to his son William 

 Briwere the younger, and on his death, without issue, 12 February, 1232, 

 were divided among his four daughters, co-heiresses." 



One of these daughters, Margaret, was married to William de la Ferte 

 or de Affertis, and had by him an only daughter, Gundreda, who brought 



' William was in possession in succession to his father, John, in 1 2 14 (Lit. Claus. 16 John, pt. ii, m. 24 

 in dorso) and died in 1223, leaving a widow, Avice, who married again and enjoyed her dower up to 1230 

 {Lit. Claus. 8 Hen. Ill, pt. i, m. 10 ; Rot. Fin. 15 Hen. Ill, m. 7). 



' Rot. Lit. Claus. (Rec. Com.), 1 1 Hen. Ill, m. 16. (l) Emma, wife of (Thomas ?) Merton and mother of 

 Henry de Merton, who did homage for her share in 1227 (Rot. Fin. 1 2 Hen. Ill, m. 9) ; (2) Dionisia, wife of 

 Henry, son of William, who did homage for her share in 1227 (Rot. Fin. 12 Hen. Ill, m. 7), and then sold 



it to Henry de Merton, who died, seised of f in 1245 (Inq. p. m. 30 Hen. Ill, No. 16) ; (3) , wife 



of Richard Tremenet, who sold her share to Henry de Tracy, from whom it passed to Geoffrey de Camvil, 

 in right of his wife, Maud de Bryan, great granddaughter of the said Henry de Tracy {Hund. R., Rec. Com., 

 3 Edw. I, No. 17, p. 70) ; (4) Sybil, the wife of Richard Umfravil and mother of Gilbert de Umfravil ; 

 and (5) Mabel, the wife of Walter de Sully and mother of Raymund de Sully, who in 1232 paid ^^49 9/. 3//. 

 for the issue of his lands (Pipe R. 17 Hen. Ill, Rot. 6) and died in 1 24 1, after having given his share with 

 Sybil his daughter to Guy de Bryan. 



^ Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 194^, i^6b, 197^; Trans. Devon. Assoc, xxxvii, 419, 427, 437; 

 Dugdale, Bar. i, 701. 



* A list in Testa de NevilUV^sc. Com.), 199(2, and Trans. Devon. Assoc, xxxvii, 446. 



" Bruerre in Red Book of Exch. (Rolls Ser.), 232. As witness to two charters in 1190 and 1 198 {Cat. 

 Doc. France, 1 19, 462), William is called Briguere. In the foundation deed of Tor Abbey (Oliver, Mon. 1 73), 

 he attests for himself as Briewere, and his son as Briegwere. Testa de Nevill (Rec. Com.), 194^, writes 

 Bruere, 196^ Briwarr, 197^ and 199a Briwere. 



' In which year he purchased Ilesham. Dugdale, Bar. i, 700. 



' Ralf de Brueria is probably connected with Geoffrey de Bruere, a witness to charters in 1092 and 1 147 

 (pal. Doc. France, 167, 518), and Gofer (Geoffrey) de Boueria, a witness in 1152 (Ibid. 375, 419). 



' William Briwere held Greendale in Woodbury by grant of Reginald de Allsemarle, his uncle (Oliver, 

 Mon. 1 80), and gave it in free-marriage with his sister Englesia to William de la Brueria (Ibid. 187). Englesia 

 and her husband gave it back to William Briwere in exchange for Holbeton, whereupon William Briwere 

 gave it to Tor Abbey (Oliver, Mon. 187 ; Trans. Devon. Assoc, xxxv, 289). Another estate, Wolborough or 

 Newton Abbot, which William Briwere gave to Tor Abbey, he obtained before 1 1 96 from William, son of 

 Antony de Bruera (Oliver, Mon. 186). 



' Maclean's Trigg Minor, iii, 148. 



'" William Briewere married Maud de Vaux (de Vallibus) (Oliver, Mon. 173), the mother by Reginald, 

 earl of Cornwall, of Henry the earl's son. His eldest son, Richard, met his death before 1 196 fighting 

 against the Welsh. 



" Testa de Nevill (^cc. Com.), 19912; Risdon, Notebook, 74. 



567 



