General Notes

Philip confirmed his father's gifts to the abbey of St Florent in 1096. He was the first Braose Lord of Builth and Radnor, their initial holding in the Welsh Marches.  Philip returned from the 1st Crusade in 1103.  He built the Norman Church of St Nicolas at Old Shoreham and founded the port of New Shoreham.  His lands were confiscated by Henry I in 1110, due to his traitrous support of William, son of Robert Curthose, but they were returned in 1112.  Philip de Braose went on 2nd Crusade and died in Palestin.

Philip confirmed the gifts of his nephew, Philip de Harcourt, to the newly established Knights Templar.  Philip de Harcourt, Bishop of Bayeux, bestowed the manor and church of Shipley on the Templars between 1125 and 1130 and in 1154 added St Mary's, Sompting.

See St Nicolas, Old Shoreham.  Said to have died on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.Son of William de Briouse and Berta; succeeded his father during the reign of William Rufus (r. 1087-1100). He is mentioned by Orderic Vital in 1096 as supporting William Rufus against his brother Henry, who held the strong castle of Domfront in Normandy, from which he carried on his operations. Philip was the ancestor of the great houe of Braose, barons of Bramber, Brecknock, Gower and Totness, and of William de Braose, who obtained from King Henry II a grant of the "whole kingdom of Limerick" in Ireland for the service of 60 knights' fees. Numerous branches existed also in Sussex, Bedford, Hampshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Wales, and from him descended also the Wingfields, viscounts Powerscourt. The family must not be confused with that of Brius, Bris or Brix, of which Robert de Brix was the representative at Hastings. [Falaise Roll, pp. 35-6]

m. Johel de Toteneis; father of William de Braiose who m. Bertha of Gloucester. [Ancestral Roots, p. 152]

Son of William I de Braose and Eve de Boissay; m. Aenor de Totnes; father of William II de Braose who m. Bertha de Gloucester. [GRS 3.03, Automated Archives, CD#100]

Son of William de Braiose and Agnes de St. Claire; m. Aenor de Totnais; father of William de Braose. [Charlemagne & Others, Chart 2978]

Even before William de Braose's own death in abt 1096, his son Philip had followed the family 's warrior tradition. The bloody struggle for territory in the Welsh marches suited the de Braoses' warring ambitions. Philip gained the temporary favour of King William Rufus and an unsteady hold on Radnor and Builth. The Welsh princes who defended these lands as their birthright launched repeated campaigns. Early Norman gains met with several setbacks but Philip eventually consolidated his position and was able to build strong castles. The marcher lords hel d their lands largely outside the jurisdiction of the English crown. This provided a powerful incentive for the relentless warfare needed to subdue the Welsh. Ironically, their strength later posed a threat to the monarchy and their alliances extended to marriage with "the enemy".
   Philip de Braose travelled to Jerusalem on the First Crusade from 1097. At this time he was the country's 10th most wealthy baron. In 1110 wars on the continent compromised his loyalty and the de Braose lands were confiscated by King Henry I. Philip was back in royal favour within two years, however. His wife, Aanor, dau. of Judael de Totnes, lord of Barnstaple, had brought west country strongholds into the family (though they were saddled with legal disputes into the next century). His barony was restored to him and Philip resumed his reign as warlord in Builth and Radnor.
   Like his father, Philip had much to fear for his immortal soul. Fighting men were obliged to atone for the sins of war and this was usually to the material benefit of the church. A new order of fighting monks to defend the Holy Land, the Templars, caught the imagination of many warlike benefactors, including Philip de Braose. Saint Bernard of Clairvaux created holy orders for the Knights Templar in 1128.
   Philip de Braose built Radnor Castle to guard a strategic route into Wales. The path of the early Norman invasions can be seen clearly from the mound.["Barons de Braose" <http://freespace.virgin.net/doug.thompson/BraoseWeb/stage.htm]

Philip confirmed his father's gifts to the abbey of St. Florent in 1096. He was probably the first Braose Lord of Builth and Radnor, their initial holding in the Welsh Marches. Philip returned from the 1st Crusade in 1103. He built the Norman church of St. Nicolas at Old Shoreham and founded the port of New Shoreham. His lands were confiscated by Henry I in 1110, due to his traitorous support of William, son of Robert Curthose, but returned in 1112. Philp de Braose possibly went on 2nd Crusade and died in Palestine.
   Philip confirmed the gifts of his nephew, Philip de Harcourt, to the newly established Knights Templar. ["Barons de Braose" <http://freespace.virgin.net/doug.thompson/BraoseWeb/stage. htm]

Philip de Braose enabled som e of the earliest gifts to the Tmplars from his domains. In 1125 Philip de Harcourt bestowed the manor and church of Shipley. His brother, Richard de Rennesville, was a Templar before the knights received their holy orders. It may be that Philip de Braose travelled to Jerusalem in 1120 at the time when the Templars were first conceived.
   New Shorham was founded by Philip de Braose and became one of the most prosperous English ports during the next three centuries. Philip built the beautiful Saint Mary de Haura church for his town, possibly in thanks giving for a safe return from the Holy Land in 1100. The Templars and the knights Hospitaller established large houses at New Shoreham but the river has long since washed away the remains.
   Returning crusaders frequently introduced leprosy to the community. Philip may have been responsible for establishing the hospital of St Mary Magdalen between Bramber and Steyning in the area still marked with the name Maudlin. The bodies of medieval lepers were unearthed here when a housing estate was built in 1959.
   Philip's death appears to be recorded by a contemporary writer, Gerald of Wales. Some time before 1135, Philip and his dogs spent a night in the church of Saint Afan, or Llanafan i n Welsh. They had been hunting near Builth. At first light Philip awoke to find that all his dogs had gone mad and he himself was blind.
   After years of helplessness, Philip grasped an opportunity to redeem his offence against the church. He armed himself and travelled to Jerusalem on a strong and faithful war horse, led by a group of friends. They took him to the front line of battle, where he gallantly charged forward. Philip was immediately struck down and met an honourable death. ["Barons de Braose " <http://freespace.virgin.net/doug.thompson/BraoseWeb/stage.htm]

The origins of the site at Builth Castle, Llanfair-ym-Muallt (Powys) go back to the Norman in vasion when Philip de Braose, son of William de Braose, took possession of the cantref of Buellt and in about 1100 threw up a motte-and-bailey of formidable size at an extremely strategic crossing point of the river Wye. Neither its appearance nor its strength went unchallenged and after 1168 when Rhys ap Gruffudd, the Lord Rhys, of Deheubarth destroyed the castle, it was rebuilt and refortified on several occasions, as it was defended by the Anglo-Normans a nd the Welsh in turn. [The Castles of Wales, p. 44]

*********************