Baldwin FitzGilbert (died 1086-1091) (''alias'' Baldwin the Sheriff, Baldwin of Exeter, Baldwin de Meulles/Moels and Baldwin du Sap) was a Norman magnate and one of the 52 Devon Domesday Book tenants-in-chief of King

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...

, of whom he held the largest fiefdom in Devon, comprising 176 holdings or manors. He was feudal baron of Okehampton, seated at Okehampton Castle in Devon.

Origins

He was originally from Meulles or nearby

Le Sap Le Sap () is a former commune in the Orne department in north-western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Sap-en-Auge.

, in Calvados, Normandy. He was a younger son of Gilbert, Count of Brionne and of Eu, in Normandy.

Career

Together with his eldest brother

Richard FitzGilbert Richard fitz Gilbert (before 1035–), 1st feudal baron of Clare in Suffolk, was a Norman lord who participated in the Norman conquest of England in 1066, and was styled "de Bienfaite", "de Clare", and of "Tonbridge" from his holdings.G. E. Cok ...

, in 1066 Baldwin participated in the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...

of England. Following the successful siege of the Saxon city of

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

appointed Baldwin castellan of the newly-built royal castle there,

Rougemont Castle Rougemont Castle, also known as Exeter Castle, is the historic castle of the city of Exeter, Devon, England. It was built into the northern corner of the Roman city walls starting in or shortly after the year 1068, following Exeter's rebellion ...

. He also appointed him hereditary Sheriff of Devon, a position he held until his death. Exeter Castle was thenceforth the official seat of the Sheriff of Devon. King William I also granted him the very large

feudal barony of Okehampton The feudal barony of Okehampton was a very large feudal barony, the largest mediaeval fiefdom in the county of Devon, England,Thorn & Thorn, part 2, chapter 16 whose ''caput'' was Okehampton Castle and manor. It was one of eight feudal baroni ...

in Devon, at the ''

caput Latin words and phrases {{Short pages monitor