Giles de Braose (or Giles de Bruse; died 17 November 1215) was Bishop of Hereford from 1200 to 1215.

Early life

Giles was the second son of

William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber William de Braose, (or William de Briouze), 4th Lord of Bramber (1144/1153 – 9 August 1211), court favourite of King John of England, at the peak of his power, was also Lord of Gower, Abergavenny, Brecknock, Builth, Radnor, Kington, L ...

.Barrow "Briouze, Giles de" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' His father was a landholder on the Welsh Marches, who gained the favour of King

John of England John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Emp ...

in the early years of John's reign.Turner "Briouze, William (III) de" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' Giles' mother was Maud of St Valery.Holden "King John and the Braoses" ''Albion'' p. 12 His education and early career are unknown,Barrow ''Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 8: Hereford: Bishops'' but he was likely born soon after 1170.

Bishop of Hereford

Giles was elected as Bishop of Hereford on about 19 September 1200 and consecrated on 24 September 1200, at Westminster. The cathedral chapter had previously attempted to elect

Walter Map Walter Map ( la, Gualterius Mappus; 1130 – 1210) was a medieval writer. He wrote '' De nugis curialium'', which takes the form of a series of anecdotes of people and places, offering insights on the history of his time. Map was a court ...

, but the death of King

Richard I of England Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...

prevented Map's election. He owed his election to his father's position with the king, and continued to receive gifts and grants from the king for the next four years. He was also granted custody of the castle of

Bishop's Castle Bishop's Castle is a market town in the south west of Shropshire, England. According to the 2011 Census it had a population of 1,893. Bishop's Castle is east of the Wales-England border, about north-west of Ludlow and about south-west of Sh ...

in southern Shropshire.Holden "King John and the Braoses" ''Albion'', p. 5 Giles was probably responsible for the building of the tower of

Brecon Cathedral Brecon Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Aberhonddu), in the town of Brecon, Powys, is the cathedral of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon in the Church in Wales and seat of the Bishop of Swansea and Brecon. Previously the church of Brecon Priory ...

and is depicted in a window in the north aisle. He may also have then been responsible for the building of the tower of Hereford Cathedral as his

alabaster Alabaster is a mineral or rock that is soft, often used for carving, and is processed for plaster powder. Archaeologists and the stone processing industry use the word differently from geologists. The former use it in a wider sense that include ...

effigy can be seen there today and he holds a tower on his chest. Over 50 documents from Giles' time as bishop survive, which show him to have had a good knowledge of

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

. He was often employed by the papacy as a judge-delegate, hearing cases referred back to England from Rome. Since Hereford was on the Welsh Marches, Giles was involved in the politics and disputes of the border lands, including a dispute between King John and

Gwenwynwyn ab Owain Gwenwynwyn ab Owain Cyfeiliog (died c. 1216) was the last major ruler of mid Wales before the completion of the Norman English invasion. He was one of few native rulers to represent a real threat to the rule of Llywelyn the Great. Lineage Gwenwy ...

of Powys, which was resolved around 1204.

Troubles with John

In late 1206 John appointed a new sheriff of Herefordshire, who appears to have put pressure on both Braoses, father and son. Giles may have been a hostage for his father's behaviour in April and May 1208, before escaping and going into exile in France in late May 1208. While he was in exile, he joined a group of other English exiles that were trying to get aid from King

Philip II of France Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French m ...

against John. Giles' mother and elder brother were starved to death in 1210 on John's orders, and this probably increased his distrust and dislike of John. Giles aided

Llywelyn ab Iorwerth Llywelyn the Great ( cy, Llywelyn Fawr, ; full name Llywelyn mab Iorwerth; c. 117311 April 1240) was a King of Gwynedd in north Wales and eventually " Prince of the Welsh" (in 1228) and "Prince of Wales" (in 1240). By a combination of war and d ...

's efforts to make an alliance with King Philip, which bore fruit in 1212.

Return to England

Giles was able to return to England in 1213, where he at first was on good terms with John, who restored some lands to him. The bishop, however, was concerned that the lands of his nephews, the sons of his elder brother William, were not returned to them, and in May 1214 efforts to find a compromise with the king failed. John then confiscated some of the bishop's lands and granted them to another. This led Giles to join the barons opposing John, and in conjunction with the Welsh leader Llywelyn the Great, to raze Hugh de Mortimer's castle at Wigmore, Herefordshire. Hugh was the lone marcher baron to side with John. In October 1214, the marcher lords and John were reconciled, and Giles rejoined the royal court. After Llywelyn's revolt in May 1215, Giles and his brother

Reginald de Braose Reginald de Braose (19 September 1182 – June 1228) was one of the sons of William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber and Matilda, also known as Maud de St. Valery and Lady de la Haie. Her other children included William and Giles. The de Braoses ...

seized their ancestral lands and the bishop himself took a number of the castles. In October 1215, Giles was reconciled with the king, and paid a fine of 9,000

marks Marks may refer to: Business * Mark's, a Canadian retail chain * Marks & Spencer, a British retail chain * Collective trade marks, trademarks owned by an organisation for the benefit of its members * Marks & Co, the inspiration for the novel ...

to assure his possessions. It appears that in 1215, Giles had custody of his father's lands, along with his nephew John, as in March of that year a fine was recorded against Giles for the custody of the estates, and on 10 May 1215 a writ was issued allowing him to have the case judged. However, while Giles returned to the king's faction by the autumn of 1215, Reginald did not.Holden "King John and the Braoses" ''Albion'', pp. 13–14 Giles died 17 November 1215,Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'', p. 250 at

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

and is buried in Hereford Cathedral.

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Braose, Giles de 1215 deaths Anglo-Normans in Wales Bishops of Hereford 13th-century English Roman Catholic bishops People from Gloucester Burials at Hereford Cathedral Year of birth unknown Feudal barons of Abergavenny Feudal barons of Bramber