Sir Reginald Fitzurse (1145–1173) was one of the four

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

s who murdered

Thomas Becket Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then as Archbishop of Canterbury fr ...

in 1170. His name is derived from ''

Fitz Fitz (pronounced "fits") was a patronymic indicator used in Anglo-Norman England to help distinguish individuals by identifying their immediate predecessors. Meaning "son of", it would precede the father's forename, or less commonly a title held ...

'', the Anglo-Norman French term meaning "son of" and ''urse'' meaning a bear, likely the ''

nom de guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In Ancien régime, ''ancien régime'' Kingdom of France, France it would be adopted by each n ...

'' of an ancestor. Although he lived before the true age of

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and genealo ...

, which developed in the early 13th century, his shield bore the

cognizance Cognizance may refer to: * Cognizance, IIT Roorkee,https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/education/news/3-day-annual-technical-festival-kicks-off-at-iit-roorkee/articleshow/90521282.cms an annual technical festival held at the Indian Institute of ...

of a bear, which is visible in a contemporary drawing portraying the murder of Becket.

Early life

Fitzurse was the eldest son of Richard Fitzurse, on whose death about 1168 he inherited the manor of

Williton Williton is a large village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England, at the junction of the A39 road, A39, A358 and B3191 roads, on the coast south of Watchet between Minehead, Bridgwater and Taunton. Williton station i ...

Somersetshire Somerset ( , ), archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to ...

. He also held land in Leicestershire and Northamptonshire and at

Barham, Kent Barham is a village and civil parish in the City of Canterbury district of Kent, England. Barham village is approximately south-east from Canterbury and north from Folkestone. History The name Barham was spelt ''Bioraham'' in 799, from ''B ...

, between

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

and

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

. He lived for a time at

Barham Court Barham Court is an English country house in the village of Teston, Kent. History It was once the home of Reginald Fitz Urse, one of the knights who murdered Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170. As a result of that deed, Fitz Urse fle ...

Teston Teston The Place Names of Kent,Judith Glover,1976,Batsford. or BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names — is a is a village and civil parish in the Maidstone (borough), Maidstone District of Kent, England. It is located on the A26 r ...

. He was a knight in

Henry II Henry II may refer to: Kings * Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014 *Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154 *Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...

's household.

Assassination of Becket

At Christmas 1170, Fitzurse was at the court of

at Bures in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

when Henry ranted against

. Fitzurse and the other three knights, Hugh de Moreville,

William de Tracy Sir William de Tracy (died ) was a knight and the feudal baron of Bradninch, Devon, with ''caput'' at the manor of Bradninch near Exeter, and was lord of the manors (amongst very many others) of Toddington, Gloucestershire and of Moretonhampste ...

and

Richard le Breton Sir Richard le Breton or Richard de Brito (fl. 1170) was one of the four knights who in 1170 murdered Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. Origins Roger Brito is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as holding land under the overlordship o ...

or Brito, crossed the Channel separately and met up in

Saltwood Castle Saltwood Castle is a castle in Saltwood village, one mile (2 km) north of Hythe, Kent, England. Of 11th century origin, the castle was expanded in the 13th and 14th centuries. After the Norman Conquest, the castle was appropriated by the A ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, to plan their attack. On 29 December 1170, they burst into the cathedral choir at

clad in armour and carrying swords determined to capture or kill Becket. Fitzurse appeared to be the ringleader and delivered the first but non-fatal blow to Becket's head and the other knights followed suit until Becket lay dead. Christendom was outraged while the king publicly expressed remorse and engaged in public confession and penance. The four knights initially escaped to Scotland and thence to Morville's

Knaresborough Castle Knaresborough Castle is a ruined fortress overlooking the River Nidd in the town of Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, England. History The castle was first built by a Normans, Norman baron in on a cliff above the River Nidd. There is documenta ...

where they stayed for a year. All four were excommunicated by

Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland (), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a Papal election, ...

on Easter Day and ordered to make a penitential pilgrimage to the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

, staying for 14 years. It is believed that none returned.''Eleanor of Aquitaine'' by Alison Weir. Legend holds that Fitzurse fled to

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

where he fathered the

McMahon McMahon or MacMahon ( or ) may refer to: Places * Division of McMahon, an electorate for the Australian House of Representatives * McMahon, Saskatchewan, a hamlet in Canada * McMahon Line, a boundary between India and China * McMahons Point, a ...

clan. Fitzurse's relatives, who remained in England, changed their name to 'de Bereham' (of Barham), the location of their home, to also avoid any persecution. The name has evolved over time to just Barham.

Marriage and Issue

Reginald married Beatrice de Limesi they had one daughter: # Matilda Fitzuse she married Robert de Courtney they had issue.

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzurse, Reginald 1145 births 1173 deaths 12th-century English military personnel 12th-century murderers Anglo-Normans English assassins Medieval assassins Medieval English knights Norman warriors People excommunicated by the Catholic Church People from the Borough of Maidstone Thomas Becket