Walter Espec (died 1153) was a prominent military and judicial figure of the reign of

Henry I of England Henry I ( – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henr ...

. His father was probably William Speche (William Espec), who joined

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

in the

Norman conquest of England The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

. The senior Speche is believed to have become the

feudal baron A feudal baron is a vassal holding a heritable fief called a ''barony'', comprising a specific portion of land, granted by an overlord in return for allegiance and service. Following the end of European feudalism, feudal baronies have largely be ...

Old Warden Old Warden is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about south-east of the county town of Bedford. The 2011 census shows its population as 328. The ...

by 1086. In the years up to 1120, Espec controlled northern England, alongside Eustace fitz John. He was the builder of Helmsley Castle; he built also Wark Castle. As an old man, when

High Sheriff of Yorkshire The Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere o ...

, he fought against the Scots at the

Battle of the Standard The Battle of the Standard, sometimes called the Battle of Northallerton, took place on 22 August 1138 on Cowton Moor near Northallerton in Yorkshire, England. English forces under William of Aumale repelled a Scottish army led by King Davi ...

in 1138. He was the founder of

Kirkham Priory The ruins of Kirkham Priory are situated on the banks of the River Derwent, Yorkshire, River Derwent, at Kirkham, North Yorkshire, Kirkham, North Yorkshire, England. The Augustinians, Augustinian priory was founded in the 1120s by Walter l'Esp ...

(

Augustinians Augustinians are members of several religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written about 400 A.D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13 ...

) and later

Rievaulx Abbey Rievaulx Abbey ( ) was a Cistercian abbey in Rievaulx, near Helmsley, in the North York Moors National Park, North Yorkshire, England. It was one of the great abbeys in England until it was seized in 1538 under Henry VIII during the Dissolu ...

(

Cistercians The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

). Kirkham Priory was founded around 1130.Houses of Austin canons – Priory of Kirkham , British History Online
/ref> He then donated to Rievaulx, where building started in 1132, and is largely credited for the arrival of the Cistercians in England. By 1135 he also founded Warden AbbeyBedfordshire County Council: Warden Abbey
/ref> (Wardon) in

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated ''Beds'') is a Ceremonial County, ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the south and the south-east, and Buckin ...

, a daughter house of Rievaulx. Walter Espec later became a Cistercian monk himself.

References

*''Concise Dictionary of National Biography'' * Paul Dalton, "Espec, Walter (d. 1147x58)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004. * Janet E. Burton, ''The monastic order in Yorkshire, 1069–1215'', Cambridge studies in medieval life and thought, Cambridge University Press, 1999, 352 pages. . * A. Gransden, ''Historical Writing in England c. 550–c.1307'', 1974. * Christopher Tyerman, " Walter Espec", in ''Who's Who in Early Medieval England, 1066–1272'', Shepheard-Walwyn (editor), 1996, p. 113–114. ().

Notes

External links

''Four Great Abbeys and Priories of Yorkshire''

Walter Espec, founder of Rievaulx abbey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Espec, Walter 1153 deaths Anglo-Normans Norman warriors People from North Yorkshire High sheriffs of Yorkshire Year of birth unknown