The Twelfth Century Beaumonts of the NE part of the Cotentin

Néville-sur-mer (Neevilla - Nigel's town) sits on the north coast of the Cotentin peninsular, east of Cherbourg.

William the monk (this appears to be a name he adopted, not an indication of his profession) in the early 1160s founded a chapel "on his domaine" in the parish of Néville (Drouet p.407). He was the son of Richard de Ansgerville (Angoville-en-Saire?) and his second wife Mabilia, whose father was called Rogo son of Nigel. 

It appears that -

• William had a sister who had married someone called Beaumont, and that - 
• his mother must have had an interest at Néville which descended to him.

It also appears that William the monk did not marry, for his heirs were four brothers called Beaumont, referred to as his nephews (nepotes) and vice versa he as their uncle (avunculus). The oldest brother, the senior heir, was called Thomas. This "family tree" is built up from information in Montebourg and Saint-Sauveur charters, first seen in "Domesday Descendants."

• Nigel
• Rogo
• Mabilia m. Richard de Ansgerville (his 2nd wife)
• William the monk
• Lady m. Beaumont
• Thomas de Beaumont & three brothers

Possibly the William de Beaumont who gave a share in the mill of "Aldulvilla" to Montebourg Abbey (in the 1080s? - no later than 1107) was of this family (BNFr MS Lat 10087 no.141) (sometimes "Aldubvilla" - usually identified as Audouville-la-Hubert, but why not Saint-Martin-d'Audouville?).

The chapel William the monk established at Néville-sur-mer was associated with Montebourg Abbey, and various property was given. In several of William's own charters the consent of Thomas de Beaumont and sometimes also his brothers Philip, Juhel, and Godfrey, was recorded.

There is a place called Beaumont near Hacouville not very far away from Néville-sur-mer.

Beaumont, Hacouville, Manche (Google street scene)

The names of the Beaumont brothers here correspond intriguingly to those of people found in England. Those connexions seem mainly to be with Devon (another piece needed about that), but not exclusively so. Surely the William the Monk and Thomas de Beaumont his nephew who sold their interest at Staining, Lancashire, to John Constable of Chester (see my piece dated 27 February 2021) must be the same people as here. 

And Thomas and Philip may well be the two mentioned in my piece dated 30 January 2021. A particular reason for thinking so is that the charter discussed there was a gift to St. Sauveur abbey, to which same abbey William the monk gave his house at Barfleur, that charter being witnessed by all of the Beaumont brothers.

From Stapleton's map

Drouet noted -

• that Philip de Beaumont (whom he identified as the nephew of William the monk), was still living in 1217, when he permitted Montebourg abbey to allow the chapel to be served by secular priests
• and that Thomas (identified as the son of the above Philip) gave four acres in 1248 and went on the crusade with "Saint-Louis" (King Louis IX of France)
• and that in 1281 the lord of Néville was Richard de Beaumont, a knight. Along with Beaumont a la Hague, Fermanville, the Rethoville, Néville appears to have passed with an heiress to a family called Argouges a generation or so later (Drouet p.410, p.420). "Le fief de Beaumont-en-Néville" is mentioned (eg p.411) but it doesn't seem clear if that is a separate place or a family reference.

As and when I can transcribe the Montebourg charters, I think it will become clear whether anything can be added to what is in Drouet's book.

As to Beaumont-Hague. This place is marked "Bellusmons" on Stapleton's map, and the "lieu-dit" Beaumont near Hacouville is not. We are familiar with the name of a landowning family being used to distinguish places with otherwise common names - Stanton Harcourt, Newton Reigny. The name Hague is attached to several places in that high ground NW corner of the Cotentin, and indeed to that area as a whole. I think the name is connected with Scandinavian words meaning enclosure - a common enough concept. I wonder if this is a case where a place is simply being tagged with the surname of the then owner - to avoid confusion with other places called Hague.  Which Stanton, you ask? The Harcourt one. Which bit of Hague? The Beaumont bit. Another example: Theurtheville-Hague and Theurtheville-Bocage. Any views, anyone?

Sources include:-

Keats-Rohan, "Domesday Descendants." This was the starting point.

Cartulaire de Montebourg, BN Fr MS Latin 10087, charter numbers 422ff (I have full copies now but have not yet transcribed them fully). 

Cartulaire de Saint-Sauveur, BN Fr MS Latin 17137, fol. 246r/v.

Memoires de la Societe des Antiquaires de Normandie vol. 22 (1856) p.21.

Louis Drouet, (1893) Recherches Historiques... Saint-Pierre-Eglise. He cited as his sources documents in a "Repertoire" by M. de Gerville, which I think consisted of transcripts of the Montebourg charters. Although Drouet in several places links this Beaumont family with Hague, it would be surprising if he did not know of the place mentioned above, which is surrounded by or adjacent to a number of other places he does mention.

Thomas Stapleton's map "Tabula Normanniae sub Regibus Angliae" (faces title page in Powicke's "Loss of Normandy").

EMB 10 March 2021