Sampson d'Anneville
Sampson (or Samson) d'Anneville
Sampson (or Samson) d'Anneville was a historical figure who formed the origin of the modern feudal settlement of Guernsey. Born around 1025 and dying at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, he was a seigneur of Anneville sur Saire in Normandy and a knight under the Duke. According to official legend and Guernsey tradition, he went to Guernsey to fight pirates. He reached the port of Saint Sampson in the parish of Saint Sampson. After defeating them, he was granted a fief called "Fief d%27Anneville", which comprised a quarter of the island. A similar feudal right was granted to him in Jersey. This version of the legend was officially recognised by the commissioners sent by Queen Elizabeth in 1567 This was the first grant to a layman in the island and after Sampson's arrival other knights followed, including the Mautalent who were also vassals of Anneville in Normandy. The actual feudal settlement of the island began with the arrival of Sampson.
Another version (Carey) says that Sampson followed Duke William and fought Neel de Saint Saveur, who held the fief of de Bessin in Guernsey. In any case, even in this version, Sampson d'Anneville stands at the beginning of the actual feudal settlement of the island. Sampson built a Manor called the Manor of Anneville and had two sons. He is still remembered for a donation at the church of Anneville. A extract of a cronique of the abbaye de Caen mentions the Seigneur of Anneville as one of the Seigneurs that should rule Normandy during the conquest of England and in specific he should rule on Val-de-Saire (https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k54249211/f314) . It is therefore sure that in 1066 a seigneur d'Ansneville or Anneville was governor of the Val-de-Saire.
The Descendents of Sampson d'Anneville
According to one account, the descendants of Sampson d'Anneville held the seigneurie and Fief d'Anneville in Guernsey for four generations, starting with Sampson himself. His second generation included two sons: Guillaume (also known as William) and Humphrey. Guillaume is believed to be the "sire Val-de-Saire" mentioned by the poet Wace ("fearing neither stake nor fosse, and overthrowing and killing many a good horse and man"), who was present at the Norman Conquest and held lands as an under-tenant of Roger de Montgomery in Hampshire.For some other historians the Sire Val-de-Saire was Sampson himself. In 1106, Guillaume made a donation of a church to the Abbey of Lessay and is known to have traveled to the Holy Land with Robert Courteheuse, Duke of Normandy and Godfrey of Bouillon in 1099. He was married to Hawise. Humphrey, on the other hand, was a sub-tenant of Eudo Dapifer in Hertfordshire. Another son, N. d'Anneville, went to England and is referenced in various texts. [1]
William and Humphrey d'Anneville were both recorded as sub-tenants in the Domesday Book. William held lands under Earl Roger in Hampshire, while Humphrey was a sub-tenant of Eudo Dapifer in Hertford. As they were both sons of Samson, it is difficult to explain why they received only limited lands, unless their father also came to England with them and was the Equarius quidam regis (Bedfordshire, f. 218) or the "Samson" (Staffordshire, f. 247b) recorded as holding lands directly from the king. The Annevilles can be traced in various counties such as Hampshire, Bedfordshire, and Somersetshire until the end of the reign of King Henry II. Alured d'Anneville was assassinated in Bedfordshire during that time. The family d'Anneville had also some templar connections. In the reign of King John, Jordan d'Anneville and his wife Beatrice de Lacy granted ten acres of land at Elmedon to the Knights Templars.
Coming back to the branch in Guernsey some commissioners appointed by Queen Elizabeth I declared the branch of the family in Guernsey to be one of the oldest families in the island. This information is recorded in "Recherches sur le Domesday". The third generation of the family in Guernsey was represented by the two sons of Guillaume d’Anneville, Geoffrey and Jean.
Geoffrey, the first son of Guillaume, confirmed the donation made by his father in 1118. This is recorded in a document found in the Gallica Bibliothèque Nationale de France. The second son, Jean, confirmed the donations made by previous generations to the Abbey of Lessay in 1139. He is mentioned in various other documents, which can be found in the same source.
In 1144, a Richard d'Anneville is mentioned in Guernsey alongside a Mautalent.
In the fourth generation, Geoffrey had two sons: Sampson and John. Sampson is mentioned in the charter 268 of the Livre Noir de l'Abbaye de Lessay in 1208, where he made donations in memory of his deceased parents. He is also recorded in the Norman Exchequer Roll for 1180 as having paid a fine for the peaceful settlement of a judicial duel. Sampson's brother John is also mentioned in a document found in the Gallica Bibliothèque Nationale de France. These two brothers correspond to the John and Sampson whose lands in Guernsey were escheated.
Sources:
Mairie d'Anneville
A chronicle from the Abbey of Saint Etienne in Caen (https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k54249211/f314)
Wace, Roman de Rou et des ducs de Normandie.
"Extrait d'une chronique tirée de l'Abbaye de Saint Etienne de Caen, contenant les noms de plusieurs seigneurs" (https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k54249211/f314)
Chartulary of the Abbey of Lessay
Document from 1180 mentioning Robert d'Anneville as a witness to a charter.
charter 268 of the livre noir de l’Abbaye de Lessay
