Robert of FRANCE Count of Artois
ROBERT OF FRANCE le Bon or le Vailiant, Knt., Count of Artois, seigneur of Saint-Omer, Aire, Hesdin, Bapaume, and Lens, younger son, born (17) Sept. 1216. He married at Compiègne (Oise) 14 June 1237 MAHAUT (or MATHILDE) OF BRABANT, daughter of Henri II le Magnanime, Duke of Brabant and Lorraine (descendant of King Stephen of England), by Marie, daughter and co-heiress of Philip I, King of the Romans, Duke of Swabia and Tuscany. She was born about 1224. They had one son, Robert (II) [Count of Arrtois], and one daughter, Blanche. In 1239 Pope Gregory IX, having excommunicated and deposed Emperor Frederick II, offered the imperial crown to the king of France for his brother, Robert, but, in 1240 the king refused the offer. ROBERT OF FRANCE, Count of Aitois, was slain in battle at Mansourah, Egypt 9 Feb. 1249/50. His widow, Mahaut, married (2nd) at Naples, Italy 16 Jan. 1255 GUI II DE CHATILLON, Count of Saint-Pol, seigneur of Ancre d'Aubigny-en-Artois (died 12 March 1289), son of Hugues I de Châtillon, Count of Blois and Saint-Pol, seigneur of Châti]lon. They had three sons, Hugues (II) [Count of Blois and Dunois], Gui (III) [Count of Saint-Poll [see WYDEYIILLE 6), and Jacques [seigneur of Condé and Leuze], and two daughters, Béatrix (wife of Jean de Brienne, Count of Eu) and Jeanne (wife of Guiliaume III de Chauvigny). In 1267 she founded the chapel of Sainte-Marguerite at Lucheux. In 1275 Gui and Mahaut founded three additional chapels in their castle of Lucheux. Mahaut, Countess of Artois and Saint-Pol, died 29 Sept. 1288, and was buried the Abbey of Cercamps-en-Artois.
Gospatrick Ii DUNBAR 2nd Earl of Dunbar
GOSPATRIC II
CREATED EARL OF DUNBAR
He was born about 1062, Dunbar Castle, East Lothian, Scotland and died August 22, 1138 at the battle of Standard..---See Footnotes 5, 6 Some sources state that he was also Earl of Northumberland, but Adrian says, "I am sure he was not Earl of Northumberland. According to Weis he married Sybil MOREL, the daughter of Arkil MOREL. "You may well be right that he died at the Battle of Standard, but I should point out to you the view of a guy in the East Lothain Museums service: GOSPATRICK of Northumbria (c1040 - c1100) m. AETHELREDA his son GOSPATRIC, Comes (c1070 - c1138/9) m. unknown his son GOSPATRIC, Comes (c1100 - c1147) m. unknown. Some hold that this is just on person because his son GOSPATRICK (c1100 - 1166) m. DERDER his son WALDEVE (c1130 - 1182) m. ALINE. So we have one (or two) GOSPATRICK's in the right period with unknown spouse."---
Gospatrick I DUNBAR Earl of Northumberland and Dunbar
GOSPATRIC I
EARL OF NORTHUMBRIA & BAMBURGH
He was born about 1040, Northumberland, England and died about December 15, 1072, Ubbanford, Scotland. "Some say he died a Monk at Durham"--The Complete Peerage Vol. IV.,p.504 He married Princess AETHELREDA. The Complete Peerage shows that he was Earl of Dunbar, but most sources state that his son was the first Earl of Dunbar.---See Footnotes 5, 6 "He came to Scotland because he'd fallen out with William the Conqueror and was given lands at Dunbar."---
On an exposed cliff top overlooking the North Sea, the Picts built a fortress to defend themselves from invading Scots, Saxons, and Britons. Over succeeding years this fortress was to grow in importance because of its strategic location at the mouth of the River Forth.
Sometime between the years of 835 A.D. and 839 A.D., after the Battle of Scone, when Dursken, King of the Picts was slain and his followers fled, this fortress was awarded by Kenneth I, King of Scotland to a brave and valiant captain of the Scots named Bar. Thus the fortress became known in the Gaelic as Dun Bar, or the Tower or Fortress of Bar on the Hill. The first person to use the name of Dunbar was Gospatric I ,who rebuilt the wood and wattle Tower of Bar into the stone castle that was to become the home of one of the most powerful families in Scotland.
The Dunbar Earls of Dunbar and March controlled much of Lothian, and all of "The Borders", Berwick, Peebles, Selkirk and Roxburgh, plus great holdings in Northumberland and Cumberland. Through marriage to the famous "Black" Agnes Randolph, the Dunbar Earls acquired the Earldom of Moray as well, holding Aberdeenshire, Morayshire, Nairn, Buchan, and Inverness.
While the Privy Council of Scotland recognized the Dunbars as a clan in 1579, the House of Dunbar has always been infinitely more than a clan. As a famous 17th century historian remarked, " Second only to the Cummings, and of course, the Royal family, the Dunbars are the greatest family of Scotland". Sir Robert Douglas noted, "No name in Scotland can boast of a more noble name than Dunbar". In Gospatric, First Earl of Dunbar and founder of this great family, the greatest families of Scotland, Pictland, Northumbria, and England were combined to prove Douglas' evaluation.
The Clan has long been closely associated with the Church, and has built many monasteries, abbeys, and chapels throughout the Scottish nation. The Clan was present on the Crusades to the Holy Land, and the Seal of the Dunbar Family can be found on the Arbroath Declaration sent to the Pope. After the death of the heirless King Alexander, Patrick the Eighth Earl of Dunbar was one of the ten competitors for the throne of Scotland at Berwick upon Tweed in 1291. Dukes, Earls, Marquises, and Viscounts abound through the family history from 1066 to 1457 when through palace intrigues, a jealous King James I deprived George, Eleventh Earl of Dunbar of not only his title, but also his land and other possessions. With one stroke of a pen, James I appropriated the entire inheritance of the richest man in his kingdom, and destroyed a possible rival. The Clan to date has not recovered from this affrontery, and its descendants have scattered across the world. Eventually five branches of the once princely House of Dunbar obtained baronetcies; Mochrum in Galloway and Senior of Line, Durn in Banffshire, Northfield in Moray, Boath in Nairn, and Hempriggs in Caithness. Although worthy and well doing families, none have risen to the former glory of the House of Gospatric. The motto of the Mochrum branch, "Sub Spe" or "Under Hope" attests to our faith that the Clan will rise again to its former glory.