Henry fitzGerold

Who is Henry fitzGerold?

Henry fitzGerold was a 12th-century Anglo-Norman nobleman and government official.

FitzGerold was probably the son of Robert fitzGerald, an Essex landowner. Henry definitely had a brother named Warin. The brothers' first appearance in the documentary record was as witnesses to the foundation document of Walden Abbey, some time between 1138 and 1144. Henry subsequently witnessed a number of the future King Henry II's charters before the latter's accession to the throne of England. Soon after 1154, he was appointed constable of Wallingford Castle. Henry II sent him to Sens on a diplomatic mission to the pope in 1163.

FitzGerold was the steward to Geoffrey de Mandeville, the Earl of Essex, from around 1154 as well as holding land worth 4 knight's fees from Mandeville. From 1158–1170 he was chamberlain to Henry II, succeeding his brother Warin. Besides the lands held of Mandeville, Henry and Warin acquired the majority of the lands of Eudo Dapifer; Henry's share amounted to more than 50 knight's fees in Essex in 1166. FitzGerold also had the farm of the royal manor of Sutton Courtenay in Berkshire, which was worth ₤50 per annum.