fluence over
their vassals, tenants, and slaves. And the immense fortunes which the
Conqueror had bestowed on his chief captains, served to support their
independence, and make them formidable to the sovereign.

He gave, for instance, to Hugh de Abrincis, his sister's son, the whole
county of Chester, which he erected into a palatinate, and rendered by
his grant almost independent of the crown.[*] Robert, earl of Mortaigne,
had nine hundred and seventy-three manors and lordships: Allan, earl
of Brittany and Richmond, four hundred and forty-two: Odo, bishop of
Baieux, four hundred and thirty-nine:[**] Geoffrey, bishop of Coutance,
two hundred and eighty:[***] Walter Giffard, earl of Buckingham, one
hundred and seven.

[* Camd. in Chesh. Spel. Gloss, in verb. Comes
Palatinus.]

[** Brady's Hist. p. 198, 200.]

[*** Order Vitalia.]

William, earl Warrenne, two hundred and ninety-eight, besides
twenty-eight towns or hamlets in Yorkshire: Todenei, eighty-one: Roger
Bigod, one hundred and twenty-three: Robert, earl of Eu, one hundred and
nineteen: Roger Mortimer, one hundred and thirty-two, besides several
hamlets: Robert de Stafford, one hundred and thirty: Walter de Eurus,
earl of Salisbury, forty-six Geoffrey de Mandeville, one hundred
and eighteen Richard de Clare, one hundred and seventy-one: Hugh de
Beauchamp, forty-seven: Baldwin de Rivers, one hundred and sixty-four:
Henry de Ferrers, two hundred and twenty? two: William de Percy, one
hundred and nineteen:[*] Norman d'Arcy, thirty-three.[**] Sir Henry
Spelman computea that, in the large county of Norfolk, there were not,
in the Conqueror's time, above sixty-six proprietors of land.[***] Men
possessed of such princely revenues and jurisdictions could not long
be retained in the rank of subjects. The great Earl Warrenne, in a
subsequent reign, when he was questioned concerning his right to the
lands which he possessed, drew his sword, which he produced as his
title; adding, that William the bastard did not conquer the kingdom
himself; but that the barons, and his ancestor among me rest, were joint
adventurers in the enterprise.[****]

[* Dugdale's Baronage, from Domesday-book, vol. i.
p. 60, 74; iii. 112, 132, 136, 138, 156, 174, 200, 207, 223,
254, 257, 269.]

[** Ibid. p. 319. It is remarkable that this
family of D'Arcy seema to be the only male descendants of
any of the Conqueror's barons now remaining among