Sir Gaulter "Walter" de Somerville

The Somerville surname has been subject to much variation over time, yet it is sufficient to know beyond all doubt that it is of Norman extraction. The lineage begins with that of the respected knight:

Sir Gaulter de Somerville, the progenitor of all the Somervilles in Great Britain, and the first on record to bear that surname. He was born around 1030, (possibly to a father of the same name, although there is no evidence to support this belief), in a French village located near the northwest coast of Normandy, possibly that of Sommervieux, a small commune roughly 18 miles west of Caen. He was of mixed Frankish and Scandinavian blood, and it is very probable that his Viking ancestors had settled in the Normandy region over 100 years prior to his birth. His name, Gaulter, roughly translates to “commander of the army,” a powerful and fitting name for the warlord knight he came to be.
The family bore a great rank in Normandy, putting them in high regard with the Conqueror, whom Gaulter accompanied during the Conquest in 1066. For his service, Gaulter was awarded the lordship of Whichnour, in the county of Stafford, where he settled, and Aston Somerville, in the county of Worcester. He was a man of good parts and stature, who earned his honor not through wealth or court favor, but through valor and loyalty. He died after the year 1100, at his estate in Whichnour, leaving issue several sons.

Of how many children he had, it is not known, nor the identity of women who bore them. Yet, those of certainty include:

1. Gaulter de Somerville

2. William de Somerville

WALTER OF SOMERVILLE

According to Sir William C. Lawrie: "Gualter de Somerville ….. obtained from (the Conqueror) Whitchnour in Staffordshire and Somerville Aston in Gloucestershire. He left several sons, at the commencement of the twelfth century, Gualter, who inherited his estates in England; and William, his second son, who attached himself to David I. He obtained the manor of Carnwath. Lawrie Charters: Notes LIV p. 49. William de Sumerville