Roger (Bigod) le Bigod (abt. 1060 - 1107)

*Here is an archived version of the K-R article: https://web.archive.org/web/20210515164218/https://users.ox.ac.uk/~prosop/prosopon/issue9-1.pdf

• There are some interesting discussions in this article by Peter Stewart: https://www-personal.umich.edu/~bobwolfe/gentxt/Origin_and_early_generations_of_the_Tosny_family.pdf
• There has been some editor concern about the question of how many wives there are but keep in mind that in effect the 2 wives are merged into 1 now by historians like Keats-Rohan, and one of them was just a name. This is a kind of adaptation we don't have much to worry about. A bigger problem would be two clearly named wives with connections to 2 different families.
• Here is a reference for that ODNB article in case we need it: Wareham, A. (2004, September 23). Bigod, Roger (d. 1107), administrator. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved 23 Sep. 2023. FWIW it does give two wives, but it is also clearly not a very new article.

This profile page is a huge mess! It looks like someone just copied info from Wikipedia instead of doing actual research. Note that Wikipedia is not considered a reliable source.

"A Genealogical History of the Dormant, Abeyant, forfeited, and Extinct Peerages of the British Empire," by Sir Bernard Burke, LL.D., Ulster King of Arms (p.53) states, regarding Roger Bigod, "In the reign of King John he was one of the barons that extorted the great Charters of Freedom from that prince, and was amongst the twenty-five lords appointed to enforce their fulfilment. His lordship m. Isabel, dau. of Hamelyn, Earl of Warrenne and Surrey, and had issue,

1. "Hugh, his successor.

2. "William, m. Margaret dau. of Robert de Sutton, with whom he acquired considerable property.

3. "Thomas.

4. "Margery, m. to William de Hastings.

5. "Adeliza, m. to Alberic de Vere, Earl of Oxford.

6. "Mary, m. to Ralph Fitz-Robert, Lord of Middleham."

ALL six of the above-mentioned children were of Roger's marriage to Isabel Plantagenet according to the Ulster King of Arms.

Note that Hugh is also shown as the son of Robert [sic., Roger] and Isabel Plantagenet in "The Descent of George Washington from King John and Nine of the Twenty Five Barons Sureties of Magna Carta" commissioned by the British government. This historic document hangs on the wall of the Library of Congress in the reading room.

As to the question of two wives... As noted above, Roger's first wife was Isabel Plantgenet (sources already mentioned). Roger's second wife, Ida de Toeni, is mentioned in "New England Historical and Genealogical Register," Vol. 160, April 2006, Whole Number 638 (p.105). There, she is mentioned as having been a mistress of King Henry II of England before marrying Roger le Bigod, Earl of Norfolk.

Note that the link to the Keats-Rohan source used to support the claim that the children were by Alice de Tosny leads to a 404 Error page, meaning that the page does not exist. Ergo, the claim is unsupported.

Does the ODNB really distinguish two wives?

Perhaps we need a discussion about why Richardson thinks that he was married twice. Don't see evidence to make the case from Keats-Rohan, just opinion. So do we just have dueling opinions? In that case, I'd say to leave the mother of Matilda/Maud as unknown. No?

Have a look at Toeni-30, it has much more information (and sources) in that profile. That profile also shows "The elder of Robert de Tosny's younger daughters was Adelisa, wife of Roger Bigod at his death in 1107. It is probable that Roger was married only once, although he is usually credited with two wives of the same name on the inconclusive evidence of a pro anama clause in a charter of his son William.[11] Roger and his wife Adelisa gave charter for Rochester priory which referred to their sons and daughters and was attested by their children William, Humphrey, Gunnor and Matilda.[12]."

Also see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_de_Stafford

And https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Bigod_of_Norfolk