William de Lovetot, Lord of Hallamshire

Hallamshire

Hallamshire is the historical name for an area of South Yorkshire, England, in the current city of Sheffield.The origin of the name is uncertain. The English Place-Name Society describe "Hallam" originating from a formation meaning "on the rocks"...

, possibly descended from the Norman Baron Ricardus Surdus, was an Anglo-Norman

Anglo-Norman

The Anglo-Normans were mainly the descendants of the Normans who ruled England following the Norman conquest by William the Conqueror in 1066. A small number of Normans were already settled in England prior to the conquest...

 Baron

Baron

Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...

 from Huntingdonshire

Huntingdonshire

Huntingdonshire is a local government district of Cambridgeshire, covering the area around Huntingdon. Traditionally it is a county in its own right...

, often credited as the founder of Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

It is unknown when De Lovetot acquired an interest in the manor of Hallamshire, but by the early twelfth century (in the reign of Henry I

Henry I of England

Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...

) he was in possession of Hallam, Attercliffe

Attercliffe

Attercliffe is an industrial suburb of northeast Sheffield, England on the south bank of the River Don.-History:The name Attercliffe can be traced back as far as an entry in the Domesday book -Ateclive- meaning at the cliffe, a small escarpment that lay alongside the River Don...

, Sheffield, Grimesthorpe, Greasbrough

Greasbrough

Greasbrough is a suburb of Rotherham, in South Yorkshire, England.Greasbrough has 2,038 inhabitants and of land belonging to Earl FitzWilliam. It is located two miles north of Rotherham and includes the neighbouring hamlets of Bassinthwaite, Ginhouse, Cinder Bridge, Nether Haugh, and part of...

 and Worksop

Worksop

Worksop is the largest town in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England on the River Ryton at the northern edge of Sherwood Forest. It is about east-south-east of the City of Sheffield and its population is estimated to be 39,800...

. He also had interests in Handsworth

Handsworth, South Yorkshire

Handsworth is a suburb of south eastern Sheffield, in South Yorkshire, England. Handsworth has a population of approximately 15,000. It covers an overall area of approximately...

, Treeton

Treeton

Treeton is a village and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England. It is located about south of the town of Rotherham and east of Sheffield City Centre.-History:...

, and Whiston

Whiston, South Yorkshire

Whiston is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 5,115.Originally a small rural village between Sheffield and Rotherham, within the Saxon "Shire of Hallun" , Whiston is now a suburb of Rotherham, close to its border...

 . He founded a priory at Worksop c.1103, St. Mary's Church at Handsworth

St. Mary's Church, Handsworth, Sheffield

St. Mary's Church in Handsworth, a district in the east of Sheffield, England, was founded in the 12th. century.The Normans were very enthusiastic church builders and St. Mary's Church was constructed in order to satisfy the growing need of the local community for a permanent priest. It has...

, and may have founded the parish church in Sheffield at around this time. Lovetot is credited with the building of a motte and bailey castle

Sheffield Castle

Sheffield Castle was a castle in Sheffield, England, constructed at the confluence of the River Sheaf and the River Don, possibly on the site of a former Anglo-Saxon long house, and dominating the early town. A motte and bailey castle had been constructed on the site at some time in the century...

 in Sheffield. Along with the castle, a hospital was established at what is still called "Spital Hill", a mill was built beside the River Don, and a bridge called Lady's Bridge

Lady's Bridge

Lady's Bridge is the oldest bridge across the River Don in the City of Sheffield, England. It is located in the central section of the city, linking the Wicker to the north with Waingate to the south.-The first bridge:...

 was constructed where there had previously only been a ford across the river. Little is known of Sheffield prior to Lovetot, but these developments established Sheffield as the main town in the Hallamshire area.

William had four sons, with his wife Emma; Richard, Nigel, Henry and Hugh.

Following the death of William de Lovetot the manor of Hallamshire passed to his elder son, Richard de Lovetot, and then to Richard's son, William de Lovetot, before being passed to Gerard de Furnival

Gerard de Furnival

Gerard de Furnival was a Norman knight and Lord of Hallamshire and Worksop. De Furnival's father was also called Gerard de Furnival, and had fought with Richard I at the Siege of Acre....

by his marriage to Maud de Lovetot in about 1204.