Richard de Lucy

Richard de Lucy, Luci, Lucie, or Lusti (1089– 14 July 1179), also known as Richard the Loyal, was first noted as High Sheriff of Essex, after which he was made Chief Justiciar of England.

Life
The De Lucy family took its surname from Lucé in southern Normandy, then still held by the English kings. Richard inherited from his father estates in Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent, and Normandy. His mother was Aveline, the niece and heiress of William Goth. In the charter for Sées Cathedral in February 1130–31 Henry I refers to Richard de Lucy and his mother, Aveline. His brother, Walter de Luci, was abbot of Battle Abbey. De Lucy's wife, Rohese, who is named in several documents, was possibly a sister of Faramus de Boulogne. Rohese and Faramus were children of William de Boulogne who was the son of Geoffrey fitz Eustace (son of Eustace II, Count of Boulogne) and Beatrice, daughter of Norman magnate Geoffrey de Mandeville.

An early reference to the family refers to the render by Henry I of the lordship of Diss, Norfolk to Richard de Lucy, Governor of Falaise, Normandy, after defending it with great valour and heroic conduct when besieged by Geoffrey, Earl of Anjou.

In 1153–4 De Lucy was granted Chipping Ongar, Essex by William, son of King Stephen and his wife, Maud of Boulogne. He may have built the motte and bailey Ongar Castle, although it is also attributed to Eustace II Count of Boulogne (c. 1015). Richard de Lucy was appointed Sheriff of both Essex and Hertfordshire for 1156.

When Henry II came to the throne in 1154, De Lucy was made Chief Justiciar of England jointly with Robert de Beaumont, Earl of Leicester. When de Beaumont died in 1168, De Lucy continued to hold the office in his own right. One of the members of his household was Roger fitzReinfrid, the brother of Walter de Coutances. Roger became a royal judge and later donated land to Lesnes Abbey in Kent, which had been founded by De Lucy.

He resigned his office between September 1178 and Easter of 1179, and retired to Lesnes Abbey, where, three months later on 14 July 1179, he died and was buried.

Legacy
Richard's son Godfrey de Lucy entered the clergy and became bishop of Winchester (1189–1204). Richard's eldest son Geoffrey de Lucy predeceased him and Geoffrey's two sons Geoffrey and Richard died without children early in the reign of RichardI (r.1189–1199). This led to protracted litigation over his estate between Richard and Geoffrey's daughters that lasted until the reign of HenryIII (r.1216–1272).