Brian Fitz Count

Brian fitz Count (also Brian of Wallingford) was descended from the Breton ducal house, and became an Anglo-Norman noble, holding the lordships of Wallingford and Abergavenny. He was a loyal adherent of Henry I, King of England, and a staunch supporter of his daughter, the Empress Matilda, during the Anarchy (1135–1153). Brian would go on to become one of the most notable knights to have sided with Empress Matilda and the Angevin faction. As a result, he is consistently mentioned in contemporary sources. Life Brian fitz Count was an illegitimate son of Alan IV, Duke of Brittany, and thus the half-brother of Conan III, Duke of Brittany. He was sent to be raised at the court of King Henry I of England. He served Henry well at the Battle of Tinchebray in 1106 and elsewhere, winning the king's favour. Brian became a close friend of Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester, Henry I's illegitimate son, and the two remained longstanding allies. In 1127 Brian and Robert were chosen by Henry to accompany his daughter, Empress Matilda, to Anjou during the negotiations for her marriage to Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou. The Gesta Stephani notes that Brian was a man of "distinguished birth and splendid position". As a Marcher Lord through the Barony of Abergavenny, Brian was reputedly concerned with the resurgence of Welsh hostility following the death of Henry I.