Roger de Busli was born in or around 1038. His surname comes from the town now known as
Bully (near
Neufchâtel-en-Bray, mentioned as
Buslei ar. 1060,
Busli 12th century.) in
Normandy, and he was likely born there. Busli was given lands in
Nottinghamshire,
Derbyshire and the
Strafforth wapentake of
Yorkshire. These had previously belonged to a variety of Anglo-Saxons, including
Edwin, Earl of Mercia. By the time of the
Domesday survey de Busli was tenant-in-chief of 86 manors in Nottinghamshire, 46 in Yorkshire, and others in
Derbyshire,
Lincolnshire and
Leicestershire, plus one in
Devon. They became the Honour of Blyth (later renamed the Honour of Tickhill), and within it, de Busli erected numerous castles, at
Tickhill,
Kimberworth,
Laughton-en-le-Morthen and
Mexborough. Roger de Busli's wife Muriel was in favour with the queen, to whom she was probably a lady-in-waiting or a kinswoman, evident in the queen's grant to de Busli of the manor of Sandford upon his marriage. The de Buslis had one son, also called Roger, who died as an infant, thus leaving no heirs. His daughter (or possibly his sister) Beatrix, (also known as Beatrice de Builli), married
William, Count of Eu. De Busli died in the last years of the 11th century without an heir. His lands were given to
Robert de Bellême, who lost them in 1102 after he led a rebellion against
Henry I of England. Ernulf de Busli, probably Roger's brother, may then have inherited some of the lands; these were then passed to Ernulf's son Jordan and grandson
Richard de Busli. ==References==