| Notes |
- At his peak William was Lord of Bramber, Gower, Abergavenny, Brecknock, Builth, Radnor, Kington, Limerick, Glamorgan, Monmouth and Gwynllwg as well as the three castles of Skenfrith, Grosmont and Whitecastle.
William inherited Bramber, Builth and Radnor from his father; Brecknock and Abergavenny through his mother. He was the strongest of the March Lords involved in constant war with the Welsh and other lords. He was particularly hated by the Welsh for the massacre of three Welsh princes, their families and their men which took place during a feast at his castle of Abergavenny in 1175. He was sometimes known as the "Ogre of Abergavenny". One of the Normans' foremost warriors, he fought alongside King Richard the Lionheart at Chalus in 1199 when King Richard received his fatal wound.
William received Limerick in 1201 from King John. He was also given custody of Glamorgan, Monmouth and Gwynllwg in return for large payments.
William captured Arthur, Count of Brittany at Mirebeau in 1202 and was in charge of his imprisonment for King John. He was well rewarded in February 1203 with the grant of Gower. He may have had knowledge of the murder of Arthur and been bribed to silence by John with the city of Limerick in July. His honours reached their peak when he was made Sheriff of Herefordshire by John for 1206-7. He had held this office under Richard from 1192 to 1199.
His fall began almost immediately. William was stripped of his office as bailiff of Glamorgan and other custodies by King John in 1206/7. Later he was deprived of all his lands and, sought by King John in Ireland, he returned to Wales and joined the Welsh Prince Llewelyn in rebellion. He fled to France in 1210 via Shoreham "in the habit of a beggar" and died in exile near Paris. Despite intending to be interred at St. John's, Brecon, he was buried in the Abbey of St. Victoire, Paris by Stephen Langton, the Archbishop of Canterbury, another of John's chief opponents who was also taking refuge there. His wife and son William were murdered by John, possibly starved to death at Windsor Castle.
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1153 - 1211 (~ 71 years)
