William de Mohun of Dunster, 1st Earl of Somerset William de Mohun of Dunster, 1st Earl of Somerset William de Mohun of Dunster, Earl of Somerset (c. 1090 – c. 1155), 2nd feudal baron of Dunster, was a favourite of Empress Matilda and a loyal supporter of her in the war against King Stephen, during which he earned the epithet of the "Scourge of the West". William was the son of William de Moion, who was seigneur of Moyon which is close to Saint-Lô. The elder William was High Sheriff of Somerset in 1084. During the war between Matilda and Stephen, Stephen marched against Mohun's castle at Dunster, but
Dunster Castle Howards regiment. During this period the castle still kept an armoury of 43 muskets. Francis died heavily in debt in 1690, and his widow Mary moved the contents of the castle to London, where they were destroyed in a fire in 1696. At the start of the 18th century the Luttrells and Dunster Castle faced many financial challenges. Francis's son Alexander, inherited the castle when he came of age in 1704, but it was still mostly empty and carried large debts with it. Alexander died young in 1711 and his widow, Dorothy, spent almost twenty years paying off the debts.