Berkeley family Constable (Alnod), a high official under King Edward the Confessor. Berkeley Castle, the "caput" of the barony, and the adjoining town of Berkeley are located in the county of Gloucestershire and are situated about five miles west of Dursley and eighteen miles southwest of Gloucester, and northeast of Bristol. The location has conferred various titles on the family over the centuries, including Baron Berkeley (barony by writ), Earl of Berkeley, and Marquess of Berkeley. Berkeley Castle was originally granted by William the Conqueror to the Norman Roger de Berkeley, feudal baron of Dursley, under the feudal tenure of fee-farm. However,
Dudley Castle Somery, died in 1321. It is thought that the fortifications were complete by this date. The castle and estates passed to John Somery's sister Margaret and her husband John de Sutton. Subsequently, members of this family often used Dudley as a surname. John and Margaret were only in possession of the castle for a few years before the property was seized by the younger Hugh Despenser, a favourite of King Edward II. Despenser owned the castle from 1325-1326, being dispossessed when the king fell from power. The castle was returned to John and Margaret in 1327. It was probably during