 But Robert also had a love of arms and fighting and was for five years an esquire to Duke William, who at the end of that period knighted him and rewarded him generously for his service.In 1040 when Robert I died, his three sons, including Robert, all shared in their father's inheritance.In 1050, Robert and his elder brother Hugh de Grandmesnil had decided to found a monastery and asked their uncle, William fitz Giroie, to advise them.