Ralph de Gaël (otherwise Ralph de Guader, Ralph Wader or Radulf Waders or Ralf Waiet or Rodulfo de Waiet; before 1042c. 1100) was the Earl of East Anglia (Norfolk and Suffolk) and Lord of Gaël and Montfort (Seigneur de Gaël et Montfort). He was the leading figure in the Revolt of the Earls, the last serious revolt against William the Conqueror. Birth Ralph de Gaël was born as a noble before 1042, most probably about 1040. He was the high-born son of an Earl Ralph who was English, or born in England, and lived at the time of the Confessor. Some sources believe this to be Ralph the Staller, while others argue that he was the son of Earl Ralph Mantes of Hereford, and who briefly held the Earldom of East Anglia. Both English and French sources highlight that he had mixed ancestry, both English, and with a Breton parent, possibly his mother, that was 'Bryttisc' meaning 'British', a Breton. Other sources state that it was his father who was of Breton ancestry (although born in Norfolk), and that his mother was English. French sources state that he was a 'man of illustrious birth, descended from the Kings of the Bretons', including Warrior Saint King Judicaël, the castle of Gaël being the traditional seat of the Kings of Brittany. In the Domesday book, an English Alsi, is named as 'nephew of Earl Ralph', and a Godwin, English with Anglo-Saxon and possible Dutch connections, is named as Earl Ralph's uncle. Other sources cite a possible relation (possibly a cousin), to rebel Hereward the Wake, also stated to be of noble birth. His wedding feast and associations highlight connections to both Anglo-Saxon and Danish nobles, as well as his vast inherited lands in Brittany. Inheritances He inherited the great Breton barony of Gaël, which comprised more than forty parishes. In England, he also inherited estates, but it is not known whether he obtained the Earldom immediately on his father's death. Shortly after the Norman conquest, he held large estates in Norfolk, as well as property in Suffolk, Essex, Hertford, and possibly other counties. He was named Earl of East Anglia by William I. Some accounts suggest that his service in the conquest restored lands that were already his by inheritance. This is mentioned in the Norman chronicler Wace's account of the conquest of 1066: Prior to the Revolt of 1075 In 1065