William de Chauncy, eldest son of Chauncy de Chauncy who had fought with William the Conqueror in the Norman Conquest of 1066, purchased the manor of Skirpenbeck from Odo Balistarius, who held it by gift from William the Conqueror, and lived there with son and heir Walter in the reign of King Henry I.

Given life expectancy at that time, William de Chauncy likely died sometime in the vicinity of 1130, at about the time his son Walter de Chauncy paid a fee of 15 pounds to marry who he desired in 1131 in the 31st year of the reign of Henry I.

Though no burial marker survives, it is likely that William de Chauncy died in the manor of Skirpenbeck and was buried in the churchyard of St. Mary parish in Skirpenbeck.

(Memorials of the Chaunceys, Including President Chauncy, His Ancestors and Descendants, by William Chauncey Fowler, Dutton and Son: Boston, 1858, page 38.

The Historical Antiquities of Hertfordshire, by Sir Henry Chauncy, Knight, volume 1, Mullinger: London, 1826, page 111).