Ralph de Somery I inherited the barony of Dudley on the death of his uncle, Gervase Paganell, in 1194 although he did not get full ownership of the lands until the death of his mother in 1208. Ralph swapped land that he owned at Wolverhampton with King John, obtaining estates at Kingswinford which proved very valuable to later Lords of Dudley during the Industrial Age. He had three sons and died in 1210.
