Martrud was the lord of the Bretonni of Castle Montfort and the surrounding lands by 977 IC, when Gilles le Breton began his campaign to free the lands of Bretonnia.[1c] Though Castle Montfort has stood guard over the narrow passage through Axe Bite Pass for hundreds of years, it was Martrud who built its walls to the towering heights that they remain, and it is this image that is depicted today in the family's heraldry.[1b]