Comprising the history of England, from the invasion of Julius Cæsar to the accession of Henry II. Research genealogy for Stephen King of Horsmonden Kent England, as well as other members of the King family, on Ancestry®. Stephen (1092 or 1096 – 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. [100] Dover finally surrendered to the queen's forces later in the year. His special interests include pottery, architecture, world mythology and discovering the ideas that all civilizations share in common. The lawlessness of his Flemish mercenaries and the desperate measures he took to build a party loyal to himself only alienated the barons. Cheers!AttributionThumbnailUnknown, Public Domain, via Wikim. [213] Upon news of this, Stephen gathered up a large force and marched from Oxford, and the two sides confronted each other across the River Thames at Wallingford in July. 164–165; Crouch (1998), p. 258. However, she was subsequently freed only to then audaciously establish a rival court in south-west England. Despite two marriages, King Henry I of England left no legitimate male heir and so his nominated successor was his daughter Matilda (b. [237] Later chronicles written during the reign of Henry II were generally more negative: Walter Map, for example, described Stephen as "a fine knight, but in other respects almost a fool". Stephen is buried at the Clunaic Monastery in Faversham, Kent. 17–18. They were the parents of at least 7 sons and 5 daughters. [136][nb 18] Stephen was not a gifted public speaker, and delegated the pre-battle speech to Baldwin of Clare, who delivered a rousing declaration. [209] Stephen's castle at Malmesbury was besieged by Henry's forces, and the King responded by marching west with an army to relieve it. Edmund King believes the attack never got close to York; R. Davis believes that it did and was deterred by the presence of Stephen's forces. ), as successor to the throne. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne in right of his wife. Although Stephen was brave and energetic, his affable, mild-mannered nature prevented him from providing firm leadership. From master storyteller Stephen King, his unforgettable and terrifying sequel to The Shining—an instant #1 New York Times bestseller that is “[a] vivid frightscape” (The New York Times). https://www.britannica.com/biography/Stephen-king-of-England. The north of England was now controlled by David and Prince Henry, Stephen had abandoned Wales, the fighting in Normandy had considerably destabilised the duchy, and an increasing number of barons felt that Stephen had given them neither the lands nor the titles they felt they deserved or were owed. [161] In September, he spotted an opportunity to seize the Empress Matilda herself in Oxford. First, Robert, Earl of Gloucester, rebelled against the King, starting the descent into civil war in England. [68] A wide range of nobles gathered at Westminster for the event, including many of the Anglo-Norman barons and most of the higher officials of the church. [24][nb 4] The ship foundered en route, and all but two of the passengers died, including William Adelin. She yields her claims on England to Stephen in return for English support of the Salian dynasty and a large bribe. [135] When the news reached Stephen, he held a council to decide whether to give battle or to withdraw and gather additional soldiers: Stephen decided to fight, resulting in the Battle of Lincoln on 2 February 1141. [101] The King took the opportunity of his military advantage to forge a peace agreement with Scotland. [70] He portrayed himself as the natural successor to Henry's policies, and reconfirmed the existing seven earldoms in the kingdom on their existing holders. [190] The Angevin plan involved Ranulf agreeing to give up his claim to Carlisle, held by the Scots, in return for being given the rights to the whole of the Honour of Lancaster; Ranulf would give homage to both David and Henry FitzEmpress, with Henry having seniority. [4] His eldest brother was William, who under normal circumstances would have ruled Blois and Chartres. [212] The fall of Wallingford appeared imminent and Henry marched south in an attempt to relieve the siege, arriving with a small army and placing Stephen's besieging forces under siege themselves. [37] Chroniclers recorded that despite his wealth and power he was a modest and easy-going leader, happy to sit with his men and servants, casually laughing and eating with them. [208], Henry FitzEmpress returned to England again at the start of 1153 with a small army, supported in the north and east of England by Ranulf of Chester and Hugh Bigod. Stephen even received a second coronation on 25 December 1141 CE, this time in Canterbury Cathedral. [14] Henry fought his next military campaign in Normandy, from 1111 onwards, where rebels led by Robert of Bellême were opposing his rule. [166] On this occasion, however, William Martel, Stephen's steward, made a fierce rear guard effort, allowing Stephen to escape from the battlefield. World History Encyclopedia, 06 Dec 2019. Stephen of England & Henry II of EnglandBritish Library (Public Domain). [55][nb 7], Meanwhile, the Norman nobility gathered at Le Neubourg to discuss declaring Theobald king, probably following the news that Stephen was gathering support in England. Mark is a history writer based in Italy. 46–47; Crouch (2002), p. 252. Edmund King disagrees that the Empress received an invitation to. [156] Queen Matilda and William of Ypres then encircled the Angevin forces with their own army, reinforced with fresh troops from London. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms. [95] Stephen himself went west in an attempt to regain control of Gloucestershire, first striking north into the Welsh Marches, taking Hereford and Shrewsbury, before heading south to Bath. [214] As a result, instead of a battle ensuing, members of the church brokered a truce, to the annoyance of both Stephen and Henry. When the Empress and Robert invaded in 1139, Stephen was unable to crush the revolt rapidly, and it took hold in the south-west of England. King (2010), p. 38; Crouch (2008a), p. 162. In When Christ and His Saints Slept, the newest addition to her highly acclaimed novels of the middle ages, and the first of a trilogy that will tell the story of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, master storyteller and historian Sharon ... William's children were still fighting over the collective Anglo-Norman inheritance. Matilda is often called Empress Matilda after her marriage in 1114 CE to Holy Roman Emperor Henry V (r. 1111-1125 CE). 4. [227], After Stephen's death, Henry II succeeded to the throne of England. His wife Matilda was sent to Kent with ships and resources from Boulogne, with the task of retaking the key port of Dover, under Robert's control. [202], Stephen was furious over what he saw as potentially precedent-setting papal interference in his royal authority, and initially refused to allow Murdac into England. When Henry died in 1135, allegedly from eating too many lampreys (a fish), his nephew, Stephen of Blois , son of William the Conqueror's daughter Adela, usurped the throne. [167], In late 1143, Stephen faced a new threat in the east, when Geoffrey de Mandeville, Earl of Essex, rose up in rebellion against him in East Anglia. [99] In response to the revolts and invasions, he rapidly undertook several military campaigns, focusing primarily on England rather than Normandy. [183] Some parts of the country, though, were barely touched by the conflict—for example, Stephen's lands in the south-east and the Angevin heartlands around Gloucester and Bristol were largely unaffected, and David I ruled his territories in the north of England effectively. [171], For a period, the situation continued to worsen. 165, 167; Stringer, pp. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Stephen (c. 1096 - 25 October 1154), the only King of England from the House of Blois and also Count of Boulogne by marriage, reigned from 1135 to 1154, when he was succeeded by his cousin Henry II, the first of the Angevin or Plantagenet Kings.. Consequently, on 6 November, Stephen signed with Henry the Treaty of Wallingford, which recognised him as Stephen's official heir. [218] The armies of Stephen and Henry FitzEmpress met again at Winchester, where the two leaders would ratify the terms of a permanent peace in November. An on-off civil war ensued over the next decade and a half or so between the two sides while the English crown lost control of its territory in Normandy as well as lands to Scotland and the Welsh princes. [6] In the west lay the three counties of Maine, Anjou and Touraine, and to the north of Blois was the Duchy of Normandy, from which William the Conqueror had conquered England in 1066. In November Stephen was exchanged for Gloucester, who had been captured by forces loyal to the king. 278–279; Crouch (2002), p. 276. Certainly lands in Normandy, passed by hereditary right, were usually considered more important to major barons than those in England, where their possession was less certain. The King gave Eustace the County of Boulogne in 1147, but it remained unclear whether Eustace would inherit England. 65, 69–71; Carpenter, p. 124. [35] Henry angrily declined to do so, probably out of a concern that Geoffrey would try to seize power in Normandy somewhat earlier than intended. [114] As the papal legate, he summoned the King to appear before an ecclesiastical council to answer for the arrests and seizure of property. [191] Following this peace agreement, Henry and Ranulf agreed to attack York, probably with help from the Scots. He was present at court during the King's visit to the Abbey of Saint-Evroul in 1113. Stephen became increasingly concerned with ensuring that his son Eustace would inherit his throne. In 1135 Henry I 's death sparked off a succession crisis leading to a period known as The Anarchy which came to a head during the reign of Stephen of Blois. Sale. [177] The war in the west progressed better in 1145, with the King recapturing Faringdon Castle in Oxfordshire. [134] Stephen returned to London but received news that Ranulf, his brother and their family were relaxing in Lincoln Castle with a minimal guard force, a ripe target for a surprise attack of his own. [155] In the subsequent battle the Empress's forces were defeated and Robert of Gloucester himself was taken prisoner. [247] Historian Keith Stringer provides a more positive portrayal of Stephen, arguing that his ultimate failure as king was the result of external pressures on the Norman state, rather than the result of personal failings. He was reared by his uncle, King Henry I, and received vast lands in England, Normandy, and the county of Boulogne.With a number of other magnates he was pledged to support Henry's daughter, Matilda (q.v. At first Stephen scored several military triumphs, but he lost the support of the church when he arrested Bishop Roger of Salisbury and his relatives. [223] Stephen's middle son, Baldwin, and second daughter, Matilda, had died before 1147 and were buried at Holy Trinity Priory, Aldgate. 10.1154, King of England 22.12.1135 - 25.10.1154, with . (eds) (2002), Crouch, David. Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. I knew nothing of Stephen Bachiler's parentage, but my daughter accidentally came across a father for him on the internet, and it named his father as Philip Bachiler, born 1535; and a mother, Ann, born in Flanders; and . Robert, Earl of Gloucester was the illegitimate son of Henry I, King of England and a chief supporter of his step-sister Matilda's claim to the English throne during the civil war. [241] Stubbs' analysis, focusing on the disorder of the period, influenced his student John Round to coin the term "the Anarchy" to describe the period, a label that, whilst sometimes critiqued, continues to be used today. King's fiction has repeatedly centred on the loner, the figure who is bullied at school, who fails to… King Stephen of England invades Normandy but is forced to withdraw due to lack of baronial support. Stephen's father had been killed at the battle of Ramlah, while on Crusade and in his youth, Stephen had been sent to England by his mother, being only her third son, it was hoped he would make his fortune at his uncle's court. Last modified December 06, 2019. [17] In 1113, Stephen was granted both the title and the honour, although without the lands previously held by William in England. Westminster Abbey and its people, c.1050-c.1216. Well-centered. Stephen was born at Blois in France, the son of Stephen, Count of Blois, and Adela (daughter of William the Conqueror). By 1113, Stephen had joined the court of his uncle, King Henry I of England. [153] Henry's alliance with the Empress proved short-lived, as they soon fell out over political patronage and ecclesiastical policy; the bishop met the Queen at Guildford and transferred his support to her. Corrections? King Stephen. (1994) "1066 and the Introduction of Chivalry into England," in Garnett, George and John Hudsdon. [175] Miles of Gloucester, one of the most talented Angevin commanders, had died whilst hunting over the previous Christmas, relieving some of the pressure in the west. [186] In 1147 Robert of Gloucester died peacefully, and the next year the Empress Matilda left south-west England for Normandy, both of which contributed to reducing the tempo of the war. Stephen also had a very decent pedigree as a grandson of William the Conqueror and a nephew of Henry I. Crucially, at the time of the king's death in December 1135 CE, Stephen was the first to arrive in England while Matilda remained in France. [44] The Norman kings had traditionally exercised a great deal of power and autonomy over the church within their territories. He invaded Normandy in 1137 CE and despite Stephen's expedition there, the local barons proved less than willing to fight yet another war over this hotly contested territory. Video Software we use: https://amzn.to/2KpdCQFAd-free videos.You can support us by purchasing something through our Amazon-Url, thanks :)Stephen , often refe. His wife retrieved it, encouraged him, and it was later published. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Stephen ( c. 1092/6 - 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois ( Old French: Étienne de Blois ), was a grandson of William the Conqueror. ; Carpenter, p. 3: Ritual and political order in early 1154, Dover, Kent King. 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