Theobald III After His Defeat
Since Geoffrey Martel’s victory over Theobald III in 1044 the counts of Blois had ceased to play a prominent part in the story.…
Stephen-Henry, Count of Blois, and Adela
The injured heir took refuge in Normandy, married the Conqueror’s sister, and found in England ample compensation for what he had lost, so that neither he nor his posterity ever a…
Stephen’s Education at the English Court
The eldest son William would normally have succeeded, but Stephen had left the entire control of his affairs, including the disposal of his territories, to his wife Adela.…
Stephen of Mortain and Boulogne
Adela was Henry’s favourite sister and the only one of his sisters who had children; she was worthy of his confidence and esteem, and once at least did him signal service by contr…
Stephen as Henry’s Adoptive Son
Stephen seems in fact to have been, next to William the Ætheling, the person for whom Henry cared most; and after the disaster of the White Ship, in which a lucky attack of illnes…
The Oath of Homage in the 1126 Council
His position was illustrated by a dispute at the Christmas council of 1126, when the barons took the oath of homage and fealty to Matilda in order of precedence.…
The Succession Question After Henry’s Death
But for that council and its oath, the succession both to the English crown and to the Norman ducal coronet would have been an open question at Henry’s death.…
The Three Claimants to the Throne
Independently of any special engagement, the barons would be fully entitled to choose between the daughter of William’s son and the sons of his daughter—between Matilda of Anjou,…
Matilda’s Qualifications and Weaknesses
Of the three, Matilda was on the whole the one who had least to recommend her. Her great personal advantage was that she, and she alone, was the child of a crowned king and queen,…
Theobald the Great as a Candidate
If a sovereign was to be chosen for personal qualifications, it would have been hard to find a better choice than Theobald the Great, count of Blois, Chartres and Champagne.…
Stephen’s Advantages as a Claimant
It was Stephen, not Theobald, who had been the king’s favourite and constant companion, lacking nothing of the rank of an adoptive son save the avowed prospect of the crown.…
CAPÍTULO V.
Chapter V. traces the rapid transfer of the Anglo-Norman realm from Henry I to Stephen of Blois in late 1135 and early 1136. It follows Matilda’s brief and unsuccessful bid to secure Normandy, Stephen’s stormy Channel crossing, and his swift acquisition of the English crown thro…
Matilda claims her inheritance in Normandy
Matilda claims her inheritance in Normandy On receiving news of Henry’s death before the first week of December 1135 was out, Matilda presented herself in Normandy to take possess…
Stephen crosses to England amid a storm
Stephen crosses to England amid a storm Stephen set out at once from Wissant and crossed the Channel in a storm so terrific that men on shore deemed it could bode nothing less tha…
The citizens of London elect Stephen as king
The citizens of London elect Stephen as king Repulsed from Dover and Canterbury (the men of Kent having a hereditary grudge against anyone coming from Boulogne), Stephen pushed on…
The archbishop’s scruples and the coronation
The archbishop’s scruples and the coronation The primate and the justiciar, who ought to have led the national councils, had at first stood passively by, but both now joined Steph…
The merging of the feuds of Blois and Normandy
The merging of the feuds of Blois and Normandy With Stephen on the throne, the two great feuds that had hitherto influenced the Angevin political career—the feud with Blois and th…
Stephen’s character and the curse of his race
Stephen’s character and the curse of his race Although Stephen had renounced all share in his father’s territories, there was one paternal heirloom he could not renounce and which…
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