Stephen’s Plans for Eustace as Heir
The political prospects of both England and Stephen seemed to be brightening. Yet Stephen was increasingly conscious that for him as for his Angevin rivals the time had come to gi…
Eustace’s Embassy to the King of France
Just as Henry Fitz-Empress’s first independent act had been a kind of reconnoitring expedition to England, so the first retaliation on Stephen’s side was a visit by Eustace to the…
The Rivalry of Anjou and Blois over Normandy
The current phase of the rivalry between Anjou and Blois, the struggle for dominion over Normandy and England, affected the French Crown as deeply as the earlier contest between F…
The French Marriage and the Duchy of Aquitaine
Scarcely before the dying Louis VI granted investiture of Normandy to Stephen’s young son in 1137, William IX, the last of the old line of dukes of Aquitaine, died on pilgrimage a…
Gerald of Montreuil-Bellay and the Angevin Revolt
Gerald, lord of Montreuil-Bellay near the southern border of Anjou, one of the fortresses raised by Fulk Nerra in his early warfare with Odo of Blois, was denounced by an Angevin…
The Siege of Montreuil-Bellay
After nearly twelve months of labor, Geoffrey’s forces still could not overcome the Valley of Judas separating them from the castle.…
The Filling of the Valley of Judas
To fill the Valley of Judas, Geoffrey ordered the annual fair normally held at Saumur to be transferred to Montreuil.…
Louis VII’s Campaign Against the Norman Duchy
Having returned from Palestine, Louis VII was so angered by Geoffrey’s treatment of his favourite Gerald that he joined Eustace in an attack on the Norman duchy.…
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