William the Conqueror King of England of NORMANDY
[81]14 Oct 1027 - 9 Sep 1087
- BURIAL: St. Stephen Abbey, Caen, Normandy
- BIRTH: 14 Oct 1027, Falaise, Normandy
- DEATH: 9 Sep 1087, Rouen, Normandy, France
- RFN: 1160
Mother: Herleva of FALAISE
Family 1 : Matilda, Queen of England of FLANDERS
- MARRIAGE: 1053, Castle Of Angi, Normandy
- Robert III Duke of NORMANDY
- Richard of NORMANDY
- Cecilia of NORMANDY
- Adelidis "Alice" of NORMANDY
- Margaret of NORMANDY
- William II "Rufus", King of ENGLAND
- Constance of NORMANDY
- Agatha Matilda of NORMANDY
- Anna of NORMANDY
- +Henry I "Beauclerc", King of ENGLAND
_William I "Longsword" Duke of NORMANDY _+ _Richard I "The Fearless" Duke of NORMANDY _|_________________________________________ _Richard II Duke of NORMANDY __| | | _Herfastus Sire de CREPON _______________+ | |_Gunnor Duchess of Normandy de CREPON ______|_________________________________________ _Robert I ("the Magnificent"), Duke of NORMANDY _| | | _________________________________________ | | ____________________________________________|_________________________________________ | |_Judith of Brittany De RENNES _| | | _________________________________________ | |____________________________________________|_________________________________________ | |--William the Conqueror King of England of NORMANDY | | _________________________________________ | ____________________________________________|_________________________________________ | _Fulbert, Burgess of FALAISE __| | | | _________________________________________ | | |____________________________________________|_________________________________________ |_Herleva of FALAISE _____________________________| | _________________________________________ | ____________________________________________|_________________________________________ |_Doda (Dode Duxia) of FALAISE _| | _________________________________________ |____________________________________________|_________________________________________[81] William the Conqueror is also known as William the Bastard (he was an
illegitimate child) and also known as Guilliame (French for William).
He was the Duke of Normandy prior the conquest of England in 1066
which resulted in his also becoming King William the First of England.
He married Matilda of Flanders and became step-father to her two
children, Gherbod and Gundred from her previous marriage to the
Advocate of St. Bertin. Gundred married William de Warren Earl of
Warren in Normandy and later Earl of Surrey in England. William de
Warren and Gundred are ancestors of Richard Warren who came to America
on the Mayflower in 1620. - - - - - - - - - William was described by a
Norman monk "as a burly warrior with a harsh gutteral voice, great in
stature but not ungainly" - probably 5'10", full-fleshed in face, of
"russet hair" {-"William the Conqueror...," David . Douglas [London,
1966]}. A primary source by a contemporary is "The Ecclesiastical
History of England and Normandy," Ordericus Vitalis, trans. Thomas
Forester (London: Henry G. Bohn, 1854). ----- Compton's Encyclopedia
(America On-Line, 1995): Wlliam I (born 1027, ruled 1066-87), called
William the Conqueror, was an illegitimate son of Robert I, duke of
Normandy. His mother was a tanner's daughter. William succeeded his
father when he was only 7 years old. At 24 he had made himself the
mightiest feudal lord in all France by various conquests, but his
ambition was not satisfied. He laid plans to become king of England
also. William married Matilda, daughter of Baldwin V, count of
Flanders, in 1053. She was descended from the old Anglo-Saxon line of
kings. Among their children were four sons: Robert, future duke of
Normandy; Richard, who died as a youth; William Rufus, who succeeded
his father as king of England; and Henry, who succeeded William Rufus.
One daughter, Adela, became the mother of England's King Stephen.
Edward the Confessor, king of England, was William's cousin. William
used his connection with Flanders to put pressure on Edward to extort
a promise that he would become heir to the English throne. It is
probable that Edward made some kind of pledge to William as early as
1051. Edward died childless on Jan. 5, 1066. William then claimed the
throne on the basis of this promise. The English, however, chose
Harold, earl of Wessex, as their king. William prepared a large
expedition and set sail for England. On Oct. 14, 1066, he defeated and
killed Harold at Hastings in one of the decisive battles of the world.
Then he marched on London, and on Christmas day he was crowned king.
After subduing England's powerful earls, William seized their lands
for his Norman nobles and ordered the nobles to build fortified stone
castles to protect their lands. As payment for their fiefs, the nobles
supplied the king with armed knights. French became the language of
the king's court and gradually blended with the Anglo-Saxon tongue.
William won the loyalty of the mass of the people by wisely retaining
the old Anglo-Saxon laws, courts, and customs with only a few changes.
Thus the principle of self-government, which lies at the root of the
political system of English-speaking peoples, was preserved and
strengthened. At the same time, William taught the English the
advantages of a central government strong enough to control feudal
lords. Toward the end of his reign, William ordered a great census to
be taken of all the lands and people of England. This survey was
called Domesday Book. Two of the original books may still be seen at
the Public Records Office in London. "So very narrowly did he cause
the survey to be made," complained the old Anglo-Saxon Chronicle,
"that there was not a single rood of land, nor an ox, or a cow, or a
pig passed by, and that was not set down in the accounts." William was
often on the continent dealing with his widespread holdings. He died
there in 1087 from injuries received while warring with Philip I of
France. William was a man of great stature and had a tremendous voice.
Such was the good order he established that, according to a quaint
historian of his time, "any man, who was himself aught, might travel
over the kingdom with a bosom of gold unmolested, and no man durst
kill another, however great the injury he might have received from
him." He was succeeded in Normandy by his eldest son, Robert, and in
England by his second son, William II, called William Rufus. - - - - -
- - - - Regarding the location of the Battle of Hastings, this site on
the World Wide Web is helpful and provocative: HREF="http://www.cablenet.net/pages/book/index.htm#PART57">http://www.
cablenet.net/pages/book/index.htm#PART57
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