William I (The Conqueror)

EARLY LIFE 

William was born in Falaise Castle, near Caen, France, most likely towards the end of 1028.

William the Conquror c1580

He was the only son of Duke Robert I, who was was known as Robert the Magnificent for his bravery and brutality. Duke Robert I died whilst on a pilgrimage when William was only eight.

His mother, Herleva, was the daughter of a tanner of Falaise. She was possibly a member of the ducal household, but did not marry Robert, so.William was an illegitimate child.

A clean living and pious child, William had a difficult upbringing which toughened him. At the age of 10 he witnessed the murder of his beloved steward in his bedchamber before his very eyes. Three of his guardians were murdered and attempts were made to kidnap the young boy.

DUKE OF NORMANDY 

William became Duke of Normandy on July 3, 1035, succeeding his father.

William faced several challenges on becoming duke, including his youth: the evidence indicates that he was either seven or eight years old at the time. Many Norman nobles wanted him out of the way for a time Normandy was in complete disorder.

William was mocked for his illegitimate birth. When the inhabitants of Alecon rebelled against him, they hung hides on the walls of the city with "Work for the Tanner" written across them.

The king of France, Henry I, supported the young duke and in early 1047 Henry and William were victorious at the Battle of Val-ès-Dunes near Caen.

Having quashed rebellion, William begin to establish his authority over the duchy, a process that was not complete until about 1060.

The English king Edward the Confessor had taken a vow of chastity. As a result, his marriage was childless and the question of succession became a prominent one as he neared the end of his reign. One of the claimants was his cousin William the Duke of Normandy whom Edward promised would succeed him.

INVASION OF ENGLAND

When King Edward the Confessor died on January 5, 1066 it was found he had disinherited his cousin, William of Normandy and appointed Harold, the second son of Godwin, instead as his successor.

William, believing he had the rightful claim to the throne and having received the Pope's blessing decided to take it by force. He landed on Pevensey beach with his Norman troops on September 28, 1066.

Scene from the Bayeux Tapestry depicting William the Conqueror invading England

The Battle of Hastings was fought between Anglo-Saxon King Harold II and his men and the Norman-French army of William on October 14, 1066. Harold was shot in an eye but he bravely fought on. Finally the English king succumbed, his body being identified by his wife's name, Edith, tattooed on his heart. After eight hours the battle was over.

After the demise of their king, the English chose Edgar, grandson of Edmund Ironside, as his successor. Edgar wisely chose to submit to William who treated him well.

William was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day, 1066. When he was crowned the people shouted loud greetings, “long live the king” in Anglo Saxon. William’s knights thought they were booing and that the noise was a riot so they set fire to the houses nearby. The service went on but the newly crowned King had a nervous first day.

It was William's half-brother, Bishop Odo of Bayeux, who commissioned the 230 feet long wool and string Bayeux tapestry. It depicts 72 different scenes from the Norman conquest from the preparation of the fleet to the flight of the English from the battlefield. The original rolling news service, the tapestry was sewn between 1067-70.

ENGLISH REIGN 

William faced rebellions for years after the Battle of Hastings, and was not secure on his throne until after 1072. He confiscated the lands of the resisting English elite, some of whom fled into exile. To control his new kingdom, William gave lands to his followers and built castles commanding military strongpoints.

William built the White Tower in 1078 to intimidate the citizens of London. This later became part of the Tower of London. It is said that he ordered bull’s blood to be mixed with the mortar symbolising strength and a royal power that would last forever.

The White Tower in london began by William. By Bernard Gagnon

One way William kept the peace in England was his decree that after the tolling of the 8 o'clock bell, everyone should put out their fires and retire to bed.

In 1072 William invaded Scotland, defeating Malcolm III, who had recently invaded the north of England. King Malcolm III, who was married to Edgar's sister Margaret, submitted and was allowed to retain his lands. William later founded the city of Newcastle Upon Tyne to resist the incursions of Scotland's king.

Between 1073-1084, most of William's attention was taken up by war and diplomacy on the European continent, as his French constituency was more prone to enemy attack.

At the time of his death, William and his family owned a quarter of all the land in England. By redistributing the rest of the English land to those who'd fought with him at Hastings, he established the feudal system.

Map showing William's lands in 1087 

William made his famous survey called the Domesday Book, a complete census of all land and livestock in England to help him know the scope of his kingdom so that he could levy tax.

Traditionally considered the work of his wife Matilda, the Domesday Book was made up of two books, one 382 pages, (the sweetly titled "Little Domesday"), and the other 450 pages. Both were written in Latin and are now housed in the Public record office in London. It was claimed "no hide nor yard of land was there left out", not strictly true as four northern shires and a number of towns such as Lincoln were missed. William himself never read it, as he was illiterate.
          
The Anglo Saxon Chronicle comments on William’s reign, “His anxiety for money is the only thing on which he can deservedly be blamed; …he would say and do some things and indeed almost anything…where the hope of money allured him.”

England's first Norman King spoke the French of Normandy and though he tried to learn English in the 1070s he was too busy to master it.

BELIEFS 

William was a practising Christian and attended, whenever possible, church each morning and evening.

In 1066 Halley’s Comet appeared shortly before William the Conqueror invaded England. The Norman king took it as a good omen; his battle cry became “A new star, a new king”.

On their voyage across the English Channel in 1066, William lost only two of his fleet's 700 vessels. One of them carried the expedition's soothsayer. "No great loss" commented William sympathetically "he couldn't even predict his own fate."

Just before the Battle of Hastings, William swore to erect an abbey if he won. He and his fellow Normans spent the night before in prayer whilst King Harold and his merrie men sat up drinking.

After William's men won the battle, the Conqueror erected St Martins Abbey on the hilltop where Harold was killed.

APPEARANCE AND CHARACTER 

William was tall for his time, 5ft 10ins (178 cms), and strongly built. Red haired, in his older years he had red close-cropped hair, balding on top and a moustache above his upper lip.

William the Conqueror - Google Art Project

In his early days William was disciplined in eating and drinking and abhorred drunkenness. By his last years he had developed a large belly.

According to William of Malmesbury, William had a "fierce face...he was majestic.... although his pot belly rather spoiled his appearance."

William and his fellow Normans introduced a new pudding bowl short crop hairstyle to England.  After William and his Norman soldiers landed in Pevensey, King Harold’s spies ventured out to gather intelligence. They returned with the report of a very large group of "priests" seen nearby but no enemy soldiers. Those priests were actually William’s army, mistaken for holy men due to their clean-shaven appearance on their faces and exaggerated pageboy haircuts. The way they shaved off the hair on the back of their heads but kept a short back and sides look, gave them all a monk-like appearance.

Along with his fellow Normans, William customarily wore long tunics.

Charismatic and regal. William was a fluent, persuasive though at times harsh speaker.

William was a shrewd, courageous, at times ruthless ruler and an efficient organiser with plenty of Norman wisdom. It was said his icy stare could freeze the fiercest baron.

MARRIAGE 

William's wife from the early 1050s was Matilda, the daughter of Count Baldwin of Flanders and granddaughter of king Robert II of France.

According to legend, when William sent his representative to ask for Matilda's hand in marriage, she told the representative that marrying a bastard was below her. On reading her response, William rode 250 miles from Normandy to Bruges, dragged Matilda off her horse by her long braids, and threw her down in the mud in front of her flabbergasted attendants. He then rode off.

William and Matilda were forbidden to marry by the Pope as they were considered too closely related but they went ahead anyway.

They married in 1050 or 1051 at the Cathedral of Notre Dame at Eu, Normandy (now in Seine-Maritime). She was in her early 20s and William was some four years older.

Matilda. By Alfred Guillard - Selbymay,

For years William had the stigma of being a bastard. By marrying Matilda, who was the niece of the King of France, William gained respect in Europe.

It was misreported for years that Matilda's height was 4 feet 2 inches (1.27m) leading to the myth that she was extremely small. In 1959 her skeleton was examined and it was established that her height was 5 feet (1.52m), a normal height for the time.

William was a faithful husband and it proved to be a highly successful union.

Matilda bore her husband four sons:

Robert Duke of Normandy, who was one of the leaders of the successful first crusade. He succeeded his father in Normandy.

Richard Duke of Bernay who died as a teenager whilst hunting.

William II, also called William Rufus due to his ruddy complexion. A bad tempered bully, he succeeded his father on the English throne, but was slain by an arrow which deflected off a tree in the New Forest on August 2, 1100.

William II drawn by Matthew Paris

Henry I, who succeeded his brother William Rufus as King of England.

HOBBIES AND INTERESTS 

The athletic Norman king liked hawking and hunting and was a fine horseman.

It was alleged William could leap directly onto his charger (horse) whilst fully clothed in armour.

William cleared 225 Saxon villages to create the New Forest which became a royal hunting area.

William was very protective towards his royal deer; the punishment for merely disturbing the King's stags was blinding. "Anyone who killed a hart or a hind was to be blinded... He loved the stags as clearly as though he had been their father ." said The Peterborough Chronicler, regarding the death of William the Conqueror.

DEATH 

William enjoyed excellent health until old age, although he became quite fat in later life.

Whilst on a punitive raid against the French, William the Conqueror's horse having just trodden on some burning cinders, reared. England's first Norman king fell and his saddle pommel was forced into his stomach.

He was taken to the priory of Saint Gervase at Rouen, where he died on September 9, 1087. As he passed away, William commanded his soul to Mary, "that by her holy prayers she may reconcile me to her son, my Lord Jesus Christ".

His body was carried to the Church of St Etienne, Caen, to be buried. By this time the late king was so grossly fat that when his attendants tried to force his body into the stone sarcophaguses, by standing and jumping on the body to squeeze it in they broke the king’s back. The broken spine tore a hole in his stomach which burst and the church was enveloped in a disgusting odour.

In 1793 William's tomb was robbed by French revolutionaries. All that remains today is a stone slab marking his last known resting-place.

William's grave at Abbaye-aux-Hommes, Caen By Supercarwaar