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Born

1028

Born At

Falaise, Normandy

Died

9 Sep 1087

Buried At

Abbey of Stephen, Caen

Royal House

Norman

Titles Include: King of England from 1066 to 1087; Duke of Normandy and Maine from 1035 to 1087

Origins

illiam was born in 1028. He was the son of Robert, Duke of Normandy and Herleva. Because Robert and Herleva were not married, William was known to his contemporaries as William 'the Bastard'. To us he is known as William the Conqueror. In 1035 at the age of seven or eight, William's father Robert was killed returning from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Before Robert had left for Jerusalem he received the assurance from the Norman barons that William would become the next Duke if anything happened to him during the trip. After his father's death William became the Duke of Normandy. At first William was not old enough to rule for himself and his early life as the Duke was extremely hazardous. Other members of his wider family would have benefited from his death and so William was guarded at all times to ensure his safety. William's mother Herleva married a follower of her husband and had two more sons, Robert (Count of Mortain) and Odo (Bishop of Bayeux)

Weapons

Danish Axe

Duke of Normandy

It was not until the mid 1040's that William was old enough to rule unaided and at once he began campaigns against rebel Normans and neighbouring enemies. He quickly gained a ruthless reputation. In October 1049, William married Matilda the daughter of Count Baldwin of Flanders, one of his few allies. The marriage was against the wishes of the Pope who thought that Matilda and William were too closely related. William wanted the marriage for the important alliance with Flanders and also because he was in love with Matilda. The marriage was discussed by Pope Leo IX in Rheims. This caused some alarm, as it had not been for some time that a Pope had travelled to France to interfere with events.

Disputed Succession

In 1051 Edward the Confessor, the King of England was having problems restraining the Godwine family. In the hope that the Normans would assist him, Edward offered William, Duke of Normandy the right to claim the English throne after his death. Edward had no children and no direct heir. In 1066 just before his death, Edward changed his mind and offered the English throne to his wife's brother, Harold, Earl of Godwine. William had been visited by Harold earlier in 1064 and at a meeting it is suspected that Harold agreed to William's succession. When William learnt that Harold was to become king he was outraged and began invasion plans.

Invasion

By August of 1066 the invasion fleet was ready, but the winds in the English Channel were not right and he had to delay sailing. This delay was fortunate for William because in July another invasion led by Harold Hardrada had begun in the north of England. This drew king Harold away from the south coast. King Harold fought and defeated Hardrada on 25th September at Stamford Bridge. At the same time, the winds on the Channel became favourable and William crossed to land without opposition at Pevensey. King Harold then marched his exhausted army back south to fight William.

As King of England

The armies of William and Harold meet at Hastings on the 14th of October 1066. William was victorious and Harold was killed. After the battle there was little resistance and William was accepted as the new King. He was crowned at Westminster Abbey on 25th December 1066. For the first few years of his reign William spent time in Normandy and in England and while away he promoted his half brother Odo as his deputy in charge of English affairs. Not everyone in England was happy with the new Norman Kings and several revolts broke out. William was able to deal with each revolt in turn and soon began the construction of many castles to help subdue the rebels. William brought his Norman friends across the Channel with him and quickly began replacing the Bishops and Earls with his own men. The most famous Norman Bishop was Lanfranc who became the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Defending his Empire

From 1071 onwards, William had to contend with threats of invasion both against England, but also against his lands of Normandy. Threats from Swein of Denmark, The King of France and the Counts of Anjou and Flanders were a constant problem. William also had to content with his eldest son Robert, who was involved with William's enemies.

The Domesday Book

In December of 1085, William the Conqueror ordered the survey of his lands in Britain. The survey was given the name Domesday Book possible because of its similarity to the Last Judgement of Christ, or Domesday. A detailed record of ownership of land, types of land, numbers of people and their status, numbers of animals was undertaken. Details were not just required for that moment in time, but at the time of Edward the Confessor (1065) and at the time when the land was granted by William himself. Each shire was required to obtain and collate the information and any disputes were heard in a court with a jury of equal numbers of English and Normans. The survey was written up into two volumes and was held at the Winchester Treasury.

Whether this was the first survey of its type is unknown, but it is the first recorded survey. The reason why the survey was taken is not known either. After the Conquest the allocation of land had probably been chaotic and the survey could have been a method of sorting out the confusion and to prevent further disputes. Knowing how much workable land and working people there were would have also been useful for taxation and military purposes.

Death

While fighting the King of France in Vexin in July 1087, William was injured and died from his injuries on 9th September. He was buried in the church of St. Stephen in Caen.

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Preceded by
HAROLD (II, Godwinson, King of England 1066)

Succeeded by
WILLIAM (II, Rufus, King of England 1087-1100)

Family Tree Details

Father:	Robert (I, Duke of Normandy 1027-35) ( - d.1035)
Mother:	Herleva

WILLIAM (I, the Conqueror, King of England 1066-1087) (b.1028 - d.1087)
         +Matilda (of Flander) ( - d.1083)
                  =Robert (II, Duke of Normandy 1087-1106) ( - d.1134)
                  |        +Sybilla (of Conversano)
                  |                 =Clito, William ( - d.1128)
                  =Richard (Son of William the Conqueror)
                  =WILLIAM (II, Rufus, King of England 1087-1100) (b.1057 - d.1100)
                  =Plantagenet, Henry (I, King of England 1100-1135) (b.1068 - d.1135)
                  |        +Matilda Edith (of Scotland)
                  |        |        =William (Adelin) (b.1103 - d.1120)
                  |        |        =Matilda (Daughter of Henry I) (b.1102 - d.1167)
                  |        |                 +Geoffrey (Plantagenet, 'The Fair', Count of Anjou) ( - d.1151)
                  |        |                 |        =Henry (II, King of England 1154-1189) (b.1133 - d.1189)
                  |        |                 |        |        +Eleanor (of Aquitaine) (b.1122 - d.1204)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =William (b.1153 - d.1156)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =Henry ('the Young King') (b.1155 - d.1183)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =Matilda (b.1156 - d.1189)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =Richard (I, King of England 1189-1199) (b.1157 - d.1199)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =Geoffrey (b.1158 - d.1186)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =Eleanor (of England) (b.1162 - d.1214)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =Joan (of England, Queen of Sicily) (b.1165 - d.1199)
                  |        |                 |        |        |        =JOHN (King of England 1199-1216) (b.1167 - d.1216)
                  |        |                 |        |        +Illegitimate
                  |        |                 |        |                 =Plantagenet, Geoffrey (Archbishop of York)
                  |        |                 |        |                 =Longsword, William
                  |        |                 |        =Geoffrey (VI of Anjou)
                  |        |                 |        =William (Count of Paitin) (b.1136 - d.1164)
                  |        |                 +Henry (V of Germany)
                  |        +Adeliza (of Louvain) ( - d.1151)
                  =Cecilia (Daughter of William the Conqueror)
                  =Constance (Daughter of William the Conqueror)
                  =Adela (Daughter of William the Conqueror) ( - d.1137)
                           +Stephen (count of Blois)
                                    =Theobald (V)
                                    =Stephen (of Blois, king of England 1135-1154) (b.1100 - d.1154)
                                    |        +Matilda (of Boulogne) ( - d.1152)
                                    |                 =Eustace (IV, Count of Boulogne) ( - d.1153)
                                    =Henry (of Blois, Bishop of Winchester) ( - d.1171)

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Mini Timeline (Ages are approximate)

1028		Birth of William, the future conqueror of England
		William is born at Falaise in either 1027 or 1028
1033		Robert Assists English and French Kings	Age: 5
		Robert I, Duke of Normandy was an ally of the French King Henry I and also assisted the two English brothers Edward (to become Edward the Confessor) and Alfred, sons of Aethelred King of the English who was over thrown by Canute in 1016. Robert may had tried to assist Edward and Albert in their attempts to retake the English throne back from Canute. It may have been for this assistance that Edward was to promise Robert's son William (the Conqueror) the future crown of England.¹
1035	Jul	William the Conqueror becomes Duke of Normandy	Age: 7
		In the eighth year of his life William (the Conqueror) became the Duke of Normandy when his father Robert died on a pilgrimage at Nicea. Robert's death led to a period of instability in Normandy as William was too young to take his father's place and the nobles in the region took the opportunity to settle old feuds and to increase their private wealth.¹
1053		William marries Matilda	Age: 25
		In spite of objections from Pope Leo, William married Matilda, the daughter of Baldwin V, Earl of Flanders.
1054		Battle of Mortemer	Age: 26
		Battle fought between Henry, the King of France, and William, the Duke of Normandy. Henry wanted to take control of the Normandy area which was preventing the French access to the English Channel. The Normans defeated the French.²
1057		The Battle of Varaville	Age: 29
		Another battle fought between Henry, the King of France, and William, the Duke of Normandy. Again the Normans defeated the French King's army.²
1063		William invades and captures Maine	Age: 35
		Some years earlier William had supported the exiled Count Herbert of Maine when Geoffrey Martel invaded the province and captured its main town Le Mans. As part of the pact William and Herbert agreed that if Herbert died without an heir the province could be claimed by William. William's eldest son Robert Curthose was betrothed to Herbert's daughter (Margaret?) but she died before they could be married. When Herbert died William claimed Maine in the name of his son and invaded. Robert was made Count of Maine when the province was captured.³
1065		Mysterious meeting in Normandy	Age: 37
		A mysterious meeting is reported to have taken place in Normandy between William the Conqueror and Harold in 1065. In the meeting it was claimed that Harold agreed that William should become King of England when Edward the Confessor died. From what is known of Harold it seems unlikely that he would agree to something like this. We know that he went against this agreement when assumed the role as King after Edward's death.
1066	Jun	Dedication of Holy Trinity at Caen	Age: 38
		William and Matilda were at the dedication of Matilda's church, the Holy Trinity at Caen. To show their devotion they gave their daughter Cecilia to the church to be raised as a nun.⁴
	Jul	William's Invasion fleet gather in the estuary of the River Dives
		William the Conqueror prepared to invade England. His invasion fleet gathered in the estuary of the River Dives and other ports in Normandy.¹
	Jul	Harold prepares for William's invasion
		Harold, King of England, gathered an army and waited on the south coast of England to defend the country against an William's invasion.
	Sep 12	St-Valery-Sur-Somme
		William the Conqueror's invasion fleet arrived at St-Valery-Sur-Somme further up the Normandy coast. William either decided to move the fleet to the inlet or the fleet was forced to take shelter there when it attempted to cross the Channel and was hit by a storm. William's fleet remained there waiting for winds blowing in the right direction to take them to England.
	Sep 20	Battle of Gate Fulford
		Harold Hardrada's forces invaded and started ravaging the countryside as they made their way to York. English forces led by Earl Edwin and Earl Morcar battled with Harold Hardrada at Gate Fulford, but the English were severely beaten. Following this defeat Harold, King of England, was forced to march his army away from the south coast where they were preparing to defend against William the Conqueror's invasion to deal with the invasion in the north.
	Sep 25	Stamford Bridge Battle
		King Harold II defeated the invasion threat from Harold Hardrada, King of Norway and his own brother Tostig, both of whom were killed. This stretched his forces to the limit as they quickly had to march south to defend against William of Normandy's invasion at Hastings.
	Sep 27	William lands at Pevensey
		After dawn the main part of William's fleet landed on the English coast at Pevensey while some split from the main group and landed at Romney.
	Oct	William moves to Hastings
		The village of Hastings in 1066 was on a peninsula of land with marsh and water on two sides. The area was a natural defensive site with a hill to the north that could be used as a lookout point. William possibly built extra defences at Hastings while he prepared to move towards London.
	Oct 1	Harold learns of William's arrival
		Harold was resting his army in York when he learnt that William had landed on the south coast.
	Oct 6	Harold and his forces reach London
		Harold II had to march south from Stamford Bridge to counter the threat of invasion from William of Normandy.
	Oct 13	Harold reaches Caldbec Hill
		Harold and his army reached Caldbec Hill near the road from London to Hastings. Here they prepared for the battle to come.⁵
	Oct 14	Battle of Hastings
		William the Conqueror and Harold II met in battle at Hastings. Although Harold had the superior position on the battlefield his tactics failed and he was killed. This left England open for William to continue with his invasion plans.¹
	Nov	William advances to London
		After his victory at the battle of Hastings William moved along the south coast to Dover where extra fortifications were built in the existing castle at the top of the cliffs. From there he moved on to Canterbury. After the death of Harold the archbishops of York and Canterbury, Ealdred and Stigand supported the plan to put Edgar the Aetheling on the English throne but William moved too quickly for this to be done. Canterbury submitted to William and he moved on to London. Instead of entering London from the south he moved around the west of the city crossing the Thames at Wallingford. Finally archbishop Stigand and the other Anglo-Saxon leaders submitted to William and after turning south at Little Berkhamsted William entered London.
	Dec 25	William the Conqueror becomes King of England
		William the Conqueror was coronated as King of England in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day of 1066.¹
1067		Odo becomes William's deputy	Age: 39
		Odo,the Bishop or Bayeux, became William the Conqueror's deputy in England and was assisted by William Fitz Osbern until Osbern's death in 1071. Odo also became the Earl of Kent and his wealth and land became considerable.
	Mar	William returns to Normandy
		William returned to Normandy taking as guests Edgar the Aetheling (the grandson of Edmund Ironside), Stigand (Archbishop of Canterbury, the Earls of Mercia and Northumbria and the brothers Edwin and Morcar.¹
1068		Warwick Castle built on William's orders	Age: 40
		William the Conqueror ordered the building of Warwick Castle.
		Northern English move to Scotland
		Many of the northern English lords escaped to Scotland and the court of Malcolm III when it was clear that William had control of the country.
		Construction of Nottingham Castle
		William and the Normans started construction of the castle at Nottingham. This would have been a wooden building. It was built on the high ground above the town using the step slope down to the river Leen as a defence.⁶
		The Curfew Bell
		William the Conqueror ordered that all church bells should be sounded at eight o'clock each night as a signal for everyone to put out fires and candles and retire to bed. The term appears to come from the French couvre feu meaning cover the fire.⁷
		Construction of Lincoln Castle
		William the Conqueror ordered that building work on a castle at Lincoln was to be started.
	Feb	Exeter falls to William
		Although William had defeated Harold at Hastings, Harold's mother Gytha and her forces still had not submitted to William's rule. They held out at Exeter until William broke the defences. William had to take heavy casualties in the confrontation.¹
	Spring	Construction begins on Exeter Castle
		Following the rebellion in the West William orders the construction of a castle at Exeter.⁸
	May 11	Matilda is crowned Queen
		William brought his wife Matilda of Flander to England to crown her Queen of England.¹
	Sep	Birth of Henry I
		Henry, the future king of England, was born at Selby in Yorkshire.⁹
1069	Dec	The North is devastated by the Normans	Age: 41
		William's forces defeat rebels in the North and Midlands.
1070		Lanfranc becomes Archbishop of Canterbury	Age: 42
		William the Conqueror placed Lanfranc in the position of Archbishop of Canterbury a move designed to strengthen his hold on the English throne. Thomas of Bayeux, a pupil of Odo (William's brother), was put in the position of Archbishop of York after the death of Ealred who died on September 11, 1069. Archbishop Stigand was imprisoned in Winchester.
		Castles at Chester and Stafford begun
		William continues his castle building spree at both Chester and Stafford.⁸
		Castle at Old Sarum
		Using the prehistoric hill fort's defensive position to good use, the Normans built a new castle on the Old Sarum site. William the Conqueror paid off his soldiers here in this year.
1071		Ely castle ordered	Age: 43
		William orders a castle to be built at Ely.⁸
		William puts down the revolt
		The rebels Hereward the Wake and Morcar on the Isle of Ely were attacked and defeated by William the Conqueror.
		Bangor Cathedral destroyed by the Normans
		A Norman army attacked the northern Welsh town of Bangor and destroyed the Cathedral there.¹⁰
		Construction of Oxford Castle
		Robert D'Oilly was given the task of building a castle at Oxford by William the Conqueror at the important Thames river crossing. A motte and bailey castle would have been the type of castle built at this time.¹¹
1072		At Durham, another castle is ordered	Age: 44
		William orders the castle as Durham to be built.⁸
		Serlo takes over at Gloucester
		Serlo, William the Conqueror's chaplain, revived the floundering monastery at Gloucester and started major rebuilding work. Serlo died in 1104.
		Treaty of Abernethy
		Treaty between William the Conqueror and Malcolm III of Scotland. In this treaty Malcolm paid homage to William.
	Jun	William leads an army into Scotland
		It is possible that William the Conqueror was planning to attack King Malcolm to prevent him protecting Edgar the Aetheling and to stop him advancing into the north of England. The treaty 'Peace of Abernethy' brought a solution to the situation where Malcolm agreed to become William's vassal and to expel Edgar.¹
1073		Edgar the Aetheling attempts to take the English throne	Age: 45
		Edgar joins forces with King Malcolm in Scotland and King Philippe I of France.
1075		Chepstow Castle passes to the crown	Age: 47
		Roger Fitz Osbern joined an unsuccessful uprising against the king and lost. The castle then passed to the crown.⁶
1080		Colchester castle begun	Age: 52
		To defend the estuaries of Essex against attacks from the Danes William the Conqueror ordered the construction of a new castle at Colchester.
1081		William tours south Wales	Age: 53
		William the Conqueror visited South Wales and St. David's. He met Rhys ap Tewdwr, the ruler of the area and allowed him to remain in control of the region for a yearly sum of money.
		Cardiff Castle construction
		William the Conqueror may have ordered the creation of a castle at Cardiff during his tour of Southern Wales. The first castle on the site would have been a motte and bailey type and it was built on the site of existing Roman fortifications.¹²
1083		Odo imprisoned	Age: 55
		William imprisoned his half-brother Odo, Bishop of Bayeux.
1085	Dec 25	Domesday Book	Age: 57
		At the Christmas Council William ordered the creation of survey of property with their values and populations county by county covering most of England. Commissioners were sent all over England, apart from the far north, to make a record of the population, value, state and ownership of the land. The book consisted of two volumes and was completed by 1088.
1086	Aug 1	Oath of Salisbury	Age: 58
		William the Conqueror called a meeting at Old Sarum where he invited his most important vassals and tenants-in-chief in England to swear allegiance to him. The oath is now known as the Oath of Salisbury.
1087	Sep 9	William the Conqueror Dies	Age: 59
		William I of England died at the abbey of St Gervais, near Rouen.¹
	Sep 26	William II (Rufus) crowned at Westminster
		William II (Rufus) was crowned at Westminster by Archbishop Lanfranc after the death of his father William the Conqueror.
1215	Jun 15	John's Great Charter (the Magna Carta)
		A large number of barons, led by Stephen Langton the archbishop of Canterbury, meet King John on an island in the Thames at Runnymede. They forced the king to sign the 'Great Charter' or Magna Carta that would limit the power of the monarchy. The barons insisted that the old feudal contract should be reinstated and that the king should abide by the laws that the rest of the population did. The feudal contract allowed the barons to run their own lands, renting it from the king but paying rent by supplying knights rather than money. This feudal system had been set up by William the Conqueror.¹³

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Locations of invasions and battles in 1066

Invasion by Tostig and Harald Hardrada, King of Norway

Tostig was the brother of King Harold and had been the Earl of Northumbria until the Northumbrians revolted against him. Tostig went into exile to Flanders but in May of 1066 he invaded southern England with a sizable invasion fleet. His invasion plans failed and he sailed north, first to Scotland and then to Norway and the court of Harald Hardrada. Tostig pursuaded Harald Hardrada to assist him invade England. In September 1066 Harald and Tostig along with a large invasion fleet sailed up the River Humber and headed for York. On September 20th at Gate Fulford just a couple of miles south of York the English, lead by Earls Edwin and Morcar, fought the invaders. The English were defeated by the invaders.

This diagram shows the route that William and his army took from Pevensey, where they landed, to London.A direct route to London was not possible so William had to circle the city and enter from the north.

William the Conqueror's territories in 1087.

William's possessions in 1087

Map Information

This map show the areas of Britain and France that William the Conqueror had control over in 1087. This graphic is based on a map in Gardiners Atlas of English History.