Richard of Normandy | The History Jar

Norman family tree

If ever there was a dysfunctional family – this is it. There are sufficient tales of sibling rivalry, murder and kidnap to keep me out of mischief for weeks.

William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders had the following children –

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Robert Curthose (1052/4- 1135) who married Sybilla of Conversano. He fought with his brothers, rebelled against his father and was denied the English crown by his youngest surviving brother Henry before losing the duchy of Normandy and being imprisoned for 28 years in England. One story suggests that Henry threatened to put Robert’s eyes out to prevent him from escaping. He married and had issue. William Clito was the only one of Robert’s two sons to survive until adulthood. He became Count of Flanders by right of his grandmother but his struggle to regains father’s lands and titles resulted in much unpleasantness.

RichardofNormandy

Richard who died in a hunting accident in the New Forest by either in 1075 or 1081.

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Cecilia born about 1054 who was entered into her mother’s abbey of the Holy Trinity in Caen and went on to become its abbess. She died in 1126.
Adeliza born 1055. She may have been promised in marriage to Harold when he was the Earl of Wessex but as events turned out she entered a nunnery. Alison Weir states that she was probably dead by 1066.

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William Rufus was born sometime between 1056 and 1060. He died as the result of an ‘accident’ with an arrow on 2nd August 1100.

Constance married Alan IV of Brittany. She died in 1090, possibly poisoned by her own servants.

adela

Adela was born about 1062 and was married to Stephen, Count of Blois. After his death she entered a nunnery. She died in 1137 or 38. The lives of her children are interwoven into the story of England at this time – one became Bishop of Winchester, another – Stephen became king whilst a third drowned when the White Ship sank in 1120.

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Henry was born in 1068 in Selby, Yorkshire. He was crowned on the 5/6th August 1100 having purloined the English Crown from his older brother Robert who was traveling home from the First Crusade at the time William Rufus’s unfortunate accident. He died in 1135, his only legitimate sone having drowned in 1120. His first wife was Edith of Scotland (daughter of St Margaret) she changed her name to Matilda which was much more comfortable on Norman ears. After the death of his heir Henry remarried to Adela of Louvain who I have posted about previously. Alison Weir lists 25 children both legitimate and illegitimate. Their story reflects the fact that legitimacy was not so important at this time in history. One of Henry’s daughters married Alexander I of Scotland another married the Duke of Brittany.

white ship sinking

Agatha, born in 1064, was married by proxy to King Alfonso of León. She died in 1074.
Matilda died in 1112 – and that’s more or less all that we know about her.

The family tree at the start of the post demonstrates the way in which William’s family was married into States which bordered William’s own territories. The extended familial relationships then impacted on English politics and Church making England a very European affair.

Henry I forced his barons to accept his daughter Matilda after the death of his son William in 1120 but Matilda’s cousin Stephen of Blois was male and on the scene so snaffled the job. This resulted in the so-called Anarchy which lasted from 1135 until 1153. It was only after the death of Stephen’s son Eustace that a peace treaty between the two sides could be formally arranged by the Treaty of Winchester. Matilda’s son Henry known as Henry FitzEmpress was recognised as Stephen’s heir. His accession to the throne ended the Norman period of rule and began the Plantagenet line.

Many of the images in this post come from the Genealogical Chronicle of the English Kings which dates from the reign of Edward I, is almost five metres long, beginning with Egbert King of Wessex and concludes with Edward I. Edward II and Edward III were added at a later date.

https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/genealogical-chronicle-of-the-english-kings

For the most part when we think of William the Conqueror’s and Matilda of Flanders’ children we tend to identify William Rufus who got himself killed in the New Forest in 1100 and his little brother Henry who took the opportunity to snaffle the crown having secured the treasury in Winchester.

The death of William Rufus is pictured below in an illustration from William of Malmsebury’s account of events in the New Forest.

The English crown went to William Rufus as the second son surviving son whilst the more important patrimony – i.e. Normandy went to William the Conqueror’s eldest son Robert Curthose. Henry, William’s youngest surviving son received money to buy land. Robert_Curthose_-_MS_Royal_14_B_VI

William and Robert hadn’t always seen eye to eye. In 1077 Robert rebelled against his father following a prank played by William Rufus and Henry. They thought it would be funny to up end a full chamber pot over Robert’s head. Robert fought his brothers and the resulting brawl was only stopped when William the Conqueror intervened. Robert was so disgruntled when his two brothers went unpunished that he and his followers attempted to seize Rouen Castle the following day. The dispute lasted for the next three years until Queen Matilda was able to bring both sides together having secretly sent money to her son behind William’s back during that time. As is often the case there is more to the tale than the story. William left Matilda in Normandy acting as regent during his absence. Not only was she acting on William’s behalf but she was also standing in for the young Robert. This practice should have stopped as Robert grew up. He demanded that he be allowed more responsibility, but William who appears not to have had a high opinion of his eldest son refused. Robert’s resentment grew.

Matilda died in 1083 and Robert became something of a vagrant, travelling widely to avoid spending time in his father’s court.

220px-Henry_I_of_England When William the Conqueror died in 1097 Robert gained Normandy and made William Rufus his heir. William did like wise. However despite this agreement little brother Henry (pictured left) was able to claim the English throne in 1100 because Robert was on the return journey to Normandy from the First Crusade where he had proved himself to be an effective military leader which goes somewhat against the chronicles of the time which describe him at best as lazy, at worst as incompetent. At the time of William Rufus’s death Robert not only had further to travel but he had interrupted his journey in order to marry a wealthy bride. In order to pay for the crusade he’d mortgaged Normandy and now needed to find the funds to free himself from his debts.

His bride was Sybilla of Conversano about whom I have posted before. The pair had a son called William Clito before she died in 1103. Like William the Conqueror, Robert had left his wife as regent during his absences and most chroniclers agree that she made a better job of the role than Robert.

Inevitably Robert finally arrived on English shores with an army on July 21st 1101 but Henry persuaded Robert to settle for a pension instead of a kingdom. This was recognised in the Treaty of Alton (Hampshire). Sooner rather than later Henry stopped paying the pension and punished the men who had supported Robert in his claim.

In 1105 Henry invaded Normandy and beat Robert at the Battle of Tinchebray. The British contingent in Henry’s army felt that Hastings had been avenged as the Norman army fled the field. Robert spent the next 28 years in captivity. He died in 1134 in Cardiff Castle where he’d passed the time learning Welsh and writing poetry. He is buried in Gloucester Cathedral. Robert’s incarceration did not mean that Henry was bale to rule both England and Normandy in peace. Robert’s son William Clito was recognised by many Norman nobles as their rightful duke.

RichardofNormandy And finally, William Rufus wasn’t the only one of William the Conqueror’s sons to die in the New Forest. Richard (pictured left) who was born some time between 1055 and 1059 died in a hunting accident by 1075. Orderic Vitalis says of him that “when a youth who had not yet received the belt of knighthood, had gone hunting in the New Forest and whilst he was galloping in pursuit of a wild beast he had been badly crushed between a strong hazel branch and the pommel of his saddle, and mortally injured.” He is buried in Winchester.