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William the Conqueror

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William I (c. 1027-1087), was a King of England, known alternatively as William the Conqueror and William the Bastard. He was the illegitimate son of Robert the Magnificent, duke of Normandy, and Herleva, a tanner's daughter; he was born in Falaise, Normandy (now in France).

He married Matilda of Flanders, they had four sons and seven daughters (see list below).

He succeeded his father to the dukedom as a young boy in 1035 and was known as Duke William II of Normandy. He immediately came under attack from the vassals. With the assistance of King Henri I of France William finally secured control of Normandy by defeating the rebel Norman barons at Caen the battle of Val-ès-Dunes in 1047.

Upon the death of William's cousin king Edward the Confessor of England (January 1066), William claimed the throne of England, asserting that the childless Edward had named him his heir during a visit by William (probably in 1052) and that Harold Godwinson, England's foremost magnate, had pledged his support while shipwrecked in Normandy (c. 1064).

In order to pursue his claim, William invaded England on September 28 and defeated King Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings (October 14, 1066), thus allowing him to seize the throne. This is now known as the Norman Conquest. His victory is commemorated in the Bayeux Tapestry.

William initiated many major changes, amongst them a fundamental review of the prevailing Anglo-Saxon legal system, which he fused with Norman law. In order to ascertain the extent of his dominion, William commissioned the compilation of the Domesday Book, a survey of England's productive capacity. He also ordered the building of a number of castles, among them the Tower of London.

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He died at the Convent of St. Gervais, near Rouen, France, on September 9, 1087 from injuries received when he fell off a horse at the Siege of Mantes. He is buried at St. Stephen's, Caen, Normandy, France.

William was succeeded in 1087 as king of England by his younger son William II and as duke of Normandy by his elder son Robert Curthose, who had earlier rebelled.

Children of William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders

  1. Gundrade (~1053-1085) m. William de Varennes, Count of Surrey
  2. Robert Curthose (~1054 - 1135), Duke of Normandy, married Sybil of Conversano, daughter of Geoffrey of Conversano
  3. Adelicia (or Alice)(1055- d. ~1065), betrothed to Harold II of England
  4. Cecilia (~1056 - 1126), Abbess of Holy Trinity, Caen
  5. William Rufus (1056 - 1100), King of England
  6. Richard (1057 - ~1081), Duke of Bernay
  7. Adela (~1062 - 1138), married Stephen, Count of Blois
  8. Agatha (~1064 - ~1080), betrothed to (1) Harold of Wessex, (2) Alfonso, King of Leon
  9. Constance (~1066 - 1090), married Alan IV Fergent, Duke of Brittany
  10. Henry Beauclerc (1068 - 1135), King of England, married (1) Matilda (or Edith) of Scotland, daughter of Malcolm III, King of Scotland, (2) Adelicia of Louvain, daughter of Geoffrey of Louvain, Duke of Brabant
  11. Matilda (d. <1112)
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