Since the arrival of William the Conqueror in 1066, England has endured multiple civil wars as people fought for control of the throne and the country. Many of these are well-known and studied in great depth, such as the Wars of the Roses in the 15th century and the Civil War of the 17th. There is one such war, however, that is not so widely known and it just so happens to be the first such war England had to face. The Anarchy, as it is known, was fought between cousins for the throne of a country that was still unsure of itself after the Norman Conquest, fewer than 100 years previously. The war would encompass the whole country, tearing families apart and wreaking chaos, hence its name. In the first of two parts covering this war, we will look at what caused it all and the early years of the war itself.
King Henry I took the throne after his older brother, William II, died in a hunting accident in the year 1100. He ruled, relatively successfully, for the next 35 years. However, his only legitimate son, William, died when his vessel, ‘The White Ship’, sank crossing the English Channel in 1120. Henry would have no further sons and so supported the succession of his daughter, Matilda. This was difficult as England, even back into the Anglo-Saxon period, had no history of a female ruler. Henry was eventually able to convince his barons, having them swear an oath to support Matilda and married her to Geoffrey, Count of Anjou, to strengthen her claim. Henry, however, made no attempt to have Matilda officially crowned as his heir, nor did he actually give her any land or castles of her own, seemingly in an attempt to hold on to power for as long as possible.
When Henry died in 1135, Matilda was in Anjou with her husband and made no apparent attempt to travel to England to claim her throne and, as she dawdled, something happened that she did not expect. Another claimant to the throne stepped forward: Stephen of Blois, cousin of Matilda and grandson of William the Conqueror. Stephen claimed that his uncle, Henry I, had a change of heart on his deathbed and named him as heir to the throne. He travelled directly to London, crossing a stormy Channel to do so, proving an instant hit with the citizens. Stephen proved so popular that the city elected him as their chosen king. With the people’s support secured, Stephen travelled to Winchester for his coronation. Here, with the support of his brother the Bishop of Winchester, Stephen gained the support of many other bishops and even the royal treasurer. The Archbishop of Canterbury was more reluctant to renounce his oath to Matilda, only doing so when Stephen promised to uphold and protect the church. The barons of Normandy, on hearing of Stephen’s coronation, immediately accepted him as their new Duke, not liking Matilda’s marriage to the Count of Anjou, a region that had long been an enemy of Normandy. Most English barons were also quick to pay homage to the this new and well-liked king. There were some that took longer, however, such as Matilda’s half-brother, Roger of Gloucester.
In the early years of his reign Stephen faced three Scottish invasions between 1136-8, led by King David. The king of Scotland had eyes for more territory but was also attempting to promote the claim to the throne of his niece, Matilda. The first two invasions were quickly stopped by English forces and ended with peace treaties. The third invasion in 1138, however, was far more brutal. The Scots carried out a campaign of destruction, the scale of which had not seen since William the Conqueror’s ‘Harrying of the North’. Instead of forcing people to accept his niece as intended, David was pushing them away from her and towards King Stephen. With the Scottish devastation in the north, the English were forced to do battle in what would become known as the Battle of the Standard, so-called because of the religious banners in the centre of the English army. The battle lasted only a couple of hours before the Scots were scattered. A final treaty secured Stephen’s border to the north at long last, allowing David some of the land he so desperately craved in return for a lasting peace. In the south, though, another war was brewing.
Robert of Gloucester, still Matilda’s greatest supporter, defected from Stephen and rebelled in May, 1138. With this, a series of rebellions occurred throughout the south-west, where Roger had his power base. Stephen was able to quickly subdue each of these rebellions but was unable to take Roger’s stronghold at Bristol. Although relatively small and no direct threat to the king, these uprisings showed the influence that Gloucester held, especially in that part of the country. Just over one year later, in September 1139, Matilda finally arrived in England personally. Roger, who had travelled from France with her, went straight to Bristol while Matilda sought refuge with her stepmother, Adeliza, at Arundel Castle. Stephen quickly moved on Arundel, recognising Matilda as the most immediate threat. Adeliza quickly withdrew her support for Matilda at the arrival of the king and, in what may have been the most unusual decision of his entire reign, Stephen granted Matilda safe passage to her half-brother in Bristol.
Stephen then moved to stem the tide of Matilda’s influence, attacking her eastern-most fortress: Wallingford Castle, Oxfordshire. However, the strong defences and ample food supplies meant that this would not be a quick siege. Therefore, Stephen left behind a besieging army and took the rest of his forces deeper into Matilda’s territory, taking a series of castles and towns as he went. As Stephen pushed further south-west, Matilda’s supporters launched a surprise attack on the king’s forces at Wallingford before taking the royal city of Worcester to the north. In retaliation, Stephen began a strategy of destruction, laying waste to the countryside around Hereford and Bristol, further hardening the people in the area against him.
In late 1140, over a year into the war, Stephen received word that the citizens were claiming mistreatment at the hands of their Earl. Fear of losing another royal settlement, especially one so far north, drove Stephen to travel to the city and deal with the problem personally. The king found only small garrison, albeit one refusing to surrender, so began his siege almost immediately without gathering a larger force. What he did not know, however, was that the Earl of Lincoln’s half-brother had travelled to Bristol to meet his father-in-law, Roger of Gloucester. Seizing the opportunity, Roger gathered an army from his allies in the south-west and even received help from some Welsh forces. His army advanced on Lincoln.
Stephen was considerably outnumbered but refused to heed advice to withdraw and gather a larger host. Stephen’s army put up a stout defence but, outnumbered as they were, the rebels were able to surround them completely. The king himself fought particularly fiercely, until his sword actually broke. At that point, he took up a discarded battle-axe and continued to fight. Eventually, the axe also broke and Stephen was knocked unconscious after a soldier hit him on the head with a rock. The king was taken prisoner and the rebels rejoiced. Finally, Matilda had a chance to claim the throne. Her throne.
To learn the rest of the story and the thrilling conclusion, come back next week for part 2!
A Hand with History 