William, the illegitimate
son of Robert, Duke of Normandy and Herleva
of Falaise, was
born in 1027. Instead of marrying Herleva, Robert persuaded her
to marry his friend, Herluin of Conteville. After marriage, Herleva
had two more sons, Odo
of Bayeux and Robert
of Mortain.
In 1035, Robert of Normandy went on a pilgrimage. Before setting out
on his trip Robert he forced his lords to swear fealty to William.
Although
William was illegitimate, he was Robert's only living son.
When Robert of Normandy died in 1035 William inherited his father's
title. Several leading Normans, including Gilbert
of Brionne, Osbern the Seneschal
and Alan of Brittany, became William's guardians.
A
number of Norman barons would not accept
an illegitimate son as their leader and in 1040 an attempt was made
to kill William. The plot failed but they did manage to kill Gilbert
of Brionne, Alan
of Brittany and Osbern
the Seneschal. William survived
but he was forced to accept Ralph of Wacy as his guardian and leader
of his armed forces. William was unhappy with this as Ralph had been
involved in the plot against him and had been responsible for the
murder of Gilbert
of Brionne.
William
began to govern Normandy in 1045. Two
years later, the lords of the western region of the duchy rebelled,
but William successfully defeated them at Val-es-dunes. In 1051 William
visited Edward the Confessor, the king
of England. Later, William claimed that Edward promised him that he
would become his heir.
In 1053 William married Matilda of Flanders,
the daughter of Count Baldwin of Flanders. Over the next sixteen years
the couple had nine children. Robert
Curthose,
Richard (killed in a hunting accident in 1075), Cecily, William
Rufus, Agatha, Henry
Beauclerk and Adela.
William's power in Normandy was constantly
under threat. In 1053 he suppressed a revolt led by William of Arques.
After repulsing two French invasions, William eventually managed to
capture Maine. At first the people of Maine were unwilling to accept
William as their leader. In 1063 William's army ravaged the land until
he received their submission.
In 1064 Harold
of Wessex was on board a ship that was wrecked on the coast of
Ponthieu. He was captured by Count Guy of Ponthieu and imprisoned
at Beaurain. William, demanded that Count Guy release him into his
care. Guy agreed and Harold went with William to Rouen. Later the
two men went into battle against Conan of Brittany.
For
his role in the capture of Dinan,
Harold was knighted by William. During the ceremony at Bayeux, Harold
took an oath that he would do his best to help William to become king
when Edward the Confessor died. Harold
also agreed to marry William's daughter, Eadmer. In return, William
promised Harold half the realm of England.
In
1065 Edward the Confessor became very
ill. Harold claimed that Edward promised
him the throne just before he died on 5th January, 1066. The next
day there was a meeting of the Witan to
decide who would become the next king of England. The Witan was made
up of a group of about sixty lords and bishops and they considered
the merits of four main candidates: William, Harold, Edgar
Etheling and Harald Hardrada.
William of Normandy (seated)
negotiates with Harold
Godwinson (with mustache) in 1064 Bayeux
Tapestry (c. 1090)
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