Odo, the son of Herluin
of Conteville and Herleva
of Falaise, was
born in about 1036. Herleva was also the mother of William
of Normandy, Richard
Fitz Gilbert
and Robert
of Mortain.
In 1049 William
of Normandy appointed Odo bishop of Bayeux and over the next few
years organized the rebuilding of Bayeux Cathedral.
When William decided to
invade England in 1066, he invited his three half-brothers, Odo, Richard
Fitz Gilbert
and Robert
of Mortain to
join him. One Norman chronicler claims that Odo of Bayeux contributed
100 ships to William's invasion fleet.
He fought at the Battle
of Hastings and afterwards was given the title of Earl of Kent
and the castle at Dover. After his coronation in 1066, William
the Conqueror claimed
that all the land in England now belonged to him. William retained
about a fifth of this land for his own use. The rest was distributed
to those men who had helped him defeat Harold.
Odo was granted manors in thirteen counties which gave him an income
of over £3,000 per year, making him the richest tenant-in-chief
in the kingdom.
In 1067 William
the Conqueror appointed
Odo as regent while he spent time in Normandy.
For the next fifteen years Odo he was second in power to William in
England. It is believed that Odo commissioned the Bayeux
Tapestry.
William was in Normandy
in 1073 and Odo of Bayeux had the task of dealing with the rebellion
led by Waltheof and Ralph, Earl of Norfolk.
On his return in 1076, Waltheof was executed - the only time capital
punishment was inflicted on an English leader during his reign. However,
the Earl of Norfolk managed to escape to Brittany.
In 1082 William heard
complaints about Odo's rule. He returned to England and Odo was arrested
and charged with misgovernment and oppression. Found guilty he was
kept in prison until Robert of Mortain
achieved his release on the death of William
the Conqueror in
1087.
Robert
Curthose, William's eldest son, was expected to become king of
England when his father died. However, William preferred
