Stephen of Blois, King of England

Other Events and Attributes:

• General Information: Brave and generous, possessed of the common touch, Stephen of Blois seemed a promising king. But, as his nobles and adversaries soon discovered, he was not cut out for the role. As he lost the control that Henry had secured over England, the country was torn apart by rival forces.
• Title(s): Bef 1115; Before 1115 he became the Count of Mortain.
• Miscellaneous: 1120; In 1120 Stephen narrowly escaped drowning with Henry I's son, William Adelin, in the sinking of the White Ship.
• Title(s): Bef 1125; Before 1125 he became Count of Boulogne in right of his wife.
• Reign: From 1135 to 1154; King of England
• Title(s): 1135; He succeeded as the 11th Duke of Normandy in 1135.
• Crowned: 1 Dec 1135; He succeeded as King Stephen of England on 1 December 1135 and was crowned King of England by William, Archbishop of Canterbury on 26 December 1135 and styled Rex Aglorum Dux Normannorum. He pretended that the deceased monarch had expressed an intention that he should follow him on the throne, and he He was deposed on 10 April 1141. He succeeded again as the King on 1 November 1141 and was crowned as King 25 December 1141 at Canterbury Cathedral, Canterbury, Kent, England. At length, after many changes of fortune, Stephen having lost his son, Eustace, entered into a compact with Henry Plantagenet, son of his rival, the Empress Maud, by which it was agreed that Stephen should enjoy the throne in peace during his life, and that Henry should succeed him.
• Miscellaneous: 1139; The rightful heiress to the crown of England was Henry I's daughter Matilda but at the time of Henry's death she was with her husband in Anjou and Stephen was the first to reach London and successfully claim the throne. Matilda or Maud, as she was also known, disputed Stephen's claim. Matilda's illegitimate half brother the 1st Earl of Gloucester rebelled, and civil war broke out in 1139 when Matilda invaded. In April 1141 hostile troops seized Stephen at the Battle of Lincoln but in November exchanged him for Gloucester who had been imprisoned by Stephen's supporters. Stephen then regained much lost power and in 1148 Matilda left England. Upon Maud's death, her son Henry Fitz-Empress continued the challenge. While the dispute continued, Henry married the divorced wife of the French King. This gave him great power as his wife was, in her own right, a reigning Princess. Stephen had married Matilda of Boulogne and hoped that their son Eustace would succeed him, however Eustace died and in 1153 at Winchester, Stephen reluctantly declared Henry Fitz-Empress as his heir.
• Last Full Review: 17 Jul 2020

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Name:

Buried:
His tomb was destroyed during the Reformation.

Died:
He died of a heart attack.

Stephen married Matilda, Countess of Boulogne in 1125 in Westminster Abbey, London, England. Matilda (daughter of Eustace III, Count of Boulogne and Lens and Mary, Princess of Scotland) was born about 1105 in County of Boulogne, France; died on 3 May 1151 in Hedingham Castle, Castle Hedingham, Essex, England; was buried in Faversham Abbey, Faversham, Kent, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Baldwin de Boulogne
2. Eustace IV, Count of Boulogne was born about 1129; died on 10 Aug 1153.
3. Sir William FitzRoy, Count of Boulogne and Mortain was born about 1135; died in Oct 1159 in France; was buried in Montmorillon, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.
4. Matilda was born about 1133; died about 1135 in Tower of London, London, England; was buried in Holy Trinity Priory, Aldgate, London, England.
5. Mary of Blois, Princess of England was born about 1131 in Blois, Loir-et-Cher, Centre-Val de Loire, France; died on 25 Jul 1180.

Stephen married Dameta de Normandie in Not married. Dameta was born about 1103; died in 1152. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Almaric
2. Ralph
3. Gervaise of Westminster, Abbot of Westminster Abbey was born between 1115 and 1120; died in 1160.

Family/Spouse: Unknown. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. William
2. Sybilla died in 1141.

Other Events and Attributes:

• General Information: His full titles were the Count of Champagne, Brie, Blois, and Chartres.
• Military: 1096; Stephen was one of the leaders of the First Crusade.

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Died:
He was killed in the Battle of Ramleh. His death may have been on the 27th of May.

Stephen married Adele of Normandy, Princess of England in 1080/81. Adele (daughter of William I "the Conqueror", King of England and Maltilda of Flanders, Duchess of Normandy and Queen of England) was born about 1062; died on 8 Mar 1137/38 in Maringuy Convent, Marcigny, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• Religion: say 1130; Before her death, she became a nun.

Theobald married Alix de Crepi on Yes, date unknown. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• General Information: He was also called William "the Bastard".
• Title(s): 1035; In 1035 he succeeded as the Duke of Normandy.
• Military: 1066; William invaded England and defeated Harold II at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
• Reign: From 1066 to 1087; King of England
• Crowned: Dec 1066, London, England; In December 1066 he was crowned King of England in London.

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William married Maltilda of Flanders, Duchess of Normandy and Queen of England in 1053 in Eu, Normandy, France. Maltilda (daughter of Baldwin V de Lille "the Pious", Count of Flanders and Adelaide of France, Princess of France) was born in 1032 in Flanders, Belgium; died on 2 Nov 1083 in Caen, Calvados, Normandy, France; was buried in Abbey of Sainte-Trinité, Caen, Normandy, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• General Information: Her name is also rendered Maud in England.

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Death: von Redlich (1941) gives her death date as 3 November 1083.

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• General Information: His name was also spelt Odo.
• Title(s): 1004; He became the Count of Blois in 1004.
• Title(s): 1019; He became the Count of Champagne in 1019.

Eudes married Ermengarde of Auvergne in 1020. Ermengarde (daughter of Robert I, Count of Auverne and Ermengarde) died on 10 Mar 1040. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• General Information: He was also known as Robert I "the Magnificent", Count of Hiesmois, Duke of Normandy.
• Title(s): 6 Aug 1027; Robert I succeeded on 06 Aug 1027 as the Duke of Normandy.
• Pilgrimage: 1034; In late 1034, curiosity or devotion induced Robert to undertake a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, where the fatigues of the journey and the heat of the climate so impaired his constitution he died at Nicaea (in the area of Iznik in modern Turkey) on his way home.

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Robert married Herleva de Falaise. Herleva (daughter of Fulbert of Falaise and Dode) was born about 1012; died about 1050; was buried in Grestain Abbey, Fatouville-Grestain, Normandy, France. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• General Information: He entered into hostilities with Emperor Otho II and acquired from that monarch Valenciennes and the Isles of Zealand. He subsequently further increased his territories by another rich accession, that of the citadel of Ghent.

Baldwin married Adelaide of France, Princess of France in 1028. Adelaide (daughter of Robert II "the Pious", King of France and Constance of Arles) was born in 1009; died on 8 Jun 1078. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• General Information: Her name is also rendered Adela.