Beginning in 1108, the two kings maintained a rivalry that led to open conflict beginning between 1111 and 1113 as Henry backed rogue French barons against Louis. A larger conflict broke out between 1116 and 1120 as Louis, allied with Fulk of Anjou, Baldwin of Flanders, and rebel Norman barons, fought with Henry, allied to Theobald of Champagne, over William's claim to the Duchy of Normandy. After some successes, the coalition gradually weakened as Louis was defeated at the Battle of Brémule. Peace was made in the Spring of 1120.
In November of that year the White Ship disaster led to the death of Henry I's recognized heir, William Adelin. Another phase of dispute began marked by proxy conflicts. Another revolt broke out in Normandy, and Henry convinced his son-in-law, Emperor Henry V of Germany to invade France, but both were unsuccessful. Upon the murder of the new Count of Flanders, Charles the Good, Louis installed Clito as his own candidate and a civil war broke out in Flanders as Henry supported rival claimants to William. After some military successes, William died suddenly and was succeeded by Thierry of Alsace, whom Louis reluctantly accepted. Henry and Louis signed a peace treaty in 1129 that held until their deaths.
The fighting was tied to the campaign by Louis to assert the authority of the French king, and his wars against rebellious barons like Thomas of Marle. After Henry's reign, a Civil War broke out over the English throne known as The Anarchy. The alliance between Henry and Anjou that came of the fighting formed the nucleus of the Angevin Empire, which threatened Louis' son, Louis VII.
Background and Prelude (1103–1108)
A map of Northwest France at the time
Since the reign of Henry I of France, the French kings had gradually gained more recognition and authority from their princes. Under him saw the emergence of a central royal bureaucracy in France.[1] This Henry had limited success in containing the rise of the future William the Conqueror, and saw mixed but real success in his dealings with Anjou and Blois.[2] Fighting between the French crown and the dukes of Normandy continued under Louis' father, Philip, stoking revolt, dividing the conqueror's family, and placing pressure on the Vexin.[3] He significantly expanded the French royal domain, adding the Vexin, Amiens, and other territories.[4]
From 1103 onwards, the vassals of Duke Robert of Normandy, known as Curthose, gradually peeled off from him in favor of his younger brother Henry, who ruled as King of England.[5][Note 1] The Anglo-Norman king's preparations for an invasion of Normandy were ongoing from 1104, prompted by Robert's reconciliation with the rogue baron, Robert of Bellême.[7] Henry invaded Normandy in 1105 and 1106, culminating in the decisive Battle of Tinchebray, where the duke was captured.[8] At Falaise, Henry met the duke's 4 year old son, William Clito. As a show of compassion, he placed the boy into the care of his brother-in-law, Helias of Arques.[9][Note 2]
In the aftermath, Henry temporarily made peace with Robert of Bellême to avert further conflict and consolidated his regime in Normandy. The king released many of his prisoners aside from Count William of Mortain and Duke Robert.[12] He also dealt with the issue of the Investiture Controversy in England, reconciling with the church and Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury in 1107.[13] In 1108, Louis VI, known as the fighter or the fat, succeeded Philip as King of France. Philip and Henry had maintained a cordial relationship up to this point, but Louis intended to expand the power of the French crown.[14][Note 3] It was under the reign of Louis VI, who Jim Bradbury referred to as "an active military man," that a surge of royal power would take place.[16] In particular, Louis desired the castle of Gisors, its status in doubt.[17]
War and Revolt (1108–1120)
Revolt in France
The Castle of Gisors, a major point of contention
Upon his accession, Louis demanded Henry's homage for Normandy–alongside the other French princes–and that Henry surrender the fortifications of Bray-et-Lu and Gisors, which French sources alleged were held in violation of a prior agreement. The truth of this statement, which Henry denied, cannot be ascertained.[18] Louis raided into Normandy, but upon encountering Henry on opposite sides of the Epte, agreeing to a truce that resolved none of their disputes.[19] Supporters of Louis in the Vexin overthrew William of La Roche-Guyon soon after the meeting on the Epte.[20]
Henry suffered another diplomatic reversal when Fulk V became the Count of Anjou in 1109. This directly led to Henry losing his suzerainty over Maine; Helias of Maine, Henry's fidelis, died in 1110 and Fulk inherited his county, refusing to renew the arrangement. Instead, the new count allied himself with Louis.[20] Meanwhile, Henry attempted to arrest William Clito in 1110 while he was eliminating a number of unruly barons, but was unsuccessful, and the boy fled with his guardian Helias of Arques. On the other hand, Henry's successful arrest of Robert of Bellême in 1112 eliminated a dangerous lord and one of William's supporters.[21] Henry had an ally in the form of Stephen of Blois, who was his younger nephew through his sister Adela's marriage with Stephen-Henry of Blois.[22] Adela's other son, Theobald II of Blois, would break from Louis and ally with Henry by 1110.[23]
During Louis' reign, he would deal with troublesome barons in Northern France.[24] One of these was Hugh de Puiset, who represented the most significant threat to royal authority.[25] In 1111, Louis would succeed in besieging and capturing the castle of Le Puiset, Hugh with it. When released under oath in 1112, Hugh immediately took up arms against the king again, defeating Louis near Le Puiset.[26] Hugh would not be defeated for another 6 years.[27] By 1112, Louis faced one of the most significant crises of his reign when Hugh of Le Puiset and Theobald of Champagne led a significant coalition of French lords in an uprising against Louis, defeating the king in battle near Le Puiset. Ralph of Vermandois was one of the French king's supporters, while the rebels were backed by Henry I, whom Suger reports sent a Norman army.[28]
Marriage pacts won Henry more allies at this time. A betrothal between the king's son William Adelin and Fulk's daughter Matilda brought Anjou into back into the Anglo-Norman orbit, and a marriage between Henry's natural daughter Matilda FitzRoy and Conan III of Brittany, dated by Hollister to just before 1113 was made with the same intent.[29] Henry was left with the upper hand. Although Louis' position did not collapse, and he defeated many of the rebel castellans,[30] he was forced to come to terms. Louis acquiesced to Henry all that had been contested as well as the overlordship of Maine and Brittany, which he had already gained.[31]
Coalition Against Henry
A simplistic map of the French and Angevin invasions of Normandy from 1116 to 1120. The southwest arrow is the attack of Fulk of Anjou, and the northeast arrow is the attack of Louis of France.
William Clito had resided in Flanders after 1112, and Hollister suggests that he developed a bond with Baldwin VII, the Count of Flanders. Baldwin launched raids into Normandy as early as 1114, but he did not present a serious military threat to the English king and Henry seemed confident the truce would hold.[32] In 1115, Henry attempted to convince Louis to accept William Adelin's fealty for the Duchy of Normandy, as a solution to the unique situation in Normandy.[33] but on the advice of William II of Nevers, he refused, instead choosing to support William Clito's claim.[34]
Theobald soon seized William of Nevers and would hold him for the next few years. The next string of fighting probably broke out around 1116, influenced by Henry's prior support for the French rebels.[35] Between mid-1116 and mid-1118 campaigns led by Louis of France and Baldwin of Flanders caused devastation in northeastern Normandy within the pays of Caux.[36] The war began in earnest after 1118 with the deaths of Henry's key advisors, Robert of Beaumont, William of Évreux, and his queen Matilda of Scotland.[37] Peace in Normandy collapsed under invasions from Fulk, Louis, and Baldwin.[38]
As a preventative measure, Hugh of Gournay and Henry, Count of Eu, two magnates in the northeast, were both arrested by the king on suspicion of defection in 1117. They were both released at the insistence of William of Warenne, but despite promises of good conduct they took up arms against the king in June 1118. Stephen of Aumale, who alongside Henry of Eu had ties to Baldwin of Flanders, also revolted in favor of Baldwin. Further south. Robert Giroie, another rebel baron, held the castle of Saint-Céneri against the king, joining Fulk of Anjou in a siege of La-Motte-Gautier. The garrison surrendered by August.[39] 18 castellans in upper Normandy fought for Clito.[40]
On 3 September, Louis managed to seize L'Aigle, but his success was counterbalanced when Baldwin of Flanders suffered a wound that same month, forcing him to return to Flanders, where he would die on 17 June 1119. His successor, Charles the Good, made peace with Henry.[41] This loss for Louis and William was soon offset on 7 October when William Pointel, the royal constable of Évreux, surrendered the castle of Évreux to Amaury III of Montfort, a Norman rebel who was allied with Louis and Fulk of Anjou.[42] Stephen of Blois was granted the town of Alençon in order to help with Henry's defense in Southern Normandy, but he mistreated the townspeople. In response, they sought aid from Fulk of Anjou in their revolt. Alongside his brother Theobald, Stephen led the advance guard, but they were defeated in battle before the walls and Alençon's garrison surrendered before the end of 1118.[43]
Fighting continued into 1119 as Louis launched a campaign towards Les Andelys and captured the town in the early year, holding it for the next few months.[44] From his bases at L'Aigle and Les Andelys, Louis was able to send in raiding parties into the Vexin, and by now the French, Angevin, and rebel Norman coalition controlled a significant amount of territory near the borders of the duchy.[45] In addition, Henry's life was threatened twice, and he became nervous over his personal security.[46]
Meanwhile, Eustace of Breteuil threatened to make war against the king unless his family's castle of Ivry was returned to him. Henry promised to consider his request, giving him the son of Ralph Harenc as a hostage, while giving Ralph the daughters of Eustace. On the advice of Amaury of Montfort, Eustace blinded Ralph's son. As recompense, Henry allowed Ralph to blind Eustace's daughters. Eustace entered into a revolt against Henry but it was largely unsuccessful; when his wife Juliana attempted to defend their castle at Breteuil the garrison was undermanned and demoralised, forcing her to escape. The couple lost almost all of their lands.[47]
English Recovery
Henry I of England on the Genealogical Roll of the English Kings (Royal MS 14 B VI folio 5r)
Fulk of Anjou exited the conflict in May 1119 when Henry, partially prompted by his defeat at Alençon, finally agreed to pay him a large sum of money, and upon the completion of the long-awaited marriage between William Adelin and Matilda of Scotland. Also at Fulk's request, Henry restored the lands of the Bellême family to Robert's son and heir, William Talvas. The count of Anjou then went on crusade to Jerusalem, leaving Maine to Henry I until his return. This infuriated the French court.[48]
By August of 1119, Louis and Henry were both campaigning in the Vexin around Noyon-sur-Andelle, but neither army was aware of the other's presence.[49] Henry posted scouts who warned him of the enemy's approach. Louis and Henry had 400 and 500 knights respectively, however in Louis' entourage was William Clito, who rode with him as a young knight.[50] With William Crespin as the king's lieutenant, the French charged in two squadrons.[51] Despite managing to strike a blow to Henry's head, they were unable to break through and were surrounded by the English.[52] The French suffered only 3 deaths, but lost either 114 or 140 knights to capture.[51] A failed counterattack towards Breteuil was launched before Louis gave up. Afterwards, the war largely petered out.[53]
When the Council of Rheims was assembled on the 18 October 1119, Louis found an opportunity to appeal. He made a series of complaints, including over Henry I's invasion of Normandy in 1105-1106, as it was a part of his kingdom, over Henry's treatment of Robert Curthose, his vassal, over his disinheritance of William Clito, who was with the French king, and other issues. The papacy urged peace, and commanded the two sides to observe "the truce of God."[54] Near Aumale, Henry negotiated with William Clito, who pleaded for his father's release in exchange that they would go together to Jerusalem and never return. Henry instead offered William wealth and three counties in England. Out of respect for his father, Clito angrily rejected the offer.[55] Louis and Henry made peace in mid-1120, with William Adelin performing fealty for Normandy.[56][Note 4]
Disaster and French Interventions (1120–1128)
The White Ship
Early 14th-century depiction of the sinking of the White Ship at Barfleur on 25 November 1120
Henry sailed for England from the port of Barfleur on 25 November 1120, and allowed many of the younger members of the Anglo-Norman nobility sailed on the White Ship, which was owned by Thomas FitzStephen.[58] This included the king's son, William Adelin, his natural daughter Matilda of Perche, and his natural son Richard, now lord of Breteuil. A notable absence was Stephen of Blois, even though he was a servant directly to the king and was generally with him, he stayed in Normandy, possibly out of concern over safety, or due to diarrhea. As the rowers steered ahead, they crashed against a rock and the ship capsized, causing a great loss of life including Henry's children. Upon hearing this, the English king was desolate.[59]
The battle revived Louis' hopes and raised up William Clito as a viable claimant to England and Normandy once again. In the words of J.F. Andrews, "as the only son of the conqueror's eldest son, his claim would surely override that of anyone else; he was 18, popular, and a veteran of a number of military campaigns."[60] William was increasingly recognized as a charming, militarily capable, and charismatic young man.[61] Henry remained unwilling. He may have considered his nephews, Stephen and Theobald for the crown (Stephen would indeed become king upon Henry's passing), but by 1126 it was clear that he was set on Matilda.[62] William now drew supporters from across the Anglo-Norman realm.[63][Note 5]
Fulk of Anjou's alliance with Henry, predicated on the marriage of his and Henry's children, began to collapse. After arriving from the holy land in 1121, he demanded the return of his daughter's dowry, but was refused, and thus allied with Amaury of Montfort.[65] In 1124, Fulk would marry his other daughter, Sibylla of Anjou, to William Clito, granting him the County of Maine as a dowry until Clito's supposed conquest of Normandy. Henry convinced the papacy to support him in annulling William's marriage, but Fulk had to be threatened with excommunication in order to give in, driving William out of Maine.[66][Note 6]
Amaury of Montfort was planning a revolt in Normandy as early as 1122 alongside much of the Norman nobility, including Waleran, Count of Meulan, intending to install William Clito as count. The English king's intelligence network had detected this, however, and he set about going on the offensive, in contrast to 1118.[67] After the capture of Pont-Audemer in December of 1123, which suffered a siege of nearly two months, fighting cooled for some time, with only a few skirmishes on both sides with mixed success. However, in the Spring of 1124 a large rebel force moved secretly to relieve the castle of Vatteville. They were met and defeated at the Battle of Rougemontier by Odo Borleng, a member of the king's familia. Most rebel leaders were captured. The last resistance was mopped up in the following weeks.[68]
Louis himself made efforts to support the Norman rebellion, and when Henry besieged Pont-Audemer there were French knights amongst the rebel garrison. Louis was distracted by an invasion led by Henry V of Germany–the son-in-law of Henry through his daughter Empress Matilda–who had been persuaded to attack France by the English king. Louis raised a kingdom-wide coalition army with troops from as far as Aquitaine, though mostly from Northern France, which succesfully intimidated Henry V to the extent he retreated without an engagement.[69] It was a significant triumph and a display of the wide-reaching influence of the king, but Louis did not recover an advantage in Normandy.[70] Louis spent the 1120s asserting royal initiative over the French principalities. By 1130, he would finally crush Thomas of Marle, and the baron died soon after.[71]
William Clito as Count of Flanders
Seal of William Clito
At the beginning of March 1127 fighting broke out in Flanders upon the murder of Charles the Good, its count after 1119.[72] Exercising his royal prerogative, Louis quickly raised William Clito to the countship on 23 March. William's own claim was through his great-grandfather, Baldwin V, who fathered the wife of William the Conqueror, Matilda of Flanders. But chiefly, it lay in the support of the French king.[73] Louis campaigned alongside William Clito, and by April 23 they had captured Ypres, and with it William of Ypres, a rival claimant to the County of Flanders. By May, Louis and William had secured Flanders, and an inquest was ordered into Charles' murder, leading to multiple executions of the conspirators.[74]
Henry immediately began attempting to destabilize William's hold on the county, distributing bribes and assembling a coalition against the young count. This included his father-in-law, Godfrey of Lower Lorraine, Baldwin of Hainault, William of Ypres, and Thomas of Marle.[75] Stephen of Blois, now Count of Boulogne by right of his wife, Matilda of Boulogne, was a significant part of this system, funneling money to Henry's allies and launching an invasion of the county over the summer of 1127. This was unsuccessful, and William's counterattack into Boulogne forced Stephen into a three-year-truce.[76] In fact, William's establishment as Count of Flanders seems to have even motivated William's decision to marry the widowed Matilda to Geoffrey Plantagenet, the son of Fulk of Anjou.
William's situation began to decline by September of 1127 as the cities of Bruges, Ghent, Saint Omer, Ypres, and Lille turned away from the count. This was both due to Henry's machinations and Clito's political mishandling of the Flemish urban class. He was unused to the Flemish political system, despite having stayed at the court of Baldwin VII between 1112 and 1118 as a child.[77] Claimants arose in Arnold of Denmark, though he was defeated by William, and Thierry of Alsace, who by May of 1128 became Clito's most significant rival.[78] Louis attempted to relieve William's position, but when Henry I threatened the Île-de-France the French king was forced to retreat to defend his own lands.[79]
William fought vigorously against the rebels throughout this time, and in the next few months launched a counteroffensive that set Thierry on the defensive, and saw Thierry's position decline rapidly. By June, the coalition against him arranged by Henry was suffering from infighting over control of Thierry.[80] On 18 and 19 June, Thierry gathered a large army to besiege Axspoele, held by a supporter of William named Fulk. He was supported by the city of Bruges. The medievalist Jan Frans Verbruggen estimates that, for the Battle of Axspoele, Thierry had about 300 knights and 1,000 infantry. By contrast, William may have had about 450 knights. Taking a position on the hill, he split his force into thirds, leaving one in reserve. When the Flemish knights charged, William led them into an ambush by ordering a retreat, and then charging with his fresh reserves once Thierry's troops were exposed.[81] William did not live to capitalise on this success, as he died suddenly on 27 July 1128. William had sent a letter asking his uncle to forgive his followers on his deathbed, to which Henry agreed. Louis was forced to accept the countship of Thierry.[82] Despite the king's lack of permanent success, Bradbury still considered the affair a positive display of Louis' ambitions.[83]
Aftermath
William had been the last significant alternative to Henry's succession plans; his death brought the end of major fighting between Henry and Louis, and the two agreed to a final peace treaty in 1129.[84] Henry's daughter Matilda and her husband Geoffrey, now the Count of Anjou, bore two grandchildren in 1133 and 1134–including the future Henry II of England–which strengthened Henry's dynastic position further.[85] His relationship with his son-in-law began to decline by 1135, triggered by Geoffrey demanding the frontier castles of Matilda's dowry, to which Henry refused. A revolt broke out in Southern Normandy which was supported by Geoffrey, and as Henry was campaigning against them he suddenly died on 1 December at Lyons-la-Forêt.[86]
The alliance between England and Normandy arranged by Henry, despite its difficulties, came to form the nucleus of the Angevin Empire, which would pose a great threat to Louis' son, Louis VII of France.[52] However, as Louis' own life came to its last years, there was much reason for optimism. The Anglo-Norman realm collapsed into civil war as Stephen of Blois opportunistically seized the throne after Henry's death, even suffering an invasion from Scotland, and could pose no military or political threat.[87] Louis VII, the king's son, married Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1137, bringing the vast Duchy of Aquitaine into the royal demesne for a time. Soon after the wedding, Louis would die on the 1 August.[88]
↑Helias had been a long-time ally of Duke Robert, having been wed to a natural daughter of his and being given Arques-la-Bataille as a benefice.[10] He would become an equally loyal follower of William.[11]
↑At the time, France was a collection of largely independant counties and duchies under the theoretical authority of the king, whose real power was tied to his control of the Île-de-France.[15]
↑Much of Henry's victory can be attributed to the English king's large and professional familia regis. They were paid full-time, and can be distinguished from the mercenaries he would have had on his payroll.[57]
↑The marriage between William and Sibylla lay within a prohibited degree of consanguinity, which was a valid reason for annulment in the 12th century. Although, the church usually tolerated such marriages, one of which was the marriage between William Adelin and Matilda of Anjou, unless a figure like Henry could object.[66]
David, Charles Wendell (1920). Robert Curthose, Duke of Normandy. Robarts - University of Toronto. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
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