Belisarius may be this bearded figure on the right of Emperor Justinian I in the mosaic in the Church of San Vitale, Ravenna, which celebrates the reconquest of Italy by the Byzantine army under the skillful leadership of Belisarius

Flavius Belisarius (Greek: Βελισάριος, ca. AD 500^[1] – AD 565) was a general of the Byzantine Empire. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian's ambitious project of reconquering much of the Mediterranean territory of the former Western Roman Empire, which had been lost less than a century previously.

One of the defining features of Belisarius' career was his success despite the little or no support he received from Justinian. He is also among a select group of men considered by historians to be the "Last of the Romans".

Early life and career[link]

Belisarius was probably born in Germane or Germania, a city that once stood on the site of present day Sapareva Banya in south-west Bulgaria, in the borders of Thrace and Illyria. Born into an Illyrian^[2][3] or Thracian^[4] family, he became a Roman soldier as a young man, serving as bodyguard of Emperor Justin I.^[5][2]

He came to the attention of Justin and his nephew, Justinian, as a promising and innovative officer. He was given permission by the emperor to form a bodyguard regiment (bucellarii), of heavy cavalry. He was given permission to expand this unit into a personal household regiment, 1,500 strong. Belisarius' bucellarii were the nucleus around which all the armies he would later command were organized. Armed with lance, Hunnish composite bow, throwing darts, and broadsword, they were fully armored to the standard of heavy cavalry of the day. A multi-purpose unit, they were capable of skirmishing at a distance with bow, like the Huns; or could act as heavy shock cavalry, charging and crushing an enemy with lance and sword. In essence, they combined the best and most dangerous aspects of both of Rome's greatest enemies, the Huns and the Goths.

Map of the Byzantine-Persian frontier

Following Justin's death in 527, the new emperor, Justinian I, appointed Belisarius to command the Byzantine army in the east to deal with incursions from the Sassanid Empire. He quickly proved himself an able and effective commander, defeating the larger Sassanid army through superior generalship. In June 530, during the Iberian War, he led the Byzantines to a stunning victory over the Sassanids in the Battle of Dara, followed by a close defeat at the Battle of Callinicum on the Euphrates in 531. This led to the negotiation of an "Eternal Peace" with the Persians, and Byzantine payment of heavy tributes for years in exchange for a peace treaty.

In 532, he was the highest-ranking military officer in the Imperial capital of Constantinople when the Nika riots broke out in the city (among factions of chariot racing fans) and nearly resulted in the overthrow of Justinian. Belisarius, with the help of the magister militum of the Illyricum, Mundus, along with the generals Narses and John the Armenian, suppressed the rebellion with a bloodbath in the Hippodrome, the gathering place of the rebels, that is said to have claimed the lives of 30,000 people.

Military campaigns[link]

Against the Vandals[link]

Map of the Vandalic War

For his efforts, Belisarius was rewarded by Justinian with the command of a great land and sea expedition against the Vandal Kingdom, mounted in 533-534. The Byzantines had political, religious, and strategic reasons for such a campaign. The pro-Byzantine Vandal king Hilderic had been deposed and murdered by the usurper Gelimer, giving Justinian a legal pretext. Furthermore, the Arian Vandals had periodically persecuted the Nicene Christians within their kingdom, many of whom made their way to Constantinople seeking redress. The Vandals had launched many pirate raids on Byzantine trade interests, hurting commerce in the western areas of the Empire. Justinian also wanted control of the Vandal territory in north Africa, which was vital for guaranteeing Byzantine access to the western Mediterranean.

In the late summer of 533, Belisarius sailed to Africa and landed near the city of Leptis Magna. He ordered his fleet not to lose sight of the army, then marched along the coastal highway toward the Vandal capital of Carthage. He did this to prevent supplies from being cut off, and to avoid a great defeat such as occurred in the first attempt to retake northern Africa 35 years before.

Thirteen miles from Carthage, the forces of Gelimer (who had just executed Hilderic) and Belisarius finally met at the Battle of Ad Decimum on September 13, 533. It nearly turned into a defeat for the Byzantines. Gelimer had chosen his position well and had some success along the main road. The Byzantines, however, seemed dominant on both sides of the main road to Carthage. At the height of the battle, Gelimer became distraught upon learning of the death of his brother in battle. This gave Belisarius a chance to regroup, and he went on to win the battle and capture Carthage. A second victory at the Battle of Tricamarum on December 15 of the same year resulted in Gelimer's surrender early in 534 at Mount Papua, restoring the lost Roman provinces of north Africa to the empire. For this achievement, Belisarius was granted a Roman triumph (the last ever given) when he returned to Constantinople. According to Procopius, if he is to be believed, in the procession were paraded the spoils of the Temple of Jerusalem (the Vandal treasure, including many objects looted from Rome 80 years earlier, the imperial regalia and the menorah of the Second Temple among them) which had been recovered from the Vandal capital along with Gelimer himself before he was sent into peaceful exile. Medals were stamped in his honor with the inscription Gloria Romanorum, though none seem to have survived to modern times. Belisarius was also made sole Consul in 535, being one of the last persons ever to hold this office, which was by this time merely a ceremonial relic of the ancient Roman Republic.

Nevertheless, the recovery of Africa was not complete; army mutinies and revolts by the native Berbers would plague the new praetorian prefecture of Africa for almost 15 years.

Against the Ostrogoths[link]

Map of the operations of the first five years of the war, showing the Byzantine conquest of Italy under Belisarius

Justinian now resolved to restore as much of the Western Roman Empire as he could. In 535, he commissioned Belisarius to attack the Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy. Belisarius landed in Sicily and took the island for use as a base against Italy, while Mundus recovered Dalmatia. The preparations for the invasion of the Italian mainland were interrupted in Easter 536, when Belisarius sailed to Africa to counter an uprising of the local army. His reputation made the rebels abandon the siege of Carthage, and Belisarius pursued and defeated them at Membresa. Thereupon he returned to Sicily, and then crossed into Italy proper, where he captured Naples and Rome in 536.

In 537-538 he successfully defended Rome against the Goths and moved north to take Mediolanum (Milan) and the Ostrogoth capital of Ravenna in 540, where the Goth king Witiges was captured. Shortly before to the taking of Ravenna, the Ostrogoths offered to make Belisarius the western emperor. Belisarius feigned acceptance and entered Ravenna via its sole point of entry, a causeway through the marshes, accompanied by his comitatus/bucellarii ("Household Regiment"). Thereupon, he proclaimed the capture of Ravenna in the name of the Emperor Justinian.

The Goths' offer raised suspicions in Justinian's mind and Belisarius was recalled. He returned home with the Gothic king and court in custody.

Belisarius was recalled in part to deal with the Persian conquest of Syria, a crucial province of the empire. Belisarius took the field and waged a brief, inconclusive campaign in 541-542. He eventually managed to negotiate a truce (aided with the payment of a large sum of money, 5,000 pounds of gold), in which the Persians agreed not to attack Byzantine territory for the next five years.

Belisarius returned to Italy in 544, where he found that the situation had changed greatly. In 541 the Ostrogoths had elected Totila as their new leader and had mounted a vigorous campaign against the Byzantines, recapturing all of northern Italy and even driving the Byzantines out of Rome. Belisarius managed to recover Rome briefly but his Italian campaign proved unsuccessful, due in no small part to his being starved of supplies and reinforcements by a jealous Justinian. In 548, Justinian relieved him in favor of the eunuch Narses, who, thanks both to military competence and cooperation from the Emperor was able to bring the campaign to a successful conclusion. For his part, Belisarius retired from military affairs. At the Second Ecumenical Council of Constantinople (553), Belisarius was one of the Emperor's envoys to Pope Vigilius in their tug of war over "The Three Chapters". The Patriarch Eutychius, who presided over this council in place of Pope Vigilius, was the son of one of Belisarius' generals.

The Deposition of Pope Silverus[link]

During the Siege of Rome an incident occurred for which the general would be long condemned: Belisarius, an Orthodox Christian, was commanded by the monophysite Christian Empress Theodora to depose the reigning Pope, who had been installed by the Goths. This Pope was the former subdeacon Silverius, the son of Pope Hormisdas. Belisarius was to replace him with the Deacon Vigilius, Apocrisarius of Pope John II in Constantinople. Vigilius had in fact been chosen in 531 by Pope Boniface II to be his successor, but this choice was strongly criticised by the Roman clergy and Boniface eventually reversed his decision.

In 537AD, at the height of the siege, Silverius was accused of conspiring with the Gothic King and several Roman senators to secretly open the gates of the city. Belisarius had him stripped of his vestments and and exiled to Patara in Lycia in Asia Minor. Following the advocacy of his innocence by bishop of Patara he was ordered to return to to Italy at the command of the Emperor Justinian and, if cleared by investigation, reinstated. However, Vigilius had already been installed in his place and Silverus was intercepted before he could reach Rome and exiled once more, this time on the island of Palmarola (Ponza), where he is said to have starved to death. He remains the patron saint of Ponza today.

Belisarius, for his part, built a small oratory on the site of the present church of Santa Maria in Trivio in Rome as a sign of his repentance. He also built two hospices for pilgrims and a monastery, which have since disappeared. Santa Maria in Trivio is around the corner from the Trevi fountain; a 12th century inscription is the only surviving monument of the great general.

Later life and campaigns[link]

The enlargement of the Byzantine Empire possessions between the rise to power of Justinian (red, 527) and his and Belisarius' death (orange, 565). Belisarius contributed greatly to the expansion of the empire.

The retirement of Belisarius came to an end in 559, when an army of Kutrigur Bulgars, under Khan Zabergan crossed the Danube River to invade Byzantine territory for the first time and threatened Constantinople itself. Justinian recalled Belisarius to command the Byzantine army. In his last campaign, Belisarius defeated the Kutrigurs and drove them back across the river with a greatly outnumbered force at his command.

In 562, Belisarius stood trial in Constantinople on a charge of corruption. The charge is presumed to be trumped-up, and modern research suggests that his former secretary Procopius of Caesarea, may have judged his case.^{[citation needed]} Belisarius was found guilty and imprisoned. However, not long after, Justinian pardoned him, ordered his release, and restored him to favour at the imperial court.

In the first five chapters of his Secret History, Procopius characterises Belisarius as a cuckold husband, who was emotionally dependent on his debauched wife, Antonina. According to the historian, Antonina cheated on Belisarius with their godson, the young Theodosius. Procopius claims that the love affair was well known in the imperial court and the general was regarded as weak and ridiculous; this view is often considered biased as Procopius nursed a longstanding hatred of both Belisarius and Antonina. Empress Theodora reportedly helped and saved Antonina when Belisarius tried to charge his wife at last.

Fittingly, Belisarius and Justinian, whose sometimes strained partnership increased the size of the empire by 45%, died within a few weeks of one another in November of 565. Belisarius owned the estate of Rufinianae on the Asiatic side of the Constantinople suburbs. He may very well have died there and been buried near one of the two churches in the area, probably Saints Peter and Paul.

Timeline[link]

<timeline> ImageSize = width:1000 height:1000 PlotArea = left:40 right:0 top:10 bottom:10 DateFormat = yyyy TimeAxis = orientation:vertical format:yyyy order:reverse Period = from:500 till:570 AlignBars = early ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:10 start:500 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:500

Colors =

 id:gray value:gray(0.7)
 id:lightsteelblue value:rgb(0.418, 0.609, 0.800)

Define $dx = 20 # shift text to right side of bar

PlotData =

 bar:event width:20 color:gray shift:($dx,-4)

 from:start till:end color:lightsteelblue

 mark:(line, white)
 at:505 text: ca. AD 505 – Born in Bulgaria
 from:518 till:527 text: Reign of Justin – Serves in Emperor's bodyguard 
 at:527 text: AD 527 – Appointed Commander of the troops in Dara 
 from:529 till:531 text: Appointed General of the East 
 at:532 text: AD 532 – Crushes Nika riot  
 at:533 text: AD 533 – Sent to Libya, wins victory over Vandals 
 at:534 text: AD 534 – Returns to Constantinople for Justinian's triumph 
 at:535 text: AD 535 – Rewarded with consulship, sent back to West, captures Sicily 
 at:536 text: AD 536 – Invades Italy, captures Naples and Rome 
 at:537 text: AD 537 – Besieged in Rome by Goths
 at:539 text: AD 539 – Relieves Gothic siege of Rimini
 at:540 text: AD 540 – Besieges Goths in Ravenna, refuses kingship of the Goths, summoned to Constantinople
 from:541 till:542 text: AD 541/2 – Sent to eastern front 
 at:545 text: AD 545 – Sent to Italy for ongoing Gothic war 
 at:547 text: AD 547 – Recaptures Rome from Goths 
 at:549 text: AD 549 – Returns to Constantinople as Commander of the Imperial Bodyguard 
 at:559 text: AD 559 – Defends Constantinople against the Bulgars 
 at:565 text: AD 565 – Dies at Constantinople 

</timeline>

Legend as a blind beggar[link]

Bélisaire, by François-André Vincent (1776). Belisarius, blinded, a beggar, is recognised by one of his former soldiers

Belisarius Begging for Alms, as depicted in popular legend, in the painting by Jacques-Louis David (1781)

The outcast Belisarius receiving hospitality from a Peasant by Jean-François Pierre Peyron (1779)

According to a story that gained popularity during the Middle Ages, Justinian is said to have ordered Belisarius' eyes to be put out, and reduced him to the status of homeless beggar near the Pincian Gate of Rome, condemned to asking passers-by to "give an obolus to Belisarius" (date obolum Belisario), before pardoning him. Most modern scholars believe the story to be apocryphal, though Philip Stanhope, a 19th century British philologist who wrote Life of Belisarius — the only exhaustive biography of the great general — believed the story to be true. Based on a parsing of the available primary sources, Stanhope created an argument for the legend's authenticity.

Though the legend remains of dubious provenance, after the publication of Jean-François Marmontel's novel Bélisaire (1767), this account became a popular subject for progressive painters and their patrons in the later 18th century, who saw parallels between the actions of Justinian and the repression imposed by contemporary rulers. For such subtexts, Marmontel's novel received a public censure by Louis Legrand of the Sorbonne, which contemporary divines regarded as model expositions of theological knowledge and clear thinking (Catholic Encyclopedia: "Louis Legrand"). Marmontel and the painters and sculptors (a bust of Belisarius by the French sculptor Jean-Baptiste Stouf is at the J. Paul Getty Museum) depicted Belisarius as a kind of secular saint, sharing the suffering of the downtrodden poor. The most famous of these paintings, by Jacques-Louis David, combines the themes of charity (the alms giver), injustice (Belisarius), and the radical reversal of power (the soldier who recognises his old commander). Others portray him being helped by the poor after his rejection by the powerful.

In art and popular culture[link]

Belisarius was featured in several works of art before the 20th century. The oldest of them is the historical treatise by his very own secretary, Procopius. The Anecdota, commonly referred to as the Arcana Historia or Secret History, is an extended attack on Belisarius and Antonina, and on Justinian and Theodora, indicting Belisarius as a love-blind fool and his wife as unfaithful and duplicitous. Other works include:

Belisarius as a character[link]

Drama

• Belasarius – a play by Jakob Bidermann (1607)
• The life and history of Belisarius, who conquer'd Africa and Italy, with an account of his disgrace, the ingratitude of the Romans, and a parallel between him and a modern hero – a drama by John Oldmixon (1713)
• Belasarius – a drama by William Philips (1724)

Literature

• Bélisaire – a novel by Jean-François Marmontel (1767)
• Belisarius: A Tragedy – by Margaretta Faugères (1795). Though written as a play, Faugères "intended [this work] for the closet," i.e., to be read and not necessarily performed. Her preface voices complaints about "maledictions" and long-winded rhetoric in popular tragic drama, which she says tend to bore and even outrage a reader, and announces an intent to "substitute concise narrative and plain sense." The drama's plot and character development are secondary to moral conflicts, mainly between vengeance and mercy/pity, respectively associated with pride and humility.
• Beliar – 18th century poem by Friedrich de la Motte Fouque.
• Ein Kampf um Rom – an historical novel by Felix Dahn (1867)
• Belisarius, 19th century poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
• Count Belisarius – a novel by Robert Graves (1938); Ostensibly written from the viewpoint of the eunuch Eugenius, servant to Belisarius' wife, but actually based on Procopius's history, the book portrays Belisarius as a solitary honorable man in a corrupt world, and paints a vivid picture of not only his startling military feats but also the colorful characters and events of his day, such as the savage Hippodrome politics of the Constantinople chariot races, which regularly escalated to open street battles between fans of opposing factions, and the intrigue between the emperor Justinian and the empress Theodora.
• Lest Darkness Fall – an alternative history novel by L. Sprague de Camp (1939). Belisarius appears first as the Byzantine opponent of the time traveler Martin Padway who tries to spread modern science and inventions in Gothic Italy. Eventually Belisarius becomes a general in Padway's army and secures Italy for him.
• A Flame in Byzantium – an historical horror fiction novel by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (1987)
• The Belisarius series – six science fiction novels by Eric Flint and David Drake. Alternate history exploring what might have happened if Belisarius and a rival were granted knowledge of future events and technologies. The first four books are available as free ebooks from the Baen Free Library, or all six at The Fifth Imperium website.^[6]
• Belisarius: The First Shall Be Last (2006) and Belisarius: Glory of the Romans (2010) – novels by Paolo Belzoni^[7]

Opera

• Belisario – a 19th century opera, by Gaetano Donizetti

Comics

• Destiny: A Chronicle of Deaths Foretold – comic book miniseries authored by Alisa Kwitney with art by Kent Williams, Michael Zulli, Scott Hampton, and Rebecca Guay (1997). Belisarius briefly appears as a jealous husband, imprisoning his wife in their quarters due to rumors of her affairs, instead of fighting in Italy.

Games

• Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings – a video game by Ensemble Studios (1999). Belisarius is a "Hero" that can only be accessed in the map editor. He has the appearance of a Cataphract, the Byzantine unique unit.
• Civilization IV – a video game by Take Two (2005). Belisarius is a "Great Person". specifically, one of many Great Generals that arise through gameplay via successful warfare with other civilizations but not barbarians.

Films

• Belisarius was portrayed by Lang Jeffries in the 1968 German movie Kampf um Rom I, directed by Robert Siodmak.

References and mentions[link]

Literature

• Mardi – novel by Herman Melville (1849); Melville playfully assigns the moniker "my Belisarius" to the Samoan Islander first encountered aboard the abandoned vessel "Parki".
• Jorge Luis Borges mentioned the legend of Belisario as a blind beggar in some of his poetic works, for example, "A quien ya no es joven," the first verse of which reads: "Ya puedes ver el tragico escenario y cada cosa en lugar debido; la espada y la ceniza para Dido y la moneda para Belisario."^[8]
• Foundation and Empire – a science fiction novel by Isaac Asimov, second novel in the Foundation Series (1952). The character Bel Riose, based on Belisarius, is the last great general of the first Galactic Empire, which was modelled on the late Roman Empire.
• The General – a series of military science fiction novels by S.M. Stirling and David Drake. The plot draws much from the life and campaigns of Belisarius; the main character, Raj Whitehall, sets out to reunite the planet of Bellevue after the fall of galactic civilization.

Games

• Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb – a video game by LucasArts (2005). During his quest to find the tomb of the first emperor of China, Indiana Jones learns that the Nazis have discovered Belisarius' "sunken temple" beneath a mosque in Constantinople.
• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion – a video game by Bethesda Softworks (2006). A soldier named Belisarius is found in the Cloud Ruler Temple as a non-player character and another character with the name Belisarius is a speaker of the Black Hand only seen in the final Dark Brotherhood quest Honor thy Mother.
• Freespace 2 – A video game by Volition Inc. The ship NTCv Belisarius is destroyed after emerging from subspace, heavily damaged and defiant of all calls to surrender, despite facing a superior enemy.

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

Primary Sources[link]

• Procopius, Belisarius and Narses, Academic Fellowship, 1964.
• Procopius, The Secret History of the Court of Justinian, online at Gutenberg Project.

Secondary Sources[link]

• "Belisarius" Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 27 Apr 2009
• R. Boss, R. Chapman, P. Garriock, Justinian's War: Belisarius, Narses and the Reconquest of the West, Montvert Publications, 1993, ISBN 1-874101-01-9.
• Glanville Downey, Belisarius,: Young general of Byzantium, Dutton, 1960
• Percy Stickney Grant, The search of Belisarius;: A Byzantine legend, Brentano's, 1907.
• Edward Gibbon has much to say on Belisarius in The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Chapter 41 online.
• Martindale, John R.; Jones, A.H.M.; Morris, J. (1992). The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. IIIa. Cambridge University Press. pp. 181–224. ISBN 0-521-20160-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=fBImqkpzQPsC. 
• Lord Mahon, The Life of Belisarius, 1848. Reprinted 2006 (unabridged with editorial comments) Evolution Publishing, ISBN 1-889758-67-1
• Lord Mahon, The Life of Belisarius, J. Murray, 1829. With a new critical introduction and further reading by Jon Coulston. 2005 Westholme Publishing, ISBN 1-59416-019-8 [1]
• Ancient Warfare magazine, Vol. IV, Issue 3 (Jun/Jul, 2010), was devoted to "Justinian's fireman: Belisarius and the Byzantine empire", with articles by Sidney Dean, Duncan B. Campbell, Ian Hughes, Ross Cowan, Raffaele D'Amato, and Christopher Lillington-Martin.

External links[link]

Wikisource has original text related to this article: History of the Wars

Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Secret History

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Belisarius

• Military History magazine article

William the Conqueror
William depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry during the Battle of Hastings, lifting his helm to show that he was still alive.
King of England
Reign	25 December 1066 – 9 September 1087
Coronation	25 December 1066
Predecessor	Edgar the Ætheling (uncrowned) (otherwise) Harold II
Successor	William II
Duke of Normandy
Reign	3 July 1035 – 9 September 1087
Predecessor	Robert the Magnificent
Successor	Robert Curthose
Spouse	Matilda of Flanders
Detail Issue
Robert Curthose Richard of Normandy William II of England Cecilia of Normandy Adeliza Matilda Agatha of Normandy (existence doubtful) Constance of Normandy Adela, Countess of Blois Henry I of England
House	Norman dynasty
Father	Robert I, Duke of Normandy
Mother	Herleva of Falaise
Born	c. 1028[1] Château de Falaise, Falaise, Normandy, France
Died	9 September 1087(1087-09-09) (aged 58–59) Priory of St Gervase, Rouen, France
Burial	Saint-Étienne de Caen, France

William I (circa 1028^[1] – 9 September 1087), also known as William the Conqueror or William the Bastard,^[2][a] was the first Norman King of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 1087. Descended from Viking raiders, he had been Duke of Normandy since 1035 under the name of William II. He faced a long struggle to establish his power when he became duke at the age of seven or eight, but by 1060 his hold over Normandy was secure.

William was the son of the unmarried Duke Robert the Magnificent of Normandy by his mistress Herleva. His illegitimate status and his youth caused some difficulties for him after he succeeded his father, as did the anarchy that plagued the first years of his rule. During his childhood and adolescence, the Norman aristocracy battled each other, both for control of the child duke and for their own ends. In 1047 William was able to quash a rebellion and begin to establish his authority over the duchy, a process that was not complete until about 1060. His marriage in the 1050s to Matilda of Flanders provided him with a powerful ally in the neighbouring county of Flanders. By the time of his marriage, William was able to secure the appointment of his supporters as bishops and abbots in the Norman church. His consolidation of power allowed him to expand his horizons, and by 1062 William was able to secure control of the neighbouring county of Maine.

In the 1050s and early 1060s William became a contender for the throne of England, then held by his childless relative Edward the Confessor. There were other potential claimants, including the powerful English earl Harold Godwinson, who was named the next king by Edward on the latter's deathbed in January 1066. William argued that Edward had earlier promised the throne to him, and that Harold had sworn to support William's claim. After building a large fleet, William invaded England in September 1066 and decisively defeated and killed Harold at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066. After further military efforts William was crowned king on Christmas Day 1066, in London. He made arrangements for the governance of England in early 1067 before returning to Normandy. A number of rebellions followed, but William was able to put them down, and by 1075 his hold on England was mostly secure. Consequently William was able to spend the majority of the rest of his reign on the continent.

William's final years were marked by difficulties in his continental domains, troubles with his eldest son, and threatened invasions of England by the Danes. In 1086 William ordered the compilation of Domesday Book, a survey listing all the landholders in England along with their holdings. William died in September 1087 while leading a campaign in northern France, and was buried in Caen. His reign in England was marked by the construction of castles, the settling of a new Norman nobility on the land, and change in the composition of the English clergy. He did not try to integrate his various domains into one empire, instead continuing to administer each part separately. William's lands were divided after his death: Normandy went to his eldest son, Robert, and his second surviving son, William, received England.

Background[link]

Norsemen first began raiding in what became Normandy in the late 8th century. Permanent Scandinavian settlement occurred before 911, when an agreement between Rollo, one of the Viking leaders, and King Charles the Simple of France was reached, surrendering the county of Rouen to Rollo. The lands around Rouen became the core of the later duchy of Normandy.^[3] When Scandinavian attacks were renewed at the end of the 10th century, Normandy may have been used as a base; this would have worsened relations between England and Normandy.^[4] In an effort to improve matters, in 1002 King Æthelred the Unready married as his second wife Emma of Normandy, sister of Duke Richard II.^[5]

Danish raids continued and Æthelred sought help from Richard, taking refuge in Normandy in 1013 when King Swein I of Denmark drove Æthelred and his family from England. Swein's death in 1014 allowed Æthelred to return to England, but Swein's son Cnut contested Æthelred's return. Æthelred himself died unexpectedly in 1016 and Cnut became king of England. Æthelred and Emma's two sons, Edward and Alfred then went into exile in Normandy while their mother, Emma, became Cnut's second wife.^[6]

After Cnut's death in 1035 the English kingship fell to Harold Harefoot, his son by his first wife, while Harthacnut, his son by Emma, became king in Denmark. England remained unstable. Alfred returned to England in 1036 to visit his mother and perhaps challenge Harold as king. One story implicates Earl Godwin of Wessex in Alfred's subsequent death, but others blame Harold. Emma went into exile in Flanders until Harthacnut became king following Harold's death in 1040, and his half-brother Edward followed Harthacnut to England. When Harthacnut died in June 1042 Edward was proclaimed king.^[7][b]

Early life[link]

Château de Falaise in Falaise, Calvados, France, was William's birthplace.

William was born in 1027 or 1028 at Falaise, Normandy, most likely in the autumn of the latter year.^[1][8][c] William was the only son of Robert I, Duke of Normandy, son of Duke Richard II.^[d] His mother, Herleva, was the daughter of Fulbert of Falaise; Fulbert may have been a tanner or embalmer.^[9] She was possibly a member of the ducal household, but did not marry Robert.^[2] Instead, she later married Herluin de Conteville, with whom she had two sons – Odo of Bayeux and Robert, Count of Mortain – and a daughter whose name is unknown.^[e] One of Herleva's brothers, Walter, became a supporter and protector of William during his minority.^[9][f] Robert also had a daughter, Adelaide of Normandy, by another mistress.^[12]

Robert, William's father, became Duke of Normandy on 6 August 1027, in succession to his elder brother Richard III, who had only succeeded to the title the previous year.^[1] Robert and his brother had been at odds over the succession, and Richard's death was very sudden. Robert was accused by some writers of killing his brother, a plausible but now unprovable charge.^[13] Conditions in Normandy were unsettled, as noble families despoiled the Church and Alan III of Brittany waged war against the duchy, possibly in an attempt to take control. By 1031 Robert had gathered considerable support from noblemen, many of whom would become prominent during William's life. They included Robert's uncle, Robert the archbishop of Rouen, who had originally opposed the duke. Other supporters of Robert were Osbern, a nephew of Gunnor the wife of Duke Richard I, and Count Gilbert of Brionne, a grandson of Richard I.^[14] Robert also supported the English princes Edward and Alfred, who were still in exile in northern France.^[2]

There are indications that Robert may have been briefly betrothed to a daughter of King Cnut, but no marriage took place. It is unclear if William would have been supplanted in the ducal succession if Robert had had a legitimate son. Earlier dukes had been illegitimate and William's association with his father on ducal charters appears to indicate that William was considered Robert's most probable heir.^[2] In 1034 Duke Robert decided to go on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Although a number of his supporters tried to dissuade him from undertaking the journey, Robert convened a council in January 1035 and had the assembled Norman magnates swear fealty to William as his heir.^[2][15] Robert then left for Jerusalem and died in early July at Nicea, on his way back to Normandy.^[15]

Duke of Normandy[link]

Challenges[link]

William faced a number of challenges on becoming the new duke, including his illegitimate birth and his young age; sources state that he was either seven or eight years old at the time.^[16][17][g] William enjoyed the support of his great-uncle, Archbishop Robert, as well as the king of France, Henry I, and this enabled the young duke to succeed to his father's duchy.^[20] The support given to the exiled English princes in their attempt to return to England in 1036 shows that the new duke's guardians were attempting to continue the policies of his father.^[2] However, Archbishop Robert's death in March 1037 removed one of William's main supports, and conditions in Normandy quickly descended into chaos.^[20]

The anarchy in the duchy lasted until 1047,^[21] and control of the young duke was one of the prime concerns of those contending for power. At first, Alan of Brittany had custody of the duke, but when Alan died in either late 1039 or October 1040, Gilbert of Brionne took control of William. Gilbert was killed within months, and another guardian, Turchetil, was also killed around the time of Gilbert's death.^[22] Yet another guardian, Osbern, was killed in the early 1040s in William's sleeping chamber while the duke slept. It was said that Walter, William's maternal uncle, was occasionally forced to hide the young duke in the houses of peasants,^[23] although this story may be an embellishment by Orderic Vitalis. The historian Eleanor Searle speculates that William was raised with the three cousins who later became important in his career – William fitzOsbern, Roger de Beaumont, and Roger of Montgomery.^[24] While many of the Norman nobles engaged in their own private wars and feuds during William's minority, the viscounts still acknowledged the ducal government, and the ecclesiastical hierarchy was supportive of William.^[25]

Column at the site of the Battle of Val-ès-Dunes

King Henry continued to support the young duke,^[26] but in late 1046 forces opposed to William came together in a co-ordinated rebellion centred in lower Normandy, led by Guy of Burgundy with support from Nigel, Viscount of the Cotentin, and Rannulf, Viscount of the Bessin. According to stories that may have legendary elements, an attempt was made to seize William at Valognes, but he escaped under cover of darkness and sought out King Henry for assistance.^[27] In early 1047 Henry and William returned to Normandy and were victorious at the Battle of Val-ès-Dunes near Caen, although few details of the actual fighting are recorded.^[28] William of Poitiers claimed that the battle was won mainly through William's efforts, but earlier accounts claim that King Henry's men and leadership were also important.^[2] The battle marked William's assumption of authority in Normandy, and he marked it by promulgating the Truce of God throughout the duchy shortly after the battle. The Truce was an effort to restrict warfare and violence, and William's proclamation restricted the days of the week on which forces were supposed to fight.^[29] Although the battle marked a turning point in William's control of the duchy, it was not the end of his struggles to gain the upper hand over the nobility. The period from 1047 to 1054 saw almost continuous warfare, and lesser crises continued until 1060.^[30]

Consolidation of power[link]

Image from the Bayeux Tapestry showing William with his half-brothers. William is in the center, Odo is on the left with empty hands, and Robert is on the right with a sword in his hand.

William's next efforts were against Guy of Burgundy, who retreated to his castle at Brionne, which William besieged. After a long effort, the duke succeeded in exiling Guy in 1050.^[31] Another problem was the growing power of the Count of Anjou, Geoffrey Martel.^[32] William joined with King Henry in a campaign against Anjou, the last known cooperation between the two. Although the campaign captured an Angevin fortress, little else was accomplished.^[33] Geoffrey attempted to expand his authority into the county of Maine, especially after the death of Hugh IV of Maine in 1051. Central to the control of Maine were the holdings of the family of Bellême, who held Bellême on the border of Maine and Normandy, as well as the fortresses at Alençon and Domfort. Bellême's overlord was the king of France, but Domfort was under the overlordship of Geoffrey Martel and Duke William was Alençon's overlord. The Bellême family, whose lands were quite strategically placed between their three different overlords, were able to play each of them against the other and secure virtual independence for themselves.^[32]

On the death of Hugh of Maine, Geoffrey Martel occupied Maine, in a move contested by William and King Henry; eventually they succeeded in driving Geoffrey from the county, and in the process, William was able to secure the Bellême family strongholds at Alençon and Domfort for himself. He was thus able to assert his overlordship over the Bellême family and compel them to act consistently in Norman interests.^[34] But in 1052 the king and Geoffrey Martel made common cause against William at the same time as some Norman nobles began to contest William's increasing power. Henry's volte-face was probably motivated by a desire to retain dominance over Normandy, which was now threatened by William's growing mastery of his duchy.^[35] William was engaged in military actions against his own nobles throughout 1053,^[36] as well as the new Archbishop of Rouen, Mauger.^[37] In February 1054 the king and the Norman rebels launched a double invasion of the duchy. The main thrust was led by Henry and came through the county of Évreux while the other wing, under the French king's brother Odo, invaded eastern Normandy.^[38]

William met the invasion by dividing his forces into two groups. The first, which he led, faced Henry. The second, which included a number of men who became William's firm supporters, such as Robert, Count of Eu, Walter Giffard, Roger of Mortemer, and William de Warenne, faced the other invading force. This second force defeated the invaders at the Battle of Mortemer. In addition to ending both invasions, the battle allowed the duke's ecclesiastical supporters to depose Mauger from the archbishopric of Rouen. Mortemer thus marked another turning point in William's growing control of the duchy,^[39] although his conflict with the French king and the Count of Anjou continued until 1060.^[40] Henry and Geoffrey led another invasion of Normandy in 1057, but were defeated by William at the Battle of Varaville. This was the last invasion of Normandy during William's lifetime,^[41] and the deaths of the count and the king in 1060 cemented the shift in the balance of power towards William.^[41]

The signatures of William I and Matilda are the first two large crosses on the Accord of Winchester from 1072.

One factor that helped William was his marriage to Matilda of Flanders, the daughter of Count Baldwin V of Flanders. The marriage was arranged in 1049, but Pope Leo IX forbade the marriage at the Council of Rheims in October 1049.^[h] Despite this, the marriage went ahead and was conducted some time during the early 1050s,^[43][i] possibly without papal sanction. According to a late source, papal sanction of the already performed marriage was not secured until 1059, but the source for this is not considered generally reliable. Further corroboration of a grant of papal approval earlier than 1059 is the fact that papal-Norman relations in the 1050s were generally good and that Norman clergy were able to visit Rome in 1050 without incident.^[45] Papal sanction of the marriage appears to have required the founding of two monasteries in Caen – one by William and one by Matilda.^[46][j] The marriage itself was important in bolstering William's power, as Flanders was one of the more powerful French territories, with ties to the French royal house as well as to the German emperors.^[45] Contemporary writers considered the marriage to be a success and it produced four sons and five or six daughters over time.^[48]

Physical appearance and character[link]

No authentic portrait of William has been found; the contemporary depictions of him on the Bayeux Tapestry and on his seals and coins are stylised portraits designed to assert his authority.^[49] But there are some written descriptions of his appearance, describing him as burly and robust with a guttural voice. He enjoyed excellent health until old age, although he became quite fat in later life.^[50] He was strong enough to draw bows that others were unable to pull and had great stamina.^[49] Geoffrey Martel described him as without equal as a fighter and as a horseman.^[51] Examination of William's femur, the only bone to survive when the rest of his remains were destroyed, showed he was approximately 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) in height, quite tall for the time.^[49]

There are records of two tutors for the young duke during the late 1030s and early 1040s, but the extent of William's literary education is unclear. He was not known as a patron of authors, and there is little evidence that he sponsored scholarship or other intellectual activities.^[2] Orderic Vitalis records that late in William's life the king tried to learn to read English, but was unable to devote sufficient time to the effort and quickly gave up.^[52] William's main hobby appears to have been hunting. His marriage to Matilda appears to have been quite affectionate, and there are no signs that he was unfaithful to her – unusual in a medieval monarch. Medieval writers criticised William for his greed and cruelty, but his personal piety was universally praised by contemporaries.^[2]

Norman administration[link]

Norman government under William was similar to the government that had existed under earlier dukes. This was a fairly simple administrative system, which was built around the ducal household.^[53] The household consisted of a group of officers such as stewards, butlers, and marshalls.^[54] The duke travelled constantly around the duchy, confirming charters and collecting revenues.^[55] Most of the income came from the ducal lands as well as tolls, and a few taxes. This income was collected by the chamber, one of the household departments.^[54]

William cultivated close relations with the church in his duchy. He took part in church councils, and made a number of appointments to the Norman episcopate, including the appointment of Maurilius as Archbishop of Rouen.^[56] Another important appointment was that of William's half-brother Odo as Bishop of Bayeux in either 1049 or 1050.^[2] He also relied on a number of the clergy for advice, including Lanfranc, a non-Norman who rose to become one of William's prominent ecclesiastical advisors in the late 1040s and remained so throughout the 1050s and 1060s. Besides the two monasteries founded by William and Matilda in Caen to appease the papacy, William also gave generously to the church.^[56] From 1035 to 1066, the Norman aristocracy founded at least 20 new monastic houses, including William's two monasteries in Caen, a remarkable expansion of religious life in the duchy.^[57]

English and continental concerns[link]

Scene from the Bayeux Tapestry showing William giving arms to Harold during Harold's trip to the continent in 1064.

In 1051 the childless King Edward of England^[58] appears to have chosen William as his successor to the English throne. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, in the "D" version, goes so far as to state that William visited England in the later part of 1051, perhaps to secure confirmation of the succession,^[59] or perhaps William was attempting to secure aid for his troubles in Normandy.^[60] William was descended from Edward's uncle, Richard II, Duke of Normandy.^[58] The trip is unlikely given William's absorption in warfare with Anjou at the time. Whatever Edward's wishes, it was likely that any claim by William would be opposed by Godwin, the Earl of Wessex and his family, who were the most powerful family in England.^[59] Edward had married Edith, Godwin's daughter, in 1043, and Godwin appears to have been one of the main supporters of Edward's claim to the throne.^[61] But by 1050, relations between the king and the earl had soured, which in 1051 broke into a crisis that led to Godwin and his family's exile from England. It was during this exile that Edward offered the throne to William.^[62] Godwin, however, returned from exile in 1052 with armed forces and a settlement was reached between the king and the earl, with the earl and his family being restored to their lands and the replacement of Robert of Jumièges, a Norman whom Edward had named Archbishop of Canterbury, with Stigand, the Bishop of Winchester.^[63] No English source mentions a supposed embassy by Archbishop Robert to William conveying the promise of the succession, and the two Norman sources that mention it, William of Jumièges and William of Poitiers, are not precise in their chronology of when this visit took place.^[60]

Count Herbert II of Maine died in 1062, and William, who had betrothed his eldest son Robert to the sister of Herbert, claimed the county through his son. This was resisted by the local nobles, but William invaded the county and by 1064 had secured control of the area.^[64] William appointed a Norman to the bishopric of Le Mans in 1065 as well as allowing his son Robert Curthose to do homage to the new Count of Anjou, Geoffrey the Bearded.^[65] This secured William's western border, but his border with Brittany remained insecure. In 1064 William invaded Brittany in a campaign that remains obscure in its details. Its effect though was to destabilise Brittany, forcing the duke, Conan II, to focus on internal problems rather than expansion. Conan's death in 1066 further secured William's borders in Normandy. William benefited in another way from his campaign in Brittany by securing the support of a number of Breton nobles, some of whom went on to support the invasion of England in 1066.^[66]

In England, Earl Godwin died in 1053 and his sons became powerful, with Harold succeeding to his father's earldom and another son, Tostig, becoming Earl of Northumbria. Other sons were granted earldoms later: Gyrth as Earl of East Anglia in 1057 and Leofwine as Earl of Kent some time between 1055 and 1057.^[67] Some sources claim that Harold took part in William's Breton campaign of 1064 and that Harold swore to uphold William's claim to the English throne at the end of the campaign,^[65] but no English source reports this trip, and it is unclear if it actually occurred. It may have been Norman propaganda designed to discredit Harold, who had emerged as the main contender to succeed King Edward.^[68] Meanwhile another contender for the throne had emerged – Edward the Exile, son of Edmund Ironside and a grandson of Æthelred II, returned to England in 1057, and although he died shortly after his return, he brought with him his family, which included two daughters, Margaret and Christina, and a son, Edgar the Ætheling.^[69][k]

In 1065 Northumbria revolted against Tostig, and the rebels chose Morcar, the younger brother of Edwin, Earl of Mercia, as earl in place of Tostig. Harold, perhaps to secure the support of Edwin and Morcar in his bid for the throne, supported the rebels, and persuaded King Edward to replace Tostig with Morcar. Tostig went into exile in Flanders, along with his wife Judith, who was the daughter of Count Baldwin IV of Flanders. Edward was ailing, and died on 5 January 1066. It is unclear what exactly happened at Edward's deathbed. One story, deriving from the Vita Edwardi, claims that Edward was attended by his wife Edith, Harold, Archbishop Stigand, and Robert FitzWimarc, and that the king named Harold as his successor. The Norman sources do not dispute the fact that Harold was named as the next king, but declare that Harold's oath and Edward's earlier promise of the throne could not be changed on Edward's deathbed. Later English sources stated that Harold had been elected as king by the clergy and magnates of England.^[71]

Invasion of England[link]

Harold's preparations[link]

Map showing William's lands in 1087

Harold was crowned on 6 January 1066 at Westminster Abbey, although some controversy surrounds who performed the ceremony. English sources claim that Ealdred, the Archbishop of York performed the ceremony, but Norman sources state that the coronation was performed by Stigand, who was considered a non-canonical archbishop by the papacy.^[72] But Harold's claim was not entirely secure; there were other claimants to the English throne, perhaps including his exiled brother Tostig.^[73][l] King Harold Hardrada of Norway also had a claim to the throne based on his being the uncle and heir of King Magnus I, who had made a pact with Harthacnut in about 1040 that if either Magnus or Harthacnut died without heirs, the other would succeed.^[77] The last claimant was William of Normandy, and King Harold Godwinson made most of his preparations to repel William's anticipated invasion.^[73]

Harold's brother Tostig made probing attacks along the southern shore of England in May 1066, landing at the Isle of Wight, using a fleet supplied by Baldwin of Flanders. Tostig appears to have received little local support, and further raids into Lincolnshire and near the River Humber met with no more success, so Tostig retreated to Scotland, where he remained for a time.^[73] According to the Norman writer William of Jumieges, William had meanwhile sent an embassy to King Harold Godwinson, reminding Harold of his oath to support William's claim, although whether this embassy actually occurred is unclear. Harold assembled an army and a fleet to repel William's anticipated invasion force; troops and ships were deployed along the English Channel for most of the summer.^[73]

William's preparations[link]

Scene from the Bayeux Tapestry showing some of the Norman preparations for invading England.

William of Poitiers describes a council called by Duke William, in which the writer gives an account of a great debate that took place between William's nobles and supporters over whether to risk an invasion of England. Although some sort of formal assembly probably was held, it is unlikely that any debate took place, as the duke had established control over his nobles earlier, and most of the assembled nobles would have been anxious to secure their share of the rewards from conquering England.^[78] William of Poitiers also relates that the duke obtained Pope Alexander II's consent for the invasion, along with a papal banner. The chronicler also claimed that the duke secured the support of Emperor Henry IV and King Sweyn II of Denmark, but as Henry was still a minor and Sweyn was more likely to support Harold who could then help Sweyn against the Norwegian king, these claims should be treated with caution. Although Alexander did give papal approval to the conquest after it succeeded, no other source claims papal support prior to the invasion.^[m][79] Events after the invasion, which included the penance William performed and statements by later popes, do lend circumstantial support to the claim of papal approval. William also put the government of Normandy into the hands of his wife for the duration of the invasion.^[2]

Throughout the summer, William assembled an army and an invasion fleet in Normandy. Although William of Jumieges's claim that the ducal fleet numbered 3,000 ships is clearly an exaggeration, it was probably large and mostly built from scratch. Although William of Poitiers and William of Jumieges disagree about where the fleet was built – Poitiers states it was constructed at the mouth of the River Dives while Jumieges states it was built at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme – both agree that it eventually sailed from Valery-sur-Somme. The fleet carried an invasion force that included, in addition to troops from William's own territories of Normandy and Maine, large numbers of mercenaries, allies and volunteers from Brittany, northeastern France and Flanders, together with smaller numbers from other parts of Europe. Although the army and fleet were ready by early August, adverse winds kept the ships in Normandy until late September. There were probably other reasons for William's delay, however, including intelligence reports from England revealing that Harold's forces were deployed along the coast. William would have preferred to delay the invasion until he could make an unopposed landing.^[79] Harold kept his forces on alert throughout the summer, but with the arrival of the harvest season he disbanded his army on 8 September.^[80]

Tostig and Hardrada's invasion[link]

Modern day site of the Battle of Stamford Bridge

Harold's brother Tostig and Harald Hardrada invaded Northumbria in September 1066, and defeated the local forces under Morcar and Edwin at the Battle of Fulford. King Harold received word of their invasion and marched north, defeating the invaders at the Battle of Stamford Bridge on 25 September. Both Tostig and Hardrada were killed at Stamford.^[77] Meanwhile, on 27 September the Norman fleet finally set sail, landing in England at Pevensey Bay the following day. William then moved to Hastings, a few miles to the east, where he built a castle as a base of operations. From there, he ravaged the interior and waited for Harold's return from the north, refusing to venture far from the seacoast, which was his line of communication with Normandy.^[80]

Battle of Hastings[link]

Harold, after defeating Tostig and Harald Hardrada in the north, left much of his forces there, including Morcar and Edwin, and marched the rest of his army south to deal with the threatened Norman invasion.^[80] It is unclear when Harold learned of William's landing, but it was probably while he was travelling south. Harold stopped in London, and was there for about a week before Hastings, so it is likely that he spent about a week on his march south, averaging about 27 miles (43 kilometres) per day,^[81] for the approximately 200 miles (320 kilometres) distance.^[82] Although Harold attempted to surprise the Normans, William's scouts reported the English arrival to the duke. The exact events preceding the battle are obscure, with contradictory accounts in the sources, but all agree that William led his army from his castle and advanced towards the enemy.^[83] Harold had taken a defensive position at the top of Senlac Hill (present-day Battle, East Sussex), about 6 miles (9.7 kilometres) from William's castle at Hastings.^[84]

Death of Harold Godwinson in the Battle of Hastings, as shown on the Bayeux Tapestry, although whether this is an accurate depiction is unclear

The battle began at about 9 am on 14 October and lasted all day, but while a broad outline is known, the exact events are obscured by contradictory accounts in the sources.^[85] Although the numbers on each side were about equal, William had both cavalry and infantry, including many archers, while Harold had only foot soldiers and few if any archers.^[86] The English soldiers formed up as a shield wall along the ridge, and were at first so effective that William's army was thrown back with heavy casualties. Some of William's Breton troops panicked and fled, and a number of the English troops appear to have pursued the fleeing Bretons until they themselves were attacked and destroyed by Norman cavalry. During the Bretons' flight rumours swept through the Norman forces that the duke had been killed, but William succeeded in rallying his troops. Two further Norman retreats were feigned, to once again draw the English into pursuit and expose them to repeated attacks by the Norman cavalry.^[87] The available sources are more confused about events in the afternoon, but it appears that the decisive event was Harold's death, about which differing stories are told. William of Jumieges claimed that Harold was killed by the duke. The Bayeux Tapestry has been claimed to show Harold's death by an arrow to the eye, but that may be a later reworking of the tapestry to conform to 12th-century stories in which Harold was slain by an arrow wound to the head.^[88]

Harold's body was identified the day after the battle, either through his armour or marks on his body. The bodies of the English dead, which included some of Harold's brothers and his housecarls, were left on the battlefield. Gytha, Harold's mother, offered the victorious duke the weight of her son's body in gold for its custody, but her offer was refused.^[n] William ordered that Harold's body was to be thrown into the sea, but whether that took place is unclear. Waltham Abbey, which had been founded by Harold, later claimed that his body had been buried there secretly.^[92]

March on London[link]

William may have hoped that the English would surrender following his victory, but they did not. Instead some of the English clergy and magnates nominated Edgar the Ætheling as king, but their support for Edgar was only lukewarm. After waiting a short while, William then secured Dover, parts of Kent, and Canterbury, while also sending a force to capture Winchester, where the royal treasury was.^[93] These captures secured William's rear areas and also his line of retreat to Normandy, if that was needed.^[2] William then marched to Southwark, across the Thames from London, which he reached in late November. William then led his forces around the south and west of London, burning along the way. He finally crossed the Thames at Wallingford in early December. It was at Wallingford that Archbishop Stigand submitted to William, and when the duke moved on to Berkhamsted soon afterwards, Edgar the Ætheling, Morcar, Edwin and Archbishop Ealdred also submitted. William then sent forces into London to construct a castle and was crowned at Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066.^[93]

Consolidation[link]

First actions[link]

William remained in England after his coronation, and tried to reconcile the native magnates. The remaining earls – Edwin (of Mercia), Morcar (of Northumbria), and Waltheof (of Northampton) were confirmed in their lands and titles. Waltheof was married to William's niece, and a marriage between Edwin and one of William's daughters was proposed. Edgar the Ætheling also appears to have been given lands. Ecclesiastical offices continued to be held by the same bishops as before the invasion, including the uncanonical Stigand.^[94] But the families of Harold and his brothers did lose their lands, as did some others who had fought against William at Hastings.^[95] By March, William was secure enough to return to Normandy, but he took with him Stigand, Morcar, Edwin, Edgar, and Waltheof. He left his half-brother Odo, the Bishop of Bayeux, in charge of England along with another influential supporter, William fitzOsbern, the son of his former guardian.^[94] Both men were also named to earldoms – fitzOsbern to Hereford (or Wessex) and Odo to Kent.^[2] Although he put two Normans in overall charge, he retained many of the native English sheriffs.^[95] Once in Normandy the new English king went to Rouen and the Abbey of Fecamp,^[94] and then attended the consecration of new churches at two Norman monasteries.^[2]

While William was in Normandy, a former ally, Eustace, the Count of Boulogne, invaded at Dover but was repulsed. English resistance had also begun, with Eadric the Wild attacking Hereford and revolts at Exeter, where Harold's mother Gytha was a focus of resistance.^[96] FitzOsbern and Odo found it difficult to control the native population and undertook a programme of castle building to maintain their hold on the kingdom.^[2] William returned to England in December 1067 and marched on Exeter, which he besieged. The town held out for 18 days, and after it fell to William he built a castle to secure his control. Harold's sons were meanwhile raiding the southwest of England from a base in Ireland. Their forces landed near Bristol, but were defeated by Eadnoth. By Easter, William was at Winchester, where he was soon joined by his wife Matilda, who was crowned in May 1068.^[96]

English resistance[link]

The remains of the second motte-and-bailey castle built by William in York

In 1068 Edwin and Morcar revolted, supported by Gospatric. The chronicler Orderic Vitalis states that Edwin's reason for revolting was that the proposed marriage between himself and one of William's daughters had not taken place, but other reasons probably included the increasing power of William fitzOsbern in Herefordshire, which impacted Edwin's power within his own earldom. The king marched through Edwin's lands and built a castle at Warwick. This caused Edwin and Morcar to submit, but William continued on to York, building castles at York and Nottingham before returning south. On his southbound journey, the king began construction of castles at Lincoln, Huntingdon, and Cambridge. William placed supporters in charge of these new fortifications – among them William Peverel at Nottingham and Henry de Beaumont at Warwick. Then the king returned to Normandy late in 1068.^[96]