Right, since Vykke's Alternate History has gone cold for these past months, I have decided to write a new alternate history about Stephen, King of England and Duke of Normandy. His reign was in realtiy blighted by civil war (commonly known as the Anarchy) as he fought against his rival claimants, the Empress Matilda, Countess of Anjou and her son, Henry Plantagenet (the future Henry II). However, maybe with a few good decisions by our venerable members, things might have turned out differently.
The rules are exactly the same as Vykke's: first three posters decide, first one casts the deciding vote and gets to make suggestions.
Have fun!
Alternate History
The Anarchy of King Stephen
You are Stephen of Blois, King of England, Duke of Normandy and Count of Mortain. The year is 1138, the third year of your reign. It has not been a peaceful one. It has been eighteen years since that black, cold November day when William the Aetheling, sole legitimate son of King Henry and heir to the throne of England and the duchy of Normandy, drowned with many others (including your own sister, Matilda) when his ship, the Blanc Nef, floundered of the coast of Normandy. It was a fate you yourself only narrowly escaped by having a fortunate bout of diarrhoea, preventing you from taking the doomed ship. The disaster left Matilda, widow of the Emperor Henry V of the Holy Roman Empire as heir to the throne. In order to secure Matilda’s accession, King Henry had exacted oaths from all barons and clergymen of the realm that they would recognise her as the rightful sovereign upon his death. You were one of these barons. However, the oath was made on condition that Matilda would not be married without the permission of the barons beforehand. Yet in they year of Our Lord 1128, in order to seal an alliance with Normandy’s age old enemy, Anjou, against the King of France, Matilda was married with Count Geoffrey of Anjou, without the permission of the barons. This match also would have meant that the unpopular Geoffrey would have been crowned King of England along with his wife. In effect, Anjou would have won, having its Count sitting on the throne of England, without even raising a sword.
In December 1135, King Henry died. Matilda, still in Anjou, did not make for England. Anarchy soon took hold throughout the land. None acclaimed Matilda. It was then that you seized the initiative. As the favourite nephew of the late King, you had been given extensive lands in England, the county of Mortain and the hand in marriage of the rich heiress, Maud of Boulogne. And so, in during Advent of the year 1135, you took a ship bound for England from the port of Wissant. Despite being denied entry to Dover and Canterbury, you made way for London where the citizens hailed you as their King. Having secured London, you made way for Winchester, site of the national treasury and held by your brother Henry of Blois, Bishop of Winchester. With London and Winchester under your command, only one last hurdle remained before you could safely call yourself Rex Anglorum et Dux Normannnorum. You needed to be crowned and anointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury. It was to prove the highest hurdle of all. William Corbeil, Archbishop of Canterbury, was an experienced ecclesiast and well remembered the oath he had sworn to King Henry three times and was reluctant to recognise you as King. However, help was at hand in the form of Hugh Bigod, an important nobleman of East Anglia and two other knights. They swore an oath that said that they had been present at Henry’s deathbed when he had disinherited his daughter and son-in-law for having angered and insulted him and that you were to be acclaimed as the next king.
The Archbishop accepted Bigod’s oath and on 22nd December 1135, you were crowned King of England and Duke of Normandy. The Norman barons soon followed suit and soon every nearly every major baron throughout the realm, including Robert of Gloucester, half brother of Matilda and Henry’s favourite bastard son, swore fealty to you. Even his Holiness Pope Innocent II formally recognised you as king. For that period, the future had seemed rosy.
The two years since your coronation in December 1135 and spring 1138 have not been easy. There have been rebellions in the West Country, raids on the Welsh border, incursions by the Scots and last year Geoffrey of Anjou invaded Normandy, seizing several castles which he claims had been promised as part of his wife’s dowry. You had gone to Normandy to repel him, but a fight between Flemish mercenaries and Norman barons and the latter’s departure from your army had destroyed all likelihood of battle and a three year truce was signed for which you paid three thousand marks.
You have several supporters and advisors to help you in the governing of your kingdom. These include your brother Henry, Bishop of Winchester and Abbot of Glastonbury, the Beaumont twins: Earl Robert of Leicester and Count Waleran of Meulan, Gilbert of Clare and William of Ypres, commander of your Flemish mercenaries and your chief military lieutenant.
You are residing at the Tower of London, the white stone fortress built by your grandfather William the Bastard. Sitting by the warm glow of the blazing fire in the hearth of the Great Hall, your advisors approach you with several pressing issues.
“My liege,” says Gilbert of Clare. “The Welsh continue to harass our border, attack our castles and burn our land. We must respond with force and teach these savages a lesson so hard that they will never forget. I myself would be able to raise some men from my own estates to fight against them.”
Your brother disagrees. “Noble king, Baldwin de Redvers has rebelled and seized Exeter Castle and now commits most heinous acts of banditry against the citizens of the town and the surrounding lands. And may I remind you that Exeter is also the fourth city of the kingdom, and is a valuable source of income for the royal coffers. A show of force against de Redvers would be most valuable, and would serve as an example to others.”
Waleran, Count of Meulan speaks. “My lord would do well to remember that the situation in Normandy still remains unresolved, and Geoffrey of Anjou still holds several key castles along the border. If we were to decisively defeat him in battle, he and Matilda would no longer consist a threat.”
William of Ypres offers his opinion. “King David of Scotland regularly invades England. He has seized Carlisle and Newcastle, while his forces continue to pillage the land, committing unspeakable atrocities. He also claims Matilda of Anjou to be the rightful sovereign.”
It is now time for you to decide the action to be taken:
1.Follow Gilbert of Clare’s advice and pacify the Welsh border. It would secure the allegiance of barons who have been far from the centre of power and could act as a balance against Robert of Gloucester, who is proving increasingly cold and hostile.
2. Listen to your brother Henry and quash the rebellious Baldwin. You need to show your steel early on in your reign and Exeter is one of the richest ports on the English Channel.
3. Leave for Normandy and resume war with Anjou, even though the three-year truce is still in its first year. However, most of your barons have both lands in Normandy and England, and you may lose their support should they become threatened.
4. Raise an army and march against the Scots. It would rid Matilda of a political ally and you would garner support from the northern lords.
You must decide.
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