William I (1066–1087)

As the young Duke of Normandy, William led a powerful army—including a highly-trained cavalry—which he used to put down rebellions in his Duchy and defend it against the King of France. In 1066, William launched an invasion of England to seize the crown, which he believed had been promised to him by Edward the Confessor. At the Battle of Hastings, he defeated and killed Harold, who had been elected king after Edward’s death. Ascending the throne as William I, it took him six years to control his kingdom. He crushed uprisings in the west and drove both Danes and Scots out of the north of the country. To impose Norman power on his new subjects, William the Conqueror, as he has been known ever since, had more than 80 stone castles built across the land during his reign.

In 1085, William decided to find out just what his new kingdom of England was worth and what taxes should be paid. He sent out commissioners to record the total population, the size, ownership and value of all the land, and the amount of livestock each landowner owned. The results were written down in 1086 in what came known as the Domesday Book.

William spent the last days of his reign in Normandy, fighting against King Philip of France’s attempt to grab Norman territory. He died from internal injuries after a fall from his horse whilst besieging the French city of Nantes in 1087.

William II (1087–1100)

William II was known as Rufus because of his red face. Outspoken, cruel and unpopular, he extended Norman rule to the far north of England, and tightened his grip on the Duchy of Normandy. He took over the revenues from the Church and was in constant dispute with Archbishop Anselm. William Rufus was killed in a hunting accident in the New Forest, although some historians say that he was shot on the orders of his younger brother Henry, who succeeded him as king. Walter Tirel, one of the hunting party, was blamed for the deed. The Rufus Stone in the New Forest, Hampshire, marks the spot where William Rufus fell.

Henry I (1100–1135)

Henry I was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and became king after the death of his brother, William II, in 1100. After the Battle of Tinchebray in 1106 in France, Henry took over direct rule of the Duchy of Normandy from his brother Robert, whom he imprisoned for the last 28 years of his life.

Henry was an able king who introduced a number of important administrative reforms, including setting up the Curia Regis (King’s Council) to settle disputes between the crown and its subjects. During his long reign, England remained at peace. Henry's nickname “Beauclerc” was a reference to his good education. He was probably the first Norman king to be fluent in English (the two Williams were French speakers).

Stephen (1135–1154)

Henry I’s son and heir, William, died when his boat, the White Ship, sunk while crossing the English Channel in 1120. As a result, the crown passed instead to Henry’s daughter, Matilda, on his death in 1135. However, her cousin Stephen, with the support of those barons who were opposed the idea of a female monarch, seized it for himself. Matilda invaded England in 1139 to claim the throne, and civil war broke out between the two rivals. In 1141, Stephen was captured at Lincoln and defeat at the hands of Matilda seemed certain. However, he was released in exchange for her captured half-brother Robert Earl of Gloucester.

Matilda's eldest son, Henry Plantagenet, who had married Eleanor Duchess of Aquitaine, twice invaded England in 1149 and again in 1153 in a bid to capture the throne. It was eventually decided, under the terms of the Treaty of Wallingford (also known as the Treaty of Winchester), that Henry would succeed to the throne when Stephen died.

Civil war, along with constant raids by the Scots and Welsh, lasted throughout Stephen’s reign. For this reason, this period is described as “nineteen long winters” or “The Anarchy”.