 Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Born Sep 1068 at Selby, Yorkshire, England, died Dec 1, 1135 at St. Denis, Seine-St. Denis, France, 67 years 1 NAME Henry I King of /England/ 1 NAME /Henry/ I 1 BIRT 2 DATE 1068 1 DEAT 2 DATE 1135 BIOGRAPHY: Henry was in reality a usurper. He imprisoned his older brother, Robert in Cardiff Castle in Wales, and it is said he had Robert's eyes put out. Henry reigned thirty-five years, not only over England, but over one third of France. In 1120 the White Ship went down on a hidden rock in the English Channel with the Crown Prince on board and it is said Henry I is never known to have smiled again. He had only one child left, Maude-Matilda, then a widow of the German Emperor Henry V. For political reasons she was next married to Geoffrey of Anjou, a boy of sixteen, ten years her junior. After the death of Henry I there was civil war between Matilda and her nephew Stephen, who got the throne for nineteen years. At one point in this contest Matilda had to escape from the Robert Doyley tower of Oxford Castle by sliding down a rope with gloved hands, the rope held by her favorite knight, Alain. She, with a few others dressed in white to avoid detection, crossed in the snowy night over the frozen Thames. The condition of the English people was deplorable during the reign of Henry I, owing to the blood-curdling cruelty of the Barons. Henry established a vigorous police system to check this, and tried to stop counterfeiting the money by mutilations. He oppressed his people by taxation. BIOGRAPHY: Henry I was born in the year 1068---a factor he himself regarded as highly significant, for he was the only son of the Conqueror born after the conquest of England, and to Henry this meant he was heir to the throne. He was not an attractive proposition: he was dissolute to a degree, producing at least a score of bastards; but far worse he was prone to sadistic cruelty---on one occasion, for example, personally punishing a rebellious burgher by throwing him from the walls of his town. BIOGRAPHY: At the death of William the Conqueror, Henry was left no lands, merely 5,000 pounds of silver. With these he bought lands from his elder brother Robert Curthose, Duke of Normandy, only to see them taken back again a few years later by Robert, in unholy alliance with his brother William Rufus. BIOGRAPHY: Henry could do little to avenge such treatment, but in England he found numerous barons who were tired of the exactions and ambitions of their king. He formed alliances with some of these, notably with the important De Clare family. He and some of the De Clares were with William Rufus on his last hunting expedition, and it is thought that the king's death was the result of Henry's plotting. BIOGRAPHY: Certainly he moved fast to take advantage of it; leaving Rufus's body unattended in the woods, he swooped down on Winchester to take control of the treasury. Two days later he was in Westminster, being crowned by the Bishop of London. His speed is understandable when one realises that his elder brother, Robert [Curthose], was returning from the crusade, and claimed, with good reason, to be the true heir. BIOGRAPHY: Henry showed great good sense in his first actions as King. He arrested Ranulph Flambard, William's tax-gatherer, and recalled Anselm, the exiled Archbishop. Furthermore, he issued a Charter of Liberties which promised speedy redress of grievances, and a return to the good government of the Conqueror. Putting aside for the moment his many mistresses, he married the sister of the King of Scots, who was descended from the royal line of Wessex; and lest the Norman barons should think him too pro-English in this action, he canged her name from Edith to Matilda. No one could claim that he did not aim to please. BIOGRAPHY: In 1101 Robert Curthose invaded, but Henry met him at Alton, and persuaded him to go away again by promising him an annuity of D2,000. He had no intention of keeping up the payments, but the problem was temporarily solved. BIOGRAPHY: He now felt strong enough to move against dissident barons who might give trouble in the future. Chief amongst these was the vicious Robert of Bell Married/ Related to:  Sibyl CorbetBorn ± 1070 at Caen, Calvedos, France, died ± 1156, approximately 86 years 1 _MSTAT Other Children: 1. Joan (Elizabeth) of EnglandBorn ± 1095 at Talby, Yorkshire, England, died between 1132 BET., - and , 98 or 99 years 2. Sybil FitzHenryBorn ± 1097 at Domfront, Normandie, France, died Jul 12, 1122 at Isle of the Woman, Loch Tay, Scotland, approximately 25 years 3. Rohese FitzHenryBorn 1115, died 1176, 60 or 61 years 4. Renaud De CornouaillesBorn after 1100, died 1175, at most 75 years | |||
| 2nd marriage/ relation Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married/ Related to: Concubine PRIVACY FILTERChildren: 1. Maud of EnglandBorn ± 1091, died Dec 2. Constance FitzHenryBorn ± 1100 at England, died Dec | |||
| 3rd marriage/ relation Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married/ Related to: Princess of Wales Nesta Verch Rhys Princess of WalesBorn ± 1073 at Dynevor Castle, Llandyfeisant, Carmarthenshire, Wales, died Dec BIOGRAPHY: Princess Nesta was a very remarkable woman. She is sometimes referred to as the "mother of the Irish invasion" since her sons, by various fathers, and her grandsons were the leaders of the invasion. She had, in the course of her eventful life, two lovers, two husbands, and many sons and daughters. Her father is quoted as saying that she had 10 children as a result of her matrimonial escapades, eight sons and two daughters, among them William fitzGerald de Windsor. One of her lovers was King Henry I of England. Some years before she married Gerald, her father, the fierce old Prince of South Wales, was fighting the English under Henry, (then the Prince and later King). Henry succeeded in taking the lovely Nesta as hostage. By this royal lover, she had two sons; Meyler fitzHenry and the celebrated Robert of Gloucester. It would seem that Gerald, busily engaged in military business, could have had no peace about his wife, since she was clever as well as beautiful, and every warrior seems to have fallen in love with her. In 1095, Gerald led an expedition against the Welsh on the borders of what is now Pembrokeshire. In 1100, he went to Ireland to secure for his lord, Arnulf Montgomery, the hand of the daughter of King Murrough in marriage. He was the first of the Geraldines to set foot in Ireland, where they were later to rule like kings. Later, Arnulf joined in a rebellion against the King, was deprived of his estates and exiled in 1102. Then the King granted custody of Pembroke Castle to Gerald. Later, he was appointed president of the County of Pembrokeshire. BIOGRAPHY: But it was Nesta that occupied the center of their stage during their marriage. Her beauty continued to excite wonder and desire throughout Wales. At Christmas in 1108, Cadwgan, Prince of Cardigan, invited the native chieftains to a feast at Dyvet (St. David's). Nesta's beauty was a subject of conversation. She excited the curiosity of Owen, the son of Prince Cadwgan, who resolved to see her. She was his cousin, so that the pretense of a friendly visit was easy. He successfully obtained admission with his attendants into Pembroke Castle. Her beauty -- it was even greater than he expected -- excited his lust. He determined to carry her off! In the middle of the night, he set fire to the castle, and his followers surrounded the room where Gerald and Nesta were sleeping. Gerald was awakened by the noise and about to discover the cause, but Nesta, suspecting some /treason, persuaded him to make his escape. She pulled up a board and let her husband escape down a drain by a rope. Then Owen broke open the door, seized Nesta and two of her sons, and carried them off to Powys, leaving the castle in flames. Owen had his way with Nesta, (historians say that one of her ten children was his), though whether she yielded from desire or force was uncertain. But at her request, Owen hastened to send back the two sons to Gerald. When King Henry heard of Nesta's abduction, he was furious. He regarded it as an injury almost personal, since Gerald was not only his steward, but his particular friend. The abduction of Nesta led to a war, which resulted in her return to her husband, and Owen fled to Ireland. Gerald took a conspicuous role in the fighting. In 1116, Henry ordered Owen, who had returned to Wales, to apprehend Gruffuyd, son of Rhys ap Tewdyr. As he passed through a wood on his march to join up with the royal forces, Owen seized some cattle. The owners of the cattle, as they fled, met Gerald, Constable of Pembroke. Gerald was also on his way to join the royal forces. When the cattle owners requested his assistance, he was only too delighted to have the opportunity for revenge for the insult to his honor done by Owen's abduction of Nesta. He lost no time in pursuing Owen, found him, and a skirmish followed. Owen was slain, an arrow piercing his heart, and Gerald's honor was avenged. BIOGRAPHY: Gerald died about 1135, leaving three sons and a daughter by Nesta. They were: Maurice, one of the principal leaders of the Irish invasion in 1169; William, ancestor of the families of Carew, Grace, Fitzmaurice, Gerald, and the Keatings of Ireland; David, who became bishop of St. David's; and Angareth, wife of William de Bari, and mother of the historian, Gerald Cambrensis. Nesta married again. Her second husband was Stephen, Constable of Cardigan, by whom she had one son, Robert fitzStephen. Nesta's children and their descendants constituted a menace to the English rule of Wales. Royal Welsh blood mingled with the blood of the nobles of Normandy in all the half-brothers, sons of Gerald of Windsor and Stephen of Cardigan. Bastard or legitimate, they were turbulent princes in a /troubled land. Now fighting the Welsh natives, now allying themselves with their cousin, Nesta's brother Gruffuyd, the unconquered Prince of Wales, on whose head Henry had set "a mountain of gold", they remained a constant source of /trouble to the King, an ever-present threat to his security. BIOGRAPHY: And so they fought, these Norman barons, and they went on fighting. It was the able and ambitious Henry II, one of England's really great kings, (the Henry of "Becket" and "Lion in Winter"), the father of Richard the Lionhearted and John of the Magna Carta, who was to find a solution. He was to give these Norman adventurers a free hand in Ireland. It was thus that the Norman invasion of Ireland came about, and the Geraldines arrived in 1169. 1 _MSTAT Other Children: 1. Earl of Gloucester Robert De Caen Earl of GloucesterBorn ± 1090 at Caen, Normandy, France, died Oct 31, 1147 at Bristol, Gloucestershire, England, approximately 57 years 2. Henry FitzHenryBorn 1088 at Narberth & Pebidiog, Wales, died 1157 at Anglesey, Wales - Killed, 68 or 69 years | |||
| 4th marriage Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married Jan 29, 1122 at Windsor Castle, Berkshire, England (13 years married) to: Adelicia Princess of BrabantBorn ± 1109 at Louvain Belgium, died Apr 23, 1151 at Affligham, Flanders France, approximately 42 years | |||
| 5th marriage/ relation Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married/ Related to: Gieva De TracyBorn 1068, died Dec Child: 1. William De TracyBorn ± 1090, died Dec | |||
| 6th marriage Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married ± 1115 (approximately 20 years married) to: Isabel Elizabeth De BeaumontBorn ± 1096 at Leicester, Leicestershire, England, died after 1172 Children: 1. Constance Matilda PlantagenetBorn ± 1128, died Dec 2. Alice Of EnglandBorn ± 1115, died Dec 3. Emma Princess Of EnglandBorn ± 1115, died Dec | |||
| 7th marriage Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married Nov 11, 1100 at Westminster, London, Middlesex, England (17 or 18 years married) to: Matilda Atheling Edith Canmore of ScotlandDied 1118 1 NAME Matilda of /Scotland/ Child: 1. Matilda (Maud) Empress of GermanyBorn before Aug 5, 1102 at London, Middlesex, England, died Sep 10, 1169 at Notre Dame, Rouen, Seine-Maritime, France, at least 67 years 1 NAME Matilda the /Empress/ | |||
| 8th marriage/ relation Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married/ Related to: N.N. Children: 2. Sybil De FalaiseBorn ± 1154 at Ketelby Bellars, England 3. Mabilia (Eustacia) FitzHenryDied Dec 4. Constance FitzHenryBorn ± 1100 at England, died Dec | |||
Adopted child: Constance FitzHenry | |||
| 9th marriage/ relation Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married/ Related to: Amice De GuaderDied Dec Child: 1. Maud De NormandieBorn ± 1086, died Nov 25, 1120, approximately 34 years | |||
| 10th marriage/ relation Henry I "Beauclerc" King of England, son of William the Conqueror King of England and Matilda Countess of Flanders.Married/ Related to: Edith SigulfsonDied Dec Child: 1. Mathilda Of EnglandBorn 1086, died Dec | |||