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Birth:          14 Oct 1024 Falaise, Normandy
Death:          9 Sep 1087 Rouen, Normandy
Burial:         Caen, Normandy

Notes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_the_Conqueror
William I[a] (c. 1028[1] – 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror 
and sometimes William the Bastard,[2][b] was the first Norman King of England, 
reigning from 1066 until his death in 1087. A descendant of Rollo, he was Duke of 
Normandy (as Duke William II) from 1035 onward. After a long struggle to establish his 
power, by 1060 his hold on Normandy was secure, and he launched the Norman 
conquest of England six years later. The rest of his life was marked by struggles to 
consolidate his hold over England and his continental lands and by difficulties with his 
eldest son.

William was the son of the unmarried Robert I, Duke of Normandy, by Robert's 
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, members of 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 arrange the appointments 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 the childless Edward the Confessor, his first cousin once removed. 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 previously promised the throne to him, and that Harold 
had sworn to support William's claim. William built a large fleet and invaded England in 
September 1066, decisively defeating and killing 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. Several unsuccessful rebellions followed, but by 
1075 William's hold on England was mostly secure, allowing him 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 the 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, but instead continued to administer 
each part separately. William's lands were divided after his death: Normandy went to 
his eldest son, Robert Curthose, and his second surviving son, William Rufus, 
received England.
Background

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

Danish raids on England 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 home, but 
Swein's son Cnut contested Æthelred's return. Æthelred died unexpectedly in 1016, 
and Cnut became king of England. Æthelred and Emma's two sons, Edward and Alfred, 
went into exile in Normandy while their mother, Emma, became Cnut's second wife.[6]

After Cnut's death in 1035 the English throne 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 
to 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; Edward was proclaimed king after Harthacnut's death 
in June 1042.[7][c]

Early life

William was born in 1027 or 1028 at Falaise, Normandy, most likely towards the end of 
1028.[1][8][d] He was the only son of Robert I, Duke of Normandy, son of Richard II, 
Duke of Normandy.[e] 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.[f] One of Herleva's brothers, Walter, 
became a supporter and protector of William during his minority.[9][g] Robert also had 
a daughter, Adelaide of Normandy, by another mistress.[12]

Robert became Duke of Normandy on 6 August 1027, succeeding 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 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, Osbern, a nephew of Gunnor the wife of Duke Richard I, and Count Gilbert of 
Brionne, a grandson of Richard I.[14] After his accession, Robert continued Norman 
support for 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 likely heir.[2] In 1034 
Duke Robert decided to go on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Although some 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] before leaving for Jerusalem. He died in early July at Nicea, 
on his way back to Normandy.[15]
Family and children

William and his wife Matilda of Flanders had at least nine children.[48] The birth order 
of the boys is clear, but no source gives the relative order of birth of the daughters.[2]
1.Robert was born between 1051 and 1054, died 10 February 1134.[48] Duke of 
Normandy, married Sybilla of Conversano, daughter of Geoffrey, Count of 
Conversano.[146]
2.Richard was born before 1056, died around 1075.[48]
3.William was born between 1056 and 1060, died 2 August 1100.[48] King of England, 
killed in the New Forest.[147]
4.Henry was born in late 1068, died 1 December 1135.[48] King of England, married 
Edith of Scotland, daughter of Malcolm III of Scotland. His second wife was Adeliza of 
Louvain.[148]
5.Adeliza (or Adelida,[149] Adelaide[148]) died before 1113, reportedly betrothed to 
Harold II of England, probably a nun of Saint Léger at Préaux.[149]
6.Cecilia (or Cecily) was born before 1066, died 1127, Abbess of Holy Trinity, Caen.
[48]
7.Matilda[2][149] was born around 1061, died perhaps about 1086.[148] Mentioned in 
Domesday Book as a daughter of William.[48]
8.Constance died 1090, married Alan IV Fergent, Duke of Brittany.[48]
9.Adela died 1137, married Stephen, Count of Blois.[48]
10.(Possibly) Agatha, the betrothed of Alfonso VI of León and Castile.[x]

There is no evidence of any illegitimate children born to William.[153]

Parents
____ Robert II "the Magnificent" (ABT  998 - 2 Jul 1035)
DE FALAISE Herleve (Harlette) (Arlotta) (ABT 1003 - ABT 1050)

Siblings
____ William I "the Conqueror" (14 Oct 1024 - 9 Sep 1087)
OF NORMANDY Adelaide (ABT 1027 - BEF 1090)

Marriage To OF FLANDERS Maud (Matilda) (1028 - 2 Nov 1083)
    m. 1053 

Notes

Parents
DE LILLE Baldwin V (19 Aug 1012 - 1 Sep 1067)
____ Adela (Adele) (Alix) (Adelaide) (ABT 1009 - 1079)

Children by OF FLANDERS Maud (Matilda) 1028 - 2 Nov 1083
____ Robert II ("Curthose") (ABT 1054 - 2 Oct 1134)
OF NORMANDY Gundrada (ABT 1060 - 27 May 1085)
OF NORMANDY Adele (Alice) (ABT 1062 - 8 Mar 1137)
____ Henry I "Beauclerc" (1070 - 1 Dec 1135)

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