[91] The town of Bristol itself proved too strong for him, and Stephen contented himself with raiding and pillaging the surrounding area. [63][nb 9], Stephen had to intervene in the north of England immediately after his coronation. One of the first seven deacons of the Christian Church, Saint Stephen is also the first Christian to be martyred for the Faith (hence the title, often applied to him, of protomartyr that is, "first martyr"). [104][nb 13] He appears to have had several objectives in mind, including both ensuring the loyalty of his key supporters by granting them these honours, and improving his defences in key parts of the kingdom. [53] David I of Scotland invaded the north on the news of Henry's death, taking Carlisle, Newcastle and other key strongholds. [227] Stephen's son William was confirmed as the Earl of Surrey by Henry, and prospered under the new regime, with the occasional point of tension with Henry. Stephen was the third son of Stephen, Count of Blois and Chartres, and Adela, daughter of King William I the WebStephen Hawking. [152] Stephen's long-standing commander William of Ypres remained with the Queen in London; William Martel, the royal steward, commanded operations from Sherborne in Dorset, and Faramus of Boulogne ran the royal household. He's very intelligent and focused, but can also be considered oblivious to something begging to be noticed. These armies, however, were ill-suited to besieging castles, whether the older motte-and-bailey designs or the newer, stone-built keeps. Stephen was one of the seven men chosen to be responsible over the distribution of food to widows in the early church after a dispute arose and the apostles recognized they needed help. Begging Pardon and Favor: Ritual and Political Order in Early Medieval France. [204] Since the only person who could crown Eustace was Archbishop Theobald, who refused to do so without agreement from the current pope, Eugene III, the matter reached an impasse. [119] The reasoning behind Stephen's decision to release his rival remains unclear. 171172; Crouch (2008a), p. 29. He was Count of Boulogne jure uxoris from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 1135 until 1144. [207] When Theobald refused yet again, Stephen and Eustace imprisoned both him and the bishops and refused to release them unless they agreed to crown Eustace. [13] Adela and Theobald allied themselves with Henry, and Stephen's mother decided to place him in Henry's court. [202] When Theobald, the Archbishop of Canterbury, went to consult with the Pope on the matter against Stephen's wishes, the King refused to allow him back into England either, and seized his estates. [97], Stephen's personal qualities as a military leader focused on his skill in personal combat, his capabilities in siege warfare and a remarkable ability to move military forces quickly over relatively long distances. Crouch (2008a), p. 29; King (2010), pp. Stephen William Hawking CH CBE FRS FRSA (8 January 1942 14 March 2018) was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who, at the time of his death, was director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge. [30] Conflict was curtailed, however, by the power of the King's personality and reputation. Stephen was the third son of Stephen, Count of Blois and Chartres, and Adela, daughter of King William I the They had five children:[251], King Stephen's illegitimate children by his mistress Damette included:[251], "Stephen of Blois" redirects here. King (2010), pp. [198] Stephen's dispute with the church had its origins in 1140, when Archbishop Thurstan of York died. 136137; Crouch (2002), p. 245. [78] Henry of Blois's claims, in his role as Abbot of Glastonbury, to extensive lands in Devon resulted in considerable local unrest. 164165; Crouch (1998), p. 258. [248] Peters paints Stephen as a tolerant man and a reasonable ruler, despite his execution of the Shrewsbury defenders after the taking of the city in 1138. [135][nb 18] Stephen was not a gifted public speaker, and delegated the pre-battle speech to Baldwin of Clare, who delivered a rousing declaration. [160] In September, he spotted an opportunity to seize the Empress Matilda herself in Oxford. Making a Living in the Middle Ages: The People of Britain, 850 1520. 65, 6971; Carpenter, p. 124. Stephen is kind hearted and family oriented. [185][nb 21] Many of the barons were making individual peace agreements with each other to secure their lands and war gains. [171] In the west, Robert of Gloucester and his followers continued to raid the surrounding royalist territories, and Wallingford Castle remained a secure Angevin stronghold, too close to London for comfort. [67] A wide range of nobles gathered at Westminster for the event, including many of the Anglo-Norman barons and most of the higher officials of the church. 280283; Bradbury pp. [243] Modern historians vary in their assessments of Stephen as a king. [204][nb 23] At the end of 1148, Stephen and Theobald came to a temporary compromise that allowed Theobald to return to England. Together with his close advisor, Waleran de Beaumont, Stephen took firm steps to defend his rule, including arresting a powerful family of bishops. [78][nb 10][nb 11], In the years following his succession, Stephen's relationship with the church became gradually more complex. [129] Nigel escaped to Gloucester, but his men and castle were captured, and order was temporarily restored in the east. [233] The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle was past its prime by the time of Stephen but is remembered for its striking account of conditions during "the Anarchy". [103] Only a handful of earldoms had existed under Henry I and these had been largely symbolic in nature. The story of Saint Stephen's ordination as a deacon is found in the sixth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, which also recounts the plot against Stephen and the beginning of the trial that resulted in his martyrdom; the seventh chapter But an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS represented more of a gamble. He also worked with space-time singularities. [145] When Matilda advanced to London in an effort to stage her coronation in June, though, she faced an uprising by the local citizens in support of Stephen that forced her to flee to Oxford, uncrowned. Placed into the court of his uncle Henry I of England, Stephen rose in prominence and was granted extensive lands. Though not as well-used or fashionable as it was in its heyday -- it was a Top 25 name from 1946 to 1957 -- it's still a widely used name. [96] These forces were either feudal levies, drawn up by local nobles for a limited period of service during a campaign, or, increasingly, mercenaries, who were expensive but more flexible and often more skilled. [95] Occasionally pitched battles were fought between armies but these were considered highly risky endeavours and were usually avoided by prudent commanders. WebStephen Sharer - Jump In! This threat was backed up by the arrest of the bishops, with the exception of Nigel who had taken refuge in Devizes Castle; the bishop only surrendered after Stephen besieged the castle and threatened to execute Roger le Poer. King (2010), p. 9; Crouch (2002), p. 241. [74], Troubles continued across Stephen's kingdom. [116] The following month, however, the Empress was invited by the Dowager Queen Adeliza to land at Arundel instead, and on 30 September Robert of Gloucester and the Empress arrived in England with 140 knights. [66] An agreement was made under which David would return most of the territory he had taken, with the exception of Carlisle. Henry had increased the authority and capabilities of the central royal administration, often bringing in "new men" to fulfil key positions rather than using the established nobility. (1990) "The End of Stephen's Reign,", Yoshitake, Kenji. Historian R. H. C. Davis's influential biography paints a picture of a weak king: a capable military leader in the field, full of activity and pleasant, but "beneath the surface mistrustful and sly", with poor strategic judgement that ultimately undermined his reign. [200] Bernard then convinced Pope Eugene III to overturn Henry's decision altogether in 1147, deposing William, and appointing Henry Murdac as archbishop instead. He was extremely wealthy, well-mannered and liked by his peers; he was also considered a man capable of firm action. [219] Stephen and Henry sealed the treaty with a kiss of peace in the cathedral. ), king of England from 1135 to 1154. 50m. [244] Stephen's lack of sound policy judgement and his mishandling of international affairs, leading to the loss of Normandy and his consequent inability to win the civil war in England, is also highlighted by another of his biographers, David Crouch. From stephanos. WebStephen Sharer - Jump In! Stephen Hawking, in full Stephen William Hawking, (born January 8, 1942, Oxford, Oxfordshire, Englanddied March 14, 2018, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire), English theoretical physicist whose theory of exploding black holes drew upon both relativity theory and quantum mechanics. [193], In the final years of the war, Stephen began to focus on the issue of his family and the succession. His reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda, whose son, Henry II, succeeded Stephen as the first of the Angevin kings of England. [45] Stephen's elder brother Theobald was further south still, in Blois. [101] Stephen responded to rumours of this plan by escorting Henry himself north, but this gesture proved the final straw for Ranulf. [133] Abandoning the deal he had just made, Stephen gathered his army again and sped north, but not quite fast enoughRanulf escaped Lincoln and declared his support for the Empress. [204] Stephen's preferred option was to have Eustace crowned while he himself was still alive, as was the custom in France, but this was not the normal practice in England, and Celestine II, during his brief tenure as pope between 1143 and 1144, had banned any change to this practice. He stabilised the northern border with Scotland, contained Geoffrey's attacks on Normandy, was at peace with Louis VI, enjoyed good relations with the church and had the broad support of his barons. [149] Many started to leave Stephen's faction. Stephen, also called Stephen Of Blois, (born c. 1097died Oct. 25, 1154, Dover, Kent, Eng. WebStephen Hawking. [70] The Easter court was a lavish event, and a large amount of money was spent on the event itself, clothes and gifts. Baldwin de Redvers crossed over from Normandy to Wareham in August in an initial attempt to capture a port to receive the Empress Matilda's invading army, but Stephen's forces forced him to retreat into the south-west. From Latin Stephanus, from Ancient Greek (Stphanos), from (stphanos, crown, wreath), from (stph, to put round, to surround) . He was also "full of Gods grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people" (Acts 6:8). [91] Robert had tried to convince Theobald to take the throne in 1135; he did not attend Stephen's first court in 1136 and it took several summonses to convince him to attend court at Oxford later that year. [226], After Stephen's death, Henry II succeeded to the throne of England. But an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS represented more of a gamble. [91] A small number of Stephen's household knights were sent north to help the fight against the Scots, where David's forces were defeated later that year at the battle of the Standard in August by the forces of Thurstan, the Archbishop of York. War and Society in Medieval and Early Modern Britain. Stephen was one of the seven men chosen to be responsible over the distribution of food to widows in the early church after a dispute arose and the apostles recognized they needed help. Biblical: Stephen was the first Christian martyr. [196] In 1148, Stephen built the Cluniac Faversham Abbey as a resting place for his family. [20], Finally, the King arranged for Stephen to marry Matilda in 1125, the daughter and only heiress of Eustace III, Count of Boulogne, who owned both the important continental port of Boulogne and vast estates in the north-west and south-east of England. [163] 1143 started precariously for Stephen when he was besieged by Robert of Gloucester at Wilton Castle, an assembly point for royal forces in Herefordshire. (eds) (2000), Round, John H. (1888) "Danegeld and the Finance of Domesday," in Dove, P. E. (ed) (1888), White, Graeme. [1][nb 1] His father was Stephen-Henry, Count of Blois and Chartres, an important French nobleman, and an active crusader, who played only a brief part in Stephen's early life. [39] His wife, Matilda, played a major role in running their vast English estates, which contributed to the couple being the second-richest lay household in the country after the King and Queen. [156] Henry held another church council, which this time reaffirmed Stephen's legitimacy to rule, and a fresh coronation of Stephen and Matilda occurred at Christmas 1141. [61] The extent to which lands and positions should be passed down through hereditary right or by the gift of the King was still uncertain, and tensions concerning this issue had grown during the reign of Henry I. David Crouch argues that in fact it was the royalist weakness in infantry that caused their failure at Lincoln, proposing the city militia was not as capable as Robert's Welsh infantry. 4647; Crouch (2002), p. 252. [153] The Queen appears to have generated genuine sympathy and support from Stephen's more loyal followers. [102], Stephen prepared for the Angevin invasion by creating a number of additional earldoms. [165] On this occasion, however, William Martel, Stephen's steward, made a fierce rear guard effort, allowing Stephen to escape from the battlefield. Stephen Colbert spotted a weird moment involving Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), the newly elected Long Island House member caught in so many lies that his local GOP leaders are calling on him to resign. [220], Stephen's decision to recognise Henry as his heir was, at the time, not necessarily a final solution to the civil war. [133] Stephen returned to London but received news that Ranulf, his brother and their family were relaxing in Lincoln Castle with a minimal guard force, a ripe target for a surprise attack of his own. Crouch (2002), p. 269; White (1998), p. 133. [180] Numerous "adulterine", or unauthorised, castles had been built as bases for local lordsthe chronicler Robert of Torigny complained that as many as 1,115 such castles had been built during the conflict, although this was probably an exaggeration as elsewhere he suggested an alternative figure of 126. Westminster Abbey and its people, c.1050-c.1216. Helmerichs, p. 137; Carpenter, pp. [139] Finally, he was overwhelmed by Robert's men and taken away from the field in custody. [17] The gift of the Honour of Lancaster also followed after it was confiscated by Henry from Roger the Poitevin. It is possible, however, that Stephen had already begun to consider passing over Eustace's claim; historian Edmund King observes that Eustace's claim to the throne was not mentioned in the discussions at Wallingford, for example, and this may have added to his anger. WebThe name Stephen is boy's name of Greek origin meaning "garland, crown". [214] Eustace's death removed an obvious claimant to the throne and was politically convenient for those seeking a permanent peace in England. Weiler, Bjorn. Edmund King disagrees that the Empress received an invitation to. [69] He portrayed himself as the natural successor to Henry's policies, and reconfirmed the existing seven earldoms in the kingdom on their existing holders. (1984) "The Anarchy of King Stephen's Reign". [98] In response to the revolts and invasions, he rapidly undertook several military campaigns, focusing primarily on England rather than Normandy. In 1153, the Empress's son Henry invaded England and built an alliance of powerful regional barons to support his claim for the throne. WebStephen or Steven is a common English first name. [22] Stephen had intended to sail on the same ship but changed his mind at the last moment and got off to await another vessel, either out of concern for overcrowding on board the ship, or because he was suffering from diarrhoea. Theobald was appointed a papal legate in 1151, adding to his authority. 187188. Crouch (2008b), pp. Three hundred passengers embarked on the White Ship to travel from Barfleur in Normandy to England, including the heir to the throne, William Adelin, and many other senior nobles. [18] In 1127, William Clito, a potential claimant to the English throne, seemed likely to become the Count of Flanders; Stephen was sent by the King on a mission to prevent this, and in the aftermath of his successful election, William Clito attacked Stephen's lands in neighbouring Boulogne in retaliation. [231] All of the main chronicler accounts carry significant regional biases in how they portray the disparate events. Opinions vary over the degree to which Stephen's acquisition of power resembled a coup. In return, Stephen confirmed the English possessions of David's son Henry, including the Earldom of Huntingdon. [199] The row between Henry and Bernard grew increasingly personal, and Henry used his authority as legate to appoint his nephew William of York to the post in 1144 only to find that, when Pope Innocent II died in 1145, Bernard was able to get the appointment rejected by Rome.
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