Henry I "Beauclerc" King of ENGLAND

Sources:

The Magna Charta Sureties 1215, Frederick Lewis Weis, additions by WalterLee Sheppard Jr, 5th Edition, 1999, 161-9
Encyclopedia Britannica, Treatise on, Henry I
Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists, 7th Edition, by FrederickLewis Weis, additions by Walter Lee Shippard Jr.,, 262-27, 33a-23
GEDCOM File : ~AT1255.ged

Notes:

                   Henry I was born in the year 1068---a factor he himself regarded ashighly significant, for he was the only son of the Conqueror born afterthe conquest of England, and to Henry this meant he was heir to thethrone. He was not an attractive proposition: he was dissolute to adegree, producing at least a score of bastards; but far worse he wasprone to sadistic cruelty---on one occasion, for example, personallypunishing a rebellious burgher by throwing him from the walls of histown.

At the death of William the Conqueror, Henry was left no lands, merely5,000 pounds of silver. With these he bought lands from his elder brotherRobert Curthose, Duke of Normandy, only to see them taken back again afew years later by Robert, in unholy alliance with his brother WilliamRufus.

Henry could do little to avenge such treatment, but in England he foundnumerous barons who were tired of the exactions and ambitions of theirking. He formed alliances with some of these, notably with the importantde Clare family. He and some of the de Clares were with William Rufus onhis last hunting expedition, and it is thought that the king's death wasthe result of Henry's plotting.

Certainly he moved fast to take advantage of it; leaving Rufus's bodyunattended in the woods, he swooped down on Winchester to take control ofthe treasury. Two days later he was in Westminster, being crowned by theBishop of London. His speed is understandable when one realises that hiselder brother, Robert [Curthose], was returning from the crusade, andclaimed, with good reason, to be the true heir.

Henry showed great good sense in his first actions as King. He arrestedRanulph Flambard, William's tax-gatherer, and recalled Anselm, the exiledArchbishop. Furthermore, he issued a Charter of Liberties which promisedspeedy redress of grievances, and a return to the good government of theConqueror. Putting aside for the moment his many mistresses, he marriedthe sister of the King of Scots, who was descended from the royal line ofWessex; and lest the Norman barons should think him too pro-English inthis action, he changed her name from Edith to Matilda. No one couldclaim that he did not aim to please.

In 1101 Robert Curthose invaded, but Henry met him at Alton, andpersuaded him to go away again by promising him an annuity of 2,000. Hehad no intention of keeping up the payments, but the problem wastemporarily solved.

He now felt strong enough to move against dissident barons who might givetrouble in the future. Chief amongst these was the vicious Robert ofBellême, Earl of Shrewsbury, whom Henry had known for many years as adangerous troublemaker. He set up a number of charges against him in theking's court, making it plain that if he appeared for trial he would beconvicted and imprisoned. Thus Robert and his colleagues were forced intorebellion at a time not of their own choosing, were easily defeated andsent scuttling back to Normandy.

In Normandy Robert Curthose began to wreak his wrath on all connectedwith his brother, thus giving Henry an excellent chance to retaliate withcharges of misgovernment and invade. He made two expeditions in 1104-5,before the great expedition of 1106 on which Robert was defeated at thehour-long battle of Tinchebrai, on the anniversary of Hastings. No onehad expected such an easy victory, but Henry took advantage of the stateof shock resulting from the battle to annex Normandy. Robert wasimprisoned (in some comfort, it be said); he lived on for 28 more years,ending up in Cardiff castle whiling away the long hours learning Welsh.His son William Clito remained a free agent, to plague Henry for most ofthe rest of his reign.

In England the struggle with Anselm over the homage of bishops ran itscourse until the settlement of 1107. In matters of secular governmentlife was more simple: Henry had found a brilliant administrator, Roger ofSalisbury, to act as Justiciar for him. Roger had an inventive mind, akeen grasp of affairs, and the ability to single out young men ofpromise. He quickly built up a highly efficient team of administrators,and established new routines and forms of organisation within which theycould work. To him we owe the Exchequer and its recording system of thePipe Rolls, the circuits of royal justiciars spreading the king's peace,and the attempts at codification of law. Henry's good relationships withhis barons, and with the burgeoning new towns owed much to skilfuladministration. Certainly he was able to gain a larger and more reliablerevenue this way than by the crude extortion his brother had used.

In 1120 came the tragedy of the White Ship. The court was returning toEngland, and the finest ship in the land was filled with its young men,including Henry's son and heir William. Riotously drunk, they tried to gofaster and faster, when suddenly the ship foundered. All hands except abutcher of Rouen were lost, and England was without an heir.

Henry's only legitimate child was Matilda, but she was married to theEmperor Henry V of Germany, and so could not succeed. But in 1125 herhusband died, and Henry brought her home and forced the barons to swearfealty to her---though they did not like the prospect of a woman ruler.Henry then married her to Geoffrey of Anjou, the Normans' traditionalenemy, and the barons were less happy---especially when the newly-wedshad a terrible row, and Geoffrey ordered her out of his lands. In 1131Henry, absolutely determined, forced the barons to swear fealty oncemore, and the fact that they did so is testimoney of his controllingpower. Matilda and Geoffrey were reunited, and in 1133 she produced a sonwhom she named for his grandfather. If only Henry could live on until hisgrandson was old enough to rule, all would be well.

But in 1135, against doctor's orders, he ate a hearty meal of lampreys,got acute indigestion, which turned into fever, and died. He was buriedat his abbey in Reading---some said in a silver coffin, for which therewas an unsuccessful search at the Dissolution. [Source: Who's Who in theMiddle Ages, John Fines, Barnes & Noble Books, New York, 1995]