On a Tall White Ship
(second edition)
England was without rest. The Angles, the Saxons, and the Danes had invaded them one after the other, none relenting in their might. Then came the Normans, brutal conquers lead by a man so cunning that it only seems right to call him the Bastard. When he died he divides his lands amongst his two sons, William and Robert, and left the other with only an inheritance of cash, Henry.
The eldest, William II, would die unexpectedly, leaving the throne empty. With Robert on crusade, Henry quickly secured his brother’s land. With England in hand, Henry looked jealously at Robert’s Duchy of Normandy, and succeeded in prying it away from Robert’s grasp.
With all of his father’s inheritance, Henry settled down to rule England and Normandy. England for the first time in a long while was at peace. But like many other peaces, it would only last until his death.
In 1120 his only legitimate heir, a man also named William, died while traveling aboard a ship. He would die bravely attempting to save his illegitimate half-sister. Isabella, his wife, would go on to become a nun.
Henry, without an heir, turned the nobles of Normandy and England and made them promise to submit to his only other legitimate child, a girl named Maud. Maud, the former Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, however was betrayed by the nobles, again bringing war. Rather than be ruled by a woman, the nobles turned to Stephen of Blois.
War erupted between the two, with each jockeying for position. Maud married Geoffrey of Anjou, known as the Plantagenet or the Handsome, who himself was ruling over the counties of Maine and Anjou. They swiftly conquered Normandy, though neither Maud nor Stephen could contend with the anarchy of England. Stephen and Maud growing weary came to a compromise which left Stephen on the throne, but made her son the heir to the throne.
They turned the reigns over to Henry II, one of England’s, nay Europe’s, greatest kings! Henry’s assumption of the Kingdom would mark the start in the next sage of England’s turbulent history, the Plantagenet Dynasty!
However England could have had an heir that didn’t have to struggle for his throne. Instead of Stephen of Blois, or Henry II, they could have had a William III. A Norman, yes, but a Norman that could claim his throne in peace!
I give you that world! A world without the White Ship Diaster!
(second edition)
England was without rest. The Angles, the Saxons, and the Danes had invaded them one after the other, none relenting in their might. Then came the Normans, brutal conquers lead by a man so cunning that it only seems right to call him the Bastard. When he died he divides his lands amongst his two sons, William and Robert, and left the other with only an inheritance of cash, Henry.
The eldest, William II, would die unexpectedly, leaving the throne empty. With Robert on crusade, Henry quickly secured his brother’s land. With England in hand, Henry looked jealously at Robert’s Duchy of Normandy, and succeeded in prying it away from Robert’s grasp.
With all of his father’s inheritance, Henry settled down to rule England and Normandy. England for the first time in a long while was at peace. But like many other peaces, it would only last until his death.
In 1120 his only legitimate heir, a man also named William, died while traveling aboard a ship. He would die bravely attempting to save his illegitimate half-sister. Isabella, his wife, would go on to become a nun.
Henry, without an heir, turned the nobles of Normandy and England and made them promise to submit to his only other legitimate child, a girl named Maud. Maud, the former Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, however was betrayed by the nobles, again bringing war. Rather than be ruled by a woman, the nobles turned to Stephen of Blois.
War erupted between the two, with each jockeying for position. Maud married Geoffrey of Anjou, known as the Plantagenet or the Handsome, who himself was ruling over the counties of Maine and Anjou. They swiftly conquered Normandy, though neither Maud nor Stephen could contend with the anarchy of England. Stephen and Maud growing weary came to a compromise which left Stephen on the throne, but made her son the heir to the throne.
They turned the reigns over to Henry II, one of England’s, nay Europe’s, greatest kings! Henry’s assumption of the Kingdom would mark the start in the next sage of England’s turbulent history, the Plantagenet Dynasty!
However England could have had an heir that didn’t have to struggle for his throne. Instead of Stephen of Blois, or Henry II, they could have had a William III. A Norman, yes, but a Norman that could claim his throne in peace!
I give you that world! A world without the White Ship Diaster!
