Throughout the history of England, many conflicts have arisen over the rightful heir to the throne. The most infamous of these conflicts centered on the controversy of a female heir. One was in 1135 during the reign of King Stephen, the other was 415 years later with the death of Henry VIII. These two events changed not only the course of English history, but also changed the minds of a country in regards to gender roles and the crown.
The History of the Norman Kings.
The Reign of Stephen would not be complete without a history of the Norman Conquest. In 1066, William Duke of Normandy defeated Edward the Confessor ending the reigns of the Anglo-Saxon Kings. The Battle of Hastings was fought on Saturday, October 14 from morning until dusk and marked the beginning of the Anglo-Norman era. With William I the newly crowned King of England, the modern age of English monarchy began.
He was tall and extremely fat, with a fierce look and .
a forehead bare of hair, with arms of such strength.
that nobody else could draw his bow, though he himself.
could bend it while his horse was at full gallop. He was.
majestic, whether sitting or standing-though the outward.
swell of his big belly deformed his royal person-of robust.
health and addicted to the pleasures of hunting. .
This description of William I gives him the image of a deity, which would help explain England's immediate acceptance of their new King. For 21 years, William the Conqueror built England into a very dominant country that he handed over to his son, William Rufus.
William II was a man after his father's image. He was very regal in look and very frugal in his spending of royal money. He was very arrogant, and treated people under him with much disrespect.
When he was in public and in large assemblies, he wore.
a haughty look and darted his threatening eyes on those.
around him and with pretend severity and fierce voice he.
He became an extremely powerful leader and had become to take major interest in English affairs. ... Over the next sixteen years they had nine children. ... Harold of Wessex claimed that Edward promised him the throne just before he died on 5th January, 1066. ... This was the only time capitol punishment was inflicted on an English leader. ... During the fighting Matilda convinced the two men to end their feud. ...
This ambition of gaining power and authority over others makes him similar to Doctor Faustus in Marlowe's play, who also sold his soul only to have power for 24 years. ... The bad character of Richard III was seen when he plotted and succeeded in eliminating three heirs to the throne before him, as well as King Edward IV himself (Shakespeare & Crowther 85). This plot was to ensure that he would manage to gain power and that he would ascend the throne. He did it because he was aware that he would not be able to ascend the throne unless his three elder brothers, including Edward IV who was ...
This struggle was for control of the English throne. "In 1455 broke out a series of battles, raids, border fights, feuds, and murders." ... Parliament passed a law where "every lay person over the age of fourteen was to pay four pence." ...
There he finds himself in the middle of the family feud and the families were fighting till the death. ... One of the men claims to be an English duke! And the other man was the late heir to the French throne, which made him a dauphin! ... The duke and dauphin enter the town and claim to be the English brothers. ... Jim is put back in captivity while Tom's aunt goes crazy over Tom's gunshot wound. ...
After they threw 90,000 pounds of English Tea into the Boston harbor in the famed Boston Tea Party, the king was furious because the waste of the tea had cost him a great deal of money (Conroy). ... Many of the people in the colonies considered themselves American, not English and felt that it was necessary to separate from Britain, no matter what the cost. ... The event widely accepted, as the trigger event is the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand; heir to the Austrian throne, by Serb nationalists on 28th June 1914....
After they threw 90,000 pounds of English Tea into the Boston harbor in the famed Boston Tea Party, the king was furious because the waste of the tea had cost him a great deal of money (Conroy). ... Many of the people in the colonies considered themselves American, not English and felt that it was necessary to separate from Britain, no matter what the cost. ... The event widely accepted, as the trigger event is the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand; heir to the Austrian throne, by Serb nationalists on 28th June 1914....