Essay On William The Conqueror

William the Conqueror was the illegitimate son of Robert the Devil. According to tradition, William would not have technically been eligible for any position in the Duchy due to his illegitimate birth. Before Robert left on the crusades he forced his counts to swear fealty to William, should he not return. This was very controversial for the Norman government because William was about 7 or 8 at the time and could not rule properly. Bloody uprisings and civil unrest plagued Normandy because lords were questing for more power and land. This left William with a very complicated predicament; William could do little about it at a young age and was almost murdered several times in his childhood by assassins hired by lords who hoped they could take control of Normandy.

His only real relative he could use to justify his claim was his great Aunt Emma. Now Harold was supposed to be the real king of England after Edwards death, he reigned for over five years, leading England into mass political turmoil and war. By 1060, there was no more rebellion among the Duchy in Normandy. William was now going to turn his full attention to the invasion of England and prepared a mass invasion fleet of hundreds of ships. In1066, the Battle of Hastings, Harold was brutally killed in battle. The Battle of Hastings was a decisive win for William and his forces. By this time, Normandy had gained so much power and prestige that they were nearly independent from France. The war for England was won by William the Conqueror and he was crowned king of England on Christmas Day. The English people were unhappy with Norman rule and revolted relentlessly several times over. William created famines to starve the rebels and punished them greatly by confiscating their land. He built fortifications across the country to ensure he had military power that could be ready to put down revolts at a moment’s notice. He used the uprisings as an excuse to confiscate massive areas of land and enacted new forest