Thesis Statement For William The Conqueror

However, Edward did something very odd—he promised the crown to William, Duke of Normandy—a cousin through Edward’s mother, Emma. This perplexingly odd promise was made even stranger when, according to the Bayeux Tapestry, Harold was shipwrecked off the coast of Normandy and brought to stay at the court of William. There he supposedly swore an unbreakable oath, giving William his loyalty and support in his path to the crown. He returned to England. Yet when the king died, his dying words seemed to be appointing Harold “protector” of England, which was interpreted as “king”. So Harold was named the king, breaking his supposed promise to William. Furious, William invaded England. Freshly crowned, Harold was not only dealing with this Norman threat, but also an invading Norwegian Viking army, led by Harald Hardrada, who, like William, also believed he had a claim to the throne. Harold easily defeated Harald’s forces at the Battle of Stamford Bridge (near York), but then was forced to drive his tired, bedraggled army to Hastings to confront the invading Norman troops. There, at the famed Battle of Hastings, William became William the Conqueror, decisively defeating the English, killing Harold, and winning the crown.

William was a better leader because although Harold had the upper hand in the battle and they were losing, William managed to outwit and defeat the English. In the Bayeux Tapestry there is a scene depicting that in the days preceding the

William 1 had a poor childhood, but a successful king's life.When he was a child, he was being known as "William the Bastard" for his enemy because his parents never get married. When he grows up, he was always very successful and he had a professional and skillful army. The most important business was happening in Norman Dynasty is when William the first ruled the England was the Battle of Hastings.

It is at this time where early transitions and alliances started to pay off. Ancient traditions helped William maintain his ducal authority. Count William of Arques still had to pay homage to the duke. Probably the biggest reason William was able to maintain his authority was due to the Norman relationship with France. King Henry I supported William. Another break for William was the fact that King Henry didn’t take Normandy for himself. He did claim rights over Normandy and placed William under his protection. The King was exercising his rights as overlord to safeguard his kingdom. King Henry didn’t do this completely without any benefit to himself, he did take two fortresses.

At the time of Edward the confessor there were three claimants to the English throne. One of the claimants was Harold’s. He believed he should be on the throne because he was Edward the confessor’s brother; he was born in England and was the most powerful English earl. The next claimant was William duke of Normandy. William believed he should be king because Edward the confessor promised him the throne for his support and Harold swore an oath on holy relics that he would be king. The last claimant to the throne was Harald Hardraada; Harold believed he should be king because there had been Viking kings

To understand William, we have to understand his life. William was born in 1027 to “Robert I, Duke of Normandy, by his concubine Arlette, a tanner’s daughter from the town of Falaise as an illegitimate son” (History.com Staff). This is one of the many factors that came to debate later on as he tries to take the throne since he was born out of an affair. Due to his father’s death, he was named Duke of Normandy at age seven (History.com Staff). Many people were not pleased with the former King’s decision and started many rebellions, all of which William escaped. “In 1051, William visited England and met with his cousin Edward the Confessor, the childless English king. According to Norman historians, Edward promised to make William his heir. On his deathbed, however, Edward granted the

The young man calls himself an English duke while the old man calls himself the dauphin from Louis

After constantly being attacked he was forced to seek king henry of France who molded him and made him to the ruthless leader he was to become. After leaving Normandy for so long, William made his return back in 1047 and asserted his authority destroying all of the rebels after that making the claim as the undisputed Duke of Normandy. William of Normandy matured into a tall man with red hair. During this time The Duke of Normandy went to visit his cousin Edward the confessor, It was during this visit that he would be promised William the kingdom should he die. The true heir was Edgar Atheling who is Edwards great nephew, but he was still a child who knew very little about England, but Edward who was appointed the king in 1042 promised him in that right.

William was born to Robert I of Normandy and Herleva, a woman who lived with Robert I but was lower than a wife, in 1028 (“William I”). In a royal family being the eldest male child gives you direct claim to the throne, and luckily for William he was

The focus on this assignment will be on William the Conqueror who was the king of England, and also the Battle of Hastings. William conquered many countries and won the Battle of Hastings, which then made him King of England. William the conqueror was born in 1028 in a country called Normandy. He became the Duke of Normandy at age 8 after his father (Robert 1, Duke of Normandy) died.

King Charles IV had no heir to the throne as a result of having no male children. King Edward III of England believed he should be king, while the French believed that King Charles IV’s cousin Philip IV should be king. Edward stated that he was the closest heir, due to the fact his mother is the sister of King Charles IV. The French said because King Edward III was connected through a female, he had no right to be king. The quote from Edward

This source also uses the word 'men' to refer to humanity as a plural, where instead, a universal term such as 'people' could be used. It also has a rather victorious perspective, shown by the way that it only lists the positive qualities of William the Conqueror, not once commenting on any flaws he had when he ruled England. It also fails to mention the people unhappy with William the Conqueror claiming the crowns, who were mostly Anglo-Saxon supporters of the previous King of England, Harold II. The writer obviously believes that William the Conqueror was the best king yet, better than any of his predecessors, as he was, in his opinion, honorable, honest, and

land in the north of England after both the Earl and Anne died. He was

King Alfred of Wessex is one of the few to be known as “great”. He was a successful warrior, which eventually brought peace to his people. He placed emphasis on education and improved laws and the legal system. King Alfred improved the living standard of his people. Alfred’s Christian ideals guided him to be a generous monarch. He believed he was entrusted by God to have a genuine responsibility to his country. (Woodcock)

There is a critical difference between the two countries that seems to have heavily contributed to the reason William won, and Harold lost. Although his troops were fighting on their home soil, they simply were not as warlike and aggressive as the Normans, and were doomed to failure.