He wasn’t a great king, but he was a good man. At the end, he read the room correctly, recognized the reality of the situation, humbled himself and chose peace. I’d say that’s a fairly wise and compassionate decision.
I would go as far to say, the things you have outlined are what make him a such a great king. Peace and understanding of politics. I feel like he should have been known as King Stephen The Wise.
The bit of Targaryen history referred to as the "The Dance of the Dragons" in "A Song of Ice and Fire" is directly lifted from the real life conflict between Stephen and Matilda.
He has said his book series is inspired by British , history , myths and legends . There are loads of things to point to all through the series and books including the obvious inspiration he took from the war of the roses , also the red wedding is actually taken from Scottish history the real name of the event was the black dinner . He's a clever guy his books are superb
Matilda actually set off for England after hearing of her fathers death however by the time she got to Normandy she realised she was pregnant with her 2/3rd child and decided to wait until after the birth believing that the Barens would stand by their oaths made to her father to support her
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excellent insight on this subject, Stephen and Matilda. i have always wanted to understand this a bit better. i have listened to some in depth research talks on the middle ages which have helped me understand that at this time, nobles were called cowards and lacking motivation if they did not fight for their claims.
Superb! Not only well researched and written...but not even most of my fellow countrymen know how to correctly pronounce, 'Shrewsbury' as indeed you do! I live between 'Bosham' and 'Arundel'..There's a treasure-trove of historical skulduggery from around these parts should you need more!!
I'm an American, but I've always pronounced Shrewsbury something like "SHROWS-bre." For Arundel (as in Anne Arundel County in Maryland), folks over here on the west side of the pond insist it's pronounced like "uh-RUN-dle." I call it "aron-DEL," which is a lot closer to how Lady Anne Arundell, would have pronounced it; alas, I get howls of laughter when I do.
Some of the pronunciations are terrible but that doesn't matter, the video is brilliant, this is the first I have ever seen of yours and I am glad I have watched it 👍 ☺
Yes they are amusing pronunciations at times but I think it adds to the charm but you're right, in no way does it detract from the overall excellence of the series. I really enjoy the fact that an American has taken so much time to produce such a detailed series on English/British monarchical history.
The Kings of England after William the Conqueror were French Dukes, or rather Dukes of Normandy with ancestral lands in France. But it is important to note that France was not a unitary state like today. France than was a province like Normandy, Burgundy, etc. The English kings (French Norman Dukes had go to the continent (France ) to keep and defend their lands. The historic rivalry between England and France stems from this. People in England are mostly in denial as to the impact of French culture on English culture. But it is there to see in law, in government, in the military and of course in language.
"Of course in language"? Wrong. The Normans had to keep English going so they could communicate with the natives. It was English, French and Latin. What you say is not wholly correct.
What a killing the media would've made of it all. Can you imagine having the same headline all the time and just changing the names. "Matilda deposes Stephen..." (or vice versa)
This channel, and another called "Her Remarkable History", are the best channels for history videos. So many important details are discussed in a concise but thorough process. Please keep it up! 😊
Thank you for this detailed vdo. This brings light to the history around King Stephen who is often casted in a darker shade. A man is partially the product of his circumstance nevertheless.
'Stephen of Blah' - yep that pretty much sums him up! On a more serious note - thanks so much for this series. I'm really enjoying learning more about the old royalty of England.
Interesting video thank you 😁 Stephen wanted to build a castle in my neck of the woods but was scared off by an angry Saint-ghost. Shame really, it's beautiful, but wouldn't everywhere be better with a castle 😃
Great story and Stephen's lineage still lives on today in England and in the United States I am a son of stephen And the sons of Stephen have gone on to do great things like be a great leader in the Revolutionary War in Washington's army Probably fighting some of their cousins That came across the pond
Late to the party but would love your take on Matilda. The White Ship disaster made sure to bring ill upon every one in England. It rippled badly through the Anarchy. So many things in history changed because of it. What if Stephen was aboard with his cousins? What if the nobles weren’t incredibly sexist and kept their oaths to Matilda?
GK, true. Matilda could possibly have pulled it off and sent Stephen packing back to Blois (or to Hell) if she had not had such a severe personality and charm deficit. She had an almost unnatural talent for alienating even her supporters.
Whats fascinating about Stephen is that he gave up his sons succession rights to be King! Stephen was a grandson of William the Conqueror and had a coronation. His sons had just as much right as Henry 2. Great job!
Since he stole the throne from the rightful heir by the first place, Henry II had more of a claim than his cousins. Regardless, Stephen's sons were just as exhausted as he was by the end of 20 years of war.
Why shouldn't he give up his kids rights . He had no right to be king in the first place . Stephen was a thief . He stole Matilda's throne . And besides he knew ( considering the weakened state England was in ) , Henry of Anjou , son of Matilda , would have kicked Stephen ass all over the battlefield. If you noticed , I call Stephen , Stephen , and not King Stephen . For I never recognized him as a legitimate king.
Great video. Funny how power and make or break you. It probably broke Stephen because he did not know how to wield it, leaving many barons to make their own power.
@@kelvinkersey5058 Historical fiction is just that. Fiction. Not meant to replace a history book. It is written just fine, though some of the characters are a bit "stock". I bet you're a real hoot at parties.
@@wynstonsmith7194 "Historical fiction is just that. Fiction." True, but it can be a where an interest for something or someone starts. For my part my interest for Stephen of Blois began many years ago with Ellis Peters' romantic stories about the monk Cadfael. And that was most certainly fiction.
@@KingOfTheCapybaras No. His first son died and his second renounced any claim. Of course, that does not preclude any marriage of more obscure relatives down the line having any input, but that is just natural with anyone.
While his sons where worthless his daughter Marie line became part of the Dutchy of Brabant and the County of Holland for a while. the Brabant line daughters married in the France royal family One became the second wife of King Edward I of England while another a wife of King Henry IV of England So yes a tin drop of blood from Stephen remains.
When Henry I died his Daughter Empress Matilda stayed put in Normandy because she was pregnant with her youngest son William and dared not risk a crossing of the Channel to England in her condition.
Matilda probably would have made a good queen as she had had practical experience on ruling a country when she ruled Italy on behalf of the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V while he had to go north to sort out troubles in Germany-this was part of their Italian expedition when they traveled to Rome to be crowned by the pope.
William Shatner used the word "coronated" several times recently when talking about the Stone of Scone in Westminster Abbey and I cringed each time -it should be "crowned."
He was simply too nice for his own good. A firm hand was needed to govern ambitious nobles and he simply did not have it. When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman is a great novel about this period. Also poor Eustace. He grew up thinking that was his crown only to be betrayed by his own father. That must have stung.
@@Curly4000 Wow, thanks for the reply, our schools here in the UK went way back to prehistoric times as infants to juniors through to Saxon times. In high school we learned from Roman times through to the modern day. I'm now 53 so that was a long time ago now for me, some 48 to 38 years ago, I have no idea what they teach these days, or even if they teach the same history or a bastardised alternative history for snowflakes.
'Robert of Gloucester quickly withdrew himself, because the clergy would not crown a bastard' Hmm, well they didn't have a problem crowing William the Bastard, who after his Coronation became William the Conqueror.
Men wore skirts back then, women didn't, women wore dresses not skirts, men also wore tights then too, it seems women stole skirts and tights from men!
Everything that Henery feared that Steven would do, his own daughter did to his beloved kingdom. Had he only known, had the white ship never fallen beneath the waves of the channel, how different would english history have been?
This is a legitimate point. I have found conflicting information on this, but to your point, if "coronated" is considered a word today, it was surely formed based on mass incorrect derivative usage of the word coronation. Crowned should be used moving forward to eliminate any confusion. Cheers
Hé was ruled by the Beaumont brothers and other powerhungry barons. Too weak to make and hold to decisions, hè wanted everybody to like him and was too naïeve to see that hé was manipulated
there has never been an English king of England since Harold lost in 1066. They have been Norman French (Vikings), Tudors were Welsh, Stuarts were Scots< William 3 was Dutch. The present lot are Germans. Oliver Cromwell was English, when we had a republic
@@kelvinkersey5058 I don't agree with that at all. If they were born in England they are English monarchs. If their parents were born overseas then they are half and half but as such as for example Edward VI, Mary I, Elizabeth I, Edward VI, George V, George VI, Elizabeth II are all English born and bred. Foreign great ancestors don't make a difference to that
@@acidmack1041 Stephen's name "of Blois" indicates that he was not born in England. Of the Patronomy of William the Conqueror, the Duchy of Normandy was the more important part over the Kingdom of England at the time.
@@acidmack1041 just a question I'm curious what you say . If two African elephants male and female are moved to Scotland where they have a baby elephant does that make that elephant Scottish ? Keep in mind Scotland has never had elephants roaming around the glens😂
SIGH! Matilda’s claim to the throne was equal to or better than Stephan’s Plus SHE was an Empress!!! Frigging Male Primogeniture led to years and year of war and hardship .SIGH.
WHERE IS QUEEN MATHILDE'S ROLE. SHE IS MISSING AND I'M AFRAID ITS, THEREFORE, AN INACCURANT ACCOUNT OF EARLY KINGS N QUEENS FOLLOWING WILLIAM OF NORMANS INVASION. SO SKIP IT.
Hello. Thanks for the comment. Did you watch the entire video? If you are referring to Stephen's wife, queen Matilda of Boulogne, she is mentioned multiple times in the video. The marriage is referenced at 4:30, her role in the Route of Winchester is referenced at 20:00 and her death and the impact it had on Stephen is mentioned at 25:56. Cheers.
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Please, please, learn a bit of French. (It's the least you could do if you're going to teach about them.) Or-it just occurred to me-you could just do it all with the American English pronunciation you used for Adelin.
En fait, j'apprends le francais maintenant. Je sais que mon francais est tres mauvais, mais c'est tres difficile. J'utilise Duolingo et j'apprends sur le web. Tu parles le francais aussi?
Ha, what if: Stephen took everyone out partying while cronies pulled out a bung or left open a hatch and organized/overloaded the ship with rocks for “ballast”, or perhaps stowing things to make the ship low/ heavy/uneven in the water, knowing it would soon be lower and heavier from the weight of 300+/- sated and wasted people (who wouldn’t notice anything) plus last-minute goods loading - therefore it would take on water OR be too heavy to miss submerged hazards. And then Stevie faked a tummyache, skeddadled off and lived! Neatly taking out some rivals and their supporters, cleaning the board of key players. And whoever survived couldn’t pin it on Stephen as the evidence had sunk!
