King William II Timeline 1057-1100

King William II was born to William Duke of Normandy and Matilda of Flanders. He was the couple’s third son and fifth child – his elder brothers Robert and Richard and elder sisters Cecilia and Adeliza had been born earlier. He was known as William Rufus due to his red hair.

William’s sister, Constance was born to William Duke of Normandy and Matilda of Flanders.

William’s sister, Adela, was born to William Duke of Normandy and Matilda of Flanders.

William’s sister, Agatha was born to William Duke of Normandy and Matilda of Flanders

William Duke of Normandy was furious when he learned that Harold Godwinson had seized the throne of England after the death of Edward the Confessor. William claimed that Godwinson had sworn on holy relics to support William’s claim to the throne.

William’s sister, Cecilia entered the abbey of the Holy Trinity in Caen as a novice

William Duke of Normandy left Normandy at the head of an invasion fleet bound for England where he was determined to take the throne.

Battle of Hastings
After a battle that lasted all day, William Duke of Normandy, defeated the Saxons. Harold Godwinson was killed. However, the Saxons did not surrender and William had no choice but to subdue the people by force.

Having taken control of the south of England, William’s father was crowned King William I of England in Westminster Abbey.

With much of England now secure, William Rufus, his younger siblings and his mother Matilda went to England. William’s elder brother, Robert Curthose, was left in charge of Normandy.

Matilda was crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey.

William’s brother, Henry, was born in Selby, Yorkshire. He was the first of King William’s children to be born in England.

William’s elder brother, Richard, died while hunting in the New Forest.

William and his younger brother, Henry, upset their elder brother, Robert, by emptying a chamber pot over his head. Robert reacted badly and a fight broke out between the three young men.

King William of England and Duke of Normandy, died. William inherited England while his elder brother Robert inherited Normandy. His younger brother, Henry, inherited a sum of money.

William Rufus was crowned King William II of England in Westminster Abbey.

William’s uncle, Odo of Bayeux, supported by a large number of barons, led a rebellion of against him. The rebels believed that William’s elder brother, Robert, should have inherited both England and Normandy. The rebels made their base at Pevensey Castle but William successfully lay siege to the castle and the rebellion was put down. Odo was banished to Normandy.

William faced continual rebellions in Northumbria and so decided to partition the county into Northumberland, Durham, Yorkshire, Westmoreland and Lancashire in order to make it more manageable.

Archbishop Lanfranc of Canterbury died. Before his death, Anselem of Bec had been acknowledged as successor. However, William decided not to appoint a successor.

William invaded Normandy and managed to take lands from his brother Robert.

Malcolm Canmore of Scotland invaded England in support of Robert Curthose, reaching as far south as Durham.

Treaty of Caen
This treaty agreed a peace between William II and Robert Curthose whereby they both agreed to be each other’s heirs.

After his successful campaign in Normandy William returned to England to deal with Malcolm Canmore’s invasion. The English army marched North but Canmore retreated to Scotland rather than fight. A peace was agreed and Canmore was forced to pay homage to King William II.

William II took Cumbria from Malcolm Canmore and built a castle there.

William was taken ill and believing he was dying appointed Anselem of Bec as Archbishop of Canterbury. The appointment proved to be a disaster for William, who was not dying after all. Bec called for the church to be independent of the monarchy.

Battle of Alnwick
Malcolm Canmore had invaded England again and laid siege to Alnwick. An English force led by Robert Mowbray arrived to relieve the siege and in the subsequent fighting Malcolm Canmore and his son were killed. Malcolm’s brother Donald became King of Scotland.

William quarrelled with Anselem of Bec, Archbishop of Canterbury over the way William conducted himself. William and his favourite, Ranulf Flambard, enjoyed partying and having fun, a pastime he financed by raising taxes and selling church offices.

William invaded Normandy but failed to make any gains.

William faced a new rebellion against his rule. This new rebellion was led by Robert Mowbray. William marched north, defeated Mowbray and imprisoned him.

The Council of Rockingham
This was held to try to settle the ongoing disputes between King William II and Anselem of Bec. The Council was unsuccessful.

The Pope intervened in the dispute between William II and Anselem of Bec. He sent Walter of Albano as Papal Legate to England. The Legate’s remit was to find reconciliation between the King and Archbishop. The Legate managed to find a solution and the two men were reconciled.

Robert Curthose decided to join the first Crusade and in order to raise money for the venture he leased Normandy to William for 10,000 marks.

Odo of Bayeux, William’s uncle, died while on Crusade.

William helped Edgar Aetheling to overthrow Donald III of Scotland.

William and Anselem of Bec had another disagreement. William wanted Anselem to provide him with Knights for a campaign in Wales but the Archbishop refused stating that William had not fulfilled his promise to reform the Church. Anselem then left England for Rome. William confiscated the Archbishop’s lands.

Anselem was still in Rome and attended the Easter Council at St Peter’s Basilica. Pope Urban II announced a ban lay investiture. This meant that church appointments should only be made by Bishops and Archbishos and not by monarchs. The Pope also stated that Church officials should not pay homage to Kings.

William appointed his favourite, Ranulf Flambard as Bishop of Durham.

William II was killed by an arrow while hunting in the New Forest. The arrow was fired by Walter Tirel, one of the party that had accompanied the King. Historians are divided as to whether William’s death was an accident or an assassination.

William’s younger brother, Henry knew that his elder brother Robert was away on crusade and seized the throne as King Henry I of England.