King Of England Beauclerc Henry I

  General Notes:

GEN: He was the youngest son of William the conqueror, born in England. His nic kname, Beaucler, means "good scholar." It was given GEN: to him because of his fine education. He seized the crown in 1100 when hi s brother King William II was killed in a hunting GEN: accident and his brother Robert, Duke of Normandy, who was next in line o f succession, was absent on a crusade. GEN: At his accession, he issued the famous Charter of Liberties, which , ove r a hundred years later, was used as the basis of the GEN: Magna Carta, the foundation of the liberties of the Anglo-Saxon world. H e also favored the church in order to gain its GEN: backing against the claims of his brother Robert to the English throne. GEN: The Charter of Liberties helped gain Henry the support of the nobles. He c onciliated the Englaish, conquered by his father, by GEN: marrying Matilda, who was the daughter of King Malcolm II of Scotland, an d who was descended from the Anglo-Saxon kings. The GEN: support of the common people was assured the by justice he administred thro ugh the King's Court. GEN: His only son, William Aetheling, was drawned in 1120 when the White Ship sa nk in the English Channel. According to legend, the GEN: king never smiled again. The accident left his daughter Matilda, widow o f the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, and his nephew GEN: Stephen contestants for the throne at his death.