Unit 6. The First Norman Kings

William had three sons. His elder son Robert inherited Normandy, while his second and favourite son William Rufus became the king of England. There are various ideasof how he got his nickname. He was called Rufus, which means "red" either because of the colour of his hair or his face. He was not popular with his subjects, and he had to fight against his two brothers, Robert of Normandy and Henry, who claimed the throne for themselves. While the elder brothers tried to get the English throne Henry supported each of them in turn. In 1091 they had a truce, Normandy was given to William for much money and Robert set off on a crusade to the Holy Land. The crusade was not a success. William confronted the clergy and claimed his power to be higher than the Pope`s. He took the revenue of the monasteries, that enraged Rome. William died rather mysteriously. He was found dead in the forest. William was possibly killed by the courtier Walter Tirol by name, who is considered to have acted by his brother Henry`s order. The king and the knight went hunting and trying to shoot a deer, Tirol killed William.

In 1100 in England William was succeeded by his brother Henry I, who had to lead the struggle against the third brother, Robert of Normandy. Henry prepared for the war, hiring the services of mercenaries and getting support from the king of Scots whose sister he had married. The final battle took place in Tinchbrai 1106, September, 28. Robert lost the battle and spent the rest of his life in prison. Henry I (1068-1135) was a powerful ruler. He was quite popular with his subjects. In his childhood he was given the nickname "Beau Clerk" (a good scholar) as he was fond of learning. His other nickname, given in his later years was "the Lion of Justice". He reorganized the courts, the duties of the king`s offices were rearranged and a new body of advisers was created. It was called the King`s Court. He restored the property of many of the Saxon nobility, by which he tried to find balance between the old and the new aristocracy and restrain the latter.

Henry had a son and a daughter. His son, Prince William, was drowned in 1120, when the king and his courtiers were returning from France. The king had put a truce with the French king and married the daughter of one of the French noblemen. The prince was sailing on a separate ship, which was called "White Ship". He had an escort of more than 100 men and his half-sister aboard. The ship was driven to cliffs and sank. The prince had a chance to save his life in a small boat, but returned to save his sister and some friends. The boat capsized and all the people died except the captain of the ship and a butcher. The captain committed suicide when he learnt about William`s death, and the butcher was the man whose evidence we know now. They were afraid to inform the king about his heir`s death, finally a little boy was sent to him. The king fainted and though he survived he was said never to smile again.

Read the text, translate it into Russian.

Memorize the words, answer the questions:

revenue -доходы	What does “Rufus” mean in English?
nobility - дворянство	How did Henry behave during the war between his brothers?
restrain - сдерживать	What did Henry I establish?
commit suicide - совершать самоубийство	Why were the subjects afraid to inform Henry about his son`s death?
evidence - свидетельство	Why didn`t Henry smile again?
cliff – скала, утес	How can you characterize Prince William`s behavior during the shipwreck?
survive - выживать