Unfortunately for King Stephen, it wouldn't be long after his coronation that the first signs of disorder would begin to show. It was merely days after that, in January 1136, David I of Scotland invaded the north of England. Pushing south, David captured the castles at Carlisle and Newcastle as well as other key strongholds in the north including Alnwick, Norham and laying siege to Durham castle.
Once news of this invasion reached the king, Stephen headed north and met David in Durham on the 5th February. It was here that the first Treaty of Durham was agreed by the two kings. David would be permitted to hold onto Carlisle and Doncaster, and his son Prince Henry would be made Earl of Huntingdon. In return for this, the strongholds of Norham, Newcastle and Alnwick would be returned to King Stephen, to whom Henry would publicly pledge support.
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| David I of Scotland laid siege to Durham Castle in 1136 |
Meanwhile in Wales, the Welsh victory against the Normans at the battle of Llwchwr, on New Years Day 1136, led to a wide-scale rebellion that would eventually sweep over much of South Wales. In an attempt to pour oil on troubled waters, the king sent a number of men in to deal with the Welsh, but by 1137 these efforts were seemingly abandoned so that Stephen could concentrate on other issues.
With the dispute in the north settled (for now), Stephen headed back down south and held the first royal court of his reign on Easter 1136. This would be a lavish event, with many barons and members of the clergy in attendance - many of whom where granted land by the king during this assembly.
It was during this gathering that the king confirmed many of the promises he had made at the very beginning of his reign. Stephen was able to win the support of the church as he had promised to hand over significant liberties to the clergy.
...out of respect and love of God do grant freedom to the holy church and confirm the reverence due to her
Stephen had also sought to satisfy the opposers of the deeply unpopular laws that made it an offense for individuals to hunt game or disturb vegetation in certain forests. Stephen pledged that he would return these "royal forests" to the status they had held before the reign of Henry I.
With considerable support from the church and nobility, a further boost was given to the king when the pope later that year ratified his accession to the throne. Copies of this ratification were widely circulated in order to legitimize Stephen's reign further.
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| Pope Innocent II ratified Stephen's reign in 1136 |
Robert, Earl of Gloucester was an illegitimate child of Henry I who played an important role in the court of his father. His earldom, which was bestowed upon him by Henry, granted him ownership of a number of castles in the south and he became a powerful figure in England and Normandy during his father's reign. A skilled man both militarily and politically, Robert was a well respected figure in the land. However, in a blow to Stephen, Robert defected to the side of his sister, Empress Matilda in June 1138 and, deserting the king, fled to Normandy with the intent of bringing her back with him in a full scale invasion.
Robert had gained the support of a substantial number of landowners and barons in the south west who began revolting and were able to capture a number of castles there. Stephen sent a campaign led by his wife (also by the name of Matilida) into Kent to take back an important port at Dover, which it did so successfully. The rebels probably expected Robert to return to assist the rebel cause, but he did not - opting to remain in Normandy for the remainder of 1138. Meanwhile, Stephen was able to extinguish much of the rebellion in the west of England with a relatively short military campaign which saw the king recapture a number of strongholds that he had lost, with the exception of Bristol which he was unable to recapture from Robert's men.
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| David I of Scotland took advantage of England's political instability by invading the north several times in the 1130s |
Meanwhile, David had once again invaded the north of England, pledging support to Matilda and attempting to retake the territories that were handed back to England in 1136. Stephen, in a stronger position having effectively dealt with the western rebellions, sent a number of men up north in order to deal with the troublesome scots, which culminated in the Battle of the Standard in August 1138. The English army emerged victorious, with light casualties.
A new peace treaty (Treaty of Durham 1139) was drawn up following the battle. Stephen, knowing that an invasion led by Matilda was probably imminent, did not want to compromise his military integrity by fighting multiple forces at the same time, and so offered David's son Henry the earldom of Northumbria - effectively giving him control of an area that stretched well south of Durham. In exchange for this, peace along the border would be assured.
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| After the Treaty of Durham 1139, Scottish territory reached as far south as the River Tees |
By 1139, Matilda and her husband Geoffrey were mobilising forces ready to cross the channel alongside Robert. In an attempt to strengthen his defence and ensure further loyalty, Stephen granted earldoms in strategic positions to men who he considered to be the most loyal and militarily capable.
Later that year, it was becoming apparent that a large number of senior bishops (who had once belonged to Henry I's royal administration) were beginning to build more castles and expand their militaries. Fearing that they were gearing up to side with Matilda, Stephen summoned Roger, Bishop of Salisbury and his men to court in 1139 where, in an event that the king likely orchestrated himself, a fight broke out between Roger's men and the men of Alan, Earl of Richmond, a noble loyal to Stephen. Following this incident, Roger and his men were forced to give up their castles which significantly reduced their threat.
Shortly after this, in September 1139, Empress Matilda launched her invasion and landed in Arundel, West Sussex alongside Robert of Gloucester, ready to claim her inheritance.
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| Empress Matilda landed in England in September 1139 |
"Doncaster 'is part of Scotland' after 900-year-old administrative error comes to light". Yahoo News UK & Ireland. 27 February 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2014
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