page_title: Stephen, King of England
section_title: Defending the kingdom (1138–39)
hierarchical_section_title: Stephen, King of England / Early reign (1136–39) / Defending the kingdom (1138–39)
caption_attribution_description: Norman. Henry of Scotland, Earl of Northumberland, son of David I of Scotland. 1139-1152. AR Penny (1.18 gm, 10h). Corbridge mint; (H)erebald, moneyer. +hENRICVS •[F RE?], crowned bust right, sceptre before +EREBALD: ON [C]OREB:, cross moline with fleur in each angle within tressure. Mack, "Stephen and the Anarchy 1135-1154," BNJ XXXV (1966), 283 (same obverse die); Boon 12; SCBI 48 (Northern Museums), 1360; North 912; SCBC 1309. Good VF, creased flan, dark toning. Extremely rare coin of the Anarchy. "When Henry I died in 1135 he desired his daughter Matilda (or Maud), married to the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, to succeed him. But Henry's nephew Stephen of Blois, Count of Boulogne, was the quickest to react to news of the king's death and crossed the Channel to claim the throne. Matilda rallied her own supporters and landed in England in 1139, sparking a 15 year civil war, the Period of Anarchy. During this period many of the contesting nobles struck coins in their own names. Matilda's uncle, king David of Scotland, invaded northern England in her support, but was defeated by Stephen at the 'Battle of the Standard" in 1138. To avert further hostilities, Stephen agreed to name David's son Henry Earl of Northumberland, and left the north under nominal Scottish control. Stephen was captured in 1141, but his supporters continued the conflict. In 1153 when Eustace, Stephen's son and heir designate, died, the two sides reached an agreement to end the conflict. Stephen would retain his kingdom for life and in return adopt Matilda's son, Henry Plantagenet, as the new heir."
context_page_description: Stephen, often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death. He was Count of Boulogne from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 1135 until 1144. His reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda, whose son, Henry II, succeeded Stephen as the first of the Angevin kings of England.
  Stephen was born in the County of Blois in central France; his father, Count Stephen-Henry, died while Stephen was still young, and he was brought up by his mother, Adela, daughter of William the Conqueror. Placed into the court of his uncle, Henry I of England, Stephen rose in prominence and was granted extensive lands. He married Matilda of Boulogne, inheriting additional estates in Kent and Boulogne that made the couple one of the wealthiest in England. Stephen narrowly escaped drowning with Henry I's son, William Adelin, in the sinking of the White Ship in 1120; William's death left the succession of the English throne open to challenge.
context_section_description: Stephen was attacked on several fronts during 1138. First, Robert, Earl of Gloucester, rebelled against the King, starting the descent into civil war in England. An illegitimate son of Henry I and the half-brother of the Empress Matilda, Robert was one of the most powerful Anglo-Norman barons, controlling estates in Normandy. He was known for his qualities as a statesman, his military experience, and leadership ability. Robert had tried to convince Theobald to take the throne in 1135; he did not attend Stephen's first court in 1136 and it took several summons to convince him to attend court at Oxford later that year. In 1138, Robert renounced his fealty to Stephen and declared his support for Matilda, triggering a major regional rebellion in Kent and across the south-west of England, although Robert himself remained in Normandy. In France, Geoffrey of Anjou took advantage of the situation by re-invading Normandy. David of Scotland also invaded the north of England once again, announcing that he was supporting the claim of his niece the Empress Matilda to the throne, pushing south into Yorkshire.
  Anglo-Norman warfare during the reign of Stephen was characterised by attritional military campaigns, in which commanders tried to seize key enemy castles in order to allow them to take control of their adversaries' territory and ultimately win a slow, strategic victory. The armies of the period centred on bodies of mounted, armoured knights, supported by infantry and crossbowmen. These forces were either feudal levies, drawn up by local nobles for a limited period of service during a campaign, or, increasingly, mercenaries, who were expensive but more flexible and often more skilled. These armies, however, were ill-suited to besieging castles, whether the older motte-and-bailey designs or the newer, stone-built keeps. Existing siege engines were significantly less powerful than the later trebuchet designs, giving defenders a substantial advantage over attackers. As a result, slow sieges to starve defenders out, or mining operations to undermine walls, tended to be preferred by commanders over direct assaults. Occasionally pitched battles were fought between armies but these were considered highly risky endeavours and were usually avoided by prudent commanders. The cost of warfare had risen considerably in the first part of the 12th century, and adequate supplies of ready cash were increasingly proving important in the success of campaigns.
  Stephen's personal qualities as a military leader focused on his skill in personal combat, his capabilities in siege warfare and a remarkable ability to move military forces quickly over relatively long distances. In response to the revolts and invasions, he rapidly undertook several military campaigns, focusing primarily on England rather than Normandy. His wife Matilda was sent to Kent with ships and resources from Boulogne, with the task of retaking the key port of Dover, under Robert's control. A small number of Stephen's household knights were sent north to help the fight against the Scots, where David's forces were defeated later that year at the battle of the Standard in August by the forces of Thurstan, the Archbishop of York. Despite this victory, however, David still occupied most of the north. Stephen himself went west in an attempt to regain control of Gloucestershire, first striking north into the Welsh Marches, taking Hereford and Shrewsbury, before heading south to Bath. The town of Bristol itself proved too strong for him, and Stephen contented himself with raiding and pillaging the surrounding area. The rebels appear to have expected Robert to intervene with support that year, but he remained in Normandy throughout, trying to persuade the Empress Matilda to invade England herself. Dover finally surrendered to the queen's forces later in the year.
  Stephen's military campaign in England had progressed well, and historian David Crouch describes it as "a military achievement of the first rank". The King took the opportunity of his military advantage to forge a peace agreement with
caption: A Henry of Northumbria silver penny, minted in his own name at Corbridge in Northumberland after his peace deal with Stephen
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