July 1145 A.D. – England

The reign of the first three Norman kings of England had seen the country broadly at peace. But Henry I’s son William had been drowned in the wreck of the White Ship. There were few Norman nobles who wished to be ruled by his daughter Mathilda and her French husband. And so the throne of England passed to Henry’s nephew Stephen in 1135.

However a stable period on the throne eluded King Stephen. He was unable to control his nobles in the same way as his predecessor and uncle, Henry. By 1139, some barons were becoming restless and they found someone to rally round in the person of Mathilda.

The country was plunged into civil war. John Fitzgilbert, the Marshal, was an English noble who had sworn loyalty to the new King when he was first crowned. He was granted the castles of Marlborough and Ludgershall as a reward. But at the start of the war, he decided to switch sides and declared for the Empress Mathilda. It would be the start of a turbulent period in his life. And at the same time, he became father to another boy.