William the Conqueror

Interesting read!

William the Conqueror is perhaps one of the best known of the old ruling kings of England, yet oftentimes the lay person seems to only know that he conquered England and ruled Normandy, and perhaps that he was a bastard. William was so much more of a complex person and his important rule over Normandy and England had huge, far reaching implications. William came in to his rule young and through force and will he was able to take a hold of his claim on Normandy and solidify his holdings. Bates does wonderfully in analyzing William's Normandy before he had any thoughts of invading England. You see a shrewd man who was a calculating general who continually thwarted his enemies in battle. His eventual invasion of England, as Bates showed, was a huge undertaking that also had luck on his side as Harold was off fighting another invasion in the north. The combination of his forces and Harold's depleted forces made for a decisive victory and a new King of England. What I learned most from Bates was about William's personality. Bates shows how forceful he was in enforcing his rule by displacing the nobility with Normans loyal to him and thus changing the history of England irrevocably. Even more telling was how William handled the church. When the Pope tried to enforce his will in William's land he was absolutely unsuccessful since William took the stance that he had complete control over the church in his lands and dictated who was appointed the various bishoprics and so on. This was fascinating to me because, even though the church was still securing its power base, I had assumed that their foothold in Normandy and England was more secure. Not so with William. The nobility and the church yielded to his iron will. Bates does wonderfully in showing the true character of William both pre-England as well as post-England. A recommend to those interested in William or this time period. 4 stars.

William the Conqueror was an ambitious political leader who was the driving force of the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Scholar David Bates' new biography WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR documents the man's achievements in Normandy and England, examining these successes in light of European history as a whole. A 'must' for any student of the era.