The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I’s Dream

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No wonder the 12th century historian William of Malmesbury wrote of the White Ship, ‘No Ship that ever sailed brought England such disaster. Matilda was an innovator, too, building bridges around London that exist today, and she even introduced the first public lavatories to the capital. Speakers at the annual event have included the authors Bill Bryson, Helen Fielding, Antonia Fraser, and Boris Johnson. The museum was opened to the public in 1998 with all profits going to Diana's Memorial Fund, also set up by Spencer. Contrary to his brothers, his prospects for the future seemed rather dim, but that didn’t stop him from going on a historical ascension to the English throne, becoming one of Europe’s most powerful figures.

The White Ship’ by Charles Spencer Book Review: ‘The White Ship’ by Charles Spencer

Since then, history has spiralled down from a guaranteed part of each student’s curriculum, to a minor discipline that is quickly optional. That said, I'm really glad he wrote this because I probably wouldn't have read a history about this period otherwise. He reported that the section was at least 4m long, though more was thought to be concealed by a boulder.It was clinker-built, meaning that the oak hull planks overlapped each other, and propelled by 50 oarsmen.

The White Ship by Charles Spencer | Waterstones The White Ship by Charles Spencer | Waterstones

In the end the white ship incident is like the climactic event that divides a play into two bits; Henry I’s rise and then the chaos that followed him.EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Mystery as Prince Andrew's favourite club Tramp - which once played host to stars. I imagine that Brits will get more out of this book, or people who already know something about this period in history. The small vessel was soon overturned by other passengers thrashing in the waves, desperate to save themselves. The expected protests and battles by the older brother soon follow but Henry has a more popular following and manages to hang on to the throne though his grasp is frequently challenged. Congregating with the king at the port of Barfleur on that freezing November night was the cream of Anglo-Norman society: three of his children, including the only legitimate male heir to the throne, as well as the flower of the aristocracy, famous knights, and mighty courtiers.

Earl Spencer joins expedition as divers find evidence of Earl Spencer joins expedition as divers find evidence of

Scuba divers who had been hoping to locate the wreck have now reported finding far more than the scattered remnants they had hoped for. In this tale, Spencer takes you the reader on a tour of the timeline of events from William the Conqueror leading up to the tragedy at sea, and the repercussions for the English throne beyond this. The White Ship” is worth reading at this juncture and suggests new information even to those readers familiar with the topic. Taking us back to 1120, it presents us with a narrative which explores the sinking of the titular ship, with members of royal families on-board, and its consequences in relation to the Norman Conquest as well as the decades of civil war that followed.The royal line severed and with no obvious heir to the crown, a civil war of untold violence erupted. This would help to explain Henry’s literacy, which was remarked on at the time, and reflected in his bookish nickname of Henry ‘Beauclerc’. History books have always easily retained the attention of those who already had an interest in their contents, but I think recently there has been a collective realization that they need to offer something more to grasp a wider audience.

The White Ship: Conquest, Anarchy and the Wrecking of Henry I

For instance, Edward the Confessor did not set sail for England as soon as he heard of King Harthacnut’s death in 1042: he’d already been co-ruler there for a year. No ship that ever sailed brought England such disaster,” the chronicler William of Malmesbury wrote of the wrecking of the White Ship, which crashed upon the Quillebeuf rock barely a mile off the Normandy coast on November 25, 1120. This angle has its own merits as a written text but isn’t the initial presented intent and strays from reader expectation. The longboat was quickly swamped as the drowning members of the elite desperately tried to clamber aboard.Naturally, there is a limit to how much information Charles Spencer can share with us in the span of a single book, but in my opinion, he really does make the most of the limited space he has. Everything he had worked for was finally achieved, and he was ready to hand it on to his beloved son, William AEtheling.