• General Notes

  [SUSANNA KEENE.FTW]
  
  Fatal fall from a horse, died of a burst bowel.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Reigned 1066-1087. Duke of Normandy 1035-1087. Invaded England
  defeated and killed his rival Harold at the Battle of Hastings
  and became King. The Norman conquest of England was completed
  by 1072 aided by the establishment of feudalism under which his
  followers were granted land in return for pledges of service
  and loyalty.  King William was noted for his efficient if harsh
  rule. His administration relied upon Norman and other foreign
  personnel especially Lanfranc Archbishop of Canterbury. In 1085
  started the Domesday Book.
  
  NOTES: William of the House of Normandy; The first Norman King;
  On 28 Sep 1066 William secured the sanction of Pope Alexander
  II for a Norman invasion of England. By 1070 the Norman
  conquest of England was complete. William introduced the
  Continental system of feudalism; by the Oath of Salisbury of
  1086 all landlords swore allegiance to William, thus
  establishing the precedent that a vassal's loyalty to the king
  overrode his fealty to his immediate lord. During a campaign
  against King Philip I of France, William fell from a horse and
  was fatally injured. William was the illegitimate son of Robert
  I, duke of Normandy and Arletta, a tanner's daughter. He is
  sometimes called "William the Bastard".
  
  REF: "Falls the Shadow" Sharon Kay Penman: William requested a
  large number of Jews to move to England after his conquest.
  They spoke Norman & did well under his reign.
  
  REF: British Monarchy Official Website: The victory of William
  I, 'the Conqueror' (reigned 1066-1087) at Hastings and his
  subsequent coronation in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day
  1066 did not give him complete control of England. Remaining
  resistance was, however, severely crushed and castles were
  built to control the country (including a fortress on the site
  of Windsor Castle, and the White Tower at the Tower of London).
  The lands of defeated Saxon nobles were given to William's
  followers in return for military service by a certain number of
  knights, so that the tenants' foremost obligation was
  allegiance to the king. This firmly established the feudal
  system. In 1086, William commissioned the Domesday Book, to
  record land holdings for the
  assessment of taxes and other dues. William spent long periods
  in Normandy to maintain his authority there, dealing with
  rebellions and French invasions.
  William died in 1087 leaving Normandy to his eldest son,
  Robert, and England to his second son, William II Rufus
  (reigned 1087-1100).
  
  REF: "Royal Descents of Famous People" Mark Humphreys:  Steve
  Jones' book "In the Blood: God, Genes, & Destiny" 1996,
  estimates that 25% of the population of Britain is descended
  from William the Conqueror.  Consider you need two parents,
  four grandparents, etc.  Assuming an average of abt 25 years
  per generation, you only need go back to 1200, quite within
  historical times, to need more separate ancestors than the
  population of the world.  Therefor we all must descend from
  cousin marriages, many times over, even within the last few
  hundred years.  Davenport claimed "no people of English descent
  are more distantly related than 30th cousins".

Details of William II the Bastard's family with Matilda (Maud) de Flandre