WStephen, often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. A younger son of the Count of Blois, he was Count of Boulogne jure uxoris 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.
WBrother Cadfael's Penance is a medieval mystery novel set in the autumn of 1145 by Ellis Peters. It is the last novel in the Cadfael Chronicles, first published in 1994.
WFaversham Abbey was a Cluniac style monastery immediately to the north-east of the town of Faversham, in Kent, England.
WDeeds of King Stephen or Acts of Stephen or Gesta Regis Stephani is a mid-12th-century English history by an anonymous author about King Stephen of England and his struggles with his cousin, Empress Matilda, also known as the "Empress Maud". It is one of the main sources for this period in the history of England.
WThe Battle of Lincoln, or the First Battle of Lincoln, occurred on 2 February 1141 in Lincoln, England between King Stephen of England and forces loyal to Empress Matilda. Stephen was captured during the battle, imprisoned, and effectively deposed while Matilda ruled for a short time.
WThe Pillars of the Earth is a historical novel by Welsh author Ken Follett published in 1989 about the building of a cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge, England. Set in the 12th century, the novel covers the time between the sinking of the White Ship and the murder of Thomas Becket, but focuses primarily on the Anarchy. The book traces the development of Gothic architecture out of the preceding Romanesque architecture, and the fortunes of the Kingsbridge priory and village against the backdrop of historical events of the time.
WThe Pillars of the Earth is an eight-part 2010 TV miniseries, adapted from Ken Follett's 1989 novel of the same name. It debuted in the U.S. on Starz and in Canada on The Movie Network/Movie Central on July 23, 2010. Its UK premiere was on Channel 4 in October 2010 at 9pm. In 2011, the series was nominated for 3 Golden Globes, including Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, Ian McShane for Best Actor and Hayley Atwell for Best Actress at the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards.
WThe siege of Oxford took place during The Anarchy—a period of civil war following the death of Henry I of England without an heir—in 1142. Fought between his nephew, Stephen of Blois, and his daughter, the Empress Matilda, who had recently been expelled from her base in Westminster and chosen the City of Oxford as her new headquarters. Oxford by now was effectively a regional capital and important in its own right. It was a well-defended city with both rivers and walls protecting it, and was also strategically important as it was at a crossroads between the north, south-east and west of England, and also not far from London.
WThe Treaty of Wallingford, also known as the Treaty of Winchester or the Treaty of Westminster, was an agreement reached in England in the summer of 1153. It effectively ended a civil war known as the Anarchy (1135–54), caused by a dispute over the English crown between King Stephen and his cousin Empress Matilda. The Treaty of Wallingford allowed Stephen to keep the throne until his death, but ensured that he would be succeeded by Matilda's son Henry II.
WThe White Ship was a vessel that sank in the English Channel near the Normandy coast off Barfleur, on 25 November 1120. Only one of approximately 300 people aboard survived, a butcher from Rouen. Those who drowned included William Adelin, the only in-wedlock son and heir of King Henry I of England, his half-sister Matilda of Perche, his half-brother Richard, Richard d'Avranches, 2nd Earl of Chester, and Geoffrey Ridel. William Adelin's death led to a succession crisis and a period of civil war in England from 1135–53 known as the Anarchy.