William I, King of Normandy

William I born 1258, died 1317, was King of Normandy from 1268 to 1317. William was the son of Henry I, King of Normandy and Maria of Aragon, cousin of King James I of Aragon. William became King in 1268, upon the death of his father.

King of Normandy
William was crowned King of Normandy in 1268 after the death of his father, Henry I, King of Normandy. William was just 10 years old, so his uncle, Thomas, Duke of Brittany became Regent of Normandy. During his early reign, the Kingdom faced revolts in Alexandria and Damietta, which saw costly wars fought in Egypt.

The young King also suffered problems with a number of barons who sought to exploit the young King in order to gain power. In a bid to prevent this, Duke Thomas, created the King's Council, which saw 20 of the most powerful barons assist in ruling the Kingdom.

Norman Civil War
In 1273 the Kings Council became divided and war broke out between the Norman nobles leading to the Norman Civil War. Andrew de Coldein, Duke of Cornouaille, had gathered support from many Breton barons and sought to overthrow the young King and his uncle. De Coldein gained the support of King Phillip III of France, whilst the Royalists gained support from Robert II if Burgundy, King Edward I of England and King James I of Aragon. During the war William was held captive by de Coldein and his uncle killed.

Samuel de Holdene, Duke of Surrey defeated de Coldein and released William from captivity.

Early reign
After the Civil War, William set about executing the rebel barons and distributing there lands to those loyal to him. He retained a deep hatred towards the French who had supported the rebels and sought an alliance with the English by marriage to Eleanor of England in 1284.

Tenth Crusade
In 1290, Pope Nicholas IV called for a Tenth Crusade to the Holy Land to retake Acre. William was the only European monarch to answer the call. The following year, Acre, the last remaining Crusader state fell to the Mamluk's. William departed from Venice on 11 April 1291 with an army numbering 20,000. William landed in Cyprus where he met with Henry II, King of Cyprus and Otto de Grandson, Jaques de Molay and Guillaume de Villaret. Henry II joined with William who were bolstered by the Templars, Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights.

After an 8 year campaign, William was successful in taking the cities of Jerusalem, Acre, Tyre and Ascalon. Through the marriage of his son Nicholas to the daughter of King Henry II of Cyprus and Jerusalem, he secured the territories of the Holy Land to the Norman Kingdom.

Franco-Flemish War
In 1302, William signed an alliance with the County of Flanders and sent an army in support William of Jülich in the Franco-Flemish War opposing the French.

Suppression of the Knights Templar
On Friday, 13 October 1307, hundreds of Templars in France were simultaneously arrested by agents of King Philip the Fair of France, to be later tortured into admitting heresy in the Order. King William sent diplomats to the French and Vatican courts to demand the release Grand Master Jacques de Molay and fellow Templars. Phillip ignored the Norman demands and had many executed, including de Molay in 1314.

Many Templars sought refuge in Normandy and were welcomed by William who continued to oppose the trials held by Phillip and Pope Clement V. In 1315, war was declared on France by the Normans, but was averted when Pope Clement threatened excommunication on William.

Later life
William died in 1317 and his eldest son, Nicholas was crowned King of Normandy.

Issue

 * Nicholas I, King of Normandy, born 1290
 * Matilda
 * Anne
 * Edward