William Bigod

William Bigod, the heir to the Norfolk Earldom went down, with the 'White Ship' as she set sail from Normandy, in 1120. The succession of Henry I to the throne of England was secured not only by the mysterious death of 'Rufus' King William 11 but also by the defeat of his eldest brother Robert, known as 'Curthose'. It was said that the crew and passengers had been drinking, whether by perfidy or incompetence, the vessel and all those shining dreams of the 'English Romanesque' were lost. Duke William of Normandy, in becoming King of England, introduced with great vigour the architecture of European society. Assuredly 'William' is the name given to the Bigod heir to honour his families relationship to the William 1 of England and Normandy. William was the greatest man of his age. His contributions to social architecture were profound and genuinely coherent. Norman ties were broken on the ascendancy of Anjou to the English Throne. William's father, Roger Bigod of Norfolk, the 1st Bigod Earl, Ralph de Breuilon (de Breton) being the 1st Earl of the Conquest. Ralph de Breton had made a marriage contract, between Norfolk and Hereford, without the King's consent. A civil war ensued which resulted in the Earldom of Norfolk being given to Roger, William Bigod's father. Roger had been an unknown hearth-knight to the Bishop of Bayeaux. We do not see Roger mentioned at the Conquest. William Bigod is cited in THE KING'S ENGLAND 'Norfolk', by Arthur Mee. Page 365. The Tower of a Norman Lord. South Lopham is considered the finest example, apart from the Cathedral, of Norman Architecture, in the County. William's younger brother Hugh succeeded to the Earldom. Arthur Mee states that Earl Hugh is stained with blood of the subsequent civil war which occurred between King Stephen and the Empress Maude (or rather The Countess of Anjou and Normandy and daughter of Henry 1). This being as Earl Hugh was present at death of King Henry and it was he who declared the King's change of will. There are many factors to question the accuracy of this but certainly Earl Hugh is scapegoat for a situation, in truth, engineered by the thoughtless ambitions of King Henry 1 in so marrying his daughter to the son of Geoffrey (The Fox) of Anjou. The natural enemy of the Norman aristocracy.