known as Henry Beauclerc (French: "Good Scholar")
born 1069
died Dec. 1, 1135, Lyons-la-Forêt, Normandy
King of England (110035) and ruler of Normandy (110635).
The youngest son of William I , he became king on the death of William II . His eldest brother, Robert Curthose ( Robert II ), returned from the First Crusade to claim the English throne in 1101; Henry placated him by giving him Normandy, but Robert ruled it badly, and in 1106 Henry seized Normandy and imprisoned his brother. Henry quarreled with Anselm of Canterbury over the issue of investiture (see Investiture Controversy ), but they were reconciled in 1107. He maintained control of Normandy, despite attacks by Robert's son, and named his daughter Matilda his heir.
Henry I, miniature from a 14th-century manuscript; in the British Library (Cottonian Claud D11 45 ...
By permission of the British Library