And Matilda 1141 

Stephen by general agreement is the worst King England ever had. He had no right to the throne which both Stephen and the Barons had agreed with King Henry should go to his only surviving legitimate child, his daughter Matilda. 

Matilda was a snob and an Empress being married to the Holy Roman Emperor Henry 5th. The rivalry between Stephen and Matilda plunged England into civil war. Matilda nominally ruled England for a few months in 1141 but the flamboyant but useless Stephen got the support of the Barons and Matilda eventually retired in Germany. On the death of Henry 5th she married Geoffrey 4th (The Handsome) Count of Anjou a province in France south of Normandy where she produced 3 sons. She agreed with Stephen to end the wars so long as he agreed to her son Henry becoming the next King of England. Hence Henry 2ndfirst of the Plantagenet Dynasty and perhaps the best King England ever had. 
 

Stephen married another Matilda, a woman living in France and related to Malcolm 3rd 
King of Scotland and they produced 5 Children including 3 boys. Stephen also sired 5 children with his long time mistress Dameta of Normandy.

Why was he a bad King?

• He gained popularity through weakness. For example he allowed Barons to build castles on their own land which caused them to always be fighting one another.
• Hence he could never guarantee support from his Barons in his battles with Matilda. Indeed his whole reign was dominated by civil wars and supporters changing sides. Matilda would never have attacked him if it had not been obvious he was weak and useless. In one battle Stephen was captured outside the town of Lincoln by Matilda’s men and Matilda was given the title of “Domina” or Lady of the English. Nobody could see a woman ruling the country as Queen.

After Lincoln Stephen was clapped into irons where Matilda could gloat over him but released some months later in exchange for Matilda’s half brother Robert of Gloucester who had been taken prisoner in a skirmish near Winchester.

Soon Matilda  got tired of constant battles and when Stephens sons died she agreed  with Stephen that he should keep the throne until he died and then her son Henry would inherit the throne.