1120 November 25th. The Sinking of the White Ship.

This article is about the twelfth-century vessel. 

The White Ship sinking

The White Ship (French: la Blanche-Nef) was a vessel that sank in the English Channel near the Normandy coast offBarfleur, on 25 November 1120. Only two of those aboard survived. Those who drowned included William Adelin, the only surviving legitimate son and heir of King Henry I of England. William Adelin's death led to a succession crisis and a period of civil war in England known as the Anarchy

Shipwreck

The White Ship was a new vessel captained by Thomas FitzStephen, whose father Stephen FitzAirard had been captain of the ship Mora for William the Conqueror when he invaded England in 1066. FitzStephen offered his ship to Henry I of England to use it to return to England from Barfleur in Normandy. Henry had already made other arrangements, but allowed many in his retinue to take the White Ship, including his heir, William Adelin; his illegitimate son Richard of Lincoln; his illegitimate daughter Matilda FitzRoy, Countess of Perche; and many other nobles. According to chronicler Orderic Vitalis, the crew asked William Adelin for wine and he supplied it to them in great abundance. By the time the ship was ready to leave there were about 300 people on board although some had disembarked before the ship sailed due to the excessive drinking.

The ship's captain, Thomas FitzStephen, was ordered by the revellers to overtake the king's ship which had already sailed.  The White Ship was fast, of the best construction and had recently been fitted with new materials which made the captain and crew confident they could reach England first. But when it set off in the dark, its port side struck a submerged rock and the ship quickly capsized. William Adelin had got into a small boat and could have escaped but turned back to try to rescue his half-sister, Matilda, when he heard her cries for help. His boat was swamped by others trying to save themselves, and William drowned along with them.According to Orderic Vitalis only two survived by clinging to the rock all night; one was a butcher from Rouen, the second was Geoffrey de l'Aigle. The chronicler further claimed that when Thomas FitzStephen came to the surface after the sinking and learned that William Adelin had not survived, he let himself drown rather than face the King.

The cause of the shipwreck remains uncertain and various stories surround its loss. The most frequently aired version of events is that of a drinking binge by the crew and passengers. When seabound the captain became reckless and dared to try to overtake the King's ship once outside the harbour walls. It is also told that priests were not allowed on board to bless the ship in the customary manner.

Repercussion

Main article: The Anarchy

A direct result of William Adelin's death was the period known as the Anarchy. The White Ship disaster had left Henry I with only one legitimate child, a second daughter namedMatilda. Although Henry I had forced his barons to swear an oath to support Matilda as his heir on several occasions, a 

woman had never ruled in England in her own right. Matilda was also unpopular because she was married to Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, a traditional enemy of England's Norman nobles. Upon Henry's death in 1135, the English barons were reluctant to accept Matilda as queen Regnant.

One of Henry I's male relatives, Stephen of Blois, the king's nephew by his sister Adela, usurped Matilda as well as his older brothers William and Theobald to become king. Stephen had allegedly planned to travel on the White Ship but had disembarked just before it sailed;  Orderic Vitalis attributes this to a sudden bout of diarrhea. 

After Henry I's death, Matilda and her husband Geoffrey of Anjou, the founder of the Plantagenet dynasty, launched a long and devastating war against Stephen and his allies for control of the English throne. The Anarchy dragged from 1135 to 1153 with devastating effect, especially in southern England.