Question

When did Stephan recognize Matilda’s son, Henry as his heir?
A) After the death of Matilda
B) After the victory of Matilda over Stephan in the battle of London
C) After the death of Henry I
D) After the death of Stephan’s son in 1153

Answer 1

Hint: King Henry was the King of England and Empress Matilda was his daughter. After Henry’s death, his throne was empty and Stephen and his cousin sister Matilda fueled a civil war in order to take the throne. Stephen succeeded to the throne immediately but the civil war did not end. The civil war due to this family dispute ended after 18 years when Matilda’s son Henry I was recognized as the heir by Stephen himself.

Complete answer:
Now let us look into the given options:
Option A) After the death of Matilda – Empress Matilda, also known as Empress Maude was the Queen of England from 1141 to 1148 and she was the cousin sister of Stephan, who succeeded to King Henry I’s throne after defeating her. Stephan recognized Matilda’s son, Henry as his heir in 1154, but Matilda was still alive during that time. She died in 1167. Therefore, this option is incorrect.

Option B) After the victory of Matilda over Stephan in the battle of London – The Battle of London took place in 1135 and it was actually a civil war between Stephan and his cousin sister Matilda, as both of them wanted the throne of England. He defeated Matilda and himself succeeded to her throne. Matilda’s son Henry was only two years old then and was nowhere in the scene during this time. Therefore, this option is wrong.

Option C) After the death of Henry I – Henry I was the King of England from 1100 to 1135 i.e. before Stephen defeated his sister and succeeded his throne. King Henry, I had caught some disease and on 1st December he died leaving his throne empty, but with many contenders to fight for it. Again, Matilda’s son was not in consideration of succession during this time, as Matilda herself was eyeing the throne. Thus, this option is incorrect.

Option D) After the death of Stephan’s son in 1153 – Stephan had two sons, Eustace and William. He was very concerned about Eustace and wanted him to succeed to his throne. But Eustace died suddenly due to sickness. During this time Matilda’s son Henry was also attempting to invade England and to claim the throne. But Stephen was not ready to fight with him due to the sudden death of his son. He, therefore, ended the family war by agreeing to the Treaty of Winchester and recognized Matilda’s son, Henry II as the successor to his throne. Thus, this is the correct option.

Thus, the correct answer is Option (B) After the death of Stephan’s son in 1153.


Note: Empress Matilda was the daughter of King Henry I of England. She forcefully tried to take the throne from Stephen and almost succeeded. Stephen and Matilda, both had an equally powerful army and support from their people. Thus their collision could not be decisive. In the end, Matilda became the Empress of South-west England and Stephen remained the king of south-east England. The rest of England was left at the hands of the local people.