THE ARRIVAL OF THE ANGEVINS IN NORMANDY (1135–50)

Following the death of Henry I, the ensuing succession crisis and Angevin conquest of Normandy involved the frontier baronage extensively. In two ways the situation along the frontiers of Normandy now changed dramatically. In the east, the removal of the great king of England from the scene defused the tensions along the Franco-Norman frontier, although at his death the Norman barons made immediate provision for its defence. Both Stephen of Blois and Geoffrey of Anjou enjoyed a reasonable understanding with the kings of France in the early years of their respective régimes in Normandy, and so it was not until the late 1140s that the Franco-Norman frontier once more became a focus for tension between the rulers of Normandy and the kings of France. The second change was in the south, where the initial successes of Geoffrey of Anjou, though limited, shifted most of the conflict between the rival claimants away from the borders of Normandy and Maine into the heart of the duchy. More generally, the death of Henry I and the contested succession signalled a relaxation of ducal power that allowed turmoil and disorder to spread across the whole duchy. Hence the political significance of the frontier diminished markedly; with the decline of ducal authority, dispute settlement at the limits of each castellan's power became more common, and Normandy in the late 1130s has much of the character of some other regions of France where the ordre seigneurial prevailed.