by An Ard Rí and Susan Flantzer © Unofficial Royalty 2012
The House of Normandy ruled England from 1066 when William, Duke of Normandy invaded England and defeated Harold II Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings until 1154.
Burial articles for all the British royal houses can be found at Unofficial Royalty: British Royal Burial Sites
Norman Monarchs
- William I (the Conqueror) – reigned 1066-1087
- William II (William Rufus) – reigned 1087-1100
- Henry I (Henry Beauclerc) – reigned 1100-1135
- Stephen (Stephen of Blois) – reigned 1135-1154
- Matilda (Empress Matilda, Lady of the English) – reigned April 7, 1141-November 1, 1141 (disputed)
An excellent resource: The Royal Tombs of Great Britain by Aidan Dobson, published in 2004.
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All portraits and photos are from Wikipedia unless otherwise noted.
William the Conqueror/William I, King of England (reigned December 25, 1066 – September 9, 1087)
King William I died on September 9, 1087, aged about 59, probably from kidney failure. He was buried in a stone coffin which was placed in a shrine at Saint Etienne’s Abbaye aux Hommes in Caen, Normandy, France. His grave was disturbed several times. In 1522, it was opened on orders of the Pope. French Huguenots desecrated the grave in 1562, leaving only William’s left thigh bone. The thigh bone was buried in a new tomb which was destroyed during the French Revolution. It was later found and reburied under a new grave marker on September 9, 1987, the 900th anniversary of his death.
Stone marking the grave of William I
Matilda of Flanders, Queen of England
Statue of Matilda of Flanders in the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris, France
Matilda died in Caen, Normandy on November 2, 1083, at the age of about 52. She was buried at the Abbaye-aux-Dames (Holy Trinity) in Caen founded by Matilda and William at the time of their marriage. Her tomb was desecrated in 1562 by French Huguenots and her remains were moved to a new tomb in 1702 which was destroyed during the French Revolution. Matilda’s remains were reinterred in 1819 under the original black stone inscribed with her epitaph.
Tomb of Matilda of Flanders – photo from Il Palazzo di Sichelgaita
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William II Rufus, King of England (reigned September 9, 1087– August 2, 1100)
- Unofficial Royalty: King William II Rufus of England
- Unofficial Royalty: Suspicious Death of William II Rufus, King of England
The son of William I, William II Rufus was murdered by an arrow shot on August 2, 1100, while hunting in the New Forest. He was buried at Winchester Cathedral. In 1107, the tower at Winchester Cathedral near William Rufus’ grave collapsed and the presence of William Rufus’ remains was considered to be the cause. Around 1525, the royal remains in Winchester Cathedral were rearranged. William Rufus’ remains were transferred to one of the mortuary chests next to the mortuary chest of King Cnut the Great atop the stone wall around the high altar. In 1642, Winchester Cathedral was sacked by Parliamentary Troops during the English Civil War. The remains in the mortuary chests were scattered around the cathedral. Later the remains were returned to the mortuary chests in no particular order. In 2015, a project to record and analyze the contents of the mortuary chests began.
King Cnut the Great’s mortuary chest atop the wall; Credit – http://www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk/
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Henry I, King of England (reigned August 3, 1100 – December 1, 1135)
Henry I, son of William I, died in Saint-Denis-en-Lyons, Normandy on December 1, 1135. He had fallen ill after eating a number of lampreys against his doctor’s advice. It is possible the cause of death was ptomaine poisoning although an acute gastrointestinal condition such as a perforated ulcer is more likely. Henry’s body was returned to England and was buried in Reading Abbey in Reading, England before the high altar. Eventually, a tomb with a recumbent figure was erected but it was mostly destroyed during Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries. In March of 2015, it was announced that after the successful search for the remains of King Richard III, a search for King Henry I’s remains would be conducted under the ruins of Reading Abbey.
Matilda of Scotland, Queen of England
Matilda was the first wife of Henry I of England. She died when she was about the age of 38 on May 1, 1118, at the Palace of Westminster in London. The place of Matilda’s burial is uncertain. One tradition says that she was buried at Winchester Cathedral in the old monastery and that around 1158, her remains were placed in a mortuary chest which is now lost. Another tradition says Matilda was buried in Westminster Abbey at the entrance of the chapter house and then later reburied to the south of Edward the Confessor’s shrine.
Adeliza of Louvain, Queen of England
Adeliza of Louvain was the second wife of Henry I. After King Henry I’s death, Adeliza went to live at Arundel Castle which was part of her dower lands. In 1138, Adeliza married William d’Aubigny, 1st Earl of Lincoln and 1st Earl of Arundel and the couple had seven children. In 1150, Adeliza left her family and retired to Affligem Abbey in Flemish Brabant (Belgium) near where she grew up. She died at Affligem Abbey on April 23, 1151, at the age of 48, and was buried at the abbey.
Tomb of Adeliza of Louvain
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Stephen, King of England (reigned December 22, 1135 – April 1141; November 1141 – October 25, 1154)
Born Stephen of Blois, he was a grandson of King William I. Henry I intended for his daughter Matilda to succeed him but upon his death, Stephen seized power and was proclaimed king. A long civil war ensued until Stephen recognized Matilda’s son, the future Henry II, as his heir. Stephen died of peritonitis caused by appendicitis at Dover Castle on October 25, 1154, and was buried with his wife Matilda and his son Eustace at the Cluniac Abbey of Faversham in Faversham, Kent, England which was destroyed during King Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries.
Matilda of Boulogne, Queen of England
Matilda of Boulogne died of a fever on May 3, 1152, at Hedingham Castle in Essex, England. She was buried at the Cluniac Abbey of Faversham in Faversham, Kent, England which she and her husband had established. The abbey was destroyed during King Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries.
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Empress Matilda, daughter of King Henry I of England, mother of King Henry II of England (disputed reign as Lady of the English April 7, 1141 – November 1, 1141)
Empress Matilda was the only legitimate surviving child of King Henry I. She first married Heinrich V, Holy Roman Emperor and then Geoffrey, Count of Anjou. Matilda and Geoffrey were the parents of King Henry II. Matilda, aged about 65, died on September 10, 1167, in Rouen, Normandy. She was buried before the high altar of the abbey church of Bec-Hellouinin Le Bec Hellouin, Normandy, France. Her epitaph read: “Great by birth, greater by marriage, greatest in her offspring: here lies Matilda, the daughter, wife, and mother of Henry”. Her tomb was damaged in a fire in 1263 and later restored in 1282, before being destroyed in 1421 by English mercenaries during the Hundred Years War between England and France. In 1684, some of her remains were found and reburied in a new coffin. Matilda’s remains were lost again after the destruction of abbey church by Napoleon’s army but were found once more in 1846, and then reburied at Rouen Cathedral in Rouen, Normandy, France.
Geoffrey V, Count of Anjou, 2nd husband of Empress Matilda and father of Henry II of England
Geoffrey died on September 7, 1151, and was buried at St. Julien’s Cathedral in Le Mans, France. His tomb and remains were lost during the French Revolution.
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