The Battle of Wilton was a battle of the civil war in England known as

The Anarchy The Anarchy was a civil war in England and Normandy between 1138 and 1153, which resulted in a widespread breakdown in law and order. The conflict was a war of succession precipitated by the accidental death of William Adelin, the only legiti ...

. It was fought on 1 July 1143The date is from

Gervase of Canterbury Gervase of Canterbury (; Latin: Gervasus Cantuariensis or Gervasius Dorobornensis) (c. 1141 – c. 1210) was an English chronicler. Life If Gervase's brother Thomas, who like himself was a monk of Christ Church, Canterbury, was Thomas of Ma ...

(Davis, p.72n; Crouch, p.207), but Gervase only began writing his chronicle around 1188 (Davis, p.148). The contemporary chronicle ''Gesta Stephani'' dates the battle as being after the siege of

Oxford Castle Oxford Castle is a large, partly ruined medieval castle on the western side of central Oxford in Oxfordshire, England. Most of the original moated, wooden motte and bailey castle was replaced in stone in the late 12th or early 13th century and ...

(Davis, p.72n), which ended in December 1142 (Davis, p.69; Crouch, p.203; Bradbury, p.123). at Wilton in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

. An army under King Stephen was stationed at

Wilton Abbey Wilton Abbey was a Benedictine convent in Wiltshire, England, three miles from Salisbury, probably on the site now occupied by Wilton House. It was active from the early tenth century until 1539. History Foundation Wilton Abbey is first reco ...

, where it was attacked by an army led by Robert Earl of Gloucester. Although King Stephen's army was defeated, the king himself escaped capture.

Background

On 1 January 1127, King Henry I of England designated his daughter, the

Empress Matilda Empress Matilda ( 7 February 110210 September 1167), also known as the Empress Maude, was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war known as the Anarchy. The daughter of King Henry I of England, she moved to Germany as ...

, as heir to the throne. However, when Henry died in 1135, his nephew Stephen of Blois crossed the Channel from Boulogne to England and claimed the throne. He quickly gained the support of London's magnates and the church, and seized control of the treasury at

Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...

. He was crowned king on 22 December 1135. By 1138, Matilda had gathered enough support to challenge Stephen for the throne. Her supporters were led by her half-brother Robert Earl of Gloucester. The ensuing civil war lasted until 6 November 1153 when, by the

Treaty of Wallingford The Treaty of Wallingford, also known as the Treaty of Winchester or the Treaty of Westminster, was an agreement reached in England in the summer of 1153. It effectively ended a civil war known as ''the Anarchy'' (1135–54), caused by a dispute o ...

, Stephen recognised Matilda's son

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

as heir to the throne.

Campaign

By 1142 both sides had become cautious of risking open battle, and the civil war became a war of sieges as each side attempted to capture strongholds held by the other. With Matilda's strongholds mainly confined to

south west England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...

, most of the sieges took place around that area. In 1143, Stephen embarked on a new campaign to strengthen his position in the

west country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...

. He marched on Wareham, the port used by Matilda's party to maintain communications with

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. Wareham was too strongly defended for the king to capture, so he turned towards

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

instead.Davis, p.72; Crouch, p.207. On his way there, he occupied Wilton Abbey while waiting for reinforcements from Winchester.

Battle

While King Stephen was stationed at Wilton, mustering his forces for an attack on Salisbury, Earl Robert mounted a surprise attack at sunset on 1 July 1143.Crouch, p.207 Stephen attempted to break out from the siege, but his army was forced back and dispersed by a cavalry charge from Earl Robert's army. In the darkness, Stephen escaped from the burning abbey while his steward

William Martel William Martel ( fl. 1130–1153) was a steward of the royal households of King Henry I and King Stephen of England. He was castellan of Sherborne Castle until 1143. William Martel was of Norman descent. His grandfather and his uncle were she ...

fought a rearguard action to delay the pursuers. After the battle, Earl Robert's forces looted and burned houses in Wilton.

Aftermath

King Stephen surrendered

Sherborne Castle Sherborne Castle is a 16th-century Tudor mansion southeast of Sherborne in Dorset, England, within the parish of Castleton. It stands in a park which formed a small part of the Digby estate. Old castle Sherborne Old Castle () is the ruin ...

to Earl Robert as ransom for the captured William Martel. Sherborne had been an important strategic outpost for the king in the west country.Davis, p.73 R.H.C. Davis suggested that Stephen was prepared to pay such a heavy ransom because he was keen to avoid his

father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. An adoptive fathe ...

's reputation for deserting his friends (Davis, p.73). As a result of its surrender, Earl Robert's power extended from the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel ( cy, Môr Hafren, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Seve ...

to the south coast of

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

. The civil war settled into a stalemate, with Stephen unable to extend his power into the west country, while Matilda was unable to extend hers beyond that region.Davis, p.95; Crouch, p.207-208, 212-213, 215-216; Poole, p.146; Matthew, p.120.

Notes

References

Bibliography

*Barlow, F. (1999). ''The Feudal Kingdom of England 1042-1216'', Fifth Edition. Harlow, Essex: Longman. *Bradbury, J. (1996). ''Stephen and Matilda: The Civil War of 1139-1153.'' Stroud, Gloucs: Alan Sutton. *Crouch, D. (2000). ''The Reign of King Stephen 1135-1154.'' Harlow, Essex: Longman. *Davis, R.H.C. (1990).''King Stephen'', Third Edition. London and New York: Longman. *Matthew, D. (2002). ''King Stephen.'' London and New York: Hambledon and London. *Poole, A.L. (1955). ''Domesday Book to Magna Carta 1087-1216'', Second Edition. Oxford University Press. {{ISBN, 0-19-821707-2 Wilton Wilton Wilton 1143 in England Wilton, Wiltshire