throne,--Henry's daughter, Matilda (for he left no lawful son), and
his nephew, Stephen. In France the custom of centuries had determined
that the crown should never descend to a female. It was an age when
the sovereign was expected to lead his army in person, and it
certainly was not expedient that a woman should hold a position one of
whose chief duties she could not discharge. This French custom had,
of course, no force in England; but the Norman nobles must have
recognized its reasonableness; or if not, the people did.[1]

[1] Before Henry's death, the baronage had generally sworn to support
Matilda (commonly called the Empress Matilda, or Maud, from her
marriage to the Emperor Henry V of Germany; later, she married
Geoffrey of Anjou). But Stephen, with the help of London and the
Church, declared himself "elected King by the assent of the clergy and
the people." Many of the barons now gave Stephen their support.

Four years after Stephen's accession Matilda landed in England and
claimed the crown. The east of England stood by Stephen, the west by
Matilda. For the sake of promoting discord, and through discord their
own private ends, part of the barons gave their support to Matilda,
while the rest refused, as they said, to "hold their estates under a
distaff." In the absence of the Witan or National Council (S80),
London unanimously chose Stephen King (1135).

The fatal defect in the new King was the absence of executive ability.
Following the example of Henry (S135), he issued two charters or
pledges of good government; but without power to carry them out, they
proved simply waste paper.

140. The Battle of the Standard (1135).