| Battle of Lincoln | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofThe Anarchy | |||||||
 The Battle of Lincoln in theHistoria Anglorum | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| House of Blois | House of Anjou | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Stephen of Blois (POW) | Robert of Gloucester | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1,250 | 1,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattle of Lincoln, or theFirst Battle of Lincoln, occurred on 2 February 1141 inLincoln, England between KingStephen of England and forces loyal toEmpress Matilda. Stephen was captured during the battle, imprisoned, and effectively deposed while Matilda ruled for a short time.[1][2]
The forces of KingStephen of England had been besiegingLincoln Castle but were themselves attacked by a relief force loyal to Empress Matilda and commanded byRobert, 1st Earl of Gloucester, Matilda's half-brother. The Angevin[clarification needed] army consisted of the divisions of Robert's men, those ofRanulf, Earl of Chester and those disinherited by Stephen, while on the flank was a mass of Welsh troops led byMadog ap Maredudd, Lord of Powys, andCadwaladr ap Gruffydd. Cadwaladr was the brother ofOwain, King of Gwynedd, but Owain did not support any side inthe Anarchy. Stephen's force includedWilliam of Ypres;Simon of Senlis;Gilbert of Hertford;William of Aumale,Alan of Richmond andHugh Bigod but was markedly short of cavalry.
As soon as the battle was joined, the majority of the leading magnates fled the king. Other important magnates captured with the king wereBaldwin fitz Gilbert;Bernard de Balliol,Roger de Mowbray; Richard de Courcy;William Peverel of Nottingham;Gilbert de Gant; Ingelram de Say;Ilbert de Lacy andRichard fitzUrse, all men of respected baronial families; it had only been the Earls who had fled.
Even as the royal troops listened to the exhortations of Stephen's lieutenant, Baldwin fitz Gilbert, the advancing enemy was heard and soon the disinheritedAngevin knights charged the cavalry of the five earls. On the leftEarl William Aumale of York andWilliam Ypres charged and smashed the poorly armed, 'but full of spirits', Welsh division but were themselves in turn routed 'in a moment' by the well-ordered military might of Earl Ranulf who stood out from the mass in 'his bright armour'. The earls, outnumbered and outfought, were soon put to flight and many of their men were killed and captured. King Stephen and his knights were rapidly surrounded by the Angevin force.
Then might you have seen a dreadful aspect of battle, on every quarter around the king's troop fire flashing from the meeting of swords and helmets – a dreadful crash, a terrific clamour – at which the hills re-echoed, the city walls resounded. With horses spurred on, they charged the king's troop, slew some, wounded others, and dragging some away, made them prisoners.
No rest, no breathing time was granted them, except in the quarter where stood that most valiant king, as the foe dreaded the incomparable force of his blows. The earl of Chester, on perceiving this, envying the king his glory, rushed upon him with all the weight of his armed men. Then was seen the might of the king, equal to a thunderbolt, slaying some with his immense battle-axe, and striking others down.
Then arose the shouts afresh, all rushing against him and him against all. At length through the number of the blows, the king's battle-axe was broken asunder. Instantly, with his right hand, drawing his sword, well worthy of a king, he marvellously waged the combat, until the sword as well was broken asunder.
On seeing this William Kahamnes [i.e. William de Keynes],[3] a most powerful knight, rushed upon the king, and seizing him by the helmet, cried with a loud voice, "Hither, all of you come hither! I have taken the king!"
— Roger de Hoveden, writing in the late 12th century[4]
The rest of his division fought on with no hope of escape until all were killed or had surrendered. Baldwin fitz Richard and Richard fitz Urse 'having received many wounds, and, by their determined resistance, having gained immortal honour' were taken prisoner.
After fierce fighting in the city's streets, Stephen's forces were defeated.[1] Stephen himself was captured and taken toBristol, where he was imprisoned. He was subsequently exchanged forRobert of Gloucester, who was later captured in theRout of Winchester the following September. This ended Matilda's brief ascendancy in the wars with Stephen.[2]
The Welsh contingent of the Angevin forces included Maredudd and Cadwgan,[5] two of the five sons of Madog ap Idnerth, who (when he lived) was the ruling prince ofFferllys in theWelsh Marches.[5] Conversely, Stephen was aided by prominentMarcher Lords, likeHugh de Mortimer.[5] Following the Battle, his cause seeming lost, Hugh turned his attention to Fferllys, and invaded its northern parts the following year, killing Cadwgan (and Cadwgan's brother Hywel).[5] In 1146, he invaded the south of Fferllys, and killed Maredudd.[5] Matilda's son,Henry, forced Hugh to surrender his Welsh possessions;[6] Fferllys was divided between Madog's surviving sons,Cadwallon (who receivedMaelienydd) and Einion Clud (who receivedElfael).[5]
This battle is featured in the historical novelThe Pillars of the Earth byKen Follett, and is described almost as it happened, including the capture of King Stephen and his subsequent exchange.
Similarly, it is recounted inWhen Christ and His Saints Slept bySharon Penman.
The Battle of Lincoln is also an important plot element inDead Man's Ransom, a novel in theBrother Cadfael series byEdith Pargeter (writing as Ellis Peters).
An older novel,The Villains of the Piece (akaOath and the Sword), by Graham Shelby, also has a chapter in it describing the First Battle of Lincoln.
The first battle of Lincoln is also represented in the 2021 Microsoft video gameAge of Empires 4 as a campaign mission.