Henry I (c. 1068 – 1 December 1135), also known as
Henry Beauclerc, was
King of England from 1100 to his death. Henry was the fourth son of
William the Conqueror and was educated in
Latin and the
liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henry's elder brothers
Robert Curthose and
William Rufus inherited
Normandy and England, respectively, but Henry was left landless. Henry purchased the
County of Cotentin in western Normandy from Robert, but William and Robert deposed him in 1091. Henry gradually rebuilt his power base in the Cotentin and allied himself with William against Robert. Henry was present when William died in a hunting accident in 1100, and he seized the English throne, promising at his coronation to correct many of William's less popular policies. Henry married
Matilda of Scotland but continued to have a large number of mistresses, by whom he had many illegitimate children.