Inge and the Norwegian king Magnus Barefoot…

Emperor Huizong becomes, at nineteen, the eighth emperor of the Song dynasty in 1101.

At first attempting reforms, he increasingly leaves affairs of state to his minister Cai Jing and other favorites.

Borivoj II, the younger half-brother and successor of Bretislaus II, is opposed in the succession by Duke Oldrich of Brno, his cousin, who had recovered the stronghold originally confiscated from his father.

A civil war ensues.

Oldrich intends to recognize the suzerainty of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, and thereby gain his support, but Borivoj has already been confirmed by the emperor.

Oldrich is eventually forced to flee to Moravia.

The Polish rebel forces are now further directed towards Sieciechów, where the Palatine takes refuge.

Unexpectedly, Prince Wladyslaw comes to the aid of his besieged favorite with a small force.

At this point, the princes decide to depose their father.

The opposition sends Zbigniew with an armed contingent to Masovia, where he is to take control of Plock, while Boleslaw is directed to the South.

The intention is the encirclement of their father, Prince Wladyslaw I.

The Prince predicts this maneuver and sends his forces back to Masovia.

In the environs of Plock, the battle is finally joined and the forces of Wladyslaw I are defeated.

The Prince is hereafter forced to exile Sieciech from the country.

The Palatine leaves Poland around 1100/1101.

He is known to have sojourned in the German lands.

However, he will eventually return to Poland but will never again play any political role.

He may have been blinded.

Peter, according to what is probably a legend, had planned to join on the Crusade of 1101 and make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem at the urging of the monks of San Juan de la Peña, but Pope Paschal II had refused to allow it and ordered him to make war on Zaragoza instead.

Probably aided by knights from France and Catalonia, Peter certainly does make war on Zaragoza in 1101, in a campaign that lasts the whole year.

He may have been inspired by the First Crusaders, since contemporary accounts of the 1101 campaign call him a "cross-bearer" (crucifer).

The size of his forces so impresses a contemporary scribe in León that he remarks in the dating formula of a document of February 12 that "Peter, Aragonese king, with his infinite multitude of armed men, the city of Zaragoza, with Christ's banner, fought".

Peter has by June begun the siege of Zaragoza itself.

For the siege, he has a fortress built named Juslibol (a corruption of the Latin slogan Deus lo volt [”God wills it”] used by the First Crusaders) and rings the city with banners bearing the cross.

In August, he is conducting a razzia (raid) as far south as Alpenes and the river Ebro, but the campaign is eventually aborted due to insufficient cavalry.

By the end of the year he has expanded Aragon and Navarre in the west almost as far as the walls of Zaragoza and …

…Tudela, though the cities both remain in Muslim hands.

Robert Curthose’s Failed Invasion of England and the Treaty of Alton (1100–1101)

Following the death of William Rufus on August 2, 1100, Ranulf Flambard, the notorious financial adviser to both William the Conqueror and William Rufus, encouraged Robert Curthose to claim the English throne. Robert, who was returning from the First Crusade, found himself outmaneuvered by his younger brother Henry, who seized the English crown before Robert could assert his claim. In 1101, Robert launched an invasion to reclaim England but failed due to poor strategy and lack of support, leading to the Treaty of Alton.

The Death of William Rufus and Henry’s Seizure of the Throne (1100)

• William Rufus died in a suspicious hunting accident in the New Forest on August 2, 1100.
• Robert was still returning from the Crusades, giving Henry the perfect opportunity to seize the throne of England before his elder brother could react.
• Henry moved swiftly, securing the royal treasury in Winchester and being crowned King of England on August 5, 1100.
• Meanwhile, Robert, still in Italy, was about to marry a wealthy bride to raise funds to buy back his duchy from Henry.

Robert’s Claim to the English Throne and the Invasion of 1101

• Upon his return to Normandy, Robert was urged by Ranulf Flambard and several Anglo-Norman barons to challenge Henry’s rule based on the short-lived 1087 agreement, which had designated Robert and William Rufus as each other’s heirs.
• In July 1101, Robert landed at Portsmouth with an army, intent on deposing Henry.
• However, Robert’s poor strategy and lack of support among the English nobility weakened his position.
• Unlike Henry, who had won over the English barons, Robert struggled to gain allies, and his invasion tactics were poorly executed.

The Treaty of Alton (1101): Robert’s Surrender

• Rather than engaging in a prolonged conflict, Robert was forced into negotiations with Henry.
• In the Treaty of Alton, Robert renounced his claim to the English throne in exchange for a pension of 3,000 marks a year and Henry’s promise of peace.
• This formally ended Robert’s ambitions for England, leaving him with only the Duchy of Normandy, which he continued to mismanage.

Robert’s Military and Political Failures

• Robert was known as a brilliant field commander but a terrible general, as seen in the First Crusade, where he showed great valor in battle but lacked leadership skills.
• His inability to govern Normandy effectively left the duchy in chaos, while his failed invasion of England demonstrated his lack of strategic acumen.
• Ultimately, Robert’s incompetence in both war and governance led to his eventual downfall at the hands of Henry I, who would conquer Normandy in 1106 at the Battle of Tinchebray.

Conclusion: Henry’s Triumph and Robert’s Decline

• The Treaty of Alton (1101) marked the failure of Robert’s final attempt to claim the English throne, ensuring that Henry I remained king.
• Robert’s poor political and military decision-making weakened his rule, setting the stage for his final defeat in 1106.
• Henry, in contrast, proved himself a far more effective ruler, consolidating Normandy and England under his firm control.

Robert’s 1101 invasion of England was his last major challenge to Henry I, and his defeat and subsequent downfall reflected his lifelong struggle with leadership and strategic planning.

Emperor Henry IV’s Attempt to Seize Flanders and Robert II’s Retaliation (1099–1100)

While Robert II of Flanders was away on the First Crusade (1096–1099), Emperor Henry IV attempted to seize control of imperial Flanders, taking advantage of Robert’s absence to expand imperial influence in the region. Upon Robert’s return from the Holy Land, he swiftly responded, supporting the Commune of Cambrai in their revolt against the emperor and his ally, Bishop Gaulcher, and seizing several castles in retaliation.

Henry IV’s Move Against Flanders (1099)

• With Robert II absent on the First Crusade, Henry IV sought to exert imperial control over parts of Flanders, particularly the imperial fiefs traditionally under Flemish influence.
• Bishop Gaulcher of Cambrai, an ally of Henry IV, acted as the imperial representative, ensuring that Flanders did not fall completely out of the emperor’s grasp.

Robert II’s Return and Response (1099–1100)

• Upon returning to Flanders from the Holy Land in late 1099, Robert II immediately took action to counter Henry IV’s interference.
• He supported the revolt of the Commune of Cambrai, an early example of an urban self-governing movement opposed to feudal or imperial authority.
• The commune’s rebellion targeted Bishop Gaulcher, who had been ruling Cambrai on behalf of the emperor.
• Robert’s forces seized multiple castles, undermining imperial control in the region and reasserting Flemish independence.

Significance and Consequences

• Robert II successfully defended Flemish autonomy, ensuring that Flanders would not become an imperial dependency.
• His support for the Commune of Cambrai reflected the rising power of urban movements in the late 11th century, where cities increasingly resisted feudal and episcopal control.
• The conflict demonstrated ongoing tensions between the Holy Roman Empire and the County of Flanders, as Flemish counts often aligned with France against imperial interests.

Robert II’s swift retaliation against Henry IV’s attempted intervention reaffirmed Flanders’ independence, setting the stage for further conflicts between the empire and the Flemish rulers in the 12th century.

Henry's new regime is established and functioning by early 1101, but many of the Anglo-Norman elite still support Robert, or would be prepared to switch sides if Henry's elder brother appeared likely to gain power in England.

Flambard escapes from the Tower of London in February and crosses the Channel to Normandy, where he injects fresh direction and energy to Robert's attempts to mobilize an invasion force.

The struggle between church and state continues into the spring of 1101, when Baldwin has Daimbert suspended by a papal legate, while later in the year the two disagree on the question of the contribution to be made by the patriarch towards the defense of the Holy Land.

The struggle will end  in 1102 with the deposition of Daimbert.

Calls for reinforcements from the newly established Kingdom of Jerusalem, and Pope Paschal II, successor to Pope Urban II (who had died before learning of the outcome of the crusade that he had called), urge a new expedition.

He has especially urged those who had taken the crusade vow but had never departed, and those who had turned back while on the march.

Some of these people are already scorned at home and face enormous pressure to return to the east; Adela of Blois, wife of Stephen, Count of Blois, who had fled from the Siege of Antioch in 1098, is so ashamed of her husband that she will not permit him to stay at home.

As in the first crusade, the pilgrims and soldiers had not left as a part of one large army, but rather in several groups from various different regions from across Western Europe.

In September 1100, a large group of Lombards had left from Milan.

These are mostly untrained peasants, led by Anselm IV, Archbishop of Milan.

When they reached imperial territory, they had pillaged it recklessly, and Emperor Alexios I had escorted them to a camp outside Constantinople.

This did not satisfy them, and they made their way inside the city where they pillaged the Blachernae palace, even killing Alexios' pet lion.

The Lombards had been quickly ferried across the Bosporus and made their camp at Nicomedia, to wait for reinforcements.

At Nicomedia, they are joined in May 1101 by a smaller but stronger contingent of French, Burgundians, and Germans, under Stephen of Blois, Stephen I, Count of Burgundy, Odo I, Duke of Burgundy, and Conrad, constable of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor.

Joining them at Nicomedia is Raymond IV of Toulouse, who is now in the service of the emperor.

He is appointed overall leader, and an imperial force of Pecheneg mercenaries is sent out with them under the command of General Tzitas.

This group marches out at the end of May, towards Dorylaeum, following the route taken by Raymond and Stephen in 1097 during the First Crusade.