English Baronial Rebellions

Timeline

1. 1136–1138Welsh Marches · WalesAfter Stephen's accession the Welsh rose up, and Owain Gwynedd and Cadwaladr raided the Marches. In 1136 Ranulf, Earl of Chester was defeated in Wales. Meanwhile Robert of Gloucester, though a confidant of Stephen, grew estranged over a succession dispute and in 1138 openly declared for Matilda, becoming the opposition's military leader.
2. 1139South-central England · EnglandAfter Stephen arrested the bishops in 1139, Roger le Poer rose and seized Wareham Castle. Ranulf, Earl of Chester also rebelled against the king and allied with the Welsh. After Matilda landed, nobles of the southwest and midlands chose sides, with Geoffrey de Mandeville and others shifting back and forth, and private war and castle-building flourished.
3. 1140England · EnglandBy 1140 unauthorized (adulterine) castles proliferated across England; barons controlled localities by force, levied taxes privately, and administered justice themselves. Royal authority existed in name only, the countryside was ravaged by war, and the Peterborough Chronicle said 'God and his saints slept.' Baronial rebellion turned the Anarchy from a succession struggle into systemic political collapse.