Medieval World: The White Ship

PowerPoint (with 5 slides) that examines the consequences of the White Ship disaster of 1120. The lesson covers King Stephen, Empress Matilda and (briefly) the Anarchy. It also offers an opportunity to consider the issue of gender in medieval Europe.

Activities include

• Starter activity in which students write a definition of illegitimate.
• Analysis of a list of King Henry I’s children to identify why the White Ship disaster presented such a problem.
• Analysis of King Henry’s family tree to identify a suitable heir to the throne (prior knowledge of William Rufus will aid pupils here).
• Discussion of the pros and cons of Henry I’s decision to name Matilda as his heir.
• Source analysis to explain why the reign of King Stephen became known as the Anarchy.
• Analysis of the Treaty of Wallingford to consider who won the civil war.
• Extension on whether Matilda’s gender was the main reason she never ruled England.

Designed for teaching an academically able Key Stage 3 class covering aspects of the Medieval World.
Lesson Length: 1hr depending on pace.

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