Herleva
William I the Conqueror's motherWikipedia
2
MENTIONS
2
EPISODES
2
PODCASTS
Search complete. 2 mentions across 2 episodes found for "Herleva".
Oct 23, 2026
2 Bizarre Medieval Mysteries Explained
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24:25JimmyHOST
Eventually Robert gave in, and the brothers clasped hands, made peace, and parted on good terms.
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24:33JimmyHOST
Robert's partner, a woman named Herleva, was from Falaise, and their son William was born there, probably in 1027 or 1028.
J
24:44JimmyHOST
So the future conqueror was born in the very town his father had held against his own brother, something that later chroniclers found poetic.
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24:55JimmyHOST
Richard, meanwhile, had other business, and a charter from January 1027 shows him granting a marriage settlement to a bride named Adela.
William the Conqueror vs. Queen Elizabeth I
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1:26Uncle IanHOST
The king who we know as William I of England, AKA William the Conqueror, born on or about the 8th of November 1028 in Falaise, which is in northeast France, in what was then the Duchy of Normandy.
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1:42Uncle IanHOST
His parents were Duke Robert I of Normandy and Herleva.
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1:49Uncle IanHOST
They were unmarried, hence William was known as William the Bastard then and still.
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1:56Uncle IanHOST
Given that it was a duchy, not a kingdom in Normandy, his illegitimacy wasn't a barrier to him succeeding to the duchy, which he did very early in life.