Prince William, aka William Ætheling, son of Henry I of England and heir apparent to the throne, died in the White Ship tragedy of 25 November 1120. He was crossing the English Channel from France, but during the night, a drunken helmsman rammed the ship into a rock in the bay. When the ship began to fill with water, William and several friends managed to launch a life-dinghy. At the last minute, William dashed back to rescue his illegitimate half-sister, Matilda FitzRoy, Countess of Perche. When they and several others threw themselves into the small dinghy, it capsized and sank.
Prince William, aka William Ætheling was the son of Henry I of England and heir apparent to the throne who died in the White Ship tragedy of 25 November 1120. The Duke and his companions had been crossing the English Channel from Barfleur in the Blanche-Nef, the swiftest and most modern ship in the royal fleet. William and his party had remained drinking on the shore until after dark, confident that in a fast ship and on the still sea the delay would have no real effect. In the middle of the night the drunken helmsman rammed the ship into a rock in the bay. When the ship began to fill with water, William and several friends managed to launch a life-dinghy. At the last minute, William dashed back to rescue his illegitimate half-sister, Matilda FitzRoy, Countess of Perche. When they and several others threw themselves into the small dinghy, that capsized and sank.
Size: 4215px × 3173px
Location: English Channel
Photo credit: © De Luan / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1120, 12th, 19th, antiquarian, antiquity, art, black, breakers, capsized, century, channel, coast, coastal, crossing, crowded, drawing, england, english, engraving, etching, family, henry, heritage, historic, history, illustration, king, line, lithograph, medieval, monarchy, monochrome, norman, people, prince, reef, rocky, royal, royalty, sailing, sailors, sea, seascape, ship, shipwreck, sketch, son, sunk, tragedy, waves, white, william, woodcut, wreck, Ætheling
