Rebellion of 1088

Since the younger William and his brother Robert were natural rivals, these nobles worried that they could not hope to please both of their lords, and thus ran the risk of losing the favour of one ruler or the other, or both.

They were spread far and wide geographically from Kent, controlled by Bishop Odo, to Northumberland, controlled by Robert de Mowbray, to Gloucestershire and Somerset under Geoffrey de Montbray (Bishop of Coutances), to Norfolk with Roger Bigod, through Shropshire and Sussex and other counties with Roger of Montgomery, and a vast swathe of territory in the south-west, centre and south of England under Count Robert.

If for some reason no response came, they knew they could easily live by plundering neighbouring territories, and thus reduce the kingdom to feudal anarchy, a situation the king would eventually have to address.

Those of William's barons who had remained loyal urged leniency for the rebel barons, Orderic Vitalis says, addressing the king: Odo, previously the richest man in England, was stripped of his belongings and banished to Normandy for life,[8] while his nephew Robert Curthose was allowed to stay in England and keep his estates in Normandy, on the proviso that he recognise William II as king and set aside his claim to the throne.

William de St-Calais, Bishop of Durham, who had abandoned the king's army during the campaign, was tried later in the year, deposed, and exiled to Normandy, but in 1091 returned and was reinstated.