ABSTRACT
The collapse of Norman supremacy after 1135 is approached here and in chapter 3 from
the viewpoints of the principal belligerents, and it is natural to begin with Stephen’s
waging of war. Traditional accounts tell a simplistic story of almost continuous
incompetence and failure. ‘Neither strategist nor tactician’, runs a typical comment,
‘[Stephen]…was conventional and unimaginative, if not downright stupid’ (Cronne
1970:74). By contrast, John Beeler (1966:157) concluded that ‘in current terminology,
Stephen would have been considered a good corps or divisional commander’. Though
this verdict was given nearly thirty years ago, scarcely any attempt has since been made
to advance the discussion, and a new assessment is long overdue.
