Stephen, King of England him, Geoffrey of Anjou invaded Normandy again and, in the absence of Waleran of Beaumont, who was still fighting in England, Geoffrey took all the duchy south of the river Seine and east of the river Risle. No help was forthcoming from Stephen's brother Theobald this time either, who appears to have been preoccupied with his own problems with France—the new French king, Louis VII, had rejected his father's regional alliance, improving relations with Anjou and taking a more bellicose line with Theobald, which would result in war the following year. Geoffrey's success in Normandy and Stephen's weakness in England
The History of the Norman Conquest of England periods aimed at a popular readership: "Old English History for Children", a work he had had in mind since before he began the "History of the Norman Conquest", was published in 1869; "A Short History of the Norman Conquest" in 1880; and "William the Conqueror" in 1888. In 1974 J. W. Burrow produced an abridged edition of the "History of the Norman Conquest of England". Freeman was a man of deeply held convictions, which he expounded in the "History of the Norman Conquest" and other works with vigour and enthusiasm. These included the belief, common to many thinkers of his