Stephen, King of England win the civil war in England, is also highlighted by another of his biographers, David Crouch. Historian and biographer Edmund King, whilst painting a slightly more positive picture than Davis, also concludes that Stephen, while a stoic, pious and genial leader, was also rarely, if ever, his own man, usually relying upon stronger characters such as his brother or wife. Historian Keith Stringer provides a more positive portrayal of Stephen, arguing that his ultimate failure as king was the result of external pressures on the Norman state, rather than the result of personal failings. Stephen and his reign have been
Joan of England (1335–1348) was a northern ecclesiastical lord, the bishop of Carlisle, who was overpaid by the King because of the high risk involved. It is unknown what happened next. There is no record of Joan's remains being returned to England nor any account of a funeral of any kind. According to medievalist Norman Cantor, in his book "The Last Knight: The Twilight of the Middle Ages and the Birth of the Modern Era" (2004), Joan actually died in Bordeaux, where the mayor, in an effort to arrest the plague, set fire to the port, burning the Plantagenet castle there as well. Joan's