House of Blois chose a wife from the House of Champagne (Adela of Champagne) as a counterpoise to Angevin power. The senior line of the House of Blois became extinct with the death of Joan I of Navarre, wife of Philip IV of France, in 1305. Champagne and Navarre passed to the Capetian dynasty. King Stephen I of England, 1135–1154, was both a member of the House of Blois and the last Anglo-Norman King, being the grandson of William the Conqueror through his daughter Adela of Normandy. A branch of the family was established in Sancerre by Stephen I of Sancerre, a younger
Cultural depictions of Stephen, King of England Cultural depictions of Stephen, King of England King Stephen of England (c. 1092/6 – 25 October 1154) was a grandson of William the Conqueror, and has been depicted in various cultural works. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne "jure uxoris". His reign was marked by civil war with his cousin and rival the Empress Matilda, in a period called the Anarchy which has been dramatized by Beth Flintoff in her play "Matilda the Empress", first performed in November 2017 at St James's Church, Reading. Stephen was succeeded by Matilda's son,