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Cultural depictions of William the Conqueror

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

William I of England has been depicted in a number of modern works.

In drama, film and television

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William I has appeared as a character in only a few stage and screen productions. The one-act play A Choice of Kings by John Mortimer deals with his deception of Harold after the latter's shipwreck. Julian Glover portrayed him in a 1966 TV adaptation of this play in the ITV Play of the Week series.

William has also been portrayed on screen by Thayer Roberts in the 1955 film Lady Godiva of Coventry, John Carson in the 1965 BBC TV series Hereward the Wake, Alan Dobie in the two-part 1966 BBC TV play Conquest (part of the series Theatre 625), and Michael Gambon in the 1990 TV drama Blood Royal: William the Conqueror.

Films about William's life include the 1982 French/Romanian production "William the Conqueror" (aka Guillaume le Conquérant or Wilhelm Cuceritorul), directed by Sergiu Nicolaescu and Gilles Grangier, where Hervé Bellon played William.[1] The 2015 French production Guillaume, la jeunesse du conquérant (aka William the Conqueror), directed by Fabien Drugeon, focused on William's early life. In this film William was played by Jean-Damien Détouillon.[2]

He has also been portrayed by David Lodge in a 1975 episode of the TV comedy series Carry On Laughing entitled "One in the Eye for Harold" and by James Fleet in the 1999 humorous BBC show The Nearly Complete and Utter History of Everything.

He has been portrayed in the BBC show Horrible Histories by Simon Farnaby up to Series 5 and Kevin Eldon in Series 6.

He will be played by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in the upcoming series King and Conqueror

On radio

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Stephen Dillane played William in the 2001 radio play Bayeux by Simon Armitage and Jeff Young, based on the Bayeux Tapestry.[3]

In literature

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William I has been depicted in historical novels and short stories. They include:[4]

In video games

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William I is a playable character in a few historical scenario settings.

William de Normandie is a playable character in all three instalments of the Crusader Kings franchise. In Crusader Kings, William is only playable when he has already become the King of England. However, in Crusader Kings II and Crusader Kings III, William's (and Harald's) invasion of England can be played out by both the player and the AI. In this scenario, William begins as the Duke of Normandy and vassal of the King of France, at war with England and controlling a large number of special event troops.

In Age of Empires II: The Conquerors, the Battle of Hastings (Battles of the Conquerors) depicts list for an invasion by warship and the Norman knight, bowman, and ax man-in arm on Anglo-Saxons homeland as well Norwegians King Harald Hardraade's defeat at the Battle of Stamford Bridge.

In the 2001 real-time strategy game Empire Earth, some of the early stages of the England campaign portray him from civil war between remaining Norman loyal forces (with support of the French king, who would later turn on William until his reign ended on 4 August 1060) led by the future Duke of Normandy and several rebel Norman barons, led by rebel leader Guy of Brionn in the Battle of Val-ès-Dunes to the future King of England landing in the southern-west part of British Isles.

There is a tutorial campaign about Duke William and his lord-general, a prepared mission for the group of crusaders to conquer the native people of England in Medieval II: Total War, a game of turn-based strategic rounds and real-time tactically oriented battles.

References

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  1. ^ "William the Conqueror (1982)", www.imdb.com [unreliable source?]
  2. ^ "Guillaume, la jeunesse du conquérant", www.imdb.com [unreliable source?]
  3. ^ "Classic Serial:"Bayeux" BBC Radio 4, . Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Nield (1925), p. 25-27
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Baker (1914), p. 12-13
  6. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition(1910-1911), article Sir Charles James Napier
  7. ^ a b Baker (1914), p. 14
  8. ^ Stephen Morillo, The Battle of Hastings: Sources and Interpretations. Boydell & Brewer, 1996 ISBN 0851156193, (p. xi)
  9. ^ Review: Noel Gerson, "The Conqueror's Wife". Publishers Weekly, 1957. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  10. ^ a b Hartman, Donald K. and Sapp, Greg. Historical figures in fiction. Oryx Press, Phoenix, Ariz., 1994. ISBN 9780897747189 (p. 264-265).
  11. ^ Pam Spencer Holley, What Do Young Adults Read Next?: A Reader's Guide to Fiction for Young Adults, Volume 2. Detroit, Gale Research, 1994 ISBN 9780810364493 (p.571)
  12. ^ "Tarr, Judith" in Stableford, Brian M. The A to Z of Fantasy Literature.Lanham (Md.) : Scarecrow Press, 2009. ISBN 9780810868298 (p. 397)
  13. ^ "Review: "Hereward: End of Days" Review by E.M. Powell". Historical Novel Society. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  14. ^ O'Neill, John. "What if King Harold had Prevented the Norman Conquest: After Hastings by Steven H Silver" Black Gate, 12 July 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2021.

Sources

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