When Rufus became King of England his elder brother Robert ruled Normandy. The English church and English people wanted Robert as king as Rufus was seen to have a ruthless  temperament and the Church did not like his promiscuous homosexual lifestyle.  Nevertheless he consolidated and expanded the boundaries of England into Wales and when the Scottish King Malcolm 3rd  invaded he beat back the Scottish army so decisively that not only did he take back the north western area known as Cumberland but also forced Malcolm to pay homage to him. (Homage in feudal law means to acknowledge as the superior and to pay out some peace money.)

William’s first battle had been in Normandy against his elder brother Robert which ended in a truce when it was agreed that who ever lived the longest would rule the vacant territory. It never come to this because Robert being a religious man was determined to join the First Crusade and to raise money he pledged (pawned) Normandy to William for 10,000 Marks.

William Rufus died out hunting in the New Forest in mysterious circumstances with an arrow in his back. No one knows if it was deliberate or an accident but what is known is that Rufus was very unpopular and that his hunting party disappeared never reporting the “accident” and left the body of the king to be discovered by a Mr Purkiss a local farmer.

Being a homosexual William Rufus left no children.