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years old, he decided that it was time for him to become Duke of Normandy. His father had England, that was enough. Robert confronted his father and demanded the dukedom. William was not interested; he refused. That demand did not endear Robert to his father, nor to William and Henry, his surviving brothers; the second son, Richard, having been killed by a stag while hunting in the New Forest.
    Predictably, the hostility turned to violence. One evening after dinner there was a ferocious brawl between Robert and his supporters on one side, and his two brothers and their supporters on the other side. Apparently it started when his brothers, probably the worse for drink, dumped stinking liquid on Robert’s head from the gallery. King William stopped the fight, but he refused to punish the pourers of the liquid. Shouting abuse and threats, Robert stormed out, bent on revenge.
    Robert went to Normandy, and with money provided by his mother, he recruited his own army. He attacked Rouen, where his forces were beaten back. Then, Robert went to his father’s enemy, the King of France, and asked for help. King Philip, always jealous of Norman power, sent Robert a contingent of soldiers.
    William was not a man to rest idly, waiting to be attacked. If Robert wanted a fight, he could have it. Having sailed to Normandy, William led his army in battle against Robert, defeating him at Rémalard. Robert withdrew to the east of Normandy, and barricaded himself and his men in the Castle of Gerberoi.
    Charging after his son, William besieged Gerberoi Castle. Three weeks went by, and Robert knew that by waiting any longer, his position would only deteriorate. So Robert and his men rode out of the castle to attack, catching William completely by surprise.
    With William’s army being considerably larger than Robert’s, surprise would not be enough. Robert realised that his best chance of victory would be to kill his father. After William’s death, his army would have nothing to fight for and even better, Robert would be their new ruler. It seemed to be the perfect solution.
    Riding in full armour, Robert made for the centre of the fighting where he found William, and he engaged his father in combat. By now William was nearly 50 years old; Robert gained the upper hand, and he pressed his advantage. Then, with a savage slash at William’s side, Robert injured his father, causing a wound to William’s arm from which he would never fully recover.
    Robert continued the assault, going for the kill. However, William had his senior knights near him, and one of them saw that his king was in danger. That knight, whose name was Toki, attacked Robert, driving him away from his injured father. Now more of William’s men came to his aid and helped him from the field of battle, but not before Toki had been killed.
    William’s forces withdrew. Next, King Philip of France changed sides. With that development, despite victory Robert’s position was no longer promising. It was time to talk.
    The Norman nobles wanted some sort of agreement, as many of them had impatient sons fighting alongside Robert. Yet negotiation would not be easy with Robert having tried to kill his father, the King of England. Despite his reputation of not being clever, Robert dealt with the issue by explaining that he had not realised that the armoured man he was fighting was William, and that as soon as he had recognised his father’s voice he had immediately withdrawn. Toki was not there to contradict him.
    Accepting the excuse, William tried compromise.He offered Robert the dukedom of Normandy, but only on William’s death. Although it was not what he wanted, Robert accepted that it was the best deal available, so he agreed to the bargain and returned to court.
    All was quiet for some time. Then, in 1083, Queen Matilda died in the convent to which she had been sent by William, angry at her for supporting Robert. It provoked the grieving Robert to rebel once more, and he made for