Welcome to the British History Podcast. My name is Jamie and this is episode 438,

Robert's Rebellion. This show is ad-free due to member support,

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One time when I was about six, I got really mad at my parents.

I can't remember what it's about, but I do remember my solution. I decided I was done with this

janky family in their drama and so I was going to run away. I marched into my room

prepared as best as I could with the knowledge that I had, which at this point came almost exclusively from cartoons.

And so I got a big stick, I found a bandana, I tied the cloth into a nap sack at the end of the stick and into that nap sack went some hot wheels, a couple Star Wars action figures, fruit roll up, and because the journey ahead of me was surely going to be a long one, I also put in one of those little cheese and cracker packets where they give you like a plastic spatula to spread the cheese.

So you know all the things that a young man of six would need for a hard life on the road.

And with my supplies secured, I marched out the front door, ready to begin my life as a wanderer. And I made it about to the end of the driveway before I realized I was way in over my head.

As I recall, I spent about an hour at the edge of the front yard, eating snacks and trying

to work out how I was going to walk this whole thing back. And when there was no more cheese, I solemnly stomped

back inside, because it was cold out there, and I was getting hungry. We all have these moments. Childhood isn't exactly dignified,

and the relationships between parents and their children can get tricky.

Fortunately, when the family estate is just a two bedroom ranch in the dodgy end of the city,

well the stakes can only get so high. But when the family estate is a good chunk of

northern France and all of England. Well, then it gets a bit more dicey. And when Robert rode out of his father's encampment on that fateful night in 1078, I'm sure there was an initial period of exhilaration.

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