Ralph de Gael, the Earl of Norfolk, and Roger de Breteuil, the Earl of Hereford, conspire in the "Revolt of the Earls" to overthrow William during his absence in 1074.

Ralph is at least part Breton and had spent most of his life prior to 1066 in Brittany, where he still has lands.

Roger is a Norman, son of William fitzOsbern, but had inherited less authority than his father had held.

Ralph's authority seems also to have been less than his predecessors in the earldom, and this is likely the cause of the revolt.

The exact reason for the rebellion is unclear, but it is launched at the wedding of Ralph to a relative of Roger, held at Exning, despite the king's refusal (in his absence—he has been in Normandy since 1073) to sanction the marriage between Emma (daughter of William Fitzosbern, first Earl of Hereford and Adelissa de Tosny) and Ralph de Guader, Earl of East Anglia.

Another earl, Waltheof, although one of William's favorites, is also involved, and there are some Breton lords who are ready to rebel in support of Ralph and Roger.

Ralph also requests Danish aid.

William remains in Normandy while his men in England subdue the revolt.

Waltheof soon loses heart and confesses the conspiracy to Archbishop of Canterbury Lanfranc, who urges Earl Roger to return to his allegiance, and finally excommunicates him and his adherents, and then to William, who is in Normandy.

Roger, who is to bring his force from the west to join Ralph, is unable to leave his stronghold in Herefordshire because of efforts by Wulfstan, the Bishop of Worcester, and Æthelwig, the Abbot of Evesham, who have brought the Worcestershire fyrd into the field against him, holding him in check at the River Severn.

Ralph has meanwhile encountered a much superior force under the warrior bishops Odo of Bayeux and Geoffrey de Montbray (the latter orders that all rebels should have their right foot cut off) near Cambridge and retreats hurriedly to Norwich, hotly pursued by the royal army.

Ralph is bottled up in Norwich Castle by the combined efforts of Odo, Geoffrey, Richard fitzGilbert, and William de Warenne.

Ralph eventually leaves Norwich in the control of his wife and leaves England, finally ending up in Brittany.

Norwich is besieged and surrenders, with the garrison allowed to go to Brittany.

Meanwhile, the Danish king's brother, Cnut, has finally arrived in England with a fleet of two hundred ships, but he is too late as Norwich has already surrendered.

The Danes then raid along the coast before returning home.

Odo of Bayeux had became Earl of Kent in 1067, and for some years he has been a trusted royal minister.

On some occasions when William is absent (back in Normandy), he has served as de facto regent of England, and at times he led the royal forces against rebellions (e.g., the Revolt of the Earls): the precise sphere of his powers is not certain, however.

There are also other occasions when he accompanied William back to Normandy.

During this time Odo has acquired vast estates in England, larger in extent than any one except the king: he has land in twenty-three counties, primarily in the south east and in East Anglia.

Several years after the invasion, Archbishop Lanfranc, having in 1070 succeeded to the see of Canterbury, requests an inquiry into the activities of Odo (and Lanfranc's predecessor, Stigand) who has allegedly defrauded the Diocese of Canterbury (and possibly the Crown) during his tenure as Earl of Kent.

Lanfranc demands that the matter be settled by the nobles of Kent and William I orders that an assembly be formed at Penenden Heath (today a suburb of Maidstone) for the purpose.

Various prominent figures in the country at the time are called, including Geoffrey de Montbray, bishop of Coutances (who represented the King), Lanfranc (for the Church), Odo de Bayeux (defending himself), Arnost bishop of Rochester, Æthelric II bishop of Chichester (an elderly bishop regarded as the authority on the laws of the realm), Richard de Tunibridge, Hugh de Montfort, William de Arsic, Hamo Vicecomes and many others.

Precisely when the inquiry was held is unclear although many historians have determined it to be between 1075 and 1077.

The trial itself lasts three days and ends in the partial recovery of properties for the church from Odo and others.

The trial is the first indictment of Odo of Bayeux, perhaps setting sufficient precedent for him to be stripped of his properties entirely in 1082 and imprisoned for five years following further challenges to his wealth and powers.

William Rufus is the third of four sons born to William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders, the eldest being Robert Curthose, the second Richard, and the youngest Henry.

His exact date of birth is unknown, but it was some time between the years 1056 and 1060.

William had succeeded to the throne of England on his father's death, but Robert had inherited Normandy.

Richard had died around 1075 while hunting in the New Forest.

William has five or six sisters.

The existence of sisters Adeliza and Matilda is not absolutely certain, but four sisters are more securely attested as being: Adela, who between 1080 and 1083 had married the Count of Blois; Cecily, who became a nun; Agatha, who died before marriage; and Constance, who married the Duke of Brittany.

Relations between the three sons of William I were recorded to have been strained.

William's contemporary, chronicler Orderic Vitalis, wrote about an incident that took place at L'Aigle, in 1077 or 1078: William and Henry, having grown bored with casting dice, decided to make mischief by emptying a chamber pot onto their brother Robert from an upper gallery, thus infuriating and shaming him.

A brawl broke out, and their father was forced to intercede to restore order.

According to William of Malmesbury, William Rufus was "well set; his complexion florid, his hair yellow; of open countenance; different colored eyes, varying with certain glittering specks; of astonishing strength, though not very tall, and his belly rather projecting."

The division of William the Conqueror's lands into two parts presents a dilemma for those nobles who hold land on both sides of the waterway of the English Channel.

Since the younger William and his brother Robert are natural rivals, these nobles worry that they cannot hope to please both of their lords, and thus run the risk of losing the favor of one ruler or the other, or both.

The only solution, as they see it, is to unite England and Normandy once more under one ruler.

The pursuit of this aim leads them to revolt against William in favor of Robert in the Rebellion of 1088, under the leadership of two half-brothers of William the Conqueror: the powerful Bishop Odo of Bayeux, and Robert, Count of Mortain, with Odo the stronger of the two and the leader behind the plot.

Among the king's initial supporters are all the bishops of England, a few major magnates including Alan Rufus (in the east of England north of London up to Yorkshire), William de Warenne (from Sussex to Yorkshire) and Hugh of Avranches (in the west, around Cheshire), and lesser tenants-in-chief such as Robert Fitzhamon and Walter D'Aincourt.

However, the rebels' ranks are made up many of the most powerful barons in England: of the ten largest baronial landholders in the Domesday Book, six are counted among the rebels.

They are spread far and wide geographically from Kent, controlled by Bishop Odo, to Northumberland, controlled by Robert de Mowbray, to Gloucestershire and Somerset under Geoffrey de Montbray (Bishop of Coutances), to Norfolk with Roger Bigod, Roger of Montgomery at Shrewsbury in Shropshire, and a vast swathe of territory in the southwest, center and south of England under Count Robert.

Also in support of the rebels is Eustace III, Count of Boulogne.

The rebels' strategy is that Odo and the other rebel barons will start the fight in England, while Robert will launch an invasion force from Normandy.

The barons, with the coming of spring in 1088, set out on a campaign to lay waste to the king's lands and supporters.

They now activate their own castles, fortify and stock them with provisions, and wait for a response from the king.

If for some reason no response comes, they know they can easily live by plundering neighboring territories, and thus reduce the kingdom to feudal anarchy, a situation the king will eventually have to address.

The king's response is threefold.

First, he divides his enemies by promising those who side with him that they will receive as much money and land as they want.

Second, he appeals to the English people as a whole, promising them "the best law that had ever been in this land".

This has a positive effect in allowing regional garrisons the support they need to fight the rebels.

Finally, he attacks the rebels personally.

In a six-week siege of Pevensey Castle he captures the rebel leader Odo.

The troops Robert is sending from Normandy are driven back by bad weather on the seas in a stroke of luck for the king.

Meanwhile, the king, together with some of his allies, takes Rochester Castle, and with Robert's failure to arrive, the rebels are forced to surrender and the rebellion is over.

Those of William's barons who had remained loyal urge leniency for the rebel barons.

Odo, previously the richest man in England, is stripped of his belongings and banished to Normandy for life, while his brother Robert of Mortain is allowed to stay in England and keep his estates.

Roger of Montgomery had left the rebels and joined with the king after promises of land and money.

The king pragmatically keeps those aristocrats whom he needs and removes those who are a threat.

William de St-Calais, Bishop of Durham, who had abandoned the king's army during the campaign, will be tried later in the year, deposed, and exiled to Normandy, but in 1091 will return and be reinstated.