17. The Spoiled Prince
William the Aetheling (1103 – 1120) was the heir and only legitimate son of King Henry I of England. He was also the Duke of Normandy in his own right. William was spoiled rotten, and according to a contemporary chronicler, he was pampered so much that it was clear he was “destined to be food for the fire“. That indulgence would have fatal consequences when the young prince got himself killed in a silly accident.
In November, 1120, after a diplomatic visit to France, a fleet was assembled to transport King Henry and his court across the English Channel back to England. The 17-year-old prince William made plans to cross in a vessel known as the White Ship, the English navy’s proudest and fastest ship. William and his companions turned the affair into a wild party, and delayed the crossing while they got rip-roaring drunk on shore with the ship’s crew. Then, in a state of high intoxication, the prince and his entourage, numbering about 300 people, boarded the White Ship to make a nighttime crossing. The spoiled prince was about to have a tragic oops moment.