‘The Impact of Continental Possessions on English central government was most significant from the reign of Henry I’ How far do you agree with this statement?

During the reign of Henry I, continental possessions had a positive impact on English central government due to an increased efficiency and lack of corruption, as well as innovation in terms of the roles of the justiciar and the exchequer. The positive impact was also due to the use of meritocracy, where governmental positions were based on merit rather than nepotism. This efficiency is also true in terms of Richard, and there was also innovation in terms of common law during the reign of Henry II. In the reigns of Stephen and John however, continental possession weakened central government due to the fact neither king were capable in maintaining their control over both territories, shown by the loss of Normandy in 1144 and 1204.
The control of continental possessions led to absentee kingship, which relied upon a strong, centralised government in order to maintain order. This saw innovation in the reign of Henry I, who developed the roles of the exchequer and justiciars in order to create a transparency in terms of taxation. This strengthened central government as it ceased corruption and managed to claim more money than in the reign of William Rufus, without an increase in taxes. This is significant in terms of continental possessions as it allowed Henry I to fund his lands in Normandy without increasing taxation, therefore maintaining order over his people while also being able to maintain a tight hold over Normandy after his victory at Tinchebrai in 1110. Henry also used the exchequer as a sub-regulus, so writs were written in his name during his absence. This is also linked to Henry ‘raising men from the dust’ (or meritocracy), which allowed him to have a larger group of qualified people in government, rather than a closed group of advisors. Continental possessions are therefore clearly significant during the reign of Henry I, as his absence allowed innovation within central government in order to create self-sufficiency so he could secure Normandy.