Stephen was the last of the Norman kings. Their reign had covered
nearly a century. The period began in conquest and usurpation; it
ended in gloom. We are not, however, to judge it by Stephen's reign
alone, but as a whole.
This considered, it shows at least one point of advance over the
preceding period,--the triumph of the moral power of the Church over
feudal discord. But Stephen's reign was not all loss in other
respects, for out of the "war, wickedness, and waste" of his
misgovernment came a universal desire for peace through law. Thus
indirectly this weak King's inefficiency prepared the way for future
reforms.