But in England his will was carried out with a perfect success.

For more than a quarter of a century the land had rest.

Without, the Scots were held in friendship, the Welsh were bridled by a steady and well-planned scheme of gradual conquest.

Within, the licence of the baronage was held sternly down, and justice secured for all.

"He governed with a strong hand," says Orderic, but the strong hand was the hand of a king, not of a tyrant.
"Great was the awe of him," writes the annalist of Peterborough.