Stephen seized the throne of England from Matilda a few months after the death of her father Henry I. Having forced Matilda to flee the kingdom, Stephen was confronted with civil war following her invasion in 1139; although captured at Lincoln (1141) and temporarily deposed, he ultimately forced Matilda to withdraw from England in 1148. However, the year before he died Stephen was obliged to recognize Matilda’s son, the future Henry II, as heir to the throne.