if i die its bc of anglo saxons and normans

what was england like in anglo-saxon times

1. population of 2 million

2. everyone farmed land

3. christian country

4. under threat from Vikings

5. Edward the confessor was king from 1042-1066 but the kings before him were vikings

6. well-organised government

explain the social system in Anglo-Saxon society

1. King: most powerful person, job to protect his people from attack and make laws

2. Earls: most important men after king and area of country controlled by an earl was called an earldom, could be demoted to Thegns

3. Thegns (thanes): local lords who lived in a manor house and held more than 5 hides of land and had a duty to provide men for the fyrd (army) when needed. could be promoted to earls

4. Peasants: made up most of the population + worked for their local lord. Ceorls free to go and work for another lord if they wanted to but still had to do work for their local lords. Peasants could sell themselves into slavery to support their family and work way up to thegn status

5. Slaves: made up 10% of the population and were viewed as property rather than people. owning slaves was a normal part of life for Anglo-Saxons but the Normans thought it was cruel. Slaves could be freed by thier masters to become peasents

explain the monarchy in anglo-saxon britain

1. Edward the Confesser: King from 1042-66 and controlled law-making, money, land ownership, military and taxation

2. every boy swore an oath to the king when they reached 12 years old.

3. strengths: his earls and thegns were a powerful military force, he was respected law-maker, he was pious and claimed to have a special link to God

4. limits: Danelaw had strong Danish links from previous Viking invasions and wanted to live by own laws and customs

   • Earl of Wessex: Earl Godwin was powerful and could put pressure on Edward to do things his way

   • Edward and Godwin fell out in 1050 and Edwin forced Godwin into exile, but he returned in 1051 with an army, Edward gave him his earldom back to prevent a war

explain the role of the Witan

1. council of adivsers to the king

2. made up of earls and archbishops

3. discussed threats and disputes

4. large role in choosing a new king

5. king decided who was on the Witan and when it met and did not have to follow it’s advice

explain earldoms

earls were given many of the king’s powers in order to help run the country:

1. collected taxes: kept a third of what they collected so they were very rich

2. in charge of justice and leagal punishments in their earldom

3. military power: had a group of hughlt-trained bodyguard soldiers called housecarls

explain the local government in Anglo-Saxon Britain

1. country was divided into earldoms controlled by an earl

2. each earldom was divided into shires overseen by a shire reeves who carried out the king’s instructions in each shire

   • collected fines, enforced the law, provided men for the fyrd and maintained roads and defences, collected geld tax

3. each shire was divided into hundreds

4. each hundred was divided into tithings (group of 10 households)

explain the legal system in Anglo-Saxon Britain

justice was based on collective responsibilty - if someone refused to join the fyrd there would be consequences for the whole tithing

1. blood feuds: grudges between families lasted generations. if someone was killed, the victim’s family had the right to kill someone from the murderer’s family

2. wergild system: instead of taking revenge, the victim’s family recieved compensation from the murder’s family

   • cerol worth: 20 shillings

   • thegn: 1200 shillings

   • earl/archbishop: 3600 shillings

explain the economy in Anglo-Saxon Britain

1. England was well suited to growing crods and traded wool and cloth with other countries

explain the influence of the church in Anglo-Saxon Britain

1. English Church was organised into large areas controlled by bishops who were rich and important

2. local priests often ordinary people that weren’t well educated

3. Abott and Abbesses: ran monasteries and nunneries

4. religion was a part of everyday life as people worried about what would happen when they died

explain why were the Godwins so powerful

1. Land: owned lots of land making them almost as rich as the king

2. Leadership: Godwins were lords to many hundreds of thegns, making them powerful war leaders

3. Church influence: Godwins convinced Edward to appoint bishops who were loyal to them

4. Political links: political marriages gave the Godwins power - Edith Godwin was married to King Edward

explain Harold Godwinson’s embassy to Normandy in 1064

1. Harold landed in Ponthieu, where Count Guy of Ponthieu took him prisoner

2. William of Normandy rescued Harold

3. Harold spent time in Normandy, helping William in two military campaigns

4. Harold made an oath to William: possibly swearing William’s claim to the throne

significance:

1. showed that Harold was Edward’s trusted adviser

2. Normans used it to boost William’s claim to the throne

3. After Harold took over as king from Edward in 1066, Normans used this embassy to portray Harold as an oath-breaker

explain the rising against Earl Tostig in 1065

1. Tostig was the Earl of Northumbria and the uprising was led by Northumbrian thegns

2. rebels invited Morcar, brother of the earl of Mercia, to be their earl and Harold was given large amounts of land in Mercia

3. Nov 1065: Tostig was exiled

explain reasons for the rising against Earl Tostig in 1065

1. Tostig was a southerner: Northumbria had strong Viking links

2. people felt he abused his power: killed powerful rivals

3. taxed Northumbria heavily

4. didn’t defend Northumbria from attack by Malcom III in 1061

explain the respone for the rising against Earl Tostig in 1065

1. Harold agreed that Tostig had pushed Northumbria too far

2. King Edward ordered an army to put down the rising, but Harold and other earls didn’t follow his order - showing weakness in the king’s power

3. Edward was forced to accept the rebel’s demands

4. By getting rid of his brother, Harold removed a potential rival for the throne

explain the death of Edward the Confessor’s Death

1. died on 5th Jan 1066, had no children so there was a succession crisis

2. Bayeux Tapestry shows Edward on his deathbed holding out his hand to Harold

3. Witan met quickly and Harold was crowned the same day as Edward’s burial, 6th Jan 1066

explain Harold Godwinson’s claim to the throne

1. claim: appointed by Edward on his deathbed. family connection (brother-in-law), proven military success and infleunce with the earls

2. strength of claim: Good - supported by witnesses

explain William, Duke of Normandy’s claim to the throne

1. claim: agreement supposedly made with King Edward in 1051, confirmed during Harold’s 1064 embassy

2. strength of claim: backed by the pope but no real evidence, Normans were strong warriors

explain Harold Hardrada’s claim to the throne

1. claim: had inherited the claim from previous viking kings

2. strength of claim: Weak: though the danelaw may have welcomed a Viking king. the exiled Tostig went to Harald for support - together they had a strong army and fleet

explain Edgar Aethling’s claim to the throne

1. claim: royal blood - Edward’s nephewand natural heir. Aethling = prince of royal blood

2. strength of claim: Weak: had no previous experience and the Witan wanted a strong king to see off threats from Scandinavia and Normandy

explain challenges Harold faced as king

1. challenges from powerful earls

2. north

3. tostig: was looking for allies in europe

   • sailed to England in may 1066 but was put of by Harold’s strong defences. A fight with the Mercians at Lincoln left him with only 12 ships

4. william: reportedly getting ready to invade

   • Harold positined an army along the south coast expecting an invasion but eventually stood down when the Norman invasion had still not come by Sept

explain the battle of gate fulford (20th sept 1066)

1. Hardrada and Tostig attacked and were blocked outside of York by the new Earl of Northumbria Morcar and Edwin at Gate Fulford

2. battle was a defeat for Morcar and Edwin as they just fought outside York rather than within the city walls

3. Harold heard about the invasion and marched north: confident that William would not attack the south any time soon

explain the Battle of Stamford Bridge (25th sept 1066)

Harold suprised Hardrada and Tostig at Stamford Bridge and they were both killed. Harold won as:

1. Vikings had left their armour on their shops

2. had the element of suprise

3. Hardrada and Tostig had fought at Gate Fulford 5 days before

4. Vikings were under the impression that the English hated Harold

5. Harold's men broke the Viking shield war

explain the Battle of Hatings (14th Oct 1066)

After leaving York, Harold stopped in London to gather troops befor heading south to meet William near Hastings

1. battle began in Harold’s favour but his shield wall broke down

2. rumour went round that William had been killed, he tipped his helmet to show he was alive

3. Harold Godwinson and his brothers Gyrth and Leowife held their position on the top of the kill and were eventually killed

explain why William had won

tactics and leadership:

1. used cavalry to break up Harold’s shield wall

2. tricked the English into false security by pretending to retreat

3. delayed his invasion until Harold disbanded the southern fyrd

4. horses were bred and shopped over forthe battle

5. Normans stole food + destroyed houses when they arrived in England

6. William adpated an Iron Age Fort at Hatings into a defensible castle

harold’s leadership and bad luck:

1. Harold’s army had been out since may

2. rushed south to fight William when he could have stayed in London

3. his men were poorly disciplined causing the shield war to break up

4. didnt have the elemt of suprise

5. Harold’s men were tired fighting north and then marching back south

explain pros and cons of norman knights

pros:

1. charged at the enemy

2. mounted kinghts could strike downards

3. well trained on horseback

4. saddle held rider firmly in place, could use their arms freely

cons:

1. horses vulnerable to attack

2. more difficult to charge effectively up hill

3. cavalry and archers were only effective once the shield wall had been weakend

explain pros and cons of Anglo-Saxon Housecarls

pros:

1. shield wall was hard to break

2. heavy axes took down horses and caused severe injuries

3. housecarls were well trained

cons:

1. strong shield wall required discipline and endurance

2. once shield wall was broken it was no longer effective

explain what happened after Hastings

1. witan elected Edgar Aethling as king

2. William sent troops to seize Winchester and marched towards London as he needed control of the south coasts to get supplies over from Normandy

3. Normans forced people to submit by destroying homes and farms

4. Edwin and Morcar submitted to William and swore an oath to obey him

5. William was crowned on Christmas Day in 1066 and swore an oath to rule England like the best Anglo-Saxon kings had

explain the earl’s and william’s advantages

earl’s advantages:

1. Londonw as fortified, so it was hard for William to attack

2. Edgar had a better claim to the throne and had been elected by the Witan

3. William had control of essex but the earldoms of mercia (Edwin) and Northumbria (Morcar) supported Edgar

4. William;s army was small compared to the fyrd

5. many of William’s men were ill

williams advantages:

1. William had control of the treasury at Winchester so he could reward his followers

2. William was a strong leader wheras Edwar was young and unprepared

3. England’s best warriors had been killed at Hastings

4. William’s stratergy of destruction meant people submitted easily

5. William’s route threatened to cut London off from the North

explain how William rewarded followers

rewarding anglo-saxons:

1. Willaim wanted a trouble-free takeover and allowed earls to keep theor earldoms

2. archibshops kept their positions

3. promised Edwin could marry his daugher

rewarding his own followers:

1. promised land and money to those who helped him invade

2. sent rich gifts to pope and church supporters in Normandy

3. introduced heavy geld tax to raise money and pay mercenaries

4. gave land to family members and advisers - his half brother Odo was given all of Kent

explain how William established control of the borderlands

1. established Marcher earldoms on Hereford, Shrewsbury and Chester

2. all three earldoms were given as rewards to people who had been loyal to william

   • Earldom of Chester: given to Hugh d’Avranches as his father provided 60 ships for the invasion

   • Earldom of Shrewsbury: given to Roger Montgomery as he governed Normandy while William was away

   • Earldom of Hereford: given to William FitzObern as he was William’s right hand man in the invasion

explain features of Marcher earldoms

1. smaller than other earldoms making them easier to control

2. marcher earls had special rights that usually only the king had: could create towns and establish churches

3. marcher earls had almost full control of the legal system in their earldom

4. marcher earls did not have to pay tax on their lands

5. marcher earls were free to build castles without applying to the king

• special rights attracted people from Normandy to come and settle the regions

explain features of motte and bailey castles

1. bailey: encolsure containing barracks and stables

2. gatehouse: controlled access

3. keep: tower which provided a lookout point

4. motte: mound of earth which the keep sat

5. palisade: strong wooden fence surrounding the castle

6. water-filled ditch: stopped enemies getting in

7. built in strategic places near rivers or mountain passes

8. used as a base by the local lord and troop

9. built quickly

differnece between motte and bailey castles and burhs

1. burhs were public whilst castles where private

2. castles much smaller and easier to defend

3. castles harder to burndown as they were protected by earthworks

4. castles designed to control people whilst burhs were meant to protect people

explain the revolt of Edwin and Morcar in 1068

1. William went back to Normandy in spring 1067 and took with him: Edgar Aethling, Earl Edwin, Morcar and Waltheof

2. when he came back dec, Normon control was under threat

3. 1068: Edwin and Morcar fled North and began a rebellion against William

4. William took control of Warick, Edwin and Morcar surrended

5. William pardonded Edwin and Morcar but kept them as guests at his court

6. Edgar and other rebels fled to Scotland, creating new resistance there

7. William’s strength convinced many that futher revolt was useless

explain reasons for the revolt in 1068

1. Morcar’s anger: William had given parts of Morcar’s earldom to other people

2. Edwin’s anger: William had gone back on his promise that Edwin could marry his daughter and made his earldom smaller

3. Williams heavy geld tax was hated

4. Castels were hated as they were a symbol of Norman control

5. William gave away more Anglo-Saxon land when he returned in 1-67

6. Odo of Bayeux and William FitzObern had seized land illegaly

explain rebellions in the North

1. Robert Cumin: chosen earl of northern Northumbria by WIlliam. He attacked towns and villages as he went north and a group of angry Northumbrians retaliated by killing him in Durham

2. Uprising in York: Edgar Aethling came down from Scotland to join the rebels.

3. Anglo-Danish attack on York: In 1069, Edgar’s forces joined with a fleet sent by the King od Denmark and together they attacked York where they destroyed castles and killed 3000 Normans.

   • Rebels scattered when William arrived and thearmy split up, William tried hunting the rebels down but they were hard to attack meanwhile more rebellions broke out

   • William knew it was pointless to keep hunting the rebels and decided to pay the Danes a large amount of money to leave

   • Willaim then began a campaign of destruction: the Harrying of the North

explain Hereward the Wake and Rebellion at Ely, 1070-71

1. Danes returned in 1070 led by King Sweyn and he set up on the Isle of Ely

2. Sweyn made alliances with locals including Hereward the Wake, a thegn whose land had been given away to Normans and the Archbishop of nearby Peterborough had also been replaced by a Norman

3. Hereward was fighting a guerilla war against the Normans in the swamp fens

4. Hereward and the Danses raided Peterborough Abbey to stop the Normans getting it’s riches but the Danes made off back to Denmark with the treasure

5. Hereward was helped by Morcar who was later imprisoned

6. the defeat at Eky marked the end of Anglo-Saxon rebellion

explain the Harrying of the North (1069-70)

After an attack on York in 1069, William began the Harrying of the north in order to remove Northumbia as a threat. this involved: burning crops, killing livestock and destroying villages

short term impacts:

1. 100,000 people died

2. people had no food or shelter so they starved or froze to death

3. thousands of refugees fled the region

4. people resorted to cannibalism or selling themselves into slavery

long term impacts:

1. William’s troops salted the earth so nothing could grow again. 60% of Yorkshire was classed as waste with no economic activity in the Domesday survery 1086

2. removing Anglo-Danes from Northumbria reduced the threat of furture Danish invasion

3. William now decided to replace Anglo-Saxon nobles rather than win them over

4. William later regretted the Harrying and gave money to the Church to make amends

explains changes in landownership 1066-87

1. William replaced Anglo-Saxon landholders with Normans as rebellions showed he could not trust them

2. By 1087: less than 5% of land as held by Anglo-Saxon aristocrats and only two of england’s tenants in chiefs were Anglo-Saxons

explain how Anglo-Saxons lost their land

1. forfeit: Landowners lost their land as a punishment and it as given to Normans instead

2. new earldoms: William made new earldoms, mercher earldoms, and gave them to his followers

3. land grabs: normans either seized land or took it through corrupt dealings leaving Anglo-Saxons with less than before

explain William’s changes to landholding

Anglo-Saxons pre 1071:

• 2 types of landholding and people had to pay tax on both types

1. Bookland: landholders were given a document by their lord to show right to the land which could be sold or passed on

2. Leases: land was loaned for set amount of time in exchange for money

William from 1071:

1. owned all the land, people only had tenure from the king

2. Anglo-Saxons had to pay William for the right to keep using their land, Norman followers did not

3. if a landholder died without an heir, the land went back to William

4. Heirs who inherited land had to pay a tax to William

Tenants in chief:

• Williams’s tenants in chiefs now had power over thegns

1. could rellocate land when a thegn died

2. could replace thegns who acted against them

3. thegns had to be obedient vassals and follow thier new lord

Peasants:

1. lives became harder as new tanents in chief wanted to get more money from their land

Ceorls:

1. became rarer

explain how William maintained his power

1. Military strength: skilled warrior and defeated rebellions

2. Legitimate succesor: stressed claim that Edward has promised him the throne and wanted to be seen as the rightful king

3. Oath-taking: held oath ceremonies ex; Salisbury in 1086, every landowner swore their loyalty

4. Royal ceremonies: At his coronation, he was annotied with sacred oil and promised to keep Edward’s laws, began a tradition of being seen wearing his crown 3x a year

5. Coinage and writs: his offical royal seal was put on coins and offical documents

6. Owning land: all landowners were directly linked the king and he could reward or punish rebels by giving/taking land

7. Journerys around England: travelled around and met important families across the country, power was visible to the whole country

explain the revolt of the earls in 1075

Ralph de Gael (Norman - Earl of East Anglia)

1. His father had been given land in East Anglia by William in 1066

2. Ralph succeeded his father and married Roger de Breteuil’s sister

3. Reason: loss of power and wealth: his landholdings had been made smaller than this father’s

Roger de Bretuil (Norman - Earl of Hereford)

1. Son of William FitzObern and succeeded him in 1071

2. Reason: loss of authority and land: William introduced his own sherrifs into the Marcher earldoms

Waltheof (Saxon - Earl of Northumbria)

1. Reason: unclear: may have played both sides and chose to inform when the revolt’s success looked unlikely

Other Reasons:

1. Archbishop Lanfranc was in charge of England due to the absence of William who had been in Normandy since 1073 giving conspirators an ideal opportunity to rebel

explain the planning of the revolt of the earls in 1075

1. Ralph and Roger disscussed their plans with Waltheof during a wedding feast

2. Waltheof was the last survivng Anglo-Saxon earl and had good contacts with King Sweyn of Denmark, so they expcted Danish support for their plan

explain what went wrong in revolt of the earls in 1075

1. most Anglo-Saxons supported William

2. Waltheof changed his mind and told Archbishop Lanfranc

3. Lanfranc wrote to Roger trying to convince him to not revolt and threatened to excommunicate him

4. Lanfranc organised counter-measures: Norman and Anglo-Saxons wored together to orveent Roger and Ralph breaking out of their earldoms

5. By the time the Danish fleet arrived, William was back in England and the Danish refused to fight him

explain the defeat of the revolt of the earls in 1075

1. Ralph: escaped to Brittany, while his wife Emma held out in Norwhich castle

2. Roger: imprisoned for life like Morcar

3. Waltheof: fled abroad, then returned thinking that he would be foregiven but William executed him in 1076

4. William tried to attack Ralph’s castle in Brittany but had to retreat due to the resistance

explain the signifance of the revolt of the earls in 1075

1. had to be careful of his own earls who resented his power

2. Danish threat seemed to shaken William so he went to extreme measures to boost England’s defences

3. Anglo-Saxons helped stop the revolt: suggests that some now supported William but the execution of Waltheof shows that William continued to come down hard on Anglo-Saxon rebels

explain the feudal system

system of landholding and the duties and obligations that came w it

1. William

2. Tenants-in-chief (lords, bishops, abotts)

   • provided money, weapons and equipments for knights so William didn’t have to pay for them himself

3. Under-tenants (vassals + knights)

4. Peasants

explain the role of Tenants-in-chief

1. Military: expected to fight with the king and put down local opposition

2. Social: provide knights for king, organise transfer of landholding from Saxon to Normans, provide courts in each barony

3. Political: gave advice to king and food and shelter when he travelled around the country

4. Economy: gave the king a share of revenue earned in their theifs

explain knight service

1. 6000 knights in Norman England

2. role was to: guard their lord’s property, defeat threats and provided up to 40 days of knight service when needed

3. used cavalry charges and couched lances against their enemies

4. replaced thegns as the under tenants

5. dealt with minorcour cases in manorial courts

explain homage

1. landholders had to carry out a cerpmony of homage to William by promising on a bible to remain loyal to him and say, “I become your man”

explain labour service in Norman England

1. work that peasants did in return for land, involved farm work or providing produce

explain forfeiture

1. punishment for breaking the agreement between landholder and tenant

2. if the land user didnt provide service required of them they would forfeit land or pay a fine

explain the church in Norman England

1. major landholder: collected taxes and kept written records of what was owed

2. bishops were heads of cathedrals: controlled an area called a diocese

3. chirch clerks issued the king’s writs

4. church leaders kept laws and legal documents

5. church leaders owed William knight service

6. Bishops and abbots were well educated: often gave advice to the king

7. Archbishops represented the king in negotations

explain the difference between the Anglo-Saxon Archbishop of Cantenbury, Stingdad and Lanfranc

1. Stingdad had been appointed as he was a close ally of Earl Godwin whilst Lanfranc thought appointment should be from God

2. Stigand didn’t have control over the Church outside his area whilst Lanfranc was made head of the Church in England

3. Stigand was a pluralist: a bishop of 2 areas so he had more land and money whilst Lanfranc thought the Church should stand above corruption and money

explain Lanfranc’s reforms

1. wanted priests to live spiritual lives: banned marriage and made celibacy compulsory for priests

2. from 1076: priests were tried in special Church-only bishops’ courts

3. more monastries

4. introduced Norman guidelines for following and creating new laws

5. Anglo-Saxon cathedrals in rural locations were knocked down and rebuilt in market tons

6. more archdeacons: looked after Church courts

explain the Normanisation of the Church and how it helped William’s power

Normanisation of churches:

1. Parish priests came under stricter control and had to follow Norman procedures

2. quater of land was held by the Church reducing the risk of Anglo-Saxon rebellions

3. Norman bishops and archdeacons influenced messages people heard about the king and God

Strength of William’s power:

1. New bishops did homage to the king and Church leaders could forfeit their lands if they failed their duties

2. When a bishop died William chose his successor and recieved revenue form that land until a replacement arrived

3. William controlled communication between Church leaders and the pope this stopped people obeying the pope over him

explain the changes in society in Norman Britain

1. King: William built castles and cathedrals as symbols of his power and introduced the feudal system so he had ultimate control over society

2. Nobles: Earls became tenants-in-chief reducing the earldoms of their power. Nobles were no longer in a position to challenge the king’s power

3. Warriors: Thegns were destroyed and replaced by Knights though knights had less power compared to thegns

4. Peasants and slaves: num of creols went down and peasants came under more pressure as William wanted more revenue from the land. Normans thought slavery was wrong and freed some slaves

5. Economy: William stopped trade with Scandinavian countries which impacted Danelaw areas. Trade with Normandy increased and large cities grew rapidly

explain the continuity in society in Norman Britain

1. King: roles of royal household didn’t change: William just replaced Anglo-Sacxons with Normans doing the same job

2. Nobles: Earls sworn loyalty to Edward just as Anglo-Saxons did

3. Warriors: thegns owed Edward military service just as Norman knights owed the king knight service

4. Peasants and slaves: life of peasants was the same and still farmed for their lord

5. Economy: towns kept trading rights given to them by Anglo-Saxon kings

Explain Norman changes to gov

1. William centralised power so he had total control

2. power of earls was reduced

3. regents (like Lanfranc) was used to run England or Normady whilst William was away

explain ways in which power was centralised in Norman England

1. Knight service: troops loyal to king

2. Church: normanised under Lanfranc

3. Land: all owned by William

4. Demesne: land kept by William for himself

5. Feudal system: all land users depended on the king

6. Domesday book: recored how much areas were worth and how much they should pay

7. William earnd money through reliefs and heavy geld tax

explain the role of Norman sheriffs

1. Power: more powerful than Anglo-Saxon sherrifs and only answered to the king

2. Law: some legal responsibilites were taken over by baranoial and church courts

3. Defence: military role ran alongside knight service

4. Local people: unpopular with society as they were entitled to a share of revenues collected from their shire making them rich and a lot of land-grabbing was done by sherriffs

explain the forest

William enjoyed hunting and made new areas into forests. This was significant as:

1. showed power of king was above everything else

2. extending the forest increased amnt of land William controlled directly

3. harsh punishments for breaking forest laws

4. William earned more money from forests

5. Animals protected especially William’s favorites: deer and boar

6. Hunting weapons weren’t allowed in the forest

7. Restricitions on cutting wood, building and clearling land in the forest

8. Hunting dogs were not allowed into forest

9. Damage to the vegetation was forbidden

explain the domesday book

at christmas 1085, William ordered a survey of England in order to find out who held what land and what taxes were owed

1. Financial: wanted to find ways to get more money out of his tenants causing heavy geld taxes in 1084 and 86

2. Legal: helped solve land disputes as many Anglo-Saxons claimed land had been taken from them which boosted the image of William as a fair king

3. Military: invasion threat from Denmark in 1085 - whilst it didn’t happen the survey linked to seeing how many soldiers each tenant could provide

explain culture in Norman Artistocracy

Norman aristocrats like to show off their power, wealth and superiority over the Englisn

1. built huge, experimental cathedrals, churches and castles

2. male aristocrats shaved the back of their heads: showed they were rich as it was luxury only a few could afford

3. introduced cerminonal method of butchering animals they hunted

4. bought culture to chivalry: william was merciful to enemies, putting them in prisons rather than killing them

5. relgious: believed in penance and everyone who fought against the English at Hatings had to atone for their sins by praying or giving money to the church

6. Normans threw out Anglo-Saxon saints’ relics and destroyed tombs

7. introduced family names based on where they lived: liked to pass estates ontp a single heir

explain language in Norman Artistocracy

1. William tried to learn english but have up as he didnt have the time and Lanfranc also couldn’t speak english

2. all legal and church documents were written in LATIN

3. Norman aristocracy spoke French though their children spoke french and english

4. Many Normans didnt learn to read

5. English became a vernacular lanuage only spoken by common people

who was Odo

1. Willams’s half-brother and was made Bishop of Bayeux in 1049 and helped William in his invasion of England

2. He was rewarded with the earldom of Kent and became the second largest landholder after the king

3. Odo was co-regent of England along with FitzObern while William was away

explain Odo’s trouble

Odo got into trouble w William due to his corrupt behaviour and seemed to have ambitions for power

1. Domesday records contained many complaints against Odo for illegaly taking land, including the Chruch. Lanfranc complained to William and Odo was made to give land back

2. William sent Odo to deal w trouble in Northumberland and while he was there, Odo damaged the region, robbed people and took cathedral treasures

3. Odo tried to take William’s knights on a trip to Rome which went against William’s power as knights were loyal to the king

4. 1082: William put Odo in prison and was only persuaded to release him on his death bead

describe how William was as a person

1. Loved money: wanted to own everything and tried to get more revenue out of his land

2. Husband: devoted to his wife Matilda

3. Strong: survived several assination attemps

4. Brutal: put down rebellions harshly ex: Harrying of the North

5. Religious: promoted church reforms and supposedly repented his sins on his deathbed

explain Willam’s relationship with Robert

1. 1077: Robert started a fight with two of his younger brothers after they played a prank on him and felt William didnt punish them enough and tried to take control of the castle

2. William wanted Robert and his supporters arrested, Robert fled and was taken in by the King of France and began to launch raids from a castle in Normady

3. Unknown to William, Matilda was sending money to Robert

4. 1079: Robert knocked William off his horse during battle, gave his defenceless father his own horse and orded him to retreat, humiliating William

5. 1080: made up due to a reunion organised by Matilda

explain William's death

1. He was injuired in 1087 after being thrown from his horse in France

2. People thought his death was full of bad omens: when he died, panicked servants stole everything they could leaving his stripped corpse on the floor

3. At his funeral, his corpse burst when it was being squeezed into the tomb causing a smell in the cathedral

4. William said that Robert should inhert Normandy whilst William Rufus should inhert England

5. William was filled with guilt for his sins on his deathbed and said he would let God choose the next king of England

explain William Rufus v Robert and Odo

1. Odo was released from prison and started a rebellion agaisnt William II in 1088, a year after William was crowned king by Lanfranc

2. Odo and barons thought it made sense for Robert Curthose to be in charge of England and Normandy

3. Odo was joined by his brother Robert of Mortain

4. Most Norman aristocrats and English citizens were against the revolt

5. William Rufus caught Odo and Robert using local fryd troops

6. Odo escpared to Rochester Castle but eventually surrended after Robert Curthose didn’t come to support him

7. William was popular after Odo’s defeat and made promises to overturn many hated parts of the Norman rule (high taxes, the forest) but he went back on all of them