Anglo Saxon and Norman England: 1.1 Flashcards
Anglo-Saxon society
1
Q
Describe the social class of peasant in Anglo-Saxon England
A
- majority of Anglo-Saxons were peasant farmers
- worked the land for a landlord (thegn) and in return were given land of their own to work and live on
2
Q
Describe the social class of ceorl in Anglo-Saxon England
A
- they were ‘free’ peasants, who were not tied to a single landlord their whole lives
- could choose whom to work for
- otherwise, had the same obligations and lifestyle as the majority of peasants
3
Q
Describe the social class of slave in Anglo-Saxon England
A
- made up 10% of the population
- were punished less harshly to maintain their ability to work for a master
- treated like objects to be bought, sold and used
- earned small amounts of money
4
Q
Describe the social class of thegn in Anglo-Saxon England
A
- appointed by the king when owning 5 or more hides of land
[] some thegns were king’s thegns, who owned their land directly from the king, whilst most simply owned it from their earls - the Anglo-Saxon warrior class
[] had to pay a heriot tax when appointed (equipping themselves with horse, armour and weapons)
[] had to fight in the select and general fyrd
5
Q
Describe the social class of earl in Anglo-Saxon England
A
- appointed directly by the king
- acted as the king’s right hand men, advisors and military leaders
- kept 1/3 of all tax collected on their lands by shire reeves
- provided 1 man per 5 hides of land they owned for the fyrd
- sometimes could challenge the king for more power
- had their own elite bodyguard of soldiers called housecarls
6
Q
Describe the composition and role of the Witan in Anglo-Saxon England
A
- clergy
[] archbishops
[] bishops
[] allowed king to spread any messages or propaganda quickly using the Church hierarchy, as going to church was a huge social obligation and thus a chance to spread messages to large numbers of people all at once - earls
- some handpicked, trusted people of the king at the time
- Witan chose the succeeding king once the old one died
[] usually went to a blood-relative, but they had the power to overrule this if they were deemed unfit to rule - provided advice to the king on legal, religious, foreign, military and financial matters as well as helping to settle land disputes and tensions in the country
[] king did NOT have to take any of the Witan’s advice by law
7
Q
What was special about the Anglo-Saxon social system ?
A
- was FLUID
[] people could move up or down in the hierarchy with no restriction
8
Q
What were the duties of an Anglo-Saxon king ?
A
- law-making
- keeping the peace
- deciding and collecting tax
- minting and distributing official coins for trade
- military protection of the people
- owned a lot of land that could give out and also could confiscate land from particularly treasonous or unsavoury individuals
9
Q
What were the duties of Anglo-Saxons to the king ?
A
- obey the law
- use the king’s coins
- pay tax
- perform (and provide) military service (40 days total per year) in the fyrd
10
Q
What were the strengths of Edward the Confessor’s reign ?
A
- was good at keeping the peace
- was a respected law-maker
- was incredibly pious (religion was very important to the Anglo-Saxons due to relying on fate/God to get better from illness and survive in war)
[] Anglo-Saxon 12 year old boys would swear allegiance to Edward in a ceremony and if broke their oath would be struck down by God; helped keep people on his side
11
Q
What were the weaknesses of Edward the Confessor’s reign ?
A
- wasn’t a brilliant military leader and so could be easily overpowered by the earls
- Viking raids
[] lost large amounts of money through the Danegeld - the Danelaw in England (around half of the country) were descended from Viking invaders and wanted to live by their own rules and customs despite honouring the English kings’ rule
[] people in the Danelaw paid less tax as didn’t pay towards the Danegeld (money used to bribe Viking raiders to go away; didn’t pay since had allegiance with the Danes) - the Godwinson family of earls
[] Harold Godwinson alone held as much wealth as Edward and was a far better military leader
[] earl Godwin (Harold’s father) had been banished by Edward earlier in 1050 for disobeying his orders, but came back forcefully in 1051 with his own army from his land in England and demanded reinstatement with all his previous powers and lands
[] Edith Godwinson was married to Edward
[] very close ties to the family, so could be easily manipulated or challenged by them
12
Q
What were the powers of Anglo-Saxon earls ?
A
- responsible for overseeing the collection of tax on their lands
[] kept 1/3 of all collected tax
[] made earls very wealthy; this wealth was supposed to be used for the benefit of their earldoms, though wasn’t always - oversaw law and justice in their earldoms
[] only kings had the power to make laws, but the earls were the king’s means of enforcing and maintaining them - responsible for providing men for the fyrd
[] could levy their own section of the fyrd at any time
[] were used by the king as generals in times of war, directing their own section of the overall Anglo-Saxon army
13
Q
Describe the limits to the powers of Anglo-Saxon earls
A
- power relied on the strength of the king
[] with Cnut (strong leader), earls had less chance to challenge or intimidate for power as he would punish those who did immediately
[] with Edward, earls had more leeway, particularly the Godwinsons - power relied on being in the king’s favour
[] earls would often fight over demonstrating themselves to be the most trustworthy or strong etc. in order to gain favour with the king and use it as a bargaining chip to get more power and land - power relied on the support of people within their earldom
[] Tostig sent into exile because of the rebellions of thegns and normal Anglo-Saxons against him due to his abuse of power
14
Q
What were the legal, political, military and economic functions of a shire ?
A
- legal:
[] shire courts tried cases in the shire and gave punishments accordingly - economic:
[] each shire had a burh (fortified town) where all taxable trade took place - military:
[] each shire provided 1 man per 5 hides of land - political:
[] shire reeve acted as king’s representative in the shire, though had less power than the earls and could be manipulated or blackmailed by them because of this
15
Q
What was the role of shire reeves in Anglo-Saxon England ?
A
- collecting money from earldoms
[] fines from shire courts
[] geld tax for Danegeld
[] revenues and regular tax - acted as the king’s representative in shires
[] oversaw that all laws were enforced properly in court
[] oversaw obligations to provide men for the fyrd and for the upkeep of roads + fortifications in burhs
[] gave out/read the king’s writs
16
Q
What was a blood feud and how was it replaced ?
A
- blood feud:
[] if one member of one family killed, the victim’s family could kill a member of the killer’s family or the killer themselves
[] this resulted in a cycle of bloodshed that was hard to stop - wergild:
[] replacement for blood feuds
[] system of monetary compensation for the killing of one’s family member
[] different fines to be paid by the killer, getting more expensive the higher the victim’s social status was
[] ceorl worth 20 shillings
[] thegn worth 1200 shillings
[] earl/archbishop worth 3600 shillings
[] (1 shilling = £1)
17
Q
What is collective responsibility ?
A
- when crime committed, duty of all people in the tithing to find the criminal
[] known as hue and cry; if not found, all would be fined - collective punishment via fine for bad behaviour/disobeying of one member of the tithing
18
Q
What were England’s main trades ?
A
- wool
- cloth
- grain production and flour production (many mills found in England)
- salt (salt mills found)
19
Q
What were England’s main imports ?
A
- German silver for coins
- millstones and whetstones from Denmark
- wine from Normandy (likely increased Anglo-Norman trade when Edward in power due to his own Norman connections)
20
Q
Give the features of an Anglo-Saxon burh
A
- were placed 15 to 20 miles apart so everyone had easy access to shelter
[] linked by roads for ease of troop movement - had strong fortifications like palisade walls and guard towers
[] inhabitants of the town were responsible for their upkeep - were trading hubs
[] all taxable trade had to take place inside
[] towns like York often prospered because of their strong international trading links
21
Q
Describe the features of a typical Anglo-Saxon village
A
- small homes and farms scattered across the countryside
- thegns had nicer homes with manors and their own churches with employed priests that they shared with the village
22
Q
Describe the influence of the Catholic Church in Anglo Saxon England
A
- minimal influence due to geographical distance from Rome, as well as the English Church’s focus on tradition
- recognised Celtic and Catholic saints
- English resistance to religious reform meant that clergymen still were allowed to marry into the community and have families + sexual relations
[] monks and nuns lived as part of the community and didn’t isolate themselves to live holy lives (thus, monasteries in particular were in decline in England)
[] simony (selling of Church jobs without permission from the Pope or archbishop)
NOTE: despite all this, religion itself was INCREDIBLY important in England
