Anglo Saxon and Norman England: 2.3

Question 1

Describe the three major ways in which Anglo-Saxons lost land and the reactions to these

Answer 1

• forfeiture of land due to rebellion against William
  [] best received because there was an actual reason, however still caused massive resentment
  [] didn’t restrict this to Anglo-Saxons; took forfeited land from Norman earls and aristocrats also
  [] this showed William to be judicious and unafraid to exact law on all those who wronged it, thus giving him more loyalty overall from his followers
• illegal land-grabs by Norman aristocrats
  [] TONS of resentment
  [] Norman sheriffs were particularly notorious for this, as well as Bishop Odo
  [] this made Anglo-Saxons lose faith in the Norman government to protect their rights as well as Norman rights
• new, smaller earldoms being created by William for more control over troublesome areas
  [] resentment from earls, and caused rebellion earlier on in William’s reign (like Edwin and Morcar’s revolt in 1068)

Question 2

Why did William replace most Anglo-Saxon earls with Normans ?

Answer 2

• rebellions showed that they couldn’t be trusted to stay loyal to William
• made Anglo-Saxon thegns dependent on Norman earls for their land and power, thus forcing them to abide by Norman standards and not to rebel

Question 3

How did tenure/landholding change between the Normans and Anglo-Saxons ?

Answer 3

• Anglo-Saxons:
  [] any land owned by someone was theirs to use and pass on however they saw fit
  [] tenure was secure
  [] earldoms were bigger
• Normans:
  [] blocks of territory were consolidated and earldoms made smaller so that William had more control than the earls
  [] heirs to land had to pay a “relief” to William to redeem the land
  [] tenure was much less secure; land could be confiscated or reallocated whenever William wanted
  [] William/king owned ALL land in the country
  [] tenants in chief could reallocate land of thegns who had died and could dispossess disobedient thegns
  [] Anglo-Saxons who were landholders before the Conquest had to pay a relief to redeem their land if they were allowed to keep it
  [] ceorl class disappeared and peasants were made EVEN MORE dependent on their Norman lords for food, land and work

Question 4

When were the Godwinsons’, Edwin’s, Morcar’s and Waltheof’s landsforfeited to William ?

Answer 4

• Godwinsons: 1066
• Edwin: 1071
• Morcar: 1070
• Waltheof: 1076

Question 5

Describe seven ways in which William maintained control over England

Answer 5

• made lots of effort to be seen as a ‘legitimate’ king
  [] traditional Anglo-Saxon religious and royal ceremonies
  [] crown-wearing ceremonies at least 3 times per year
  [] pushed narrative of being backed by God and the Pope during the conquest in churches
  [] keeping as much as possible the same from Anglo-Saxon rules such as the government, the Witan, writs etc.
• placed even tighter control over the mints so everyone had to use the king’s coins
  [] put his royal seal on the coins
• military strength
  [] his brutality in putting down rebellion helped establish him as the sole figure of authority, and also to discourage further rebellion
  [] Anglo-Saxons respected strong military leaders greatly
  [] William’s luck in battle was seen as favour from God by the Anglo-Saxons
• using writs
  [] Anglo-Saxon system of royal proclamations and documents
  [] using the traditional Anglo-Saxon royal method, he seemed more legitimate as king, was more easily accepted by the Anglo-Saxons etc.
• made efforts to be seen by locals all over England in royal parades etc.
  [] made sure his power was felt all over, not just by those in London; decreased rebellion as rebels didn’t feel that William’s power was far away and localised but rather was ubiquitous
• owned all English lands
  [] centralised power to the Crown
  [] gave William a way of ensuring loyalty from those who didn’t wish to lose their land (or risk it)
  [] earned income for the Crown via reliefs which could then be used on the Norman army, castles and other means of control
  [] made all others dependent on William and gave incentive to get on his good side
  [] meant that the fyrd wasn’t the landholder’s to levy, as only the land OWNER could levy the fyrd
• oath-taking
  [] Anglo-Saxons believed that God would strike them down if they broke oath