Anglo Saxon and Norman England III Flashcards
List the four positions of the feudal hierarchy and what they do
King - granted land, tax and provided peace
Tenants in chief - granted land and other privileges but also does knight services
Under tenants (vassals) provided land, but does military service in return for land Peasants - did land service
List the four features of a tenant in chief
Military - fought for the king and led their knights
Social - goes in law courts to deal barony law disputes
Economic - paid the king taxes from their large revenues
Political - Often served on the royal court as advisors
What was knight service?
The duty to protect knights for the king for up to 40 days a year
What is fief?
Land held by a vassal in exchange for service to a lord
What is homage?
A public display of allegiance to the king
What was the military power the feudal system gave William?
- The feudal system was a way of ensuring that the king had military power without paying for it
- Knights were extremely expensive to maintain, but William needed lots
- Received knight service in return for grants of land - and that gave him knights to fight in battle and knights to garrison the castles
What was the political power the feudal system gave to William?
- He could control his barons through grants of land, reliefs and forfeiture - had to or they would get too powerful
- Forfeiture - William had the power to punish someone by taking away their land, and granting them for someone else as loyalty
What happened to the peasants in the feudal system?
- It was a social system that made sure the nobility stayed rich
- Peasants provided labour service for their lord in return for land and protection, but they were bound to their lord
WHAT was the importance of the Church in society?
- Helped control society by praising the king and teaching the people about her role in society
- Major landholder, church tenants worked for the church, and the church paid taxes to the king
- Church leaders involved in shire courts and other legal processes where God’s will was needed to be interpreted.
WHAT was the importance of the Church in government?
- Taught reading and writing and government depended on church officials. Clerks issued writs
- Church able to advise on legal matters
- Bishops and abbots were good advisors - they were literate
What were the criticisms of Stigand?
CORRUPTION
- He was a pluralist - bishop for more than one area, increased land and area
- Accused of simony - giving out jobs at Church in return for money
- Stigand got the job because of the Godwins, but Lanfranc believed only the church or the king should appoint popes
- Stigand had no discipline over archbishops and bishops.
Name the features of the normanisation of the church
- Stigand removed in 1070
- Only Wulfstan stayed - LAST AS BISHOP
- Churches rebuilt norman style
- New bishops
- King controlled communication between the pope and the english church
Lanfranc’s reforms - LIST THEM
- Wanted a strict hierarchy
- Convinced the king to put the Archbishop of Canterbury (only answer to king and pope in rome) in charge of the whole church of england
- Organised church councils, held them more frequently, used them to push his reforms
- Archdeacons were brought to control parish priests
- Priests should be celibate and marriage was banned (should be devoted to God)
- Church only courts to try clergy
- Number of monasteries so monks and nuns were no longer mixed with ordinary people
Changes in Norman society
- Trade with Scandanavia was reduced
- Military - castles dominated, houses cleared in burhs to make space
- Lanfranc dragged the english church with his changes (YOU KNOW THEM)
- Feudal hierachy (YOU KNOW THEM TOO) - Social change
- AS removed from powers of influence - Stigand and stuff
Continuity in Norman society
- Farming life stayed similar, norman landlords were stricter
- Government PROCESSES continued (writs)
- Geld tax - biggest source of revenue - levied HEAVY to extract money from his kingdom
- Towns kept their trading rights and privileges
List the ways in which William centralised power in Norman England
- Knights in service
- The Church
- Crown lands
- Economy
- The Domesday Book
- Feudal system - they depended on him!
The role of earls in norman life. LIST THEM.
- Smaller earldoms
- Reducing number of earldoms
- Increasing power of sheriffs who answered directly to the king
- William using his powers over tenant in chief so they were dependant on him
Who were the 2 regents?
Odo of Bayeux and William FitzOsbern did terrible job in 1067, undid William’s diplomatic approach to AS nobility - provoking AS resistance
Lanfranc - more reliable, 1075 contained the revolt of the earls
What was the role of the sheriff in Anglo Saxon society vs Norman society?
AS SOCIETY
- Manage king’s earldoms
- Responsible for law and order
- Defence of the shire and gathering fyrd
NORMAN SOCIETY
- More power - controlled shires and answered to only king
- New laws added
- The responsibility of AS society and custodian of castles
Why were some sheriffs resented?
- Took a share of all revenues, gave them an incentive to ‘squeeze’ the locals
- Paid a set sum to manage king estates ‘demesne’ and kept profit - another ‘squeeze’
- Involved in many land grabs - victims were powerless
Why was royal forest resented?
- More royal land meant taking land away from others
- ‘Forest’ land was exclusive - victims of their land gone couldn’t even go to their land - evicted
- Protected quarry (hunting animals) so harsh punishment for anyone poaching or using tools or dogs
- Prohibited damage to the vegetation used by quarry - no cutting down wood, etc
What was the Domesday book and it’s uses?
- It was a survey with 13400 names about social roles and finance situations
- FINANCIAL - see which landowners should be paying more money
- LEGAL - Helped sort out legal disputes as it said who owned what
- FINANCIAL - What reliefs should be charged when land was due to be inherited
- MILITARY - Could see how many tenants in chief could provide knight service for upcoming wars.
Languages in Norman Aristocracy?
- Norman-french for ruling elite
- Latin for official writing
- English for peasants
Aristocratic culture features
- Tended to put money into buildings, especially churches and cathedrals whilst AS chose lavish gifts eg jewellry
List 3 features of Norman culture
- Chivalry - the culture of the knight - a complex moral code about how knights should behave combining Christianity, mercy, and the glorification of violence
- The Church and penance - Very religious, should atone for violence. Penance involved prayer and acts that helped the church. Looked down on the English and their culture. Got rid of AS relics - weren’t seen as holy
-Landholding - Pass on ALL estate all together to one heir, whilst AS shared their wealth with family members.
List the reasons for Bishop Odo’s significance.
- William and him were half brothers
- He was in William’s debt
- Big contribution to the invasion in the Battle of Hastings
- Commissioned the Bayeux Tapestry to glorify William
- Made co-regent after Ozburn
- Limits to his power when Lanfranc and him contrast
- Odo imprisoned shows how William wanted obedience and loyalty - even imprisoned family members
William’s good and bad points?
GOOD - Devoted to his wife, Matilda, very religious, wanted to be respected - wasn’t happy just being a conqueror
BAD - Prepared to use extreme violence to get his way multiple times
Features of Robert Curthrose?
- William’s eldest son which he bullied and then refused to let have any power in Normandy
- A good warrior, but lazy and weak-willed, could not lead
- Curthrose - a nickname meaning dumpy legs
- Difficult with his father, but favorite out of the nine kids with his mother
What happened in Robert’s revolt?
- His younger brother played a prank on him in 1077 which led to a real fight
- Angry that his father did not punish his brothers, Robert and his men went to seize the Rouen castle
- William led troops against him, Robert fled to Flanders
- William’s enemy, King Philip of France gave Robert a castle on the border of Normandy, and he launched attacks
- William raised an army against him, but lost and Robert humiliated him
- Matilda organised a reconciliation between them in Easter, 1080 and William made him his heir again
What were the reasons for the disputed succession?
- William preferred Rufus to be the king, not Robert
- The barons swore their allegiance to Robert, but William had his father’s deathbed letter to Lanfranc to support his claim
- His father didn’t trust Robert from the previous conflict
- Robert had weak character and the barons thought they could exploit this, but Rufus had strong character
- Norman tradition meant eldest sons inherited
- The barons wanted Normandy and England to be united under 1 lord
Key events of the 1088 rebellion?
- 1087 Odo was released from prison
- Odo led a rebellion with Robert
- Majority of english barons supported William
- Odo and Robert took refuge in Pevensey Castle
- Odo escaped to Rochester waiting for Robert’s support
- Robert never came and Odo was forced to surrender - he was exiled
