Anglo Saxons Unit 2 Flashcards
What happened after the battle of hastings?
William went north towards London, where survivors from Harold and Edwin and Morcar and Edgar were.
- Areas were demolished along the way, people rushed to submit to avoid this
- He seized the treasury at Winchester
- He met with leading earls and Edgar at Birkenhamstead, where they submitted
Why did the Earls submit?
Argument for Submitting:
- William and his troops threatened to cut london off from supplies
- Edgar was not decisive, the earls probably couldn’t agree
- The Battle of Hastings was a crushing defeat = no good fighters and morale down
- People thought God was
punishing them - William had the treasury, and destroying everything was really effective
Argument for fighting:
- London was fortified
- Edwin and Morcar’s earldoms represented over 1/2 the country
- Williams troops were tired, ill, and deep in enemy territory
How did William reward followers?
Rewarding Anglo-Saxons:
- He gave them money and let them keep their earldoms eg Edwin and Morcar
Rewarding Normans:
- He promised money to mercenaries and land to Normans
- He took all land, and then gave it out
- He introduced geld tax to help pay the mercenaries
Key features of Marcher Earldoms?
- Small
This means they are easy to police and control, but also lacking in power = no challenge to King - Special rights to build settlements and castles and markets
This was to secure the borderland and attract Normans - Exempt from tax
This is so more money was focused on defence and expansion - Law was internally controlled
Had nothing to do with the King’s Sherrifs = Easy control and crime stopping
Why were castles important?
- Built in strategic locations
- Used as a base by the Lord of the area
Could be used for a counterattack or a safe haven - Symbol of Norman power
- Dominate newly Norman territory and stamp out unrest
Why did Edwin and Morcar revolt?
- High tax (geld tax) was going to be used for Norman gain, not Anglo- Saxon
- Loss of land through land grabs
- Morcar lost part of his Earldom to other Anglo-Saxons, while Edwins Earldom was made smaller and less important
- Castles
They were resented, hundreds of homes were demolished to build them, and castellans could ask for the people of the area to do things for the garrison and castle
What happened in Edwin and Morcar’s revolt?
They fled north in 1068 and met with many revolters, Earls and Edgar.
William heard, and brought his army north, building castles as they went.
They took Warwick and Edwin and Morcar immediately surrendered
Edgar escaped to Scotland, met with Malcolm III
Why did Edwin and Morcar’s revolt fail?
- Williams’s show of strength would have made resistance seem pointless
- Castles were exceptionally good at controlling rebels
- Edwin and Morcar could have surrendered so fast to test William, they never intended to do anything
- The rebels were from all classes = they probably had their own resentments and reasons for revolting
What happened in Edgar Atheling’s revolt? (Before the Attack on York, Starts with Robert Cumin)
Robert Cumin was appointed by William as the new earl of North Northumbria
He went north to kill and burn things, and were taken surprise by Northumbrians, who killed Robert and his army
- Soon after, a different uprising happened in York, which Edgar and his force joined in
William sent his army and crushed the
rebels
Edgar went back to Scotland
What happened in the attack on York?
The combined Anglo-Danish army + Edgar attacked York
The Normans accidentally set fire to York while trying to defend, so they went out to meet the Anglo-Danish force
3,000 Normans died, and York got looted
The Danes then went to Lincolnshire, defended by swampy land
William got engaged in guerrilla warfare with the rebels, and his army got stretched out
What was William’s solution to the Anglo-Dane revolts?
William paid off the Danes and they went home
He did the Harrying of the North
What happened at the Rebellion of Ely?
- The Danes came back (1070)
- Hereward the Wake returns to England to find his family dead
- He and the Danes stormed the island of Ely, but the Danes stole the treasure and went home
- Hereward and Morcar’s men joined and defended Ely
- They were given away by monks who showed the Normans a safe passage into the castle
- Morcar captured, Hereward escapes and is never heard from again
What were the reasons for the Harrying of the North?
- Cumin and Normans dead = William swears revenge
- William needed to stop rebels from being able to stay in the area to put pressure off of his troops
- Rebellions were being triggered all around the North - William couldn’t keep dragging troops around
- William realised that the North would need different treatment to the south, due to Danelaw
What were the impacts of the Harrying of the North?
Short-term:
- Crops and animals and homes gone = 100k people starve or freeze
- Some people went to cannibalism
Long-term:
- The ground was salted = no growth for 20 years
- Over half of Yorkshire was dead ground
- Danish supporters and rebels were removed, so invasion was postponed
- William regretted his choice - he repented and tried to make it up to the Church and the pope
How did landownership change with the Normans?
Before
- All land owned by 4 families
- The King was less powerful than the Godwinsons
After
- Land was distributed widely = less power for individuals
- William OWNED all land, and leased it to Earls
- William has 20% of all land to himself = most powerful
How did Anglo-Saxons lose their land?
- By forfeit
- Anyone who fought against William would be forced to forfeit their land e.g. the Godwinsons - New Earldoms
- e.g Marcher Earldoms (defended trouble spots)
- Put together from pieces of forfeited land
Land Grabs
- Just take the land lmao
How did holding land change with the Normans?
Before
- Bookland
You were given a document that declared your right to the land
- Leases
Land loaned for money
If someone didn’t fufill their land duties eg fyrd obligation their land is gone, and re-distributed through the king
Under Normans
- All land is owned by the King
- Anglo-Saxons had to pay to keep their land, Normans didn’t
- Tennants in Chief
Had power to re-allocate their area of land and could take land away to re-distribute
Peasants have to work land, ceorls dont own it anymore = reduced independence
How did William maintain his power?
- Military Prowess
He was a great tactician and leader
His Normans were the best fighting force in Europe - Anglo-Saxons respected this, some joined him in battle - The Legitimate Successor
William stressed his claim to the throne, said that Harold had falsely taken the crown
God had sent William to put things right - Journeys around England
William and his court went around to stamp power on far away places where royalty seemed distant - Oath taking ceremonies
Got important Lords and Earls to swear loyalty
Did the biggest one in 1086, where Dane invasion seemed imminent, every landholder was invited - Coinage and writs
William controlled all wealth, and his face was on coins.
He used writs (proclamations) to spread influence around England
Who was involved at the Revolt of the Earls? Why were they revolting?
Ralph, Earl of East Anglia
Norman
Revolting = Loss of land and power
Roger, Earl of Hereford
Norman
Son of FitzObern
Therefore, not expected to revolt
Revolting = William put his own sheriffs in his Marcher Earldom
Waltheof, Earl of Northumbria
Anglo-Saxon
Revolting = Not known
What happened at the Revolt of the Earls?
Important earls and bishops etc were at Ralph’s wedding
The three Earls plotted - William was in Normandy, Bishop Lanfranc was in charge
Waltheof had the Danes on board
Waltheof then snitched on them to Lanfranc
Roger and Ralphs troops were boxed into their Earldoms by Norman AND Anglo-Saxon forces
William then came back, the Danes ran away to loot = defeat
Waltheof executed
Ralph escaped
Roger imprisoned
