Differences Between Anglo Saxons And Norman (Government, Villages and Towns etc) Flashcards
What was one of the main ways William imposed control and how was this done?
Land distribution. William owned 22% of land in England himself, where as Edward had only owned 12%.
He also granted his most loyal supporters tenants-in-chief (barons and bishops) huge areas of land around the country.
In return for the land that William gave what did the lords/barons/bishops have to do?
This was a big change form Saxon times as in return military service became an obligation:
- tenants-in-chief has to provide an agreed number of soldiers usually for 40 days a year (called servitium debitum)
- to fulfil this duty, many barons either granted land to knights (in return for service) or paid them to be part of their house hold army.
- knights had to swear an oath of fealty to their lords.
- by 1100 the king could call on 5000 knights.
What was the feudal system/feudalism?
This was based on a system of give and take. In this way everyone knew their position in the social hierarchy and what was expected of them as well as what they had to do for the people above and below them.
Why did William Male knights swear loyalty and make military service compulsory and distribute more land?
He spent 3/4 of his time out of England so needed:
-strong system of Government that would
work when he was away.
-substantial amount of money to maintain his control over both territories. Used to fund castle building and other military services.
-reliable source of good soldier.
What was the system of feudal inheritance?
William created this to control inheritance of land for example he could take back land if the owner dies without a male heir. It also meant Norman could gather rent form land left to sons who were not old enough to own it.
Why could William not conquer Whales?
It was not a united country with a single leader. It has 5 kingdoms each ruled by a warrior prince.
What tactic did William use instead at the Wales border (Welsh Marches) that was different to his land policy in England?
William did not want his barons to become too powerful. He granted large areas of land to his most trusted supporters (Chester, Shrewbury and Hereford) on the Welsh border. They became known as the Marcher lords.
How successful were the Marcher Lords in keeping Wales under control?
They used castles as bases for their Norman attacks on parts of Wales. They did claim some territory in Wales but never had secure control. In 1095 and 97 William Rufus invaded Walesand managed to take control of much of it but this was only temporary.
However, in the twelfth century Wales becomes increasingly under the influence of England. Only until Edward 1 was it fully under the control of England.
What powers did the Marcher lords have?
They were almost independent rulers in their own areas, tasked with preventing raids by the Welsh. The extra powered included making laws in their area and building castles without kings permission.
How did William divide the land in to shires and was it the same as Anglo Saxon times?
-England was still divided into 134 shires like Saxon times, but the power of the sheriff increased.
How did William give the impression of continuity with the Saxon government?
He issued a charter (written royal order) guaranteeing the people of London the same liberties under Edward.
Royal order were produced by the Chancery (group of educated officials serving king) this was the same as in Saxon England and he even used English to write these. However Norman’s issued far more orders.
How did the number Norman lords change during Williams reign?
When William become king he replaced a number of English lords with Norman lords/earls but still left some Anglo Saxon lords such as Waltheoff.
However after the rebellion form 1067-71 the royal assembly gathered and was increasing dominated by Norman’s.
Give three examples of how William changed the legal system through courts and trails?
- introduced the honourial court (lords court) where the lord dealt with the crime or property transactions on his land.
- shire courts continued to judge crimes such as violence or theft but now met more regularly. The most serious crime could only be tried in kings court.
- trial by ordeal CONTINUED (wither by cold water or iron) but Normand introduced trail by combat)
Give three examples of how William changed the legal system through law enforcement?
Most villages had constables to arrest people and break up fights and watch men to enforce curfew.
After a crime took place, the hue and cry meant that everyone shared the responsibility to alert people to a crime and help catch the suspect.
In some places freemen joined groups of 10-12 in a tithing. They promised to help each other stop committing crimes.
Why did William make his lords pay military service to him and make knights take the oath of fealty?
Made William look stronger as a king as he had many knights serving him and knew exactly how many he had and where they were situated around the country so could therefore react quickly to rebellion, invasions and surprise attacks.
