Norman England 1066-1088 Flashcards
1
Q
Feudal system
A
King
Tenants in chief
Vassals
Peasants
2
Q
King
A
Owned all the land in Norman England, gave it out to his subjects to hold but he could take it away if he chose.
3
Q
Tenants in chief
A
Anyone who held land directly from the king, including archbishops, bishops, earls, and barons.
4
Q
Vassals
A
Someone who swears an oath of loyalty to their lord - a homage ceremony, and were therefore given land.
5
Q
What happened to slaves under the Normans?
A
numbers constantly decreased
6
Q
Tenant in chief duties
A
- homage to king
- provide knights
- shared a portion of their income from land with the king
- ran justice in baronial court
7
Q
Vassal duties
A
- homage to tenants in chief in return for land
- pay taxes in return for land
- provide military service, e.g. keeping lord safe, protecting castles, fighting
- ran justice in a manorial court
8
Q
Peasant duties
A
- labour service on lords land
- in return given protection and a small patch of land to farm for themselves
- pay taxes
- be loyal
- possibly high in army
9
Q
Forfeiture
A
If a vassal broke the agreement between them and their lord, forced to give up their land.
10
Q
When had almost all of the Anglo Saxon elite been replaced by Normans?
A
1086
11
Q
What caused William to replace Anglo Saxons?
A
A series of major rebellions
12
Q
How many knights in Norman England?
A
6000
13
Q
Role of knights
A
- guard lords property
- ride out to combat threats to lord
- provide up to 40 days of service directly to king
14
Q
What percentage of England was Norman by 1087?
A
1%
15
Q
Centralised government
A
- Williams government became more centralised
- power became more focused around the king
16
Q
Writs
A
- short documents containing royal commands for local government officials to follow
- William increased use
17
Q
What did the increased power of sheriffs mean?
A
- limited the power of the earls
- began to take over some of the responsibilities in local governments
- no one became strong enough to challenge him
18
Q
Regents
A
someone who rules on the kings behalf, with the same authority as the king himself
19
Q
Examples of regents
A
Archbishop Lanfranc of Canterbury
Odo of Bayeux
20
Q
What did an increased use of writs mean?
A
William could take a more direct role in running the kingdom
21
Q
What happened to earls and the land that they held?
A
Fewer earls who held smaller earldoms
22
Q
Role of sheriffs
A
- supervising collection of fines and taxes
- judging civil or criminal cases in local courts
- organising (often leading) military forces
23
Q
Who were sheriffs appointed by?
A
Sheriffs were directly appointed by the king.
24
Q
What qualities did the sheriffs William appointed have?
A
- wealthier and held more land than Anglo Saxon sheriffs
- enough authority to perform duties
- not enough power to rebel
25
Demesne
And land that a lord let for his own personal use.
26
How much land was royal demesne?
One quarter
27
Who managed the royal demesne?
- sheriffs managed
- poorer peasant worked
28
Did William change English laws?
- he promised to keep most of the same Anglo Saxon laws
- he introduced a few new laws
29
Why did William try to maintain pre-conquest laws?
- to create continuity
- show he was a legitimate successor
30
What was the royal forest?
Any land that was set aside by the king as hunting grounds. Ordinary people weren’t allowed to use the royal forest.
31
What percentage of wood land was forest?
30%
32
Forest laws
- forests had their own legal system
- poaching was now a crime
- had to buy a hunting license (most couldn’t afford)
- couldn’t take anything out of the forest
33
What were the punishments for breaking forest laws?
Cutting off fingers, then blinding people with hot irons, then capital punishment.
34
What were social crimes?
People covering for each other for crimes they didn’t consider serious.
35
Why were the forest laws unpopular?
- limited the amount of land available for hunting or gathering food
- Norman’s destroyed villages to make land more suitable for hunting
36
Murdrum
- law introduced specific to murdering a Norman
- if a Norman was murdered, the whole village had to pay a large fine
37
The domesday survey
- ordered December 1085
- a survey if all the land in England
- carried out in 1086
38
What did the domesday survey record?
- amount of land held by the king, his tenants in chief and their vassals
- who held the land before the Norman conquest
- its value pre-Norman and its value 1086
39
What made the domesday survey possible?
Anglo Saxon taxation records and systems of government e.g. the way the kingdom was divided into shires and hundreds.
40
Domesday book
The book the domesday survey was written down, in 1086
41
Who was interviewed for the domesday book?
The priest, steward and 6 elderly villagers in each village.
42
Why did they interview the priest for the domesday survey?
He was very religious and therefore wouldn’t lie.
43
Why did they interview the village elders first the domesday survey?
To hear about lots of generations, and how the land changed.
44
What financial information did the domesday book provide the king?
- make sure he was receiving all of his taxes and other payments
- could decide whether or not to tax people more
- helped him figure out when land was inherited, to charge an additional tax
45
What legal information did the domesday book provide the king?
- end disagreement between Norman’s and Anglo Saxons about land ownership
- legalise Norman ownership of land
- solve future governance by providing written evidence
46
What military information did the domesday book provide the king?
- survey showed the number of military resources available to him
- survey shows home many knights the king could summon to fight for him
47
Trial by combat
If someone accused of a crime, they would challenge their accuser to a fight to the death rather than a court. Norman’s believed gig would intervene if they were innocent.
48
What did the Norman’s think of the English?
The Norman’s felt superior to the English culture, so set themselves apart as much as they could.
49
What are the nobility?
The people that belong to the ruling class in society
50
What was the behaviour of the Norman aristocracy?
- expected to show generosity to those below them
- hunting very popular
- wanted lots of money for the building of castles and cathedrals
- wore silks and furs
- chess and dice very popular
- often shaved backs of heads to show wealth
- looked down on Saxons
- servants read and write for them
- French showed off status
- chivalry in war
51
What did English become?
A vernacular language - spoken only by the common people
52
Norman nobility and church?
- generous towards the church, giving it gifts and land to build on
- with 50 years of invasion, started rebuilding almost all major churches
- constructed new monasteries
- built in the Romanesque style of architecture
53
What language did the Norman’s use?
- spoke old French
- used Latin for most written documents
54
What did the changes to language reflect?
The Norman’s control over England. They had almost completely replaced English in government and church, and had a significant impact on the spoken language (new French words).
55
Why did the Norman’s support the church so generously?
The Norman’s thought that supporting the church was a way of serving god.
56
How many Anglo Saxons bishops were there by 1087?
1
57
Why did William replace the most powerful figures in the English church with Norman’s?
He needed the support of churchmen as they were powerfully figures in society - they held large areas of land, played vital roles in government and influenced ordinary people’s opinions.
58
Who was Stigand?
The corrupt Archbishop of Canterbury before Lanfranc
59
What was pluralism and who was accused of it?
Pluralism means holding multiple religious offices, it was illegal. Stigand - Archbishop of Canterbury and bishop of Winchester.
60
What was simony and who was accused of it?
Stigand - selling top church positions
61
Who did William replace Stigand with and why?
Lanfranc - having a Norman in the top church position strengthened his control
62
What happened to the English church under Lanfrancs influence?
The Norman’s reformed the English church by imposing much stricter rules on how churchmen should behave.
63
What does nepotism mean?
Giving church roles to friends or family members.
64
Church hierarchy
Pope in Rome
Archbishop of Canterbury
Bishops
Priests
65
What were Lanfrancs reforms?
- celibacy for churchmen
- more monasteries, cathedrals and churches
- church courts for churchmen
- Archbishop of Canterbury given more power and influence
66
How was William related to Odo?
Half brothers
67
When was Odo made Bishop of Bayeux?
1049
68
Why did William make Odo earl of Kent?
Helped with the invasion in 1066 by providing men and ships, as well as fighting. William wanted his supporters in power to guarantee their loyalty.
69
What important thing did Odo order the creation of?
Bayeux tapestry
70
What was the Bayeux tapestry?
An almost 70m long tapestry detailing the story of Williams claim to the throne and his victory over Harold Godwinson at Hastings.
71
Why was the southeast area of England, that Odo controlled one of the most important areas in England?
The Norman’s needed to maintain control of the crossing to Normandy.
72
How many counties did Odo have estates in?
22
73
How did Odo treat the Saxons?
He used harsh measures against them to keep them under control, which may have made them more hostile to the Normans. However, it may have been necessary in order for the Normans to maintain control.
74
What did Odo do as soon as he became Earl of Kent?
He began seizing large amounts of land and wealth from landowners in the earldom and either keeping it for himself, or giving it to followers.
75
When was the rebellion against Odo?
1067
76
What happened in the rebellion against Odo?
The people of Kent attempted to capture Dover Castle with the support of a foreign lord, but they failed.
77
When was Odo accused of taking land that belonged to the church and what was his punishment?
1070s, had to give up some of his land
78
Why was Odo imprisoned eventually?
He gathered some troops and planned a journey to Italy
79
When was Odo imprisoned?
1082
80
When was Odo named a regent?
1067
81
What were Odo’s responsibilities as Earl of Kent?
- control the southeast of England
- maintain control of the crossing to Normandy
82
Why do people praise William?
- he maintained control of Normandy and England despite many challenges
- he was an intelligent leader and skilled politician
- he was very religious and made large donations to churches and cathedrals
- as a young man, he was physically strong and a skilled fighter
83
Why do people criticise William?
- some view him as cruel due to his treatment of Anglo-Saxons at the Battle of Hastings and during the Harrying of the North
- he is often seen as greedy, as he took a lot of tax and land
84
Why was William and Robert’s relationship bad?
- he chose Matilda as regent instead of Robert
- nicknamed Robert Curthose
- William wouldn’t give Robert any real authority, preventing him gaining wealth and power
85
When did Robert go into exile in order to start a rebellion?
The late 1070s
86
What happened in the battle against Robert and William?
- Robert gathered his forces at Gerberoy and raided the surrounding area
- Robert won the battle
- this was humiliating for William, and he was advised to reconcile with Robert
87
What did Matilda do for Robert against Williams wishes?
She sent Robert money while he was on exile
88
Why do sources about Williams life make it difficult to know what he was really like?
People were biased - Norman sources were written by his supporters, and Anglo-Saxon sources were written by those who thought he had no right to be king.
89
What day did William die?
9th September 1087
90
What were Williams son’s names?
Henry
Robert Curthose
William Rufus
91
What did Robert inherit?
He became Duke of Normandy
92
What did William Rufus inherit?
He became King of England
93
What did Henry inherit?
£5000, a huge amount of money
94
When was William Rufus crowned king?
26th September by Lanfranc in Westminster Abbey
95
Why was there a rebellion against William Rufus?
Many Norman lords held land in both England and Normandy, which was difficult because William and Robert disliked each other
96
Who led the rebellion against William Rufus in 1088?
Odo of Bayeux, after being released from prison.
97
Why did the 1088 rebellion against William Rufus fail?
Odo failed to gather enough support amongst the lords in England, and Robert didn’t help as Odo thought he would.
98
Which powerful figure did William Rufus quickly get on his side?
Archbishop Lanfranc - he was the head of the church, and therefore very influential. William was crowned by him.
99
How did Odo and his allies plan to overthrow William Rufus in the 1088 rebellion?
They planned to gain the support of more lords and secure the south coast, to allow them to bring reinforcement from Normandy.
