The Feudal System and the Domesday book.

Question 1

What goes down the Feudal System?

Answer 1

Land

Question 2

What goes up the Feudal System?

Answer 2

Money.

Question 3

Why was the feudal system created?

Answer 3

It was created to make peace and prosperity over the fellow citizens of England. Also gaining money to fund charities such as for the knights.

Question 4

Who is at the top of the feudal system?

Answer 4

The king or monarch.

Question 5

Who is at the bottom of the Feudal System?

Answer 5

The peasants

Question 6

How does the Feudal System differ from Catholicism?

Answer 6

In Catholicism the bishop is at the top but the monarch is at the top via feudalism

Question 7

Who rents land?

Answer 7

The villeins and freemen had to pay tax and gine that money to the Nobility.

Question 8

How do we know what medieval society was like?

Answer 8

We use the Domesday book to give a detailed survey of what life was like in medieval England in 1086. It gives an idea about how society was structured and what life would have been like for different groups of people.

Question 9

Why did William need the Domesday Book?

Answer 9

In 1085 he was concerned that England was under threat from a Viking invasion. To defend his land, he needed a large army. This would be expensive, so William needed to know who he could tax and how much people could afford to pay. To do this, he needed to survey the land and people of England.

Question 10

Did the peasants trust William?

Answer 10

No. In fact they despised him and thought he was not worthy of the throne.

Question 11

What year was the Domesday book finished?

Answer 11

1086

Question 12

How much wealth did the barons have as a percentage?

Answer 12

50%

Question 13

How much wealth did the church have as a percentage?

Answer 13

25%

Question 14

How much wealth did the king have as a percentage?

Answer 14

20%

Question 15

How much wealth did the remaining English nobles have as a percentage?

Answer 15

5%

Question 16

Name one question that William wanted answered.

Answer 16

Who owned the land and how much was it worth?
How many people lived on the land?
How much woodland was on the land?
How many animals were on the land?
What buildings were on the land?
How much were the land and goods worth in 1066, when William took over?
How much were the land and goods worth in 1086, at the time of the survey?

Question 17

What happened to William before the book was created?

Answer 17

He fell off his horse and died.

Question 18

Is the Domesday Book a complete record of life in England in 1086?

Answer 18

The Domesday Book is an excellent source of information and shows what life was like in England after the Norman conquest. It details land ownership, jobs, what animals people owned and what laws were in place.

But there is a lot it doesn’t cover, and so it cannot be seen as a complete record. The Domesday Book does not list every person who lived in the country, as William was mainly interested in wealthy landowners who he could tax to fund his army.

Question 19

Who wrote the book?

Answer 19

Several monks.