The Norman Conquest

Question 1

1. Why did William decide to invade England? (4)

Answer 1

• He wanted to expand his empire and power beyond Normandy
• He believed he had been promised the throne by Edward the Confessor
• He was angry that Harold had taken the throne from him
• England had rich resources, including land and royal finances

Question 2

2. What date and time did the Battle of Hastings start? (1)

Answer 2

9am 14th October 1066

Question 3

3. Name the two different types of Saxon soldiers, as well as their number combined (2)

Answer 3

• Housecarls & Fyrd

- Between 5,000 and 7,000

Question 4

4. What was the name of the Hill Harold was positioned on top of? (1)

Answer 4

Senlac Hill

Question 5

5. Which regions did William’s infantry, archers and cavalry come from? (4)

Answer 5

• Normandy (the Normans)
• France (the French)
• Flanders (the Flemish)
• Brittany (the Bretons)

Question 6

6. What was the name of William’s battle tactic, which tempted the English fyrd to break rank (1)

Answer 6

Feigned retreat

Question 7

7. What day was William crowned? (1)

Answer 7

Christmas Day 1066

Question 8

8. Name two rebellions and their dates (2)

Answer 8

Any two from:

• 1067 Dover Castle
• 1067-68 Edric the Wild and the Welsh Kings (rebelled in the West Midlands)
• 1068 Bristol (King Harold’s sons sailed from Ireland to attack)
• 1068-69 Exeter (defeated after a 10 day siege)
• 1069 York and Durham
• 1070 Hereward the Wake

Question 9

9. What was the Harrying of the North? (2)

Answer 9

• Refers to one of the rebellions in York in Durham in 1069

- People were ruthlessly punished and crops were burnt, leading to starvation.

Question 10

10. What are the five main ways William strengthened his power? (5)

Answer 10

• Castles
• Domesday Book
• Feudal System
• Crushing rebellions
• Replacing the Saxon ‘Church’ with the Norman one

Question 11

11. What was the Domesday Book and when was it completed? (2)

Answer 11

• An investigation of the nation’s wealth and structure (who owned what and how much!)
• Completed in 1086

Question 12

12. How did the Domesday Book help William keep control of England? (2)

Answer 12

• Gave William clear records of wealth

- Allowed him to tax more effectively

Question 13

13. What was the Feudal System?

Answer 13

A hierarchy of society from the King to the peasantry, based around land.

Question 14

14. What was the structure of the Feudal System and what did each ‘layer’ give each other? (3)

Answer 14

• Kings gave land to barons who gave loyalty and provided soldiers in return.
• Barons gave land to the knights who promised to fight and to be loyal in return.
• Knights gave pieces of land and protection to the peasants who worked the crops and fought when needed in return

Question 15

15. How many people were in each ‘layer’ of the Feudal System? (4)

Answer 15

• 1 King
• 200 Barons
• 5,000 Knights
• 1.5 million Peasants.

Question 16

16. How did the Feudal System help William keep control? (2)

Answer 16

• Everyone became loyal to the king through the passing down of land.
• William could generate an army quickly.

Question 17

17. What was the first type of castle called? (1)

Answer 17

Motte and Bailey

Question 18

18. Name four key features of the Motte and Bailey castle (4)

Answer 18

• Motte (mound of land that the keep was on top of)
• Keep
• Bailey (area of land within the castle
• Palisade (outside wall)

Question 19

19. How many castles did William build? (2)

Answer 19

Around 1000 Motte and Baileys and 200 Stone Keep castles

Question 20

20. Name three famous castles that WIlliam built (3)

Answer 20

And three from:

• Tower of London
• Windsor
• Dover
• Rochester
• Pevensey
• Exeter

Question 21

21. How did castles allow William to keep control? (3)

Answer 21

• Ensured loyalty from the Barons who lived there
• Acted as a medieval ‘police station’ for the area
• Was a demonstration of William’s power made to intimidate the population