THE NORMAN CONQUEST

BACKGROUND TO THE CONQUEST 878 Battle of ETHANDUNE Alfred the Great of Wessex defeated the Vikings They withdrew to the DANELAW (Northern Britain)

BACKGROUND TO THE CONQUEST Alfred’s successors extended their kingdom at the expense of the Danes 899 Edward I the Elder 924 Athelstan 940 Edgar 975 Edward the Martyr 978 Ethelred the Unready VIKING VIOLENCE RETURNED to England in the 990s BUT

BACKGROUND TO THE CONQUEST 1016 Ethelred the Unready died 3 DANISH KINGS (1016 – 1042) Cnut Harald I Hartcnut Cnut ordered the murder of the members of the old royal family

BACKGROUND TO THE CONQUEST Only Ethelred’s younger sons survived and fled to Normandy (protected by their maternal uncle, Duke Richard II) Among them was EDWARD, who lived almost 30 years in exile, waiting for a chance to become king of England

BACKGROUND TO THE CONQUEST 1042 Hartcnut died EDWARD THE CONFESSOR His authority was rivalled by the Godwine family, who had thrived under the Vikings. NO HEIR PROBLEMATIC SUCCESSION!

BACKGROUND TO THE CONQUEST 1066 Edward the Confessor died 2 CONTENDER S HAROLD GODWINSONWILLIAM OF NORMANDY

HAROLD GODWINSON Member of the powerful Godwine family With Edward’s death, he saw a chance to get the throne and seized it Crowned king of England on the same day of Edward’s funeral!

HAROLD GODWINSON WILLIAM OF NORMANDY Bastard son of Duke Robert of Normandy LEGITIMACY Youth years : exile, assassination attempts, civil war William greatly valued PERSONAL LOYALTY Ruthlessly efficient

HAROLD GODWINSON SEIZING THE CROWN BOTH Harold and William claimed they had been PROMISED the crown by Edward William invaded England with a Norman army

HAROLD GODWINSON THE BATTLE October 14 th, 2016 BATTLE OF HASTINGS The English were defeated and Harold died WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR

HAROLD GODWINSON THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY 70-metre long emboidery Commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux, Half-brother to the King Narrates the events previous to the Conquest and William’s exploits from a Norman point of view

HAROLD GODWINSON THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY The tapestry confirms the rightfulness of William’s claim to the throne He needed to SECURE HIS new-found POWER

HAROLD GODWINSON SECURING POWER After the Conquest, William was busy putting down rebellions across the country, eventually managing to impose his own authority HOW? Did he achieve that merely by using force?

HAROLD GODWINSON SECURING POWER REPLACEMENT of the ANGLO-SAXON RULING CLASS with NORMANS Land seizures William’s followers secured control over their new lands by building CASTLES

HAROLD GODWINSON SECURING POWER Introduction of the FEUDAL SYSTEM KING BARONS and LORDS KNIGHTS PEASANTS STRONGLY HIERARCHICAL STATE

HAROLD GODWINSON SECURING POWER Unlike previous Anglo-Saxon kings, William considered England to be his own property. He was the source of all power and authority, as well as of the right of property and lordship over land. Therefore, a baron held his land because of his personal relationship with the king PRECARIOUS POWER!

HAROLD GODWINSON THE DOMESDAY BOOK Issued in 1086, based on a survey ordered by king William Very detailed RECORD of LAND OWNERSHIP in England William sent his men «All over England into every shire […]. He had a record made of […] what or how much everyone who was in England had […]. So very narrowly did he have it investigated that there was no single yard of land, nor […] one ox or pig which was left out and not put down in his record» (Anglo-Saxon Chronicle)

HAROLD GODWINSON THE DOMESDAY BOOK WHY? To make sure the king could demand the right taxes from everyone It further established the king as the ultimate source of power and as the barons’ right to hold lands.

HAROLD GODWINSON SOCIETY AND CULTURE FRENCH as the official language of Court, justice and politics The Conquest had profound effects on the English society and culture: ENGLISH was still spoken by the lower social classes SOCIAL DIVIDE

HAROLD GODWINSON SOCIETY AND CULTURE Extraordinary lexical richness of the English language In time, it absorbed over Franco-Norman terms Closer ties with Western Europe England shifts away from Scandinavian influence