1. What is this?
What could it tell us about Norman England?

2. What does the Domesday Book tell us about King William’s England?
Learning outcomes:
Explain what the Domesday Book was.
Assess what the Domesday Book reveals about the impact of the Norman Conquest.
Evaluate different interpretations of the purpose of the Domesday Book.

3. The Domesday Book
In 1085 William I ordered a survey of all property and resources in England.
This was a huge undertaking which was completed in less than a year.
The result is a detailed document which tells us a lot about Norman England and the impact of the Norman conquest.
People were asked who owned land in 1066 and who owned the land in What do you think this may have revealed?
Historians have different interpretations of why William ordered the Domesday Book – raise taxes after the threat of invasion from Danish Vikings in 1085, for vanity in order to record his power at the end of his reign, to settle disputes about land ownership following the redistribution of land after 1066.

4. What does the Domesday Book tell us about King William’s England?
Whilst you are watching make notes under the following headings;
What was the Domesday Book?
- How was the information collected and what questions were asked?
- What does the Domesday Book tell us about Norman England and the impact of the Norman conquest?
- What are the different interpretations of the purpose of the Domesday Book?
What does the Domesday Book tell us about King William’s England?

5. Which interpretation of the purpose of the Domesday Book is the most convincing?