Norman England Flashcards
All 31 cards in this deck
Who were the tenants-in-chief in Norman England, and what was their main role?
The great landholders (barons and bishops) who held land directly from the king. Their main role was military: to provide the king with knights, and barons led their knights in person.
Under knight service, how much military service did a knight owe each year?
Forty days a year, in return for the land he held from his lord.
What was forfeiture in the feudal system?
The taking back of land by the king or lord if the holder broke his oath of homage or failed in his duties.
Who was Lanfranc?
An Italian monk, abbot of Caen in Normandy, made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1070, replacing Stigand. He led the Normanisation and reform of the English Church.
True or false? Everyday life in English villages changed completely under Norman rule.
False. Village life continued much the same: the same demanding labour, the same agricultural cycle, and the lord still controlling the poorest peasants.
How did William I change the use of earls after the Conquest?
He appointed far fewer earls and gave them less land and power, so government was centralised in the king's own hands.
What was the role of the sheriff in Norman England?
A royal official in each shire who collected taxes and royal revenues, enforced royal justice and managed the king's land in the shire.
What was the royal demesne?
The land held directly by the king, whose rents were paid straight to the monarchy.
What was the 'forest' introduced by William I?
Large areas of land reserved for the king's hunting, protected by severe forest laws with punishments such as blinding for poaching.
What was the Domesday survey (1085–86)?
A survey recording who held every piece of land in England and what it was worth, so that people could be taxed correctly.
True or false? Norman aristocrats generally learned to speak English.
False. Norman aristocrats did not learn English, though their children often spoke both Norman French and English.
What was the most common pastime of the Norman aristocracy?
Hunting, which was also good preparation for fighting in war.
Where did many Norman aristocrats hold their land?
In both England and Normandy, so they travelled frequently between the two countries.
Who was Bishop Odo?
William I's half-brother and Bishop of Bayeux. He fought at Hastings and was rewarded with the earldom of Kent.
What position did Bishop Odo hold while William I was away in Normandy?
Regent, governing England in the king's name.
Give one reason for the bad relationship between William I and his son Robert.
William refused to give Robert real control of Normandy, believing he was not ready; he also bullied him with the nickname 'Curthose'.
What happened in Robert's revolt in Normandy (1077–80)?
Robert attacked Normandy from a border castle given to him by the French king, and in battle he unhorsed his father, forcing William to retreat.
When and how did William I die?
On 9 September 1087, from internal injuries received when he was thrown against his saddle at the siege of Mantes.
True or false? William I left the throne of England to his eldest son, Robert.
False. England went to his second surviving son, William Rufus (William II); Robert received Normandy and Henry was left silver.
What was the rebellion of 1088?
A revolt led by Bishop Odo to make Robert king of England. William Rufus defeated it, and Odo lost his English lands and was exiled.
True or false? Under the feudal system, all the land in England belonged to the king.
True. William granted land to his tenants-in-chief in return for homage and service, but kept ultimate ownership.
True or false? In Norman England the Church was completely separate from royal government.
False. Bishops and abbots were tenants-in-chief who held land from the king, advised him and, being literate, helped run his administration.
Who was Stigand?
The Anglo-Saxon Archbishop of Canterbury, deposed by William I in 1070 and replaced by Lanfranc.
Give one way Lanfranc reformed the Church in England under William I.
He set up separate Church courts so that churchmen were tried by the Church rather than in the king's courts.
Why was Stigand criticised as Archbishop of Canterbury?
He was a pluralist, holding the bishopric of Winchester as well as Canterbury, and was accused of simony: giving out Church posts in return for money.
Why did William I need regents to govern England?
As Duke of Normandy too, he spent long periods across the Channel (up to three-quarters of his last ten years), so trusted men such as Odo, William FitzOsbern and Lanfranc ruled England in his place.
What prompted William I to order the Domesday survey at Christmas 1085?
The threat of a new Danish invasion: he needed to know what his tenants-in-chief held, and how many knights and how much tax England could provide.
Why did William I imprison Bishop Odo in 1082?
Odo was accused of trying to take knights from England to Rome, apparently to make himself pope; mismanaging his earldom may also have played a part. He stayed in prison until William's death in 1087.
Which language replaced English for royal writs after the Norman Conquest?
Latin. Before 1066 writs were often written in English; under the Normans official documents were written in Latin, while the ruling elite spoke Norman French.
Give one reason William Rufus defeated Odo's rebellion of 1088.
Any one of: Robert Curthose never came from Normandy to back the rebels; many Norman barons and nearly all the bishops stayed loyal to Rufus; English troops, including the fyrd, fought for Rufus.
Why did some Norman barons want Robert Curthose, not William Rufus, as king of England in 1087?
Robert was the eldest son and they had sworn loyalty to him, and they wanted England and Normandy under one ruler so they would not owe service to two lords.