Medieval Britain
1. Anglo-Saxon invasion
2. Viking invasion
3. Norman conquest
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Anglo-Saxon Invasion
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Anglo-Saxon
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People：The ethnically and linguistically related peoples
living in the south and east of the island of Great Britain

Time: From around the early 5th century AD to the
Norman conquest of 1066.
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Language: closely related Germanic dialects.
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Ethnical groups: Identified by Bede as the descendants
of three powerful Germanic tribes, the Angles and the
Saxons from today’s northern Germany, and the Jutes
from today’s Denmark.
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Angles, Saxons and Jutes from the Continent
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Heptarchy (Seven Kingdoms) (600–800)
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Christianization of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom began around 600 and
was essentially complete in the mid 8th century.
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Throughout the 7th and 8th centuries, power exchanged between
the larger kingdoms.

Bede records Aethelbert of Kent as being dominant at the close of
the 6th century, but power seems to have shifted northwards to the
kingdom of Northumbria.

The so-called ‘Mercian Supremacy’ dominated the 8th century,
though again it was not constant.
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The word Heptarchy arose on the basis that the seven kingdoms of
Northumbria, Mercia, Kent, East Anglia, Essex, Sussex and Wessex
were the main polities of south Britain.
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Heptarchy (600–800)
1. Northumberland
2. Mercia
3. East Anglia
4. Essex
5. Wessex
6. Kent
7. Sussex
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秦齐楚燕韩赵魏
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One day life of an Anglo-Saxon peasant
 Wood-splitting
 Summoned
 Quest
 Battle
 Reward
 Home
(video)

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Viking Invasion (800–1066)
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Viking Invasion

In the 9th century, the Viking challenge grew to serious proportions.
Alfred the Great’s victory at Edington in 878 brought intermittent
peace, but the Norsemen with the foundation of Jorvik gained a
permanent foothold in Britain.

An important development of the 9th century was the rise of the
Kingdom of Wessex, and by the end of his reign Alfred was
recognized as overlord by several southern kingdoms. Æthelstan
was the first king to achieve direct rulership of what is considered
“England.”

Near the end of the 10th century, there was renewed Scandinavian
interest in England, with the conquests of Sweyn of Denmark.
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Viking Expansion
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Viking Invasion: The Route
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Viking Invasion: Viking Boats
Viking invasion: beginning of dark ages (video)
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Nomadic tribes: yurt
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0
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Nomadic tribes: moving
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Nomadic tribes: summer camps
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Norman Conquest
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Norman Conquest—An introduction

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The Norman conquest of England began in 1066 AD with the
invasion of the Kingdom of England by William the Conqueror (Duke
of Normandy), and his success at the Battle of Hastings resulted in
Norman control of England.
The Norman Conquest was a pivotal event in English history for
several reasons:
1. This conquest linked England more closely with continental
Europe through the introduction of a Norman aristocracy, thereby
lessening Scandinavian influence.
2. It created one of the most powerful monarchies in Europe and
engendered a sophisticated governmental system.
3. The conquest changed the English language and culture and set
the stage for a rivalry with France that would continue intermittently
until the 20th century.
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Normandy: Composition
(French: Normandie)
1. Basse-Normandie
2. Haute-Normandie
3. The Channel Islands
a. Guernsey
b. Jersey
 Normandy
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Normandy: Where is it?
Normandy
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Norman Conquest:
Starting from Viking expansion
Northmen  Normandie  Normandy
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Norman Conquest: the cause

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What was happening in England?
Viking attacks resumed in the late 10th century, and in 991 the King
of England Aethelred II agreed to marry Emma, the daughter of the
Duke of Normandy, to cement a blood-tie alliance for help against
the raiders.

When King Edward (son of Aethelred II ) died in 1066 with no child,
and thus no direct heir to the throne, a power vacuum arose in
which several competing interests laid claim to the throne of
England.

One was Harald III of Norway.
Another claimant was William, Duke of Normandy because of his
blood ties to Aethelrad through Aethelred’s wife Emma.
A third was the Earl of Wessex Harold Godwinson who had been
elected king by the Witenagemot of England.
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Power vacuum after King Edward II
Father
Mother
(daughter of Duke of Normandy)
Son (No heir)
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Preparation for the conquest

William had assembled an invasion fleet of approximately 600
ships and an army of 7,000 men.

William had recruited soldiers from all of northern France, the
Low Countries and Germany.

Many soldiers in his army were second- and third-born sons who
had little or no inheritance under the laws of primogeniture
([praimə‘dʒenitʃə ]长子身份).

William promised that if they brought their own horse, armour,
and weapons to join him, they would be rewarded with lands
and titles in the new realm.

William also gathered over 2,000 horses, transported across the
channel in specially adapted horse transports.
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Preparation for the conquest
Horse transport
Bayeaux Tapestry
(an animated video: Preparation, crossing the channel, landing,
castle building, fighting, victory)
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Crossing and Landing
William
gathered his ships at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme
ready to cross by 12 August
delayed by unfavourable weather
landing at Pevensey in Sussex on 28 September, assembled a
prefabricated wooden castle near Hastings
A crucial delay:
Just a few days after Harold’s victory over the Norwegians
Bad weather had done William a great favor:
Had William landed in August as originally planned, Harold would
have been waiting with a fresh and numerically superior force.
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Hasting Battle

Rushing south at the news of William’s landing, Harold
paused briefly at London to gather more troops, then
advanced to meet William.

They fought at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October. It
was a close battle at first, but in the final hours William’s
superiority in cavalry and archers proved decisive.

Harold was killed, along with his brothers Earl Gyrth and
Earl Leofwine, and the English army fled.

(Hasting battle: a modern version video)
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Occupation of London

William expected to receive the submission of the surviving English
leaders,

Edgar Atheling was proclaimed king by the Witenagemot, with the
support of Earls Edwin and Morcar, Stigand, Archbishop of
Canterbury, and Aldred, Archbishop of York.

William, who had received reinforcements from across the English
Channel, therefore advanced, marching through Kent to London.

He was unable to storm London Bridge and therefore sought to
reach the capital by a more circuitous route.
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Occupation of London

He marched west to link up with another Norman force near
Dorking, Surrey. The combined armies then moved up the Thames
valley to cross the river at Wallingford, Oxfordshire. While there, he
received the submission of Stigand.

William then travelled northeast along the Chilterns, before
advancing towards London from the northwest.

Having failed to muster an effective military response, Edgar’s
leading supporters lost their nerve, and the English leaders
surrendered to William at Berkhamstead.

William was acclaimed King of England and crowned by Aldred on
December 25, 1066, in Westminster Abbey.

(Who was William the conqueror?)
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Control of England

Soldiers rewarded: The Normans received from William
lands and titles in return for their service in the invasion.

All land was the king’s: William claimed ultimate
possession of virtually all the land in England and
asserted the right to dispose of it as he saw fit.
Land confiscation: William confiscated the lands of all
English lords who had fought and died with Harold and
redistributed most of them to his Norman supporters.
 These initial confiscations led to revolts, which resulted
in more confiscations, in a cycle that continued virtually
unbroken for five years after the Battle of Hastings.

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Control of England

Fort and castle building: To put down and prevent further rebellions,
the Normans constructed a variety of forts and castles on an
unprecedented scale.

Heir designation: If an English landholder died without issue, the
King could designate the heir, and often chose a successor from
Normandy.

Inheritance control: William and his barons also exercised tighter
control over inheritance of property by widows and daughters, often
forcing marriages to Normans.

No English in upper society: The Normans displaced the native
aristocracy and took control of the upper ranks of society. By 1086,
French names predominated even at the lower levels of the
aristocracy.
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Kings of House of Norman, Anjou, Plantagenet
Henry II
 Witnessed a long
period of peace
Steady increase in
trade and in
population.
 Reformed the
courts and law.
Introduced the jury
system
made the law
common
 Weakened the
power of the lords
and knights
 Cancelled the
feudal services of
forty days
Asked the lords to
pay a special tax.
 Hired professional
soldiers.
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William I
Robert
William II
Henry
Stephen
Matilda
Henry II
Richard I
King John
Henry III
Edward I
Edward II
…
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King John and the Greater Charter
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King John and the Great Charter (1)

King John succeeded his nephew Richard I in 1199.
1) Defeated in a war with France and lost Normandy in 1204.
Demanded more feudal taxes and army service to
revenge himself on France.
2) The lords became angry, marched to London and forced
him to sign a long document on June 17th, 1215. The
document is known as the Great Charter.
3) torn up the Great Charter with the help of Pope.
War broke out and finally John lost the war and died in
1216.
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King John and the Greater Charter (2)
The Great Charter had three sets of provisions:
1) that the king was not to exact extra payments from the feudal
vassals (towns) without their consent;
2) that laws were not to be modified by the arbitrary action of the king;
3) that should the king attempt to free himself from law, the vassals
had the right to force him to obey law, by civil war or otherwise.

Significances of the Great Charter
1) Made in the interests of the feudal lords
2) Granted to the townspeople freedom of trade and self-government.
3) Political rise of merchants and craftsmen for the first time

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King John and the Greater Charter (3)

The Greater Charter was the first document forced onto an English King by his subjects
in an attempt to limit his powers by law
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Birth of Parliament
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Birth of Parliament (1)

Henry III (reign 1216-1272) was crowned at the age of 9.
He hoped that he could defeat the lords and their Charter with the
help of the Pope: (advisers, church post)

Rebellion broke out with Simon V de Montfort (6th Earl of Leicester)
as the leader.

The lords forced the king to dismiss his foreign advisers and to accept
their own council of advisers, instead.
de Montfort’s new council took control of the treasury and all state
officials, and then settled down to work their reforms.
Simon called a parliament in 1265 after a battle in which Henry III
was defeated and taken prisoner.
In addition to the older group, there were two knights from each shire
and two citizens from each town. It was known as the “All Estates
Parliament (各级议会).”
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Birth of Parliament (2)
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Edward I succeeded his father, Henry III, in 1272
Conquered Wales and engaged in a long war with Scotland
In constant need of money.
In 1295, he summoned the “All Estates Parliament”—more than 400
members in all. As that Parliament was followed as a model, it
became known in history as the “Model Parliament (模范议会).”
Edward II succeeded his father in 1307
A weak and lazy king
Left the work of government to his household favorites
A party of lords formed against him.
Parliament made a plan to demand the public appointment of all
state officials.
Parliament forced Edward II to hand over the crown to his son in
1327
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de Montfort (1208 –1265)
(from the Chamber of the United States House of Representatives)
the de facto (actual) ruler of England after 1263-1264 rebellion
Regarded today as one of the progenitors of modern parliamentary democracy
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Significances of Norman Conquest
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Significances of Norman Conquest (1):
Establishment of Feudalism
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Feudal Hierarchy:
The king was the sole and ultimate owner
of all land, which he gave to nobles and
the Church in return for military and other
services.
The vassals could subdivide their fiefs into
smaller fiefs and bestow them upon their
own followers.
The king was the lord to his vassals, who
in turn were lords to their knights.
Thus a new and more elaborate hierarchy
of nobility came into being.
Centralization of power
The king required not only his vassals but
also the vassals of his vassals to take an
oath that they would be faithful to him
against all other men.
duke, marquis, viscount, earl, baron
公爵,侯爵,伯爵,子爵,男爵
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Significances of Norman Conquest (2):
Law reform and establishment of parliament

Introduction of
jury

Making law
common
throughout
England

The Greater
Charter

Establishment of
parliament
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Significances of Norman Conquest (3):
government system (1)
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Before the arrival of Normans, Anglo-Saxon England had one of the
most sophisticated governmental systems in Western Europe.
All of England had been divided into administrative units called
shires of roughly uniform size and shape, which were run by officials
known as “shire reeve” or “sheriff”.
The shires tended to be somewhat autonomous and lacked
coordinated control.
This sophisticated form of government was handed over to the
Normans and grew even stronger.
The Normans centralised the autonomous shire system.
The Domesday Book exemplifies the practical codification which
enabled Norman assimilation of conquered territories through
central control of a census.
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Significances of Norman Conquest (3):
government system (1)

Domesday

also known as Domesday, or Book of Winchester

the record of the great survey of England completed in 1086

similar to a census by a government of today. William needed information
about the country so he could administer it.

One of the main purposes of the survey was to find out who owned what so
they could be taxed on it.

The name Domesday comes from the Old English word “dom”, meaning
accounting or reckoning.

Thus domesday, or dmsday, is literally a day of reckoning, meaning that a
lord takes account of what is owed by his subjects.
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book (英国土地志 ) (1)
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Significances of Norman Conquest (3):
government system (2)
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Significances of Norman Conquest (4):
Language (1)
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牛的肉是“牛肉”，猪的肉就是“猪肉
Old English  Anglo-Norman
pig
pork (porc)
ox
beef (boeuf)
deer
venison (venison)
calf
veal (veal)
sheep
mutton (mutton)
Old English  Anglo-Norman  Modern English
as the language of the ruling classes in England for nearly 300 years
Words borrowed from Old French Language
1. Government and law:
government, legislature, court
2. Art and culture:
dance, language, art
3. Enjoyment of Life:
leisure, fashion, cuisine
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Significances of Norman Conquest (4):
Language (2)
Court and politics
tax
mayor
Church diction
pray
saint
Military diction
army
navy
Clothing
robe
coat
Food
dinner
biscuit
Furniture
table
closet
Arts
dance
paper
Trade
cost
price
Emotion
pain
joy
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mercy
accuse
justice
faith
battle
dress
cream
salad
pastry
porch
engine
market
rage
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Significances of Norman Conquest (4):
Language (3)
Anglo-Norman language:
 from a sociolinguistic perspective

Upper class: French
 Middle class: Anglo-Norman
 Lower class: Old English


In the end, English won the competition, with a
systematic variation.
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Significances of Norman Conquest (5):
Anglo-Norman and French relations (1)

Anglo-Norman and French political relations became very
complicated and somewhat hostile after the Norman Conquest.

The Normans still retained control of the holdings in Normandy and
were thus still vassals to the King of France.

At the same time, they were their equals as King of England.

On the one hand they owed faith to the King of France, and on the
other hand they did not, because they were peers.

A crisis came in 1204 when French King Philip II seized all Norman
and Angevin holdings in mainland France except Gascony. This led
to the Hundred Years War when Anglo-Norman English kings tried
to regain their dynastic holdings in France.
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Significances of Norman Conquest (5):
Anglo-Norman and French relations (2)

The Hundred Years' War (1337 to 1453)

The English kings’ claims to the French
throne.

The war was a series of conflicts and is
commonly divided into three or four phases:
1. the Edwardian War (1337–1360),
2. the Caroline War (1369–1389),
3. the Lancastrian War (1415–1429), and
4. the slow decline of English fortunes after
the appearance of Joan of Arc (1412–1431).

Results
It finally ended in the expulsion of the
English from France.
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Significances of Norman Conquest (6):
social and cultural relations (1)

the near total elimination of the Anglo-Saxon aristocracy
by the time of the Domesday Book, only two English landowners of
any note had survived the displacement

the loss of English control over the Church in England
by 1096 no church Bishopric was held by any native Englishman; all
were held by Normans.
No other medieval European conquest of Christians by Christians
had such devastating consequences for the defeated ruling class.

Meanwhile, William’s prestige among his followers increased
tremendously and his control was greatly consolidated

He was able to award them vast tracts of land at little cost to
himself.
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Significances of Norman Conquest (6):
social and cultural relations (2)
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Emigration to the Byzantine Empire

Thousands of Anglo-Saxon nobles and soldiers ultimately
found Norman domination unbearable and emigrated to
Byzantium, placing themselves at the service of the
Byzantine Emperor.

Anglo-Saxon emigrants came to dominate an elite unit
called the Varangian Guard (拜占庭皇帝的卫士), which
served as the Byzantine Emperor’s own bodyguard and
continued in existence until at least 1204.
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The End
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QUIZ
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Please give a brief talk about “the
significances of Norman conquest”
Suggested points to be discussed
Establishment of Feudalism
Law reform
Establishment of parliament
Establishment of government system
Language changes
Anglo-Norman and French relations
Social and cultural relations
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