CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE NORMAN CONQUEST?
Perhaps the most important event in England's history is the Norman Conquest. In the year 1066, England was conquered by the Normans.
The Normans were warlike descendants of the Vikings, or Northmen, who came from Norway and Denmark. Fox about 150 years they had lived just across the English Channel in northern France.
The ruler of the Normans was William, the Duke of Normandy. He very much wanted to be king of England, ruled at the time by the Saxons under King Harold II.
William organized a large army and built a fleet of ships. Then in September of 1066 he led his troops across the channel to England.
Harold could not fight William's forces because his army was fighting the king of Norway in the north, who also wanted to rule England.
Harold's men defeated the Norewegians and without a rest marched south to meet the invading Normans. A famous battle was fought near Hastings. William's better trained and larger army won. Harold and most of his men died during the battle.
After the Battle of Hastings, William marched into London. The people, who no longer had an army of their own, crowned William King of England on Christmas day in 1066.
Before the Norman conquest, every English lord ruled his own land and all the people on it. William changed that. He took over all the land. He gave some land to his followers but divided it into small sections. No lord had much power in any one place.
William also made all the people under each lord swear their loyalty to him, the king. In this way William became very powerful. No lord controlled a large group of men that would fight for him. In this way, peace was brought to England.
The king owned the land but gave sections, or fiefs, to his nobles.
Since William and his nobles were French, the language of the court or government became French. Soon even the common people were speaking French.
Even though the government was more like that of France, William also kept many of the old Saxon laws and customs. He continued to appoint sheriffs for each county, which had been an old Saxon custom. The sheriffs collected taxes and looked after details for the king.
England became very prosperous under the Norman rule. Huge castles and beautiful cathedrals, churches and monasteries were built.
William united England so completely that it has never again been conquered.