changes to organisation

• William I - King

  • granted land
  • tax concessions
  • provided peace, law, protection

  in return for loyalty and service
• William I - King

  in return

  • knight service according to set quota Tax (and reliefs)
  • Justice (baronial courts)
• Tenants-in-chief 


  lords

  bishops

  abbots
• tenants-in-chiefs


  granted land and other privileges to under-tenants
• Tenants-in-chief


  in return

  • military service or land tax (and reliefs)
  • Justice (manorial court)
• under-tenants


  vassals
• under-tenants


  provided land to be worked on by peasants
• under-tenants


  in return

  • land service (farming on vassal land)
  • rent
• diagram -

  A) king

  B) tenant-in-chiefs

  C) under-tenants

  D) peasants

  
• got rid of the thegn class and ceorl class - helped William maintain power as it meant Anglo Saxon peasants couldn't move around and no Anglo Saxon had too much power
• was the feudal system similar to the AS system - big change

  • king owned all the land - AS = a system developed over centuries where thegns and earls owned land
  • when the landowner died they had to prove to the king in a ceremony of homage and pay relief money before he could inherit it
  • tenant-in-chief carried out a similar homage ceremony with his under-tenants
  • if a land owner did not provide military or land service they would forfeit the land
• homage


  kneeling down in front of the king and promising on Bible to become the 'king's man'
• Normans believed slavery was wrong so ended it
• Norman lords demanded taxes from peasants - made life hard
• earldoms were smaller and earls became tenants-in-chief with less power
• royal household continues with servant, advisors and administrative staff but they were now Norman