Life in Norman England

• A social hierarchy was in place in Anglo-Saxon England, divided into earldoms, and the King could make anyone an earl.
• Aristocracy were more affected by changes to the Feudal System than the peasants.
• William gradually disinherited English earls and split large earldoms into much smaller land holdings, given to loyal Norman aristocracy (barons/bishops etc.).
• A small number of Norman barons became powerful, such as FitzObern and Odo.
• By 1076, only two areas of land were still held by Anglo-Saxons.
• Fuedal System

  
• Land

  REPLACEMENT:

  Anglo-Saxon Earls all replaced with Norman Barons

  By 1096, all senior positions in the Church were held by Normans

  OWNERSHIP:

  William owned all of the land

  Land distributed between him, Church and 200 barons

  Barons did not hold too much land so they couldn’t have too much power (compared to 6 Earls in AS)

  CONTROL:

  Feudal system was more formal

  King had more control over his tenants (e.g. charged fees when tenants died/controlled marriages of tenants widows/redistributed land without a male heir)
• Military Service:

  OATH:

  Knights swore an oath of loyalty to their lord.

  It was a religious duty to do military service.

  Break Oath = punishment from God

  FORMAL:

  Barons and bishops had to provide a certain number of knights

  This was a binding commitment

  FISCAL:

  Knights had to carry out said military service

  When called to service, the knights had to serve for at least 40 days

  (AS thegns didn’t have to do this)

  Approximately 5000 knights

  (Fyrds were still used for the army if needed.)
• •Approximately 250 people held all of the land in Norman England. •Land almost completely controlled by Normans. •All land owned by / belonged to the King. •Primogeniture introduced to centralise land holding and increase control. •The Domesday Book was the biggest gathering of information in History.
• •1086 – the Domesday Survey is completed.


  •1087 – William I died.
• The Domesday survey was carried out to raise money for the Norman army in case of invasion from the Vikings.
• A survey helped William to accurately collect taxes and ensure that feudal lords were not hiding their wealth.
• The Domesday survey recorded and settled arguments over land after the invasion.
• The survey made it clear that all land was held by permission of the King.
• What did the survey investigate?

  •Who lived where and who owned what land and property

  •The overall value of property, including animals and equipment

  •What taxes were owed from the time of Edward the Confessor

  •Who held wealth (and therefore power) in different parts of the country
• WHAT DID THE DOMESDAY SURVEY SHOW?

  •Who held land (see diagram below)•The value of land (see evidence below)•There were 2000 knights in England.•There were 10,000 Normans.•That the Saxon landholders had mostly been replaced by Normans.•The total population of England was between 1.5 and 2 million people.
• WHAT WERE THE LIMITATIONS OF THE SURVEY?

  •Women and children were left out•Most Saxons couldn’t read or write•William’s commissionars spoke Latin or Norman French. The people spoke English.•The people weren’t always happy to answer the questions (but they would be punished if they were caught lying!)•Not all areas were surveyed, e.g. London, Winchester, Bristol.
• HODDESTON – SOUTH

  Ownership

  1066 – King Harold held the land

  1086 – King William held the land

  Size

  1066 – population of 80 villagers

  1086 – population of 96 villagers

  Villagers

  1066 – five freemen

  1086 – one freeman

  Value

  1066 - £50

  1086 - £60
• PICKERING - NORTH

  Ownership

  1066 –  Morcar

  1086 – King William

  Size

  1066 – population of 91 villagers

  1086 – population of 7 villagers

  Villagers

  1066 – two freemen

  1086 – no freemen

  Value

  1066 - £88

  1086 - £1
• Governemnt, Law & Order - SUMMARY

  William did not change everything in terms of government, law and order, as he wanted to prove his legitimacy as the rightful King of England. Changes generally helped the Normans to maintain control over the Saxons
• KEY WORDS

  •Primogeniture – heir to the land is only the eldest son.

  •Shire – legal areas of the country (134) – overseen by a sheriff

  •Trial by ordeal – testing if someone is innocent or guilty

  •Fines – payments made when you commit a crime

  •Castellan – new position, in charge of maintaining castles and forests

  •Oath – promise made to God or the King
• THE KING

  Continuity of legal power:

  -Only one who could make laws

  -Only one who could increase taxes across the country

  -Judged very serious legal cases in the King’s Court

  -Advised by a council (Cura Regis – Great Council)
• Law & Order notes

  
• Norman Villages - SUMMARY

  •Generally, life for peasants did not change after the Norman invasion.

  •Freemen were most affected by changes to villages – their numbers decreased.

  •Life for slaves arguably improved as slavery decreased.

  •Land value and population of villages generally increased under the Normans (except in Yorkshire.)
• Norman Village

  
• Land in Norman Villages -CHANGE

  •Norman lords replaced Saxon lords

  •For freemen, rent was higher than in Anglo-Saxon England

  •Some freemen could no longer afford their rent so returned to being villeins

  •Number of freemen decreased between 1066 and 1086

  •Number of slaves reduced in Norman England – easier to give land in return for labour
• LAND IN NORMAN VILLAGES - CONTINUITY

  •25-35% of land kept for use of Lord

  •Rest of the land divided amongst peasants

  •Peasants responsible for farming a number of strips
• PEASANT LIFE IN NORMAN VILLAGES - CHANGE

  •Norman lords replaced Saxon lords

  •Manor and Church rebuilt in stone
• PEASANT LIFE IN NORMAN VILLAGES - CONTINUITY

  •Peasants lived in cottages – they were dark, damp and were usually a single room.

  •Peasants grew crops and grazed animals

  •Main crops were wheat, barley, oats and rye.

  •Peasants worked from sunrise to sunset

  •Simple and healthy diet – soups/stews/bread/beer to drink

  •Peasants worked every day, except Sunday

  •All peasants paid a 10% tax to the Church (called a tithe.)

  •Peasant life was dictated by the farming year-Spring – sow seeds-Summer – harvest crops-Autumn – plough the fields-Winter – survive off the food harvested the year before
• TYPES OF PEASANT

  •Freemen – free peasants who paid rent for land

  •Villeins – worked on Lord’s land for no pay – no freedom and couldn’t leave village. Given some land to farm for themselves.

  •Bordars and cottars – even poorer than villeins, given even less land. 

  •Slaves – no freedom and no land
• ROLES IN THE VILLAGE

  •Reeve – a peasant chosen by the Lord to help with the day to day running of the village

  •Bailiff – in charge of collecting taxes, ensuring crops were gathered and debts paid

   •Priest – ran the local church, collected 10% tax from peasants each year, called a tithe.

  •Miller – produced grain to make bread. Usually relatively ‘rich’ within the village.
• Norman Towns - SUMMARY

  •Generally, towns developed and grew under the Normans.

  •Trade was very important - the Normans encouraged trade, which led to town growth, which led to even more trade. Trade in salt/wool/metalwork was common.

  •Burgesses were important in towns.

  •Guilds and markets/fairs developed.
• Norman Towns

  
• Norman Towns

  
• GROWTH OF TOWNS-CHANGE

  •Trade increased and so did the number and size of towns

  •Norman nobles encouraged this growth as it would increase trade (especially towns in the South as this would increase trade with Normandy and Europe.)

  •Between 1066 and 1100, 21 new towns were created around the country.

  •Towns had new Norman lords

  •New Norman Churches and castles were often built
• GROWTH OF TOWNS-CONTINUITY

  •Towns had always been centres of trade

  •Established towns continued to grow

  •Burgesses were important in towns - they had responsibilities, they could buy and sell property, they had rights and legal protection, they had freedom of movement.
• GROWTH OF TOWNS-EVIDENCE OF GROWTH - The Domesday Survey, 1086

  •London – 10,000 inhabitants•Winchester – 6,000 inhabitants

  •Norwich, York, Lincoln – 5,000 inhabitants

  •Bury St. Edmunds – 300 new houses built

  •Number of burgesses gave a good indication of town size (e.g. 970 burgesses in Lincoln.) 
• JOBS IN TOWNS

  •More people began to move to towns for opportunities, potential education, and increased wealth.

  •Not everyone who moved experienced these positive changes!

  •Jobs were in a hierarchy

  TOP – merchants, lawyers, doctors and property owners – many of whom became richer in the Norman period.

  MIDDLE – craftsmen once they were masters of their trade (e.g. bakers/carpenters.)

  BOTTOM – unskilled workers and servants
• IMPORTANCE OF TRADE IN NORMAN TOWNS

  SALT

  •Towns like Droitwich grew as a result of salt production (13 salt mines) and sale

  •Salt used in food for cooking and preservation
• IMPORTANCE OF TRADE IN NORMAN TOWNS

  METALWORK

  •Towns like Gloucester became centres for iron and lead

  •Important for house building and weapons

  •Towns located near woodland