1066-1087 ( William in power )

• After the Battle of Hastings, the Witan wanted Edgar the Atheling to become king
• William burnt land and villages in the south, took control of the treasury, and marched towards London
• The Anglo-Saxon earls and Edgar the Atheling submitted to William, who was crowned on Christmas Day 1066
• William took lands from the Godwin family and other Anglo-Saxons killed at Hastings
• William rewarded his Norman followers by giving them land and important positions in England
• William raised heavy taxes from England to pay his soldiers and send gifts to the Pope
• William established three new earldoms on the border with Wales: Chester, Hereford, and Shrewsbury
• The earls of the marcher earldoms had special powers, such as the right to build castles and create new towns
• Castles included a motte (hill) and bailey (area for stables, etc) and were used as administrative centers
• The revolts of Earls Edwin and Morcar in 1068 were due to losing status and power
• William marched north, building castles, and Earls Edwin and Morcar surrendered
• In 1069, Robert Cumin was appointed Earl of Northumbria and was murdered
• The city of York rebelled with the support of Edgar the Atheling in 1069
• William put down the rebellion in York, and Edgar escaped with the help of Danes
• The Harrying of the North in 1069-1070 was a brutal response by William to rebellions in the north
• William destroyed the north, causing many deaths and making it impossible for the north to rebel again
• Hereward the Wake led a rebellion at Ely in 1070-71, joined by King Sweyn II's fleet
• Hereward attacked the monastery at Peterborough, and the Danes were paid off by William
• The revolt at Ely was the end of Anglo-Saxon resistance
• In 1075, Ralph de Gael, Roger de Breteuil, and Waltheof rebelled against William
• Earl Waltheof informed Archbishop Lanfranc about the plot, and the revolt was put down
• Roger was imprisoned for life, Ralph escaped to Brittany, and Waltheof was executed
• The revolt showed that many Anglo-Saxons were accepting William as their king
• The revolt also showed William the need to be cautious of his own earls and the potential threat from the Danes