The Norman Conquest and the subjection of English, 1066 -

1200Baugh and Cable, chapter 5

5-81 The Norman Conquest • The Norman Conquest in 1066 had

the greatest effect on the English language than any other event in the course of its history.

• What the language would have been like if William the Conqueror had not succeeded?

5-81 The Norman Conquest Perhaps… • it would have pursued much the same

course as the other Germanic languages • and would have retained more of its

inflections • and preserved a predominantly Germanic

vocabulary, • incorporating words from other languages

much less freely.

5-82 The origin of Normandy• Normandy is a geographical region

corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy.

• It is situated along the coast of France south of the English Channel and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands.

• The Duchy of Normandy stems from the Danish invasions of France in the 8th century.

NORMANDY

5-82 The origin of Normandy• Northmen settled here in the 9th

and 10th centuries.

• At the same time that other bands were settling in the north and east of England.

5-82 The origin of Normandy• In 912 the right of the Northmen to

occupy this part of France (Normandy) was recognized (cf. Alfred/ Danelaw)

• Rollo (c.860 - c.932) - acknowledged the French king (Charles the Simple) as his overlord and became the first duke of the Normans.

Photo of Rollo statue depicted among the 6 dukes of Normandy

in the town square of Falaise

5-82 The origin of Normandy• When the Norse-speaking settlers spread out

over the lands of the Duchy (9 -10th cent.), they adopted the Gallo-Romance speech of the existing populations.

• In Normandy, the new Norman language, formed by the interaction of peoples, inherited vocabulary from Norse.

• Norman is still spoken in mainland Normandy in France where it has no official status, but is classed as a regional language.

5-82 The origin of Normandy• Scandinavians quickly absorbed the

most important elements of French civilization, but also improved what they had borrowed.

• They added the French tactics to their military forces and soon had the best armies in Europe.

• They accepted Christianity and began the construction of Norman cathedrals that are still marvels of architecture.

Exeter's Norman cathedral (12th c.) 

5-82 The origin of Normandy

• For some years before the Norman Conquest the relations between England and Normandy had been fairly close.

• In 1002 the English king Æthelred the Unready had married a Norman wife.

• When driven into exile by the Danes, he took refuge with his brother in law, the Duke of Normandy.

5-82 The origin of Normandy

• His son Edward was brought up in France, and was almost more French than English.

• In 1042 the Danish line in England died out

• and Edward the Confessor (ruled 1042 - 1066) was restored to the English throne from which his father had been driven.

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

• The Norman conquest of England was the invasion of the Kingdom of England

• by William the Conqueror (Duke of Normandy) in 1066

• at the Battle of Hastings and the subsequent Norman control of England.

• HOW did this happen?

William I

King of England, Duke of Normandy

                                             William shown as Duke of Normandy in the Bayeux Tapestry

William I

King of England, Duke of Normandy

                                             William shown as Duke of Normandy in the Bayeux Tapestry

William I King of England, Duke of Normandy

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

• Upon the death of William's cousin King Edward the Confessor of England (January 1066),

• William claimed the throne of England, asserting that the childless Edward had named him his heir during a visit by William (probably in1052)

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

• By the mid 1050s, Harold Godwinson, brother-in-law of the late King Edward the Confessor,

• was effectively ruling England through the weak King Edward and was unlikely to surrender the throne to a foreign noble.

• England's leading nobles approved Harold Godwinson’s coronation which took place on January 5, 1066 making him King Harold II of England.

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066• In order to pursue his own claim, William

obtained the support of Pope Alexander II for his cause.

• He assembled a Norman invasion fleet of around 600 ships and an army of 7000 men.

• He landed at Pevensey in Sussex on 1 September 1066 and assembled a prefabricated wooden castle near Hastings as a base.

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

• The Battle of Hastings took place on October 14, 1066.

• It is the most famous date and the most famous battle in English history.

• According to some accounts, Harold was allegedly killed by an arrow through the eye, and the English forces fled giving William victory.

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

• William was then crowned on December 25, 1066 in Westminster Abbey.

• Although the south of England submitted quickly to Norman rule, resistance continued, especially in the North for six more years until 1072.

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066• It is an important watershed in English

history for a number of reasons:

–the conquest linked England more closely with Continental Europe and lessened Scandinavian influence,

–created one of the most powerful monarchies in Europe,

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066–created the most sophisticated

governmental system in Europe, –changed the English language and

culture, and –set the stage for an English-French

conflict that would last into the 19th century.

–It remains the last successful military conquest of England.

5-83 The Conquest – the year 1066

• An educated guess at the population of England in the years immediately following the Conquest is two million.

• It is estimated that one fifth (c. 400,000) of the people of England were killed during these years by war, massacre, and starvation.

5-84 The Norman settlement: Control of England

• Once England had been conquered, the Normans faced a number of challenges in maintaining control.

• The Anglo-Norman speaking Normans were in very small numbers compared to the native English population.

• Historians estimate their number at 5,000 armoured knights.

5-84 The Norman settlement: Control of England

• Any of the remaining Anglo-Saxon lords who refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of William's accession to the throne or who rose in revolt were stripped of titles and lands, which were then re-distributed to Norman favourites of William.

• If an Anglo-Saxon lord died without issue (i.e. without heirs) the Normans would always choose a successor from Normandy.

5-84 The Norman settlement: Control of England

• In this way the Normans displaced the native aristocracy and took control of the top ranks of power.

• In 1072 only one of the twelve earls (grafas) in England was an Englishman, and he was executed four years later.

5-84 The Norman settlement: Control of England

• It is quite impossible to say how many Normans and French people settled in England in the century and a half following the conquest,

• but because the governing class in both church and state was almost exclusively made up from among them, their influence was out of all proportion to their number.

5-84 The Norman settlement: Control of England

• William proceeded to appoint Normans to church positions.

• In 1075, 13 out of the 21 abbots (head of a monastery) were English;

• In 1087, their number was just 3.• Foreign monks and priests sought the

greater opportunities for advancement in England.