Synopses & Reviews
The Norman Conquest was one of the most significant events in European history. Over forty years from 1066, England was traumatised and transformed. The Anglo-Saxon ruling class was eliminated, foreign elites took control of Church and State, and Englands entire political, social and cultural orientation was changed. Out of the upheaval which followed the Battle of Hastings, a new kind of Englishness emerged and the priorities of Englands new rulers set the kingdom on the political course it was to follow for the rest of the Middle Ages. However, the Norman Conquest was more than a purely English phenomenon, for Wales, Scotland and Normandy were all deeply affected by it too. This books broad sweep successfully encompasses these wider British and French perspectives to offer a fresh, clear and concise introduction to the events which propelled the two nations into the Middle Ages and dramatically altered the course of history.
'Fluent, wide-ranging and up-do-date, this is an excellent synthesis of recent work on the ever-fascinating topic of the Norman Conquest. It reveals not only how much was achieved by twentieth-century historians of the Conquest, but how much still remains to be discovered.'
Nicholas Vincent, Professor of Medieval History, University of East Anglia
Synopsis
The events of 1066 are perhaps the most famous in English history, and their consequences for the British Isles and for Europe as a whole were profound. In this book, Richard Huscroft provides the most accessible, challenging and up to date introduction to the subject available.
- Contains a strong blend of political, economic, social and cultural history
- Excellent chronology of key dates and a guide to further reading
- Engages with recent historiographical debates for added relevance to students
About the Author
Richard Huscroft read Modern History at Oxford and spent six years as a practising barrister before giving up his legal career to complete a doctorate in medieval history. His previous publications include Ruling England, 1042-1216 (2003) and Expulsion: Englands Jewish Solution (2005), and he now teaches medieval history at Westminster School.
Table of Contents
Contents
Preface
Money and terminology
References and abbreviations
Maps
1England: shires and political divisions in 1066
2 Scotlandand northern England: regional divisions
3Wales: regional and political divisions
4Normandy in the eleventh and twelfth centuries
Genealogies
1The kings of England: the West Saxon line (simplified)
2The kings of England: the Danish line (simplified)
3The kings of England: the Norman line (simplified)
PART ONE Preliminaries
1 The principal sources
Narrative sources
Administrative sources
2 Britain and Normandy in the eleventh century
Lands and peoples
Polities and power
Military organisation
Economies
The church in pre-conquest Britain
Britainand the papacy before 1066
The church in pre-conquest Normandy
Conclusion
3 The origins of conquest, 991-1066
Royal succession in England
Alliances and invasions, 991-1016
English, Danes and Normans, 1016-1042
The King and his Earls, 1042-1045
Edward and the Normans
Edward and Godwine
The crisis of 1051
William of Normandy and the offer of the crown
The return of Godwine
Beyond England
The rise of the Godwinesons, 1053-1064
Harold and Wales
Harold and William
The Northumbrian rising
A fateful choice
PART TWO The Norman Conquest
4 Conquest, 1066
King Harold
The phoney war
The northern invasion
Duke Williams prepares
Invasion
The Hastings campaign
The battle of Hastings
From Hastings to London
5 Conquest consolidated, 1067-1087
The establishment of Norman rule
Englandsubdued, 1067-1072
Opposition: the next generation, 1072-1075
Frontiers and family, 1076-1084
Danes, Domesday and death, 1085-1087
6 Conquest confirmed, 1087-1100
William Rufus
Securing England, 1087-1088
Normandy, 1089-1091
Scotlandand Wales in the 1090s
Conspiracy, 1095
Normandyand its frontiers, 1094-1099
A bolt from the blue
7 The English conquest of Normandy, 1100-1106
Henry, king of the English, 1100-1102
Henry, Wales and Scotland, 1102-c.1110
Duke Robert undermined
The battle of Tinchebray
PART THREE The Impact of Conquest
8 Government and law
Kings and magnates
Household government
Cross-channel government
Government in waiting
Regional government
The royal forest
Royal wealth
Collecting the funds
The law
Conclusion
9 Lands and armies
A new aristocracy
Barons and below
Honours and incidents
The English survivors
The mechanics of settlement
Military power
Armies and fleets
‘Feudal England?
Walesand Scotland
10 Economies and families
Town and country
Families and female power
11 The church
The post-conquest English church
Questions of primacy
Parishes and councils
Conquest and cloister
Kings, archbishops and popes
Reconstruction
Wales, Scotland and Normandy
Conclusion
PART FOUR Conclusion
12 Britain and Normandy in 1106 - myths and reality
Suggestions for further reading
Index