A SOCIAL HISTORY OF ENGLAND,assets.cambridge.org/97805217/13238/frontmatter/...The years between 900...

The years between 900 and 1200 saw transformative social change in Europe, including the creation of extensive town-dwelling popu-lations and the proliferation of feudalized elites and bureaucratic monarchies. In England these developments were complicated and accelerated by repeated episodes of invasion, migration and changes of regime. In this book, scholars from disciplines including history, archaeology and literature reflect on the major trends which shaped English society in these years of transition and select key themes which encapsulate the period. The authors explore the landscape of England, its mineral wealth, its towns and rural life, the health, behaviour and obligations of its inhabitants, patterns of spiritual and intellectual life and the polyglot nature of its population and culture. What emerges is an insight into the complexity, diversity and richness of this formative period of English history.

julia crick is Associate Professor in the Department of History, University of Exeter. Her research interests include property, power and gender before 1100, aspects of palaeography and the transmis-sion of texts in the Middle Ages, monastic culture and the uses of the past. Her publications include The Uses of Script and Print 1200–1700, edited with Alexandra Walsham (2004) and Charters of St Albans (2007).

elisabeth van houts is Lecturer in Medieval History at Emmanuel College, Cambridge and Affiliated Lecturer in the Faculty of History, University of Cambridge. She has published extensively on Anglo-Norman history and the history of gender in the Middle Ages. Her recent publications include Exile in the Middle Ages (2004) with Laura Napran and Medieval Writings on Secular Women in the Middle Ages (2011) with Patricia Skinner.

A SOCI A L HISTORY OF ENGL A ND,

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Horse harness pendants, c. 1200Numerous pendants have been unearthed in recent years with metal detectors. They are difficult to date, because they were presumably lost from horses on the move and are not usually found in datable layers of archaeological sites. The earliest pendants sometimes have the kind of decoration which was incorporated into early heraldry and which might be interpreted as armorial; but heraldry itself was in its infancy and it is impossible to be certain that personal association was intended. These examples (and photographs) are

from the collection of Sir John Baker (JHB) and they are reproduced with his kind permission.1 Chequy or and [tincture]. This may represent the arms of Warenne (Chequy or and azure), though in

later times a chequered field would be represented with more squares. Warenne shield-pendants become common in the thirteenth century, the incised squares being filled with blue enamel. From a Yorkshire

collection. JHB 5122 A cross. The cross is indicated merely by raised lines, incised in the mould, and there is no cutting away

for enamel as in later times. A cross occurs in numerous early coats of arms, but could perhaps have religious significance. Found in East Anglia. JHB 268

3 Bendy of fourteen argent and azure. These arms were on the seal of Amaury de Montfort (d. 1213), count of Evreux, earl of Gloucester jure uxoris, the same tinctures as here being recorded in thirteenth-century

rolls: Dictionary of British Arms, ii. 125–7. Found at North Owersby, Lincs., in 1999. JHB 4654 Argent, a cross formy azure. These arms are not recorded. There appear to be traces of whitish enamel in

the field, and of blue in the cross. Found in Yorkshire. JHB 5105 Or, a fret [tincture]. The fret was used as an armorial device by several early families, but it may not here be heraldic. This example retains much of the gilding. Found at Great Wakering, Essex. JHB 543

6 Barry of six, a bordure. These arms occur on the seal of Reynold, count of Boulogne: Dictionary of British Arms, ii. 194. Found in Essex. JHB 126






A SOCI A L HISTORY OF ENGL A ND,

JU LI A CR ICKA ND

ELISA BETH VA N HOU TS

edited by






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A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication dataA social history of England, 900–1200 / [edited by] Julia Crick, Elisabeth van Houts.

p. cm. – (A social history of england)isbn 978-0-521-71323-8 (pbk.)

1. England–Social conditions. 2. England–Economic conditions. I. Crick, Julia C., 1963– II. Van Houts, Elisabeth M. C. III. Title. IV. Series.

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v

Contents

List of figures page viiiList of maps and tables ixList of contributors xAcknowledgements xiList of abbreviations xii

Introduction 1Julia Crick and Elisabeth van Houts

I.1 Land use and people 15Robin Fleming

I.2 Water and land 38Stephen Rippon

I.3 Forest and upland 46Oliver Rackham

I.4 Mineral resources 56Peter Claughton

I.5 Health and disease 66Carole Rawcliffe

II.1 Authority and community 76Bruce O’Brien

II.2 Lordship and labour 98Stephen Baxter

II.3 Order and justice 115John Hudson

II.4 War and violence 124John Hudson






vi Contents

II.5 Family, marriage, kinship 133Elisabeth van Houts

II.6 Poor and powerless 142David A. E. Pelteret

III.1 Towns and their hinterlands 152David Griffiths

III.2 Commerce and markets 179Richard Britnell

III.3 Urban planning 188Julia Barrow

III.4 Urban populations and associations 198Charles West

IV.1 Invasion and migration 208Elisabeth van Houts

IV.2 Ethnicity and acculturation 235D. M. Hadley

IV.3 Intermarriage 247Elisabeth van Houts

IV.4 The Jews 256Anna Sapir Abulafia

V.1 Religion and belief 265Carl Watkins

V.2 Rites of passage and pastoral care 290Sarah Hamilton

V.3 Saints and cults 309Paul Antony Hayward

V.4 Public spectacle 321Tom Licence

V.5 Textual communities (Latin) 330Teresa Webber

V.6 Textual communities (vernacular) 341Elaine Treharne






viiContents

VI.1 Learning and training 352Julia Crick

VI.2 Information and its retrieval 373Nicholas Karn

VI.3 Esoteric knowledge 381Andy Orchard

VI.4 Medical practice and theory 391Carole Rawcliffe

VI.5 Subversion 402Martha Bayless

Glossary 412Time line 900–1200 420Further reading 427Index 446






viii

Figures

Frontispiece Horse harness pendants, c. 1200 1 The reclaimed wetlands of the North Somerset Levels page 39 2 Outlines of some representative medieval parks 52 3 Lead vessel from Bottesford, Scunthorpe (Lincs.),

typical of those found on Middle to Late Saxon sites in the Trent valley 57

4 Evidence of cribra orbitalia in a medieval skeleton 68 5 Evidence of hypoplasia in dental remains 70 6 Examples of castles and planned lordships in Yorkshire 84 7 The more important towns in 1086 166 8 Domesday population 171 9 Zones of nucleation and dispersal 175 10 Urban castles at York and Nottingham 192 11a The ship list of William the Conqueror 212 11b Portrait of William the Conqueror, from the Gesta

Normannorum Ducum, autograph manuscript of Orderic Vitalis, c. 1113 213

12 Gunhild (d. 1087) burial plaque, © KIK-IRPA, Brussels 228 13 Liturgical compendium in Latin and Old English, c. 1062 295 14 Burnham Deepdale font 298 15 Tombstone of Gundrada of Warenne (d. 1083) 304 16a Burial casket of Gundrada of Warenne 305 16b Burial casket of Gundrada of Warenne (with close-up

of her name) 305 17 The use of cauteries illustrated in an early twelfth-century

English manuscript owned by the monks of Durham 392 18 A late eleventh-century herbal produced at the abbey of

Bury St Edmunds 398






ix

Maps and tables

m a ps

1 England and its neighbours page xiv2 England 900–1200 xv

ta bl es

1 Kings of England 871–1066 4102 The Norman and Angevin kings of England 1066–1216 411






x

Contributors

a nna sa pir a bul a f i a, Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridgejul i a ba r row, School of History, University of Nottinghamstephen ba x ter, Department of History, King’s College, Londonm a rt h a bay l ess , Department of English, University of Oregonr ich a r d br it nell , Department of History, University of Durhampeter cl aughton, Department of Archaeology, University of Exeterjul i a cr ick, Department of History, University of Exeterrobin fl eming, Department of History, Boston Collegedav id gr iff it hs, Department for Continuing Education, University

of Oxfordd. m. h a dl ey, Department of Archaeology, University of Sheffieldsa r a h h a milton, Department of History, University of Exeterpaul a nton y h ay wa r d, Department of History, University of

Lancasterjohn hudson, School of History, University of St Andrewsn ichol a s k a r n, School of Humanities, University of Southamptontom l icence , School of History, University of East Anglia, Norwichbruce o’br ien, Department of History, University of Mary

Washingtona ndy orch a r d, Trinity College, Torontodav id a. e. pelter et, Independent Scholarol i v er r ack h a m, Corpus Christi College, Cambridgec a rol e r awcl iffe , School of History, University of East Anglia,

Norwichstephen r ippon, Department of Archaeology, University of Exeterel a ine tr eh a r ne, English Department, Florida State Universityel is a bet h va n hou ts, Emmanuel College, Cambridgec a r l watk ins, Magdalene College, Cambridgeter esa w ebber, Trinity College, Cambridgech a r l es w est, Department of History, University of Sheffield






xi

Acknowledgements

During the preparation of the volume our contributors have been unfail-ing in their willingness to respond to our original brief. We owe par-ticular thanks to Dr Sarah Hamilton and Professor Stephen Rippon for additional help and advice in the preparation of the volume. We are also indebted to Professor Sir John Baker, Dr Oliver Creighton, the Reverend Stephen Day, Professor Stephen Rippon and Mr Mike Rouillard for per-mitting us to publish photographs and illustrations in their possession. We should, however, add that some of the photographs and illustra-tions are the choice of the editors, and not the authors. We have received encouragement from successive history editors at Cambridge University Press: Simon Whitmore, Michael Watson, Elizabeth Friend-Smith and their staff, amongst whom Gillian Dadd was particularly helpful. We would like to acknowledge the constructive comments and criticism of the anonymous referees who read our proposal and final typescript. We acknowledge use of the Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England database, the Patrologia Latina database and the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.






xii

Abbreviations

ANS Anglo-Norman StudiesASC Anglo-Saxon ChronicleASE Anglo-Saxon EnglandBHL Bibliotheca Hagiographica Latina, Antiquae et

Mediae Aetatis, Subsidia Hagiographica 6 (2 vols., Brussels, 1898–99); with Novum Supplementum, H. Fros, ed. (Subsidia Hagiographica 70; Brussels, 1986)

BL British LibraryCouncils and Synods D. Whitelock, M. Brett and C. N. L. Brooke,

eds. Councils and Synods with Other Documents Related to the English Church, vol. i, A.D. 871–1204, (2 vols., Oxford, 1981)

DB fol. Domesday Book, (A. Williams, G. H. Martin, eds., Domesday Book. A Complete Translation. Alecto Historical Editions, (London, 2002))

EcHR Economic History ReviewEEA English Episcopal ActaEETS Early English Text SocietyEHD Dorothy Whitelock, ed. English Historical

Documents, vol. i, (2nd edn; London, 1967); David Douglas and George Greenaway, eds., vol. II (London, 1968)

EHR English Historical ReviewJEH Journal of Ecclesiastical HistoryJMH Journal of Medieval History ODNB H. C. G. Matthew and Brian Harrison, eds.,

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography: From the Earliest Times to the Year 2000 (60 vols.; Oxford, 2004; online edn 2004)






Abbreviations xiii

OMT Oxford (formerly Nelson’s) Medieval Texts (Oxford, 1950–)

PL J. P. Migne, ed., Patrologia Latina (221 vols.; Paris, 1844–64)

P&P Past and PresentPRO Public Record Office (The National

Archives)RS Rolls Series (London, 1858–96)Sawyer, Anglo-Saxon Charters P. H. Sawyer, Anglo-Saxon Charters:

An Annotated List and Bibliography, (London, 1968)

TRHS Transactions of the Royal Historical Society






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Map 2 England 900–1200






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