HISTORY OF BRITISH HISTORY OF BRITISH SOCIAL AND CULTURESOCIAL AND CULTURE

Week 3:Week 3:

The Middle AgesThe Middle Ages

Flash back………Flash back………

• The Roman had brought their own religious customs with them to Britain and built temples in which to worship their gods.

• They were tolerant of the islanders’ beliefs.• However, in 313, the Roman Emperor Constantine I was

converted to Christianity. This enabled Romans and Britons to worship side-by-side.

• When the Romans withdrew, the Barbarians brought their pagan gods with them. For 150 years, Christianity was driven underground.

• Gradually, it spread out to the whole Britain thanked to the Monks from Iona.

THE NORMAN QONQUESTTHE NORMAN QONQUEST

• The Middle Ages in Britain was signified by the change of the king, William, Duke of Normandy. He claimed that he had been promised the throne of England.

• It was said that it was initiated with the visit of King Harold’s visit to Normandy in 1058 and he promised to give the throne of England to William.

• William and his soldiers landed in Hastings in October 1066 and the war broke out.

Battle of HastingsBattle of Hastings

• October 14, 1066 was known as the Battle of Hastings.

• William’s people from Normandy were face to face with the British troops, Harold’s people, for a great battle.

• King Harold was murdered.

• The reign of William the Conqueror began.

• Westminster Abbey • Westminster Abbey is the best-known church in England. It was begun in 1245 for

King Henry III, and the French Gothic influence can be seen in the flying buttresses and the window tracery in particular. The chapel of Henry VII, designed in the Tudor style, was added in 1503.

The New Age had commencedThe New Age had commenced

• On Christmas Day 1066, Duke William of Normandy was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey.

• William also demanded Scotland and Wales into his realm.

• He introduced feudal system in his reign.• Barons ruled their own little empire.• William kept as much of the land as he needed

for himself, and distributed the rest to his knights, and in return, they recruited the men and arms to meet the king’s requirements.

• The Knights (under Baron) broke up their land into smaller units, which they leased to serfs (slaves).

• In return for the scraps of soil, they had to supply their masters with free labour; to serve as soldiers when ordered; to pledge their loyalty and obedience.

• A serf could not even marry his daughter to a man in another manor without first getting his master’s permission.

• Life for the knights and barons was good in Norman England. For others, especially the Saxons, it was cruel.

• For example, a Norman was murdered. If the killer was not caught, the citizens of the town where the crime occurred were fines. But if the victim turned out to be Saxon, no penalty was demanded.

• The Saxons were taxed, tortured and treated as second class citizens.

• Finally William could conquer Scotland in 1072. He also conquered Wales.

• Wherever they went, the Normans built castles. Towns such as Cardiff, Swansea and Newport grew from communities at the foot of the castle walls.

Cardiff Castle, Wales • Cardiff castle, constructed by the Normans in 1090, was built upon the thick outer

walls of an old Roman fort. In the

About William IAbout William I

• William died in 1087 and the conquest had been completed, except Ireland.

• All the land belonged to William I (The Conqueror). It was predicted that he kept ¼ of it for his own use; leased 2/5 of it to the barons, and gave the remainder to the Church. He is a devout/pious Christian. He provided large amount of money for the building of churches and cathedrals.

• His bishops had considerable power – acting in many ways, like barons

• The land he used was mainly used for deer hunting. It was a great offence to gather wood. The penalty was the chopping off a hand.

Domesday BookDomesday Book

• William made what is called Domesday Book. It contained list of his possessions. It was the detailed account of the royal estates and those of his tenants-in-chief.

• It was like the present-day census since it contained the data from the whole Britain.

• The data included about the population, the divisions of land, the houses, and so on, in the past and the present, to see the changes that happened.

• All the evidence was given on oath; all the information was checked to make sure it was accurate. The questioning was so thorough, that it was also called like Judgment Day or Doomsday.

Domesday BookDomesday Book

The Uses of Domesday BookThe Uses of Domesday Book

• Providing opportunities of raising more taxes.

• Estimating the country’s military strength.

• The second was important because William kept worried about the an invasion of the Danes.