William the Conqueror

Background In about 400 AD, Saxon tribes from Germany and Denmark began to invade and settle in Britain. Saxon kings ruled the country for the next 600 years. The Saxons, who brought a rich culture with them, began to convert to Christianity from 600 AD.

In January 1066, Edward the Confessor, King of England, died. There was confusion about who should be the next king. Edward named Harold Godwinson, who was a powerful noble, as his successor, but Edward’s distant cousin William also claimed a legal right to be king. William was the Duke of Normandy, in France. The Normans, who originally came from Scandinavia, had a different culture to the rest of France. The word Norman comes from the expression ‘north men’.

FACT FILE Name: William I/William the Conqueror Dates: c.1028–1087 Nationality: Norman (from Northern France) Role: King of England Known for: invasion and rule of England; introduction of the feudal system; the Domesday Book

Venture Level 2 . William the Conqueror, p.250 © Oxford University Press PHOTOCOPIABLE 3 Read Background and the text. Complete the sentences with the correct name (William or Harold).

1 was King of England after Edward the Confessor.

2 didn’t agree with Edward’s choice of successor.

3 defeated the Vikings at Stamford Bridge.

4 won the Battle of Hastings.

5 died at the Battle of Hastings, and so was only King of England for a few months.

6 changed the culture, architecture and language of England.

The Norman Conquest In September 1066, the Vikings, under Harald Hardrada, invaded England from the north. The new English king, Harold, took his army to Stamford Bridge, near York, to meet Hardrada’s men. He won the battle, but two days later William of Normandy crossed the English Channel with over 700 ships. He attacked England near Hastings, on the south coast. King Harold raced his army back down south to meet the new invader, and on 14th October the two armies met at the Battle of Hastings. The English army were exhausted. The battle ended with the defeat of the English and the death of King Harold. William was crowned King of England on Christmas Day, 1066.

Venture Level 2 . William the Conqueror, p.250 © Oxford University Press PHOTOCOPIABLE The Norman Conquest changed the whole culture of England. William removed English people from positions of power in the state and the church, and replaced them with Norman nobles and bishops. The Normans, who had expert architectural skills, built the first castles and cathedrals in England, including The Tower of London and Durham Cathedral.

In 1085, William ordered a survey of all the land, towns and manor houses in England. This important historical document, which is known as the Domesday Book, survives today. It lists all of the property, servants and domestic animals in Saxon England.

After the Norman Conquest, the ruling classes of England were all French-speaking. French words began to enter the English language and Old English, the language of the Saxons, gradually began to disappear.