This presentation provides an overview of England before 1066. It discusses who the English people were descended from, how England was organized politically, and what life was like in 1066. The English were descended from Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, and Danes who invaded and settled after the Romans left. In 1066, England was divided into powerful earldoms ruled by earls loyal to the king. The population was around 1.5 million, and most people lived rurally, working on the land.

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Britain 1066–1500
England Before 1066
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Learning objectivesLearning objectives
This presentation covers:
1. Who the English were descended from.
2. How England was run.
3. What England was like in the 1060s.
Learningobjectives

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What was England like before 1066?

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Some people were educated to a very high level, but
many were unable to read or write.
People were very religious, but still believed in the
power of nature.
The country was organized into areas run by earls,
but there were often wars fought for control.
People knew about disease, but not how disease
was spread or cured.
England could be said to be a country of contrasts
(meaning opposites).
What was England like before 1066?

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England in 1066 was separate from Scotland, Ireland and
Wales. The kings of England had enough trouble keeping
their country together, without worrying about their
neighbouring countries.
England was a strange place since the
Romans had left in the 4th
century AD.
The Saxons invaded Britain, along
with other groups of people. The
knowledge the Romans had brought
went, and sewerage and heating
systems fell into disrepair. It was like
England had gone back in time!
What was England like in 1066?

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The English were descended from the Anglo-Saxons, the
Vikings and the Danes, who had all invaded and then
settled once the Romans had left.
Who were the English?

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At this time England's connection to Europe did not lie with
France, just across the channel, but rather with the
Scandinavian countries where the Vikings originated from.
England had been part of the Viking Empire of King Cnut
up until 1034.
England
Norway
Denmark
English Channel
England in the 1060s

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England was divided
into a series of
earldoms, each ruled
over by a powerful
leader (earl). These
earls were meant to be
loyal to the king.
Which of these earldoms do you think was the most
important?
Clue: Winchester was
the capital at this time.
England in the 1060s

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England in the 1060s

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There were 1.5 million people living in England in the
1060s.
How do you think life then was different from life
today? (There are about 60 million people in
England today).
Most people lived in the countryside in small villages and
worked on the land.
Much of the southern area of the country was covered in
forest.
The country was ruled by Edward the Confessor.
England in the 1060s

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In approximately 1005, a monk called Aelfric was writing
about the types of people in England:
“Labourers are they who provide us with food … Priests
are they who pray for us to God and promote Christianity
among Christian people in the service of God … Warriors
are they who guard our boroughs [towns] and also our
land…”
Do think life was fairly
simple in the time of Aelfric?
England in the 1060s

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What does the source tell you about the people of
England?
What does it tell you about religion?
Aelfric was a Christian monk. What difference could this
have made to what he wrote?
What other sources could you use to find out about life at
this time?
What other information would you like to know?
“Labourers are they who provide us with food … Priests
are they who pray for us to God and promote Christianity
among Christian people in the service of God … Warriors
are they who guard our boroughs [towns] and also our
land…”
England in the 1060s

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England was a Christian country. The country
was part of the Roman Catholic Church
which was headed by the Pope. Many
countries in Europe belonged to this church.
In Europe, there was a movement by
some to unify (join) parts of Europe
together. In Normandy, the Duke
(called William) was fighting in Italy to
make himself more powerful and he
really wanted to control England too!
Our neighbours…

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England before 1066: multiple-choice questions