The Norman Conquest of 1066 marked the beginning of the transition from Old English to Middle English. William the Conqueror invaded Britain from Normandy and established Norman rule, replacing Anglo-Saxon nobles with his own. The Normans spoke a dialect of French different from the standard French, and this Anglo-Norman became the language of kings and nobility in England for over 300 years. Meanwhile, the lower classes continued speaking English, and the two languages gradually merged over time as the populations intermingled, producing Middle English.