William the Conqueror became the first Norman King of England in 1066. His coronation ended in violence when Norman knights mistook cheers inside the abbey as a rebellion and burnt surrounding houses, killing Englishmen. He seized land from defeated Anglo-Saxon nobles and gave it to his Norman knights. When the northern English rebelled, William brutally punished them by burning villages and destroying crops. He finally defeated the Anglo-Saxon leader Hereward the Wake by building a causeway across marshes to access the town of Ely. To ensure loyalty from remaining Anglo-Saxon nobility, William forced them to swear oaths and took their sons as hostages.

1. Unit 2.3 The Norman Conquest
By Ms. Farida

2. Words to learn
Term Definition
Royal court (witan) A collection of nobles and clergymen known as
courtiers, who advice the king
motte and bailey castles
(wooden castle)
A simple fortification with an artificial hill and a
defensive courtyard
Lords A general term for a medieval landholder, or a
member of the peerage today.

3. The new King of all England
• On Christmas
day 1066, 2
months after he
defeated Harold,
William was
crowned King
William of
England by the
Pope of
Canterbury at
Westminster
Abbey.

4. The violent beginning
• The Norman knights
guarding the coronation
were fearful of a popular
rebellion, and mistook
cheers from inside the
abbey as revolt
• In response, they burnt
the surrounding houses
and killed any
Englishmen to slow the
flee
• It was a clearly a violent
beginning to a violent
reign

5. Brutal force
• Following his victory
against King Harold at
Hastings, William’s
approach to conquering
England was brutally
effective
• Wherever resistance or
rebellion occurred, his
heavily armoured knights
descended on the Anglo-
Saxon communities,
burning down villages
and slaughtering the
inhabitants were living
under military occupation
of just 20 000 Norman
invaders.

6. How did William change England
(Land) ?
• Before invading England, William
promised the Norman knights
who fought for him that they
would be richly rewarded with
English lands
• The Anglo-Saxons noblemen,
many have died on the
battlefield at Hastings, had their
land seized from their families
and given to Norman knights.
• William established a royal court
consisting of French Noblemen,
and a new ruling class with
French names, such as Beaufort,
Neville and Sinclair spread across
the country

7. How did William change England
(Castle) ?
• Wherever they were granted land, Norman nobles
built large defensive structures with French name
‘castle’
• At first these were simple motte and bailey castles
which were quick and easy to build (using wood)

8. How did William change England
(Castle) ?
• Gradually, these
were replaced with
stronger , stone
castle- stern
buildings which
symbolized a
foreign occupying
force.

9. The Harrying(attack) of the North
• Many Anglo-Saxon rebelled
against Norman rule. In the
north-east of England, the local
population twice rose up
against their new lords
• On the second occasion in
1069, the northern rebels took
Durham Castle, murdered its
Norman earl, Robert de
Commies and slaughter most
of its garrison.
• The rebels then took York and
proclaimed Edward the
Confessor’s Anglo-Saxon
nephew Edgar the Aetheling to
be the rightful king of England

10. • William was furious . He vowed
to make an example of the
northern rebels. His army
marched north, burnt to the
ground every village between
York and Durham
• Farm animals were slaughtered ,
crops were destroyed, and the
field were laced with salt so that
no more food could be grown.
• Estimation 100 000 ppl starved
to death (could be exagerated)
• The harrying of the North
showed William the Conquerer
at his most ruthless.

11. Hereward The Wake
• The east of England had
long been a stronghold of
Anglo-Saxon power and it
was here the final rebellion
against Norman rule
occurred in 1070.
• The land surrounding a
town called Ely was made
up of marshes and rivers
and often covered in mist
• An Anglo Saxon noble
Hereward The Wake and
his band were outlawed
and set many traps

13. Isle of Ely
• Hereward would ambush
Norman knights, kill them
and dissapear into the
mist
• Hereward stands against
the Normans came to an
end when William arrived
outside Ely , they built 2
miles of wooden causeway
across the marshes

14. Punishments
• Norman knights rode into the
town, and the Saxon rebels
were killed, imprisoned,
blinded or had their arms
chopped off
• Hereward escaped and some
claimed that William had
spared his life on purpose as
he admired his bravery
• Hereward’s heroic deeds along
with his swords known as
‘Brainbiter’ became legendary
and were told for generations
later

15. Norman rule
• Few Anglo-Saxon nobles
survived William’s invasion
were forced to swear an oath
of loyalty to William
• He took their sons as hostage
to make sure all the nobles
stayed loyal
• French became the language
of government, business and
royal court
• England entered its new era
under the rule of William and
his new Norman descendents.

16. Question
• 1. Why did William the conqueror’s
coronation end in violence?
The Norman
knights guarding
the coronation
were fearful of a
popular rebellion,
and mistook cheers
from inside the
abbey as revolt
Or Norman knights
were partying and
enforcing violence
as part of their
cheering outside
the Abbey during
the coronation

17. Question
• 1. Why did William the conquerer’s coronation
end in violence?
• The answer is :
The Norman
knights guarding
the coronation
were fearful of a
popular rebellion,
and mistook cheers
from inside the
abbey as revolt

18. Question
• 2. What happened to the land belonging to
England’s Anglo Saxon’s noblemen?
Their land was
burnt down and all
their properties
were confiscated
Or had their land
seized from their
families and given
to Norman knights.

19. Question
• 2. What happened to the land belonging to
England’s Anglo Saxon’s noblemen?
• The answer is:
had their land seized from
their families and given to
Norman knights.

20. Question
• 3. What did William do to punish the rebels
who rose up against him in the north East?
Norman knights
rode into the town,
and the Saxon
rebels were killed,
imprisoned,
blinded or had
their arms chopped
off
Or His army marched
north, burnt to the
ground every
village between
York and Durham
Farm animals were
slaughtered , crops
were destroyed,

21. Question
• 3. What did William do to punish the rebels
who rose up against him in the north East?
The answer is :
His army marched north,
burnt to the ground every
village between York and
Durham
Farm animals were
slaughtered , crops were
destroyed,

22. Question
• 4. How did William the Conqueror finally
defeat Hereward the Wake?
Hereward stands
against the
Normans came to
an end when
William arrived
outside Ely , they
built 2 miles of
wooden causeway
across the marshes
Or Gradually, Norman
built castle to
control the people
using, stone castle-
stern buildings
which symbolized a
foreign occupying
force.

23. Question
• 4. How did William the Conqueror finally
defeat Hereward the Wake?
• The answer is :
Hereward stands against the
Normans came to an end
when William arrived outside
Ely , they built 2 miles of
wooden causeway across the
marshes

24. Question
• 5. What was one of the tactics William used to
ensure loyalty from the Anglo saxon’s nobility?
Abduct their
children and
confiscate their
properties and
they would only
get their properties
back if they were
loyal
Or They were forced
to swear an oath of
loyalty to William
He took their sons
as hostage to male
sure all the nobles
stayed loyal

25. Question
• 5. What was one of the tactics William used to
ensure loyalty from the Anglo saxon’s nobility?
• The answer is :
They were forced to swear an
oath of loyalty to William
He took their sons as hostage to
male sure all the nobles stayed
loyal

26. The End