West Derby School
YEAR 7 HISTORY
END OF YEAR EXAMINATION
REVISION MATERIALS
The Norman Conquest: Overview
In January 1066 Edward the Confessor, King of England, died childless. He had
promised the throne to two different men, but several people wanted to be king. William
of Normandy invaded England, won the Battle of Hastings and became king of
England.
The main rivals for the throne were Harold Godwinson, Harald Hardrada and William of
Normandy.
When Edward the Confessor died, Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex, was
immediately crowned king and became Harold II. The royal council, known as the
Witan (a group of people who gave the King advice), supported him. He gathered an
army to defend the kingdom.
Harald Hardrada was king of Norway. He invaded Yorkshire with a fleet of ships, but
was defeated and killed by Harold's army at the Battle of Stamford Bridge.
While Harold II was in the north of England fighting Hardrada, William, Duke of
Normandy invaded Sussex. Harold rushed back south to fight him.
On 14 October 1066, Harold II fought William's army at the Battle of Hastings and lost.
Harold was killed, perhaps with an arrow in his eye - although this is disputed by some
historians
William was crowned king of England on Christmas Day 1066, but it took years more
fighting to conquer the whole country. His cruellest campaign was the 'Harrying of the
North' in 1069, where he slaughtered the inhabitants of the north-east and destroyed
their food stores so that even the survivors starved to death.
The Norman Conquest changed the face of England forever.
The Norman Conquest: The rivals for the throne
Edward the Confessor died on 5 January 1066. He had no children. Three men wanted
to be king of England. Each man thought he had the best claim to the throne. The next
king of England would have to win it in a war. Who do you think had the best claim to
the throne?
• Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex, a powerful and rich English nobleman.
According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Edward named Godwinson as his
successor on his deathbed. The next day, the royal council (group of advisors),
known as the Witan, met and declared Godwinson king. An English king was
proclaimed by the Witan - this gives Harold Godwinson the only claim to the throne
by right.
• William, Duke of Normandy. The Norman chroniclers reported that Edward had
promised his distant relative, William, the throne in 1051. William was the only blood
relative of Edward, but the English throne was not hereditary anyway. Claims that
Edward promised the throne were probably made up by the rival sides after the
event. The Bayeux Tapestry, which was made after the Conquest, shows Godwinson
swearing an oath of support to William in a visit to Normandy in 1064. William was
supported by the Pope.
• Harald Hardrada, King of Norway, a Viking warrior. Hardrada based his claim on the
fact that his ancestor, King Cnut, had once ruled England (1016‒1035). He was
helped by Godwinson's brother, Tostig.
The Norman Conquest: The fight begins
After Harold Godwinson was crowned King Harold II, William and Harald Hardrada
both made plans to invade England.
• Hardrada's invasion force was about 300 longships.
• Harold II assembled his bodyguards, known as the housecarls, and gathered an
army of ordinary men, called the fyrd. He split the fyrd in two, sending some men to
the south and some to the north. He sent a fleet of ships to the English Channel.
Then they all waited. In September supplies had run out and Harold II had to send
the fyrd back home to bring in the harvest.
• Hardrada invaded. He landed in Yorkshire and defeated the northern Saxon army at
the Battle of Fulford.
• Harold II marched north quickly, gathering an army on his way. He took Hardrada by
surprise and defeated him at the Battle of Stamford Bridge (25 September).
• Hardrada and Tostig were both killed.
• So many Vikings were killed that they only needed 24 longships to go home.
The Norman Conquest: The Battle of Hastings
William's army had been ready since August, but strong winds stopped him sailing until
late September. There have been many accounts of the Battle of Hastings. It is difficult
to be sure of what happened, but there are some good guesses. In the end William
won, but can you think of any reasons why?
• William gathered an invasion fleet of 700 ships and a large army.
• William landed at Pevensey on 29 September, built a castle and raided the
surrounding area.
• Harold II marched quickly south from Stamford Bridge. He left many of his
footsoldiers behind and exhausted the others.
• The two sides met at Senlac Hill, near Hastings.
• Harold II's army were at the top of Senlac Hill. They formed a shield wall to protect
themselves. The Norman knights could not charge uphill.
• Some of the Norman soldiers began to flee because they thought William had been
killed. William took off his helmet to show them he was still alive.
• The Normans pretended to run away, then turned and cut down the Saxons when
the inexperienced fyrd chased them.
• William had a well-equipped army. He had knights on horseback and archers with
crossbows. Harold II had a traditional Saxon army – his housecarls fought on foot
with axes, the fyrd were just farmers with any weapons they could get.
• William used archers to break up the Saxon shield wall.
• The housecarls formed a ring round their king.
• Harold was killed. It is impossible to know how Harold II died. Most people believe
that he was killed by an arrow in the eye. This theory is based on a scene in the
Bayeux Tapestry. The tapestry has the words 'Harold is killed' next to a man with an
arrow in his eye, but it is impossible to know which soldier is Harold II because all
the Saxon soldiers are dressed identically.
The Norman Conquest: The roots of the Feudal
System
Once William became king of England, he had to decide how he was going to run the
country. He did not want the old English nobles to keep their estates, because they
would be powerful and might try to overthrow him. Anyway they had to make room for
William's supporters who had been promised land in return for helping him. William
introduced a system of duties and rewards known as the Feudal System. William was
very careful not to just give land away. His supporters were rewarded (with land) but
they had duties to perform as well. The feudal system proved idea for distributing the
land of newly conquered England.
How did the Feudal System work?
• The barons or bishops were given land and had to swear an oath of loyalty to the
lord who was giving it. This called ‘doing homage’.
• The barons or bishops then became tenants-in-chief and agreed to provide knights
(mounted soldiers) to guard castles or fight in wars for their lords.
• The more land the baron was given the more knights he had to provide.
• The tenants-in-chief sometimes had their knights living with them in their castles.
• Usually, however, they gave some of their own land to the knights, who in return did
homage and agreed to fight when asked.
• The knights became under-tenants. They kept some land for themselves and
shared the rest among the peasants who farmed it.
• The peasants did homage to the knights who, in turn, promised to protect them.
Thomas Becket and Henry II
Thomas Becket's life and death were remarkable. In 1162 he was appointed
Archbishop of Canterbury by Henry II. He became a strong defender of the
Church . This was the opposite to the loyalty Henry had expected from
Becket. At the time the Church held great wealth and power over monarchs
and their people. With the support of the Pope in Rome, Becket represented
an even greater power.
The events leading to the murder of Thomas Becket
1. Becket refused to agree to a law which would punish members of the
Church. He was found guilty of treason (a crime against the King or
Queen) and fled to France.
2. In 1170 Henry let Becket return to England. Becket had won.
3. Becket threw three bishops out of the Church because they supported
Henry.
4. In rage, Henry is said to have shouted: Will no one rid me of this turbulent
priest?.
5. Four knights heard this and, in an attempt to please Henry, rode to
Canterbury, and murdered Becket at the altar of the Cathedral on 29
December 1170.
King John and the Magna Carta
King John is most famous as the king
who was forced to agree to Magna
Carta - a set of laws he had to follow
giving rights to the people. This was
after many conflicts with barons and
the Church.
King John and the Monarchy
During John's reign, he tried to strengthen the monarchy:
•He collected a new land tax from the knights and the barons.
•He modernised the government and kept good records.
•He tried to force the Church to accept his candidate for Archbishop of Canterbury.
•He increased his control over Ireland and Wales, and built up his forces in northern England.
The King of Scotland signed a peace treaty with John.
John's actions angered many people:
•Barons and knights would have been angry at having to pay taxes for wars John lost.
•Both officials and barons would have resented King John taking away their power. Everybody
saw it as an attack on their freedom.
•The Church didn't want to be told what to do.
•The Irish, Welsh and Scots all hated the power John had in their countries.
The Black Death
All the conditions were right for an epidemic. Doctors were powerless against infectious
disease. People were weakened by war and harvest failures. Germs, the fleas which
carried them, and the rats which carried the fleas, flourished in the dirty towns. Busy trade
routes carried the plague from one place to another.
The plague arrived at Melcombe Regis in Dorset in June 1348 and it spread throughout the
south of England. In 1349 it reached Wales, Ireland and the north of England. By 1350, it
had made it to Scotland. Estimates suggest as much as half the population died.
Causes of the Black Death
Today, we know that there were many causes of the Black Death. Poor medical
knowledge. Medieval doctors did not understand disease, and had limited ability to prevent
or cure it. So, when the plague came, doctors were powerless to stop it.
Medieval doctors were not certain what caused the plague, but believed it could be the
result of:
•the movements of the planets
•a punishment from God
•bad smells and corrupt air
•enemies who had poisoned the wells
•staring at a victim
•wearing pointed shoes
•strangers to villages too were blamed
What were the symptoms of the Black Death?
Cures for the Black Death
In the 1347 - 1350 outbreak, doctors were completely unable to prevent or cure the plague. For
those who believed in the Greek humours there were a range of cures available. ‘Blood-letting’
– deliberately bleeding a vein – was a way of reducing ‘hot’ blood, whilst blowing your nose or
clearing your throat was a way of getting rid of too much ‘cold’ phlegm. Mustard, mint sauce,
apple sauce and horseradish were used to balance wet, dry, hot and cold in your diet!
Some of the cures they tried included:
•Rubbing onions, herbs or a chopped up snake (if available) on the boils or cutting up a pigeon
and rubbing it over an infected body.
•Drinking vinegar, eating crushed minerals, arsenic, mercury or even ten-year-old treacle!
•Sitting close to a fire or in a sewer to drive out the fever, or fumigating the house with herbs to
purify the air.
•People who believed God was punishing you for your sin, 'flagellants', went on processions
whipping themselves.
•In the 1361 - 1364 outbreak, doctors learned how to help the patient recover by bursting the
buboes.
•Doctors often tested urine for colour and health. Some even tasted it to test.
The Peasants Revolt
The Peasants' Revolt in 1381 is viewed as a turning point, enabling peasants together, to
demand more freedoms from their Lords.
The Peasants' Revolt started in Essex on 30 May 1381, when a tax collector tried, for the third
time in four years, to take a poll tax. Richard II's war against France was going badly, the
government's reputation was damaged, and the tax was 'the last straw‘.
The peasants were not just protesting against the government. Since the Black Death, poor
people had become increasingly angry that they were still serfs, usually farming the land and
serving their king. Whipped up by the preaching of radical priest John Ball, they were
demanding that all men should be free and equal; for less harsh laws; and a fairer distribution
of wealth.
Soon both Essex and Kent were in revolt. The rebels coordinated their tactics by letter. They
marched in London, where they destroyed the houses of government ministers. They also had
a clear set of political demands.
On 15 June, the 14-year-old king, Richard II, met the rebels' leader Wat Tyler. William
Walworth, the Lord Mayor of London, attacked and killed Tyler. Before the rebel army could
retaliate, Richard stepped forward and promised to get rid of serfdom. The peasants went
home, but later government troops toured the villages hanging men who had taken part in the
Revolt.
Timeline of the Peasants Revolt
1. The rebels marched in London. The leader of
the men of Essex was called Jack Straw.
2. On 7 June 1381, the Kentish rebels asked an
ex-soldier named Wat Tyler to be their leader.
3. The priest John Ball had been imprisoned by
the Archbishop of Canterbury. The rebels
freed him and he preached to them, saying
that God intended people to be equal.
4. The rebels were joined by others. They sent
letters round the countryside calling for people
to join them.
5. On 13 June, someone opened the gates of
London to the rebels.
6. The rebels entered the city and attacked the
houses of Richard's advisers, including John
of Gaunt (Richard's uncle) and Simon
Sudbury (the Archbishop of Canterbury).
7. On 14 June, Richard (who was only 14 years
old) bravely went to Mile End and met a group
of rebels led by Richard Wallingford. They
demanded that he dismiss some of his
advisers and abolish serfdom. Richard
agreed. Some of the rebels went home. While
this was happening, a group of rebels broke
into the Tower of London and beheaded
Simon Sudbury, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
It is said that he endured eight strokes of the
axe.
8. On 15 June, Richard went to Smithfield to
meet Wat Tyler, who had refused to accept
the deal with Wallingford. Tyler demanded
that the law should be less harsh, the
Church's wealth be given to the poor, there
should be no lords and all men should be free
and equal.
9. William Walworth, the Lord Mayor of London,
attacked Tyler.
10. As he died, Tyler ordered his army to attack,
but Richard stepped forward and said: I will
be your king and leader. He promised to
abolish serfdom. The peasants trusted him
and went home.
Revision questions
1.
Why was there a disputed succession in 1066?
2.
Why did William of Normandy claim the English throne?
3.
How many Viking longships returned home?
4.
Why was Harold's army so tired?
5.
Why did Harold position his army at the top of a steep hill?
6.
Who won the Battle of Hastings?
7.
Who was crowned king of England after the Battle of Hastings?
8.
The 'Feudal System' is a name coined by historians to describe what?
9.
In return for promising loyalty to their lord, what were people given?
10. Who was the 'feudal lord'?
11. What was the Domesday Book and when was it written?
12. What were towns like at the time of the Domesday Book? (Try to sum them up in
a sentence).
13. Who was Thomas Becket and why was he killed?
14. Give two reasons why the Barons were angry with King John.
15. When did the Black Death arrive in England?
16. Give two causes of the Black Death.
17. Give two symptoms of the Black Death.
18. Give two ways in which people tried to cure the Black Death.
19. When did the Peasants Revolt take place?
20. Give two reasons why the Peasants Revolt broke out?
21. Who was Wat Tyler?
22. What happened to Wat Tyler on 15 June 1381?