1. Norman and Medieval England
Everything you’ve ever wanted to know!

2. Norman England:
King Harold was defeated by William the Conqueror in 1066 at the Battle of Hastings.
William – from Normandy, France
Significance - first time England was unified
William believed he had some rights to the English throne.
With William the Conqueror’s victory, England was for the first time united under one strong king. How did he do it?

3. William established…
Feudalism: a system of land ownership based on service to the king
Created a strict social stratification that was pyramid shaped
William redistributed the land. What belonged to 5000 Anglo-Saxons he claimed for himself and the few men who swore allegiance to him.
First, William established feudalism, which is a system of land ownership based on service to the king. This was a form of governing that established a strict social stratification based on land ownership. Think of it as a pyramid structure.
The king was at the top, followed by his most loyal barons, who then had their own knights, and beneath the knights were serfs.
The top three layers were Normans, and the bottom of the social structure were Anglo-Saxons who lost everything.

4. Domesday Book
A survey conducted by William’s soldiers of all of England — every acre of land and every bit of livestock was recorded, and he claimed ownership of it all.
The second thing that William did that helped him establish the feudal structure was to order this survey of all lands, livestock, and goods in England.
Once completed, he claimed ownership of everything and then redistributed the land to his men.
He took land owned by thousands of Anglo-Saxons and gave it to a few hundred of his barons. This solidified all value into the hands of just a few and impoverishing everyone else.

5. William Rufus (son of William the Conqueror)
Kings who followed
William Rufus (son of William the Conqueror)
Henry I (Rufus’ son)
Stephen (grandson of William and put into place by the church)
William Rufus = redhead
Stephen was weak and put into power by the Catholic Church. This became the start of a power struggle between the Church and state in the Middle Ages.

6. The Middle Ages: 1154-1377 Begins with the reign of Henry II
Strong king with plans to gain control from the Church that Stephen let slip away
Henry II was a strong king with plans to wrestle control from the Church that Stephen had allowed to happen.

7. Henry II First of the Plantagenet family Brilliant, strong king
Reign marked by power struggle with the Church – this took many forms…
a change in the justice system
his relationship with his best friend, Thomas Becket
Henry II commanded much fear and respect amongst his people.
A change in the justice system was his greatest contribution. Prior to this, the Church controlled the justice system through trial by ordeal.
Henry saw no reason for the Church to interfere in civil crimes. He divided the country into districts with a judge and jury. Civil crimes would be dealt with there, not in the Church court.
The Catholic Church did not like this loss of power, especially when crimes involved their own priests.

8. Henry II is also remembered for…
His friendship and conflict with Thomas Becket
This power struggle with the Church also found its way into his relationship with his best friend, Thomas Becket.

9. They started out as friends…
Thomas was an Anglo- Saxon who found power in the Catholic Church.
Thomas Becket became Henry’s most loyal subject and his greatest friend, and he was ultimately named Chancellor of England.
Both enjoyed the same things – wealth, women, hunting, and power.

10. Things changed when…
Henry decided the best way to gain control over the Catholic Church was to name Thomas to the position of Archbishop of Canterbury.
Thomas begged him not to do this. Henry refused to listen and made it happen anyways.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the highest ranking position in the English Catholic Church.

11. This created all sorts of trouble
Thomas underwent a religious conversion
He then opposed Henry
Opposed Henry on the rights of Church vs. King’s rights, especially in regard to the trial of clergy for civil crimes
“Will no one rid me of this tiresome priest?”
Thomas became the most devout Catholic possible. He sold all of his possessions and wore a hair shirt.
He opposed Henry on rights of the Church vs. the King, especially in regard to trials of the clergy for civil crimes.
One night, Henry gets drunk and says to his barons, “Will no one rid me of this tiresome priest?” The barons take him at his word and murder Thomas in the church at mass.

12. Saint Thomas Henry II petitioned Rome to name Thomas a saint.
Miracles began to occur at the site of his murder.
The pilgrimage to Canterbury Cathedral became the most prestigious pilgrimage a person could take.
The pilgrimage was the Medieval form of a vacation. People went to visit cathedrals and churches for a variety of reasons. If you wanted to impress people, Canterbury was the place to go.

13. Canterbury Cathedral
The BEST pilgrimage in England due to the martyrdom of Thomas Becket

14. The Nave
Notice the towering arches give impression
of great height

16. Inside the cathedral Imagine you are a poor serf –
what would you think of this?

17. A view of the back of the Cathedral
Again, the size alone is impressive even to
today’s standards.

19. The Becket window

20. The Miracles of Thomas Becket
“The miracles began immediately after his death. The blood from his head wounds, which formed a pool on the stone floor, was soaked up by the cloth rags that several of the laity present in the cathedral had. One man took his home to his sick wife, who was instantly cured. Similar reports of cures followed in the next few days, involving predominantly poor and sick local women. Becket’s blood touched the cloth, imbuing it with his saintly powers. Later, the blood would be watered down so much that the water contained the merest hint of a drop of blood in it, and sold to the pilgrims.”

22. Medieval cultural notes…
Knights, Crusades, Chivalry, Women and Medicine

23. Barons, Knights and Serfs
Oaths of feudal loyalty, of faithfulness and loyalty, were sworn by a vassal (knight) to his lord (Baron). Pledges were often made over religious relics or with the vassal’s hands between those of his Baron. They’d seal the pledge with a kiss. The lord provided his serfs with land, simple housing, and protection. The serf paid for these things by working the lord’s lands and by providing the lord with a portion of whatever they grew. Serfs were different from slaves in that they were not owned, but couldn’t leave without permission.

24. From boy to knight…
Not every boy could become a knight; the parents had to be wealthy enough to purchase armor, weapons, horse(s), and servants. Education began at age 7 as a page; pages learned manners, singing, dancing, and how to use shield and sword. At age 14, pages could become squires (personal servants to knights).

25. The Crusades
Wars waged by European Christians against Muslims to control the Holy Land Capture of rich Islamic cities like Baghdad and Cairo exposed Crusaders to cultures much more sophisticated than their own

26. Knights and Chivalry
Chivalry was a complete code of conduct that provided rules to control a lawless knight. The knight’s first obligation was to defend his lord, his king, and his faith. There were rules of warfare, like never attacking an unarmed opponent. The code also covered how to treat a lady, how to help others, and how to resist the urge to run from danger.

27. Chivalry and Courtly Love
Adoring a particular lady, not necessarily one’s wife, was a means of achieving self- improvement.
Revering and acting in the name of a lady would make a knight more brave.
Courtly love was nonsexual — the knight would glorify his lady in words and wear her colors in battle, but she remained pure and out of reach.
A Knight's Tale
Gave rise to new literary form – the Romance
Did little though improve lives of women.

28. Women in the middle ages
A quote about women written in the 15th century sums it up nicely: “A woman is a worthy wight / She serveth a man both daye and nyght / Thereto she putteth all her might.”

29. Women’s roles
Valued only in regard to the land she brought to marriage Social standings depended on father’s or husband’s status Had no political rights Limited choices — wife or nun
Even though women could become nuns, the Catholic Church also diminished women’s status by reclaiming convents that had been supported and run by women in earlier times.

30. Medicine in the Middle Ages
The four humors – bodily fluids that needed to be in the correct proportion in order to maintain health
Black bile (depression and delusions)
Yellow bile or choler (unkindness and instability)
Phlegm (sloth, obesity, hairless skin)
Blood (too much caused heart attacks and sensuality)

31. Kings Following Henry II
How to Become the British Monarch

32. Richard the Lion Hearted
3rd legitimate son of Henry II
Known as a great military leader and warrior
Took control of his own army by the age of 16
Spent little time in England
Viewed the royal treasury as a personal source of revenue
Died without an heir

33. John
Youngest of five sons of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine
Favorite son of Henry II (the older brothers tried to rebel against Henry II)
John’s older brothers, William, Henry, and Geoffrey, died young, leaving only Richard ahead of him in line for the throne
Unsuccessfully tried to rebel against Richard, but was forgiven and was still crowned king after Richard’s death
Historical opinion of John: "hard-working administrator, an able man, an able general”
Historians also agree, though, that John “had many faults as king, like ‘distasteful, even dangerous personality traits, such as pettiness, spitefulness and cruelty.’”
As a result, he’s been popularized as a villain, the evil King John, in the Robin Hood movies
Selfish ruler: impoverished country with high taxes, jailed subjects at whim
Evil King John

34. Magna CArta
The first document forced onto a king of England by a group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit the king’s powers by law and protect their rights
An important step towards constitutional law that eventually served as a model for the American colonies

35. The next Kings Henry III (1216-1272) (son of John)
Became King at age 9
Weak and untrustworthy
Edward I ( ) (son of Henry III)
Called the first parliament
2 representatives from nobility, clergy and towns
Major step away from Feudalism due to growing middle class
Edward II ( ) (son of Edward I)
Edward I’s biggest failure
Reign marked by incompetence, political squabbling, and military defeats

36. Edward III and England in 1300s
Noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II
Transformed the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe
Saw vital developments in legislation and government — in particular the evolution of the English parliament
After a successful campaign in Scotland he declared himself rightful heir to the French throne in 1337, starting what would become known as the Hundred Years' War
Joan of Arc
After this, Plantagenet dynasty ends and the Tudor dynasty begins.
Edward III…or Albus Dumbledore?

37. Hundred Years’ War
A series of conflicts waged from 1337 to between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of France for control of the French throne
Edward declared that he, not Philip, was the rightful King of France, a claim dating to 1328, when Edward's uncle, Charles IV of France, died without a direct male heir
Question of legal succession to the French crown was central to the war over generations of English and French claimants

38. Joan of Arc A folk heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint
Born to a peasant family in northeast France
Claimed divine guidance and led the French army to several important victories against England during the Hundred Years' War, paving the way for the coronation of Charles VII of France
Captured and transferred to the English in exchange for money, put on trial by the pro-English bishop, and burned at the stake for heresy when she was 19 years old
Twenty-five years after her execution, an inquisitorial court examined the trial, pronounced her innocent, and declared her a martyr
Said she had received visions from God instructing her to support Charles VII and recover France from English domination late in the Hundred Years' War
Overcame dismissive attitude of veteran commanders and caused the lifting of the siege in only nine days, turning the tide for the French

39. Changes in England
Social structure changes and so does political structure
New weapons: cannon and crossbow
Means less reliance on the knight and codes of chivalry – more reliance on the yeoman
Black Death — the plague
Killed 40% population
Decreased population of feudal Barons
Decreased control of Church
Emergence of prosperous Middle Class
Shift from barter system to money-gold coins

40. And we’re done!
It's just a flesh wound