1. High and Late Middle Ages
Ch. 8
1050 – 1450 AD

2. Chapter 8, Section 1
Royal Power Grows

3. The Power of Monarchs England begins to form as a nation
Monarch (king), nobles, and clergy (church officials) all had similar power
Around 1000AD, monarchs start exerting their power over nobles by:
Growing their land holdings
Building their own armies
Establishing courts (royal justice)
Strengthening their relationship with townspeople

4. England is Born The Anglo-Saxons
Germanic tribe conquers what will become
England
Who will be King of England?
In 1066, King Edward dies without an heir
Nobles in England want king to be his brother in law, Harold.
William, the Duke of Normandy, wants to be King of England too

5. The Battle of Hastings 1066 William has support of the Pope
church support = more powerful
At the Battle of Hastings, William defeats Harold’s Anglo-Saxon army
Becomes knowns as William the Conqueror
On Christmas Day, 1066 he becomes the king of England

6. William the Conqueror as King
He has to establish power over the nobles
Grants fiefs (vocab term from Ch. 7)
Every vassal had to swear first allegiance to him over anyone else
Collects taxes from manors
Creates the Domesday Book 1086
Has officials count all people/livestock to know the population
aka: who to tax

7. King Henry II Inherits the Throne 1154
Henry wants to expand royal justice
Creates English Common Law
Set of laws that apply to ALL of England
Replaces feudal law, or law of the manor
Created a jury system
Henry clashes with the Church
Common Law means that clergy can be tried in court
Clergy felt that the Church governed them NOT the king
Henry’s BFF Thomas Becket, an Archbishop, disagreed with him on this

8. King Henry II and Thomas Becket
“Who will rid me of this meddlesome priest?”
Four of Henry’s knights take the hint
Thomas Becket is killed in his cathedral in Canterbury
Church blames Henry for this but he denies sending them
To make peace with the Church, Henry stops trying to regulate it