The Early Middle Ages

By Claireszc
  • 1066

    Death of Edward the Confessor and Coronation of William I

    Edward the Confessor died without an obvious heir but he had strong connexions with Normandy
    Harold Godwinson, a Saxon, was designed to succeed him but William the duke of Normandy challenged him so Harold was attacked on 2 fronts: the Normans in the SE and the Norwegian Vikings in the NE
    William landed near Hastings, he was crowned as William I on Christmas Day 1066
  • Period: 1066 to 1087

    Reign of William I

  • Period: 1066 to 1300

    The Normalisation of England

    The Normans are the descendants of Vikings who settled in France
    William was forced to act as a colonizer
    The land of Anglo-Saxon landlords was confiscated and given to Norman landlords: 4000 Saxon landlords were replaced by 200 Normans
    They built a lot of cathedrals and castles
  • Period: 1066 to

    Feudalism

    The basis of feudal society = possession of land looked after by vassals in exchange for services
    There is a promise of loyalty between a lord and a vassal
    Basic principles: every man has a lord and every lord has a land
    When a lord died his son had to pay tax on his land to the king
    William needed to know how much land he owned and had a survey made: Domesday Book
  • Period: 1066 to 1087

    Government, law and society under William I

    There were no capital of the kingdom: Westminster and Winchester
    They established an efficient administrative system and a regular tax system
  • Period: 1066 to 1300

    Society between 1066 and 1300

    The population multiplied by 3
    Markets and trade developed (Wool was England's most profitable business)
    The growth of the role of money and a market economy marked the start of the decline of feudalism
    Religious: from 50 monasteries in 1066 to 900 in the early 14th century, monks learnt to write and read
    Learning increased, Oxford and Cambridge were established in the 1220s
  • 1086

    Domesday Book

  • Period: 1087 to 1100

    Reign of William II

  • Period: 1100 to 1135

    Reign of Henry I

    Henry I standardized justice. He introduced circuit judges
    La jurisprudence was instaured, this law became known as "Common law"
    He passed his crown to his daugther Matilda who was married to Geoffrey Plantagenet, Duke of Anjou
  • Period: 1135 to 1154

    Reign of Stephen

  • Period: 1154 to 1189

    Reign of Henry II

    Henry II introduced trial by jury
    He started the Plantagenet dynasty
    His dominions were very large after his marriage with Eleanor of Aquitaine (from Scotland to the Pyrenees)
    He was succeeded by Richard I "the Lionheart", he fought in the Crusades and was arrested by the Duke of Austria who asked a large ransom
  • 1169

    Ireland conquered by the Anglo-Normans

  • Period: 1169 to 1200

    Problems on the Celtic Fringe: Ireland

    Ireland was conquered by the Anglo-Normans in 1169
    Henry II tried to force the Irish leaders to submit to his authority
    He made Dublin the capital of his colony but he failed to control Ireland outside of Pale ( a small/medium size land around Dublin)
  • 1180

    Dover Castle

    Built by Henry II in the 1180s
  • Period: 1189 to 1199

    Reign of Richard I

    Richard I fought in the Crusades and was arrested by the Duke of Austria who asked for a large ransom
    He was succeeded by his brother John "Lackland"
  • Period: 1199 to 1216

    Reign of John

    John's nickname was "Lackland", he made himself unpopular
    In 1204 he lost his father's land in France
    In 1209 he had a conflict with Pope Innocent III over the next Archbishop of Canterbury
    He was excommunicated for 5 years
    In 1215 he was forced to sign Magna Carta
  • Period: 1200 to 1320

    Problems on the Celtic Fringe: Scotland

    By the 11th Century, there was only 1 King of Scots: Duncan I (1034-1040: killed by Macbeth)
    In 1290, a crisis of succession after the death of Alexander III and his grand-daughter
    Edward I invaded Scotland In 1296, he stole the Stone of Destiny
    The rebellion was first led by William Wallace but he was captured and excecuted
    Robert Bruce took up the fight, Edward II tried to intervene but he was defeated at Bannockburn in 1314
    In 1320, Scottish clergy wrote the Petition of Arbroath
  • Period: 1200 to 1300

    Problems on the Celtic Fringe: Wales

    A new ruling class developed after the Norman invasion
    They did not speak English
    A rebellion was organized by Llewelyn II ap Gruffydd (1225-1282)
    Edward I (1239-1307) wanted to rule over all Wales and had him captured and executed, he decided the eldest son of all English kings would become the Prince of Wales
  • 1204

    King John lost his father's land in France

  • 1209

    John vs Pope Innocent III

    Over the next Archbishop of Canterbury so he was excommunicated fro 5 years
  • 1215

    Magna Carta

    John was forced to sign Magna Carta at Runnymede.
    The Magna Carta is one of Britain's earliest constitutional documents and a symbol of political freedom
    It stresses that no one is above the law not even the king who had abused feudal rights
    By limiting royal rights, it marked a clear stage in the decline of English feudalism. It condemned abuses of feudal rights not feudal rights themselves.
    John didn't keep his promises.
  • Period: 1216 to 1272

    Reign of Henry III

  • 1258

    Salisbury Cathedral

    An early Gothic cathedral built between 1220 and 1258
  • 1282

    Llewelyn II ap Gruffydd executed

  • 1290

    Crisis of succession after Alexander III

  • 1296

    Edward I invaded Scotland

  • 1314

    Edward II defeated at Bannockburn

  • 1320

    Petition of Arbroath