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Lastname 1 Student Name Ms. Bacon and Mrs. Frindell European Studies 3-4 April 24, 2009 Establishing an Era Through his conquest, William I of England was able to bring aspects of his Normandy into the England he took over with the ultimate goal of bettering his conquered country. He developed England into a country that was truly led by a monarch, not just a country with a figurehead ruler. William expanded what a king could do in England by creating a need for there to be a relationship between the monarch and his people in order for the populace to gain land. He used this relationship to create a sense of obligation for the public to have a respect their king; the foundation of his system of ruling. From his scheme came a variety of changes to England that would encourage the creation of England’s identity. William the Conqueror’s reign on the English throne established a national identity in England that revolutionized the role of the monarch. While the title of king remained the same, William’s conquest of England founded a much deeper purpose for an English sovereign. In order to take the throne, William defeated his monarchial predecessor, Harold Godwinson, at the Battle of Hastings. Historians of this era often acknowledge the thought that Harold’s worth as a king was tested by God at this battle (Saul 71). With William winning this battle, it proved him worthy of the throne and consequently English people were less apprehensive about his eventual reign (Saul 71). William and the Norman forces he controlled thoroughly dominated all succeeding English rebellions after Hastings and any negative ethnic hostility was eliminated and William could focus on national development Lastname 2 (Thomas 108). The manner and success of William’s conquest of England would give him the freedom to impose his significance away from war and on the throne. The dominant style in which The Conqueror used on the battlefield would be indicative of how his reign in England went. William used this opportunity to extend the power of the English king in terms of how they controlled and owned the land of their empire. William created the idea that the king owns all land in his kingdom and consequently wrote the Salisbury Oath, exchanging duty and homage from his vassals and barons for their land and fiefs as well as protection (Knox). William had used this practice of offering protection for his subjects dating back to his time as Duke in Normandy (Riley 54). This homage to William as king of England became a crucial aspect of English life because of its numerous key implications. One had to pay homage to William not only to gain his land but also since the grace of the king had become so crucial in everyday life (Saul 71). The establishment of land and power by William had allowed him to create a monarchy with total control over subjects in all aspects of life. Due to the fact that the king owned all land, once a landowner died the land went back to William and therefore the inheritance of estates was controlled by the king (Saul 74). This gave William broadened control over his kingdom as it extended the importance of duty and homage beyond the initial holders of land. The control William had was described by historian of Norman England, Eadmer, “’All things, spiritual and temporal alike, waited on the nod of the king’” (Saul 75). William moved the role of king beyond a figurehead status by forcing his people to go through him in order to get what they need. William demonstrated his dominance as the English king and started an innovative and complex system of aristocracy built around his influence as monarch. William manufactured a Lastname 3 sense of control over the English aristocracy that made him responsible for any idea of worth and class among the English people. All land being that of the king, all barons and bishops and anyone who had acquired land had to do so by fulfilling homage to William. Therefore all class status involved with owning land had to go through William (Saul 69). In this way, office position and landholding and any power in William’s England corresponded with the homage to him and as a consequence no one received a title unless the king gave it (Saul 73). The Conqueror’s impacts upon England extended the control of his new aristocracy and thus his kingdom. Previous to the Norman Conquest, inheritance of land among non-lords was spread out amongst several family members. After he took the throne, the practice changed to only the eldest son inheriting land (Thomas 101). This change kept estates entirely intact as well as easier for William and his barons to manage. The Salisbury Oath that William made had extended the use of duty to the king beyond the primary tenants of his land to the secondary and tertiary tenants as well (Saul 71). Creating this structure allowed the system of aristocracy to extend to William’s entire kingdom in an organized fashion. William’s aristocracy managed his people while the specifics of the system gave his monarchy further control. William instituted economic and government policies that further helped supervise his nation by having the characteristics of much of what William created in England. William revolutionized aspects of government that became grounded into English customs while being practical relative to his era. Upon taking reign in England, William and the Normans undermined the existing English code of law in order to establish their own legal principles of modern English law (Thomas 144). This move created the image to English people that the Norman policy would be superior to previous ideals pertaining to law and justice. William began the practice of delegating specialized commissioners to English courts (Douglas 309). In doing this Lastname 4 he helped to regulate English law throughout the nation and ensure the will of the king was known amongst his kingdom. Among the courts in England was another huge innovation of William’s, the first practical jury. The jury was described as, “a group of men appointed by a court to give a collective verdict upon oath” (Douglas 309). He insisted upon his Norman language be spoken in English courts and to then be the official language of record (Abbott 270). These innovations helped regulate the judicial system by creating a standard upon which to reference for further legal classification. The Conqueror also was able to run his nation from a financial standpoint with his characteristic dominance and control. His notable census of England gave way to a system of proficient economic management relative to its time. William used The Domesday Book to keep record of all subjects within England and the wealth of each citizen (Knox). Using the Domesday Book, he imposed the first system of uniform national taxation in Western Europe (Thomas 299). These policies helped enforce the Conqueror’s dominant characteristics were seen throughout all aspects of his kingdom. This was also reflected when he began the concept of a king’s wealth by monopolizing the English minting industry and amassed immense wealth in this manner (Douglas 304). Although necessary for running a nation, William’s modifications to both England’s government and economy came with a sense of William’s extended dominance of his country. William I of England was able to govern England socially that allowed him to further control his people, and in doing so let England evolve socially into its own national identity. The Conqueror preemptively handled the potential for an ethnically disjointed nation and therefore minimized unnecessary conflict between each side of the Conquest. Him doing this let England socially evolve into its own national identity. He claimed himself rightful heir to the English Lastname 5 throne and upon taking power he promised fair treatment to his new English subjects in exchange for loyalty (Thomas 108). This expectation developed a sense of legal equality between the king and his dominion. Even through his demonstrative aristocracy, William managed to stabilize the relationship between both Norman and English people. With the primary lords and barons of his land being Norman conquerors and the sub-tenants being the conquered English people, William practiced a respectful yet obligatory relationship with his barons to be spread to the English to promote racial equality (Saul 70). This also extended the message to the English people that their king truly respected their well being. William made the decision to place Normans in positions of administration and civil office; however he foresaw jealousy and admiration from the native English people (Abbott 268). To combat this, William increased the number of Normans who held positions of power to make them into their own social class to gain respectability among the conquered (Abbott 268). His adjustments to England socially demonstrated his dominance as king but helped make his nation ultimately what it defined itself as. The Conqueror was able to not only do as his name suggests in England, but also founded the ideas of identity and respect for the king within his nation. His dominant nature and widespread ownership of property made necessary the union between king and subject. This union strengthened William’s kingdom by forcing subjects to go through the king to gain all important land. William thus put himself responsible for any system of class and power in England, which consolidated his nation’s power into what The Conqueror chose. The power that William created for himself contributed to how England defined itself as a whole, creating a national identity that was built around the king. Lastname 6 Works Cited Abbot, Jacob. William the Conqueror. New York & London. Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1901. Douglas, David C. William the Conqueror: The Norman Impact upon England. California: University of California Press, 1964. E.L. Skip Knox. “The Middle Ages; William the Conqueror.” History, Boise State. 24 Feb 2009. <http://history.boisestate.edu/westciv/willconq/>. Riley, Brent A. “William: from Bastard to Conqueror.” Military History 19.1 (2002): 50-58. Saul, Nigel, ed. The Oxford Illustrated History of Medieval England. New York: University of Oxford Press Inc., 1997. Thomas, Hugh M. The Norman Conquest. Plymouth, UK. Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.