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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
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(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
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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
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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
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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.
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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.