The Norman Conquest

THE NORMAN CONQUEST

Department of History

S1

Johnstone High School

What happened before 1066?
1066- A FATEFUL YEAR

Many people living in Scandinavia (Norway, Denmark and Sweden)could not make enough food for themselves. In the 8th Century, Scandinavians (known as Vikings or Northmen) went in search of food. They found that land in Europe would be better for farming and so they decided to stay.

The new people who came to Britain settled down over a long period of time and gradually over hundreds of years the British people changed. People from foreign lands came in their thousands to Scotland and England. They brought with them new languages, religions and different ways of life.

1066 was a year which changed English and even British History.

WHAT TO DO

Copy the heading ‘1066- A fateful year’.

Four key characters played a very important role in the story.

Read Pages 4,5 & 6 to find out who these 4 men were, then complete the tasks below.

1. In what ways was Edward the Confessor different in his nature from the other three characters?

2. What serious problem did the death of Edward make for the English?

3. Write a short note on each of the people who claimed to be the future King of England and try to explain why they should have been the King.

4. Who do you think should have been the King of England? Give reasons for your choice.

CHARACTER ONE

NAMEEDWARD THE CONFESSOR

POSITIONKING OF ENGLAND

AGE64

NATIONALITYENGLISH BUT HAD LIVED IN NORMANDY(FRANCE)UNTIL THE AGE OF 20.

BACKGROUND

CHARACTER TWO

NAMEHAROLD GOODWIN

POSITIONEARL OF WESSEX

AGE44

NATIONALITYENGLISH

BACKGROUND

RELATIONSHIP

TO EDWARD

CHARACTER THREE

NAMEWILLIAM

POSITION DUKE OF NORMANDY

AGE39

NATIONALITYNORMAN

BACKGROUND

1) Edward had lived in Normandy and had promised the crown to William.

2) William claimed that Harold, the Earl of Wessex had been shipwrecked on the coast of France and had been captured by a French nobleman , Count Guy. Duke William had rescued him and in return Harold had promised that he would help William to become King of England.

CHARACTER FOUR

NAMEHARALD HARDRADA

POSITIONKING OF NORWAY AND DENMARK

AGE51

NATIONALITYNORWEGIAN

BACKGROUND

5)Copy the following sentence into your jotter:

The English Witan (council of wise men) decided to choose Harold Goodwin as their next King and he was crowned as the King of England on the 6th of January 1066 in Westminster Abbey.

TROUBLES CAUSED BY TOSTIG AND HARALD HARDRADA

WHAT TO DO

Copy the heading into your jotter. Read the following passage and then answer the questions which follow.

Tostig, Harold’s exiled and revengeful half-brother, ousted from his earldom of Northumbria, began to raid the Isle of Wight and the South Coast of England in the summer of 1066. By September he had sailed up the east coast to the river Humber, doing damage everywhere. Here, Tostig was joined by Harald Hardrada, King of Norway and their combined forces sailed up the Humber defeated the men of York and camped at Stamford Bridge.

Harold, on hearing of this invasion, dashed north collecting his army as he went and met the invaders at Stamford Bridge on the 25th September. The ensuing battle was long and bloody and by the end of the day the Norwegian army had been destroyed. Both Tostig and Harald Hardrada were killed. Harold’s victory was soon overshadowed by the news that William had landed unopposed at Pevensey.

WHAT TO DO

Answer the following questions in sentences:

1. Who was Harold’s half brother?

2. Where did Tostig first raid?

3. Who joined Tostig in the North?

4. Where did Tostig and the Norwegians sail

and whom did they defeat?

5. What did Harold do when he heard

of the invasion in the North?

6. Where did Harold meet the invaders?

7. Explain how the Battle of Stamford Bridge

helped William of Normandy.

The Battle of Hastings 14th October 1066

STEP ONE-

The battle started with the Norman archers advancing and firing the arrows, most of which got stuck in the shield wall of the English and did little damage.

STEP TWO-

Then the Norman cavalry attacked time after time, but could not succeed in breaking the English shield wall.

STEP THREE-

At one point in the battle,some of the Norman soldiers tried to flee the battleground because they believed that William had been killed, but William rode in front of them and lifted his helmet to show that he was alive.

STEP FOUR-

Eventually a few of the English, believing that they were winning the battle broke their shield wall and ran down the hill after the Norman knights.When they were on the flat level ground,the knights turned their horses surrounded and slaughtered the English foot soldiers.

STEP FIVE-

William saw this and ordered his knights to ride up the hill to the shield wall , pretend to flee back down hill and draw the English down to the flat ground at the bottom of the hill. This was done successfully several times and soon gaps appeared in the shield wall. The Norman cavalry turned to run over the English infantry.

STEP SIX-

The final blow to the English was the death of their King Harold. With this great victory, the throne of England was empty and the road to London was now open to William.

Use the information to re-write the six parts of the battle in your own words.

The Bayeux Tapestry

The tapestry is from the time, helping us understand life in the past; it is a Primary source.

The tapestry is alive with controversy and myth, providing us with a classic example of the old saying that history is written by the victors.

What does this mean, ‘history is written by the victors’?

Bias, being one sided is very important when looking at the Bayeux Tapestry.

Whose version of events will the Tapestry reveal?

We can also see a little of how people lived. It demonstrates the style of castles at the time - they were originally built as wooden stockades placed on top of artificial mounds.

Put the heading “The Bayeux Tapestry”

Here are three pictures from the Tapestry shown in the wrong order.

1.In detail write what is happening in picture(a) X(b) Y(c) Z

2. What should be the right order of these?

3. If you were drawing these scenes today how would your pictures be different from these?

4. In sailing to England, Duke William’s ship got separated from the others during the night. Draw the scene of William’s ship alone in the middle of the English channel in the STYLE OF THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

Imagine that you are a newspaper reporter who has to write an account of the Battle of Hastings.

You can either write it from the a) Norman

b) English point of view.

This would make the story biased or one-sided.

Here are some headlines to help you:

DISASTER, VICTORY, HAROLD DEAD,

VICTORIOUS WILLIAM, HAROLD DEFEATED,

ENGLISH SURRENDER, KING WILLIAM,

WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR OUTNUMBERED.

What features will you need to include when producing a newspaper front page?

Newspaper Name

Date

Headline

Picture

Caption

Sub-headings

Main story / second story in columns

Interviews

Here are some subheadings to help you:

William is expected to be the next English King

Easy victory for the Normans

William’s tactics prove decisive

Harold’s troops defeated by the Normans

Bleak future for the English people

Norman invaders head for London

WILLIAM’S ROUTE TO LONDON AND HIS CORONATION

Copy the above heading into your jotter. Read the following passage.

After the battle, William returned to Hastings for five days. The English leaders in London could not agree on who should be their next King. William, tired of waiting, decided to force the English to accept him as King. William first marched to Dover where he burned down the castle, then set off for London. At Southwark Bridge the bridge over the river Thames into London. William defeated a band of English soldiers, but refused to enter London.

William did not want to become King by force. Instead he wanted to be accepted as the legitimate heir to Edward the Confessor. William now marched south of the river Thames burning crops, killing cattle and destroying houses. Finally at Berkhamstead, the leading citizens of London surrendered the keys of the city and accepted him as the rightful King of England.

William was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066. Outside the abbey, the Norman guards misinterpreted the shouting which took place during the coronation ceremony and slew over one hundred of the London citizens, before order was restored.

Copy the following summary paragraph and fill in the blanks:

William returned to Hastings for ______days after his victory. Then he marched to ______before heading towards London. He defeated the remaining ______soldiers at ______bridge, but did not enter the capital.

William wanted to be the ______heir to Edward, not King by force. After burning ______and killing cattle, William was surrendered the city ______making him the ______King.

The Norman Duke was crowned in ______Abbey on Christmas Day 1066, but the day was ruined by the deaths of over 100 ______citizens.

UPRISINGS IN ENGLAND 1066-1070

Copy the heading into your jotter and then read the passage.

By the end of 1066 William was the King of England. But England was still generally hostile to him, particularly in the west and north. The first serious rising took place in Exeter in 1068. After besieging the city for 18 days the citizens surrendered. To maintain order there, William ordered the burning of a castle.

In the following year, the rebels in the north were aided by the Danes and together they drove the Normans out of York. William headed North, the Danes fled and the Normans recaptured York. While in Yorkshire, William ordered that the area be laid waste. Villages were burned, cattle killed and food destroyed. For some 75 miles from north to south the land was devastated.

The last men to resist the Normans held out in the marshes of East Anglia. There, Hereward the Wake brought together refugees from every part of England and began a campaign against the Normans in 1070. William forced the rebels back to their refuge on the Isle of Ely. Faced with starvation, they finally surrendered. Only Hereward himself escaped.

Now, copy out these sentences into the correct, chronological order:

a)Refugees from all over England gathered under Hereward the Wake in the East Anglican marshes.

b)William ordered the castle to be burned down to keep order.

c)The Danes and people of the North of England drove the Normans out of York.

d)William forced the rebels back to the Isle of Ely. Starving these rebels were forced to surrender.

e)William decided to devastate land 75 miles north and south of York.

f)The Normans besieged Exeter for 18 days,before the first uprising was put down.

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11/10/2018