The Normans Viking Settlers The Viking Age spanned the late 8 th to the late 11 th century During this time, Vikings from Scandinavia explored Europe by its oceans and rivers for trade and plunder By the mid- 9 th century the Vikings came in larger numbers looking for land to settle In England they took a large section that came to be known as The Danelaw In France they would take the land that would come to be known as Normandy Rollo and Normandy In Western Europe the Carolingian Empire was breaking up and chaos ruled the land this was the world the Vikings descended on The Viking leader Rollo invaded France and threatened Paris Unable to resist, the king of France offered Rollo the land that would come to be known as Normandy in 911 C.E. In exchange, Rollo acknowledged the French king as his overlord and converted to Christianity Rollo, the Viking, is recognized as the founder of the Norman people Norsemen become Normans Throughout the 10 th and 11 th centuries the Vikings from the north settled into their new land From the beginning the newly baptised Vikings now known as Normans were keenly aware of the importance of close relations with the Church The Normans rebuilt and improved many monasteries gaining support from the Church The Normans also continued to improve on their warrior prowess, constantly adopting the most up- to- date armaments of war William of Normandy Born to the local duke William, an illegitimate son, was forced to fight to keep what was his At 18 William crushed a group of rebellious barons firmly establishing his power in Normandy William continued to win battles, developing new strategies in warfare came to be known as one of the greatest generals in Medieval Europe 1
Anglo- Saxon England January 1066 Edward the Confessor, king of England, died childless Struggle of secession ensued between three rival claimants: William of Normandy Harold Godwinson Harald Hardrada, King of Norway Harold Godwinson, brother- in- law of Edward, would be crowned king of England by the Anglo- Saxon nobility He would rule for 9 months last of the Anglo- Saxon kings William s Invasion William was furious for two reasons: He was Edward s closest relative, his cousin He claimed that Harold had sworn an oath to support William s claim to the English crown William immediately began assembling an army to invade England 7000 men 6000 horses (3 for each knight) 700 boats were constructed The appearance of Halley s comet in March 1066 was seen as an ill omen for Harold Bayeux Tapestry Named for the French city where it is kept Most likely created in the 1070s, less than ten years after William s invasion of England One of the most important documents of 11 th century history and art 69 m long and 50 cm wide Tells the story of William becoming king of England Invasion of England Harold Godwinson, now Harold II, assembled his own army of Anglo- Saxons and marched south to wait for William s invasion it didn t arrive While he was in the south Harold II learned of another invasion in the north Battle of Stamford Bridge Harald Hardrada, king of Norway, had come to claim the crown of England Harold II, in an extraordinary military feat, marched the Anglo- Saxon army 180 miles north in four days to meet Harald and his Viking army at Stamford Bridge The Vikings had not expected the Anglo- Saxons to arrive so quickly The Battle of Stamford Bridge was one of the bloodiest in British history the Viking army was annihilated and Harald Hardrada was killed historians regard Harald s death as the end of the Viking Age No sooner were the Vikings defeated when word reached Harold that William and the Normans have landed in southern England Harold gathered his battered army and marched south 2
Battle of Hastings William and Harold would meet 19 days after the Battle of Stamford Bridge on 14 October, 1066 The Battle of Hastings was one of the longest in the history of Medieval warfare The fortunes of battle swung back and forth The Norman cavalry were finally able to overcome the Anglo- Saxons when they broke from their shield- wall to pursue Normans that were pretending to retreat Harold II was killed and William, Duke of Normandy, was crowned William I of England would be known as William the Conqueror Norman England The vast majority of the Anglo- Saxon aristocracy lay dead on the battle field William replaced them with Norman lords as well a replacing Anglo- Saxon churchmen with Normans He built churches and castles across the countryside suppressing the Anglo- Saxon population with the threat of violence and eternal damnation French was now the language of the ruling class Anglo- Saxon or Old English was now the language of the conquered 10 to 12 thousand French words came into the English language All the words of authority in modern English come from French army, soldier, court, throne, peasant English: Pig, Cow, Lamb peasants labored French: Pork, Beef, Mutton nobles feasted Domesday Book Commissioned by William in 1086 The Domesday book was a record of everything in England who owned what land and what was on that land down to the last cow and pig A treasure trove giving us a clear indication of the division of England after the Norman invasion The Normans were now firmly in charge of England Normans in Italy At the turn of the 1 st millennium (1000 C.E.) southern Italy was a melting pot of the Mediterranean world The Normans would regularly travel on pilgrimage to Monte Gargano and the shrine of the archangel Michael, patron of the Normans Italy was in political turmoil and the Pope had little control he decided to request the aid of the Norman Lord Robert of Guiscard These lands did not belong to the Pope Robert and his knights had no problem subjugating or removing the Greeks, Lombards, and Muslims who lived there This was one of the factors that lead to the Great East- West Schism in the Church 3
Normans on Crusade 1095 C.E. Pope Urban II called for a crusade to reclaim the Holy Land He had hoped for a good army, what he got was one of the largest armies of the Middle Ages The Normans were at the forefront of this crusade with their Viking heritage of raiding, plundering, and conquering new lands For the next century Norman- Italy would be a launching point for many crusaders Norman Kingdom of Sicily Roger II, king of Sicily, would create a multi- cultural society unlike anything else in Europe His court was filled with Norman, Greek, and Arab scholars Preferred diplomacy to warfare Built up Sicily and his capital of Palermo into a shining light of architecture and learning in the Middle Ages The Norman kingdom of Sicily lasted roughly 60 years under the rule of Roger II and his son and grandson, William I and William II Within five years of William II s death, the kingdom of Sicily would belong to Roger II s son- in- law, Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor Angevin Empire 1152 C.E. Henry II king of England, Count of Anjou, and Duke of Normandy married Eleanor of Aquitaine Created a realm that stretched from Spain to Scotland Included England, half of medieval France, and parts of Ireland and Wales Henry II had many sons most of which rose up in rebellion against him His son Richard would be successful with the help of the king of France Richard I became known as the Lionheart and would be one of the most romanticized kings in English history Richard the Lionheart King of England 1189-99 Spent only 6 months of his reign in England Did not like England, preferred his lands in France Spoke French, could not speak English Used England as a bank to finance his armies both in wars in France and on Crusade Did have some measure of success on the 3 rd Crusade but failed in retaking Jerusalem Was captured near Vienna returning from Crusade his ransom all but bankrupted England, 34 tones of gold Died laying siege to a castle in France His brother John would become the next king John is one of the most vilified kings in English history 4
King John King of England 1166-1216 Lost his lands in France to the powerful French king Philip II in 1214 English Barons revolted against John and his tax increases the kingdom had been bankrupted by his brother Richard 1215 John was forced to sign the Magna Carta a document that said no one, including the king, was above the law John had been portrayed as a weak and ineffectual king throughout history End of the Normans The loss of Normandy to the King of France forced the lords and barons to chose between: Keeping their lands in Normandy and swearing fealty to the French king Keeping their lands in England and swearing fealty to the English king From this point the kings and lords of England were once again from England and lived in England King John would be the first king since 1066 to be born and to die in England 5