The lesson
In 1066 William, Duke of Normandy, claimed the English throne. He defeated King Harold’s army at the Battle of Hastings and became king, replacing the Anglo-Saxon ruling class with Norman rulers.
Norman French influenced the English language, and Norman rule changed the organisation of land and government. William ordered the Domesday survey, which recorded land, property, and resources in England. The Normans did not invade Scotland.
The Battle of Hastings was fought in 1066. Harold was the Anglo-Saxon king; William was Duke of Normandy, in what is now France. William’s victory began Norman rule in England. Castles helped the new rulers control territory, and the Norman elite spoke a form of French.
The Domesday survey was completed in 1086, twenty years after the conquest. It recorded who held land and what resources existed, helping the king govern and raise taxes. Keep the conquest and the survey in that order: 1066, then 1086.
The Bayeux Tapestry is a long embroidery depicting the Norman Conquest and is kept in France. Harold was killed at Hastings, and William became William the Conqueror. The conquest of 1066 is conventionally described in the study material as England’s last successful foreign invasion. Norman power expanded into Wales, but William did not conquer Scotland. The Domesday Book later recorded settlements, landholders, animals and resources to support royal government.
Practise event order