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The rise of Feudalism in Europe
William the conqueror king of England
The rise of Feudalism in Europe
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Who is William the conqueror, what was his legacy, his back ground, how he conquered England, and the last question is how did he die? All the answers and explanation for these questions are below.
William the conqueror was born in 1028 in Falaise, Normandy. He is well known as William the Conqueror but his name is William the Bastard. At the age of 8, William the conqueror became duke of Normandy after the death of his father Robert I. Robert I was a very powerful duke but he died from the return trip from Jerusalem. William was the child of Herleva (the mother) and Robert I also known as Robert the magnificent (the father). His two brothers Odo of Beyeux, Robert, count of Mortain and his sister Adelaide of Normandy. Violence plagued his
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Norman army led by Duke William of Normandy sailed to England and defeated the Saxon army of Harold Godwinson at the battle of Hastings. Battle of Hastings is the major battle against Harold Godwinson. Harold Godwinson was the king of England before William the conqueror, in this battle William defeated Harold by shooting an arrow in the eye. William the conqueror conquered England and this is how he became very famous. He also has a very special part in the history of medieval Europe. He ruled from 1066 to 1087 which is 21 years. He was well known after he became a duke and even more after he became the king of England. William the conqueror was the first ever English monarch too and also the king who made the feudal …show more content…
William, as the French ruler of Normandy, brought in England his French culture which changed England's language and politics system. In the years after the conquest, William set up his government on a firm basis and established feudalism into England which was the most political change in the English system. The Feudal system was a powerful social system in Medieval Europe. This system was all about taking all the land back out off the hands of Anglo-Saxons and to carefully redistribute it to his own vassals who were the lords. The king gave the lords/vassals land in exchange for military service, lords were in turn tenants of the nobles or knights, while the peasants were obliged to live on their lord's land and give him homage, labour, and a share of the produce, nationally in exchange for military protection. King is the main person then working for him are the lords, working for the lords are the knights and working for the knights are peasants or serfs. This system still happens in our modern times but with a slight change. Like the kings now we have these people known as the central bankers, below them as in ranks are the Dukes in the medieval days now it is known as the Big bankers. By rank the third ones are the priests and bishops which is now called the corporate elite. The next one is known as the Royal ministers who are the constables and the chiefs. Just like the royal
William the Conqueror and his Patronage William I, better known as William the Conqueror, began his medieval and political career at a young age when his father left him to go on a crusade. Effectively William became the Duke of Normandy. He had to fight against other members of the Norman royalty who desired William's land and treasure. William learned at an early age that the men who ruled Europe during the middle ages were primarily interested in their own greed at the expense of all else, including the concepts chivalry and honor. He soon became a feared military commander, conquering all in Normandy who would oppose his interests.
October 14th of the year 1066 two armies faced each other near the town of Hastings. 10,000 Norman troops under the command of William of Normandy faced 8,000 Anglo-Saxon soldiers led by Harold the current king of England.
There was a hierarchy of people with feudalism. At the top were powerful lords who split their lands amongst lesser lords. These lords were called vassals If someone was a vassal to a powerful lord, that meant they would pledge his service and loyalty to the more powerful lord. Once this pledge was completed, the powerful lord would grant an estate to the vassal. These estates were called fiefs. .
William of Rubruck was a traveling Franciscan monk. He lived from about 1200 to 1256. He accompanied King Louis IX on the seventh crusade and became close with him. Louis feared Europe was next on the Tartars list to be conquered. His reaction was to send William to the Court of the Great Khan in 1253 to convert them to Christianity and to assure that Europe was safe from invasion.
On the 14th of October 1066, Duke William of Normandy defeated King Harold at the Battle of Hastings. His win could be summed up by the fact that William was a better leader. Other factors that contributed to William’s victory include: William was better prepared, the English army was severely weakened as Harold had just fought off an invasion in the North of England, and Harold made a fatal mistake of prematurely entering the Battle of Hastings.
William was born around 1147 to John Marshall and Sybil of Salisbury during the reign of King Stephen. His father, John Marshall, served as a court officer and eventually earned the status of a minor baron. John Marshall was a shrewd soldier and a skilled negotiator. He was the premier example of lordship in William’s life. William’s relationship with his father would be brief and he would never experience him beyond his childhood. John Marshall died in 1165. John would leave a legacy behind that would influence William’s life and spark the future of his outstanding career both as a soldier and a courtier.
The upper echelons belonged to the aristocracy whose positions were granted them by birth and within this group there was a hierarchical system. The king was at the top of the hierarchy and the gentry at the bottom. Wood describes the gentlemen of the gentry as a help to the commoners. These men lent money to those of lower social standing and also purchased goods from them as well as acted as their representatives to the higher social structures. In turn the commoners paid allegiance to the gentlemen through conscription and political support.
1066: The Year of the Conquest, written by David Howarth, tells of one of the most important dates in the history of England. In 1066, William the Conqueror and William of Orange fought the historical Battle of Hastings. The outcome of this battle lead to many changes to the English people. The Norman people became assimilated into the English way of life. Howarth proceeds to tell the tale of the Battle of Hastings through the eyes on a common Englishman.
Charlemagne was born between 742 and 748, and died on January 28th 814 at age 71. His father was Pepin the Short who had become King of the Franks in 751. After the death of his father, Charlemagne became King of the Franks himself, with his brother Carloman, splitting the empire in half. The brothers were not fond of having to split the empire in half for three years. The way they would communicate would be through their mother. Carloman mysteriously died one day, and to this day in history, no one knows for sure whether or not Charlemagne was involved with it. Once his brother died, Charlemagne would take over the whole empire in 771 at age 24. He was now the emperor of the largest single kingdom in Europe.
In 1066 when his claim to the English throne was threatened by Harold Godwinson. Due to the fact that Harold Godwinson overlooked the dead king's wishes. Edward the Confessor, sworn his loyalty to William of Normandy when he died not to Harold. Harold Godwinson promptly had himself proclaimed king. It was only a matter of months before William, Duke of the large and powerful duchy of Normandy in France, paid Harold a visit to bring to his remembrance his own claim to the throne. William raised an army of Normans by promising them land and wealth when he came into his rightful kingship. October 14th 1066 he and William fought at the famous battle of Hastings. William and his army of Normans came, saw, and conquered. True to his promise to his fellow warriors, William systematically replaced the English nobility with Norman barons and noblemen who took control of the land, the people, and the government.
The Duke of Normandy, couldn’t have chosen a better time in which to invade England. King Edward the Confessor of England died in January 1066 with no heir to take his place, and William’s distant family claims to the throne were an opportunity to declare himself king. With the support of the Church and an army of around 7,000, William landed his army in southern England where he occupied Hastings.... ... middle of paper ...
William I was put into the spotlight from a very early age. He became the Duke of Normandy at the ripe age of eight years old, and pandemonium ensued almost immediately. Throughout his early years of power, a “breakout of authority” occurred all throughout Normandy, leading to many future problems that William would handily deal with (William I 2). Although he had many people seeking to overthrow him, William had support on his side, and was able to use the adversity he faced to his advantage. At a very young age, William was learning the tricks of the trade, and became very logical and rational in making decisions whether they be military or political based. Without his troubled upbringing, it is questionable whether or not he would have been as great of a leader as he turned out to be.
The feudal system was one that arose in England after the invasion and conquest of William I. It has been said that this was the perfect political system for this time period. Life was really hard back in the Middle Ages and safety and defense were really hard to come by after the empire fell. There were no laws to protect the poor, so they turned to their lords to keep them safe. The king was in complete control of the system and he owned all the land. One quarter was kept as private property and the rest was given to the church or leased
Then in 1147, Henry II campaigned against Stephen which produces little success. Henry then attacked Stephen once again two years later with help from King David of Scotland and was a disastrous failure, leaving barely with their lives. Henry II then became the Duke of Normandy in 1150 by his father which in a way started his ongoing legacy and gave him the power boost he needed to succeed. Henry also succeeded his father as count of Anjou the next year. Henry did not have long to wait to take the crown from Stephen after he died in 1154.
King Charles was not the only child of James VI and Anne of Denmark he had a sister named Elizabeth and elder brother Prince Henry of Wales who later on died in the year 1612 at the age of 18 of suspected typhoid. Heavy hearted was not even the word for King Charles after his brother died, due to the fact that King Charles was overshadowed by his older brother, someone to look up to. However sadness was not all that came from the death of Prince Henry something good came of it as well which was a bond that was created between King Charles and his sister Elizabeth while they mourned the death of their older brother together. Henry's death was King Charles open door to the throne as the new ...