Chapter 4 and 5

Chapter 4, Conquest and feudal rules

1- Who was William the Conqueror?
William the conqueror was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death
in 1087.
2- Characterize the feudal system
William organized his English kingdom according to the feudal system which had already begun
to develop in England before his arrival. The word "feudalism" comes from the French word feu,
which the Normans used to refer to land held in return for duty or service to a lord. The basis of
feudal society was the holding of land, and its main purpose was economic. The central idea was
that all land was owned by the king but it was held by others. called "vassals", in return for
services and goods.
3- What happened when a Nobel died?
When a noble died his son usually took over his estate. But first he had to receive permission
from the king and make a special payment. If he was still a child, the king would often take the
produce of th e estate until the boy was old enough to look after the estate himself. In th is way
the king could benefit from the death of a noble. If all the noble's family died th e land went back
to the king, who would be expected to give it to another deserving noble. But the king often kept
th e land for some years. using its wea lth. before giving it to another noble.
5- What was the importance to the Kings the fact that they had to give land to the nobles?
If the king did not give the nobles land, they would not fight for him. The king had to make sure
he had enough satisfied nobles who would be willing to fight for him.
6- Which areas were controlled by William?
William controlled two large areas: Normandy, which he had been given by his father, and
England, which he had won in war.
7- How was England under king Henry 2nd government?
Henry knew that if he wanted the English crown he would have to act very quickly. He had been
with William at the time of the accident. He rode to Winchester and took charge of the king's
treasury. He then rode to Westminster. where he was crowned king three days later. Robert was
very angry and prepared to invade. But it took him a year to organize an army.
The Norma n nobles in England had to choose between Henry and Robert. This was not easy
because most of them held land in Normandy too. In the end they chose Henry because he was in
London, with the crown already on his head.
8- What were the consequences between Matilda and Stephen to be coronated?
Matilda invaded England four years later. Her fight with Stephen led to a terrible civil war in
which villages were destroyed and many people were killed. Neither side could win, and finally
in 1153 Matilda and Stephen agreed that Stephen could keep the throne but only if Matilda's son,
Henry, could succeed him.
9- What kind of kings were Richard and John?
Richard had no son, and he was followed by his brother, John. John had already made himself
unpopular with the three most important groups of people, the nobles, the merchants and the
Church. John was unpopular mainly because he was greedy. The feudal lords in England had
always run their own law courts and profited from the fines paid by those brought to court. But
John took many cases out of their courts and tried them in the king's courts, taking the money for
himself.
10- What was the Magna Carta?
"Magna Carta", the Great Charter, and was an important symbol of political freedom. Magna
Carta was used by Parliament to protect itself from a powerful king. In fact, Magna Carta gave
no real freedom to most people in England.
Chapter 5 The power of the kings in England
1-What were the consequences of the end of John Reign?
John 's reign marked the end of the long struggle between Church and state in England. The
struggle was for both power and money. During the eleventh and twelfth centuries the Church
wanted the kings of Europe to accept its authority over both spiritual and earthly affairs and
argued that even kings were answerable to God. Kings, on the other hand, chose as bishops’ men
who would be loyal to them.
The first serious quarrel was between William Rufus and Anselm, the man he had made
Archbishop of Canterbury. Anselm, with several other bishops, fearing the king, had escaped
from England. After William's death Anselm refused to do homage to William's successor,
Henry I. Henry, meanwhile, had created several new bishops but they had no spiritual authority
without the blessing of the archbishop. This left the king in a difficult position. It took seven
years to settle the disagreement.
2-Comment on the creation of the Parliament
King John had signed Magna Carta unwillingly, and it quickly became clear that he was not
going to keep to the agreement. The nobles rebelled and soon pushed John out of the southeast.
But civ il war was avoided because John died suddenly in 1216.
Parliament is the legislative body of the United Kingdom and is the primary law-making
institution in Great Britain’s constitutional monarchy.
The present-day Parliament is a bicameral (“two chambers”) legislature with a House of Lords
and a House of Commons. These two houses, however, weren’t always joined, and had their
earliest beginnings in the Anglo-Saxon council governments of the 8th century.
The Witan was a small council of clergymen, land-owning barons and other advisors chosen by
the king to discuss matters of state, taxation and other political affairs. As it expanded to include
more advisors, the Witan evolved into the magnum Concilium or Great Council.
These institutions functioned with varying degrees of success as law-making bodies and law
enforcement agencies throughout England during the Middle Ages. The two bodies didn’t
regularly convene, but they paved the way to the bicameral legislature that exists today.
3-Who brought the first real Parliament?
Edward I brought together the first real parliament. Simon de Montfort’s council had been called
a parliament, but it included only nobles. It had been able to make statutes, or written laws, and it
had been able to make poli tical decisions. However, the lords were less able to provide the king
with money, except what they had agreed to pay him for the lands they held under feudal
arrangement.
4-Who was the Prince of Whale?
The prince of Whale was Edward II, Edward I eldest son.
After the English considered that Wales had become part of England for all practical purposes. If
the Welsh wanted a prince, they could have one. At a public ceremony at Caernarfon, Edward I
made his own baby son (later Edward II) Prince of Wales. From that time the eldest son of the
ruling kin g or queen has usually been made Prince of Wales.
5-What did Edward I steal during the invasion of Scotland?
During the invasion Edward stole th e sacred Stone of Destiny from Scone Ab bey on which, so
the legend said, all Scottish kings must sit. Edward believed that without the Stone, any Scottish
coronation would be meaningless, and that his own possession of the Stone would persuade the
Scots to accept him as king. However, neither he nor his successors became kings of Scots, and
the Scottish kings managed perfectly well without it.
6-Who was William Wallace?
William Wallace was a Norman-Scottish Knight. one of Scotland’s greatest national heroes and
the chief inspiration for Scottish resistance to the English king Edward I. He served as guardian
of the kingdom of Scotland during the first years of the long and ultimately successful struggle to
free his country from English rule.
Edward's treatment of the Scots create d a popular resistance movement. At first it was led by
William Wallace, a Norman-Scottish knight. But after one victory against an English army,
Wallace's "people's army" was itself destroyed by Edward in 1297. The Scots had formed rings
of spearmen which stood firm against the English cavalry attacks, but Edward's Welsh
longbowmen broke the Scottish formations, and the cavalry then charged down on them.
It seemed as if Edward had won after all. He captured Wallace and executed him, putting his
head on a pole on London Bridge. Edward tried to make Scotland a part of England, as he had
done with Wales. Some Scottish nobles accepted him, but the people refused to be ruled by the
English king. Scottish nationalism was born on the day Wallace died.