Edward the Confessor, one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England, had two heirs in the moment of his

death. 1st person to claim the throne was his son-in-law Harold Godwinson; Earl of Wessex, who proclaimed himself King of England. 2nd person was Harold, King of Norway (a Viking who had been invading England) and was a contender for the throne. 3rd person was William, Duke of Normandy. Edward the Confessor had travelled to France and had told his cousins son that he would make a good king when he died.

In January of 1066, hearing that Harold Godwin had been crowned King, Harald Hardrada landed in what is now Yorkshire and fought in the Battle of Stamford Bridge (25 September 1066) where both he and his army were defeated. Three days later, on September 28, the Normans under William the Conqueror landed in the South coast of England. King Harold had to rush his battered, weary army south to meet the new invasion. Harold was defeated and killed (legend has it that he was shot through the eye with an arrow) at the Battle of Hastings. This battle is depicted in the famous Bayeux Tapestry (Normandy). This fact meant the beginning of the Norman Conquest of England and the end of the Anglo-Saxon era. William proclaimed himself King of England on Christmas day in that same year. (25 December 1066).

The Normans brought with them several changes: the establishment of Military Feudalism, England stopped looking at Scandinavia and started looking towards Europe (France) and there were also changes in language as Normans couldnt speak English. Because of this fact, they expelled all the Saxons and brought Normans in. These influences in language still persist nowadays.

IN NAMES PROPER NAMES Fitzwilliam Fils William Fitzroy Fils Roi Montfort Beaufort De Bercy PLACE NAMES Beaulieu /biuli/ Belvoir /viva:/ Beaumont Rievaulx Monastery

IN LANGUAGE Most legal terms terms (such as judge, jury, tort, and assault) come either from Latin or Norman French social ranks and institutions (such as duke, baron, peer, countess, and parliament) military/defensive - castle Now every single law approved in England has the inscription La Reyne le veult handwritten in it.

FOOD Deer - Venison Pig - Pork, Bacon Cow - Beef, Veal Sheep Mutton, Lamb

Not yet happy with all those changes, William made himself head of the synod (council of a Christian church). The Church is separated from the law. This paves the way for English civil law to develop separately and explains why English law is different to the codified legal systems in other European countries.

ORDEALS By the time of Henry II [William the Conquerors grandson and first King to use the title King of England (as opposed to King of the English)], the system of law in England had been improved because Henry sent out his own judges from London to listen to cases throughout all Englands counties. Each accused person had to go through an ordeal. There were three ordeals: 1. Ordeal by fire: An accused person held a red hot iron bar and walked three paces. His hand was then bandaged and left for three days. If the wound was getting better after three days, you were innocent. If the wound had clearly not got any better, you were guilty. 2. Ordeal by water: An accused person was tied up and thrown into water. If you floated you were guilty of the crime you were accused of. 3. Ordeal by combat: This was used by noblemen who had been accused of something. They would fight in combat with their accuser. Whoever won was right. Whoever lost was usually dead at the end of the fight.

SWORN TESTIMONY The sworn testimony is evidence given by a witness who has made a commitment to tell the truth. If the witness is later found to have lied whilst bound by the commitment, they can often be charged with the crime of perjury / forswearing (willful act of swearing a false oath or affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to a judicial proceeding). In those times, 12 villagers had to swear the accused was innocent. These are the types of sworn testimony in England: Oath: I swear by [Almighty God/Name of God /or the name of the Holy Scripture] that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Affirmation: I do solemnly and sincerely and truly declare and affirm that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Promise: I promise before Almighty God that the evidence which I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

MARCHES A march or mark refers to a border region similar to a frontier, such as the Welsh Marches, the borderland between England and Wales. So the marches consist in marking out the territory. During the Frankish Carolingian Dynasty, the word spread throughout Europe. Nowadays, in England there are still some towns and villages which celebrate this medieval custom in the summer.

DOMESDAY BOOK The Domesday Book is a great land survey from 1086, commissioned by William the Conqueror to assess the extent of the land, property, arms, animals and resources being owned in England at the time, and the extent of the taxes he could raise. (Anything that did not belong specifically to someone was declared Crown Possession.) The information collected was recorded by hand in two huge books, in the space of around a year. William died before it was fully completed. The reason why it was called Domesday Book refers to the grand scale of its survey and the irreversible nature of the information collected, this led people to compare it to the Last Judgment, or 'Doomsday', described in the Bible, when the deeds of Christians written in the Book of Life were to be placed before God for judgment. However, this name was not adopted until the late 12th Century. Today we pay a Property Tax which is a legacy of this survey.

ARCHITECTURE Fortified buildings: Castles (battlements and turrets for use not for decoration) Ecclesiastic buildings: Churches, Cathedrals, Abbeys, Monasteries