Norman England, c1066-c1100 | AQA GCSE History (8145)
Norman England, c1066-c1100
- 114 questions
- 8 subtopics
- Paper 2
- Paper 2
Norman England, c1066–c1100 is examined in Paper 2, Shaping the nation.
It covers causes of Norman Conquest, military aspects: Stamford Bridge, Hastings and Norman tactics, Establishing and maintaining control, Feudalism and government, economic and social changes and their consequences, the Norman Church and Archbishop Lanfranc, Norman monasticism, learning and education and the historic environment of Norman England.
Sample questions from Norman England, c1066-c1100
Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.
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Causes of Norman Conquest
On what grounds did Duke William of Normandy claim the throne?
Show the answer
He said Edward had promised him the succession in 1051, that Harold Godwinson had later sworn a sacred oath to support him, and that he was Edward's kinsman through Emma of Normandy. -
Military aspects: Stamford Bridge, Hastings and Norman tactics
When was the Battle of Hastings fought, and what ground did each side hold?
Show the answer
On 14 October 1066, with the English drawn up along a ridge and the Normans attacking uphill from the valley below. -
Establishing and maintaining control
What foreign help did the northern rebels receive in 1069?
Show the answer
A large Danish fleet sailed up the Humber and joined them, and William eventually paid the Danes to go home. -
Feudalism and government
How was Anglo-Saxon England organised for local government before 1066?
Show the answer
It was divided into shires under a sheriff and subdivided into hundreds, each with its own court, above which sat the great earldoms. -
Economic and social changes and their consequences
What did the word manor mean in this period?
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It was the estate of a single lord, made up of the land he farmed for himself and the holdings of the peasants who owed him service. -
The Norman Church and Archbishop Lanfranc
How did Lanfranc settle the quarrel between the two English archbishops?
Show the answer
He insisted that Canterbury held authority over York, so that the whole English Church answered to one head under the king. -
Norman monasticism, learning and education
What three vows bound a monk in a Norman monastery?
Show the answer
Poverty, chastity and obedience. -
The historic environment of Norman England
What should you be able to say about the structure of the site you have studied?
Show the answer
Its materials, its layout, how it was defended or supported, and how far the building standing today has been altered since.
The 8 subtopics
One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.
| Subtopic | What it covers | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| Causes of Norman Conquest | Edward the Confessor's death, the Witan, the claims of Harold Godwinson, William of Normandy and Harald Hardrada, the oath, Edgar Aethling, the power of the Godwins, the rising of 1065, and the papal banner. | 10 |
| Military aspects: Stamford Bridge, Hastings and Norman tactics | The battles of Fulford and Stamford Bridge, William's landing at Pevensey, the Battle of Hastings with the English shield wall and housecarls against Norman archers, infantry and knights, the feigned retreat, the first Norman castles, and why Harold Godwinson lost. | 12 |
| Establishing and maintaining control | The rebellions of Edwin and Morcar, the northern rising of 1069 and the Danish fleet, the Harrying of the North and its consequences, Hereward the Wake, the Revolt of the Earls, William's methods of control and his regents, and the division of his inheritance and the rebellion of 1088. | 12 |
| Feudalism and government | The feudal system, tenants-in-chief, homage, the servitium debitum and subinfeudation, patronage, the fate of the thegns, Norman changes to Anglo-Saxon government and law, trial by ordeal and by combat, the murdrum fine, inheritance and wardship, and the Domesday survey and the Oath of Salisbury. | 22 |
| Economic and social changes and their consequences | Castles and the towns, new boroughs, the Jewish community, open fields and the manor, a villein's labour, building in stone, the peasant diet, women's work, the farming year, and Forest law. | 13 |
| The Norman Church and Archbishop Lanfranc | The English Church before 1066 and Stigand's fall, Lanfranc's reforms against simony, married clergy and pluralism, Canterbury's authority over York, new cathedrals and Church courts, the tithe, William I's rules on the Papacy, William II's quarrel with Anselm, and the Investiture Controversy. | 17 |
| Norman monasticism, learning and education | Monasteries before and after 1066, Battle Abbey, the Rule of St Benedict and the three vows, a monk's day and the officials, the scriptorium, schools and Latin, and the fate of English and French. | 14 |
| The historic environment of Norman England | How to write about a Norman site's location, function, structure, people and design, including why castles stood where they did, the motte-and-bailey plan, the Norman great church, round arches and heavy pillars, and what such buildings show about Norman power over the English. | 14 |
How the guide is worked
Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.
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Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
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Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
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Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.
Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.
Nearby topics
AQA GCSE History Active Recall Guide
Every topic, not just this one. 1,889 questions with their answers.