Starter quiz
- Which word describes when you pay money and declare loyalty/submission to your ruler, especially on a formal occasion?
- 'tribute' ✓
- Which important lands did William give to his half-brother, the Bishop of Bayeux?
- London
- Isle of Wight
- Dover ✓
- parts of Hampshire
- Kent ✓
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- Who did William take back to Normandy with him as hostages in 1067?
- Edgar the Aethling ✓
- Earls Edwin and Morcar ✓
- Eadric the Wild
- Archbishop Stigand ✓
- the Welsh prince of Powys and Gwynedd
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- Put the following events in chronological order.
- 1⇔William wins the Battle of Hastings
- 2⇔William is crowned King of England
- 3⇔William returns to Normandy with hostages
- 4⇔Rebellion by Eadric the Wild occurs
- 5⇔William creates new Marcher earldoms to defend the Marches
- Why did William only appoint his most trustworthy followers to be Marcher earls?
- It was a risk to give such extensive powers as they may try to become king. ✓
- He only ever appointed family members to positions of power.
- They had previous experience fighting against the Welsh rebels.
- They were Anglo-Saxons so they were good negotiators with the Welsh.
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- What word describes a person who rules a country for a limited period, because the monarch is absent or too young or too ill?
- 'regent' ✓
Exit quiz
- Most Norman castles were variations in what type of castle design?
- 'motte-and-bailey' ✓
- How did Norman castles have a psychological impact on the Anglo-Saxons?
- acted as new homes for Normans in England
- terrified the local population and dominated the landscape ✓
- acted as bases for Norman nobles to administer an area
- acted as royal palaces for William
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- How many castles are estimated to have been built by the Normans within 20 years?
- 1000
- 100
- 500 ✓
- 50
-
- Match keywords to their correct definitions.
- burh⇔a fortified Anglo-Saxon town ✓
- oppress⇔to govern people in a cruel way and prevent them from having freedoms ✓
- keep⇔the strong main tower of a castle which acted as a watchtower ✓
- palisade⇔a strong fence made out of solid wooden poles that is used for defence ✓
- Castles were almost ______ to Anglo-Saxon England, who had previously relied on burhs for protection.
- 'unknown' ✓
- What material were many castles later rebuilt using?
- timber
- stone ✓
- clay
- brick
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Worksheet
Presentation
Video
Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Castles were a military innovation that was almost unknown in Anglo-Saxon England.
- Castles had a military function, acting as bases for troops who would control and oppress key areas.
- Castles also had a psychological impact of terrifying and dominating the local population.
- Castles were centres of Norman control, acting as bases for Norman nobles to administer an area.
- Most Norman castles were variations of the motte-and-bailey design.
Common misconception
A common misconception is that castles only had a military function.
Norman castles also acted as administrative centres. They had a psychological function in dominating the landscape and the people who lived there and some castles also helped trade develop.
Keywords
Motte-and-bailey - a motte-and-bailey castle is a fortress in which there is a motte (small hill) surrounded by a bailey (courtyard) inside an outer wall
Burh - a burh was a fortified Anglo-Saxon town
Oppress - to oppress is to govern people in an unfair and cruel way and prevent them from having opportunities and freedom
Keep - a keep is the strong main tower of a castle which acted as a watchtower and a final point of defence
Palisade - a palisade is a strong fence made out of solid wooden poles that is used to protect people or a place from being attacked