Nation+Building+-+England

Nation Building - England **__ English Monarchs __**

__Egbert__ 827- 839 Egbert was the first monarch to stabilize the anglo-saxon England. His son Ethelwulf was the next to rule.

__ Edward the Confessor __ He was born in 1003. He grew up in Normandy with strong religious views and got the nickname “Confessor”. It was said he had a very poor childhood and blamed his mother for it. He was king of England from 1042-1066. He married Edith and had no children because Edward took a vow of celibacy. Most of his reign as king was peaceful and prosperous.The economy was good because of trade and the judicial system was under control. He was very nice and generous to the poor. Edward put forth all his energy to building the Westminster Abbey. He died in 1066, and the fight for who should become the following king was fought through the Battle of Hastings.

__ William The Conqueror __ He became duke at the age of seven. His tutor protected him because people didn’t approve of him being king and tried to assassinate him. However, when he turned 18, he officially became duke with no tutor or regent. A rebellion broke out because the people wanted to test his strength as an independent ruler. William the Conqueror crushed the rebellion and established himself as a strong and capable ruler. King Edward of England grew older and he had no sons so he promised the throne to William. However, shortly before he died, he decided that the throne would go to Harold of Wessex. When King Edward died, William went to go rule England but soon found out that King Edward gave it to someone else. William the Conqueror invaded England, defeated Harold of Wessex and became king of England. The battle William and Harold of Wessex fought is known as the battle of Hastings. William dealt with many rebellions from England, but in the end, no one could deny William the king of England. He enforced a new structure of government, new laws, and a new taxation system. []

__ Domesday Book __ The Domesday Book was a book that was written in 1085. It was authorized by William the Conqueror. This book was a record of people’s surveys of their land. William did the survey to see how much of the land was being used to see if he could raise taxes and it was used to see who owed him money. William created the Domesday Book nearly 20 years after the battle of Hastings. Since the Domesday Book contained all the information about peoples’ land, if he said that someone owed him tax money, the person would not be able to go against him because the book contained proof. The reason this book is called the Domesday Book is because it spared no one. I t was very precise and there was not one part of the land which was not accounted for. The book contains intricate records of landholders, tenants, the amount of land owned, and the people on the land. Many other factors of the land are included as well.   [] []

__ Harold of Wessex __ <span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">He was born in 1022. He eventually married Eadgyth Swanneck and had 5 kids with her. As King of England at the time of 1066, he led the English army against William the Conqueror in the Battle of Hastings for who would take the throne after Edward the Confessor. He lost and was killed during battle.

<span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__Henry II__ <span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Henry II was the first Angevin king to rule England from 1154-1189. He was the grandson of William the conqueror. He is said to be one of the most effective monarchs for refining the government and creating a self-standing bureaucracy. Henry II was interested in Emperor Augustus from the Roman Empire. Just like Augustus, Henry II made his first task to tackle the people who had the power to remove him as king. Then he attempted to reunite the people of England.

<span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">** Battle of Hastings ** : <span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Edward the confessor promised the kingdom to William the Conqueror (Duke of Normandy). When Edward died, Harold Godwinson (Harold of Wessex.) was claimed king. William got support of the pope to takeover England to take what he thought belonged to him at the Battle of Hastings on October 14th. William murdered Harold ll during battle. He took control over England and added new nobles on Saxon estates.

<span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">**Hundred Years War:** <span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">The Hundred Years War lasted 116 years, 1337- 1453. It was a very important time in history for both France and England. This war centrally caused when King Phillip lV, king of France tried to confiscate England’s land of Aquitaine in Southwestern France. The Treaty of Paris stated that Henry lll got the duchy as a fief of the king of France. Henry had to pay the king liege homage. Also, the control over the throne of France added more complications. When the king of France, Charles lV died without a son, Charles’ sister’s son wanted to take over. He was Edward lll, king of England. When Phillip lV received the throne and to defend his claim, Edward invaded French territory and later crowned himself king of France.

<span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px;">**__ Military __** <span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">In medieval England there were three different positions in their military. The three positions, which the military was made up of, were the footmen, archers, and the knights. Footmen were the majority of the army. They were in the front of everyone, and stayed on the lower ground fighting. Their lives were most at risk because they were grounded and fought in physical contact with others. Archers attacked enemies from afar. They used long bows to do so. The third level of positions was the knight. They were the commanders of the army. <span style="font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">The English armies’ weapon of choice in battle was the longbow. This weapon helped England to be victorious in the Hundred Years War. The longbow was very tall, at least 5 feet tall, if not taller. The majority of the bows were made of yew, which is a type of wood. The effective range of shooting is about 200 yards, however there is no exact measurement. The longbow could be rapidly fired. It could shoot on average 10 to 12 arrows per minute.

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<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__**Major English Cities**__

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__ London __ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">London was as big and as important of a city in medieval times as it is in this day. Medieval London began Christmas day in 1066 when William the Conqueror was crowned the new king of England. London was a bunch of twisted streets and lanes. A Lord Mayor and council that were elected by ranks of the merchant guilds ran the government. The guilds controlled commerce and ran the city effectively. Each guild had their own coat of arms. Members subscribed to be in the guilds. The guild you were in had to do with the job you had. Plague was also a major, constant threat because there was such poor sanitation.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__ York __ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">There was great wealth in York during the Middle Ages. It was crowded and noisy: Houses were crammed together and the lanes were very narrow. The daily routine consisted of a visit to church and main meal in the early evening. York was said to be a very smelly place because butchers’ offal rotted in ditches and the streets. But it was also said to be a very beautiful. Hygiene in England during the Middle Ages was awful. People would dump their own waste in their yards and drinking water was very filthy unless it was boiled before you drank it. People had a very poor diet, which lead to illnesses like joint disease and rickets.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">**__ Medieval English Government __**

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__ Central Government __ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">The king was the head of the government. The king’s official chief was called the **Chamberlain**. His job was to control domestic and private affairs or the king’s. When the king wanted to make a new law his clerk of **Chancery** wrote it. The head of the chancery was called the **Chancellor.** Almost all the chancellors in the middle ages were bishops. The **Court of Chancery** heard cases and decided pleas the law did not address. The **Exchequer** was the name of the department responsible for royal finance. And the chief of this department was called the **Treasurer.** The **Court of Exchequer** heard cases related to royal revenue. The **Lord High Steward** became an important office in the late 12th century. They had the rights to supervise the royal household. The **Wardrobe** traveled with the king at all times and was in charge of royal expenses. The chief official was named the **Keeper of the Wardrobe**. The **Admiral** was the name of the officer who commanded the ships that defended the English Channel. The **Marshal** and the **Constable** controlled the royal horses and military operations. The **High Court of Admiralty** was in charge of disciplining the navy and punishing pirates. From the time of the Magna Carta, the **Court of Common Pleas** was located at Westminster. This court heard civil cases. However, criminal cases were heard in the **Courts of the King’s Bench**.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__ Local Government __ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">The **Sheriff** was responsible for many things including, executing the orders given from Westminster, and delivering criminals to the royal courts. The Gentry were typically members of the **Justices of the Peace**. Their job was to administer justice; they could punish minor offenses. The **Coroner** was responsible for maintaining legal records and acted as a royal tax collector.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">__ Magna Carta __ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;"> The Magna Carta was a document established in 1215. King John of England signed the Magna Carta. He was forced into signing the Magna Carta. He didn’t want to sign it because it would reduce his power and start the formation of a powerful parliament. The Magna Carta became the foundation for citizen’s rights. The purpose of the Magna Carta was to take power away from the King and make him rule by the old English laws. King John needed power taken away from him because he abused the power and did whatever he wanted without consulting the Barons first. Even though King John signed the document, he was not the one to write it. The Magna Carta was written by Archbishop Stephen Langston and powerful Barons and signed by the King on June 15th 1215. This is one of the most important documents written in Medieval England.

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<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">**__ Medieval English Economy __**

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">The Economy in England was overwhelmingly agricultural. In the towns there were commercial centers, however long distance trade was not popular yet. England’s main export was wool and they grew a lot of grain.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">**__ Population __**

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Compared to modern times, the towns were pretty small. London, which had a population of 35,000 people by 1300, was considered a large city. Norwich, in a little over 200 years went from 6,000 inhabitants to 10,000 inhabitants.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Now that the feudal system is over, and people worked for money, due to increased populations peasants became poorer. However, they became freer. They no longer owed anything to their vassals and lords. They preferred being free to having more money. On the other hand, landowner became richer because of high food prices and the low wages they gave the farmers.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'times new roman',times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Definitions:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Guild- a medieval association of craftsmen or merchants who usually held considerable power.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Bishop- A member of the Christian clergy.