Landownership changes
Impact of Anglo-Saxon rebellions on landownership
Landholding under the tenants-in-chief
Changes to landholding – what it was like under Anglo-Saxons and changes under Normans
Three ways Anglo-Saxons lost their land
Changes for peasants
Extent of changes (direct comparison of Anglo-Saxon and Norman systems, data such as maps on page 60)
Conclusion – why did changes make resistance less likely after 1071?
Because of the Anglo-Saxon rebellions, William knew that he could not trust the earls in their earldoms
More land meant more power so if William took it away the Anglo-Saxon earls would be limited in resource and supply
The Anglo-Saxon earls had too much power over the king and had challenged him in his actions
If the earls rebelled, their thegns were inclined to as well
Because of these vast amounts of rebellions, the Anglo-Saxon earls were soon replaced by Normans
Forfeit
New earldoms
Land grabs
The king could forfeit anyone's land because it all belonged to him anyway
William made his followers 'heirs' to the land that been forfeited from the Anglo-Saxons
The process of inheritance continued all the way through William's reign
William rewarded his followers with new earldoms that he created
They were made up from forfeited land from previous Anglos-Saxon owners
They were created to defend trouble spots, like the Marcher earldoms
This was an illegal way that Normans could take control of Anglo-Saxon land
The Normans committed thefts and seizures of land as well as corrupt dealings that took away Anglo-Saxon land
Norman sheriffs were known especially for this
Before the rebellions, William could only put Normans in control of Godwinson lands but now he could do the same with the rest of the country
William changed the way that he granted this land to his followers
Anglo-Saxon landholding
Bookland: Lords were given a charter to prove the owning of their land
Leases: Land was loaned to someone for a set period of time for a certain amount of money
Geld taxes were charged on all types of land
Someone could lose their land if they did not pay their geld tax
When a new thegn took over previous land, they had to pay tax to their lord
Norman landholding
Some similarities and some differences to Anglo-Saxon ownership
The king owned all the land so everyone had a tenure from him
Anglo-Saxons had to pay William money in order to keep using their own land which was highly unpopular.
If the landowner died without an heir, the land would automatically go back to the king
If there was an heir to the land, they would have to pay tax to the king when they inherited the land
Landholders that acted against the king could lose their land
William exerted his power well using this new system
The tenants-in-chief had a lot of power as well as the king
They were allowed to re-allocate land when a thegn died
They had their own followers which they could reward by making them 'heirs' to a thegns land
They could take away the land of any thegn who acted against them
Many of the thegns that lost their land went over to Europe to work as mercenaries
The thegns that stayed had to give their services to their Norman lord in return for their keeping of the land
This new system caused many revolts but after the revolts had been countered, it was a strong controlling factor
Landholders didn't farm the land themselves but paid peasants to farm it for them
The new Norman tenants-in-chief were keen to get more revenue from their lands so the peasants had to work harder
Ceorls would lease their land from the lord and didn't own it themselves
Ceorls became rarer and rarer after 1066 although some kept the same landholdings as before
The new lords limited the peasants independence by making them work for them
1065
The Godwinson earls owned just under half of the land
King Edward owned around a third
The rest of the land was split between Earls Edwin and Morcar as well as Earl Siward
Edwards earls owned the majority of the land
1086
King William owned around two thirds of the land
The rest was split up between his tenants-in-chief and other loyal followers
Some of WIlliam's family owned the largest part of England after the king
The king and others in power had authority to take away Anglo-Saxon lands and rights
Williams new earldoms greatly reduced the likelihood of attacks or revolts from trouble spots
William now had a lot more power over the country and used it to hold back revolts and threats
There were less 'free' men in the country so less power held by people lower than the king