Anglo-Saxon England under Edward the Confessor

Question 1

What was the state of Anglo-Saxon England like during 1060?

Answer 1

2,000,000
Life expectancy - low
Infant mortality was high

Question 2

What was the hierarchy of Anglo-Saxon England?

Answer 2

1. Earls
2. Thegns
3. Ceorls
4. Peasants/Farmers
5. Slaves

Question 3

What are 3 features of Earls during Anglo-Saxon England?

Answer 3

-very small
-They controlled earldoms
-They competed with other earls to gain the kings trust

Question 4

What are 4 features of thegn in Anglo-Saxon England?

Answer 4

-4,000 - 5,000 in c1060
-Local lords who lived in earldoms
-To become one you had to hold 5 hides of land
-Lived in manor houses / separate church

Question 5

What are 2 features of ceorls in Anglo Saxon England?

Answer 5

-Small
-Peasant farmers free to work for another lord if wished.

Question 6

What are 4 features of Peasant farmers in anglo-saxon england?

Answer 6

-Majority of england
-Paid rent to thegn to farm small piece of land
-Percent. of crops that grew went to local lord
-If refuse or did not grow enough crops would lose rights to land

Question 7

What are 3 features of slaves in anglo-saxon england?

Answer 7

-10% of population
-Accepted part of society
-Seen as property

Question 8

How could someone move up the hierarchy of Anglo-Saxon society?
4 examples

Answer 8

-Slave to Peasant = Freed by master

-Peasant to Thegn = Grown enough crops to buy 5 hides of land/ become a merchant

-Thegn to Earl = Promoted by king

-Earl - king = King named you heir to throne

Question 9

How could someone fall down the hierarchy in Anglo-Saxon society?
3 examples

Answer 9

-Peasant to slave = punished for crime/Selling himself into slavery to protect their family from starvation

-Thegn to peasant = Forced to sell 5 hides of land if not growing enough crops

-Earl to thegn = lose trust of king

Question 10

What were the powers of the king?

Answer 10

-landownership
-Military
-Taxation
-Money (control process of making money)
-law-making

Question 11

What were some duties of society in anglo-saxon england? 3 examples

Answer 11

-no forgery
- age of 12 made an oath of loyalty to the king (refuse = oathbreaker)
-Thegns/Earls provide soldiers - peasants had to fight in war

Question 12

Why was Edward the confessor so powerful?

Answer 12

-pious = respected / God’s representative on Earth
-gifted law maker

Question 13

What is Danelaw?

Answer 13

Vikings lived in the north of England for a long time.

The people there liked Danish rules.

They let Edward be king, but wanted local leaders in charge.

This area was called the Danelaw.

So, Edward had less power in the north.

Question 14

Why was Danelaw a limit to Edward the confessor power?

Answer 14

Edward had to respect the Danelaw.

If he didn’t, the Anglo-Danish people might rebel, and Vikings from abroad could help them.

This made it hard for Edward to rule the area.

People there spoke a different language, had more freedom, and paid less tax.

Question 15

What were the features of the earl of Wessex?

Answer 15

The Earl of Wessex was Godwin

Wessex was the richest earldom in England

The House of Godwin was as rich as the king

The land that the family owned made it a powerful military force

Question 16

Why was the Earl of Wessex a limit to the king’s power?

Answer 16

Godwin, Earl of Wessex, was very powerful — his family was as rich and strong as the king.

Wessex was the richest earldom in England and had a strong army.

In 1051, Edward told Godwin to punish Dover, but Godwin refused.

This was disloyal, so Edward exiled him.

But in 1052, Godwin came back with an army and forced Edward to give him his power back.

This made Edward look weak and showed that even the king could be challenged by powerful earls.

Question 17

Who was the Witan?

Answer 17

was the king’s council
made up of the most powerful people in the kingdom — earls, bishops, and other nobles.

Question 18

What did the Witan do?

Answer 18

Advised the king on important decisions
Helped choose the next king when the old one died.
Could show support or withdraw loyalty from a king — this made them quite powerful.

Question 19

Did the king have to listen to the witan?

Answer 19

No.

Question 20

What power did earls have in terms of taxes?

Answer 20

-collect taxes in earldom
-keep 1/3
-use taxes to defend earldom

Question 21

What power did the earls have in terms of the law?

Answer 21

-be a judge
-influence and control ennit

Question 22

What power did earls have in terms of the military?

Answer 22

-be military leader in battles
-maintain professional soldiers called housecarls
-ensure thegns provide soldiers

Question 23

What was a limit to the power of an earl in terms of loyalty to king?

Answer 23

Lack of loyalty or obedience could lead to:
-Losing their earldom
-Exile
-Death

Question 24

What was a limit to the power of an earl in terms of thegns unhappiness?

Answer 24

thegns could ask the king to remove an earl if they weren’t happy

Question 25

What is an example of thegn asking the king to remove an earl?

Answer 25

In 1065, King Edward exiled Tostig, Earl of Northumbria (and Godwin’s son), after Northumbrian thegns rebelled against him.

Question 26

What was the function of a shire?

Answer 26

SOCIAL = Own courts to hear cases POLITICAL = Shire reeves political representatives of the king ECONOMIC = Contain BURH which was centre of trade MILITARY = Provide FYRD soldiers of the shire

Question 27

What were shire reeves?

Answer 27

local government officials that operated in each shire

Question 28

What were Duties of a shire reeve?

Answer 28

Collect: rent, fines, geld taxes Act as witness to oversee judgements in shire courts Upkeep roads and walls

Question 29

What was the fyrd?

Answer 29

The fyrd was the Anglo-Saxon army made up of ordinary men (mainly thegns and ceorls).

Question 30

What were the 2 types of fyrd?

Answer 30

Select fyrd General fyrd

Question 31

What were features of the select fyrd?

Answer 31

-Fight anywhere in england -Consisted of thegn and their followers -Well-equipped Serve for only 40 days

Question 32

What were the features of the general fyrd?

Answer 32

-Only fight in local area -Consist of general population -Limited weaponry -Serve for only 40 days

Question 33

What were blood feuds?

Answer 33

A blood feud was when one family took revenge on another after a murder or serious injury. often by killing someone from the other family.

Question 34

Why was blood feud a big problem?

Answer 34

continue for generations=wipe out entire families draw in other families=Violence could spread across towns and villages

Question 35

What was the solution to family feuds?

Answer 35

The wergild?

Question 36

What was the wergild?

Answer 36

Wergild means "man-price" — it was money paid to a victim’s family if someone was killed or seriously injured.

Question 37

How did anglo-saxon england trade with other countries?

Answer 37

Silver from germany Mill/whetstones from Demark Wine from Normandy

Question 38

What did a buhr look like?

Answer 38

-Moat -Palisades (strong walls) -Ramparts (Earth Banks)

Question 39

Why were buhr so important in anglo-saxon england?

Answer 39

-10% of the population lived in buhr -Well planned = buhr connected to other buhr by road -an important source of income for the king

Question 40

What were peasant houses like in VILLAGES?

Answer 40

-Wooden house with thatched roofs -Multiple relatives in one house -Rent land

Question 41

What were Thegns houses like in VILLAGES?

Answer 41

-Manor houses (sometimes with fortifications) -Only immediate family in the house -Built churches on the land with separate services

Question 42

What impact did religion have on an anglo-saxon?

Answer 42

-Feared afterlife: so went on pilgrimages or prayed to saints

Question 43

What issues did bishops cause in Anglo-Saxon England?

Answer 43

-Bishops not trusted = making money from the church -Conflict between thegn and bishops: 1. Thegns established own church made them believe they had the right to run it 2. Bishops selected priests - thegns believe it should be their right to hire 3.Power struggle

Question 44

What was a limit to church influence on Anglo-Saxon England?

Answer 44

-Less religious: By the 9th century, rich Anglo-Saxon nobles controlled monasteries more. Monasteries became less focused on religion and more on wealth and power. Viking attacks: Vikings targeted monasteries because they were rich and poorly defended. Many were raided or destroyed, and couldn’t afford to reopen. Too close to communities: Monks were meant to live a separate, holy life, away from others. But to survive, they had to work with local peasants and became less isolated.

Question 45

what influence did the church have?

Answer 45

-Influenced law & punishment -Controlled education -Powerful bishops

Question 46

How did Harold Godwinson become earl of wessex?

Answer 46

Godwin died in 1053

Question 47

What are examples of the Godwinson control in Anglo-Saxon England?

Answer 47

Harold - Earl of Wessex - 1053 Tostig - Earl of Northumbria - 1055 Gyrth - Earl of East Anglia - 1057 Leofwine - Earl of a smaller earldom in the south-west Midlands - 1057

Question 48

Why was the house of Godwins so powerful?

Answer 48

-Vast amount of land -political marriages

Question 49

Why did having a vast amount of land help the godwins family have so much power?

Answer 49

Vast land = money (as much asmoney as edward the confessor) -large number of thegns - raise a large fyrd

Question 50

Why did the certains earldoms that the godwins family held increase their power?

Answer 50

Held key area of england: -Wessex defended against france attacks -Hereford used to launch attacks against wales

Question 51

Examples of political marriges in the godwins family that increased power?

Answer 51

Godwin's daughter Edith was the wife of Edward the Confessor Harold's - Edith the Fair had claims to large areas of land in East Anglia 1066, Harold married a different Edith. She was the widow of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, the King of Wales