Lesson video

Hello, welcome to history here at Oak National Academy.

My name's Mr. Newton, and I will be your teacher for today guiding you through the entirety of today's lesson.

Right, let's get started.

Over the next few lessons, we'll be thinking about our big inquiry question: how did Norman government impact England? This is the question we will use to investigate the nature of Norman England.

After the Normans had successfully conquered England, it was uncertain what an Anglo Norman state would look like.

There had been a complete change in the ruling elite, the Anglo-Saxon aristocracy had been replaced by the Normans.

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to describe the Norman aristocracy and its impact on England.

Before we begin, there are a few key words we need to understand.

The aristocracy are a class of people who hold high social rank, often inheriting their status and wealth.

Chivalry is the system of behaviour followed by knights that put a high value on bravery, mercy, justice, and generosity.

Living in a way that is devoted to religion is known as piety.

Romanesque is the style of building that was fashionable in Western Europe which recalled the power of the Roman Empire.

And finally, penance is to punish yourself to seek God's forgiveness for a sin.

Today's lesson is split into three parts.

We'll start by looking at the Norman aristocratic culture before moving onto their architecture.

And finally, the language.

Right, let's begin with the Norman aristocracy and their culture.

The Norman aristocracy had a warrior culture with distinct features, mainly castles and knights.

So the Normans, like the Anglo-Saxons, had a warrior culture.

However, the Norman culture of warfare had developed slightly differently.

So for us to understand that difference, we need to understand where the Normans came from, Western Europe.

Western Europe was divided amongst powerful dukes, counts, and warlords.

If you have a look at the map on the left, you can see that different areas of Europe would've been ruled by different leaders.

This meant that the territory within Europe was divided up amongst those leaders, and modern nations, such as France and Germany, did not yet exist.

In other words, there was no all powerful overlord, there was no king of France.

What there was, though, were lots of warlords and dukes who frequently fought with each other over territory, and this constant change and instability also meant that they often face rebellions from the people they ruled over.

This meant that in regions like Normandy, elites built innovative fortifications called castella, what we call castles.

These castles were initially designed to protect communities against raids from rival dukes.

However, castles later developed to control and dominate the communities around them.

After 1066, the Normans effectively used their innovative castles on the Anglo-Saxon population as England had not really encountered this type of structure before.

Another distinctive feature of the Norman warrior culture was that a new type of warrior emerged amongst the instability in Western Europe.

The Dukes in Western Europe required larger full-time professional soldiers as their household bodyguards.

These heavily armed warriors on horses were known as chevaliers, horsemen.

In England, they were known as knights.

If you have a look at the photo on the left, it shows a Norman chevalier, or a knight, and these were very effective in the battle of Hastings.

Knights, in fact, were the future of mediaeval warfare.

These heavily armoured warriors on horseback were the tanks of mediaeval Europe.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

How was the Norman Warrior culture different from the Anglo-Saxon warrior culture? Select two correct differences.

Pause the video, select your differences, and come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done if you knew those differences were castles and knights.

Okay, let's continue.

European aristocrats were beginning to create a code of behaviour known as chivalry.

And this linked Christian piety to a warrior code.

As we know, the Normans were very religious, and their religion influenced how they behaved on and off the battlefield.

If we have a look at the illustration on the left, it shows 11th century crusader knights.

And if you look closely, we can see that they are adorned with symbols of the cross representing their connection to the Christian Church and God.

So in the early culture of chivalry, it primarily promoted brave and hardy fighting.

If you have a look at the illustration on the left, it shows 13th century knights in battle.

And this is typically how we think of knights.

However, chivalry also promoted values of mercy, justice, and generosity.

In other words, chivalry was a code of behaviour the knights followed on the battlefield as well as the courtly manners they maintained off it.

For example, William demonstrated chivalry when he mercifully did not execute Anglo-Saxon rebels after they had surrendered.

Anglo-Saxon rulers, in comparison, were known to execute rebels.

So here, we can see quite a sharp difference between Anglo-Saxon and Norman conduct.

And this is primarily driven by the Norman's adherence to chivalry.

So the duke and his knights made up the Norman aristocracy.

And with their advanced castles and culture of chivalry, they very much viewed themselves as superior to the conquered Anglo-Saxons.

Have a look at the images on the left.

On the furthest left is an illustration of a Norman aristocrat.

The photo to the right of it shows Anglo-Saxon peasant re-enactors.

And although we are generalising here, we can imagine a stark contrast between the Norman elites and the ordinary Anglo-Saxon peasants.

For example, Normans adopted a simple and pious lifestyle.

However, they allowed for luxury in the particular foods they ate and the extravagant homes and churches they built.

On the other hand, Normans were less complimentary about the ordinary lives of Anglo-Saxons who lived as peasant farmers, wore tattoos, ate whatever food was available to them, and according to Norman sources, drank too much alcohol in their basic wooden houses.

Okay, let's check your understanding.

Why did the Norman aristocracy view their culture as superior to the Anglo-Saxon culture? Select three correct answers.

A, they believed the English drank too much alcohol.

B, they believed they were more pious.

C, they had a sophisticated diet.

D, they read more books than the illiterate English.

Pause the video, select your three correct answers, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done if you identified the three correct answers, which was that the Norman aristocracy viewed their culture as superior because they believed the English drank too much alcohol, they believed they were more pious, and they had a sophisticated diet.

Okay, excellent.

Let's move on to task A.

Alex here is unsure of the key features of the Norman aristocracy.

What I want you to do is advise Alex on the features of Norman culture, which a Norman Aristocrat would consider superior.

So perhaps you could hold this as a discussion, or you could jot your ideas down in a bullet point list.

Pause the video, have a go at the task, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

Well done for having a go at that task.

Now, you could have advised many different things, but compare your answers with what I have here.

Norman Aristocrats were extravagant builders.

They built superior castles, churches and homes, et cetera.

Norman knights were skilled horsemen who followed a code of chivalry.

For example, William mercifully did not execute rebels after they had surrendered, but Anglo-Saxon rulers executed rebels.

And the final example of why a Norman aristocrat might consider their culture superior is that Normans had a more sophisticated lifestyle adopting a pious life and enjoying luxurious foods.

Anglo-Saxons were peasant farmers who drank too much alcohol in their basic wooden houses.

Okay, good.

So we have an understanding of Norman aristocratic culture.

Let's now move on to the second part of the lesson where we can take a closer look at Norman architecture.

As you'll remember, the Norman aristocracy had led a vast castle building programme across England, but that was not the only building programme.

In the 50 years after 1066, led by Lanfranc, almost all English cathedrals and churches had been rebuilt in the new Romanesque style that was fashionable in Western Europe.

Okay, so before we look at what a Romanesque church might look like, let's have a look at the typical style of English churches pre 1066.

So English churches were generally smaller, often made of wood.

Those that were built of stone had flat walls painted with religious scenes.

If you have a look at the photo on the left, it shows one of the few surviving Anglo-Saxon churches.

And we can see it's a perfectly modest church with few decorative details.

Norman designers, however, built thick stone walls.

The stone was sometimes imported from Normandy.

They also built square central towers and added depth to walls with pillars and semi-circular arches.

And the photo on the left is of Winchester Cathedral.

And we can see the thick walls and the square central tower.

These buildings recalled the power of the Roman Empire, hence, they became known as Romanesque.

Cathedrals were very expensive to build, and they were designed to be awe inspiring, to be amazing to look at.

Try to imagine how an Anglo-Saxon peasant must have felt the first time they saw one of these mighty structures.

And as we step inside one of these mighty structures, clearly we can see these new grander features were designed to impress.

Have a look at a photo on the left.

It's the nave of Winchester Cathedral.

And I want you to try and imagine what it would be like to be inside one of these cathedrals during the 11th century.

Let's imagine in the congregation an elderly lady, Esma, sits silently listening to the words from the service echoing around the great hall.

Her mind begins to contemplate about spiritual matters.

She looks up towards the vaulted ceiling.

The towering arches rise to a height she has never witnessed before in an earthly structure.

The sweet smelling smoke from the burning incense has produced a fine mist high above the heads of the congregation.

Shards of light shine through the lofty windows, illuminating the distant haze above.

Esma feels she is looking up towards the heavens, towards God.

And we can certainly imagine how these mighty Romanesque cathedrals provoked awe in the minds of the ordinary people of England.

The construction of many Romanesque cathedrals and monasteries was an architectural revolution which dominated the landscape and became the lasting symbols of Norman control over the English church.

Through this building, the Normans were identifying themselves as both conquerors and religious reformers.

Romanesque cathedrals sprung up right across England from Canterbury to Durham, Worcester to Norwich, and the White Tower, the Tower of London, especially its chapel, is an example of Romanesque military architecture, and perhaps it's not obvious at first, but buildings actually reveal lots about the values of the culture which constructed them.

The size and ambition of the Romanesque cathedrals reflect the devotion of the Norman aristocracy to God and to the reform of the church.

Look at the photograph on the left.

This is Canterbury Cathedral.

We can see how this impressive structure towers above surrounding buildings.

Even though this is a modern photograph surrounded by modern buildings, we can still imagine how ambitious the design was in the 11th century.

A further example of the devotion of the Norman aristocracy to God was that all Norman Romanesque cathedrals were built facing east, towards Jerusalem, in the shape of a cross to remember Jesus' death and to show their Christian devotion.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

The Romanesque style was characterised by what new elements in English churches? Select three correct answers.

A, pillars and semi-circular arches.

B, square central towers.

C, thick stone walls.

D, wooden panels.

Pause the video, select your three correct answers, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done If you identified the following elements in Romanesque architecture.

A, pillars and semi-circular arches.

B, square central towers.

And finally, C, thick stone walls.

Okay, let's continue.

Piety meant the Norman aristocracy went to great measures to atone to make up for their sins.

Norman soldiers were ordered to do penance for the lives they had taken at Hastings.

This could be a year of prayer or giving money to the church.

Norman Aristocrats could afford to demonstrate larger acts of penance by building churches or founding abbeys.

For example, in 1077, the Norman Lord William de Warenne set up a priory near his castle at Lewes.

Have a look at the image on the left.

It's an illustration of an abbey.

And this gives us a sense of scale.

A priory housed the whole community of monks or nuns, and could be a substantial set of buildings.

So this certainly would've demonstrated a large and expensive act of penance.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

What shape were Norman cathedrals built in to symbolise their piety? A, circle.

B, cross.

C, rectangle.

D, triangle.

Pause the video, have a think, and come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

Well done if you knew it was B, Cross.

Why did Norman aristocrats build churches or abbeys after the Battle of Hastings? A, to do penance for the lives they had taken.

B, to provide education to the local English population.

C, to increase their wealth through land acquisition.

Pause the video, have a think, and come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done if you knew it was A, Norman aristocrats built churches or abbeys after the Battle of Hastings so that they could do penance for the lives they have taken.

Okay, excellent.

Let's move on to task B.

The following statements are features of Norman architecture in England.

What I want you to do is complete the sentence starters by providing additional information to support each feature.

So for example, if we read the first feature, one feature of Norman architecture in England was the Romanesque style of Norman cathedrals.

For example, and I want you to complete that sentence, providing a sentence or two of additional information which further describes, in this example, Romanesque style of Norman cathedrals.

Once you've done that, move on to the second feature which refers to the aristocracy's piety.

Pause the video, have a go at the task, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

Now, you could have answered that in many different ways, but compare the answers I have here with what you have.

So one feature of Norman architecture in England was the Romanesque style of Norman cathedrals.

For example, and here's the additional bit of information, Norman designers built thick stone walls, square central towers, and added depth with pillars and semi-circular arches.

The second feature, another feature of Norman architecture in England was that it revealed the aristocracy's piety.

For example, all Norman cathedrals were built facing east, towards Jerusalem, in the shape of a cross to remember Jesus' death.

Okay, perfect.

Let's move on to the final part of the lesson where we look at Norman language.

The language used by the Norman aristocracy signified a clear division between the conquerors and the conquered.

The language of the defeated lower classes was Anglo-Saxon English, old English.

The language of the victorious ruling class was Norman French.

For example, William and Lanfranc did not speak English.

And this would have an impact on England.

French words and names soon entered the English language.

For example, castle, mansion, pork, mutton, William, Robert, Beaumont.

Some place names were normalised too.

In Essex, Fulepet, the foul pit, became Beaumont, fair hill.

Furthermore, places such as Grace (indistinct) and Stoke Mandeville were named after Norman Lords.

At the same time, the Anglo-Saxons, who are now the Norman servants, still spoke English.

As a result, the English language sometimes has two words for similar things.

You may wonder why we use different words for the cow in the field and the beef on our plates, or the pork in our supermarkets and the pig in the farm.

Another example is the sheep you see in the photo on the top left of the slide, and the sheep in food form on the table in illustration underneath.

Since Anglo-Saxons were now the Norman servants, the Anglo-Saxons called the animal they looked after a sheep.

However, the Normans called the sheep meat they had served at the table, mutton.

The word mutton comes from the French for sheep, mouton.

Okay, let's check your understanding.

True or false.

Anglo-Saxons, who were now the Norman servants, still spoke English but needed to understand orders in French.

Is that true or false? Pause the video, have a think, and come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

I'm well done if you knew that was true.

But why would that be true? I want you to justify your answer.

Is it true because A, the English language sometimes has two words for similar things, sheep for the animal, which Anglo-Saxons looked after, and mutton for sheep meat, which Normans had served at the table, or B, the Norman's forced English servants to speak Norman French, pork for the animal, which Anglo-Saxons looked after, and ham for the pig meat, which Normans had served at the table.

Pause the video, have a think, and come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done if you knew it was A.

Okay, let's continue.

From 1070, all royal documents originally written in English were instead written in Latin.

The ruling elite of Europe all used Latin as a common language of administration, communication, and scholarship.

This was the official language of the Roman Empire and the church.

The Norman Church in England also moved to using Latin, both in services and in written records.

If you have a look at the illuminated manuscripts on the left, you can see it's actually written in Latin, and we can see an illustration of monks in the centre.

The colonised English may have viewed Norman culture, architecture, and language as an indicator of status.

In other words, if you spoke Norman French or Latin, that indicated that you were from the Norman aristocracy, you were one of the wealthy elites.

However, many would've also felt it was a deliberate attempt to undermine English identity.

Okay, let's check your understanding.

What new administrative language did the Norman aristocracy introduce for royal documents? A, English.

B, French.

C, Latin.

Pause the video, have a think, and come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done if you knew it was Latin, the language of the Roman Empire and of the church.

Okay, let's move on to the final task, task C.

And I've got a statement here.

The most significant impact that Norman aristocracy had on England was the change in language.

What I want you to do is write one paragraph which agrees with this statement.

Pause the video, have a go at the task, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

You could have written your paragraph in a number of different ways, but check what you have with the model example I have here.

The Norman aristocracy spread the use of Norman French and Latin.

French words and names soon entered the English language.

For example, the English language sometimes has two words for similar things.

Sheep for the animal, which Anglo-Saxons looks after, and mutton for sheep meat, which Normans had served at the table.

Furthermore, the Normans replaced the language of the government and the church with Latin.

This is important because it divided the Norman aristocracy from England's lower classes.

Anglo-Saxons would have felt their English identity was being erased.

The language of England's major institutions was foreign to them.

And I want you to take note of that last sentence or two, starting with where I've written "this is important because it divided the Norman aristocracy from England's lower classes." These last two sentences really explain why the change in language had a significant impact on England.

In other words, the first part of the paragraph gives a description of the changes that took place.

But if we really want to answer the question well, we need to have that second part where I really explain how this impacts England, in that it divides society between England's lower classes and the Norman aristocracy, and many English may have felt their identity was being undermined.

Okay, excellent.

Let's summarise today's lesson.

The Norman aristocracy brought with them a distinct culture, which they believed was superior to the conquered Anglo-Saxons, for example, Romanist cathedrals and castles and chivalrous knights.

The Normans adopted a pious life and enjoyed luxurious foods.

They looked down on Anglo-Saxons as peasant farmers who drank too much alcohol in their basic wooden houses.

And finally, the Norman aristocracy spread the use of Norman French and Latin.

And this divided the ruling elite from the Anglo-Saxon lower classes, who would've felt their English identity was being erased.

The language of England's major institutions was foreign to them.

Okay, well done on a brilliant lesson.

And thank you for joining me for our study into the nature of Norman England.

I hope you can see how the Norman aristocracy impacted upon, and in many ways, integrated with England.

I'll see you next time when we continue our inquiry.

See you in the next lesson.