AQA GCSE Norman England
(everything)
England Prior to Norman Conquest - correct answer ✔- Feudal system not
that different from Normans
- King had all the power
- Population of 2 million
- Almost everyone farmed
- Christian (large part of everyday life)
When was Edward the Confessor king? Kings before him - correct answer
✔1042 to 1066
- Cnut and his two sons had been vikings, well organised government
Who were the Witan? - correct answer ✔A council of advisors to the king
made up of earls and archbishops, discussed who was the new king.
Problem the Witans Faced - correct answer ✔Edward the Confessor never
had a child to become heir, this was terrible as a new king had to be
appointed in case of threat.
Contenders to the throne + Relations to Edward - correct answer ✔- Harold
Godwinson: Earl of Wessex (brother in law to Edward the Confessor)
(Allegedly swore on Religious relics to support William as king)
- William: Duke of Normandy (Cousin of Edward the Confessor) (Promised by
Edward to be king)
- Harald Hardrada: King of Norway (No direct connection, but ancestors were
supposedly promised throne)
, - Edgar the Atheling: Great-nephew of Edward (Great nephew and last Anglo-
Saxon prince after father killed in 1057)
Who the Witans chose and why? - correct answer ✔Harold Godwinson:
promised the throne as Edward was dying, A lot of battle experience, Family
is very wealthy
Establishes himself king in 1066. Crowned king on the day of Edward's burial
Tostig Godwinson - correct answer ✔Forced into exile in 1065 by his brother
Harold due to his high taxes and brutal treatment of anyone who resisted his
rule. Traveled to Norwat to gain support from Harald Hardrada.
Morcar - correct answer ✔Earl of Northumbria
Younger brother of Edwin of Mercia
Edwin - correct answer ✔Earl of Mercia
Sister Edith was married to king Harold
Battle of Fulford (9 points) - correct answer ✔- 8th September, Harold
disbanded army from waiting in the South for William
- In the North-East an attack was imbound from scandinavia
- Harald Hardrada believed father should be king so he invaded
- 300 ships 10,000 men
- Edwin and Morcar brought army of 4500 men
- English army fought bravely but did not expect the flank by Hardrada
- When the English tried to flee, the Norwegians hurled bodies into the bank
so that they could get across
- 24th September, Hardrada won, 150 hostages exchanged (but expecting to
receive more from whole county)
(everything)
England Prior to Norman Conquest - correct answer ✔- Feudal system not
that different from Normans
- King had all the power
- Population of 2 million
- Almost everyone farmed
- Christian (large part of everyday life)
When was Edward the Confessor king? Kings before him - correct answer
✔1042 to 1066
- Cnut and his two sons had been vikings, well organised government
Who were the Witan? - correct answer ✔A council of advisors to the king
made up of earls and archbishops, discussed who was the new king.
Problem the Witans Faced - correct answer ✔Edward the Confessor never
had a child to become heir, this was terrible as a new king had to be
appointed in case of threat.
Contenders to the throne + Relations to Edward - correct answer ✔- Harold
Godwinson: Earl of Wessex (brother in law to Edward the Confessor)
(Allegedly swore on Religious relics to support William as king)
- William: Duke of Normandy (Cousin of Edward the Confessor) (Promised by
Edward to be king)
- Harald Hardrada: King of Norway (No direct connection, but ancestors were
supposedly promised throne)
, - Edgar the Atheling: Great-nephew of Edward (Great nephew and last Anglo-
Saxon prince after father killed in 1057)
Who the Witans chose and why? - correct answer ✔Harold Godwinson:
promised the throne as Edward was dying, A lot of battle experience, Family
is very wealthy
Establishes himself king in 1066. Crowned king on the day of Edward's burial
Tostig Godwinson - correct answer ✔Forced into exile in 1065 by his brother
Harold due to his high taxes and brutal treatment of anyone who resisted his
rule. Traveled to Norwat to gain support from Harald Hardrada.
Morcar - correct answer ✔Earl of Northumbria
Younger brother of Edwin of Mercia
Edwin - correct answer ✔Earl of Mercia
Sister Edith was married to king Harold
Battle of Fulford (9 points) - correct answer ✔- 8th September, Harold
disbanded army from waiting in the South for William
- In the North-East an attack was imbound from scandinavia
- Harald Hardrada believed father should be king so he invaded
- 300 ships 10,000 men
- Edwin and Morcar brought army of 4500 men
- English army fought bravely but did not expect the flank by Hardrada
- When the English tried to flee, the Norwegians hurled bodies into the bank
so that they could get across
- 24th September, Hardrada won, 150 hostages exchanged (but expecting to
receive more from whole county)
