- A
- B
- C
Listen to a lecture in a history class, take detailed notes while listening.
ancestor – a relative from the past
assemble – to bring together
monarchy – rule by a single person
nobility – the ruling class of people below the king
thorough – complete
Fill in the following diagram.
Event
1.
Consequences
A 2.
B 3.
C 4.
Now answer the questions using your notes.
Norman Conquest and English Culture
Which of the following were results of the Norman Conquest? Place a check mark in the correct box.
Summarize the text using your notes and diagram.
- 1: Duke William of Normandy conquered England in 1066.
- 2: Anglo-Saxon nobility lost land and power.
- 3: Anglo-Saxon Church leaders were replaced.
- 4: English language adopted French and Latin words.
Listen again:
M1: Okay, let's spend some time discussing the Norman conquest of England, Just for the sake of review, it happened in the year 1066. And remember, the Normans came from what is now Northern France. So what happened?
W: Well, the Norman Duke, William the Conqueror, assembled an army and, um, invaded England.
M2: Yeah, he defeated Harold, the Anglo-Saxon English King.
M1: Good. Anglo-Saxons, you may recall, uh, they were the people living in England–and, er, they spoke Old English, a language closely related to German. In fact, most Anglo-Saxons had German ancestors. Now, what effect did this conquest have on English culture?
Surely, it must have changed the culture and society of the Anglo-Saxons when the Normans arrived and said they were now in charge.
W: Well, I remember reading that the old nobility got replaced. And I think the Church leaders too.
M1: Excellent. Those, are two major changes. Do you remember the third?
M2: Hmm. Not really.
M1: Well, I'll get to that in a minute. First, I want to go over the political changes you just mentioned. William declared himself King of England. Then urn, he took all the land and power from the Anglo-Saxon nobility. Took it and gave it to Normans who had helped, him win. By removing the nobles from power, he also made his monarchy more powerful, one of the strongest in Europe. Before, the nobility was strong, and the king was weak. After William, that relationship was reversed.
Oh, second, you mentioned the Church. What happened was, William replaced all the top Anglo-Saxon Church leaders. He replaced them with Normans. So his people were now the new Church leaders and the new nobility. His conquest was thorough and long lasting. Now, hmm, what else?
M2: Wasn't there something about language?
M1: Oh, right, this is a consequence we see most clearly today. As I mentioned, Old English, the language of the Anglo-Saxons, was closely related to German. After the Normans took over, the language started to change considerably. English adopted words from French and Latin, the languages of their conquerors, it became a mixed-up language, sometimes with overlapping vocabulary. It evolved into the type of English that we have today.
