HIST 398
SYLLABUS
WEEKLY DISCUSSION MATERIALS

Tuesday:

THE NORMANS COME TO ENGLAND

The Norman Kings of England:

FAMILY TREES OF EDWARD THE CONFESSOR (d. 1066) AND WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR (1028-87)
http://www.primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/bt/images/tree.gif

THE NORMAN KINGS OF ENGLAND
http://www.englishcrown.co.uk/imgs/nor_tree.gif

The Norman Conquest:

The back-story (according to the Normans): Edward the Confessor, King of England, is elderly and childless. He decides to name his maternal cousin William, Duke of Normandy, as his heir. Edward sends his brother-in-law, Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex, the most powerful noble in England, on a diplomatic visit to Normandy. He is shipwrecked, arrested, and delivered to Duke William as a prisoner. William offers to release Harold unharmed if Harold will swear an oath to support William’s claim to be the heir to Edward’s throne. Harold swears and returns to England. Edward the Confessor then dies, and Harold claims the throne of England. There is another claimant waiting to claim the throne of England: Harald Hardrada, King of Norway.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: William I  (URL below)
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1186ASChron-William1.html
What did the author of this eyewitness account see as:
the king’s virtues?
the king’s vices?
How might this description reflect the condition of England in the reign of William the Conqueror (1066-87)?

Questions:

1.  In the reading by Henry of Huntingdon, what are the signs of chaos that Henry identifies at the beginning of the reading?  Are these to be taken literally?

2.  In the reading by Henry of Huntingdon, what does Henry have to say about the treatment of the clergy by lords during the rebellion?  Why do you think that he says this?

3.  What does Henry have to say about the behavior of many bishops?  Why do you think that he says this?

4.  Did Henry support King Stephen, or the king’s enemies (the allies of his cousin Matilda), or was he politically neutral?  Cite evidence for your judgment.

Carlin and Crouch, Lost Letters, Introduction, pp. 1-3, 9-12, 15-17:

Below is an example of a genuine letter written to Master Ralph de Neville, a clerk (cleric) in King John’s household. The writer, Thomas de Hoiland, a scholar at Lincoln, evidently was an old friend of Neville. (He wrote his letter in Latin; the translation below dates from 1850.)

Ralph de Neville was an illegitimate member of the large and wealthy Neville clan.  By 1207 he was a clerk in King John’s household, and in December 1213 he became the keeper of the Great Seal, under the direction of the bishop of Winchester.  Neville accompanied the king on the calamitous expedition to France (January-October 1214), during which King John appointed him Dean of Lichfield  (April 1214), and he remained in the king’s service until at least May 1216.  Neville’s whereabouts during the next two years are unknown, but he was back at court in May 1218, and was effectively running the Chancery in the absence of the Chancellor, Richard Marsh, Bishop of Durham, who stayed largely in the north.  In October 1222 Neville was elected Bishop of Chichester (consecrated 14 April 1224). Two years later, following the death (on 1 May 1226) of Bishop Marsh, Neville succeeded him as Chancellor (so styled on 17 May 1226).  In 1231 the monks of Canterbury elected Neville to the archbishopric of Canterbury, but this election, though approved by Henry III, was quashed by the pope.  In 1238 the monks of Winchester elected Neville to the vacant bishopric of Winchester but Henry III, who wanted the see instead for his wife’s uncle, got the papal curia to quash his election.  He also removed the Great Seal from Neville’s keeping, but Neville retained the title of Chancellor and the revenues of that office.  Five years later, in September 1243, Neville was reinstated as keeper of the Great Seal, but died soon after, in early February 1244.

To his dearest companion, Ralph de Nevill, Master (magistro), Thomas de Hoiland, greeting, and the affection of sincere love. — It is reported to me, that you, being established in great power, and fully obtaining the favour of your Lord, are able easily, out of the abundance of venison, to satisfy your friend in need of such a thing; we scholars indeed, dwelling at Lincoln, neither find venison meats to be sold, nor do we find any one to give it us; I supplicate therefore earnestly your liberality, on which I fully rely, by my friend, the bearer of this, that as it may not be troublesome to you to succour me with as much of this kind as you please, so it would be glorious to me, if I should be able by your bounty to set before my companions dwelling with me, among other things to be set on the table, such as are so rare among us; and if perchance you should not be able to satisfy my petition at present, which heaven forbid, arrange if you please so that within a certain period to be notified to my messenger, I may have one beast, from some one of our friends. Farewell.

(Source: W. H. Blaauw, “Letters to Ralph de Neville, Bishop of Chichester (1222-24) [recte 1222-44], and Chancellor to King Henry III,” Sussex Archaeological Collections, 3 (1850), pp. 35-76, at p. 38; The National Archives, SC 1/6/13.)

Here is the same letter, divided into passages:

1. To his dearest companion, Ralph de Nevill, Mastermagistro), Thomas de Hoiland, greeting, and the affection of sincere love.
2. It is reported to me, that you, being established in great power, and fully obtaining the favour of your Lord, are able easily, out of the abundance of venison, to satisfy your friend in need of such a thing; we scholars indeed, dwelling at Lincoln, neither find venison meats to be sold, nor do we find any one to give it us;
3. I supplicate therefore earnestly your liberality, on which I fully rely, by my friend, the bearer of this, that as it may not be troublesome to you to succour me with as much of this kind as you please,
4. so it would be glorious to me, if I should be able by your bounty to set before my companions dwelling with me, among other things to be set on the table, such as are so rare among us;
5. and if perchance you should not be able to satisfy my petition at present, which heaven forbid, arrange if you please so that within a certain period to be notified to my messenger, I may have one beast, from some one of our friends.
6. Farewell.

Questions:

1. This letter is undated, but it must have been written before April 1214. Why?
2. Can you spot any examples of formulas (stock phrases) in this letter?
3. What does the writer want?
4. Why does he want it?
5. Why does he believe that Ralph de Neville can provide it?
6. What does the writer suggest as a Plan B if Neville is unable to provide it?
7. How would you express the same letter in modern English?