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Bezig met laden... 1066door Peter Rex
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The Norman Conquest is the single most important event in English history. On this invasion and 'regime change' pivoted the second millennium of English history. This is well recognised, what is not is how long and hard the English people fought to deny William 'the Bastard', Duke of Normandy his prize. Rather than being the smooth transition peddled by pro-Norman historians, the Norman conquest was a brutal and violent takeover by an army of occupation. Unknown thousands of rebellious thegns resisted the Norman regime, the most famous being Hereward, but there were plenty of willing collaborators among England's clergy, who pushed for William to be crowned king. In return he let them retain their sees and abbacies, as well as the vast tracts of land. Peter Rex tells the whole story of the conquest of England by the Normans from its genesis in the deathbed decision of King Edward the Confessor in January 1066 to recommend Harold Godwinson as his successor, to the crushing of the last flickers of English resistance in June 1076. Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)942.021History and Geography Europe England and Wales England Norman 1066-1154 William I 1066-87LC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
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Rex chronicles the run up to the invasion and the ten year period afterwards when William ruthlessly Normanised Britain. The old ways were swept away and William's supporters were rewarded with Earldoms. The populace was subdued with a combination of Military occupation, heavy taxation and ravaging of the land, which left it barren and uninhabitable for years. Suffice to say that William lived up to his name of The Bastard.
Rex paints William as a usurper with no legitimate claim to the throne of England, a war criminal who used force to gain and hold on to his kingdom. He also tells of the English resistance which fought in vain to throw off the Norman Yoke. There were several revolts during those first ten years but in each case they came to nothing, William either buying off the participants or putting them down with superior military might.
There are useful appendices on the English Succession, The Bayeux Tapestry and an English folk hero called Hereward who led a resistance on the Isle of Ely.
So, a decent history book, well researched and written, but perhaps not as engaging as it could be. ( )