# The Norman Invasion (1066-1458)

The Norman invasion! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiaCId6pANI

The most famous date in English history is the 14th of October in 1066. On that day the Norman Duke William the Conqueror (Willem de Veroveraar) defeated the English King Harold at the Battle of Hastings. It will be remembered as the last succesful invasion of England.

Unlike the Germanic invasion, the number of invasions were small. Norman soldiers who had invaded land were given ownership of the land and the people living on it became their peasents. This formed the feudal system.(as illustrated bellow)

King William finished a book in 1086 he called the Domesday Book. In that book he had a very detailed record of all the people and their possessions in his kingdom. The system of strong government, which was introduced by King William, made the Anglo-Norman kingdom the absolute power in Britain and Ireland.

Also, it was in this period that the democratic body of our society was being created. The word Parliament comes from the French word 'parler' which means to speak.