Domesday book domesday book, british history, history. Domesday book is a detailed survey and valuation of landed property in england at the end of the 11th century. Then, at the midwinter, was the king in gloucester with his council after this had the king a large meeting, and very deep consultation with his council, about this land. A book william of normandy kept to survey england and record everything in. Domesday book is the name given to the record of the great survey of england made by order of william the conqueror in 108586. Dec 25, 2012 domesday book, or simply domesday, the record of the great survey of england executed for william the conqueror. This meant that no lord or other nobleman could build up enough money to raise a private army to challenge william. After this had the king a large meeting, and very deep consultation with. The book, known at first as the book of winchester after the treasury in which it was originally housed for safekeeping, had acquired its modern name by the twelfth century. It seems to have been compiled, probably under the supervision of rannulf flambard, from the records of the inquest after 1089 and is best interpreted as a response to the revolt, and consequent tenurial chaos, of 1088 p. Historythe domesday book history flashcards quizlet. Nov 19, 2018 finally, domesday book may have been compiled simply for william to know exactly who owned what in his kingdom. The existing literature on this remarkable memorial is so extensive, that it has not appeared advisable to quote largely from it.
Sep 24, 2004 domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. Domesday book was compiled as a description of all england or all of norman controlled england but a more precise motive than that has. The name domesday book was not adopted until the late 12th century. The domesday book online frequently asked questions. Domesday is now available online, and you can search for your town or village, and download images of domesday along with an. The domesday book english medieval legal documents. One of the main aims of the investigation was to quantify the assets of each individual and the taxes on these assets imposed during the reign of edward the. It was compiled from surveys like exon, but the information was then abridged and then rearranged to produce the domesday book we know today. Little domesday records for essex, norfolk and suffolk which were the final locations for the commissioners work. Since then his thesis has been refined in various ways, but there has been no serious challenge to his central propositions. The power to raise danegeld a uniform tax to pay for the defence of the country had been inherited from the anglosaxons, and william saw the need for the domesday book as a thorough assessment of the potential amount of tax he could raise from his subjects and their assets. This tremendous story of england and its people was made at the behest of the norman king william the conqueror. Jul 31, 2019 the original manuscript of the domesday book is in the pro. It also meant that william had money to increase the size of his own army paid for by english taxes.
He had sided with his brother richard in a rebellion against his father d. Domesday book was unrelated to the concerns which launched the inquest in 1085. The information collected was recorded by hand in two huge books, in the space of around a year. Duke of normandy, compiled his domesday book in 1086. The book of winchester was the domesday book compiled by officials of william the conqueror on his orders and published c1086. It was commissioned by william the conqueror to assess the extent of the land and resources being owned in england at the time and therefore the extent of the taxes he could raise. During the last years of his reign, king william the conqueror had his power threatened from a number of quarters. The feudal system and the domesday book bbc bitesize. The domesday book is actually not one book but two. Domesday book the domesday book was a survey designed to record everything that people owned in england. They were probably not included in the main collection because king william died before all the records had been given to the principal scribe. Domesday book was a comprehensive survey and record of all the landowners, property, tenants and serfs of medieval norman england which was compiled in 10867 ce under the orders of william the conqueror r. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesday i.
It had the king at the top with all of the control, and the. How much some one owed and how much they could afford to pay tax. The survey was conducted in 1085 or 1086 and took less a year to complete. This led the book to be compared to the last judgement, or doomsday, described in the bible, when the deeds of christians written in the book of life were to be. For these three counties the full, unabbreviated return sent in to winchester by the commissioners is preserved in the second volume little domesday, which. The domesday book is closely linked with william the conquerors attempt to dominate medieval england.
The anglosaxon chronicle states that planning for the survey was conducted in 1085, and the books colophon states the survey was completed in 1086. T he domesday book was kept in a sturdy chest with three locks. Morris puts it, the king now had a political weapon with which he could subdue any single rebellious baron for, in an instant, william could order the confiscation of all the lands that that baron held according to. The survey was ordered by william the conqueror at christmas 1085 and undertaken the following year. We learn from the english chronicle that the scheme of this survey was discussed and determined in the christmas assembly of 1085, and from the colophon of domesday book that the survey descriptio was completed in 1086. Domesday book, or simply domesday, the record of the great survey of england executed for william the conqueror. It records who held the land and how it was used, and also includes information on how this had changed since the norman conquest in. To further extend his grip on england, william i ordered that a.
Winchester was the norman capital as it had been of the saxons, so the treasury was there at that time. Domesday book is a manuscript that collects the results of a large census carried out in england and in wales in 1086. Domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was the record of the great survey of england completed in 1086, executed for william the conqueror. The survey was executed for william i of england william the conqueror. The first royal commission, the domesday inquiry, was largely about projecting power over a disheartened english population through the control of information and the dispossession of the english people. The domesday book english medieval legal documents database.
William needed information about the country he had. Domesday book, compiled in 1086 at the behest of william the conqueror, has been described as the most valuable piece of antiquity possessed by any nation david hume and viewed by historians as the final act of the norman conquest. The anglosaxon chronicle states that planning for the survey was conducted in 1085, and the book s colophon states the survey was completed in 1086. The domesday book online compiling the domesday book. Domesday book, the original record or summary of william is survey of england. Every theory as to the making of domesday book has some difficulties to overcome. Domesday book pronounced doomsday is one of the most remarkable documents ever compiled. But whatever may have been the exact process by which domesday book was compiled, it remains an astonishing product of the conquerors administration, reflecting at once the problems with which he was faced, and the character of his rule. Whatever the role of documents like the icc, they were demonstrably not the materials from which domesday book was compiled. Produced at amazing speed in the years after the conquest, the domesday book provides a vivid picture of late 11thcentury england. The first volume great domesday contains the final summarized record of all the counties surveyed except essex, norfolk, and suffolk.
It is the record of a survey which, according to the anglosaxon chronicle, william the conqueror ordered to be taken at christmas 1085. Domesday book facts, summary, composition, creation. Apr 26, 2020 it is now forty years since galbraith published the making of domesday book. Now available in one volume, here is the complete, authoritative translation from the original latin, together with an index of places and a glossary of terms used. For a more detailed introduction to domesday, and england at the end of the 11th century, when domesday was compiled. It records the number of households, the economic resources, who owned the land, and the tax paid to the king, for almost every settlement in england. The data in the domesday book are recorded by landowner, then manor. The bbc domesday project was a partnership between acorn computers, philips, logica and the bbc with some funding from the european commissions esprit programme to mark the 900th anniversary of the original domesday book, an 11thcentury census of england. Domesday book is a manuscript record of the great survey of much of england and parts of. The original manuscript of the domesday book is in the pro. Domesday book the reader wiki, reader view of wikipedia. The domesday book was compiled on the order of william i in 1086. By the time of king williams death in september 1087 work had stopped, and could have ceased before this time. Then sent he his men over all england into each shire.
Produced under the supervision of the most renowned domesday scholars, this authoritative translation of the complete domesdayoffers a remarkable portrait of. It is currently contained in five volumes, after its rebinding in 1984 to improve its preservation. William the conqueror had the domesday book compiled to. In 1086, domesday book, perhaps the most remarkable historical document in existence, was compiled.
Domesday received its name in the 12th century, for it was regarded as the ultimate authority, the last word on matters of property. Royal commissions have a lengthy history spanning almost a millennium, originating with the domesday book compiled in 1086 england. The feudal system and the domesday book the feudal system was a way of organising society into different groups based on their roles. It came from the word doomsday which was the day when christ judged you and you had no right to argue. The results created whats known as the domesday book. The domesday book is a great land survey which was compiled in 1086. William the conquerer, duke of normandy, compiled his domesday book in 1086. Produced under the supervision of the most renowned domesday scholars, this authoritative translation of the complete domesday offers a.
While spending the christmas time of 1085 in gloucester, william had deep speech with his counsellors and sent men all over england. This map shows every place in domesday that can still be located today. While spending the christmas time of 1085 in gloucester, william had deep speech with his counsellors and sent men all over england to each shire to find. The investigation was carried out by order of william the conqueror. Find out how it was compiled, and what it reveals about life in. Domesday, which may be interpreted as the day of judgment, was a recognition that its evidence was subject to no appeal. Domesday book is the earliest, and by far the most famous, english public record. During the last years of his reign, king william the conqueror had his power threatened. Oct 10, 2018 the domesday book was never meant to be singular, it was originally two books, great domesday and little domesday. It is a detailed survey of a conquered land, namely england after the norman conquest of 1066.
For these three counties the full, unabbreviated return sent in to winchester by the commissioners is preserved in the second volume little domesday, which, for some reason, was never summarized and added to the larger volume. It has been cited as an example of digital obsolescence on account of the physical medium used for data storage. Whatever may have been the exact process by which domesday book was compiled, it remains an astonishing product of the conquerors administration, reflecting at once the problems with which he was faced, and the character of his rule. Dr roffe has proposed to eliminate this weakness by denying that the domesday inquest had anything to do with domesday book. William did not live long enough to see the benefit of the domesday book. Domesday book is a manuscript record of the great survey of much of england and parts of wales completed in 1086 by order of king william the conqueror. It was ordered by william the conqueror the winner of the recent battle of hastings so that william could determine how much money in taxes he could raise and to give william a better sense of the territory he had just conquered. Domesday is a corruption of doomsday the day of the final judgment. The world of domesday exhibition depicts life in 11th century england. The smaller volume, little domesday, is an example of an earlier stage in the writing up process by which great domesday, the larger volume, was produced. The greatest threats came from king canute iv of denmark. Mar 05, 2015 the domesday book is one of medieval englands greatest treasures. The domesday book, our earliest public record, is a unique survey of the value and ownership of lands and resources in late 11th century england. In the eleventh century, part of the taxes raised went into a fund.
The record was compiled in 10861087, a mere twenty years after the norman conquest, at the order of william the conqueror. Great domesday contains most of the counties of england and was written by one scribe and. The national archives is the home of domesday book, the oldest surviving public record. It was called domesday, the day of judgement, because like the day of judgement, its decisions are unalterable. As the basic unit of measurement, the manor was never defined in the domesday record. The latter was a longer version that did not make it into the final edition. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of. The great weakness of rounds view was that domesday book itself was in a feudal format illsuited to the purposes of the taxman. Domesday book was compiled by a team of inspectors acting for king william i in 1086, taking only months to gather the information. Domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. It is not known when exactly domesday book was compiled, but the entire copy of great domesday appears to have been copied out by one. Along with a string of castles throughout england, the domesday book was to give william huge authority in england. No other country in the world, at this point in history or for centuries afterwards, had been described as fully.
Writing in 2000, david roffe argued that the inquest survey and the construction of the book were two. The anglosaxon chronicle states then, at the midwinter 1085, was the king in gloucester with his council. Domesday is a most remarkable and valuable record, created in 10851086 by order of william the conqueror, so that he might fully know and understand the nation he ruled over. The domesday book great survey of much of england and parts of wales is one of englands greatest treasures of medieval times was a nationwide inventory of property landlords and property of the people, indispensable for taxes he planned to introduce. Each represents a different stage in the remarkable story of how domesday was compiled.
The set of questions that these officers asked of the town and county representatives constituted the inquisitio eliensis. Although the great domesday book was left incomplete, the draft of the remaining unabbreviated work the east anglian circuit remains as the little domesday book. The results of this survey were written into domesday book. Charlemagne frankish ruler who reunited western europe for the 1st time since the fall of the roman empire. Domesday book was compiled in ad 1086 for william the conqueror. So, the domesday book i saw in the public record office was an entirely new land register, quite separate from the inquest conducted by william the conqueror. It is our earliest public record, the foundation document of the. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Three officials each had a key to one of these locks, so that.