Medieval England

Medieval England (1066-1485)

The Norman Kings

1066 - William of Normandy invaded England and defeated the last Anglo-Saxon king at the Battle of Hastings.
William gave most of England to his followers. These powerful barons and their heirs came into conflict with England's kings for the next four centuries. Magna Carta (1215) was one of many agreements aimed at guaranteeing the nobles' rights against the crown

The Angevin/ Plantagenet kings to 1307

The Medieval Church was an important and powerful institution. The Church was not only wealthy and owned a great deal of land, but also it controlled almost all education and held unique moral authority.
English kings wanted to control the Church in their lands by having the last word in the appointment of Bishops - the local leaders of the Church. This led to controversy between Henry I and Anselm and - most famously - to the murder of Thomas Becket on Henry II's orders in 1170.

The Plantagenet kings to 1399

	England's problems were not only political. The population of England had been gradually increasing and more and more marginal land was brought into production. In 1348-49 one in three (or perhaps more) English were killed by the Black Death. The resulting labor shortages and attempts by landowners to enforce outdated rights provoked the Peasants' Revolt, 1381.
	During the 11th and 12th centuries, English kings controlled much of France, but Normandy was lost during the reign of King John. Edward III and Henry V regained much French territory, but all except Calais was lost by 1453.
	The institution of Parliament developed and grew in strength from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries, as it provided English kings with the money to wage the wars in France.

The Wars of the Roses

In the middle of the fifteenth century, there was serious political and sometimes military conflict between the supporters of two rival branches of the royal family, both of which had a claim to the English throne.

Both were descended from Edward III. The supporters of the Lancastrian line wore a red rose.

Their rivals, the Yorkists used the white rose as a symbol.

The Wars of the Roses marked one of the most unstable periods of English history, at least at the political center.