The Domesday Book (AQA GCSE History)
Revision Note
Written by: James Ball
Reviewed by: Natasha Smith
Summary
There are several reasons why William decided to commission the Domesday Book in December 1085. It reinforced his authority as the ultimate judge of who owned the land in England. The information it contained was seen as final and inarguable and it gained its name from being compared to the Day of Judgement. It also had the benefit of increasing his income through more accurate taxation of his tenants-in-chief and gave him a better understanding of the number of knights available to him.
What was the Domesday Survey?
The Domesday book was a written survey of England that aimed to discover:
who owned land in England
if any land had multiple people claiming ownership
who lived in each area of land
how much the land was worth
the function of areas of land, for example, woodland or fields for growing crops
how much tax landowners needed to pay the king
To collect this information, the 34 shires in England were divided into seven areas known as circuits
Each circuit had 4 commissioners who inspected every manor and questioned its occupants
William commissioned the book in December 1085 and it took his commissioners less than a year to inspect 13,400 places
The significance of the Domesday Book on Norman Government
The Domesday book was significant in several ways including:
Military
Legal
Financial
Military
In 1085, there was a threat of another Viking invasion
The book gave William a much better idea of how many knights could be provided by his tenants-in-chief
Legal
The Domesday Book established in law that:
the Normans were the rightful owners of the land in England
all landownership was at the king’s discretion
The Domesday book also helped resolve the many land ownership disputes that had been caused by the Norman invasion
Financial
It led to William becoming wealthier
It enabled him to see who was not paying enough tax
It also identified opportunities to increase the amount of land directly held by the king through the deaths of a tenant-in-chief or by forfeit
Examiner Tips and Tricks
The origin of the Domesday Book’s name is not only interesting, but it also helps you to remember its use and purpose to William. Some religions, including Christianity, believe that God will sit in judgment on them on Doomsday - and that His judgement will be final. People saw the Domesday Book in much the same way when it came to taxes, land disputes and the number of men that a tenant-in-chief could provide for William’s army. The judgement of the book was final and could not be argued with.
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