=304. England Conquered Many Times.= England had been conquered by the
Romans, the Anglo-Saxons, and the Danes. Now she was conquered for the
last time. The people who defeated her were the Normans of France. We
have seen them come into France when the Normans scattered from their
native lands in the north of Europe.
After Alfred died several kings ruled in England. When Harold was
chosen king, the Duke of Normandy claimed the throne of England. He
made this claim on the ground that the former English king had promised
it to him. The Duke of Normandy has always been called William the
Conqueror. He was a stern man who knew how to rule and fight. To
establish his claim to the English throne he gathered together an
army, crossed the Channel, and landed at Senlac, near Hastings.
[Illustration: ST. CUTHBERT, A NORMAN CATHEDRAL]
=305. The Battle of Hastings (1066).= Harold had gathered his soldiers
to resist the Normans. They fought bravely, as any good soldiers do
when defending their native land. "All day long they stood stubbornly
together on a hilltop and beat back every attack with their swords and
axes." When Harold was wounded, his men still fought on. William of
Normandy now thought of a trick. He ordered his soldiers to pretend
to be beaten and to retreat. This they did. The English soldiers now
rushed forward to follow on their heels and cut down as many as they
could. What was their dismay to see the Normans turning around and
cutting down the English! When night came the English army was no more.
[Sidenote: =Character of the Normans=]
England had staked all and had lost. Most of the country gave up.
William was crowned king. He divided the land among his nobles, and
England, which was democratic under the Anglo-Saxon became aristocratic
under the rule of William. The Normans built the huge castles and
cathedrals that dot the face of England. From their castles they lorded
it over the Anglo-Saxon. But slowly this condition changed. After many
years Normans and Anglo-Saxons commenced to grow friendly and their
sons and daughters began to marry one another. The fusion of these
two classes made the English people a more hardy and daring race than
before.
[Illustration: A NORMAN CASTLE BUILT IN 1078, NOW PART OF THE TOWER OF
LONDON]
[Sidenote: =How the Anglo-Saxons conquered the Normans=]
The local institutions which had grown up under the Anglo-Saxons now
began to appear again. And in time the Normans may be said to have
been conquered by the Anglo-Saxons. The Anglo-Saxon way of doing
things belonged to the shire, the county, and the township. The
people were called together in the different districts and practiced
self-government.