The domesday book is closely linked with william the conquerors attempt to dominate medieval england. The discs were mastered and produced by the philips laservision factory in blackburn, england. When the treasury moved to the palace of westminster, probably under king john, the book went with it. It contains the results of a huge survey of land and landholding commissioned by william i in 1085. William needed to raise taxes to pay for his army and so a survey was set in motion to assess the wealth and and assets of his subjects throughout the land. The anglosaxon chronicle states while spending the christmas time of 1085 in gloucester, william had deep speech with his counsellors and.
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 continue reading domesday book. After the norman invasion and conquest of england in 1066, the domesday book was commissioned in december 1085 by order of william the conqueror. Students learn the problems william faced, and then see some of the data that was collected, followed by a create a class domesday book activity, followed by a hands up did he solve his problems with the domesday book. Data and images for both discs were collected and organised by the bbc domesday project based in bilton house in west ealing where the premastering of data was carried out using a vax 11750 minicomputer along with a network of bbc micro computers.
This gives a clear indication of how badly the coastal area of sussex between pevensey bay and hastings was affected by the norman invasion. The domesday book is actually not one book but two. The results of the survey ordered by william the conqueror were collected into two volumes. Mar 05, 2015 the domesday book is one of medieval englands greatest treasures. The process of collecting the information to make domesday book was done in stages. The grand and comprehensive scale on which the domesday survey took place and the irreversible nature of the information collected led people to compare it to the last judgement, or doomsday, described in the bible, when the deeds of christians written in the book of life were to be placed before god for judgement. It was a gigantic survey of every town and village in england and described in detail which barons owned which tracts of land. When william was born in 102728, robert was count of hiesmois.
Learn more about out why and how domesday was created, and how to interpret it, in discover domesday. It is also the oldest public record to have survived through the ages. Along with a string of castles throughout england, the domesday book was to give william huge authority in england. These were then sent to the city of winchester and recorded in the final great domesday book. When all the information had been collected, the commissioners visited special sittings of the county courts to test the accuracy of the information provided. The first draft was completed in august 1086 and contained records for,418 settlements in the english counties south of the rivers ribble and tees the border with scotland at the time. Domesday book, the original record or summary of william is survey of england. 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.
The domesday books information was collected by surveyors going around door to door asking the people to answer the questions or be killed. After compiling the domesday book, william knew how many manors there were. Aug 10, 2010 domesday book is the product of an extraordinary survey of england commissioned by king william the conqueror in 1085. Domesday book is the oldest government record held in the national archives. The domesday book is now held in the national archives at kew. Domesday book simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror the domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth as the scribes went round england, they were protected.
When the information was collected it was sent to winchester where it was recorded in a book. The domesday book, known formally as the book of winchester, was a survey held in 1086 for the purpose of tax information. Aug 11, 2010 the domesday book was commissioned by william the conqueror. In fact there are two domesday books little domesday and great domesday, which together contain a great deal of information about england in the 11th century. Normanton is recorded as an existing settlement governed by the manor at wakefield. Domesday is by the far the most complete record of preindustrial society to survive anywhere in the world and provides a unique window on the medieval world. There are actually two separate domesday books, the little domesday and the great domesday book.
Domesday book provides a vast amount of information for those who want to build up a picture of life in england under the. Domesday book is a manuscript record of the great survey of much of england and parts of. This is why the domesday book took such a long time to. The country was split up into 7 regions, or circuits, with 3. The information collected was recorded by hand in two huge. About a hundred years after it was produced the book became.
The investigation was carried out by order of william the conqueror. Camp, my ancestors came with the conqueror london, 1990 this booklet not primarily concerned with domesday book examines evidence about the few men known to have fought on the norman side at hastings, and gives an index to several versions of the spurious battle. The domesday book compiled in 10856 is one of the few historical records whose name is familiar to most people in this country. There were 120 or so settlements in domesday book that can be categorized as in some sense urban. Great domesday book is the incomplete, last draft of the information collected by the domesday survey, commissioned by william the conqueror at. Feb 09, 2008 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 i of england. Winchester was the norman capital as it had been of the saxons, so the treasury was there at that time. 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. Domesday book was known as the book of winchester when it was housed in the royal treasury at winchester.
The national archives is the home of domesday book, the oldest surviving public. Find out how it was compiled, and what it reveals about life in. 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 definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Rollos power was inherited first by william, nicknamed longsword d. At christmas, 1085, whilst staying at goucester, william the conqueror decided to conduct a far ranging survey of his kingdom, its boroughs and manors, for tax purposes, becoming known as the domesday book, from the old english dom, meaning reckoning, due to the exacting and invasive nature of its questions, the survey was completed in 1086. 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.
Fifteen are called cities civitas, the remainder, either directly or by implication, boroughs burgus. The results were compiled into two books which are called the domesday book. Great domesday most of the counties, abridged, and little domesday the 3 counties missing from great domesday, in their unabridged form. Prior to the norman conquest its lords were cniht and godric, with william being recorded as the new lord, as with many yorkshire settlements. Frequently asked questions the domesday book online.
The domesday book online frequently asked questions. The domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth. Unlike the modern census records, the domesday book was designed not to count the numbers of the population. The domesday book is a great land survey from 1086, commissioned by william the conqueror to assess the extent of the land and resources being owned in england at the time, and the extent of the taxes he could raise. For sussex in particular, the domesday book contains some interesting information about the area around pevensey and hastings fifteen manors were attacked so badly that they were described as waste as in waste land by the men sent out to gather information for the domesday book. Burgus, representing oeburh, stronghold, had less specific connotations. The domesday book compiled in 10856 is one of the few historical records.
Focus on domesday the national archives learning curve. In mediaeval times the two volumes of domesday book were always kept at the treasury. Under the feudal system all manors had to provide taxes and soldiers to the king. Domesday book online the domesday book was commissioned in december 1085 by william the conqueror, who invaded england in 1066. Information was collected for seven large areas, or districts, in england. The first volume great domesday contains the final summarized record of all the counties surveyed except essex, norfolk, and suffolk.
They all felt that the data collected for the project would be as important and useful for future historians as the original domesday book is useful for historians of our time. The domesday book s information was collected by surveyors going around door to door asking the people to answer the questions or be killed. However, the information collected from the whole survey was retained and still exists today in 2 volumes. A page in the domesday book relating to westminster.
Domesday book facts, summary, composition, creation. Domesday book is the product of an extraordinary survey of england. When all the information had been collected, the commissioners visited. Domesday book info collected about entire kingdom through method of inquisitio. In 1086, king william i the conqueror wanted to find out about all the land in his new kingdom. Domesday book was preserved from the late 11th to the beginning of the th centuries in the royal treasury at winchester the norman kings capital. The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror the domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth. Domesday book covers all of england except the northern areas. It has been cited as an example of digital obsolescence on account of the physical medium used for data storage. The information collected was recorded by hand in two huge books, in the space of around a year. But an article published in 2002 in the british newspaper the observer revealed a very different reality. Produced at amazing speed in the years after the conquest, the domesday book provides a vivid picture of late 11thcentury england. Stage 1, all norman lords who had been given land by king william were.
Mar 25, 2020 the ancient babylonians, chinese, egyptians and romans all conducted censuses, as did william the conqueror, who in 1086 inscribed info about englands landowners into the socalled domesday. It was moved to westminster and then to the national archives at kew. Mar 14, 20 the domesday book is one of the most renowned, respected and revered public records ever to have been published. Links and bibliography for domesday book for source material on the internet, click here works useful to the genealogist. The survey was similar to a census by a government of today. The domesday book history of domesday book information about domesday book domesday book facts domesday book info middle ages era middle ages life middle ages times life english england famous medieval mideval midevil meadieval history and interesting information europe facts info era life times period important accomplishments accomplishment. Domesday book is a manuscript that collects the results of a large census carried out in england and in wales in 1086. Though invariably called domesday book, in the singular, it in fact consists of two volumes quite different from each other. The national archives is the home of domesday book, the oldest surviving public record.
Students learn the problems william faced, and then see some of the data that was collected, followed by a create a class do. Volume i great domesday contains the final summarized record of all the counties surveyed except essex, norfolk, and suffolk. Chichester, 19741992 the english translations for the great domesday counties, together with images of the latin text, are available in searchable form on cd, known as domesday explorer, published by phillimore and co. The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror. 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 information was handwritten in the latin language. Find out how to search for your town or village, and how to access images of domesday along with an english translation, using our research guide. The domesday book was a survey designed to record everything that people owned in england. The grand and comprehensive scale on which the domesday survey took place and the irreversible nature of the information collected led people to compare it to the last judgement, or doomsday, described in the bible, when the deeds of christians written in the book. The book of winchester was the domesday book compiled by officials of william the conqueror on his orders and published c1086.
William the conqueror landed in england in the year 1066, at the head of an army of frenchmen. To further extend his grip on england, william i ordered that a. What information does the domesday book contain answers. The procedure was thus strictly geographic, material being collected by. Domesday book definition of domesday book by merriamwebster. The information in the survey was collected by royal commissioners who were sent out around england. The phillimore translation the basis of this electronic edition of the text is the translation published by phillimore and edited by john morris 35 volumes, chichester, 197386, with the following modifications.
Domesday book provides a vast amount of information for those who want to build up a picture of life in england under the normans. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesdayi. Domesday book definition is a record of a survey of english lands and landholdings made by order of william the conqueror about 1086. 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. It is our earliest public record, the foundation document of the. It was often referred to as the book or roll of winchester. But the answers which the commissioners for east anglia collected were never copied into this book. How was the information in domesday book collected answers.