Stephen baxter, associate professor of medieval history at the university of oxford, has discovered some surprising facts about the depth, speed, and sophistication of the survey which led to the famous domesday and other texts, which formed a useful medieval database that is still examined by historians today. He argues quite convincingly that domesday book was more of a device enabling the king to exercise political control than a tax assessment. Most historians believe it is some sort of tax book for raising revenue. That is why we have called the book the book of judgment. In fact, baxter argues, it would have be rather difficult to use if it was the latter. Domesday book reveals the rise of a norman abramovich after. Apr 03, 2021 william the conqueror did not commission domesday book. Domesday book is at once one of medieval englands best known and most enigmatic. Compiled in a matter of months in 1086 at the behest of william the conqueror, domesday quickly established itself as document of immense legal importance. Prof baxter, who is a worldleading expert on domesday book, the survey of england carried out by william the conqueror in 1086, was on the programme to speak about his groundbreaking work on what is arguably englands most famous manuscript. Elements of this appear in his future histories especially later works like the destinys children series and flood ark, but here it is the focus. The threat of invasion and the strain on resources created by the need to billet a large mercenary army in england caused. Stephen baxter at the sciencefictiontage nrw in dortmund, germany, march 1997 a second category in baxter s work is based on readings in evolutionary biology and humananimal behaviour. He is clarendon professor of medieval history and barron fellow in medieval history at st peters college, oxford stephen.
He argues its real purpose was to confer revolutionary new powers on king william. If by william you mean william the conqueror, then the short answer is that it was no use at all. Prof stephen baxter on bbc radio 4 st peters college. But baxter reveals why domesday book couldnt have been used to collect taxes. Apr 17, 2014 joining melvyn bragg to discuss domesday book, the circumstances of its creation, the processes of the survey that supplied the information, its contents and its lasting impact, were three eminent scholars of the norman conquest. The study shows that the work of the medieval scribes was so efficient and sophisti study unveils just how scribes compiled the famous domesday book ancient worlds. Domesday book is at once one of medieval englands best known and most enigmatic documents. Original domesday survey major new study findings revealed. University of oxford a new interpretation of the survey behind domesday book the record of conquered england compiled on the orders of william the conqueror in 1086has emerged from a major new study of the surveys earliest surviving manuscript. Pase domesday, which is released today, links information from the. New insights from original domesday survey revealed techcodex. Domesday in a fascinating exploration of domesday book, medieval historian dr stephen baxter reveals the human and political drama that lies within the parchment of englands earliest surviving public record.
The conqueror s survey and its context oxford university press, forthcoming 2021. The second novel in a thrilling alternatehistory seriesfrom national bestselling author stephen baxter. When william was born in 102728, robert was count of hiesmois. Stephen baxter is a worldleading expert on domesday book. The conquerors survey and its context, which explores how and why king william is survey of england was made, drawing on a largescale collaborate study of exon, the earliest manuscript of the survey.
In a fascinating exploration of domesday book, medieval historian dr stephen baxter reveals the human and political drama that lies within the parchment of englands earliest surviving public record. The acta of william the conqueror, domesday book, the oath. Three centuries have passed since rome fell, as the. The written record of a census and survey of english landowners and their property made by order of william the conqueror in. Footnote 35 the making of domesday book, argues bates, is the ultimate monument to william s belief that he was a responsible ruler and to the attempts of lanfranc and others to shape him as one. Stephen baxter discusses the latest insights revealed by a new study of the 11thcentury survey of england professor stephen baxter discusses the latest insights revealed by a new study of domesday book, which suggests that william the conqueror s survey of england in the mid1080s was more efficient, complex, and sophisticated than previously thought. Stephen baxter pase domesday, which is released today, links information from the domesday survey 1086 to maps showing the location of estates throughout england. Jan 16, 2021 compiled on the orders of william the conqueror in 1086, the domesday book, today widely regarded as 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. William the conqueror, domesday quickly established itself as document of. Dr stephen baxter reveals the human and political drama that lies within the parchment of englands earliest surviving public record, the domesday book, commissioned in 1086. Exeters historic domesday manuscript sheds new light on devon.
Jan, 2021 the iconic domesday book is a 9pagelong tome that is the earliest public record in britain. In 1085, william the conqueror faced the greatest crisis of his life and reign. New research has cast light on how and why the iconic domesday book was created. The fourth major contribution to the domesday debate relevant to the argument below is that made by stephen baxter. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading conqueror times tapestry book 2. Stephen baxter with a replica of the domesday book at kings college london.
Domesday tonight dr stephen baxter shakes the dust off the domesday book to figure out why this great tome was commissioned by william the conqueror in 1085. Study unveils just how scribes compiled the famous. Yesterday afternoon, prof stephen baxter, barron fellow in medieval history at st peters, appeared on the bbc radio 4 programme, making history. Study unveils just how scribes compiled the famous domesday book. Armed with domesday book, king william could threaten to dispossess a. Stephen baxter, dr frank thorn and dr francisco alvarez lopez for sharing. Prof stephen baxter sheds new light on survey behind domesday book monday, 11 january 2021 a new interpretation of the survey behind domesday book the record of conquered england compiled on the orders of william the conqueror in 1086 has emerged from a major new study of the surveys earliest surviving manuscript. Visitors can find out who owned their town or village, create maps and tables of the estates held by the same lords elsewhere in england, and examine the scale of the. Elisabeth van houts, david bates and stephen baxter. Theres been a bbc documentary about the book this week, where dr stephen baxter. A new interpretation of the survey behind domesday book the record of conquered england compiled on the orders of william the conqueror in 1086. During the lifetimes of william the conqueror and his sons, royal officials described it using.
Stephen baxter is clarendon associate professor and barron fellow in medieval. The threat of invasion and the strain on resources created by the need to billet a large mercenary army in england caused him to commission the domesday inquest at christmas in 1085. Stephen baxter considers the big questions about this pivotal work. William the conqueror commissioned the survey that resulted in the famous. According to dr baxter, its real purpose was to confer revolutionary new powers on the monarchy in norman england. Melvyn bragg and his guests discuss the domesday book, a vast. Dr baxter, a medieval historian from kings college, london, has a different theory.
Aug 09, 2010 stephen baxter, a historian at kings college london, is one of the authors of a database, which goes live tomorrow, making it possible to trawl through figures from the domesday book and map the. Lewis, comment identifier les proprietaires fonciers du domesday book en angleterre et en normandie. Stephen baxter, who led the domesday part of the project, said. Stephen baxter, a historian at kings college london, is one of the authors of a database, which goes live tomorrow, making it possible to trawl through figures from the domesday book and map the. Rollos power was inherited first by william, nicknamed longsword d. The representation of lordship and land tenure in domesday book. Aug 10, 2010 the domesday book was collated between 1085 and 1086.
The domesday book definition of the domesday book by the. I also teach these courses to students at merton college, with whom st peters has an arrangement to share teaching provision. Prof stephen baxter, clarendon professor of medieval history and barron. Joining melvyn bragg to discuss domesday book, the circumstances of its creation, the processes of the survey that supplied the information, its contents and its lasting impact, were three eminent scholars of the norman conquest. Stephen baxter, associate professor of medieval history at the university of oxford, said. Bbc cambridge university connects communities with domesday. Sutherland the domesday book is closely related to william the conqueror or william the bastard, king of england and duke of normandy, ca.
New interpretation of the domesday book of william i the. The threat of invasion and the strain on resources created by the need to billet a large mercenary. The iconic domesday book was simply one of several outputs from the process. Pase domesday online database launches ahead of bbc two. William the conqueror and the normans life and times series by robin may. Prof stephen baxter sheds new light on survey behind. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. I am currently writing a book titled a making domesday. In this programme on the domesday book, dr stephen baxter, medieval historian at kings college, london, reveals the human and political drama that lies within the parchment of englands earliest surviving public record. Compiled on the orders of william the conqueror in 1086, the domesday book, today widely regarded as 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. Aug 10, 2010 dr stephen baxter, who presents the bbc domesday programme part of a series on the normans said it was the first time people would be able to generate maps showing the land owned by individuals. The earls of merciastephen baxter 20071206 focusing on the family of. The acta of william the conqueror, domesday book, the oath of.
It was called the domesday book because whatever it said was the law, and there was no appeal. The threat of invasion and the strain on resources created by. Most historians believe domesday is some kind of tax book for raising revenue. But baxter reveals why domesday book couldnt have been used to. Prof stephen baxter sheds new light on survey behind domesday. Professor stephen baxter discusses the latest insights revealed by a new. Oct 22, 2015 dr stephen baxter reveals the human and political drama that lies within the parchment of englands earliest surviving public record, the domesday book, commissioned in 1086. Stephen baxter is professor of medieval history at st peters college. Conqueror times tapestry book 2 kindle edition by baxter, stephen.
Stephen baxter reader in medieval history at kings college london elisabeth van houts honorary professor of medieval european history at the university of. Domesday tv with stephen baxter a corner of tenthcentury. Exeter cathedral librarys exon domesday is the earliest surviving domesday manuscript. He also finds out the real reason it was commissioned by william the conqueror in 1086. William the conqueror peoplecharacters librarything. The domesday book synonyms, the domesday book pronunciation, the domesday book translation, english dictionary definition of the domesday book. Domesday goes digital tomorrow, 920 years after it was compiled by an anonymous scribe, william the conqueror s epic audit of life in medieval times will become available. New insights from original domesday survey revealed. Domesday database launched online university of cambridge. William the conqueror and the battle of hastings pitkin guides by michael st. The iconic domesday book is a 9pagelong tome that is the earliest public record in britain.
William the conqueror did not commission domesday book. William the conqueror orders compilation of the domesday book. A new interpretation of the survey behind domesday book the record of conquered england compiled on the orders of william the conqueror in. Stephen baxter, associate professor of medieval history at th. His research has formed the basis of radio and television documentaries, including on the domesday survey bbc2. The iconic domesday book is a 9pagelong tome that is the earliest. The dvd also includes a very interesting pointofview documentary on domesday book by stephen baxter. Domesday book details made available in map form bbc news. Domesday book wikipedia, the free encyclopedia domesday. Dr stephen baxter, who presents the bbc domesday programme. He also finds out the real reason it was commissioned by william the conqueror. The site enables users to list, map and quantify the estates of all the landholders named in william the conqueror s great domesday survey of 1086 at the click of a button. The reasons forand processes behindits creation have been the subject of debate among historians for centuries. Twenty years after the battle of hastings, william the conqueror sent.
It is also the most remarkable portrait of england in thelate eleventh century. It was completed following a huge land and landholding survey that was commissioned by william i, aka william the conqueror, in 1085. The iconic domesday book was simply one of several important. Domesday book, and especially from the exon domesday manuscript newly. Domesday book, or, the great survey of england of william the. New insights from original domesday survey revealed nexus.
Domesday book, or, the great survey of england of william the conqueror a. New insights from original domesday survey revealed university of. It recorded the land, livestock, and taxable assets of all of england a remarkable achievement for the time. A new interpretation of the domesday survey, the famous survey of england taken on the orders of william the conqueror in 1086, has emerged from a major study of. Domesday book reveals the rise of a norman abramovich.
Study unveils just how scribes compiled the famous domesday. William needed information about the country he had. He was a great a man who dominated england in middle ages, but vast sums of money were needed to rule such enormous lands. Jan 11, 2021 professor stephen baxter discusses the latest insights revealed by a new study of domesday book, which suggests that william the conqueror s survey of england in the mid1080s was more efficient, complex, and sophisticated than previously thought.
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