The text of domesday book, the record of the great survey of england completed in 1086 executed for william i of england, was first edited by abraham farley in the 1770s. The story of domesday book domesday decade 108090, key to domesday entries, domesday life. The duchy of normandy was formed by the treaty of saintclairsurepte in 911 between king charles iii of the west franks and rollo also. 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. The normans who invaded and settled in normandy, the northwest region of modern france, in the 8th10th century were descendants of vikings from the northern countries of europe danish, norwegian, orkney. Awliscombe and some other places were subdivided into several individual holdings or manors, each held by a different person, so listed separately in the domesday book. Search by name, modern place name, domesday place name or folio. The bulk of the evidence for the settlement of the english in. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesdayi. 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.
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 book, our earliest public record, is a unique survey of the value and ownership of lands and resources in late 11th century england. The placenames found in the domesday book are township and estate names, and may include other villages and hamlets that receive no specific mention in. Virtually all of the place names decided on up to around the 14th century were due to the environment of the area. Sawyer, ma assistant in history in the university of edinburgh domesday book is important not only for historians but also for students of english place names. The population of the entire country was probably between 1. This gazetteer is intended to supplement the other volumes of the domesday geography of england by providing an index of placenames together with maps showing their location. We looked at names from king henry iiis fine rolls th century a couple of weeks ago, so now lets go back a bit further and look at names from the domesday book 11th century what is the domesday book. At the time of the domesday book, devonshire was still subdivided into the old anglosaxon hundreds. The domesday book was compiled on the orders of william the conquerer to catalogue the ownership and value of land in the newly conquered territories of england.
It was written in medieval latin, which was the form of latin used in roman catholic western europe at the time. When you hear something called the doomsday book you expect the mother of all of dystopia novels. Domesday book is a detailed survey and valuation of landed property in england at the end of the 11th century. Domesday book life in towns and villages the national archives. They are often mentioned more than once in different spellings, with the result that the number of entries in the index exceeds. This page simply records all owner names mentioned in domesday book. However, when you see the actual title and learn that the book is essentially a summary list of the towns and villages in 1086 england, well the domesday book maybe doesnt seem quite so kickass. The domesday book is closely linked with william the conquerors attempt to dominate medieval england. Many, for example colchester, lincoln and york, had their origins in roman britain.
Domesday book at midwinter in the year 1085 william the conqueror wore his crown at gloucester and there he had deep speech with his wise men. Domesday book is the earliest, and by far the most famous, english public record. The name domesday book, commonly applied from the 12th century ce, may derive from doom, the term for a customary law in anglosaxon england, or be a reference to the day of judgement, referred to in the bibles book of revelation, reminding that the records in domesday book were final and could not be disputed. The imprint of scandinavian settlement is evident in great domesday in the personal and place names and in the units of assessment. The great domesday book, which records 31 of these counties, ends abruptly at east anglia, perhaps due to the death of the king in 1087. 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.
Sep 24, 2004 domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. The domesday book provides extensive records of landholders, their tenants, the amount of. An index of personal and place names in domesday book woodbridge, 1997 k. 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. This was the age of the county history, with many accounts of the english shires being published at this time, and domesday book, as a property record of early date that happened to be arranged by county, was a major source for the medieval history of all the. Domesday book online the domesday book was commissioned in december 1085 by william the conqueror, who invaded england in 1066.
Female names in the domesday book nancys baby names. The domesday book online contents of the domesday book. The outcome of that speech was the mission throughout all england of barons, legates or justices. Click on a county name on the map to continue, or use the list of links below it. For example, doncaster would probably have originated as a roman fort on a hill, from the roman caster and celtic don. It is not surprising that so many scholars have felt. For example, great and little domesday provide an exceptionally important record of the danelaw counties of england because of archival losses sustained in the viking wars of the 9th century. About 90 per cent of places on the modern map of england south of the tees are recorded in domesday book. After the norman invasion and conquest of england in 1066, the domesday book was. A town mentioned in the oldest surviving book of records, a great piece of. Along with a string of castles throughout england, the domesday book was to give william huge authority in england. A reference guide to medieval england, covering the period between the beginning of the 6th century through to 1485, the beginning of the early modern period.
Domesday book online simple to use directory with interactive map of england in norman times commercial site with extracts from domesday book domesday book entries including translations for each settlement. Apr 06, 2012 these names are most numerous in the eastern half of the country, particularly yorkshire and lincolnshire. See more ideas about domesday book, william the conqueror and history. Now available in one volume, here is the complete, authoritative translation from the original latin, together with an index of places and a glossary of terms used. Note that the same name is not necessarily the same person. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesday i. In fact, more anglosaxon place names are recorded in domesday book than in all the anglosaxon documents put together. A number of towns were also omitted, notably london, winchester and bristol. Dec 21, 2018 consisting of 9 pages, and 2 million words, the book mentions more than,000 place names in england and some parts of wales. The record was compiled in 10861087, a mere twenty years after the norman conquest, at the order of william the conqueror. Of these towns, the two largest, london and winchester, were left out of the domesday book entirely. Consisting of 9 pages, and 2 million words, the book mentions more than,000 place names in england and some parts of wales.
Domesday book is inconsistent in its treatment of towns providing a very. However, when you see the actual title and learn that the book is essentially a summary list of the towns and villages in 1086 england, well the domesday book. Completed a mere seven months later, by 1 august 1086, the survey provided a detailed record of,418 settlements in england in thirtyfour counties. Scandinavian elements found in the domesday book english. There are some 418 towns and villages recorded in the domesday book, covering 40 of the old counties of england. I have transcribed all names exactly as they appear in my sources with one exception. The domesday book early englands most important document.
It is near the very end of the bible revelation chapter 20, verses 11. For a more detailed introduction to domesday, and england at the end of the 11th. I have replaced the medial s with a short s to make the lists more readable. Why do you think domesday book was named after the day of judgement. Awliscombe and some other places were subdivided into several individual holdings or manors, each held by a different person, so listed separately in the domesday. The domesday book is one of medieval englands greatest treasures.
May 09, 2017 the domesday book recorded 19,500 people and over,400 places, far more than in any previous document. Bishop william of thetford, english bishoparchbishop, 0, 106. Domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. Great domesday book is the incomplete, last draft of the information collected by the domesday survey, commissioned by william the conqueror at christmas 1085 and using a detailed list of questions to record who owned which estate.
It records who held the land and how it was used, and also includes information on how this had changed since the norman conquest in. The outcome of that speech was the mission throughout all england of barons, legates or justices charged with the duty of collecting from the. The modernised names of the places in the hundred of hemyock are. Domesday book gives the names of many places that are still around today. The majority of these still exist in some form today. Abraham farleys edition 17731783 domesday book was an item of great interest to the antiquarian movement of the 18th century. To see full names of counties hold your mouse over the name. A prosopography of persons occurring in english documents 10661166. Domesday book, the original record or summary of william is survey of england. The hundred of hemyock covered fifteen place names. It is the record of a survey which, according to the anglosaxon chronicle, william the conqueror ordered to be taken at christmas 1085. There were only 18 towns of over 2000 inhabitants in the domesday england of 1086. Domesday book is the most famous english public record, and it is probably the most remarkable statistical document in the history of europe.
Name, type, places owned before the conquest, places owned after the conquest. The placenames found in the domesday book are township and estate names, and may include other villages and hamlets that receive no specific mention in the text. It calls itself merely a descriptio and it acquired its name in the following century because its authority seemed comparable to that of the book by which one day all will be judged revelation 20. Aug 14, 2010 about 90 per cent of places on the modern map of england south of the tees are recorded in domesday book. Watermills were the most economically important machines in 11th.
Domesday book simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Domesday book encompasses two independent works in, originally, two physical volumes. Surnames mentioned in the domesday book british surnames. No surveys were made of the city of london, winchester, or some other towns, probably due to their taxexempt status. It was intended to document what, or how much, each man had, who was an occupier of land in england, either in. Little domesday covering norfolk, suffolk, and essex, and great domesday covering much of the remainder of england except for lands in the north that later became westmorland, cumberland, northumberland, and the county palatine of durham and parts of wales bordering, and included within.
The number of separate places named in the domesday book amounts to over,400. What can we learn about england in the 11th century. Domesday book place name forms all the original spellings of english place names in domesday book link to pdf file. The national archives learning curve focus on domesday. There is a passage in the bible that talks about what will happen on the day of judgement.
The domesday book was a survey, or census, commissioned by the norman conqueror king william i, of his newly conquered lands and possessions in england. The domesday book shows how cosmopolitan the population of lincoln was. It was intended to document what, or how much, each man had, who was an occupier of land in england, either in land or in stock, and how much money it were worth. Hemyock was the chief manor, or head of the hundred. An english translation of the latin text for most counties was published by victoria county history vch. It acquired the name domesday book because of the huge amount of.
On the economy and taxation, military service, other public obligations, administrative structures, government, legal customs and practice, placenames and personal names and many more miscellaneous topics, domesday book is the primary source for several centuries of english history. As expected, the domesday book shows us that the areas where there is a greater number of occurrences of scandinavian place names elements are those within the danelaw, and, in general, where scandinavian settlement was the strongest, during the 8th, 9th and 10th century. This is precisely where, as we know from other evidence, there was a substantial settlement of scandinavian immigrants. Domesday book the domesday book was a survey designed to record everything that people owned in england. This page simply lists all places mentioned in domesday book. The place names found in the domesday book are township and estate names, and may include other villages and hamlets that receive no specific mention in the text.
The first facsimile edition of the manuscripts was made in a project led by the cartographer henry james in the 1860s. Its a land survey, compiled in 1086, that covered much of england and parts of wales. After the norman invasion and conquest of england in 1066, the domesday book was commissioned in december 1085 by order of william the conqueror. Domesday book is the earliest, and by far the most famous, english public. Organizing a vast kingdom the greater domesday book was written, for the most part, by a single scribe with some additions and corrections made by others. Are there any saxon or norman place names in your area. In the 11th century, surnames were still in a state of flux and many people still did not have what we would consider a surname. Origins of place names virtually all of the place names decided on up to around the 14th century were due to the environment of the area. The survey was ordered by william the conqueror at christmas 1085 and undertaken the following year. Sawyer, ma assistant in history in the university of edinburgh domesday book is important not only for historians but also for students of english placenames. To further extend his grip on england, william i ordered that a.
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