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The Norman Invasion of England, as shown on the Bayeux Tapestry.
Origins
Deriving their name from the early French word for “North Men” the Normans as they came to be known were comprised of the Christian descendants of Viking raiders who after generations of marauding were granted a large swathe of territory in the North of France by the French King Charles the II as a means of pacification. This area would come to be known as Terra Normanorum, “The Land of the Northmen” later Normandy. The Vikings would rapidly convert to Christianity and intermarry with the locals gradually eschewing the relics of their forefathers including their language as the Old Norse tongue began to fade away in favor of French. One important vestige of their Viking ancestors in which the Normans would retain would be their sheer martial prowess and their innate thirst for war and conquest. This they would have no issue fulfilling as Northern France proved to be a consistently unstable corner of Europe in which powerful and ambitious feudal Dukes and Lords often challenged the rather tenuous authority of the French Kings in Paris whom they were nominal vassals of. The Normans would regularly clash with their neighbors in Brittany, Maine, and Paris, honing their military capabilities and adopting the latest advances in tactics and technology. These serial conflicts with other French powers would likewise contribute to the Normans shaping their already unique cultural and political identity.
Conquest of England
It was not only impressive military capabilities that defined Norman success. The Normans proved enthusiastic in their recent conversions to Christianity currying great favor with the Church in Rome in addition to more local Bishoprics. Establishing such successful rapport with the Church would greatly benefit The Normans who demonstrated themselves to be ample opportunists taking advantage of instability and political fragility throughout Europe to further extend their influence and power. The most famous example of this is “William the Bastard’s” swift and brutal conquest of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of England for which he would earn the eternal epithet “William the Conquer.” William took advantage of a succession crisis following the death of the English King Edward the Confessor.
A claimant of the throne of England himself, being a distant relative of the English King, William denounced the recently crowned Harold Godwinson as a usurper and immediately mobilized a coalition of forces including men from Brittany and Flanders. While Harold successfully battled Harold Hardrada, a third contestant to the throne at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in the North of England, William bided his time waiting for the most opportune time to strike knowing Harold’s exhausted and rapidly dissipating army would have to march hundreds of miles south to confront this new threat. In short, William’s impressive tactical and strategic grasp of events would enable the Normans to prevail at the Battle of Hastings in which Harold and the bulk of the Anglo-Saxon nobility would fall thus paving the way for a rapid conquest of the remainder of England. Part and parcel to Norman victories would include their lethal application of cavalry in which Norman Knights sporting Hauberks or large chain mail cloaks charged in tight and cohesive formation with long lances and modern saddles thus enabling them to defeat often more numerous oppositional forces. The Normans would immediately consolidate such victories through rapid castle and fortification construction, mainly of the motte and bailey model which were primarily assembled of earth and timber later to be replaced with more solid stone foundations. These ad hoc forts would be quickly garrisoned and often within close distance to one another thus ensuring quick reinforcement capabilities and in addition to making powerful visual statements to the local populace with their intention of staying. William would follow up his victories with the notorious “Harrying of the North” in which the last remnants of opposition were brutally quelled by fire and sword.
Mediterranean and Holy Land
The conquest of England often overshadows other Norman conquests in the Mediterranean and Holy Land. Showcasing their typical aggressive energy, Norman Warlords such as the notorious Robert Guiscard descended on Italy then mostly controlled by the Byzantine Empire. Norman soldiers and adventurers would likewise prove invaluable as mercenaries fighting for squabbling local rulers earning deadly reputations in the process. The largest and likely most prosperous island in the Mediterranean Sicily, would soon find itself under Norman occupation. By 1131, a Norman Nobleman Roger II of Sicily would unite all Southern Italy, Sicily, Malta, and parts of North Africa creating the Kingdom of Sicily in which a multi-cultural mix of Normans, Arabs, Byzantines, and others flourished, developing a unique culture architecturally, religiously, and intellectually in which remnants can still be observed today in cities such as Palermo.
The Normans would yet again be at the forefront of one of the most successful expeditionary campaigns in the history of warfare, The First Crusade. With the intention of “liberating” the Holy Land from Islamic control, Christian Princes and Warlords from across Europe but mainly France banded together consolidating their forces to march across the continent and reconquer the sacred sites of the Bible under the banner of Christendom. Given decades of conquest, renowned Normans such as Bohemond of Taranto, an Italo-Norman and Robert Curthose, eldest son of William the Conqueror would be in the vanguard. The First Crusade proved successful beyond anyone’s wildest dreams or calculations. The Crusaders not only captured the Holy City of Jerusalem but also carved up Kingdoms and Duchies from Anatolia to Egypt. Norman resourcefulness and aggression proved to be an effective force multiplier for the outnumbered and meagerly supplied Christian coalition.
Conclusion
In many ways the Normans embody the spirit and ethos of the Medieval world. On one hand they were brutal conquerors who ruthlessly slaughtered unprovoked local populations as a means of consolidating their power and rule. However, The Normans at times would also display remarkable tolerance and flexibility over their subjects regardless of ethnicity or religion thus enabling for flourishing societies serving as sort of trendsetters for modern multi-ethnic cosmopolitan societies. Overtime the independent spirit and identity of the Normans would give way to the broader nationalistic identity of the two nations in which they were forever linked to England and France. The Normans may have lost their quasi-independent identity, but to this day the world can be reminded of their short-lived but eternal impact from the Tower of London to Jerusalem.
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Sources
Matthew, D. (1992). The Norman Kingdom of Sicily. Cambridge University Press
Renaud, J. (2008). ‘The Duchy of Normandy’ in Brink S. (ed), The Viking World (2008). United Kingdom: Routledge
Brownworth Lars. (2014) The Normans from Raiders to Kings. Crux Publishing