The Feudal System & Norman Government
The Feudal Hierarchy
After the Conquest, William imposed the feudal system on England. The core principle was simple: all land belonged to the king. William granted large estates to his most loyal followers, known as tenants-in-chief (about 200 men, including bishops and abbots). In return, they owed the king military service, loyalty, and financial contributions.
Tenants-in-chief then granted portions of their land to knights, who received enough land to support themselves and their families in return for fighting when called upon. A knight’s estate was known as a “knight’s fee” — the amount of land needed to equip and maintain one mounted warrior. Below the knights were peasants who worked the land, paying rent and providing labour service (typically two or three days per week on their lord’s fields). This created a clear chain of obligation running from the bottom to the top, with each level owing service to the one above.
The feudal system worked through homage (a public ceremony where a lord knelt and swore loyalty to his superior), knight service (providing a set number of armed knights, usually for 40 days per year), and forfeiture (land could be taken back if a lord broke his oath or rebelled). This gave William control over every level of society.
Landholding and the Nature of Feudalism
The feudal system transformed who held land in England. By 1086, the Domesday Book showed that only two major English landholders remained out of approximately 200 tenants-in-chief. Almost all land had been transferred from Anglo-Saxon to Norman hands. This was the most complete change of landownership in English history.
Homage: A formal ceremony where a vassal (lord or knight) knelt before his superior, placed his hands between his lord’s hands, and swore an oath of loyalty. This created a binding public agreement. Knight service: The obligation to provide armed and trained knights for military campaigns, typically 40 days per year. Tenants-in-chief had to supply specific quotas based on the size of their estates. Labour service: Peasants owed their lord a set number of days’ work on his fields each week, in addition to working their own strips. Forfeiture: If a lord broke his oath of loyalty or rebelled, the king could seize all his lands and redistribute them. This was William’s ultimate sanction and a powerful deterrent against disloyalty.
Changes to Government: Centralised Power
Norman government was more centralised than Anglo-Saxon government. William dramatically reduced the number of earls. Instead of the four great Anglo-Saxon earldoms (Wessex, Mercia, Northumbria, East Anglia), William kept power concentrated in his own hands and those of a small circle of trusted followers. He limited earls’ independence to prevent any single nobleman from becoming powerful enough to challenge him — having seen how the Godwin family had dominated Edward the Confessor.
When William was absent from England (he spent roughly half his reign in Normandy), he appointed regents to govern in his place. His most common regents were Odo of Bayeux and Archbishop Lanfranc. This system worked because William chose men who were loyal and capable, but it also created risks — a regent who abused power could cause resentment and rebellion, as Odo later proved.
William reduced the power of earls compared to Anglo-Saxon times. Anglo-Saxon earls like the Godwins had controlled entire regions with their own armies and revenues. Norman earls held land scattered across multiple counties, preventing them from building a local power base strong enough to challenge the king.
The Sheriff and the Royal Demesne
The sheriff became the most important local royal official under the Normans. Sheriffs administered each shire on the king’s behalf, collected taxes, presided over shire courts, and managed the royal demesne (the king’s own estates). William increasingly appointed Norman sheriffs to replace Anglo-Saxon ones, ensuring his agents controlled local government. The sheriff was effectively the king’s eyes and ears in each shire — he reported directly to the king and could override local lords if necessary. The royal demesne itself was extensive, providing William with direct income independent of his tenants-in-chief.
William introduced the concept of the royal forest — vast areas of land reserved for the king’s hunting. The New Forest in Hampshire was the most famous, created by William around 1079. Forest law was separate from ordinary law and extremely harsh: killing a deer could be punished by blinding or mutilation. Forests were not just woodland — they included farmland, villages, and open heath, all subject to the king’s exclusive hunting rights.
William took large areas into royal forest, and later kings extended them much further still. Forest law was deeply unpopular because it restricted grazing, woodcutting, and farming rights that Anglo-Saxons had previously enjoyed. It was a visible symbol of Norman oppression and royal power imposed on the landscape itself.