The Norman Conquest (Marc Morris)

 

In The Norman Conquest, Marc Morris recounts, explains the background to, and shows the consequences of a seminal event in English history: the 1066 invasion of England by William the Conqueror of Normandy.  While the majority of the book focuses on Edward the Confessor, William and what happened in England immediately before and after 1066, Morris goes discusses events from the 990s to 1230s to give the work suitable context.  He discusses the powers vying for the English throne- the entrenched Anglo-Saxon nobility, the often-invading (and occasionally ruling) Vikings from Scandinavia (modern Norway, Denmark, and Sweden), and of course the Normans (from modern northern France).  We also get snippets of affairs on the continent which (indirectly) played a role- from Normandy's fights with adjacent kingdoms (Anjou, Flanders, France, Maine, etc.) to the Viking's internal power struggles in Scandinavia.  In short, we learn a lot about a lot of different peoples in northwest Europe at the turn of the first millennium.

A historian of antiquity faces two challenges:
1) the dearth of primary source material
2) the often-obvious bias of what little material exists
Morris does a masterful job in overcoming both.  He 'considers the source' at all times, looking at not only what was written, but who wrote it and what agenda they could have in so doing.  Where no primary sources on a given event exist, he scours other relevant material (land ownership, taxation records, etc) to reconstruct what might have happened.  And, to top it off, he weaves an interesting narrative out of his extensive research, remaining readable to the layperson yet valuable for the academic.  He does just about as good of a job as one could, looking so far into the past.

Any student of British history would find this book valuable.  The events of this time period are complex, no question- almost everyone's connected (through marriages or fealty), the balance of power is always shifting, and people change sides often in their ongoing attempts to gain power and wealth.  Marc Morris makes about as much sense of it all as can be made- and he does so in often succinct and elegant prose.  Among other things, I appreciated his ability to incorporate relevant background information on other areas (Normandy, Scandinavia, etc.) into the narrative without losing the overall story.  Highly recommended.

Rating: A